A/N: While writing this chapter, I just wanted to walk away from all the awkwardness! I know from now on, at least for the beginning, it'll be a lot of cringe-worthy moments. So keep reading, reviewing, and enjoying!
Also, I'll be really busy for the next two weeks, so I'm sorry if I don't update in that time. I'll try, but no promises.
"No one saw," she reassures.
I don't respond as I walk her to her class.
"Really. And even if they did, you shouldn't be embarrassed. You were so funny!"
I frown while I look at her.
She smiles. "You're so tall, so when you fell, it was like a tree falling." She laughs, and she cups her hands around her mouth. "I wanted to yell, 'Timber!'"
I groan. "Well, I'm glad you find me so humorous."
She starts giggling again, and I can feel my face soften. But for the life of me, I can't tell if it's because the embarrassment is finally dissipating or if it's because I like her whimsical laughter. Or if it's because of the fact that I'm the one making her smile.
Maybe my sarcastic comment is not so sarcastic. Maybe I'm being genuine.
"I found it funny, too," Mizuiro chips in quietly.
I scowl, and I'm about to make a snarky remark before I hear a grating yell of my name down the hall. I can only sigh as Keigo comes closer to us, and I plan to block the crazy guy from getting too close, but it's not needed because Inoue steps forward and greets Keigo. He stops running, and he blushes and bows as he greets her back. I snort at how tamed he's become.
"How are you feeling, Inoue-san?"
"Me? I'm doing—"
I can't hear the rest of her response because an arm wraps around my neck, and I'm dragged away.
"Oi! Let me go!" I struggle to get out of the grip, but her arm tightens.
"Not yet, you punk. We gotta have a little talk."
Tatsuki tugs me down, so I'm forced into a hunched over position.
"About what?" I ask with unveiled irritation.
"Did you already forget our conversation from yesterday?"
I glance up. Mizuiro and Keigo are gone, and my eyes move to Inoue who is now excitedly talking to Chad, and I start to remember what words were exchanged between Tatsuki and I.
I click my tongue in annoyance. "You really have no faith in me."
She strengthens the headlock, and then she rubs her fist against my scalp. I flinch at the stinging pain.
"Are you kidding?" She asks incredulously. "You do know that I'm only okay with Orihime dating if she's dating you, right?"
I look down. My hair hides the surprise in my eyes.
"So take care of her." She lets me go, and I stand up straight. She gives a smirk as she punches me hard on the arm. "And congratulations."
I watch as she walks over to the other two. I see her pet Inoue on the head as Inoue wraps her arms around Tatsuki's neck, and all of this is done with so much affection that a warm feeling spreads all over me. And it's because to Inoue, Tatsuki is basically her everything, and Inoue's everything just gave me her blessing. And hearing Tatsuki's approval means a lot to me, and honestly, it's the kind of acceptance I was expecting to get from my dad last night. But some expectations are just expectations. They're not reality, and yeah, it's not ideal, but it's not the end of the world, either.
Inoue, still clinging to Tatsuki, gives me this wide smile that pulls me from my thoughts and draws me closer. As I get nearer, I can see Tatsuki struggling to pull Inoue off while Inoue holds on tighter, saying that she won't let go.
"What's going on here?" I ask with a bit of humor in my tone.
"Tatsuki-chan is being too cute!" Inoue squeals in glee.
Tatsuki grunts, and she tries harder to peel Inoue off her.
"Arisawa-san was," Chad begins to explain before he's cut off by Tatsuki's glare.
"I was doing nothing!"
Inoue giggles at Tatsuki's denial.
"Really cute," she repeats before dropping her arms. I let out a curt laugh.
Tatsuki's nose wrinkles in distaste at the compliment. She then gains this wicked smile.
"Come on, Sado. Let's leave the new couple to talk alone."
Her words have the intended effect that she wanted: we both blush.
She ushers Chad away from us, leaving behind an awkward silence.
"She…she meant us, right?"
"Yeah." I pause with unease. "You're not misunderstanding, right?" I ask hesitantly. "We're not a couple of people. We are a couple," I stress embarrassingly. I want to make sure that we don't have a repeat of yesterday, that she and I are on the same page. That we want the same thing.
She hums. "I understand. Because I like like you, and you like like me," she clarifies.
I run a hand down my heated face. "That's true, but don't say it so…so bluntly!"
Her eyes widen like she just realized what she just said.
