"Daarliing!"

Hiro turns slowly to find Zero Two running towards him, a bright twinkle evident in her teal colored eyes as her lips contorted into a toothy grin. Her pink locks trailed as she strode with her long legs, and he could see she was wearing her red muffler even during the hot weather, something he had gotten used to after spending so much time with the pinkette. Her most glaring feature, however, were the two bony protrusions sitting just above her hairline- its red color seemingly reflecting the sun's rays.

To most people, they grew wary of the girl and her 'horns', but to her friends, they knew of her real condition and came to accept who she was, not for her looks but rather, for her personality. For Hiro, every part of Zero Two, from her eyes to her horns, he came to love and cherish. 'After all, she came to accept me, weaknesses and flaws included.'

It might've been a bit late realizing such, but Hiro was now 100 % sure of his deep feelings for the pinkette, and that alone was now his reason to keep on with his life.

"Mornin', Zero Two." his lips curve into a smile when he feels her hand grab onto his. She was slightly taller than him, but it was a wonder how small her hand was compared to his. Feeling a bit more bold, Hiro proceeds to lace their fingers tightly, heart skipping a beat when Zero Two smiles fondly at the gesture.

"Shall we go, darling?"

She feels warm

"Mhm."

"OI OI OI" As usual, Zorome's voice breaks the room's peaceful morning, earning the young man dirty looks from his classmates, especially from a certain redhead. "It's only 7am and ya'll really have the guts to act all lovey dovey and crap?" The dirty blonde continues with a disgusted expression as he points a single finger at both Hiro and Zero Two. Blushing, the raven teen tries sputtering out an explanation while his partner has a small, smug smirk.

"Um..this is..uh.." Hiro couldn't help but lift a finger to his face, cheeks growing hotter by the minute.

SMACK

"Yeowch!" Zorome hollers, tiny tears forming in his eyes due to the sudden stinging feeling on the back of his head. He glares as he finds Miku looking at him with her brows furrowed and a notebook in her grasp, immediately sensing she used it as her weapon against him. "What the hell, Miku!"

"Mou!" the redhead breathes out in a huff. "You really should stop minding other people's businesses, y'know?"

"Well tell that to yourself.."

"Excuse me?" turning towards the muttering blonde, Miku's ahoge twitches in annoyance- a strange feature only her and Zorome possesses. With the boy coming back at her with harsh remarks, the two barely began their daily brawl as Zero Two suddenly speaks up;

"Well, well.." amusement drips like honey in her voice, "..it seems like you two seem to be lovey dovey today, as well..!" both ahoge bearing teens turn red due to annoyance and embarrassment.

"LIKE HELL WE ARE!" The way the two shout in unison makes both Hiro and Zero Two snicker.

"Oh.." Hiro feels an arm wrap around his shoulders. Looking up, he sees no other than his roommate and best friend, Goro eyeing him with a teasing smirk. Behind him, was Ichigo, who had a small smile on her lips as she watched the previous scene unfold before her eyes. "..looks like someone woke up at the right side of the bed..!" the blonde man joked, making the raven teen lightly smack his arm away.

"Jeez! What's that supposed to mean?" Hiro chastised with a light chuckle.

"You seem very happy." it was Ichigo's turn to say, making him smile sheepishly, for he knew the real reason why he felt a hundred times lighter the past few days.

"Really? I didn't seem to notice.."

"Mm.." the bluenette shakes her head at her friend's bashful nature, not bothering to hide the small giggle that errupts from her lips. "happiness suits you, Hiro." turning her gaze away, she looks at a certain pinkette who seemed to have a calm look on her face, something you wouldn't see if it was from their past encounters.

"Good morning, Zero Two." said girl's mouth twitches upward at the greeting.

"..Yo"

With the two girls looking at one another with unspoken camaraderie, both are rendered surprised when Miku asks the group, "Hey, by the way, have you guys texted Kokoro?" the others shake their head, making the redhead's brows furrow in worry. "It's quite unusual she's late.."

"Kokoro san had a lot to do last night.." A voice answers Miku's queries, to which she quickly recognizes as Mitsuru's.

"Mitsuru..!"

As usual, he had his head held high in disdain towards them, green eyes showing mild annoyance. Beside him was Ikuno, who was already making her way towards Ichigo and Goro. "That girl.." Mitsuru mutters, "She just really had to insist doing all the reports for the last semester.." knowing Kokoro the most, Miku quickly understands the teen's words, letting out a sigh of her own.

"Really.." 'She's so hopeless!'

