A Not-So-Disastrous Romance (Book 1) Chapter Three
Kusuo Saiki x Reader
Chapter Three: Sports Festival
Summary: Saiki and (Y/N) participate in the Sports Festival, and Saiki has his receiver taken.
(Y/N) stretched as they waited for the events to begin. It was PK Academy’s Sports Festival, and Class 3 was ready and eager to compete (except for Saiki). Everyone was way too into the event for his taste, but it wasn’t like he could change that.
“Never give up, Class 3! Yeah!” shouted Hairo encouragingly.
“Yeah!” repeated his classmates.
“Quite saying ‘yeah,’ it’s annoying.”
“Sports Day, huh? Humph, how stupid,” remarked Kaidou dramatically, “My strength is for use in combat. I shouldn’t waste it on silly games.”
“You’re just saying that ‘cause you’re terrible at sports,” said Nendou.
(Y/N) laughed.
“Hey, Saiki!” called Hairo. “I expect great things from you!”
Don’t expect anything from me!
“Saiki!” (Y/N) ran up to him and gave him a large, closed-eye smile. “You’ve got this if you try!”
“Thanks,” said Saiki (not as begrudgingly as he’d like to think). They seemed earnest, and he respected that (and them in general).
“Nendou!” Hairo turned his exuberant attention to the tall boy. “You’ve got great athletic skills!”
“Sure!” Nendou gave Hairo a thumbs-up. “You’re not gonna beat me this time.”
“Nendou, he’s on our team, too,” reminded (Y/N), poking him.
“(L/N)!” Hairo looked at them. “Keep bringing your energy!”
(Y/N) gave him a peace sign and smile. “Sure thing!” They always had energy.
“Also, Kaidou…!” Hairo attended to the blue-haired boy. “Uhm, well, do what you can.”
Even Hairo’s optimism has limits.
“What do you mean by that?!” cried Kaidou.
(Y/N) patted his back comfortingly. “Give your best. I believe in you.”
That’s probably less earnest than their other statements.
“Don’t worry,” said Hairo, “All that matters is that our class wins!”
“I’d rather just have fun,” commented (Y/N) to Saiki.
Just like they said that day after the rain, they enjoy the little things. They called it “romance.” Saiki frowned as his heart beat a fraction faster as he thought of the word “romance.” That had never happened before. He wasn’t a fan.
“The competition this year looks tough,” said Hairo. “First, Class 1. An intellectual group that has many students get top grades on tests! And Class 2. An athletic group that has the most students who belong to athletic clubs!”
“Why does their class representative not have his shirt on?” mumbled (Y/N). They really didn’t need to see a random guy’s bare chest.
At least someone here notices how weird this is.
“Furthermore, Class 4,” continued Hairo, “An intellectual group led by Tanihara, who scored first-place in the midterms! The last one is Class 5. An intellectual group where an astonishing eighty percent of them wear glasses!”
“You just like saying ‘intellectual,’ don’t you?” remarked Saiki. “And why did you have to give such long exposition?”
“So we’ve got three intellectual classes, an athletic one, and…us,” said (Y/N). I don’t really know what’s special about us. Maybe we’re the “weird” class. A little mean, but it felt right.
At least someone here knows how to get to the point.
Over the loudspeaker came an announcement. “The first event is the boys’ 100-meter dash.”
Saiki sighed.
“Good luck, Saiki,” said (Y/N), smiling brightly.
Saiki nodded at them.
“Kuu! Go for it!” cheered Mrs. Saiki.
“I’m recording you on a hard drive called my heart,” called Mr. Saiki.
(Y/N) tilted their head. “Doesn’t he have a video camera?”
“Out of battery,” answered Saiki.
(Y/N) frowned. “How do you know?”
“He didn’t properly charge it last night.” Saiki easily covered for himself. Before they asked anything else, he walked over to the starting line.
“Go! Saiki! For our victory!” shouted Hairo.
Saiki sighed, and as the gun went off, he ran out. He ended up in second place, but that was too conspicuous, so he let everyone catch up and instead finished third—acceptable, but more average. His team didn’t mind and congratulated him.
“Great job,” said (Y/N) earnestly.
