AN: Hello again everyone! Hope you guys have been enjoying your Nagatoro monday! I hope everyone enjoyed the new Manga chapter that released today. Considering it's Nagatoro Monday, I figured I'd clarify that this fic technically takes place in a AU where Naoto and Hayase didn't go on the aquarium date. I don't have a set place for where I'd put it in the Manga but since I started it before the date at the aquarium I figure it should at least fall before that lol. Anyways enough rambling, on with the fic!
Naoto stood alone in the hallway, his face a bright red, surprised by Nagatoro's actions. He'd have bet money that she'd be too embarrassed to actively engage with each other at school. But clearly to a certain degree she was willing to accept the social consequences of claiming Naoto as her own. Besides in front of her friend group at least.
Naoto quickly realized that if he didn't get moving he'd be late for his class and began hurriedly walking in that direction.
After sitting through a few classes it was finally time for his art class. Naoto sat in his seat as the art teacher entered the room and began the lesson for the day. Naoto was at least attempting to stay focused on the teacher's words, but it was all in vain. The only thing Naoto could really stay focused on was Hayase.
Much like on his way to school, he daydreamed about Hayase, thinking back to the kisses they'd shared. The thoughts bringing butterflies to his stomach. As he sat there, reliving the moments in his mind, he heard a fellow student bring up the art project they'd been assigned, causing Naoto to perk up.
"So, do we have to explain the goal to the whole class?" Asked the student.
The teacher shook their head, saying, "No. I recognize that some of you are depicting goals that can be more private than others." The teacher said, causing more than a few students to breathe sighs of relief including Naoto. While having Hayase as his goal was something he'd never be ashamed of, it wasn't exactly something he wanted to explicitly explain to a whole classroom.
"That being said however, you have to schedule a time outside of class to present the art to me." said the teacher. Causing a few students to gain nervous looks on their faces. Anticipating their reaction, the teacher continued with, "Don't worry I've seen presentations on just about anything you can shake a stick at, I promise whatever it is, you'll be graded on the effort made on the pieces, not whatever the goal is."
Naoto pursed his lips at that news. Logically he knew he'd have to present the art to someone at some point, but the idea still made him nervous. After the teacher finished their short lesson, they gave the class the remaining class time to work on their projects.
Not willing to work on his project in class with all the prying eyes of his peers, Naoto pulled out his sketchbook and worked on some miscellaneous projects instead. It was mostly just for looks though, as his true focus was still firmly on Hayase.
The bell finally rang, releasing the students for lunch. Naoto began to pack up his things, and pulled out his phone to check for any messages. Not noticing anything, Naoto put his phone back into his pocket and began to leave the classroom.
As Naoto walked in the direction of the art room, he noticed a difference in the way people were looking at him as he walked. Typically, Naoto walked through the hallway totally unnoticed, simply another part of the crowd. Now however, as he walked he noticed people glancing at him and whispering to themselves. He couldn't quite make out what they were saying though. Nervous from the extra attention, he did his best to keep his head down and continued walking to the art room.
After arriving, Naoto, still a little flustered at the looks people were giving him, quickly slid into the art room and closed the door behind him. Breathing a sigh of relief to be out of the crowd's piercing gaze, he muttered, "What was that all about?".
Taking a seat at the setup table, Naoto cleared off some space and began to eat his lunch. As Naoto sat, eating his lunch, pondering, he heard the sound of rapid footsteps approaching down the hallway. Naoto looked to the art room door as it was violently thrown open by an exasperated looking Hayase. She hurriedly entered the art room and closed the door behind her, a little more gently than she'd opened it.
Naoto, concerned by Hayase's expression, asked, "Is everything okay?".
Hayase breathed out a similar sigh of relief that Naoto had when he'd entered and said, "People have been looking at me weird all day. It's starting to piss me off."
Naoto furrowed his brow and said, "That's weird, I noticed the same thing on the way here."
The two sat there contemplating what was going on when Naoto had a thought. "Do you think it's about the fight the other day?"
Hayase scratched her head a little, contemplating the suggestion, then said, "I mean maybe. But I didn't notice anything yesterday. I know I was tired, but not THAT tired."
"Maybe Gamo knows?" Naoto suggested, to which Hayase shrugged at and said, "I'll shoot her a text and see if she knows."
