𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑫𝒆𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒒𝒖𝒆𝒏𝒕'𝒔 𝑻𝒖𝒕𝒐𝒓 | Kazutora Hanemiya x Reader

Chapter 11

The next few days were awkward for Y/N and Kazutora. The cultural festival was happening soon, so the class ramped up the production of their haunted house. The pair had to coordinate a few things with their classmates, but other than things for their project, they didn't really talk to each other anymore. There were no more greetings, no more tutoring sessions, no stolen glances during class. Now, they were just acquaintances at most.

At lunch, Kazutora was helping the props people assemble the walls of their maze, while Y/N was cleaning up discarded materials. She and her classmates filled an entire box full of trash, and the classroom was spotless.

"Y/N! This box is pretty full," said Erina. "I think we can bring it down to the dumpsters already."

"Oh, I'll take care of it," Y/N said, and she grabbed the box and made her way out the door.

This is kind of heavy, she thought. She was walking down the stairs, but since the box of trash was obscuring her view, she slipped on one of the steps.

Fuck, she felt herself falling, but suddenly something stopped her.

"Are you okay?" asked a familiar voice. Tanigawa peeked from the side of the box to see if Y/N was alright.

"Oh hey, it's you, Tanigawa-senpai," she said, smiling warmly. "I'm fine. Thanks for catching me."

"Want me to take this down for you?" he offered.

"Ah, no, it's okay," she said, trying her best to subtly sidestep him.

"By the way," Tanigawa said, "are you and that guy from the library the other night dating?" He was looking up at Y/N with hopeful eyes.

"No," Y/N said curtly, "he's just my classmate."

"Okay, good," he sighed. "I heard things about that guy and he's trouble."

This time, Y/N couldn't hide the annoyance on her face. "What do you mean trouble?"

+ + +

"He-hey, Hanemiya!" Erina called. She knew from Y/N that he was a nice guy, but she still couldn't help but feel a little scared of him. "Y/N was taking down a heavy box of trash. I just thought she might need some help if you're free." Erina wasn't stupid. She had a feeling that something was going on between her friend and Kazutora, and she wanted to give them a little push. "She didn't leave that long ago."

"Okay, got it," he told her, and headed straight for the door. Kazutora was really nervous about seeing Y/N. He didn't know if she would let him help her. They haven't even been alone together since their walk from the library. How can I face her when she hates my guts? And when I still really really like her...

Kazutora was about to round the corner to the stairs when he heard two people speaking.

"What do you mean trouble?" He could tell it was Y/N.

"You know," a familiar voice said. Kazutora peeked through the corner to see the same senior who followed her out of the library. Who is this guy? And why is he always around Y/N? He thought to himself. "Well, he's a known gangster, for one. And I heard he's one of the top executives of Tokyo Manji Gang. Some of my friends went to the same elementary school he want to and I heard he's been beating the shit out of people since he was a kid. And who gets a tattoo that huge in high school? He's trouble and nothing good can happen if you stick by him, you know what I mean?"

Kazutora clenched his fists listening to this guy. Who does he think he is? I'll kill him. But just like Y/N's mother's words got to him, his seniors' words got to him as well. Nothing good will happen if she sticks by me. That's why I stopped talking to her, right? Kazutora was about to walk back to his classroom defeated when Y/N spoke up.

"Who the hell are you to speak that way about Kazutora?" She spat. Both Tanigawa's and Kazutora's eyes widened. "What do you know about him or Toman that I don't know?" Her voice was shaking with anger.

"Hey, don't get mad," Tanigawa backtracked. "I was–I was just looking out for you..."

"Don't act like you know me, either," she sneered. "Kazutora's a good person. He's smart and funny and kind. He's been nothing but nice to me and he's really considerate, too. He has such a good heart and I won't allow an idiot like you to bash him like that."

"Jeez, okay," Tanigawa scratched his head. "If I had known you could be such a bitch, I never would've paid attention to you."

Before she could even respond, Kazutora quickly stepped between her and Tanigawa. "What did you call her?" Kazutora glowered at his senior.

At that moment, all the color drained from Tanigawa's face. He couldn't even face Kazutora. He muttered a pathetic "sorry" and quickly went down the stairs.

Kazutora turned to Y/N but didn't meet her eyes. His cheeks were bright red from Y/N talking him up to Tanigawa. "I'll take this for you." He placed his hands on the side of the box, brushing his fingers against Y/N's, and grabbed it from her. Y/N watched him as he walked down the stairs and disappeared from her view.

She sat on the step, unable to keep her knees from folding. She turned bright red herself and covered her face with her hands. Don't tell me he heard me say all that.

+ + +

Is that what she really thinks about me? Even after I ignored her this entire time? Kazutora had already thrown the box into the dumpster, but he couldn't move from his spot. He wanted so badly wanted to fold, to say he was sorry, to make everything go back to normal. But he was still scared. He heard from Y/N herself what she thinks of him, and yet he can't shake off her mother's words, and now his senior's words. He remembered the gangsters at the beach and how they went after them because of Kazutora's reputation. He couldn't help but believe that despite what she thinks of him, he would be no good for her.

You're such a mess, you're such an embarrassment, are you really my child? Kazutora started hearing his father's words in his head. He remembered how his father beat him, tore down his confidence, made him feel like he was nothing. Kazutora didn't realize that even though his father was long gone from his life, the damage was near irreparable. He hadn't felt like this in a long time. He felt like he was going to go crazy. He thought he wasn't good enough for anything or anyone. He wanted to disappear. Tears threatened to spill out of his eyes. Kazutora's a good person. His heartbeat quickened as he remembered her words, her voice. He has such a good heart. Slowly, his hurt and his pain eased. He looked up at his school's building, searching for the window of his classroom. He found it and saw Y/N looking out of it, staring at something far beyond them. He followed her gaze and looked at the fluffy clouds in the sky. Somehow, their whiteness made the sky look even more blue. If you say things like that, Kazutora told Y/N in his head, I'm going to end up believing you.