Valentine's Day - Part Two

Throughout the rest of the day, the festival was all I was able to think about. When the dismissal bell had finally rung, I went straight home to get ready for it. On a normal basis, my parents didn’t pick me up or drop me off when it came to anything to do with school. Considering that I had told them about my plans for the evening, it seemed they were more than willing to help me out. Neither of us wanted my outfit to get messed up or dirty after all, I guess.

The majority of my time was spent looking in front of a mirror. Even when I was all ready and set to go, there was always some kind of doubt in my mind. That doubt managed to get me to take once-overs several unnecessary times. Eventually, there came a point where time forced me to stop.

Naomi was a punctual girl. That was the truth. Never have I ever seen her late to anything from the entire time I’ve known her. If I told her that the festival started at six, she was going to be there at six. In fact, I was sure she’d be there at least even a few minutes earlier than that. Uncertainty over my appearance still lingered on, but I forced myself to ignore it and clear my mind. With somewhat of a clenched fist, I headed downstairs to tell my parents that I was ready.

It wasn’t enough that I was feeling uneasy at home. Once I was waiting at the front of the school as promised, my nerves trembled to no end. Everywhere I looked, I saw either close couples or groups of friends. It felt like I was the only solo person here, and I was starting to let it get to me.

Half of this still didn’t even feel real. Was I actually going to this thing with Naomi? Am I sure I just didn’t hear her wrong when she responded to my invitation? Then again, she didn’t say anything about this festival at all today. Was she actually on her way over here? What if she wasn’t? Did I just come here all dressed up for nothing?

Laughter echoed from a girl walking past me. Tempted to look back out of being a bit self-conscious, I forced my head to remain locked in place. In an attempt to distract myself, I brought up my left arm and looked at my wristwatch.

Fifteen minutes before six. Guess I did get here a little too early. Maybe I should have stopped to get some flowers after all…

Flowers… Flowers. Did I make a mistake by not getting any for Naomi? I think this was technically a date, right? Was I wrong for thinking that flowers might be too much and even cliche for her? Damn it. This sucks.

Before long, what sounded like a car pulling up caught my attention. I looked up from the ground and spotted a black sedan parked nearby. I didn’t know what it was exactly, but something about it just stood out from all the other cars in the vicinity. Something about it just screamed luxury and comfort. I assumed that some big group of friends splurged the entirety of their allowances for a short ride here. All for the sake of arriving in “style”, I guess.

With something to distract me from my nerves, I continued observing this particular vehicle. After a while, I noticed what appeared to be a stereotypical chauffeur getting out from the driver’s side. He had the suit, tie, gloves, even that one hat, everything. He made his way over to the backseat on the other side and pulled on the door handle. Waiting to see a group of stuffed kids come trailing out, I was surprised to see only one.

It was a girl wearing one of those one-shoulder dresses. The dress itself consisted of a shimmering blue color, reminding me of the sea for some reason. The design on the dress wasn’t too flashy like some others I had seen here. Actually, it looked like something more an adult would wear. Wait. Was this girl actually a teacher here instead of a student or something?

The driver of the vehicle went on to tip his hat to her. After seeming to speak with her for a moment, he returned inside the vehicle and prepared to drive off. Turning in the direction of the school, she adjusted a part of her hair with her left hand. On the other hand, she carried a small hand purse. Shortly after, she began walking to where I had been standing.

I hadn’t been sure at first, but my mind soon drew a blank when she was close enough to recognize. In fact, I found myself observing nothing but her figure growing larger. It wasn’t until I heard her voice when I finally snapped out of it.

“You’re here quite early, Chase.”

I felt myself clearing my throat without even thinking about it.

“Y-Yeah, well I didn’t want to make you wait in case you got here before I did…” Hoping it wasn’t too rude of me, I helped myself in getting a better look at her attire. I had only ever seen her in her school uniform, so seeing her in a form-fitting dress was a new experience. I knew she had always been pretty slim, but her dress revealed how much of an elegant and firm figure she really had. It was even a bit uncanny to have her standing in front of me like this, to say the least.

