The shadows on the streets grew longer as Kazuo walked home at a decent pace. He felt a little nervous about how he was going talk to Haruka. Would she be angry? Would she ignore him only to glare at him from time to time? Kazuo was both worried and happy. It wasn’t like they were a couple or anything as well, which made everything a little more awkward.

A black cat skipped of the wall as Kazuo opened the gate and quickly got to the metal grid stairs leading up to the apartment. He entered and instantly looked into the kitchen in case Haruka was there. When he couldn’t see her he took of his shoes and headed through the kitchen into the living room where he, at first, saw nothing until after a few seconds when he noticed a weird bulge on Haruka’s futon.

*- Heh? * Kazuo sneaked up to the bulge and poked it with his foot.

“- Hyyaa! “ Kazuo had scored a blind critical hit into Haruka’s side.

“- Hmm, did the futon just make a noise? I oh so wonder what could be under the blankets… “ Kazuo prepared for another strike that would be even more effective with the knowledge gained from the first one. As he was about to poke again he heard a quiet squirm and hesitated for just a second which left him open for counter attack. Suddenly Haruka leaped out of the futon and grabbed Kazuo’s ankles which made him stumble and fall. Once on the floor there was no escape, Haruka already had him in her grip. She had, in one motion, gotten on top of him and her long hair was hanging down from her head tickling Kazuo’s face. Both of Kazuo’s arms were held down and all he could see was glimpses of Haruka’s sinister smile.

“- Did you have fun with your beloved Kayano? “ Haruka stared at him like a wild beast eyeing its prey.

“- Um, about that… “ Kazuo couldn’t quite get the words out as he nervously tried to blow away Haruka’s hair away from his eyes.

“- Hmm? What about it? “ Haruka started to raise her hand into position as she kept her sinister smile and trained her blue eyes on Kazuo. A couple of silent moments went by until Kazuo started to mumble and stumble his reply but was instantly interrupted as Haruka ferociously started to tickle his sides. She made sure Kazuo couldn’t get away as she freely tickled him to death.

“- Ahahahah! Stop already! “ Kazuo’s struggle to get Haruka of him continued for a couple of minutes until she suddenly stopped and it got surprisingly quiet. Kazuo caught his breath again and realized Haruka had released her grip on his arm and were just silently sitting on him with her hair hanging over her face.

“- Haruka? “ Kazuo was just about to poke her as she collapsed down onto him and snuggled up to his chin. Her small figure felt light on Kazuo’s chest as she gripped his shirt and brushed her head against his chin. Her hair smelt of his own shampoo but for some reason it smelt much better than Kazuo could remember. Kazuo’s heart started to race more and more as he felt Haruka’s do the same. The tension started to get unbearable and Kazuo started to nudge Haruka to get her off but it only made her strengthen her grip. After a couple of minutes Kazuo could feel his heart slowing down and he started to relax a little. He decided to wrap his arms around the small figure on his chest. Once completely relaxed Kazuo could hear Haruka’s soft breathing coincide with the gentle and warm breeze from an open window. He looked over at the window and could see green leaves against the twilight sky. The sound of the leaves swaying in the breeze created and immense calm within Kazuo and the moment felt magical. He started to fiddle with Haruka’s hair as he made sure to enjoy every last bit of the exceeding sweetness formed by the light breeze, the beautiful evening sky and the small but warm Haruka on his chest with her hair in all its glory. Everything just seemed so peaceful and magical that Kazuo just wanted to stay like this for all eternity. After much less than an eternity however, Haruka moved her head and peeked through her hair at Kazuo making him feel even more at peace.

“- Hey… You will only ever do this kinda stuff with me, right? “ Kazuo felt like Haruka had something in mind with such a claim and wasn’t sure he could meet any promises since Kayano doesn’t seem to have any boundaries.

“- I think so… “ Kazuo couldn't bring himself to promise whilst feeling so uncertain he would be able to keep it.

“- You think so? Is Kayano making you uncertain? “ Haruka glared at him slightly through her bangs.

“- Yes… A little, nothing we can do about it really, since she won’t give up… “ Kazuo looked away briefly.

“- Hmm, I think I’m going to do something about it actually… “ Haruka seemed determined suddenly, she even smiled a little which made Kazuo realize how blurred the line between friends and lovers had become.

“- Really? What’ll you do? “ Kazuo felt his heart go faster again after his little realization.

“- You’ll see… “ Haruka suddenly pushed herself back up again and stretched her back. She rose and walked over to the window where the breeze caught her hair and gently tumbled it around. Haruka stood still for a moment and admired the beautiful colours in the sky. Kazuo could still feel her warmth on his chest but it got even warmer as he watched Haruka, standing by the window. After a bit of quiet, Haruka turned her head around towards Kazuo.

“- You wanna go out and buy dinner? “ She smiled.

“- Sure. “