Chapter 4: Love and War
"K-Kushieda-san? Are you okay? You're crying."
"..." …? I brought my finger to my eye in disbelief. ….!
W-w-w-whaaaaat!?
Oh my gosh! No! No no no no no no no! This is not happening! This can't be happening! NO! NO! Crud! He saw me cry! What do I do!? What do I do?! How am I going to get out this!? Why can't I just go and die!?
"Do... do you need any help?" Takasu asked as he reached his hand out towards me. I panicked and turned around as fast as I could, masking my face out of pure shame. I needed a way out of this. I think to myself desperately searching for an answer. "D-Do I just run away as fast as I can and be a complete scumbag to Takasu? I can't do that! Do I just stay here and try to act like everything's okay? H-How am I supposed to make that work!? It can't be! There's nothing I can do! I-I... No! NO!" I was broken more than I had ever been. I wanted to give up, fall on my knees, pretend this was all a bad dream. I prayed for a miracle.
"Hey you lovebirds, are you just about done with the little talk you're having?" I heard Yuri-sensei's voice directly behind me. "I leave you two alone outside, not wanting to get in the way of a high school experience, finish taking role, and find that you're both still outside talking with each other! Can't this wait until lunch at least? Better yet do it off of campus, and take Kushieda-san on a date Takasu-kun! You're not going to get anywhere with a woman at school and frankly no one wants to see something like this here!" Sensei had gotten to know Takasu and his laid back tendencies, and proceeded to lay down her authority on the both of us.
"S-sensei!? No this isn't what this looks like were just having a normal conversation that's all!" Takasu gave her a stuttered reply.
"Oh really? Just a conversation? REALLY? Because it lasted for 5 mins after I started class!" She was so scary that she took most of the attention off of me. Wait! Now's my chance!
"It's true Yuri-sensei, we were really just having a friendly chat but we were so into it that it got out of hand! I didn't even have enough time to use the restroom before class started and I really have to excuse myself from you both! Sorry!" I backpedaled from the both of them while closing my eyes, making sure no tears were leaking after I had wiped my face.
"Wha- Kusheida-san! Get back here! I'm going to mark you truant for class!"
"I'm sorry sensei but you know us girls! When we have to use the restroom we really really have to go! I'll take the truancy just this once!" I wave them both goodbye as I speed up towards the end of the hall. I turn the corner and catch a breather, nearly cursing at myself for letting myself cry infront of Takasu.
"Why in the world did you cry in front of him you stupid loser!?" I say my words masked under my breath, too bothered to keep it to myself. "You've never cried since middle school! And you certainly have never cried in front of a boy! How am I ever going to look at Takasu-kun ever again!?" I felt the impulse to break everything around me, but the only thing I could hit was the classroom walls beside me. Knowing that wasn't an option I held the pain back as best as I could and walked as quickly as possible to the restroom. I thought I would collapse before I could get there.
I stagger through the girl's door and rush to the faucet, drenching my face with cold water. As the heat cooled off from my skin I think of what caused me to do such a disgraceful thing. I thought back to Takasu and what he said about Taiga. About how he saw that Taiga was just an average girl like everyone else.
"I don't understand. How could he know so much about her after they just met? All these small things that I treasured about Taiga, all these things I understood about her after being with her so long, he learned in just a week. I announce my thoughts to the empty room, trying to calm myself down. I've known Taiga for over a year now and it seems like Takasu knows just as much about her as I do. And maybe even a little more..."
"How could a person like him even exist? How could a guy be that sensitive to how someone feels? How could a guy just unravel my best friend, and be more a friend to her than I am? Just who the heck is he!?" I was frustrated. "He just called himself a fool and thought that was a good enough answer for me!? Takasu-kun you idiot! You stole Taiga from me!" My speech started to slur. I couldn't even talk right.
