Work Text:
If you asked anyone about the relationship between Adonis Otogari and Souma Kanzaki, one would answer that they were good friends. Some would even claim that they were a couple, but that wasn’t the truth. At least if you asked Adonis. He would answer that Souma was his best friend, and despite her being of opposite sex, there was nothing romantic going on between them.
Or was there?
Until Christmas Eve, Adonis had harbored a gentle crush towards his other female friend, Koga Oogami. For the longest time, he had never had enough courage to confess to her – and he had always had the feeling that Koga was in love with their upperclassman Rei Sakuma. When Adonis had finally confessed on Christmas Eve, Koga had rejected him. Even though Adonis had been wary of her true feelings, the rejection still broke his heart and it had made already quiet Adonis even quieter than usual. Koga and Adonis had managed to make up and continue their friendship but it wasn’t quite the same as before Adonis’ confession. Adonis still considered Koga his friend and sometimes spent time with her after school but not as often as he had used to.
And that was when something shifted in Souma’s behavior.
Souma had obviously noticed that something was wrong between Adonis and Koga but since Adonis was too embarrassed over the rejection, he had clumsily explained to Souma that he and Koga had had a fight but even though they had made up, they were still a little awkward around each other. Adonis hated lying but this white lie was so minor he managed to let it pass by and Souma had mercifully believed it. And it apparently had encouraged her to spend more time with Adonis. If Adonis went somewhere after school, Souma tagged along. If Adonis was having a lunch break, Souma always joined him. If Adonis mentioned going on a morning run the next day, Souma often suggested coming with him. True, all of this had happened before, but not on this frequency. And it made Adonis confused somewhat.
He didn’t fully realize it until Rei came to talk to him one day when he was heading towards the school’s gym where his track & field club was going to have some weight training that afternoon.
”Oi, Adonis! How is it going?”
Rei cheerily waved at him on the hallway and delighted of his attention, Adonis decided to give Rei few minutes of his time – track & field club was never that strict, anyway.
”Sakuma-senpai! Good afternoon. I am doing well. How are you?” Adonis politely asked.
”Good, good… I was just about to head to our clubroom for practice. And that reminds me… say… how are things with Puppy?” Rei asked and squinted.
”Oogami? Fine, I guess”, Adonis said and shrugged.
”Fine, you say? Alas, then I have nothing to worry about… it would make me so sad if my precious children were fighting with each other” Rei hummed.
”We are not fighting. Which reminds me... I have to thank you for helping to restore our bonds, Sakuma-senpai”, Adonis said.
”It was my duty, really… but you should also thank the charming young lady who came to the… hmm, how should I put it – peace treaty dinner, perhaps? Either way, who came with you to the restaurant. You two have been pretty close lately, haven't you?”
Rei’s smile was teasing and Adonis’ cheeks heated up a little.
”Kanzaki is my good friend. Of course I am thankful to her”, Adonis replied.
”Glad to hear. She seems to enjoy your company. You have good friends, Adonis, you truly have… and perhaps she will end up becoming more than a friend to you in due time”, Rei’s smile widened.
”I don’t understand”, Adonis blinked.
”Do not worry, Adonis. Eventually, you will understand the meaning of my words. Alas, I have made Puppy wait for way too long now. Did you know? She is working on a song for UNDEAD. Perhaps we will play it on White Day if it is finished by then.”
”Really? That’s very impressive. Say hello to her from me”, Adonis said.
”But of course. Have a pleasant day, Adonis.”
Rei turned his back on Adonis and started walking towards the hallway along which the band club’s clubroom was located. The self-proclaimed vampire was always mysterious but now, his figure of speech had left Adonis bewildered.
What had he meant by ”more than a friend”?
Adonis had known Souma since he had become a student of Yumenosaki Academy a year before. The only person Adonis knew from Yumenosaki Academy before coming to the school was Rei but since Rei was busy with what was going on at the school at that time, he didn’t really have much time to babysit Adonis and teach him how everything at the Academy worked. He had enlisted Koga from the band club to help Adonis to adapt but since she was in different class and busy practicing her guitar skills, she couldn’t be there for him all the time, either. But Souma, who happened to sit on a seat behind Adonis in their classroom, was surprisingly willing to help him when Adonis had asked her about something for the first time. He had needed directions to the school’s gym and Souma had even volunteered to walk him there, introducing different classrooms, clubrooms and other facilities on their way to the gym. Since that day, they started interacting frequently, with Adonis also being interested in Souma’s samurai family and the fancy sword she always carried around.
Sometimes, Adonis wondered what would have happened to him if he was seated next to someone like Natsume Sakasaki instead. That girl was a mystery to him and Adonis was fairly sure she would just have tricked him if he would have asked her for help, chuckling from the shadows at her successful prank. Souma was nothing like that. She was diligent though sometimes a little hot-headed. Nevertheless, she was a loyal friend and would never pull Adonis’ leg like that.
But now, when Rei had given Adonis something serious to think about, he became somewhat hyper focused. It was like Rei had planted some evil seed into him which steadily grew every day, making him observe Souma’s every mood and action like she was under a microscope. Rei was observant and smart and even though he liked to tease people a little, he would never joke with something serious like this.
Could there be a possibility that Souma already thought Adonis as more than her friend?
And if she did, what would he do then?
It had not been that long since Christmas and though Adonis hated to admit it, he felt a dull pain in his chest whenever he spotted Koga somewhere at school and the pain sharpened if he saw her interacting with Rei, cheeks all flushed, admiration in her eyes. The pain was a little less bad if he actually spoke to Koga in person or spent time with her – especially at school where Souma was most often by his side. But Adonis knew it only meant he still wasn’t completely over with his crush towards Koga and he had no idea would he be able to like any other girl anytime soon. Especially if the said girl had been his close friend for almost two years now!
