└── 𝐖𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐧𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫!

𝟐𝟓

Time had been ticking by slowly, but eventually it's time to return to school. The first few lessons are basically a breeze by, Scaramouche can hardly even register his teachers words, the only thing on his mind is talking to Y/n, as silly as that sounds.

By lunchtime, he's wandering around the cafeteria looking around for the girl, unfortunately he doesn't find her. His mind whirls at the possibilities of where she could be. Eventually, he strolls over to the outdoor lunch area.

Luckily for him, the teen he'd been walking around looking for is sat at one of the small tables for two. It seems like her friends aren't present either, because her headphones are on her ears while she takes a bite of her lunch.

Trying to act casual, Scaramouche takes a deep breath and walks over to the table, sitting directly in front of Y/n. The familiar tuft of indigo hair brings her out of her thoughts. While hurriedly swallowing her food, she looks up at Scaramouche with a brow raised in confusion.

"What're you doing here?" She asks softly, slipping her headphones off her ears. She's careful not to break them, she'd spent her hard earned money buying a new pair, so it's only reasonable that they're treated like they're sacred, right?

"Am I not allowed to talk to a friend?" He boldly asks, a smug grin playing on his lips.

"I'm not your friend, I wouldn't lower my standards like that." Y/n quips smugly, her own lips pulling up at the corners into a smug smirk.

"Ouch. Anyway, where are your friends? Since you have such high standards, they wouldn't abandon you right?"

"Kokomi isn't here today, and Lumine has lunchtime detention. If you must know." She rolls her eyes and takes another bite of her lunch. A comfortable silence engulfs them.

In Scaramouche's mind, he's thinking of ways he can ask about her home life, different ways he can take a peek into her mind and see what's really going on...but for once, he doesn't have a solution. He isn't use to trying to actually get to know a girl.

He'd lived privileged due to his good looks, most girls would open up to him willingly, even if he didn't want to listen. So, this was unusual. Also, he wasn't use to seeing somebody guard themselves so strongly. He wasn't sure of how to get her to lower her guard. He'd lowered his, but would she do the same for him? Probably not.

"You look like a weird nerd sitting all by yourself." He comments teasingly, a sly smile forming on his perfect features. It annoys Y/n how perfect he looks, how he can fool someone, it's hard to stay angry at that kind of person. He's weaponising his appearance, and she hates that. She hates people who are aware of how good looking they are, especially men. It gives them the ability to sway a persons opinion, to manipulate and control it.

It only boosts their already inflated egos. Being infatuated with an attractive male is hard. Especially if they're aware of their advantage. It's difficult talking to somebody who's so content with people bowing to them, it only feels more challenging to have true conversations with a person who can control the society around them. Attractive people are strong, especially since their actions are often overlooked simply because they're 'handsome' or 'attractive'.

Scaramouche is a perfect example, he's done so many horrible things, he's gotten into trouble and had bad relationships and experiences with girls, yet he remains popular simply because he's so beautiful. He knows he is too, so he's quick to make girls forget about his wrongdoings just by batting his eye.

Y/n refuses to be one of those people who are so self absorbed that they never look past a persons image.

In her mind, she sees no reason for Scaramouche to be talking to her willingly. It seems absurd. She is aware of how much displeasure he has towards her...something must've changed. He has to have a new motive, otherwise he wouldn't be hanging around her.

"That's too bad. Why're you here sitting and talking to the 'nerd' then?" The h/c girl asks subtly.

"Am I...not allowed to hang out with you? Maybe I pitied you since you're sitting all alone!" Scaramouche jokingly says, a chuckle escaping his throat in the process.

He's intrigued by her. He's never met somebody so similar...yet so different to himself. He's confused because he was sure that she liked him, yet when people are fond of someone, doesn't that make them more vulnerable?

Was Y/n not vulnerable when he spilled his troubles to her, shouldn't she have had a mutual reaction? Or at least told her she knows what it feels like to be treated in such a way?

He wonders if it's just all a facade, an act because the girl was bored and just wanted some fun. But that doesn't seem likely either because she'd shown genuine emotions. So, what is it?

"I don't need your pity, I don't need anybody's pity." Y/n smiles bitterly and takes the last bite of her sandwich. There it is, an emotion...a sentence that Scaramouche can cling onto for a clue of some kind.

He pauses, could that be it? The reasons why she hadn't told him? Was it because she believed she didn't need anybody's pity? Or that he would pity her?

"Of course not, nobody needs pity, but I can sympathise, right?" The words slip out of his mouth before he can stop them.

Y/n also pauses, she looks up from her backpack that she was digging around in to find her drink and looks Scaramouche in the eye. He looks frozen, had he not meant to say that? Her suspicion of him only increases upon hearing such an unrelated thing escape him. "What the fuck are you talking about?"

"I-I...don't know?" A murmur is all that can be heard from Scaramouche which causes Y/n to scoff softly at him.

Soon enough, lunch is over, it's time to return to lessons. Just as Y/n begins packing up and standing up to leave, Scaramouche finds his voice once again. This time, he sounds confident. He refuses to let himself crack so early on, he'd embarrassed himself, but he'll make up for it.

"Let's meet after school, I'll wait for you by the gates."