63 Chapter Nineteen: Wilting Petals

"Haru-chi? What's up?" Chiyo's voice said through the speaker. Haruna could hear the mild surprise in her words. "I..." she began, but trailed off. "What do I even say?" she thought. "We haven't had a real conversation like this in months. Is it really okay for me to just call her like this?"

No matter how much either of them had tried, the distance that had formed hadn't lessened. There had been times that it seemed like it had. During lunch at school, sometimes the way they talked to each other appeared to be just like before. But, below the surface, it was clear there was a gap. It was as if Haruna stood on one side and Chiyo on the other, both staring at each other. They both wanted to build that bridge again to connect them, but they could only do so much on their own. Chiyo had tried by acting like her usual self. Haruna had tried to forgive, but still had a hard time doing just that. So the gap remained, leaving both girls to awkwardly interact with each other until they figured it out.

Although, the process does go faster when a hand is forced. Left with no other solo options, Haruna knew that she needed Chiyo. In the past, she had helped her plenty, even to the point of getting her to realize her feelings for Kanako. Haruna also knew that romance wasn't her strong suit, and yet she had tried to go about it alone. "If I had just swallowed my pride or whatever and asked her for advice a long time ago, would things be different now?" she wondered. Would Haruna have the upper hand on Akio? Would she be making constant progress with Kanako? Would the two of them... be dating right now?

There was no use in contemplating those questions. After all, they'd never get answers. Thanks to Haruna's unwillingness to move past the blockade she had set in front of herself, she had put herself in the position she was in now. That was something she would just have to deal with. However, it was that kind of thinking that brought her back to her guilt. This was her problem, so was it really okay to ask Chiyo for help?

As Haruna's thoughts raced, a giggle emanated from the other side of the line. "Oh, Haru-chi," the voice cooed. "Lemme guess. You're totes overthinking everything right now, right?" Haruna let out a breath. "I-" she tried saying, but was cut off. "Listen Haru-chi. I know things have been, well, kinda weird between us. And I'm like, totally up for talking it over if you are. But, I get the feeling that you're real worried about something, so... d'ya think it'd be okay if I helped you out a little?"

Those words were nearly enough to bring Haruna to tears. Her friendship with Chiyo still wasn't 100 percent. It would take a little more to fix it all the way. But, knowing that even when it was awkward between them Chiyo was still willing to help her, that meant a lot. So, releasing the tension in her body, Haruna smiled a little. "Yeah, that's fine."

"So what's up girl?" Chiyo said, going into a more serious tone. "Miyashita-kun... asked Kanako out on a date yesterday, and they went today." "...What?!" Chiyo exclaimed after a brief pause to process. "It gets worse," Haruna continued with a groan. "Kanako seemed to have had a really good time too. She was all smiles and stuff." "Are you sure she wasn't faking it?" Chiyo asked. "Huh? Why would she?" Haruna asked, dumbfounded. "Kanako's always been in love with Miyashita-kun. Of course she'd be happy to be on a date with him."

It made perfect sense to Haruna. Whether it was when they were friends or when they weren't, there had always been one fact that remained true: Kanako had a crush on Akio. That was something that had been true for a long time. Even despite Haruna's efforts to win Kanako's heart, it was clear that she was still losing out to the boy from childhood.

"Well anyways,�� Chiyo said, moving past Haruna's comment. "Definitely surprised Akio-kun did something so bold. I guess he was serious after all..." "Serious?" Haruna repeated. "Don't worry about it," Chiyo said light-heartedly. "What you should worry about it how you're going to respond." "Mmm..." Haruna let out, voicing her distress over the situation. "You really got nothing?" Chiyo said. Haruna sighed. "I don't."

*****

Laying on her bed, Chiyo pondered aloud. "A date huh? That sure is hard to beat." "Tell me about it," Haruna's voice came through bitterly. Looking around her room, Chiyo searched for inspiration. There was a lot of random stuff among the clutter, but none of it was particularly romantic. It wasn't until her eyes landed on her nightstand that Chiyo got an idea. "Flowers," she said gently. "Get Kana-chan flowers."

What brought about this idea was a singular white hydrangea flower in a thin glass vase on the nightstand. A few days after Michi had cried into Chiyo, the small girl had begrudgingly approached her about how she could say thanks. Jokingly, Chiyo had said Michi could get her flowers. The next day, Michi had thrusted a single flower into Chiyo's face. "Here's your stupid flower," she had mumbled with some red in her cheeks. Chiyo had assumed the blushing was only from embarrassment, but it made her happy nonetheless.

