As (Y/N) walked away from Yukio, she felt extremely embarrassed and a bit frustrated as her face held both a blush and a scowl. She could already imagine all of the things that people were going to say about her. (Y/N) especially worried about Ayako, who she hoped wouldn't hear from some random person about what had just occurred. She quickened her pace slightly so that she could find her friends a bit sooner. Not only that, but the action itself felt fairly intimate, and her suspicions of the boys liking her grew. Even though she tried her best to shake those feelings off, she couldn't help but feel happy that she was able to be friends with them. In a strange way, she wished slightly that they did like her, even if she couldn't return those feelings, because it felt good to have caught the eye of such interesting boys.
Once (Y/N) exited the lunchroom, she was surprised to find Ayako and Itsumi right near the entrance. Ayako leaned against the wall while Itsumi played with some strands of her blonde hair. (Y/N) walked over to them, thankful that she had been able to find them so quickly. They also seemed to be waiting for her, so she was hoping that it meant that they hadn't lost faith in her. This hope caused the girl to forget what had just occurred, and a bright smiled appeared on her face.
"Hey, guys!" (Y/N) greeted cheerfully, happy to know that nothing was wrong.
Her two friends looked up at her with blank expressions on their faces. Of course, (Y/N) would need to explain herself.
"Sorry for missing lunch with you guys without notice! It's a long story but it all started out-" (Y/N) tried to tell her friends what happened, but she was cut off.
"No one gives a fuck, (Y/N)." Ayako interrupted the (H/C)-haired girl, with a tone so venomous that (Y/N) hardly even recognized that it was Ayako talking.
(Y/N) looked around, noticing the stares that the group was receiving from others in the hallway.
"Let's talk about this in the bathroom." (Y/N) suggested, feeling like this conversation might take a while.
Ayako reluctantly agreed, and the three girls headed to a bathroom around the corner that almost no one used.
(Y/N) continued the conversation. "Look I know that you guys don't like it when I go off without notice, but you're being a bit much, Ayako." (Y/N) said lightheartedly, trying her best to keep the situation from escalating.
"I don't care if you hang out with them, (Y/N), it's how you hang out with them," Ayako stated angrily, clearly infuriated with the girl in front of her.
(Y/N) was confused by the comment, but she turned her attention over to the other girl. (Y/N) looked over at Itsumi, who had so far been silent, an unreadable expression on her face.
"You don't have anything to say, Itsumi?" (Y/N) asked, hoping that she too would think that Ayako was overreacting.
Itsumi remained quiet before opening her mouth to break her silence.
"You broke my trust, (Y/N)." Itsumi said quietly, and it looked like she was on the brink of tears. "I told you I liked Yukio, but you clearly haven't taken any of that into consideration." Itsumi elaborated, clearly hurt.
(Y/N)'s face held a shocked expression. She hadn't at all expected the conversation to be about that.
"Itsumi, let me expla-"
(Y/N) was once again cut off by Ayako.
"What the hell, Itsumi?! You told (Y/N) that you liked Yukio but not me?" Ayako nearly yelled at the blonde girl, causing the latter to flinch slightly. "You could tell I liked him, too!" Ayako raised her tone once more, now mad at both girls.
Ayako then abruptly turned to (Y/N).
"And, you! You knew that Itsumi liked Yukio but you didn't tell me?! Even after I told you how I felt?" The girl's tone softened at the end, and (Y/N) felt horrible, knowing that this was all her fault.
"I'm sorry. I didn't think it meant that much to you guys, that's my mistake." (Y/N) sincerely apologized, although she knew that there wasn't anything she could do at this point, and she just wished that this whole thing would just blow over soon.
Ayako's blue eyes then erupted in fury. "But you didn't say anything, and then you go around and flirt with him knowing that your two best friends have a crush on him!" Screamed the girl, just quiet enough that no one outside the bathroom would hear.
(Y/N)'s eyes immediately filled with regret, and she tried to explain to her friends. "I'm sorry, but I wasn't flirting with him." The girl could feel tears welling up in her eyes.
"That's not what it looked like to us," Itsumi commented quietly but spitefully, her brown eyes narrowing at (Y/N).
"I guess the whole school is right, you really are a heartless whore, (Y/N)." Ayako spat out, the venom practically dripping off her tongue.
After that remark, (Y/N) could only stand with her head facing the ground, her (H/C)-colored hair falling in front of her eyes that were overflowing with tears. Never had she imagined that her friends would say such things about her. They were there for her when no one else was, and she didn't understand how they could trust go and treat her like they hadn't been known each other for years.
"Why do you guys care so much about a stupid boy?" (Y/N) choked out, barely being able to contain the ocean of tears that threaten to pour out at any moment.
The second that (Y/N) finished that sentence, Ayako practically exploded.
"Are you kidding me?! That's hardly the reason! You completely ignored how we felt! Even if was just a simple crush you went behind our backs!" Ayako screamed at (Y/N), tears of frustration beginning to prick her blue orbs, and her voice slightly cracking.
Itsumi narrowed her eyes had the (H/C)-haired girl before adding on. "Plus, don't act like you're not trying to get something from those boys. We all know that you've never had good luck with relationships, so now you're just throwing yourself at them in hopes of something." Itsumi declared spitefully, her gaze never once leaving (Y/N)'s form.
(Y/N) look at the blonde girl. She had never seen Itsumi like that before. The blonde was absolutely livid. And to think that her anger was directed toward her completely tore (Y/N) apart.
What had happened to her friends? Her happy, cheerful friends? For a second she wanted to blame the boys, after all this whole debacle was caused by them. But then she realized that it was all her fault. Everything. She had done everything wrong. Once this realization hit her, (Y/N) could hardly even look at the two girls in front of her. They knew it too. (Y/N) sprinted out of the bathroom. She didn't want to hear it anymore. She didn't want to hear what they had to say because she already knew that she had ruined everything.
Ayako nearly stopped her, but she kept herself from doing so. "Dumb bitch can't even handle the truth."
(Y/N) barely caught this last part, but she didn't care. She just wanted to go home, and that's exactly where she was headed. She ran through the halls with tears streaming down her face. A few students were playing hooky in the hall, but they hardly noticed her. She quickly grabbed all of her things before bolting for the nearest exit. Just as she was about to leave the school building, a familiar voice stopped her.
"Hey, (Y/N), didn't expect to see you here." Ryu's voice greeted her casually, and it sounded like heaven compared to what she had had to endure earlier.
But even if (Y/N) needed someone to just talk with right now, she couldn't let him see her like this again. So, she just kept walking and hoped that he would just let it slide. Unfortunately, she soon felt a hand grasp her wrist, and she winced slightly from the pressure. Ryu turned her around to face him, and he was immediately met with her puffy, red eyes, and tear-stained cheeks. His grip loosened when he saw her, clearly surprised by her appearance.
"Who did this to you?" Ryu's aura changed into a deadly one within a matter of seconds, his grip tightening once more. "Was it Yukio? Did he say something?" Ryu asked with anger and impatience in his voice, and he pulled (Y/N) closer to himself.
(Y/N) was scared by Ryu's strange personality change. She just wanted to deal with her problems by herself. (Y/N) tore her hand from his.
"Leave me alone." (Y/N) said barely over a whisper.
She then bolted from him, exiting the building and making her way back home.
"Dammit," Ryu spat out angrily. "I shouldn't have gotten so worked up. She probably got scared." His eyebrows furrowed intensely as his aura darkened once more. "But I'm going to have to have a talk with that little punk. He's really been moving up the plan."