“Is something the matter?” I heard her ask.

Realizing I had most likely been looking for too long, I returned my gaze to her face.

“O-Oh, it’s nothing. You just look really, um, beautiful.”

I didn’t like the way my words came out, but it seemed she had appreciated it either way.

“Thank you,” she responded without a hint of embarrassment. “You look rather dashing yourself.”

She said that so easily. I couldn’t help but think twice about whether she was actually complimenting me or not.

“Thanks,” I returned, feeling unable to look her in the eye after that. I turned and got a view of the school. “You want to head inside? Everyone else should be over at the courtyard.”

“Sure.”

Just as I was about to walk over to the front doors, I felt something slip around my right arm. I stopped to take a look and found an idle hand gripping the area where my triceps were. Before I knew it, Naomi had been standing close to me by my right side. Really close.

I actually almost jumped out of my skin.

“Hm?” Naomi turned her expressionless gaze towards me.

I shook it off with a flick of my hand and slightly choked up a chuckle. From there, I headed toward the front doors as she held onto me the entire way.

The courtyard on the other side of the school consisted of different stands and setups. A lot of them had your typical festival games and entertainment while others were a bit more loyal to the theme.

Naomi and I passed through, all while she continued to hold on to me. I tried focusing on the stands and activities nearby, but for some reason, I just couldn’t. No matter what I did, it was almost impossible to pry my mind away from her touch.

At some point, I even began worrying about what the other students might have thought of this. It wasn’t like we were actually a couple, so there was room for misunderstandings. At the time, all I could do was hope that no one actually cared in the first place.

“See anything here you like?” I asked her, lacking any clue on what to do.

“Nothing in particular,” she answered after taking a short look around.

I could hear the sound of any bit of pride I had shattering into pieces. I was the one who invited her here. If there was nothing she wanted to do, then there was no reason for her to be here in the first place!

Come on. You have to at least find one thing she’ll like!

“Something on your mind?” She looked at me with unfazed eyes.

“N-Nothing important,” I responded to her as calmly as I could, despite feeling a bead of sweat dripping somewhere down my head. “I guess we can go check out where the dance floor is.”

I’ll only be able to stall so much. I have to find something for us to do soon!

Any kind of equipment that was usually in the gym had been cleared out for today. Around the perimeter of the building, there had been sections for food and beverages. Things like sophisticated snacks and sweets sat on tables, along with various drinks. Nearby there were also tables and seats set up in a way that left the center point of the gym open.

Even though it had still been just a little past six, there was already quite a decent amount of people in here. As I looked around at my options, I felt my heart begin racing. I had ignored the feeling as much as possible before, but it was now when I realized I had no idea on what the hell I was doing.

I had the courage to ask Naomi out to the festival. That’s cool. But what was my plan after that? I already knew what kind of girl she was, so what was I expecting? Did I really think that things would work out on their own if I just went with the flow? It was only a matter of time before she’d get bored with this place and realize how much time she was wasting with me.

My worries must have somehow been soaking through my face because Naomi seemed to notice them.

“Is something the matter?” she asked.

“Um… I don’t suppose there’s anything here that interests you, is there?” I responded, feeling the entirety of my body tense up. “…something you want to do?”

Like before, her eyes scanned the area around before they drifted towards a group of speakers. They had been playing some kind of eloquent instrumental music at an appropriate volume. But I wasn’t worried about the music. Instead, I took careful notice of the expression on her face. More accurately, the lack of expression.

“It doesn’t matter to me.” With a frank answer, she returned her unreadable gaze at me.

Ugh… Great…

As far as activities went, I was at a loss when it came to deciding what to do. It was a social event after all, but talking with people I didn’t even know seemed out of the question. It was best to say that Naomi and I weren’t exactly extroverts. That being said, those particular traits weren’t any use to us at a moment like this.

