I slowly blinked my eyes open as I felt warm sunlight on me from Senri's window. It looked like it had to be close to 8:30 in the morning. As I tried to get out of his bed, I felt something around my waist holding me back. Curious as to what it was, I peeked under the covers and saw that Senri had his arm wrapped tightly around my waist. I mentally slapped myself,

What else would it have been, dingus?

I tried to gently pry his arm off of me, but that only seemed to make him hold on tighter. I sighed in resignation and laid back down,

He has to wake up eventually.

I thought to myself as I sat there silently. My silence was short lived as I heard the door creak open,

"Senri? You feelin' okay? Everything-"

I looked up and saw Riki standing in the doorway, anger and jealousy biting in his eyes. I smiled at him,

"Riki! Can you help me? I'm kinda trapped."

The raven haired teen's eyes flicked to me,

"What the hell are you doing in his bed?"

I laughed awkwardly,

"Long story that I'll definitely explain once you get me out of here. He won't let go."

Riki stalked over to his friend and ripped him away from me. Senri's eyes flew open as he slammed into the floor hard. He rubbed the back of his head and glared up at his angered friend,

"What the hell was that for?!"

Senri's voice when he wakes up could've almost been cute, had he not been so pissed off. Riki glared daggers down at his friend,

"Why was she in your bed? With your arm around her?"

He spat angrily at the honor student whose face suddenly became smug, but I cut in before he could answer,

"He was having a nightmare. I-I heard him from my room and wanted to make sure he was okay. He asked me to stay with him. That's all that happened, nothing more."

Riki's eyes snapped in my direction as I spoke on Senri's behalf, worried that he would say something purposefully to antagonize the charcoal haired teen in front of him. Riki nodded, seeming to understand the situation,

"Alright. Breakfast is ready, that's why I came up. Come down whenever you're ready."

His tone was hard and stoic, making my anxiety about what just transpired rise. After he left I turned to Senri,

"I'll leave you alone so you can get dressed."

I turned to leave but he gripped my bad wrist, making me hiss in pain. I felt Senri's hard, calculating gaze on my wrist. Pulling my sleeve up, he saw light brown bruises in the shape of a hand on my skin,

"(Y/N), what is this?"

I turned back around to fully face him. His usual cool, calculated demeanor was gone and replaced with anger masked by a thin sheet of calm. His tone was dangerously steady as he spoke again,

"Who did this to you?"

I stood silently for a moment, not wanting to cause further animosity among the teens who resided here. Judging by the look in his eyes, I knew he wouldn't let this go. I sighed mentally before responding,

"March."

I uttered the crimson haired teen's name softly to the calculating intellectual in front of me. I felt the aura around us shift as Senri processed the information. His eyes became distant and dull as his grip on my wrist tightened. I gasped in pain as my already injured wrist throbbed at the unwanted pressure,

"Let go."

I said as his grip tightened. I spoke again, louder this time,

"Let go, Senri!"

I yelled at the honor student. He blinked rapidly a few times before his eyes focused on my pained expression. The intellectual quickly retracted his hand,

"S-Sorry..."

He stuttered out quietly. I turned around and left his room quickly, only to run straight into another warm body. I stumbled back slightly to catch my footing before looking up to see who I plowed into,

"H-Hey Jackson! Sorry I ran into you."

I stuttered out, still trying to wrap my head around my entire morning so far. Jackson's eyes snapped down to me as an easy smile overtook his features,

"No worries~"

He said in his usual sing song, upbeat voice. His eyes continued to travel down until the rested on my wrist. I looked down and realized I was holding it,

"(Y/N), are you alright?"

I nodded,

"Yeah it isn't anything big. I'll be okay."

The bluenette nodded,

"Alright. Can I see it? I know a bit about injuries. Maybe I can help."

I felt my entire body go tense,

"N-No it's alright, really. I don't want to bother you."

Jackson seemed to sense something was wrong and asked me another question, this time in a hushed tone,

"I heard you yell at Senri a few minutes ago. You told him to let go of you. I assume that's what's wrong with your wrist, correct?"

I nodded, speechless. I didn't think Jackson could ever be serious like this. He comes off so carefree. The azure haired teen in question looked at my injured wrist and gently took it in his pale hands. He tentatively pulled back my sleeve to reveal dark blue and purple splotches. I gasped,

"It wasn't that bad last night. Senri's grip must've made the bruise worse."

"Why was your wrist bruised last night?"

Jackson asked seriously, never taking his eyes off the bruise, all traces of spunk gone from his voice. I bit my lip before responding,

"I was talking with March last night, when he showed me to my room. I accidentally made him angry and he dragged me to his room. I guess he was holding my wrist tighter than he thought."

Jackson's eyes hardened and darkened the more I explained,

"So what you're saying is, March let his temper get the better of him again which caused him to hurt you. Then Senri, being the cold bastard he is, made it worse."

His tone held a dangerous calm as I nodded,

"Yeah. I'm pretty sure it was an accident though, for both March and Senri. It's okay."

Jackson said nothing as he, surprisingly gently, led me down the stairs and into the kitchen. He went into the freezer and grabbed a cold pack,

"Here put this on it. Alternate on and off every twenty minutes. It should feel better and prevent swelling."

I smiled in appreciation and placed the cold pack on my injured wrist. I noticed Jackson was watching me intently and decided to say something,

"Are you alright, Jackson?"
His gaze flicked up to me face, an easygoing smile back on his face,

"Totally! Why wouldn't I be? I'm just glad you're alright."

"So am I. Thanks for the cold pack, by the way. That was quick thinking on your part. I was just planning on letting it go, maybe putting a cold pack on it if it swells."

Jackson sat down next to me as I spoke before responding,

"I've had some experiences with bad bruising like that. Typically you'd want to put a cold pack on it as soon as possible if it looks like that. But, lemme guess, you didn't want to bother any of us, did you?"

I laughed awkwardly,

"Guilty as charged. I just don't want to cause a problem. Plus I knew if I explained what happened it might cause animosity and I didn't want that."

Jackson chuckled at my response,

"You never have to worry about that. The guys bicker sometimes, but don't blame yourself for it. Besides, you're injured. You shouldn't have to hide that. Ever."

His tone started off normal, but quickly turned to become detached and distant, like he was remembering something from long ago. I decided now was the wrong time to press him for information as I leaned back in my chair. I looked out the window as the late morning sunlight spilled into the room and let my mind wander. I became so lost in thought that I didn't notice how Jackson had moved closer to me, his lapis lazuli bangs falling in front of his eyes. My face was turned away from him so I didn't notice how close he was getting to me until I felt his breath against my (H/L), (H/C) hair. I jumped, startled, and turned to him,

"Jackson?"

He didn't respond, he just kept looking at me, his eyes slightly unfocused. I began to feel uneasy as he moved closer to me. I started backing up before Bex intervened,

"Jackson!"

He shouted at his friend sharply before releasing him. Jackson blinked a few times before realizing what happened,

"S-Sorry, (Y/N).... my darling..."

He said softly, whispering the last part before sprinting out of the room, up the stairs, and locking himself in his room.