Chocolate Kisses

A week had passed since the end of the concours although it seemed that the hype for the concours members had not calmed at down the least bit. In fact, there seemed to be even more publicity towards the members than there was when the actual concours had been taking place. One reason for this might have been because Valentine's Day was soon approaching and the majority of the councour's participants were male. Males considered drool-worthy, even.

Valentine Day was a sacred holiday in Japan where girls would willingly confess to the guy of their desires by presenting them a simple box of chocolates. It wasn't rare to find girl's giving chocolates to other males, not necessarily one whom which they were in love with, but to relatives, adults they were familiar with, or simply friends. If only it were that simple for one, Hino Kahoko.

But this Valentine's Day would be one Hino Kahoko would not soon forget.

--

Hino blankly looked up from her History textbook directly across her to meet Nao's daring and intense gaze. It made the previous concours member inwardly scratch her head in confusion. She didn't remember anything about a guy, did she? "I don't know, Nao-chan, who is the lucky guy?" She assumed her fair-haired friend was speaking of a male who perhaps won the lottery? That would have been one lucky guy indeed.

Receiving a hard slap on the back, Nao chided with laughter at her friend's odd sense of humor, little realization that her fellow second-year wasn't joking whatsoever. "Good one, Kaho-chan." Wiping a stray tear from her eyes, Nao turned solidly to the only other member in the room, Mio. "She's really something, huh Mio?"

"Um…I don't think Kaho-chan was kidding, Nao-chan." Mio replied warily, lightly peeking her eyes through the slits of her homework. The three were at Seiso's school library quickly reviewing over notes and catching up on thoughtlessly missed homework during their after school period. Of course, not much work was getting done on Nao's part, who was seemingly more interested in her friend's non-existent love life.

As the figure came closer, shinning emerald hair was the first noticeable feature, followed by a carefree smile stretching from ear-to-ear. Their uniformed ruffled, and run a little sloppy, Hihara cheerfully made his way to Hino's table.

A little startled, Hino gazed up from her work to meet the trumpeter's golden eyes. "Ah, Hihara-senpai." She smiled shyly at her friend whose face was now beat red from running. He panted slightly as he set his trumpet case down beside him. "Is something wrong?"

Hihara shook his head violently to the point Hino was certain it would fall off. "N-No! Nothing's wrong at all!" His words were rushed and came out in a mixed jumble, his face quickly heating up. "I-I was just wondering…" He trailed off, suddenly noticing the taunting presence of Hino's two friends. He hurriedly retracted his words. Maybe asking wasn't such a great idea.

"About what, Hihara-senpai?" Hino asked, good-naturedly.

Nao leaned in, grabbing Mio's shoulder so that she would be dragged in as well. The two bent over closely to where Hihara was standing, neither of the two wanting to miss the exchange of words.

The trumpeter mumbled something inaudibly to even himself.

A puzzled Hino stood up to meet eye-level with Hihara. "I'm sorry I didn't hear that." She herself felt a blush creep on to her face upon realizing the sudden proximity between her and her third-year acquaintance.

The golden-eyed boy must have also noticed the sudden closeness, as his head snapped up swiftly, making eye contact with Hino for a split second before returning his gaze to the floor. He suddenly wondered if it were too bold of him to ask such a daring question to the oblivious violinist.

Once again a light mutter was heard escaping the lips of Hihara. What was it that he was so reluctant about asking, was Hino's only thought? The third-year was not a timid person whatsoever. He was loud and cheerful and almost always smiling. He was not one to think thrice about asking anything, so what was different today than any other day to make him act as such?

"Tomorrow." A low murmur.

"Tomorrow?" A higher-pitched voice dripping with curiosity.

"Tomorrow?!" Two simultaneous shrieks of delight.

Hihara chuckled slightly, closing his eyes while embarrassedly scratched the back of his burning neck. "Ah, it's just that tomorrow's Valentine's Day and I was wondering if…" His eyes snapped open. I was wonder if…what?! The voice in the back of his head mentally screamed at him. At a loss for words he stood silently oblivious to Nao's widening grin or timid Mio's slightly ajar mouth.

