Chapter Text
The first time Hirose noticed him was on a bright and sunny Tuesday afternoon, the air was pleasantly warm, and the trees outside the school fluttered gently in the breeze. It had been about a month since classes had started, and Hirose had made it a point to become familiar with most of his classmates. So when he heard someone call his name as he stepped out of the nearly empty classroom, he instinctively turned around.
"Your handkerchief..." a girl said softly, her voice trailing off as she knelt down to retrieve the forgotten item from the floor.
Before Hirose could reach out to take it from her, he suddenly noticed a foot stepping down on the delicate fabric, pinning it to the ground. He looked up in surprise and met the gaze of a boy with striking black hair and dark eyes. Hirose realized he didn’t remember the boy’s name, was it something starting with an N? He wondered.
The boy's eyes darted between him and the handkerchief, and with a hesitant movement, the boy bent down and picked up the handkerchief, which now bore the distinctive imprint of a shoe. Then, he held it out to Hirose with a trembling hand. The unexpected gentleness of the gesture caught Hirose off guard, and he felt a strange flutter of interest in his stomach as he accepted the stained item, their fingers brushing momentarily in the exchange.
However, the touch lasted only a couple of seconds before the boy, cheeks flushed with embarrassment, suddenly muttered an apology and dashed away without waiting for a response.
From that fateful day onward, Hirose found himself increasingly captivated by the quirky yet undeniably sweet Nakamura.
In recent weeks, Hirose had taken to observing Nakamura from a distance—not in a creepy way, of course. He made a point to watch him during lunch, noticing how Nakamura always sat alone and ate his food quietly while reading manga. Although Nakamura seemed perfectly content in his solitude and had never seemingly made an effort to befriend anyone in their class, Hirose still felt a strong desire to get to know him better.
Today, Hirose had spent the entire day trying to get Nakamura's attention. By chance, he and Oomori ran into Nakamura on their way to school and chatted for a bit before they all had to rush off to make it to their morning class. During that conversation, Hirose managed to confirm that Nakamura was indeed into octopuses, although he wouldn't admit it for reasons Hirose couldn't quite understand just yet.
By the time lunch rolled around, Hirose felt a surge of determination. He decided to seize the moment and offered Nakamura one of the brightly colored candies he always carried tucked away in his school jacket. As he walked away, doing his best to avoid bumping into other desks, he thought to himself, Surely, this will encourage him to come up to me more.
Unfortunately, that plan didn’t work as well as he intended, he never saw Nakamura eat the candy. Maybe I gave him a flavor he doesn’t like? He thought.
And so, when Teacher Otogiri asks Hirose to drop off some homework for a sick classmate, whose house is conveniently on the way to Nakamura’s, he jumps at the chance,
This is perfect, Hirose thinks. If I can get Nakamura to walk home with me, we will have no choice but to talk the whole way! Wait a minute. Is he being a bit too intense about befriending Nakamura? Hirose shakes his head, trying to dismiss the thought. He must really want to be his friend, that's all.
Hirose takes a deep breath and turns to walk toward Nakamura’s desk. A glimmer of light catches his eye as he approaches. Nakamura is intently gazing at a small glass bottle, its surface reflecting the fluorescent lights above. The bottle seems to capture his complete attention, leaving him oblivious to Hirose’s approach.
“Nakamura!” Hirose calls out, a broad smile spreading across his face, the warmth of camaraderie evident in his voice. “Do you want to walk home together?”
Caught off guard, Nakamura jumps in his seat, his chair creaking beneath him as he stumbles backward, arms flailing in a futile attempt to regain his balance. He narrowly avoids tumbling to the floor, his expression shifting from shock to a sheepish grin as he finally registers Hirose's presence.
“Are you okay? Did I scare you?” Hirose exclaims, his voice laced with concern as he takes a step closer, almost rushing to help, only for Nakamura to sit back up with surprising agility.
“No, no, no! You didn’t scare me! Don’t worry!” Nakamura insists with a wave of his hand, though his flushed cheeks might suggest otherwise. “But why do you want to walk home with me?” he adds.
