Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Aki was not happy. 

He was sitting in the audience, staring at the ice rink with boredom. The blue seats surrounded the ice rink with a barrier so nobody could walk out during performances. The people sitting down looked eager for the competition to start and Aki didn’t get why. 

Next to him was his friend, Denji, who was practically shaking in his seat in excitement. Being dragged out because his friend needed emotional support wasn't how Aki wanted to spend his Wednesday afternoon. Not to mention he had an upcoming test that he needed to study for. 

“She’s gonna look so good.” He said as he intertwined his fingers together to stop them from shaking in enthusiasm. “What if she makes eye contact with me? Do I look good?” 

Denji pulled out his phone, opening the camera app to make sure he looked decent. Aki continued to stare and crossed his arms, sighing. “When is this thing gonna be over?” 

“It’s not just a ‘thing’. The love of my life is performing and I have to be there to see it.” He responded, not passing a glance to the male next to him. He just messed with his hair as he tried to make sure he looked presentable. “And if you keep skating all day, your legs are going to shrivel up and die.” 

And while his legs were sore, and had scabs, and bruises, it was a fun hobby Aki liked. Skating was one thing that Aki could enjoy without being pestered by the outside world. He didn’t have to worry about keeping his grades up, maintaining his friendships, or anything else. “That’s not how it works, dumbass.” 

Denji opened his mouth to say a retort but a man on the intercom came on. His head perked up at the sound and Denji shut off his phone immediately as a huge smile appeared on his lips. He shook Aki’s shoulder and shouted in cheers alongside the crowd of people watching. “Oh my God, it’s starting!” 

“Yeah, I hear it.” He scowled and moved away from Denji’s touch. 

‘We thank you for coming out this afternoon to see our talented skaters!’ The man said with ambition. The audience clapped at the sound of the introduction, as they were growing impatient. ‘We haven’t held a competition like this in a few months due to personal issues but it means a lot to us that all of you were able to make it out!’ 

With Denji right by his ear, Aki could hear every scream and shout that came out of his mouth. He almost felt like his eardrums were ringing. Shooting a nasty glare at the boy next to him, the man spoke again. 

‘With that, we welcome a very talented skater that has been skating for years! He’s unnamed but so unbelievably skilled, maybe you guys know him?’ 

The crowd screams praises and applauds, knowing who he’s talking about. And Aki thinks that it’s stupid to shout over something so trivial. Denji sinks into his seat upset that he will have to wait to see the girl of his dreams. 

Aki nudges him in the arm, “What the hell is this guy talking about?” 

Denji’s eyes widened at his friend. “You don’t know who that is?” 

He shook his head, confused. “Am I supposed to?” 

“I guess not, but he is pretty famous.” Denji turns back to the ice rink and waits for the man to stop talking. “He’s basically an anonymous figure skater who likes to remain that way. He’s really good.” 

Aki nodded, understanding the information. But he doesn’t think it makes sense. Why perform in front of an audience if you don’t want to be known? 

‘Yeah? I think you guys know! With further ado, welcome, Unidentified!’ 

‘ ’Unidentified?’ Aki thinks. Was that the name he went by? 

Again, the people sitting down clap with screams as they jump out of their seats when they see someone roll out on the ice. The first thing Aki notices about ‘Unidentified’ was the brightly colored hair he had. It was a shade of vermilion which was tied into a ponytail with a pink scrunchie and black leather gloves. Then the black gas mask he had on. He assumed it was to cover his identity but nothing was over his eyes, so Aki could see that it was red.

As he made his way to the ice and got into his starting position, the audience only screamed louder. But it came to quiet when they realized it would be starting soon. Aki heard a soft melody play from the speakers and ‘Unidentified’ started skating. 

Instantly, Aki was amazed. The moves of the person on the ice were angelic. It was like Aki was watching an angel fly around. With every jump and twirl he did, Aki felt his heart leap. Even if he couldn’t see his face, he saw the sheer emotion in his movements as he skated with every bone in his body. 

His hair was pulled out of the ponytail, revealing his long hair traveling down his back. The mob cheered again but Aki completely blanked it all out, being too entranced by the amazing figure skater in front of him. 

The way his body moved matched the music perfectly and Aki was on the edge of his seat. And when he did another twirl, leaping into the sky and landing on his feet, Aki found a slight smile on his lips. 

This was intriguing. He’s never had this much fun watching someone before. His hair flowed beautifully in the wind as he circled the edge of the rink, making the people in the front row squeal. And when he passed by Aki, their eyes meant for just a second. 

Aki felt his heart rate pick up as he blushed. The man probably didn’t even know who he was, but Aki still felt like he was special. Because he made eye contact with someone as talented as ‘Unidentified’. 

Trick after trick, jump after jump, Aki’s eyes widened in admiration. There was something about the unnamed man that made him so enjoyable. Perhaps it was the sheer skill he had, or how pretty he looked. It didn’t matter at this point, because Aki was drawn in. Drawn to the point he couldn’t tear his eyes away from the anonymous skater on the ice. 

He was glad Denji forced him to come out here. If he hadn’t seen the skater in front of him, he didn’t know what he’d done. Aki wondered what the skater looked like under the mask, was he just as majestic as his skating under the mask? 

With such talent, why keep your identity hidden? Wouldn’t you want to be known, to be famous? To be recognized by many? Maybe ‘Unidentified’ liked to remain anonymous, maybe he was shy and didn’t like attention? But why perform in front of hundreds of people if you don’t want to be the center of attention? Aki had way too many questions. 

He found himself disappointed when the performance ended, he wanted to see more. He saw Denji falling asleep on his shoulder and almost got offended that he wasn’t amazed at how good the skater was. 

____

As soon as Angel got into the backroom in the changing rooms, he sat down on one of the chairs and started to take off his skates. He was breathing deeply as he untied them, exhausted from his performance. 

He took off the black gas mask, finally getting to breathe properly. Then he took off his gloves, setting them beside him. Now walking over to his locker and opening it, he takes out his sneakers and sits down again to put them on. 

