It was Friday morning, and Daisuke was at home preparing for the dance. Rummaging in his closet for his school uniform, he wondered how the dance would turn out. It felt like it was only 5 minutes ago that Riku had turned him down. The scene replayed in his head over and over again, like a broken DVD.
"She probably would have rather went with Dark anyways. He's so much more funand outgoingthan I am."
He sighed. Thinking like this wouldn't help. Daisuke pulled his shirt on, looked at his reflection in the mirror. He saw a short, skinny kid with messy red hair staring back at him with worried eyes. Grabbing his jacket, he ran down the stairs to catch the early bus.
"He's a lot better looking too."
"Morning, Daisuke." Said a familiar but comforting voice behind him.
"Satoshi! Don't scare me like that!-"
"Yeah, the little girl's gonna start crying!" Takeshi teased, cutting him off.
"Little girl? Crying? Shut up, Saehara." Daisuke laughed. "I wouldn't be talking. I remember the time in gym when you got beaten by a gir-"
Satoshi roared with laughter. "I remember that. Then he didn't stop crying for hours!"
"You two! I'm so gonna kill you!" He punched both their arms, hard.
"Hey!" Satoshi and Daisuke cried out in unison, and the trio started laughing.
Someone behind them sighed loudly.
"Oh, boys. They never grow up, eh Riku?"
The three boys wheeled around and found them facing the Harada twins. Daisuke blushed, Satoshi gave them a blank stare, and Takeshi smirked and said, "Yep, what fun is growing up like girls? All they do is put on makeup and chase around boys."
Risa laughed, and backfired, "Yeah, and all boys ever do is act stupid, just like you. With the exception of some mature ones. Anyways, the teacher told me to find you two." She looked at Satoshi and Takeshi. "Oh and Daisuke," there was a gleam in her eye, "Riku needs to talk to you."
The two looked curiously at Daisuke. He nodded, and said, "Go ahead. I'll see you later." Daisuke gave them a genuine smile, and waved them off. He watched as Risa, Satoshi and Takeshi left, and turned to Riku. The hallway was empty, and they were the only ones in it.
Silence. Then-
"Um. Hi." Riku mumbled, looking at her feet.
"Hey." He shoved his hands into his pockets, and stared at the top of her head.
"Daisuke? I just wanted to ask you. Are you... Do You... Hate me?"
"What? What are you talking about? Why would I... ah... hate you?" He asked her, with a innocent and sincere tone.
"Oh. Nothing. I was just wondering. Because... You haven't been talking to me ever since I... um, turned you down." Riku said, still staring at the floor and mumbling.
"Oh. That." Daisuke replied, with a slightly darker tone, but then lightened up. "Listen, I'm fine. I ah... have to go. I'll see you later."
Riku panicked, and stepped forward. "No! Daisuke! Wait! I... I wanted to go to the dance with you!" She shouted. "I really did." She whispered, almost so quietly that even she almost couldn't hear herself.
Daisuke stopped, and turned around to look at her. "You.. did? With me?"
Riku nodded. "I was waiting for you to ask me. But you never did, and I never thought you would, so Dark asked me right before you did."
He stared at her. "I never thought I would either," He mumbled, then smiled. "I guess I'm a little too slow, huh? I'll make it to you first next time. Have a good dance. See you." He gave her a friendly pat on the shoulder, and jogged down the hall around the corner.
Riku stared after him, feeling considerably lighter in her chest. "I guess this'll work out after all."
It was time for the dance. Daisuke met Ritsuko in front of their classroom, where her group of friends stood, watching and giggling. He blushed, and mumbled, "Let's go" to her. Ritsuko giggled too, as she left, and her friends waved and mouthed, "Good luck!".
They walked down the hall and to the gym, where they met up with Satoshi and Risa. The two girls immediately started talking and laughing.
Satoshi looked at Daisuke, and patted him on the shoulder. "Try and have fun, for a change. It's only this time." He smiled. Daisuke returned a weak and sad smile, and the group headed into the gymnasium.
The music was blaring, and people were already dancing. Daisuke scanned the crowd. No sign of Riku and Dark.
"Daisuke! Come on, let's dance!" Ritsuko grabbed his wrist, and they danced to a fast song.
