Mahiru had a problem.

Hope's Peak was holding a dance a few days from then, and that's something the school rarely did. Mahiru knew she gave off a sort of tomboyish impression, but she did really want to go to that dance. The problem was, she didn't have someone to go with.

Most of her class had already paired up, and the ones that were left...weren't the best candidates. Hiyoko would've been nice, but didn't find the idea of a school dance fun. She had considered just going with Sato, but she actually didn't want to go, so that was a bust. She had also considered going with someone from Class 78, but she didn't really know anyone over there very well. She just didn't really see much of an option for herself.

So when her classmates around her spent the time between class talking about the dance, by the end of the day, it had left her bummed out. So as she left class that day, she slowly walked out of the door with her hung head a little low. She trudged her way to the main gates, and as she reached them, she spotted a familiar face that looked just as downtrodden as her.

"Hey, Mahiru." Hajime said, his face brightening a little when he saw her.

"Hey." She said back. Hajime was one of the reserve course students, but he regularly visited Mahiru's class to help out with different things. He was also the surprising boyfriend of Chiaki. In fact, when Mahiru's class found out, Chiaki treated it like it was no big deal, but that wasn't really much of a surprise. "What's up?"

"Well…" he seemed to hesitate for a moment, "I'm sure you know about the dance Hope's Peak is holding." Mahiru nodded. "As a reserve course student, I can't attend unless I go with an ultimate, and Chiaki doesn't really want to go." Mahiru wasn't surprised. A dance definitely didn't seem like Chiaki's thing. "So I'm...a little down."

"I'm...kind of in a similar boat." Mahiru admitted. "I want to go, but I don't really have anyone to go with, and I don't really want to go by myself." The two of them stood there in silence, both lamenting their predicament.

"How about I go with you?"

Mahiru looked up to meet Hajime's eyes, surprised. "But, Chiaki-"

"I can ask her, but I'm sure she'd be okay with me going with you as a friend, especially if I explain that you don't have anyone to go with." He said. Mahiru's cheeks flushed a bit. Sure, she liked Hajime enough, for a boy, but even if they did go as friends, going to a dance together seemed a little…

"A-are you sure?" She asked, and he nodded.

"Might as well, right?" He said. Mahiru bit her lip as she thought it over. She did really want to go, and the dress she bought was something she'd really been looking forward to wearing…

"A-alright. If Chiaki says it's okay, then sure." Mahiru finally answered, and Hajime smiled. Mahiru blushed again as she couldn't help but notice just how bright his rare smile was.

"I'll talk to Chiaki and let her know. Oh! Actually, do you mind giving me your number, so we can contact each other?" He asked. Mahiru gulped. Giving her number? That seemed a little personal, though it did make sense. She also knew Hajime well enough that he rarely had ulterior motives, and it was clear he did really like Chiaki…

She was just overthinking things. She nodded, and they exchanged numbers, making him the first guy she had the number of outside her classmates. "Okay, I'll let you know!" Hajime said, and he sprinted off. Mahiru stared after him, then exhaled loudly. She still was hesitant about this, but she knew she was just being way too cautious. She made her way home.

When she got home, her dad was passed out on the couch, unsurprisingly. She rolled her eyes and went into the kitchen, where she grabbed some leftovers, heated them up, and brought them up to her room. The entire time, she couldn't stop thinking about Hajime.

For some reason, she had a feeling that this entire thing was a bad idea, but she couldn't pinpoint exactly why. He loved Chiaki, and he even said they'd be going as friends. It was just an arrangement to allow both of them to go to the dance. So why was she so apprehensive?

Mahiru sighed and ate her food as she turned on her tv to a random channel. Eventually, her phone vibrated, signaling a message. She grabbed her phone and saw it was from Hajime. Nervously, she opened up the message, not sure what she was hoping for.

"She said it would be okay. We can discuss details whenever you want. -Hajime"

Mahiru sighed again. She set down her phone and laid back on her floor. She was just overthinking it, that's all. She was gonna have fun. Mahiru looked over at her closet, where her red dress sat separated from everything else. She managed a smile.

It would be fine.

"Hey are you going to the dance?"

Mahiru nearly jumped out of her seat when Ibuki slammed her hands on Mahiru's desk and blurred out the question. Immediately Mahiru's cheeks flushed as she wondered if she should tell the truth or not.

"U-um...yeah…" she said. Ibuki nodded.

"I figured. Who are you going with? Hiyoko?" Ibuki asked, and Mahiru hesitantly shook her head. "That one girl with the green hair?" Mahiru shook her head again. Ibuki put her fingers to her temples, something she did whenever she needed to think. "Okay I give up, who?" Ibuki asked.