As he struggled to untie the random knot in his shoelace, someone came through the door. He looked up to see a girl with purple hair that was tied in a bun and green eyes. She saw Angel and smiled, “Hi, is this the changing room?” 

“For guys, yeah.” He replied in his monotone voice, finally managing to unknot the lace and put it on. He was so tired that he wanted to go home and take the longest nap. “The female one is to your left, down the hall.” 

She nodded and bowed slightly, “Okay, thank you.” 

When she was out of sight, Angel sighed deeply. He hated being out of breath, but the thrill of having the audience cheer and clap because of his performance made up for it. 

As both of his shoes were on, he went back up to his locker, grabbed his phone, and closed it. He powered it on to see he had a few text messages from his friends. 

bible study-

16:37 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

who do you think is hotter

aki hayakwa or denji

16:37 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

kobeni

16:37 P.M. ieats1ders…

Literally none of them

Aki isn’t that bad actually

16:37 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

so denji right

16:37 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

absolutely not

16:37 P.M. ieats1ders…

Nope 

16:37 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

why not :(

16:37 P.M. ieats1ders…

Beam, you need to obsess over someone else😭

16:37 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

pls bro

like this cannot be healthy

16:38 P.M. ieats1ders…

We’ll get you into therapy

16:38 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

who tf is we💀

I don’t have the money for that

and we all know you don’t either

16:38 P.M. ieats1ders…

Okay, first of all, fuck you,

And second of all, Angel can give us the money when he’s done with the competition

16:38 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

missing my boo angel fr 

16:38 P.M. ieats1ders…

He's my boo too asshat

16:38 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

BEAM DOESN'T NEED THERAPY!!!🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥

16:38 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

oh god, doctor hes out again

16:38 P.M. ieats1ders…

Quick! Get the spray!

16:39 P.M. A_ng3l

What the fuck?

16:39 P.M. ieats1ders…

ANGEEELLLLLLLLLLLLL

16:39 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

HEY DUDE WELCOME BACK

16:39 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

angel they were bullying beam and gonna send him to therapy

16:39 P.M. A_ng3l

Yeah, I saw

16:39 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

do something about it :( 

16:39 P.M. A_ng3l

I’ll prepare the money

16:39 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

NOOOOOOOOO

16:39 P.M. ieats1ders…

Good work out there, I stayed until the very end

16:39 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

we all did

princi don’t try and one-up us

16:40 P.M. A_ng3l

You guys didn’t have to stay and watch

You could’ve gone home

16:40 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

beam likes seeing hsi friend skate 

16:40 P.M. ieats1ders…

Yeah, Angel, it was so amazing

I recorded it

16:40 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

I think I saw Aki in the crowd

16:40 P.M. ieats1ders…

WHAT

NO YOU DIDN’T YOU FUCKING LIAR

Angel wasn’t sure who this ‘Aki’ person was. Perhaps he goes to his school? Whoever he was, he had to be someone important as Princi seemed shocked by the information. 

16:41 P.M. ieats1ders…

DID YOU SEE HIM THERE?? 

16:41 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

FUCKING OBVIOUSLY IF I SAID IT

Angel decided to turn off his phone for the day, feeling more exhausted now that he had a conversation with his friends. It felt as if he lost more of his intelligence when he spoke with them. 

While walking out of the locker rooms, he sees the girl that entered the wrong room walk out. She wore a beautiful white silk dress that had a glitter pattern on them. Her makeup was done and her hair lay naturally on her shoulders. 

Angel watched her pass him before he turned to the entrance. He spotted his friends through the glass doors. But his hands felt sweaty and dirty from the heat that was trapped in the gloves. He took one last look at his group of friends, then walked to the bathroom. 

Hiding his identity isn’t a hard task for him to do. He thought putting on a mask would work and surprisingly it did. He had forgotten the stupidity of humans and how easily they forget about small details. 

When no one knows who you they're cheering for, it sends a sort of rush through his blood. When no one can judge someone based on their appearance or how they sound, just how good they are. And Angel knew he was spectacular. 

While opening the bathroom door, he saw someone at one of the sinks, washing their hands. Paying no mind to him, he went to the one next to him and turned on the faucet. 

The stranger turned to stare at him, his eyes growing wide at the sight of the hair. 

____

Aki knew that hair color was familiar. He knew the shade and he knew the color of his eyes. But as he kept staring, he found himself wanting to reach out. He wanted to see his face. 

But he found himself stuck. ‘Unidentified’ wanted to be unknown, would it be disrespecting him if he found out? Not to mention, what was he thinking going out without the mask on?! Isn’t that the one rule you are supposed to do if nobody in the world knows your face? Hide it?

Aki looked back at the sink, contemplating what to do. Should he say something? Or should he just let the man go on with his day?

Could someone so talented, be this calm about their face in public? Especially if they performed at that place?

It seemed he spent too much time thinking about what he should do, he didn’t hear and see the man walk out of the restrooms. Panicked, Aki turned off the faucet, running out of the bathroom to the main entrance. He looked around to see if he could spot the same colored hair again, but he found nothing. He had missed his chance to see him again. 

Chapter Text

Aki thinks skateboarding is fun. Maybe not to some people, but to him, it is. He liked feeling the wind on his face, blowing his hair back.

It’s quite an expensive hobby, though. The skateboard he owned cost him his entire savings. He didn’t regret buying it however, it might’ve been the best thing that happened to him in his life. 

After the death of his family, nothing seemed fun to him anymore. Normal things he enjoyed like spending time with his friends, watching comedy shows, and biking around his neighborhood, he just got bored of all of it. It felt like a chore more than a privilege. The world seemed gray, colorless as if Aki just didn’t care anymore. As if no one in the world seemed to understand what he was going through. 

Everything was simply boring. Nothing could pique his interest. His friends dropped him as they had no idea how to handle what Aki was feeling, his grades decreased, and nothing was going for him. He just wanted to go to sleep and never wake up from his deep slumber.