"She thinks she could finish everything just fine, but look at her..!" usually, cool and collected, Mitsuru's exasperation surprises everyone. "Now she's running late, and probably exhausted..not efficient at all!" he grumbled, amusing his cousin to no end.

"Well.." Ikuno smirks, making Mitsuru scowl harder. "..You've gotta admit though, Kokoro is still pretty admirable...I mean, she puts up with your attitude, so there's that." she snickers, earning a cold glare from her cousin that could rival even the harshest of winters.

"Hmph."

"It's true, y'know." Ikuno says.

"Hey, wait, speaking of Kokoro chan-" Zorome intervenes, eyes scanning the classroom; "I bet fatty has something to cheer her up!"

"Futoshi?" Goro questions, "-wait, where is he anyway?" Zorome elbows him with a wide, boyish grin on his face.

"Well...let's just say Futoshi's gotta whole surprise waiting for his beloved Kokoro chan..!"

"EH?!" Most of the group's mouth hang open in surprise. Both Hiro and Goro have equally shocked looks on their faces, while Mitsuru seemed to be fairly uninterested, opting to slide away from them and sit by his desk. Ichigo was blushing hard, imagining what scene may unfold between Futoshi and Kokoro. Ikuno was blinking rapidly, while Miku was trying to control the squeal bubbling within her throat. Zero Two had her arms placed on her hips with a smug smirk beginning to appear on her lips.

'Things seem to be getting...interesting..' The pinkette thinks to herself, eyes darting towards her darling, who in turn, looks at her as well. Their eye contact sends Hiro blushing lightly, making her heart flutter over his cute reaction.

'Ahh~ I could just eat you up, darling!'

"Ne, Zorome! What do you mean by surpris-" before Miku could finish her sentence, they see Kokoro walk through the door with a gentle smile. Although she seemed fairly fine, the group notices she was paler than usual and had light dark rings along her eyes, probably from the lack of sleep. "Kokoro!" Miku yelps and envelops her friend in a hug, albeit carefully so she doesn't knock her out. "Miku was worried you might've gotten sick!"

"Hm?" the young blonde hums in light confusion before giggling over her friend's protectiveness. "Im fine Miku! We've just gotten out of summer break after all..!" she tries reassuring, but Zero Two suddenly intervenes;

"Well yeah, but heard you've been quite busy last night.."

"Oh, well...things like that aren't new to me at all." Kokoro's laugh seems to be shaky and out of breath, yet nevertheless, her kind smile never goes out of place. "After all, I'm part of the council, right, Ichigo?" said bluenette nods before placing a hand on the blonde's shoulders, lightly squeezing it in support.

"That's true but...next time, don't do things on your own, okay?" Ichigo winks, "..As your president, it's okay if you could depend on me, or the others more!"

"Mm..thanks a lot, Ichigo.."

"KOKORO CHAANN!"

Kokoro's ears perk up at the sudden call of her name and once she turns around, she sees Futoshi stalking up to her with hands full of bread. His cheeks held a flushed color and it looked as if he was a bit out of breath. Concerned, the young blonde reaches out to touch him lightly on the cheek. "Are you okay, Futoshi kun?" she asks but her touch sends a sudden jolt to the boy, and immediately, he pulls away with a large blush forming. Laughing nervously, he stutters a reply;

"Oh, um..yeah..! I'm..uh.." grabbing hold of himself, Futoshi swiftly shoves the basket of bread he'd been holding to Kokoro. In surprise, she notes how he's bread seems to be different from his usual concoctions. It was braided intricately with small heart like patterns scattered across its pink frosted shell. She could also get a faint whiff of strawberries and cream cheese. When Kokoro looks back at Futoshi, she sees him bashful and red, but nevertheless, smiling.

"These are for you..Kokoro chan!"

Kokoro smiles gratefully at his considerate efforts.

"Oh! Um..thank you Futoshi kun!"

Meanwhile, with the others going back to their own businesses, Miku approaches Zorome and whispers, "Hey, what is Futoshi planning, by the way?" the young man smirks secretively at her and responds in the same, hushed tone of hers'

"Let's just say..lover boy's gonna take things up a notch..!"

"Ehh?! You mean-"

"Uhuh!" Zorome affirms. "If you're REALLY curious though, then meet me near the bushes by the school gate at 5 o'clock." with her protective instincts kicking for her best friend, plus with the sudden pique of her curiosity, Miku couldn't help but agree to the boy's offer.

