Chapter 11

A/N: Na, I don't really have much to say about this chappie…except that it's fairly fluffish. No confession yet though, for those that have been saying they want to see it soon. Sorry. ^.^

You guys thought you hated the teacher last chapter? Let's see what you think of him now…

Disclaimer: I do not own any rights to Bakugan, so sorry to disappoint.

Restless green eyes stared up at her plain ceiling, blinking ever so often. Runo sighed, soft enough so that she wouldn't wake Alice.

She scared of the dream she knew she would have, if she would realize the fakeness of it again, if it would seem as empty as it was before. Most of all, she was scared if someone would end up replacing Dan.

It was silly. She wasn't growing a crush on…that boy. She couldn't bear to think of the name now, it was so embarrassing. She wasn't developing a crush, she couldn't be developing a crush, no matter how much he was slowly dominating her thoughts…

No matter what she had nearly written that afternoon.

It was only because he was there, annoying her, and she couldn't focus. There had been too much on her mind, too much…but that didn't excuse the girly script she had used, how much care she had put into it before she had realized what she was doing.

Slowly, she pulled her arm out from under the blanket and let it fall down the side, fingers groping for the little ball. She just had to make sure it really did exist…

Frowning, she stretched her arm farther, hand patting the hardwood floor. But no crinkled bunch of paper made contact with her hand. Probably just rolled under her bed…

* * * * * * * * * * *

Runo slumped down in the chair across from her teacher, waiting for him to stop looking at himself from all angles in a small, hand-held mirror.

Finally, Folman looked up and stared at Runo in surprise. "Masaki? What are you doing here?"

"You called me here," she grumbled, sinking lower in her chair. God, she felt terrible. The past week hadn't been the best, what with the class changes, her tutor, and the fact that the Brawlers had been acting very strangely around her, particularily Alice. They've been acting strangely casual, almost fakely so, and kept giving her weird looks.

Folman frowned, blue eyes searching her over for an answer. Suddenly, his face brightened up as he remembered. "That's right! I wanted to talk about you about your grades…" His gaze half-drifted back to his mirror, before regretfully putting it down.

"Okay…" For some strange and random reason, she wanted to shove that mirror down his throat.

"Now…you were having some trouble with your math classes at first, but those are improving…" He smiled to himself, still believing he was the reason for this improvement.

The real reason was barely any better.

"But with your gym classes…" He sighed dramatically, running a hand through his thick, wavy brown hair. "I was told that you were a star in that class, but with the performance that I have seen in the week since I have taken it over…now, I know that I may be a bit of a distraction…" (A/N: That's something that my math teacher would actually say. Trust me, he is that full of himself. It's hilarious.)

"It's just the…the dancing," Runo interrupted. "It's just not my strongest suit…maybe if we wrapped it up…"

"No," Folman said firmly, crossing his well-muscled arms, which he clearly showed off with the T-shirts he wore. "I have sworn to myself that I will help you with this…disability that prevents you from being able to dance properly! I'm going to turn you into a dancer!"

Runo stared at him in disbelief, trying to restrain her temper. Don't break anything, don't break anything…

* * * * * * * * * * *

"Runo, I believe punching your teacher in the nose might have been a bit of an overreaction," Tigrerra said as her mistress hit herself over and over again with her math textbook, hoping that her parents might unground her if she underwent brain damage. Or might try to find her a proper dancing teacher, seeing as apparently neither of them could dance themselves. Curse hereditary family traits…

"He deserved it," the blue haired girl mumbled, setting her textbook down on her blanket and clutching her aching head. "Ow…that hurt…"

"What is this? Runo punched her teacher in the nose and got grounded? I didn't expect that to happen."

She turned her head sharply upwards, to see a certain villian smirking down at her. "Shut up. I hate you. This is all your fault, I just know it."

"I'm sure it is," he said dryly. "So, I suppose that's the reason why you're home so early?"

She glared at him, picking up her textbook threateningly.

"…I will take that as a yes. Maybe we should get started on the homework."

With another scowl, she crossed her arms, refusing to open her binder. Masquerade cocked his head, confused.

"I'm pretty sure that the reason I'm here is to help you with your homework. It's kind of useless if you won't even get your homework out."

She cast her eyes downwards, thinking hard. It was very possible that it was her only option…she may have to kill herself afterwards, but if it meant that there was a possibility that she could increase her precious gym mark…her parents couldn't dance, and she didn't want to ask her friends. She had a feeling that Dan would never let her live it down…

"Runo?" Masquerade passed a hesitant gloved hand over her eyes. "Are you going to get your homework out?"

Her decision was based strictly on her need to improve her mark. Of course it didn't cross her mind that she should ask him because of any growing feelings…it was just strictly business.

The memory of the piece of paper she had written earlier, still missing, flashed through her head. She quickly squashed it; that had absolutely nothing to do with anything. At all.

Finally, she looked at Masquerade, her sworn enemy/math tutor, and hated herself for what she was about to ask. "Do…do you think you could help me with…dancing?"

~Random Moment That Does Not Actually Pertain To Story But I Felt Like Writing Just For The Sake Of It~

Masquerade had lately been going to bed earlier, grumbling about something or another, and Hydranoid had the sneaking suspicion that it had something to do with tutoring the Brawler girl. However, for once the Darkus Bakugan didn't care. It gave him some…alone time.

"Ooooooh…who lives in a pineapple under the sea?!"

"SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS!"

"Is so full of holes and porous is he?!"

"SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS!"

"If nautical nonsense be something you wish…"

"SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS!"

"Then drop on the deck and flop like a fish!"

"SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS! Sponge-bob, Square-pants, Sponge-bob, Square-pants, Sponge-bob…square…pants…"

Hydranoid trailed away as the light flickered on, revealing a shocked Masquerade, who was staring at the little black ball on the couch incredulously. They stared at each other for a moment, trying to think of what to say. The TV was still blaring loudly.

"…Were you…just singing along to the 'Spongebob Squarepants' theme song?"

"NO! Of course not…heh heh…I mean, it is a stupid human program…stupid human thing…I wouldn't stoop so low as to…IT JUST HAPPENED TO BE ON THIS CHANNEL! I SWEAR, I WASN'T SINGING TO IT! IT ISN'T WHAT YOU THINK!"

"…Sure…"

A/N: …I was strangely giddy when I wrote that. After Chappie 8, I ended up getting this little mental image of an OOC Hydranoid watching the TV…at first, it was some sort of soap…but I don't know any soaps, and that seemed even more clichéd that this scene already was…I had to guess at the lyrics, so sorry if I got anything wrong…but yeah, I just felt like writing that. Doesn't actually have anything to do with the story.