A/N: Sorry for the delay! My life got really uh, crazy, and I haven't had much time to write. Anyways, A VERY KEYSHIPPY CHAPTER THIS ONE IS. Literally, it has everything, but actual kissing and Yuma being Astral's boo! (it'll come eventually...)

Um, before I forget, I totally forgot Heartland City relies on TECHONOLOGYYY whilst writing this...So, just imagine that teacher mentioned is really old-fashioned and wants to show the kids the ~magic~ of paper and pencils.

I am not sorry.
Also, apologies if OOC. I am lame as heck.

I shan't ever OWN ZEXAL.

School Shenanigans

Chapter 5 Vector Shingetsu takes revenge!

It was safe to say Astral had missed a lot on his day out. As when the boy made it to Heartland Academy, he found Ryoga and Rio arguing, which wasn't unusual per say, but this particular argument seemed more intense than normal...but who knew since he didn't even know what they were arguing over in the first place. Either way, Rio eventually stormed off with the indigo haired boy trailing behind her, still grumbling about something. Moving on, Astral noticed Durbe and Mizael were missing, and when the former alien asked Alito and Gilag, the two buffoons had just burst into several fits of laughter. However, the duo later explained that the carrot head, Vector, had gotten and burned Mizael's Tachyon plush, much to the dismay of the blonde dragon tamer. In an attempt to be the mature one of the former emperors, Durbe suggested that the two friends take the day off to hold a funeral for the doll which was something the blonde agreed to almost immediately. As for Vector...Well, he was gone as well, but Astral, as well as the rest of the group, assumed he had skipped school to go terrorize the missing duo some more.

Even though the former astral being was informed on the current events, he couldn't help but wonder how these events were even triggered...And when he asked around, everyone, including Yuma, just avoided the topic altogether.

Eventually, he gave up his quest for knowledge and decided he would just catch up on his school assignments.

When lunch came, he figured he would do his homework. So, sitting cross-legged, he did the assignments, occasionally taking a bite from his lunch. Yuma sat beside him like usual, glancing over his shoulder every now and then while talking to the members of the Numbers Club and eating.

Eventually, the light-haired boy completed a majority as he put the sheets of homework away and fully engrossed himself into completing his meal.

"Are you done?" the black-haired duelist asked almost instantly as he popped a piece of the lunch Astral had prepared for him into his mouth and chewed mindlessly.

"No, but I completed a majority of it...I will finish it when we return home," his best friend responded casually as he took another small bite from his food. Yuma didn't respond but instead took to giving his friend an occasional glance. Astral said nothing. However, he couldn't help but notice that the tanned boy was acting a little unusual. It was as if he was troubled over something unknown to the light-haired male.

Eventually, lunch was over, and it was time for the group of friends to return to class which is what they began to do. However, upon Yuma's request, which he showed by clasping his hand with Astral's, the duo decided to linger behind.

Keeping his stare focused on the embrace the black-haired youth's hand made with his, the former spirit couldn't help but notice how pleasant the sight was. Unfortunately, he wasn't able to focus on the action for much longer as he heard the male call his name.

"Astral."

The former spirit glanced upwards to meet the ruby eyes of his companion, "Yes?"

"I'm sorry," Yuma immediately apologized, bowing his head in shame as his grip on the light blue haired boy's hand tightened.

"...Yuma?"

"I-I...Vector said...He was gonna do really mean things to you," the black-haired boy blabbed, keeping his gaze on the ground for a moment before meeting Astral's mismatched eyes with his own red ones. "I...I accidentally...told everyone his s-secret...and, and..."

He trailed off, staring at the floor again as he released his grip and let his hands fall to his side, "I'm sorry I got you into this..."

"Yuma," the former spirit called, intertwining his hands with those of his companion's once more. The Tsukumo boy glanced upwards with a bewildered and flustered expression, "It will be okay."

"B-but Astral-"

"Yuma," the light haired male stated again in a stern voice, "The worst Vector could do is...try and humiliate me...I think...Regardless, it could be worse as whe-"

Astral wasn't allowed to finish though as Yuma immediately tugged his arm away and enveloped his best friend in a sudden hug.

"Yeah...You're right...It's a little weird to say this...but I...I think I'd rather have him...humiliate us...than lose you again," the tanned boy murmured before pulling away and giving the light-skinned teenager a grin. "Well...I guess we should get going."

A nod from Astral said he agreed.

So, the younger of the duo began to stride towards the interior of the school, holding his best friend's hand once more. The pale male only followed after, not uttering a word.

When the pair reached the inside of the building, Yuma was quick to release his hold on the former spirit's hand as he proceeded to tell him that he had to get to class. With that, he waved and took off running in such a speed, he was gone from the pale male's view within seconds.

