Chapter Text
“Dang it…” Ranpo sighed out. He was standing in front of a vending machine in the school’s cafeteria. There was this candy box he had been wanting to get all week. It was this new grape flavored one that he had never tried before and he was really looking forward to! But he was 50 yen short! The pains of being unemployed in high school are truly not for the weak.
“Are you having issues, Edogawa?” A head of brunette hair appeared beside the shorter man.
“What do you think, Poe?” Ranpo sighed dramatically at the foreign exchange student. He looked longingly at the box candy in the vending machine.
“I think you could use some help, Edogawa.” Poe produced a leather wallet from his school bag. The difference between him and his academic rival is the fact that Poe actually has money.
“Well I mean if you insist…” Ranpo's mouth cracked into a grin that reached from ear to ear. Sure they were rivals and all but who’s to say that rivals can’t help each other out every now and again? Besides it was for the greater good of their ability to compete with each other! Ranpo needs fuel to keep surpassing him in literature class!
As Poe reached into the dispensary slot and produced the box candy from it he sung out to Ranpo, “I look forward to beating you in that analysis paper for reading class Ranpo.”
“Hah! You wish!” Ranpo took the candy from the taller man’s hands. “I’m gonna crush you! And when I do you’re gonna have to take me out and buy me all the pastries I want.” The two had an ongoing deal where whoever beats the other in a significant assignment then the loser has to buy them whatever they choose. So far the local pastry shop knows Poe by name with how much he pays for Ranpo’s stuff. But Poe honestly doesn’t even mind it!
“Well I suppose we’ll have to see how it turns out. I have no doubt you’ll give me a fight,” Poe said with a smirk on his face. Back in their first year their relationship was one of genuine one sided anger on Poe’s part. He hated how Poe had always managed to beat him and score at least one point higher than him. But over time with a little bit of communication (and some underlying homosexual tension between the two) they’ve actually become good friends.
“Oh you better give me a fight. It would be insulting to think that you’d go soft on me,” Ranpo put a hand on his arm and leaned into Poe’s space.
Poe leaned in towards Ranpo as well, their faces inches apart from one another and murmured to the shorter man, “I wouldn’t even dare dream of it..”
At a nearby table Yosano sat with her lunch tray but her focus wasn’t on the food but the two rivals standing by the vending machine. Her expression was one of pure exhaustion. Since she had the fortune of being Ranpo’s friend she had to sit by and watch these two practically eye-fuck each other in class, talk on call for HOURS about shakespeare, and she has beared witness to Poe buying Ranpo food at the the local bakery….
‘Those homosexuals….’ she thought to herself.
Rumors had been circulating that the two rivals were more than just rivals but they just treated them as just that, rumors.
The two had walked off with one another to go sit down at a table together.
“Any updates on the fanfiction trope?” Chuuya walked over to Yosano and sat down next to her. The two liked to talk about anything and just drink together. Chuuya being a delinquent had no cares for his underage drinking. Yosano does have some care and definitely watches her intake but at the same time she’s a senior. She’s about to be old enough to drink legally anyways. “Lemme guess the two seem like they walked straight out of a fic?”
“Depends. Which site are we talking about?” Yosano turned her head to look at the ginger.
“Wattpad. I’m pretty sure Poe’s rich, so definitely Wattpad,” Chuuya deadpanned.
“Eugh no. I'd actually stop being friends with Ranpo if he was like a wattpad main character,” Yosano shivered at the thought. Back in middle school she had a Wattpad phase and man… it was NOT good… “But so far it’s going about as normal as usual.”
“So no progress on them dating,” Chuuya leaned forward and rested his head on his hand. His eyes tracked the way Ranpo practically draped himself on Poe in their seats. Poe had a book in his hands and was telling Ranpo all about the book from what it seemed.
“This is just infuriating at this point…” Yosano gritted her teeth. She was TIRED of hearing Ranpo rant about how much he loved spending time with Poe, ‘oh Poe is soooo smart’ ‘Poe said this’ ‘Poe said that’ ‘I wanna kiss poe’ blah blah- wait…’I WANT TO KISS POE’????
It hit like a truck. She remembered that one time while her and Ranpo were on call he admitted to having a crush on Poe!
“Chuuya what’s the name of that group that Poe hangs around?” She asked him suddenly. her hand shot out to grab onto his shoulder.
“Uh why?” Chuuya gave her a weird look at the sudden question. He knew how weird Yosano could be but she was usually one to stay on topic not to change it so quickly.
“Just answer me,” She stared at him intensely in anticipation leaning forward into his personal space.
“The… Guild i think? I’m pretty sure they play D&D? I don’t know,” Chuuya takes a sip of his water bottle, his eyes still focused on Poe and Ranpo. He didn’t talk to either of them much so all he had to go off of was what Yosano told him or what he observed.
“We gotta talk to them,” Yosano interlocked her fingers and rested her head on her hands, posing like a supervillain in some anime. “Chuuya… operation: ‘Lovebirds’ is in full effect.”
“Operation… what?”