Kiku stood outside of his new dorm room that he was meant to share with someone that was rumored to be a bit eccentric. Everyone seemed to have a different opinion about this Heracles Karpusi. However, Kiku tried to keep an open mind as he put his hand on the doorknob of their shared room. Though some of what he had been told kept snaking into his mind.
"Oh? Him? He's quite a fun one if you ask me," Francis had said with a mischievous wink and smile.
Sadiq had only said, "I can't stand his stupid guts. Get a different room as soon as you can."
Arthur only mumbled quietly about crazy philosophy majors and how Heracles could go on and on about the subject.
At least his new dorm mate seemed to be intelligent from what he could gather. Kiku didn't have anything against Feliciano, he was amazing in art and literature, but having to help him every single night for at least three hours their freshman year, with even just simple math, really took a toll on some of Kiku's grades. Of course he still got all A's in all of his classes, just not 100% in all of his classes. However, a few 98%s for three classes wasn't so bad. After all, he had helped Feliciano pass math with a B, so he would accept the lower percentages.
He hoped his new roommate wouldn't find him boring, all Kiku did was study. In the same sense, though, he hoped his roommate wouldn't try to drag him out to places like parties and such things. Kiku would rather just stay in his room and read a book or watch some DVDs if he had spare time.
Gathering his courage, Kiku opened the door to his new shared room, attempting to put on a small smile to seem friendlier. He didn't even know if Heracles was in the room at the time, he might have been out and about. Either way, it didn't really matter; the best option was always the most prepared option. The sight he was greeted with, however, made his blood freeze.
He and Heracles had a brief time of eye contact, and Kiku couldn't help but be drawn into those dusky green eyes. Kiku backed away just seconds later, and shut the door. He took a few more steps back, his throat dry and his heart racing. Already, he could feel the blush on his face as he grabbed his things and walked as fast as possible down the hallway to where he knew Feliciano's room was, knocking hastily to get in.
The bouncy Italian answered within a flash, and Kiku had been dragged into a hug that crushed his lungs. Feliciano always seemed so tiny, but he seemed to contradict that appearance with his hugs. He then proceeded to pull Kiku into his room, blabbering on and on until Kiku put a hand on his shoulder, giving Feliciano a horrified look.
"I need to switch rooms," he said.
.
After a few hours spent being calmed by his Italian friend, Kiku eventually returned to his room, holding his luggage in such a firm grip that his knuckles became paper white. There was no way that Heracles was still engaged in such activities after so many hours, right? He had no idea how to be sure; Francis had said he was a "fun one".
Kiku shook his head and sighed to himself, he'd only had a glimpse of his roommate and already he was letting other people's opinions make an image for the other boy. This time, Kiku knocked on the door, waiting for a response. He waited for what seemed like hours but nothing happened, no sound of movement, no one answering the door, nothing. So Kiku knocked again, and waited again. He made sure to wait a bit longer than last time before deciding it was safe to enter.
Still wanting to be sure, Kiku just barely opened the door, only wide enough for him to peek inside of the room. As far as he could tell, it seemed empty. So for the first time that afternoon, Kiku actually entered his room he shared with who he would definitely consider eccentric. Not in a bad way, just in a way that he was something Kiku was definitely not used to.
The Japanese boy set down his bags, sighing in relief as feeling flooded into his fingers once more. He looked around the room, and noticed that Heracles had already claimed one half for himself, small details giving his presence away. He seemed rather tidy at first glance, with a few books in the corner of the desk, and some family photos. Kiku was curious, but he decided it would be rude to snoop.
Instead, he went to the unclaimed half of the room, and began setting up some of the things he had brought with him. Pictures of family, friends and of course pictures of his dog Pochi. He pulled his laptop out of his bag, set in on the desk, and went straight to the internet.
Kiku checked all of the usual social network sights, cringing slightly at photos Alfred had uploaded of him and Arthur together. It wasn't that Kiku had anything against them being together; in fact he'd been the one responsible for getting the two to meet. It was just that he didn't really want their relationship shoved in his face. That was probably why he couldn't stop thinking of when he'd first seen Heracles. The image would probably haunt him for the rest of his life.
Heracles had looked calm enough when he looked up at Kiku from where he had been resting between…
Kiku shook his head, noticing his heart rate had sped up and knowing that his face was definitely as red as it could get. Again, Kiku didn't have anything against Heracles; he just didn't really want to know that his roommate could be so intimate. Maybe she had been his girlfriend, but even so Kiku didn't want anything to do with it. If she was his girlfriend, they would need to set up a system immediately that allowed Kiku to know if she was visiting. Anything would do, he just needed some sort of signal.
He shut his laptop after an hour of browsing, and then texted Feliciano if he wanted to go get dinner. Kiku didn't necessarily want to go, but he supposed it would be polite after he had spent four hours holed up in Feliciano's room unable to say what had happened, effectively worrying the Italian. Feliciano's response was an instant "yes" with approximately ten exclamation marks. Kiku felt himself smile a little, while he could be a handful, he was always chipper and it was a nice change of pace.