"Flowers?" Haruna repeated. "Yep. They're a classic. Some guy tries to win a girl over, and he shows up at her doorstep with a big bouquet! That's like, in every romance movie ever Haru-chi," Chiyo said. "I don't know... wouldn't that be too forward?" Haruna said shyly. Chiyo was quiet for a moment. "Alright Haru-chi, I really want you to listen to me." "Okay?" "Are you listening?" "I am!"

Chiyo drew in a deep breath, then, "IF YOU'RE NOT MORE FORWARD, HOW IS KANA-CHAN GONNA KNOW YOU LIKE HERE?!" On the other end, Chiyo thought she heard Haruna hit the floor. "Ow..." she said. "God Chiyo, why'd you have to yell? You nearly blew out my eardrum!" "Listen girl, love is all about putting out and putting on the moves. If you just keep letting Akio-kun pull off better and better moves, you'll totally be left in the dust! Is that what you want?!" Chiyo shouted. "Hey Chi! Knock it off with all the screaming!" Chitose yelled from the other room.

Lowering her voice, Chiyo went on. "I know this isn't really your thing Haru-chi, but trust me. You giving Kanako some big bundle of flowers is sure to at least make her happy, if not make her think a little bit about you." "Yeah, you're probably right," Haruna said, feeling dumb for her earlier bashfulness. "Great! So, tomorrow morning, be sure to get some!" Chiyo said. "Wait, tomorrow?! There's no way I'll be able to do that! I'd be late for sure!" Haruna exclaimed. "Then I'll do it," Chiyo said simply. ��Huh?" Haruna let out. "I'll get them for you. Don't worry," Chiyo said. Haruna didn't know how to respond to that, so she went with silence.

For a moment, it was quiet. "...Hey, Haru-chi?" Chiyo said softly. "What?" Haruna said. "You know I'm always on your side, right?" the gal said. "No matter what, I promise I'll always be there to help you out." "...Yeah, I know," Haruna said. "Thanks Chiyo." With that, the call ended, and Chiyo sat up before standing and taking a step toward her nightstand. Staring at the hydrangea, she watched as it sat still in its vase.

"Every girl likes flowers," she said to no one. Then, giving the one in front of her a poke, she sent it bobbing a bit. Chiyo smiled. "Even if you get hit in the nose with them."

*****

The next morning, Haruna waited outside of the school. "I wish Chiyo would hurry up. It's freezing out here," she muttered. She would've waited inside, but Haruna was too afraid of Kanako seeing her so she continuing standing out in the cold. Around five minutes later, Chiyo finally appeared, walking quickly with a bouquet in hand.

Thrusting them forward, Chiyo stopped in front of Haruna with her arm outstretched. "Flower delivery for one pretty lady!" she said proudly. "Wow, that's... a lot," Haruna said, noticing that there were over a dozen. "The more, the better!" Chiyo said. "So what kind are they?" Haruna asked, not knowing much about flowers herself. Chiyo lowered her arm. "They're purple roses," she said. In her hand rested an arrangement of purple and purple-ish flowers. "Why purple and not red?" Haruna asked. She didn't know much about flowers, but nearly everyone knew the significance of a red rose. "Well, I kinda thought you didn't wanna be like, that obvious, so I did a little research. I think the purples ones suit you better Haru-chi." "Suit me?" Chiyo nodded. "Mhm! Because they mean ���enchantment.' Your heart has been totally bewitched by Kana-chan, Haru-chi."

"Enchant-!" Haruna began to say loudly, but she stopped herself. It wasn't like Chiyo was wrong. Kanako was what Haruna was thinking about at least half the time anymore. "...Thanks," she mumbled as she took the bouquet. Her face was flush with embarrassment. "No problem," Chiyo said, smiling softly.

Then a thought occurred to Haruna. "Hey, what made you think of flowers anyways?" she asked. Chiyo looked surprised for a moment before smiling and turning away. "Who knows?" she said in a sing-song tone as she bounced away.

