Chapter Two

My heart was thumping harder than it has ever done so before. As I awaited for her arrival, I began thinking back to all of the times that we have ended up together, whether it was willing or not. Like the first time she became a 'member' (albeit an unwilling member, but a member all the same) of our group. That was also the first time we met Oshizu as well. Sure, she was only coming along as a bossy snob (or so I thought at the time), but still. She always put rules before anything, although those rules were usually thrown out of the window before too long (courtesy of Lala).

Anyway, over time, she began hanging out with us more and more, probably just out of habit (to 'keep an eye on us to make sure we-me and Lala, that is-don't do anything shameful, or something along the lines of that). I chuckled slightly at some of the memories, such as accidentally seeing her naked at the beach. Yet for all of her rules and such, she really began to relax around us, even breaking some of those rules she set.

I think it was the time that I had to bring her some paperwork due to her being sick that I began to really notice her. She always put up such a strong front, and yet she was so vulnerable. Her soft spot for cats was really cute, and even more so when she got all embarrassed about it. Of course, that visit created a couple misunderstandings (such as me accidentally groping her in front of her brother, causing him to assume we were going out or something), but all in all, I think that was probably my favorite moment between the two of us.

A sudden noise caught my notice, and I heard a "I'm home!" coming from the front door. I took a deep breath, steeling myself, and hoped this would go over well.

Imagine the surprised look on Kotegawa Yui's face when she saw me waiting for her in her living room.

"Rito? What are you doing here? W-where is my brother?" she asked. Aww, she's blushing. Maybe this might not go so badly after all…

"He went to go visit Akiho. I had come here to talk about something with him, and thought I'd stay and wait for you." I replied, trying to keep my cool, even though I was sweating more than I had ever done so in my life.

"Oh…I-I see…" She stammered. I didn't know she could turn that shade of red…

Silence reigned for several moments afterward. I half expected her to tell me to leave, yet she still stood there, doing absolutely nothing other than staring at her feet, although the normal color of her face was slowly turning back to normal. It probably wouldn't stay that way for long though, once I began talking…which I might as well get done and over with, before I lose my cool, or, even worse, someone walks in (which Lala has a bad tendency to do so in these situations).

"So…since I'm here, I need to talk to you about something anyway," I started, watching her reaction carefully. If I got that bad of a vibe, I'd high-tail it out of here, telling her to forget about it. So far, so good…

"O-oh really? W-well, then, g-go ahead," She really is cute when she's embarrassed.

"Kote-no, Yui," Her face turned even more red at that, "How long have we known each other?"

"U-Um, about a year or so, I'd say…if you're talking about that we became…f-friends…"

"Oh? We're friends? I thought you thought of the rest of us as shameless acquaintances…" I said, smirking, knowing exactly what her reaction was going to be.

"Well, you are shameless," She huffed, glaring at me. I chuckled; seriously, too cute.

"You know just as well as I do that none of those incidents were intentional." Which was the truth, despite what others thought of it.

"Well, I would have hoped so! But it's still inexcusable!" She snapped. Ok, taking a dangerous turn for the worse here…

"Yes, I know, I know. But we all know Lala won't listen to anything we say, because she just doesn't get Earth customs that well…speaking of which, I'm surprised that you took the fact of aliens and such being real so well." Dammit, I was veering away from my original purpose…or maybe it's better that I keep things casual for now.

"Well, what other excuse would there be? Especially after seeing her inhuman strength." Yui countered.

"Well, there is that. But then, why are so you quick to jump to conclusions, especially after being on the receiving end of Lala's inventions more than once? …Actually come to think of it, why does everyone do that? All I am is the victim…"

"…" I think I actually made her speechless. I shook my head; getting way off task.

"Anyway, that's not what I wanted to talk to you about. Actually, I've heard some rumors, and I wanted to hear the truth from you before I jumped to conclusions." I said conversationally.

"W-what? I mean…w-what rumors?" She asked, obviously nervous.

"Oh nothing much…just the usual rumor of someone liking someone else…" Ok, this was a slight bluff. Although Momo did once mention something about Yui liking me, I had merely brushed it off at the time. Now, however…I was going to take advantage of it. And Yuu had basically said the same thing not too long ago, so…

"O-oh really? I'm not a rumor-monger though…" Oh, it's so cute when you're trying to evade the question, Yui…

"I never said you were. I was talking about the subject of the rumors. Which would be you." Her eyes narrowed slightly at this; here came the most dangerous part. I was ready to run for my life, if necessary.

"Who's been saying stuff about me?" She asked, obviously getting rather pissy at the implications that someone was spreading rumors about her.

"Does it matter? I wouldn't think less of you either way, Yui," That seemed to calm her down slightly, and her face, which was red from anger, was now red from embarrassment. "But…it's the object of your affections that I wanted to ask you about." Her face now drained of color. Looks like I was right on the money. I had to quickly intervene before she reacted very negatively.

"Hey, I already said that I wouldn't judge you, Yui. You're free to like who you want to. There's nothing wrong with that."

"B-but, it's shameful!" She then muttered something under her breath, angrily, it seemed. Now was the moment of truth.

"I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that." I prodded her, which had the desired effect of her glowering at me, and sure enough…

"I said why did I have to fall in love with someone like you!" She snarled, only to have the color drain from her face yet again. Now here was the tricky part; returning the feelings before she exploded.

"Ah. I thought it was something like that. And you thought it was shameful to like someone like me?" I asked, amused.

"Y-yes! Look at all of the things you do with Haruna and Lala and-!"

"Whoa whoa whoa! Calm down, Yui!" I shouted, trying to diffuse the situation. It didn't work. Not that I expected it to.

"No! What is it about them that you find so attractive?" Oh no. Not this kind of talk. I had really hoped to avoid this. "Is it because I'm too bossy? That I don't have Lala's chest or Haruna's curves or-"

I finally silenced her. I risked it all on my actions, and yet it seemed to knock her speechless. And senseless. She raised her hands to her lips, obviously trying to make sense of what just happened. My own lips were still warm from being pressed against hers.

"I did like them, Yui. And I still do." She got a hurt look on her face. "I'd be lying if I said I didn't. But…I only love one person." I got closer to her. "And that person is you. It took me forever to realize it, but I finally understood why I couldn't pick between Lala and Haruna. It was because there was someone else. Someone else that I had fallen in love with. And it was with the last person I would've expected." I put my hands on either side of her face, caressing her cheeks.

"I love you, Yui." And with that, I claimed her lips once again. At first, nothing happened. Then, she began to return my kiss. It only lasted a few seconds, and yet if felt like a millennium. And at the end of that millennium…I heard clapping. The two of us leapt apart, looking at the door.

At the door, there stood everyone. Yuu was clapping like an idiot, Akiho was smiling, and everyone else's jaw was somewhere near their ankles. Well, except for Lala's and Yami's, but that's to be expected. I glanced at Yui, and her face was probably just as red as mine, if not more.

Lala finally squealed. I flinched; I sensed a very awkward moment approaching…

"Oh my god, Rito! I would've never have guessed that you were working so hard on a polygamous relationship!" I face faulted at that; leave it to Lala to say something like that.

"No, Lala, I'm not working on a polygamous relationship. I'm in love with Yui." I said firmly.

"But…weren't you in love with Lala and Haruna, Onii-chan?" Mikan asked.

I sighed. This explanation was going to take forever. 'And yet,' I thought, as I looked over at Yui, and, noticing the smile on her face, I grinned. 'I wouldn't have it any other way.'