At the mention of a reunion the next day, Ikari crossed his arms as he closed his eyes in deep thought. It wasn't as he didn't want to meet with her, but he still wanted to stay on his house an do absolutely nothing. "Well.. it's a little too soon to ask you about this, but would you like to come to my house after school?" It was the perfect plan. He would get to be with Misaki while still being on his house. If his mother asked him who she was, he would trick her into thinking that she was a different Misaki. "I can go and pick you after school, if that's okay with you" He continued without missing a beat.

With this, he would get to reconnect with Misaki without selling himself out. "Besides, Ma... I mean, my mother, she does some fine sweets" He said he with a smirk, knowing that Misaki was a maniac when it came to sweets. She was pretty cute when her mouth watered at the sight of his chocolate cake. 'Now I have to hope that she falls into it...'

Misaki was hesitant at first, going to a boy's home just after knowing him for a day, but she was sold once he mentioned that his mom made sweets. Homemade sweets were always better than one sold in stores. "Yes!" She accepted, realising she sounded too excited to be going to his house. "Ah- I mean, if you don't mind having me." She giggled, she corrected herself, a little embarrassed that she would say yes to anything that involved sweets.

She was pretty happy that she was going to get more sweets tomorrow, she wasn't expecting more after spending a lot of money on it today. Her stomach grumbled slightly just thinking of it. "I'll see you tomorrow then!" She was about to run off again but she wasn't very sure of her bearings at the moment. She pointed in a direction she thought was right and asked, "If I go down this street and make a right, will I end up on Tokuga street?" She didn't want to end up on that dodgy street where they just ran from. She moved into a one-person flat in a 3 storey building that was just a few minutes away from school. She did grow up in this town as well, but didn't expect places like her old home to turn into a dangerous place.

Ikari smiled. He was glad that she accepted, though it was an obvious outcome considering that he promised her more sweets. While Misaki still didn't recognize him and seemed a little insecure about his invitation, he didn't mind her presence at all. She was refreshing in so many ways that he was capable of ruining his daily routine just for it. "Don't worry. We are friends, right?" He brushed off her concern, making himself a little nervous because the choice of words.

He was about to call her when she turned around to leave. The place was dangerous and she didn't know about self-defense at all. He didn't get to say a thing when she came to him again asked where was Tokuga street. He slightly sighed, glad that at least she knew where was she going in the first place. "Yeah, is that way" Ikari replied, before yawning on his hand. He was thinking about accompanying her, but he quickly pushed that idea when the thought of all the things that happened that day crashed down on him. 'Maybe it isn't too bad if she leaves alone...' He did enough for a day. "Well, this was a pretty intense day. See ya tomorrow" The blond said as he held his closed fist in front of her for a friendly "fist bump".

Misaki nodded in agreement when Ikari said they were friends. She giggled, glad that she did make one on her first day of school. She said her thanks and waved at him as she made her way home. "I'm home!" She said when she entered her house, removing her shoes at the entryway. But no one replied since she lived alone, the girl was used to announcing her arrival home, and have not gotten used to having her house empty. Her parents were just a few cities away, and she could call them anytime, but it did feel a little lonely for the high schooler.

She sat her back down and readied the bath, leaving the tap on to fill the tub with hot water. Meanwhile, she went to the kitchen to grab a box of biscuits that were coated with chocolate, and poured herself a glass of soda. She brought her snacks to the bathroom, and dipped herself into the tub when she undressed. Misaki gulped down a large mouthful of the carbonated drink, and exclaimed like an old man having his first beer after a long day at work. She started to wind down and relax in the tub, it had been a long day, but she couldn't wait for tomorrow to come.

