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This wasn't usually how you spent your weekends. You didn't know why you rarely participated in parties, but you're not bothered to figure out why. You're only here because your good friend, Hu Tao wanted you to come with her. Although, as of now she's nowhere to be found.
A sigh echoed into your cup as you sipped on your drink. You had run out of ideas to keep yourself occupied a while ago. Maybe it was time to head home? Eh, one more plate of food before you go wouldn't hurt.
The food bar consisted of three long tables lined up against each other, most platters being completely empty by now. As the music blared, you placed your drink down and started piling food onto your paper dish. You hum with content once you observed the amount you accumulated.
"Need any help with that?" A voice came from your side.
Turning your head, you saw a man smiling down at you. The dim lighting of the room made it hard to make out his features, although, you could tell his hair was dark.
"No, I've got it, thanks." You look around the table in search of your drink, but you were stopped by his voice.
"I insist." He reached out to the plate in your hands, which you shield away from.
You were starting to get bad vibes from him. You could see the ill intent in his eyes. "No no, I got it." Your nervous laughter wasn't enough to stop him from grabbing your wrist.
"Someone as gorgeous as you shouldn't have to carry their things."
You gulped, contemplating whether or not the food was worth this trouble. Maybe you could just set your plate down and leave.
As you tried to come up with a plan, you felt an arm slink around your waist. You tensed immediately, but you noticed that the guy in front of you hadn't moved. Someone else had come up behind you.
"Do you know this person, dear?"
Your head whipped around to find a rather tall man staring down at the guy in front of you. Oh great, just how many men were going to invade your personal space tonight.
He spoke up once again. "I would love to know why someone's getting handsy with my darling." The condescending tone in his voice sent a chill down your spine.
"A-Ajax?! Sorry, didn't know this one was yours." The dark-haired man laughed nervously, letting go of your wrist. "I'll get going now, great to see you again. Haha..." He had left as quickly as he had appeared.
With the man's presence gone, the arm around your waist disappeared as well. You were finally able to get a good look at the guy behind you. He was much more charming than you had anticipated.
He sighed and dragged a hand down his face. "Did he give you a hard time?"
You shook your head. "He didn't, but that doesn't mean you won't." You eyed him, not really a fan of how he defused the situation.
He laughed and put his hands up, defensively. "Don't worry, I'm not here to cause a ruckus." He outstretched a hand to you, slowly. "The name's Ajax, but you might hear people call me Childe or Tartaglia from time to time."
Hesitantly you shook his hand. "[Name]."
"Well [Name], shall I escort you to a friend of yours who might be attending the party?"
You shrug. "Good luck with that, I have no idea where she ran off to. I was actually about to leave with this plate of food."
He chuckled to himself. "Then should I take you to your car?"
"I guess that would be okay. Just let me find my drink first."
"I wouldn't bother looking for it. Unattended drinks aren't the safest during events like this." Ajax's eyebrows creased a bit, hoping you wouldn't react too negatively.
With a sigh, you just nodded and started walking to the door, Ajax at your side.
He wasn't quiet, that's for sure. For the short walk it was he had managed to fit in a conversation topic. Of what you didn't know, you just nodded along like you had been listening the whole time. When you got to your car, he grabbed something off the top of your plate and ate it before you could say otherwise.
"Well, I enjoyed our time together. I hope we can see each other again soon." He laughed.
With a roll of your eyes, you just nod. "Yeah, sure."
With that, he walked back inside as you shot Hu Tao a quick text about your whereabouts and drove home. You finished the platter on the way there and fell asleep almost as soon as your head hit the pillow when you made it to your room.
You had slept pretty hard that night, the social interaction from the party seemed to really drain you. If it wasn't for the loud vibration of your phone waking you up, you're sure you would've slept until past noon.
Lazily flinging your arm to your phone, you brought it to your face just to find that it wasn't an alarm you forgot to turn off, but rather a call.
You had forgotten to check the caller ID when you pressed the green button to accept the call, but the undeniable yelling of your friend made it pretty obvious.
"YOU'RE DATING THE RICHEST GUY IN THE SCHOOL AND YOU DIDN'T TELL ME?!" You're certain that you heard her wrong from just waking up and all.
"...Huh?"
"NOT ONLY ARE YOU DATING A MEMBER OF FATUI, BUT YOU'RE ALSO DATING THE AJAX?!"
The name sounded familiar enough to you for you to sit up and try to rub the tired out of your eyes. "What are you going on about, Hu?"
She wasted no time to fill you in. "Everyone's been talking about it since last night. It's been spreading like wildfire and I need to know if it's just a rumor or not!"
"Everyone's been talking about what?"
"Have you been listening?! People aren't shutting up about how you and Ajax, one of the best members of FATUI might I add, are apparently a couple!"
You were shocked into silence quicker than a line forming at Xiangling's food stall every Friday afternoon. Ajax? The guy from last night? Your memory had been jogged once you remembered the guy's orange hair. He had pretended to be your boyfriend the night before to get you out of a difficult situation. Was that all it took for a rumor like this to form?
"[Name], are you there?!"
A yelp left your mouth as her voice startled you. "Y-Yeah, I'm here."
"Then is it true or not?!"
"No, of course not!"
"Oh thank god!" You could hear her exasperated sigh from the phone. "I thought you had started dating someone without telling me."
You roll your eyes at the whine in her voice. "No matter how many times you try to get me a date, it's not going to happen. I have to focus on my classwork."
"Not even a little bit?" She whimpered.
"No!"
"Aw c'mon. I think it's time you settle down and get your head out of those textbooks, and with the whole school believing this rumor I think you might just have to."
