114 Chapter Three: To Be So Close...

The remainder of Michi's time left at the Wakabayashi household had been… awkward, to say the least. After having argued with their parents, she returned to Chiyo's room, only to find the girl curled up in a ball again. "Is she asleep?" Michi wondered. Getting closer, it didn't sound like the breathing of someone sleeping. "Chiyo?" she called quietly. A moment passed with no response. "Hmph. I guess she really is- whoa!"

Before Michi knew it, arms had come up to pull her down. With no way to resist, Michi plummeted down toward Chiyo, her face landing directly in the gal's breasts. "H-Hey, Chiyo! What gives?! Let go- mmph!" As Michi went to protest, she found her head pushed down, cutting off her speech and air supply. "Sorry Mi-chan, but I don't want you to go just yet," Chiyo said.

Feeling the pressure let up a little, Michi pushed her way back up. "Pah!" she exclaimed. "What the hell Chiyo?!" In response to her reaction, Michi's eyes suddenly got covered by Chiyo's hand. "D-Don't like, look at my face yet either." "What's going on with you?" Michi asked as she tried to uncover her eyes. "Just give me a sec!" Chiyo cried. "Oh come on Chiyo! Seriously, I'm tired of you screwing with me like this. Now, let. Me. See!" Michi demanded.

With one more good tug, she managed to free herself of Chiyo's covering. When she did, she saw Chiyo looking away from her as much as she could. "Did you do something to your face when I wasn't in the room?" Michi asked. "More like you did something to my face…" Chiyo muttered. "What does that even mean?" Michi sighed. "Just look at me already. It feels like you're ignoring me when you're like that."

"No."

"Come on, don't be difficult."

"That's totally the pot calling the kettle black Mi-chan."

"Ugh, this is getting ridiculous!" Michi exclaimed. Reaching out her hands, she placed them on Chiyo's cheeks, planning to forcibly turn the gal's head. "Look at me Chiyo!" she shouted as she did so. What came next stunned Michi.

Now face to face, what Michi saw was an expression she had never seen Chiyo make before. Her eyes were wide, her lips slightly parted. The look she had could perhaps be best described as panic, but there seemed to be other emotions mixed in. Although, the biggest thing Michi noticed was the redness of Chiyo's face.

For a moment, they stared at each. "W-Why is your face all red?" Michi struggled to ask. "Do you have a fever or something?" Seeing Chiyo make the face she was making was causing Michi to lose her composure. "I don't know," Chiyo said weakly. "Why don't ya check?" "No thanks. I don't want to be any closer to you than necessary," Michi said, trying to regain her senses. "You're pretty close now though Mi-chan," Chiyo pointed out. With their faces mere centimeters apart, that was certainly true.

"I-I'm only close because you pulled me down," Michi explained. "Then get up," Chiyo said softly. To her surprise, Michi didn't move. "...Or… do you not want to?" Chiyo continued, hope seeming to emerge in her eyes and tone.

They were so close they could feel each other's hot breath on their faces. Chiyo's cheeks were still as red as ever, and as she sat there, barely a space between her and her crush, she could feel her heart pounding. "Mi-chan…" she let out. "D-Don't… look at me… l-like that…" Michi just barely managed to say. It was clear she wasn't quite thinking normally either. Her face was nearly as red as Chiyo's, which only spurred the gal on even more.

"Hey, Chi, I wanted to-"

Suddenly, Chitose opened Chiyo's door, and the scene she walked into stopped her dead in her tracks. It certainly wasn't the first time she had witnessed her little sister getting all "close-and-personal" with someone, but seeing that it was with Michi was what really shocked her. She knew Chiyo had feelings for Michi, but from what she knew about the situation, Chiyo was certain Michi wouldn't feel the same way. However, considering her own observations, Chitose had wondered if that was true.

Now, there they both were, only a small push away from locking lips. "What's… going on here?" Chitose decided to ask. Upon hearing her sister, Chiyo panicked. She immediately grabbed Michi's shoulders and pushed her away a bit. "N-No! Um, w-we were just-" she flailed. But, just as Chitose was about to start smirking, Michi stood up.

