a-dreaming-artist

[a-dreaming-artist]

A Witches Spell Chapter 4

Chapter 1                 Chapter 2              Chapter 3            Chapter 4

The boy wasn’t sure when he had fallen asleep, but at some point he did. He was still sitting at his desk, the book underneath his head still open. The little bit of light that peeked through his blinds hurt his eyes, it took a moment to adjust to the light. Standing up he stretched slightly and walked to his small kitchen, making his way to the basket on his counter. Removing the small cloth on top revealed the sweets the blonde had brought him yesterday, still warm like they were just pulled out of the oven.Tamaki knew he should have been using his magic for better uses but the ability to keep food warm was one he loved. Grabbing a sweet roll he took a bite and made his way back to his desk, reviewing all the notes he had taken last night. 

‘It’s not good enough’

A little voice whispered inside Tamaki’s head, making him squeeze his eyes shut. He just wasn’t as good as his mother. He knew he wasn't. The little voice wouldn’t let him forget this fact. Tamaki let out a long sigh and closed the large book of spells and potions. After finishing the sweet roll, he rested his head on the desk wishing to just go back to bed for another hour. He needed to keep working though. His mother's work couldn’t be for nothing. 

‘Tamaki, baby, it’ll be ok’

A woman's voice broke the silence of the little house, it was so soft and sweet. Tamaki looked up and over to the kitchen, seeing a woman stirring what seemed to be a pot of soup. Walking to the kitchen Tamaki stood next to the woman, causing her to look over at him.

‘It’s just a slight fever, you’ll feel better in no time I promise’ 

Tears began to form in the boy's eyes at the sight of the woman's smile, it was so full of love. It made him feel safe.

“M… mom…” Tamaki reached forward and touched his mother's hand, flinching when it simply fazed through hers. This wasn’t real. Just a memory. Just his mind playing tricks.

‘Yes, baby?’ 

“I can’t… I can’t do it…” the tears began to fall, “I’m not- I’m not as strong as you and-“ he couldn’t even finish his words, he just let out a choked sob and buried his face into his hands. The house was only filled with the sounds of sobs and hiccups, reminding Tamaki how alone he was. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Two hours.

Tamaki spent two hours crying, two hours wasted on nothing. Finally getting off the kitchen floor the boy took shakey steps back to his desk, sitting down in the chair. He felt so tired, so weak, but he couldn’t waste anymore time. Picking up his pen Tamaki looked at the sheets of paper scattered across the desk, some were covered in small notes while others had large black spots of ink from the boy scribbling out notes. He was working on an antidote, trying to figure out how to stop this awful disease. His mother was so close, she almost had it. 

But…

Tamaki shook his head, removing the thought quickly. It’ll only make him break down again. He didn’t know the name of the wizard who spread this curse, but he remembers his face clearly. The motive was unclear, it made no sense. Why kill an entire town for seemingly no reason? Letting out a sigh of frustration, Tamaki grabbed the mortar and pestle. Looking at one of his notes he threw in two peony flowers, often known for their healing powers, along with marjoram. He used the pestle to crush the three ingredients, reading over the papers while he did so.

Mumbling a regeneration spell onto the mixture Tamaki set the mortar to the side. The regeneration spell wasn’t strong, only meant for small cuts, but with the help of the mixture it could become more powerful. He reached for a glass bottle, filled with purple colored water, pouring some into the mixture.

This is the farthest Tamaki has ever gotten. This mixture alone could cure a small cold, but not even close to something like the current issue. He’s mixed almost everything possible, at least for what was in his house, and nothing has worked. However, he had something new, yesterday he saw purple mushrooms growing by one of his traps. They’re uncommon, only growing every 15 years. Ripping a piece of the mushroom off he put it in the weak potion. Crushing and mixing it together, Tamaki grabbed a diseased potato. The curse has three ways of infecting its victims, food, contact with those already infected, or rare cases are from the air. So he always tested on bad food. Using a pipette to absorb some of the potion Tamaki dropped the liquid onto the potato, watching how it reacted.

Tamaki’s stomach dropped at the sight. The potato turned black, shriveling up almost instantly. It killed it. Tamaki wasn’t moving forward, he was moving backwards.

“Damnit!!”

He slammed his fist on the desk, causing everything to shake. Including the toxic potion, making it spin towards the edge of the desk and fall down. The glass bottle shattered, spilling the liquid and sending broken glass everywhere. Tamaki flinched at the sound, not bothering to look down at the damage he caused. He grabbed a broom and washcloth, cleaning up the mess. Tears began to burn his eyes again, making cleaning a difficult task complete.

“Stop it” he wiped the tears away, “I said stop it. Don’t- don’t be weak” there was a shake in his voice, he was holding back a sob. Tamaki dropped the washcloth, knowing he couldn’t finish this during his emotional episode. 

He was so weak.

He was so exhausted.

He was so

Lonely.

Tamaki felt his body begin to shake, letting the tears fall freely now. He wasn’t sure how much time was passing, but he didn’t even care. He just wanted to sleep. 

The tears stopped eventually, he wasn’t sure how long it had been, and Tamaki continued to clean pretending the emotional episode didn’t even happen. Throwing the poisoned washcloth away, he cleaned up the glass finally and threw it away as well. He stood in the center of the cottage for a moment, staring down at the floor. Tamaki began to zone out, jumping at the sound of a knock on his door.

“Tamaki? It's me, Mirio!”

[a-dreaming-artist]

A Witches Spell Chapter 3

Welcome to chapter 3!! Here are the other parts

Chapter 1                 Chapter 2              Chapter 3

-----------------------------------------------------------

When Mirio finally got home he quietly entered the house, careful not to wake his father if he was asleep. He grabbed a cookie off of a tray on the counter and tiptoed to his room, falling onto his bed instantly. The witch entered his mind again, Mirio wasn’t sure what it was about the boy that made him so curious. It was probably because the idea of magic being real excited him, how just one person could create potions to help others and possibly even cast spells. Just like Merlin. Eventually the thoughts of magic put him to sleep, almost like that itself was a spell.

—————————

When the sun came up and made its way into his room Mirio started to stir. He knew he needed to get up to start baking fresh bread, but his body refused to comply. His legs were sore, probably from riding his bike such a long distance so quickly. Any small movement hurts. So he continued to lay in bed, his mind slowly going back to sleep. However, his eyes shot open when there was a loud knock on his door followed by a cheery voice.

“Togata!! Rise and shine, sleepy head!

Nejire’s voice filled the house, her cheerful behavior motivating Mirio to get up. The blonde stood up and made his way to the bedroom door, opening it to see the shorter female smiling. 

