A/N: Thank you guys for your support of The Ribbon! I'll be posting the next chapter on Monday, as scheduled! In the meantime, I want to present the first chapter of my Ashido companion fic! I'll be posting it as a separate fic called "The Contract." The storyline parallels the Christmas chapters of The Ribbon, so you'll see that a couple of scenes were already in The Ribbon, but now you're reading them from Ashido's POV.

I'll be posting "The Contract" chapters every Friday, so if you happen to enjoy both of the stories, you'll have extra content to read each week. If you're not interested, that's cool too! Just stick around until Monday for the next chapter of "The Ribbon." (Note, I will not be posting additional chapters of The Contract in this story, this is just a sample of the story to be continued separately from Kirishima and Kanzashi's tale).

"The Contract" follows Ashido's struggles as she tries to get over a broken heart. She can't cope with the fact that Kirishima is in a relationship. All she wants is to be noticed and loved for the person she is underneath her usually bubbly, airheaded surface. She would even go so far as to strike a deal with a desperate first-year business class student who needs her help if he's to avoid being expelled from U.A. Heartache, a mutually beneficial business arragnement, and a fake boyfriend are all the ingredients needed for this drama-filled disaster recipe. Ashido x OC, angst/fluff.

Let me know your thoughts! Otherwise, see you on Monday!

How to Get Over a Broken Heart

I didn't mean it, Mina thought, as she watched his fingers brush her jaw.

I take it back, she wanted to scream, as he whispered into her ear and her cheeks flushed pink.

I didn't think it would be this serious, she internally cried, as she giggled and lost herself in his bright, red irises.

You're breaking my heart, she whimpered to herself, as Eijiro Kirishima ran his fingers through her hair.

"Stop that, Eijiro" she scolded him. "I told you it's rude to touch a girl's hair without asking. Not to mention embarrassing."

It wasn't Mina who Kirishima was touching, whose ear he was whispering into, whose hair he was stroking.

Their eyes met. Not Mina's and Kirishima's. Mina and Kinuhana Kanzashi, Kirishima's girlfriend.

The other girl's hair turned pink as her embarrassment heightened. She hadn't realized Mina was watching them. "I'm going back to my dorm," she said to Kirishima. "To study. Like you should be studying for your test tomorrow, first-year."

It was three months ago when Kirishima had come to Mina's room and confessed that he had a crush on his tutor. A second-year girl from the support class, whose quirk allowed her to make fabric from her color-changing hair. Mina had teased him and given him advice on how to confess his feelings. Now, she wished she hadn't.

She didn't think things would get serious between them. She was a grade above them, after all. It was just a crush, there was no way they'd really date. And if they did, it would be a casual relationship, nothing deep—nothing real or raw or serious.

But on the day of the school festival, Kanzashi and Kirishima had made it official. They'd been together for two months now, and it was clear to any outsider that "serious" was an understatement. Kirishima walked around with a permanent halo of bliss surrounding him. He looked like he was in love. People constantly talked about how cute they were together, how they balanced each other out perfectly. Kirishima with his relaxed, boisterous personality, living in the present moment—paired with someone shy, calculating, and always thinking ahead.

Kirishima's grades have gotten better since they started dating! Hagakure had commented.

You finally learned how to have fun, Hana! One of Kanzashi's friends had declared.

You're so perfect for each other!

Mina was so sick of hearing about it.

Kirishima had failed to notice her eavesdropping on their conversation since he couldn't tear his eyes away from Kanzashi for longer than a second. So, Mina gave Kanzashi a little wave before skipping off in the other direction. Wouldn't want her to catch on to the bitterness growing inside of her.

When Mina got back to the dorm common area, all she wanted to do was to go up to her room and cry.

Why do I feel this way? she wondered, despondently, as she trudged inside. It's not like I was crushing on him before they got together. He's just Kirishima. He's that weirdo boy from middle-school. I didn't want to be with him.

But, maybe that wasn't true. Maybe she'd set aside her feelings, taking for granted that he was just Kirishima. He was her classmate and friend. He wasn't going anywhere. He wouldn't be stolen from her by some random blonde sidekick.

"Hey, Ashido!" Hagakure waved to her, bracelet jangling in the air. "We're gonna do each other's nails! Do you wanna join?"

Mina looked at the other girls. Uraraka, Yaoyorozu, Tsu, Hagakure… She shook her head. "Thanks, but I'm wiped! I'm gonna take a nap before dinner. Later!"

