"How long have you liked women?"
Shalon didn't know what to say, what to do. Her mind momentarily became blank. Her heart nearly stopped beating. She could hear her breathing which was suddenly heavier than usual. She stared at Kio hard.
"Um... I didn't say I liked women..."
Kio leaned closer, her beautiful lips parting slightly. Shalon gulped. Kio smirked.
"Are you sure about that?" She asked.
"Y-yes..." Shalon unconvincingly replied.
Kio examined Shalon, her glinting eyes daring all over her face. Shalon bit her lip in anxiety. She immediately became self-conscious. She wanted to run. She wanted to hide. She wanted to be far away from Kio, so she couldn't see how hideous her nose was.
Shalon hated her nose. She thought of it as too long and fat. The more closer you came to it, the more bigger and fatter it got. She hated the idea of Kio just staring at it in disgust. However, Kio had no interest in Shalon's nose. She was looking straight at Shalon.
"Why are you so worried?" Kio asked in amusement.
"I-I um..." Shalon screamed in frustration inside her head. Great, now Kio would think she was awkward, pathetic, anti-social and a weirdo who stares at ladies bums! She really hated herself.
"You know, I envy Shaun," Kio said out of the blue. "He was always Mum and Dad's favorite. He used to be the popular kid at school, whereas I was just a dork who dreamed of being in the popular crew. He got all the girls, the fame, the grades - everything! He was a superstar. The Golden boy. I hated him for always being so better than me. And now... Now he's still winning..." Kio sighed sadly.
Shalon wanted to cheer Kio up. She hated to see her like this. She wanted to wrap her arms around Kio and stroke her gorgeous, short, messy hair. She wanted to say something soothing, but didn't know what to say. As usual.
"Oh... poor you..."
Kio shook her head. "No, don't bother. I don't need your sympathy. I know you don't really care."
"What?" Shalon said, taken aback. "That's not true. I care."
"No you don't."
"I do!" Shalon snapped, irritation filled her voice. It only took her a few seconds until she realised she was using her outside voice, and that Kio was sniggering. Shalon glared.
Kio stopped laughing and stared carefully at Shalon. "Really?" She asked in disbelief. "Prove it."
"What?" Shalon gulped down the lump in her throat. She didn't like where this was going.
"Yeah, if you really care about me... Prove it."
Shalon straightened her posture, trying to look confident. She wasn't kidding anyone. "Okay then... but how?"
Kio grinned, a lopsided grin. "Kiss me."
