It was the start of spring.

“Why… why does it always have to be like this!?”

Takasu Ryuuji glared at the mirror with disgust, furrowing his eyebrows as he leaned closer. No matter how many times he washed his face, combed his hair, or smiled politely, his eyes remained the same — sharp, cold, and absolutely terrifying.

He wasn’t angry. He wasn’t irritated. He had just been… born with this face.

A face that could scare off neighborhood kids.

A face that made teachers keep their distance.

A face that made even his own classmates whisper behind his back:

> “That guy… he’s totally yakuza.”

Ryuuji sighed, brushing back his bangs with a towel as the morning sun poured into his room.

It was the first day of second year in high school.

“I’m not a delinquent,” he whispered to himself, shoulders slumping.

---

Downstairs, the sound of clanking pans and loud humming drifted from the kitchen.

“Ryu-chaaaaan! Breakfast’s ready~! You better eat while it’s hot!”

That voice belonged to his mother, Takasu Yasuko — an overly cheerful woman with dyed-blonde hair and a personality louder than life itself. At only 4'11", she didn’t look like anyone's idea of a mother, especially not Ryuuji’s.

Ryuuji sighed again, but smiled faintly. Even if she was a little irresponsible, she was still… his mom.

After a quick breakfast — rice, miso soup, and a burnt-looking omelet (which still tasted good, somehow) — he slung his bag over his shoulder and stepped out of their small apartment.

The sky was clear. The cherry blossoms danced on the wind.

> This year… maybe things will be different.

He didn’t expect much. He just wanted a normal high school life.

But life had other plans.

---

Enter the Tiger

“Move it!”

A blur of brown shot past him as he walked down the hallway of Class 2-C, a small figure charging at full speed like a wild beast.

Thud!

Bam!

Crash!

Chairs toppled. Desks rattled. A boy screamed.

And there, standing in the middle of the chaos, panting with a murderous glint in her eye—

Was Aisaka Taiga.

Petite. Beautiful. Doll-like face.

And absolutely terrifying.

Everyone called her the Palmtop Tiger.

> “Don’t… get in my way,” she growled, brushing her long chestnut hair aside as she turned back toward the door.

Ryuuji blinked.

The tiger had arrived.

---

The Dragon’s New Seat

Fate (and the seating chart) had a cruel sense of humor.

Ryuuji’s seat? Right behind Taiga.

At first, she didn’t even look at him. Didn’t acknowledge him. Nothing.

But then during lunch, when he offered her a tissue (after she sneezed three times in a row), she turned slowly… eyes narrow like a cat ready to strike.

“...Why are you looking at me like that?” she asked flatly.

“I… I wasn’t,” Ryuuji replied, inching back.

She stared at him a moment longer… and then looked away.

It was the start of something… dangerous.

---

The Letter in the Wrong Bag

That night, Ryuuji returned home and, out of habit, started tidying his school bag.

He reached for his notebook — and something fluttered out.

> A love letter?

He opened it slowly. His eyes widened.

It was addressed to…

Kitamura Yusaku.

His best friend.

But the letter wasn’t his. It was—

Taiga’s.

She had stuffed it in the wrong bag.

And now Ryuuji was holding it.

“Oh no…”

---

The Midnight Intruder

That night, as he was brushing his teeth—

He heard a faint sound.

Rustling.

He turned around.

There she was.

In his house. In the dark.

Aisaka Taiga, standing in his living room, holding a wooden sword.

“Give. It. Back,” she said through gritted teeth.

“What the hell!?” Ryuuji shouted, nearly dropping his toothbrush.

She lunged.

He ducked.

She swung.

He ran.

What followed was a chaotic chase around the apartment, furniture crashing, pillows flying — all for one single love letter.

Finally, Ryuuji managed to stop her, panting.

“I’m not going to tell anyone! I swear! Just calm down!!”

She froze, staring at him.

“…Really?” she whispered, cheeks red.

Ryuuji nodded.

“Then…” she murmured. “You have to help me.”

“H-Huh?”

“Help me confess to Kitamura.”

Ryuuji blinked. “You want me to—?”

“You saw the letter! You know now! You have to help me, or else—”

She held up the wooden sword again.

“…I’ll kill you.”

---

Dragon and Tiger, Bound by Fate

And so, a strange alliance began.

The feared delinquent.

The palmtop tiger.

Bound together by secrets, misunderstandings, and a love letter gone wrong.