Maybe he fell into a depression, he didn’t know. But the moment he was introduced to skateboarding, a flash of rainbow burned through his vision. The dull, colorless world he was once in was overrun. 

And for the first time after the passing of his family, he felt joy. He could enjoy something that wasn’t boring to him.  He could feel the thrill in his blood when stood on it. He could feel happiness again. 

You could say that it sorta saved his life in a way. If he didn’t start skateboarding, he wondered if he would still be at his house, sleeping it off, alone in his cold, dark room. He doesn’t like to think about it, though. It didn’t bring up good memories. 

Aki sat in his seat, staring at the window with his hand resting on his chin. The leaves swayed in the distance as the wind shook them. Students below walked and talked, making their way to their next class, some running to make sure they got there by the bell rang. 

Aki saw Denji being one of those people. Beside him was a girl with peach hair flowing down her back. She had some sort of red horns on her head and Aki assumed it was a hairpiece. He knew who it was, though. 

Power is one of Denji’s best friends. She’s obnoxious, loud, and rude, pretty much like Denji if you ask him. They fit each other perfectly. Aki never asked how long they’d known each other, he didn’t bother to care for such a trivial fact, but from context clues, he was sure it’d be a few years. 

He remembered when they were all hanging out, Power and Denji were acting like complete idiots in a restaurant and Aki kept trying to get them to quiet down but they told him he was being dramatic and that they weren’t bothering anyone. 

Apparently, they were because a woman approached him on his way out the door, telling him that he needed to get his children under control. And before he could even correct her, she was already long gone. 

“Aki Hayakawa!” A sing-song voice called from the doorway, pulling him out of his trance as he turned his head to the sound, even if he already knew how it was. “We see thy!” 

“Hi, Power. Hi, Denji.” He replied in the normal way he used to greet them. 

Power and Denji don’t have any classes with Aki, as the school separates students by floor. The smarter students stay on the second floor while the students that need more help go to the first floor and average-level students go to the third. You can easily tell that Denji and Power were on the first floor while Aki was on the second. 

No one is allowed to interact with students outside of their floor range but Denji and Power don’t care. Neither does Aki because even if he didn’t admit this to himself, he liked having them around. But if you get caught hanging out with them during school and a teacher catches you, you are in huge trouble. 

None of the students in the school like that rule, though. So whenever they see somebody hanging around the wrong level range, they ignore it and don’t say anything. Because everyone can agree the rule makes no sense. 

When kids complain about it, the school uses the excuse, ‘When the first floors interact with all the other floors above them, it might affect the third and second floors' grades.’ 

Students aren’t referred to as ‘students,’ they’re referred to as floors, as objects. The floor you’re on determines how the faculty members treat you, Aki didn’t know how badly the teachers on the first floor treated Power and Denji, but he knew it wasn’t good. 

“On our way to class, Power ended up bumping into Kobeni and spilled all of her books!” Denji said, almost in tears from cackling. 

Power crossed her arms, “‘Tis wasn’t me.” 

Such a blatant lie... Aki never understood why she insisted on lying when everyone knew she did it. It was like that one time she ate Denji’s sandwich right in front of her and while he asked why she ate it, she just said, ‘’Tis wasn’t me. Denji it was.’

The two of them have been causing trouble around him ever since he’s known them, but they’ve become part of his daily routine that he doesn’t bother to try and change their attitude. 

“Oh, I took Aki to the skating rink-” Denji started but Power interrupted him. 

“Without me?!” 

He rolled his eyes at her memory, “Do you have brain damage or something? You were re-taking a test, dumbass.” 

“Oh, yeah.” She giggled at her mistake instead of brushing it off like she normally would do. 

“Anyways, when I turn and look at Aki to see if he’s enjoying it, his eyes are so wide and he was smiling!” 

Aki wished he would have forgotten about that. He had been so lost in the skater's moves that he didn’t notice Denji staring at him. Power cackled in the back and almost lost her balance. 

His cheeks were dusted in a shade of red, ears growing crimson as he felt embarrassed. “Shut up already.”

“You said you would rather be skateboarding than being there,” Denji said, using his words against him.

“I would. But…” He would most definitely rather be skateboarding than watching random people in an ice skating contest, but something about that one person made him so interesting. “This time it was different.”

____

The class was the same as usual. The teacher talked in the same tone of voice, acting as if she wanted nothing more than for the bell to ring, some students throwing paper balls at each other and getting caught by the teacher, some kids sleeping in the back of the room, getting noticed by the teacher as she called on him to answer a question, he surprisingly got right. 

Same old thing. 

Walking down the hall, he stopped by the office to pick up the skateboard he dropped off. The school doesn’t allow him to carry around the big board all day, so he has to drop it by the office and he gets it at the end of the day. 

Once he retrieved it, he said bye to the front office women who were working at the counter and walked out the door. 

When Aki got to the sidewalks, he got a running start, lowering his board close to the ground. He placed his feet on the skateboard and removed his hands from the top of it. He repositioned his feet horizontally, bending his knees slightly. 

He let himself relax, feeling the breeze on his skin. He could hear and feel the wheels on the bottom bouncing against the concrete. 

Aki felt the speed slow down, and he gave it another push. To get to his house, all he had to do was go straight. But he was going so fast that he didn’t even realize a person coming from the corner of the intersection. 

With a halt, Aki came crashing into the stranger, spilling whatever they had on the ground. Aki didn't fall completely, his board just flew a few feet above him as he stumbled a bit. 

Terrified he upset the person, he turned around, dismissing the skateboard that was currently rolling away, “I’m so sorry-” 

He stopped talking when he caught sight of vermilion hair. 

-

Today was just not his day. Angel was late for class, his locker with his shoes wouldn’t open, he tripped on the way down the stairs and Princi laughed at him, and now, he had to deal with someone on their dumb skateboard bumping into him. 

He looked up to the man that just made his day a hundred percent worse and was ready to shout angry curses at him. 

That was until he recognized him. 

