Introduction (13 July 2023)

Still no news about a second season for the anime. Maybe this third chapter will make the wait a little easier. As always, feedback welcome, and have fun reading!

Note: If you want to comment on this story, or any of my other stories, you're welcome to leave a review, preferably as registered member, as I can then reply and for instance express my thanks to you for taking the effort to leave a review. Thus allowing for more interaction with the people who read my stories.

Chapter 3

"Ascending"

"Hey Taiyou, what's the matter?"

Yukiko's kid brother still remained deep in thought, and didn't even seem to have heard the question.

"Let me guess, this has something to do with Nishimura-san."

"H-How did you know?" Taiyou suddenly responded, after hearing his classmate's name.

"That must be my special big sister powers," Yukiko bragged.

"Amazing! So you have powers too?"

"Of course, but we're not talking about me right now; what's bugging you, lil' bro?"

"Well…" Taiyou started, looking a bit flustered, "… it's just that lately Nishimura-san keeps getting cuter almost every day…"

"Ahhhh, you got that right…" Yukiko smirked.

"But how is that even possible?" Taiyou wondered.

"It's a known fact that girls get prettier as they grow up; I mean, just look at your big sister," Yukiko added, as she struck a pose, a smug expression on her face.

"Oh, wow! I totally didn't know that…"

"Well, you agree with me Nishimura-san is an angel, right?"

Taiyou remained silent for a moment, then turned towards his sister…

"No!"

'What's gotten into Taiyou? Could it be that Nishimura-san's cuteness is getting too much for him?'

"Wh-Why do you say so, Taiyou?"

"Since Nishimura-san is much, much cuter now, I really need to up my game. As 'angel' no longer feels like it's good enough for her!"

"Ah, that is what you meant…" Yukiko replied, feeling relieved.

"I just have to come up with something way, way better…" Taiyou stated, as he frowned deeply.

"You definitely do…" Taiyou's sister said, nodding; "It might not be easy, but I am sure that you got this all covered, lil' bro!" Yukiko continued, looking for a tissue for her nose, meanwhile leaving her brother deep in thought…

The next day, Taiyou was slowly eating his breakfast, with a troubled look upon his face. Suddenly he started to smile, quickly packed up his things and a fair bit later than usual, stepped outside, then starting running to school…

"Nishimura-saaan!" Taiyou shouted, as he dashed down the hallway.

"H-Hi, Takada-kun. You're late, class is about to start. Are y-you okay?"

"Nishimura-san, I have something important to tell you…" Taiyou said, after he managed to catch his breath again.

'Huh!? Takada-kun looks very serious… wait, don't tell me he…?' Flustered thoughts went through Akane's mind, before she started reconsidering things. 'Isn't this similar to when he asked me about my shampoo, and I got all worked up over nothing? This is probably just something similar, right?'

"Wh-What is it, Takada-kun?"

"I can no longer call you an 'angel', Nishimura-san!"

'Wait, is this all part of him realizing I am just a regular human being? I mean, it did make me happy when Takada-kun said I'm an angel, but it was also a bit embarrassing sometimes. So it's probably for the best if he stops doing that.'

"Uh… okay," Akane agreed, blushing slightly.

"It simply won't do, Nishimura-san; You've gotten so much cuter lately, it's not fair!" Taiyou further explained.

"I-I don't think that I am r-really getting any cu…" Akane faintly objected, as her face started getting quite red now.

"So, instead I will be calling you a 'goddess' from now on," Taiyou casually added, before entering the classroom.

"…"

The young boy walked towards his desk and sat down, while Akane slowly followed him, without saying a word. As the chime sounded and the last students were pouring in, Sumire Kasahara suddenly tapped on Taiyou's shoulder.

"Pssst, Takada-kun, what did you say to Akane-chan?" Kasahara whispered; "She's just staring into the distance ever since you two arrived. What did you say to her? Did something happen?"

"Hi, Kasahara-san. I said nothing special, I just called Nishimura-san a 'goddess', that's all…" Taiyou started explaining; "Oh wait, I totally forgot to add the word 'cute', I really am dumb, I guess… but don't worry, I'll fix that during lunch break!" Taiyou stated, with his usual confident smile.

"You d-d-did wh-what…!?" was all Kasahara could say in return, while gasping for air.

"Kasahara-san? Now you're spacing out too!? Is this some kind of virus?" Taiyou thought out loud.

He looked at Hino, who stared back at him with a surprized gaze, similar to the expression upon Kasahara's face.

"Huh, Hino-kun, not you too? It really is contagious!"

(To be continued…)

Chapter Afterthoughts (15 July 2023)

I'm hoping "short but sweet" applies to this new chapter. Hopefully you enjoyed reading it, I know I had fun putting it together, and I'm definitely looking forward to presenting you more content.

Disclaimer

Btw, since I am not a native speaker, there will likely be some silly mistakes in this story. Hope you can bear with me and see through that. Helpful tips and suggestions for improvements are welcome.

Stay safe, and maybe until soon!