Hirose’s smile falters momentarily, a shadow of uncertainty crossing his face. “Ah, well… Sato is sick,” he explains, glancing away as if searching for the right words. “Teacher Otogiri asked me to drop off his homework, and i remembered his house is on the way to yours. I thought you could help me get there?”
Nakamura suddenly adopts a very serious expression. “Of course I want to help. Let’s go.”
Hirose feels a wave of warmth at Nakamura’s earnestness, and despite the urge to laugh at how seriously he’s taking his request, he can’t help but find it endearing.
The walk to Sato’s house proves to be more enjoyable than Hirose ever anticipated. Although he is interested in Nakamura, he knows that it can sometimes be difficult to engage him in conversation. However, it seems that all it takes is creating a comfortable environment for Nakamura to begin to open up.
Arriving at Sato's front door, Hirose clutches the neatly organized homework, its edges crisp and the pages reflecting a bit of sunlight. He hands it over to Sato's mother, who greets him with a warm smile and a few kind words. As he steps back outside, the familiar sound of soft humming pulls him from his thoughts. He pauses, intrigued, as he realizes it’s Nakamura, lost in his own world, a gentle melody spilling from his lips— he wonders if Nakamura is even aware he’s doing it.
“Let’s go, Nakamura,” Hirose calls to him, starting to walk in his direction. He notices Nakamura jump slightly and straighten up with a hint of surprise on his face. “Sato seems to be feeling better, I’m really glad,” he adds, offering a cheerful smile.
Nakamura hums in agreement, a shy smile creeping onto his lips, as they begin to walk side by side, the pleasant tension of their emerging friendship lingering in the air.
Now, Hirose usually finds himself in strange situations. His friendly personality often leads to this kinds of predicaments, but after the nice time he had with Nakamura, the last thing he wants is for it to be ruined by the gang of weirdos currently holding him hostage.
“I said, let me go!” Hirose’s voice cuts through the air, tinged with desperation. “You perverts!” He knows he doesn’t have the strength to free himself, and he isn’t sure anyone is around to help him.
Suddenly, a voice echoes in the distance. “HE SAID TO LET HIM GO!” Hirose strains to see who it is, but one of his captors stands squarely in his line of sight, blocking his view. The thugs whirl around, appearing bewildered, their confidence wavering.
“Whatever, forget about that,” sneers the one with a garish red mohawk, his wild hair contrasting sharply against the dim light. “You’re coming with us… as the model for our photography club!”
“Stay away from me!” Hirose retorts defiantly.
Just then, a commotion erupts behind the thugs, causing them to turn and investigate. Emerging from the dark mouth of the sewer, someone stumbles forward, mumbling, “Get away from him.” Hirose’s eyes widen in recognition. It’s Nakamura. His entire face is smeared with an unsettling substance that Hirose can only hope isn’t blood. He somehow looks like a zombie in a poorly executed school play.
The bullies shriek in horror, dropping Hirose unceremoniously onto the pavement before fleeing like startled rabbits, their screams echoing, “A zombie in a school uniform!”
Nakamura glances back at Hirose, trying to wipe the mess off his face with the sleeve of his uniform. “Are you okay, Hirose?” His voice wavers slightly, laced with concern.
Hirose attempts to suppress his laughter but fails miserably, “What are you doing? You look terrifying!” He can’t help but laugh until tears brim in the corners of his eyes. Later, he might feel guilty for laughing at his rescuer, but at this moment, sheer amusement wins out.
“Oh, s-sorry, I must look very creepy, huh?” Nakamura’s confidence deflates as he lowers his gaze, cheeks tinged with embarrassment.
Pushing himself off the pavement, Hirose stands upright, determination strengthening his resolve. In a gesture of gratitude, he reaches into his pocket for a handkerchief. “Not at all! You were amazing,” he responds, a genuine smile blossoming on his face as he offers the cloth to Nakamura.
When their eyes meet, Nakamura shyly smiles back at him. And in that moment, Hirose realizes for the first time that he finds Nakamura beautiful.