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Chapter Text

Hira Kazunari was heartbroken.

It was the last day of school before vacation, and Hira was excited to spend his summer break watching videos of his favorite idol. He had been a fanboy since before Kioyi's idol debut, just a little after he had gotten his modeling career started. Hira had been lucky enough to have stumbled upon a flyer promoting a dance studio nearby. The flyer had a young boy's beautiful face stamped on the front. Almost instantly, Hira became infatuated. He had only ever had an interest in photography, so when his parents found out about his new fixation, they were nothing less than ecstatic. 

Hira had his day after school all planned out. He would get home, go directly to his room, and watch Kiyoi's Music Station performance of his new single Lights Out. After that, he would eat dinner, take a shower, and binge-watch Kioyi's cutest moments on YouTube until the sun went up. 

As soon as he stepped foot in his front yard, he rushed straight to his bedroom barely remembering to take off his shoes at the entrance. Hira dropped his school bag on his bed and looked for the remote control to turn on the television. Once the TV was on, he switched the channel to where Kioyi was scheduled to perform. However, instead of seeing his idol's beautiful face, a different artist was performing.

Immediately, he rushed to retrieve his phone from the pockets of his backpack. When he powered on his phone, hundreds of notifications began to pop up. Panicked fans retweeted a statement from StarStruck Entertainment, Kiyoi's company.

[Hello, this is StarStruck Entertainment.

First of all, we would like to express our sincere gratitude toward all the fans who love and support Kioyi. We are writing to inform you about Idol Kioyi Sou's future participation in events.

StarStruck Entertainment has had a long discussion with Kiyoi, and we decided to terminate the artist's contract. Kioyi has decided to part ways with StarStruck Entertainment to further pursue his education. 

We extend our sincerest apologies to his fans who have shown love and support for causing concern over his wellbeing. We wish Kioyi the best in his journey, and we hope you can continue to support the other artists under our company 

Thank you. 

StarStruck Entertainent]

Hira's heart dropped to the deepest, darkest pit of his stomach. Had Kioyi retired? That was all he could think about. Hira had been Kioyi's biggest fan since before his debut, but now he was stopping all activities-possibly leaving the industry. Hira wanted to be mad, wanted to be upset at Kioyi's sudden decisions; however, he knew that Kioyi's health mattered the most. He posted a tweet supporting Kioyi's choices and grabbed the homework from his backpack. 

Hira went about his night in robotic motions. After finishing his homework, Hira was called down for dinner by his mother. The TV had been on and playing the news about Kioyi's indefinite hiatus. 

"Isn't that your favorite idol, Kazu?" his mother asked. Hira stayed quiet wanting nothing more than to be in his bed. His mother seemed to have somewhat understood his pain because she quieted down and bowed her head. Dinner went by in an awkward silence with only the hushed sounds of the News in the background. 

At last, Hira finished eating whatever food he could stomach. He had gotten up to wash his dishes, but his mother grabbed his sleeves and said, "I will wash the dishes. You should shower and get some sleep. It's past midnight."  

He rushed to his room to gather some clothes and then ran straight to the bathroom. That was the first time that night that Hira shed tears over Kioyi's sudden disappearance. He must have lost track of the time he spent showering because he was starting to turn slightly pink and his mother knocked on the bathroom door. 

"Kazu, it's time to get out now", she said in a gentle tone, "you will get sick if you stay there any longer." She was right. Hira quickly dried himself off and changed into his night clothes before heading to his room. This whole night wasn't what he had planned to do; therefore, he did what he did every time his routine was broken. He cried like there was no tomorrow, sobbing so hard he could feel his bed shaking with every wrenching sob. 

What a way to start the summer, huh?

Chapter Text

The Hira household was in shambles for the entirety of summer vacation. Hira experienced more change in those two months than he had in his entire life. 

First, his idol had gone on a sudden hiatus ruining his entire planned-out schedule on how he was going to spend his break from school. Then, his parents got a job offer hours away from his childhood home; therefore, he would be living in his grandfather's home for the rest of his high school education. 

Of course, Hira did not like change. At all. He felt his skin crawling at the very thought of living away from his home, but at least he had time to prepare before the actual shift.