Hino's eyes widening in shock at Hihara's words.

It took the emerald-haired boy only a split second to notice the dramatic change in his fellow concour member's features. Shutting his eyes tightly a sudden wave of regret churned within him. Hihara stumbled for the right words to say to repair the damaged atmosphere. "I…I didn't mean it like that, Kaho-chan! I-I was just—"

"Valentine's Day?!" Hino brought her hands to her mouth, shock written clearly over every feature on her face.

Hihara blinked, absentminded.

Mio nodded plainly from her seat at the table, no longer held down by Nao in order to eavesdrop on the conversation. "Yes, tomorrow's Valentine's Day. It couldn't have slipped your mind, could it?" Mio's inquisitive look only received a bemused look from her bullion-eyed friend.

"You forgot Kaho-chan?!" Nao practically shrieked, rushing up to Hino, violently shaking her by her shoulders, unnoticeably shoving poor Hihara out of the way in the process. "How can there be a Violin Romance if you've forgotten to give chocolate to Tsukimori-san?!" Nao continued to mindlessly shake Hino until Mio carefully interjected. Hino's mind swiveled in endless circles.

Valentine's Day?

Chocolate?

Tsukimori?!

"Y-Y-You're giving your ch-cho—" Unable to complete his sentence, Hihara remained in a state where he continued to repeat the words until her felt a rather strong slap on his back and unwillingly spit the words out. "Chocolate to T-Tsukimori?!" He couldn't understand why but he felt a sudden string in the corner of his eyes. For some reason, it felt as if someone had just punched him in the stomach.

He couldn't understand why, but he sort of wanted to be the one to receive chocolate from the dumbfounded girl.

"I couldn't help but overhear that Tsukimori will be receiving chocolates from you, Hino-san?" A rather amused voice chided from behind Hihara followed by a charming smile. Extended neat and smooth sapphire hair with an equally elegant presence to match seemed to taunt Hino, even though her soul had departed from her body as soon as Hino, Tsukimori and chocolate were used in the same sentence.

"Yunoki-senpai!" Nao and Mio chorused in tune, completely taken by surprise from his sudden presence.

Yunoki tilted his head slightly to the left while bringing his palm to rest under his chin, his long, pastel fingers spread out across his thin, pink lips. "I never knew Hino-san was in love with Tsukimori…" The light malice went unheard by the others. Suddenly, the trivial hatred unheard a second ago turned towards embarrassing the already embarrassed Hino.

Unseen to the others, a small smile filled with wickedness graced Yunoki's refined features.

He grinned good-naturedly, his voice soft and childlike. "If anyone, I assumed Hino-san to give her chocolates to Tsuchiura." He chuckled wholeheartedly, "The two are such close friends, after all, it'd be strange not giving any chocolate to him, right Hino-san?" The flutist offhandedly turned in Hino's direction. He received no response asides silence and a face void of its natural color.

"No response, so it is Tsuchiura, isn't it?"

"T-Tsuchiura?!" Hihara felt the support in his legs slowly giving away.

"Tsuchiura-kun?! What about Violin Romance?!" Nao's wailed.

Mio remained silent whist Hino's face burned up with such a fierce color that Yunoki was sure if in a supermarket, she may have been mistaken for a life-sized tomato. How had such a peaceful day ended up heading in such a direction?

"Valentine, eh?" Hino, who seemed to be somewhere drifting off in her own world, finally spoke. "Valentine's Day, eh?" As if entranced, she began to walk out of the school library with slow steps at first before breaking out into a full blown run as soon as she had stepped foot out of the library. Nearly breathless, she continued running, her strawberry colored hair fiercely blowing backwards with the oncoming rush of swift wind.

I forgot to make my chocolates! She cried inwardly.

She continued her hurried pace of running until she had hit a road block. Literally. A road block which she knocked over due to her intense speed. Hino stumbled backwards; about to tumble over if it weren't for the strong hand quickly grasping her own. Unfortunately for her at the same time she decided to grab onto said person to prevent her own falling he had decided to grab onto her to prevent his own falling.

