"Back from the days that I fell in love
Was the time my heart felt like a caged dove
As days passed, I needed you more and more
Until I never knew my old self anymore."

A few were slacking on their desk, others were busy buzzing like a bee with their seatmates, and the remaining of the class were having a gaze at the sky. Everyone seems to have their own business. Toffee just bit his lip and glanced away, but Faye suddenly praised him in the midst of their diverted attention, "That one's a good line, Toffee!" And it gave him a jolt after realizing that she's been talking to him.

"Toffee," Sakura sighed, sagging her back slightly against the wall.

"Y-Yes, ma'am?" His voice shivered.

"'Ill-gotten' love by Cube." She stared at him owlishly, lifting her eyeglasses "You just ripped it off from the song, right?"

Toffee's silence says it all. The level of his word composition and vocabulary are below average, and he could barely make his own poetic lines; that's why he always borrow one from a song. The guilt that he felt made him blue and want to cry, but he knew that shedding tears wouldn't help him. *How unpleasant!* He thought as he brandished his fist.

"Please don't make it a habit, Toffee. It's the third time this week that you gave me a line from Cube's song." Sakura raised her voice "We're here for literature and not for music."

"Excuse me!" Faye raised a hand "But isn't song composition considered literature?" Sakura's face went as plain as the sky and haven't managed to speak even a word. Faye proceeded, "The lyrics that the song writer composes is like a poem; it is expressed through a song so people can't see it as a piece of literary work. Yet they have the same components - words, creativity, expression, heart, and soul mingles a literary work and so does a song lyric."

She raised an eyebrow and threw a question back to her, "Are you asking me this to defend Toffee or to express your opinion?"

"Both," Came the plain reply.

"Isn't Faye from a noble family?" A student from her behind started whispering about her.

"She does,"

"No wonder why she puts things like that. She's on a different level!"

*What would I expect from the daughter of a Fitzgerald?* Toffee thought while standing still. *They must have gave her top quality education. But no! I must refrain from these thoughts and start thinking of another original line, or else I'll be doomed.*

The school bell broke the silence. A number of students stood up to have their way to the canteen and the others remained in the classroom to have their lunch, but Toffee still seemed lost in the thought. Perhaps he was thinking of a way to improve himself for the literature class or worse than that ---

"My lunch!" He cried "I forgot my lunch!"

Their teacher reminded him of performing better in the literature class, and the remaining students laughed at his clumsiness as they pass by, but Faye offered him one, "How about a lunch with me at the rooftop?"

It was like an angel came down from heaven to lend him a hand. That radiant smile of hers, for almost two months that they've been in the same class, it was the very first time that he saw her wearing such a glittering smile. Toffee was in awe of her and couldn't move his lips.

"Toffee?" Her sweet, charming voice called him "Are you alright?"

Still, he was in admiration of her irresistible charm, until he felt a soft, wet touch on his lips which wiped away his incognizance. "I like you, Toffee." Faye whispered enticingly while sliding her hand on his cotton-soft, rosy cheek.

"Ugh!" Toffee assumed that his first kiss had been stolen, and it turned his flattened for a slap, but instead, he bit his lip and tasted something similar like of a fruit's flavor, "It tastes like --- strawberry!"

"Your lips are dry, and you almost thought that it was a kiss." Faye giggled, waving a lip gloss on her hand "And that was only a joke when I told you that I like you."

"I know right." Toffee rolled his eyes sideways until his eyes accidentally stopped at Faye's developing breast. Fortunately, Faye turned backwards, held his hand, and pulled him like he's only weighing the weight of a paper.

"Let's go now, Toffee." Her dazzling, diamond eyes and the cheerfulness of her sugary voice caught him off guard "To the rooftop!"

*Faye Fitzgerald* Her name echoed in his head a thousand times while walking with her, and their hands were holding together. *The most admired lady of our academy and at the same time, the lady who turned down every guy who suited her. And now here I am, holding her hand like we're a couple going towards the rooftop. What does this supposed to mean anyway? And why me? Of all the boys out there? But she only offered me a lunch, didn't she? I hope she only means friendship because I don't want to turn her down if she asked me to be her boyfriend. Wait! Why am I thinking such thing? Is it because it's the very first time a girl approached me? No matter what this means to her, I guess I'll just go with the flow.*

"Finally!" Faye sounded tired, yet her cheerful attitude remains "We're here."

