Chapter Text
8th Grade Graduation: Late May
“ Say cheese!”
Each of Killua’s friends slung an arm around his shoulder. His parents stood behind him with approving smiles plastered on their faces. His siblings also took their places around him, all smiling in some way for the picture.
Killua’s grin was the widest of them all. Dozens of medals clinked together and shone under the evening sun as he held a professional looking certificate. He looked between the paper in his hands and the camera perched in front of him. His lips only extended further and he held out the certificate further out for the camera to see.
“Cheese!”
——————
That day was one of Killua’s favorite days ever. His parents had went all out with the rewards. They took him, his friends, and the entire family to his favorite restaurant. Hell, they even bought him all the chocolate robots he had managed to stuff in the shopping basket.
Currently though?
Currently Killua was munching on said chocolate robots while laying stomach down on his bed. His certificate was now framed and sat in front of him. He kicked his feet happily as he reread its words for the millionth time that night.
“Certificate of Intelligence
Killua Zoldyck.
This certificate is awarded to Killua Zoldyck, the most hardworking student in Hunter Junior High, graduating with the highest grades amongst all his peers.”
He squealed with excitement as his eyes glazed over the words. Sure he had just graduated from the eighth grade, and sure he was a fifteen year old boy, but he convinced himself he had the right to squeal over this. He had earned it after all.
“Killua? Killua are you awake??You better not be reading that certificate of yours! Go to sleep!” Kikyo, his mom called from down stairs.
He groaned, internally cursing his mom’s sharp senses— and cursing himself for even squealing in the first place.
Nevertheless he yelled back. “Yes mother!”
The house was dead silent after that. He assumed that the rest of his siblings were already asleep.
Reluctantly, he picked himself off his bed, grabbing his certificate and holding it to his chest. His floorboards squeaked much to his annoyance as he tiptoed across his room and to his awards shelf. He took a couple seconds to admire all the medals, trophies, and certificates that sat on the shelf. Carefully, he added his most recent certificate to the collection, placing it front and center.
He stared at it some more, cherishing it. The white haired boy sighed dreamily, thoughts running through his head.
I’ll definitely earn another one of these. High school. I’ll do even better in high school. He thought confidently. Hell, I’ll be valedictorian for sure.
He crawled back into bed, covering himself up to his nose with his silk sheets. Yup, I’ll definitely be the best in the high school. And I’ll graduate top of my class.. get into an Ivy League school.. get my dream job. Yeah.. yeah that’s how it’ll be!
It’ll be a piece of cake, considering I’ll be surrounded by a bunch of morons.. He laughed quietly at his own thought.
He shifted, getting into a comfier position on the mattress. His eyelids drooped slowly as these many ideas ran through his mind.
Soon his breath evened out.
He slept extremely peacefully that night.
——————
July: The Middle of Summer Break
“Why are we studying again..? We’re in the middle of summer break.”
Killua was currently sitting criss-cross on his wooden floor working through some algebra textbooks he’d bought himself for practice. Next to him? One of his best friends since elementary school, Kurapika.
“What do you mean why? Don’t you want to get ahead for next year? I hear algebra is one of the hardest subjects in all of highschool.” Killua pauses from his work just to stare at Kurapika as if he’d said something utterly ridiculous.
The blonde sighed. “Well sure, but it’s not that necessary is it? I mean, we’ve been doing just fine all this time just learning like everyone else. Well- I have at least.” He shrugged.
He wasn’t wrong. Kurapika usually did above average compared to the other kids in their classes, and he didn’t study nearly as much as Killua usually did. He’d assumed that his friend was just naturally gifted like that.
The snowy haired boy narrowed his eyes at his best friend and hummed in annoyance. “Yeah. Right. I bet if your boyfriend were here studying with us right now you wouldn’t have any complaints.” He rolled his eyes.
Kurapika’s face heated at the mention of Leorio, aka the third member of their idiotic friend group.
