[N] We're Just Friends

Mid-November’s cold air bit at Anon’s nose as cold winds snaked their way around his exposed face, it was nowhere near the time for snow but it sure felt like it, at least to him. He leaned against a frigid lamp post and stared down at the ground aimlessly, his hands shoved in his pockets.
He’d long since lost interest in the dumb rhythm games on his phone, he sighed and watched as his breath clouded in front of his face before trailing off into thin air, they were going to be late at this point.
Finally footfalls came into earshot, it was enough to drag the boy’s attention from the pavement. A fairly small girl in an almost plain white dress rounded the street corner and approached him, panting.

Anon spoke, his tone was flat. “You’re late.”
“Yeah? Well maybe you’re just early.”
The boy stood up from his leaning position and looked the girl up. Her outfit wasn’t anything special, just a white dress, adorned with some red stripes here and there for a splash of colour, her hair was done up in its usual twin pigtail get up, pearls shone brightly on her ribbons.

“What are you looking at?”
“Nothing really, are you ready to go?”
“Hang on a second.”
Suddenly the girl’s hands flew upward and took hold of Anon’s bow tie, adjusting it slightly. She then dusted his tuxedo with a single hand.
“God, did you even wash this thing Anon?”
“Why bother? I’m not exactly invested in this thing.”
“You could have at least put some effort in.”
A grin etched its way across his face. “Besides, everyone’s going to be looking at you, not me.”
The girl’s eyes widened in shock momentarily, a slight pink tinge filled her cheeks.
“W-What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing, can we go now?”
“Fine.”

They set off, Anon’s hands were still nestled snugly in his pockets. As they walked he felt a small arm snake through the gap between his arm and his side, holding on loosely.
“You remember we’re just going as friends, right?”
“Of course.”
“Good, I don’t want anyone thinking I’m dating you or anything.”
“You wish.”

Normally he’d feel a small fist knock against his shoulder or at least receive some snide comment about how he was the one who wanted it but nothing came, just a dull silence that matched the cold night air around them.
Eventually the girl’s quiet voice broke the silence, it was almost a faint murmur.
“Anon?”
“Yeah?”
“W-What do people do at proms?”
“Wait, you’re telling me you’ve never been to one?”
She shuffled awkwardly.
“Well, no one ever invited me.”
“Oh, I’m sorry."
“It’s not your fault idiot, don’t apologise.”

Anon couldn’t decide whether he was surprised or not. Her brash attitude wasn’t exactly the most welcoming, but a girl as cute and surprisingly lovable as her must have had at least one invitation thrown her way at some point.
“Well?”
“I’m honestly not sure, I know there’s drinks and dancing, but that’s about it.”
“You’ve never been either huh?”
“No.”
“Odd…”
“Odd? Why odd? He wasn’t exactly the go-to guy to be going to prom with.” He thought.
He paused briefly. “There’s the slow dance.”
“The slow dance?”
“It’s some romantic bull couples do, they dance slowly to some love song or whatever.”
“Oh...”

Another brief pause.
“Anon?”
“Yeah?”
He could already hear the question before she even said it. His heartbeat picked up speed as he tried to prepare himself for it.
“C-Can we slow dance together?”
Anon looked down at the girl and raised an eyebrow. She managed to stammer out a response.
“I just want to see what it’s like, okay?”
“Alright, we can slow dance together if you really want.”
“Of course I do, w-why else would I ask?”
The two fell back into silence and kept walking.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The awkwardness between the two had lessened slightly as they approached the entrance of the school’s sports hall, Natsuki was practically bouncing next to Anon who could only eye the doors, his gaze lacking any form of interest.
They showed their tickets to the bouncer and were ushered in, two pats from a thick hand struck Anon on the back of the shoulder as they passed the rotund guard.
The sports hall had been given a complete make over, ribbons and banners hung from the ceiling dotted with balloons and other sparkling details. Colourful disco lights darted around the room, spots of colour pooling on the hardwood floor below, Anon felt the girls arm tighten around his as she cowered ever so slightly.