Angel believes he saw him at the contest he was competing in. They made eye contact and Angel thought he was oddly attractive. It was the only reason they locked eyes though. But thinking back, he might’ve seen him in the bathroom as well. 

Now knowing the guy was a fan (and attractive), he couldn’t show any rudeness. And by the look of the stranger’s eyes widening, they recognized him too. 

Sure, he tried to keep his identity a secret, but if someone found out it was him, he wouldn’t care. He just liked having the audience cheer for him even when they didn’t know what he looked like, they liked how amazing he was at his talent. 

He looked for where his phone was, only to see the man giving it to him, “S-sorry. Honestly, I didn’t see you there.” 

Angel stood up and brushed his pants off. It was kind of his fault too, as he was texting his friends and also not looking at where he was going. He took his phone back, fingers brushing against each other. Angel tried not to think about the lingering feeling. 

“It’s all good.” He spoke and checked out his phone, only to see that the case was just scratched up. At least he still had one stroke of good luck left. “I wasn’t watching where I was going either, my eyes were glued to my phone. Thanks for it back, by the way.” 

Aki ignored the way his voice sent signals to his mind. Every alarm was going to his head, he could hear the sirens going off. But he kept his cool and remained calm as he cleared his throat. “It’s… it’s not a problem. Hey, your uniform. You go to Tokyo High?” 

He nodded, taking a look at Aki’s uniform to see that it matched his. “I guess we go to the same school then? How come I’ve never seen you around?” 

“I could say the same with you, y’know.” He said, letting his nerves finally settle down. Though his heart was still running miles, he could practically feel it pumping. “Your hair’s brightly colored, I thought that would be easy to spot.” 

He shrugged, “I try to stay out of the spotlight, maybe that’s why. Wait, what floor are you on?” 

Aki held up a finger, “The first one, you?” 

“Third. Wow, you must be smart, huh?” He teased sarcastically. 

Aki scoffed and rolled his eyes, “Sure. Anyways, you skate, do you not?” 

Not surprised by the sudden topic change, he shook his head up and down. “I do. I believe I saw you at one of my competitions a few days ago.” 

“Mhm. A friend of mine forced me to go. Didn’t regret it.” Aki was a little confused about why he wasn’t freaked out about how he found out his identity so quickly. “Do you not care if I found out that you’re ‘Unidentified?’”

He thought about it for a moment, humming before he concluded. “Not really. Sure, I hide my looks but I don’t mind if people find out. I just heard that sometimes the judges judge on how your face looks, so I just covered it up to see if I’d win just by how good I am.” 

“Ah, I see.” Aki got it now, Angel didn’t want any points taken off of his performance because of how his face looked. But he didn’t see why they needed to take away any points, they should add points because of how pretty he is. 

“So, you skateboard, right?” He asked the next question, eyeing down the board that stopped rolling down the street not too long ago. 

“Hm? Oh, yeah, I do.” He walked over to his board, stomping on the edge of it to make it lift. He caught the tip of it with his hand, stepping back to Angel. “Say, I never got your name.” 

“It’s Angel.” He said nonchalantly. 

“Ah, that explains it.” Aki chuckled as if he had just figured out a mystery. “How you were skating so angelically.” 

Maybe Angel had a thing for bad pickup lines because the way he let the blood rush to his cheeks is embarrassing. But Aki enjoyed every bit of it, seeing Angel flustered was a sight he never thought would please him so much. 

“Could I get your name then?” Angel questioned to try and pry the attention somewhere other than his face. Even if he spoke calmly, he was yelling things in his mind. 

“Aki.” 

Angel tries to think of a comeback or to say something flirty to try and get back at him but nothing comes to mind. He opens his mouth to say something he’ll be embarrassed about later but the notification of his phone saves him. 

bible study-

15:22 P.M. ieats1ders…

Dude did Angel die or something

15:22 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

bro actually disappeared 

15:22 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

NOOOO HE DIED

15:22 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

no the person who buys us food is dead forever! 

15:22 P.M. ieats1ders…

You guys are being dramatic, he probably fell and lost his contacts

15:22 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

pfft 

can you imagine him on the ground 

but instead of searching for his contacts 

15:22 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

ITS HIS GLASSES

VELMA

YES
BEAM GOT IT BEFORE YOU PRINCI

15:22 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

YES BEAM ILY

YOU KNOW ME SO WELL BRO

15:23 P.M. ieats1ders… reply to d3nj1plsn0ticeme_ –I GOT IT BEFORE YOU PRINCI

I could literally not give two shits rn

And I'm taking one

15:23 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

WHERE THE FUCK ARE YOU ANGEL 

15:23 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

PLS BEAM HAS BEEN WAITING HERE FOR SO LONG

Angel sighed. He had forgotten that Galgali and Beam were coming over. Princi decided she wanted to study for a test instead. Looking back at Aki, “Sorry, It looks like I need to go. My friends are being total assholes to each other.” 

He chuckled, “I can understand that. My friends act like children.” 

“Well, at least we have one thing in common.” He joked as he smiled. “I’ll see you around, Aki?” 

“We’ll see.” And with that, he skated away as Angel’s eyes trailed him until he was no longer in sight. 

Then he instantly broke down, he squatted down, and buried his face in his knees, sighing very loudly. He could feel the heat still on his cheeks and ears, his heart was racing and his thoughts were swarming. 

bible study-

15:25 P.M. A_ng3l

Oh my fucking god

Guys holy shit

I'm freaking the fuck out 

SOMEONE COME ONLINE

15:25 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

AND HE LIVES!!

15:25 P.M. ieats1ders…

What the hell happened

You disappeared on us

15:25 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

YOUR ALIVE ANGEL

ANGEL BEAM MISSED YOU

15:25 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

I MISSED YOU MROE

15:25 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

NO YOU DIDNT

15:25 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

ANGEL I LOVE YOU

AND I MISSED YOU SO VERY MCUH

15:25 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

BEAM MISSED YOU THE MOST 

15:25 P.M. ieats1ders…

Guys, our friend is having a real- crisis

Now is not the time to fight for his ever-lasting love

15:25 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

he has a real life crisis every day

15:26 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

yeah just last week

about having to answer a question in front of the class

15:26 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

he ended up getting it right too so idk why he was freaking out

15:26 P.M. ieats1ders…

There's this thing called ‘social anxiety’ dumbfuck

15:26 P.M. A_ng3l

Speaking of ever-lasting love… 

Remember that question you had before, Beam? 

