The girl was pouring a coffee at the counter when she heard the commotion and looked up. A grin started to spread across her face and she bowed her head to hide it. Only when she had calmed enough to maintain a calm expression did she lift her face again. She finished pouring the coffee and walked to deliver it, offering the customer a bright and cheerful smile. "Here you are, sir. Let me know if you need anything else."

She wanted to go back to the counter as quickly as possible. The longer she interacted, the more likely her mask would slip. The professional smile would start to falter and the muscles around her eyes would relax into their natural glare. When she turned to walk away, the young man blushed and stammered a thank you.

Touka was already back at the counter and grimaced a little when she saw the other girl's grin, hidden behind locks of dark hair. "Don't say it, Saya."

"What? It was pretty funny," the girl argued.

"No, it wasn't. It was embarrassing." They both looked in the direction of the table. The two young men were still seated there, but it seemed like the light-haired one was going to the restroom. The one that had just asked Touka's name and asked if she had a boyfriend. The one that remained was a dark-haired boy a little older than them, nervously looking toward the door.

"You're so cute, Touka. What's it like to get hit on?" Saya taunted.

"You might get hit on, too, if you didn't act so fake in front of other people."

She knew it was not meant to hurt her, but Saya still felt a tightness in her chest when she heard the words. "Heh. Yeah, right. Because my natural face is so charming."

They both saw a familiar older ghoul enter the café and a few minutes later, Touka nudged Saya's elbow with hers. "Hey, are you seeing that?"

Pale blue eyes lifted to see what her friend was talking about and her eyes widened. What is he doing? Who does he think he is, just approaching her like that? Saya's right hand subconsciously gripped the cup harder as she tried in vain to concentrate on her pour. The dark-haired boy from before was talking to the older female ghoul. What is he saying though? She's smiling. Her heart skipped a beat at the sight and she bit the inside of her cheek. She's always so pretty when she smiles.

"What do you think they're talking about? He seems pretty excited about something. Look at Rize's face."

"It's Rize-san."

"What? Why are you being formal?" Touka raised an eyebrow and glanced from Saya back to Rize. The girl beside her was bowing her head again and seemed tense. "Saya?"

"Someone like her. You don't just call them by their first name. It's Kamishiro-san or Rize-san." Saya caught the sheepish grin on Touka's face and frowned. "What? She's different. Rize-san is elegant and beautiful."

"Saya? Do you have a crush?" She saw her friend's face go bright pink and she covered her mouth with a hand. "No way. Seriously?"

"It's not a crush! I mean, I look up to her! She's beautiful and she reads those cool books and she has an air of elegance and mystery!" Sighing in frustration, Saya shook her head. "Besides, can't I appreciate feminine beauty?"

Saya went through the rest of her shift with angry butterflies in her stomach. I can't believe Touka would ask something like that. I just didn't like Rize-san talking to that guy so casually. It isn't a crush. Right? I have a guy that I like! He's a jerk sometimes, but still! She was stepping onto the sidewalk to head home and paused when she caught a familiar face awaiting her.

The older ghoul lifted a hand in greeting, smiling down at her. "Sorry that you had to see that earlier."

"What? No. Um…it's fine. It didn't cause any problems for the café so-"

"Did it cause problems for you though?" She pushed up her glasses, studying Saya's now blushing face very closely, and grinned when she pulled away. "Saya-chan? It's important to blink."

"Sorry." She turned away and started to walk in the opposite direction, blushing even brighter. She thinks I'm creepy, doesn't she? I don't know what it is, but whenever she's in the café, I just can't look away! She's cool. I can't even tell her that though. I'm too nervous when she's around. Rize suddenly popped up on her right side, clutching a book to her chest and beaming.

"He asked me on a date. We're probably going to talk about books and spend a few hours together," Rize continued. "Don't look so down. It's just for a quick meal. He'll be an easy catch."

"That's good, but is he enough for you?" The words made Saya's stomach do flips and she glanced over to see Rize's reaction.

"Hm. If I'm still hungry, I'll grab something else, too." She leaned forward a little, trying to see Saya's face as she continued to walk beside her. "If you don't want me to go, I won't."