After class

"Mff..!" A soft sigh escapes Zero Two as she stretches out her long, limbs; moaning in satisfaction when she feels a few pops escape her body. On instinct, her eyes immediately search for her darling, and she sees him busily fixing his stuff into his bag. Impatient, the pinkette brings two hands and cups them by the sides of her lips and calls out to Hiro with a playful drawl.

"Darliiiing!"

The pet name jolts Hiro and he finds himself looking at a Zero Two with eyes reminiscent of a puppy waiting for its master to play with it, and lips curved into a pout. Hiro found the face she was making cute and lets a quiet chuckle escape his lips. He knew she wanted to get out of the classroom as fast as they could, so immediately, he walks towards her desk. Although he was still quite shy to initiate any sort of contact, his newfound feelings had him easily extending out a hand to Zero Two. "Shall we go, Zero Two?"

"To where..?" she asks with expectant eyes.

With a finger inquisitively tapping on his lower lip, Hiro pauses for a while until an idea pops in his head. Hopefully, he had some cash to support his offer. "I've seen some Ice cream parlor nearby. How about we try it?" he knew just how much Zero Two loved her sweets, and it was extremely worth it to see how her eyes glowed in excitement and cheeks color happily in pink. It was clear as day how much she wanted to visit the shop.

Quickly standing from her seat, she grabs hold of Hiro, hugging his arm close to her chest and dashes out of the classroom, babbling about how she wanted to try the different flavors available. What they didn't notice however, was the sketchbook that was sprawled on the floor left forgotten.

"Kokoro san.."

"Yes?"

Looking over the immense pile of paperwork sitting on top of her desk, Mitsuru couldn't help but grit his teeth. He had told her after class to just go straight home and rest after the all nighter she had pulled last night. He could clearly see beneath her gentle facade how hard she was trying to keep focused, especially earlier in their history class when she was stopping herself from dozing off. Though he might've sounded harsh while telling her off, it had irked him seeing Kokoro brush him off with a grin, telling him to not worry about her.

And yet, no matter how many times he tried convincing her, to the point of light threatening, here she was working herself to her limits.

'..You've gotta admit though, Kokoro is still pretty admirable'

'Yeah..admirably stubborn.' his thoughts reflect his sarcastic nature.

"You should really be going, Kokoro san. I can handle all of this." he keeps on insisting, but Kokoro reasons out to him as always, trying to sound reassuring despite the obvious shakiness of her voice.

"I'm fine Mitsuru kun. Besides, Futoshi kun told me to meet him later by 5. I'm just doing this to kill some time, that's all.."

"Hmph.." He looks away, annoyance welling up inside him, for some reason. "..You..really wear me out sometimes.." his eyes meet up with blue ones filled with worry and slight sadness. Her dainty hands ball up into tight fists that goes noticed by Mitsuru, and he notes to himself how she was a bit sensitive today which was probably due to stress. Afterall, no matter how kind Kokoro may be, she's still human.

Scratching the side of his cheek as he allowed himself to look away from her doe like stare, he began, "..Actually, not just me, but the others as well, and I swear Kokoro san, if you don't stop what you're doing right now, I'll have Ichigo use her powers on you and force you to take a week break." his words shock her to the point of putting all work down and sitting robotically on the empty chair beside him.

"I'm sorry, Mitsuru kun.."

"I've told you before..stop apologizing all the damn time.." he says dismissively. 'Especially since, you aren't at fault.' When Kokoro tries apologizing once more due to impulse, he quickly shoots her a hard glare, making her fidget in her seat.

After a few moments of silence, the young blonde speaks first, "Um..What should I do then?" she asks softly, looking up at Mitsuru under her long lashes. Shrugging, he replies nonchalantly, not quite sure what exactly she should do at that moment.

"I dunno..go nap or eat that bread Futoshi gave you or something.."

"Oh! I completely forgot about it!" Kokoro clasps her hands together in realization, before reaching towards the basket to grab a soft, frosted braid. Taking a bite, she doesn't forget to hand out some to the boy next to her, who was eyeing her with a questioning glance. "Want some, Mitsuru kun? They're pretty tasty!" she exclaims with cheeks full after taking another bite.

"I hate sweets."

"Oh right..would you like some coffee then?"

"Kokoro san.." he sighs, "Just go rest, would you?"

"So, this is the place, huh.." Zero Two muses to herself, the sweet scent of ice cream flooding her senses she could almost taste every single flavor. With Hiro's hand still in hers' they both enter the parlor to see the usual dream like facade any dessert shop possesses. Replicas of the shop's menu offerings, such as crepes, sundaes and milkshakes were displayed by the counter had Zero Two almost drooling.