“Oh good you’re awake! We gotta get down to the shop! I noticed a few cookies and sweet rolls were missing…”

“Uh… ya sorry, that was me. I got a little hungry.”

Mirio laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck. He didn’t want to lie to his best friend, but Nejire couldn’t keep anything a secret. If the town found out he was visiting the witch and came back safely more people might begin to bombard the poor boy. Tamaki obviously didn’t want that, the numerous traps proving so. Maybe one day he’d explain the situation to Nejire, but today was not that day. 

Nejire explained she’d head back down to the shop, saying she’d start to prepare everything while Mirio got ready for the day. The blonde started to get dressed, putting on a pair of black pants with suspenders and a white collared shirt. He quickly brushed his hair and teeth, making his way to the shop. It wasn’t far from Mirio’s house, it was at the end of the long street, about 7 buildings away from his house. 

Walking through the front door he heard the small bell ring. The place was empty, obviously, but that also included the glass cases that held different treats. Every morning it was Mirio and Nejire’s job to cook new bread, take the cakes out of the fridge, and place the cookie trays in the cases. It was a lot of work, but they always got it done. Mirio could hear the girl in the kitchen, already placing different pans on the counters. After putting his apron on Mirio walked into the kitchen, ready to help Nejire.

The two talked happily making different breads and cookies, placing them on different trays and plates. It was Saturday, usually one of the busiest days for the cafe, most people were off work and after drinking the previous day they would take their family out for treats and even some coffee. So the two had to make sure they stocked up for today. 

After an hour of prep Nejire officially unlocked the door and flipped the sign to ‘OPENED’. Customers slowly filled the shop, Nejire pointing at tables for who wanted to stay and taking everybody's orders. Mirio stayed in the kitchen, continuing to bake the rest of the cookies they needed. The blonde let his mind wander, thinking about almost anything. However when his mind went to his father it led to him thinking about Tamaki. 

He wanted to visit again today, just to get to know the boy more. Living in the woods must be lonely, so visiting didn’t seem like a horrible idea. But Mirio pushed the thought away, he didn’t want to visit so often the boy got annoyed. Plus him disappearing almost everyday will make others suspicious. Mirio will just hang out with Nejire when they finish working, she can take his mind off the boy.

“Togata!! The oven!!”

Nejire’s voice broke Mirio out of his trance, snapping his head to the oven. The glass was clouded with black fog. Rushing over and opening the oven door allowed thick black smoke to pour out of the oven, causing Mirio to go into a coughing fit. Brushing the smoke away with a towel the blonde pulled out the cookies, revealing what almost looked like lumps of coal. He set the tray on the stove and let out a loud groan, fanning away the black smoke again. Nejire opened the kitchen window, helping to fan out the black fog. 

Once the majority of the smoke was gone Nejire turned to Mirio, her expression a mix of different emotions. Confusion. Anger. Worry. She didn’t know where to begin.

“What is going on with you? Yesterday you couldn’t take your eyes off the clock and now you're almost burning down the cafe?” Nejire put the towel she was holding on the counter, “It’s like ever since you returned with that weird medicine for your dad you’ve become a totally different person. Where did that stuff come from anyway??” 

Nejire went quiet for a second, before Mirio could practically see the lightbulb turn on. 

“The witch!! That's it! You found the witch in the woods!” The blue haired girl began to pace the room, “she gave you a potion to help your father! Did you see her horrific face? Did she curse you? Oh my god did you sell your soul to her!? Is that why your acting so weird??”

Nejire cupped Mirio’s face after the last remark, leaning forward to look in his eyes to try and find his ‘soul’. The blonde couldn’t help but laugh, even if this was technically a serious situation.

“No, I didn’t sell my soul. I want to tell you everything but, don't be offended, you’re horrible at keeping secrets.”

The blue haired girl opened her mouth wide, as if she were going to loudly protest, before closing it again and crossing her arms across her chest.

“Fair point…” she peeked out of the kitchen to make sure there weren’t any waiting customers before looking back at Mirio, “but if this is super super serious I promise I’ll keep it a secret! Promise!” 

“Well you loudly exclaiming you won’t tell my secret isn’t very promising.”

The girl's hands shot up to her mouth, covering it tightly. Mirio only laughed again, removing the girls hands from her mouth. 

“How about while we close up tonight I explain everything. Nobody will be around to overhear me” 

Nejire nodded, a huge smile spreading across her face. She was practically jumping around the kitchen, saying over and over how she will keep her promise. However, Mirio was kicked out of the kitchen Nejire explaining they’d switch places since clearly Mirio couldn’t be trusted anymore today. The blonde didn’t mind, the counter allowed him to think more anyway.

————————————-

9:30 finally rolled around, meaning it was finally time to close the little shop. Nejire worked on cleaning the kitchen, scraping the burnt cookies off of the tray, while Mirio worked in the main area cleaning tables and sweeping the floor. Nejire stayed quiet the whole time Mirio was explaining what had happened in the woods the night he left. He told her everything, the trap he fell for, the witch actually being male, how he liked legends just like Mirio did. Once he was done rambling the cafe grew quiet, the only sound being the broom brushing against the ground. Nejire was processing all the information, going over every detail in her head. Finally, after a few minutes of silence, the questions started flooding in. 

“The witch is a boy? Doesn’t that make him a wizard? Or is that not how it works? What’s the difference between a wizard and a sorcerer? Ooh did he eat any of the cookies I made? Did he like them? What's he like? Is he pretty?”

Nejire kept asking questions, barely stopping to take a breath. She wouldn’t even give Mirio a chance to answer anything. Mirio just let her go, knowing she wouldn’t stop until she asked all her questions.

“Is he the one spreading the deadly sickness around town??”

Hearing that question made Mirio freeze, the sound of the broom scraping the floor stopped. He completely forgot that the witch was supposedly the one spreading the disease, and it made sense too. It came out of nowhere, and it only was affecting the people of Mirio’s town. Even when somebody left to visit another town, it never spread to others. It was strictly Mirio’s town. Also, why did Tamaki have the cure to his father’s illness? He would only have the antidote if he knew what he created.

The blonde felt sick, how could he forget such a big detail? How come he never asked that very question to the boy in the woods? Mirio could have possibly been trying to befriend a monster. The timid and shy boy could all be an act, just a cover up to hide his true nature.

‘Mr. Williams went insane after visiting the witch’

Tightening his grip on the broom, Mirio finally spoke up. Answering all the questions the best he could in two words. 