In the end, the two of us sat at a table in silence. In fact, the only kind of talking that was going on was the chatter around us by everyone else. I continued to try brainstorming ideas, but I was on the verge of giving up.

I watched her every now and then to see her adapting to her situation. She’d either send an absentminded look across the floor or busy herself with the phone from her purse. I felt like just a disappointment.

Glancing over at the refreshment table, I took a pathetic shot in the dark.

“You hungry?”

She took a moment to answer. “I’m not very hungry. Thank you.”

A soft grunt flew past my lips. I wasn’t that hungry either, but I thought it could be some kind of start if we had gone together to get food.

After wallowing in disappointment for a while, I simply just sat there. The more I sat to myself like that, the more I began wondering if going to this thing was a good idea in the end.

“Hey…” In a soft tone, I called out to her. “You sure it was okay coming out here with me today?”

Her eyes darted in my direction. For a few seconds, she didn’t say anything. In fact, I couldn’t help but get a feeling she was studying whatever look I had on my face. After a moment, she raised her head and spoke.

“Why do you ask?”

Trying not to sound too disappointed or depressed, I addressed the issue in a subtle manner.

“Just thought you’d prefer to spend the time studying instead. At least doing something more important than this.”

“That’s true,” she admitted as we made direct eye contact. Although I was hopefully putting up a strong front, I felt every part inside me wither away. “I tend not to associate myself with activities such as this. I find no reason to as they have nothing to offer me in return.”

I get it… You should just leave while you still can, I guess…

“But that’s not the reason I’m here right now,” she continued as if she was able to hear my inner thoughts.

“Huh?” My head raised in response.

“You remember what we discussed the other day over coffee, don’t you?”

“Well, we talked about different kind of things…”

“Forgive me,” she apologized, taking me by surprise. “I was referring to my discussion of friends.”

I remembered what she said that day. That she was there because she wanted to give our friendship a chance, so to speak. I didn’t understand her feelings over the manner completely, but I got the gist of it.

“Y-Yeah, I remember,” I replied.

“I don’t care for events like these, but since you invited me… its importance grew.” She turned her gaze over to her handbag. “Coming here with you, it doesn’t feel like a menial and baseless task. In some way, there’s a meaning behind it. Perhaps, it’s my desire to foster the relationship the both of us share.”

I was speechless. Was I hearing things right? Did she just tell me what I think she told me?

“…you’re saying you came here with me today because…you wanted to spend time with me?” I responded between pauses of hesitation.

She turned her head and faced me in a direct manner for some time. Then, her eyes sunk a little after as if she thought quietly to herself.

“I suppose you can put it that way.”

Uffhm. She was so serious about it. She just came outright and said it. What was I supposed to say now?

After having an uneasy glance around the room, I decided to finally respond to her.

“Well, I’m glad to hear that. To tell you the truth, I wasn’t sure if you even wanted to be here in the first place. After all, you didn’t look interested in doing anything here.”

“You don’t need to take me into consideration so much, Chase. I already told you that I accepted your invitation solely for you. I may not be amused by the activities they have here. But I’m more than content with just accompanying you, should there be something you’d like to do. Believe me when I say this, Chase. If I didn’t want to be here, then I wouldn’t be.”

“Naomi…” It was the only thing I could say at that point. To be honest, I was still a little confused over what she really wanted out of this. But I was mostly just relieved. If I was hearing right, she wasn’t expecting me to “please” her as if she was some high-maintenance girl on a date. In her own way, I guess all she really wanted was…just to be with me… “Alright. In that case, why don’t we check out some of the games outside? Then, we can grab a bite to eat after.”

Growing a warm smile on my face, I stood up and held out my hand to her. If her confession wasn’t already enough, she did something else that poked at my heart. As if it was her body’s natural response, she returned a subtle yet noticeable smile. Accepting my hand, she gave a soft nod of her head.

Naomi and I returned outside and spent some time with the stands they had out in the courtyard. Keeping her words in mind, I decided to take the lead and try out games that looked pretty amusing. Of course, she didn’t necessarily take part in said games. I caught her standing back and watching me the majority of the time.

