Fortunately, Chisa ended up alright. Though she was mentally tortured by Junko for who knows how long, she was still able to smile at her students when she woke up. According to Mikan, she should probably take the rest of the year off for her work. But Chisa had insisted that it would be better for her to spend her time with the class, and that she was just tired.
As promised, Izuru had explained most of what happened to her.
"Junko Enoshima, along with her sister Mukuro Ikusaba, are obsessed with a concept known as Despair. They planned to throw this class into Despair by forcing your beloved teacher into Despair." Izuru glanced pointedly at Junko who was sitting in a corner, still tied up. When she noticed that he was staring at her, she stuck her tongue out and turned away. "She had kidnapped her and forced her to watch a series of gore videos that were overlayed with edited audio and visual effects in order to brainwash her. When this didn't work however, Mukuro had attempted to use outside stimuli through lobotomizing her. I stopped her before they could go far with it."
"Junko... isn't she just a fashion model?" The Impostor asked. "One that is generally described as ditsy at that. How would someone like her pull off a plan like this?"
"She has the talent of the Ultimate Analyst." Izuru said. "Meaning she can predict most of what's going to happen. Your behavior, your thoughts, your actions... all of it."
"Thatssss right baby!" Junko squealed. "I'm completely omniscient! I know everything!"
"She is not omniscient," Izuru said.
As he said this, the headmaster walked into the infirmary. He had a deeply concerned look etched into his face as he goes over to Chisa. "Yukizome, how are you feeling?"
"I'm just tired, that's all." Chisa said, weakly waving her hand. "I should be ready to get back to teaching after some sleep though."
"Yukizome, you must not overwork yourself. I understand that you had just went through a taxing ordeal. It would be fine for you to take an extended leave for the remainder of the school ye-"
"Absolutely not!" Chisa managed to object firmly, despite her haggard state. "I won't leave my students behind! Especially not during the final stretch for the year!"
"But Yukiz-"
"No objections. I will be fine."
"..."
Chisa gave him a reassuring smile. "I promise, okay?"
Sighing, Kirigiri rubbed the bridge of his nose. "In any case, I have reported this incident to the authorities. Junko and her accomplice will be prosecuted in a court of law."
Hope's Peak has always covered up Junko's various misdemeanors. This was because of her rare analyst talent - she was too valuable to give up. But this was taking it way too far. Not even Hope's Peak board of trustees would be able to cover something like this up, not with the entire class witnessing what had happened.
"WHAAAAAT?!" Junko screamed. "Prosecuted? I'm going to jail? Are you serious?! That's the lamest punishment you could have given me! Can't you just fucking execute me or something? Whatever happened to the electric chair! A guillotine? What about a good old fashioned hanging?"
Scooching over to Mukuro, Junko began to kick her sister in the face. "Muku! They're actually going to send us to jail! Can you believe it? Isn't that ridiculous?"
As she was still unconscious, Mukuro didn't respond.
"Please, leave the issue to me. I will ensure that this clears up as cleanly as possible. You students should get back to your dorms." Kirigiri shook his head in apparent disgust, face twisted into a tight grimace. "For something like this to happen in my campus... it is unthinkable."
Chiaki was a rather sharp girl. She could usually pick out small details and had a pretty good intuition. This proved pretty useful in mystery games such as Phoenix Wrong and Dragonronpa. However, when it came to things about her own emotions and social ques, she could be... slow.
Exhibit A: Izuru Kamukura.
When Chiaki had met him for the first time, she had immediately taken a keen interest in him. That interest grew to a sort of awe when she realized that he was better at video games then she was. So she started to spend as much time as possible with him. She wanted to be with him. She felt this compulsion to just break through Izuru's wall and become his friend.
Not only did she want to become Izuru's friend, but she also wanted Izuru to become friends with everyone else. While that hadn't really happened, (Even if he did help them out, Izuru acted as cold as ever to his classmates) she had become Izuru's friend...
I think.
While Chiaki had openly acknowledged Izuru has her friend, Izuru had never actually called her his friend. That could mean that Izuru didn't see her in such a friendly light, but...
