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It happened every day, almost like clockwork.
“Good morning, Iruma.” A voice would sing, and Miu would always look up just in time to see Akamatsu Kaede walking by with hair swinging, and before the inventor could say anything–
She’d be gone.
Fuck.
So, to make this completely clear, Girl Genius Inventor Iruma Miu was working hard in her little lab, because it meant that she’d be able to avoid all the other people in this stupid killing game. Because, y’know, as lovely as it was to make innuendos and dirty jokes, she was probably going to give in to that bear and actually commit fucking murder if she spent more time than necessary with those idiots. So. She mostly stayed in her lab and did whatever she wanted to amuse herself, because the others were good for exactly nothing but inspiring her to plan out new and improved inventions. A little schedule for every day: work a bit, eat breakfast and then retreat to her lab once she got bored of bickering with everyone and everything in the cafeteria.
And, every day, Kaede would walk past the lab, maybe peek in every so often to see what was going on, and say “good morning, Iruma” before she left. Normally, it was before breakfast, at the worst hour of the morning possible that Miu despised being awake at (but needed to be to somehow gain enough strength to make it through one meal). Which is just what baffled her, because Kaede had exactly zero reason to be up at that hour. Sure, it was mostly just when she was on her way to the cafeteria for breakfast, but sometimes she’d hesitantly come inside the lab and ask a few questions about what was going on. Miu honestly didn’t know what was going through that girl’s mind, but she did know that whatever it was must’ve been very pretty.
Okay, no shit Miu had a crush on her, seriously?! Kaede was soft and kind and her voice was even sweeter than the songs she played on the piano, she looked absolutely amazing and her eyes never failed to leave the taller girl speechless. Her hair looked like it would be soft and nice to play with, and the way her sweaters fit her was just perfect. She was just… an angel.
And better than Miu deserved.
Not that she was going to launch into all that self-deprecating bullshit right now, but Miu was notably more vulgar and sexual than Kaede was and even if opposites attracted, the two weren’t even opposites. Hell, they weren’t even on the same coin. Kaede was on one side of a coin and Miu was over on the other side of the world on a completely different type of currency. It was just too much of a stretch to ever pursue the girl.
So, Miu didn’t flirt with her. She’d tease and joke and be a bitch, but she never flirted, and Kaede seemed to notice judging by how ventures into the inventor’s lab seemed to be happening more often nowadays. Miu pretended not to stare, but she would make a note of the different outfits on different days. Everything felt weird and surreal still, and she wasn’t sure if anyone was taking the killing game seriously right now, but everyone was definitely still on-edge from everything. Some people dealt with it via isolation like Miu. Some people trained, like Chabashira, until they passed out. Kaede just followed the Ultimate Detective kid around most of the time and read books in the library, but Miu noted how she would always change little elements of her outfit every day. A different set of pins in her hair (because somehow she’d managed to get different types of bobby pins with her in this game thing), switching her skirt for something else, or just changing around a few colours. Miu liked the pink on her, but she had to admit that seeing Kaede in blue jeans and a loose grey sweatshirt was… damn. DAMN. Add in a messy ponytail and Miu was done for it, holy shit, why did girls have to look like that when her heart wasn’t strong enough–
“Good morning, Iruma.” The voice sang, and Miu nearly jumped out of her skin. Kaede was standing there with her hair thrown up in a bun (orange hair tie today, she noted), green t-shirt and black sweatpants paired with her usual tennis shoes. A couple loose strands had escaped to frame her face, and the tiny little hairs that couldn’t be caught rested gently on the back of her neck. Miu took a second to catch her breath before nodding.
“Morning, Akamatsu.” She smiled crookedly. “Y’scared me, goddamn!”
“Ah, sorry…” The girl rubbed the back of her neck sheepishly. “Can I come in?”
“Yeah, sure. Tch, like you even gotta ask. The genius of Iruma Miu is too great to be hidden from the world!!!” Kaede smiled, shaking her head.
“Thank you.” She carefully stepped around the parts and tables strewn about the room to look at what Miu was doing. The taller girl took care not to start hyperventilating as she got closer. “What are you working on?”
“Hah! As if I’d reveal my secrets!!” She puffed herself up with fake bravado. “Wouldn’t want my invention to be stolen by some idiot in here!!”