His grandfather’s house was bigger than the apartment he lived in with his parents. The house had an enormous yard with beautiful flowers, and he had a spacious room with a desk included. Hira felt that for the first time in his life, he would not mind such a big change. 

Slowly, but surely, Hira grew accustomed to the new location. Just a week before the first day of school, Hira’s parents left, after many days of stalling, to make their journey to their new place. Hira was nothing short of panicked.

Although he did not mind moving places, Hira was concerned about his parents leaving him to take care of himself. He has never been away from his parents, or any authoritative figures, for longer than a few hours, and in those few hours, Hira would always find a way to create unnecessary chaos. 

The first day of being away from his parents passed unbearably slow. He layed in his bed all day watching Kioyi’s TV interviews, only getting up once he felt hungry. Surprisingly, the rest of the week passed by positively with Hira learning new cooking recipes and taking pictures of whatever he found fascinating. The neighbors from across the street would check up on him periodically to ensure his well-being at the request of his parents. 

The neighbors were an old couple well into their 60s, and Hira knew them well because they were friends of his grandfather. The old couple would help take care of Hira after his grandfather’s passing, and his parents had no one else to turn to in moments of emergencies. 

“Hira-kun, have you been doing well on your own? Or do you still feel that you need your parents?” Miko questions with a tilt of her head. 

Hira’s posture stiffens. “I feel fine Miko-san. Knowing Miko-san and Hakari-san live across the street makes me feel a lot less stressed,” he answers with his head down and a slight smile tugging at his lips. 

Miko chuckles, “Hira-kun can come to our home whenever he feels like it.” She moves her hands to the pocket of her jacket pulling out a silver key. “This is a spare key to our house. We want you to have it Hira-kun for if me and Hakari are not home and you want to come on.”

Miko gently lays the key right beside where Hira is sitting. “Thank you, Miko-san,” Hira says, touched by the couple's warming actions. “Now you best have an early night, boy. School starts tomorrow, and you don’t want to be late. It’s a long bike ride,” grumbled Hakari, standing up and making his way towards the entrance. 

“We will come wake you if we don’t see you out by 7:50, so don’t worry too much,” Miko said, leaning down to put her shoes on. 

Hira smiles the smallest smile, “Thank you, Miko-san.” Hira closes the door as the Abe’s walk out, and makes his way to his bedroom. He gathers his night clothes and heads for the bathroom to shower. 

While in the shower, Hira had hundreds of worrying thoughts. Should I prepare for tomorrow morning by laying out my uniform? Am I going to have to introduce myself? How long is the bike ride from here to school? Miko-san said it was a long bike ride. Hira quickly dries himself and puts his pajamas on in order to look for his uniform. 

After five minutes of searching, Hira finds his new uniform and lays it down on his desk chair. He takes the alarm clock right next to his camera, sets it to 6:00 AM, and places it right next to his nightstand. 

He lies down on his bed and knocks out pretty quickly after panicking about not getting enough sleep for the big day tomorrow. 

—------------------

The sound of an alarm clock beeping in Hira’s ear startled him awake. He had set the alarm at 6 AM in order to have enough time to get ready and eat breakfast.

 He got dressed quickly and went to the bathroom to wash his face and brush his teeth. After doing both of these things, he checked the time and realized that he had to eat his breakfast super fast and get on the move so that he could make it to class on time. 

At exactly 7:50, he was walking out the gate with the bike by his side. He looked across the street and saw Miko waving at him. Hira waved back and mounted his bike. The ride to school wasn’t as long as Miko had told him it was. He even had time to stop and take a picture of a rubber duck in a water drain. 

When Hira made it inside the school, he remembered how nervous he was. His heart was pounding inside his chest so loudly that he felt the people around him might be able to hear it. 

Before he knew it, he was standing outside his classroom hearing the loud murmurs of teenage conversations inside. He hastily entered the classroom and headed to his seat when he heard footsteps behind him. Once in his seat, Hira tuned out the conversations buzzing around him and focused on what he would say when he introduced himself. 

Not long after, the teacher entered the classroom and started what Hira found the most dreadful part of the school year: self-introductions. 