"I'm going home," she said plainly. With the way she said it, there was clearly no room for debate. "Ah, sorry, did I kill the mood?" Chitose asked as Michi went to walk out. "Move," the girl said darkly at the doorway. "Sure…" Chitose said, moving out of the way. Then Michi walked out, down the hall and out the front door.

Turning to look at her little sister, Chitose saw her looking really out of it. "Chi, what the hell did you do?" she asked. Hearing the question, Chiyo slowly turned to look at her big sister. "I don't know…" she said quietly. "Didn't you say Mi-chan wouldn't feel the same way?" Chitose asked. "Yeah… she wouldn't… there's no way…" Chiyo said, beginning to think. "But… what if…"

What if she was wrong? What if, somehow, Michi's heart had begun to change? If that was the case, then the very foundation that Chiyo had built her unwillingness to confess on would crumble. Could she really put hope in that? Had Michi really changed? Sure, they had been ridiculously close just a moment ago, but anyone could get swept up in the moment, same gender or not.

"Is there… a chance? Or not…?" Chiyo muttered to herself. She had no idea anymore. At first, she thought she had known the answer, but recent developments had begun to shake that answer apart. Now, the gal felt as if maybe, just maybe, her feelings weren't as unrequited as she had thought.

*****

The slam of the door behind Michi echoed in the outer hall of her apartment building. Her heart was racing, but for what reason, she couldn't say. Was it panic? Confusion? Anger? All of the above, and perhaps more? Regardless of the answer, Michi's emotions were so far out of normal that she simply didn't know what to do with herself.

"What was that?" she screamed internally. "What was that? What was that? What was that?!" It was all she could manage to think. The physical distance (or lack thereof) between her and Chiyo had simply been too much for Michi to comprehend. Sure, they had been close before, but this time was clearly different.

The way Chiyo had stared at Michi, her eyes full of feelings Michi either couldn't understand or refused to. The way Michi herself could feel her mind emptying the longer she looked at Chiyo at such a close range. The fact that their lips had been so near, she had felt breath that was not her own. All of these factors told Michi one thing: unlike all of the other times Chiyo had clung to her, grabbed her or messed with her, this was by far different from the rest.

"Why did she look at me like that…?" Michi wondered. "Something tells me… that she shouldn't of." Could she place exactly what it was that Chiyo had been trying to convey to Michi through expression alone? Perhaps. It would be easy to read between the lines and figure it out. However, for Michi, who refused to admit to what she believed was impossible, all she could do was settle on confusion and annoyance instead of discovering an actual explanation.

"Why did she do that?" Michi thought, becoming irritated. "She didn't need to look like some maiden… what's her deal?!" Gradually, Michi's anger rose. "Ugh!" she exclaimed. "What is wrong with her?!" Now shouting to an empty apartment, Michi made her way from the door to her bed before flopping down. For a moment, she laid still, but then she quickly flailed around, beating down on the mattress with both hands and feet, much a like a child's temper tantrum.

"I don't get it!" she cried. "I know she's all clingy and stuff, but there's a line! A limit! Does she think I'm one of her boy toys now or something?! GROSS!" Going from anger to making assumptions, Michi continued to vent. "That was way too far! I can deal with the grabbing my arm, or the teasing, or even the w-whispering in my ear, but we almost… a-almost…"

Even just the thought of it brought a new flood of emotions. "Argh! What if something had happened?! What if an earthquake had happened and I fell forward?! We would've kissed! That would've been disgusting! Who knows how many lips that mouth of hers has touched? Like I'm going to be the next one on the list! And I definitely don't wanna be either, especially because Chiyo's another girl!"

Panting heavily, Michi sat up. "...A kiss…" she muttered, suddenly quiet. "I wonder what that's like…" Just like most teenagers, Michi had dreamed of her moment for her first kiss. Would it be sudden? Expected? Aggressive? Sweet? Honestly, she had considered plenty of possibility, but… not one of them had ever included a girl.

How could it? Girls were not a romantic option, not in the slightest to Michi. But, if that was true… if she steadfastly believed that like she always had… then why did the idea of kissing Chiyo not bother her as much as she thought it might? She said it disgusted her, yet her revulsion was less than she expected.

