Himeko Katsukawa's Story

Kurou Kitomura
Wow, rude.

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Even though he was always made uncomfortable during storms, it was never because Kurou hated the rain. Rain itself was actually enjoyable, and especially now that it was barely raining, Kurou could listen to it. The sound of the raindrops pelting the ground at the beat of nature was soothing in its own way. But with rain came lightning, and with lightning came thunder. Thunder was obnoxious and abrupt. It reminded him of the worst memory he still owned and he hated it. But it was not always that thunder needed lightning.

"If you're here about the article, then get lost! I don't want to talk about it anymore!" a storm nearly boomed.

Kurou jumped, having not expected the sudden outburst from the girl. He was not sure what it was exactly that she was referring to, but it certainly wasn't relevant to him. He regained his composure long before the girl turned around, his arms crossed and a very sour look on his face to follow. He certainly wasn't happy he was yelled at for now reason. Are most of the woman this year going to be this rude? he thought, though when he thought of Aina being the exact opposite, he preferred this in some ways. People being too nice just didn't sit well with him. But perhaps she had noticed her misdoing, because immediately when she turned her head to face him, her expression was priceless. Kurou's own expression lightened for a moment as he had a very difficult time resisting the urge to grin, though this as well didn't last long at all.

"Oops, wrong person. Gomen ne, Kitomura." she apologized, though it felt like anything but.

Kurou's eyes narrowed immediately as he was suddenly put on guard. He hadn't even spoke yet, let alone give her his name. While it was true that she could know him simply from gossip, that did not explain the tone she was using, which was sounded less friendly than the earlier one she was using. It was as if she knew him, and had a reason to hate him. But I don't know who this girl is, do I? He looked her over with little to no subtlety, not particularly caring about whether or not it would make her feel embarrassed or not. All he could really say was she was beautiful, and that he especially liked her hair. Wait.... that does look familiar.... But that's all it was. It was that vague sensation that you've seen it before, but you didn't have enough to go on to figure anything out. Perhaps he'd seen it on someone in a commercial, or an actress? Honestly, he couldn't figure it out and since it wasn't a strong feeling, he didn't think too much more about it.

"Forget it, I'll just find somewhere else to go. I didn't realize that I'd have company. Class will be back in session in around ten minutes anyhow." she broke the silence that had formed between them, her voice still betraying a complete lack of positive emotion towards Kurou. It reminded him of himself in a way, but his displeasure was directed towards pretty much everybody, not just one person, so it was nearly as strong a feeling.

Oh, he'd better say something before she runs away. He was curious now.

Kurou pushed himself off the wall and finally spoke to the girl."You know, I don't believe anybody's ever been this nice to me before." he began. "Why, with the way you laced my name with sugar, I had almost thought you were about to confess or something. You really do sound like you like me, after all. To what do I owe this admiration?" of course, every word was laced with almost the lethal dose of sarcasm and a heavy dose of obliviousness as well. He was unintentionally as cruel as he just was.

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This was indeed being troublesome more than he wanted to invest his effort in. Shin had decided to ignore this rumor mill and have the agency launched an official statement that he has no relationship with that girl in the tabloids. That it was just a misunderstanding and just a passing interaction between two strangers. It was already been approved judging by the SMS he received earlier while looking for Yukito's classroom, but that won't be the case anymore. He and that girl attended the same school, this would certainly feed the fires and Yukito was not certainly being helpful in the matter, more like the idol has no intentions of lending a hand at all.

Speaking of feeding the fires, the girl caught up with him in the rumors was like a blazing one. She was obviously a firecracker with that mouth of hers. He was right to think that she was different from those run-down the mill girls he had often been dragged to socialize with. He had only one problem with that. His eyes instinctively narrowed in displeasure which only lasted for a second. He is after all in front of an audience. He was fine if people speak nasty things about him. He's used to it all of his life. He would proudly say that he's immune to it, but it was a different matter when it comes to Yukito. This girl was earning points in his negative ranks, a place no one would want to be in.

He wasn't able to say a word since the girl took the high and mighty approach and left. It seemed his conclusion that was drawn last night about her being caught up in her own thoughts was true as well. She just took her interpretation and didn't care for the others. He understood the trouble of the rumors on someone like her and he didn't want that on anyone especially someone who was innocent in the first place. That's why... "Hey." His voice was low but was loud enough to make everyone else remaining in the room and others from the outside peeking in because of the commotion hear him. "She has nothing to do with me and those rumors are lies." His voice was calm yet stern, meaning that what he was saying at this moment was equivalent to a law.

"I would like it if you don't connect me with her any longer as it clearly bothers her and me. If you want details, I suggest waiting for my official statement later in the day. If you would excuse me then." That is all he would have to say about that topic. He then left the room without another word. There was no use after all staying there since Yukito was not there anymore. The students started to make their own conclusions and were actually pleased with his words because it meant, the ever-popular model was still a bachelor. As for the said person, he strode the hallways looking for Yukito. He was actually irritated and wanted to say a few things to that coffee girl in regards bad-mouthing his light. Shin decided against it, since he wouldn't want to further blacken his mood or be infected with idiocy.

That's when he turned to a corner and saw a group of guys, encircling his classmate, that should be the term. They were like a pack of dogs in heat and that was disconcerting not only to him but to the girl they had their eyes set on. "You should leave her alone." They looked at him and the guys instantly knew that he was someone not to be trifled not only because of his physique, but of his spreading reputation in school, moreover when he reached for one of the boys hand that held his classmate's wrist. He pried it off with enough strength to imply he was not someone to be messed with. "You guys should know your limits and pay attention to others." The group of guys immediately apologized and took their leave, more like have their tails tucked underneath their legs. "Malik-san, you should know when to say no. It's not a bad thing to do so." He noted as he looked at his fellow newcomer. "Be careful." He then continued on his way.

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It seemed that Kitomura-san liked the strawberries which made her happy and bid her goodbye. "Yes, see you later Kitomura-san.". Aina said with a gentle smile and then she finished her own meal and took a few minutes to settle herself. There was still time before classes start so, she decided to take the liberty of looking around. She knew that it would be wasted since she would forget it tomorrow, and that's why she took her journal to write the directions down. It would be awfully suspicious to others if she had been here for months and still couldn't find her way around.

There were other students she passed by who were obviously gossiping about her. She does stick out like a sore thumb due to her uncommon features and the fact she's exquisite to look at. Boys ogled at her and girls envied her, but she was completely oblivious to it and not because she was arrogant or something. She was just simply not paying attention to it as she was fixated on her physical surroundings and taking down notes. It was because of that she bumped into someone. She recognized her carelessness and immediately offered her apologies. "Oh, I apologize for my carelessness." Her eyes of of silvery purple gazed at the one she bumped into. It was a male student accompanied by his friends. "I hope that you did not get hurt. Are you fine?" Her very existence radiated pure concern which was taken advantage by the boys who instantly identified her as a beauty to possess even for a while.

They started to speak over-exaggerated lies about having a broken bone and that she should compensate which she was actually willing to. "This is my fault. Please tell me what I should do to compensate." That was the boys' win as they began to ask her out and even started to grab her hand as she was going to be dragged to some place where they could do anything with her. She was increasingly feeling uncomfortable, but held strong as she was filled with guilt for causing harm. It was during that moment when a voice entered that roused her to reality. It was her fellow newcomer and from what she had gathered a famous model. "Ogawa-san..." She was surprised as Ogawa grabbed one of the boys holding her wrist and pried it off effortlessly.

It didn't take long before those boys left them while apologizing profusely and then Ogawa telling her to say no and be careful. He then turned his back at her and began to leave. She instinctively reached for him and grabbed hold of the ends of his jacket. "You seemed in a hurry, but I just want to properly thank you for your assistance." She then released his jacket and formally bowed her head, something she had learned to be a proper way in Japanese of saying thank you. However, she was the kind of person who show her appreciation in a physical manner. Not able to hold back her joy, she closed the gap between her and Shin and embraced him with her arms finding its way around his torso. "Thank you so much, Ogawa-san!" It was at that point that other students began to fill the hallway. It seemed, there was another rumor that would be going about with the every intimate and incriminating scene between her and Ogawa especially, when that playful yet polite remark echoed as a certain idol witnessed it, to Shin's further problems, and due to Aina's ignorant innocence.

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Well, Yukito knew from the very beginning that Nemui's new female friend was an interesting person. School life was starting to be his own stage of entertainment and that wasn't bad at all. It also meant he won't be bored anytime soon. He wasn't even offended when the paranoia girl lashed out at him verbally. He actually found it cute like a hamster who didn't get it's meal. Anyway, that leech was there to clean it up. That guy was dependable on those matters, something like that of a dog who would stand by his side. He absolutely finds it pathetic, but it does have its uses. His mind was indeed becoming very dark which was the opposite of what he's presenting outwardly, like how he was having lunch with others in a friendly manner. He was even laughing a bit and joining in with their lame jokes. It was a perfect act that no one ever sees through.

He was even asked about Nemui being his older sister as he had announced it earlier and he answered it with an effortless. "Aren't I lucky?" matched with that smile of his. No one attempted further to pry and soon, they were going to return to their class. It was at that point, his phone vibrated, he had placed it on silent as he took a quick look what it was, apparently it was a call which he wouldn't dare to miss. "Why don't you guys go ahead first? I just have a call I need to take." He was soon left on his own as he found a place where he could not be interrupted and have a moment of peace with just himself and the one calling him. "Hello. Good evening. It should be night there, right?" He leaned on a nearby wall and a female voice filtered through. "Of course, I know. So, how is the shooting going on?" It was clear as day that there was deep affection seeping through his voice. It was far different from the ones he casually showcases.

"That's amazing, but that was a given with you. You should rest since you would have an early day tomorrow." His eyes crinkled in delight as he even taken a moment to chuckle lightly. "Ah, yes you are far older than me, but senpai is less mature than me." There was objection on the other line and he couldn't help but smile at that. "So, what is it that you had to call me for so late over there? It must be important." There was a moment of silence before it was answered and those words related to him made his eyes darkened ever so slightly. His hold on his phone tightened and his silence evident. "Oh... Ah, yes I'm still here. Congratulations to both of you!" He managed to end his sentence with joy though, his expression was the complete opposite of that. "So, I'm the first one to know? That makes me feel very special."

His eyes were now covered by his bangs and his head lowered, though his tone did not change from its upbeat nature. "I shouldn't hold you for too long senpai. He must be waiting for you and I do have classes, so..." He removed himself from the wall and approached one of the windows in front of him and opened it. The petrichor of the dwindling rain welcomed him completely to reality as he placed his arms on the sill. "It's no bother. I'll see you two when you get back then. Yeah, goodbye." The call ended at that as he lowered his phone and kept it. He took a deep breath and sighed. "Special, you say... Not special enough..." His eyes revealed itself as he looked at the scenery before him. That's when he noticed someone under the tree, a familiar face.

