I’m so excited that I have trouble talking straight “H-hi Yukio! It’s… I’m so glad you finally made it early! I've been so upset that we couldn’t talk to each other these last few days!"

My out of the ordinary, enthusiastic tone surprises her "Wow I was totally not expecting that reaction! It's almost as if you're excited to see me! But don't worry, I've also been upset we haven't been able to talk!"

Oh maybe I came on a bit strong there. This is only our third time talking to each other, so I shouldn’t do anything that can scare her off… but would that actually happen? I was really only matching her energy. And she did respond like she was teasing me.

Still, I’ m going to be a little more reserved "Yes uh it's just that class has been a little boring and I was hoping to get to know you a little better. Since this is the only time we can really speak to each other."

She laughs at my tone shift "I feel the same way! I guess I forgot to mention how many quiet days this class has huh? I promise it gets better as it goes along! Since we have time now, what would you like to know about me?"

Yes, here it is! My chance to ask her if she lives next door "Actually, there is one thing I've been really curious about... the last few days, I've seen a black car drop you off at a house right after school, and I was wondering if it was because you lived there?"

Her head cranks to the side and she says in a joking tone "Oh my god you've been watching me? Are you like stalking me or something?"

Though I don’t catch that she’s joking "No no no no it's not like that at all! I just happen to see you every day since I always arrive home at the same time... because I live there... in the house next to you I mean!"

By the look on her face, I could tell it was her first time hearing that "No way... you're telling me we've been neighbors this entire time? What are the chances of that?!" she’s very excited about it. Excited enough that she grabs both of my hands "How have I never seen you before? I've been totally drawn to you since I first saw you, so I would have definitely remembered if I had seen you before!"

My heart beats so quick that it feels as if it’s going to burst out of my chest. This isn’t good. I just know that my face is bright red right now, and she can totally see it. Her hands are so small and soft, they feel like they’re meant to be holding mine. I already feel so familiar with them… I can’t be doing this.

Those pretty eyes staring into mine, I’m looking deeper into their meaning than her intent. I’m betting this is just her personality. The type of person who’s really affectionate with all of her friends. I’m sure this means nothing to her. She’s probably not even gay.

I need to hide these feelings from her. Just talk casually "It's probably because I don't leave the house much. My parents keep me locked away most of the time."

She holds my hands tighter "That sounds awful!” then giggles to herself “But it kinda sounds like you're a princess, waiting for Prince Charming to come and rescue you! Hey, maybe I can be your Prince! You do live next door after all!"

What the hell? No way she just said something that corny. If it were a guy saying that to me, I would think it’s a terrible try at flirting and cringe. But since it’s her? It kinda makes me feel flattered.

Again though, I need to remind myself that she isn’t flirting. All she’s doing is joking around with me because we’re friends. Girls do that kind of thing with their friends all the time. There’s no way she would be interested in me.

Just don’t respond in a way that would creep her out. Say something that doesn’t sound flirty "Oh haha, that's so nice of you, but I was actually over exaggerating. My parents just don't like me going out much since it might effect my studies."

She giggles in a way that it’s hard for me to interpret the meaning. And before she can respond, Sensei begins speaking "Okay everyone, today will be a little bit more fun of a day, since the plan is for you to take what you've learned and put it to use by talking to your desk mate! Now this is serious practice time so I don't want to hear too much goofing around. And if you do mess around, make sure you're speaking Japanese."

What a pleasant surprise. Here I was, expecting to work on another assignment in silence all class, but now my assignment is to actually speak to Yukio? This day just got a whole lot better! If only every day of class were like this. Especially on one of those days where Yukio came in late.

And when I turn back to her, she’s already looking at me with wide eyes and a big smile "Looks like we should get to work then!" I hold back how excited I actually am and agree with her.

We dive right into the practice with ease. There isn’t even a moment where the conversation feels stiff or one of us has issue coming up with a sentence. It’s so easy and relaxing talking to her. All we’re saying is random Japanese sentences, but it’s making me really happy.

We’re having so much fun talking back and forth that it feels like we’ve known each other forever. We don’t even have any issues understanding the other when we speak Japanese. Which is nice, because I always heard listening comprehension is one of the hardest parts about learning another language.

The rest of class goes by in a flash. We were having so much fun talking to each other, that we hadn’t even noticed the time on the clock. Class was about to be over, and my mood dampens upon remembering what’s waiting for me afterwards.

As class is wrapping up, Yukio says in her cheery voice "Thanks for the fun conversations today! I know you have to run out of here as soon as the bell rings, so I figured I would say my goodbyes now."

My heart hurts a little knowing we have to go our separate ways "Yeah that's understandable... I really enjoyed today. I hope more classes can be like this, because talking to you is always the highlight to my day."

She doesn’t respond immediately. I get nervous, thinking something I said made her feel weird. I’m nervous until, surprisingly, she leans over and gives me a hug.

Her hugging me was so sudden, I don’t know how to react to it at first. And the hug feels different this time as well. It feels like there’s actual emotion behind it. The type of emotion you would give to someone you have a very close relationship with. She was even savoring the moment. Our quick friendship hug from before meant nothing compared to this.

Unfortunately, the moment has to end once the bell rings.

We both pull back, with her looking slightly sad. But I would be lying if I said I wasn’t feeling the same way. Though we both already know the drill. We say goodbye, then I run to the parking lot as I always do.

Today was my moms day to drive, and she was waiting for me as usual. After I hop in the car, I wonder what kind of ride home it’s going to be. Will she do her nonstop yapping about some boy she thinks I would be good with? Or will the ride be completely silent?

Turns out, both options were wrong.

As soon as I enter the car, my mom can tell I’m in a good mood. It makes her uncharacteristically ask me about class. It let me know that she was suspicious of me. She had never cared about how my schooling was.

So I gave her some generic answer, summing up my good mood to having received a high grade on a quiz. Which worked well enough to shut her up for the rest of the ride home. Lying to her had always been easier than lying to my dad. With her, I never worried if she was only pretending to believe me like my dad would do.

When we finally pulled into our driveway, my eyes were already glued on Yukio’s house. I just know that she’s going to show up at the exact same time as she always does. Even if it’s just for a moment, I want to catch one last glimpse of her. Just that short amount of time seeing her gives me enough happiness to make it through the rest of the night.

Then sure enough, I see a car pulling up out of the corner of my eye. Only, it doesn’t appear to be the same car. The model was the one I was expecting, but instead of it being black, the car was red. I wondered if it was someone else pulling up, as there was no way they could have changed the color of their car that quickly.

My excitement is slowly fading from me thinking I wont be able to see Yukio again. I’m about to give up hope when I see the door of the red car open. Out of curiosity, I wait to see who steps out. And that curiosity changes to excitement and confusion upon seeing that it is Yukio stepping out.

I’m looking at her, wondering if my eyes are playing tricks on me. I was sure the car that dropped her off every day was black. But as I watch it pull out of the driveway, it being red is as clear as day. Maybe that should be another thing I clarify with her tomorrow.

When my eyes go back to watch Yukio again, I see that she has stopped walking.

The conversation we had earlier must have popped into her mind. Remembering we talked about living next door to each other, she turned around, almost immediately locking eyes with me in the car. She gives me a quick smile and a wave, and upon me returning it, she turns back around to enter her house.

"Who is that?"