Chapter Text
There was nobody in Furin High School who had not heard about Suo Hayato.
Everybody knew him.
Everybody loved him.
…Well, the latter statement might be up to debate.
The smart, talented Suo Hayato was always everybody’s first choice to team up with for any group assignment. The teachers also liked him. Suo was clever, polite, and friendly to everyone. He’s pretty athletic too, which made him popular with the upperclassmen given how many clubs that often asked him to step in to help with their practice. Not to mention, Suo’s academic rank was among the top 1% of the entire school. Just halfway into his first-year alone, Suo already won himself two medals at a regional-level science tournament and debate competition.
Suo Hayato was perfect.
Too perfect, in fact, that some people started disliking him.
Many omegas at school felt insecure whenever Suo was in their presence. Some betas too, especially ones who were inclined to be attracted to an alpha than an omega, started seeing Suo as their threat.
Among the alphas themselves, Suo Hayato had always been a hot topic. It’s a given. It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that Suo was attractive, after all. Quite many alphas were after him. However, Suo’s tendency to turn any alpha who tried to court him had gained him a dirty reputation of being an omega who’s playing hard to get.
He even earned a nickname. People called him the “Cool Beauty”—the unattainable star they all wished to get their hands on.
But… If someone like Suo Hayato got nicknamed a “Cool Beauty,” then what kind of nickname they’d use on someone like Sakura Haruka? Maybe… An ugly dumb monkey? A stupid disgusting monster?
Sakura had always been the burnt of the joke and got called icky names by his peers for as long as he remembered. So much that he’d gave up on telling people his real name. Even if someone had asked, they would soon forget it. Nobody ever willingly interacted with him for too long. Not his peers, certainly. Neither did the teachers nor his foster families.
Suo Hayato was a bright star.
Sakura Haruka was a dark curse.
Suo might be despised by some people, but almost all people despised Sakura. It had always been like that.
Their lives could not have been more different.
So, why did the Bright Star, the Cool Beauty, suddenly appear in front of him, the cursed school outcast, holding out a water bottle for him?
“Ahem… Sakura Haruka-kun? Can you hear me?”
He stared dumbly as Suo Hayato waved a hand in front of his face.
There’s a faintly sweet scent emanating from the boy, something warm that smelled much like steamed herbs. It was such a pleasant scent that Sakura wondered if his own pheromone smelled terrible in comparison. His classmates in middle school used to say that he smelled like rotten fruits. Sakura had never been sure whether his natural scent really did smell like that or was it just some bullshit they said for the sake of bullying him. Either way, the idea of Suo Hayato being able to smell his pheromone made him uneasy.
The situation was bizarre enough as it was.
Sakura wondered if he’d fallen asleep on the wrong side and somehow got himself stuck in a weird dream. It had to be a dream. There could be no other explanation.
The only other believable explanation of this situation was that it had to be a prank. Which Sakura was almost certain that it was. Just another cruel prank. No different than what he often experienced in middle school.
He really wasn’t a stranger to people using him as a dare or a joke. He’d foolishly fallen multiple times for abrupt confessions and unexpected acts of kindness that was secretly recorded by a bunch of stupid giggling teenagers who were in hiding.
Except this time he couldn’t spot any snickering student trying to hide behind a wall. Not that there’s any wall to hide in there, given that he was at the school rooftop.
The only thing his eyes caught on was… Suo Hayato.
The popular student whom he’d never spoken with stood before him, and for some reason, looked increasingly concerned by the second.
“Sakura-kun, hello? Are you sick? Is your voice okay?”
“Um.”
The words caught in his throat. Sakura shuffled his feet awkwardly. He’s not sure why Suo Hayato, out of all people, suddenly showed him concern. He really couldn’t think of any reason, but his gut feeling told him that it could not be a good one.
“What… What do you want?!”
“Ah! So you can speak! I wondered if you’d been swapped with an alien doppelganger who doesn’t understand human language!”
“Huh?”
The omega boy before him giggled, but the joke didn’t land on him. Sakura could only stare dumbly like a lost child, not sure if he should be offended or laugh along.
“Anyway, Sakura-kun, you are an alpha, right?”
“Um, yeah…?”
“Are you, by chance, are currently in rut? Or is it your pre-rut?”
Sakura stiffened, face flushing red. “How do you know about my cycle?!”
