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ayufufu · 24 days

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OnionThief x Rival!MC

Word Count: 4368

Summary: In which OnionThief and his rival get paired up for a project. But for the first time, he gets to see what it’s like for them behind the scenes of their bratty know-it-all personality (basically academic burnout).

Author’s Note: Started sometime in 2020, finished April 5th, 2024. I present the sassy, probably out-of-character, OnionThief and his little rival. Trust, it’s been like 3 years since I’ve played this game. Oh lord am I out of touch with this fandom. It is buried within me right now. But hey, finished writing. I am proud of the beginning half, the ending might not be it though.

“Eat shit and die.”

“Yes, fuck you.” These whispers flew past surrounding peers, already used to overhearing this type of bickering between the pair. It was never truly clear how it began. They tested each other’s knowledge, butting heads every year since high school. Y/N and Onionthief simply found each other insufferable, their hostility seemed to intensify when they found out they applied to the same college. It was as though they were water and oil, never being able to mix well. The professors chose to pay no mind since both were still excelling. Their grades were incredibly high, scores screaming in pain at the height they were reaching, extra credit opportunities never wasted.

“You’re all dismissed, please remember to review pages 556 to 590 for next week.” The class let out dim cheers, the sounds of paper rustling, bags zipping, and peers exchanging words filling the large room. As Y/N finished packing their last item away, they rushed straight to the door. Walking to the outside of campus, they made a mental to-do list. Assignments were beginning to pile up, but Winter break was right there. Couldn’t stop now.

“Move,” Onion’s voice rang out as he shoved his shoulder into theirs harshly, a scoff coming from them as they’re broken from their thoughts.

“I wasn’t aware the 15 feet of space around me was nonexistent,” Y/N spat. Their eyes followed his back as he continued his fast pace without a word. Unbelievable. Turning to walk the other direction, the sounds of their peers filled their ears. Silently restarting their to-do list, the sounds became a blur. The walk to their apartment was a routine, passing the different trees and couples before reaching the bridge. Rushing across, the sounds of another pair of footsteps flooded their ears.

“So you’ve resorted to stalking me,” Onion sneered. Y/N turned around, head flooded with annoyance.

“I live here, you’re aware of that.” “Right.” He walked over to the bridge pulling a small bottle from his pocket. Y/N watched curiously as he tipped it over the edge and shook it a bit. Realizing he was feeding the fish, Y/N walked off, bag bouncing with each step. The eyes following them were left unnoticed, the sounds of class echoing in their mind all the way to their desk.

“I mentioned at the beginning of the year that there will be one major partner assignment in this class, serving as our midterm final.” Groans and whispers of cheers filled the room, peers feeling dreadful while others spotted friends across the room. Y/N sighed, head resting in their arms. Glad he’s at least sitting somewhere else.

“Alright, settle down. These partners will be assigned by your latest test scores.” Right... Y/N clicked their pen impatiently, feeling the metal between their fingers, more sounds of displeasure filling the room. The teacher droned on about the details of the project, explaining how lower scores would be assigned tutors for their projects.

“Let’s start with the highest scores shall we?” They sat up.

“Y/N and—” Clack. The sound of the pen hitting the table drew the attention of a few surrounding classmates, but Y/N didn’t even take notice.

“You two don’t need a tutor so you’ll be able to view the project details online. Now for…” He was their partner. For once, a teacher decided to pair them up. They sat through the rest of the class, every word flowing through their ears and out the other. Nothing was staying put into their mind. I just had to be paired with such an insufferable… Shaking their head, they heard the professor dismiss them.

“Well, I guess I’m ready to fail this assignment.” And there he is. They began packing their stuff, shoving the items in the bag messily.

“Same here, you’ll just drag down my grade even if we did try.”

“Right, what was this worth again, 50%?” Y/N stopped their aggressive packing at this.

“Where did you get that this was 50%?” “Read the details dumbass,” he passed his phone to them. Their eyes skimmed over the details, the 50 percent and “due in 10 days” standing out from everything else. The phone was plucked out of their hands as he smirked, tucking it away. He left the room, Y/N trailing behind. They couldn’t just skip the assignment, their hard-earned A+ would easily drop in just one month. Onion tried his best not to notice the footsteps behind him, knowing it was them. He held back chuckles as he wondered how long they’d follow him.