“Number 13, please introduce yourself. Number 13? Is something wrong,” said the teacher while Hira was having a nervous breakdown. 

Hira got up so hastily that he accidentally knocked his chair into the desk of the person behind him. 

“H-h-hi,” Hira stuttered, feeling his stomach drop as he heard his classmates laugh and joke about his stuttering. “Hi-hi-hi,” he continued stuttering, but before he could finish his introduction, the door slammed open. The loud bang caught the attention of the classroom; however, Hira still had his head down. The girlish shrieks and the gasps of the class prompted Hira to lift his head. 

Hira suddenly felt dizzy when he saw the person in front of the class. After months, weeks, and days of not seeing any updates on him, he was standing right there just a mere 6 feet away.  

“My name is Kioyi Sou,” his idol said, looking around the classroom before heading to his seat. 

Hira felt hypnotized. Kioyi Sou, his king, his favorite person in the world was in the same room as him. “Uh, Hira Kazunari. You can sit down now,” said the teacher. Hira slumped down on his chair turning his head to the ceiling almost as if he was about to pass out. 

Kioyi saved me once again.

Chapter Text

The school had been the loudest it had ever been since Hira’s first year of high school. The entire student population was surrounding a classroom, more specifically, a desk at the corner by the window. 

Kioyi was sitting at his desk, looking out the window, ignoring the squealing girls and groaning boys. Kioyi must feel suffocated. Because I certainly do. Hira loved Kioyi as much as a servant could love a God, but the crowded room was no easy feat. 

Hira planned to glance at Kioyi one last time before he left the room; however, as he turned to look, he found Kioyi looking straight at him. 

Hira was stunned. It was as if time had stopped. His king, Kioyi, was looking at him. He had ignored all the other people choosing to stare out the window instead, yet there he was, staring straight at him with those beautiful chocolate eyes. 

Hira quickly looked away, unable to maintain eye contact with a deity. He felt unworthy. He stood up and rushed out of the classroom looking for his favorite place to decompress: a large broom closet. 

Once inside the closet, Hira’s thoughts took over. Was he looking at me or was I dreaming? My skin is tingling, is this a good thing? He hated eye contact more than the texture of sticky Natto, so he was taken aback by his ability to obtain it even if it was only for a couple of seconds. 

Wrapped up in his thoughts, Hira almost didn’t hear the bell that signaled the start of a new class period. Hira was instantly on his feet, fleeing his safe place to make it to class in time. As he opened the door to the classroom, he saw Kioyi sitting at the exact same spot and the exact same position that he was in when Hira left. 

Hira felt like Kioyi wasn’t having the best day ever. 

—-------

“Hira, you and Kagami are on class cleaning duty this week. Please come talk to me if there are any problems,” the homeroom teacher said right before class was let out. 

Hira felt dread fill his body. Great, cleaning duty in the first week. How lucky of me. Hira thought. “Okay sir, thank you.” Hira quickly gathered his things and went to the classroom closet to get the cleaning supplies. 

“Excuse me, are you Hira? I’m Kagami. I am supposed to be helping you with cleaning duties this week.” 

Looking up and to his left, Hira saw a short girl with long, black hair and bangs. “Y-y-yes, I-I’m Hira. N-Nice to meet y-you,” he said, bowing his head so swiftly he could get whiplash. “No need to be so formal, we are classmates!” chuckled Kagami, covering her mouth with her hand. 

“R-right,” stuttered Hira. He grabbed the broom and mop from the closet and moved away from the door. Hira bowed his head, avoiding eye contact. “I-I’ll sweep a-and mop the floor. Y-you can work o-on t-the desk and w-windows,” he said. His voice was shaking so badly it sounded like he was going to cry. 

Kagami giggled, “Alright, but don’t be so nervous Hira-kun. It looks like you are about to burst into tears.” Hira didn’t reply to her comment, choosing to continue sweeping the floor. 

“Oh god, did you see Kioyi today? I can’t believe such a popular idol goes to our school,” Kagami said, instantly getting Hira’s full attention. “Truth be told, I have been a big fan of his since his modeling days, but I’m too intimidated to approach him. He must have been feeling suffocated with all those people crowding around him.”

