Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Shuutaro Mendo was the perfect man.

Rich, handsome, charming. He was like a prince on a white horse. The fact that his uniform was white unlike the other boys helped with that too.

Every girl wanted him, he had everything he ever wanted.

His life was perfect.

Except for one thing.

One insignificant lowlife who had wormed his way into the head of the perfect man.

One thing named Ataru Moroboshi.

Technically it was Mendo who suddenly came into Ataru’s life but it was Ataru who crashed into Mendo’s mind.

He despised that degenerate. He hated his ugly face, his disgusting personality, his stupidity, his lack of etiquette- Everything about him made Mendo’s blood boil.

And yet the beautiful Lum loved him despite it all.

Mendo didn’t understand that.

Well, for a long time, he didn’t. 

And then he did.

He’s not sure how, but he grew to enjoy that bastard’s presence. He was funny and he had a good heart. He showed Lum that he loved her without even saying it, and he really did love her. And that stupid ugly face somehow became cute and charming.

It infuriated Mendo, the fact that he fell in love with such an idiot. And the fact that he could never be with him. Not only because he couldn’t stand the thought of it even though it did make his heart flutter. But also because Ataru was in love with Lum. It was so obvious that he was that it made Mendo even more pissed off in his presence. But Mendo didn’t want to break the two apart.

But that meant he would have to hurt. That it would just have to eat away at him inside until there was nothing left. Someday he’d be arranged to marry a wealthy girl and have children and that was it...

On top of this, there was the elephant in the room. A fact that he tried to ignore for so long and refused to acknowledge. But now he’d come face to face with that fact and he didn’t know what to do.

The fact that Shuutaro Mendo, heir to the Mendo clan, was gay.

Mendo, who flaunted his affections for women and treated men like dirt was gay. It sounded too impossible to be true. But there it was, right in front of him. The boy always wondered why he felt so odd when a girl truly tried to get close to him. And why his proclaimed love for women somehow felt forced. At times, he willingly tried not to be over the top about it. Perhaps that helped him realize the truth too. That it was an act. That he was playing the part of the man he wanted to be. A man who kept women by his side and kept men far away. If they were so far away, he wouldn’t have to think about his true feelings.

Ataru was the one who made him realize this, and it made Mendo hate him even more. The fact that that idiot had destroyed his entire reality.... And he couldn’t even tell him.

Mendo didn’t know much or really anything about gay people and he didn’t know anyone gay either. The only time he heard the word ‘gay’ mentioned was in disgust and jokes. To those around him, gay meant “pervert.” 

As the heir of the Mendo clan, there was no way he would allow himself to be exposed as a “pervert.” 

He didn’t know what to do, the boy was at a loss at these revelations. Not only was he gay but was also in love with Ataru Moroboshi as if things couldn’t get any worse. He tried to simply ignore it, but it was always there no matter where he went. The agonizing reality that laid before him never left, no matter how much he wanted to. He tried to make the feelings go away but he couldn’t.

He just had to live like this.

It was lunch break and Mendo was looking at a book but not reading it. He couldn’t help stealing glances at Ataru and Lum who were bickering but only playfully.

Mendo silently sighed to himself and turned his attention back to his book.

He heard someone walk towards him and turned his head, expecting one of the girls who loved him to strike up a chat. But it wasn’t one of those girls.

It was none other than Ryuunosuke, the strong boyish ocean girl.

Mendo wasn’t used to Ryuunosuke approaching him. Yes, they were friends but it’s not like they were very close. So it was confusing why she would be the one to talk to him first. Nonetheless, he didn’t mind it.

“Oh, hello Ryuunosuke-san. Is there something you need?” He put on that signature good boy smile he always did around women.

“Oi Mendo, follow me,” Ryuunosuke said and then promptly turned around and walked towards the door, looking back to see if Mendo was behind her.

This was unexpected. The two of them rarely ever talked alone. Still, he followed her.

The girl walked through the hallway, Mendo right behind her. He kept asking “Where are we going?” and “Is something wrong?” but she just ignored him.

