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Bells from the school speakers signaled the end of class, and for Yomi, it was a good opportunity to catch up on reading a magazine from her bookbag.
Tomo, on the other hand, shot up from her seat and skipped over to her fellow Knuckleheads to consult each other about their lunch situation.
“Alright, you two,” she pointed, “It’s YOUR turn to fetch us lunch!”
“Hell no! Osaka and I paid for lunch the last couple of days already, it’s YOUR turn to pay up now!” Kagura retorted.
“Tsk tsk tsk,” Tomo wagged her finger, “Kagura, my dear, need I remind you of who got the highest score on the test this week? Oh yeah, that’s right, ME!” she grinned, pointing her thumb at herself, “Which means I don’t have to pay for lunch until the next test! That’s the deal we made.”
As Kagura became increasingly frustrated at Tomo, the Wildcat leaned in to pour salt on the athlete’s wound, “If you don’t wanna keep paying, you just have to get smarter! But that’s already a tall order to expect from someone who's all brawn and no brains, huh?”
Kagura growled, “Why you-”
“It’s gonna be a’ight, Kagura.”
She turned her head to the Osakan who rested her hand on her shoulder.
“Ah actually like having these lunch runs with ya! We a’ready don’t hang out all that much just the two of us, so ah don’t mind getting lunch for Tomo!” Osaka beamed.
“I don’t mind our walks either, but I DO mind how light my wallet is getting,” Kagura grumbled, blushing lightly, “...Let’s just get going.”
“Cyaaaa! Don’t get lost on the way to the cafeteria!” Tomo waved at the two as they shuffled their way out of the classroom.
Being physically incapable of being still and alone with her thoughts for more than two minutes, Tomo turns towards her next target of torment.
“Heyyyyy-”
“What is it now?” Yomi cuts her off with a deadpanned tone without averting her gaze from the magazine, “Need next week’s notes for the test or something? Think again because I’m done helping you get a free lunch.”
“Jeez, what’s got you so prickly today, Miss Yomi?” Tomo teased as she sat herself on her desk, right on top of her magazine.
“Wh- I was in the middle of reading that!” she barked, her patience decreasing and irritation rapidly increasing from dealing with the usual nuisance, per usual, of course.
“Haven’t you heard the saying Miss Yukari tells us allllll the time when we don’t pay attention in class?”
“When you don’t pay attention in class?” She corrects.
“Yeah yeah,” Tomo flicks her wrist dismissively, “You know what Miss Yukari says to that?”
“What.”
“Umm…” Tomo pauses and ponders for a moment before continuing, “Well, I don’t exactly remember what she said, but you oughta look at people when they talk to you, yknow!”
“... Of course you don’t remember. Now shut up and MOVE, you moron, I was in the middle of reading this month’s dietary page. I’m trying to lose a few pounds before the summer.”
Before Yomi could yank the magazine back, Tomo grabbed her wrists and leaned her face closer to hers.
“Wha-” Yomi’s cheeks flushed from the sudden closeness.
“Not so fast!” Tomo’s grin widened. “Why don’t you talk to me some more?”
“Because you’re annoying and I was in the middle of reading?” Yomi reiterated and turned her head, leaning back from the Wildcat, but Tomo’s face only got closer.
“What’s wrong, Yomi?” Tomo further teased, “Now you can’t even look at me! Did the Wildcat catch your tongue?
“Oh come on that’s not even clever, and you’re not even using the phrase correctly,” she hissed.
“Yeah, okay, whatever,” she snickered, entertained by how easy it is to embarrass and frustrate her best friend. “Is Koyomi here ready to talk, or is she still acting like a stupid-looking grump?”
“Just shut up already, will you?!” Yomi snapped.
“Or else what?” Tomo challenged, her confidence inflating by the second.
“Ugh…”
As a last fleeting attempt to get her to back down, Yomi’s body reacted on its own and kissed Tomo.
This isn’t the first time the two have shared a kiss, though, as they have had many after-school hangouts at each other’s houses, which would sometimes involve a bit of cuddling and the occasional pecks.
It is, however, the first time they’ve kissed outside of the comfort of their own homes, and Yomi was the first to acknowledge this.
Immediately, she shoved herself away from Tomo and shot up from her chair, clasping a hand over her mouth.
Once she scanned around the room to ensure nobody saw what she did, she turned her gaze to the now stunned, yet flustered Tomo.
“Tomo-“
Before Yomi could mumble out an apology, she cut herself off and took notice of the predicament she was in.
Sure, Yomi is deeply embarrassed by her actions, but also finds it amusing how silent Tomo has become compared to her usual cocky and boisterous attitude. Frankly, she finds it adorable how the Wildcat Idiot is now nothing more than a bright red gaping guppy, and she intends to take full advantage of this.
Yomi smirks, “Hey, what’s wrong?” She held her hands behind her back and stepped closer, ”Didn’t you want to talk now, Tomo?”
“Wh- Huh?!” Tomo managed to sputter out, but Yomi continued.
“What? You kept pushing me to look at you and talk, and now you have my full attention,” she grinned deviously, “Don’t tell me you forgot what you were gonna say.”
Tomo blinked, “I-I didn’t, I just…”
“Just what?” Yomi pressed further, “You’ve gone uncharacteristically quiet, yknow. What? Cat got your tongue?” she teased.