“Hey shallot-head,” Y/N called. He hummed in acknowledgment, but he still didn’t change pace or look their way. Y/N was starting to struggle to keep up the pace, always one step or two behind from walking next to him, not noticing the smirk he was hiding. They finally huffed before grabbing the back of his shirt to stop him completely. He halted at the sudden pressure, a smirk forming a look of surprise while Y/N rushed to face him.

“Listen shallot, I can’t afford to skip this assignment.” He cocked an eyebrow at this.

“The Y/N cannot afford to skip this assignment? I’m sure you can lose half of your grade, still pass, and I would be able to avoid your ridiculously low IQ.” Their head felt hot at the sound of his ridiculing.

“I need to pass this assignment. I can do the work, but you just need to revise some parts to look like it’s yours,” Y/N pleaded. He seemed to ponder the options, putting his chin between his fingers.

“No.” He turned to leave. “Wait– I offer instant miso!” His head perked up.

“Green onions too, plus I’ll throw in extra tofu.” He grabbed Y/N’s wrist roughly before beginning to drag them to the apartment in a rush, Y/N struggling once more to keep up, relief washing their body.

“I need to stop here for a moment.” He approached the bridge again, the same bottle as before in his hand. Y/N watched him shake the bottle once more, fish crowding the area again. He turned back to them before nodding and walking to the complex, Y/N tailing after. Once they called the elevator, awkward silence surrounded them. For the first time since they began their walk (run) back, tension swallowed them whole, arms and legs aching from arduous journeys across campus and poor posture in class.

Y/N stepped into the elevator first, clicking the third-floor button once Onion stepped in. They side-eyed him, taking in his tense yet relaxed state. Y/N willed themselves to relax their stiff body while the elevator doors spread open.

“Do you need anything from your room or are you good to go,” Y/N asked, adjusting the bag on their back.

“I don’t need anything else. I bring all my work necessities with me” They nodded at his response before putting in their pin and unlocking the door. They walked straight in, putting away their necessities, shoes by the door, and water bottle on the table.

“Right, um, you could set up in the kitchen while I make your miso?” Onion nodded and began to set his stuff on the chair next to Y/N’s stuff while they began putting a pot of water on the stove. As Onion began pulling out his laptop and notes, he stared at Y/N’s back while they shuffled around the kitchen grabbing things out of cabinets and drawers. His brows furrowed in annoyance at the unwanted presence, punching his laptop code in with more pressure.

“Don’t you have a desk?” Onion sighed at the environment.

“I do, but it only fits me. I didn’t plan on having anyone study at my apartment until now.” The instant miso powder hit the boiling water, the aroma filling the room, the silence of their voices following. Bubbling water and mouse clicks were the only things heard for a few more minutes, the atmosphere stiff. Eventually, two bowls of miso, two laptops, two notebooks, and two comp sci students were positioned at the table.

“So, let’s test the limits of your stupidity.” “...I literally have a higher score than you.”

“Ok, and?” Y/N leaned back in their chair. They barely even started, the soup still steaming, but their bickering was starting up once more.

“I’m just saying, that B in algorithms seems to say something about you.” Harshly sighing, Y/N tipped their head back to the ceiling, their eyes tracing the patterns in the material.

“If you don’t pay attention I will chug this miso and leave.” They snapped their head towards him. They sat up and positioned their arms to type before realizing they hadn’t even read all of the assignment details yet. This was going to be a long month.

10 days.

“No dumbass, this is supposed to be–” “No it isn’t, what the hell?”

“Are you denying the truth? “I am denying what is clearly wrong.” “Look at my notes, it’s right!” Y/N shoved their notes in Onion’s face. Pushing his glasses further up his nose, his eyes scanned the text. After a minute or so, he sighed.

“Your notes are wrong.” Their eyes widened when Onion handed his own notes to them before rereading their notes with a confused expression. Onion had wanted to work on homework before continuing the project to make sure their (mostly his) grades didn’t drop. Upon looking at their notes from the day, their professor's words filled their brain again. They couldn’t stop the disappointment from filling their face, a frown settling on their features. Since they were so sure they were right, they didn’t think their understanding of the topic was off. Onionthief observed their down face, an expression he seldom saw.

8 days.

“I couldn’t grab extra tofu last time I went out for groceries.” Y/N set the bowls down carefully, taking their seat right after. Onion didn’t budge, opting to continue typing away at his laptop. At the lack of response, they cocked an eyebrow. They thought he’d throw a fit, but surprisingly he stayed put. Y/N sighed before opening up their work yet again, shoulders aching. Onion stayed true to the deal, opting to revise the parts Y/N laid out for him while continuing his homework from other classes. At the lack of help and the burden of other classes on their mind, Y/N could feel the shadows of burnout waiting to envelop them. After this, they were prepared to let their bed swallow them whole.