"Hello!" the attendant greets them with a fixed smile, "What would you like to order?"

"Oh, um.." Hiro squints at the menu, preferring to choose one of the simpler servings since he wasn't much of a sweet tooth compared to his pink haired companion. Pointing out, he says, "I'd have the mango cream crepe, please."

The attendant nods and inputs his order into the cashier. Once done, she faces Zero Two and asks the same question. Without further hesitation, the pinkette exclaims with much fervor her order, making the poor worker almost jump in surprise.

"Banana split sundae with extra honey drizzled on top! Oh, and could you also add one extra scoop of chocolate ice cream?" just when the attendant thought Zero Two had already finished, she was left taken aback when the pinkette also orders something in the menu called, "Fluffernutter" milkshake.

'I've met tons of customers, but never in my life had I encountered someone like her!' the attendant feels a bead of sweat roll down her forehead, perplexed over the tremendous love the girl had for sweets.

After paying, Hiro and Zero Two sat by the corner of the parlor, where a large stuffed teddy bear lay. The raven haired teen felt his cheeks hurt due to smiling so hard over seeing Zero Two become so snuggly with the toy. Just how cute can this girl become?!

"Ah~ so fluffy.." A purr rolls out of her tongue.

"You seem to be enjoying yourself, huh, Zero Two?"

At her darling's light teasing, Zero Two playfully glares at him. "I'm a girl too y'know.." her voice feigns hurt, but quickly reverts back to her cheery tone while she snuggles the bear harder to her body. "I just can't help it! This is just super soft!"

"Even so..you're still better than any kind of stuff toy, darling.." the way she says it so seriously drives Hiro's heart beating like crazy.

"I-is that so.."

"Mhm- Oh!" Her eyes widen when she sees their orders have came. As the waiter placed her sundae on the table, Zero Two silently said a thankful prayer, satisfied over the fact that the real thing exceeds all of her expectations, and without further adieu, began digging in. No words were said on her part, and only delighted moans were heard from her, and the occasional slurping from her milkshake.

'Geez, wouldn't she get a brain freeze from that?' Hiro thought to himself as he took a small bite from his crepe.

'Who am I kidding..this is Zero Two, after all!'

"Hey, Darling.."

Breaking out of his thoughts, Hiro finds himself staring at a spoonful of ice cream coming from Zero Two. "Uh..Zero..Two?" He slowly asks, quite unsure of what he should do next.

"Here, have some!" She urges him with a smile and he complies. The moment the cold dessert touches his tongue, he is assaulted with a burst of sweetness that had him almost choking. Come to think about it, it wasn't THAT bad, but Hiro really didn't fair well with too much sweetness; on the other hand, he knew this was perfectly up to Zero Two's standards, so he tries to fake a smile in response to her expectant look. "How was it, darling? Good?"

"Yeah..but I think you'd prefer not sharing it all, right?"

"That's..!-" her cheeks color in embarrassment, knowing what Hiro said was true. "..Mou, darling! You're so mean!" the raven haired teen chuckles at her exasperation, though he doesn't react immediately when Zero Two suddenly reaches out to him and licks the corner of his mouth. His cheeks matches the color of her hair once she pulls away with a satisfied smirk. He tries complaining at the sudden heart stopper, but the pinkette cuts him off with her own queries.

"As always, darling always tastes the best.." Hiro feels his pulse quicken over what seems to be an innuendo,

'Although, it's safe to assume Zero Two didn't really think about its meaning..' he tries composing himself, but the way her gaze bore intensely at him, and how her smile was slowly starting to get rather sultry proves otherwise.

"W..why'd you do that.." Hiro's voice comes off as shaky, giving away his nerves at the moment. He finds his throat growing dry when her index finger taps him lightly on the nose, letting out a breathy giggle.

'She really is..'

"-You had some leftover ice cream on your face, darling!" she exclaims before digging in once more, leaving a poor Hiro even more flustered and unable to finish his crepe.

It was already forty five minutes till five

For the nth time, Mitsuru tries suppressing a sigh. Earlier, while he managed to stop Kokoro from overworking herself, he found himself being dragged into her silly ramblings. Over some bread and coffee (much to his chagrin, Kokoro had insisted making some coffee.), he had tried muting out her voice, yet he could still recall her stories about her and her grandma during the summer vacation, or how she asked for his opinion on what flowers she should try combining for her arrangements at the shop.