What seemed like a lifetime had passed before either of the two party members spoke.

"If you don't mind getting off, Hino-san, you're quite heavy."

It took Hino a full minute to realize her current location. Pressed on top of Tsukimori Len. He looked dangerously irritated to boot. His naturally piercing eyes looked even bitterer than they usually did. His eyes did not meet hers, even once, as if ashamed to be caught in such a position. When he spoke, his voice was treacherously low and accusing. "I have things to do, and if you don't mind Hino-san, I'd like to leave."

Embarrassed and flushed, Hino clumsily began to remove herself but her pace was not as quick as Tsukimori's. He sat up rather gruffly, flippantly knocking her over in the process. He stood up swiftly and evenly, not once turning around to offer the female violinist a hand as he grabbed his own violin case and began to walk down the endless school corridor before turning a corner and vanishing from Hino's sight altogether.

"Hino?" Hino turned abruptly to the owner of the profound voice. "Yo." A lopsided grin.

"What are you doing down there?" Followed by a teasing snigger, Tsuchiura outstretched one of his naturally strong bronzed hands for Hino to grab a hold of. She did so and soon she was steady enough to stand on her own two feet and slowly began to dust the dirt off her school uniform.

Her face colored lightly but she managed to utter a diminutive "Thanks, Tsuchiura-kun."

The latter simply grinned and soon enough Hino had fallen into step with her fellow classmate. The two made their way out of school property at a rather steady speed, neither one of them daring to breathe a word as if afraid to break the harmonious silence between them.

A few minutes passed before Tsuchiura spoke again, "Hey, what were you doing in school at that time anyway?"

"Ah! Nao-chan, Mio-chan and I were finishing up our homework." She explained steadily. "Tsuchiura-kun was there because of soccer practice, right?"

Tsuchiura's eyes widened slightly. He hadn't informed anyone that he had rejoined the soccer club, but somehow this girl had realized the fact on her own. His wide eyes softened, his lips slanting into somewhat of a crooked smile. "Yeah, you could say that." They continued walking together for some time before the male student spoke again, a little discomfited while running his long fingers through his hair.

"So…are you giving anyone chocolates tomorrow?"

Hino's face brightened. "Yes!"

She seemed utterly delighted by the idea as Tsuchiura's face drained of all of its natural color.

The pianist's mind began a downwards spiral into a pool of utterly ridiculous ideas. Hino is giving chocolates to a boy tomorrow?! He thought to himself, inwardly going through a mental list of every male Hino could have possibly wanted to give chocolates to.

"I'm going to make some for Fuyuumi-chan, Shimizu-kun, Hihara-senpai, Yunoki-senpai, Kanazawa-sensei, and Tsuchiura-kun…" Happily, Hino went down the list of all the recipients of her to-be homemade chocolates. "There's also Nao-chan, Mio-chan, Amou-san…and T-Tsukimori-kun…" She trailed off, the grip on her violin case tightening. She noticed and quickly covered it up with a lighthearted giggle, "But I'm not sure he'll even want my chocolate, right?"

"He's stupid if he doesn't." Tsuchiura lowly growled.

"Hm? What was that, Tsuchiura-kun?"

"Ah…it was nothing." They then reached where it was that they were to part ways. "Uh, anyways I'll see you later." Idly, Tsuchiura gave a curt wave while Hino waved back cheerfully. "I…I'm looking forward to…the chocolate." He called back, his back to hers as he began to walk into the distance. Hino couldn't stop the smile crawling up her lips.

Setting up the necessary appliances, Hino set out to work as soon as possible, with much interruption from the nosiness of her mother and older sister. They teased her endlessly about who she was giving her chocolates to. Hino never answered once, too entranced in her current job of baking delicious chocolates to worry about a little ridicule.

"Alright!" Wiping off the little beads of sweat from her forehead, Hino stared down in amazement at her work. She couldn't believe it took until just a little after midnight, but she had finished. She had a lot to make, after all. This wasn't like in most situations wherein only one person accepted the chocolate, but she was giving it to much more than a single friend.

