Sticky Notes and Foolish Stumbles

by Older. Wiser. But still Naty

I don't know how I became insecure; I guess I just am. Everybody stumbles in life, yet only I die of embarrassment when I do. While others pick themselves up and dust themselves off, I sit there in complete horror as if I'd been hit by a car instead. It's not normal; I need to change. So Mom sent me to a self-esteem camp. And that's where I met Luka.

1. Sticky Notes and Foolish Stumbles

Sticky-Notes and Foolish Stumbles

*awkward cough* Happy late birthday to Paru-chan! Happy late birthday to Paru-chan! Happy late birthday, happy late birthday, happy late birthday to Paru-chan! Yay!

Anyway... LOL, I started this oneshot back when I still thought you were a boy, Paru-chan! XD It's written right beneath this, right now, 'Special oneshot for ParuCafe - HIS birthday is January 3rd, so you MUST have it done by then!' (I've erased it now, though.) That's a double strike right there; first of all, you're lacking an OTN, therefore making you a 'her', and second of all... even with a little note like that, I couldn't finish this on time. OTL

I really hate being me, sometimes. I never have time for anything! D;

Um... Yeah. I started this somewhere in December, but I'm terrible when it comes to finishing oneshots. I'm sorry! OTL ParuCafe's birthday was on January 3rd (she turned 16!), and it is now way, WAY past that. I'm so sorry, Paru-chan! OTL I wanted to finish it at least before March (I have realistic goals, LOL), but then February was a total bust (you may or may not remember why), and then I forgot about it for a while. Then I thought, OH CRAP! and remembered. It was only like, three thousand words then. I'd been trying to update my stories as usual and the extra time I had from that, I'd put into this oneshot. ... But then... that ended up taking forever. It is currently the end of May, pretty much six months after your birthday. I SUCK. Finally, I sucked it up and decided, 'L&F Ch.23 can wait a little longer. I'VE GOT A BIRTHDAY FIC TO FINISH, DAMNIT, AND I'M GOING TO FINISH IT!'

Again... I'm so sorry this is so late. Like... really sorry. I freaking SUCK. (You may not say it, because you're too kind, but I give you permission to think it. I know you probably already are. XD)

But anyway, this is a Luka x Miku fic. THIS IS A YUUUURI FIC. For those who don't know what yuri is, yuri is when two people with boobs and other female parts love each other and do things that some boys and girls do. Don't like that? You shouldn't have clicked this in the first place, then. Do like that? Good; let's be friends! XD

Anyway... in regards to the actual story.

This was actually inspired by a real-life event of mine. (Well, minus the yuri.) When I was about 9 or 10, I spent two weeks at a sports camp called Olympia. (Ew, sports.) I was a little too young, I think. I was still very dependent on my parents back then, and for some reason, I was very mood-swingy. I was such a crybaby! It's embarrassing to think about it... OTL

Anyway, some (*cough* most) of the camp layout is even based off that old camp. Mine was a sports camp, though, not a self-esteem camp thing. I actually got the idea for this in the shower... Don't ask about that. I always get my best ideas in the shower.

Anyway, I was thinking about all those Dove Girls' Camps commercials that always air during the summer and spring to promote - as the title suggests - Girls' Self-Esteem Camps. It's supposed to boost your self-esteem and make you more confident. So I was in the shower just thinking about what it would be like if I actually went to one of those. I'd probably be the brattiest kid there. *laughs* I'd probably be like, "Oh, by the way, I might like girls, so if any of you are against gays, keep your mouth shut, or I'll burn you. Okay?" I'd probably end up offending everyone, too. I'm far too cocky and defiant... It's not a good thing either. LOL!

So, from that, I started getting all perverted in my thoughts. For some reason, no matter what the situation is, if I start thinking of it as a series of events, like a story, I automatically fill the roles with characters that aren't me. I think at first, I thought of Gumi and Rin, or something. Gumi was based off my personality, and Rin was... well, Rin. But then I decided I wanted a more mature character as the love interest, so I traded Rin for Luka. And I don't like Luka x Gumi, so next, I switched Gumi for Miku. Then, I was like, 'HOLY CRAP, PARUCAFE LIKES MIKU X LUKA! IT'D BE PERFECT!' So, voila. You've got the process of making this story.

Crap... how do my A/Ns always end up so long...?! OTL

---

I watched the trees fly by.

It seemed like forever had passed, even though I'd only gotten on the bus a few hours ago. Perhaps 'few' was an understatement; I'd been on the same bus for nearly seven hours now.

I should have been grateful; I was riding a coach bus with a bathroom, snacks, and a movie playing, and of course, my destination was promised to be just as wonderful. But that was part of the problem: I was so looking forward to arriving that everything else just seemed dull to me.

See, for the first time ever, I would be sleeping away from home. I'd never gone to sleepovers or parties or road trips of any kind and wasn't used to sleeping in any bed not my own, so this would be an entirely new (and maybe a little scary too) experience. But was I ready?

I sighed, slouching in my seat as I observed the other girls on the bus. 'It would be nice to have a friend to talk to...' But everyone had already found a companion. They didn't need another, and even if I did decide to try and make friends, I was far too shy to be able to do such a thing properly. The likely outcome would be an awkward 'Hi...' before returning to my seat. Embarrassing and not ideal. And yet… being lonely isn't any fun either…

"Attention, girls! We'll be there in less than ten minutes! If you have anything taken out, please re-organize your belongings, and be prepared to exit." Ah, that was relieving. It would seem I'd be able to avoid quenching my loneliness after all. Good.

The chatter on the bus rose higher in volume, and adults tried (and failed) to calm people down. But how would that work? Even I felt excited! It seemed to take hours. I had nothing to put away, so those ten minutes seemed to stretch out to last twice as long. As I lay in my seat, I thought back to the reason my parents had agreed to send me here in the first place. I had a severe case of shyness, an insecurity that seemed to keep everyone away. My mother often told me It was because I built walls instead of bridges, but I didn't mean to! If anything, the walls had built themselves around me, and more than anything else, I wanted them to disappear.

I don't know how I became insecure; I guess I just am. My mother can never understand this, being she has a strong composure and blunt attitude. She never gets embarrassed over anything, no matter the situation. 'Everybody stumbles in life,' she told me once, 'but it's only you who makes a huge deal of it. While others pick themselves up and dust themselves off, you sit there in complete horror as if you'd been hit by a car instead. We need to change that, Miku. We have to change that about you.' It seemed easy when she said it like that, but it wasn't anything I could help- believe me, I tried desperately.

"Here we are!" the speakers voiced. "Welcome to Camp YWH Dove, or just Camp Dove." The person at the intercom proceeded to list instructions of where to go upon being let out onto the camp site, but I didn't listen. I was already in awe.

The pine trees were larger than any I'd ever seen, and far greener than those at the city. The air smelled cleaner, too. I'd never even realized the air had a scent before. Here, though, it smelled nicer, sweet, even. I opened my window further to breathe it all in, loving it already. Mm...!

"So remember, A to L goes to the left side, M to Z goes to the right." The voice on the intercom repeated. "Are you ready?" The girls cheered. Even I let out a small 'yay'.

We all filed off the bus with our carry-on bags and waited for the counselors to unload our suitcases from the bus. As soon as I retrieved my maroon red suitcase, I rushed to the right side of the field.

There was a large gate signifying the entrance to the camp. Words were spelt by its swirled metal patterns, though I was too close to read what the words said. Beyond it was a dusty path that seemed to stretch on forever. Or perhaps I was only being impatient in that way; everything seemed unbearably slow to me at the moment.

To the left of the path was a nice, white wooden cabin. Some of the wood was chipped and broken, and the cabin seemed to be missing a few shingles, but I loved the small house anyway.

The path went downhill from there (or so it seemed), so I couldn't see very much else. I could, however, see the water beyond the mountain I stood on. It seemed slightly darker than the water in my swimming pool, and made me a little hesitant. I'd wait to see if anyone else would go swimming before me, to test if the water was acidic or not.
I hoped I'd be able to go swimming. Though it was cold now, the forecast warned of hot weather during the rest of the week, so that body of water would be more than convenient.

"... Next...?"

I snapped out of my daze. "O-Oh, sorry..." I apologized. "U-Um, my name is Miku."

"Miku, what?" the lady behind the table asked, a clipboard in hand.

Oh, right. I'd forgotten to tell her my last name. "Um, Hatsune... Miku Hatsune."

The lady gave me a look. "This is the M to Z line. Your last name starts with an H, so you have to go to the A to L line."

"O-Oh!" I turned beet red, covering my face with my hands. I was so mortified! "I-I'm so sorry...!" The lady shook her head and waved me off. Quickly, I skittered away.

'Stupid, stupid...!' I hadn't been truly paying attention, and thought of the first letter of my first name - M - instead of my last name. That was why I'd stepped into the wrong line. I felt so embarrassed now, I'd peek out every so often in my new line to make sure this was truly the A to L line, that the small sign hadn't changed.

"Miku Hatsune..." The young man murmured as he searched his own clipboard for my name. "Yep, here you are."

I breathed out a huge sigh of relief as I was handed a large envelope. "Thank you..."

The counselor grinned. "No problem!"

As I walked away, I opened my envelope.
There was a paper with the prices of goods at the camp store. The sweaters were 50$, which seemed pretty expensive, but I could need one, I thought. I only had a hundred dollars with me though... Would I really need the extra sweater? I'd decide on that later.
The next sheet of paper explained the purpose and goal of Camp Dove, along with a list of rules. The rules were typical; Don't get into fights with other campers, follow instructions, don't roam out of bounds, etc. Basic, really. I would have no problem following those.
Lastly was a paper with my medical information, the words 'Give to your counselor' written on the bottom. Stapled to it was another piece of paper that only measured half a page.

'Your cabin number is 1', it read. 'Your counselor is Iroha.'

I bit my lip in excitement. This was all so real! I'd always wanted to go to an overnight camp, and now that I was 15, my parents were actually letting me! I felt like I could squeal!

