Twilight’s P.O.V.
WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!
One moment I was having problems trying to confess my feelings to Aria, and then suddenly, after gazing into her eyes illuminated by the moonlight I was inspired by her words. I gained enough courage not just to reveal how I really feel about her, but I also did it in such a unique way. Not to mention that… I JUST KISSED HER!
“Gah!” I gasped. With the heat of the moment gone, I covered my face with my hands.
When I started to think how to confess to Aria, I wasn’t expecting I would find myself doing so only a few days later!
It doesn’t matter now. My feelings have been laid out in the open for her to see. Several seconds passed. It felt like my heart was going to burst out of my chest any moment by how hard it was pounding. My entire body was heating up, and the butterflies in my stomach were going berserk leaving me with an overwhelming sense of nausea.
Then there was Aria, who was completely silent. Was she still there? Was she gone? I have to look, but my hands refused to move. I don’t know how I was able to remain standing, my legs were shaking like never before but my balance remained. It took me quite some time, but eventually I worked up the courage and moved my fingers just enough to allow me peek. Aria was still there completely frozen in place in utter shock. Witnessing this, I removed my hands from my face.
“A-Aria…?” There was no response whatsoever.
I managed to take a step closer to her and wave a hand in front of her eyes.
“Aria? Aria!” I snapped my fingers, which seemed to work.
She blinked and quickly looked right at me. When our eyes met, I took a step back again.
“T-Twilight…” She stammered, pointing a finger at me.
Even in the dark night, I could see her blushing thanks to the pale moonlight.
“D-Did y-you just…?” I took a deep breath and nodded. “Then… it’s true? Y-You… like… me…?”
I nodded again, trying to find the words to say. “Y-Yes, it’s true… I-I… really like you as more than just friends.”
“Oh, wow.” Aria, my crush, placed a hand on her forehead and looked away still shocked. “I don’t believe it. Adagio was half right.”
I raised an eyebrow, confused. What did she mean?
“What?”
Aria glanced at me and widened her eyes again as if she let something slip she didn’t mean too. “N-Nothing! Never mind.”
“O-Okay…” I cleared my throat and placed my hands behind my back, completely avoiding Aria’s gaze. “S-So…”
“So…?” The Siren stroked her own arm awkwardly.
I took a deep breath. It’s the moment of truth. “D-Do you… l-like me back…?”
I barely made eye contact with her. Aria raised both of her eyebrows in alarm.
“R-Right! I should say something, shouldn’t I?” She chuckled nervously to try to relieve the tension, but it didn’t work.
I was far too nervous to even fake a smile. Seeing this, she sighed and crossed her arms. Her gaze was focused on anywhere but in me. “You caught me off guard, Twilight. I would never have guessed that you…” She paused. It seemed like if she was measuring her words. Eventually, she made eye contact with me, still perplexed.
“I never thought someone would ever like me like that. Twilight, you’re a good friend, and I really care about you. But-” There it was the dreaded ‘but’, a sure sign of rejection to come.
My chest became tight and my heart began to ache. Tears immediately started to flow from my eyes and down my cheeks. After seeing my reaction, Aria seems to panic and tried to reach for my shoulder.
“No, Twilight, wait, don’t-” Aria tried reaching for me again, but I quickly backed away.
“I-It’s f-fine, A-Aria…” I managed to say between sobs. “I-I k-knew that th-this was a p-possible outcome…”
“Twilight, please, let me-” She reached again.
I didn’t let Aria touch me. I couldn’t. Submerged in sorrow, I turned around and tried to run, but she managed to grab my arm, holding me back. She gave me another example of her strength by completely stopping me in my tracks with one arm. I tugged and pulled with all my might, but I couldn’t make her budge even a little. I couldn’t even struggle.
“A-Aria… I-I n-need to be alone!” I yelled smacking her hand trying to loosen her grip.
“Let me finish first, Twilight.”
I tried to block out what she was saying. I didn’t want to hear what was coming it was too much for me to bear. “P-Please, spare me! I-I can’t bear to listen th-that you don’t like me back!”
“But I’m not going to say that!” I stopped my attempts of escape. She’s not going to reject my feelings? Then, what was she going to say? Still in tears, I turned my head towards Aria and dared to look directly into her eyes. She looked dangerously serious, but her expression quickly softened and I felt slightly less tense. “Just… let me speak, okay?”
