"Really? I thought we were. I even thought we had something." You saw him mock you, using a voice filled with genuine concern. For a moment, you thought what he was saying was true.
"You assumed wrong," you denied nervously. Even if it wasn't real, it still managed to unsettle you.
"Come on, don't hurt my feelings," he reacted as if your words truly mattered.
"We've only known each other for a few weeks!" you tried to excuse yourself, hoping he would stop bothering you, denying his nonsense.
"To me, it felt like an eternity," he admitted without the slightest hesitation. He said it without any trace of dishonesty or a hidden joke.
You wanted to deny it, to get angry, or to run away, but the warmth in your heart outweighed that fear, leaving you by the redhead's side.
You stared at your dear friend. She was surrounded by strangers from school. She loved it—she smiled, enjoyed the attention, the touches, exchanged words and jokes with them.
On the other hand, you were off to the side, left out, ignored. You were the quiet one, shy around new interactions... well, that's what they thought about you.
Lost in the crowd, your gaze remained fixed on the happy couple—your dear friend and the boy you liked standing beside her.
"___ is my best friend. We've been best friends since we were twelve," Sakura would say over and over whenever people questioned your closeness or found it strange.
You were always the good friend, the loyal right hand, her fairy godmother. And not just for Sakura—even your classmates, your family, and your mother.
"What would I do without you?" your mother would often say, whether it was because she had met her new husband thanks to you or because she had gotten her new job.
You were always giving and giving...
You were the person everyone looked for when they needed something, but they disappeared not long after. They weren't friends. They weren't people you could turn to when you needed them.
"Ugh, I hate it when we have to spend time with the final class," Sakura complained from her seat as you all watched the baseball game.
"Sakura," you scolded her. She could have ended up in that class if it hadn't been for your help and the tutors her parents were able to hire thanks to your parents' connections.
"It's true. They're nothing but failures," she defended herself.
"They should just give up."
"And stop wasting the school's resources," Sakura's new friends chimed in.
"Why don't they just quit? We all know Class E is going to lose."
Sitting two seats away from Sakura and her friends, you watched the field. The winning team was still celebrating with loud cheers. Most of the players couldn't stop smiling or congratulating one another, while their classmates celebrated with them. Even with the weight of defeat, the opposing class congratulated them.
Off to one side of the field, some of the students from Class E began to gather. Their faces remained calm, even amused.
Even knowing the entire game was stacked against them, they were still going to play.
They really were admirable.
"___, you know, I'm suddenly a little thirsty. Can you go get me something?" Kaho ordered, her voice dripping with fake kindness, though the condescension was impossible to miss. Her smile was full of mockery.
You waited a few moments, carefully thinking about the words you were about to let leave your lips.
Crossing your legs, you turned toward the higher rows of the bleachers where the girls were sitting. Most people would call them the typical queen bees from an American teen movie.
To you, they were harpies.
"Oh, really? I think I saw a vending machine nearby. Do you want me to explain how to get there?" Innocently, you replaced your defensive, irritated tone with a harmless one.
"___." A familiar voice scolded you. You never imagined this moment would come.
"Yes, Sakura?"
"Don't be mean to Kaho."
She had forgotten surprisingly fast that you were her friend. Just to fit in, Sakura didn't defend you. If anything, she expected you to give in.
You looked at Sakura, still unable to believe her behavior. Did she really expect you to run errands for them?
"..." You were left speechless. What were you even supposed to say now?
"I want a soda."
"Ah, me too. ___, bring me one as well."
"Actually, why don't you just bring one for each of us?"
You nodded, keeping your expression calm. You bit your tongue to stop yourself from insulting any of Sakura's new friends. Your dear friend only looked at you guiltily for a brief moment before smiling at the other girls again, returning to talking about boys and gossiping about whichever girl had managed to catch their attention.
Ha. It was a great joke if they thought you were going to be their errand girl.
You had put up with Sakura's new friends only because of your years of friendship with her, not because you actually liked them.
This was the last thing you needed to finally draw a line.
Oh, you were so annoyed with everyone, seeing you as their helper, someone they could use without feeling guilty. You wanted to hit something. You really did.
"___."
You stopped in your tracks, annoyed by whoever had called your name. Slowly, you turned around and glared at the new person ruining your day. But your surprise was immense when you saw a face you hadn't seen in a long time.
"Sugino."
"Ah, what a relief. I thought I'd mistaken you for someone else."
"Ooh, that would've been funny. Seeing the look on your face after realizing you'd called the wrong person," you laughed.
"You know, I'd forgotten how cruel and funny you can be."
You smiled. Seeing Sugino again felt like a breath of fresh air. You hugged him nostalgically. You had been close friends since kindergarten, the kind of friends who always ended up in the same classes and got along effortlessly. You had even tutored him when his grades started dropping. But after he was transferred to Class E, you never saw him again... and he never texted you.
