The rest of the school! Mizuki tried not to think of the humiliation she was sure to suffer, though it bothered her for the rest of the afternoon. By the time she'd met up with Nakatsu, the notion hadn't left her.
She blinked when she caught sight of the boxes laid out all over Nakatsu's dorm room. "What's all this?"
"The practice pies, of course," the bleach-haired boy scoffed indignantly. "I got them from the bakery. What kind do you want, Mizuki?"
"D-do we really have to practice now, Nakatsu?" She really didn't feel like gouging herself with pie more than once. "Can't we wait until the competition?"
"Don't be stupid!" he nearly hollered. "Practice makes perfect! And we have to win!" He motioned to the stacks of boxes. "There's blueberry, strawberry, blackberry, peach, and cherry. I think that funny green box is gooseberry. Take your pick."
Then there came a knock on the door, and Nanba poked his head in. "I can hear your loud obnoxious voice from halfway down the hall, Nakatsu, he gritted. "Keep it down." His eyes widened as he caught sight of the numerous pies scattered about the sloppy dorm room. "What the hell is that?"
"Pies," Nakatsu blurted defensively. "You told us yourself that our class had to win. We're practicing." He jabbed a finger at Mizuki. "And he's helping me."
Nanba conked him hard over the head. "There's no food in the dorm rooms, unless it's just leftovers from lunch of something. Idiot. Knowing you, you'll make a mess. Get rid of it!" He slammed the door after him, confident that his orders would be obeyed.
"Damn him," Nakatsu cursed, rubbing his head ruefully. "Mizuki, you'd better leave. We'll find another time to practice. At least take a pie with you, though."
She scanned the piles meticulously. "I think I'll take cherry," she decided. Maybe Yujiro will eat it.
On the way back to her own room, she slipped the box open and extracted a piece of the delicacy. "It can't hurt to eat just one piece before dinner," she muttered to herself to ease her guilt. The sweet sugary filling was delicious, and before she'd even reached her door, she'd devoured the whole slice.
Licking her fingers, she stretched out a hand for the knob, but to her astonishment, the door swung open on its own. Sano stared at her.
"What the heck are you doing, Ashiya?" he demanded.
"I was with Nakatsu," she responded absently, entering the room and searching for a place to stow the dessert. "He gave me some pie." She stopped short as Sano laid a hand on her shoulder.
"Turn around," he commanded softly.
"S-Sano? What…" What is he doing?
He reached up a hand and wiped a glob of filling off her nose with a dark sleeve. "You slob," he whispered fondly, "You got cherry filling all over your face."
A warm flush made itself visible on Mizuki's features, and she turned quickly away, rubbing her face roughly with the back of her own sleeve. Why won't my heart stop beating so fast?
"Anyway," Sano continued, "I'm off to practice."
"I'll see you there," she replied, only half paying attention. This pie thing is going to be harder than I thought, she pondered to herself as she began to change her clothes.
A/N: Sorry this chapter was so short! I've been working on a lot of other things. I'll try to keep updated!