Three years have passed since then. And Kishibe was now captain of the Kidokawa Seishuu High's soccer team while you simply went to the same school as him.
You two could still get along just fine, but you had decided that he shouldn't hang out with you at school anymore.
Why, you ask? Well, let's get some facts straight. He was captain and ace striker, captain and ace striker, he had lots and lots of fangirls. He got confessed to at least once a week (turning them all down too, for god knows why), even the popular cheerleaders had been turned down by him. He was good-looking – no, he was downright handsome. Nice, sympathetic, barely rude. And on top of that good grades as well.
You well, you shot yourself down quite a bit. You weren't part of any club. You had never been confessed to, so never kissed either. You thought yourself average in looks, or lower than that depending on the situation. Your grades were pretty good though. So one thing you were proud off. Sort off, at least.
So that made it pretty clear why you thought it better for him not to hang out with you. You would only ruin things for him, or so you thought.
As you walked down the hallway, clutching your books against your chest, two male seniors appeared. You simply ignored them, but it seemed that they had their mind set on doing … something to you.
"Hey, girl, wanna hang out for a bit? Drink a bit?" asked one, the other snickering.
"No, thank you," you answered, ignoring them and continuing on your way.
"Oh I don't think so, girly," the other one said as they walked after you, "You see, it's school etiquette that if you get asked out to get something to drink with your senpai, then you can not refuse."
"Never heard of such a thing," you said, frowning slightly.
The two men laughed shortly and you decided to get away as fast as you could. You didn't make it far though. When you had only taken three steps, a cold voice whispered in your ear, "And where do you think you're going."
"I don't – " you flinched when the one who had spoken first grabbed your arm and twisted it, making your whole body turn with it so you now faced him. Your books had fallen to the ground as you other arm hung lifelessly next to your body. Your breathing started to speed up as you stared with something akin to fear in your eyes at the man in front of you.
Then someone coughed, gaining the attention of both the seniors.
"What do you want?" the other senior asked, glaring angrily at whomever it was that had coughed.
"I would like you to release her, if you please."
That voice … it couldn't be. What was Kishibe still doing at school? He should've been free an hour or so ago.
"And why would we listen to you, brat?" the one holding you hissed.
"Because I will make your lives a living hell if anything happens to her," Kishibe answered calmly.
"Hm? And why would we take that from you?" the same one asked.
"Well, there's a teacher in the room behind me, just so you know." Kishibe nodded with his head to the door leading to that classroom.
"Shit," the other hissed as he shot his mate a look. "Better leave then."
"Yeah, she's not worth all that much trouble anyway," the one holding you added, letting go of you and walking off with his friend.
You stood there frozen for a second, their words and threats still running through your mind. You rubbed your arm, trying to rub off the last words he had said.
You didn't even notice Kishibe coming closer until he tapped you on the shoulder, making you jump almost 3 feet in the air.
"Sorry," he muttered, flashing a small smile, "[F/n], did they hurt you?"
"N-no, I'm fine," you lied, "Really. I … I should go."
You knelt down and started picking up your books, trying your best not to burst out into crying. It didn't fully surprise you when Kishibe knelt down as well and started helping you.
You stood up wordlessly as did he, handing you the rest of your things he had collected.
"Well, I gotta go," you let out a nervous chuckle and started walking away, but then Kishibe grabbed your arm.
"Say, [F/n], have you been avoiding me lately?" he asked, turning you around.
You stayed quiet, looking at the ground.
"You have, haven't you," he heaved a sigh, "Honestly, [F/n], if you think you aren't good enough to hang out with me, then reconsider that. I like hanging out with you; more than with anyone else in fact. And you're clearly upset about just now, so how about we go do something fun?"
You wanted to say something, but you simply couldn't. So you nodded instead, making him chuckle.
"Okay, lost your tongue?" he teased.
"No, just … what you just said … made me really happy," you said, managing a small smile.
"If that already made you happy, then I know a sentence that will make you even happier," he said, bending slightly towards you.
You stood frozen as he whispered three words in your ear you never expected to hear from anyone, let alone Kishibe.
"I – You … what!?" you stuttered, gaining the colour of a tomato.
He chuckled again as he lifted your chin up, his blue eyes sparkling.
"I love you, [F/n]," he repeated before kissing you tenderly.
It only took you a moment before responding, your books once again falling to the floor.
"You need to stop dropping those," he said when you broke the kiss.
"Like I do it on purpose," you answered, pouting, before kneeling down once again to pick up your books, again. He chuckled as he once again helped you pick them up.
When they were all picked up again and firmly against your chest, you looked towards the ground, a slight blush on your face.
"You know," Kishibe started casually, "normally when one person confesses his love to you and the two kiss with equal passion, the other says she loves him too."
Your face equalled a tomato once again as you clutched your books tighter.
"I was mentally preparing for that," you muttered.
"Ah~ I'll wait," he said, looking highly amused at you.
"I –" you stopped yourself again, taking a deep breath.
"I... you know what? My mother's making miso soup tonight, wanna come and have dinner?" you said instead, looking up hopefully.
Kishibe stared at you for a moment before bursting out in laughter. You blinked while he tried to somewhat control it.
"You … haven't changed at all, not at all. It makes me want to kiss you again," he said, shaking his head.
"But I won't," he added when you opened your mouth to say something. "Because you have to tell me you love me first. No sugar before that."
He snorted while you opened and closed your mouth, trying to get those three words out.
"I … love you," you eventually managed to mutter.
"Hah?" he tilted his head slightly.
"Do I have to repeat myself!?" you looked utmost dreadful while he chuckled.
"Was it really that hard?" he asked, moving a hand through your hair.
"No, I just … wasn't sure if this was all a dream or not," you answered, pouting slightly.
"Oh," he thought for a moment, "I really hope it isn't a dream. I love you...r mother's miso soup."
You hit him on the shoulder at that. "I know you do; that's why I invited you over."
"No other reason?" he bent forward a bit, giving you a seductive look.
"Perhaps," you muttered as you blushed again.
"Looking forward to it. Shall we leave? It's getting rather an insane hour to still be a school, you know," he said, winking.
"Yes, leaving is good. Uhm..." you looked down at your books with a frown before fiddling a bit with your arms, making it so you held them with one arm instead of both. Then, you stretched out your hand towards him. He looked questioningly at it.
"We can hold hands, right?" you asked, looking off to the side. He chuckled before intertwining his fingers with yours.
"Sure we can."
You walked towards the exit in silence, enjoying each other's company.
"I really do love you, though," Kishibe said just before you stepped outside. You stayed quiet for a while, looking to the ground, before you finally mustered up enough courage.
"I love you too.