Maki's POV

I have never been so afraid of Nico-chan until now. The look of her eyes as she stared at me. It made me shiver, I know that she wants to slap me or insult me regarding what happened, what I did. I anticipated that as I closed my eyes, waiting for her to do her move.

...but nothing happened...strange...

I opened my eyes again - Nico was not there anymore. Rather, I saw her now talking with Rin-chan, without looking too depressed or agitated. Wait...so...Nico-chan just stared at me and left?! What was that about?!

Regardless, I felt more nervous as I thought what may be Nico's state of mind right now. Does she plan to ignore me instead? Is she planning to punish me later? Does she...does she...

Does Nico-chan still love me?

"Maki-chan, please understand...", said by someone who approached me from behind, placing her arm on my shoulder. A recognizeable voice. It was Kotori-chan.

"Nico-chan...umm...Nico-chan doesn't want to talk to you right now. She hopes you understand what she is doing for the time being."

"Kotori...why...wait...did Nico tell you...?", I said. Then Kotori nodded her head, held my hand, and brought me downstairs. She said she wanted to talk to me about Nico. She already asked permission from Umi-chan, who agreed to dismiss me and Kotori from practicing for the time being.

"Nico-chan told me what happened two days ago. After I finished my part-time work at the store, I walked down the alleyway to head back home. But...I found Nico-chan there...she was crying really hard so I had to talk to her.", Kotori said that with a worried expression.

"What did Nico-chan say?"

"She said she was really hurt by what you did with Tsubasa-chan. She couldn't handle it. She wanted you to leave her alone for a while to give her some time to think of what she should do."

"I see..."

"But!...but Nico-chan told me that it is still okay for you to say something to her! - although you have to tell me so I will tell her your message. In other words, I will be your and Nico-chan's messenger!...", she says trying to lighten up the mood. Kotori is really a nice person. She tries whatever she could to give me at least some "good news".

"Thanks, but it won't be necessary...I'm sorry you got dragged into this mess..."

"I wish I could do something...somehow...to get you two back to the way you were!"

"There's nothing else you should do, Kotori. We have a few months left before we disband, it'll be too late anyway." I replied with both pessimism and concern. Please, Kotori, don't involve yourself any further.

"Kotori-chan...do you hate me now for what I did?" I said those words wondering what Kotori felt. I had that feeling everyone might start hating me for making Nico cry.

"Maki-chan, even if I did...I don't have the right. There is no reason for me to judge you two or your affairs with each other."

Then, she said:

"Just make sure you don't do what I did years ago...running away from the person you hurt and letting it end like that, without a proper goodbye.", said Kotori as she recalled what she did back then. Years ago, she was going to go abroad, not telling Honoka and everyone about it but when she did, Honoka got really mad at her and it became a problem. Good thing Honoka managed to stop her leaving at the airport though.

Come to think about it, now it seems I'm going through the same issue as Kotori-chan had then. Same pattern. I don't think those words will help me though, sorry Kotori.

Anyway, after that talk, both of us headed back to the rooftop and resumed practice. During the practice, everything went smoothly. We sang, we danced. The only obvious difference was that Nico and I are not paying attention to each other. Every step we made, we distanced ourselves from each other, probably by 10 meters or so. It felt really, really awkward.

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The next day...the date

Location: Akihabara, at a park somewhere near UTX Academy. 8:55 AM. Sunday.

Tsubasa's POV

I waited patiently for her at the park, wearing a blue longcoat, a crimson ribbon, and a cap. I've never been on a date before so I just wore what I thought Maki-chan would wear during occasions like this.

I know it will be hard for both of us. My feelings today are both excitement and fear. Even as I want to think deeply of what I am doing now, and what Nico-chan might feel, turning back will not be an option. I will focus for now, to make Maki-chan happy, and to make this date a moment both of us will never forget.

Moments later, Maki-chan arrived. Her attire surprised me; she is well-dressed, wearing a blue, sleeveless jacket, white blouse, pink skirt, and high socks. Her expression is calm, somehow she still managed to look forward for this date regardless of what happened.

Straight to the point, I asked her: "Maki-chan, are you alright?", to confirm my observations.

"I'm fine, Tsubasa-chan. You have no need to worry. Let's get this date started." She says those words as positive as she could, though I still feel her a bit of her uneasiness.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, don't worry Tsubasa. I'm alright."

Maki-chan held my hand and made the first move - that surprised me. She really is looking forward for this, huh? ...I'm happy...

As we walked to our first destination, which happened to be an arcade shop, I got this weird sensation of...comfort. Hearing her sweet voice, looking at her eyes, they made me blush. Her physique reminds me of A-Rise for a bit. I dunno if I'm overexaggerating my words, but that is all I could think for now. Oddly enough, I do feel a bit excited...

That feeling...as we walked through the crowd...holding each other's hands...trying hard to enjoy the day...

... ... ...

...and the feeling...that...that someone was watching us...

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