A new bounce in my step, I followed some of the other girls down the path I'd noticed earlier, all the while trying to shove my papers back into my envelope. 'Oh... There's a flashlight in here too.' I noted to myself, and then picked up my pace as we started down.

There was another building to my right with the camp's logo - a flying dove - painted on the front wall. I saw the same list of prices taped on the window as I had in my envelope. Was this the camp store?
To my far left, behind the first house I'd seen, was a larger wooden building, at least twice the size of the store. No, scratch that, it had to be at least four times the size of the store! It was huge! 'Perhaps that's the cafeteria...?' I wondered.

As I rounded the bend, the group of girls reached the main path. There were at least four more paths in different directions, positioned almost as if I were standing in the middle of the sunshine.

To my right was a large empty field of green grass, and beyond that, a sandy ditch with a volleyball net.
Forwards, there was a path leading to some cabins. Beside it was the basketball court, a caged enclosure with a surprisingly big area. The court was blue and I saw two wired boxes full of basketballs in one corner.
Northeast was another path leading to more cabins, with several benches decorating the way.
Southeast was a path that, when I turned around to look, reached another building larger than the cafeteria. I wondered to herself what such a large building could be for, and then remembered the camp's program mentioned dances. But how could they have dances without boys? Or was it possible to have dances without boys?
To my direct east was the beach I'd seen earlier. There was a wooden dock in the water, and the sand was a warm gold. A white lifeguard's chair towered over, as if reminding you that you were safe there.
A cluster of girls stood in the middle, asking each other where they had to go. A few abandoned the rest and began down the two northern paths.

I scanned my surroundings in awe. It was amazing how there could be a beach so close to forests like this. "'Scuse me."
I took a step to my right as a pretty girl with long pink hair nudged by me. She flashed a quick smile of thanks my way, then continuing down the northeastern path to the first set of cabins. Hesitantly, I followed. This girl seemed to know where she was going, and the small mob behind me didn't seem to be getting anywhere.

I noticed, as I passed the first few cabins, that the cabin numbers were painted on to the wood. Very thoughtful of them. 19, 18, 17, 16... I wondered how many girls were here, exactly. Twenty cabins seemed like a lot. And what cabin did that pink-haired girl belong to?

Finally, the girl turned down a small way, walking up to cabin number two. She turned back sharply, noticing me behind her, and smiled. "Hm." I blushed. It probably seemed like I'd been stalking her... How embarrassing...! Quickly, I ducked my head and rushed past, hoping the other girl would just ignore me.

I looked up and saw cabin number one in front of me, beside the house the girl had gone into. 'Well... Here goes nothing.' I nervously knocked on the door and waited, but no one answered. I remembered it was rude to go into someone's house without being allowed, but... I opened the door. "H-Hello?"

A girl with hot pink hair glanced up from one of the bunk beds. "Oh, hey!" she smiled, her eyes crinkling.

Her hair was cut in a short bob with straight bangs, but the back was long and fine, pulled into a thin ponytail. Her eyes were of an amber color and almond shaped, coated with a thin layer of eyeliner and gold eye shadow. She seemed fit enough; not front cover material, of course, but healthy looking. She looked around 130 pounds, give or take.

She held out her hand. "I'm Iroha, and if you belong to cabin 1, than this is your cabin for the next two weeks!"

I glanced around.

There were four bunk beds with small nightstands separating them in between. One had a suitcase lying on it, so I assumed Iroha had already claimed that one as her own. Beyond that was a small hallway, and I could see white tiled walls. I assumed this was the bathroom, or the showers. Wait... There would be doors on the stalls... right?

It was a small, empty cabin, and though I was a little concerned about a few things, I somewhat liked my new temporary home. It was so different from my house...but I had to wonder: Would I really be sleeping in the same room as other girls...?

I asked this to Iroha, who only laughed. "Well of course! What, do you expect us to just leave them to sleep in the woods?" I bit down on my lip. This was one thing that worried me...

For a while now, I'd begun to notice... stuff.

My old school hadn't had a change room. We simply played in our regular clothing and didn't care if the person beside us smelled or not. We were family, in a sense, and we accepted the good and the bad of each other. In high school, though, we suddenly got change rooms and had to change into gym clothes. All of the girls simply shed their clothing like it was nothing in a wide room of lockers.

I could say as an excuse that I simply wasn't used to it, or found it odd, or perhaps even that I was trying to find out what size a certain person's bra was... But I sometimes caught myself watching them.
Sometimes, when a girl talked to me, I'd stare at her lips, wondering how they'd feel against my own. Sometimes, I'd have dreams about a fictional girl of my imagination suddenly noticing me and finding me pretty, and...

But I still thought the same things about boys, too. I'd daydream about what it would be like go be a certain boy's girlfriend. I daydreamed about sex like any other teenage girl would. So...what was I, exactly? Was I crazy or delusional, or something?

"Oh, yeah!" Iroha exclaimed. "I forgot to ask you your name!"

My cheeks colored. I wondered discreetly if Iroha could tell what I was thinking about. Was Iroha feeling the same uneasiness as well, perhaps? "Um, Miku. Miku Hatsune..."

Iroha skipped over to her self-claimed lower bunk and grabbed a list. "Miku Hatsune... fifteen. Ooh, turning sixteen soon, I see!"

I nodded. "August thirty-first..."

"Mhm, nice! You're only staying for two weeks, though, right? Damn... we won't be able to celebrate it..."

"Celebrate it?"

Iroha blinked. "Well, yeah! We'd have a good birthday bash together! You can't have a birthday without a party! Although I suppose we could celebrate it earlier anyway..." I simply stared up at her. Iroha barely knew me...why would she want to celebrate my birthday?

Just then, the door jiggled open behind us.

"Hell yeah, I call the top bunk!"

"No way, I'm getting it!"

"There's probably more than one topper..."

"So? I still want one!"

A trio of girls burst in, giggling and chatting.

The first one had an angular chin with pretty large blue eyes. Her emerald green hair was chopped short in the back, but hung long in the front, and her bangs fell unevenly into her face. She looked like a competitive tomboy, as she raced the second girl to the nearest bunk, pushing her off the ladder so she could make it to the top bunk first.

The second girl was... perky. There really was no other way to describe it. Even her breasts looked perky... though I felt like hitting herself for noticing it. Her strawberry blond hair looked silky and soft, and fell to her mid-back. She also had a very large and very noticeable cowlick, curling forward in a cute way. Her pinkish-colored eyes shimmered and sparkled in excitement, and she seemed so bubbly, so optimistic, that she could probably get her arm bitten off by a shark and only say, "Well, at least it's not my writing hand!"

The third girl seemed smug. She had her arms crossed arrogantly as she watched her companions argue about the bunk. Her flaxen-blonde hair framed her round face nicely, and was decorated with a large floppy white bow. She had big half-lidded cerulean blue eyes, and small pink lips. She was extremely skinny, with a flat chest and a thin waist, but she didn't seem quite anorexic. Perhaps she had a high metabolism.

"Welcome to Cabin One!" Iroha grinned. "I'm Iroha, your cabin counselor for the next two weeks. Can I get your names?"

"Rin." the blonde one said, jerking her chin up in a cocky way that both annoyed and intrigued me. "Age fourteen, turning fifteen." Rin gestured at the other two. "Green one's Gumi, sixteen years old. Pink one's Miki, fifteen years." She glanced over at me. "Who are you?"

"I-I'm Miku." I swallowed. "Um... age, sixteen."

Rin took a step closer, smirking. "Aw, well aren't you a cutie!" she exclaimed.

Gumi and Miki both looked over, temporarily giving up their bunk. "Yeah, she is pretty cute!"

"Mhm!" Miki agreed. She hopped over to them. "You have such long hair!" she murmured in awe as she combed through my long blue locks.

"U-Um, yes..." I grew flustered. "I've been growing it out for a really long time, so..."

"Aw, look, she's blushing!"

"She's a freaking loli!"

"Not really... I mean, isn't a loli supposed to be short? She doesn't look like a nine-year-old, so I don't think she'd be considered a loli."

"You ruin everything..."

As the three of them bickered on around her, the door opened again.

In stepped a girl with pale pinkish hair. It was braided on both sides in front of her shoulders, but the rest flowed like a long mane behind her. Her azure blue eyes seemed dull and monotonous as she took in the room around her behind her thick black glasses.

"Ooh, cute outfit!" Miki gushed.

The girl glanced down at herself. She wore a plaid red pleated mini skirt with some green lines here and there in the design, along with a white T-shirt with a black bolded 'WHAT?' imprinted on it under a thin black leather jacket. Navy socks stretched up to her knees, and dark-colored combats decorated her feet. She carried a plain black suitcase, but also had a brown messenger's bag hanging across her torso from one shoulder.

She glanced back at Miki with a small 'humph', and made her way to the furthest bunk to the left. She lifted her suitcase onto the mattress without a word, and began unpacking.

"Um... What's your name, hun?"

The girl glanced back at Iroha with a somewhat annoyed expression. "Aria."

"Aria Planetes?" Iroha asked, glancing down at her clipboard.

Aria ignored her. "Just call me Ia."

"O-Okay..."

"How old?" Miki asked in a friendly manner, rocking back and forth on her heels.

Ia didn't even answer. "She's turning sixteen." Iroha answered for them.

Rin gaped. "Are you fucking serious?! I'M the youngest?!"

Gumi smiled. " You better not shout! "

Miki giggled and joined in. " You better not cry! "

" You better not pout, I'm tellin' you why! "

They glanced up at me expectantly and I fidgeted, flustered at the sudden attention. " Rinny-chan is coming... to town. " I sang quietly.

"Aw!" They both sighed, resting themselves on Rin's shoulders.

"That was so cute!"

Rin fumed. She pushed them off violently. "Get off, you fucking lesbos!"

"Hey!"

"I'm no lesbian! I have no idea about Gumi, but I like boys!"

"I don't-…!" She paused. "Well, it depends."

Rin smirked at Gumi's small confession. "Nice."

"Keep the conversation appropriate, girls!" Iroha laughed. "So, do you three go to the same school?"

"Hm? Ah, no." Rin grinned. "We're complete strangers. We're just friendly!"