Hira felt himself strongly agreeing with her words. “D-do you have any c-clue why he went o-on a ha-hiatus? It w-was so sudden,” Hira said, not thinking about how Kagami might react to him being a fanboy. 

“Ah! Are you a Bloom?” Kagami questioned. Bloom was the term Kioyi called his fans, and Hira was the biggest Bloom of them all. Hira panicked, looking away from her. He didn’t want anyone to know of his particular interest . “Um, I-” he started, but Kagami cut him off before he could start his explanation. “Are you? Are you? If you are, I would be so happy! It is rare to find male Blooms,” she asked, fiercely scrubbing the desk. 

Hira wanted to lie- wanted to keep to himself- but he promised his parents he would make friends this year. He had never had a long-term friendship with anybody in real life, so he took this chance to start one. 

“Uh, I-I am. A B-bloom I mean,” Hira stated, slowly looking back at her still scrubbing the desk with what looked like passion. As soon as she heard the confession, she looked up and squealed. 

“Oh, that is wonderful! All of my Bloom friends are online friends, so I’m happy to know a fellow Bloom in person!” Kagami said with a pitch so high she could train a dog. Hira bit back a smile. Maybe having a friend isn’t so bad. 

Hira had finished sweeping and mopping during the duration of the conversation. “Woo, I’ve finished wiping down the desk and windows. Have you finished with the floor?” questioned Kagami, glancing over at Hira. Hira replied, “Y-Yes. I’ll put the s-supplies away.” 

Hira grabbed the broom and mop he leaned against the wall and walked toward the desk Kagami was standing by. 

“Ah, don’t worry! I’ll help you put them away,” she said, quickly grabbing the rags before Hira could get them. She rushed to the closet and neatly put the supplies back from where she got them. Hira walked over and waited for her to finish putting the stuff away so that he could put his things away too. 

“I’m glad I had duty with you. I now have a friend who likes Kioyi just like me,” Kagami smiled. Hira placed the cleaning supplies back into their former place and then turned towards Kagami with his head looking down. He was looking at her shoes, too uncomfortable to look at her. “M-me too. I d-don’t have any f-friends in person e-either. Mo-most of my f-friends are Bloom’s f-from different countries,” Hira managed to stutter out. 

Kagami and Hira walked to the front of the class to gather their personal belongings. After grabbing their things, they walked towards the school’s entrance together, making small talk along the way about Kioyi and his talents. They reached the shoe lockers and split ways. Walking to his respective locker, he opened it to see if his shoes were still there. 

Last year, some kids in his class thought it was funny to take his shoes from his locker prompting him to walk all the way back to his apartment in his indoor school shoes. Thankfully though, they were still there, completely untouched. He changed his shoes and looked up when he heard footsteps approaching him. 

“Hira, could you give me your contact information? We should keep in touch to talk about our cleaning duties,” she said, leaning in just a tab bit to whisper in his ear. “And to talk about Kioyi.” Hira moves away hastily feeling his skin crawl from her whispering so close to his ear. He pulled out his phone, typed in his password, and handed it to her- making sure to not make contact with her. “Okay, I’ll add you on email, phone number, and social media. Can I add you on social media?” she looked up slowly with a curious look on her face. 

Hira was embarrassed. He never shared his social media with anyone he knew in person, and no one online knew of his real identity.  “S-sure, but i-it’s a b-bit strange. I am a fan account only,” Hira whispered softly because there were still students in the building.

Kagami’s eyes lit up. “Yay! Me too. I also have a fan account,” she yelled. Hira’s head snapped up, and he looked around to make sure no one heard her exclamation. “C-cound you p-please not share it. I-I would like to keep this p-part of me p-p-private,” he asked. Kagami nodded, “Of course, I know it can be seen as odd by others if you are a fanboy of a dude.” 

After exchanging information, they walked out of the school and parted ways to make their way to their respective homes. When Hira arrived home, he quickly changed into his house clothes and began making dinner. He felt excited for once in his life to go to school. Kiyoi now was attending the same school as him, and he had a friend to talk to. 

