A/N: Hello everyone! Have another standalone Yuujigisa fic!

So yeah…this is entirely self-indulgent. The inspiration was too good to pass up. Prompt is from a post on Tumblr, something along the lines of: "Imagine your OTP studying together, and for every question answered right, somebody has to take off a piece of clothing."

Side note: This is NOT written as part of my FYA-verse! It's kind of envisioned as its own little thing, separate from both Found You Again and For the Fans. But hey, it would only take minor tweaking to insert it into either of those stories, so feel free to imagine it however you'd like! :)

Cover image is a commissioned piece by Namaeekaki on Tumblr. Please check out his fantastic work!

…Also, as should be obvious: The actions depicted in this fic are not necessarily age-appropriate, and not meant to be endorsement of any kind.

Nagisa blinked. "You want me to do what?"

"C'mon, Nagisa!" Yuuji said, both hands held up in front of him in a pleading motion. "I'm telling you, I'm desperate! Couldn't you do this, for me? Just once?"

The pleasant chatter of café noise hung at a low level around them. Mid-afternoon sunlight streamed through the windows and lit up the room, lined with rows of tables stretching out to the front and back. Off to the right-hand side was the main counter where people could place an order, an attractive glass case taking up most of its frame. Yuuji sat on one side of the table, facing Nagisa an arm's length across. Two small plates lay forgotten beside them, strewn with messy forks and the forgotten remnants of their meals.

The café itself was new, its floors still shining with polish and the corners sporting plants arranged in tasteful bunches here and there for decoration. It had seemed like a relatively safe bet, given the circumstances. And if there was anything that Yuuji had a good sense for, it was eatery places. Yuuji had bought the both of them lunch as well as a drink (Non-alcoholic, he had remembered, directing his eyes away from that side of the menu-board. Of course.) as a show of goodwill. That was the customary practice for when you wanted to ask a favor of someone, anyway.

Nagisa kept both hands cupped around the base of his drink, sipping calmly through a straw as he held Yuuji in a stare.

Yuuji gulped, wilting under it for a moment.

A lot of things had happened over the years.

It was kind of strange to admit, but somehow the two of them had managed to find each other again. Time had passed like some sort of weird clunky machine, a process which adults always seemed to describe with such ease but that turned out to be unavoidably awkward for those who were actually living through it. A week here, a few holidays there, the next teen life crisis there, soaked in a whirlwind of different classes and school uniforms, and before Yuuji could even lift up his head and look around, the span of a few entire years had passed. They were high-schoolers now. Unreal.

Everything was so different from how it had been in middle school. Man, that had been one strange school year, Yuuji thought, drifting back through his memories for a moment. Of course, he had heard about the many scandals at Kunugigaoka. Most of what he knew was second-hand information, after the government released its final reports and closed all official records related to the topic. But just like everyone else, Yuuji had at least heard the confusing and dangerous stories that spread like wildfire. Something about the shocking deception of a school principal, a class of middle schoolers recruited to be assassins, the government's eventual death ray from above, and even rumors about a gigantic yellow octopus that had been planning to destroy the earth? For one single terrifying week in March, Yuuji had watched the world almost come to an end.

Immediately, he had sent Nagisa a panicked message online, something like 'oh my god I saw your school almost blow up, are you alright?' After that, the two of them had kept in an awkward sort of contact. Thanks to the powers of the internet, anything was possible. Though it wasn't like Yuuji could call them particularly close, over the years both of them seemed to form some sort of connection. A silent agreement that they didn't want to lose track of each other.

Due to the unfortunate nature of their first meeting, Yuuji had approached Nagisa rather timidly at first, but after the whole end-of-the-world thing, that all took a back seat. Nagisa had been surprisingly forgiving whenever they exchanged one of their sporadic texts, saying that everything was okay, he was just glad Yuuji had messaged him. If you asked Yuuji, that response was by far the strangest thing of all.

Oh, and Yuuji knew now that Nagisa was actually a guy, of course. Really, it had been weird for a while to think that his first-ever real crush could be a boy, but Yuuji had come to accept that by this point. Crushes were crushes, and the momentary feelings of happiness that they brought were all that mattered. He did see Nagisa as his actual gender now, whenever he looked at him. Honestly, Yuuji wondered how the heck he could have missed it before. It was obvious once you knew the truth.

Besides, Nagisa actually didn't look that bad as a guy. With his recent haircut, the new, shorter length of his blue hair definitely helped to bring out a more masculine impression. Somehow, with the softness of his cheeks, he still looked like someone Yuuji would want to protect. Yuuji wondered if it was okay to think of a guy as "cute".

Yuuji still hadn't heard the whole of what happened during that year at Kunugigaoka, but whatever. He supposed that in the end, he only needed to know that he had Nagisa's forgiveness.

Although, currently, that forgiveness appeared to be running a little low.

"You can't be serious," said Nagisa. Although the boy had a reputation for being kind, his current tone was managing to do an impressive job of resembling a brick wall. "I told you, Yuuji, I'm kind of busy right now. Plus, are you really sure we could pull something like that off? I don't know if such a thing would really suit me…"

"Please!" The declaration burst out of Yuuji. He slapped both hands to the tabletop and bowed deep enough that his hat nearly touched the polished wood. "This is really important, Nagisa. I'll do anything!"

