"We are mavericks... assistance is unneeded~" I closed my eyes as the cold night air blew against my thin jacket and I almost shivered.

"...are you seriously singing a theme song for your escape?" a certain sarcastic voice asked from beside me.

I turned my head to glare at him lightly, "Yes, I am. Are you seriously judging me, Yukki?"

He sighed and wrapped his self-made scarf tighter around his neck, so tight that I wondered how it didn't choke him.

"Maverick, an unorthodox or independent-minded person...I guess we are," he whispered after a while.

"Wow, didn't know you were an English dictionary! And here I thought the only thing you thought about were clothes," I quipped, although my tone betrayed no malice.

"Shut up. Or I won't recommend you to the director," he muttered grumpily, but the softness of his gaze as our eyes met was enough for me to know he didn't mean any of it.

"I already made some demos for the winter troupe's performance, though~"

"Nobody likes annoying composers," he glanced up at the sky as we neared the theatre.

"Nobody likes annoying fashion designers, either~" I flashed him a close-eyed smile as we arrived in front of the building.

As we headed to the dorms in the back a thought suddenly popped up and I fidgeted with my bag, "Izumi-san won't...insist to call my parents first, right?"

"...Muku and I explained the situation this morning," he exhaled, and a puff of white accompanied it.

As though summoned by the mention of his name, the pink-haired boy opened the door to the dorms and greeted us with a bright smile.

"Was the commute okay?" he asked, and I realized how much the two had been trying to normalize our interactions today.

"I guess. The subway didn't break down or anything," Yuki muttered, for once complying to small talk.

Honestly, what did I expect? For them to ask me how I snuck out of my house with three fully packed bags in tow? Whether my parents noticed me or would care enough to actually get angry that I was running away? What was I thinking, they were never such dense and thoughtless types. Still, this is too much...it's kinda cute...

I pressed my other hand onto my mouth in an attempt to stiffle a giggle, but they still heard it and looked at me inquisitively. I shook my head and merely patted their heads in response, to which Muku smiled nervously and Yuki blushed, faint enough that he could have used the cold of winter as an excuse if I teased him for it.

As we entered the living room, a few sets of eyes turned to look in our direction. I recognized most of them, being well acquainted with the Summer Troupe and having met most of the actors in other troupes as well. Kazunari was immersed in sketching something and didn't notice us until Misumi bounced up to us with a rather loud greeting, "Our baby triangles are back~ Welcome home~!"

For a brief moment, Kazunari's eyes seemed to linger on my bags, but then he bounced up as well and slung an arm around Yuki and I, laughing.

"Frooch is gonna be fuming that you two were out so late~"

Tsuzuru walked in with a yawn and smiled at the scene, instantly understanding the situation, "The director left some curry in a pot in the dining room. Should be enough for the two of you. Just make sure not to be too loud, the other students and the winter troupe are out cold from school and practice."

The two of us nodded and went to the dining room, Muku following behind us. We passed Itaru on the way there and he raised an eyebrow in question before seeing my bags and realizing what was going on.

As we served ourselves, Muku watched us from the end of the table, face propped up on one hand and the other tapping a simple rhythm on the surface.

After a few bites, I heard Yuki mutter, "Seriously, that Currian...couldn't she have made something other than curry on such a day?"

"Ne, Yukki...Mukkun..." I mumbled after I finished eating.

"Hm?" Yuki hummed in response as he took our plates to the sink.

"What is it, n/n-chan?" Muku asked softly.

"Sorry I dragged you into this mess..." a short stretch of silence followed.

"What are you apologizing for, idiot? Mankai's composer can't stay in an abusive household. It could affect the quality of her work," Yuki stated bluntly, and Muku and I blinked up at him in surprise before I burst out laughing.

"...I love you, Yukki," I say nonchalantly as I get up from my seat and grab my bags.

Before Yuki could respond, Muku started choking on air and I heard a voice from behind the three of us, "O-oi. I fall asleep for a bit and the crossdresser gets a girlfriend?"

Yuki threw a dishrag at him almost instantly as I frantically tried to help Muku, "Don't you think you guys have more dramatic reactions than the guy I confessed to?"

Yuki glared at the floor and seemed like he was about to say something when the director walked in.

"Ah...good evening Izumi-san," I say, embarassed at the chaos around me.