Before my brain could register what she had said my curiosity got the best of me and I asked, “If you’re not going to turn me down, what are you-?”
Aria held up a hand silencing me. “Promise me that you will listen?”
I nodded, “Okay.”
Aria released me and I kept my word. I took a step back to give her and myself some breathing room while we both tried to figure this situation out. Aria took another deep breath looking up at the pale moon as a gentle wind blew over us. In that moment I saw Aria in a new light, a mighty wolf who was as beautiful as she was headstrong, as her long hair flowed with the wind. I was in awe at the sight of her under the starry moonlit night.
“Twilight, before you, I thought friendship wasn’t for me. I pushed away everyone who showed the slightest interest in me,” She said, pushing her long bangs to the side.
“Yes, I remember.” I replied with a nod.
“Right…” She folded her arms. “But things didn’t go as usual with you. I admit when I first met you I thought you were rather annoying to be around. I hated the fact you got along with Sonata so well, and my older sister teased me a lot after we started hanging out,” She said, looking up at the sky again. “but, I started to enjoy my time with you even before admitting that we were friends. Other than my sisters, I never cared for anyone like I cared about you. And… it’s actually the first time I said that out loud.”
I blushed at her words feeling both a sense of pride and shock. It truly is amazing how sweet she is with me. I always knew she didn’t get along with others, but to hear her admit it openly had a profound impact on me. This softer and gentler side of hers is one of the reasons why I like her so much. The fact that she’s only like this with me is what makes it feel so special. What makes me feel special.
“Twilight-” I woke up from my thoughts to find Aria right in front of me. She placed both of her hands on my shoulders, and one hand touched my chin and guided my gaze to hers. I gasped lightly and felt like if my legs became jelly. “I started to feel a lot of new emotions with you. I‘m rarely show my soft side, and yet with you I am all the time. I don’t know exactly how I feel about you. I like having you as a friend, but I’m not sure if that’s all I feel. Romance is really not my forte.”
She dropped her head and didn’t say anything for a moment. “That’s why I can’t really give you an answer.” She looked at me again. “Not just yet, at least.”
I tilted my head, confused. “What do you mean?”
“I mean…” She sighed, folding her arms and looking away from me. “I’m going to need some time. I need to talk with my sister, Adagio.” She made eye contact with me again.
“Why do you need to talk to her?” I asked.
Aria fidgeted nervously, a slight blush reddened her cheeks as I watched her.
"As you know Twilight, I’m not very good at expressing my emotions,” Aria said, as if in a confession. “Everyone of your friends I met can vouch for that. Sunset, Rarity, Trixie, even Spike I’m sure.”
I waited eagerly as Aria struggled to come up with how to express what she was trying to say. Eager I was, but I knew what it was like to hold onto something like this. I knew Aria needed to get this out. I wasn’t blind to it, but I know from my talks with Cadence and others how much just admitting your faults can take a huge weight off your shoulders. Aria scratched her head and took in a deep breath before she continued to speak.
“You know how I express my anger. It’s what I do best. When I’m angry I lash out and sometimes I don’t think about what I say or do, I just act on impulse,” Aria said brushing her hair back and looking at me. “But for you I try. I try so hard to make things work out, I try so hard to make you feel special, I hate it when you get upset, you honestly bring the best out in me Twilight, but I’m not good at expressing other emotions that come naturally to others. My sister has a better idea about these feeling things. So, before I can answer you properly, I need to talk to Adagio.”
“Aria…” I took a step forward, dropping my head, but I kept eye contact with her. I never knew she felt so strongly about this. How she was so insecure with her feelings, she really was just like me. She was relatable because I too felt the same, and yet I felt some doubt. “Are you sure about this? Is this because you don’t want to hurt my feelings?” I asked.
“That might be one of the reasons.” Aria looked away. She remained silent for a moment before turning to me again. “But like I said, I have no idea how my feelings work. Just give me a day, or two. I promise, I’ll get back to you I just need to clear my head and talk to my sister.”
“U-Umm… I…” I thought that confessing was going to be the hardest part, but it turns out that I’ll get my answer in a day or more… the anxiety will be the end of me!
“Listen-” Aria placed her hands on my shoulders and looked at me with seriousness. “I know I’m asking too much, but this is big, Twilight. Whether I say yes or no, everything will change between us. I want to be absolutely sure about my feelings in this matter before I answer.”
