Chapter 9

A/N: Sorry for not updating for an ass long time... I been working on my KPOP BTS Suga fanfic (posted on Wattpad and by the name Lethargic by the way), this past half year and kind of abandoned this work.

So I was going through my old works and realized that there was still 3 chapters I never did post, so here they are. I'll post the last two the next 2 consecutive weeks and then... I don't know if I'll continue this work. I kind of fell out of anime lately, it just happened like that.

So enjoy this last few chapters and if you want me to continue this, maybe leave a review. But it's highly unlikely I'm going to revive this work. I'm really sorry!

Please don't judge the writing for these 3 chapters, I wrote this over a year ago so my language has every since improved.

Tsuki's POV

"Eggs." I open the carton and hand Karuta the eggs. She takes them from me, cracking them open nicely before whisking them rapidly, making them soft and fluffy.

"Chiyo-chan! Pass me the tomatoes!"

"Hmph, I can't believe you can't get them yourself!" Ririchiyo grumbles but she walks over to the counter, placing the tomatoes on the chopping board.

"Thanks." I say before I start chopping the tomatoes at top speed, the knife cutting the tomatoes into delicate slices, the 'rat-tat-tat' of the knife on the board music to my ears.

"Woah…" Ririchiyo stares at me as I cut up the remaining vegetables, her eyes shining in admiration. Karuta finishes beating the eggs, sprinkling a little salt and pepper before pouring the mixture into the frying pan.

"T-The b-both are you so good at this," Ririchiyo sighs as she rinses the rice carefully, making sure that every single grain of rice has been washed, "And I'm…" She pauses for a moment and stares down at her reflection in the water, her expression full of self-doubt.

"Chiyo-chan…" I put down the knife in my hand carefully and giver her one of my rare smiles, "It's fine, ok? Lots of girls can't even wash vegetables, yet you already helped us out so much. Remember, we're a team, Chiyo-chan and everyone contributes to the end results, so don't feel that way."

Ririchiyo nods her head in determination, giving me a grateful look as she carries on with washing the vegetables. I give a sigh of relief and pick up the knife again, proceeding to chop up the rest of the ingredients. At least she's feeling ok now, I remember last week when she got so depressed about it that I had to go to her room and talk to her… Ever since I came to Ayakashi Hall, I found that I'm actually capable of being nice to people, giving Ririchiyo advice about her predicaments. So I'm actually changing already…

We're having Home Economics class right now and we're required to cook up something with eggs as an ingredient for our group assignment today. I had no idea that besides eating, Karuta's a great cook. She and I often exchange thoughts and opinions on cooking; we even like to eat stuff together. All the time.

On the other hand, Ririchiyo's too… scientific. She measures everything to the nearest micrometer, it takes her 10 minutes to just weigh 100 grams of rice! Cooking needs feelings, you need to trust your own instincts sometimes, even if you follow the recipe faithfully, it doesn't mean that the dish will turn out perfect. Sometimes, a little dash of something foreign can change a dish's taste completely, the end result might be disastrous or if you're lucky, a successful improvisation!

Like me. I was randomly thrown into the mix of Ayakashi Hall and even though I was resistant to change at first, my inertia steadily decreased as I slowly opened up to the people there. Besides making some good friends like Ririchiyo, Karuta and Banri (though I only say it to myself, I refuse to admit it to a certain delinquent), I developed a crush on one of the more normal tenants there, Soushi Miketsukami, Ririchiyo's SS agent.

What's not to like about him? He has such charisma; he's kind, friendly, polite and is such a gentleman… And even though he does have an obsession for Ririchiyo, he's by far the most normal person I have met at Ayakashi Hall. But so far, Soushi and I are not even friends, we merely know each other through Ririchiyo and everyone else. I want to get to know him, to become more than strangers. Not necessarily get too close to him; all I want is just to be able to talk to Soushi without him always referring to me as 'Yoake-sama'. Like normal friends would.

I wish that Soushi was my SS agent… Not that clingy, overbearing and annoying bonehead, Shigeru Kageyama. I mean sure, Soushi can be overbearing sometimes and he does has his flaws but compared to Shigeru, having Soushi as my SS sounds too good to be true. Shigeru is by my standards the most undesirable person that can ensure my safety. Instead, he could very well put me in danger…

Like I said, a little dash of something foreign can also lead to disastrous results…

"Tsuki-chan! Hey!" I can actually hear his nettlesome voice now; I must be going crazy already…

"Yoake-san! There's someone out there calling your name." A girl with magenta hair from the next group gestures to the corridor outside. I allow my eyes to follow her gaze and I get the ultimate shock of my life this week.

