Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

It was only supposed to be a hobby, something I had to do to release some steam when I’m not able to fight.

But as the blood drained from my face while I stared helplessly at pages and pages of my handwritten work posted neatly on Furin High’s School Bulletin Board, I thought to myself…

Ah. My life is fucking over.

“Hey, who left their book on the teacher’s desk?”

Hayato Suo looked up from his novel to see a familiar tuff of blond hair holding up a blank-covered book up in his hand. In a brief moment, the blond gestured the book to him in question, but the boy simply shrugged.

“Eh? Nirei?” Mazaki Anzai called out as soon as he entered the door from the back of the classroom, “What do you have there?” 

Akihiko Nirei quickly shifted his gaze to his classmate and gestured the book to him as well.

“This yours?” He asked, to which Anzai simply shook his head in response.

“Have you checked inside?” Suo suggested helpfully as he put his novel away, “Maybe there’s a name written in there.”

“Ah, yeah. You might be right.” Following his suggestion, Nirei flipped through the book in search of clues. 

But with every turn of a page, the frown in his brows only grew deeper and deeper. Suo watched curiously as the frustration in Nirei’s face worsened. As soon as the blond began muttering incoherently under his breath, Suo decided to intervene.

“Find something?” He asked, immediately snapping Nirei out of his reverie.

“Uh, I don’t know how to say this, but…” Nirei trailed off as he glared at the open book.

“But...?”

Nirei raised his deep brown eyes and met his gaze with a confused frown, “I don’t know, I think I might be illiterate?”

Suo’s brow twitched, threatening to break his calm expression. Instead, he simply stood up from his seat and approached the blond to assist. As soon as he found his spot behind Nirei, he quickly peeked over his shoulder to see the page.

It was the clumsiest handwriting he ever had the displeasure of seeing.

“Suo?”

It took everything in him to suppress the snort that threatened to spill out.

“What is it?” Nirei asked.

Suo simply smiled at him before replying.

“You’re not illiterate.” He said as he gently patted Nirei's shoulder.

He then turned his back towards the blond and walked away from the teacher's desk.

“What does that even mean? Hey!” Nirei whined after him, his lips pursed into a cute pout.

“‘Yo, Suo! Nirei!” 

Nirei whipped his head to the door as Taiga Tsugeura entered with an energetic wave. Mitsuki Kiryu soon followed inside and gave them a slight smile and a small nod in greeting. 

“Whatcha’ got there?” Tsuge asked as he nodded his head at the book.

"Man, I don’t know," Nirei said as he gave the pages another look, “Runes, maybe?”

“Really?” Tsuge perked up as he adjusted his headband over his afro. He then reached his hand out and made a grabby gesture, “Let me look.”

Nirei chuckled as he obediently handed the book over to Tsuge. The boy quickly settled his bag down on the desk and wasted no moment to flip the book open and examine the pages.

His eyes quickly lit up as soon as he realized what it was.

“Oh, hey! It’s a hand-written story!” Tsuge exclaimed as he flashed Nirei a wide grin.

“Seriously?” Nirei asked as his eyes widened in curiosity, “I had no idea it was actually something like that.”

Nirei then narrowed his eyes as he fluttered his fingers across the pages, "Doesn't feel handwritten though."

“Well, it’s more of a photocopy, I guess. Probably why there’s no indentation or whatever.”

“Is it yours?” Nirei asked him.

“Huh? No way! Reading takes too much work.” Tsuge waved his hand in denial. 

“I mean, whoever wrote this must be hella dedicated. The handwriting is pretty rough, like he’s not at all used to it, but it’s pretty much a full-scale novel in there.”

By then, there were more students in the classroom, quickly populating the once empty seats.

“'Yo, Tsuge! Read it to us then!” Yuri Kakiuchi called out playfully, “With feelings!”

The other kids joined in, goading Tsuge incessantly to read the contents of the book.

“Come on, Tsuge! You’re an entertainer, aren’t ‘ya?” One of them yelled out in encouragement while the others laughed.

“Ehh,” Tsuge whined despite the boisterous noise. He turned his head towards Nirei with a silent plea for help.

Nirei only laughed in reply as he quickly found his spot next to Suo.

“Sorry, Tsuge. You’re probably the only one who can read that book.” He said as he chuckled, “And I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t curious.”

"Hah? You just don't wanna read through the font." Tsuge laughed as he shook his head in defeat.

“Y'all better remember you asked me to do this.”

He then dramatically held the book up and cleared his throat. In the most ridiculous storytelling voice ever, Tsuge began his dramatic reading.

“The morning breeze brushed against my cheek in greeting as I trotted my feet towards school. My gaze fixed on the tiny characters inside a small notebook, I tuned out the rest of the world as I studied the data I gathered the day before.”

The room suddenly exploded with amusement as soon as Tsuge paused for effect.

“Hah? The hell is that!” One of the boys who were listening yelled out, cackling boisterously.

“Boo!”

The classroom was almost full now, and the listening ears began to jokingly heckle at the musclehead. With a laugh, Tsuge managed to quickly dodge the crude balled up pieces of paper thrown his way.

“Shut up, ya’ shits!” Tsuge yelled, shaking his fist in the air. 

“Don't forget ya’ wanted this!”

The classroom promptly quieted as Tsuge once again cleared his throat, quickly getting into character.

“My head began to throb in the motions, and I clamped my eyes shut as I willed the pain to subside. Blinking my eyes open, I was met with a beautiful ruby gaze boring into mine. A smile spread across my lips, and I was immediately at ease. Good morning–”

Suddenly, he froze. His abrupt pause was so jarring that it triggered some sort of alarm in his classmates. 

“‘Yo, Tsuge. What's going on with you?” Someone asked.

Brows furrowed to a small frown, Tsuge looked up from the book and stared at Suo in confusion.

Suo simply cocked a brow at him, “What is it?”

“I, uhh…” Tsuge began dumbly.

The boys grew impatient, gradually getting rowdier the longer Tsuge dawdled.

“The hell is that? Keep going!”

“Come on, Tsuge!” Anzai called out from his seat, “Don’t leave us hanging!”

Tsuge looked back into the crowd, confusion evident on his face as he hesitated. With a gulp, he opted to continue.

“Err, uhm... Right.” He cleared his throat again, but his acting sounded a lot more confused this time around.

“Good morning, Suo.” He finally recited. 

The entire classroom immediately fell silent. The students shared a look among each other, mirroring the visible confusion on Tsuge’s face.

“... The hell?” Anzai said after a moment’s silence. He chuckled nervously as he spared Suo a quick glance.

Much like everyone else, the boy had been caught completely off-guard.

“Hey… uhh, maybe it’s a different Suo.” Kakiuchi began slowly. 

“I mean, it’s a name bound to be used in fiction in some way or another, right?” He continued carefully, choosing his words as he tried to ease the tension in the room. 

The boys nodded half-heartedly, muttering to themselves. Despite Kakiuchi's best attempts, the tension only eased up by a small amount.

"I mean, you never know... right?" Kakiuchi added as a feeble attempt to reinforce his statement, meeting the strong brunette's gaze for validation.

Suo simply stared at him before giving him a non-commital shrug.

The others shared a look after the exchange but nodded hesitantly. They returned their attention to Tsuge, their eyes full of caution as they silently prompted the boy to continue.

At this, Tsuge groaned loudly.

“Ahh, seriously?” He sighed as he scratched his scalp defeatedly, “Know what? Y’all wanted this, alright? Whatever comes next is not my fault.”

He gave the book a wary look, grumbling quietly under his breath before he continued.

“Suo... Suo flashed me a smile that could make anyone melt on the spot. In one quick motion, he made his way over to me, his intoxicating eyes never leaving mine. His steps eventually slowed to a stop and without another word, he leaned over and planted a chaste kiss on my lips.”

The discomfort became more and more evident every time Tsuge paused. Unlike before, his pauses came as a sign of hesitation rather than a cause of drama. With each passing second, Tsuge began to look like he’d rather just stop reading altogether. And as he struggled to choke out the next lines, he took a deep breath.

“He straightened his back, his towering height shielding me from harsh rays of the sun. And with the most affectionate look on his face, he called out my name.”

Tsuge audibly choked. Clamping his eyes shut as he raised his head. Slowly opening them once more, he turned his head towards the blond who stood attentively next to Suo. Almost breathlessly, like the book orginally instructed, he continued.

“... Nirei.”

And just like that, a pin drop silence filled the classroom.

The tension was immediate. Like a large wave that crashed violently against the shore, the thick and murky feeling of unease lingered inside the four walls of their classroom. Everyone held their breaths, and not a single soul dared to breathe. It was as if they had been frozen to their seats, unable to move.

Ever so slowly, as if regaining their senses, everyone’s eyes began to shift. One by one, their gaze all fell on the two boys who stood completely still.

And just like them, they had been holding their breaths.

Everyone knew Suo and Nirei had been attached at the hip since the very beginning. Despite the brunette outwardly expressing his admiration in Haruka Sakura in the beginning, his attention somehow settled comfortably on the small boy who had come with him on the first day.

And as if to defy everyone’s quiet expectations, Suo’s attention on Nirei had only grown more undivided. Some might even dare to say that he was affectionate.

Still, as they watched their jaws fall slack and their mouths agape, the dumbfounded look on both of their faces told the rest of the boys everything they needed to know.

