In Close Quarters

So, there were twelve people living on a train. And the thing about that was that no matter how luxurious the train (and luxurious it was) and how discrete the people (and honestly, most of them weren't all that discrete), they were all bound to learn things about their classmates that they would never have known otherwise.

Some of those things, Ryouko mused, were pretty damn gross. For example, Daigo trimming his nose hair—not something she ever wanted to see again. In fact, for a good week afterwards she was pretty sure she didn't want to see anything ever again.

But other things were more pleasant.

Ryouko sipped at her coffee, crossing one leg over the other as she gazed over the rails. For some reason, the person who designed the train placed the breakfast nook right above the exercise room. So whenever she got up early, Ryouko got a front row seat watching Kurokiba Ryo work out. And more often than not—always, if she were to be honest—Kurokiba-kun worked out without shirt on.

As was often the case with such good news, word spread fast.

"Look at those arms," Ikumi marveled as she spread apricot jam on her toast. She worked out a little bit herself—she had to in order to butcher meat as well as she did—but she had to admire his athleticism, his physique. The things one didn't notice while he was acting as Nakiri Alice's shadow.

"Look, look," Yuki interjected, "he's switching to the one handed push-ups."

The three girls were silent for a moment, and then they released a collective sigh.

"Don't let Alice catch you," Hisako cautioned as she made her way up the stairs. The secretary then put on a fresh pot of coffee.

"Alice-chi watches with us whenever she wakes up early enough," Yuki informed her.

"That does sound like her," Hisako admitted.

"Pull up a chair, Arato-san," Ikumi said, flipping through the pages of the Tōtsuki newspaper in front of her. How Alice managed to get it delivered to them all the way in Hokkaido, the world may never know.

"We have a great view," Ryouko added.

Hisako shook her head and gave a tiny shrug. "I've seen it before. Not interested."

"Would you wanna watch if it were Hayama-kun?" Ikumi teased.

The pink haired girl rolled her eyes. "Look, I don't know how Alice mislead you, but I don't have anything to do with that person."

"So you weren't wearing his scarf the other day?"

Honestly, she would have just stayed cold if she'd known people would still be talking about it a whole week later. "It was only for a few hours. I was freezing. He was just being a gentleman."

"So, Erina's secretary-chi is into chivalry," Yuki observed. "I never thought you were that type."

"I'm not," she huffed. "And I wouldn't say he's that type either."

Ikumi blinked once. Twice. "But then doesn't that mean-"

"Look," Hisako said as she poured her coffee into a white porcelain mug. "Even if I was interested in love right now, which I am not, he isn't my type at all."

Ryouko raised an eyebrow, then she and Yuki exchanged an incredulous look. "Why not?"

"Well, for one thing, he's arrogant." She started to pace, beverage in hand as she ticked items off the list in her mind—a list she'd recited far too many times since Alice started questioning her. "And he's mean, and elitist, and pretentious, and he thinks he can speak to people however he wants just because he happens to have an abnormally good sense of smell." Hisako glanced up when she heard the other three girls start to giggle. "What?"

"Nothing," Ikumi said.

Hisako narrowed her eyes. "I'm leaving."

"Wait," the meat master continued, smirking as the Arato heiress paused. "It's just...think about what you just said and replace sense of smell with sense of taste. Who do you get?"

Hisako grew quiet, slowly realizing what they were getting at. "Oh my god, no! No! That person is absolutely NOTHING like Erina-sama!"

"When you think about it, he's kind of like the male version of Erina-chi," Yuki added.

"I resent that comparison, Yoshino-san!" Hisako cried, her face flushing. "Erina-sama is a pure and admirable soul! One cannot help but adore her magnificence. He, on the other hand-"

"Arato-san," Ryouko spoke up, her eyes suddenly wide. "You-"

"For the last time, there is absolutely nothing I like about Hayama-kun!"

And then Hisako sensed more than saw him standing behind her, smirking in that self-satisfied way of his. "Good morning to you too, Arato."

Hisako turned around slowly and saw him, shirtless, hair unbound and dripping from the shower. She quickly looked down to avoid his teasing, green-eyed gaze, her cheeks burning. Ikumi, Ryouko, and Yuki, who'd all previously had so much to say, fell silent.

"J-just shut up and get your coffee," she said, cursing the fact that she had put on his favorite blend subconsciously. In retrospect, that was probably what had lured him up there.

"Whatever you want," he said, deciding to pass up this particular opportunity to tease her.

"And put on a shirt!" she admonished before she could help it. "It's below freezing outside."

Nope. Never mind. She made it too easy. "Do you always nag like this, or is it just with people you hate?"

"That's not what I said. I just-"

And then he was smirking at her again, and some involuntary force turned her lips upward into a half-smile. "I'm kidding, Arato."

She crossed her arms over her chest, refusing to be baited any further. But despite herself, Hisako found herself watching him reach for a mug and pour the coffee, his toned back muscles in full view. Though she'd never admit it to Ikumi and the Polar Star girls, he was good looking—sexy even.

She gave her head a rigorous shake. Sexy? Since when was that word even in her vocabulary? Being separated from Erina for so long was surely taking a toll on her sanity.

When that troublesome spice person finally left, Ikumi and company were grinning like imps. Hisako rolled her eyes. "I don't know what could possibly be funny."

"Well, we found one thing you like," Yuki joked. "I don't think I've ever seen Erina's secretary-chi so flustered."

...

Well into the afternoon, just after she emerged from the bath in her terry cloth robe, Nakiri Alice was brought a full English breakfast by her loyal aide.

"Ryo-kun," she said as she started nibbling a piece of toast. "Why do you always make so much when you know I can't finish it?"

Wordlessly, he stole a piece of bacon from the platter.

"Then just make your own!" She rolled her eyes. "Honestly, you're so unprofessional. You should try to be a little formal, like Erina's secretary."

"Ok." Next, he went for two of the eggs.

Alice shook her head, knowing her efforts were futile. He could eat the whole world after a good workout. "At least give the fork back."

After bringing a grilled tomato to her mouth, Alice recalled something that Erina has said once—that sharing a fork with a boy was an indirect kiss. It was probably something she had picked up in one of those sappy shoujo manga she liked. Erina would probably have six heart attacks if she ever found out how much saliva she and Ryo had swapped over the years. Alice sighed. She was actually starting to miss her.

"Ryo-kun," she said. "Distract me. What was all the noise about earlier? Were the girls watching you work out again?"

"Is that what they're always doing up there?"

"Of course you wouldn't notice something like that." She gave a little lilting laugh. "But something out of the ordinary must have happened. I woke up twice to Hishoko-chan yelling."

"Hayama came and pissed her off," he said. "Or turned her on, or something."

Alice gave an impatient huff. "Well, which was it?"

"I wouldn't know." He shrugged. "Both, probably. Like with your cousin and Yukihira."

Alice stared at him incredulously. "E...Erina and...WHAAAAAAAAT? How did I never think of that before? Ryo-kun, you're a genius!"

And that, of course, was how Kurokiba Ryo unwittingly released a deluge of teasing and pestering into the life of the other Nakiri heiress.

Author's Notes: Thanks for reading, everyone! Please let me know if I should continue this and what kinds of interactions you'd like to see in the future (More of Hisako freaking out? Some Ryoali fluff? Souma and Erina via FaceTime?) Have a good weekend!