Shigeru's standing outside my classroom with a bunch of other first-years, beaming widely and waving his hands frantically to get my attention. His signature ebony hair's as messy as ever, his green eyes are sparkling with happiness the moment he catches a glimpse of me looking at him. And he's still calling my name.

"Tsuki-chan! Konnichiwa!" His friends give him disgusted looks, like he was talking to a piece of dirt. Everyone in my class is staring back and forth between Shigeru and me now, making me want to dig a hole in the ground and hide to escape from their questioning expressions. Ugh, this is so EMBARESSING! What the hell does he think he's doing!? He's being such an idiot!

"Do you know him, Yoake-san-"

"NO!" I deny loudly, bringing down the blade hard to let out my frustration but I end up accidentally slicing my finger.

"OW!" I drop the knife on the board, my injured finger bleeding profusely from the cut. Ririchiyo rushes forward, taking a clean cloth to stem the bleeding while giving me a band-aid.

"Hmph, can't believe you were so stupid to cut your own finger. What a simpleton you are." Ririchiyo's mouth says but she acts otherwise, cleaning up my wound briskly as she mops away the blood. Karuta turns off the fire and rushes over too, popping a piece of chocolate into my mouth before she helps Ririchiyo with my wound.

"Yoake-san! Are you okay?" The magenta hair girl says in concern. Am I okay? Do I look okay to you? If you haven't asked me that question I wouldn't have cut myself in the first place, right? But before I can start shouting at her or anything, Ririchiyo and Karuta manage to drag me off to the toilet to clean up. Luckily, we don't encounter Shigeru on the way.

"Tsuki-chan!" As we're lining up to buy some bread afterwards, a familiar voice assaults my eardrums. I whip around and spot Shigeru making my way towards me. Ah, shit! Not him again! I try to find a place to hide but there's nowhere I can go. I don't want him to 'attack' me in the middle of the dining hall! My reputation is already bad enough; I don't need to add any more fuel to the fire! And I don't want to be seen with that guy!

"Guys! Hide me! Please!" I beg as I hide behind Banri's back, lurking out of Shigeru's sight. Imagined if he suddenly hugged me in the middle of public… MY WHOLE LIFE WILL BE RUINED!

"Oi! Don't hide behind me! I'm not some random wall you can duck behind, you know?" Banri says in irritation. Ririchiyo sighs and looks around.

"Such a coward you are, Tsuki-chan. But since you're so weak, I'll just have to help you." She says before she takes my hand, pulling me away from the line out of the dining hall, ducking behind a corner. She looks at Karuta and Banri, the both of them nodding in understanding.

"Eh? Where's Tsuki-chan?" Shigeru finally manages to push through the crowd of students and approaches the both of them, "I swore I saw her here just now."

"U-UFO!" Banri shouts loudly, pointing above Shigeru's head, bringing the chatter and conversation of the dining hall to a halt. An awkward silence follows as everyone ogles him, making Banri's face flush crimson in embarrassment.

"What? Where!? Where's the UFO!? Are there aliens too!?" Shigeru glances frantically as he searches for the imaginary little green men, making me mentally face palm myself in exasperation. He's already 15 but his mental capacity might as well be that of a 5 year old…

"It was there… Floating… Whoosh." Karuta points the space above Shigeru's head again, blinking her pink eyes. The other students shake their heads and the noise resumes.

"Maybe it's invisible!" Shigeru waves a hand through the air as he hunts for the 'invisible airship'.

"Y-Yeah! It's invisible!" Banri waves his hand around the air too, joining Shigeru in his façade.

"I want to find the aliens too…" Karuta takes an empty bowl and attempts to 'capture' the 'aliens', much to everyone's amusement.

"Look at all the idiots…" Ririchiyo sighs beside me. I nod my head weakly in agreement, rubbing my band-aid nervously. At least I escaped him again, another point to Tsuki Yoake and Friends!

"Tsuki-chan! Tsuki-chan! Down here! TSUKI-CHAN!" I finally can't stand the weird looks that everyone's giving me, poking my head out of the window.

"WHAT!?" I scream down at the figure below, who is no other than that annoying blockhead, Shigeru.

"Konnichiwa!" Shigeru waves happily at me as he jogs along with his other classmates along the sides of the field, wearing his PE kit. Almost everyone down there is looking up at me! I immediately duck out of sight, crouching below the window before groaning loudly. Is he mentally retarded!? Has he got no shame!? Just bellowing my name at the top of his voice like a maniac in public, does the feeling embarrassment actually register in his brain at all!?

