Chapter 2- Absolute Arrogance

*A few minutes earlier*

He felt his father's hand rest on his shoulder as he was spoken of in pride.

"I can assure you, Ryuunoske-kun, what Seijuro says are not mere words. They are affirmations. And one day all of Japan, as will the rest of the world, shall be marked with their supreme influence."

The man's tone of voice did not sound as if he was referring to his child. There was a peculiar edge to it, implying pride towards himself rather than his son. As if he felt accomplished by molding a human being successfully to his liking.

"Ah, my boy!" Hamasaki Ryuunoske, the spoiled old geezer, reached out and turned the young man's face upwards to his, as if appreciating a treasure. "Someday the world will see what a great man your father has raised you to be."

Akashi smiled in confirmation.

"But of course, there exists no challenge I cannot pass. Difficulty is but an obstacle that refines my strategy and hardens my will. Any test I encounter, will confirm my aptitude. Any trial I endure, I will emerge from more formidable than before. The world may throw its worst at me, but over the strongest foe in any field, I will not only win…but rise as the absolute."

Ryuunoske laughed in astonishment.

"Masaomi-kun, I love your boy!"

The two elder men engaged in meaningless conversation, which left little room for Akashi to entertain himself. To prevent the disinterest becoming obvious on his face, he averted his eyes from the shallow plutocrat. He looked around the room only to see multiple copies of the same personality in various forms. Naturally, due to this, anyone who wasn't a clone of a clone would stand out prominently and draw in any wandering eyes. This is how the presence of an exceptionally beautiful woman had captured Akashi's attention. She was wearing a shining sky-blue fishtail gown that shimmered like polished sapphire stones. There was an opening that split up to the middle of her left thigh with sequins and imitation diamonds decorated upon it in mesmerizing patterns. Tossed over her bare shoulders was a silver shawl that drew attention to a pristine face accentuated by its makeup.

Akashi had found her quite beautiful indeed. However, such human beauty is hardly a rarity in these kinds of occasions. Thus, her beauty alone wasn't enough to maintain even his gaze. Rather instead, it was the tangerine shade of her styled hair and the sunlight yellow of her eyes that made her irresistible to turn away from. These two features had struck a chord in Akashi, one that he didn't know existed or since when.

'She looks…familiar?' He thought deeply to himself.

As if feeling yet another man's gaze on her, the women had shifted her eyes and looked Akashi right into his own. The realization flashed in his mind like a firecracker. The look she gave him perfectly overlapped with the face of the dancer he had made eye contact with earlier. The one who not-so-coincidentally slipped immediately after.

'Her mother? Sister? Most likely the latter, if her looks don't betray her age.' He thought to himself in a moment shorter than a second.

The internal revelations he experienced revealed themselves subtly on his face. He had managed to answer his curiosity, giving him a triumphant feeling, but the answer itself brought a sense of embarrassment. A mix between these feelings created a facial reaction that was easily mistakable for something else entirely. Since it occurred as soon as he made eye contact with her, it was hardly an unreasonable assumption.

'You think I'm hot, don't you?' Yume thought to herself, seeing Akashi's face blush with a small grin lifting the corner of his mouth.

A fun little thought popped into her mind, and she immediately excused herself from the group around her. Neither of them broke eye contact as she strut over to the two men and the famous teenager.

'Well hot shot, if you think I'm pretty… Just wait til you meet my sister!' A fiendish, almost predatory smile spread across her face. 'In fact, she's just about your age!'

Akashi was the only one unfazed when a beautiful woman had suddenly interrupted his father and Ryuunoske's conversation.

"Eehhh? So this is the Akashi Seijuro? What a handsome young man!" She flirtatiously teased, honing in on him like a missile and taking him by his upper arm. Akashi felt her slyly gripping his biceps.

'Th-this woman!' He blushed while tensing up, having never experienced such forwardness from a gorgeous older woman.

His father grinned at her compliment, giving a rare warmth to his cold aura.

"He looks much like his mother, after all." His words were accompanied by an unusual softness.

It clearly caught Akashi's attention. His wary eyes broke away from Yume's to look up at his father with incredulous surprise.

"Ah, and you must be Hiroshi-kun's lovely daughter, Yume-chan!" Ryuunoske chimed in, before she could think any further about the boy's peculiar reaction. "I see you're promoting your fashionable talents, as fabulous as always my dear. You're quite the effective advertisement yourself! So…do I get a birthday kiss from the beautiful Yume-chan?"

