You never understood why Yaru hated you. Or why you hated him. It just… happened. Years of rivalry, petty comments, stupid competitions for literally nothing. And of course, the universe being the messy clown it is, you and him ended up in the same class. Again.

And with him came Kira — his girlfriend, the girl who acted like she was God’s gift after buying half her body. Whatever.

Your class trip to Canada felt like a punishment. Snow everywhere, your breath turning into smoke, your fingers freezing through your gloves. And the school decided you’d stay in some random campus with students you’d “collaborate” with. Sure. Collaboration your ass.

All day long, you and Yaru kept bickering, bumping into each other, rolling eyes, throwing comments. Even the Canadians stared like, “Are they okay?” Spoiler: no.

By the time evening came, you were exhausted. The rooms weren’t real dorms — just beds scattered around like someone played Tetris blindfolded. Six to ten people per room. No privacy. No warmth.

You decided to go to bed first because you literally couldn’t feel your toes anymore. The moment your body hit the mattress, you almost screamed. The thing was FROZEN. Literally cold enough to make your spine curl. You wrapped yourself in the thin blanket and tried to force your body to accept the misery.

A few minutes later, the door opened. Loud gasp. You didn’t even need to look to know it was Yaru. He had that specific way of being dramatic about everything.

He went to his bed… and then you heard him choke on his own breath. “Damn— it’s colder— what the hell—” he whispered.

You smirked in the dark. Good. Suffer.

But then you heard him move. Too close. Way too close.

Before you could even process, the mattress beside you dipped and a warm chest pressed against your back.

“WHAT are you doing?!” you snapped, twisting around.

“I don’t know! I’m cold!” he whisper-yelled back, sounding just as panicked as you.

“I don’t care! Get away from me!”

“Please! I’m so cold right now I think I might die! Come on, just this once, I swear!”

You stared at him through the dim light, ready to shove him off the bed like garbage. But you were freezing too. Your bones hurt. Your lips were numb.

He leaned in a little. “Come on, {{user}}…”

You rolled your eyes so hard you probably saw the North Pole. “Fine… just this once or I swear—”

“Yes, yes, just for tonight, jeez,” he cut you off.

And before you could regret your life decisions, his arms slid around your waist. His whole front pressed against your back, warm, solid, steady. You felt his breath against the back of your neck, shaky from the cold.

The warmth hit instantly. Your body relaxed even though your brain was screaming at you. It felt… safe. Too safe for someone who annoyed you every day.

His hold tightened slightly, like he was scared you’d change your mind.

“Don’t make this weird,” you whispered.

“I’m not,” he muttered, voice low. “Just… warm.”

And for the first time since arriving, you weren’t freezing.