That neither of the two knew what was going on either.

The silence continued, almost painful. The air had become so unbearably thick that even the dullest butter knife could cut through it. Everyone sat at the edge of their seats, waiting in anticipation for something--anything.

Not one of them dared to make a single sound.

“... Huh. The hell.”

An indescribable look uncharacteristically flashed across Nirei's normally cheerful face, striking an unfamiliar fear into the group of boys.

But as fast as it came, it was immediately replaced with his usual nervous and clumsy laugh. Though obviously forced, it was enough to completely dissipate the overwhelming tension that nearly crushed the class.

“Ehh? What the hell was that?” The blond asked as he heartily laughed, waving his hands in disbelief.

“Is that fanfiction?" He continued, "Seriously, who’d write something like that?”

Suo stared at him, his face betraying a look of surprise and... something else.

“Well," He started, "it might be similar to what Kakiuchi said.”

Their eyes turned to Suo had his calm smile back on his face.

“There’s a lot of Nireis and Suos in Japan, after all. Even more on a global scale." Suo stated as a matter-of-factly, "Maybe the author was just inspired.”

“Y-yeah!” Kakiuchi exclaimed impulsively, barely concealing his stutter.

“I-I mean, it’s not like that book’s Nirei and Suo went to Furin High School, right? It never said that they specifically belonged to Class 1-1 or something…”

Everyone politely ignored how the dark-haired boy's voice cracked pitchily towards the end, right before he trailed off.

Kakiuchi then pointedly cleared his throat and gave Tsuge a hard stare, desperately trying to telepathically send him an SOS.

Tsuge flinched, coughing nervously into his hand as he snapped out of it.

“Oh, uhm, yeah. Let me check.” He said as he quickly flipped through the pages at record speed. 

Honestly, it was kind of amazing how this boy whose brain was only what was scientifically described on the surface (a huge lump of muscle) was absorbing information like his life depended on it.

But to everyone’s horror, Tsuge’s entire body froze as his hands stopped on a certain page. He chomped down on his bottom lip and looked up to meet Kakiuchi’s gaze in a desperate plea. Kakiuchi simply stared back, but his eyes screamed ferociously at Tsuge to lie. Considering the way his eyelids were practically glued to the back of his eyeballs with how hard he was staring, the boy had become absolutely feral.

But Tsuge… dear sweet, innocent Tsuge. Even if faced with the reality of his rapidly declining mortality, he was just way too honest.

“It’s…” Tsuge managed to choke out, “It’s, uhh... set in Furin High School.”

Somehow, it felt like even the air had stilled.

“W-well, it’s not like their assigned classroom is Class 1-1, right?” Anzai asked, low-key hysterical. It was impossible to ignore how his voice pitched up way too many octaves higher than it should. Even his forced laughter could not mask the panic building up his throat.

Anzai quickly regretted saying anything when Tsuge visibly paled.

“It’s, uhh…”

Tsuge, please. Just shut the fuck up, was the entire class’ desperate mental plea for the boy.

“They’re, uhm…” Tsuge gulped, his vision growing hazy as cold beads of sweat rolled down his temple.

“I, uhh...”

Just as soon as Tsuge began to short circuit, a pale and slender hand suddenly snatched the book away from his feeble grip. All the boy could do was follow the perpetrator with his gaze.

Everyone watched with bated breath as Suo stared hard on the page, his eyes refusing to betray any emotion. His normally calm face was tense and even more stoic than usual as he skimmed through lines and lines written in chicken scratch.

Tsk.

The temperature immediately dipped below zero as the entire class dropped their gaze, their blood running ice cold the moment they heard a click of a tongue.

“Sorry, Nirei.”

The boys fearfully glanced up as Suo’s sickeningly sweet voice, which was normally full of affection and especially reserved for Nirei, filled the room like the gentle ringing of wind chimes. Yet somehow, it sounded exactly like how the breeze would deliver an omen this time around.

“It appears that this Nirei and Suo also belonged to Class 1-1 of Furin High School.” The brunette continued calmly as he carefully stowed the book into his bag. Nirei simply watched him, his face neutral and just as scarily calm.

The group of boys watched quietly as Suo put his bag aside and walked back to his spot next to Nirei and gingerly put his hand on top of the blond's head.

“I’ll take care of it,” He finally said as he gently ruffled Nirei's hair, “don’t worry about it.”

“Eh, you don't have to." Nirei shrugged. Then a thoughtful look crossed his face for a moment.

"Well…” The blond voice drawled as he nonchalantly put his hands behind the back of his head and leaned back, “As long as Sakura doesn’t find out about it, I guess.”

Suo chuckled in response.

“You're right." He started, "His brain would probably implode and he'd have to call in sick the next day.”

Chapter Text

“Good morning, Sakura!” 

And just like Nirei expected, the idiot immediately straightened up, turned around, and slammed the door shut behind him. Though, Nirei swears that Sakura’s face was flushed to the deepest shade of scarlet. Still, he could only stare at the door with an empty smile and a blank expression on his face.

With a sigh, Nirei returned his attention to Kiryu's game as the sound of digital gunshots erupted from its speakers. Finding himself mildly entertained by the game, he watched as Kiryu claimed the MVP spot from that session.

“Maybe you two should spend some time away from each other,” The boy stated as he quickly entered the next game, not even sparing them a single glance from his phone.

Nirei and Suo shared a look. The two were hanging out inside the classroom, staying by Suo's desk. Nirei was leaning against the table and Suo was on his seat while he worked on some origami art. 

The two had agreed to think nothing of it and just go on as usual despite everything.

At first, Nirei was determined not to have the situation affect their friendship in any way, but with how Sakura was dealing with the entire thing… it was just getting out of hand.

“That's what I'm saying. As long as both of you are still attached at the hip, Sakura's never going to enter this classroom out of his own free will.” Kiryu continued as he tapped away on his phone. Finally, he looked up and gave them a cat-like smile that barely masked the boredom on his face.

“After all, it's been like, what? Two weeks?”

Since that day, Haruka Sakura had been completely (and successfully) avoiding his vice captains. It was way too obvious considering how Sakura would abruptly turn his heel and walk the other way every time he encountered them in the corridors. 

The way he would brisk walk—though some would argue that he was running—away from them after blushing wildly was just painful at this point. This was precisely why Nirei didn't want him to find out. Though admittedly, it was inevitable.

But with all due respect, it just made no sense. 

Nirei and Suo were the main victims of the infamous weird ass BL fanfiction that was publicly paraded all around the school—and by extension, the town and everywhere else. 

Not only did they find out that the blank-covered book in the classroom was not the only copy, they later discovered that every single classroom in Furin High School had their own personal copies while the original was put up side by side on the school's bulletin board.

Apparently, Tsubakino had made it his personal mission to find out who the author was, and had sacrificed Suo and Nirei to the wolves for his goal. He declared that he would go through hell and back just to know who wrote the piece so that he could personally deliver a few points of improvement.

And as one of Bofurin's Four Kings, his passionate drive had influenced way too many people under him.

That said, Nirei should really ought to note how absolutely insane it was for all the grade captains (and their vice captains) to be total fucking weirdos. They were seriously way too protective of their classroom copies.

And yes, that included Ren Kaji.

Somehow, if Nirei could just be completely honest, that took the cake.

(“Hiragi told me to protect it with my life. Now, fuck off.” He simply told them.)

The day all hell broke loose, he and Suo took the time to visit each classroom, only to be inevitably kicked off the corridor despite the initial awe.

At least our class was respectful enough to never mention it around us, the blond quietly thought to himself.

And while there were a few others who were swept into the madness as well simply by being appearing in the fanfiction (namely Tsubakino himself, Hiragi, and even Umemiya), only he and Suo really received the brunt of people's attention.

Way to take care of your kohais, right?

Nirei had completely lost count of the amount of times he received ‘wedding gifts’ from the townsfolk, and how some grannies would drag him (and sometimes Suo if he was caught) into their personal homes to eat red bean rice to ‘celebrate their union.’ 

The most insane thing he had to reject was a lifetime certification that granted them free board and lodging (for as long as the two were supposedly together) from some rich landowner in the area. 

(“Listen sir, not only are we not in a relationship, we're also just kids in our freshman year of highschool. And if you really haven't figured it out yet, we're literally underage.” Nirei told him.)

He could hardly believe how Suo just stood quietly behind him every time Nirei had to exchange a few words with some big, scary men.

If anything, he even laughed along with them like they were having a tea party and he just got some juicy gossip.

Speaking of Suo, he had been strangely docile with the entire thing. If Nirei didn't know better, he would have thought the brunette was too welcoming of it all. Every time someone brought up a ridiculous gossip about the two of them, Suo would neither deny nor confirm anything. Instead, he would inadvertently fuel the goddamn rumor.

Nirei, on the other hand, was going insane. Is this what being a celebrity is like? Being subjected to a life of constant scrutiny, and having your identity reduced to fit a certain image people have of you?

“You're overthinking it,” Suo breezily said. He then folded a corner of the paper as he focused on his origami art.

Nirei gaped at him owlishly.

“How the hell are you not affected by this?” He asked, exasperated.

“Don't you think it's embarrassing?” He continued, “You're being romantically paired with some weakling that’s tiers below your caliber.”