Michi thought about that for a second, but only a second. Quickly, she shook her head. "No," she thought resolutely. "There's no way I'd have any interest in locking lips with that bimbo. No way in hell." Thinking a little more, Michi came to another conclusion. "Maybe… it would be best to start putting some distance between Chiyo and me."

If Michi was beginning to indulge, even a little, in the idea of having any sort of intimate involvement with Chiyo, then perhaps it was time for her to really put her foot down with the gal. She had rolled over so easily time and time again, but if their relationship was trending in the direction Michi least desired, then she would have no more of it. She would make sure to keep Chiyo at an arms-length and find some way to enforce it. "That's what I have to do," Michi thought. "I need to stop letting her push me into things."

And yet… for some reason, Michi felt a pang of loneliness at the thought of spending less time with Chiyo. "Why…?" Michi thought. "I don't want to be around her anyways… So why…?" If she didn't want Chiyo around, that should at least bring relief, so why did her heart feel like it hurt at the thought of keeping her distance? The answer, of course, was simple.

It was too late. Far, far too late. Before Michi had even realized it, Chiyo's very presence had become engrained into her daily life. To try cutting the gal off now would be like trying to sever one of her own limbs and shrug it off. Truly, an impossible task. Any effort that Michi would put into such an endeavor would only end up causing her pain in the end.

Unfortunately, the sheer stubbornness of Michi Fukuhara was engrained even deeper into her. It would be ridiculous to deny Chiyo's importance to Michi. However, that was exactly what she was planning on doing. Even if it hurt Michi, she was sure that pretending that bond wasn't as important as it was would be for the best. "I said I'd protect her," Michi muttered to herself. "So if our relationship is going the way it looks like… then it's the best for both of us if I put some distance between us."

As she spoke those words out loud, Michi couldn't help but notice how hollow they sounded. She wanted to protect Chiyo, but something clashed with her approach. While she believed cutting off even potential romance was a good idea, a part of her told her that this idea of hers was the worst thing she could do. Put distance between herself and Chiyo? Was that even possible at this point? And even if Michi did manage to accomplish that, would she really feel any better? Somehow, something told her it'd be quite the opposite.

"I don't know anymore…" Michi sighed, putting her face in her hands. At the moment, she wished she had someone to talk to about all of this, but the person she had become closest to recently was the very source of her problems. "If only… Kanako and I were close like we used to be," Michi thought. Having her old best friend would certainly make her life easier, if for no other reason than having someone to tell all her problems to.

There were other options, of course. Mayu and Itsuki were choices, but Michi didn't quite feel close enough to either of them to have a serious conversation like that. Itsuki in particular seemed like it would be difficult. Outside of those two, there were the friends Michi had made during the school trip, but they didn't seem like good options either. They could be serious at times, but they were usually more relaxed and liked having fun, making it a challenge to bring up a serious subject. Then there was the fact that Michi had known that group for even less time than Mayu and Itsuki, so that really put them out of the running.

Out of the people in her life, that left few options. Her parents were an absolute no. They were completely incapable of caring for their own daughter over themselves as it was, so Michi doubted they were capable of giving any sort of decent advice. There was Jasmine, but Michi felt like that would be even less helpful. So, that meant all that remained was Hinami, but Michi had probably only spoken to the girl a couple of times at most, meaning there was no foundation for Michi to use to approach her with such a serious topic.

Yet again, Michi sighed. "I guess I really need Kana-chan after all…" she thought. After having spent so much time with Chiyo in the past year, Michi had begun to wonder if she really needed to fix their friendship at all. Although, with all their history, Michi knew she couldn't just ignore it. "And now I could really use someone to vent to…" she thought.

Michi still didn't want to take any responsibility for their fallout, but she also understood she had to put in effort if there was any hope at all of fixing what was broken. "But what can I do to make an effort?" Michi wondered. All past attempts had failed, so was there anything she could do that had a chance at success? "What if I get her something?" she thought, but then gave up the idea. "A gift would probably only make things more awkward. It's not like it'd be for a special occasion or anything."

