"and he kissed you just like that?"

l/n y/n sat in front of baji f/n with a warm cup of tea in her hands, looking down at her drink with a tired look on her face as she nodded at her friend's words.

it's been three days since the banquet- three days since kokonoi hajime made a move on her and kissed her under the moonless night sky.

of course, the two never brought up the kiss since then- tension growing more and more as they stayed in the same office together.

the warm ambiance was way better than the icky, stuffy office that she was used to cooping inside off.

which is why the young manager decided to up and leave her office even just for a little while, she couldn't handle being under the silver-haired man's gaze any longer- and she was to stay there, she'd surely melt.

"and... you kissed him back? honey, i don't see what's wrong with that. i'm just happy that you got to move on from you know who."

f/n said, noticing the perplexed look on her friend's face as she continued swirling her already cold tea.

"that's the problem- i haven't moved on yet."

silence dawned upon the two women, the soft buzzing from the television acted as some sort of white noise to avoid complete silence between them.

the (r/h/c) haired assistant knew that y/n really did like mitsuya, but it also pained her to see the woman clinging onto that little sliver of hope for the past twelve years.

she was well aware that you really can't forget your first love- but she just wanted to hit her friend on the head because she's clinging onto a married man. god forbid that the young manager will do something as sinister as what she had in mind.

f/n sighed, caressing her big baby bump to soothe her stressed-out mind.

"y/n, dear- it's been ten years. surely all of your feelings towards takashi are all gone."

(e/c) eyes looked like they were in a daze, peering into the warm-colored drink at hand as she absentmindedly hummed at her friend's words.

"do you think that maybe it's all in your mind?" this made y/n look up, brows furrowed in confusion as she saw the comforting smile that f/n gave her.

"what do you mean by that?"

"what if your heart has already moved on from him but your mind just doesn't want to admit it."

at that moment, the (h/c) haired woman tensed on her seat- hands feeling clammy and her heart thumping on her chest at a fast pace.

she knows where this is going- knows what her friend is about to say next, but she just doesn't want to admit it.

"you're in love with kokonoi hajime, y/n."

"your mind may see him as mitsuya takashi at the moment- but it's all in your head. i know that your heart was thumping that night, why can't you just admit it?"

if it was only possible to trade your mind to a new one, she could- she really would.

"but- but i always mistake him for mitsuya... whenever i'm with him, i can still feel his presence as if there was a phantom following me." f/n looked at her in pity, sighing as a small smile etched itself on her features.

she knows what the (h/c) haired girl was feeling right now- it was a mix of confusion, sadness and disbelief. actually, it did pain her a little when her friend told her that she saw mitsuya in another man, but as she said- it's all in her head.

y/n may not be aware of it now, but kokonoi hajime successfully cleared the thick fog that was covering her mind- now all that's left for her to do is walk out of that dense forest with the man.

"y/n, the night that kokonoi kissed you- what was on your mind."

the young manager turned to her assistant with a confused looked etched on her features, but nevertheless racker her mind on what she was thinking that night.

"kokonoi was the-"

f/n let out an amused chuckle at the sight of her (e/c) eyes wide with realization, leaning onto her armchair with a smile on her face.

"your mind sure is hard to slap some sense into."

"y/n, you've been over mitsuya for a long time now- let your head realize that fact because i'm sure your heart is tired from all that deniability that you've been getting into."

y/n said nothing, shaky hands tightening themselves onto the porcelain cup that they were holding on as the liquid began rippling as well.

she didn't need to say anything because the (r/h/c) haired woman said everything for her.

because baji f/n was right, she was in love with her assistant, kokonoi hajime. she was just scared to admit that because she's afraid to get her heartbroken and experience the pain that she felt ten years ago.

y/n wanted to bury her feelings for him by telling herself that she was still in love with mitsuya takashi- and even though she did mistook the silver-haired man twice for already, that's just her being in denial.

in reality, she was, in no doubt- in love with kokonoi hajime.

"i'm happy that he's in your life now, i really am." f/n said, standing up and taking the cold cup from her hands and walking towards the kitchen to make a fresh brew.

it's official, the young manager of the bouncing ball corporation is a dumb woman who can't accept the fact that she was falling for someone else.

but you know, she can't help but feel butterflies warming inside her stomach- a feeling that she thought she'd never get to have again.

y/n made a mental note to thank her friend for all of that, because if it weren't for her then she would've surely been still in denial for the rest of her life.

the young woman was snapped from her trance when she heard the front door open, f/n coming out of the kitchen and walking towards the entrance to welcome her husband in.

"kei! did you buy the things that i told you to get?" the woman asked, smiling at her husband as the raven-haired man nodded and gestured behind him.

"mitsuya's got it with him. made the fucker carry everything because i'm tired." she froze, smiling with wide eyes at nothing at the mention of the name.

why now?!

f/n scurried towards the living room- thankful that y/n was still the same, dense girl that she was before.

the (h/c) haired girl looked up with her brows raised in concern and confusion, wondering why her friend was sweating like she had just ran a marathon.

"are you alright? do you need anything-"

"baji! get your fucking ass out here and help me!"

(e/c) eyes widened slightly in familiarity, knowing damn well whose voice that belonged to.

"y/n i'm so sorry- i didn't know that keisuke will be bringing him!" f/n was cut off when the young manager let out a small chuckle, eyes crinkling in delight as she gave a reassuring pat to the woman.

"it's quite alright."

"i've got koko, i'm more than fine with that."

it was the first time in forever that y/n felt relieved rather than nervous and hurt whenever she'd hear someone mention even a smidge about the lilac haired male- but it took her a quick second to finally listen to her heart, ready to take on that leap that she had been avoiding for so long.

she didn't know how she did it- but she did and now she's happier than ever.

footsteps approached the living room, eyes making contact with wide lavender ones she thought that she had missed.

"y/n? oh shit crap- uh, how bout we go to the back?" baji keisuke said, wanting nothing more than to be buried six feet underground because he didn't want to be stuck in their tension.

but surprisingly, he felt nothing but serenity floating all around the room.

"it's nice to see you two again." y/n smiled, taking her bag from the coffee table and bowing at f/n as a sign of gratitude.

"thank you for the tea f/n. i'll be looking forward to your delivery soon."

mitsuya takashi stayed put in his place, feet feeling heavier than ever as he finally set eyes on the woman that he once loved.

she was just as he had remembered her to be- if not even more beautiful than what his mind would make her up for.

he was well aware that he's a married man, but even he has those moments where he'd think back on his past mistakes.

"y/n..." (e/c) eyes met with his for the second time, seeing nothing but a bright look on her face- different from the one that she had ten years ago.

the young manager turned towards keisuke who was busy apologizing to her mentally, chuckling at his sorry expression.

"i'll be taking my leave. do enjoy the rest of your afternoon."

and with that, l/n y/n left the room and out of the front door- leaving not only her deniability inside of that house but also the past that she was once clinging onto.

she entered as the y/n that was still in 'love' with mitsuya takashi, and she left the house as the y/n who is now in love with kokonoi hajime.