My.
G O D.
Online school may, in fact, be one of the most time-destroying things of all.
Like, I'm just gonna say it right now cause this is just fhekwapofdsa.
Tell me why some of my teachers are like, "this is an honors class, you should be able to handle all of this work because your other teachers are likely doing the same thing" when at least half of them are like "yeah you don't have homework for today or tomorrow because we don't meet then" like which one is it???
Not only that, w H Y on this Earth does Cornell notes exist??? Why would I use it for World History H when it's more fitting to use a timeline or flowchart??? Summary of main ideas? Main ideas of time??? yeah no we aren't telling themes with king tut having his half-sister as his wife I apologize
and lastly
w h y d o e s m y m a t h l a b e x i s t
like i love math and all, it's my favorite subject easily, probably one of my favorite things to do in general, but
m y m at h la b i s a p l a g u e o n t h i s e a r t h
And without further ado, let's get into it!
Initial Release Date: September 3, 2020
~~~~~
"Hey, Baldy, why'd you wanna go to that restaurant anyways? Isn't it a bit...too expensive for you?" I ask, putting my hands on my hips. "Plus, I heard this ramen restaurant was supposed to be a long wait since it's the grand opening. There aren't a lot of restaurants in City R in the first place..." I trail off, looking down at my outfit. It's not a casual one like I wore on the dates Saitama and I have gone on.
"Really, Tats, that's your question?" He asks, his tone strained and chafed. "My only question is how the hell you got me into this in the first place.: I chuckle, rolling my eyes at his discomfort.
What were we wearing? Simple. I was wearing a long dark green dress that I made sure didn't look like some sort of ugly fungi, which of course had some sort of cut to it. Didn't pay attention to how many, though.
And Saitama?
He was wearing an actual suit. Bowtie, white shirt under the suit, and even some fancy shoes. I made him buy those, too. God, it was funny to see him nearly break down over the price of the shoes over he had well over 1,000,000¥ in his bank account. That's like almost $10,000, if I remember right from that one time I had to go to America.
"Sensei, I have to admit: I never thought you'd ever wear anything other than Hawaiian shirts, shorts, or your hero outfit," Genos muses, and Fubuki, Genos, and I chuckle at the now slightly disturbed Saitama as he realizes the accuracy of his pupil's statement.
"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up," he rolls his eyes, though can't help but have a small smile grace his face. "C'mon, though. I made a whole reservation for the place."
"But you made it five hours later than when you and Genos sparred," Fubuki coughs to mention, smirking. Saitama puts up a finger and opens his mouth to interrupt, but soon puts it down in defeat. We're enjoying ourselves, and that's when I realize something.
"Genos, Fubuki, you guys told the public about you two being in a relationship, right?" I ask to make sure. It's connected to my train of thought, so I gotta make sure. As the two of them nod, I walk over to Saitama and let the other two talk to each other.
"Hey, Saitama," I whisper. I don't really call him anything other than Baldy; I'm trying to fix that habit, but that's besides the point.
"Yeah, Tats?" He asks.
"I know that we're dating, but is it okay if we don't make it public yet? I don't think I'm ready for that," I admit, looking a bit to the side. It's not even because of the publicity. I just...don't feel ready for it. Would we be considered a celebrity couple? What would that do to our relationship?
"Of course, Tats," he nods, and I breathe a small sigh of relief. "If you don't want to, I'm fine with that. Whatever makes you happiest." I gulp a bit, blushing a bit. I didn't expect him to say that, to have the reason for him be my contentment.
God, it'd be a bitch to tell the public about it.
"S-Shut up!" I blush a bit more. "You don't have to be...romantic about it!" I'm not used to romance, obviously. It's also obvious now, probably, that I'm not too good at reacting to unexpected stuff. Not including fighting.
Unfortunately, I was loud enough to be heard by Genos and Fubuki, who lightly laugh at my misfortune. Realizing how flustered, I was, I groan a bit and toss a paper plate that Saitama has at his place at the two of them. It hits Genos on the back of the head, and I'm satisfied.
"Well, Tats," he smiles. "Shouldn't I be?" He takes my hand and hugs me a bit, and I blush a bit more. I know that he's doing this to make me flustered, but I can't help it.
