Here's my entry into the MostlyLuckyStar forum's 'Fanfiction Challenge: 17'. I hope everyone there enjoys it, particularly since some of them don't know School Rumble. Regardless, I tried to make it as readable as possible for someone who has yet to join the Rumble, lol (which is why it should technically take place fairly early in the series). And I also hope anyone else who reads this enjoys it. Please review when you're done, as it's very much appriciated.

All things School Rumble belong to Jin Koboyashi and the rest of it's respective owners. Happy Reading :)

P.S. This is my first fanfic in the School Rumble category. However, if you know and enjoy Azumanga Daioh, you might want to check out some of the other stuff I've done (I know... shameless plug. I do it all the time).

The Bet:

Kenji Harima laid his head casually onto his desk, bored with the lesson his teacher was giving that Thursday afternoon. He didn't understand it, and therefore didn't much care. Instead of listening, Harima simply lay there, his head cradled in his arms, as he stroked the hair on his chin and stared at his one and only reason for going to class in the first place. His dark, angular sunglasses hid a goofy, longing expression from onlookers, instead making it look like he was annoyed with having to sit and listen to such a useless lecture.

The fact was however, under those mysterious sunglasses, his eyes glowed with love; a powerful love that was impossible to hide if left naked. But that's exactly why he had to mask them behind those blackened lenses. His fellow students wouldn't understand. A brute like him couldn't feel love, they would say. Such a thug could only think of abusing an innocent girl like Tenma Tsukamoto, they would think. Of course, nobody other than possibly Hanai would ever have the courage to say such things to Harima's face; but that didn't mean he couldn't feel the others thinking it.

Then again, who cared what they thought? Harima certainly didn't. He already knew that nobody really understood him. How could they? After all, he had indeed been a monster until recently. Until he'd fallen for Tenma, Harima could only think of fighting. He was always looking for that next battle; the next fist he could swing to prove his worth. But those days were gone. He didn't want to expose Tenma to such a world. He didn't want her to be with such a pitiful excuse for a man. She deserved better than a loser like that. So Harima changed his ways. He tried to become more respectable. Unfortunately... nobody seemed to notice the changes other than himself.

Tenma casually glanced over in Harima's direction, and gave a small smirk. The tall boy perked his head up and smiled back, his face red from embarrassment. 'Did Tenma... did she really just smile at me?' Harima thought frantically, wondering if he should speak up and say something to her. The girl raised her hand, and gave a small wave in his direction. Harima's heart practically stopped, and he quickly did the same, before noticing movement from the other side of the classroom, in his peripheral vision. It had been coming from Karen Ichijou, who was waving back toward Tenma. 'Damn, she wasn't waving at me? Was she even smiling at me? Does she even know I exist?' Harima roared inside his mind.

A second later, his thoughts were pulled in another direction as the final bell rang, signaling the end of the school day. Everyone around the room gathered their things as the teacher quickly gave final announcements, and said his goodbye's. Most everyone flooded towards the two exits, clambering to make it outside into the fresh, spring air. "Don't forget about the test tomorrow!" the teacher yelled after them, sighing, and turning to clean off the chalk board.

Harima casually got up from his desk once the crowd thinned out a bit, and started toward the exit. As he rounded the corner, and began walking down the crowded hallway, someone grabbed his shoulder, and stopped him in his tracks. "Hey Harima," the girl said energetically. It was Mikoto.

"Yeah?" he said nonchalantly, in his usual, deep voice. He turned to face her, and placed his hands casually into his pant pockets.

"We were just talking about who's gonna pass the test tomorrow. How d'ya think you're gonna do?" Mikoto responded, trying playfully to mimic his casual nature.

"Why're you asking me?"

"I dunno. Just curious I guess. I know you barely ever showed up for class last year. And now you're here every day. I just figured, whatever your reasons for showing up so often, you have to be learning something," Mikoto responded.

Harima looked away, not wanting to show any hint that he was only coming to school to be near Tenma. "I'll probably bomb it," he explained truthfully. "I haven't really been paying attention lately."

"You have to have been picking some stuff up in class," Eri jumped in, walking up next to Mikoto.

