𝐃𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐑𝐞𝐝 - [ʜɪᴀᴛᴜs]

𝟎𝟏𝟓: 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞?

You walk into a mini tunnel, bikes parked on both sides.

"Hey..." Draken turns upon hearing your voice. You walk closer. Your arms were crossed, the hoodie you were wearing wasn't warm enough for the autumn night.

"Sorry to call you out this late," Draken apologizes. Waving your hands you reassure him you were fine with it. "I'm assuming Takemichi gave you my number?" You ask and the tall boy nods. Draken puts his hand in one of his pockets, "Mikey told me why you were with Kazutora." You gulp, this was your first one-on-one conversation with him since August. With how deep and intimidating his voice was, you couldn't help but feel a little intimidated.

He takes out a 1000 yen bill and gestures for you to take it. You ask him what it was for, confused why he would give you money. "You only told me you owed Kazutora to not blow Takemitchy's cover, right?" He asks, "I got your money back."

You take the bill from his hands. Truthfully, you did kind of owe Kazutora the money. "Wait," you realize, "You spoke with Hanemiya?" Draken nods, "About the brawl, this coming Halloween."

"Speaking of," the tall blonde continues, "Don't interfere like last time," Draken says, his voice cold and serious. His gaze gave you a chill. "I'm grateful for your assistance against Moebius, especially with attending to my wounds," he expresses, "But this fight is far too dangerous."

"I wasn't planning to," you confirm. You hear Draken sigh, seemingly relieved. Draken gets on his bike and pats the seat behind him. "I brought you out this late, might as well give you a ride." You hopped on and he began to drive.

The both of you begin to drive off. You felt awkward holding onto him. He slows down at the stop lights. "How are you and Emma?" You break the silence. "Huh? We're okay, I guess," he answers nonchalantly.

'I guess'? You repeat in your head. "How'd you two meet?"

"Through Mikey."

You wondered if Draken was an affectionate lover or not, seeing how seemingly disinterested he was in the conversation. "How are you and Mikey?" Draken asks.

You understood now why Draken seemed disinterested. Maybe he was just awkward about answering, which is how you feel right now. "We're okay, I guess..." You say, you hear him chuckle quietly.

"You love him?" He suddenly asks. You were glad he was in front of you and focused on the road, otherwise, he would be witnessing your panicked eyes and flushed face. Though you admit to yourself that you care about Mikey, you never thought or considered that you loved him. Though it started as a fake crush, you weren't sure if your feelings were further than they were before.

"Do you love Emma?" You shift the question to him.

"Shut up," he responds bashfully. You chuckle, taking it as a yes. You didn't understand why he wouldn't admit it. Maybe he's trying to be cool? For a second, you forgot Draken was only a year older than you.

I guess boys just don't talk about love, You think to yourself.

Finally, the both of you arrive at the front of your apartment. You get off the bike and thank him. He tells you to stay safe and bids you goodnight.

-

You sit and look outside the window of your class, thinking about the fight happening on Halloween. You noticed Takemichi was seemingly busy looking for his own answers, seeing he hasn't talked to you in a while.

There was a sudden commotion from outside the classroom. Everyone gets up to see what's going on. The teacher tries to get everyone back in their seats. Someone opens the door from outside of the classroom.