~Oliver's POV~

I woke up, groaning. "U-ugh...."

"Ah~! Oliver~!" A voice I knew far too well practically burst my eardrums.

"Shit, Gumi...!" I hissed in pain, pushing the green-haired girl away from my face. "That's too damn loud...!"

Gumi pouted, looking exactly like a child at that moment. "Wow, that's so mean, Ollie-kins~"

I narrowed my eyes at her. "Shut up."

As I sat up, turning to sit normally on the couch, my foot hit something. "Huh...?" I looked down, flinching when I saw Len sprawled out on the floor like a dead body. I looked up at Gumi with slight irritation. "Don't tell me you killed him?"

"Nope~!" Gumi cheered happily, beaming. "Not yet, at least."

"Make that 'Not ever'," I remarked, sighing. "So, what did you give him?"

"Tranquilizer fluids."

"T-that's poisonous!" I shouted, paling. "Gumi, what the hell?!"

"No, no, you don't get it," Gumi laughed. "It's my own special kind. No poison. Well, not for him at least." She smirked, placing a hand on her hip.

I looked away. "That's not...." I sighed. "Nevermind."

Gumi raised an eyebrow. "Whatever. He'll be out for a few hours. What's he thinking?"

I looked over at Len, concentrating.

'Goddamn that dumb bitch...! What the hell?! Who does that?!'

I laughed nervously. "Nothing good...."

"Well that doesn't sound promising." Gumi spun a small pen in her fingers as she spoke, huffing.

"Nothing sounds promising when you tranquilize someone, Gumi...." I looked away, gritting my teeth. Of course she had to go and tranquilize him....

"Anyway," Gumi started, "what are you gonna do now that he's knocked out?"

"Probably just wait for him to wake up," I deadpanned.

Gumi pouted. "What? That's no fun.... Wanna play with me~?"

"And exactly what does that mean, Gumi?" I looked up at her, knowing something was up. She was always a bit weird around me, and I hoped she wouldn't do anything too strange.... Begging, even.

Well, apparently God revoked my prayers.

"This~!" Gumi sang happily, moving down and getting on my lap. She pushed my back against the back of the couch, her hands on either side of my head.

"G-Gumi...?" I asked slowly, my eyes widening in shock and slight fear as she moved her head closer to my own. Her eyes closed, and I began praying harder than I've ever done before.

Maybe this time God would answer.

"...ver...."

"Huh...?" Gumi and I both flinched, the greenette opening her eyes to look over at where the sound had come from.

I looked at Gumi, raising an eyebrow. "W-was that...?"

"Really?" Gumi whined, getting off of me and crossing her arms, pouting. "I totally knew it."

"W-what...?" I gave Gumi a confused look as she lightly kicked Len's shoulder.

"This doof." She gestured to Len's limp body on the floor. "I'm thinking that he's developing feelings for you. It's pretty obvious when you look close enough."

I flinched violently, blushing. "W-w-what are you talking about, Gumi?! He's a guy; there's no way he could like me! A-and I'm straight, too!"

"Really?" Gumi asked, tilting her head to the side slightly. "I could've sworn you were bi...."

"T-that's not important!" I screeched, tensing up. "Still, there's no chance that he's into guys! I'm not either, so leave it at that!"

"Then what about me?"

"W-what?"

"What about me?" Gumi repeated, taking a step closer.

"W-what do you mean...?" I asked, scooting back on the couch a bit. "I-I don't understand...."

"Could you...ever love me...?" Gumi looked down, her bangs covering her eyes. "Please. Be honest."

"I-I...?" I looked around, desperate for some sort of miracle to save me from having to answer. But, of course, nothing could save me from this dead end.

"Well?" She persisted, clenching her fists tightly. "Could you, or could you not?"

"I...." I looked away, blushing harshly. "I-I could...."

Gumi flinched, seeming shocked by my answer. "R-really...?!"

I bit my lip hard and covered my face. "I-I guess? Probably?"

"T-then, c-could I...?" Gumi practically bounced over to me, her eyes wide with anticipation and excitement. It was easy to tell what she wanted, and I...couldn't really resist.

"U-u-uh, s-sure...?" I shut my eyes tightly, waiting. I could feel my entire body trembling.

After a moment, I felt a soft pair of lips brush against mine. It was only for a second before they pulled back.

I opened my eyes hesitantly and saw Gumi blushing harshly, her hands on her cheeks as she jumped up and down with glee, sputtering out things about how embarrassed and excited she was.

I blushed harshly, looking away again. Something about the entire thing felt off, but I brushed it off. "Does that mean...? U-uh, we're...?"

Gumi faltered slightly, looking at me with shock. "F-fwah?! Really?! Can we?!"

I flinched, shrugging. "I-I guess...?"

Gumi's squeal was so loud that I had to cover my ears. She tackled me, rubbing our cheeks together affectionately.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you~!" She repeated over and over, wrapping her arms around my neck. "Uwah, Oliver, I love you!"

I flinched at that. No one...ever told me they loved me before.... It was either insults or disgusted looks. I knew it was because I never covered my left eye. The red color gave people the feeling that I was dangerous, or something stupid like that. But...now that I think about it, Gumi's never said anything bad about or to me and she's definitely never given me a disgusted look. I think....

"I...love you too, Gumi...." I wrapped my arms around the greenette, holding her tightly. It felt like if I let go I would fall into a bottomless pit; left there to die and suffer forever.

And yet...something about those words slipping from my lips also felt wrong. It felt...unnatural. Like it wasn't my place to say them.

There was a pain in my chest. One I couldn't recognize at that moment. One that I regret not noticing.