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Riddle checked his calendar. It was exam season, and the teachers had packed their schedule full with end of semester tests and projects. Of course, Riddle was up to date with everything, and he wouldn’t say he was struggling too much with studying. Only a little bit.
The calendar also had some other dates marked by default. Riddle didn’t usually pay much attention to them, but he was doing that now out of boredom and exhaustion after a study session. He looked over February’s dates, and one pair of numbers was written in red, marking an important date.
Valentine’s Day.
Ah yes, that day. Some Heartslabyul students had asked him a few days ago if they could use the dorm kitchen to prepare some chocolate and sweets because of Valentine’s Day, and Riddle agreed, so at least he had some idea of what was going on. And also because Trey wasn’t around to help him as much as usually because of him getting swamped with requests from students to help them make chocolate.
Something about thinking about missing Trey made him feel something in his chest. It felt… Lonely. Maybe he didn’t notice, but it really was nice to have someone by your side who could help you when things get too hard, even if he would never admit that directly-
Being kind of overwhelmed by those thoughts, he decided to go to sleep. He really didn’t want to think about his own feelings now, and especially not about those involving Trey Clover.
… Thought it wouldn’t be a bad idea to think about a way to repay him for all he’s done for him. He’ll note that down on his to-do list tomorrow when he wakes up.
***
Next day transcurred normally. Class 2-E’s exams made Riddle temporarily forget about his emotions, but it all came down on him when it was time for his club activities. He knew he shouldn’t be distracted, but after his overblot, he was trying to get better and don’t ignore his negative feelings and anger. But he was terrible at reaching out to others, so he usually kept quiet.
So when Silver, one of his clubmates approached him, Riddle was grateful.
“Club leader… Is everything alright? I noticed you weren’t performing as usual today…”
“Ah… Yes, I’ve noticed it too” He said quickly, not wanting to dwell much on his mistakes.
“Is everything alright?” Silver asked, packing up his things.
“Well…” Riddle started, but paused again. He wasn’t sure how to word this… Or even if he could open up to him. But Silver was said to be trustworthy and always looking after the Diasomnia dorm leader, so he wouldn’t laugh at him or anything, right…? “What would you do if you wanted to thank someone for being always there for you, but you don’t know how to express it?”
“Oh…”
Silver stared at Riddle for a moment, thinking about how to respond to what the shorter boy had said. But thinking made him feel dizzy, and he almost fell asleep right there. Riddle, in surprise, quickly went and try to support him, but he still fell to the ground. How sleepy could his clubmate be…?
“Hey! Silver! Wake up!” Riddle said, shaking his body. Slowly, Silver opened his eyes and sighed.
“I’m sorry, this always happens... “ he shook off the dirt from his clothes, and stood up again. “Thinking made me sleepy… But regarding your question, I think I understand how you feel. There’s some people who are always by your side, but you don’t know how to express how much they mean to you…”
“Yes, it’s exactly that feeling... So you have the same problem, Silver?”
“More or less… When it comes to my family, it comes out naturally. But there’s this certain person I like, and…”
“Silver!!” someone else yelled. Riddle and Silver turned around, finding out that voice came from their other clubmate, Sebek Zigvolt. “What are you doing chatting around! The Young Master is waiting for us, we have to go now!”
“Calm down, Sebek… I was just packing my things up, I’ll catch up in no time, okay?”
“Hmph, alright. I’ll be waiting for you outside. Don’t be late!” Sebek stormed out of the room as quickly as he had entered it before, leaving the other two alone again.
“... So there’s a person you like, too” Riddle continued.
“I see… Can I ask who they are? If you don’t mind sharing. Maybe I could help you better, then…”
Riddle felt his face getting red. This really was embarrassing. Upon seeing his flustered reaction, Silver backed down a bit.
“Again, you don’t have to if-”
“T-Trey” he muttered. “Trey Clover”
“Ah… He is Heartslabyul’s vice dorm leader, correct?”
“Yes, that is correct… He’s always helping and looking after me, I can’t thank him enough”
“Well… If that’s the case, Valentine’s Day is near” Silver said, and Riddle’s eyes widened. He had completely forgotten about it. “Maybe you could gift him something”
“That’s certainly a good idea. I’ll think about it” Riddle said confidently, but the truth is, he wasn’t confident at all. “... But what if he doesn’t like it?”
“I’m sure Trey wouldn’t get mad over a gift, especially if it’s from you” Silver reassured him, with a smile.
“Thank you for the advice, Silver” Riddle said, smiling back. “And what about you? Are you planning on giving the person you like something as well?”
“That’s right. I want to make chocolates for him, but I don’t know how to bake anything, and I don’t want Lilia-senpai to tease me, so… Guess I’ll have to learn by myself”
“There should be recipe books in the library. We can look for them together if you want to”
“I’d love to” Silver said, adjusting his backup. “But for starters, I shouldn’t leave my crush waiting for long, so maybe another day. See you tomorrow, Riddle”
“W-Wait. Does that mean your crush is…?”
Silver nodded, making Riddle confirm that Silver’s crush is Sebek, their other clubmate. Riddle sighed, he guessed the two of them were very close too, but… He definitely wasn’t expecting the relaxed Silver to fall in love with the over-the-top Sebek. Maybe they complemented each other like that…?
Not wanting to judge his clubmates longer, he also went back to Heartslabyul, and started doing some research of his own. He hopes the kitchen will be free tomorrow.
***
Riddle had a good memory, but he had forgotten how bad he was at cooking. Once he tried to make a soup for Trey, but didnt even know how to make that. It was all thanks to Lilia that his soup didn’t turn out to be a disaster.
And here he was now, trying to measure correctly all the ingredients for making chocolates for Trey and Sebek. Silver was fairly decent at baking, however, his unconscious habit to fall asleep at any moment had caused them trouble, and the table was everything but clean.
Halfway through the process, Riddle sat down in a chair. After that, they’d only have to decorate the chocolates a bit, and put them in a cute envelope. And of course, give them to the person they liked. That could be even harder than cooking.
“Thank you for helping me, Riddle. I couldn’t have done it without your help” Silver said, sitting down next to him.
“I should be telling you the same. Thank you for helping me, too”
“Tomorrow is the day… I hope Sebek understands the message. He’s very smart, but he’s also a bit dense with feelings… I can’t blame him, though. It’s the same for me”
“I… I also have some trouble understanding others’ feelings. I think I’ve gotten better at it, though”
“That’s good. Then I’m sure Trey will receive your feelings”
“I hope so…”
Then, Riddle started feeling anxious. What if Trey didn’t understand? Or what if he did understand, but didn’t reciprocate his feelings? What if he was doing something wrong and tomorrow he’d look like an idiot giving Trey his gift?
Silver noticed Riddle’s nervousness, and put his hand on his shoulder.
“It’ll be okay. Be confident in yourself, Riddle”
“... I’ll try” Riddle shook his head, now more convinced. “No, I’ll definitely do this”
“That’s better” Silver looked at the wall clock, and got up. “It’s getting late, everyone at the dorm must be worried. Good night, Riddle. And good luck” he waved at Riddle before turning, and Riddle waved back.
“Good luck to you too, Silver”