And everything nice! ;)

Recap of the Previous Chapter: Valentine's Day is coming up. Aya gets asked to help with controlling the Day Class girls; she's the only other student who knows of the Night Class' true identities. Reluctantly, she agrees, with the promise of extra credit and guilt from when she finds out Zero had to skip out on detention because of his duty. The next day, Makino gets in a disagreement with her Chemistry teacher and storms out, only to have Zero turn up shortly after, and the two argue. Aya confronts Zero about his heartless rejection, offending him as he leaves with some icy words that resonate with Aya.

-X-

How the Heart Races

|| -X- || CHAPTER THREE || -X- ||
"Sugar & Spice"

I arrive to Chemistry late, not that I even care anymore. Ever since my explosion at Ms. Chan, she's been off my case. I'm sure she still marks it in her attendance that I'm late, but she definitely doesn't make some snarky remark about my punctuality anymore. I appreciate the lack of attention, but a part of me is also slightly fearful of the fact that she might simply be marking me as absent altogether… But I'd prefer not to think about that.

After my second day as a Temporary Prefect — or as I like to see it, a seasonal employee -, the news had spread like wild fire. Excuse the cliché simile, but don't make me remind you of my literary capabilities and the thanks I owe to Ms. Cilantro, I mean … Ms. Coriander.

Valentine's day is officially this weekend and I have much more important things to worry about than my herb of a literature teacher.

Oh, and tall-dark-and handsome lavender eyed boy has been ignoring me for the past 2 days, not that it bothers me. It's not like I'm sorry or anything. Ha. Haha.

Okay, so maybe I am a little guilty, just a little though. I was nosy, yes, but I was also just sticking up for my fellow female (because sisterhood is totally at the top of my priorities) - and I still think that it was totally unnecessary for him to shatter her heart like that. Empathy has never been one of my most prominent traits, but a teenage girl in the midst of blossoming teen love shouldn't have to deal with some pompous jackass—

"Makino?" As soon as my Economics teacher, Mr. Hawkins says my name, I break out into an itchy cough, attracting even more attention. He was obviously about to call me out on zoning out and not paying attention in class, but my coughing catches him off guard. Who knows, maybe I'm allergic to Mr. Hawkins. "…Are you…"

Cough cough. "Yeah, I jus—" Cough!…. Cough cough cough. "Sorry—-" COUGHCOUGHCOUGHCOUGH— DEAR LORD.

"EXCUSE ME," I holler, still coughing as I bolt out of the classroom, his finger out in an attempt to stop me, but he's too confused to react quick enough. Darting into the corridor, I bring up my elbow to hack into, trying my best to muffle the noisy disruption and keep my germs at bay. You're think that I'd be utterly humiliated at this kind of attention, but you need to remember that I'm Aya Makino, and life has had an uncanny way of giving me the middle finger my entire life. This amount of embarrassment is nothing.

My eyes are simply zoning out down the hall when suddenly silver catches my sight. And then lavender. Oh, how that colour combination strikes a new chord within me. He's at the very end of my hall, passing by perpendicularly.

"Hey—" I watch Zero's eye twitch, and he bolts past the hall I'm in, disappearing from my sight.

"HEY, KIRYUU, WAIT!" I cry out, running after him in a mad sprint, "THERE'S SOMETHING I NEED TO TELL YOU!"

But instead, I just stare at the place where he disappeared from, not acting on the urge. My heart wanted to call out, to apologize sincerely for what I'd said, but my brain shushed it with a firm finger wagging. Give him the space he needs. Some people just weren't meant to be friends.

I stay a moment longer in the hall, kick a rock to the edge of the wall, and head back into the classroom.

-X-

"Okie dokie," Yuuki chirps, clapping her hands together energtically. "We've only got two more days left! Hasn't the week passed by so quickly?"

"Mhm. So quickly." It's been the slowest week of my life.

Zero keeps his eyes closed, leaning against the gate with his arms crossed.

Yuuki blows out a sigh, and I tug at my lips sympathetically for the girl. She's had to deal with two partners who refuse to talk to each other, acting as somewhat of a middle man, except she's obviously closer to her childhood friend than she is with me.

After the first 4 days, the girls had gotten the point quick. I wasn't here for decoration, and it didn't take long for them to realize that I was 'extra back-up' to make sure the Night Class and Day class kept their distance. Word got out that I was only temporary too, and rumours had begun to spread about how I had been picked. Most of it was surrounding extra-credit or marks, which wasn't far from the truth. People will always talk.

