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Kuro Yakaku walked down the school hallway, lost in thought.
He was thinking about non other than the Producer. How typical. He swore he hated her, but he couldn’t chase her away from his thoughts.
Why was this so frustrating!?
His footsteps slowed as faint voices could be heard from down the hall. He peered into the window to see the woman who had been occupying his thoughts giving Fire Fenyx a dance lesson. She was swirling her body, obviously showing them how to master a certain dance sequence.
To his irritation, the three boys were gazing at her with awe and admiration.
Why did they have to look at her like that?
He should be the only person who got to see her like this…
Wait. What the heck was he thinking? No, no, no. He had long since given up on that.
There was no chance of them being together anymore.
He shook his head to chase those forbidden desires out of his mind, and then he headed on his way.
Yuzuki turned to the window, but no one was there. Was it her imagination, or had someone been watching them just now?
She shrugged before returning to the lesson.
***
As the Alchemist performed their newest song to the cheering crowd, Yuzuki watched them from the back door, unable to tear her eyes away from their leader.
“Kuro…” she whispered his name longingly.
It was incredible how many fans cheered for him now, nothing like their early Ichu days. She knew she should be proud of him.
And yet…for just a moment, she wished that he was hers and only hers. She didn’t want anyone else to see how brilliantly he shone on the stage. She wanted to keep him to herself.
Her breath caught when his eyes seemed to meet hers from across the room, as though he could sense the scandalous thoughts that she locked away deep in her heart.
Flustered, she turned away and slapped her cheeks to bring herself back to her senses.
What was she thinking!? She was their Producer now. There was no way they could ever be together again, not like the old days.
She wanted to cry, but she had no right to.
***
After their performance was over, she greeted them in the changing room. “Good work, you three!” She bowed sincerely.
“Aw, did you come all this way to see us?” Saku teased, leaning too close towards her and making her rather uncomfortable.
Kuro scowled and jerked the other boy away. “Don’t touch her.”
Yuzuki could only stare, not knowing what to think. Was he…was he looking out for her?
Baber blinked between them. “Baber doesn’t know what’s happening, but let’s go get some drinks, Saku!” He hurriedly dragged Saku out of the room.
“Aww, but you know there are drinks in here, Baber?” the blond boy protested as their voices faded into the distance, leaving Kuro and Yuzuki alone in the room.
Now that they were the only two left, the room temperature seemed to drop at least ten degrees.
Oh no. This wasn’t good for her heart…The silence was killing her. Say something, anything! Yuzuki implored herself desperately.
“Er…Good job out there.” She managed to stammer without making a complete fool out of herself.
“I don’t need that from you,” Kuro said, his tone as scathing as ever.
She flinched at his harsh words, lowering her head. “I know. And…I really am sorry, Yakaku-kun.” She didn’t dare call him Kuro when they were alone, knowing that he didn’t like it.
“Whatever. I’m leaving.” He stalked past her, so close they almost touched.
As though her body was reacting on its own, she reached out and grabbed the hem of his sparkling black jacket.
“Wait…”
He paused ever so slightly, looking back at her through amethyst eyes. “What is it?”
She shook her head quickly, not knowing what had come over her just now. “N-Never mind. It’s nothing.”
“It can’t be nothing if you’re stopping me from leaving.” He pointed out with a sigh.
No matter how much he once hated her, he could never control himself when it came to her. Even if he didn’t want to, he always ended up doing what she wanted. That was the effect this woman had on him.
Dammit. After all these years, no matter how much he tried to hate her, his lingering feelings refused to fade…
He slowly, hesitantly lifted a hand and patted her head, his touch so featherlight that she could barely feel his warmth through his gloves. But she knew she didn’t imagine it. His gaze softened ever-so-slightly, a look he only reserved for her.
“Well…I’m off now.”
This time, she didn’t try to stop him, simply staring after his broad back as he retreated from the room.
One day, she hoped that they could return to being friends again. But for now, this was more than enough.
She smiled, hope brimming in her chest.
“Kuro…thank you.”
Whether he heard her or not, he showed no signs, but his footsteps sounded slightly lighter as he left in search of Saku and Baber.