“Let’s find a table in the corner.”
He could tell she was nervous, scanning along the edges of the main dance floor he spotted an empty table close to the corner and took off, dragging the girl along with him.
“Hey, watch it. I’m coming jeez.”

The two sat down, Natsuki let out a deep sigh of relief and propped her elbows on the table, holding her head in her hands. Anon reached over the white table placed a hand on her shoulder.
“Hey, Natsuki.”
She didn’t respond, he shook her gently and spoke again.
“Are you okay?”
“Y-Yeah, there’s just more people than I thought there would be.”

The boys grip loosened and he took his jacket off and slung it over the back of his chair. Truth be told he wasn’t exactly fond of large crowds either, but he was willing to step out of his comfort zone for the girl’s sake.
After a while the girl opposite him lifted her head and placed her chin on her now interlocked hands, staring at Anon who was watching other couples and larger groups of people hang out. Slowly the feeling of being watched crept up his spine and sent tingling ripples through his back, he turned and caught her pair of pink irises staring into him. He returned the smile she was wearing which prompted a familiar faint pink colour to wash over her cheeks, Anon’s following suit.


A sudden feeling of awkwardness gripped Anon as they held their gaze, he stood quickly as his face flushed even more.
“How about some drinks?”

Before the girl could even respond he tore off towards the punch table, letting out a sigh as he picked up a pair of glasses and shuffled over to the punch bowl. He cursed himself quietly, by now he should be able to look the girl in the eyes, only God knew how many times they’d shared fleeting glances at once another over the past few months.
Out of nowhere something tapped him on the back and a familiar voice called his name, he turned to meet the emerald green eyes of Monika, the literature clubs president.

“Anon?”
“O-Oh, hey Monika.”
“I thought you said you weren’t coming? Who are you here with? Sayori?”
“No actually, Sayori said she was too backed up with homework or something.”
“So Natsuki then? Yuri isn’t the type for these get-togethers, let’s be honest.”
“Yeah, we’re just here ‘as friends’ though.”
He raised his hands and made the air-quotes gesture, causing the girl to giggle into her palm.
“Really now? I bet you wish it was much more though, Anon.”
“Maybe a little. How’d you figure that?”
She gave him a teasing grin. “Just a hunch I suppose.”

Silence fell momentarily as Monika took a drink from her own glass.
“Well, I should get back to the girls. It was nice seeing you Anon.”
“You too, Monika. See you later.”
Monika gave him a jovial “Mhm!” before turning and trotting off towards a group of girls, her sunflower yellow dress fluttering around her legs as she did so. Anon returned to the bowl and filled his glasses with punch, setting off towards the table again.


As Anon had made his way back to the table in the corner he froze in place suddenly, his stomach churned violently and his heart jumped into his throat as he caught sight of his ‘date’ who was almost obscured by a much larger figure, leaning over her and swaying ever so slightly.
He approached the table and set the drinks down before placing a firm hand on the figures shoulder and turning it to face him. He was met with a face wrought with drunken malice, glassy unfocused eyes and an almost sadistic grin to match his overall demeanour, clearly he must have had the wrong person or something as he straightened up and glared down at Anon.

“Who you think you are pal?”
Anon’s blood was boiling, newfound confidence tore through him like an animal through the brush, lunging for its prey.
“I think you’ll find I’m her date.”
“You? Yeah sure, and I’m the bloody king of England. Fuck off mate.”
The figure stifled a laugh, he was much larger than Anon but it didn’t have any effect on the boy, not now that his date and, in totality his night was in trouble. The bully finally let out a full cackle only for it to be drowned out by pulsing music, his beady eyes glared right through Anon, burning.

“Listen dweeb. Why don’t you fuck off eh? Little girl is with me now.”
“Who are you calling little?!”
Out of nowhere a small foot lunged at the back of the figures leg and hit its mark causing him to buckle a little. Anon took the opportunity and swung a fist at the figures head as hard as he could, connecting with the side of his face. The thug stumbled away from the table slightly, Anon shifted his position and put himself between figure and Natsuki who was now standing behind him, his chest puffed out as far as it would go.