“Who knows…” 

[a-dreaming-artist]

A Witches Spell: Chapter 2

Just in case you haven’t read chapter 1 here you go

A Witches Spell Ch 1

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

The potion worked perfectly, while it didn’t have Mirio’s father out of bed within an hour like he imagined, his fever was going down and he was able to keep food down. By Thursday he was able to get out of bed and walk a little. Mirio didn’t let him help around the cafe yet, he wanted to wait till he was feeling 100% ok. So he ran the little shop alone with Nejire. It wasn’t big, and never was super busy, so the two of them were able to handle it just fine. 

When Friday finally came around Mirio was counting down the minutes, waiting for the store to close. The cafe closes early on Fridays, that’s when the weekend starts and it’s time for family to be together and even for some adults go out and drink alcohol. 

“Togata stop staring at the clock. It’s not just gonna walk off the wall” Nejire was the one who broke Mirio out of his trance, “you’ve been staring at it ever since you opened.”

“Right, sorry” Mirio turned away from the clock, using everything he had to not look at it. 5:30. He just had to wait till 5:30 and he could drop off the small basket with treats inside to the witch- wizard? Witch was easier. He wanted to get them over while they were still warm.

So when the clock showed it was time to close Mirio rushed out, giving Nejire a quick apology and promising to pay her extra for cleaning up. So he hopped on his bike and put the baked treats into the basket, peddling into the woods. The woods were still dark, but Mirio knew where he was going this time so it was much easier. Once he reached the run down cottage he put his kickstand up and walked towards the house, making sure to watch where he stepped so he didn’t set off another trap.

Mirio put on a big smile and knocked on the door, hearing soft footsteps from inside the house. The footsteps got louder, and eventually the door cracked open just a little.

“Who is it..?”

“It’s Mirio Togata! I told you I’d come back!”

The boy got quiet, keeping the door cracked. Mirio thought for a moment he’d shut the door in his face, but soon the witch was opening the door. He was still wearing his white cloak with a black pair of pants and a shirt. He also wore a belt, holding his knife from yesterday along with two bottles of strange looking liquids. 

“Why are you here..?”

“I brought you some treats! As a thank you for the potion”

Mirio held up the basket, showing off the different sweets. There were cookies, sweet rolls, and a few other things.

“You don’t need to thank me…”

“Of course I do! You saved my father's life! Your amazing!”

The boy grabbed the top of his cloak hood and pulled it down, hiding his face even more. He started to mumble a few things, to quiet for Mirio to hear. Finally he spoke up again, letting go of the hood.

“It was nothing… but... alright…”

Mirio handed the witch the basket, hearing a quiet thank you after. The boy took a step back, ready to close the door, but Mirio didn’t want it to end just yet.

“Hey, I uh, never learned your name” 

The cloaked figure stopped his movements, clearly contemplating whether he should tell his name to a stranger or not. Finally he spoke up, after a minute of silence.

“I’m… Tamaki”

Mirio was already smiling, but somehow he was able to smile even more. 

“Is that your first name? I mean, I assume it is”

All Tamaki did was nod, glancing at the treats in the basket. Mirio tried to think of what to say, he was fascinated by the little witch in front of him. What did he know? How long has he lived here? Was he the one who released the sickness across town like that lady said?

“We should have a mini picnic!” Tamaki looked up, his facial features still hidden. The hood cast a shadow, and thanks to the patio cover the sun couldn’t reveal anything. “It’ll be fun! We can talk, and I can thank you a ton more”

“Please stop thanking me” 

——————————

Tamaki had no idea why he agreed to sit with the blonde boy, but for some reason he did. They both sat on the edge of the patio since his porch swing was currently broken. He really needed to fix it. Mirio was talking a lot, saying different things about his life. Mentioning the cafe his father owned, his best friend Nejire, and what his town was like.

“Man and all the rumors about you? They’re all so wrong!”

“Rumors…?”

“Ya! Everyone thought you were some crazy old lady who was hunched over, had super long nails, and that your face was so horrific people will have nightmares for years! That one could be true though, you know since I haven’t actually seen your face”

Each rumor made Tamaki cringe, of course that’s what people thought of him. The thought of everybody talking about him made him sick, wanting to just crawl into a hole and never come out. It doesn’t matter if the people don’t actually know who he is, just the fact that they talk about him is upsetting. They weren’t supposed to know about him. 

“Good to know everybody’s afraid of me” Tamaki mumbled, once again pulling at the hood of his cloak. Mirio gave him a questioning look, his only answer being a quiet “nothing”.

“So what about you?”

“What about me?”

“Anything about you! Just tell me about yourself, I wanna know! If you don’t mind, of course” Mirio smiled widely at Tamaki, hoping his smile would make the boy feel comfortable. Moving his hood slightly, Tamaki saw Mirio’s smile. Instantly four words came to mind, almost as if they’ve been waiting for this exact moment.

Just like the sun

He had never met Mirio, but for some reason it felt as if he’d seen that smile a thousand times. That warm smile that was just like the sun, a smile that made Tamaki feel like he could do anything. It felt like he had butterflies in his stomach, appearing all because of one single smile. 

“Hello? Earth to Tamaki?”

Mirio was now waving his hand, having a worried expression. The cloaked boy must have gotten lost in his own thoughts, being far to quiet.

“Did I make you uncomfortable? Sorry, I guess I shouldn’t have talked so much. Or asked you to tell me about yourself” he let out a soft laugh, it sounded like it was traced with a little bit of sadness. 

“It’s fine.. I was just thinking” Tamaki let go of his hood completely now, putting his hands together and fidgeting his thumbs. He was never good at talking, especially when it came to himself.

“There’s not much to say.. but… I’ve lived in this cottage all my life… it was just me and my mom… usually I would read different stories… I always liked King Arthur” Mirio’s eyes lit up, hearing that they had something in common made him giddy.

“No way, really?? Me too! My dad would read me his adventures all the time!” 

Tamaki resisted the urge as best as he could, but Mirio’s burst of energy and excitement made him smile. Something he hadn’t done in awhile. Mirio started to explain his favorite tales from King Arthur, Tamaki happy to just sit a listen. 

It was dark now, the sun had gone down only a few minutes ago. Once it was gone Mirio finally realized how long he had been gone from town, and how long he had been rambling to Tamaki.

“Oh geez I totally cut you off didn’t I?” Mirio laughed awkwardly, “sorry ‘bout that. I get carried away sometimes”

“It’s alright”

Mirio stood up and stretched, looking up at all the stars in the sky. He grinned a little after finding a constellation, bringing his head down and turning to Tamaki.

“I should probably head back home before my father starts to freak out. Thanks for letting me talk your ear off! I hope you enjoyed the cookies”

“I did… thank you for bringing it… and keeping me company” 

The blonde smiled wide and waved goodbye, walking back over to his bike. He told Tamaki he’d see him later, riding off before the witch could protest. If he was going to at least. His entire ride home he kept his smile, thinking about Tamaki enjoying his company. Maybe one day the boy wouldn’t be as nervous around Mirio, maybe even open up a little more. They could even be close friends one day.