Saiki nodded to them in acknowledgement.
“That was incredible!” exclaimed Hairo.
“Why am I getting so much praise for ranking third?”
“Because friends congratulate each other,” said (Y/N).
“You’re not my friends.”
“Maybe one day you’ll actually convince me,” teased (Y/N). They weren’t put off by Saiki’s words. After all, the heart held the truth more than what he said.
“Not bad, pal, although I can run faster than that,” said Nendou.
“Well, right now it’s Kaidou’s turn,” said (Y/N). “Come on, Kaidou!”
Yare yare, so energetic.
Kaidou tried his hardest and ended up fifth place. He looked disappointed, so (Y/N) patted him on the back and told him he tried his best. He smiled slightly and stood up straighter.
“What was that running?!” laughed Nendou.
Kaidou slumped over again. (Y/N) leveled a steely glare at Nendou. He flinched and shut up. Saiki watched warily and reminded himself not to upset (Y/N). Evidently, they had an intense, protective side.
“We have to somehow turn things around in the next event,” muttered Hairo determinedly, completely engrossed in the events of the sports festival.
The loudspeaker turned on again. “The second event is the girl’s 100-meter dash,” announced the voice.
“Well, I’m up,” chirped (Y/N). They were competing against girls since their team needed strength in that area.
“Good luck.”
Surprised, (Y/N) blinked. Their heart thumped for a second, but they recovered and just grinned. “Thanks, Saiki!”
The gun went off, and (Y/N) ran the best they could, spurred on by the belief their friends had in them (even Saiki. Especially Saiki). They crossed the finish line second, moving the class up the ranking. Seeing the scoreboard change, (Y/N) whooped happily.
“Great job, (Y/N)!” cheered Hairo, clapping them across the back.
(Y/N) coughed as the wind was knocked out of them but laughed all the same. “Thanks, Hairo.”
“The next event is the coed three-legged race,” announced the loudspeaker.
Teruhashi was competing. Instantly, everybody swarmed around her and began to give her words of encouragement. (Y/N) sweat-dropped. It really was incredible the effect she had on people.
“Good job,” said Saiki.
(Y/N) brightened. “Thanks!” For some reason, (Y/N) couldn’t help but straighten happily knowing Saiki had cover over to stand with them instead of hovering around Teruhashi. It was normal for him, but (Y/N) couldn’t help but notice it.
From behind them, Teruhashi frowned for a moment before lighting up with a bright smile again. Why’s he over there with them?! Why isn’t he over here, telling me I’m going to do a great job?! I am going to win this! After all, I’m the perfect pretty girl, including in sports!
I might want to blend in, but I still have my pride. I’m not going to fawn over someone… He subconsciously glanced at (Y/N) before forcing himself to focus on Teruhashi and her partner in the race.
“Let’s do our best, Sawakita,” cooed Teruhashi.
“O-Okay,” stuttered Sawakita, blushing nervously.
“Let’s win no matter what!” Teruhashi took Sawakita’s hands into her own gently. I may not look it, but I hate to lose. Which is why I have to get first, to beat (L/N) and to have Saiki congratulate me!
Yare yare. I don’t want to deal with this.
“Hey, if we win, let’s celebrate alone, okay?” asked Teruhashi coyly.
That’s one way to give him a reason to win.
Sure enough, as soon as the pistol signaled the start of the race, Sawakita picked Teruhashi up and sprinted to the finish line. No one had a problem with it, and they won first place with no issue. As usual, the world smiled upon Teruhashi and let everything work out for her.
“Aren’t they supposed to run on three legs?” asked (Y/N).
Saiki nodded. It’s Teruhashi, though, so no one will get in trouble.
“All right! Let’s keep it up and make a comeback!” said Hairo.
“Ha! The scavenger hunt race is next!” laughed Nendou. “Who’s gonna do that?!”
“You will,” said Saiki.
“Good luck,” said (Y/N), deciding to ignore Nendou forgetting.
“Oh, yeah. It was me,” realized Nendou as he walked over to the group of participants.
“Go for it, Nendou!” cheered the redhead.
“All right!” yelled Nendou as he picked up his list of items. “Oh, this is so easy.”
