Root Beer Float (Kaito x Meiko)

Twenty-Three

I missed Kaito. A lot.

At the ice cream shop on Friday, when we all went to sit down, Luka stayed up at the counter for a few more minutes to talk to Kaito. When I looked over and saw them whispering, I sighed. Luka was always determined to make a way for the things she thought were right. But when she sat down, nobody acknowledged it, and we went on with our eating.

But not long after, Kaito came over to our table. I stared at my float. "Hey, guys. Everything good over here?"

Everyone told him that yes, it was very good while I moved my spoon around in the cup. "Meiko?" I looked up quickly, almost knocking my drink over. "You good?"

Of course not. What a stupid question. Despite my thoughts, there was no way I could say anything here in front of everybody, so I just nodded. He exchanged a glance with Luka and then left. She must've told him to come over and I foiled her plan.

I didn't talk to him again that day or the next. The kids decided they wanted to meet Yohioloid and so that's what most of Saturday consisted of. I still didn't trust the guy, so I spent most of the day away from him.

So far, Sunday had just been moping in my room. It had only been four days since that argument, but it felt like four years. Due to my tendency to overthink, I was getting even more upset than I already was.

I would never get to watch trashy TV shows with Kaito again. I would never get to share a laugh or a nice moment with him. I would never get to hold his hand or properly kiss him. Not anymore.

But the most heartbreaking thing of all was that I would never get to hear him say "I love you".

I felt my eyes tear up. Any chance I had at a future with Kaito was gone. I ruined it.

Luka burst through the door. "Alright, I'm making a fancy family dinner so I gotta run to the store to pick up some last minute ingredients. Yohioloid will be here in two hours if you want to start getting ready and... hey, are you crying?"

"No," I sat up and rubbed my eyes.

Luka, always eager to help, rushed over. "Oh, you poor thing! Is there something bothering you?"

"I told you I wasn't crying," I sniffed, but I came up with a story anyway. "I don't know. It's probably something stupid, like stressing over work."

Luka thought for a moment. "Well, if you're stressed, you can always take the day off tomorrow-" 

"No! No more days off. I'm just... tired, okay? It's not a big deal."

"Okay..." she frowned. "Well, don't worry about dressing up too nice. It's going to be fairly casual. I'm gonna head to the store, maybe you should get some rest before dinner."

"Alright," I sighed, getting back in bed and turning over. A Yohioloid-filled evening was the last thing I wanted.

He actually showed up before Luka got home, and I greeted him at the door with a glare. I didn't bother to look nice for him. "Meiko," he gave me with a similar expression before walking in and looking around. "Where's the love of my life?"

"Bullcrap. You don't have one."

He shot me another look.

"Luka is still at the store. You came early."

He crossed his arms. "Well, I wanted to see her and- Heyyy! There they are!"

"Daddy! Daddy!" The twins clung to his legs while Miku silently stood off to the side.

"I told you not to call me that," he mumbled before speaking up. "There's my little twins!"

Rin grabbed her sister's hand and pulled her over. "And Miku, too!"