About if Aki or Denji was hotter or something? 

15:26 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

vaguely

15:26 P.M. A_ng3l

Aki

Definitely Aki

15:26 P.M. ieats1ders…

DID YOU SEE HIM??

15:26 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

THATS WHY BRO WASNT ANSWERING

15:26 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

GETTING HIS BACK BLOWN OUT FR

15:26 P.M. ieats1ders…

Calm the fuck down, Jesus

15:26 P.M. A_ng3l

He bumped into me with his skateboard 

And apparently, he saw me during my competition

15:26 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

FUCK YOU PRINCI

I LITERALLY SAID THAT I SAW HIM THERE 

IN YOUR DUMBASS FUCKING FACE BITCH

15:26 P.M. ieats1ders…

I DON’T GIVE A RAT’S ASS GALGALI

THAT WAS DAYS AGO

15:27 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

SUCK ON MY BIG FAT MAN TITTIES BITCHES 

RAAAHHHHHH
RAAAHHHHHHH

15:27 P.M. ieats1ders…

LITERALLY STFU

Anyways, Angel

Did you get a crush on Aki now or smth?

15:27 P.M. A_ng3l

NO.

I just think he’s very attractive, that's all

15:27 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

that was me in denial when I saw kobeni for the first time

ANGEL CAN YOU RUN HOME 

LIKE WE’VE BEEN WAITING HERE FOR SO LONG

BEAM IS LYING DOWN ON THE FLOOR BC HIS FEET HURT

15:27 P.M. A_ng3l

I have a key under my rug, just use that

15:27 P.M. ieats1ders…

Noted 

Angel turned off his phone, putting it in his back pocket. He started to walk back to his house, assuming that Galgali and Beam let themselves in, and ignored Princi’s weird text.

His friends were… unique. They weren’t your typical high school friend group, but Angel doesn’t think he wants it any other way. He liked having them around, he liked when they would joke about something dumb that happened ages ago, but it would still make them breathless. 

They all meant in middle school, and Angel didn’t think that their friendship would last this long. He sometimes finds himself wondering if they would still be friends after high school, but he tries to think about something else to distract him. He doesn’t want to think about a life without them. 

They couldn’t hang around with each other in school, as some of them were on different floors. Beam is on the first, Princi is on the third with Angel, and Galgali is on the first. When they first joined the school, they were afraid that the separation would draw them apart, but it didn’t do much as they found ways around it. 

Angel ended up finding a secret room underneath the stairwell that led to the third floor. It was unused and almost empty. The only thing that was in there was a navy blue couch, a table, and a few black foldable chairs. Amazed by his discovery, he texted his friends that they should always meet there if they ever wanted to hang out. 

Surprisingly, they agreed. But Beam and Galgali had to be very sneaky, as they were coming from different floors. But even now, they still haven’t gotten caught. Angel knows the door doesn’t lock so anyone could come and take over this place and catch them, but that was unlikely. It has been a few months and no one has seen them, he hopes it stays that way. 

Princi is someone whose personality is quiet and she keeps to herself when you first meet her. But when she gets comfortable around you, it’s like a whole different world. Sure, she cares for you and makes sure you’re okay, but she will also laugh at your misery, and insult you nonstop if you piss her off, or eat any of her food. 

This change surprised Angel when he first meant her. How someone so closed off could change in a matter of weeks? But Princi is nice to talk to, Angel never engaged in any conversations with her before but when they sat by each other and partnered up for a project, he guessed that was when their friendship bloomed. 

Beam was a different story. Angel’s first impression of him was loud and obnoxious. He was always yelling in the back of the classroom (or anywhere), he would randomly jump on desks, or scream just to talk to his friends when they were right in front of his face.

But his view of him changed when Angel was being picked on by some students a grade above him. They were making fun of the way he decided to style his hair, saying that he looked like a girl and how he sounded like one as well. Angel didn’t care, really. He got this kind of treatment almost every day. And it would usually be Princi standing up for him but she was sick that day. 

As the harassment continued, Angel sat in his seat, taking all the insults. He ended up zoning out, looking at the clock so he didn’t even end up hearing half of the harsh things they said. 

Beam’s voice pulled him out of his trance. Like a movie, Beam yelled out to the bullies, pointing a finger at them, and told them to leave him alone. It was obvious that he was trying to copy one of the characters from his favorite show that always saved the damsel in distress. But Angel was not a damsel, nor was he in distress. 

But he didn’t say anything and let it playoff, he was a little curious to see what the outcome would be. He hoped they would just listen to Beam’s false threats and leave. Not for his own sake, but for Beam’s. These children weren’t tough but they could definitely overpower both of them by how taller they were. 

They didn’t leave.

Beam ended up getting beat up by all of them and Angel jumped out of his seat, surprised that he was just taking it. Why didn’t he fight back, kick, or shout like he always did? Wasn’t that his specialty? Angel tried to pry the boys off of him because for some reason he felt some sort of guilt for leading him to this situation. It was kind of his fault that Beam was getting beaten up in the first place. 

When the assault was over and the older kids left, Beam was covered in bruises and red marks. Angel crouched down next to him and placed a cold juice box he had in his bag on his cheek, trying to ease the pain. 

“You didn’t have to do that,” Angel said, feeling worried for the boy he thought he didn’t like. “I don’t care what they say to me, it doesn’t bother me.” 

Pouting, Beam replies. “Well, it bothers me!” 

Beam had no reason to feel bothered about what they said about Angel because they weren’t even talking about him. He rolls his eyes, letting go of the juice box as Beam starts to hold it. “Yeah? And why would it bother you?” 

“Because we’re friends.” 