It was true, she was asking too much, but she had a point. If she wanted time to think, she will have it as much as it pained me to have to wait. I took a deep breath and sighed. “Okay…” I smiled slightly at her, I waited this long to ask her so I could wait a little longer. “You can take your time, Aria. I would hate it if you just answered based on what I want to hear.”
“Right.” She took a step back and smirked. “I care about you, that much I know. I won’t break your heart unless I’m certain that I don’t like you back.”
“O-Okay…” There was an awkward silence after this. Aria folded her arms and looked everywhere but me. I wasn’t sure how she intended to sound, but it came off as a bit harsh. However, I trust Aria, and I know she isn’t trying to hurt me intentionally. I know she’s had plenty of opportunities to do so without any input on my part, so I decided to trust her judgement on this matter. I had my hands behind my back while I stared into the floor. Eventually, Aria cleared her throat to catch my attention.
“W-Well… I suppose that we should call it a night… I-I mean, after… you know…”
“I-I suppose so, yeah…” I looked at her. Her expression was hard to read, but I think I saw signs of sadness and confusion. “I’ll pack my things…”
“Let me help you!” We were still standing fairly close, so I got startled when Aria raised her voice all of the sudden. She must have noticed because she instantly looked guilty and took a step back.
“I-I’m sorry…” Aria cleared her throat again and spoke with a softer tone. “C-Can I help you?”
I nodded, smiling lightly at her. We picked up the blanket and disassembled my telescope in silence. When I was set to go, Aria pulled out a book and handed it to me. Glancing at the cover, I saw that it was the Astronomy book I lent her some time ago. “Here… thank you again for lending it to me.”
“It was my pleasure.” When I took the book, my fingers touched hers. I blushed brightly, but I said nothing of it. I looked at Aria and I think I saw her blushing at least a little. “I’ll see you soon…”
“I’ll walk you home, Twilight.” She smiled. “It’s the least I can do.”
I certainly can’t say no to her offer, so I smiled back. “Okay.” Aria awkwardly placed her hands in her pockets and walked beside me all the way home.
Once we reached my home I walked up to my door, but paused as I sadly glanced back at Aria. She was standing there with her hands still in her pockets looking like she wanted to say something, but she refrained from it, instead looking up at me with a smile. I smiled back at Aria as I slowly opened the door and entered my home. As I closed the door I saw Aria’s hand stop the door from closing.
"Hey, cub, I promise I'll answer you soon," She said.
I nodded without a word. I didn't have the energy to respond. Instead, I dared to reach out and touched Aria’s hand. Feeling her warmth I gently gripped her hand, squeezing it.
"Aria, I know you said you're not good with expressing yourself, but I think you're a lot better at it than you realize," I said without loosening my grip.
To my surprise, Aria gently squeezed my hand back giving me a sweet smile. I rubbed the palm of her hand with the tips of my fingers before pulling away as she slipped her hand from the door.
"Thanks, Sparks," She said to me smiling. "I won't keep you waiting more than necessary."
I smiled back, wanting to reach for her but held back the urge. I didn't want to rush things and scare Aria away before got my answer.
"I'll be waiting," I said, closing the door. "Goodnight Aria."
"Goodnight, Twilight."
With that I closed the door locking it behind me. I would now have to wait till morning maybe later to hear from Aria. Hopefully with her answer.
I woke up the next morning still feeling tired. I had problems trying to stay asleep the night before. My restlessness stemmed from my not knowing what Aria's answer would be. Neither Aria nor me said a word when she walked me home. Only when we arrived to my home we could exchange a few words. When I closed the door, I went straight to my room, not in the mood nor with the energy to tell Spike nor my parents what happened. Mom and dad were watching a movie when I arrived. As expected, they asked me why I returned so soon and got worried when I ignored them. My mother came to see in my room, wondering what was wrong, but I nicely told her to leave me be for the night. Upon waking up, I found Spike laying on my chest, looking at me worriedly.
“Hey, Twilight…” His ears were down. “Did you get any sleep last night?”
“Not really…” I rubbed an eye with a hand and Spike moved away so I could sit on my bed.
My pet quickly sat by my side and I placed an arm around him, scooting him against me. I needed his comfort right now. That’s what I liked about dogs, they were loyal to their master and friends for life and nothing could change that. Then what about wolves? Loyalty to their pack and family was a common trait among wolves, so what did that say about Aria and me?
