Thanks to everyone for the nice reviews on my last fic!I hope you will like this one as well,even if its a rantaku and not a ranmasa :3

Colour , size,flexibility, Shindou wasn't sure how many times he's heard of those things before Kirino actually –and finally- managed to buy his new pair of hair-ties. Don't get him wrong, he liked his best friend's company, hanging out with him in town was one of the things he liked most and was used to since childhood, but… everyone has flaws right? Kirino has his hair and everything else that comes with them. From shampoo to hair ties. If buying a new "special hair cream" meant spending hours searching for the most useful, scented one, then buying hair-ties meant spending all the afternoon trying on those for him.

"Lucky you have long hair as well, heh!" Shindou was sure that was the pink-haired boy's way of apologizing for he has heard those words at the end of their chores lot of times before "Well…I guess that helps us doing your shopping faster" and he was more than sure, that Kirino was playing dumb on purpose to avoid the hidden prayer to "stop bringing him along and use as a model for the hairstyle", every single time he would answer like that.

Of course, his best friend was smart. He knew the brunette would never ask him directly to stop,since he was the one always helping him out with his music issues.

"I'm so tired!"

Shindou gave the other a puzzled look "I wouldn't call that tiring, more like…embarrassing." Kirino let a small giggle come out from him "Oh come on, you're whining a lot today! Don't you enjoy having all the girls squealing for you?" the defender knew right along how to make his captain blush "Don't say that. You are the one getting all the attention in those shops" Kirino sighed "That's because they think I'm a girl" "Well you shop like one" "Hey!" the brunette laughed lightly at his friend reaction "Sorry, slipped out" the other one rolled his eyes before enjoying the silence of the road on the riverbank they took on their way home.

"You know…" Shindou looked up to him "…it's not that I like to spend hours like that,even if it seems so to you" the playmaker frowned a bit at his words "What do you mean?" that gave him the right to continue his words "Well…I'm not like you." Kirino stopped on his tracks, forcing the other to follow.

"Of course not. You play in a different role and-" "It's not soccer I'm talking about!" Kirino rolled his eyes. Even if he knew Shindou was a genius at school, soccer or piano, he also knew he was quite the naïve type when it came to "life experience".

"I mean…look at us. We both have long hair, but you don't have to tie them up to look manly."

Shindou blinked few times before actually realizing what his friend was trying to say "Kirino…being confused for a girl…you know that has always happened to us,so what's wrong with that now?"

The defender shook his head "That's not true… It's right when you say you've been mistaken for a girl as well,but that was in our kindergarten years. Being a child with long hair is strange,besides, I think everyone thought of you as a girl because you cried a lot back then." Shindou blushed slightly and tried to open his mouth again to answer,but was shut by Kirino once again "That has never been for the way you look. I mean…your face, eyes, lips…" the playmaker saw the other one awkwardly averting his eyes from him as he stayed there in silence for a bit after those words. He sighed, unsure of what to do before realizing not answering at all wasn't the best thing anyway

"Kirino, there's nothing to be embarrassed about. You know all the people that at first mistake you, suddenly realize you're a boy when they talk to you" "yeah,something to be proud about…" he rolled his eyes at the sarcastic words. Shindou kept silent for a bit before sighing "Kirino…practice this morning must have been too intense, and spending all the afternoon walking around the town sure didn't help. You must be tired, why don't you go home and take some rest?" the pink-haired guy looked at his friend. Shindou was smiling at him in the sweet and caring way he always did. No surprise he was one of the most popular boys in school "..yeah" he knew it was just his way of taking care of him,but…that didn't help at all? Saying some encouraging words on the field was okay,but..that was a completely different matter. Still, he ended up smiling a bit "Sorry" talking about something like that with Shindou was useless since it wasn't really such a big deal his friend should bother about anyway. In the end he could cut his hair and maybe puberty will help out sooner or later or-

"Kirino" the called boy looked up again snapping out of his thoughts when he noticed his captain was already back to walk "What is?"

Shindou smiled "…I think you are beautiful by the way."

The other one looked startled "T-That…now..!" "Who cares if people mistake you for a girl?"

and again with that smile Kirino was sure has made lots of victims before. And since he felt his cheeks heat up he must have been one of those too "D-Don't say such…!" but then the brunette smirked. Kirino blinked few times before it hit him. Ah!

"Beautiful?! What do you mean by beautiful!? I'm a boy! You should have at least said handsome!" Shindou's laughing sound made the defender pout "You said that on purpose right?!Shindou!"

but he was already walking faster "Hey! Don't you dare run away! Shindou!"

"You are too slow!"

Kirino smiled even if he sure was paying attention to not let the other one notice.

Yeah,who cares if everyone mistook him for a girl when his best friend thought he was beaut-…handsome ?

"Wait for me!"