Astral then noticed he only had a few minutes to get to his own course. So, he decided to start heading over immediately.

However, it seemed fate had other plans...

Just as he was close to exiting the hallway, the pale skinned boy heard a voice call his name.

"Astral~. Astraaaal~," the voice continued to sing, causing the named to stop in his tracks.

"... Who's there?" the light-haired male asked, standing around but flinched just a little upon discovering a silhouette approach him. However, after a few more steps, he was able the recognize the stranger to be no one other than the carrot head, Vector.

"Don't worry, Asu-kun! It's just a-me, Vector~," chimed the former mad prince, chuckling to himself upon spotting the heterochromatic boy tense a little in response.

"... What do you want?"

"You act as if I want to harm you~! I'm awfully hurt, Asu-kun since I thought all those nasty feelings during the war were gooooone," the orange-haired teenager replied, pouting a little to seem more genuine, but Astral knew better.

The male with light blue hair didn't respond, only staring at the other in a cautious state.

"Ah well, can't blame ya, buuuut...I didn't come here to hurt you or Yuma-kun. I can't say the same for Miza-chan though," Vector stated after a few moments of silence, laughing to himself as he said the last part.

Astral remained silent, eyeing the Shingetsu boy still...He highly doubted that the former mad prince came in peace, but he was acting tame enough...

"Anyways, I'm getting off topic," the orange-haired boy continued, seemingly not minding that he was having a one-sided conversation. "I just stopped by to tell you that I noticed that you and Yuma-kun have a rather close relationship...And I wanted to suggest a thing for you two to try out!"

Cocking an eyebrow, the paler of the two replied, "I do not follow..."

"Haven't you seen couples, Astral?"

"...Couples?" That was a new word for Astral. Of course, he had heard of 'couple' which meant 'small number of things', but 'couples' was new... Perhaps it was plural for 'couple'?

Regardless, the former astral being failed to see what relevance this had with his relationship with the Tsukumo boy.

Anyways, after several moments of Vector resting his face in his palm, the carrot head responded, "Uh...Two people...that have a very special relationship... And..."

The former Barian Emperor paused then shrugged, "I dunno. It's like more special..And uh, sometimes, they do dumb stuff like hold hands...which you two idiots do like every day."

"... I see," the pale male responded, not really sure what to say.

"... ANYWAYS," the carrot head suddenly announced, clearing his throat afterwards. "As I was saying, I just wanted to suggest a thing for you two to try."

Astral failed to respond which resulted in Vector chuckling.

"Don't worry, Astral! Trust me on this one, will ya? I was just gonna ask if you'd consider calling him 'Booma'. It's a cute little pet name I made up for the dummy!"

"...Booma?"

"Clever, huh? It's a combination of 'boo' and 'Yuma'! I'm such a genius," the carrot head proclaimed, grinning a little too goofy for Astral's liking.

It was silent afterwards before the former astral being, in a state of curiosity, asked, "What is a boo?"

Silence resumed as the chipper one of the duo gave an exasperated sigh and replied in a flat tone, "A nickname. Usually to show all that mushy gushy crap you have for your partner."

Partner? Yuma was his partner...

"Hmm..."

"So, yeah? You like my awesome suggestion?"

"I suppose so," the pale male murmured in response, deep in thought.

"Excellent. Well, I'm out. I gotta terrorize Miza-chan some more before I go home. Bye, bye Asu-kun," the carrot head stated, signaling the end of the conversation as he took off, laughing to himself that his plan had most likely worked.

By then, the bell had already rang, signifying lunch was officially over. Basically, Astral was late to class which resulted in the youth panicking a bit and running off.

Still, the topic of his and Vector's conversation was fresh on his mind.

While the boy had sounded sincere enough, Astral wasn't very sure if this was the carrot head's attempt to humiliate him or Yuma. There was a possibility. A strong one at that as Vector was quite talented in deceiving others.

However, the pale male would be sure to ask Kotori what 'boo' was.

Maybe she'd know. And if she knew, then maybe it would help him decide.

To summarize, Vector was right.

Kotori, with much confusion, confirmed so when Astral had asked her.

So, the former spirit figured it wouldn't be too bad to refer to the black-haired teenager as 'Booma'.

Still, he hadn't really any idea when, or how for that matter, he would call Yuma by this name.

Regardless, he tried not to think about it much as he shifted his attention back to the teacher and today's lesson. However, a few minutes in, he ended up averting his stare to the boy, also known as Yuma, sitting next to him. Per usual, the boy wasn't paying attention. Instead, the younger duelist was scribbling on a paper, incredibly focused on writing down whatever he was thinking about.

