Y/N was currently walking, a sort of pleasant look on his face. While he wasn't necessarily annoyed by the area he was in, he was really annoyed by the amount of people there were.

Standing next to him was the blue-haired goddess herself, a small blush on her face as she awkwardly messed with some of her bangs. There was one thought that went through their heads.

'Why did we go through with this plan?'

Back tracking to the beginning of the day, Y/N awoke as normal. There was about a week left of summer vacation before they went back in for school and it had been a month since the beach trip.

Since then, Y/N had not received a single message nor call from Saki. Y/N himself wasn't sure why he was so eager to receive an message or a call. He did admit to himself, he was now attracted to the girl, despite not knowing a lot about her, but he did like the shy side of hers. How she'd blush when she would ask him a question of anything really.

As the oldest Shiozaki sibling was cooking breakfast for his younger sister and himself, his mother having left the house early for work, his phone rings. Not bothering to check the ID number, he answers the call anyway.

"Y/N Shiozaki here."

"H-Hey...", a nervous voice came from through the phone's speaker.

"Kawasaki-san?"

"Y-Yeah." Saki clears her throat, "S-So you know how I said I'd call you if I had something in mind to pay you back, r-right?"

"Mm-hm. I do remember something going like that about a month ago. Why? Thought of something?"

"Y-Yep. S-So you know about th-that firework festival later this evening, right?"

"Uh, yeah. Akari has been on the fritz about that lately. What's up?", Y/N asks with slight curiousness.

"S-So you know where this is going, right?"

Y/N smiles and rolls his eyes, "Yes, I'll go with you if you want, Kawasaki-san. That's if...that's if you're asking that."

"Pr-Pretty much what I was going to ask. O-Okay then. See you later this evening."

Saki then ends the call, her last few words filled with nervousness. Y/N let out a small chuckle, him going back to his work before he turned around, a smug Akari leaning against the counter top.

"What?", Y/N asks, clearly annoyed.

"Someone's got a date.~", Akari says, teasing her older brother.

"Keep talking and I'll whack you with this frying pan."

"Aw, come on.~ You didn't deny it, Nii-chan! ...H-Hey, wh-what are you raising that frying pan up for...?"

"I told you, didn't I?"

"H-Hang on! Th-There's still stuff on it! Y-You know, hot oil and bacon on it!"

"Ah, don't worry. It won't be a problem because I have the perfect plate to put it on."

"N-Nii-san, let's talk about this," Akari says, sweat dropping.

Y/N, however, only kept a straight face before he raised the frying pan even higher before he started to chase after her. Akari's screams of terror could be heard throughout the neighborhood.

Present Day...

Back to the present, Saki and Y/N were walking through the festival, the fireworks haven't been launched yet. Y/N looks to the blue-haired girl and eyes her outfit. She wore a nice kimono, the primary color being white with purple, blue, and orange flower patterns, along with an orange sash.

On Saki's hair was a red rose clip, her hair being put into a single ponytail as usual. But this time she wasn't using one of the scrunchies she'd always use. Saki notices Y/N's gaze, a light blush coming to her face.

"Wh-What?"

"...H-Huh? O-Oh, just looking at you...it, uh. You look nice," Y/N replies, sincere with his answer.

Saki's blush rises even more as she looks down, "I-I see...th-thank you."

"Y-Yeah. J-Just a simple compliment."

The two continued to walk down the line stalls on either side, the area brimming with people. Y/N notices that Saki was having a bit of a hard time walking, the blonde offering his arm. Saki looks at it confused.

"What's this for?"

"So you don't get lost. Plus, I can tell you're having a hard time walking."

"I-I'll be fine for now, but thanks for offering."

Y/N nods. "Of course. ...Hungry?"

"I could go for something," Saki replies.

"Anything you'd like?"

"It doesn't really matter."

"I see...how about some takoyaki?"

"S-Sure, I-I don't mind," Saki says.