"Mhm." Gumi climbed up the ladder of the bunk she'd wanted without Miki noticing and lay down on it in satisfaction.

"Really?" Iroha raised a brow. "What about you, Miku? Did you come with someone?"

I felt as if everyone was watching me and shrunk back slightly. "I-I- No, I-I came alone..."

"Oh." And that was that; the end of the conversation.

I saw Ia glance over at me and suddenly realized no one had asked her if she had come along with anyone. They'd probably assumed that, because of her cold demeanor, she didn't have any friends to bring along. I wondered, was this girl just like myself? But I didn't dare ask.

"Alright, that's all five of you. Choose your bunks, sort things out, and we'll be off to The Eats for dinner!" Iroha announced.

Oh, right... I hadn't even started yet!

I put my suitcase on a bottom bunk, the second to the right. Miki quickly ran over. "Miku, Miku! We can be bunkmates, since Gumi," she stuck her tongue out at the older girl, "stole mine. Yay!" She pushed her hot pink suitcase under my bunk and climbed the ladder up to her bed. "Ew... it's hard!" I heard her complain as she lay down on the top bunk.

Both Rin and Gumi's eyes brightened. "That's what she said!" they both exclaimed at the same time and gasped, turning on each other. "Jinx!"
As the two girls argued over who was jinxed, I pulled out my bag of toiletries, placing them on the small night table between the bunks. Then, I fished a white fluffy polar bear stuffed animal out of my backpack.

I heard a sniff behind me and spun in surprise. Ia stood there, a hand on her hip, brow raised at the bear in my hands. I wrapped her arms around it protectively. "It's my beary!" I smiled shyly. "It's not weird...!"

Ia's other brow met the first one and I saw the ghost of a smile on her face. "Cute." she said ever so softly, before turning and leaving.

I was even more intrigued now. Were we really the same? Maybe Aria would like to be friends! Perhaps, because we were both loners, we'd be able to enjoy each other's company. 'We'll see.' After all, it was still only the first day, and they'd be there for two weeks!

A little encouraged now, I placed my stuffed bear onto my bed, and raced off to follow Ia and the others outside.

---

Sometimes I wonder if it was maybe the people around me who made me the way I am. To me it feels like putting the blame on innocent people, but it could be possible. My classmates are polite and smile, yet they don't talk to me much. I guess I'm too much for their patience with my skittish ways.

Sometimes I think of myself as being covered with sticky notes. Once in a while someone will laugh at something I do or say something cruel, but mother always tells me just to forget it, that it's not important. I do try, I do, yet the insults seem to stick to my conscience the way sticky notes do to paper. It just seems that no matter what, I can't peel those damned sticky notes off.

"Over to your left, you've got the basketball court," Iroha announced, gesturing towards it. "To your right, you've got the beach. Here, we refer to the beach as the actual sandy part; further down, you'll be able to find a huge dock. If you're at the dock, and you tell someone to wait for you at the beach, don't be surprised if they don't get there. Get your names straight, and you won't have a problem."

I stopped and took it in. The water did look somewhat dark. "Is it normal for the water to be green?" I asked.

"Yep. It's just because it's lake water." She grinned. "Don't worry, it's not acidic."

"Ha!" Rin laughed.

"Further ahead, if you look, you'll be able to see a blue-ish building. That, my dear minions, is the recreation hall, where we'll do most of our indoor activities, as well as our fun-time dances on Thursdays."

"Woohoo!" Gumi cheered, fist pumping the air. Then, she knelt down in front of Miki. "Miki, will you be my date to the dance this week?"

Miki gasped dramatically. "Why, Gumi, I didn't know you felt that way!" she replied, swooning. "Of course I will! I'd be honored!"

Gumi quickly straightened up. "Excellent! This is a fantastic start to my two-week romantic plan! By next Sunday, we'll be married, and by Saturday, we'll be expecting our first grandchildren!"

"Twins!" Miki giggled. "We'll name them Steve and Joe!"

"And then we'll adopt a blue dog and name it Blue!"

Their eyes both sparkled as they sang, "We are gonna find Blue's Clues! We are gonna find Blue's Clues! We are gonna find Blue's Clues, because we're really smart, yeah!" (1)

Iroha chuckled. "Actually, you won't have to bring each other; the dances are co-op."

"How?" Ia asked.

"There's a brother camp to this one nearby; it was founded a few years after the YWH Dove camp, and it's called the YMH Dove camp."

Rin cringed. "Ew... They get Dove too? Why can't they get Camp Eagle, or something? Or, never mind them, why can't we get Camp Eagle?!"

"Dove is the founding company's name, that's why."

"That must be pretty embarrassing," Rin said with a smirk on her lips. "'Where did you go this summer, Tom?' 'Oh, I went to Camp Dove!' I thought this camp was supposed to build self-esteem, not create a path to destroy it!"

"Shh!" Iroha brought her finger to her lips, looking both ways to make sure no one heard. "Don't go around saying stuff like that! They might fire me for being a bad influence!" She was smiling though as she said it.

"What does YWH even stand for?" I asked.

"Young Women's Health," Ia answered for our counselor.

"Oh? How did you know that, Aria? Did you read the pamphlet?"

"Of course I did," Ia snapped at her. Iroha didn't seem to mind. "It doesn't take a genius to figure it out, though. Any self-esteem promoting camp with the initials YWH in its title will obviously stand for Young Women Health. It's just common sense."

"Yeah, yeah..." Rin rolled her eyes.

I didn't like how they ignored her. It was no wonder Ia was such a cold person on the outside! "You're smart, aren't you?" I asked her quietly.

Ia turned her cool gaze on me. "... Just because people call me smart doesn't mean that I am."

I blinked, confused. "I don't think I understand..."

"Of course you wouldn't." Ia turned away again, leaving me feeling bad. 'What did I do...?'

"Ah! Oh no!" Iroha exclaimed. "You girls were making me laugh and I forgot to give you the rest of the tour!" She pointed over to our left. "Over there is the camp store. You can get clothes, bottles, souvenirs, and, my favorite, candy!"

"What?!" I'm sure all our eyes (but Aria's) widened in hope. "Candy?!"

"Yep!" Iroha chirped. "There's Gatorade, Twizzlers, slushies, ice cream, sour keys, candy corn, popsicles, Jolly Ranchers... It's my heaven! If you'd like me to recommend something to you, I suggest you try the Rolo flavored Dibs. They're these little blocks of Rolo ice cream things coated in chocolate and are literally irresistible! (2)"

"Mmmm!"

"Oh, hey, have any of you been here before?" Iroha asked. We all shook our heads and she frowned. "No? Well that's rare. You're part of the older campers, so normally at least one of you has already been here. Cool! Maybe I broke a record, or something!"
We continued our tour. "That white house there is the office. This is where you should go if you have questions that can't be answered by me or if you're lost or something like that. It's also the nurse's office. If you get hurt, go there. At the very back- you see that huge building? That's The Eats."

"'The Eats'?"

"Yep. That's what we call the cafeteria. 'The cafeteria' sounds boring, while 'The Eats' sounds super swaggy!"

I noticed Ia roll her eyes at the word 'swaggy'.

"That's where we're headed now. You must be pretty hungry after that bus ride!" We nodded. "Good! So am I. Beside The Eats, there are three pay phones. After dinner, there'll be a counselor there to help you make a call to your parents, or whoever. They'll tell you a code, and you'll be able to call your parents free of charge- on your side. You may not want to use it too often because long distance calls are expensive. It'd be easier to send letters."

Finally, we reached the cafeteria doors. Around the grounds there were picnic tables and I wondered if we'd be eating outside one day. "Come on, Miku!" Iroha ushered, holding the door open for me. I hurried in.

The Eats was one large room filled with a dozen or so long tables reaching horizontally from one end to the other. Girls of all ages sat at them, setting the tables, cutting open bread, making origami with their napkins. 'So many people...!' There had to be nearly a hundred girls scattered throughout the room!

"Come on!" Iroha chirped. "We share a table with Mizki's group. Follow me!" She marched like a soldier all the way to the left wall to get around the first table then continued straight.
We stopped at the sixth table. A group of girls aged around thirteen years were busily chatting on the nearest end. One girl seemed taller than the rest, aged around fifteen rather than in her preteens. Iroha snuck behind this one.

As the girl laughed at something one of the youngers had said, Iroha pushed her forward on her seat. We all laughed at the girlish scream that came from her as she turned to see her attacker's face. "Iroha! Damn you, you almost gave me a heart attack!"

Iroha grinned and sat down beside her. "Minions, this is Mizki, the counselor of cabin 3." I think all of the members in my cabin group emitted a little gasp; Mizki was a cabin leader?! That would mean she'd have to be aged in her twenties! "We're friends, so we sit here, but you can actually go to any table you want as long as you clean up after yourself and don't make yourself a nuisance."

"Yes!"

I lowered my head and stared down at the hands on my lap. The main reason my parents had allowed me to be here for was because this camp was aimed to polish a girl's self esteem. When they found they hadn't the knowledge or experience to help me, they'd started looking into therapy. I was so lucky they'd found this camp. But so far, if they could see me, I'd be disappointing them.
I wanted friends too! I wanted to have someone to talk to!

I stuttered. "G-Gumi, I, um... I-"

"Oh my god, Rin, Miki!" Gumi piped up, apparently not even hearing me. "Remember that one girl we met on the bus?"

"We met a lot of girls on the bus." Rin remarked, raising her brow.

"Oh, I know! Do you mean the one girl with the Jolly Rancher candies?" Miki asked, eyes wide. "I wonder what table she's at..."

"Why don't we find out?" Gumi asked.

"Hm, yes, I could use myself a Jolly Rancher right now..." Rin stuck her tongue out. "If we can remember her name."

"Her name? Crap, what was her name?"

"I don't remember..."

"Here, how 'bout we focus on finding her first? Then, we'll ask her for her name!"

"But isn't that kind of rude?" Miki asked, cocking her head cutely as she began to stand.

"Nah, it'd be ruder if we spent two weeks here stealing candy without knowing her name." Rin nodded.

"Alright, if you say so. Jollieeeees!"