“Wrong. I'm being romantically paired with my worthy disciple whom I personally handpicked to train.” Suo replied with a wink as he completed his paper swan.

"Here, take it."

Nirei absent-mindedly took the paper swan and stared at it with an indescribable look on his face. How could Suo be so indifferent about this whole thing? Should Nirei be concerned?

Then again, that is a trait about Suo that he did admire. The boy simply did not give a fuck about what others thought nor did it limit what he can and can't do.

Must be nice to have a delinquent mindset, Nirei eventually concluded as he mentally accepted his fate.

People who grew up as delinquents simply gave zero fucks and lived a self-serving life under the chaotic spectrum.

Suo is definitely a chaotic neutral, Nirei concluded some time ago. The blond had spent enough time to know that Suo's polite expressions and pleasant tone masked a rotten personality underneath. But to give him credit, at least the brunette had the decency to keep that shit under wraps.

And Nirei would be lying if he said he didn't like the leniency Suo showed him.

“See?” Kiryu drawled, “This is exactly what I'm saying. You guys aren't even trying to disprove the rumors.”

Nirei scoffed as he fiddled with Suo's paper swan, “As if we're going to make some weird fanfic drive a knife between us.”

“Sure,” The pink-haired boy said dryly, “Make sure to say that too when you meet your mother-in-law.”

Nirei choked on his spit as he scrambled to find a quick rebuttal.

“‘Yo, K.”

Kiryu only hummed in acknowledgment as Anzai approached him.

“Have you seen Tsuge around? I wanted to ask him what protein brand he was using.” Anzai said after giving them a small wave. 

“Shoot him a text or something, I'm not his keeper.” Kiryu mumbled under his breath.

“He hasn't replied to me all morning.” The other replied.

“Probably doing a live reading somewhere then. The second years have been asking for him lately.” Kiryu told him.

“Oh, again? I'll look for him in the second year corridors then. Thanks, dude!”

Kiryu simply made a non-committal sound as Anzai left.

"Live readings?" Nirei asked, confused.

"Oh, the second years heard about how he read for us two weeks ago. They wanted the full experience so they've been asking for that musclehead." Kiryu told him.

"Seriously, he should stop going around in a wife beater if he's going to be an entertainer. So unfashionable." He added as he clicked his tongue.

Tapping furiously on his phone, Kiryu didn't bother to acknowledge the stupefied look that bloomed on Nirei's face.

“I'm sorry, Tsuge is doing what?” Nirei finally managed to sputter out.

“Oh,” Kiryu paused as he stared at his phone after promptly losing his game. 

He turned to meet Nirei's gaze and even had the audacity to look confused, “We're still talking about that?”

Nirei could only sigh in defeat.

“Hey,” Suo started as he stared pensively to the distance.

It was a little after their training session by the creek, and Nirei was enjoying his post-workout treat.

“Hmm?” Nirei glanced at him while he nibbled on his anpan.

Absent-mindedly, he made a mental note about how the pensive expression on Suo's face looked strange on him.

“Is it that weird to be paired up with me?” The brunette asked aloud.

Nirei paused. That's what's bothering him?

"Well..." Nirei closed his eyes in focus as he pondered how to really explain the situation to his teacher.

"Ah, I got it!"

Nirei then turned towards Suo with misplaced enthusiasm.

“Think of it this way,” The smaller boy began, “why wouldn't it be weird?"

Suo raised a brow at him.

"I-I mean," Nirei stuttered, a little flustered by how Suo stared at him.

"I mean, come on. You'd be stuck paired up with me, of all people.”

Suo continued to stare, seemingly unsatisfied with Nirei's attempt to explain. The blond internally groaned.

"I mean..." Nirei trailed off as he avoided Suo's gaze. He fixed his gaze on the water as he finally admitted why he thought it felt wrong.

"You should be paired up with someone worthy. Like Sakura or something." He finally said.

A somber silence settled between them as Nirei fiddled with the grass stems beneath him.

"Nirei, look at me."

Obediently, Nirei looked up and met his gaze. For some reason, the look in Suo's eye felt intense—emotionally charged, even. Was Nirei allowed to assume that Suo was also pretty affected by the whole thing?

They stared at each other for a while, neither one of them breaking the connection.

It was weird. His gaze was heavy, yet comfortable. Maybe it was the mood, or perhaps it was the way the sun lit up behind him as it bathed them in its golden hour. Somehow, Nirei found himself getting lost in his gaze, casually noting the reddish specs in his brown eyes.

Blinking my eyes open, I was met with a beautiful ruby gaze boring into mine.

Nirei blinked, suddenly becoming all too aware of everything. Looking away, he drew small circles on the soil.

He heard Suo chuckle.

"I thought I taught you not to close your eyes." He stated in amusement, flicking Nirei's forehead softly.

Rubbing the spot, Nirei grumbled half-hearted excuses under his breath. With all of his might, Nirei willed the blush creeping up his neck to disappear before Suo would notice.

Even with Tsuge's ridiculous way of dramatizing the scene, the line echoed endlessly in his head. He tried not to think too much of it, but it still somehow made him feel a certain way.

He listened to Suo hum thoughtfully as he fixed his gaze on the creek in front of them.

“Honestly,” Suo released a quiet sigh, “I can't think of why I shouldn't be paired up with you.”

Nirei’s jaw slackened as he stared at Suo in disbelief.

“Are you kidding me?” He asked, “You're one of the strongest guys in our year—arguably the strongest guy in our year.”

“That's an insult to Sakura.” Suo chuckled, but Nirei ignored him.

“So if you put it that way, why should the strongest guy of our year be paired with the weakest guy in the entire school?” The blond asked him. 

“It makes no sense!” Nirei exclaimed as he threw his hands up in the air.

A weird silence filled the space between them as Nirei allowed Suo to let the thought simmer. Up until recently, Nirei could barely protect himself in a brawl. Suo had to take a backseat during a lot of fights because of him, though Nirei had an idea of why that was.

Suo might be self-serving in many ways, but the guy had a sense of duty. And somehow, he took it upon himself to take care of him.

And as much as Nirei didn't want to admit it, it seriously ate him up inside.

“I don't get it,” Suo suddenly said, though his voice was quiet.

“What do you mean?”

“I don't know, I just don't. You're saying I need someone worthy and all, but who really gets to determine all that?" He asked aloud.

Nirei didn't reply. If anything, he didn't know what to say.

"I really don't get it. If it's with you, why should it be weird?”

Nirei felt confused. If Suo had to put it that way, even he wouldn't know what to say.

He really couldn't help but mull on the question before he went to bed that night. 

Why should it be weird?

“Sakura.”

The boy flinched, jumping at the mere sound of Nirei's voice behind him.

Somehow, Nirei caught him on the rooftop, crouched over one of Umemiya's flowerbed while Sugishita was weeding the sapling pots. The scene itself was already pretty weird. After all, why would Sakura willingly spend time alone with the fanatic?

But before he could even unfold his legs, the blond already had him pinned down with a tight grip on his shoulder.

“Y-yeah?” Sakura stuttered as he stiffly turned his head towards the blond.

Sakura wasn't the type to be easily intimidated by people. He was Haruka Sakura, for Pete's sake! If anything, he impulsively challenges any figures of authority out of habit. But with the aura around Nirei right now… his gut was telling him to stand down.

“D-did you need something?” He asked, knowing perfectly well just how much he fucked up.

“Can you come with me for a second?” Nirei asked him with a tight smile on his face.

Without waiting for an answer, Nirei took his grade captain by his collar and dragged him off the rooftop and into the stairwell.

Despite Sakura's adamant yelling and pathetic begging, Sugishita simply clicked his tongue and continued to weed the sapling pots. 

See no evil, hear no evil.

Once the two reached the foot of the stairs, Nirei loosened his grip on the collar and released him.

“Hey, Sakura.”

Sakura stiffened, instinctively standing up straighter than he should be. Nirei slowly turned his body towards him while he maintained his scarily tight smile.

“The fuck are you being so shady for?” He asked.

A pathetic laugh escaped Sakura's lips as he trembled nervously under his gaze.

“W-wha–?” He tried to play off innocently, “You're being weird, Nirei.”

The boy simply continued to smile at him.

“Because I'll be real with you, Sakura,” Nirei expressed, his voice empathetic but his words ominous.

“You're being really fucking weird right now.”

Somehow, it felt like Suo was in front of him instead of the chirpy blond who shadowed him everywhere.

And that's what made it scarier.

“Hmm? W-what are you talking about?”

At that, Nirei dropped his smile and fixed a blank stare at Sakura.

“Don't fuck with me, you bastard.” He spat.

“What do you mean?”

“Are you saying that I, Akihiko Nirei, a pathetic excuse of a Furin High School student,” Nirei snarled as he pointed a finger towards himself and shoved it hard against his chest. 

“Is making the Haruka Sakura,” In one swift motion, he pointed his finger towards the trembling boy and shoved it just as hard against his.

“The bastard who went toe to toe with Shishitoren's second-in-command…”

With every word, Nirei continued to dig his finger further and further into Sakura's skin, determined to bruise him despite his nimble hands.

“And actually lived to tell the tale…”

Nirei paused. 

What was he trying to prove by provoking him?