So Michi continued to think. There had to be a way to not only start a conversation with Kanako, but also maintain it. Normal conversations with good flow were the basis of any friendship. It was great if you had things in common, but if you couldn't coherently talk about it, commonalities ceased to matter. Realizing that, Michi was struck with an idea. "We're both in the cooking club, so we obviously both like to cook. What if we use that as the starting point to fix our friendship?"

The word "fix" had to be used roughly with Michi. Not willing to accept responsibility or blame meant that the "fixes" she would be making would only be superficial at best. But, to Michi, it was a start. At the very least, it meant that she had something to work with now, which was more than she could've said even a couple of hours ago.

"Maybe I'll make something and bring it over to her," Michi thought. Gathering ingredients, she settled on a simple pasta dish. "I wonder if I should surprise her with it?" It was probably better to call ahead, but if Michi showed up at Kanako's doorstep, dish in hand, it would be difficult to turn her away. On top of that, it would show she was making an effort by not only cooking for the girl, but by bringing it to her on a surprise visit.

"Yeah, that'll be good," Michi thought as she sizzled some vegetables in a pan. "I'm sure she'll appreciate it."

*****

"..ko…"

"Kanako," Haruna repeated for the third time. "Huh?" the girl next to her let out. "I was trying to ask you something," Haruna said, a little annoyed at being ignored. "S-Sorry," Kanako said. "I guess I'm just a little out of it." "Is something wrong?" Haruna asked. "U-Um…" Kanako said, uncertain of how to answer.

Currently, the two of them were sitting on the floor in Kanako's room. They had simply been spending time together and enjoying each other's company when Kanako's mind had drifted off. The act of hanging out with someone reminded her of the past, specifically with Michi. "We used to be kind of like this all the time," Kanako thought.

Of course, the reason she was hesitant to tell Haruna she was thinking about Michi was because she knew it wouldn't go well. "I'm sure she'll just say something mean…" Kanako thought. Next to her, Haruna stared. "Kanako?" she said, concerned by her girlfriend's lack of answer. Deciding it would be better to say rather than act like she was hiding something, Kanako continued. "I-I was just thinking about… how Mi-chan and I used to hang out a lot."

Hearing that, Haruna frowned. "Fukuhara-san?" she said with irritation. "Why are you even thinking about her?" "I-It's just, we used to be such good friends, and now…" Kanako said, trailing off. "Why even bother with her? She obviously only cares about what she wants to," Haruna pointed out. "Mi-chan helped me a lot before high school and in our first year…" Kanako explained. "Helped you how?" Haruna asked. Once again, Kanako was reluctant to speak.

Much of her friendship with Michi had formed through Kanako being comforted after attacks from Haruna. Naturally, there was no good way to say that. "She…" Kanako began. "Would make me feel better… a-after I had fought with you…"

Haruna fell silent. How was she supposed to take that? Sure, now things between her and Kanako were great, but back then, she understood just how awful she had been. The fact that Kanako had had someone to help her deal with all of Haruna's aggression was a good thing, but that person being Michi gave Haruna mixed feelings. Should she thank Michi for being kind to Kanako during that time, or should she hate her for being made into the villain instead of suggesting reconciliation. "Well, it's not like that would've worked anyway…" Haruna thought regretfully.

Admittedly, that time in Haruna's life was probably the worst she had ever been. Being able to look back on it now, she wished she could go back in time and just explain everything to her past self and have her make up with Kanako. Although, doing that would probably mean they would never fall in love with each other. Not unless the future Haruna made the effort to tell the past Haruna about their feelings. Then maybe past Haruna would develop those feelings sooner and stop her aggression earlier. But, that also had the potential for forever unrequited love. "Okay, now this is just getting messy," Haruna thought, putting a stop to her time-traveling notions.

Regardless, the past Haruna was one that the current Haruna wished she could forget, but knew she never could. All she could do was try to give Kanako as much love as she had hate, and hope that that was enough to balance the scales.

"I see…" Haruna eventually muttered. "Ah!" Kanako exclaimed. "S-Sorry, I didn't mean to make you feel bad or anything!" "It's fine," Haruna said sadly. "I mean, after everything that happened between us, I'm just happy you didn't hate me." "I could never-" Kanako began to say, but she was cut off by a finger pressed to her lips. "I know," Haruna said with a small smile. "And that's one of the things I'll always be grateful for."