I watched the three of them run off in search of their friend from the bus, feeling discouraged. When would I ever be as peppy as they were? Why couldn't I be?

Slowly I turned towards Aria, who still sat nearby. She caught my gaze and frowned slightly as I opened my mouth to speak. "Ia, do you-"

"You probably don't want to engage in conversation with me." She said coldly, as she rose and walked to the other end of the table, plopping herself down where she'd be alone. 'You and I both...' I thought to myself.

Well... now what? Now I had no company at all. How could I ever be social if I remained alone like this? I bit my lip as I glanced at the younger girls from Mizki's group. They giggled and teased but seemed only interested in each other. Iroha and Mizki were happily discussing something as well. I had no one.

"How many plates do you need here?"

I gasped to myself when I looked up; it was the pretty girl from before, the one I'd followed to find my cabin. Her cotton-candy-pink hair seemed silky and soft and fell down to her waist and her cobalt blue eyes smiled warmly. She had a mature aura about her that made my throat run dry.

"Oh, Luka!" Mizki smiled. "You don't have to set the table for us! We'll do it once we get our lazy butts up!"

"No, I insist!" Luka protested. "Let me! I'm happy to help."

Mizki hesitated and sighed, shaking her head. "In which case, we need nine."

"Wait!" I piped up before shrinking. They were all staring at me now… "Did you count Aria?" The girl's eyes locked onto mine and I felt my face heat. I swallowed nervously.

Iroha stood and tried to see the rest of the table. "Ah, you're right. We need ten plates."

I felt happy with myself for noticing. Luka nodded. "Alright... ten plates. I'll be right back."

"I-I'll help!" I blurted out without thinking.

Again, our eyes met and we stared at each other. I felt a tingly feeling start in my chest, but ignored it. "Alright..." she said. "I guess it would be easier if two did the job. Follow me." I stood and followed her to a busy quarter in the back.

People of all ages rushed to and fro, grabbing plates from a large basin along with cups and cutlery. On the other side was the buffet counter, where people could serve themselves to the food. Luka began to hand me plates, stacking five of them one on top of the other. Then, she grabbed five for herself.

"So... First time here?" she asked.

"Mhm." I inwardly winced at how dumb my answer sounded. "I... I've always wanted to go to an overnight camp like this, but my parents never let me until now."

Luka smiled at me. "That's nice. I've been here every year since I was about eight or nine. My parents are friends with the owner," she explained.

"How old are you?" I asked, surprised Luka had the money.

"Seventeen," Luka answered. She laughed and added, "I'm probably the oldest one here."

"Wow... That's really cool. You're so lucky."

"You think so?" Luka smiled. "I've always thought it a bother."

We began setting the plates on the table. When I placed the last plate in front of Aria, she looked up and frowned. "I could've gotten that myself," she muttered.

"You're welcome." Somehow, I felt my gesture wasn't well appreciated. What had I done wrong?

Luka and I went back to get cups and cutlery. "They didn't always have plastic cups," Luka said, "but we'd usually break at least three per year, so they had it switched about... two summers ago, I think."

"Really?" I giggled. "That's kind of funny. I bet whoever cleaned it up all the time was really annoyed, though."

Luka shrugged, a few strands of hair slipping off her shoulder. "I didn't mind much." She caught my gaze and explained, "Because I know the woman who runs this camp, I don't mind helping out with things. Now that I'm older, I can do more, so sometimes I even get to take care of the younger groups."

"Really? Wow, that's so cool!" I'm sure my eyes were shimmering. "That's almost like being a counselor, right? I wish I could do that!"

Luka cocked her head and watched me for a moment, an interested look in her eyes. "Next time they ask me, maybe I'll get you to take my place. Less work for me, after all."

"Really?" Oh wow!

"I was only kidding," she laughed. A joke? Oh. ... Hahaha... "Even if I asked, they probably wouldn't let you, seeing as they don't know you. Besides, it's your first year here, right? Might as well enjoy it!" She winked at me and walked up to our table. I couldn't help but think, as I watched her set glasses in front of plates, that she was absolutely gorgeous. I ignored the part of me that wanted her and followed her lead, placing knives on the right and forks on the left.

When I was done, she handed me a single plate. "What's this?" I asked. Had we missed one?

"Yours," she replied with a smile. "The food's over there. You do eat, right?"

"Of course I eat! How can anyone not?" Oh... Perhaps she thought I was anorexic? After all, I was skinny, though I didn't find myself boney. Did she think I looked boney?!

"It was just a joke." She began scooping some spaghetti onto her plate. "You don't really get humor, do you?"

"I've been told I don't get sarcasm. Is that what you mean?"

"Hm, not quite."

I surveyed the buffet's contents and frowned. "There isn't much here..." There was a basin of spaghetti, a basin of meatballs, a smaller bowl of tomato sauce, a plate of stacked garlic bread, and... well, that was it.

Luka raised a perfect pink brow. "If it weren't your first time at a place like this, I'd think you were stuck-up."

I shivered at her bluntness. "I-I'm sorry... I guess I didn't know any better?" I thought a buffet was supposed to have a variety of different foods, but... Ugh, how could I have been so inconsiderate?! "I'm sorry!"

"It's no big deal," she said, brushing it off. "So, how old are you?"

Was that it? I thought she would have at least scolded me or given me a warning of some sort. "U-Um... I'll be sixteen really soon. My birthday's at the end of the month."

"Really? So you're fifteen? My birthday was in February. So you'll be in grade ten, right?"

"Y-Yeah... And you'll be in grade eleven? That's really close to graduation. Have you thought about what you want to be?"

She cocked her head. "Funny, you sounded like a parent when you said that."

I backed up a step, eyes wide. "N-No, I assure you, I didn't have a teen pregnancy, I promise!"

Luka laughed. "I wasn't accusing you of anything, don't worry! It was a compliment, sort of." Oh. I thanked her, my cheeks red. "As for your question, I don't have a clue yet. My parents suggested I get into graphic design, but..." She wrinkled her nose. "It sounds kind of boring, don't you think?"

"U-Um, no, I don't think so at all!" I shook my head and some of my hair fell into my food. I made a sound of disgust as I set my plate on the table and cleaned the red sauce out of my soft blue.

"Have you decided what you want?"

I looked up at her sharply and quickly ducked my head, blushing once more. She'd find my career choice so stupid... "I... I'd kind of like to be... a kindergarden teacher," I confessed, extremely embarrassed. And she'd said graphic designers were boring! What would she think of me, now that I'd mentioned something with even less pay and even more tiring?!

"A kindergarden teacher, huh?" She twirled her hair thoughtfully. "You look like you'd be able to handle that. I've considered being an art teacher for middle school, or something, but I don't have the patience to deal with people." Her cobalt blue eyes bore into mine. "That's an admirable quality, you know." I hid my face in my hands and she laughed. "What are you blushing so much for? Was it something I said?"

"I've... I just don't get so many compliments at once, normally..." I sounded like such a fool. "Especially not from someone as pretty as you..." Now I'd done it!

She laughed and a part of me inside shriveled up. I knew she'd laugh... they always laugh at me. I'm just so stupid! "I don't get you," she said, waving a forked meatball around. "Why does it matter if the person who tells you is pretty or not? Haven't you ever looked in a mirror?"

Slowly, I dropped my hands. Had she just...? "What's that supposed to mean?"

Luka rolled her eyes. "It's not often I meet someone as cute as you are, but you're so self-conscious and modest, it's funny! In fact, I find it hard to believe. Are you playing me?" she asked teasingly.

"E-Eh? Playing you?" I shook my head. "I don't understand what you mean...?"

"It's nothing, really. Just eat your noodles."

I was pathetic, really. I'd known Luka Megurine for only ten, fifteen minutes max, but already, I'd managed to fall for her. Congratulations, Miku Hatsune; you are officially a hopeless fool.

---

I felt so stupid the next morning as I dug through my suitcase.

I'd kept myself awake for a while the night before thinking of her. Of Luka. It was so stupid of me, because I knew that my attraction would only ever be one-sided. Surely, being as beautiful as she was she'd have a boyfriend already, and even so, she'd probably be disgusted at the thought of loving another girl. I couldn't tell her!

"Stupid," I muttered to myself as I rummaged through clothes. Why was it that even if I knew I wouldn't get my feelings returned, I still wanted to dress myself up for her? Perhaps it was enough to want to be called cute by her again. Never had I actually felt so pretty before she'd told me so... Ah! I covered my face to hide my blush. I felt like squealing! Look at what this girl had done to me!

As I pulled out a light blue tank top and threw it away, I realized: This was the first girl I'd ever actually claimed to have fallen for. I gasped to myself and stared straight ahead, feeling around me blindly for my beary. Did that really mean that... I was...? I whispered the forbidden word to myself: "Lesbian..."

"What are you doing?"

I jumped at the sound of a voice. Quickly I scanned the room, panicked over if the person had heard me say... 'that'. Had she guessed what I'd been thinking when I'd said it? Would she tell my secret?! Would she laugh at me, add another sticky note to my grand collection?

Aria glared at me from her top bunk. "What are you doing?" she repeated.

"I-I'm... picking clothes for today?" To make myself look cute for Luka. But of course I wouldn't say that.

"This early?"

"I-It's only 6:45am, Ari- Ia, I mean." She seemed to like the way I'd corrected myself. "The others will have to wake up in fifteen minutes anyway."

Aria rubbed at her eyes. "6:45?! Are you kidding me?! How are you so awake at 6:45 in the morning?!"

I cowered. Had I woken her up? Was she angry? "I-I... I always wake up early..."

She gave me a look, as if I were some crazy person. Was it not normal to be a morning person?! I couldn't help it, I'd always preferred waking up early! When I was younger, I'd be out of bed as soon as I could to watch the sun rise, and I've always hated the thought of sleeping the day away. Was that not normal?!

Aria sighed. "Whatever. I'd might as well get up too, then, or God knows I never will." She climbed down the ladder and stretched.

She wore hot pink flannel pajamas with white sheep. I wondered if she was warm last night- after all, it was late summer and steaming outside. "I don't get why it's taking you so long to pick clothes. Why don't you just grab a shirt, shorts, and get dressed?" She eyed all the clothes on my bed and her nose twitched. "How long have you been up?!"