“Looks like he knows where to get it,” commented Hairo, relieved.
Nendou ran up to the class. “Hey, let me borrow that.”
“You mean this?” Hairo held up his tennis racket.
“No, that’s not it.” Nendou reached out and grabbed one of Saiki’s receivers.
Saiki blanked and collapsed in exhaustion.
“Saiki!” cried (Y/N) in concern, dropping to their knees next to him. They hadn’t anticipated such a reaction, but their worry covered up the strange moment.
“What’s going on?!” questioned Hairo. “What happened?!”
“I-I don’t know,” stammered (Y/N), “He just collapsed!” They gazed at him worriedly since he had an odd look on his face. He clearly wasn’t alright. “Nendou! Give me that bobble back,” they ordered. If taking it out hurt him, maybe it needed to be put back in.
“Huh? Why?” asked Nendou.
(Y/N) just snatched it from him and put it back in Saiki’s hair. It also went into his head, but they didn’t realize. They held their breath and waited.
A moment later, Saiki’s eyes opened. He found himself staring up at (Y/N). Surprised and suddenly realizing he was close to their face, he sat up wildly and backed up.
“Hey, hey, you’re safe,” assured (Y/N), putting a steadying hand on his shoulder for a moment. They removed it immediately after, not wanting to cross any boundaries. “I put that bobble back since you collapsed after Nendou took it,” they explained.
Saiki breathed a slight sigh of relief. Obviously, his reaction to seeing them had been about the receiver. He thought he’d done something without his powers being dampened. Luckily, he hadn’t.
“Are you okay?” asked (Y/N), their voice filled with concern.
They didn’t care about the announcement of Nendou being last place in the scavenger hunt; they were just worried for Saiki. However, he stood up steadily, so (Y/N)’s apprehension abated.
“I’m alright,” said Saiki. He was…glad they were concerned—somehow, them being worried about him felt nice instead of irritating.
(Y/N) let out a breath of relief. “I’m glad.” They smiled. “You had me worried there.” They stood up and brushed the dirt off their knees. “Let’s get some lunch, you need to refuel after passing out.” When there was no response, they straightened. No Saiki. They frowned. “Saiki?” He’s wandered off. It’s not safe to do that after just collapsing. I better go find him.
At the back of the school building, Saiki slid down the wall with his bento box. His hands trembled as he held the chopsticks. His strength was still uncontrollable, so he was avoiding other people because people might find out about his abilities and because he might hurt a friend. When Saiki heard footsteps, he was immediately on edge. It only got worse when (Y/N) walked around the corner. They were probably the person he least wanted to hurt other than his family.
“Saiki,” they said, crouching down next to him. “You need to stop scaring me,” they joked. Their smile fell as they saw his shaking hands. Their gaze softened in concern. “Hey, you’re still pretty weak…Do you need help?”
“I’m trying to eat. What is there to help with?”
“At the rate you’re going, you’re either going to snap the chopsticks or drop your food,” teased (Y/N). Their expression turned serious. “But really, I can help. I know it’s kinda weird, but you need to eat, and I’m not going to just leave you without help.” Was it strange? Yes. But (Y/N) was Saiki’s friend. They would help him in any way possible.
“Alright,” relented Saiki. He decided consciously that this was a good cover and a way for him to eat while his strength was uncontrollable, but there was also a comfortable feeling that surrounded him when (Y/N) was there to help. He couldn’t help but say yes.
(Y/N) smiled and gently took the chopsticks into their hand. Bit by bit, they fed him his food. No words were exchanged; a calm silence enveloped them.
The peace was unfortunately broken when Nendou rounded the corner.
“Oh, hey, pal, pinky, we were looking for you. You guys missed the magician,” said Nendou. He noticed how (Y/N) was feeding Saiki. “Oooh, are you guys on a date?”
(Y/N)’s faced warmed, and they laughed nervously. “No, I was just helping him out since he still isn’t feeling well.”
Saiki nodded. Good thing (Y/N) thinks quickly. Otherwise, Nendou would tell the whole school we were dating.
Ba-bum.
Yare yare, there’s that feeling again.
