"See? Now was that so hard?"

"Jeez, shut up Kashiwagi!" I could still feel my face burning from behind my scarf. "That was completely weird."

"It's too cold out here. Let's go find somewhere to be warmer." Jeez, what was with him? 'Let's go find somewhere to be warmer'? That sounded a lot like he was flirting with me. Though with the way he acted, it didn't seem like he was the type of person to flirt shamelessly.

"Aw but it looks like you made his day! He'll probably never forget you. You should be happy about that."

"It was your idea for me to go up and give him the scarf in the first place. . !"

"Yes but you pointed out that you thought he was cute so I was only helping you, Tsu-bak-i~"

"Jeez!" I huffed knowing I was flustered. Kashiwagi knew just how to tease me.

"You think you'll see him again?" she was more serious this time.

I shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe if it's "meant to be"." I said sarcastically.

"Joke all you want but you know I could be right." Another cold breeze blew by. "Whew, it's really cold out here. Well, this is my stop. Thanks for coming with me today, Tsubaki."

"Oh, it was no problem. Good luck on your date tonight!" I waved at her as she went into her apartment. Turning, I headed towards the subway to head home myself.

"I'm home!"

"Oh, you're back. Did Kashiwagi find a dress?"

I slipped my shoes off and hung my coat on the coat rack beside the door before looking behind me to find my younger sister standing behind me drinking something from a mug. Probably hot chocolate.

"Oh yeah. Got it for a steal, too. How was school?"

"Ah, same old same old," Takeda Sawabe is my kid sister even though she's not much of a kid anymore. She's in her last year of junior high school. Her hair is short like mine but straight and her eyes are darker than mine.

I sighed. 'Arima Kousei. Kousei.'

"Huh? Onee-chan.. are you blushing?" Takeda came over to me and peeked over my shoulder to look at my face. "Oh, you are! What happened? Did you meet a guy? Ooh, what's his name? How old is he? Is he cute?"

"What are you talking about? You shouldn't assume things, jeez. . ." Even as I tried to deny it I could still feel my face burning. "And besides, I don't plan on dating anyone for a while." I went to the kitchen and filled myself a glass of water.

"Oh come on, sis! Yeah, right! You never know, maybe this guy is the one!"

"There is no guy, and trust me. I think I'll be okay on my own. I could do without another episode of what happened with Aaren."

Aaren Abbot was my American ex-boyfriend. We had a good relationship for a solid three years. He was the perfect boyfriend, he never let me go a day without making sure I knew that he loved me. He would shower me with gifts and take me out for dinner to dozens of fancy restaurants whenever he got the chance. I was in love. At least, I thought I was. Don't get me wrong, Aaren was an amazing person, but of course all good things must come to an end. He's a marketing consultant and so his job requires a lot of travel. He'd been assigned here in Tokyo for only two years, but then came the time for him to go back to New York City in America where he lives. Of course the idea was brought up for me to go and move back with him, but Takeda is only fourteen. I still had to take care of her. It was my responsibility as her older sister and I wasn't willing to leave her in anyone else's hands. And the idea to bring her with me wasn't an option that I had been very fond of. Takeda's entire life had been spent here in Tokyo. Unless it was a situation that there weren't any options, I didn't want to take that away from her. That last year we tried to make it work with video chats and monthly visits, but eventually life got in the way and we both realized that the spark was no longer there.

It was too bad. Aaren was definitely an eligible bachelor. He was tall, blond and handsome. His blue eyes are what made me fall head over heels for him in the first place. Hell, they would probably make any single girl just getting into the world stop just to get a glance of him.

Not only that but he was rich, hence the endless gifts and countless expensive dinners. Though could you blame me for not wanting to have a repeat? Yes, it had been a mutual decision for us to break up but that didn't mean that there hadn't been any pain. I just didn't want to face anymore heartbreak.

"Oh please, don't fool yourself. I mean, is it really worth it to put your love life on hold right now? What if you end up living alone with a house full of cats?"

"That won't happen. Besides, I have you don't I?" I finished my water and put my glass in the sink.

Takeda laughed. "Maybe for now until I graduate high school but after that you're on your own."

"Yeah, yeah okay." I retreated to my room. I was exhausted. Kashiwagi dragged me all over town today looking for her dress for her date later tonight. Her boyfriend was taking her out to dinner at this fancy new Chinese restaurant in town and she was worried she didn't have the right dress to wear. Despite my doubts of the restaurant being that fancy, Kashiwagi wasn't backing down. She was my best friend, I couldn't say no. It would break her heart.

Nao Kashiwagi and I met when we played softball together in junior high and from that we became best friends. After junior high we went to high school and college together. Nao went on to be a daycare teacher and I work at the big café in town everyone comes to. Being a barista wasn't that bad. It required energy which I knew I had plenty of and it was fun to talk to the customers. As for Nao, she didn't show it much but she actually had a nice and caring side and she loved children so her job had been perfect for her.

I've called her by her last name for as long as I could remember. Nao was a good person. She's been there for me every time I had a problem and vice versa. I couldn't remember the last time she let me mope around about something. Whenever it came to Aaren after we split up she would always tell me to move on, but she was supportive about it.

I sighed, laying down on my bed. There'd even been times when Kashiwagi had forced me to do things that I wasn't really comfortable with, like giving a scarf to Kousei earlier.

I turned on my side. In a way I felt stupid for doing what I did but every time I thought about it, I couldn't help but blush and smile. The fact that we might never meet again didn't matter to me. That brief moment had given me a happiness I hadn't felt ever since I was with Aaren.

I yawned. I needed a nap after how tiring my day had been. I closed my eyes and before I knew it I'd fallen asleep.

After a day of work at the café I was heading up the stairs when I saw Takeda standing outside of our apartment waiting for me. She was still in her school uniform. "Oh good, you're back. I want you to come with me to my piano lesson today."

"Huh? Why? I've got nothing to do there." I was about to put my key in the door when she stopped me.

"Please, Tsubaki? It would make me really happy!" she convinced.

I sighed. I had already been planning to sit in front of the tv and eat ice cream all day. And that was far more appealing than sitting there listening to nothing but the piano for two hours. "I think I'll just stay here; you go on ahead."

"Please, Tsubaki? I'll do anything you want!"

I gave in. "Fine, fine. I'll think of something for you to do for me after. Come on."

"Awesome, you're the best Tsubaki!"

The piano school wasn't far from home. It was just around the corner to be exact. I was already bored the moment we reached the school. I should have brought a magazine or something with me.

As soon as I opened the door I heard the sound of a piano playing Pachelbel's Canon. I recognized it because it would play in the café every now and then.

I headed to the entrance of the piano room and when I reached it I stopped walking. I felt my heartbeat speed up all of a sudden and I could feel the blood rushing to my face.

'Arima Kousei. Kousei.'

Bonjour mesdames et messieurs~ Hope you enjoyed~ I'm having fun writing this story and loving the fact that I can just basically spill my words onto paper and voila, there's another chapter. :D

Disclaimer: I do not own Shigatsu wa Kimi no Uso (Your Lie in April) nor do I own any of the original characters from the anime or manga itself.

~ShortAzn