Work Text:
Akane was tasked with delivering new books to the school library, apparently being in the student council is a free pass to do the work of every club with lazy members on it.
Akane huffed, getting a better look at the box overflowing with stacked books in his hands before putting them in their respective shelves. He was still at the start of his task when he spotted the youngest Minamoto hunched over the library table, furiously scribbling on a paper, glaring at his notes as if he was in the middle of a serious battle.
“Kouhai?” Akane’s eyes widened “You’re already studying?”
That’s admirable, there are still three weeks before exams start. Maybe his judgement that Kou was the type to only study with the pressure of deadlines hanging over his head had been mean of him.
“Aoi-senpai!” Kou startled, being too loud for a library “I am doing english homework!” He shone with pride, the sweat on his brow glistening as he showed Akane his homework “I am almost done.”
Akane nodded, a bit distracted by his radiant enthusiasm but pausing once he actually read Kou’s answers “You got the first one wrong.”
He knows Kou is from a grade below his, and it would be unfair to compare him to his genius of an older brother, but the question wasn’t hard, he just had to conjugate some verbs. Is Kou stupid?
Kou froze, the light in his eyes going dim “But the verbs end with ‘ed’,” He tapped a notepad full of messy scribbles “So ‘runed’ is right! It sounds right too.” He sweated at Akane’s dead inside look “...Is it written with two ‘n’s?”
“That’s not a rigid rule.” Akane said “Runed sounds like something related to runes, the past tense of ‘run’ is ‘ran’, English rarely has set rules.”
Kou bit his lips, looking at his questions again, judging by his distress he generalized a lot to finish things quickly “Thank you senpai, I’ll… Give it a better look.” He erased most of his answers, focusing on the paper.
“Good luck.” Akane offered, taking the rest of the books to their correct place and sighing in relief when his task was finally done. There is no student council today so he should be free until the keepers start annoying him. Akane stretched and passed by the library tables again, surprised to see Kou still there, he seemed stressed, so Akane decided to check on the kid before going home.
Kou had corrected the first question, and the other verb questions were right, but a lot of his answers were still wrong or worded weirdly. He’ll need more than luck to nail this.
“You suck at this.”
Kou flushed at his dry tone “Shut up! I-I’ll get it right this time!”
Akane glanced at the eraser shaving all over the table, proof Kou had worked hard to find these wrong answers. “This time.”
Kou flushed harder at his raised eyebrow, his glare as intimidating as a bunny.
He is so different from Teru, be it their attitude or the effortless way Teru solves all problems, Akane is still in disbelief that they are related.
(He finds it rather pitiful to struggle so hard with an English sheet, but he can’t deny Kou’s determination is inspiring. Most people would just give up after two failures, but Kou was willing to re-do everything again and again if needed)
Akane looked at his wrist watch: 3 pm.
He still has time before the clock keepers force him to slave the evening away like a glorified maid. He could use the time to do his own homework, he should use it for homework but...
He glanced at Kou’s trainwreck of a problem sheet again, feeling an annoying urge to help him, an urge that will pester him for the rest of the day if Akane ignores it.
“I’ll help you.” Akane offered, pushing a seat on the other side of the table and sitting down “What gives you the most trouble, Kouhai?”
Kou’s glare immediately dropped, facing his tired face with shiny eyes “Senpai…” He seemed touched, if embarrassed, “I got the pronouns and the adjectives.” He showed the problems with these subjects and Akane nodded, they were right “It’s the conjugation that’s tricky.”
“Get your school book” Akane said, sure it wouldn’t hurt to go over the basics again “Let’s read the right explanation, glaring at your messy notes won’t fix this trainwreck.”
Kou bristled, embarrassed by the jab.
Heh…
He is so easy to rile up.
.
Akane simplified what the book said in more organized notes, and Kou paid full attention to what he highlighted and what he skipped. Despite clearly not having any particular interest in English, he took the study session seriously: Everytime Akane asked him a question to see if he was still listening, the boy straightened up, and he could imagine golden dog ears snapping in attention on top of his messy hair.
It was refreshing, Lemon always had to be dragged away from his phone even when he was the one begging for Akane’s help, no matter how hard he tried to keep his friend focused, it was clear Lemon was more focused on missing his games than studying.
Kou was quick to prove Akane exactly how much he sucks at school work, some of his answers vexing, some so stupid Akane had to hold back the urge to slap him for not absorbing anything he taught him (Teru would have killed him if he laid a hand on his precious little brother), but progress was slowly being made. By the time Kou started getting his answers right, Akane found himself smiling and fist pumping the air with Kou, infected by his enthusiasm.
