"I hope you're all ready to collaborate!" the teacher announced with a too-cheerful smile. "Today's activity is about communication and teamwork. Groups of two!"
The class buzzed with excitement, mild panic, and not-so-subtle glances across the room.
Before I could even open my mouth, a voice behind me said:
> "I'm with Kenyu."
I turned.
Rei.
The teacher glanced at the seating chart and nodded. "Aizawa and Kuroyuki, you're partners."
I didn't even have time to say "wait" before Rei was dragging his chair forward to sit beside me like it was the most natural thing in the world.
---
We were supposed to design a simple poster together for a nature-themed competition.
Rei leaned in. "What do you think, Yuki?"
I blinked. "What?"
He smiled. "It's a cute nickname. Short. Warm. Suits you."
My brain blanked.
Yuki?!
From across the room, I heard at least two girls whisper "Yuki?!" in horrified unison.
Hinata, who had unfortunately been placed with a quiet kid who only spoke in yes-no sentences, mouthed dramatically:
> "YOU'RE IN A SHOUJO MANGA."
---
The nickname spread like wildfire.
In the next ten minutes, five people had asked me if Rei and I were "a thing," and one random guy casually told Rei, "Nice. Smooth move, bro."
Meanwhile, I was just trying to color a tree without breaking my pencil.
"Yuki, what do you think about this font?"
"Yuki, this green or that green?"
"Yuki, are you ignoring me or just shy?"
"YUKI, I WILL SET YOUR POSTER ON FIRE," Hinata whisper-screamed from her table.
---
Meanwhile… Shinbou?
He wasn't sulking.
Nope.
He was actually laughing.
Laughing.
With a group of guys from another class who'd joined us for the field trip talking about video games, sports, and manga like it was totally normal.
I blinked like I was seeing a mirage.
He even fist-bumped someone.
Someone bumped me and said, "Didn't know your partner had a personality. Who knew?"
I didn't know whether to be offended or impressed.
---
Rei nudged me. "You're staring."
"I am not."
"You are. You look like a girlfriend who just got replaced."
"Excuse me?!"
He just smirked and continued shading the leaves on the poster like he hadn't just exploded my brain.
---
When we finished the project, Rei signed our names with a flourish.
Right below it, he wrote:
"Yuki & Rei Team Evergreen."
I was about to erase it when he gave me that look again.
The soft one.
The "I know you'll forgive me because I look good saying it" look.
Ugh.
From the corner of my eye, I saw Shinbou glance at the board.
His expression didn't change.
But he stopped laughing.