This is a spinoff of "Everywhere at Once". Check out that story if you're interested in more content with this OC.

Now then, let's begin.

"Good morning class," droned Aizawa. "Today we're going to do 2v2 battles like you did at the start of term. With random pairings."

Class 1-A buzzed with anticipation. Lately their training had been very rescue-focused, and it had been a while since they had challenged each other in combat.

"The goal here is to see how you have improved across the board since that initial battle trial. Strategy, quirk usage, teamwork…all of these things shall come into play. Now, you all know how I feel about wasting time. Get into your costumes and head down to the field."

Several minutes later, Momo Yaoyorozu was quietly putting her costume on in the girls' locker room, as the other five chatted with each other.

"My winter costume takes longer to put on," Mina was complaining.

"Can't relate," Toru fired back in a teasing manner.

"You're gonna freeze, ribbit," said Tsu.

"Nah, I'll be alright. The way my skin cells trap light and redistribute it actually helps me keep warm."

"I don't have that luxury, ribbit. You warm-blooded creatures, you…"

"Hehe, all these new upgrades I've been getting on my costume are still taking some getting used to," said Ochaco as she struggled into a boot.

"Why all the upgrades, anyway?" asked Jiro. "I mean, I'm thinking of new sound equipment all the time, but your Quirk doesn't really…"

"Well, I just figured I may as well have some more tools at my disposal," Ochaco answered. "Be a well rounded hero, like De…"

She shut herself up, but it was too late. Mina pounced on it like a cat.

"Midori, huh? Well, go ahead and wear those upgrades, Ochaco-chan! I'm sure he'll pick up on it eventually!" She and Toru laughed, while Ochaco flushed red.

"It's…it's not like I'm trying to get his attention…" she mumbled. "Although hero-related stuff is basically the only way I can really get him to notice me…he doesn't seem to get excited about anything else…"

"Please stop bothering her about Midoriya," Momo cut in, causing Mina and Toru to fall into silence. "It's tough enough on the poor girl as it is."

"Oh come onnnn, Yao-momo," Mina drawled. "I get that it's for your Quirk, but don't tell me that outfit isn't meant to make boys notice you a LITTLE? Like…Todoroki, for instance?"

Momo flushed. "Not in the slightest." She'd had a crush on Todoroki for a while, but it had grown clear very quickly that he wasn't interested in that sort of thing. These days she was just sort of...floating.

Mina pouted. "Whatever. You guys are no fun. Someone needs to hook up with someone else already. We're in dorms now, it should be much easier!"

"Why don't you make that someone yourself?" Jiro suggested. "Surely there's a guy you like."

The acid user seemed to give it some thought. "Not at the moment, no."

"Okay, well…" the punk rock girl made a sour face. "Stop pestering other people about it, then."

Momo couldn't help but retreat into her thoughts. I've seen most of the boys in our class in far too many vulnerable moments. We've fought villains countless times. Instead of classmates, it's more like we're all war buddies, or something. Starting a romantic relationship would just be strange.

Plus, my family would probably not approve!

With a shake of her head, she followed the others out of the locker room.

…

"Here are the pairings," Aizawa announced. Flanking him on either side were Midnight and Ectoplasm, who'd be helping monitor the exercise.

"The word pairings makes it sound like we're about to be shipped together," Kaminari whispered to Sero, but Momo overheard. "I hope I end up with one of the girls this time!"

Sero laughed it off in a kind of half-disgusted sort of way. "Just for today, try and think with your brain, Pikachu."

"First up," said Aizawa, pulling some slips of paper out of a box. "Kaminari and Aoyama, you'll be fighting Bakugo and Asui."

Kaminari wilted. "No freaking way."

"Hehe, let us shine out with our bright powers, monsieur!" Aoyama did a pirouette.

Sero clapped his friend on the back, chuckling. "Have fun! And be careful what you wish for!" Kaminari only wailed in response.

"WHAT?! Frog Face?" Bakugo snapped in shock.

"Let's work together well, Bakugo-chan," said Tsuyu, offering her hand.