---

A constant beeping roused Misaki from her sleep, a hand shooting out of her futon to search for her alarm clock on the floor. Finally turning the incessant sound off. She groaned, slowly supporting herself with an elbow as her other hand rubbed the drowsiness from her eyes. Soon, she looked at the time blinking on the digital clock, and all sleepiness went away. She was about to be late! She jumped out of bed, throwing her blanket aside and rushed to the sink to get ready. Changing in a lightning fast speed, she grabbed her bag and clumsily put on her shoes on the way out, shouting a "I'm heading off!" As she locked the door to her flat. Her bed hair flew as she started running to school. Thanking god that she was just a few minutes away.

She saw the gates of her school closing, and quickened her pace. "Waaaaiiiitttt!" She prolonged the word, an arm stretching so she would hold the gates back from closing. Misaki barely managed to squeeze through the gap, her hands on her knees as she caught her breath, relief that she wasn't late.

"You almost didn't make it on time." A feminine voice said. Misaki looked up, still panting, and a white haired girl had her arms crossed across her chest as she looked down on her. Ikari's warning from yesterday rang in her head; "She has weird white hair, and a red armband." Her eyes checked the white-haired girl's sleeves and found the red band stuck on with a safety pin.

"A-ah..." What was she supposed to do now? She ran into the president the next day that Ikari warned her not to get into her bad books! "I'm sorry! It won't happen again, I promise!" She pleaded with her eyes, a hand running through her hair only for it to get stuck on a knot- this was what happened when she didn't comb her hair in the morning. She probably looked like a mess but at least she won't get punished for being late. Right?

The president hmphed in response, "This is your only warning. You'll be in detention if you are even this close to being late again. Be in class before the warning bell rings." She dismissed, flipping her hair as she turned her back from Misaki and headed inside the school building.

Misaki was pretty stunned, whether by her strictness or her beauty she didn't know. But heeded her advice as she started brisk walking her way to her own classroom.

---

The final bell rang, signalling the end of the school day. Misaki stretched her arms from her seat and waved goodbye as her fellow classmates bid their farewell, some going home while some had clubs to attend. While the newly transferred student was busy with cleaning the school grounds. She decided to start by the school entrance, if Ikari was picking her up, he would be there soon. And maybe she could leave after cleaning that area for the day. She grabbed a broom and empty bin bag, skipping down the stairs. She seemed to be in a pretty good mood for a student that was punished to clean the school for two weeks. However, she was looking forward to the sweets later that afternoon.

Ikari watched as his friend went to her house with a happy-go-lucky air all around her. He sighed with a small smile, glad that he finally had some time to himself to think about what happened in just one freaking day while walking lazily towards his home. He met his chilhood friend after a great amount of years, got into a fight where he blowed some steam off with some assholes, and almost go expelled. Ah, and he eated a lot of sweets. Just eating sweet made his day a good one, despite all the weird and bizarre bullshit he had to put up with.

Losing track of time, he reached his house sooner than what he expected. It was your normal 2-story house in a neighborhood. It was a little big, considering that he lived alone with his mother, tough he didn' mind the extra space. He didn’t waste any time on closing distance with his home, and just as he opened the door...

"YOU'RE LATE, DUMBASS!"

...He had to dodge a piece of furniture, maybe a chair, which came at a blinding speed against. him. The thing went flying and was smashed to pieces when inevitably reached a wall. A dumbstruck expression painted his features, before veins started popping out on his head in anger. "You motherfuckin' old hag! What the hell you think yer doing?!" The blond yelled in anger at the person who launched a blunt object against him. It was a beautiful woman with long black hair tied in a ponytail, and piercing blue eyes. She looked so young that it could be hard to tell if she was a mother or not. She wore a yellow apron with a white shirt and blue pants beneath, and had her arms a crossed with an angry look. This woman was none other than Mikihiko Shitsurei, mother extraordinaire of the most problematic person in Higashi High.

