As it Was | Hange x Reader

Chapter 21: Animosity

(Y/N) stared at her phone's screen in shock. A few minutes ago, she had received an email with the entire list of participants for the regionals. She had opened it, excited to see her name...but she saw a different one that made her freeze. Hange Zoe. What? Hange wasn't a participant in the science fair. That didn't make sense. How was their name listed? How was it possible?

The only way she could find out was by asking them. She stood abruptly from the library desk, deciding at that moment she needed to go confront Hange. She needed to ask how they were registered in a competition they had no possibility in being in. It had been almost one week since the whole situation where Hange had learned what (Y/N) had done. Things were...a little quiet between the two of them. They still hung out, they still worked together...but Hange seemed a little withdrawn.

"Hange!" (Y/N) called, spotting them exiting the science lab.

Hange looked towards her in surprise, raising a hand in greeting. "Hey."

"Hange," (Y/N) was breathless when she caught up to them. "I needed to...ask you something."

"What's up?" Hange asked, curious. "Is everything okay? You seem kind of frazzled."

"I just....well..." (Y/N) took in a deep breath before blurting what was on her mind. "I was looking through the participant list for the regionals and I saw your name? I thought I read it wrong, but it was clearly your name! Maybe it's a mistake? I'm not sure how your name got there since only one person could move on..."

"Oh," Hange blinked. Their fingers clutched their backpack tighter, their eyes focused on the floor rather than on (Y/N). Something was up.

"Hange?" (Y/N) pressed. "Do you know something about this?"

"Well, I was going to tell you this, but I kind of went to Mr. Williams and inquired if it was still possible for me to participate in the regionals despite not having won the school science fair, and he said that the project idea that I came up with was great and that I could participate with a letter of recommendation, so he wrote me one," Hange cleared their throat. "I submitted my application three days ago."

"What?" (Y/N) couldn't believe her ears. Hange had decided to participate? They were her competitor now? She had no idea what drove them to do this. "What is the idea what you submitted?"

Hange inhaled sharply. "A compost technique."

(Y/N) stood still, arms hanging limply by her sides. Compost? That was just like her fertilizer idea. "But...why? You never showed any interest in this competition before hand."

"I just had an idea," Hange said defensively. "I'm only participating for fun, anyway! This way, I'll be able to attend the ceremony if you win! I'm sure my idea won't get far enough to win the prize."

(Y/N) studied Hange. They had kept something from her. Just as she had kept something from them. There was a slight tension between the two, something that was causing them to drift apart very slowly. She wasn't sure what their true reasoning behind joining the competition was. She wasn't sure if they were telling the truth right now. It hurt to think such things about them.

But despite it all, despite the fear she had of losing Hange...she felt a spark of competitiveness. Hange was brilliant. And her most formidable opponent. She had to work even harder if she wanted to win the competition. She couldn't take them lightly.

(Y/N) let out a sigh. "Oh. I see."

"You're not upset, are you?" Hange asked, their tone questioning. They looked at her, a strange expression in their eyes.