The explosion user blinked. "Err…tsk." He averted his eyes dismissively, avoiding the handshake, but not blowing up at her either. "Of course. We're gonna win this easily."

Momo noticed Bakugo had mellowed out recently, but there was something else to it as well. The fact that he didn't really have any special connection to Tsuyu, and therefore had no reason to get all hot and bothered about working with her.

"It's been awhile since we've teamed up randomly like this," Jiro muttered next to her. "Bakugo and Asui is such a weird combination. I think everyone's settled into separate friend groups since the first time we did this. And since then, we've all gotten used to getting challenged and hyped up by…those people." She realized Momo was looking at her, and blushed. "Sorry. I'm rambling."

"No, I get it," Momo said softly. "I am also feeling something like that."

"The next match will be Todoroki and Koda…versus Ojiro and Uraraka."

"Huh?" Ochaco blinked, looking to the tail user.

"Cool," Ojiro said, scratching his neck. "I don't think we've ever worked together before, Uraraka-san. Let's do it!"

"Hehe, yeah!"

"Are there creatures nearby you can bring to help?" Todoroki asked Koda curtly. The larger block-headed boy shrugged.

"See?" Jiro pointed out. "That's weird. Just…strange."

"Uraraka and Ojiro seem to be getting on well though," Momo pointed out. "These sorts of exercises are good for team building. You never know who might be in the area during a situation, and may have to work with whoever's available."

"The third match will be Jiro and Iida vs Shoji and Ashido," said Aizawa.

Annoyance flashed over Jiro's face for a split second, and then Iida had rushed to her side. "Jiro-san, let us do our best! We have not interacted much, but you are quite a capable individual from what I have seen!"

The rocker girl forced a smile. "Thanks, you too. Let's think of a plan, come on." With a silent help me glance towards Momo she followed the engine user away.

Iida isn't so bad, Momo thought. But they had a lot in common, she supposed. Both from upper class families, both with more sheltered and strict outlooks on their student lifestyle, both on positions in student government…still, why would Jiro find him so annoying, but tolerate her just fine?

It also occurred to her that her name hadn't been called yet. There were only eight people left.

"The fourth match will be…" Aizawa pulled out some more pieces of paper. "Kirishima and Hagakure vs Sato and Sero."

"Alright!" Sero whooped. "Let's do it, sugar boy!"

"Yeah!" The two of them high-fived.

"Front-line bravery and covert stealth? We complement each other perfectly!" Kirishima declared to his invisible partner. Toru giggled, clearly a bit enamored by all of this.

I guess I'm in the last group, Momo thought. But wait, who else hadn't been picked yet?

"Final match will be you four, but I guess I better decide the teams…" Aizawa picked out two more slips. "Midoriya and Tokoyami. That means Katayama and Yaoyorozu are a team. Alright, that's everyone."

Momo's eyes widened. Katayama?

She looked over to the boy in question, who she had spoken to very rarely. Purple eyes met her own grey ones. "Welp," he said in his frank, almost twitchy tone, "this was unexpected."

Doko Katayama was a strange person. He could be considered one of the "class clowns" along with Kaminari and Sero, but he spoke up a bit more rarely, often making his funny observations and comments in a very dry, self-deprecating kind of way. Mina and Toru found him hilarious, of course. He was also good friends with Tsuyu, as they both had blunt and off-color personalities.

He was on the taller side, with dark grey hair in a wavy crew cut and aforementioned dark violet eyes. His Quirk was an emitter teleporting-type, which he used to warp himself or objects up to his own body weight up to ten meters in any direction, and occasionally further if he strained himself. The last time she'd really taken notice of him was during the sports festival, where he'd finished in the top four. His Quirk was crazy impressive, and he used it in a variety of creative ways…

He always wore that enigmatic half-smirk, as if he was thinking about something that he wasn't willing to tell you. And he often had long periods of time in which he wasn't talking to anyone at all. That was her best attempt at summarizing him in her brain, with her limited knowledge.