"Maybe. What's the test on anyway?" Harima shrugged, still giving no hint that he even cared.

"What? You don't know?" Mikoto and Eri responded simultaneously, their jaws dropping in amazement.

"Maybe you really don't have a chance," Eri remarked.

"Yeah, whatever," Harima said, turning to continue his journey down the hallway. Just that moment, Tenma walked out of the front door to the classroom, and his eyes lit up under his sunglasses.

"Hey Tenma, what took you so long?" Mikoto questioned as her friend arrived. Harima stood in mid stride, refusing to move an inch as he listened in.

"I was asking teach' what subject tomorrow's test is on," Tenma chimed, both of her friends going white with shock.

"Seriously, you and Harima are doomed! He's been talking about this test all week long, and neither of you've even noticed," Eri explained.

"Yeah, there's no way you're gonna pass, Tenma," Mikoto added, trying to stifle a laugh.

Harima turned back around to face the girls who were making fun of him and Tenma. He didn't care what they said about him, but nobody made fun of his one and only love. He stepped back into the growing group, shoulders cocked and back straight, now standing somewhere around six feet tall. His menacingly large body was complimented by a furious, furrowed brow; the kind that only warriors wore. Harima looked like a man on a mission, as he opened his mouth to give the two girls a good tongue lashing. Just then, he panicked. He couldn't say anything too mean. They were Tenma's close friends after all.

"T-tenma's not going to fail," Harima stuttered pathetically, lying through his teeth. "She's really smart," he finished simply, hunching his shoulders over in defeat, as he didn't know what else to say that wasn't rude. Even Harima knew that Tenma wasn't exactly the brightest bulb in the room. Tenma stood proud at his statement, but her friends just glanced at each other before breaking out into hysterical laughter. Just then, Akira walked up, her usual 'expressionless expression' adorning her face.

"You and Tenma couldn't even pass the test if you took it together," Akira responded bluntly, Tenma shooting her an angry, pouty look.

"We could too!" she lashed back. As if reading her mind, Akira replied like lightning.

"Care to make a bet then?" she asked quickly, still showing absolutely no emotion. The girl suddenly slipped a piece of paper and a pen out from behind her back, as if from thin air.

"I don't like where this is going," Harima began, but it looked like it was too late. Tenma seemed on board with whatever was going to be thrown their way.

"Bring it on!" Tenma growled competitively, grabbing Harima's arm around the elbow. A dumb smile broke over the tall boy's face, his mind flowing freely into blissful daydreams.

"Okay, the bet is that you and Harima can't pass the test tomorrow, even after cramming all night tonight," Akira explained. "Everything's on this contract here," she then said as she handed over the paper and pen. "If you pass, Eri, Mikoto, and I will all dress up in panda outfits during school, for the entirety of next week."

"Hey, where'd that come from? Have you been planning this bet all week or something?" Eri shouted, clearly not happy about being pulled into such a gamble. "I didn't agree to that!"

"They'll never pass," Mikoto assured her friend, though both of them looked slightly nervous.

"And if you fail, you and Harima have to do the same," Akira finished.

"Deal!" Tenma shouted, signing the contract for both herself and Harima.

"But-" Harima began, though Tenma quickly interrupted, not giving him any time to object.

"C'mon Harima. We've got a lot of work to do. We need to get to studying," she said as she grabbed his hand, and whisked him off down the hallway.

"Kay," Harima drooled, happy to be lead around by the love of his life.

"You wouldn't have made that bet if you thought they actually had a chance at winning, right Akira?" Eri questioned, unable to shake her nervous feelings as Akira handed her the contract.

"Of course not," the silently confident girl responded. Eri reluctantly signed the paper and handed it to Mikoto, who did the same.

"Good, because I wouldn't be caught dead in a hot, sweaty, gross panda outfit; especially for a whole week."

"We'll see..." Akira muttered, smirking slightly as she also signed the contract she'd drawn up. The other two girls looked at her worriedly, knowing their crafty friend was most likely up to something.

A half an hour later, Tenma and Harima were at the mall, looking for a quiet place to study. They finally settled on the least popular cafe around, assuming they wouldn't be bothered too much for the rest of the day if they went there.

