The sudden change of their relationship was already a big turn in their life.

Or... not?

What Mirai wanted to point out here was her and Yamada's relationship. It had been a month since the sleepover in Kamiki's apartment. But now here she still complementing whether their relationship went over a 'best-friend' zone or not. Because she just realized that there’s no confession from him or her. ‘It was just a kiss, maybe he did it just because he really want to get a revenge for it! He just wanted to revenge you!’

‘No! He definitely has something for you! Do you forget what he did before he went to sleep?’

No, she couldn’t forget it. She still remembered the warmth of his lips on her forehead every time she went to sleep.

‘And do you forget what did he say on that day?’ another voice asking into her head. No, she hasn’t forgotten about it. But, because of that, she couldn’t help to ask what their relationship now. Her mind suddenly replayed the day after the sleepover.

After that awkward scene when they got caught by Kamiki, they did chatted for a while but the awkwardness was not decrease even a bit, so she called it a night and went to sleep. She still remembered, after Yamada went to switch off the light, she was already pretending to be asleep. He went to her side, whispered an "Oyasumi, arigatou," then she felt a hand swept her bangs away followed a kiss on her forehead. ‘Gosh!! WTH he’s doing!!’ she screamed in her mind and really hoped that the temperature on her head did not heated much and made him realized that she was not sleeping yet.

7 o’clock in the morning, Kamiki woke them up just to say that he should go to the office soon. He got a call from his boss who said there was an urgent meeting.

"Oi, love-birds! I gotta go to my office now! Just left the key in the post-box, OK?" he tried to wake Mirai and Yamada up. Mirai stirred a bit, blinking blankly at Kamiki’s face. “Huh? Hai…” she replied, just to roll on the carpet again, seeking for a good position to continue her sleep.

“Duh!” Kamiki slapped his forehead, having his best-friends already sorted their feelings surely a good thing, but he suddenly felt like a parent now. Glancing to the clock on the living room, he realized that he should go now or his boss would hang his head later. Before he stepped out from his apartment, "Argh! Don't do any inappropriate thing in my apartment, understand?! Just don’t!!"

Kamiki’s voice at last reached Mirai, but she even hadn’t fully awake and comprehend what he said, the door already closed by him, left her and Yamada who still fast asleep. When she wanted to get up, she felt a pair of hand pulled her back to the ground. Mirai realized it was Yamada's, he unconsciously treated Mirai as his bolster. She was shocked of Yamada's movement, but before she could entangle herself, he already tightened his hug. With her back facing his chest, she felt this strange but warm feeling which allured her to drift back to the dreamland. Mirai didn’t realize that she fell asleep again until both of them were awoken because her head hit Yamada’s chin when she flipped her body in his hug.

“Itte...” both of them hissed and rolled to different direction at the same time. Mirai had her left hand on her head, rubbing it as she sat up from her previous position. On the other side, Yamada rubbed his poor chin which got a sudden attack and sat up to scold Mirai. “Gosh, your power is soooo un-girly!!” he groaned as he playfully smacked her arm. Mirai, who was still rubbing her eyes, turned her body to his direction, “It’s your fault! It’s because you’re hugging me!”

Their drowsiness swept up just in seconds because of those sentences. Silent. Mirai, who just realized what she said earlier, immediately lowered her head to hindered Yamada’s eyes. If they were still elementary schooler, it won’t be like this. It was pretty normal to find them in each other embrace when they had sleepover in his or her house. “We-well...” she heard his uncertain voice and she glanced back to his face just to see reddish colour crept up to his ears. “I’m sorry...” he continued.

“Eh?!” now she fully faced him.

“Like I said, I’m sorry!”

“I’m the one who should say sorry though...”

“No! Because... I was the one... who hugged you...” his voice gradually became whispers and his ears were already fully red. Seeing that, Mirai chuckled because he was really like an opened book right now. ‘Gosh! Why he’s so cute?!’ she could her inner screaming because him.