Soon, they approached the gym closet and Ryuunosukke stepped inside, waiting for Mendo to follow. The boy was hesitant to enter but he figured it would be fine. Luckily the lights were on so he didn’t have to worry about it being dark. But why would Ryuunosuke want to talk to him in such a secluded place? What could she possibly be here to tell him?

Mendo’s eyes widened a bit. It couldn’t be.... Was this a love confession?

Once Mendo stepped in, he hung his head and crossed his arms, “Ryuunosuke-san, you know you are a dear friend to me but I’m sorry. I just don’t feel the same wa-”

“You’re gay, right?”

Mendo blinked after being cut off. It took him a second to process her words. But once he did, his mouth dropped and he took a step back.

“W-WHAT!? NO!! WHERE DID YOU GET THAT IDEA!?” He tried to look disgusted rather than guilty but he worried that the truth showed through.

“I’m the same,” Ryuunosuke’s arms were crossed and her eyes stayed on Mendo. She seemed completely calm despite the conversation.

Mendo just looked at the girl, trying his hardest to decipher her words...

“....You’re in love with Moroboshi too?” His voice was quiet.

“Ew no!” Ryuunosuke’s face contorted in disgust. “I’m saying I’m a lesbian!”

There was a split second where Mendo forgot what that word meant. Lesbian.... What was a lesbian.... Lasagna? Leopard? L.... Oh.

He stood properly again, wearing a more calm expression on his face.

“Wait... I thought you said you weren’t interested in women,” Mendo pointed to the girl in front of him.

“That was obviously a lie,” Ryuunosuke sighed, putting her hands on her hips.

It took Mendo a moment to process this new information. Truly, it wasn’t that much of a shock. Ryuunosuke had expressed not being interested in men and having crushes on women in the past. But she had also said she didn’t like women that way.

She said she wasn’t a “pervert.”

Mendo’s brow furrowed just a bit. He quickly turned his face into an awkward smile.

“Oh, um, well... Good for you,” He put a hand on Ryuunosuke’s shoulder, who quickly shook it off. “But I’m not gay.”

“You admitted it 5 seconds ago, “ She quickly interjected.

He tried not to show his increasing anxiety, “T-That was just-”

“Well anyway, if you wanna talk, let me know. I just wanted to get that out there,” And she handed Mendo a piece of paper with a number on it as she walked towards the door.

Mendo looked down at the paper and then at Ryuunosuke. He was trying to think of what to say, to clear up this misunderstanding. To let her know that she was wrong about him. To-

“Mine’s Shinobu.” 

And she left.

Without a clue on what to do, he just looked down at that paper she gave him. He had figured out already what the number was.

He just didn’t know if he was going to use it.

Chapter Text

It had been two days since Mendo and Ryuunosuke spoke in the storage room. Mendo had kept the paper with him even though he had decided to throw it out. The boy looked down at the numbers on the paper as he sat on his couch. Luckily Ryoko wasn’t around to bother him about it, though she may have been eavesdropping. That was always a possibility.

Still, Mendo kept his eyes on those numbers. He wanted to throw it out and let everything go back to normal. But he also didn’t. What Ryuunosuke had said back there... It piqued his interest.

“Mine’s Shinobu.”

He could infer what that meant but he still wanted to know more. But that meant he would have to tell her the truth. Which meant he had to admit the truth to himself as well. That agonizing ever prevalent truth.

He had run away from it for so long that he didn’t know how to stop anymore. But he had to... somehow.

A little part of him always knew it was true, but the other part of him tried to shove that part far far away into the deepest corners of his mind.

But there was nowhere to hide now.

He took a deep breath, picked up the receiver of the telephone, and dialed the numbers he saw on the paper he held tightly. The phone rung for a few seconds before he could hear it being picked up.

“HELLO? Hamajaya owner speaking!!! How may I help you!?”

Mendo froze up when he heard the familiar grating voice on the other side of the line. It was Ryuunosuke’s father, that bastard who made not only Ryuunosuke’s, but everyone’s lives worse. Mendo couldn’t let that garbage distract him from his main goal, though. So he kept going, despite his own nerves.

“Um, may I speak to Ryuunosuke-san?” He tried to make himself sound confident like when he talked to girls, but his voice came out rather timid and nervous. Probably because he was actually very nervous.

