The first month of classes are gruelling - Akitsuki is a pretty tough hero academy, that's why it has such a reputation! - and you wind up spending less time with Mai due to distractions on both your parts. She's talking to Togo-sensei a lot, and occasionally seems on the verge of telling you something before changing her mind. You can wait! You're not going to pressure your friend, not when she's already under so much pressure with class and her need to confess to her love.

Apparently her love also wound up going to Akitsuki Hero Academy, which is really lucky! You don't recognize any of the other students from your old school, but maybe you just missed one? Or maybe the guy she likes went to a different school. She keeps talking about the guy, but whenever you ask if she's made a move yet, it goes like this:

"Have you made a move yet?" You'll ask.

"Oh, well... I mean... I suggested very seriously I was interested in them."

"That doesn't sound like you made a move!"

"What, so you think I should say something like..." she'll turn to you, "I really like you. Would you go out with me?"

"Perfect!" It's elegant in its simplicity! "Just tell it to the guy you're interested in that, and he'll swoon, no doubt!"

Then she'll slam her head against the wall and groan. Probably because of how pitiful she feels, that she can only say that to you, and not the guy you're interested in. You guess it must be really hard for her to confess her love... that must suck. Fortunately, you don't have any such problems!

Anyway, on the 34th day of the semester, after the classes end for that day, Akitsuki Hero Academy has a career festival type thing, with alumni coming by to talk to the next generation of heroes. By an amazing stroke of luck, Ten Man will be there! You already know where his booth is. It's circled on your map and then there's a bunch of red arrows pointing to it and little hearts surrounding it, so it's impossible for you not to know! It does make reading the map pretty hard though, you probably overdid it.

You wait patiently in line (behind two other students, as Ten Man's popularity has not yet reached its apex) - you doubt Ten Man would like a woman who just cuts in line. That's not very heroic, after all! It's a violation of all the norms and standards he's sworn to protect!

"Ten Man," you gush, as you come to the head of the queue. He frowns a little as he sees you. He remembers you! "A~h," you sigh, in radiant pleasure at just being near the object of your affection, the pinnacle male specimen that is Ten Man! Oh you'd forgotten what it was like, to be so close to such a perfect figure!

He coughs. "Did you have any questions?"

"Could you autograph my bra!" You spit out, then blush as you realize that you don't have your bra in your hand. It's on your tits... you probably shouldn't take off your shirt... "I mean," you stumble. "I'm such a huge fan of yours. Could I have your autograph?"

"Of course," he says. Oh, he's so magnanimous! A lesser man might have given you the brush off for that, but he's understanding!

He looks at you for a couple seconds, and you realize you haven't given him anything to sign. You hurriedly reach for the first piece of paper you can, which is the map of the festival, and you blush in embarrassment as you realize he can definitely see all the markings around his booth. He just smiles good naturedly and signs a big TEN MAN underneath it. You practically swoon. "Thank you so much," you breathe out. "I'm such an enormous fan of yours, you inspired me to be a heroine, and could we possibly maybe talk more alone later maybe please please please?" You blabber out at high speed.

"I uh, didn't quite catch that, but there are other people behind you," he says, politely. "No need to hold them up."

You glance behind you, and there's one weedy little girl with big glasses. Ah, dammit! Ten Man is too nice. "I'll see you later!" You say, sincerity in your voice as you half-sprint a way, your heart pounding like a freight train in your chest. You breathe heavily, leaning against one wall, and Mai steps up to you.

"Ganko," she says, softly. "There's something I need to tell you."

"I just talked to Ten Man and got his autograph and he was nice to me," you say. Mai's expression looks mortified. "I'm sure you can get that guy you like to be nice to you, too! You just need to be assertive," you say, taking her hand in yours and squeezing it. "You're a real catch, don't worry!"

Mai blushes, sputtering a little before she speaks again. "A-ah. Ahem." She coughs. "I need to tell you this, so there can't be any ambiguity." You nod. "I like you, Ganko."

"I like you too! You're a great friend!"