'Truly, the king among all sleazy opportunists here, this man is'. Akashi thought to himself, before he was yanked by his arm to the woman's side.

"Oh, I can't do that, Mr. Hamasaki, I have a boyfriend!" She lied before returning her mischievous innocence-feigning smile to the young man in her grasp. "Anyway, Akashi-kun! There is a lovely young lady who I'm sure would love to meet your acquaintance!"

'Nee-san, what the hell did you do!' Hayami screamed in her head.

The crowd behind her sister split evenly as she made her way through. Countless sets of eyes turned to Hayami and the invisible pressure of their attention weighed heavily. If she were dancing, it would be drastically different. She enjoyed basking in the awe and wonder of the inimitable skills she's developed…but this, however…

"Hayami-chan! There is a lovely young man here who would love to meet your acquaintance!"

Yume stepped aside and revealed Hayami's current worst fear. Underneath his blazing red hair, a polite mask covered an otherwise emotionless face. Though, once his eyes had met hers, there was flickering shift in his expression, only ever-so slightly. This detail, although hardly noticeable, sparked a glint of curiosity toward the seemingly uninterested boy.

"Ah, the graceful dancer from earlier." He bowed to her.

His words hit her like an electric jolt.

"Graceful?" She helplessly said out loud. 'Ha! Now were talking!' She thought to herself, half-jokingly.

Yume introduced them to each other, and bragged to Akashi about her younger sister. As she spoke with him, Hayami pondered how she hadn't noticed him sooner when he exudes such a powerful presence. She still refused to end the night without finding Tenshin once more, but the more she looked at Akashi, he grew on her. He was just few inches taller than her, and was visibly fit from both his stance and posture. Of course, it would still be a deal breaker for her if he was as haughty and pompous as many of the other teens here tended to be. This, however, could only be inferred through actual conversation.

"Well now, I'll leave the two of you to better know one another" On cue, Yume departed along with Miori and her new lady friend. Hayami sighed internally.

'Time to make the best of a random, awkward, and a kind of forced meeting.' She reluctantly thought.

"So…Akashi-kun-" He raised his hand up to her with an ease-putting smile.

"There's no need to be tense. Before the night was over, I had planned to come and meet your acquaintance. As your sister put it." He cut her off, sensing her nervousness.

"Oh." She blinked in surprise. "…Why?"

He closed his eyes and chuckled to himself. When he opened them and looked back at her, there was something slightly different about him. Something subtle from just a few seconds earlier.

"To compliment you on your dancing."

Her attempt at pin pointing what exactly had changed came to a sudden halt.

"Really?" She replied happily, and he simply nodded.

She fixed her posture from the willingness to leave and faced him with newfound curiosity.

"Your sister had told me you are quite gifted in this art. I had witnessed your performance from earlier and I agree with her opinion."

Hayami had a short flashback of their silent exchange that landed her on the floor, then chuckled light-heartedly.

"I'm sorry, I'm just surprised that a basketball player would…be so interested in dancing. I'm curious, what is it exactly that captures your eye?"

'HIS EYE!' Finally she had noticed what was off about him. His oddly colored eye, which stood out in its prominent saffron shade, now had a strong tint of red to it. The ladies words repeated themselves mentally, "Heterochromia Iridum", emphasizing the stark contrast of the image of his iris's in her mind. His eye was definitely of a different shade than it had been.

"Beyond the simplicity of the waltz, I have virtually no experience in dancing." As he spoke, her focus shifted from the physical state of his eyes, to the emotion within them. "I believe it is human nature to be drawn to sensations we have yet to understand, though I simply have never had the time to treat myself to it. Watching you though, Nakayo-san, I will admit was an alluring spectacle. Your coordination is sophisticated, and combined with your dexterity, it really draws out the enticing art of movement. An appreciated talent as ancient as culture itself."

"Wow." Impressed, and somewhat touched by his words, Hayami smiled with a joyous shine in her eyes. "Thank you! I've never received such a profound compliment, Akashi-kun!"

"Oh, well, it's just my opinion" He modestly tried to downplay his impact. "So, I assume you have danced most of your life?"

"Yes, that's true. When I was a child, I wanted to learn various types of dances and over the years grew fond of ballet in particular. I am indeed proud, and perhaps daring enough, to say I have reached a notably proficient level of skill!" She happily bragged, attempting to match the upraised status of the young man who was personally recognized by the gala host.

