Chapter 14 Mika's PoW

"I can’t tell! Not yet!" Steven mocked Mika. “Do you think you are in some kind of a dumb romance movie flick? You had to look deep in her eyes and answer with a yes!”

They were both at her room going through the materials for the upcoming test. They had also invited Silva, but she had declined. The reason being muscle pain she had said.

"I don’t sound like that! Why did I even tell you what I said? And what you described I recall actually seeing in a movie." Mika defended herself.

"Why can’t you tell? You know it is a small wonder that she has not noticed by herself. You. Are. That. Obvious. Oh, but now I am repeating myself." Steven stated before returning to the textbook. Mika tried to study, but her thoughts always wandered back to Silva.

"Steven?" A grunt urged her to continue. "What do you think I should do?"

"Do about what? In general? About school? Homework? Or with your, frankly sickening, crush on Silva?” Came answer as Mika watched her best friend trying to understand what he was reading, but the occasional swear word from him proved that his efforts were not entirely fruitful.

“The last one.” Mika pointed out in annoyance.

"Okay, let’s see... Actually, wait, have you even told me who is the person you like?" That made Mika stop.

“I did?” But thinking back she couldn't recall if she had.

“Was that Silva’s impression? And you have not, maybe I am wrong in my assumptions, who knows? So let us start from there. Who is this person who you hold so dear? Who is the person you are in love with?”

Mika felt her cheeks catch fire as they heated up. She figured that saying it out loud for once would not hurt, but when she tried…

“I-, I like-, I mean, I am in lov-, ugh!” She felt like steam was coming out from her ears.

"Wow, I literally feel sick now." Steven retched. "You can't even tell me. How are you going to confess like that." Mika visibly wilted. "You are planing on confessing, right?" her eyes started to wander around. "Are you?"

“I guess?”

“Why are you so different when we are talking about Silva? This should not be so difficult! Are you or are you not?” Steven looked like his head was hurting.

“I... am...” Mika mumbled.

“Okay, when?”

“That... I still have to gather more points.”

“Points of what? I mean, you are already slipping constantly. You are lucky that Silva is so dense.”

Mika wanted to defend Silva from being called dense, but could not bring forth any viable retort. Then a worse thought came to her.

“Maybe she doesn't see me as a possible partner.” Mika shuddered because of the thought alone.

“If she doesn't then that's that. You know all too well that which gender one likes cant be changed. Get shot down and live on. You can't always be afraid of rejection, you have to take chances sometimes.”

“It's not that easy...” Mika sighed. “And don't say 'get shot down'...”

Steven shook his head. "You at least have to tell Silva that you are interested in girls." Then he paused. "And your parents as well. It creeps me out how they still think we are secretly dating."

“I told them a hundred times that we are not.” Mika frowned. But even then she had no plans to tell her parents until she could afford to rent her own place.

“And your mother still winks at me every time I come over. Do you know how fucking awkward it was when your father told me about using protection?”

"I-, I will talk to them again." Mika conceded.

"But you still have to tell Silva. She is my friend too, while your parents are only yours. You can't keep her in dark. Especially because she is a girl and you have a crush on her. Hell, if she knows you are interested in her, your clumsy attempts at flirting may actually go somewhere."

"It should not be that bad. I put a lot of thought into it" Mika felt insulted. True, it was the first time she tried to flirt deliberately, but she felt that she was not doing that terribly.

"Not saying it is bad, just clumsy." Steven shrugged as he still flipped the pages of his textbook. "Actually you should tell Silva that you are a lesbian on the next opportunity. I could be there for you, to support.”

“Thanks…” Mika was grateful but cautious. She was sure that there was more.

“Yea, that should be hilarious.” Steven imagined the scene and snickered which earned him a stab with a pen. “Why are you lately using tools to get back at me?” He asked looking down at the mark left by the stab.

"It hurts to hit you with my bare hand." Mika gave him a murderous glare. "So I have to resort myself to some help. It's not like I can't heal you afterwards."