We're not in a relationship. We don't even talk that often. So why is she teasing me like this? Did Touka say something to her? Shaking her head, Saya tried to walk a little faster. "Why would I want to keep you from a meal?" Her voice was flat, trying to hide her frustration.

Rize snickered. "You're pretty cute, you know. I'm sure some brave boy will ask you out some day. Or maybe a brave girl?" She giggled when Saya tripped and nearly fell onto her face. "I'll talk to you later, Saya-chan. I'll tell you all about my date the next time I see you and we can have a good laugh." She reached over and tucked a loose lock of wavy, dark blue hair behind the younger girl's ear. "Don't worry; I'll be waiting for you after your shift and we can spend some quality time together~"

Saya was left standing alone on the sidewalk as Rize continued on her way. She took a deep breath, trying calm herself again. Her pale blue eyes narrowed into their natural glare and she grimaced. What's wrong with me? When she touched my hair, her hand brushed over my cheek and I almost leaned into it. She shook her head again and pulled her cellphone from her bag, scrolling to her crush's phone number.

The phone rang a few times before he picked up and she forced a grin, hoping to keep her emotional torment from leaking into her voice. "Hey, it's me. Can I come over tonight? I want some help studying for an exam."

"Ugh. What kind of exam is it?"

The sound of his voice made her grin become genuine, despite his irritated tone. "It's biology. I'm going to stop at the convenience store before I come over, okay? Do you want something?"

"I want a can of cold coffee and some blonde roast instant coffee."

"Sure thing! Be there soon!" Saya put her phone away and walked to the store with a certain spring in her step, cheered up at the thought of seeing her crush. She pushed her thoughts of Rize to the back of her mind as she entered the convenience store.

The ghoul picked up several cans of coffee and was about to leave when she spotted him again. The older boy from the café. He was standing in the junk food section. Saya had forced her typical work smile on upon entering the store and tried to keep her eyes wide and welcoming. Now she lost control of both and scowled, her gaze narrowing upon him.

There were a lot of things that she wanted to say to the boy. She was tempted to even sabotage his date with Rize by threatening him. Instead, she simply stared at him with her icy glare. He slowly seemed to notice her presence and turned toward her. Saya swiftly changed back to a smile and waved before stalking off to the next aisle. I have better things to do anyway. I have a study date! Maybe he'll even offer to walk me home this time!

Her crush answered his apartment door with a frown. "What's wrong with your face, Saya? You look like a door to door salesman."

As irritating as it was for him to greet her this way, she managed to maintain a smile. "Oh, I'm just so happy to have such a nice senpai that will help me study for exams! Thanks ever so much for helping me, Nishiki-senpai!"

He stepped aside to let her in and raised an eyebrow. "What's with the attitude, brat?"

She let her shoulders droop slightly and she scowled, letting her facial muscles relax. He had seen her natural face often enough to not be surprised by it. Saya dug around in her bag for the plastic sack of coffee cans and cracked one open. "Something happened at work. It doesn't matter."

Nishiki stared at her for a long moment and smirked. "You got snubbed by some guy, didn't you?"

"It doesn't matter," she repeated through gritted teeth. She chugged the can of cold coffee and released a sigh. "Everything will be fine. It's not like you can only like one person anyway. Even if a crush doesn't work out, you can always like other guys."

"Yeah, but for a relationship, you have to get the guy to like you. Those eyes are of yours look scary when you're not pulling that "working professional" face that you do." He saw a muscle near her right eye twitch and crossed his arms. "Come on. You know, some guys find round faces cute. You just need to not look like you're going to maul them when they get close."

Her frustration finally boiled over and her expression turned evil. "So what kind of mask did you wear to get Kimi-chan to fall for you anyway? It must be pretty good if it can hide that toxic personality of yours and make her still like you." Saya saw his frown deepen and then caught him smirking down at her again. "Can we just start studying? I have class in the morning."

"You won't leave if I just tell you to. The sooner we get this over with, the better. I don't get why you don't have Touka help you."

"Because this is the only subject I struggle with and she's not great at it, either! Why else would I lower myself to asking you for help?" On the inside, she began to smile. This interaction would help her feel better.