"The whole school what now?!"
It was true, the entire school believed in this stupid rumor that started at a dumb party. You didn't believe that people would be dumb enough to think so until you showed up to class the next day. Everywhere you walked you would hear gossip, and watch as fingers point to your direction followed by hushed whispers. You couldn't even go on the student online forums without all the posts being about Ajax and this mystery person he's dating. You were slowly going insane.
"See, I told you." Hu Tao wasn't making things any better. She had been walking through the halls with you, watching the gossip revert everyone back into high schoolers. This was a private university for christ's sake.
You groan to yourself. "This is going to be a long semester if I don't do something about this."
You heard Hu Tao gasp at your side. "No! Think about all the respect you could get from dating a member of FATUI?"
"I've never wanted people to kiss up to me and I especially don't want anyone doing so now." The door to your classroom was just in reach, hopefully, you could hide away in there.
FATUI was an acronym of words you've long forgotten by now. The program itself was something unique to your university alone. The people that are in said program have to meet some of the most difficult requirements you've seen to get in. Not only is getting into the program a hassle but from what you've heard there are ways to earn a higher rank among the members, and as of now there are only eleven slots. Each being taken, which was no surprise.
"As long as I don't see that guy again, I'm sure I can fix this whole situation before midterms." You sigh heavily as you open the door.
Your eyes scanned the room and you froze once you spotted a familiar head of auburn hair. Ajax was sitting in your class, being bombarded by your classmates. They were asking him neverending questions of who knows what at this point.
You stiffened and inhaled sharply. "You've got to be kidding me."
A giggle could be heard from your side. "Oh, this is just perfect."
You jabbed Hu Tao with your elbow, to which she yelped at.
Since when did he have this class? The semester had begun two-ish weeks ago, surely you would've seen him at least once before now.
You gripped the strap of your bag out of irritation. "With my luck, I bet he's part of the upper eleven too."
Hu Tao coughed slightly. "Hah...about that-"
"You're still in elbow distance, I will remind."
She took a step to the side without a word.
Of course, you just had to get careless at a stupid homecoming party. Of course, you had to get your butt saved by the richest guy at school, and of course, he could also be part of the upper eleven of FATUI.
Begrudgingly, you took a step away from the door. Maybe if you could get to one of the seats in the back, you could get by this class without being seen by him at all. The little hope you had was shattered the instant you heard your name.
"[Name]?" Oh great, he pushed past the crowd to get over to you. "How are you? I didn't know you took this class."
With a deadpan expression, you gave him no hint of interest. "Yeah, and since when did you take this class?"
"Ah." Ajax chuckled a bit. "I accidentally chose the wrong class and this one was the only one still open for what I needed."
"And why'd it take you two weeks to change classes? Are you really dumb enough to not realize you were in the wrong class for that long?" You'll admit, that came out a bit harsher than you intended but you were already exhausted from this rumor.
His demeanor shifted slightly, but he was still cheery as ever. "Ouch, haha." Seemed he took it as a joke. "No, there were just a few complications when it came to switching. Because the semester had already started and all."
"Hm, alright next question. Did you let the rumor spread the way it did?" Your voice was unintentionally hushed with irritation.
"Rumor? What rumor?"
You opened your mouth to go off on him but your professor had walked through the door and asked for everyone to sit down. You looked to your side to find that Hu Tao had disappeared. One glance at the seats revealed that she went ahead and found a seat without you. Glaring at her you realized that you took too long to find a seat, and now there was only two left side by side. Your luck couldn't get much worse, could it?
Not wanting to hold up the class, you sat down and let Ajax sit next to you. Before he joined this class there had always been one empty seat. You guessed that he filled that spot.
An angry sigh left your lips as you pulled out your notebook. You'd just have to ignore the redhead for the time being. Or so you thought. Not even half an hour into the lecture, Ajax slid a piece of paper ripped from his notebook in your direction.
What rumor were you talking about? That's what he had written.
You sigh before writing in the corner of your notes.
The entire school thinks we're dating.
Since when?
The party.
It was a bit childish to be writing notes back and forth but the two of you stopped when your professor spoke up.
"Now, I need full attention for what I'm about to say." He started, "Each one of you needs to find a partner. Someone you can work with for the rest of the semester. Starting next class we'll be working on your final project after each lecture."
Oh, that was easy, Hu Tao could be a pain to work with but she'll get things done if you bash it into her head enough. You had nothing to worry about.
"I will not have any exceptions, everyone must work with a partner. With the even number of students, I find that this shouldn't be a problem." He finished up by asking if anyone had any questions. After that, he started going over the criteria of the project.
You listened intently as the clock ticked away. Before you knew it, class was over and you could finally get out of that seat. You wasted no time walking over to Hu Tao.
"Hey Hu, wanna come over to my place tonight so we can come up with what our project will be about?"
"Oh, sorry [Name]. Me and Xingqiu already decided to work together." She faked sympathy.
Your eyes went wide as you looked over to the now-waving, blue-haired boy. "But we always work together. Who am I supposed to work with?"
You didn't know anyone else in this class, hell, Hu Tao and Xingqiu were the only people you knew the name's of. You looked around to see if you could build up the courage to talk to anyone but you stopped when you noticed the identical smirks growing on your friends' faces.
"[Name]?" From behind you, Ajax walked up, clueless about the situation at hand.
"Oh look, someone to work with." Hu Tao got up from her seat.
"Seems as though you got a partner right here." Xingqiu followed her, finishing her sentence.
Ajax blinked, confused. "Partner?"
"Well, see you later [Name]." Hu Tao scrambled away with her partner in crime in tow.
