He used you. And you were an idiot to not have noticed a thing.

Obviously, you didn't want to confront Shiro about it, after all he must have a valid reason for tricking you. At least, that's what you'd like to convince yourself for a bit. You trust him. He'd never deliberately put you in any danger just because it conveniences his plan to take his brother down...

Seiichiro pushes forward and seized Kirigiri's wrist when her nostrils started to flare. If he didn't stop her then, then she'd probably end up murdering you in cold blood. She was glaring daggers at you, currently consumed in her wrath and envy. As bad as it looked, she was under the assumption that you were not only an attention seeker-- but a thief as well. And unfortunately.. there was no changing her mind about her opinion of you, either.

"Let go of me, Seii!" The redhead snarled, "She can't get away with this!" Clenching the squirrel charm tightly, she resisted his grip while he on the other hand-- tried to pull her close and away from you. "Stop it! You're doing it again-- you're acting crazy, Kiri!!"

There's a fierce fire in her gaze. Involuntary movement comes from your end and you adjust your shirt by dusting it off after your altercation with Kirigiri. You looked irritated. Especially after being deceived by Shiro. You thought what he had given you was a present from him.. what'd sent you a slight semblance of happiness now kicked your hopes down a couple of notches.

And what's worse? Shiro didn't seem interested in intervening.

He started this mess, so why not put an end to it? It's the kind of drama that's downright unnecessary and uncalled for. Who in their right mind screams at someone else without indulging in the full story?

Since Kirigiri looked to become more violent with every passing moment, even Seiichiro could barely keep her on a leash. She was thrashing around just to grab you-- flustering your demeanor. What was she, a rapid beast?

Seiichiro was grunting and clenching his teeth as he fought to distance her from you. He feared that if he loosened his grip even slightly, she'd not waste a second and hurdle forward. Yet with a sudden burst of strength, your eyes widened once you saw Kirigiri storming on as the oldest twin went falling onto his rear. "Agh! What the-- is she Hercules or something?!" He exclaimed.

Your foot staggers backward. She moved far too fast for you to comprehend, and now she was right in front of you with her hands outreached. Before you knew it, you crashed onto the ground as the frenzied young woman remained on top, raising her fists as if she was going to pound them against your head. "You piece of shit, die!" She shouted.

You had a feeling she was serious.

The first punch knocked your thoughts right out of your head, so the following came together cohesively as one big blur. "I said die, you shitty homewrecker!!" Then there was another punch -- only this time, your gut took the blow. "I hope you rot! You're just jealous of what I have, aren't you??!!"

She was screaming at the top of her lungs again. Everyone in the vicinity was concerned, yet no one did anything. They were willing to cower and watch you get pummeled for little to no reason at all. Even Shiro. His brother was the only person willing to scramble forward, effortlessly yanking Kirigiri back by the shoulder. She was pulled right off of you and he wrapped his arms around her torso, keeping her back pinned against his chest as she continued flailing herself. "Are you even listening to a word that I'm saying?!! I said stop it, Kirigiri!"

Fortunately he knew her long enough to be keenly aware of her trigger word. "Or else I'm breaking up with you!" He blurted out. And just like that; her muscles would come to a stiff halt and her blue eyes went wide.

She turned her head, eyes suddenly welling up with tears. There was no longer a trace of her jealousy and utter hatred... She was filled with shock and absent-mindedly spared you all the trouble of witnessing her troublesome insanity. "Wait! I'm sorry, okay!? I.. I just got so worked up, Seii." She started apologizing to her boyfriend, without owing you a single sorry in the making.

Meanwhile you wiped your cheek as you brought yourself onto your knees. Then you used the table to regain your bearings before rolling your eyes. Just how unhinged was she? If Seiichiro didn't stop her there, then who knew how far she might've taken things. 'Luckily her fists don't pack that much of a punch..' You thought, able to move and think with no problem at all. Nor were you very sluggish.

You figured to take a seat to walk things off. After all, the situation got out of hand... what more; you needed a break from it all. But then, you remembered how your chair was knocked over and onto the polished floor.

So you turned around and reached for the wooden edges, however when you blinked it was clear to see that someone else had beat you to it. His fingers were pretty and slender, but only his finger pads were a lot more calloused. When he gripped the chair he pulled it up in one gentle motion, plopping it upright.

Steadily, you shifted your eyes up and came to focus on the brunette who appeared somewhat guilty. He looked concerned. More specifically; concerned about you. "I saw everything." Said Leo. That's when he clenched his jaw and then pinched the bridge of his nose. His eyebrows were burrowed.. relaying his disappointment in Kirigiri. Her fragile ego is so shameful. "What kind of third year allows herself to make such a scene publicly like this? At my job, nonetheless!"

