February 13 came to pass in a quiet, nerve wracking anticipation. But then Valentine's Day arrived, and many hearts were having a hoof, like a lid on a boiling pot.
The school was hectic enough, Mikoto's own worries aside. Mainly because of Kuroko, as her affection got notched up from eleven to a whole twenty. Of course, she gave Mikoto chocolate first thing in the morning and of course it was a big heart-shaped box. Followed by the usual advances and kisses – which Mikoto kindly refused with a few shocks.
In her typical fashion, Kuroko also tried teleporting anyone approaching her dear Onee-sama somewhere far away before they could give her chocolate. Whether they actually intended to or not. But once Mikoto zapped her some more, all of Tokiwadai breathed a sigh of relief.
And then chocolate started flowing in.
Honestly, Mikoto expected to get some, being Level 5 and all. However, she was sure everyone would be fawning over that starry-eyed girl. And yet the mountain of boxes on her desk kept growing.
"White Day is gonna be tough," Mikoto muttered as she was stuffing them into a bag. "How am I even gonna eat all of this? Maybe some milk would help…"
By the time the classes ended her bag was as big as Santa's. Sadly, it didn't come with a sledge and a dozen deer. She could have asked Kuroko to just teleport everything to their dorm room but that didn't feel quite right. Besides, the quicker that girl focused on her Judgement work the better. If she learnt Mikoto was going to give chocolate to a boy…
After dropping off the bag at the dorm, Mikoto rushed to the meeting place. There, by the entrance to the subway station, a girl waited for her. She wore a dark blue sailor uniform and a single white flower accessory on the left side of her long dark hair.
Noticing Mikoto approach, she beamed and waved with her right hand, "Misaka-san!"
The girl's other hand firmly held a small bag. Seeing it, Mikoto's worries eased up slightly.
"Sorry, Saten-san, I'd have gotten here sooner if they haven't buried me in chocolate," Mikoto apologized straight away.
But Saten Ruiko simply giggled, "Popular as ever, eh? Well, no worries. I didn't wait long," she added carefree giving Mikoto the bag.
Mikoto immediately took out a translucent pouch tied up with a red string. Inside were star-shaped chocolate candies. In perfect condition, far from melting.
She sighed in relief.
"I took utmost care of it," Ruiko said proudly. "Don't worry, Kamijou-san will be smitten by the love you put in this chocolate!"
"L-love?! Who said anything about love?! It… it's just friend chocolate!" Mikoto insisted shoving the pouch back into the bag.
Ruiko rolled her eyes, "Sure, sure."
Mikoto glared at her but quickly looked away when Ruiko shot one back. That "you-are-not-fooling-me" look and the wry smile shattered Mikoto's weak composure. Hiding her embarrassment, she focused on the bag instead.
"Plan A – check. Plan B? Check," Mikoto muttered after making sure the box of chocolate was also intact.
"Moral support – check!" Ruiko added with a grin.
Mikoto stared at her, "Moral support? Saten-san… don't tell me you want to tag along?"
"Of course!"
"But… I thought you'd be looking after Kuroko."
"Oh, Uiharu has it covered. Don't you worry! Just before you came, she called and said Kuroko was "under control"."
"Under control? What did she mean by that?"
"Dunno… maybe Uiharu is keeping Kuroko busy with paperwork? Although the way she said it… felt more like she had knocked Kuroko out and stashed her in a closet."
Ruiko laughed at what seemed like an impossible situation. But Mikoto had her doubts. Despite meek looks, their friend Uiharu was capable of pulling off something crazy like that.
"Anyway," Ruiko continued, "somebody has to make sure you won't run away at the very last minute."
"Why would I run away?"
"Oh, I dunno… Hm, remind me, what happened to those cookies I helped you make for Kamijou-san?"
"Ugh… Well… you see… I didn't give them to him…"
"And who set you up for the dance at the sports festival? While you were bubbling unable to even look up at him?"