Toffee gulped, seeing the vacant, wide area. Just as what one of the teachers told Faye, the rooftop was empty every Friday. The fact that it's only the two of them who will occupy a vast space makes him feel somehow awkward. Perhaps, it's also because they were not quite close yet to each other.

"Remember what we used to play on the last day of summer?" Faye plainly said as she let go of Toffee's hand. Toffee replied to the lyrics despite of being clueless of what Faye was trying to pull, "Whatever lies beyond that day, I'll hold you as if there's no forever."

Then he pressed her hand tightly and spoke, "Cube is such a genius, isn't she? I said I'll hold you as if there's no forever, but are we friends in the first place?"

"Why would I ask you to come here with me at the rooftop if we are not friends yet?" Faye turned to him with a narrow, yet blinding smile.

Toffee's eyes widened and his jaw dropped, being caught with an unexpected reply. *Then from the very moment she approached me, I already am her friend. Just what did she saw in me to make me her friend?*

"You always seem out of the thought." Faye snapped in front of his face "Is there something wrong?"

His stomach abruptly growled like one of a lion's "Hihihi . . ." He laughed, scratching his head.

"You're just hungry, aren't you?" Faye tilted her head and pointed a place to have a seat, "Let's go over there and eat."

The unsettling ambience of the rooftop captivated Toffee's mind with uncertainty. While Faye was looking for the food she prepared for him, Toffee was still in doubt of asking her why he was chosen to be her friend despite of them having no close relationship. However, before he could even ask her, Faye handed him a lunch box wrapped in linen.

"I baked this for you." Faye bowed, stretched her arms with a narrow length, and handed over her present.

"What's this?" Toffee wondered, taking a slight sniff. *I smell something sweet.*

"See for yourself." She replied as she took a bite from her meatball.

Toffee, knowing that Faye was raised by a noble family, expected a lot from the present he got. He gently slid the cloth and unwrapped the lunchbox. *It's really getting exciting! I wonder what it is!* His smile was widening every second his hands get closer to the lid.

"Cupcakes!" His eyes flashed with delight, depicting a child's attraction for a toy "B-But how did you know?"

"I've been observing you most of the time, Toffee." Came the reply.

"W-What!? You've been stalking me all this time?"

"Hey," Faye released a gentle laugh that changed the ambiance. "I said 'observing', not 'stalking'."

"Eh?" Toffee joined her laughter. "But aren't they the same?"

"No! There's a big difference between the two." Faye started to lecture him like a professor. The more they exchange words and laughter, the more they feel at ease with each other. Toffee never knew that Faye would be a person of perfection. Her flawless beauty from inside and out makes his heart beat faster than a drum's.

"I see. Now it's clearer for me." His smile shined brighter than gold.

Toffee was about to take his first bite, but one thing that caught his attention was the strong, sweet scent of the cupcake and the amount of sugar sprinkled on its outer layer. *There must be something wrong with these cupcakes.* He sighed and begun to sweat. *but I don't want to disappoint her, so I'll just chew it quickly and drink.* And there goes his first bite. The sweetness was beyond his expectations, but he kept on chewing it with a teary eye.

"Oh no!" She exclaimed "I forgot! Those cupcakes are too sweet, so I've also made a coffee for you to balance the sweet with bitter." And she handed him a tumbler of coffee "Go ahead and drink this. It's not that hot anymore, so your tongue won't be burnt."

So he took a sip and melted the cupcake on his mouth. *It tasted better when the coffee balanced the sweetness. Is this how it was supposed to eat this type of pastry?* And then he swallowed. Just then he found out that he was soaked and wet with sweat.

"Oh my!" Faye screamt all of a sudden. Toffee was somehow alarmed of her expression "Your face looks so dirty now, and there's a bit of coffee dripping below your lips." Hastily, Faye groped for her handkerchief, but she couldn't find one on her pocket "I think I forgot to bring a handkerchief."