"No, Ganko," she says, squirming a little as she says it. "I mean. I like you." You nod along, not really understanding her. "I mean. I want to kiss you."

"I guess we could practice kissing, if you're worried about your future boyfriend not being satisfied because you're a kissless girl," you say, uncertain why she feels like she needs to kiss you. "Does he not like pure girls?"

"No! I mean, that's not the issue!" Mai says, her cheeks red, her expression like steam was about to start coming out of her ears. "Don't you get it?"

"No?"

"I like you and want to kiss you and spend time with you!"

"We spend time together all the time," you say.

She begins to do this sort of half-laugh, half-cry thing. "Why me?" She whimpers out, before taking her hand out of yours and rushing off.

Weird. Well, you'll give her a hug when you get back to your dorms, she always likes that. You glance over towards Ten Man's booth, since Mai was distracting you... and see that Ten Man is no longer there! The perfect opportunity to talk to him without a line forming behind you and forcing him to regrettably abandon your very productive line of seduction!

You see him talking to Togo-sensei! She's smiling sweetly as the two of them talk about something. You can't make out the words from this distance, with this crowd. She couldn't be swooping in on him, could she? No! Togo-sensei is completely out of her league with somebody as great as Ten Man! She just teaches gym, he's a real hero!

You slowly stalk forward, pretending to read your map as you get close to the two. "...don't fraternize with students," you catch, from Mayumi. It sounds like affected professionalism.

"Yeah, yeah," Ten Man responds, with amiable camaraderie. "But unofficially?"

"I have my eyes on one in particular. She's got a crush on a definitely arrow-straight girl. It'll be so nice to comfort her after she inevitably gets rejected. Poor thing."

"You ever worry about getting caught or something?"

"Not really, no."

Your little circuit thing can't really reasonably keep you in earshot of the two any longer! You're going to have to go in now if you want to non-suspiciously take your chance to talk to Ten Man for the first time in the better part of a year!

You breathe in and out, calming and centering yourself, slowly folding up your map into your pants. Then you turn to face Mayumi and Ten Man. You confidently stride up to the two, taking a deep breath before speaking, and-

"Oh, hello, Kimura-san," Mayumi says, knocking you out of your stride. "Funny you should show up now, we were just talking about you."

"No you weren't!" You counter, too quickly. Ah, no! Dammit, you revealed you were listening in! No, focus, Ganko! They might not put it together if you plow ahead. "Anyway! Ten Man!" You say, turning to your true love. Mayumi seems to pause to let you speak. "You're an inspiration to me!"

"Well. Thanks, I suppose," Ten Man says.

"You made me want to be a heroine! In fact, when I get into a mentoring program, I'd like to be your sidekick, please, sir! I'd do everything I can to satisfy you in any way you wish!"

Mayumi gives a little snort. "I see."

"What do you see?" Ten Man asks, worry in his voice.

"Oh, no, no, don't worry," Mayumi says, with a big smile that says she's in on a joke you're not.

"Tell him what you see, Togo-sensei!" You say, wheeling on your teacher. Your beloved wants to know what she's talking about, so you'll get it!

"Oh, it's just, you know," Mayumi says with a slow, languid gaze running up and down your body. "You're such a beautiful young woman. Is all you want to be Ten Man's sidekick? Nothing more?"

You blush. How can this woman see through you so easily?! Did Mai tell her about you? But why would she, she was looking for advice for her love target. Maybe it came up in passing, because she's jealous of how focused you are on your love target? No! You need to focus on Ten Man, not Togo-sensei! "I do want to be more than just your sidekick. You're so amazing and handsome and heroic and I think you're the best man in the world for me, and I'd do anything for you, so please please accept my unending boundless love!"

"Ah, a little, ahm, early for that, don't you think?" He says, nervously, glancing between you and Togo-sensei.

"I mean, we could go on dates first, so you could get to know me better, but whenever you want me, however you want me, I'm ready to satisfy your every need!" You pause, taking in a few quick breaths, wanting to calm down. "Not that I'm pushy! I'm just saying, don't hesitate on my account! If you want to hesitate because you're a believer in traditional romance, that's really sweet and admirable and I wouldn't dare try to stop you!"