“Ryuunosuke? Oh, he’s busy, off doing manly errands and what-not. You know how it is with young boys.”

Mendo cringed at the man’s words. How could someone be so obtuse and downright idiotic?

“Well-” Mendo started but was cut off by a series of banging, crashing, and yelling on the other line. He’d be more concerned but this sounded like how interactions between Ryuunosuke and her father usually went.

After some more harsh noises, Mendo heard a more welcomed voice on the phone.

“Yo, Ryuunosuke here. What do ya need?”

“Ah...” Suddenly Mendo’s mind went blank. He had forgotten everything he was going to say. The whole script he had planned in his head had flown out the window. “Um...”

His anxieties were growing but they were cut off by the voice on the other line.

“Mendo?” She sounded surprised but in a relieved way. “Uh, hey.”

“Hey...” He had still forgotten what he wanted to say.

Ryuunosuke was smart though, despite what some people say about her. She saw right through him.

“Did you call to take me up on my offer?” She sounded just a little less calm than she did in the storage room, but it was hard to tell.

“Y-Yeah,” Mendo cursed himself for stuttering.

“Alright,” There was some shuffling on the other end of the phone before the girl spoke again. “Talking about it on the phone probably isn’t a good idea, and neither is talking at my place. Wanna talk at your place?”

“Uh, sure,” He nodded despite this not being a face to face conversation.

“Cool.”

Unlike in the storage room, Ryuunosuke’s more lax demeanor comforted Mendo a bit.

Mendo then told Ryuunosuke his address and they agreed to meet tomorrow at noon.

“See ya then, bye.”

“Bye-”

And then she hung up the phone, so casually.

Tomorrow at noon, tomorrow at noon, tomorrow at noon... Mendo kept repeating those words to himself like some kind of prayer. He wasn’t sure why he was doing this. But still, he gripped the front of his shirt and kept repeating in his head.

Tomorrow at noon, tomorrow at noon....

Chapter Text

It was tomorrow. At noon.

Well, it had been tomorrow at noon. But now it was tomorrow at 1 p.m. Specifically tomorrow at 1:09 p.m.

Mendo stared out the window in his bedroom, hands behind his back. You wouldn’t have been able to tell from behind but he was actually very nervous. His brow kept twitching and every so often, he’d start shaking and he’d have to manually stop himself. But he tried to keep his cool. Or act like he was keeping his cool. His cool had actually left the building awhile ago.

Is Ryuunosuke-san not coming today? Did I get the date wrong? Did something happen? Was she lying the whole time? Was this all a ruse? Did she tell someone? Did she tell Moro-

There was a knock at his door that caused him to jump.

“Young Master, you have a guest,” One of his bodyguards spoke from behind the door.

Mendo cleared his throat first, making sure he sounded put together and not like he was considering jumping out the window and running away forever 5 seconds ago.

“Let them in.”

With that, the door opened and revealed a very tired looking Ryuunosuke. She stomped forward slowly and then collapsed in a nearby chair.

The door closed and Mendo rushed over to the fallen girl.

“R-Ryuunosuke-san! What happened!? Are you okay!?”

Once she caught her breath, the girl spoke, or rather shouted, “WHY IS YOUR HOUSE SO FUCKING BIG!??”

“Huh?” Mendo was surprised at how quickly she recovered.

“I WAS WALKING AROUND THIS PLACE FOR HOURS! HOW DO YOU LIVE HERE!? IT’S A FUCKING MAZE!!” Ryuunosuke clenched her fists in rage.

“What do you mean? I’d say it’s pretty decent sized. Nothing too fancy-”

“ARE YOU INSANE-”

Ryuunosuke stopped herself mid sentence and sighed, she wasn’t here to argue.

“I don’t understand rich people...” She mumbled under her breath.

“Did the bodyguards not guide you to my room?” Mendo asked.

“Hm?” She lifted her head. “Oh, yeah they did at first...”

Mendo tilted his head.

“But then some guys all dressed in black came out of nowhere and said they had free food so I followed ‘em. But they just made me go someplace and then ditched me! And I didn’t even get free food!” The boyish girl crossed her arms in frustration.