“What happened last night?” The way Spike was looking at me made it impossible for me to dismiss the question.
“I… told Aria how I feel about her last night a-and I kissed her…”
“You did?” Spike wagged his tail excitedly, but he quickly stopped when he remembered that I was feeling down. “Did she reject your feelings?”
“Not exactly…” I looked at him. “She doesn’t know how she feels about me, so… she asked me to give her time to think.”
“Oh…” Spike looked around before eventually making eye contact with me again. “What are you going to do?”
I sighed. “All I can do is wait, Spike.” I smiled slightly at him as I scratched his head. “I just have to keep myself busy somehow.”
Spike wagged his tail happily. “Why don’t you call your friends?”
“Good idea, Spike!” I hugged and kissed him before taking my phone. From all of my friends, my mind went to Sunset. She knows that I have a crush on Aria, so I’ll be able to ask her for advice. “After breakfast, I’ll take you out for a walk.” I said before turning to my pet. “I’ll call Sunset while you play to see if she’s free today.”
“Sounds like a plan!” Spike said before affectionately nudging me with his head.
I petted him before heading to my closet. I also have to tell mom and dad about what happened last night. I’ll do that now and then I’ll call Cadence… maybe tomorrow. Right now, I need Sunset. I haven’t asked her for help with Aria yet. A different perspective might be helpful.
In the afternoon, I headed out to Sunset’s apartment. I’m glad she said she was free today when I called her this morning. I didn’t want to make my parents worry about me, so I told them everything about what happened last night before going out. Of course, they were very supportive of me, they hugged me and told me that I could always go to them if I needed them. I’m so happy to have such amazing parents. After walking and playing, Spike got sleepy. He also couldn’t sleep well last night since he was worried about me. He’s such a caring dog, and so loyal to me.
Now that I was feeling at least a little bit better, he could sleep, so I allowed him to do so. While walking, I glanced at my phone more than once. Aria hasn’t texted me nor called me all day. I wonder if she was able to sleep last night…
I have no idea when will Aria call me to have a serious talk. She could take a day or more. I can’t sit on my bed all that time, waiting. Visiting Sunset and talking about what happened last night will help me to ease my anxiety. At least a little bit.
Upon arriving to Sunset’s apartment complex, I rang her bell and took a deep breath.
“Hello?” Sunset answered on the other end.
“It’s me, Twilight” I gave her a simple answer, managing to smile a little.
“Hi, Twilight! I’ll be right there!” Sunset hang up and opened the door a minute later. “Hey!”
Sunset smiled, leaping onto me and hugged me. I hugged her back, but when she noticed my pout she gave me a worried look. “Something wrong?”
“I need to talk with you…” I said lowly.
“Of course.” Sunset placed an arm around my shoulders. “Let’s get in.”
The fiery girl led me up to her apartment. It was a nice place. The windows were big, saving Sunset electricity during the day. My friend took me quickly to her room, barely allowing me to see the rest of her place. Her room had a single bed, and a cage on a table where she kept her leopard gecko, Ray. He was sleeping at the moment curled up in a little ball, so I didn’t disturb him. Sunset made a head gesture to tell me to sit on her bed as she took her place beside me sitting on her knees.
“Whenever you’re ready, spill. I’m all ears,” Sunset said looking a bit worried.
I took a few moments before taking a deep breath. “W-Well, last night, I confessed my feelings to Aria-” I told Sunset every detail from the start of our night to my shocking revelation to Aria. Her expression changed from surprise to sadness and then to confusion. She noticed my anxiety, so she was quick to speak after I told her everything.
“S-So… wow.” She blinked blankly clearly unsure of what to say. “And how are you feeling now?”
“Honestly? I’m anxious, and a bit itchy,” I covered my face with my hands and supported my arms with my elbows on my knees. “All I can do is wait now for who knows how long?” I glanced at my friend. “What do I do, Sunset?”
“You’re right, you can’t do anything else right now,” Sunset knitted her brow in thought. “I have to say, though-” She looked at me and smiled. “It’s really sweet of Aria not wanting to hurt your feelings.”
I blushed and smiled awkwardly as I rubbed my arm with my hand. “Y-Yeah, she really is.”
“And I can’t believe that she’s so into stargazing. She must have really studied in order to remember everything you told me,” Sunset said, with genuine surprise. “I didn’t think she had it in her.”
I smiled widely. “Yes, she must have.”
