Author's Notes:

I think it's been over a month since my last update? I'm so sorry! :'D Since I was trying for about 1 chapter every 1 to 2 weeks, this time I'm uploading 3 chapters at once; they've been finished for a while, but I've just been too distracted to edit and upload them. I've also made up my mind about which ship to sail in this story, so that'll become more and more obvious later on.

Thank you for all the new reviews/favorites/follows thus far! I really appreciate them all!

"Hey, Chizuru-chan~"

Okita-senpai peered through the Kendo club room's open door with his usual smile. When he spotted Heisuke-kun, he smirked and strolled into the room, one broom in each hand. She found that he looked different, and observed that his hair was partially pulled back into a small ponytail, probably to keep it out of his face while he was cleaning; she imagined that tying his hair back would also be helpful during his kendo practice. The look suited him, and she quietly wondered why he didn't tie his hair back more often.

"I thought I might see you here too, Heisuke," He tilted his head slightly, holding out one of the brooms towards him, "Are you here to help out?"

"Eh… As if I would spend any of my precious time helping you! I have better things to do! Anyway, Hijikata-sensei would throw me out a window if he found out," Heisuke-kun replied with narrowed eyes, his arms folded across his chest as he complained loudly, "I'm only helping because of Chizuru, got it?!"

"Got it crystal clear," Okita-senpai laughed, tossing one of the brooms at him without as much as a warning. However, as if he had done it a million times before, Heisuke-kun effortlessly caught the broom before it had the chance to touch the floor.

"Um, Heisuke-kun?" She stared at the broom in his hand before holding onto it, giving a light tug to get him to let go, "Maybe you should just leave this to Okita-senpai and me… I don't want you to get into trouble with Hijikata-sensei."

… Not that she believed what Heisuke-kun said about being tossed out a window.

That would be illegal, right? Tossing your student out a window?

"Are you sure, Chizuru?" Heisuke-kun frowned, once again folding his arms across his chest as he squeezed his eyes shut; he looked so annoyed and unsettled that, for a moment, she was afraid that he might insist on having his way. However, when he opened his eyes, he nodded, sighing loudly to show how unwilling he was about complying, "Alright then… But once club activities start, I'll be here! So don't you dare bully Chizuru!"

The last sentence was directed at Okita-senpai, who was grinning like a Cheshire cat; she couldn't help but feel that Heisuke-kun's words might have had the opposite result of its intended effect. Looking at that 'I am up to no good' grin of his, Chizuru fretted and pondered if maybe she should have Heisuke-kun stay with her after all…

"It's too late for that, Chizuru-chan."

It was as if he had read her mind, or perhaps it was just that her worry was plainly shown on her face; without her noticing, Okita-senpai had slid up behind her, and currently had his arms wrapped loosely around her shoulders. She squirmed, and instinctively reached for Heisuke-kun for help, only to realize that he was no longer in the room, having left while she was daydreaming. When he understood what she was trying to do, his grin widened, seemingly enjoying her reaction.

"Well then," To her immerse relief, he released his hold and gave her a pat on her head, "Shall we start before you snap that broom in half?"

That's when she realized that, in her nervousness, she had gripped onto the broom handle so tightly that her knuckles had turned white.

She wiped the perspiration off her brow with the back of her hand, and stood back to admire her work; the locker room had undergone a magical transformation. It was in a dreadful mess before – the rubbish bin was so full that rubbish was spilling out and onto the floor, there was dust on every available surface, stains on the lockers from being touched over and over again by sweaty hands, and announcements from years ago still pinned onto the notice board. However, it was now much cleaner and neater thanks to her hard work. She still wasn't sure why she cared enough to go so far for a club she didn't even belong to, but she chalked it up to it being Heisuke-kun's club… And she knew how much kendo meant to her childhood friend.

It was somewhat of a second hand affection.

"Okita-senpai, I'm done!" She was all smiles as she exited the locker room, "Would you like to check-"

He was lying face down on the floor, his broom beside him. She froze, eyes widening as her mind reeled to process what she was seeing.

"O-Okita-senpai!" Her voice came out as a terrified sob as she rushed to his side, kneeling down beside him. She shook him with as much strength as she could muster. With every passing second, her heart went faster and faster, so much so that she felt almost giddy, "Okita-senpai! Okita-senpai!"

When there was no response, she stood up to leave for help, only to feel a strong grip on her wrist, pulling her back down.

"Just kidding, Chizuru-chan~"

His grin said it all; he was only pretending to pass out, and was never in any danger. Relief washed over her, followed by a torrent of other emotions – confusion and sadness, but what stood out the most was anger. How could he trick her like that? How could he make her worry as a joke? What part of that prank was funny to him?