"What are you doing over there, Kurumi-san?" This was a good thing. He needed a distraction and she will do. There was his usual friendly expression. His eyes related a gentle concern and his lips revealed a kind smile. "Did something happen? Are you feeling sick?" He then removed his arms on the sill and instead placed his hands on it. There was not a second of hesitation as he pushed himself up and athletically got himself out of the window, and believe it or not, he did it with such poise. "If so, would you like to share it with me? They say that a burden is lessened even for a bit if you have someone take a share of it." He noted as he approached her and reached out his hand towards her, an offer to stand with that kind smile on his face.

"But, I won't force you." He added and whether Kurumi took his hand or not, it was fine with him. "We should get back inside, classes will start soon and I wouldn't feel fine if I leave you here alone, in the rain even if it's already weak." Whether, she answered positively or not, Yukito was forceful just a little bit though by holding her hand and pulling her towards the building. It goes without much saying that the students they passed by looked at them with jealousy and with gossip. It's because those two were still holding hands together and apparently, Yukito was not mindful of it. That was at that point in the hallway where another scene was unfolding as Yukito stopped on his tracks. His orange eyes widened a bit in surprise which soon reflected interest. There it was Shin and an unknown girl embracing each other. Shin's hands were on the girl's shoulders while the girl's face was filled with cheer while placed on Shin's chest. It was quite romantic.

"My, what a wonderful scene, Leech-kun. So, she's your real girlfriend?" He noted with his cheerful self and that friendly smile. "But, I suggest that lovey-dovey scene be limited. We wouldn't want everyone to be jealous." He was actually having a grand time even if outwardly, he was acting cordial and polite. That was when the the bell rang, meaning lunch was over. "I guess. It's time to go back to class then." He then looked at Kurumi which he noticed that he was till holding hands with. "Oh, sorry about that, I guess I just liked holding your hand. You won't mind doing that again sometime right?" He then released her hand and waved her goodbye as he proceeded to go to his class passing by Shin and the girl which would be known to him as Aina.

"You know, I don't believe anybody's ever been this nice to me before."

She took a single, subtle step back as he finally decided to speak up, and part of her was tempted to leave the rooftop. She didn't realize it in her distress, but this roof was a lot higher than she had thought. It was starting to make her really nervous and dizzy, "E-Eh!? What did you say? Are you being a smartass?" Himeko hissed, keeping a tough front despite her fear of heights. Her right eye twitched a few times in irritation as he made fun of her, just like old times. He was still able to get under her skin with ust one sentence, which only enraged her even more in the end. Even though she felt no romantic feelings for him anymore, his words still retained a certain level of weight, and she couldn't understand how or why. It was mind boggling, and it made her want to pull her hair out in frustration.

"Why, with the way you laced my name with sugar, I had almost thought you were about to confess or something. You really do sound like you like me, after all. To what do I owe this admiration?"

Forget it, you're still just as vile as the Kitomura that I remember. Himeko glared, her fists gripping the edges of her uniform sleeves. She wanted nothing more than to punch his lights out, but she knew that violence would get her nowhere fast. Her brother Ren was a violent person, and all it did for him was put him in an early grave. She never found out what really happened to him, and that was the hardest part. She was rather startled when he mentioned 'confessing', and was terrified that he had finally associated her with the girl that he publicly humiliated, "Who would confess to someone you?" She asked in a defensive and mocking tone, quirking one eyebrow at Kurou as if the mere notion were absurd. She didn't feel the same way about him now, not anymore, once she realized what kind of person that Kurou truly was, she wanted no part of it. She couldn't believe that she had spent so much time pursuing a guy with such an ugly soul.. He had ruined her life here, and despite moving on, she could never forget that. She no longer held him accountable for the bullying, but part of Himeko couldn't help holding a grudge against him. The way Himeko saw it was; if they never would have abruptly transferred schools, then Ren would have still been alive today. Although she forgave him for what he had done to her, she doubted that she could ever forget what his actions brought upon Ren. Even if it was indirectly, Kurou put Ren on that path, and despite her typically forgiving nature, she's held a grudge against men ever since.

She almost took a step towards him, despite her better judgement, but the bell rang just in time to snap her out of her anger. She was glad to have had the wake up call, finding herself quite relieved that it caught her before she did something stupid, like busting Kurou's nose. That would have been a bit suspicious and she was almost certain that someone would have put two and two together if she had done something so blatant and personal, "Whattya know? There's the bell. Sayonara, Kitomura." Himeko mumbled putting harsh emphasis on his surname, not even bothering to wave as she made her way to the door, opening it and making a casual stride down the stairs as if nothing had happened. On her way down, she noticed a poster about tryouts, and signed up for cheerleading. She was a cheerleader before she left, but now she had the aspiration to become the captain. She had gotten a lot better at her last school, what with all of her pent up anger and all. Ren used to joke her that she only grew taller due to her hatred, because she was lactose intolerant, so she couldn't grow any because of milk. Somehow she kind of believed him, yet she eventually had gotten over her hatred for Kurou... yet it quickly returned the day the police officer knocked on her door with Ren's bloody Letterman jacket.

She wasn't out for revenge or anything, that would be petty, which was something Himeko typically tried to avoid becoming. Besides, how does one get revenge for a dead brother anyhow? It wasn't like she was willing to kill anyone to make things 'even'. Regardless of what she chose to do to Kurou, it would never be equal to her brother's life, at least not in her opinion. Though she was torn from these thoughts when a girl from her class named Ayusuri, Shino grabbed her by the wrist and drug her towards their classroom, "Wah!" Himeko called out, but kept up with the nerdy looking girl, despite nearly tripping every so often. She was glad to have another girl looking after her, but she didn't understand why this girl was helping her, "A-Arigato, Ayusuri-chan.." Himeko said to the girl who pulled her along. They passed the guy known as Ogawa, Shin, the one who she wished to avoid with another, not to mention, beautiful girl. She probably had unnecessary paparazzi lined up outside of her house, and it would no doubt continue for a week or so if it ever was released that they attended the same school.. Coincidences are maddening... This is so troublesome. I just wanted a fun and peaceful school year, how did I get stuck with this? She let out a depressed sigh, but was in the classroom before she knew it. The other girl smiled to her and offered for her to sit with her, which meant she'd be sitting behind Nemui this time around. Nemui wasn't back in her seat yet, in fact she was sitting with that boy named Ren, which perked Himeko's interest, but she kept silent. She sat down, even if it meant it brought her a little bit closer to that demon, Kitomura, Yukito. She made two friends, and she couldn't be happier that she got to sit near them both. First Nemui, and now Shino.. She felt so lucky, despite all the horrible things that were happening to her in the last two days. Himeko's eyes landed on her unopened bento, and she suddenly regretted leaving it behind. She let her eyes dart to the teacher's desk, smiling when she realized he was not yet present. She quickly leaned toward her previous seat and reach over to retrieve her bento. It was a long stretch, but she managed to grab it without losing balance. She sat upright again, letting out a relieved sigh as her stomach softly growled in anticipation. She hurriedly snuck a few bites in before the teacher arrived and put the bento back inside of her bag, as if nothing had ever happened. I'm so hungry.. Himeko thought to herself as she closed her eyes, wondering if she'd even be able to pay attention like this.

Kurou Kitomura
Kurou Kitomura: Rivaling a neutron star in density since *DOB here*

||Thought Color = c2150f||||Speech Color = d6a91c||

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"E-Eh!? What did you say? Are you being a smartass?"

Why yes, yes I am being a smartass, and I am glad you could tell.

The reactions he was getting from this unnamed girl were entertaining, to say the least. Perhaps it was a bit cruel to tease someone he did not even know, but she was being quite hostile, and judging from the intensity, he could not claim he did not know her with his full confidence. That being said, he could not figure out who she was just yet. So tease her he did. As he continued, he noticed it got to her more and more, especially after he mentioned a confession. Maybe she was unpopular and never got a confession herself? He could see that. Despite her attractiveness, she'd been nothing but aggressive since he'd arrived up here. If she was this way with everybody, then it wouldn't surprise him at all, hypocritical as it may seem. But he liked to believe it was just him, since the anger in her voice betrayed that she held some sort of contempt for Kurou himself.

"Who would confess to someone like you?" at this point, she seemed more than just angry, her hands keeping her uniform in quite the deathgrip.

So he continued, hoping to see just how far this anger would go. "Quite a few, actually. I've been getting confessions since I was 12, you know. Must be because I'm devilishly handsome or something" he shrugged his shoulders, still too dense to notice that she was one of the first to actually confess to him, despite giving himself a very big hint. Thankfully, he had never claimed to be a genius, or he'd have rosey cheeks right about now.

Before he could do much else, the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch and his interaction with this girl. It was very hard to tell given her excellent ability to hide what she was feeling, but he couldn't help but notice that she wanted to get away from him as soon as possible. She left down the stairs without a moment's delay. Kurou shook his head. "People are just so rude nowadays." he muttered as he looked over the roof and then realized something. He was on a roof. He didn't realize it before because he wanted to get away from the physical manifestation of kindness, and then because he was dealing with that girl, but now he felt a bit nauseous. He quickly departed from the roof after he was sure he wouldn't just run back into that girl.

Class was not so far away from him that he panicked to get back. So he walked at a leisurely pace, trying his best to recall that girl from before. Aside from him being a dick just then, he couldn't imagine any reason she should be that mad at him. He could only think she was jealous of something, but even then he couldn't figure out just what that was. He begun to think back to when he was younger. Did he do something back when his mother di-----

....What is she even doing? Aren't there rules in place against PDA?

Whatever train of thought Kurou had just then was immediately cut off by the sight of Aina intimately hugging some guy, who Kurou would have assumed was her boyfriend if it weren't for the fact she had just got here today. Unless she knew him from somewhere else, or was just really quick at finding a partner. It was not as if he particularly minded, but seeing that kind of stuff in the middle of a hallway was not normal.

"You two know class is about to start, right? I would suggest finding a room if you plan on ditching, or hurrying up. Either way, nobody wants to see that stuff." he commented while briefly stopping next to them, then continuing to head to class once he'd finished.

Today is.... eventful.

"Do you really want to share with me?"

Nemui was not expecting that question at all, because it wasn't what she meant at all. He didn't see a problem with directly sharing food that her chopsticks have touched? That's the only way she could fathom that they weren't on the same page. She was shocked, but she knew she had to say something before the misunderstanding stood permanently, "I-It's not that I don't.." She raised both of her hands gently, shaking her head as well. She did want to share, but she was just a little apprehensive. She didn't get sick very easily, so aside from her embarrassment, she would be fine if their chopsticks touched the same places.

She felt horrible for making Ren think that she didn't want him to eat with her, because she did owe him, and she had no idea how to fix it otherwise. This isn't going that well.. How is it that I always get in these situations?

"You don't have to force yourself if you fear getting something from me."

"I-I promise it's nothing like that..." Nemui replied in a soft tone, shaking her head one more time to reassure him, "It is just kind of a girl thing.. I suppose.. E-Etto..."

"No. It's fine. I don't like tea."

