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Description
Folded arms; defensiveness, reluctance.

The cafeteria was a mixture of emotions; there were loud shouts of frustration, sounds of gossip, and soft whispers that floated around.

At a glance, you looked relaxed. You donned a neutral expression, and there was no sign of furrowed eyebrows or weary sighs.

It would take a closer look by the observer sitting right opposite you to figure out that you were not even the slightest bit relaxed. There might not have been any indication on your face, but the rest of your body language certainly helped in giving clues.

You sat straight, your muscles tensed and fingers tightly clenching your phone.

Apart from just reading your body language, it also helped that the observer knew you enough to know that you wouldn't seat yourself at a table that was already occupied without asking beforehand.

He didn't seem to mind though; not in the least. It was apparent to anyone, due to the subtle smile that had swiftly appeared.

He watched you, appraising the fact that you were still so deeply lost in thought that you hadn't yet noticed your surroundings.

"[Name]-"

You looked up, surprised to hear your name. Tracing the sound to the voice was a pleasant surprise, though.

Looking up at him now, you had so much to say to him, but very little reason to. He was the reason as to why you were in your current situation; you had noticed how he had been subtly avoiding you during the day. It was not as big a problem as your face showed. However, in your defence, this had never happened before.

Your eyes then widened when you realised that he had been the one to first call your name.

Had he been avoiding you because there was something he wanted to confront you about?

You sat up straight, your lips forming a small smile. "Shin-chan, hello," you said, knowing very well how much he despised the nickname. Nevertheless, he didn't seem to mind this time. He stared back at you unnervingly, giving off the impression that he wanted to convey something to you. Soon enough, though, his gaze fell. His hands, that had been resting on the table, now folded themselves neatly at his chest.

His actions weren't new to you, but lately, you had started noticing the meaning behind them.

You had met him two years back. It was the same setting, you remembered. He was sitting quietly at a table, listening to what a friend of his was animatedly telling him. At the time, his hands were resting peacefully on the table, his face relaxed.

You learned his name later that day, when you bumped into him while waiting for the bus after school. You noticed how his hands were folded neatly across his chest, even as you tried to engage in a light conversation to get rid of the silence that was hanging in the air.

Two years back, you had thought that his folded arms were an indication of the cold. However, two years back, you were only watching him from behind the eyes of a stranger.

Within the time it took to learn to understand him, you had also learnt to understand how little he opened up to the people around him.

And, within those two years, you had also realised that he always dressed warmly. He never was dressed to feel the cold. So, you surmised that his constantly folded arms were unintentional; it was a habit that had grown on him.

Just like those unintentional attempts of yours to try to understand him.

"[Name]? Can I ask you something?" His voice brought you out of your thoughts.

You smiled, and nodded, his question needing no other sort of confirmation.

"It's just a question on general knowledge, but, it caught my attention," he continued, unsure, whilst searching your face, "Do you know how long it takes to fall out of a habit?"

You were pretty sure you had heard the question elsewhere, so you wasted no time in answering. "Wasn't it sixty-six days, or so?"

He only gave you an unreadable stare; one that could not be deciphered if you tried.

"That's true... it takes about that long to change a habit. If you think about it, it's not a long time if you put your mind to it."

He seemed to have more to say so, you said nothing.

"Recently, I thought that being with you... slowly turned into a habit...I-" Realising what he had been saying, his mouth immediately clamped shut, his face flushing in embarrassment.

You frowned at his words, "A habit?"

Realising belatedly that you may have misunderstood what he was trying to convey due to him bringing up the topic on falling out of habit, he started speaking again, his voice starting out as a string of barely coherent words. "I... was just thinking of changing this habit of mine," he said, his words rushing out of his mouth.

You stopped short at his words, your words hanging at the tip of your tongue, as you wondered why he was suggesting such an idea.

You were certain that he was implying that he wanted to abandon the relationship that had slowly built between the two of you.

He hadn't finished speaking yet, though.

"It might take longer than sixty six days, but I think it's worth it; changing this habit of mine into a more permanent, voluntary practice," Midorima said quietly, his eyes refusing to meet yours throughout his confrontation.

He finally looked up.

His eyes scanned your face, searching for whatever emotions he could detect, "Habits are unintentional. Being with you...isn't."

And with that, his hands fell delicately to either side of him, his defences with them.

It was only then that you realised that your attempts to understand him hadn't been unintentional as well.