“Ok! Apology accepted! Now we’re tie!” decided to lighten up the awkwardness, she pinched his cheeks and to hide her shyness, she quickly stood up to get a drink.

“Eh? Tie?”

“Yeah, did you forget that last night I was awaken on 2 a.m. because your head hit mine?”

“Ah… I’m sorry for that too…” he scratched his un-itchy hair. “Eh, where’s Ryuu? He hasn’t woken up yet?”

Mirai took a glass and filled it with water, “Hmm… He left earlier,” after one gulp, she continued, “His boss called him for something urgent.”

“Oh…” Yamada replied, then glanced at the clock, 9:12 a.m. Suddenly, he felt her presence near him. He turned his head to that direction, found Mirai already settled right beside him and gave him a glass of water. “Here…”

“Ah, thanks…” he took the glass, finished it in few gulps and put it on the carpet. “Ne, you will go back to Yokohama today?” asked Yamada.

“Yeah, on the first place I didn’t plan to have a sleep-over, though.”

“Eh, but you were very eager to have it last night?”

“Well, it’s has been some time three of us can have a nighter. Though Mikki cannot be counted as a nighter,” she chuckled a bit. “And… uh…”

“What is it?”

“Nope, nothing…” she shook her head, and continued it in her own head, ‘I don’t know, but yesterday I kinda got courage to ask you about that time.’

The silent came back. Their eyes wandered all around the place but they couldn’t see each other. Until Yamada broke it, “Wanna take a stroll before you go home?”

“Eh?” Mirai turned her direction to him.

“Well, it’s a perfect time for ‘brunch’,” glanced back at her, he smiled a little.

“’Brunch?’”

“Because it’s too late to have breakfast and too early to have a lunch. Eh? You didn’t know it?”

“Well, I’m sorry I never heard that kind of word~ Moreover I’m a Japanese, so how I should know what it means!”

“How could an idiot like you got a scholarship from Yokohama National University?!”

“You even didn’t get one! That means you’re more idiot than me!”

Their face was really stern, like having a serious argument there. But as they glared each other, slowly they cracked a chuckle, and soon grown into a big laughter.

Mirai ceased her laugh and pointed at Yamada’s face, “Gosh! You should see your own face! It’s hilarious!”

“You too! Your eyes were like popping out from its place!” said him as he imitated her face before.

“Stop it! It’s scary to imagine it” she smacked his head.

“This is why I became an idiot! Because you always smack my head!” said him.

“I’ll smack it forever then~ Baka~”

“Omae mo baka dayo!”

After that (lovey-dovey /whacked/) argument, they had a quick preparation and got out from Kamiki’s apartment.

“You’ll directly go home after the brunch?” Yamada asked Mirai as he locked the apartment door.

“Yeah… I already got my stuff here…”

“OI!!! GUYS!!!” suddenly they heard someone shouting at them.

“WAIT! DON’T LOCK IT!” It was Kamiki, he was running from near the stairs to his room. Yamada quickly opened the apartment door, and Kamiki dashed to enter his room, went straight to his bedroom, grabbed a suitcase then shoving random clothes in to it.

“Eh, Mikki-kun? What happened?” Mirai asked as she followed Kamiki inside and Yamada was tailing behind her.

“For my promotion, my boss appoints me to be an assistant supervisor in our new factory for two weeks.”

“Two weeks? Where is it?” this time Yamada asked.

“North Hokkaido…”

“Eh?! You should bring thicker clothes!” both of Yamada and Mirai exclaimed. Before Kamiki could realize anything, Mirai already had his suitcase, emptying it, and Yamada already raided his wardrobe. Yamada got all Kamiki’s thick clothes and handed it to Mirai to be folded then putted into the suitcase. In five minutes, Mirai had zipped the suitcase and Yamada had closed the wardrobe. Meanwhile, Kamiki was still struck there, mouth gapping.

“Then how you will go there?” suddenly Mirai asked.

