A/N: Sorry this chapter is kinda on the shorter side.
Dekomori was following the rest of the group towards the elevators, when she suddenly felt someone tug at her arm. She turned around and saw Mitsuki looking at her, a very serious expression on her face.
"I need to talk to you," Mitsuki said. "It's important." Dekomori nodded. She felt nervous. Her mind went directly to Nibutani. Dekomori wondered if something bad had happened between the second year and Mitsuki. It didn't seem like they were on friendly terms. They were always glaring at each other, and they only spoke when they absolutely had to.
Dekomori turned to the others and shouted, "We'll be back in a few! Mitsuki wishes to speak to me about something of great importance!" She was unable to say anything else as she felt Mitsuki grab her arm for a second time and drag her away.
Mitsuki lead her to the hotel lounge. It was a large room with an abundance of couches and armchairs. There were many businessmen and women occupying the area, typing away on their laptops or making phone calls. Mitsuki walked over to one of the vacant couches and sat down. She patted the empty space beside her, inviting Dekomori to come sit next to her.
Mitsuki avoided eye contact when Dekomori sat down. She took a deep breath, and as she exhaled, Dekomori could hear her breath come out shakily. Mitsuki looked up at her and said, "I have a lot to say, so I would like it if you would hear me out completely before you gave your opinion." Dekomori nodded.
"I talked to Nibutani this morning. I stayed behind to speak with her." Mitsuki began. This wasn't surprising. Dekomori had figured that Nibutani fit into this somehow. Despite her expectations, she still felt anxiety cut at her insides. This conversation could go in any direction, and it wasn't likely that many of them were good.
"To be honest, I'm not sure why I confronted her. I suppose I just felt a little threatened. I mean, it's obvious what last night was. I just felt so fired up. I wasn't thinking rationally," Mitsuki laughed softly to herself.
"What was wrong with last night?" Dekomori asked. Could Mitsuki be mad that she ditched her? It wasn't entirely her fault, so Dekomori hoped that wasn't the case. She would have gladly spent time with her purple haired companion if Kumin hadn't asked her to go with Nibutani. Though she couldn't ignore her satisfaction with being able to walk around with the second year, and Dekomori felt slightly guilty.
Mitsuki sighed and close her eyes, ignoring Dekomori's question. "I can tell how much you care for her, Sanae. It's obvious to everyone. I'm pretty sure Nibutani is at least a little bit aware of it too." Dekomori felt her cheeks heat up. She never outwardly admitted it to anyone, so hearing someone say it for her was incredibly embarrassing.
"I'm worried about you," Mitsuki continued. "I just don't trust her. I don't think she has your best interests at heart." Dekomori's eyes widened. That couldn't be true. Nibutani may be stubborn and bitter, but she has always looked out for her friends.
"I started believing that when I saw the way she patronized chuunibyou and everyone associated with it. I know how much being the Mjolnir Hammer means to you, so it upset me that she took that position, especially since she means so much to you. That's why I confronted her both today and that day when you reunited. I told her that I would stick by your side no matter what." Mitsuki paused to look over at Dekomori, whose eyes were fixed on the ground.
"You've fought before?" Dekomori asked quietly.
Mitsuki nodded, "Well, I wouldn't call it a fight, but we did talk about some rather personal subjects, and I can't deny that we didn't see eye to eye on most of it. We have a very different view on things in general."
Dekomori sighed. Sometimes differences in opinion couldn't be helped, but having two friends at each other's throat stressed her out. Dekomori was torn between trying to step in and help out and walking away and letting them deal with it themselves.
Mitsuki continued, "But Nibutani made an interesting point that I failed to take into perspective. I was so intent on protecting you from what I believed was inevitable heartbreak, that I didn't stop to think about how you felt about all of this. Nibutani pointed out that you are your own person, and you are capable of making your own decisions. That discussion I had with her is what made me bring you here in the first place. What I'm about to tell you is something that you need to process on your own. I can't tell you how to feel about it, but there's no use keeping it secret until you figure it out yourself."
Mitsuki took another deep breath and fiddled with her fingers. She was visibly shaking. Dekomori turned her gaze to Mitsuki. The purple haired girl had already said a lot of things that were hard to process. She couldn't imagine what else could possibly be said.
"I-I've grown to care about you a lot. You've shown me that there are people who truly are kind and generous. You don't hide behind those traits either. You don't use them to maintain popularity. It's just a part of you. It comes naturally. You're able to be proud of who you are no matter what, and you're still kind to those who don't understand you at all. I haven't met someone like that before. I know I'm rambling, but I guess this is my weird version of a confession." Mitsuki chuckled nervously.