"Let's sit over here in the corner," Tenma shouted excitedly, leading her large companion over to a small booth in the back of the cafe.

They both sat down, and immediately got their books out. 'I can't allow Tenma to lose this bet! I need to do everything I can to pass this test, and make sure she does as well.' Harima thought determinedly to himself. He opened his book, found the chapter they were going to be tested on, and looked over it for a few seconds. 'Crap! I don't even understand what they're talking about here!'

"And what can I get for such a cute little girl, and her rather large boyfriend today?" someone asked suddenly, in a monotonous tone Harima swore he knew. As he turned his head, his suspicions were proven correct. Akira was standing by their table, a cute little tiara and apron on over her clothes.

"Akira! What're you doing here?" Tenma gasped, expecting that her friend was up to something.

"What else? I work here," Akira explained casually.

"Where don't you work?"

"Well, I don't do any jobs in Ecuador or Nigeria," Akira responded.

"What does that mean?"

"Nothing you need to worry about," Akira said, as her eyes shined mysteriously. "Anyway, can I get anything for you lovebirds?" she then asked, getting back on subject.

"You know we're not dating, silly," Tenma giggled, as Harima clutched his chest and held back tears. "We both need the strongest coffee you have, in the largest size you've got. We have to have a lot of energy if we're gonna win the bet," she continued triumphantly, as if they'd already won.

"Got it," Akira said simply, walking off back toward the counter. Immediately, Harima and Tenma got down to studying, but neither of them could seem to decipher what was even going on in the books before them. When Akira arrived with their drinks, they had yet to make any headway whatsoever. Thirty more minutes went by, and the two of them struggled on, coming absolutely no closer to their goal.

"I don't get it," Tenma whined, placing her chin on her book as if she was giving up. "This is impossible."

"Don't say that!" Harima shouted determinedly, banging his fist on the table.

"Waaah!" Tenma yelled in shock, falling out of her seat.

"Tenma! I'm so sorry," Harima apologized profusely, helping her up.

"You two are doomed, aren't you?" someone questioned from across the room. It was Eri.

"Whadda you want, rich girl? What're you doin' here?" Harima snapped, to which he received a dirty look in return.

"I come here all the time."

"Yeah right. You don't belong in a place like this," Harima told her, catching her lie in an instant.

"Okay... so I don't ever come here. But can't a girl see how her friend is doing?"

"You really care that much Eri?" Tenma asked, her eyes sparkling.

"Well, no. But it's nice to see that you're gonna lose the bet," the tall blond responded.

"Get out!" Harima roared, standing up from the booth. Eri jumped, looking absolutely terrified. She glanced at Tenma to see if she what she thought of such harsh actions, but Tenma was busy giving Harima a thumbs up and a big grin.

"Fine, have it your way," Eri growled, stomping her way out of the cafe.

"Okay, back to work," Tenma chimed, burying her head back into her book with revitalized vigor. However, five cups of coffee, and several hours later, they hadn't made much progress.

"We're doomed, we're doomed," Tenma cried repeatedly, hyped up on caffeine, and delirious with failure.

"It's going that bad, huh?" Mikoto questioned as she arrived next to Akira, who was carrying another set of coffees.

"Whatzit to ya?" Tenma snapped, taking over Harima's role as the angry brute.

"Hey, I just wanted to see what's going on. Eri told me you were here, and I wanted to see if you were doing any better than when she checked in on you," Mikoto defended herself.

"Gaaaah! If you guys keep distracting us, the bet is off! It'll be all your fault that we fail. Sabotage!" Tenma yelled at a hundred miles an hour, before quickly gulping down her newest coffee and requesting another.

"Okay, sorry. I'll leave," Mikoto said sincerely, before mumbling something under her breath. "It's worth waiting to ridicule you until you're wearing a panda suit on Monday anyway."

Mikoto strolled out of the cafe, a new spring in her step, which only made Tenma even angrier. "What's with everyone? Can't we study in peace?"

"I can help with that," Akira replied simply.

"How?" Harima questioned slowly, unsure why the 'enemy' would want to help them.

