𝐒𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐦𝐞𝐥𝐭 ❄️

17: Approaching Shadows

It was only the first day of school, but the Sohmas had become the gossip of new and old students alike, thanks to their good looks. It was easy to notice all the girls who blushed at the sight of Kyo as he passed in the hallways. I could imagine Yuki was probably still being mobbed by freshmen girls at the entrance ceremony. It was his job to help out and I was sure those girls were taking advantage of that fact. It wouldn't be long until Yuki's fanclub scared them off. If there was one good thing about that stupid fanclub, it was that they would put an end to the hordes of girls who probably would never leave Yuki alone. Not that the fanclub girls were any better. Ugh, just thinking about those idiots made me angry.

"―Natsu! Hey!"

I broke out of my thoughts at the sound of my name. "Eh, what is it?" I asked, looking at Uo questioningly.

The blonde girl chuckled. "Man, you've been out of it since we mentioned Yuki's entrance ceremony management duties. Worried, huh?"

I frowned. "Well yeah," I said. "It's rough dealing with all those fangirls."

"Is that right?" Uo and Hana exchanged smirks before Uo continued. "Anyways, Kyo was just going to get his cousins for us so we could meet them."

Kyo burst into yelling. "I NEVER AGREED TO THAT!" He exclaimed. "Why don't you just make Tohru or Natsu go!"

Hana glared down at him from her standing position. "What kind of friends would we be if we did that?" She asked, her eyes boring holes into him. "It would be a terrible crime to make our friends go through such trouble."

Kyo shrunk away from her intense gaze as much as he could without looking away from her. "W-Well what about me?!"

"Oh, you?" Uo asked. "It's alright if it's you."

Tohru tried to diffuse the tension. "I-I don't mind going," she said. "I was already planning to go say hello to them, so it's no trouble. I'll come with you, Kyo."

Kyo groaned. "I never said I was gonna go," he corrected her. "I already see way too much of those guys as it is."

Tohru smiled brightly. "But it might be different seeing them at school. It could be fun! What do you think?"

Kyo looked at her like he'd been blinded by a bright light, eyes widening in surprise before he squeezed his eyes shut and looked away. "Whatever," he mumbled quietly, but not angrily. "I'll go." What an abrupt change in attitude.

"Great!" Tohru exclaimed happily. "Let's go!"

I laughed and stood up with the two. "I'm coming with you," I said, and the three of us exited the classroom. We started walking down the hall . . . and walking, and walking . . .

"Tohru, which classroom are we looking for?" I asked, turning to her in confusion. It turned out that Tohru also had no idea where we were going.

She froze mid-step and turned back to look at me with a sheepish look. "Ummmm . . ."

"YOU DON'T EVEN KNOW!" Kyo screeched, drawing the attention of a couple of students nearby.

"I-I'm so sorry!" Tohru bowed. "I left without thinking and I forgot to ask what class they'd be in. B-but if we keep walking, we'll find them."

Kyo and I sighed in unison, neither of us feeling like we wanted to keep wandering the halls aimlessly. "Wait here, I'll go ask," Kyo said.

Huh? He's just doing that without complaining or being asked to do it?

I stared at Kyo in surprise, following the orange haired boy with my eyes as he headed in the direction of two girls. Judging by the blushes on their faces and the way their posture changed, they thought he was attractive. I had to agree with them on that point. After a short moment of conversation, the girls scurried off somewhere and Kyo turned to look at Tohru and I.