Love in the Times of the Crescent Moon

Chapter 8 🤝

Kit had done it. She had secured second place in the sciences, just behind Okuda, and had topped the class in English. Filled with pride, she thought about how they were now just one win away from the trip, and indeed, Isogai had achieved the highest score in social studies. They cheered, knowing they had not only secured three of Korosensei's tentacles but would soon embark on a class trip to the Okinawa Islands. Of course, they'd plan another assassination attempt there, but there would still be time for some fun.
As Kit was wondering whether she had a suitable bikini, Terasaka appeared, boasting the highest score in home economics - a core subject often overlooked. Along with three other classmates who had also achieved perfect scores, they were now allowed to destroy a total of seven of Korosensei's tentacles. The entire class cheered.
"Wow, Terasaka, you guys must have studied like crazy! A hundred percent, that's insane!" Kit exclaimed amidst the general celebration.
"Ah, it was just home ec," he replied, downplaying it, but grinning from ear to ear.
"Oh, by the way, where's Karmakun?"
Only then did she realize he was missing. She scanned the classroom but couldn't find him.
"He's probably licking his wounds somewhere," Terasaka guessed. "It must be pretty embarrassing for him not to have taken first place in anything when he's always acting like he's some kind of prodigy. I even beat him in one subject."
Kit glanced outside and caught the last glimpse of Karma's red hair disappearing over the hill. Korosensei stood a bit further away by a tree; it looked like they had just had a conversation. Kit wondered what it had been about but decided that maybe Karma wanted to be left alone. Terasaka was probably right; he needed some time to get over his defeat.

She returned to class, joined in celebrating 6-E's collective victory, and later went downtown with Kayano, Kurahashi, and Kanzaki, where they all bought new bikinis.
"We could try these cute things out right now, couldn't we?" suggested Kurahashi, convincing everyone to take a quick trip to the nearest pool.
They ate ice cream, sunbathed, and cooled off in the water. They chatted about boys, the upcoming trip, and assassination plans, until Kanzaki suddenly fell silent.
"I have a list," she said, staring at the ground.
"A list of what?" Kayano asked, curious.
"Well, it's a list of everything I definitely want to do before next March."
The girls looked at each other and all agreed. They should each make lists like that. And so, their girl's day became both melancholic and full of laughter - a perfectly normal day, from an outsider's perspective, since no one else could possibly know what they knew.

When Kit went home that evening, she grabbed a quick meal at her favorite takeout spot, remembering just in time that her father wouldn't be home tonight. He had left earlier for a business trip, some kind of top-secret meeting with high-ranking government officials. That's all Kit knew.
Sometimes, she wished her father was just a dentist or a bank clerk or a teacher—she had to smile at the thought. Yes, the teaching profession suited him well. Interacting with students made him more open and brought out his best qualities.
She was just a street away from her house and lost in thought when a shout pulled her back to reality. Wasn't that...
"Get out of here, kid!" the bartender yelled in front of her, pushing a wildly cursing redhead out the door.
"Karmakun?" Kit stopped in surprise and almost tripped over her own feet. "What's going on here?"
"You know this guy, Kitchan?" the bartender asked in a fatherly tone.
Kit nodded.
"Then get him out of here. He's a nuisance - and underage. If anyone finds out I served him alcohol..."
"You're screwed," Karma finished for him, grinning but a bit unsteady on his feet. "He believes everything people tell him," he said to Kit before he leaned against a lamppost, promptly emptying his stomach.
"I can't believe this," Kit muttered. She quickly thought through her options. "I'll take him home, Sing."
"No, Kitchan. I'll handle it. Your father would kill me if he knew I let you walk through town with a drunk troublemaker at night. He used a fake ID to get tons of alcohol, harassed my customers, and eventually got cocky enough to pull out his real ID and mock me. I swear I didn't know; maybe I should call the police," Sing said, considering.
"No, really, leave it to me," Kit insisted, waving her hands. "Honestly, he lives only five minutes from here. I'll take care of it and send you a message as soon as I'm home."
Without waiting for a reply, she grabbed Karma's arm, pulled him along, and turned the corner.
"Alright, now tell me where you live."
"Just five minutes from here," he repeated her words, finding them hilarious.
"I mean it. Your parents must be worried about you."
He suddenly stopped, stumbled forward a step, and then caught himself.
"My parents? They're somewhere in Africa. I told you, they're businesspeople. They're hardly ever home. Maybe that's a good thing - I get some peace and quiet."
Kit suddenly felt a wave of sympathy. Even if he told her where he lived, she couldn't leave him alone - not in this state.
"Come with me," she said, taking his hand so he'd follow. He didn't resist or ask where they were going. When they finally stood at her front door, Kit briefly thought she'd be grounded for life if her father ever found out about this. Then she felt Karma's warm hand in hers and put the key in the lock.
"So, this is where you live?" he asked unnecessarily. "Nice."
"You really pissed Sing off," Kit said as she poured him a glass of water.
"Apparently. But it was too easy. How do you know him?"
She placed the glass on the table, took Karma's jacket, and guided him to the sofa.
"He went to school with my dad, and since he runs a bar just a street away, my dad asked him to keep an eye on me if he's not around. I'm supposed to stop by and let him know if I need anything before heading home. Now I'll just send him a message saying I made it home safe, which technically isn't a lie."
"No, you're just not telling him the whole truth," Karma agreed, stretching out on the sofa. "Where's your dad?"
"At some meeting. He won't be back until tomorrow, so you can sleep it off."
But sleep was the last thing on Karma's mind. In the middle of their conversation, he disappeared into the bathroom and didn't reappear for a while.
Finally, Kit took the glass of water and two headache tablets and went upstairs to her room. Her inner "good daughter" guilt still nagged at her, but she ignored it, changing into comfortable pants and a sweatshirt. She lay down on her bed, feeling her adrenaline slowly ebbing, until she realized she'd never been alone with a boy at home before. Her heart raced even as she told herself it was silly. She wasn't on a date; she should be more worried about whether her guest was still conscious in the bathroom.
Just as she was about to check, she heard him stumbling up the stairs.
"Here you are," he muttered as he grabbed the painkillers, washed them down with a big gulp of water, and flopped down next to her on the bed.
He looked tired - infinitely tired. For a moment, they just lais there, staring at the ceiling. It felt almost surreal. She felt the warmth radiating from his hand, just inches from her own.
"Do you still want to know why I ended up in Class E?" he asked into the silence.
She nodded, turning her head to look at him. He didn't meet her gaze.
"I was never really one of the model students at this school, but my grades were good enough that nobody cared. My homeroom teacher said he'd always stand by me as long as I was in the right. But that changed the moment I hurt one of his favorites from Class A." Karma glanced at her briefly, but she held back from interrupting. "He deserved it. You don't want to know how many times he bullied students from Class E, or the methods he used. He'd go after the especially weak ones because he saw them as easy targets. Someone needed to show him he wasn't all-powerful. But my homeroom teacher felt that a student with 'bright prospects' was more valuable than a rogue from Class E. So besides a suspension, he decided that moving me to Class E was just the right punishment. And in that, he might've been right. I didn't care, but my parents sure weren't pleased," he added wearily. "They value success. I told them it wouldn't change a thing. With my grades, no one would care what class I was in anyway."
Then his voice faltered. She could feel the lump in his throat and finished the story for him.
"And then the final exams came. Everyone improved, and you fell behind."
He only managed a sigh. "Even Terasaka did better than me. It doesn't get more humiliating than that."
Kit tried to hide her smile. "That was just one subject. Everyone loses sometimes, Karmakun. Now and then, even you have to put in some effort for your grades. But in the end, you know as well as I do that this is only a minor setback."
Kit closed the distance between them and gently placed her hand on his. He flinched briefly, but then interlocked his fingers with hers, and her heart beat so loudly that she feared he might hear it. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and waited for her body to gradually calm down. Her fingers lay relaxed between his, and she savored his closeness and the exhilarating feeling it brought. He probably wouldn't even remember it tomorrow, but Kit stored this moment in her heart.

