"You okay, Akari? You're looking pretty sleepy today." Yamada kept his voice down, to the best of his ability. He could see the dark circles under her eyes when she lifted her head and he had to do a double take to be sure she was even really awake. He set a can of coffee down in front of her on the desk and grinned when she immediately took it.
"Nn. I'm fine. Thanks." She opened the can of coffee and began to drink when she heard someone else enter the teachers' room. The woman watched from the corner of her eye as Aizawa walked to his desk and then proceeded to down the rest of her coffee.
The blond hero followed her line of sight and quirked an eyebrow. "Hey! Good morning, Shouta!" He moved away from Akari's desk, his focus shifted to his other fatigued coworker.
Slouching in her seat, Akari absently stared down at the swirling designs on the label of the coffee can. She had been working as a backup teacher for about a week and it never got easier for her. She struggled to get out of bed every morning and had actually resorted to setting up a system of alarms that would force her to leave her room to turn them off. No amount of sleep aids could help her sleep through the night, either. Her sleep was broken and restless.
"…heh…Shouta…" she mumbled under her breath. Eyes sliding half-closed, she easily slipped into a memory from high school of him adamantly refusing to speak in front of the rest of the class. How does someone like him end up being a teacher? How does someone like me end up being a teacher? Or Hizashi? We're just a bunch of weirdos…
"Did you need something, Akahana?"
She was shaken from her reminiscing by the sound of his voice and frowned. "What?" Pushing herself to sit upright, she ran a hand through her hair.
"You said my name." There was a note of irritation in his voice now.
"Oh. Um. Yeah. The lesson plan for today. Can I see it?"
"Just give it back when you're done." He leaned over to hand it to her and frowned when his eyes met hers. "Did you sleep last night?"
Embarrassment heated her face to a pink shade and she frowned back at him. Taking the printout from his hand, she redirected her gaze. "What are you talking about? I'm fine." She jumped a little when a hand planted on her desk and a face came down close to her.
Yamada lowered his sunglasses, his expression serious as he regarded the dark circles under her eyes once more. "Babe, have you been sleeping at all?"
"I'm fine," the woman murmured. She tried to focus on the lesson plan, but felt the other two still looking at her. "I said I'm fine. I'll just get some more coffee or something if I start to doze off."
The blond glanced over his shoulder at Aizawa and shrugged. "Let me know if you need anything, Akari, baby! We can't have you passing out in the middle of the hall or something!"
Akari was glad when he sat down again, but now he was whistling. The sound was almost ear-piercing in volume and she wanted nothing more than to use her capture weapon to cover his mouth. Slouching in her seat, she started to grin as she imagined it. The crimson ribbon wrapped around the lower half of his face to block out sound.
In her groggy state, she was completely unaware of the face she was making and failed to even notice how uncomfortable it was making the teacher seated across from her. Yagi eventually got up from his seat and that was when she finally realized that her facial expression might have been a little off-putting.
I keep forgetting to keep my face in check. She yawned as she walked down the hall alongside Yamada, barely having time to cover her yawn with a hand. Daylight. Loud noises. People. It's all still too new. I should be asleep right now.
"So what did you really mean to say to Shouta earlier~?" The blond man grinned when he saw her stumble in surprise. "You're so obvious, Akari, baby! What were you thinking about? Come on! You can tell me!"
She rubbed the back of her head, crimson lips pulled into a frown. "Nn. It doesn't matter. I was just thinking…"
"Thinking about what?" He leaned in closer, staring at her intently over the edge of his sunglasses. "Come on!"
A faint warmth began to spread across her cheeks. "Has he always been like that?" She saw him raise an eyebrow and shook her head. "Never mind, okay? Pretend like I didn't say anything. I'm sure I'm just tired."
"Has he always been like what? That grumpy? You remember how he was in high school!" Yamada leaned away now and grinned. "Or were you going to say something else?" he teased.
"It doesn't matter! I shouldn't have said anything. I wouldn't have said anything at all if I knew you were going to be like this."
"I'm just curious! I'm not going to tell him anything!" The man held up his hands in defense, but he was still wearing that wide grin. "You look so cute when you get all flustered, babe! Your face almost got as red as your hair! I love it!"
She sighed, frustrated, and ran her fingers through her thick, crimson locks. "It's just the fatigue, okay? I'm sure it's just the lack of sleep, but…he's looking kind of…"
"Hot?" He saw her face instantly turn red and she pulled up the hood of her costume to try to hide it. "Awww! You're into Shouta, Akari?"