“Well, if we’re all idiots, then how would we steal it?” Kaede poked back. Miu stuttered for a second and the pianist laughed, which only made the inventor stutter more and go through another three levels of gay crisis. As Kaede looked at her, she could feel her knees go weak and her entire body be flooded with the sense that she was pitifully underdressed for the situation. After all, she was just in a loose shirt and some random pants, her goggles being the only thing holding her hair back, in shitty-looking work shoes and with sweat making her shine like the greasiest thing on earth.
Oh. And the oil too.
“Stop laughing, asshole.” She pouted. Kaede grinned, making a zipping motion over her lips.
“Alright, alright. Fine. Sorry for distracting you, Iruma.”
“Y-yeah, you should be!! Pulling my attention away from my work and everythin’, what’s your plan?!” Kaede just shook her head again, looking a little exasperated.
“I just wanted to see you, I guess!” Miu stopped dead in her movements.
“You what?!” Kaede began to turn pink, rubbing the back of her neck again. Through her shock, Miu could register Kaede’s face falling and how she was chewing at her lips. That shouldn’t be as attractive as it was.
“Well, it that a problem? I can leave if you don’t want me here, I just… I thought that you, uhm. That you maybe liked me a little bit more than you did at the start of all of this, but maybe I was wrong, and I’ll just– yeah, I’ll just go–”
“No!” Miu blurted, grabbing the girl’s arm. Kaede turned back to look at her– oh Jesus fucking shit her eyes looked so cute but she looked like she was going to cry and for the love of god, Miu, way to screw it up– “No, don’t go. P-please.” Her heart was pounding in her ears.
Kaede slowly turned around.
“Okay. Okay, I can stay. If you want me to.” Her voice was quiet and Miu nearly broke right then and there. Her heart sure did. There was silence for a second before Kaede nervously laughed. “You, uh, you have a rainbow. On your forehead.”
“And you’re wearing one.” Miu allowed a small smile, letting the girl go to touch her forehead. Oil, go figure. She’d almost forgotten what a mess she looked like.
“Well, I have to show it somehow!” Kaede shot back, before seemingly realizing what she’d said. “Oh, uhm–”
“Me too.” Miu interrupted her. She cleared her throat awkwardly as Kaede stared at her in her open-mouthed, absolutely adorably shocked way. “A-as in, uhm. Me being…”
“...being gay.” Kaede finished. A pause. “Right?”
“Yeah.” The girls looked at one another for a second before Kaede blushed harder.
“Then, uh… I guess I should tell you that. Uhm. I don’t just want to see you here.” Miu tilted her head, a grin slowly forming on her face.
“Oh? Where else might you like to see me?”
“I– Iruma!”
“It’s an honest question!!” Miu grinned back, a twinge of evil making its way into her expression. “And call me Miu, babe~ I think you’ve earned that much by now.” Kaede looked like she was about to turn purple from how hard she was blushing (although Miu much preferred lavender on her).
“M– Miu, I–! Well, you– it’s just–” She seemed to be struggling. Miu’s grin was only widening. “–Stop smiling!!”
“Answer the question!!”
“Oh, I– fine, I’d like to see you i-in the library with me, or in the g-gardens, or in my lab or my room–”
“Doing what in your room?~”
“Miu!!!!” Kaede basically squealed, and Miu resisted the urge to just fall over from laughing so hard at the embarrassment on the girl’s face. “Oh my– shut up!!!!”
“Say ‘please’!!!!” Miu shot back. Kaede pouted at her, brows furrowed and arms crossed. Miu gave her a shit-eating grin until she groaned.
“Please would you stop teasing me about w-where I’d like to see you and tell me if you like me back already!!!” She shoved as much firmness as she probably could into the sentence, but it still made Miu melt internally because of how sweet her voice still sounded. She bit her lip as she grinned, looking the smaller girl up and down as she squirmed before stepping forwards and kissing her cheek. Kaede nearly fell over.
“Is that enough of an answer for you?” Miu smirked, watching Kaede go through seven different emotions in half a second before breaking out into a grin. The pianist looked up and locked eyes with her.
“Yes. But next time, try not to miss.” And with that, the girl whirled on her heel and sprinted out the door, loose bun bouncing with the movement as Miu processed the words. It took a few seconds, but finally they hit her.
“Oh, you little shit–” She grinned, running over to stick her head out the door. Kaede was giggling as she rounded the last corner, waving at Miu before disappearing from sight. Miu was damn-near cackling, a stupidly light feeling overwhelming her.
Oh, she was so gonna get her back for that.