A dash of white caught Yuuji's eye. On the table in front of him was a single slip of paper, its surface marked with black ink—a transcript of his grades. Yuuji grit his teeth. This couldn't be happening to him.

The unfortunately-familiar scrawl was a brutal reminder of why he was here today. Honestly, they didn't look that bad to Yuuji, but still. He had been given enough grief about it by now.

"You gotta help me," Yuuji continued, nearly whining. "We're only in our second year of high school, but my teachers are already getting wiggy about this stuff. We've got mock exams coming up soon, and apparently that's, like, the end of the world or something."

Nagisa raised one eyebrow at the end-of-the-world comment, but let him continue.

Yuuji huffed. "I don't see what the big deal is, to be honest. But they say that the mock is a good indicator for college entrance exam scores. And we all know just how much adults love to yap on and on about that."

Nagisa nodded, quietly taking it all in. "I see. And how are your grades now?"

"They're…fine?" Yuuji tugged down on the brim of his cap as if to hide his face. "Look, high school is a lot harder than middle school, okay? I can't coast by as easily anymore."

The thought made Yuuji scowl. It was true. His grades were, much as he hated to admit it, kinda tanking. Even despite all that his parents had paid for him to go to this private school, staffed by elites and other children of the rich and infamous. He could still hear their last family argument inside his head: 'Yuuji, do you really think these kinds of results are acceptable? After all that your father and I have done to invest in your education…'

If they hadn't been in public at the moment, Yuuji would have grumbled under his breath. He was trying hard, dammit. He just wanted to enjoy himself and live his own life, for god's sake. Like keeping up with his internet-famous food blog. Wasn't that enough? But no, it wasn't like his parents even knew about it. A dark weight settled inside Yuuji's heart. Hell, they probably wouldn't even read it if they did.

That blog was the one thing that made Yuuji feel like himself. That food diary showed off his talents and was the one thing intrinsically his, yet they never cared. Instead, what his parents had started to notice instead were his marks in school. He had gotten the usual speech. Phrases such as 'What happened to everything we did to raise you?' and 'Don't dishonor this family' still rang inside his ears so much that they stung.

Yuuji winced in order to hide a frown. Just because they were right, didn't make it easy.

His heart wallowed. Stupid parents. Why did they only decide to pay attention now? He had been living like this for years, hardly putting much effort into studying. Enjoying the moment and living while he was young had seemed far more important. After all, he was just a kid. Life was supposed to be a fun while it lasted. Was it because he was about to step into the limelight now, become an adult, and they didn't want him to embarrass them? Was is all because of the precious family name? Why was it that the only times he could get someone to care were the times he was about to fall apart?

The pit of darkness inside of Yuuji curdled and turned sour at the edges with guilt. God, just listen to him. He sounded exactly like all those rich-kid brats that he never wanted to be. The kind of kids who received everything, and never said a word of thanks for it. All these resources, all this money and support that surrounded him, yet he never used them to their full potential. How spoiled was that?

The background noise inside Yuuji's head ground down to a constant grumble. God, everything was just so hard. He never asked to have this destiny, this silver spoon in his mouth that everyone resented him for, being born into a life of having everything expected of you and yet nothing at all.

"Still, why would you need me?" asked Nagisa, interrupting Yuuji's train of thought. "Wouldn't your parents…I don't know, consider a cram school or something?"

"Yeah, they already thought about that," Yuuji answered quickly. "They brought up the names of a half-dozen schools. My mom even brought out some brochures and everything. Then they started talking like I wasn't there. You know, like it was their future and not mine."

"Still." He shook his head. "I told them that I refused, and if I could find a better way, then they would have to accept it."

Inwardly, Yuuji shuddered at the memories of that conversation. Like hell he would ever go through the flashcard-whirlwind, overly-strict-lady-peering-down-through-eyeglasses, repetitive mess that was private tutoring again. He had hated it as a kid. No, much better to do this kind of thing with somebody that you actually knew and liked.

"I just don't get the point," Yuuji grumbled, fiddling with the paper wrapper for his straw. "There are tons of people I know who aren't taking these mock exams seriously. None of my close friends are even worried about it! So why should I?"

It was true. Among all the kids Yuuji knew at his elite private school, half the people he could name seemed to be making no effort to take the mock tests seriously. Those kids appeared to be partying just the same as before. Heck, even harder. Yuuji had heard countless whispers around his school of who was planning to skip the exam, ditch it, get an advance copy, have their parents make some personal phone calls, or even just bribe their chosen colleges outright.

Nagisa nodded. He took a long sip of his drink. "And yet, you don't seem to be joining them."

Yuuji hesitated. "No," he said at last, not even knowing why. "I just… I guess I just want to prove something. I mean, my parents are watching my grades now, and that's part of it, but still. I want to try under my own power."

"And you're good at this," Yuuji said, leaning over to point at Nagisa. "I know that. You've always been way more dedicated to school stuff than me. And I hear you still do tutoring at that nursery school on the side. Wakaba Park, right?"

Nagisa shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Y-yeah, but… Yuuji, I'm not sure if I have enough time. I have my own mock exams to study for, too-"

"I'll pay you."

Despite Nagisa's best efforts, the boy fell quiet. Yuuji knew that kind of immediate silence. It was the kind that meant his words had hit their target.

