HIM – NO

The air felt heavy between the two as Tyson took a moment to intake all the information. Although his face remained somewhat expressionless, his mind was in a turbo mode of thoughts. Shock. Regret. Wonder. Many emotions flickered through his heart, but he remained silent, as though words couldn’t escape his throat.

“… judging from your reaction,” Emma said, breaking the silence as she smiled bitterly. “It looks like you had no clue, huh?”

“… nope,” Tyson said, chuckling. “I really didn’t.” Aah, this is shocking… what the hell is the right course of action here anyway?! “Why tell me now, though?”

“Hm,” Emma thought for a moment before replying. “It’s silly, really. Before, I thought that if I told you and, for some reason, you said you liked me too, that I would relapse, you know? But now… I can see how much you care for her. And I figured I can at least get it off my chest. Selfish, I know…”

“… waah, that’s one dumb of a reason,” Tyson said, chuckling. Selfish, huh? That reminds me of when I first started talking to Aya… “But it’s surprising. I really never realized.”

“Yet I literally dropped hundreds of hints… you really were dense, weren’t you?”

“Hints? Huh? When?!”

“Hmm… do you remember our trip in the third grade of high-school?” she asked as Tyson nodded. “And remember how I told you that meet-up was at 7? Actually, it was at 6. And, that entire night, I clung to you to the point I felt my heart would break. Yet, you looked so normal. I nearly cried myself to sleep that night…” Oi, oi!! Do you know how much self-restraint I had to have that night?! Are you telling me I was supposed to not have any?!! Guh, this is bad for my heart… should I just tell her to stop? Should I even tell her I used to like her too?!

“Eeh… yeah, I guess I really was dense,” Tyson said, looking out the window. “That night, I just thought you were scared because we lost the group, which is why you clung to me.”

“… wow, how do you even come up with that stuff?”

“Shut up. It was a tender age.”

“Ha ha, yeah, I imagine it was,” she said, laughing lightly. “But, I don’t really regret it.”

“You don’t?”

“Nah, why would I? First loves rarely work out anyway,” she said. “And, even if I didn’t like Jared when we started dating, I really do love him now.” she smiled brilliantly, causing Tyson’s expression to mellow. Ah, even if you did like me… you never smiled like that when talking about me. “I told him, you know? A few days after we started dating. About how much I liked you.”

“Eh?! Wow, you really are a terrible girlfriend. Could it be that I dodged a bullet?” Tyson joked, causing Emma to glare at him for a moment.

“Shut up. I’ll punch you.”

“Please don’t. I’m a really delicate person.” Tyson said. “So, what’d he do?”

“He said he knew,” Emma said. “And he even proposed he helped me with you. But, I said no. After all those years, I suppose I’ve grown tired. I wanted to move on, find something new to obsess over. So, I asked him – selfishly of course – if he could be patient with me. He just agreed with a smile. We started occasionally going out, talking a bunch more, and, before I knew it, I realized that he had replaced you almost completely. People really are strange, aren’t they?”

“… we really are,” … literally the same thing happened to me. Hah, to think we are this similar… I wonder how things would have turned out if either of us amassed enough courage to say it? “But, I’m half-drunk, it’s late at night, so let’s not tempt any heavy subjects.”

“Ha ha, yeah, you always hated heavy topics, said they make you uncomfortable.”

“… hmm, I guess I did.” Tyson said, chuckling. “But, we all have to change sometime, right?”

“… can I ask you something?” Emma said in a serious tone.

“Sure.”

“… did you… did you ever like me?” Ugh, there it is. I knew she’d ask. Aah, what’s even the right thing to do here? Say yes? Say no? Play dumb? Nah, there’s no the right thing. Just whatever I choose to do. Hah, I bet she’d tell me to just say the first thing that comes to my mind…

“No.” Tyson said smiling lightly. “Sorry.”

“… nah, I figured.” Emma said, her smile somewhat bitter. “You were never really a coward. If you had liked me, you probably would have told me.” … oi, oi, when the hell did I give you that impression?!

“Ha ha, I can’t say I would have,” Tyson said, chuckling. “After all, I was always a delicate person.”

“Riiiight. And I’m a NSCAR pro driver.”

“You could be. If only you’d chase your dreams with passion!!”

“I don’t even have a license.”

“You can always buy one.”

“I don’t think that’s how the world works.”

“Who cares how the world works?!” Tyson exclaimed flamboyantly. “Make up your own rules!”

“So you’re telling me to become a politician?”

“Nah, you’re too pretty to be a politician. Maybe a Dictator?”

“Aww, I can’t believe Ty just told me I’m pretty~~”

“Wow, you gals really have talent on being hung up on the weirdest parts of what I say.”

“That felt strangely sexist.”

“It was.”

“Eh,” Emma shrugged, stretching out and yawning. “I know this may be rich coming from me, but, from tomorrow on, can we just go back to the way we were?”

“… I wouldn’t have it any other way.” Tyson said, smiling.

“Aah… you really make other people feel depressed.”

“Eh? Don’t you fools usually laugh at my antics?”

“That’s not what I meant,” Emma shook her head. “You always felt as steady as a rock, as though nothing can shake you or move you, that no matter what disaster would arrive, you’d always have an answer for it. It was actually a part of the reason I fell in love with you.”

