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As Makoto closes the door to the student council room, she hears a loud thump through the wall. At first, she thinks she closed the door too hard and startled herself, but the thump is followed by some raised voices, followed by two students of Shujin stumbling out of the library, looking fearfully back at the door as they make their escape down the stairwell. A moment later, Ryuji Sakamoto comes sliding to a halt against the doorframe of the Library, blood dripping from his clearly broken nose he’s attempting to staunch with his hand. Once he realizes they’ve already made their exit, he leans his head against the door frame, exhaling. Makoto breaks the silence first, having already closing the distance between them.
“…Ryuji?” Her words startle him, and he flinches reflexively back, covering his entire face with his hand.
“Makoto? What the hell? Why’re you even here?”
“Akira asked me to drop off some of the student council materials I’d ended up taking home while I was still student council president. If you don’t take care of that soon, you’re going to really regret it, you know.” He looks away, blushing.
“W-well, I was waiting for him, you know.” Makoto narrows her eyes at Ryuji, and he involuntarily flinches again. “Okay, okay, fine, I’ll go to the nurse’s office. Jeez.” Ryuji heads for the stairs, slouched and groaning.
“She’s probably already left, so I’ll go with you. I’ve got plenty of experience fixing broken noses, after all.”
“Seriously? This is embarrasing enough already…”
“So, this is going to hurt, but only for a second.” Makoto’s sitting across from Ryuji, face impassive and her hands on each side of Ryuji’s face, who is trying and failing to stop blushing. The blood still slowly leaking out of his nose isn’t helping with the redness.
“Just do I-AAAUUUGH! Holy shit, warn a guy!”
“Surprise helps lessen the pain, if you were prepared for it you would have felt it worse.” She holds out a square of gauze and indicates the still-bleeding nostril. Ryuji rolls his eyes and takes it, staunching the bleeding and leaning his head back.
“So, what’s up with you?”
“I was going to ask you the same thing, honestly. Getting punched in a library?”
“I didn’t even start it! That kid was talking so much shit about Akira being the student council president, I was trying to mind my own business and…uhhh…”
“Wait, were you studying, and you still managed to get in a fight with someone?” Makoto laughs once, shaking her head. “You are incredible, aren’t you?”
“How was I supposed to just keep trying to figure out English words when that shit happens?!”
“Okay, so they were rumormongering, and you, what, confronted them…in the library?”
“I was quiet about it! I just got up, put my stuff away, and leaned over them, and said they shouldn’t say bad things about people they don’t know the first thing about, and then wham! He socked me out of nowhere, and took off!” Makoto covers her face with one hand, groaning.
“Ryuji, they were first years, a foot shorter than you, and you know you have a reputation, deserved or not! You scared them and they reacted.” Ryuji sighs, sitting back up and pulling the gauze away from his nose and looking at the blood staining the fabric.
“I’m not so stupid I don’t know that, it’s just…man. I don’t give a shit about my own reputation, people will always talk about things they don’t know, but…Akira doesn’t deserve it, you know?” Makoto nods, sighing.
“Even when he’s finally doing so well again, somebody will find something to talk about. I was worried about it, I’ll admit.”
“Yeah. I’ve tried to keep my nose clean, since we’re friends, but man…” Ryuji shakes his head. “Forget about all this, though, how’s college life treating you?” Makoto leans back, stretching her arms behind her back. Ryuji pointedly looks away, out the window.
“The classes are bigger and the professors are more serious, but otherwise it’s basically the same. Still, it’s only my first semester, it’ll get more intense once I get into the harder courses.”
“Man, I don’t envy you. Though it must be nice to have a dream.”
“What, you don’t have something you want to do?”
“Nah, not really. I’ve been trying to figure that out since class started again, but…I don’t know. Maybe I put too much emphasis on the Phantom Thieves, and nothing else feels right now.”
“Hm…I think I get it. Have you thought about a part-time job? You could try a few things, see what works.”