”That’s my line, idiot. Do you know how preoccupied I was? First, the principal calls me about your suspension because of a fight, and then you disappear of school!" She said, trying her best to not destroy him right there and then. Ikari was actually nervous, given that she could hand his ass to him any day of the week if he said the wrong thing. ”S-Sorry, I went to a cafe with a friend” The blond stated, not really wanting to incite the woman’s wrath even further. After hearing that, his mother expression changed from angry to surprised and almost happy. It happened so fast at the mention of a friend that it was almost scary. In a quick movement, she circled her arm around his head in a playful manner. ”Aaaww, my little Ri-chan finally got himself a friend!" She cooed, her anger completely dissipated from a moment to another. "Fuck the principal, this is more important! So so, what’s its name? Is it a girl or a boy? How close are you 2?" She started bombarding Ikari with a question after another, making him more nervous than before.

”O-Ok , I get it! He yelled while pushing her away, his patience finally growing thin at his mother’s persistence. ”Look, I know it’s a bit sudden, but could you make some sweets for tomorrow? Since I can’t go to school, I decided to invite my new friend to the… house…” The teen informed his mother, whose eyes started lighted up even more. Before he could say anything more, she drawed him in a bone-crushing hug while squealing like a high-school girl. ”Kyaaaah, I’m so happy that my little troublemaker isn’t a loner anymore!" The woman started hugging him even stronger, making Ikari wince. ”S-Stop that Ma, you’re…killing me… The blond managed to blurt out despite his lungs being crushed, to which his mother responded by letting him go.

”Oh, c’mon, don’t be such a little girl. I’ll have the best sweets that I can come up with tomorrow. Besides, I have a work meeting, so I won’t be bothering you and your new friend either” His mother informed him with a playful wink, before disposing herself to go into the kitchen. Ikari sighed in relief that he didn’t die in that hug, and went upstairs. He entered his room, closed his door in a not-very gently manner, and sprawled himself in the bed without bothering to change himself into something more comfortable. He was glad that she didn’t ask who this new friend was. It saved him from doing explaining, and since she wasn’t going to be in the house then the odds of Misaki knowing the truth were even fewer.

’I just hope that idiot doesn’t get in any more trouble…’ He thought with a smile, the exhaustion on his body finally winning against him. Bath and new clothes be damned, he almost died today, so a little nap won’t be that bad...

---

(The next day)

Since Ikari was accustomed to waking up at very early hours of the day, he a good amount of time to prepare himself before Misaki had to exit school. He grumpily got up, and after a few moments realized that his mother wasn’t in the house, which was a good thing if he wanted to keep the secret of his identity a secret. Before doing anything, he took a shower bath to wash away all the negative feelings he had from the day before, and dressed himself in a yellow shirt with black stripes along with black comfortable pants and black shoes. It was bound to draw attention, but he liked it nonetheless. He went to the kitchen to make himself a quick breakfast, and just as he was about do it, he noticed how there was a note on the refrigerator.

”I won’t be in the house until late night. I made the sweets you love so much! And in case your new friend is a girl… don’t do anything naughty. I don’t want to be a grandmother yet. <3”

The blond didn’t know if bashing his head against the wall or letting a car run over him were the fastest ways to die right now. He acted as he didn’t read that, and threw the note on the trash can. His mother was always like that when he made new relationships (which were very few). In a few minutes he made himself a coffe charged with sugar, and swallowed it in seconds like a thirsty Viking. A day with Mi-chan required a lot of energy if he didn’t want to collapse. Not wasting any time, he locked the front door with a spare key and left the house. Going at a steady pace, Ikari was just a good amount of steps from school, since it wasn’t that far from his house either. If he was right, Misaki was in cleaning duty for 2 weeks, so she had to stay over class schedule. The blond could wait for her since he didn’t have anything better to do, but considering that certain white-haired tyrant was patrolling the school grounds on this hour, he was better off if his childhood friend wasn’t too far away.

And talking about Misaki, Ikari saw her just in the school entrance with a lot of cleaning objects. The sight of her instantly made his mood a little better, so he decided to call her. ”Hey, you. Do you know this dumb girl named Misaki? Ya know, the one who gets abducted very often in this area” He called her, rapidly resorting to tease her with a malicious smirk just for the hell of it. A little joke wasn’t too bad to start day.