Mendo laughed nervously at that. Unfortunately, he knew exactly who would do such a thing. It had to be none other than his mischievous and downright sadistic younger sister. He wasn’t sure why he even thought she would leave him in peace for just a second. Being reasonable just wasn’t her thing.

He sighed, rethinking the plan he had for today.

“What? You know something about this?” Ryuunosuke interrupted Mendo’s thoughts, hands on her hips.

“Ahaha... well...”

--

After explaining that his sister was batshit, Mendo led Ryuunosuke into his closet and then into a secret side room inside of his closet. You know, the things that serial killers have.

He had a good reason for this, though. This was the only place that Ryoko couldn't find. Or, at least he hoped she couldn’t find it. That girl was always full of surprises. Too many surprises.

Mendo and Ryuunosuke sat on opposite sides of a fancy looking table with two cups of tea in between them. It had been brewed by the bodyguards but they weren’t in the room with them. It was only the two of them. One sitting with crossed legs and the other ‘manspreading.’

Can you guess which one is which?

Ryuunosuke leaned back in her seat, “So, you wanna talk?”

Once again she had approached the topic all too casually, to Mendo at least.

“Y-Yes,” He nodded, cursing himself for stuttering like that again.

Giving the boy some kind of look that Mendo couldn’t figure out, the girl took a sip of her tea. There was silence in the air for about a minute before she spoke.

“Guess you want me to start?”

“Ah-!” Mendo jumped a bit. He wasn’t sure what to do in this situation. Never in his life had he expected to be in a situation like this. So, he let Ryuunosuke take the lead, even though that made him feel weak. “Uh...”

She put down her cup.

“That makes sense. You’re probably confused as shit, after all. I know I was.”

Mendo’s eyes widened and Ryuunosuke could tell that her words had piqued his interest.

“I think I was around uhhhhh 13?” She rested an arm on her chair. “I knew I liked girls before that, but I didn’t really think about it until then, I guess.”

Mendo held his breath. He didn’t know why.

“When it really sank in, I got super mad and confused. The only times I heard the word ‘gay’ was in jokes. Hell, the other kids already thought I was a lesbian just because of how I dress and act so I already knew what people thought about that. That it wasn’t normal.... That it was perverted... You already know my dad is a shitbag who keeps telling me I’m a boy so that only added to everything else.”

She sighed and looked away, “It sucked, it still sucks. To feel like there’s something wrong with you, that you’re a freak and there’s nothing you can do about it.”

Mendo looked down, brow furrowing.

“And then there’s Shinobu. Once I realized that I actually had feelings for her, I was so angry. She was so kind to me and saw me as a girl and this is how I repay her? I was so fucking... frustrated.”

Her head turned back to the boy in front of her, “But there’s nothing I can do. She likes guys and I’m not a guy.. It’s frustrating but... that’s life, isn’t it?”

She gave him a weak smile.

“Ah shit, sorry I just unloaded a bunch of shit on you,” She scratched the back of her head and tried to seem less depressed. “It ain’t all bad though. I know there’s other gay people out there, I haven’t gotten to meet ‘em myself though... Well, except for you.”

“I’m no-” Mendo instinctively stood up and raised his voice, but he couldn’t finish his sentence. Because he knew it was a lie.

He sat back down.

Ryuunosuke didn’t comment on it, “So I was thinking we could chat about gay shit or something. It’s probably nice to talk to someone with the same problems as you.”

There was silence again. Ryuunosuke just looked at the boy across the table with eyes that looked both tired and... kind.

Mendo’s gaze finally met that of the girl in front of him.

“I... I don’t know... I don’t know what to do,” His fists gripped the fabric of his pants tightly, just looking for something to cling on to. “I didn’t want this. I don’t want this. I don’t want any of this! It’s not supposed to be me!”

He raised his voice and stood up, slamming his hands on the table.

“I’m not supposed to be this! This isn’t who I am! This isn’t who I’m supposed to be! I don’t want to be this! I’m Shuutaro Mendo, I’m the heir to the Mendo clan! I don’t have a choice! I don’t want a choice! I don’t want any of this! I want to be NORMAL!!”