Mirio couldn’t wait for that day. 

Chapter 2

The potion worked perfectly, while it didn’t have Mirio’s father out of bed within an hour like he imagined, his fever was going down and he was able to keep food down. By Thursday he was able to get out of bed and walk a little. Mirio didn’t let him help around the cafe yet, he wanted to wait till he was feeling 100% ok. So he ran the little shop alone with Nejire. It wasn’t big, and never was super busy, so the two of them were able to handle it just fine. 

When Friday finally came around Mirio was counting down the minutes, waiting for the store to close. The cafe closes early on Fridays, that’s when the weekend starts and it’s time for family to be together and even for some adults go out and drink alcohol. 

“Togata stop staring at the clock. It’s not just gonna walk off the wall” Nejire was the one who broke Mirio out of his trance, “you’ve been staring at it ever since you opened.”

“Right, sorry” Mirio turned away from the clock, using everything he had to not look at it. 5:30. He just had to wait till 5:30 and he could drop off the small basket with treats inside to the witch- wizard? Witch was easier. He wanted to get them over while they were still warm.

So when the clock showed it was time to close Mirio rushed out, giving Nejire a quick apology and promising to pay her extra for cleaning up. So he hopped on his bike and put the baked treats into the basket, peddling into the woods. The woods were still dark, but Mirio knew where he was going this time so it was much easier. Once he reached the run down cottage he put his kickstand up and walked towards the house, making sure to watch where he stepped so he didn’t set off another trap.

Mirio put on a big smile and knocked on the door, hearing soft footsteps from inside the house. The footsteps got louder, and eventually the door cracked open just a little.

“Who is it..?”

“It’s Mirio Togata! I told you I’d come back!”

The boy got quiet, keeping the door cracked. Mirio thought for a moment he’d shut the door in his face, but soon the witch was opening the door. He was still wearing his white cloak with a black pair of pants and a shirt. He also wore a belt, holding his knife from yesterday along with two bottles of strange looking liquids. 

“Why are you here..?”

“I brought you some treats! As a thank you for the potion”

Mirio held up the basket, showing off the different sweets. There were cookies, sweet rolls, and a few other things.

“You don’t need to thank me…”

“Of course I do! You saved my father's life! Your amazing!”

The boy grabbed the top of his cloak hood and pulled it down, hiding his face even more. He started to mumble a few things, to quiet for Mirio to hear. Finally he spoke up again, letting go of the hood.

“It was nothing… but... alright…”

Mirio handed the witch the basket, hearing a quiet thank you after. The boy took a step back, ready to close the door, but Mirio didn’t want it to end just yet.

“Hey, I uh, never learned your name” 

The cloaked figure stopped his movements, clearly contemplating whether he should tell his name to a stranger or not. Finally he spoke up, after a minute of silence.

“I’m… Tamaki”

Mirio was already smiling, but somehow he was able to smile even more. 

“Is that your first name? I mean, I assume it is”

All Tamaki did was nod, glancing at the treats in the basket. Mirio tried to think of what to say, he was fascinated by the little witch in front of him. What did he know? How long has he lived here? Was he the one who released the sickness across town like that lady said?

“We should have a mini picnic!” Tamaki looked up, his facial features still hidden. The hood cast a shadow, and thanks to the patio cover the sun couldn’t reveal anything. “It’ll be fun! We can talk, and I can thank you a ton more”

“Please stop thanking me” 

——————————

Tamaki had no idea why he agreed to sit with the blonde boy, but for some reason he did. They both sat on the edge of the patio since his porch swing was currently broken. He really needed to fix it. Mirio was talking a lot, saying different things about his life. Mentioning the cafe his father owned, his best friend Nejire, and what his town was like.

“Man and all the rumors about you? They’re all so wrong!”

“Rumors…?”

“Ya! Everyone thought you were some crazy old lady who was hunched over, had super long nails, and that your face was so horrific people will have nightmares for years! That one could be true though, you know since I haven’t actually seen your face”

Each rumor made Tamaki cringe, of course that’s what people thought of him. The thought of everybody talking about him made him sick, wanting to just crawl into a hole and never come out. It doesn’t matter if the people don’t actually know who he is, just the fact that they talk about him is upsetting. They weren’t supposed to know about him. 

“Good to know everybody’s afraid of me” Tamaki mumbled, once again pulling at the hood of his cloak. Mirio gave him a questioning look, his only answer being a quiet “nothing”.

“So what about you?”

“What about me?”

“Anything about you! Just tell me about yourself, I wanna know! If you don’t mind, of course” Mirio smiled widely at Tamaki, hoping his smile would make the boy feel comfortable. Moving his hood slightly, Tamaki saw Mirio’s smile. Instantly four words came to mind, almost as if they’ve been waiting for this exact moment.

Just like the sun

He had never met Mirio, but for some reason it felt as if he’d seen that smile a thousand times. That warm smile that was just like the sun, a smile that made Tamaki feel like he could do anything. It felt like he had butterflies in his stomach, appearing all because of one single smile. 

“Hello? Earth to Tamaki?”

Mirio was now waving his hand, having a worried expression. The cloaked boy must have gotten lost in his own thoughts, being far to quiet.

“Did I make you uncomfortable? Sorry, I guess I shouldn’t have talked so much. Or asked you to tell me about yourself” he let out a soft laugh, it sounded like it was traced with a little bit of sadness. 

“It’s fine.. I was just thinking” Tamaki let go of his hood completely now, putting his hands together and fidgeting his thumbs. He was never good at talking, especially when it came to himself.

“There’s not much to say.. but… I’ve lived in this cottage all my life… it was just me and my mom… usually I would read different stories… I always liked King Arthur” Mirio’s eyes lit up, hearing that they had something in common made him giddy.

“No way, really?? Me too! My dad would read me his adventures all the time!” 

Tamaki resisted the urge as best as he could, but Mirio’s burst of energy and excitement made him smile. Something he hadn’t done in awhile. Mirio started to explain his favorite tales from King Arthur, Tamaki happy to just sit a listen. 

It was dark now, the sun had gone down only a few minutes ago. Once it was gone Mirio finally realized how long he had been gone from town, and how long he had been rambling to Tamaki.

“Oh geez I totally cut you off didn’t I?” Mirio laughed awkwardly, “sorry ‘bout that. I get carried away sometimes”

“It’s alright”

Mirio stood up and stretched, looking up at all the stars in the sky. He grinned a little after finding a constellation, bringing his head down and turning to Tamaki.

