Chapter 100

Yuma.

As soon as Kaito and Miku stopped at my place, I hurried out of the car and headed up to my room. I went to the bathroom to take a look at my forehead, and it really wasn't that bad.

There was a bit of a scrape near the top right hand corner of my forehead. It was small and bright red, but it wasn't bleeding. I disinfected it, wincing as soon as I felt the cold, stinging sensation, and then I put a bandaid on top. I tousled my bangs a bit so that they fell over the wound.

"There," I said to myself with a nod, pulling my gloves off. They were scuffed by the knuckles, and I soon realized why; when I fell, they must've grated against the road.

They looked worse than my head, but still not that bad. Actually, it looked kind if cool, I guess. The skin was scraped clean off and blood was caked on the peaks of my knuckles. It hurt more, though, but I wasn't planning on telling Kaito or Miku; they'd just feel worse.

Sure, it was Kaito's fault and all, but I didn't like holding grudges. Besides, it's not like I needed to be taken to the hospital or anything.

I put some disinfectant on my knuckles and wrapped some bandages over and around them, making quick knots and pulling them tight with my teeth.

"Looks good," I mumbled, examining my hands and pulling my gloves back on before leaving the bathroom. I pulled open my closet door and removed my guitar, which was in its case.

"Take your time," Miku had said when we had approached my home, "Just don't take an entire hour."

And so I sat down on my bed and pulled out my guitar, strumming a few chords and singing a couple of lines from my song. I thought back to memory from a couple of years ago, when I was secretly crushing on Gumi.

Two years ago

Yuma shifted uneasily on the bench as the sounds of squeaking sneakers and bouncing basketballs filled the gymnasium. He frowned and grimaced, shifting his leg slightly. It was a sprained ankle that was keeping him from playing, but at least he could sit on the bench and watch.

The gym was divided with a large, thick and heavy beige curtain that separated the boys from the girls. Normally, you couldn't see the other side, but if you sat on the bench, you could. There wasn't any rule against a girl being on the boy's side or vice versa; they were just separate classes.

There was an advantage to being on the bench, Yuma knew. Even with a hurt ankle, he was content, because he could see his crush easily. She was wearing a t-shirt and shorts that reached to her knees, and her shoulder length, bright green hair was kept taut and disciplined in a high ponytail. He smiled a little to himself, quickly turning away and hoping that the guys wouldn't see him blushing.

"Woo hoo!" He heard her voice, "Three pointer!"

And then he had to turn and look again, because he was stupid and hopeless and emotional, and he had the biggest crush ever on this athletic, perky little green-haired girl.

Gumi. She wasn't always grinning and happy, but when she was in the company of friends, that was her usual demeanour. Yuma was one of the people who saw her beat the boys' basketball team on her own, but he started liking her before that.

As he watched her, he saw her take the arms of a fellow girlfriend and jokingly waltz across the gym floor in nothing but sweaty shirts, shorts and sneakers. Did she even notice him? Probably not. She probably liked someone else. Yuma frowned, but he couldn't look away. He pulled some of his pale pink hair over his face out of embarrassment, but that didn't really help.

"Hey, Gumi, you want to join our team now?" A girl asked, making Gumi laugh. That laugh sent Yuma's heart soaring.

"Maybe tomorrow," Gumi answered, shaking the girl's hand, "Class is almost over. Good game, though."

As soon as Gumi pulled away, another girl latched onto her, hooking an arm around the neck of Yuma's crush.

"Gumi, sing!" The girl pleaded, making Gumi laugh. Yuma suddenly felt an urge to go up to Gumi and confess, but he couldn't stand, and even if he wanted to, his crutches would make him look stupid. She'd probably slap him or giggle and say that she was sorry but she didn't feel that way, and then the other girls would gossip about him.

"No, I can't," Yuma mumbled to himself, turning away.

"I can't sing, you know that!" Gumi patted her friend's back.

"But aren't you going to sing at Miku's slumber party?"

Yuma slumped. The slumber party was a girls-only thing, so there was no way that he'd get to see Gumi sing without looking like some sort of creep. He sighed as the bell rang, indicating the end of class, and grabbed his crutches. The other boys had already headed out of the gym.

Gumi giggled. "Actually, I've been practicing this one song," she whispered into the echoey emptiness of the gymnasium. Her friend squealed.

"What song, what song?" She asked excitedly.

"Meltdown," Gumi grinned. Yuma snuck one last glance at her before grunting and lifting himself up. They didn't even notice him.

"Oh my God, I love that song!" The girl laughed, "Sing a couple of lines, please?"

"In here?" Gumi went on as Yuma left the bench and continued down the length of the curtain. Now he couldn't see her anymore, but staying there would lead to them seeing, and he'd look weird. He limped with his crutches as fast as he could towards the exit.