"But," Haruna continued, removing her finger. "When you put it that way… maybe… I could be… a-a little nicer… to Fukuhara-san…" It was clearly a struggle for Haruna to even suggest such a thing, but when Kanako heard it, a big smile crossed her face. "R-Really?!" she shouted. "O-Only a little!" Haruna said, turning away from Kanako's sudden closeness. "It's not like we're gonna be best friends."

"I know," Kanako said, calming down. "But it makes me happy. If me, you and Mi-chan could all get along, that would be nice." "I-I just said I'll try, okay?" Haruna said, feeling the pressure a bit. "Sure," Kanako said with a nod.

Regrettably, for as fast as the good mood had come, it was replaced with a sense of forlorn. "But, I guess none of that really matters if I can't get along with Mi-chan…" Kanako said quietly. "That's… because of me, isn't it?" Haruna asked tentatively. Kanako hated to admit it, but that was essentially the truth, so she gave a small nod. "Yeah, I figured," Haruna said with a sigh. "After that outburst she had in front of the school, I kinda thought I was the reason why she kept fighting with you."

Kanako was silent for a moment. "I don't think… it's just you though," she said. "She's angry that it seems like I chose you over her, but it's not like you're all we fight about. Like, we fight about-" Kanako stopped, looking at Haruna. "Ah…" she let out. "What?" Haruna asked, confused. "W-Well, um… Mi-chan and I have occasionally fought about… girls dating other girls…" Taking a second to think about it, Haruna let out a dry laugh. "Great, now I'm really the problem." "I'm sorry…" Kanako said.

"Although, even if that's most of it," Kanako went on. "It doesn't really change the big issue with Mi-chan." "Which is?" Haruna asked. "She's stubborn," Kanako said plainly. "That's something I've always known, but usually it was always about small things, like what time we would go to bed during a sleepover or which kind of milk is the best. Ever since everything changed between us, it's like it's everything I do. It makes it impossible to have an actual conversation with her. I feel like I have to choose every word I say carefully or I'll start another argument."

"I want to talk to her like we used to, but I don't think Mi-chan knows how. She still wants it all to be like how it was, not how things are now. One time, she got really mad at me about how things change, so I think it's something like that."

When Kanako stopped, Haruna remained quiet. Seeing that, Kanako suddenly felt a bit self-conscious. "S-Sorry, I'm just dumping all my problems on you, aren't I?" "Nah," Haruna said, taking Kanako's hand into her own. "Isn't that what being in a relationship is partly about? We help each other when we're worried, bothered or in pain. I know Fukuhara-san and I have plenty of differences, but I also know she means a lot to you, so if you tell me you want to fix your friendship with her, I want to support you in that."

"Haruna…" Kanako breathed as she stared at her. A year ago, this would've been unthinkable. "You sure have changed, huh…" Kanako mumbled. "I-Is that bad?" Haruna asked nervously. Kanako shook her head. "Of course not. It's very, very good," she said softly as she cuddled up next to Haruna. Getting close enough so there was no space between their bodies, Kanako rested her head on Haruna's shoulder. "If you had never changed, we would've never gotten to be like this." "That's probably true," Haruna agreed, leaning her head down against Kanako's.

It was quiet for a while, the two girls content to stay just how they were and enjoy the moment. Unfortunately though, the moment couldn't last forever, as a ring sounded off through the house. "Who could that be?" Kanako asked aloud. "Guess one of us has to go check, since your parents aren't home," Haruna said. "I vote you considering it's your house." "Mmm, I can't," Kanako said. "Why not?" Haruna asked. "Your magnetic pull is too strong. I can't get up," Kanako joked, leaning further into Haruna. "Hey, if you keep leaning like that-" Haruna began to say, but before she could finish, they both fell over.

"Ah!"

"Oof!"

Both girls toppled over onto the floor, sprawled out. "Geez, I told you-" Haruna said, but she stopped herself. "Oops," Kanako let out. "I guess I was messing around… too… much…" Kanako's voice trailed off as she took in the scene. There she was, suddenly on top of Haruna, propped up with her hands and knees. "Ah…" she let out.