No. Izuru is my friend. It's as simple as that
After a while, Izuru had begun to change. The wall that he had set around himself had begun to thin out. He was extremely reclusive, not caring about anything at all. He always complained about boredom and was extremely colds towards everyone. While he was still cold and reclusive now, he definitely cared a little bit. Plus, his complaints about boredom had died down significantly. As Izuru changed, so did Chiaki. She was anti-social and used to never even attempt to initiate conversations. She always just looked down at a screen and ignored everyone else. But now, she could act like... well, act like a normal person.
Eventually, the mere mention of 'Izuru' was enough to make her heart start racing. She had no idea why, but she had started to get really nervous when she was around Izuru.
Then, Izuru had said those things to her. He had expressed interest in her. That day, as soon as she got home, she booted up her computer. She then proceeded to buy and download a dating sim. It was rather generic, being filled with boys that fit pretty much every stereotype out there. And of course one of those stereotypes would be the brooding emo guy.
She went for that one.
Dating sims were her worst genre by far. It was actually the only genre that she was bad at. She could never pick up on subtle hints in the character's texts and was terrible at picking dialogue options. But even so, she kept replaying this sim over and over again until she got the 'good' ending.
After that, she only had gotten even more confused about Izuru. This was around the time when Izuru had gone with her to the amusement park. Why was she so attached to the rabbit doll he had given her? Why did she keep flashing back to when Izuru had carried her down a flight of stairs? Why did she think about how sturdy his arms were and how she was so close to him that she could pick out details present on his face?
It was only during the middle of summer vacation that she realized.
It was only after she was polishing up her 4th dating sim game that she realized.
This game had a character pretty similar to Izuru. Cold and unfriendly, red eyes, and he even had long hair. Even his name was close to Izuru - Isura. Naturally, this was the character that Chiaki had pursued for this dating sim. But as she played, Isura had eventually said something that caused Chiaki's brain to... click.
Isura had told her that she was boring.
"..." Chiaki blinked sluggishly as she read this. She then thinks back to her other playthroughs.
Why am I practicing dating sims...? Actually, why am I picking the characters that are similar to Izuru?
...
...
...
Finally, she realized.
Izuru quickly skimmed through a newspaper. Caught in a cloud of boredom, he had picked one up randomly on a whim. He already knew what was going to be in the newspaper, but he decided to read it anyway. It wasn't as if there was anything else to do.
"Famous Model convicted! Enoshima revealed to be a psychopath?"
That puts an end to that.
Sighing he put the paper down and looked around. As he had nowhere left to go, the school let him stay in his dorm during summer vacation. The room hadn't changed a single bit since he had started living here, other than the pile of plushies he had won at the amusement park. He had just dumped them into the corner so that they would be out of the way. Aside from that, his room was still as empty as it was at the beginning of the year.
So why did he feel like something was missing?
It was a powerful nagging feeling, one that annoyed Izuru to his core. It was illogical - nothing of importance had changed in his dorm. So why did he feel as if there was something that should be here, but isn't?
Scowling, Izuru stood from his desk and took a look around his dorm. He scanned every single inch of the place, until...
Izuru picked up a single strand of hair. It was slightly curled, and light pink. For a moment, Izuru just stood there. His usually sharp eyes cloud over as he stared at this single hair.
...
So, that was it? Truth be told, Izuru had not seen Chiaki in several weeks. She had no idea that he was still living in his dorm, so she never came to visit anymore. Instead of wandering around town like he did one year ago, he instead spent most of his time indoors. He only went out to bring food and water back into his dorm.
He didn't own a phone either, so it wasn't as if Chiaki could call or text him. In other words, they were pretty much completely separated.
Izuru... was bothered by this.
Why?
I had taken an interest in Chiaki, but only because her presence caused my predictions to become unreliable. She was an interesting specimen to observe. But now, even while I'm not near her, my behavior is changed. I s that why I feel so attracted to Chiaki? I have been searching for an answer to my boredom ever since I had been brought to this world. Is Chiaki my answer after all?
Thinking back on it, he hadn't felt an extreme sense of boredom while he was with Chiaki. While still bored, it felt... tolerable. But since school was over and he had stopped meeting her, Izuru felt that crippling boredom touch him again.
If Chiaki was truly the solution for his boredom, then... perhaps he should make more of an effort to be with her. While he didn't know where she lived, if he wandered around, he was sure that he could bump into her eventually. If not by sheer coincidence from his Ultimate Luck, then he could simply deduce where she is.