Misaki had worked her way from the shoe lockers to the school's courtyard. She was surprised with how much litter she picked up along the way. She sure didn't notice these things, and gained admiration for those part of the cleaning club. Of course the club was informed of her punishment and left it all to her. The area was pretty much empty now, and she wiped her brow and stretched her back as it was getting sore from bending down to pick up miscellaneous things to put it in the trash bag. All that was left was to sweep the fallen leaves from the school gates to the side. Misaki tied the bin bag and put it to the side before grabbing the broom.

She was in a midst of sweeping when she heard someone call out, ”Hey, you. Do you know this dumb girl named Misaki? Ya know, the one who gets abducted very often in this area.”

Misaki spun around, mocking anger as she placed a hand on her hips and held the broom in front of her. "Hey, a good afternoon or a how are you is muuuuuch better way to greet someone!" She stuck her tongue out childishly. "And this girl happened to get you out of expulsion." She pointed to herself and held her head high, whether it was something one should take pride in or not she wasn't sure.

All jokes aside, Misaki told him, "I'm nearly done for today, I've just got to take out the trash and grab my bag. Wait for me, ok?" She didn't wait for him to respond and ran back to where she left the bin bag. Grabbing it and taking it to the back of the school where the trash and recycling bins are, she quickly tossed it into the non-recyclables. The girl went back into the school building to return the broom and proceeded to take her bag.

Meanwhile, Roukurou saw an outsider and one of the students talking through the window of the student council room. She left the room to confront the outsider as to why he would be within school grounds. As she approached the school gates, the female student she saw before wasn't there, but the blonde wearing bright yellow clothes was hard to miss. "Why is a suspended student here and not at home reflecting on his actions?"

Ikari smiled at how very easily Misaki could take a joke, but he didn't get to say anything more as she just disappeared into the school, probably to take her things or something. As he was suspended, going inside was a big no-no. Not that he really cared about it, though going to school was a good way to kill time efficiently. He rested himself against a wall to wait for her, but just as he did that a voice that he recognized and at the same time hated resonated through his hears.

"Why is a suspended student here and not at home reflecting on his actions?" The blond thought that this was going to be a peaceful day, but it seemed that it wasn't going to be like that. As he spun around to spot the source of the voice, the image of a beautiful girl stood in front of him, her eyes piercing his own. Any other guy would be drooling like and idiot at the sight, but not him. Specially not him. "Aaah? What gives you the right to order me around? I can go anywhere I want to reflect about my goddamn problems" Ikari said with a scowl, trying to appear as though as possible. He was getting a little nervous because if he didn't get her to go to another place, Misaki would be dragged into the problem as well. "Piss off and go torture some cats, or whatever you do in your free times"

This woman was, aside from her mother, one of the few people he didn't really wanted to mess with. The only thing he had to defend himself was strength, but that's all. Rokurou had the entire school with her, and she could kick his ass anytime. From their interactions he knew that she wanted to maintain her proffesional image at all times, so it was hard to hit a nerve when talking to her. Hopefully she wouldn't snap at him and ruin his and Misaki's day.

Rokurou was not impressed, she narrowed her eyes even further if that was physically possible, and looked at him like he just offended her ancestors. Sparks of tension seem to fly between the two, glaring down each other. As president she had the authority to kick him off school grounds, especially since he was suspended due to violent acts. In fact, he should be no where near the campus. A teacher should have called to check in on him if he's home. Suspension in Higashi High basically meant you were home jailed. "It's obvious that you are not even regretting your actions from yesterday. If you keep this attitude up, your mother can expect another phone call."

Approaching footsteps could be heard by the two, but Rokurou didn't bother turning around to see who it was. "Ikari! We can go-" Misaki paused when she saw the white-haired president with him. A chill ran down her back, feeling the tension in the air. "Oh hello president. Didn't see you there." She joked, faking a laugh but it soon became awkward as the president merely glared at her.