Maybe he had been ashamed of failing.
"Are you going to play?" you asked with interest when you noticed your friend in uniform, a baseball in his hand.
"Well, this is the only chance I've got to show what I can do."
"And beat Shinso," you added.
"And beat him."
"I see. Good luck," you said, beginning to say goodbye.
"You're leaving already? The game's not even starting yet." Sugino looked at you sadly, disappointed that you were ready to leave. He had hoped to spend a little more time with his old friend, maybe even repair your friendship after he had stopped reaching out to you...
He felt guilty.
"..."
You were conflicted, but not because you didn't want to spend more time with Sugino. It was because of the other students' stares—the looks from Sakura and Kaho, who were becoming real harpies.
You shook your head, trying to sort through your options.
"Why don't you stay? I need some support, just like in the old days." He pulled you along by your shoulders, guiding you toward the seats where his team was gathered without waiting for your answer, excited to have his friend with him again.
Many of the boys greeted you when you reached the Class E team's bench. Some looked surprised, others shy.
You greeted them with a nervous smile before quietly taking your seat, crossing your fingers and hoping this nightmare would end.
You weren't exactly prepared to interact with so many strangers.
"Guys, this is ___, my friend from Class A. ___, these are my friends from Class E."
"Sugino, nice! You brought us a cheerleader," a blond-haired boy congratulated him. He introduced himself as Maehara and immediately started talking to you, shamelessly flirting and invading your personal space.
"Is that so? She looks more like a spy," a redheaded boy sitting on the next bench mocked, watching you with amusement.
By that point, you had already had enough of passive-aggressive and hurtful comments that assigned you a role or a personality before you had the chance to prove otherwise, so you couldn't stop your tongue.
"And you look like a criminal in the making." Unwilling to put up with his words, you answered defensively. All the frustration you had been holding in came out on the wrong person.
You expected a harsh reply, cutting words, a lecture about your behavior, cold stares...
But not the redhead bursting into laughter.
Even a few of the boys who had overheard smiled.
"You've got guts. I'll give you that," he said with a grin before turning his attention back to the baseball field.
Huh.
You had expected him to get angry, just like some of the boys from the main campus would have.
You looked at him in confusion.
Did he actually like being insulted?
You were... you were suspended from Class A...
And... and transferred to the final class.
And it wasn't your fault.
You could still taste the bitterness in your mouth because of the outcome.
It wasn't your fault. If it had been, you would've come up with something much more elaborate.
All because you tried to save Sakura... and she hadn't even asked you to, nor had you agreed in the first place. She simply ordered you to do it, believing your "friendship" was enough for you to take the blame.
Cheating on an exam...
You had honestly thought she was finally taking her studies seriously.
The worst part was that she hadn't gotten rid of the cheat sheets. She kept them... and so did her other friends.
Which led to you being blamed as the owner of those notes.
By the time you realized they had slipped one of the missing sheets into your bag, it was already too late.
Without a doubt, your former friend was falling apart. All you could do now was hope to watch her crumble during the exams and final grades. You had always been the one helping her study and guiding her through her assignments.
"I... I'm sorry, ___," she apologized quietly, hiding the truth in front of all the other students.
"I know it's my fault for leaving you out."
How self-centered... and ungrateful.
All for the sake of appearances and status.
"It's not your fault, Sakura. She brought this on herself," one of Sakura's new friends defended her, even though all of them had helped make those cheat sheets.
"I hope things go well for you in that class."
"Maybe that's where you always belonged."
You wanted to punch one of those girls so badly, but then you remembered what your stepfather had warned you.
Don't get into trouble.
"Haha, I guess that's why her dad left and chose his other daughter instead."
You froze.
That was a secret.
The fact that your father had started another family was something only Sakura knew...
So why had she told the others?
"That was a secret." You looked at your former friend, hurt. You had always kept her deepest secrets. You had never even used them against her, not even when you were alone together.
"Just like the secret that your mom's a social climber? That's why she married a rich man."
You simply nodded at the harsh reality, finally understanding that your friendship had never meant anything to Sakura.
"I hope you have good luck over the next few years, Sakura." You looked at her, remaining perfectly calm so you wouldn't cause a scene.
But those weren't your last words.
You hugged your former best friend before leaning close and whispering into her ear,
"If you or one of your little friends ever says that again, I swear you'll regret it."
You smiled.
It was that same smile filled with madness and ferocity that appeared whenever your anger took over.
The very same smile Sakura knew she should never provoke.
That day, you kept walking until it was late, with no destination in mind.
You wandered through streets you knew well, but without any particular place to go.
