Natsumi ran through the hallways, heading for the library. She was in a full panic now! Of all the days to lose track of time. She was supposed to meet Ryuu Yoshida in the library directly after school, but she had been distracted when Mr. Mashima asked her to run some papers to the staff room for him. Now she was ten minutes late, which wouldn't normally seem like a big deal, but today was too important to chance. Worse, was that Ryuu Yoshida seemed really unpredictable and could very well deny her even a chance after being late.

She rushed into the library, having to apologize to a pair of students that she almost bowled over. She came to a stop and looked around the library for that familiar head of orange hair. She frowned when she didn't see him anywhere and worried that she had already lost her chance. What if he had gotten tired of waiting and left? She bit her lip and walked over to the library attendant.

"Excuse me. Have you seen a student by the name of Ryuu Yoshida in here? Tall, orange hair with-"

"I know who Mr. Yoshida is. But no. He hasn't come in yet." The librarian said without looking up from the book in front of her. Natsumi sighed in relief and resisted the urge to sink to the floor. Instead she found an empty table that would make it easy for him to spot her and pulled out her notes. She didn't want to waste this stroke of luck and began to organize her plans and the schedule she had created for him.

Her plan was a quick introduction to break the ice and then to dive right into her strategy for helping him. She also took the time to run her fingers through her hair, straightening the bow once more as it had gone crooked in her rush. She made sure the collar on her white shirt was perfect and tightened the tiny, red tie that hung from under the collar. She would often have to fix her uniform's appearance due to her constant running around.

The whispers were what clued her into his arrival. She looked up and felt an unwanted blush creep into her cheeks. She had forgotten how handsome he was up close, his uniform fit his athletic physique perfectly. She shook her head and scolded herself to focus. She watched as he leaned on his right leg while holding his bag over his shoulder by the handle. His red eyes were scanning the room until they finally fell on her. She gave a nervous wave to alert him that she was who he was meeting. His eyebrow rose, but there was no other reaction. She watched as he carefully walked towards her, noting that he carried himself well, but what else would you expect from someone like him?

When he was standing at her table she rose and held out her hand, giving him her best smile.

"Hi Yoshida-san, I'm Natsumi Kimoto and have been assigned to help you. It's a pleasure to finally meet you." She said, patting herself on the back for getting through the introduction without stuttering. He looked at her hand for a few seconds and then slowly raised his own to give it a quick shake. He released it almost immediately and sat in the chair without speaking to her or returning her greeting. She sat back down and looked at him curiously. He almost seemed bored, but she figured it was the expected attitude after being disappointed with three prior tutors.

"I'm sorry that you've been unhappy with my fellow members, but I hope that I can change that and that together we can get your scores up." She said as she began to shuffle through the plans she had made, spreading them out in front of him to read. She looked up to explain and noticed that his stare had never wavered. He had been staring at her the whole time, his expression remaining cool as he did so. Natsumi swallowed as her nerves returned, but she tried to force them back.

"If you decide that you want to continue studying with me, I've made a schedule for us to follow. If there are any parts that you would like to alter or times you can't meet, please feel free to tell me and I'll make the changes. I think it would be best if we started with-"

"How many students have you tutored in the past?" He asked suddenly, his deep voice making her jump as her eyes returned to his. She swallowed again and sat as straight in her chair as she could.

"You would actually be my first. I only joined this tutoring group this year and although I may not be as experienced as the others, I will do everything to help you. Despite my lack of experience I am more than qualified to-"

"I'll determine your qualifications Kimoto." He interrupted her again and she blushed. She was shrinking internally, having a feeling where this was heading. But on the outside she remained poised and ready to battle. His eyes roamed over her and then down to her notes, calculating things silently in his head. As he picked up the schedule she had made he asked,

"Tell me. Why did you join this tutoring program so late in the game?"

"Oh...Well I joined at the suggestion of my counselor. It's for my college application, and...well...to see if my dream is attainable." She said the last part softly and his brow rose once more. He set down the schedule she had made and leaned forward. His elbows resting on the table with his fingers laced as he placed his chin on them. He was studying her closely and she could almost read the formulas racing through his eyes as he judged her. She clenched her fingers around her uniform's black, pleated skirt to keep them from trembling. She prepared for what he may say next, but no amount of mental pep talks could have helped.

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"Dreams are meaningless in this world Miss Kimoto. Because the truth is that you would abandon these so called 'dreams' if something better came along."

"That's not-"

"Not what? True? Really...So you're telling me that if someone offered you monetary compensation in exchange for giving up on your dreams, you would turn them down?"