"I… I don't know…"

"It's good money. Double the usual hourly rate. Plus, it'd look really good during college interviews."

The words flowed out of Yuuji's mouth like the burbling of a river. The sheer ease of it made Yuuji want to kick himself for a moment. Ugh. He was doing that thing again, relying on his money to get people to pay attention to him. Pathetic. But all the same, Yuuji squashed that instinct of shame down. He couldn't help it, okay? It was the quickest way to get what he wanted out of this, and would save a lot of headaches. Plus, it was kind of all he knew how to do at this point. Flash some cash in front of people, and it was amazing how many walls would start to crumble.

"Please! I really need this," Yuuji said again, voice wobbling this time as he brought his forehead down toward the tabletop. Was he begging? He was begging. C'mon, the great Yuuji Norita was bowing his head. Anyone should appreciate this!

For a long while, Nagisa was silent. His fingers tapped the side of his glass. "Hmm. You'll 'do anything', huh?"

Suddenly, his gaze snapped up to Yuuji. "In that case, I suppose it can't be helped. I'll do it."

"What?" Relief flashed through Yuuji's veins like lightning. "Really?"

"Mm-hm." Nagisa nodded. "Just until the mock entrance exam period is over."

"You mean it? Oh man, thank you-"

"But on one condition." Nagisa smiled, cutting off the burst of joy that erupted from Yuuji's heart. "You have to promise to give all my methods a fair shot. They might seem a bit strange at first, but they'll work. Trust me."

Yuuji stared back at him in confusion. Of course. Why wouldn't he trust Nagisa?

Nagisa nodded. "Okay. Let's get everything sorted, then. Location?"

"My house," answered Yuuji automatically. "So my parents can tell that I'm actually doing something. I'll even reimburse you for the travel costs."

"Hm. Length of each session?"

"Uhh…two hours?" Yuuji guessed. "Wait, that sounds like a lot. Let's make it one and a half."

"Payment schedule?"

"In-person, given after each session."

A nod from Nagisa. "Once session per week?"

"Twice."

A small frown. "Once."

"Twice," said Yuuji, holding firm.

The frown stayed on Nagisa's face, a small glint visible somewhere within the boy's eyes, like light off the edge of a knife. "Twice a week," he spoke slowly, "and cut it down to one-hour per session."

"Done."

"Okay. I think I can do that." Nagisa gave a bright smile, as if even these negotiations were all part of a bigger plan. "Well, this is exciting! I'm actually kind of looking forward to this. I hope we can get to know each other well!"

The sight of that grin on his face made Yuuji's heart go all funny. God, Yuuji still remembered that smile—the one from back then, when Nagisa had smiled at him right before leaving the club, and how it had seemed to make all the background noise and worries disappear. Did Nagisa have any idea what effect he had on him?

But, in response to the innocent expression of surprise on Nagisa's face, Yuuji swallowed it down. Yuuji stuck his hand out, in the way that he had always seen his father do. "Pleasure doing business with ya."

As their palms touched, a different kind of warmth spread through Yuuji's heart. Man, that smile made everything worth it.

Their first meeting was on a Saturday, after the half-day of school.

The thought of it almost made Yuuji want to groan. That meant he couldn't go out and get stupid like usual, but whatever. This was fun too, somehow. His toes couldn't stop tapping, as if some part of him had been looking forward to seeing Nagisa all week.

Besides, it was only for a few months, he told himself for the hundredth time. After this fraud of trying to please his folks' wishes, he could go and goof off as much as he wanted. He just had to put up with this for a little while longer...

A soft click passed through the air as Yuuji opened the door to his room. "Here we are," he said, stepping inside. "Our own cozy little abode. Make yourself at home. Sorry for the mess, my mom insists on telling the house staff to clean less up here, to try to make me do most of the work myself…"

"Oh my god," said Nagisa after they both passed through the doorway. His eyes flew wide like a deer in headlights. "Yuuji, this is incredible."

The size of the room appeared to dazzle him. The space around them was huge, with walls painted a pristine, almost unnatural white. Natural light filtered in through oversized windows. A thick carpet attempted to give the floors a cozy feel. Long curtains fluttered on one side, covering floor-to-ceiling glass panels that slid open like doors, leading out onto a spacious balcony that provided a view down into the gardens below. The room itself was divided in the middle, hitching in like a waist. One half-wall stood in the center of the complex, leaving space to pass by on either side, like twin corridors. Beyond that partition, even more personal affects could be seen along with a king-sized bed, the sheets folded immaculately in a way that could never have been done by its teenaged owner.

The rest of the room was living space. Off to one side stood a desk, a sturdy, brown one made of wood. Next to it was a mini-fridge, sleek and gray and undoubtedly stuffed with snacks, maybe even a few drinks. A mass of different shelves lined the walls, strewn with remnants of old hobbies. Aside from manga, a surprising number of books of every shape and color could be seen as well. The room held not just one but two TVs—the bigger set placed proudly against the wall, with a more personal sized one facing the bedroom chamber. Connected to the larger one was a selection of video games and consoles, one of every kind that had ever been on the market. A stereo system with surround-sound speakers and its wires traced the ceiling. The "mess" Yuuji had been talking about appeared to be a few papers scattered here and there, some wrappers poking out from the edge of a garbage can, and a few coats thrown over the back of a nearby massage chair. Also, of course, a stray hat or three lying around.