“I should probably head back home before my father starts to freak out. Thanks for letting me talk your ear off! I hope you enjoyed the cookies”

“I did… thank you for bringing it… and keeping me company” 

The blonde smiled wide and waved goodbye, walking back over to his bike. He told Tamaki he’d see him later, riding off before the witch could protest. If he was going to at least. His entire ride home he kept his smile, thinking about Tamaki enjoying his company. Maybe one day the boy wouldn’t be as nervous around Mirio, maybe even open up a little more. They could even be close friends one day.

Mirio couldn’t wait for that day. 

[a-dreaming-artist]

A Witches Spell

Summary: Mirio grew up loving different legends, especially King Arthur. As he grows he begins to hear rumors about a witch who lives in the forest, so when his father falls ill he seeks help from the witch to save his father.

(Note: In this story it’s universe is similar to Kiki’s Delivery Service. It takes place in the 1950’s, and just like Kiki’s WW1 and 2 never happened)

Every town has their own legends, some to scare children into behaving and others to give hope to the people of the town. Word spreads around fast, but as the stories are told over and over details are lost and some are even added. Though usually the message stays the same, the purpose of the legend still remaining.

She passed away when Mirio was only 7, leaving Mirio’s father to raise the child while trying his best to keep their little cafe opened. Every night Mirio’s father would tell him a story, using little wooden toys to help get the point across. The stories helped Mirio move on after the loss of his mother, reminding him of the kind words she’d always say to him.

When he was 10, he started to help his father run the cafe. With Mirio’s help things were going great, his help in the kitchen was appreciated. As he grew Mirio still loved the different legends, however some he didn’t believe so easily now. Although while he was out in town with his best friend Nejire he started to hear rumors from people in town.

“Did you hear about Mr. Williams down the street?”

“No, what happened?”

“Well, supposedly there’s a witch who lives in the woods. He heard about this and left to find her, to ask for a love potion. He came back and he hasn’t been the same, it’s like he’s gone mad”

Witches? Love potions? Was there even such a thing? Mirio wasn’t sure what he truly believed, but the idea of witches being real was fascinating. He continued to listen in on what others had to say, wanting to know more about the supposed witch who lived in the woods.

“I hear she has fingernails that can cut you easily”

“Well I heard her face is so horrific just looking at her will give you nightmares for years”

“I believe she’s the one who’s been spreading this horrible sickness around”

The rumors were starting to get far fetched, but Mirio loved them nonetheless. He began to tell his father about what the people were saying, even explaining his own theories about the witch in the woods. His father found some of it entertaining, but still warned Mirio to never go to the woods just in case.

So the days passed, Mirio would work, study, listen to rumors and legends with Nejire, and repeat. Life was perfect.

The key word is was.

Mirio’s father had fallen ill, a sickness very similar to his mothers. Doctors would come to check the symptoms of his father, only to deliver the same news.

“There’s nothing we can do”

The thought of losing his father, the only family member he had left, hurt Mirio more than he could describe. Thinking about it made him want to puke, to scream or cry.

There’s nothing we can do

Those words kept running through Mirio’s head, their had to be something he could do. There just had to be. Finally an idea came to him. What about the witch? Surely she could help her father. There’s only one way to find out. After Nejire agreed to take care of his father for a day or two, Mirio left on his bike to find the witch as soon as the sun started to rise. He refused to come back till he found a cure.

The woods were very dark, even when the sun began to light the world up. Navigating was hard, and to be honest Mirio wasn’t even sure if he was heading in the right direction. Every sound made Mirio jump, anything could come from any direction and he didn’t have anything truly useful to defend himself. Animals could be heard walking, but whether it was a deer or a wolf he had no idea. Mirio just kept looking forward, taking deep breaths to calm himself the best he could.

His legs were starting to cramp, begging to stop for just a minute. Mirio was about to give in, to just stop for a few minutes, but something caught his attention. In the distance was a little cottage, it was covered in vines and looked like it was ready to just fall apart.

This was it

Mirio peddled as fast as he could, praying that this was the place. After putting up the kickstand of his bike Mirio made his way towards the house. The ground was covered in leaves, which was odd considering it was summer. If Mirio had paid close attention he would have realized the trap that was on the ground. Stepping forward Mirio activated a trap, a rope quickly tightening around his ankle and launching him up in the air, leaving him to dangle by the tree.

Mirio let out a cry, the sudden rush of movement scaring him. His cry was heard, because a figure in a white cloak came out of the little cottage. It was the witch. The witch began to walk in a precise manner, avoiding any other traps they had laid on the ground. While she made her way over Mirio quickly tried to think what he would say to her.

“What are you doing here?”

Oh

Oh

That’s not a woman.

“I-I uh…” Mirio’s mind had gone blank from the discovery of the witch being a guy, also along with the fact that all blood was rushing toward his head. He couldn’t make out the males face, the hood of his cloak hiding any of his facial features.

“I said, '' What are you doing here?”

“I… I need a potion! For my father!”

The male went quiet, he started to make his way towards the trees trunk. He pulled out a knife and cut the rope, causing Mirio to land on his head.

“Absolutely not. I’m tired of you all asking. Go before I put a curse on you... or something.. something like that”

The figure turned away, starting to walk back towards his house.

“Please wait!” Mirio quickly stood up, “I need this potion! My father is very sick and he’s only getting worse by the day. My mother suffered the same fate, so he’s all I have left!”

This caused the cloaked figure to freeze, instantly stopping in his tracks. The woods grew quiet, the only sound being birds singing their song. After a minute the male walked into his cottage without a word. Mirio felt tears start to form, and he couldn’t stop them from falling. This was his final hope and it was taken away without a second thought.

He sat down on the ground, burying his face in his hands. His body shook harder the more he cried, not ready to return home and face his father.

Then a glass bottle was placed in front of him. It was filled with a reddish liquid. Mirio looked up and saw the cloaked figure standing in front of him.

“I wasn’t going to give it to you… but then you started crying and I felt horrible.. so.. here”

Mirio just stared for a moment, but soon jumped up and hugged the male tightly.

“Thank you! Thank you thank you thank you!!”

The gesture took the cloaked figure by surprise, hating the sudden attention and not appreciating a total stranger hugging him.

“Your supposed to just take the potion and leave…”

“I can’t leave without thanking you!” Mirio let go and began to notice a few features of the male. He looked to have purple eyes but Mirio wasn’t 100% sure, “I need to repay you! What about a few sweets from my cafe? I’m sure it’s not the same as a literal life saving potion but it’s all I have”

“I… I don’t need anything ...What I need is for you to leave before your yelling draws people here…”

Now being eye to eye the figure and realizing the slight height disadvantage the male seemed much more nervous, his tough facade disappearing.