Hino began to package them all in different colored packages with ribbons and various lacey decorations. She stopped once she arrived at Tsukimori's. Blankly staring at it for a moment, she decided to leave his in a plain white package. She couldn't exactly think of a color that would suit the coldhearted violinist.

"What is this?!" A shriek erupted from beside Hino as her sister began to rummage through the remaining, unpackaged chocolates. "Kaho! Why are none of them are shaped as hearts?!" Horrified, she began to look for any chocolates that represented some sort of love in any which way. She found none. "This is Valentine's Day we're talking about. Va. Len. Tines." She separated each word by syllables, pinching both of Hino's cheeks and outstretching them.

"Ouch!" Hino grumbled while tending to her bruised cheeks. "They're for my friends. That's all." With the leftovers, Hino began to carefully place them in the fridge while her sister snatched a couple for herself.

"Mmm! These are delicious, Kaho. Too bad no lucky guy will get them." She yawned and headed off to the washroom to shower. "What a waste!"

Self-conscious at her sister's words, Hino leisurely opened the plain packaged chocolate. Sitting on one of the chairs in the kitchen, she stared down at the chocolate the plain packaged contained. It was unlike the others. Unlike the others, it did not contain many pieces of small sphere shaped chocolates but only one chocolate. It was noticeably larger than the others as well. "I-I hope they like it." Hino intertwined her fingers and closed her eyes as if she was praying.

The chocolate was shaped like a heart.

--

"Hino-san…"

"Y-Yes Tsukimori-kun?"

"Thank you, for the chocolate. I find it very tasty, you must have spent quite a while making it." The reply wasn't in his usual monotone, cool way but instead it was delicate, caring even.

Hino blushed, clearly embarrassed. She scratched the back of her neck nervously, a possible bad habit picked up from the trumpet player. "Ah, well it did take me a little while, ha ha ha…" She trailed off with an uneasy laughter.

"Hino-san…" Tsukimori was closing the proximity between the two.

Hino continued to flush. "T-Tsukimori-kun?"

The two closed their eyes and Hino shivered as she could feel Tsukimori's breath on her face. She tried not to smile but instead enjoy the coming kiss. Her first kiss. With Tsukimori Len, no less.

"Kaho…"

Hino's face, if possible, turned redder than it was a second ago. She had never heard Tsukimori call her by first name. It didn't shock her for him not to, of course. The two were far from close. Even Tsuchiura or Hihara whom she was much closer to – as friends – weren't addressed by her by their given names. But for Tsukimori to do such a thing… Hino tried to regain control of her feet before they caved from beneath her.

"Kaho…"

"Kaho."

"Kaho!"

"Kaho!"

Hino snapped her eyes open, jumping from her bed. "Kaho! If you don't get up now, you're going to be late for school!" The holler from her mother caught her off guard. "Hurry, Kaho – give your little heart-shaped chocolate to your boyfriend!" She interjected in a sing-song voice as Hino's eyes broadened to the size of saucers. Her mom didn't…

…did she?

A high-pitched shriek was heard emerging from Hino's room. "Tsukimori-kun is not my boyfriend!" The words escaped her mouth before even realizing what she had said. She covered her mouth while running into the bathroom to get ready for school and to hide from the snide remarks she was sure that her mother was going to make at the mention of a boy's name.

The walk to school was anything but peaceful for Hino. It was nerve-wracking having to think of what was going to happen. But Hino had promised herself that she was going to give her chocolates to all of her friends – including Tsukimori. "Alright!" The female violinist enthusiastically punched the air, pumping herself up. "I'm ready, Valentine's Day, here I come!"

"You're looking excited today!" Turning around, Hino slowed down her pace as Hihara caught up with her, his face completely beaming. "Happy Valentine's Day, Kaho-chan!" He chided merrily, unable to stand still, he swayed his hands around while twirling once. "So, does Kaho-chan have any chocolate for me?" He asked a little nervously, pointing to his face with his index finger.

Hino nodded, fumbling through her school bag while maintaining balance with the violin case in the other hand. She picked through the wrapped chocolates until she had found the one she had intended for Hihara. Carefully, she handed him the one that was wrapped in colorful lime coverings. "Here you go!" She smiled widely.