All in all, Momo felt intimidated by him. Not just his personality, but his skillset as well…she remembered during her low point after the sports festival where he was one of the ones she compared herself to. One of the ones that seemed like an impossible barrier to surpass. She'd thought, I'll never be that good. Even if I should be.

She'd regained some of her confidence since then, but that didn't make him any less intimidating.

Momo looked over to their opponents. Midoriya…a veritable wild card, and Tokoyami…who made a fool of me in the sports festival. The former was chatting in a low voice to the latter, very quickly.

"Midoriya is a strategist," said Katayama, now standing next to her and looking in the same direction she was.

Momo nodded. "That he is." Her gut instinct upon being teamed up with him was apprehension, because he didn't seem to have an outwardly high opinion of anyone in the class, which must have included her. But he was behaving…normally?

"I know your Quirk works better when you come up with plans beforehand," he continued. "But I don't think we can out-plan Midoriya. It will be better to come up with things to create on the fly as the situation calls for it."

"I…agree," Momo said. "Unlike the last battle trial, there is no bomb objective. We are just fighting each other in the streets to submission. So every action we take should be focused on that."

"Since Dark Shadow doesn't like light, you could make flashbangs," Katayama suggested. "Then again, Midoriya will definitely be aware that we'd try that. He's just…smart like that."

Momo smirked. "I could disguise the flashbangs as something else."

Katayama's eyes widened. She realized quietly that that was the first time she'd ever seen him surprised. "Of course. Sorry, I…" Suddenly, he was blushing, pulling back into himself in a shy manner. "You know your Quirk better than I do. I didn't mean to take over the planning or anything, just offering suggestions…"

Momo's eyebrows went up. Who is this boy, truly? "It's alright. Perhaps if I can make flashbangs, or anything else, you could teleport them in toward Dark Shadow?"

"Yeah. That'd be good." He met her gaze again. "And I can teleport other objects around the area to try and drop on them, but it would do so little good I may as well be tickling them. Midoriya when he's…what's he call it, Full Cowl? And Dark Shadow, are both really strong. I…I honestly don't know what to do."

Momo felt strange. She remembered her final exam, in which she'd naturally let Todoroki take charge. Now, the positions were almost reversed.

"Midoriya will try to get in close," she said. "I can make things that will deter him, but…"

"If all else fails, I suppose I can use Warp Field," Katayama mused. "Neither of us are powered in a way that improves our resistance to blows. Midoriya will hold back since he's a good guy, but a charged punch or kick from him would be devastating. I can't let him hit y…us." He coughed.

Momo felt heat fill her cheeks a little. "What's Warp Field again?"

The grey-haired boy blinked at her, and she felt an embarrassed strike in her heart. Oh God, he's mad at me for that I should have known better…

"It's my super move," he said. "I spread my Quirk through my whole body at once and release, teleporting objects away from myself in a scatter. That includes people, so anyone in the radius is blown away from me. It's my defense, basically."

I should have known that. How have I never paid much attention to him at all? "And what about offense? I mean…say we do get Dark Shadow under control. We can overpower Tokoyami himself most likely, but that's only if Midoriya gives us the chance. How do we fight Midoriya?"

She had an answer herself, but she kind of wanted to hear from him first. His solution might be better than mine.

"That's what I'm still stuck on," he said sadly. "I can probably outmaneuver him for a spell, but that leaves you open. Which means…"

Momo winced inwardly. I knew it. He thinks he needs to protect me, and why shouldn't he? He's a lot more impressive in combat.

"...that I'm putting myself in your capable hands, Yaoyorozu."

She opened her mouth in surprise. "Wh-what?"

"I'm not the best at planning, to be honest. I'm better at thinking on the fly. When I saw that I'd be against Midoriya and Tokoyami, I got a little scared, but with you as my partner I feel better. I don't think I would have felt as reassured with anyone else."

She couldn't stop her face from going red. What…what is he saying?

Doko Katayama continued on, oblivious, as if what he'd said was perfectly normal and wasn't the most substantial praise she'd received in a while. "The first match is about to start, we should head to the observation room and watch."