“Alright I’ll leave, but that doesn’t mean I won’t repay you!” Mirio rushed over to his bike and carefully put the glass bottle in the little basket on the back, “My name is Mirio Togata! I’ll come back Friday!”

Before the cloaked male could speak Mirio was already riding away, making his journey back through the woods.

Mirio Togata? Where have I heard that name?

[a-dreaming-artist]

Take Your Heart- Chapter 3

It was late, everyone went to bed. They all slept downstairs in the living room. Ann and Shiho has fallen asleep in the recliner together, with Ann hugging Shiho from behind. Haru and Futaba fell asleep at opposite ends of the couch, leaving Ryuji and Akira to make a bed on the floor. All of the girls were asleep, but the two boys were still awake.

“Got any eights?” Ryuji asked, looking down at the handful of cards he was holding.

“Go fish”

Ryuji let out a quiet groan and picked up a card. He had ten cards while Akira only had two cards. Akira let out a yawn, then asked what cards Ryuji had. However Ryuji didn’t answer, instead he set his cards down.

“Man we’ve been playing this for an hour straight. It’s two in the morning. Maybe we should go to bed”

“Your just mad because you're losing”

“Shut up” Ryuji lightly pushed him, causing a laugh to escape Akira.

That laugh.

Ryuji loved it when Akira laughed, he always sounded so happy and carefree. Then again Ryuji loved everything about the boy. The way he covered his mouth when he laughed, his determined look when fighting shadows, and especially how he cared for everyone.

“Maybe you're right, we should sleep” Akira spoke, causing Ryuji to return to the real world. He nodded and put all the cards in a big stack. They both laid down and covered up with the blanket. Akira let out another yawn before mumbling out something.

“Night Ryuji, I love you”

Did he hear that correctly? Was his sleep deprivation finally catching up to him? What should he say? Was it an accident?

“Goodnight Akira”

“Wake up sleepy heads!!!” Ann yelled, opening all of the curtains. Futaba let out a loud hissing sound, covering her face with the blanket. Ryuji let out a groan, sitting up.

“Ann what the hell?” He managed to mumble out before letting out a loud yawn.

“It’s eight o’clock!! We need to get up!! Come on me and Shiho made pancakes!” Ann skipped happily into the kitchen while Futaba and Haru trailed after her.

Ryuji tried to stand up only to feel something holding him down. Looking down he saw a sleeping Akira holding onto his waist. However Ryuji’s movements caused Akira to stir. After rubbing his eyes Akira looked up at the blonde and gave him a small smile

“Good morning”

The sight killed him. The bed hair, the half opened eyes, that crooked smile. Everything about it made Ryuji’s heart melt.

“Morning. Get up Ann and Shiho made pancakes” Ryuji stood up and walked to the kitchen, eventually Akira joined them.

Futaba had her eyes glued to her switch, mumbling out incoherent words. Meanwhile Haru was already eating pancakes, happily talking to Shiho. Ann turned around holding out two plates with pancakes on them.

“Eat up!! You don’t want them to get cold!” The two boys thanked Ann for the food and sat down at the table everyone else was at. Eventually Ann joined them, carrying her own plate.

“So you two were up late… and playing go fish. Why go fish of all games?” Ann asked, taking a bite of pancake.

“Look it was two in the morning, we were a little loopy and bored.” Ryuji responded, pointing his fork at her, “and how do you know? Did you wake up?”

“Ya just for a second. I even heard Akira say he loves you~”

“I did what…?” Akira asked quietly, looking up. He was half asleep. You could tell. He would occasionally lean forward before jerking backwards, also his eyes were only half open.

“Nothing! Don’t worry!” Ann replied cheerfully, and in response Akira nodded slightly.

“Why do you bring that part up? He was barely awake, it meant nothing…” at this point everyone but Akira was listening in on the conversation, and all the girls had the same look on their face.

Someone please help this oblivious boy

“Dude, I don’t even know anything about romance and I know that’s completely wrong.” Futaba commented, setting the switch down, “Akira obviously likes you, trust me. I’ve gone through his phone”

All the girls started talking at once, all saying different things. Ryuji didn’t want them to know he was jealous, not over something so dumb. He didn’t want them to know how he was jealous of Makoto and how much time she’s been spending with Akira, how he wishes he was as smart as her, even mature. However eventually Ryuji broke, spilling all his thoughts out.

“Geez you guys just don’t get it do you? He likes Makoto, and honestly can you blame him? She’s beautiful, mature, smart, she’s going to have a very successful life, and where do I stand? At the bottom. Bad grades, and going nowhere. I lost the chance of ever getting a scholarship for track so that guarantees it.”

Ryuji kept going, saying many thing he didn’t expect. Though what broke him out of his ranting was someone touching his shoulder. He looked over and saw Akira looking at him, having a worried expression.

Crap.

I forgot he was sitting there.

All the girls went silent, all having different expressions. Eventually the silence was broken by Akira

“Hey, guys could you leave us alone for a second?”

“Oh ya of course” Ann responded and stood up, walking to the living room while all the other girls followed.

It was just the two of them now. Sitting at the table with a plate of pancakes. Ryuji’s chest hurt, his heart was pumping a mile a minute. He couldn’t move, he was to scared and shocked. What was he supposed to do now? Accept that Akira was going to hate him forever?

After a few minutes of silence Akira spoke.

“Ryuji…”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Akira knew he liked Ryuji, he wasn’t going to deny it. The feelings had been around for awhile, back when they first defeated Kamoshida. Ryuji, Ann, and him went out to celebrate with the money they got from selling Kamoshida’s medal.

They were all talking, telling stories and trying to eat as much as they could since they had grabbed a lot of food. During all of it Akira felt something, like his chest tightened when Ryuji smiled at him or said something. At that moment Akira already knew he was in to deep, he had fallen for Ryuji.

He would have told Ryuji, he really did plan on it. However he backed out once he thought back on everything. Ryuji always talked about how hot certain girls were and when Akira made a flirty comment he’d always say something sounding a little annoyed.

So he carried on as usual, making sure his feelings didn’t get in the way of helping others, telling himself he’d never actually tell Ryuji.

Yet

Here he was

Sitting next to Ryuji, hearing how the blonde loved Akira and was jealous of Makoto. He wasn’t expecting any of it, even thinking he was still dreaming.

Ryuji liked him?

Why?

None of it made sense to Akira, and he didn’t know what to do. Of course he wanted to date Ryuji. He wanted a lot of things from Ryuji, mostly a kiss. However now that he was here, now that he had a chance to confess, Akira wasn’t sure if he should.