She didn't make eye contact with anyone as she retreated to her room and slumped onto her bed. The tears were already right there, pricking her eyes and making her sniffle. It didn't even help to be in her room, the place where Kirishima came to her for advice. The place where he used to come hang out with her, sometimes.

She wiped her face with her shoulder when she heard her door gently click open. She sat up in time to see Uraraka poking her head inside.

"Are you okay, Ashido?" The girl asked, her brown eyes swimming with concern.

"Yeah, I'm cool!" Mina faked a huge smile. "Just tired!" She rubbed her eyes as if to emphasize this. Really, it was to catch any stray tears.

Uraraka frowned. She stepped inside and let the door softly shut behind her. Then she sat on the corner of Mina's bed and proffered a knowing smile. "It's Kirishima and Kanzashi, isn't it?"

Mina stared at her. It was no use. She couldn't keep up the smile. It felt like the corners of her mouth were being held up by feeble tooth-picks, struggling against a frown that weighed hundreds of pounds. So, she let it go, curled her knees up to her chest, and stared at a pink circle on her bed. "How did you know?"

"Because I know what that feels like," she answered softly. "To be… jealous, I mean."

"I'm not jealous!" Mina argued.

Uraraka gave her a pitying look.

"Okay, so maybe I'm a little jealous." She sighed. "It's just… I don't know… I see them together and I hate it. I hate it so much." The tears started to well up again, and this time she couldn't hold them back.

"I understand how you feel," Uraraka said. She placed a hand comfortingly on hers. "At the provisional licensing exam, I saw Deku with that Shiketsu High girl. I guess something happened between them during the exam and I… it made me feel sick like I'd been using my quirk all day or something." She shook her head fiercely, then smacked her own cheeks. "I know how that can haunt you."

Mina nodded. She tried to gather herself, but it was pointless. She was sobbing into her pants now. "At least Midoriya isn't dating her," she said. "I don't know… what I'm supposed to do."

Uraraka interlaced her fingers in her lap and breathed a silent sigh. "I wish I knew the answer. I'm sorry. What do you think would make you feel better?"

"Seeing Kanzashi move to another country," she said, bitterly, but then regretted it at once. "I know I shouldn't think like that. She makes him happy, and if I care about him then that should make me happy too, right? But it doesn't."

"Maybe…" Uraraka was contemplative for a moment. "Maybe you should tell him how you feel."

Mina stared at her, incredulous. "Are you kidding me? I can't tell a boy who has a girlfriend that I like him!"

"I was just thinking that it might help you to get it off your chest." She looked down. "Not that I'm one to talk. I'm giving you advice that I could never follow." She grimaced but then steadied her breathing once more. "I just think that if you were honest with him, you could get some closure. And maybe it would help him to be more aware of your feelings when he's with her. He could cool down on the displays of affection around you."

"I don't want closure," Mina argued. "And I don't want him walking on eggshells around me, either. I just want this to stop."

Uraraka sighed. "I'm sorry. Do you want anything? I could bring you some food?"

"No." Mina shook her head and sniffled. "I appreciate it, but I think I just want to sleep."

Her friend smiled and finally stood up. "Okay. Text me if you need anything at all. I can't help you get over a broken heart, but I can be here for you when you need me."

Mina nodded, then watched as Uraraka excused herself. Finally alone, she succumbed to her misery. She put her face into her pillow and broke down into sobs. She tormented herself with memories. Flip-flopping between recollections of Kirishima laughing with her, treating her like she was special, like she inspired him… to memories of him with Kanzashi, looking at her in a way he'd never looked at Mina. Even though these thoughts hurt, she forced herself to replay them again and again, thinking that if she re-watched the tape enough times, her heart would harden. It had to get easier eventually, right? This agony couldn't last forever.

I hate this. I want to be the one in your arms, Eijiro. It should have been me. If I'd just told you how I felt before you met her, then… it would be us.

I hate this. I want to be alone. Why does it have to be me? If I'd just picked something easier, then… this would all be over.

Roan Fujinari was not popular. This wasn't due to some poor, misunderstood underdog trope, either. He wasn't popular because he wasn't likable. Popular people had presence, trademarks, style, and consistency. Roan had… well, at least he had consistency. But beyond that, everything in his biology had doomed to him to be a staple, avoid-at-all-costs teenager. He was tall, intimidating, his voice too deep, his hair too long, and—most importantly—he was not nice.

And that was going to be a problem.

