Chapter Text
"Okay! Whoever lands on the ends of the bottle has to participate in the pocky game! Whoever can manage the shortest pocky will get two weeks of free ice-cream courtesy of me!"
Haruaki briefly looks up from his passage to see what the commotion is about. The homeroom teacher hadn't arrived yet, and both the class president and the vice-president were also absent.
And of course, Nikaido–the resident prankster–had roped most of the class in a spin the bottle game. The respectful, studious air is trampled under the rising enthusiasm and dares of the students, and someone even brings a bottle of Ramune to spin it.
He meets Tao's gaze from across the class, and she shakes her head hopelessly with a smile. Some other studious students also look vexed and try to reprimand the rowdy classmates back to their chairs but their efforts to get the already gathering mob isn't very effective.
Haruaki turns his attention back to his book, losing interest.
Whatever Nikaido did always ends in tears or in something broken, and he wants no part in it.
Yet, from the excited whoops and hollers in front of the room, the game had started with enthusiastic response.
He frowns when his concentration is momentarily broken briefly by the raucous laughter, heggling, and teasing.
When he looks up, almost all the class has now gathered around Nikaido's Ramune betting pool.
He shakes his head, returning back to the Tanka poem book. He slowly traces a finger over the finely printed Kitahara Hakushu poem.
A Hyacinth,
The pale purple colored
Flower bloomed.
It was the first day
She shaked my heart.
He had started the book only last night, and unfortunately his progress had been rather slow. Trying to understand the nuance of the poet, the deliberate choice and placement of the word to convey emotion–maybe his fingers hesitate to move forward on the pages because he hasn't really felt love as it is usually described.
Something sacred, something unexpected, something to treasure and new and exciting.
He carefully flips the page, and tries to not snap in irritation when an unwelcome dark hand pushes his book down.
Haruaki hadn't noticed at all, but now that he is back in the present, the room is uncharactistically silent.
Annoyed now, he looks up to see the bright grin on Bel Hadad's face. When he looks back around the room, he notices the hurriedly averted eyes and the poorly concealed interested gleam of his other classmates.
"What." Usually, he would have tried to curb his annoyance, but he can't help that this time, his question comes out more like a statement.
Hadad grins even wider. "Looks like it's our turn, Haruaki."
What a pain.
"Can't you do it with someone else?"
He catches Tao's eyes across the room and she gives him a guilty look of apology. Hadad doesn't care that he is now crossing over Haruaki's personal space, leaning across his desk.
"Unfortunately, Nikaido set the rules. And it's my first time trying out a pocky game." His grin takes on a mischevous edge. "And it would be a shame if I missed out on an opportunity because one of my classmates wasn't feeling friendly!"
Hadad smiles down at him, brown eyes crinkling in mirth.
Haruaki sighs, and closes the book.
Three days ago
"Suika. Stay for a moment, please."
Haruaki Suika looks up to see his homeroom teacher stopping him as he is about to leave the class.
Silently, he nods and sits back down as the rest of the class fills out. He checks the clock. He'd be a little bit late to his literature club, unfortunately.
"I know you are looking to get into Todai, Suika. And with your grades you have a high chance you'll make it."
Haruaki nods, and the teacher continues, "So I wanted to hear your opinions on some extra credit."
He teacher takes Haruaki's silence as acceptance.
"Don't look so worried now. It won't take that much time out of your current schedule. We'll have a few transfer students coming to 2-A. I want you to help acclimatize them to the school."
"A transfer at this time?"
The teacher adjusts his glasses, looking a bit self-conscious. "They all had some extenuating circumstances. Yuzuru Atsuta was also offered, but he declined because of his class president workload. So, I'm extending the offer to you, Suika. I'll even write you a letter of recomendation at the end of your 3rd year."
Haruaki takes a moment to think it over, and decision made, he nods.
"Good!" The teacher says and stands up. "They will be attending school starting from tomorrow. Just help them get used to Jouin, tell them about club activities and possible extracurriculars and be their friend. Not going to be difficult."
That... should have been the first clue that things wouldn't be so easy.
Two days ago
The first overseas transfer student to their class 2-A is very striking. Dark skin, pale– almost silver shaggy mane of hair, intense brown eyes, with an ever present playful smile on his countenance.
The second overseas transfer student is the exact opposite. Light skinned, long blond hair braided down his shoulder, forest green eyes, impassive expression over his face.
Haruaki almost misses the names in the excited hubbub from his classmates.
