The next day seemed to go by slowly. They did eat at the restaurant Minako suggested and afterwards everyone went their separate ways. When Rei returned to the shrine she dressed and set about her work, but nothing seemed to get done. She'd start a chore then blink and find herself just staring at a washcloth or a broom or a rake instead of actually using them. Only one thing was on her mind.

Kissing Minako had been so intense. It was like her entire body had been on fire, and even a day afterwards just thinking about it left her feeling warm. It was nothing like the ones shared between the other girls. Then again, their relationship was different as well.

The burning question on her mind was what the kiss meant. It had been more in line with what kisses were shown to be in manga and dramas. It certainly left her feeling more than the quick peck Ami had given her. So was there some deeper meaning to their kiss? Was it just a case of Minako pushing boundaries again? Thinking back on it she couldn't even say why she had spun that bottle. Minako had seemed content to let the game end despite the fact that Rei was about to have a turn. No answers came to her while she tended to the shrine grounds.

Rei was no closer to resolving her thoughts into any semblance of order after school the following day. If anything she was more confused. The other girls seemed unfazed by the game of spin the bottle, eating lunch together and chatting about nothing as they always did. Minako didn't say anything about their kiss either. She acted as she always did towards Rei, teasing and bothering her whenever she could. Maybe the kiss had been an extension of their competitive natures and Rei was looking for meaning that wasn't there.

The second day after the party saw the girls in gym again. They would be playing softball, one of the few games Rei had enjoyed before Minako transferred. She usually took right field since few balls were hit that way. She could relax and enjoy the breeze and sunshine without much worry of having to participate. She was looking forward to taking advantage of that position again so she could try to forget all of her questions and think of nothing at all.

She ended up on a team with Minako and Ami. Their team was in the field first and Rei made her way to her normal spot. Minako took second place, directly in front of Rei. She frowned. It would be hard not to think of anything when the girl who was on her mind was directly in front of her. Then Minako turned to her and blew her a kiss and Rei almost choked on her own tongue. Of course the first reference the other girl made to their kiss would be used to tease Rei. Minako certainly hadn't changed her behavior.

It took Rei a few moments to realize that something had changed. When Minako had first started messing with her she had responded with anger and frustration. She thought of their encounters as competitions that she had to win, and if she did win then Minako would stop. But when Minako teased her with that blown kiss she didn't feel anger. She didn't even think about trying to stop Minako. She already knew that she would try to fluster the blonde in return. That was normal. That was part of her new routine.

That new routine also included Serena and Ami and Makoto. She talked to them during classes and lunches and had even met up with them outside of school. She knew that when the opportunity came again she would cave in and they would all gather at her shrine to spend some of their time studying and most of their time just being together. The Rei from before Minako would never have imagined not only spending time with classmates outside of school, but even enjoying that time.

That begged the question of what the other girls even were to Rei. They surely were more than classmates. Would she say they were friends? Could she? Was she friends with Minako? What did it even take for someone to be considered a friend? If Serena, Ami, and Makoto were her friends but she felt her relationship with Minako was different, what did that make Minako?

Her rumination was interrupted by Minako calling her in. Apparently they had gotten the other team out three times and it was their turn to bat. She followed Minako to the bench to await their turns at the plate. Rei's self-reflection made her aware that she naturally followed Minako and sat next to her and Ami without any thought of sitting anywhere else. Then she was struck by the surreal realization that she had kissed both girls at the sleepover. She tried to ignore it and act natural.

They were told to bat in boy-girl order, and one of the boys volunteered to bat first. Minako volunteered to go second and the other girls were happy to let her. She got up and went to the on-deck circle to take a few practice swings.

"Did you have fun at the sleepover?" Ami asked.

"More than I thought I would," Rei said, again suddenly aware that before Minako she and Ami had never said a word to each other.

"To be honest me too," Ami said. "You know I'd never been to a sleepover before."

"Same," Rei said. She had never seen Ami hanging out with anyone before Minako, Serena, and Makoto had interrupted her lunch one day. Ami was renowned for her high grades and hard work, but that left little time to make friends. She may have never had one. It occurred to Rei that the two of them were somewhat similar.

"I don't think either of us ever expected to," Rei said.

"No, I suppose not," Ami said.

There was a cheer from their teammates as the first batter got a hit and ran to first. Minako stepped up to the plate.

"What did you think of the others when you first talked to them?" Rei asked.

Ami blinked at her, perhaps thrown off by the question. "Well I was surprised. One day in gym Serena started talking to me out of nowhere and the next day she invited me to have lunch with her and Makoto and Minako. I thought it was a prank at first, actually."

"Really?"

"Yes. I didn't think that someone as popular as Serena would have a reason to talk to me, let alone want to spend time with me."

"But you accepted the invitation," Rei prompted.

"Something about Serena seemed so… genuine. I don't think she would hurt someone, not intentionally," Ami said.

Rei could appreciate that. In the time she had spent around Serena the other girl had been loud, boisterous, and annoying. But she had a disarming charm in her excitability, sincerity, and innocence. For all her faults, she struck Rei as the type of person to go to any lengths to help her friends.

"And Mako and Minako are nice too. Mako is so thoughtful, and she has a surprisingly girly side that she tries to hide. It's cute," Ami said. "Although, maybe you're more interested in what I think of Minako."

Rei pursed her lips. Maybe trying to be subtle with the smartest kid in school hadn't been a good idea. "I wouldn't say more interested," she said.

A collective groan sounded around them. Rei looked to the batter's box and saw Minako walking away dejectedly. She must have struck out.

"For what it's worth, she may be a little mischievous, but I think her heart is in the right place," Ami said before Minako returned to the bench. When she did she plopped down heavily between Rei and Ami.

Minako grumbled about her failed plate appearance and Ami humored her by patting her on the back. Rei remained unsympathetic, saying that she had to accept the results of her own efforts. Minako stuck her tongue out at Rei in return.

Their team got out two more times and had to take the field again, and again Rei found herself staring at Minako's back. Minako was eternally frustrating. She turned everything with Rei into either a competition or a tease. She toyed with Rei easily, casually.

Rei was also aware of her own part in their relationship. She rose to every challenge Minako threw at her and returned every tease with a smart remark of her own. Worst of all she knew that she could end their cat-and-mouse game. When she had tried ignoring Minako the other girl had pulled back as well. But that hadn't sat well with Rei. She was too stubborn and competitive to let Minako have the last word. Maybe she and Minako were similar too.

Then Rei thought about Ami's words. Was Minako's heart in the right place? Rei frowned as she remembered that first study session at her shrine. Minako had told Rei about her childhood and her parents. She had laid her past bare because she didn't want Rei to be alone anymore and Rei saw how closely Minako's pain reflected her own. She had looked so vulnerable. It was a look Rei never wanted to see on Minako again.

When class ended Rei was no closer to defining what Minako was to her. Maybe she didn't have the right words to do so. Maybe she didn't want to admit that she enjoyed Minako even with all of her provocations. Maybe she was thinking too deeply into their situation. But Rei knew that Minako was a part of her life now, and she was okay with that.