Nagisa took it all in slowly, looking from side to side. He appeared to be absorbing every centimeter of it, like a sponge. "Why does your room have two sections? It's like…a hotel suite."

Yuuji looked back at him. "Hm? What are you talking about? This is just a normal room."

Whatever. The two of them quickly moved on, Yuuji leading them towards the desk. Privately, Yuuji hoped that Nagisa wouldn't ask any more questions. Seeing how shocked Nagisa had been made Yuuji want to shrink a little bit on the inside. Usually Yuuji loved showing off, but for some reason this was different. He didn't want Nagisa to feel as if there were any distance between them.

They settled in around the wood desk. One of the bookshelves stretched behind the back, creating a rather scholarly air. Yuuji took a seat and brought out his study materials, fetching a notebook, pencils, and binder paper from one of the drawers. Hey, he might not be the brightest bulb in the room, but no one could say that at least he wasn't prepared.

Come to think of it, Nagisa had been impressed with the rest of the house, too. Yuuji had caught the wonder in the boy's eyes when first greeting him at the door, and the rush of a gasp Nagisa had made when walking through the foyer. He had spread out his arms, as if in awe that he couldn't touch the sides of each room. And Yuuji remembered how Nagisa had shouted in the main hall, hearing his voice echo through the space before clapping a hand over his mouth and apologizing. Yuuji had told him it was no big deal.

Honestly though, Yuuji didn't see what was so impressive about it. All he could think about was how deeply the house staff had bowed to them him and his "honored guest" at the entrance, and how his parents wouldn't even be home tonight. His fingers tightened around the grip of his pencil.

"Alright. So what's the plan?" asked Yuuji, trying to shake off those feelings. "How are you going to turn me into a super-genius within the span of the next few months?"

Nagisa rolled his eyes. "Honestly, you're supposed to be helping me create a schedule, Yuuji." But even then he pulled a notebook and binder stuffed with papers out of his schoolbag. Yuuji hid a small smile. It looked like he had come prepared.

"Well, let's get started," Nagisa announced, tapping the papers against his lap. "First, I thought it would be a good idea to concentrate on refining your weak points. Would you mind telling me what you would say is your weakest subject, at the moment?"

"Uh." Yuuji felt an invisible sweat-drop as he thought. "Math, I guess?"

Nagisa switched the papers in his hand, shuffling a few different ones forward. "I had a feeling."

"Okay, in that case let's focus on that for today," Nagisa said. "But don't worry, in later sessions we'll also add in your strengths, so that you don't get demotivated. And don't think that this lets you off the hook for the other subjects. Ideally, I'd like to see you bring up your scores in all the other subject area up, too."

"What?" Yuuji whined. That sounded like so much work. "Why? What on earth would I have to gain from all that?"

Nagisa smiled. "My favor."

Well, that did it. Yuuji shut up, his mouth closing tight to snuff out any and all complaints. The fires of motivation flared to life inside his stomach. Yuuji was nothing if not a simple man.

"Actually, there's more to it than that, to tell you the truth," said Nagisa. He held up one finger, like a lecturer at the front of a classroom. "Work in any subject is bound to pay off in many ways. Once you've learned good study strategies and put forth the effort needed to succeed in the areas where you have less natural ability, that's how you access your own inner strength. From then, it becomes easier to use those strategies when studying for the other subjects too. Therefore, getting your grades up in one subject can helps every one out." Nagisa glanced away in a motion so quick it took only a blink. "And ah, slipping in any one subject can start bringing the rest of them down, too…"

"Yikes man," Yuuji said, leaning on his desk with one elbow. "Don't pressure me with stuff like that."

He was quiet for a moment, taking in the other boy's slumped posture, his conflicted expression. "…Is that how you ended up in the E Class?"

Nagisa turned to him in shock. "How'd you know?"

"Just a feeling." Honestly, even Yuuji wasn't sure how the idea had come to his attention. One of the perks of having those ridiculous powers of observation, he supposed.

Just as he finished saying that, another new idea popped into Yuuji's head. He leaned across the space between them, cupping one hand around his face as if they were sharing a secret. "Hey. Speaking of that class, did you guys actually do all of those things people say you did, or…?"

"What, the secret mutant alligators?" Nagisa said, referring to one of the most common conspiracy theories out there. "No. Just an octopus that could fly at Mach 20."

"Oh."

"There was a mouse that blew up the moon, though."

"There was what?"

Nagisa shrugged. "It made sense at the time."

Yuuji gaped. Well, he supposed in Nagisa's world, all things were possible. The world that Nagisa inhabited was bound to have been full of things as unearthly and wonderful as the boy himself. That wouldn't have been unusual.

From there, the studying began. The sound of pencil scratching across paper filled the air as Yuuji made his way through a worksheet. Nagisa had wanted to give him a pretest, to see what level he was at for further sessions. Nagisa gave instruction, going over the main ideas and formulas first. He explained the ways around common obstacles, guiding Yuuji through a few steps until Yuuji could replicate them on his own, giving just enough hints to let Yuuji fumble his way to an answer himself. In a way, it was like listening to a tactical commander. Yuuji shook his head in exasperation. He felt like a soldier being thrown into battle. His formulas and hastily-cobbled-together strategies hung in his mind like ill-fitting armor. He could practically picture the problems floating off of the paper, morphing into monsters that surrounded him and stood ready to beat him to a pulp. Whenever he looked over towards Nagisa with wide eyes that screamed "help", he would get only an encouraging smile back. If the pen truly was mightier than the sword, this seemed to be Yuuji's chance to prove it.