"Then I should go to the comfort room and wash myself." He stood up. Her face crumpled and her lips pouted "Stay here!" Her voice went loud as she got a firm hold on his hand "Don't you dare leave your princess alone in her castle!"

Her words struck his mind, giving him thought that Faye has been attached or attracted to him. *If so, then for what reason?* He asked himself. Being caught off guard once again, Faye pulled him down until he fell on the ground and end up lying down on her. Their eyes meeting one another's eyes, their lips an inch away from a kiss, and the heat of their flesh blazed as if they're burning in the abyss of their sensual desires.

As far as Faye has observed, Toffee was the type of person who's not on to that thing. He was quite pure and meek to do such acts. Yet, her crave to touch his lips was as inextinguishable as the flame of the burning bush.

"Close your eyes." She commanded, and the lion obeyed his tamer. Once again, he felt a soft, wet touch on his lips. The taste was similar from what he had tasted before, but the texture was so unfamiliar to him.

*Chup!*

"Ugh!" Toffee begun to pant. He knew that their lips are already touching and he was helpless about it. Perhaps, it's because he was savoring every friction that she gives him and the sensation was undeniably gratifying.

"Haaaaa . . . haaaaa . . ." Faye heaved "I want to taste more of you, Toffee." She went down to the side of his neck and licked him softly. Meanwhile, Toffee was seeking for more relish. He groped for her chest with such tenderness and --- "Bad lion!" Faye bit his ear.

"Aaaaah!" He reacted from the pain.

"The naughty lion deserves a punishment." Faye tapped his nose with a finger and inserted her thumb into his mouth. Toffee savored her finger, lubing it with his tongue "I'm your master, and your master didn't tell you to do so. Such domestication is needed for you."

Faye slid her thumb off from his mouth and started to suck it. Her thumb became drenched and her entire body was soaked with sweat while Toffee was just watching her in obscure disgust "And look who bit my ear," Toffee smirked for a second, paused and came back with another reply, "The lion bites when she couldn't appreciate her master's touch."

Having no second thoughts, Faye grabbed his necktie and dragged him closer. Their nose fondled due to the pull. Then she whispered, "Your words ignited my lust, but we've just only begun. You still have much to learn like my previous ones." Her lips gleamed in glitter as she slid her tongue from side to side, her gaze at his eyes gave him a hint, and as she let go of his necktie, she pressed herself down to him until he lie motionless and was being killed with a flurry of breathtaking kiss.

"I still have much to learn, huh?" Toffee pondered while randomly rolling on his bed, listening to Cube's song:

I was fooled by words and driven myself crazy for you.
I was stupid to think you can change
And now, here I am, crying and in rue.
Lost and desperate for a move of an exchange.
But now here I am again, standing up and never kneeling.
Because why would I? Knowing you'll start begging.

Every Friday night was his most cherished time. Playing video games, listening to music --- most likely Cube's songs ----, watching live streams of his idols, expressing his thoughts on social media, and sleeping up until late morning. However, there was another reason why he was still awake by nearly two o'clock in the midnight. Prior to the current time, his phone vibrated unexpectedly. Perhaps it's the signal that his download has been finished. So he took his phone on the desk and ---

*Are you free on Sunday?*

He just received an e-mail from her. Toffee, having a kiss from her lately, somehow felt responsible. *But it's only a kiss. We haven't done anything yet like --- Oh no! I remember touching her. And I just remembered, it's been a long since I got an e-mail. Grey . . . I wonder how's he doing right now.*

*Please do reply if you're still awake. I can't sleep yet. I'm still cherishing the touch of your hand and lips.* He received another e-mail. However, he diverted his eyes from the message, trying to clear his mind first.

*What are you going to do, Toffee?* He murmured. His head was clouded with dim thoughts and could barely think of brighter ones. *I must know first.*

He replied to her e-mail: What are your plans for Sunday? I might come if possible.

*Don't spoil the thrill of surprise.* She replied. Toffee screwed up his face, but ended jiggling his hand. Knowing that this might happen, Toffee never replied to her. However, the feeling that he's somehow responsible for what they did at the rooftop convinced him to approach her on Sunday. *It can't be helped. I've wanted to do that. Both of us did. If not, then we should've quit earlier.*

"Why is this happening to me?" He smacked his forehead with his palm and let it slide down to his chin. "And why me? There has to be some reason why it has to be me among the other guys at school."