"O-Only ten minutes, I swear!" Was it bad to put so much thought into what I'd wear?

Aria rolled her eyes. "Hmph. Whatever." As she rummaged through her own suitcase, I turned my focus back to the clothing draped on my bed.

I could wear the loose blue shirt, but that might make me look fat. I don't want to wear just a simple T-shirt either; I want something cute. I want her at least to think for a second that I look nice! I pulled out a long sparkling hot pink scarf. Ooh, nice. Maybe I'd wear that too. But what to go with it...?

I heard an exasperated sigh from behind me. "Still?" Aria asked.

"I-I'm sorry!" Why did it bother her so much that I was taking so long? Was she waiting for me for something? But what? I didn't know I had to hurry! "I'm sorry!" I said again. Oh no, oh no! My father would be shaking his head at me right now. I'm such a disappointment!

"And they signed me up for self-esteem camp..." she muttered with what I guessed was a hint of sarcasm. Or maybe more than just a hint... "Here, I'll pick something for you in less than twenty seconds." She stepped forward, lightly pushing me out of the way. "Mm... This is nice, but it'll get dirty. I like black, but you probably don't look as good in it." Thanks. "Here, this is good, with this."

I gazed over her shoulder. In the center of my mattress, she'd laid out a teal blue halter top that bunched at the breasts. Underneath that was a black ruffled skirt (and I noticed she'd added my black booty shirts as well to prevent panty flashes- Smart). "I think blue looks good on you," she said.

I blinked. What could that mean? I hadn't been wearing blue yesterday... How could she have known? "Th-Thank you..." I murmured. She only nodded her welcome. "Oh, your braids... Did you sleep in them?" I asked, noticing the messy tresses in front of her chest. (4)

"I always sleep in my braids," Ia answered. "I redo them every morning."

My gaze drifted downwards and I realized she was already fully dressed. "Wow... You're fast."

She wore a graphic tee with 'Don't mess with me' written in big block letters. (She seemed to like that kind of shirt.) Over it she wore a brown cowboy vest. A jean skirt sat loosely on her hips and she had white knee-highs this time. A brown western-styled belt was wrapped through her skirt's belt loops and I noticed big hoop earrings that weren't there yesterday.

"I just don't take forever picking things out," she snapped, but this time, I didn't flinch. I secretly wondered it that was an improvement.

"You look nice..." I told her. "Oh! Where's your glasses?"

"I'm not actually blind," she said, rolling her eyes as if such a thing were obvious. "It's a fashion statement. You know... for us hipsters." Actually, I didn't know, but I wouldn't tell her that. "Come on, get dressed already. We might as well leave early."

"H-Here?!" I asked, widening my eyes. Was she going to watch me change?! Thought I didn't want to, I couldn't help but wonder if this meant she really was like me after all.

"Of course not!" she scowled. Okay, maybe not, then. "I have to redo my braids, so I'm taking the mirror. You can change in a stall; they're big enough."

"O-Okay..." Of course she hadn't meant it like that! Duh...! Once again, I'd proven myself stupid.

Embarrassed, I quickly gathered the clothes she'd picked out for me and rushed to the bathroom stall. I heard her follow, stopping in front of the mirror.

Once dressed, I gazed down at myself. She was right; blue did look good on me, though I already knew that. Blue was my favorite color. I was about to step outside when I heard her sing.

"Hm hmm hmmm... Jealousy filling this pained and undeserved ko-ko-ro..." She had a nice voice, slightly accented and sometimes squeaky, but nice. "Yes, even though I'm tired and worn out, I'm trying, so shut up! Quit your prying... Hm hm hmm hm..."

"You're a good singer," I told her, approaching the mirror myself.

The look on her face was enough to tell me she disagreed. "You must be deaf."

I frowned slightly but chose to ignore it. Was this another improvement? I turned to the mirror and winced at my reflection. Though my long locks were fine - I'd always tie them up before going to bed so they wouldn't tangle - my bangs were sticking up everywhere. Ugh.

Aria's braids were done now, fastened with her barrettes at the ends, and yet she stood in front of the mirror, staring at herself. It almost seemed like she wanted to say something, but couldn't think of what. "We...should probably wake them up now, right?"

"We have a few minutes still," I said softly, fearing what would come now in exactly four seconds. As predicted, the awkwardness hung heavily in the air and made me squirm with discomfort. This was what always happened when I tried for conversation! Why couldn't I have said a little more?!

"You never told me why you wanted to dress up," Aria finally said. "Unless you take that long every day," she added with an arrogant sniff.

"N-No, I don't I just..." Oh no! If I told her the true reason, she'd be repulsed and wouldn't ever talk to me again, I knew it! "I just... I want to make a good first impression...?" On a specific person. It wasn't an all-out lie.

"First impressions?" Another sniff, this time in sarcasm. "You've done that all right..." Though I could tell (this time) that she was speaking sarcastically, I still wondered what she meant by those words. "Come on, wake up the others."

I left obediently and hovered beside Iroha's sleeping form. How exactly could I wake a person up without invading their personal space? I didn't want to anger her, but I didn't know how else to wake her than to shake her. "I-Iroha...?" No answer. "Iroha?" What could I do?

"'Morning sunshine, the day has broken," I sang, hoping to maybe surprise her. (4) "You must wake and enjoy it before it ends..." I heard Aria scoff from the bathroom and winced. Yes, this probably did seem ridiculous...but what else could I do?

"I'll show you how it's done." I hadn't even seen Aria walk up to me. She lifted her water bottle over Iroha's head and smiled sadistically, before slowly tilting it.

When I finally realized what she was doing, I yelled, "STOP!" It was too late, though; a little water spilled out and onto Iroha's head. I winced, bracing myself for her anger, but it never came. She was still asleep!

"See? That wasn't enough to wake her," Iroha said. "You have to dump the whole thing."

I snatched the bottle from her hands. "No you don't! That's mean, Ia! It's so rude to wake someone that way!"

Aria's eyes flared. "Excuse me? It's rude to call others rude. Have you never woken anyone up before? This is the best way to do it!" She grabbed for the bottle but I hid it behind me. "Stop being so stupid...! Just give it!"

My eyes widened. "S-Stupid...?"

I saw her pause, and she even seemed to regret for a moment. Then, she used my frozen state to her advantage and quickly reached behind me, stealing the bottle away. Some of it spilled on my back and I let out a shriek. "Serves you right," she smirked.

"GIVE THAT BACK!" A little more water spilled onto Iroha's cheek but Ia had to hold it up higher so I wouldn't smack it out of her hands.

"Go away! Geez, what's your problem?!"

"I DON'T HAVE A-" A knock at the door interrupted us and we froze. It opened and a pink-haired girl peeked inside.

My heart stopped. I'd never been so mortified! The beautiful Luka stood perfectly, her uncombed hair nice-looking even though it was a little tangled. She looked cute even just waking up while I had messy pigtails, overly red cheeks from waking not too long ago, and a huge wet spot on my teal halter top. No! This is not how I wanted her to see me!

"Mew sent me to wake you up," Luka said with a smile. "Iroha rarely manages. I'm like her alarm clock." Look at her! Flawless! I felt so ashamed. She walked over to us with such grace, she could have been a ballerina. I felt like fainting. "Can I borrow that?" she asked Aria, who still held the silver metal bottle.

"Hm? Yeah, sure."

She stood right across from us, from me, and held the bottle up high. To my horror, she turned it completely upside down, making Aria grin at me triumphantly.

Iroha awoke with a scream, her fine hair now soaked as well as her bed sheets. "What the hell?!"

Luka and Ia laughed as I stood there in shock. How could someone as kind as Luka have done something so...? "Good morning," Luka greeted. "I figured you wouldn't wake up on your own."

"What time is it?!" Iroha panicked. "Am I really that late? Has The Eats finished serving? Shit, I want food!" She scrambled out of bed, nearly hitting Aria.

"You're fine," Luka said. "It's only ten after seven." Ten after seven? And yet, Luka was still in pink butterfly-patterned pajamas. I was completely dressed- though I'd probably change my shirt now thanks to Aria...

"Ugh, thank you Luka! I'll wake the others." She stopped. "Wait... Luka, would you mind taking my shift this morning? I have to teach the twelve-year-olds the intro esteem stuff, but..." She glanced at the three sleeping girls in the bunks around her. "I have a lazy bunch here. I might miss breakfast."

"No problem," Luka smiled. "It's not like I'm not used to it." How could she be so selfless and kind? I so wished to be like her...

"If you want, Miku can help you out." Iroha stared at me expectantly. "Right?"

"Haha, no, it's fine, I don't need any help," Luka said, brushing it off. I had to admit it hurt a little.

"N-No, I'd like to help, please!" I insisted. Look at how desperate I was acting! How shameful...

"But it's only your second day!" Luka exclaimed. "Shouldn't you join the others at the regular activities? Are you sure you want to help?" I'd probably imagined it, but I could have sworn she looked intrigued by me, though I was probably still only being hopeful. You could be sure I nodded vigorously in response to her question.

"I could help out instead," Aria spoke up. "I don't care for the activities, and Miku needs them more than I do, anyway." I was offended by her remark. I didn't have problems! Well... Okay, maybe, but the way she'd said that made me sound crazy! I wasn't crazy! ... Was I?

"It's alright, Miku's already volunteered." Aria looked disappointed. "Maybe next time, okay?"

I watched her carefully. Why had she wanted to do it? She didn't... No way. Could she also have held feelings for Luka?! No way! She shot me a look and I gulped. I was nothing compared to Aria- I'd lose for sure. Oh, who was I kidding? I didn't have a chance either way! Luka would be disgusted if she knew of my feelings!

"S-So what do I do, exactly...?" I asked. I couldn't even handle my own self-esteem problems; how on earth would I teach young girls how to handle theirs?!

"We just do a few activities, then make some sort of support group-like circle and ask why they might have problems with their self-esteem," Luka explained. "Most of the time, no one can answer that question, so it usually turns into confessions of their biggest secrets or most embarrassing moments." She smiled. "It can be fun. Do you have any secrets, Miku?"