6 days.

“Hey, this is still wrong.” Y/N’s head jerked up from the part of the project they were currently typing out. Onion observed them as they rapidly scrolled to where he was viewing. It was an entry from the beginning of the project. A part that affected the rest of the work. Deeply sighing, the monotone voice in their head began reading again. Despite rereading it constantly, nothing was sticking. It was as though the words didn’t exist. At the lack of response from Y/N after a good few minutes, Onion huffed before highlighting the mistake in the text.

“Oh.” It was all they could let out at the moment. Despite the sentence highlighted, the information wasn’t processed in their head. Their face scrunched up at the hotness filling their head. The sight made an unfamiliar feeling rise in Onion. He breathed out harshly before deleting the sentence, correcting it himself. If it wasn’t for the silence in the kitchen, he doubted he’d ever hear the quiet ‘thanks’ they let out. He froze at the appreciation, the sound of it unfamiliar from them. The hell do they mean ‘thanks’?

5 days.

The project was still unfinished, the amount of work left taunting Y/N as they were left staring at the blank screen yet again. The homework had already seemed to have drained them, but they refused to call it a night yet. Their miso bowl was cold, the ingredients settling to the bottom. Onion had already finished his homework and revised the parts of the project he was given. Now, he seemed to be collecting data on some fantasy web novel. Rubbing their temple, Y/N shut their laptop despite having never even opened the project yet. Their brain was on overdrive, the workload invading their mind and trying to push them to work. Despite their efforts, Y/N just couldn’t bring themself to even pretend they could work, their gaze burning holes in the back of Onion’s laptop.

“Are you finally done with the project,” Onion blurted out, eyes not leaving his screen. No answer. Glancing over the top of his laptop, his eyes were met with Y/N’s drained demeanor. As his gaze wandered over their face, it soon traveled to the untouched bowl on the side. Adjusting his glasses, he shut down his laptop after saving his work, the sudden movement making Y/N jump. He leaned forward, chin resting against the back of his hands.

“Do you need help?” “Why the fuck are you asking like that–” “I’m just asking.” “Yes, but what’s with that pose, you look dramatic.” Onion’s confused face became deadpan at the comment. He opened his mouth to let out a snarky remark before Y/N got up abruptly. He watched as they trudged over to their room, the door shutting softly behind them as a muffled thud was heard.

3 days.

Y/N hasn’t emerged from their room since yesterday, the silence in class left everyone dumbfounded as Onion continued on with his day-to-day classes in silence. Yet as the day came to an end, he found himself in front of the same door he’s gone to for the past 19 days. What do I even say? Why am I here? They didn’t say they’d work on the project today. His hand raised for the buzzer.

“Coming…” Dull. A very dull voice. “Come on in, miso’s in the pot. I’ll be in my room laying down, we can just do it tomorrow or something.”

“But that would put us–”

“Behind schedule I know, shut up. Please.” He frowned at their small pleading. I don’t like that they have to plead. “If you want to you can work on it yourself…”

“But that wasn’t-”

“A part of the deal I know, it’s just a suggestion. Take it or leave it, miso’s still yours.”

“Oh.. okay then.” As they left, Onion felt bitter guilt rising in him. He looked at the miso and sighed before pulling out his laptop and getting to work. Might as well as payment for the miso. He swiftly got to work as Y/N stayed silent in their room.

2 days.

Onion finished the last of his typing, the kitchen was oddly silent as there was no miso being cooked and no Y/N to bother him. Y/N just let Onion in, apologizing for the lack of miso or food, and tried to turn him away, but Onion persisted that it didn’t matter. They let Onion do what he wanted as they did the same as they did before, retreating back to their room in silence. Yet Onion completed the project yesterday. It was a minor error that needed to be corrected, one colon needed to make the code work. When he found the error, all he could do was chuckle a bit before staring at Y/N’s room.

“Why can’t I just leave,” Onion whispered to himself as he stared at his laptop in frustration.

“No one said you can’t,” Y/N muttered, walking over to the fridge to get water.

“I know,” Onion spat. “I don’t know shallot, doesn’t seem like it,” Y/N spoke in a flat sing-song tone.

