Chapter Text
“no one can make desperate look cool.”
and god, wouldn’t he know that to be the truth. it’s almost embarrassing how tetsuro keeps moving seats during lab to get a ‘casual’ glimpse of you in the singular hour he has in that stuffy room.
he’s had to keep changing lab partners because he keeps messing up the titrations or measurements or using the wrong instrument. nothing too serious, just little inconveniences that make him a bit trifling to work with. that’s okay with him. that’s on purpose. his plan is to hopefully land with you next, but you seem to be very content with your current lab partner. which is…not ideal.
today, tetsuro manages to finally grab a table near yours, mulling over his thoughts for a moment before turning around with a sheepish smile on his face. “hey, would you mind if we borrowed your scale?” he asks, in what he prays is an easygoing tone.
you tilt your head. “your lab partner is getting one,” you tell him, pointing behind him. tetsuro fights to keep a polite look on his face as his partner walks back with a scale in his hands. “ah, sorry. didn’t see, haha!” tetsuro laughs, turning back to you warmly. “nice…”
he literally fades off. he was going to compliment something about you, but everyone is wearing the same protective gear, and it’s not like he could say, “nice PPE!” because that would even more of a fumble than what was already happening. tetsuro resorts to two finger guns. “thanks,” he says, trying not to sound awkward, and turns on his heels back to his table.
fine. he’s determined. yearners are earners, as they say!
luckily for him, it seems like today’s lab he’s hit the jackpot. your partner failed to show up (because of a surgery or something insignificant like that), and his lab partner also failed to show up (something something broken ankle or other). you know what that means!
“heyyy,” tetsuro calls, sauntering up to you. he leans nonchalantly on the lab table you’re standing at. “no partner today?” you glance at him. “nope. yours either?” “yeah. i mean— no. i mean unless you wanna be, then yeah,” he rambles. wait, he’s confused. what did you say? “huh?” tetsuro squeaks at the end, like it couldn’t get any more worse. oh my god, kill me now, he thinks, blankly smiling at your amused face.
you laugh, and it almost makes him forget how mortifying this situation is. “sorry, i meant, your partner isn’t here either? i phrased it badly. sorry,” you explain, still giggling a bit. “but sure. i’ll be your partner. wouldn’t want you to mess up those titrations again.” “damn, is that my reputation here?” tetsuro asks good-naturedly, attempting to look you straight in the eyes. he fails. he looks at your ear.
“well, it’s hard to ignore the fact that you have to keep switching lab partners,” you reply, just as cheekily. “maybe i’ll settle down one day,” he nearly jokes, but he swallows it down and laughs instead. suddenly it’s really hard to speak.
he’s uncharacteristically quiet as you set up the lab table for a lycopodium experiment. he reads over the instructions as he waits, and a smile tugs at the corner of his mouth. “hey,” tetsuro starts. “i can perform the experiment. since it’s open flame, and stuff.”
“oh,” you say, peering at the paper. “okay then.” tetsuro has to look away to not look stupid as he tamps down a grin at the thought of you two having to stand next to each other. since it’s open flame, and stuff. he redirects his smile to the teacher, who looks at him oddly, but keeps walking around. “i think we can start now,” you tell tetsuro after a few moments. “neat,” he replies, then nearly bangs his head on the table corner. who the fuck says ‘neat’??
after mentally beating himself up, tetsuro takes a match and lights it, hand shaking just slightly as he feels you sidle up next to him. “whoa,” you breathe. the powder catches the flame and gives a mild ‘whoosh’ in response. “not too scary,” he remarks. it’s more of a reassurance to himself, because his finger is right on the match and the fire is a little too close for comfort. “it’s not burning you, right?” you ask him, a hint of concern in your voice.
he laughs, feeling some of that macho energy. “nah,” he replies, smirking a bit. then the flame jumps, and he quickly shakes the match to put it out. yikes. “uh, mind getting the pipette?” “yeah,” you reply, suctioning up some lycopodium powder in the tube and handing it to him. tetsuro lights up a standing candle and takes the pipette from you, trying to hide the fact that he’s reeeally giddy at the feeling of your fingers brushing his.
“alright, stand back,” he says leisurely. you hide behind him, looking over his shoulder, and tetsuro feels like he’s soaring on top of the world. he holds the pipette to the candle and squeezes, creating a giant flame that dances in his vision. “wow!” you exclaim with your hand on his bicep, and the pipette in his hand starts shaking.
fortunately for him (and his ego), he recovers quickly, and gives the pipette another squeeze to fuel the fire. this goes on until the powder runs out. as the two of you clean up the tables, you speak up. “you’re actually much more capable than you seem.” tetsuro looks to the side sheepishly. “was i really such a lost cause to you before?” he asks, and snickers at your immediate confirmation.
you shake your head amusedly as you wipe down the tabletop. “seriously, all the data in the report is correct, and you didn’t mess up the experiment. i’m impressed,” you tell him, giving him an appraising look.
it’s so embarrassing how he can’t make that smile of his smaller. his cheeks hurt like hell, and there’s a fuzzy feeling in his chest as he practically floats his way home.
fuck, he’s so whipped for you.