He stared at the weirdly docile Sakura and watched him gulp in fear. Taking a deep breath, he pulled his finger away from him and dropped his gaze.

“... tremble nervously with just a single word?” He finished quietly.

The bite in his voice was gone. All the momentum he had completely disappeared. Did he really have to go this far to get his point across?

He looked back up at Sakura expectantly, hoping that maybe he'd get his shit together and help him figure out where he was coming from.

But to his dismay, Sakura just continued to laugh nervously and blatantly avoided meeting his eyes.

“M-Maybe you've been hanging out with Suo too much.” Sakura finally said after a moment's silence.

Nirei stared at him.

“Suo doesn't talk like this.” He replied incredulously.

“T-Tsuge then?”

“Are you fucking kidding me right now?”

Admittedly, Nirei really was being weird. With all things considered, he was a good kid. Profanity just never came that naturally to him.

But for some reason, Sakura was pulling all the stops and it was seriously pissing him off.

Nirei sighed as he pulled away.

“I give up,” he muttered quietly.

Sakura paused, his fear morphing into confusion.

“Huh?”

Nirei turned away from him and just began gesturing wildly around him.

“I give up? I give up!” 

He looked crazy. He felt crazy. With each passing second, Nirei felt himself growing more and more hysterical.

“Hear that, you fuckers?! I fucking give up!” He declared, proudly advertising his defeat as he gradually sank into some form of insanity. 

Then suddenly, he dropped to his knees and stared blankly at the floor. His body eventually lost all of its energy, and just slumped against the wall.

Sakura openly stared at him, confused.

“Dude, you're being fucking weird right now.”

Silence.

“Nirei?”

“Shut the fuck up, you ass.”

Sakura fell silent. If he was being honest, he didn't know what to do. He decided to wait, maybe play footsie with the air until Nirei felt better. But after a while, Sakura realized that he would have to be the one to break the silence this time around. 

It was obvious to Sakura that Nirei was not being himself. There was a huge difference with his behavior from his usual loud-mouthed personality that Sakura couldn't help but worry.

At a loss, he quietly sat down next to the boy.

“What's wrong?”

“Fuck off, you don't get to say shit.”

Sakura stared at Nirei with an indescribable look on his face. It was a mix of too many things—too many thoughts, too many emotions. Feet tucked beneath him, he inched closer towards the blond. He let his eyes travel down Nirei's form as he tried to make sense of what the boy would need at this moment. 

It was subtle, but Nirei's body was trembling underneath his clothes. Before he could stop it, Sakura reached out and clumsily placed a hand on Nirei's shoulder. To his relief, Nirei stilled immediately.

“Hey,” he said.

No reply.

Sakura lifted his head and quickly checked their surroundings before he ultimately laid his head down next to Nirei. Sakura felt the boy's body stiffen, then gradually relax as time passed. He waited, not even moving a muscle when the blond began to shuffle around. Almost shyly, he felt Nirei curl his small body into a ball and sought comfort in his warmth.

“You good?” Sakura asked, his voice quiet.

“... ‘uk ‘ff.”

Sakura chuckled softly, allowing the silence to take over. He stared at the dark ceiling, letting his thoughts go through its course. And after a few minutes, Sakura got up. Ignoring Nirei's audible protests, he got to his feet and brushed the dust off his uniform. He walked over the boy, careful not to step on his limbs as he did.

Sakura gave Nirei's pathetic form one last look, then smirked. In one swift motion, he swung his foot forward and kicked Nirei as hard as he could.

“Dude, what the fuck?!” Nirei shrieked, his eyes stinging in pain as his thighs burned from the impact.

God, that was going to leave a mark.

Nirei shot Sakura a spiteful glare as he clumsily got up.

“What, you wanna go? ‘Cuz I'm rarin’ to go.” Sakura grinned as he raised his fists up.

Nirei groaned, not even sure what he was expecting from the guy.

“If I fight you, I'll die.” He deadpanned.

“Come on, it'll be fun!” Sakura exclaimed excitedly, throwing punches into the air like he was a kid giving himself a pep talk in front of his bathroom mirror.

Nirei shook his head, letting out a chuckle.

“So, we good?”

“Nah,” The blond said as he popped a joint in his neck. Casually raising his fist, Nirei seemingly examined his knuckles before slamming it hard against Sakura's jaw.

The boy simply stared at him with gentle eyes. His annoying, arrogant smirk still spread across his face despite having Nirei's fist digging deep into his jowls.

“Sorry, I had to get a punch in first.” Nirei laughed as he pulled his hand away, wringing his wrist to get the knots out.

Sakura shrugged.

“‘s cool. I was bein’ an ass anyway.” He said.

Nirei chuckled softly, “My punch probably felt like a toddler's assault.”

“Yeah, it was hella weak.”

“Fuck off.”

The two settled into a comfortable yet awkward silence. Nirei felt like there were still a lot of things he had to say, but after everything, he didn't know how to go about it.

Still, it was a shot in the dark.

“Hey, Sakura.” Nirei began.

“Yeah?”

“What should I do?”

Sakura paused.

“Well, what do you want to do?”

“Do you even know what I'm talking about?”

“Not a goddamn clue.”

Nirei stared at him for a while, not even sure how he should feel at this point. Suddenly, a snort escaped his lips and he just doubled over as peals of laughter took over his entire body. 

Sakura raised a brow at him, confused but amused.

“... dude, get your shit together.” He said, but his words lacked the bite.

“You don't get the right to say crap right now, you ass.”

Sakura snorted. Looking away, he raises his hand and sheepishly scratches the back of his neck.

“I'm sorry.” He muttered quietly under his breath, “You know, ‘bout the last two weeks.”

“I'm glad you know you were an ass.” Nirei replied as he began to calm down.

“Yeah. That was a real dick move from me, and I'm sorry.”

“Wow, you apologized twice. You must be really guilty.” Nirei smirked, somewhat enjoying the superiority he had over his grade captain.

“Well, I was gone for two weeks, so it's one apology per week.”

“Smartass.”

The silence that followed felt more comfortable.

As Nirei stared at the floor, a number of thoughts crossed his mind. But one thought pushed its way forward, demanding to be prioritized.

He sighed.

“Seriously… It makes no fucking sense.” He mumbled quietly.

“Did you say something?” Sakura asked him.

Nirei paused for a moment, contemplating it for a second before releasing his breath.

“I think I like Suo.” He finally said.

Nirei looked up at Sakura, trying to see how his face would look when he replies. To his surprise, Sakura only sported a light blush and stubbornly fixed his embarrassed gaze elsewhere.

“... you don't look surprised.” Nirei stated, cocking a brow at the usually bashful boy.

Sakura simply scratched his head, more confused about how he should respond.

“I mean…” He started, his voice sort of avoidant, “was that something I shouldn't know?”

Nirei stared at him. A million thoughts raced against his head as he tried to make sense of the conversation.

“So… you know?” He asked.

“Well, yeah.” Sakura replied, though still refusing to meet Nirei's eyes.

“But how?”

Sakura paused for a moment then sighed. Nirei didn't know why it sounded like he was admitting defeat.

Finally, Sakura met his gaze, “Didn't you read that weird story between you two?”

“What about it?”

“Well,” Sakura's eyes darted away from Nirei's face for a moment before he briefly clamped them shut, as if fighting some sort of internal battle.

“Sakura?”

“I, uhh…”

Nirei watched Sakura's expression shift from one of shame to resignation. Somehow, Nirei was not sure if he wanted to hear the reason anymore.

“I wrote the fucking thing.” Sakura mumbled quietly, dropping his gaze down to his shoes.

Nirei stared at him, completely dumbfounded. Suddenly, he found his mouth moving before the thought could fully materialize in his brain.

“What the fuck did you just say?”

Chapter Text

“What the fuck did you just say?”

Nirei stared at Sakura in complete and utter disbelief. The blond always thought he was smart—that he was smart enough to take any curveball coming at him.

But Sakura?

Somehow, he can't even summon a coherent thought.

“Wait, you—?” Nirei choked as realization finally sank in. He covered his mouth as he stared at him with wide eyes.

He pointed a finger at him in confused accusation, “You?!”

Sakura nodded solemnly.

“I did.”

“You wrote that fic?” Nirei asked incredulously as he watched Sakura's cheeks flush a deeper shade of red, “You're the god damned author?”

Sakura didn't reply. He didn't need to. He waited for the information to sink in and simply watched as the realization hit Nirei. Sakura held his breath in anticipation as Nirei's hands fell limp to his sides and walked to approach him, wobbling slightly.

Sakura’s heart beat wildly against his chest as the blond approached. As Nirei raised his hands, he clamped his eyes shut as he inhaled sharply.

Sakura's eyes snapped open when he felt them on either side of his shoulder.

“Why?” Nirei asked flatly. The look on his face was a cross between concerned, confused, and disturbed—much like when they first met.

“Do you really want me to answer that?”

“On second thought, I don't think so.” Nirei deadpanned as he let go.

The two stood in silence, not really sure where to go from there. Should they keep talking, or do they just leave it at that? Where would they even go after that's done? It was a weird state of limbo.

Nirei glanced at Sakura from the corner of his eye as he scratched the back of his head.

“I didn't know you liked to write novels.” Nirei muttered offhandedly.

“It's… a recent development.” Sakura replied.