Left standing alone with a bunch of purple roses, Haruna realized something. "Where am I going to put these?!" she panicked. Trying to put that many in a locker would surely crush them, so that wasn't an option. "It's not like my desk will work either... Agh, seriously, what the hell?! Why didn't I think this far ahead?!���

As Haruna tried to figure out what to do, she saw a wave of blue just about to pass her by. "Ah!" she exclaimed. "Eep!" the girl yelped. "Hey, President! Can you hide these for me?!" Haruna asked, rushing up to Izumi with a fair amount of intensity. "O-Oh, hiya Haruna-san. You seem, um, energetic this morning," she said, recovering from her surprise. "So, where'd the flowers come from? Is it a boy? Hm? Is it a boy?" "No, it's not that! Come on, can you help me out or not? I'm running late enough as it is," Haruna said. "A tardy future club president is sure to leave a poor impression on the small children," Izumi, trying to sound elderly. "Alright, first of all, the current tardy president has no right to say that," Haruna pointed out. "Secondly, most of those small children are taller than you."

"Anyways, anyways," Izumi said, waving off Haruna's comments. "For real, what's the deal with that bouquet? It's bigger than my head." "That's what I've been trying to tell you..." Haruna sighed. "It's mine, okay? And I need a place to put them so they won't get crushed. Could you put them in the clubroom for me?" "Why couldn't you do it?" Izumi asked. "Because only you have the key..." Haruna said, exasperated. "But since you're here, I thought maybe you could help me out?"

Izumi went deep into thought. "Is it really that hard of a decision?" Haruna wondered, losing patience. Finally, Izumi looked up at Haruna towering over her. Her face was smug. "Oh no," Haruna thought. "I'll lend you a hand Haruna-san," she said wryly. "On one condition." "What?" Haruna asked, almost too afraid to find out. "Agree to officially become the next president of the Girls Snowboarding and Skiing Club!" Izumi proclaimed.

"Never mind," Haruna said, turning away. "Why?!" Izumi exclaimed, stunned by the response given with no hesitation. "I've told you a million times I don't want to do it!" Haruna yelled back. "Aww... well, whatever, whatever. Here, gimme the flowers," Izumi said, holding out her hand. "If you were going to help anyways then why did you come up with a condition?!" Haruna loudly groaned. In the end, Haruna gave the bouquet to Izumi. Holding it with care, she looked at Haruna. "These are for someone special, right?" she said. Haruna meekly nodded. "Then I'll be sure to keep good care of them," Izumi said kindly. As she turned to walk away, her super long blue hair followed, flowing through the air in one smooth motion. "I swear she somehow controls all of that with her mind," Haruna thought randomly.

Once she made it inside the school, Haruna went to her classroom where she was lectured for so long for how late she was that she never wanted to be late again.

*****

All throughout class, Haruna couldn't stop worrying about what she was going to do. "All I'm doing is giving Kanako flowers. There's no need to be so freaked out. It'll be fine. Girls like flowers, right?" Haruna thought, forgetting to include herself among those girls. "But, what if she doesn't like them? I've never heard Kanako say anything about flowers. Does she like them at all? Is she allergic? Should I just scrap this whole idea?!"

Panicking, Haruna turned to look at Chiyo, who was sitting ahead of her. Nearly reaching out her hand, Haruna stopped. "No, I can't," she thought. "I've bothered her enough with this. It'd make me an even worse friend if I kept bothering her when we haven't even properly made-up." Haruna was thankful enough that Chiyo was even willing to listen to her. "I know she said she'd always be there for me, and I know she meant it, but..." But that didn't make it any less awkward. Although, thanks to Haruna reaching out her hand, it did feel like the gap that had formed between them had become just a little bit smaller.

*****

"Hey Kana-chan, do you like carrots?" Itsuki suddenly asked. "Huh? Why?" Kanako said, not really paying attention. "I was just wondering, because you're cutting a lot of them." "What?" Kanako said, finally looking down at her cutting board. Laying all across it were piles of sliced carrots. "O-Oops," Kanako said. "You better not waste 'em!" Rina called from the other end of the kitchen. "I like carrot cake!" Saki, the pig-tailed airhead resident of the club announced. "We're not taking about that! Ah, and watch the stove!" Rina shouted to her. "It sure is lively in here today," Naomi said happily. "Senpai, I think you should show a little more concern considering you're club president," Michi said pointedly.

"So, what're you gonna do with all of those?" Itsuki asked. "Eat them and become a rabbit," Kanako said with no emotion. "Eh? K-Kana-chan, are you okay? Um, Mayu-chan, help," Itsuki said, panicking at such a bland response. "It's fine Itsuki-chan. Let's just leave her be," Mayu said as she pulled Itsuki away.

