Friday, June 3rd

"Marco, have you seen Maeda?" (Y/n) whispered over to her male friend, mindful of attracting their teacher's attention as she pretended to be taking down notes. The boy gave her a dismissive shrug as his response.

"Sorry, haven't seen her since yesterday. Have you tried texting her?" He suggested, straining to look at the board as he manoeuvred his gaze around people's heads.

"I did but she hasn't been checking her messages. Do you think she's sick?" Marco tilted his head from side to side in thoughtfulness before voicing his conclusion.

"Could be. You remember last time she got ill she couldn't even say a single swear word. Those were dark times." He muttered, finishing off his literary mimicking of the front of the class with a satisfied smirk. "Lighten up. You've got work after this so you should start worrying about that." Encouraging the girl with a light pat, he concentrated back on his tasks, scanning through each question with a determined flair.

The female slumped on her hands where she allowed her thoughts to wonder, sensing an irrational uneasiness over the entire situation. She soon reminded herself of her job that waited after her educational part of the day was over, sending her state into deeper depression. 'Ugh...I can't believe mum used to do this every day without complaining.' Looking back on the front board, her mind trying to focus on her teacher's explanatory voice, only for the sounds to muffled once her thoughts wondered.

(Y/n) walked past the gates to enter the premises of her workplace. Approaching the door, she felt an instinctual wariness flood her senses. A feeling that inclined her to halt and refrain from opening the entrance. She had to try and suppress the elusive warnings in her body as pulled the door open to enter inside.

"Take me!" A confident and booming voice echoed around the central passage, bouncing around the area with excessive energy until it looped back around towards the male. Lilito leaned back against a chair, holding his blouse open to present his build, rambunctiously smirking to display his playful attitude.

The girl analysed at him for a fraction of a second, wrapping her mind around the sudden surprise. '...Well, let's see if he gets satisfied by 'this' reaction.' The female took a deep breath in for her preparation before throwing herself on top of the boy, shocking the male into a stunned stare. "This is such a relief! I'm glad you understand 'who' will be taking 'who' in this relationship!" (Y/n) chirped out, clutching the male's hands in grateful support while Lilito only sounded out his astonishment with a small, questioning hum. The girl moved her hands towards the boy's shoulders where she tightly squeezed them, contorting her features into a sinister smirk. "Bend over, Lily-boy."

"HUH?!" Lilito flailed his limbs about, taking initiative to back away from the girl to take a moment of recollection. Losing his composure led him to lose his balance as he wobbled and slipped back to be taken to the floor, by the chair.

Rubbing the dizziness from his head, his muffled hearing finally picked up on ecstatic giggles and laughs that aimed to ridicule the boy. (Y/n) had to support herself on her knees to gain an appropriate balance for her uneven chuckles. "Haha! Now I get why you do this! This is hilarious!" She exclaimed while the shaken boy began regaining his previous excitement as he grinned at the girl.

"Haha, you actually kept your promise. You managed to amuse me this time, haha-NO!" The male suddenly burst we out, forcing a flinching response from the female. His face twisted into an irritated frown of disappointment as he begrudgingly lifted himself, and the chair back up. "No! Shut up, I'm supposed to be angry at you!" (Y/n) gave him a bemused look of loss, wondering what she had done wrong in their last encounter to leave the boy so bitter. "Yesterday I prepared all this as well, I even had candles and a stereo and even asked Akai to come and play the violin to set the mood -he punched me of course-. And I stayed here for hours thinking that you'd come but you never did!" Finishing off his rambling rant, the boy angrily turned away from the female with crosses arms and a fuming exasperation. "I can't believe you stood me up."

"That would imply that I promised you something." The girl remarked, earning another disheartened grumbled from her welcomer. As the boy prepared to elongate his sour rant, he felt a buzzing vibration dancing in his pocket. Upon taking out the device, he discovered his phone to be signalling for answer as an unfamiliar number was written out on the screen.

"Ugh, not again..." He sighed out, trying to ignore the distracting buzzing. The female curiously sent him a confused gaze before picking up on the inclination of the caller's identity.

"Don't tell me." She almost humoured, hadn't the male's annoyed glare stopped her.