“We aren’t.” He deadpanned. 

“Okay, even if you don’t think we’re friends, I do!” He declared as if friendships only needed one person to contribute. “And it makes me angry that you don’t do anything about it! They deserve to be taught a lesson!” 

Those words shocked him. Angel didn’t even talk to Beam, maybe once when he asked to use a pencil but that was it. How can someone be friends with someone they barely know? Angel had no idea. But it changed his perspective on himself, Beam is a caring person. And Angel accepted that.

Galgali came in soon after, and Angel thought he was a chill guy. There was nothing off-putting about him, his demeanor seemed normal, and the way he talked to everyone was the same. Angel didn’t think there was anything behind the same personality he showed to other people. 

And he was right. Galgali didn’t change his attitude toward anyone, he was nice to Angel and on Angel’s list of people he liked, Galgali would be in the ‘like’ spot. 

That was until he meant Princi. The moment Princi saw Angel talking with Galgali, she freaked out. Instantly throwing profanities at him, he returned it. It seemed the two of them had a very complicated relationship in the past. 

Every time Princi saw Galgali talking to Angel, she would sprint over as fast as she could and separate them while calling Galgali insults. Angel had no interest in their petty arguments, he didn’t want to be in the middle of it at all. He decided to let them figure it out on their own. And they did, maybe they got used to each other and knew that Angel wouldn’t pick sides in their argument. 

_____

“Did you hear that a teacher on the first floor broke a kid’s phone?” Princi asked, nudging his arm with her elbow. 

He shrugged. Angel felt bad for how the students on the first floor were treated, but it’s not like he could do anything about it. Protest about how the school’s rules are unfair and humiliating? Yeah, no. Maybe if he had the energy to, he would. (no, he wouldn’t)

“Are they allowed to do that?” He questioned. “Can’t the student press charges or something like that?” 

She nodded but sighed, “They could, but I don’t think they’re going to. After all, this school can hide anything.” 

Angel made a noise of remembrance. “Ah! Like when that teacher was smuggling drugs to students?” 

Princi snapped and pointed at Angel at the great example. “Yes! Exactly like that! They swept that one under the rug and blamed the students because they were on the first floor.” 

Angel scoffed, erasing his wrong answer on the sheet of paper. “This floor bullshit is driving me mad, dude.”

She sighed, leaning back in her seat, not even trying to do any of her work. “Tell me about it. Hey, when are you going to practice ice skating? Can we watch?” 

“I don’t like people watching me practice, Princi. It’s embarrassing.” 

“But it’s different when you're performing in front of hundreds of people?” 

“Exactly, you get it.” He said sarcastically as she scoffed. “I wished that I was able to talk to Aki some more. I barely got to talk to him because my phone was going off.” 

Princi whistled and then smirked. “You’ve got a crush.” 

“We talked once, Princi.” 

She puts her hands behind her head, closing her eyes. “Love at first sight, you’re growing up so fast…” 

She ended up tipping her chair too far back as her back hit the floor with a loud thud. Angel bursts out laughing, clamping his hand over his mouth to muffle the sound. Other people were in the classroom as well but they were giggling as well. Angel likes to think it was karma. 

____

Aki wants to die. He wants to shoot himself in the brain until he cannot stand up or breathe an ounce of air. 

He had forgotten to ask for Angel’s number. Aki cursed his forgetfulness, he was so into the conversation that it had crossed his mind. Maybe it was something about Angel’s voice, he had a very soothing voice, and if he read a book to Aki, he would fall asleep instantly.  

The bell rang and the students gathered their things into their bags before heading out the door. Aki was one of the last to leave, he liked it better when he didn’t have to squeeze past people to get through narrow spaces. 

After exiting the classroom, Aki made his way to the stairwell that led to the first floor. He wanted to spend his lunchtime with Denji and Power. Careful of any faculty members catching him, he stopped at the top of the stairs, looking around to make sure there was no one to catch him in the act. 

That was when he saw someone coming down from the third-floor stairs. He knew teachers were allowed to go to different floors, so that worried him of being caught. But if it was a student, they probably wouldn’t care. At least some of them wouldn’t care, but there were still those kinds of students who would snitch whenever they saw students from different floors interacting just because they wanted to have a good relationship with the teachers. 

To his fortune, it was someone he recognized. Angel and beside him was a girl with black hair and a scar running down her face. They seemed to be in a conversation that Aki shouldn’t have been eavesdropping on as he heard a few sentences. 

“I told you, Kobeni and Galgali have it going on!” She said as she smiled. 

Angel rolled his eyes, “I have known that for the longest time, he doesn’t exactly keep it a secret.” 

That was the moment they spotted Aki ready to head down to the first floor. They all made awkward eye contact for a few seconds before Angel said something, finally processing who was in front of him. “Ah, Aki. Are you heading down to the first floor as well?” 

“Oh, uh, yeah.” Aki was a little taken aback by how normal Angel was seeing him sneak into a different floor. Aki was a star student, almost everyone knew that and if they saw him breaking the rules, his reputation would be over. “You two are going down?” 

Angel nodded as he pointed to the taller girl next to him who did a small wave. “Yup. This is Princi. We’re gonna go to eat lunch with our other friend, Beam. Who are you seeing? Or are you just going down there just ‘cause?”

He shakes his head, “I’m gonna see Power and Denji.” 

“Ah, I know Denji and Power. A little.” He adds, looking over at Princi. “Doesn’t Beam talk about Denji almost all the time?” 

She laughs and nods. “Yeah, he does. Pretty sure they're friends.” 

Suddenly there was a pair of footsteps coming up the stairs. It sounded like two people walking up the stairs. Aki quickly hid behind a wall as Angel and Princi ran back upstairs, trying very quietly to hush their footsteps from echoing.

Aki covered his mouth in case his breathing gave him away. But the yelling that came from the stairwell made Aki sigh in relief. He stepped out of his hiding spot to see Denji and Power racing up the stairs. 

“Will you guys shut the fuck up?!” Aki whisper-yelled. “Teachers could hear your loud ass.” 