Adonis didn’t really want to know but he also couldn’t suppress his curiosity. On the surface, everything was pretty much business as usual. He and Souma talked about indifferent topics when eating lunch or walking home together: the only difference was that Souma sought for his company more often than before. Maybe she just wanted to make him feel better after his ”fight” with Koga. But was Adonis just imagining things, or were her eyes more sparkly than usual when Adonis bought her a drink one day? And what was that bubbly giggle he once heard Souma let out when he pointed something funny to her in a shop window? Koga never behaved like that around him. Or any other girl Adonis knew.
Adonis decided to test waters one day. When he had gone to karaoke with Koga on Christmas, he had been way too straightforward with his confession so he decided not do anything like that ever again. But he needed a sign, no matter how small, something, anything, to confirm his doubts. And the perfect opportunity came around one day when he was out in town with Souma after school. This time, Adonis had volunteered to come with Souma to get some special fish food for the marine life club Souma was a member of.
”Thank you for coming with me, Adonis-dono! Shinkai-dono usually takes care of these things but she asked me to get this special blend this time since the aquarium store is located on a way to my home”, Souma cheerily told Adonis while walking down the district of shopping street where all the buildings and stores were older and streets narrow and cramped.
”Mmm”, Adonis said and nodded.
”Adonis-dono… I apologize if I offend you by my question... but you have been even quieter than usual lately. May I ask if everything is alright?” Souma gingerly asked and shyly glanced at Adonis.
”What? Oh, no, everything is fine… I... was just in thoughts”, Adonis said and shook his head.
”That’s a relief to hear! I was afraid you might have had another fight with Oogami-dono”, Souma said and frowned slightly.
”There has been nothing of sort! You worry for nothing, Kanzaki”, Adonis firmly said.
During the rest of their way, Souma’s tone of speaking was cheerier than usual and Adonis could not help to notice that. If Arashi Narukami was there, she would probably say something like ”that’s one point to ’she likes me’ -column!”. Listening to her speak about things like that at track & field club suddenly came surprisingly handy and Adonis thanked her in his mind.
They arrived at the aquarium store. The tiny shop window was colorful and made Adonis smile. Adonis opened the door for Souma who thanked him with a smile on her lips. Inside the small store, around all the different aquariums and fish, Souma kept looking around, trying to locate the special fish food Kanata had requested.
”Hmm… Adonis-dono, you’re taller than me… can you see if it’s on the upper shelves…?”
”Of course. Which color the package was again?”
”Turquoise. I think it would be easy to spot – oh.”
Souma’s eyes focused on the selection of fish food on one of the upper shelves. There, in the middle, were turquoise packages with bright blue labels. Souma frowned and reached for a package: she couldn’t quite reach,
”Do you need help, Kanzaki?” Adonis asked.
This was his chance! Adonis took a step closer to Souma who shook her head, her ponytail swaying with the movement.
”You don't have to, Adonis-dono, I can almost reach it...” Souma was tiptoeing now, her fingertips brushing the package.
Adonis said nothing. Instead, he inched even closer to Souma, so much so that their bodies almost brushed against each other, Souma's ponytail pressing against Adonis' chest. Adonis easily grabbed the package from the shelf, his hand deliberately touching Souma’s while he did that. He clearly saw how Souma's fingers twitched when he touched her.
”How many packages Shinkai-senpai said you’d need?” Adonis asked, trying to keep his voice as casual as possible.
”T-three…” Souma stammered – quite uncharacteristic for her.
Slowly, Souma pulled her hand away while Adonis took another two packages from the shelf. When he took a step back and handed them to Souma, he was met with a surprise: Souma’s face was bright red and her eyes were cast down on the floor.
Another point to ’she likes me’ -column. Adonis blushed.
”T-thank you, Adonis-dono… I think we should leave now…” Souma muttered to her shoes and took the packages from Adonis' hands, careful not to touch him again.
After Souma had paid for her purchases with money Kanata had given to her, the two exited the store. The mood had suddenly turned quite awkward and Adonis tried frantically to think something to say to fix the situation.
”So, Kanzaki”, he started even though he had no idea what should he even say to her.
Souma glanced at Adonis. Her cheeks were still a little redder than usual. Say something, Adonis Otogari, you big moron!
”Should you take those back to school?” Adonis managed to ask and pointed at the plastic bag Souma was now carrying with fish food inside.
”G-great idea, Adonis-dono! Walking the extra detour would make a nice exercise as well! But you do not need to join me for that, Adonis-dono. You can just go home! Thank you for your company today!”
Souma sounded unusually flustered and Adonis raised an eyebrow to her.
”If you say so, Kanzaki. See you at school tomorrow”, Adonis said and smiled gingerly at Souma.
”Yes! See you, Adonis-dono!”
Souma made a short, awkward bow to Adonis' direction, turned swiftly around and started rapidly walking to the direction from which the two had came from, leaving confused Adonis alone in the front of the aquarium store.
Not even Adonis was dense enough to not to read the signs. There was definitely something more than friendship developing at least from Souma’s side of things and Adonis had now idea how to handle that. He needed some advice and he needed it fast.
To Adonis’ relief, next day at school, everything had returned to normal. Souma greeted him in the classroom in the morning and Adonis asked something about the fish the food she had bought. Gone was the awkward mood and there was nothing out of ordinary in their interactions. It was a good thing.
Or was it?
At one point during the lunch break they were having in their classroom, Adonis suddenly found himself staring at Souma’s silken hair, having a passing thought how it would feel like to pull her hair tie down and run his fingers through the glossy locks. When he realized he had paid no attention to what Souma was saying to him and what had he been actually thinking, Adonis almost chocked on a piece of meat. Souma, thank heavens, didn’t seem to notice – Subaru Akehoshi's timing to start bickering with Natsume was almost perfect and Souma turned her attention to them, partly curious, partly disapproving. Adonis sighed and Souma probably thought it was because the meaningless quarrel their classmates were having. Saved, for now.
Later that day, back at home, Adonis thought hard. A thought like that he had had during lunch break about Souma was far from friendly even though Adonis had admired her rigorous hair routine before. But not that intimately! Did that mean he was already getting over Koga and starting to see another girl in different light? But that girl was his closest friend! Adonis didn’t want to ruin another friendship by something stupid like relationship drama… but then he remembered Souma’s flushed cheeks from the day before at the aquarium store. Adonis frowned. There were several points in ”she likes me” -column already. But how should he proceed? Adonis threw himself onto his bed and closed his eyes.