All they could do was stare at one another, and as they did, both heartbeats quickened. "S-Shouldn't you… check the door?" Haruna asked, her voice shaking a bit. She was clearly flustered. "Probably…" was all Kanako said back. She just couldn't stop staring.

The way Haruna was lying on the floor, her clothes a little messy and her black hair spraying out in all directions across the carpet. Her face, seemingly getting redder by the second, and the way she brought the back of her hand to her to her mouth as she failed to hold Kanako's gaze. "C-C'mon… get off already…" she said weakly. Really, to Kanako, that hardly sounded like what Haruna really wanted.

"Should I?" she whispered. "Eh?" Haruna let out, turning back to Kanako as her eyes went wide. "Haruna…" she cooed, beginning to lean down to her. "K-Kanako…" Haruna uttered, bracing herself. Then, just as Kanako was getting closer, she heard the door downstairs open.

"Huh? Why is the door unlocked? Hey Kana-chan, are you here?" a voice called. Shocked by what she heard, Kanako panicked. "T-That's Mi-chan!" she exclaimed. "Ah, if she sees us like this-!" Rushing to get up, Kanako felt her hands slip from underneath her. Before she could stop herself, her body plummeted down to Haruna's, their heads connecting forehead to forehead with a crack. Stunned by the blow, both girls writhed on the floor for a moment.

"Ow…"

"That hurt so much…"

"Kana-chan? Hello?"

Both girls wanted to recover for a minute longer, but there was no time to waste as another call from Michi echoed in the Nakatomi house. "C-Coming!" Kanako called back. "Hey, what should I do?" Haruna asked, still holding her forehead. Kanako thought for a moment. "It's not I have to hide you being here. At the very least, your my friend and neighbor. It makes sense for you to be here." "Yeah, but don't you remember the other day?" Haruna asked. "We showed up to the cafe together and Fukuhara-san was bothered by just that."

Kanako knew what Haruna meant. If just an arrival was enough to irritate Michi, then how would she react to seeing Haruna in Kanako's house? It was a question to consider, but… Kanako refused to give it the time of day. "I don't care," she said defiantly. "First of all, I live here. I can have whoever I want at my house… w-with my parents' permission. Secondly, I'm not going to hide you, because hiding would imply that I have something to be ashamed of, and I don't. One day, I want to show you off to everybody as my girlfriend Haruna. I can't do that if I were to act like you weren't here today."

It was a declaration bordering on brazen, and sounding somewhat unlike Kanako. However, Haruna allowed every word of it to seep into her. "I… really like the sound of that," she said. "Good. Then we should go greet Mi-chan," Kanako said, satisfied. "Alright," Haruna agreed, standing up. "Whoa… I feel a little dizzy. I think your hard head gave me a concussion." "I'm pretty sure you're the one with the hard head," Kanako said, not missing a beat. "Wha-" Haruna went to protest, but Kanako was already walking away.

Taking a second to herself, Haruna tried to collect her thoughts. "Okay, so we totally just knocked heads, but before that, was she going to…" The position, the mood, her actions, they had all indicated that Kanako had been about to kiss her. "We almost… kissed…" Haruna thought. Her head began to fill with the idea, but taking a step forward sent a pounding through her skull. "God… what a headache," Haruna groaned. "I definitely would've preferred a kiss over this…"

*****

Standing in the living room, there was Kanako, Haruna, and Michi with dish in hand. It was quiet between all of them, but they could all feel the tension. "...Okay, so why is she here?" Michi asked, clearly annoyed by Haruna's presence. "That's what I should be asking you," Haruna shot back. "Why'd you just show up out of the blue with… what is that?" "Hah! Of course you don't know what this is," Michi scoffed. "I guess a brute with culinary skills only suited to charcoal could never identify a dish." "What the hell!" Haruna exclaimed. "Listen you-" But, before she went on, Haruna looked at Kanako. The worry on her face was already very visible. "Right… we just talked about this…" Haruna reminded herself. Taking a deep breath, she tried again.

