Chapter Twenty-One
-Miku-
"What was that?" I hear a voice behind me. I suddenly spin around to see a confused and worried looking Piko, shoving his hands in his hoodie pocket.
"What was what?" I ask dumbly, shaking my head.
"Look, Miku, I thought-"
"Oh. Piko," I suddenly moan, "It's not a date or anything. Just let it go," I say, leaning against the wall of the living room. It hasn't been very long since we had all eaten breakfast, and I'm supposed to meet Kaito so he can take me to an ice-cream shop in a couple minutes. To be honest, I'm quite excited.
"Well, the way he said it, it made it sound like he was trying to ask you out," Piko says, raising his eyebrows. That's right. Piko and I are kind of going out now…
"Well, the way he slammed the jam down on the table, it made it sound like he was trying to tell you how much he hates you," I point out. Why… did that just come out of my mouth? Piko's face suddenly falls. I bet that made me look like a great half-girlfriend.
"Sorry, it's not my fault he doesn't like me," Piko shrugs. "Do you know why?" he suddenly asks, pushing his bangs out of his eyes. He sits down on the couch next to me- and pretty close to me for that matter.
"Nope," I reply, "No idea." Suddenly, I pause as a thought sinks in. "Maybe it's because…" I start. He knows Piko and I are going out. He knows this kind of stuff, Miku, he's not stupid. "Never mind," I finish, instead of saying anything else.
"You sure?" Piko asks, playing with his hoodie zipper. Maybe I'm the one who's stupid. I can't even seem to get across the message that I don't have feelings for Piko. Maybe I do like Piko and I don't even realize it. Maybe-
"Yeah," I suddenly answer with a shudder, afraid of what my thoughts would try to convince me next. Suddenly, I hear footsteps walking into the room as both Piko and I turn our heads in the direction of which they come. Kaito walks in, a strange… blank look on his face. Thank you Kaito, you saved me… I think.
"Are you ready to go, Miku?" he asks, pulling on his blue scarf. I give a nod, turning away from Piko so I don't have to see his face. It kills me to see these two glaring at each other. Why can't they just-
"Yeah," I answer, cutting off my thoughts again. I walk up beside him as we begin walking out of the doorway. I stop suddenly. "Bye Piko," I smile, turning around to give him a wave. He waves back and turns around to pull out his phone. I suddenly feel a buzz in my pocket. I whip my phone out and read the message that flashes across the bright screen.
Piko: Tell me how it goes, okay?
"What was that?" Kaito asks, walking beside me to the mudroom. I quickly shove my phone back into the pocket of my short black shorts.
"Nothing," I answer, putting on my matching black flats. Kaito puts on his shoes as well and we head out the door. "So what is this ice-cream place like, anyway?" I ask, trying to break the silence. I watch as Kaito's eyes light up like a little kid.
"It's wonderful. There're tons of flavors! Oh, and it's right by the arcade too!" he grins.
"You really do love ice-cream, don't you?" I ask as we slip into his metallic blue Mercedes convertible. He starts the car, the loud engine vibrating in my ears. I pull out my phone and quickly type in my passcode (5335, because it's technically "leek"). I open my messaging app and re-read Piko's message before replying my own.
Piko: Tell me how it goes, okay?
Miku: Going okay so far, I'll txt you more later. G2G!
Putting my phone back in my shorts pocket, I watch as Kaito smoothly pulls out of the driveway and onto the street. I tug down on the big red bow on my cream-colored shirt, which currently matches the red bows in my hair that hold up my two teal twin tails, creating a contrasting color scheme. "How far away is this place?" I ask Kaito.
"It's really not too far," he answers, turning to face me as we cruise down the road. I nod my head. This is a little… awkward. I bite my lip, trying to think of something to say to break the ice a bit. "Look, we're practically there," he smiles, pulling up into the parking lot. That was fast.
I look up to see a cute red and white sign hanging above a small white building which reads Cerise. I look around to see that Kaito is already gazing at the menu in awe. I can't help but let out a laugh at his adorable childlikeness.
"Kaito!" I call, running up next to him at the counter. "Wait up, okay?" I laugh. I look up at the menu as well. He's right. Everything looks so good.
"I'll take two vanillas," Kaito says, placing a hand on my shoulder. He knows me too well. He gives me a contagious grin. The girl behind the counter smiles at us. "One medium and one small," he adds.
"Why'd you get a vanilla this time?" I ask with a laugh, "There are a ton of other things you could've gotten!"
"What? Maybe I like vanilla too," he argues teasingly, "Plus, do I seem like the kind of guy who's only going to show up here once?" he asks, raising his eyebrow at me playfully. I scoff.
The girl behind the counter turns around with a friendly smile, her red bun bouncing on the top of her head as she does so. Her outfit is really cute too; she wears a white and blue striped tank top with a red zipper down the front. She has long white gloves that climb up her arms and stop past her elbows, outlined in blue. She has a blue music-note in her hair, connected to a pair of white headphones.
"Here you go," she smiles, handing us both our ice-cream cones. I watch as Kaito pays. This time, I don't have that uncomfortable feeling… Unlike with Piko last night. "Enjoy!" she smiles.
We walk away, holding our cones in our hands. "She was nice," I comment, once we're out of earshot.
"Yeah," Kaito agrees, finding a nearby bench to sit on, "But I wish there was more shade around here. My ice-cream is melting already," he chuckles, patting an empty spot on the bench for me to sit down on. I take a seat next to him. A summery breeze flies through our hair, ruffling Kaito's and sending mine flying around my shoulders.