Two fast songshad played already, and there still wasn't a slow one played yet. Daisuke thought of it as pure luck. At least it would put Dark off from slow-dancing with Riku- for now. But what if he did? Would Riku start to like Dark more? Daisuke shook his head to get the thought out of his mind.
"Ah.. Ritsuko? I'm gonna go get a drink... I'll be back in a few minutes or so."
"Ok Daisuke! See you!" Ritsuko replied, and kept dancing.
"Good, she too distracted to notice if I'm gone for a while... I hope." Daisuke thought, and started off in the direction of the water fountain.
Someone behind them put a firm hand onto his shoulder. "Good luck, get her before Dark does." Satoshi said, with an innocent but encouraging smile.
Daisuke returned the smile, nodded, and set off. He scanned the crowd. They could be anywhere... A flash of short red hair caught his eye. It was Riku, and beside her was Dark. They were having a good time, as they were both laughing and smiling, dancing to the upbeat music. Daisuke stood watching them, but neither noticed him.
Finally, the song ended. Dark and Riku were laughing, again. Cautiously, Daisuke walked around Dark, avoiding him, but making sure Riku could see him. He looked around innocently, as if he were looking for someone. Behind him, he could almost feel her staring at him.
"Hey, Dark? I'm gonna... go get a drink." Riku said. She looked around. "Look, there's Krad! I'll be back in a few minutes." She pointed at a group of girls where Krad was standing in the middle. He looked as if he was enjoying the attention.
"Oh. You sure you don't want to dance to one more?..." He looked at her suspiciously, then said, "Sure. See you later." Dark smiled, and headed over to Krad. The girls squealed as they saw Dark headed in their direction, but Krad looked fairly annoyed.
"Time to get moving." Daisuke's instincts told him, as he set off in a swift walk into the crowd. "If I'm lucky, she should be following me..."
Sure enough, there was a tug on his sleeve. He wheeled around. Something all too familiar happened. Daisuke had turned around so fast, that Riku was too unprepared to let go. She fell forwards, and Daisuke caught her by her arms just in time, before she managed to knock him over. He put her back upright and released her. Daisuke grinned, and noticed that she was blushing a deep shade of red, even though it was fairly dark.
"I thought you would have learned not to pull on my arm again." He laughed. "There's no knowing how fast I turn..."
"That cute smile again... It's been a while since he smiled at me like that." Riku thought, as she stared at him. "Stop staring, Riku! Say something back, you look like an idiot!" She took a deep breath, and retorted, "I-it's n-not my fault you decide to play whip with me every time!" She stammered.
Daisuke stared at her for a moment, and started to laugh again.
"Wh-What's so funny all the time? What are you always laughing about?" Riku demanded, still very red in the face.
Looking at her one more time, he grabbed her hand and led her out of the gymnasium.
The halls were quiet and deserted. The only sound was the echo of their footsteps, which were slow and soft. Daisuke slowed to a stop. They were both still holding hands.
"Riku, can I ask you something? Do you... Like Dark? Not the friend kind... You know, the other kind?" Daisuke blurted, not being able to hold it in any longer.
"What? Why? And why so sudden?" Riku replied, with a tone of shock in her voice.
He turned away and nudged the ground with his foot. He didn't want her to see how hard he was blushing, just for asking that question. "N-nothing. I just.. I was… I was just... I was just wondering." He stammered, still not facing Riku.
Silence. Daisuke could feel her staring at his back. She opened her mouth once, and closed it, deciding what she should say. Finallly, she spoke.
"Dark... Is a really nice person. Once you get to know him well, he's different. He might seem like a really loud-mouthed jerk, and sometimes he can, but he's actually not." She paused to watch Daisuke again, and continued. "And you, Daisuke…"
He turned around to look at her.
"You're just as nice as Dark, even more so. You're not nearly as loud-mouthed as he his. And... I like how you smile." She blushed, and took a deep breath. "The truth is, I..."
Cliffhangers!
Sorry for taking so long! My internet was down for a long time. I hate the internet connection at this house. The lines suck, because it's a new development.
Anyways, I think this chapter is too... fluffy and corny. Not to mention it had a slow start. And stupid and silly too, since Takeshi decided to jump in.
I might also take a while with the next chapter, since there are exams coming up right after Christmas holidays. Stupid exams.. Haha, I shouldn't so negative. Instead, I should say...
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
Keep reading!