Romance AU - ByakuRisa

6

Books hold truth, even if it's fiction.

[Word count: 3672]

The classroom, bathed in the soft morning light that filtered through the windows, held a serene atmosphere as the students of class 78 settled into their seats, notebooks and textbooks in hand. Risa seated next to Calliope as usual, who already had all of her assignments completed, granted she finished them the night before, but at least she was somewhat prepared. Risa on the other hand, was not prepared at all. She was writing an essay right there, her hand moving practically at the speed of light to finish this sorry excuse of an essay before it was due in. She checked the clock on the wall of the classroom. Five minutes, it was due in five minutes.

Risa's notebook lay open before her, a canvas for her thoughts and creativity. Every word, every sentence in her essay had been meticulously chosen and carefully crafted, even if she was making it up as she went, the words were strung together perfectly. Her unique talent as an entertainer extended to her writing, and the pages before her were a testament to her skill.

Byakuya, with his usual aura of sophistication and calm, saw an opportunity in this moment, looking at her from his seat at the back of the class, she looked so focussed, and not only was he curious as to what she was writing, but he wanted to know her better, and any excuse to talk to her such as 'criticising' her work, was good for him. He stood from his chair and walked up to Risas seat, standing behind her chair. He placed either hand around her shoulders to land on her desk, he was leaning over the back of Risa's chair, his gaze scanning the pages of her essay, his chin close to laying on her head. After reading through it -while Risa was muttering swears and insults at him under her breath, something about being in her personal space, something about him smelling good 'not like i care'- He saw that it was all grammatically, punctually and spelled correctly. He was well aware that the content was impeccable after taking this fact in, but he needed a pretext to engage her, to prolong this precious connection before the arrival of the teacher.

With a slight furrowing of his brows, he commented, "Lu, I couldn't help but notice that the structure of your essay seems to be lacking coherence." His words, though subtly manufactured, were intended to initiate conversation. He had chosen to feign concern about the essay's structure rather than its content, a tactic to sustain the interaction and relish this unique closeness for a while longer.

Risa, unwilling to back down, met his gaze with a hint of incredulity in her eyes. "Oh, really, Togami?" Her voice carried a touch of challenge as she responded. "I was sooo certain that I had the structure just right. Please, enlighten me with your suggestions for improvement." Her words were sarcastic, emphasis on larger words she normally wouldn't use in her ordinary vocabulary in attempt to make fun of the fact he was so stuck up. Though seemingly confrontational, her words deeply concealed the unspoken truth that their exchange was about more than just an essay. It was an argument that hinted at a deeper connection between them, a connection that was slowly but surely growing into something more significant.

"Don't poke fun at me. For once, i was actually offering my assistance to someone like you." He moved away from leaning over her, standing next to her desk now, looking down at her with his arms crossed. Risas foot tapped to the beat of her heart, growing more rapid by the second as they held eye contact.

"Someone like me? ive made this clear, so get it into your head." She stood from her seat, poking his chest as she spoke her next words, "im just as rich as you. Stop looking down on me, or anyone even."

Within moments of this arguing breaking out, the teacher had walked into the room, seeing the two of them next to each other, the teacher made a fair assumption. "Togami, Lu, to the principal's office. How often am i going to have to do this?"

"Only one more when i smack his fucking face in-"
"Lu!" The teacher yelled, cutting her off with a simple movement of their arm, pointing towards the classroom door. 

Risa sighed, and Byakuya followed with the same feeling in his chest, both of them leading out of the classroom.