Umi stumbled into the coffee shop and regained her composure, she was running late for work and wasn't able to brew her own coffee. She decided on stopping by the local coffee shop to pick up a cup of her usual black coffee. She waited in line, constantly staring at her watch to check the time. She was in a big hurry and if she was late, there was no telling what her boss would do.

After 10 minutes of waiting, Umi reached the front of the line and quickly ordered her black coffee. It was done in a few minutes and Umi picked it up off the counter.

"Thank you!" She yelled as she turned around to rush out of the coffee shop. However, Umi soon found herself wet and on the ground. She had bumped into another person and her cup of coffee crushed in between them.

"Ahhh hot hot hot!" Umi got up and tried to wipe off all of the freshly made coffee.

"This is terrible..." she looked down at herself. Her white blouse was completely coffee stained and looked terrible.

"O-ow..." Umi heard a voice from below and shifted her gaze towards it. The other girl was in the same condition that Umi was in and she helped her up.

"I-I'm so sorry! I was rushing to work and I didn't even notice you," Umi began apologizing hysterically.

"I-it's okay, I wasn't looking at where I was going either," the girl apologized back.

Umi looked up and her eyes widened, "...Kotori?"

Kotori's eyes widened just like Umi's did when she saw her face, "Umi?!"

Umi stood up straight and fixed herself up, "I uhh... How have you been? I haven't seen you since we graduated," she stopped fixing herself up when she remembered what had just happened.

"Yeah, it's been so long. I've been doing well," Kotori rubbed the back of her neck and laughed awkwardly.

Umi noticed how much coffee had spilled on Kotori and frowned, "I'm so sorry, I ruined your dress..."

"N-no, it's okay," Kotori brought her hands up in denial.

"No, it's my fault... Let me pay for the dry cleaning," Umi offered, "and for the coffee that you had."

"You really don't have to, Umi, I'm okay," Kotori kept refusing.

"Please let me, Kotori," Umi persisted.

"... O-okay then..." Kotori gave up in the end.

"Just give me a second to call into work and tell them I can't come in," Umi moved to a corner in the shop and used her cellphone to make the call. Kotori looked around the shop to see everyone staring at the two of them. She laughed awkwardly and smiled.

"Okay, are you ready to go?" Umi said once she hung up the phone.

Kotori turned and nodded at her. The two left the coffee shop once they got their new cups of coffee and made their way to a nearby dry cleaner.

"Hi, we need to dry clean our clothing," Umi said to the woman at the front desk.

The woman stared at them and smiled awkwardly, "I'd be glad to, but do you have a change of clothing?"

The thought just blew over Umi's head and she had totally forgotten, "N-No we don't."

Kotori tapped Umi's shoulder and brought a bag into her sights, "I have some spare clothes here."

"Why are you carrying spare clothes?" Umi asked.

"For work, I make clothes," Kotori replied.

"Im... guess that works..." Umi looked over to the woman over the counter. She pointed over to a changing room and the two of them followed her direction.

They entered the changing room together, "It's surprisingly small..." Umi commented.

"Yeah... I guess we just turn our backs and change?" Kotori suggested.

"I guess we have no choice..." Umi moved to the far end of the room and waited for Kotori to turn her back. The two of them started undressing. Umi's eyes couldn't help but wander and look behind her.

Kotori's body was curvaceous and her breasts were larger than Umi had thought. She blushed and quickly turned around to continue changing.

Kotori wasn't so innocent either. She turned to get a glimpse of Umi as she changed. Umi's body was slender, but it was fairly toned and some of her muscles caught Kotori' attention. Kotori blushed and placed her focus back into changing.

When the two of them finished, they couldn't look each other in the eyes without blushing. The two left the dressing room and handed the clothes to the woman so she could calculate the costs for the dry cleaning.

Umi gave the woman her debit card to pay for it and the two girls took a seat in the seating section of the dry cleaners. They sat next to each other and drank their coffee in silence.

"So... Have you been dating, Umi?" Kotori asked out of the blue.

Umi almost spit out her coffee but was able to swallow it before answering, "O-of course not!"

