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Tamaki doesn’t know what came over him, but when Luna asked if he’d be willing to help out at her study group, he’d said yes. Normally he’d refuse, but apparently his brain decided today would be the day he tried to face his social anxiety.
Maybe it had been because Mirio had been there, and Tamaki wanted to prove himself. Mirio always seemed to have that effect on him, making him want to be more bold. Now that the blond wasn’t around to boost his confidence, Tamaki was questioning if he’d made the right choice.
“You know you don’t have to come, right? I wouldn’t mind if you decided to back out now.” Luna, ever the perceptive one, picked up on Tamaki’s unease. Even if she said she wouldn’t mind, and he knew she wouldn’t, it was too late. They were already almost at the classroom the study group would be held in, it’d be embarrassing to turn back now.
“It’s fine, I can handle it.” Luna gave him a worried look, not really believing him, but choosing not to say anything.
“If you say so. Just remember that two other students are also gonna be helping, so if you do decide to leave I’ll still have help.” Tamaki nodded, humming in confirmation. Seemingly satisfied, Luna went back to walking.
When they reached the classroom, it was empty. Luna, in consideration of Tamaki’s anxiety, had suggested they try to get there first so Tamaki could get settled before the other students showed up. Tamaki was grateful his friend was so considerate.
“I’ve got a list of all the students that are coming today, if you wanna see?” When Tamaki nodded, Luna pulled a sheet of paper from her backpack and handed it to him. It wasn’t a very long list, Tamaki noticed. “These two are the ones who will be helping us.” She pointed to two names at the top of the list, Tenya Iida and Momo Yaoyorozu. “The ones with the red marks next to their names are the ones who need the most attention, I’ll be handling them.” Tamaki nodded in understanding.
There weren’t many other students to worry about, which the dark haired boy was grateful for. He could probably leave most of the work to the other helpers and not have to talk to anyone. Tamaki handed the list back to Luna, who was setting up her things and getting prepared.
It wasn’t long before the door to the classroom opened, and two students, a boy and a girl, came in. The boy had dark blue hair and glasses, and the girl had black hair that was tied back in a ponytail. They must’ve been the helpers. Behind them were the rest of the students.
As Luna talked to them, informing them of how things would go, Tamaki couldn’t help but notice that one of the students was staring at him. The student seemed to be analyzing him. His face looked familiar, but Tamaki didn’t recognize him. He’s sure he’d remember meeting someone with bright red hair like that.
When Luna finished explaining things to the students, everyone split into groups. Tamaki tried to sneak away to a more secluded part of the classroom, but the red haired kid came up to him before he could get anywhere.
“Could you help me with my work? I’d ask someone else, but they all seem busy.” Right. The whole reason he was here. To help with homework.
“Y-yeah, sure.” As the boy smiled and lead him to a place to sit, Tamaki groaned to himself. Maybe he should’ve backed out when he had the chance.
“I’m Eijirou, by the way,” the boy said.
“Tamaki.” If Eijirou was annoyed by Tamaki’s anxiousness, he didn’t show it.
As they studied, Tamaki’s anxiety slowly started to lessen. It helped that Eijirou seemed to shine so brightly, like Mirio. The familiar feeling of being near someone so bright brought Tamaki comfort.
“Are you ok, man? You’ve got a weird look on your face.” Tamaki blushed slightly, embarrassed. He hadn’t realized he’d been staring.
“Sorry, you just remind me of one of my friends,” Tamaki rushed to apologize, not wanting to seem like a weirdo.
“The blond one, right? Isn’t he your boyfriend?” Tamaki’s face very quickly became red, nearly matching Eijirou’s hair.
“What?! Boyfriend?!” Tamaki hissed, trying to keep his voice down so the others wouldn’t hear.
“Are you two not dating?” Eijirou looked confused.
“No!”
“Sorry man, you two just seem so close-“
“It’s fine, you just... surprised me, is all.” Eijirou wouldn’t have been the first person to make that assumption. Luna had thought the same thing when she first met them back in middle school, and so had Nejire in freshman year.
Normally he didn’t care all that much, he was used to it at this point, but ever since he came to terms with his crush, he’d get embarrassed whenever someone brought it up.
Thankfully, Eijirou decided to drop the subject, and they returned to studying.
When the study group finally ended, Tamaki was relieved. As nice as Eijirou was, he was desperate to get out of here and go home. He definitely wouldn’t be accepting another offer to help out anytime soon.
The other students slowly filed out. Tamaki decided to stay behind and wait with Luna so he’d have someone to walk home with. Just when he thought he was safe, he heard Eijirou shout something.
“Now I remember! You’re the dude I nearly knocked over that one time!” Now that all the attention was on Tamaki, he started to panic. He quickly turned around, pressing his face into the wall and trying to calm himself down.
He doesn’t know how much time passed, but when he finally managed to calm his racing heart, he could feel a hand soothingly rubbing his back. He peeled himself away from the wall, and Luna slowed her hand’s movement.
“You good, Kiki?” Tamaki blushed slightly at the childhood nickname, but still nodded. Luna smiled, slowly pulling away. They both grabbed their things, finally deciding to leave.
“So, what’s all this about nearly getting knocked over?”
“Luna!”