Finding his partner was fine for the moment, he went back to watching the teacher again. However, just as it was finally getting interesting, the former astral being heard the Tsukumo male whisper his name. The pale teenager only tilted his head to the side to find the tanned youth facing him with his hand outstretched. In his hand sat a folded sheet of paper.

"Take it," Yuma said in a hushed voice to which Astral did.

As he held the fragile item, Astral examined it quickly before he began to carefully open it, trying his best to not make any loud sound. When he completed his goal, he found a small message, in his companion's handwriting, on the little sheet.

'I'm bored :P' It read, and the heterochromatic adolescent couldn't help but roll his eyes. Still, he decided to answer as he placed the sheet of paper on the desk and picked up his pencil.

'Perhaps you should pay attention then' Astral wrote in response before folding it and handing the note towards his best friend. The black haired youth immediately took it with excitement, making a few noises as he hastily unfurled the sheet. However, when he read the former spirit's message, a huff was heard...and then more scribbles. Afterwards, Astral watched the Tsukumo boy push the item back to him.

Rolling his eyes once more, he took it, unfolded the paper, and read the message.

'But Astral, its boriiiiing Dx'

After reading the message, and dully noting that 'Dx' was what Yuma had called an 'emoticon', the former spirit began to write a reply.

'Consider its usefulness for later duels.'

After returning the note once more to the black-haired boy, the pale male patiently waited, and once again, acquired the paper in his hands.

'But I'm already the best! XP I'm the WDC champion. I saved the world. Heh, I even saved you.'

Rolling his eyes, the older of the pair of friends began to write his response.

'Of course. I failed to realize you are absolutely the best, Booma.'

With that, Astral handed the sheet back to Yuma and took to watching the instructor. Upon reading the note once more, the tanned boy's eyes widened in shock, and in a confused and too loud tone, said, "Booma?!"

So, it was no surprise when most, if not all, of his classmates turned to stare at Yuma as a faint blush formed on the duelist's cheeks in embarrassment.

Even worse, the teacher seemed to have heard as she immediately turned to face the boy, obviously annoyed that the black-haired youth had interrupted her, "Excuse me?"

"N-nothing!" Yuma was quick to respond as he quickly tried to hide the note. Much to his dismay, the teacher seemed to notice as she approached the boy and extended her hand.

"Let me see what you're hiding, Yuma," she demanded to which the black-haired teenager flinched and shook his head quickly. Pestered, the teacher spoke again. "Yuma, give it to me or detention."

Hesitantly, the tanned male complied as he handed the sheet with his and Astral's handwriting over to the teacher. Almost immediately, the teacher began to unfold the paper, and with every intent of embarrassing as well as teaching a lesson to the Tsukumo boy, she began to read it out loud.

For the most part, Yuma just gazed around, hopeful the instructor would be just a little merciful and stop before she could reach the end of the conversation. However, no such luck happened for the boy.

"Of course. I failed to realize you are absolutely the best, Booma," the teacher's monotone voice rang throughout the class. Instantly, barely audible whispers were heard from the Tsukumo boy's peers. The instructor paid no mind however as she then turned to Astral and asked, "Astral, I am to assume you were the one swapping notes with Yuma?"

The light haired male confirmed so by nodding his head, and then, gasps, whispers, and about one squeal erupted throughout the room.

"Yuma and Astral are dating?"

"Aww, Booma is such a cute name!"

"Told you they were dating!"

Yuma could only remain silent as his face flushed a vibrant shade of red. He wasn't dating his best friend!

Glancing over to see his best friend's reaction, the tanned youth turned to find the girl who sat in front of Astral was pestering him with questions about the "secrets of their relationship". However, the pale male only blinked and asked what she meant in response.

"ENOUGH!" the instructor's voice shouted as she placed the paper back on the black-haired boy's desk and stalked over to the front of the classroom. "Tsukumo and World's relationship, whatever it is, is not the focus of this class. So, drop it, and let us continue with the lesson."

A few groans rang throughout the classroom, but the students, with much disappointment, did as they been instructed.

And for once, Yuma was grateful they were returning to the lesson.

Yuma hadn't been speaking to Astral. In fact, Yuma hadn't been speaking to anyone at all.

This worried his friends, especially Kotori. It also didn't help that people had started to spread rumors about the boy's false relationship with his best friend.

As for Astral, he didn't really seem to mind other than the fact several girls had began to start following him, often cheering, "There's true yaoi in the world!"

Besides that, it was really not a problem, but the former spirit did notice that it seemed to trouble Yuma.

And with seeing Yuma bothered, the light haired boy began to feel bad as well...As if he had somehow wronged his friend. However, when he asked, the Tsukumo boy would just shake his head and claim Astral hadn't done anything wrong.

Not that the pale male believed him, but he didn't pester him on it further.