Stifling your frustration you looked up at the man before you. "What do you need?"
"Oh." He laughed. "I was just gonna ask a question or two, but it seems I caught you in a bad time."
"No no, go ahead."
He found your annoyance amusing. "Do you know how this whole rumor started?"
"I dunno, I guess whenever you got me away from that guy."
"I see. Well, that's easy enough. I'll have this fixed in no time." He smiled. "And one more thing, is it okay if we partner up?"
You groan. "Really?"
"Well, there isn't exactly anyone else I can ask." He gestured around the room. There was, in fact, no one else in the room.
You fought the urge to facepalm as you sighed and nodded. "Yeah sure, I guess I have no choice."
"Great, I'll give you my number."
You'd be surprised, under normal circumstances, about gaining a FATUI's number. Though, of course, these aren't normal circumstances and you couldn't be more annoyed.
You haven't heard from him since and now two days have passed. You should be able to see him again in class. Maybe then you could ask about what he's done to help your situation.
Sitting down where you sat last time, you notice that neither Hu Tao nor Xingqiu had arrived yet. Even if you didn't walk with Hu Tao today she still would've gotten here around the same time. You didn't think about it too much as you got your notebook out and set it on the desk. To your surprise, hands on top of your desk greeted you when you came up from scrounging around in your bag.
You flinch, the sight scaring you. When you looked up, though, you immediately deadpanned. "Oh. It's you."
Ajax took his hands off your desk and took a seat next to you for the second time this week. "Good morning to you too." He chuckled.
"So, got any news about our situation?" You ask, straight to the point. There really wasn't any reason for you to resent this guy so much. What had happened was an honest mistake, and at the end of the day, he was just trying to help. Although, he was very annoying.
A deflated sigh left him as you saw him tense. "I've got some bad news..."
With a brow raised, you awaited his failure.
"When I tried to post on the forum, my autocorrect decided to make things worse." He laughed nervously, not meeting your gaze. "I was trying to make it simple, straight to the point even. So I went with "[Name] and I aren't dating," but..." Ajax trailed off.
"But?"
"My phone decided to change aren't to are right before I hit the button to post. I deleted it as soon as I realized, but I wasn't fast enough..."
You knew what he meant, it was every man's downfall, screenshots.
Letting your head fall onto the desk you mumble a prayer. "And how many screenshots did you see?"
Ajax kept his voice low, scared of your temperament. "I saw at least fifteen reblogs of the same one this morning."
A groan left you. "It's probably gotten reblogged a dozen times over since then." Eventually, you sat up. "If it weren't for the student loan debt I have, I would've thought this was a high school with how everyone's acting. Can't you just make another post to fix this?"
He shook his head. "The people here are probably starved for drama and have nothing more interesting to do with their lives. I probably couldn't do much because of that fact alone. Not to mention, I have a history of covering up the things I've said with lies to keep my father from knowing."
"And I couldn't do much because I don't have that high academic profile that people can't seem to get enough of like you do."
"Yeah, for all they know you could be covering it up for my sake." It was his turn to sigh. "It should die down by the end of the semester. People might still think we're dating but at least they won't be barging the forums like they are now."
That was the hope. It really was.
As the weeks slowly went by you noticed that Ajax's theory wasn't going anywhere. The posts didn't decrease, in reality, it seemed they were only getting worse. There was noting the two of you could do, not with Ajax's notorious lying habit. There was nothing the two of you could do other than ignore it, no matter how creepy the random photos of you two together were.
Right now the two of you were studying for midterms at his place. With the constant get-togethers to work on your project, it didn't take long for you to get comfortable enough with each other to hang out. Even if you were only feeding the evergrowing hashtag on the forum.
Despite his wealthy status, he lived in a small and content home. You were honestly surprised the first time you drove up. Anyway, he was going through a textbook on his bed while you were sprawled on the floor and going over your notes. It was getting pretty late into the night and you felt a yawn coming on. Rubbing the exhaustion out of your eyes, you look up at him for a minute.
"You never did tell me why you try to hide so much from your dad." You needed a break from reading, and you wanted to see if you could get a conversation out of this.
"Why are you so worried about that?" He chuckled.
You couldn't help but jokingly scoff. "I mean, if it wasn't for that dumb habit of yours #Tarta[Name] probably wouldn't be one of the top ten things trending within this school."
That got a laugh out of him as he sat up. Ajax pushed the textbook aside before sighing. "I've lost count of how many times I've gotten on that old man's nerves. He's the most nitpicky man I've ever met, and he wouldn't hesitate to lecture my ear off over a ninety-six as a test grade."
"Yeesh, and I thought I've already heard the worst." You shook your head at the thought. "I'm sorry about that, I guess you've never got the chance to live a little, huh?"
He put a finger to his chin, thinking. "Well, every once in a while I'm able to sneak in a little fun. Like today, I would've been grounded for having someone over. Father would've called it a distraction from my studies."
Your brows furrowed. "Really? Who pissed him off?"
Shaking his head, Ajax laughed and went back to his textbook. "Now come on, we got tests in a week."
You indeed had tests all next week. Were you prepared, possibly? It all depended on what you took in from this study session, but it was getting so hard to keep your eyes open at this point. It was probably midnight by now and since you've spent your time doing nothing but read half a semester's worth of notes, you were pretty dang tired. Before you knew it, your face was smooshed against the paper of your notebook.
Your mind became a mess of jumbled thoughts that slowly became coherent. You were too tired to open your eyes so you just continued to think about your current situation. Not sure how long you've had your eyes closed you remembered that you passed out on your notes. Now that alone wasn't a big deal but the fear that you could be drooling on them and ruining all your hard work jolted you awake. You sat up just to feel the weight of a blanket roll off of you. Not only was there a blanket on you but when you looked back to where your notes supposedly been, a pillow had taken their place.