"And where are you going, Ms Kondo?" Rokurou interrogated. Her eyes flickered between the two, "You can't possible be hanging out with the very guy that hurt you?"

"You're wrong! Ikari wasn't the one who hurt me. Whatever you think of him, is wrong!" Misaki blurted out the moment she accused him. She was met with the president's shocked face, and she used the chance to grab Ikari's hand and started running. Leaving a stunned beaut by the school gates.

The blond had to restrain himself from slapping this girl right there and then. Being suspended didn't meant he was chained to his home like a dangerous prisoner, and dragging his mother in the problem wasn't a better idea if she wanted him to calm down. "You bitch..." He said with gritted teeth, trying to come up with something, anything, that would get him out of talking with this person. What to do in a situation like this...?

"Ikari! We can go-" Another voice butted in, making Ikari widen his eyes in surprise. Behind the student council president was Misaki, whose confused face could only match his own. How could she be so careless? He specifically told her that Rokurou was bad news for both of them. Just as he was about to open his mouth to try and stop a catastrophe, the 2 girls exchanged words too fast for him to register what they said. Misaki yelling at Rokurou was totally unexpected for him. "You're wrong! Ikari wasn't the one who hurt me. Whatever you think of him, is wrong!" She exclaimed with intensity, before grabbing his hand and leaving the president alone. Ikari could only look at her stunned, and a bit embarassed. He had problems by only talking with Rokurou and his chilhood friend had managed to get them out of there by just yelling. She looked a bit menacing like that, too.

Menacing as a sassy puppy, that is. Misaki is capable of being angry and look adorable at the same time, something that he can't still fathom even after 1 day of meeting her again. She looked like she was pouting, and her free hand was balled in a small fist while the other still held his hand with a smooth, yet firm grip. The blond sighed a little before stopping her where she was. "Hey, relax. She's not following us, so you can stopp dragging me" He informed her, before scratching the back of his head a little. "Uhm...I just wanted to say, thank you. Nobody has ever stood up for me before like this" A lie, but he was still grateful that even after all these years she was still capable of protecting a friend (even if they met a day before). "For that I think you deserve a good part of the sweets that the goddess known as my mother made overnight. You better eat them, or I'll make you" Ikari playfully said, trying to lighten the mood a little.

Misaki turned around when Ikari pulled them to a stop. Leaning towards the side to see that he was right, in fact they were already a few blocks from school. How did she not notice that they've already gone this far? She stuttered when she realised she was still holding his hand, and let go quickly. She looked up at him with a puzzled expression, "of course. It's only natural to help a friend." she said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

The corners of her lips slowly turned upward in understanding. The blonde did seem like he's not had many friendly encounters. Her eyes started twinkling at the mention of sweets handmade by a goddess. Mimicking a soldier, she raised her right arm and saluted. "I'll eat all of them!" Misaki declared, a cheeky grin on her face and laughed, putting her hand back down. "I hope I didn't drag us too far away from your place." She said, looking around the area.

"Hey, not all of them. I want to eat too" The blond replied with a grin of his own. "And no, we didn't went that far. My house is just ahead, we just have to walk a little more" He explained before taking her hand to lead her, but just as he took a few steps he let go, cursing himself for doing it in the first place. Why the hell he can't learn to calm down and think things through, instead of doing them? And Misaki is the one who gets all the teasing because she's the "dumb one". "S-So...what did you do before coming to a shitty place like this? You don't have to tell me if you don't want to..." He suddenly changed the topic of conversation, mainly because he wanted to act like the hand-holding didn't happen again, but wanting to know more about Misaki and those years they weren't together wasn't too bad either.