He sighed before giving her a surrendering smirk. "Yes, it's her. She's still trying to get with me and I'm still trying to push her away." He limply dangled the now dormant phone in his fingers, pondering over any long term solution for his troubles. "It's flattering and all, but the relationship is dead. Can't she take a hint..." He mumbled, groaning out his irritation before his head flicked towards the girl's direction, eyes filled with a jester spark as he skipped towards the worker.

"No." (Y/n) declined, disregarding anything the male had to say altogether. Lilito pouted and gave out a small whine before caressing the girl's arm like a yearning animal.

"Please, secretary. Last time you managed to get her off my back for the whole day, I need your magic words again." He pleaded, flinching once his hand picked up on another round of vibrations, triggered by a call. "Please." He delicately whispered, heightening his pitch to display the desperation in his tone.

The female continued glaring at him for the longest time, contemplating over lending her aid or allowing the boy to sort out his own problems. "Give me." She annoyingly exhaled, making the boy jump in excitement as he gladly handed her the mobile device. Pressing the answer button, the girl was immediately bombarded with hyped words and bold statements that nearly knocked her composure. "Hello, this is Lilito's secretary. He can't come to the phone right now because he's defusing a faulty nuclear reactor. Please call at a more convenient time." She didn't even prepare to wait for the girl's reaction on the other end before ending the call and handing the phone back to the satisfied boy.

"Have I mentioned how amazing you are, secretary?" The girl rolled her eyes at his sweetened tone before preparing to leave the crime scene and proceed with her duties. Noticing her departing intentions, Lilito quickly took the female's shoulder before she could disappear from his sights. "Where you going, little lady? The day is still young, you can't tell me you don't have a small minute to spare for your favourite person."

The worked gave him a questioning expression, devaluating his statement. "Right now, my favourite person has to be the one on my money. And in order to get that, I need to work for it." Her blunt remark earned the male a discouraging frown, realising her focused intents were not directed towards his presence.

Lilito forced on a smile before plucking the girl's hand back. The intended surprise was meant to be displayed by the female towards the action, only for the boy to react with surprise. As their hands met, the male felt his automatically flinch away, realising the lack of a sensation that he felt desensitised to. He visibly displayed his surprise as he snapped his hand back to look at it with puzzlement over the inclination.

As he stared at his limb, wondering for the explanation to his body's reaction, he noticed the girl sending him the equivalent of his own confused gaze. "Static shock?" She questioned, attempting to find her own reasoning behind the physical response. The male clenched his hand a few times, knowing his exterior display was not resulted from simple static electricity.

"Yeah, that one really hurt." He joked, waving his wrist around to dull some of the intended pain. The girl hummed out her understanding before turning back around to leave. "Huh?! Are you seriously just going to leave me? Come on, I try to be as nice to you as possible, even with that rude attitude." The girl felt her eyebrow mechanically raising at his exaggerated statement, making her regard the frustrated boy.

"Why do you even try then? Why do you keep coming and trying to spend time with me?" She grumbled her own irritation as the boy gave her a melancholic exhale.

"You see, I'm just so lonely and have no friends, it's depressing how isolated I am so I just want to try my hardest to create a bond with you." The female could almost hear the solo violin that was meant to be added with his hyperbolic performance. All that was missing was a single tear to fall out of his eye.

"Well if you stopped feeling sorry for yourself and used that energy to go out and find people who are interested and not meant for a one night stand, maybe you'll actually make some." She bluntly stated to him, setting the male back at her harsh critique as she attempted to proceed with her journey once more. Lilito had to take a few moments to process the blatant comment before he sulked like a guilty child.

"How rude!" He exclaimed, fuming at the female's mocking truth. (Y/n) sighed, feeling a residue of slight shame as she wondered whether her irked remark was slightly forced to a harsher than necessary reality. However, her mind was then locked shut as she felt a presence bouncing beside her, making her look towards the boy who playfully skipped at her side. "As punishment, I'll be spending the day with you then." He chirped, giving her a cocky smirk.

'Is this guy serious?!' She screamed in her mind, quickening her pace to try and display her reluctance towards his distracting presence. Lilito quickly caught up as he bounded at her side. "Lilito, I don't have time for you. I need to do my work and I can't be having you distract me!" She stated, trying her up most best to ignore his presence.

The charismatic charmer soon pulled up a frown as his pace slowly decelerated to a stop. "Ugh, fine then. I don't even know why I keep trying to talk to you. You're so stiff and humourless, maybe you are suited for Seok." He commented sincerely, crossing his arms, presenting his deflated motivation.