You knew your mother would probably brush it off, tell you everything had already been taken care of, and then leave for another one of her charity events, setting you aside once again, making you feel unimportant.
You stopped outside a convenience store with a bag of chips and a large soda, quietly watching the clouds drift by.
Even though your life had just taken a huge turn, everything around you seemed completely normal.
Somehow, that made you feel even more like trash.
"Hey..."
"Hey, pretty girl. Look at me."
Snapped back to reality, you became aware of the people who had decided to keep you company.
They were students, but from another school, with the appearance of street delinquents.
You couldn't help making a face at how unpleasant they looked.
"You think you're better than us?" The student beside you noticed your expression of disgust, and it seemed to make him furious.
Instead of looking back at him, you simply ate another chip, calmly chewing while watching the sky slowly turn pink.
The pain of losing your friend hurt more.
Being transferred to a new class frightened you even more.
Feeling disposable to the people you knew...
That was far worse.
"Damn bitch, she's seriously ignoring me." The boy grabbed your arm tightly, squeezing without any care.
"Why can't you just let a girl be miserable without bothering her?" you snapped, finally angry at him and his friends.
They didn't seem to care that you were clearly suffering. Instead, they surrounded you, invading your personal space and blocking your view of the sky.
"Wow, picking on someone weaker than you. That's pretty pathetic." Someone outside the group mocked them.
"Get lost, kid," one of the boys laughed.
You looked over just as a commotion broke out, the stranger effortlessly knocking down every member of the group.
It was the same redhead you had met during the baseball competition.
Sugino's classmate.
You had front-row seats as you watched him beat up each of the boys with almost playful amusement.
At some point, the redhead's movements became hypnotic, and you couldn't look away.
You watched his hair sway with every quick movement, his grin whenever another guy cried out in pain. You even caught a glimpse of his fangs, and the way his clothes fluttered in the wind.
Too bad the boy holding your arm still hadn't let go.
Encouraged by the chaos unfolding before you, you raised your free hand toward his face while standing up at the same time, but he stopped you by grabbing your wrist.
"Haha, did you seriously think a little hit from those tiny hands would hurt me?"
You didn't answer.
You simply smiled when you realized he'd given you a clear opening.
Lifting your leg, you drove your foot straight between his legs with all your strength.
It happened at the perfect moment for the redhead to step in, pull you away, and punch the guy beside you square in the face.
"First a spy, and now a troublemaker?" Karma joked as you found yourself standing right in front of him.
You shook your head, slightly offended, while picking your things up from the ground.
"I didn't do anything. They just showed up," you defended yourself.
"So you attracted them just by sitting there?"
You nodded and walked over to throw away the trash from your food.
"So you're good bait," you heard him mutter to himself.
You didn't even bother wondering what he meant.
You simply walked away.
"Hey, you're leaving already?" you heard him shout from behind you.
"Without even thanking me."
He whispered the words so close to your ear that they startled you.
You hadn't realized he had gotten that close.
"Or giving me a thank-you kiss."
His words made you stop.
Just hearing them was enough to make you blush.
You didn't even know why.
It wasn't like you liked him.
"And what's that for?"
"For being a gentleman and saving you."
"You're pretty bold," you said, stopping halfway down the alley after putting enough distance between yourself and the convenience store.
"If that embarrasses you, I'll settle for something else."
"Seriously, what is it?" You looked at him with your arms crossed, waiting for whatever ridiculous thing he was about to say next.
Honestly, you were expecting something absurd.
Just the thought amused you a little.
"A carton of strawberry milk."
"..."
Definitely not that.
Why just a sweet drink?
You thought he'd ask for something difficult.
Maybe help with one of his stupid pranks...
Or a distraction.
Your expectations had been way too high.
"Strawberry milk?" you repeated in disbelief.
Somehow... it actually made sense.
He seemed like the troublesome, joking type, but with good intentions.
Otherwise, who knew where you'd be right now?
"Or would you rather go with the kiss?"
You lowered your head, shaking it at the ridiculous thought that suddenly filled your mind.
"Seriously? Asking for a kiss?" You kept shaking your head without looking at him. "I don't even know who you are."
You smiled at the strange, peculiar boy you had met again.
"Just call me Karma." He dismissed formalities with a shrug. "And you?"
"___," you answered.
Since he had skipped the formality of using his last name, you figured you could do the same.
"See? Now we know each other."
He kept joking.
You could tell by that shameless grin.
You nodded before searching through your bag.
"This is all I have."
You pulled out two 100-yen coins.
You walked toward the boy, who already looked delighted.
Maybe he really liked that drink.
"Aw, how kind," you saw him say excitedly.
But instead of placing the coins in his outstretched hand, you walked right past it and stepped even closer.
You pressed your lips against his cheek.
Only for a second.
Then you pulled away.
