I'm sorry it's taken so long for me to get this chapter out. I agonized for some time over what I was going to do next in the story. However, I suddenly found myself inspired to finish this chapter when I received a review from the extremely talented Elle Rita. (It was such a total fanboy moment for me when I saw the review!) Anyway, I hope you guys will like this.

I'd also like to thank knifestick, Sapphirebloo, Liber-T.E.A., Catalog Cats, flamingbunnies, and emerlyluff for taking the time to leave reviews and let me know what you all thought about this. Thank you all, so much!

Part 3

Life is hardly ever a simple affair... It has a tendency to bring about the unexpected. And when this happens, it's often best to simply just go along with whatever life throws your way. Case in point, Koiwai had never planned to adopt a young child after graduating. Yet here he was, the parent of a seven year old girl at the age of twenty-seven!

Not that he regretted having Yotsuba in his life, quite the opposite in fact. And of course, it wasn't as if the curve-balls that life had thrown him were all bad. Much like how the mysterious little girl had been thrust upon him, something else had been thrust upon- and fairly recently as well! To his amazement, Fuuka had- in a roundabout way- confessed her feelings to him. And while he didn't know what this said about him, he'd replied with a similarly vague admission of his own.

He was a grown man, well into his 20s while Fuuka was only 18. While he was relatively settled in life, she was a third year in high school and still planning her future. She was cute and energetic- often brimming with enthusiasm. So it came as a surprise to the translator when the dark-haired girl (with the cute eyebrows) had revealed her feelings to him... Fuuka Ayase liked him!

And, if he was perfectly honest... he liked her as well. In theory at least, there wasn't anything all that wrong with said arrangement. And yet he knew full well that there was no way that either of them could let anyone know about any of this... Well, not yet anyway.

Koiwai stopped typing and leaned back to regard his work for a moment. He silently wondered what anyone would think about about it. He knew that it wasn't something he could talk to with Jumbo- and he sure as hell had no intention of discussing it with Yanda! And then of course, there was the Ayases to consider as well. While he wasn't really scared of reprisal, he reasoned that it was best that they not know about it for the time being.

And so, here he was... Stumped as to what to do now that the initial confession phase of things was over. What happened now? What possibly could be the next step in a situation like this? There were so many factors to contend with! Koiwai rubbed the bridge of his nose, feeling that after his musings, he'd been left with more questions than answers.

...o.o.o...

Fuuka had departed from her house as night was falling, with the intention of stopping off at the nearby convenience store to get some energy drinks. She was busy studying for her finals and her college entrance exams and wanted to stay alert and focused as much as possible.

By chance, she'd spotted Koiwai outside (taking out the trash) and waved him over to her. Thankfully, he'd put on a pair of pants before going outside. The middle Ayase daughter had then effectively strong-armed him into walking with her (or 'escorting her', as she put it.) Fuuka was dressed in her school-issue running suite, a navy blue out with with gold trim.

"Um, I'm not really complaining... but could explain to me why you need me to come with you?" He asked as they walked down the street.

Fuuka smirked. "I'd think it was obvious." She began. "It's dark out, so it's clearly far too dangerous for a defenseless girl like me to be walking by myself- some pervert might grab me!" She explained somewhat melodramatically... considering that they lived in a good neighborhood.

Koiwai shook his head as they walked. "You know, Fuuka..." He began. "You sound awfully certain, but how can you be so sure that you can trust me?" He asked her. "I mean, you never know when a guy could turn out to be a wolf." He reasoned.

She looked up at him. "Are you a wolf, Koiwai-san?"

He blushed faintly at her question. "No, of course not! I'm just saying-"

"That's all I needed to hear." She replied with a smile. "This may surprise you, but I'm not completely clueless when it comes to those sort of things." Fuuka continued. "And I don't spend time with you because I'm naive... I do it because I know you're not that sort of man."

"Wow... Then does that mean that you really do think of me as your boyfriend?" He asked, smiling as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Gah!" She exclaimed, her cheeks turning a cute pink color as she blushed. "You dummy! Don't ask such a dumb question!" She exclaimed. "I can't believe that you'd tease me like that, especially when you already know my feelings!" She chastised him.

"I'm sorry..." Koiwai replied nervously. "I guess I can't help it sometimes because you always have such a cute reaction." He added, giving her a bashful smile.

Fuuka crossed her arms and huffed, her lower lips jutting out slightly as she pouted. Though the result ended up being more cute than indignant. The two of them continued on for a moment, but Koiwai stopped when he suddenly felt her tug at his t-shirt sleeve.

Koiwai turned to look at her. The translator observed that she now had a fairly serious expression on her face. "Fuuka...?"

Fuuka looked at him intently for a moment. "Koiwai-san, do you really think I'm... cute?" She asked, a tinge of uncertainty in her voice.

He smiled at her and nodded. "Absolutely."

...o.o.o...

Fuuka and Koiwai were making their way back down the street from the Circle K. Fuuka was carrying her energy drinks in a convenience store bag. The two had remained relatively silent after leaving the store. About halfway back, the teen stopped and looked up at him.

Koiwai stopped and glanced down at her. She suddenly reached up and put hand on the side of his head, just behind his ear, and pulled him down towards her. But what really shocked him happened right after this- she moved in and kissed him on the cheek! Then, just as abruptly as she'd done it, she let go of him and pulled back.

Fuuka stepped back and, while still blushing, gave him a big smile. "I'll go on ahead and, then you can show up a few minutes later." She explained to him. "After all, we don't want to look too suspicious." She offered, giving him a small wave before taking off on her own.

He reached up to feel his cheek where she'd kissed him. Koiwai blushed faintly as he thought about it , while as she disappeared. "Wow..."

Koiwai walked back into his house, trying to compose himself as he shut the door. He straightened himself up as he attempted to shake off his confusion. It was then he suddenly recalled his 'wolf' exchange with the young woman, his mind starting to wonder...

"Oh my, Koiwai-san, what big teeth you have?"

"Aw man... No no no!" He muttered to himself, trying to rid himself of the image of the unnervingly tantalizing image of Fuuka in a red hooded-cloak. With that, Koiwai quickly raced off to go look over his translating work...

...o.o.o...

Meanwhile, next door in the Ayase Household, Fuuka arrived in her room. She closed the door and slipped off her school running suite

Fuuka paused and looked at herself in the mirror. She put her hands on her hips and inspected her figure for a moment. She made a face at her reflection, then crossed her arms- pushing her breasts up slightly in the process. The dark-haired girl then looked down at her hips and legs for a moment, deciding that they looked fine- certainly not fat by any means!

Satisfied with her observations, Fuuka quickly took out a pair of (green and blue plaid) pajamas and changed into them. She then took a seat at her desk. She became silent for a moment as she sat, before a smile slowly graced her features...

Fuuka smiled to herself as she opened one of her energy drinks. While she'd never openly admit it to anyone, the teen had secretly taken a lot of pleasure from the shocked expression Koiwai had when she'd left him. Perhaps now she'd given him something to think about for the next time when he considered teasing her!

(- End of Part 3 -)

Sorry that this chapter ended up being a bit on the short side, but I wanted to get a new chapter out after so much time. Still, it was hard coming up with new things to write after the confession, but I still think this chapter ended up turning out alright. I hope you guys enjoyed this, and I'll try and have a new (and hopefully longer) chapter up sooner.

-Bojack727