"... And the fact that Takasu-kun said that she was lonely, saying that she needed a friend... she has me, doesn't she? Why didn't she just talk to me about this stuff?" I look up in the mirror to inspect my flawed self. I looked pathetic. And at school no less. "I thought she was independent. She was wasn't she? I mean,... but no she wasn't. She really needed help and she didn't want me by her side... and she didn't even tell me about it either... She's done with me, isn't she?" I could feel pressure build up around my cheek bones and then tears started to form around my eyes. It was clear what caused me to cry in front of him.
I forced my tears back and used the water to hold them off further. I wasn't going to cry if I had the will to stop it. I wasn't at home; I couldn't blow this off until today had ended. And it was going to be a while until it happened. I bottled up everything, promising myself to not do something as stupid as gushing out a fountain in front of a boy. I didn't think I could keep up with class like this, and I was already late, so I figured I might as well go outside and get some fresh air. I even considered ditching and going to my softball locker room to relax.
I walked to the rear exit, wondering how I would talk to Taiga from here on out. She didn't want anything to do with me. Takasu mentioned that she wasn't going to see him anymore, but if it wasn't him then somebody else would come along and help Taiga out. I guess Taiga moved on. She was independent alright, independent from me. And I was so depressed about it I couldn't even function. I needed time to think. I opened the exit, and astonishingly enough I heard people talking outside, even though class was well underway. "Must be some troublemakers or something..." I thought to myself and continued down the stairs. But I stopped, hearing something familiar. "... Wait a second... that's Taiga's voice! That's Taiga!"
I crouch along the inner wall of the stairs, making sure no one could see me from outside the school. I was a story high from the ground so I had a pretty good vantage point. I peeked up, and saw that Taiga was really there. And she was talking with Kitamura! He doesn't show up to class in the mornings, but shouldn't he be at the student council!? Why were they both outside alone together!?
Taiga then started to talk with him. "Kitamura-kun!" She was trying her best to not be nervous in front of him. "Kitamura-kun I-I, umm... Kitamura I-" Oh my gosh! This is really happening! She's going to confess to him!
I crouch back and hide from the both of them, not willing to accept the situation I was in. Was I really going to hear my best friend give her heart out to the person she likes, even if she didn't want me to know anything about it? But I want to hear it so badly!
"Hold on a minute Aisaka-san." Kitamura stepped in to reply to Taiga. "I get the feeling I know where this is going. But I want to make sure I'm clear on this before you move on. Aren't you dating Takasu-kun right now?" Just as firm as ever, even when getting confessed to.
"N-no! Everyone just made up rumors that we were going out that's all!" She was slurring all over the place. She was so timid that I could tell just by her voice alone.
"You don't have feelings of love for him or anything like that?"
"No it's nothing like that! We just live really close together. I don't like him at all."
My heart was pounding to the point I thought it would surge out of my chest. I held my hands against my mouth, bracing for the moment that Taiga would confess. I was self-conscious eavesdropping, but I couldn't help myself to move.
"So do you hate Takasu-kun then?"
There was a pause before Taiga gave an answer. "I... no... I don't hate him..." What? What was that tone in her voice just now? Curious, I squeezed over the top again to get in another glance.
Taiga was looking around at the ground below her, being very uncomfortable. I couldn't see her face, but her words just now seemed really strange. Almost... passionate.
"But no! Don't misunderstand! Me and him are not like that!" Taiga sounded embarrassed, like she didn't want to admit it. She stopped stuttering too. "Ryuuji, he... that's right! Food! He would go and cook me delicious food whenever I would come over! He would always urge me on! He, he even lied to me make me a little happy..." She spoke softly, as if the breath she spoke was so delicate it could shatter. Oh my goodness... she's getting emotional.
"He would always be there when I needed help... he listened to me when I yelled at him..." ...Taiga... her words were touching. In the only way a girl could make them when she put her feelings into it. "He's... He's always there when I need him. Because of him I have the courage to do this!" Taiga lifted her head to meet Kitamura eye to eye. "K-Kitamura-kun! I like you!" My heart ached beyond words for her. But it wasn't for Kitmura's sake. It was for Takasu's.