However, when the duo began to make their way home like always, Kotori had asked Astral to speak to the younger duelist; claiming that if anyone could make him talk, it was Astral himself.

The light-haired male had only nodded and promised to try his best.

So, here the duo sat, in the attic. Yuma had situated himself in the hammock, sorting through his deck while Astral watched the 'magic box' without much interest.

The reasoning being he was too focused on how to try talking to Yuma. Sadly, he had no clue how, but the former spirit needed to talk to the boy sometime today...

So, nonchalantly, he called, "Yuma."

He turned to face the tanned boy and found the deck of cards sprawled out on Yuma's chest as the younger of the duo began to quickly collect his cards.

Upon gaining his composure, the boy replied, "Y-Yeah?"

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah! I'm feeling awesome. I mean I had a lot of awesome du-"

"Yuma."

"What?"

"Do not lie to me. You have not been acting normal since the incident i-"

Yuma interjected, "I don't wanna talk about that."

"But Yu-"

"Astraaaal," the black-haired boy whined, interrupting his friend once more. "Let's just forget it happened, okay?"

"Very well, but you seemed shaken up by the situation."

"W-Well, of course! I don't want people to think I'm dating my best friend!"

"Dating...? What is that? I don't believe you have mentioned it before."

"Oh. Um, remember that one time you asked me what kissing was?"

"I believe so...It was the odd gesture those two people were doing on the magic box, correct?"

"TV, but yeah. People who are dating usually kiss. Or sometimes, they hold hands."

"Hold hands..." Astral repeated, narrowing his eyes as he took this information in. "Yuma...are you sure we are not dating?"

A thud was then heard as the black-haired boy fell off the hammock in surprise. However, he immediately sat up in bewilderment, "W-What?!"

"Well, you said some people who are dating hold hands...and Vector did mention that we held hands often and that we had a special relationship," Astral continued, deep in thought. "I suppose it would make sense for him suggesting that I call you 'Booma' then..."

"W-what? Vector?! That-" the duelist began to say but instead, fell silent.

"Hmm?"

"That jerk!" huffed the tanned boy as he stood up, clenching his fists. "I'm gonna get him tomorrow! I knew he would try something, but he took it too far!"

"I don't understand...Care to explain?"

"You know how I said I spilled his secret? And that he was gonna get back at me by doing bad things to you?"

"Yes, but I fail to see the relevance."

"This is his revenge!"

"I don't see how though. He has not exactly caused any harm..."

Yuma paused for a moment before gazing away, "He...He thinks I...like you."

"I thought you did...since we are friends?"

"N-no! Like, dating-like...which I don't, because you're my best friend, Astral!"

"I see."

Silence overcame the two boys as Yuma awkwardly sat beside his best friend. Astral had returned to watching the television, but eventually, his mind drifted towards the conversation that had just occurred.

"Astral."

"Yes?

"Do...Do you ever think..." the black-haired male trailed off, starting at the ground for a moment before continuing, "...of...us dating?"

"I'm not quite certain. It is still an odd topic for me to understand."

"Yeah, me too..." the Tsukumo boy murmured in response, giving a faint laugh before he was quiet again. "Well, I guess I'm going to bed now...Night, Astral...and don't stay up too late, okay?"

Astral nodded in response before noticing ESPer Robin beginning to play, much to his excitement. Eagerly, he fully focused his attention on the show, giving a small grin. The duelist only stared with an amused expression, obviously enjoying the sight of Astral beaming at the TV.

However, before he knew it, he began leaning over to the former spirit and awkwardly placed his lips on his most important's cheek. The light haired boy froze at the action, and momentarily ignoring the show, turned to peer at the reddened Tsukumo teenager.

"S-Sorry," the tanned boy immediately apologized as he stood up and proceeded to climb down the attic, deciding it was probably better he sleep in his bed than the hammock for tonight. "Won't happen again. Night!"

Astral only blinked as he then placed his hand on his cheek, curious about the reasoning for Yuma's abrupt actions.

He'd have to ask Yuma about it tomorrow...but right now, he wanted to enjoy ESPer Robin.

A/N: TA-DA! I do not apologize in the slightest. B)

Anyways, join me next chapter in which we focus on Astral's quest to figure out what his and Yuma's relationship is. (Or something like that).

Starring Rio, Kotori, and III! ('cause III and Rio friendship needs to be a thing)

Fun fact: Yuma and Astral were supposed to kiss, but suspense is fun. Plus, I forgot I have different plans for that. c:

Anyways, I'm eternally taking suggestions/ideas for a chapter (as I'm going to focus on different characters at times), so yeah. :P

Read, review, watch TV late at night, or not! :D

With that, I take my leaf! *throws leaves*

See ya next chapter!