“That prize is mine…” Adamant words prowled under my breath as I aimed my toy pistol. My eyes were set on various balloons shaped into hearts that were pinned to a corkboard. Taking one last deep breath, I steadied my aim as much as I could as I waited for the bell to sound.

Riing!

Pop. Pop. Pop.

Taking aim at every balloon that first came into sight, I flexed my finger continuously. As every bead and pellet shot out, I didn’t hesitate on switching targets even if I had missed the previous one. Time didn’t have a place in my mind while I focused on the game on hand.

Worry about time too much and you’re bound to lose it in the end, after all.

Riing!

I was so concentrated on my shots that I almost jumped at the sound of the bell. I didn’t realize how much background noise I had tuned out until my time was over.

“Nice shooting!” The girl behind the stand congratulated me and guided me over to the prize section. “Go ahead and pick your prize!”

I immediately went for the little stuffed panda they had and took it over to Naomi, who had been waiting by the side.

“What do you think?” I asked, showing the panda to her.

“It looks like it can be easily torn,” she said with a straight face.

Not the kind of response I was looking for, but this was Naomi.

“Why don’t you have it?” I offered.

“Me? But you were the one who won it.”

“Yeah, but I won it for you. I wanted to give it to you.”

“…give?” Despite her expressionless face, she seemed to be a bit confused.

“Yep. Take it.” Feeling pretty confident, I grabbed her hand and placed it on her open palm. “It’s pretty cute if you ask me.”

She stared at it for a bit of a long time.

“Are you sure you want to give this to me? I don’t have any use for it, and I wouldn’t want it to go to waste.”

“You don’t really ‘use’ it,” I told her as I tried to come up with a way to best explain it to her. “It’s like a memento, I guess. Anytime you look at it, you can remember what we did today.”

“A memento…” she repeated, continuing to stare softly at the small plushie she held in her hand. After a short moment, she closed her eyes and nodded. “I see. Thank you, Chase.”

Having a good feeling that she appreciated my offer, I smiled back.

Just as I was about to search for something else to do, I heard an unexpected voice call out to me.

“Oh, if it isn’t Chase! I almost couldn’t tell it was you.”

Turning in the direction the sound came from, I noticed an older woman approaching me from nearby. Getting past the fancy wrap dress she wore, I found that it was someone I knew. Despite the flashy layer of lipstick on her lips and hint of blush on her cheeks, I realized it was Mrs. Rivers from Art.

“Mrs. Rivers…!” I responded, surprised to see her in front of me. “Didn’t know you were here at the festival too.”

“Mm-hm.” She returned an enthusiastic nod. “I’m here with my husband. He’s helping us out with the Art Club. We’re doing portraits.”

“Oh, really?” I replied, taking a glance around to see if I could map out the direction she had come from. “I must have missed you or something.”

“It has gotten pretty crowded. I don’t think you’d be able to find me unless you knew where to look.” She noticed Naomi, who had been observing our conversation while standing by my side. “Oh, is she your date?”

I felt my body freeze for a quick second after hearing that. In fact, I was afraid of Naomi stepping in to correct her and say she wasn’t. Thankfully, she remained silent and instead seemed to turn her gaze over to me for my answer.

I didn’t want to jump the gun or anything and say she was right off the bat. But I didn’t want to make any bad implications and say that she wasn’t either. In the end, I settled on somewhat giving her the straight and kind of literal answer.

“Well, I did ask her out here, so I guess you could say that.” In an attempt to play off my answer as a joke, I laughed afterward.

“You two should stop on by when you have the chance. You two look like you’d make a cute portrait,” she teased with a wink.

My eyes shot open, and a low stunted grunt seemed to slip past my lips. Once again, I glanced over at Naomi who held the same neutral expression as before.

“Y-Yeah, sure…! There are still some things we want to do, but if we have time left, I might just take you up on your offer.”