Hihara's golden eyes sparkled and he could feel that same strange tug in his stomach. "T-T-Thank you, Kaho-chan!" He laughed in upmost delight, spinning around once while attentively watching the chocolates with such care you would have expected it to be a child. "Thank you so much Kaho-chan!" Unaware of his actions, he grabbed the unmindful violinist and held her in a tight bear hug.

"Eh?"

She blinked twice, reluctantly pressed up against her senpai's lean chest. The unexpected waft of strawberries hurried into Hihara's nostrils before comprehending his current situation and being mindful of his body's unintentional actions. He was hugging Hino! As quickly as he had held on to her, he retracted his hands. "Sorry!" He shouted, a little too loudly because a couple passing by Seiso students began to stare. "S-Sorry!" He yelped again, bowing clumsily as he began to rush in the direction of the school, his visage noticeable flushed.

"Thank you, Kaho-chan!" He sung as he ran, turning to face Hino whilst running, nearly tripping over his own two feet in the process.

Hino laughed at her odd upperclassman, he never failed to surprise her with his awkward actions. "You're welcome, Hihara-senpai!" She called back.

"Ah, Kaho-chan and Hihara-senpai would make a cute couple, wouldn't they, Nao-chan?" Amou skipped happily while Hino turned around to face her, avoiding eye-contact due to the remark she made about she and one of her favorite upperclassman. The wide grin plastered on the news reporter's face widened as she scribbled down things Hino was sure she didn't want to know into the notepad she held in her hands.

"Kaho-chan gave her chocolate to Hihara-senpai!" Nao carelessly nudged her flustered friend in an attempt to get to confess all the interesting details of her secret love life. "Who would have guessed our Kaho-chan would have it in her?"

"Ah! N-No, it's not like that, Nao-chan!" Hino stumbled across her words, the firm grip on her violin case tightening. "I made some for everyone." She took this chance to hand over her chocolates to Amou, Nao and Mio.

Amou and Nao frowned simultaneously while Mio smiled generously. "Thank you, Kaho-chan," Mio beamed. "I made some for you as well!" In return she handed her own chocolate to Hino while the scarlet haired violin player grinned.

Amou sighed in frustration. "You're surrounded by how many guys and you still don't have a boyfriend, Kaho-chan?" The words came out as if it were almost a crime to do so. "I mean, if it were me I'd definitely snag one of those guys by now…" A little evil laughter escaped her pink lips, twitching in to a crocked upwards grin that scared both Hino and Mio.

"What a waste!" Amou and Nao yelped in unison and Hino couldn't help but laugh.

The day dragged on and Hino had successfully given her homemade chocolates to everyone she had intended to. Well, almost everyone. The final bell of the day had rung and the matter of Tsukimori's chocolate still lingered in the air.

It wasn't that Hino hadn't had a chance; it was simply because she didn't take either of the chances presented to her. "This time… for sure." She whispered to herself as she stood outside the school on the front steps, leaning carefully on one of the large podium-like poles that supported the school. Hino would simply wait for Tsukimori to come out and then present her chocolate to him.

Not a hard plan at all.

Actually, it was quite a simple plan. Hino smiled inwardly to herself. She wanted to tell Tsukimori today. She revised what she was going to say for the umpteenth time that day. Tsukimori-kun, if it's not too much trouble, I made this chocolate for you, please accept it. And I'd like to tell you that for a while now I've been in love with you. I don't want our friendship to change, but as long as you'll allow me to love you, I'm okay with that.

Hino nodded to herself, both her hands concealing the plain white box that she held close to her chest. She nuzzled her neck against her plaid red scarf that matched evenly with her crimson strands of tresses. Hino waited and waited. Before she had realized, the school grounds were deserted. Still, Hino awaited the arrival of the other violinist.

