Chapter Text
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Sitting on the same usual spot in the school cafeteria, Lucifer was having his lunch while watching his somewhat distracted best friend Diavolo. He obviously thought he was being discreet with the glances he threw at a certain dark-haired girl but being friends with him for years, he could not conceal it well from him. The girl in question was what one would call a typical bookworm. Appearance wise, the girl could not even pass as attractive by any means. She had an oversized uniform, her dark hair always up in a tight bun and lastly, that thick eye-glasses with a big frame she had on was not something you would normally call beautiful. He knew one should not judge another by appearances, but she definitely was not his type. While she was not in the same class as him and Diavolo, he had spoken to her a couple times due to them being their own class representatives.
Honestly, he did not know what made the girl so special to Diavolo but could not blame him for wanting the unusual. Despite being well-known as the big corporate heir, Diavolo was friendly to everyone, which made him popular among the ladies. It went without saying that every girl in the school would try to catch his eyes but the one who seemed to manage to do that was the top student with zero appeal. He sighed inwardly. He had refrained from saying anything but it started to get annoying to see his best friend mooning over the girl from a distance.
Once they were back in the classroom, he finally had enough. "You know, no amount of staring will get you closer to the girl. Why not go ahead and say hi for a change?"
Diavolo gaped at him before flushing red.
Lucifer could not honestly say he was not enjoying the reaction. It was the first time he witnessed his best friend like this.
A sigh escaped from his lips as Diavolo smiled sheepishly at his best friend. "I should have known you would notice."
He, Diavolo, was absolutely smitten with the girl from the other class but had no courage to approach her.
Out of curiosity, Lucifer asked, "Since when?"
Diavolo hummed. "Entrance ceremony. Literally bumped into her. By accident, of course!"
Lucifer was amazed to say the least as that was over six months ago. He did not think his best friend would last this long. This girl was obviously special. "What do you like about her?"
Diavolo's expression made him blink as he realised that his best friend had it bad, like really bad.
"Her eyes. I have never seen such dark and beautiful violet eyes before."
Lucifer tilted his head as he realised beside her thick eye-glasses, her long fringes seemed to hide away those eyes, too.
"Well, don't you think you have waited long enough?"
Diavolo shifted uncomfortably on his seat.
If Lucifer did not know how awkward this was to Diavolo, he would have laughed. While it was true he was very popular with the ladies, Diavolo was an absolute gentleman to them all and never made any inappropriate move to any lady. Right now, the table had been turned. Diavolo himself had to make the move since it was quite obvious the girl would not do it.
"I know it's funny, but I don't know how to approach her without being overly self-conscious, u know?"
Lucifer decided to drop the subject as he contemplated on speaking with someone who could help his hopeless best friend.
Standing beside his father to greet the guests, Diavolo could not help how his mind kept wandering to his favourite bookworm. The day he bumped into her was the only day he saw her without her eye-glasses. He missed seeing those eyes again. When he saw her eyes the first time, he thought it was a waste to hide such beautiful eyes, but then, thought better of it. It might sound selfish, but he was happy to be the only one to witness such beauty and wanted to keep it that way, for now.
"Diavolo." His father's voice snapped him out of his daydream.
He turned to his father apologetically. "My apologies, Father."
Just then, his breath caught in his throat when he glanced at the entrance for the incoming guests.
Yamamoto was inwardly surprised to see the look on his son's face as he heard him mutter the name, "MC."
It would seem Lucifer was not joking about Diavolo having a huge crush on Mizusaki's daughter.
Once they reached them, he smiled at the middle-aged man in black suit. "Welcome, Mizusaki-san. Glad you can make it."
The raven-haired man nodded at him in greeting. "Thank you for the invitation, Yamamoto-san."
Yamamoto turned his eyes to the beautiful girl in the indigo kimono beside him. Her long dark hair was braided to the side and the smile on her face enhanced the beauty of her dark violet eyes that she obviously inherited from her father. He had to admit that his son had a good eye.
