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A loud crack of thunder sent you into yet another trembling fit. It barely ever storms in Japan Sir Pheles, the off-his-rockers academy director had told you when you'd first arrived at the academy, I haven't heard thunder in years!
"No storms my ass" you grumbled over the sound of rain pattering down on your windows as you pulled your blankets tighter.
Storms, especially thunder, had never been something you handled well. In all your years, you'd never seen a single thunderstorm that you didn't panic all the way through. Even as a young child you'd flee into your parents' room at the sound of rain coming down. You'd always felt better with them, safe, but after they died...
Your thoughts were cut short by another flash of lighting that was followed by the loudest boom of thunder of the night. It seemed to shake the entire room, sending a shot of terror through every part of you. Loudly and clumsily, you threw your duvet over your head and closed your eyes as tightly as you thought possible. Well, there went you hopes of getting through a semester without having a Mother Nature induced panic attack. Life at True Cross had been nearly perfect before tonight. Yu had some good friends and your grades were decent, but one storm was enough to make you forget about all of that for at least a little while.
Honestly, you didn't think that things could get any worse for you until you heard faint footsteps in the hall that seemed to be approaching your room. In a normal dorm, the sound of someone walking around wouldn't be too peculiar, but since your only other housemates were the Okumura twins and Rin’s familiar, it was more than a little weird to hear someone lurking this late at night on your end of the dorm. The boys almost always stayed to their end of the dorm. They kept Kuro in his place and it was usually a peaceful place.
The twins had graciously offered to let you move into their building after you got into a heated argument with one of the girls in your old building. You couldn't be around her for more than two minutes without screaming (there may have been a couple punches thrown), so your only option was to move and your only "friends" outside that dorm were the twins. Sir Pheles of course had a small fit when you’d suggested staying in a boy’s dorm, but he soon realized that it was either that or a bloody cat fight on his academy grounds. The demon wasn't one for drama surrounding his school. So, he'd finally caved at let you move into the side of the building opposite to the brothers.
The footsteps outside grew louder and louder until they finally seemed to stop just outside your door. Crap. Crap crap crap. Should you pretend to be asleep? What if it’s not one of the twins? What if a demon got into the city? God, you were always so paranoid late at night and the thunder raging on outside wasn't helping.
You jumped when you heard a knock on your door, but your worries were chased away a bit when the call of a familiar, comforting voice filled the air.
“Y/N?” Rin muttered from the other side of the door, “You alright?”
Shit. Should you really risk humiliating yourself in front of Rin by admitting that were still awake? You couldn't lie, you fancied the boy just a bit and the thought of him seeing you so weak and vulnerable made you sick. He constantly complimented you on how good an exorcist you would be, so should you really risk making yourself look like a child? What would Rin think of you having such an immature fear?
The boy rasped his fist on the door once again, “Y/N?”
Well, what good would it do to ignore him? Maybe you wouldn't even have to tell him about your fear. Maybe he wouldn't notice how flustered you'd become. Having him with you could really help you calm down a bit since being alone didn't seem to be doing you any favors. From what you'd seen of the oldest twin, he was pretty nice and seemed to get along pretty well with everyone as long as they didn't piss him off. The chances of him picking on you were slim, right?
Finally, you gave in to the boy's calls, “Come in, Rin.”
A second later, the door cracked open and revealed the scrawny boy. You were used to seeing him in his True Cross uniform with his black bangs clipped back, sword slung over his shoulder with his tie pulled loose just to drive his older brother crazy. You of course always found him to be quite handsome, but now he stood in the middle of your room in nothing but a pair of sweatpants and a blue t-shirt that made him downright adorable. His hair was completely free to fall over his eyes and you noticed that he completely lacked his sword. That was unusual for the eldest twin.
“Hey” you whispered as you untangled your body from the sheets, “What’s going on?”
He narrowed his eyes when he saw you all tangled up in blankets, “Yukio woke me up because he heard a knock on the wall. We wanted to make sure you were okay.”
You felt your face begin to heat up with embarrassment. You’d totally forgotten how thin the walls between the rooms were. It was creepy really, how you could practically hear every conversation the brothers had and how you were pretty sure they could hear all of yours.
“Y/N?” Rin questioned when he noticed that you had begun to zone out.
“Oh” you stuttered, “Uh yeah, yeah I’m fine.”