Have you ever seen those posts on the internet where guys are so starved of physical touch that they cry whenever they get hugged? That's sort of how I feel, but not as dramatically.
"S-Shut up," I whisper, defeated. "Let's go, already."
"Sure, sure," Saitama agrees. "And yeah, Tats, I'll make sure that I don't give hints that we're together."
"Thanks," I smile a bit, and he smiles back. "So, shall we go now?"
"Wait," Genos interrupts. "How are we going to get there? We could obviously just fly or just go there on our own pace, but that'd ruin our clothes."
"Yeah," Saitama agrees. "It obviously won't affect the two of you since you guys have psychic powers, but Genos' arm cannons...I'm not even gonna talk about how badly that'd burn from overheating. Why do you think he wears sleeveless stuff and things made from the Hero Association?"
"And how about you, Saitama?" I ask, putting my flats on.
"I don't think getting to the restaurant with a rip in my pants from running too much is a good idea," he insinuates. I nod.
"So how are we gonna get there?" I ask. I look at Fubuki, who I already know came up with a solution and is going to go into a really dramatic explanation, probably just for the flair.
"Oh, I can probably call some of the heroes in B-Class to pick us up. I think they'd be fine with it, especially since we bought it collectively," she suggests, way too calm.
"Genos rubbed off on you too much," I sigh, putting one of my hands on my hip. "What happened to all that flair?" I smirk, and she smirks back.
"That's for hero work. But lemme call them up anyways. It's a limo, so we'll be pulling up in style," Fubuki finishes teasingly. "That better?" She poses, doing one of those seductive success poses in anime. I could swear that I saw one of those glitter things hover next to her for a moment.
"Yeah, yeah," I nod. "Bit too much flair, though."
~~~
"Fubuki, why would you even need one of these?" Saitama asks me. "This thing's a limo...and you're a B-Class hero who can probably make it to high A-tier. Why would you need something like this?"
"I dunno," I admit, taking a sip of the soda that I had stashed in the limo. "Ask Genos. He was the one who suggested we get something to drive in...besides, he phrased it as 'Why not acquire something to feel normal for once?' As if that wasn't a callout." I chuckle a bit, and Tatsumaki raises an eyebrow.
"Really, cyborg? That's why you wanted a limo?" She prods, as a small bump hits the road and launches Saitama just enough to hit his head on the ceiling. Nice.
"To be fair, when I suggested that we get a vehicle to drive in, I did not expect the entirety of Fubuki's clique to chip in...and choose a limo. I thought it would be some sort of a BMW or a car about that size. Not this," he corrects.
"Hey! Don't call it a clique!" I smack him on the back of the head, causing Tatsumaki to almost spit out her soda. Surprisingly enough, despite the various bumps we've hit, the soda we have here seems to never spill. It's really convenient.
"I apologize, Fubuki," Genos nods. "What would you like me to call it?"
"A gang," Tatsumaki suggests under her breath, and I send a glare at her as Saitama hears her and snickers a bit.
"Hey!" I flush a bit, embarrassed. "They're actually strong and can do stuff, you know!"
"They're B-Class," Tatsumaki says, matter-of-factly. "You know dang well they can't really do much."
"Well, there's C-Class heroes that can do stuff, Tats," Saitama suggests. "Like Mumen Rider. Even you can't deny that he's strong. He's not conventionally strong, but he's got like the most mental strength I've ever seen."
Even though he's supporting me, I still find it surprising that Saitama could use the word "conventionally" correctly.
"Miss Fubuki and friends," A voice comes from the back of the limo. "We're here."
"Oh, thank you, Mountain Ape!" I express my gratitude as Eyelashes opens the door. "Thanks to you too, Eyelashes." I gracefully exit the limousine and lead the rest of my friends out of there.
"Man, this place is huge," Saitama observes, looking up at the building. It was quite gigantic, and from what I remember, it's like one of the most expensive places to eat at in the entire country. How'd you even get a reservation here?" I admire, my voice quiet, like childlike wonder.
"I mean, we're all professional heroes, three of us the top tier, so they were pretty eager to have this sort of publicity," Saitama answers. "The lady I talked to actually mentioned that a few more heroes were supposed to come. I think one or two more."