When every answer was eventually correct he gave Kou a pat on the back “You got it!” He patted him again, this time a bit harder, soaking in his excitement. “Wacha!”
"Thank you for everything Aoi-senpai!” Kou smiled, fangs on display. What a pure smile… “You are much better at this than Hanako!”
“No problem” Akane smirked, “If you ever have trouble again, you can ask me for help, don’t rely on that slimy pervert.”
“I won't!” Kou nodded, his smile falling when he saw Akane’s watch “It’s so late!” He shoved his books in his bag “I need to go!” he put his bag strap over his shoulder and spared him another big blushy smile as he rushed away “see you, Aoi-senpai!”
Akane waved, checking the time and sighing. 4 pm: It’s cleaning time.
.
Despite his enthusiasm, Kou didn’t seek him again for homework worries, likely just going to Teru if he wanted his studies to be checked. He asked and Teru confirmed his suspicion.
By the time exams loomed over them, Akane had forgotten about his offer to help Kou, drowning in many books. It was relaxing, to highlight the important parts of his studies and write down explanations, but after hours of doing this it started to get real tiring.
His phone started ringing, Kou’s number greeting him.
He let go of his pencil, and accepted the call.
“Aoi-Senpai!” His underclassmate yelled, forcing Akane to put his phone away from his ear “I need help with math!!”
“Are you only studying now??”
“I was busy!” Kou sounded pained, and Akane does vaguely remember Yashiro disappearing for a week. Kou must have disappeared with her, that’s why Teru was so stressed.
“Supernatural nonsense?”
“Yes.” Kou said, his voice a bit tight, refusing to elaborate. He must not be having any luck increasing Yashiro’s lifespan.
“Those are the worst.” Akane sighed, looking down at his books. He hasn’t finished revising everything for next week's exams, but Kou's distress painted a sad mental image. Akane would feel bad if Kou got a bad grade despite trying to work on his abysmal study ethics.
Akane toyed with the idea of lecturing him through the phone but Kou likes to stare when he talks, occasionally becoming so focused on the wrong trail of thoughts that he needed Akane to slam his book on the table to startle him out of it.
“...I’ll go to your house, be there in a few minutes.”
“Thank you, senpai!” Kou said, he could picture him bowing in gratitude. “I'll do my best!”
.
Kou greeted him with a lion t-shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his shoulders and a headband that reminded him of shrines “Aoi-senpai!” He stopped blocking the door once Akane took off his shoes “Come in! My bedroom desk is a bit small so we will be studying here.” He guided him to a clean dining table with two books, one open in a page full of equations. “You can check my problems, I’ll go get us some water and a snack.”
Akane nodded, focusing on the books when he said “Thank you, Kouhai.”
.
His math was abysmal.
Coming here was a mistake.
Akane was tempted to slam his head on the table when Kou got back, holding a plate of takoyaki and wearing a radiant smile “I made us a snack!”
Akane squinted his eyes at his sweet aura, feeling a little warm. These damn Minamotos are all charming, but unlike the president, Akane chooses to trust Kou’s angelic aura, allowing himself to lower his guard and take one of the takoyakis.
Akane was rewarded for his choice, a small bite enough to get an explosion of flavor in his mouth. This is the best takoyaki he had ever eaten even better than restaurant ones! He took another bite, blushing a little “Thank you.”
Kou smile widened.
Akane wonders if he knows how to make sweet pies too, if his raspberry pie is as good as his takoyakis Akane would die to try it out. He should save one for Aoi too, she has been distracted recently but she always appreciates good food.
Akane smiled at the mental image of Aoi’s sparkly eyes and blushy face when she got a good meal. “These are so good, thank you Akane-kun <3” Aoi would say with an adorable smile “I should visit Minamoto-kouhai and ask him for more <3”
Akane felt a hint of jealousy at where his own scenario went but focused on the joy in this hypothetical Aoi’s eyes.
Kou is a safe presence, a good kid who would never make her uncomfortable or pursue her, the exact opposite of the devil he calls a brother.
As if summoned by the mere thought of him, Teru walked down the stairs with his sword bag on his back, wearing a white kimono and a big smile “Do I smell takoyaki?” He picked up the pace, jumping two stair steps at a time “I want one!”
Akane paled, his sense of safety crushed.
No, absolutely not! Aoi is not visiting Teru's house. He doesn’t trust the president with her!
“I left some on the table for you.” Kou took the plate out of Teru’s reach, pointing with his head at the kitchen.