"I've got the perfect place for you to work. Nobody will bother you," she explained. "Follow me."

Harima and Tenma hesitantly followed Akira across the cafe, and back behind the counter. They went into the kitchen, and through the dishwashing area, all the way to the back of the shop. Akira stopped them in front of the final door, and turned the handle. Inside they found several boxes stacked up, but the small room was otherwise empty.

"This is where we store the stir sticks, straws, napkins, and that sort of thing. Nobody will even know you're here, so it's the perfect place to study in peace," Akira told them as they walked inside.

"Are you sure we're allowed to-" Tenma began but Akira interrupted with a nod. "Why are you helping us anyway?"

"I have my reasons," Akira responded before walking back through the door, and closing it behind herself.

"Finally, we're alone together," Tenma sighed, smiling in Harima's direction as she shrugged off the uncomfortable feeling Akira's actions gave her. Harima returned a giant toothy grin, blushing profusely as he moved some of the boxes out of the way.

Finally the two of them began to make some progress, deciding to look back to a few of the previous chapters for help. What seemed like a half an hour or so went by, their spirits rising with each passing minute that they got closer to knowing enough to pass the test. However, their last bit of caffeine was now starting to wear off, and they needed more before the both of them crashed. Akira hadn't come by to check on them since they'd went in the back room, so the two of them decided to go find her and order some more coffee.

As soon as they opened the door into the dishwashing area, Harima and Tenma knew something was wrong. All of the lights were off, and they couldn't hear anyone working in the kitchen ahead. They felt their way through, and realized as they turned the corner that the lights were all off in the kitchen as well. "What time is it?" Tenma asked curiously, wondering what in the world was going on.

Harima got out his cell phone, and noticed that it was already past ten o'clock. They used the light from the phone's screen to guide themselves out of the kitchen. Both of their hearts stopped beating simultaneously, as they came to find that every light was off; not just in the cafe, but in the entire mall. The metal gates that locked up each of the stores were pulled across the entrances of each shop, including their own. They were locked in...

"What're we gonna do now?" Tenma cried frantically, clutching at the metal gate.

"Relax, there's gotta be a way to release the lock," Harima assured her, excited that he was finally able to prove his worth. He took a few seconds to glance around, and found a control panel on the wall, just on the other side of the gate.

"Tenma, reach your hand through there, and open up the gate," Harima explained to his smaller companion. The girl agreed, reaching her hand in between the metal bars. She placed her index finger on the 'One' button, and suddenly froze.

"Umm, what's the password?"

"Hell if I know," Harima told her, shrugging his shoulders cluelessly.

"Then what am I supposed to do?" Tenma shrieked angrily. "If we get it wrong, the police will come, and they'll think we broke in. Not to mention, we'll look like the stupid kind of criminals for getting ourselves stuck!"

"I can't get in anymore trouble," Harima confessed, having been in too many fights in the past few years.

"Argh! This is all your fault Harima!" Tenma shouted.

"My fault?" he gasped in response, feeling hurt and confused.

"You're supposed to be the big strong man! Now's where you act like a hero and find a way out! Why don't you already have the answer, Mr. Hero? Why can't you be more like Mangoku from Three For The Kill?" Tenma cried, repeatedly pounding her fists on his large chest.

"...You're right Tenma," Harima bawled, falling to his hands and knees.

"Huh?" Tenma squeaked, raising an eyebrow.

"This is all my fault! I should be more like Mangoku. He could pull out his katana and slice through this gate. He could get you out of here before anyone even knew what happened. Iiiiiii'm useless!"

"Wait, Harima," Tenma started in shock. She felt bad for making such rash accusations. "I'm sorry. I was overreacting," she continued, placing a hand on his shoulder. "This isn't your fault, Harima. I didn't mean to make you feel bad," she said apologetically.

"Y-you mean it?" Harima stammered pathetically, wiping the tears from his face.

"Of course I do," Tenma smiled, before raising a fist in anger. "This is all Akira's fault! She must have planned this all along!"

"Yeah!" Harima agreed. For a second, he thought he heard a small snigger from the other side of the cafe, but figured it was just his imagination. "So... whadda we do now?"