My eyes went wide. Most of the time I was honest, and so I didn't have many secrets. The only thing juicy enough to confess would be my secret attraction- but that would ruin me!

"Ooh, you look like you have a good one!" Luka beamed. "I can't wait to hear it later." She winked and it bothered me that such a simple action made me blush. She turned to Iroha and said, "I should leave now; I still have to get dressed before heading down to The Eats." To me, "Miku, meet me in the field when you're done eating, okay?"

I couldn't have nodded any more enthusiastically. It made her smile as she waved goodbye.

While I was worried about the confession of secrets part, I was suddenly extremely excited to teach those children.

---

As promised, Luka was in the field when I'd finished breakfast.

She waved me over and we both sat. "We have cabin 15, 16, and 17. The girls there are aged from nine to eleven. Nothing we can't handle, right?" Her smile made my breathing catch. "We have the activity sheets already and crayons, so all we really have to do is supervise and make sure no one dies." She laughed at her own joke, and even though I didn't completely understand how death was funny, I giggled along with her.

"What activities are there...?"

"I'll explain it to you at the same time we explain it to the girls. It isn't hard, don't worry. Oh, yeah," she exclaimed after a small pause, "I forgot to tell you, one of the staff's daily jobs is to constantly compliment the campers. Meaning, if you think a girl has pretty eyes, you have to tell her. If you like the way a girl's hair looks, you have to tell her. If you think a girl is cute, personality-wise or appearance-wise, you have to tell her." I gulped; Have to?! "It's supposed to make them feel better about themselves. Come on, you try!"

"Y-You- Me?" Oh no, oh no, would she realize if I flattered her too much? Maybe I shouldn't- though maybe if I refused to do so, she'd assume I didn't find her pretty at all! No, I didn't want to upset her, I couldn't! "You... are a beautiful person." Personality-wise and appearance-wise.

She smiled. "See? That was perfect! You'll do fine!" She didn't seem at all affected, which both relieved and disappointed me. At least she hadn't realized my forbidden emotions, but at the same time, it seemed like she already knew she was beautiful, and my compliment was nothing new to her. Or at least, that was how it seemed to me.

We had about twenty girls to watch over.

It was curious how different they all seemed from each other. Some were extremely skinny, some overweight. They all varied in hair color, eye color, and their personalities all seemed different in some way or another. It was so interesting just to watch them interact and I grew somewhat excited.

"Miku will hand you all an activity sheet," Luka announced after our introductions. "On it, you'll see the outline of a girl. What you have to do is draw a heart over the parts of your body you like and draw an ex over the parts of your body that you don't like so much, or that embarrass you. Miku and I will do it too, and we'll all share together. Understand?"

It seemed interesting. I didn't really have specific parts of my body that embarrassed me, or so I thought. In the end, I drew an ex over my mouth, my hands, and my forehead. A heart circled my hair.

"Why do you have that ex over your belly?" Luka asked one girl when it was time to share.

"Because... well... I'm kind of..." the girl blushed and quickly spit out that last word, "fat...!" It was true that she was rather chubby, but Luka wouldn't hear it.

"That's nonsense!" she exclaimed animatedly. "Whoever told you that? I don't think any of you are fat at all. I think you're beautiful the way you are!" How easily she could drop a compliment. Had it been me, I'd have blushed madly and protested, but the girl simply gave a dissatisfied hum, looking unconvinced.

"You like your feet?" Luka asked, pointing at another girl's sheet.

"I'm a dancer." It was a fact this person looked proud of- maybe too proud. Obviously, she was very confident in her own abilities. Her shiny black hair was pulled in two pigtails and her nose was lifted in the air rather arrogantly. "I like my feet, because without them, I wouldn't be able to dance. My momma says my talents are God-given."

"Really?" Luka nodded. "What's your name?"

"Yuki," the girl responded with a smirk. She seemed to be about ten years, but her cocky attitude bothered me greatly. She reminded me somewhat of Rin, though I much preferred the blonde.

"That's a very nice name. Maybe later, you'd like to demonstrate your talents for us."

"I'll do it now!" Yuki decided, standing up.

"No, we don't have time now." Already, Yuki had struck a pose, and she stared at Luka in disbelief.

"What do you mean, we don't have time now?!" Her eyes narrowed. "My talents were given to me by God to share, and that's what I intend to do! You must be the devil to try and stop me!" How rude! Even Luka seemed offended!

"I'm trying to give young girls a voice and prove to them how wonderful they all are." We all stared at Luka, some slightly frightened. "You must be the devil to try and interfere so selfishly. You may share your 'God-given' talents later, but not now. Understand?" Never had I heard her speak coldly and it shocked me so when she spoke this way to little Yuki. Obviously, she was even more bothered by Yuki's comment than I.

Yuki said nothing in return but sat with a shocked expression on her face. It was very satisfying to me.

"Why did you ex out your hands, Miku?" Luka asked me softly. I was still very surprised and didn't understand what she meant at first.

"Oh, the paper. My hands seem to move on their own, especially when I'm nervous..." As I spoke, I unconsciously raised my fists to my chin. Thanks to my hands, I was always an open book. I really hated that.

"I see." Her smile was back and dazzling, as if she hadn't just been glaring at a ten-year-old as she had. "That's not so bad. It's better than always getting the hiccups when you're nervous."

What? "You have that?" No way!

"No, but a friend of mine does, and it takes forever to get rid of them." Of course she wouldn't have a habit like that; she was perfect. "Whenever she's near a boy she likes, she starts to hiccup like crazy. We all think it's funny, but she hates it." She laughed at her own memories.

"What do you have on your paper?" I asked curiously. She showed it to me. There were hearts on her hair, legs, throat, arms and hands as well as a single ex on her chest. "What's the ex for?" I asked. It was... right on her breasts, I noticed. Didn't she like them?

"It's supposed to be on my heart," Luka explained. Oh... Yes, of course it would be. Duh. "Sometimes I get lonely and sometimes I try too hard. My emotions get the better of me sometimes, and that's not usually all that good. That's why I don't really like my heart- to me, it represents feelings and self-control, and those are things I wish I had more of."

I thought about it for a moment then grabbed a red crayon lying nearby and drew an x on my own paper, just over the paper girl's heart. When I looked up, Luka was smiling. "Birds of a feather, aren't we?" It made my heartbeat quicken. She turned back to the girls, who were now chatting amongst themselves and yelled out, "Who thinks they know why they may have low self-esteem?"

Most stared back at us blankly. Finally, one girl raised her hand. Her reddish hair had a silky look to it as it fell onto her shoulders and her cheeks seemed permanently flushed. "People laugh at me," she said when Luka called on her. "I don't like it when people laugh at me. I don't like it when people look at me." She glanced around at all the other girls and ducked her head. "Like right now..." she mumbled.

"Why wouldn't you want people to look at you?" Luka asked. "Don't you know how pretty you are?" The girl's head snapped up in shock. "Just by looking at you, I can tell you've got a purity that's rare nowadays. You're very pretty but you don't seem to realize it. Do you avoid talking to people because you're afraid they won't like you? Why? I've known you for only twenty minutes, but I like you already." She smiled. "Maybe you should test your luck on other people."

The girl seemed like she'd stopped breathing. The girls around her seemed to find that amusing and I saw one scoot closer to her. "What's your name?" It was funny how grateful the girl looked. I thought I even saw tears in her eyes.

"I love that feeling," Luka sighed. "Knowing you've made someone happy... doesn't it feel wonderful?"

"She isn't the only pure one here, I think." Look at how wonderful and sweet Luka was! Surely there was no one purer than her.

Suddenly her expression turned mischievous and she smirked. "Believe me, Miku," she purred, "I'm most definitely not pure." I didn't really understand what she meant by that but it gave me the shivers. But they weren't shivers of fear...I felt my face heat up. "I think that's the only hand we'll see up for that question. You know what that means, then." She winked at me. "Everyone, come closer! It's time to play truth or dare!"

Girls broke out in grins and rushed over until we were all clumped up in one very deformed circle. "Miku," Luka nodded at me, "you go first."

I couldn't remember the last time I'd played this game. In my life, I'd probably participated in it less than five times, but hopefully I still remembered how it worked. "Y-You... with the brown hair?"

About five different brunettes pointed at themselves with wide eyes. "Me...?"

"N-No, I mean, the one with the orange shirt."

The white silhouette of a hibiscus was on the corner of her shirt, and I was about to add so when the girl I'd been looking at quickly glanced down and up again. "Me!"

I nodded and the others seemed disappointed. "Truth or dare?"

Her hazel brown eyes gleamed mischievously. "Dare!"

"Dare? Um..." Oh no, I most definitely wasn't good at this. "What should I say?" I asked my partner.

"We dare you to eat a handful of grass!" Luka declared.

Our audience groaned. "That's so boring!" Nonetheless, the girl ripped a fistful of grass from the ground and enthusiastically shoved it into her open mouth. Without so much as a cringe she chewed on it, swallowing it with a satisfied smirk. "My turn!" She glanced around and pointed at a girl with light green hair. "You! Truth or dare?"

The green-haired girl cocked her head. "Truth."

"Is it true that..." A few others crowded around her and whispered things into her ear. "Is it true that you pick your nose?"

"No."

"Hey!" A purple-haired lass protested. "You're supposed to always tell the truth in this game!"

"I am telling the truth." I admired the green-haired girl's ability to keep calm. She seemed cool as a cucumber. "I don't pick my nose. I don't think I ever have." The other tried to protest again but she interrupted. "Is it my turn? Yes? Good." She pointed at Yuki, the dancer girl that I didn't like very much. "Truth or dare?"

Yuki raised her nose up to the air and huffed arrogantly. "Dare." I wouldn't have been surprised to hear she'd once gotten a bug in her nose or something- the way it was raised like that, it didn't seem very difficult.

"If you're such a 'godly dancer'," the green-haired girl began sarcastically, "then let's see you try the splits."

