Exception

By: Aviantei

26. Bragging (and Other Forms of Confidence)

"The vegetables have entered the pot. Repeat: the vegetables are in the pot."

"Was that really necessary?"

"Affirmative."

Lenalee tried her best not to sigh or yawn at the situation. It was the end of the day, and she could head home and rest up soon enough. The weekend cleaning of the house had been successful, albeit it had taken up most of her time. Lenalee hadn't been able to do plan her outfits ahead, and she had barely had enough time to do her homework, but that was life sometimes. At least it was possible to eat without fear of causing a not-so-small avalanche.

Now if only taking home ec hadn't suddenly become such an exhausting experience.

Okay, maybe it wasn't as bad as it could have been, but keeping up the usual polite deal was a bit more than Lenalee could handle right now. Ari was still monologuing over their pot of boiling vegetables for their lesson on side dishes, and Lenalee wasn't sure she completely liked just how much the younger girl seemed to be smiling.

I mean, something's going on, but…did something happen with Allen?

Jealousy was an ugly thing, and Lenalee would never admit to it out loud. But that didn't change the fact that Lenalee wasn't going to lose this one, no matter what. At the very least, she wouldn't let Ari win, either. But Lavi had been acting weirder than usual on top of his scheming, and Allen had blushed significantly whenever Ari had even talked in his general direction at lunch. Something had to have happened, and Lenalee was out of the loop.

Well now, that just wasn't right!

Lenalee double checked the rice in their second pot, then went back to mixing the spices they had compromised on. At least, when it came to cooking, the two girls had similar taste buds, so they didn't argue about that so much as they disagreed on everything else. Slipping her finger into her mouth for a quick taste test, Lenalee eyed her partner.

"So how was your weekend?"

Ari smiled brilliantly. She was good at that part; never letting her expression waver, even if it was a challenge of sorts. Of course, this smile was a genuine reflection of happiness: no amount of stupidity from her brother could make Ari stop being excited over her kiss. That was something she wanted nothing more than to brag about, but that didn't mean this was the right time.

Play your cards smart, Ari.

"It was great," she settled on, her grin not dimming in the least. "I went out on Friday night, and it was just the best!" Ari let out a happy sigh. She would recall the memory now if it didn't have the potential of making her vegetables soggy. "And you, Lenalee-san?"

Now that was suspicious if Lenalee had ever heard it, but pressing now would be too obvious. Stay cautious, and get to it when the time's right. "I stayed in all weekend," she admitted. Ari rose an eyebrow, but Lenalee ignored it. "I had to force Nii-san to clean up his mess that he's left all over the house." Most students had either taken one of Komui's courses or at least had passed by his classroom at some point. It was a mess, his desk coated in assignments he had yet to grade and return. Lenalee had a large chunk of Ari's sincerest condolences if the house was even roughly similar. "But you said you had a date, Ari? I didn't know you were seeing anyone."

Bait dispersed. Ari could read it in an instant; that wasn't even a question. Now, how to approach it, that was the real part. Lavi had a penchant for secret missions. Allen would be too shy. Ari didn't know much about Ivy, but she didn't think the older girl was suited much for gossip. None of them probably planned to mention things to Lenalee, and it could ultimately screw up what Allen was aiming for.

Oh, who cares?

She had earned that date. Even if it was just being nice, even if Lenalee and Allen would probably be going out sometime soon, Ari had gotten there first!

"I'm not seeing anyone," she said, because that was unfortunately true. But that was fine, because Allen had given her a chance, and maybe he would give her another one soon. "But I did go on a date with Allen-san Friday night."

In all fairness, she had at least waited until Lenalee had put the rice pot down. It wouldn't do any good for anyone to get burnt in the process. That would just dampen Ari's victory, and she wouldn't stand for that.

Ari grinned a bit, enjoying just how many colors Lenalee's face shifted through before landing on a frustrated red. It even reached the tips of the Chinese girl's ears. "Hey, did you know? Allen-san's lips are soft. Like, seriously."

This little she did not she did not—!

"Alright, everyone, time to get your dishes ready!" Jerry called, putting a stop to what could have been a nasty bloodbath. Black Order High didn't need another excuse to call an ambulance—they had been doing so well this year! Ari giggled as she strained the vegetables, recovering the seasoning from a less than responsive Lenalee, and set about plating their assignment for the day.

Jerry made sure to keep an eye on them as the last ten minutes of class went by. Girls were amazing in so many ways, but they could also be pretty dangerous. As a teacher, it was his job to make sure things didn't get too bad.

Ari went home in the same high spirits experienced the day she had successfully asked Allen out.

Lenalee may have apologized afterwards, but that didn't change the fact that there was now a rather nasty dent in her neighbor's locker.

Wednesday came too quickly, and Allen knew that he was running out of time.

Lavi had been surprisingly quiet about the situation—Allen had been expecting multiple questions per day concerning the plan, but it hadn't happened yet. Maybe Lavi was being a lot more respectful or maybe he just had something else on his mind. In any event, that could only last for so long. Ivy had been giving Allen meaningful glances over the lunch table and in the halls, and they both knew that once the halfway mark of the week passed, keeping Lavi sedated would be whole lot harder.