The male could not quite pinpoint the exact reasoning behind his attempts to grab her interest. In usual situations as these, he would accept the rejecting hints and move on to the next person of interest. However, each time he would enter a state of accept surrender over the female, his mind would switch back the moment her presence graced him, causing his sporadic bold acts.

'Why the hell am I even interested in her? I can be out and having fun with another one of my girls.' He bitterly thought, finally deciding on switching his direction away from the girl. 'Forget it, I'll just go and do exactly that.' Despite his stubborn jurisdiction, he subconsciously knew that his defeatist decision would only last until the next time he crosses her path.

Lilito was promptly paralysed to the spot as he felt the collar of his shirt restricting him in progressing with his journey. Looking back to see the obstruction, he came to stare at an aggravated and insulted face that focused her intense, (e/c) eyes on the male's threatened ones. "Did you just call me 'stiff' and 'humourless'?" The boy blinked a few times as he was taken aback by the obviously affronted girl.

"You are an absolute monster." Lilito awed in admiration, barely keeping his excitement inside as he watched the girl put her cynical schemes in motion.

As (Y/n) carefully poured the melted chocolate she had warmed up on top of a raw egg, she made sure every surface of the product was coated in the warm, brown liquid. Performing the same act with a number of other eggs, she placed the products in the fridge to cool and solidify. Lilito squealed in excitement as he raced and fidgeted around the girl to coax more of her pranking nature. (Y/n) smirked with an enticed hinting of her secondary thoughts over a proud conjuring.

"You're a genius!" The boy silently chanted as he watched the girl's cunning trickery at work. (Y/n) carefully used up a role of cling film to loop around the entire statue, making sure to tuck the wrap in each crevice and corner until it firmly stuck to Gilbert's form, blending in with the shape of his body. She gratefully tapped the gargoyle in a prepared manner before turning towards her partner in crime.

"Ok, now hand me the paints." She indicated, immediately being granted with the few pain buckets she had acquired from the storage closets and beginning to splatter the numerous colours on the untouched statue. Lilito eagerly joined in on the harmless cruelty until they deemed their decor suited enough to bring the statue's creator a heart attack. "There. No actual harm done and it'll still bring the intended reaction."

Lilito quickly agreed, completely giddy with excitement over the prospect of the reveal of their pranks, feeling a sense of disappointment as the girl made her way back to the ground floor to rejoin her working attitude. The boy quickly followed behind as he jumped around her to bring back the mood of craftiness.

"Come on! Show me more! This is the first time I've found someone who's on my level of immaturity! I've never felt so comfortable in my own skin before!" He exhaled with blithe jubilation, prominently admiring the girl's experience and skills. "Please, secretary! I'll be your best friend~" He mused, batting his large eyes at the girl to try and tempt her further into mischievousness.

"Sorry, but this time I've got work to do. Maybe next time." Lilito worriedly pouted, catching the female's sleeve before she could leave.

"Please! I've finally got someone to relieve my boredom. You're my one and only!" He shouted, clasping his hands tightly in a prayer before her, hoping to gain her sympathy that would lead to a continuation of their antics.

As the pair stood in the central passage, they were both startled by a disgusted scream, originating from the kitchen. "Oh my God! What the hell?!" They heard a panicked and repulsed voice resonating out, before being followed by nauseated spitting and gagging.

"Oh! I think Gio found our chocolate eggs!" Lilito joyfully exclaimed, his whole body stirring with excitement. As the two looked out for the individual to show himself, another horrified screech echoed out as loud pants of panic followed.

"Gilbert! My precious Gilbert, who did this to you?!" A frantic scream emanated towards the two teenagers, alerting of the fruitful success in their mocking pranks.

"Whoa! Perfect timing, a double combo!" Lilito's exhilarated vocals quickly attracted the attention of both parties, the two troublemakers hearing their quick footsteps hurrying towards their direction. "Oh. I think we're going to get busted. Haha, I guess we really got them, didn't we?" The girl amusingly smiled as she nodded her head in agreement.

"Yep."

The boy humorously chuckled as he prepared himself for the upcoming abhorrence he would receive. "You ready to go down together?" (Y/n) returned his gullible giggles.