With a nod, Y/N leads himself and Saki over to the stand selling the takoyaki balls. Paying for a box of these octopus balls, containing a good amount of six or seven, the two go on their way.

The two continue to walk around, still a few hours away till the fireworks started. Y/N kept making glances towards Saki, the blueish-haired girl still having a hard time walking. With a sigh, Y/N links his arms with hers, making the girl blush and look at him.

"Wh-What are you doing?", she questioned.

"No matter what you say or how much you protest, you're going to have a hard time walking. Plus, you're not used to it, right?"

"Y-Yeah."

"Then I'll help you along the way, so don't bother about protesting about it. Just deal with it."

With a pout, Y/N internally chuckling as he finds it cute, Saki obliges and makes their link tighter. The pigeon blue eyed girl blushes, Y/N only having a small smile as he leads the both of them through the crowd. 

Soon, the sky was covered in darkness, the two finding a small spot on a hill, other people doing the same. There were some benches at the top, the two situating themselves there as they sat down, eating some of their snack as they waited for the fireworks to start, which would be in a few minutes.

"So, where is your sister and your mom?"

"Hmm? Ah, they're around, but since Akari told mom about our little plans, they decided to leave me be and do my own thing. So they decided to go a little bit later than us. You?"

"Y-Yeah, the same thing with my parents, so they'll be with my siblings. S-So yeah...i-it's just us t-two," Saki states with a heavy blush.

"Ah, r-right."

The two begin to reach for the last takoyaki ball, the two's hands coming in contact with each other. Saki and Y/N then retract their hands away, blushes growing redder on their faces.

"Y-You can have it. No, I-I insist," the two of them said, at the same time.

Y/N and Saki then face away from each other, Y/N awkwardly scratching his cheek while Saki messed with her bangs. A warm feeling began to arise in their chests, their hearts beating faster, especially Saki's. This was the first time she was beginning to be interested in a boy, so this was completely new to her.

"D-Do you want to t-try that again...?", Saki asks.

Y/N nods, "S-Sure. W-We can."

Slowly, they intertwine their hands together. Saki's hand felt soft, the blueish-haired girl feeling Y/N's hand. She had felt it before, stating it felt a bit rugged, but Y/N's hand still had a comforting touch to it. It felt nice, is all she thought. The two look up at each other, a loss for words as they continued to stare into each others eyes.

Unintentionally, they were leaning closer, feeling their breaths on their faces. It wasn't until they heard a loud whistle, looking to the air as a streak of light went up. It soon explodes into a colorful explosion, the firework show starting. As Y/N kept staring, his eyes drew themselves back to Saki, his eyes widening even more. Saki Kawasaki had a smile on her face the whole time she watched the fireworks, a new beauty Y/N found himself.

His last girlfriend, Chelsea, was pretty in her own right. But if Y/N were to make a comparison, Chelsea's auburn hair was nice, which was all he could summarize, but when looking at Saki's hair color, to him it brought him a whole new breath of fresh air. Her pigeon blue eyes shined with the different colors of the fireworks, the colors of red, blue, yellow, green, etc., being reflected off her pupils. And while Chelsea was pretty, Saki was cute and adorable, Y/N thinking that Saki is even more beautiful than his ex-girlfriend.

When Saki notices Y/N's gaze, her blush continued to grow as they still kept holding each other's hands. With her other hand, Saki went back to messing with her bangs, a cute confused expression on her face.

"Wh-What?"

"H-Huh? Oh! I-It's nothing. You just...you just look real beautiful right now..."

His words trailed off, Saki's eyes widening at what he said.

'He thinks I'm beautiful!?', Saki thought.

"I-Is something wrong? You're forehead is kinda warm, Kawasaki-san."

The blueish-haired girl was snapped out of her gaze, now feeling Y/N's hand on her forehead. She quickly swats it away, a pouting look on her face.

"I-I'm fine," Saki says.

"R-Right, my bad. D-Didn't mean to get into your space," Y/N apologizes.