Toffee started to conclude as he filtered all his differences from the other guys at their school and came up with a list in his mind.

"Okay," He gulped. "There are only two major things that Faye should've considered to befriend me. First, I'm not smart and I always get a low passing grade on every subject. But why the hell would she befriend me for that reason? Might she want to try something new because all the people surrounding her are high class? And second, my fe ---"

*Knock! Knock!* An abrupt wooden noise stole his attention.

"Toffee?" His mother called "Are you still awake?"

"Come . . . Come in." He sounded unclear and his voice almost sounded wet.

The door opened, and she came in and saw his son's face wet with a river of tears. "Is there something wrong, sweetie?"

"It's nothing," Came the reply and his eyes were averting "I just feel like crying for no reason." He felt her arms crossed on his back. The way she hugged him tighter than a bear's ceased the flow of his tears, and his cheeks glowed like a millpond under the moonlight.

"Are you sure?"

"Mmmhmm,"

"Then, good night, Toffee!" She left a kiss on his forehead "And oh! I remember! Could you please come to the market later and buy stuffs for me? You could keep the change if you want."

"I'll do, mom. But it'll be near afternoon when I go there." Toffee cocooned himself on a blanket.

"Nope. It's fine."

The sunrise pierced through his eyes. As expected, Toffee woke up late in the morning, and still, his lullaby was playing on a low volume speaker. Toffee suddenly felt hard, wet, and sticky from below so he changed his undergarments and fixed everything in his room until he paused in front of the mirror and saw something disturbing.

"That little brat!" He cursed as he spotted a red mark on the side of his neck "No one must see this."

Trying to prevent the exposure of his hickey, he wore a black choker to fit his black sweater. It seemed stylish to him and nobody will suspect that he's hiding something. "There you go!" He smiled at his own reflection. Then a sudden vibration on his desk came. He picked up his phone and was hoping that it's not related to her. Yet again ---

*Let's meet tomorrow. 10 am at Kyoto station. I'll be waiting for you no matter what.* He received a new e-mail from her.

Instead of being annoyed, he kept calm and agreed for the meeting. *I'll come.* He replied on her e-mail. And anticipating that this might be a date, he have this thought of taking the opportunity to learn new things about her.

"I might be the one pursuing you first," He grinned in front of the mirror. His lips showed affection, but his eyes reflected hate "but once I got your heart on me, that's the time I'll crush you into tidbits . . . And this . . . I'm doing this for stealing my first kiss and sanity. If it wasn't for pleasure, then I won't be this crazy to crave for more." Then he applied lip gloss on his lips and lowered the sleeves of his sweater, revealing his shoulders.

"Oh! Look how fabulous you are!" He laughed almost drastically while having a firm hold on the sides of the mirror. Then he huffed, catching his breath "I'll shine brighter than you, Faye!"

His phone vibrated once again. *Thanks!* She replied.

The market was a kilometer and a half away from his home. Walking alone under the heat of the high sun, he was holding the goods on his right hand and was checking if he had already bought all the items on the list "So only the milk is missing, huh? I'd better hurry so that I could spend more time for the practice."

Toffee turned left and saw the convenience store on which he is a patron for buying dairy products, and just only a few steps away from the store was an arcade he frequently go to. The thrill of going to a place like that pulls his feet to pass through the store, but a duty is a duty. So he entered the convenience store and grabbed a gallon of milk.

"That'll be 705.77 yen." The cashier told him.

"Here's 1,000 yen." He handed the payment.

Having a thin body figure and undeveloped muscles, Toffee barely picked up the gallon of milk. Not knowing that behind him was a familiar face, he was surprised when he was offered to carry the goods for him, "May I?" Their class president lend him a hand.

"Oh, Sugar!" Toffee rejoiced. "Great timing!" Then he handed him all the stuffs he had, aside from the bag of onions.

"I have a bike with me." Said Sugar. "Would you mind if I bring these stuffs to your house?"