“Could you just, shut up already, damn,” he spat. Y/N carried no response. They stood in place, the chill of the open fridge numb to their body as they stared into the light illuminating the numerous food products inside. “Y/N…?” They closed the fridge as if on autopilot and made their way back into their room, their heart weighing heavy as an ache formed in their chest, their cheeks damp. Damn it.

24 hours.

No knock today. The miso sat on the stove for 3 hours, cold, and untouched. Y/N waited hours, even after they poured the miso down the drain. Part of them laughed at themselves for waiting, yet the other part made them ache. Of course, he got tired of me like everyone else. The silence of their apartment bothered them, the lights and blinds all dimmed. They stared at the freshly bought miso packets, the weight of their assignments and lectures missing pushed on their heart and crushed it as their tears fell.

22 hours.

“Oh,” was all Y/N could muster when they received an email from Onion telling them to get on the link to the project presentation. Not a single “sorry” or “Are you okay” was typed out. They grabbed their laptop and moved it from their bed to their desk as they prepared for another night in bed alone again. Their assignments could wait just a bit longer.

21 hours, 3AM.

Three knocks.

“Hey, sorry I was finishing up the work in the library.” Oh? Y/N could smell the bullshit coming from him.

“Oh, it’s fine, don’t worry,” was all they could muster in response.

“Okay, here I’ll make miso. I don’t smell miso, so I guess it’s safe to assume you haven’t been making any. I’m sorry for ghosting,” Onion gave a sheepish smile. What the hell do you mean sorry? Their chest aches even more at the sight of his small smile.

They talked for a while on the couch about the assignments Y/N had been missing while the TV ran some background noise for them. Turns out Onion and Y/N were excused from some extra tutoring that other students were given in the class, so it wasn’t too bad. Y/N still had some work to do, but Onion mentioned how he finished the assignment way before, hence the email to check on the file. Y/N breathed a sigh of relief.

“Why don’t I make us some miso soup for once,” Onion asked. Y/N raised a brow at this in mocking offense.

“You, my guest, cooking? Hell no.” Onion scoffed.

“Just rest.”

“No I’ll make it–”

“Literally shut the fuck up and go.”

“Fine.” Y/N pushed themselves off of the couch and semi-stopped over to their bed before plopping on it dramatically. Onion walked in to make sure they were actually in bed before grabbing an extra blanket that sat on their chair and layering it on them. Y/N side-eyed his every move the entire time as he did. Their heart had a warm ache this time while Onion shut the door.

“Where the fuck do they put the pots.” Now that Onion was tasked with “taking care” of Y/N, he realized he had no idea where anything was. He sighed before going through each cabinet one by one. Y/N heard the cabinets opening and closing before smiling softly to themselves. Wait, what.

The weight lifted from their shoulder. The heaviness of the world had gone. They took a deep breath, sinking back into the soft blankets once more.

20 hours, 4AM.

“Damn this is good, what kind of crack did you put,” Y/N enthused.

“Just some extra ingredients I brought,” Onion replied. Y/N froze. “I didn’t fucking poison it dumbass.”

“Well how am I supposed to know, hm?” Y/N spat.

“We’re eating food… from the same pot.”

“Oh yeah huh.” Y/N hastily resumed their eating as Onion shook his head. Y/N pondered as they ate. “Hey… you’ve been acting different lately. You’re less…”

“Less what?”

“Less annoying,” Y/N deadpanned.

“...thanks?”

“You’re more… enjoyable to be around I guess.” Onion felt his face go a bit warm, having never heard those from their voice. He stared down at his bowl as he felt it go to his ears. “Woah,” he heard Y/N say. “You’re red as fuck.”

“Yeah, wonder who’s fault that is,” Onion retorted. Y/N chuckled at that as they stood up to grab more soup. The TV was all that filled the room as Onion felt his brain restarting. Rain began to patter against the windows. “I guess you’re not that annoying too, enjoyable, even…” Y/N froze up too, almost dropping the soup filled ladle. They quickly shook their head as they put the bowl back on the table, mimicking what Onion had just done. Shyness is cute on them…? Onion was considering things immensely now.

With the change in attitude from his supposed academic rival, his emotions have been askew these past days. The lack of brattiness left a hole. Something, such as a shift in the force, had changed his whole routine entirely.

“Fuck off,” Y/N spat.

“Nah.”

“Whore.”

“Eat shit and die,” Onion smirked.