But it was rather irritating that Izuru hadn't realized this sooner. Why had it taken so long for him to realize that Chiaki was a solution to his boredom?
I had a year to come to that rather simple conclusion... yet I hadn't.
Thinking back on it, Izuru realized that his behavior had become extremely unusual. He had done and said many unnecessary things, with seemingly no purpose. Why had his behavior changed so much?
Well, the answer was the same. The answer to everything he had been wondering about was the same. To his boredom, to his strange behavior, to his confusing emotions, the answer to these things were all the same.
He should have realized it much, much sooner.
Chiaki Nanami...
Chiaki stared out the window. It was quite bright out, but tinges of oranges were already streaking the sky. After some recollection, she had decided that she wasn't in the mood for video games. Instead of playing dating sims, talking to guys that looked like Izuru, she would much rather talk to the real thing.
But where is he?
Sighing in frustration, Chiaki put her hand up to her forehead. I'm such an idiot... I didn't ask for his phone number or e-mail! Do I even want to stay in touch with him?
Of course, she did want to stay in touch with Izuru. But for whatever reason, she didn't ask for any contact information during the last day of school. In fact, she didn't even talk to him that much that day.
Mentally cursing herself, she started pacing around her room. What could she do...? If she didn't find a way to contact Izuru, she might really lose his friendship. There wasn't any guarantee that Izuru would come to school next year - she knew that he was a drifter. In fact, there wasn't any guarantee Izuru would even be in Japan next year.
"Ah, screw it." Chiaki muttered under her breath. Without a second thought, she opened her door and ran outside. She had no idea where she was going, but she had one goal in mind.
Izuru.
Once again, Izuru stood in his bathroom and stares into the mirror. Physically, he hadn't changed much. However, Izuru's keen observation skills could pick out some differences. His sharp red eyes had rounded somewhat - they were no longer as piercing as they used to be. His normally cold expression had also softened a slight degree.
It was interesting. Slowly but surely, Izuru was changing - both physically and mentally. But what would the end result for these changes be?
Change. Change is good.
Change brought new experiences. Different experiences. That was all that Izuru had ever wanted. But if Izuru wanted to change further, he needed to be with Chiaki. She was a necessity.
Slowly, Izuru walked out of his bathroom. Chiaki's location was unknown. However, she would probably be easy to find. The problem was if she would be willing to spend time with him. During the last day of school, Chiaki hadn't talked to him much and didn't ask him for any way to contact him. Did this mean that she was trying to break him off?
Several evaluations of Chiaki's personalty told him otherwise. Despite this, the slim possibility kept eating away at him. To worry like this was illogical. In fact, most of Izuru's thoughts were illogical these days... well actually, emotional would probably describe his thoughts better.
Now that was a word that Izuru would have never thought to describe himself with. 'Emotional'.
Well, he was finding himself being dumbfounded by more and more things recently, why not one more thing to add onto the pile? Sure, Izuru was experiencing emotions right now. And these emotions told him that he needed to find Chiaki. Why not? So many new experiences, all at once... It was overwhelming.
Shaking his head, Izuru swiftly walked out of his dorm room. He was going to go outside, but not for food or water. He had one goal in mind.
Chiaki.
"Wandering around aimlessly, without purpose."
Chiaki recalled this quote from Izuru as she walked around town, eyes scanning for any sight of him. That was one of his hobbies, so perhaps she actually had a good chance of finding him this way. It was kind of funny that Chiaki was wandering around to find a wanderer, but she didn't draw any humor from this situation. She had already been walking around for half an hour and there seemed to be no sign of Izuru.
The small streaks of orange that had tinted the sky had grown into large streams. Soon, these streams grew into oceans As the time passed, so did Chiaki's energy. Initially, she ran around the city with an almost manic energy. But now, she couldn't bring herself to do more then a speedwalk. She was tired.
She even asked passing pedestrians if they had seen Izuru. He would definitely stand out from a crowd, so she figured that if he was out here someone must have caught a glimpse of him. But unfortunately, no one saw anyone that fitted his description.
For several hours she had been circling around, searching everywhere. She even checked inside of various stores and buildings, as if Izuru would, for some reason, be loitering inside one. But there really was no sign of him.