“It’s up to you. If you decide to come, I’m just down the pathway to the left. You should be able to see me if you keep an eye out,” she mentioned with a smile and held the back of her hand against her hip. “I should be getting back though. I just wanted to stop by and say hi. It was nice seeing you.”

“Yeah…you too, Mrs. Rivers.”

She lifted her other hand and gave a short wave. Afterward, she left in the direction of wherever her stand was.

Releasing a soft sigh, I turned to my side to find Naomi facing directly at me. Realizing she had been standing there in silence for me to finish, I apologized.

“Sorry for making you wait. I wasn’t expecting her to show up like that.”

“It’s fine.”

Lifting up my left arm, I checked the time on my wristwatch. We had been so busy out here that I didn’t even realize how close it was to eight.

“You said you had to leave around eight, right, Naomi?” I asked.

“Yes,” she answered before her head made a slight tilt to her left. “Is it that time already?”

“No, not yet. But it’s getting close…” I took a second glance at my watch to make sure as if there was a chance I had been seeing wrong. “Man, and I still wanted to dance with you before you left…” I mentioned under my breath.

“Dance?” she heard and inquired about it.

“Y-Yeah. I mean, i-if that’s okay with you…”

Earlier, it didn’t look like the dance floor had been set up completely, so I didn’t ask her then. With how much time had passed, I was hoping that the floor was ready to go. After all, dancing with her was something I actually wanted to put to the test. It was practically the only thing I had decent confidence in.

“I have to say, I didn’t take you for the dancing type,” she mentioned.

Yeah, I don’t blame you.

“Well, if you don’t mind, I think we can fit in a dance or two before you have to go. The dance floor should be up already.”

Naomi kept silent in response, striking my nerves with uneasy anticipation.

“I don’t mind dancing with you,” she finally said.

At that moment, I felt my heart leap in joy.

“C-Cool,” I expressed with a triumphant smile. “Let’s head back to the gym then.”

Once we stepped foot into the gym, I noticed the music they had playing was different from before. Their playlist now consisted of what sounded like ballroom music. Empty tables were now filled, and it looked like some people were getting ready to step up and dance.

I wasn’t sure if they had plans to move back and forth from ballroom dancing to “modern-day” dancing. All I knew is that I couldn’t waste the opportunity that stood out before me.

With an excited smile, I turned to Naomi and held out my hand.

“Ready to do this then?”

With a slightly agape mouth, she stared at me for a few seconds before accepting my hand. My nerves should have been jumping and jittering around in this situation. I should have been nervous as hell, but that wasn’t the case this time. I was now in the zone, and I guess I had an overzealous sister to thank for that.

I proceeded to lead Naomi to the dance floor. Just before we actually entered the arena, I analyzed the floor for a moment. I wasn’t expecting a lot of other people to be filling the area already, so it was a bit of a surprise. It was also now when I realized what kind of music we were dealing with.

I ended my fast-paced walk and turned towards Naomi.

“I can’t believe I didn’t ask… How are you with dancing? Can you do tango? Or do you need something slower?”

“I am experienced with ballroom dancing. Tango is fine,” she answered in a calm demeanor. “How about you? I assume you can lead, considering you asked me to dance in the first place?”

Damn. That would have wrecked me had I not had my confidence. Don’t worry, Naomi. I’ve had more than enough practice than any average guy should have to suffer through.

“You’ve got that right,” I told her and finally pulled her into the floor.

Picking a spot with enough room away from others, I stopped and faced my partner. In return, she continued to look back at me as if waiting for my next move. I began by connecting my left hand with her right and positioning my right on her back. She followed by positioning herself as well.

We stood there still for a short moment as I mentally synced myself with the music. When I was ready, I began leading her into the actual dance.

Things were slow at first, and we started off by just taking small steps around our initial area. It gave us a chance to warm up, so I didn’t argue against it. Before we had any chance to relax, the tempo began picking up. Eventually, we found our steps taking swift and great strides along the dance floor.

