The School Dance! And A Kiss?

She gets up and leaves her room prepared to go out. Hikigaya bumps into her in the hallway with a confused look.

Hikigaya "You going out?"

Shiori "Yep."

She says without looking at him and beginning to walk past him.

Hikigaya "Where?"

Shiori "To go find a dress for the dance."

He gets a surprised look again.

Hikigaya "You're going alone?"

Shiori "Nope."

She says before walking down the stairs. Hikigaya gets an even more surprised but now slightly jealous look. He goes into his room and sits at his desk. He picks up a pencil and points it at his paper with a character roughly sketched on it. He taps it for a second while bouncing his leg, obviously not thinking about art.

Hikigaya "She's going with someone else?"

He sits for another second before getting back up and rushing downstairs to the door after her. He opens the door only to be met by Milo standing in front of him. He is shocked for a moment as she smiles at him.

Milo "Hey Hiki! Nice new house. It was kinda hard to find since you didn't tell me the address but it's okay cause I'm here now! Also, I just saw that shorty leave, was she hanging out with you? Alone maybe?"

She says with a twitching eye, obviously irritated. Hikigaya looks concerned but moves on.

Hikigaya "Right… Look, I gotta go."

He says with an upset look while squeezing past her. She is surprised for a moment and pouts before grabbing his wrist.

Milo "Wait! Hiki, I gotta ask you something."

He stops and looks at her as she blushes and has a softer look than usual.

Milo "I know you don't like me… Like, very much at all… I'm sorry I'm always annoying you and stuff but I just can't help myself around you. I just like, super duper like you and if you'd give me a chance, I was hoping maybe we could go to the dance together?"

She gives him a timid look as he relaxes a bit. He pauses and contemplates before answering.

Hikigaya "Sure."

Milo instantly perks up.

Milo "You really mean it?!"

Hikigaya "You certainly have been determined. I owe you a dance at least."

Her eyes start to tear up a bit as she smiles widely.

Milo "Yay! I'm so excited! Okay, I'm gonna go and make sure I have everything I need! I'll see you at the dance Hiki!"

She runs off as she waves at him. He gives her a soft smile before it fades away. He looks at the ground for a moment with a concerned look.

Hikigaya "Was that a good idea?.."

He says softly before going back inside.

Eventually, the night of the school dance comes. Shiori comes to the school and before the gym at night. She is dressed nicely in a dress with light jewelry. She takes a deep breath before entering the school. There she is met by Chizuru, Touma, Lucy and Ryuji who are also dressed up. Chizuru waves to her and calls her name loudly.

Chizuru "You actually came! I'm surprised you were able to convince Hiki, he never likes these things."

Shiori gets an awkwardly nervous look.

Shiori "Oh, actually I'm not here with Hikigaya."

She says softly. Chizuru gets confused.

Chizuru "Oh? Then are you here by yourself?"

Shiori "No, I'm-"

Tsuki "Shiori! There you are! I'm so glad you made it!"

He says happily while approaching them. The others look at him confused as he takes her hand.

Tsuki "Tonight is going to be so fun!"

Shiori smiles a bit but still with an awkward look. The others stare for a moment before someone else calls to them.

Milo "I see everyone made it out tonight! This is going to be amazing! Right, my date?"

She says playfully while pulling Hikigaya forward by his hand. He laughs a bit awkwardly before stopping and looking at Shiori. He blushes at her sight as she notices him too. She looks away awkwardly.

Shiori "Hey Hikigaya…"

Hikigaya "H-hi."

He says back. They stand there awkwardly for a moment before Tsuki and Milo wink at each other.

Tsuki "Come on Shiori! Let's go inside!"

Milo "Yeah, us too Hikigaya!"

They say as they tug them along. Lucy is in shock as Chizuru has a worried look on her face. Even Ryuji and Touma could tell how awkward things were between them right now.

Lucy "How could this have happened?"

Haru "Hey guys! Looking good!"

Lucy gets an irritated look.

Lucy "Haru…"

She turns around and pulls his ear.

Lucy "What did you do?!"

Haru "Ow ow ow! I don't know what you're talking about!"

Lucy "Why are Tsuki and Shiori a date tonight? How did he even ask her?!"

Haru "How should I know?! It's not like you have proof I gave him her number!"

Sugawara winces as Ryuji shakes his head realizing he just gave her his answer.

Lucy "You did what?!!"

She punches the top of his head angrily. Haru squats, holding his head as it aches and swells.

Haru "I'm sorry! I didn't think she would actually say yes…"

Lucy lets out a sigh before looking at the gym.

