Chapter 5: The Perfect Evening

It wasn't the first time that Kahoko was at a loss for words. Despite being known for speaking her mind (a trait which has gotten her into trouble more than she liked), there were times when her thoughts and emotions would get all jumbled up, spewing out messages left and right, making it impossible to voice out her thoughts with her trademark conviction.

These moments didn't happen that often, but when it did, dear Kami, she hated every minute of it.

A great example would be her present predicament. They were seated on the steps of her front porch, staring at anything but each other. The tension, confusion, and anticipation were there, making the air thick and her head dizzy. The silence was eating her, and knowing that this would easily be fixed if somebody would just damn talk already, she said the first thing that came to mind.

"Huh."

Nope, that did not help at all. Smooth, Hino. Real smooth.

She looked at the boy seated beside her. No, she corrected herself, Tsuchiura Ryoutaro was no longer a boy. Aside from his strong stature and masculine features, it was his maturity and confidence that proved her otherwise. And it was that same confidence and her growing affection towards him that got them together.

It was bound to happen eventually, there were only so many times that you could ignore the stolen glances and fleeting touches. While walking home, he asked her out to dinner. It could have been how adorable he looked when he blushed, or the comfort she felt when they were together, but she answered him with a nod and a small smile that he knew was reserved just for him. He liked her and she liked him, and that was all she needed to know.

They've been together for four months now. The dynamics of their relationship didn't change much. Aside from the weekend dates here and there, they still ate lunch together and hung out after classes. They did "The Talk" that was customary for best friends that went into romantic relationships, and agreed that whatever shit that could happen, they would -as cliché as it sounds- still remain friends.

They set up boundaries, of course; yes, physical contact like hand holding was fine, but no, she was still uncomfortable with heavy petting. They haven't discussed kissing yet, because the only experience they had on that was when he would give her a quick kiss on the cheek.

She could already imagine Nami in her head, shaking finger and clucking her tongue. "Really Kahoko, what are you, twelve? It's not like he's going to bite... yet". As much as she was embarrassed to admit it, Kahoko was starting to get tired of the good ol' peck on the cheek. She blamed it on the hormones, and Nami's racy stories, and Ryoutaro's muscles. She was, however, a lady, and ladies don't order their boyfriends to kiss them on the lips like right now. No, they wait for the perfect opportunity.

Like their date tonight, for example.

It was like they were in a movie, a far cry from their previous outings. The bouquet of flowers, the dinner, the movie, the walk on the way home... Everything was just so romantic that she knew that the much awaited kiss would be the perfect ending to the perfect evening. So as they sat on the steps of her front porch, allowing their laughter to die down as they indulged in the warmth of each others presence, they looked into each others eyes and started leaning in. She closed her eyes and thought, "Yep, this is it. We're going to kiss now and there'll be sparks flying everywhere and it'll be perfect."

No sparks came.

But Kahoko was anything but a quitter, so she kept on searching and deepened the kiss. It could have easily been dubbed as the hottest kiss in her life (not that she had a lot of experience), but to her disappointment, no such spark -not even a fizzle- came. It didn't make any sense at all. As they broke apart, she feared that it was just her. That she was the problem.

"Now now, Kahoko. You don't kiss a guy with all he's worth and just say 'Huh'."

Ryoutaro's voice brought her back to the sad reality that she called her dating life, and was unnerved by his smirk. Maybe it really was just her.

"Sorry. It's just that I'm really at a loss for words here," she replied. She was still stumped on what to say. Should she tell him the truth? Should she lie? Both could result to undesired outcomes, but lying seemed to be the lesser of two evils. "The kiss was really-"

"Bad."

Wait. Hold up.

"I'm sorry?"

He chuckled. "The kiss was bad, Kahoko. I mean, it was hot, yes. You're a really good kisser by the way," he added, making her blush a brilliant shade of red. He laughed again. "But really, it was a dud."

"Gee, thanks for rubbing it in."

"Hey, now. I already said that you're a good kisser. It was good... technique-wise."

It was her turn to laugh. "Yeah, yeah. You're a good kisser too."

"Of course I am," he replied, making her snort and earning him a swat on the shoulder.

They became silent yet again. There were so many things that still puzzled her, and she still couldn't wrap her head around their conversation. The silence was eating her again.

"I can hear you thinking, you know?" he said while ruffling her hair. "So what's on your mind?"

"What now?" she asked. "Really, what do we do now? It's... I don't know. We like each other, that's for sure. We've only been dating for three months but we've known each other for years. Shouldn't there be some kind of spark between us?" She pauses to gather her thoughts. "Are we doing something wrong? Should we," she gulped, "practice a bit more?"

