"Are you sure ?"

"Yes ".

"Really ?"

"Yes , I've told you a million times now ", she replied cheerfully.

Kazuya glanced at her , still concerned as he repeated ,

"We can take a break if you want "

Chizuru sighed and told him ,

"It's fine . We don't have a long way to go anyway".

Kazuya finally relented and they continued walking back towards their apartments.

They had ended up staying at the shrine for longer than they expected, enjoying each other's warmth . Both of them had cried quite a bit as well and refused to budge even after they were done .

They left only when they realized that it was nearly midnight and that they were in danger of missing the last subway . As it is they had to get off one stop early and so ended up walking the rest of the way .

Kazuya had offered to find a taxi or a bus somehow but Chizuru had refused and insisted on walking back and so here they were about 20 minutes away.

They hadn't let go of each other's hands since the second they held them , which was the very next second after they had gotten up from the bench in the shrine .

They walked slowly , shoulders gently pressed on each other, matching each other's stride and smiling happily.

It took only five more minutes before Kazuya noticed that Chizuru was wincing, just a bit with every step and so he stopped and looked at her and finally she nodded her head and said ,

"Let's sit down for some time ".

They sat down on a bench at the bus stop , nearby. Kazuya watched as Chizuru immediately kicked off her sandals and rubbed her feet with a huge sigh of relief .

Catching his concerned look , she told him,

"I'm fine . Just sore feet . These Geta sandals aren't the easiest to walk around in "

They sat for a few more minutes before Chizuru tried to stand up again but Kazuya gripped her hand a bit tighter and so she sat back down .

She tuned to him and said,

"I'm okay now and we're not too far away " .

"We'll wait a bit more " , he said stubbornly.

Chizuru frowned a bit and was about to disagree but saw the worry on his face and immediately her face softened and she smiled before telling him,

"Sorry for making you worry . I should have just agreed to the cab at the station itself ".

Kazuya opened his mouth but almost immediately closed it again before saying finally,

"No its fine " .

This time it was Chizuru who firmly squeezed Kazuya's hand causing him to ask her ,

"What is it ? "

She stared straight at him with that piercing glare that always made him feel like she could see into his soul, before telling him ,

"Don't do that " .

"What ? " , he asked again .

"Just now , you wanted to say something to me right? And then you stopped? " , she asked

Kazuya slowly nodded his head, knowing there was no use in pretending otherwise.

She continued, firmly,

" I don't want you to do that anymore . Both of us have done that all this time . We've held back a lot , we've said only certain things .

But ... I don't want that anymore . Things are different now right ?

That's why I want you to say what you want. Even if I've done something dumb and you're annoyed or mad at me , you can say it ".

Kazuya listened to it all , sighed a bit and answered her ,

"I'm not annoyed or anything "

"Then ? " , she asked.

"It's just.. you said I shouldn't worry about you. But I do . All the time. Even before today. And from now I'll probably start worrying about you more " , he finished slowly.

He saw her blush just a bit before she told him,

"I guess ... I'm still not used to having someone worry about me . So thank you ."

"And ... you were kind of being dumb , when you insisted on walking back " , Kazuya added .

"Yes I was " , she agreed matching his grin .

She had barely spoken when almost miraculously, a bus appeared out of nowhere , which they promptly got into and soon they were walking up the stairs to their apartments.

They both slowly walked past Kazuya's and finally stopped in front of Chizuru's apartment. They then glanced at their interlocked hands, neither of them wanting to let go but slowly they did .

They both looked at each other a while , without saying anything before Chizuru admitted,

"I don't really know what to say ".

Kazuya chuckled and suggested,

"See you tomorrow? Isn't that what you always say ? "

Chizuru laughed as well before replying,

"I'll definitely see you tomorrow " .

They wished each other goodnight before Chizuru went inside . Kazuya then unlocked and entered his apartment , throwing his phone and wallet on the table, before falling onto his bed.

He raised his hands , just a bit and saw that they were still shaking. He was still in disbelief but at the same time , the happiest smile broke out on his face and he rested his head on his pillow , soon falling asleep .

Next Morning,

Kazuya got up , brushed his teeth , changed his clothes, grabbed his stuff and was halfway out of his apartment before he remembered. And once he did , the weight of last night nearly knocked him off his feet but with that happy grin returning to his face , he continued outside his apartment , almost skipping in delight .