"Eh?" Toffee took a step backwards. "But do you know where my house is?"

Sugar laid his hand flat on Toffee's cheek, "So . . . have you forgotten the night that we've spent together? In your room?"

His words were as blunt as a hammer that it can't pierce through his mind; Toffee played dumb and answered, "Eh? But mom doesn't allow sleepovers." And Sugar dared no more to imply his thoughts.

"Hey, just . . . don't take it seriously, okay?" Sugar asked for pardon while laughing a bit at his own words. "And I just have this feeling that you wanna go to the arcade, so go ahead now and I'll bring these stuffs to your mom."

"Since that you also have a bike with you, then please bring this too." Toffee bent his head with a smile as he handed over the bag of onions. By that small, simple movement, his choker became more evident.

"I haven't noticed that you're wearing a choker this whole time." Sugar remarked, having a strong feeling that the choker was unique and rarer than an artifact, like he saw it only once on a certain person and event.

"Oh? This?" Toffee pointed "I got this choker from a Pixel [note: Pixel is the general term used pertaining to Cube's fans] Gathering a year ago. I just bought this at the event."

"That suits you." Sugar praised, though he sounded insincere.

"Thanks?"

Sugar rode his bike and went off. Meanwhile, Toffee groped his pocket and knew that he has 427 yen on his hand, including the change he got from buying all the stuffs. So he came to the arcade and wandered for a while until he noticed a line in the claw machine. He came near the line not to play, but only to observe how the game works. Every time a player fails to get an item, Toffee gathers information and studies it. Then the line became shorter and ---

"Hey, kid. Aren't you gonna play?" A man from the line asked him.

"I'll play." He replied "I'm just observing every details about the machine first. The time limit, the delay before the claw activates, and even the positioning of the stuffed toys."

"Then you're not gonna play just for fun, right?"

"I'll play for the prize."

And finally, all the players lost, but Toffee has a strong determination to get at least one stuffed toy. The game costs a hundred yen per try, and he inserted his first coin. There are only thirty seconds for him to make his move, and he has already a target. *That panda,* He murmured. *I'll get that.*

Twenty seconds left and he perfectly placed the claw on its position to grab the panda. He pressed the button confidently and yes! The claw grabbed its tag according to his plan. *Just . . . don't fall until you reach the dropping area.* He hoped. The stuffed toy dropped at the dropping area and it was successful for his first try. Not knowing that another stuffed toy was pulled down by the impact of the drop, he was surprised when he felt another presence on his hand aside from the first one he got.

"Oh!" His eyes stretched out "I got two at just one try!"

"Well," Said the man whom he talked to lately "The luck is on your side, kid."

"It's not luck." He corrected him "It's fate."

Toffee brought a panda and a koala stuffed toy, and took his way home. There wasn't much he did yet on his day, and he feels like craving for more of his weekend activities. So while walking alone, he cheerfully sung:

*Oh! The stars and the moon in the morning
And the sun in the night of desperation.
The heavens witnessed how twisted is my way of thinking
And even my god despised his own creation.
Let the celestials speak to me once more
Or else I'll pull you down as I open the door.*

Somewhere near his location, he heard a cry of a boy who seemed to have lost something important. So he approached him running beside the seesaw and used the koala to distract his cry "Is there something wrong?" Toffee waved the hand of the koala and tried to cheer him up, but it wasn't as effective as he was expecting it to be. His cry went louder that it pierced through his ear and caused him bother, until he showed him the panda.

"How about me?" Toffee waved the hand of the panda. The boy smiled from ear to ear, stretching out his arms to get it. "Do you want me more than the koala?"

Toffee left the park where he met the boy, and it was only the koala that's left on his hand. It was somehow saddening for him because it was his first time winning on a claw machine and one of the prize he got now belonged to another person. And more than that, he was planning to give that to Faye as his present for tomorrow's meeting.

"Well," He sighed. "I'd really want to keep that in my room, but at least I've got that boy to hush and I've still got this koala with me . . . and maybe it's fate's humor that allowed me to win two prizes at the same time, and it's also destined for me to meet that child. Just how unpleasant fate is!" He laughed a bit and continued to sing.