"So, do you have a target you're aiming at?"

"What?"

"Your goal," Nagisa continued. "It's hard to strike a bullseye against an opponent when you don't even know where your main target is. And the upcoming mock exams are for college placements, right? Do you have any idea about what your top choice might be?"

"Nah, actually," Yuuji said, not looking up from where he was concentrating on a particularly vexing bit of mathematic code. "Honestly, I figured there isn't much point. I'll just pick a few top schools, then do my best with the exams for them. Might have to pay my way in, but that's fine. That's how a lot of things are done at the elite level, anyway."

From where he was sitting, Yuuji might not have been able to see Nagisa, but he could sense his frown like a chill through the air. "You should maybe think about taking this more seriously," Nagisa chided. "I know this is only our second year. And the practice exams won't actually have any bearing on what we do with the rest of our lives. But it's important prep for the craziness of third year, which isn't that far away. That's when everything will really start to pay off."

"Practice exams are preparation for the real thing," Nagisa continued. "Whatever exams we take will determine what colleges we get into, which is a pretty big step in determining out futures. Hard work and personal ability is important, too. But unfortunately you know what they say. If you can get into a good college, and beable to put that name down on a job application, you'll be much more likely to get hired. It's like companies think that just because a person was able to get into places like Souseda, or Keisetsu, then that person is smart enough to be a good worker for them." Nagisa frowned. "Which I guess might be true in a way, given that they must have been smart enough to pass the entrance exam for those places, but still. And it's… nice that you're able to pay your way in, Yuuji. But that shouldn't be your only option."

Nagisa squeezed his papers to his chest. "The hard work you put in now is going to be invaluable in helping to pass this mock exam. That's why it's important to face this kind of thing properly, head-on. "

Huh. Yuuji frowned, holding the end of his pencil in his mouth as he puzzled. He had never really thought about it like that before…

When the two of them were done for the day, Yuuji escorted them back, retracing their path down the spiral staircase and through the corridor to the front entrance of the house. Once there, Yuuji held open the door for Nagisa. He puffed out his chest and tried to look suave. "So, may I see you again?"

Nagisa glanced at him in a way that was almost amused. He raised an eyebrow. For one moment, Yuuji's breath caught in his throat, thinking that he was about to say something sweet-

"Well, I'm scheduled for next Tuesday, so." Nagisa shrugged.

"Oh, right," Yuuji said. "Of course."

They bowed, and Yuuji closed the door, not sure if he felt more like an idiot or the luckiest person in the world.

Over the next few weeks, Yuuji's life settled down into its new routine.

Nagisa would come over twice a week. And two times per week, Yuuji would find himself sitting at the desk, scoot himself in, get out pencil and paper, and resign himself to the absolutely marvelous torture that was tutoring under Nagisa.

Today they had progressed from mathematics to another benchmark test. Yuuji frowned down at the paper. English lessons. Nagisa's specialty. And Yuuji's nemesis.

Nagisa's head perked up after Yuuji gave a particularly frustrated-sounding sigh. Nagisa shuffled his papers over his lap nervously. Once a few innocuous seconds had passed, he gently spoke to interrupt.

"Yuuji," ventured Nagisa. "I didn't think to ask about this earlier, but…you haven't been struggling with other things on top of school, have you?"

"Hm?"

"I mean," Nagisa said, tone calm yet cautious. "That ah, strange cigarette stuff from forever ago. Your grades haven't been going down due to being under the influence, have they?"

"What?" Yuuji said. "Oh god, no. I've actually stayed away from that stuff."

Nagisa rustled pencil against paper. "How much?" he asked like a doctor measuring a dose of medicine. Somehow, the question managed to sound nonjudgmental coming from him.

"Uh. Completely." Yuuji ruffled his hair. From the look on Nagisa's face, he could tell that the boy didn't believe him. "Oh come on, I'm serious! Like, okay, maybe the odd drink here and there," Yuuji admitted, memories flashing back to scattered nightclubs with pulsing music (lyrics slightly tamer) and dimly-lit company (now with "friends" that stayed for longer).

"I still like to, y'know, have some fun now and then," said Yuuji. "And it's hard to avoid that kind of world completely. But none of that really sketchy stuff. To be honest, I think I'm done with that sort of life." Yuuji shook his head for emphasis. And, as just a few years ago he would have been surprised to realize, it was true. Nagisa had been so worried, so adamant about not only telling but showing Yuuji how that sort of stuff did the exact opposite of making Yuuji look cool. And it had made Yuuji think. Every time Yuuji got the urge to try something, or was offered something by another person in skeevy trash-heaps, those words and the concern laced on Nagisa's face would immediately flash back into Yuuji's mind. He just couldn't forget it.

Besides, if Nagisa saw something that had been worth saving in Yuuji, then Yuuji could almost believe he was worth saving.

