Chapter 05: Sumire -Devotion

My mind was blank.

I don't remember how I got to my classroom. I don't remember how I managed to get the right textbooks for my classes. I don't remember what was said or what I did - I was running on auto-pilot fumes that seemed to remember what I did every day.

My mind was a mess.

Mitsuya kissed me! Mitsuya kissed me! Mitsuya kissed me!

The hell? The hell? The hell? The hell?!

I gripped the handles of the rooftop's safety rails and groaned, blatantly ignoring Ryusei rolling on the ground, who was laughing his ass off. I glanced at the way the pink-haired dumbass with black stripes was getting his uniform dirty. He didn't seem to care or notice it. Oh, no - he was much more interested in my plight and as usual, Ryusei had figured out what happened faster than either Chifuyu or Baji did. Then again, all he had to do was to listen to the gossip created by Mitsuya suddenly kissing me in front of the gate, where everyone could see us, and he had the answers to his questions.

I'd heard whispers in my class and felt eyes on me. I'd seen the way the students stared at me when I walked in the hallways. But none of that mattered to me. Sure, that wasn't our first kiss - but…we have yet to talk about it, we hadn't even said what my drunken kiss with Mitsuya meant to our friendship. Nor discuss our feelings towards each other, what crossing the boundaries of a friendship would do to us.

I didn't want to overthink it, but my mind couldn't help but take it in weird directions.

The way his lips were on mine…the way Mitsuya smirked at me before he took off.

It's like he was telling me something I couldn't decipher, leaving me a mess. Or paying me back for that drunken kiss.

And Ryusei was blatantly enjoying the sight before him: a barely functioning Hanagaki Sumire, who always managed to snark back at him, kept them in line and made him enjoy himself a lot more. That's not me saying it to be egotistical, just something Ryusei mentioned after the whole Yotsuya Kaidan mess and when he resigned as the Vice-Captain, giving the position to a stunned Chifuyu. Not to mention that I could hear him muttering such lines through his wheezing, along with something that sounded a lot like I should thank Mitsuya.

"Th-this…hahahahhahahaaa!"

My eyebrow twitched at Ryusei's attempts to talk, he was wheezing and nearly choked on his words. Good for him, I thought with a glare.

"Would one of you mind telling the rest of us," Chifuyu said his green eyes narrowed into slits, pointing at himself and at Baji, who was pretending not to pay attention to us but to his book, however, I knew that to be an act. Baji's always been a shitty liar and actor. His twitching lips and the way his legs kept shifting were a dead giveaway that he was paying attention. "What the hell's so funny? Why is Ane-san such a mess?"

My eyes shifted back at Baji, who was wearing his dorky glasses, his long black hair up in a bun and a book in his lap, pretending to be reading it. Our teachers would get a heart attack if they saw Baji outside school, I thought with a slight head-shake, a fond smile appeared on my lips. The differences in how he behaved at school and outside were like a sun and a moon.

The only reason why he even hung out with us was cause Chifuyu hadn't gotten the memo to leave him be at school, shocking their classmates who had no idea about Baji's history, making them scared that he was going around, turning 'nerds' into delinquents. I've lost count of how many times I've had to drag Chifuyu out of Baji's classroom, having received an SOS message from Baji, just so that he could study and not blow his 'cover'. It didn't always work with his plans to get rid of Chifuyu, sometimes, the kid managed to make me sit down and join in on their merry little band.

And that often brought Ryusei around, he seemed to have some sort of sixth sense when it came to me.

"She's…. Pwhuahahhahaha!"

I grabbed the first thing my hand could reach, which happened to be Chifuyu's manga I'd borrowed to read, and threw it at still-laughing Ryusei. It hit him straight in the stomach, making him nearly choke and gasp for breath. I grinned, and ignored Chifuyu's protests for mishandling his manga, seeing him run after it before one of us accidentally threw it over the rooftop. It's happened before.

"Are you trying to kill me?!" Ryusei finally managed to wheeze out, holding to his throat as he glared at me, voice slightly raspy.

I smirked, "I'm considering it."

"Oh come on," he said, accepting a water bottle Baji threw at him. "You'd find it funny too if it happened to someone else."

"Maybe," I shrugged, dusted my skirt and walked over to Baji. Blatantly ignoring the looks we got from Chifuyu and Baji. I sat down next to my childhood friend and leaned against his shoulder. "But I'd still kill you if you keep laughing like a madman, dumbass."

Ryusei snorted, "Righhtttt," he shook his head, grinning. "Anyone who knows you, Sumire, would laugh - seeing you so out of it, all because of what?"

My eyes widened. I could feel Baji's body trembling, he was trying to hold back his laughter. I had little to no doubt that Mikey and Draken had gossiped with the others about my situation with Mitsuya.

"Of what?" Chifuyu practically demanded, he was starting to lose patience. "Just spit it out if you know what's gotten into Ane-san to act like a fumbling idiot."