Hayase pulled out her phone, presumably to do just that. Once she'd sent the message, she walked over to Naoto and slid into the chair next to him. Naoto blushed at the sudden proximity, despite whatever was going on in the hallways, he was happy to be with her again. After taking her seat, Hayase glanced over at Naoto who had a small smile on his face, clearly not aware he was staring at her. The cute look brought butterflies to her stomach, taking the opportunity to get some teasing in, she said, "What's that creepy look for Senpai~?"
Naoto, realizing what he was doing, quickly snapped out of his stupor and said, "S-Sorry. I was just staring off into space."
Hayase giggled at his response, and then nudged him with her shoulder, saying, "Sure you were Senpai. Last time I checked my name wasn't 'space'."
Naoto, slightly embarrassed at Hayase calling his bluff and said, "W-Whatever."
"Whatever." Hayase mimicked, giggling a little. "You're such a dork, Senpai."
Naoto smirked at her mimicry, happy to see her in a better mood than when she entered. He then said, "I'm glad you're feeling better."
Hayase, blushing at Naoto's considerate words, said "I always feel better when I'm around you Senpai." The comment making Naoto blush a little. Hayase, being who she was however, couldn't help but get another tease in, "I mean how could I not feel better after teasing a super virgin like you?"
Naoto shook his head, a slight smirk on his face. Rather than respond to her jab, he simply continued eating his food.
Once the two of them finished their food, Hayase stood from her chair, stretching her arms over her head. After she finished her stretch she said, "So Senpai, have you figured out what you want to do for your next art piece?"
Naoto scratched his head, he had an idea, but wasn't sure how to approach it. "Y-Yeah I guess you could say that."
Hayase smiled, excited to see what he had in mind. "Well? Lay it on me." said Hayase, causing Naoto to blush from the word choice.
Naoto nervously stared at his shoes, struggling to find the words to ask what he had in mind. Much like the first time he found it irritating that he could tell her he loved her, but struggled with this minor feat in comparison. "W-Well… I want to do another piece on us holding hands, but this time I'd like to include more of you in it. Not just your hand."
Without skipping a beat, Hayase said, "Sure we can do that." clearly not bothered by the idea.
"R-Really?" Naoto asked, "Just like that?" He was a little surprised by how easy it was to get her on board, she hadn't even teased him over the idea.
"Yeah sure, why not?" Hayase shrugged, "I mean if you can sketch me in my swimsuit I think I can handle holding hands with you. Even if you are pretty gross!" a wide grin across Hayase's face as she said it.
"There it is." Naoto thought to himself. "You didn't seem to mind the last time." Naoto said, teasing back a little, which got a minor blush out of Hayase. He followed up with, "Sh-Should we just plan on going to one of our houses again?"
Hayase got an evil glint in her eyes. She'd come up with an idea. "Nope! This time I get to choose where we go!"
Naoto, curious about Hayase's demand, said, "O-Okay? What did you have in mind?"
"We're going to go on a picnic!" Hayase said, her voice filled with excitement. "That should be romantic enough to show your creepy goal Senpai!"
Naoto blushed embarrassedly "A picnic?" He asked.
"Yeah! A picnic! It'll be nice and secluded so people won't bother us!" Hayase said, a grin on her face as she thought about it. Naoto, who was now also smirking at the thought, said, "I… I guess we could do that. When were you thinking?"
"Hmm…" Hayase said, bringing her hand to her chin, "Well, if you're willing to wait till after club we could go today?" Hayase suggested.
"Sure, that'll give me some time to prepare, I'll head home and whip up something quick." said Naoto.
Enthused with the thought of enjoying more of Naoto's cooking, Hayase quickly said, "That sounds great Senpai! I'll shoot you a text after Judo and we can meet up at the park I had in mind."
Naoto smiled, happy with the idea. Without thinking he said, "It's a date then.".
They both quickly noticed his slip, Hayase, with her cat-like reflexes quickly pounced on his freudian slip, her cheeks a wild blush from what he said.
"Oh-ho! Has that been your plan this whole time? You're so gross, Senpai! Taking advantage of my generosity to trick me into a gross date with you!" Hayase closed the distance between them and put her face into his while she said it, taking notice of his bright red face.
"Th-That's not what I was trying to say! It's just an expression!" Naoto said, back tracking a bit. Hayase, having none of it however, said, "Oh really? Does that mean you don't want to go on a date with me, Senpai?"
Naoto, taken aback by the comment, struggled to get a response, "W-Well… No… Not exactly…"
Having gotten Naoto right where she wanted him, she said, "Well what do you want then? Spit it out Senpai!" She was still hovering her face at eye level with Naoto, one way or another she was getting what she wanted.