—--------

Buzz.  Buzz. Buzz. Hira looked away from his homework and grabbed his phone. Four different messages: one from Kagami, two from his mother, and one from his father. He typed in his password, which was Kioyi’s birthday, and clicked on his mother's message first. 

The first message had been a greeting and the second was questions about how his first day of school went. Hira types out a long paragraph about his first day. Mostly about Kioyi and his new friends, Kagami. After he sent that message he clicked on his fathers. 

His father's message was one of encouragement. His dad had wished him luck and expressed his worries about his well-being. Hira smiled and replied with another lengthy paragraph to his father to ease his worries. 

Lastly, he went to Kagami’s message. It was an article about Kioyi attending a school in the countryside of Japan. There was a photo shown in the article and it one taken of Kioyi in class. Hira felt himself stop breathing when he saw he was in the corner of the photo, looking at his notebook. He texted Kagami.

[ Eternal.Kioyi: Do you know who took this photo? 

KamiSou: Nope, but it seems you’re face made it into an article. 

Eternal.Kioyi: You think anybody will notice me because of it? 

KamiSou: I don’t think so. There are a lot of people in the photo, so I highly doubt they would focus solely on you. Don’t worry too much about it. 

Eternal.Kioyi: I hope so. I can’t help but worry. TT ]

Hira turned off his phone and put his homework away. He hoped that Kioyi wouldn’t see that particular article. That night, to his disbelief, Hira slept like a baby. He dreamed of chasing after Kioyi in an infinite circle. 

Although Kioyi is more closer to Hira than he has ever been before, he still felt so far away. 

Chapter Text

It wasn't until the fourth day of school that Kioyi and Hira finally talked and it was all thanks to Kagami’s curiosity. 

—

Hira and Kagami had built up a routine of walking into school together and having lunch on the stairs leading up to the rooftop- which no one visits. Overtime, Kagami became aware of Hira’s unusual behavior. She noticed that he was very sensitive to normal stimuli such as textures, sounds, touch, and smells. Not only that, but he had unusual mannerisms like swaying or rocking his body, he avoided eye contact like it would set him on fire, and he would repeatedly stutter in every sentence he spoke. 

Kagami didn’t really mind his behavior as it didn’t harm her in any way, but she was curious about what it is that is causing it. Therefore, on the fourth day of school she contemplated asking him directly regarding his demeanor. 

It was during lunch that she finally built up the confidence to ask. She had waited for them to be alone on the stairs to finally pop the question. 

“Hira, I've been curious about this for a few days now, but I felt it was rude to bring it up, so I didn’t. But, my curiosity is killing me,” Kagami said while taking a bite of her cream bread. She was talking so nonchalantly that many would think not to worry, but Hira was on the verge of having a panic attack. 

“W-w-what i-is it?” Hira questioned. He hoped she wasn’t asking about what had killed all his short-term friendships in the past. “Well.. I don’t offend you in any way and if you feel uncomfortable, you can ask me to stop, but…um,” she mumbled, face and ears red. Hira leaned back. 

“I noticed that you act kind of oldly. No offense, of course!” Kagami waved her hands over her face, momentarily causing a breeze to hit Hira’s face. He cringed- noting his discomfort, Kagami stopped moving. She continued, “It is just that you react to certain things very differently that any other guy your age would. Your actions aren’t ordinary.” Kagami paused to look up at Hira; he looked incredibly uncomfortable, and she thought of stopping the conversation altogether, but she has always been a curious person. 

“Hira, is there something causing you to ask this way? If it’s me, then I can chang-” 

Abruptly, Hira stood up and rushed down the stairs. He heard Kagami call his name yelling out something, but he couldn’t hear over the rushing of blood in his ears. 

Is she going to stop being friends with me? Am I too weird? Even a nice girl like Kagami would notice that I am weird. Hira only thought negative things while running all the way to his comfort room. He needed to get away to think of something to excuse his behavior and keep his friend. 

Before he knew it, Hira was sitting inside the closet with his hands to his ears. He rocked in a slow, rhythmic pace till his heart returned to its normal rate. 

Rustle. Rustle. Hira freezes, immediately stopping his rocking. 

“Are you done?”

Hira knows that voice. That soothing voice. He has listened to it for hours on end for weeks, months, years. But he is too afraid to face it. 

