Chapter 9

"Can I come, can I come, can I come?" Katsu asked, jumping up and down while trying to block his sister's view of the mirror. Akira shoved him aside, only to have him get in her way again. "Onee-chan! Don't ignore me! Can I come?"

"No," Akira replied sharply, as she fished through the small make-up bag. It wasn't even hers; she'd borrowed it from her college-going cousin, who had neglected to explain what each item in the bag did. Akira poked through various brushes, sticks, and powders that all seemed alike and yet so different. She finally found a tube of lipstick. Well. At least she knew how to use this. "Katsu, move, I need the mirror. I've never done this before."

Katsu sighed and moved aside, before peeking into the bag. He pulled out a long, oddly shaped brush and narrowed his eyes at it. "Onee-chan, what's this for?"

Akira paused in her applying the lipstick, and glanced at it. "I'll give you a 100 yen if you can tell me. I'd love to know. Don't you have something better to be doing than going through a girl's make-up bag?"

"I want to go out with you and Nagisa-nii-chan," Katsu pouted. "I like him. He bought me ice cream the last time I saw him, and asked me to say nice things about him to you. Nagisa-nii is really, really nice! He promised to buy me more, too! I want ice cream, can I come? Please, please?"

"No," Akira snapped again, before she heard the doorbell. Her eyes widened. Katsu's pestering had made her lose track of time! She watched her brother run out of the room to open the door, while quickly grabbing a tissue and wiping off the messily applied lipstick. It didn't suit her, anyway. She took a deep breath, straightened her clothes and then hurried downstairs.

Katsu had already let Nagisa in and was hugging him tightly around the waist. Nagisa patted the boy's head, seeming a little pleased to have someone that was shorter than him. "Nagisa-nii, will you buy me ice cream today? Onee-chan says I can't come with you!"

Nagisa smiled. "Gomen'nasai, Katsu-chan, not today. But if you promise not to tell anyone, then after regionals are over, we can go to that new ice cream parlor near the park. I heard they have triple chocolate scoops with fudge sauce!"

Katsu's eyes widened. "Really? You'll take me there?"

"Sure. " Nagisa bent down and lowered his voice. "You remember our deal?"

Katsu grinned and nodded, putting a finger over his lips while grinning. Akira stood there silently, arms folded across her chest while waiting for one of them to notice her. They kept whispering to each other until she cleared her throat loudly. "What are you two idiots plotting?"

Nagisa straightened up hurriedly and grinned at her. "Akira-chan! Wow, you look so pretty!"

Akira blushed a little, despite herself. She'd worn a yukata, so that she wouldn't stand out in the festival. As silly as it seemed, she felt her stomach flutter a little when Nagisa complimented her. "It's just a yukata," she muttered. "Now are you done playing with my brother so we can leave?"

Nagisa nodded, taking Akira's hand as they both started to walk out of the door. He paused to wave goodbye to Katsu, before Akira closed the door behind them. It was dark outside, and they stepped out onto the street. Nagisa was still smiling. "I think Katsu-chan's really warming up to me! Kids don't normally like me as much as they like Makoto."

"I don't see why not, you're practically one of them," Akira mused.

"Akira-chan!" Nagisa pouted.

"Don't make that face, it's only proving my point. No man gets excited over triple chocolate scoops and fudge sauce," Akira replied. She couldn't hold back a laugh when she saw Nagisa's disgruntled face. She leaned over to pinch his cheek. "Wow, Nagisa-kun, you're adorable," she laughed.

Nagisa smiled slightly, squeezing the hand that he held in hers. "Is this your first date, Akira-chan? It's my first date. I never thought I'd go on a date with you! My sisters always told me that I'm too childish and little-brotherly for a girl to date."

"Well, luckily for you, I'm apparently into that sort of thing," Akira muttered. She glanced at Nagisa, who was practically bouncing with excitement. "Is the festival any good? You went with your swim club teammates yesterday, right?"

"Yep! There's lots to do! We can look around the stalls, and eat and even watch the fireworks! Do you like squid? They have a lot of squid! Oh, and we can scoop goldfish! I'm really good at scooping goldfish, I've been doing it since elementary school."