After you assured yourself that your work was safe, you took a look around, a bit disorientated. As daylight seeped through the curtains, you wondered if you had actually fallen asleep? You couldn't believe it. If so, how come there was a blanket and pillow where you laid on the floor?
It was then that you realized you had fallen asleep In Ajax's room. Neither of you had stayed the night over at the other's place before, so embarrassment filled you quickly. You didn't ask if you could stay, you didn't know if Ajax was okay with you being here the whole night. You groaned before standing up. Surely, if he didn't want you here he would've woken you up before now.
Instinctively you look over at his bed, expecting him to be there, but alas he wasn't. You open the door and walk out to be hit with a strong, pleasant smell. It had your mouth watering in mere seconds. You had to know where this was coming from.
You were met with the sight of the man with orange hair over the kitchen stove. He had just flipped a pancake over, humming an unfamiliar tune. He looked like he belonged there and that's what confused you. Him in pajamas and cooking breakfast just felt right.
"Ajax?" You called out, which sounded more like a croak than anything.
His attention whipped towards you in an instant. "Oh good, sleeping beauty is finally awake." He giggled. "Must have been really tired to fall asleep on the floor like that."
"Sorry." You looked away, bashfully.
"Don't be, I would've woken you up if I didn't want you here. Although, I do regret sleeping on the couch." He groaned, leaving you to assume he was sore.
"Why didn't you just sleep in your bed?" You took a seat at his table, adverting your gaze to anything but him.
By now he had returned to cooking breakfast. "I didn't think you would be comfortable sleeping that close to me. I chose the safest option since I didn't want to wake you up to ask."
You could feel your cheeks grow hot at his admission. "Really?"
"Of course. I always want to take your feelings into account." He managed to sneak up on you with a plate of food in hand. "Ever since finding out what my actions at the party led to, I don't want to make a similar mistake. Even if what happened is kind of funny."
Rolling your eyes at his laughter, you took the plate and admired the dish. Eggs, pancakes, and bacon. A traditional breakfast but you didn't expect it to taste that good. This man could really cook.
***
Even as midterms and the weeks went by, you still couldn't get that morning out of your head. You caught your cheeks flush when you thought back to it. Not only that, but you noticed how much you daydreamed of him cooking for you again. Just the thought of it now left you sighing.
"Who's got you this distracted?" A voice from your side jolted you out of your thoughts.
"Jesus, Xingqiu! A warning next time?"
The two of you had been together since last class. He was usually free during this time and your scheduled class had been canceled. You thought it was a good idea just to wander around campus in each other's company. In hindsight, you regret it.
"You've been sighing like that this entire walk." A devious smile formed on his face. "You got someone on your mind, don't you?"
You shoved him away, the boy had been leaning closer to you with every word. "It's nothing, just tired."
He wasn't buying it. "Mhm, if you say so." He probably had more to say but the clock tower's chime silenced you both.
The timing couldn't have been more perfect. It was time for you to go to class, which meant you could get away from Xingqiu's teasing. "I'll talk to you later, have fun doing nothing I guess."
"Wait." He stopped you before you could get any further. "Hu Tao wanted me to tell you that you need to meet up with her later."
You raised a brow. "Why couldn't she just text me?"
"Don't shoot the messenger." He shrugged, "She said to meet her by the back parking lot after your last class."
You nodded before heading off.
Why Hu Tao needed to see you was a mystery. Surely she could wait until your next shared class, or even call you. It couldn't be helped though, she had her reasons and you were sure you were going to hate them.
The day went by rather slowly, the second half of the semester was looking very similar to the first. The rumors had only grown, but you had gotten used to just ignoring the stares. The temptation of using them to your advantage was strong if it could keep people quiet. Though you knew that it would be a bit rude to do so. Ajax is now someone you could consider a friend, using his academic status for your benefit would be nothing short of douchey.
The air was getting cooler, you wished you had brought a light jacket. It was only going to get colder when the sun gets lower. Winter was two months away, and the first snow would probably be sometime in November if you could guess.
Even if it was cold, the walk to the parking lot wasn't unpleasant. Your last class was pretty late into the day so there weren't many people around at this time. Even so, you could hear a large crowd in the direction you were headed. There was probably some one-day event you didn't get wind of. You never paid attention to the flyers on the bathroom stall doors to know when they were happening. The group only got louder as the parking lot came into view. When you finally found a bench to wait at, you saw them in the large field the campus had.
It was typical that whatever was going on happened here. The field itself was known to be a makeshift recreational portion of the campus since some small events had been held there. The school itself had no use for this land at the moment so they didn't mind.
You tried to make out what was happening as you sat on the bench. Hu Tao hadn't arrived yet so you suspected you were going to be here a while anyway.
There were colorful targets lined up far away from the crowd. A couple had been knocked down by whatever was being thrown at it. You suspected this to be some kind of competition by that alone. There was probably a small prize for whoever won.
As you watched from a distance you grew antsy, Hu Tao was still nowhere to be found. A sigh left you as you got up, shivering slightly at the wind. A little peek at what was happening wouldn't hurt. You just had to make sure you catch Hu Tao's text for when she can't find you.
Walking closer, you find that this competition was for archery. You watched people shoot arrows towards the targets, and heard the cheers of onlookers when the archer got a pretty decent shot. You didn't think that arrows alone could make a target of that size fall, so you assumed that people purposely knocked them over, for reasons you weren't sure of yet.