"This young lady must be..."
"Yes, this is my daughter," Mizusaki introduced with a proud smile on his face as he looked at her.
Following her father, she politely bowed at him. "Pleasure to meet you, Yamamoto-san. My name is MC."
Somewhere along the lines, his son seemed to have recovered from his shock when he gestured to his side. "Here is my son, Diavolo."
Diavolo returned the greetings as calmly as he could. "Pleased to meet you, Mizusaki-san."
A soft blush coloured his cheeks as he turned to the girl. "Hello, MC-san."
"Hello, Diavolo-san." A small smile on her lips.
For a moment, both adults watched the two high schoolers exchanging shy glances at each other.
Yamamoto smiled at Mizusaki as he cleared his throat. "Well, I believe you told me this is your daughter's first time coming to this kind of gathering."
Mizusaki nodded in agreement. "Oh yes, it is."
"We have prepared all sorts of entertainment. If you don't mind, my son can show her around the venue while we talk about boring, business stuff."
"I don't mind at all." Mizusaki turned to his daughter. "As long as she is okay with it?"
Diavolo extended his hand with a bow. "I'd be happy to show you around, MC-san."
The smile on Diavolo's face widened when MC placed her hand in his.
"Thank you, Diavolo-san."
"My pleasure."
Both men could tell how happy Diavolo was. As soon as both were out of the earshots, Yamamoto commented, "So, what do you say about finalising the agreement now?"
Mizusaki huffed. "As I said before, that is not up to me to decide. I will not use my daughter as a bargaining chip."
Yamamoto sighed. "Have a little bit of faith in me. I know that but I will be happy if you can agree as well."
Mizusaki was honestly surprised when Yamamoto contacted him two weeks ago. It was true that they both used to be close friends during their school years but lost contact after Diavolo moved aboard for his studies. He did not mind reconnecting but what bothered him most was his suggestion to tie their families together through their child. Unlike Diavolo, he did not own a big corporation, only that his family was the owner of tea houses throughout Japan for generations. While he did not like the notion of arranged marriage itself, it still did not offer any merit for Diavolo should he agree to the arrangement.
It was not okay to be so suspicious of his own friend, but one would generally wonder why bother in the first place. The only thing Yamamoto shared was to see it for himself by attending the party he would host so their child could meet. After witnessing Diavolo's reaction towards his daughter, he finally understood why. His daughter was an honest girl and knew she did not mind Diavolo like the rest of the male populations of her own age.
Yamamoto turned to Mizusaki properly. "You know I will treat her as if she is my own."
It was Mizusaki's turn to sigh. "Fine. I have no problem with it, but MC will have the final say on it."
Yamamoto smiled. "Thank you, truly."
They both watched their child together. Despite the initial bashfulness, they seemed to be enjoying themselves as they headed towards the balcony.
Diavolo was trying to calm his fast beating heart ever since he saw her. It did not cross his mind how the whole meeting had been set up until later on. He had always known MC was beautiful and now that he had seen her without her bookworm mask on, he did not know how to suppress his needs to make her his.
Hands on the railing, MC was gazing up at the star-filled night sky. "Beautiful."
"I agree," he replied while looking at her face.
MC turned to him and blushed when she realised he was staring at her.
"Can I call you just MC?" he nervously asked.
She ducked her head shyly. "If you don't mind me do the same, yes."
Diavolo grinned. "Of course. In fact, I insist."
He then took her hand and looked into her eyes.
"Diavolo?" She tilted her head slightly.
Damn. Even the way she said his name was enough to send his heart to overdrive.
"I don't want to sound like a creep but ever since that day, I have been thinking about you, a lot." He gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "It might be too soon but will you go out with me? I'd be very, very honoured if you agree to be my girlfriend, MC."
