Study Buddies

Chapter 4: Exam Day

Ishimaru awoke to the sound of his alarm, as usual. He blinked trying to wake himself up before getting up, but an arm around his waist kept him from escaping the comfort of the bed. He knew far too well who the buff arm belonged to but there was no escape. It was either wake him up or suffer the consequences of being out of routine. Neither sounded good. He gently pried himself free from Mondo's grip and after failing 3 times, he successfully slipped out of the biker's arms. Did he want to stay there? Of course! But showering and getting ready was a bigger priority at the moment. He grabbed his bag and went into the bathroom to shower. He decided to wake Mondo if he wasn't up by the time he was done showering and getting ready. He undressed and hopped into the shower.
Mondo stood in the hallway of the school, staring at the gym doors. What was he looking for? He walked towards them and he could faintly hear laughing and music. Everyone was dancing, well except one person. Ishimaru stood in the midst of everyone looking incredibly nervous. Mondo walked towards him and offered his hand to him. The two started dancing and suddenly everyone around them disappeared. Now it was just them. Ishimaru had his arms around Mondo's neck and Mondo had his arms around Ishimaru's waist. They looked at each other and slowly moved their faces closer. Closer and closer. There was hardly an inch between them now. Mondo attempted to close the gap but suddenly there was nobody in his arms. It was suddenly cold. Now it was just him.
Mondo sat up quickly in a cold sweat. He sighed in relief that it was just a dream, but he was also a little disappointed. He heard the shower running and huffed, hoping Ishimaru didn't use up all the hot water. Mondo slid out of bed reluctantly and stretched before tossing some clothes on the bed to wear. His pompadour was starting to become bangs so he just brushed it back with his hand for now. He went into the bathroom to grab a hairtie just to keep his hair at bay till he could shower and style it. Ishimaru was just brushing his teeth, but he wasn't wearing anything other than a towel around his waist.
"Ah good morning, Mondo!" Ishimaru smiled with a mouthful of toothpaste.
"Hi Taka" he smiled doing everything in his power to not look at anything below Ishimaru's neck. He was failing miserably. Ishimaru wasn't doing much better either since Mondo was just in his boxers and a t-shirt but he was more focused on Mondo not having a pompadour for once.
"Wow..your hair" he mumbled staring at it. Mondo remembered that really nobody had seen his hair down.
"Hm? Oh yeah, shockingly my hair isn't naturally cool and gravity defying" He chuckled running a hand through it.
"I think it looks cool either way" Ishimaru shrugged rinsing his toothbrush.
"You think my hair is cool..?" Mondo mumbled blushing.
"Of course!" Ishimaru grinned "It's super cool"
"Thanks, your hair is pretty neat too" Mondo chuckled "but i think you should try slicking it back, it might make you look tougher"
"Really??" Ishimaru inquired before slicking his damp hair back "Like this?" Mondo nodded, surprised at how nice it made him look. Then again, he was still naked under that towel. So it was impossible for him to look bad at the moment. Well, in Mondo's eyes at least.
Ishimaru looked at himself in the mirror.
"Huh, it is kinda nice. However, my normal hair style is perfectly acceptable for a school environment. But if we ever are together outside of school then I might consider the other option" He fixed his hair so it looked like his usual style.
"Well the shower is all yours now, i'll let you get ready" Ishimaru smiled walking out of the bathroom "Oh by the way, you have a weird fold or bunch up in your boxers" he chuckled. Mondo's face went red looking at what he was talking about. Whoops!
Ishimaru put on his clothes and put the books back in his backpack. He headed downstairs and set his bag next to the door so he wouldn't forget it.
"And who might you be?" A voice questioned from the kitchen. Ishimaru jumped in surprise.
"I'm Kiyotaka Ishimaru, I was helping Mondo study for exams-" he nervously replied.
"Oh! Well hello, sorry for scaring ya. I'm Mondo's brother Daiya" The annoymous figure greeted him. Ishimaru could see the resemblance immediately. Pompadour, tall, pretty fit, it was all there.
"I was worried he brought someone home for a late night bed tango" Daiya joked
"Oh, well i can assure you that we did not do that " Ishimaru reassured, albeit very embarrassed by the very thought of it.
"Come, have a seat and chat. Mondo takes forever to get ready in the morning" Daiya huffed "I'm surprised he makes to school on time at this rate. Recently he's been getting there earlier but staying later. I assume that's your doing?" He inquired. Ishimaru nodded.
"We've been studying before and after school, he's making excellent progress!" Ishimaru gushed on and on about how smart Mondo really was and how well he was doing. Little did he know that about halfway through his rant, Mondo came downstairs, hiding when he heard his name mentioned. Did Ishimaru really think so highly of him? It was very endearing, honestly. Daiya heard Mondo come down the stairs but didn't say anything and just listened to Ishimaru talk. It was very entertaining. Daiya decided to cut it short so they could get to school on time.
"Shouldn't you be heading off to school?" Daiya chuckled. Ishimaru looked at the time and panicked
"Oh no we're gonna be late!" He nervously exclaimed running to the door. Mondo tried to get his cheeks to stop being red but it only made it worse.
"Let's go!" Ishimaru said as he pulled Mondo's arm towards the garage. Mondo was fairly surprised by how strong Ishimaru was.
"Bye children! Good luck!" Daiya laughed. Mondo glared at him as he was dragged out the door.
The pair put on their helmets and off they went on Mondo's motorcycle. Ishimaru was very afraid of how fast they were going, but at least they'd be on time. He held onto Mondo tightly, not wanting to let go at all till they were completely stopped. Were they going at a legal speed? No. Would they be on time? Yes. Under normal circumstances, Ishimaru would lecture someone for going faster than the speed limit. This was the very rare exception. They made it to school 5 minutes before they would be considered late. No need to run in the halls, no need to hurry. They had plenty of time. Ishimaru gave back the helmet Mondo let him borrow
"Good luck today on your tests. I know you're gonna do great!" Ishimaru grinned
"I'll try, but I definitely won't do as good as you" Mondo shrugged. The two stood in front of the doors to the school, then looked at each other nervously. Ishimaru smiled at Mondo, Mondo smiled back, anf they hugged before going their separate ways.