Ryota scratched the part on his head where Ayame had hit him. “Gosh, builder-woman, I’m not a block.”

Both guests were sitting, patiently, in the waiting room in front of Ryosuke’s office, but they sat opposite each other. Both had a different reason for stopping by though. She was here to discuss the further construction of the new building, and he was here to drop off a few things Ryosuke had asked for since early morning. Although he could’ve just left it with the secretary, he wanted an answer about why Ryosuke needed this.

“You are a block,” she said to him from the opposite side of the room. “What are you doing here anyway? It’s unusual to see you around this time of the day.”

“Oh, ho, ho. You want to see more of me?”

“I only wish you’ll stop hanging around Ryosuke because you’re a bad influence.”

Ryota laughed because he and Ryosuke were both adults, so how could he be a bad influence on another adult? But as they were on the subject of Ryosuke and with the items he had brought, it reminded him of the relationship he had recently found out about Ryosuke, Natsu, and Mirai. The fact that he knew about it…he had a guilty conscience of having to keep it from someone—Ayame.

“You don’t have to tell me about it,” she blurted out.

“Huh?” He flinched and hoped it wasn’t something related to his thoughts.

“Your expression tells me you have something you want to say…” she looked away, “but you can’t. Right? It’s okay. I understand.”

“Builder-woman.” He exaggerated a flashy expression. “You’ve proved your ability to understand people and not only concrete rocks!”

“Shut up!” She held in her laughter.

“Oh!” Ryota stood up in surprise and pointed a finger at her, which offended her.

“Hey, pointing’s rude.”

“No, no!” He rushed to her side. “You cut your hair! And-and!” He brought his hand to his eyes and flickered his lashes with his index finger. “You curled them and put on that thing!” As he inched closer to her face, he continued to point out her appearance. “And-and-and you’re wearing lip gloss!” He pulled back and sighed. “You know, that color doesn’t match you. You should—”

“That’s ual harassment!” She embarrassingly and angrily pushed his head back with force.

He stood up with rage and scoffed. “Who’d want to harass a builder-woman like you?!”

“Hey,” someone said, and the two of them looked in the voice's direction and saw Ryosuke. He was wearing a light gray sweater and jeans, and next to him was Mirai in light-blue shorts and a white, striped tank top under a peach cardigan, and her hair was in a messy bun. Strung on her shoulder was a dark brown purse, and in her hands was her cell phone.

Because Ryota knew of the relationship between the two, he secretly cheered for them with a mushy smile.

“Mi-chan,” said Ayame, “how come you’re here with him?”

“Ryo—um—Mr. Yamada said there’s a discussion with the filming studio about Natsu for the commercial,” answered Mirai. “We didn’t get to speak with them last time.”

Ryosuke let the ladies talk and went to his buddy. “You got it?”

Ryota nodded and handed the bag to his friend. “Here.”

“What’s that?” Ayame asked when she saw the exchange.

“My clothes,” Ryosuke answered, nonchalantly.

“Your clothes?”

“I couldn’t go home in time to get my clothes, so I had asked him to do me the favor since all he does is fumble with girls and nothing else.”

Ryota blushed and playfully nudged Ryosuke. “Mou, don’t be jealous, Ryo-chan.”

“So, you slept elsewhere?” Ayame continued to question, and Ryosuke nodded. “Where? Did your mom know?”

The former, innocent, curious question caught the attention of Ryota, Ryosuke, and Mirai.

Ryota quickly glanced at his friends and pursed his lips. So, he slept with her? Did they patch things up? He then looked at Ayame. She’s going to be so hurt.

To save the day, Ryosuke’s secretary showed up with a black binder in her hands. “Sir, the meeting will begin in ten minutes in the second conference room.” She handed him the binder. “Included are the two documents needing all parties’ signatures. Then, at five in the evening, Ms. Gouriki has booked you for a meeting.”

The friends looked at Ayame this time, and Ryosuke questioned Ayame about the five o’clock meeting. He knew she hardly made any kind of appointment, for she usually dropped by whenever she wanted to for whatever she needed.

He asked Ayame, “What are you doing here at one in the afternoon if our meeting’s at five?”

Ayame smiled. “I want to prepare you for our meeting.”

“Because?”

“Our fathers will be there.”

*

“You’re not leaving?” Ayame asked Ryota.

They were together again—in the same room—after Ryosuke and Mirai had left for the meeting, but this time, they were on the same couch with a seat between them.

“You’re not leaving?” he asked back, making it sound as if she had nothing important for her to stay behind.

“I’m staying here until we go see our fathers.”

“That long?”

She nodded.

“Jaa, I’m going.” He got up and received a text message, and as he read it, he had a small scowl and sat down again.

“Thought you’re leaving?”

“Umm, I’ll wait a bit.”

“For what?”

He looked away because he wasn’t sure how to tell her. Or if he was supposed to. “S-something.”