"I wasn't bubbling! But… you did. I got to dance with that idiot thanks to you."
"See? So, what does that suggest?"
"Ugh…" Mikoto grumbled, then ruffled her hair and sighed. "Please… continue to support me."
Ruiko hit herself on the chest lightly, "Of course! Time for Valentine Attack! Kamijou-san better be prepared."
Well, I surely ain't, Mikoto thought as her shoulders dropped. But as long as Mama isn't around the teasing shouldn't be that bad. Although Saten-san has her own heavy ammunition in form of those knowing smiles.
So far Valentine's was turning into more of a challenge than the sports festival…
Accompanied – or rather convoyed by Ruiko, Mikoto arrived at a certain high school.
The classes had ended and now students were flowing through the gate to freedom. Older boys and girls, all unfamiliar faces, with no spiky-haired head in sight. Yet Mikoto froze a step away from the school grounds.
Ruiko, on the other hand, perked up.
"Oh! I've been to this school. Everyone who used Level Upper had to take a special class here."
And, without any hesitation, she passed through the gate.
"Yep, yep, this is the place. And there is the track that PE teacher made us run. This brings up memories… the kind you have passing by the dentist's office."
While her friend was walking down the memory lane, Mikoto was still just standing there, on the outside. Glancing at the faces of the students passing by. Both hoping and dreading to see him.
"Come on, Misaka-san," Ruiko called. "Don't you start getting cold feet now."
Mikoto sighed and looked down on the line separating the school grounds from the rest of the city.
"You can do it! Come on! One small step for a girl, one big leap for a maiden in lo…gh?!"
Before she could finish, Mikoto did indeed leap – like a tiger on its prey – and shut her mouth tight.
Some students shot them weird looks – ranging from inquisitive to amused. There were even a few chuckles.
"Stop spouting nonsense!" Mikoto said as her face grew beet red.
Ruiko mumbled something unintelligible, and Mikoto reluctantly put her hand away.
"Got you here though, didn't it?" Ruiko beamed proud of herself.
Mikoto hanged her head defeated. She couldn't even with this girl.
"Oh, what's this? Looks like we have visitors," someone mused approaching them.
Mikoto shifted her gaze and instantly frowned. A child? Cute little girl, not older than twelve. What could she be doing at a high school? Perhaps, she was a genius that had skipped a few grades? But she wasn't wearing the uniform and instead of a school bag she had a purse.
Someone's child maybe…
"Oh, sensei! Long time no see," Ruiko said and bowed to the girl.
Mikoto's mouth hanged open, "Sensei?!"
This… person was a teacher?! This 135cm tall person that would look perfect with an elementary schooler's backpack?!
"Yes, I am a teacher here. My name is Tsukuyomi Komoe," the child… no, the woman introduced herself, and perhaps, she would have appeared mature – if not for her adorable pouting. "Who knew a Tokiwadai lady can be this rude?" Komoe added noting Mikoto's uniform.
"Every rule has an exception. Or two," Ruiko piped in smirking.
"Oh?" Komoe tilted her head and then took a closer look at Ruiko. Her eyes lit up. "You are one of naughty kids that got involved with Level Upper. Hm… Saten-chan, was it?"
Ruiko beamed, "Yep!"
"Staying out of troubles, I hope?"
"Well…" her smile twisted somewhat awkwardly. "I try, but they seem to keep finding me."
Komoe sighed, "You sound just like Kamijou-chan. Well, hopefully, it's not as bad for you. That boy is a real trouble magnet…"
Hearing a familiar name, the girls perked up.
"Are you talking about Kamijou Touma-san? Black spiky hair, hopeless face?" Ruiko asked.
"Likes to nag about misfortune," Mikoto added.
"Yep, that's our Kamijou-chan. I am his homeroom teacher."
