Her question.

I never expected it to go well. It was a delicate topic that needed to be discussed, so I was ready to be yelled at and called all sorts of things. I never thought she’d run away, though.

I sat on the floor of the rooftop, confused and mentally exhausted.

Noelle said we would talk later, but would we really? If she ran away, it meant she didn’t want to see me, right? I couldn’t get a read on her thoughts. What little I heard was a mix of emotions and ideas that was too hectic to make any sense of.

I let out a loud, frustrated groan as I rubbed my face. Should I have done things differently? Should I have said something else? Maybe if I was more assertive, but that likely would’ve been off putting and made her hate me more. Maybe there was just no way to get a better outcome. It was bound to happen.

When my phone buzzed, I almost didn’t want to check it, but it could be the girls, so I still did. And yeah, it was Sarah, asking me where I was and to stay there.

I was expecting them to come here, but it was Noelle who came through the door, running and gasping for hair.

“H-Hey, what’s wrong?” I asked in a hurry, standing up and going to check on her.

“...Nothing, nothing,” she said, laughing tiredly. “Sorry, I said… we’d talk later today, but… I made up my mind sooner than I thought.”

“W-What do you mean?”

“I went to talk to the girls. Milana, Grace and Sarah. I needed to do that before I asked you this.” Noelle took a couple of deep breaths. She stood up straight, but still had to look up at me. Her expression was serious, resolute. “O-Oliver! I r-r-really l-l-like you! W-W-Will you go out with me?” She almost shouted her question.

I slowly blinked as my jaw fell. I felt so dizzy that I had to believe I was hearing things.

“W-What? But… I thought you… That you didn’t want to…”

“I… I don’t want you to friendzone me!” she said bluntly. “It made me realize that… That I didn’t want to waste an opportunity to be with you! That’s how much I like you. I’ll… I’ll share if I have to, I won’t complain, but I refuse to miss out on this. I’m tired of squandering opportunities just because I was afraid!”

I blinked again. “Friendzone you? I… wasn’t gonna do that.”

“Eh?”

“You left before I could tell you. I was going to say that… I want us to remain friends, because I don’t want to give up on you. Even if it took me months or even years, I would eventually convince you to go out with me, to… accept my relationship with other girls.” I scratched the back of my head. “I know it’s insanely selfish, but this is the one thing I can’t compromise on. I want you, Noelle, every bit as much as I want Mila, Grace, Sarah and Alice. So I’ll do everything I can to fulfill that wish, no matter how long it takes me.”

Noelle’s mouth remained half-opened. “So… I jumped to conclusions?”

“I think so?” I offered sheepishly.

Noelle’s blush deepened even more, and then suddenly she burst into laughter.

“Ahahahaha! I can’t believe it! Hahaha! I’m so dumb!”

“H-Hey…”

“I thought… I thought you didn’t want to go out with me anymore, so I rushed. But this…” She snickered. “God, I must look so stupid.”

I chuckled. “Not really. When… When I asked out Mila, Grace and Sarah, I rushed too, because they were going to a party that night and I was afraid they’d hook up with other guys.”

Noelle kept laughing. Her grin was gorgeous. “Are you serious?”

“In my defense, I had no idea what that relationship was for a long time.”

“Yeah, they told me.”

The choice of that specific anecdote was deliberate. I didn’t want to tiptoe around the fact I was seeing other girls. If this had any chance to work, Noelle needed to understand how much those girls meant to me. That said…

“So yeah, I’m not going to give up easily. However, I don’t want you to make a rushed choice,” I told her. “So if you want to take some more time…”

“No.” Noelle shook her head. “If anything, this helped me make up my mind. I’m sure that if I spent more time thinking about it, I’d end up deciding the same.” She smiled at me nervously. “So… What’s your answer? Will you go out with me?”

My smile came to me on its own. “Yeah. I promise you won’t regret it.”

Noelle giggled. “Bold words. That confident?”

I laughed. “I won’t get anywhere if I don’t at least look it, right?”

{Do whatever feels right, huh?}

That reading was strange. It was Noelle’s thought, but I heard hints of Mila’s voice in there. Maybe a memory more than a thought, then.

Noelle started fidgeting in place. She looked down at the floor with burning cheeks. “H-Hey, just so you know, I… I’m not… I’ve never had a boyfriend before.”

I smiled at her and nodded. “I’m honored, then.”

She giggled. “What I’m trying to say is that… I’m not… experienced.”

{Will he think less of me if I tell him I’m looking forward to doing naughty things? But I’ve never even kissed a boy before, so I’ll suck at it! But I want it…}

You know, maybe reading minds isn’t such a bad thing.

I stepped closer to Noelle. With my latest, surprise growth sprout, standing so close to her made our height difference more noticeable. I was half a head taller than her.

I gently put my hands on her shoulders. She flinched from surprise, and my own heart was racing as well. Regardless, I pushed through and embraced her. Just a hug, but I wanted to feel her close. Noelle let out a shy chuckle and hugged me back, hiding her face in my shoulder. Just this felt heavenly. The closeness, the contact… But it was clear we both wanted more.

“Can I kiss you?” I asked her softly.

I felt her body tense. She looked up at me, face as red as her hair. She licked her lips and silently nodded.

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