Family Affairs

" A crush. "

Michiru placed a hand on her chin and sighed inwardly. The sight before her was enough to make her to her sick to her stomach but she couldn't help being consumed by the feeling inside of her. Several times she tried to look away and several times she failed in doing so. She swallowed her pride and continued to work on the assignment that she was supposed to be working on to begin with. After a few minutes of concentration she again looked up to see the brunette whisper something to a blonde girl, then with a malicious expression, she glanced over at Michiru and smirked.

" Hey. "

The aqua-haired girl almost had to pull her eyes away from the brunette to find a tall blonde beaming down at her. " Hi. " Michiru nervously averted her gaze away from Haruka who seemed to have caught her staring.

Haruka bit his lip and stole a glimpse of what seemed to have Michiru in a daze. ' That girl again. What was her name? Makina? Makado? Oh! Makoto. Hmm… I wonder what the deal is with that girl. '

" Did you need help with your math, Haruka? " The aqua haired girl asked, hoping to distract the boy from what happened just moments ago.

" Not exactly. " Haruka took the seat right next to Michiru. " I was hoping you could fill me in on something. "

" Sure. "

Haruka cleared his throat, a bit nervous in asking. " I think I like this girl. "

" Two weeks here and you already have a crush? " Michiru asked, diverted from her previous thoughts. " You are way worse than I thought. In fact, you're hopeless. "

" Yeah? " The blonde became discouraged in asking the question.

Michiru quickly changed her tone when she realized how harsh she might have sounded. " I'm sorry. Go ahead, tell me about it. " She was hoping that she hadn't hurt his feelings but a part of her was sort of angry.

" Okay. Well, she's very nice. And, really pretty. But I'm not sure if she's taken. So before I go recklessly head over heels for this girl, I just want to know what you think of her. "

" Why would you care what I think of her? You're the one who likes her. " Michiru was a bit puzzled by her stepbrother's question.

Haruka shrugged. " There's a few things I'm starting to get to know at this school. One, not everyone here tells the truth. Two, people will say things just to get what they want. Three, everyone wants something. But … well… I trust you. So I was wondering if you could let me know what you think of this girl. "

" Okay, okay! " Michiru laughed as she realized how innocent Haruka had sounded. " Who's the girl? "

" Minako. " The boy whispered in return.

Michiru's expression went from happy to disappointed in a few moments. " Stay away from her Haruka. If you know what's good for you. "

" She's not dating anyone. I know that. "

" Yeah but she has something going on with someone else. And believe me, you do not want to get on the bad side of this other person. "

" He doesn't scare me. "

Michiru paused, almost about to reveal something. She quickly evaluated the situation and decided not to tell the blonde. " Haruka, seriously. "

Haruka squinted at Michiru as if the news she had brought was not what he was looking for. They shared a couple minutes of silence. Michiru hoped that he would have dropped the subject but the silence surely fooled her. " I'm going to ask her out. " He replied with much ease.

" Okay. You've lost it. "

" Have not! " Haruka was about to continue when someone had called his name.

" Tenoh! Hey, did you still need help with your math? " Minako waved from across the library, as an angry brunette sat behind her, watching the scene.

" No -- I mean, yes! I'm absolutely confused with just about everything. " Haruka pretended to be distressed about the situation. Minako seemed to throw back a few expressions of sympathy while Makoto glared at the boy as if it would do something terrible to him.

" Haruka you lia-- " Michiru stopped as she felt the blonde squeeze her arm under the library table.

" Not a problem! We'll get that fixed right away. " Minako got up from her seat. " See you later Makoto. If Haruka wants to get a head start here then it would be good if I helped him get better in math. " The brunette sneered at a giddy Haruka. " Call me some time tonight. "

" Of course. " Makoto replied smoothly.

Haruka got up from his seat. " Did you need a ride home tonight? "

" No thanks. I'll get my own ride. " Michiru scowled at Haruka for his behavior.

" Are you sure? " Haruka asked, a bit concerned that his stepsister wouldn't have a ride home. " Well, call me if you need a ride. I'll come get you no matter what. "

" Don't worry Haruka, I'll give her a ride home. "

The blonde looked at Makoto skeptically. If anything, he did not want Makoto to take Michiru home. There was something about that girl that made him shudder in disgust. He couldn't shake the feeling either. He felt that somehow he knew what Makoto's intentions were but he was very far from actually knowing them. He sighed heavily. He had to make his choice. 'Michiru or Minako. Michiru or Minako. Minako. Minako.' Haruka released a defeated sigh. 'Michiru.' He really couldn't trust this Makoto, his gut instinct told him so.

" No thanks, Makoto. I'll give Michiru a ride home. " Haruka smiled. " Minako, can we schedule our tutoring session at a later time? "

Minako smiled in return. " You bet! Here's my number. " The blonde slipped Haruka a note with some words sketched on it. " You let me know when you're free, okay? " Haruka nodded as he watched both Minako and Makoto leave in unison.

" I don't get it. You had your chance. Why did you blow it? " Michiru grabbed her things and left the table, leaving a very confused Haruka behind.

" Wait, Michiru. What's wrong? "

Michiru kept walking, not heeding Haruka's words. " I said I didn't want a ride. Just because you're my stepbrother doesn't mean I'm an obligation. "

" You're not an obligation. Michiru, stop walking so fast. " Haruka made a quick sprint ahead of her and stopped her. " Why would you think you're an obligation? "

" You said it yourself, you want to go on a date with that girl, fine. But don't act like I'm the reason why you can't go. " Michiru was angry. Why was she angry? She'd never been angry like this before. She wanted so bad to push him out of her way, to hit him, to … to hug him? Michiru shook the thoughts from her head. She was beginning to think she was mildly crazy. " Listen, you can still go hang out with her Haruka. She hasn't left yet. " Michiru pointed but Haruka didn't even think to look.

" Michiru, you're not an obligation. I swear. Please believe me. I just wanted to give you a ride home. If I want to hang out with her later, then I'll call her. But for me, now is not a good time. Okay? " Haruka placed his hands on her shoulders, he gently shook her in exaggeration. " Michiru…. Michiru…." Each time he said her name she would smile a little bit more until she couldn't smile anymore. She laughed and then pushed him away.

" Okay, okay. "

" Yes! " Haruka did a dance as if he had done something fantastic when he made her smile. " Come on, let's get going. I really need some help in math. " Haruka placed an arm around Michiru's shoulders playfully and guided her to the Junai parking lot. Michiru watched, in observance, the comforting arm that held her; she had no desire to push him off and yet, it seemed so natural of thing to do for her. No guy had ever laid a hand on her… so why did this feel so right?