She got the hint that he didn’t want to tell her, so she ignored it and avoided eye contact with him until the silence filled with hushed breathing and stale air annoyed her, so she uttered, “Hey.”

“Hmm?” He didn’t shoot her a look as he was too busy gawking at his phone to check out every female model picture showing up on his social media feeds.

“Would you still want to be friends with someone who clings to you?”

He let out a mocking laugh. “Pfft, yeah right.” He momentarily looked up from his phone to look at her. “It’s not just me. No one wants someone clingy.” He refocused on his phone again.

“Jaa.” She looked at her feet. “Ryosuke… He wouldn’t want to be friends with me, right?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Aren’t I clingy?”

This question stuck a pain in his heart for unclear reasons. The girl beside him was a mere acquaintance. Someone he only saw when he visited his buddy, and she and he fought and argued like step-siblings fighting for their parents’ attention, so how could she make him worry about her? And why would he?

“I am,” she added, “aren’t I?”

He prioritized her over the female model pictures, so he turned off his phone and looked at her as she half-ignored his nearby presence. “Builder-woman…”

“Well, I am,” she repeated, frustrated.

“I didn’t say that. No one had said anything of the sort.”

She pouted at him. “But your response said it.”

He backed away a bit, upset. “H-how was I supposed to know that you were referring to yourself?”

“Because I asked the question.”

Okay, he got it now. He heaved a heavy sigh and briefly looked away before looking back at her. “Are you worried that his ex would come back?”

She finally properly looked at him, and it took her a moment to gather her courage and strength to admit the truth by nodding, although quite fearfully.

“And you’re scared that he’ll go back to her?”

“Well, it’s obvious he still loves her since he was so worked up when that man, who helped his ex leave him, appeared.” She scowled and glanced away, and with a much quieter voice but still loud enough for him to hear, she added, “And it’s not like she was any ex. She was an ex-wife. I… I’d feel much better if she was a longtime girlfriend or something. But not a wife.”

“Better?”

“Yeah. Because that’d mean I could have a chance to have him love me.”

His guilty conscience hit him again because he knew who the ex-wife was, he knew the relationship among Mirai and Ryosuke and Natsu, and he also knew that he couldn’t say it to anyone because it was none of his business. However, he did feel that it was cruel of him to not be able to help Ayame in any way, even if all they do was name-call, fight, and argue with each other. He exhaustingly pressed his back and head onto the wall behind him to look straight at the wall across from him. “When it comes to relationships…” He momentarily paused because, to him, it sounded wrong. “I mean, when it comes to serious relationships, I don’t think you should worry too much about those trivial things.”

She glared at him for calling her love for Ryosuke trivial.

“Give me a moment.” He smiled at her. “What I mean is, she’s in his past and she might be in his present or may still be in his present…” He hastily thought of how to correctly say the next few lines without hinting anything. “...but it’s all about doing what you can do to make him yours. It’s all a fair game.” He snickered and added, “Sure, she’s got a head start before you did, but anything can happen in the future.” He then laughed and patted her on the back. “We would never know. There might be a day where you’d get married to him at a church you built in a week—” he interrupted and joked with, “—although I don’t think it’d be safe since you built it—”

She laughed and prompted him to continue by smacking him on his leg.

“Or,” he sincerely smiled at her, “you might find another guy who’d love you for whatever kind of girl you are. Always covered in dirt. Ferocious. And very, very strong.” He rested an elbow on his leg and supported his tilting head as he looked at her. “And at the end of the day, he’d proudly say, ‘that’s my girl.’” He stopped and analyzed her expression before continuing. “Even if you are clingy.”

*

“How’d it go?” Ayame asked Ryosuke and Mirai as soon as she saw them. She’d like to stand up and greet them, but a sleeping Ryota currently reserved her shoulder, and it was because of him that she had been sitting sternly for almost two hours to involuntarily be his pillow.

Ryosuke saw Ryota and pointed at him. “He didn’t leave?”

“He said he has something to do.” Ayame raised her brows to imply that she knew only that much and then turned her attention to Mirai. “You look tired, Mi-chan.”

Mirai forced a smile. “Yeah. I didn’t expect the meeting to be very informative, so it was a lot to understand. And it was longer than expected.”

Ryosuke had told her that the meeting would take at least an hour and a half, not two hours and forty-two minutes, and during each minute she had stayed in the dark room, looking at the presented concepts and pictures, she could only give them little attention because something occupied her mind.

“Baka,” inserted Ryosuke to Mirai. “I told you I can explain it to you later.”

She glared at him. “I don’t want you explaining it to me. I want to understand it there and then.”

“Umm,” Ayame uncomfortably interrupted. “C-can you guys help remove this heavy person off me first?” She stiffly side-eyed Ryota beside her.

“Sorry,” said Ryosuke as he helped.

To his surprise, however, Mirai beat him to it with much haste. She gently patted Ryota on the shoulder with a hushed voice as if she was talking to a baby. “Ryota, wake up.”

