AUTHOR'S NOTE: Welcome to the 3rd installment of the VS Romance series, this time starring Rui! Please read the first 2 before reading this 3RD and final one! Murata VS Romance and Zenitsu VS Romance!
Rui VS Romance – Chapter 1
An alarm clock was ringing inside a dark room. After a couple of seconds, it was turned off.
"Ugh…" murmured a guy as he was rolling in his bed
His name was Rui Ayaki, and he was a student at Kimetsu Academy. Because of his looks and character, he was one of the most popular people at the academy. Girls would argue and fight over his attention and beg him to spend time with them or join their clubs. But Rui didn't are about that, because he wasn't ever interested in any girl… until recently…
"This sucks…" he murmured as he rolled in his bed, looking at the ceiling
Recently, a girl at the academy caught his attention. Her name was Nezuko Kamado and Rui couldn't stop thinking about her. He asked her if she would like to become friends with him and someday, maybe something even more. She agreed happily to become his friend… but politely declined being his girlfriend. The same day as he was rejected, Nezuko was asked out by his rival, Zenitsu Agatsuma. She accepted, and the two started going out. Rui wasn't very happy about that…
"I hate this feeling… I never felt it before… And it sucks…" he murmured
His first love in life didn't end well, and he was devastated. As he was lying in bed, he heard someone knock on his door.
"Rui! Wake up! You're going to be late!" said a concerned voice
"Mother… I'm sick… I'm not going today…" he replied annoyed
"Oh dear!" the mother replied, still behind the door
"Tell sister to go without me…" he added
After that, Rui went again under his blanket, trying to think about what to do next. In the meantime, the mother went to tell his sister.
"Where is the little nuisance?" the sister asked, waiting at the house door, ready to go
Her name was Ane Ayaki. She was Rui´s older sister and same as him, a student at Kimetsu Academy. The two were not on good terms…
"Don't call him a nuisance, please! Rui told me that he is sick and that you can go on without him today." the mother replied
Ane raised an eyebrow as she heard that, but nodded and went on her way. She thought about it and noticed something strange. He was in his room the whole weekend and if he were sick, then he would annoy her with stupid requests, like bringing him food or something to drink… but this time, he didn't do anything of that sort.
"Something must have happened… or maybe it's just my imagination? Either way, I don't care." she thought to herself as she went to the academy
On her way to the academy, Ane spotted someone in front of her.
"Hello Ane!" said the girl with a smile as she was waving at her
"Hello… Mukago…" Ane replied
The girl in front of her was Mukago. She was in the same class as Rui, so she was a bit younger than Ane. Unlike other girls, she didn't swarm Rui whenever she saw him. She always watched him from a distance.
"W-where is your brother?" Mukago asked nervously as she tried to spot him
Hearing that question, Ane just look at her annoyed. That girl tried to hide her secret, but was very bad at it. The secret being that she had a secret crush on Rui.
"He stayed home today. Probably sick." Ane said as she walked past her
"Sick!? Is he going to be alright?" Mukago asked as she followed Ane
"Yeah… I think so. He was acting weird the whole weekend, not leaving his room." said Ane
"Oh…" Mukago replied with a sad tone
Ane continued walking, not paying any attention to Mukago, who was walking beside her. Thinking about her brother, she was getting a bit curious. He never acted like this before, so something must have definitely happened. After walking a few minutes in silence, Ane spoke up again.
"Say… do you want to make a deal?"
"A deal?" Mukago asked confused
"Yeah… I'm sure you would like to see Rui, am I right?" Ane asked with a teasing smile
"W-W-W-WHAT?! NO! NO! I mean… YES! B-BUT…!" Mukago panicked while blushing
"And be alone with him… right?" she teased again
"W-W-WAHH! A-A-ALONE W-W-WITH R-R-RUI!?" Mukago screamed, still blushing
"So look here. You two are in the same class. How about you ask the teachers for homework and bring it to him?" Ane asked
"I-I-I-I COULD DO THAT… Y-YES! N-NO! Y-Y-YES!" Mukago panicked again
"Good. Now that I told you how to get a chance to be alone with Rui, I would like something in return." said Ane
"Huh…?" Mukago murmured as she heard that
"When you bring him his homework, find out what happened to him! I have a feeling that I know what happened, but I'm not 100% sure. And if I asked him… he would never tell me." Ane explained
Thinking about it, Mukago replied.