Sunset nodded. “She either tried to impress you or you really got her hooked in stargazing, maybe both.”
I blushed and leaned down my head while still keeping eye contact with Sunset and smiled. In truth I was glad Aria ended up taking a liking to my hobby, it was something I knew we could share. Something very special between us.
“M-Maybe…”
My friend chuckled. “Something you said caught my attention.” She placed her hand on her chin. “So… Aria and her sisters have super strength?”
I nodded. “Yes, why?”
“Interesting…” She frowned, but quickly smiled. “I’ll have to write to the equestrian Twilight about this. Since you told me that you met the sirens, I‘ve been talking with her about them. She decided to write a book about sirens since details about their species are vague.”
“Oh…” I blinked in confusion before smiling. “I see, but wait. Why doesn’t she study the sirens from her world?”
Sunset quickly lost her smile. She sighed and looked at me with sadness in her eyes. “Unfortunately… sirens have gone extinct… Aria and her sisters… are the last of their species.”
I gasped and covered my mouth with a hand as I widened my eyes. I couldn’t believe it! “Th-That’s terrible! I-I’m…”
“Twilight…” Sunset placed a hand on my shoulder and met her eyes with mine. “It happened a long time ago. We’re talking about hundreds of years.”
“Hundreds of years…?” I tilted my head, confused again. “Wait, are you saying that my siren friends are older than they look?”
“No. The pony Twilight has been investigating that,” Sunset burrowed her eyes. “Aria and her sisters didn’t arrive here like I did. They didn’t walk through the portal hidden in Canterlot High. They were forced here by a portal created by a powerful unicorn known as Starswirl the Bearded. The equestrian version of him was different from the human. He was a solitary pony with powerful magic. His magic not only brought them here, also brought them forward in time.” My friend smiled. “Their appearances aren’t deceiving, Twilight. Don’t worry.”
“Th-That’s good…” I sighed in relief. “They won’t outlive us, then?”
Sunset shook her head, still smiling. “No. The little information that remained states that Sirens had a similar lifespan as ponies.”
I caught her smile, but only briefly. I had another question. “But… why did that Starswirl unicorn bring them here?”
Sunset widened her eyes before looking away from me. “Th-That has to do with what Aria hasn’t told you yet.” She met my gaze. “That’s something you should really hear from her.”
“Oh…” I looked away. “Then I don’t want to know.”
I’m going to keep my promise no matter what. There were a few moments of silence, until Sunset stood up all of the sudden.
“Well!” She said, before clasping her hands together. “You can't keep thinking on when will Aria let you know she's ready. Remember, a watched pot never boils. You need a distraction.”
“A distraction?” I blinked. I suppose she’s right. I wasn’t as anxious when I walked Spike this morning. And just now, talking with Sunset helped too. “What do you propose, Sunset?” I managed to give my friend a genuine smile.
The equestrian girl grinned. “How about video games?” She pointed at the door with her thumb. “I have some good ones to play, if you’re interested.”
I smiled. “I like the sound of that. Let’s go.”
“Yay!” Sunset clapped. “This will be so fun!” She said before grabbing me by my arm and leading me to her living room. Sunset’s excitement put a big smile on my face.
We spent hours gaming. We started with fighting games, where we were fairly even but I lost the last match against Sunset. Then, we tried some co-op games. Lastly, Sunset chose a one player game and I watched. I said it was okay. I wanted to see how this game was. I never thought a video game about a man who uses a bat costume could be so epic!
“And this is just part one.” Sunset commented. “After the Madhouse comes the City, and then it goes to his Origins. There’s also a fourth game in the series, but I don’t own it… yet.”
“Wow, and all four of them are as good?” I asked.
Sunset nodded. “Yeah, although there’s a thing or two if you’re going to nitpick. Like how in his origins it’s possible to have more powerful gear than in the other games, which are set in his later years, or how he’s able to defeat a highly trained assassin when he’s just a rookie in real crime fighting. Those common prequel mistakes, though.”
“Details.” I giggled. “I won’t mind as long as the gameplay is still good.”
“Don’t worry, it keeps its charm,” Sunset smirked. “But as good as it is, that one is considered by many to be the weakest of the series. Weak doesn’t mean bad. Like I said, it’s just not as good as the previous two.”
I smiled at her, but then, my cell phone played a notification sound. Not any sound… it was the one I set for Aria. I gasped and looked at my cell phone. Sunset looked at me with confusion.