"I mean, someone like you shouldn't be in here. I wasn't lying when I said you were too nice with everyone" The blond rested his blue eyes on her as he said that, remembering the first serious interaction the girl had with other students. He didn't know what she said to Kabuki, but it ended with her unconscious and him getting in a dangerous fight. Ikari would be lying if he said he wasn't nervous as of late. A lot of people hate him but don't even think about provoking him, which was the final objective for what he became the moron he is today. But when people do know that he is as fearful as them when he gets all angry, then that image would fall down. Misaki was just the opposite of him, resorting to talking instead of violence. "Look, it isn't like talking with others is a bad thing, but it doesn't work with someone who doesn't want to talk with you in the first place. Is there a point to being nice with everyone, just like that?" He questioned while quickening his pace a little.

Misaki pondered for a moment, a finger tapping her chin as she did before she coughed, "be the change you want to see in the world." She nodded at her own words, a hand stroking a long imaginary beard. Giggling, she gave Ikari a toothy grin and finger gunned him. "Did you just think how admirable I am?" She twirled around and striked a pose, mimicking some anime she saw a while ago. Her father was the one who taught her to approach others with a smile, 'because who doesn't like that?' Was what he would always say. "To put it simply, I don't see a reason to not be nice to everyone. I agree that some people don't like it, but it's very rewarding when it counts. That's how we met after all." Misaki told him, a soft smile on her face.

Just as they approached a road crossing, the light for pedestrians to cross had just turned green and a melodic beep sounded to alert pedestrians that it was safe to cross. An elderly lady with her hands full of groceries was on the opposite side and just started to cross, walking towards the students. Misaki ran across and offered to carry the bags, taking it off the tired hands of the elder. She fell in step with her as they crossed, slowing her pace to match the grandmother. Once they safely made it across the light changed and made way for vehicles. The elder thanked her and gave her a juicy looking apple. The girl declined kindly but the woman insisted as she made her way home. Misaki waved the apple at Ikari, almost as if proving a point. She chose not to mention what she did before she came as she didn't want to dampen their spirits. The Kondo family had moved to a bigger city to get better medical facilities for the head of the family. However, that fact was covered up with an employment opportunity to their young daughter so many years ago.

Ikari narrowed his eyes when Misaki explained her reason of being like she was, not because he was angry, if not because he was frustrated. Frustrated wit himself for not being able to follow her example and causing so much problems to everyone. "I'm... I'm sorry, but I just can't be like that. Almost everyone I know wants to kill or simply ignores me, so talking isn't an option for me now, as much as I would like to..." The blond explained while looking down, his stone face replaced with a hurt look, but he quickly composed himself. "...But that's what someone like me deserves. I even got you hurt just because an idiot had a grudge against me, and I dragged Ma into the problem too" He kept going without missing a beat, like he really meant all those things.

Misaki helped an old lady to carry her bags full of groceries moments later, all while he watched the interaction between the 2 of them. His childhood friend waved a fresh apple that the granny had given her as a reward, which only made him feel more complicated. "Ok, ok, I get it. Talking and being nice with other people can reward you..." He surrendered, not willing to keep talking about what's good and bad with her. His childhood friend made a very awesome pose some moments later, before proceeding to give him a soft smile. For some reason he felt she was thinking of something else. He didn't follow that idea any further.

As they kept walking, the blond stealed some glances at the girl, like making sure she didn't fall too far behind, or just to simply look at her. Was he getting worried for her? Or maybe it was too hard to really tell she was the real Misaki? No, that couldn't be it. Ikari thought he was being paranoic about basically nothing, so he brushed off that strange feeling.

"So, here we are" He said while pointing to his rather big house with one hand, and placing the other one on Misaki's shoulder to stop her. Unlocking the front door with his spare key, he led Misaki inside the house and locked it again. "I know it's not the best, but make yourself comfortable." Ikari told her while pulling off his shoes and leaving them on the entrance. He went ahead to the living room, which had a table with 4 chairs in the middle, a red couch to the left and a TV to the right. The place was connected with the kitchen, so getting the sweets wouldn't be too hard. There also were some old photos of his mother and him many years before on the walls, or others where his father was.