Nirei stared at the floor in silence, “... I didn't even know you were literate.”

“Hey, you do know I made it to high school for a reason, right?” The boy glared.

“Then what the hell was that chicken scratch you call a handwriting?”

“... barely made it to high school.”

The blond sighed before audibly groaning.

“I don't get it!” Nirei exclaimed in exasperation. 

“Why the hell would you, of all people, write some BL fanfiction about me and Suo?”

Crash!

Nirei whipped his head behind him. Eyes fixed on where the sound of clay shattering against the hard floor belonged.

Blood completely drained from his face the moment his eyes landed on Hajime Umemiya's frozen state. The silver-haired man simply stared at them in surprise, mouth agape, and his hands still positioned in such a way when it used to have a pot between them.

They all stared at each other for what felt like an eternity before Umemiya's gaze dropped to the broken pot at his feet.

“Ah!” He exclaimed in alarm, completely snapping out of his reverie as he crouched down in a futile attempt to collect the scattered soil.

“A-Are you okay?” Nirei finally managed to sputter out as he rushed to Umemiya's side, crouching down next to him as he gathered the soil in his hands.

“I'll be fine, but my sapling won't.” Umemiya whined tearfully, “It was supposed to grow up to become a fine Chilli shrub!”

Nirei always thought of Umemiya as this awe-amazing character who's never caught off-guard in any situation. But as he watched Furin High's top dog completely flustered, he couldn't help but feel the tiniest bit disillusioned. Still, with whatever's left of his sanity, he signaled Sakura to get Sugishita.

“I was going to use it for the school barbecue we had scheduled in October!” 

“We had a barbecue scheduled in October?”

“We were supposed to!” Umemiya wailed loudly, and Nirei had to consciously stop himself from dissociating—a state he has trained himself to go into whenever Sakura starts screaming in his ear.

After a moment, they heard a grunt behind them. Turning around, they saw Sugishita's towering figure standing over them with another clay pot in his hands.

Immediately, Umemiya's mood improved.

“Ah, Sugishita! Thank goodness you're here!” The man quickly gestured to the giant to come over, and they began filling up the new pot properly.

“Man, what a relief!” Umemiya exclaimed. He quickly got on his feet and took the newly filled pot in his hand.

“By the way, Sugishita.” He started, earning an obedient grunt in reply, “Do you mind cleaning up here for me? I wanted to have a word with these guys upstairs.” 

Umemiya nodded his head to the two boys, who pointedly avoided his gaze. Sugishita simply nodded enthusiastically in reply.

“Thanks! Now, you two…” His warm gaze then landed on Nirei and Sakura, “Follow me up?”

The two wordlessly obeyed, following him up the rooftop and settling themselves down on the picnic table nearby as Umemiya did his routine. As soon as he was done, the silver-haired man settled down next to them.

Nirei stiffened as soon as Umemiya's gaze fell upon them.

Normally, the blond would argue that Umemiya's eyes were enough to cure any sort of mental illness you have from the comfort it provided. He was like a walking therapist who provides a free consultation any time. But at this moment, Nirei had no idea how to read his look.

“So…” Umemiya started as he fixed his gaze on Sakura, “You're behind that thing that’s got the entire school in a frenzy?”

The look on Sakura's face was a sight to behold. If you could pin down the fight or flight stress response with an expression, this had to be it. His face was so red it was almost purple, but at the same time there was fear in his eyes.

Truly, an expression worthy to be memorialized in a physical photo album.

Without another word, Sakura nodded.

“I see.” Umemiya stated as he stared at Sakura thoughtfully, “I just have one question though.”

Nirei held his breath.

This was it. The moment of truth. Will Sakura be able to live a peaceful life in Furin High, or will he be unceremoniously removed from the scene of the crime?

He clamped his eyes shut in anticipation.

“Does Kotoha really give better love advice than me?” Umemiya asked, completely serious. 

Eh?

The two freshmen stared at him, confused.

“You wrote that Kotoha gives better advice than me, and that mine were kinda subpar.” He explained, “Is that true?”

Nirei and Sakura shared a look.

Umemiya took one look at their expressions and exclaimed in disbelief, “Huh? For real? But as the big brother, shouldn’t I be portrayed as someone wiser, right?”

“Y-you're already plenty wise, Umemiya-san.” Nirei tried to offer helpfully.

“Yeah, but I give pretty good advice too!” He huffed, cheeks puffing with complaint, “Even I know a thing or two about love!”

Nirei was sure Hiragi would disagree, but he kept his mouth shut.

“Don't lie!” Sakura exclaimed, very much unlike Nirei’s choice, “When I asked you what love looked like, you just told me to use Tsubakino as a reference!”

“But was I wrong? Tsubakino’s the only one with a maiden’s heart out of all of us!” Umemiya whined, his voice close to a wail.

“I mean, you weren't but…” Sakura made a choking noise before yelling, “But Kotoha had better advice!” 

Sakura glared at Umemiya as he flew to his feet, face flushed fully red now.

If Nirei was confused before, it didn't come close to how he is now. He was completely and utterly lost and the two boys in front of him were acting so ridiculous that he didn't even know where or what to pick up.

“Ehh?” Umemiya audibly whined, “What did she even tell you to do?”

“She told me to—” Sakura paused, glancing at Nirei before completely cutting himself short.

Nirei stared at him in confusion.

“What?”

Sakura inhaled sharply through his teeth before releasing the deepest sigh possible.

“She… Kotoha told me to look at a couple who I thought were truly devoted to each other or something…” He finally said, his voice trailing off towards the end.

Nirei continued to stare at him in confusion. It's like he's been given a bunch of jigsaw pieces that were supposed to fit together, but he had no idea just what he was looking at.

“... and?” He asked, prompting Sakura to continue.

“Well… when I looked at you and Suo… it just made sense.” He explained as he muttered, “She told me to put it into words, write it on paper or something to make it more tangible or whatever.”

“What makes sense? How does my relationship with Suo fit into this?” Nirei asked. This time, he fired one question after another like a gatling gun.

“I mean, it's pretty much there in the… the thing.”

“I don't get it.”

Sakura stared at Nirei, frustrated, “Did you even read it?”

“Hell no, I can’t read your chicken scratch.” Nirei deadpanned.

Umemiya watched the two thoughtfully before finally perking up.

“If it helps, I’ve read it.” The silver-haired boy said as he crossed his arms in thought.

“I mean, I definitely see the potential,” he continued, “and since I’ve seen the real thing, I definitely know where it’s coming from.”

“With all due respect, Umemiya-san, but what the hell are you talking about?”

Sakura stared at Nirei, confused. He didn't understand why the blond didn't get it. Didn't Nirei like Suo?

Finally, realization dawned on him.

“Nirei…” He started as he watched Nirei's brows furrow into a deep frown.

“You don't know how Suo looks at you, do you?”

Nirei stood outside their classroom door alone. If he was being honest, he was in a weird mood. He felt like something was wrong, but he didn't know what it was exactly.

He didn't know what kind of expression he should have once he entered the room, or what face to wear when it's time for him to walk over to Suo.

Recalling their moment at the creek, Nirei realized that he hadn't found the answer to Suo's question either.

Why should it be weird?

Nirei gulped as he stared at the door anxiously. He had gone over to the rooftop first thing in the morning in hopes to demand answers—or at least clarity—from Sakura, but he only came back more confused than ever.

“You don't know how Suo looks at you, do you?” Sakura had asked him.

“What do you mean?” Nirei asked him.

Before the boy could reply, Umemiya put a hand on Sakura's shoulder and shook his head.

“That's something Nirei should find out by himself, right?”

Nirei frowned at the memory.

“I thought Umemiya was supposed to give bad advice,” He grumbled under his breath.

With a resigned sigh, he mustered up all of his courage and slid the classroom door open. His eyes scanned the room anxiously to find the usual faces in there. All but one.

“Huh?” Nirei started before he could stop himself, “Where’s Suo?”

“Heya, Nirei.” Tsuge waved from across the room. Next to him were Anzai, Kakiuchi, Takanashi, and Kiryu all gathered around him in a circle.

“Woah, full house.” Nirei absent-mindedly said, earning him a laugh from Takanashi.

“It’s a weird group, that’s for sure.” The boy laughed, throwing his head back at the gesture. 

Anzai gestured for Nirei to come over, and the blond obeyed. As he approached them, his eyes wandered around the classroom, looking for the brunette’s silhouette.

Kiryu watched Nirei scan the room and smirked.

“If you’re looking for your better half, he went out around an hour ago.” Kiryu told him.

Nirei flushed red, but pointedly ignored the comment, “did he say where?”

The pink-haired gamer shrugged.

“‘Dunno. He didn’t say.”

Nirei hummed thoughtfully before taking the spot next to Tsuge so that he had a good view of the door. You know, just in case.

Kiryu’s smirk only got wider, mischief written all over his face.

“Aww, look at him. So cute.” He mused.

The blond cocked a brow at him, “what?”

“Nothing,” he said as he waved it off dismissively, “I’m sure you’re just keeping an eye out.”

Takanashi stared at Kiryu, confused.

“Dude, what are you talking about?” He asked.

“He’s saying that Nirei’s acting like a housewife waiting for his husband to come home.” Kakiuchi offered helpfully while snickering under his breath.

Nirei flushed a deep shade of red.