Momo found herself walking next to him back to the observation room. Even though they still didn't have a plan, she was feeling surprisingly…confident.

…

They had somehow beaten the odds and won. She couldn't believe it.

As expected, when Katayama had tried to teleport her flashbangs in to attack Dark Shadow, even though they were disguised, Midoriya had used a powerful kick to create a gust of wind that blew them all away.

They had chaotically split up after that. Katayama had danced around Midoriya, making him give chase, while Momo had been forced to go head-to-head with Dark Shadow for the first time since the sports festival. This time she held up much better, creating more flashbangs whenever the creature tried to get in close along with her normal weapons.

She had managed to come up with a plan before the match started, and it became time to enact it as soon as Midoriya managed to land a blow on Katayama.

The teleporter had feigned a deal of pain, making Midoriya hesitate and think that he'd accidentally used more power than intended. In that moment of pause, he'd yelled the signal.

"YAO-MOMO!" Katayama had roared. "CROSS!"

With that, she'd flipped backwards as Dark Shadow came down and attacked the ground where she'd stood a moment before. She soared gracefully over Katayama…and created a flamethrower, dropping into his hands. She folded into a diving kick as she plummeted toward the ground, planting her heeled boot solidly in Midoriya's face. Katayama teleported backward as Dark Shadow came in for support, and blasted the creature with fire. As Dark Shadow shrank in size, cowering, Katayama teleported in toward Tokoyami in a bob-and-weave motion, punching him solidly and knocking him to the ground.

Midoriya tried to get up and continue the fight, but Momo created a floodlight and blinded him, making him stagger. Katayama hurriedly captured Tokoyami with the capture tape and then teleported back to them, warping four pieces of debris onto Midoriya's arms and legs to pin him down. Momo leaned over and got some tape around him.

Dark Shadow reappeared from Tokoyami in that moment, but it was too late. Once both teammates had been captured, even briefly, the match was technically over.

Even though the plan had been Momo's idea, it had been Katayama who'd planted it in her. They're strong enough to continue the fight no matter what we do, he'd said beforehand, but as long as we're fast enough to capture them both at the same time, we can end the match.

In real life, of course, that wouldn't have been a win. But both Midoriya and Tokoyami had accepted it graciously, Midoriya in particular praising them for their strategy.

"You two make such a great pair!" he'd gushed, stars in his eyes.

Katayama and Momo exchanged a glance, their eyes widening as they realized they were both looking at each other. They quickly averted their gaze and blushed. "Midoriya-san, be more considerate with your words," Katayama muttered. "You'll give the poor girl nightmares."

There he went with the self-deprecation. Momo sighed, feeling the air relax a little.

As they walked back, having received feedback from Aizawa, she found herself walking with Katayama.

"That was enjoyable," he commented lightly.

"Yes…I like to see everyone's progress and improvement. It is always a wonder."

"Oh, I wasn't on about that. I was talking about winning. I mean, ahem…" he coughed, having spoken in a very quick, panicked manner. "...I mean, yeah! Competing brings out the best in us, and all that…stuff…" He chuckled nervously, scratching the back of his neck.

She couldn't tell if he was being serious or not. That was the thing with Katayama. Apparently his erratic behavior was caused by the energy given off by his warping Quirk, as he'd often explained to others in a lightning-fast spiel.

"It's okay to enjoy winning," she reassured him with a smile, deciding that was the safe thing to say.

Katayama gave her an alarmed glance, as if confused, and then turned away, muttering to himself.

Momo felt an instant strike of despair, watching him walk away. What did I do wrong?

"Hey," Jiro said, reappearing at her side. "What's with that face?"

"I don't know…" Katayama had rejoined Sero and Tsuyu further ahead, the two people who he spoke with most often. "I suppose I'm just confused by him."

"Who, Katayama?" Jiro's eye twitched. "He is weird. He's like Aoyama, but more sociable. At least he's not an idiot like Kaminari. He just acts like one sometimes…which is almost worse."