"I really am wandering aimlessly..." Chiaki muttered to herself. "Where in the world is Izuru?"
For the hundredth time that day, Chiaki desperately looked around her. However this time, something caught her eye. Off in the distance, she spotted the tip of Hope's Peak Academy. Even from so far away, the building was visible and stood out. The glare of the sun reflected off of the building, causing Chiaki to squint a little as she stared at it.
Now that she thought about it, she hadn't even thought to check the area around Hope's Peak. It was closed for the summer, so it hadn't crossed her mind. But out of everywhere, that might actually be the place where Izuru was most likely to be at. What if he had decided to stay in his dorm? He had mentioned that he didn't have any other place to call home at one point.
With newfound determination, Chiaki quickly sprinted off to Hope's Peak. Izuru had to be there. There was no where else he could be!
Scowling, Izuru glared at the sky. Since when did time go by so fast? Before he knew it, the sky had turned fully orange, and yet there was no sign of Chiaki anywhere. Time had always passed slowly for Izuru - drowning in boredom, the seconds felt like hours. But now, seconds were just regular seconds. Izuru had confidence that he could easily find Chiaki. He had countless talents that could help him track down a person, and if all else failed, he could still rely on his luck.
But for once in his life, his talent fails him. Somehow, for some reason, he couldn't find a single trace of Chiaki. Perhaps she was travelling out of Japan? It was summer, so the idea was not entirely out of the question. If that was the case, then Izuru would have no chance of going after her - he didn't even have a passport.
Perhaps I could manufacture a personal aircraft. I'd have to find the materials, but I could outfit it so that it won't be detected by conventional radars, bypassing international travel laws.
As Izuru brainstormed, he turned to face Hope's Peak. Even from a few kilometers away, he could still see the outline of the building in the sunset.
Hope's Peak... the school that gave me talent.
In a sense, Hope's Peak had stolen his life. Any chance for livelihood and joy seemed to be stolen with it. He was bitter, but he wasn't mad. He knew that Hajime had gone into this project of his own free will. He was a talent-less leech, albeit one that was self aware. It was only natural for someone like him to do anything for talent. It seemed irrational to get mad at something he had brought upon himself.
As he stared at the outline of Hope's Peak, a sudden jolt runs across his chest. It was as if someone had shocked him with a taser. He had effectively combed most of the city, and not a single clue of Chiaki had appeared... that could mean that she truly was not here.
But Izuru's logical reasoning brought him to one conclusion. Or was it emotional reasoning? He couldn't really tell the difference yet. At any rate, Chiaki had to be at Hope's Peak. Whether she had arrived there while he was searching or if she was always there, Izuru didn't know. But it was the only place he hadn't thoroughly explored. He had rushed out without bothering.
It seemed that his short search would soon come to an end.
Chiaki stared down at her feet, unable to do or say anything. She was so sure that he would be here, and yet... not a single trace. She had called his name, looked everywhere, even broke into the school by jumping over a gate. She tried knocking on his dorm, but no one answered. He wasn't anywhere. Not inside the school, not in the dorms, not near the school grounds, nothing.
She was sitting on the base of a large stone fountain - this was a place that she always went to in order to clear her mind. The last time she had been here, she was sitting on the bench next to the fountain. Izuru had come by and offered to cook her a meal.
Eyes glazing over, she recalled those events. She remembered that day vividly - he had cooked her the best lunch she had ever eaten. Smoked salmon topped with dill and capers, as well as two bread rolls.
After that, he had walked her to his room... and then...
"Who are you, Chiaki Nanami?"
Right as he said that, she felt her heart start doing somersaults. She could also tell her face was burning up completely. It didn't exactly help that he had his face so close to hers either...
Was that when I started crushing on him?
Thinking back on it, the answer was no. She had probably started liking him ever since they met. When he revealed that he knew what Gala Omega was and that he was actually good at it, then... that was probably the turning point.
From her hoodie pocket, Chiaki pulled out her Gameboy and booted it on.
Gala Omega
Instead of playing though, she simply stared at the screen. In stark contrast to its rather plain gameplay, the title screen for it was unusually bright and fancy. The words 'Gala Omega' were printed in a large green font, clashing with its dark blue background.
