"We're never done with killing time

Can I kill it with you?

'Til the veins run red and blue

You pick me up and take me home again

Head out the window again

We're hollow like the bottles that we drain"

- 400 Lux by Lorde

"Asano-kun, the principal's office requests your presence immediately." The professor announced, "Asano-kun." The professor said louder.

His head was up in the clouds again, Asano blinked several times upon noticing that his name was being called. "I-I... I'm sorry, I didn't hear the question, sir." He stuttered.

"The principal wants to see you now. You're excused for the rest of the time period."

Asano could feel his heart race. Not only that, he felt quite embarrassed that everyone around him was well aware of the fact that he wasn't paying attention the entire time. He silently stood up from his desk, gazing downwards as he made his way to the back door.

"Uh oh, looks like someone's in trouble..." Akabane teased with a whisper as Asano walked past by his seat, the latter couldn't help but ball his fist and clench his jaw in sheer annoyance, the delinquent didn't have to add any further embarrassment on his end.

Although since Akabane already did mention it, he couldn't take the thought off of his mind now. Well, at least somehow. Was he really in trouble? He loathed the feeling of cluelessness so much, and the fact that his father wouldn't be the person inside the principal's office anymore doesn't help ease the situation at all.

Upon arriving right in front of the office's door, he took a few deep breaths and shook his hands vigorously to release some unwanted tension. He knocked gently before he went right in.

"Good afternoon, Seito-san." He greeted first.

"Good afternoon, Asano-kun. Please take a seat." The new chairman greeted back. He then propped his elbows on the table and interlaced his fingers together as he continued speaking, "I'll get directly to the point. It was unfortunate to hear that you fell out of the Top Ten Rankings. Judging by the new rules that the board has agreed upon at the beginning of this school year, we deeply regret to revoke your scholarship. Based on the new rules, once you're out of the scholarship list, you may never return back even if you regain your previous ranking, and this goes on for the succeeding years within your stay in the institution." Seito paused briefly after deliberately explaining, putting into consideration to maybe offer Asano a few words of consolation, "I know this is a lot to process, but I'm honestly sorry to say that I can't do anything about this."

"I understand, Seito-san. It's... it's my fault anyway for not focusing on my studies well." Asano begrudgingly admitted. And it hurt him to blurt out an outright lie. Badly. It's as if the universe was telling him that maybe he wasn't really even good enough to begin with, that no matter how hard he tried, he'll never amount to anything because effort doesn't equate to intelligence.

He kept thinking that maybe all this time, everything he's ever achieved was the result of mere diligence, not because he was gifted or smart as everyone thought.

"Anyways, here's a notice letter that needs the signature of your parent. Just give it to your homeroom adviser once you're done. Have a nice day ahead."

Asano stood up, forcing a courteous smile as he bowed before he left.

He didn't know what to do next from there.

His father wouldn't be too pleased to hear any of this, especially that he would now have to start paying for his tuition fee when he's still starting his new cram school. That on top of incurring a huge financial loss from the controversy and losing his position as the chairman.

He's also beginning to lose hope... in everything.

What's the point of regaining his position back in the ranks anyway? He just wanted to go home and let loose... for once. He also didn't care if this is going to be the second time he'll be skipping classes. He's growing more tired and tired each day, and it's not like he's getting any younger.

To be frank, these wild thoughts are taking a toll on him these days. He felt... frightened. Sometimes, he gets this fleeting glimpse of the future, the fear of getting old without amounting to anything, it was daunting.

"Hey smartass, where are you going?" He heard a familiar voice call him from behind as he walked through the empty hallway.

He turned around only to see the arrogant redhead across the other end of the hallway, with his signature smirk in full display that he wanted to slap off of his face. "None of your business, Akabane." He told him dismissively and continued walking away.

The delinquent ran and kept pace with him until he was already a few steps behind, "So you're skipping classes now too, huh? Well, that's fun. We're skipping buddies now." Karma joked lightly.

"I'm... tired. I just... am. So stop bugging me!" He stopped in his tracks and muttered irately before he abruptly turned around that they almost bumped into one another, "No matter how hard I try, I just can't get anything right anymore and I'm very sick of it!" Appalled by his sudden outburst, he let out a frustrated sigh and tried to calm himself down, "Why am I even explaining myself to you?" He scoffed.

What happened next made him lost for words.

Akabane moved closer, his face devoid of any expression. He grabbed Asano by the collar and casually pulled him into an embrace like it was nothing to him.

"What... what are you doing?" Asano found himself stumbling upon words. Having received no response at all from the delinquent aside from a gentle rub on his back, probably as a form of consolation, he struggled to wriggle himself free.

"L..let go of me!" He demanded in between labored breaths, but it was futile as Karma further wrapped his arms even tighter around him.

This is bad. Real bad. The next thing he knew, he wasn't able to control himself any further. He couldn't believe he let himself go off like that for the second time around.

"I hate you." He hissed in tears while he balled his fists and weakly punched Akabane several times in the back, "I fucking hate you!" He gritted his teeth as hot tears flowed freely and stung his cheeks before they fell onto Akabane's shoulder. For a few seconds, they stayed that way, that until Karma decided to finally let him go.