Mendo stopped to catch his breath. Ryuunosuke didn’t say a word. Her eyes looked the same. 

“It’s not fair... Why do I have to be so fucking... And Moroboshi of all people!! How could he do this to me- How DARE he do this to me- How fucking dare he make me this!”

He didn’t notice the tears falling down his cheeks.

“How dare he- How dare he!! That stupid fucking idiot with his ugly stupid fucking face- Why do I have to feel like this because of him!? It’s all his fault! Why does he have smile at me sometimes- Why does he have to have a kind heart- Why does have to look pretty- He’s so fucking ugly, it doesn’t make sense! I don’t understand anything! Why am I like this!? I don’t want to be- I don’t want-”

Words were lost to him now, he couldn’t articulate this pain, it had no voice. Instead of with words, his frustration flowed through his eyes and down his cheeks. He fell back into his chair with his head in his hands and sobbed. He sobbed harder than he ever had before. It was like he was stuck in a dark, cramped place but that place was none other than his own mind, his own body, his own soul. And there was nowhere he could go. He couldn’t run from it anymore because there was nowhere left to go. 

He laid his head on the table and covered it with his arms, as if he was trying his hardest to disappear. And perhaps he was.

Muffled sobs filled the room. Mendo couldn’t see Ryuunosuke with his eyes closed and head down, but she wasn’t saying anything. He wondered if she left, that would make sense. This was probably more than she bargained for. No one would want to see something as unsightly and pathetic as this. He was sure of it.

Then he felt a gentle touch on his head. He looked up to see Ryuunosuke looking down at him with her hand on his head. She wasn’t smiling or frowning. She didn’t look disgusted or amused. She just looked... human. She looked like she was looking at a human. She saw Mendo as a human. Her mouth didn’t move but her eyes said a thousand words. So many words but the ones that stood out most were this:

I understand.

Mendo opened his mouth but no words came out, he could only look up at the girl with watery eyes.

Suddenly arms wrapped around him. He was engulfed in a warmth he had never felt before. A soft, gentle embrace. Something like a mother hugging her crying child or a child comforting a frightened animal. Something like that. A touch full of a specific type of kindness that was unknown to him until now.

His own arms returned the embrace as he quietly sobbed into her shoulder. Everything he had been holding in had suddenly burst out of him and the only thing he could do is cry. He mourned his broken facade, the self he thought he was. His shell had been broken and he was defenseless. Nowhere to hide. 

And she took it and accepted it. And she saw him and she didn’t look away.

“I understand.”

Chapter Text

Mendo wiped his tears as they slowed and finally stopped, eyes dried up. 

Once the boy was done sobbing, Ryuunosuke pulled away and put her hands in her pockets, looking away. She had a slight blush on her face and Mendo did as well. It was less than slight on him though. He had never been so... vulnerable with someone before. His interactions with his parents (which were far and few between) were almost business-like. And his sister was never a sentimental one. 

There was an awkward silence, the two of them both looking away from each other.

Ryuunosuke wasn’t used to this either, her dad was insane after all. She had hugged Ataru’s mother once and that was nice, but it was only one time. She didn’t have a mother and most of her life felt like a constant fight. A sensitive moment like this was foreign to her.

Mendo cleared his throat and stood up, facing her.

“So, uh....” He struggled to put his thoughts to words, or to even put thoughts in his mind. He felt very empty at the moment, but not in a bad way. More like he had a weight lifted off him that had been so heavy for so long that he didn’t know how to live without it.

“...Thank you, Ryuunosuke-san,” He looked straight at her, finally able to breathe clearly.

The girl looked back at him and a small smile grew on her face, “No problem.”

The weight of the air had finally been lifted, like a rainbow after the rain.

Rainbow is a little on the nose, isn’t it?

Deciding to meet up again, this time in an abandoned classroom after school (Ryuunosuke lived at school with her dad so she was able to snag the key from him).

They sat on the floor like girls at a sleepover telling each other scary stories. Mendo didn’t want to sit on the floor but Ryuunosuke told him to deal with it so he did. She didn’t say but she wanted it to feel like a sleepover. The girl never got invited over to sleepovers as a kid since her dad said “boys shouldn’t have sleepovers with girls!” She would’ve kicked his ass back then if she hadn’t been 10 apples tall.

