Being the new student of a highly prestigious academy known for schooling ultimate students sounds wonderful on paper, right? You get to meet so many new people who are all the very best at what they do and just by being associated, you get some recognition on top of that! Super amazing, no complaints, 10/10!!
Yeah, well, that's just a flat-out lie. Of course, being in such a prestigious school was great and all, but it was extremely expensive to get in as just a regular student and being compared to the ultimate all the time wasn't great...
But what can you do? You do have friends in the Reserve Course and you get decent grades, so at least it isn't all bad.
In fact, one of your friends happened to be a guy named Hajime Hinata who knew this one girl in the Main Course, who knew this guy, who knew this guy, who knew this guy, etc. The point was, that all of this eventually led to you meeting a short, brown-haired guy named TeruTeru Hanamura, the Ultimate Chef.
Your official meeting was during a school event, the one time when most Main Course and Reserve Course students actually got along. You were sitting on a bench, waiting for some friends to finish grabbing whatever they wanted to eat, when Hajime happened to come up to you. He apologized for disturbing you but then introduced you to TeruTeru, explaining that he had asked to meet you.
The moment he began speaking though..., let's just say, even people who are normally very sex-positive would be in disgust at his lack of manners.
Sure, he was friendly enough and you can tell from the brief conversation you were able to have with him, before excusing yourself due to all his sexual comments, he is extremely passionate about what he does.
...But god, is it hard to get past his weird exterior when the first thing he says to you is, "The name is TeruTeru Hanamura. Normally I'd shake your hand but..., mind if I touch somewhere else instead?" You can guess where that went when you and Hajime just awkwardly laughed it off, an intense feeling of discomfort rising in you as you already knew exactly what kind of guy you were dealing with.
But that was only your first meeting and even though you tried your best to remain distant with him, hoping he'd get the message to just leave you alone, he unfortunately didn't...
In fact, any time he got the chance to, TeruTeru would visit you and the cycle of discomfort would just repeat itself.
He'd say hi, things would be fine for a minute as he asked you the usual polite question of how your day was going and if classes were being rough to you as well, and then he'd say some innuendo, making you uncomfortable, and you'd end the conversation as quickly as possible.
It seemed like the more he was getting comfortable, the more open he would be with his lewd words and advances. You weren't even sure if he meant any of them, but that didn't stop you from ending the visit quicker and quicker each time he came over from the Main Course.
At some point, you even started to just avoid him... You really didn't want to deal with the weird sexual comments he was giving you and despite how decent he can be at times, like when he gifted you some delicious sugar cookies one time, it still wasn't worth the discomfort for you.
Of course though, as you distanced yourself more and more, eventually avoiding TeruTeru altogether, he did eventually notice your lack of presence as well.
Now, TeruTeru is aware he can be bad at picking up social cues most of the time (literally all of the time-) so he can really only assume he did something wrong to warrant this kind of reaction from you, he just doesn't know what that is...
He's been friendly, hasn't he? He gives you baked goods all of the time, you have some good conversations, and he really enjoys your company! In a lot of ways, you're different from the Main Course students, you actually understand and don't disregard his talent, unlike the others. Sure, the other kids might say his cooking tastes good, which he already knows, but you go in-depth with it and he really likes that, you appreciate the art of cooking!
Even though you both haven't known each other for a long time, that is the reason he keeps actively seeking you out. He's got to know what he did wrong..., so he goes to the one mutual friend you both have, Hajime.
Hajime can only really give the biggest sigh whenever he hears of TeruTeru's problem, mainly as he feels it's extremely obvious what the issue is but also because he can tell TeruTeru does take a special interest in you compared to everyone else he mercilessly flirts with. Hajime also being your friend, knows of your sexuality and the repulsion to nsfw content that gives you, but he knows better than to just out you like that, so he basically just gives TeruTeru the cliff notes without outing you.
"Is it not obvious? They're avoiding you because of how inappropriate you are, Teru. That's why most people avoid you, but they in particular are not a fan of it." A simple and concise explanation that even dense people like TeruTeru or his underclassmen(?) Hifumi Yamada.
When Hajime says he's never seen someone look like they had such a moment of clarity, he means it.
TeruTeru has never once really questioned the things he says or does, especially his more questionable decisions. He just never thought about it...
If it wasn't obvious, TeruTeru, despite his rural background, tries so hard to build his persona under the guise of being from the city. Every chef he's seen on TV or in magazines may have started somewhere humble, but their big break was in the city, unlike him. I mean, wouldn't it be silly to stay in a small, rural town no one's ever heard of when you have far greater and more prosperous opportunities in the city? In fact, if he's telling the whole truth, he would much rather just have been born there... People would actually take him seriously as a chef. There would be no accent to make fun of or mannerisms to mock. He would be where he always dreamed of being. Not in some backwater town.