“Yay.” Teru said, his joy mixing with confusion when he locked eyes with Akane “Aoi? What are you doing here?”
“Minamoto-kouhai needs help studying for his exams.”
“Help…?” Teru frowned, heartbroken, “I can teach you, Kou.”
“You’re busy Teru-nii.” That’s rich, Akane is busy too, you know. “And Aoi-senpai doesn’t go easy on me, I learn more!"
Teru looked like he wanted to argue but he just pouted harder “I can be stern…”
"Not enough." Kou shoved a takoyaki in his mouth.
Teru frowned, his bad mood gone as soon as he started chewing the treat. He blushed at the taste and turned towards Akane with a sparkly smile, immediately putting him on guard “Have fun, Aoi!”
Akane gave him wary looks until he was out of the house, having not expected Teru to work during the weekends too. What a brutal job.
“Well then.” He relaxed, taking another bite of his takoyaki and grabbing one of Kou’s books. The rich flavor on his tongue soothing him. “Let’s start.”
“Let’s!”
.
After becoming decent at math, Kou opened his history book, forced to put a pause on their study session as soon as the washing machine stopped. He excused himself to hang the wet clothes while there was still sun outside. Akane offered to help but was dismissed, taking the break as an opportunity to go over Kou’s notes.
It seems history is one of his strongest points. He got the events that happened, the names of each eras, and their rulers right, occasionally mixing up the timeline of events but nothing atrocious, his spirit was in the right place.
Kou came back with some flans. “Tiara reminded me we still have a few flans. You can have some Aoi-senpai.”
Akane isn’t a fan of flan, but it looked so shiny he had to try out one, surprised by the rich taste. That’s pretty good. This boy really can cook anything, is like magic. “Not bad, kouhai. You got a bright future as a chef.”
Kou chuckled, his smile not reaching his eyes. “I guess. Teru-nii told me the same.”
Akane raised a brow at the lack of enthusiasm from the most enthusiastic boy he knows. Does Kou not like cooking…?
(That’s a shame, he would like to take Aoi to a restaurant with this brand of unforgettable food in the future.)
“Senpai, do you want to take a break before we continue?”
“Already?” Akane frowned, “We still have a lot of material to study Kouhai, let’s finish history first.”
“... The entirety of history?” Kou eyes widened, gulping at his stern look “Y-Yes sir!”
Kou sweated at his highlighted page but dutifully stuck his nose back on the pages.
.
Akane slammed a book on the table, making Kou jump “Break time.”
Kou slowly nodded, exhausted.
The young exorcist looked outside “It’s getting late. I need to take the laundry inside.” Kou got up “Are you going back home Aoi-senpai?”
“I have time. We should recap everything before I go.”
Kou nodded, taking the empty flan plate off the table “I need to start dinner soon, but we can study after.” Kou said “Teru-nii won't be here until past midnight, so he probably won’t have dinner.” He’ll take that long to come back? Is this normal for his job? That’s… concerning, actually. “But if you don't mind his absense, you can eat with us.”
“That would be nice.” Akane pushed the new information to the back of his head, understanding a bit better why Teru is so stressed, even if he still despises his assigned ‘job’ as his stress relief. “Thank you, kouhai.”
“Is there anything you want for dinner?”
He shook his head, unaware of what ingredients Kou had available. “No.” He doesn’t want to risk saying something that would make Kou want to go take a grocery trip just for him “Do whatever you think I’ll like.”
“I’ll do my best” Kou promised, and Akane could tell from the fire in his eyes that he really would.
He is a good kid.
After washing the flan plate, Kou went out to get his family clothes and started folding them with expertise.
He is really good at his chores, he would be a great husband. It speaks volumes of how stupid the average student in their school is that Teru is the Minamoto people want to marry.
Akane nodded to himself, casually voicing his thoughts, "You’ll make a good husband when you’re older, kouhai”
“W-well!” Kou got flustered, waving his arms “Thank you, senpai.” He slowly stopped flailing around, his blush growing weaker. “I can say the same about you.You’re mean, and kind of weird, but you’re a really nice guy!” He gave him a thumbs up “You’ll make a good husband!”
“He he~” Akane hummed with delight, picturing him and Aoi with matching rings, being given a kiss on the cheek when he got back to their future home and having the honor to cook for her. “I’ll do my best~”
Aoi deserves the best after all <3
The very best...
Akane paused, realizing something. He turned towards Kou at neck breaking speed, grabbing his shoulders. “Kouhai!”
Kou tensed up “Yes sir!”
“Teach me how you cook!”