Ryota, still half-asleep, unknowingly wrapped an arm around Mirai’s waist and pulled her close to him as he lifted his head from Ayame’s shoulder. “Babe, give me a kiss.”

Ryosuke’s mouth curled in annoyance because Mirai was not Ryota’s “babe,” and he wouldn’t let them kiss even if it was because Ryota was a sleepyhead. He noticed that Mirai was too taken aback to do anything—though he wanted her to shove Ryota’s head away, so he hurriedly grabbed her hand and pulled her away from Ryota’s puckered lips. Once she was behind him, he growled, “Wake up, Ryota!”

Mirai sighed and said to Ryosuke, “He’s tired.”

Ryosuke didn’t say anything but sent her a frown.

Ryota stretched, and one of his arms accidentally hit Ayame’s forehead, and he was surprised. “Oh.”

“It’s not ‘oh,’” Ayame irritably said. “You fell asleep on my shoulder for almost two hours, and I couldn’t do anything, you know!”

“Well, you could’ve wakened me up or something. Do you not have hands?” He pretended to be in disbelief. “Oh, I forgot. You do have hands, but you don’t have a brain.” He rushed out of his seat before she could hit him and finally took notice of his standing friends, and when he caught Mirai’s attention, he was reminded of something, and he worriedly went to her. “D-do you still need me to take you home?”

Ryosuke overheard and said to her, “I’m taking you home.” He even stepped closer to her as if Ryota would snatch her away.

“Oh, you are—” Ryota’s comment was cut short by Mirai’s interruption.

She said, “I’m going with Ryota. I need to talk to him.”

Ryosuke became disappointed. “Why? I want to take you home, and we haven’t had dinner yet.”

Behind Ryosuke, Mirai could see Ayame’s confused expression, and she feared that Ayame would misunderstand. Or worse, she’d catch on, so Mirai removed her hand out of Ryosuke’s grasp and went to Ryota’s side. “It’s something between us.”

Ayame pouted and included herself in the conversation. “Mirai, since when do you have something with him? He’s a bad influence.” She added a smile. “I’ll feel better if Ryosuke takes you home.” Her eyes then lit up like a kid’s. “Hey, let’s have dinner together with our fathers! I can finally introduce you to him. He’s always adored your independence when I tell him stories about how strong-willed you are, so he’s been wanting to meet you too, and this is a great opportunity.”

And just like that, Mirai tensed up and her voice cracked. “U-uh, sorry, but…”

“Don’t worry. You can join us for dinner. They won’t mind.”

Ayame and Ryosuke witnessed Mirai gradually moving a hand to cling onto Ryota’s arm as if she was afraid to lose him.

Mirai muttered, “Thanks, Ayame, b-but I-I’ve got to go.” She began to pull Ryota in close and couldn’t see or hear anything. All she knew was she wanted to get out of the place. She had to. “R-Ryota, please.”

Ryosuke would’ve said something about her sudden change of condition and complexion, but the fact that Mirai didn’t make any eye contact and had short breaths showed that she was scared out of her mind. But of what? And why? She was fine earlier until this conversation. Was it because she was worried that Ayame would somehow relate her relationship with him and Natsu through Ryota? He became pissed when he believed this was the case, so he didn’t bother to stop her from leaving with Ryota.

Ryota, on the other hand, was hesitant about what to do. He could see the annoyance in Ryosuke’s eyes and his unhappy frown. He knew that his buddy wouldn’t misunderstand his relationship with Mirai, but he did know that Ryosuke—or any guy—would get angry if their girl was holding onto another man’s arm. Regardless, he couldn’t do or say anything other than walking out of the waiting room with Mirai glued closely to him.

Ayame sat back down in her seat. “Ryosuke, you should’ve stopped him.”

Ryosuke let out an exhale and entered his office, and she was left alone, confused.

*

The two leaving friends reached the parking lot, and to Ryota’s surprise, this was the fastest he had arrived at the parking lot from the building.

Because of Mirai.

Usually, he took his time to flirt with the employees or to find single mothers who might want to mingle.

“Mi-chan,” said Ryota. “Wh-what’s wrong?” He took out his keys, ready to disarm his car just down the lot.

She didn’t answer. Instead, she was steps ahead of him, power-walking as if they were in a marathon.

“Are you in a rush to go somewhere? Is it a lunch date?”

She heard him, and it reminded her of the innuendo conversation she had with Ryosuke this morning, so she stopped walking and sadly bit her lip to keep her from crying.

He finally caught up to her and saw her holding back her tears, and it answered his mental curiosities. He gave her a moment to herself before saying anything to her. Once she began to whimper and her shoulders started to shake, he hugged her. “If you like him that much, don’t push him away.” He soothed her back with his hands. “He’s waiting for you.”

She knew it too. She knew it too well. And because she knew it very well how much her dumb friend loved her, it ate her up. Her hands clung to his shirt. She didn’t need anyone to tell her that she loved him. Or that he loved her.

“Ryota,” said someone.

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