"N-No, no...it's okay. You were just concerned...that's all." Saki then says something quietly, "Th-Thank you..."

But, Y/N heard her. He turned to look at the fireworks, a small smile creeping to his face.

"You're welcome."

About ten minutes later, the fireworks had finished and some people began to leave. A few people stayed to bask in the peacefulness of the night sky as some lied down on blankets that were placed on the grassy hill.

Saki and Y/N were making their way to the exit, the two still holding hands as they didn't look at each other, blushes still present on their faces. Another bystander wasn't paying attention, accidentally bumping into Saki. The blueish-haired girl let out a surprised gasp as she begins to fall backwards. Saki closes her eyes as she prepares to hit the solid concrete ground, expecting the impact.

But she felt nothing.

When she opened her eyes, she sees she was caught by the Shiozaki boy. His arm was wrapped around her waist, the hand that held her hand was being latched tightly on her wrist.

"You okay? Ah..."

Now realizing the distance of their faces, being merely inches away, Y/N backs up and helps Saki stand upright. He then faces away from her, rubbing the back of his neck.

"S-Sorry about that. I got into your personal space again. Forgive me."

But Saki doesn't respond, removing Y/N's hand from her wrist and holding it once more. Y/N looked down at his hand, it being held by hers, then looking back to her. She had an embarrassed look on her face, but looking at her eyes, they were ones of gratefulness.

He nodded, beginning to lead them out of the festival, Y/N beginning to walk Saki back to her home. As they crossed a crosswalk to get into Saki's area, he looks back to her.

"So...are your feet doing okay?"

"Well, they hurt...just a bit. It's like you said. I'm still not used to walking in these."

Y/N sighs. "Then I guess it can't be helped."

He lets go of Saki's hand, the Kawasaki girl looking at Y/N confused. Her eyes widened as she watched Y/N crouch down.

"Here. I'll carry you."

"...Wh-What if someone's watching...?", Saki shyly asks.

"Don't worry. I won't let anyone see you. Besides, there isn't anyone watching right now."

"O-Okay..."

Lifting the kimono up, she maneuvers her legs over Y/N's shoulders, now mounting herself on top. With a slight heave, Y/N hoists himself up as Saki atop his shoulders, her hands rested on the top his head.

"Comfy up there?"

"Sh-Shut up. Don't talk to me right now...this is embarrassing."

Y/N chuckles. "Yes, ma'am."

"A-And don't laugh!"

Y/N laughs even more. "Yeah, yeah."

"Sh-Shut up already! D-Dummy..." 

Y/N held onto Saki's legs, making sure she was secure up there and didn't fall. Saki wasn't used to the contact on her legs, making her a bit nervous, but she had to let it slide. Y/N was only doing this so her feet wouldn't hurt anymore.

The walk was silent, the only thing heard was the sounds of Y/N's shoes making contact with the ground as he slowly made his way down the street. Now arriving at Saki's house, Y/N lets her down.

"Well, this is your stop, Kawasaki-san."

"Y-Yeah, thanks."

"Well, um, I'll be going now. S-See you tomorrow."

"W-Wait!"

"Hmm?"

Just as Y/N was about to leave, he was quickly turned around. He felt something soft on his right cheek, looking to see that Saki had planted her lips there.

After about a second, she steps back, noticing Y/N's slightly shocked look. Her cheeks flared with heat and embarrassment, her turning around and unlocking the door to her house. She quickly stepped inside and shut the door behind her, now leaning up against it. But leaving that kiss on his cheek felt nice to her, Saki letting out a small giggle as she smiled and put two fingers to her lips.

Outside, Y/N was still in disbelief. He put a hand on his right cheek, where Saki kissed it. It took him about a second or two for him to register what had happened completely. While a small blush formed on his face, he still smile nonetheless. He silently cheered to himself as he began to make his way back home. He kept thinking that this may be the start of something good. A new fresh start to keep his mind off her.

But there was one thing that was true. A steady relationship was steadily blossoming. There was no denying that.