ROSE

Knowing that Honoka and Fujimura were nothing more than childhood friends was one thing. But now that Nagisa knew that Honoka was gay, Nagisa didn't know what to make of such information. For Honoka to entrust something so personal to Nagisa certainly required a lot of courage, so the girl was determined to repay her new friend's trust. Yes, she already considered her a friend and she let her know that in the following days after they went to the movies.

Nagisa wondered if Fujimura Shougo knew that Honoka was gay, but still didn't feel confident enough to ask more details about it. What Nagisa did do was ask something more or less normal. There was nothing wrong with a girl dating another girl, and a boy dating another boy. Everything was normal, yes. She just wanted to know about her new friend's love life, a very normal conversation between two friends.

"So... Have you dated anyone?" A curious and smiling Nagisa asked. They both had lunch together.

"Yeah, in my senior year of middle high school," Honoka replied between bites. The girl was happy because Nagisa was comfortable even after telling her something so… Intimate.

"And how was that?"

"It was really cute. Her name was Yuriko and, you know? She was the one who confessed to me first. We were both in the science club," Honoka said before offering Nagisa one of the pieces of meat from her lunch. Her friend happily ate it. "I knew for a long time that I liked girls and although I wasn't in love with her, I decided to accept her confession", the girl sighed. "It was really nice dating her."

"Sounds great... Oh, and what happened after that?" Because it was obvious that Honoka wasn't dating that girl anymore.

"We both had a good time but realized that we didn't feel intense love. We worked better as friends than as girlfriends, so we broke up before we graduated," Honoka recounted with a wistful smile. "I'm still in contact with Yuriko and I know that she already has a new girlfriend with whom she is happy. And I feel happy for her."

"And what about you?" Nagisa was very entertained by the talk. "Is there anyone at school that you like?" Her imagination began to work. "What about Yuka-senpai? She's cool, pretty, and very smart! And she's in the science club, too!"

Honoka laughed cutely. "I wouldn't be surprised if half the girls here have crushes on her," she took a couple more bites of her lunch. "I admit that Odajima-senpai makes me blush but it's more like admiration...I don't know if you have someone you admire."

Yes, she had it. When Honoka said that, the first person that came to Nagisa's head was Fujimura Shougo. She blushed suddenly and looked to the side to hide her blush. "I…"

"I understand. You don't need to tell me anything if you don't want to, but then it means that you understand what I feel. Odajima-senpai is great and very beautiful, I really admire her and I like working with her, but I know we're not on the same page."

Those words made Nagisa shrug. Yes, it was the same feeling. But... She had a chance with Fujimura Shougo if she really tried, right?

"If you wanted to try something else with Yuka-senpai, what would you do?" Nagisa was curious.

"Well… I'd be direct and tell her that I want to date her. You know, we have to make things happen," Honoka said with an amusingly serious nod. "And to give my words more strength, I'd offer her a rose."

"You're a very romantic person, aren't you?" Nagisa smiled.

"I guess I am. What about you? How would you tell that special someone that you want more?" It was Honoka's turn to ask.

"I... Well..." Nagisa began to laugh nervously. "I prefer boys, so I'd expect a confession. Boys usually confess first, right?"

"Yes, that's how it gets used to, but there's nothing wrong with you being the one to take the first step." Honoka insisted. "But now I'm curious, I'll change the question. How would you like a guy to confess his love for you?"

"I'd really like to receive a letter in my shoe locker, and for the letter to say that he wants to see me after school," Nagisa took a deep breath. "And yes, I'd really like him to have a rose in his hand and tell me that he likes me, that he wants to go out with me."

"A rose is important for a romantic confession, right?"

"Yeah."

"I hope you get it."

"And I hope you can give it to someone."

And the girls smiled.