Confession (Part Two)

Outside the auditorium, on the athletic field.

"Make way! The Association is here!"

Sirens, shouts, and the roar of cheers in the distance blended together.

The Association's support convoy finally rushed onto campus. Action Team members jumped out, cordoned off the area, and began evacuating the crowd.

Celestial Star landed beside Knight.

"Why did you come alone?"

Knight looked puzzled.

"There's a Dawn Rank, a Lamp-Lighting Rank, and a Firefly Rank on the scene. The Association isn't worried about the situation here at all. They just put me in charge of the team..."

"So how are things now?"

Knight glanced toward the auditorium.

"There shouldn't be... any problems... I think..."

Inside the collapsed auditorium.

The dry ice fog onstage had long since dissipated. All that remained were overturned tables and chairs and scattered prop swords.

The crowd's cheers drifted faintly in from the athletic field, sounding as though they came from another world.

Love landed gently on the stage.

Under Celestial Star's direction, the auditorium ruins had been cordoned off. No one could get in.

Chen Qianqian's eyes were red.

Whether from anger or from crying earlier, Love couldn't tell.

"Heh~ Gave you a big scare, didn't I?"

"I'll give you a big scare!"

Seeing Love act so flippant, Chen Qianqian finally snapped and landed several punches on her shoulder.

"Hey~ Easy~"

"The Fallen Beast didn't kill me, but you might."

"You're still joking!"

At Love's words, Chen Qianqian shot her a fierce glare.

"You... you... I..."

Chen Qianqian was so worked up that she couldn't get a complete sentence out. Tears sprang to her eyes in frustration.

Love reached out and gently wiped the tears from Chen Qianqian's face.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you until now."

Chen Qianqian bit her lip and glared at Love for a long moment, then suddenly threw herself into her arms.

"When did it start?"

With her face buried against Love, Chen Qianqian's voice sounded muffled.

Love wrapped her arms around Chen Qianqian and gently stroked her back.

"At the factory," Love said softly. "When that Fallen Beast caught your parents... That was the first time I used my powers in front of everyone."

"The first time?" Chen Qianqian caught the wording at once. "What about before that? When did you become a Magical Girl?"

Love fell silent for a few seconds.

"About a year ago."

"Wishes don't seem to care much about what makes sense... I was a boy, but mine still made me a Magical Girl."

She became a Magical Girl a year ago...

So this was the secret Yang Chen had been hiding all along?

"Then why didn't you tell me?"

Love sighed softly.

"Because this power comes at a price."

At the word "price," Chen Qianqian pulled away from Love.

"A price? What price?"

She gripped both of Love's arms tightly. Even without transforming, she squeezed hard enough to hurt.

Seeing Chen Qianqian react just as she and Chen Zhou had, Love felt a surge of warmth.

"Don't worry... It's nothing dangerous."

"It's just... how do I put this? The more I transform and fight, the more my body changes into a girl's... until one day, completely..."

"I never knew how to tell you."

"I was afraid you'd..."

Thud!

Chen Qianqian punched Love hard again.

She had figured out what Love had planned back then.

She finally understood what had happened when they were kidnapped at the warehouse, too.

"You bastard! You idiot! You selfish jerk! You never think about anyone but yourself... I'm going to beat you to death!"

"Is that the kind of person you think I am? Do you know how worried I was about you all that time? Why do you always bottle everything up and try to deal with it alone? Am I really someone you can't lean on?"

Love stood still and let Chen Qianqian's fists fall on her again and again.

"I'm sorry," she said softly.

"Celestial Star already gave me an earful. She said I was being stubborn."

"She was right!"

"Yeah, she was." Love accepted it without protest. "Later, when you visited me in the hospital, you said you could pull me back no matter what I became... That was when I finally understood."

"Understood what?"

"That..." She scratched her head, leaving a strand of pink hair sticking up. "I shouldn't hide. I should stand in front of you and tell you everything."

"That's why I did all this today."

Qianqian's fists stopped.

"...Then the Cultural Festival stunt..." Realization belatedly dawned on her, and she narrowed her eyes suspiciously. "What was that about? Did you have to make such a huge production of it? The whole school was watching!"

"Well..."

Love's gaze began to wander.

"A confession like this needs a sense of occasion..."

"Tell me the truth."

"...I wanted to see you jump out of your skin."

"Yang! Chen!!"

Chen Qianqian grabbed Love by the collar. They stared each other down beneath the spotlight, their noses almost touching.

Then Chen Qianqian saw her face.

That impossibly beautiful face, so close to hers.

Pink hair fell across the back of her hand, tickling it. Her own reflection shone in Love's starry eyes.

She suddenly realized something, let go, and took two steps back.

"...You said the price ends with 'Yang Chen' disappearing completely."

"Yeah."

"In other words..." Chen Qianqian's voice dropped. "You'll become a girl. Completely."

She had been so angry that only now did Love's words truly sink in.

"Yeah."

"Then what about us..."

She stopped halfway through.

Beyond the stage, the noise from the athletic field seemed to recede into the distance.

Tiny motes of dust drifted slowly through the spotlight's beam.

"I've thought about it," Love said softly. "When that day comes, maybe we'll only be able to be best friends."

"...Huh?"

"I'm serious—after all, we..."

Love never finished.

Chen Qianqian grabbed her, pulled her head down, and kissed her.

Love's eyes flew wide open.

To be honest, Chen Qianqian had been a little forceful and was terribly inexperienced. It didn't feel all that wonderful, especially when their teeth bumped together.

But...

"What are you talking about? You're the one I love... Just you..."

"Love can overcome any barrier. You said so yourself!"

"Yes!"

"That's exactly what I wanted to see!"

In the shadows, Celestial Star had shed her usual calm for once. Her face was flushed with excitement.

Knight covered her eyes shyly, wanting to look but not daring to.

Yes, Celestial Star's curiosity had gotten the better of her, and she had dragged Knight along to watch.

Then again, Knight was a Lamp-Lighting Rank. If she truly hadn't wanted to come, how could a mere Fluorescent Rank have dragged her here?