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So much to do, so little time. Those were the thoughts that permeated the minds of Mitsuru and Akihiko since their third year of high school started. Both had been diligent in their academic and extracurricular endeavors, but the time left, or lack thereof, weighed especially heavily on the shoulders of the two third years. Akihiko was determined to win as many boxing tournaments as he could; they could very well be the last tournaments he ever won. Mitsuru, however, was adjusting herself to the prospect of running one of the largest businesses in the country. She needed to be prepared to take over the company as soon as possible lest anything unforeseen were to happen to her father. All this normal stress combined with their ventures into the tower every couple of nights made for two very tired seniors.
Late at night, after exploring Tartarus, once the other dorm members went to bed, the two bumped into each other downstairs during a particularly inconvenient bout of restlessness. They both let out a relieved sigh at the sight of each other. All manufactured images of competence and professionalism seemed to fade when it was just the two of them talking together. They had been friends since childhood, after all.
“Couldn’t sleep?” the redhead asked the boy.
“Afraid not,” he answered curtly before adding on a more tender note. “Mitsuru… do you ever think we’re stretching ourselves too thin?”
“What do you mean, Akihiko?” she stepped a bit closer to him, looking up a bit to meet his eyes.
“I mean… everything, really. We’re going into Tartarus, you’re the student council president, and we’re both planning for our futures after this,” he answered, looking away briefly before looking back at her again. “Sometimes, I feel like I’m looking so far into the future… I can’t see what’s right in front of me.”
“I assure you, everything we do now is simply placing us at an advantage for later,” she assured him while gently straightening his nightshirt.
“I understand that… but there are so many things that it feels like we’ve missed out on. Things most normal students have. Neither of us have been in a real relationship yet. That’s something every high schooler has experienced.” He kept his voice quiet so as not to rouse the rest of the dorm.
“That is entirely your fault,” she chuckled, “do you know how many girls are tripping over themselves to win your heart?”
“You of all people should know I won’t settle for just any woman who throws herself at me,” he answered seriously.
“And pray tell, what must a woman do to win over the hard-to-get ‘Akihiko Sanada’?” she teased him. “What standards would you hold your partner to?”
“Well, a woman I’d want to be in a relationship should be intelligent, sensible, and-” he cut himself off as he realized he was about to describe Mitsuru herself. He saw that teasing smirk crawling onto her lips and quickly reversed the question onto her. “Well, what about you? What traits would you desire in your partner?”
“I’m afraid that my opinion doesn’t hold much authority in this circumstance,” she replied solemnly as her expression fell, “I am already promised to Hokaku Sha. He is another prominent son of a businessman.”
Akihiko knew that would most likely be the case, after all, she was the heiress of the largest corporate organization in the country. Even still, the prospect of seeing her in a loveless marriage made his heart hurt. Or maybe it was simply the thought of seeing her with another man.
“I imagine you aren’t thrilled with this, Mitsuru?” he asked, trying to keep his voice steady.
“I’ve made my peace with the arrangement, don’t worry about me.” She forced a smile to reassure him. The uncomfortable feeling in his chest grew stronger, he had to do something. If he wanted to change this outcome, he had to act right now. His nerves evaporated in that moment, and he held her shoulders.
“Don’t marry him.” Akihiko’s determined tone and firm hold on Mitsuru’s shoulders caused the slightest of a flush to rise in her cheeks, unnoticeable due to the dim light.
“And… what do you suggest I do instead?” she struggled to keep a stutter out of her speaking, “I couldn’t simply refuse my family’s wishes this blatantly without someone to take the place of my fiancé.”
“I’ll take his place, then.” He held her just a bit tighter.
“Aki…” She brought her hands up to hold his face. “Don’t promise me that if you can’t keep it.”
“I will keep it.” Another burst of desperate boldness forced the next words out of his mouth, “I love you, Mitsuru.”
Tears welled up in the corners of her eyes at his confession. One that she had been waiting for since she was just a girl.
“I… I love you too.” She wanted this to work, she wanted to be with him. She knew her family would never approve of this, but for once, she threw caution to the wind. She slung her arms around his neck and kissed him, Aki held her waist while their lips danced together.
After finally pulling back for a breath, the two looked from each other’s eyes to the clock. It was far past midnight.
“We should be off to bed, then.” Mitsuru untangled herself from him, regaining her composure.
“Right,” he nodded, “thank you… Mitsuru.” The two walked up the stairs to the second floor where the boys slept. Mitsuru was about to go up to her floor when she heard Akihiko struggle to open his door.
“Is everything all right?” she asked, checking on him once again.
“My door’s locked.” He tried it once more, to no avail, “looks like I’m sleeping in the lobby tonight.”
“Nonsense.” she took his hand, leading him up the stairs to her own room. She closed the door behind them.
“I appreciate the hospitality, Mitsuru. But isn’t this a bit… improper?” Akihiko looked around her room, then to her.
“Of course not. It is only one night, and I will be sleeping on the floor anyway.” Mitsuru answered, laying out a blanket on her floor.
“You can’t be serious,” he sighed, “I’m the one invading your room; I’ll take the floor.”
“I don’t mind, Aki, truly.” She assured him again.
“I don’t rightly care if you mind or not, if you don’t take the bed, I won’t either.” He stood adamant about the sleeping situation. The stubborn student council president sat down on the blanket she laid on the floor. The boxer wasn’t about to give in either. He stripped some more of the sheets off the bed and laid down next to her on the ground.
“You’re ridiculous,” she huffed with a smile, looking at the boy lying next to her.
“As are you,” he replied, closing his eyes. She shut her eyes as well, before they fell completely asleep, their hands found each other’s. They drifted off together hands and hearts bound together.