Girl Next Door

Chapter Sixty-One

Mio was of course shocked to the core. Her eyes were at their widest and her mouth was wide agape. It's as if the breath had been knocked out of her lungs by an unknown force.

"W-W-What...?" she said in her bewilderment and disbelief.

Takeru took a deep breath and sighed heavily.

"I love you," he said once again.

Mio stared at him with wide eyes and mouth. She had no idea how to respond. Takeru just averted his gaze and put his hands in his pockets as an awkward silence occurred between them.

"I'm not buying it," said Mio softly after a sigh.

"What...?" said Takeru, surprised at her reaction.

"I said, I'm not buying this sick joke of yours!" bawled Mio, who appeared to be on the verge of tears.

"It's not a joke," replied Takeru assertively. "What I feel for you is sincere and true."

Mio finally broke down into tears. "S-Shut up! It's not funny! I'm not buying your joke! I'm not! I'm not!" She tried to brush her tears away angrily.

"Mio..." said Takeru softly as he watched her cry, feeling pity for her. He went closer to her to try and comfort her.

"I'm not joking with you, Mio," said Takeru. "I really do love you. And I need you to believe that."

Mio then looked at him for a second then brushed away more of her tears. Then she regained her composure and glared at Takeru.

"You asshole," she said angrily. "I bet you're just trying to suck up to me. What? You think I'll go easy on you and stop beating the hell out of you if you 'confessed' to me? Fat chance." She then turned away from him. "Ooh, and I bet you're also gonna tell me I'm pretty as a fail-safe. Hmph."

"It's not that," said Takeru calmly. "I don't think you're pretty at all."

At that Mio felt a rage so wild that she could tear a person apart.

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?!!" yelled Mio as she raised a fist to punch Takeru square in the face.

But the boy had such quick reactions that he had caught the girl's fist before it landed, surprising her. He then proceeded to pull Mio closer by her wrist and land a passionate kiss on her lips.

Mio blushed wildly as her lips met Takeru's. She tried to pull away, but the kiss was too much for her to bear. She felt as if she were going to melt from the inside as her palms got sweaty. Everything was warm, wet and wild. Suddenly she felt the urge to kiss back, and she did.

When Takeru broke the kiss, he was the one to speak first.

"You don't have to be beautiful for me to fall in love with you," he said, looking into Mio's teary eyes. "You're already beautiful inside. You may hate me for this, but no matter what happens, I'll always be in love with you, Mio."

Mio took Takeru's word's to heart as they stood there close to each other. Her cheeks were red as beets and she tried to avoid his gaze, speechless.

Another awkward silence came between them.

"Um..." spoke Takeru. "Am I being too straightforward? Is it... too much?" He had a sheepish smile on his face as he said so.

Mio then looked back at him and gave him the sweetest smile she had ever given him. She then shook her head at Takeru's question then gave him a hug. Takeru hugged her back.

Little did the two realize that everyone present in the dance was looking at them through the open doorway until Mio opened her eyes.

"Aah!" uttered Mio. "H-How long have you guys been watching...?"

"A while," said Risa from the crowd, smiling sweetly.

Takeru rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment, smiling sheepishly.

"So, does that mean that you two are dating now?" asked Kyosuke, slightly smirking.

Takeru and Mio then looked at each other, wondering how to respond to that.

"I-I guess so," said Takeru.

Mio then hit him in the back of his head with her fist. "You haven't even asked me yet...!"

"Oww!" said Takeru, rubbing his head in pain. "Fine... Mio Tsukisaki, will you be my girlfriend?"

Mio then looked back at him passionately, but rolled her eyes afterwards. "What would you be without me?"

"So that's a yes...?" asked Takeru.

"Yeah, yeah," replied Mio.

A big smile crept into Takeru's face as he yelled, "YES!!" and leaped to the air.

"Shut up, you!" said Mio with a smile.

The crowd inside the gym who witnessed the whole thing applauded the two, especially their friends Kyosuke, Risa, Ichiro and Yukie.

It was past twelve A.M., and Yoshiba High's school dance was finally over.

Kyosuke's mother had picked up the two after they had said goodbye to their friends. It was a few minutes ride back home. After the drive, Kyosuke opened the car door for Risa and walked her to her gate.

"Kyosuke," said Risa as they stopped by the gate.

"Yeah," said Kyosuke.

"I've never had so much fun in my life," said Risa, smiling at him. "Thanks for taking me."

"Ah, it was nothing," said Kyosuke, averting his gaze and putting his hands in his pockets. "Thanks for saying yes, though."

"Tee-hee," giggled Risa.

"So, Takeru and Tsukisaki-san are dating now, huh?" said Kyosuke.

"Yeah," replied Risa. "I'm so happy for them."

"Never thought Takeru would actually land one," said Kyosuke, rubbing the back of his head.

Risa chuckled.

After a moment an awkward silence came between the two teenagers. They suddenly found themselves staring into each others eyes. Then there was that feeling again. The feeling that they were being drawn closer to each other.

The two were going to kiss.

They were now holding each other close and breathing into each other's faces when Matsuko from her car pressed the horn, interrupting them. The two of them giggled in embarrassment.

"Well, I suppose it's time to go," said Risa, with a smile.

"Y-Yeah," said Kyosuke. "Good night, Risa."

"Good night, Kyosuke," said Risa with a gentle smile as she opened the gate to her house and disappeared into it.

Kyosuke smiled at himelf as he headed back to his mother.

"The seniors' dance," he thought to himself. "This is the last time we'll be having it. But it was worth it. I know we both enjoyed it, so I'm happy. Hmm..."

He went inside the house with his mother with plenty of stuff to talk about before he goes to sleep.