Opposites Don't Always Attract (But They Do)

Miura Yumiko can't help but glare fiercely at the slouching boy. Her arms are crossed in an effort to hold herself back from reaching over to grab him by the collar.

Hikigaya Hachiman ignores the glaring blonde with a scoff. His hands are stuffed into his pockets in an effort to make sure he doesn't flip the bird at her.

Standing between the two with a cigarette in her mouth and a sigh on her lips is Hiratsuka Shizuka, their exasperated homeroom teacher. She knows about their circumstances of course, about how they both missed the first day of school because they got into a car accident involving a dog.

They say coincidences don't exist, but Shizuka is pretty sure this proves otherwise. Nothing else explains how she has ended up with two completely different problem cases. It's either coincidence, or her bosses are lumping the work onto her again. (Or is it Fate?)

Yumiko is, to put it nicely, a prideful girl. Her attitude, in addition to the fact she missed out on the all-important first day of introductions, is going to cause her a lot of problems. Shizuka can just tell.

Hachiman… yeah, there is no nice way to say it. He looks like the type to blame society for giving up on him and becoming a pariah. He may have had a chance if he acted nice enough on the first day, but since he too missed it…

The sigh Shizuka was holding back escapes. Unfortunately for the two of them, they may be more similar than they think. In fact, they may have to rely on each other. (Both felt shivers go down their spines.)

Shizuka puts out her cigarette in what she hopes is a cool move. "Alright you two, that's enough." Strangely, both of her students comply and stand down. She really believed they were going to continue trying to kill each other with their eyes alone. Okay, she can work with this.

"You're both smart, that much is obvious." As hard as it is to believe even now, the walking stereotype of a binbo isn't just looks. She's the daughter of a successful doctor, and actually has the brain to back up her attitude. The one who looks like a NEET who exists only to leech from his parents scored third highest for humanities with an essay that seems to showcase an above average grasp on common sense. I.e, that he had it at all compared to his more naive peers.

As such, she knows that they know just how unlucky they are. (Fate couldn't have picked anyone else.)

"Because you're smart, you know you're at a disadvantage. Most in the class already made their friends, and will just consider you as extras. Because let's be honest, neither of you have the sparkling personality to change their mind." Indeed, both Yumiko and Hachiman grimaced at her words, yet both accepted the reality with a defeated nod. "Okay, maybe you have a chance," Shizuka points at Yumiko, "but it's either with boys who wanna get into your pants, or girls who wanna use you."

Unsurprisingly, Yumiko knows that. Much to Shizuka's surprise however, she notices a glint of sympathy from Hachiman's dead-fish eyes. Huh. Not such a lost cause perhaps.

Shizuka cups her elbow with one hand and points a finger up with the other. "You may not like it, but you two are the only ones who know each other. In fact, I daresay you know each other better than any other friend group in the class right now." she sees the exact moment both of them realise what she is about to suggest. "So, why not put this grudge of yours aside, eh? Start anew."

"With all due respect Hiratsuka-Sensei," Yumiko speaks first, as expected of such an aggressive and assertive girl, "This… idiot, threw himself in front of a car for a dog. He didn't care about how his friends and family might miss him." Shizuka notices how Hachiman's frown deepens at the word 'friends' and has to suppress the urge to sigh. "You can't honestly tell me to befriend such a selfish idiot."

"With all due respect Sensei, this bitch-" Shizuka raises a single, unimpressed eyebrow, "woman, judged me based on a single action without knowing my circumstances, my character, and basically assumed the worst of me within a minute. You can't seriously want me to be friends with someone as shallow as her."

Ah, and there they go trying to kill each other with just looks again. Good grief. (Yet they both acknowledge rach others existence instead of ignoring it.)

"Valid points, both of you." Shizuka chuckles at the astonishment on both her students' faces. "But consider this: you're both being hypocrites."

"Miura, you claim Hikigaya's an idiot for jumping in front of a car. That's true, but did you not do the same thing? And Hikigaya, aren't you assuming the worst of Miura without knowing her?" A soft smile forms as Shizuka watches the two of them consider her words. "Don't worry, all humans are hypocrites once in a while. That said, I think you're both being too harsh. This grudge? Put it aside for now, because frankly, it's too petty to be held onto. Start fresh and see where it goes. I'm not asking you to be best friends, just that you both give it a chance. What do you say?"

Of course, they both give her the same answer; a resounding no. Because despite her words ringing true, despite both of them knowing they may not have a chance with the rest of the class, they're both too stubborn to accept each other. They'd both rather try their chance with the rest of the class and fail than entertain the idea of them being anything more than just classmates.

Shizuka had a feeling that would be the case. Even so, she isn't so worried. For whatever strange reason, she has a feeling that the two of them are going to get along just fine, and her gut is rarely ever wrong.

She just hopes that no matter what comes next, her students will grow up a bit. Because really, at their age, they just need a little push so that they can flourish. That's why she became a teacher after all, to give the teenagers under her care the push they need.

Man does she feel old thinking that. Curse fate for not letting her feel young! (But is it really Fate's fault?)

A/N: My third year is killing me harder than I expected, especially with HBL. There just isn't enough hours in the day for me to read, write, play, socialise, and do my projects. Not necessarily in that order.

Then again, that seems to be the case for everyone, so why am I complaining? Ganbare, Humanity-chan. The percentage that aren't dooming themselves at least.

Unrelated note, I'm surprised this fandom is still going. Not very surprised by what's been popping up lately, but I am surprised it's still going. Though I suppose I am contributing to the mess rather than deleting my fics and forgetting this fandom existed, so… I forgot what I was going to say. Weird. (Goodbye for now. I hope to see you again soon~!)