Momo didn't know how to respond to that. Jiro can only think of people in comparison to other people. That's how her mind works. But…

…Doko Katayama is different, and I don't understand it.

…

Doko returned to the dorm late that afternoon. When he got up to his own room on the third floor, he flung the door open, slammed it shut, and immediately sank into his bed, groaning.

Yaoyorozu saw right through me. I'm such a phony.

The class president of 1A and resident rich girl had always been a major source of terror for Doko. She was just so classy and refined, and he'd never really gotten the courage to establish a rapport with her like he did with Sero, Tsu, Ashido, and Hagakure. Those four were probably his closest friends because they were outgoing and easy to talk to. People who were harder to talk to…he was just too afraid. And now it was late in the year, and friendships had been established…

He knew, of course, that he was part of the problem too. He was terrible at making himself approachable. Everyone just thought he was weird, or frightening…

But it had been absolutely essential for him to make a good impression on Yaoyorozu, because he needed her help.

His phone buzzed again. It was a text from his mother.

Don't forget that we're allowing you to live in those dorms, young man. That is a privilege, not a right.

Trembling slightly, he scrolled up through the earlier messages.

Your grades are subpar. Other than that silly hero class, you've got all Bs. Are you applying yourself at all?

We gave you the right to attend that hero school because you applied yourself in your studies beforehand. But now that you're there, you think you can just be lazy like you used to be?

If this continues, Doko, we will pull you out. Don't think that we won't.

It was a difficult situation. In order to attend UA, his parents had required him to pass a bunch of other incredibly hard high school entrance exams. Once he'd proven that he could do that, only then did they allow him to go.

His parents despised his Quirk. They thought it had turned him into a lazy bum. They hadn't wanted to send him to a school that would let him use it more freely.

But now that he was here, he was determined to use his Quirk for good. Would they ever understand that? He didn't know. But he certainly wouldn't have a chance to convince them if they pulled him out.

So his only hope was to improve his grades, which had been slipping due to a…variety of factors. And Yaoyorozu was top of the class. He had intended to ask for her help, so he'd tried to match her refinedness and class with as collected of a persona as he could cultivate.

He'd tried to act normal. He'd tried to strategize, say things in a level tone, use big words, even. But then he'd said the stupid thing about winning. He'd slipped up.

And what had Yaoyorozu, the ever-shining ball of gentle prosperity done? She'd smiled at him and pitied him.

Doko hated being pitied. How could he stoop so low as to rely on the reassurance of others when he had such an amazing Quirk? How could he live up to the expectations placed on him, as a teleporter with a wide variety of abilities, when he kept leaning on the shoulders of other people? That wasn't heroic at all. It was just…weak. And lazy. Just like his parents believed.

He'd needed to establish himself as an equal with her before asking for her help. But he knew that he gave off a smug aura without even meaning to, so it required a careful balance of self-deprecation without making it seem like he was wallowing in self-pity. Because he wasn't, he really wasn't. He didn't want to make anyone think that he thought he was better than them. But he also didn't want to make anyone think that he needed to hear that he was better than them. He'd seen firsthand what excessive praise and ego had done to people. It was present in his very class.

Striking a balance was important, but it seemed like he'd missed the mark with Yaoyorozu. How was he supposed to ask her now?

Doko groaned, and put his face in his pillow. I'm going to fail and get kicked out of the school and it'll be all over. I'll never get to put my Quirk to use. I'll never get to save anyone.

Someone will die because I wasn't there.

…

Two in the morning.

Momo couldn't sleep. She tossed and turned and twisted, feeling hot and cold all at once. Nothing was working.

Her room was feeling incredibly stuffy. I need some air.

She shrugged into her nightgown and tiptoed out of the room, heading down the quiet, dark hallway.

She knew it was a privileged thing to think, but she really did miss walking through her family mansion at night, especially during the warmer months. The Yaoyorozu ancestral home was massive and spacious and drafty, with many floor-to-ceiling windows that gave you views of the stars.