"We'll have to be more on guard for these last two days," Yuuki held up an informative finger, "Valentine's day is on Saturday, and I'm sure things are going to get out of hand the closer we get!"

"Yep. This Saturday."

Zero heaved a sigh.

"I swear, you two," Yuuki rolled her large brown eyes, looking awfully annoyed, though her small frame and naive personality could never portray anger in an intimidating way. "Can we not end the week off on bad terms? And to think that we're all the same age and have basically grown up together!"

I raised a brow in challenge. "Correction. Only you two grew up together."

"We're also the only two that grew up."

"Fight me, Kiryuu," I hissed.

"You wouldn't last 5 seconds," he snapped back.

"Oookay, you two, heheheheh…" sheepish laughter leaves Yuuki as she embeds herself between the two of us for safety measure. She clears her throat, eyes travelling to the corner of her vision as she focuses, "let's focus on releasing our anger out in healthy ways, yes? Like protecting the students of our beloved Cross Academy?"

"Protecting from what? Because if it's from coldheartedness, one of us is already a repeat perpetrator."

"If it's from stupidity, we've got the the criminal with the most offences right here."

"I swear, I'm gonna-"

"HEYLOOKIT'SALREADY5!" Yuuki blurted, ushering us both apart. I catch my steps from the push and walk towards the end of the line. I was always in charge of ending the path. Yuuki was front in line, guarding the first portion, and Zero was in the middle. Girls were more scared of me than they were of Zero. I'd seen myself that Zero, for all his douchebaggery, wouldn't lay a hand on a girl. I totally would. Go figure.

By the time the gates finally swing open at 6pm, right as the horizon is still bright orange red from the sun going down, the crowd is barely under control. Yuuki was completely right: the girls were rowdier and more fearless the closer the days got to Valentines, or as I liked to call it: Doomsday. These past few days, there was even a bigger turn-out of boys, but their shouts were easily drowned out by soprano shrieks. I briefly made out my class rep in the crowd, shouting a name. Ruka, was it?

"Idol-sama! Idol-sama, please look over here! Akatsuki-kun! KANAME-SAMA!" they screamed, prancing up and down, shaking their limbs vigorously like those stupid air blow-up dolls are car dealerships. Some girls snapped their compact mirrors open to check their appearance every so often before screaming again. I was half scared that the safety lines wouldn't hold them back, but they stayed behind obediently, knowing how ruthless we would be once they broke the trust.

"Shiki-kun! Takuma! KYAA!" I winced, sighing. Funny how it was always the same group at the front of the line-up. Only those close with the reverent Kaname Kuran were of elite status, I noticed, as the same names would always repeat themselves and stand out from the crowd. The rest of the Night Class might as well have been freebie extras in an all-star movie cast.

From the corner of my eye, I see a weird movement. A girl looks over to see if Zero is looking, and then dashes out. My legs take off.

"Taku—"

"HEY, whoa there!" My hand is in front of her before her beloved's name finishes leaving her lips. She reaches past me, like I'm just another obstacle between her and her man, oh wait, I guess I am just another obstacle— THIS IS NOT THE TIME TO BE ANALYZING MY TERRIBLE ANALOGIES.

"Takuma! Takuma!" Zero sees me struggling with this girl in my arms, and a hard look crosses his face. I increase in strength, pushing her back as I realize the danger ahead: literally. My section at the end is unguarded. I keep my eyes on my section, and sure enough, the girls were pushing against the line and it was beginning to move.

Oh no.

"Stay back! Don't even think about— HEY!" Another girl escapes and I curse under my breath, shoving the girl in my arms back in line. I rush up back to my section at the end of the line, catching up to the front of the Night Class.

"Hey, hey, hey- don't cross over!" The girls retreat back, frowning. My jaw drops as I identify a black uniform in the crowd of white. I squint, and lo-and-behold, there's a pretty little brunette buried in the chest of Blondie.

Her face is of serenity. "Idol-sama… please… just hold me like this forever."

"Yeeeeeah, no. Sorry, forever's getting cut short," I dive between the two of them and usher her back in line with her shoulders. No sooner than getting her back into line, I feel a chill creep up my spine.

Saccharine tenor purrs into my right ear. "No need to be so protective, kitten."

I clamp a hand on my ear to stop his poison from infiltrating my system. I spin around with a daggers in my eyes, hoping the disgust I feel is as blatant as it can be on my face. "Don't you ever speak into my ear again, Blondie."

