Chapter 1: August

"Why do I have to be back here?"

Isuke complained to herself as she slumped down on the familiar, and probably expensive couch of her old dorm room.

Against any type of protest she had made, Isuke was back in Myōjō.

Not just Isuke herself; all of her former Black Class acquaintances had been reluctantly dragged back to the academy.

The reason? According to Nio, some of Myōjō's secrets had been leaked to the authorities by an anonymous source. What Myōjō is, and what they do. Everything had almost been entirely exposed; by what they believed to be was the work of a hacker.

Because of this, the people behind the Black Class decided to recruit their last active members as a precaution, in a desperate attempt to ward off any type of suspicion.

Meaning that, to their dismay, and Isuke's annoyance, they were all requested to act and function as a normal class until further notice.

Releasing a tired sigh, Isuke began to narrow her gaze, in an attempt to once again take in the familiar surroundings. All the Black Class members were re-assigned back to their old rooms. All for the sake of their convenience and comfort.

'How considerate.' Isuke sarcastically thought to herself, closing her eyes and allowing her head to rest back against the couch.

She was tired.

And right now, all she could think about was how if it hadn't been for her incompetence in eliminating Haru, she probably wouldn't have to be here. She could have been relaxing in a villa or something…

Isuke gritted her teeth at the bitter memory of her past humiliation. Only to frustrate herself further when she failed to drown out those particular memories.

Slightly furrowing her brows, she wondered if the universe simply desired to spite her, by bringing her back.

Ichinose Haru.

How had she failed to dispose of such an easy target?

Twice, to be exact.

With a discontent sigh, Isuke stretched out her long limbs, and finally allowed herself to actually relaxed.

She repositioned herself on the couch, and laid-down. Bringing her hands up to her face, she shielded her eyes from the room's artificial lights and settled for a short nap.

'...'

Isuke stirred.

A sudden presence began to loom over her.

Her fingers, as if on instinct, twitched for the knuckle-knife she always carried with her. Even though the presence itself did not feel like an actual threat.

Quickly uncovering her face, Isuke abruptly sat up, only to be greeted by warm playful eyes, and a familiar grinning, Pocky filled expression.

"Yo." Haruki casually mused, raising her hand in a gesture of greeting.

Leaning back, Isuke made a face. She was still in somewhat of a daze from her short-lived nap. But not matter how incoherent her current train of thought was; even she understood what was going on, sadly.

Because of the current circumstances, she would once again have to room with Sagae Haruki.

It's not that Isuke hated Haruki.

But the first time they met, they had obviously gotten off on the wrong foot. And after that, Isuke couldn't really stand her much. The way Haruki always managed to look so carefree, her distracting and impolite habit of talking with Pocky in her mouth, her constant nonchalant smiles..

The way she had disrespected Isuke on the very first day they met.

'Well not exactly disrespect, but it was rude to just casually grab Isuke like that.' Isuke remarked to herself.

Seeing her reflection in Haruki's eyes, Isuke came to notice how dangerously close they now were. And she found herself trying to suppress a foreign heat that was currently making its way up to her cheeks.

Still, there was a formidably acceptable distance between them, but for Isuke: 'This overly familiar idiot is too close for comfort.'

Isuke stirred.

"Do you need an invitation to get off?" She had been trying for a more sarcastic and annoyed tone, but her voice came out as a small quiet rasp instead.

Haruki blinked.

"Oh! Sorry, sorry, Isuke-sama."

Haruki practically jumped to her feet.

She scratched the back of her head, and looked down at her roommate with an apologetic expression.

Quickly collecting herself, Haruki chuckled. And wearing her usual grin, she stretched out an inviting hand in an attempt to help her roommate up.

"Guess I shouldn't have tried to startle you like that, huh?"

Avoiding eye contact, Isuke cleared her throat and hurried to her feet, bluntly ignoring her roommates' polite gesture. She then began to leisurely smooth out the wrinkles of her skirt.

Isuke peeked at the clock, which elegantly hung on the wall.

Weird.

'Was the room always this cold?' Isuke wondered.

No, Haruki had just been that warm.

Haruki's body heat had been so familiar and somehow comforting, that Isuke found herself missing it after just a few second of its absence. Coming to this realization made Isuke feel both uneasy and angry with herself.

She shrugged the thought off, and turned her attention to the grinning pocky-chewing-red head before her.

'Isuke won't be having this casual idiot get the best of her.'

"Why are you even here?" Isuke deadpanned.

Putting her hands on her hips and shifting her weight to the side, she purposely gave out an air of unshaken superiority.

"Can you even afford the luxury of being here and letting your massive family starve itself? Aren't you supposed to be playing Martyr or something?" Isuke coldly stated, in a somewhat defensive manner.

Taking a bite out of her Pocky, Haruki's usual grin turned into a small smile.

"It's all been taken care of, Isuke-sama." Haruki replied, and turned away, going for her bags, which were located, near the door. Isuke's gaze followed Haruki around the room.

Squatting down beside her bag, Haruki began to unpack her things.

"Hey, Isuke-sama, do you have any-"

Déjà vu.

"Hold on a second." Isuke interrupted, bringing a hand to her temple.

Haruki's brows went up, and she stared at Isuke with open surprise. She knew that Isuke was never one to pry or get into other people's business. She didn't care enough to do so. That's why her sudden interest in Haruki's affairs had taken both of them by surprise. Even Isuke couldn't quite understand herself why she had asked.

Isuke looked away, trying to look as indifferent as possible.

"What do you mean it's all been taken care of?"

"Isuke-sama is actually worried about my family's well-being? I'm touched." Haruki lightly teased.

This girl..

Closing her eyes, Isuke brought her hands together and flashed her usual poisonous smile. She did her best to stay collected.

"My, it's only natural for Isuke to worry about the dead poor. They are a hindrance to me." She bitterly remarked between her teeth.

Haruki shrugged.

"The people here in Myōjō's were nice enough to pay some of our fees and keep my family fed while I'm here."

Chuckling and staring at the ground, Haruki added:

"Since I had been working at a nearby construction site, I had originally declined when they told me that I had to come back."

Haruki stood up and looked Isuke in the eye.

"So they told me that they would temporarily provide for my family, while I was here."

Haruki smiled, and snapped another Pocky stick between her teeth.

"I also get to see you again, and have a shot at finishing my studies."

Haruki's smile widened, showing genuine affection.

"Like killing two birds with one stone."

Isuke almost instinctively glanced away. Unlike this idiot, Isuke wasn't planning on wasting her time playing school.

Haruki stretched out her hand.

"I'm looking forward to spending the year together. Guess I'll be in your care again, Isuke-sama." She enthusiastically added.

Isuke opened her mouth with every intention of sarcastically retorting.

Snapping her mouth shut, she just rolled her eyes.

"Idiot... You can take care of yourself."

With that being said, Isuke promptly took Haruki's hand into hers, and reluctantly returned the gesture.

Authors Note:

Well guys, I really hope you enjoyed this rough first chapter. I plan to make this a dramatic/fluffy/angst-y sort of ordeal. I've had this idea in my head for a while now, and hope to get it out there.

This Chapter didn't have any fluff to offer (and was a little slow), but we're just getting started! If you guys want to see anything in particular, please let me know. Hopefully things will move faster next chapter.