"Lucky!" Ruiko punched her palm like a fighter about to step into a ring and pushed Mikoto forward, "You see, sensei, this girl has some business with Kamijou-san. Very delicate business," she winked at Komoe.
The 135cm tall teacher frowned. Like a scanner, her eyes went up and picked on Mikoto's red cheeks. Then it travelled down and stopped on the small bag in her hands. Instantly, the puzzle came together.
"Ah, so it's like that?"
"Exactly!"
"I see, I see…"
"Hey, quit making strange assumptions about me and that idiot! This… this is just friend chocolate!"
"Sure, sure," Komoe and Ruiko said in unison, with exactly the same knowing smile.
Mikoto could only growl helpless.
"Well, sadly, Kamijou-chan…" Komoe started but someone interrupted her.
"What's this? More girls that want to give Kami-yan chocolate?" mused a tall boy with blue hair joining them. Next to him, the tiny teacher looked even smaller, like a toddler.
Great, more people to pick on me, Mikoto fidgeted mentally. But then she realized something.
"No, no, I'm not here to…" Ruiko trailed off as it came to her too.
"Did you just say "more girls"?" Mikoto asked in an unnervingly calm voice.
The air around them got tense, yet the boy didn't seem to notice.
"Err, Aogami-chan…" Komoe tried to cut in but to no avail.
The boy named Aogami smiled nonchalantly, "Oh, yes. That bastard was bragging about getting chocolate even before getting to school. And then there was Fukiyose… Oh boy," he sighed as if it was particularly tough topic.
"Fukiyose?" Ruiko asked while Mikoto turned eerily silent.
"Oh! Just a moment… Here!"
He showed the girls a picture on his phone. On it, three boys were scuffling in a classroom. Among them was a familiar spiky-haired Kamijou and blue-haired Aogami. The third boy had blond hair and wore sunglasses (indoors, in a classroom!). Things looked pretty heated but at the same time there was an impression the boys were just arguing about something silly. Everyone else on the picture was laughing.
Well, except for one – a well-endowed girl with long dark hair. She looked pissed and prepared to throw a punch. Seeing this, one couldn't help but imagine her wiping the floor with the three idiots and restoring peace in the classroom.
"This is Fukiyose. Boy, did she get us good that time," Aogami laughed without a hint of malice or regret. "Well, not any worse than usual. She is always there to mess with our fun. Like an arch nemesis or something."
"That's because you keep messing around in class. Seriously, Fukiyose-chan acts more like a representative than you, Aogami-chan."
"But we were having a serious discussion! So what if things got a little heated? We were just about to settle on which bunny suits are the best when…"
Blueish white sparks cut through the air, and Aogami fell silent.
Sweat beaded on Ruiko's face. "Err, Misaka-san?"
But Mikoto didn't seem to hear her.
As electrical currents swirled around them, the third strongest Level 5 kindly said, "Please, stay on topic. What happened between this Fukiyose girl and that idiot?"
"Oh, right, right, my bad," Aogami said unfazed. "So, Fukiyose caught Kami-yan in the hallway and gave him this small chocolate bar…"
"Was it… that kind of chocolate?"
"Neah, the atmosphere was completely wrong. No blushing or fidgeting like a deredere. She wasn't even forceful like a tsundere hiding her embarrassment. Besides, not even Fukiyose would give a boy one of her healthy snacks as love chocolate. No one would write a love scene like that!"
Instantly, the electrical storm died.
"Is that so? I see… I see…" Mikoto muttered as her shoulders relaxed.
Komoe and Ruiko breathed out in relief, as if a bomb had just been defused.
And then Aogami said, "But man, Kami-yan was touched!"
Mikoto's smile turned plastic. The poor spectators felt their hearts stop.
"Oh, was he now?" she asked in a robotic voice.
Even with the red wire cut the timer was still going.
"Yep! Swept him off his feet, she did!"
For a moment the world stood still, and in that silence Mikoto's voice cracked like electricity.
