Chapter Text
By the time An reached the rooftop, Nene was already there. She was peering down at the courtyard, wind slightly moving her hair and sun lighting her face. An didn’t care if it was some sort of cliche. Nene was so beautiful.
“Hi!” An greeted, shutting the door behind them
“H-hey…” Nene replied
“I guess…this is where we finally…talk…” An said
“Yeah…”
The two stood in silence, hair blowing in the wind and sun ever so slightly illuminating the two.
“Hey, Kusanagi-san…”
“Hm?” Nene didn’t look up
“I-i’m sorry.”
Huh?!
“What did you…?”
“I said…I'm sorry for pushing so hard on trying to talk to you. I guess I didn't really…think much…” An continued
Nene looked at the girl for a second.
“N-no! I should be the one apologizing. I was so scared of you getting bored or of me just messing things up! I-i’m sorry, Shiraishi. I really do like your company…I'm just scared…”
“Scared?” An took a step closer and looked Nene directly into her eyes, “of what?”
“I-i don’t even know myself. There’s just constant fear stuck inside me, and I can't seem to shake it, you know?” the green-haired girl replied
“Oh, like your anxiety?”
“Y-yeah…” Nene admitted, “i’m sorry that…i’m not-”
“It’s okay, Kusanagi-san!” An said, taking Nene’s hands into hers
“Huh?! Shiraishi?”
“I’m not fed up with you being scared or anything! I’m ready to stay with you and help you overcome your fears! I wanna stay with you forever if I have to!”
Nene didn’t say anything. She couldn’t.
‘...forever?’ she thought, ‘she doesn’t mean it…right?’
“And before you go questioning the legit-ness of this,” An confirmed as if reading Nene’s mind, “I really do want to stay with you forever! We’ll take it one step at a time, just so that you can get used to it. Because I love you!”
Silence. An eerie one. A silence that felt like an eternity but also nothing at the same time. Both the girls thought about what just came out of her mouth.
‘I…love…you?!’
“HUH?!” they exclaimed, red faced and facing away from each-other
“I-I didn’t mean to say that, wait Kusanagi-”
“Y-you love me?!” Nene managed to say in complete shock
An sighed, “yeah. I have loved you for a while. But…I'm sure you don’t love me back. It’s okay, really-”
“Don’t go assuming things.”
“...what?”
What could Nene have possibly meant by that? An had just said…
…hold on…
“Kusanagi…” An leaned forward, looking into her eyes, so close that she almost made their noses touch, “do you love me too?”
“U-UHM!” Nene burst into a living tomato. At least, that’s what you’d think given the horrendous shade of red that covered her face, “I-I…yeah…i like you…too”
Saying those words felt like finally ripping a band-aid off. Having a weight lifted from her. Being freed from the tough shackles of hidden love. But still, Nene’s heart was beating at 100 miles per hour.
But it was all worth it, seeing An’s face light up the moment the words left Nene’s mouth.
“Y-yes! I can’t believe it! Well, actually I can, but…YAY! I’m so happy right now!!”
“Woah!”
The songstress was suddenly caught into the tight, warm embrace of the passionate singer. She reciprocated the action by putting one hand on An’s back, and using the other to pat the girl’s head. An seemed to really enjoy the headpats, for some reason.
“So…are we…dating?” Nene asked shyly when they let go
“I think…i think so!!” An exclaimed
“Oh. oh, wow…” Nene laughed. She was so nervous, and yet this was the best possible outcome that could've happened, “i’m so happy as well…!”
“Ooh! Can I start calling you Nene-chan now?!” An asked with literal sparkles in her eyes
The green-haired girl sighed, “okay. And I'll call you An then.”
“Yay!!” An squealed as she attacked her girlfriend with more hugs
❤🩹
The next day, Mizuki woke up early and got dressed at record speed just to see what happened to An and Nene.
“Ah! Hey, Lil’ Bro! Hi Toya!” she waved at the partners
“Akiyama, I told you a million times to quit calling me Lil’ Bro…” Akito complained
“Good morning, Akiyama-san.” Toya greeted
“Do any of you know what happened with Nene and An?” Mizuki asked excitedly
“No, but I do know she skipped practice afterwards.” the ginger grumbled
“Oh, so that’s why someone’s so salty!” Mizuki teased
“Fufu, nice to see you again, Mizuki.”
The pink-haired one turned around to be greeted by,
“Rui! Tsukasa! Hello!” Mizuki exclaimed
“Greetings, Akiyama-san!” Tsukasa said with way too much energy for first thing in the morning
“Do you two know what happened with Nene and An?” the editor asked with a glimmer of hope
“Nope! We didn’t have practice yesterday, so we didn’t hear a thing from Nene!” Tsukasa said
“And she didn’t even bother to text me, her best friend and neighbor!”
“You don’t get an advantage just because of that!” Tsukasa jokingly scolded Rui
The group went silent when they noticed An and Nene walking into the school premises. Together.
“No…way…” Akito watched, almost shocked
“Nene-chan!” An bounced with excitement, “wanna go on a date to the arcade after school today! I don’t have practice today, so Akito can’t yell at me!”
“A d-date?!” Nene stammered, “th-that would be nice though…okay, love. We’ll go today then.”
“HUUUUUUH?!” Tsukasa, Akito, and Mizuki all yelled at the same time. Tsukasa alone was so loud that the statue of liberty could hear that cry of confusion.
“I see…good for her.” Rui said like a proud father
“Oh, I'll have to congratulate the two later on,” Toya said, “but I don't want to spoil their moment.”
And Toya made a great decision. Because those two girls were laughing and smiling together, as girlfriends, and they looked like they were so in the moment they wouldn’t interrupt it for anything.
‘One step at a time, huh?’ Nene thought, ‘I think I like it just the way it is…’