It's been almost a week that I've been at my new school and already I'm notorious. Partly because of my appearance and my personality but mainly because… That one of the most popular guys in the first year has a thing for me. For the past week, Shigeru has been bugging me like crazy! Every time I see him in the corridor, he wouldn't fail to call out my name and rush over to me, immediately pulling me into a bear hug, much to everyone's shock. No matter where he is, even if it's in the middle of assembly!

Is my reputation going to be ruined even further just because of him!?

"Tsuki-chan! Hey, wait up!"

I don't know you, I don't know you! I think to myself as I walk briskly down the hallway, trying to look as neutral as possible. Don't look behind you. As long as you don't look at him, you'll be fine. Just ignore him, pretend he's not there-

"Oi! Tsuki-chan! I thought you said that you accepted me!"

I stop dead in my tracks as my face starts to heat up in humiliation, people sniggering right next to me. Wait, why the hell did he say that!? People are going to take this the wrong way! I speed off in the opposite direction as fast as my legs take me, Shigeru pursuing me relentlessly.

"Tsuki-chan! What the hell!? You gave me permission for me to stay with you!"

"Don't walk so close to me."

"But I want to be close with you!"

"Quit with that already! Stop," I hiss at him, "Take five steps back. Keep at least a meter away from me."

"Can I hold your hand?"

"Are you even listening to me!?"

I bicker with a jovial Shigeru on the way home, once more inviting curious looks from onlookers. I hope they don't think we're a couple or anything… Every single, bloody day has been like this, with Shigeru at my heels, following me everywhere like a hound. Because of him, I nearly finished 2 entire boxes of chocolate in just one week! Really stress eating here… In fact, he might as well be even worse than Soushi…

"Yoake-sama, you and Kageyama-san are really getting along well lately." Soushi comments as we all approach the school gate, smiling politely at me, making my heart skip a beat. Speak of the devil, Soushi's here! I stand up straighter, faltering for a moment before finally finding a retort.

"NO WAY! Do we look like we're getting along?"

"But Yoake-sama, Kageyama-san is just trying to ensure your safety, just like I to Ririchiyo-sama. I will always stay with Ririchiyo-sama when the situation allows it, but the fact that I have to be apart from Ririchiyo-sama for almost 5 hours a day makes it almost unbearable…" Soushi grabs onto Ririchiyo's hands and says dramatically, giving her that adorable puppy eyes.

"You fool, let go of my hand. We're in public; it's embarrassing being seen with a dog like you," Ririchiyo swats away Soushi hand, "Besides, I'm only at school, it's not as if I gone anywhere far!"

"But Ririchiyo-sama, it seems like 50 cold years without you by my side…"

Second thought, Shigeru might be as bad as Soushi after all but I wish that Soushi would say that to me… Hold it! What are you even thinking, Tsuki Yoake? Stop daydreaming! I pinch my arm and shake my head violently. Snap out of it, if not the whole world is going to know!

"Hey, Tsuki Yoake!" Shigeru walks up to me and flicks my forehead, pulling me out of my jumbled thoughts.

"Hey! What's that for!?" I rub my forehead crossly, attempting to flick his forehead back but he grabs my hand, holding it firmly before letting go.

"Quit spacing out, Tsuki Yoake!" He says but somehow he looks a bit aloof, his eyes are unfocused somehow. However, I shake it off quickly as something else comes to mind.

"Where's Karuta-chan and Banri-kun?" I haven't seen them since class finished, where could they be?

"Oh, Banri? He and Karuta went back first, something about wanting to get an ice cream." Shigeru replies quickly.

"I thought they were walking back with us-"

"Well, they're not going to, ok?" Shigeru snaps at me in an irritant tone before walking ahead of me, his hands stuffed into his pockets.

I really don't get this guy… So mercurial! What's he getting so worked up over? If guys complain that girls are unpredictable, then Shigeru might as well have some kind of female complex or something!

"Yoake-sama, would you like me to fetch you and Kageyama-san back? It's quite a distance from Ayaykashi Hall. There's enough space for both you and Kageyama-san at the back, if Ririchiyo-sama doesn't mind." Soushi says as he opens the limo door elegantly for Ririchiyo to step into. That's so nice of him, offering to drive us back. Ririchiyo's so lucky to have such a wonderful SS agent…

"Hmph, I suppose we could let them catch a ride. I wouldn't want them to suddenly collapse in the middle of the street-"

"Nope, we're walking." Shigeru suddenly comes over and grips my shoulder firmly, making me jump. Hey, Soushi was asking me, not you! It's my decision! I ignore him and give Soushi a small smile.

"Arigato, Miketsukami-kun, Chiyo-chan, we'll love to-"

"We're not going to hitch a ride! We are going to walk back by ourselves!"