After a few minutes, Chiaki slowly brought her hand up to her hair. She unclipped the hair pin that she had been wearing for years - a pixel model of the Gala Omega ship. Shifting her eyes to the hair clip, she shut off her Gameboy and stuffed it back inside of her pocket.
On the very first day of school, Izuru had recognized it.
"A Gala Omega hair pin..."
He was the only one out of the whole class to know that it was from Gala Omega. His recognition of it had prompted her to let him play on her Gameboy... was he as good as she was?
Of course, the answer was yes. Not only was he as good as her, he was better. While they had tied high scores, his movements were much more precise then hers. Watching him play was beautiful. It was the most perfect gameplay that Chiaki had ever seen in her life. She instantly recognized the skill gap between the both of them.
What I wouldn't give to see him play Gala Omega again.
Letting out a small growl of frustration, Chiaki is suddenly filled with an irrational sense of anger.
All of this was my fault... How could I forget something as simple as asking Izuru for contact information?! It's because my mind is constantly on video games... Stupid, dumb video games... Now, I might not ever see him again!
Suddenly, Chiaki threw her hair clip as far away as she could. She could see it glint slightly in the sunlight as it flies away from her. As she threw it though, she instantly became overwhelmed with regret. She had won it in a gaming contest a very long time ago. It was the first time that someone other then herself recognized that she was talented in gaming. Ever since she won it, she had always kept it close to her... and now she had thrown it away in a petty tantrum.
Slowly, Chiaki tilted her head down and closed her eyes. It was getting late. On top of that, she had spent the entire day running around like a maniac, trying desperately to find Izuru.
She was exhausted. All she wanted to do was to rest. That's why she didn't say anything, or even open her eyes as she heard someone sit down next to her.
As soon as Izuru entered the grounds to Hope's Peak, he immediately went straight to his dorms. There were only two places where Chiaki would be if she was really here - his dorms, and at that fountain.
But as he reached his room, he found no one standing outside of his door. He remembered that Chiaki used to wait out here for hours, all for the opportunity to be with him. She constantly knocked on his door and even if he didn't answer, she just sat out here.
Though it was pointless, he unlocked his room and walked in. After a quick scan, he confirms that she wasn't here.
That meant that she had to be at that fountain.
She had to be.
She had to be.
Breaking off to a brisk jog, Izuru made his way outside. The stone fountain was located a fair distance away from the school's main building. If he didn't hurry there, perhaps Chiaki would decide to go home... it was rather late after all.
But as he approached the fountain, his worries are immediately calmed as he noticed two things.
First, there was Chiaki's Gala Omega hair clip. For some reason it was on the ground, caught snugly between a few blades of grass. For a split second, Izuru thought that something may have happened to her, but the second thing he noticed had disproved that thought.
It was the distant figure of Chiaki, sitting on the base of the stone fountain.
Picking up Chiaki's hair clip, he walks over to her. Her head was tilted downwards and her eyes were closed. She looked as if she were sleeping.
Izuru sat down on the fountain next to her. If she noticed him, then she didn't show it. She just remained completely still with that peaceful expression on her face. In fact, if Izuru were anyone else, he probably would think that she was actually sleeping. However, he noticed that her breaths were deep and slightly irregular. This indicated that she was awake.
As Izuru studied her for the next few minutes, he eventually realized that something about her appearance was... off.
Unconsciously, Izuru slowly raised his right hand towards Chiaki. It was the hand that was holding her hair clip. Before he could even realize what he was doing, he carefully clips it on to her hair, at the exact same spot where it was usually adorned.
It attached smoothly.
As soon as he does this, Chiaki finally reacted. She flinched as her eyes flied open. She immediately turned her head to face Izuru. The two just stared at each other, neither person willing to say anything.
They just looked at each other, unblinkingly. The deafening silence spread through the air like a thick fog.
They stayed like that for a while.
After what seemed like an eternity, Chiaki finally opened her mouth.
"I-Izuru?" Chiaki asked in a trembling voice.
Am I dreaming? I must have nodded off while I was resting on the fountain. This is just a hallucination.
"Chiaki."
Chiaki suddenly rushed forward, pulling Izuru into a hug. Since they were both sitting down, the hug ended up being a bit awkward. It didn't matter though - all that mattered was that he was here. No, he was not a hallucination. He was very much real. As she locked her arms around him, she sunk her face into his chest and closed her eyes. She could feel his soft, silky hair tickle her face. Despite being so robotic, he was actually really warm...