"Really?" Nemui asked, in a rather surprised tone, blinking a few times to make sure that she'd heard him correctly. She had always thought that tea was almost a universal drink, yet she already knew two people who disliked it. She couldn't control her facial expression, so a warm smile crossed her lips before a small laugh escaped, "You remind me of my ____, Kuru-chii."

"I can find another way to have a lunch."

Nemui felt herself deflating as this debate continued and she shook her head silently, "I-It's okay, I'm not afraid of germs or anything weird like that." She tried to reassure him without bringing a lot of attention to the two of them. Unlike Himeko, she didn't like to be the center of attention, and she couldn't handle everyone's eyes being on her. She just wanted to move past this roadblock and eat.

"It is not like I don't appreciate what you did. Thank you. I just don't want you to feel forced into doing this."

deciding that the two of them had misunderstood each other for too long, Nemui let out a short and slow sigh before forcing a determined expression on her face. Time was running g short and she did not want to finish her classes on an empty stomach, "I-it's not that. I just didn't want anyone to get the wrong idea.." Nemui breathed the words out, half terrified of speaking honestly, but the other part of her was excessively relieved. She had to admit that it felt really good to finally get what she had wanted to tell him this entire time off of her chest in a direct manner. Somehow, Nemui still couldn't shake that he could somehow get offended by her words or possibly even misunderstand her again, "I'm not exactly someone that is a smart choice to hang out with.. I only said it because it's a little embarrassing, but mostly so no one gets the wrong idea about it and decides to pick on you too."

Nemui lifted up her chopsticks and retrieved a piece of chicken from her bento, politely chewing and ushered for him to eat quickly as well, swallowing before speaking, "C-Class is going to start soon, we should eat something. T-There isn't much time." She informed him hastily and ate her second piece, leaving two for him before starting at one side of the rice. She wasn't sure if he was convinced, but now that she caught a glance at the clock, All Nemui was concerned with was getting a bit of food in her stomach before classes started again.

She got to eat a little, but for the most part Nemui barely ate, not because she was sharing, but due to the time the two had wasted discussing their eating arrangements. It was a bit funny, and was definitely something she'd never forget. Nemui quickly cleaned up, waving to Ren before returning to her seat next to Yukito's. She wondered if they would sit together every day.. My hat would eventually cause her problems in the future... She could already tell that the glares on her back were far more intense than usual, in fact, until now, most of the class never knew that Nemui even existed. Yukito made Nemui infamous, and now that she had something to compare it to, she couldn't help but kind of prefer being invisible. Her life was going to permanently become far more complicated from now on, and she wasn't certain that she would be able to survive it. Oh man.. Why me? I'll never get to finish Moe Kare at this rate.. I'm gonna die...

The strict teacher waited for students to flood in, then began calling roll once more, and anyone who was not seated would be counted absent when their name came up, "Fujioka, Nemui?"

"Hai!" Nemui called out, raising her hand briefly, before lowering it in a timid manner. She was a bit louder than she intended to be, but her voice still held a fragile and gentle quality. She was just so distracted, what with all of the new changes in her life. It was hard to adjust when nearly every aspect of her life was altered overnight.

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At that familiar voice chiming in, Shin knew that he was yet again in a very compromising position. He could already hear the other voices of the students chattering about, no doubt starting another rumor. He was yet to clear up the misunderstanding with the other one and here comes another. What is it his luck with women, really? There's also the fact that any woman near to him would be attached to him instantly. What's up with that? In any case, he gently pushed Aina away from him and quickly rose to his defense. "This is not what it looks like." He ignored the sound of the bell ringing or the other commentaries (Kurou) thrown at him as he came after Yukito who was walking away without a care in the world after giving friendly wave to Kurumi. "Let me explain. Wait Yuki!" His voice was raised to a tone as he ignored the people around him who risked their time just to watch the interaction between the two celebrities. It was same for Shin who didn't care that he would be late. There were more important things than classes.

Yukito stopped in his tracks and effortlessly pivoted to face Shin who was running after him. His orange eyes had a threatening glaze, but would only be known to two people. One of those two would be Shin who also froze in the spot. "Leech. I would appreciate if you do not call me that since you have no right to do so." His voice was still awfully cheerful and politeness. "You also don't have to explain anything to me. Whoever you take as your lover is your business. I would support you all the way. I also think it would be good for you." Every word that Yukito dropped were like knives being stabbed to him awfully slowly. It was pure torture as Shin clenched his fists. "Then, if you would excuse me. I would not like to be late for class." Yukito ended that with his usual smile and a brief nod of the head before continuing on his way.

Shin did not follow him anymore and just released a frustrated sigh while clicking his tongue. "Tsk." He even punched the nearby wall, good thing the hallway was now vacant so, no one saw that outburst of his. This day was getting worse and far different from what he had imagined yesterday. He took a deep breath and decided to return to his classroom as well. The rumors or anything else at that matter was no use to him. All he wanted was to have a rosy school life with Yukito and that was not easy to achieve from the looks of it. Speaking of which, Yukito seemed to be in a bad mood. He could tell from how Yukito barbed at him. It made him wonder what caused that. Well, that was the least of his problems. He soon reached the classroom and took his seat which was besides Kurumi. He was preoccupied that he didn't catch that she called Yukito her little brother back there. It was clear that he was obviously troubled, but kept his cool and collected face. It's a good thing the teacher was still not there for another harping about him being late was not going to help him at this moment.

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Aina can be oblivious, but she does know when her actions had caused trouble which she never intended to do so. She could see it from how Shin acted as he pushed her away gently despite her actions as he ran after a younger boy who she could tell was rather handsome. She stood there for a moment as other students began to whisper. She could pick up some of it relating to her and Shin. "I humbly apologize for what happened. It is a misunderstanding. Ogawa-san is not at fault at all." She did a formal bow as the students were not sure what to about her sudden apology. Somehow, it made everything awkward and them feeling guilty. In respect to her, she had been warned by her grandfather that she should control her expressions of happiness as the culture here was not as open as other nations.

"I apologize again." She then properly stood and went on her way. She must make amends especially to Shin. He was kind enough to come to her aid and this what happens. She must clear the misconceptions of what happened, but first, she must apologize to him. She reached the classroom, but Shin was not there. It made her wonder if he must be with that younger boy. Instead, her eyes landed on her seatmate. She remembered that he also saw that scene and even commented about it. She approached him. "Kitomura-san, I would like to apologize for what had transpired earlier. It would not happen again." She bowed her head in apology. It was clear that she was serious in what she's doing and there was not an illusion behind it. Her eyes of violet glistened to show that she was indeed regretful of the consequences of her action, even if it was just an innocent gesture of happiness.

At that point, she raised her head and finally noticed that Shin has returned, but she could tell that he was not in the brightest of moods. Still, she had to make amends for what she did and now would be a good time since the teacher is not present. "Excuse me, Kitomura-san." She then went towards Shin and called out to the silver-haired male. "Ogawa-san." She was expecting that Shin would ignore her, glare at her, or even shout at her for the trouble she caused him. She would find that acceptable, but that wasn't the case. Instead, Shin looked at her calmly. "Yeah?" He was casual about it and she instantly bowed her head. "I am truly sorry for what happened earlier, Ogawa-san. I was so happy that I was unable to control myself and hugged you. I am really sorry for the inconvenience I caused you. I feel very awful after you were kind enough to help from those boys. Please, allow me to make amends."

Her voice trembled with the mixture of fear of being hated, but she would accept it. Other than fear, there was also her overflowing guilt and determination to make up for her ignorance. Her sincerity showed like the rising sun. Shin looked at Aina who was still bowing before him after saying her piece. This certainly earned the attention of the class. Well, if someone apologized to him like that, he couldn't get angry, not like he blamed her at all. "Malik-san." He started as he reached out his hand and placed it on her head. "Don't worry about it." She looked up meeting his gaze which was not reproachful, but was actually understanding. "I was really surprised back there." He patted her head much like how a parent would do to a child, a sign of comfort and acceptance. "I'm not sure if you know, but here, hugging someone is reserved for those who you are very close to or very familiar with." He then removed his hand from her head. "You should be more mindful because you might get taken advantage of. Be careful next time, okay?"

She stood straight as she lifter her head and nodded in agreement. "I will, Ogawa-san. About my amends, I---" Shin cut her off there. "I don't need it. I didn't help you or forgive you because I want something in return. It's fine already that you know you did something wrong and apologized. You should return to your seat. Class would start soon." Somehow, Aina was now truly understanding why the girls in their class or school are mesmerized by him. It was not just because of his looks, he was truly a kind person. "Yes, thank you very much Ogawa-san." She then returned to her seat and had a gentle and happy smile on her face. She was meeting such wonderful people and without waste, she wrote it down on her journal.

As for Shin, that was another chip off his shoulder. He was still oblivious why he's always linked to women. It's because of how he interacts with them, but that was not his concern really. He now needed to think on how to appease Yukito and just as so, the teacher entered the classroom and school resumes.

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In another classroom, Yukito had returned to his seat. He knew that he ratted out on Shin. Well, that was just bad luck since he was still hung up on that phone call he received. Plus, that guy has tough skin. It was something he was very sure of. In any case, he noticed that there was something different from the seating arrangement as the paranoia girl was closer. This was a new development. His eyes studied her as he noticed her leaning towards a bento which probably belonged to her in the first place. It was her seat previously. He then looked at front seeing that the teacher was not there and that Nemui has returned to his side after having lunch with their neighbor, Ren.

Somehow, he allowed his mind to focus on the little things happening in the classroom to distract him. Yes, he must not stop, because if he did, he would think about that again. The teacher soon entered the room and began doing the roll call. There was another scene with Ren, but somehow, he has a feeling that would be quite often from now on. Afterwards, he then procured some strawberry-flavored gum from his pocket and then handed it. "Nemui-san, here have some for dessert." He stated in a low voice so that the teacher won't notice as he has a kind smile on his face. He then looked at the paranoia girl. "Katsukawa-san, have some as well." He knew that she was hungry from what he had seen earlier and with that he has that pristine kind smile that no one can see through.

After that, he took one as well and began to listen to the class lecture. As far as he is concerned, this day was really something.

"Thanks, Fujioka-san."

"A-Any time, Suzuki-San." Nemui nervously chimed in a rather bright manner. She was still slightly shaken by their conversation, but she was glad that they were able to reach an understanding and both were able to eat something at the very least.

Nemui noticed that Himeko was now sitting behind her instead of beside her, but Ren was still to her left, forward and diagonally. Yukito was to her immediate right, arriving just on time. She averted her gaze immediately upon meeting his gaze however, not wishing to anger his fan club.

Then, while roll was being called, Ren's words rung through her head, due to Nemui having no other distraction to keep her mind busy.

"Just because we shared anything doesn't mean we're a couple or something."

