A Helping Hand

Melissa barely muffled squeal at Haku's expression. She couldn't help herself as she took hold of her again. "Eeee~, oh my God! Sweet and cute!! She's definitely the whole package!!" Melissa had sobered up just a little from their conversation. This was a product of her remaining intoxication and plain silliness.

Haku thought her head was going to explode, with how much she was blushing. "It's... too bad nobody else ever thought so..."

Melissa giggled blissfully without letting her go. "Oh~ that won't be a problem here! The boys'll be all over you! Girls, too. Even I can't resist your charms!" She gave a playful yelp. "Oh noooo! Haku's trying to steal my heart! What do I doooo~!" Melissa was swaying now, completely absorbed with Haku's blushing face.

Haku's blush intensified greatly at that. She wasn't sure if Melissa was serious or not about that last part. "Y-you... th-that's not a very n-nice joke, p-p-pretending to like me..."

Melissa slowed her motions and looked directly at Haku. Half of her, her drunken self, was still being ever playful. The other half... "You're right... That wouldn't be a nice joke." She slowly hugged Haku a bit closer to herself. "But I wouldn't be mean to you!"

Haku was turning an even deeper shade of red, if that was possible. "Wh-wh-wh-wh-wh..." This was getting nowhere. She swallowed hard, and tried again. "Wh-what are y-you saying, Melissa?"

"Hm~? I wonder~!" Melissa's smile broadened. She brought her face closer to Haku's and lowered her tone. "What I'm saying is..." Melissa quickly closed the gap between her lips and Haku's. Her rationality was being drowned out by the liquor for the time being. Her teasing had gone too far, but it wasn't just about that anymore.

Haku was completely caught off guard by the kiss. Nobody, nobody, had ever kissed her before. Kisses on the forehead or cheeks from her sisters didn't count. This... this was far different. It was new... nice.... confusing.... scary. Haku couldn't tell whether she should like this or not. It was sudden, it sent her reeling... and Melissa was drunk. And in Haku's mind, this only happened because of that. And she found that that hurt. Conflicted, Haku pushed Melissa way firmly, though was gentle looking at her for a moment with so many conflicted emotions flitting across her face... before fleeing into the room that was hers for now, shutting the door.

Haku dove onto the bed and curled up, wrapping the sheets around herself almost protectively. She didn't know what to do... and now she was terrified that she'd just pushed away someone who could have been very important to her...

Melissa sat where Haku left her for a few moments, stunned. That was bad. That was very, very bad... 'Oh God. No, no, NO. What did I do??' She shook her head from side to side and rubbed her forehead. Melissa wanted to blame the alcohol for her behavior, but she already knew that was partially untrue. Why did she even do something like that? Knowing Haku's trepidation toward contact and affection... Melissa felt terrible, and a bit disgusted with herself.

After a minute of reflection, Melissa slowly stood and started down the hallway. She stopped in front of Haku's door, reaching for the handle but quickly losing the nerve to attempt it. It'd somehow feel worse if it were locked, so she opted not to know. "Um... Haku...? I'm not coming in. I just wanted to say... I'm very sorry. I'll... talk to you in the morning. Okay...?" Melissa tried to muster her normal voice. She'd have to properly apologize later when she was feeling better both physically and mentally. Figuring Haku wasn't likely to answer, she made her way into her own room and lay on the bed.

Haku heard Melissa, and felt even worse. 'No... I don't want her to... it's not her fault...' She couldn't face her right now though... not yet...

Melissa was up bright and early to fix breakfast for everyone. Getting up wasn't usually a problem for her, and she hadn't slept that well anyway. After she finished cooking, Melissa would usually go to wake Elise up. She had to attend to Haku before that; or at least try. She lightly tapped on Haku's door. "Haku? May I come in?" If she didn't want to, or simply wasn't awake, Melissa would have to try again before going to school.

Haku heard her, but couldn't manage to answer. She just curled up more, completely covered by the sheets.