"K-Kaito, look!" I gasp as my ice-cream begins to drip around my fingers. He laughs at me, shaking his head. "Get it off me!" I yell, laughing as well.
"Lick it off," he says as if it's completely obvious. I roll my eyes. He tosses me a napkin. I bet I look so shallow right now. Suddenly, I take a deep breath and begin licking the sweet vanilla ice-cream off my fingertips. He laughs. "There you go," he says encouragingly. I let out a scoff, and with a flick of my wrist, I send the melted drops of ice-cream flying at him. I laugh with satisfaction as he gasps.
"There you go," I mock him with a snort. He rolls his eyes.
"Just be lucky I don't fight with girls," he teases, his blue eyes shining through his tossed cobalt hair.
"Hey!" I exclaim, punching him playfully in the shoulder. He flicks me in the cheek. I yank on his scarf. Suddenly, I feel a familiar vibration in my pocket again. It's just Piko. There's no need to check it right now.
"So who is it that keeps texting you?" Kaito asks with a tilt of his head, adjusting his scarf back to normal. I bite my lip. Don't lie to him…
"Piko," I answer quietly, avoiding his gaze.
"Oh," Kaito replies. "Are you guys like, dating or anything?" he asks suddenly. He did not just pull that card.
"Um…" I hesitate, "No… Not really." I thought I wasn't supposed to be lying to him. I bite my lip. Gah, and the hesitation completely gave it away!
"You kinda hesitated there," he sings, chuckling nervously. Perfect. "Come on, Miku," he says, "Don't lie to me."
"Who said I was lying?" I suddenly defend myself, "Plus, why did you slam the jam down this morning at breakfast, huh?" I ask, slurping down the last of my vanilla-flavored milk. I cringe as I watch Kaito's eyes widening suddenly.
"I-I didn't! It was an accident!" he claims. Why can't I control my mouth?
"Come on, Kaito," I tease with a smirk, "Don't lie to me." He lets out a scoff and crosses his arms.
"Fine. It wasn't an accident," he sighs, looking down. My face falls.
"Kaito, why would you do that?" I ask, my jaw dropping. I think I know exactly why…
"I just don't like the kid, okay?" Kaito groans, "He's so… sketchy." I let out a breath, followed by uncertain laughter.
"Is that actually it?" I ask, shaking my head. "Come on, there's a reason!"
"He just… I don't trust him, okay?" Kaito exclaims, his eyes widening. I give him a look. "Fine. I don't trust him around you, that's all," he mumbles.
"Ooh," I sing, wiggling my fingers, "Kaito…" I suddenly burst out into laughter. This isn't funny, I convince myself, so why am I laughing? "What? You think he likes me or something?" I scoff. Kaito rolls his eyes. I raise an eyebrow.
"Yes," he finally admits. I start laughing even harder.
"What? Are you trying to play matchmaker or something?" I ask, flicking his shoulder.
"No," he retorts, "Unlike Len."
"L-Len?" I ask as my laughter falls, suddenly confused.
"Yeah," Kaito answers, "He was the one who wanted to set you and Piko up in the first place." My eyes suddenly widen as the truth flashes in front of my eyes. Piko was his "friend" he was talking about, right? He said he needed to "settle the score" with someone here in Paris… was that just a lie to make sure I met Piko? Was he really just trying to set us up like Kaito said? Did he know this whole time that Piko had some sort of crush on me? Did he-
"Len…" I groan, cutting off my thoughts for what would probably add up to the thousandth time. "Whyyyy~?" I whine, tossing my head back in frustration.
"He knew that Piko liked you," Kaito tells me matter-of-factly. How does he know this? Why is he telling me this? Does he not feel completely awkward?
"Kaito…" I start. He looks up at me. "Why…?" Suddenly, I stop. I can't feel it right to ask anything. It's like… I almost forgot what I was going to say, but really, I knew all along. Gah, I can't even make sense of anything myself.
"How about we get going to the arcade?" he smiles with a tilt of his head. Without waiting for my response, he takes the wrapper from the ice-cream cone out of my hand and crumbles it with his, tossing it in the garbage can right beside him. How can I be like this? First I'm laughing as if everything is perfect, and a blink later, I can't even make sense of my thoughts?
In recollection of the question that's been on my mind for what seems like forever, suddenly, a new one flickers into my mind, reading a message that seems to explode all over every last corner of my cognizance. What if Kaito only asked to hang out with me so that he could ask me out? What if by lying to him, I just opened the doors for him to? What if-
"You okay, Miku?" Kaito asks, sticking his hands in his pockets and looking at me strangely. "You're looking a bit… scared."
"Oh, nothing," I sing, my voice shaky from the alarming thought. What on Earth have I done? Suddenly, a little booth catches my eye as we make our way in. "Kaito! Look!" I say, tugging on his sleeve to get his attention. He turns his head in the direction I'm pointing. "A photo booth! You think that could be fun?"
Suddenly, a smile brushes his features. "Definitely," he grins.
Oh hi there! This next chapter will be Gumi's POV.
Eating: Waffles
Drinking: Nothing
Doing: Publishing, writing chapter 22
Homework: Sketch a figure for a fashion class I'm taking. Shouldn't be too hard, right? Oh, and I have Honors Choir homework. I have to memorize seven songs in two days! Help!
Listening to: Honors Choir songs
Quote time: "He did not just pull that card." - Sassy Little Miss Miku