"Fujinari," his homeroom teacher's unnatural voice called out to him. "It's your turn."

The first-year business course was taught by the pro-hero Ectoplasm (fondly referred to as Mr. Plasm by his classmates). It was a fitting role for the teacher, whose love of math made him especially good at economics, a crucial piece of business as a whole. He also had a lot in common with Roan, mostly within the realm of "people look at us and run." Though, because of this similarity, Roan felt that Ectoplasm was especially tough on him in comparison to his peers. His classmates seemed to believe he was the teacher's pet, and that Ectoplasm was doing his best to coach Roan from the place of the generally-feared hero. Roan believed that any extra attention from anyone was an unwelcome chore.

He felt his classmates' eyes on him. He couldn't see their eyes, by design, of course. There was a reason he'd grown his dark-blue hair out to cover his own, after all.

"Fujinari," Ectoplasm repeated. "Have you made any progress with your end-of-trimester project?"

Roan did quick math in his head, trying to calculate the exact percentage chance of him getting detention if he ignored his teacher completely. If he factored in his current rate of detentions, the last three warnings he'd received, and the fact that Ectoplasm had a trash article published about him in yesterday's paper, then… He'd say there was about a sixty-eight percent chance of detention. Ninety-four percent chance of being asked to stay after class. He wasn't in the mood to deal with any of that, so… he finally answered.

"No," he said, hoping the word carried a hint of finality.

"Do you still not know what your project will be on?" Ectoplasm's white eyes widened. "Winter break is in less than a month."

"I'll figure it out," he mumbled.

The truth was, Roan had decided what his final project was going to be two weeks ago. He'd already outlined, researched, and prepped the entire thing. But then he'd been hit with the harsh reality of it all. He couldn't complete his project because people didn't like him. It was sick irony. The survey he'd designed was a questionnaire based on the factors that made heroes likable. Ane he was so entirely unlikable, that he couldn't even give the survey to other students.

"I hope you take this seriously," Mr. Plasm said. "You're at the bottom of the class, Fujinari. A failed grade on this project will mean you're out."

He stared at the corner of his desk, refusing to look up or answer anything further. Eventually, the teacher had the mercy to move on to the next student.

Roan spaced out for the rest of the class. He was imagining a world where everyone was a robot, with simple algorithms and programming. He could pass out his questionnaire to them, and not only would they accept without looking at him, judging him, or running away, but they would also give unbiased answers and return the survey forms in a timely manner. It would be heaven.

The bell rang, and he did his best to get out of the door before…

"Fujinari."

He stopped in his tracks. Hadn't he been put through enough torture today?

Ectoplasm walked up to him, his peg legs clicking on the floor with every step. "Networking," he said, simply.

Roan waited for more, but nothing came. "Networking?" he asked.

"You're an intelligent student, probably among the best in the class," Ectoplasm said, doling out unexpected praise, especially considering the quality of Roan's grades. "Your creativity knows no bounds. However… this is a business course. And the reason you are failing is because you adamantly refuse to acknowledge the fundamental building-block of all businesses. Networking."

Great. He was being lectured about not having friends. "Kill me," he said. He'd meant for it to be a thought, but his lips betrayed him.

"Your objective should be to network with your peers so they can help you with your project," his teacher continued. "If you can manage that, I'm sure you'll impress me. You always do."

There were a lot of things Roan could have said to that. He could have thanked him, or acknowledged the praise at least. He could have promised to do his best and go plus ultra, or whatever. He could have simply said, 'good afternoon,' and excused himself.

But, he didn't. He just walked away.

Networking… he groaned internally as he trudged down the hall. As if. A single glance up from behind his locks of hair told him exactly why that was an impossible feat. A girl from Class 1-C saw him and immediately moved as far against the opposite wall as possible. After that, he heard two more students muttering about him as he walked by.

"Isn't that the kid who murdered someone?"

"I heard he's actually the son of a villain."

"I heard both of his parents are villains!"

Ah yes. The cliche, angsty anti-hero plot. If only they knew that his parents were your average, run-of-the-mill psychiatrist and gynecologist.

He stopped walking, suddenly. The two students gasped and held their breath as he turned to face them. Here goes, he thought. "You," he said. "I want to ask you some questions."

They laughed awkwardly and started to moved cautiously away from him. "U-Uh, n-no thanks!"

"P-Please don't hurt us!"

They fled.

Roan sighed. And that was exactly why he was going to fail his class and get expelled from U.A. High.

