The next morning, y/n slowly woke up at the decent hour of 10, like any other weekend. She slumped out of bed and headed to the kitchen to see her mom eating her breakfast at the table.
"Hey, hon! What do you want for breakfast?" Her mother's morning happiness almost drained y/n's sleepy self.
"I might just keep it simple and do cereal." She replied matter-of-factly. She grabbed what she needed and sat down to prepare it.
Her mom stroked up a conversation once more, "What time are you going over this guy's house today?"
Y/n's eyes widened and she almost choked, "Oh shit! I gotta be there at noon!"
"Oh jeez, y/n! Go get ready, you take forever!"
"Yeah, I know!" She ran to her room and rid of her pajamas, replacing them with a towel and running into the bathroom. She showered as quickly as she could for a hair wash day, and dried off, running back into her room and rummaging through her clean clothes. She whipped on whatever clothes she would both be comfortable and look decent in. Rushing without trying to mess up anything, she completed the rest of her routine and checked the time - 11:15. "Alright... I can finish my breakfast, brush my teeth, then head over."
And so she did. She sat down with her cereal once more and finished it even though it was kind of soggy now. She then brushed her teeth and left with some time to spare. "I'll see you later Mom!"
"Don't forget your bag and phone!"
"Oh shit, I knew I was forgetting something!" She went back in and grabbed her forgotten items and headed toward his street. Luckily, It wasn't too far considering the cold January air. Just short of noon, she arrived at his address only to be met with a giant gate. She spotted a buzzer and pushed the button - the buzz making her jump, but the gate opened nonetheless. She walked along the path in front of her, eventually reaching what seemed like the front door that was 3 times her size. She spotted the knocker and nervously knocked, the door opening soon after - being met with a slick-haired man in a tuxedo.
"Ah, Miss. L/n, we've been expecting your arrival." Surprised at his knowledge of her, she just nodded and stepped in to follow his guidance. "May I take your coat and bag?"
"Oh! Uh, sure," She took both off as quickly as she could in the scenario that he would get impatient, "Thank you."
"Of course, Miss. L/n." The butler headed to the nearby coatroom and placed her things on a hanger. Y/n looked around and observed the frivolous surroundings - Her jaw quite literally dropping.
A voice then snapped her out of her observation, "Hello, l/n. Nice to see you somewhere other than school."
She whipped her head in the direction of the voice, revealing itself to be from Iida, "Oh, hi. Good to see you too..." She replied politely, not knowing any other way.
"Please, follow me, I would like to introduce you to my family. Considering the guidelines of the project, I think it's only appropriate."
"Alright." She was dryer than usual, but she wasn't comfortable with the situation at all. But either way, she followed through his labyrinth of a house to his living room. It was elegantly decorated with high-end materials and furniture. Inside, the fireplace was roaring and his family was engaged in pleasant and light conversation. The coffee table was decorated with tea-time snacks, which everybody picked as they pleased.
"Excuse me, but our guest is here."
His mother quickly turned and got up to greet y/n, "L/n, so good to have you here! When Tenya told me about this project, I couldn't wait! He's only had his small group of boys over, so when I heard a girl was his partner, I couldn't resist going all out!"
Her excitable greeting admittedly took her back but made her feel welcome, "Thank you. Uh-"
"Come on, honey, you're scaring her." His father spoke, "Welcome, please make yourself at home."
"Thank you." She smiled and bowed in respect.
"Ahh, no need for that much politeness l/n," Another voice spoke, "I'm Tensei, Tenya's brother. I've heard a lot about you." He smirked.
"Oh! Well, uh, nice to meet you." She nervously replied, still caught on the fact that he's heard a lot about her. He nodded in reply, then looked at Iida who was shaken up by his brother's eccentric introduction.
"Tensei, don't make fun of your brother," His mother scolded, "Come sit, come sit! Tell us about yourself!"
"Alright," She felt slightly underdressed considering her surroundings but ignored it as much as she could when sitting down in an empty seat. Because her legs were bigger in proportion to her weight, she knew she couldn't cross her legs to appear proper - So she crossed her ankles to try and give the same impression.
"Oh honey, relax! We don't bite!" His mother comforted her. She waved it off in return and remained in her position. "So you two are in the same class?"
"Yeah, but we never really... talked," She admitted.
"Our homeroom teacher put unlikely pairs together for this project." Y/n nodded in agreement.
His father continued the conversation, "Got anything planned for after school?"
"Well... I haven't paid too much attention to it, but science class was always pretty interesting?"
"That's a start, kiddo."
Although it felt like an interrogation for her, she let the questions continue until they got to know her more than they did before.
"Tenya!" His mother called out, "Did you want to show her around?"
He stood up, "It would be my pleasure," He gestured towards the girl sitting on the lush couch, "L/n?"
