Chapter Text
The third to pick an outfit for the party, he left one of the many dressing rooms, the one reserved for him. He’d acted quite indecisively back there. Given his interest in fashion, who would he be if he hadn’t tried out all the clothing combos that appealed to his taste? In the end, when he finally revealed himself to the audience of two, Teruya had gone with a simple black suit including some yellow details and a red bowtie. You can never go wrong with black, he’d once read in a magazine.
Undeniably, it did discourage him when the one person he was aiming to impress spared him merely a single side look and a few careless words.
“Teruya…why are you so hyped?”
“Because,” he chirped, “the clothes in the dressing room set my heart on fire!”
From then on, while the others progressively got out of their respective rooms with their brand new looks, endless laughter and chatter filled the ballroom.
Haruhiko had the attire of a prince. Rei was rightfully confident in her looks. Kinjo and Kurokawa had that mysterious beauty surrounding them. Late for the occasion, Satsuki was the one who almost gave her friends a heart attack, yet her elegance made up for it.
Everyone looked gorgeous in their own unique ways, Teruya would admit that much, but none attracted him like he did.
Yuki’s normally disheveled hair (the school air always ruined it) now stayed fully straight, his face flushed, embarrassed to even be there if the merchant was guessing correctly. And that plain, dorky style? He’d learned to grow very fond of it.
Too bad Yuki himself had eyes on someone else. A girl, as to be expected.
Akane was also in all black, occasionally fidgeting with edges of her hair or trying to get comfortable under the tight dress. Her makeup made some of her facial features stand out, even the stuff one wouldn’t normally pay attention to such as the length of her lashes. It seemed unlikely that Yuki would tear his gaze away for a fraction of a minute.
Why the hell not?!
Poof!
Monokuma’s appearance ruined the moment for everyone, as always. Find a partner to dance with or you’ll get punished, blah blah blah…Poor students weren’t allowed to catch a break and have genuine fun for once.
The turn of events or death threats that hung in the air failed to give Teruya a scare, for he already knew who to go to.
“Just to clear things up, ahem, you must pair up with someone of the opposite gender. I have eyes on each and every one of you, so don’t try to be slick with your weird fantasies, pupupu!”
“Damn it all…” He cursed under gritted teeth, not letting anyone eavesdrop on his little outburst.
Yuki was a gem he could never get close to. Like a star, he always remained in sight but just out of reach.
Sheesh, what was he thinking? He had more important issues, he couldn’t afford to be poetic in his head, all the girls were going to ditch him!
Not that he saw any of them in a different light, but because he’d die if that were the case.
What now? He looked around, anxiety rising in his chest with each completed duo. Satsuki was the perfect princess for Haru, he didn’t have the heart to separate them. Rei, being the one with strict standards, had already chosen the smartest guy in the group. Yuki and Akane were a painfully obvious pair from the start, so that left…
Mikako Kurokawa.
He didn’t hate the idea, but what about her? He knew nothing about her taste in boys, or anything about her in particular, although neither of them had a choice in this. They were the left-outs and their lives were on the line, it would be a shame if she were to prefer punishment over a dance with him.
His steps cautious, Teruya approached the girl whose head hung low, suddenly overwhelmed with nervousness.
“Heya, uhh…you see…”
Kurokawa automatically turned towards the source of the stuttering. An eye contact between the two never happened but she did lower the hand she was previously rubbing her arm with, extending it for Teruya to hold.
“...May I?” Her voice came out hoarse, probably due to how little she used it.
He swallowed hard, having imagined himself to be the one who would invite the other, not vice versa. Was it really alright? His palms weren’t sweaty, were they? Plus, when they stood next to each other like that, the height difference was too apparent for his liking. Were they really going to be able to pull this off?
Teruya held the offered hand. Despite the gloves she wore, he could feel the thin fingers and a concerning amount of bones under his skin. It would only be appropriate if he overlooked that detail at the moment.
He should’ve acted like himself regardless of whom he was dancing with, be it Kurokawa or any other one of his classmates, it shouldn’t have made a difference. He could make a senseless joke about how he’d finally pulled a girl. He could actually take the time to adore the girl standing in front of him. He could, maybe, not dream of a man instead.
“Jeez Louise, you’re tall as heck!” Teruya commented shortly after returning to reality, squinting his eyes as he observed Kurokawa from head to toe, trying to calculate her accurate height. “S-Sorry, I just…dunno how to position myself. I’m like half your size or something, I don’t wanna make things weird.”
“Leave it to me.” Kurokawa assured, indifferent to the situation and the turmoil inside Teruya’s head. He would soon find out why she was so aloof, other than aloof being how she generally presented herself.
Without waiting for an indicator that she was allowed, she took a gentle hold of his free hand, prompting him to wrap his arm above her waist.
