No longer alone (non-toxic/stereotypical PG Saiouma)

Chapter 4: Second time's the charm

Kokichi's POV (3rd person):

It was lunch time and Kokichi was still thinking of a plan to befriend Shuichi. Not finding anything that wouldn't get past the boy's boundaries, Kokichi just sighed and decided to take it a break until he would have an idea.

And with that, he walked to the line in the dinner hall. As always, the food was... Barely acceptable. Thankfully, Kokichi brought his own lunch in his backpack in case he wouldn't eat anything. As soon as Kokichi got his tray, he saw the friends that he's still angry at for making fun of someone wave at him as a gesture for him to join them.

Kokichi simply pretended that he didn't see them as he looked around for a peaceful spot. Soon, he saw Shuichi sitting all alone at a table, seeming to not have a lot of apetite just by seeing today's food. And that was understandable.

Kokichi smiled at an idea he just had before walking towards Shuichi's table, noticing the other boy was blanking out. Avoiding to startle Shuichi, Kokichi cleared his throat a bit to get Shuichi's attention, knowing that the other heard him by seeing his expression slightly change, even though he still didn't turn to look at him, Kokichi didn't mind about that and spoke up.

"Do you mind if I sit here?" Shuichi's eyes quickly widened as he gave a sight glance at Kokichi, avoiding eye contact as he hesitated before shaking his head to gesture that he didn't mind.

The shorter boy kindly smiled as he sat across from Shuichi to make sure the boy had some space. "Food isn't really good today, huh?" He started, hoping to make a small conversation with the taller.

The latter nodded in agreement, which was satisfying enough for Kokichi.

"I brought my own lunch, I can give it to you if you want." The purple haired suggested, making Shuichi look up from his plate of 'food' with a surprised expression. Just as Shuichi was about to refuse because of logical purpose, Kokichi intervened by speaking up again. "I don't mind eating this." He spoke, pointing at his own plate. "I ate more disgusting, I can even eat yours while you eat the food in my lunch box." He then finished, giving Shuichi a kind smile.

The quiet one sure was caught off guard. But after a few minutes of hesitating, his stomach chose for him as it grumbled loudly, making Shuichi slightly blush in embarassement before finally nodding.

Kokichi nodded back at Shuichi as he gave him the box of lunch he had brought. "Here you go!" Still a bit embarassed, Shuichi says a quiet thanks as he opened the box to see what was in it. It was an omelet, as simple as it is, it's actually Shuichi's favorite food. And that made him more than happy as he tried his best to hide it to not 'embarass' himself.

The short one softly chuckled "I'm glad that you like omelets, maybe next time I could bring food for the two of us." Shuichi's head perked up at the words 'next time'. Kokichi obviously guessed what Shuichi was thinking, he knew he was thinking about the idea of not eating alone anymore. And with that, a slight smile that couldn't be stopped appeared on Shuichi's face.

The sight made Kokichi smile as well. He loved putting smiles on people's faces, and this smile, for some reason was even more beautiful than the others. He just wanted to look at it for hours... He wanted to protect it and make sure it never faltered, just like avoiding a candle to be blown to make sure the fire stays bright and warm.

The two of them continued chatting together, Kokichi keeping up the conversation as he knew that Shuichi wasn't really talkative, even though the introverted one seemed to open up a bit more every seconds they spent together.

Both kept spending time with each other, unaware of what future was keeping in store for both of them. But they didn't care, as a new friendship has just bloomed.

And maybe... This friendship would evolve into something else.

(Word count: 668)