Kiku quickly changed into clothes he hadn't been wearing all day, and made sure he looked presentable before leaving his room and going to Feliciano's. He was met halfway by the brunet, who hugged him like they hadn't just seen each other an hour earlier.
"Do you mind if Ludwig comes?" Feliciano asked, smile bright and as wide as possible. "He is my roommate! He seems really scary, but he's just really quiet! I promise he's nice!"
Kiku glanced behind Feliciano at who he assumed was Ludwig, and he was the tallest man Kiku had ever seen. He couldn't imagine the blond somehow fitting onto the tiny beds they were given. As Feliciano had said, he had a stern scowl on his face, and his arms were crossed, but he seemed like a nice person.
Wanting to be polite, Kiku broke his hug with Feliciano, and offered his hand to Ludwig. "My name is Kiku Honda; it is nice to meet you."
Ludwig examined Kiku for a moment with piercing blue eyes, before taking the hand offered. "Ludwig Beilschmidt."
"Does your roommate want to come?" Feliciano asked, waving down the hallway as he saw Heracles entering Kiku's room.
The blood drained from Kiku's face, and he shook his head, trying to pull Feliciano away from the area and towards the exit of the dorm building. "No, he said he would rather stay in the room tonight. He wants to rest from unpacking."
Feliciano seemed shocked, furrowing his eyebrows at Kiku. "When did you talk to him?"
Kiku just continued shaking his head, managing to pull Feliciano out of the exit and towards the dining area of campus. He didn't want any sort of interaction with Heracles while the image was still so fresh in his mind. He hadn't even heard the girl, and he had been too shocked when he opened the door to see if perhaps they had been just a little more risqué than the average couple. The thought of what Heracles might have in his dressers instead of clothes turned his face beet red, and he looked down at his feet as he walked. He couldn't have Feliciano or Ludwig noticing and making a big scene out of it.
.
Dinner passed with idle small talk about the weather, classes, the town, the atmosphere, and such things. Nothing in particular was memorable, aside from Feliciano had tripped over someone's extended leg as he came to sit down at the table with Kiku and Ludwig, and without missing a beat, Ludwig stood from his chair and caught Feliciano. His tray of food went everywhere, causing quite a mess, but the look of mortification on Ludwig's face when his eyes met Feliciano's was all too perfect.
The blond went with Feliciano to apologize to the janitorial staff for the mess, and then to go get Feliciano a new tray of food after explaining what had happened. When they returned, Ludwig was looking even more flustered than before, but Kiku didn't say anything. He just couldn't believe how quickly they had become so close.
As he approached his room, Kiku attempted to gather his courage. What if Heracles had his girlfriend over? What if he wasn't even there? Better safe than sorry, he decided. The same as earlier that day, he knocked on the door and awaited a response.
Heracles answered that time, thankfully fully clothed and apparently not having his girlfriend over. "Did you forget your key?" he asked.
His voice was quiet and low, but even then Kiku could still hear his very distinct and thick accent. "Um, no," Kiku said, already feeling his blush creeping up his neck and ears like a curious but unwelcome spider in the middle of the night. "I just, didn't want to interrupt. Like I did earlier. I don't even know if your girlfriend is here, I just wanted to be safe."
Nodding, the brunet opened the door and stepped back, going to his desk where his laptop was open. Kiku shut the door behind him as he entered, barely hearing Heracles as he said "She's not my girlfriend."
"She isn't?" Kiku asked, going to his own laptop. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to assume."
Heracles just shrugged.
The rest of the night had a very tense air for Kiku; he doubted it was the same for Heracles. Kiku just couldn't settle himself and couldn't stop thinking. He and Heracles hadn't really had a proper introduction yet, but wasn't it a bit too late to do so now? If he introduced himself tomorrow it would be even more awkward, but he couldn't continue living in the same room as Heracles knowing he hadn't properly introduced himself.
At around ten Heracles shut his laptop, and stretched out on the bed he had claimed. He fell asleep almost instantly, and Kiku didn't know what to do. He felt rude for still having his laptop screen shining in the direction of the brunet, and he still had his lamp turned on. His roommate didn't seem to mind, though.
Kiku stayed up until about three in the morning, as he didn't have classes early in the morning the next day and he hadn't felt tired until then. As quietly as possible, he moved into the other bed, pulling the covers up to his chin. His heart raced just knowing what had happened in the bed next to his, all he could hope was that Heracles had washed his bedding afterwards. Kiku shook his head and squeezed his eyes shut; it was none of his business what his roommate did or didn't do. As long as they figured out some sort of system so Kiku would know if Heracles had a… guest, Kiku didn't care what he did.
A/N: The update for To Save You is not far behind, honestly. I have just had this idea on my mind for a while now, and it is a nice change from writing an overly confident person to a quieter person.
