Chapter Text
Hajime
The school dance is in ten days. Everyone is going to be there. And when I say everyone, I mean it. After all, attendance is mandatory.
All of my friends have already picked out an outfit and are excitedly chatting about it all around. Though, I'm not nearly as excited as them. After all, I still don't have a partner and if I go alone, I'll look like an even bigger loser than I am now...
All of these thoughts were clouding my head as i layed in my bed silently overthinking. Was this even considered overthinking? If it was based in reality? I softly sighed to myself as I got up from my bed. I guess I could ask Chiaki, I thought to myself. As friends, of course.
Chiaki was my best friend and I hung out with her almost every day. It wouldn't be that weird if I asked her to come with me, would it? I mean, a lot of people already kept assuming that we're a couple. Not that I was interested in her in a romantic way. I used to be, but that was a long time ago. Some sparks did fly here and there, but we decided we'd be better off as friends and we kept it that way since.
I finally decided to leave my house and walk to hers. She lived a few blocks from me and we visited eachother quite often. We had a lot in common, surprisingly. For an ultimate, she was unusually down to earth.
Ah, with all this rambling going on, I guess I forgot to properly explain the situation I'm in, so here. I should take it slower.
For context, I go to a high school called Hope's Peak Academy, which is known for scouting the very best, most talented students from all around the world. Each and every person that attends Hope's Peak Academy, is unique in their own way. Some are skilled in various forms of art, even martial arts, some in something as vague and perplexing as mere luck.
With all that being said, I'm none of those things. I'm not interesting, or unique in any way. I'm just an ordinary student with no talent, no big dreams or hope for the future. I just live in the moment, always hoping for things to miraculously work out. I guess they pretty much did up to this point. I always admired Hope's Peak Academy ever since I was a small child, always hoping I'd develop a talent so intriguing and overwhelming, that they'd just have to accept me. But I never did. And I don't even remember when I gave up, but I eventually did. Now I attend the reserve coarse department, which is a part of Hope's Peak, that was specifically made for talentless people like myself, accepting the fate I was given. If you can even call it that. I now live in unceasing awareness that I'll never be on the same level as my Ultimate peers. Even with Chiaki, my best friend and The Ultimate Gamer. Even though I feel relaxed most of the time I'm with her, there're still moments that make me remember my place. To be fair though, she always tries to tell me that the world doesn't revolve around talent and that I'm great just as I am. This is another thing we don't see eye to eye on.
As I knocked on her door, I tried to shake some of these negative thoughts out of my head. That's really not a thing I want to focus on right now. It would just make me more depressed and add another thing to my list of concerns. I waited at her doorstep for a few minutes. With time, I've learned that I would just have to be patient with her. Everything she did was so carefree and slow paced, I was actually really jealous of her. That she could be so uncaring given... Well, everything. I guess I just see things differently when I don't have a certain future ahead of me.
I was being nihilistic again. Damnit. Truthfully, I have been in a bad mood ever since I've learned about the dance. My pessimistic brain instantly went to the big possibility of going alone and embarrassing myself in front of everyone.
Thankfully, the creaking sound of the wooden door opening instantly took me out of the dark thoughts that were starting to sneak into my head seconds after I swore I'd leave them be. There she stood. Chiaki. As sleepy and uninterested as ever.
"Oh. Hey, Hajime."
She walked back into the house, allowing me to follow right after her. She threw herself onto the couch and instantly went back to gaming on her psp. I nervously sat on the edge of the seat.
"Um... Chiaki? There's something I wanted to ask you..."
I subconsciously gulped and instinctively looked away, even though she wasn't looking at me to begin with. She usually never was, always enthralled by her video games.
"...so, if I asked you to the dance, would you come with me...? As friends, of course. It's just that- as embarassing as that is- I still don't have a partner... Um..."
She finally looked up at me, with her unchanging, sleepy expression, and softly spoke.
"I'm really sorry Hajime, no can do. I already have a partner. Maybe... Maybe you can ask someone else? One of my classmates maybe? Or even Natsumi-"
"I'm NOT asking Natsumi. And I don't know how I feel about asking someone from the main course..."
Natsumi was one of my classmates and, dare I say friends, in the reserve course department. But for a girl, she sure was aggressive as hell, always picking on me for the smallest things. We hung out most of the time during school, having at least one thing in common. Wanting to get moved to the main course badly. Her reasonings were different from mine, though. She had a brother that attended the same class as Chiaki did, The Ultimate Yakuza, Fuyuhiko Kuzuryu. She wanted to be able to attend the class with him, due to how close the two were, and even having a bit of subconscious jealousy over him, which I understood. Even though they came from the same yakuza family, he had the privilege of becoming the next leader of the Kuzuryu klan, which she didn't. Even through all this, they maintained a very close bond and he even called her his "Ultimate Little Sister", which was ridiculously cute. She still was, in the nicest way I can put it, a narcissistic prick, and probably my last, LAST resort.
"Hmmm... I don't know then. You're pretty picky, Hajime."
Chiaki yawned, after earning a sour look from me. I wasn't picky, there just weren't enough options. Enough GOOD options. As if on cue, she spoke again, this time earning my full attention, as I looked at her, full of disbelief at what she said next. Surely, she couldn't have actually seriously suggested this.
"There's still Nagito. I bet he doesn't have a partner yet either."
Suddenly, the thought of inviting Natsumi sounded a lot more pleasing.