You continued to look over the crowd of people that had formed. Among the sea of different hair colors, one stuck out to you instantly. You couldn't believe it when you saw Ajax himself, wielding a bow. He fired an arrow as you were watching him. A judge inspected his arrow and announced it to be a bullseye. You had to cover your ears from how loud everyone had cheered.
You were so impressed that you had to continue watching. Pushing through the crowd you found a railing where non-participants were supposed to stay behind. You leaned against it and stayed right behind your red-haired friend.
Throughout watching the competition, you managed to figure out why they were knocking down targets. It was to show how many people were still competing. It was an elimination game, and Ajax had made it to the finals. You were starting to root for him once you realized how far he had made it. You were sure the railings were going to topple with how much you leaned against them.
Third place had already been awarded and that left Ajax and his fellow competitor to first and second place. This last shot determined who got what, and you would be lying if you said you weren't tense.
It was Ajax's turn, he wasted no time to get his bow as accurate as possible before shooting. The arrow whizzed by and hit the target with precision. The judge went over to check his work and yelled that he had gotten another bullseye. The outburst of cheers is something you gladly took part in, along with clapping a bit. You couldn't see how accurate of a bullseye it was from here so you could only hope that the other person didn't manage to do better. You were team Ajax, after all.
Your body went back to being tense when you watched the other person draw their bow. They took a little more time than Ajax did, and it only made you more rigid. The shot they made was practically identical to how Ajax had, you couldn't even tell what kind of score they got from where you stood. Luckily, the judge did his job and went over there.
The man took a good minute to observe both targets. The air was silent as everyone waited for what he had to say. When he came back he spoke quickly about how close the score was but there was clearly a winner. He didn't make anyone wait longer than they should have by announcing and gesturing that first place went to the person you didn't know.
You couldn't help but be a bit disappointed but you clapped anyway, it was a fair game and you knew that whoever they were deserved it. Though, that didn't stop you from cheering when Ajax was announced as second place. Seemed as though he finally heard you because his gaze met yours as he scanned the crowd. You smiled proudly at him as you clapped, happy that he noticed your support.
To your surprise, medals were given out to the three winners. This must have been the real deal if that was the case. Even so, you didn't have much time to ponder on it. You looked at your phone, expecting to see a text from Hu Tao, but there was none. As you shoved your phone into your pocket with a sigh, you heard hurried footsteps coming towards you.
"[Name]!" Ajax had rushed over to you, avoiding the crowd.
The sun had lowered enough to turn the street lamps on. You smiled at the tall man before you. "Hey man, you did amazing."
He scratched the back of his head at your praise. "Thanks...I didn't think you would be watching me."
"I just happened to be around, I didn't even know about this until I saw it for myself." You glanced at the medal now hanging from his neck. "What was all this about anyway?"
His eyes seemed to light up. "Oh, the school has a few courses dedicated to weaponry. I've been taking all of them one by one, and archery is the last one I have to complete. This was just a school-led tournament, which is a bit different than what I'm used to."
Your eyes widened. "That's so cool, and you got second place?"
Ajax was getting a bit bashful, he avoided looking at you directly. "Hah, yeah."
A small moment of silence was shared between the two of you, in that time the wind picked up, leaving you shivering.
Ajax noticed immediately. "What are you doing here anyway?"
Before you could get words out of your opened mouth, you heard your phone go off. You pulled it out to read the notification. It was from Hu Tao.
Hey sorry, I can't make it after all, hope I didn't keep you waiting too long :P
You sigh, not bothering to text back. "Well I was gonna meet up with Hu Tao, but she just canceled on me."
"Ah, what a bummer." He started to take off his jacket. "I know you normally park on the other side of campus so here. I'm gonna have to help you put it on though, the buttons are stupid."
You roll your eyes as you let him, a smile on your face. As he leaned forward to put it on you, the medal dangled off his neck. "Can I look at it?"
"Yeah, go ahead."
You went to grab the silver medal, but as soon as your fingers wrapped around it you heard the noise of a camera's shutter to your side.
The two of you looked over to see a girl with a camera leaving the scene.
"What is she doing?" You ask.
"Oh, she works for the school newspaper. I saw her taking pictures of third and first place. I was so focused on getting to you I forgot to get my picture taken." Ajax shrugged as he got the jacket on you.
You observed the medal briefly. "She could've asked first."
At the time, you didn't pay the photo much mind. It was just someone trying to do their job and you could respect that. In hindsight, you wished that you could've stopped her before she walked away.
In your hands was the newest edition of the school newspaper. You would never get one yourself, always too sidetracked to ever do so. In fact, Hu Tao was the one who had brought this to your attention.
"And you're sure that you two aren't dating." Hu Tao had been teasing you all morning as you waited for your professor to show up.
On the sports page were pictures of the people who earned third to first place during the archery tournament. The picture of the other two winners was normal, but when it came to Ajax's it only fed into the rumors more.
Right there, clear as day, was a picture of him helping you put his jacket on while you observed his medal. The picture itself was really good, you had twisted the medal in just a way to get the full front of it to the camera's view, but you were sure that the forum was eating this up as you sat there.
***
At this point, you weren't surprised anymore. The gossip didn't die down, and the hashtag only grew in popularity as finals drew near. You and Ajax became pros at ignoring everything by now, and at this point, it was an inside joke.
Every once in a while, the two of you use pet names and words of endearment to refer to one another.
"Hun, could you pass me my textbook," or "Do you need a ride home, love." All playing on the joke that people were so interested in your nonexistent 'love life.'