“…” I should have become an actor considering the level of my acting ability… sigh… “Well, for better or worse, I’m happy you told me. Never hurts knowing that someone used to love you.”

“’s that so?” Emma mumbled. “Well, thank you for listening anyway. We’ll now switch places.”

“Eh?”

“Don’t you have a girlfriend now?” Emma suddenly grinned as she moved to the bedroom. “I can’t have her seducing my boyfriend, you know?”

Suddenly, Aya and Jared peeked out of the bedroom, the latter nervously scratching his nose while Aya remained expressionless, her gaze locked onto Tyson who felt shivers run down his spine. No, no, no… did—did I just give her decades of teasing material?!! NOOOOOOOOOOOO!

HER – AN ODD PAIR

Aya and Tyson sat on the bed, latter drinking a can of beer nervously, while the former just looked at him in silence. The night had long gone sunk across the sky, moon faintly visible behind the clouds. Street lamp shone weakly through the window, casting faint light at the two.

“… h-how long will we not talk?” Tyson mumbled.

“Oh? We have something to talk about?” Aya said, curling her lips up in a smile. “What would that be, if you could refresh my memory?”

“… the size of your tits?”

“They’re B. Nothing’s changed.”

“… the softness of your lips?”

“Are you trying to write a bad poem?”

“Not anymore apparently.”

“Sooo,” Aya mumbled, stretching, as Tyson shuddered. “Is beer good?”

“Oi, don’t make me sit on cushion of knives for so long!! Just commence your teasing, please!!”

“… wow, to think I’d meet someone who’d actually beg to be teased. What’s up with that? Did you finally awake your inner M?”

“… if I were an M, wouldn’t I be having a boner right now?! Instead, why do I feel like jumping out the window?!”

“Eh, those are your mental problems. Nothing to do with me.”

“… h-how much did you hear?” Tyson asked, lowering his head.

“Hear what?”

“Ugh,” Tyson grunted, suddenly putting the beer down on the table and turning toward her. “Give me your best.”

“… well, if you’re asking so intently,” Aya suddenly reached for her blouse and began to take it off, while Tyson’s eyes rounded as he stretched out his arms and stopped her. “Hm? What’s wrong?” she asked, sneering.

“… do you think I should have said ‘yes’?” Tyson mumbled in a low voice, his hands somewhat shaking on her shoulders.

“… did you want to say yes?” Aya asked, her face returning normal as she grabbed his hands with her own.

“… I don’t know.” he sighed. “It’s kind of disheartening how, well, disheartened you seem about this.” … should I tell him that I nearly came bursting into this room with a desire to break a few teeth of hers? Uh, better not…

“I trusted you.”

“You trust me far too much. What if I was swayed?”

“We’d break up.”

“… wow, that hurt. At least, if the roles were switched, I’d fight for you.”

“I’m fighting in my own way, you know?” Aya said, suddenly hugging him and pulling his head onto her chest, gently stroking his hair. “I can’t be like others… yelling and proclaiming you mine, telling other girls to stay away lest I rip a few hairs of theirs out.”

“No, that really doesn’t sound like you.”

“Why are you rubbing your head against my tits?”

“It feels nice.”

“I bet it does, but I thought you wanted to have a serious conversation?”

“Eh, tits are better.”

“…”

“…”

“Ah, whatever,” Aya said, laughing lowly. “You earned it.”

“I have, haven’t I?” Tyson said, rising his head as he leaned it against Aya’s, stting up next to her.

“At least now I don’t have to worry about you running off with another girl.” Aya said, chuckling.

“Well, just so you know, if Rachel McAdams comes knocking, I’m off faster than the speed of light.”

“Ah, if it’s her, I can forgive you.”

“So, about that second date,” Tyson mumbled. “Where do you wanna go?”

“… how about you sleep first, and we’ll talk tomorrow.” she said.

“… good… idea…”

A few minutes later, Tyson had already gone to dreamland. Aya stared gently at his relaxed features and a dumb smile, smiling herself. When you said ‘no’… I think I finally experienced what they mean by ‘happiness beyond words’, you know? A few tears trickled down her cheeks as her smile widened.

“… I really do like you, after all…” she mumbled in a low voice.

“… I really do like you, too.”

“Eh?!” Aya exclaimed as her cheeks flushed red, looking down at grinning Tyson.

“Aah, nothing beats that red-beet face of yours.”

“… fuck you. Die. Forget.”

“Oi, is that something you should say to the guy you like?!”

“…”

“Aah, to think you’re the same girl who laughed when I rubbed my head against your tits,” Tyson said, chuckling. “You’re really odd, aren’t you?”

“… joke’s on you.” Aya said, sighing as she smiled. “You like that odd girl, after all, making you just as odd as me.”

“Yeah,” Tyson said, his hand wrapping around her neck as he pulled her closer. “What an odd story, huh?”

“Yeah…” their lips slowly intertwined as the two lied down next to each other.

Aya rested her head on Tyson’s chest as his hand stayed on her back, gently holding her. It didn’t take long for both of them to fall asleep, gentle streams of moonlight cascading over their smiling faces.