“H-HEY!” Tomo exclaimed, blushing furiously, “Don’t use my words against me!” She pointed accusingly at her.
Yomi just sighed and lowered Tomo’s arm, “They’re not your words, you moron, it’s a common expression.” Swallowing her frustrations, Yomi kept her momentum going, “Anyway, why don’t you tell me what you were gonna say? I’m sooo very curious to know right now.” Surprising herself with how much she enjoys having the roles reversed, Yomi leaned in even closer, her nose almost brushing against hers as her grin remained unwavering.
Tomo, refusing to let Yomi have the upper hand over her, swallowed hard before retaliating as best she could, “Ha, oh yeah? What if I just… uh, don’t feel like telling you anymore?”
“Oh? Is that so?”
“Pffft. Yeah.” Tomo averted her gaze from Yomi, furrowing her brows, “M-Maybe you’re too much of an idiot to tell ‘cuz…”
“Because of what, Tomo?”
She chuckled sheepishly, “Uhhh…”
“Huh, guess you really don’t remember. That’s a real shame, how embarrassing for you.” Yomi let out a fake sigh before stepping back to clear her throat, giving Tomo enough room to regain her confidence.
“W-Whatever! That doesn’t even matter anymore,” Tomo sat up, “You’re talking big and all that crap as if you’re not being embarrassing getting all fat-headed on me!” she spat.
Yomi's playful smile dropped and was replaced with her usual scowl. “E-Embarassing?” A familiar blush dusted her face, “Wait– FAT-HEADED?!” she bellowed, already feeling her blood boil all over again.
Tomo barked out a laugh, “Yeah! You heard me! I don’t know what’s gotten into you, but you aren’t pulling that kinda stunt with me!”
Yomi scoffed, crossing her arms, “What stunt? I’m just matching your energy, if not, exceeding yours, if you even know what that word means.”
“Of course I know what it means!”
“Then what does it mean, Tomo? Miss Yukari went over this a few weeks ago.”
“Pshhh! Well, obviously, it means…” Tomo paused before averting her gaze once again, “Uhhh…”
“No no, cmon. Look at me in the eye and tell me what exceed means.” Yomi grabbed Tomo by the face and pulled her closer to look at hers, despite Tomo doing her best to pull away.
“Wha- hey!”
Once Tomo finally met her gaze, there was a brief pause between the two best friends. They stared at each other, crimson-faced, until the Wildcat managed to break the silence.
Tomo grinned bashfully. “It means to do it faster, right?”
“Moron, that’s accelerate .”
“Oh…”
Yomi just blankly stared at Tomo, almost in disbelief at how she had let herself kiss such a pesky yet dimwitted girl that she had known nearly her whole life.
“Are you gonna let go of me now, or are you just gonna keep staring at me like some bug-eyed idiot?” She sneered.
“Ugh, just stop talking already.” Yomi pulled Tomo in for a quick peck on the lips before pushing her back with one hand.
Startled, Tomo attempted to retort with a comeback or an insult, only to short-circuit and stammer out nonsense.
“Wh-.. Um… Uhhh…”
“That’s more like it.” Yomi smirked slyly before fetching her wallet from her bookbag. “Well, I’ve wasted enough time entertaining your antics, so I’m just gonna get myself a milk tea while I still can. Be back before class starts, don’t cause any more ruckus, okay?”
Watching her best friend leave the classroom in an irritatingly good mood, Tomo just sat there, flushed and vacant, until she turned her head towards the familiar shuffle of steps from her fellow Knuckleheads.
Kagura sighed, placing Tomo’s plastic-wrapped sandwich and water on the desk, “Before you start yelling at us for taking too long, there was a line, and Osaka and I got… distracted.”
“Ah thought ah saw a cute little black kitty cat roaming tha’ halls…” Osaka chimed in, raising her wrists to imitate a cat, “Turns out… it was just the loose strap of a gym bag, and we went on a wild goose chase around tha’ school for nothin’!”
Kagura turned towards Osaka, “I told you it was just a gym bag! We almost got caught by Miss Kurosawa, what if she kicked me off the swim team?”
“Ya didn’t have to come with me…”
“Wha- well…” Kagura scratched her cheek, a light blush dusting her cheeks, “I had to keep you out of trouble, I couldn’t just leave you alone!”
“Oh no, Tomo! Are ya sick? Do ya have hay fever too?”
“Wait, yeah– Your face is really red!” The two turned their attention towards Tomo, who was still visibly beet-red and dazed from her earlier interaction with Yomi.
Snapping out of her trance, Tomo immediately went on the defensive, “It’s… it’s nothing! Just forget about it!” The Wildcat turned away from her fellow Knuckleheads and frantically waved her arm at them dismissively, “It’s none of your beeswax!”
Kagura scoffed, “Doesn’t seem like nothing, and I was wondering why you were so quiet.”
“Don’t worry, Tomo, ah’ll get Yomi to take ya to the nurse–”
“NO!” she interjected harshly, “Don’t you DARE get her, I’m fine, OKAY?!”
A lightbulb went off in Kagura’s head, “Ohhhh… I think I know what happened here.” She turned to Osaka and smirked knowingly, “Her and Yomi probably had another one of their usual ‘lover’s quarrels.’”
“Huh? A lover’s qua–”
“GAHHHHH!!! J-Just shut up already!”