“I am not a housewife!” He angrily exclaimed.

“Yeah, yeah. Whatever helps you sleep at night.” Kiryu replied dismissively.

“Which reminds me,” Tsuge piped up, “the second years were calling Nirei ‘Suo’s Wife’ or something.”

The group gaped at him in silence.

“Dude,” Anzai finally started, his voice reprimanding, “that was like a Hollywood secret.”

“Oh, for real?” Tsuge asked him.

“Yeah, dude. That’s the kind of shit you don’t say around Nirei.” Kakiuchi added.

“It’s totally fine if he’s not here, but like—”

“I’m right here!” Nirei yelled out, his face fully flushed.

The group stared at the blond, the amusement growing in their faces the redder Nirei got.

“Dude, he’s so red.” Takanashi snickered, “He could give Sakura a run for his money.”

“Speaking of, isn’t Sakura the new titleholder for Furin high school’s official baby girl or something?”

“Designated baby girl. Get it right, Tsuge.”

“But yeah, Tsubakino already made the announcement. The ceremony’s going to be held this Friday, and everyone’s being made to gather for the hand over event.”

“Does Sakura even know?”

“I doubt it.”

At this point, Nirei’s not even sure why he bothers to get so flustered. Knowing this group, their attention deficiency was something you need a behavioral counselor for.

Silently, he made peace with the fact that he will never be able to keep up with them in a conversation.

“Oh, but before I forget,” Tsuge started excitedly as he turned towards Nirei.

“What do you like about Suo?” He asked.

Nirei stared at him blankly, “what?”

Takanashi snickered.

“Dude’s totally fishing right now.”

“What? The second year students kept asking, so I wanted to know too!”

“Well, yeah, but that’s still so mean. You wouldn’t ask a girl why she likes her crush or something.”

“Nirei’s not a girl though?”

“Yeah, but he totally has a maiden’s heart.”

“Doesn’t matter, I still wanna know!”

Nirei froze when they all looked at him with the eeriest synchronicity, as if they were a hive mind sharing one brain cell.

“So what do you like about Suo?” They asked in unison.

On a normal day, Nirei would’ve found that absolutely creepy. But considering how he’s in the hottest seat in Japan, and how they’re waiting for him to reply… he just lost his grip on reality.

“He's…” He started. 

The group held their breath in anticipation. 

“Suo… he's…” Nirei clamped his eyes shut, yelling out his next words in embarrassment. 

“Suo’s an amazing fighter!”

They stared at him in disappointment.

“Dude, that’s so boring—” Takanashi started. 

“He’s a reliable friend!” Nirei continued. “A competent and skilled teacher!”

At this point, Nirei was grasping at straws. It was so much easier earlier to admit these things to Sakura, but to these guys? It was a whole other story.

Unable to stop himself, Nirei continued on his endless tirade to defend his respected teacher's honor.

“He's one of a kind! Anyone who'd become Suo's life partner would have to dedicate the rest of their lives thanking the stars every night for the opportunity to be a part of his future!”

Nirei panted, chest heaving as he struggled to keep what was left of his composure. The group simply stared at him, barely masking the look of disbelief and amusement on their faces.

“What?” Nirei asked.

“Dude,” Kiryu snorted, “all you had to say was ‘I love you.’”

“Oh, fuck off!” Nirei threw his hands up in the air in exasperation.

“Hey, lay off the guy, Kiryu.” Anzai chuckled as he put his hand on the gamer’s shoulder.

“Finally! A voice of reason! Thank you, Anzai!” The blond sighed in relief.

“After all, it's an important step to boyhood.” Anzai explained while the others nodded in agreement, accepting the explanation as it is.

Nirei paused as he stared at Anzai in horror.

“Oh,” Kakiuchi started as he gaped owlishly at Anzai in realization, “Oh my God, do you mean—”

“So what if he wants to get railed by Suo from the back? Big deal! It's a great time to experiment.” Anzai continued cheerfully, his words brimming with encouragement.

Nirei stared at him in disbelief. Anzai was talking as if getting stuffed was on equal footing as dabbling in various fighting styles. Actually, Nirei wasn’t even sure why he was following this conversation.

Suo was... with someone like him... impossible! Insane! Absolutely batshit fucking crazy!

And just like that, something in him snapped.

“Are you insane?!” Nirei shrieked, “If you had a single thought in your head that was generated by a single goddamn brain cell, maybe you'd think a little!”

Before Nirei could stop himself, he found himself shrieking the next few words at the top of his lungs.

“Have you ever considered that maybe, just maybe, I'd want to do the railing?!”

Silence fell inside the classroom, all conversation hushing to a stop.

Nirei panted heavily as the group of boys simply gaped at him, completely dumbfounded.

“Woah, Nirei.” Tsuge started slowly, “I never thought…”

“Yeah, I’m with Tsuge for once. I never pegged you to do the pegging.” Kiryu added.

“Yeah, you seemed more like the type who would want to be embraced.” Anzai agreed.

“You know, like a pillow princess?”

“I don't know what that is, but it'd make sense for someone who carries the label of ‘Suo's Wife.’” Kakiuchi added thoughtfully.

“Oh, is that where the whole ‘Missus Suo’ came from?” Tsuge asked, shifting his gaze to Kakiuchi.

“Hmm, probably. Actually, yeah. Maybe.” The other boy said as he put a finger on his chin, “I think someone started it in Tsubakino-senpai's faction. Jikoku Team, was it?”

“Oh! So that's why some kids from class two always ask me for Missus Suo when they really mean Nirei.”

The boys continued to talk among themselves as if he wasn't even there. Nirei didn't know which heat was stronger, the rage that burned in his chest or the intense heat on his face.

But enough was enough.

“Having fun?” He asked, his voice dipping into a dangerously low pitch.

They froze. For some reason, the group couldn't find it in them to turn their heads while their faces burned hot and cold from the side where Nirei stood.

“S-sorry, sir.” Tsuge stuttered nervously as he broke into a cold sweat.

“We got carried away.” Anzai added.

“It will never happen again.”

Nirei harrumphed in temporary satisfaction. He may be the weakest link in the school, but it felt good to have some of the stronger guys in class bow to his rage.

But seriously, did he even want... to do that with Suo?

Nirei's cheeks flared a deeper shade of red, mirroring Sakura's usual blushes.

Hold on.

Sakura?

Suddenly, Nirei's head cleared, as if the answer to his questions simply presented itself in front of him.

Sakura started all of this. Him and his god damned BL fanfiction. That degenerate caused this entire mess, so he better be the one to fix it.

An ominous laugh escaped Nirei's lips as his face darkened mischievously.

If Sakura won't bend, well... There's always other ways to get a guy to break, aside from physical violence. Nirei will make sure he gets one of Furin's strongest to bow to his will.

The boys shared a nervous look among each other as they watched Nirei gradually lose his mind in front of them.

Think we're off the hook? Tsuge's eyes seemed to say.

I don't know, but we better get outta here before he notices we're gone. Takanashi replied telepathically as he nodded his head to the door.

They all nodded in agreement. Without another word, the boys slowly took a step back. Quietly, they all snuck away from the blond's line of sight.

You’re going to fix this, Haruka Sakura, Nirei thought darkly as his chest rumbled in a low chuckle.

There's no use escaping. I know where you fucking live.

Chapter Text

Click.

Ren Kaji tapped on his phone as he settled on a playlist to end this morning’s patrol. Adjusting the headphones on his head, his face relaxed when the muffs finally sat comfortably on his ears. 

The melody quickly poured into his ears, the trap beat drumming against his eardrums. Ever so slightly, he nodded his head to the beat before shifting his gaze lazily to his vice captains, Yuto Kusumi and Takeshi Enomoto.

He leisurely walked over to them, relishing in the lyrical flow of the American rapper that was playing as he watched Enomoto promptly knock the shoplifter out cold.

“Wait, huh?” Enomoto blinked as the guy dropped to the pavement, unconscious.

“My bad, didn’t mean to hit ya’ that hard.” He muttered under his breath, his apology falling on deaf ears as he got up.

Kaji quietly fell into step next to them, staring blankly at the limp body as Enomoto grumbled about how he’s going to have to carry the bastard to the station.

"Just leave 'im." The blond said, popping the lollipop out of his mouth with a quiet 'pop,' before he shifted his gaze to his other vice captain—who had his eyes glued so intently on his phone screen.

As if feeling his gaze, Kusumi looked up. The boy tried to wave Kaji's curious look off dismissively, a weak attempt to reassure him, before throwing an alarmed look at Enomoto.

“What?” Enomoto asked. Kusumi simply shook his head in reply, despondent.

Kaji raised a brow at the interaction, but didn’t prod further.

Wrapping up their patrol, the three began to make their way back to the school in silence. As they walked, Kaji couldn’t help but become more aware of how restless Kusumi was behaving.

The boy’s face grew paler every time he snuck glances at their path, noting how much closer they were to campus before ducking his head to look at his phone.

As soon as they reached the school gates, Kusumi audibly gulped. Frustrated, Kaji whipped his head towards the boy.

“Stop being so fucking weird and be out with it!” He exclaimed in irritation.

Kusumi quickly cowered behind Enomoto, trembling slightly as he stared at Kaji in fear.

“Dude…” Enomoto sighed before shifting his full attention to Kaji.