You'll admit that every time he calls you something of the sort, you indulge in yourself for just a second, pretending that he's calling you that in seriousness. It came to a point where you would lay, sleepless, and squirm around in your bed just because you were excited to see him. Luckily, since the end of the semester was drawing nearer every day, Ajax hung out with you more frequently to work on the final project.
With only a few more days left to work on your presentation, he was over at our place and adding the finishing touches. He was busy on his laptop and you with notecards, writing down every key point that needed to be said.
"And...that should do it," Ajax spoke up from your bed, a beaming smile on his face. "Just got the last bit of the bibliography done, so that means we're finished."
Looking over at him you gave him a prideful smile. "Great, thanks so much."
"Ah, I was doing my share of the work." He dismissed your praise.
With a roll of your eyes, you turn back around to continue on the notecards. "I'm just about done with this, find something to keep yourself occupied, dear." A small chuckle left your lips.
You knew he wouldn't be leaving for another few hours, he tended to stick around longer than it took to finish whatever you were working on. Usually that left time for just goofing around, playing games, or watching movies which you didn't mind at all.
A few minutes went by before you heard him talk again. "Oh, I've been meaning to ask you something."
You hummed in acknowledgment.
"So FATUI has two major events a year and their first semester one is just around the corner," he started. "It's a holiday dance, and everyone is allowed to bring a plus one."
"Uh-huh." You knew where this was going immediately.
You heard him shift on the bed. "I've been teased for not bringing a date for two years in a row, so I was wondering if you'd like to pretend to be mine for the night."
With a snort, you spin in your chair to face him. "I don't think it's so much as pretending than it is feeding into the drama." You laughed a little.
He looked away awkwardly. "Yeah yeah, but I'm serious. I haven't gotten a break since the last holiday dance, and with everything that's happened now, it's only gotten worse."
"Oh, you poor thing." You faked sympathy.
"Hey!"
Giggling, you nodded. "Alright, just this once. I'm in it for the food though."
"I wouldn't expect any less from you." He gave you a cheeky smile.
***
As the day of the final came up you were a bit nervous. Both you and Ajax had spent a lot of time on this project, and you'd hate to see all that time go to waste. Luckily, he was able to reassure you before you went up to present.
The presentation itself was nothing too special. It met the requirements to pass and everything you needed to know about your topic. You were confident that things would go smoothly and you would get out of this with a good grade. Although you couldn't relax too much after, you still had other tests from other classes.
When the two of you finished up and sat down, Ajax hit you with a thumbs up. Your cheeks warmed at the sight of his proud smile. You couldn't get enough of it.
With the presentation now dealt with, the next thing you could look forward to that included Ajax was the dance. In the back of your mind, you were a bit worried that something similar to what happened at the last party would happen again, but overall you were excited to go. You wanted to have the fun of going along with the drama and pretend to be a couple. It left you chuckling when you thought about it. Even so, it left you sighing fondly.
Ajax was so impressive you couldn't find the right words without feeling as though you downplayed his achievements. Not only was this guy a FATUI prodigy and an academic whizz, but he was also a great person in general. He treated you as an equal and always wanted to hear your side on things. You couldn't wait to see him again.
Finals went by like no one's business. Now you were left waiting for the last grades to get in. You also were waiting for the dance that was at the end of the week. You were surprised that this semester went by so quickly. It was one of the most interesting ones you've had, that's for sure.
You were having lunch with Hu Tao and Xingqiu, a small celebration for reaching the end of the semester. Day's like these are when you question why you still hang out with these two. Especially, the teasing they've put you through after you told them about the FATUI event.
"At this point, I think it's undeniable. You guys have the hots for each other." Hu Tao poked at her plate, more focused on your reactions.
Xingqiu only chuckled. "Are the forum posts getting to you?"
"It's for one night," You groaned. "We're going as friends, I'm pretending that I'm his date." You were red in the face as you angrily ate your dish. You couldn't tell if your flush was from anger or embarrassment.
"I wouldn't be surprised if he confesses to you." Hu Tao spoke in a singsong voice before shoving a large bit of her food into her mouth.
You sighed as you continued to eat. If you ignored them long enough, they'd drop the conversation.
Confesses? You wish. Ajax had grown on you in the sixteen weeks (full semester) you've known him. The possibility of him having feelings for you was slim. You were pretty sure he only saw you as a friend, but in the off chance he did harbor affection for you, what would you say?
The feeling in your chest wasn't completely foreign, you reconsigned it enough to dismiss it as nothing. You played it off as the gossip getting in your head and placing images that shouldn't be there. Did you really have a crush on him? Maybe, but you couldn't be too sure unless something outright told you.
The celebratory lunch had put thoughts in your head that lasted up to the night of the dance. You were looking through your closest, trying to figure out which outfit would suit the occasion, all the while your mind raced through different scenarios that included Ajax. He was going to pick you up in an hour, giving you time to get ready. It almost felt like he was taking this date seriously.
After a facepalm or two, you managed to think straight and pick something out of your closet. You hope you didn't overdress, or worse underdress. It was a FATUI sponsored event for members of the program. You didn't exactly know what to expect and hoped that you didn't have to worry too much about etiquette.
You did a few final touches to your look, fixing a strand of hair and brushing a wrinkle out of the fabric with your hand. A knock at your door could be heard and you went over to answer it. When the door opened, before you was the man you had been looking forward to seeing all week. He wore a simple suit with his FATUI emblem pinned on the collar.
Ajax smiled at the sight of you. "You look great."
You took a second to look over what he was wearing and couldn't help but get a bit nervous. "I hope I'm dressed well enough."
"Oh don't worry, the blazer is coming off when the music starts."
