Five sat on a wooden chair in the kitchen, waiting for his mother. He placed a paper towel on his wounded eyebrow to stop the bleeding. Every soft touch left him with a piercing pain as if a needle had just been pressed into his skin. Five sighed in anguish and leaned back against the table. He had the impression that his head was about to explode. He gripped the towel tightly in his fingers and tossed it to the ground in a fit of rage.

— Five, I told you to keep a towel over the wound. - Grace stated as she made her way back to the kitchen carrying a bandage, plaster, and hydrogen peroxide.

— I'm sorry, Mom. - he revealed the bleeding wound as he brushed his fingers through his hair.

— The most important thing is that you don't hurt. - His wound was cleaned, a bandage and plaster were put on, and Grace also administered a cooling cream on the bruise on his cheek. — Done. You can now go to the rest.

After saying "thank you" to her, the Boy quickly space-jumped to Griddy's Donuts, where his siblings were. His entrance attracted the attention of his siblings. He quickly turned his back on them and hesitantly walked over to the counter.

— How can I help you? - Agnes gasped, staring in horror at Number Five's face. — "Oh Jesus, what happened?"

— I'd have two hot chocolate, please. Five bought the drinks and sat down on a chair at the counter. In a complete distance from his siblings. He could feel them looking at him.

— Of course, right away.

Agnes immediately ran to the machine and poured hot chocolate into two cups. Then she handed them to the boy, still looking at his wound. But he paid her no mind. He paid, snatched the drinks, snatched the drinks and stood up, heading for the door.

— Don't you want to spend the day with your siblings?

— Not today. - Five said as he walked out the door.

After spacial-jumping to his room, he ensured the door was locked so no one could come in.

— Y/N? Where are you? - Five inquired, looking around, and suddenly the girl appeared from the shadow next to the wardrobe.

— Jesus Christ, you scared me. Maybe next time knock or something. - she said as she sat down on the ground and glared at Five with a hint of irritation.

— I should knock before entering my own room?

Rolling her eyes, Y/N pulled out the chess set she had "legally" stolen from Allison's room. Since Number Three seldom used them, Five and Y/N were confident that she wouldn't notice that they were missing.

Only now, as Five was now sitting next to her, did Y/N look up from the floor to see the wound on his forehead.

— What happened to you? - she asked, pointing to the wound that was visibly still bleeding.

— Nothing interesting, really. - Five turned the chessboard towards the girl. — You start.

Y/N analyzed the board and after a while she made the first move.

— E2 to E4. - she moved the pawn a little forward. — You were hurt during the training today? - she inquired, studying Fives' face.

The Boy copied her action, shifting his pawn from position E8 to E5.

— I did not. - he answered harshly.

Y/N then grinned and immediately made her next move. She grabbed her bishop and moved it from F1 to C4.

— Why can't you just admit you got your ass beaten? - Y/N joked.

Five now appeared a bit irritated but still maintained to keep his composure.

— B8 to C6 and no, I didn't lose.

— Sure. - Y/N giggled and made her next move. — What is the reward?

— Prize? What prize? - Five gave her a perplexed look.

Five gave the girl's suggestion some thinking. He then turned to gaze at her.

— What prize would you want? - He regarded her with interest.

— When Five's pawn was taken, Y/N enquired. — What do you have to offer?

— I don't like such evasive answers. Tell me what you want to get.

— A sketchbook and some pencils would be good.

— Is that it? Nothing else? - he surprisedly questioned her.

— This will be enough. - Y/N smiled as she watched Five takes her rook.

Without thinking, she made her move, this time knocking down Fives' bishop.

— You're not going to ask me what I want?

— I don't think it's necessary. I'm not going to let you win.

Five smirked and stole another rook from Y/N, making her chuckle.

— Hargreeves, you have no idea who you're messing with.

— I've been playing chess since I was a child. - he grinned as he made eye contact with Y/N.

— So did I. By the way, - she made another move, this time posing a real threat to Fives' Queen. — This wound appears to be pretty nasty. Did Luther hit you?

— Stop asking questions and instead focus on the game. - Five reacted harshly once again. — Do you find satisfaction in irritating me? Because that is how I perceive you.

— No. But I enjoy how quickly you can be distracted.

Despite the fact that Y/Ns' another bishop was defeated by Five's rook, she did not give up. They were both now trying to win at any cost.

— Tell me, - Y/N grabbed her king, unsure of where to place it. She looked up and noticed Five making a valiant effort to mask his anxiety. — when you were hit, did it hurt?

She placed her king on the F7 square, obstructing Fives' Queen's escape route, who was also barred by his own bishop and pawns. Y/Ns' King, on the other side, was backed by her bishop on the C4 square, so if Five beat him with his Queen, Y/Ns' bishop would defeat her.

In an effort to collect himself, Number Five stared in disbelief at the chessboard before turning to face the girl.

— How.. How did.. How did you.. - he whispered in amazement, every now and then shifting his gaze from the girl to the board.

Y/N grinned as she observed Five leaning back against the wall.

— Practice. - she said, her pride evident. — I'm waiting for my prize. - she said as she took a drink of her hot chocolate.

The boy grumbled and rolled his eyes before putting the game down.

— Woah, you're mad. - Y/N noticed.

