Despite all of his complaints,

"Hachi-senpai~ can't we take a break?"

"Who the hell said you can call me that? And no, finish your work."

"But studying is so boring!"

"...You're not wrong, but aren't you the one who asked me for help in the first place? Finish your work."

Ai pouts, puffing up her cheeks and accentuating her cuteness. Tch, this girl. Even when she's dressed completely incognito her idol aura still peaks through.

"...Fine, we'll take a short break and finish the rest after."

"Yay!" Ai cheers. She bounces in her seat, eating some assorted snacks while texting on her phone.

Hachiman sighs and stands up from the table, "I'm going to get another coffee- do you want anything?"

"Oh~ is Hachi-senpai treating his precious kouhai? In that case- can we order more cake?"

Hachiman gives her a blank stare, "You know I only offered out of politeness and you still say something like that?"

Ai gives a smug grin, "Consider it a punishment for not letting me take a break earlier!"

Hachiman clicks his tongue, and heads to the counter to order. It's easier to just let her win.

After ordering, Hachiman sits back down at the table. This trendy cafe has all sorts of colorful desserts and drinks. It really didn't suit him at all- in fact he's sticking out like a sore thumb. Even Ai, who's wearing a baseball cap and a plain white hoodie, matches the atmosphere more than he does. "Why'd you choose this place to study?"

Ai brings her finger up to her chin in thought, "Well, Hachi-senpai won't let me visit study at his place and going to the library again gets boring! Besides, the library doesn't have snacks and this place is cute!" Her eyes gleamed slightly, "And no one would believe Hachi-senpai would be at a place like this."

He rolls his eyes, of course no one would think Hikigaya Hachiman would willingly go to a trendy cafe to study with an idol. The waitress delivers his coffee and her cake to the table. "Should you really be eating that much sweets? I thought idols had a strict diet."

Ai who was in the middle of a bite glares at Hachiman, "After all this time- you still don't know how to talk to girls. Being an idol is hard work, you know! I deserve these sweets!"

Amused, Hachiman takes a sip of his overly sweetened latte, "Time's up on the break- let's get back to work." Ai nearly pouts again, but nods and diligently returns to her worksheets.

They both work on their own assignments. A familiar and comfortable silence forms, only broken when Ai asks Hachiman for clarification. After several weeks of study sessions like this, Hachiman wonders why Ai works so hard when she doesn't need to. "Hoshino," he calls out.

She continues writing her essay.

"Oi, Hoshino!" he calls a little louder. Her writing hitches slightly, a clear sign that she heard him, but she doesn't stop working. It's almost as if she's ignori- oh, so that's it. What an uncute girl. An embarrassed blush coats his face as he leans in and whispers softly, "Ai-san." Her eyes immediately rise from her paper onto him, and a mischievous smile tugs on her lips.

"What is it, Hachi-senpai?"

"Why're you studying so hard? Surely you can drop out and focus full time on performing, so why don't you?"

She looks back in confusion, "Weren't you the one who said that I needed to take my studies more seriously?"

"I did," he agreed, "but you're putting in a lot more effort than just a 'C' grade like you said you wanted."

"Isn't Sobu an elite prep school?"

Hachiman raises an eyebrow, "I wasn't aware that you were even aiming for Sobu."

"I just thought, wouldn't it be nice if we went to the same school together again?"

Against a statement like that, he couldn't say anything back. Hell, how could she say something so embarrassing like that?

The silence is restored as they both return to their assignments.

"... I wouldn't mind that," he mutters under his breath.

Hoshino Ai smiles.

Hikigaya Hachiman doesn't mind her company.


Omake

"Eh? Why is your answer completely different from the one in the textbook? Aren't you the one who's supposed to be teaching me this?"

"... Math isn't my strength."

Ai points at a different paper, "Why are we talking about physics here, isn't this supposed to be biology?"

"Ah, science isn't my strength either…"

Her eyes scan the paper again, "Why is this the only question you got right? 'The mitochondria is the powerhouse of the cell.'"

"Hah, even I know that!"

"...Perhaps Sobu isn't as elite as I thought."

Hoshino Ai resolved to get a proper tutor for math and science.


A/N

This story came about because the idea came into my head and wouldn't leave me alone. Literally, I started having dreams about this- it was scary.

Be warned- some of the upcoming chapters may have spoilers for Oshi no Ko and may include some controversial topics, but it shouldn't be a big issue.

In terms of context Hoshino Ai would be the same age as Iroha, so just a year below Hachiman. Fun fact, Ai's birthday is April 17th while Iroha's is April 16th. If I had to say, this particular chapter probably occurred halfway through Hachiman's 1st year at Sobu.

Pacing felt a little weird in this chapter and I wouldn't say that I'm satisfied by this work. However, if I don't have a beta and don't feel like editing at a serious level it's best to just put it out at there.

After every chapter I will try and get into how I approached the previous chapter. For these drabbles I try to think of a single word prompt that sets the tone and style- for the 1st chapter it was "uncute." I tried to write it in a way that conveyed a coldness leading to an understanding expressed by the lack of proper nouns until the last few moments. It was very rudimentary but I felt the end product came out fine, especially because it's the first time I've written in a 3rd person limited format in years. I also only write while drinking.

Whether or not this relationship is purely platonic, romantic or ends in tragedy I wouldn't know, but I can't wait to find out along with all of you.

What I do know is that this will mostly be fluff. That doesn't mean there won't be hardships or disagreements, but that's life.