"Uh," Ten Man stumbles. He's not saying no, that's a good sign! "Well. You know." He coughs loudly. "Mayumi, want to help an old friend out?"

Mayumi gives a little chuckle. "I'm enjoying this too much for that," she says, with a wicked smile.

"You should help him out, by giving him good advice, that he should date me! I'm an amazing student, aren't I?"

"You're definitely very dedicated," Mayumi admits. "I don't know how much that translates to marital suitability, though. How is Mai, by the way?"

"She ran off crying for some weird reason, but I couldn't pass up this opportunity to meet Ten Man!" Damn, when you're in front of Ten Man, you just can't stop yourself from saying whatever the first thing that comes to mind is. You just want to be honest and not deceive him, because you love him so much! "She'll be fine, though, don't worry! She cries a lot, for no clear reason. I think it's because of her love target!"

Mayumi guffaws loudly at that. Even Ten Man looks confused - good, so it's not just something you missed. "Mm, come on, Ten Man," she teases, "don't you want such a sweet, innocent girl to climb into bed with you?" She gives Ten Man a wink. She's on your side, good! Any suspicions you had about her instantly evaporate like water on a hot stove!

"It's not that I don't appreciate the thought," Ten Man explains, "but, you know..." He jerks his head in a direction. Towards further down the path? Nothing and no one in particular stands out. What does Togo-sensei know? "I'm not looking right now."

"I can wait!" You sputter out, hurriedly. "I can wait as long as I have to, Ten Man! I don't want you to feel like you have to accept my love right this moment, I can be as patient as I need to be."

"This is sad to watch," Mayumi says, and Ten Man gives her a look. "Just break her heart already."

"Come on, Mayumi," he says.

"Yeah, come on, Togo-sensei! Don't encourage him to break my heart! Especially not when, like you just said, I'm sweet and innocent, and a dedicated student! Excellent marriage material!"

Mayumi doesn't seem to even process your words. "She's not going to get it unless you're clear, and she's not going to leave unless you tell her to."

"That's not true! I'll leave whenever security tells me to, or when the festival ends, or other conditions other than Ten Man's command!"

Mayumi just looks at Ten Man, who sighs and turns his gaze back to you. "Look..." he pauses.

"Ganko-chan!" You offer.

"Right. Ganko-san," he says. So polite! Even though you told him to call you -chan, he called you -san anyway. What a gentleman! "Ganko-san, I was having a very nice conversation with Mayumi, and you sort of interrupted, so could you leave?"

"Anything for you, my love!" You say, before stepping backward. "It was wonderful to talk to you! Love you! Bye!" You keep walking backwards until you stumble into a short, horned and red-eyed man who you think is a teacher at the school. He gives you a look that could curdle milk and melt steel, so you start walking in the proper direction as you leave the festival.

You should find Mai! Now that talking to Ten Man is handled, you can go comfort her crying butt. She really does cry too damn much! You'd think she was a waterfall, with how much she weeps. You really hope that whatever guy she's going after likes the crybaby type of girl, or she might be in big trouble.

Mai turns out to have headed back to the dorm room, so finding her isn't too much trouble. She's sniffling and wiping at her nose with tissues, her black hair let loose to hang around her back. She shies away a little when you arrive, like she's embarrassed to be crying in front of you. "Ah, hm, hic, sorry, Ganko," she mumbles.

"Don't apologize!" You say, squatting down in front of her where she sits on the edge of the bed. "Now, why are you crying?"

Mai gives a strangled laugh. "You were right there."

"Well, yes, but you just started crying for no reason. I was saying..." you pause, thinking back. Ah, that was before you had your first real conversation with your beloved Ten Man, so it feels like a lifetime ago, even though it couldn't have been more than an hour or so. "I was saying that we hang out all the time. Do you feel like we don't hang out enough?" You ask, uncertainly.

Mai hesitates, then nods a bit. "Something like that."