“Oh, pal, are you still sick? Maybe you should head home,” said Nendou.
I never thought he’d ever have such a good idea. Saiki nodded.
The three of them went back in front of the building. Saiki’s friends annoyances were waiting there and bombarded him.
“What happened?”
“Where’d you go?”
“Are you alright?”
“Are you heading home?”
“Are you sure you can go home alone?”
“Don’t push yourself.”
“Don’t worry about us, we’ll cover for you.”
Yare yare. These guys…It’s very hard to go home now. Saiki was tempted to smile, but his “annoyance” was too grand.
“You’re going to stick around, aren’t you?” remarked (Y/N).
Saiki looked at them. How do they manage to read me?
(Y/N) continued jokingly, “We’ve melted your icy heart! You cannot help but stay!” They laughed at themself.
The corners of Saiki’s mouth twitched upwards for a moment, and he immediately decided not to entertain their conversation for fear of more reactions.
“Alright, Class 3!” declared Hairo. “We’re having team competitions in the afternoon! The next event is the tug of war!”
“I think he’s super excited because he wasn’t in any of the individual events,” commented (Y/N) to Saiki. “Have fun,” they teased.
Yare yare.
Saiki pulled on the rope with the rest of the boys in his class. However, he wasn’t giving much effort since his strength was far beyond the others’. Saiki even accidentally broke the rope. Due to the situation from earlier, he still couldn’t control his abilities and ended up winning the match for Class 3, though no one noticed it was him.
“Great job, you guys!” congratulated (Y/N). They turned to Saiki. “You must be strong, Saiki! You were barely breaking a sweat!”
Yare yare. They somehow cover for all my abilities while also noticing them more than anyone else. So strange.
“Behold the power of Class 3!” declared Hairo.
“To think that a match against humans got me this fired up,” murmured Kaidou dramatically.
“Did you guys have lunch?” asked Nendou.
“The rope is torn at the spot I was holding,” exclaimed Takahashi, “Could I have done this?”
The four boys then posed with determined faces and crossed arms while the other classes looked on in wonder. However, Class 3 was still in third place overall. Two events remained.
“Class 3 isn’t doing so hot, huh?!” questioned Toristuka challengingly, “Looks like Class 2 might win, huh?!”
“So? I couldn’t care less,” said Saiki.
(Y/N) nodded. “Having fun with friends is more important.”
Toristuka hurriedly continued his condescension. “Ah! See? We’re number one right now! Bam!” He smiled. “Well, I was last in the three-legged race, though.”
Recalling how creepy he’d been, (Y/N) shivered.
“I can’t believe you look so proud of it,” said Saiki.
“Please don’t hold a grudge against me if my class wins,” said Toritsuka, still acting superior.
“Seriously, I couldn’t care less about who wins, or about you for that matter,” said Saiki while (Y/N) nodded in agreement.
“Sorry, but it’s Class 3 that’s going to win!” declared Hairo. “If we lose, I’ll get a buzzcut!”
“We’re way behind them, are you sure we should be making bets?” questioned (Y/N), tilting their head blankly. They were all for some fun, but they weren’t sure this was their class’s best idea ever.
“Are you serious?” asked Toritsuka, looking at Hairo.
“That just shows you how determined I am!” said Hairo.
“Hey, hey, if Hairo’s going to do it…We’ll get a buzzcut, too!” promised the other boys of Class 3.
“Wait, wait,” said Saiki. He didn’t want to get roped in.
“Count me in, too,” said Kaidou confidently, “Of course, there’s no chance of me losing.”
“Kaidou, confidence is good, but sometimes realism is important,” remarked (Y/N).
“Where is he getting that confidence from?” asked Saiki.
“I’ll get a buzzcut, too,” proclaimed Nendou.
“In your case, it won’t be a penalty,” observed Saiki.
(Y/N) nodded. “A proper cut that’s even all the way around may actually look better.”
“That’s right! Our hearts are one!” declared Hairo. “If we lose, every guy in Class 3 will get a buzzcut!”
“I’m glad it’s just the boys doing this,” commented (Y/N). They beamed. “I don’t have anything to worry about.”
