Asahi looked at the board, smiling.

'Thank you for returning my book. Your notes were very thoughtful. There's a pack of new small sticky notes in the middle drawer to help you out with your loss.'

Asahi erased it, writing his note.

'No problem! Thanks for the sticky notes, I really needed some.'

He turned around in his chair, going to grading. His students had left hours ago, leaving him in peace. Asahi had his hair down and was rocking in his chair, getting more and more done over time.

Button could wait a bit for him to come home. He laid his head on the desk, getting exhausted. He wanted to stay energized but caffeine made him shaky so he just had to suffer through this until he could get some rest.

****

"Excuse me?"

Asahi lifted his head, taking a deep breath. "Mm?" He was startled as there was another man he definitely didn't know in his classroom. "Uh..."

"That's my desk."

Asahi nodded. He grabbed his bag, trudging off.

The other male hurried to him, grabbing his shoulder. Asahi was startled. "Please don't drive when you're this tired."

"Oh no, it's okay I always do this-" Asahi's eyes widened as he was led into the storage room in his classroom. "What are you doing?!"

The larger of the two didn't respond, opening the door and turning the light on. To Asahi's surprise, there was a cot in the far corner out of view. He was led to the cot where he was instructed to lay down.

"I-I don't know you and this is weird and- and- oh my God why are you moving the shelf-"

"I'm a physics teacher. This is our shared space and you look ready to faint." He set up a box on a shelf, covering the last hole where someone could see Asahi. "Rest."

Asahi stared at him. "You're Aone?"

"Hm? Yes." Aone walked out, closing the door almost all the way and turning out the lights.

Wait. Wait, wait, wait. That was Aone?

That kind man was known as being terrifying? How was that even possible? Sure his height was anxiety-inducing but that random kindness had been so amazing.

Asahi laid down, feeling a lump under the cot. He felt a box and opened it, confused since it was a light box compared to the other boxes full of books. His hand skimmed over soft cloth and pulled it out, gasping as a blanket was revealed by touch.

It felt so nice and wasn't too heavy. He covered himself with it, comfortable and deciding to fall asleep. Wouldn't be too bad. The worst that could happen was a janitor or student walking in on him while he was sleeping- which now that he thought about it was pretty cringy.

He ended up falling asleep for a while, snoring softly and possibly drooling into his hair. When he woke up Aone was taking out a box of textbooks, sitting on the floor. He was silent.

"Mm... Scuse me." Asahi sat up. He lost balance slightly and faltered.

Aone looked over. "Hm?"

Asahi took a deep breath. He rubbed his eyes. God, he felt awful.

"Are you alright?"

"I'm okay." Asahi sat up, putting his head in his hands. "My head hurts."

Aone looked around, finding a first aid kit. He got up, handing him a bottle of painkillers.

Asahi took the bottle and stood. "Thank you."

Aone lifted one of the heavy boxes. "There are still students in the auditorium. Would you like to stay here?"

"Yeah." Asahi fiddled with a piece of his hair. He watched Aone before noticing his piercings and tattoos. He could see the edges of some sort of flower under his shirt peeking out of Aone's dark sweater. "Wow."

"Excuse me?"

Asahi startled. "What?"

Aone kept his eyes on the other male. He sighed and walked out. Asahi laid back down, nervous. There were so many words on the tip of his tongue. So many thoughts were clouding his mind with anxiety.

Asahi just laid there, accepting that the more frantic part of his mind was starting to show. It was okay. This was okay.

This was normal. This was going to happen till the day he died and he wouldn't fight off something like this. He was so tired of trying to fight his anxiety. It would just be his pessimistic companion.

When Aone came back he put away the soft blanket and got his things. Aone watched his shaky movements but made no comments. He was quiet. Quiet was good, even if it silenced the negative comments that might be sent his way.

Asahi drove home and was borderline amazed that he was able to concentrate. He stumbled inside, shaky. "Button?! Button come here honey!"

Button pranced over and didn't fight when being picked up. Asahi lay on the couch and the cat sat on his chest, purring. She was honestly a lifesaver.

Nishinoya hurried to the front of the apartment. "Everything okay man?"

"Anxiety attack," Asahi choked out.

Nishinoya leaned down and set a hand on his chest. "Relax dude, I'm right here. You're okay. It's all good. You're not alone."

It took an hour until Asahi finally calmed down and was able to get some water into his system and grab something to eat. While he did so Button stayed close, circling his feet and brushing up against his ankles. "You must be so hungry..."

Button meowed. Nishinoya let Asahi carry her, following close behind.

Asahi fixed her bowl, sitting by her. "I finally met that scary teacher. He's really quiet but super nice."

Button meowed softly.

"I know, I know. Be quiet, that's kinda depressing." Asahi sighed. He leaned into the wall. "Do you want to go to bed? Hm? Would that be nice?"

Button kept eating. Of course she did, she was just a cat. Asahi got up, going to brush out the knots in his hair. His phone began buzzing and he turned back around, answering the call. "Hello?"

"Hi Mr. Asahi!"

"Oh, Layla. Hi." Asahi glanced at Nishinoya, who was petting Button. Nishinoya rolled his eyes and fake gagged.

"I was wondering if we were allowed to read farther than what we were told to. I'm a little bored at the moment."

"No. I'm sorry but I don't like spoilers for students who haven't gotten that far. Stick to the assigned chapters." He picked up some papers off of the floor and placed them on top of his dining table.

"Oh... okay!"

"Goodbye." Asahi hung up and returned to what he was doing. He hated random calls like that. Sure Layla was sweet but she had no business calling all the time. He was her teacher and she was his student.

Asahi sat on his bathroom floor, brushing out his hair. He still didn't feel too good mentally. Nishinoya finished his hair for him and watched him until he went to bed. There was something wrong and he couldn't help.