He decided to go to his room and start packing. Maybe his parents were still paying for the apartment he used to live in before everyone had to move into the dorms. He kind of doubted it though. He'd just have to ditch his belongings and live on the street. Maybe he would join the villains, after all. Most of them were socially-inept losers, too. If only he had the kind of utter lack of self-respect required to become an enemy to society.

Networking… It would be so much more efficient if I just had someone network for me. There are apps and programs for that. Why isn't there an app I can use on the student body? If I understood robotics, I could design a charming robot to do all the hard work for me. I guess I could ask Mei Hatsume if she'd build me something like that. But then, I'd have to talk to her, and I don't want to. I don't want to talk to anyone. I just want to hide forever and do my marketing research in peace.

If only he could commission someone to be friendly and likable in his place. Then, maybe he could stay enrolled at U.A. High.

It was the first week of December. The trees in the forest surrounding U.A. High were barren, having already shed their brilliant orange and yellow hues, in exchange for the skeletal structures that held up the gray sky of encroaching winter. The first snow had yet to fall, but the sky seemed heavy with the prospect. It was getting colder too, a fact enunciated by the puffs of air released from the mouths of shivering students, buttoned-up tightly in their winter uniforms and coats. While it wasn't as frigid as it would be two months from now, it was still far too cold for the student body to be amassed on the crunchy grass at 7:00 AM for an assembly.

Class 1-A was among the gathered students, shivering and bouncing on their toes as they waited for someone, anyone, to make an announcement and let them leave.

"Hey, why doesn't Tsu have to be out here with us?" Mina complained as she rubbed her arms for warmth.

"She got a medical permission slip to skip," Yaoyorozu said. "You know she can't handle cold well."

"Do you have any idea why we're here, Deku?" Uraraka whispered.

The boy took the question seriously. He touched his chin as he considered the most reasonable answer. "If I had to guess, I'd say it has to do with the holiday season. Christmas and New Year's are at the end of the month, and the faculty have yet to address what the plans are for releasing us."

"Man, I can't wait to go home!" Kaminari hopped up and down. "I'm gonna stay home, sleep, and eat until I'm fat."

"Ew, please don't," Jiro commented, adjusting her earmuffs.

"What are your plans, Kirishima?" Mina asked.

Uraraka's advice from Friday was still plaguing her. She'd thought about it all weekend—the prospect of telling him how she felt, if for no reason other than to get some closure. But, for the past two days, whenever she got the chance to talk to him, she froze up. It was small talk, no space to be honest or upfront about the things that had been bothering her. If I can find the nerve to tell him the truth, then maybe I will feel better.

Kirishima grinned. "My folks are super traditional, so for New Year we'll for sure go to a shrine, get Omijuki fortunes, and my mom loves all the store discounts, so she'll probably drag me around with her to go shopping for a couple of days."

"Your parents still use you as a pack mule?" Mina giggled. She could still remember seeing him on walks in their neighborhood with his mom, carrying her purse, a backpack, and her umbrella—and not looking the least bit upset about it.

"Well, yeah!" He lifted his arm and flexed, even though his bicep wasn't visible beneath his long-sleeved uniform. "I'm strong, so I'm good for it!"

You are strong, she thought with a smile. Strong, funny, cute...

"Listen up, everyone!" Iida's voice interrupted. "The principal is about to speak!"

The little mouse, dog principal of UA climbed onstage and up the steps to his pedestal. "Good morning, students! Isn't the weather lovely! My fur makes wonderful insulation for the cold, and it's the best season for drinking tea!"

The shivering students looked far less enthused about the weather.

"I'll cut to the chase now," he said. "I have good news and bad news. The bad news is that, due to the uprise in criminal activity since All Might's retirement, we will not be allowing students to return home for winter break."

The crowd erupted in muttering and groans of disbelief and surprise.

"Unfortunately, we also cannot allow family members to enter the campus at this time."

"What?!" Yaoyorozu frowned. "But New Year's is supposed to be when families stay home and spend time with each other!"

"All you losers do is complain," Bakugo growled. "Who cares?"

"Dude, literally everyone except you," Kirishima said, elbowing him in the side. "Just because you don't care about your parents doesn't mean the rest of us don't."

"Who said I don't care about my parents!" He snapped back. "I'm just not going to whine about not seeing their annoying-ass faces!"

"Settle down!" Mr. Aizawa chided.