"Haha...nope." The two were joined by a pair of equally enraged and infuriated males dashing towards their direction. Giovanni appeared from the converging corridor, his body steadying itself as he leaned against the wall for support. He seemed to be wiping away a vile taste from his drooling mouth as his hand held a smashed, raw egg doused in chocolate. Padraig appeared at the top of the stairs, his face morphed with lines of rage as angry tears brimmed his eyes, his entire exterior stiffened in preparation to smoulder the perpetrator of his work.

Lilito smiled up at the males glaring at him, preparing to share the consequences with his associate. "Looks like you found our little gifts we prepared for you. Do you like them-?"

"Oh my God, Lilito! How could you?!" (Y/n) exclaimed, placing a hand over her mouth in shock as she gapped at the boy with a bewildered expression. Lilito stared at her reaction, pondering over her intent before noticing his victims sending malicious glares towards him. The boy looked back at the female to see her smugly sticking out her tongue at him behind her astounded hand.

His eyes widened as he realised the intentions behind her misleading response. "No! It was all her ideas and her doing! I just helped!" However, as loud as he shouted, the pair of tricked boys prepared their bodies to sprint at him, intending to deal a severe punishment over his trickery. Lilito looked towards the innocent girl as she shook her head in disappointment over his unfounded accusations. "You devious b***h..."

The girl gave him an unnoticed smirk as she lowered her volume. "What? I thought you wanted to make friends." She responded, stepping aside to allow the aggravated targets to make their way to the culprit.

Lilito reflexively bolted as his instincts sensed an upcoming barrage of pain that would be inflicted on him. "I'd so do you right now!" He sounded out in an excited voice towards the female before he disappeared from the scene, being promptly tracked down by his two victims.

"I'll use your blood as decoration you b*****d!" (Y/n) watched as the males' company had completely vanished with their fading runs. Silence followed the chaotic scene, bringing a sense of satisfactory results.

(Y/n) finally exhaled to relax her senses as she was freed to do as she pleased. 'At least that'll keep him off my back for the day.' As she drifted her gaze around, she felt a slight sense of guilt emerging to her subconscious. 'Was I too harsh? Usually I'm more patient with people...' As she passed her glances around the area she soon discovered her presence not to be the only one lingering around.

(Y/n) stopped her confused sights at Akai, who smiled at her off to the side as he sipped his juice in an entertained fashion. "I saw what you did there." He mused in admiration, congratulating the female on her deceit.

(Y/n) gave a self-conscious smile, trying to dismiss the whole incident altogether. "Don't encourage this. I feel bad for putting him on the spot like that." The individual who had previously played witness from the side line approached her with a brushed off attitude.

"The f**k boy deserved it. He gets on everyone's nerves, it was coming sooner or later." The male's insensitive comment earned a subtle shrug from the girl. "Are you going to work now?" He enquired, curiously watching for the female's answer.

"Well, that's what I'm here to do and the reason I had to do that to him." Her answer was highlighted under thoughtful optimism as she checked over her assigned schedule.

Akai watched the female in speculative analyses, attentive over her attitude and general manner. "You're a hard worker." (Y/n) sent him a confused glance before placing her working arrangement back.

"I'd like to think I do a decent job." She briefly stated, her vocals slightly strained as she couldn't figure a proper response for the side comment. Akai hummed, seeming to contemplate over the girl herself before proceeding to move away in a slow pace past her.

"I'll see you later then." He implied, passing the bemused female to change location and allow the girl the privacy she needed to perform her duties. (Y/n) followed her confused gaze after the boy, searching for a proper conclusion over his brief friendliness, until he disappeared from her vision.

'Well, that was a weird conversation...' Her thoughts subsided once she focused back on the duties at hand.

'Alright, it says that today I'll be clearing up Eban and Gennai's room and from there I can start gathering up everyone's laundry.' She thoughtfully assessed, piecing together her own schedule that would suit to her time.

Upon approaching the room under her focus, she stopped herself a few paces back as she found an obstruction further ahead in the form of a boy. She blinked a few times to clear away some of the doubt in her perception before she noticed her own presence was being stared at. The boy sent her an empty, stern look, seeming to lose himself in the female's gaze.

"Hey, Gennai. Are you excited about your brother coming today?" She granted him with an innocent inquiry as she neared the stiff boy.