“Yeah, maybe. The guy who runs the gym me and Akira use always says he needs somebody to watch the place at night, since it’s 24-hour…” Ryuji stands, stretching his legs and checking his nose with both hands.
“Well, It’s a start.” Makoto rises as well, straightening out her skirt.
“You still running, right?” They leave the nurse’s office together, heading out of the school.
“Yep. It’s surprisingly relaxing for such a strenuous activity?” They pass the school gate, the street clear and empty at the late hour they’re leaving.
“That’s what I love about it! I can just kind of lose myself in the moment, just focus on my form and my time and not worry about homework or school or dating or Mom or anything.” Makoto stops walking, and Ryuji turns back to her.
“Did I hear dating in there?”
“Yeah, like I got time for it. I got invited on a group date by one of the track guys who still talks to me, but it was a total disaster. I was basically just there to give them an excuse to invite another girl, so I spent most of the time on my phone.”
“Doing what, exactly?”
“…”
“Ryuji.”
“……”
“Ryuji…”
“Look, it was embarrassing, I don’t want to talk about it.”
“Ryuji.” He flinches back, grimacing.
“I was trying to figure out what to message somebody.”
“Oh, really?”
“What the hell does that mean? It was nothing! I was just bored, and one of them reminded me of somebody, so I wanted to send them a joke about it. Never did it, but the thought still counts, right?”
“Hmm. Was it….a month ago, or so?” Ryuji’s face falls.
“…Yeah.” Makoto reaches into her bag, and thumbs through her phone.
“Hmm, let’s see. A month ago, probably late at night…Ah. Let’s see, it says, ‘Yo, Mako-chan, I feel like I haven’t seen you in ages, you better be working on your form or you’re gonna turn your ankle one of these days!’ Then there’s an emoji with it’s tongue sticking out and another of a shoe.” Ryuji squats down onto the ground, crossing his arms in front of him and burying his face into his arms.
“I thought it didn’t send ‘cause the coverage in there was so bad…” Makoto squats down next to Ryuji and puts a hand on his shoulder.
“Buck up, tough guy. My form’s probably better than yours is these days. I do appreciate the thought, though.”
“Did you seriously just let that sit this whole time? We’ve even had group chats with everybody else…”
“In my experience, blackmail material is better held on to until you’ve got them in the right spot. So.”
“…So.”
“You’ve got a crush on me, right?”
“…”
“Look, it’s not the end of the world. I had a crush on one of my senpai when I was still a goody two-shoes. These things happen.”
“…What the hell, are you trying to console me about liking you?” Ryuji looks up, squinting at Makoto in the failing light.
“Just offering perspective. Personally, I think you and Ann were made for each other, but I know for a fact that I’m not the best judge of these things.” Ryuji snorts.
“Are you blind? Ann and Akira have been dating since before he got sent to Juvie.”
“…Oh. Huh.”
“‘Sides, she’s like my sister, I’ve known her so long.”
“…Hmm. Well, now I look silly.”
“That makes two of us.” Ryuji looks over at Makoto’s arm on his back. “Are you gonna take that off yet?”
“…No, I think I’m fine here.”
“Oh, yeah?”
“Yeah.” Ryuji buries his head back in his arms.
“Mixed signals, Mako-chan.”
“A little familiar, there.”
“Makoto is fine but Mako-chan isn’t?”
“Using diminutives for an older woman is a dark path, Ryuji. Know your place.”
“Bossy.”
“Like you don’t love it.” Makoto closes her eyes, smiling faintly to herself.
“Shit…”
They sit there in silence for a minute, then two, then five, and the only passerby gives them a glance before twisting his curly hair in one hand, deciding better of interrupting the moment and simply walks on. Eventually, Ryuji breaks the silence.
“Can we just go now?”
“Mm. One more minute.”
“Come on…I’m so hungry…” Makoto pats him once. “Please? Pretty please?”
“Okay, okay.” Makoto waits for Ryuji to stand, keeping her hand on his back. “What were you thinking? I’ll treat, since I kept you so long.” Once Ryuji’s standing, she sets about straightening his jacket and fussing with the collar. “I don’t know how that doesn’t bother you, it’s all rumpled and crooked…”
“Jeez, I can iron the damn thing, I just haven’t felt like it.”