“Hum?” Kou's eyes widened. “You want to learn how to cook??”
“I want your secrets.” Akane corrected, considering himself a pretty decent cook: mom and dad are usually not home so he learned to make everything from simple sweet snacks to proper meals, but Kou doesn’t just cook, he makes magic. “Tell me how you cook.” Kou sweated, “and I’ll help you make dinner.”
Akane vibrated, proud of himself.
He’ll make Aoi the best bentos in the world, able to put her at ease even when she can’t open up about her problems. He’ll be the amazing husband she deserves and get to eat food closer to this quality level for himself too! Is a win win!!
Kou seemed a mix between scared and flattered “You come here just to help me study,” Kou gave him an awkward smile, still sweating “I can’t make you help with dinner too-”
“I can, let’s go!” Akane dragged Kou into his own kitchen, determined to learn something.
.
“Hum, senpai” Kou lingered by the door while Akane put on the spare apron and a headpiece, ready to cook “I don’t have raspberries.”
“Raspberries?”
Akane wasn’t aware Kou liked raspberries too.
“?” Kou seemed confused by his confusion “Don’t you want to make Akane-senpai raspberry pie? You said it was her favorite.”
Akane stared, touched that he remembers his ramblings about Aoi when he can’t remember half of what Akane taught him ten minutes ago. “I can buy raspberries and come back tomorrow for that.” Akane smiled, patting his shoulder “We can study while it bakes.”
Kou nodded, blushing a little.
.
“Add two spoons of olive oil to the pan and crack 3 eggs” Kou yelled, opening a cupboard and passing him a bottle of olive oil before rummaging around and holding a half empty bag of rice. “And make sure not to let any of the shell fall in!”
Akane nodded at the obvious instruction, vaguely noticing the olive oil he was given was from a far fancier brand than the one he has at home.
.
Kou seemed relieved by his egg frying skills. Poor guy, Tiara and Teru must have lowered his standards drastically.
“No need to fret kouhai, I know the basics.” Akane flipped the egg just to show off, a little endeared by the way Kou looked on in awe despite likely knowing how to do this ten times better “Treat me as an assistant.”
Kou made a strange face, somewhat pensive. “An assistant… ”
“But do correct me if you know a better way to cook something.” Akane gave him a sharp look, pointing his spatula at him, the metal tip nearly hitting his nose. “I would like at least one Minamoto to make my life easier.”
Kou startled “Yes, sir!”
And so it begun.
It took a while to get into a nice pace, for Kou liked to keep an eye on Akane’s cooking, or worse, give him the most minimal of tasks in a clear attempt to somehow cook the entire dinner himself. It took glaring at him to get into the proper role of an assistant.
Whatever Kou asked, Akane did. Whatever tool Akane needed, Kou put it by his side. They got into a nice rhythm.
“You’re chopping it wrong.” Kou said gently. “You need to make the cucumber pieces thinner.”
Thinner? It’s already thin.
Kou is the chef here, so Akane did as told anyways, taking more time but cutting it thin enough for each cucumber slice to become semi-transparent.
“That's a good cut!” Kou praised. “But you’re making it harder for yourself, don’t hold on too tight to the knife, senpai.”
Akane did as asked, but it felt worse. “I need a grip on this to cut Kouhai.”
“No, not like that. That’s too much.” Kou's smile fell as he got closer, focusing on his hand “Let me show you.”
Kou held on to Akane’s wrist, the sudden clinginess catching him off guard. Akane watched in disbelief as Kou kept his eyes on their hands, gently adjusting Akane’s hold on the knife and tilting it to a better angle.
“If you cut it like this it will be faster.” Kou explained, guiding Akane through the motions and giving him a dazzling smile, “See?”
‘See what? That we are basically holding hands??You’ve been spending too much time with that toilet pervert.’ Akane thought.
But Kou’s smile lacked the malice he sees in Teru’s charming smiles or the mischief burning in honorable No.7's eyes. The boy is simply happy to teach him after being his apprentice the whole evening, and since Akane was the one that ordered Kou to correct him, it felt.... mean to judge him for it.
Akane sweated, swallowing the urge to say something that would likely ruin the comfort they built sharing this kitchen and focusing on the actual lesson he was being told, following the moves Kou wanted him to do and blushing at how easily he could cut this way.
Wow... Kou really knows what he is doing.
Kou let him go when he got a hang of it, and pointed at one of the cupboards “When you finish here, let them soak in shōyu.”
“Yes, chef!” Akane nodded, back on track. Kou smiled, rushing to the oven to add seasoning to the cooking rice.