The male immediately flinched at her approach, instantly feeling the heat begin to radiating off his face as his heart reciprocated the reaction. "Ah! No!" He shouted, halting the surprised girl in her tracks to stare at his sudden reaction. Gennai touched around his chest, outwardly feeling each strong beat vibrating through his skin. "Oh no! The bomb will explode!" He panicked, distancing himself from the female to feel the thumps behind his rib cage settling down. He breathed out in relief before looking towards the girl that had triggered the bodily response.

"Are you ok?" (Y/n) questioned the sporadic actions, waiting for the male to settle himself.

However, as much as the boy would have liked to hand her an aggressive reply, his tongue found it hard to articulation any sort of word as it lay limp behind his clenched teeth.

Gennai slowly began tracing his steps backwards as he enlarged the gap between him and the female. He pressed his lips together in a tight border for no sound to escape before he swiftly turned to run in the opposite direction towards the library. She stared after him, bewildered over his reaction. Her brows automatically crinkled in a confused expression before reticently turning towards his room. 'What's gotten into him?'

As the female proceeded to enter the male's quarters, she was pleasantly surprised to see the corresponding area to his own said to be left untouched. She gazed around Gennai's side however, and could almost feel her muscles aching from the work she would inevitably have to endure. It seemed to her that all the junk and trash had doubled since her last visit and played cruel tricks on her mind as she began losing motivation.

Stepping over the piles and stacks of worthless treasures, she gazed over each individual item to allow a question to loom over her head. 'I don't even know what needs to be kept or not...this is going to be such an irritating task.' She grunted to herself as she began mentally assorting the items into categories before beginning on parting them in their own section.

(Y/n) lugged out a heavy bag full of miscellaneous trash out into the corridor where she placed the filled up blak plastic to lean against the wall. She took the pausing moment to regain her breath and collect her mind.

'Hopefully he doesn't have a problem with ridding some of these out. I wish he was here to inform me what he wants to keep.' The girl briefly scoffed at her assumption, as though she was really deluded enough to think the male would give up even the most insignificant of objects.

As she straightened her aching back, her senses felt an indicating presence residing in her company. Turning her attention towards the area where the distraction originated from, she noticed the hoarder unnervingly watching her from the side. As Gennai was uncovered, his body stiffened as his feet nailed to the floor, too stubborn to move. The male felt a rush of tingles and energy coursing through every part of his body, causing him to uncontrollably shake as shivers ran up his spine to his enflamed face. He swiftly began backing away as the girl chose to approach the new company.

"Gennai, are you ok? I'm starting to seriously get concerned with your health." She stated, watching his red face and wide eyes tremor and twist up, while the boy felt an unwanted strong beat in his chest.

"Ah, no! No, no! It's ticking! The bomb is ticking again!" His shouts became panicked and rushed as he frantically patted down his chest in search of the cause. (Y/n) took a step towards the paranoid male to inspect him, only for Gennai to shoot his heeding eyes at her. "No! You're triggering it! You're doing this to me! Make it stop!" His demanding plea shot into the female's perception as the context became blank and unreadable to her. Seeing the girl's cluelessness for a solution, Gennai swiftly ran down the corridor where he disappeared behind the corner, leaving the girl to her own devices.

(Y/n) stared after the scene, trying to gather through the process in her mind that would result in the reaction. 'What's going on with him?' She unintentionally raised her eyebrow before proceeding to reenter his room and finish the rest of her job.

Gennai staggered and stiffly ran as he looked around himself in search of a missed individual. 'Eban...I want Eban. He'll know what to do! He can fix this damn bomb.' The male placed his hands to his chest where he could still feel the remanence of the strong pumps that felty hey could jump out through his skin. He let out a shaky exhale as he tried to keep his body under control, worried another beat might cause him a heart attack. Looking about himself a second time, he spotted a figure moving into his view, sparking his attention. "Zak! Zak, help me! I need to speak to you!"

The worker was nearly startled as he heard the high shrill, forcing his focus on the boy. "Master Gennai? What seems to be the trouble?" The male ran to him before coming to a panicking halt right in front of him, beginning to speed through his troubles as though every second of life counted.

"I-it's (Y/n)! She put a bomb in my chest! She keeps making it tick whenever she's near me! T-that witch, I don't know how she did it! But she wants to kill me!" He frantically shouted, earning a few confused gazes from the older male.

"Please pace yourself. I can't understand what you mean." Gennai began shaking with frustration and irritation as he felt the inclination to repeat himself. "Now please explain in more detail."

