that's just how it works [REWRITING]

Chapter Thirty one - One Kiss

. . .

  'This might be the one time I'm actually thankful for Present Mic's commentary...'

   You were in one of the halls inside, not really wanting to see anyone. You didn't know why you were feeling so empty inside, but you knew that being around a lot of others wouldn't help. You just settled on leaning against the wall and listening to the commentary over the speakers. 

   After a while, you grunt as you push yourself up off the wall. Tokoyami's victory over Mina had just been announced, and you wanted to stretch your legs a bit more. You grimace to yourself and mumble, "Wow, shouldn't I be more excited on a day like today?"

   You turn the corner and do a doubletake. You shuffle backward, but the person you probably want to see the least notices you anyway.

   "Where do you think you're going?"

   "I was just about to leave, seeing as you couldn't have anything useful to say, Monoma."

   The blonde narrows his eyes at you. "Wow, that was more rude than usual. Do you have a fever or something?"

   "I don't have time for this." You spat out these words and continue walking, planning on going right by him. However, as you're about to pass him, he reaches out and grabs your arm, pulling you towards him. You yelp, stumbling back into him. "What the hell?!"

   "Class A trash..." He muttered, spinning you around to face him. "You're not acting normally."

   You sneered at him, "Neither are you. Shouldn't you be off mocking my class or something?" You refuse to let yourself smile or smirk when he grunts and rolls his eyes. 

   The blonde straightens his posture, glaring at you in the eyes. "(Y/n)."

   Chills ran down your spine, and you cursed internally. You hated him, right? So why did his tone of voice while saying your name make your knees weak? You decide to just say what seemed reasonable to you.

   "Yes, Neito?"

   He looks taken aback by that. Score you. Well, until you see anger form in his eyes. 

   "You're not acting like yourself. It's as if you're a whole new person." His words boil your blood suddenly, and you growl.

   "A whole new person?" You snarl as if what he was saying was preposterous, "Hah, rich. You hardly knew me all those years ago. And suddenly, I'm a whole other person? Wow... I oughtta be saying the same about you."

   "(Y/n)! To hell with that! I was not talking about when we were kids!" Monoma looked mad, and you knew you should stop and apologize, but you couldn't control your mouth. You knew you sounded like a total bitch, but your thoughts were way different than what was coming out of you. "And you know that too." His eyes narrowed at you. "Despite barely talking to you before this Sports Festival, I could tell what kind of person you were based on how you interacted with the others in your class. But today, you're just... different." His voice had quieted at the last sentence, and you felt your bottom lip quiver. 

   You could feel your energy draining. Being angry and bitchy was tiring... All of a sudden, your cheeks felt wet, and you saw Monoma internally do a double take. There were a few more seconds of quiet before you burst out in tears. You sniffled, covering your mouth with your hand as you doubled over. The stress of the whole day just came rocking down onto you, and you couldn't take it.