She knew that his words were true, but after Yukito asking if she had a crush on Ren, she felt that she couldn't be too careful. What had she done to make Yukito believe that she had feelings for Ren? Was she missing some kind of bigger picture? She didn't like Ren romantically, but either her actions or words seemed to mislead Yukito into believing that she did. She felt kind of bad for putting up barriers, especially after he voiced that he didn't care what others thought about him hanging out with her.

"Suzuki, Ren! Suzuki, Ren!"

As the teacher went through roll call, there was another snag when it came to Ren. Would it be like that every time the teacher called roll? Did Ren not learn his lesson, or did he just enjoy getting in trouble? Nemui wasn't sure what the reason for this occurrence was, but she had a feeling that it was going to be quite repetitive, and was something that everyone in the room should come to expect and accept.

"...Present."

Nemui blinked in surprise. Well that was an anomaly, at least he knew it was roll call this time.. She thought to herself, smiling a bit with a moment of silent laughter. Sure, Ren was causing a lot of disruption in class, but she enjoyed his company. She understood that he was being a bit of a delinquent, whether his behavior was intentional or not, but he was a far cry from the scary kids with too many piercings and an obsession with hair gel.

"Don't push your luck, Suzuki-san."

Her attention was removed from the teacher when she heard a faint whisper, turning her attention to her seat mate and soon-to-be younger brother, Kitomura, Yukito. His smile was quite dangerous, kind of hypnotic, but she was too cautious to be taken in. If she let herself focus on Yukito's radiance, she would only anger his fan girls that much more, and she was certain that they were already in the process of creating blueprints for a vaporizer with her name written all over it. They were angry enough to want her dead, and that was definitely scary. They were all freshmen, and several of the girls already discussed a willingness to committing murder over Yukito's attention and affections, if they knew that they'd get away with it that is.

"Nemui-san, here have some for dessert."

"Arigato, Fuwa-San." Nemui responded in a hushed whisper, carefully opening the package of gum that she received from Yukito. She hesitated at first, but eventually put the piece of gum inside of her mouth. Nemui typically did not chew gum, her mother claiming it to be a bit of a bad habit and all... but the flavor was quite enjoyable. In fact, she found that she liked it a lot. So good... Nemui thought to herself with both eyes closed, a blissful expression painted across her features.

Though her expression did not last long. The sound of chalk tore Nemui's attention away from the pleasant taste of the gum and straight onto the letters written on the chalkboard; 'Pretest'

Nemui wasn't all that concerned, because she studied frequently and had a good idea of what the academy expected of her, but she understood that word was absolutely horrifying to individuals like her sister, Kurumi. Nemui retrieved her test pencil from her pencil case, the blue one, which had the best eraser and little anime pandas all over it.

The teacher handed out the test after roll call, and Nemui began immediately. The questions weren't very hard, at least not for her. there were at least a hundred questions though, which definitely threw her off guard. The exam mostly consisted of typical questions that Japanese students would expect to see upon entering their freshman year of high school, but there were a few that they did not learn in middle school, targeting those like Nemui, the overachievers that attended cram school over the summer.

"Once you finish your test, you are free to go. I would like for everyone to keep in mind that anyone who fails the test is on mandatory cleanup duty for a week... No exceptions!"

About fifteen minutes later, Nemui stood and turned her test in at the teacher's desk and exited the classroom. So my day is over? Really? The weather outside was seductively sunny, the sunlight breaking through the windows that were covered by the raindrops that had consumed the entire morning. It was bright and lively outside, but all Nemui could think of was getting to work early so that she could read her new favorite manga, Moe Kare, until her shift at the comic store began.

She made her way to her locker hastily, changing into her sneakers, putting her school shoes back into her locker, which would remain there until Monday morning. Considering that it was now the weekend, Nemui was quite excited, but also full of anxiety.

The younger Fujioka sibling tapped the toe of her left shoe against the floor in order to make sure that her shoe was on tightly, then switched and repeated the process with the other foot as well. Both were tire sufficiently, so Nemui adjusted her shoulder bag and proceeded to the main exit. Thankfully, Nemui was smarter than the other girls in her class, so she was confident that she would actually be able to escape her bullies today and live to see her mother's wedding taking place on the following day.

The short haired girl made her way to the exit without altercation, so she shoved the door open and let the sunlight engulf her entire being. The hot rays of sunlight felt good against her exposed pale skin, what little there was in her baggy and conservative uniform. Nemui smiled up at the colorful blue sky, enjoying the weather conditions as she strolled off towards her destination. She was off of the school grounds before she knew it, resting her headphones on her shoulders before plugging them into her iPhone, blasting a song so that she could hear it without putting the headphones on and messing up her already unruly, sandy blonde hair. Nemui listened to a lot of classical music, and rarely listened to music with song lyrics, half of why she wasn't familiar with Yukito's music, other than what she overheard at home, seeing as Kurumi was a huge fan of their new younger brother.

He is younger than me, isn't he? I never gave that a lot of thought until just now.. You wouldn't think it, but I guess he is~! Nemui thought to herself, silently giggling. She was so lost in the warmth against her skin and her own thoughts that she wasn't even paying attention to those on the sidewalk or her incredibly slow pace. She was on a totally different frequency than those around her, oblivious to everything and everyone.

Now that she was done with classes for the day, she couldn't help but feel that nothing could ruin her day... but the day was far from being through, wasn't it?

"Suzuki, Ren! Suzuki, Ren!"

"...Present."

"Don't push your luck, Suzuki-san."

That guy really needs to get his act together... Where is he right now? Outer space? Himeko thought to herself with a shake of her head. She wasn't perfect, in fact, her grades were typically barely passing, except for gym class that is. She couldn't judge him, but in this situation it was hard not to have an opinion, especially when he shared her deceased brother's first name. He was putting the teacher in a bad mood, and that usually had an effect on everyone else's classroom experience for the rest of the day.

"Katsukawa-san, have some as well."

She was hesitant to accept the candy, because she hadn't exactly gotten along with him, or his older brother Kurou... Now that she thought about it, she never even realized that Kurou had a younger brother, especially one that was in the same grade as her. Why didn't she notice this kid? Yukito seemed fairly popular, so why couldn't she remember him? Was he strange back in middle school? She transferred early on, but if he was as popular then as he was right now, then it made no sense. Why don't I recognize you, Kitomura? Himeko thought as she practically stared a hole through his skull. The expression on her face lacked adoration or hatred, in fact, her features revealed that she was more frustrated and confused than anything else at that moment. Realizing that she had zoned out into her own thoughts, Himeko quickly shook her head, quite literally shaking off her thoughts. Himeko reach out her open palm, letting him drop the gum into her hand.

Once the candy was in her possession, Himeko examined the gum that was presented to her by Yukito with the utmost skepticism. She couldn't help being suspicious, especially after the events that unfolded prior to the end of lunch. Though after Nemui began chewing the piece that she had been offered by her brother into her mouth. Himeko decided to give the candy the benefit of the doubt, seeing as the shy girl trusted him enough to eat it. She didn't trust Yukito at all, but he wouldn't offer something horrible to his own sister, would he? She was confident that it would be safe if he extended a piece towards his own sibling. Himeko gingerly unwrapped the gum, beginning to have second thoughts. Perhaps he only poisoned one piece of the gum and was risking accidentally killing his sister? Or perhaps the two pieces of candy were different in some way that she hadn't noticed? She knew she was being overly paranoid, but paranoia was a survival technique that had never failed her in the past.

Despite her doubts, Himeko popped the gum into her mouth, chewing slowly. After the flavor had time to tease her taste buds, Himeko's eyes widened a fraction of a centimeter, "Oishii...~" [Delicious....~] Himeko chimed under her breath, hoping that neither Nemui or Yukito overheard her. She couldn't bare letting Yukito having the satisfaction of knowing that she liked his taste in gum. Where did he get this gum? She pondered to herself, then remembered that she neglected to thank him.

"A-Arigato, Kitomura." Himeko whispered in a stubborn tone, leaning in Yukito's direction so that she wouldn't have to speak louder or alert their sensei. She only moved slightly toward him, however, so as to not gain unwanted attention from Yukito or their teacher. She refused to make eye contact with the young idol, whom she still didn't know was a famous pop star. She returned to sitting upright in her seat, a stubborn pout plastered on her lips as she chewed the gum quietly, letting the flavor overwhelm her taste buds. I-I have to buy this gum..

"Once you finish your test, you are free to go. I would like for everyone to keep in mind that anyone who fails the test is on mandatory cleanup duty for a week... No exceptions!"

Himeko began her test after receiving it, her eyes scanning through the pages. She knew a good portion of the answers, but there were nearly just as many that she did not know. A sigh escaped her lips, and Himeko began filling out the answers she did know. Seeing as the packet covered all of the Freshman subjects, she had a few strong points on the test, and a few shortcomings as well. Her eyes widened once she saw Nemui turn in her test. The short haired girl didn't seem even a little nervous about the test, making Himeko even more nervous. S-She didn't hesitate at all... How smart is she..? Himeko thought to herself, feeling completely ineffectual in this situation. She finished her test, long after Nemui, and turned the test in, rubbing the back of her neck as she made her way out of the classroom. She stopped a few feet down the hall, leaning back against the stone wall with a sigh, "That was brutal.. I don't think I passed that one..." She muttered to herself, but loud enough for anyone passing by to overhear.

Kurou Kitomura
Kurou Kitomura: Crushing anime tropes one at a time. Sorta.

||Thought Color = c2150f||||Speech Color = d6a91c||

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By the time Kurou Kitomura had entered the classroom and sat down in his assigned seat, he'd pretty much completely forgot about whatever it was that Aina and that boy were doing. It was very safe to say that Kurou couldn't care less about what they were doing now that he wasn't there to witness it. Yet, for some reason, Aina felt like it was her duty to apologize for her apparent PDA, which in truth was only irritating to the elder Kitomura, as he simply wished to rest his head or remain to himself.

"Kitomura-san, I would like to apologize for what had transpired earlier. It would not happen again." she apologized. She made it seem like she had unknowingly insulted his family or touched a heavy subject. Like she had some genuine reason to apologize to Kurou personally.

Is this going to happen a lot? Kurou wondered, though judging by her attitude, he could guess that answer pretty easily.

"Don't worry about it. Seriously." he said, his head resting between his arms and his eyes idly staring at whatever happened to be in front of him, obviously disinterested. That's when he noticed he was looking at a NPC classmate, who was grinning at him for some reason. As Kurou's eyebrow rose slowly in confusion of this, Aina decided to excuse herself, with Kurou simply muttering a "Yeah" as she did.

"So." the classmate in front of him spoke.

"So." Kurou repeated, waiting for him to continue.

"You seem to be getting along with girls, recently."

Kurou raised his head at that statement. "What are you talking about?"

"With the new girl. You seem to be talking a lot more around her." the student elaborated. "Like her?"

Kurou shook his head dismissively. "I don't like anyone. And she's talking to me, which I'd rather her not do." Kurou said firmly.

