...11/10/2009 Sunday; Morning...
Morning broke over the city's streets, gradually spreading sunlight across the buildings and sidewalks. Unlike the previous days, the city seemed much quieter.
After all, the younger students didn't have to attend classes that day.
That didn't mean, however, that everyone could take advantage of their free time to rest.
Quite the opposite.
The coming week promised to be rather busy, and not because of the Shadows.
In the dormitory, almost everyone was tucked away in their respective rooms, occupied with books, notebooks, and study notes.
Some had stopped by the library to gather additional materials, while others were desperately trying to catch up on everything they had neglected over the past few weeks.
The reason was simple.
Mid-term exams would begin in two days.
And nobody wanted to find out the hard way that they weren't prepared.
Inside Mitsuru's room, Hiro and Akihiko were sitting on one of the sofas, focused on their studies. Both were writing constantly, although neither seemed particularly pleased with the material in front of them.
Hiro had a notebook resting on his lap. In one hand, he held another open notebook, filled with detailed notes on their Japanese lessons.
The handwriting was exceptionally fine and organized. Every character appeared to have been written with meticulous care, accompanied by small remarks, additional explanations, and examples scattered throughout the pages.
It was undoubtedly Mitsuru's notebook.
Hiro scanned another series of notes, trying to absorb as much information as possible.
On the other side of the sofa, Akihiko was facing a considerably different situation.
His notebook was covered in messy handwriting, numbers, and mathematical calculations scattered across practically every page.
Some equations had been crossed out, while others had been rewritten so many times that it was becoming difficult to distinguish the original numbers.
He held his pen between his fingers, repeatedly tapping it against his own head.
His eyes wandered across the mess of equations, as if he expected the numbers to suddenly start making sense on their own.
Both of them were doing their best.
Or, at the very least, trying to understand just enough to survive the exams.
Until Hiro let out a frustrated sigh.
The pen slipped from his fingers and landed on his lap. He leaned back against the sofa, allowing his shoulders to slump as he tilted his head backward against the backrest.
"Ahhh, Jesus Christ... I'm so screwed for Terauchi-sensei's exam."
Akihiko glanced away from his notebook and cast a sideways look at his companion.
A small smile appeared on his face.
"Well, at least she's usually pretty lenient with her exams."
Hiro furrowed his brow and raised his head, looking directly at him.
"Uh-huh... but that doesn't change the fact that kanji is a pain in the ass."
Akihiko shrugged and returned his attention to his calculations.
"Or maybe you just spend her classes sleeping."
Hiro narrowed his eyes.
For a few seconds, he stared at Akihiko. Then, an ironic smile appeared on his lips.
"Well... at least my grades are good. Can't exactly say the same about your grades on Edogawa's exam."
Akihiko's pen stopped halfway through its movement.
A knot formed in his chest.
Just hearing that name was enough to bring a wave of boredom and irritation over him. Even the mere memory of Edogawa's classes was enough to make him question some of his life choices.
Slowly, Akihiko turned his head toward Hiro.
A forced smile formed on his face.
His eye twitched slightly.
The hand holding the pen began to tighten its grip, while small spasms of irritation appeared across his expression.
"Son of a..."
Before Hiro could respond, a frustrated throat-clearing echoed through the room.
Both of them stopped talking and looked toward the door.
Mitsuru was standing there, watching them with a serious expression. In one hand, she carried a tray with her tea set and a small plate filled with cookies.
"You two should be paying more attention."
Akihiko raised his arms in surrender, glancing at her.
"Whoa, calm down! We were just talking. You don't have to sound like my mother."
Hiro let out a quiet chuckle before picking up his pen again and returning to his notebook.
Meanwhile, Mitsuru approached the coffee table.
With precise movements, she lowered the tray and carefully placed it on the surface, making sure the cups didn't move.
"That doesn't justify the fact that studying and achieving good results on your exams are both your responsibilities."
"Well, at least all of this will be over for us soon," Hiro replied, continuing to write without even looking up from his notebook.
