Detective and His Pianist (Saimatsu) [ORIGINAL]

(Chapter 10) It's Done

Shuichi's POV

"Akamatsu?" She looks at me, head still on my shoulder.
"I want to ask you something.."
"What is it?" She asks.
"Well," I hesitate for a moment.
"Give me a second," I ask of her. She sits up straight and looks at the view. I turn my head away so it's harder for her to hear.
"Rantaro! Should I really do this Infront of Kaito and the others??" I whisper.
"It's fine, I convinced him to leave you guys alone. Have at it," Rantaro replies. Thank god, I didn't want to get teased for the rest of my life.

"Akamatsu.." I said. She looks back at me.
"What is it?" She asks.
"I.... uh.... I-I.. I need..." I stutter. She tilts her head, genuinely concerned for me.
"You know what? Let's just continue walking," I stood up. I'm still not ready yet.
"Dude! You literally just had your opportunity! What're you doing?!" Rantaro tells me.
"I'm not ready yet! Give me a moment!" I reply.
"Hey, how could you hear my conversation? Are you also stalking me?!" I realise.
"Uh, your earpiece has a microphone?" Rantaro scoffs. Right, forgot about that.

...

I still don't know how to confess to her. It is not an easy task for me, okay? She's like waay out of my league, and she'll most likely reject me..
Or maybe Rantaro is right, and she does like me back. But, how can he be so certain? I'm the one with her and I'm not so confident myself. What do I do? What do I do whatdoidowhatdoido?!
I got to think of something quick if I want to confess during the date. But what the hell do I say?? This is too much power of freedom for me, I can't handle this. If this is some elaborate prank from Rantaro, there's gonna be a body discovery..

"Saihara.. are you okay?" Kaede asks. She noticed my obvious nervousness.
"Uhm.. let's just get back to the main entrance, then I'll tell you.." I answer. She has a genuine look of concern and worry on her face, but decides to go along with it anyway. The main entrance is coincidentally next to the lake that Kaito and I work out at.
How the hell am I gonna word this? What am I gonna say??
I just gotta think of something before we reach the main entrance, and then we'll find out what she says.
Okay.. fine. What do I say though?? What words can I put together to express my crush on Kaede for over a year now-
"Okay, we're at the main entrance! What do you wanna tell me?" Kaede tilts her head a little and smiles.
"Alright. It's showtime. Don't mess it up," Rantaro tells me.
"Promise you won't tease me?" I ask, as quiet as I can be.
"Promise," he replied. Alright, I guess I actually have to do this. I hope I don't mess up..

"Akamatsu.. god, how do I even word this? Let's walk over to that lake first, it feels more appropriate there."
We walked over to the lake. It was sparkling in the sunset light.
"Okay... Akamatsu, I know this was out of place and happening all of a sudden, but.. everything I've said about you has been true, I mean it. Ever since I've fallen for you when we locked eyes in middle school, I had this crush on you for almost two years. I'm in love with you, but I'm completely fine if you reject me, and I hope we could stay friends if you do," I swiftly said. I felt much more relieved getting that off my chest for some reason. Kaede looks at me in shock.

We stood here for a while.

"Okay, you win now, Saihara, you can stop the act.." Kaede nervously laughs.
"It's not an act. It's true, my confession is absolutely true," I replied.
"Look, it's fine if you don't like me back, I'm perfectly fine with that, it's jus-"
Kaede puts her hand over my mouth to shut me up.
"Saihara.. if this is not a joke, then.. I've had the same feelings for you too. Sure, it may not be for almost two years, but I have also grown affectionate feelings for you," Kaede tells me. She.. really does love me back?

"See, what did I tell you? Like a miracle made in heaven," Rantaro tells me.
"Uhm.. so, since we've basically revealed our feelings for each other, does that mean we're like... in a romantic relationship now?" Kaede asks.
"I don't know, I never think I would get this far.. Besides, this is my first time," I respond.
"Me too.. I guess this counts??" Kaede shrugs.

"So, like... do we kiss, or..?" Kaede asks.
"Honestly, maybe we should start out slow," I suggest.
"Okay.. a hug?" She asks, again.
I look at her for a little while, before pulling her into a hug. She was a little surprised at first. Honestly, I would be too. She slowly eased into the hug, before hugging me back.

"I love you... Shuichi," she says.
"I love you too, Akamatsu," I respond.
"Come on! We're dating now, you don't need to be so formal!" Kaede giggles a little.
"Okay.. Kaede," I oblige.

...

I honestly regret saying that we should start out slow. But now even if I kiss Kaede, I'll just look like a hypocrite. Welp, patience is a virtue, I guess..
We walked home together. It was 8pm, and unlike yesterday, Kaede didn't want to come over to my house this time. We didn't have anything to do anyway.
I eventually reached my house, thinking about what we are gonna do together.
I opened my doors to see my uncle already inside, reading his newspaper.
"You're home early," I mention.
"It's a Sunday, I always get off early on Sundays," he answers.
I keep forgetting a lot of things today, jeez.
"Wait, you came home yesterday at 8.. what about that?" I ask.
"Oh yeah. Boss saw me absolutely stressed to death, so he let me go a little early," he tells me.
"Dang, you're lucky that your boss cares about you," I joke with him. He chuckles.
"You know, you're awfully cheery today. Wanna tell me something?" He asks.
"Hmmm... I'll keep it a secret!" I tease.
"Ah, secretive type. Okay, okay, I see you!"
I walk up to my room. I still wanted to talk to Kaede, so I decided to call her up.

...

We spent two hours video chatting and enjoying each other, when I hear a knock on my door.
"Hey, tomorrow's your first day of second year, so sleep early okay? I'm gonna go to bed." My uncle speaks up.
"Okay! Thanks!" I respond. He walks away.
"I'm guessing you're going to bed?" Kaede asks.
"Yeah. Wanna get up early to school tomorrow so I could see you again," I flirt. She flares up and tries to hide it while I giggle. She's really adorable, you can't prove it otherwise.
We said goodbye, and hung up. I went to sleep, knowing that I'll see Kaede again..

A.N: I'm finished!! The confession was suprisingly difficult to pull off, but I think I did well! I'm sorry I spent an entire weekend on, like, one chapter that's not even longer than the others, but hey, worth the wait! Right? (please)
Have a nice day!