"The splits?!" "Don't those hurt?" "I can't do it." "I could, when I was six, but now..." "You'd have to be pretty flexible, I think." "Can you do it?" "Of course not!" The girls buzzed to each other, looking a bit worried.

Yuki let out another snobbish huff as she quickly leaned back onto the balls of her feet. Then, pushing outwards with her legs, she very quickly shot down. When I finally got the courage to look again, she was doing a perfect split! "Piece of cake," she mumbled, straightening herself up. "Well then, my turn. I pick Luka. Truth or dare?"

Luka had a guarded look in her eye. "Truth." Apparently, she too was unsure about Yuki.

"Have you ever kissed anyone?" By the look on Yuki's face, it was obvious she didn't think so.

"Well, yes, of course I have."

"Really?" most of the girls asked- including me.

She turned to me curiously. "You haven't had your first kiss yet Miku?"

I shook my head slowly, extremely embarrassed. "People don't really like me..."

I felt her lift my chin to look me in the eye and she smiled sexily (though she probably didn't notice it). "I like you, Miku. Those other people are just dense, it seems."

Oh my. Our faces were quite close to each other. Oh my! My face morphed into a tomato. "I-It's your turn now, I think..."

She saw the effect she had on me and her brow rose. Had she realized why? I hoped not! It seemed to amuse her though and she scanned the crowd of girls. "You there, light blue hair, bright yellow shirt."

The girl beamed. "Dare!" she yelled before Luka could even ask the question. She was very hyper, bouncing in her seat, quickly glancing this way and that way, playing with her hands. It was like she couldn't stay still.

"I dare you to run ten laps around this field." Again the girls groaned, moaning about how 'sucky' that dare was, but the one with the blue hair quickly stood and began running at a rather fast pace. She seemed rather pleased with her dare.

"Since she's running, can I go instead?" asked one with bright red hair.

Luka shrugged. "Go ahead."

The redhead smiled shyly and glanced around at her peers. "Luka, truth or dare?"

"Again?" she laughed. "I guess... this time I'll go with dare."

The girl's face fell and she huddled with a few others. After a few moments they disbanded and she yelled out, "I dare you to tell us how many boys you've kissed!"

"Really?" Luka said. "First you want to know if I've kissed anybody, now you want to know how many. Can't my love life keep an ounce of secrecy?" They all vigorously shook their heads. "Fine... how many boys I've kissed you say?" She pretended to ponder on it. "Hm... if I count this one and that one, that would make... zero."

All was quiet until it sunk in. "Hey, what?!" "So you were lying!" "You can't lie in truth or dare!" "Tell us the truth, Luka." "Yeah! Tell us the truth!"

"I am telling you the truth," Luka said. "You asked me how many boys I've kissed. See, I don't kiss boys. That doesn't mean I don't kiss people, though."

I thought it over for a moment and finally gasped. "A-Are you saying you're a...?!"

"You're a lesbian?!" the green-haired girl yelled and they all erupted in loud conversations. "No way!" "You're kidding me, right?" "I had no idea!"

"That's disgusting!" Yuki yelled out louder than anyone. They all quieted down and watched her with wide eyes. "You kiss girls?" She cringed. "That's sick! There are laws against that, and for a reason too! That's so gross! (5)"

I saw Luka bite down on her lip, the blue in her eyes changing color like boiling water. "Excuse me?" she said. "Why is it disgusting for me to love another person? Hm? Why is it so 'gross' for me to be in love with someone, and want her to love me back? Is it so wrong just to want to be loved, Yuki? Is it?"

"Yes," she said with a disgusted tone. "It's gross to love girls. We're all girls here; how do we know you're not in love with all of us?" Some of them glanced at us uncertainly, swayed by Yuki's last question. I saw some of them hug themselves too, as if that would ward off any possible affection. Maybe it did; I found myself doing that all the time back at home.

"I don't fall for just anybody, Yuki," Luka snapped, "and if anyone right now is worried, I'm not in love with any of you. Just because I prefer girls does not mean I'm different than any of you. I deserve as much respect as I would if I were straight, as I will give you as much respect as I would any other day. Do you all understand?"

"It's still sick. I don't-"

"Frankly, Yuki, I couldn't care less about your opinion on my relationships," Luka interrupted. "If you want to be straight or even asexual ('which I'm sure you'll be forced to be with that attitude', I heard her mumble), go ahead, but I'm not going to listen to you when it comes to who I should love. Is that clear?"

Yuki didn't answer but made a face as if her breakfast was coming up and sat down.

Everything was quiet. I myself was in shock. Even Luka seemed to sense the awkwardness. "How about we play a game of manhunt?" she suggested.

Everybody got up and the bluenette finally stopped running and joined us. "What's going on? What'd I miss? What are we playing now? Huh, huh?"

I got up alongside Luka, watching her in amazement. She caught my gaze and smiled before turning back to the ten-year-olds. All I could think was, 'She's a lesbian. She doesn't find it disgusting. She's a lesbian. She might not find my feelings disgusting.' Oh my. Never could I have predicted what would follow.

---

I sat in the field later on with paper on my lap and a pencil in my hand. 'Dear Momma, Papa, I'm really very glad you sent me here. I'm having a lot of fun and making a lot of new friends.' That was what they wanted for me, wasn't it? I'd make sure to add how much my confidence was being boosted later on- this way, they'd feel they'd really got their money's worth.

"Whatch'ya doin'?" I heard and looked up. There she was, the one and only Luka, her long hair without a single knot and her fair skin without a single burn. Perfect.

"I-I'm writing a letter to my parents," I told her, gesturing at the paper on my lap. "What are you doing here?"

"Isn't it obvious?" I held my breath. "I came here to see you!" She winked at me and I tried to remember how to breathe again. Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale...

"Th-That's aw-awfully sweet of you." I blushed and my hands started to shake.

She noticed and placed one of her own on top of mine. "Relax, Miku!" she said with a small laugh. "You always get so nervous over everything!" Why wouldn't I? I wished I could be more like her, calm as the breeze, so laid-back and beautiful.

"Luka... is it true what you said earlier today?" I asked. It'd been bothering me. "About..."

"My being a lesbian?" she finished. "Yep! Actually, I broke up with my last girlfriend only about a month ago, so that's proof I'm not just saying that. Why? Does it make you uncomfortable?"

"Oh, no!" I didn't want her to react like she did to Yuki, no, no! "I... I was just wondering. I mean... yeah." I blushed. "How... How did you know?"

"How did I know what? How did I realize I like girls?" I had the slightest feeling she was mocking me, or at least enjoying herself. "It wasn't really that long ago. It's only been two years." She lay back on the grass and made herself comfortable. "We were playing a game of truth or dare, actually." She paused. "Why the curiosity?"

Again, my head substituted itself for a tomato. "N-No reason at all, I swear!" I knew I was probably making it even more obvious, but I couldn't help my protests; I felt a need to defend myself, even if I was lying by doing so.

"Oh?" She cocked her head and simply stared at me, examining me. I felt terrified and I was sure it showed. She broke into a reassuring grin. "Okay, then, if you say so! You probably don't want to hear me chat your ear off, then... I'll just leave you alone." She got up and started to leave.

"W-Wait!" I called, reaching out to her. "I never said I want you to leave! I-I want to listen to your story, I do!"

She stopped and without turning around said, "Why? So you can laugh at me? If you don't have a valid reason, I'm going to assume it's because you just want to make fun of me."

Hesitation. "I... I do have a reason, actually," I admitted. "I want to know how you knew so I can find out for myself if..." I couldn't finish that sentence. Already I felt beyond ridiculous for admitting such a thing. I hid my face in my hands, too shy to even check if she'd left. Then, I heard a rustle of movement to my left.

"I'm glad you're not just trying to find gossip." Slowly I looked up at her and thought that, for just a moment, it was almost as if she'd done all of that just now on purpose. But... that was silly! Of course she... no. "Alright then. We were playing a game of truth or dare between friends. It was Ring's birthday, and we were about fourteen, I think. It was either my first year of high school or my last year of middle school."

"So, I was invited to Ring's slumber party. She has one every year and we always stay up 'til, like, three in the morning just watching movies or cartoons. We'll start by watching romances and eventually shift to Bugs Bunny, or something." She chuckled at the memory. "So, that time, Clara brought her phone with some truth or dare app, and we decided to play. She put my name, her name, Ring's name, Yukari's name, and a girl named Avanna's name in. It started simply enough. 'Avanna, truth or dare?'"

She glanced my way to be sure I was still listening. "Avanna was alright, but kind of shy. Well, not as shy as Yukari, but quiet. More of a listener than a talker, you know? Anyway, people like that almost always choose truth while the more energetic people choose dare, right? She chose truth, and it was an easy, 'Have you had your first kiss?' She blushed and admitted she hadn't."

"Did you...?" I started then faltered, embarrassed. Luka seemed to understand anyway.

"I had a boyfriend back then, but nothing serious. It was more to brag about our status than for actual love, like most girls my age. But yes, I'd had my first kiss, and teased Avanna about not having hers. Yukari hadn't had hers either. Clara had a boyfriend too, so we were on one side cooing to the 'little ones', promising to teach them our ways, and all that crap. I didn't really know Avanna - she was more Ring's friend than mine - so I especially poked Yukari until she turned beet red. Ring was kind of on the side watching us, laughing. I'm sure she'd had her first kiss too, but she didn't seem to want to brag about it."

"I really liked Yukari. She was really cute, in a way I can only describe as 'fluffy'. Just the slightest compliment could turn her red, but she was fine at any other time. She didn't have any self-esteem problems or anything- she just never really had much to say and kept quiet. She fell asleep pretty easily too, so sometimes she'd doze off on my shoulder, or something." I wondered why she was stalling so much. While I was interested in her friends, I was anxious to find out what had happened. She saw that in my face and smirked, and I realized she really was stalling, on purpose! "I'm getting there," she sang. "Be patient!" I tried my best.

"So, once we'd calmed down, we pressed the button on Ring's phone to start the next round."

"Ring's phone? I thought it was Clara's phone!"