Truthfully, Kanako was still lost in thought over the events of the weekend. She couldn't stop thinking about how her date with Akio had gone. "He was nice the whole time, but sometimes he said stuff that didn't make sense." Even if she ignored that, there was still no denying that she hadn't enjoyed it nearly as much as she thought she would've or should've. "I wanted to go on a real date with Akio-kun for so long, and the day I did I felt like I want to be somewhere else." Letting out a sigh, Kanako began boiling the carrots she had sliced.

What could it mean? Did she just have an off-day? Was her horoscope bad? Had the dream been grander in her head? "It's not like I didn't have a good time, but..." Kanako thought. "Why was I so distracted?" More importantly, why had it been Haruna that had been the one distracting her? The girl hadn't even been there, and yet Kanako had spent more time thinking about her than about the boy she was in love with. "It just doesn't make any sense," she thought.

As time went on, the clubroom began to empty out until only Naomi, Mayu and Kanako were left. Silent except for the sound of a bubbling pot and running water in a sink, the three girls all went on with what they were doing until Naomi suddenly broke the silence. "Hey, Kana-chan?" she said. Kanako looked at her. "There's something I've been meaning to ask you."

*****

"Thanks President," Haruna said, breathing a sigh of relief as she took back the protected flowers from Izumi. "No sweat, no sweat," Izumi said. "I just hope she likes 'em." "Yeah, me too- wait, what did you say?" Haruna was about to agree with Izumi when she caught the fact she had said 'she,' like Izumi knew who the flowers were for. "Good luck Haruna-san," she said as she walked away. ��Hey, wait! How do you know who they're for?!" Izumi stopped and whipped around, sending a flurry of blue flying as she spun a 180 before facing Haruna. "I believe there's a card in that bouquet, isn't there? Sorry, sorry, but I maaay have snuck a peek."

Shuffling through a few of the flowers, Haruna found what Izumi had mentioned. It was a simple white card, completely blank except for the words 'To Kanako' with a little heart drawn underneath. "Chiyo..." Haruna sighed, though she appreciated the effort. Placing the card back where she found it, Haruna waved to Izumi and headed off toward the cooking clubroom.

On her way there, she couldn't help but feel a little giddy. Things hadn't gone as well as she would've liked recently, but it felt like she was on the upswing now. "These flowers are pretty nice. They even smell good too," Haruna thought happily. "I hope Kanako likes them..."

Approaching the door, Haruna arrived just in time to hear Naomi. "There's something I've been meaning to ask you." "Huh? What's this about?" Haruna wondered. Deciding to eavesdrop, she listened in.

*****

"A-Ask me?" Kanako said, surprised that Naomi was being so upfront. In response, Naomi nodded, but only a moment later, her confidence seemed to waver. "Well, it's just... I've been wondering... I hope it's okay to ask, but, um..."

"Are you and Haruna Endo dating?"

Time stood still. Even the sounds of the bubbles popping could no longer be heard by Kanako. Her mind froze. Her legs shook. Her heart thumped so hard she was sure it would burst out of her chest. "D-...D-...D-Date...ing? Date... Haruna?" she sputtered.

It wasn't as if the thought had never crossed her mind, though she had never been serious about the idea. It wasn't like Kanako never heard people whispering rumors about them, but that's all they were, rumors. However, no one had ever asked so directly. Naomi was the first, and it was a question that had shaken Kanako to her core.

"U-Um, Naomi-senpai...!" Mayu said, but calling her senpai's name was useless. Naomi's attention was locked onto Kanako. She hadn't asked with the intention of scolding her or berating her. There were no wishes of ill will or anything of the sort. Naomi just wanted to get an answer to a question she had wondered about for a while. However, being held in such a gaze made Kanako shrink. She wanted to run, but what good what that do? If anything, it would probably just make things worse or create a misunderstanding. Here and now, Kanako had to face one of the many feelings in her heart.

*****

"What... did she just ask?" Haruna thought, wide-eyed after hearing Naomi's question. It was something Haruna had never expected. Once or twice, Haruna had been asked the same thing, but she had been able to send the person away with a glare. She had yet to truly answer anybody when asked if she and Kanako were dating. Of course, the answer was no, but that didn't make it any easier to say. Saying no felt like a denial of sorts to Haruna, but saying yes was obviously a lie.

Haruna had no idea what was in Kanako's heart. She didn't know if Kanako felt as conflicted as she did. She didn't know if she'd made a dent in the feelings Kanako held for Akio. Haruna couldn't even begin to guess if she had swayed Kanako's heart at all toward her, although a part of her hoped she had. Now, being faced with Naomi's question, Haruna would get at least some level of an answer to her questions.