The Heights Alliance, by contrast, was very closed-in. Uniform. Hastily built. She understood its necessity, but she did miss her mansion sometimes.

If only it were here on the school grounds, where it's safe. It's big enough to house everyone in my class with room to spare. And every day my friends would be able to enjoy the same comforts that I've enjoyed for so long.

Down in the common room, she quickly made a cup of green tea. Studies showed that it helped one sleep.

She suddenly felt a strange presence, and was compelled to turn around.

Beyond the kitchen, through the windows that faced the front steps of the Class A dorm, she could see a boy sitting on the stoop, backlit by the clear night sky. Although he was a silhouette, she knew somehow. Intrinsically. It was Katayama.

Without another word, she found herself making a second cup of tea. What am I doing? This is probably a mistake. But her hands picked up both cups, and her feet took her toward the door.

The door opened with an unmistakable creak, that he of course heard, and was compelled to turn around. His profile was thrown into relief by the overhead lights on the top of the building, and his purple eyes glinted.

A soft gust of breeze swept over the stoop, causing her nightgown and her hair to stir, flapping a bit in the wind. Momo winced.

"Evening, Yao-momo," he said with his trademark half-smile. "I almost didn't recognize you with your hair down."

"I…made you tea."

"Oh." His eyes flashed downward to the two cups. "Well…thank you."

"Do you mind if I sit?"

"...Not at all. I mean, no. I don't mind. You can do whatever you like." He stumbled over his words, and then sighed, briefly turning away and sliding his hand over his face.

That put Momo at ease, somehow. He's frustrated about something.

She sat down on the stoop next to him, gathering her nightgown around her lap in a way that made her modest. He was in just a white undershirt and shorts, she noticed as she set his cup down between them.

Katayama picked it up and took a very light sip. He lowered the cup to his chest, holding it in both hands. "So, what brings you out here? Sudden interest in astronomy, perhaps?"

Momo chuckled. "I'm afraid not." She followed his line of sight up to the moon, which was over half full but not quite all the way full. "I was just having trouble sleeping."

"So you got up to make tea, and saw me out on the porch like this. To an outside observer, that would seem like a pretty fateful event."

She felt heat rush to her cheeks. "No wonder you get on so well with Tsu. That's the exact sort of thing she would have said."

"Yeah…I'm all sorts of derivative." He lifted the cup back up as if he would drink some more, but then lowered it again.

"What about you? Did you also have trouble sleeping?"

"No. I wasn't trying to." He glanced at the moon again. "The moon and Jupiter are in conjunction. It was cloudy earlier, so I figured I'd stay up and wait to see." He pointed his finger at a bright, unblinking object below the moon.

"Ah, yes. That's Jupiter. Are you into astronomy, Katayama?"

"I read a lot of nonfiction stuff. My parents…I mean, my family isn't all too big into…stories, or modern media, or anything like that."

"Ah. I see." There was definitely more to what he just said, but she chose to hang back and be respectful. "Well, I like to keep up to date on all manner of scholarly subjects, but I confess that space is one that I am not interested in as much."

With a blush, she realized that she had gone off and done her uppity thing, having even closed her eyes and put her hand against her chest in a preppy manner. She quickly lowered her hand and closed her mouth, embarrassed, but it didn't even seem like he had noticed.

"Since the Quirk emergence, no one cares much about space anymore," said Katayama.

"It is…a bit of an obsolete topic."

"You probably think I'm weird for being into it."

"Everyone has their interests."

"It's just cool to think about how things might have been different, if that baby hadn't lit up in China. We could have been among the stars by now, but fate offered us a different sort of evolution."

A moment of silence.

"...I'm sorry, that sounded stupid, didn't it? I mean…"

"No, it's alright!" She waved her hands and gave him a smile. "I get what you're saying. But…you don't have to use such big words around me."

He blushed at that, and looked away from her. Well, that all but confirmed it. "Katayama-san…have you been trying to put on a persona around me?"

"Erm…well…" He sighed.

