The end of my little story...this chapter is Yuzu! This story took me awhile because I wanted to post all three chapters at one time, that way it could be read in a single sitting!
I hope everyone has enjoyed. Please read and review if you have time!
Still don't own Citrus.
Yuzu stood at her locker, putting her books away while pulling out her bag to take home. She was running on autopilot at this point. The entire day had been a drag. She hadn't been able to think of anything but Mei. It didn't help that she saw her beautiful step-sister in her classes, in the hallway, at lunch…no matter where she went, she was reminded of how she felt for the girl.
And how Mei had no feelings for her at all. Mei probably didn't even like her as a human being.
"What's up, Yuzu?"
Yuzu was jolted out of her thoughts by the question. She turned to see Harumin peering closely at her.
"Oh…it's nothing really…" she replied. She really didn't want to bring Harumin down with all of her drama. "It's just been one of those days, you know?"
"Yuzu…" Harumin began, "you know that you're my best friend, so that means I know when you're lying. So tell me what is actually bothering you, please."
Yuzu looked down at the ground, wondering how much she should actually tell Harumin. She wanted to tell her everything. She just didn't know how her friend would react if Yuzu told her that she was harboring a massive, unrequited crush on her step-sister, who also happened to be the president of their student counsel and hated both of their guts. On top of that, they had actually already kissed several times.
She decided that it might be best to be as vague as possible in this situation.
"Well…you see…there's someone that I like…a lot. But I just can't figure out how they really feel about me…" Yuzu looked down at the ground after her admission, afraid that she might begin crying from the sympathetic look Harumin was giving her.
"Like" was the mellow way to describe her feelings. Hopelessly, pathetically, miserably, desperately in love with the girl might be a little more accurate. But there was no need to go into details right now.
Feeling Harumin's hand on her arm, Yuzu looked up at her friend's smiling face. She let out a shaky exhale as she tried to smile in return. She was really lucky to have a friend like Harumin, who was always by her side with a smile and a good joke to lighten her spirits.
Yuzu quickly looked down again as she felt tears once again threaten to spill, this time out of gratitude towards her friend. If not for Harumin, Yuzu would have no kindred spirit at school to spend her time with. No one to break the rules with. No one to go shopping with. No one to tease the student council members with. School would definitely be much less enjoyable without Harumin there.
Suddenly, Yuzu felt Harumin grab her shoulders before she heard a hurried whisper in her ear.
"Yuzu, I think I can help you with your little problem, but you need to not freak out for the next 30 seconds, got it?"
Confusion filled Yuzu as she looked at her determined friend. "Wha…what are you talking about, Harumin? What are you going to do?"
Yuzu racked her brain as she desperately tried to think of what Harumin could be thinking of. She was suddenly worried that Harumin was going to try to scare her with a spider or something. How was she not supposed to freak out if that was the plan? But when Harumin smiled reassuringly at her and said, "Just trust me, ok?" Yuzu decided that she did trust her friend enough to agree to her request, at least, this one time.
As soon as she nodded her head, Harumin shoved her back into the wall of lockers behind her. Yuzu made a quiet "eep!" as she felt Harumin's lips collide with her own. Her mind exploded with alarm bells as she frantically tried to not 'freak out' at what was happening.
But WHAT WAS HAPPENING? Harumin was kissing her. Harumin was kissing her! Why was Harumin kissing her? And she was seriously...
Harumin's lips suddenly disappeared, halting Yuzu's thoughts. Her eyes fluttered open just in time to see Mei standing in front of her, landing an open hand squarely across her friend's face with an audible SLAP.
She gasped as Harumin fell backwards several feet, holding a hand up to her cheek. Yuzu shouted "Mei!" in shock as she rushed over to see if Harumin was alright. Taking ahold of one of the girl's arms, she frantically examined the girl's face, saying, "Harumin! Are you alright? Are you ok?"
She couldn't fully comprehend what had happened, or why, but Harumin's cheek looked like it was already swelling.
"I'm ok, I'm ok," Harumin reassured her, before turning towards Mei and shouting, "But what the hell is your problem?!"
Looking at Mei, Yuzu found herself wondering the same thing. Why had Mei done that? It was unlike the ultra-composed student council president to lash out like that. Not to mention entirely uncalled for.
"That…behavior…is completely unacceptable at school," Mei spit out through gritted teeth, a scowl firmly etched into her thin features.
Yuzu flinched at the words. Is that what Mei had thought about the kiss Yuzu had given her in her grandfather's office? That it was unacceptable school behavior, and that's all?
"I think that hitting students is even more unacceptable, don't you?" Harumin shot back.
Yuzu thought that maybe she should step in before a full argument could break out between the two girls. The last thing Yuzu wanted was for Harumin to file a complaint and get Mei expelled from the school, but Harumin did deserve an apology.
"Harumin, I'm sure that Mei knows she was out of line and will apologize, won't you, Mei?" She shot Mei her best pleading look, hoping that for once in her life, Mei would acquiesce and let the supposed transgression slide.
