NeonHorizon: Hey, so...just wondering...which guy do you prefer?
They're probably mad about yesterday! I wouldn't blame them if they think I'm a bad friend now! I didn't mean for it to happen, though! Shirayuki walked briskly down the hallway, her head down as she nervously chewed at her bottom lip. Her heart was beating fast, her stomach coiling in knots of dread at losing her first group of friends.
As she entered the classroom, she immediately spotted the three other teenagers and bowed her head even lower. She hurried to her seat, thankful that they seemed to be busy. Shirayuki could hear them talking and it did nothing to help her calm down. The more she thought on it, the more she was sure that they probably hated her now.
With trembling hands, she dug through her bag for a book and opened it. Reading usually helped her relax. If nothing else, she might be able to distract herself from the situation for a moment. However, she soon found herself reading the same sentence over and over again. Sighing in defeat, she put her head down and closed her eyes.
Deep breaths. A calm lake. A steady mountain. Cats. Freshly baked cookies. Shirayuki quietly took a deep breath and exhaled. Her pulse managed to slow a little and she felt the trembling subside. A smile settled behind her mask and she lifted her head. I'm okay.
"Good morning, Yuki-chan."
"Hey, Yuki-chan! What book is that?"
"Morning, Yuki-chan!"
She jolted, having not realized how close they had gotten. Turning her head, Shirayuki's face started to turn pink behind her mask and she held up her hands. "…I-I'm sorry…about yesterday…I don't blame you if you hate me…!" she blurted out, tears forming in her eyes.
Ashido, Kaminari, and Kirishima shared a brief look. "Uh, what? Why would we hate you?" the pink-haired girl asked.
"…I was…two hours late…and we missed our movie…we had to go to a later one and…it wasn't the one we had planned on seeing…and you probably wanted to eat somewhere else and…I-I'm so sorry that I was late…!" Shirayuki closed her eyes, not wanting to see their expressions. When she felt a hand on her shoulder, she jumped a little and was forced to look.
"Hey, don't worry about it! That other movie was pretty good," Kirishima assured her. "Besides, we get that something came up. We were just worried when you were late, but at least you told us."
"So what was it anyway?" Kaminari tilted his head.
At that same moment, a certain someone entered the classroom and sent a glare their way. No greeting was offered. Just a short bark at Kaminari to get away from his desk. Once Bakugou was seated, Shirayuki bowed her head a little more. "…ah…I had…some chores for my grandmother…" she lied.
Ashido smiled. "It's okay. Seriously, we wouldn't stop being friends just because you were late to one movie. So, moving on! Who was that guy you came to school with this morning? He's in class 1-C, right?"
"What? Yuki-chan came to school with a guy?"
"Boyfriend?"
"…I don't…have a boyfriend…he's just a friend…that I went to middle school with…" she muttered, looking away. She could still feel Kirishima's and Kaminari's stares and was a little disappointed by how surprised they both were. Given, she hardly interacted with anyone. It still felt a little bad to see them so surprised.
The blond frowned. "Seriously? You're pretty cute."
"Yeah. And you're really polite and you're pretty smart. I'd date you." When the other two looked at him, Kirishima's face took on a slightly pink tint. "What?"
"So ask her out then, dude."
"That's kind of a big decision! And I don't even know if I'm her type! Yuki-chan, you kinda seem like you'd be into smart guys, right?"
She was now blushing profusely behind her mask. "…I-I don't…know…I've never dated anyone before…so…"
Kirishima looked to his hand, still planted on her shoulder. "Oh! Sorry, sorry!" He lifted his hand. "And, I mean, it's not a thing to rush into anyway."
"…right…you're right…Kirishima-kun…" Shirayuki could feel eyes burning a hole in the back of her head and she began to slouch a little in her seat. We're annoying him. I don't want him to be mad at me. He just helped me with my quirk yesterday. Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to make eye contact with the others. "…class is starting soon so…I-I'll see you at lunch, right…?"
Ashido beamed. "Of course!"
Once the others were gone, she tried to focus on her book again, but it was difficult. She could still feel Bakugou glaring at her and she was starting to feel anxious. Like she was being watched beneath a microscope. As if every little movement was being monitored, every breath being an annoyance to him. She almost felt claustrophobic.
Even after class started, the girl felt extremely self-conscious. He's mad. What did I do? I just hope we don't have to pair up with other people again for anything today. She tried to focus on the lesson, but her attention started to drift from Aizawa and even Bakugou. She started to think about what Kirishima had said.