"Don't worry! I've been through this type of thing before; twice before in fact. Waiting is my specialty. We'll be alright Harima," Tenma reassured her friend in a courageous tone.

(Ten Minutes Later)

"Aww, this is horrible! It's sooo hard. I'm dying for my nice warm bed," Tenma cried, looking utterly defeated, as she laid face down on the carpet. She seemed to really be struggling already. Harima wasn't really having a hard time however. He simply attempted to console his friend, paradise enveloping him. They were all alone. This was his chance to tell her his feelings; this was it! He opened his mouth to speak, but Tenma beat him to it.

"I wish Kurasuma was here," Tenma whined, pining for the man she loved, and leaving Harima silent and heartbroken.

(Hour One)

'Man Tenma. You're the most amazing girl in the world. I love you so much... but damn you can be really annoying!' Harima thought as the girl continued to mope about. She insisted that they were going to die before anyone found them. Her tall companion continued to explain that at most. they were going to be stuck there just a few more hours, and that they should have plenty of food and drink to live off of. Still, Tenma whined for at least the next hour, wondering what she'd done to deserve this. Harima thought the exact same thing, though he was thankful for their situation. 'It's almost like we're living together, Tenma.' He giggled excitedly on the inside.

(Hour Two)

"Harima?" Tenma yawned, looking towards him with extremely lazy eyes.

"Yeah?"

"I think I'm gonna take a na..." she slurred before falling asleep.

"The coffee must have finally wore off," Harima whispered to himself, as he watched her sleep. Harima stared at her contentedly, as she silently breathed in and out in peace. "Sweet dreams," he smiled, prepared to stay awake and 'defend' her. Being in this situation, he couldn't help but to think back to when he and Tenma first met.

Just as she was now, Tenma slept soundly that day when Harima had fought off the criminal trying to hurt her. The sight of the blood dripping from Harima's injury had caused her to faint, so he had carried her all the way to his place. He stared down at her for a few seconds as she slept, feeling a fleeting stir within his chest. Harima couldn't help but think of how beautiful this mysterious girl was. Suddenly, she started mumbling to herself. Before he could react, the sleeping girl wrapped her arms around his neck, and refused to let go. "I love you. I love you," she repeatedly whispered in her sleep, tears streaming down her young, soft cheeks.

Harima tried to pull away, but couldn't get out of her amazingly strong grip. Tenma unknowingly pulled him closer and closer, their lips inching toward connection. At the very last second, Harima thrust his hand in between their faces, preventing contact.

That's when she woke up. Tenma's vision slowly collected, the young girl finding a surprise when she was finally coherent. On top of her was a man; the man she remembered from before. He'd saved her life... and now he was obviously taking advantage of her. He was sweaty and heaving, his face red from embarrassment that she'd woken up. Harima quickly jumped off of her and tried to explain, but Tenma wasn't listening. She stood up, fully clothed, but covering herself regardless as if she was completely naked. Harima followed her all of the way to the front door, frantically telling this strange girl that nothing had happened. He knew she still wasn't paying him any mind, so he lightly placed his hand on her shoulder.

Suddenly and without warning, Tenma slipped her foot across his ankle. The small girl then grabbed his arm, and flipped Harima forcefully to the ground. Her strength was amazing "Umm... thank you for saving me..." she whimpered shamefully. "But I think what you just did was..."

Harima couldn't continue on with the last part of the memory. What was he doing thinking about his past? All he cared about now was fixing things with Tenma; getting her to understand his deep seated feelings for her. He wanted her to know who was behind the sunglasses that he'd hid behind since that day; that he had been that boy from before. If she knew it was him, maybe she'd listen to his explanation of what really happened that day. He just had to find the right time to bring it up... which was after she'd fallen in love with him. Only then was Harima sure that she'd trust his words.

(Hour Three)

Harima thought on until about a quarter after midnight, before realizing that they'd long since stopped studying, and hadn't yet done enough to pass the test later that day. Deciding to let Tenma sleep for another minute or two, he silently crept towards the back room, and got their things. He brought them back out into the darkened cafe, and set them on the floor near where Tenma was sleeping.