"You gotta do it, Allen-san," Ivy said, lagging behind their group as they exited from lunch. Kanda tossed his girlfriend a glance but separated to head to his locker in less of a huff than Allen had expected. "I don't wanna rush you, but time is kinda of the essence here."

"Thanks, Ivy, as if I wasn't nervous enough," Allen grumbled. The crowds in the halls were enough to cover up the conversation, so being secretive wasn't completely necessary. Still, Allen had eaten less of his lunch than usual, and there had been concerned glances as the Brit actually threw some of his leftovers away. It was unheard of.

"No, that's—" Ivy sighed, looking apologetic. "I just want to help. I know it's a hard thing to do, but I believe in you. You and Lenalee have your free period next, right? Ari will be in class, and so will Komui. You shouldn't have much trouble."

What food Allen had eaten (which was still a sizable amount compared to everyone else) churned instantly, his stomach becoming a mixer set on high. He had completely forgotten about Komui. How in the world had he forgotten about Komui?

"Bloody hell," Allen breathed, his face turning an unhealthy shade of white. If he lost any more circulation, his skin tone would match his hair. Ivy quickly tried to backpedal, putting a hand on Allen's back to keep him moving through the crowds.

"You got this," she asserted, trying to sound more confident than she had felt. How had they not thought about Komui in their stupid little TRIangular meeting? The science teacher was arguably the most important part in the equation—more than Lenalee and Allen themselves even! "Take the chance now, while Komui's busy with class. And just know that if Lenalee wants to go, she'll make it happen, okay?" Ivy tried rubbing a few circles into Allen's back to relax him, but he didn't relax any. "Sorry, I gotta get going or I'll be late for class. I believe in you, Allen."

Yeah, Ivy believed in him.

Because that did a whole bloody lot when you were about to walk into certain death!

Allen approached his locker with more than a sense of dread coursing through his veins. This, this was absolutely resignation. It was either get killed by Komui or have Lavi act as the third party, which would also lead to getting killed by Komui. Allen should probably write a will beforehand. He didn't have much, but he at least needed to make sure that Tim was put in good hands.

Allen usually spent his free period relaxing in the library or occasionally hanging around the music classrooms. Lenalee tended to be more social and took the opportunity to hang around with other students or making new friends. There weren't many people at Black Order High that Lenalee didn't know, and Allen had the delayed realization of just how popular his friend was.

And I'm trying to ask her out?!

He tried to take deep breaths. He really did. He collected his books for his class afterwards and wandered down the sophomore hallways, wondering if Lenalee was still around. Come to think of it, he was never sure where Lenalee went, only that she would be somewhere in the school, and that was about it. At least he could eliminate her being outside with the weather.

Well, there was no need to play this stupidly. Allen reopened his locker, retrieving his cellphone from his locker and turning it on. He usually played the good student card, but he wasn't exactly supposed to be in class right now, and this was an emergency of sorts. Turning the sound off, Allen quickly typed out a text.

[Hey, you wanna hang out?]

It was the most casual way he could think of it. There wasn't any way he could type "I have something to ask you." Lenalee was perfectly fine with communication in the written word over human speech. This was something that had to be done in person, or not done at all.

The response came to his phone almost immediately: [Sure where ?]

As far away from Komui as humanly possible, Allen thought, glancing down the hall. The sophomore lockers were all lined up next to the science classes, and Allen's sense of foreboding only got worse. What if Komui could hear his thoughts? The man seemed to have some sort of sixth-sense concerning his sister. If anything supernatural truly existed in this world, it was Komui.

[The art work rooms are usually free.] And on the other side of the building for that matter. [See you in a few?]

[Yeah see ya! :)]

Allen might have walked a bit faster than necessary to his destination, but it wasn't running. No hall monitor could catch him alive. Once he got to the stairwell that lead next to the art rooms, Allen slowed down a bit. This was happening. This was really happening. He was going to ask Lee Lenalee out, and then he was going to fall over and probably never wake up. That was, assuming he could get his mouth to even form the words.

How in the world did Ari do this?!

He walked more on autopilot than anything. The art department wasn't overly large, but they got enough funding that there were a few separate "study rooms" stocked up with art supplies and the like nearby. While most students that Allen had seen were fine with using the art room on a regular basis, every now and then someone would take their project into a private room, presumably for more space or silence.

Of course, they were pretty perfect niches to spend your free period, too, especially if other study rooms were taken up.

Lenalee was already inside one, and she waved once she saw Allen through the window in the door. Allen waved back, and tried his best to steel himself. At least if he was walking into death, he could hold his head high. Squaring his shoulders, Allen opened the door and stepped inside, grabbing a chair from the wall and sitting across from Lenalee.

The first thing he noticed was that she looked cute today. Well, Lenalee had a tendency to look cute regardless—she worked hard for her appearance, after all! But today Allen just noticed more, the way the tights curved around her legs to show off both her boots and skirt, the way the colors in her top played off the gray of her eyes. Feeling his mouth go dry, Allen settled for eye contact. "Hey."