Soon after they were semi-adjusted, classical melodies filled the room, the only genre of music Teruya wouldn’t willingly listen to. Dancing to its rhythm was another story, however.
“Just follow along…please.” Kurokawa whispered so silently that it could easily get lost among the sounds of rising activity in the room. “...I’ll do everything for us to make it out alive…”
Survival.
Something about the exorcist’s only goal being to survive in an environment where everyone else was having at least a little fun was so her. Undeniably odd for Teruya, yet he was glad that they both had ulterior motives in the end. Not only would it be awkward otherwise, but he also wouldn’t want to feel like he was using someone else to soothe his foolish desires.
Doing as told, he didn’t attempt to show off his nonexistent dancing skills, simply moved his body whenever and wherever Kurokawa guided him to. It was fine as long as they weren’t stepping on each others’ shoes.
The dance starting at a slow pace granted Teruya with the opportunity to take a look around. His glances towards the other couples were hardly noticeable, just making sure they were there and safe, until it landed on Yuki and Akane.
Their movements were graceful and in sync. Yuki’s inexperience led him to an outward state of panic, though Akane was doing a good job handling his shenanigans. What’s more, they were talking. Teruya had noticed before, some time after the third class trial unless his memory deceived him, that they’d gotten into an argument and were cross with each other. Now, on what was the closest the students would get to a dance floor, nothing about the past mattered.
Teruya couldn’t have been happier for his friends.
Come on, even he himself didn’t buy that lie.
Akane was much livelier than she’d ever been throughout the killing game, explaining something though he couldn’t hear what it was. The only way of stealing Yuki’s attention as he listened attentively would be for someone to drop dead. If given the chance, Teruya would accept a fate like that.
Compared to Kurokawa, who was sincerely worried about guaranteeing their safety, his intentions were clearly impure.
He tightened the grip on the back of her dress.
A new piece began to play the second the first one ended. He hadn’t even realized he was being dragged around by the taller figure for approximately three minutes.
Teruya’s thoughts wandered farther away from Yuki, away from Hope’s Peak Academy and the killing game tragedy.
He had always loved his dad more than anyone else in this world. He was more than a father; he was a friend, a teacher, an idol and so on. It didn’t change the fact that in some areas of life, he was insufficient, romantic love being one of them.
It wasn’t uncommon for pops to crack a joke about his son being single, when a pretty girl passed them by on the street or when Teruya told him stories about his classmates. They’d laugh a lot, sometimes the child would feign anger, other times he’d promise he’d come back home with a girlfriend one day.
The possibility of him not being into girls in the first place had never been brought up. Because Teruya was more afraid of hearing an opinion that would change his entire view of his father than he was of actually loving a boy.
It was nobody’s fault that he’d never discovered those parts of himself. At least it would’ve been nobody’s fault if the merchant could stop letting it get to him.
“...You’re a little sad.”
A question or observation? Her remark falling on both categories at once, Kurokawa spun Teruya around, making him face away from her.
“Huh?” Teruya blinked. “Did ya say somethin’?”
He was making up excuses not to talk about his emotions, not knowing how he’d express them once forced to. Even with the sound multiple footsteps made being louder than Kurokawa, she still wouldn’t need to repeat herself to be understood, which she didn’t anyway.
“If it means you’ll perform better…you can pretend I am him…”
Teruya almost choked on his own spit. He couldn’t even ask if his crush on Yuki was that obvious, because damn right it was! The entire time, he’d done nothing to support Kurokawa, done nothing at all but stare at the ginger like he was about to dissolve into thin air.
“Did– Did I say too much…?” Her shoulders hunched.
Shoot, he must’ve forgotten to talk again.
“No, you didn’t.” Teruya’s voice matched the other’s in volume. “But I can’t do what you just said. That would totally stain your honor!”
“It would be easier for me… I don’t fancy…well, being perceived when I’m like this.”
The conversation came to an end there but the dance continued under the girl’s lead. She pushed the boy without letting go of his hand completely, then pulled him even closer than before.
Rather than showing signs of flusteredness, Teruya smiled brightly. Kurokawa’s lips may or may not have twitched in response, he couldn’t exactly tell as he let his eyes flutter close, surrendering to the rhythm and their harmony.
Their harmony. The imaginary one.
He tried not to pay the physical variances between her and Yuki any mind. The height difference -about 30 centimeters according to his calculations from earlier- left him out of breath, but he could ignore the inconvenience.
For Yuki, of course.
He didn't allow himself to second guess the decision of playing pretend, telling himself it was a win-win situation or whatever any good merchant would call it. He could have that dance with Yuki he'd been dreaming of since the start, and Kurokawa wouldn't have to worry about being sexualized because of an event she didn't ask to join, in a dress she also didn't ask to be put in.
Both of their movements had gotten significantly smoother. That must’ve counted for something.