Akira laughed. For a moment, she wondered if she was really here, on a date with a boy who considered goldfish scooping to be one of his best talents. And yet, when she saw the way his magenta eyes lit up and his innocent smile directed at her, she felt warm inside. Goldfish scooping or not, there was no one else she would rather be with. They walked closer to the festival, the lights and noise getting brighter and louder.

"Wow, ice cream!" Nagisa beamed, pausing at a stall. "This wasn't here yesterday! Akira-chan, do you mind if I-"

"Yes, I mind," Akira replied, pulling him away from the ice cream stall quickly. She'd seen Nagisa with an ice cream cone in his hands; he could easily be mistaken for a middle schooler. "I want people to think I'm on a date, not babysitting a little boy. Let's go eat squid."

They found food to eat as they wandered the stalls. Akira had to keep a firm grip on Nagisa's hand so he wouldn't go running off whenever he saw something shiny. They played a few games and ate snacks until they reached the goldfish scooping stall. Nagisa stopped and grinned. "Just wait, Akira-chan! I'll get you a goldfish!" he promised, rushing forward to pay the man. Akira stood quietly to a side while Nagisa kneeled beside the tub, his tongue sticking out of his mouth in concentration. He was sitting next to a group of elementary school kids; he seemed to blend in with them.

"Younger brother?" the stall-keeper asked Akira, smiling at her.

Akira flushed in embarrassment. "Boyfriend," she muttered, causing the stall-keeper to look surprised.

Nagisa cursed as he let another goldfish slip out of the net. It was nearing his third try and Akira tapped him on the shoulder impatiently. "Nagisa-kun, it's fine. Leave it now, you don't have to catch one."

"I almost got it!" Nagisa insisted, looking up at Akira with a puppy face. "One more try, Akira-chan, please!"

"Fine, just hurry up," Akira muttered, hoping nobody had heard him whining like a toddler. She moved away from the goldfish stall a little bit. Maybe nobody would notice she was with him? She sighed and folded her arms across her chest, until the woman at the next stall called out to her.

"You look a little tired, dear. Would you like your palm read?" she asked kindly.

Akira uncrossed her arms, glancing at the price written on the stall. It was pretty cheap. She glanced back towards Nagisa, who was still sitting among the elementary school children and trying to scoop the goldfish. She shrugged and sat on the stool that the lady pulled up for her. It wasn't as though she had anything better to do. "All right. How does this work?"

"Just give me your right hand, dear. That's right," the woman said with a smile, taking Akira's right hand in hers. "Ah, yes. There's a nice straight head-line. That means you have a realistic approach to life. But it's broken a little here; that shows slight inconsistencies. Maybe you change your mind often?"

Akira frowned and glanced at the back of Nagisa's blonde head. She'd clertainly changed her mind regarding him. As the women traced her palm again, Akira turned her attention back to her. "Your life line is straight and close to the edge of the palm. That means you're cautious when it comes to relationships. Your heart line- ah, well this is a nice one. You'll be quite content with your love life."

"Will I really?" Akira muttered.

"Well, your heart line touches your life line. That means your heart is easily broken. Of course that doesn't mean that it will be broken, only that it can be."

"Hm."

And your fate line. It breaks and changes direction. This means that your life is prone to changes from external forces."

Akira frowned down at her palm. She didn't really believe in this stuff, but it had managed to pass the time rather well while Nagisa scooped his fish. Akira thanked the woman and handed her the money, while Nagisa came up to her, his face upset.

"Didn't catch any fish?" Akira teased.

"I had it in my net, but those stupid elementary kids stole it from me!" he complained, folding his arms across his chest and pouting. A sudden smile broke out on his face as he looked up at the stall. "Palm-reading! Sugoi! Do mine, do mine!" he thrust his hand out towards the lady, who smiled and gestured for him to sit down.

"Your brother?" the palm-reading lady asked Akira kindly, while Nagisa oohed and aahed at a fake crystal ball set on the counter. Akira gave a non-committal grunt. The lady took Nagisa's hand. "Your heart line begins in the middle and is curvy; that means you fall in love easily, and freely express your emotions."

