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Nene huffed as she compared the two dresses in her hands. She had been debating on them for a solid ten minutes and was still no closer to coming to a decision.
On one hand, the coral, floor-length princess-V neck would look gorgeous on her. However, the short, turquoise A-line scoop neck dress was also stunning. It even had beautiful lace sequins at the top front and was almost the exact same color as the tips of her hair.
Aoi suddenly appeared behind her, her own outfit already picked out and purchased. “How’s it going, Nene-chan? Pick out a dress yet?”
Nene merely grumbled in response as she held up the two articles of clothing to her friend.
“Aoi, help! I can’t decide which one of these dresses would look better on me, and you’re the fashion expert! Can you help me choose?” she pleaded.
“Hmm…” the other girl contemplated. “I like the turquoise one! I’m sure you’ll look amazing in that! Then, wear it with…oh!” She picked out a pair of cream-colored heels from the floor. “These shoes. It’ll bring the whole outfit together!”
A few sentences from her friend and one look in the mirror had Nene beat. Soon, the two girls proceeded towards the boutique check-out, chattering ecstatically.
“Tonight’s going to be so much fun! Isn’t it, Nene-chan!?”
“I know! Kamome doesn’t usually do stuff like this! Everyone’s going to be there!”
Tonight was the “Kamome Academy Spring Formal”. Normally, the school didn’t host any kind of parties or balls; at the very least there was the Study Camp before the summer break. However, this year, for whatever reason, the student council decided to come up with a formal for all the students! Suits, gowns, a freaking buffet; the whole shebang. Nene, obviously, was absolutely giddy. Not only would she be able to hang out with all her friends one last time before they all left for college, but maybe even meet a cute guy that would be willing to date her!
You would think that at some point throughout her high school life she would finally find the prince of her dreams; the person she was meant to be with. But alas, it appeared fate had not been on her side. Boy after boy, rejection after rejection. She hadn’t even kissed anyone yet!
Hopefully, this dance would turn her luck around.
“Geez, look at the time!” Aoi suddenly exclaimed. “If we want Mitsuba to get our hair and makeup done, we better pick up the pace!”
They both hurried towards the house of their pink-haired Kouhai and rang the doorbell when they arrived. His mom immediately welcomed the girls in.
“Hello girls! How are you doing? Excited for the formal?!” Before they could respond they were cut off. “Oh, that’s right, you’re here for Sousuke. He and Kou are in his bedroom. Wait till you see them, they’re so cute! I told them to make sure to take lots of pictures!”
After politely declining the tea and biscuits she offered, Nene and Aoi walked through the door of Mitsuba’s room. “Hi, Mitsuba-kun, Kou-kun, we’re he—”
Immediately, it appeared as if the two boys were shocked apart, both reddening madly as they held each other’s hands; it was obvious what they had been up to. The girls in front of them only smirked teasingly.
“Not a word or I won’t even bother making you guys look decent.” Mitsuba retorted at their gazes . “Geez, I thought I told that carrot hag to let me know when you were here…”
“Hi, Senpais!” Kou greeted; parting from his boyfriend’s side as he walked towards them.
“Hello, Kou-kun! Wow, you two look amazing in those suits!” she clapped as she looked the teenage boys over. “Very fancy~” Aoi added. Nene thought she teared up a little and couldn’t deny the fact that seeing her little Kouhais in their shiny black ensembles made her heart swell.
“Thanks..” Kou thanked them sheepishly, flush slowly returning to his face. “I’m sure you guys will look awesome too once you put on your outfits!”
“Yeah, if they ever get the chance!” Mitsuba spoke up. “We better start now or else we won’t make it in time. Radish-senpai, you’re up first, alright.”
“Thank you so much for doing this, Mitsuba-kun.” Nene said shyly as she sat on the chair in front of the bedroom mirror.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah, you can worship me later. For now, let’s get to work.”
After Mitsuba had finished getting Nene and Aoi ready, the four teenagers hopped into Kou’s car, smiling and laughing, anxious to arrive at the dance.
Since they were somewhat late, a lot of their friends arrived before they did.
Nevertheless, Akane immediately held out his hand to help Aoi out of the vehicle as soon as they appeared, praises and compliments ushering out of his mouth non-stop.