Scribbling in the margin of her notes, she frowned. My type? What is my type? I've never really thought about it. I'm not used to talking to boys so I don't even know. How do you figure out what your type is? She felt a sudden tug at her hair from behind and tensed. "…I-I'm sorry…did you need something…?"
"You said you didn't like him," Bakugou growled. "Hey! Look at me when I'm talking to you, red eyes!"
She half-turned in her seat, glad that they were currently between classes. "…I…I'm friends with him so…um…"
"He asked you out!"
"…I didn't answer…" Shirayuki bit her lip and fidgeted a little, picking at the skin around her nails. "…I…I'm sorry that I said that I didn't like him yesterday…I honestly don't know…if I like him that way or not…b-because I've never been friends with boys before…um…I don't know what my type is…so…I shouldn't have given you that answer yesterday…"
He grimaced and released the lock of her hair. "You had fun yesterday," he started. "Your type's supposed to be someone you have fun with."
"…oh…I didn't…I didn't know that…"
"Yeah." Bakugou ran a hand through his hair and made a sound of frustration. "Look! You better not tell him "yes"! Got it?! And why are you walking to school with a guy? You know how that looks?"
I'm so confused right now. Shirayuki gave him a slow nod, but was still puzzled. Thinking back to the previous day, she had to admit that she did have fun. She had also been extremely nervous and kind of frightened. Especially when he took her into the forest and even more so when he insisted on spending more time with her after that. He had made her late to the movie and made her worry that her friends would hate her.
When it came time for lunch, she walked with her three friends and tried to ignore the glare being cast in her direction from behind. She anxiously toyed with the hair band around her wrist as she stood in line to get food, her stomach growling loudly. I don't think we have a class with All Might today. I can probably eat lighter. What should I get though?
"Shirayuki."
"…ah…" She turned and felt a smile pull at her lips behind her mask. "…Shinsou-kun…hello…"
He looked from her to the line and tilted his head. "What are you getting?"
The girl followed his gaze, eyebrows furrowing. "…um…I'm not really sure…" Deciding to push herself to try to talk more, she summoned forth some courage. "…do you…know what you're getting…?"
Shinsou nodded once. "Go sit down. I'll get yours."
She held up her hands, shaking her head. "…n-no…I couldn't ask you to do that…um…I-I'm fine with waiting in line…"
He looked away and rubbed the back of his neck. "I want to do it."
"…y-you're sure…?" She saw him nod. Shirayuki frowned. "…I'll…get some good seats then…" Her chest felt fluttery, her stomach twisting into anxious knots. He wants to eat lunch together? Is that why he wanted to get my food? After giving her friends a quick explanation, she found a pair of seats in a good location and sat down. Her eyes were drawn to the line where he was standing and she found herself beginning to blush.
We walked to school together this morning. We're eating lunch together now. Is Shinsou-kun my type? He's kind of quiet…like me. He kind of keeps to himself. But he's nice to me. He's really nice to animals. Do I like him…? The girl bowed her head when he looked over, smiling behind her mask.
When he joined her, he set down a small variety of different things for her to eat and took a seat across the table from her. "I didn't know what you wanted so I tried to guess what you might like," he explained.
"…thank you…I really appreciate it…" She lowered her mask, her cheeks turning red as she saw him staring at her. "…um…?"
"Nothing." Shinsou waited for her to start eating before he began eating as well. His indigo gaze wandered from his meal up to her face occasionally and he frowned to himself. "I don't see your mouth very often," he remarked.
Instantly, her face went red again. "…ah…um…w-well it's not…really something I like to show so…"
"You don't look bad, Shirayuki." A sheepish sort of half-smile pulled at his lips as he leaned back in his seat. "I kind of like it though. It's like a secret that you're sharing with me."
She caught a very faint hint of color rise to his face and she tilted her head. "…Shinsou-kun…what's your type…?"
"What? What do you mean?" His face returned to a neutral expression.
"…my friends…asked what my type was…what kind of boys I like…a-and I don't really know how to tell…I-I've never had friends before…or talked to boys so much so…I don't know how to tell…"
Shinsou's eyes half-closed as he looked down to his food. "You know the term "butterflies in your stomach"?" He saw her shrug. "Okay, it's like…you get this fluttery feeling around them. People say that when you like someone, that's something that you feel." His gaze lifted to settle on her face again. "So do you feel like that around anyone?"