“Take a hint, ‘mate.’ She isn’t interested.”
“Why you little fucking shit.”
A few others had surrounded the two by now, as the thug threw himself at Anon he was grabbed from behind by a few bystanders who struggled against his strength, before either Anon or the figure could inch any closer to each other however a large man in a full black suit shoved past the boy and grabbed the thug and dragged him from the room by force.

Slowly the party resumed to normal after the commotion ended, guests had returned to dancing and grinding against one another to thumping disco music. Anon had sat down again and rested his forehead on his hand, rubbing it gently. The girl across the table had her arms crossed.
“I could have handled him myself you know.”
“Sure thing Natsuki.”

There was a pause before something wet struck the boys cheek, he turned to see Natsuki retracting to her seat again, she refolded her arms and looked away from him bashfully.
“T-Thank you though…”
Anon smiled warmly as he lifted his drink and took a swig.
“No problem, Natsuki.”
“Can we leave though? I’m not really enjoying this as much as I thought I would.”
“Sure, no shame in calling it an early night. We can leave after the slow dance. Sound good?”
“I mean... We don’t need to call it an early night. Right?”
The boy almost choked on his punch as she said this, was she implying what he hoped she was?


Finally the room went dark, only to be replaced with uncoloured lights washing the main dance floor in a white glow. The music stopped momentarily before changing to something slower and much more romantic, if not a little sultry. This was it.
The couple stood, Anon took the girl’s hand in his own and led her to the dance floor alongside all the other couples, they stuck to the edge so that they could escape back to the solace of their table as soon as the song was over. Anon turned to Natsuki and looked down at her, an awkward and surprised look streaked across his face. This was the best chance he was going to get tonight.

“Anon I don’t know how this works.”
“Just do what I do, let me lead. Okay?”
“Okay Anon.”
Anon placed his arm around her, perching his hand on her shoulder. She did the same as Anon linked their free hands together and raised them to shoulder height. Natsuki looked up at him with widened eyes, her lower lip quivering gently.
“You trust me, right?”
“Y-Yes.”
“Alright then, follow my lead.”

He stepped slowly, the girl tried to emulate his movements, getting better as the dance went on. They stared into each other’s eyes, Natsuki’s pinks locked onto Anon’s brown pair. Anon pushed with his left hand and pulled with the other, turning the two as they continued to step together.
Everything around the two seemed to melt away, fading off into obscurity. The only thing that mattered to Anon right now was the girl in his arms, and he to her. They became lost in one another’s embrace, enamoured in each other’s warmth.
Slowly Anon tuned back into reality, the song was beginning to wind down and some couples had already left the dance floor, now was the time to make his move otherwise he’d lose the opportunity. He began to push his face towards Natsuki’s, she was still lost in him. Suddenly he felt a foot cross his and he was thrown off balance, he toppled backwards towards the ground pulling the girl along with him.

The groan he let out as his back hit the hard wood floor was cut off almost instantly by something wet colliding with his lips by force. It was Natsuki’s mouth. Whether intentionally or not their lips met, the fact that the girl held them there had Anon thinking it was the former. Nonetheless he gave in and returned the kiss.
Finally they broke off, Natsuki pulled away with her eyes fluttering open slowly. As soon as she caught sight of Anon her face turned a dark red shade as she scrunched her face up.

“A-Anon! I’m sorry!”
Anon panicked slightly, he could only stutter as the girl scrambled off of him and stood up, tearing off in the direction of their table. He picked himself up and dusted off his shirt before running after her, finding her sitting in her chair pressing her index fingers together, her face entirely red now. She was silent.
“Hey, Natsuki.”
He threw his jacket on quickly and offered his hand to her, she looked up at him. He pointed towards a small stall next to the door they had entered through earlier.