Asano could feel his legs trembling after his unexpected breakdown, so he leaned onto a nearby wall and immediately wiped his tears as he tried to regain his composure. Meanwhile, Akabane was preoccupied on finding something inside his bag.

He held out another carton of strawberry milk to Asano's chest, the latter confusedly blinked in response before he reluctantly took it.

"See you later. Hope you feel better soon." He casually told him while his hands idly rested inside his pockets before he finally left like nothing ever happened.

Asano stared down on the item he held in his hand, a residual tear gradually fell on it before he muttered a soft, "Thank you..."

What was that supposed to mean?

By the time he came home, he noticed that Gakuhou had left a note on the kitchen counter. It was a relief to know that his father wouldn't be home until late evening, at least luck sided with him for even just a small fraction of the day. He went straight to his room and laid down passively on his bed, staring blankly at the ceiling as he contemplated what he should do about the notice letter.

He just didn't want to feel like... a burden.

He still couldn't forget how Gakuhou hit him ruthlessly in front of the entire Class 3-A without hesitation. What his father might even do to him now is very unthinkable to him, especially when he finds out that he's not on the top rankings anymore, and to a greater extent, falling out of the top ten while losing his scholarship.

He previously told himself that he wanted to give up. But then, does he really have a choice here?

A sheen of sweat began to become visible on his forehead as he quickly got out of bed and looked frantically for the notice letter.

He bit his lip and stopped briefly before he forged his father's signature, his hands were trembling like crazy out of fear. He balled his fists to cancel out the tremors so he could finally get this over with. He felt fortunate enough that his father was so occupied with establishing a new cram school that he hasn't talked to him in a while about his grades yet. He was certain that his father was still confident about what he's capable of, that's why he's not supposed to know any of this.

He'll find a way.

He has to, one way or another.

Asano became unaware of the time, several hours were laid into waste as he did nothing but lay idly in bed wide awake. The next thing he knew, he heard the door slowly open.

"I bought some dinner, have you eaten already?" Gakuhou asked.

"So you care?" Gakushū thought to himself as he sat straight up on his bed. He gulped and uttered out a lie effortlessly, "Yeah, I'm about to sleep already. I have to go to classes earlier tomorrow for some group project we're working on."

"I see." The former chairman briefly responded as expected, they had a nonexistent father-son relationship after all.

"Asano-kun," Gakuhou called once more.

Gakushū tilted his head up in response, "Yes, sir?"

"Do well in school, I'm counting on you." He said.

It almost sounded... encouraging. It sounded like his father was sincere about something for once. And he couldn't help but feel his chest cramp up in guilt. He nodded silently before the man finally left. He was up the whole night studying again. Yes, he knows it was probably no use. Yes, he hated himself even more by the day.

But then, he decided to give himself another chance.

"Asano-kun." He heard someone call his name but everything was just too hazy that he could barely feel anything, "Asano-kun." The voice repeated even louder.

"Would someone please wake him up." The professor requested, now with a hint of irritation in his voice.

Karma, who sat behind him, slightly stood up from his seat and gave him quite a strong push on the shoulder. It was successful, for Asano immediately blinked his eyes wide open and jolted up straight from his previously slouched position.

"I don't need anyone sleeping in my class, is that understood?" The professor told him sternly.

"I'm sorry, it won't happen again, sir." Asano briefly stood up and apologized with a bow.

"By the way, hand me the notice letter now." The professor demanded. Asano quickly scrambled his hands inside his bag to find it, only to realize later on that it wasn't there.

He hated it. He hated being humiliated in front of everybody. The feeling of several unwanted stares pervasively lingering in the atmosphere, it was unnerving. He kept his gaze glued to the ground as he reluctantly admitted his mistake, "I... I forgot it at home, sir."

He couldn't help but cringe as the professor began to scold him, "The last thing we want in this class is someone who's not paying attention, and on top of that, an irresponsible one. Now sit down."

With that, another bad day went on, one day on top of another since he ever started high school. It was mundane, but he was getting used to it.

"Hey, smart-ass, where the hell are you going? The cafeteria's that way."

"My whereabouts are none of your business," Asano told Karma off dismissively, but the latter was rather persistent.

"Come on, let's eat lunch together. I'm starving like hell." He urged.

"Look, Akabane. Stop talking to me find someone else to pester. And also, don't treat me like some sort of pity case." Asano spat.

"Who says I pity you? I just want some company and you seem to be the closest person I know here." Karma retorted.

Asano failed to conceal the embarrassment as his cheeks slightly flushed in response. Having no choice left, he couldn't help but shrug his shoulders and concede with a sigh, "I'm skipping classes. Now what?"

Karma playfully patted him on the back and blatantly placed his arm across his shoulders, "That's great. Let's go."

Asano awkwardly tagged along with him until they reached the main entrance, but the rain prevented both of them from going any further. With that, he began to look for the compact umbrella inside his bag when he caught a glimpse of Karma blankly staring outside.

"You don't have one?" He asked.

The delinquent quietly shook his head in response.

"Then I can share it with you." Asano readily offered, it was about time he returned the favor to Akabane for somehow keeping what's little left of his sanity at bay for the past few days.