"It's uh...Hajime…" she said.

"HAJIME?!"

Ibuki's shout attracted the attention of everyone else in the room.

"You're taking Hajime to the dance?!" Ibuki shouted, as if to clarify what they were talking about to those who were now listening. "You're stealing Chiaki's man?! Oh, the drama!"

"No! That's not what I'm doing!" Mahiru said. "We're just going as friends! Ask Chiaki!" Everyone turned to Chiaki, who was, as usual, playing games.

"Yeah, I said I was okay with it." She confirmed, not looking up once. Mahiru sighed.

"Hmmm…" Ibuki said with narrowed eyes. "Alright. But if something happens, I definitely want to see it!"

"Nothing is gonna happen." Mahiru said, though she wasn't quite sure of it herself.

"Alright enough, get back to your seats." Chisa said as she entered the room. It took a moment, but everyone eventually found their way back in their seats. As Chisa started the next class, Mahiru couldn't help but keep thinking of the dance, which was steadily approaching.

The next few days went by in a blur, until before Mahiru knew it, it was the night of the dance. Her entire class was even noisier than usual that day, and Chisa could barely control them. As soon as the bell rang, the entire student body rushed out to go home and prepare for tonight. While Mahiru still had some apprehension, she was also very excited. She quickly made her way home.

Her dad was gone, as usual, and she rushed upstairs immediately to start getting ready. She mostly wanted to make sure her dress was clean as well as make sure the flower decoration for her hair was nice as well.

Mahiru took a lint roller to the dress about half a dozen times before she was satisfied, and then spent the time until the dance watching TV and checking her camera to make sure it was working right. She was gonna take it and make sure to get a ton of good pictures.

Finally, the time came and Mahiru stood up, walked over, and grabbed the dress from out of her closet. It was a crimson sleeveless dress with a skirt that went down just above her knees. Mahiru had also picked it out because it was incredibly soft to the touch. It was exactly what Mahiru had wanted.

She quickly got to putting it on, and making sure everything was nice and set. It hugged her body nicely, not too tight but also not too loose. She'd put a lot of thought into finding the perfect dress for this dance. It had also been...very expensive…

As she fluffed out the skirt, Mahiru turned to one of her many photo boards she had on her wall. Her eyes landed on a picture of her mom smiling wide for the camera. Mahiru felt a sad smile come over her own face.

"I...wish you could see me right now." She said aloud. She stared at the picture for a few seconds before she took a deep breath and went over to her dresser to retrieve the white flower decoration for her hair. She pinned it in, and it provided a nice contrast against her red hair. She sat down in front of her mirror and grabbed the few makeup supplies she had to put on some eyeliner and some dull red lipstick. Once she was done, she gave hersel one last look in the mirror, making sure she was all set, grabbed a purse she rarely used, slipped her camera and other important items inside, and with one last deep breath, walked down and out of her house, making her way towards the school.

Mahiru and Hajime had agreed to meet at the main gate and walk in together. Thankfully it wasn't very far. Mahiru had decided not to go in heels, thankfully, as she knew she would topple over, so she went with simple red tennis shoes to match her dress. She didn't care if it looked weird, it was practical.

As she approached the main gate, she saw other students also congregating there, each in their own suits, dresses, and other fancy clothes. She spotted people she knew were in class 78, and even some of her classmates, like Gundham and Sonia, but she wasn't able to get a good look at what they were wearing before they disappeared in the crowd.

Eventually, Mahiru saw Hajime, and made her way over to him. Immediately, she was impressed by just how good he looked in a tux. His hair was brushed nice and well, and he was searching around, probably for her. When he finally noticed her, his jaw dropped, and his eyes went wide. Mahiru felt her face burn as red as her dress as she stopped in front of him.

"H-hi…" She said.

"Hi…" Hajime said, looking her up and down. Usually Mahiru didn't like it when someone did that, but this time, it made her feel...pretty. So she didn't say anything. "You look…gorgeous." Mahiru's face somehow managed to burn even hotter as she found herself unable to meet his eyes.

"Th-thank you...you look good, too…" she responded, and then they both went into silence. Mahiru could still feel his gaze on her, and so after a few seconds, she cleared her throat. "Should we...go in?"

"Ah! R-right, yeah, let's...do that." Hajime said. He turned and held out an elbow, and Mahiru couldn't help but giggle at the gesture. Nevertheless, she put her arm through his, and the two walked up to the school along with all the other students.