"Yeah, why not? Everyone's gone, and I just want to hear how good you sound!"

Yuma froze.

"Okay," Gumi giggled and then she began to sing. It was only a few lines and she was fairly quiet, but Yuma instantly fell even more in love with her than before.

"Someday, I'm going to tell her how much I love her," Yuma whispered to himself as he hobbled out of the gymnasium, "Someday, we'll sing together..."

Present day

There was a honk from outside, and that was when I got up and quickly put my guitar away. I slung the case over my shoulder and hurried right out.

"I'm here!" I announced as Miku pushed the door open.

"What, did you fall asleep or something?" She smirked and I settled into my spot.

"Sort of, yeah," I shrugged, "Sorry about that."

"It's fine," she said, "We need to hurry to Rin's place. I've told Len to take her there."

Len.

Rin was looking out the window when my phone buzzed. I pulled it out and saw a message from Miku.

"Who is it?" Rin asked. I chuckled uneasily. I couldn't spoil the surprise, but I had to say something.

"It was Miku," I answered, "She can't wait to see you tomorrow."

"Oh, really?" Rin looked up at me and I put an arm around her shoulder, "I miss her, too...I wish I could've seen her today."

"Well, you never know," I said to myself. Thankfully, Rin didn't hear.

"Does your mom wonder?" She asked suddenly.

"Wonder about what?" I frowned.

"Whether you like a girl or not."

I paused. "I don't know, she never says anything. Besides, she's always out, so I don't think she's noticed anything strange."

"Would you tell her about me now?"

"Do you want me to?"

Rin shook her head. "It's your choice, Len. Whenever you want. I just don't want to lose you."

"Well, you won't lose me," I kissed her forehead, "In fact, I'll come to your house tomorrow for breakfast."

"Why don't you just stay the night?" Rin smiled slyly and I blushed.

"I never though you'd say something like that," I mumbled, scratching the nape of my neck. She laughed.

"I asked you once before, remember?" She poked me in the stomach and I nodded.

"I wanted to," I answered sheepishly, "But it felt too early."

"If I knew that you liked me back then...," Rin brought her face closer to mine, "I would have said 'yes' right there, in front of my home."

"It's still a little early, isn't it?" I smirked, leaning towards her just as the bus stopped and I snapped out of it, "Oh...our stop. Again."

She pouted dramatically before laughing again and following me out of the bus. I took her hand and we ran down the streets and towards her house.

The sky was dark now, and the sun was nearly gone. There weren't any crowds, and there weren't any birds chirping anymore. It was just me and Rin, heading to her home.

"So you're going now?" Rin asked, standing with me by the iron gate. She had her back against it, her fingers wrapped around two of the ebony bars.

"Only if you want me to," I put my hands around her waist and leaned forward, kissing her. She removed a hand from one of the bars and draped it behind me, pulling me closer as she closed her eyes and opened her mouth.

"Len...," she said against my lips as I kissed her harder. I opened my eyes for a split second, catching Miku glaring at me from Rin's living room window, gesturing for us to come inside. Rin opened her eyes and looked up at me.

"Is something wrong?" She asked. I shook my head.

"Let's go inside," I said, glancing back at the window. Miku had disappeared.

Nodding, Rin pulled a key out of her pocket and unlocked the gate. We stepped in, past the garden and up to the front door, which Rin also had a key for.

"Come on," she said, stepping in and taking her shoes off in the hall. I followed suit, taking her hand as a smile crept up my face.

Any minute now...

We crossed the hall, and the door at the end was closed. Rin frowned.

"That's funny," she muttered, "We never usually close this door..."

She pulled it open and saw that the lights were off. She queued my hand a little and we walked in.

"Why're the lights off?" She frowned, "Didn't Doris come home?"

"Where the switch?" I offered, though we couldn't even see each other.

Suddenly, the lights turned on and voices rang out, yelling "Surprise!"

Yay, 100 chapters! It will take me maybe thirty to forty more to reach the ending...that's actually a lot, isn't it? (._.)

Also, notice how Yuma and Gumi's words and thoughts are sort of parallel, even though they aren't talking and Gumi doesn't know that Yuma's sitting on the bench on the other half of the gym. The flashback is written in third person, and that's because...well, I'll tell you once the story's done.

Also, I'm sorry, but I just couldn't kill Yuma. I love him too much, and...well, it won't work. You'll see why later. Much later.

Please vote so that I know who you are! I'm trying to dedicate a chapter to everyone who keeps reading and supporting, so the votes help me keep track of that. ^^ And comment! And keep reading! I'll see you next chapter!