Nonetheless, he looks up. He sucks in a deep breath and just stares. Beautiful brown eyes are staring into his soul, godlike wavy hair frames the face. 

“Are you going to keep staring at me like a freak, or are you going to say something?” his God says, leaning forward and bringing his face closer to Hira’s. 

Kioyi is talking to me. He is so beautiful. He smells amazing. He is staring at me. Staring? At? Me? 

“Uh, uh, uh. I-I-I’m” Hira starts, moving so that he is now starting at hands on his lap and not at Kioyi’s beautiful, godlike, gorgeous, roya-

“Is this your spot? I’ll leave if you want. It is just that everyone keeps following, and it is suffocating me, but I can find another spo-” 

“No!” Hira interrupts Kioyi. Kioyi looked spooked. Hira continued, suddenly feeling bad about yelling, “I-I-I mean you can s-stay. I’ll l-leave.” 

Hira quickly gets up, but he feels a tug on his uniform. “No, you can stay here. It looks like you had this spot before me. I’ll look around for another room.” Kioyi grumbles. He lets go of Hira’s pants and moves to stand up. 

“M-mr. Kioyi, s-sir-” 

“Don’t call me that. Just Kioyi is fine”

“-you c-can use the r-room. Y-you need it m-more than I do.” Hira stutters out.

“Ugh, still on that then. I told you that you can have the damn roo-” he stops suddenly. “How about we both use this room. I’ll be so quiet that you won’t even know I am here, and I am guessing you will do the same?” He looks straight at Hira. 

Say yes. You’ll spend more time together. Say you’ll be quiet. Say something!

Hira nodded his head, tongue too tied to say anything. Kioyi sighed a sigh of relief- probably- and leaned against the wall. Hira felt totally entranced. Like Kioyi was a car accident he couldn’t look away from. 

Ding. Dong. Ding. Dong.

The ringing of the school bell brought Hira back to life. 

“Ah, time to go. See you later I guess. Uhmm” Kioyi paused. Oh no. I forgot to introduce myself to him. How could I forget? I’m such an idiot. Useless, dum-

“H-H-Hi-Hi-Hira,” Hira managed to say. 

“Um, then. See you later, Hira.” 

The door closed behind him. Hira was left in the closet all alone. He felt a tingle make its way up from his toes to the top of his head. 

He said my name. Kioyi said my name. I have been acknowledged by the King. I could kneel down and kiss his feet. Kioyi said my name. 

—

Rwush.

The sound of the door closing behind Hira. 

Finally, he was home. 

He felt like he was going to collapse from exhaustion. The day felt centuries long, especially since the moment in the closet. He felt like he was floating on a cloud with thousands of pounds of weights lying on top of him. But at last, he was home. 

He quickly washed up and layed in his bed. His mind was running millions of scenarios of him and Kioyi. 

However, not long after his head hit the pillow, he completely knocked out.

Unfortunately, Hira forgot one thing; to set his alarm for the morning.

Chapter Text

Thump. Thump. Thump. 

A loud banging on the front door woke Hira from his sleep. Sluggishly, Hira rose from his bed and made his way toward the front door unaware of the bright lights shining through his windows. 

“Hira-kun? Are you there?” 

The concerned voice of Miko-san almost completely took Hira out of his sluggish state. He quickly opened the door and saw Miko standing in front of him with a worried expression. 

“Hira-kun, did you forget to set your alarm? If you don’t get ready now, you are going to be late to school,” Miko-san said, looking Hira up and down. 

Almost immediately, Hira felt his heart rate pick up and an uncomfortable feeling settled down on his bones. He had ruined his routine. 

An overwhelming feeling of anxiety and dread surrounded Hira. 

Miko-san noticed Hira’s distress and stepped inside to try and console him. 

“Hira-kun, you need to get ready quickly. I will write a note to your teacher and Hakari will drive you to school. Come on, then.” Hira allowed himself to be dragged to his bedroom where his school clothes were despite the urge to claw the hand off his arm. 

Miko-san let go of Hira’s arm and made a move toward his uniform, but Hira quickly grabbed his clothing and ran to the bathroom to change. 