"Can't you just tell me what you brought?" she asked, doing her best to not lash out at Michi. Noticing her efforts, Michi was surprised for a moment. "I-It's a simple pasta dish I threw together with ingredients I had at home," she answered warily. "Is it any good?" Haruna asked. "I don't see why you need to know that," Michi spat. "It's not like you're getting any." "Either everyone eats or no one eats, Mi-chan," Kanako quickly said. Seeing how serious she was, Michi let out a "mmrgh…" but relented on her stance.

Serving the food, Kanako placed plates in front of both Haruna and Michi, then got some for herself. "Thanks for the food," she said, the other two following behind her. Grabbing her fork, Kanako tried a piece. "Oh!' she exclaimed. "Wow, Mi-chan, this is really good!" "Glad you like it," she said happily. "Yeah, this is actually good," Haruna added. "No one asked for your opinion," Michi huffed. "I'm complimenting you, you dumb-"

Catching herself, Haruna stopped and took another deep breath. "Can I not compliment you?" she asked, sounding a bit like she had to force it out of herself. Confused by her tone, Michi only gave a short, "whatever," in response.

The rest of their time at the table mostly passed in silence. They all enjoyed the food, but the time for eating was coming to a close. Despite that, silence prevailed. "This is awkward…" Kanako thought. She wanted to talk about something, but she had no idea what to talk about anymore due to Michi's recent tendencies to turn everything into a fight. "Isn't there something I could say?" she wondered, but nothing came to mind.

As for Michi, she felt the same, along with the irritation of having Haruna with them. "This would be so much better if Endo-san wasn't here," she thought bitterly. Her whole plan was ruined because of that. Although, she had to admit that it seemed like Haruna was trying to be a little nicer. It was weird, but if it continued, Michi thought it might not be so bad. "Then again, I probably shouldn't get my hopes up. She's probably only being nice to me because Kana-chan is around. I bet if Kana-chan left the room, she'd tell me all kinds of insults."

With bitterness abounding, Michi hatched a plan. "I'll get her to show her true colors. If I can get Kana-chan to leave, then Endo-san will probably be the brute I know she is, and Kana-chan will come back and see that. Then maybe she'll see what I've been trying to tell her!"

Came for potential peace, resorted to destruction. Michi's intentions had been slowly changing to the right direction, but her main motives still remained. As long as Haruna was around, it was possible that may never change. Not unless a change of equal proportion occurred in Michi's own life.

"Hey, Kana-chan," Michi said. "I've been meaning to ask you something. I think I may have left a hair tie in your room one of the last times I was here. Can you check for me? It's one of my favorites." "A hair tie?" Kanako repeated. "Yeah. I noticed it was missing a few weeks ago. It's purple," Michi added to her lie. "B-But if its one of your favorites, wouldn't you have asked before now?" Kanako asked. "Can't you just check?!" Michi snapped, losing her patience. "O-Okay…" Kanako said. Fearing another argument might occur, she got up to search for the non-existent hair tie.

Satisfied with her deception, Michi turned to look at Haruna, who to her surprise was staring intensely at her. "W-What?" she said. "Aren't those hair ties you're wearing now purple?" Haruna asked with suspicion. "O-Oh, are they?" Michi said nervously. "I guess I didn't notice." "But if they're your favorite, that means you already have them, doesn't it?" Haruna asked, getting more suspicious. "A-A girl can have more than one of the same colored hair tie, can't she?!" Michi yelled, starting to panic.

Haruna continued to bore into Michi with her gaze. "I guess but… it kinda feels like you're up to something." "How would you know?!" Michi shouted. "Gee, I don't know, maybe because you tried to blackmail me before?" Haruna shot back. "That kinda thing makes someone forever wary of the person that tried to do it." "Ugh…" Michi groaned. "Look, I don't know what business you have with me, and honestly, I don't care. All I want is one thing," Haruna said. "And that is?" Michi asked.

"I want you to stop causing so much trouble for Kanako," Haruna said back sternly. "She's been worried about her friendship with you for a while, but you jut keep making it worse." "Like you would know anything about our situation!" Michi exclaimed. "Seriously?" Haruna said in disbelief. "I know neither one of us wants to admit this, but can't you see what's happened here?" "I don't know what you're talking about," Michi huffed. "We've switched roles Fukuhara-san," Haruna explained. "I used to be in your spot, and you used to be in mine."