Advice, that would be helpful, like he had thought the day before. But from who to ask? His sisters were an obvious choice but also people Adonis wanted to confine in the least. They were often demanding and difficult and were probably able to milk every single sliver of information out of him, wanting to meet his possible crush right away. So they were out of question. Adonis had somehow been able to evade them when things got awry with Koga but he thought he wouldn’t be so lucky second time around.
There was also Koga but she was a poor choice as well – he was still in a process of getting over his crush towards her and talking to her about Souma somehow felt wrong. She also seemed quite busy with the band club and Adonis thought he shouldn’t bother her too much with his trivial problems. Same went with Rei who was also busy with the same club and he would probably give some confusing advice shrouded in mysterious words Adonis would probably have hard time trying to comprehend. Same went with Natsume – that girl would probably just try to lead him on, much like she had tricked him into thinking his Christmas outing with Koga was a date and what had followed from that? Nothing good!
So there really was only one person Adonis could go for. Arashi Narukami was observant but also friendly. She had also sometimes talked about her own relationship troubles with Adonis before so she would probably be willing to listening to Adonis’ troubles for a change? Adonis was a little worried about her inclination to gossiping but maybe she would be able to keep important things, like other people's secrets, to herself.
Adonis reached for his phone and checked his calendar. The next track & field club practice was scheduled the next day. Adonis nodded to himself. Better sooner, right?
Adonis had not expected that waiting for the club practice would be so thrilling – and not in a good way. There was an uncomfortable feeling churning in his stomach the whole morning and when he spotted Arashi briefly on the hallway during a break, his stomach flipped. Luckily, none of it was showing outwards, so no one really noticed anything unusual. Adonis was even saved from participating in that many conversations with Souma that day: Koga came to their classroom during lunch break, promptly pulled a chair next to Souma and started asking her about the turtle Souma kept at the marine life club. Adonis looked at the two girls sitting next to each other opposite him. To his surprise, Koga’s fluffy gray twin tails and sharp golden eyes gave him only a small sting and he didn’t feel that depressed at all. It had been about a month since Christmas. If his romantic feelings towards Koga were indeed waning, he had gotten over her surprisingly fast. But that was only a good thing, right?
When Adonis concentrated on Souma, her violet eyes and dark purple hair, her eyes sparkling when she talked about Kamegorou to Koga, his heart skipped a beat and that was something that had never happened before. Adonis noticed that there was a rice grain stuck near Souma’s lower lip. He wanted to remove that grain, leave his thumb on her cheek, lift her head up a little and then-
”Oi, Kanzaki, you have a rice grain stuck over there”, Koga said and vaguely gestured somewhere around her lower lip.
”Oh, thank you, Oogami-dono, I didn’t even notice that…”
Adonis certainly had noticed. He dug deeper into his lunch box, mortified of what he had just thought about. In front of him, the two girls kept on chatting, totally unaware of his mental state.
Later that afternoon, after club practice, Adonis got lucky. He stepped out of the locker room at the exact same time Arashi exited girls’ locker room. Adonis drew in a sharp breath. It was now or never!
”Narukami”, Arashi called and Arashi immediately turned to him, a sunny smile on her face.
”Adonis-chan! Did you need something from me?” She asked and batted her thick eyelashes.
”Uh…”
Words suddenly got stuck on Adonis’ throat and he didn’t know how to proceed. Arashi, however, caught the hint immediately.
”Do you want to talk? You know, there is this new coffee shop near school I’ve wanted to try out for a while! You can accompany me, if you want”, Arashi’s lavender eyes narrowed ever so slightly.
”Thank you, Narukami. It will be my treat, then”, Adonis said and nodded.
”Kyaa, luckyy! Let’s get going, then!”
Arashi scooted out of the locker rooms in such a speed Adonis needed to quicken his pace to follow her out of the school and to the street. The coffee shop was tiny but somehow Arashi managed to make her way to the table in the farthest corner from the door. The chairs were decorative but uncomfortably narrow and Adonis found it difficult to find a comfortable position to sit on. Arashi obviously noticed this immediately and chuckled lightheartedly at him.
”Let’s see…” Arashi picked up the menu from the table, ”oh, I totally want to taste honey cake!”
”Sounds good. I think I’ll take that, too”, Adonis said and nodded.
”Perfect!” Arashi chirped and conveyed their order to the waitress who had appeared next to their table.
While waiting for their cakes and teas to come, Arashi kept lightly chatting about something she had been talking with Izumi Sena, an upperclassman Adonis barely even knew.
”…and then Izumi-chan said that Leo-kun – oh, thank you!”
The waitress set a steaming cup of tea next to Arashi and Adonis followed how she inhaled the scent. The delighted smile on her face was lovely.
”So!” Arashi started breezily, picking up her spoon, ”what did you want to talk about?”
”Well…” Adonis fiddled with his spoon, ”…Narukami, how do you know if someone has a crush on you?”
Arashi almost chocked on her cake. After she had coughed for a few times, with Adonis giving her a worried look, she looked at Adonis with wide eyes and eyebrows forming surprised arcs.
”You wanted to have girl talk with me? I certainly didn’t see this coming! I was guessing that maybe it’s something, like, concerning your fight with Koga-chan – wait. Does Koga-chan like you? I thought she had it in for Sakuma-senpai!” Arashi looked shocked.
”You’re right. She is into him, I believe. This is not about her”, Adonis said and blushed.
”Oh, really? Well, I won’t even try to pretend I don’t realize what this is actually about. If it’s not about Koga-chan, you must be talking about Souma-chan, right? I’ve seen you two together quite often lately… more often than before”, Arashi gave Adonis a sly smile.
Adonis said nothing. He sipped his tea and waited for Arashi to continue talking.
