CHAPTER TWO

*note: from this point on, the story will be written from Yuko's point of view unless otherwise stated.

The squeaks of shoes on the gymnasium floor could be heard as I opened the gym door. The room was much cooler than summer heat outside, and I sighed in content. I looked around, before finding the colossal purple-headed boy underneath one of the basket, eating another bag of sweets.

For the last hour, I have wasted my breath apologizing to my math teacher, hoping he could make an adjustment to this punishment. However, he seemed more delighted than before, as if he had conceived the best idea. He enjoyed the fact that the worst student would be partnered and taught by one of the top students (yours truly) of our grade. In fact, he had threatened me that if I did not get his next test result up, mine would become lower as well. Therefore, my academic life rotated around this gigantic sweets-eating monster.

"Hey! Watch out!" a voice shouted. As I looked towards where the voice had come from, a basketball headed towards me with extreme velocity. I closed my eyes, waiting for the impact, which never came.

Opening my eyes, I peeked another boy in front of me, his hands holding the basketball. "Are you okay?" His voice was kind, unlike Murasakibara's whiny ones. His black hair hung loosely around his face, and a small, black birthmark was underneath his right eye.

"Y-yeah, thank you."

"Huh? What are you doing here~?" the familiar voice spoke as Murasakibara walked towards us, the distance closing rather quickly to my liking.

"I have to tutor you, remember?"

"But I don't want to~"

"Well, you don't have a choice, because I'm not failing this class."

"Who cares~?"

"Why is she tutoring you, Murasakibara?" the black-haired boy asked.

"Ah~, senpai said something in class, and she got in trouble, so Nari-chan has to tutor me now."

"Yeah, and you have to get good results, or my marks drop as well."

"Well, Murasakibara, you'd better go study with the pretty young lady then." I blushed slightly at this comment, but Murasakibara interrupted it with his petty comment.

"What pretty lady~?"

I frowned, and ripped the sweets away from him, causing him to whine even louder than before. "Look, all you have to do is study with me until the next test, and when your test results get better, I'm sure senpai will stop this charade of his, got it?"

"Fine~"

"Good. We can start tomorrow, after school." I turned around, walking out the gymnasium, and back into the scorching summer heat.

"I don't understand~" Murasakibara whined once again, as he stretched his lanky arms onto the large table in the library.

"You're not even trying!" I groaned. "I told you, you have to use the sine law to get the angle."

"But this is boring~. And I'm hungry~."

"You're always eating, and there's a no food policy in the library, so stop complaining."

"You're so mean, Nari-chin~."

"I don't care, just solve the question."

As if one child was not enough, I heard another calling my name behind me. Hina appeared out of nowhere, causing me to jump.

"Hina?"

"Yuko! I didn't see you anywhere today! This was where you were! And you're with Murasakibara-chan! You really have to tutor him?"

I glanced at Murasakibara, only to find him playing with his pencil.

"You know what? That's enough for today. Let's go Hina," I stood up as I grabbed my bag and Hina, and stomped away.

"You're so mean to Murasakibara-chan, Yuko," complained Hina.

"I'm not mean, it's just that he's so childish, and he won't listen to anything I'll say, so I get frustrated."

"But maybe he'll try if you were more nice to him."

"Like that would work."

"Well it works with me, and you call me childish sometimes, right?"

"You and Murasakibara are two different people, Hina. I just have to endure this until our next exam, I'm sure."

"I'm just saying, it would be much easier if you guys got along."

I ignored what she had just said, focusing on the two roads that separated our homes. "I'll see you tomorrow, Hina," I said as I waved my hand at her, and she waved hers back in reply.

I had been waiting for the purple beanstalk for half an hour, anger slowly building up inside me, ready to burst. Sighing, I grabbed my school bag, and headed outside the library to search for Murasakibara.

"Murasakibara!" I growled as I spotted the purple-headed boy lying on his back at the gymnasium floor.

"Huh?"

"What are you doing?"

"Playing basketball~."

I looked at him in disbelief. "You're not doing anything though! You're just lying on the floor!"

"Yeah, Murasakibara, listen to your girlfriend!" another tall boy teased as he threw in a basket. He was slightly smaller than Murasakibara in height, his hair short, and his eyes quite slanted.

"She would never be my girlfriend, she's a meanie~"

Murasakibara was getting onto every single one of my nerves, until a loud growl was heard from his stomach. I saw him slightly pout, as he rubbed his surprisingly flat stomach. Before I could think about what I was doing, and stop myself, I crouched on my knees and asked, "do you want to go get something to eat?"

The purple-headed boy's eyes widened from it's normal half-open position, and they seemed to sparkle excitedly. He stood up, towering me easily. "Really, Nari-chin?"

I stood up myself, dusting my legs in the process, confused about the sudden change within Murasakibara. "Sure, where do you want to go?"

"I know this bakery, they have the best cakes~" he said as he grabbed my wrist and pulled me out the gymnasium.