Remember Me (Illumi x reader) (Modern)

𝒞𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓉𝑒𝓇 4

An exasperated groan escaped me as I recognized the familiar voice. I turned my head to the side, shooting an exhausted look at the person approaching me. It was Hisoka, his smirk evident as he easily kept pace with me through the crowded hall.

"No, thank you," I snapped, tightening my grip on the heavy books I was carrying. Despite my refusal, he reached out and took the books from me anyway.
"Nonsense," he said with a smile. "You're clearly struggling," he observed, a playful tone in his voice. "Even if it's adorable to see, I should help you~" he chuckled, seemingly enjoying the situation.

I sighed and navigated through the crowded hallways, occasionally bumping shoulders with others. Hisoka, ever curious, piped up with a question, "So, where's Illumi?"
"He's in Science class. It's the only class I don't share with him," I replied, a hint of annoyance in my tone.

"Oh? Is that so?" Hisoka's tone remained playful. "Machi has Science class too, you know," he added with a mischievous glint in his eyes.
I knew that already. Machi was Illumi's science partner; he had mentioned before that she was "okay" to work with.

I found myself growing increasingly irritated, biting the inside of my cheek in frustration. Though, it wasn't like I had any strong feelings against Machi; I barely knew her. We had never spoken, and she wasn't even in any of my classes.

"Hmmm, what's wrong, my little fairy?" Hisoka's teasing voice came from beside me, and I felt a rush of heat flood my cheeks as I shot him a glare. I couldn't decide if I was more annoyed at being called a 'little fairy' or at the fact that I knew he had brought up Machi just to get under my skin.
"Oh, I love it when you look at me like that," he purred, his words only serving to turn my irritated expression into one of outright disgust.

After what felt like a long and uncomfortable walk, I finally reached my classroom door, feeling a sense of relief wash over me.
"Such a shame, it seems our stroll has come to its end~" Hisoka pouted playfully, handing back my books as we reached the end of our walk. I looked at him with an exaggerated frown. "Yes, it is such a shame," I replied sarcastically. Without waiting for his response, I then turned on my heel and walked into my classroom, leaving him standing in the hallway.

I placed my books on my desk, let out a sigh, and rested my head against the cool surface. The classroom felt strangely quiet and empty, a stark contrast to the lively chatter I was used to in other classes where I had friends.

My gaze wandered around the room, taking in the scenes unfolding before me. A group of boys engaged in animated conversation, their voices blending into a lively buzz. In the back left corner, a cluster of girls giggled and whispered, likely sharing stories and gossip. Two boys at the front were deep in a debate about comic book heroes, their voices rising with passion.

The rest of the students seemed to have succumbed to the monotony of the class, heads resting on their desks in various states of slumber. Meanwhile, the teacher diligently erased the blackboard, preparing for our lesson.

- - -

As the class ended, I lifted my head from my folded arms, feeling as bored as ever. The lesson had been a repetitive review of the material from the previous class, and I struggled to muster any enthusiasm. Reluctantly, I gathered my heavy books and pushed myself up from my desk.

Dragging my feet through the halls, I made my way towards my locker, lost in my thoughts. However, my attention was abruptly drawn to Illumi walking ahead of me to my left. A smile tugged at my lips, and I quickened my pace, determined to catch up with him.

I reached out my hand, intending to grab his shoulder as I jogged to match his long strides.
I pulled on him with enough force to turn his body towards mine, his dark eyes meeting my (e/c) ones. At first, he appeared surprised, likely because he wasn't expecting someone to forcefully turn him. However, his expression quickly returned to its usual stoic demeanor once he realized it was me.

"Oh, (Y/N). How was your class?" Illumi asked, his gaze focused on me. I couldn't help but grin in response, keeping a hold on his arm as I struggled to keep up with him. "Extremely boring," I huffed.
"I see. How unfortunate," Illumi remarked calmly, effortlessly pulling his arm out of my grasp. My frown deepened at his nonchalant reaction.

"Machi," Illumi called out to her, drawing my attention to the girl he was addressing. "This is (Y/N)," he said, pointing down at me.

I looked at Machi, feeling a mix of surprise and admiration. She was undeniably beautiful, and I couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy. Knowing that Illumi saw her every week and enjoyed working with her wasn't too troubling at first. However, seeing her now made my emotions simmer with a hint of resentment.
What bothered me most was that I knew Illumi didn't judge people solely based on their appearance. He was more nuanced than that, even if he kept his thoughts to himself most of the time. Despite this, seeing him interact with someone as attractive as Machi stirred up some unsettling feelings within me.

~

After an unbearably painful lunch, Machi headed to her next class. The final class of the day was gym, where Illumi and I were participating in a fairly odd group activity.

We had been doing this activity for a few classes now. It involved all grades coming together to form groups of three. Once the groups were formed, we were guided outside and each given a badge with an assigned number.
Next, we received a piece of paper with another set of three numbers on it. These were the numbers we needed to "steal" from other students, excluding our teammates. The goal was for each student to end up with a number that wasn't originally theirs if everyone successfully collected their targets' badges.

I didn't quite grasp the purpose of this exercise; perhaps it was meant to familiarize us with teamwork. It was clear that I was teaming up with Illumi, and he didn't appear to have any objections. However, our tranquility was soon disrupted when Hisoka approached us.

"I would like to join your team~" he announced with a grin. I couldn't help but cringe inwardly at the thought of teaming up with Hisoka, but I remained silent. I glanced up at Illumi, curious about his reaction. He seemed a bit uncomfortable but simply shrugged. "Alright," was his response.

Once all the teams were assembled, we moved outside to start the game. The instructor distributed our badges and gave us a list of our assigned targets. It was possible for two members from different teams to have the same target, which meant we had to act fast to reach our targets before others.

Illumi selected the first number, I took the second, and Hisoka claimed the third.

I recognized my target immediately; he was a senior, towering over me with his dark brown hair and lanky build. He had a pasty complexion which hinted at a lack of sun exposure, and the dark bags under his thin, pale eyes added to his intimidating appearance. He rarely spoke, often wearing a stern expression that made me uneasy. I noticed his number, 406, as we walked outside.

Illumi received number 86 as his target. She was a girl slightly shorter than me, and I recognized her from one of my classes. Her curly blond hair was styled in two buns on her head, and she stood out with a brightly striped sweater in fluorescent red and yellow. She reminded me of someone who could be on a fast-food advertising poster.

Hisoka's target was number 327, a girl who exhibited a level of immaturity that seemed out of place for her age. Despite being a teenager, she acted like a spoiled brat, often throwing tantrums when things didn't go her way. Her behavior mirrored that of a five-year-old trapped in a thirteen-year-old's body, creating a challenging dynamic for anyone interacting with her. I was already able to anticipate the chaos that would ensue once Hisoka managed to steal her badge.

After Illumi stowed the piece of paper in his pocket, we dispersed to locate our designated targets.