"What's your problem!?" I screech at Shigeru, "What's up with you!? Can't I even ride in a car!? You shut it, he was asking me!"

Shigeru looks so mad until veins are popping in his face. He quickly glances at Soushi and I swear there's anger in his expression.

"Fine!" He shouts begrudgingly, pushing me into the car roughly, making me nearly knock over Ririchiyo.

"Oh my God! Stop that already! You're acting like a 5 year old kid! Stop being so stupid!"

Ugh, my migraine's coming back with all those voices interfering with my train of thought. Luckily we're in a car now, they won't bother me in here. That's another reason for me wanting to hitch a ride: So I won't have to deal with those buggers following me back home later.

Shigeru gets into the car and slams the door loudly, sitting with his back to me as he glares out the window. He's sulking again, such a child! For the rest of the drive back, we sit in an uneasy silence.

Even when we pull up at the gates of Ayakashi Hall, Shigeru's still fuming. How long is he going to keep this up? He's been throwing tantrums ever since school finished, has he finally had enough yet?

"Yoake-sama, is there something on your mind?" I look up and notice that Ririchiyo and Shigeru are already out of the car, Soushi holding the door open for me. He's so conscientious, just like Ririchiyo. Well, I do want to talk to someone about my worries. Get some feedback from a guy of the opposite sex and of a mature age.

Maybe it really won't hurt to consult with Soushi. I'm a bit worried about Ririchiyo, if I tell Soushi, her SS agent, he could probably do something about it. He has the right to know as well.

Besides, maybe this is my chance to get to know him a bit better… I really want the both of us to be able to converse freely, like friends, regardless of our status.

"Um… Hai. It's about Chiyo-chan… She's… not very confident about things. She's always putting herself down, saying that she's a boring person and she has no substance," I look down at my hands in my lap, "But in reality, she's the most understanding person I've ever met. I know about that bad habit of hers even if she didn't tell me about it, I know that she doesn't want to scorn people. Because I feel the same way."

Soushi's face grows solemn as he steps into the driver seat, closing the door behind him so that we can has some privacy.

"Yoake-sama… I am also a bit worried about Ririchiyo-sama. She hasn't been sleeping well of late, her lights have been on until the early hours. I have noticed this and other changes in her behavior for quite some time," Soushi looks at me with his odd-colored eyes and smiles, "But I will talk to her this evening, so you don't need to worry, Yoake-sama. I'm glad that Ririchiyo-sama has such a caring friend like you."

His words make my heart race and I can feel a flush appearing on my face.

"Thanks…" Soushi is about to get out of the car before I stop him, "And Miketsukami-kun… You really don't need to be so formal with me. Just call me Tsuki, ok? I mean, we are acquaintances…"

Soushi's eyes widen and he gives me a close-eyed smile.

"If you wish… Tsuki-sama."

"See you, Chiyo-chan, Miketsukami-kun." I wave at Ririchiyo and Soushi as they step out of the lift onto their floor. The moment the doors close, I do a small fist-pump.

YES! Soushi called me by my first name! Even though he still used that '-sama' honorific, that's a small step towards being friends, right? I feel so happy, it's as if I'm floating on a cloud!

"Oi, we're here already." A certain irritated voice cuts me off bluntly, making me roll my eyes to heaven. I'm not going to let Shigeru spoil my mood now so I should just keep my cool.

"Oh, I'm sorry, your holy-ass." I say in a mocking tone and I'm about to step out of the lift when the doors bang shut in my face.

What!? I turn to Shigeru and I see that he has a finger on the button. Did he just close the doors? Isn't this our floor?

"Hey," I narrow my eyes and click my tongue in annoyance, "This is our floor, idiot." Don't get mad, don't get mad. Think of Soushi. Think about how calm he would be in this situation.

"I know." He answers briefly before grabbing my shoulder roughly, turning me around to face him. Hold on, what's he doing!?

"What the hell, Shigeru!?" I glare at him, "Quit playing around!"

"Shut up!" He pushes me, slamming my body against the back wall of the lift with extreme force, making me cry out in surprise.

"What is wrong with you!? Are you mental!?" I try to shove him away but he restrains me by grabbing both of my hands with one of his. He finally meets my gaze, his eyes blazing with anger so intense that it makes me shrink back in fear. I never seen this upset before, he's usually so goofy and stupid…

Wait, there's only the two of us in this lift and he's got me cornered… Not. Good. But what's even worse is when Shigeru manages to figure out exactly what I been thinking about for the past week or so.

"You like Soushi," Shigeru says bitterly, "Don't you?"