Little did they know…

This was the beginning of something neither of them expected.

Not friendship.

Not love.

But something far more complicated.

---

To Be Continued…

“We’ll help each other.”

Ryuuji didn’t know what exactly he was signing up for. One moment he was dodging swings from a sword-wielding girl who broke into his house at midnight, and the next… they had a deal.

She would help him get closer to Kushieda Minori, the bright, athletic, slightly oddball girl he liked.

And he… would help Aisaka Taiga confess to his best friend, Kitamura Yusaku.

It sounded ridiculous.

But something about the look in her eyes made it hard to say no.

---

The Morning After

Ryuuji woke up with a stiff neck and a weird heaviness on his chest.

“…Mmm…”

There was something — no, someone — lying next to him on the futon.

Long chestnut hair. A small frame.

It was Taiga.

His eyes went wide. His heart nearly stopped.

“WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE!?”

Taiga blinked slowly, still half asleep. “You had warm rice…”

“Don’t sleep in people’s houses without asking!!”

“I was hungry…”

“You can’t just — Ugh!”

---

The Plan Begins (Sort of…)

At school, Taiga acted like nothing had happened. In front of Kitamura, she was her usual silent self — cold, distant, intimidating.

Meanwhile, Ryuuji tried to act natural around Minori, but every time she looked at him with her bright smile, his words turned into mush.

Taiga glared at him.

“You’re pathetic.”

“Well, excuse me for being human!”

At lunch, they sat on the rooftop, discussing “strategies.”

“I’ll tell Kitamura how amazing you are, how cute you look when you’re not trying to stab someone,” Ryuuji offered, half-joking.

Taiga narrowed her eyes. “You’ll do the cleaning. The cooking. The laundry.”

“…What does that have to do with—”

“Everything. If you want my help with Minori, then become my dog.”

“Dog!?”

“You like cleaning anyway.”

“I don’t like it! I just… do it because no one else does…”

She shrugged. “Same thing.”

---

The Unseen Kindness

Despite her rough attitude, Ryuuji began to notice things.

Taiga, for all her strength and confidence in front of others, lived completely alone in a high-rise apartment.

Her fridge? Empty.

Her floors? Covered in junk.

Her life? Disorganized, quiet, and lonely.

She acted like a tiger, but she was just… a girl.

Small, fragile, and struggling to do everything on her own.

So Ryuuji — the so-called scary delinquent — started cleaning her room after school. Cooking meals for two. Making bento for her every morning.

And Taiga… accepted it all silently.

---

In Class: Rumors and Whispers

The other students couldn’t stop whispering.

“Why is Takasu Ryuuji always hanging around Aisaka Taiga?”

“Did they get in a fight?”

“Is he her new servant?”

“Maybe he’s into her!?”

The rumors got worse.

But neither Ryuuji nor Taiga cared.

Their strange relationship was built on mutual secrets. Mutual goals.

And a fragile, unspoken trust.

---

That Night: The Wind Blew Softly

Back at Taiga’s place, Ryuuji was sweeping the floor while she sat cross-legged, munching on rice crackers like a spoiled cat.

“You’re going to get fat if you eat that much.”

She threw a cushion at him.

“Shut up. You’re not my mom.”

“…I feel like one.”

She looked at him from the corner of her eye.

“You’re weird, Takasu.”

“And you’re a pain, Aisaka.”

A pause.

“…But thanks,” she mumbled.

He looked at her. She was staring at the TV, pretending not to care. But her ears were slightly red.

It was the first time she’d said “thank you.”

---

The Dragon and the Tiger — Closer Than Before

As the days passed, they didn’t just help each other with their crushes.

They started knowing each other.

The tiger, feared and untouchable, had soft sides she never showed anyone.

The dragon, misunderstood and avoided, had kindness in every action.

They didn’t realize it yet.

But the story of Toradora had already begun to shift from “helping each other get their crushes”…

…into something much deeper.

---

To Be Continued…

Spring sun and awkward feelings.

Class 2-C buzzed with life.

New school year. New seating.

Same old high school chaos.

But for Takasu Ryuuji, everything had changed.

Ever since Aisaka Taiga mistakenly dropped her love letter into his bag, they had become something like… “partners-in-crush.”

He helped her. She threatened him.

He cooked. She ate.

He cleaned. She ordered.

And yet—

She was still just a girl chasing her own clumsy dream.

Just like him.