The demon placed himself down in your desk chair and flicked his tail back and forth against the carpet. Crap. You really wished that he wouldn't show his tail off in your room. You’d known about Rin’s little secret for about a month, finding out about it only because you’d barged into their room when the oldest boy had refused to turn his music down. You weren’t exactly comfortable with it by any means, but you knew you’d have to deal if you were going to live with and try to be friends with him. You'd begun to learn that it was just another part of the Okumura package.
“You sure you’re okay?” he questioned you, “You look kinda shaken up.”
You nodded a little quicker than you needed to, “I’m okay, Rin. Really.”
The boy wasn't convinced in the slightest, “Yukio said that he heard you scream.”
Screw you, Yukio.
You shrugged in an attempt to keep your cool, “Something just spooked me. I swear I’m okay.”
As if on cue, a loud crash of thunder shook the dorm and involuntarily caused you to flinch into the covers. You could only hope that Rin hadn't noticed you retreat into your blankets, but of course that was too much to ask for.
“Don’t like storms, huh?” he whispered when you finally emerged from the sheets.
You immediately felt your face burn red from embarrassment. Well, there was really no hiding it now. Guess it was time to fess up.
“A bit” you confessed in a whisper, “I was when I was a kid and I never really got over it.”
He seemed to think for a minute, a semi-concerned look on his face, "Well" he told you before rising out of your desk chair, “It can’t hurt ya. It’s only a really loud noise.”
You darted your eyes away in humiliation, “Yeah, yeah. I’ve heard it before. I just can’t help it.”
“Well that’s okay” Rin assured, standing up from your chair and placing himself on the edge of your bed, “Everyone’s got stupid little things they’re afraid of. Like, Shima has bugs and Yukio has dogs. It’s not a bad thing.”
You giggled slightly at his words without meaning to, “Yukio is afraid of dogs?” You couldn’t imagine big man, top ranking exorcist Yukio being afraid of anything, let alone dogs.
The boy before you giggled as well, “Yeah, when we were little our neighbor’s dog always used to chase him. Now apparently he's 'scarred for life'.”
“Mr. Okumura, top exorcist, A+ ranking Cram teacher is afraid of puppies” you laughed. You really didn't like joking about Yukio behind his back since he always seemed to find out about it when others did it, but you just needed something to keep you calm and take your mind off things. Joking was just an easy, quick way to put your thoughts elsewhere.
“He lets me kill demons but he won’t let me get a dog” Rin added in with a big smile.
The two of you sat and joked for a minute more, the air in the room seeming to grow a bit lighter. That was one of the things you loved about Rin. Despite all the things he'd gone through in the past couple of months, he always managed to put a positive, carefree spin on everything. It almost felt like nothing could ever get too sad or too stressful around him. It was one of the many things you'd quietly grown to enjoy about your classmate.
The joking continued for a bit before the demon seed to notice you looking completely exhausted. Dark circles adorned your cheeks and your eyelids were nearly drooped shut.
“Ya know” he began, “You should probably get to sleep. We have that big written test tomorrow and you look wrecked.”
Thunder rolled on outside, so you pulled your blankets tightly around your shoulders. No way were you going to be able to sleep tonight.Test or no test, you couldn't even calm down long enough to lie still, let alone fall asleep. Not in this weather. Despite Rin’s kind words, your fear remained.
He seemed to noticed that you were still shaken up when you don't reply, “Ya know...I could like...stay...if...if you wanted someone around.”
You gave him a puzzled look. Stay a whole night with you? A whole night before an exam? You always knew that Rin was a pretty nice guy, but he was awkward and hormonal like every other fifteen year old in the world, so staying the night with you? That just didn't add up for the hotheaded boy.
“I wouldn't do anything creepy if that’s what you’re thinking” he informed in response to your silence, “I just wanna make sure that you’re okay. I mean, you're one of the top students here and I don't want a storm to ruin your rep.”
Could you trust him? You weren't the world’s most trusting person, but come on, it was Rin. Sure he was a little immature and could be a jerk at times, but he would never hurt you.
Would he?
No. No this was Rin. Of course he wouldn't.
“You’d really stay?” you replied finally, finding it difficult to meet the boy’s eyes as your voice had once again fallen sheepish.
He nodded, “If it’ll help you.”
You sighed, finally caving as you nodded and slowly climbed back into bed.
“Where are you gonna sleep?” you wondered as you noticed him not knowing what to do next.
He shrugged, “If you trust me, could I maybe uh, sleep in your bed?”
For the millionth time that night, you started blushing again. Sleeping in your room was one thing, but in your bed?
“Uh” you began, trying to keep as calm as possible, “I uh-.”
