Chapter 10 - Embarrassing

"S-So, this is my boyfriend, Shiro."

It was awkward as hell. When Shion broke the news to the poor guy who had just recovered on the bed, he was stunned. "B-Boyfriend?" He had stuttered in disbelief. Shion could only use Rika as an excuse and apologise, though she was pretty fine with it.

"You don't mind, right?" She had asked nervously, trying to suppress a blush. Satoshi shook his head but averted his eyes away from hers.

So when Shion introduced Satoshi a.k.a Shiro to Satoko and Rika in the clinic, the kids danced for joy to celebrate. "Shii finally has a boyfriend! Nipaa~" Rika smiled widely. Satoshi silently heaved a sigh of relief when neither of them recognized him. After all, his cap hid his blonde hair and the mask covered the rest of his face, leaving his red eyes bare for them to see.

Satoko stopped short and glanced at Shion with a confused look. "But I thought you said you liked Nii-"

"AHAHAHA, the one I truly love is Shiro!" Shion yelled out to interrupt Satoko's words. If she had spouted out Nii-Nii she'd be dead meat. She hadn't realized her words made Satoshi nervous a little.

He was the only one being quiet. He had just recovered, meaning that he managed to suppress his L5 back to L3. It was a momentary thing and he was told that it would be frequent and would not be dangerous if the shot was taken immediately.

Somehow the thought of being Shion's fake boyfriend was...new.

"We should get going," Satoko said as she turned to leave.

"Hey, Shii, how about you and Shiro come to our house for tea?" Rika beamed.

Shion nodded her head almost immediately. "Sure, we'd love to!" Great job Rika, even if you didn't know anything! Satoshi could only nod. He still wasn't allowed to speak unless needed.

The four headed to the house together, with the children skipping at the front while the teenagers tagged along at the back. Satoko was grumbling about how Keiichi didn't fall for a trap that one time while Rika was comforting her.

Keiichi. Satoshi had heard of him before, and he only knew him as someone close to Satoko and the loser in the club. The guy who always lost and wore embarrassing outfits. He couldn't really believe that Satoko was finally interacting with a guy with no hard feelings, but times did change when he wasn't around. Nevertheless, as long as Satoko was happy, he'd be happy too.

He was still feeling a little uncomfortable to his stomach, but he felt like he could manage well the entire time by sun set. He hoped his identity wouldn't be exposed anytime soon, seeing that he was dangerously close to his sister. Who knows how she would react when she saw him?

"This is our crib!" Satoko said cheerfully to Satoshi who nodded his head in acknowledgment. She used to be hiding behind him whenever she saw a male stranger, but now she was openly welcoming him. She had changed a lot.

They went into the house and sat while Satoko prepared tea. Rika shifted closer to Satoshi and stared at him with her big violet eyes.

"Is your cold better?" She asked, smiling but her eyes didn't seem to.

The way she asked made him a little uncomfortable. It felt as if she knew he hadn't caught a cold. He felt like she was tearing his disguise away, one by one, the cap and the mask. It was Rika-chama after all, the Head of the Furude shrine.

Maybe she knows, he thought, but she didn't seem intent on exposing him. Sometimes children (or girls) can be scary.

He faked a cough and shook his head while Shion watched in amusement. I'm pretty good at acting, especially when it comes to Satoko, he had said a little too proudly, leaving the girl a little stunned.

Satoko came back with tea and she settled down with the others. "Hey, Shiro-san, how did you get together with Nee-Nee?"

Nee-Nee? Satoshi glanced at Shion who seemed to be red. It was a cold winter's day, so maybe the cold had gotten to her, he thought. He also thought that he was the only one being called a cute nickname, but seems like he wasn't that special anymore. Satoshi slumped a little, trying not to sigh.

"U-U-Uh, l-let's not talk about this!" Shion stuttered, feeling flustered. Her face was obviously red and she felt super hot even though the heater wasn't that strong. It was embarrassing enough to introduce Satoshi as her boyfriend, but it's worse if she had to make up stories about them (meaning that she'd have to spill out her fantasies).

"Rika wants to know too!" The blue haired girl smiled widely and chanted her catchphrase.

Seeing that the girls were excited about their "relationship", and also that Shion wasn't going to speak anytime soon (seriously, is she going to catch a cold?), Satoshi decided to talk.

He cleared his throat, making the fellow teen turn her head. "I, uh," He began, not knowing what to make up. He clearly hadn't got into a relationship before. He wasn't close to any girls except for Satoko. Mion was the tomboyish leader and he barely knew Rena, who had transferred in before he left. Rika was...just Rika and Shion was...

