Work Text:
It’s Not You, It’s Nirei
Suo x Sakura
…
“Yeah, I got a call from Suo-kun yesterday…he was devastated. Never heard the guy sound like that before.” Nirei said solemnly, as if he were delivering news of a national tragedy.
…This was only partially true. Yes, Suo had called him. Yes, he had a tone that was different than normal…but no, he was not ‘devastated.’
“Oh no…should we be worried?” Tsugerua sighed, his voice much quieter than anyone was used to. “They’re our captain and vice captain, after all.”
“No, no.” Nirei reassured, waving the boy off. “Just give them a little time…things will work themselves out, soon enough.”
It was a wonder that he could lie so smoothly, the tone of his voice nor his facial expressions giving away the faintest clue that he was telling a very fleshed out tale; spending too much time with Suo could be to blame for this.
Anzai, sitting in his chair backwards, looked at Nirei in bewilderment. “It was so short, though! I was sure they’d be endgame.”
“I know! Suo was super into Sakura last week!” Tsugeura lamented, clutching his chest as if he were the one experiencing heartbreak.
Nirei nodded, feigning sorrow. “Oh yeah, Suo-kun was really excited about the whole thing, planned a date for them and everything.”
“So it was Sakura’s fault then?” Kiryu chimed in. “Unsurprising. Suo’s clearly the romantic type, whereas Sakura…he’s anything but.”
Biting the inside of his cheek, Nirei kept a laugh from erupting from his throat. Now, he understood why Suo was the trickster he was…it was fun messing with people. But in his conscience, he knew he didn’t have the willpower to lie to them for too long; he didn’t have Suo’s stamina for chaos, and he knew that he would start feeling bad soon. Before he got out another word, though, Suo had entered the classroom, all of the boys turning and looking at him with a knowing silence.
“Hey, buddy.” Tsugeura said softly, tilting his head to try to see Suo, who’s bangs fell over his eyes.
He walked with the slightest slouch in his back, his feet almost scraping against the ground as he moved. Though Nirei was planning to end the lie soon, he knew he wouldn’t have the chance at present…not when Suo was in his mischievous mode.
“Good morning.” He shakily responded, the sound of tears threatening to fall at any moment heard in his voice. “Hope everyone had a good weekend…”
As Suo’s head came up, the blood nearly drained from everyone’s faces. Suo’s eye looked bloodshot, puffy, as if he had been crying all night; he softly sniffled, the sound cutting through the silence, like a dagger to the heart. Nirei watched, in awe, at his performance…this guy was a monster.
“Dude…” Anzai whispered in disbelief, half a mind to escort him to the guidance counsellor “Hey, hey don’t cry.”
He softly stood, both he and Tsuguera hovering with a hesitant hug.
“Sorry everyone. I’m just going through a rough time right now.” Suo sniffeld, rubbing his eye for dramatic effect.
“Don't worry about it! We’ll get through this together, right guys?” Tsuguera soothed, the rest of the class screaming out words of encouragement.
“We got you, Suo!”
“We’re here for you!”
“You’ll be okay!”
As the two boys hugged Suo, he caught sight of Nirei’s eyes, seeing the pure fear on his face. Suo swallowed a laugh, as the two let him go.
“I know, I know. Nirei-kun consoled me last night, so thankfully I feel a bit better than I did before.”
…This was only half true. Though the two had talked, there was no consoling…and yes, he felt better than before, but only because now, he was relishing in the thought of Sakura’s mortified confusion, when he walked into class.
“It’s just…” He softly sighed, a cloud covering the sun momentarily, casting a theatrical shadow across his face. “...I guess I wasn’t good enough.”
“Don’t talk like that!” Tsugeura bellowed. “You’re a gentleman, a total chad!”
“Yeah, Suo.” Kiryu chuckled. “I know a charmer, when I see one.”
“Just because Sakura couldn’t see it, doesn’t mean someone else won’t.” Anzai nodded, arms crossed over his chest.
The door opened, a lazy figure slipping through the frame before walking to his desk. Sakura’s hands rested behind his head, a bored yawn escaping his mouth. He may not have been public enemy number one before he entered, but seeing him without a care in the world…yeah, that changed things.
“...The hell is wrong with you guys?” Sakura sighed, his hands coming to the pockets of his pants; he had no idea why they were all looking at him, piercing him with judgement, but it was creeping him out.
No one said anything, Suo softly clutching his chest, looking away from the two toned boy, before being guided to his seat by Anzai.
Sakura ruffled his eyebrows, looking at the scene. “What’s your deal?”
“I don’t know.” Kiryu started, side eyeing Sakura. “Maybe he’s still processing things. Pain affects people differently.”
“Huh?” He looked at Suo, who managed to give him a sly smirk, without anyone else catching him. “There’s nothing wrong with him, look!”
As the class looked back at Suo, they saw him, seated like a wounded prince.
“Hey, man, denying someone’s feelings isn’t cool.” Tsugeura scolded. “He’s going through a lot right now. You know that.”
Sakura’s eyebrows furrowed, before looking at Nirei, who pretended he didn’t see him, the blonde biting back another laugh. Maybe letting it go on for a little while longer wouldn’t hurt…
“Yeah, Sakura. You may be fine, after the breakup, but let Suo process his emotions in peace.” Nirei softly added, shooting another mischievous smirk at Sakura, without anyone noticing.
And that’s when it clicked…this had something to do with what happened last week. Sakura felt a blush creep across his face, embarrassed, flustered, agitated… these guys were really dumb enough to believe that?
