Written for Femslash February 2019's sixteenth prompt "Blue."
A Certain Appeal
Tome rolls her eyes and yawns loud enough for Shigeo to turn his attention away from Tsubomi. She narrows her glare on him, watching him slowly shift his gaze back to the school's most popular girl. Overpowered as the gossip of the girls standing outside the open door of her club room spreads inside, Tome gnaws on her lower lip.
"Hey, hey, I'm talking to you about my theories! I'm spilling some major secrets about myself, and you're not even listening!" she snaps, smacking her hand on the table.
Jerking his head back to her, Shigeo quirks his lips into a shocked grin before settling back into neutrality. "Sorry, Kurata-san. What were you saying?"
She grumbles, leaning forward and squinting at him. Shigeo averts her glower by flicking his attention to the window, spotting a few random classmates walking home from school. He would have been training, but she had dragged him into the former Telepathy Club room in order to learn more about Reigen's business. She seemed to have an interest in learning psychic powers from him, but even though he had gently tried dissuading her, she seemed more intent on training with him to awaken her supposedly latent psychic abilities before they graduated middle school.
Her theory isn't exactly reasonable. He knows her interest in space is vast, but he's certain that aliens never blessed her with powers as a baby. That sounded like something out a cheap science fiction novel, but she was too engrossed in explaining her wild conjecture before he had a chance to interject. When he spotted Tsubomi outside, he found something to keep his attention as she rambled on and on about nothing of relevance.
"I'm betting that they're from another galaxy, too! They're not those weird kind we saw either. They're the real deal," she adds, and Shigeo purses his lips, irritation pinching his skin.
"Kurata-san, that's not plausible," he says, feeling as though he had struck a hornet's nest when she scowls at him.
"Why not? It's totally plausible! Alien abductions might be rare in this technological age, but a weak baby can't stand a chance against that when she's sleeping."
He wants to leave and jog with the members of the Muscle Improvement Club as she begins doubling down on her explanation. Blocking out her jabbering, Shigeo peers over to Tsubomi, a hint of pink touching his cheeks. She's giggling as her friend finishes up a joke, making him wonder what had made her laugh until Tome snaps her fingers in front of his face.
"Come ooon! I'm seriously pouring my heart out to you. I'm showing you all the passion I have burning in my chest, and you won't even take it at face value," she snarls, and Shigeo winces, really hoping his master would suddenly call him in for an exorcism.
Tome glares at Tsubomi's backside. She's certainly pretty with long locks of blue hair and the brightest eyes she's ever seen. Like a swan, she stands tall and proud, bowing down to no one and affirming herself.
She doesn't really know that much about Tsubomi compared to Shigeo. She didn't have any connection with her except for knowing her name like the rest of the student body. Tsubomi's stunning with a very pretty face and nicely textured hair. She constantly does well in school and her extracurriculars as if she oozes talent. Anyone with half a mind at Salt Middle School would fall for her, but her heart belongs to the occult.
With her own desire to become psychic, she had hoped Shigeo would offer some advice. Maybe he could have even humored her a little, but he refused to play along. His swift glance towards Tsubomi, the final nail in the coffing of him not taking her seriously, made her irritation boil over like an erupting volcano.
Throwing her arms up, Tome leaps up from her seat and shouts, "What do I have to do? Dye my hair blue and pretend to be her for you to listen to me?"
"You want to dye your hair, Kurata-san?"
Her mouth flops open, and she shudders from head to toe. Dropping her arms down, she hunches forward and stares at Tsubomi standing in the doorway. Like a deer in blinding headlights, Tome is frozen solid. She doesn't take in Shigeo looking between them, too concerned with the delight that glitters in Tsubomi's eyes like precious diamonds.
"What color? I think a nice purple would look good on you. It'd compliment your eyes," Tsubomi says, her friends having departed for the day.
She cringes, awkwardly playing with a few split ends. "Eh, I meant-that's not what I meant-"
"Oh, maybe a pale pink." She steps inside and gently strokes through Tome's hair, her soft fingers on Tome's scalp making the other girl shiver. She giggles, pulling back and clutching her bookbag. "I think it'd look really nice on you. Dyed hair is becoming pretty popular."
"You think so?" Tome touches the spot where Tsubomi had stroked through, a fleeting warmth spreading from the top of her head and trickling down in her chest.
"I do. I'm even interested in dying my hair over summer vacation. Maybe we could get our hair dyed together if you're interested."
"O-oh! Uh, yeah, sure!" A scratchy laugh ripples up from the back of her throat.
Tsubomi smiles and checks her bubbly pink wristwatch. "Oh, darn. I have to get going." She brushes her bangs back and slips a few curls behind her ear. "Kurata-san, let me know if you're interested in dying your hair together over break. I think it'd be fun."
"Y-yeah, yeah. I'll let you know whenever." Tome stiffly nods.
Tsubomi greets Shigeo as she skips out the door, and he meagerly waves back, his face flushing. They listen to her receding footsteps become quicker, the sounds of her heels clacking against the tiled floor echoing in the hallway. Shigeo rubs his throat, watching Tome stumble back into her seat. As she streaks her fingers through her hair, Shigeo checks his phone and sees a missed text from Reigen.
"That girl, she's so...forward," Tome whispers, heat flushing her cheeks.
"That's Tsubomi-chan for you. She's been like that since elementary school," he says, grabbing his nearby backpack and slipping it on. "Also, sorry, but Master needs me."
Gesturing at the door, she mumbles her goodbye as Shigeo slides out. She laces her fingers in front of her nose, her brow furrowing. Hunching in her seat, she rests her face in her palms and purses her lips tightly together.
"Forward, huh?" she whispers, and she rubs her head, the warmth of Tsubomi's hand still there. "No wonder everybody likes her…"