Luka stopped, closed her mouth, and blinked. "... Whoops. I got mixed up. You're right, it was Clara's phone. We pressed the button and it chose Ring. Ring decided to do a dare and had to do fifteen push-ups. Next was Clara's turn, I think. I can't remember what she got, but I think she chose dare. I can remember getting a little annoyed because it went back to Avanna after that, even though I hadn't yet had my turn. Finally, it became Yukari's turn.

"She wanted truth, but Clara and I bugged her until she chose dare." She paused and smiled at me. "You can probably guess what it was. 'Yukari, kiss Luka.' Really, that was probably the most extreme of the dares on there. It was for children, remember? Well, of course, Yukari turned tomato-red and we all giggled at her and yadda yadda yadda when Clara asked how long we'd take. I'd been surprised because I hadn't thought they'd actually make us do it. Avanna was on her side but Ring stuck with us. I'd thought it was weird, since we were both girls, but Avanna told us French people kissed all the time, boy or girl, married or not. It was a little reassuring and pushed me into agreement. After all, it was just a stupid dare."

"... I can remember it perfectly. It's like how you can remember the most random of childhood moments so well that it feels vivid, like you're watching your own memories in a movie theatre. She looked scared of me then, when Ring finally agreed to convince her. It was just a dare and would be over soon enough. What was the big deal? I leaned in to her and put my hands on her lap," she told, pressing her hands just over my knees and leaning towards me, "like this. Her eyes went so wide, I thought they'd pop out. To tell the truth, I was as nervous as she must have been. Maybe just a little less."

Her hands dug into my thighs without her noticing and I tried not to wince. She wasn't meaning to hurt me; she'd only not realized. She shifted from her bottom to her knees on the ground and that reduced some of the pressure on my leg, so I felt fine. "Once in a while, I'd wondered what it'd be like to kiss a girl, whether or not it the same as kissing a boy. I didn't think much of it and dismissed it as simple curiosity. There was nothing strange of it, really."

"'I'll admit I was even a little excited when I leaned in closer. Avanna was holding her breath dramatically. Finally I was close enough. Yukari was completely frozen, too scared to move even a hair. It was actually very comical. And..." She'd been inching closer to me this entire time. Her nose nudged mine and her eyelids suddenly fluttered. I must have been as frozen as Yukari, though it excited me to see her this close to me, even though she may not have done it intentionally. She pulled away, blushing lightly. "I'm sorry. That was... I'm sorry."

Damn. She'd pulled away. My heart's fast thumping began to slow. "W-What happened next?"

She cocked her head, looking suddenly very interested in me. I wondered if she'd misheard what I'd said, or something. "I didn't really think of it much until the next night, when I realized I'd actually really liked it. I got a bit of a crush on Yukari and even ended up dumping my boyfriend for her, but..." She shrugged. "Yukari was straight. I probably could have turned her, if I'd known what I know now back then, but I didn't have the guts to do anything. In the end, I gave up."

"So..." I'd been hoping a little more detail on what happened after the kiss and wondered why she'd suddenly skipped it all. She was probably just embarrassed about what she'd accidentally done to me. "You fell in love with someone else after that?"

"You're really interested in stuff like that?" she asked, cocking her head to the other side now. She did that a lot, like a little puppy would. I nodded, which made her laugh. She had such a pretty laugh... "It was about... a year and a half later, I think. I met this girl at a concert. She sat right beside me and we got along really well. We exchanged emails and all, and then later I found out she actually goes to my school. It was pretty great."

"What was her name?" I asked.

She hesitated a moment. "Elisa." Her eyes met mine with a sudden thoughtful air to them. "You know what's funny? She isn't like you at all. She isn't completely AD/HD energetic, but she can be loud at times. She likes to joke around a lot and is really relaxed. You on the other hand... You're nearly her opposite. It's funny..."

I didn't quite understand.

She shook her head. "She was my girlfriend until last year. She doesn't talk to me much anymore, though."

"Do you still... love her?" That'd be bad for me, though I still didn't believe anything would really truly happen between us.

"Yes, I do..." She stared into my eyes. "But not the same way I used to."

My cheeks turned red from her staring. I felt like she was watching my every movement, which made me even more nervous. And... it was then that I realized how similar her voice sounded to flirting. Her words held that slight suggestion to them, as well as the way she said them... "Luka, are you...?!" No, no! I couldn't ask something like that! It'd been my imagination, my own personal fantasies clouding reality. I couldn't ask something like that!

"Am I what?" Her head was tilted again as she waited for my answer.

"Never mind, please."

"What is it?"

"No, it's nothing."

"Won't you tell me?"

Why did she insist so? "Luka, please, I don't want to tell you that!" I pleaded. "It's stupid."

"It won't be stupid! I promise I won't think so!"

"Why are you so persistent?" I asked. It was making me nervous again and my hands began to tremble.

"Because. I just told you what happened to me." She slowly fluttered her lashes. "I want to know what it was you thought of. I promise I won't find it stupid. I just... you sounded surprised about something. I just want to make sure it wasn't a bad thing."

"It wasn't, I promise." She waited and I sighed, finally giving up. "I don't understand why it's so important to you, but... I was just... For a moment, I thought you were..." My face turned red as I quickly spit out the last words. "Flirting with me." A deep breath. "That's all. It was stupid, and that's why I didn't want to tell you."

She seemed both surprised and unsurprised at once, as if she were somewhat expecting it but surprised her prediction had come true. "...To tell the truth..." She hesitated for a long time. "Just a little." A smile. "Maybe a little more than a little. Yeah." She bit her lip and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

I couldn't believe my ears. "Yeah...to what?"

"Don't make me say it again!" she laughed. "I already admitted it once..."

My eyes went as wide as saucers. "You...Luka, do you...?" No. No way!

"I've admitted it already!" She hid her face. "Don't make me say it again! Just say yes or no."

Yes or no? To what? What was the question? I took a guess and decided I had a fifty percent chance of getting the right answer. "Y-Yes?"

She glanced up sharply. "Really?"

I was confused. Very confused. What had I said, exactly...?

"I didn't think you... I just thought that, well, maybe, but I didn't think you'd actually..." A nervous giggle. "Do you really mean it, or are you just messing with me?"

"Yes...?" It felt rude to ask what I was agreeing with.

She gazed at me strangely, almost longingly. "You do realize we're only here for two weeks, right? After those two weeks, we'll probably never see each other again. Is that okay, or...?"

I blinked and nodded, again not really knowing what I was agreeing to do. She took in a breath and put her hands back on my thighs again - on purpose, this time - and leaned forward. Her hands didn't hurt this time, and felt rather... um... I don't know how to describe it. It made my breath catch. "You've never kissed anyone, have you, Miku?"

I was nearly sixteen and had never kissed anyone. I was so embarrassed as I shook my head. I saw her smile. "Tell me..." Her voice was thick with lust. "Do you want to?"

Oh my- Oh my Lord. Oh my God. She'd just... Oh my. Breathe, in, out, in... Oh my! I was too embarrassed to do more than one quick curt nod. How had this happened?! Was this what I'd been agreeing to?! I was so glad I'd done nothing but nodded. This was... Oh my.

Next thing I knew, I felt something soft on my lips. It took me a moment to realize she was kissing me, but I think I may have temporarily died once I did. She was- She was...! Ah!

And just like that, it was gone again. My eyes fluttered open to find her smiling at me. "Am I really that good?" she asked with a chuckle.

"Eh?!"

"You moaned."

I felt like dying of embarrassment. Had I really...? Oh, this was too much. I thought I'd faint, overwhelmed by the rush of blood to my face, to the turmoil of emotions in my mind. Somehow, though, I remained conscious as she kissed me again.

I wondered once again if maybe I'd made it up. It was one o' clock in the morning now according to the red numbers projected on the ceiling from Gumi's clock. Maybe I'd awoken from a dream of some sort. As I rolled onto my side, I smiled. Gumi and Iroha's snores echoed softly throughout the room and Miki whimpered once in a while in her sleep. I was the only one awake still, except maybe for Ia (though if she was awake, she did nothing to tell me so). Usually I'd get lonely at this time of night, but tonight I was filled only with girlish fantasies.

I knew deep within that I hadn't imagined what had happened out in that field. I hadn't imagined that wink she'd sent me in The Eats either. I felt a goodness inside, a feeling that promised this would be great. I couldn't wait for tomorrow. Now, I had a new big reason to thank my parents, though I'd never tell them. My heart pounded at the thought of what tomorrow would bring.

Maybe it was time to begin peeling off those sticky notes, I thought. Luka would help me, and by the time summer was over, I'd be changed for the better. I could only hope, pray, but somehow, I wasn't too worried.

---

Hmm... It didn't come out as well as I wanted it to. -.-" Oh well, it's pretty good either way. So, happy six-month-late birthday, Paru-chan! ^-^/ Wow, this is really long. o.o Almost 18 000 words! THAT'S A NEW RECORD! \(o0o)/ HOORAY!

Oh, not only is it my new record in word-length, it's also my first ever Miku x Luka fic! HOORAY TIMES TWO!

This has got to be one of my shortest A/Ns in a LONG time... o-o" What's wrong with me?! Oh well... I hope you enjoyed this oneshot~! ^^

~Naty17

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(1) To any of you who don't know what Blue's Clues is; you must have had a very sad childhood. It's one of the best kid's shows ever! ^o^ (Though personally, Max and Ruby was and still is my favorite.)

(2) There really was a store at my Olympia camp, and this was everyone's obsession; Rolo Dibs. EVERYONE ate them. It was definitely the most popular item at the store... XD

(3) Why is she always looking at the chest area? =.=" Miku, you perv...

(4) No real specific song, but I just needed something with 'Good morning' that wasn't 'Good morning Baltimore', haha!

(5) As you can tell, I'm very gay-friendly, so I really didn't know what to say during Yuki's outburst. I have no idea really why people are against gays except for biblical reasons, which even then, aren't very good reasons. I didn't feel like having Yuki spout religion, so I figured I'd just give her a more... I don't know. General hatred of gays? *shrug* As you can see, it didn't work too well. I had no idea what to say! So... I king of just repeated synonyms of 'disgusting' over and over again.

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Please Review~!