Yoshito's POV:
I was peacefully sleeping. Dreaming about what it would be like to be Miyako's boyfriend. Suddenly, the sound of the door opening woke me up immediately.
"Happy birthday to you!" my mom started singing out loud.
I covered my ears with the pillow, trying to fall asleep again, but my mom kept singing. When she finally fell silent, she started hugging me and kissing me all over my face.
"Mom!" I complained, but she didn't stopped.
After that eternal torture, I went to take a shower and brushed my teeth. I changed my clothes and went down to eat some breakfast with my family. Ryu was sitting there with his sour face and dad drank his coffee while reading the newspaper.
"Good morning" dad and I exchanged.
Mom placed a plate of pancakes in front of me and kissed me on the forehead. I growled at her gesture and she just laughed.
"Enjoy!" she told us after placing Ryu's pancakes on the table.
Ryu began to devour his breakfast like a hungry beast. For my part, I ate slowly as usual. Mom left a plate in front of dad and another one in Yûsuke's place and sat down to eat next to us. A couple of minutes later, Yûsuke arrived at the kitchen with his damp hair falling over his forehead and neck.
"Good morning" he said before taking a seat.
"Good morning" we responded.
"Now that we are all here, I want to give you your gifts!" mom exclaimed.
"Honey, we agreed that we would give them their presents later" dad said.
"I know! But I can't wait to see their reactions!" she exclaimed and dad laughed.
"Okay then" he agreed.
Mom disappeared into the middle of the door frame and returned after a while. In her arms she carried three gift boxes, one for each of us.
"What is it?" I asked her.
"Open it!" she giggled.
Our parents watched us as we opened our presents. Yûsuke got some books and manga, Ryu some sports' equipment and for me, video games.
"Thank you! This is awesome!" I thanked them.
"Yeah! Mom, dad, thanks!" Yûsuke said.
"Yeah, what they said" Ryu added.
Later, we went to the professor's lab for a meeting. Ryu didn't want to come, but we convinced him. Once we were there, we knocked the door.
"Come in!" the professor said and the door opened by it's own.
I followed my brothers inside and noticed everything was dark.
"Um, where are you?" Yûsuke asked.
"Keep going! You're almost there!" that was the professor's voice again.
Suddenly all the lights came on.
"Surprise!" everyone exclaimed, except for Kaoru.
The professor, Ken, Peach, Momoko, Miyako, and even Kaoru, were wearing party hats. It was a surprise party!
"Happy birthday, guys!" Ken exclaimed and Miyako blew a party whistle.
"How did you know that our birthday was today? We didn't tell you anything" Ryu asked.
"I have access to all your personal information on the professor's computer" Kaoru answered him, using a sarcastic tone.
"Gosh, I love this chick!" I heard Ryu mumble.
"Here, Yoshito! Look at the cake I made for you!" Miyako exclaimed.
I took a quick glance at the birthday cake. It was decorated with many strawberries and three candles. It looked appetizing.
"Wow, Miyako! It looks so delicious!" I told her.
She blushed and smiled, what made her look very cute.
"I also have a gift for you" she told me.
"F-for me?" I stuttered, evidently nervous.
"Y-yes" we were both blushing, "but I'll give it to you later."
Yûsuke's POV:
Our surprise party was very nice. We played some games together, we ate like pigs, and we joked around. It was almost dark when I received a call from Nagisa.
"Hello, Nagisa" I replied, catching Momoko's attention.
"Hello, Yûsuke-kun. Happy birthday!" she responded.
"Thank you!" I thanked her.
"Are you busy?" she asked me.
"No, no! Just hanging with some friends" I answered.
"Can we meet somewhere?" she asked me.
"Now?" I scratched my head.
"Yes" she affirmed.
"Alright. I'll meet you at the cafeteria, the same as always" I told her.
"Okay! See you there! Bye!" she sounded happy.
"Bye" I hung up.
"Are you leaving now?" Momoko asked me.
"Yeah. Nagisa wants to see me" I explained to her.
"Alright" she sounded... upset?
"Gotta go" I told the others.
I started to say goodbye to everyone, although I noticed Momoko was somewhat annoyed. The truth is, it wasn't important to me at that moment and I just left. I went to the usual cafeteria to meet Nagisa, who was already there waiting for me. She received me with a big smile and a beautiful gift. She was always very sweet to me.
"Y-Yûsuke-kun" she suddenly called my name.
"Mmm?" I was concentrated on my smoothie.
"Do you have a crush on someone?" she asked me.
I choked on hearing her question, having been caught off guard. Have she noticed? Am I so obvious?
"W-why you ask?" I asked her.
Nagisa's cheeks turned pink, she started to stutter and her hands started to sweat.
"I-I-I" she started playing with her hair and lowered her face, "because I have a crush on someone."
"Oh!" I was surprised to hear that confession.
"Should I ask who it is?" I thought.