Denji pointed at Power who pointed back at Denji, and in unison, they blamed each other. 

Princi and Angel came down the steps, hearing Aki talk to his friends. “Thank God it was just them,” Princi let out a breath. 

“I felt my heart drop,” Angel said as he noticed Denji staring at him with wide eyes. Uncomfortable, he waited for a bit before asking, “...what?” 

“You look like a girl but your voice is very male-like.” Denji deadpanned without a second thought. “Are you a girl or not?” 

Angel didn’t react, he was used to people mistaking him for a woman so much that he had gotten used to it. But Aki was mortified that Denji would even say those words. He ran up to him and pushed him down the stairs, harder than he intended to. 

Power watched as he fell down the stairs before bursting out laughing. Princi turned around to hide her smile but it didn’t work as Power’s chortle made her break. Aki looked over at Angel with an apologetic expression. “I am so sorry. I don’t know what’s wrong with him.” 

He shrugged, a little surprised by how quickly Aki restored to violence but returned to his normal look. “It’s okay, I’m used to people misgendering me. Maybe I should cut my hair.” 

Princi grabbed his shoulder, wiping a tear from the corner of her eyes. “No, don’t. You with short hair will take so long to get used to.” 

Upon hearing Denji groan from the bottom of the stairs, Aki sighed. “We’ll see you guys later, again, I apologize for Denji’s behavior, there’s something wrong with him and I seriously need to take him to a hospital.” 

The joke made Angel let out a small chuckle as he smiled slightly up at him, “Yeah, you do that.” 

Aki tried not to blush at his laugh, but it didn’t work as Power snickered at him while walking down the steps. 

Princi smirked slyly and looked down at her friend, “What was that?” 

“What was what?” He questioned, gazing at her with a stare. 

She rolled her eyes while she kept pestering, “You know!” 

Princi then moved away from him a little, putting distance between them. She fixed her hair to match Angel’s before speaking, “ ‘Yeah, you do that.’” She flirtatiously, on purpose, tucks her hair behind her ears, mocking Angel. 

“I didn’t do that.” He denies it as his ears start to turn the color pink. He knew Princi always overreacted whenever he had a conversation with anyone that wasn’t in their friend group. “Why is it that I can’t talk to people normally without you thinking I like them?” 

“Not true, whenever you talk to Kobeni, I don’t think you're flirting.” She declares confidently as if she was winning the argument. “I only do it with Aki and that one girl you dated.” 

He rolls his eyes at the mention of his past lover. “Kobeni likes Galgali, there’s no reason for you to think that. And Aki’s just a… friend.” 

He winces when his voice is laced with uncertainty. Is Aki his friend, considering they only meant yesterday? Maybe acquaintance would be a better word but it didn’t seem correct because they didn’t treat each other like that, it was more of a friendlier atmosphere. 

Wait, why was he so hung up about this? Who the hell cares if he thinks Aki is his friend or not, it shouldn’t matter.

With a few more of Princi’s teasing, they went down the stairs. 

_____

Again, he had forgotten to ask for Angel’s number. 

He was sitting behind the bleachers with Denji and Power beside him. Denji was currently stuffing his face with whatever disgusting food combinations he invented while Power just stared at Aki’s lunch, secretly swiping the bag of chips, thinking that he didn’t notice. 

While Power silently celebrated her victory, Aki rolled his eyes. 

“Yeah, you do that.” 

Aki flushed violently and stuffed his face with his hands before groaning in them. The sentence made Aki so incredibly embarrassed and he had no idea why. He didn’t know how to act or why he was acting this way just because of a few words. 

Angel had said it so perfectly and smoothly, any normal person would blush, right? 

Power nudged Denji, “What’s topknot’s problem?” 

He shrugged and said in between mouthfuls of food, “Maybe he’s guilty about pushing me down the stairs.” 

“I’m not. Speaking of, what the actual fuck, were you thinking?!” Aki shouted, removing his hands to glare at his friend. 

Denji put his hands up in defense to try and explain. “Hey! In my opinion, he looks a lot more like a girl than a guy! Right, Power?” 

She, who zoned out of the conversation, nodded and continued to chew on the chips. “Sure.” 

“No one asked for your opinion, Denji!” Aki yelled, irritated. 

“Why are you so mad?” Denji said, trying to a rise out of him and it was working. Aki never got too mad at Denji to push him down a flight of stairs. “Is Angel your secret boyfriend or whatever?” 

“Do you wanna die?!” Aki stood up, raising his arm but never had any real intention of hurting him. 

Of course, Angel wasn’t his secret boyfriend! It was absurd that Denji would even think that, he doesn’t even like Ange like that-

“Yeah, you do that.” 

The blood rushed to his cheeks faster than it ever could. What the fuck is wrong with him? Why was he going crazy over something so trivial? 

The slight laugh Angel let out before he said it, the smile when he looked up at him, and his eyes meeting his- 

Aki quickly turned to hide his face from the duo laughing maniacally behind him. He sighed and pinched his nose bridge. “I hate the both of you, I don’t fucking like him like that.” 

“ Not yet!” They said at the same time and looked at each other in surprise before high-fiving. 

Aki didn’t hate them, but they did get annoying at times. Still, he was glad they were here and not somewhere else causing trouble. 

Aki meant Denji and Power at the same time during middle school. The two were annoying little shits who ended up destroying Aki’s laptop that he brought to school, making the school force them to pay for it. As they were orphans with no parents, Aki just asked them not to mess around with him anymore and paid for it himself. 

Nothing goes his way, though, so they kept coming back and bothering him. Every day, Aki felt himself inch closer to insanity with them by his side. But after a while of them sticking close to him, they got sick and missed a week of school. 

During that week, Aki realized how much he missed them. He missed their petty little arguments that he sometimes found funny, he missed how Denji would constantly talk to him during lessons, causing the teacher to think they were both talking and sending them to the principal office, he missed when Power would steal his pencils and chew on them so he would never want them back, he missed all of it. 