It was so unexpected that it left him completely frozen.
"But these are for emergencies." You shook your head and slipped the coins back into your bag.
Then you hurried away before he could react.
And he didn't.
He stood there for quite a while, silently watching as his newest target disappeared into the distance.
He had planned to tease you a little before going his own way.
Maybe even make sure you got somewhere safer than that street.
But you...
You...
You had turned the tables on him.
Leaving him standing there like an idiot, frozen by a silly kiss on the cheek...
Even making his cheeks grow warm.
He was definitely going to get you back for that joke.
"Idiot," you scolded yourself mentally.
How could you have had the nerve to do something like that to a boy you had just met?
Had you gone crazy?
Had the madness of being transferred to another class already gotten to you?!
And then, when you finally arrived home, you realized something you had never stopped to consider...
He was from Class E.
The very same class you were about to join.
You...
You were going to see him again.
"So... he's an octopus?" you asked, nodding from your seat beside Sugino, his friends Nagisa and Kayano.
"Yeah," your friend nodded.
"The one who's going to destroy the Earth like he did the Moon?" No matter how many times you repeated the facts to yourself, they sounded impossible, unreal, almost like a dream.
"That's right," Nagisa nodded as well, concerned by the way you had frozen in place, lost in thought.
"And we're supposed to kill him?" you asked again, still sitting there in shock.
"Yes, ___, that's right. But take it easy," Kayano said, patting your shoulder, a gesture you appreciated.
"I thought it was a joke!"
"Believe me, it's very real," your new teacher said as his tentacles enthusiastically wrapped around your arms. "And I'm excited to have a new student."
Koro-sensei introduced himself happily, practically singing as he welcomed you.
As strange as everything was, it was nice. You had just come from a place where everyone hated you and looked at you with disgust.
Now, in this new place, no one ignored you. There was no cruelty, nor competition.
Some of them smiled when they saw you, and during lunch break they even introduced themselves.
Many eagerly invited you to eat with them.
Even during your new P.E. class, where you clearly didn't fit in at all, no one made fun of you. Instead, they gave you advice and words of encouragement.
For a moment, you thought things would become awkward, especially after your bold kiss. Even if it had only been a joke to tease the boy who had saved you, all because of some ridiculous idea that had suddenly crossed your mind.
But they didn't.
Karma seemed to have gotten over it. Maybe it had been something insignificant to him, because you had never seen his reaction, probably one of amusement.
He was still the same annoying boy who had broken the ice with you at the baseball field, the same one who joked around while beating up other students.
"Hey, you know? That look on your face is really funny," the redhead you had met a few days ago teased, laughing at your bewildered expression.
You were going to ignore him. You were ready to continue with your assignment until your new teacher returned from his trip.
"Are you seriously going to ignore me?"
You didn't answer. You simply kept moving your pencil across the paper.
"Wow... I'm really hurt."
You thought he would stop.
He didn't.
Instead, he started playing with his pencil, repeatedly tapping it against your desk. Out of everyone in the classroom, you seemed to be the only one he wanted to bother, since nobody else complained.
"Don't you have anything better to do?" you asked, setting your worksheet aside to look at him.
"No."
"Seriously? What about the assignment?"
"I already finished it."
"Good for you, I guess. So why don't you go find something else to do?" You waved your hand as if you were shooing away a stray dog.
Even so, you secretly crossed your fingers, hoping he wouldn't bring up the kiss just to tease you.
"I don't need to. I already found something." He smiled, clearly amused by what he meant.
"Well, that's too bad. I'm busy."
"Making doodles?"
"What...?" you blurted out, startled that he'd caught you. You shifted uncomfortably in your seat.
"Come on. You were in Class A. This is obviously a piece of cake for you."
"Uh... thanks?" You weren't sure how to respond. Was that a compliment or another way of teasing you?
"Now then, how about you tell me something about Asano?"
There he was again, interrupting the little time you had to think and accept the fact that you were now in the final class.
For some reason...
You let him convince you.
"Well... he's perfect, you know..."
"So are you?" Karma interrupted immediately, already judging you for saying that. Seriously, your taste was terrible. There were much better guys than that stuck-up snob. "Don't tell me you actually think that too."
"Wait, let me finish," you said, shaking your head, unknowingly giving Karma a small sense of relief.
"...if you ignore his OCD with being perfect."
"OCD?"
"Of course. You didn't notice?"
"Interesting theory." You watched him nod, now genuinely entertained by what you had said. "Tell me more."
He even had the nerve to get comfortable, resting an arm on your desk and propping his chin on his hand as he waited for you to continue.
You assumed Karma would never mention the second time you two met.
He had plenty of opportunities now that you spent much more time together, thanks to circumstances that were completely out of your control, of course.