I slumped back down with a bag of mixed feelings. I didn't know what to make of all this. Takasu... he was a guy who managed to get really close to Taiga. I... I was jealous of him. I was jealous that Taiga relied on him instead of me. But after just seeing that... is it right to be angry at someone so important to my best friend? "No, no, don't be like this. Support Taiga with her decisions. She cares about him." I whisper to myself, hoping to convince myself that it was the right choice. But the pain in my chest wouldn't vanish. I didn't want her to go and just find a replacement for me. Even though she already did... Wait. Something's off. Right! Takasu said that he and Taiga wouldn't see each other again! So everything will go back to normal! … No... Taiga cares about him. Even if she wouldn't admit it to me. It would hurt her a lot. …? Why would Taiga tell Takasu not to see her again? What reason does she have- I pushed my eyes open, forcing myself out of my thoughts. I was trance-like for some time, and those two were still below me. I got back on my feet eager to hear the two. I owed it to myself to see this side of my best friend. I had to.
I saw Taiga panicking, holding her hands to her head like she had made the biggest mistake of her life. Kitamura was opposite her, just as calm as he was before. I didn't know what they spoke about while I had my head in the clouds, but it made Taiga frantic.
"Don't worry Aisaka, don't worry." Kitamura spoke first.
"W-w-What do you mean don't worry? I don't think you understood what I was trying to tell you!" She was still embarrassed, but it was nothing like the beginning when she just started to talk to him. Rather than a girl confessing to her crush, she was like a girl that would give anything to change the past few minutes of her life.
"Don't worry. We'll definitely become close friends."
"N-no! This isn't about being friends! This is a confession!...? Wait, friends?..." Oh no.
"That's right. Friends." Kitamura's smile was so gentle it could cut a wound.
Taiga froze as stiff as a statue. The shock of rejection is painful to anybody, let alone to a girl. And the way Kitamura rejected her so calmly was just, well, shocking. She stared out ahead of her, refusing to accept the situation. I couldn't imagine how she must have been feeling right now. Takasu mentioned that the both of them spent so much time to prepare for her confession, and for it to end up like this...
"Well anyway Aisaka, we're both not where we're supposed to be right now. I'm going to go ahead to the student council room. I'll see you in class in a while." Kitamura waved as he headed off away from Taiga. She didn't respond. Not even a twitch.
The look on Taiga's face as she stood there was unbearable. She tilted her head down, looking as if she was going to break down into tears. Before I knew it I was heading down the outside stairs to where she was, unwilling to see her like that. I didn't know what to say when I got to her or what I was even thinking, I just couldn't help but go to her.
"Well well, so you had a crush on Kitamura-kun this whole time huh?" I spoke in a easy, jokingly manner as I reach the end of the stairs. I held my hands behind me while I slowly walked down, making sure I was inviting and friendly as possible. I wanted to be her friend right now, and I wanted her to know I was. I wasn't Takasu, but my intentions were in the right place.
"M-m-mi-Minori! W-What are you doing here!? Did you hear that entire thing?!" She sure snapped out of her sad mood pretty fast.
"I heard a good bit of it. Enough to tease you about it, that's for sure." I gave a smile as I met her at ground level.
"S-So what?! Yeah I liked him, what about it?!" Taiga rose her voice, trying to mask how embarrassed she was.
"Ohhh nothing, but seeing you be all emotional in front of him brought a tear to my eye, you know?"
Taiga blushed profusely. "Minori you idiot!" She turned her head to the side, unwilling to look me.
"I'm joking, I'm just joking." I chuckled to her. The atmosphere was much better than it was a few moments ago. "I can't help but say something when I see something like this right?" Hopefully she was cheering up.