He had to emphasize through gritted teeth how he wasn't interested in flowers and such, and although she had pouted sadly, he honestly didn't even have any knowledge on the topic, nor had he have the skill.

"You're better off following what your gut tells you, Kokoro san.." he tells her while fiddling with his rolex. "You know the most about flower arrangements."

"Oh not at all!" with blushed cheeks, Kokoro waves her hands in an effort to dismiss Mitsuru's statement. "Gardening and arranging flowers..those are just hobbies of mine.." she smiles to herself, remembering how light and happy she feels while tending her and her grandma's garden. "When I'm in our garden..I feel like I'm in my own little world..I can think freely and it just feels so wonderful seeing various flowers in bloom.." Mitsuru doesn't bother replying, and instead, chooses to just stare down at the gentle ripples of his coffee.

"..How about you, Mitsuru kun, what do you like doing the most?" He just rolls his eyes at her sudden inquiry.

"I'm not entirely fond of wasting my time with trivial sorts.."

"Don't be like that, Mitsuru kun!" Kokoro lightly scolds. "Having a hobby isn't a waste of time! In fact, it actually helps you manage yourself in a way..kind of like.." she pauses for a minute, trying to come up with the right words.

"-Like..you get to calm and energize yourself; so you could focus better!"

"Tch." the olive haired youth finds himself unable to retort back at her. Begrudgingly, he mutters out an answer to her previous question.

"..Books.."

"I..beg your pardon..?"

"I said.." he breathes in deeply, annoyed at the fact he had to repeat himself. "..during my spare time..I read books- novels to be precise."

"Ooohh.." Kokoro stares at him with genuine curiosity; her big doll like eyes making him oddly uncomfortable. "Well..to be honest, I've kind of figured you to be someone as the bookish type- Not that it's bad or something!" she grins at him nervously.

"So..what kind of books do you read, Mitsuru kun?"

"..More on mystery I guess, but I've been reading Machiavelli's works for quite some time." Mitsuru states plainly.

"Waah, you must be a really deep person, aren't you?" he merely shrugs at her sudden awe. "In my case..I like reading home care stuff, and maybe a few romance novels here and there.." a small giggle escapes her lips, slightly flustered over revealing such facts about her. "I must be really plain, huh.."

"It's just your normal self." his reassurance comes off as rather cold, but fortunately, this does not bother the gentle blonde.

"Anyway..besides reading, is there anything else you do Mitsuru kun?" Kokoro asks, growing ever more curious with her aloof companion. "Ikuno chan is great with guitar, so I'm assuming you'd be knowledgeable in some instruments? O-or not.."

"Violin."

"Eh?"

"I play the violin." at his statement, Mitsuru could imagine on the pads of his fingers the feel of his bow strings. It had certainly been a while since he last picked up his violin and he secretly hopes he wouldn't be too rusty once he decides to play some time in the future. "..I started young, like seven or something, since my dad wanted me to keep my busy..same thing goes for Ikuno since it's...kind of like a family tradition of some sorts.."

"Why'd you choose violin?" Kokoro asks,

"It looked classy, that's all."

The young blonde finds herself chuckling over his answer. 'As expected of Mitsuru kun..' Ignoring the dirty look he gave her, Kokoro asks him once more, "Ne, would you play for me, sometime?" she knew based on his personality, Mitsuru would just choose to brush her off, but it was worth a try she guessed. Ultimately, she fails to notice the slight color forming on his cheeks, yet he manages to react to her with a straight face.

"I'd rather not, thank you very much."

They stay quiet after that, with Mitsuru reading for their next lessons tomorrow and Kokoro munching on her bread while stealing glances at the stone cold boy. It was like that between them for a short while until soft snores invade Mitsuru's hearing. Turning to look at his companion, he finds himself unable to feel any sort of surprise as he sees the blonde maiden with her head resting on the table, a few bread crumbs sticking near her lips. Rolling his eyes, Mitsuru couldn't help but smirk at the scene.

"Really..you really are so hopeless…"

"Fuwaaa.." Zero Two lets out a satisfied sigh as she finishes the remnants of her milkshake, long gone was the tower of ice cream she had ordered moments ago. Across her, Hiro watched with eyes filled with awe and adoration, but quickly notices some honey smeared all over her lips, giving it a nice shimmer. He blushed at the thought of how sweet it must've tasted, yet he had to restrain himself for doing stuff similar to Zero Two. Instead, he grabs hold of some tissue and reaches out to gently wipes her mouth. Once he's done, he is met with teal eyes shining in mirth.