"So hey, uh…" Yuuji spoke again, breaking the silence. "Speaking of that, I never really got the chance to say this before, but thanks. Seriously. Those words helped me out a lot, and you don't know how often they've come in handy."

"No, no," Nagisa laughed, shaking his head to refuse, as always. "You did all that quitting yourself. All I did was open the door. You're the one who chose to walk through it."

Then Nagisa's expression turned sheepish. "I mean, I didn't even mean to do anything to you, so… I don't really feel that I can take the credit. It was an accident, honest."

Now it was Yuuji's turn to shake his head in refusal. "You don't need to apologize. Meeting you was the best accident that's ever happened to me."

"What?"

"Nothing."

The two of them got back to studying, Yuuji feeling somehow much lighter around the shoulders than earlier.

But still, try as he might, soon Yuuji found himself reaching the limits of his concentration.

Yuuji sighed. He jiggled his pencil in his mouth. He rested his head in his hands, even when he didn't really need the break. He began staring into space, looking off into the confines of his bookshelf as if the gaps between volumes were as vast and interesting as the depths of a whole new universe. Any attempts at holding thoughts in his head failed, thoughts coming to him and then slipping away like holes in swiss cheese. The sounds of Nagisa giving a tutoring lecture from beside him faded out into an incomprehensible melody, indistinct as the pounding of a drumbeat.

"…And so when you see this case here, what it really means is that-" Nagisa's voice petered out as he noticed that his employer wasn't paying attention. "Hey. Yuuji, look alive."

"Oh, c'mon," Yuuji said, kicking back in his seat. He tilted his chin up and groaned. "We've been at this for so long already."

"It's hardly been thirty minutes."

"But it feels like forever," Yuuji whined.

God, this was why Yuuji could never bring himself to do extra study work. It just required so much time and focus, damn it. What was the point of forcing himself to keep his butt in a chair for another solid hour, if he didn't even want to do this in the first place? Yuuji's feet swung aimlessly through the space underneath his chair.

Then, in a lightbulb flash, an idea came to him.

"Hey," he said, returning back from his lackadaisical pose. Yuuji slouched over the desk, leaning forward towards where Nagisa was standing. "You know what kind of things I think we should study instead?"

"What?"

"Each other."

Nagisa looked at him funny. He cocked an eyebrow before moving on, looking down at his tutoring notes.

"Oh c'mon, don't give me that. You know I don't like it when the clouds hang over your bright smile."

Nagisa shifted on his feet. He turned over the top paper in his grasp with a determined flip.

Yuuji grinned. This was getting fun now. "Hey Mister Tutor, you know what? The two of us go together like a teacher and a textbook-" he held up his own from where it was on the desk. "You solve all my problems."

Nagisa groaned at the pun. But, he couldn't hide a slight grin that peeked out where Yuuji could spot it.

"You know what grade I'd give you if I had a choice?" Yuuji puckered his lips and made a kissy face. "An 'A' for Angel." Yeah, this seemed like a good idea. Maybe he wouldn't have to study if he could just distract his instructor instead.

A rosy blush came to Nagisa's face. "Stop that," he muttered.

A reaction! So, his words were getting somewhere. Yuuji pressed on, determined. "Aww, c'mon. What's the harm? You know, if you'd like to take a break too, you know what else you could tutor me on? CPR lessons. You never know when a little mouth-to-mouth is gonna come in handy… "

Nagisa sighed, shaking his head. "Yuuji, you're a terrible flirt."

Immediately, Yuuji perked up from where he had been slouching over the desk. "Really? Thanks, I try so hard-"

"No, I mean it. You're terrible at this." Nagisa said with a contemplative frown.

Oh. Yuuji collapsed after a few more seconds, all the wind taken out of his sails. Well, fine. It had been worth a shot, damn it.

"I'll take your practice test now, if you're done with it."

Yuuji turned in his test sheet with a grumble. At the very least, he had at least been able to finish it. When he handed the paper over, he didn't even need to see the look on Nagisa's face to know the truth. His results would be… not good.

Nagisa went over the sheet quickly, pencil tapping and eyes scanning for any imperfections. He opened his mouth as if to critique-

Then abruptly closed it again. Nagisa's hand wavered where it was on the sheet, sending a tremble through the paper for a moment. Yuuji looked up, alerted by the silence. When he did, he saw something different in Nagisa's eyes. It was almost as if something had come into focus.

Nagisa looked off to the left, back towards the doorway. "Yuuji," he said. "This room is…pretty private, right?"

"Huh? Yeah. We're all alone, and these rooms are huge. You see these carpets?" Yuuji scuffed a toe against the ground. "Nice and fluffy. Honestly, I've dropped heavy stuff up here before and no one has come running to check. If the door was open then it might be a different story, I guess. But usually when I have the door closed, that's a signal that I don't want to be disturbed." Yuuji nodded back at the door, which was indeed closed for their session. "Near sound-proof, see? If you're worried about the house staff, they don't usually come unless called." Privately, Yuuji winced at not being able to catch himself in time. Dang it. Yet another reference to the gap between them.

Nagisa was silent, still looking off towards the door and frowning. He appeared to be staring into space much like Yuuji had been.