The boy breathed out a deep gulp of air before composing himself, with only a small layer of anxiousness. "(Y/n)! Last night, we were in the park and she was saying I can be just as great as Eban, and that's when I felt the bomb in my chest. It kept ticking, and it was getting stronger the closer she was to me! And it made my whole body unstable. I need to take it out!" His exasperated state and desperation caught the worker's attention as he entered deep thought.

"A bomb in your chest...? As great as Eban...?" Zak silently muttered to himself as he processed the boy's explanation, transitioning it into normal language. Amidst his thinking, he felt the realisation shock him into high alert as an amused smile began spreading to his lips. "Oh, I think I see what's happening...tell me Master Gennai, what do you think of (Y/n)?"

The male gave him a bemused look as he attempted to understand the man's implication. "What does that have to do with anything?" He questioned, earning a temporary dismissal from Zak before being incentivised to answer the enquiry. Gennai took a moment to gather his thoughts over the question, as he began compiling an opinion of the girl. Zak felt humoured and answered as he watched the boy's face deepen a pinker tone. "She...she wants to understand me! I really like that. She's mean and harsh, I think she makes fun of me sometimes. But she makes fun of herself sometimes as well, so I don't know how to feel about it." The male's body automatically fidgeted, squirming in his space as he could feel the unwelcome pumps in his chest increasing with the deep analysis over the girl even without her presence. "She entertains me, and does a relatively descent job in looking after me like big brother. I like that. She annoys me sometimes though...so I don't know why I keep going to her." The male hushed his words as they progressed, stopping his speech to glance over at his worker.

Gennai morphed his features into a bewildered look as he watched Zak trying to hold in his laughter and wide smile behind his hand. "Oh, is that so?" He managed to exclaim before clearing his throat to comprise himself properly as he regarded the boy with a smile. "Interesting. And how do you feel when you're around her?" Gennai gave him an unamused stare, pondering over the reasoning behind the interrogation.

He took a small moment to think over his response before voicing his answer with excitement. "She's amusing! When I ask her to do something, she does it! She's sometimes stubborn though...but eventually gets persuaded." Gennai's voice became irritated as his eyes enlarged in terror. "But last night -I don't know how- she emplaned a bomb in my chest!" He briskly pointed to the spot near the centre where he felt the incessant beating. "Whenever I'm around her I can feel the ticking in my heart! Something then starts making my body tremble and wince. And my knees start shaking and..." Gennai lightly rubbed the palms of his hands against his knees that were beginning to numb at the mere thought of the female's influence over him, looking down to the ground to hide his worried expression, "and...my face becomes really hot! I think it's because the bomb is warming up to explode. And, the closer she gets to me, the stronger the beats of the bomb become! It feels like it might explode. And my chest starts hurting really badly and..." As the flustered and upset male pointed his eyes up towards Zak, he glared at the older male as he saw him unintentionally displaying a large grin that stretched across his intrigued face. "What?!"

The man let out a shaky sigh, labouring in suppressing any light chuckle that could escape. "Wow, never thought I'd see the day you develop these type of feelings...heck, never thought you could." He muffled a small giggle behind his sleeve as the boy continued sharpening his glare and frustratingly questioning his inference. "It's nothing Master Gennai, I don't think you have anything to worry about." He patted the fuming boy's head with assurance. "My advice is to just not to worry about this. You'll get used to it over time, just go try to enjoy Miss (L/n)'s company." Zak began walking away from the astonished boy.

Gennai stared back at him as he raised his daunted angry voice at the departing man. "Zak! I wanted advice on how to get rid of the bomb, what the hell are you talking about?!" His frustrated scream brushed past the worker as he disappeared to his own business, leaving the boy boiling in dissatisfaction. "Uurrghh! Zak, you're useless!" His angry scowls were sent down the hall to swivel their way towards the male in question before the disheartened boy began pacing back down the corridor.

His mind became clouded with thoughts and perceptions unfamiliar for his emotions to deal with. The more his mind rushed, the more his pace quickened as his subconscious attempt to escape the surfacing thoughts. His forceful mind vehemently pushed his active brain to replay images of the person plaguing his senses. Gennai tried to shake out the thoughts, rubbing his head to scatter the vexing recollections.