“What?” The blond asked a little too forcefully, cringing slightly at the volume.

“Before we go in there, there’s something you should know.” He said.

“What is it?” Kaji asked, his brows furrowing into a frown.

“Promise me you won’t get mad.”

“Take too long and I just might,” Kaji spat as he shot them a glare.

Enomoto and Kusumi shared a look, then released a deep sigh.

“Well…”

Nirei liked to think that he still had a semblance of conscience left in him. So after he put up the material that could very well be detrimental to Haruka Sakura’s running for Furin High’s Designated Baby Girl title—not that the boy even knew about it, he did feel a little guilty.

Well, a little. If you call that miniscule pinch he felt in his heart when he stared at his life’s work posted all over the school bulletin board in satisfaction. 

He had snuck into the school the night before to carry out his deed and promptly left, unnoticed by the roving students who were hanging out. Still, it had to be done. And what’s done is done.

Perhaps the blond did have a death wish. 

Maybe he just bought himself a one-way ticket on the express lane to his inevitable doom. Maybe Nirei loved the thrill that comes from having his life in immediate danger. He wasn’t sure where he got the confidence to be so reckless with his mortality, but somehow he was persistent to laugh at death in the face.

The original plan was just to stalk Sakura outside of school and ambush him at the entrance. Plan B was just cornering him at either Cafe Pothos or his apartment. But the boy was way stickier than Nirei expected.

Days had passed and despite their reconciliation arc, Sakura was still nowhere to be seen. Ultimately, he had forced Nirei’s hand.

Nirei was sure no one saw him that night. So can someone tell him why Suo had him pinned against the wall with absolutely no way out?

“W-woah, hey t-there, Suo!” Nirei stammered out, completely avoiding the boy’s eye. 

Somehow, due to an incredible turn of events, he was trapped between Suo’s arms with his back pinned against the wall. There was a pleasant smile on Suo's lips, but a dark look in his eye.

“W-what brings you here in this fine establishment?” The blond asked, his voice cracking all the while.

They were in the far corner of the toilet in the first year’s corridor. If he screamed now, no one would really care. For Pete’s sake, Nirei just wanted to relieve himself in a stall, not in his pants.

Still, Nirei felt his hands becoming clammy with sweat. In fact, he couldn’t pinpoint why exactly he was sweating. Was it from his body heat given the proximity, or was it because of how close his face was to his? 

It felt a little inappropriate but Nirei was this close to having a heart attack, considering how fast his heart was pumping in his chest.

Suo didn’t reply and as the silence continued, Nirei felt himself grow more nervous every time he felt a hot breath of air blow against his cheeks. Slowly, he took a peek from underneath his eyelids, sneaking a glance at the brunette.

To no one’s surprise, Suo was staring right back at him—his gaze steely. In a blink of an eye, his gaze warmed up as his smile spread more genuinely.

“You’re finally looking at me.” 

Nirei paused, confused for a moment, before quickly glancing away. The red was starting to crawl up his neck and creep into his face. Suo hummed happily as he pulled away, completely satisfied.

If Nirei was being honest, it was painfully difficult to meet Suo’s gaze lately. Every time he does, the words ‘ruby’ and ‘gaze’ just flashes in his brain like a strobe light gone rogue. More often than not, he’d find himself fixing his eyes on a random object he can latch onto—sometimes the floor would make a great subject of his attention.

But, the number of times he completely flunked the new moves in every scheduled training session they had was alarming. Almost to the point that Suo asked if he wanted time off.

“S-Sorry. Got a lot on my mind.” Nirei muttered under his breath.

Suo simply smiled at him. He looked like he wanted to prod further, but with how tight-lipped Nirei was about it, he remained quiet.

Still, that doesn’t stop him from his mean streak.

“Understood.” He smiled as he reached his hand out like he usually did. Nirei stiffened at the gesture, but immediately relaxed when he felt Suo rubbing his head.

“So, now can we talk about why you have an oddly specific story up on the school’s bulletin board?” Suo held back a snort when Nirei flinched under his touch.

Looking up at him meekly under his eyelashes, Nirei laughed nervously.

“I take it that you know my work solely by my writing style?” The blond asked as he scratched the back of his head.

Suo paused, “You have an endearing way of using the word ‘basically’ a few too many times.”

Nirei cursed under his breath as he pulled out his phone and quickly tapped on the Google Docs icon.

“I knew the word started to sound weird towards the end.” He muttered as he scrolled through the document.

As much as Suo wanted to relish in the moment, he had an agenda to fulfill.

“Am I allowed to ask why our Grade Captain was the subject of your imagination this time?” The brunette asked, taking advantage of Nirei’s distracted state. 

Suo knew full well that he’d have an easier time getting an answer if the boy was preoccupied. As he expected, Nirei was very cooperative.

“Had to get my revenge,” was his curt reply as he bit on the nail of his thumb.

Gently, Suo trailed his hand down from Nirei’s head and gently took the boy’s hand out of his mouth. Still compliant, Nirei let him while the blond glared at the screen of his phone—as if the words committed a grave sin against him.

“Revenge?” Suo repeated as he maintained his tone so Nirei wouldn’t snap out of focus. 

“What for?”

“Bastard has to know what it’s like,” Nirei answered absent-mindedly.

Another thing Suo really liked when Nirei was like this was how his spatial awareness drops dramatically. If Nirei knew what he was doing, he wouldn’t be gripping Suo’s hand so firmly. Sometimes, the blond acting on his natural instinct was Suo’s favorite thing.

Suo stayed still with a pleasant smile on his face, casually intertwining their fingers as he clasped their hands together. Nirei allowed Suo to go as far, though admittedly, completely unaware. Still, Suo allowed himself to relish in the warmth between their palms at that moment.

“Crap,” Nirei finally muttered after some time, his brows furrowing to a deeper glare.

“Hmm?”

“There were like forty-seven ‘basically’s in there.”

“Arguably better than Sakura’s writing, don’t you think so?”

“That’s true.”

Nirei paused before whipping his head to look at Suo’s smiling face in complete and utter surprise.

“Wait, what?” was all he managed to say.

Coming back to his full awareness, Nirei’s gaze dropped to their interlaced hands. Like he had touched the hot surface of a stove, he pulled away as if he’d been burned.

“S-Sorry.”

Suo simply shrugged gently in reply, playing innocent.

“A-Anyway,” He started as he collected himself, “What did you just say?”

“That you have better writing than Sakura?” Suo replied, though it came off more as a question, “After all, his essays aren’t exactly very articulate.” 

Though Suo meant it as a clarification, he didn’t miss the way Nirei visibly relaxed after that.

Ignoring the way his hand burned from the absent heat, as if desperately missing Nirei’s warmth, Suo clasped his hands together behind his back.

“I have to say though, it’s an interesting couple to pair up.” He said thoughtfully.

Suo watched in great satisfaction the way Nirei squirmed under his gaze. It was a little dance he’d do when he’s embarrassed, ashamed, and guilty all at once.

“I-I stand by what I said,” Nirei stated with conviction, though the stutter gave away his true emotions.

“He needs to know what it feels like, having the entire school scrutinize your relationship with a friend like that.” He explained.

Suo didn’t know the context, but if he was being honest, that was a really poor justification. Still, the brunette was never the type to point out what’s right from wrong for a child—much more a teenager.

“Still, I have to admit,” Suo began, “Kaji-senpai was a bit of a weird choice for a male lead.”

“Really?” Nirei asked, doe-eyed. Despite having done something that basically sealed his trip to the afterlife, it seemed he still wanted feedback.

“I thought they had a good vibe going recently.”

“I agree, but if I’m being honest…” Suo trailed off, in thought. 

“I kind of got the impression that the choice was simply because you wanted to make the biggest splash in the pond.” He finally said after some time. 

“Perhaps the jump to the kissing scene was a little out of nowhere?” Suo added helpfully.

“Hmm,” Nirei hummed as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully, “Maybe it was a bit of a stretch—”

CRASH!

The sound of glass shattering was immediately followed by the most infernal scream Suo had ever heard—and it came from the corridor outside.

Nirei visibly paled. He knew that scream from anywhere.

“YA’ THINK YER’ SO BRAVE, DON’T YA? ”

A shudder ran up Nirei’s spine as he heard the familiar animalistic voice growl dangerously outside the door. His instincts were going absolutely haywire, like an animal trapped in a cage.

“Y’ALL FUCKERS BETTER FESS UP RIGHT NOW— ” 

Instinctively, he did what he thought would make him feel the safest. He latched on to Suo’s figure, burying his face against the brunette’s chest as his hands gripped tightly onto the fabric of Suo's school blazer.

“Perhaps you were a little too brave?” Suo asked with a soft laugh as he wrapped a comforting arm around Nirei’s trembling form.

“... ‘ut up.” Nirei mumbled onto his clothes, his voice shaking slightly as he hiccuped.

Suo simply chuckled as he gently stroked Nirei’s shoulder. He contemplated waiting out the storm, but with how Kaji’s booming voice was ruminating even inside the toilets, maybe they’d be safer outside.

“WHICH ONE OF YOU BRAVE FUCKING SOULS DID IT? ”

If Tasuku Tsubakino was being honest, dealing with the normally despondent Kaji was a pain. As social as Tsubakino considered himself, getting a proper conversation out of Kaji was like praying for the second coming of Jesus Christ.