A sudden jab of self-consciousness made Yuuji start to freak out on the inside. Was Nagisa offended or something? Damn, Yuuji knew he should have kept his big mouth shut. His mind scrambled for something he could say to make things less awkward.

At long last, Nagisa sighed. "Well, you did say that you'd 'do anything'," he mumbled to himself.

Before Yuuji could ask what he meant, Nagisa had leaned down and dug through his folders again. He took out another sheet of paper and placed it onto Yuuji's desk. From the looks of it, it was another short practice test.

"Why?" Yuuji whined. "Why do I have to do this again?"

"Just give it a try."

Yuuji pouted. "But I already finished the one for today."

"Just do your best," Nagisa encouraged. "Here, look…"

He leaned forward over the desk, one arm snaking out in front of Yuuji. Nagisa's pen moved swiftly across the paper, adding a few red tick marks next to each question. "How's this for an idea. Let's make it a bit of a competition. For each right answer you get, I'll take off a piece of clothing."

"Geez, fine… What?!" Yuuji jolted in his seat. He had to be dreaming. He hadn't heard that right. He knew he hadn't heard that right, there was no way. Okay, he might have been saying all that stuff earlier, but just because Yuuji had done that didn't mean…

Nagisa nodded. He smiled as if he had just said the most normal thing in the world. "It's an exchange. One right answer per article of clothing."

Yuuji's face burst into red. "S-stupid, what are you saying?"

"Just like strip-poker, right? Think of it as extra motivation."

With that, Nagisa sat back into his seat, both hands folded demurely in the center of his lap. "Good luck."

Yuuji stared. His mind kept jumping from Nagisa's face, back to the desk, to Nagisa's smug damn face, to the white paper sitting there. He couldn't… This was all happening so fast. Did Nagisa really mean that? Even if Yuuji glanced at him with all his strong powers of observation, the calmness in Nagisa's shoulders and resolve in his gaze seemed to imply no weak points.

Yuuji held back a noise of confusion and returned his attention back to the desk. He scooted himself in and doubled-down, concentrating on the task. Only one way to find out. But as much as Yuuji tried, he could feel himself unnerved by the situation. The track of his pencil swayed, his handwriting wobbling. All mathematical units and equations would slip from his mind in favor of other distracting questioning thoughts. He couldn't be… Was Nagisa serious?

When Yuuji was done, he shoved the paper over to the edge of his desk, signaling that it was ready to be graded.

"Hmm," Nagisa said, after going through the paper carefully with red pen. "Only four out of ten. That's basically a failing grade."

Yuuji let out a breath of air. So, that was that, then. But wait, why did Nagisa sound almost a bit disappointed? It wasn't like he was actually going to-

Oh my god.

Nagisa stood in one smooth, luxurious motion. He set the paper down on Yuuji's desk, face-up so Yuuji could verify what grade it had gotten for himself. And there it was indeed: a big four written in blocky red ink right at the top. Without a single pause, Nagisa stepped out into the center of the room. Slowly, sumptuously, he began to move.

Nagisa swayed from side to side, moving as graceful as a blade of grass in the wind. He sunk down into his hips, letting them lean to one side before slowly bringing them around and back, using the movement to bring the flow up into his torso, then his arms stirring too, falling in line with an inaudible beat. Nagisa lifted his arms before ending with a smooth shoulder roll. The young man was graceful, and moved with a lithe ease to his limbs. In one quick action, he kicked off his house-slippers, letting them fall where they may. Without losing a single bit of flow, Nagisa reached down, peeling off one sock and then the other, leaning back against the nearby chair to support himself as he stretched out his leg enough to show off the subtle curve of his calves. When that was done, Nagisa transitioned back onto his feet with a gentle push.

Nagisa brushed both hands through his short hair, lifting his elbows up and allowing Yuuji a long, unfettered look at his torso. Blinking eyes that had suddenly become seductively half-lidded, Nagisa slowly slid his hands downwards, tracing along his body until they reached the ends of his shirt hem. He took hold of his outer jacket, following the zipper line up and up and up until it reached his collarbone. Gradually Nagisa let the jacket slide off of his shoulders, first on one side, then the other.

This appeared to shift his dance into a whole new level, the young man sinking deeper into his pose and letting his body go. Nagisa twisted and turned, waving the jacket over his head for a few moments like some kind of rodeo star. He danced around it, using the cloth like a partner in his movements. He even turned around for a few precious seconds, giving Yuuji a back view as he held the jacket stretched between both hands like a towel, holding it over his shoulders to emphasize the curves and lines there. Once a short yet excruciating eternity had passed, he let the jacket fall to the ground. The sight of it just lying there, after having been used for so much ceremony, made something strange stir to life within Yuuji. Bringing his hands to his chest, Nagisa began to work on his vest. He spent a leisurely amount of time undoing the buttons, leaning forward a bit with each new reveal, giving a look at the pure white shirt hidden underneath. Gently, Nagisa took off that layer too, letting the opened vest slip from his shoulders and down his arms, taking the vest in one hand for a moment before tossing it aside, leaving him in just his thin white shirt.