"We understand that this is very upsetting for many of you," Principal Nezu continued. "Which is why we have decided to hold our own holiday festivities! I know it cannot make up for lost time with your families. However, I do hope you can find comfort and enjoyment in what the school has decided to offer."

"What kind of festivities?" Shoji muttered, tone curious.

"We will be hosting a Christmas party, as well as a New Year's festival. Curfew will also be pushed back an extra hour for that week, and there will be no curfew at all on New Year's Eve. We'll have a sunrise viewing event, and no homework projects assigned over the vacation."

"Sounds pretty sweet to me," Sero commented.

"Yeah right," Bakugo snapped. "They're just trying to bribe us so our parents don't sue the school."

Kirishima elbowed him again. "What's your deal, man? You extra bitter today or something?"

"WHAT AM I, COFFEE?! I'M NOT BITTER."

"You should be thrilled about this, Bakugo," Kaminari said with a smirk. "If everyone's stuck at school, then you get to spend New Year's Eve with Aisla~"

Bakugo tensed. The aforementioned small blonde girl was standing behind him, her cheeks now pink from more than the cold. "Do you… want to watch the sunrise together, Katsuki?" she asked, timidly.

The boy looked ready to explode. Kirishima clasped his hand on his shoulder to contain the fumes.

"Didn't I tell you not to talk to me in public?!" he snarled back at her, not turning around to see her rejected expression.

"Bakugo…" Kirishima raised an eyebrow at him. "We talked about this."

Bakugo's body quivered with rage. "Who says I'm going to be awake at sunrise?" he snapped. "Don't ask me stupid questions!"

Kirishima beamed over his shoulder at the girl. "That wasn't a 'no,'" he pointed out with a wink. Then he patted his friend on the spiky, blond head. "Good boy, that was almost nice!"

"Kirishima…" Bakugo seethed. "If you ever pet me again, I'll blast you so hard that your skin will be so permanently damaged that you'll never be able to use your quirk again."

"Sure man, whatever you say!" He laughed.

It always amazed Mina that Kirishima could handle Bakugo as if he wasn't a live grenade. He was the only person in their entire class who could diffuse the other boy. Well, she supposed Aisla was sometimes an effective salve too, but mostly she just seemed to make him even more explosive.

How is it that a Shiketsu high transfer student can nab a boyfriend—the meanest boy in the school—but I can't have Kirishima? It's not fair. If I'd just spoken up sooner about my feelings...

She took a deep breath, hoping that the icy air would help numb her body to the bitterness growing inside of her. "Watching the sunrise with someone sounds so fun!" She grinned. She had to keep up the happy-go-lucky act. So, she gave Kirishima's arm a playful tug. "How about it, Kirishima? You wanna stay up with me on New Year's Eve?"

"Huh? Well, if I can't hang out with my parents, then…" He got a distant look in his eyes as he considered his answer.

Even though Mina knew it was too much to hope for, she wondered momentarily if he was considering it… Staying up all night with her on New Year's Eve, dancing in the dorm common area and singing karaoke on the tables, just to climb up onto the roof at dawn to watch the first sunrise of the year, shining over the treetops. Then… A New Year's kiss, just as the rays of the sun touched their skin—signifying a new beginning for them.

It would be my first kiss, she thought, a trill of pleasure running down her spine. But… A realization struck her like a shard of ice from one of Todoroki's attacks. It wouldn't be his first kiss. Kanzashi already stole that away from me.

"Maybe," he gave a non-committal answer, snapping her out of the dark thoughts."If Kanzashi doesn't want to hang out with me."

Again, as if being struck by a powerful ice attack—only this time, she felt the pain of the blow.

"Wowww," she laughed, and she hoped her voice didn't reveal the panic nor the agony she felt. "So, I'm your backup if your girlfriend stands you up? I think you just broke my heart, Kirishima!" Light words masking the truth. He really was breaking her heart. Every day a little more than the last.

"Let's just hope she doesn't stand me up," he chuckled.

"Yeah," Mina agreed. Though, a small part of her wondered if she could be that fortunate. If Kanzashi stood him up, then… She withheld a depressed sigh. "Let's hope she doesn't."

Kirishima gave her a strange look as if he'd seen her slip. He must have heard it in her voice. He parted his lips to speak, but then principal Nezu spoke again.

"I encourage all of you with concerns to speak to your homeroom teachers. We would like to be accommodating and allow for scheduled times when your parents can visit the school. We believe that staggered appointments such as these will be the best means to protect our students and staff."

