"Oh oops, I'm sorry! Excuse me!"
Kenmei called back to the stranger as she zipped past them on her bike, nearly colliding into them as they suddenly appeared from around a corner. She was unable to hear their incoherent yelling as she continued her journey, focused on not running into any of the other students who were exhaustedly trudging towards their unknown destinations. All that was on her mind was getting to class on time, and she cursed herself for picking classes that were all so far from her dorm. In fact, all her courses this semester were in the same two buildings. If she had picked at least a couple of closer classes, she would have gotten to relax or simply walk a few times a week.
Though, at this point, it didn't really matter, and there was no point in fussing about it. Sure, she could walk every day instead of taking her bike if she wanted to. But on such a huge campus, she preferred the bike, as it cut her travel time down to less than half. A bicycle had been her main source of transportation for the majority of her teenage and now adult life, so she had gotten quite skilled on one. At least, enough to avoid crashing into people, which was always a danger with students on their phones or reading their notes as a last minute study session before class. Kenmei couldn't exactly judge, however, as some of her routes had been spent relistening to lectures through her headphones.
Today she decided not to listen to anything, as she felt as if she really needed to focus on her route. It was the first day of classes for the Spring semester, and everything was a bit chaotic with both new and experienced students not really knowing where they were going. With this being her senior year, she knew exactly where she was going, but that was never the main issue to begin with. It was the other students, who would suddenly stop and change directions as they realized they took a wrong turn, or those that would pause to read a map. She knew that once the semester progressed, it wouldn't be so bad, but she felt responsible for both hers and others safety if she was going to be using her bike like this.
As she reached the top of a particularly steep hill, Kenmei took a moment to pause and glance around. The fog of her hot breath in the chilly January air obscured her vision a bit, but she was able to see the bike rack she had been heading for. There was only one spot left, and she knew she had to get to it before someone else did. Otherwise, she would be taking her bike into the lecture hall, and that was always the most embarrassing thing for her to do. She hated the unwanted attention it gave her, even if it was minimal. With this thought, Kenmei resumed her journey, glad that the crowds of students had dissipated up in this section of the campus. Most of them were probably still making their way up the insane amount of stairs that led to this section, she assumed.
Moving quickly, she was successful in snagging the last spot in the bike rack, sighing in relief as she hopped off her bike right before she reached it. She walked the bike into place, using her foot to adjust the kickstand. The front wheel safely tucked into the metal bars of the rack, she pulled her backpack off her back to dig through it for the lock. Unfortunately, bicycle theft was common on this campus, so she had made a point to buy a very expensive, very difficult to remove even with a key style of lock. After getting it into place to attach the bike rack to the body of her bicycle, she gave it a small tug to make sure it was secure, giving a small, satisfied sigh when it showed no sign of budging.
Walking around to the other side of the bike that faced away from the rack, she slipped her backpack on, taking a moment to adjust her clothing. Even in the cold of late winter, she still felt the need to wear a skirt. Though, the fleece leggings, boots, heavy sweater and jacket were enough to keep her warm, and she often found herself shedding layers anyway. Too focused on adjusting the alignment of her jacket, she didn't hear the screeching of bicycle wheels until a force rammed into the back of her legs.
Screaming out both from pain and shock, she stumbled forward, gripping onto the closest thing to her, which was a metal trash can. Kenmei felt relieved for a moment that it was bolted to the sidewalk, but that was quickly subdued by a sudden burning in her calves from where she had been hit. Pushing past the pain, she whipped around, glaring towards the figure that hit her behind the tears welling up in her eyes.
"Hey, watch where you're going!" Even though she did her best to sound intimidating, her voice cracked and trembled with her flustered embarrassment. Not wanting to cry for this, she quickly reached up and wiped her eyes, listening to the stranger talk as she did so.
"You were in the way of the bike rack! Who the fuck just stands there in front of it like that?!"
Once her vision was clear, she glared back at the stranger again, though she felt a bit of surprise as she observed him. Still on his bike, he had one foot on the peddle while the other foot rested on the ground to support him. He was panting, as if he had just made a mad dash to get to the rack. If this was true, then Kenmei could understand why he had been unable to stop, but it didn't excuse his actions now. There wasn't a single apology from him. Instead, he glared right back at her with captivating crimson eyes that made Kenmei feel even more flustered. He was cute, and as stupid as it sounded, she nearly forgave him just for that reason.
Instead, she pointed towards the bike rack, not backing down just yet. "You could see from a mile away that the rack is full! I wasn't even in front of it, you jerk! Just admit that you weren't paying attention!" The boy rolled his eyes as he hopped off his bike, gripping onto both handles to steady it. "You were the one not paying attention! I even called out to you to move, the ground is slick and I couldn't stop." He turned his gaze to the rack, giving an annoyed sigh as he saw that it was full, just as Kenmei had said. "Damn it! Are you leaving, or did you just park?"