Akashi gave a genuine smile in response, one that touched his eyes and expressed heartfelt depth in one simple look.

"I sincerely agree, and yet I doubt I've seen the best that you can do"

"Oh, hardly!" She confirmed, starting to take a liking to him.

"Do you outdo your sister?" He asked challengingly, and even with a gentle edge of flirting.

"Well, of course! I'm the only dancer in my family. Unless you want to count when I was younger, my parents forced my older brother to help 'his little sister' practice."

Akashi let out a husky chuckle at the image painted by those words.

"Was he as graceful and enthralling as you?" He teased.

"Nope, not even close." As they both shared a laugh, any awkwardness initially felt had melted away in the warmth of their rapport.

'He's kind, he's not pretentious… which is disappointing how typical that is among these types. He's definitely intelligent, and might I say quite eloquent as well. And amazing at sports? Not to mention good-looking. Maybe not like Tenshin, but I can't shake this feeling of… something powerful and mysterious about him. There's something special about this guy, I can feel it!' Hayami thought to herself, before recalling something else to add to their conversation.

"Oh, but my brother does play basketball. Which reminds me by the way…" She cleared her throat and turned her whole body to him, hoping to return a compliment as meaningful to him as he had to her. "Congratulations on winning the Summer Championships! My brother told me how prestigious those competitions are. I may not know much about sports, but I sure know that winning first place is an amazing feat!"

"Yeah, well…" Akashi averted his eyes and scratched his head, seemingly embarrassed. "I didn't…actually play. So it's not like such an honorable mention before this aristocratic crowd was warranted through merit. However, Mr. Hamasaki is a close acquaintance of my father and a supporting sponsor to our business. I guess he wished to show his respects to my family is all." He explained with a line of shame running through his voice.

'And he's humble!' She happily thought to herself.

"Anyway, will we be privileged enough to witness another gracious show before the nights end?" He asked this with sincerity, but Hayami received a faint feeling that he was purposely trying to switch topics. Her sudden excitement, however, blocked any further thought into it.

"Heh, well well, how close do you want to watch exactly?" She replied with a beaming smile.

Akashi blinked in confusion for a second before he caught on.

"Wait…do you mean…" He was obviously caught off guard by her invitation.

"Yeah! Come on, dance with me!"

Akashi's expression was not what Hayami expected. She anticipated him accepting with the same smooth and refined manner he spoke with, but rather instead…he flinched. It was odd and unexpected, as if he just suddenly gained awareness of his surroundings.

"I…I don't know...if" He stuttered unsurely at first, then he turned away from her and looked down, his body language giving off a stronger sense of shame.

'…Is he embarrassed because he doesn't know how to dance?' Hayami thought. 'But he doesn't seem like the type to shy away so easily. Oh well, we're all entitled to a few insecurities here and there!'

Hayami was about to speak up to reassure him, until she noticed his fist clenching tightly. The blood drained from his knuckles through the force he squeezed with. When she looked back up to his face, despite it being downcast, she could see his eyes burning with the despair of a nefarious struggle.

"Akashi…" Her voice trailed off unnoticed.

'Did…Did I say something wrong? Is he really this nervous about it?' She frantically thought.

Hayami shook her head and put on the same bright smile to try and calm him.

"Hey, there's no need to be embarrassed, or nervous even!" She spoke with a bubbly tone of voice, hoping to encourage him. "C'mon, if you'd like, I can teach you a tip or two!" His face snapped right back to hers.

"No." He said with blunt immediacy and a suddenly commanding tone, sending a chill down her spine. "Don't be mistaken, I was genuinely impressed with your skills, but I spoke objectively of your skills alone. I have no use for such, and if I did, it would end like everything else I dedicate myself too: with total mastery. Besides, to what end do efforts without an attainable victory achieve? An endeavor free of conquest advances nothing. It's vain."

She stared back, mouth agape and going dry, holding her gaze on a pair of eyes drastically different in color.

Hayami hadn't truly appreciated how calm and chivalrous the atmosphere around Akashi had actually been until now. His demeanor had completely changed, radiating the intimidating, dictatorial presence she initially felt upon first seeing him across the room. Innumerable subtleties overwhelmed her senses all of a sudden, adding up to something terribly off. The inexplicable rush of these feelings involuntarily showed themselves, without control or hesitance, on her face.

"It seems I have offended you. I apologize, but it's perhaps best if we cut our meeting off here, Nakayo-san. I have many affluent individuals my father is waiting to introduce me to, and it is important I cater to them. So if you will excuse me." Akashi bowed, abruptly turned around and began to leave.

