Gladiator [K.Zoldyck X fem!Reader] (HxH)

25-But I like you, too, Killua

↜3rd Person Pov↝

"The Fourth Phase of the Exam has just ended. Will the applicants please return to the starting point at once? You will be given one hour of extra time. If you do not return during this time, you will fail the Exam. Furthermore, you are not allowed to exchange tags after reaching the starting point. Anyone caught swapping tags will be disqualified." said the examiner of the Fourth Phase through loud speakers, making sure that everyone on the Island could hear her.

Walking closer to the place the boat had dropped them off, (Y/N) smiled brightly. She couldn't wait to finally be reunited with her friends. She had a bounce in her step as she hummed a happy tune to herself, being able to see a few people already there.

Once she got closer, she was able to spot a fluffy head of white hair. Her eyes were practically sparkling as she sped up, calling out: "Killua!" The young boy turned around, a smile immediately replacing his bored expression.

"Hey, (Y/N)-" he started, only to be cut off by her. She basically threw herself at him, knocking him to the ground. "I missed you so much! It was so boring without you, Killua! I don't ever wanna leave you again!" she said, hugging him tightly.

Killua winced, saying: "Y-Yeah... I'm happy that you're back, too, but... (Y/N), I can't breathe..." She immediately let go, quickly getting back onto her feet, pulling him with her. She smiled at him, saying: "Sorry. I just missed you too much."

Once her words had registered in his mind, he quickly turned to look away, a blush coating his cheeks. "Did you make it? I mean, of course you did, huh?" she asked him, already answering her own question.

He let out a chuckle, turning back to face her. He answered: "Yeah, I did. I even got two extra tags that I threw away." "For real? I only got one extra. I brought it, though." she replied, shrugging.

Killua's eyes lit up as he asked: "So you made it, too?" She grinned, replying: "Sure did! It was... an interesting experience." "How so?" "Let's just say that I now want to keep my distance from Hisoka and Gittarackur. They're both weird."

He only stared at her, waiting for her to explain what had happened. Right as she was about to answer, the examiner spoke up. "Then we will now check the tags of everyone here!"

As it turned out, Hisoka, Killua, (Y/N), Gittarackur, Bodoro, and Hanzo passed. Just as the examiner was about to wrap it up, three other applicants appeared. "Gon! I knew you'd make it!" called (Y/N) out, waving at her friend. He returned her cheerful smile, saying: "I knew you'd make it, too, (Y/N), Killua."

"These nine applicants have passed the Fourth Phase of the exam!" called the lady out, smiling. "Only one Phase left, huh? We'll definitely make it." said (Y/N), determined to win. Gon nodded, agreeing with her, while Killua had just snapped out of his thoughts, having caught himself staring at her.

↜Time skip: a bit later↝

↜(Y/N) Pov↝

I burst out laughing, leaning back in my seat. "Why, you...!" trailed Leorio off, standing up from his chair, looking like he wanted to punch me. "But it's funny!" I said, almost losing my balance and falling off my seat. Almost.

"There were so many snakes." noted Gon, quickly adding: "Getting bit by them hurt quite a bit." I calmed down again, saying: "Well, yeah. You did grab that antidote off of that dude." "That's crazy." noted Killua.

Gon chuckled, saying: "You would've done the same. Right, (Y/N)?" I nodded, answering: "Of course! But I'm mostly immune to poison. Probably." "Probably?" repeated Killua, rolling his eyes at me.

He muttered: "Your carelessness is gonna kill you one day." I shrugged my shoulders, saying: "Maybe. But I know you won't let that happen if you're there. And I plan to travel with you guys after we've become Hunters."

"You don't want to go back to the Colosseum?" asked Kurapika, gaining my attention. I looked over at him, answering: "Never." "But you don't seem to dislike what you did there." "That's because I don't. I just don't want to fight for my parents' wealth. As for the rest, I don't really care. But having them yelling at me to do this, to do that, and never do this... It gets frustrating pretty quickly."

A sudden thought appeared in my mind. "Hey, Killua, do you know Gittarackur?" I asked him, remembering my opponents words. Looking at me in confusion, Killua answered: "I don't. Why do you ask? Wasn't he your opponent?"

Nodding, I answered: "Yeah, he was. And it was... strange. We fought for two hours, then he just gave me his tag and left. I was sure that I would lose. But he did say that I was strong, and that it was no wonder that you took a liking to me. He was so weird."

Killua's face immediately turned bright red as he turned away from me, covering his face with his arm, saying: "I-It's not like that, idiot!" I just chuckled, saying: "But I like you, too, Killua! It's not embarrassing to admit to like someone. Right, Gon?"

"I don't think it's embarrassing, either." agreed Gon, sharing a smile with me. Kurapika just shook his head with a smile, while Leorio said: "It's a different kind of 'liking', (Y/N). It's clear as day that Killua-"

"Don't you dare finish that sentence." threatened Killua, his cold, blue eyes glaring straight at Leorio. He shivered, holding his hands up in the air. "Okay, okay, I won't!" I tilted my head, looking between them.

"What kind of 'liking' is it?" I asked, to which Killua quickly turned his whole body away from me, now sitting sideways on his chair next to mine. Thinking about it for a bit, I asked: "Wait, do you not like me? Am I not your friend?" "That's not it." he replied simply, showing no signs of saying more than that. I turned to look at Gon, who just smiled, shrugging his shoulders.

"I have an announcement for all applicants. The Chairman wishes to interview the remaining candidates. When your number is called, please come to the first reception room, on the second floor. Then we will start with #44, Hisoka." spoke Beans over the speaker, cutting our conversation short.