"Did they mention who it was supposed to be?" I ask, walking into the restaurant.
It's magnificent. It's beautiful. Never have I seen something so...regal. It was as if I walked into a castle and the lobby was just the ball room. How much did they put into this place? I look a bit more into the restaurant, and the tables are pristine. It looks like they're made completely of marble, and despite the place being open for an entire hour, the floors still looked shiny and clean enough that you could eat off of them.
"Fubuki, close your mouth. You're going to appear as a fool," Genos advises, and I realize how simple-minded I must have looked right then and there. I'm a bit embarrassed, but at the same time...how couldn't I be mesmerized?
The sparkle, the shine, the luster, every little thing about it...was marvelous.
"You know, Saitama," I address him, and his attention is caught. "You made a beautiful choice. This place...seems amazing."
After a few minutes, Saitama's gone up to the hostess, got us to our table (which made me feel like I was on top of the world), and the hostess had gotten us accustomed and thanked us for joining them for their grand opening.
The sommelier comes over to us, asks us if we want for any wine, and we kindly refuse. A couple minutes pass where we're just looking at the menus, not even bothering to deal with small talk, and I can just feel a bunch of people staring directly at us. Luckily, there weren't any children. I think Saitama's bald head would have gained a bit too much attention for being shiny.
After a few minutes, when our food arrives, we finally get our food. The steak I ordered is pristine, near perfect. After we thank the waiter, Saitama starts dining in...only to start choking on something before Tatsumaki starts lecturing him.
Maybe lecturing him about etiquette was the right choice. We should have done it more often, in retrospect. It's weird to think about when Genos, the supposed pupil, seems to be a few hundred times more disciplined than him. It's even weirder for him not to realize that he is, either.
"Baldy, quiet down!" Tatsumaki quietly lectures. "We're in this high-end restaurant that you wanted to go to! At least have some sort of manners!"
"Miss Tatsumaki, people are staring at us," Genos embarrassingly notices, trying to hide his face a bit. I have a small smile at the scene in front of me, and oddly enough, I feel like I'm the most casual person out of the four of us.
"I don't care!"
"Tats, please," Saitama tries to communicate, only to have to drink more water to flush the food down. "We're going to get kicked out."
A new voice emerges; it's male, sultry, and slick. You can tell there's a bit of charisma and bite behind it, though not alarmingly so. A familiar one. And considering the fangirling going on around me, I can tell exactly who would even come up so casually to a group of four heroes.
"Well, well, what do we have here?"
"Amai Mask," I blink slowly, my shoulders tensing up. "What are you doing here?"
"I was invited for the grand opening of this place. What else would I be doing?" He rhetorically asks, rolling his eyes as he pulls up a chair.
"Now...let's talk, shall we? There are quite a few things I want to catch up on, especially with the new duo in S-Class," he smirks, his eyes becoming a bit more alert and wary. His posture changes from a bad-boy sort of casualness to complete seriousness, like a businessman of sorts.
And here I was, thinking this was just gonna be a normal hangout and some good food.
~~~
Sweet Mask. The Top A-Class hero. In the hero world, the gatekeeper to S-Class. From what I know and from what Fubuki has told me, even the disciples of Atomic Samurai, one of the top 5 heroes, cannot surpass him.
He seems suspicious. Incredibly so. He has this odd aura about him. It's not an overwhelming power, like what I feel from Saitama-Sensei. That's the overwhelming power of brute strength, something that you simply cannot overcome. It is simple in that regard.
This man...it is a different kind of intimidation. It's akin to that of a snake. Cunning, slippery, manipulative. I could tell he was observant, his moments of silence used to learn and observe and adapt. It was a subtle sort of strength he possessed.
The martial art style that Silver Fang possesses. Although it would ultimately crumble to Saitama-Sensei's strength, it is nothing to scoff at. Despite his weaker physique than some of the other heroes, including me, I know he could probably defeat me due to his technique. It's sort of a bolster to his already mighty strength.
That's the sort of strength emanating from him.
"So, what exactly do you want to talk to us about?" I warily ask. "I do not believe you would talk to us to ask questions if you didn't have questions beforehand."