"–we are almost 3rd years. What are they thinking–"
"–sooo cute–"
"–two overseas transfers? That's crazy–"
"–look at them!–"
"–is that hair natural–?"
The homeroom teacher says, "Okay! Settle down, everyone! They are here as part of a special program we started this year, and it's their first time in Japan. I hope you will treat them nicely!"
Once everybody quiets down, the teacher gestures at the transfer students to start introducing themselves again. The silver haired one starts.
"My name, is Bel Hadad. I'm sure it's a pleasure."
He gives a magnanimous tilt of his head that has some of the more excitable classmates giggling and whispering.
The blond student follows up with, "I'm Fionn McCall. Nice to meet you."
He doesn't add anything more, but the class is filled with delighted whispers that the teacher has to silence again.
Introductions done, the teacher explains about the seating arrangements, additional accomodations, and other information that Haruaki tunes out. He already got the briefed version from the homeroom teacher beforehand, so he knows all this.
What's unexpected however, is the dawning smiles on the transfer students when they catch sight of him.
Haruaki doesn't know how he knows, but the radiant expressions they sport are truly one of wonder, and delight.
It's something that long lost lovers might give to one another after years of painful separation due to circumstances out of their control. It's something that Pyramus and Thisbe, or Orihime and Hikoboshi and other tragedies of love express to one another.
That's not an emotion that two students Haruaki had never met before should have.
Haruaki is taken aback at the intensity of their expressions, and settles with giving them a brief nod of acknowledgement.
He has to help them get used to Jouin after all.
Yet, he is slowly regretting ever accepting the extra credit offer when the two students ignore their teacher's call to their actual seats, deciding to come closer to his seat and crowding over him.
Present
Haruaki is debating internally the easiest way to get back to his book and ignore Hadad when Tao speaks up, "Okay, if this is making others uncomfortable, we should stop now. Let's get back to our studies before the class president and vice-president come back."
Nikaido jeers, "Oh, come on Isonokami. It's all just harmless fun. And it's not like Suika can't say anything for himself either." He gives Haruaki a challenging smirk. "So? Gonna tap out?"
When Nikaido gets in that mood, it's easier and painless for everybody to just go with his antics.
Ending in tears and something broken. He's called it.
"Fine," he says as he looks up at Hadad, who is still looking immensely entertained. "just make it quick."
Without prompting, Hadad places the pocky in his mouth, and takes Haruaki's chin in one hand, angling his face gently.
Hadad mumbles around his cookie, "You sure about this?"
Haruaki just narrows his eyes, taking his side of the pocky. Get on with it.
Hadad's eyes crinkles with mirth, and he starts eating his side without hesitation. Haruaki starts from his side a bit slower, making sure he isn't dropping any crumbs onto his lap, or worse.
Over his rented book.
Soon, Hadad's face is barely inches away from his, and the exchange student angles Haruaki's face so that it becomes easier to keep eating without bumping noses.
Haruaki can see the flecks of red in Hadad's brown eyes, and for a second, the excited squeals of his classmates as their faces inch closer has him gazing away in irritation.
But Hadad doesn't stop even when he can feel the warmth of their breaths mingling, when he can see how Hadad's pupils are blown wide, when he can feel the heat of Hadad's body as he presses closer to him.
Haruaki grasps onto Hadad's hand still over his chin and says, "Wait, I–"
He tries to lean his head back, but Hadad doesn't let him, just surging forward to kiss him on the mouth, clever tongue licking and quickly taking away the last piece of pocky between Haruaki's teeth when he parts his lips in surprise.
For a second, there is a surge of electric warmth zipping over his muscles at the contact, locking him into the parody of intimacy.
Then, it's over in an eyeblink.
Hadad leans back and pokes his tongue out to show him the stolen piece of pocky, then crunches on it with a smirk.
There is a ring of stunned silence.
Haruaki grazes his lips with the tip of his fingers. Incredulously, he raises his eyes to the beaming face of Hadad who looks triumphant over a piece of cookie, looking down at him in smug satisfaction.
Still reeling from surprise, Haruali blurts out, "You just took my first kiss."
He didn't mean to say that out loud.
Then, the class erupts into squeals, excited yells, and the inevitable scream of Nikaido saying, "YOOOOOO WHAT THE FUCK–"
Hadad, still looking ridiculously smug, only says, "I thought everybody else was... What's the word? Yes. Too chicken to go for it." He practically purrs, "I went for it."
The class descends into further chaos.