"A fumbling - what?!" I snapped my head at him, eyes widened. The locks of my honey-blond hair whipped against my cheek and jaw, and I grimaced when I felt my longer earring with three red beans get stuck in my hair. I let out a small curse, before trying to untangle the mess I'd unwillingly created. The pink nail colour with glittery stars on them glared back from under the sun, a courtesy work from Emma, who'd wanted to do something girly.

Despite the teasing I got from the boys, especially Draken and Mikey, I kept the nails. I'd blushed when Pah had oddly commented that the nails suited me before he added that pink wasn't really my colour. Peh-yan and Mitsuya had to hold me back from beating the shit out of Pah. I felt too much pride in Emma's work. Had it been anyone else, who'd asked to use my nails as an experiment, I would've refused.

But I couldn't say no to Emma.

It was simply impossible.

And I may have liked the nails more than I dared to admit…and Mitsuya had stared at them a bit longer than he'd probably admit.

"Idiot," Baji said, unable to hide his grin. "He said a fumbling idiot which is about right."

Baji dodged the punch aimed at his head.

"…At least I don't look like a bloody nerd."

"Ouch, hitting me where it hurts, huh, Sumire?" Baji was holding to his heart, pretending to be wounded. I snorted.

"Mitsuya kissed Sumire," Ryusei's sudden words shocked us into a sudden silence, muting any comeback I was going to say.

Chifuyu's jaw dropped, he was gaping like a fish stranded on the land. Baji blinked, he glanced at Ryusei before turning to stare at me. I could almost visualise the lighting bulb switching on in his mind. He hit his palm, silently nodding to himself.

I groaned and buried my face into my hands, I'd gotten my hair and earring free from the knots, feeling the heat rising on my cheeks. The embarrassment and shock returned ten-fold: the fact that everyone had seen us, the boys discussing my … love life (is that what it is?) with such an interest…

Somehow, the lack of Mikey and Draken being present when the topic came up, made things so much different - more realistic and less of a joke. I knew that, despite Ryusei laughing at my situation, he was somewhat disappointed.

"When?!" Chifuyu demanded, cheeks turning red as he imagined the scene, and eyes widened. For a moment, he looked like an innocent kid. The only romance Chifuyu experienced was through his manga collection.

"When he dropped Sumire off at school today," Ryusei said, rubbing the part of his stomach I'd hit him with manga, smirking at me. Something flickered in his dark eyes, an emotion I knew but wrote off as something I'd already dealt with. Shortly after the incident with his best friend, Ryusei had asked me out. I rejected him, liking him more as a friend. Since then, he's made jokes about us going on dates and whatnot, much to Baji's and my amusement and Chifuyu's confusion. "Dunno how you haven't heard it, yet. It's a pretty hot topic around the school."

"After the last time, I try not to pay attention to the gossip," Chifuyu scratched his cheek, and a look of realisation flashed on his face. "Oh, so that's what they were saying." He was referring to his friends, who loved to gossip just about anything and anyone. The same friends, who had been stunned to learn that Toman's Top Three was a girl at their school.

I'd snorted at their expressions when Baji introduced Chifuyu to me. Chifuyu's friends had run into us when he got kidnapped while trying to save Ryusei. I strongly suspected that the nickname 'Ane-san' came from those idiots, especially since no matter what I did or said, Chifuyu refused to call me anything else. He'd even tried to make Ryusei call me 'respectfully' as he said. Baji jokingly asked Chifuyu if he had a small crush on me or something, which the kid instantly denied.

"Don't be a dumbass! She's like a sister to me!" He claimed, looking proud of his claim.

Baji burst out laughing, "Well, there's a cause to be happy, ne, Sumire~?" He nudged me with his bat-shit-eating grin, causing me to lose my balance. I caught my fall with my elbows, glaring up at him. "Share a few more kisses, and you guys can be out of that awkward shit you've been in for the past month. Bonus points if you get rid of that sexual tension you've been wallowing in since forever."

"Draken told you?"

"Mikey told me," Baji corrected, flashing me a knowing grin. He'd been there when Mikey tried to claim me as his. The day the founding members still remind Mikey, and those who'd known his brother would note their similarities in having zero luck with girls. I wasn't entirely sure what it was about Shin that kept girls away but I knew why no one dared to approach Mikey.

Toman.

Sure, girls would stare at him without shame, however, approaching him is another matter and half of the time, they think that he's already going out with me.

"He'd grumbled about it like an idiot he is," Baji carried on. "Muttered about how he should've met you before Mitsuya and whatnot shit."

I raised an eyebrow, giving Baji a dubious look, "That wouldn't have changed shit. Has he forgotten that I technically did meet him before Mitsuya - at his family Dojo?"

"Oh yeah, he thought you were an annoying girl back then," Baji looked as though he was remembering something good.

I repressed the urge to kick him over the rooftop.

"You were a bit wilder and less mannered brat back then." A well-aimed punch hit Baji's stomach causing him to topple over. "Shit! That hurt, Sumire!"

"I don't recall ever being like that, bastard," I growled, noticing how both Chifuyu and Ryusei had paused in their chat and were staring at us. "You're mixing me up with that barbarian Takeomi used to bring to the Dojo!"