"I-I… do want… to go on a d-date with you." Naoto finally managed. He hadn't made eye contact with his hovering Kohai, avoiding eye contact from embarrassment. Hayase, ecstatic with the answer, gave him her answer in her favorite way. Quickly leaning in she planted a firm kiss on his lips, catching the boy by surprise.
They held the kiss for a few moments before she pulled away and said, "You should've said that from the beginning! Silly Senpai~!"
Naoto, with his brain starting to short circuit from the kiss, said, "Is… is that a yes?" causing Hayase to roll her eyes. She gave him a playfully irritated look and said, "What do you think?"
Naoto, irritated by his own density, said, "Sorry… Stupid question." which made Hayase giggle, clearly enjoying the boy's kiss induced stupor. Just as Hayase was about to lean in again, she felt her phone buzz with a new message. Guessing that it was Gamo's answer to her earlier question, she pulled away from Naoto, standing up straight.
Retaking her seat next to Naoto, Hayase opened her phone and looked at the message Gamo sent. As Hayase read, the irritated look she'd had when she entered the art room returned. Naoto, noticing Hayase's expression quickly shift, said, "What's up?"
Setting down her phone, she let out an irritated sigh and said, "Well, you were right about why everyone has been looking at us weird. The camera footage of the fight spread like wildfire apparently."
Naoto tensed at the news. The last thing he wanted was a video of him getting beat up getting spread around the school. "How the hell did that happen?" Naoto asked, frustration bleeding into his tone.
Hayase shrugged, and said, "Maybe one of the game club guys?", after she finished her phone vibrated against the table, indicating another message. Hayase picked the phone up again and saw the message. "Gamo sent the video, do you want to see it?" asked Hayase, a hint of irritation still in her voice.
"Not really, but I might as well anyway." replied Naoto. Hayase shifted her chair right next to Naoto so he could see her phone better. She leaned lightly against Naoto, the closeness easing both of their frustration a bit as she hit play on the video.
The video started focusing on the staircase and hallway that Naoto had walked down that day. The staircase was clear for about five seconds into the video until Naoto appeared on camera, walking down the staircase. Once he'd made it down the staircase and into the hallway, despite the lack of sound on the video, Naoto in the video visibly reacted to something. The ringleader appeared in the frame not long after.
The video played out the rest of the encounter, showing Naoto getting struck in the chest, and pinned violently against the wall. Naoto while watching the video winced at the blows, the video reminding him of the soreness he'd had afterwards. As well he felt Hayase noticeably tense at the blows, quickly glancing at Hayase, he noticed her face sporting a familiar death glare.
The video continued, showing Naoto, the ringleader, and his entourage all looking at something out of frame. A few seconds later, Hayase appeared in frame kicking the ringleader off of Naoto, into the opposite wall. The video finally ended just as Hayase began to look over Naoto.
The two of them sat silently for a few moments, both of them irritated by their circumstances. Naoto took in breath and released, doing his best to calm himself. He looked over and noticed Hayase was no less angry. Naoto, wanting to ease Hayase's visible frustration, tried to lighten the mood.
"Well… On the brightside. That kick looked as badass on video as it did in person." The comment got a slight smile and giggle out of Hayase.
The two sat quietly for a few moments before Naoto said, "You know… despite how painful it was… I'm kind of glad it happened."
Hayase looked at the boy confused wondering if he'd gone stupid. "Why would you be glad?!" Hayase said, her voice sounding irritated.
Naoto, realizing he'd upset Hayase, quickly clarified, "What I mean is, if it hadn't happened… You wouldn't have come over the other day."
Understanding what he meant, Hayase blushed, embarrassed by her outburst, and then said, "O-Oh...". After a few moments, Naoto found some courage and said, "Even though it hurt… it was worth it because… I got to spend that day with you.". Hayase couldn't help but grin at Naoto's words, he was getting better at this whole romance thing, Hayase thought to herself.
"I know I said it already, but…" Naoto nervously held Hayase's hand, weaving his fingers with hers. "Thank you Hayase."
Hayase blushed a deeper red at his words and actions, her heart fluttering with joy, he was getting a little TOO good at it. Hayase fully leaned against Naoto, resting her head against his, squeezing his hand tightly. "Y-You're welcome, Naoto."
The couple sat peacefully for the rest of the lunch period, happy to have the time to themselves.
And that's chapter 10! Let me know what you thought of it in the comments! I love reading everyone's thoughts and opinions on the chapters! I hope you guys have a good rest of your week and I'll hopefully see you for chapter 11!