Lucy "Let's hope the damage isn't that bad."

In the gym, there are many students dancing as music plays loudly. Tsuki walks with Shiori in as she looks unsure of how to go about it.

Shiori 'What am I supposed to do? I've never been to a dance before…'

She thinks to herself as Tsuki looks at her. He realizes how nervous she is and looks over at the concessions table. He gets an idea as he calls Shiori.

Tsuki "Why don't we get some drinks to start? One of my friends said the punch is super yummy tonight!"

Shiori smiles softly and nods. She follows closely behind him with a nervous look. They get drinks and sit down on the benches on the side. Tsuki drinks his fruit punch as Shiori holds her drink and stares at the floor. Tsuki gets a concerned look.

Tsuki "You okay? You know you don't have to stay with me here if you don't want to?"

He says softly. She looks at him surprised, pulled from her thoughts, before smiling nervously.

Shiori "No, no. I'm okay. I just…"

She looks up and at the entrance where she sees Milo pulling Hikigaya along by his hand. She gets a sad look.

Shiori "It's okay."

Tsuki doesn't seem convinced by her answer but doesn't pry any further. He looks at the other students dancing including Haru having a blast and Touma nervously trying his best to dance as Chizuru encourages him. He smiles and looks at Shiori.

Tsuki "Why don't we dance instead?"

She blushes and gets an embarrassed look.

Shiori "I don't think that's a good idea! I have no idea how to dance."

Tsuki "Oh come on! Everyone can dance! Let's go!"

He grabs her wrist and pulls her into the crowd. In the entrance, Suiyoubi and Alice both step inside, both dressed up nicely. Alice's eyes shine in awe as she is very excited for the dance.

Alice "Check this out! I like what they did with the place, haha! Come on, I wanna dance!"

She says back to Suiyoubi who nods softly and smiles as she follows Alice into the crowd. Kitaro and Hisana are by the snacks table as Hisana grabs one too many snacks. She comes and sits next to Kitaro who sweats a bit at her plate.

Kitaro "Didn't you want to come to dance?"

Hisana "Mhm. But the snacks are just too good!"

Kitaro "Right."

He says as he leans back. Hisana looks at him and blushes a bit as she stares at him in his suit. She stops and takes another bite of food before speaking.

Hisana "Why don't you dress like this for me all the time?"

Kitaro "Because I don't dress for you at all, dummy."

She giggles as he smiles at her softly. As the others dance, Shiori awkwardly sways and swings her arms around gently, blushing in embarrassment.

Shiori 'What am I doing?.. I feel so out of place. I wish… I wish Hikigaya was here…'

She thinks with an upset look on her face.

Tsuki "See? You're doing great!"

Shiori smiles awkwardly as he laughs.

Shiori 'I think… I think this was a mistake. I need to find Hikigaya and apologize. I don't think I can do this without him.'

She stops and steps back a bit. Tsuki stops and looks at her confused.

Tsuki "Where are you going?"

Shiori "I think I'm done dancing for now. I'm gonna go-"

She smiles softly at him as she turns and looks in Hikigaya's direction. There she stops suddenly as she sees Hikigaya and Milo close together on the bench on the side. She sees them obviously kissing as her heart sinks.

A few minutes prior…

Milo leads Hikigaya to the benches on the side of the gym where they both sit next to each other.

Milo "Man, I love dances! They're always so fun but this just isn't my song yet. Gotta wait for the right song to hop onto the dance floor, am I right?"

She says happily. Hikigaya gives her a soft smile and nod before looking away. Milo notices and pauses for a moment.

Milo "Hikigaya, I know you don't want to be here with me."

He looks at her surprised.

Hikigaya "What? No, it's all good! I just got a lot on my mind, that's all!"

He laughs awkwardly as she puts her finger on her mouth, shushing him.

Milo "You don't have to pretend Hiki… I've known you for a long time. I can always tell when you're lying cause you suck at it."

She gives him a soft smile. He looks sad but assuring that she is right. She looks away with a soft smile on her face.

Milo "You've been very clear about how you feel about me from the moment we met. I'm not gonna force you to try and like me anymore."

She says softly. Hikigaya struggles to hear her words over the loud music.

Hikigaya "What?"

She turns and puts her hand on his cheek before pulling him in closely to speak to him, their mouths extremely close.

Milo "Thank you for letting me like you for so long but I think it's time I let you go. I don't want to be a burden on you anymore. I only asked you out tonight so I can finally say I at least asked you out on a dance at least once."