Ryuji liked him, he knew that now, but what if something happened? If they ever got into a fight this could affect their duties as Phantom Thieves.

Or even the obvious elephant in the room. What about when Akira has to leave? He’s only here because he’s on probation. What would happen? Would they just split and pretend it never happened? Akira wasn’t sure if he could handle that, he’s tired of being disappointed and let down.

So now was the time to decide.

What’s Akira’s next move?

[a-dreaming-artist]

Take Your Heart- Chapter 2

Its alright

The message felt different, something about it was off, Akira just couldn’t figure out what it was. Was something wrong? Is he upset?

“Akira.” Makoto’s voice brought him back to the real world, not the one inside his phone that contained Ryuji’s odd text. Akira looked over at her, she had a concerned yet serious expression.

“Did you hear what I said?” Akira shook his head, he had completely blocked out the outside world. Makoto sighed, “It’s alright, it wasn’t anything very important…”

“Sorry, Ryuji text me and I decided to respond instead of just leaving him hanging..”

“By texting I assume you mean sending one message and staring at your phone for five minutes straight.”

Five minutes? Akira didn’t realize it had been that long.

“Is everything alright? You looked worried over whatever Ryuji sent.”

Akira nodded and showed her his phone.

“He just wanted to hang out.. but I told him I was with you and he said it’s alright”

“So what’s wrong?”

“Something feels different about it…”

Makoto gave him a confused look, it was a text message, how could he tell something was different from anything else he has sent?

“I’m probably overthinking things” Akira put his phone away and smiled, “now what were you saying earlier? Everything you say is important”

It was late now, the sun had set and the streets were becoming less busy. Akira was alone at the train station, Morgana decided to stay home with Sojiro after he offered Morgana leftover curry.

It’s alright

What was so weird about that text? Everything seemed normal at first glance, but for some reason Akira couldn’t shake the feeling something was wrong. Once he boarded, Akira pulled out his phone and texted Ryuji.

“Are you feeling ok?”

Akira waited for a response, but after ten minutes it seemed like Ryuji was never going to answer back.

Maybe he’s asleep

Akira put his phone away and got off the train, walking all the way back to Leblanc. He entered the cafe and saw Sojiro grabbing his hat.

“Oh there you are, perfect timing, I’m heading home. If you want something to eat make something, just be sure to clean up your mess.”

Akira nodded and watched as Sojiro exited the cafe. Morgana was sitting on one of the barstools, licking his paw.

“You were gone longer than usual” Morgana stated looking up at Akira, “What did you and Makoto do?”

“We just talked and went for a walk” Akira sat in the barstool next to Morgana’s and rest his forehead on the counter

“You should probably go to bed, it’s late”

“Ya I know” Akira responded, but didn’t move. He just wanted to think for awhile, even if it was in an uncomfortable position that hurt his back.

He wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but it was long enough for him to doze off. He had only been asleep for a minute or two before his phone went off. Akira looked down to see the message

“Sorry I fell asleep. I’m fine, why do you ask?”

Ryuji had finally text back

“No reason, I just was being paranoid for no reason. Your text felt off was all”

“It did? Huh. Well I’m alright, don’t worry about me”

Akira turned off his phone and stood up. Ryuji says he’s alright so he’ll believe him. He walked up to his room and changed clothes before laying on his bed. Morgana soon jumped in bed after him.

Ann invited everyone over to her house one weekend to have a sleepover together, however only a few people could make it. Ryuji, Akira, Futaba, Shiho, Yusuke and Haru were the only ones who ended up coming.

“Ok everyone! All of us are here which means we can start!”

“I brought my switch! We could play Super Smash Bros!” Futaba smiled happily while showing off her switch, “I made sure to bring my extra controllers!”

“Oh hell ya! I’ll beat all of you at it!” Ryuji yelled, and in response Futaba let out a dramatic gasp

“You think you can beat me, the champion of Smash Bros??”

“I don’t think. I know I can.” Ryuji stated confidently.

Ryuji lost to Futaba, 0-8. He groaned loudly once the announcer had signaled the end of the match. Futaba cheered, throwing her hands in the air.

“I am still undefeated!!”

“Hey Akira almost beat you!”

“True… but he didn’t so it doesn’t count” Futaba laughed before setting her controller down, “Alright I’m done for now, I need to charge the controls anyway”

While Futaba put the switch away Ann entered the room with a bowl of popcorn.

“Ok! I have an idea! Why don’t we all play truth or dare?” Ann exclaimed and sat down, setting the bowl in the middle of everyone.

“Oh that sounds fun” Haru smiled, reaching for a a few pieces of popcorn.

“Ehhh” Ryuji and Futaba said at the same time, giving Ann a skeptical look.

“It’ll be fun I promise!”

“What if someone just refuses to answer a question or do a dare? Would kinda defeat the purpose of playing” Ryuji asked, hoping this face would change her mind

“If they refuse to do what they’re told they’ll be a punishment! As for what that punishment is, I’ll come up with it later”

Ryuji and Futaba reluctantly agree to play, only to make Ann happy truthfully.

“Alright!! Then I’ll go first!! Shiho, truth or dare” Ann looked towards Shiho, grinning wide.

“Oh uh… truth?”

“Do you love me?”

“Ann we’re dating”

“I know I just gotta make sure” Shiho laughed a little

“Yes. I love you”

“Yaaaay!” Ann exclaimed happily, hugging Shiho.

“Oh come on that was lame! You gotta ask good questions!” Cried Futaba, crossing her arms.

“It was a good question, I needed to hear her say she loves me. Now, it’s your turn Shiho!”

“Oh ok um.. Ryuji, truth or dare?”

“Truth. I don’t trust none of you, sorry Shiho”

“That’s alright….. are you a phantom thief?”

Ryuji sucked in to quickly, causing him to choke. Everyone’s glared at Ryuji, his loudness had finally gotten them caught. Before Ryuji could answer Shiho laughed.

“I’m kidding! The look on your face was really funny.” Ryuji sighed and put on a fake laugh

“Ya really funny. What’s your dumb truth?”

“Ok ok… do you really have a crush on Akira?”

Oh no, is it too late to answer the previous question?

“H-Hah, uh what? Are you for real right now?” Ryuji took a quick glance at Akira, and his face hasn't changed. It was still the same emotionless expression, the one he used when trying to hide.

Shiho looked over at Akira and panic took over her.

“Oh my gosh I forgot Akira was here, I’m sorry I didn’t mean to ask- that wasn’t- I got caught up in the moment and I-“

“Hey it’s alright, calm down. I don’t know what Futaba has been telling you, but no I don’t have a crush on Akira”

Ann looked at Ryuj frowning. She knew he was lying, and according to the rules she made he was supposed to be punished, but.. she could make an exception. If Ryuji wasn’t ready to tell him then she wasn’t gonna make him.