Shion had been by his side ever since he woke up. In fact he knew he briefly before he was in a coma and all he remembered of her was the twin of Mion. It came as a surprise to him so he hadn't really got to know her. Now that she was taking care of him, he managed to get closer to her. He regarded her as a good friend that one could depend on.

"Shion's a nice girl," he said while the girls listened intently. He could feel a faint blush because he hadn't really compliment a girl before. "She helped me a lot before so...I fell for her and asked her out."

Will Shion be angry? He glanced at her but was quite surprised to see her face redden to the shade of a tomato. He was pretty sure that it wasn't because of the cold air. Maybe she was actually...feeling hot? But the heater wasn't that strong...

The children squealed, especially Rika who seemed to be too excited about it. How's that, Hanyuu? She asked the God mentally, who had decided to remain as a spirit for a while to supervise Satoshi.

Au~Au~, they're so cute~~, Hanyuu cooed.

Many things were happening in the household. Shion was frozen on the spot because of Satoshi's words and though she knew they were made up, she couldn't help but feel all fluttery. Satoko and Rika were swooning, since they were interested in their friends' love lives. (Remember that one love quadrilateral between Keiichi, Mion, Rena and Shion? That was waaaaay too entertaining for the kids.)

Meanwhile Satoshi was watching Satoko, who thankfully hadn't noticed it because if she did she'd have a bad impression. She was all grown up since the last time he saw her. She was a little taller, her hair was longer and her dull eyes were now beaming with happiness. It was a major change compared to almost two years ago. He was definitely proud of her and he wanted to quickly return and make up for the time lost.

He stared down at his tea. He hadn't touched it, mainly because he'd have to remove his mask to drink it. It'd be rude if he didn't, but he had to somehow not expose his identity. He still had his cap on, but he wondered if that would be sufficient to hide him.

The girls were already chatting about stuff he didn't know of, probably about how Keiichi lost to Mion in a game. Or how Rena's habits had grew worse. He pulled down his cap so it hid his eyes, then pulled down his mask and brought the cup to his lips.

"N-" The moment Satoko started he flinched, causing the tea to spill on his jacket.

"Sa-Shiro!" Shion quickly grabbed some tissues and wiped the stain. The rest turned to look at Satoshi, who smiled sheepishly.

"S-Sorry," He mumbled softly to her.

Thank God Satoko wasn't saying Nii-Nii. He chided himself for being too cautious to the point where he'd screw things up.

"Hey, hey, how about a kiss?" Rika asked innocently and so suddenly.

"W-Wha?" Shion immediately sat back away from Satoshi, who hadn't really heard what Rika said.

"Do it!" Satoko urged enthusiastically.

"W-Wha..." Shion was too burned up to even complete her sentence. She tried her hardest not to look at Satoshi, but she could feel his stare on her. This was getting too tiring for her. It was enough heart-racing for the day.

Satoshi, on the other hand, was clueless. "Do what?" He asked, putting his mask back on. If Satoko wanted them to do something, then why not? Why was Shion being so flustered?

"Let's just do it?" He asked. He figured he should do what Satoko wanted, even if it was under the guise of some random guy.

"WHAT?" Shion practically yelled into his face, her cheeks burning. Oh my god, he doesn't mind? Wait, so he wants to kiss me? B-B-But we aren't even lovers! I haven't even confessed yet!

Her heart was speeding like a bullet train and she wished she could hop onto the nearest bullet train and run away from the situation. She licked her lips, and braced herself.

"S-So you want to k-kiss?" She asked Satoshi.

There was an uncomfortable pause, causing the entire house to fall silent. The kids were waiting, holding their breaths in. Satoshi was too stunned by her words to even utter a single word.

Shion waited for an answer, but when she saw that Satoshi wasn't budging, she heaved a sigh. One in relief and disappointment.

"We have to head back soon, i-it's getting late!" She tried to hide the dull tone in her voice. She got up and the silent boy stood up after her.

"See you then!" She waved with a huge smile and the kids waved back in disappointment at their abrupt leave

Satoko hung her head. "It was such a shame." She said while Rika nodded her head.

"By the way, don't you think Shiro-san looks a little familiar?" The blonde asked Rika, who shrugged.

"Who knows?" She smiled suggestively.

The entire trip back home was probably the most awkward moment in the history. Shion was walking fast ahead of Satoshi and as much as she wanted to slow down, she couldn't. She was a little disappointed, but she understood. She had caused such inconvenience to the poor guy and she didn't know how to face him. Maybe introducing him as her boyfriend was a little too much.

She sighed, letting the warm air out like smoke. She'd apologise once she got home.

Little did she know that Satoshi was blushing hard the entire time with many thoughts running through his head.