"Tenma. Tenma, wake up," Harima muttered, shaking her a bit. The young girl groaned a bit, stretching and rubbing her eyes.

"Just five more minutes Yakumo," she mumbled, rolling over.

"No, it's me, Harima. Tenma we're still stuck in the mall," Harima explained a bit louder than before, making sure she'd here him.

"Wha?" Tenma questioned airily, before realizing what was going on. She sat up and looked at her darkened surroundings, then towards the towering male figure sitting near her. "Aww, I thought it had just been a nightmare!"

"You need to wake up. I know you're tired, but if we don't finish studying, we're not gonna pass the test. You don't wanna dress up in those panda suits do you?"

Tenma weighed her options for a few seconds, really, really wanting to fall back asleep. "Alright," she frowned, turning toward him and giving another great yawn.

Harima got out his cell phone and began to scan the pages of his book with the glow of it's screen. Realizing that Tenma couldn't see, he urged her to come around and sit next to him. She did so, though Harima could feel that she wasn't entirely comfortable with it.

For the next hour they attempted to study with the low light Harima's phone gave off, but they weren't very successful. It was too difficult to read anything, and eventually his battery ran so low that they couldn't even make out the text on the dark pages. Finally, they gave up on the phone, leaving them without a way to study; or so they thought. Being as dim as they are, neither Tenma or Harima thought once about going back into the back room... or turning on any of the other lights for that matter.

(Hour Four)

Deciding there was no longer any reason to stay awake, both of them drifted asleep; Harima in one booth, and Tenma in another. Harima began dreaming about how he'd failed the test. He came to school on Monday wearing the panda outfit as requested, not wanting to chicken out and leave Tenma alone in her embarrassment. However, when he walked through the front doors, he came to find that she'd actually passed the test. Everyone around him began to laugh, including his love; Tenma. She pointed at him as she cackled in delight, calling him names and saying what an idiot he was.

"Ahh!" Harima gasped, waking up to the darkness of the cafe in a cold sweat. He looked around to find that Tenma was still fast asleep. Praying that his phone wasn't yet completely dead, he opened it and held the power button. It took a second, but the phone booted up, revealing that Harima had only been asleep for about fifteen minutes. He sighed in annoyance, and shut the phone back down, wanting to conserve as much power as possible.

Harima prepared himself for a long night as he laid back down. Suddenly, he heard a rattle from the gate keeping them locked in. A mixture of concern and curiosity gripped him tightly, as he stayed silent in his booth. Harima was careful not to reveal himself too quickly as he peeked his eyes over the back of the seats. Shock enveloped him as he came to find that his giraffe, Piotre was now standing on the other side of the gate.

Harima shook his head in disbelief, but the giraffe didn't disappear. He scrambled out of the booth, careful not to make enough noise to wake Tenma up. "What're you doing here Piotre? How in the world did you get into the mall?"

As if he was psychic, Harima could suddenly hear Piotre respond to his questions. "I came looking for you master, because I was getting lonely. I've found you. Let's go home," Piotre explained with a single stare.

"I'm stuck Piotre. Without the code to this gate, I can't get out," Harima responded, his mind still stuck on how a giraffe possibly made it into the mall without setting off any alarms.

"What can I do to help?" Piotre questioned in his usual, lazy voice.

"Go and get help, Piotre. Go and find someone that can understand you; someone who can get us out."

Piotre thought about this for a few seconds, and realized exactly who could help. "I'm gonna go get that girl; that really kind girl from that one time. She's such a nice girl," he droned, turning to walk off back towards the exit.

Harima didn't really know for sure who Piotre was talking about, he just hoped that this mysterious girl could help. He casually walked back to his booth and laid down, now unable to sleep.

Ten minutes later, Piotre made it to his destination. He bent his neck down and looked through the windows of the house until he found what he was looking for. Opening the window with his mouth, he slipped his head through, and nudged the sleeping girl with his nose.

With a small, shocked yelp, Yakumo Tsukamoto; Tenma's sister, looked around frantically to see why something cold and wet was touching her face. The girl fell from her bed as she found a big, black-eyed giraffe staring her down. Yakumo then remembered that she knew who he was.