So, in an effort to make people take him and his passion seriously, he disguised the worst part of himself and said he was from Minato and Aoyama. He covered his accent and tried to copy the mannerisms of people from the city, mainly by movies, TV, magazine interviews, etc. Of course, this was what made him pick up his lewd behavior in the first place as most of the content he viewed to gain new mannerisms wasn't shy when it came to being explicit and while the people in his town sugarcoated a lot of the explicit things they said, they also didn't care to correct his behavior either.
As much as he wants to excuse all his behavior though, TeruTeru knew deep down that he still did it even when he should have known better... He knew he needed to at the very least apologize because even if his behavior was once atrocious, he at the very least had decency.
It took a good few weeks before TeruTeru started to approach you again, which you were thankful for as you could only hope your life would start to go back to normal.
You were of course wrong when he came up to you after school, a frown on his face as no mention of anything NSFW came out of him, but at least this time he took you off guard in a good way.
He takes a breath, his shorter stature looking up at you in the most apologetic way he could muster, and he soon speaks, "I know I'm probably the last person you want to talk with right now, which is okay, but, I needed to let you know I'm sorry..." His voice was quiet and you could hear slight traces of his country accent slipping out before he quickly reeled it back in.
Now really, if this were anyone else, you would've likely just said you'll think about it and moved on, but strangely enough, it was really hard to say that so disingenuously when he was being the complete opposite of that. You knew it was probably better to just reject him but...
"Okay..., just don't do it again." A sigh escapes your lips as you know the future you was probably kicking yourself looking back at all of this. "Let's try this again."
TeruTeru almost jumped for joy at your acceptance, every word you said pulling a weight off his shoulders that he didn't even notice was there. This time was going to be different, he was going to be better! And that isn't something he takes lightly.
After agreeing to start your relationship over, TeruTeru was unexpectedly and yet also expectedly pleasant to be around. As mentioned before, there were times when his passion for cooking would take over the topic of conversation and you got to see who he was past all the inappropriate remarks, but it always turned sour as he eventually caught himself and started shooting more lewd comments at you.
Thankfully, you get to see the good side of him this time. He was honestly a lot harder working and caring than you initially gave him credit for, and even if he didn't talk about her often, it was sweet to hear that he cares so much about his mom from the few times he's spoken about her.
TeruTeru was undoubtedly starting to find himself getting more and more interested in you as well. When you both first met, he was only really interested in you because of your looks and what he then perceived to be your "hard to get" personality, but now he can't deny he feels intrigued by you. From your personality to the things you like, to your background, he finds himself grinning as he replays your conversations in his head over and over.
It's weird for him to admit, but he likes actually getting to know you past the shallow level that he knows everyone else on. It was also nice to know you were willing to get to know him past that too.
Everyone in the Main Course is honestly super confused about why TeruTeru of all people uses whatever spare time he can to go to where the Reserve Course students are, only to come back, grinning like a moron. Anytime they question him on it, mainly Mahiru as, knowing TeruTeru like she knows him, she can really only assume he's going over there to prey on people, TeruTeru will just give some vague answer. He does this because he rather not have everyone question him about you the moment he brings you up...
A surprising thing you've learned about TeruTeru is that he is surprisingly very into pop culture, you can literally name any celebrity and he will be able to give you a whole biography about them, no questions asked.
Does TeruTeru sometimes slip up around you? Of course, he's human and when you've been doing something for so long and it's so integrated into your mannerisms, you're bound to slip up every now and then. He really tries not to make any inappropriate comments about you or anyone else, but when he does slip up, he apologizes profusely.
You have no need to worry about packing a lunch anymore because TeruTeru will be providing that for you! He isn't the ultimate chef for no reason either, you are gonna be eating good.
TeruTeru feels like he should've suspected this change in him to happen eventually. You're pretty, smart, and so patient..., it's really no wonder that he would soon start to fall in love with you.
In fact, maybe he's been in love with you for a long time and he's just never had the guts to notice.
And that thought terrifies him.
He has never been one to easily fall in love, he's obviously found people of all types attractive, but he's never gotten so close to someone where he can seriously imagine a future with them...
Not to mention how you both got off on the wrong foot, and he really doesn't want to destroy the trust he's built with you all over these feelings. Because, sure he loves you, but his feelings will never matter more to him than seeing you happy.