“By plane…”

“When will it depart?” asked Yamada.

“At…” Kamiki searched the ticket on his jacket pocket, “11:45”

“GOSH! NOW GO! OR YOU CANNOT MAKE IT!!” and Mirai shoved the suitcase to Kamiki, Yamada made sure that nothing important left behind and called a taxi.

“Wait guys!!! Why you guys who become high-spirited for this?!” now they were going down from the apartment, guiding Kamiki to the taxi.

“It’s for your promotion right? So after this, you should treat us in a five-star restaurant!” Yamada smirked.

“What?!! I can’t believe both of you anymore!!” Kamiki yelled.

“There, there. Your taxi will come soon. Be a good boy there and don’t forget to treat us when you come back, OK?” said Mirai as she patted Kamiki’s back.

“Ugh… I even haven’t got the promotion yet… Ah, Mirai-chan, you will go home after this?” asked Kamiki.

“Yeah, why?”

“In case if I forget this, please tell my mother if she can’t call my cellphone, it’s because there’s no cellphone signal there. But I’ll make sure to call her from the office phone when I got there.”

“What? Am I your messenger?”

“Pleaseeee… Ah! Is that the taxi?”

Yamada checked the taxi, “Right… Be careful Ryuu!”

“Un, thanks Yama-chan! And please take care of Mirai-chan from now on~ Oh! You two can be a good parents too!” teased Kamiki.

“You!!” Yamada shoved Kamiki into the taxi and closed the door. Hearing that, Mirai didn’t know how to react. After saying goodbye, both of Yamada and Mirai still stood there until the taxi disappear from their sight.

“Well, North Hokkaido…” started Yamada.

“For two weeks…” Mirai continued.

“Without cellphone signal…”

“And cold weather…”

“Let’s hope that he will be OK there.”

“Right…”

“Uh…” Yamada glanced his wristwatch, “Guess, now it’s not a perfect time to have a ‘brunch’, so how about a lunch?”

“Great, my energy somehow drained after packing Mikki-kun’s clothes.”

“Yeah, me too. Any idea for it?”

“Hmm… How about ramen?”

“Sounds good. Let’s go~”

After having lunch, Yamada walked Mirai to the station. While waiting the train to come, they sat on a bench.

“Etto, Mirai-chan…”

“Yeah?”

“Can I borrow your cellphone for a minute?”

“Well, sure…” though Mirai was a bit confused, she handed him her cellphone.

Yamada received it and started to do something with it, it’s like he typed something on it. After that, he handed it back to her. She looked at the screen, there’s an address typed on it.

“Urm, that’s my apartment address. Well, sorry for telling you just now after almost 4 years, and I didn’t tell my parents too. Sorry.”

“Did you do that just to avoid me?” asked Mirai.

Yamada slumped his back to the wall behind him and nodded to answer Mirai’s question.

“But you still come whenever Mikki-kun called you though you know I was there too. Why?”

“Because I still want to be your best friend. I… I just can’t risk our friendship. We’ve treasured this since we’re kids, right?”

Mirai struck by that word, because they thought the same thing, she just too afraid to chase him just would make everything vanished into the air. But, now both of them already knew each other feelings. So, it’s ok for them to start right?

“But…” as Mirai wanted to talk, there’s an announcement of the train that headed to Yokohama.

“Ah, your train already here,” Yamada took Mirai’s hand and pulled her to the entrance gate before she could continue her words. “But for now, please believe in me and wait for me. Can you?” then he beamed his usual smile, the smile that has a power to make her heart rest-assured. She just nodded at him and went to her train.

“Mirai… Mirai… Oi, Mirai!!”

“Oh??! Umika?!”

“Geez, why are you staring blankly at your thesis? Ah… You’re thinking about him again right?” said Umika as she sat on the chair across Mirai.

“What are you talking about? Who is ‘him’?” asked Mirai as she gathered the papers on the table, giving Umika a space to put he