Saiki gave them a deadpan glare.
“Aw, come on, you know I’ll still try to help you,” said (Y/N), waving a hand. They frowned. “All the same, I don’t think there are a lot of events left.”
I’ll be making sure I don’t have to get a buzzcut with my powers, anyways.
The loudspeaker turned on and announced, “The next even is the interclass beanbag toss.”
Sure enough, as his classmates ran around and threw beanbags towards their basket, Saiki ensured that a good amount landed inside. Psychic powers came in handy occasionally.
Hey, don’t say this is foul play. Nothing in the rulebook forbids supernatural powers.
Once the time ran out, the beanbags were counted up, and the announcement was made. “Class 1: thirty-three beanbags, Class 2: twenty-eight beanbags, Class 3: eighty-three beanbags,” reported the PA system.
“Hey, we did pretty well!” chirped (Y/N). They smiled brightly, and flowers seemed to dance around them.
“We got more than double the others!” shouted Class 3.
“Er…” the announced paused awkwardly, “Class 4: one hundred beanbags.”
(Y/N)’s eyes widened comically. “How did they manage that?!”
Especially without psychic powers…
“We used our heads. Look,” said Class 4’s representative pompously.
His class had piled all the beanbags into one giant plastic bag and put that into their basket.
(Y/N) sweat-dropped. “I feel like there should be a rule about that.”
I might have powers, but this definitely feels like foul play.
“Don’t call this foul play,” said Tanihara, “The rulebook doesn’t say that the use of a big bag is forbidden.”
“They should’ve written a rule for that.”
(Y/N) nodded fervently. “It’s out-of-the-box thinking, but it just feels unsportsmanlike.”
“But there’s still the last event, the interclass relay!” declared an optimistic, determined Hairo. “The class in first place will get five hundred points. It means that if we’re in first place and Class 4 is in last, we can win! Saiki! I want you to be another leg!”
“It seems refusing would just make things difficult,” the psychic observed.
“I’ll try to get the baton to you quickly,” said (Y/N) brightly, trying to help as best they could.
The classes organized themselves. When the pistol signaled the start, Kaidou began running as fast as he could (not very fast) while his classmates cheered him on. When he passed the baton to Tadashi, they were unfortunately in last place. This was repeated when Tadashi passed the baton to Nendou. Luckily, even though he ran very strangely, he was fast and got to first place. Teruhashi was next and could run quickly as well (another perk of being the perfect pretty girl). She passed the baton to Yumehara who managed to maintain a fast pace. Hairo was next to receive the baton. He handed it to (Y/N) while still in the lead. (Y/N) prepared to run quickly but tripped suddenly. They were in last place as they got back up and started sprinting.
Saiki readied himself for the baton. I’m going to cross the finish line in the same place I started. In other words, we will finish in last place.
Tripping someone isn’t foul play, either…As long as no one notices, that is… thought Tanihara.
Now that changes everything. Can’t let him get away with cheating and sabotaging (Y/N) my class.
“Saiki! Hurry!” called (Y/N) as they held out the baton.
It flew from their hand to Saiki’s, causing them to blink.
“I will,” said Saiki. It’s payback time for (Y/N).
Class 3, indeed, all of the students, gazed in amazement as Saiki sped to the front of the group. He was almost at the finish line.
“Yeah! Great job, Saiki!” cheered (Y/N).
Saiki collapsed. (Y/N) sweat-dropped. His class gaped.
Oh, that’s right. I can’t control my body well right now.
(Y/N) walked over and knelt by him. Smiling kindly, they said, “It’s alright. You did your best.”
Yare yare. I was trying to avoid a buzzcut.
l
“Good morning, guys!” greeted Hairo. “Where are your buzzcuts?”
He was sporting one himself. Behind him stood Nendou, Kaidou, and Saiki. Nendou sported the same cut, but he somehow ended up with more hair than he began with. Kaidou was completely bald, and Saiki had a buzzcut.
(Y/N) bit their lip to stop from laughing. “You boys only had to do that if we lost to Class 2, remember? We beat them.”
Yare yare. Saiki had a feeling that (Y/N) wasn’t going to let this one go for a while.
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