"B-but I'm not sure if he likes me too" she said in a sad tone.
"Why wouldn't he? You're pretty cute, intelligent and sweet, really, really sweet" I smiled to her, trying to make her feel better.
Her face was even more red than before.
"Y-you think so?" she touched her cheek.
"Indeed, Nagisa! You always know how to cheer me up and make me forget all my problems!" I smiled even more.
Suddenly, she started crying.
"N-Nagisa? What? D-did I said something bad?" I asked her, obviously worried.
"No" she denied.
"Then why are you crying?" I asked her.
"Because I'm happy. I'm glad you think that about me and that you realized my efforts to please you" she tried to clean her own tears, "from the first moment we met you were very kind to me and protected me. No one has ever cared as much about me as you do."
Nagisa raised her head to face me, with tears still falling from her eyes, but with a sweet smile planted on her face.
"That's why I love you, Yûsuke-kun" she said.
I gasped with surprise.
"You are my crush" she admitted.
I admit it took me by surprise. I didn't know what to answer her at that moment, because her feelings were unrequited and I didn't want to hurt her. It was obvious that I had feelings for Momoko and that I only saw Nagisa as a friend. However, it was difficult for me to tell her the truth.
"N-Nagisa, I-I-" I tried to speak, but she kissed me before I could say anything.
I had no idea that Nagisa could be this daring. On the one hand, I liked that, but on the other hand, I shouldn't let that blind me. I couldn't help but glimpse someone watching us. It was then that I realized that Momoko had seen us.
Ryu's POV:
After the party, I invited Kaoru to the park. Our relationship was better than before and I even dare to affirm that I earned her trust. We were walking next to each other. Without realizing it, I took her hand and we continued walking like this while I told her about my parents.
"My brothers and I have already decided and we are going to ask them about our adoption tomorrow. We hope not to hurt their feelings, we just want to get answers" I explained her.
"Well, that'll be harsh, but" she said and stopped to face me, "I'm sure they'll understand. After all, they must have told you the truth from the beginning."
"Yeah" I nodded and lowered my head.
I glanced at our joined hands. I found it really adorable that she didn't notice. I couldn't help but smile like an idiot.
"What?" she asked me.
She was confused and that made me laugh a little.
"No, nothing. I just like to hold your hand without you complaining or hitting me" I admitted.
"Idiot!" she growled and released my hand.
I laughed again at her angry expression.
"Have I ever told you that you look cute when you get mad?" I asked her.
"Have I ever told you that you're a complete imbecile?!" she growled again.
Not caring how angry she might be, I tugged on her arm and pulled her to me, wrapping her into my arms. She made no resistance, as she didn't lately. I stroked her hair and sniffed it. I love her scent. My heart was pounding as hard as the drums of a rock band. That infinite happiness I felt could only come from her.
"Kaoru" I mumbled.
"Yes?" she whispered me back.
"Do you love me?" I asked her, still holding her.
She squeezed my shirt, but I still waited for her response.
"Please, answer me" I insisted.
"W-why do you ask this awkward things?! Why do you always have to make me feel so vulnerable and stupid?!" she asked me with frustration.
"Fine" I released her and moved away from her a little, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked. J-just... forget it."
I admit that I was disappointed. We had already come so far that I thought I had accomplished something, but it seemed to be taking longer than I thought. I turned and walked on my own, but she took my arm to stop me.
"R-Ryu, I-I-" she stuttered.
I could really tell the effort it was taking for her to speak. However, her pride was always greater.
"It's okay, Kaoru. You don't have to say anything-" I told her.
"Ju-just look at me!" she yelled at me.
I sighed and turned around to face her. It was then that I was in for a big surprise. Kaoru joined our lips in a fast, simple but beautiful kiss that felt wonderful to me. It took me a couple of seconds to react, to realize that I had succeeded. Kaoru was in love with me. I couldn't resist the desire to kiss her again and intensify it a little, although it didn't seem to bother her. Our lips rose sweet and slow as I caressed her hips. I opened my eyes a little and saw her blush. It was not a dream, it was completely real. I didn't want that moment to end, but humans require oxygen to live. We looked at each other, not saying anything. But she wasn't mad anymore. I could tell how happy she was, but also worried. I hugged her once again, but harder this time. So she did.
"Thank you, Kaoru, for making me experiment this joy. I promise to make you happy for the rest of my days, to love you, and to make you feel loved" I told her.
I could feel she was on the verge of crying, so I just hugged her. From now on, that would be my way of understanding her and respecting her feelings.
"I'll never leave you alone" I whispered in her ear.
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Aaaadjjsjgowjckskc!!! Kaoru finally revealed her feelings for Ryu! What a perfect birthday gift! On the other hand, what will be Miyako's gift for Yoshito? And more important, what will happen now between Yûsuke and Nagisa? How will Momoko react to what she has seen? We'll find out in the next chapter!