Mei studied her, who suddenly felt very self-conscious under her step-sister's steely gaze. It was unnerving her, but she refused to back down from her request. Mei should apologize for what she did. After what seemed like an eternity under this scrutiny, Mei finally turned back towards Harumin and said flatly, "Go home, loitering around after school hours is also against school rules."
"Mei!" she shouted immediately. Agitation started to build in her system at her step-sister's stubbornness. She had done something wrong and physically hurt someone. She should apologize for it! Not continue to lash out at the victim.
Harumin grabbed ahold of her hand suddenly, gaining Yuzu's attention. The injured girl gave her a big smile.
"It's alright, Yuzu, I should get going anyway."
Yuzu felt her jaw drop at Harumin's response. It just didn't feel right for Harumin to leave without an apology from Mei. She opened her mouth to say something else, but Harumin pulled her into a hug before she could speak.
"Good luck," she heard whispered in her ear before Harumin pulled back slightly, grinning wildly. The next second, she felt Harumin's lips press quickly to her forehead, before her friend skipped off with a quick wink.
Yuzu stared at Harumin as she left her and Mei standing alone in the hallway, before she put her hands on her hips and turned back to Mei. Her step-sister was watching Harumin leave with a smug look on her face.
That look only made Yuzu more upset at Mei's behavior. It was unacceptable for Mei to treat Harumin that way, much less treat anyone that way. She would not let Mei get away with it without explaining herself.
When Mei finally turned towards Yuzu, her expression was blank. But before Yuzu could get out a single word, Mei turned away from her and started walking away.
"Well, are you coming or not?" Mei tossed back over her shoulder as she continued walking.
Yuzu's frown deepened at the sight. Mei thought that she could just ignore what just occurred and obediently follow her home?
"No," she said flatly. "I'm not." She stood her place in the hallway, determined not to let Mei push her around this time.
Hearing Yuzu's words, Mei stopped walking and turned around to face her. Maybe it was just her, but Mei actually looked slightly confused by her refusal.
"No?" she asked as she began walking back to Yuzu. "Why not?"
As Mei stopped directly in front of her, Yuzu could feel her resolve begin to melt away. The proximity to the raven haired girl was quickly eroding her anger. All she could think about was how beautiful Mei was from this distance, with her long eyelashes, silky hair…
She swallowed as she tried to refocus.
"Tell me why you just did that, Mei," she was finally able to get out. "I'm not going anywhere until you explain yourself."
Thankfully, it sounded much more forceful than she actually felt. In actuality, she was seconds away from dropping the whole thing and going home with Mei peacefully.
Mei sighed before she began speaking, carefully looking anywhere but at Yuzu.
"Yuzu, I…I don't want anyone else to have you…"
Yuzu could barely make out what Mei said because of how softly her step sister was speaking, but she was pretty sure she had just heard that correctly. Confusion flooded through her as she tried to comprehend.
"Why would you care when you have no feelings for me?" she asked incredulously. Mei had no feelings for her, but she didn't want anyone else to like her, either? That seemed like an incredibly unfair and greedy thing for Mei to say.
"I…lied…before," Mei said slowly, "About my feelings…for you."
Yuzu stared at Mei blankly as the words sunk in. She…lied. If she lied when she said that she had no feelings for Yuzu then…
She looked away from Mei as she suddenly felt a blush growing on her cheeks. Mei was saying that she did have feelings for her. Right?
"Wh-what do you mean, you l-lied?" she was finally able to say as Mei gave her a small smile. That little smile was causing Yuzu to become even more flustered, as Mei hardly ever smiled like that.
Mei thought for a few seconds before carefully responding, "I…did not tell the truth. About my feelings."
"But why?" she burst out in response. Why would Mei lie about her true feelings, when she knew how Yuzu felt about her?
"Because, Yuzu, that path that you want to go down is not an easy one, not in the least. Besides our parents, there's my grandfather, our classmates, general societal norms…I couldn't let you go through that," Mei paused briefly before slowly concluding, "I didn't think that I could go through that…"
Her ears perked up immediately when she heard the last sentence.
"You didn't think that you could handle it, past tense," she pointed out, feeling happiness begin to spill out of her. "Now you do?"
"I…think…that I can, yes," Mei said slowly. "But I still don't want to put you through any of this."
Yuzu waved off Mei's worries, far too focused on the fact that Mei was almost admitting to the fact that she liked Yuzu. Almost, but she wanted to hear it from the raven haired girl directly, just to be sure.
"So…you like me," she stated. She couldn't keep her excitement from showing as she bounced softly from foot to foot, impatiently waiting to hear Mei's response. Could it be that all this time, she was wrong in thinking that Mei only tolerated her presence?
Mei sighed again before answering.
"I'll admit that I have feelings for you that are different than those for anyone else…"
"You like me," Yuzu pressed. She really wanted to hear Mei say the words, not some diplomatic skipping around the issue. She watched as Mei waged a short internal battle with herself before she opened her mouth to speak.
"Yes…Yuzu, I like you."