Kou is usually a pretty reserved boy, touch wise, but the kitchen makes him bolder, liking to be near: He very rarely holds Akane’s hand to explain something but he always hovers to check if there is any trouble. He helped Akane sift the flour in the quickest and least messy way by adjusting his hold. And he brushed their shoulders when he explained how to season the salad, taking a moment to notice and awkwardly take a step back.
Akane got used to it relatively quickly. It’s hard not to pay attention to what Kou says when he is so close, and it’s easier to figure out how to do something when Kou guides him step by step. Once he got used to the clinginess it was just a good teaching method, even a kid could learn it.
Akane watched Kou work with awe, he is so young and already so skillful, while Akane had cracked some eggs, separating the yolk at Kou’s request, his under-classmate had already taken the bones off the fishes and cut them into perfect fillets.
“Is the yolk ready?” Kou smiled, taking it from his hands, “Thank you, senpai!”
Akane nodded, watching as Kou put the fish on the sifted floor, then brushed it with the yolk and put a thicker flour over it. He looked at ease in the kitchen, focused yet calm, no longer a kid stumbling over equations, but a skillful chef able to read even complicated recipes.
He really is the exact opposite of Teru.
Akane noticed a hint of flour on his face, pointing at it. “Kouhai, you got flour on your face.” He frowned “And hair.”
Kou showed his dirty hands, which would turn any attempt to clean himself into a bigger mess, and gifted one of his usual radiant smiles “I’ll clean it after I fi-” Akane grabbed a kitchen towel and cleaned his cheek, amused by the way he sputtered, blushing brightly “S-senpai!”
“What?” Akane raised a brow, ruffling the flour off his hair too and letting a hint of his amusement seep into his voice, “Are you the only one allowed to be touchy here?”
“...Touchy?” Kou said slowly, his eyes widening as understanding hit him “I wasn’t! I didn’t mean to!” He blushed hard, stumbling backward with horror in his soul “I u-usually cook with my sister.” He waved his hands, avoiding eye contact and sweating even harder. “It’s a force of habit” His voice got higher pitched “I wasn’t trying anything, you just, er, ah, you were in the wa…y I just-” Kou paused his barely coherent rambling and flustered energy turning into shock “Wait…” Kou gave him a judgemental look “You let me hold you!” He blushed hard again, palpably uneased. “Why didn’t you say anything?!”
“I was going to, you’re unreasonably clingy.” Akane admitted. After learning he likes Yashiro’s screams he stopped trying to assume only wholesome things about his quirks. He may be a cute underclassman but he got some of that Minamoto sadism in him. “But it does make it very easy to learn. I don't mind anymore.”
Is not like Kou holds him too tight, or smells bad, he just teaches, occasionally touching him but never fully pressing himself against him.
(It’s kind of nice to be given a clear and gentle lead compared to the usual ‘here is a problem, deal with it’ approach his classmates throw at him. Not that he will ever admit something that embarrassing to his impressionable underclassman.)
Kou made a displeased face, his cheeks still bright red.
Heh…
Akane smirked “You can keep doing it.”
The kid predictably acted scandalized, taking a jumpy step back and growing bright red.
Akane chuckled. He really is too easy.
“Let's get back to cooking chef.” Akane turned his back on the flustered boy and focused on the oven “Our rice must be nearly done.”
“R-right!” Kou followed him, trying to check the food without getting too close when Akane took the rice’s lit off.
There was a clear effort to not touch him after Akane called him out, slowly showing Akane how things are done and letting him mimic it later.
It wasn't as easy as when Kou literally guided him by the hand but if Akane paid attention and worked hard he could do it. Kou tried to simplify everything, but Akane was still amazed by how many steps and dedication Kou puts into his dishes.
By the time they finished the salad, the potatoes, the vegetable rice, and the omellete, Akane's mind was racing with little things he learned. He needs to write it all down.
.
Tiara came to check on them, but after stealing a few tomatos and a few cucumber slices, talking to herself about feeding "fairy" something other than candies, she went away again.
.
“All done!” Kou smiled, “Now we just have to wait until the fish sticks are done!”
Akane nodded, finishing his notes on what he learned under Kou’s guidance and smiling to himself. What a productive cooking session.
He closed his notepad “Let’s go back to study?”
Kou's smile dimmed, but he still nodded, determined.
“Alright!” Akane said, clenching his hand into a fist “We can recap everything by tonight! Let’s finish this Kouhai!!”
“Lets!” Kou awkwardly mimicked his enthusiasm.
