『shiden ritter x reader』SCARLET NEXUS

chapter four- maybe you're not so bad after all

"oh- seto!" kyoka spotted seto platoon near us.
    "the pampered sumeragi kid," shiden said, glaring at yuito.
    "what's with the attitude?" nagi said, unimpressed. "wait, naomi? hi! oh, y/n's here too! good to see you guys!!" his expression changed, and he seemed a lot happier now.
    "oh, nagi and yuito!" naomi turned to face them with a smile.
    "y/n, naomi and kasane. hi! good job today!" yuito said cheerfully.

"kyoka, are you training rookies too?" seto asked kyoka.
    "yes! we got a bunch of cuties again this year, so i have to do my best," kyoka replied.
"my guys are doing well," seto said. "kasane, was it? how was training?"
after everyone caught up with each other, kyoka and seto announced that everyone was dismissed, except for the team leaders, who had to go to headquarters.

most of the platoon then left, including me. i had no idea what to do. should i explore suoh again? check out some more shops, get a bite to eat...

maybe i should go to musubi's, one of the most popular cafés in suoh. i hadn't been in a while, and i could use a drink or a snack.

i was almost at the entrance of musubi's when i bumped into someone, accidentally burying my face in their chest. it lasted for a second, then i quickly stepped back.
"oh my god i'm so sorry!" i apologised, slowly opening my eyes. then i realised i knew this person.
"oh, shiden??- what are you doing here??" i asked, feeling kind of awkward. i wasn't expecting to bump into someone i knew.
"i'm just- um- going to musubi's," shiden said, sounding kind of nervous. his face was slightly flushed. this was really out of character for him.
"oh, okay! i'm going too! do you wanna hang out together?" i asked, hoping for the best. he was slightly annoying, but maybe it would be better if i got to know him better. right?
"yeah, okay. but don't think this means we're friends or anything," he responded. now THAT sounded more like him.
    "great! let's go in!" i smiled, trying to be as friendly as i could.

shiden and i found a table for two, and sat there. i looked through my menu, trying to decide what to order. it was oddly quiet, and pretty awkward.
    "so, um- how are you?" shiden asked, probably just to break the silence.
    "huh? i'm ok i guess, you?" i responded.
    "i'm alright as well..."
this might've been a bad idea. i had absolutely nothing to talk about with him. or did i? what about that other we fought earlier?
    "you fought really well when we were fighting against that major other," i said.
    "of course i did, i've fought many of them before. it's nothing new to me, i'm obviously good at it," he bragged.
then his expression softened.
"i think you fought well too. it must've been hard for you, fighting a major other on your first assignment. you looked really scared before the fight. i'm impressed you managed to pull through. your technique was also very good," shiden said. this sounded like genuine feedback, and he wasn't mocking me or insulting me. did he really think i did well?
    "wow- um... thank you" i replied. i could feel my face getting warmer. i wasn't expecting him to compliment me.
    "hey- don't go thinking that means i think you're impressive, i just said you did well for a rookie. plus, I DIDN'T NEED YOUR HELP," shiden scoffed. now that was expected.
    "yeah right," i rolled my eyes, "i think we should order now,"

soon our food arrived, and we started eating.
it was pretty quiet from here on. shiden and i didn't know each other very well, and didnt have anything to talk about.

then, we were pretty much done. that went by a lot faster than i wanted it to. wait, wanted it to?
"well, i guess we're done here," shiden said.
    "yeah i guess..." i replied.
    "this was okay, i guess. maybe you're not so bad after all," he added, looking away. i giggled.
    "oh my god, are you saying we're like BEST FRIENDS now??" i joked.
    "no! of course not!" shiden rolled his eyes, but as he turned away i saw a small smile.
both of us then heard a beeping noise, indicating that we got brain messages.

it was kyoka. she messaged the whole platoon, telling us that we now had a hideout, and that she wanted us all to meet up there, along with the location details.

    "did you get the message as well?" shiden asked.
    "yeah, i got it. the unit's near kikuchiba, right?"
    "yeah, that's where the coordinates lead," he confirmed. then he paused.
"do you wanna head over there together?"
     "okay, lead the way. i haven't been there before, so i'm not entirely sure where it is-" i responded nervously.
    "don't worry, i've been there plenty of times. you'll be ok," shiden said.

so we set off for the hideout. it was a smooth trip, there were only a few others, and we were both overall safe. before i knew it, we arrived at the coordinates.

"looks like we're here," shiden said, looking down.
    "yeah! thanks for helping me get here, i really appreciate it!" i smiled.
    "it's okay, whatever."
  we entered the hideout, and almost everyone was already there.