Mitsuru sat down on the sofa across from them. A small smile appeared on her lips as she picked up the teapot.
"Yes. But don't forget that we still have the university entrance exams."
A shiver ran down Hiro's spine.
He stopped writing and pointed his pen in her direction, forcing a smile.
"That... is beside the point... for now."
Mitsuru simply smiled, as if she had already anticipated his reaction.
With complete composure, she began pouring tea into one of the cups.
Akihiko let out a sigh, following the movement of the teapot with his eyes. Once Mitsuru finished, she picked up the cup and held it out toward Hiro.
He nodded in gratitude and accepted the tea. At the same time, he handed Mitsuru's notebook back to her, which she took without difficulty.
Akihiko narrowed his eyes.
There was something that had been bothering him.
He began recalling several situations he had witnessed over the past few months. Hiro and Mitsuru were almost always together during breaks at school.
They ate lunch side by side, talked, and quite often helped each other with one thing or another.
But that wasn't all.
His memory went back to the day the horde of Shadows had appeared. He remembered perfectly how Hiro had tended to the wound on Mitsuru's face. And, more importantly, her reaction at the time.
Mitsuru had been completely caught off guard.
Akihiko looked at the two of them again.
Hiro was drinking his tea while Mitsuru flipped through her notebook, apparently focused on her notes while also discussing something with him.
Neither of them seemed to notice him glancing back and forth between them.
Then, a possibility began to take shape in his mind.
Something was going on between those two.
Something that, apparently, even they hadn't realized themselves.
Akihiko didn't say anything immediately. He simply leaned forward, picked up one of the cookies from the plate, and settled back into the sofa.
His eyes, however, continued shifting between Hiro and Mitsuru. There was something in his expression that suggested he was still thinking about something.
Until...
"There's something weird going on between you two."
The conversation came to an immediate halt.
Hiro and Mitsuru stopped what they were doing and looked at Akihiko.
Both wore practically the same expression: a mixture of confusion and surprise at his sudden remark.
"What do you mean?" Hiro asked, placing his cup on the coffee table.
Akihiko finished chewing the cookie and shrugged.
"I don't know... You two have been spending quite a lot of time together at school these past few days. I mean... a lot of time together. I'm actually surprised there haven't been any rumors yet."
Hiro and Mitsuru exchanged glances.
Rumors?
Why would anyone spread rumors about them? After all, they weren't doing anything wrong, much less hiding anything.
Hiro, however, narrowed his eyes.
Akihiko's words continued echoing in his head.
The two of them together...
Together...
Little by little, the pieces began falling into place. He finally realized what Akihiko was implying.
His eyes widened slightly. A faint warmth crept across his face, leaving his cheeks flushed.
"Hold on a minute! That's not what you think!"
Mitsuru turned her head from one to the other, clearly confused by Hiro's sudden reaction.
"Huh...? What are you two talking about?"
"Uhhh..." Hiro brought one hand to his face and rubbed his eyes, trying to hide his embarrassment. "It's nothing serious... He's just making things up."
Akihiko gave him an amused smile. Without bothering to respond immediately, he picked up his notebook and returned his attention to his notes.
"Uh-huh... I didn't make anything up, you know. It's just what I think."
Hiro let out a quiet snort and looked away, visibly annoyed. Then, he leaned back against the sofa and crossed his arms.
"Hmph... Well, you're wrong. There's nothing going on between us."
"Sure..." Akihiko glanced sideways at him, keeping that playful smile on his face. "Then why are you getting so worked up?"
Hiro didn't answer.
He simply raised one hand and slowly gave him the middle finger.
Akihiko suppressed a laugh, managing only a muffled chuckle before returning his attention to his notebook.
Mitsuru watched their exchange in silence, looking from one to the other. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't understand what had just happened.
After a few seconds, she let out a small sigh and decided not to press the matter.
She picked up one of the cups and brought it to her lips. The tea slid smoothly down her throat, leaving behind a light, sweet taste.
Perhaps it would be better to simply ignore their little argument and let the two of them get back to studying.
TO BE CONTINUED...