He had gone a few miles before he stopped and wondered if he should have knocked on her door and asked if she wanted to come with him.

"That's the right thing to do , right? " , he told himself.

He glanced at the time on his phone however and realized that it was too late .

He remembered her mentioning that she had an early class today morning and judging by the time , it was more likely that she had finished the class by now.

Undeterred , Kazuya walked on happily , providing strangers, his failing attempts at whistling, as they passed him.

Eventually he reached University and walked in . He spotted his friends and was pleasantly surprised to see them in conversation with Chizuru and her friends .

He walked towards them and almost instinctively was about to join the circle as far away from Chizuru as possible , which was their usual arrangement but Kazuya emboldened by recent events, chose to slightly push Kuri and squeeze in , between him and Ichinose Chizuru .

He greeted everyone and joined the conversation, chatting about this and that , glancing every so often to his left, hoping to meet her eyes but she stayed fixed on the others .

Kazuya was a bit disappointed but carried on with the conversation till the girls headed to their next class .

He didn't turn away from them though and continued to stare at her back even through the crowds of people, watching her every step till Kibe smacked him on the back .

"What was that for? " , Kazuya asked him , annoyed at having lost sight of Chizuru.

"What's up with you man ? " , Kibe asked him in return

"You seem distracted and kinda weird " .

"Nothing, I'm fine man " , Kazuya replied.

"Are you sure you didn't fight with Chizuru-san or something? " , Kibe questioned.

"Of course not " , Kazuya asserted before adding ,

"You're worse than my grandmother " .

"Well, someone has to make sure you don't lose a girlfriend like that ".

"Yeah , man " , Kuri added in between the peals of laughter he had descended into since the conversation began.

"How are things going with you and Chizuru-san?" , Kuri continued, teasingly.

"Fine " , Kazuya answered instinctively before the thought registered in his mind ,

"Oh yeah . Kuri has no idea . He still thinks.. "

Kibe continued interrupting Kazuya's thoughts,

"I still have no idea how damn lucky you got . And it's been two years right? How the hell did this even happen ? She's a perfect ten and you're a four at best . Though I guess that's proof that she really likes you for whatever reason ".

"Big talk from someone who hasn't even had a girlfriend ", Kazuya retorted.

The two continued their friendly bickering, with Kuri throwing in shots at both of them whenever he felt like it , till they went their separate ways to their different classes .

Once he sat in class , Kazuya felt that wave of disappointment again . For some reason that exchange with Kibe about Chizuru was ringing in his ears and before he knew it he had clicked on her profile on Line and messaged her,

"Hey" , his message read .

He stared at it in horror for a few seconds before he saw her typing back and soon her reply arrived ,

"Hey" .

Kazuya now began to panic because he had no idea what to say next but he knew what he wanted .

He wanted to spend some time with her .

He wrote back ,

"Are you free in the evening? "

He waited with bated breath till her reply arrived .

"Sorry, I have acting class today ".

"No , that's fine " , he hurriedly wrote back .

There was a pause for a few seconds before Chizuru wrote back,

"The professor's starting class , so I better go ".

And then another message popped up from her ,

"Sorry ,again. See you later ".

Kazuya sent her a thumbs up and then put his phone in his pocket feeling distinctly more disappointed now .

A Few Hours Later ,

Kazuya trudged back home after a shift at the Karaoke Bar and a trip to the supermarket , scowling as he walked. His mood had worsened through the day .

The only saving grace had been that Ruka hadn't been there today .

Unfortunately thinking about Ruka made him remember about Chizuru's job as a rental girlfriend and that had put him in a sour mood which had persisted.

He contemplated as he walked back home

"It's not like I want her to quit or anything. I know why she's doing the job . And I don't want to be that kind of guy and force her to do what I want . It's just... I'm disappointed.

Not because of her job , but because ... nothing has changed .

We're still spending our time apart ."

Kazuya sighed with frustration but perked up as he neared the building. Because he was just about able to make out the figure of Chizuru climbing up the stairs.

He picked up his pace hoping to catch up with her but she was soon at her door , well before Kazuya even got to the parking lot .

Suddenly she stopped and turned back . She walked a few steps and stopped outside his door .

Puzzled , Kaz continued to watch as she slowly raised her hand to knock on the door. She was only inches away when she suddenly stopped and stood in place for a few seconds before she turned back and went inside her own apartment.