Yuuji's breath grew still in his throat. He stared openly, like some sort of animal. He couldn't help himself; he had never seen something like this before, or if he had, it had never been quite so alluring. Every single motion was fascinating, each movement of Nagisa's hips like the swing of hypnotist's charm. Yuuji's eyes went wide, taking in the new sights that each loss of clothing revealed. The shift and folds as one article of fabric was drawn over another. The sheer athleticism that must have been required to perform all this. The flex of sinew and muscle in his neck. The faint creases tracing the lines of Nagisa's arms through his sleeves. Yuuji gulped. Why the hell was he even noticing that?

Finally, Nagisa seemed to reach an ending point.

"Welp then. That's as much as you get with that," said Nagisa. He stood in place, his shirt having become slightly loose around the collar and one hand resting on his hip. He sounded a little out of breath.

Yet, after all that, he still had another small smile to cast at Yuuji. "Care to try a second round?" he asked.

Without any words, Yuuji nodded.

"Good. Then let's try one more."

Yuuji did as he was told, the two of them returning back to work at the desk. Yuuji muttered to himself as he blitzed through the worksheet at light speed. The subject was different, and Yuuji couldn't tell if he was better (that was to say, worse) at English or Math, but for now he couldn't hold any thoughts in his head aside from how that had looked, how that presentation had felt, and wanting to see it again as soon as possible, half-wondering if he was hallucinating and it would all slip away from him if he stopped to consider it for longer than half a second, like a delicate glass bubble.

And just like before, once the practice test was done, Nagisa graded it.

"Hmm. Okay," Nagisa muttered. He set down the sheet again, the resulting score marked at the top. It was hardly any improvement over the former.

And once more, Nagisa stepped aside and took his place in the middle of Yuuji's rug. Just like last time, he lost the vestments of his slippers and socks, the mere fact that they had been added back being all that was needed for Yuuji to feel a slight trill of excitement at getting to seeing that exposure be revealed once again. Nagisa seemed to gain more confidence with each successful maneuver, leaning over to stretch out his legs before sliding his hands up their length, ankle to upper thigh. Following the flow, he pulled up into a small head-roll, letting his eyes flutter shut as blue bangs fell in front of his face.

There was no music, yet every action that Nagisa did fell immediately into perfect rhythm. It felt like a song that continuously built up inside Yuuji's head the more he watched. The young man was agile, moving with the confidence of someone who had never quite forgotten special training, despite their body changing throughout their teenage years. Energy rolled through his body in an almost palpable tension, like the coil of a python or boa constrictor. His movements put to shame every dancer that Yuuji had ever seen, times ten. He even found himself watching with half awe, half fascination, unsure if he wanted to be Nagisa, or just be closer to him. Every single bit of Nagisa suddenly seeming alluring, taking on a new figure underneath the overhead lights. Nagisa smiled, making sure to hold eye contact as if every movement told a story, each blink causing time to stand still. It almost appeared that he was savoring the rapt attention, coursing with the power of being "looked at" and "seen".

Without pause, Nagisa grasped the bottom seam of his jacket and lifted it, pulling the garment up over his head. He worked faster this time, struggling free while a few strands of hair pulled loose with its passing. Twirling in bare feet, he played once more with the vest, undoing one button at a time as he spun. Once that had reached its limit too, his discarded it to the floor.

Nagisa's hands made their way down towards the ends of his shirt, fiddling with the edges and lifting them up. Although, never more than enough to show Yuuji anything more than what another young man would be used to seeing. He added in a full body-roll as he sunk down almost to his knees, before rising out of it through a duck-and-twist. Occasionally, he would look over at Yuuji, the bareness of his actions challenging Yuuji to both look and not look.

At last, Nagisa's smile curled at the edges into a kitten-ish smirk. He tipped his head to one side. His hands came snaking down to his hips, crossed over his body in a sultry X. And there they came to rest.

After a few quiet moments passed, it became apparent that the show was over. Nothing progressed much farther past that point this session either.

All the blood came rushing back to Yuuji's head at once. No. No, that couldn't be it. There had to be more on this test sheet that Yuuji could use. Yuuji bent forward over the desk, teeth clenched in frustration. Damn it, there were only so many questions on this list. If he wanted to see any kind of good skin, he would need to answer many more correctly…wait, did he want to see more skin?

Yuuji turned to look up at Nagisa. But before he could ask him if he was really sure, if he was really okay with doing this, especially doing this with a guy, Nagisa spoke. "See? That's not too hard, right?"

Yuuji nodded in agreement. His head whirled. So, these were the strange studying methods that Nagisa had been talking about earlier?

Well, Nagisa had said he wanted to be a teacher, Yuuji thought vaguely to himself. He had to wonder how on earth or what kind of people had taught him to associate perverted acts with academic instruction, though… Who in their right mind would include adult material or suggestive actions like these when being a teacher in a classroom full of students? Although, Yuuji had to admit, the technique did seem to be effective on him.

And maybe that was all Nagisa needed, in the end. Yuuji had noticed that special glint in his eye—the feeling of excitement, of using special skills, and more than that, winning with them. That was probably just part of who the boy was, as one of those ex-assassin trainees.

"You remember what I was saying about using any method?" Nagisa said. "Well, if this one can work, I'm willing to try it. Only if you want to, of course." He shrugged. "It takes all sorts of different strategies to succeed. Like how even flaws can become your weapons when used most effectively, right? "

Yuuji nodded. He mumbled something about making sure do his best.

"Alright then." Nagisa gave a tight smile. "We have a deal. Good luck."