The student raised a finger to his head, as if thinking deeply upon something. "Well, she's not all, you know." he continued. "What about that girl at lunch. The one who gave you a lunch? I could almost hear the "It's not like I'm giving it to you because I like you or anything, b-baka!". Do you have a tsundere on your hands?"

Wha....what? Is this guy stupid?

"Sister." Kurou answered in a sharp, short reply.

"Oh... well..." he placed his finger back on his head, thinking again. "Then what about... that one girl that I saw coming down from the roof? How about her?"

Kurou's eyes narrowed at the boy, a terrifying glare aimed at the young man. "Are you stalking me?" he asked, though it was definitely not something the boy had a choice whether to answer or not.

"N-no...!" he stuttered. "....err, well, that was a coincidence. I was on my way to class and I saw her come down, then you." he explained. Kurou closed his eyes and rested his head against the table and sighed.

"You're watching too much anime, and it's beginning to piss me off. Leave me alone, I'm no manga protagonist. I've never even made some childhood marriage promise, at least that I can remember." Kurou suddenly realized that he was prone to forget things he did not consider immediately important, so he wasn't as confident when he brought up something like the childhood marriage promise.

Please, no. If I ever ended up being confessed to because of such a cliche thing, I'd probably die right then and there.

This time, the classmate didn't seem to have anything more to insinuate. He shrugged his shoulders. "Well, if there's anything like that, don't hesitate to tell me. I wanna experience something like that in real life, so I can properly write manga!" his pupils seemed to turn to stars and he said this as though he was declaring his lifelong dream, which he likely was. Regardless, Kurou only listened in hopes that this would be him ending the conversation, and was pleased to see that it was just that.

Now I can finally---

"Kitomura Kurou." the teacher called his name for attendence.

He answered with a "present". Since that was done, now he cou----

"This test counts against your grade, so I hope you studied over the summer.... Once you've finished your test, class is dismissed for the weekend. BEGIN!" the teacher announced. Kurou realized there had been a test placed on his desk, figuring it must have been passed out while that boy was annoying him. He almost smiled, though. Class was going to be out for the weekend? That was wonderful, since he wouldn't have to worry about showing up to school then. Kurou retrieved a pencil from his bag and then began the test. While he wasn't confident in every single answer he wrote down, he was sure he would get a relatively safe score, perhaps a 80% or so, at least that's the general area he expected to get. So, it was safe to say he wasn't worried when he turned in the paper a few minutes after it began, and happily made his way out of the classroom when it was all said and done.

He started walking down the hallway as he thought about what he should do. There are no good shows on today, and I have already beat all the games I own, I'm not really interested in that right now. Perhaps I could just take a nap? That's always good, isn't it? Yes, sleep away the stress I've incurred during school. That's healthy and appealing.

"That was brutal.. I don't think I passed that one..." a familiar voice entered his ears a little bit after passing his brother's class. However, it was a girl's voice, and he almost couldn't recognize it since it wasn't spewing verbal venom at him. The girl from the roof, from just before lunch ended. And she was apparently unsure of her grades on the... well, if it were freshmen, then it was definitely just a pretest. How could be worried about that?

Do you have a tsundere on your hands? The classmate's voice echoed in his head.

Dismissing it without second thought, he stopped near the girl and decided to make a comment, if only to confirm she had something against him personally, and it was not just the situation (though he was more than 90% sure of this already). "You're in the wrong class if you can be confident on a prestest, aren't you? Low scores just mean you need to study while you're in class, though I am sure if you're very nice like you are to me, someone will tutor you."

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Yukito left little to chance especially with his choice of food. That's why he was certain that the gum he offered would be enjoyed by the two girls. Nemui was honest with her reaction but, it was not the same with the paranoia girl who did her best to hide her reaction. He could still put the pieces together and knew the girl liked it, more so when she thanked him. He responded with a small smile, before returning his focus at the front of the class. His purpose behind that gesture of his also had a certain importance to him, but that's only his to know at the moment and that's the way he liked it.

In any case, it seemed there was another distraction for him to tackle on. It was a pretest. He really has no problem with it. He actually expected this to happen, since this is a normal routine for teachers to do. He took his paper and studied the content. It was not bad at all. He began answering the items with such a leisure pace. He wasn't in a hurry and just took his time. It did interest him when Nemui had already finished hers. That was awfully confident of her. She was either a know-it-all or know-it-nothing, but he would bet it was the first one.

The same could be said about him, even with his absences ever since he started his career. He still passed his classes with flying colors and there was really little effort involved thanks to his flawless auditory recall. He waited until a few more others passed their test before he did his, when that was done. He left his room and then were quickly surrounded by some of his classmates and even school mates. It was the end of school, so everyone has time to spare. It wasn't the same with him, but as they say entertaining people both on stage and out is part of the job description. That's why he did his part with amicably chatting with them, but when he felt his phone vibrated he excused himself. "Well, I guess time's up. I have to get going. Work calls. I'll see you all soon." He said with a cheerful voice as he even partnered it with that radiant smile of his.

He then made his way to the entrance while looking at the messages and missed calls made by his manager. She must be missing him a bit too much., but before he could reach that, he noticed his brother and the paranoia girl together. Well, this was a new development. He inwardly smirked as he kept his phone. He was actually going to text his brother that he might be late in coming home, so he has to watch over the house and the girls, but there's an opportunity to tell the older Kitomura personally. "Ku-nii. Katsukawa-san." He started as he stopped before the two with casual friendly demeanor of his. "This is a lovely surprise, you two know each other?" He asked and the continued on as his eyes landed on his brother. "Anyway, Ku-nii. I'll be late, so watch over the girls, okay?" He then gazed at her. "Katsukawa-san, I'll see you in class then."

He left them there as he walked towards the main gates. He then found his manager's car. It was clearly obvious that the other students around were impressed to have such a famous idol in their midst. "Hello there, Haruko-san." Yukito approached the car and entered without much of a second thought. Haruko looked at her charge before starting the engine. "You really do take your time." He smiled at this and leaned on his seat. "Why not? I do like being a student." Haruko shook her head as they took off. "Whatever you say. Anyway, I sent you the schedule." He nodded at that as he closed his eyes for a moment. "I cleared your day tomorrow. You have a family affair right? Having sisters. That should be fun."

"Maybe..." He answered as he opened his eyes and the notion of the wedding tomorrow reminded him of the call he had earlier. His face became a simple canvass and his orange eyes reflected a degree of sadness. "Maybe?" Haruko asked without looking at him. "Haruko-san, do you have a boyfriend?" Haruko was surprised by that question and stepped on the brakes. It's a good thing that there was traffic. "Why are you asking that!? That expression instantly vanished without a trace as he met Haruko's deadly glare with his usual brightness and coy politeness. "Juts for research." He answered with a smile. Haruko doesn't believe that even a bit, but the stoplight lit green. It was time to go and they do have work to do. That should come first before that research excuse of Yukito's.

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Aina looked at the test now in her hands. She was completely at a disadvantage here. She was no good with surprise tests because of her certain condition. She is also a new student and her journal never told her that there would be an exam, but it was already here. She should give it a shot and hope that there are things that she knows. She steeled her nerves and began to answer the test. It was unfortunately a puzzle for her, most of the questions did not leave her any sense of knowing. That's why her answers are most just hunches. She wished that she passes and if not, cleaning wasn't a bad thing. She was used to it.

She soon passed her test paper and bid their teacher goodbye before leaving. She then took out her journal again and began jotting down the things that happened to her. She didn't want to forget anything as much as possible. It didn't occur to her that she had already reached the entrance lobby if not one of her classmates greeted her, lifting her attention from the journal. She stopped in her walk and greeted back. It was then she heard a very familiar name which ended in a question. She looked at where that voice came from and found a man who was a stranger, a male, to her in every sense, but somehow, there was an image of a boy that overlapped with his.

"...Len..." The name spilled forth from her lips as the past which has become a permanent ghost of hers was now breaking through her reality. It seemed that fate has indeed some other plans than she had wanted.

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In regards to Shin, the test was not even something to be bothered with. He finished it without any difficulties at all. He knew the answers to all. There were far more important things he had to handle. He passed his papers and left the room. He would need to talk with Yukito and settle the things about the rumors circulating around him. It also reminded him that he was going to do an official statement about him being linked to that girl who he had bumped into last night and was apparently one of his schoolmates.

Before all of that, he wanted to see if Yukito was still here. It was during the middle of his search that he had a call from an overseas entity. He answered his phone and now understood why Yukito was in a bad mood. This was the cause of it. "I see... Congratulations then" He then bid his goodbye and released a very tired and frustrated sigh. He was certain that the famous idol was going to be in a terrible mood for the rest of the days, and it would be his duty to make sure that Yukito won't be thinking of doing something stupid. There was another call, this time from the agency. It seemed that everything is prepared and he was the only one needed to be there. Well, this was needed to make sure he won't be bothered again. with trivial things.

Himeko was about to continue on her way, now that she had given herself sufficient time to calm down. Before she had the chance to shove herself from the wall, an uncannily familiar voice rang out all too soon. Did this guy have a tracking device on her or something? Kurou was showing up everywhere she went, which was something she had not planned on upon returning to this town. If he continued to be seen with her, eventually one of his psychotic fan girls would realize that she was the same Himeko Katsukawa that confessed to a middle school boy when she was a mere elementary student, though in her defense she was in fifth grade and he was in seventh.. She'd thought she'd seen the last of him, at least for today that is, yet here he stood. Coming to mock me?

"You're in the wrong class if you can be confident on a prestest, aren't you?"

However, she was pleasantly surprised when his words were actually....reassuring. Those words struck a chord, and for a split second it revealed itself on her face. Her eyes met his, and her entire face was innocent, engulfed by confusion and surprise. Though his words were true, there were consequences to failing the pretest. Though her thoughts returned to Nemui, and how she had been so confident turning in her pretest, "Fujioka-San... She was so sure of herself..." She whispered out, loud enough to be heard, but not directly toward Kurou. She was kind of spaced out, but fundamentally aware of his presence at the same time.

"Low scores just mean you need to study while you're in class,"

As he continued, Himeko snapped back into reality, "Anyone who fails today's test has to help clean the school for an entire week after classes end. I'm not just worried about my grade. I'm not some kind of nerd or anything... I have extracurricular activities after classes sometimes." Himeko mumbled, crossing her arms over her chest. Himeko was aware that it was ridiculous, but something about having her arms crossed made her feel more comfortable, like it somehow put more distance between herself and Kurou, even though it obviously did nothing of the sort. She did in fact have try outs coming up, and she would eventually have practice once accepted to the team.

"though I am sure if you're very nice like you are to me, someone will tutor you."