She kept her head tilted, staring at the ground to the side of her. "Hey, how much exactly did you hear?" She sounded serious with her low chilling voice. So serious I was hesitant on giving an answer.
"Well... I heard the little speech you gave about Takasu-kun."
"Really..." Her mood was getting a lot darker. I needed to change the subject. I pulled my cheery self out on the spot.
"But hey, I never expected you to do something like this! Going off and confessing to a boy by yourself? I never thought you could be so brave!"
"..."
"And you never told me about any of this either! Do you know how much of a surprise it was to see you both together out here?
"..."
"Were you just embarrassed that much about telling me about it? I mean, I do talk with Kitamura-kun sometimes but you're my best friend! I would always support you!"
"W.. do … ..re..." Taiga hushed something underneath her breath. I didn't think any of it, so I continued to talk.
"And you had Takasu-kun help you out with the whole thing right? I would've loved to help you out with this! How could I not want to help you get closer to someone you like? You should never feel ashamed to tell me about these things!"
"... Why do you care?" Taiga looked at me dead-on, giving me the most serious stare I had ever seen.
"? Taiga? Is something the matter?" I didn't know what she could possibly mean by that.
"Why do you care Minori. Why." She legitimately scared me. I've seen Taiga when she's angry, but this was different.
"W-Well, like I said you're my best friend. I want to know about things like this."
Taiga continued to mad dog me in silence. It was quiet between us for a few moments. I didn't know what she wanted me to say.
"...I care about you. I want to help you out in anyway that I can. You mean a lot to me." I spoke sincerely.
She looked down and closed her eyes, tensing up. "You care about me? Really? Is that so?" I could see her arms start to shake, and her whole body started to twitch. I refused to believe what was going to happen.
"T-Taiga I'm sorry I didn't mean to get you angr-"
"You care about me!? Like heck you do! You don't care about me at all!" That was the second time she yelled at me. But that wasn't what bothered me. Her words hurt more. I took a step back, not prepared for what she said to me. "School starts and you just want to suddenly go and be my friend again!? Even after you lied to me!?"
I was disturbed. What Taiga was saying wasn't true, I really did care about her. But the fact that she didn't think that was... it was unbearable. It hurt more than I could ever imagine. I flashed back to memories of me and her last year and all the good times we spent together. I had no words for her. I was left speechless.
"You go on and on last year talking about how you wanted to spend time together during vacation, because you were so busy with work and school! And then when the time finally comes you say you can't come visit at all because you got more jobs!? Do you know how much I was looking forward to finally talking with you like friends again!? Do you care more about money and savings then being around me!? You do don't you!?"
I wanted to say something to her. Something to say I was sorry. But no words would come out of me.
"I would be sad when you had to go work and we couldn't hang out together, I really would be! But it was okay, since we would spend so much more time together when the school year would finally be over! *sniff* " As she was shouting her voice became higher and her cheeks started to puff up. I could see water start to form around her eyes. " *sniff* I would just remember the promise you made and I would get over it. I thought that no matter what we could still be friends during vacation! But we couldn't, could we!? No, BECAUSE YOU GOT MORE JOBS!" She gave me a full force yell as I saw tears streaming down her face. "I hate how you have so many jobs! It pisses me off more than anything! So why the heck did you go and get more!? You had enough before to pay for your place! You told me! *sniff*" Her words became jumbled. They were mixed in with the sound of crying and sniffling. "I told myself to stop caring about you over the summer because you didn't about me! That it would be better if I just got away from you! But here I am, *sniff*, crying because of all this!" She shut her watery eyes closed, gritting her teeth. "I hate you Minori! I hate you!"
"...Taiga I'm so sorry I-"
"Shut up! Just shut up! You're not sorry!" She had her hands on her eyes, trying to stop the flow of tears. "If you were sorry you would have said so a long time ago! If you really cared you would have done something already! I hate you! Go away!"