"Good evening, y/n-chan," she responds with a gentle smile, while dragging Tenma (who was still arguing with Yuki) out of the room and closing the door.

"...so I heard you wanted to apply as a live-in composer. We've never had one before, we usually just make do with whatever royalty-free music we can find that fits, so I'm sure the boys will be excited to hear that someone will be in charge of it from now on," she said as she sat down, instantly relieving me of any remaining worries.

"I...um...made some demos for the winter troupe..." I hurriedly take my laptop out of one of my bags and play the first one I made, "I know it's not as good as some professionals'...but I took some workshops when I was younger and I'm planning to go to Veludo Arts University for a music course once I graduate..."

"No, it's beautiful, y/n-chan!" I looked up to see Izumi's wide eyes and her hand covering her mouth in awe.

"Told you it was great," Yuki grumbled to me as I looked at him with a questioning look due to the director's reaction.

"Yuki is really prickly with praise, so I was surprised when he told me your music was cool, but it really is!" Muku's eyes were practically sparkling.

"You really got the emotions Tsuzuru-kun's script was trying to evoke...and the beat goes well with the casino theme too! I'll take this up to Tsuzuru-kun and Sakyo right away! We'll have some suggestions and feedback ready for the final versions soon!" She perked up and started copying the files onto a flash drive she got from her pocket.

"I'll talk to Sakyo about the addition to the budget and finding you a room. For now, you can room with Misumi?" She said distractedly as she zoomed away once the transfer finished, leaving the three of us unnable to utter another word.

Right on cue, Misumi poked his head in and asked, "I can trade with Yuki~ I have some new triangles I wanna show to Tenma anyway~"

Yuki looked like he was about to protest, but I really needed some familiarity tonight, so I agreed to Misumi eagerly. As Misumi skipped out of the room, I moved to pick up my bags only to discover that Yuki and Muku had already taken one each, leaving me only my backpack to carry up. I giggled at their behaviour but nonetheless walked to room 203 with them without complaint.

When we got there, Yuki and I sighed at the amount of triangular items scattered on the ground and in various nooks and crannies, whilst Muku simply seemed fascinated. We started tidying the place a bit after placing my bags on the unused bed, and once we were almost done, Muku excused himself to get some manga to entertain us.

After finishing, I went to the bathroom to change and when I got back, Yuki was already sewing an accent piece for one of the winter troupe actors' costumes.

"...y/n?"

I turned to look at him curiously, "Not n/n?"

He glanced down at his hands, almost as if he was pretending to concentrate on his work.

"Yukki," I moved over to sit next to him and felt him stiffen before relaxing.

"...I don't want to confess to you only to find out you confused your gratitude with liking me," he muttered and stabbed the cloth forcefully before turning to glare at me.

"...what?"

"Why the hell would you like a guy who wears girlier stuff than you? Is it because we're both outcasts? Because you've romanticized the notion of us being mavericks?" my eyes narrowed at his words and a slight pain stabbed at my chest.

"Feeling grateful I helped you doesn't mean you like me, idiot. It means you're a decent human being," he growled as Muku burst in the room happily.

Ignoring his thoroughly confused friend, Yuki continued on his tirade, "I don't need to get hurt just so you can find someone to cling to. Go confess to Muku instead, he's always waiting to be someone's Prince! I'm just a kid who helped another kid run away, not a prince who saved you from the villainous claws of your parents or some dramatic shit!"

Muku flinched as Yuki made his way to the door and I laughed bitterly, "Geez, can't you reject me in a nicer way, Yukki?"

He stopped in his tracks and glared at the floor as I got up as well, "You don't need to make excuses. Just say you don't like a pathetic girl like me...instead of telling me how I feel!"

I stomped out as Muku made a small squeaking sound and attempted to ask me where I was going.

"I'm gonna sleep in the washing machine tonight. I heard it's plenty comfy. And my parents have made me sleep in worse places," I huffed, not caring about the nonsense that came out of my mouth at that moment.

"...but...but I heard Hisoka-san might be sleeping the--" I slammed the door shut despite Muku's protests, leaving the poor boy to question why fights and misunderstandings seemed much scarier in real life than in his shojo manga.

***

"Damn it," I cursed to myself as I opened the washing machine and crawled into the tight space, hugging my knees and placing my head on top of them.

"I'm dense as hell too and probably have more insecurities than you so why do you have to try to use your insecurities as an excuse to reject me! God, if he just didn't wanna say outright that he didn't like me that way, he could have thought of a less...less frustrating excuse!"