His smile falters just the slightest, his blonde hair irritatingly windswept back with not a strand out of place. Every look at their stupidly good-looking facial features churned my stomach and reminded me of how cruel the world was. "Oh? And here I thought you were jealous and wanted me all for yourself."

"Is your ego this big because you're compensating?" I look down at his nether regions briefly for good measure, "Because if that's the case, it's gonna have to get a lot bigger to compensate, and I don't think that's possible."

I hear a less-than-subtle "pfft" come from behind Blondie, a girl of the Night Class snickering behind a slender hand to mask her smile. I glance back at Blondie, who's name I think is Hanabusa or Hannibal or something terrible like that. He glares down at me with blue eyes like an ocean, trying to drown me, but I know how to swim. When I don't budge, his jaw tenses and his eyes narrow.

"Aya Makino, right?" he growls, leaning down to my height. I'm a good four inches or so shorter than him, but I try not to let it get to me. "Did your mother never teach you your manners?"

The corner of my lip twitches, a snarl already kicking in from the mere mentioning of my mother. I furrow my brows, alarms going off in my head as a vicious smirk places on his lips. "Oh right. You don't have one. That would explain it."

The front of the pack, Kaname, has stopped and is looking back at our exchange, but I barely notice except the people have stopped moving. Time has stopped moving. A weight lands in my chest with a heavy thud, and I am still.

How could he…?

"Hanabusa," commands a firm voice, calm and forceful at the same time. Blondie winces. "Apologize."

Blondie looks taken back, suddenly on the defence. "But she—.."

"Forget it," I spit and look away from him, wishing the venom that I felt would leap from my words and corrode him. "It was my fault for getting involved with someone so petty."

His lips part, and even though I'm not looking at him, I can feel that his expression isn't hard anymore. I don't even care if he's guilty. There's a line that you don't cross, and it just goes to show how much of an ass they are. He frowns even deeper, tearing away from me. It takes another moment, but eventually the crowd keeps moving. It's not like the head of the pack is going to turn around and apologize on behalf of his subordinate. It was enough that he commanded him to apologize.

From my limited exposure to Kaname Kuran, he was a man of only outer integrity. He did what made him look good, but when it came down to it, it was always only about him and his pompous pureblood self. Throw in a good old infatuation with Yuuki Cross and you've got yourself a real salad bowl of eeriness.

I crack my head, sighing as the rest of the Night Class leaves wordlessly and the girls whisper amongst each other for the sitcom they just witnessed. I begin to reel in the rope from the end, and then as the girls are dispersing. Why is it always so hard to drown out the words you don't want to hear?

"Seriously, who does she even think she is? He was just joking."

"Yeah, Makino was the one who provoked him first. He was just hugging Yukari because she came onto him…"

"Does she have anger issues or something?"

"She deserved it."

"Hey," My hand-motions of winding the rope slow at the male voice, stern with irritation, "if you don't have anything useful to say, why don't you shut up?"

The thundering arrogance is reduced to shudders. "W-We were just…."

"No amount of make up is gonna cover up your ugly heart." My eyebrows shoot up. That was harsh. "I don't even know why girls like you try."

When the girls go quiet, I peer over my shoulder. Idiot. You're just making things worse. What are they gonna think now, with you jumping to my defence like that?

Zero shoves his hands into his pocket, and as he turns, we catch eyes. He breaks his gaze first. I blink twice, feeling slowly warming up in my heart from steeling it.

What a cold-hearted bastard. He's such an enemy of woman. Total jerk.

My cheeks fight against lifting, but my lips lose their battle.

-X-

I help Zero put back the equipment. Half because I'm forced to, with Yuuki running up to report to Kaien of the Night's events as always after duty.

A bundle of orange cones rests underneath each arm as I carry them like I would basketballs. Zero opens the equipment door, his arms also full with equipment like caution tape and a few more cones. He leaves the key jangling in the key slot and pushes it open aggressively with his foot. I give him the benefit of the doubt that his hands are full instead of the fact that he's a naturally aggressive person.

I'm torn between Words linger and flick at my lips, toying in my brain as they morph in different ways. I analyze each form they take on, wondering how he'd respond, but I know inside that I'm not going to say anything. So I don't.

Besides, he's probably brush me off, or not even accept it. He doesn't seem much like the 'let's just walk it off' or 'hug it out' type.

Bzzzzt. My hands are occupied, so I can't check my phone vibration in my pocket, much to the dismay of my curiosity. When Zero backs out from the cone area, I drop them off quickly and hurry out of the shed after him, pulling out my phone as he locks the shed.

Alarm: Shopping for Ingredients.