His chuckle soothed your mind as he hooked arms with you.
"Shall we be off, my date to the party?" He stifled a laugh at his own joke.
Giggling, you nodded. "We shall."
He happily led you to his car, opening the passenger door for you and everything. When he got situated in the driver's side he was laughing to himself. "This is going to be great."
You enjoyed his upbeat attitude that could be sourced to his mischief. He was having a blast knowing that he will fool everyone at the party. You knew that this probably wouldn't affect anyone who didn't know, but it was certainly something you could look back on and laugh at. Though, you hoped that this still would be a fun night regardless.
The snowy drive there was filled with conversations that included just about anything. Ajax always had a way to keep things moving, knowing how to transition from one topic to the next. You were sure that you could talk for hours with him, and if you remembered correctly, you have.
When you arrived, he opened the door for you and hooked your arm once again. One glance at his face revealed the smug look he had. You had to fight a smile of your own, trying not to give away anything that you two were up to.
"We'll say hello to a few people I know before we have any fun. Also, I don't tend to stay very long during these events, so if you want to leave early just tell me. It shouldn't be a problem to slip out and hit a fast food joint." He looked down at you briefly.
You shook your head with a chuckle. "Sounds like a nice backup plan. The idea of us dressed like this in a place like that is funny."
"That's why I even came up with it."
You continued to walk and talk with him, all the way up to when you made it to the room. Once inside, your eyes widened at the sight of the decorations. Everything was decorated in theme for the holidays, aesthetically pleasing and breathtaking.
You felt someone's hand come under your chin and close your agape mouth. Embarrassment swelled in your chest when you find that hand attached to Ajax. You saw the corners of his mouth twitch upwards and you elbowed him in the side.
"Ack-" He quickly took a step away from you, clutching his stomach. "Oh c'mon, you looked cute."
"Don't make me start to regret agreeing to this." You sighed in annoyance.
He only nodded before outstretching his arm to you once more. "Of course not, my dear."
You scoff, but still hooked arms with him with a smile.
As Ajax dragged you along to introduce you to members he knew, including his fellow upper eleven, you started to get antsy. This whole thing was a little too formal for you. With every new face you said hello to, it became harder to smile each time. Luckily, there wasn't more than a handful of people you had to meet, but now you two were just floating with the crowd, both equally as bored.
You sigh and tug at his sleeve. "Is it too early to check what food they have?"
He laughed quietly, but just loud enough for you to hear it over everyone else in the room. "No, it's not. Come on."
He grabbed ahold of your wrist before pulling you through the sea of people. Soon enough the long table was in front of you. Ajax already grabbed a plate once you got a good look at him.
"I'd say another five minutes before they dim the lights." He started to serve himself.
You echoed his movements and started to fill your plate as well. "You don't sound all too thrilled."
Ajax shrugged. "Events like these aren't usually my thing. It's not like I chose to be in FATUI, I had to, to keep my father happy."
"Yet you made it to the upper eleven?"
"I was bored with my position and thought it could keep the old man off my back for a while."
You glanced at him briefly before turning your attention back to your plate. "Well, I don't think that the position or status matter. To me, it's the effort you put into whatever you're doing that's praiseworthy."
There was a second of silence before you felt his gaze on you. "Is that why you were proud of me over a second-place medal even though I could've done better?"
His question sounded genuine, not a hint of humor behind it, and that's what worried you. You looked over at him to find disbelief creasing his eyebrows. "Well duh, I don't care that you didn't get first-place. I was so proud of how much your hard work paid off. Even if you didn't make it to the finals I still would've found you as amazing as I did."
"Really?"
"Of course."
The lights dimmed and music started to play before he could get another word in. Ajax shook his head to get his thoughts straight.
He grinned at you before turning away from the table. "Let's find somewhere to sit before all of the good seats are taken."
You caught the shift in his attitude, but you didn't want to point it out. You followed him with your plate in hand and took a seat when he did. He wasn't lying earlier when he said the blazer was coming off as soon as the music started, there it was draped over his chair as he dug into his food. You laugh to yourself before eating as well.
The two of you sat and chatted over the music for a while, by now your plates were empty. Honestly, you didn't think that you had eaten enough, so you could take on Ajax's offer and get out of here. It's not like the two of you had anything better to do. Although, as soon as you decided to ask, a guy on the shorter side walked by and Ajax called out to him.
"Hey Scara!"
The man turned around and you recognized his looks and name, Ajax had introduced you to him earlier.
"What do you want?" He was snarky, blunt, and unpleasant to be around, but that did stop your ginger-haired friend from finding some amusement in him.
"I was just wondering why you were still sticking around, you usually leave even earlier than I do." A mischievous hum left Ajax.
Scara scoffed. "I was just leaving, but you interrupted me." He glanced at you for a second. "As much as I'd love to see you make a fool of yourself during the couple's dance, I have more important things to do."
Without as much as a goodbye, the small man left with a huff.
Your brow rose as you turned to Ajax. "Couple's dance?"
"Oh, right." he started, "I forgot to tell you about that, it's the whole reason why I asked you to come. It's also the root of all the teasing."
"Would've been nice to have a warning."
"We don't have to, like I said we can leave whenever you want."
"No, I'm interested now. I think it could be funny." You suppressed a laugh to get the last bit out. "Dancing with my sweetheart and all."
He laughed. "Of course my lovely."
The two of you were a giggling mess before the music's mood changed. What was a fun and peppy atmosphere before became something softer and romantic. You looked at each other for confirmation and Ajax nodded.
"I guess that's our cue."