"Wait!" Hayami yelled and, with the angry intention of demanding to know what his problem is, reached out and gripped his wrist collar.

He turned his head half way around and looked at her over his shoulder. It was unintentional, but she couldn't help but feel serious fear when she found herself under the stare of his algid eyes.

"I-I'm sorry!" She urgently exclaimed. 'Why am I apologizing?' She thought quickly. "I didn't mean to offend you, either." She released his wrist.

"Good. Then we can part on a fair note and a mutual understanding. Enjoy your night, Nakayo-san." Once again, Akashi proceeded away into the midst of the crowd and disappeared into the horde of people.

'….WHAT THE HELL?! FUCKING ASSHOLE!' Hayami thought as she stood alone and utterly baffled. Her confounded face dissolved into a suspicious stare in the direction he exited. 'He's hiding something. This has got to be some defense mechanism he's put up, but for what? He wouldn't act so rude just because he's too scared to dance, would he?'

"Psh, pussy" She whispered angrily to herself.

Though this was the easy conclusion to jump to, her intuition dictated something deeper entirely. Feeling momentarily defeated, she started making her way back to her table, unable to stop repeating Akashi's words over in her mind.

'Efforts without victory? Endeavors free of conquest? What's wrong with doing something because you enjoy it?' She squeezed her hands into fists and unconsciously began stomping as she walked.

"That guy is such a HYPOCRITE!" She scolded a little louder under her breath, until she realized...

He did not contradict his own words at all. He had expressed his admiration for her dancing earlier and still admitted to it, just within a terribly rude context the second time around. Hayami felt hurt and betrayed by it though, having become fond of Akashi's personality while being moved deeply through his compliments. Now each of those have turned onto her like a poisonous gift. Naturally, she wanted to face him again and figure out what his deal is, even if it meant forcing out the answer…however…

'Why such a drastic change in attitude… that bothers me more than anything. Just…why? What for? He was so wonderful before. I would have never imagined he could flip so easily. I don't understand…it just doesn't make sense!' Hayami could not fathom any reasonable logic behind Akashi's irrational behavior. There wasn't a single indication anywhere of anything that would have warranted his reaction. She palmed the side of her forehead and grabbed a handful of her hair as her thoughts disarrayed into intangible nonsense. A pure reflection of the situation she didn't ask or intend to be a part of.

"Um…Senpai? I have your drink."

"Huh?"

Hayami turned up to Takumi, her face lost in empty thoughts. Takumi gave a sheepish smile and jiggled the icy drink in his hand to jog her memory.

"Oh! Yes, I forgot about that, thank you, Takumi-chan." She accepted the drink and finished half of it in one prolonged sip.

"I must say, Nakayo-san, I never figured you the type to have a drinking problem!" A familiar voice spoke from behind.

Hayami turned around and was momentarily stunned to find Tenshin standing there. The bubbling anticipation she had been feeling all night was absolutely gone now. After her little fiasco, the only thing she felt now was just relief. Her scorn for Akashi only increased because of this, for his having ruined what she was originally so eager for.

"Fujimaki-kun…"

"Ah please, if you will, call me Tenshin. I've been accepted into a university in America, so I'm trying to get used to being addressed by my first name. I have many people here doing the same. Of course, if you're not comfortable, that is perfectly acceptable. I don't wish to burden you with such an awkward request."

Hayami was initially taken back, due to the amount of personal intimacy it takes for people in Japan to refer to each other by first name. However, deciding to engage in some culture play, she smiled and allowed his friendly nature to spread her sense of relief further within her.

"No, it's ok. It's better to overcome the awkwardness of it now, so I'll happily help out however I can...Teeen-shiiiin." She smiled mischievously, feeling a lot like Yume in that moment.

'Already accepted into an American university, and he's not even a third year yet? This guy really is a prodigy. I should take my ballet practice up a few notches, and maybe I can get a scholarship for it in a college too.' Hayami thought, then a fleeting memory of Akashi's gentle yet eloquent image popped in her mind. 'Hmm, I wonder though. I'm sure Akashi has something impressive planned too. Someone as talented as…WAIT!"

The fictional gears in her head screeched loudly to a violent halt. Her sense of relief was zapped out of her and the irritation from earlier returned with a blood-thirsty vengeance.