Natsumi's mouth fell open in shock. She wasn't sure what to say to that. No one had ever said something so cold or hurtful to her. She was used to people making snide comments about her or her living situation, but she had never had someone offend her so deeply. She gritted her teeth and narrowed her eyes at him.

"No. I would never accept something so-so cold! My dream is not something to laugh at and means a lot to me!" She hissed as she glared at him. He leaned away from his hands, taking in her determined stare and the way she was trying not to shake in rage. He turned away from her, leaning down to his bag. She opened her mouth to say something further, but he straightened again with a little, black book in his hand. He pulled the pen off the collar of his white shirt and clicked it. Natsumi wanted to question his actions, but chose to sit quietly instead as he wrote something out of sight.

He glanced up at her and made a final flourish with the pen before clicking it and replacing it on his collar. He ripped out the paper he had written on and placed it face down on the table. His eyes remained locked with hers as he slid the item across the table to her. She frowned at him before her eyes moved to the paper. She reached for it and the minute her fingers grazed its surface he jumped up and placed his large hand over hers. She shrieked as she looked up at the boy looming over her. Taking in all the features of his face and the way his crimson eyes had a rim of black around the edge.

"Let's see if your motives are as pure as you claim. If you come back tomorrow with that torn in half I'll take back what I said." He leaned closer and for the first time smiled at her. Well more like smirked in a condescending way, as if he already knew she wouldn't. He turned away, grabbing his bag as he once more slung it over his shoulder and made to leave the library. Natsumi frowned and looked down at the paper, turning it over to see what he was talking about.

Her eyes widened as she realized the thing in her hand was a check. More than that it was made out to her for the amount of ten thousand yen! Her mind flashed with so many things that she could use this money for. Her family could really use this so that her parents wouldn't have to worry as much. She looked up at Ryuu's back as he walked out with his other hand in his black pant's pocket. She frowned as she looked between him and the check. She bit her lip and sent a silent apology to her parents, promising to make it up to them when she was older.

"Yoshida-san!" She shouted, standing up out of her seat. She ignored the dirty look the librarian gave her or the shushing sound she made. Ryuu stopped walking and turned slightly to look back at her. She took a deep breath and then smiled at him as she held the check up with both hands and tore it in half. Ryuu's eyes widened briefly before he schooled his expression once more. She tilted her head as she smiled brightly,

"So. Shall we continue with our session? Or do you still want to wait until tomorrow?"

He grinned softly and walked back to the table, setting his bag on the floor and resuming his seat. He waited until she sat down as well before speaking.

"I misjudged you Kimoto."

"Let's start with our meeting times and the days you're available." She said, turning on her 'teacher-mode' and ignoring his statement. She had already made her point and didn't want to waste anymore time they had together by gloating. This seemed to surprise him further as he gave her a strange look. He sat silently as she explained her strategy to help him, listing books she would be using and how she wanted to fit all of this around his upcoming exams. When she was finished explaining she sighed and smiled up at him.

"So is there anything you feel we should change?" She asked and he shrugged. She tilted her head and frowned. He was looking at her more than the notes in front of him and she wondered what he was thinking in that moment. She cleared her throat and shuffled the pages together, tapping the end on the table to straighten them.

"Well then. If you don't have a problem with anything I have planned we can continue. We'll meet tomorrow after school and begin your study sessions." She said as she replaced the pages into the folder she had designated for him and placed that in her bag. Then she rose to her feet and held her hand out to him once more. He stood as well and grabbed her hand, shaking it briefly. She smiled and tried to pull her hand back, but his grip tightened, preventing her from moving. Natsumi looked up startled as he leaned closer again, a strange glint in his eyes.

"I misjudged you Kimoto." He whispered and she frowned before waving her free hand to try and push aside the issue.

"That's alright I-"

"No it's not alright. I didn't misjudge the others, I was completely right about them. I don't misjudge things. I'm not allowed to." He said, his eyes narrowing and she swallowed as she waited to see where this was going. He surprised her yet again as his face split into a wide grin.

"This is going to be more interesting than I thought. Let's see who can figure out the other first." He said as he finally released her hand. Natsumi pulled it back to her chest and narrowed her eyes up at him.

"I'll see you tomorrow Yoshida-san." She said and started to walk past him when his hand fell on her shoulder, stopping her once more. She suddenly hated the fact that she was shorter than him as she was forced to turn and look up once more. His expression had returned to its former stoic self as he gazed down at her.

"Ryuu. I don't like to be called by my last name." He said and walked past her. And she swore that she heard him mumble something like,

'It makes me think people are calling me my father.'