Author's Note:

Hello all. Sorry I've sort of fallen off the grid. A lot has happened since my last update. I don't want to go into to detail, but I will warn you that my updates aren't going to happen very frequently anymore. Life is kind of crazy.

I'm sorry to have had to put the story on ice for a couple months. Rest assured, though there may be long(er) gaps between chapters, I WILL be finishing this story.

Thank you all for your love and support. It really does mean a lot to me.

The week passed by pretty quickly and, to be honest, Kahoko was glad that Ryotaro had soccer every day after school. It was more manageable that way: small bite-sized chunks of time together that they'd sneak before school, or at lunch, or even right before his practice started. And it wasn't all physical, which was a change for Kahoko.

Sure, there were a few instances where, in the privacy of a practice room, they got a little carried away, but most of the time they just sat and talked. Ryotaro knew that she didn't want to make a big fuss over things, so he tried to stay away from public displays of affection—especially while they were eating lunch with their friends. Sometimes he'd put an arm around her or hold her hand, but for the most part, he just sat beside her. He'd tease her, try to get her to laugh, and it worked. The mood was lighter when Ryotaro was there. Kahoko felt more relaxed. Her friends loved him.

To be honest, it frightened Kahoko how easy it all was.

The rumor-mill went wild, of course. Strangely, no one ever actually approached Kahoko to ask about her relationship with Ryotaro. She didn't mind, though. Kahoko was relieved that no one was prying—the truth was that she still didn't know how she would answer them if they did ask about the relationship.

Kahoko received a phone call from Ryotaro on Saturday afternoon. His team had won the game, gone out to celebrate, and now he was at home. He offered to swing by and pick her up, but Kahoko insisted on walking over. The weather was nice, and she wanted to get some fresh air. She also wanted the time to walk alone and clear her head, but she didn't tell Ryotaro that.

Kahoko had baked cookies the night before with her mother and placed some in a container to bring to his house. If Ryotaro was going to be providing the food, the movie, and the meeting place, she figured she'd contribute by bringing a little something to sweeten their date.

Kahoko flushed as she realized that she was openly acknowledging that it was a date. It's no big deal, she told herself. You have fun spending time with him. It's not like he's actually asked you to be his girlfriend or anything.

She felt a little nervous as she stepped onto his front porch, but Kahoko shoved her uneasiness aside and rang the doorbell. Ryotaro answered quickly, seeming a little flustered himself when he opened the door. "Hey Kahoko," he said with a smile, "come on in."

Kahoko slipped off her shoes and followed Ryotaro into the house. He led her to the living room and gestured to the pizza boxes sitting on the coffee table. "Perfect timing," he said, "these were delivered right before you got here."

Kahoko raised her eyebrows. "Two pizzas? We each get our own?"

Ryotaro shrugged. "Actually, I was planning on eating both by myself. I realized how hungry I was when the game ended, and I know how you girls are. I've got a salad for you in the kitchen."

Kahoko went to punch him in the arm, but Ryotaro deflected the blow and snaked an arm around her waist to pull her in close. "Just kidding," he said. "You're beautiful. You can have both pizzas if you want."

Kahoko frowned. "I think you're just saying that to get on my good side."

"Maybe." He leaned down to give her a kiss. "Is it working?"

"I'm not sure," she teased, "maybe you ought to try that again."

Ryotaro eagerly accepted, but he broke away from the kiss with a chuckle as his stomach growled. "As much as I enjoy this, I'm starving."

They sat down on the couch and dug into the pizza. They joked and chatted, and Kahoko laughed so hard at one point that she nearly choked to death on her food. Ryotaro came to the rescue with a can of soda, but not until he'd made a quip about mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

When they couldn't possibly eat any more, Kahoko looked through Ryotaro's movies and they popped one into the DVD player. Kahoko curled up next to Ryotaro on the couch, and she smiled when he draped his arm around her.

Kahoko hadn't intentionally chosen a romantic film, but it ended up that way. At one point, there was a rather drawn out love scene that followed the couple after the man chased after the woman in a rainstorm and begged her to forgive him. Kahoko couldn't help but feel happy for them. She knew that it was just a movie, that life rarely happened that way, but she still wanted to congratulate them for finding love and happiness.

"I feel safe with you," Kahoko whispered. She hadn't intended to say the words out loud, and she blushed when she realized she'd slipped. She kept her eyes on the screen, partially hoping that he hadn't heard her.

Ryotaro gave her a gentle squeeze. "I'm glad," he said.

And Kahoko did mean what she said. Just sitting there on the couch with him, full of food and watching an incredibly cheesy movie, she was content. She trusted Ryotaro. Right now, she wasn't afraid or worried about anything. She sat up and leaned in for a kiss, unknowingly mirroring the couple on the television. "Thank you," she said.

"For what?"

Kahoko shrugged. "Just . . . thanks."

Kahoko drifted off to sleep a forty minutes before the movie ended. Ryotaro pulled a blanket off the back of the couch and draped it over them both. Carefully, he shifted her so that she was lying beside him. She sighed in her sleep and snuggled closer, resting her head on his chest. Ryotaro smiled. He wrapped an arm around her in case she decided to try and roll off the couch. Within a couple minutes, he was asleep as well.