"...That thing you said before. About me getting along with Tsu really well. It's because I always know what she's thinking. She's so down to earth. It's easy for anyone to get comfortable with her." Something passed through his eyes. "But I don't always know what you're thinking, Yao-momo. You frighten me a bit. You're…you're really good at everything."

She was shocked. The feelings he'd described were almost exactly how she felt about him.

"It's okay, Katayama. To tell the truth…I've always admired the way you work in combat. You're so fast and creative with your Quirk, in a way that I aspire to be with mine. We both have very diverse Quirks, but you work with yours much better…and that's always intimidated me. So…you can be yourself around me. I don't mind. I would actually prefer it." She smiled, blinking her eyes at him.

Another gust of wind swept over the porch.

For a moment, he just stared at her, his mouth slightly hung open. His eyebrows went up. Was he surprised?

Then, he relaxed.

"I…I know." He sighed. "I know that I'm hard to approach. And I know I'm better than I give myself credit for. It's just…I see the way some people in our class act…and I'd rather not be like that. I'm perfectly comfortable staying in the background, not making too much of an impression."

"Well…" Momo grinned and took another sip of her tea. "...I think you've somewhat failed at that."

He put his face in his hands and groaned. She chuckled, feeling much better than before. Is this the real Katayama?

"To tell the truth," he mumbled through his hands, "I was going to ask you for help with my studies. My grades have been slipping recently."

That took her aback. She raised an eyebrow. "Truly? But you always rank fairly well in class, Katayama."

"I'm making Bs. I'm average. I…I could be doing better."

Once again, there was more behind those words. She wanted to know, but she knew she couldn't pry too much. If he's asking for help, then I shall be of service. That is what I can do.

"I'd be happy to tutor you if that is your desire. It's no problem at all."

He lowered his hands and relaxed, as if the topic had been bothering him a great deal. Was he that worried about my reaction? Surely he knew that I ran a study group at my house for finals. Some of his friends had even been there.

"Thanks, Yao-momo. …You don't mind if I call you that, right? I mean, it's just a bit easier…"

"I don't mind at all," she interrupted, waving her hand. "Pretty much everyone else does anyway."

"Man…" he grumbled. "I feel like I'm just giving you the worst impression of me right now."

"I was feeling the same way earlier about your impression of me."

"Hmm?" He looked genuinely confused about that.

"Sometimes…" She swallowed. She hadn't meant to talk about this, but she'd already given him the hook. "Sometimes I feel like I'm acting too…upper-class around all of you. Jiro has complained about it before. Lightly, of course, but I can sense the resentment under there. And I know it doesn't help that I make good grades and all that. I feel like when people praise me, what they're really doing is ridiculing me in their heads. So I always try to be careful and…" She coughed. "...I don't know. Not seem like such a princess, I guess."

"Oh." He winced. "So, when I praised you before, I just made you uncomfortable?I'm sorr…"

"No, that's not it!" She quickly corrected, maybe raising her voice a little too much. "I believed your words. It was something about the way you said them, I'm not sure. But around anyone new, I'm always careful…I'm worried that they'll think I think I'm better than them…"

Katayama's eyes widened. She didn't know why, but they did. Once again, she wished she had a key to his brain, to know exactly what he was thinking.

Then, he just grinned easily, taking the tension from the air in one fell swoop. "Well, I guess we can just both admit that our positive feelings about the other are genuine, and stop worrying about it so much?"

Momo paused for a moment, stunned, and then smiled with him, laughing. "I suppose we can do that."

They shared soft laughter for another few seconds, and then stopped. Katayama turned back toward the stars.

"Say, Katayama?"

"Hmm?"

"Do you drink tea?"

"...Not at all, no."

"You could have just said something."

"I know. But…I figured if you made it for me, then I may as well give it a try."

Hope you enjoyed this first chapter. More than likely, most of the chapters in this fic will not be this long. I wanted to get a specific stopping point and it took longer than expected.

Lots has already happened, more than I initially planned, in fact. I can't wait to develop their relationship even further from here.

As of now, I have no schedule, but expect an update to this next week? Maybe? We'll see how things go?