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“Who’s the strongest in our class?”
The students in the dorm turned to look at the purple haired girl as the silence was suddenly broken, Junna seemingly lost in thought over the question.
“What brought that up all of a sudden?” Futaba asked with a hint of amusement in her voice, to which Junna shook her head.
“Just a random thought that occurred to me. We’ve seen many people’s physical stamina and agility, but there aren’t many points to show off pure strength.” Junna reasoned, a good point being raised. It was a way to break the stalemate that was that afternoon though, given that the practice rooms were closed that day and the class was stuck lounging around the dorm.
“Well, Futaba does swing that big axe around like it’s nothing. I doubt that’s just a one time thing.” Claudine added onto the discussion, with Maya seeming to nod. Futaba gave a quick shrug though, not one to necessarily brag.
“Yeah, but wasn’t Mahiru a farm girl or something? She’d probably be able to lift up a ton no issue.” Futaba argued. “And Banana feels like she’d be one of those sleeper strong people, like the one who doesn’t seem stuff but would wreck you, kinda like Mahiru.” She turned to Junna as she said this, looking for some sort of approval, to which she received a nod and a shy smile. Futaba pointed back at Claudine next. “You yourself are also pretty strong, Kuro. I’ve seen how you fight on that stage, it’s kinda crazy. Hell you almost crushed Hikari that one time!”
"That wasn't on purpose!" Claudine argued, torn between feeling proud and embarrassed, with her admittance of it being unintentional only adding to Futaba's argument as the tomboy gestured incredulously at her.
"I’d have to say Nana, just from personal experience throughout all the times she’s helped me with moving things from stage props to supplies, and whatever else I’d need help with.” Junna chimed in. “I’m sure if Karen and Hikari were here, we’d be hearing more about Mahiru though.” she added which called to attention the absence of the two wild children, the others agreeing with Junna’s observation. Maya seemed to be nodding along with the answers given as the girls listed off their final suggestions, before clearing her throat.
“What do you think, Momoi-san?” Maya asked, turning to the idol who was sitting a bit away from the group. To Maya’s surprise, the idol just scoffed and shook her head.
“Did you think I was just gonna say you because you asked?” Airi said, an amused smile coming to her face, something Maya couldn’t help but take a bit of offense too. She was secretly hoping that she would be mentioned among her peers as one of the strongest. Even if she thought the others deserved their shoutouts as well, she still wanted to be in the running. However, there is something to be said about Maya, she never backs down from a challenge. With a deep breath, she rose quietly, the dorm’s eyes watching Maya intently save for Airi who was looking through her phone facing away from the group.
“Well, I suppose I’ll have to demonstrate then…” Maya said, making her way over to the chair Airi was sitting in with quiet footsteps, before using one hand to grab her by the scruff of her sweater like a cat, the other arm grabbing her waist as Airi straightened, her body going stiff.
“H-hey, what are you-?” was all Airi managed to get out before she cut herself off with a shriek as Maya effortlessly hoisted her up, placing her over her shoulder. Airi kicked her feet and tried to prop herself up as she stared daggers at the back of Maya’s head, her face igniting a crimson red that was even brighter than her hair color. “Maya! What the hell?!” she yelled at her mischievous girlfriend.
Maya, meanwhile, couldn’t look more proud. Placing her hand on Airi’s waist to keep her steady and leaving the other on her hip, she turned to the rest of the room with the proudest, most irritating smile on her face at her own display of strength, earning a few laughs and a few sighs. Airi was deathly embarrassed by the display, being unable to wriggle out of Maya’s hold, even if something about Maya’s strength and grip was… certainly appealing,. Before her brain stewed in any more thoughts, though, she was cut off by the sound of a very upset frenchwoman.
“Seriously, Tendou Maya?” Claudine said with a finger pointed at her rival. “Don’t think you can win with something like that, any of us could pick someone up here!” Maya’s grin stayed put though, even growing a bit larger, never a good sign when it came to those two interacting.
“Maybe you’d also like to demonstrate then, Saijou-san?” Maya said, with everyone in the room rolling their eyes, Airi included. They knew all it took was one simple taunt from Maya, and-
“Maybe I would!’ Claudine snapped at the challenge, and quickly marched out of the dorm’s living area towards a certain tiger’s bedroom. Just like that Claudine had taken the bait, and now whatever happened next was the whole dorm’s problem. A few of the girls there exchanged worried looks with each other, and some with Airi, although she just shrugged it off, as when Maya got competitive like this sometimes it was a bit fun to play along.
Eventually, some yelling and quarreling was heard from outside the halls, an obvious outcome considering who Claudine was dealing with. When Claudine came in with a pissed off Taiga under her arm, needless to say there was a gasp of surprise from the dorm. Taiga was a difficult force to tame, and the ash-blonde had managed to do the impossible, although not without some effort if the disheveled hair and clothes were anything to go by. Maya’s smile only grew as she saw Claudine was up to the challenge, the glare shared between the two growing brighter than ever. Meanwhile, the Palmtop Tiger and idol being carried exchanged a look of immediate understanding, and some very relatable words were shared from that glance alone.
“Never date a competitive theater kid.”