"Maybe it's because you don't have any other friends! Maybe you should hang out with that guy you like more." Mai gives a strangled laugh. "Oh, come on, don't be such a scaredy cat. Do you think guys like that?"

She wriggles uncomfortably on the bed. "I confessed to the person I like," she explains. Aha! That's why she was so easily set off. "I don't think they understood my meaning, though..." she admits, mumbling. "But I don't think they'd accept it if they did."

"Why not?" You ask, confused.

"...they like somebody else," she admits.

"That's no obstacle! You can just be a mistress!" Mai lets out a little laugh at that. "Come on, lots of women are mistresses! There's nothing wrong with it."

"I'm not really that person's type, either," she adds.

"Now, you can't know that. Sometimes people like somebody who's not their type, you know." Mai nods in admission of the correctness of your point. "You know, with how you fumble around this guy, sometimes I think you're failing on purpose! It just seems kind of ridiculous to me."

Mai gives another little laugh, blowing her nose. "You're probably right." She pauses, uncertainly. "Do you have any advice for me?"

Mai wants love advice, from you? You'll give her the best love advice she could ask for!

"You need to make an over the top show of your love!" You tell her. It's hard, but sometimes love is tough! "If this guy is as oblivious as you think, or your approach is actually too oblique for him to get, you need to leave something with no room for error or confusion. Something personal, intimate, and targeted, which leaves him with no question in his mind: this is Mai Owada telling her love that she wants him, physically, emotionally, and erotically. Do you think Ten Man doesn't know I like him?"

"...no," Mai mumbles, her voice quiet.

"So why are you letting this guy walk around, oblivious to your love? Tell him, Mai. Demand he see your love! Tell him! If he still rejects you, then he wasn't the one."

Mai swallows, her lower lip trembling a little. After a few seconds of silence, she moves slowly towards you, in a cautious, uncertain way. She takes hold of your cheek, her fingers trembling a little bit. Then she leans forward, and kisses you, softly, on the lips, her own having a curious blackberry taste to them. A soft exhalation leaves her mouth as she pulls back, and she stares directly into your eyes. "W-well?" She manages, nervously.

"That was great," you respond, with a smile. Her expression brightens, joyous and sunny. "Just do that to this guy, and you'll nail it!" For some reason, her expression suddenly falls, a miserable look on her face. "Don't worry about being an inexperienced kisser, that just means he gets to teach you." You waggle your fingers at her seductively. "Guys like that." Mai mumbles, still looking miserable. "Okay, okay. If the guy really hates pure girls that much, you can practice with me."

Her expression brightens up, a smile on her lips. Then she seems to fully process what you said. "Practice?" She winces. "I... I guess I'll take it."

She leans forward, her lips soft against yours again, touching nervously at you, her hands on your thighs. It's so intimate for just a practice kiss, but you suppose she really wants to get it down for her guy! She's finally taking real, concrete steps! That guy should count himself lucky to have such a great girl.

She pulls away, her cheeks pink. "C-can we practice other things?"

"Like what?" You ask, confused.

"Um... cuddling... going on dates..." she averts her gaze, and she says something quietly to herself that you just manage to pick up. "...I'm terrible..."

"You're not terrible!" You say, taking her hands in yours. "This is just preparing yourself for your love. It's not like it's cheating. It's just teen girls doing what teen girls do! It's perfectly normal!" She gives you a nervous guilty look, so you kiss her again. If you kiss her, then she can't feel guilty, because she didn't do anything. That's just common sense! She tentatively kisses you back, her breath softly teasing your teeth. She doesn't even know to use her tongue. Oh, is that why she listed her long tongue? No, wait, if that was why, she would be using it better. You pull away. "You should use tongue," you suggest. "There's lots of sensitive spots inside a guy's mouth."

"A-ah," Mai says, pinks flush, nodding.

You practice kissing for a good long while longer. She asks if she can sleep with you, so you trundle her under the blankets and cuddle. Man, that guy sure is making a lot of work for you! He should appreciate all the effort Mai's putting into things.