”I mean, it’s pretty obvious, right? Souma-chan never smiles like that when she’s around anyone else, Adonis-chan!” Arashi happily told Adonis.
”She doesn’t?” Adonis raised an eyebrow.
”No! And you’ve probably noticed how much time she has spent with you lately? There is no way she’s not romantically into you!” Arashi puffed her cheeks and glared at Adonis like he was an idiot for not realizing it sooner.
”What should I do, then?” Adonis sheepishly asked, starting to feel rather anxious.
”Well, duh. Isn’t it obvious? You should ask yourself, like, do you like her, too? And not as a friend! I mean, like, do you feel like you'd want to take her out? Honestly, I’m quite surprised you two aren't dating already! Maybe you both are just – well, never mind…”
Arashi elegantly sipped her tea and Adonis imitated her action. She had definitely given him something to think about. Did he want to date Souma? Somehow, the thought made Adonis all fuzzy inside. But then, suddenly, a stinger in his chest reminded him the last time when he had confessed to someone. But Koga would have never accepted his feelings – she had always had it in for Rei and while Adonis understood that, the truth still hurt a little.
”I don’t know”, Adonis then said and Arashi sighed.
”No one can know it for you, Adonis-chan! Just give it some thought. You two spend so much time together you’ll figure it out soon enough. Or maybe you should just ask her out. On a date!”
”D-date?” It was Adonis’ turn to almost choke on his tea.
”Yeah! Maybe you should be a little proactive here. Or if you’re not sure… hmm… you know, Valentine’s Day is pretty close! She’ll probably give you some chocolate. And then the rest comes naturally!”
Valentine’s Day… Adonis had almost forgotten about that. Last year, Souma had indeed given him chocolate. If she liked him, not as a friend but as someone she would like to date, maybe the chocolate would be fancier this year? Heart-shaped and his name on top, like the chocolates he had seen the girls on his class give to their crushes and boyfriends. Adonis blushed and Arashi noticed that, raising an eyebrow to him. Adonis was not awfully aware how chocolate giving on Valentine’s Day actually worked but it was definitely something to look forward to.
”Speaking of Valentine’s Day, I personally can’t wait! I wonder what kind of chocolate I should make for teacher Kunugi this year…”
For the rest of the meeting, Adonis listened to Arashi talking about the teacher she was in love with. Even though Adonis did not voice his opinion, he didn’t really think Akiomi Kunugi was that kind of teacher who would give in to his student’s affections – even if the said student was as pretty as Arashi was.
20 minutes later, the two exited the coffee shop.
”Thank you, Narukami. For good advice”, Adonis said before parting ways with the girl.
”No need to thank me! Just put it in a good use! And… if Souma-chan noticed you going out with me, you tell her that we were planning Mama’s graduation party! No need to make her jealous of nothing, really…” Arashi said and giggled.
”We’re going to arrange a graduation party for Captain?” Adonis asked, cocking an eyebrow.
”I don’t know, it was just a random idea! But maybe we should really organize something, you know? I mean… our club cannot really put up a performance on White Day so we should probably do at least something for him! He’s our senior at the club, you know”, Arashi said and shrugged.
”Good idea. We should talk about it with Tenma later on”, Arashi said and nodded.
”Sounds good! Well, see you at the next practice. Bye!”
On his way home, a thought started bothering Adonis. White Day definitely was a thing and if Souma was going to give him chocolate on Valentine's Day, he should eventually get a present for her in turn.
During the next few weeks, nothing really out of ordinary happened. Adonis was surprisingly busy with his club since Madara Mikejima had somehow got an idea to whip everyone in his training group into shape before he graduated and was planning to have a race with all of them to celebrate his graduation. While Adonis was happy to have a challenge ahead of him, squeezing time to spend with his friends or do homework started being a small problem. Luckily, Koga had lamented one day that she was suffering from the same issue and the two had decided to put up an impromptu study circle to catch up with homework – to which Souma decided to join as well.
Managing all three’s schedules with club practices and whatnots was not easy but on one afternoon, all three of them were finally sitting at school’s library, doing homework and helping each other with difficult subjects.
”Man! I can’t get how Ritchan does it. All she does is sleep and I’ve never seen her study, yet somehow she’s one of the top students in our class!” Koga sighed while doing her literary assignment.
”Well, Sakuma-senpai is highly intelligent. Maybe she takes after him?” Adonis suggested.
”Might be… but be careful never to say that if she's around. She hates being compared to him, you know…” Koga muttered.
”I’ll keep that in mind”, Adonis said and nodded.
”What is Sakuma-dono planning to do after he graduates, if I might ask?” Souma asked Koga.
”Eh, going to some posh university, I guess. Hard to think it will take only two months and then all the seniors will graduate!” Koga snorted.
”What is going to happen to UNDEAD when he graduates?” Adonis asked.
”We’ll probably disband. I can play with the twins next year alright but the band will not be the same without him around. And I doubt he has time for us when he becomes an university student anyway”, Koga said and sighed again.
”Really? I thought your band is really cool!” Souma said, her eyes round.
”Thanks, Kanzaki. Anyway, if I’m going to seriously continue my career as a musician, I need to find another band to join. Sakuma-senpai has connections so that won’t be a problem”, Koga said and shrugged, sounding like she had really thought it through.
”I’d love to see you play more, Oogami-dono, so I wish you the best of luck on your efforts in finding another band”, Souma said with earnest voice.
”Thanks, I'll try my best. So… never thought what you’re gonna do after our graduation next year?” Koga asked.
”I’m planning attending an university”, Souma said and nodded, looking quite serious.
”Me, too. Though I don’t yet know if it’s here or abroad”, Adonis said.
”What?”
Koga looked mildly surprised but Souma’s expression was the showcase of both shock and surprise.
”Really? Going back to the homeland, are you?” Koga asked and raised an eyebrow.
”Probably, but I’m not sure yet. With my sisters having moved here, I might as well stay here. Nothing is decided yet, however. And it will be over a year until we graduate.”