"So cruel~!" Steven managed to squeeze out a tear. "The poor gal that will end up with such a brute like you! Ah, that's right, no gal will, because you can't even say aloud who you like!"

After giving Steven another stab Mika threw away the ruined weapon and acquired another one. “I agree, I have to at least tell her that I am into girls.” She begrudgingly agreed with Steven.

“And the confession?”

“Not for now.” Mika hissed.

“Okay fine, no confession! So I take that I am not a desirable company when you are going to tell her?”

“What do you think?”

“And where are you going to take her to do it?”

“Huh, can't I do it here or when we meet up after school?” Mika was perplexed.

"No, no, no! You cant do it here, what would she think if you invited her to your room and said 'Oh, by the way, I am a lesbian'! Won't she think you have ulterior motives?" Steven shot down Mika's suggestion. With an accusing finger pointed at Mika, he continued. "And after school? What? Are you going to drop a bomb like that on her while walking on the way home? Look, here is what you should do! You have to find a nice quiet place, but still somewhere with people, so that she feels safe."

“Oh?” Mika listened to Steven enthralled by his speech.

“And it should be a place where you two could relax before the serious talk.”

“Right.” Mika agreed.

"So you should go on a movie date and after the movie threat her a dinner," Steven concluded.

“D-, d-, date!?” Mika stuttered.

“Of course, you can go to see a romantic comedy, relax, gather courage and afterwards, while going home confess! A surefire way for success.”

"A d-, date with Silva..." Mika was visualizing it, her eyes glazing over. It went on for several minutes. "Wait, no! We were talking about me coming out!" She finally woke up startling Steven who had returned to studying.

"Look," Steven sighed. "You just have to make a plan and go with it. If you have a better one I am all ears. Also, could you explain this page here? I don't get it."

After helping Steven and needling him about his lack of proper work ethics regarding studying she still had not come up with a better idea of how to tell Silva her secret. Mika was faintly aware that she should not rely on Steven’s advise, at least not entirely. However, the word 'date' kept spinning in her head, taking most of her brainpower. "I could invite her to shop in the mall. That could work, only... Steven is right, I wouldn't be able to calm down. Should I really go with a movie? But wait..."

“Why are you so sure that your idea would work?” Mika asked when she saw Steven stopping after a short struggle with a question from his textbook. If she was right they had covered the question last week.

"Experience." Steven absent-mindedly replied.

“Experience?”

“Well, yes, I mean, sure, my situation is different than yours, but even I had troubles confessing for the first time. I invited her to a movie. We ate before, went to the movie and after it I confessed. Worked like a charm.” Steven shrugged. “I did the same next few times as well.”

“Wait, how come I have not heard of this? And what do you mean next few times? You have never told me you are dating someone! And when? We were almost always together!”

"Yea, that's why none of the girls worked out. They wanted me to spend time with them, not with you!"

“You moron, that's normal!” Mika could not believe her friend.

"I guess, but I told them that you are my best friend. Of course, you are more important that infantile bond based on sexual attraction.”

"There is something clearly wrong with you!" Mika almost shouted while Steven was unperturbed.

"Maybe, but at least I am not 18 years old virgin who can't even say aloud with who she is in love with."

Mika collapsed back in her seat. Thinking back, there were always times when Steven was busy with something unspecific, she just had not thought that he was on a date and had not asked to clarify. It was also no wonder because there was always one girl or another, who was gunning after him. "Are you 'dating' anyone now?" Mika was curious.

"Nah, don't have the time." Steven slammed the book he was holding over his head shut and put it down. "It does not seem like I can endure this any further. I just don't get it." He shoved the algebra book away with disgust in his face. "Also, do you think I would spend Saturday's evening here if I was dating? When are you going to speak with Silva anyway? Tomorrow is Sunday and I bet she has no plans."

"You won't get a good grade at this rate." But before Mika continued she already gave up. Steven had no drive for studying and she had other things in mind anyway.