Five was visibly taken aback and slightly insulted by her statements.

— I am not. - he muttered angrily beneath his breath, avoiding the girl's gaze.

— Oh, you SO are. - Y/N moved closer as she continued to tease Number Five.

Five flinched at her words, accidentally making brief eye contact with her. Y/N smiled seeing how embarrassed he was.

— You know I think I've changed my mind about what prize I want. You have to..

— Be right back. - he replied immediately and stood up. He turned and walked to the door, snatching his wallet from a dresser drawer.

— Hey! Where are you going? - she managed to ask before Five left the room.

— To get your prize! - Five yelled as he slammed the door, leaving Y/N alone.

-(••÷ ~☂️~ ÷••)-

He entered the stationery store with trepidation. He hurried briskly to the department on the left side of the store, looking around. He rummaged through the shelves full of the many sketchbooks mentioned by Y/N. Small sketchbooks, enormous leather-bound ones, and simple sheets of rolled paper were among the items he observed. He began to wish he had stayed and asked Y/N for information because he had no guidelines to aid him in picking the best one. Then he felt a touch on his shoulder out of nowhere.

He took a step back, turning away from the "intruder" who had breached his personal space. Then he noticed a rather short, smiling girl standing just behind him. She was definitely a year or two older than him. She wore her dark hair down to her elbows and braided it into two braids. Five was drawn to a worn green outfit with her name tag on the left side. It's comforting to know she's not some fan who'll approach him for a signature or a photo, something his father has firmly forbade. Just as he had forbidden them from leaving the academy without his permission, which Five was currently doing.

— Hello, my name is Nora, can I help you in any way? - she inquired, smiling at him. The navy blue uniform and the famed academy emblem sewn on the boy's jacket took her a second to identify. — Oh my.. Are you a member of the Umbrella Academy? At first, I didn't notice.

She was going to flood the boy with a barrage of words, but Five quickly interrupted her after realizing that he was wrong in expecting typical service.

— I need a decent sketchbook, but I have no idea which one to get. - he answered in a monotone, and it was clear from the tone of his voice that he was uninterested in her presence. Which she obviously didn't get.

— Need help choosing? - she asked as if she found it difficult to interpret what Five had just said.

He was starting to loathe the girl much more now than he had just a moment earlier. He wasn't sure if it was his mind playing tricks on him or if she was actually smiling at him like a psychopath would at her next victim, but something about her conduct concerned him.

— I can help you with that! - she quickly added, pleased she might be of use. It was her first week on the job and it stung when she was doing something as an intern. — Is this for you, or are you here to buy a sketchbook for someone else?

The girl walked closer to the shelf and started looking around, looking for the perfect product for her client.

— Gosh.. Why are you talking so much?

— I lost a bet. - he swiftly responded, not wanting to lose his cool and order the girl out loud to shut up. After all, he had particularly awful luck today.

The girl nodded in understanding and paused for a moment, turning to Five.

— Is this person just beginning their drawing career or is it a hobby? This will help me choose a good product.

For a minute, Five was silent and fixed his gaze on the ground. He didn't even know that about Y/N, in all honesty.

— I don't know. I guess she likes drawing, since she asked me for such a prize. Take whatever you feel is appropriate.

The girl smiled again, but this time she appeared dissatisfied or perhaps irritated, so she hastily picked a random A4 notebook and handed it to Five.

Number Five examined it carefully, his gaze resting awkwardly on the notebook he was carrying and the girl who was still standing in front of him.

— Okay, I'll take it. - he said, this time staring the girl in the eyes, which caused her to hastily glance away. He is the winner this time.

The girl smiled and nodded as she moved towards the pay register, followed by Five, who picked the first random pencils she came across. After all, he's not going to ask her for advise on which one to pick again. He wouldn't survive it.

— That will be 33 dollars in total.

Five took some cash from his pocket and handed it to the cashier. Then he took the paper bag and walked out of the store before anybody could notice.

-(••÷ ~☂️~ ÷••)-

— I'm back. - he said, right after spatial-jumping back to his room.

Y/N looked at him and then at the bag he was holding.

— You left when I wanted to tell you that I don't need all of this. - she replied smiling.

Five did not respond, preferring to end the conversation.

— Why are you so quiet?

— Take it. - he handed her the bag and walked to his closet to get his pyjamas.

— Did you fight with someone or something?

— Let's just say that a simple cashier from the store has already ruined all my mood. It's embarrassing.

Y/N nodded. As she was examining her new sketchbook, a small crumpled piece of white paper fell out of the first pages.

— What do you mean she ruined your mood?

— She was imposing on me and constantly trying to talk to me.

— Isn't that good? I mean, you're famous after all.

— If she likes me that much, she should leave me alone. Everyone knows I don't like pushy people. Or people in general.

— Even me?

— Yes, even you. - he replied sarcastically, smiling at Y/N which she returned by rolling his eyes. — I'm going to take a bath, I'll be right back.

— Sure. - she replied, looking at the number written on the previously mentioned piece of paper. — Whore..

Hey everyone!

I'm sorry that I haven't posted any chapter for a long time, but because of school I don't have time or strength to do anything for myself, let alone to write.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this quick chapter. In the next month I have even more important tests, but I will try to find time to write more chapters.

Have a nice day/night<3