Leorio had also been friends with them since elementary. He’d also always had a crush on Kurapika since then. It wasn’t till the beginning of eighth grade till he’d grown the balls to make a move on the blonde. Much to Killua’s surprise, (not really) Kurapika reciprocated the feelings and they’d been dating ever since. Luckily for Killua, he couldn’t care any less about relationships, and quite frankly they didn’t make him feel like a third wheel so he didn’t mind the whole thing.
In fact, Leorio would probably be with them right now if he could. But every summer he and his family would go back to their hometown on Whale Island to spend their vacation. Speaking of which-
A sudden buzz grabs both Killua and Kurapika’s attention.
Kurapika’s phone.
He picks it up and a smile graces his features. “It’s Leorio.” He announces.
Of course it is.
His eyes flicker over his screen. “He sent something in the groupchat- where’s your phone anyway?” He scanned the surrounding floor for Killua’s phone. He hadn’t heard it buzz.
“I keep it out of my room when I’m studying so I don’t get distracted.” Like right now!
“Oh wow. How responsible of you.” He teases as he scoots closer to his friend and shows him his screen.
It displays their group chat. There’s a new message from Leorio as well as an attachment. “Spending the day with my island boy friend.” The text said. The attachment was a selfie that included Leorio with his arm slung around said friend. It was a boy around their age, with olive colored skin, soft freckles dusted on his face, spiked up black hair, and the widest smile Killua’s ever seen in his life.
Killua squinted at the picture and shrugged. “Cool.” He really couldn’t care less about a boy that lived over ten hours away, especially not since it was disrupting his study time.
Kurapika rolled his eyes. “You’re such a robot.” He said as he laid back on the floor and texted something back.
“Am not- … only when I’m working.” He tried defending, focusing back on his books.
“Sure- oh!” Kurapika sits up again. “Leorio says his friend is moving.”
“And tell me Sherlock, what does that have to do with us?”
The blonde narrowed his eyes at his friend. “Here. He’s moving here. To Yorknew. To Hunter High.” He says slowly, dragging the words out as if Killua was stupid. (He is.)
“Oh- .. I still don’t see what that has to do with us.”
Kurapika crawled forward and smacked Killua upside the head.
“What the he-“
“Oh shut up. Seriously. I don’t get how you’re so smart but so stupid at the same time.” He rubs his temples like he’s trying to ease a headache. “If Leorio’s friend is moving to our school, then obviously he’ll be hanging out with us. Oh and Leorio says he’s pretty smart. Says he’s the top of his class back there. You might be getting some competition, Mr. Perfect.” He wiggled his eyebrows in a teasing manner.
Killua can’t help but laugh. “Competition? Yeah right. I think you’re forgetting my score ranges. Remember what I got on my PSAT?”
Kurapika groans. “1400?”
“1400! And that was on my first try too!” He
stated proudly. “I doubt Leorio’s friend even got above a 1000. Plus. Leorio thinks everyone’s smart considering he’s not the brightest… anyway! I don’t think I’ll have to worry about this new kid.” He focused back on a difficult equation he’d been working on.
Kurapika on the other hand had completely given up on algebra for the time being. His eyes were glued back to his phone, fingers moving swiftly as he texted who Killua assumed to be Leorio.
But he speaks up. “Whatever you say, Kil.”
Killua decided to ignore the comment. His pencil swept across the paper while his mind ran. He was perfectionist when it came to school. He always had been, and he was sure he always would be. (Maybe it was a mental thing, he wasn’t too sure.) Ever since he started school, he’d always known what he wanted to be: He’d wanted to work in business. Marketing? Sales? He wasn’t too sure. But either way, finding a decent office job at a high class company would be difficult and he knew it. That’s why he’d work his ass off every single day concerning his academics. As of now? He was in a comfy position. The thought of competition worried him. But he laughed it off.
Competition? Really? That would never happen.