You were classmates, seat neighbors, and part of the same circle of friends. Yes! That was the only reason you had become so close, nothing more!!!
Besides, it wasn't your fault that fate had made you both live in the same neighborhood, or that Karma now saw you as walking bait for delinquents, making him insist on following you because he believed he'd find "some good fights."
Nor was it your fault that Karma found it entertaining to tease you over every little thing, just to see you get annoyed and laugh about it.
And how could you forget his obsession with stealing the sweets you secretly managed to get?
Or his latest mission to score higher than you on every test, just because you had bragged to his face that you got a better grade than he did as revenge for all his teasing.
You wished Karma would never bring up that moment again.
But he did.
"Do you kiss every stranger you meet?" Karma whispered into your ear, making you stop walking.
The way he said it made it sound like a completely ordinary conversation.
"What?"
The question left you frozen, barely able to speak.
"Well, your bold little stunt wasn't exactly easy to forget. It was only a few days ago." Carefree as always, Karma rested his hands behind his head and continued walking beside you. He was the very definition of someone without a worry in the world.
"Don't think too much about it. It was nothing," you denied, trying to forget that embarrassing moment.
Truthfully, you had hoped Karma would forget it. It had only been a small slip-up, a prank, a moment of impulse.
Not exactly an appropriate topic for a conversation while walking toward some unknown place your teacher wanted to show the class, under the annoying sun burning your face and the suffocating heat.
He had certainly picked the perfect moment.
"Then why are you nervous?"
That almost made you slip off the stone path you were following. A few classmates looked your way, but quickly lost interest when they saw the redhead grabbing your arm before you could fall.
"That's not it," you denied, gently pulling away from his grip.
"Sure. Then what is it?" You saw him smile, clearly not believing your lie for a second.
"Well..." You stayed silent, only shaking your head. You were too embarrassed to admit it. "Just forget it." Instead of defending yourself or making up an excuse, it seemed better to keep quiet.
"Oh, come on. I'm not going to judge you." Karma raised both hands as if to prove he was harmless.
Maybe you really were making too big a deal out of something insignificant. That thought finally made you lower your guard.
"But don't make fun of me," you warned, pointing an accusing finger at him.
"I can't promise that."
Hearing that, you looked at him even more accusingly, seriously wondering whether you should answer his question or simply leave him curious.
You sighed and shook your head. If there was one thing you had learned about him, it was that there was no cure for his love of mischief.
"It was your fault," you confessed, stopping so you could face the redhead.
"You fell in love with me the moment you saw me."
You rolled your eyes at his nonsense.
You knew he was joking.
But maybe...
Maybe it wasn't entirely false.
When you had watched him fighting that group of delinquent students, it had been so impressive that it had literally left you speechless... and breathless for a few seconds.
The image of Karma fighting was still etched into your memory, and you had no idea why.
"That's not it," you smiled. "It was the fun... the adrenaline you felt while you were fighting. It was contagious."
He didn't answer.
He simply listened to you attentively.
"You were free. You weren't afraid."
"I guess... I wanted to have a little fun too, so I played along with the kiss."
You tried to make it sound unimportant.
"You didn't have to help me either... but you did. It was nice."
You didn't wait to hear his response.
Whatever he said would only make you more embarrassed and leave your face bright red.
You didn't need that, especially if it meant having to explain yourself to anyone who noticed.
So you slipped away from his side and went looking for Kayano.
Even after you adapted to your new class, a place where you made new friends you truly appreciated, the shadow of the other campus continued to follow you.
Every morning, you ran into Sakura. Whenever you saw her, you felt conflicted. Part of you wanted to run over, greet her, and hug her. Another part wanted to insult her and hit her so hard that she would finally feel your pain.
The pain of losing your best friend...
And the anger of her betrayal.
And now Asano was helping Class A study.
As if things couldn't possibly get any worse.
Talking about the student council president had always been a delicate subject. You admired him and even cared about him in a way...
But he stopped being your "friend" the moment he started dating Sakura. Or maybe he simply stopped acting friendly, because you doubted he had ever truly considered you his friend in the first place.
You resented him.
He never believed you when you told him about the cheat sheets, that you had never used them, and that they belonged to his girlfriend's group.
All he gave you were hurtful words and told you to accept your punishment.
Which brings you to the next problem...
Having real friends was nice...
But having them become obsessed with your love life definitely wasn't.
Their excuse?
You were pretty, smart, and came from the main campus, where there were supposedly more boys and more potential boyfriends.
To you, though, it was obvious they were trying to live out their own romantic lives through you.
Now, slumped in your chair, you couldn't help wondering why you were being punished like this.
"So... you like Asano?" Rio teased after noticing you never seemed interested in any of the boys from the main campus and only referred to them as classmates.