"H-hello," she shyly greeted him, glancing at her clock to find that it was now almost two o'clock A.M. "Did you need something?"

Piotre opened his mouth, as if to speak, though he couldn't actually say anything. But it didn't much matter. The giraffe had made it to his destination... but he couldn't remember for the life of him why he had needed to go there in the first place.

(Hour Five)

Harima finally started to give up on Piotre. Forty-five minutes had had gone by, and still nobody had shown up to help. "Damn his inability to remember anything for very long," Harima growled quietly, before scolding himself for saying such a thing about the giraffe. Piotre only wanted to help after all, even if he wasn't very good at it.

"Harima, I'm hungry," Tenma said quietly, causing the young man to jump in surprise. She was now sitting in the booth next to him, clutching her stomach. Harima looked down at his own belly, which immediately growled as if it knew what he was thinking about.

"Yeah, me too. Let's go find something," he agreed, standing up. They both walked back behind the counter and started to look for where the food was kept. Making their way rather clumsily into the dark kitchen, they continued to scour the shelves and cabinets, looking for anything to eat. All they could find however were ingredients; nothing that had already been made.

After ten minutes, Tenma began to complain, whining that she was absolutely starving. "Well," Harima started, looking around. "We can eat this I guess," he explained, scooping his hand into a bag of flour and shoveling some into his gaping maw. Almost instantly his mouth dried out and he coughed as some of the powder made its way down his throat. The lack of actual taste was by no means appealing, and he was becoming increasingly thirsty by the second. "Mmm, delicious," Harima coughed, smiling and giving a thumbs up, revealing a gooey, sticky mouthful of dough.

"No thanks," Tenma shook her head, resigning herself to her hunger as she walked back out toward her booth. They both laid back down in their separate 'beds' and attempted to go back to sleep. Because of their intensely grumbling stomachs, it took a little while to actually drift into dreamland. But eventually, they both made it there.

(Hours Six and Seven)

For the next two hours, each of them slept fairly soundly, yet not at all deeply. They both woke up repeatedly every twenty or so minutes, before rolling over and forcing themselves to fall back asleep.

The sun was finally starting to come up, and a warm, orange glow began to bathe the large hall between the stores, coming through the skylights. Harima woke up once more, cursing under his breath at how uncomfortable the night had been. He repositioned himself and closed his eyes once more, when, out of the silence, he heard a sharp click coming from the gate. Harima got up to examine it, delirious exhaustion letting him hope against hope that it had somehow unlocked itself. The tall boy grabbed the metal crosshatching and pulled. To his great surprise, the gate slid open without giving any sort of a fight.

In absolute amazement, Harima closed the gate, and opened it back up multiple times. He didn't know how but it was unlocked; they were free to go! "Tenma! We're free! Tenma!" Harima shouted excitedly. It took the girl only a few seconds to realize what was going on, and she was on her feet fairly quickly.

"Omigosh! Harima, you've saved us!" Tenma shouted, tears running down her cheeks.

"But I-" he began, before deciding he might as well take the credit. "Yeah, I guess I just got lucky and pulled on the gate the right way. It opened right up."

"C'mon, let's go before something else goes wrong," Tenma cheered. As she started to skip off however, Harima grabed her hand. Now was the time to explain his feelings. This was the perfect time.

"Tenma, wait. I have something important to tell you," Harima began, shaking slightly with nerves.

"Yes?"

"Well, being with you all night... and going through everything that went on; I just feel that I need to get something off of my chest. Tenma," Harima continued, before taking a deep breath in preparation for the next phrase he was to say.

"Tenma, I... I love you," Harima stated simply, looking through his dark sunglasses into her large, innocent eyes.

Tenma stared at him silently for a few seconds, taking in the words she'd just heard come from his quivering mouth. Without any warning, she embraced him tightly, still saying nothing.

'This is the greatest day of my life!' Harima's mind roared in elation. 'I'm so freakin' happy!'

"I think I feel the same way," Tenma confessed, sending Harima's happiness into overdrive. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. His dream was finally a reality. Nothing could bring him down now.