Sakura warmly welcomed them, gushing at their dresses, with Natsuhiko still desperately trailing after her even though she had a date of her own.
On their way inside they ran into Mei, who happened to be on the Party Committee. She seemed extremely busy, focusing on everything but the people in front of her. They felt bad she had to miss out on the festivities, but she merely smiled and said, “It’s fine! Besides, I need to get those volunteer hours somehow!” She then proceeded to make her way further into the crowd, but not before Lemon made all of them take a picture together.
To say Nene was ecstatic would be an understatement. Not only did she genuinely look and feel pretty with her outfit, but she was also spending the night having fun with her friends, hanging out and talking, and just being with them. Almost everyone from their grade was there, including some people that students brought as extra guests.
As the night progressed, they played games, danced like crazy, and ate delicious food. After a while, Nene’s group spread out. Mitsuba and Kou went to hang out with Yokoo and Satou while Lemon and Natsuhiko went and did their own thing. Sakura left to search for her date, who apparently had not yet arrived.
Suddenly, the slow dance started, and people began to pair up with one another and headed toward the center of the floor. Nene began to feel sort of sad and nervous, as she didn’t have a date of her own.
Before Akane could take her hand and whisk her away, Aoi grabbed Nene’s arm and whispered in her ear.
“It’s okay, Nene-chan. Look around! There are plenty of cute guys here without dates that I’m sure you can dance with if you ask! Don’t be nervous, just go for it!”
She then left Nene behind with a thumbs up and disappeared into the crowds.
Nene gulped, sweating and shaking from the nerves that arose as she scanned the room for a boy who looked like he wasn’t with someone. Was she really going to do this? Ask a hot guy to dance?
As she continued searching, she saw a really handsome young man with wavy, parted hair. He was laughing and drinking punch with his friends, though he appeared older, and Nene thinks that he was probably brought as a plus-one.
Nene gulped again, gripping her dress tightly. That boy was totally her type, and he didn’t even have a date! Still, it seemed embarrassing to ask him to dance in front of all those people beside him.
Nene shook her head and remembered Aoi’s words of encouragement.
You can do this, Nene! Go for it!
She slowly and shyly walked up to the boy, her heart pounding against her chest. Once she was close enough, she squeaked, “U-um, excuse me?”
The handsome fellow turned to look at her, face clearly annoyed. His friends started whispering and snickering something to themselves.
“I-I was wondering, if you don’t have a date, if you’d like to dance w-with me?” Nene asked, blush clear on her face.
His friends smiled at the boy, waiting for him to say something. All he did was sneer at her and snort, “Sorry, even if I did want to dance with someone, it certainly wouldn’t be with an ugly radish like yourself.”
The boys around him bawled and cried their eyes out, pointing at her and her ankles. “Look, he’s right! Her legs are the size of an elephant’s!”
Hahahahahahahaha!
Nene felt her heart crumble into a million little pieces, even though she tried as hard as she could not to cry, crocodile tears sprung into her eyes and rapidly fell down her cheeks. She futilely tried tugging her dress down; an attempt to cover her ankles and legs. God, why didn’t she pick a long one when she should have….
As the laughter got louder and louder, all she wanted to do was disappear. Erase her existence from this very planet. All she could do though was sniffle and sob as she ran out. She’s pretty sure she passed Mei, or Aoi, or one of her friends as they called her name, but she ignored them and continued running.
She ended up in the practice garden, tripping over a rake and falling in the dirt as the music from the inside faded away. She picked herself up, looking down at her dirty, mud-filled dress and shoes. When she was met with an array of radishes on display for her to see, Nene broke down.
Slumping down to the ground, hiding her face in her knees, and wrapping her arms around herself, Nene wailed and cried hysterically. Not caring that she’s filthy, not caring that her body hurts, not caring about the fact that her friends were probably looking for her. All she cared about were the jokes and all the humiliation and embarrassment she felt. How she was never going to find somebody, and how nobody would ever see her as more than a creepy, disgusting vegetable.
She didn’t want to go back in there and ask Kou to take her back home. She didn’t want to ruin everybody’s night. She was perfectly fine on her--
“What’s the matter, princess?”
Nene flinched as a teasing, but somehow sympathetic voice filled her ears. Looking up from her knees, her wet ruby eyes met golden amber hues; a boy roughly her age, with chopped, messy black hair, was squatting down in front of her, head tipped to the side as a warm smile surfaced on his face.