Kenmei crossed her arms, still upset that he hadn't apologized to her. "I just parked to go to class. You know, you could at least say sorry. That hurt!" She lifted up one of her legs to check her calve, noticing that her leggings were now scuffed with dirt and the fabric was frayed. "I just bought these leggings…" She mumbled more to herself in irritation, reaching down to try and wipe the fabric clean. All she got in response was an annoyed groan and the sound of bicycle wheels as they clicked in movement. Glancing up, she noticed him walking away, red bike in tow.
Frowning, she watched him walk away for a moment, a bit frustrated with herself for being so easy on him. Just because he's cute doesn't mean he should get a pass… I should confront him. Just as she got ready to go after him, her phone buzzed violently in her jacket pocket, prompting her to pull it out. Big white letters spelled the word 'CLASS IN 5 MINUTES' and she immediately felt panic flood her. Deciding to just let it slip, she made a mad dash towards the building, not wanting to be late on the first day because of such a ridiculous situation. After rushing and nearly tripping going up a flight of stairs, Kenmei made it into the large lecture hall, scanning her ID at the door to mark herself present.
Taking in a few deep breaths to ease her heavy breathing, she took a moment to glance around, noticing that almost all of the three-hundred seats were taken. Frustrated, she began to walk up the stairs looking for a spot to sit. The red bicycle against the wall barely tugged at her attention, though realization dawned upon her as she noticed the person in one of the only easy to reach open seats. The boy that had slammed into her just moments before was in the end seat of an isle, and the seat beside him was open. Glancing around, she noticed all the other seats were at in the middle of the rows or had bags in them already.
With a sigh, she dragged herself over, squeezing herself past his long legs until she stood in front of her seat. She carefully pulled her backpack off her shoulders, though was more wary of the other person beside her rather than the rude boy. In fact, she felt the urge to smack him with her bag, but decided against it, not wanting to seem petty. As she sat down, she placed the bag down on the ground, digging about inside it for her notebook and pen to take notes.
"What irony. I try to get away from you, and you end up having to sit next to me. Pretty fucked up."
Feeling her face flush with heat, Kenmei only glanced at the boy beside her as she sat back up. He was absentmindedly chewing on the end of a pen as he scrolled through something on his phone, not even looking at her as he spoke. Kenmei pulled up the small desk surface that was attached to her chair, placing her belongings down onto it once it clicked into place. "Well," she spoke softly, a bit worried about others around them getting into their business. "That's what you deserve, I guess. You should have apologized."
"Tch," he removed the pen from his mouth, and Kenmei could feel his harsh gaze upon her. "I did apologize, did you not hear me?"
A bit surprised at his words, she finally looked up at him. "What?" Crimson eyes rolled in irritation as he placed the pen down on his own small desk, along with his phone. Kenmei could tell he had a short fuze and even shorter patience, but she was actually confused. She hadn't heard him say anything, but maybe she missed it as he was walking away. It was very possible, as she had a tendency to miss things while mumbling to herself.
"I said sorry as I was walking off. Not my fault if you didn't hear it." He refused to look at her now, as if the thought of having to apologize embarrassed him. Still, his posture made Kenmei believe that his words were true, and her frustrations calmed. Crossing her legs the best she could under the small desk, she fidget with her pen, giving a small nod. "I see… It's okay, it was an accident, really. I'm sorry I didn't hear it."
She looked back over at him when he didn't respond, watching as he opened up his notebook with an annoyed look on his face. As she looked at him, she could feel her cheeks grow hotter, beginning to feel embarrassed at being in his presence. Everything about him embarrassed her, from his attitude, to his good looks, to the prideful way in which he carried himself. Yet, he was dressed quite lazily for seeming so into himself, in black sweatpants and a plain grey t-shirt. What caught her eye the most, however, was his hair. It was a messy flop on the top of his head, but the large braid that cascaded over his shoulder and across his lap was something she hadn't noticed yet.
"Maybe you should ask my name before you sit there staring at me?"
As he spoke, Kenmei's gaze quickly moved back up to his eyes, feeling her embarrassment grow at the smirk that crossed his face. Stuttering, she quickly looked away, clicking her pen nervously. "I-I'm sorry, I was just… just looking at your hair." She swallowed the lump that had gathered in her throat, trying to find her courage. "But, yes, I guess you're right. I'm Kenmei, it's nice to meet you?" She felt immediate regret for the way that statement came out, as if she were asking his permission for it to be okay. I seriously need to work on my people skills…
She was a bit surprised as he chuckled, guessing he found humor in her timid nature. At this moment, she was unsure if she should take that as a good or bad sign, but was glad that the angry tension between them had faded.
"Judar," he spoke, going back to looking at his phone. "And it can be nice to meet me, if you want it to be."