"Violin Romance, eh?" She heard herself question the uninhabited atmosphere. Hino closed her eyes, gently leaning against the pole. "Please hurry up Tsukimori-kun," The longer she waited, the more nerve-wracking the whole scenario became. "I want to give you my chocolate!" She admitted rather loudly, it was reassuring knowing her words were heard by deaf ears. "Hurry so I can give you my chocolate!" Hino chuckled nervously, leaning from one foot to the other.

"If you're looking for that loser, he left from the back about ten minutes ago."

Hino spun around rather quickly, nearly knocking herself off balance. Her face heated up, from the embarrassment due to the fact Tsuchiura had heard her little confession or the fact that Tsukimori was long gone, Hino wasn't quite sure. All she was sure about at the moment was that there was a large sting in the corner of her eyes and the tears were threatening to spill.

"Um…i-it's not like that…really." She managed to stammer, rather uneasily.

Tsuchiura sighed heavily, the small ache in his heart invisible to the latter. "If you start running now, you could probably catch up to him." He smiled weakly at his shorter friend while putting both of his large hands on either of her thin shoulders. "Don't give up now or I won't forgive you, Hino!"

Staring up at Tsuchiura, she brushed away a stray tear. "I won't." Hesitantly, she gave him a small hug, trying not to squish the precious chocolate in the process. "Thanks Tsuchiura." The violin player practically whispered. "You're the best." With that said, steadily she began to pick up her pace and head off in the direction of Tsukimori's house. She stopped only once to look back at her jade haired classmate and she only received small thumbs-up that could have been too easily missed.

Tsuchiura himself leaned back against the school walls before involuntarily sliding down against them. "The best, huh?" He repeated Hino's words warily while watching her run off to catch up with the other violinist. Tsuchiura sighed profoundly,

"Apparently being the 'best' just doesn't cut it."

--

Hino panted heavily, the beads of sweat on her forehead increasing in number. Still unable to catch up with Tsukimori, Hino continued her now unsteady paced jog to his house. Within a few minutes she had reached her destination and hesitantly stood on the front porch. Her fingers hardened, shakily making their way towards the doorbell.

"What are you doing?"

Spinning around, Hino's eyes met directly with another pair of bullion eyes, only darker, more intimidating and colder. All at once, Hino's hands began to shake uncontrollably. "I-I just wanted to…" Remember the words you've practiced Kaho. Hino reminded herself mentally. Unconsciously, Hino lowered her head, stretched out her hands and stuck the plain white wrapped chocolate in Tsukimori's direction. "I-If it's not too much trouble…I-I made this chocolate—"

"Don't want it." Tsukimori injected, his pale hands remained ungloved even in the winter weather. "Now if you'd excuse me, Hino-san, I'd like to practice before dinner." As always, he didn't wait for Hino's response, but gently pushed past her and, using his key, opened the door to his house.

Frantic, Hino tried to go after him. "Wait!" The bold demand held Tsukimori's feet in place. "At least hear me out, Tsukimori-kun." Hino was positive she was shivering from the both the coldness the evening held and Tsukimori's thorough rejection but refused to stop just yet. "I want to give you my chocolate."

Tsukimori, his back to Hino, spoke slowly, his voice hazardously low. "You're quite hypocritical, Hino-san." The words escaped Tsukimori's mouth before he had even realized it. He didn't know why he was so angry at Hino, but he was aware that he wasn't pleased at the fact that she had given chocolates to Hihara, Shimizu, Yunoki… and most annoyingly, Tsuchiura.

He didn't want to be categorized in the same level as Tsuchiura, not considering musical talent or their placement in the female violinist's heart. "I do not need chocolate identical to everyone else, Hino-san. Now, I've got to go practice—" Tsukimori bit his harsh tongue when he turned around to face an almost crying Hino.

Dejectedly, Hino shook her head. "No... It's my fault." She cut her sentence off with a slight sniffle. "I never asked Tsukimori-kun what he wanted… I just assumed."

Tsukimori inwardly cursed himself as the other violinist began to run off, the box of chocolate still clutched delicately in her arms.

Hino slowed her pace down to a small jog, and then completely collapsed on a park bench. Her feet had had enough. Hino stiffened a bit. "Why…?" She muttered plainly to herself as she remained sitting, the numb feeling in her legs slowly fading away and she started to warily open the delicately wrapped package. Why was I dumb enough to even want to give chocolate to him?