"What?" That caught you completely off guard, so much that you visibly tensed, because... in a way, you had liked him a little.
"It's just that you always look sad whenever you hear his name," Kayano joined in.
"How did you notice?"
"When Shinso introduced the Class A tutors for the exams."
Nothing escaped your friends, did it?
On one hand, it felt nice to finally have people who actually noticed you.
On the other, you were being sentenced to the worst possible interrogation.
"Did he break your heart?" Rio asked, now even more interested. There was a hint of mischief in her voice, but it was only harmless teasing. You could also hear genuine concern beneath it. After knowing her for this long, you were certain that if that had really happened, the blonde would already be planning a revenge campaign.
"Were you two dating?" Kurahashi asked with her usual innocent curiosity.
"I..."
"Come on, ___, don't leave us hanging," Koro-sensei joined in as well, acting like an excited schoolgirl desperate to hear the gossip. His tentacles twitched nervously and waved around uncontrollably, eager for your answer.
"N-No, it's nothing like that," you laughed, amused by everyone's imagination. "We were just acquaintances. I guess... I admired him."
"That's all?" they pressed.
"Maybe... I liked him a little." You held your thumb and index finger close together, trying to make your confession seem as small as possible.
"Ahhhh!"
It didn't help.
Your classmates only became even more interested in your story.
"It can't be just that," your octopus teacher declared dramatically while furiously scribbling notes into his notebook.
"Guys, don't exaggerate. It's really not a big deal. I think the only thing I liked about him was how intelligent he was."
"Only that?"
"He was handsome, but not really my type," you said, shaking your head as you genuinely tried to figure out why you had liked Asano in the first place. He had always been kind to you... but that wasn't the only reason.
His looks had definitely played a part too.
"In what way?" Rio asked again, completely invested now. "What exactly did you like about him?"
You thought.
And thought.
The silence stretched long enough for everyone to stare at you expectantly.
Maybe it was because he always scored higher than you.
Because he stood confidently at the front of the classroom.
Because he always seemed to know the answer to every question.
"He was a genius. I think... that's what I liked about him."
"..."
"But don't worry." You shook your head with a smile. "I'm over it now. I'm terrible at love. It's better if I stay single."
That finally silenced everyone questioning you.
Seeing them like that, you decided it was time to leave. Classes had ended quite a while ago.
It seemed like you had disappointed a lot of people...
Or at least, that's what you thought.
Because, in reality, a nosy teacher and a group of enthusiastic students had just gained even more information to use in their mission of finding you a boyfriend.
You let out a tired sigh before forcing yourself to continue the exhausting training.
Your legs felt like they were burning, and you couldn't find the strength to stand up.
Instead, you relaxed on the grass in the schoolyard. It was cool and surprisingly comfortable. Looking up at the sky helped you forget the brutal training you had gone through today.
"Need some help?"
His voice pulled you away from your admiration of the clouds, just as you were beginning to remember which childhood cartoon the newest cloud reminded you of.
It was Karma.
You recognized his voice just as well as you recognized the far-from-kind intentions he usually had whenever he came over to you.
He always approached you just to make you nervous and laugh at your expense.
"What are you planning?" you asked without hesitation.
"Hey, I'm just trying to help a lady in distress," he defended himself, sounding offended.
So now he wanted to play the gentleman again?
"Uh-huh."
Completely unimpressed, you went back to watching the clouds. They looked like tiny little monkeys...
"I just feel sorry for seeing you lying there like a homeless girl." Seeing that he wasn't getting your attention, Karma pushed a little harder.
"And aren't you going to take advantage of it?" you encouraged him to get to the point, whatever it was he had originally come over to do.
"No. You've already sweated enough."
That actually sounded kind.
But before you could say something nice, he spoke again.
"Besides, it's not fun when you already look completely worn out."
You decided to swallow your kind words.
"Come on."
Without waiting any longer, Karma finally said what he had been thinking.
He genuinely wanted to help.
You looked like you were having a hard time, and with the day's temperature still rising, things were only going to get worse.
You looked at the hand he was holding out to you.
It stayed there, without the slightest hesitation.
"I can't. I barely have enough strength to look at you," you admitted, still lying on the ground.
"Then I'll carry you."
There wasn't even the slightest hesitation in his voice.
"What?" You laughed. "You're taking this gentleman act way too seriously."
"What can I say? It's in my blood." Instead of denying your words, he embraced them completely. "Anything for my lady."
"Tell me I'm not going to regret this," you said, looking at him uncertainly.
Karma simply smiled back at you.
Waiting for you to trust him.
"Stop joking! I don't want to fall!" You hit his shoulders and pinched him, trying to make him stop pretending he was losing his balance and was about to fall with you.
"Hahaha, just have a little fun, ___," he teased.