"You're just like a big brother to me. I love you, big brother Harima," Tenma continued. Like glass, Harima's heart shattered as he fell into the void.

"Oh, yeah... like a big brother," he stuttered, chuckling a bit as they broke apart. "Yup, I love you like a little sister..." Harima lied in a squeaky voice, trying to hide his inner sorrow. 'Why does the world hate me?' he asked himself angrily

"I feel just like Yakumo must; now having a big sibling to look up to!" Tenma chimed happily. "Then again, I guess she takes more care of me than I do of her," she laughed in embarrassment. "So I guess it's like I've got two 'older' siblings now."

"Well then, it's time to go, Nee-san," Tenma chirped.

"Wai-" Harima started, ready to explain what he really meant. He couldn't live knowing that Tenma thought he felt such a type of bond with her. His feelings were different; stronger, and more romantic than a brother-sister relationship. But before he could say anything, Tenma grabbed him by the hand and stood on her toes to give him a gentle kiss on the cheek.

"Wanna walk me home so that I can get ready for today's test, Nee-san?" she asked Harima kindly, looking up at him with her beautiful, pure eyes.

"Kay..." Harima drooled, once again in a fantasy world.

When both Harima and Tenma were finally gone, Akira stepped out from the shadows at the other side of the cafe. She smiled mischievously, knowing that there was no way they could pass the test now. Sure she'd missed a night of sleep over it, making sure that everything went according to plan. But it was so worth it.

Akira had furthered more goals than just assuring Harima and Tenma's failure in class later that day, but there wasn't time for her to think of success. She had to prepare the panda suits...

(Monday)

Harima walked to school, embarrassment and anger turning his face a deeper red with every step he took. "Don't worry about it, Harima! I think you look cute!" Tenma cheered, pumping a fist in the air.

Indeed, they had both failed as Akira had planned. Then again, they did so bad that the girl quickly realized that she hadn't even needed to intervene in the first place. Yakumo stared at them in silent confusion. She didn't know all the details about the bet, and therefore didn't quite understand why they'd agreed to such insane terms. Yakumo herself could never have signed a contract with so much risk involved. A whole week in a panda suit would be torture.

"Is the school gonna even allow this?" Yakumo asked quietly, feeling sorry for her older sister.

"I guess we'll see when we get there. But I forgot to bring a change of clothes if they don't," Tenma laughed, not really concerned with what lie ahead of her.

"Of course they're gonna allow it. I pulled some strings," Akira suddenly responded from behind them.

"Oh, hi Aki-" Tenma began, before turning to find her friend was also wearing a panda suit, just like her and Harima. "Why are you...?"

"It's not just me," Akira droned in her monotonous voice. She stepped aside to reveal both Mikoto and Eri hiding behind her. Each of them was also in a suit, clearly embarrassed, and clearly frustrated.

"But why?" Harima questioned. "You guys won."

"We did indeed. But the terms of the contract were stated as thus: 'If both Harima and Tenma pass the test, Eri, Mikoto, and Akira have to wear panda suits to school for all of next week. If Harima or Tenma fails, both of them have to do the same. You both failed. That means you have to wear panda suits."

"I know that, but why'd you guys wear them?" Harima inquired again.

"I never said that if you guys failed, we didn't have to wear them. You just have to join us."

"How did you 'pull some strings' to make this okay anyway, Akira?" Mikoto questioned in annoyance.

"Never you mind, pretty panda," Akira said happily. "I've always wanted to do this..." she then mumbled to herself.

"You knew we didn't ever have a chance at passing, didn't you Akira?" Tenma asked, slightly annoyed about clearly being played.

"Of course. Didn't I say that in the beginning? I knew it all along. Especially when you guys gave up without thinking to return to the back room of the cafe, in order to study in the light," Akira responded.

"What? How did you-?" Tenma started, astonished and confused by what she'd just heard.

"Never you mind, pretty panda," Akira repeated, giving a small chuckle.

Yeah, I know. Pretty awesome right? If you agree, tell me why in a review. And if you don't... well, tell my why in a review as well. Hope you liked :)