Author's Note: I'm going to be really unpopular now, aren't I? I just wanted them to be happy, okay? So they can be alone together! Thanks for sticking with crazy old me. I love anyone who's read this far!

I lay back on my bed a sigh a little. That Nitori-kun is pretty cute. But Gou had a point. I certainly know how to pick 'em. Is this some kind of curse that has been laid on me? Am I fated to fall in love with guys who don't really love girls in general? Or, well, not that way. I roll around a little, struggling with my decision. I know what it feels like to grow a crush, and that's definitely what I'm doing. But I don't want to hold onto it for a year and then cut it down in a day like I did with Makoto-senpai. So this time, I'm nipping it in the bud. I stand up decisively and start ruffling in my handbag, looking for my phone.

Why can I never find anything in here? I try to keep it organised. Really! But somehow, all this random crap just sort of accumulates and before long it looks like a hurricane blew through my handbag. Ah! There it is. After about three minutes of fruitless searching, I finally find my phone.

Nitori-kun, I want to talk. Can we meet again at the park tomorrow? I type it, but I don't send it. I read it over a few times. Is that too formal? Should I be more energetic? I delete what I've typed so far and try again from scratch.

Hi, Nitori-kun! I hope you're feeling better now. If it's not too much trouble, can we meet again in the park tomorrow? There's something I want to ask you. 3. Well, the heart has no place, so I delete it pretty quickly. Is that too happy? Does it sound fake? I let it echo about in my head a little. It does. So I try being more candid. But that's hard when you're talking to a keypad.

Nitori-kun, there's something I want to talk to you about. If you can, I'd like to meet you in the park tomorrow. This is important to me, so can you please reply quickly? That sounds nice. It's just the right amount of desperate – like I need his help, but not needy. It's the right amount of polite – like we're friends but there's something boiling under the surface. It's the right amount of energetic – happy, but not false. I click send and watch as my phone works its magic.

Now I play the waiting game. And it's absolute torture. Seconds drag out, and I get desperate for something to do. I grab my handbag and upend it over my bed, spilling lipstick and receipts and all sorts of things everywhere. I look into the empty bag and see little piles of dust collecting at the edges. I blow at it, trying to get them out, but it makes them blow back in my face. I cough a little, because I breathed in some dust. Now that it's clean(er), I inspect all the little pockets on the inside. There are plenty. I should devise some sort of system. There's a big one along the left side. Make-up goes in there. Three shades of pink lipstick, a compact with my favourite solid foundation and a little box with four different colours of eye shadow get tucked surreptitiously into this new hidey-hole. That's all that I have in handbag at the minute. I should probably put in some mascara just in case. I don't wear it often, but when I do, I can't risk having an emotional moment, crying and smudging it everywhere. I should put in some make-up removal wipes, too. Next to my make-up pocket is a little slide that's the perfect size for my phone. So now my phone officially has a home. No longer shall I ferret around in a handbag searching for it. My purse is large enough that you can't really miss it if it just floats in the bag, so it just goes back in. Receipts are the killer. They're awkwardly sized, but you want to make sure you have them in case you want to return something. So I decide to stack them neatly next to my purse. But I check them first, throwing out the ones I don't need anymore. And now there's all this random crap. Those water-free hand sanitisers, an old key ring and for some godforsaken reason an apple. I sort through this plie of paraphernalia (I'm not entirely sure that's the correct use of that word), throwing out the things I don't want, and poking a little at the apple before putting it aside. I'll wash it in a bit, and then eat it. It's still good. There's the really convenient zip-up pocket that runs the length of my bag, so there's plenty of room for everything I have to fit in there. I just dump it in gracelessly. I smile at myself, satisfied. I grab my phone to check the time. It's been about five minutes. It felt like five hours. I go to sigh in disappointment when it buzzes in my hand.

What time, Chigusa-san?

At least he's available. I'm glad I tried this. It might go wrong, but at least it'll go wrong fast. Just going nowhere slowly for a year sucks. Been there, done that. Time to get persuasive.

Around 10 good by you?

Perfect. See you there.

So it's 10:10 and she's not here yet. Is this a standard girl thing? And what do I say when she arrives? Are there rules or something I'm supposed to follow? I shake my head a little to try and make my thoughts clear again. Keep it together, Aiichiro. She asked for your help. I only met her yesterday. But she's nice, if a little bubbly. So I'm glad to help, if I can. And plus, it's good to make some friends outside of school and the swim team and in general. I take cover from the sun under the big oak tree in the centre of the park.