When Karma woke up the next morning, it took him a few minutes to get his bearings. A full glass of water stood by the bed, which he downed in a few eager gulps. Slowly, the memories trickled back: the grading, the defeat, the taunts from Korosensei. The frustration, the bar, a forced exit he'd undoubtedly brought upon himself. Kit. He was at Kit's place. How could he have let himself go like that in front of her?
A rush of intense shame overcame him, bringing back a wave of nausea. He cringed at how he had behaved, recalling a look of pity from her that he'd rather not remember. Falling into self-doubt wasn't usually his style. He'd love nothing more than to sneak away quietly, but he knew she had to be somewhere nearby.
"Damn it," he muttered, waiting for the nausea to subside.
He needed to eat something urgently. Admittedly, the painkillers had helped a lot - he didn't want to think about how he'd feel otherwise. Resigned, Karma got up from the bed, which he'd evidently shared with Kit last night. He'd finally spent the night with a girl and managed to mess it up completely. He vaguely remembered her holding his hand, but he chalked it up to her helpful nature, not to any supposed charm on his part.
"I'll just slip out," he mumbled quietly, carefully heading down the stairs step by step.
"Is that really what you're planning, Karmakun?"
She'd heard him. Of course.
"You stay over for the night, and then you're going to skip out before breakfast? I would have expected more from you."
When Karma turned, she was standing in the kitchen doorway, eyeing him with amusement from head to toe. He must have looked like a wreck.
"I'm not hungry," he said, though his stomach betrayed him with a loud growl.
"Oh please, there are pancakes in the kitchen. I can't eat them all, and if Dad comes home and sees I made them, he'll wonder who I made them for. It would be better if they just disappeared into your empty stomach and served some practical purpose. You look, um, a little... rough," she finished in her usual friendly tone.
Sometimes, basic needs won out. His appetite was overwhelming, and after devouring several pancakes, he began to feel more like himself.
"Better?" Kit asked, still eating her first pancake.
"Much better, thanks," he replied, hoping he didn't sound embarrassed because he felt as if his pride had taken a hit. He didn't need to be looked after. "But I'll be heading out now. Looks like it's time to start studying."
"That's the right attitude," she said between bites.
Karma got up and walked to the front door, eager to finally be outside again.
"Karmakun?" He turned to look back at her. "If you want, last night can stay within these four walls."
"Thanks," he replied through gritted teeth and walked out.