"Haha… I see, I see… So he is the kind of idiot to be swept by such simple chocolate as long as it's from a busty bimbo… Well, in that case…"
Ruiko braced for a thunderstorm to break out.
But it never did.
Instead, Mikoto stomped the ground and declared, "In that case, I will send him to the moon with mine!"
Kicking things into high gear, she immediately called a certain number. The beeps rang out through the small space they occupied. After the fifth one, the person picked up.
"Yes? Hello?" A boy's voice said sounding slightly troubled.
"Where are you?" Mikoto asked sternly.
"That voice… Misaka? What, not even a hello for me? How rude! Your high-class lady image just keeps crumbling," he teased with that specific tone that always annoyed her.
"Like I care! Again, where are you?"
"Hm? Just going home. Why?"
"We need to meet up."
The boy fell silent. Mikoto could practically see him stare at his phone with a troubled expression.
"What for?" he finally asked. "Don't tell me you want to pick a fight with me again… Seriously, I thought you developed past that silly character motivation."
A blood vessel popped on Mikoto's forehead.
"Shut up! Just…"
Sparks flew from her bangs, and the call ended. Confused, she looked at her phone. Did he hang up? Or were there problems with the phone line?
She called the boy again. This time he picked up right away. But then a terrible static assaulted her ear and the line disconnected.
"Ugh, why does this keep happening?" Mikoto glared at her phone like it was a traitor.
Well, calling him wasn't an option anymore. That left…
"Hey!" she called and Komoe jumped up. "Where does this idiot live?"
"Mmm, I don't think I should disclose this information…"
Mikoto's eyes flashed lightning but the 135cm tall teacher that would have looked perfect with elementary schooler's backpack stood her ground.
Aogami looked from one to the other, then smirked and explained in detail how to get to his friend's dormitory.
"Kami-yan's room is on the 7th floor," he added. "The door has a nameplate, so you won't miss it. Oh, and don't be afraid of the elevator. It moans like a zombie but it works just fine."
Without even a "thank you", Mikoto stormed off – like an athlete in a sprint.
Ruiko watched her shocked. Did that girl just do a 180? Or a 360?
Then, as the determined maiden in love was vanishing on the horizon, it hit her.
"W-wait! Misaka-san!" Ruiko called running after her friend.
But there was no catching up to that comet anymore.
Aogami kept on smirking until Komoe called him.
"Aogami-chan, lean towards me, please."
"Hm, what is it? Do you want to reward me for a job well-d… Oww!"
"It's not good toying with a girl's heart like that," Komoe said pulling the boy's ear.
"Then why are you rewarding me anyway?"
She sighed and let go. Disciplining masochists was tricky.
Aogami rubbed his ear smiling happily.
"Besides, it's not like I lied."
"No, you didn't. But you still deceived her. If I said I prepared a special surprise for you and it turned out to be an "especially" hard surprise exam, you wouldn't be happy about it, would you?"
"Err, no, most likely not."
There was a slight pause after which Komoe asked, "So? Why exactly did you do that?"
"Do you really need to ask? A shy but hotheaded tsundere trying to give her crush chocolate on Valentine's – how can I just walk by this romcom plot and not add more fuel to the fire?"
"You really have too much free time on your hands… Maybe I am going easy on the homework?"
"Please, sensei! You are already a demon during the make-up classes."
It might have sounded like Aogami got scared but his lips curling up every now and again gave him away.
"Well, jokes aside," he said slightly more serious. "No.3 wouldn't hesitate to clash with an army or jump into a crumbling building to save people. But when it comes to her feelings, that courage just dissipates. She would deny any sort of affection for a certain boy, and yet she so adorably haywires whenever he is around. You really need to edge her on to get her going."
Komoe tilted her head, "You talk like you know her but it seemed like you never met before. Aogami-chan… are you a stalker, by any chance?"
Aogami simply chuckled, "Really, sensei, I prefer "observer"."