#and valentine's fluff is justice x10

[traumxrei-archive]

【 not-so-secret admirer 】

NRC launches lockers for valentine's day where students can anonymously place gifts for their crushes. Now it was only a matter of not getting caught by said crush... (ft. jamil viper, ace trappola, floyd leech)

gn! prefect, word count: 2.2k

a/n: happy (belated) valentines day !! bringing you basketball club boys and extra soft valentine's day fluff ^^ good luck to everyone who's weak to fluff <3

jamil viper

When Jamil first heard about the Valentine lockers, his mind did flash to a certain resident of Ramshackle. But he desperately pushed the image out of his mind, telling himself that he was too busy. Which was technically the truth. He barely had time to himself that week, with how the assignments were starting to overlap with his extracurriculars.

But still, he…managed to make something. Combining some alchemy into cooking, he made a small box of chocolates that wouldn't melt unless eaten, complete with fillings that he knew the Prefect would enjoy.

It was his intention to give it to them. If he ran across them in the hallways he would give it to them, he told himself. If he found himself somewhere near the lockers, then he would put the gift in their locker.

But what Jamil wasn't expecting was for Kalim, of all people to send him to the lockers.

"C'mon, Jamil!" Kalim said cheerily. "I've already checked mine and I got lots of nice messages, so you should check yours." At his pointed stare, the white-haired added, "H-hey, I didn't eat any of the chocolate, I promise!"

So that was how Jamil ended up in front of the dreaded Valentine's lockers. He stared at them dejectedly as he started to walk toward where the second-year lockers were.

And that was when he spotted the Prefect, pacing a few meters away. He stopped in his tracks, the box of chocolates feeling that much heavier in their presence.

He couldn't help but call their name, despite his nervousness, "Prefect." Their eyes met his and they froze lightly, clearly not expecting there to be another person around.

"O-oh, Jamil," They said, a nervous undercurrent running through their words. "What brings you here?"

"I was about to check my locker," Jamil carefully eyed the flowers in their arms. "Did you come back from checking yours?" The flowers were beautiful, blooms of lilies and carnations artfully arranged into one bouquet.

"Huh?" He saw how their shoulders jumped— a strange, almost knee-jerk reaction. "Oh, this is– it isn't for me."

"Ah," Jamil couldn't help but swallow, a suffocating feeling starting to grow in his chest because…his crush liked someone else. He couldn't show them that he was sad. He looked away from the bouquet, and his eyes— unfortunately— landed on the locker that they were standing in front of.

"Were you….about to give those flowers to Riddle?" Jamil knew he shouldn't ask. He knew that it would only hurt him more if he knew the details, and yet he didn't take back his words. Silence stretched out between them and Jamil wanted nothing more than to leave.

But then they spoke.

"The…flowers," Their words were so very careful, their eyes flicking back and forth between him and the flowers. "They're actually for you."

For…him?

The pressure in his chest lifted, and he exhaled in disbelief. His eyes scanned the lockers and sure enough, his name was one away from where they were standing. Did that mean what he so desperately wanted to believe that it meant?

And maybe Jamil had been too quiet for far too long because they started elaborating, "Well, I did stop in front of your locker earlier, and I was just worried that you wouldn't…like it…so–"

"Actually," Jamil interrupted, closing the gap between them just a little. "I was here to put this in someone's locker too."

He pulled out the box of chocolates, gathering his courage before meeting their eyes, "But since you're already right in front of me, it's better if I gave it to you personally, right?"

There was a stunned smile on their face that Jamil wanted to commit to memory, the butterflies kicking in his stomach as he took the bouquet into his arms. He half-wanted to put the flowers aside, and take them into his arms to hold; if only to convince himself this was real. But he didn't have to, not when they had already tentatively taken his hand in theirs.