They made their way to where the dance was being held, inside the massive gymnasium the school had. With how many athletic ultimates there were, they definitely needed a big one. The lights were dimmed, and music was echoing throughout the room. Currently, it was loud, upbeat music, courtesy of ultimates like Ibuki. Thankfully she wasn't playing her own music, that would've been terrible…

As they shuffled in, Mahiru could see some students milling about already, some of which she knew. One student she saw was someone she recognized from class 78, the kid who always seemed to be standing at attention with his blazing red eyes. He appeared to be patrolling the room, looking every which way. Suddenly, he stopped and rushed towards a pair of students who were getting a little handsy with each other in the corner. Mahiru wasn't able to hear exactly what he was saying, but he could tell by the pair's expressions that it wasn't good.

"Do you know what they have to drink?" Hajime asked.

"No, but I am kinda thirsty...and hungry...I...didn't eat dinner." Mahiru said with a sheepish grin. Hajime nodded and the two walked over to a massive table of food and drinks. As soon as the smell hit Mahiru's nose, she instantly recognized it as Teruteru's cooking.

Speaking off, Mahiru heard a rustling and looked down to find Teruteru peeking his head out from underneath the table. Mahiru jumped in surprise. "Wh-what are you doing?!" She asked.

"So many beautiful ladies in beautiful dresses~" he said with a sly grin. "Speaking of, wonderful choice of underwear, Mahiru. Black looks very nice on you~" Mahiru's face burned deep red with embarrassment and anger as she shoved the dress down.

"Can I kick him?" Hajime asked, and Mahiru nodded. Teruteru was barely able to get a word out before Hajime brought his foot into his face. Teruteru fell to the floor, and Mahiru and Hajime both pulled him out and away from the table. They moved him over to a different part of the floor, and then just left him there as they continued looking for something to eat and drink.

Standing at the table was Sonia and Gundham, who were happily sampling the food together. Sonia was even directly feeding Gundham some of it, which Mahiru found to be a mixture of cute and weird.

Suddenly, Kazuichi popped up out of nowhere and sidled up next to Sonia.

"Miss Sonia! I saw that you were eating some of the food, so I was wondering what I should have." He said. Sonia ignored him as she fed Gundham some simple cheese on a cracker.

"What do you think?" Sonia asked.

"The taste is quite amazing for such a simple snack." Gundham answered. "Truly Teruteru's skills are commendable, even for such simple foods! I wonder if I could persuade him to be my personal chef…" Sonia giggled as she gathered more food for him to try, leaving Kazuichi staring down at the floor rejectedly.

Mahiru and Hajime made their way to a different part of the table, where some noodles sat in a bowl next to some fruit punch.

"Noodles at a dance?" Hajime asked. Mahiru shrugged.

"It's Hope's Peak, you can't really expect anything normal." Mahiru said, and the two of them grabbed some bowls and cups, getting themselves some noodles and punch, and went over to one of the small tables set up around the perimeter of the gym. They sat down and started eating and as soon as the noodles hit Mahiru's mouth, she almost moaned at their pure deliciousness.

"God...Teruteru may be a perv, but his food is no joke…" Mahiru said and Hajime nodded as he too enjoyed the incredible food. Mahiru started getting so into it that she didn't realize she had spilled some on herself until Hajime cleared his throat.

"Um, Mahiru?" He said. Mahiru stopped and looked over at him. He was looking slightly down, and although at first she assumed he was staring at the slight cleavage the dress showed, he spoke up again before she could yell at him. "You got a little something-" he pointed and she looked down to see a bit of noodle juice on her dress. She immediately began to panic about it, but Hajime quickly grabbed a napkin and wrapped it over his finger, tapping it against his tongue before reaching towards Mahiru, then stopping. "Um...may I?" He asked hesitantly.

Under any other circumstance, she would've denied him immediately, especially with where it was, but for some reason, she didn't say no. She didn't know if it was how he looked as he held out the napkin, ready to help, the concerned look in his eyes, or what, but…

"Sure…" she said, and Hajime nodded. He gently pressed the napkin to her chest. The stain was right above her right breast, so she jumped a bit when he made contact. He gently dabbed at the stain until he seemingly got most of it. Mahiru looked down at the stain and saw that thankfully, it was nearly invisible now. Hajime leaned back, and Mahiru could see a blush on his face that probably matched hers. They finished their meals in silence and then threw away their bowls. They grabbed some permanent markers off the table and wrote their names on the cups and then started walking back onto the floor.

Mahiru looked over and noticed Peko and Fuyuhiko sitting together, and…

She frowned. Wait, were they...?