Mitsuki had been right. That was definitely a lot to take in, and Dekomori had trouble processing it all at once. Dekomori wasn't sure why she was so surprised. The kisses from a few weeks ago should have been a clear indicator, though she hasn't always been the best at recognizing romantic feelings in people.
Mitsuki spoke up again, "I know you're fond of Nibutani, but I still feel the need to tell you this. Like I said before, I personally don't believe she has your best interests at heart. I think that if you were to involve yourself with her, it would only end in heartbreak. She's the only one whose opinion matters to you, right? I can't see that being a good thing, especially considering your differing opinions on chuunibyou. You never know, it might be significant enough to drive a wedge between you two." Mitsuki paused to catch her breath.
Dekomori knew that Nibutani wasn't a fan of chuunibyou, but she never thought the second year would hate it to the point where it could be damaging to their relationship. The thought was startling, and for the first time in a long while, Dekomori doubted her chuuni self. It was a very unwelcome feeling, and Dekomori felt the overwhelming desire to leave immediately.
After a few moments, Mitsuki continued, "I won't tell you what to do or what to feel. How you proceed from here is entirely up to you. All I ask is that you take everything I said into consideration and know that there is an alternative option available to you."
Dekomori stood up immediately. "Thank you for sharing this information with me. You were very brave, my servant. I will make sure I assess this properly, and I shall report back soon." Dekomori shuffled her feet and looked around the room, not wanting to make eye contact. She hoped that this marked the end of the conversation.
"Okay," Mitsuki replied. She smiled and her eyes shone with happiness, her earlier nervousness replaced with confidence.
"And that's what happened." Dekomori finished.
Nibutani and Dekomori were sitting in the club room. The night before, Nibutani had been hit with the news that Mitsuki had confessed to Dekomori. She remembered that her head had spun and she had gotten nauseous. The news had scared her. She was afraid that she had waited too long and missed her chance. Dekomori must have noticed her reaction because the blonde girl told Nibutani that she would talk about what happened after class the next day, and here they were.
Nibutani bristled, "I can't believe she brought up the chuunibyou thing again. I thought she'd give it a rest by now. She should know that you don't really care what I think. " Nibutani felt utterly disappointed. Mitsuki said a lot of heavy things, and Nibutani wished she had just gone for a simple confession. It annoyed her that Mitsuki decided to drag her into it as well. There had to be some ulterior motive hidden there.
"What are you going to do about it?" Nibutani asked. "She's probably expecting an answer from you, so you need to decide if that's something you want to pursue." Nibutani was hoping that her blonde companion would just outright reject Mitsuki. Though it didn't seem like that was going to be the case. It was obvious that the purple haired girl's words had struck a chord in Dekomori.
"Do you hate me?" Dekomori asked suddenly. Nibutani looked at her in shock.
"Of course not! What made you think that I did?" Nibutani replied. The question caught her by surprise. That was the last thing she expected to hear from the first year.
"Mitsuki said that you hate chuunibyou and all things associated with it, so that should mean that you hate me too," Dekomori answered quietly. She rested her head on her knees. She appeared deeply troubled.
"Is that why you were so quiet yesterday?" Nibutani asked. "It was because you thought I hated you?" Dekomori didn't respond. Nibutani took her silence as confirmation.
Nibutani groaned. Of course saying something like that would upset her. It was a direct hit to Dekomori's insecurity. The purple haired girl must have known that saying something like that would really bother the young blonde. Nibutani clenched her fists in anger. That stupid transfer student has the nerve to say that I'm bad for Dekomori, but then she goes and says whatever she wants without considering the effect. How annoying...
Nibutani turned to Dekomori and said, "I don't hate you. It's the complete opposite. Yeah, you may be difficult to deal with at times, but I suppose everyone has their bad moments. I've grown to be appreciative of your company. It's never boring, to say the least."
Dekomori paused before answering, probably to give her time to mull over what she was going to say next. Nibutani hoped that her answer gave the twin tailed girl some peace of mind. The very idea that Mitsuki might be trying to make Dekomori doubt her made Nibutani absolutely furious. If that girl is planning something sneaky, I swear I'll make her regret coming within five feet of me.
Dekomori's voice interrupted Nibutani's increasingly violent thoughts, "Would you like me more if I wasn't the Mjolnir Hammer?" Dekomori's head still rested on her knees, and she refused to make eye contact. Nibutani felt a little worried.
"Geez, you're really throwing out the tough questions, aren't you? To be honest, I've gotten used to seeing you as your eccentric chuuni self, so seeing you act in any other way would be way too weird," Nibutani answered. That question seemed very strange coming from Dekomori. It was unlike her to feel doubtful about her chuunibyou.