A part of me broke inside. Things happened in this moment that should never happen at all. Taiga yelled at me. She said she hated me. I made her cry. I wanted to break down, just give up and run away, not turning back. I could feel my eyes water and my feet starting to back pedal. I flashed my treasured memories of us. The best times of my life I had spent with her; at her house, at school, after practice. But it didn't matter anymore. It was all going to end. More memories flood from the past until today, as if I was trying to block out what was happening. My distance between her crying grew as I got ready to turn around. Just as I was about to I stopped, remembering back to the talk I had with Takasu.
" you see a hurt tiger alongside the road. You see it needs help and food and care, but you know everyone else hates the tiger because it bites. Anyone with common sense would stay away from the tiger." I stare at my best friend crying as I remember what Takasu said. "... The tiger was lonely. The tiger wanted a friend."
I think to myself. "...I'm her friend... I'm going to go and leave her crying like that... because I'm... sad?..."
... Idiot.
A rush of energy pours through me and I dash straight forward towards Taiga. I put both my hands on her shoulders and look at her straight in the face.
"No! No! Let go of me! Let go!" Taiga yells, hands still at her eyes refusing to look at me.
"Taiga please listen! I'm sorry for all that I put you through up until now! Words can't say what I feel right now!"
"Shut up! Just let go! Let go of me!"
"I won't! Taiga what you said about me isn't true! I care about you! I care about you so much! I wouldn't know what I'd do if you weren't my friend!" I wasn't thinking at all. I spoke on instinct.
"Liar! Liar! Shut up!"
"Look at me! Taiga look at me!" I grab her arms and put them on her side. I replace them with my own as I held her face close to mine by her cheeks. She kept her eyes shut. "All this time I made you upset. All this time I left you alone and sad and miserable. All this time I didn't understand how you felt at all. Knowing that I want to tear my own heart out. Please understand! I'd do anything in the world to make you happy! I'd do even more to make it that somehow you would forgive me!" I could feel my own tears start to form. I did my best to hold them in.
"No! No!"
I flashed back again to what Takasu said. " everyone else hates the tiger because it bites. Only a fool would go and help such a vicious creature. But because I'm a fool, I chose to help it." I grit my teeth, refusing to let my insides come out.
"Taiga! I'm willing to go and get yelled at by you! Even if you say that you hate me and you fight back, I'll still be here! I'm doing this because I'm your best friend! I'm doing this because I care about you! *sniff* And I know... I know that you still care about me too! You don't want us to be fighting like this! I know that you still want us to be friends! And I know that somewhere inside you you know that's right!" I shut my eyes at the very last part; the weight of my feelings was too strong for me to bear. "I still want to be friends with you! I still want to hang out with you! I still want to spend time together like we always have! I'm sorry for what I did over the break! I'm sorry! I vow on my life that we will spend more together like we always have! We'll find a way! It won't end like this! It won't!"
"... you *sniff* idiot." I heard a low, teary voice. I opened my eyes to see the most emotional face that Taiga had ever gave. Eyes that were practically water, glistening from the tears that were constantly forming. Her cheeks were a slight red and puffed up immensely. Her mouth hung open, letting out a constant quiet cry.
"Taiga..."
"That time *sniff* earlier when you tackled me down in class, I didn't know what *sniff* what was going on. And then I saw you right *sniff* right next to me, and a desk almost comes down on your *sniff* on your head. Do you know ho- *sniff* how scared I was that it almost hit you? *sniff* What if it hit you *sniff* and you got sent to the hospital *sniff* because of me? *sniff* *sniff*"
"..."
"Of course I *sniff* care about you! *sniff* I thought you weren't the *sniff* one who cared about me!" Taiga had exposed every inch of her feelings to me and was in a state that I couldn't help but cherish. I went into her and hugged her around her shoulders, letting her know that it was alright for her to be this vulnerable. To be honest, I was just as open too.
"Taiga. I care about you too. I always have." I felt warm inside talking to her. "I'm sorry for what I've done to you. We're best friends. Let's stay that way."