"Shut up! I didn't mean…I didn't say anything like that! You're putting words in my mouth! And anyway…I'm just tired. You're taking advantage of my fatigue, you know. Not very nice, Hizashi."
He threw an arm around her shoulders as they walked, a laugh escaping as they neared a corner. "Come on! If I wanted to take advantage of you, I'd do more than just tease you!"
In her groggy state, Akari started to snicker at this. "Well aren't you a gentleman for using some self-control?" She gently pushed him away and shook her head. "Don't make me use my capture weapon on you again," she taunted, smirking.
"When that ribbon wraps around me, I can barely take it!"
"Good to see you're more awake now, Akahana."
The woman froze when she heard the voice and saw Aizawa come around the corner they had been approaching. Shit. How much did he hear? She tugged anxiously at her hood and shifted her eyes away from his. "The coffee kicked in."
Akari tried to focus during homeroom, but the entire time she had a feeling of cold dread sitting in her stomach. She knew she was sweating and she knew that some of the students noticed. Especially when one of them commented on it. She tried to laugh it off, but by this point Akari was sure that her day was unsalvageable.
He heard it all, didn't he? Or at least that embarrassing flirting at the end. Ugh! Damn it! This day really is ruined. I wish I could just go home and burrow under my blankets for the next ten years! She followed him down the hallway at a distance, nervously chewing at one of her nails. Her gaze was directed at the floor for the most part, but when she glanced up, her eyes settled on him.
Yamada had more or less nailed what she was thinking. She had been thinking about it for a while. Aizawa had started to look attractive to her. She wanted to believe that it was due to fatigue, but now that she was more awake, she still thought it. Something about that dark, messy hair and scruffy facial hair just made her heart skip a beat.
And when he leads a class, he looks so cool. What's wrong with me? I'm acting like a teenager with a crush. I'm an adult. And if I like him, I should just say something, right? But do I like him? Akari jolted when the man looked at her over his shoulder. "Nn?"
"Why are you walking ten feet behind me?" he bluntly inquired.
"Ch-checking out the view. No! I mean-!"
"What?"
"The view outside! Look at those trees! This floor has an awesome view, doesn't it?!" A strangled, nervous laugh escaped her as she turned toward the windows and rubbed the back of her head. Did I just say that? Did I really just say that?! I just…damn it! I sounded so pervy just now!
Aizawa turned to look out the window and then looked back to Akari. "Yeah. It's not a bad view, I guess." His eyes narrowed a little and he began walking again. "Don't you have a class with Kayama soon?"
"Ah. Yeah; you're right. Thanks." She started to jog ahead of him, wanting to reach the teachers' room to talk to the other woman, but a hand darted out to grab the back of her costume top. Akari released a short yelp of surprise and looked to Aizawa. "What-?"
"Don't run in the hallways."
"Right. Sorry." The woman continued on at a brisk walk, but stole a glance at him over her shoulder before reaching a corner. Her first year of high school, she had found herself in class with Yamada and Aizawa. One was super talkative and energetic, the other calm and rather quiet. She had found herself falling hard for the dark-haired boy, but he never showed any interest in her so she had given up.
I can't have a repeat of that, she thought to herself. He probably thinks I'm annoying anyway. I'm pretty sure that's what he thought in high school. As she reached the teachers' room, she realized that she had walked a little too quickly. No one else was in the room yet. Damn it.
"Just sit down. You're in the way." Aizawa raised an eyebrow when she jumped away from him. "What?"
"Nothing. Sorry." She stepped aside to let him through the doorway and began to feel awkward about being alone in the room with him. I should leave. Right? Akari turned to leave the room, but felt something wrap tightly around her wrist to prevent her from going. Casting a timid look toward her coworker, she saw him glaring at her. "Aizawa?"
"Why are you avoiding me? You've been acting weird all morning."
"I'm just tired," she lied. He looks really mad. Her gaze dropped to the pale fabric wrapped around her wrist and felt an odd tingle run through her.
The man's frown deepened. He saw a faint hint of warmth in her face as she looked at the binding on her wrist. "After school, I'm coming to your place to help you get a full night's rest. We're going to solve this problem one way or another."
Her pulse quickened, but she gave a nod. "Ah…okay."