In spite of her anger and sadness, she took out the single chocolate and began munching it. "I spend so much time on it too…" She silently stared at the heart-shaped chocolate, or what was left of it. "Stupid… I'm so stupid." The tears continued to streak down her face, now unable to control her emotions any longer, Hino allowed herself to cry.

"I wouldn't go as far as stupid." Tsukimori sighed calmly.

Embarrassed, Hino refused to look up at owner of the familiar voice. Instead, Tsukimori sat down beside Hino, but not so close as to be questioned, or too far away to seem hardhearted. Instead, he sat a fair distance away from the other second-year. Hino tried to hide the chocolate, and the fact that she had already devoured most of it on her own out of sheer disappointment.

"Sorry."

From hearing that single word, Hino's eyes began to feel the same stinging sensation.

"I didn't want Hino-san to put me in the same category… as those guys." He grumbled softly. Hino's eyes widened. "I don't want the same chocolate as them." The words were just coming out; Tsukimori hadn't a clue what he was saying anymore. "I don't want Hino-san to think of me the same way she thinks of them." He closed his eyes coolly; the following words came out relaxed, calm even. "I don't want to only be Hino-san's friend—"

Cutting off his sentence, Hino, shaking, grabbed Tsukimori's clear face and planted a kiss directly on his lips. The fresh taste of chocolate still lingered in her mouth. Stunned, Tsukimori's mouth unwillingly was left ajar at Hino's uncharacteristic actions. Flustered, Hino rapidly shook her head.

"T-That wasn't a kiss." She softly denied. Tsukimori remained frozen in place, still astonished. "T-That was your Valentine's chocolate."

Tsukimori nodded in agreement, the sweet taste of Hino's chocolate, Hino's lips, still remaining on his lips. Flushed himself, Tsukimori's face matched the color of Hino's strawberry hair. He was at a loss for words, unable to describe the new emotion that hatched within him. Luckily for the antisocial Tsukimori, Hino lowly spoke, a little discomfited. "D-Do you want more of your chocolate?" Her gaze didn't meet his, her head titled in the opposite direction.

Tsukimori's head wasn't facing Hino's as well. But unhurriedly, he nodded his head. "…Yeah." Hino smiled shyly as this time Tsukimori was the one to gently grab a hold of her chin with a single finger, tilting her limp head upwards. Both of their eyes closed, their lips met again, the taste of chocolate filling the both of them. Neither deepened the kiss nor did either part until they could no longer gasp for breath.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Hino-san." Tsukimori muttered composedly before going in for another round of Hino's chocolate kisses.

--

One Month Later

Tsukimori gazed up, alarmed although not showing it on his face. It was White Day and that meant that he would have to get something for Hino. Hino had never once mentioned what on earth she would like for White Day. Tsukimori cursed his luck.

It was going to be a long day.

Hey everyone,

I have sad, terrible, tragic and overall pretty crappy news. About 20 minutes ago before typing this, guess what happened? I accidently deleted my most popular one-shot ever made – Ten Tries to Love. For those of you who have read it, you'd know it's about another Tsukimori and Hino pairing, my first story featuring them, actually. Although it was a one-shot it had received well over 100 reviews. (Shocking) I'm so sorry. I'm stupid, I know. I don't even know if there's a way to re-do such a disgusting action. And I'm also sorry to be rambling about this right now. Sorry. Sorry. I don't think that story is coming back. My friend had told me to e-mail Fanfiction themselves, but I don't know if that will work. Anyway, thanks for reading this story. As the ending mentions, there will possibly be a sequel about Tsukimori's White Day. And yes, there was no bus or bus stop as mentioned in the summary; it was just a funny thought that came to me. (I use the public bus a lot) Ah… yes. I guess I'm just really sad about Ten Tries right now. I didn't even bother to save a copy on my USB. Sorry if this story wasn't the best. It was just an idea I had to get out of me for too long now. Anyway, leave feedback if you'd like.

Thanks.