"... *sniff* *sniff* idiot!" She buried her face in my chest, gushing out tears. I held her gently in my arms for what seemed like forever. I didn't want it to end. It was such a feeling knowing that I made up with her. Probably better than anything I had ever experienced until now. It felt like nothing could get any better than this moment. I made sure to enjoy it even more, knowing that it was going to end eventually.
Taiga's tears died down and we let go of each other. My uniform was stained fairly well from when her face was on it. I look back at her to find that she was now docile and gentle looking, almost doll like. To be one of the only people that saw this side of her made me feel even better. It subsided when I remembered that Takasu had known this side of her as well. I hadn't seen Taiga like this in a while and that guy already knew she was that kind of person at heart. There was no way he was human. Just showing up out of nowhere and getting so close to her was impossible. He was more like a ghost with how he popped from thin air. I thought about it for a moment, and came to the conclusion that if he hadn't helped Taiga I wouldn't be standing with her, and we wouldn't have made up. She would still be mad at me for what happened during vacation. So in a way he helped me out too. Huh, he really is a ghost. More like some angel or something, but I wouldn't go that far. Knowing that the only other person who knew Taiga was a ghost made me feel happier in a weird way.
Taiga spoke up soon after we split from each other. "So... can you tell me why you got so many jobs over vacation? You never did tell me why."
I was stunned for a bit realizing that I didn't explain myself when I gushed my feelings towards her. I knew that what I was going to say to her was going to upset her a lot. She was in such a great mood too, but I couldn't possibly tell her the reason why. That would make her worry way too much about me. "I... please don't get mad okay? I just... I can't tell you. I'm sorry."
She easily went from being gentle and sweet looking to being her usual self. "...Why?"
I hated the fact that I had to hide it from her, but it wasn't something I could share so easily. Telling her about Haru and the rest of them would cause her to flip out, and it wouldn't be the same between us again. I bowed to her, knowing full well how much of a hypocrite I was. "I'm sorry! Please, I just don't want you to get involved in something like this! It's nothing serious you have to worry about, trust me!"
Taiga was clearly confused. I prayed that she didn't pry further for fear that she would get mad again. Not after we just made up moments ago. "...Okay. I'll trust you."
"Thank you Taiga! Thank you so much!" I was thrilled beyond belief.
"But can you at least answer this? I already know that you're busy like every day of the week practically. Since you promised that we were going to hang out like always before how exactly is that going to work with your schedule?"
I didn't take that into account when I was being real with her, and I had to come face to face with it now. I was left without an answer. "It'll be alright, trust me! I'll find a way to make it happen! You can count on me!" I gave her a big thumbs up and a goofy smile, out of any other option. I would rather be optimistic and happy then tell her that it wasn't looking good.
"Minori... that's a lot of faith I have to have in you." She was pessimistic.
"Don't worry! I won't let you down! I promise!"
"... You're making a lot of promises today too. *sigh*, alright. I have a lot of hope in you. Don't let me down." I was glad that she accepted it, even though I knew that she didn't want to. All of my reasons were terrible and really scummy for a best friend to give.
"Roger Ms. Taiga! It'll be my sworn duty to uphold my end of our great agreement! Leave it to me!" I stood straight and gave her a big salute, returning to my old ways.
" *giggle*, well I guess everything's back to normal now." Taiga gave a smile, signaling the end of all this. I breath a sigh out, relaxing. It was short lived when I thought about how we would find the time to hangout. There wasn't any other answer than we weren't going to that much. Unless I quit most of my jobs my time was filled up. And I wasn't going to quit my jobs. I felt far too guilty knowing that Taiga put all of her faith in me and I would still leave her by herself and alone. You're pathetic Minori. I couldn't just go and do this to her. There had to be some other way, at least for the meantime until I could work things out. There has to be... that's right!