"He doesn't think I actually like him? He thinks I'm confused and can't tell which feelings are which? What am I, five? He insults me by implying that I wouldn't like him just because he crossdresses? Bullshit!" I screamed into my hands, startling whoever just entered the laundry room.

"N/n-chan? I heard you were gonna live with us starting tonight but I didn't think you'd live in the washing machine..." I wiped my tears furiously and looked up to see a concerned Kumon.

"Oh, nah. I'm just chilling here for a while until Yuki gets over his stupidity," I say with a wide smile.

"Ah...haha...ok..." he says and flashes me a nervous smile before hurriedly picking up his laundry basket and bolting out of there, probably to inform someone about me.

"Just great. Now they're gonna think I'm weird and unstable. What a great new start," I sighed and leaned my head back.

Somehow, despite the uncomfortable position and the crick in my neck, I found myself drifting off to sleep.

***

My first morning living in the Mankai company's dorms, I woke up in a washing machine to the voice of one of my oldest friends, quietly singing the theme song to an anime I once convinced him to watch with me.

"We refuse to become a gear that spins in a rhythm of monotony..." a song that always struck a little too close to home for both of us.

"Conforming to society's expectations is like a living hell..." a song that had become our theme song as well.

"Before us lies a future of ultimate victory," a song of comfort, of apologies and understanding.

"With everything proceeding as planned," a song that I hoped had come to mean "I love you".

"Now's our chance, let's cleanse this world together," I opened my eyes slowly, after realizing that it was really Yuki's voice and not my imagination.

"We are mavericks, assistance is unneeded~" our eyes locked and we sang in unison, and even though our early morning voices were nowhere near perfect, the melody I heard in that moment was one of the most beautiful things I'd ever heard.

"I'm sorry," we said unison, his surprised face causing me to laugh.

"...I'm sorry it seemed like I didn't trust you. That I made it seem like you were just looking for attention. I know you actually overthink a lot and would never say anything to hurt your friends," he says weakly, averting his eyes.

"I'm sorry I confessed so casually. I don't think I could've worked up the courage otherwise...I'm also sorry that I didn't make it obvious enough how much you mean to me..."

"Do you honestly think I couldn't possibly have a crush on you just because of your hobbies?" I huffed, but the force of my scolding was diffused by the hilarity of the way I tumbled out of the washing machine.

He rubbed the back of his neck and rolled his eyes in response as I paused to slap some feeling back into my numb legs.

"And I'm sorry for shouting at you!" we say after a brief moment of silence, eyes meeting in surprise at the second time we said something in sync.

He got up with a small grin and offered me his hand, which I gladly accepted. As he pulled me up, I asked, "So are you accepting my confession or are ya still a coward~?"

"Pfft, as if. Don't think being my girlfriend exempts you from my sass, though," he ruffles my hair as I grunt in response.

"Ew, Yukki. No one truly sassy actually acknowledges the fact that they have sass," I place a hand on my hip and arch an eyebrow.

He mimicks me down to my pose and I giggled, thankful that we could be so comfortable with each other instantly.

I heard the door and we turned to see Omi, "Hi there. Breakfast is ready."

Yuki and I exchanged a look as he continued, "Don't worry, it's not curry. I made breakfast today. There's blueberry pancakes and some apple cinnamon ones too."

We nodded and started following after him, only to run into Muku on the way there. Once he realized we were holding hands, he hugged the both of us and smiled once he pulled away.

His smile somehow suddenly scary, he warns, "Please don't ever argue like that again. Insecurities are my thing and misunderstandings are shojo manga things."

We averted our eyes from him and nodded hurriedly, though Yuki seemed a bit reluctant.

As though a switch was flipped, Muku brightened and started chattering about some manga he stayed up all night to read, omitting the fact that the reason both he and Yuki didn't feel like sleeping was because of the new couple's argument.

"Oh, also be careful during breakfast. Sakyo-san is probably going to try to catch you off-guard and get you to agree to lowering the budget for the music by a lot," Muku whispers to us as we enter.

"It's fine, I'm second to no one but Yukki in terms of haggling~ I'm a maverick after all," I declare a bit too dramatically.

"You're just using the word to justify everything at this point," Yuki shakes his head in amusement as we sit down.

"Shhh, my darling maverick."