The corner of his own lips turned upward as he pressed a lingering kiss to their knuckles, "So…would you be mine, ya ruuhi?"

note: > lilies mean "affection for loved ones" and carnations mean "fascination and love" in flower language ^^ > ya ruuhi means "my soul" in arabic >:D

ace trappola

The Prefect was…being shifty today. That wasn't a regular thing, no. Usually, the people being shifty was Grim, and that was usually because he didn't do some assigned homework and was going to copy off someone else. (Not that Ace wouldn't do the same.)

But Ace couldn't help but notice the way they flinched every time he was near, the strained smile and the way they kept glancing at him. He feigned ignorance because it was better if they didn't realize he noticed.

If he didn't know any better, he would say that he was making them nervous. But why would the Prefect of all people, be nervous because of him?

Today was Valentine's day, wasn't it…? That was when it clicked.

Ace let a smug smile settle on his face. Maybe…the Prefect liked him? So they were going to confess to him on Valentine's Day? The feeling of fondness all but ballooned in his chest as he waited for them to pull him to the side and confess.

But his impatience getting the best of him as the day came to a close. Was he reading the signs wrong after all? Did he really fool himself into thinking that his crush on the Prefect was requited?

And that was when Ace, while most definitely not sulking at all, saw them turning a corner. Curious, Ace followed behind them, watching as they scanned the lockers, a wrapped gift in hand.

And before he could stop himself, he walked up to them, snatching the box with a smirk, "Now that's just boring~"

"Wh– Ace Trappola! Give that back."

He held it out of their reach, "I mean, if you wanna confess, at least have the guts to say it out loud. Isn't confessing anonymously kinda cheating?" He glanced at the lockers, finding his name right in front of where he was standing. But he needed them to say it out loud for him to beleive it.

"I…I don't know what you're talking about," They huffed, finally leveling him with a less-than-friendly glare. "Now give it back."

"Don't wanna~" Ace said, leaning into their space a little more. "Besides, aren't these for me anyway?"

"How did you–?" They smacked a hand against their own mouth and Ace couldn't help but laugh. Half because he found the whole situation funny, and half because he was glad that he wasn't wrong. There was a pout on their face when he was finally done laughing.

He was grinning ear-to-ear now, spinning the box like it was a basketball, "It doesn't take a genius to figure out, with the way you were acting, Prefect. So, you like me that much, huh?"

"A terrible choice, I know," They said, shoving at his shoulder lightly. "Open it then, Mr. Genius."

Ace carefully tugged at the ribbon, the paper falling away to reveal a familiar-looking box of chocolates. He inhaled sharply, "No way— Did you get me those chocolates I was raving about a few months back?" He distantly remembered bragging about the expensive box of cherry-filled chocolates that his parents got him for Christmas, but he wasn't expecting this.

"Well…you said you wanted them." Their reaction was far too nonchalant for Ace's liking, and he had to hide the flush that was threatening to take over his face at the thought of them remembering such a trivial thing.

"That's so…stupid," Ace huffed, ruffling their hair wildly. "But…thank you." He felt the butterflies kicking wildly in his stomach when they smiled at him, and he knew he had to do something, or else he would end up doing something embarrassing.

"Wanna skip studying and do something fun?" The words were out of his mouth in a rush, and he felt a plan formulating in his mind as he grinned. "C'mon, I'll pay for snacks. And you're not gonna refuse your new boyfriend, right?"

floyd leech

Floyd wasn't the type to be concerned over a trivial holiday like Valentine's Day. But being unconcerned didn't mean he was completely uninterested. Contrary to popular belief, Floyd Leech did think about mushy stuff like feelings. Especially since he realized his feelings toward one particular shrimp…

Floyd grinned sunnily, staring at the hoard of people in front of the Valentine's lockers. He wondered if Shrimpy was among those minnows. Then again, why would they be? Surely they weren't going to give anyone a gift today…right?

He turned a corner, his feet bringing him to Class 1-A's lockers. There seemed to be a buzz happening in front of one of the lockers. Floyd meandered closer, ignoring the way the minnows paled upon seeing him.