"Nitori-kun!" I turn around and see her there.

"Ah, Chigusa-san. Nice to see you." I notice something's a little bit different. "Oh? You're not wearing your hair up."

"Thanks for noticing!" She smiles at me in this really friendly way and I don't quite know what to make of it. "I've been going for a more natural look recently."

I look at my knees. I'm too shy to lock eyes with her. "I think it suits you."

"Glad to hear it." She sits next to me, and I keep looking at my knees. "So, I'm just going to forward about this. Hope you don't mind."

"By all means, please go ahead. If I can, I'll gladly help." I manage to look up for a second, but only a second. I try to imagine what every else in the park must think we're doing. Does it look like we're on a date? I kind of hope not. And kind of hope so. I can't really tell what I think. I think it'd be nice to be able to go on a date with someone as cute as Chigusa-san, but I don't know if it's for me.

"Well, it might seem a little soon, but trust me, I'm experienced with this stuff." What is she talking about? Is about to say what I think she is? I blush pre-emptively. "We might have only met yesterday. But I'm starting to get a bit of a crush on you."

"You can tell already?"

"I've had plenty of crushes. I know the signs." She smiles. "But I've had a bit of bad run. I tend to hold onto just-crushes too long and by the time I say what I feel, they're already taken. So I'm making the first step now."

"Well, thank you. I guess. But I'm not sure I can return your feelings."

"Is it for the reason I think?"

"That depends. What do you think?" I retreat even further into my knees. Am I really that transparent?

"Does it have anything to do with Gou's older brother?"

I start at first, but I relax before too long. "A little bit, yeah."

"Well, if that's how you feel, I have no right to tell you to change. But…" She trails off a little.

"I don't really know just yet. There's definitely something for Rin-senpai, but I don't know if it's just admiration or… more than that."

"Then can we make and arrangement?"

I sit up bullet straight from surprise, and shudder with… something. Anticipation? Anxiety? I'm not sure. "What kind of arrangement?"

"While you figure out how you feel, can we go out? I mean, it's okay with me if that's too much for you. But, like, you can experience both sides of the argument, so to speak. And it'll be a great excuse to be closer to your Rin-senpai." I feel myself blushing furiously. I stammer, trying to make a phrase, but I can't break into her sentence. "And I'll finally get something out of one of my crushes. So it's a win-win, right?"

"I'm just… not sure." I can't look at her level. "I mean, I only met you yesterday and I don't really know you yet. And I certainly don't know you well enough to say whether I can love you or not. Is it right for me to date you even though I might never love you?"

"You're the only one who can make that call. I mean, I'm fine with it. But the decision will have to fall on you sometime." She suddenly seems quieter, more mature, like a butterfly has just now poked it head out of the cocoon that is Chigusa Hanamura.

"I guess… if you're okay with that, then… as long as you know that I may never feel anything for you." I squirm uncomfortable, fighting with the words. "Then it'd be great."

She reaches across and places her hand gently on top of mine, even though we can't meet eye to eye. "Thanks a lot."

"Chigusa-san…"

"Call me Hana."

"Hana-san, then. Don't thank me. It makes it feel too much like a lie. I think I'll enjoy it too. Being able to spend time with you. It's the first time I've ever really had a serious relationship with anybody. And I can't exactly go saying which team I bat for without some kind of experience. So I owe you as much as you owe me. I won't thank you yet. That's what a relationship is all about, isn't it? We do things for each other without expecting thanks in return, because we already know the other's grateful."

"Listen to you, you little poet-swimmer-man!"

I blush again. "That's just how I feel. Or it's all that I know that I feel." I shy away.

"Well, I think it's sweet." Our hands are still intertwined. "I've got to go. Mum's expecting me back. But I'll call soon, okay?"

"Okay." We both stand as she goes to leave. Almost involuntarily, we end up with arms around each other. "See you soon, Hana-san."

"You will, Aiichiro-kun." With that, she breaks the hug and runs off. I sigh to myself. Have I really made the right decision? A leaf breaks off the oak tree and floats down in front of me. I reverse its path in my head and find the branch it fell off. But there's really no way to tell – it looks the same way it did before. I smile to myself. So what if I made the wrong decision? Maybe a leaf or two will just fall off me and I'll keep being the way I was before. I'll just have to wait and see.