The details were a blur at that time. I paid less attention to what I was seeing and more to what I was feeling. Although, one thing was for certain. Throughout the entirety of the dance, Naomi and I had been staring at each other for what felt like a long time. Based on her smooth movements, I was able to tell Naomi was very skilled with what she was doing. Because of this, it was much easier to lose my mind to the music. It was almost like she didn’t even need me to lead her in the first place.

I’d find myself coming back to reality when the time came for a twirl or even striking a dramatic pose. But, before I knew it, our fiery steps had soon come to an end. The song we had been dancing to began fading out, and I eventually opened my eyes to the kind of posture we held. The physical distance between us was practically non-existent. Her face was only a few inches away from mine. A simple mistake could result in a…

“Well done,” she praised.

“H-Huh? Oh, yeah. You too,” I almost mumbled out.

A slow waltz soon welcomed the dance floor and its participants.

“Up for another one…?” I asked.

She returned a slow nod.

From there, we took things down a notch. Our movements were no longer energetic but careful this time around. In fact, we simply made slow strides around our area in a continuous motion. In turn, this allowed us to hold a conversation with one another.

“You’re…amazing, Naomi,” I told her, feeling on the verge of freezing in place in awe of her performance.

“Thank you,” she said, all while keeping a straight face on me. “I haven’t had the chance to put my lessons to use until now.”

“‘Lessons’?” I repeated out of curiosity.

“Yes. I’ve had lessons for ballroom dancing since I was little,” she explained. “I’ve attended social gatherings somewhat like this before. However, they were either hosted by family or close friends of family. Even so, I’ve never actually had the chance to dance with someone like now. I spend the majority of time at these gatherings introducing myself to friends or clients of my father. Otherwise, I'll stay at the table.”

“O-Oh, yeah?” I found myself holding a genuine interest in her story. It seemed she had her share of a “fancy” lifestyle that I’ve never dipped my feet into. Not only that, I was surprised to learn that I was apparently her first dance partner. Then again, she wasn’t exactly one to be social. If anyone was interested in dancing with her, I wouldn’t put it past them to be intimidated by her icy looks. Even so, to me at least, she was gorgeous in her dress. I couldn’t ignore her. If it wasn’t for her seemingly cold appearance, I was sure she could have caught more eyes than mine.

I felt my grip at her waist tighten unintentionally. At first, I didn’t notice straight away since there was no change to the blank expression on her face whatsoever. Although, when I realized how strong my grip had been, I loosened it as fast as I was able to and apologized.

“…s-sorry.”

“For what?” she questioned.

It seemed like she didn’t see the mistake as a big deal, so I decided against getting into it.

“U-Uh…N-Nothing.”

That courage I had when we first entered the dance floor started dwindling away for some reason. If she hadn’t continued the conversation, I might have just looked away from embarrassment.

“May I ask how you learned?”

It was only natural that she’d ask something like that. I should have expected it, but I didn’t.

“Oh, that?” I thought of countless ways on how to tell her. But in the end, I didn’t think anything could disguise how embarrassing the truth to her question was. “Well…I guess you could say someone in the family taught me…”

“Taught by a relative? I see.”

She seemed to have no intent on pursuing it any further, much to my relief.

The music ceased some point later and so did our steps. From there, we decided to take our leave as light applause ignited from the crowd watching. After escorting Naomi off the dance floor, I checked my wristwatch. In a few minutes, it was going to be eight. She was going to have to leave soon.

We stood outside as she kept her hands around her handbag and the small panda I had given to her earlier. Near the entrance of the school, we waited for her transportation to arrive.

“It may have been only a couple of hours, but I had fun with you today, Naomi…” I felt the strong need to tell her.

Ceasing her scan of vehicles, she turned to me. As always, she wore an expression on her face that I couldn’t quite read.

“Understandably so,” she replied. “I believe I feel the same way. Tonight was…” She paused for a moment and cast her gaze downwards. Her eyes swayed side-to-side as if she was looking for the right words to say. “…worthwhile.”