Karma only laughed harder before picking up his pace.
You wrapped your arms around his neck so you wouldn't fall as he carried you up the stairs.
Not to be outdone, he tightened his grip around your legs, perhaps just to prevent you from slipping... or maybe to keep you from being so afraid.
"I promise we won't fall," Karma said with complete confidence.
He wouldn't let it happen.
The thought of you getting hurt because of him wasn't a pleasant one.
What both of you failed to notice were the subtle glances your classmates kept stealing from a distance.
To them, those interactions looked like something more than just friendship.
You practically threw yourself onto the ground the moment you arrived, letting go of Karma as soon as he carried you back to the classroom.
"You're a demon," you muttered, still dizzy.
"Oh, come on. I helped you. Besides, you enjoyed it," Karma said as he watched you crawl across the hallway.
"Just a little," you admitted.
You had been happy riding on his back. You had felt invincible. You had even called him your servant... one of the reasons he had started joking about making the two of you fall.
It had been nice.
He had worried about you.
He had carried you all the way back to the classroom, even though he was exhausted too. You were sweaty from training, yet he hadn't complained about it more than once.
But, in the end, it had only been a fun moment between two friends.
Before you stepped into the girls' locker room to clean up and change, the boy stopped you at the door, gently taking your hand.
"Let's go get some ice cream," he said with a smile. The idea had come to him on the spot.
That alone lifted your mood.
Maybe it was his way of making up for the disastrous ride on his back.
Or, as he would later claim after school, he simply didn't want the fun to end.
You didn't want it to end either.
So the two of you went out for ice cream, throwing witty remarks at each other, laughing at one another, talking about your interests, complaining about your annoying teacher, and arguing over who would get the better grades on the next exams.
Once again, neither of you noticed the spies from Class E...
Or rather, your curious friends and even your equally curious teacher.
Well, somewhere between smiles and childish insults, the suspicions began.
Then came the bright looks and those endless smiles.
The moments when the two of you became completely absorbed in long conversations that only you seemed interested in.
To Koro-sensei, Nakamura, Fuwa, and many of your classmates, those were all signs.
Signs that they needed to step in and bring together the two idiots who couldn't seem to realize what was happening.
They took advantage of the cave exploration on the island you visited, deliberately leaving the two of you alone and hoping something would finally happen.
They seated you together to watch the fireworks that night, making sure no one else interrupted.
They arranged outings where, somehow, the two of you always ended up alone because everyone else suddenly had "something important" to do or conveniently wandered off.
But neither of you ever made a move.
Either you were both too oblivious to notice...
Or you were simply too scared.
Whatever the reason was, Koro-sensei cried in frustration every single time another one of his plans failed.
You and Karma noticed every single attempt your friends and teachers made to bring the two of you together.
The two of you would only laugh about how ridiculous their plans were.
When, in reality...
At night, you were both silently calling yourselves idiots for not taking advantage of those moments to confess your feelings.
But...
What if the other person didn't feel the same way?
What if everything went wrong?
What if, after that...
You ended up hating each other?
Your heart ached every time you couldn't tell Karma you loved him.
Having him by your side had been comforting.
You no longer felt alone.
With him, you could be free.
Without worries.
For Karma, it wasn't any different. After missing those opportunities, he could barely sleep.
How had he ended up falling for you?
Was it after all your witty remarks?
The way you went along with his crazy ideas?
Your voice, your hair, your laugh?
Was it all of it together that made him fall in love...
But neither of you would say anything.
Neither of you would confess your feelings.
You already had something good without confessing...
So why ruin it?
"___."
You knew that voice very well. You didn't need to turn around to know who it was. After all, his voice was etched deep into your mind.
"What are you doing here?"
Your mood changed the moment you saw him. You no longer felt sad or angry after seeing Asano. Everything that had to do with that boy had disappeared the moment you saw Karma.
"I..."
It was the first time you had ever seen Karma stutter. He hesitated over the words he was about to say. You noticed the conflict in his expression.
It was strange.
"I heard you were with Asano."
Hearing those words left you frozen in the middle of the empty park. Dark clouds rushed across the sky, the wind shaking your uniform, and you felt goosebumps spread across your skin.
"Oh... yeah. Well, he said he wanted to talk."
You shook your head at the memory of that meeting. You wished you had never agreed to it... then you dismissed the thought. Asano probably would have found another way.
You looked back at your friend standing in front of you, but this time his usual confident, mischievous smile was gone. Instead, he wore a small, uncertain smile.
"So... how did it go?" he asked again.
You wanted to tease him, to point out how interested he seemed, but seeing him without his usual spark, you couldn't do it.
"I think it went well."
You brushed the conversation off. It wasn't worth thinking about.
"You and him?" Karma continued, wondering if that uptight Asano had actually managed to win you over, if Asano had accomplished what he had never dared to do.