While he spoke, Adonis warily glanced at Souma. The girl’s eyebrows had formed an anxious frown and she looked quite anguished – something that made Adonis’ heart suddenly race faster.
”Yeah, it feels like an eternity! Anyway, I better concentrate on UNDEAD while it lasts. I have songs to think about and all that. Speaking of that... Kanzaki, can you look at this what I’ve written down here?” Koga asked, turning to Souma with her literary homework.
”What…? Oh… yes, I can take a look…” Souma sounded rather distracted, still looking at Adonis.
”Are you alright?” Koga asked Souma, looking a little questioning.
”Thank you, Oogami-dono, but everything is fine. You wanted me to take a look at this? Very well...” Souma said and picked up her pencil.
While Souma went through Koga's literary assignment, Koga picked up her English textbook and started writing another assignment. Adonis looked at them, deep in thought. Souma’s reaction over his extremely vague plan of moving out of the country to study abroad had really surprised him. True, she was his closest friend, but her reaction had been quite strong. And Adonis couldn’t help thinking that this was yet another point to ’she likes me’ -column.
Oh, dear. Adonis hid his flushed cheeks behind a school book he was holding. Valentine’s Day was only less than a week away and Adonis couldn't stop thinking what would happen between him and Souma on that day.
When Adonis approached Yumenosaki Academy on Valentine’s Day, his heart was pounding loudly inside his ribcage. While he was fairly certain he didn’t have any secret admirer who would surprise him with chocolate, he believed he would get a few: from Koga, Souma, and maybe Arashi would get him chocolate as well. But it was Souma’s chocolate he found himself looking forward to the most and the pounding became louder as he walked in his classroom.
Souma was on a great mood the whole morning. Her smile was brighter than usual, she laughed more frequently and even sat on Adonis’ desk to chat with him during their lunch break. Her cheery mood was contagious and Adonis noticed how he shared her every smile and was filled with warm, comfortable feeling. It was really nice. He could get used to it.
But then Koga arrived with Adonis’ chocolate and even though her visit was really brief, Souma’s expression turned into an anxious frown and she grew more quiet, glaring after Koga when she left the classroom. Adonis was confused. Koga was his friend – like she herself had underlined while handing the chocolate, just like last year – and Souma had seemingly got along well with her during their study sessions together. Maybe Koga’s visit had just reminded Souma of her own chocolate - which she still hadn’t handed to Adonis. Adonis swallowed nervously. All he could do was wait.
The last bell for the day rang and there was a slight surprise waiting for Adonis on the classroom door.
”Adonis-chan! Come and get your chocolate before someone snatches it away from me!”
Arashi’s giggle was enough to turn few heads and make some classmates whisper ”lucky!”.
”Thank you, Narukami”, Adonis said, approached Arashi and and took the package she handed to him.
”Don’t worry, it’s not heart-shaped! I would never give something like that for a friend”, Arashi said and gave Souma a long, pointed look.
”Did you already give chocolate to the teacher?” Adonis asked.
During and after club practices leading to Valentine’s Day, Adonis had had to listen Arashi babble about the chocolate she was going to give to Akiomi Kunugi. Adonis had had no idea how to participate in those conversations but had politely listened to her anyway.
”Shhh! Not everyone needs to know, you now…” Arashi hissed and glanced around with nervousness in her eyes.
”Well, I wish you the best of luck”, Adonis said.
”Oh, but thank you, Adonis-chan! Maybe you’ll score some more chocolates today, too.”
Arashi winked at Souma’s direction and Adonis heard the girl draw in a sharp breath behind his back.
”Thank gods Mama called off the club practice today! Do you think he’s having a date with someone?” Arashi tried to engage in some gossip with Adonis.
”I have no idea”, Adonis said and shook his head.
”I have to ask Izumi-chan, then, they’re classmates. She might have heard something! Anyway, I need to get going before teacher leaves for home! See you at the next club practice!”
With that, Arashi left without even waiting for an answer, leaving Souma and Adonis alone in the now empty classroom. Everyone had hurried off as soon as the bell had rung, busy going on their club practices, dates and whatnots. Adonis turned to look at Souma, about to ask whether she had club activities that day, and noticed that she was uncomfortably fidgeting, her cheeks red and eyes cast down.
”Kanzaki? Are you alright?” Adonis asked and his eyebrows furrowed from worry.
”Y-yes, Adonis-dono! I – I just have something to give to you!”
When Souma lifted her head to look Adonis in the eyes, her gaze was surprisingly determined. She fished out a small package wrapped in violet wrapping paper from the pocket of her uniform blazer and hastily handed it to Adonis.
”Happy Valentine’s Day!”
With slightly trembling fingers, Adonis took the chocolate from her.
”Thank you, Kanzaki.”
Adonis maintained the eye contact with Souma. He awkwardly stood there with the chocolate in his hand. He had no idea what he should say or do. On the other hand, he wanted to thank Souma more properly by embracing her but on the other hand, he wanted to leave the classroom with her, like they usually did, without any implication that he might have deeper feelings for her. And Souma, delicate blush on her pale cheeks, apparently had no idea what she should say, either.
”Adonis-dono, I-!”
But Souma’s voice hitched in her throat and she couldn’t continue her sentence. Adonis swallowed. He waited. But nothing happened. The tension waned away and Souma cast her eyes down again.
”…I hope you like my chocolate. I’m not at great at making Western sweets, so it’s store-bought, but I assure you that-!” Souma frantically started babbling.
”I am sure it will be delicious.”
On a sudden whim, Adonis reached his hand out and let it fall on Souma’s head. Her hair was just as silken as Adonis had always imagined. Souma’s eyes immediately darted back to Adonis and the flush on her cheeks deepened when Adonis patted her head.
Suddenly, Adonis remembered how he had caressed Koga’s hair during their doomed Christmas ’date’ and quickly retreated his hand from Souma’s head. He felt a pang in his chest when he saw disappointment flickering in Souma's eyes as soon as he had pulled his hand away.
”Do you have club activities today?” Adonis quickly asked, trying to ignore his own hot face.