Warm. comfortable.
She quickly pulled away from Izuru and looked away, embarrassed. Her face quickly became a likeness of the reddening sky.
"Sorry."
Izuru blinked. "There is nothing to apologize for."
"I just hugged you so suddenly. I mean, you don't really seem like the type to... w-well, the type that likes physical contact." Chiaki said awkwardly. It was true - he seemed like the type that would kill you if you shook his hand for too long. In fact, everything from his pale skin to his sharp red eyes suggested that Izuru would be cold to the touch, like a corpse.
But as Chiaki now knew, he was warm and very much alive.
"There is no reason for me to dislike physical contact." Izuru said in a matter of fact manner. "If you wish to hug me, then I have no qualms with your decision."
"You don't dislike it, but do you like it?" Chiaki asked. "Izuru, it's okay for you to have your own preferences, you know?"
"I have preferences."
"Oh yeah?" Chiaki asked with a raised brow. "Like what?"
"I prefer to spend time with you above most other activities." Izuru said simply.
"I-I see." The blush that was present on Chiaki's face spreads. She knew that was only because he wanted to study her, but for him to say it so bluntly...
"Anyway," Chiaki said, quickly changing the subject. "Where were you?"
"I was in the city. Looking for you."
Chiaki sits up and stared at him incredulously. "You were looking for me?"
"Yes. When I didn't find you, I returned to Hope's Peak."
Chiaki shook her head. At the exact same time Chiaki was searching for Izuru, Izuru was in turn searching for her. This must have meant that both of them were circling around each other until Chiaki finally decided to go to Hope's Peak. If she had just stayed put, then maybe Izuru would have found her a long time ago. It was just a twist of bad timing.
As she thinks this, Izuru's expression shifted slightly. It seemed that he had guessed what had happened as well. "You were searching for me as well."
"Yeah."
"I see." Izuru said. Then, something truly amazing happened. The corners of Izuru's mouth slightly tilt up as his eyes soften. His normally stoic face breaks down into a more peaceful expression. For a second, Chiaki couldn't even comprehend what had just occurred. It was impossible - not in a million years did Chiaki ever think that this would happen.
Izuru was smiling.
Not once during the whole year did Chiaki see Izuru smile. In fact, she had rarely even seen his face deviate from his normally apathetic expression. She felt that she should probably take a picture of this just so that she could preserve the moment - she might never see it again. Inexplicably, she began to smile in return.
"I appreciate that you were concerned about me." Izuru said. And just as abruptly it had appeared, his smile vanished. The only trace of his smile that had remained was the warm feeling in her chest.
"Were you concerned about me too?"
"... I suppose so." Izuru said.
"O-Oh. I see."
What he had experienced during his search for Chiaki... there was no denying that he was worried. He felt as if that it was necessary for him to find her. Izuru had been filled with anxiety for the whole day, up until he found Chiaki. When he found her, all of that anxiety completely disappeared. It was illogical - it wasn't as if Chiaki was vital to his survival or safety. It wasn't logical but Izuru now knew that it was emotional. For whatever reason, Izuru felt an emotional connection to Chiaki.
Emotions.
Izuru knew how to read and manipulate emotions. It was one of his many talents. However, he always had trouble feeling emotions. This wasn't to say that he was an unfeeling robot - Izuru could always emote. However, he rarely felt any strong emotions. The extent of his feelings were basically just annoyance and disappointment.
But now, Chiaki had given him emotions. Joy, anxiety, relief, sorrow, and he could predict that if he were to stay with her, then he would probably experience more.
"Chiaki."
As Izuru said her name, a shiver ran down her spine. She would probably never get used to it. She couldn't explain it but whenever he said her name, it just feels right. It almost felt intimate.
"I would like to stay by your side for the foreseeable future, if that is alright with you."
"W-What?!" Chiaki yelped, jumping up in shock. As a result, she nearly fell backwards directly into the fountain. Thankfully, she managed to upright herself before that could happen.
Chiaki breathed a sigh of relief before turning to Izuru with a bewildered look. "What do you mean by stay by my side?"
"Exactly what it sounds like. I wish to be with you," Izuru said.