Once he finally got to the front of the crowd, he could see students taking turns placing different gifts into an overly-full locker. Floyd tilted his head in contemplation. Who in Class 1-A was that popular? It couldn't possibly be Crabby, right? Sure, he bragged about being popular, but there was no way Floyd ever believed in his words.

That was when someone managed to wrangle the locker shut with a particularly loud slam, and Floyd caught a glimpse of the name on the locker.

It was his Shrimpy's name. Floyd blinked, eyes going from the name on the locker to the gifts that lined even the outside of the locker. His Shrimpy was that popular…?

To which his brain answered with, of course they were that popular. It was natural that someone who resembled sunlight dancing across the ocean's surface would be popular. If Floyd's face split with a grin at the very sight of them, then of course there were others who felt the same.

And just like that, Floyd's jovial mood had flipped itself on its head. He shoved out of the crowd, uncaring of the stares that followed him as he scowled. He didn't know who he was upset with, simply that he was upset because Little Shrimp really was too far out of his reach.

In his state, he didn't notice someone calling for him until a hand touched his arm, "Floyd…?" Floyd's head snapped toward the voice, finding the little shrimp standing there wide-eyed.

Seeing them right in front of him put a bitter taste on his tongue, "Go away, Shrimpy." That wasn't what he meant to say. But if they didn't go away, then he was going to do something stupid.

"Did something happen?" Shrimpy asked, glancing him over. "You don't look hurt."

He rolled his eyes, "Why dontcha go play with all your fans instead?" He saw a frown stretch on their face, their brows wrinkling at his harsh words. And he so badly wanted to reach over to smooth their brow but instead he looked away.

"Floyd Leech, just what are you talking about?"

"It's just…Shrimpy's so popular," It felt childish to complain about such a thing in front of them. "'N it's not fair, because…" Because what? Because Floyd harbored feelings for them that he never confessed? Those other minnows didn't know that. He couldn't exactly blame them.

"Ah," They snapped their fingers. "Are you upset that I got more gifts than you? At the lockers?"

Floyd groaned, "No way—"

"Here," They held up a box for him to take. "For you."

Floyd took the box gingerly, still frowning all the while, "Shrimpy, if this is a pity gift, Imma squeeze the life outta you." Still, a part of him still hoped that there was a chance.

He opened the gift, untying the bow and lifting the lid. Inside was…a scarf. Teal in color, he could see an eel motif in the scarf's design, a dopey smiley face, and a tail at either end of the scarf.

When he looked up, the Little Shrimp this cute nervous expression on their face, "I told you it was for you. It's just…I thought you wouldn't…get to know it was from me."

…Oh.

So they were on their way to gift this to him? Anonymously? Well now he really wanted to squeeze them.

And so he did, he dropped the box with a laugh, snaking his arms around them, "Shrimpy~ I love it~ How'd you even find that thing~?"

"I-I made it," They confessed, looking a little startled by the sudden embrace. "You said you didn't like the grey scarves of your dorm uniform, right?"

"Aha, I remember that," Floyd rubbed his cheek against their head, feeling so elated with the fact that they were here for him. Him. Shrimpy liked Floyd Leech and not any of those other minnows.

"Hey, Shrimpy~" Floyd grinned once more. "Doesn't that mean we're dating now?"

"Wait, you like me back?" They squeezed out, and it was Floyd's turn to be disappointed.

"C'mon Shrimpy, I thought you'd figure it out by now," Floyd shook his head before picking up the scarf. "Then shouldn't we do something to celebrate? Ooh, how about we go to the Lounge and raid Jade's snack box? And I've gotta show off to the world that Shrimpy's made me such a cool scarf~" Floyd tugged them along as he rambled about their plans. They piped up a couple of times, but other than that, they seemed happy enough to be lead wherever he wanted.

Good. There was no need for them to go to their locker. He could buy them all that and more, now that they were his.

ty ty for reading all these valentine's drabbles ? ficlets ? valentine's stories !! if you enjoyed and would like to read more of my works, come check out my masterlist <3