For some reason, Nene was mesmerized. She had simply wanted to go find another place to cry when she heard someone else with her, but she just couldn’t bring herself to leave.
Nene wiped away her tears with her wrist. “I-I’m sorry”, she sniffled, “I didn’t mean to make you feel bad for me or anything. I’ve just…been having a rough night.”
He laughed quietly. “Yeah, I can see that.” He offered his hand to her, and Nene graciously accepted it, getting herself off the dirt. Hypothetically, she would have fallen head over heels for this mystery boy right now. But she had just gotten her heart broken again for like the 50th time, and to be honest, he didn’t look like her type.
Still, she was undoubtedly grateful he came and helped her out.“T-thank you”, she mumbled quietly. “I, um, really appreciate it.”
“Hey, I couldn’t just leave a pretty girl like you crying”. He smirked, tucking a strand of her messy hair behind her ear. “My name’s Amane. Yugi Amane. What’s yours?”
Nene blushed violently. No stranger had ever called her pretty. “Y-Yashiro Nene”.
“Well, Yashiro-san. How about we get you cleaned up?”, he suggested. “Looks like you got scratched up. some”
Nene looked down at herself. “I’m fine. It’s just some mud. Besides…I don’t really want to go back in there.”
Amane took her hand gently and rubbed at the grime on them. “We can still get you cleaned up. C’mon, I know another place I can take you.
Again, all Nene could do was follow him.
“So, Yugi-san”, Nene started as she and Amane walked through the halls of the old school building, “I’ve never seen you around before. Do you go to Kamome or are you here as a plus-one?”
He smiled. “Plus-one. My twin brother came with a girl he's been dating for a while. I guess he didn’t want me to feel lonely so I came as an extra guest.” He stared off to the side. “I wouldn’t have minded though. I’ve just been wandering the grounds by myself anyway.”
Nene nodded and they arrived at the girl’s bathroom on the third floor. He grabbed a rag that was sitting on the window sill. “Here, sit down. He ruffled her hair and went to one of the sinks.
Nene felt the redness that had left her cheeks return again. She didn’t know how a boy she just met could be so caring and compassionate. When he returned to her side he slowly brought the damp piece of cloth to her arms and gently wiped away the muck as he caressed her hands. He then brought it to her face, lightly pressing it against her.
She chuckled softly as he continued his work. “Thank you, again. For helping me. I didn’t think anyone would care.”
His bright golden eyes never left her face as he continued. “Like I said, I couldn’t just leave you out there by yourself. You’d have to be a piece of shit to just ignore someone like that. Besides, I kind of have experience with this sort of thing.”
Nene arched an eyebrow. “Experience?”
Amane sighed as he rinsed the rag in more water. “Let’s just say I wasn’t the biggest fan of certain individuals growing up”. He sat back down. “Lot of them had their fun throwing me in ditches and dumpsters.”
Nene’s face scrunched up. “I’m sorry.”
He shrugged. “Nah, it’s fine. Look at me now; helping cute girls and making them fall head over heels in love with me~” He grinned teasingly, crowding around her.
She puffed her cheeks out, pushing him lightly. “Stop it!” He snickered as he backed away from her. “You’re not my type anyway, Yugi-kun.”
“What a shame”, he said mournfully as he put his mouth near her ear. “Because you’re just my type.” He purred into her ear, and she shivered at the contact. She was sure her face was pure crimson at this point.
He laughed again as he made her way down to her legs, and before she could stop him, he grabbed her ankles.
He stared at them intently, and Nene was positive she saw a pink blush dusting his face. All she could remember as he looked though, was what that guy had said to her at the dance. Her frustration and unease grew when the boy beside her smiled and said, “Well, well, well. I didn’t know I’d encounter such a lovely radish tonight.”
Nene’s eyes drooped. She knew he meant it is a joke; she knew he didn’t mean to make her feel bad. Still, she could feel tears flowing down her face again and she suppressed a hiccup. Amane’s grin faltered as soon as he looked up at her.
“Hey…I’m sorry. I'm really sorry. I swear I didn’t mean to make you cry.” He wiped away the tears in her eyes, brushing his thumb along her soft skin. “It was only a dumb tease. It’s okay. Let it out if you need to.”