Nagisa grinned. "Really?" he turned around to look at Akira. "It's true, Akira-chan!"

"Your head line is wavy; that means you have a short attention span, but also an enthusiasm for life. Ah; multiple life lines, so extra vitality. And your fate line is deep; your life is strongly controlled by fate, young man."

Nagisa beamed as he fished out the money to pay the woman. As they continued down the festival stalls, he took Akira's hand and looked at it, as though he would learn something from her palm. He glanced up at her with a smile. "What did she say about your heart line, Akira-chan?"

Akira raised an eyebrow as he squeezed her hand happily. "She said I would be content with my love life, but that I could easily get my heart broken."

Nagisa frowned. "Really?"

"Yes."

He stopped walking, his magenta eyes looking up at her with perfect seriousness. Akira was surprised when he took a deep breath and said with complete sincerity. "I promise never to break your heart, Akira-chan!"

Akira laughed. "Baka. It's just a stupid palm reading, it doesn't mean anything."

Nagisa looked up at her, slightly disappointed. His cheeks flushed red. "Oh. Okay."

"But thank you anyway," Akira whispered with a smile, leaning closer and gently kissing his cheek. Nagisa flushed even more as he pulled away, his hand coming up to touch the place where her lips had met his cheek. He grinned at her widely and Akira smiled. "Now, come on. Let's find a nice place to watch the fireworks from."

They stood on the grass, just as the fireworks display began. Akira let her head lean on Nagisa's shoulder while they watched the various colors explode in the sky. She closed her eyes for a moment, letting her cheek rub against his shoulder. He smelled of chlorine and deodorant, and a tiny bit of strawberry. Akira inhaled gently, while Nagisa put his arm around her.

"Akira-chan?" he said slowly.

Akira looked up to find his magenta eyes inches away from hers. "Hmm?"

"I've always wanted to kiss a girl during a fireworks display." He hesitated a little, his cheeks pink. "Can I?"

Akira raised an eyebrow. "Well, sure go ahead. There's a pretty girl sitting right over there."

Nagisa flushed. "Akira-chan! You know what I meant!"

"Tell me."

"I want to kiss you during the fireworks display," Nagisa admitted. Akira smiled, both their faces equally red as he leaned closer and she could feel his warm breath on her face. She lifted up a hand to put on his cheek, and pulled his lips down to hers. Nagisa was hesitant, but his warm lips kissed hers gently, while he pulled her closer to his body. The mix of chlorine and strawberry was stronger now, and Akira let her hand slide up into his messy blonde hair. When they pulled apart, Nagisa wrapped his arms around her in a bear hug, nuzzling his face into her neck.

"That tickles," Akira muttered, still trying to catch her breath after the kiss. She grabbed onto Nagisa's shoulder, wondering why her legs suddenly felt like jelly. Nagisa grinned and kissed her neck once, before stepping back to look at her. He smiled.

"Shall we go home?" he asked.

Akira nodded, while Nagisa kept his arm firmly around her, leading her out of the small park. It was a little uncomfortable to walk while pressed into his side, but Akira wasn't about to step away. Her cheeks were still heated from the kiss when Nagisa suddenly stopped. They were near the exit to the festival.

"Ice cream…" he muttered, looking longingly at the ice cream stall. Akira sighed and gave him a slight push in it's direction. Nagisa beamed and kissed her again, lightly, before running over to look at the flavors. Akira followed his slowly watching as he plastered his face to the glass, trying to decide which one he wanted.

"Boyfriend?" the man behind the ice cream stall asked Akira, smiling.

Akira nodded with a laugh. "Yes, he is."

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A/N – So, I think I'll end this story here for now. Maybe I'll write more in the future, but right now I'm working on finishing my other two Free! stories. Guilt is a Haru/OC, while Megane Guys is an M-rated Rei/OC. Also, as my lovely guest reviewer put the idea in my head, my gears are whizzing with plots for a Nitori/OC one-shot too. Let's see how that turns out.

Hope you enjoyed reading this!