So, needless to say, she was happy to hang out with Mendo.

“Alright,” Ryuunosuke smiled at Mendo, uncharacteristically giddy. “So, you’re gay.”

“Wha-!?” Mendo almost jumped in surprise at her blunt statement. “Don’t say it so loud!” He said, loudly.

“I didn’t say it loud!” She pouted. “...But okay.”

The girl knew Mendo was still adjusting so she lowered her voice. It was like that for her once.

“So, you’re gay,” She whispered.

Mendo shakily nodded his head.

“Since I’m a lesbian, I won’t be too helpful with the gay man stuff,” She reached into her bag and took out a book, handing it to Mendo. “So I got you a textbook.”

In her hand was a manga volume with two men embracing each other on the cover.

Mendo just stared at it, eyes wide and speechless like he had just seen a ghost.

Since he didn’t take it from her, she just put it on the floor in front of him.

“I read a bit and it’s too cheesy for me but I figured it’d help you to... uh...” She paused, trying to think of the right words to use. “...Learn about being gay? I think?”

She scratched her head and looked away, blushing a bit at her lack of knowledge. She knew Mendo ought to be scared and confused and she wanted to help. But she didn’t really know what “help” was. Her telling Mendo she was gay was actually a fairly impulsive decision she made. Assuming Mendo would just deny it and leave it at that, she didn’t think that far into her “plan.”

So, yaoi it was.

Mendo was still frozen in place, eyes fixed on the book and body completely still.

The awkward silence was killing Ryuunosuke with every second so she reached for the book, “Uh... It's fine if you don’t want it. I’ll just-”

Suddenly Mendo slammed his hand on the book with a loud SMACK!

“No. I’ll take it.” His voice sounded almost like the growl of a territorial animal. His eyes stayed fixated on the book but his brow furrowed and nose flared. He looked ready to kill someone.

“O-Ok...” The girl blinked in awe, sweat dripping down her brow. “You can have it...”

“Thank you.” He carefully put the book in his bag.

There was a moment of silence.

In an instant, all of that tension left his face and he smiled politely at the girl in front of him, “I don’t know if I’ll read it but I appreciate the gesture, Ryuunosuke-san,” 

“N-No problem...” She smiled nervously. “...So, do you have any hobbies?”

The rest of their hangout was more casual.

A few days later, Mendo stopped Ryuunosuke in the hallway and gave her a book and a thumbs up. She looked down at it as he walked away.

This one had two girls embracing on the cover.

Chapter Text

After that day in Mendo’s closet’s closet, the two of them grew closer, talking and hanging out more. 

It was an adjustment for both of them, having a close friend that is. Mendo’s closest friend had always been Tobimaro, but they hadn’t hung out with each other since they were kids. Most of their interactions these days consisted of baseball and fighting because of their sisters.

Mendo did hang out with Ataru, Lum, Shinobu, and Ryuunosuke but it was always as a group. There was never a one to one friend talk. 

This was mostly true for Ryuunosuke too, though she did hangout with Benten one on one sometimes. But Benten didn’t live on Earth so their interactions were few and far between. But she did talk to Shinobu on her own too. But this was different, particularly because she never thought she’d be close friends with someone like Mendo. The two of them were practically opposites. But in actuality, they had more in common than they thought.

It was an adjustment for everyone around them as well. Mendo could feel Ataru sideeying him when he talked to Ryuunosuke between classes. Shinobu looked puzzled as well, and a little suspicious. Not a “I know what you are” kind of suspicious but the kind of suspicious that all the girls in class were. 

After all, Ryuunosuke was a girl. And Mendo was a boy. And the entire female student body was infatuated with both of them.

The girls in their class would watch Ryuunosuke intently, convinced that something was going on between the two, and that something had to be romance... That’s what they thought, at least.

Ataru was angry because Mendo was getting too close to Ryuunosuke. The girls in class were angry because Ryuunosuke was getting too close to Mendo. The boys in class were angry because the girls were angry at Ryuunosuke for getting too close to Mendo. Shinobu was mostly just confused.