Their moment was interrupted by Akane’s phone beeping.
Akane inwardly rolled his eyes. Teru was busy with patrol, so it must be Lemon asking if they had homework... He grabbed his phone, lighting up at the blessed sign of Aoi’s icon shining with two new messages.
> Where are you?
> (Attached below the message was a sticker of a bunny looking around confused.)
Akane softened. A tiny blush on his cheeks.
I’m helping Minamoto Kouhai study! <
I’ll be back pretty late tonight. <
> Okay.
There was a pause before she started writing again.
> Don’t stay up all night studying, Akane-kun.
Is she worried about him? How sweet!~
“Is that Akane-senpai?” Kou asked, sitting down on the living room table, butterfly style.
“It is <3” Akane blushed, little hearts floating above his head as he sent her reassurances he won’t lose sleep over finals.
Aoi reacted with a smiley sticker, so she must have been put at ease.
“Something good happened?”
“She texted me!” Akane slid to his side, ignoring the loud sound of his chair scraping the floor to show Kou the figurines. “Isn’t her texting style adorable?”
Kou looked at his phone and mindlessly nodded.
“She is so cute.” Akane pointed out, a heart still occasionally floating above his head “The pinacle of beauty <3”
Kou sweated, his nod slow.
“Her smile is the best~”
“It’s kind of bland.” Kou blurted out, his expression not changing.
Akane froze, offended on her behalf “Bland??”
He knows Kou doesn’t have a crush on Aoi, bless his heart, but bland? Bland???
Is he blind? Is he insane??
“N-Not that that’s a bad thing!” Kou corrected himself in the face of his disbelief “It’s still very cute, senpai!” He reassured, as if anyone ever had doubts about that. “Just not my type.” He scratched his cheek, smiling awkwardly “It feels kind of…. Distant.”
“You have a smile preference…?” Akane crossed his arms, somewhat impressed he noticed Aoi is closed off despite how sweet and inviting her smile looks. Kou is pretty sharp.
He doesn’t get his tastes though, how can Kou not understand the joy of seeing a disarming smile from someone that doesn’t give their emotions away freely? It’s a life changing experience every time he witnesses Aoi’s genuine joy, her deep purple eyes crinckled and filled with light.
Kou nodded, blushing a little at his piercing look.
“Hummm” Akane leaned closer “What kind of smile do you like?”
“...Nice smiles.”
“Nice?” Akane raised a brow at his vagueness “Like big smiles?”
“Yeah” Kou blushed, “Really big and gentle… The kind that lights up a room.” His eyes dartded to the table, becoming more shy by the second “O-or something...”
He thought about Kou’s radiant smile, the ones that are so big that he has to close his eyes to make space for it, and tried to picture Aoi this happy. Akane blushed at the unfamiliar sight, getting a flutter in his chest just thinking about it. “Not bad.” he approved, hoping to one day make her that happy “I get the appeal.”
Kou got more red, but he perked up at the approval. He is weak to praise, isn't he?
Guess his crush on Yashiro makes sense. She wears really big smiles when she gets excited, and it doesn’t take much to make her happy. She is kind as well, even if her brand of optimism doesn’t work on Akane, he can see she spreads it with good intentions.
Speaking of which.
The last he heard of these two, Kou was down about something probably Nene's lifespan and she invited him to the festival.
“How are you and Yashiro doing?” Akane asked. “I haven't seen you two rushing to the toilet this week.”
“We are good! But we don't have time to play.” Kou said with a tiny blush, raising his arm and rolling up his already rolled up sleeves into a tank top “We need to beat up our finals to avoid remedial courses!!”
Akane nodded, having noticed Yashiro mumble about her life being over if she got remedial courses during their most recent classes. Not that it made her stop daydreaming during the teachers lectures…
Sometimes Akane worries about her.
…Kou too, it must be hard to have a crush on someone fated to die.
“Will you ever confess to Yashiro-san?” Akane asked.
The kid is reckless but for as obvious as he is, trailing after Nene like a loyal puppy, he never explicitly flirts or touch her all that much, though the latter may be honourable No.7’s fault, the ghost is always clinging to her and trying to keep others away from his assistant.
“S-senpai!” Kou startled so bad he lost his hold on his pencil, frantically trying to retrieve it before it fell to the ground and clutching onto it, sweat rolled down his face.
“What?” Akane raised a brow “Do you think she’ll hate you if she learns you like her screams?”