She looked up at him and hesitantly stood up. Efficiently, he led the way through his estate - Showing room after room, seemingly never-ending. Finally, at the end of the tour, they ended at their botanical garden. In front of her was a beautiful array of hundreds of plants and flowers, its lush display drawing her in and making her want to see it all.
"This is our botanical garden supplied with tropical plants and flowers from around the world. Due to the temperature, the greenhouse had to be put up to keep them alive."
Y/n didn't care much about the facts, and easily spotted the skylight on the roof of the greenhouse, providing a beautiful view of the sky's colors influenced by the setting sun. She was mesmerized by her surroundings and she couldn't get enough of it. She stared out the window and admired the botanicals around her.
While closely observing a vibrant orange flower, a voice kicked her out of her trance and made her jump slightly, "I'm glad you're enjoying it. This is one of my favorite sections of the house as well."
She jerked back and looked at Iida, "It's beautiful..." She replied dryly. The light of the window above shone on her face, accentuating her natural features. Lit up in the sun as they looked up at him, Iida reciprocated and created eye contact, the light creating a glow around his head like an angel. It only lasted a quick second before y/n broke contact, and she shivered. Iida noticed and took action out of habit.
"I forgot about the temperature out here - We better head inside before one of us catches a cold."
She nodded in agreement and followed his lead, eventually heading back to the roaring fire in the living room. Forgetting she was a first-time guest, y/n rushed next to the fire and sat directly in front, warming her up significantly.
Tensei laughed at her antics, "Came from outside?"
"Mhm!" She held her hands out and warmed them up - She basked in the heat and relaxed.
Iida's mother spoke up, "It's starting to get late, l/n. You should probably get home for dinner - Tenya, can you get the driver?"
"Of course. I will be back shortly." He turned to complete the request.
Now feeling more comfortable in their home after viewing it all, she asked a question, "Is he always that proper?"
They all spoke in unison, "Yes," Then his father continued, "From a very young age, he was academically driven and tried to follow the traditions of our family."
"Traditions?"
"Yes. For generations, the Iida family has been in the car business - Providing mostly high-quality engines, and currently in the process of producing a line of cars with our engines."
Y/n's eyes bulged out of her head, "Damn..." Realizing she got a little too comfortable for her first time over, she covered her mouth, "Excuse me."
Tensei spoke up, "No need. Between us, Tenya doesn't stop calling me out on my mouth."
Easily comforted, y/n whispered, "Me too!" They laughed together and a bond was easily formed.
Right on cue, Iida came back, "I have gotten our driver should be at the front door shortly."
"Seems like I'm heading out," She smiled.
His mother got up and hugged her, much to y/n's surprise, "It was great having you here, sweetie. Please, feel free to stop by anytime!"
"Thank you so much for having me over," She walked towards Iida at the entrance to the living room, "Have a good night!"
They all responded with their respective answers, and y/n followed Iida once more to the front door where she received her jacket and bag. They headed to the car, and she sat in the back of the car, Iida unexpectedly doing the same.
Noticing her confusion, "I'm accompanying you to make sure you get home safely."
The ride was short, with little-to-no conversation. Once they arrived at y/n's home, measly in comparison, the driver opened her door and she stepped out. She turned towards Iida "Thank you again for having me."
"Anytime l/n, it was a pleasure having you over."
Hesitantly, she continued, "Would you... Like to come over tomorrow?"
"It would be an honor, l/n. I will notify my parents. Is there a specific time you would like me over?"
"Uh, I don't know yet. I'm gonna ask my mom and I'll let you know, I guess?"
"Please let me know. Hopefully, I will see you tomorrow - Have a good rest of your evening l/n," he smiled.
"You too, Iida." She walked inside her house and the chauffeur set off back to Iida's estate.
"Hey, honey! How was it?" Y/n's mother greeted.
"You're gonna be surprised, but... I took your advice-"
"Ooh! Tell me more!"
"It wasn't bad."
"That's good!" She hugged her daughter, "I'm glad you had a good time."
"Speaking of which..." She inquired, "Is it ok if he comes over tomorrow...?"
"Oh my god, of course! I wanna see this kid!" Her mother got excited very easily, "Just make sure your room and the bathroom is clean. I'll do the living room and the basement, and we'll do the kitchen together-"
"Mom! You're rambling again." She interrupted.
"Sorry! I'm just excited."
"I know, I know. But what time should I tell him?"
"Maybe around 3? Oh! Ask him if he could stay for dinner too!"
"Mom!"
"What?"
"He's just a project partner!"
"What's your point? I'm cooking for this boy." She was now determined, and there was nothing y/n could do to stop her. So all she could do was text him the time and invite him to dinner - To which he quickly replied with "Okay, see you tomorrow."
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