“There’s a photo booth near the exit. Want to get our photos taken and then leave?”
Her face brightened up a little, she took his hand and jumped out of her seat. By some miracle any embarrassment she felt had been replaced with joy as she beamed at Anon.
“Sure thing!”
She practically dragged Anon over to the booth as they climbed in and took up different poses, changing after each bright flash. After four clicks of the camera they were ushered out and Natsuki was handed a sheet of their pictures, she glanced over them and smiled to herself. However one particular image caught her eye.
She was looking directly into the camera, a prideful smirk plastered across her face as she wrapped an arm over Anon. The boy next to her had both his arms wrapped around her and his face was buried into her cheek, planting a kiss on her flesh. She looked at the picture in bewilderment, she didn’t even feel the kiss happen at all. Her gaze shifted from the picture to the boy she was holding hands with and then back to the pictures.

They exited the building, cold air meeting their exposed skin almost immediately. The two walked home in pure silence. Natsuki was essentially led by Anon like a dog as she continued to look down at the picture roll in her hand, something in her chest began to take form. She didn’t even notice when he stopped outside her house, he had to shake her back into reality.
“Natsuki!”
“W-What?”
She looked up at him, her eyes shimmering under the light of the lamp above them.
“Just making sure you’re still with us, Jesus.”
They looked into each other’s eyes, slowly falling back into the feeling of nothing else mattering, just the two of them.
This was Anon’s last chance for a real kiss, if he lost this one he might not see such an opportunity again. The girl obviously felt the same as she stood on her toes, her head tilted ever so slightly however before she could continue her movements Anon took the initiative.

He took the tip of her chin in his hand and lifted her face into his own, pressing their lips together in a deep, loving kiss. They held it for a while. All sorts of feelings burst through Anon from fear to pure joy, butterflies poured into his chest and fluttered about like someone had shaken a jar full of them. Despite being surprised by the move Natsuki didn’t protest any, similar feelings tearing through her like wild fire.
Almost a full minute into the kiss Anon pulled away, Natsuki fell back onto the flats of her feet, they looked at each other again as their faces flushed matching shades. Anon chuckled nervously.

“I should probably go… Dad might be expecting me.”
Anon didn’t want to give up the night that easily as he wrapped his arms around her.
“How about we crash at mine for the night instead? W-We could read manga or so-”
Before he could continue the girl let out an excited squeak, her face lit up like a matchstick that had just been struck, without even giving her father another thought she shook her head ecstatically, her excitement could easily give Sayori a run for her money.
“Sounds good to me, let’s go!”
The two tore off into the night like a pair of doe escaping the predator that was their separation.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The room was quiet and almost pitch black, save for a small bedside lamp that illuminated just enough of the area to be beneficial. Everything was still and calm. The two had stomachs full of takeout pizza and had settled in to reading some manga from Anon’s collection, Natsuki being the decider on what they read of course.

Anon sat on the bed, his back pressed against the headboard with his legs spread and his arms wrapped around Natsuki. In between his legs the small pink haired girl lay with her back against his chest, raising and falling ever so slightly as Anon breathed. In her hands was the book they were reading.
The boy had his chin rested on her fluffy pink hair that now lay in a mess, let down from its usual pigtail style. She had changed out of her dress and into some of Anon’s spare clothes for the night, she sighed with contentment.
Suddenly Anon lifted his chin and tilted his head downward, placing a firm kiss on the crown of Natsuki’s head. He spoke softly, his voice breaking the stillness of the night.

“Natsuki.”
“Yeah Anon?”
He hesitated a little, her tone was completely calm which caught him a little off guard.
“I love you.”
She almost choked on her spit as she gasped in shock.
“A-Anon?”
“What.”
“I love you too, idiot.”
He chuckled quietly. “So much for just friends, huh?”
An elbow dug into his leg, followed by a giggle. “Shut it you.”

Silence fell again, the two continued to read well into the morning enjoying each other’s company.
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The End.