MC would have shouted "YES!" if she was alone. To be honest, she did not expect him to remember her after their first encounter. While she could feel his gaze on her from time to time, she brushed it off as just her imagination. Diavolo was always friendly to everyone, and she knew how popular he was, especially with the girls. Her bookworm facade was just a mask she put on since she did not wish to deal with the hassle of unwanted attention from the opposite gender. It was more like she had known how bad it was to be hated by the female populations in school when she was being herself.
Boys, attached or not, would flock around her which ignited even more resentments from her peers. She did not mind not having any friends, so she had opted to not attract a lot of attention after she entered high school. Thanks to that, no one bothered her. The only thing she looked forward to was catching a glimpse of Diavolo here and there as they were not in the same class. When her father had asked her to accompany him to a formal party that was hosted by Diavolo's family, she was shocked but happily agreed to go. And now, here she was.
Being confessed to by the guy she liked, she felt like she was in a dream and unconsciously whispered, "Is this a dream?"
Diavolo blinked before registering the meaning of what she said. The smile on his face was unrestrained. "I can definitely assure you that you are not dreaming, my lady."
He kissed the hand he was holding. Her rosy cheeks were a great reward for him. "Can you please give me your answer, MC?"
"Yes," she replied breathlessly.
Diavolo released the breath he did not know he was holding before pulling her into a hug. "Thank you! You really make me very happy today!"
It did not take him long to realise that he might have moved too fast and quickly pulled away. Looking at her bright red face, he quickly apologised, "S-Sorry, I'm just so happy."
The shy and awkward Diavolo was something she considered really cute and she chuckled before she could stop herself.
He blinked in confusion and she elaborated, "I find this awkward side of you very cute."
"Well, between the two of us, you are the cute one," he replied with an eyebrow raised.
"Are you sure about that?" she replied, giving him the same look.
It was not long before both of them were laughing at how silly they were. When both calmed down, he put his arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer to his side.
"Thank you, MC," he said softly before kissing her on the temple.
She hummed happily. "Thank you, too, Diavolo."
Both were unaware how their lives would start to change the next morning.
"Are you serious, Father?" Disbelief was clear in his voice.
"Of course," Yamamoto replied without missing a beat. He just informed his son about his arranged marriage.
Diavolo clenched his fists in frustration. He tried to cool his head before saying something he might regret later on. "Why?"
Yamamoto blinked. Looking at his son's reaction, he had the feeling they both were not on the same page.
"The purpose of yesterday's party was to let you two meet each other, Diavolo. I thought you like MC?"
The long train of thoughts Diavolo had screeched into a halt as he turned to his father, wide-eyed, "You mean..."
"The marriage arrangement is between you and MC. Her father has agreed but of course, you two will have the final say."
The big smile on his son's face was blinding to say the least as he exclaimed, "Thank you, Father!"
Yamamoto could not say anything more as his son had already rushed out of his study and was likely contacting his soon-to-be fiancée. He shook his head but smiled to himself that he, too, was happy for his son.
"MC!" Diavolo called out with a huge grin and a wave across the field.
MC was reluctant but replied in kind by waving back. After much begging from Diavolo, she had agreed to watch him at his baseball club practice.
It still felt like a dream when her father told her that she was engaged to Diavolo, should she wish it. Part of her still wanted to wait since they were still very young and in school, but she could not deny the happiness Diavolo showed her upon learning the news. For now, only both families, the school faculty members and really close friends were aware of this fact. They did not want to hide their engaged status, just wanted to keep it under wraps till they both graduated from high school. While this was happening behind closed doors, she had the overwhelming urge to run and hide at the moment. The heated looks she felt at the back of her head was getting painful by the minute. The obvious reason was because she had been around during Diavolo's club activity lately, and Diavolo was not subtle to let everyone know how happy he was when she was around.
It did not take a genius to guess that the rest of the girls did not take this well. After all, she was just a bookworm that should have no business with the most popular guy in their school. By the end of the practice, she quickly left the bleachers. Unfortunately, not fast enough as someone grabbed her arms roughly the moment she was out of the field and forcefully pulled her to the back of the school. Her attacker, one of the four girls, slammed her left shoulder against the wall hard enough to make her wince. She did not make a sound despite the throbbing pain.