“It’s okay if you don’t want me to” he cut you off, “I just thought that maybe it would like, I don’t know, be a little less scary if…”
You sighed. Really, what’s the harm in getting cuddled for a night? It’s not like you would do anything you shouldn't. You were just going to have a friend there with you for comfort.
“Yeah. Yeah, come on" you whispered to kill the awkward silence.
Rin smiled a bit, his top, fang-like teeth poking over his lip as the two of you laid down in your fairly small bed together.
It was awkward at first, nothing but the sound of the heavy rain hitting the window and your slow, shallow breaths. Rin was lying on his back in a way that look lost uncomfortable while you laid half on your side so you didn't have to face him all the way. God, could this get any weirder?
Your question is answered when a loud crack of thunder rocked the building and caused you to involuntarily curl up into the curve of Rin’s body that lay next to you. When you realized what you’d done, you tried to shuffle away before the moment got more strange, but oddly enough you found something tightly wrapped around your waist.
It was Rin’s arm.
“Wha-?” you began, but the arm just pulled you closer.
“Does this make you less scared?” he questioned quietly.
Honestly, it did, so you gently gave him a nod. For some reason, everything about him seemed really comfortable to you in that moment. The feeling of his arm around your waist and his chest against your back wad like a barrier that was protecting you from the rest of the world. His rhythmic breathing was more than soothing, his warm breath on the back of your neck seeming like it would soon lull you to sleep.
Crap. You told yourself that you’d never develop serious feelings for Rin. You knew he was a bad idea, what with the bad grades and bad behavior and now the whole Satan’s son thing, but you were never able to deny that he was cute and the absolute sweetest person you'd ever met. You’d always wondered how he didn't have girls climbing all over him, but everyone always seemed too concerned with Yukio instead.
“Why aren't you sleeping?” he joked quietly from behind you, breaking you from your thoughts.
“Not sure” you grumbled honestly as you rolled over to face him. You regretted it the second you did because you found your faces less than an inch apart, but he didn't seem to mind the closeness.
“We have school tomorrow” he teased with a light smile on his face, "You need rest to keep being top dog over there."
Crap. That smile made your stomach seem to fill to the brim with butterflies. What was with you right now?
“You’re not asleep either” you countered, not knowing what else to say in fear of something stupid slipping out.
He shrugged with a sly smile, “Eh, I can get some sleep in geometry.”
You couldn’t help but roll your eyes, “That’s not exactly a good way to pass school.”
“I’m doing good in Cram. I don’t need normal school” he chuckled, “I will never need geometry being an exorcist.”
“You could bore a demon to death” you lightly joked as you began to feel comfortable again.
The two of you laughed a bit, but a thunder boom caused you to bury your face in the boy’s chest without thinking twice about it. He didn't seem to care. He just wrapped his arm tighter around you and rubbed your back until you calmed down, hushing you lightly.
How embarrassing you thought to yourself as you realized how weak you must have looked to him.
When you finally relaxed, you realized how close to the demon you’d gotten in your slight panic. Your faces were nearly touching now and you were close enough to see the variation of color in his eyes along with how soft his lips looked.
Shit. Don’t think that, you scolded yourself when you realized you were gawking in the slightest. He’s a demon for fuck’s sake.
“Sorry” you grumbled quietly as you broke eye contact with him.
“It’s cool” he reassures, “Whatever makes you comfortable.”
You didn't realize it at first, but you were still staring at him even after it got quiet. You’d lived with him for a month now, gone to school with him for nearly a semester, and yet you’d never noticed how handsome he was. Sure, you’d always found him attractive as any sane girl would, but now that you were so close to him he was really kind of stunning.
“Uh…Y/N?” he mumbled, breaking you from your trance, “You okay?”
“Y-yeah” you stuttered, “I uh…”
His lips were close enough to feel the warmth of his breath.
Your mouth continued to babble on about how sorry you were, but your mind was thinking only one thing.
Kiss him.
Why not? He was only centimeters away from your lips and didn't seem like he wanted you to back away. What harm could one kiss do?
No you mentally yelped to yourself, why humiliate yourself like that?! Why set yourself up for rejection?
You were then startled by the feeling of his hand on the small of your back as he pulled you even closer.
His lips are right there.
“Stop apologizing” he laughed, “It really is fine.”
You bit your lip and looked down to avoid his eyes, “...Sorry.”
Can I do anything but apologize? you grumbled mentally.
Rin chuckled and rolled his eyes, “We’re gonna have to break that habit.”
You couldn’t help but be slightly brightened by his carefree nature, and you soon found yourself making eye contact with him again.