After washing his face and brushing his death, Hira stepped out and saw a pair of socks and shoes at his doorstep. 

“Hira-kun, I grabbed your bag and phone and put it in the car already. Just put on your shoes and let's get going.” 

Hira did just that and thanked Miko-san. 

On the way to school, seated at the back of Hakari’s car, Hira dissociated so that he wouldn’t feel the stress that was created by a change in his daily routine. 

“Alright, Hira we are here. Hand this note to your teacher and tell him if he has any issues or questions to call this number,” Hakari said, pointing at the number on the paper. Hira nodded, not saying a word, and got out of the car. 

Hira was too distracted to notice the amount of people crowding the school gates. He tried to squeeze his way through the crowd, but he felt someone grab his shoulder. 

Hira turned so quickly you could almost hear a snap. 

“Kid, is it true that Kioyi goes to this school? How is he as a student? Give us a statement.” 

Hira looked at the woman who was digging her nails into his shoulder. He didn’t pep a squeak. 

“Hey, stop hogging him! Kid, have you seen Kioyi around the school yet? Is he arrogant?” said the man who spun him out of the woman’s grip. 

Hira felt tears well up in the corner of his eyes. He wanted to speak, to tell them to let go please , but his brain wasn’t working and allowing him to speak. The hands grabbing him were causing his brain to go into overdrive. 

Suddenly, he felt a hand grab his wrist tightly and pull him away from the crowd. “Come on,” a voice whispered. “Don’t just stand around like an idiot and keep walking.” Hira recognized that sweet tone. 

Hira looked at the person holding his wrist. It was none other than King Kiyoi in the flesh. Hira wanted to talk, but his brain was shut off. He felt as if his mouth was sewed shut. He just continued staring until Kioyi’s uncomfortableness was showing. 

“Are you just going to stare at me like a creep or what?” harsh words fell from Kioyi’s angelic mouth. Hira looked down, staring at the floor as he was dragged away. He was suddenly aware of the hand dragging him. He felt his skin was set ablaze. He didn’t want to pull away from the touch, but his skin was crawling. He looked up and saw that Kioyi was pulling him into that spot.

Once the door was closed, Hira yanked his wrist away, unable to contain his emotions any longer. “Hey! I just helped you. Don’t be rude, you idiot,” Kioyi said, stepping toward Hira angrily. Hira opened his mouth, wanted to explain that no I want to be close, but my brain is stupid and it makes decisions on its own and I love you and I’ve been a fan year-

Hira drops to the floor instead. He felt completely overwhelmed, like the world was out to spite him and now Kioyi hates him too. He feels tears running down his face. Great, I’m embarrassing myself in front of Kioyi. I really am an idiot. 

“Oi, don’t cry. I was frustrated. I didn’t mean it,” Kioyi whispered, stepping back and sitting down on the floor. He sat facing Hira. Hira continued to cry. Small whimpers fill the room.

Hira would have cried for as long as possible, but it finally registered in his mind that he needed to go to class. He was already late and needed to be in class already. He stood up abruptly and seized his crying, startling Kioyi in the process. 

“What the hell are you doing?” Kioyi said, moving out of his sitting position to stand in front of Hira. Hira looked at Kioyi. He still felt as if he couldn’t produce words, so he grabbed his phone and typed out a message. 

I need to go to class. If I don’t, the teachers will call my parents and worry them. I am supposed to be responsible. 

Kioyi tilted his face towards the phone and read the message. “Why don’t you just talk like a normal person, you idiot,” he said under his breath. “Well let's go. We have the same class anyway. Let's walk together.” 

Hira felt a slight alarm at the offer but decided against objecting because that was his God giving him an order. Hira hummed instead, showing he agreed. Kioyi nodded and went to unlock the door. 

That’s how a new step was added to Hira’s routine. He would arrive at school and walk to class with Kioyi, never saying a word. They just walked. And even when Hira was feeling overwhelmed or tired, they stopped by the spot and Kioyi allowed Hira to decompress. 

Hira felt like he was living in a dream because never in his life he would have thought that he would be walking next (or more accurately, slightly behind) his idol. He felt like life was finally looking up, but he completely forgot about the other friend he ran away from.