He continued to make more announcements about testing, the enforcement of school rules, and a bunch of other stuff that everyone was either too cold or too bored to pay any attention to. At last, he dismissed everyone to eat breakfast before their first class of the day.

When the students started to disperse, Mina looked at him again. Their friends had already started off toward the cafeteria, leaving them momentarily alone. The impulse struck her, a need as powerful as thirst or hunger. I have to tell him. I can't keep living like this.

"Hey, Kirishima?" she called out to him. He turned to face her, though she could see the slight haze in his eyes. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

He looked back over his shoulder. His eyes were searching for something in the crowd. No… Not something. He was looking for Kanzashi. Even now, with his oldest friend standing there, reaching out to him like a wounded civilian trapped in the rubble, his thoughts were on her.

"Sorry, Ashido, can it wait until after school?" His expression was apologetic, but his eyes might as well have been reflections of silver eyes and blonde hair. "It's just, I promised Kanzashi I'd have breakfast with her, and I don't want her to think I bailed."

Mina felt all the energy in her body sap away. She wanted to smack him or scream, maybe both. Instead, she grinned again. "Yeah, no problem! Don't be a stranger, kay?"

He nodded, then ran, solely focused on his objective to get to her—to the girl that took Mina's best friend away from her.

She stood there, rooted to the grass like a pink flower trying to endure the winter chill. She couldn't go to the cafeteria now. She didn't want to be anywhere near the two of them, eating breakfast side-by-side, laughing and smiling at each other. She'd rather run into the woods and vomit.

Heat touched her cheeks. She reached up and was surprised to feel something wet on her fingertips. She was crying, and the tears were hot on her chilled skin.

I hate this. I'm supposed to be the happy one. The peppy, fun one that everyone likes. I'm supposed to be the funny, girl buddy that charms the people she meets. I'm not supposed to feel this way.

"You."

She inhaled sharply at the sound of a deep, menacing voice behind her, so close that she could imagine hot breath brushing her horns and someone looming threateningly over her. She jerked around, instantly going on the defensive and dropping into a battle stance. She blinked several times before realizing that she hadn't been apprehended by a villain. It was just another student, dressed in U.A. High winter uniform.

He was tall. Really tall, and she couldn't make out any of his facial features behind a veil of dark blue hair.

"Ugh…" he groaned. "...already crying… haven't even… yet…" His voice was such a low mumble that she could only make out a handful of the words. One thing was for sure. She definitely heard him mention "crying."

She wiped her tears away quickly, put her hands behind her back, and offered up a toothy grin. "Heyyyy! You took me by surprise there, buddy! Was there somethin' ya needed?"

He didn't move, speak, or even breathe from what she could tell.

"Do I know you from somewhere?" She peered closer at him. "You're a student, but I don't recognize you! What class are you from? Why aren't you eating breakfast with everyone else? What's your name? You're pretty tall and freaky, but it's a good look on you, I like it!"

"Don't… talk to me," he grumbled.

"What? But you talked to me first, mister!" she pursed her lips. "Did you confuse me for someone else? Nah, I'm the only cutie here who's all pink! I'm Mina Ashido! Nice to meet you!"

He ignored her and suddenly opened his school bag. She watched curiously as he dug around, opened a binder, and finally produced a few stapled pieces of paper. He held them out to her.

"Huh? What's this?" She cocked her head as she glanced at the front sheet. There were a bunch of bubbles to be filled in. "Ugh, it looks like an exam."

"It's a questionnaire," he said, his tone defensive. "Fill it out." He shoved the binder back in his bag and latched it shut. "Or don't, I don't care."

"Hold on!" She called out to him. He had already shoved his hands in his pocket, lowered his head, and was moping toward the school. She shoved the papers into her own bag and ran after him. "Wait! I'll fill out your weird test, no problem, but then what? Do I give it back to you? How can I do that if I don't know your name or class?"

He ignored her, simply dropping his head even lower and picking up his pace. She couldn't keep up with his long strides without jogging, so she finally stopped and watched him walk away.

"What a weirdo," she said, as he vanished into the shadow of one of the buildings. "Wonder what that was about."

Now that he was gone, she was left completely alone on the field. All of her awful feelings came surging back, making her feel even more isolated than before. Kirishima… Kanzashi… The emotions she couldn't bury no matter how hard she tried… At least for an instant, the total stranger had distracted her from the pain she felt. She sort of wished she'd followed him. Then, at least… she wouldn't be so alone.