"Ane… I don't know…" she said with a soft tone
"Or you could just watch Rui from a distance… as all the other girls make their moves… getting closer to him… every day… slowly…" Ane added
"AHHH! I DO IT! I DO IT!" Mukago screamed as she thought about it, not wanting to lose this chance
"Good. See you after school." Ane said with a victorious smile
"Ah… Rui…" Mukago murmured to herself with a smile as she thought about the time she was going to spend with him after school
Back home, Rui was sitting on his bed, playing with a string. Not sure what to do, he leaned back and waited for something to happen. Lucky for him, somebody knocked on his door again.
"Rui! Do you feel better now? Do you want some medicine?" the mother asked
"No…"
"And how about something to eat? Do you want a pancake?" she asked again
"No…"
"Or how about a tea? I could make you one!" she asked happily again
"No…"
"And how about w-" she asked again but was interrupted this time
"NO! THANK YOU, LEAVE ME ALONE!" he yelled as he was getting annoyed by her
"Ok! I hope you get well soon!" the mother replied happily and left him alone
"Awww… He is such a sweet boy!" the mother thought to herself as she was leaving
Annoyed, Rui leaned back and closed his eyes, trying to fall asleep. After a couple of hours, Ane returned again.
"Follow me, I show you to his room… but don't forget about our deal!" Ane said to Mukago, who was following her
"I'm so nervous…" Mukago said blushing while holding books for Rui
"Whatever, come on." Ane said as she rolled her eyes and opened the door to her house
Mukago followed her closely and saw her friend's house for the first time.
"You have a nice house…" she mumbled
Ane didn't say anything, just nodded towards a door next to her.
"Ah… here…" Mukago pointed at the door and took a deep breath
She walked two steps and knocked on the door, waiting for an answer. After not getting one, she knocked again. This time, a voice could be heard.
"Come in."
Taking a deep breath again, she pushed the door open and slowly walked in. The room was pretty dark, but Mukago could spot Rui sitting on his bed. He was looking at her with a plain expression, not saying anything.
"H-H-H-Hello R-R-Rui! I brought you… our homework!" she said nervously
"…" Rui didn't say anything, he just looked at her
After not getting an answer, Mukago put the books down and spoke again.
"I-I-I-I-I h-h-h-hope you get better Rui! H-How do you f-feel?" she asked while blushing
"…"
"…"
"Who are you?" Rui asked annoyed
"IGH! I'M MUKAGO! We're in the same class, Rui!" she yelled embarrassed
"Huh… ok. Thanks." he replied
Mukago was uncomfortable. He clearly wanted this conversation to end, but she promised Ane (who was just standing outside Rui´s room) to get some information out of him.
"N-no problem. Ehm… Rui… can I ask you something?" she asked while looking at the ground
"Make it quick." he replied as he glanced at her
"S-sure! Ehm… did… something happened to you?" she asked, to which Rui looked at her with a serious expression
"AH! If you don't want to talk about it, it's fine! I will just…" Mukago tried to find the right words, but Rui interrupted her
"No. Something happened. You're right… huh… perceptive girl." he said
"Ah…" Mukago mumbled as she didn't know if he complimented her
"I will tell you. Maybe that will make me feel better… Close the door." said Rui
"IGH! CLOSE THE DOOR? T-T-T-THAT WOULD MEAN, THAT…!" she was panicking again as she realized, that she would be alone with him in a closed room
Rui just pointed at the door behind her and nodded, to which Mukago turned around and slowly closed it. As she was closing it, she spotted Ane, standing in the hallway, nodding at her with a devilish smile.
"IGH! I HATE YOU AND LOVE YOU FOR THIS!" Mukago thought to herself as she closed the door
Turning around, she looked at Rui.
"S-S-So… what happened?" she asked nervously
"Hmm… Where to start…" Rui replied