"I get it " , Kazuya realized.

Inside his apartment, Kazuya threw off his clothes and got in the shower , no longer disappointed but instead irritated and ashamed at himself.

"Mizuhara, obviously knew that I was trying to spend time with her" , he thought to himself.

"And I ended up pushing her too much . I didn't think about her . How incredibly difficult it must have been for her last night. How difficult it must have been for her the last few months. And I made today so difficult for her.

I was basically demanding that she make time for me but I know more than anyone how busy she is.

I was so stupid and inconsiderate, trying to go on a date , when she's trying her best to manage everything ".

Kazuya finished his shower , put on some clothes and intended to throw himself on his bed.

However he felt a cold breeze and realizing he had left his balcony door open , went to close it.

For some mysterious reason, though, he ended up stepping onto the balcony instead and stood there for a few seconds till he suddenly realized he could smell the deep aroma of freshly brewed coffee .

Hearing a familiar, satisfied sigh as well, Kazuya spoke ,

"Mizuhara? "

He heard a little shriek of surprise and a jump and then he saw her peer around the divide.

"Geez , don't scare me like that ", she told him, smiling , before retracting her head.

"S..sorry " , Kazuya stumbled an apology .

They were both silent for some time but Kazuya pushed on by his guilt, steeled his nerves and spoke again,

"Hey, Mizuhara? "

"Yeah " , she replied.

"I'm really sorry for today " , he told her

"Why ? " , she asked surprised.

"For ... pushing you too much today. I wasn't exactly subtle , pushing my way next to you when the others were around, then asking you if you were free and trying to get you to go somewhere with me .

I'm sorry. I wasn't considering your feelings or how difficult things must be for you. I was really selfish and I'll definitely back off and not trouble you so much ."

He paused for a second and then continued,

" I just didn't want things to be the same , you know . I kind of wanted more and I ended up putting that on you and that wasn't ... "

There was more that Kazuya intended to say but he heard a loud gasp and then the loud banging of her balcony door .

Confused , Kazuya headed inside his apartment from where he heard another bang and then suddenly Chizuru burst into his apartment, barely kicking her crocs off .

She made a beeline straight for him and before Kazuya could say anything, she stopped right in front of him and spoke ,

"I'm sorry " .

"Huh ? " , Kazuya asked confused.

He saw her bite her bottom lip just a bit and was surprised to see a look of guilt on her face .

"I'm really sorry for how I behaved today .I didn't feel like you pushed me too hard at all. In fact I was really happy that you were trying so hard .

But it's just I .."

She faltered for a second and looked away before meeting his eyes and continuing,

"I had no idea what to do " .

"Huh ? " , Kazuya asked again.

She took a deep breath and began to explain,

"You know , today morning when I woke up and remembered last night, I was so happy. I got dressed as quickly as I could because I couldn't wait to see you . But then I stood in front of your door and I suddenly realized, I had no idea what to do .

I literally had no idea what to say to you . Forget that I could barely muster the courage to even think about looking at you .

I had no idea what to do.

So I just went to Uni and then later when you stood next to me , I was so happy but at the same time so embarrassed at how happy I was. I was losing it and I ended up being cold to you. And then I just kept it up for the rest of the day .

I'm really sorry. I just... fell back into old habits .Hiding things and acting . And after everything we talked about last night , especially at the bus stop , it was a really horrible thing for me to do.

I'm sorry for being such a hypocrite.

I also want to spend more time with you. I don't want it to be the same as before, either".

An apologetic silence fell over the room as both of them looked at each other kind of sheepishly till Kazuya nodded and Chizuru smiled brightly .

He then watched her as she seemed to look around the room and then she suddenly asked ,

"Do you have anything going on now ?"

"Huh ? No " , he answered puzzled and then elaborated once he had thought about ,

"Honestly I was going to lie down with my phone but now that I think about it, I have some homework that I should probably get to "

"Actually I have a book report to finish as well ", Chizuru replied .

She then asked , smiling even more brightly with each word ,

"Do you mind if I come over and finish it here? "

A/N: A little awkwardness, a little miscommunication and some tentative decision-making leads to an uncomfortable first day albeit one full of lessons for the days ahead .

Next Time: A meaningful conversation leads to a more fruitful day two .