"Darling's so prince like!" the pinkette gushes with his face in between her palms.

"Erm..Zero Two..too hard.." Hiro mumbled before Zero Two lets go of his face with an apologetic grin.

"Oops. Sorry.."

"Mm..Anyway.." Hiro's mind drifts to something else, remembering the promise they made back at the hot springs. "..about the Tanabata festival…" uncertainty courses through his veins, and it seems his nerves were starting to get the better of him again. Glancing down, and then up once more, he sees Zero Two looking at him curiously.

"Hrmmm..." she says, trying to recall some thoughts, "Oh..it's on Saturday, right?" Hiro nods.

"Yeah..and I was just wondering if..we'd continue on with it.." his voice comes out as soft, slightly scared of the possibility Zero Two had changed her mind and wasn't actually interested in going at all. "I mean..back at the hot springs, I just thought about it on impulse, and..uh, if you don't wanna go then it's totally cool..I-I guess.." his sputtering is cut off when he hears Zero Two laughing out loud, the sound sending him in a flustered state.

Wiping off an imaginary tear, Zero Two replies, "Really darling, you're so funny sometimes!" a short giggle erupts from her lips before they curl into a fond smile. "Of course I'd love to go. I've been looking forward to it the moment you asked me!"

"..I've been looking forward for quite a long time, actually…" Hiro notices the sudden shift of her tone, sounding a bit somber at that moment. He couldn't help but feel worried.

"..Zero Two..?" He calls out, tentatively brushing his fingers along her white knuckles. "Is..something bothering you?"

"Oh, I just remembered something.." she breathes out.

"Would you like to talk about it..?" his question has her shaking her head slowly.

"Nah..it wasn't important anyway." the pinkette claims, but seeing how her eyes seemed to lose a bit of its shine once she started spacing out, Hiro knew she was hiding something; her true feelings. He contemplated whether going to the festival was the right decision, but then again, Zero Two was vocal in her excitement earlier, so probably that wasn't what made her suddenly pensive. Honestly speaking, Hiro had noticed time and time again her subtle changes, like how she'd look so deep in thought until someone would shake her up.

He wondered if she was going through something, and lately, he realized he only knew little of Zero Two. She had done so much for him, and had managed to have him open up everything inside his heart and soul. Hiro knew he wanted to do the same for her.

"Hey..Zero Two?"

"Yeah..?"

"I…" he breathes in deeply before continuing, a little more braver than before; "..I want you to speak your mind to me from now on, Zero Two..." the pinkette could clearly see the determination in his eyes, a look she rarely saw and somehow made her heart flutter.

'Get it together..Zero Two..'

"Ohooo.." she lets out a sound of amusement and teasing, "And why is that?"

'I want to love all of you. To share in both your happiness and your pain. I want to be there for you till you can't stand me. I want to be the wings that'll lessen all your burdens...and in order to do so..I must..!'

"I want to know you better, Zero Two." Hiro declares, while Zero Two could only gaze at him in silence with a small smile curved upon her lips, when she suddenly remembers something.

"Oh! I almost forgot!" she exclaimed while grabbing her bag and hastily placing it on her lap. "I had something I wanna show you, darling!" the shimmer of excitement evident in her eyes had Hiro thinking it was probably something she has drawn in her free time. She always had the sort of expression after having some kind of artistic epiphany, and he was glad he would always be the first to see her creations.

Yet, something felt wrong when her impatience was soon replaced with a look of unfortunate realization, her face growing pale and a light sheen of cold sweat forming on her skin.

"Is..everything alright?"

All of a sudden, Hiro is hastily pulled up by Zero Two. Pacing quickly with her long legs, the raven haired teen finds himself struggling to keep his balance, but nevertheless, trails just behind her. "Uh..Zero Two? Where..are we going?" his question comes out in short breaths.

"We have to go back to the school!" the pinkette turns to him, never stopping. "I forgot my sketch pad at the room, I think!"

BZZZ! BZZ!

From her nap, a phone suddenly starts vibrating, startling Kokoro as she lets out a small squeak. Flustered at the sound she had just made, her gaze shyly turns to Mitsuru, who was texting in the said phone. Sensing she was finally awake, Mitsuru turns to her with his usual straight expression.

"..Kokoro san.."

The way he says her name has her growing more flustered than earlier. "Um..have I slept for too long?" she asks softly, a nervous chuckle coming from her mouth. Thankfully, Mitsuru shakes his head.

