A loud clap of thunder woke Shuuya from his rather pleasant slumber. He glanced at the curtained window as a bright flash of lighting lit the room. Panic set in as he remembered his roommate's fear of storms and his head whipped to look at the empty sheets beside him. Scrambling to his feet, a small sliver of light caught his attention, emanating from the cracked bathroom door. He neared the door but heard nothing inside; his knuckles rapped against the wood and he called inside.
"Tsubomi? You in there?" After not receiving a reply he added, "I'm coming in…" The door swung in easily with only the tiniest of squeaks and he scanned the vacant bathroom. Suddenly an almost inaudible noise caught his attention and he wandered to where he knew she was. Sliding down beside her, he stared at the shower adjacent them before speaking again.
"You know your ability isn't very effective with me…" From the corner of his eye he watched as she slowly became visible again; she hugged her knees to her chest, eyes red from crying and she peered at him. A smile played across his lips and he wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pulling her to rest against his side. She pushed slightly to move away but he kept his grip on her.
"Just for right now…"
"…Okay…" she gave in, letting herself be held, his warmth a comfort to her. She shifted to be closer, pressing her ear against his chest and listening to his heartbeat; she figured that she could get as close as she wanted since no one would ever know. Shuuya repositioned also, closing the space between them, and pulling her into his lap. A silent agreement was made as the two fell asleep together that as long as the secret could live, it would.
Tsubomi awoke first, leaning back and starting at the blonde's face. His long eyelashes rested against his cheeks and his mouth was parted faintly. She waited a moment, trying to make sure he was truly asleep and then leaned forward. Their lips met and she quickly regretted her decision as she could feel him respond. Pulling away, she attempted to also remove herself from his lap but his eyes flickered open, red in color, and he spoke softly.
"Don't go…" His arms tightened around her waist, making it hard to move away and she grumbled.
"Why're you using your ability?" She hated that he had the nerve to use it when they were so close to each other and she'd just put herself out of her comfort zone to do something so intimate. He blinked a few times and his eyes returned to their natural gold, his face lighting with a heavy blush. He seemed to be uncomfortable and it was a sight that she wasn't used to.
"Now will you stay…?" his voice was quiet and questioning with a shadowy hint of pleading. "I promise I won't use my ability…"
"You're a liar."
"That is what I'm known for, Tsubomi…" His mask flickered on his face but disappeared as her hand came down across his cheek with a loud smacking sound. Frozen in shock, the place of impact slowly reddening, arms wrapped around his neck and his attention was drawn from the pain to the girl clinging to him. "What…"
"Stop lying…" her tone wavered, unable to conceal any more than her presence. He opened his mouth to speak but a loud knocking brought them both to attention. A cheery girl outside called through the door.
"Rise and shine, Danchou!" Kisaragi's words caused the leader to push away as quickly as she could and she ran from the bathroom, slamming the door behind her. Shuuya watched as the door swung shut, closing him on the opposite side from her.
"Oh, Tsubomi…" he mused, "You know I can't do that… I've been drowning in my uncanny self for far too long…" As he felt his eyes begin burning again, he stood and followed suit, emerging from the room to see the young Kisaragi sibling speaking with Kido from the hall. He stepped behind green haired girl and waved to the other.
"Why hello, Momo-chan~" Her eyes flashed to the deceiver before looking back at the girl she was conversing with. With a gasp, Kano scooted up beside Kido and spoke theatrically, "Ouch! I don't get a 'good morning'? Not even a 'hello'? I feel underappreciated." Both sets of eyes turned on him and a fist lodged itself temporarily in his gut. He sunk to the ground, clutching his stomach, "O-Okay! I take it back! I don't need one…" The orange haired girl was the next to speak, but once again, it wasn't directed at the mess on the floor.
"So are you ready to go to breakfast, Danchou?"
"I'm not exactly dressed yet…"
"Eh?! You slept in that?" her tone was exasperated as if Kido had committed the most heinous of crimes.
"Yeah…?" Kido mumbled, becoming aware that she was still in the clothing that the girls had forced her to wear. Her hands slipped from the pocket of her hoodie and tugged at the hem of the shorts, still too revealing in her opinion.
"It's gonna wrinkle though!"
"So…?"
"You can't wear wrinkled clothing, Danchou…"
"Why can't…" she was cut off by an annoying laugh from near her feet. A kick to the shin shut off the obnoxious sound however.
"You just can't. You're coming with me." And with that, the much shorter girl grabbed Kido's arm and pulled her off in the direction of the elevator.
The boy, having been left behind in the room, closed the door and swiftly planned out what he'd do before heading out. A shower was the first thing on his list and he stripped down, stepping in and letting the steaming water embrace him as though it could wash away all of his sins and let him start anew. When the water began to beat cold against his back, he turned it off and got out, drying himself but letting his sandy hair air dry. He rubbed his eyes and studied himself in the mirror with disgust. He had gotten too close and had nearly lost the game that the two had silently played for years. The thought made him laugh bitterly.
"I'm losing the game willingly…" A droplet landed on the bridge of his nose and he glanced back up into the glass, his reflection seemingly mocking him. A sickly twisted and foreign smile curled the image's lips. Trembling fingers fumbled with the faucet and scooped up a handful of water, splashing the corrupted face and sobering him. He sighed and again wiped his face; not wanting to deal any more with his reflection, Shuuya straightened himself and left the mocking glass to pull on his normal attire. Once fully dressed, he pulled his best mask on and promised himself that he wouldn't let it falter; with that, he made his way to join the other boys sitting in the dining room, a convincing smile lighting his face.
I'm very sorry if they're OOC in this chapter, there was bound to be at least one chapter where they were OOC...
Also, I'm really sorry if people don't like how I portrayed Kano in this chapter... I kinda wanted to delve into the madness of his ability a little... and if anyone has question please comment or message me and I'll gladly answer them for you. Thank you very much for taking the time to read this and for sticking around when I haven't been updating it very quickly.