"We... w-we're..." Kanako struggled to say. Haruna pressed even closer to the door as she tried to catch every word. "Sorry, I know this question is probably really weird. It's just, everybody talks about how you two always hold hands and look so happy with each other, so we've all kind of wondered," Naomi explained. Kanako went silent. Her legs continued to tremble. Her whole body shook, although Haruna couldn't see that. If she had, it surely would've made what came next so much worse.

"T-There's..." Kanako began. "Hm?" Naomi let out, tilting her head. "There's no way we'd ever be like that!" Kanako blurted out. "Really? I guess that answers that," Naomi said. "B-Besides, everyone knows we're b-both girls, right?! A-And, and! I-I like Akio-kun, and, um!" Kanako continued, struggling to come up with excuses. "Okay, I get it Kana-chan. You don't need to convince me," Naomi said with a little laugh.

However, there was another girl who was laughing as well.

It was dry. Rough. Like sandpaper coming up her throat. "Ha...haha..." Haruna let out to herself. "Of course. Of course she'd say that..." Staring at the flowers in her hand, Haruna smiled bitterly at them. "I... really... should've known better..." Strength drained from her grip, and the flowers dropped to the floor. They landed with a soft sound as a few petals flew off from the impact. Turning away from the door, Haruna walked away.

*****

"Huh? Did I just hear someone outside of the door?" Naomi asked to no one. Going to check, she slid the door open. "What's this?" she said. Hearing her remark, Kanako and Mayu joined her as the three of them ended up in the hallway. "Flowers?" Mayu said. "What a pretty color," Kanako said, briefly recovering from her earlier shock. "I wonder how they ended up here?" Naomi said. Staring at the fallen bouquet, Kanako noticed a piece of paper stuck inside. Bending down to grab it, she pulled it out and read it.

"W-What? It says it's to me," Kanako said, surprised. "Really? Wow, maybe you have a secret admirer Kana-chan," Naomi joked. "Hm?" Mayu let out, looking at the card. "Wait," she thought. "The only person who calls Kana-chan by her first name is..." Putting the pieces together, Mayu gasped. "Oh no. Don't tell me. Did Haruna hear our conversation?!"

Ever since Mayu had learned about Haruna's feelings for Kanako, she had found it to be a lot to process. She had spent hours thinking on it, and even that hadn't been enough to decide whether or not she agreed with it. However, there was no denying that a part of her wanted to cheer for Haruna. Even if she hadn't fully realized it herself, Mayu supported their love.

That was what made this moment so painful for her. Knowing that the flowers were most likely from Haruna and the fact that she had probably heard what Kanako had said was bad enough. Adding to that, Mayu knew what purple roses meant. She had become well-versed in flower meanings because of her mother. "Enchantment..." she reminded herself.

"M-Mayu-chan? Are you okay?" Kanako asked. Mayu continued to stand wide-eyed at the scene. "Endo-san..." she said quietly. "H-Haruna? What about Haruna?" Kanako said. "Um, you... you should really talk to Endo-san, Kana-chan," Mayu said. "O-Oh, okay," Kanako said. Staring at the bouquet of flowers that she had picked up, she wondered what Haruna had to do with it.

*****

As Haruna dragged her feet along the sidewalk, she kept taking deep breaths. In and out they went, steadily one after the other. However, no matter how many she did, her heart nor mind stopped hurting.

She kept going. Step by step, she kept going. But each step got heavier. Her shoes began to pound the pavement, but it wasn't out of anger. The muscles in her legs were slowly giving up their motivation to move, denying the request of her brain to keep moving forward. Her pace slowed, and before she knew it, she stopped.

"This sucks..." she muttered. "Flowers... They're supposed to be romantic, right? Chiyo even went through the trouble of picking me out special ones..." Her lips trembled. Finally, her legs gave out, and the only fortune that Haruna found was that there was a bench next to her to land on. "Why... why did she say that?" Haruna said, barely above a whisper. "Even if she really thinks it's impossible, she didn't have to say it like that..."

Haruna's eyes wetted. She rubbed them. They wetted again. Clutching the edge of the bench, she used all of her willpower to keep the tears inside. "I'm so stupid..." she muttered. "Why did I ever think..."

"...that I ever stood a chance?"

End of Chapter Nineteen.