"AH! Nakayo-san, like I said…if it's too awkward, you don't have to. I completely understand, there's no need for you to suffer the culture shock as well." Tenshin rushed the words out, trying to reassure her, seeing her face correlate with her feelings.

"No no, it's not that. I just…remembered something…extremely unpleasant." She pressed her fingers against her right temple and shook her head.

Tenshin smiled and extended his hand out towards Hayami. She looked up at him somewhat puzzled, to which he laughed in reply.

"Then may I have a dance with you? I'll take your mind off any unpleasantness. Though I may not be as great as your young partner here…" He reached up and placed his hand on Takumi's shoulder. "But I think I can keep up! Just go easy on me."

She straightened up excitedly with a brilliant smile.

"Oh, don't you worry, I'll keep you up with me at every step!"

Hayami felt like punching the wall as hard as she could. Her excitement and happiness were all a facade. She was feigning enthusiasm to compensate for the frustration sinking deeper into her. At the start of the night, Tenshin asking her to dance would have made her joy contagiously blissful. Now, however, it was just an excuse for her mind to divert its attention. Therein laid the issue, because the more she hugged onto this distraction, the stronger that nagging reminder of what she was avoiding grew on her.

She barely even noticed the music playing, let alone the countless people surrounding her engaged in non-stop motion. She hated to admit it, but she wanted Akashi to see her right now. She wanted him to feel jealous at how much fun she was having with Tenshin. She wanted him to see that his rude remarks held no effect on her…despite the total opposite being true. However, being absorbed into the crowd's center made such a thing nearly impossible. She then pulled Tenshin towards the outside and they continued as they were, and that's when Hayami finally saw him.

Akashi was speaking to a group of adults and all it took was a simple shift in his line of sight and he could then see her. She faced Tenshin and stepped up to a pace too vigorous for him to comfortably handle. Every now and then, she would peek in Akashi's direction to see if he had noticed her exaggerated display of fun. Unfortunately, she eventually realized that she was looking at him more than she hoped he would at her. In fact, he had yet to realize that Hayami was basically a few meters away from him.

'This freaking guy…' She hissed in her mind.

"Ow…um, Nakayo-san, you're squeezing my hands. Really hard actually." Tenshin nervously informed her.

"Huh?" She looked at his fingers bunched together tightly in between her hands and released them at once. "Ah! I'm so sorry Fujimaki-kun…I mean, Tenshin! Gosh, I, ah…" Now she felt angry AND embarrassed. Tenshin placed both his hands on her shoulders.

"It's ok, it's ok! No worries!" He tried to reassure her, but then expressed a more concerned tone of voice. "Say, Nakayo-san…are you mad at Akashi-kun?"

At that moment, the song in the background had crested in a harmony of violins and came to a sudden pause before resuming slowly. In those few seconds, Hayami was startled speechlessly.

"H-how…How do you kn…I mean, what makes you say that?"

"Well, you seemed bothered since we met again, and increasingly so from then on. Now, I have no way to prove that it started after you and Akashi-kun parted ways…but one glance in the direction you keep looking and…" Tenshin turned his head and there stood Akashi, still oblivious to them both.

Having been forced into a crossroad, she had to decide. Should she take advantage of Tenshin's intellect and run down the situation? See if he had any valuable insight to provide an understanding for what's going on? Though, a simple run down most likely wouldn't suffice. The situation was complicated as it was, and not even Hayami was sure how to express exactly what was going on. Then again, she could just put her business with Akashi behind her. She could conclude that he is an insecure jerk with emotional issues and isn't worthy of her attention or time. After all, Tenshin had so much going for him. But, in the end, she found herself unable to deny a strong, unexplainable driving force deep within her. In order to satiate it, she would need a straight answer from Akashi at all costs.

"I'm sorry, Tenshin, but I…have some business I simply can ignore no longer" and with that, she left him; her disrespectful hastiness lost on her under a mass of thoughts funneled into a single conviction.

'He has nothing to do with this, so I'll face this on my own. There's no need to rely on anyone else anyway' she thought.

A group of elder gentlemen were gathered around one speaking, with Akashi watching analytically. Hayami politely closed in on them and allowed her presence to be known, her youth and beauty easily attracting their attention.

"Please excuse me, I hope I'm not interrupting" She spoke with the demure finesse she had honed over the years from meeting deluxe socialites at her parent's side.

"Not at all, young lady! What can we do for you?" One asked.