Ikari's father was... complicated to deal with. They didn't have much father-son interaction in some time, but they both didn't care about it. His father looked at him as a problem child, while Ikari had given up trying to impress him since long ago. Just thinking about him gave the blond headaches, so he focused his attention on the photos again.

He had already dyed his hair blonde on most of them, so Misaki would have difficulty trying to uncover the truth. As he looked around, his eyes widened in surprise. There was a single picture in a drawer along the couch of him as a little kid with his natural black hair, and along him was... Misaki. 'Shit..I need to hide that one' The blond rapidly grabbed the enmarked picture and placed it behind him. His mother had always liked Misaki, and she had some things to remember her. The blue-eyed teenager didn't think that the only things he had to think of Misaki would almost sell him out.

"H-Hey, just find somewhere to sit. I'll return in a moment and then we can eat sweets" Ikari advised his friend while running upstairs to hide the incriminating evidence, leaving her alone.

"Excuse the intrusion!" Misaki announced her arrival as she entered after Ikari, taking her shoes off and placing them neatly by the entrance. She was pretty excited after he stopped her at the front of the house, seeing how big it was with modern architecture and a neat front yard. She followed the blonde's trail further into the house, liking it already. There's always something exciting about seeing another's house. The room was spacious and had windows for natural light, the red sofa immediately catching her attention. The girl immediately plopped down without hesitation after Ikari invited her to, running off elsewhere. It was softer than she thought it was bounced on it a little like a child. She looked around the room more now, noticing all the little frames on the walls.

Curious, she got up and walked towards the nearest one. She recognised a young Ikari, still blonde and wondered how long he's had that hair colour. A young woman stood by him; she looked a lot like him in the picture. A sister perhaps? Or maybe his mother. She glanced at all the pictures, ranging from his young teen years to recent times. Many of them were of him and his mother or sister, but not many with his father in them. There was one of a wedding couple, standing in front of a church. Misaki felt herself smile a little as she stepped closer to that one. There was a few people in the background and she saw a few familiar faces. She grabbed the frame off the tv stand so she could take a closer look. Looking up, she checked if Ikari was around before swinging her cell out of her bag and take a picture of the photo. A loud shutter and flash startled her and made her squeak as her phone juggled in mid air before she grabbed it. She retook the picture, since the first had the flash glaring angrily back against the glass cover. Just as she heard footsteps outside, she kept her phone and went back to place the frame where she found it.

"You're so cute in these photos, Ikari. How long have you had blonde hair? I kinda want to see you in your natural hair colour now." She continued to browse through the many photos below the tv console before she looked back up at him, smiling like she usually does. Hopefully he won't suspect that she did anything weird or sneaky.

The blond had taken the job of hiding that particular picture of him and Misaki beneath the pillows of his bed, given that no one was going to look at a strange place like that. After that, he quickly went downstairs again and into the living room, and saw how Misaki was eyeing all of the frames in the room out of pure curiosity. "You're so cute in these photos, Ikari. How long have you had blonde hair? I kinda want to see you in your natural hair colour now" She said, before giving him a warm smile. For some reason she looked a bit nervous, though he couldn’t tell why.

Brushing off that small detail, he proceeded to answer Misaki. "I'm far from being cute, and my natural hair color was boring. I look awesome as I am right now" He said with a playful smirk, trying to push aside the topic of his hair. Even the smallest things could lead to him being discovered, so better be safe than sorry. "So, Ma made my favorite chocolate cake with strawberries, and a good amount of chocolate bars. There’s Cola too, but you can drink water if you want to” He said, obviously ignoring the fact that he just said that he was having sweets with Cola, which was a very strange combination altogether.

“Sit in the table or something” Ikari told her half-heartedly while going to the fridge and pulling out a fresh-looking chocolate cake and some kind of big lunchbox, which had a lot of delicious chocolate bars without design inside. Ikari placed the sweets on the table along with 2 plates, glasses and spoons for him and his childhood friend, and while he waited for Misaki to sit down the blond went to the fridge again and pulled 2 bottles, one of water and one of Cola, which he rested along the desserts.