“Geez the tension in here is so thick I could cut it with a knife.” Futaba said, breaking the silence that had fallen onto the room.

“Sorry it’s my fault…” Shiho mumbled, looking down.

“Hey don’t talk like that, I said it’s fine. Come on let’s continue. Haru, truth or dare?”

“Dare!”

The game continued for awhile, resulting in quite a few videos being taken of everyone doing something stupid. It seemed the incident from earlier had never happened, however Ryuji’s answer to the question from earlier never left Akira’s mind

[a-dreaming-artist]

Take Your Heart- Chapter 1

Ryuji Sakamoto was in love.

He had only come to face this fact very recently, after all the feeling just came out of nowhere. It all happened when the Phantom Thieves were training in Mementos. Akira, also known as Joker, commanded everyone to perform an all out attack on the weakened opponent. Once the shadow was defeated Akira had looked over at Ryuji and gave him a smile that was out of character for his Joker personality. This caused Ryuji’s heart to melt instantly, he got butterflies in his stomach and even lost his breath. Morgana made a snarky comment about how such a weak foe made Ryuji so tired, but Ryuji knew it wasn’t the shadow that caused this shortness of breath. There was only one person in the world who could cause this to happen, and that was Akira Kurusu.

Ryuji didn’t know when these feelings started to develop, how long he refused to accept that the feelings existed. All he knew was when Akira smiled at him, with that absolutely adorable and warm smile of his, he fell for him even more. Though Ryuji would rather die than let anyone know about this stupid crush of his, he’d be completely embarrassed and afraid they’d tell Akira. The only problem is, Ryuji is terrible at keeping things under the radar.

“Do you like Akira?”

Ryuji looked up from his paper, looking directly at Ann who had promised to help him study.

“What the hell does that have to do with studying?”

“Nothing it’s just…” Ann paused, thinking of a way to phrase her words, “You’ve been acting pretty weird lately… every time Akira walks in the room your face gets a little flushed and your mood instantly goes from ok to great.”

“Well he’s my best friend… why wouldn’t I be happy to see him? Now can you help me with this? I don’t understand it” Ryuji was hoping this would be enough to get Ann to drop the topic

“Ya in a second, I still want to talk about this… if you do it’s not a big deal! We all accept you for who you are…. and I’m just kinda curious…”

Ryuji paused, avoiding Ann’s eyes as he thought about his decision. Was he going to tell her? Sure he trusted Ann, they literally fought shadows together almost everyday which requires a lot of trust among your team. In fact the problem wasn’t whether or not he trusted Ann, the problem was Ryuji. Ryuji was just scared to admit the truth, he wasn’t ashamed of this feeling, he was just scared this could ruin the current relationship him and Akira have.

Ryuji must have been silent for to long because Ann spoke again saying, “It’s alright, I won't force you to tell me”

“I like Akira”

Ann’s eyes widened, surprised she actually got an answer, but then went back to normal as she gave Ryuji a smile.

“I knew it!” She exclaimed happily, causing Ryuji’s face to turn red.

“Hey not so loud! We’re in a public place. Besides didn’t you say it’s not a big deal??” Ryuji whispered, looking around to see a few people giving them strange looks.

“Sorry sorry, I just got a little excited. I’m happy you told me.”

“Ya whatever… you just have to promise you won’t tell the others. Especially Akira.”

“Don’t worry Ryuji I wouldn’t betray your trust like that… but I do think you should ask Akira out” Ann mumbled out the last part, knowing Ryuji would never actually do it.

“What? Hell no.” Ann sighed, she knew he was going to say that yet was still disappointed.

“Why not?”

“Uh because there’s no way he would actually go out with me. I don’t even think he’s gay.”

“Ya your right…” Ann paused and looked at the disappointed expression Ryuji had when she said that, “he’s not gay….. he’s bi”

“Wait for real?” Ryuji’s eyes lit up, he had hope again.

“Of course! Have you not noticed?? He constantly compliments you and the guys.”

Now that Ryuji thinks about it, he starts to realize all the flirty comments Akira has ever made. This causes his face to light up like a Christmas tree

“Oh my god” he mumbled out, looking down and resting his hands on his neck. Ann let out a laugh, making Ryuji feel even more embarrassed.

“Wow you really are dense”

“Shut up!!”

Ann laughed even more, holding onto her stomach as she bent forward. All the clues were laid out for him, yet he never noticed them. It was like a puzzle, once you put the pieces together you get the full picture. However in this case it was almost like Ryuji was a toddler trying to put a 3000 piece puzzle together.

When Ann and Ryuji finally pulled themselves together, they continued studying. However Ryuji couldn’t focus, he was to busy thinking about Akira.

Does Akira like me? He flirts with a lot of people, so it’s probably just his personality… But what if it’s not? There’s always a chance he actually feels the same. Maybe Ann is right.. I should ask him out.

Ann and Ryuji wrapped up their studying session and went their separate ways. It was only 5:37, meaning Ryuji could still hang out with Akira, especially since he was feeling confident.

Alright! Your gonna tell him! No backing out now Ryuji!

He pulled out his phone, clicked on Akira’s contact and started typing

“Hey man, you free? I just finished up with Ann and really need a break. My brain is fried”

Ryuji stared at his phone for a minute or two before he finally got a response

“Sorry I can’t, I’m with Makoto right now. Maybe tomorrow”

All of the confidence he had went down the drain.

Makoto again.

Ryuji likes Makoto, she’s nice and is basically the mother of the group. However he’d be lying if he didn’t admit he was jealous of how much time Akira was spending with her.

It was simple at first, they’d have their own small study group together, and occasionally hang out in their free time. However lately they’ve been getting together more and more. At one point Makoto asked Akira to be her pretend boyfriend, and he agreed.

Ryuji sighed and responded with a simple “it’s alright” before putting his phone away. If Akira had feelings for Makoto, he’d be ok with it, as long as he’s happy Ryuji is happy.

Ryuji entered his house with a sigh, his mom wasn’t home, meaning he was all alone. He walked up to his room and laid down on his bed, staring up at the ceiling.

Of course he’d want Makoto over you… she’s smart, beautiful, caring. She has everything. All I have is my stupidity, childish behavior, and above all jealousy. I have nothing.

Ryui groaned and rolled over, burying his face in his pillow. If Akira is happy, Ryuji’s happy… but why doesn’t he feel happy? Why does it hurt so much? Ryuji is used to being rejected, it’s happened quite a lot, He was always okay with it back then. Why isn’t he okay now?

Ryuji closed his eyes and sighed.

Can someone please come and change my heart?