'Ah, get out of my head!' The boy began running across the corridor, barely paying attention to his surroundings as his feet automated in their jog. 'Big brother...big brother will know what to do.' He could feel a lump forming in his throat as concern took over. 'He...he'll make it all stop. He'll know how to get rid of this damn ache in my chest.' His self-assurance boosted the male's pace as his mind could only focus on searching for his absent sibling. 'Then maybe, I can be around her again.'

Gennai felt his body collide with another, forcing him to stumble back as a thud was heard. The male stared towards the girl who was disappointingly looking at the laundry basket that had resisted out of her grip to sprinkle its contents of clothes everywhere on the ground. "Gennai, be careful. Didn't you see me?" She kneeled down to start picking up the spread out piles of laundry while the boy felt his tongue twist around in his mouth, preventing him to respond.

'What?! I was supposed to be going in the other direction, why did I turn this way?!' Once he felt the familiar thump in his chest, he knew his next reaction. "No! Witch! You disoriented me! Why are you doing this?!" He quickly turned his energy into a bolting run in the opposite side of the corridor where he was originally supposed to be heading.

(Y/n) stared at him in shock and confusion as his form disappeared out of the area in unthinkable speed once again. 'Did I...do something wrong?' She questioned, trying to remind herself of any inconsiderate actions she could have performed towards the boy. Her foresight led her instincts to detect a new presence lingering around her form, forcing her to stop the collection of the dirty clothes and look up towards the figure.

Giovanni jolted slightly at his sudden discovery, jerking slightly back as he bit down on his fork that contained a piece of a pancake. The girl confusingly watched the male as he began to slightly fidget, feeling inclined on explaining himself and his company. "Oh, umm..." He hushed a mumble before giving the female a timid smile. "Buongiorno."

Gennai's legs halted at the central passage where he took a second to take in a breath of air for the first time since he began running. The boy soon felt his breathing quiver and shake as he sensed a wave of sorrow wash over him at the prospect of never nearing the female again. He began rubbing his cheeks to rid the heat that was surfacing to his skin, only for his perception to pick up on a distant sound.

As the noise of tyre tracks entered his auditory range, the boy ran towards the front entrance to briskly open it and reveal the source of the friction on gravel. He watched the large, black car stop in front of the stairs to the house where a certain individual exited the vehicle before gratifying the driver with his services.

Eban hadn't been permitted a second to absorb his environment, before a body tackled his in a welcoming hug. "Big brother, you're back!" The dark haired boy mused as he squeezed the older male's body in an airless embrace. However, Gennai quickly composed himself as he began tugging him towards the building. "Come in! I need to tell you something!"

"Gennai, I need to go and get some cleaner clothes form my room. Maybe we can-" The blond was briefly cut off when the boy dragged him away from the stairs.

"No! She's there!" He blurted out, earning a lost look from his sibling.

"Why don't you want to be with (Y/n)?" His question raised a migration of blood to set at the boy's cheeks as Gennai frantically shook his head.

"Please! It's really important!" He pleaded, gradually shifting the male towards a separate corridor.

"Alright, what is the matter?" Eban questioned, stopping in an uninhabited area to look at the boy. He furrowed his brow once he saw his sibling's red face mixing with his unstable fidgeting.

"(Y/n), she...she put a bomb in my chest." The male muttered, feeling his body's liquid rushing through his veins in speeds that caused twitches and energy to spread through his motor functions. "She...whenever I'm around her, my heart beats so fast and it hurts. I can't really breath properly ether, and feel like my chest is ticking. Like my heart might explode in any second." Eban neutralised his expression as he continued looking down at the boy with unreadable features that avoided giving away his true speculations. "I...want to know how I can get this bomb out! It hurts..." Gennai felt his stomach knotting and his pounding muscle strongly throbbing as it pushed currents around his body. "It hurts..."

"I see..." The older male narrowed his eyes at his brother, giving off only the briefest of shadowed motifs behind his emerald eyes, before a smile replaced the coveted intentions. "You're so silly, Gennai." Eban placed his palm to rest against the jittering boy's head, where he comfortingly ruffled his hair. "She didn't put a bomb in your chest, believe me. It's not humanly possible to just do something like that out of nowhere." The blond's chuckles soothed the younger male to a degree before more confusion replaced the answers.

"Then what is it?! How can I make it stop?" He pleadingly looked up at his brother, latching onto the boy's shirt in search for a solution. Eban's kind and warm grin brought him a spark of hope.