"Oh if you don't mind, Akashi-kun…" she singled him out of the crowd with her eyes and, despite him meeting her gaze with a cautioning glare, spoke with a firm voice. "May I speak with you for a moment?"

He nodded once and proceeded to walk past her and towards a moderately isolated area. She followed closely behind him before he abruptly stopped and spun around. The unreadable and emotionless void in his eyes were like a dark abyss to stare into.

"Do you actually have anything to say?" He asked.

"Yes! What was your problem earlier?" She demanded to know.

"Problem? I have none. It's as I stated, you have talent in what you do but it fails to carry anything meaningful into the world beyond mindless entertainment. And I care not for things that waste my time."

'He's like a completely different person!' Hayami thought this and felt like crying. Not only was her first impression of him horrendously off, and that her life-long efforts were being rendered pointless…but he was just being outright mean.

Something was not right here. Deep in her heart, she felt the right thing to do was bid farewell at this moment and leave him be. All the fibers in her being were charged, ready to turn and strut away to show she would not tolerate such rude arrogance. Then again…

Why did he say, with sincerity, he planned to meet her before the night had ended? What was with the sweet and poetic side she had seen of him earlier? And what was it about dancing with her that made him so angry? Just then, the music in the background ended and a round of applause ensued.

"They are good" She heard Akashi comment as he stood there and watched.

"Well…" She started off, returning his attention to her, and ignoring the bothersome look of his glacially callous eyes. "At least you can appreciate these kinds of things. Even if you do think they're worthless"

The words came out of her uneasily, despite how confidently defiant she imagined saying them in her head.

"Having mastered the violin's most difficult tunes, my opinion of their orchestration is compared not to how they exceed me, but to the amount of experience and talent I know it takes to flawlessly play."

Hayami turned to Akashi with a stern but questioning look.

"And how does playing the violin differ from dancing? Isn't that an endeavor without victory?" She shot back with his own words.

"The skill of dancing declines as the body ages. The instrument, though, is much like a tool. Its mastery is eternal to the able body."

"You know what other skills decline with age…with talents that hold no meaning to the real world? Basketball!" She snapped, yelling a little louder than she wanted.

"Hm" Akashi simply smiled, his composure undisturbed. "Sports themselves may hold no practical value beyond exercise, but they develop leadership, team work, tactical flexibility, and sharpen ones performance under stress. These skills are priceless assets no matter what journey you embark in life. As for age, I assure you, years can pass me by, yet my eye and my orders will remain undefeatable."

'The unpitying arrogance of this guy!' In a rapid burst of anger, Hayami almost slapped him hard across the face. The only thing that held her back was the unfavorable scene it would cause which she did not want to start. So instead, the urge to walk away overcame her again. She seriously considered it and definitely would have, if not for her stubborn determination to figure out what his issue is. She steeled her conviction and refused to end the night without a direct answer from this asshole. After this, she planned to never see him ever again. Akashi snuck a questioning look at her as she closed her eyes, drew in a deep breath and exhaled slowly.

"I guess I rest assured. So since this topic seems to hit a nerve with you, I'll be quick, Akashi-kun… Is there at least not ONE redeeming quality about dancing? You spoke highly of it earlier!" Her voice began shaking as she became more emotional.

"Are my answers not clear enough?" Akashi snapped, the sound of anger boiling beneath his unmerciful voice.

"It's not that! I don't think they're honest." Her voice cracked as it wavered over the brink of crying. "Just answer me, why did you start acting so mean all of a sudden? Are you ashamed you've never tried dancing? Are you embarrassed that I'm better? I never planned on showing off and making you look bad! Nothing like that! I just don't…I just…don't…" As Hayami ranted everything off her chest, she finally noticed Akashi's unchanging expression and turned her face away in total defeat. "…get you."

She trailed off at the end, finally questioning herself if this was all worth it. She turned away from him to wipe away the water building in her eyes before they could slip out into tears.

"Nakayo-san"

She flinched when she heard him say her name. With obvious reluctance, preparing to be mercilessly shot down again, she slowly turned around. The tears she just wiped away began to moisten her eyes again from feeling futile and inferior. Until she saw his own face turned aside, in shame and humiliation, with his lips curled and teeth clenched like he was in pain.

"Why…" He managed to choke out. "Why are you still here?"

"Huh?" She blinked in shock.

"Why…are you tolerating this…this…" With the sharp whip of his neck, he faced her head on, and she saw his golden eye tinted with red once again. "REPULSIVE ARROGANCE OF MINE!"