“No!” Kou flushed, clearly regretting having ever shared that “I j-just…” He held on tighter to his pencil, his frantic energy abruptly leaving “Senpai likes Hanako.” Kou got quiet, his mood swing a bit worrying. “I don’t mind!” Kou smiled as best he could at Akane’s frown “I know Hanako wants her to be happy. He is… Scummy, really scummy, but he is a good friend, he’ll always be there for her.” He was still smiling, but it didn’t reach his eyes “I am not strong like him or Teru-nii, I can’t really help her… Not with the things that matter haha.”
“You’re fourteen, of course you’re unreliable.” Akane pointed out, ignoring how his words pierced through Kou’s chest “But you are no pushover kouhai, you should give it a shot. Even if you've proven to be too good to be her type, I think she will still appreciate being told you love her.”
If sitting right in front of Yashiro has taught him anything it's how much she wants to be swept off her feet, always full of daydreams about reciving love letters and being confessed by a handsome boy on the school rooftop
“I would rather not. Senpai already has a lot in her plate.” He sweated at Akane’s narrowed eyes, raising his hands in surrender “She wouldn't want a confession from me anyways.”
“That’s cowardly Kouhai, you need to at least try!" Akane frowned "It’s better to be rejected than to never know and regret it.” Kou didn’t seem convinced so Akane gave him what he hoped was an encouraging smile. “If she doesn’t love you back, I’ll take you to the park to get your mind off.”
Kou’s cheeks got a bit red again, but he seemed mostly weirded out. “...Do you want me to be rejected?”
Akane raised an eyebrow. Please, he is being the textbook definition of a supportive upperclassman, how did Kou come to that conclusion?
Unfortunately, Kou didn’t seem to agree, hit by a realization that made his blue eyes be filled with pity “...Did Akane-senpai reject you more than usual toda-”
“Ao-chan has nothing to do with it.” Akane cut him off, “I am trying to make you go on another date with Yashiro-san here.” Which shouldn't be this hard?? This sucks, he'll never try to be a wingman again “Work with me.”
“Another?” Kou's eyes widened.
“Didn’t she give you handmade muffins and invite you to the summer festival last month?” Akane blinked, certain Nene went through with her invitation but unable to confirm it, Akane didn’t go to the festival after all, Aoi hadn’t accepted his invitation.
(He wasn’t that hung up about it, Aoi has never been the biggest fan of crowds. It’s on him, he needs to think of a better place to take her. A first date needs to be special.)
“T-that’s just senpai being nice! It doesn’t mean anything.” Kou scratched his arm at Akane’s incredulous look “We ended up going with Hanako and Yako-nee to a boundary festival instead.” Kou calmed down, his eyes sparkling softly. “It was nice, I hope we can go to a festival together again, I’m sure Mitsuba would like it too, we should…” he trailed off, his smile falling as he got lost inside his head.
“Kouhai?”
“Hum? Sorry… I got distracted.” Kou smiled awkwardly, “That was just a hang out, Aoi-senpai. Not a date.”
Akane frowned at both his clear attempt to end the topic, and at his lack of annoyance. Shouldn’t Kou care more that his date with Nene was crashed? Or did he not consider it to be a date at any point?
Come to think of it… Kou never gushed about Nene, he just let Akane do all the talking.
…Suspicious.
“Kouhai.” Akane said slowly, analyzing his face “Do you not like Yashiro-san anymore?”
“Of course I do!” He defended, filled with passion and confidence but no stuttering “Nene-senpai is amazing!”
“Reeeally?” Akane stared at his troubled face and the way he avoided eye contact, getting another suspicion “Is there another girl?”
Kou froze, taking a moment to recover from his shock. “No!” He got offended “Senpai is the cutest girl in school.”
'No, that’s Ao-chan.’ he thought, but felt no urge to state the obvious “A boy then?”
Kou froze.
Akane blinked, a tad surprised “So it is a boy.”
“It’s not like that.” Kou protested with an edge in his voice, not denying there is a boy in his mind “He is a nuisance at most!-” Kou sweated, glaring at his scattered books and lowering his voice “No one in their right mind would like a guy like that.”
He hasn't seem Kou this troubled before.
“It’s alright Kouhai.” Akane gave him a friendly smile, taking pity on how restless the kid was getting, Kou's hold on his pencil turning his fingers white “You don't have to worry,” Akane waited for Kou to look him in the eye to give him a thumbs up and a wink “I'm an ally!”
(The less boys pestering Aoi the better!)
Kou bristled. “I said I don't like him!” He raised his voice, pointing a finger at him “Stop!”
Akane blinked at his strong denial, a bit worried “Does he suck that much?”
“Yes he does!”