Melissa waited a few moments before thinking of what to do. She really wanted to apologize, and wondered if Haku was just still asleep. "...I'm coming in." After taking a quick second to muster up the courage, she slowly opened the door. With a peek inside she could tell Haku was either awake or slept in a fetal position. She stepped inside and closed the door behind her. Melissa stayed at the door, not daring to come any closer.

"If you're asleep, that's okay. If you're awake and want me to leave, that's fine too. I just wanted to say a few things to you..." She would continue to speak whether Haku responded or not. Melissa just hoped she wouldn't ask her to leave.

Haku didn't respond, other than to shift the covers a bit, her red eyes shining a briefly, showing she was awake and peeking at Melissa from under the sheets.

Melissa smiled just a little, relieved that she was still even in the room. She took a deep breath before moving on. "Last night... What I did to you was very inappropriate. I know I made you feel uncomfortable, and you have every right to be angry with me..." She interlaced her fingers and lifted her hands in front of her mouth. "...I won't make excuses for myself. I got carried away and violated your personal space. I wasn't... simply teasing you... but that doesn't matter." She lowered her hands to her front. "I want you to feel comfortable here. To think of this place as home. I'm terribly sorry for putting you in such a position that could make that impossible. It won't happen again, I promise you. And... even if you can't forgive me now, I still want you to come with me to school. Not for me, but for you." She still wanted to restore Haku's sense of self worth.

She was smiling, but her look was somehow sad. "Would... that be okay?"

For a long moment, there wasn't a response... until Haku slowly sat up, looking at Melissa with a shy expression. "...Nobody... has ever kissed me like that before..."

Melissa jumped slightly at hearing that. She covered her mouth and looked away from Haku. "Oh, no... I took your first?" She felt even worse now. Her mind was in conflict with itself again. Haku's face was too cute, and knowing she'd had her first kiss was... Melissa blushed slightly. "That sort of thing should really happen with someone you care about. I really shouldn't have done that to you..."

Haku looked down. "No, it... it was nice, I just... I didn't know what to do, and it was so sudden, and... and you were drunk, I... you wouldn't have done that otherwise, and that...." She trailed off, shoulders sagging.

"...?" Melissa blinked and returned her gaze to Haku, her expression remaining unchanged. 'She said it was... nice?' Her blush increased. Haku was being way to adorable for her own good. "...Well, you're only partially correct. I wouldn't have done that... without your permission." Melissa smiled at her softly. She clasped her hands together. "Sorry for interrupting. Finish your thought, sweetie."

Haku's blush returned. "...You're really pretty... but I'm not sure I can... that I..." She trailed off, shaking her head.

Melissa was starting to grow anticipant of what Haku was trying to say. She was quite flattering, and showing that cute side of herself again. "Aw~. Now I'm all curious." She stepped forward and sat on Haku's bed, twisting to one side to look at her. "You aren't sure you can... what?"

Haku fidgeted. "...I... I just don't know if I... I'm not used to this... I'm not used to people being so nice to me, or... being affectionate, or... I'm just really confused..."

Melissa giggled. "Well, too bad~! This world is chock-full of nice people. The friends I keep are also good people. And I'm not going to stop being nice to you because I like you. I'm sure everyone you meet will start to like you very quickly!" She gazed at Haku with her usual kind expression. "You don't need to force yourself to make sense of it quickly. I'll help you become more accustomed to it. Elise will, too. So just relax! You're doing fine."

Haku was silent for a moment, then nodded slowly. "Okay... just... I'm not sure how I feel about things, just... warn me first, if you decide to kiss me again..."

Melissa blinked. "Ahahahaha~!" She had to laugh at that. Whether Haku was joking or not, it was an amusing notion; one she'd have to remember. As she settled down, she poked Haku on the nose. "I'll think about it!" She stood up and moved to the door. "Now, come eat some breakfast. Kids can be a handful, so you'll be needing all the energy you can get!" She wasn't quite sure how Haku's body worked, but eating breakfast couldn't hurt.