"You can't." Gennai's rejuvenated state soon fell into a sinking pit where his dependance dragged him down into an onyx abyss. "I guess...it could be that your brain is feeling guilty." Gennai looked up towards the boy where his met his comforting gaze.

"Guilty? About what?" He gaped up at his sibling for assuring answers as the boy could only give him a smile.

"I'm not sure...since it happens only when you're around her, she could be the reason." Eban thoughtfully inspected, deeply seeming to contemplate the reasoning before his face gave out his realisation. "Oh, I think I know what it could be." Gennai intently stared at his brother, impatiently waiting for the explanation he had thirstily waited for. "You've been spending a lot of time with (Y/n), right? I guess that maybe you've just developed...a dependence on her." Eban leaned down to inspect his little brother's features, melt into confusion, as a sad smirk played on his own lips. "Is that why you're reacting the way you are?" The inquiry came out in a lulled tone, as though for the idea to be unthinkable. "Because you've replaced me, Gennai?"

The young boy remained in a state of shock before shaking his head in a frenzied state, quickly trying to dismiss the proposal. "No! Big brother can never be replaced! I would never do that!" Eban frowned at his words, as though remaining suspicious over their validity, engulfing the boy in further desperation as Gennai clung to his arm.

"Well, the mind reacts to the way things are. I guess it can't be helped, you've begun to tire of me and found a suitable substitute. The way you want to avoid her now shows how guilty you feel about that." The black haired male's panting became frantic and uncoordinated, rattling his head in denial.

"No! No! Eban is the best! You're the only one I need beside me! You can never be replaced! Please, make these feelings go away! It's not true!" His emotions dragging him down as each thread of despair, disbelief, dejection and hopelessness began tying his rationality in an unreachable bond.

Eban disappointingly shook his head before a revelation came to mind, saving the younger boy from completely breaking down. "There's really only one way to avoid you feeling like this." Gennai gave a wide smile at the sound of a solution as his despondency began slowly dissolving into a lifted spirit. "You'll just have to stay away from her."

Gennai's hopeful grin slumped at the sound of the harsh resolve. 'Stay away from her...'

"Leave her alone."

'Leave her alone...'

"Don't go near her."

'Don't go near her...'

"Keep yourself to yourself." Eban granted him a casual smile, as though the action of avoidance were as simple as breathing. Once he saw the desolation on the boy's face, the blond lightly placed his forehead against his brother's to bring some misguided attentive intimacy between him and the anguished male. "My precious little brother, did I upset you?"

Gennai, lightly rotated his head from side to side, not daring to look at the boy in the eyes. "No...it's just...I want to still be around her..." An emptiness began expanding within him as though his entire soul was shaken by the idea. His throat dried and even his ears could barely hear the swishing of the leaves just outside the open window.

"So you're still trying to replace me." Eban's dolor inquiry furthered the younger boy's sombreness.

"No...please, it's not like that." His voice lost all colour, as it remained in a flat tone, trying to force out its last begging reply.

"Then make it easier on yourself, as well as show me. Keep your distance from her." Gennai reluctantly nodded, sniffling slightly at the pressure he felt weighing over his shoulders, shamed to look at his sibling's face. "You want these feelings to stop? That's the best way." Eban waited a few seconds to allow his words to revolve around Gennai's mind before turning around to walk in the opposite direction.

"Where are you going?" Gennai looked over at his leaving sibling in confusion.

"I need to change." He simply stated, recalling to his previous concern before the confrontation.

"But...she's up there." Gennai looked towards the wall, in the direction of the second floor where anxiousness surfaced within him.

"Oh...then I guess..." Eban pondered over a resolution, outwardly showing to consider the problem before a reassuring smile appeared on his face. "You'll just have to stay here then." Gennai's heart sunk, feeling any adrenalin that coursed through his body vanish, leaving him lifeless to respond. "Or you can go outside. The weather is nice today." He waved to the boy before departing with him to perform his own task.

Gennai could hear the outside nature in a muffled box, feeling cage within his restrictions as he wasn't sure what to do on his lonesome. He swallowed the dryness in his throat as he no longer felt any exhilarated strong beats in his heart. He wiped away the sweat on his palms, feeling their warmth cool down as they no longer had anything to grasp for support. "Ok..."