"Only for 20 minutes, more or less.." Kokoro sighs in relief, before asking him once more.

"Um..what time is it, by the way?" now, instead of answering her directly, Mitsuru shows her the time through his phone. Slowly, she read '4:57…'

Gasping, the blonde quickly gets up from her seat and scrambles to get all her stuff, and paperwork, in her backpack. Watching her, Mitsuru couldn't help but roll his eyes. "What's the sudden hurry?" he asks her as she was about to head off for the door. It was quite a rare sight to see Kokoro seemingly out of breath.

"I-I've told you earlier.." she began, fingers encircling the door knob firmly. "I promised Futoshi kun I'd meet him by five!" nervous, she hoped the boy wouldn't be waiting waiting for too long, given the time she would have to walk to their meeting place. To her surprise though, she finds Mitsuru standing up as well to gather his own belongings. Trudging forward, his long fingers brush against hers as he reaches for the door knob, a slight shiver raking over her at the sudden contact. Without pulling away, their gazes meet, gentle and firm, a contradiction to one another.

"Um..Mitsuru kun..?" she whispers, cheeks glowing pink. It was unnerving on her part to be so close to a person most regarded as unbotherable, yet, she is left wondering if the man before her felt any sort of nervousness as well. That would've been more awkward in her part, of course, and luckily, that was not the case.

"It's getting late." he simply says, "You should be meeting with Futoshi, right?"

Kokoro smiles. Of course that would've never been the case.

"Yoooo, Futoshi…" Zorome drones out. "How long are we supposed to just stand here.." he knew both his friend and Kokoro were supposed to meet at five o clock, yet, thanks to Futoshi's nerves, they've been waiting at the front gate for an hour now. To be fair, Zorome had no problems helping out the guy, however, with an impatient redhead tagging along, it was impossible not to feel slightly pressured. He just knew he couldn't look Miku in the eye right now.

"Just a few minutes more, Zorome!" Futoshi hushes him while fixing the bouquet of roses in his hold. "Kokoro chan, must've been busy at the council room.." his statement has Miku rolling her eyes. Instead of going straight home to edit her upcoming video, she chose to follow Zorome's suggestion of watching Futoshi confess to her best friend. It would've been cute of course, but then again, was today truly the right time to confess to Kokoro? Especially with how tired the poor girl was.

But who was she to complain? This was for love, for god's sakes!

"Eh?! There she is!" Futoshi exclaims loudly in panic. "Zorome! Miku! Hide!" he pushes the two together away, earning a groan from the dirty blonde and a small yelp from the other as they both land in the nearest bush. What makes things worse, is how Zorome had his face buried under Miku's skirt as they fell. Her horror stricken face was unseen by him, yet, frilly white filled his vision.

.

.

...

"...What a...childish design.." His absent minded murmur reaches Miku's reddened ears, rendering her gaping like a fish, till mortification morphs into blind rage. Grabbing a fistful of Zorome's hair, she yanks him away from her thighs. He gulps as he sees her eyes screaming bloody murder.

"Hey, look, Miku..L-let's talk about this.." he tries reasoning out, knowing further teasing could have him buried six feet under.

"Oho..sorry Zorome.." Miku says in a sickly sweet voice. "But that won't do~"

One smack in the head had the poor boy gasping in pain, and unfortunately, he couldn't scream for help at the moment. (especially with how Miku had him in a tight head lock.)

"Futoshi kun, I'm sorry I'm late.." Kokoro breaths out after rushing as fast as she could to the front gates. Futoshi greets her back, although was slightly shock to find Mitsuru following behind her. A small pang of jealousy hits his chest. Though he wasn't clearly sure, Futoshi had noticed the two were always together, even outside duty. Knowing Mitsuru, he was extremely cold to everyone, even to his own friends, but one would be blind to not see the tinge of softness he had for the girl. It was like he was holding back when he was with Kokoro.

Futoshi shakes his head slightly. 'No. It's not like that! They're just co council mates, that's all..' and he, of all people, should know how much Kokoro's kindness could melt even the iciest of hearts. Mitsuru is still their friend after all!

'And knowing Kokoro chan..she'd do her best to try and make everyone happy!' his heart warms at the thought. It was Kokoro's kindness that had made him fall in love in the first place. The way she was able to look past a person's flaws and appearance...how she just manages to be like a sun to all. How she would smile at him without any hidden feelings.

It was impossible for Futoshi to not fall in love with her, honestly.