“Oh, yeah? I’m glad to hear that then. I was scared that you’d end up thinking this was all a huge waste of time, after all.”

Positioning her fingers underneath the tuft of hair beside her ear, she turned her eyes away.

“I’m sure you’re fully aware that isn’t the case. Spending time with you like this doesn’t feel like a waste. I’d actually like to do this again with you sometime…”

My heart began racing, and my palms started to feel sweaty. For a second, I was tempted to loosen the tie around my neck.

“Y-Yeah…? Well, I’ll make sure to bring you flowers next time.”

She stared at me with an agape mouth for a moment. It was almost as if I had said the wrong thing. But then a small smile appeared on her lips.

“Hm.”

I didn’t understand the science behind it, but I was now infatuated with the sight of her. The rarity of her short-lived smile…it was almost something worth dying for. Maybe I was just being dramatic, but it was how I felt at the time. In fact, without even thinking, I felt the next several words leap from my tongue.

“N-Naomi. Do…d-do you think…you might want to…?”

Without saying anything, she paid particular attention to me. She waited for a continuation of my unfinished response without a hint of impatience.

Now was the time. I just had to ask her, right? Now was the moment that would shape an important factor in my life from here on out. But, was now the best time? Would things turn out okay if I ended up saying it straight out? I couldn’t decide in the little time I had. Maybe I wasn’t ready after all…

A small sound buzzed from the phone in her hand. She took a glance at the screen that momentarily lit up. After, she turned in the direction of a certain vehicle in the distance.

“I’m afraid I must be going,” she said and returned her phone to the depths of her handbag. “What was it that you were going to say?”

Feeling burdened with pressure, I called off the attempt. I couldn’t tell if I was being careful or just a coward.

“Oh. I-It’s nothing… I can tell you another time…”

She continued to eye me for a moment before she finally responded.

“I see.” She then proceeded to face me in a direct manner. Afterward, she closed her eyes and returned a small bow. “Thank you for tonight, Chase.”

“Y-Yeah…no problem.” I rubbed the back of my neck with a weak hand, still feeling the disappointment of my failed attempt weigh me down. “I’ll see you at school. Good night.”

Straightening herself back up, she spared a few more words to me.

“Good night to you as well.” She then turned around and began walking in the direction of her ride. However, after making just a few steps forward, she stopped and faced me once more. “If you’d like to continue our conversation from earlier, you know how to reach me.”

I was a bit shocked to hear that coming from her. Usually, I was always the one making offers like that instead.

“R-Right,” I answered back.

If I wasn’t mistaken, another subtle smile appeared on her lips for a brief moment. Afterward, she continued on her way away from the school. I felt a wave of heat engulf my face as I watched her walk. At the same time, it was hard to feel any part of my body. My body was stiff. I couldn’t even take out the hands that were dug into the pockets of my coat.

Whoever had been driving her home walked out of the driver’s seat and approached her. In a similar fashion to when she first arrived, he opened the backseat door and welcomed her. This time, she was heading back into the car instead of out.

It was quite obvious that the driver had been some kind of chauffeur, but it was still a little hard to believe. I doubt her dad just liked to wear chauffeur outfits driving to and from places. Wait, maybe that was actually his job? Nah, I don't think they make that much…

A soft sigh parted from my lips.

I didn’t get to ask Naomi about these questions bubbling in my mind. It was possible I could’ve asked her some other time, but then again, I didn’t want to sound too nosy.

Based on the kind of house and neighborhood she lived in, I assumed her family was pretty wealthy. Maybe they rented out a driver just for her. Based on what she told me earlier on the dance floor, I could see that being a thing.

At any rate, once she and the driver were inside, the vehicle began to move and leave. I stood there for a moment in silence. I spent the time collecting my thoughts while still recovering from a few minutes ago.

Even if I did fail on my sad attempt on officially asking her out, tonight was actually a good night. It was still a little hard to describe what exactly I felt for Naomi. But I couldn’t ignore it. Did I really like her in that sense?

Like before, I couldn’t answer that with ease.