She stopped bouncing immediately and stared at Mei. She could hear nothing but the sound of her heart pounding in her ears as she tried to process what had just happened. Had Mei really just admitted it? Yuzu could swear that she had heard the words and it looked like Mei had said them, but she found it incredibly difficult to believe. Maybe Yuzu had just heard what she wanted to hear.
Realizing that Mei had begun speaking again, Yuzu tried to focus on what the girl was saying over the pounding in her ears.
" – that the feelings would fade away, but it hasn't happened."
"You do?" Yuzu interrupted, still caught up on Mei admitting that she liked her.
Sighing, Mei looked at her closely for a few more seconds before leaning towards her. Yuzu let her eyes slide shut as Mei's lips gently met hers.
The feeling of Mei's lips against hers was pure bliss. Yuzu kissed back passionately, deepening the kiss. She felt Mei's hand slide up her side before softly caressing her cheek, pushing a few strands of her hair behind her ear. Mei pushed Yuzu's back against the wall once more as they quickly became lost in each other.
The sound of a door closing around the corner jolted both of them out of the moment as Mei quickly separately herself from Yuzu. Yuzu felt a deep blush on her cheeks immediately and was pleasantly surprised to see that Mei was blushing, as well.
She gave a slight cough as she looked away from Yuzu. "Will you come home now?"
Yuzu nodded, grabbing Mei's hand to pull her towards the exit. She was delighted when Mei didn't try to pull her hand away.
"So…what would you like to do for dinner tonight?" Mei asked nonchalantly as they walked along.
"Oh shoot!" Yuzu slapped her free palm to her forehead as she suddenly remembered. "I totally forgot that I told Matsuri I would go to the mall with her after school today!"
The mention of Matsuri caused Mei's hand to quickly tighten around her own.
"Ow, Mei!" Yuzu yelped, trying to pull her hand away from Mei's vice grip before it cut off circulation to her fingers.
Mei gave Yuzu a sheepish look as she loosened her grip slightly, but didn't let go of Yuzu's hand. She then said softly, "You know that it's against the rules to go out after school."
Yuzu studied Mei as they continued walking. Mei seemed to be becoming more dejected with each passing second that Yuzu didn't respond to her.
"You're right. I'll cancel with Matsuri," Yuzu said cheerfully, "I won't break the rules today. I wouldn't want to make more work for you when you've been so kind to me today!"
Yuzu smiled when Mei seemed to cheer up slightly from her response.
"I'll text her…" she began before quickly backtracking, "I mean, when we get home! Because I definitely do not have my phone here at school with me. That would be against school rules," she finished lamely, embarrassed at having been caught breaking yet another rule.
"I know that you have your phone, Yuzu," Mei said sternly before turning away with a faint blush on her cheeks. "…I'd like it if you would text her now."
Was Mei really that jealous of Matsuri? Yuzu couldn't help the smile that formed at the thought of the beautiful girl being jealous. Especially of Matsuri. The young girl didn't hold a candle to the student council president, at least not in Yuzu's eyes.
She quickly dug her phone out of her bag and shot off a short text to her young friend. When it was done, she quickly snapped her phone shut and tossed it back into her bag so that they could continue walking.
"All done!" she exclaimed happily, before she pouted slightly. "Aw, darn I was really looking forward to buying this sweater I've had my eye on for a while…"
Out of the corner of her eye, Yuzu noticed Mei glance quickly down at her hand. She smiled when she realized that Mei wanted to hold her hand again, but was too reserved to initiate the gesture. Yuzu reached out and grabbed ahold of Mei's hand once more, feeling warmth blossom in her chest at the contact.
After walking along in a comfortable silence for several minutes, Mei finally spoke up.
"If you would really like to go to the mall, I could go with you."
"Really?" Yuzu exclaimed. She was shocked at the offer. "You'll go with me?"
Mei gave only a slight nod of her head. "Yes, I will."
Yuzu grinned at the girl before she continued.
"But not on a school night; that's against the rules."
Yuzu couldn't help but to burst out laughing. Apparently there was a limit to how many rules Mei could break in one day.
"That's fine, Mei, as long as I'm with you!"
She couldn't help being excited about the thought of going to the mall alone with Mei. It would almost be like a…date. Her heart started pounding heavily once more at that thought.
As they neared their home, Mei had one more question for Yuzu.
"Why did Harumin…kiss…you, Yuzu?" She looked away from Yuzu as they stood outside the front door, seeming almost afraid to hear the answer.
Yuzu laughed, suddenly remembering the kiss that seemed to have happened so long ago now. "She said that she was helping me with my crush, and I think that it worked!" She owed Harumin a huge thank you when she saw her next. Plus, she still needed to get Mei to apologize for hitting her.
Mei looked at her seriously. "Who do you have a crush on?" she asked, somewhat apprehensively.
"Well...you, Mei," Yuzu admitted, causing Mei to blush slightly. As they entered their home, she tugged on Mei's hand slightly so that the girl would turn back towards her. Looking straight into her eyes, Yuzu said the words she couldn't stop thinking about all day. And for once, she wasn't expecting to be rejected.
"I like you, Mei," she said with a smile, feeling a tremendous weight lift off of her chest as the raven hair girl regarded her tenderly.
"I like you too."