"OH RIGHT!"

It takes a moment before my brain clues in that Zero's right beside me, and my outburst was nothing short of abrupt. I clear my throat awkward, tugging my lips into what I hope is not a smile of discomfort (but who am I kidding). "Uh… Seeyoutomorrowbye!"

He parts his lips like he's going to say something, but I spin around and dash off like a coward.

I don't have time to waste! I gotta get to the market before curfew, so it's totally not like I'm running away from him because I'm scared of what he'll say to me, no I'm just being efficient with my time IT'S BECAUSE I GOTTA GET TO THE MARKET.

… Is what I tell myself.

Thanks to the convenient neighbourhood around the academy, the nearest grocer isn't too far unlike the cemetery. The second I'm in my room, I empty my backpack of school material and carry only my wallet inside the hollowed out bag. I throw my scarf on around my neck, hoist on my coat, and finally make sure my cellphone is tucked securely in my pocket. I always had Kaien on speed dial if anything ever happens to me while I'm out. In my 18 years of existence, it's been pretty smooth if you ask me. Knock on wood!

All prepared, I head out to get my ingredients for the week's blogpost.

"Eggs… Sugar… tea. I think that's all…" I double-check the ingredients on my phone that I need to restock and waver back and forth from my shopping basket to my screen. My feet take me to the familiar line-up of the self check-out line, and I hum to myself as I wait.

How much data do I have left for the month? I think offhandedly, pulling up the comments my last entry on molten lava cake using said data, Ooh, 3 new comments!

ShowMeTheSugaaa commented: 'Made this for my boyfriend yesterday and he loved it! Thanks Yummaay-chan!'

December_Nights commented: 'i followed ur recipe wit less sugar and it was sooooo DELICIOUS! :3 Can u post a cheesecake one? I luv ur cakes 3!'

mangotango94 commented: 'Plz plz plzzzzz post something for my bf that doesn't like sweets that much! Im like dying b/c valentines is around the corner and i already made fruit tarts last yr!'

The comments are the best fuel for my sheepish smiles. Not to fear, mangotango94! I'm coming to your rescue, as well as the rescue of like 10 other girls who posted the same thing. What's with all these guys not liking sweets? I mean, who doesn't like dessert?!

The image a certain silver-haired boy pops in my mind. I irritatedly blinked away the thought bubble just in time for the check-out cashier to ask for my points card.

Valentine's Day is this Saturday, which means I should get this new post out by tomorrow. Curse my procrastination!

"That'll be 2600 yen."

The tote bag I bring along carries the bulk of my items, and I carry the cartoon of eggs securely in my other hand. The sky is a pretty orange pink cooler, mingling with the oncoming darkness. The air is cold, like usually, and I burrow my nose and lips under the protection of my scarf. With impeccable timing, I see my bus at the end of the street, and my heart loosens as I know I'll make it back before curfew.

The familiar encompassing of the academy grounds greet me. With earbuds plugged into my ear, one of my favourite tunes accompanies me through my room door, and I drop off my items in the kitchen counter before stripping off my coat and scarf. I flip open my laptop, pulling up my recipe and opening my blog to check the comments before grabbing my camera.

I can't remember exactly when I started, but I've been running a blog for about 3 years under the alias Yummaay. It was a tribute to my full name, Ayame, pronounced 'ah-yah-may', and 'yah-may' kinda reminded me of yummy so at the time - 14 YEAR-OLD ME WAS PRETTY PROUD OKAY HAVE MERCY.

I check my inbox nonchalantly, reading a few messages while I whisked eggs into my dry ingredients.

Simply_Minna: Earl Grey Macarons? That sounds awesome! What filling u planning to use?

Yummaay: I'm thinking Honey Buttercream! Gonna write that they can replace it with a few other variations like coffee or smthng.

Simply_Minna: -thumbs up- :D

I slowly filled a pastry bag with the batter and pipe away on the parchment paper, making a few cute shapes - hearts, bears, totoro, and of course a hand full of regular circular shells. I work fast, but not fast enough as I glance at the clock and realize I've been working a little slow. I can't help it since I'm tired: going to school the whole day, having duty, going out to shop, and then coming home to bake was both physically and mentally hassling. It's been a long day, and as much as I'd love to be those night owls that don't need to sleep until 2am, my body can not function on less than 8 hours of sleep. Even when I get a full night's sleep, I'm constantly napping in class, so getting to bed early is a pretty important ritual for me.