"Well... he apologized for not believing me."
You felt uncomfortable standing still, so you started walking, taking Karma's hand.
"He wanted to talk about the cheating notes during the exams?"
You nodded.
When you had started getting along with Class E, your dear "friends" from Class A had gone out of their way to reveal the reason why you had ended up in the final class.
But your classmates hadn't cared.
Every single one of them waited to hear your side of the story without questioning you or doubting you.
Even when a teacher began searching through your belongings to make sure you wasn't still using the same tricks, your classmates insisted that the teacher search their belongings too, so you wouldn't feel singled out.
And Karma...
Oh, Karma had dragged you to his house the previous few days, where he had put you through long, intense study sessions, complete with your favorite sweets to keep you motivated.
According to him, you had to prove how capable you really were.
"Yeah. He said he should've believed me... instead of Sakura."
"Well, that's a little late, isn't it?" Karma sounded annoyed.
You couldn't blame him. You should have felt the same way, but you had decided to let go of your anger and forgive the boy. His life was already miserable enough.
You simply shrugged, showing your lack of interest.
"Well... Sakura was his girlfriend back then, and I think he loved her."
You weren't trying to defend him.
You just wanted to understand.
"Was?"
"That's the best part." You smiled, amused. "They started supervising the students more carefully so no one could cheat anymore. Sakura's grades dropped, and now she's in Class C with her friends."
"And our dear student council president can't date an idiot," Karma added with a grin, happy to see you smiling after getting your own revenge.
And even happier knowing that stuck-up Asano wasn't going to take you away from Class E... or start something with you.
He wanted to sigh in relief.
But then he remembered the promise he had made to himself.
If it wasn't too late...
He would tell you everything.
He would stop being a coward when it came to love and stop hiding his feelings.
You stopped beside a bench in the park, one that overlooked the city's central buildings.
"Were you scared?" you asked, looking at Karma, who remained standing in front of you, completely ignoring the beautiful view.
Karma stayed silent for a moment before finally speaking.
"Yeah."
You were caught off guard.
You had expected another one of his jokes.
But he didn't make one.
The redhead was definitely acting strangely.
"Scared of what exactly?"
You stopped avoiding his gaze, convincing yourself that you wouldn't get distracted by his eyes or memorize every detail of his face...
Just for today, you would be strong.
"I think you already know, ___."
You knew?
No.
Of course not.
That couldn't be it.
You were just friends who got along really well.
He would never look at you that way.
He was just having fun teasing you.
You were imagining things.
"I have no idea," you said, shaking your head. "Maybe you didn't want to lose one of your few friends."
You decided it was better to keep pretending.
You weren't ready.
Not yet.
"Yeah... you're my best friend, ___," Karma admitted.
But before you could answer, the redhead continued, kneeling down so he was at your eye level.
"But not just that. You're my partner in crime, my right hand, my lady... the person I can't stop thinking about, and the one who always makes me smile just by being there."
You froze.
At some point, he had gently taken your hands into his, filling them with warmth.
Your heart began pounding.
Unable to bear the heat spreading across your face, you looked away from Karma.
"I was scared that Asano would take you away from this class... and that I wouldn't get to see you every morning. Your eyes... your hair... your smile..."
You trembled.
This was too much for you.
"Why?" you asked nervously, though you weren't even sure what you were asking about anymore.
"Because... I really love you, ___."
"I can't imagine a day without teasing you, seeing you scrunch up your face and fire back at me."
Your eyes widened at his confession.
So...
He really did have feelings for you.
He was in love with you.
And you...
You were too.
You gave up.
You couldn't keep denying it anymore.
You felt the same way.
You wanted to hear him laugh, listen to his sarcastic comments, his ridiculous antics, his fearless attitude.
"And I know this might be a lot—"
You interrupted him before he could continue.
You kissed him.
Stopping him for the second time.
Only this time, it was a real kiss.
Not one on his cheek.
A soft, gentle meeting of your lips that lasted several long seconds.
A small kiss...
That marked the beginning of something wonderful.
You felt his hands gently cup your face while you wrapped your arms tightly around him, afraid it wasn't real, afraid something would shatter this moment and tear you apart.
Karma had to wrap his free arm around your waist as well, worried that you would run away like a frightened kitten after kissing him.
You had already done it once.
This time...
The redhead had come prepared.
Behind a bush, an octopus happily watched, thrilled that he had finally managed to bring a couple together.
Even though many of his students had given up, he never had.
He persevered.
He kept pushing.
Now, he had to go tell the rest of his students the good news.
Well, I tried. I'm not good at writing long pieces.
But anyway, I hope you give it lots of love.
And I'll write more long pieces… if I manage to finish classes quickly.