Damn near impossible if he’s being blunt. 

Dealing with Kaji on a rampage on the other hand? It was tiers above Tsubakino’s pay grade.

Granted, Jikoku Team’s leader was paid with love and affection from their beloved leader, Umemiya, he would have to demand a few favors from Hiragi as well. Somehow, the personified shark was running late from his patrol and was still wrapping things up on his end. 

Tsubakino chuckled under his breath at the thought of the other heavenly king scrambling to get back to campus. However, his thoughts were immediately interrupted by the sound of a resounding crash and even more glass shattering.

Frowning slightly, he smoothened his skirt and flipped his hair over his shoulder. He made a mental note to drop by the salon to get some red dye. His ombre wasn’t as vibrant as he liked it.

“Come on, both of you.” Tsubakino said as he gestured to the Sakaki twins to follow suit, “We gotta keep the beast cornered until his owner arrives.”

Uryu quickly got up from his seat and trailed after Tsubakino’s long strides.

“Ehh?” Seiryu, on the other hand, whined audibly. Still, he quickly caught up and fell into step.

“I’ll have to be honest, I liked his personality better in that recent fic.” He started in complaint as he stretched his arms to warm up.

“Though, whoever wrote that had a better sense to actually type it up and print it out.” He continued thoughtfully, “the handwriting in the first one was such a pain to read through.”

Tsubakino bit the inside of his lip—a conscious habit he picked up whenever he was remotely stressed, to avoid getting lipstick on his teeth. 

Whoever wrote the new piece and posted it up for everyone to see was a different person. They had a more rounded style and definitely knew how to structure a story—plot and pacing and all. However, it was still a little too innocent for Tsubakino’s taste.

It lacked the passion, the heart-wrenching yearning a true protagonist should experience of what should be an unrequited love and the intense relief that comes upon realizing there’s hope.

It was a fluffy portrayal, sure. Did it have a good grasp on the characters? Arguably.

But at the end of the day, it lacked heat.

Tsubakino sighed, annoyed.

“Let’s make this quick,” He finally said as he adjusted his blazer, smoothing out the wrinkles, “We haven’t found the first author yet, either.”

“It’s almost been three weeks, Tsubaki,” Seiryu whined. “Are you even sure he’s from here?”

“Of course,” Tsubakino replied, his brows furrowing to a slight frown.

“How else could he observe Suo and Nirei well enough to depict their tiny habits?”

Seiryu looked up thoughtfully, then shrugged.

“Well, either he fesses up before Sakura’s coronation this Friday,” The boy said as the trio finally began to near the source of the rampage, “or we’ll have to get our hands on new content somehow.” 

Seiryu paused, as if realizing something, “New Author-kun seems promising though.”

Tsubakino shook his head as he felt his temple begin to throb, signaling an oncoming migraine.

If he was being honest—yes, the new author was good. But the first author? A diamond in the rough. Whoever they were, they had great ideas. Not to mention, they really had a good grasp on a couple’s (namely Suo and Nirei’s) individual psyches, and can execute their initial characterizations well.

Sure, the new author also had a great storytelling style, but Tsubakino was a character-driven story kind of girlie.

Plot-driven stories? That’s great and all, but have you had to hold back your whimpers as you read the protagonist wail in complete and utter agony over their beloved’s corpse? It hits way too differently.

The first author…they just knew how to naturally appeal to a maiden’s heart. Though, their writing style does leave a lot of room for improvement. Still, Tsubakino was convinced that with the right guidance, they could do more than just reach the shopping streets of Tonpu and the walls of Furin High. They could even take the entire island of Japan by storm!

Seiryu just doesn’t get it and quite frankly, it’s a waste of breath trying to.

“Though if I’m being real, I do consider myself a Game of Thrones kind of guy.” Seiryu continued, “Cersei’s development just slaps, you know what I mean?”

No shade to Game of Thrones, but Tsubakino just couldn’t help but roll his eyes. You don’t need a full-scale war to get your heart racing uncontrollably in anticipation. Fantasy fans will just never get it. Yes, he’s being incredibly biased, but he was all for contemporary supremacy in his honest opinion.

Crash!

Another crash—this time it’s louder—soon followed by screaming. The words were still too distant to hear, but Tsubakino can make out some of the conversation.

He shot the twins a look, and they quickly switched to a more cautious stance. They were pretty close to the scene now, and the group can’t help but feel worried.

They were in the first year corridors after all.

“... just want… or is it… some sick ploy… ”

Tsubakino strained his ears as hard as he could, trying to make sense of the conversation before they could come in to intervene.

“... maybe y’all… part of your revenge… out of it… ”

His brows knitted together deeply as he struggled to focus on the words. Kaji’s growling despite his screaming definitely did not help him enunciate his words clearly.

“Woah, that’s some pretty harsh accusations, if I do say so myself.”

Tsubakino’s eyes widened in surprise as he quickly turned around to find the source of the ever-so-lovely voice. To his surprise, his eyes caught in the familiar tuff of silver hair before finally meeting concerned ocean blue eyes.

“Umemiya!” He exclaimed affectionately, barely stopping himself from invading the boy’s personal space. 

“Hey, Tsubaki.” Umemiya greeted warmly as he gave the Sakaki twins a nod of acknowledgement.

“Woah, seriously?” Seiryu started loudly, “Kaji going insane actually summoned Bofurin’s Top Dog, the Hajime Umemiya, from the rooftop?”

“My chilis are growing well, so I’m just taking a break.” Umemiya laughed light-heartedly, “Besides, things are looking pretty fun here.”

That said, he then turned his head back, reverting his gaze back to the scene.

Following suit, Tsubakino finally looked at the source of the commotion fully. There, he saw Kaji and Suo standing across from each other in a heated discussion, while Nirei cowered behind the brunette.

Kaji would scream something while Suo would reply calmly while shielding the pale, trembling boy who hid behind him. Tsubakino quickly made a mental note how Suo had his other arm out, as if warning Kaji not to cross that line.

Which, of course, only pissed the older boy off more.

Suddenly, Tsubakino paused as he realized something.

“Will you be staying long, Ume-chan?” He asked, his energy of his tone immediately dropping.

“Because it’s okay! We got it covered!” Tsubakino quickly continued in an attempt to reassure him. To his surprise, Umemiya shook his head vehemently.

“No way!” He exclaimed, aggressively refusing.

“There is absolutely no way I’m missing out on a live performance between the school’s biggest couples right now.” He then glanced over at Kaji’s direction, “‘sides, I bet KajiSaku is coming for SuoNirei’s necks.”

Tsubakino had no idea if he should be concerned or elated that Umemiya is even aware of their official ship names. Then again, nothing really gets past the silver-haired boy when it comes to matters regarding Furin High.

As expected of the man Tsubakino loves.

Suddenly, a serious look washed over the boy’s normally relaxed face.

“Wonder who wrote the one about Kaji and Sakura though.” He thought aloud while he stared. 

Tsubakino shrugged as he stared at the scene, just as confused.

“It’s gotta be either Suo or Nirei.” Umemiya concluded after a while, laughing heartily while he was at it.

“After all, Sakura already let slip that he’s the one behind their couple fic.”

He froze. Slowly, he turned to Umemiya, an indescribable look sitting on Tsubakino’s stony gray eyes.

“What did you just say?” He asked.

“Hmm? What?” Umemiya asked, confusion written all over his face. Then in a split second, realization dawned on him.

“Oh, was I not supposed to say that?”

Tsubakino turned back to the scene as he watched Kaji slam his foot against the side of the shelves in the hallway, making Nirei yelp as he jumped like a startled rabbit.

“How should I know you fuckers aren’t lying?” The boy bellowed with an echo.

Tsubakino watched as Suo’s brows twitched slightly. It was obvious that the brunette’s patience was running dangerously thin with Kaji’s screaming. Tsubakino's eyes finally settled on the blond. He noted the way Nirei clutched onto Suo’s back, trembling like a leaf as he blinked back tears.

He should’ve known.

Seriously, Tsubakino really should have known. After all, who had better access to Suo and Nirei than Haruka Sakura?

Sure, he didn’t know what compelled the boy to do what he did, but had he just kept a better eye on his belongings, things wouldn’t have gotten this far. And considering Suo’s posture and Nirei’s body language towards the older grade captain? It reeked of guilt.

For real, Tsubakino should have known. Everything made total sense now.

For reasons he can't pin down, pride swelled in the boy’s chest as he finally straightened his back—dropping the cautious stance he had before. Flipping his long hair back, Tsubakino stuck out his hip as he leaned his weight to one side. Standing comfortably, he observed the three in silence.

“Should we intervene?” Uryu said, finally speaking up.

Tsubakino made a thoughtful sound as he watched. Without another word, he pulled out his phone and opened his messaging app, promptly opening Sakura’s texts.

In one fluid motion, Tsubakino sent the boy a quick text.

Come 2 first year’s corridors.

After a while, at what he thought was a snail’s pace, Sakura finally replied.

hah? His text read.

Tsubakino didn’t stop the smirk that spread across his face.

We r by toilets. He replied. Come quick if u don’t want ur beloved senpai 2 kill ur fave vice captains.

Again, he waited. And finally, after a good minute, a reply came.

…

fuck