Himeko immediately twitched as he began his smartass antics again, ruining the thoughtful and somewhat inspiring portion of his dialogue with her. She even felt her arm jerk, but she forced it back into submission. She couldn't punch Kurou. She had to remind herself, but she managed to not hit him. No good would come from publicly striking the eldest Kitomura, "Maybe if you'd stop stalking me I wouldn't have to be so nice." Himeko retorted in a defensive manner, her expression growing more irritated now that he was back to being his usual self. His words of wisdom went completely down the drain, and she was back to detesting his presence in no time, "You're the one who keeps showing up everywhere I go, Kitomura." Himeko pointed out in a matter-of-fact tone, pushing herself off of the wall and began her way down the hall towards the student lockers, keeping a steady pace. She had to get her shoes if she wanted to go home after all, seeing as personal shoes were not allowed on the school floors. She discreetly checked to see if Kurou was still following her, before moving to her locker. She kicked off her school shoes in a nonchalant manner, and dropped her flip flops on the ground next to them. Himeko slipped her feet into her flip flops and flattened her skirt out smoothly. Seeing as the uniform skirts were quite short, she held it firm against her body before bending down to pick up her school shoes. God, Kitomura always gets under my skin... Both of them do to beat it all.. Once she stood back up, Himeko put her school shoes inside of her locker and ran her fingers through her long strawberry blonde hair, smoothing out any imperfections before closing her locker.

Himeko took a deep breath, as if it would somehow make Kurou suddenly disappear, If I'm lucky, he's not here anymore.. He wouldn't be this persistent towards someone he doesn't even remember knowing, right? Though Himeko was never lucky, because someone else spoke up. The voice was also familiar, one she had hoped to also avoid for the rest of the day, but it just wasn't meant to be, apparently.

"Ku-nii. Katsukawa-san." This is a lovely surprise, you two know each other?"

She couldn't help but sigh before replying to the younger Kitomura's question. This was getting rather monotonous, first that silver haired boy, now Kurou? Was every day going to be like this? She sincerely hoped not, "About as well as I know you actually, so hardly at all." Himeko replied in an icy tone towards the younger Kitomura. If he thought an offering of gum, no matter how delicious it was, would smooth everything over, then Yukito had been sorely misled. His friendly vibes were somewhat creepy, causing her to shiver a bit, "He's a stalker." She stated in a flat tone, showing no facial cues of humor.

"Anyway, Ku-nii. I'll be late, so watch over the girls, okay? Katsukawa-san, I'll see you in class then."

"Sayonara. If strange men offer you candy and ask you to get inside of their creepy van, agree to go with them, okay?" Himeko replied in a sugar sweet tone as she waved Yukito off. Her words were obviously filled with malice, considering she told him to get himself kidnapped.

Kurou Kitomura
Kurou Kitomura: Novice Stalker

||Thought Color = c2150f||||Speech Color = d6a91c||

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"Fujioka-San... She was so sure of herself..."

She's worried about keeping up with Nemo? Kurou was not sure what exactly she meant by that, only able to assume she knew Nemo in some way, shape, or form, and didn't want to be blown away. Kurou could not say he knew Nemo too well, besides being capable of denying a man his dinner for extended periods of time, but something gave him the idea that she was pretty booksmart. She'd probably mentioned studying at some point at home, but Kurou didn't bother to try remembering exactly what.

"Anyone who fails today's test has to help clean the school for an entire week after classes end. I'm not just worried about my grade. I'm not some kind of nerd or anything... I have extracurricular activities after classes sometimes." she informed him, placing some heavy emphasis on herself not being a nerd. For some odd reason, she had decided to cross her arms. Kurou didn't bother wondering about this for too long, however. Instead, he was more interested in what she had just said. Students would receive punishment for doing bad on the pretest? Or maybe it was all the tests that were given out today? He completely missed that point, perhaps because he was busy dealing with that kid, but still. He could just imagine how tedious and irritating that kind of job would be if he ever had to worry about low grades, but he didn't He was a bright kid who could retain information pretty well... at least when it came to school.

"Is that so?" He almost shuddered at having such a responsibility. It was sickening.

As their conversation continued, Kurou had been watching her for any obvious signs he could pick up from her facial expressions, to her body language. He managed to notice the exact point where she had become fed up with his proverbial shit, more particularly her arm, which twitched in response to his comment about her being nice. He was sure that she wanted to hit him right then and there and only because his fist would do that on occasion as well, particularly when dealing with a certain 'family member' he didn't get along with. But he had a reason to hate his father, so what was her reason?

"Maybe if you'd stop stalking me I wouldn't have to be so nice. You're the one who keeps showing up everywhere I go, Kitomura."

"Hmm... a stalker? After only two meetings?" he thought a bit on that. Maybe she wanted life to be a manga? He would not be surprised, since that other student seemed to want just that. "Hate to burst your bubble, but that's not the case. Besides, you wouldn't want me as a stalker, I'd do a bad job. I'd probably not bother following you home and I haven't the motivation to find out your phone number and send you messages full of deep breathing. Gomenasai." Kurou bowed his head as though he was truly sorry for not being such. "Though if you insist, I guess I could try." he then added. Since he was now her stalker, he would have to try to follow her as much as possible, so he did just that and by the time she'd switched out her shoes, he was already getting bored with this.

Man, stalkers have it rough, huh? Though I guess they at least have some sick, twisted incentive to follow their subject, don't they? My attention span is much too short for me to keep this up.

As he was about to finally decide to move past her and leave the school, he heard his brother's voice. "Ku-nii. Katsukawa-san. This is a lovely surprise, you two know each other?" he asked. So Yukito had become acquainted with this girl, then? Her name was Katsukawa? That sounded very familiar, though just like earlier, he couldn't tell why.

"About as well as I know you actually, so hardly at all." she answered in a tone fitting an ice queen. She seemed to harbor the same disposition towards Yukito as she did with Kurou. "He's a stalker." she added.

"So it seems." he looked at his brother as he spoke. "Anyway, what are you doing? Are you going to be home?" he questioned. The odds did not seem to be in favor of him saying "yes", but Kurou asked anyways.

"Anyway, Ku-nii. I'll be late, so watch over the girls, okay?" Yukito replied.

Kurou didn't seem very pleased with the answer, and opted to remain silent as Yukito bid farewell to Katsukawa. Yuki soon disappeared, leaving only Kurou and the girl he was supposed to be stalking. "Hmm...." Kurou hummed loud for a second, his knuckles being popped by his thumb individually. There was a very serious expression on his face as he popped his knuckles, as if he was about to say something very, very important. He then, suddenly, laughed. "God, you really don't like him, do you?" he seemed only to laugh harder, very obviously amused with the idea. Most girls only seemed to ever swoon when Yuki was around, the combo of being attractive and also being an idol was too much for a lot of people. To see someone so blatantly hostile with him was a rare and funny event, or so Kurou thought.

"Katsukawa? Well, you almost make me wish I could be bothered to stalk someone. I could really go for a few more laughs. But I've grown rather hungry, so I'll have to stalk you another time. Sayonara." he seemed very pleased as he departed from her presence and headed towards the exit of the school with no real particular goal in mind. He did, however, know he was very hungry again.

The wedding kiss just ended, and Himeko handed the photographer her camera, albeit it didn't seem fast enough, because the woman gave her a sharp glare filled with annoyance. Himeko loved taking pictures, but it wasn't worth this treatment. Why was she here you ask? She was working as an understudy to gain photography experience. She wanted to take pictures of children or nature, but any experience would do. No one would hire her though if she didn't get a sufficient amount of work study hours under her belt, so here she was, the last place that she ever wanted to be. The Kitomura-Fujioka family was finally combined, and soon her classmate, Fujioka Nemui would carry the Kitomura surname. She wondered how Nemui felt about it, but she was more curious about whether the school would implement her name change by Monday.

If this was me, I don't think I'd be able to do it.. This is all so fast, I doubt I'd be able to breathe.. How do people with children marry at the drop of a hat? Did their parents even ask for their opinions? She felt bad for the four kids that went to her school, even if she despised two of them. When her eyes landed on Nemui, Kurumi, and their mother, she immediately could tell that they were family, especially Nemui and Shizuka. The youngest looked so much like her mother that it was almost iconic. She didn't even realize it, but she was so beautiful.. She looked just like a model once she got out of all of those baggy clothes, and Himeko couldn't help but snap a picture of Nemui with her personal camera. S-sugoi... She was in awe, but quickly shaken out of it when everyone began to disperse to let the couple through.

They were leaving for their Honeymoon already? They weren't having a reception? Himeko found that to be quite odd, but she stepped out of the way, holding her boss's film as the married couple made their exit. On the bright side, her job was almost over. She'd get to go home soon, which was something she was definitely looking forward to. There was some chicken casserole left over in the fridge and it was calling her name. She left so early that she forgot to eat breakfast, and she was definitely feeling the repercussions now. The photographer snapped several photos from all angles, but eventually the limousine with Shizuka and Kaoru inside drove off and everyone was left to leave at their discretion. She immediately helped the photographer pack up, noticing Yukito, Kurou, Nemui, Kurumi, and Shin in the crowd. Honestly, she didn't want to be noticed by any of them.

At worst, they'd think she was stalking them. She wasn't stalking, in fact, she just found out upon arrival that this was their parents wedding. She wouldn't have agreed to show up had she known otherwise. She let out a sigh, loading up the camera supplies into the back of the photographer's van, "Please don't see me.. Please don't see me..." Himeko whispered to herself. She half hoped that she could simply be a wallflower, at least just this once. She wasn't prepared to defend herself or explain why she was here. She wasn't sure who she was avoiding more at this point, but she definitely did not want to bump into Ogawa, Shin or Kitomura, Kurou.

Once the van was loaded up, Himeko smoothed out the crinkles in her dress and looked around. If the coast was clear, she was going to make a break for it. She could make it to the bus stop, and hopefully, no one had seen her earlier, "On the count of three... One....Two..." she whispered quietly, ready to sprint off, at least as fast as her high heels would allow her to.

Kurumi glanced over her shoulder as she heard the doors opening. Suddenly family began pouring in from both sides, and she spotted Kurou and Yukito among those entering the wedding hall. She let out a sigh, blinking when she found Kitomura, Kaoru, Kurou's and Yukito's father. He was going to be her step-father, so she assumed that she might as well say hello. She sat up, brushing off her dress and approached Kaoru Kitomura, "O-Ohayo.." she stuttered out nervously, not sure how to address him. She didn't feel comfortable calling him father, but she also didn't want to disrespect her step-father either. She bowed after a moment, then smiled up to Mr. Kitomura, "I look forward to combining our families." She was not entirely honest, but she didn't mind it that much, so long as her mother was happy at least. Kurumi gave another smile, yet this one was brief and fleeting, "I've got to check on the ring bearer, he's five and might try to swallow the rings. I'll be right over there if I'm needed." She informed the men of the family, pointing towards a short ebony haired five year old boy. Kurumi politely curtsied to Yukito, Kurou, and Kaoru, without making direct eye contact with Kurou. She visually acknowledged his presence, but did not allow her gaze to meet his as she did with Yukito and Kaoru.

She couldn't treat them exactly the same, no matter how hard she tried. She wanted to move on, but it wasn't so simple when she had to live with her ex AND walk down the isle with him in less than thirty minutes. It was nerve wracking, and she understood why Nemui fled to get fresh air. Speaking of Nemui, she couldn't help but wonder where her sister ran off to exactly.