”Oh… yes, I do. Shinkai-dono is going out with Morisawa-dono this afternoon so she asked me to take care of everything while she’s away”, Souma muttered.
”I see. Captain called off our club practice for today. Do you want me to help you out?”
”I-I would really appreciate it, Adonis-dono!” Souma said and nodded excitedly.
The two left the classroom and headed towards marine life club's clubroom. Adonis felt a little relieved. The awkward moment between them had been going somewhere but that never happened and they were able to hang out together and chat like they usually did.
But what was that small, nagging feeling of disappointment making its presence uncomfortably clear inside Adonis?
Apparently, Valentine’s Day had been a hit at school. At the next track & field club practice, Arashi couldn’t stop gossiping about who had started going out with who on that date. And the news about the once popular band club president Rei Sakuma now dating his junior Koga Oogami spread in the school surprisingly fast, leaving quite a many girls disappointed. Adonis really wasn’t surprised by this information but what surprised him was the fact that he didn’t feel bad at all when he heard the news about Koga dating Rei. It seemed like he was completely over his crush towards Koga.
At the same time, there was a shift in his relationship with Souma. It was very minor, but it was still there, and while Adonis liked the warm feeling that spread through his body whenever he spent time alone with Souma, it was also slowly eating him alive.
Silence with Souma had never felt uncomfortable but now when there was silence, Adonis noticed that they were looking at each other much more often than before, with shy eyes and wary glances. Whenever Adonis accidentally touched Souma or other way around, the girl blushed and stammered and Adonis’ cheeks felt quite hot, too. To anyone following this from the sidelines, it probably looked cute and endearing. Adonis, who was following all of this happening from the front seat, was dying to decide to what to do in order to end the embarrassing awkwardness between him and Souma.
On one lunch break, about a week after Valentine's Day, Koga was sitting with Adonis and Souma in their classroom.
”Congratulations, Oogami-dono!” Souma said and gave Koga a bright, earnest smile.
”For what?” Koga cocked an eyebrow to her.
”For your newfound relationship with Sakuma-dono. May you find eternal happiness together!” Souma was practically beaming at her.
”Shut up, Kanzaki, you sound like we’ve gotten married or something!” Koga huffed and blushed.
”Anyway”, Koga then said and gave the two a flustered grin, ”if you want to congratulate me on something, do it for me for getting the new UNDEAD song done! Gotta admit I got some help from Sakuma-senpai but his contribution only made the song even more badass! We’ll totally rock this school on our White Day performance!”
White Day. Adonis’ chopsticks stopped halfway. It was only three weeks or so until that day and there were quite a many girls Adonis should get presents for. His sisters, who had also given him chocolate on Valentine's Day, were the easy ones: they had already been heavily hinting about cakes sold in a certain bakery and Adonis was planning to buy them on a day before White Day. But there was a whole other problem with the girls who had given him chocolate at school. What should he get to them – especially for Souma?
Adonis then suddenly remembered something Koga had told him on Valentine’s Day and when Koga returned to her own classroom, Adonis addressed Souma.
”Kanzaki? Remember what Oogami said on Valentine’s Day? Frankly speaking, I have no idea what should I get her for White Day and I do want to buy something for her. Can you help me choose a gift for her?”
”Ah, but I do remember. And don’t worry, Adonis-dono, I’l gladly help you out!”
Souma’s smile was a little flustered and Adonis thought how endearing she looked.
”Thank you. Oh, and I need to get something for Narukami, too… somehow I feel like that will be even more difficult”, Adonis sighed.
”I’m sure we’ll figure out something together, Adonis-dono!”
And I sure hope I’ll figure out what to get to you, Adonis thought.
A week before White Day, one day after school, Adonis and Souma had decided to go shopping together. They were slowly walking along the shopping street, trying to decide which gift to get for Koga.
”What did you give her last year?” Souma asked and looked at the passing shop window.
”White chocolate. I had completely forgotten she doesn’t like anything sweet. She spat the chocolate out as soon as it started to melt on her tongue”, Adonis said and sighed.
”That must have been quite a sight! So, I assume sweet treats are out of option, then? Hmm... maybe you should give her something practical? Like note sheets!” Souma suggested.
”Hmm… I’m fairly sure Sakuma-senpai has bunch of them in the clubroom already. But that was not a bad suggestion. Maybe something music-related would be nice”, Adonis pondered.
”Let’s visit a music store, then! There should be one nearby…”
At the music store, Souma stared at different guitars on display with wide eyes of wonder while Adonis tried to find something to give to Koga. Some guitar strings were sold in white packages but Adonis had no idea which brand Koga preferred so he dismissed those. There were also quite a many records with white covers on sale but Adonis was hesitant to buy Koga a CD since he had no idea if she appreciated any other music style than rock. While Souma browsed a selection of traditional Japanese music, Adonis found the perfect gift. Guitar picks were probably something Koga used a lot and there were white ones available. Adonis bought a few and as he was about to leave, he saw Souma absorbed reading a back cover of a CD.
”Are you going to buy that?” Adonis asked and put his hand on Souma’s shoulder.
Souma took such a fright she almost dropped the CD she was holding. Flustered, she put it back on the display rack.
”N-no! I think we might have that CD at home already… did you find anything, Adonis-dono?”
”I did. I got her some guitar picks”, Adonis said and slowly took his hand away from Souma’s shoulder.
”Oh, good choice! Shall we go and look a gift for Narukami-dono next?” Souma asked and Adonis noticed how red her face was.
Adonis nodded and the two exited the store, heading for the department store next.
Adonis knew that Arashi liked everything girly and fashionable, like clothes and make-up. She had also mentioned being on a diet since she apparently had some important photoshoot coming up on her modeling job so buying her sweets was out of question as well. In the department store, Adonis decided to head for the cosmetics department. He thought of buying her a white pocket mirror or something like that.
”Oh, Adonis-dono! Look!”
Souma pointed at a display highlighting new spring selection of a certain make-up brand. The black-and-white packages were cute with cherry blossoms drawings decorating them. Souma approached the display and Adonis followed her.