"Don't remember," Baji shrugged, pushing up his glasses and nursed the spot I'd punched him. "…What happened to holding back on your punches?!"

"Not gonna happen when you talk shit, bastard."

"OI! BACK TO THE TOPIC!" Chifuyu's hands suddenly pushed our faces away, I hadn't noticed when our faces got so close (both had veins popping up, ready to throw fists here and there), looking slightly irritated. His green eyes narrowed at me, seemingly warning me. "What's with Mitsuya-san suddenly kissing you, Ane-san? What tension is Baji-san talking about?"

"Huh?"

"Oi, Chifuyu, don't tell me you haven't noticed how those two, Mitsuya and Sumire, have been acting?" Baji asked, sounding almost disappointed at his Vice-Captain's naivety.

I pushed Chifuyu's hand off of my face, watching him fall back.

"Even Pah and Peh-yan have noticed it," I remarked, recalling when those two had asked me if everything was fine between me and Mitsuya, crossing my arms.

"So…I wasn't imagining it?" Chifuyu glanced between the three of us, seemingly seeking confirmation. The boys nodded, and I shrugged. Ryusei gave me a long look, making me sigh.

"Fineeee," I dragged the word on, giving in. "A while ago, before we discovered the existence of Toman's Underground Fight Club shit, I had issues with my cousin. You know that, right, Baji?"

Baji nodded, Ryusei shrugged and Chifuyu looked even more at loss.

"So, one day, I dragged both Draken and Mitsuya with me and we kinda got wasted."

"So that's why Mikey's grumbling about having been left out," Baji muttered.

"One thing led to another and I may have drunkenly kissed Mitsuya," my cheeks were burning, the memory flashed brightly in my mind, and I refused to look at any of them. My eyes were stuck staring at the sky. "Since then we've been in a weird situation and yesterday Mitsuya asked me to go with him somewhere, and today, he was acting a bit weird and then he kissed me."

It felt weird, but there was a sense of relief that I didn't have to go through it alone. I didn't know what Emma or Yuzuha would recommend me to do, or tell me to do since those two barely had any experience. Not that the boys were any better. But at least, they had an understanding of how Mitsuya's mind was working since they were the same gender.

"In other words, Mitsuya finally got the balls to ask you on a date?" Baji asked, being the one who'd seen the two of us longer than both Chifuyu and Ryusei. He'd seen us when we were younger, he knew our style and how we worked.

Maybe not as well as Draken, but close enough.

I could only imagine how red my face was.

"So why's Ryusei laughing?" Chifuyu asked. I groaned.

"Cause it's hilarious to see Sumire acting so unlike herself," the shit-head responded with a chuckle. "It's not a sight you see often."

"True that."

"Fuck you both."

"You wish."

"Not my type, sorry."

I face-palmed. Idiots. They're pure idiots.

"Do you know what you're gonna do on your date, Ane-san?" I glanced at my self-proclaimed little brother, scowling at the nickname. I blamed Chifuyu for making the guys in Toman call me that. I knew for certain that the First Division had started to use it to make him stop glaring at them or to amuse him. Second and Third Division had soon followed them with a few chuckles…

"Nop, but I do know someone who's gonna support a nice shining eye tomorrow," I cracked my knuckles, making him take a step back.

"You really think she'd tell us even if she knew?" Baji asked them, grabbing the book he'd dropped on the ground. "She'd tell Mitsuya to change the plans to avoid us from spying on them."

"Not like you haven't done it before," I shot back, eyeing him with a look. It was long before everything went down the shit.

"We were merely curious as to what you two were up to," Baji's hands went up, defensively. "Plus Mikey wouldn't shut up about it."

"I hope you guys enjoyed that show, cause you'll never see it again."

"Ah, good riddance - it was a weird shit."

"What show?"

I smirked at Baji, daring him to tell them. Of course, we'd noticed we were followed. We'd made them watch us do the weird couple-like shits only that we weren't a couple, but best friends who were trolling the rest of their friends. I'd purposefully dragged Mitsuya to a sweet shop, knowing they'd get stuck there once Mikey saw what was inside - my plan had worked. Too well, in fact.

"Nothing, just being reminded how you still owe us a bunch of money, Sumire!"

"I don't, not my fault you followed us."

Chifuyu and Ryusei watched us as though we were playing tennis.

"That shit you pulled cost me three months of allowance!"

"Wow, look at who is whining over something that shouldn't have come as a surprise. You were with Mikey, what did you expect?"

"Not to be led into a honey-trap shop!"

I grinned, recalling the SOS messages we'd received that day. Messages I still have saved to remind myself of what Mikey's insatiable need for food can do.

Just then, the bell rang signifying the end of our break. We dragged Ryusei with us to his classroom, blatantly ignoring his protests. My mind was no longer a mess, although, it wasn't entirely clear - I was able to function normally.

Here, at school, I didn't have to worry about keeping up with appearances at Toman. Here I could be myself, I could chill with the boys and not worry about unnecessary things.

Peaceful was how I liked it.