"Don't be so full of yourself just because Diavolo-sama paid a little attention to you, bitch."
If she wanted to, she would have rolled her eyes. Jealousy was so unsightly. She might have remembered the name of the girl before her, but she refused to acknowledge bullies by their name. It was not as if she was in denial that they came after her, just that she did not see the point of remembering mean people. Just as she was about to reply to the girl, the hold on her arms was released and then, she felt the water pouring down on her from above. Of course, they obviously picked this place for this sole reason. Seriously, she did not think they would go this far. Well, she could be grateful that it was just water.
"This is a warning for you. Unless you want a repeat performance, you be--"
"Get lost before I call Diavolo."
The girls gasped as they turned to the owner of the voice, who approached them with cold eyes.
"Lucifer-sama!"
"We can explain, this--"
"Didn't I tell you to get lost?" He narrowed his eyes in warning.
All the girls squeaked before scrambling away in fear. Lucifer never thought he would become the hero that saved his best friend's fiancée. He was still a bit amazed at how Diavolo was right that girls could be scary when they were jealous. It would seem his best friend was not as clueless about his surroundings as he thought. After the girls left, they went to Mizusaki's locker to get her spare PE uniform and went straight for the infirmary. He already texted Diavolo about what happened, so he knew it would not take long for him to join them after the short meeting with his team.
Mizusaki was currently being checked over by the school nurse, Simeon, behind the blind of the bed next to him.
Simeon clicked his tongue. "Nothing is broken, thankfully, but this is going to bruise, my dear."
Lucifer heard a soft yelp and figured the nurse must have pressed against the tender spot. He inwardly cringed at the thought of how upset Diavolo would be once he found out about this. Soon enough, the door to the infirmary was slid open with quite a force, revealing a panting Diavolo. Amber eyes looked around wildly and just before he could utter a word, the blind next to him was pulled open. Lucifer's breath hitched and he blinked his eyes a couple times, making sure he was not seeing things. In the place of the famously known bookroom of their year was someone he almost did not recognise. Long wavy hair instead of the tight bun, and there were no big eye-glasses to cover that usually hidden face. Well, he would begrudgingly admit that Diavolo was not wrong about how pretty her violet eyes were. He absent-mindedly wondered why Mizusaki would bother to hide such fine features.
Diavolo rushed over to her, fretting like a mother hen before Simeon hushed him. "Keep your cool, Yamamoto, your pretty fiancée is not bleeding, just bruised a little."
Yeah, the news did not bode well as Lucifer watched the blood drain from Diavolo's face when the nurse let him catch a glimpse of the said bruise at the back of Mizusaki's left shoulder. But it lasted just a moment before a burning rage simmered in his eyes.
"Diavolo." Mizusaki touched his arm, seemingly able to calm his rage for a bit.
Diavolo sighed before taking her hands into his. "You know what will happen now, right?"
A resigned look crossed over her face as she nodded. "Yeah.."
It was then Diavolo pulled Mizusaki into his arms before turning his head to him. "Thank you, Lu."
Lucifer waved his hand dismissively. "Not a problem. Guess you want to announce your status to avoid another one of these."
Diavolo gave a stiff nod. "I don't know if it will stop this, but we can always hope."
Hope they did and thankfully, it did not end so badly. The majority of the student body were getting a whiplash for sure when Mizusaki shed her bookworm look and walked into the school hand-in-hand with Diavolo. Seeing their reaction, Lucifer finally understood why Mizusaki hid herself away. Luckily, the minority who already accepted Mizusaki even before the revelation only wished her happiness. Now that they shared the same table with Mizusaki during lunch, Lucifer would not have to watch his best friend mooning over the girl, who unintentionally became the most popular after all was said and done. Truly, Lucifer was glad that he made the right decision to talk to Diavolo's father about his best friend's crush that day. As long as Diavolo was happy, he was happy, too.
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