“That’s my fucking line,” Y/N gasped dramatically at their own words being used against them.

“Oh whatever,” Onion chuckled fondly.

19 hours, 5AM.

The two sat in Y/N’s living room now as they chatted and argued about anything they could find. During Onion’s dramatic listing of every time he’s won against Y/N, he noticed them staring long and hard at their bedroom door.

“Earth to dumbass, what’s up?”

“I should get a start on some of my other assignments. So close to finishing yet...” Y/N let out a harsh sigh. “You probably want to head back to yours anyways.” Onion sat upright at this. “See, like a fucking dog–”

“No.” Y/N raised an eyebrow?

“Fuck you mean, no?” Onion himself didn’t even know what he meant.

“No as in… I’m not going home?”

“Suit yourself.” Y/N got up and went to their bedroom, leaving Onion dumbfounded on the couch.

No? What am I even going to do here… He took a deep breath before walking over to Y/N’s bedroom. They were already at work on their laptop.

“Hey, I’m gonna go,” Onion muttered.

“Figured, I’ll see you out then.” Y/N led the way to the door while Onion trudged along behind them with his work bag.

“Are you actually showing up tomorrow,” Onion snickered. His face turned to an unreadable expression the second he noticed Y/N look away silently with a stone face as they pondered it.

“Nah, fuck that,” Y/N chuckled dryly. An idea popped into Onion’s mind.

“Burned out?”

“What?” Y/N knew what he was talking about of course, but the fact that Onion even questioned it felt out of character for him. “So what if I am,” Y/N snapped.

“Well… you know that’s not healthy…” Onion started.

“Yes, but it got everything done so I don’t see why—”

“Because you worried me.” Y/N’s eyes widened.

“I worried you?”

“Yes.” By now the both of them were staring at each other in the entrance to Y/N’s apartment, neither of them moving and the silence filled with their heavy breaths. Onion stepped forth and held out both of his hands. Y/N gave a sharp look at him as he gestured towards them, keeping them outstretched. Y/N hesitantly put their hands in his.

“You can’t just say that…”

“I can’t?” They dropped his hands.

“No, it.. It’s confusing for me.” Onion leaned against the wall, shoving his hands in his jacket pocket.

“It’s confusing for me too, you know,” Onion whispers, averting his gaze to the ground. Perhaps if he stared hard enough, the wall and him would combine as one and he’d be able to leave. Taking care of his little siblings was one thing, comforting someone his age was another. There was a reason he resorted to talking to his friends online.

“Hey…” Y/N stepped forward, their hand twitching. “What’s on your mind, if you don’t mind my asking?” A faint smile was painted on his face. After all this, they’re still so kind.

“I.. don’t mind per say.” His bag weighed heavily on his shoulder, pulling his heart to the ground in ache. “I’m just not sure I know how exactly to say,” he sighed. A gentle finger laced with one of his own as Y/N hooked them together. Looking up in confusion, they dragged him over to the sofa.

“Let’s start from the beginning shall we?”

After a couple hours, the two had made up that night, and with help from Y/N’s visitor and a sleepover numerous late assignments were turned in. Now, it’s been a whole week since that night.

“Hey, you know you don’t have to keep coming over,” Y/N laughed as they stirred the miso in the pot as normal. This routine came back immediately. Onion coming over to Y/N’s, the smell of miso soup filling the apartment after settling down for a few minutes. A chat about interests along with plenty of time for assignments.

“Yeah well, you make my day plenty more interesting, ‘you know,’” Onion mocked. Feigning offense, the miso soup pot was set in the middle of the counter with a cork mat underneath. As Onion grabbed himself a portion, Y/N strolled over to the TV and turned it on for background noise.

“Yeah yeah, oh how I must brighten your oh so, dark, dreadful, drowsy days.” Laughter filled the apartment, almost drowning out the TV noise.

“...festival lasts for a few days, but, due to fortunate circumstances, will be held during local schools' vacation days.” The TV listed the dates as the two college students looked at each other. “Not to mention, the Winter Festival is known for the competitive nature that it brings to it’s attendees with the plethora of games, contests, and more, only here at…”

“That’s our Winter break dates huh…” Onion smirked.

Y/N cleared their throat. “Would you care to join me to this, uh, ‘friendly’ festival?”

“Oh,” Onion leaned forward. “It’s on.”

#onionthief #blooming panic x reader #bloomic #blooming panic #mc #fanfic #fanfiction

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