You don't have to trouble yourself... but I'll admit I'd feel a lot happier going home with someone else. And, um... if you're not busy, you can stay a while? I mean, not for dinner, necessarily! Not unless you wanted to...



[they excuse themselves from mr. whitecape's care and walk back to the locker rooms, where francel changes back into his school uniform, looking as fresh and clean as if he'd never gone to gym class at all. the one thing marring his otherwise clean-cut is the red mark on his cheek that, indeed, looks as if it's slowly starting to bruise.

all the same, francel goes to class as planned, then arranges to meet zephirin at the gates. some of their classmates stare oddly at the red mark on his cheek, which has begun to darken — it makes francel feel somewhat self-conscious about it, and indeed, if he thought that he had any sort of shot with zephirin at all, he might even be concerned that the upperclassman might find it ugly.

but francel doesn't expect zephirin to like him — not more than a friend, anyway — so he doesn't bother trying to cover up the large red bruise on his cheek as he catches sight of zephirin striding out of the school building.]

Oh — Zephirin, I'm here!