"Hey, I had a little talk with Takasu-kun a while ago and he mentioned that you both weren't going to see each other again. That's true isn't it?"
Taiga was shocked for a moment, then looked puzzled, wondering why I brought it up. "Yeah, I told him not to talk to me again."
"Is that so... you know, I don't know the reason why you did that, but I think it's better if you still went and saw each other."
Taiga was taken back, almost cringing from what I just said. "What!? Why should I have to do anything with that mongrel!?
"Hey Taiga hear me out! When I was talking with him before he seemed like real a nice guy, and he told me how he helped you out with everything! He told me he wanted to be friends with you too!" She hated being alone, but couldn't make friends that easily. Takasu was my best bet to have Taiga be taken care of. I still didn't know him that well, but I could see the spark between the two of them. It was a gut feeling and it was the only thing I had.
"No! Absolutely not! I don't want to be friends with a moron like him! And do you know the rumors that will spread if people see me with him again!?" I didn't think Taiga would be this defensive about this.
"Why are you so defensive about this? Hey, I don't think people in class are going to say anything with what you just did over there."
"Well why are pushing me to go and see him!? All this talk about wanting to hang out and you tell me to be friends with him!? What the heck is this all about!?"
I must have sounded completely out of line to her. It wouldn't do any good to just dodge her questions. "*breathe* I'll be honest with you Taiga. From what it looks like right now with my schedule I don't think I could spend enough time with you as I would want. I'll take every chance I get to do so but even then it doesn't look good. With what happened this past week it looks like you can get along with Takasu-kun, well, better than most people. I just don't want you to be alone, you know? And you care about him too don't you? Why don't you want to be friends with him?"
"T-There's a very good reason why! I told him that because he has a cru-" Taiga stopped, putting her hands to her mouth. "I just don't want to be friends with him!"
I walk up to Taiga again, with the best intention of persuading her. "Hey look. I heard the entire speech that you gave about him. About how you didn't hate him and how he cooked for you, all of it. I could tell just from the sound of your voice that he meant something to you. And it looks like he cares about you too. There's nothing bad that could come from this. And I think there could be something more between-"
"Fine! Fine! Just, okay! Just don't say anything else! Please!" Taiga became as red as the uniform she was wearing. I smiled.
"See? I knew you knew it was a good idea-"
"I'll show you! I'll prove to you I don't care about him! I'll work him like the dog he is and make him cook food for me every day! He'll be my pet from now on and he'll have no freedom at all! He'll wish he never met me! And when he tries to run away I'll still make him cook food! That'll teach you!
"...*laughter*"
"eh?"
"Hahaha! Hahahaha!"
"W-Whats so funny!?"
"You *laughter*, you looked so adorable when you said that! You had your finger pointed out with your face all *laughter*, all bright red! And what you said too! It was just *laughter*, it was just so like you! Hahaha!" I was belly laughing as hard as I could. I held my arms around me to try and contain myself, but I knew it wasn't going to work. It was just way too funny.
In between my cackling I sneaked in a peek at Taiga. She was pouting so much I think it made her more red. I laughed even harder. "S-Shut up! Stop laughing! Stop it!" She started stomping the ground, upset by how much fun I was having.
"I can't *gasp*, *laughter*, I can't help it! You're just way too cute!"
"W-Why you!" Taiga ran towards me trying to grab me. I playfully avoided her, getting her more riled up. She continued to hunt me down as I circled around her, laughing until it hurt. "Stay still! Stop!"
I gained some distance between her and did as she said, catching my breath. As I panted, I thought of the best idea that I've had all day.
"Hey Taiga! I have a camera in my softball locker! Just wait here and I'll go grab it! I want to take a picture of how cuddly you look!"
"W-w-What!? No! Never!"
"Or what? You're not going to chase me down and try to stop me are you?" I began jogging towards the locker room. I had to start my promise somewhere.
She ran after me, as fast as she could. "Minorin! You idiot!"