”Do you think she would like something like this?”
Souma picked a bottle of white nail polish from the selection and handed it to Adonis. Adonis glanced at the price. It was affordable enough: a perfect gift for Arashi.
”Yes, I think this is a type of thing she would enjoy getting. Good thinking, Kanzaki! I will buy this one.”
Adonis was ready to leave but Souma stood there, her eyes lingering on the lipstick selection.
”Do you want to buy something?” Adonis asked.
He was rather surprised: to his knowledge, Souma used hardly any make-up and had barely ever mentioned anything about make-up or fashion before.
”…I’m not sure”, Souma said with quiet voice and hesitantly reached for a cherry blossom -colored lipstick.
”I think that color would suit you”, Adonis said, his voice slightly wavering.
”Do you really think so, Adonis-dono?”
Adonis nodded. Souma was biting her lower lip and fiddling the lipstick in her hand.
”W-well, if you say so, Adonis-dono… I think I will buy this one!” Souma then decided.
After paying for their purchases, the two friends had fallen silent again. Souma was looking more at her shoes than at Adonis and Adonis tried to think how to continue shopping alone so he would be able to buy his gift for Souma.
”Thank you, Kanzaki”, Adonis broke the silence, ”you’ve been a great help today.”
”Oh, no, you don’t need to thank me, Adonis-dono! Besides… I had fun going out with you...”
Souma’s voice disappeared and the blush on her cheeks deepened. Adonis’ heart started to beat faster. He took a step towards her. But before he could do anything, like take her hand, Souma spoke again.
”I think we should return home now”, she said.
”Actually… there is an errand I still need to run... uh, for my sisters. But you can return home already, Kanzaki, it won’t take long”, Adonis said.
He was a horrible liar: he was sure Souma was able to notice something was amiss because of his red cheeks and wavering voice. But he got lucky – Souma seemingly didn't notice anything out of ordinary.
”Oh, that’s quite alright! I should take my leave now. See you at school tomorrow, Adonis-dono!”
Adonis nodded and Souma turned her back on him. After her back had disappeared behind a building at the end of the street, Adonis let out a long sigh. It was time to start looking for a present for Souma.
Adonis passed various shop windows while thinking hard. Last year, he had given Souma some Japanese sweets he had bought from one of her favorite cafés. It was a nice idea but he didn't want to repeat himself and he also wanted to give her something that would last longer than sweets. But what might that be? Adonis stopped in front of a jewelry store. Something like diamond earrings would be nice – but they were also way too expensive and also too intimate: weren't those gifts husbands bought to their wives? Adonis blushed fiercely: he had got a sudden passing image of Souma wearing a traditional Japanese wedding gown and the image made him hurry away from the store before his thoughts would get even wilder.
Adonis decided to return to the department store where the big selection would hopefully give him more ideas. He wandered around a bit until he ended up in a department selling kimonos. He remembered Souma mention that she always wore kimono at home. Adonis had never seen her wear one, however: he had visited her home only a few times and always after school so she had been wearing her school uniform. Adonis' eyes lingered over the selection on display. His knowledge of kimonos was limited but the colors of the fabrics did suit the ongoing spring season.
And then he spotted his perfect gift.
On a display cabinet next to two mannequins, accessories for kimonos were resting, waiting for their new owners to pick them up. The department had seemingly invested in various hair pieces and Adonis' eyes latched on a beautiful tsumami kanzashi, hair comb decorated with white and pink silk flowers with a bigger flower resembling camellia on the left side of the comb. Adonis carefully picked it up. The craftmanship was fine and it was something Souma would probably like and maybe even wear. It also had enough white flowers to warrant as a White Day gift. Adonis' grip of the comb tightened. If that wasn't a perfect gift, nothing was. Determined, Adonis marched to the counter. White Day was only a week away. Something was bound to happen on that date – Adonis was sure of it!
On White Day, when Adonis walked towards Yumenosaki Academy, he saw all the decorations straight from the school's gates. White Day at Yumenosaki Academy was not an ordinary school day: rather, it was more like a school festival but for the students only. For many years, Yumenosaki Academy had dedicated White Day as a day to celebrate every senior graduating and throughout the day various school clubs, committees and even classes held performances and displays in honor of their seniors. Last year, after the war, the celebrations had been minimal but this year, everyone had decided to go all out again. And in the flurry of everything that was happening at school, people were also giving out their White Day gifts – if they had time to do that.
Adonis had woken up early, packaged his gifts for all the girls and written cards for his sister's cakes he had placed in the fridge a night before. The three gifts were now burning in his school bag, ready to be given to the people who had given him chocolate a month ago. At the entrance hall, Adonis decided to put Koga's and Arashi's gifts to their shoe lockers. UNDEAD was to give a performance on White Day so Koga was probably too busy to give any time to Adonis – especially when she had a gift to get from Rei as well. Adonis had also heard that Arashi was going to be one of the models in the fashion show held by handicraft club so she would also be very busy during the day. Adonis picked up the small packages from his bag and placed them to the shoe lockers of the two girls. While closing Koga's shoe locker, he sighed. One gift was left and the thought of giving it to Souma made him incredibly nervous.
Adonis had reviewed the White Day schedule before leaving for school and the first thing he wanted to see was karate club's exhibition match which was scheduled to take place early in the morning. It was still some time before it would start so Adonis decided to drop by his classroom first to see if anyone was there and willing to accompany him to the match. The hallway was empty and so was the classroom of 2-A – until Adonis noticed Souma standing by the window, looking over to the courtyard.
”Kanzaki?”
Souma's shoulders twitched and she turned swiftly around.
”Adonis-dono! Good morning!”
”Were you waiting for someone?” Adonis asked and approached the girl.
”Um, not really, but I didn't know where everyone was so I came to check here first... and I'm so glad I ran into you, Adonis-dono!”
Souma blushed faintly and the smile she gave to Adonis was sweet, so sweet. Adonis glanced at the hallway. There was no one there. This was his best chance. He swallowed. Souma noticed his nervous expression and cocked her head.
