♡‧₊˚ 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒈𝒂𝒎𝒆

13

after safely tucking his belongings away from where they'll be secure and out of the way, ayato exited from class 2-1 to follow a lengthy line consisting of his classmates who were all on their way to the cleaning supplies closet. japan has always been a bit strict when it came to the tradition of students cleaning their schools because, in their eyes, students become aware of cleanliness and begin to keep the school tidy all the time. they start to pick up trash once it is noticed and arrange desks and messy classrooms during the day.

the development of respecting others and communal space is the main aim.

"ayato, my man, you were a beast," out of seemingly nowhere, rihito popped up from behind ayato and then proceeded to sock his ally in the shoulder aggressively, causing him to wince in pain. "i never knew you could throw such a great party." he praised a bit too loudly, much to ayato's dismay since if somebody were to overhear their conversation, like a teacher, then chances are that ayato will either be sent to the guidance counselor or worse: the headmaster's office which isn't particularly ideal since the older man hasn't taken a liking toward ayato.

no matter how high is his reputation, he will be afraid of what ayato can do and the potential consequences of his actions, or so rihito warned when they were first getting to know each other. it confuses him — it couldn't be because of his mother, could it? that was the only logical explanation for it. alas, this wasn't important right now. ayato just wants to keep a low profile for the rest of the day and let the news of his party cool down.

"thanks," he replied, trying his best to ignore the leader of the info-club. at least for the moment anyway.

rihito steps back from ayato to analyze him, frowning slightly. within the next second, the red-head snapped his fingers. "ah, i see. you're too busy to give your pal the time of day," he sighed exasperatedly. "what? don't tell me you're disappointed now." both of them know fully well that ayato couldn't have gotten as far as he did with y/n if it wasn't for rihito rigging the game.

"no, i'm not mad at you or anything like that." ayato answered. before he even knew it, he was at the front of the line when he saw the student council passing out cleaning supplies such as brooms, vacuums, and cloths to clean the classrooms, bathrooms, and other school spaces for everyone. one of them— kuroko kamenaga— stopped when she saw ayato, almost hesitating.

again, he never had good relations with the student council, and for good reason. ever since he was enrolled in akademi high school, it seemed like they held some prejudice over him. was it because of his demeanor? how off-putting he was at times? ayato couldn't bring himself to care because they still had no idea that he brutally murdered shinji kimura. they can't touch him. he made sure not to leave so much as a scrap of evidence behind.

"here you go." kuroko kamenaga says as she gives ayato cloth and a near-empty spray bottle which contained what he assumed to be a half-water, half-soap mixture. ayato simply nods his head as a simple 'thank you'. not even so much as sparing a glance to give the boy the time of day, "next!" she calls out. kuroko was the school's previous student council president before she was bested by saikou. so, she likes to still order people around for the sense of having authority whenever she gets the chance.

slowly, ayato began to leisurely make his way back to his classmate. sadly, it looks like rihito was also given the same supplies, meaning that he— much like ayato— is on window duty, so it would seem that he won't be able to shake the leader of the info-club off so easily after all. 'good grief.' the dark-haired student rolled his eyes.

"hey, what's the big deal, huh?" rihito picked up the pace as he tried his best to keep up with ayato, pushing his red-framed glasses up. "if i'm being honest, i half-expected you to come to my club this morning to thank me," he admitted, prompting his classmate to grimace at the idea. the only begging ayato would consider doing is if y/n would end up rejecting his hand and he'd have to become hopelessly and uselessly desperate for her to agree to his proposition (i.e., being his partner).

"i thought you knew me better than that." ayato rebutted, both of them nearing the doors to class 2-1. rihito opened his mouth to continue, but ayato worked just as quickly by swinging the door to their classroom open and watched as his ally walked in before him. however, instead of directly heading to the windows, rihito turned his heel once more to say one last thing to ayato before starting his work:

"you know, aishi, you should really consider working on your people skills." then again, rihito mostly just said this to poke fun at ayato who only scoffed at his words. he was doing just fine. there was no need to try and get all buddy-buddy with these bastards called classmates. graduating and becoming y/n's lover were the only things of importance in ayato's world.

unfortunately, rihito's remark not only achieved to rightfully pissed ayato off but gained some unwanted attention from the other students in class 2-1, one group of which had y/n in the middle of it.

"hey, y/n, isn't that the guy you made out with the other day?" himari fujita not so secretly asked the boy's beloved and the mere inquiry left ayato at the entry, wide-eyed and short of breath. well, isn't it the consequences of his own actions...he couldn't just leave now. not when he hasn't heard what y/n

"we didn't 'make out', fujita, we just kissed..." y/n whispered.

"just kissed?" another girl, miyuji shan, repeats and then raises a brow. "i find that hard to believe," she looks over her shoulder to give ayato a once-over, somewhat impressed with what she saw. though, he wasn't her cup of tea. far too skinny for her taste. "he's cute. are you sure nothing is going on between you two?" she looked back at y/n only to lean in closer just in case there were any juicy details that she refused to tell them.

meanwhile, ayato could feel the weight of their scrutiny, the words stinging like a swarm of bees. his grip on the cleaning supplies tightened, and his breaths became shallow.

the gossip is gaining momentum quickly, fueled by recent events. rihito quickly looked between the group of girls and ayato. "aw man," he laughed. "this is priceless. who would've thought you would be the talk of the school." he thought out loud, leaving ayato's side to finally start cleaning.

unable to endure the scrutiny any longer, ayato let out a shaky breath and then abruptly turned on his heels and fled from the classroom.

"aishi, where are you going?!" rihito shouted after him, but it was already too late as the classroom's door swung shut behind him, muffling the distant chatter.

ayato raced down the corridor, seeking refuge from the unwanted attention. finding solace in the nearest bathroom where he dropped the supplies in his hands and barged into a stall, locking it behind him. alone in the confined space, he leaned against the door, his chest heaving. slowly, he squatted down to the ground where he buried his head in his hands. "ugh..." he groaned. the echoes of gossip lingered in his mind, and he couldn't shake the vulnerability that had washed over him.

the half-filled bottle and cleaning cloth lay forgotten on the bathroom floor as ayato grappled with the tumult of emotions stirred by the whispers of his classmates. "i need to get a grip..."