A vein bulged on Michi's forehead. Deep down, she knew what Haruna was saying was true. At some point, she was sure the thought had crossed her mind. However, she refused to accept it. "I'm nowhere near as bad as you ever were!" she yelled. "It's not like it started out with me constantly name-calling Kanako," Haruna said calmly. "It built up slowly. All that happened was the situation kept escalating between us." "Yeah, well, that's not what's happening here," Michi said. "Kana-chan and I are hardly even fighting. It's just that you're in the way all the time!"

Haruna felt her anger rise. She wanted to yell back and tell Michi that it was Michi's fault, not hers. However, between the constant back and forth and her new promise to Kanako, Haruna found that more than anything, she was beginning to tire of Michi's accusations.

"Yup. And I'm not moving one bit," she said smugly. Haruna was sick of it. If she was in the way, then fine, she'd be in the way. Really, she knew that objectively speaking, that wasn't the case. Michi could easily repair her friendship with Kanako without treating Haruna like a blockade. She needed to work out some issues, sure, but it wasn't like Haruna was an impenetrable wall in front of Kanako. But, Haruna knew Michi would never see it that way, so she decided she'd be what Michi said she was.

"So you admit it!" Michi shouted, pointing her finger at Haruna. "You've been in the way this whole time! I'm sure you manipulated Kana-chan somehow too! There's no other explanation for why you two get along now!" She had only poked a little, but Haruna was already regretting it. "It feels like we're going backwards…" she thought. There had been hope, a slight hope, that maybe if she pretended to be a little villainous, Michi could move forward at least a little. Then maybe it would help Kanako fix their friendship, considering one of the things that kept the two girls tied together had been Haruna causing problems.

"Haruna didn't manipulate me," a very angry voice suddenly said. Turning toward the source, Michi's eyes went wide. "K-Kana-chan, h-hey…" she sputtered. "There was no purple hair tie in my room," she said, glaring at Michi. "So did you lie to me just so you could accuse Haruna of more nonsense?" "I-It's not nonsense!" Michi said, trying to defend herself. "I'm just concerned about your well-being!" "We've been over this Mi-chan!" Kanako shouted back. "How many times do I have to tell you?!"

Michi shook, standing up in her rage. "I don't get it… It doesn't make sense! People don't just change like that! You two were enemies! How can you get along now! You're always so close, holding hands and other gross stuff… Just stop already!" Tears began to form in Michi's eyes as Kanako and Haruna watched. "You've changed so much that it's like you're a different person Kana-chan! And Endo-san too! She's nice to you all the time! And Chiyo! Chiyo-!"

Saying the gal's name, Michi froze. "C-Chiyo…" she said, suddenly much quieter. Just the thought of the gal had brought her mind completely back to what had happened earlier. "No… no, no, no, no, no, no…" she muttered. "That wasn't it… it wasn't!"

"M-Mi-chan?" Kanako said, worried about Michi's sudden shift in demeanor. Hearing her name, the girl looked at Kanako, then at Haruna. "Um, Fukuhara-san?" Haruna called. "Why… are you crying?"

Reaching up, Michi felt her face. Sure enough, tears were flowing down her cheeks. "Huh?" she let out. "What…" "Mi-chan?" Kanako tried again. Reacting to her name, Michi refocused on Kanako. "Ah," she said, still wide-eyed. Taking a couple of steps forward, she quickly broke into a run. "Mi-chan?!" Kanako exclaimed as the girl dashed for the door. Before Kanako could reach her, Michi made it through, running down the sidewalk and onto the road.

Not being a fast runner, Kanako knew she probably could've caught Michi, but her confusion prevented it. With no time to react, Michi was out of sight before Kanako could get to the street. "Why…?" she voiced. "What happened?" "I have no idea…" Haruna said, having followed Kanako outside. "What's wrong Mi-chan?" Kanako asked, expecting no answer.

"Mi-chan… please be okay…"

End of Chapter Three.