Mahiru made her way towards them and Hajime followed. As Mahiru got closer she saw that they were indeed doing what she thought. They were holding hands!!

Or at least, they had been. As soon as the two saw Hajime and Mahiru approaching, they quickly stopped, Fuyuhiko's face a deep red Mahiru wasn't sure she'd ever seen before.

"Um, are you guys-?"

"You didn't see anything!" Fuyuhiko shouted before Mahiru could finish.

"I-I'm not judging, I just-"

"Turn around and walk away right now, and forget you saw anything or I'll break your kneecaps!" Fuyuhiko shouted. Mahiru threw her hands up and walked away, once again with Hajime in tow.

But now, a thought invaded Mahiru's head. As she glanced over at Hajime's hand, she suddenly wanted to grab it and hold it just like Fuyuhiko and Peko. The thought made her blush for the upteenth time that night, and she shook her head as if to shake the thought away.

"Are you okay?" Hajime asked.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine." Mahiru assured him. She wasn't though, after him touching her with the napkin, and now her sudden desire to want to hold his hand, she was getting more flustered by the minute. "So, um...do you want to...dance?" Mahiru said. Hajime laughed.

"I really don't know how to." Hajime said.

"I don't either, but it could be fun." She said. Then, an idea hit her. Something she'd always wanted to do. "Oh! You know that dance move where the guy holds onto the girl's hand and then throws her out, then brings her back into his chest, then drops her down so he's looking down at her?" She knew she was describing it poorly, but he still seemed to understand and nodded. "Let's do that." He laughed nervously, but nodded again. He reached out his hand and Mahiru froze, realizing that she'd accidentally gotten the scenario she'd wanted. Hajime gave her a concerned look as she slowly reached out her hand and grabbed his. She was immediately impressed by how firm it was, yet at the same time, seemed soft. It gave the impression of strength, but too much of it.

But yet holding his hand...made her feel all tingly inside.

"Ready?" Hajime asked, which snapped Mahiru back to reality, and she nodded. They stood side by side and leaned away from each other as they held hands, and then Hajime pulled her towards him. She spun around and her back hit his chest. Just like his hand, she was surprised by how rigid his chest was. He seemed way more athletic than she would've thought, and she had the sudden desire to feel more of his chest.

Suddenly, Hajime dropped her down, and she only had a moment to catch herself, as did he, before she fell to the floor. As he held her, he looked down, and their eyes met. In that single moment, Mahiru felt her heart suddenly begin racing, her breathing became rapid, and everything else seemed to melt away until it was just the two of them. She wanted to say something, but the words wouldn't come out. She suddenly felt herself leaning up, and he started leaning down as she began to close her eyes…

Suddenly a scream startled them, and the moment was broken. Mahiru almost fell to the floor, and scrambled to her feet. Mahiru and Hajime, along with many others, turned towards its source. The source was a small girl with light brown, fluffy hair. It seemed she had fallen over, as she was getting up off the floor. She ran off crying, and a muscular looking guy with pointy hair that looked like it could stab someone ran after her. Mahiru was wondering what could've made the girl so upset, but then she realized she might've accidentally flashed people her underwear.

"Poor girl." Mahiru said.

"Should we go see if she's okay?" Hajime asked, and Mahiru smiled. Even though he probably didn't know her, he wanted to see if she was okay, and that made her happy. Her heart was still beating fast from the moment that they'd had.

Then Mahiru began to panic. Wait, weren't they about to…?

"U-um! L-let's go do something else!" Mahiru said, and she grabbed his hand without thinking about it and walked back towards their table. Along the way, she looked over and saw a bizarre sight that almost made her stop in her tracks.

A very gothic looking girl had her feet up on a…er...round student, who was sweating profusely, and was breathing heavily, causing his glasses to fog up. Mahiru opened up her mouth to say something, but decided against it and continued moving until they were back at the table.

"Mahiru, are you okay?" Hajime asked, the concern clear in his tone. "You seem...on edge."

"I'm fine, really." She lied. "I just need to-" Suddenly, the music faded away, and it was replaced with low, sullen tones. A slow song. Mahiru and Hajime looked at each other, each silently asking the question they didn't want to ask aloud. Finally, Hajime went for it.

"Do you...want to dance?" He asked, and Mahiru nodded. Hajime stood up and held out his hand once more, which Mahiru took.

"I-I don't know how to slow dance." Mahiru said as Hajime guided her to the floor, where several other students had already paired up.

