Nanami had picked up a newspaper on her way home from school. She sat in her room and read through for jobs. She found only two part-time opportunities. She circled them and put the paper down on her dresser with a sigh. She was hoping for more of a selection in the part-time jobs.

There was a knock on her door. "Dinner," Tomoe called through the door. "Come downstairs."

"Okay!" Nanami responded. She walked down to the kitchen. A bunch of takeout boxes lined the counter.

"Oh, takeout food tonight?" Nanami asked.

Mikage chuckled and handed her a plate. "Yes, tonight and every other night really. Take whatever you want."

Nanami thanked him and starting scooping up food along with Tomoe. "You don't cook?" she wondered.

"I don't know how," Mikage admitted. "At least not how to make anything very good. I hope this doesn't bother you."

Nanami shook her head. "No, it doesn't. I've been having very plain cooked food or cheap takeout since my mom passed away. This looks a lot better than what I usually have!" She laughed. "It just seems like a shame since your kitchen is so nice."

Mikage nodded. "Your mom used to cook for you?"

"She was a very good cook. We could never afford anything expensive to eat, but somehow she always managed to make our meals taste really good," she smiled at the memories. "I miss her homemade food."

The three of them sat down at the dining table to eat. The food was really tasty and Nanami savored it. She assumed she wouldn't be able to eat something so delicious for a while once she left this house.

"Nanami," Mikage paused, "Are you wearing Tomoe's sweater?"

She felt her face turn hot. She had forgotten to take it off before coming downstairs. "Um, y-yes," she admitted. "I was cold, so I put it on. Tomoe had given it to me yesterday because I didn't have warm clothing."

"I see." Mikage smiled amiably at her and then at Tomoe. It just made Nanami feel even more embarrassed.

She wanted to yell that she wasn't wearing it because she wanted to, she was just cold!

"What?" Tomoe asked irritably. Mikage had continued to stare at him for a while.

"Nothing," replied Mikage.

Tomoe looked irritated as he stabbed at the food on his plate. "When are you getting a job?" he asked her.

"Oh, um, I found two places earlier. So I was going to go after school tomorrow."

"Are they good jobs?" Mikage asked. "Maybe you should wait a while longer before applying in case something better opens up."

Nanami shook her head. "No, it's okay. It's probably better for me to find a job soon."

"I'll clean the dishes is everyone is done," Nanami offered.

Mikage thanked her as she gathered up the plates and cutlery.

Tomoe grabbed her stack of dishes from her. "I'll do it."

"What? Why?" She protested.

Tomoe glanced at her. "You'll probably mess it up or break something,"

"I will not!"

"Tomoe, don't be rude," Mikage scolded him, though he still had a small smile on his face.

"Sorry," he muttered. "Nanami, go do your school work."

"But-"

"You haven't done anything in the past few days, have you?" he asked. "Just go work, or you'll fall behind. This won't take long anyways."

He was right; she hadn't had time for school work so far. She was doing okay in school, but she would need to catch up soon or her marks would drop.

"Okay. Thanks," she said to Tomoe. Nanami thanked Mikage as well for the meal as she left the room.

She did her homework until it was time to sleep.

Nanami woke up early the next morning. She had had a fitful night's sleep. She dreamt of her mother, and while it was nice to see her mother again (even just in her dreams), she woke up feeling sad and empty. She wished her mother was still here with her. She needed family.

She washed up and dressed before Tomoe woke up. She packed her school bags and went downstairs to make breakfast.

Nanami found a lonely frying pan and some eggs in the fridge. Scrambled eggs with salt and pepper would be good enough. She hadn't heard Mikage, she assumed he had gone to work, and so she made two servings worth.

She sat down at the table and ate her share of breakfast. "Good morning," she said to Tomoe as he entered the kitchen.

"Morning."

"There are eggs in the frying pan for breakfast if you want," Nanami offered. "They're not that great, but…"

Tomoe picked up a fork and ate directly from the frying pan. "They're fine," he told her.

Nanami smiled at him, and he looked away from her. "Do you want leftovers from last night for lunch?"

"Oh, yes, please!" she replied.

Tomoe stuffed an array of leftovers into two glass containers. He handed one to her. She thanked him and stored it in her school bag.

"I'm leaving now," Tomoe said.

"Ah, okay, I'm coming!"

Their classmates whispered about them again when they came into class together. Nanami squirmed uncomfortably under their scrutiny. Tomoe never seemed to care though. Nanami wondered why. Did he not care, or was he just good at hiding his emotions?

Soon it was lunch time, and the pair heated up their food in the microwave in the cafeteria.

A swarm of people entered the room. They were all gathered around Kurama, a popular upperclassman. He came from a rich family, who had for some reason decided to enroll him at this school. Nanami, like many others, had fawned over him at first. He was incredibly attractive with his perfectly styled brown hair, and dark, enchanting eyes. But after a while she realized that he was nothing but a big jerk.

