Disclaimer: I don't own Shaman King 'cause if I did there'd be a lot more romance in it and Marco would be dead.

Summery: RenXPirika Pirika is in love with Ren but she chickens out every time she tries to tell him.

Just Say It

"I love you, Ren," Pirika Usui told her mirror. "Why can't I ever say it to his face?" she sighed. She had done this almost every day for the past year or so, ever since she figured out that she didn't hate her brother's best friend at all. On the contrary she was completely head over heels in love with Ren Tao.

At first she thought it was just a shallow crush that would pass quickly. After six months of trying to convince herself that he was an arrogant self-centered bastard the feelings didn't go away so she decided to embrace them.

Then she had tried to tell him how she felt but it didn't work out so well. Every time she even came close to telling him how she felt she ended up choking and saying something else totally random.

She blushed remembering one particularly embarrassing incident. She had thought that this time she would surely be able to pluck up the courage to tell him but instead she ended up telling him that her brother had drunk his milk. He had gone off in a towering rage ready to kill her brother and she had ended up kicking herself for not telling him.

She sighed; she kept telling herself that reliving her past failures wouldn't help her current problem but she couldn't help it.

"Pirika! Breakfast!" Anna's commanding voice echoed up the stairs.

"Coming!" Pirika called back.

When she got to the kitchen her eyes immediately found his face. It was turned away from her talking to her brother.

"Morning Pirika," Horo-Horo said noticing his sister before his friend did. She smiled and nodded her eyes still on Ren. Horo-Horo noticed this but he didn't let on that he did. He would never let Pirika know that he knew how much she liked Ren.

"Good morning, Ren," she said cheerfully.

"Good morning," he said back stiffly. Her heart gave a pang of longing when she heard the way he said it. She wished he could at least show some sign of maybe a little bit of friendship between them.

She ate her food silently while everyone else chatted noisily and she kept looking at him when she thought no one was looking.

After the meal she was feeling brave so she followed him into the hall.

"Ren wait!" she called after him praying that her courage wouldn't fail her again. "I-I just w-wanted t-to tell you t-that I-I-I l-lo-like your shirt," she finished quickly once again hating her cowardice.

'Oh well another day another fruitless attempt to tell him how I feel,' she thought as she sulked up the stairs.

Had she looked back at him she would have seen the sad longing look on his face that expressed his deep feelings for her. Feelings he had been trying to express since the day he met her.

"Oh well tomorrow is another day," he whispered to himself his eyes following her up the stairs.

'But it doesn't have to be,' something inside him said convincingly.

"I love you!" he yelled after her. She froze hardly daring to believe her ears. He noticed her hesitation and it made his heart lurch. Then she turned around smiling brightly before running down the stairs into his arms. She kissed him passionately and it was such a relief for both of them.

"I love you too," she whispered before he kissed her again.

Just then everyone came into the hall to see the two of them making out. "Finally," someone murmured.

Mai: Ok you have no idea how long it took me to get this out. I wrote this in like July but I never got around to editing it and typing it up. So I hope you enjoyed it and please review!