"I've never done it, but I know where the hands go." Hajime assured her. For some reason, the way he phrased it made her blush. "So, if I remember correctly, the girl puts their arms around the guy's neck, and the guy puts his hands on the girl's waist." Mahiru nodded, and as she wrapped her hands around the back of his neck, he placed his hands on her waist. When she felt his warm touch through the dress, she got shivers. "You okay?" He asked, and Mahiru nodded. "And then we just…" he began swaying and moving.

Mahiru had never really understood the appeal of slow dancing, it seemed so...boring. But now...she could. It felt...soothing in a way she couldn't quite explain. She looked up at Hajime, and when their eyes met, she experienced that same feeling as before; her heart began racing, her breathing became rapid, and it became hard to think.

"H-Hajime…" Mahiru said quietly. He didn't answer, but he didn't need to. She felt the distance between them shrink ever so slightly. The music almost seemed to dull as she became lost in this new moment she was spending with Hajime.

The truth was...she really enjoyed his company. Sure, she didn't know much about him, but she knew enough to know that he was a good guy. Very kind hearted, not afraid to say what he's thinking, and always there to help. She...liked it when he was there.

And now, she was slow dancing with him. And she was enjoying every second of it.

She stared deep into his eyes as they moved around the room. His eyes seemed to hold so much emotion that she wasn't able to turn into words. In this moment, they shared emotions that didn't need words at all. It was just the two of them, and it was beautiful.

And then they bumped into another pair.

"Ah, sorry!" One of them said. It was a rather short boy with a spike in his brown hair that looked similar to Hajime's. He was dancing with a girl with a stoic face, long purple hair, and for some reason, gloves on her hands.

"It's no problem, we bumped into you, so I'm sorry." Hajime answered.

"You're fine." The boy said with a wide smile. The two pairs moved away from each other.

"Hajime…" Mahiru asked.

"Yeah?"

"What...do you think of me?" She asked. Hajime stared at her for a moment in silence that left her shaking in anticipation.

"I think…you're kind...and wow you are definitely someone who knows how to make herself look good." He said, gesturing to her dress. Her cheeks burned as he continued. "You're a great listener, a great friend, you always try to cheer people up when they're down, you work hard in everything you do…I think you're an amazing person, in every possible way." Mahiru was left speechless. She wasn't sure what exactly she'd been expecting, but it sure hadn't been that. Before she could think about how stupid it was, she leaned forward, and embraced him in a kiss.

His lips were soft and sweet. Of course, Mahiru didn't have anything to compare it to, as the only people she'd ever kissed was her parents, but she couldn't imagine that just anyone could feel this good. The warmth of his lips made her entire body tingle in all the right ways. Hajime hesitated at first, but he soon kissed her back with just as much passion as she did. Mahiru felt their bodies press together, their chests coming together just as their lips did. It was...the perfect moment.

But eventually, Mahiru remembered...Chiaki.

She broke the kiss so suddenly that Hajime almost fell over as Mahiru backed away in horror at what she had just done. She looked at Hajime, who had the same look of horror and realization on his own face.

"Mahiru-!" He cried, but she quickly turned and ran, ignoring him as he called after her. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she fled out the door past confused students who were super late or leaving early. She ran all the way to her house and to her room, where she slammed the door behind her and leaned back against it. She slowly sank to the floor, and laid her head down in her arms.

What had she just done?

She kissed Hajime, that's what she had just done! And he had a girlfriend, who was her classmate!

This was bad—really, really bad.

Mahiru stood up and paced around the room, unable to keep her mind clear and coherent as she panicked. What was she going to do? How could she ever face him again? How could she ever face Chiaki again? Would Hajime tell her? Should Mahiru tell her, and try to explain it was in the heat of the moment? Would she even buy that?

Mahiru didn't know what to do, so she simply flopped down onto her bed and groaned. This was a really bad situation. She kissed Hajime…

She...kissed Hajime…

And it had felt...so good...so magical…

Mahiru mentally slapped herself. No! She couldn't be doing this! No matter how good it had felt, Hajime was Chiaki's boyfriend! She couldn't…

But…

No!!

Mahiru groaned again, and flipped over to look at the ceiling. When that got boring fast, she turned to look at her photo boards.

And immediately saw a picture of Hajime, which caused her to groan again.

Eventually, she decided she'd just have to talk to him tomorrow. Now finally having some sort of a plan, she got up, and took off the dress, somewhat carefully putting it in a nearby hamper, and flopping back onto her bed in just her underwear, too tired to change.

This seemed bad, but surely it wouldn't be the end of the world. All she had to do was talk with Hajime, and they could resolve this. Yeah. Yeah…

Eventually, despite her worries, Mahiru succumbed to her fatigue caused by the night's activities, and fell into a deep sleep.