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chapter 1 - chocolate
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"He's so tall!"
Hanako turned to see a classmate talking to her friend, gesturing animatedly with her hands. The girl spins around and gestures at a boy sitting at the very back of the classroom, two seats behind Hanako.
Hanako turns as well, an expression of uncharacteristic shock crossing her face when she does. The guy is huge - though he's slouching over his desk, his shadow looms over the person in front of him. Two lazy purple eyes are trained on the ill-concealed bag of chips sitting on his open textbook. His mouth stops mid-chew as she poor boy in front hisses a barely audible, "Not in class, Atsushi," before the teacher asks for yesterday's assigned homework.
Hanako frowns. What was the giant boy's name again? Muramoto? Akira? Matsuya? Something long…
Ah. Murasakibara.
"Hm?" Murasakibara's eyes flick over to Hanako for a moment, and she finds herself wondering if her head even reaches his chest.
Then the teacher calls her name ("Yamazaki! Please bring your homework here!") and she turns around, all thoughts of purple hair and sweet snacks leaving her mind.
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That incident doesn't cross her mind until Valentine's Day, when she enters the classroom, holding the chocolate she'd made herself last night.
It's pretty simply made , really, but that's only because Hanako only remembered to make it after the clock struck ten. Being a person who loves making sweets, this is below mediocre, she thinks, sighing heavily. If only she'd been paying attention -
She sneaks a look at Futahashi-kun, the object of her interest, and flushes red. He's laughing with his friend over something, his chin resting in his hands.
Hanako puts the chocolate into her bag, smiling to herself, then starts to head toward her seat.
It happens in only a few moments. A light thump as a piece of candy drops on the ground. A crunch as Futahashi-kun stands and walks toward a friend, greeting him. A crash as a certain purple-haired giant shoves his chair away, looming like a tree over the boy.
Murasakibara's eyes narrow and he picks up Futahashi-kun by the back of his shirt, not even showing the slightest hint of strain. Hanako stares in horror as her crush dangles helplessly, his face paler than milk. Another boy, looking remarkably stressed, hurries over.
"Put him down, Atsushi," he says.
Hanako vaguely recognizes him as the person who sits behind her - as well as between her and Murasakibara.
Himuro pulls at Murasakibara's arm, but it doesn't even budge an inch. He pulls harder ("You'll get in trouble again!") However, it's all in vain: Murasakibara is literally smoldering with anger, his attention never leaving Futahashi-kun, and his grip is not loosening no matter what Himuro does.
What should I do? Hanako thinks. She can begin to hear the teacher's footsteps nearing the door, and everyone in the classroom has gone quiet, staring in horrified awe at the scene playing out before them. Her grip tightens on her bag -
Wait. Hanako's mind races as the footsteps begin to slow. From what she'd seen so far, Murasakibara really likes snacks. So maybe -
She reaches up on her tiptoes and taps him on the shoulder, her heart pounding.
Murasakibara's head turns and he looks down at her.
"Please put Futahashi-kun down," she says, offering him the box of chocolates she'd made for said boy.
Futahashi-kun is promptly dropped back onto the ground with a thud. The whites around his eyes visible from shock, he scrambles for his desk, looking traumatized. Both he and Himuro give almost imperceptible sighs, equally relieved. As the footsteps of the teacher stop and the door slides open, Murasakibara opens the box of chocolates, having already forgotten his previous snack.
"Murasakibara-kun!" the teacher says. She doesn't seem very pleased at all, Hanako notices. "How many times have I told you not to eat in class? Please come see me after school, both you and Himuro-kun."
"Ah," Hanako says hesitantly. Both the teacher and the class focus on her, and she swallows awkwardly. "I'm sorry, but I was the one who gave it to him. It's not Murasakibara-kun's fault."
"You too, Yamazaki-san?" says the teacher, shaking her head in disappointment. "All right, then…"
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At least I tried, Hanako thinks wearily.
She, Murasakibara, and Himuro sit in their chairs, heads lowered, as the teacher lectures them on proper conduct and self-control. Hanako's head is pounding and her eyes ache, but she manages to stay awake. She shifts uncomfortably. To her left, Himuro's hands are moving restlessly, as if he really wants to do something. To her right, Murasakibara is chewing on the last of the chocolates. She realizes, not without some chagrin, that only Himuro and herself are actually paying attention to the teacher.
"...that's it," the teacher finally says. "Keep this in mind next time, okay, you three?"
"Yes, ma'am," Himuro and Hanako say.
Hanako nudges Murasakibara gently and he inclines his head.
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"I wasn't able to thank you earlier," Himuro begins apologetically as they step out of the room. Murasakibara follows behind them, his hands in his pockets. "You really saved us from getting into more trouble. So thank you very much for that."
"No problem," Hanako assures him, thinking, what a gentleman.
She turns to Murasakibara.
"Well?"
He blinks slowly.
"What?" he says, looking almost bored.
She smiles.
"The chocolate. Did it taste good?"
A stare.
"It was good," he finally replies.
"I'm good to hear that," Hanako says.
"I've been meaning to ask you," Himuro says, tilting his head, "but why aren't you scared by Atsushi? I don't mean to be rude," he adds hastily, "but most people are intimidated by him. I thought you'd probably be terrified, after he picked up Futahashi like that, but apparently I was wrong."
"Terrified?" Hanako contemplates this. "Well, actually, I was so scared when he lifted up poor Futahashi-kun. But no, I don't really find Murasakibara-kun intimidating anymore. I thought he was pretty scary at first, but my opinion has changed."
"And why is that?"
"Murasakibara-kun looks a little frightening because of his height," she replies, "but after a while, he's actually quite sweet."
An amused smile makes its way across Hanako's face.
"Pun intended," she says, and Himuro laughs.
Then his expression changes abruptly.
"Oh, shoot! That reminds me!" he says, grabbing Murasakibara by the arm. "We're late for basketball practice again! Coach'll kill us!"
As Himuro attempts to make Murasakibara move faster, demanding to know if he had his gym stirp with him, Hanako is surprised to find herself grinning.
"Basketball practice, huh?" she says, laughing quietly. Reminding herself that she doesn't have anything to do with her time anyways (she'd usually go to Futahashi-kun's soccer practice, but for some reason, she has no desire to see Futahashi-kun today), she runs after Himuro and Murasakibara with a new spring in her step.