And Lum didn’t care. She was cool like that.

But, other than Lum, the student in class’s tension began to pile up. One day, between classes, Ataru approached Mendo, obviously in a bad mood.

“Oi, what's up with you and Ryuu-chan lately?” He leaned in close, narrowing his eyes.

Upon Ataru leaning forward, Mendo immediately leaned back, the slightest blush on his face, “What do you mean?”

“I mean, you two are way friendlier than normal! What’s going on, huh!? Did you do something to my Ryuu-cha- ACK!” Ataru was cut off by three giant hammers slamming down on him, belonging to Ryuunosuke, Shinobu, and Lum respectively.

“Who are you calling your Ryuu-chan!?” Ryuunosuke yelled furiously, this wasn’t anything new but she seemed particularly pissed off this time. Perhaps it was because he had insulted Mendo as well.

Ataru moaned in pain for his response.

“Oi, let’s get out of here,” Ryuunosuke grabbed the back of Mendo’s collar and dragged him out of the classroom. While being dragged down the hallway, Mendo could hear two sounds from their classroom, that being “DARLING!” and the other being “AAAAAAAAAAAGH!” Oh, and also electricity.

Sometimes, with only sounds, an entire story can be told.

Ryuunosuke had dragged Mendo to a familiar place, that being the gym closet. Once the door was closed, she let go of Mendo’s collar.

He frantically tried to fix the crinkles in it caused by her grip. This was a custom-made uniform, after all.

Sighing, Ryuunosuke sat down on one of those things that you jump over in gym class.

“We gotta do something about this,” She spoke curtly.

“About Moroboshi?” He was still trying to fix his collar.

“No- Well, yeah, but he’s only part of the problem. Your damn fanclub won’t stop bugging me!” She crossed her arms and furrowed her brow. “They think we’re an item!”

“What item?” Mendo had taken off his gakuran jacket and was ironing it, where the ironing board and iron came from was a mystery.

Ryuunosuke twitched in anger and raised her voice, “They think we’re dating, dumbass!”

“Wha- AGH!” Her sudden yell had caused him to iron his hand. He crouched down and held it in pain, a single tear forming in his eye. “...Why do they think that...?”

“‘Cause they’re stupid and think a girl and a guy hanging out means they’re automatically dating,” She sighed. Heteronormativity is a bitch.

Once the pain had subsided, Mendo stood up and put his jacket back on, actually paying attention this time, “That’s ridiculous! ...But that must explain why female underclassmen have been sending me odd love letters.”

“Love letters?” Ryuunosuke tilted her head.

“Yes, I keep getting love letters from them but inside are razors and insults.”

She smacked her forehead in frustration, “Those aren’t love letters! They’re threatening you!”

Mendo’s eyes widened and he froze, he seemed deep in thought. After a whole minute, he spoke.

“...That’s so mean!”

Ryuunosuke fell backwards in disbelief for comedic effect.

She quickly picked herself back up though, albeit looking exhausted.

“...Yeah, it is,” Somehow, she was out of breath. 

“What should we do? Can we only meet in secret now?” Saying this, he thought to himself, Like Romeo and Juliet... Am I Juliet?

“I don’t really wanna do that, but...” Ryuunosuke scratched the back of her head, trying to think of a solution instead of thinking about Shakespeare.

“... We could pretend to be dating so they’re not suspicious!” Mendo said as if he had a lightbulb appear over his head.

“That will only make it worse!!” The girl yelled again, metaphorically cracking the lightbulb. Sighing, she leaned back and looked up at the ceiling.

She thought, for a moment, about how things were easier before she had shared that moment with Mendo. But she quickly dispelled that thought. She knew she was happier to have someone who she could talk to about the things that no one else around her knew.

“I guess we could be sneaky about it,” She nodded her head. “Yeah, let’s do that. We’ll just act like we did before.” She smiled a bit but it wasn’t a confident smile. “Is that cool?”

“Uh, yeah! That’s cool,” Mendo nodded his head, even if he didn’t actually think it was cool. 

But it was just another obstacle for him, for them. One that they could overcome. One more obstacle couldn’t hurt.

Even if it felt like the obstacles grew more every day.