"Smart, Genos," Sweet Mask compliments. "You must have expected this subconsciously. As if I wouldn't be at such a venue, whether or not the owners paid me to be here."
I nod, "What questions do you have, anyways? This food will be getting dissatisfactory in due time."
Sweet Mask hums, only causing Saitama-Sensei to finally become aware of him, "Straight to the point."
"That is not of my doing, but rather Saitama-Sensei's."
"Sensei?" Sweet Mask turns towards Saitama, "Is there a reason he calls you this? Aren't you a rank below him?"
"Oh," Saitama fills the silence after finishing his food (which heavily surprised Fubuki, Miss Tatsumaki, and I), "I saved him from a mosquito monster and he practically made me become his teacher. He's getting decently strong, though."
"So that's why you're here with him. What about you, Tornado?" He turns to the extremely powerful hero. "What brings you to eat with these guys? I thought you didn't like social outings."
Miss Tatsumaki hesitates for a bit before formulating a response, "Y'know how Fubuki's dating Genos, right? I came along because she wanted me to, in her words, 'Hang out with her for once.'" At this, Sweet Mask raises an eyebrow but dismisses it.
"Regardless. I had some questions to ask the two of you," he declares, taking a sip of water. "So, how did you two even come to join the Hero Association?"
Saitama-Sensei interrupts, but surprisingly catches himself before he makes the mistake of being too casual with Miss Tatsumaki, "I met Tatsumaki while I was hunting down heroes once. We met Genos when I saved him from the mosquito thing, and then she helped us enroll as professional heroes."
"Well, there are rumors that you are a fraud. I'm sure you've heard about that," the top A-Class hero smoothly coos. "The meteor, you proved that you were stronger than weaklings. The test, it was rumored you got help from Tornado. The Alien Invasion? People report you came from on top of the ship, including Tornado's testimony."
"Yeah, and?" Saitama-Sensei prompts, and the urge to defend his honor pulses within me. However, with a squeeze of Fubuki's hand, my temperamental urge is calmed, and I begrudgingly witness the two heroes in front of me.
"Well, need I go on? The Deep Sea King was quite obviously on your doing. But why?" He asks. "It's not like you had anything to gain from looking like a fraud to the public. Besides...it makes us heroes look bad."
"Whatcha mean, man?" Saitama scratches his head a bit, taking a gulp of water. Miss Tatsumaki seems alert, and all eyes are on us.
I can tell why. The public was still hostile towards Saitama-Sensei, and although they may be ignorant as to the reality of the situation, I can understand why they infer what they do given their information.
"Why try to make us as heroes look so bad? It hurts my reputation, it hurts yours, it hurts all of theirs. What's your motivation?" He asks, and I become more alert before he notices. "Calm yourself, cyborg. I don't care if you're another hero or S-Class. I can crush you."
"Sure you can," Saitama-Sensei interjects, bored. "But if you want an answer...why does the reputation matter?"
"Huh?" I can tell he didn't expect that answer in the slightest. He looks...befuddled. Confused.
"You heard me. We're heroes, right? You can handle that side of things. When the C-Class heroes run, the B-Class heroes hide, the A-Class and some S-Class heroes lose...who's gonna be there to help?" He brings up. "I don't really care about being famous or whatever. If I can help someone, I'm gonna help someone."
Silence. Even the other people in the restaurant, from the sommelier, to the waiters and waitresses, to the other patrons, stared at Saitama-Sensei, a bit shocked that he just casually...how did Fubuki phrase it? 'Crushed him?' I probably didn't use that right, but the message got along just fine.
"I see," Sweet Mask quietly says while nodding. "I will be on my way.
"Oh, and Saitama," he remembers. He leans in to whisper in his ear, quiet enough that only he can hear. I am unaware of what he is saying, but when Saitama's eyes widen a bit, I can tell something's off about what he had said. It was subtle, but the change in emotion was there.
What did he say that would aggravate even Saitama-Sensei?
~~~~~
So, how was that? Suspense? Poor. General plot development? Poor. Setup to something? Absolutely.
I'll be getting back to plot after the next chapter, and I hope you guys enjoy the next one!
And of course, if you have any feedback, comments, concerns, recommendations, please tell me.
Sincerely,
SpiritBloodDragon