He had thought they were going along with Suo’s game to tease him, but did they really think their relationship was real? And even worse, they believed that they had broken up, and he was the problem? In what hypothetical situation would he ever be the reason for their breakup!? ...Not that he would ever consider dating Suo in the first place…
Finally finding his voice to speak, Sakura yelled. “Oh come on! You guys really fell for Suo’s game!? Are you insane—”
…The bell rang, the students filing in their seats to prepare for class, Sakura left standing like a fool. Pushing past him, Sugishita shook his head in disappointment, before walking to his seat. Even he was against Sakura…which was probably the least surprising thing, out of all of this.
…
“You guys are the worst!” Sakura shouted, burying his hands in his palms, as if to hide from the sheer amount of emotional damage he had received today.
It was now lunch period, the three boys sat in the stairwell outside of their class. Amused, Nirei and Suo sat across from Sakura, Nirei munching on his bento box, as Suo leaned his head against the wall; he had a smirk so smug that it should be illegal.
“You know how people are.” Nirei softly spoke, in a voice too innocent to be trusted. “They take their ships very seriously.”
Sakura lunged toward Nirei, gripping his shoulders like a man possessed. “Oh don’t do that! This is totally your fault!” He shook his friend with each word. “This is all your fault! You told everyone your stupid little lies and now the entire school thinks we broke up!”
“We didn’t have to break up, you know.” Suo slyly eyed him. “I told you it didn’t have to be just for one night.”
Sakura looked up at Suo with half a mind to kick him, a bright red blush on his face, as he remembered that night.
Seeing his face, Suo tossed his hands up in surrender; he could clearly see Sakura at his limits. “Okay, okay. Don’t take it all out on Nirei, I’m at fault, as well.”
“Oh don’t worry, I’m blaming you too, you sick and twisted freak!”
Suo, nearly keeled over from the laughter, found the accusation amusing but didn’t even attempt to deny it. “It was too good of an opportunity to miss out on!”
“You should have seen the look on your face!” Nirei giggled, nearly choking on his food.
“You made me look like an evil person!”
“Honestly, you would be an ideal fit for a romcom villain.” Suo added, playfully looking the boy over. “It’s something in your face that just gives that energy.”
Sakura was seconds away from ascending into the astral plane, his frustration was so intense. But then he saw it…salvation. Or so he thought.
A familiar mop of blonde hair entered his sight, the sound of loud music leaking through his headset.
“Kaji-senpai!” Sakura screamed, scrambling to his feet, like a drowning man spotting a lifeboat. “You’ve got to help me! They’re lying! The entire class, probably the entire school by now, thinks we broke up, but we were never together!”
Kaji paused, a complacent look on his face, as he slipped one ear out of his headset. For only a moment, he looked over the chaotic trio, before speaking.
“I’m good. I don’t get in the middle of relationship drama.”
Then he slid the headphone back over his ear and walked away, his gait slow and unfazed.
Sakura collapsed back down onto the floor, watching his last hope disappear down the hallway, in despair. Then the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch.
He looked up at the two devils in disguise, their innocent smiles making his eye twitch. “You guys are fixing this. Right now. Or I swear I’m gonna actually crash out.”
As they all got up, Suo looked over at Nirei with a chuckle. “We’ve had a good run…but I’d rather not see him demonstrate what he calls an actual crash out.”
…
Sakura stood at the front of the classroom, his arms crossed so tight, his shoulders reached up to his ears. After a moment, Suo came into the classroom, his face solemn, as if about to deliver bad news.
“Everyone…I have something to tell you.” He started, Sakura praying that he would actually be serious, for once. “About Sakura and I’s breakup…”
The class looked up, attentive as their vice captain spoke; eyebrows collectively raised, when the word ‘breakup’ was spoken.
“...It was Nirei’s fault.”
“What!?” Nirei leaped up, a chorus of gasps spreading through the classroom. “You’re gonna throw me under the bus!?”
Suo held up a hand, like a wise leader silencing his followers. “He misinterpreted my words, during a very emotional phone call.” He paused, as if taking a moment to collect himself. “Sakura-kun and I were only dating for like, a day…technically…but we never officially broke up or anything. Nirei just embellished.”
The class was staring at Nirei now, a look of disbelief on many of their faces, as they had been taken for fools. Nirei softly squeaked out a ‘sorry, guys’ before nervously sitting back in his seat.
“So…you guys weren’t together for real?” Tsugerua softly spoke, breaking the confused tension.
“No!” Sakura yelled, exasperated by this point. “We weren’t dating!”
A silence hung over the class once more, before surprisingly, Sugishita was the one to break it, looking around the room before finally speaking.
“...Maybe you guys should consider it.”
Then, the room exploded.
“Yeah, I mean they act like a couple, already!”
“Their chemistry is unmatched!”
“SuoSaku for life!”
“Might as well make it official!”
Sakura slid down the wall, dramatically, his soul visibly leaving his body, as he sat, deflated, on the cold floor.
“I can’t do this anymore…this is my villain origin story…”
Nirei slid out of his desk, going to pick Sakura up. “I told you…you know how people are about their ships.” He chuckled.
“So…” Suo started, leaning against the wall next to Sakura. “…Are you free this weekend?”
“...I’m gonna kill you.” Sakura responded, his eye twitching furiously.
“This is your way of flirting, right?”
Flinging his arms at Suo, Sakura tried to grab at him, but he simply took a step back.
“I’m more of an acts of service kind of guy…but I can make an exception~”
It took everything in Nirei’s smaller frame to hold Sakura back, but after much coaxing, many apologies, and a promise of omurice after school, he eventually went back to normal…kind of.
…