Description
Folded arms; defensiveness, reluctance.

The cafeteria was a mixture of emotions; there were loud shouts of frustration, sounds of gossip, and soft whispers that floated around.

At a glance, you looked relaxed. You donned a neutral expression, and there was no sign of furrowed eyebrows or weary sighs.

It would take a closer look by the observer sitting right opposite you to figure out that you were not even the slightest bit relaxed. There might not have been any indication on your face, but the rest of your body language certainly helped in giving clues.

You sat straight, your muscles tensed and fingers tightly clenching your phone.

Apart from just reading your body language, it also helped that the observer knew you enough to know that you wouldn't seat yourself at a table that was already occupied without asking beforehand.

He didn't seem to mind though; not in the least. It was apparent to anyone, due to the subtle smile that had swiftly appeared.

He watched you, appraising the fact that you were still so deeply lost in thought that you hadn't yet noticed your surroundings.

"[Name]-"

You looked up, surprised to hear your name. Tracing the sound to the voice was a pleasant surprise, though.

Looking up at him now, you had so much to say to him, but very little reason to. He was the reason as to why you were in your current situation; you had noticed how he had been subtly avoiding you during the day. It was not as big a problem as your face showed. However, in your defence, this had never happened before.

Your eyes then widened when you realised that he had been the one to first call your name.

Had he been avoiding you because there was something he wanted to confront you about?

You sat up straight, your lips forming a small smile. "Shin-chan, hello," you said, knowing very well how much he despised the nickname. Nevertheless, he didn't seem to mind this time. He stared back at you unnervingly, giving off the impression that he wanted to convey something to you. Soon enough, though, his gaze fell. His hands, that had been resting on the table, now folded themselves neatly at his chest.

His actions weren't new to you, but lately, you had started noticing the meaning behind them.

You had met him two years back. It was the same setting, you remembered. He was sitting quietly at a table, listening to what a friend of his was animatedly telling him. At the time, his hands were resting peacefully on the table, his face relaxed.

You learned his name later that day, when you bumped into him while waiting for the bus after school. You noticed how his hands were folded neatly across his chest, even as you tried to engage in a light conversation to get rid of the silence that was hanging in the air.

Two years back, you had thought that his folded arms were an indication of the cold. However, two years back, you were only watching him from behind the eyes of a stranger.

Within the time it took to learn to understand him, you had also learnt to understand how little he opened up to the people around him.

And, within those two years, you had also realised that he always dressed warmly. He never was dressed to feel the cold. So, you surmised that his constantly folded arms were unintentional; it was a habit that had grown on him.

Just like those unintentional attempts of yours to try to understand him.

"[Name]? Can I ask you something?" His voice brought you out of your thoughts.

You smiled, and nodded, his question needing no other sort of confirmation.

"It's just a question on general knowledge, but, it caught my attention," he continued, unsure, whilst searching your face, "Do you know how long it takes to fall out of a habit?"

You were pretty sure you had heard the question elsewhere, so you wasted no time in answering. "Wasn't it sixty-six days, or so?"

He only gave you an unreadable stare; one that could not be deciphered if you tried.

"That's true... it takes about that long to change a habit. If you think about it, it's not a long time if you put your mind to it."

He seemed to have more to say so, you said nothing.

"Recently, I thought that being with you... slowly turned into a habit...I-" Realising what he had been saying, his mouth immediately clamped shut, his face flushing in embarrassment.

You frowned at his words, "A habit?"

Realising belatedly that you may have misunderstood what he was trying to convey due to him bringing up the topic on falling out of habit, he started speaking again, his voice starting out as a string of barely coherent words. "I... was just thinking of changing this habit of mine," he said, his words rushing out of his mouth.

You stopped short at his words, your words hanging at the tip of your tongue, as you wondered why he was suggesting such an idea.

You were certain that he was implying that he wanted to abandon the relationship that had slowly built between the two of you.

He hadn't finished speaking yet, though.

"It might take longer than sixty six days, but I think it's worth it; changing this habit of mine into a more permanent, voluntary practice," Midorima said quietly, his eyes refusing to meet yours throughout his confrontation.

He finally looked up.

His eyes scanned your face, searching for whatever emotions he could detect, "Habits are unintentional. Being with you...isn't."

And with that, his hands fell delicately to either side of him, his defences with them.

It was only then that you realised that your attempts to understand him hadn't been unintentional as well.