"Oh, I didn't mean…well, I did mean, but I…" She lets out a huff before covering her face and rushing forward.
She doesn't get far. I reach out and gently grab her sweater, keeping her in place until she calms down enough to look over her shoulder. She peers at me with red cheeks and a slight pout.
"I'm embarrassed," she admits.
I chuckle softly. "So am I." And that seems to sooth her because she grins.
I let her go, and I move until we are side-by-side.
We start to walk toward her class again.
"So…did you like the cake?"
I look at her briefly. She's looking down as she picks at her sweater.
"I didn't get to try it yet, but I'm planning to eat some at lunch." She smiles up at me, and I take a deep breath. "I brought a large piece. Do you want some?"
"Now?"
"Not now," I chuckle. "At lunch."
"Eh? You want to share? With me?" I resist the urge to look away. Instead, I stare into her eyes and nod.
I'm rewarded. Her face lights up.
"Okay!" We near her class. "I'll see you at lunch, then!"
"See you."
She skips to her seat, sits down, and waves goodbye at me. I give a small wave to her and a quick nod to Chad before leaving for my own class.
Ishida is already sitting down when I arrive, and when I pass him to get to my desk, I hear a condescending snicker, indicating he knows that I fell earlier. I glare at him, warning him to keep his snide comments in his head. And when I hear soft laughter around me, I send everyone else the same nonverbal warning.
It becomes quiet after that, and class follows shortly after.
Through the lecture and the individual classwork, I can't stop myself from moving. My fingertips drum against the desk. My heel rhythmically meets the floor. My arm keeps turning towards me so I can look at my watch. My forehead creases as my scowl becomes more defined when the time doesn't pass as quickly as it should.
And these actions, these anticipatory nerves feel so weird. So enigmatic because they are newly formed and raw. Or maybe they have always been in me. Have always existed in a dormant state, and it is only now that that part of me is becoming active. Like I'm slowly becoming more alive. And maybe that familiar stranger was no stranger at all. That stranger was, is, a part of me that became activated. Became animated because of Inoue, became functional for her.
If that's the truth, I should thank her one day. Because I have a feeling that if I don't tell her outright, straightforwardly, she won't ever realize the effect she has on me. She won't ever be able to see how she affects me.
But not today. Making such a vulnerable confession of that caliber seems a little premature. Besides, I want to take our new relationship slowly, and I'm very eager to experience everything it has to offer.
So when it's finally lunch, I stride to the roof without waiting for Ishida or anybody. Which is why I'm the first one to arrive, and I take the moments alone to pry open the container that holds the cake. To my relief, the slice managed to remain unscathed from my fall.
I put it beside me with my other things, leaving the left side of me unoccupied.
Keigo is the first to show up. He tries to sit in the free space I left next to me, but an unexplained glare sends him retreating and complaining to Mizuiro who walks through the door.
Ishida comes next, and he sends me a questioning stare in my direction which I ignore. He sits across from me.
Chad materializes from the staircase, and he takes a seat next to Ishida, and I know she'll be close by. I can feel her joyful reiatsu approaching.
She and Tatsuki arrive together. She is all smiles, and she says her usual hellos, saving me for last. But unlike this morning when she greeted me quietly, shyly, she overcompensates and yells my name. It's a bit to robust than her usual cheerfulness, for she covers her mouth with her hand and bows, embarrassed at her volume.
Everyone laughs it off while I bite back an urge to tease her. If I'm not careful, teasing her will become my favorite activity. But it won't be my favorite thing about her, if I'm allowed to have one. Because my favorite part of her will always be her smile, which at this moment, is hidden behind her hair as she sits beside me.
And now it's my turn to laugh because the way she sits down is so awkward and clumsy that she nearly topples over. She sits close but not too close to me, and she starts fidgeting; her actions remind me of that one time I invited her up to my room. She had been squirming around like she was nervous, just like she is doing now, and I wonder if maybe, just maybe, she liked me then.
I'll ask her later. When we are alone.
No one comments on her behavior. We just divulge into our group dynamic, although I'm hyperaware of her presence, and I try to keep an eye on her while we eat. I want to know the second she finishes.
When she does, which is after me because I gobbled my food down, I hand her a plastic fork and the container. She blushes a pretty pink, and she gives me a questioning look. I prompt her to open it without words, trying to not draw attention, and she gets the message because she opens the container, and I observe her expression closely. And intently. And openly. And oh…one day, I'll tell her what she does to me. One day.