“Everything okay, Twi?” I couldn’t reply right away. My tongue twisted! In the blink of an eye, my anxiety returned. My heart started to race and I had trouble coordinating my hands as I fumbled to get my phone. I could feel my chest pounding with my heart beat.
“Twilight…?” Sunset paused the game giving her full attention on me.
“I-It’s Aria…” I managed to say after several moments of hesitation with a weak voice.
“Oh…” Sunset’s jaw dropped. “Should I leave you alone?”
I shook my head. “N-No. She texted me. I’ll text her back.” I looked at my friend. She nodded. Then, I proceeded to read the text message.
‘Hey. You home?’
I took a deep breath to calm myself before texting back. ‘No, I’m at Sunset’s.’ It was all I could write. She replied within seconds.
‘I have my answer. We need to talk as soon as possible.’
I looked at Sunset, hugging my phone close to my chest. “She’s ready to talk with me… I have to go.”
Sunset nodded. “Sure! Go ahead.” We stood up and hugged. “Good luck! If you ever need me again, I’m just a call away.” She added.
I smiled at her. “Thank you, Sunset. I’ll let you know how it goes.”
My friend returned the smile. “Okay. Now, go!”
I grinned and ran towards the front door, but it was closed. I forgot that we were in an apartment… I turned my head towards Sunset. “Umm…”
“Shoot!” The fiery girl facepalmed. “Right, I have to open the doors. I’ll walk you out.” She said as she looked for her keys.
“We said our goodbyes too soon, it seems.” I said, giggling afterwards.
My friend chuckled.
“Yeah… but we won’t do it again, to save time.”
After this I ran back home eager to speak to Aria and hear what she had to say. My mind raced with wild anticipation. Would she say she liked me, or reject me? In either case I was eager to hear what she thought about “us”.
Once out of Sunset’s apartment, I texted Aria to let her know that I was heading home as fast as I could. I ignored my burning lungs. I didn’t care right now. The conversation I’m about to have with Aria is extremely important!
I eventually slowed down to a walk, fearing that my lungs would collapse if I continued at the rate I was. My heart almost stopped when I reached my block. There, sitting on the stairs leading to my front door I could see a familiar figure waiting for me. Aria was already here, supporting her head with her hands and her elbows on her knees. I didn’t have enough energy to move faster, so I kept walking and called her when I was a couple of houses away.
“Aria!” I waved at her. My crush glanced at me and stood up immediately when we made eye contact. I made it to Aria, where we both stood awkwardly. I placed my arms behind my back while Aria placed her hands on her pockets. Her cheeks had a shade of pink.
“So, umm…” Aria spoke after several seconds of awkward silence. “Should we go in or shall we talk here?”
“N-No… let’s go to my room,” I said.
Recovering the control over my legs, I walked up the stairs and opened the front door, with Aria behind me. Upon entering I heard barking coming from my living room, and sure enough, Spike was in the room. He stopped barking when he saw us.
“Welcome back, Twilight!” He said, happily wagging his tail, before noticing Aria. “Oh, Aria! Hi!”
“Hey.” She waved waved at him.
“Spike…” I knelt to stroke his head. He leaned his head against my hand. “Aria and I will need some privacy.”
“Got it.” He sat down. “I’ll be here in the living room with your parents.”
“Thank you,” I smiled at him before standing up. “I’ll look for you later, okay?”
“Okay!” Spike barked once happily and ran off the room. After he left, I heard Aria chuckling, so I looked at her.
“I like the little guy,” She said with a smirk.
“His happiness is contagious, isn’t it?” I said, and Aria nodded agreeing with me.
More moments of silence followed. This time, I was the one to break it. I don’t want the talk to prolong any more. “L-Let’s go to my room, yes?”
“Y-Yes, right.” I noticed nervousness in her tone.
I can’t blame her for that. With no more interruptions, I lead Aria upstairs, to my room. Once we were in, I closed the door behind her and turned to face her. She still had her hands on her pockets and was avoiding my gaze.
“Aria… I-I’m ready…” I said, feeling a sense of dread.
My crush looked at me, eyes widened. “O-Oh! S-Sure! That’s why I asked you to meet, after all.” She smiled nervously at me before looking away. No matter how anxious I was, I wasn’t going to push her. She might be feeling even worse than me. She has to speak eventually… right?