“...Is it Honorable No.7?” Akane gave him a piting look. “My condolences” Akane can’t imagine a worse fate. “Seeing your two crushes falling in love like that… It must suck.”
“It’s not Hanako!” Kou hissed, incredulous “What are you talking about??”
“Then who is it?” Akane asked, frankly not knowing many of the people Kou hangs out with.
“You don’t know him.” Kou confirmed.
“Is it Mitsuba?” Akane guessed, hearing the name a few times from Nene too.
Kou eyes widened, instead of agreeing or disagreeing he sweated, looking at the ground with palpable unease “...I don’t know.”
“Don’t know?” Akane frowned.
Kou gave him a strange look, leaning closer and opening his mouth, only to close it and shake his head “It’s nothing. We should go back to studying.”
“...We should.” Akane agreed, but he couldn’t shake off the feeling that Kou was hiding something. He had been so sure the thing that had gotten him down was Nene’s lifespan, but now he can tell there is more to it.
He should leave him be, Akane got a lot on his plate too after all, with Aoi, and the clock keepers, and his final exams, but Kou looks lost in thought, staring at his history book without processing a single word he read.
He can’t study like this.
“Minamoto-kouhai.” Akane started, not sure how to offer advice on something Kou doesn’t want to share, but sensing enough weird vibes from his situation to know there is a lot being hidden “Don’t get mixed up with bad company. People worry about you.”
Kou blushed, looking more ashamed than encouraged. “It’s my friend who got mixed up with bad company.” Kou frowned, looking down at his fists with a troubled expression “He acts cocky but he is super naive, he relies on this stupid shrimp like I’m not good enough for him.” Kou got angrier “He is a pain in the ass.”
‘You sound like a jealous boyfriend’ Akane thought, amused.
“Then beat the shrimp.” Akane said, his bat full of spikes never failed him, he is sure Kou’s raitejou can clean up trash just as effectively. “Show them what you got!”
“I tried.” Kou deflated “I am not strong enough.”
“You’re not?” That’s surprising. Akane doesn’t remember much of the incident where the students got zombified and addicted to candy because Kou’s hit nearly gave him a concusion, his raiteijou as hard as a steel bar. Kou’s reflexes are no joke either, a normal person would have a hard time dealing with the young Minamoto.
Which means…
“They are supernaturals.” Akane deduced, crossing his legs.
Kou nodded.
“...Is Mitsuba” Or whatever his name is, since even Kou isn’t sure “a supernatural too?”
Kou nodded.
Akane sighed, of course his new friend is also a supernatural. “You don’t hear a thing me and the president say, do you?”
“...Not all supernaturals are bad.” Kou defended, “They are just different.” Kou looked at him with a focused calm that made him feel a little older “They didn’t have an easy afterlife so they give up easily. When they hurt people… They aren’t happy about it. It’s not what they really want.”
Akane scoffed, that doesn’t sound like the supernaturals he knows.
The mokkes are always gleefuly stealing his stuff, Mirai and Kako love to smile at his misery, making sure to annoy him day in and day out, Kako is a stubborn prick when he sets his mind on something. They act like twisted versions of human.
Kou closed off, avoiding eye contact, which is no good.
“I’m not going to try to make you stop being buddies with supernaturals” Akane admitted, smart enough to recognize a losing battle “Just be careful, kouhai.” he crossed his arms “If you get a lot on your plate, don’t hesitate to call me. I got 15 minutes of power, I can spend 5 on whoever you want to beat up.”
Kou seemed surprised. “Call you?”
“You’ll keep meddling with supernaturals, won’t you?” Akane gave him an unimpressed look “And if your friend is with supernaturals even you consider dangerous, I would rather you not get caught into trouble alone.” Kou was looking at him with wide eyes, so he admitted he also benefits from this “Besides, It’s always good to have your brother owe me one. He will have no choice but to treat me better if I save his cute little brother~”
“Aoi-senpai…” He couldn’t tell what Kou was feeling, his cheeks slightly red, his eyes conflicted. “Thank you…?” Kou got restless, more similar to his usual jumpy self “Can you not tell this to Teru-nii? O-or anyone” Kou said. “I don’t want them to worry over nothing.” He clenched his fist, getting some of his fire back “I got this."
Akane is pretty sure this isn’t nothing, but Kou looks determined again, despite the lingering anxiety “...Sure, Kouhai.” He nodded, “This stays between us.”
Kou beamed, his genuine joy making Akane relax “Now, back to study?”
Kou slapped his cheeks twice, more at ease “Back to study!"