“If you’re so worried about Akira’s reputation for hanging around you, you ought to at least try to look presentable. And wearing the same t-shirt to school every day isn’t endearing, either.” Makoto steps back, examining him under the glow of the streetlight.
“Yeah, yeah, I get it. Ramen sound good?”
“Ramen’s fine.” Makoto sets off towards the station, leaving Ryuji to catch up to her.
“Hey, so, back there…”
“What about it?”
“Well…Look. It’s fine if you’re not interested.” Makoto shoots him a look that is at once both pitying and damning.
“Don’t try to assume my lack of interest in you just yet.”
“R-right.” They come to a stop in the station, Ryuji leaning against a pillar while Makoto checks her phone.
“So, you’re interested, then.”
“I’m interested to see where you end up as a person, yes. I’m not ruling anything out, but let’s just say you’ve got a long way to go before you meet all my standards.”
“Well, that’s great.”
“It could be worse, you know. You didn’t even know if I’d found somebody to date at college, did you?” Ryuji sucks his teeth, wincing.
“…C’mon, stop already. I get it, I’ll lay off.”
“…” Makoto looks up from her phone.
“Sorry I made you hang out with me, then. Let’s just forget about the ramen, okay?” Ryuji straightens. “I’ll see you around, alright?”
“Ryuji.” Ryuji steps away, waving over his shoulder as he walks off back towards the school. “…Ryuji, this is the only station for 10 blocks, come on.” He keeps walking. “Oh my god, you idiot…” She gives chase, clamping her bag to her side under her elbow and jogging after him. When she catches up, she clips him across the side of the head.
“What the hell was that for?!” Makoto gets up in his face, inches away from him and a furious scowl on her face.
“Are you stupid? I was throwing out as many hints as I could!”
“For what, that you don’t like me? I got the message loud and clear, Queen.”
“Wh-I-“ Makoto goes instantly from angry to confused. “You thought I was trying to turn you down? I was trying to play hard to get, I asked Eiko-chan and she said boys love the chase!” Ryuji’s face grows incredulous as he leans back and stops slouching.
“What the hell? Who does that in reality? That’s stuff just for anime!”
“I don’t know, I’m not the boy in this situation! I just, I don’t know!” Makoto gesticulates wildly with her free hand, nearly clipping Ryuji across the nose.
“Well, damn it, I don’t know either! Not like I ever dated in school!”
“What, you think I did?”
“I don’t know!”
“Well, stop saying shit you don’t know anything about!”
“That’s what I was saying earlier!” Both of them stop cold, staring at each other in the deserted subway station. Makoto looks away, rubbing her forehead.
“…Let’s slow down a little.” Ryuji relaxes, resuming his usual slouch and sticking his hands in his pockets.
“Yeah, okay.”
“…I am interested.”
“Wait, for real?” Makoto shoots him a look.
“I’m not saying it again.”
“R-right. Well, this is different.” Ryuji scratches his cheek. “…Do you still want ramen?”
“Yeah. You’re treating this time.”
“S’not like I wasn’t gonna pay for it anyway, even though you said you would earlier.” Makoto squints at him, then decides better of it, sighing.
“You’re a strange man, Ryuji.”
“Not as weird as Akira.”
“…You’re not wrong, but you shouldn’t change the subject so abruptly.”
“Are you gonna nitpick me the rest of the night now?”
“Like you don’t love it.” Ryuji rolls his eyes as the subway pulls into the station.
“Yeah, alright, whatever. Let’s just go, I’m gonna die if I don’t eat something soon.” Makoto sighs, stepping onto the train and sitting down in a nearly-vacant car. Ryuji enters after her and sits down next to her, leaning his head back against the window. Once the train starts moving, Makoto sighs, and leans her head against Ryuji’s shoulder. The train ride passes in silence, Ryuji holding his breath the entire time.