Walking down the isle with Kurou had been very awkward, but somehow she survived it without dying. When they parted, the wedding went much more smoothly, and she was actually happy for her mother. Shizuka seemed quite happy, so Kurumi couldn't help but be supportive. She would do whatever it took to make this family function, even if it meant tolerating Kurou a bit more, but she was only human, she knew this would be far easier in theory than in practice. After her mother and stepfather drove off, Kurumi smiled to Nemui, "Ready to go home? I have a great idea for a game." She grinned, though she simply planned to have a sleepover between girls, she hoped that neither of her brothers overheard, because the game could be quite risky if boys were involved, "Ever heard of the Osama game, Ne-chii?" Kurumi asked her sister, locking arms with her as she made her way out of the church. Kurumi politely introduced herself to the Kitomura family members that approached, also introducing Nemui as well, seeing as she was the shyer sibling and would most likely struggle to get her words out. She tapped her chin smiling a bit as she thought about the sleepover idea, wondering if the guys would mind. She didn't really care, seeing as she and Nemui were now a part of the family and all."I can send the new girl in my class an invite, do you know anyone you'd want to invite?" Kurumi inquired, her blue eyes looking to her younger sister questioningly. She knew that Nemui didn't have friends, but she hoped that this year would be different. Kurumi could always be optimistic, right? It's not like optimisim was against the law or anything. My last name is Kitomura now.. I'm not sure if I'm okay with that...or ready to use it..

Kurou Kitomura
Kurou Kitomura: Attempting to Cause Duo Suffering

||Thought Color = c2150f||||Speech Color = d6a91c||

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Unlike a certain girl who was now legally his sister, Kurou "minded" this wedding and it would've showed on his face if he didn't almost perpetually wear a scowl. He loathed just about every minute of the process, from walking down the aisle with a girl he would be forced to consider his sibling who also happened to be his ex, to watching his father kiss a woman other than his mother, to also now being made to consider this very same woman his new "mother". Of course no matter what he would never, ever do such a thing. It would be disrespectful to his real mother.

Miserable is a word one could use to describe Kurou and he had the odd feeling like Kurumi, if not Nemo as well, was enjoying his suffering. He figured that the only thing that could make this day worse right now was if they had decided to hire singers to play some awkward J-pop, or a funky song about love that were oddly catchy. That... probably didn't happen.

Skipping of Time

"On the count of three... One....Two..."

It was not as though he was intending to sneak up on her, but it simply happened. A blind spot in her initial search brought on by the crowds of people, perhaps? Explanation on how Kurou got so close to the girl with her was not as relevant a fact as her being her in the first place, which was the reason Kurou Kitomura decided to approach this woman. Well, he did not know who it was until he had gotten closer, he'd just recognized the blue dress that had been scurrying around the wedding. He was actually just going to call a buss for himself since he no longer had a limo available to him, but exact woman he found was surprising. Said woman was none other than the girl who'd been fairly hostile ever since he had the pleasure of meeting her, though in her defense, she had also caused him to laugh at one point. To this day, he still hadn't gotten a name out of her, but that was very likely due to the fact what exchanges they ever managed were all very, very short ones. He almost got the feeling she did not like him. Not that it was going to stop him.

"Three?" being the smart-ass he was, he went ahead and finished the countdown for her as a means to announce his presence. "Did we suddenly switch places? I thought I was supposed to be the stalker."

"Ready to go home? I have a great idea for a game."

"O-Of course! I-I want to change clothes..!" Nemui responded unable to believe that her sister had to actually ask that question. Nemui was quite miserable, glaring down at her and Kurumi's matching bridesmaid dress (Me and KaelaKatastrophe fixed the URL problem!!!) in a detestful manner. She absolutely hated dressing like this and yearned for baggy and conservative clothing. After her father died, she couldn't feel confident in clothes like this. She felt ridiculous, despite her appearance currently resembling that of a porcelain doll. She was incredibly adorable, not sexy like Kurumi, but still quite cute.

"Ever heard of the Osama game, Ne-chii?"

Osama game...? Nemui thought to herself, wondering if it was anything like Simon says. She never played a lot of games, so she was drawing blanks. She shrugged her shoulders, completely baffled by whatever it was that her sister had brought up. Though, she had to admit she was worried, especially since her sister wished to play it later on. How was she supposed to play a game she didn't even know the rules to?

"I can send the new girl in my class an invite, do you know anyone you'd want to invite?"

Nemui immediately nodded, but she wasn't sure about how she would be able to invite the girl that she wished to invite. At least their neighbor, Suzuki, Ren, would be easier to locate, she hoped. Usually Nemui wouldn't have had anyone in mind, so she felt a bit happy now that she had people that she could consider 'friends' or at least her 'acquaintances'. A sheepish smile formed on her glossed lips and she responded, "K-Katsukawa-San and S-Suzuki-K-Kun...since I doubt we'll be able to keep F-Fuwa-San from attending...." A light blush formed on her face as she switched honorifics for Ren, but she couldn't particularly use 'Sama' without drawing unnecessary and misguided interest from her sister. She didn't have a crush on Ren, but she did admire him, especially after he stated that he would hang out with her regardless of how others viewed him for it.

Nemui noticed Yukito in the room, but quickly shifted her gaze to her feet. She couldn't look directly at him after accompanying him down the isle as her mother's bridesmaid. She knew it was normal, but being that close to him, actually touching Yukito, it made her dizzy and fogged her trail thought until the moment they had parted during the ceremony. She still felt insanely embarrassed, even though he was now legally her brother. Now, they were all legally the Kitomura family. She couldn't wait to change out of the revealing bridesmaid dress that her mother had chosen, feeling very vulnerable, especially in this setting. She waved to certain family members, including Kitomura family members that introduced themselves to her and Kurumi. Kurumi handled the vocal introductions, so she assumed that a hand wave would suffice. She couldn't muster up the courage to speak at the moment if she wanted to.

"U-Uhm.. F-Fuwa-San!" Nemui called out nervously as they drew near, fidgeting nervously as she spoke to him. She did not feel comfortable in this attire, especially since she was around her intimidating and somewhat questionable brother. She wasn't sure how to respond to him, because although he seemed to mean well, his intentions always seemed to result in a negative outcome for her, "Kuru-chii wants to get a group together to play the Osama game.. Do you know how to get ahold of Katsukawa-chan?" Nemui asked, avoiding direct eye contact, her own physical contact with Kurumi being the only thing that kept her from a nervous tremble. She had survived this long without Yukito making any weird or inappropriate comments, but she wasn't sure how much longer that it would last, especially since the family was quickly pouring out of the church leaving all the teenagers standing outside of the building.

Is that Katsukawa-chan talking to Kitomura-San? Nemui thought as her attention landed on Kurou and Himeko in the distance, wondering what was going on between the two, but turned her attention back to her own conversation. Whatever was going on between her older brother and Himeko wasn't her concern... But she wondered why Himeko was blushing.. She couldn't help but wonder if Himeko had a crush on Kurou.

"Three?"

Himeko nearly jumped out of her skin at the sound of the all-too-familiar voice. She spun around, her caramel eyes widening in a concoction of surprise and dread. She had been approached by one of the only three people that she was attempting to avoid, finding it horribly irritating to say the very least, "K-Kitomura..!" She stammered, a light blush adorning her cheeks. She was mentally panicking. She had not mentally prepared to speak with Kurou, and she was out of her element being caught outside of school by him, especially so dressed up. It took every ounce of her willpower to not check him out, and she averted her gaze before the temptation became to much to withstand. She knew that he looked nice, she'd managed to steal an appreciative glance or two while he was participating in the wedding after all... I hate to say it, but a suit really suits him.. Himeko thought to herself nervously, trying to keep her composure together. She was starting to wish that she had stayed home today, but she had no choice, her family really needed the money.. She had a responsibility to herself and to her parents, she couldn't be selfish, not anymore.

"Did we suddenly switch places? I thought I was supposed to be the stalker."

"I was here for my Work study program! I wouldn't waste my time stalking a guy like you!!" Himeko snapped at him, crossing her arms in a childish manner, an obvious pout forming on her face. She was obviously irritated with him, but with her appearance, annoyance simply looked quite cute, like a princess throwing a light tantrum, "Some people don't have our father's big fat bank account to depend on." She mumbled in a slightly bitter and defensive tone. She, unlike the Kitomura boys, Nemui, Kurumi, and Shin was not rich. In fact, Himeko's family was borderline poor. If she didn't have a job, they would likely lose their house. This topic was quite delicate for her, reminding her of her deceased brother. Her older brother used to have a part time job, but now it was her responsibly in his stead, "Some of us have to actually work for what we have.." She added, locking her gaze on a nearby tree to keep her attention elsewhere. Her stomach felt incredibly uneasy from her nerves, which were completely scrambled. Whenever she was around this guy, she couldn't relax. Something about him always seemed to get under her skin. She was beginning to wonder if she was fully over him, but she couldn't allow herself to doubt her own resolve, so she shoved the thought out of her head before it became crippling and substantial.

She couldn't understand why Kurou was always showing up, especially going out of his way to talk to her. She felt her grip tighten around her camera, and before she could think it through, she did something quite stupid. Himeko finally met his gaze, albeit in a defensive and somewhat timid manner. It was mildly implied by her body language that she would strike if he grew any closer, like a cobra. Though her eyes were a storm of emotion, primarily confusion, "Why do you..." She trailed off, catching herself mid-sentence, grateful that she'd prevented herself from asking something foolish. Himeko averted her gaze again, her posture tensing, "Forget it.. It's not important." She resigned, hiding the blush on her face behind a clenched fist. This was going very badly, why wouldn't her feet move?! She wanted to run away, but she felt petrified. Why does this always happen when I'm around Kurou!?

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|| Current Location ✦ Church |||| [ Theme ✦ [Fly On The Wall ] ||

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The wedding had gone smoothly that he almost wanted to puke, but he has mask to preserve, so he endured the festive mood with a smile and acceptance which was far from what he truly feels. He entertained the guests from both parties as amiable and as politely as he could. He was even taking the slack from his brother who despite did his best not to do anything untoward, was still relatively a stone in the dinosaur age when it comes to socializing, but that was fine. People gathered around him like it was the most natural thing and he welcomed it with a smile, that he barely had anytime to himself and so.

Soon, it did let up as his father and that woman drove off to have a romantic getaway. It does make him very angry, but what can he really do at this point. This feeling is so similar to when he received that call yesterday. It was frustrating, and he was helpless. He wanted to brutally destroy someone right now, but on the outside he was a pristine prince with such a gentle smile on his face. No wonder, many females were hook on him even if he does not openly flirt at the moment. He soon managed to take a break from the socialization and loosened his tie and opened a few buttons on his collar, to give some breathing room.