Mika started to gather her stuff to put it away and Steven did the same. “I am still not sure about this. Okay, I get it, I must tell her, but let me have some time plan it out.”

"Too late, I started calling her the moment you said ‘I get it’," Steven announced.

Mika whipped her head around just to see Steven with her phone in his hands. To her horror, he was indeed calling Silva. "Give it!" She screeched and lunged after the phone. Unfortunately for her, she did not manage to retrieve it in time and after another moment that seemed to stretch endlessly for Mika, she heard Silva's voice. "Hello? Mika?”

Mika's mind switched to overdrive. “I still have time. I just have to get to the phone and make an excuse.” But she had underestimated Steven's shamelessness and could only weakly watch him open his mouth.

“Mika wanted to know if you have any plans for tomorrow?”

Despite her better judgement, Mika found herself trying to hear Silva's answer. The token attempt at getting her phone back went unnoticed by Steven. For a moment she wavered and considered the option of Steven arranging their meeting, but the moment passed and she regained her strength. She made a repeated lunge and finally got her phone back and hung up.

“I'll do it myself. I at least have to ask myself.” Mika forced herself to say. “And you! I'll have my revenge.” She added.

Mika typed a quick message to Silva telling she will call in a few minutes. Then she spent a minute circling her room taking deep breaths to calm herself down and thinking. "Okay, it is not a date, no need to be so nervous. Just tell her you to want to eat lunch together and watch a movie afterwards. No other motives. I wonder what she will wear... No! Wait..." Mika remembered the spectator watching her every move. “You! Leave the room!”

“Really?” Steven gave her a flat look ignorant of the crime he had committed.

“Yes, now!”

“Fine! Don't wuss-out!” Steven remarked before exiting her room. Mika heard him mumbling about trying to look for something to eat.

Mika returned to the breathing exercises. Unnoticed by her five minutes had already passed. It was now or never. She felt her hands get sweaty as she started the call. There was no reason for Silva to decline, but the earlier talk about a date really messed with her mind at this point.

Luckily she had taken her time to call back and without Steven meddling, she was much more confident in smoothly arranging everything.

After a moment of calling she heard Silva's voice once more. A familiar shiver went through her body as she heard it. "Hi, so, um, that was weird?"

“Ah-ha, yea, you know Steven, he had my phone before I knew it.”

“Oh, I see” Silva seemed to understand immediately. “You usually text me so… What did you want?”

“You know, we were studying and got bored, then we started to wonder what you were doing, and we figured that you are probably free tomorrow, and I am free, and we have not really gone anywhere just two of us.” Mika thought about how to bring up the da-, meet up, but Silva was a step ahead for once.

“I am not free tomorrow, sorry, but I am next Sunday...” Silva said. “I... I assume you wanted to do something.” She suddenly sounded unsure. Mika remembered her objective and felt her heart rate go up. Her palms now were positively wet.

“Ah, yes, I wanted, to... You know, hang out and stuff? Eat lunch, see a movie, you know. Would you? As a friend.” Mika silently cursed to herself. “Fuck, what ‘as a friend’? What does that even mean?”

“Sure, it would be nice.” Silva agreed and Mika almost did a fist pump.

“Um, well, then, let us decide where to!” Mika cheerfully started to plan.

Next ten minutes were spent trying to figure out what they actually could do, Mika, in the end, decided to go with the cinema as Steven had suggested, but there was still the problem with what to actually watch, what to do before, and what comes after. Still, most of the day spent together with Silva seemed like a dream come true to her.

In the end, they decided to hammer out the last details during the week, it was then that Mika remembered Steven who was still hanging around the house with her parents.

"I have to go and rescue Steven from my parent's clutches. By now he should be harassed enough."

“Okay, bye then Mika. It was nice for you to ask!”

Mika was delighted to hear that Silva was so pleased. Her face was in danger of splitting in half because of her wide smile. “Of course. It's a date then, see ya!”

As Mika hung up she realized what she had said. An agonized scream resounded through the house as her soul left the body in regret.