"Are you going to follow me to the roof again today?" Tomoe asked her.

Nanami blushed. He made her sound like she was a stalker. "If you don't mind…"

Tomoe nodded. "Okay, let's go." Nanami trailed him towards the exit.

"Today I will buy lunch," announced Kurama. "Now what should I get?" He swung his arms out in a grand gesture.

"Ah!" Nanami exclaimed as Kurama's hand smacked against the side of her head. She was knocked off balance and keeled to the side. Her dish slipped out of her hands and smashed onto the floor. She landed beside a pile of food and broken glass.

Tomoe whirled around at the noise and ran back towards her. "Nanami?"

"I'm okay," she reassured him. She stood up and some glass bits fell from her skirt. There were some food spots on her skirt, socks, and shoes now. "I'm sorry about the container…"

"You're so clumsy," he grumbled.

Nanami frowned. "It wasn't all my fault."

"Ah, did one of my fans knock you over?" Kurama asked her.

She gaped at him. "No!"

"Oh, I guess you just fell then," he said and turned away from her.

"H-hey!" She yelled after him. "You're the one that hit me! Don't just turn away without apologizing."

Tomoe glared threateningly at Kurama. "You hit her?" he growled. Kurama glared right back.

"By accident!" she added hastily. The last thing she needed was for a fight to start. Kurama smiled at her, as if she were standing up for him. "But you should still apologize!" she insisted.

Kurama approached her and bent down to look her straight in the face. "You know, you're actually cute," he complimented her.

Nanami blushed. What's going on? Is this an apology?

Kurama took her hand in his. "You're not dating this thing, are you?" he gestured to Tomoe.

"No," said Nanami and Tomoe at the same time. Nanami sounded embarrassed, while Tomoe sounded angry.

"Then maybe we should go out." Kurama kissed her hand delicately.

Nanami snatched her hand back and pushed Kurama away from her. "N-no way!"

Kurama chuckled. "You're shy, that's so cute. You should think it over, it's a once in a lifetime chance." He reached for her again, but Tomoe stepped in front of her.

"She said no." Tomoe said angrily.

Nanami could feel electric tension between the two of them. She tugged on the sleeve of Tomoe's shirt. "Tomoe, let's go."

They left the cafeteria together, Nanami still holding onto his sleeve.

"You can let go now," said Tomoe as they climbed the stairs. "I'm not going to run back downstairs and attack him."

"Sorry," she apologized and let go.

They settled down on the ground. "Do you still have your chopsticks?" he asked her.

Nanami nodded.

"We can share my lunch then," he offered, and the two of them ate together.

"Tomoe?"

"Hm?"

"Thanks for standing up for me," she whispered.

Tomoe looked at her. "I thought you were going to tell me off for getting angry, not thank me."

"No one's ever done that for me before," she admitted. "And even though I don't want you to fight, it still made me kind of happy." No one had been there to support her for such a long time. It had always been her doing everything on her own. She lived, and ate, and survived because she made it so. It was kind of nice to have someone try and help her.

She wondered what would happen once she left his house. Would Tomoe go back to ignoring her like she didn't exist? Or maybe things would continue like they are now?

"It's not a big deal," he replied.

It grew silent again. She wanted to keep talking. Nanami said the first thing that came to mind, "Why do you not seem to care when people whisper about us?"

He shrugged. "Because it doesn't matter. They're just saying stupid things. Why do you bother to care?"

"Well, it's not true…" she responded. "They're just spreading lies."

"Whether they're spreading lies or the truth, it doesn't matter. The only reason I can see for this to bother anyone is if they like someone else," he said.

"I don't like anyone!" Nanami yelled as he looked at her.

"Then why does it bother you?"

"It's embarrassing!" she protested.

Tomoe blinked and looked away from her.

"I-I didn't mean it like that! I didn't mean it's embarrassing to have people think I'm dating you," Nanami rambled. "I just meant in general. Because I've never dated anyone before, so it's weird. Plus everyone already gossips about me because of my dad…" It was just getting more and more embarrassing the longer she talked.

He patted her on the head once, and she stopped talking. "Okay," he relented. "Now eat your food."

Maybe, Nanami thought, we can be friends…

I hope this chapter is okay! Sorry if it's a little rushed! I literally wrote this at 2:00 am after studying all day. . I tried to quickly go over it for spelling/grammar mistakes, but I doubt that I caught them all… Ahaha.

Thanks to everyone who has been reading and reviewing my story so far! I'm really appreciative! :) I hope you'll all leave me more comments again. Most people said that they liked long chapters, so I will stick with writing longer chapters!

I still have 3 finals left to go. And then I leave on vacation at the end of April. So I'm not sure if I will be able to get another chapter up before then… But I will try really hard to! Since I don't want to leave everyone hanging for so long. :P

See you guys next time! :) Hopefully soon.