But, it didn't last long as his legally stepsisters appeared in front of him. He wanted to throw water on them or something, but instead, he had that kind smile that never lets up and covered his darkest feelings perfectly. "Hello, Nemui-san, Kurumi-san." He then paused for a moment and looked at their current appearance. He had actually seen them before, but was not able to look at them properly, since he was more pissed, than happy. "Forgive me, if I wasn't able to say it earlier. But, you two look very fetching today. Very cute and beautiful." He said that with a straight face and not even an ounce of a playful tone insight.

He then smiled gently before proceeding to listen to Nemui's next words. It was about playing Osama Game. He was familiar with it, as some of his colleagues at work would drag him into one or even in some of the weird polls that the talk shows would do, like 'who do you want to play osama game with?'. He appeared always on the top of that poll. "That seems to be a fun game. I don't mind having a group together. It would be a good way of bonding together, right?" Yes, that's right he still has that mask of his, even deep inside he wanted to humiliate these two girls at this very instant. "Katsukawa-san?" He had a thoughtful look and then looked around where he spotted his brother with the girl in question. "There she is." He had a smile of triumph on his face. "We can ask her right now, it seems my brother knows her."

"Yukito." He had finally found Yukito as Shin stood behind the Kurumi and Nemui, but was in front of the pop idol. He was as fashionable as ever, but that is just normal for him nowadays. "I--" Yukito's eyes zoned on Shin and instantly smiled brightly which had the older male taken aback. "You surely appear like a Stalker, Leech-kun." His smile was still cheerful, but his tone had an edge of mischief. "Appearing here so suddenly, are you here to pick up your girlfriend?" He noted as Shin quickly defended himself at that statement. "That is not it. I have no girlfriend. And who are you talking about?" His voice held a definitive tone while Yukito shrugged his shoulders. He did heard about his official statement last night, but he can make fun, right? He then looked at the direction where Katsukawa and his brother is.

"That's too bad. She's rather cute. I don't know what you look for in a girl Leech-kun." He walked passed Shin before speaking again. "If you don't act now, others might swoop in, you know?" He then looked behind him where Kurumi and Nemui is. "I'll go and tell them about your plans for later." He then proceeded walking towards paranoia girl and his brother, but Shin took this moment to speak. "It's not about acting on now. It's more of if there was even a chance to begin with." His voice was low, but held a string of something deeper. Yukito looked over his shoulder, but there was no sign of malice or anything. It was just a gentle smile. "Says those who always give up." He then went on ahead while Shin released a sigh and even scratched his head for a moment.

Shin watched Yukito who approached the two and then remembered that of Nemui and Kurumi. "Oh. Fujioka-san." He started and then remembered that this was a wedding, and Yukito would be receiving a new mother and sisters, right? Could it be possible that these two... are... "This might be rude, but are you two Yukito's new sisters?" He asked as he looked at the two who does resemble each other in which his conclusion might not off-base. As for Yukito, he called the attention of the two. "Kuu-nii, Katsukawa-san. I didn't know you two are acquainted." He started with casual yet friendly tone. He looked at them with those orange eyes before continuing on. "Kurumi-san and Nemui-san wanted to have group and play a game, back at the house." His eyes landed on Katsukawa. "Nemui-san, would like you to invite you to come." He then looked at the direction where Nemui is. His attention then shifted to Kurou. "Want to join too Kuu-nii? It could be fun." And that last word has many different connotations especially for someone like Yukito.

Kurou Kitomura
Kurou Kitomura: Attempting to Cause Duo Suffering

||Thought Color = c2150f||||Speech Color = d6a91c||

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"I was here for my Work study program! I wouldn't waste my time stalking a guy like you!!"

Kurou found that very hard to believe, considering she was trying to sneak peeks at him. It was not as if he minded, though, as girls in school had been doing the same thing for a little while now. But he did find it amusing that he was apparently attractive enough in this suit that even someone angry at him couldn't help but admire his looks. Maybe a smug, arrogant personality would have been a better pick for him, so he could capitalize on this. Fortunately for her, he did not. Besides, she looked like an upset puppy, and Kurou had a soft spot for dogs.

"Some people don't have our father's big fat bank account to depend on." she suddenly mumbled defensively, then adding, "Some of us have to actually work for what we have."

"Hey, I'll have you know...." he trailed off for a moment, thinking about what she'd just claimed and realized that she was absolutely correct in her statements, so there wasn't much room for him to argue there. Still, it made him think about how he still managed to have to rely on his good-for-nothing father. "...that that is true and I can't really think of anything, but it's still irritating me." he directed a glare her way, but she seemed to have found something else far more interesting than meeting his eyes with her own. He did not think he deserved to be talked to like that. Such a mean person, she was. At least when it came to him personally. He found himself on the receiving end of the venom she spewed ever since they had met, and he couldn't even pretend like it was because she was tsundere, since there hadn't really been a moment where she showed anything hinting at a like for him. His body was a different story, of course. But joking aside, he still couldn't see why he was being attacked by a stranger. Ever since she first muttered his name like it was some poison, all she did was get angry at him. A lot of it was probably because he was inciting her, but there was never a time when she calmed down. As soon as she knew he was around, it was like she couldn't help but get excited in a negative way. She was a curious existence.

"Why do you..." she suddenly trailed off after finally meeting his gaze. He could tell that she decided against saying something that might have been important. He wondered what it was. "Forget it.. It's not important."

"Eh? Alright, then." he saw no point in attempting to force the subject out of her. She likely would just get angrier, and honestly he was angry enough for the both of them, despite him doing relatively well in hiding it. He only looked slightly more irritated than usual, or so he'd like to think."I'll be headed ho---"

"Kuu-nii, Katsukawa-san. I didn't know you two are acquainted."

At some point, Yuki had appeared with his typical, 'friendly' smile and said this, following up by inviting this 'Katsukawa' girl to some game they were apparently having at his house.

"Only a little bi--" he paused for a moment, thinking about what Yuki had just said. "Wait... Katsukawa....?" he quietly repeated to himself.

Abruptly, he turned to face her, and then proceeded to inspect her face from a safe distance, as she hadn't really seemed to ease down just yet. She still had a pose that reminded him a viper, about to strike. A cute, unthreatening viper, but a viper nonetheless. He did not seem to mind interrupting to flow of the conversation in order to check her out. And as he did so... something began to click.

He remembered a voice, her voice, calling out to him. Specifically, she had called out his name from behind him. It was not in anger nor disgust. The tone sounded almost... nervous? Higher-pitched as well, so he assumed this was a moderate time ago.

But that's all he remembered.

"Want to join too Kuu-nii? It could be fun." his brother offered, snapping him out of the partial memory. It was not as though Kurou often tried to hide when he was interested in someone, so it was likely this wasn't the first time Yuki had seen him do something like this.

Perhaps Kurou was a bit weird.

"....I'll think about it." he told Yuki.

Kurou hadn't moved his eyes off the girl, hoping to remember something else, yet failing to do so. By now it was clear he was suspecting something. Though he figured that this Katsukawa girl wasn't going to appreciate him staring at her for too much longer, so he finally decided to be done with it for now. Besides, he had a theory as to who she was, but confirming this was.... well, he wouldn't do so right now. "Well, see you." he said to the both of them, acting as if nothing had happened before taking this moment to hurry on ahead.

It was now that he really regretted not being the best at remembering names.

Nemui was a lot more nervous than she realized. She didn't know that the Osama game would be 'Truth or Dare' on cocaine, if she had, she never would have agreed to play in the first place. She was chosen to go first, so she held out several Popsicle sticks in her hand with numbers on all of them but one that was simply marked with a crown symbol, but the markings of the sticks were concealed by her hand. This was going to be a game of chance, and it made her stomach churn just thinking about it. This game temporarily gave people more power than they needed, and she hoped that everyone would be docile about this, but since they were teenagers with raging hormones, she highly doubted that anyone would make it out of this game without being sexually harassed or mentally scarred. No one ever told her that growing up would include sexual harassment, and if they had, she must have had earphones in. There is no way that this is the typical teenage experience... This kind of thing only happens in manga..

"Get on with it, Ne-chii!" Kurumi whined to her, growing rather impatient from anticipation.

Nemui let out a long sigh, nodding her head, "O-Okay.." She stared down at the popsicle sticks with pure determination. She did NOT want to end up being one of the targets. She had to draw the King stick, she could not handle this game. She honestly still considered fleeing the scene, but she was fairly certain that Kurumi would drag her back or use her fish face to con her into returning to the game, "O-One... Two... G-Go!" Nemui announced, allowing everyone to draw their choice of stick, leaving her with the last remaining one. She looked at her's, a relieved smile crossing her features as she saw a yellow crown. She was safe, for this turn at the very least.

"Don't show your sticks everyone, not unless you're the King of this turn!"

Nemui showed the group her stick, letting everyone see with their own eyes that she had draw the king popsicle. Though now that she was safe from an order, she realized that she would have to come up with one on her own. She messed up the back of her wavy sandy blonde hair, wracking her brain. Sure, she was a smart girl, but she never was good at Truth or Dare. She was fairly straight laced, so she wasn't sure what a 'good' order would be. She didn't want to go too easy on her choice, but she didn't want to take things too far either. Her mind turned to all the manga she'd read in her lifetime, and finally she got an idea. She wasn't sure if anyone else in the group knew what Seven Minutes in Heaven was, but she was going with it anyhow. She could always explain what Seven Minutes in Heaven was if there was anyone who wasn't sure.

"E-Etto..." she stammered, lightly blushing. Announcing her order out loud was proving to be far more difficult than she had anticipated. She didn't realize how embarrassing it would be to actually say it out loud, but she had no other idea in mind. She had to say it, even if it killed her. She let out a quiet and discreet sigh to calm her nerves and attempted to speak again, "The King demands that number two and number four participate in Seven Minutes in Heaven. W-We will know if you c-cheat... you have to use...e-etto... you have to use t-t-tongue or it doesn't count."

She then let out a sigh, relieved that she had gotten it over with. She was lightly blushing after explaining her order as King, but she managed to survive, "Everyone reveal your number." She announced, tilting her head a bit. She wondered who would have to kiss, hoping that she didn't throw the wrong people under the bus. She hoped that the two would at least remotely be attracted to each other, but she was well aware that this game scarcely ever panned out like that. Why did teenagers even like playing this game? She was a ball of nerves and she wasn't even the person who had to carry out the action. She felt horrible, anxious, but somehow energized. She imagined that this is somewhat like what it would be like to try drugs.

She was surprised at how many people were present. There were only eight people, but everyone was attractive, herself included. Specifically in her opinion, Kurumi's friend from before, Ogawa-san, Yukito, and Kurou were all aesthetically pleasing. Ren was nice to look at, but he held a natural kind of beauty, kind of like Kurumi. Aina was exotic, unable to be compared to anyone. Himeko was as beautiful as the three boys she had mentioned, almost passing for a model herself. She was just glad there was no one that she found repulsive in the circle. So, in all honesty, no matter what happened, it could have always been worse. She had to remind herself of that fact to keep herself going. If she didn't think of the positives, she'd have an early stroke from this level of anxiety.