And now, he wasn't gonna waste the chance to tell her how he feels. Whatever may happen, this would be a day he would never regret; the day he tells her how much he loves her.

'She deserves all the love, after all!'

"Kokoro chan.." his hands shake, but nevertheless, he is able to offer her the bouquet; loose petals being blown away as a warm breeze pasts through them. Kokoro's eyes shone like blue crystals, and the way her soft curls danced with the wind made her look even more beautiful in the moment. Futoshi couldn't look away, completely forgetting the olive haired man observing from a safe distance.

His heart was now beating wildly, but now was not the time for him to go all jelly. He had to do it, now.

"...We've known each other for quite some time..and after all these years, you've always been so kind to me- to everyone. You've always made me feel so happy, I could feel my heart throb so hard….."

"Kokoro chan..I.." he pauses, a slight fear stopping him from continuing. Futoshi was so sure up until this moment. What was stopping him? Was it the way she looked up at him without any ounce of clue even after his short speech? Or was it the way her lips was turned up into an innocent smile; a smile directed only at him, and him alone at that moment. She was always so supportive of him, and yet right now..he-

Futoshi places a hand on top of his chest, squeezing it lightly. Frozen in place, his sudden pause has Kokoro worrying over him.

"Futoshi kun…? Are you okay?"

she asks, taking small steps forward to try and brush his hand. Her touch sending a buzzing feeling to Futoshi. The genuine look on her face and the softness of her fingertips against his knuckles made him get back to his senses, and in a sudden burst of emotion, he finally declares loud for the whole world to hear,

"I'm in love with you, Kokoro chan!"

"Darling, hurry up! We could still get my sketchbook!" Hiro huffs in reply as he tries to catch up with the pinkette's longer strides. It was tiring for the both of them, running all the way from the ice cream parlor to the school, and come to think of it, they still had to climb a few stairs to get to their room; hopefully, the janitor was still at the campus, and maybe he could've picked it up while cleaning. Hiro is lost in thought until he feels himself stumble over Zero Two as they suddenly come into a halt.

"..oof, we're finally here.." Hunched over, relief floods his voice, as he speaks in between pants. Hiro wonders why Zero Two wasn't responding. Hastily, he looks up and finds her staring wide eyed at something. Following her stare, he sees both Futoshi and Kokoro at the school gates. The young blonde had a bouquet of roses tucked protectively in her arms, mouth left hanging slightly open; while the ginger haired boy seemed to have a hopeful look in his eyes as a blush enveloped his whole face.

"What.." the raven haired teen turns to Zero Two, unsure with what was happening between his two friends, but he had a feeling it had something to do with Futoshi-

"It seems like Futoshi had confessed to Kokoro.." Zero Two muses. "..I knew it was bound to happen..but honestly, I'm still quite surprised.."

"Hmm..shall we continue on then, Zero Two?" Hiro suggests while gently tugging on the pinkette's hand. He too knew of Futoshi's feelings for the blonde, but he didn't think it was right for the both of them to ogle at the two; it was their private discussion after all. Zero Two complied easily, but they stop in their tracks when they hear Futoshi speak up.

"I..I love you so much Kokoro chan! And..and...I want to be someone you could depend on. Someone who'll care for you and make sure you're never hurt, and if you could give me a chance I..I…" Futoshi takes a deep breath, clearly overwhelmed by everything. "..I'll make you the greatest bread and even better! I'll make you the happiest girl in the world! I love you..I love you so much!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a short silence ensued among them all. Zero Two, Hiro, and even Mitsuru, were greatly surprised over Futoshi's sudden assertiveness. Miku and Zorome, who stopped struggling long ago, were gaping with blushing faces over the sickening sweetness and mushiness of the confession. Kokoro, however, seemed to be standing with an unreadable expression, and it wasn't long until she began, a soft smile on her face that made Futoshi's heart silently wish she'd accept his feelings of love.

"Futoshi kun..I-

hello everyone! it's been quite a long time since I've written the last chapter, dont ya think? well, as much as I've wanted to update, school had been quite tough and honestly, I went through some mentally exhausting events recently; BUT! Im finally on break ANDDD very energized and inspired to write once more! I'm really happy I finally gotten to write for ya'll and I hope you liked this chapter (though I apologize if you'd find my writing a lil rusty; it's been quite a while, and I've been trying to experiment a little more.)

anyway, we're approaching a new story arc, and based on my time frame, we're quite nearing the good bits of this story. hope you all enjoy and continue supporting Hello Darling!

also, Happy 2019 guys!