Katsuo angrily washed his hands over the bathroom sink, grimacing.

That bastard… he thought angrily. If Martinez had anything, it was the audacity to return to class as if nothing happened.

Katsuo expected him to be punished — expulsion would've served Martinez right, but after seeing how the street kid had kept a good performance record, the Academy's staff decided to be lenient and offer him a second chance.

Fucking street rat–

His angry thoughts were interrupted when a familiar face showed up behind the mirror.

Of course, just my luck…

Katsuo dried his hands in silence, not daring to make eye contact.

"Hey, Katsuo," a familiar voice greeted softly.

Katsuo didn't respond and instead headed for the bathroom exit. Now was really not the time.

"Hey, wait up choom!" the voice desperately called out, a hand gently rested on Katsuo's shoulder. "Katsuo, please."

Katsuo didn't move. A few seconds passed in silence, the hand no longer on his shoulder.

"… What do you want, David?" Katsuo quietly asked, not bothering to turn around. He heard a soft sigh behind him and a few more seconds passed by.

"Just wanted to… talk about what happened the other day and apologize about—well, y'know?" David softly said. He exhaled, took a breath, and tried again. "Look, I'm sorry about what happened."

Oh, please… "Are you really?" Katsuo scoffed, still not turning around and facing David.

"Hey come on, choom," David pointed out. "I'm trying my best to be sincere and you're over here acting like I don't exist."

Katsuo rolled his eyes. Typical.

"It's rude, y'know," David continued, looking at the floor.

"You're one to talk, Martinez," Katsuo gritted out, finally turning around. David looked how he expected him to: awkward and impatient. "You're lucky you're still able to attend the Academy."

"Yeah, yeah I know. To be honest, I was surprised they let me stay," David said, a hand instinctively going through his hair. "And I'm grateful I can still be able to graduate."

He looked up and slowly took two steps forward. "Katsuo, I'm sorry I punched you and broke your nose. I got a little too aggressive and should've restrained myself, and for that I apologize."

And there it was. Katsuo couldn't help but let out a laugh. David gave a confused look, his cheeks turning a bright red.

"You expect me to believe that? Ha!" Katsuo mused. "Oh and what, you want me to accept it? Do you actually expect me to forgive you?"

David winced.

"You broke my nose Martinez! In front of my friends—!"

"You had no problem beating the shit out of me in front of your friends the other day!" David interrupted. "Come to think of it, you enjoyed it. You get off on that kind of stuff—seeing other people suffer?"

Katsuo's face hardened at the remark. "I had every chance to beat you fucking senseless, Martinez," he said, his tone careful. He started towards David, any distance between them slowly disappearing. "But I didn't. I could have beaten your face into a pulp, even broken your ribs—god knows you don't have any insurance—but I held back!"

David didn't even notice his left wrist was being held in a firm grip. Only then did he realize Katsuo's full height, those fiery blue eyes staring nothing but daggers into his pained brown irises.

"So tell me, David Martinez, what will you do now? Because I sure as hell am not accepting that dog shit of an apology you just pulled out of your—"

"…"

Huh…?

It took Katsuo a few seconds to process what was happening. There was warmth on his lips.

What…?

He blinked once, and then a few more times, his brain now slowly registering. A trembling hand held the back of his head in a gentle manner. The other hand—no longer held in a tightly grip—laid gently on his shoulder.

His eyes immediately focused on David's face, whose eyes were closed. Katsuo didn't realize just how close David was to him.

David's lips were on his, warm and soft.

David was kissing him. David Martinez, street rat from Santo Domingo, poor as the next bottom feeder from Night City, was kissing him. And Katsuo didn't have a clue as to why.

"That seemed to shut you up," David said quietly as he pulled back, his hand no longer caressing the back of Katsuo's head.

Katsuo looked at David with wide eyes, his facial expression clearly showing that he was at a loss for words.

"Katsuo," David began, his cheeks burning bright red. "I know my apology isn't gonna cut it."

Yeah you think?! Why couldn't he talk? There were many things he wanted to say right now, but no words would come out of his mouth.

"I wanna make it up to you, maybe sometime next week," David said. He reached out and straightened out Katsuo's school uniform. "See ya next time." He gave a small smile before leaving the restroom.

Katsuo leaned back against the sink, still in shock. Turning around, he saw his reflection in the mirror. The small thin bandage that went across his nose horizontally stood out first before noticing that he was blushing too.

Shit…