“Haha, calm down. I’m not a crazy stalker or anything like that. I saw you bolted out of the assembly hall earlier. You looked really pale, so I thought you might be overwhelmed. Sensory overload is a common rut symptom in a young alpha. Your newly presented body is still adjusting to the hormonal spikes.” Suo paused to hand him the water bottle. “Here. Take some slow sips. It should make you feel a bit better.”
Sakura squinted his eyes at the bottle before snatching it from the boy’s hand. He clutched it to his chest awkwardly while not taking his suspicious gaze off the smiling omega.
“Why do you bother checking up on me? Did a teacher send you here?”
“A teacher? Nope.” Suo chuckled. “As a class rep, it’s my responsibility to look after my classmates, no?”
‘Ah,’ Sakura thought, ‘so he’s just doing it to protect his image.’
He smartly chose not to voice that thought out loud. Not that he got any chance to anyway.
From his peripheral vision, Sakura vaguely registered a hard object flying his way. He flinched, raising his arms to protect his head and bracing himself for the inevitable collision.
But it never came.
Instead, he found Suo standing so close to him, close enough for him to inhale the sweet warm scent that clung on to Suo’s skin. The lack of of distance pushed their torsos to almost touch, their uniforms already brushed against each other, just one little movement and Sakura’s sure that Suo’s lips would surely collide with his flustered cheek.
But, of course, it did not happen.
In a blink of an eye, Suo already took a step back. He lowered his arms that were raised to catch the object that was going to hit Sakura square in the head had he did not react.
The mysterious object was, apparently, a volley ball.
That’s when Sakura registered the small crowd of boys clad in sports jerseys shouting at them from bellow. Suo stepped closer to the rooftop’s ledge to get a good look at them, and Sakura followed his line of gaze.
“Hey! Are you guys always this careless? If the ball had crashed into the windows, your club might be not allowed to compete for Inter High this summer, you know?”
Those boys instantly quieted down. As expected, Suo Hayato’s popularity also earned him respect among the students.
“Ah, sorry, Suo-san!”
“We’ll be more careful!”
“Suo-kun, could you pass us that ball?”
Suo huffed in slight annoyance. He took a step back, shifted into position before bouncing the ball cleanly off his arms. The wind whirled around him, tousling his hair and carrying the faint scent of his sweet pheromones. It seemed to work in his favor, lurching the ball in a perfect arch until it sank down towards the setter waiting down below.
Sakura was once again reminded of why his classmates always fought over who’s getting Suo Hayato on their team in P.E classes.
“By the way, would you like me to escort you home?”
“What.”
Sakura wasn’t sure whether he’d heard it wrong, but Suo merely chuckled at his blank expression.
“I know it might be a bit difficult to go out by yourself when you’re in this state. I could walk you home if you want. At least, with me by your side you wouldn’t have to worry about random omega on the streets catching on your scent and giving you trouble.”
“Uh, well, n-no thanks,” Sakura stuttered awkwardly, fighting himself not to fidget on the spot. “I’m fine. I’ll just…drink this and go home.”
The situation was already weird enough to him, but the idea of Suo Hayato going as far as walking him home put a dread in him that made him back off quickly. Having false rumors about himself spreading at school was the last thing he needed.
“Are you sure?” Suo pushed again, “Don’t worry about owing me anything. I really don’t mind—”
“I’M FINE!”
Sakura blanched at his own voice. That one came out harsher that he’d intended to.
“But, listen, Sakura-kun—”
“Look, I appreciate the offer, okay? I-I just… I don’t wanna be that guy that’ll ruin your image and have half the school targeting my back. My life is already shitty enough as it is. Just leave me alone!”
Suo stood still, slowly processing his words. “My image…?”
Sakura didn’t bother explaining. Surely, the smart and talented Suo Hayato knew what sort of gossip that would follow them if the whole school find out that the most popular omega was getting all friendly with the outcast alpha that nobody even gave half a mind about.
Middle school had already taught him that staying lowkey under the radar was the best option to survive in the jungle society. Stirring up a controversial rumor at school would end terribly for him. That’s for sure.
Without waiting for Suo to say anything back, Sakura bolted towards the exit door, clutching the bottle tightly against his chest, only focusing on getting away from that building as quickly as possible.
……Foolishly thinking that would be the last time he’d ever be involved with the school’s Cool Beauty.