"Let go," She muttered lowly. When he did not comply, she managed to somehow find the strength to pull her hand back. She saw surprise in his eyes, but didn't feel like looking at him a second longer, and had quickly turned away.

"Hey Chizuru-chan, are you angry?"

She chose to ignore his question – wasn't the answer obvious enough? – and silently moved to the back of the room where she had left her bag. She heard the rustle of fabric as Okita-senpai moved, and when she looked up, he was blocking the only exit.

"If you stomp off right now, you'll miss my explanation," He was wearing a smile, but something in the tone of voice he used made her pause – at least he sounded sincere about wanting her to stay.

"An explanation?" She asked, brows furrowing as she crossed her arms, "Not an apology?"

"Eh… Even the demon vice-principal couldn't get me to apolo-"

"Please move aside, Okita-senpai," She didn't wait for him to finish before grabbing her bag, and resting the strap on her shoulder.

"… I get it already," He mumbled after a slight pause, looking away with a hurt look on his face; he looked so much like a puppy being scolded that she would feel bad about being harsh if she wasn't still really angry at him. After a momentary silence, he continued in a louder voice, "I'm sorry for tricking you, Chizuru-chan."

With that, she felt some of her anger ebbing to the point where some of her other emotions could come into play – for example, the fear she felt when she thought that he had collapsed.

"I'm not angry that you tricked me. I mean, I would probably still be mad but not like this… The reason why I'm so upset is because Okita-senpai chose to trick me with something that would worry me. I… I really thought that you had passed out… And you wouldn't respond! There's nothing funny about that!"

"You were… Worried?"

"Of course I was worried! Okita-senpai, you were passed out on the floor!"

Silence stretched out between them as Okita-senpai averted his gaze, staring at the wall. Without looking at her, he spoke.

"Hey, Chizuru-chan… Do I look healthy to you?"

"H-huh?" She frowned, thrown off by the seemingly random question. After taking a moment to mull it over, she nodded in reply; although Okita-senpai was lean – almost thin – she had seen the way he moved when confronted by the bread bully, and knew that his body was in good condition.

"That's right," He laughed, smiling down at her, "So there's a lot I can do now that I couldn't do before… And a lot I can afford to want that I couldn't want before."

"What do you mean by that, Okita-senpai?"

"Hm?" He seemed to have been momentarily distracted, and barely caught her question. His smile faltered briefly before he chuckled, "I had asthma when I was a child, and my parents got me started on kendo as a way to build up my body. Thanks to that, I seemed to have grown out of it… I still bring an inhaler around with me wherever I go though, just in case. It's in my bag, first zip on the front – in case you ever need to use it on me."

Although it didn't sound like he was lying, she couldn't shake the feeling that he wasn't being completely truthful with his answer, like he was hiding something from her.

"I'm really sorry that I worried you, Chizuru-chan," This apology sounded more sincere than the one he gave before, probably because he was apologizing of his own free will, "I just wanted to find out how you would react if my asthma acted up, and I collapsed. It's not a very cool thing to have, so I didn't want to tell you about it… But if I didn't, you would still be mad at me now, right?"

"… Okita-senpai, you're a child," She was scolding him, but was aware of the sheepish smile on her lips and the fondness in her voice, "You could have just told me instead of doing that! I can understand your reason a little better now, but that still does not justify what you did."

"You're being awfully rude to your senpai," He was almost pouting as he complained, "You were so polite with Hajime-kun... It's a bit unfair."

"That's because Okita-senpai is not as polite as Saitou-senpai," She laughed despite herself; the two of them might be the same age, but Saitou-senpai seemed to be a lot more mature, "Please don't do anything that would worry me again. If you're my senpai, act like it!"

"Eh, if you don't see me as your senpai, maybe you should start calling me Souji-kun."

"W-what!"

"You address Heisuke as Heisuke-kun anyway, even though he's one year older."

"That's only because-"

"Come on, call me Souji-kun~"

"N-no way!" Her face felt warm, and she was sure that she was turning red, "Okita-senpai, stop teasing me!"

"Eeeeh, are you really against it that much? That really hurts my feelings…"

She couldn't tell if he was joking or not, and narrowed her eyes at him; he had his arms folded across his torso in an almost defensive stance and instead of a playful smirk, wore a defeated look. Still, even if he was being serious, they weren't on nearly intimate enough terms for her to address him by his first name, especially since he was a year older and an upperclassman.

She glanced at the club room door, which was no longer blocked, and briefly considered making a run for it. As if reading her mind, Okita-senpai took a few steps to the side, and leaned against the wall next to the door, as if daring her to try.

Looking at his smiling face, she pressed her lips together before turning her gaze to stare intently at the door, hoping for someone to come into the room.