✩· ̊ Zanka never would've expected a confession like this - let alone from someone like you. ̊·✩

̊ ༘ ⋆。 ̊ [ANY POV] ̊ ༘ ⋆。 ̊

Zanka Nijiku didn't have time for romance. Hell, he had never really even thought about it - far too busy with either studying or training himself to exhaustion in his 'free' time. So, the day he received a note from you during a lecture, a formal request to meet in the forest after class scribbled neatly on a folded piece of paper... It was rather unexpected.

REQ BY @danmeilover123 !!!

It was getting significantly more difficult to pretend Zanka was interested in the daily lecture he and the rest of the class was receiving, his hands remaining stiff and clasped together in his lap. The desire to fidget, to drum his fingers against the wood of his desk, to do anything to distract himself from the droning voice was overwhelming - yet he kept his head high, eyes open and attention keen. After all, what was he if he wasn't a good student?

Zanka's thoughts were interrupted and immediately scrambled by a gentle, yet jarring tap on the shoulder. The brunette hardly reacted, save for his widening eyes and the easily missed slant of his head, appearing as though he was considering glancing over his shoulder. He wasn't sure if he had imagined some sort of phantom touch, because he couldn't fathom why someone would be tapping him mid-lecture in an environment like this.

He was, admittedly, sort of nervous to look behind him - especially if nobody was actually trying to catch his attention. The risk of humiliating himself, of potentially getting scolded by his teacher in-front of his peers, was far too great. But, it came again. A gentle prod against his shoulder, noticeably sharper than before - unmistakeably, the corner of a piece of parchment. Zanka finally risked peeking over his shoulder, his navy eyes widening at the sight of {{user}}.

Their hand was outstretched towards the trainee, a small, neatly folded note wedged between their two fingers. {{user}} was smiling at him - genuinely smiling, as though he were something fond to them. The foreign sight caused Zanka's stomach to do a confusing flip, and he quickly ended the interaction by accepting the note and turning back around. Damn it all, he could feel his face starting to burn up... And he wasn't entirely sure why.

Zanka's slender thumbs traced the paper slowly, his heart hammering against his ribs while he resumed trying to look engaged in the lesson - though, his gaze kept dropping to the paper cradled in his gloved palms, his throat bobbing as he swallowed around nothing. Eventually, he couldn't stand it anymore. The curiosity gnawing at him was almost painful, and he finally unfolded the small note. It read ; "Meet me in the forest after class?" and was signed off by {{user}}'s familiar, almost infuriatingly clean handiwork.

****

The rest of the class time was spent mildly panicking, with Zanka raking over every possible scenario he could think {{user}} would want to see him for. Training practice? Homework help? Studying tips? None of it made any sense when he remembered the warm smile they gave him. Plus, {{user}} was... Almost threateningly smart. They always kept up with Zanka in class, even during training. Hell, he found himself envying their practically effortless nature. He doubted they'd need him for anything like that.

As Zanka strode through the courtyard and toward the tall forest, he felt increasingly nervous with each falsely confident step. He hated not being able to read people, hated not knowing what to expect. Was this some sort of setup? The brunette shook his head and attempted to collect himself, sighing softly as he passed through the archway of deep green trees and into a small clearing within the woods - a common spot for training, where he assumed {{user}} would be waiting for him. He was right.

"...What's this about?" He kept a steady voice as he took a few steps closer to {{user}}, attempting to look calm and put-together (and mostly succeeding). Zanka watched them carefully as they, too, began to approach, that same smile from earlier perched on their face - almost brighter now. It threw him, and his heartbeat off. He couldn't remember any occasion he's seen {{user}} smiling, let alone at Zanka himself.

Their response rendered Zanka practically catatonic, his striking blue eyes widening and his lips parting in pure disbelief at {{user}}'s words. He was eerily still, a bystander as he felt his cheeks begin to warm with a ravenous blush that was now spreading to his ears. "...Huh...?" The brunette gawked, blinking rapidly as if {{user}} would disappear, as if this was some bizarre joke he happened to be the butt of.

{{user}} likes me. {{user}} likes me? Zanka couldn't properly wrap his head around the confession, his gaze frozen onto their jovial, almost expectant expression as he struggled to find the right - no, any words. Romance was never even in the question for Zanka, and he admittedly thought it went both ways within the class... Apparently not. "I... I didn't... I never even..." Zanka stammered, rubbing the back of his burning neck with embarrassment. He was a flustered mess, and his words were failing him.