He stood and gave you his hand. Once you took it he led you to the open space of the room where actual couples were gathering. His arm wrapped around your waist and the other rested on your shoulder. You let your hands fall on his chest as you looked up to him. Your breath hitched as you realized how close he was to you. You could feel the heat rise to your cheeks.
"Now don't worry, we don't have to do anything fancy. Swaying to the music is fine, although I wouldn't be opposed to putting my skills to work." He whispered, jokingly.
"You know how to dance?"
He nodded. "I could show you sometime."
A hushed laugh escaped you. "You truly are amazing."
He sighed as he took the lead and swayed the two of you to the music. You couldn't believe how natural this felt, it was like fate had put you here. You had to fight the urge to rest your head on his chest or shoulder. It felt so restricting for reasons you couldn't pin down.
"You're stiff, is something the matter?" He searched your face for any possible answers. "You're not uncomfortable, are you?"
Shaking your head you look away. "I just don't want to get too comfortable."
He chuckled and only nodded. Ajax was quiet for a few seconds afterward, but he eventually spoke up. "You know, I always found you intriguing."
Perking up, you turned your head to him again. "Oh?"
A bashful laugh escaped his lips. "It may sound weird, but it was relieving when you disliked me so much at first. You knew my social standing but you didn't treat me like some higher being, or worse, hated me."
"But you said it yourself that I disliked you."
"Over a silly mistake. Sure you may have found my popularity annoying, but my popularity was the reason why I couldn't fix our issue." He laughed sweetly. "The main reason I stuck around, other than our project, was because you treated me as a human."
Ajax's grip on you tightened as he struggled to look you in the eye. "And then you only became more interesting. Once you grew fond of me you praised me over the smallest accomplishments like the archery tournament."
"Small?!" You struggled to keep your voice a whisper, but you managed. "You got second place!"
"My father would've said I could've done better. That's precisely why I never told him about it."
With those words, you understood now. Ajax has been forced to be perfect all his life, and this university is his first chance of being a normal kid. You felt sorry for him and terribly so. He's never actually been able to be free of the high standards the world has put on him.
"What's that face for?" Ajax picked up on your solemn expression.
Your heart raced but it didn't stop you from going to caress his face. "You know it's okay, right? It's okay not to be perfect."
He stopped swaying as soon as he processed those words. His eyes were blown wide like you had questioned if the sun was a planet.
After a second of no response from him, you traced your thumb over his cheek. "I'm sorry it took this long for someone to tell you. You didn't deserve all that pressure put on you."
When he finally blinked, he only opened his eyes halfway, and you could see the shimmer of tears brimming. "[Name]..."
The song was ending and couples were starting to sit down. You smiled sadly and took his hand. "I think it's time we leave."
He only nodded as you dragged him to the table to grab his blazer before you walked outside the building. You didn't stop walking until you made it to the freezing outside, where you turned around to find him wiping his eyes.
"I'm sorry." He chuckled halfheartedly. "I don't know what came over me."
You squeezed his hand. "Don't be sorry, you just needed to hear it I guess."
Ajax glanced at you before his gaze fell to his shoes. "I don't think I ever thought about life like that."
"I don't think you were given the chance to be able to."
He sighed, "You're right." His grip on your hand tightened for reassurance. "Everything I've done until my first semester in this school was to please my father, and even then I still join programs like FATUI thinking that I could achieve that standard he has for me."
You softly laid a hand against his face, to which he leaned into. "Maybe you should forget about him for a change. I can help you."
"I can't just do that." He was opposed to your idea yet he didn't move from your hand. "He's the only reason why I'm here in the first place. If it weren't for him, I'd probably only graduate with an associate and-"
"And that would be perfectly okay. You just need to focus on what you want to do and not what he wants from you. Do you understand?"
It took him a second but he nodded.
"Good." You smiled at him, going to hold him closer. "You shouldn't have to worry about what anyone else thinks from now on."
He perked up a bit. "But I want to know what you think."
Rolling your eyes, you obliged. "Well, I think you're outstanding. You're really smart and loyal. Honestly, I'm lucky to have met you." Your mind started to wander and you thought out loud. "I also wouldn't mind being more than friends." The last part was barely over a whisper but you wanted to suck your words back in as soon as they left your lips.
Ajax blinked at you before a small, shy smile twitched its way into existence. "I would be lying if I said I didn't mind the same thing."
You froze in place, retracting your hand away from him out of embarrassment.
He jokingly whined at the loss before straightening up to tilt your head closer to him. "Is this okay?"
You nodded.
"Then I just want to say thank you." Ajax leaned down slowly, giving you more than enough time to back out, but you didn't.
Surprisingly, you met his lips halfway and caught him off guard. You were still a bit rigid from anxiety but you eased up and kissed him. Once you relaxed you opened an eye slightly to get a peek only to see your shadows form on the wall from an unknown flash of bright light.
"Oops-"
Both you and Ajax turn to see Hu Tao and Xingqiu hiding in the snowy bushes, Hu Tao had her phone in her hand in position to take a photo of you two.
"Uh, good evening." She hid the phone behind her back.
A sound of disbelief escaped your throat. "How long have you two been hiding there?!"
"Oh trust me," Xingqiu groaned, shivering. "you don't want to know."
You had gotten to a point where you just didn't care anymore. By the looks of it, these two trouble makers may be the sole reason why you and Ajax were trending. It didn't matter at this point.
You tugged at Ajax's sleeve. "Wanna ditch them for the nearest burger joint?"
"Oh absolutely." He shared a look with you before you two bolted off.
You heard the cries from Hu Tao, complaining that she was being left out but that didn't stop either of you. When you made it inside his car you two were laughing hard at your mischief.