After thinking a lot, Riko finally chose to tell her how he feels — but you know that fear that eats you up inside, especially when the person you like is your enemy and competitor? Yeah, that kind.
It was a rainy afternoon after school.
Lily stood under the school building's roof, waiting for the rain to stop. Of course, she'd forgotten her umbrella again.
Ellie walked by, twirling hers with a smug smile. "Aww, no umbrella again?" she teased.
Before Lily could reply, Riko appeared out of nowhere.
"Babe, why didn't you bring your umbrella?" he said, loud enough for Ellie to hear. "It's okay, get under mine."
He only said babe to make Ellie jealous — but Lily couldn't deny that the word made her stomach flip.
"Sure, babe," she replied, smirking a little just to play along.
They walked off together, and after a moment of silence, Riko spoke.
"I thought you hated me."
"I do," she replied instantly.
"Then why'd you call me babe?" he asked.
"To make her jealous…" she muttered.
"Ooooh, right," he said teasingly, but both of them couldn't stop smiling the entire walk home.
And that night, neither of them could stop thinking about each other.
Lily decided she'd confess soon.
Riko decided he'd confess first.
---
The next day, after school.
Lily was alone in an empty classroom, reading If Cats Disappeared From This World. Rain tapped gently against the window.
Riko suddenly appeared at the door.
"Lily? What are you doing here? You okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just… chilling," she said softly.
"You forgot your umbrella again, didn't you?"
"예!" she laughed.
"私は知っていた!" he said with a grin.
Then came the teasing.
He leaned against her desk, smirking. "You seriously can't go one day without forgetting your umbrella, huh?"
Lily rolled her eyes. "So what if I forget?"
"Maybe you want me to walk you home again," he teased.
"What—no! Who said that?"
"You didn't need to. Your eyes did."
Lily blushed hard. "You're so full of yourself, Riko."
"Maybe," he said, chuckling. "But at least I'm not the one blushing just 'cause I got called babe yesterday."
"Y-yah! That was just to make Ellie jealous!" she stammered.
He leaned closer. "Sureee… keep telling yourself that."
"Why do you care anyway?" she mumbled.
He smiled softly. "Maybe I just liked the way it sounded… coming from you."
Lily froze, gripping her book tighter. "You're joking."
He tilted his head. "Am I?"
Just then—BOOM! thunder cracked outside.
Lily flinched and grabbed his sleeve on reflex.
He looked down at her hand.
She realized, pulled back immediately, cheeks red. "I-I didn't mean to—"
He laughed quietly. "You sure? 'Cause you looked pretty comfy there."
"Shut up!" she said, hiding her face behind her book.
Riko gently tugged the book down so their eyes met, only inches apart.
Neither of them moved.
Just rain, silence, and two racing hearts.
He swallowed nervously. "Lily… can I tell you something?"
Her voice was barely a whisper. "What?"
"I–I wanted to tell you this for a long time," he said, hiccuping nervously.
She blinked. "What?"
"Are you… dating anyone?"
She frowned. "No, why?"
He inhaled deeply. "It's just that… I-I like you. Like—not just like like you. I love like you!"
Lily's eyes widened.
He finally did it.
"Y-you l-like m-me?"
"Yes! You!"
"A-are you making fun of me?"
"No, never!"
"C-cuz I like you t-too… the lov-love like!"
Riko blinked, not believing what he just heard.
"You… you like me back?" he asked softly, eyes wide.
Lily nodded shyly, staring at the floor. "I—I do. The… love like kind."
For a moment, neither of them spoke. Just the sound of rain tapping against the window and their hearts beating way too fast.
Then Riko suddenly started laughing.
"W-what? Why are you laughing!" Lily said, pouting a little.
He shook his head, trying to calm down. "It's just—this is so… us. You confessing like it's a tongue-twister and me hiccuping through mine."
She puffed her cheeks. "Well, at least we both suck at being romantic."
He chuckled and took a small step closer, voice softening. "Yeah… but it still felt perfect."
Lily looked up at him, meeting his eyes — and suddenly realized how close he actually was.
Like, dangerously close. Her brain went blank.
"Riko…" she whispered.
He tilted his head, smiling slightly. "Yeah?"
"You're standing way too close."
He grinned, pretending to step back but stopping halfway. "Oh, am I?"
She tried to glare but failed miserably, her cheeks bright red.
"I swear, you're impossible," she muttered.
He leaned a bit closer again, just enough for her to feel his breath.
"Maybe," he said softly, "but now I'm your impossible."
Her heart did a full Olympic flip. She opened her mouth to reply—
—but then another thunder crack boomed through the classroom.
Without thinking, she flinched and ended up bumping into him. His hands instinctively went around her to steady her.
Time. Froze.
Both of them froze in that position, faces just inches apart, breathing uneven.
Her eyes darted to his lips for half a second before she quickly looked away, face burning.
"I—uh… should probably… go," she stammered.
"In this rain?" he teased, still not letting go.
"I'll just—uh, wait till it stops…"
"Then I'll wait too."
He smiled, finally releasing her, scratching the back of his neck awkwardly.
"So… I guess we're a thing now?" he asked with a tiny smirk.
Lily covered her face with her book, muffling her voice. "Shut up, Riko…"
He laughed quietly, whispering, "That's fine. I'll take that as a yes."
And outside, the rain kept falling — like the world itself was clapping for them.
_________________________________________________________________::______________________________________
Next chapter sneak peek -:
"He's my childhood bestfriend, Riko!"
Next chapter: "The Jealousy".