"What are you..." his voice trailed off as he intently watched Akabane walk away and get drenched in the rain without a care in the world, his arms spread wide open as he spun wildly out in the open with a radiant smile on his face. A smile so radiant that made him forgot about everything, even for a little while.

Although he did notice that something was a little... off. Were those... were those bruises suddenly showing up on Akabane's face?

Asano was snapped away from his thoughts as Akabane snatched his umbrella away from him and threw it away to the ground. The redhead then grabbed his hand next and pulled him towards the pouring rain with him.

"Just let go," Karma told him as they began to run while holding onto one another.

Asano felt... confused.

There was just so much going on in his head. The next thing he knew, he was crying like crazy, but it didn't matter, the rain was there to conceal his tears anyway.

Karma kept running until they finally found cover inside the abandoned 3-E building. Asano began to take off his blazer and wrung it dry. While doing that, he couldn't help but turn around to see what Akabane was doing, only to find him staring off into space. That's probably the first time he saw him do that. It was... uncharacteristic of him. Weirdly enough as it may be, he continued to discreetly observe him while he busily kept himself dry.

Honest to say, he found the delinquent very... intriguing. Minutes have probably passed by now, and Asano could already feel the raindrops dry up on his face, so how come that Karma's cheeks still remained wet? He kept looking at him nonetheless, very carefully, that until he finally realized something.

He was probably crying. He never knew Karma Akabane was even capable of crying.

He kept looking at those bruises that marred his pale skin, they looked like orchids sporadically blooming across a barren, frozen wasteland. Well, if that was even possible. Then his tousled, red locks reminded him of roses. There was so much going on, Karma was just an abandoned garden in disarray. Chaotic, but still irresistible to look at. A part of him longed to understand him.

No. This felt very wrong. How can he even find this... beautiful? He didn't even wonder how the hell he got those, the boy was a delinquent after all.

Asano balled his fists. He wanted to return the favor to him. Badly. But who was he to do that? Both he and Karma were never even close to begin with, they were mere rivals at best. He wanted to return the favor and hug him tight too like it was nothing to him.

But then, who was he to do that?

Karma gasped, eyes wide open as he felt Asano's arms wrap around him from behind, although it was only short-lived. Yes, it was just short-lived, but that didn't matter to him. He turned around only to see Asano shying away and avoiding his gaze.

So then he grabbed two bottles of liquor which he hid inside the drawer beneath Koro-sensei's desk. He opened them with the bottle opener he kept in there as well. He offered one to Asano before he sat limply on the floor with a thud and drank.

Asano didn't know what to do with it. He never drank liquor before, and it certainly wouldn't look any good if his father would find out about it. Without saying a word, he simply sat down beside Karma. It's been quiet ever since they came in, well, ever since Karma took his hand before they ran towards here.

His eyes grew wide as he watched the boy drown himself out with alcohol, and halfway through the bottle, Karma was now drowning in tears. This time, he was sobbing. The delinquent looked so... scared. His hands were trembling all over that he could barely pour the liquor into his mouth without making quite a mess.

With that, Asano was tempted to look back at the bottle he was holding. He forced his eyes shut, "fuck it," he thought to himself before he started to finally chug down on the bottle.

Karma couldn't help but stop crying as he burst out in laughter upon seeing Asano's face all scrunched up from the taste of the strong liquor. The latter coughed and gagged, covering his mouth with one hand to prevent himself from throwing up. After recovering from the nauseous feeling, he then joined in on the laughter.

It was quite a sight to behold. A former honor student and student council president, laughing and sharing drinks with a delinquent. That until those laughter eventually turned into quiet chuckles, then into awkward sighs, all reduced in the end into nothing but ugly cries.

Minutes later, all that can be heard inside the classroom were steady breaths, and the sound leaking from the earbuds they shared with one another as they both laid down on the floor side by side. Just like them, the torrential rain has subsided into soft raindrops pelting against the roof.

"You still have to pay me for the umbrella." Asano jokingly started, his nape resting against one hand, while the other was placed on his side.

A smile crept up its way into Karma's lips as he let out a short laugh in response. With both their gazes still glued onto the ceiling, Karma's fingers hesitantly and slowly crawled its way to find Asano's. From the moment they touched, their eyes locked as their fingers started to intertwine.

Two vulnerable souls, staring into oblivion, clinging onto one another because they had no other choice but to. The skies finally cleared up, tainted with faint streaks of vermillion and tangerine that melted into one another. Fragmented rays of soft gold seeped in through the windows. Dusk was soon approaching, and neither one of them had plans of going home.

Without looking away, Karma asked, "You wanna hang out on the weekend?"

He noticed Gakushū smile subtly before he responded, "Yeah, I'd like that."

Thanks for your patience! I took a hiatus because the new meds I'm taking really suppressed me 24/7, new ideas weren't just coming up easily and I just didn't feel up to writing that much. But now I'm finally back with another chapter! Thanks for reading and kindly let me know what you think about the direction I'm going for here. And if it isn't obvious enough already, I'm kind of a Lorde Stan my self so... Have a nice day!