Kahoko's eyes fluttered open. It took her a minute to figure out where she was, and to determine who she was sleeping on. The movie had ended, and the TV was playing the same 30 second loop of music over and over. Kahoko looked around and saw the remote control resting on the arm of the couch just beyond Ryotaro's head. She stretched out her arm and scowled when she came up a few inches short. Holding her breath, she propped herself up on one arm and snatched the remote with the other. Ryotaro's eyes opened right as she turned off the TV. "Thanks," he said. "The sound of the DVD menu repeating drives me nuts."

They'd closed the blinds for the movie, and with the television turned off, the room was in near-darkness. Kahoko realized that she had one hand resting on Ryotaro's chest. She could feel his heartbeat beneath her fingers.

Curious, she leaned down and kissed him, smiling when his heartbeat sped up slightly. The thought occurred to her that of the two of them, she was likely the one with more experience in this area. She did wonder if Ryotaro had been with other girls before, and how far he'd gone with them. Certainly not all the way, right?

She shivered. "Ryotaro," she asked, "you said that your parents weren't home, right?"

He nodded. "Yeah, they're on a trip actually. Their flight doesn't land until late this evening."

"Okay, good."

He grinned. "Are you afraid of getting caught?"

Kahoko traced her fingers lightly along his jaw line and down his throat. "Something like that."

Tsuchiura leaned in to kiss her and Kahoko happily obliged. She didn't know if it was the near-darkness or the privacy of the empty house or what that triggered it, but Kahoko quickly gained the upper hand. Her fingers clutched at Ryotaro's shirt, pulling him as close as she could, and the kiss was quickly moving into dangerous territory.

Kahoko's heart was pounding in her chest. Knowing that she was likely the more experienced of the two was incredibly empowering. Ryotaro opened his mouth to say something, but she interrupted him with another kiss. She pushed him down on the couch and leaned over him. Kahoko didn't know if it was her recent bout of abstinence or if it was mere curiosity, but she felt a rather strong desire for Ryotaro. When he reached up to tangle his fingers into her hair, she moved her hips against his, smiling slightly as he made a sound of pleasure.

"Kaho," he managed to gasp. "I think—"

But she interrupted his thought, pulling him toward her and kissing him. She moved her hips against his again and again, sighing when Ryotaro reached down, gripped her hips with his hands, and started helping her move against him harder, faster.

Kahoko closed her eyes and focused on the feeling of friction, on the exhilaration of being in control of the situation. She wanted to remove the obstacles of clothing and just get on with it already, but she wanted to make Ryotaro ask her for it. Instead, she closed her eyes and gave him soft moans of encouragement.

Ryotaro was taking his own sweet time, and it was driving Kahoko crazy. Frustrated, she slid one hand under his shirt, tracing a line with her fingers down his torso and coming to a rest at the waistband of his pants. Feeling daring, she stopped moving her hips and slipped her hand inside.

Ryotaro opened his eyes. "Wait, Kaho, wait." He sat up and pushed her hands away. His chest was heaving in his attempts to slow his breathing.

"What?" Kahoko asked. "Did I do something wrong?"

Ryotaro shook his head. "No, you certainly didn't. That's the problem. I didn't expect—" he cleared his throat. "I think we ought to slow down a bit, Kahoko."

Kahoko felt the color drain from her face. "You don't want me? But I thought . . ."

Ryotaro shook his head. "No, don't get me wrong. I definitely want you, I think that much is fairly obvious, I just . . . I think we should slow down. It hasn't even been a week since the first time I kissed you, Kahoko. I don't want to rush this. I don't want you to get the wrong idea about me."

"Oh." Kahoko felt a wave of embarrassment. She wondered what Ryotaro thought of her since she'd been the one driving them forward just now. Did he think she was some sort of loose girl?

"Hey, Kahoko. Whatever you're telling yourself right now, stop it."

Kahoko looked over at him. "What?"

Ryotaro looked concerned. "You look angry at yourself, and you shouldn't be. If anything, this is my fault. I should have said something earlier on, or when things started getting a little serious between us. Don't blame yourself for any of this, okay?"

Kahoko shrugged.

"Hey," Ryotaro said, "listen. Trust me, I really do want that, but I just don't think it's something we should jump right into, okay? I care about you, Kahoko. I want that to be apparent. I care about you as a person, as a friend. I want you to be able to trust me."

Kahoko nodded. "Okay. I still feel embarrassed though, to be honest."

Ryotaro smiled and kissed her. "Don't be. You definitely caught me off guard there. I didn't know you had it in you."

Kahoko stayed at Ryotaro's for a little while after that. They ate the cookies she'd brought, talked, watched some TV, and did quite a bit more kissing on the couch. In a way, it was comforting to know that Ryotaro wasn't expecting to sleep with her. It was strange to think that, even though they had the entire house to themselves, all their kissing wasn't going to lead up to anything else, but Kahoko went along with it. A little before sundown, she decided that she ought to head home. Ryotaro offered to walk with her, but she declined, joking that she'd never get there if he kept distracting her. She gave him a hug, said her goodbyes, and left.

About halfway back to her house, her phone buzzed. Thinking it was Ryotaro, Kahoko opened the message with a smile. As she read it, her smile faded and she stopped walking.

"Did you miss me?"

Azuma was back.