"Hehe, you're still the same as you were in high school," Kotori teased.

Umi blushed, "Well what about you, Kotori? I don't see you having troubles landing a boyfriend."

"Ehh... I'm not really interested in men," Kotori replied.

Umi tilted her head, "What do you mean?"

Kotori thought to herself for a second, "I guess you can say that I'm interested in women."

"R-Really? I didn't know you were like that," Umi said.

"Yeah, well... it's not that different when you think about it," Kotori replied, "and besides, I realized that I was in love with a girl for the longest time."

"Oh really? Who is it?" Umi asked.

"Not telling you~" Kotori teased.

Umi frowned, "Aww come on, I won't tell anyone."

"Hmm~" Kotori kept quiet.

"Can I have a hint at least?" Umi asked.

"She's a little dense and is a friend of mine." Kotori replied.

Umi thought to herself, "... Honoka?"

Kotori chuckled, "No, no, it isn't Honoka."

Umi ran the list of potential girls through her head and thought hard, "Maki? Nico? Nozomi?"

Kotori shook her head, "Keep guessing, you're getting closer."

Umi held her fingers up and pulled them down as she counted off the rest of the members, "Hanayo? Rin? Eli?"

Kotori shook her head again, "Nope~"

"But that is everybody, Kotori," Umi glanced at Kotori with a confused look.

"There's still one more member you haven't named," Kotori stated.

"What? That's impossible, who did I miss?" Umi was completely lost.

Kotori lifted up her hand and pointed at Umi, "Sonoda Umi!"

"Sono- What?! Me?!" Umi's face instantly lit up and was a darker shade of red than Maki's hair.

Kotori smiled and nodded, "Mhmm, I always loved you, Umi."

"B-But, why me?" Umi tried to calm herself down.

"Well…" Kotori brought her hand up and cupped her cheek, "You've been my friend ever since we were little Umi. Do you remember when we first met? Honoka found you hiding behind a tree because you were too shy to ask us if you could join."

"I think so…" Umi answered.

Kotori continued on, "And it might not seem like much, but you were always there by my side when I needed you Umi. Honoka was never strong, so whenever my legs started to hurt, you would carry me on your back."

"I was only doing what a good friend would…" Umi replied.

Kotori shook her head, "No, it meant a lot to me. Even after our childhood years we were still always together through junior high and high school. No matter where I went, you were there with me. I always felt safe and sound when around you."

"How come I've never noticed?" Umi asked.

"That's because you're Umi!" Kotori replied gleefully.

Umi frowned, "T-that doesn't make sense, Kotori…"

"You're kind, you're gentle, you're pretty and dashing," Kotori started listing off all of the qualities that she liked about Umi, "Your hair is so pretty, I get lost whenever I looked into your amber eyes."

Umi started to feel herself blush again. "You're strong, amazing, and athletic. Your voice turns me into a melting mess and you looked so cute in all of the outfits I made for you."

Kotori took a deep breath, "And most importantly, you're my dearest friend. That is why I love you."

Umi couldn't stop herself from blushing, "K-Kotori… I… I never knew you felt that way about me…"

"You don't have to return my feelings, I'm certain that you aren't interested in me," Kotori said with a sad face.

She felt a pair of hands become intertwined with hers, they were warm and made her heart beat, "I… I don't know what to say, Kotori but…"

Kotori looked up to see Umi blushing and avoiding eye contact, "B-But if you're okay with someone like me… you know… being your g-g-g-girlfriend…"

Kotori's eyes lit up, she felt her face start to warm up as tears started to well up in her eyes, "U-Umi…"

Umi finally worked up the courage to look Kotori in the eyes, "I don't have experience in this sort of stuff so… please take care of me."

Kotori's breath fell short, her chest began to tighten as tears started to roll down her cheeks. Her heart was beating like it never had before and she was filled with this overwhelming feeling of joy. Kotori pulled Umi's hands and brought her into her arms for a warm embrace. She cried into Umi's shoulder and felt the back of her head being patted.

"I'm so happy."