“Ya know” Rin started again after a second, “We live together, but we never see you.”
You shrugged the best you could in his arms, “I’m not really too good at being around a lot of people.”
“You don’t have to worry about Yukio” Rin promised, “He’s too busy half of the time to care about much. Plus, I really like you so you never have to worry about me.”
“Wait, what?” your mouth rushed out before you could stop.
“I don’t know. You’ve been pretty great to us since you’ve got here. You’re really growing on me.”
You were of course taken aback a bit by his comment. You’d barely ever spoken to Rin, let alone gotten to know him.
“Uh...thanks” you said with a simple nod, not knowing what else to say.
“It’s not too bad having a cute girl wandering around here all the time.”
Whoa, hold on a second.
Did...did Rin just call you cute?
You just stared in shock. People never really found you cute, especially not guys like Rin. It was rare that a boy even gave you a passing glance. Now one of the cutest guys you know was complimenting you?
“Um…” you drawled out for a lack of a better response, Rin’s handsome stare making it that much harder for you to focus.
You expected him to just drop the subject when he noticed how nervous you'd become, say goodnight and go to sleep, but instead his face went from playful to shocked just as quickly as yours did. You really wanted to know what he was thinking now. He looked like his mind was reeling with a rush of thoughts as he began to stare you down. You wanted to say something to break the tension, but nothing good came to mind. You hated the awkward feel that had fallen over the two of you. Just as his lips parted a bit and you expected him to speak, he leaned forward much to your surprise and pressed his lips to yours.
It suddenly felt like a firecracker had gone off in your head. Your stomach seemed to overflow with butterflies and your grip on the front of his shirt tightened as you finally allowed your lips to conform and kiss him back. The kiss wasn’t long or hot or anything like that, but when you broke apart you were more than a little disappointed by the loss of closeness. Rin seemed a little bummed as well. His blue eyes were wide with shock and you could just barely make out his tail twitching nervously behind him.
“I uh…” he mumbled, breaking the awkward, after kiss silence, “I just...sorry.”
You bob your head back slightly, “You’re sorry?”
He’s sorry? A cute boy just kissed you and he’s saying sorry?
“Why are you sorry?” you continued on when he failed to give you a response.
“I should’ve asked or...just...wow. That was actually really embarrassing of me” the boy stumbled as his eyes quickly darted around the room.
You couldn’t help but shift your eyes away as well as you spoke, “No. Uh no, don’t be sorry. I...I liked it.
You noticed his tail seem to perk up then as well as his eyes, “Wait, you really liked it?”
You nodded, a bit confused.
A smile adorned the demon’s face then, “Holy crap I can’t believe you’re not mad!!”
“Nope” you reassured him, “Why would I get mad at you for kissing me?”
He bit his lower lip, “I don’t even know if you have a boyfriend or anything…”
You shook your head once again, “Single.”
His smile widened, his fangs poking out over his bottom lip. He...he was happy that you were single?! Your heart started to race faster in your chest. You could practically hear the blood rushing through your ears so loudly that you feared the boy beside you could hear it as well.
Did Rin wanna date you?!
“Why do you look so excited about that?” you wondered as your hopes began to rise. Why not get excited? Why does any guy act like that unless they wanna date you?
Rin nervously rubbed the back of his neck, “Well I...like...I don’t know...Yukio was kinda helping me figure out how to ask you to the movies.”
What?
WHAT?!?
“You...y-you were…you were uh...what?!” you spluttered out frantically. You couldn’t believe your ears. Rin Okumura wanted to take you on a date? The cute, funny, brave demon from your cram class wanted to see a movie with you? Unbelievable.
He let out a nervous laugh, “Yeah, Yukio and the other guys were kind of coaching me on how to ask you out.”
“Were they really?” you laughed as you finally began to find your voice, “I’m really not that hard to approach.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
“Then in that case” he told you brightly, wrapping his arm back around you, “What do you say? To a movie?”
A huge smile crept to your lips as a feeling of warm happiness seemed to encase you, “I’d love to.”
You watched in adoration as Rin’s cheeks flared red. Honestly, you still couldn’t believe that you actually had a date with a boy as cute as Rin. It was a miracle in your opinion.
Seeming to be very content with himself, Rin pulled you against his chest and cuddled against you.
“Uh...Rin” you began curiously, “It kinda sounds like the storm stopped.”
“So?” he replied through a yawn as he pulled you closer yet.
The feeling of his arms so tightly around you and his lips settled on your forehead was too good to be true, “Nevermind.”
“Alright. Night, Y/N.”
“Night Rin.”