"You can turn on the TV if you want" He told her while cutting the cake in fair shares with a knife he took out of the kitchen, so the 2 of them could eat as much as the other did. The cake was pretty big, so their stomachs would be full later on. "So, eat to your heart's content" The teen said while signaling with his open arms the table. "I don't really have much to say. If you want to talk about anything at all, then go ahead. I don't bite" He advised as he took a piece of the cake and placed it in his plate.

Misaki pouted her lips, an unimpressed expression on her. "Well, you were cute." Emphasising on the tense. She snickered, teasing him after he complimented himself. Her feet pattered on the wooden floors softly, making her way to the dining table. She felt herself salivating at the mention of an entire cake and more chocolate. She pulled out a seat and promptly sat down, a squeal of excitement sounded at the sight of the fresh treats. "Please help me thank your mom for these! I probably should have come with some kinda gift too, shouldn't I?"

Placing a generous slice of cake on her plate after Ikari. Misaki took a bite of the cake and shivered, moaning with the spoon still in her mouth. She took another bite greedily, "Homemade sweets are the best!" She exclaimed, shoving more in her mouth before pouring herself a glass of water.

"I know I asked you to help me find Ri-chan, but I want to know more about you too! I mean, if that's ok." She smiled, "like did you grow up here too? What are your parents like? What's your favourite color? Do you have a hobby? Well you don't have to answer all my questions. And you can ask me some too!"

The blond tried to hide a soft chuckle at Misaki's hungry face, eyeing all the sweets like a predator does to its prey. It was just like when they were kids, were she got all happy over treats like this. He almost choked with a piece of cake when the girl mentioned his mother, and how she wanted to thank her with a gift or something. "E-Eh, no, you don't need to do that. I'm pretty sure she's happy enough that I brought a friend home..." He assured, trying to convince her that she didn't need to meet his mother at all.

Misaki was pretty much savoring and enyojing the strawberry-chocolate cake, if her expression that screamed 'I have found happines' meant anything at all. She also followed a systematic pattern of eating and drinking, which he concluded it was only to keep eating and not choke on it. Ikari would be lying if he said she didn't look cute like that, but of course, he would rather be knifed than saying that out loud.

When she started bombarding him with question after question, he looked a bit taken aback, but ultimately accepted. Answering questions with half-assed truths wasn't a big deal either.

"Ok, ehmm... I did grow up in this city, but I had to move from house to house over time" He started playing with the cake while resting his pale face on a hand that was supported by his elbow on the table. "My favorite color... blue, I suppose. Tastes change in time. I don't have a specific hobby, though. Sometimes I play games, or read something that will keep me entertained until I drop it because of disinterest"

"That leaves my parents..." At the mention of them, he started to shift uncomfortably on his seat. "Well, Ma is the best mother you could ask for, at least for what I think. She does the best food in the whole goddamn country, and is pretty funny when she wants to be. Sometimes she acts like a highschool girl, though I don't think she even realizes it. The woman also knows how to defend herself, so you better not pick up a fight with her if you want to keep walking straight" The blond said with a playful smile, a feeling of proudness creeping up his chest. "My old man, on the other hand, he's... we're complicated. I'm not the image of the perfect son he wants me to be, and I'm fed up trying to impress at this point on time. I don't talk about him, and he doesn't talk about me. Not complaining, though. I have enough problems to be talking about a guy with a 6 feet-long stick right up his ass"

As he finished answering, Ikari voraciously devoured a big-ass piece of his sweet, before focusing his eyes on her again. "And you? What's your favorite color, or... your hobby?" The blond awkwardly asked, blushing in embarrasment a little on how unoriginal his questions were. "What about... family, I think. Do you have a brother, sister, or your parents living with you? He finally asked with more resolve, internally regretting it a few moments later. Why would he want talk about the people that took away his friend from him? Now that was going to give him a sour mood...