"Okay," Dekomori sighed. She seemed unconvinced. This wasn't the best situation to be in, and Nibutani inwardly cursed Mitsuki for the umpteenth time that day. That girl had an annoying talent of being able to get into people's heads. Nibutani assumed that she had picked up that skill from her home schooling days.
Apparently what Nibutani said wasn't going to be enough. There wouldn't be another time to reveal important information that was as perfect as now. They were alone together in the club room, and everyone else had other school activities to attend to, so there was no threat of being interrupted. If Mitsuki could confess, then so could she.
"You know, Mitsuki's not the only one who really likes you. I've had feelings for you for a while myself. It seems like you really are popular with people, though I can't really figure out why we all find you as charming as we do," Nibutani smiled. Dekomori's head shot up in surprise. She stared at Nibutani, wide eyed.
"I had a lot of difficulty dealing with my feelings at first, and I spent a lot of energy trying to repress it all. My feelings resurfaced after I saw Mitsuki kiss you." Nibutani paused. Her mind flashed back to that day when she walked in to see Mitsuki kissing Dekomori. Nibutani shuddered. It was an incredibly unpleasant memory.
Nibutani continued, "Remember when we were riding the train back to your house, and I told you that I had a lot of pent up emotions? Well, that was because I was so overwhelmed with my feelings resurfacing, and I just didn't know how to handle it. I tried to run from it, which was a bad decision, and I ended up hurting you," Nibutani smiled sadly. It was hard to recollect her past behavior.
"And then the festival happened and we were paired together for the night. That was the happiest I'd been in a while. Holding your hand while walking through the crowd, sitting on top of the hill with you, and holding your hand that night in the hotel room; those were some of my happiest moments." Nibutani glanced over at Dekomori, who sat there staring into space. Nibutani couldn't read her facial expression.
"It must be strange having two confessions dumped on you within such a short timeframe, but it couldn't be helped I suppose. I just really need you to know that I don't hate you, regardless of what Mitsuki might tell you. This isn't the first time she's missed the mark completely. It's obvious that Mitsuki's showing her hand, and now it's time that I showed mine. She's not the only one with a few tricks up her sleeve." Nibutani's speech was met with silence.
Nibutani looked over at the twin tailed girl and saw that she had buried her face in her arms. That wasn't the reaction that Nibutani was expecting. She hoped that her confession hadn't made things worse. Nibutani sighed and closed her eyes.
Damn, now that I think about it, maybe confessing right now wasn't the best plan. She already has to deal with one confession, so adding a second one into the mix probably didn't help. I bet she's even more confused than before. I really need to start thinking things through before I act so I don't keep trapping myself in awkward situations.
Nibutani let out a loud sigh. She'd been sighing a lot lately, though she couldn't really blame herself. These past couple of weeks had been nothing but stressful, and now the blonde girl beside her had turned unresponsive. It was just one more thing for her to worry about.
Nibutani felt something tug at her sleeve. She opened her eyes and looked at the girl sitting next to her. Dekomori had lifted her head and was staring straight at Nibutani, a noticeable spark in her eyes. Nibutani's heart thumped, not entirely sure about what was going to happen. The twin tailed girl leaned over suddenly and pressed her lips to the older girl's cheek. Nibutani flushed scarlet.
When Dekomori pulled away, Nibutani asked, "What was that for?" She placed her hand on the cheek that received the kiss.
Dekomori ignored her and said, "I'm not going to accept Mitsuki's confession." Nibutani felt her chest swell with happiness.
"Okay," Nibutani replied. "I can't say that I'm not happy to hear that." In truth, she was ecstatic. It seemed like the drama could finally come to a close now that everything was sorting itself out.
"But, after giving it some thought, I've decided to accept yours," Dekomori grinned. Nibutani felt like crying. Things were turning out exactly the way she hoped they would, and it felt fantastic.
"Really? That's good to hear," Nibutani sighed in relief. It really was good to hear. Her biggest fear was that the blonde girl wouldn't reciprocate her feelings, but that obviously wasn't the case here.
"It's about time you confessed to me! I knew you wouldn't be able to resist the Mjolnir Hammer's charm!" Dekomori laughed boisterously.
Nibutani shoved Dekomori lightly. "Oh shut up! I can hardly believe that I fell for a crazy chuuni girl like you." Nibutani saw something flash in the other girl's eyes, but it was quickly replaced with a mischievous twinkle.
"I can take it all back. You know, accepting your confession," Dekomori smiled playfully.
"Don't you dare," Nibutani mumbled. Dekomori chortled in response, earning another light shove from the second year.
Nibutani reached over and interlaced her fingers with Dekomori's. She felt the younger girl rest her head on her shoulder. The two girls sat in silence, using the quiet to fully appreciate each other's presence.
