Disclaimer: I don't own anything in this story, from the plot to the characters to the music.

Concept: Kaori tells a different lie, and this time Watari is in on it. How would that change the story?

Enjoy! :)

Kaori took a deep breath, bowing her head so that her wavy blonde hair covered her face.

After weeks of trying to figure out a way to befriend a certain trio of her classmates, she thought that she had finally thought of something that might work. Something that would help the long-time friends accept her into their group.

But there was something—no, someone, who was vital to her idea, and considering the part she hoped he would play, she refused to go through with it unless she had his permission first.

But first she had to explain everything to him, and hope to kami that he agreed. If he didn't, Kaori didn't know what she would do. The thing she most wanted to do before she died depended on this, and if she didn't grab onto it with both hands…well.

Her time was limited.

And so here she was, waiting until football (AN: soccer to Americans) practice let out, as the boy she was waiting for was the team captain.

After another fifteen minutes of waiting, she saw him.

Ryōta Watari.

With light caramel brown hair and eyes and a lean body, he was considered good-looking. His easygoing and flirtatious attitude only endeared him further to the girls at their school, though some were put off by that same flirtatiousness.

Kaori herself didn't particularly mind it. From what she could tell Watari-san was a good person and a great friend. He might be a little flighty with the girls, but as she didn't have romantic feelings for him (she wanted someone more sincere) that wasn't a problem.

"Miyazono-san, right?" she heard a voice say, and the blonde shook her head, coming back to reality. "Most students in the school clubs left a while ago. Are you waiting for someone?"

Kaori bit her lip. "Y-yes, actually. I was…hoping I could speak with you. Yoroshiku."

(AN: Yoroshiku is a loose translation of 'please take care of me', which can have numerous meanings and is used in various situations, especially when introducing yourself. This is informal.)

Watari blinked in surprise. What could Miyazono Kaori have to talk to him about?

He'd had a fair few girls from school confess to him, but despite his confidence in his talents with the ladies, he got the feeling that this was about something different. Miyazono-san had never really seemed attracted to him anyway, from their limited interactions.

In fact…he seemed to remember her glancing at Kousei a few times, usually with what seemed to be a mix of sadness and hesitance.

"Okay." He said after a moment. "Anywhere you want to go in particular?"

He grinned slyly as he came to the conclusion that she had a crush on his best guy friend, Arima Kousei, and wanted him to introduce her to him. He had noticed a few weeks ago that her looks had changed from black glasses to contact lenses (and wow, the full brunt of those large blue/gray eyes was enthralling, even when she was nervous) and she had let her long hair down from their previous pigtail style. Maybe she had needed a makeover in order to gain the confidence to act on her crush?

The blonde bit her lip thoughtfully. "Um…my parents own a bakery. We could go there?"

"Sure." Watari agreed, hoping to lessen her apparent nervousness a bit. "Do you have dango? I've got a bit of a craving…"

For the first time during their conversation, Kaori quirked a smile, and her eyes brightened, making them even more dazzling to look at.

Watari chided himself mentally. This girl probably had a crush on Kousei, given the stares she'd given the oblivious former pianist, and there was no way he was going to get in the middle of that.

"We do." She agreed with a laugh. "And more than that. You should try the cannoli my parents make."

"That's the…Italian pastry thing, right?" he asked, tilting his head curiously. "My mom's mentioned them before. She studied abroad before I was born."

Kaori beamed at him, and he knew that he had said the right thing when she went into a passionate diatribe about the wonders of the cannoli.

He was eerily reminded of the near worship Kousei had for egg sandwiches.

As he thought about that, he grinned more broadly, now determined to try and set them up even if he was wrong and that wasn't what she wanted to talk to him about.

After all, for a person with a food obsession like that, who better to start a relationship than someone who could understand it, even for a different food?

It would be a simple matter to ignore his physical attraction for her, everything considered. He wouldn't mind getting to know her, of course, but he was already thinking about her with Kousei. Sure, she was beautiful, with her blonde hair and blue/gray eyes, but he preferred brown…

He coughed slightly as he remembered one particular issue with getting Kousei and the Miyazono girl up.

"Are you okay?" the blonde asked.

He grinned sheepishly, though his thoughts were more solemn.

Tsubaki had a huge crush on Kousei that not only Kousei was oblivious to, but Tsubaki herself hadn't yet realized. He wanted her to be happy and not get hurt, but he also knew that Kousei didn't see her as anything more than a sister and friend.

"Ryōta-san?" Miyazono interrupted his thoughts, and Watari turned back to the girl in surprise.

"Ah, sorry, Miyazono-san." He said sheepishly. "I was just…lost in thought."

"If you're sure." She agreed, before biting her lip. "And just Kaori is fine. I'm not really a formal type of person."

He grinned at her cheerfully. "Neither am I. Okay, then. Call me Watari, and you have yourself a deal."

She smiled back slightly, nodding her head in assent, and they continued in silence for a few more blocks until they reached a small bakery.

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