He glared daggers at the girl, shadowing over you. Leo felt inclined to protect you after her assault. The two started bickering, yet while you felt incredibly grateful... Your mind wandered and you helplessly wondered what was going through Shiro's head. "..."

You sought out to confront him, peering over at where he sat. As much as you expected for him to be sitting there, as he always had been... You discovered that he was gone without a trace. Puzzled, you started looking around for any sign of him, only to end up sorely mistaken. He wasn't there. Not at the table, or anywhere inside of the cafe for that matter. Maybe he ran to the restroom? Most unlikely.. not after the fact he knew what was happening.

Leo worked on untying his apron. He released a deep, gruff sigh. The tales defining the firecracker was true, it seems. Those rumors weren't just nonsense. She is a rampant, self-absorbed individual, doing everything in her power when it comes to her weird obsession with that Yuuki brother. "I'm getting [L/N] out of here. Seiichiro, you really need to get her act together. If this is your girlfriend, you shouldn't let her hurt others like this."

Before you knew it, his hand latched itself around your wrist. Your previously curt expression lit up in surprise.

Seiichiro pursed his lips. He wasn't very ecstatic about the way Kirigiri was behaving, either... Though he was aware that there was no stopping her temper tantrums. Even if he tried. He didn't know what to say and looked down, releasing Kirigiri as he stayed silent. He's been putting up with her behavior for so long now, and it's beginning to show.

Shortly afterwards, Leo stormed off, and you tried to protest. You wanted Seiichiro to answer you in regards to his brother's absence. You thought he'd know. Twins tend to share a lot with each other apparently.

Insistently, you whined as he dragged you out of the establishment. And when you were outside, you were finally able to pry yourself out of his grip. "Hey, wait! I-I'm trying to look for Shiro!" You cried out. The name itself made Leo jerk a brow. He was curious. "Hm? What's that guy have to do with anything?"

'Well, it's because.." You stopped and hesitated. It's not like you could just blurt out what he's trying to do. That'd just foil his plans. And frankly, you didn't feel like getting on his bad side for it. "Uhh... He was supposed to help me out back there!!" Saving yourself and sheepishly rubbing the back of your head, Leo felt the need to feel unconvinced, but feigned ignorance anyways. Gentlemen don't exactly pry.

You admired that about him. How caring he is.

"Eh..?" His attention was now drawn to your curiosity that lies in Shiro's subtle disappearance. Be it low awareness or him remaining oblivious... But .. he didn't know the guy was even around when the commotion happened. "Wait, he was.. with you? When all of that happened?" Leo's interest became piqued. "Oh.. I guess I didn't see him there."

You see, he just so happened to be intensely focused on you. Hopefully, that wasn't a bad thing. Leo wasn't the kind of guy who just stands idly by and watch injustice unfold right before his very eyes. That destroys every last one of his morals. His conviction. His family raised him better than that.

"That's okay, that's okay!" You quickly reassured him. Then you cleared your throat and steered your [E/C] optics elsewhere. Something about his unspoken charisma caused your ears to heat up. "I don't exactly prefer to talk about that right now, if you don't mind. I want to push Kirigiri's temper tantrum to the back of my mind, haha..." All in all, i guess this was the best opportunity to get to know your kouhai some more.

He's a little less annoying, and way more genial! It's comfortable to stand next to him. That all said and done, you stood outside of the cafe chatting with him, discussing random subjects he was invested in; to which he gladly blabbered on and on to you.

Watching his pale grey eyes light up ecstatically, you were more than willing to lend him a listening ear, nodding your head frequently as if you were genuinely caught up by what he was saying.

Across the street, loitering next to the stop sign at the crosswalk stood a suspicious young man. Beneath the tufts of his white hair, he watched you giggle intently, absorbing both your body language and your intentions while you chatted with the brunette who has irked him enough.

'Be patient, Shiro.'

As a stranger passed by him, he casually deserted his uncanny grimace and fiddled with something that clicks within his pocket. It was cold around his fingers, the metal smoothing along the pads of his digits as he thoughtlessly flicked the button, retracting the blade into place in a small, not so audible click.

He thought about it. And then he thought about it again. Why the second year bothered him so much. Why he craved to feel the sweet satisfaction of stripping away his life the moment he saw him. Why that brown head of hair annoyed him beyond comprehension. '..He reminds me of that four-eyed bastard..'

Suddenly he turned a bit and put some more purpose into his steps. He walked away and effortlessly blended well into the crowd, as if he had never lingered in the first place. This time he kept both of his hands cramped into the burrows of his trousers' pockets, concealing the razer sharp object that was a box cutter. 'I need to take care of them one by one.. no jumping into fire.'

'..I'm going to make [Y/N] so proud of me.'

[Chapter END]