Pretty Boy (RanSara)

Friends..? Maybe.

word count: 1140

When the afternoon of their meeting rolled around, Sara had completed about half of her homework (minus the studying). She had gotten away with working during class or multitasking at home, but her brain was fried. Luckily Ranmaru had forgotten his bus pass so they had to walk.

They made small talk on the way home, never continuing a topic past a couple of responses until Sara accidentally struck gold.

while absentmindedly strolling, Sara kicked at what she thought was a rock before she heard a sharp clank as it hit a metal fence.

"what was that?!" Ranmaru turned in the direction of the noise. He picked up the small object, and turned back to Sara with a little grin on his face.

"what is it, can I see?"

He placed a cool metal ring into her hand. The ring band was a pretty yellowish metal, maybe brass, with a dusty garnet gemstone in the top. "oh wow, pretty!"

"gorgeous, even. Do you think it's a real gem?"

Ranmaru shrugged. "it looks like it could've been a wedding ring once upon a time. If it's real we could pawn it off somewhere. There's a way to tell if gold is real, but I don't remember how to do it. Something about teeth..?"

Sara giggled. "you're not going to eat it are you? I wouldn't even have to study biology after seeing how many diseases you would contract from all that dirt."

Ranmaru sheepishly put his hands in his pockets. "If you don't wanna sell it, then why don't you keep it. I'm not a gold jewelry type of guy anyways.."

"really?" Sara looked at him. "you said it mighy be valuable, don't you want the money for yourself?"

"I don't need it. Plus we could buy ourselves some victory icecream once all these tests are over."

Sara felt her heart sink. Oh yeah, tests. As much as she was enjoying company, there was work that had to be done. "...I'll place a lost ring ad on social media." she muttered and pocketed the jewelry.

She heard Ranmaru mutter "ah, so you're the heroic type." under his breath.

"What's that supposed to mean?!" She snapped.

The white-haired boy looked startled and met her eyes bashfully. "..nothing. Just thought you were noble."

Sara tilted her head. "noble?"

"looking out for other people, you know? Making strong decisions with pride and justice!" He smiled and tugged at his necklace a little. "sorry, that was corny."

the ginger girl was surprised by the sudden compliments, and felt flustered. "that's- complements aren't necessary. I'm just doing the right thing. The ring looks like it must have belonged to someone, and it must be important to them."

"When you put it like that.. how could I pawn off such a special thing?"

The two stood for a moment of silence before Ranmaru cleared his throat. "how far away did you say your house was, again?"

"o-oh! yeah! it's just around the next block!"

...

When they got inside, Kai was making dinner. "ah, Miss Sara. Do you have a friend over?"

"Yes, this is my friend Ranmaru." Sara said. She hoped he didn't mind.

"Hello Ranmaru. My name is Kai Satou, a homemaker for the Chidouins." Kai smiled softly.

The two awkwardly glanced at eachother before Kai went back to cooking.

Sara led Ranmaru up to her room and put her backpack next to her desk. She noticed Ranmaru awkwardly standing in the doorway and flashed him a quick smile. "put your stuff wherever, I don't mind. It's messy in here anyways."

"it's a lot cleaner than my room.." he whispered. Ranmaru sat down on the carpet with his bag next to him. "what do you want help with first? we could split your remaining homework and get it done twice as fast, then study together."

"I'd prefer to do all my own work." Sara said, digging through her backpack for the latest assignments. "academic integrity and all that."

"you're a lot more high-strung than I thought."
Ranmaru giggled. "I won't tell anyone."

"it's not about that, I just want to solidify the material and make sure i know it." Sara tapped her head with a mechanical pencil.

"hm, i guess that makes sense." He stretched and cracked his knuckles. "When I was homeschooled, I would always just wing it every test. Who cared if i got bad grades, my dad was my teacher and he could go easy on me. I could learn a thing or two from you."

"So can I. That's why we're here."

"...right, the homework." Ranmaru fidgeted with his fingers again, looking down.

Sara noticed and spun around. "are you dissapointed?"

"well, yeah, nobody wants to do homework."

"..ah, sorry for asking."

"..." the pale boy grunted. "I guess i was hoping to make a friend more than study."

Sara blinked. "aren't we already friends?"

"You'd think so?" he looked puzzled. "we met what- yesterday."

"is that a problem?"

Ranmaru shook his head. " I was thinking that you're too trusting, but it must have just been me. Let's get working."

...

Studying went slow. a lot slower than expected. by the time 8pm rolled around and Ranmaru had to go, they hadn't made much progress. The fluffy haired guy seemed very bright, but the concepts weren't clicking. Whenever Sara would give him the textbook definition, he would sit there and raise an eyebrow. Near the end of their time together, Sara decided to scrap the official material entirely and went off of her personal definitions. He got it immediately, and things went much smoother. They had even started finishing eachother's sentences.

Great minds must think alike.

the ginger girl flopped onto her bed before bolting upwards. Crap! She had forgotten to tell Ranmaru about Joe and Ryoko's invitation! She planned on telling him in person so it felt more genuine, but she figured this would have to do.

Hey! are you still up?

Ranmaru: yeah, i couldn't fall asleep.
Ranmaru: is something wrong?

I realized I forgot to mention that my friends Joe and Ryoko wanted to spend some time with you aswell, so they were wondering if you were free this sunday.

Ranmaru: yeah i think i'm free.
Ranmaru: where are we meeting and when?

...they haven't decided yet. they keep throwing in nee ideas and are currently making powerpoints on which location would be the most fun.

Ranmaru: they sound fun.

I'll keep you posted the best i can

Ranmaru: alright, thanks for inviting me.

Sara sighed in releif. that was one thing off her plate, what felt like a million more to go. She hoped a break from the constant grind would clear her head, but she had to get through the whole week first.

She was looking forward to spending time with Ranmaru though.