"Hey," Lenalee responded in kind, smiling. "Man, it feels like it's been a while since we just hung out, huh? It's funny—we got together all the time during that SSGTIK nonsense, but now everyone's kind of doing their own thing…" Allen couldn't help but feel a bit guilty at that; everyone had been running around because of him after all, and Lenalee had been left rather spectacularly out of the loop.

Allen did his best not to laugh nervously—ah, why had he agreed to keep this TRIangular mess secret, he would never know. "We should hang out more then," he said, recognizing it as the perfect segway into asking the question. Lenalee seemed to perk up a bit at the words, but it wasn't overt. She was definitely subtler than Ari was for sure. "I dunno we could…have a big group get together on the weekend or something."

Operation: Turn Tail and Run for the Hills—resounding success.

"Oh, yeah, that'd be fun." She looked over Allen, trying to find some sign that he had changed, but she couldn't find anything. Ari's words were still nagging her, and even know they wouldn't go away. Especially now. Had she and Allen really gone on a date? Kissed? She expected something physical—didn't romance novels always talk about how there was a difference in the ways, a softness to their expression. Either all those books were full of crap, or Ari was lying.

Both was also an option, but Lenalee really preferred the second one.

Allen resisted the urge to shake his head to clear it—that would be much too obvious now wouldn't it? He settled on just breathing like a normal person, but even his lungs seemed to be protesting to the idea. At least he wasn't blushing like a moron.

Come on, you can do this!

"I mean, what would we do in a big group like that?" Lenalee mused, trying to keep the conversation going. "I guess we could meet up at my place, since we just cleaned it. Though Komui might cause a racket." Both teens chuckled at that. Komui had a tendency to glare out any potential male guest to their home, with increased intensity the closer they were to his sister age bracket. The small puddle of confidence that Allen had been generating froze over. "I guess maybe a movie marathon would be nice."

Allen nodded his approval. This hadn't been the goal, but maybe… He thought it over. Putting Komui's…tendencies aside, if Allen didn't get this date, Lavi was going to push it. And Allen didn't think any amount of potential violence from Ivy would stop the Bookman from trying to shove one Brit and one Lenalady together, even if he couldn't pick a worse location.

"Or we could go shopping," Allen blurted out. Those words caught Lenalee's attention, and there was the eyes lighting up level of enthusiasm. Well, there was no going back now, not that Allen ever really suspected there was an out to this situation in the first place.

"Shopping, huh?" Lenalee had an almost mischievous glint to her expression, and Allen felt worried for a split second. If they all went together that was at least three guys. Subtract Kanda because he would already have Ivy to take care of, but that was still two extra bodies Lenalee could use to help carry things around. Spring fashion would be coming sooner than anyone thought, and she needed to be prepared. "It might be a bit chaotic as a group, but I think we could make that work…"

Oh, God, oh, God. He needed to just say it. Get it out there, then he could worry about everything else. "I meant together," Allen managed, and that brought about one of the most awkward pauses either teen had experienced. "Just, you know, me and you? This Saturday?" Like a date?

Please someone help me.

Lenalee's brain immediately jumped to saying yes, but she stopped herself just in time. This was great and all—one thousand percent wonderful at that!—but Ari had claimed to have gone on a date with Allen. This was too sudden, and some lecture Komui had given her on how boys were awful creatures that two-time girls came to mind. But this was Allen Walker they were talking about, and Lenalee knew that he would never do anything to hurt her, especially not on purpose.

Then I guess things didn't work out as well as Ari wanted me to believe.

Lenalee went to smile, but found that she already was.

"I'd love to," she said, ready to almost burst out of her seat. Allen also felt ready to burst, albeit for different reasons. "We can shop and grab lunch and stuff. It'll be fun!" It took a lot of willpower not to go for her cellphone and gush about the good news, but Lenalee managed it. The rest of the free period was filled with general small talk and the discussion of actually having a group get together somewhere along the line.

Allen managed that part just fine, but that didn't stop his brain from overheating as the bell rang and Lenalee skipped off to class, leaving one beyond frazzled Brit to try and clean up his insides properly before he went to History class.

Hehe, this one was fun to write. Unlike the last time, the asking out actually happens on screen! No Sneaky ninja antics for you, Allen, that's a strictly Bookman thing!

Thanks to everyone that's read the story the past week! I super appreciate it!

Also, I should've mentioned this, like, three weeks ago, but Exception is officially my story with the most chapters to it since chapter twenty-three. I know it took a long time to get here, but reaching the next milestones hopefully won't take as long (major sweatdrop goes here). Who knows, it might end up being the story with the highest word count before this session of E-Sauce comes to an end...

Speaking of which, only four more updates after this until I put Exception on the back burner for SOSS! I'm actually getting really psyched up to write I Go Around, so if you're a Devil Survivor fan, maybe you'll check it out, yeah?

Next time, Johnny gets to have a bigger role. Hehe, I love that guy. Look forward to next Saturday, guys!

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