When they came back on Monday, Aki tried not to express his happiness by acting completely the same as he usually did but inside, he was so relieved that they finally came back. He had felt so lonely during the last couple of days when they were gone. 

On their last day of middle school, Aki didn’t want their friendship to end so he asked them what high school they were going to. 

“High school?” Denji said, thinking and looking over at Power. “Honestly, I’m surprised I passed middle school.” 

“Likewise.” Power nodded but pinched her chin between her fingers. “But I think of Tokyo high school.” 

Aki cocked his head to the side, “Really?” 

She nodded and hooked arms with Denji. “Wherever I go, he goes-” 

“Hey! You don’t get to make that decision!” He shouted even though she was right. 

“-So we’re both going there. Why ask?” She questioned. 

“‘Cause that’s where I’m going.” He lied. He was surprised that he made up an excuse so quickly. Maybe he was being weird and stingy about his friends, but he didn’t want to lose them. 

Denji’s eyes lit up, “Seriously?! Holy shit, that’s great!” 

And that’s when it happened. Aki never told them how he really felt about them, but he had a feeling they already knew. Aki did keep coming over to them out of his own free will instead of them coming to him, so he was sure they didn’t need to be told it. 

_____

bible study-

16:43 P.M. A_ng3l 

You guys should’ve been there when Princi busted her ass leaning back in her chair

16:43 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

NAHHHH 

PRINCI THAT IS EMBARRASSING 

16:43 P.M. ieats1ders…

ACTUALLY SHUT THE FUCK UP 

DON’T MAKE ME RELIVE THAT

16:43 P.M. A_ng3l 

The whole class was silent and you just hear “BOOM!” 

16:43 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

LMAOOOOOO STOPPPPPP 😭😭

16:43 P.M. ieats1ders…

SHUT UP ANGEL

16:43 P.M. A_ng3l 

Then the people in their seats slowly turn to look at her before bursting out in laughter

It was so funny

16:43 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

who wants to play dance dance revolution with me at the arcade

16:43 P.M. ieats1ders…

I VOLUNTEER AS TRIBUTE!

16:43 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

beam where the hell have you been man💀 

16:43 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

dnacing? 

16:44 P.M. A_ng3l 

I’ll watch

I’ll post it on my Instagram story

16:44 P.M. ieats1ders…

You better tag me 

I'm gonna have so many people in my dm’s if you do

16:44 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

yeah and it’s gonna be people asking for your wifi password

16:44 P.M. ieats1ders…

Am I not allowed to dream

16:44 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

not around me

16:44 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

so

dance dance?

16:44 P.M. ieats1ders…

YES

Your gonna get your ass beat Beam

16:44 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

there is no ass to beat

16:44 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

i’m gonna watch Princi cry in defeat and record it 

16:44 P.M. ieats1ders…

Who said I’m losing?

16:44 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

God

16:44 P.M. ieats1ders…

I am God 

16:44 P.M. A_ng3l 

I see why this group chat is named bible study now

And shut your goofy ass up, Princi

16:44 P.M. violence.isthe_answersometimes

LMFAOOOOOOOOOO

16:44 P.M. ieats1ders…

YOUR SO MEAN ANGEL

_____

Everyone hates Dennis-

16:57 P.M. P0w3rs0l0s

whats the answer to number 4

16:57 P.M. ultimat3girlsnatch3r

fuck if i know

16:57 P.M. P0w3rs0l0s

of course you dont fucking know

Fucking idiot

16:57 P.M. ultimat3girlsnatch3r

whos the one asking you dumabass blond

16:57 P.M. P0w3rs0l0s

IM NOT BLOND

16:57 P.M. ultimat3girlsnatch3r

thats the one you found most insulting💀

16:57 P.M. @k1..haya3awa

Can you guys go one day without insulting each other

16:57 P.M. P0w3rs0l0s

can you go one day without a cigarette 

16:57 P.M. ultimat3girlsnatch3r

OH MY GOD

THATS FOUL 

YOUR WRONG FOR THAT

16:57 P.M. P0w3rs0l0s

did i say anything that wasn’t true 🤷♀️

16:57 P.M. @k1..haya3awa

You need to kys 

all of you

16:58 P.M. K0b3n1_l0vescats

Man, what’d I do

16:58 P.M. P0w3rs0l0s

be alive

16:58 P.M. ultimat3girlsnatch3r

LMFAOOO 💀💀💀💀

YOU NEED TO STOP 

16:58 P.M. P0w3rs0l0s

and your gay aki

16:58 P.M. ultimat3girlsnatch3r

😨

16:58 P.M. @k1..haya3awa

What does me being gay have to do with anything

And I'm not

16:58 P.M. ultimat3girlsnatch3r

have I been cheering for a homogenous person this whole time☹️

16:58 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

you mean homozygous 

16:58 P.M. ultimat3girlsnatch3r

bro i forgot you were in this gc

16:58 P.M. P0w3rs0l0s

fr bro never texts😭

16:58 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

we were playing dance dance revolution 

beam beat princi’s ass😁

it’s someone else turn to do it so beam gets a lil break

16:58 P.M. K0b3n1_l0vescats

Who were you with?

16:58 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

angel, galgali, and princi

16:58 P.M. ultimat3girlsnatch3r

angel aki’s secret boyfriend

16:59 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

wait what😨

when did that happen

16:59 P.M. ultimat3girlsnatch3r

just now

if only you were in this gc more you wouldve seen ti

16:59 P.M. @k1..haya3awa

fuck you that never happened beam

16:59 P.M. P0w3rs0l0s

its true beam

i caught him in 4k 

16:59 P.M. K0b3n1_l0vescats

More like 2k with the shitty flip-phone 

16:59 P.M. ultimat3girlsnatch3r

OH SHIT 

DAMN

16:59 P.M. d3nj1plsn0ticeme_

LMAOOO 

BEAM IS SCREENSHOTS THAT

16:59 P.M. P0w3rs0l0s

… 

16:59 P.M. K0b3n1_l0vescats

I’m sorry