Haruka yawned loudly, not bothering to cover her mouth; she was bored. Masami was still in Bali and Haruka missed her. She was looking forward to seeing Masami in a few days. Masami was faithful in sending her pictures of her adventures. She was doing a variety of things; not only was she in meetings with her father but she bought many souvenirs, ate exotic cuisine, and even got a nice bikini tan.

Haruka was out of the house today. Haruka's mother had sent her on an errand to pick up some groceries but told her to take her time and that there was no hurry and if she forgot the groceries, it would be okay. Haruka's little brother and sister were at swimming lessons and they wouldn't be finished until later. Haruka shrugged as she mentally conversed with herself. She couldn't remember the last time her parents had been home together…

Haruka quickly shook her head and covered her face, stopping in her tracks. Her mind was heading towards inappropriate things and she didn't want to go there. When she uncovered her face, she gasped in shock. Kyosuke was standing in front of her, quizzically staring at her.

"Are you all right, Watanabe-san? Your face is all red."

Haruka's hands flew to her cheeks and she nodded, willing herself to clear her thoughts and calm down.

"I'm fine!" she said, quickly changing the subject, "How was the tournament? Hasekura-san said you all went to Hokkaido."

"The senpais did well. We won the tournament."

"Really? That's awesome! So that means the club qualifies for the bigger tournaments, right?"

"Yeah, we're preparing for the End of Summer race."

"End of Summer, huh? That sounds pretty epic."

Kyosuke gave a small smile at Haruka's enthusiasm.

A soft wind blew and Kyosuke took a deep breath, allowing the fresh air to fill his lungs. He turned his gaze back on Haruka.

"Where's your friend?"

"She's on vacation in Bali," Haruka said sadly, "she's an heiress so she goes everywhere with her father to get hands on training."

"I see."

Haruka didn't know when they began to walk but she found herself walking beside Kyosuke. They didn't have a full-on conversation, it was more of a small question-and-answer kind of thing, but it was surprisingly comfortable.

They started with small questions. Haruka's favorite color was purple while Kyosuke's didn't have a favorite but he liked white. Haruka liked udon noodles; Kyosuke liked omurice. They both liked dogs and the last time they both had a haircut was last year.

"I know I haven't seen you much but...did you get taller, Kyosuke?"

Haruka slapped her hand across her mouth and Kyosuke's eyes widened slightly in surprise. His expression softened and he nodded,

"I did grew a few inches...Haruka."

Haruka's cheeks grew warm and she looked away, unable to hide the huge grin that spread on her lips. She didn't realize that she had called Kyosuke by his first name; she assumed that since he responded by also using her first name, he was okay with the situation.

Somehow, they ended up at the park and they sat down on opposite ends of a small bench.

"Kyosuke, can I ask you something?" Kyosuke nodded, "How come you changed your mind? About me, I mean. You clearly didn't like the fact that I was trying to be your friend. How come you want to be friends now?"

Kyosuke furrowed his brows,

"Did you ask Heath?" Haruka didn't answer but her expression revealed that she was guilty of doing so, "Do you really want to know?"

"Yes! I want to know everything about you."

Kyosuke chuckled; he liked her enthusiasm.

Kyosuke turned his face to the sky and he gathered his thoughts as the wind blew through his hair.

"There was a girl who liked me in middle school. She was pretty and she was popular but through her persistence, she got through to me. We were never official and we never went public but I liked her. She took advantage of me and used me to get things done for her. Heath and Tomoe always told me that the things I was doing for her was unethical but I didn't care. Looking back at the past, I wish I would've listened to them. She broke up with me and went to be with this other guy from a different school. By then, my reputation was already stained and I was marked a delinquent. Thankfully, Heath and Tomoe stayed by my side; I owe everything to them."

Haruka recalled Heath's words to her on the train and she understood why Heath didn't want to tell her. Kyosuke was still looking up at the sky and he seemed nostalgic; Haruka wondered how she should respond or if she should even say anything.

"I see. I think I understand why you treated me so...strangely. But Kyosuke, she took advantage of you because you're too kind!"

Kyosuke turned his full attention to Haruka,

"Is being kind a bad thing?" Haruka didn't know how to answer him, "It doesn't hurt to be kind. Besides, if I wasn't a kind person, we wouldn't be sitting together on this bench, now would we?"

Haruka blushed, embarrassed, and nodded in agreement.

Kyosuke noticed that Haruka often checked her phone.

"Are you expecting a call?" he asked.

"No...well, kind of...not really," Kyosuke seemed confused, "Usually, my parents would be calling me now to see where I am. They haven't called me all day. Actually, they said for me to go out and get groceries but it was okay if I didn't come home with groceries."

Haruka shook her head and groaned, willing herself to clear away unwanted thoughts that slipped into her head. Kyosuke was still confused but Haruka assured him that he didn't want to know.

It was getting late so Kyosuke offered to walk Haruka home.

"Oh, you don't have to, Kyosuke. I'll be fine on my way home."

"Please, I insist. After all, I am a kind person."

Haruka opened her mouth to respond but she stopped when she saw Kyosuke's eyes glinting with amusement. She pouted; he was teasing her! Crossing her arms across her chest, she stuck her nose up at him.

"Well, if you insist, I suppose I can't do anything about it."

Kyosuke chuckled and Haruka blushed; it was the first time she'd heard him laugh and she liked it.

And somewhere along the way, as he walked her home, Haruka realized that she liked Kyosuke.