"I don't think it's something that could be fixed by practice. I'm flattered, though." he replied, earning another swat on the shoulder. "Ow! Okay, okay, I'll be serious."

Ryoutaro smiled as he shook his head. He looked dejected as he stared into his long-forgotten coffee.

"I guess it just wasn't meant to be."

"That's overly cliché, even for you."

"I'm being serious here, don't laugh!" he told her, smiling as he did so. "We're great as friends. This, what we're doing now -joking around and hanging out- this feels right. It works. Even now that we're dating, it still feels like we're just two friends hanging out rather than boyfriend and girlfriend. We fall flat when it comes to romance."

"Hey! Our date tonight wasn't a complete dud." she countered.

"You're right, it wasn't," he agreed "You have Kaji to thank for that. Which, by the way, just proves my point even more."

"You might not like my answer," he continued, " but I think we got together... Because it was easier for us. Because it was the safest choice."

Kahoko's gaze went downward. She couldn't argue with him. It wasn't the nicest answer, but it was the truth.

"So we settled, then?" she asked, her voice soft.

He shrugged. "Maybe? I mean, we didn't do it intentionally. We just loved the idea of how uncomplicated things were going to be, and it was. There were no awkward first dates, no unmet expectations, no secrets to hide..."

"No waiting," she added, and Ryoutaro swore he saw her smile, even just a little.

"Yeah, no more waiting."

She was leaning on him now, soothed by his words and the warmth from his body. He was right yet again.

'Not that I'm going to tell him that,' she thought.

She sighed, "So I guess it's also that same simplicity that became our downfall?"

He gave a hum of approval. "That, and our total lack of sexual chemistry."

She pushed away and smacked his back.

"Really, Ryoutaro, really? We were having a moment here and you just had to ruin it with that sex-crazed brain of yours."

"I'm sex-crazed? Excuse me, but I wasn't the one who turned our innocent kiss into a heavy make-out session."

"Ugh! You're unbelievable!"

They were laughing now, with their smiles so wide and their heads tilted back. Like magic, their bantering made all tensions and their fears disappear. They knew in their hearts that at that moment, they were going to be okay.

Their laughter died down, but the smiles on their faces didn't go away.

"It's funny, you know. I've always had biggest crush on you when we were in high school. I think that that's one of the main reasons why I didn't like the ice cube, aside from him being an ass, of course" he said.

Kahoko chuckled. "Of course."

"I've always wanted to kiss you like that. I imagined that I'd be over the moon if that happened."

"And now that you have?"

"It's bittersweet. I got my wish, but it wasn't as great as I thought it would be. Sad, isn't it?"

She shrugged. "Yeah, well. At least I made the teenager in you happy."

He rolled his eyes in response.

"So..."

She could sense it, their finality. Like standing on the edge of the cliff, just one more step and they'd fall down into the abyss. It was always her biggest fear, falling into the unknown, having no control over the situation, and the crashing so hard on the floor that you make a hole in the ground, repeating the same process.

But now she knew what was on the other side. She knew that if they fell, they'd still be the same Ryoutaro and Kahoko that hung out during breaks and made poked fun at each other and performed duets in perfect harmony. Everything was going to be fine.

And like brave woman that she was, she did the honor of jumping first. And like a good friend, she pulled him down with her.

"So, Tsuchiura Ryoutaro, this is what's going to happen. I, Hino Kahoko, am resigning as your stunningly beautiful and doting girlfriend, thus relieving you of you of your duties as my boyfriend. I'd make you sign a contract, but I don't think the piece of tissue in my purse would suffice."

"Ah, there's no need," he said, offering his hand "It was a pleasure being your boyfriend, Hino."

She shook his hand.

"Likewise, Tsuchiura."

And just like that, they broke up. It was sad, of course. And it hurt, even just a tiny bit. But they felt a weight being lifted from their shoulders and they were surprised by how much easier it was to breathe. Kahoko never imagined that their evening would end like this, but as they bid their goodbyes and went their separate ways, she couldn't deny that this was the perfect ending for their date.

"We're still going to Kaji's party, right?

"Yep. We'll never hear the end of it if we don't."

"I can't wait to see the look on his face when he finds out we botched up his masterpiece of a date."

Ryoutaro gave out a snort.

"Oh I think he won't mind."

A/N: So this happened. It's been a good four years since I last updated. It's weird. A few months ago I suddenly had the urge to watch LCD again, and I guess I got inspired. I don't hate the idea of Kahoko and Ryoutaro ending up together, but I see them more as best friends rather than lovers. In other news, have you guys watched Blue Sky yet? It's still on it's first episode so I don't have a general opinion on it yet, but the plot seems interesting. Very different from the past two seasons. I hope you guys liked this chapter. Cheers for more to come! (I hope.)