While the macarons are baking, I get started on making the honey buttercream filling. I add less sugar than usual, sneaking quick licks to test the sweetness. I'd gotten a handful of requests to make a unique dessert for valentines that isn't just chocolate, cake, or tarts, with the added challenge of making it suit the taste of someone who doesn't like sweets. Macarons were one of my favourite things to make, and I felt they were easy enough for beginners, but advanced enough to be unique and impress those hard-to-please boyfriends and crushes.

It was almost laughable how much time I spent being thoughtful for all these boyfriends and crushes that I didn't have, really.

But that's what it's like when you're an online personality. You live vicariously through these people you've never said a single word to in person, and they through you. My blog isn't just about food, but it's actually more of a personal journal. My readers know that I love to do sports, and that I was on the track team. They knew about my tardiness to classes, how I hate waking up, and about my insecurities that lead me to always second-guess myself and do poorly on tests; they know about how I feel when students talk behind my back, and they know how I try my best to ignore it, but how I will always, always still secretly doubt myself.

On the internet, I am unafraid to reveal myself for who I am, because I can control how much people know and don't know. They don't know my real name, or where I live. They don't know what I look like, or even if I'm really a girl.

It's a weird relationship, to be honest. To have people reading about your life, who know you, but also don't really. It confuses me every day.

I set the plate of finished earl grey macarons on a nice white platter, pipe a few of bears with chocolate faces and draw small hearts on the circular ones. I even write 'BE' and 'Mine' on two of them and set them on top as the center pieces. Happy with my placements, I snap the pictures on my smart phone and upload them into my laptop, choosing the few to edit and post onto my blog. By the time I'm done, there's a mess to clean up in the kitchen, and a handful of macarons I need to get rid of. I don't have work until Sunday to give them to my coworkers, so I'll drop them off to Kaien tomorrow or the day after. I take a bite out of 'BE' as both a taste test and to get rid of such embarrassing evidence of my girly escapades. The last thing I need is Kaien teasing me about how he's 'already mine' - HA.

My entire room is engulfed in the sweet heat from the oven, the smell of sugars and butters mingling into a delectable scent. I throw a bunch of dishes into the sink and open the balcony to let some of the air circulate through. Just as I slide open the door, I hear the distinct sound of my neighbour beside me sliding theirs shut. I step out and peer over curiously. Wasn't the room beside me on the left empty? I was in the Gage dorm, and we didn't have many inhabitants due to the more expensive cost of the kitchen. Students preferred living in the dorms with the cafeterias that they could just go down to and be served food instead of making it themselves. There were enough empty rooms that most of us lived next to empty rooms to decrease the thinness of the walls. I've been living in this room since September, and I could've sworn I'd never seen so much as a light in the room beside me…

I contemplate the possibility of knocking and saying hi, or making sure it's not a break in, but the lights are on for just a moment longer before they switch off. I doubt it's a break-in that sounds so peaceful, so I let it slide. Besides, it'd be rude to knock on someone's door in the middle of the night for something so silly. Introductions to this new mystery neighbour could wait.

I linger a moment more before popping the rest of 'BE' in my mouth, and retreat back inside to steal 'MINE'.

End of Chapter Three.

-X-

So while we're still getting to know Aya, her relationship with Zero will be slow but not too slow because I know how impatient you all are, and how slow I am at romance LOL. For now, you can enjoy the little quirks of Aya's personality, getting to know how she spends her life and the experiences. Aya running a blog contributes towards her awkwardly anti-social yet outgoing character, and it'll also come back later as a pretty important piece in her relationship with Zero!

Getting back on my writing game, and have finally realized that things like outlines exists HAHAHAH So I have outlined the next few chapters out for myself to prevent terribly long updates. The original ending of this chapter moved way too fast for my liking, so I changed it up and it will be posted in the near future!

Much Zero will come soon, not to worry! I'm planning to write a few special chapters from his perspective, what do you guys think about that? Or do you like being left in the dark to analyze and try and perceive just as Aya does? They're both a little hard to understand, but Zero might be tenfold! Haha.

Planning too shoot the next chapter out WITHIN THIS WEEK! *excessive screams of disbelief*

Here's a sneak peak: "For a single moment, I think I am unharmed, but pain comes a split second later in the form of a sharp burning sensation. My eyes dart to my left upper arm, expecting to find my sleeve and maybe a cut, but the bottom edge of my t-shirt sleeve is soaked in pungent crimson. Blood slithers down, dripping from my elbow and staining my navy athletic shorts.

The girl beside me screams."

Review if you have time! I love talking to you guys. Otherwise, have a wonderful day!