”Adonis-dono? Is something wrong?” Souma asked, sounding slightly worried.
”No.”
Adonis was surprised he was even able to utter a single word: his heart had somehow made its way into his throat and was beating uncomfortably fast. With trembling hands, he opened his school bag and picked up his gift for Souma. He had wrapped it in white paper and decorated it with a light blue ribbon.
”Happy White Day, Kanzaki. This is for you”, Adonis said and handed the gift to her.
”F-for me? Adonis-dono... you are way too kind!”
Souma took the gift and hold it against her chest like it was the most valuable treasure in the world. When she looked at Adonis, her eyes were sparkling. Adonis' throat had suddenly become very dry. He swallowed again.
”Can I open this now?” Souma asked.
”Go ahead”, Adonis urged and nodded.
Very carefully, as if not to tear a single wrinkle on the wrapping paper, Souma folded the package open. When she saw what was inside in a protective plastic case, she gasped and covered her mouth with her hand.
”Adonis-dono...! This is beautiful...” she breathed out, her voice full of wonder.
”I'm glad you like it”, Adonis said, his nervous voice quiet and flat.
”I have a kimono at home this would go with perfectly! How did you know...?”
”I-I... I just wanted to get you something beautiful that would last for a lifetime”, Adonis stammered.
It was such a corny line that Adonis was sure if Rei was there, he would start openly chuckling at him. But Souma didn't seemingly think so: the red color on her cheeks deepened and she cast her eyes down on the hair comb in her hand.
”Thank you, Adonis-dono. I really appreciate the thought.”
Souma set the hair comb on to the desk next to her. When she turned to look at Adonis again, her gaze was sharp. It almost made Adonis take a step back but he stood firmly where he was. His hands had started to sweat rather awkwardly.
”Adonis-dono! I know this might be too much to ask. But... may I embrace you?”
Adonis was at awe how well Souma managed to hold her composure. But Souma was strong and valiant and that was only natural for her. Suddenly, Adonis realized how much he actually liked her. Her serious but passionate nature, her values and views, the dignity she carried herself with. All of her was endearing in Adonis' eyes and he wanted to embrace her whole soul with his arms.
Adonis nodded. Souma took a step forward and put her arms clumsily around Adonis' waist.
This was no friendly embrace they might have shared once or twice before, such as when Souma congratulated Adonis on winning some inter-school race with his club. Adonis sighed and wrapped his arms around Souma, placing his chin on her shoulder, inhaling her sweet, natural scent. His heart which had been beating so fast calmed down and Adonis closed his eyes. Finally, everything felt just right and he wanted to remember everything of that moment forever. And to his delight, Souma didn't even try to break the embrace after a while. Instead, her grip only tightened and she sighed, too, her cheek against Adonis' chest.
”Kanzaki...”
After what felt like an eternity but was probably a minute or so, there was a loud sound coming from the hallway and Adonis reluctantly separated from Souma. She had also heard the sound and the both of them listened carefully to it, their heads turned towards the classroom door.
”Ngah, where did I leave it...? Teach's gonna kill me if we don't find it soon enough!”
”Relax, Mika-chan! I'm sure you just left it in the classroom...”
Adonis saw Mika Kagehira and Arashi hurry by to the classroom of 2-B, paying no attention to what was possibly going on in the classroom of 2-A. Adonis turned to look at Souma again. It was only then when he noticed his hands were still on her shoulders. He didn't feel like moving them away at all.
Adonis looked straight in her bright, violet eyes. Souma blushed under the intensive stare and bowed her head down a little. And Adonis couldn't help himself. He leaned forward and placed a tender kiss on the crown of Souma's hair.
”Adonis-dono...!” Souma gasped.
”Kanzaki”, Adonis said and was glad to notice that his voice was now steady and firm, ”this might come as a surprise but... I have feelings for you. Would you like to go out with me?”
Adonis chanted every prayer he could think of in his mind in that short period of time it took Souma to look him in the eyes with an expression of wonder on her face.
”I – I...! I... nothing would make me happier! So the answer is yes! I would like to go out with you, Adonis-dono!”
Her bright eyes and flustered smile rendered Adonis speechless. Since he couldn't give his answer by words, he just leaned forward again and placed a kiss on Souma's forehead. Souma touched her forehead, looking slightly confused, as if she could not believe what had just happened.
”So”, Adonis cleared his throat, ”is marine life club having a display today?”
”Oh... yes... Shinkai-dono is giving tours in the clubroom to everyone who is willing to come. I tried to tell her I should take care of that since she is the one who is about to graduate but she just told me to 'go and enjoy youth'. Whatever she meant by that...”
Was it just Adonis or were Rei and all of his friends equally sly? Adonis subtly shook his head.
”How about you? I heard you talking about Mikejima-dono's graduation party with Narukami-dono the other day”, Souma asked.
”Well... we were supposed to have a race to celebrate Captain graduating but he is helping everyone to organize the White Day celebration so he has no time to race us today. It was postponed to be held later on this week... Tenma was not happy about it!” Adonis told her.
”I guess the party was postponed then, too?” Souma cocked her head.
”Yes. Narukami told Captain there will be no party until we have raced, so...” Adonis shrugged.
Adonis lifted his hands finally off Souma's shoulders and took her hand instead.
”Kanzaki. I was planning to see karate club's exhibition match this morning. I assume it will start soon. Would you like to join me?” He asked.
”Gladly! And later on, we definitely need to see Oogami-dono's performance! She mentioned me that they have many new songs they will play today!” Souma exclaimed.
”Of course we shall be there. Shall we get going?”
”Yes!” Souma said and intertwined her fingers with Adonis'.
Hand in hand, the new couple left the classroom while chatting cheerily, wondering which moves the karate club captain would be pulling off at the exhibition match. Adonis felt like walking on air. Everything was fine between him and Souma at last. His grip of her fingers tightened. Souma answered the squeeze and gave Adonis a flustered smile. And Adonis was sure that the smile on his own face was as stupid, foolish, love-struck and endearing as hers was.