Nene cried and cried, and even after her tears had stopped, Amane still grasped the sides of her face, his golden eyes still raking over her face. “Are you alright?” he finally asked.
She nodded slightly.
“Y-yeah. I’m okay”, she responded as she breathed heavily. “I’m just…still upset about what happened at the formal.”
Amane cocked his head to the side and grabbed her hands, searching for an explanation. She sighed shakily.
“I didn’t come with a date. Y’know, I was having a really fun time until the slow dance came”. Amane nudged her to keep going. “And…I thought I’d be able to ask this boy I saw on the sidelines. Even though he was surrounded by people, and even though I was scared, I gathered up my confidence and asked him outright.” Nene stared at her legs. “He and his friends just made fun of me, called me an ‘ugly radish’ that no one would want to dance with. That’s when I ran to the gardens and…” Nene closed her eyes.
Amane, who had listened to her story intently, suddenly intertwined their fingers together and brought her closer to him.
“Hey, I’m sorry that asshole ruined the rest of your night”, he said viciously. “And I’m sorry your night ended the way it did. I’m guessing you didn’t want to spend it with a guy like me.”
Nene shook her head at his words. “No. I’m actually really glad I got to meet you, Yugi-kun. I like you much better than any other boy I’ve had a stupid crush on.”
Amane’s head sprung up, his face taking on a mischievous glint. “Oh my, Yashiro-san. Could it be you actually have fallen for me? Even though we’ve just met? So naughty~”
Nene’s face burnt up as she whacked him over the head. “S-shut up, Yugi-kun! Geez!”
“Alright, alright. Can you wait until after I’ve finished cleaning you up to kill me?” he asked as he rubbed the back of his head.
After cleaning off the last bits of dirt on her skin and fixing her hair into a braid, Amane shyly helped her to her feet and her clumsiness made her fall into his chest. They both flushed at the intimacy and before Nene could put some space between them, Amane grabbed her wrists, drawing her back in.
“I know it’s probably not what you imagined, but if you’d like…” he trailed off, his suggestion left hanging in the air.
He was right though. It wasn’t anything like Nene imagined. She was hoping for a tall, dazzling prince. A long, slow dance with nice music. Instead, she was with some short, starry-eyed, mischievous boy, in a dirty old bathroom, her outfit a complete mess.
She found that she didn’t care though as they danced slowly to their own humming tune, his hands against her waist and their foreheads pressed together, the glow from the moon and stars outside bathing them in dim light. They glide across the small room and he even sweeps her off her feet, his lopsided grin making her giggle.
As Nene recalled everything he had done for her and stared at his warm smile and soft lips, she couldn’t help bringing their lips together softly. Even though they’d just met that night, she couldn’t help but feel like they were meant to be something more. This night was definitely an indication.
He steps back when she kisses him and Nene automatically assumes she’s made a grave mistake. She’s slowly parting away from him and just about to apologize when he reels her back in.
“Sorry”, he chuckles, “You just caught me by surprise is all. Try me again."
So she does. They each push their lips against the other, their pace becoming quicker as more time passed. His hands press deeper against her hips and she tangles her hands in his soft hair, tugging at it when he nips at her bottom lip and slithers his tongue in her mouth.
When they finally part from the deep kiss, Nene realizes the dance is most likely over. She gives a small peck on his lips one more time before she suggests they go back.
Before they can leave, Amane leans into her space. “Looks like I was right though, you did end up falling in love with me~”
Nene can’t even fight him because he’s right. (I mean, she literally let him take her first kiss) Even so, she simply headbutts him to shut him up.
“Amane! Amane! There you are, I’ve been looking all over for you!”
After getting back to the school building and informing her immensely worried friends where she had been all night, she and Amane had gone in search of his brother, as they needed to leave soon.
However, Nene was shocked when a certain green-haired friend of hers drifted to Tsukasa’s side.
“S-Sakura-chan?! Y-your date was Tsukasa-kun?!”
Sakura smiled slightly. “Yes. I’m afraid I wasn’t ready to tell all of you who I was dating, but I see you’ve already met Amane-san, Nene. When did that happen?”
Nene turned to look at the boy next to her for some kind of explanation, but he merely shrugged and pressed a quick kiss to her cheek, not embarrassed whatsoever.
Amane-kun!!!!