"B-But... that is, I mean, w-why?" Chiaki stammered, face bearing a striking resemblance to a tomato. Instantly, she mentally facepalms. What a stupid question! She just blurted it from her mouth without even thinking. But she couldn't help it - the way Izuru had said that... how could he say it with such a straight face?!
Izuru glanced up at the sky as he ponders in silence. After what seemed like an eternity, he finally spoke.
"Chiaki, you are... special. You have made me feel emotions that I have never felt before. As I have recently learned, I can not predict my own emotions," Izuru said, looking back at Chiaki. His expression could only be described as serene. "That is what I have been craving ever since I was brought to this world. Unpredictability. I don't want to know what the future holds for me. I had been searching for an answer... and I may have found it within you. Chiaki, you have given me a reason to live. That's why I want to stay by your side. Whether you treat me as a tool for my talents, as a companion, or as something else, that would be up to you. I only wish to be with you."
"Chiaki couldn't think of anything to say. What could she say to that? Her mind felt as if it were shutting down. If only this were a video game, then she would have some dialogue options she could just pick from. Instead, she had to think of some sort of response herself. It was unfair.
"I... ah..." Chiaki coughed into her hand. "Sorry, that is to say..."
While Chiaki fumbled with her words, Izuru just sat there, staring at her patiently.
"You know, I-Izuru..."
"..."
"I've always had a crush on you!" Chiaki blurted out. Immediately, she wished she could shove those words back into her mouth. Where in the world did that come from?! Why did she say that?! She hadn't even been thinking about telling him that, and yet... it just came out with zero warning.
Meanwhile, Izuru hadn't reacted at all. In fact, it was as if he hadn't even heard her.
"I..." Chiaki started.
"Does this mean you wish to be in a romantic relationship?" Izuru asked. It was nearly imperceptible, but if you looked closely, you could see the hints of a blush on Izuru's cheeks. But in the sunset, it could have been written off as the light coming from the sun.
For some reason, as soon as Izuru asks this, his head starts pounding. Steam seems to almost cloud his vision as a distinct buzzing noise fills his ears. Yet again, Chiaki had shown him a new experience... was this also an emotion? Perhaps it was embarrassment.
"Because if that is what you want, then-"
"Izuru!" Chiaki pouted. Out of nowhere, a fiery look appeared in her eyes as she grasped both of his hands. Despite her newfound vigor, a blush was still visible on her cheeks. "Don't give me some neutral statement like 'If that is what you want'! Tell me your decision!"
"My decision..." Izuru echoed.
"You can get predictable too, you know! You've been using those same neutral statements for the entire school year! Do you want to be in a... a romantic... I mean, do you want to be my boyfr..." Chiaki sighed heavily and shook her head. She couldn't bring herself to say something so blunt. Her throat just seemed to close up. "Do you want to be... closer?"
Izuru looked at Chiaki's hands which were still wrapped around his. Her warmth seemed to seep into him, causing his heart rate to go up. Despite his calm expression, he felt undeniable anxiety. Even though he was not in any danger, he was nervous and almost scared.
Did he want to be her boyfriend? Izuru thought about it for a few seconds. That was all he needed.
"Yes, I would like to be your-"
Before Izuru could even finish his sentence, Chiaki leaned forward and kissed Izuru. It was an action that was purely instinctual, one that she hadn't even really meant to do. Her body just moved without consulting her brain. His lips were incredibly soft, almost impossibly so. Pleasure filled her from head to toe as every atom that made up her body seemed to vibrate.
After a couple of seconds, she pulled away. She put her hands up to her mouth, touching her lips as if she couldn't believe what just happened. She felt incredibly light-headed. It was only a small kiss, one that only lasted for a few seconds. Yet, she felt amazing.
"Chiaki..."
Chiaki leaned towards Izuru and pulled him into a hug, putting her cheek up to his chest. He was so solid, so there. All she wanted was to stay like this forever, safely in his embrace and surrounded by his warmth. She could hear his heartbeat - it was strong and beating fast. Chiaki allowed herself a small, contented smile - she had made his heart race like this.
Izuru carefully wrapped his arms around Chiaki and pulled her closer, closing his eyes. Words couldn't begin to describe how he was feeling. That was just the way that he wanted it. True emotions seemed to be indescribable, unpredictable.
And the best part?
He wasn't bored.