He doesn't care how long he has to hide it, as long as you are safe and happy, all the effort will be worth it.
Even if his heart is breaking every second he doesn't confess.
Pretty much every time you are around, TeruTeru feels like he's walking on eggshells as he tries to not let you notice how infatuated he is with you. It really isn't hard to notice this either with the way he stumbles over his words and the way the air has an awkward tension in it when he visits. You were starting to wonder if you had done something wrong..., he was acting like this for a reason right? You just didn't know what that could be.
The more TeruTeru tries to hide his feelings, the more this awkward tango drags on with him steering the conversation to anything but himself, his body uncomfortably shuffling as he seems weirdly distracted.
Hell, when the feelings just wouldn't stop making his life miserable, TeruTeru even tried to distance himself from you. It definitely didn't work, but he was really out of options... He wasn't going to tell you and even if he did, why would you ever want to date someone like him anyway? He knows for a fact he is not the most conventionally attractive and there are way smarter, funnier, and more caring people out there who would love to have you as theirs.
He wasn't meant for you.
...
To see one of your best friends acting so strangely around you and even purposefully distancing themself from you was not exactly fun... You'd just wish he would tell you what was wrong instead of bottling it up so things could go back to normal! He usually is a pretty confident person, so for him to be doing all of this meant it had to be something important and honestly, you were getting a little anxious yourself the more you waited for him to come out with it.
Okay, maybe not even a little anxious, the more time passed and the less and less you saw him, the more anxious you got. You really were starting to get to the point where you couldn't take the waiting any longer..., so you knew you would have to ask him directly.
It was during lunchtime on one of the few days he would let himself visit you, though his behavior still remained stiff and awkward as he tried to not focus on how your smile made butterflies soar through his chest... You two talked for a bit, you doing most of the conversation, before eventually the conversation goes stale like it usually does nowadays. You can't stop a nervous sigh from leaving you as you make eye contact with him, quietly gathering all of your courage to finally ask the question you had a feeling he knew you were gonna ask.
"So..., what's been up with you recently? Did I do something because I feel you have just been avoiding me?" To which, TeruTeru also gives his own sigh back. "...Do you really want me to tell you?" He asks, eyes clinging to the ground below as tries to will himself to be anywhere except where he is right now. As gently as you could, you grab his hand, "Of course I do, you shouldn't have to hide anything from your friends and especially not from me."
A silence fills the air after you speak, the suspense building inside of you both, though for completely different reasons. Whenever he speaks again, his voice is quiet, like he wishes if he says it quiet enough you won't hear him. "I just..., I love you."
You did hear him though.
And he definitely heard you when you replied with, "Oh..., well, I love you too."
He also made you repeat that like five times after though, just because at the moment he was so filled with disbelief that he really thought his mind was playing tricks on him. Like, that at any moment he would wake up and all of this would be another dream.
He's really glad it isn't though, the warmth of your embrace is something no dream can replicate.
Now that TeruTeru is completely comfortable around you, whenever you two are alone, he'll allow himself to speak in his natural accent. He is also a lot more open about his past and his family life.
He is unbelievably happy when you mention that you would love to go visit his mom soon.
His nickname for you would vary since he likes to have some variety with it, but his favorite is probably something food-related, like, moonpie, muffin, peach, etc.
He never did care, nor will he ever care that you don't have some ultimate talent. He knows some people can be jerks about it, but he really can't find it in him to care about something as pathetic as that when you are already so incredible. To him, you are the best at whatever you decide to do, no contest.
TeruTeru, despite how confident he seems, does have moments where he can be insecure. He's no stranger to being looked down upon because of his upbringing or his looks, he's very aware he's not gonna appear on some fashion magazine anytime soon. That doesn't mean it doesn't hurt though..., having people making snide remarks about his height and weight...
Please just give him a hug or kiss whenever he's having rough days. :(
Whenever you feel comfortable coming out to him, per or post-relationship, TeruTeru is immediately pretty laid back about it. He's never been one for labels personally, but he also definitely isn't straight. You won't have to worry, he is 100% supportive of you! And if anyone tries to invalidate you or is generally just giving you hell for something you can't control, rest assured he will not let them down easily.
You're his partner, meaning he is never gonna let anyone mess with you like that, he loves you way too much for that.
A/N: I wish TeruTeru was used more than to be the joke character, I feel like he has a lot of potential to be really compelling.
Full archive of all the posts from Tyger Songbird's Sonata.
This is Tyger Songbird's substack. He writes a lot about being a Black aroace and navigating Black manhood, purity culture, sex repulsion, teaching and more!
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