Girl Next Door

Chapter Sixty-Four

A brief moment of silence occurred, followed by the whistle of the chilly wind.

"Kyosuke," said Risa softly.

"Y-Yes...?" said Kyosuke.

"My dad called earlier," replied Risa.

Kyosuke gasped. "H-He did?"

"Yeah," said Risa, brushing a strand of her hair over her ear. "He... asked me... if I wanted to go to college in America."

Of course, inside, Kyosuke was disappointed. He knew that one day Risa would have to leave again like she did when the two of them were younger.

Or so he thought.

"D-Do you...?" he asked her.

Another silence came between them as Kyosuke awaited her answer.

"No," was Risa's reply.

"H-Huh?" said Kyosuke, curious as to what that meant.

"I'm not leaving," said Risa, turning to face Kyosuke with a sweet smile.

"B-But..." said an astonished Kyosuke. "But what about your dad?"

"I already told him," said Risa softly.

"Oh..." said Kyosuke, trying to avert his gaze, feeling guilty.

"Kyosuke, I want to stay here not because I don't like America or that I'm trying to be a rebel to my dad... It's because all my best friends are here. I feel like a total stranger in America; it just doesn't feel right. I want to stay here with my friends... My dearest friends... With you."

Kyosuke gasped in surprise at the emphasis of the pronoun referring to himself. "M-Me?"

"You see, Kyosuke," said Risa, caressing Kyosuke's cheek with her hand, "I have always felt this way about you..."

Kyosuke's heart began to thump as he heard those words. "Could it be...?"

"I only waited for the opportune moment to say it," said Risa, smiling gently into his face. "Kyosuke..."

The boy's heart thumped it's fastest ever as he waited for the inevitable.

"Kyosuke..." said Risa, eyes welling up and cheeks reddened, "I love you..."

His eyes widened at the revelation of the girl living next to him.

"R-R-Risa...?" he said, obviously flabbergasted. "I-Is that true...?"

Risa nodded calmly, smiling all the while.

Kyosuke took a moment to regain his composure and take it all in. In fact, he had no idea what to do next, so he just hugged Risa, surprising her.

"K-Kyosuke...?" said Risa, hugging back gently then pushing him away with a chuckle. "Stop it."

"I-I'm sorry," said Kyosuke with a sheepish smile. "I didn't know what to do next."

"Well," said Risa, chuckling. "You could at least ask me to be your girlfriend first."

Kyosuke was shocked at this statement from Risa. He never in his life expected that Risa would be the one to ask him that. But if that's what Risa wanted, why would he refuse?

"Oh," said Kyosuke. "F-Fine."

A brief moment for Kyosuke to collect himself was given to him.

"Risa..." said Kyosuke, "will you... be my girlfriend...?"

Risa smiled as sweetly as she could and replied, "I'd love to."

It's as if the breath had been knocked out of Kyosuke's lungs by an unknown force. His dream just came true right in front of him that night and it was almost too much for him to bear.

"You can kiss me now," said Risa, smiling.

"W-What?" said Kyosuke, aghast at what she said.

"Well, a boyfriend has to kiss his girlfriend, right?" said Risa.

Another awkward silence came between them as Kyosuke made up his mind. He then put one hand on Risa's shoulder, came close to her and pecked her briefly on the lips.

Risa laughed.

"Huh?" wondered Kyosuke.

"That was it?" said Risa, still laughing. "Come on, don't tell me that was your best kiss. Try again."

Kyosuke then gulped as he prepared to give her the kiss she wanted. He then leaned close to her once more and kissed her with much passion as he had, and he felt her kiss back. He then placed his hand on her cheek and caressed it as the kiss lingered.

Kyosuke felt as if the world was crashing down on him during that kiss. It was the sweetest moment he could possibly imagine. Seconds seemed like days as Risa kissed him. She then wrapped her arms around his neck and continued giving him the taste of happiness.

It was a cold Christmas Eve, but the two were warmed up in each other's arms and lips that night. Kyosuke had never expressed more love in his life.