Dekomori was the first to break the silence, "I believe that I informed you of my intention to reveal what happened to me while you were gone once you told me about what was on your mind. I suppose now is the best time to relay that information." Nibutani had totally forgotten about that. Dekomori had made that promise that night when Nibutani was taking her home after their reunion.
"I had my own set of difficulties during your time of absence," Dekomori began. "It's always been my intention to create a contract with you, similar to Rikka and Yuuta's, so it was difficult to accept that you were no longer making an appearance at the club. When you stopped showing up to the club room, after our battle in the hallway, I was lost on what move I should make next."
Nibutani felt guilt eat at her again. That wasn't her finest moment, and if she could take back how she acted, she would in a heartbeat.
"I eventually decided to wait for your return," Dekomori continued. "Mitsuki kept trying to convince me that I should give up on you. She claimed that you didn't care, but I knew she was wrong. In the end, my waiting paid off, and you returned. It was a difficult test of willpower, but I managed to pull through, as expected of the Mjolnir Hammer."
Nibutani smiled and squeezed Dekomori's hand tighter. "I'm glad you waited. It's something you shouldn't have had to do, but I'm glad you did it. You really are something else..." Dekomori tightened her grip as well.
"On that note, I need to go inform Mitsuki that I cannot accept her contract. I believe she is getting extra training by our classmates, so I should seek her out before she returns back home," Dekomori said. Nibutani nodded in agreement.
"I'll wait for you out front. I'll take you home," Nibutani said. Dekomori smiled widely. The twin tailed girl grabbed her bag, waved goodbye to Nibutani, and ran out the club room.
Wow, I can't believe that things really turned out in my favor. I was a little worried for a moment there. I didn't expect Mitsuki to make a bold move like confessing. Maybe now she'll back off for good. Though I wouldn't be surprised if she has a plan b. I should keep my guard up.
Satisfied with the days events, Nibutani gathered her things and made her way to the front of the school.
Nibutani stood in the front of the school. Twenty minutes must have passed before she felt someone's presence beside her. She turned around, expecting to see Dekomori standing before her, but saw Mitsuki standing next to her instead, a sour expression on her face.
"So I heard that Sanae accepted your confession," Mitsuki said. "I'm impressed that you managed to pluck up the courage to say anything. I thought you'd end up running away with your tail between your legs."
Nibutani bristled, "You really are a sore loser, aren't you? You just can't handle things not going your way, can you? It must be hard knowing that putting up your sweet, bubbly front won't always get you what you want. Maybe you should have stayed as that shy, innocent girl you used to be." Mitsuki's eyes flared in anger.
"Don't even try and act like you understand what that's all about!" Mitsuki spat back. "You couldn't possibly understand why I do what I do! I transformed myself because I had no other choice! I may not always express who I truly am inside, but at least people see me as a person and not some object they can abuse and taunt whenever they feel like it!"
"It's funny, you're so quick to pass judgement on others, but as soon as someone does the same to you, your defenses go up and you act like it's the worst offense someone could commit. Hypocrisy at it's finest," Nibutani retorted.
"Whatever. I just hope you have the decency to appreciate what you have." Mitsuki glared at Nibutani.
Nibutani's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean?"
"I hope you can love Sanae for who she really is," Mitsuki growled. "It would be a shame if she thought you felt differently. I can imagine that it would be hard for her to be with someone who didn't appreciate who she was. Who knows, maybe she'd try to change herself completely. That would be truly unfortunate, wouldn't it?" Mitsuki threw one last glare at Nibutani and stalked off.
Love Dekomori for who she really is? What does she mean by that? I wouldn't have fallen for her if that wasn't the case. Dekomori can't possibly think I feel otherwise. She wouldn't want to change herself just to make me happier. That isn't like her at all.
Nibutani suddenly remembered her earlier conversation with the first year. Dekomori had asked Nibutani if she would prefer it if she was no longer the Mjolnir Hammer. Nibutani panicked. She hoped that Dekomori really wasn't thinking that she wanted change. Nibutani thought that her confession cleared that issue up. She would have to keep an eye on the tiny girl.
Nibutani waited for a few more minutes before Dekomori showed up.
"Sorry, a teacher asked me to assist them with a very important mission, so that's why I'm late," Dekomori explained.
"It's fine," Nibutani smiled. "Let's head home." Nibutani could worry about Mitsuki's words later. For now, all she wanted to do was enjoy the presence of the girl walking beside her. As they walked away from the school grounds, Nibutani felt Dekomori's hand brush against hers. The blonde girl eventually grasped Nibutani's with her own. They walked home hand in hand.