---

Operation: Get Closer to Minorin

Ryuuji stood near the school field, clutching a pair of sports drinks. One was for him.

The other… for Kushieda Minori.

She was running laps, full of energy like always — shouting, laughing, sliding across the grass like a baseball player even though it wasn’t baseball practice.

> “How is she even real…” Ryuuji muttered.

“She’s a weirdo,” Taiga said flatly beside him.

“She’s passionate.”

“She’s possessed.”

“You’re jealous.”

“Shut up.”

But Ryuuji stepped forward anyway, mustering every drop of courage.

When Minorin finally stopped running, he walked over and handed her the drink.

“Hey, Takasu-kun! You’re a life-saver!” she grinned, her eyes shining.

“N-No problem. You looked like you could use a break.”

“Haha! What, do I look like a dying grandma out there!?”

“Not at all! More like… a super-genki grandma!”

She burst out laughing. “Okay, now you’re just weird.”

Ryuuji smiled awkwardly, heart pounding.

From a distance, Taiga watched, silently sipping her juice box.

---

That Evening: Cooking Lessons

After school, Ryuuji was in Taiga’s kitchen again.

“Look, if you’re going to give Kitamura a bento, it has to be edible.”

Taiga crossed her arms, glaring at the rice cooker.

“Food is just… food. What matters is the feeling.”

“Tell that to Kitamura when he’s in the nurse’s office.”

“I’m not that bad!”

“You tried to put whipped cream on salmon.”

“…It looked cute.”

Ryuuji sighed deeply, tying his apron tighter. “Let’s start from the beginning.”

They cooked together — badly at first. Taiga almost set the frying pan on fire. She threw rice at Ryuuji in frustration. He retaliated with a spoonful of miso paste.

Somehow… they were laughing by the end of it.

Not as tiger and dragon.

Just two awkward teens learning how to deal with life.

---

The Next Day: Bento Disaster

It was lunch time.

Ryuuji peeked nervously from behind his textbook.

Taiga sat two seats ahead, holding a cute homemade bento box — clumsily decorated with egg rolls and meatballs.

Her hands were shaking.

Kitamura sat nearby, chatting with friends.

This was it.

She stood up.

Walked over.

Raised the bento.

And—

“TAIGA-CHAN!!”

Minori suddenly popped out of nowhere, grabbing Taiga in a headlock.

“Ohhh~ you made lunch today!? Let me see!”

Taiga froze.

Ryuuji froze.

Kitamura looked over and smiled politely.

“Did you make that yourself, Aisaka?”

“…Yeah,” she said in a tiny voice, hiding the box behind her back.

“That’s amazing! You’re good at cooking too?” he said, smiling gently.

Taiga turned bright red.

“…N-no, I’m… not…”

But Minori clapped excitedly.

“Let’s all eat together! Come on, Ryuuji-kun!”

---

An Accidental Picnic

And somehow, just like that, the four of them ended up on the rooftop, eating together.

Ryuuji didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

Taiga looked like she wanted to throw herself off the building.

Minorin kept telling ghost stories mid-bite.

Kitamura just smiled and kept asking polite questions.

Taiga tried offering Kitamura her food… but her hand shook, and the meatball fell into her lap.

She didn’t speak for the rest of lunch.

---

That Night: Crushed Hopes and Burnt Rice

Ryuuji stirred the rice slowly in Taiga’s kitchen, the room quiet.

She sat on the floor, hugging her knees.

“…I messed everything up.”

He didn’t say anything.

She looked away, voice low.

“I thought… if I could give him something I made with my own hands, maybe he’d… see me differently. Maybe…”

Ryuuji put the rice paddle down and sat beside her.

“You didn’t mess up.”

She glanced at him. He looked calm — serious.

“You made that bento. You tried. You faced him. That’s more than most people do.”

“…It didn’t change anything.”

He leaned back and exhaled. “Not yet.”

She closed her eyes, cheeks flushed.

“…Thanks, dog.”

“…You’re welcome, master.”

They both chuckled.

---

Beneath the Sunset

As Ryuuji left her apartment, the sky was painted in red and gold.

He paused on the walkway, looking back at her window.

Somehow, this life — this bizarre daily routine of shouting, bentos, awkward crushes, and cleaning — had become something he didn’t hate.

Maybe even something precious.

> “She’s selfish, violent, and impossible…”

But Ryuuji smiled to himself.

> “Still… I want to see how this plays out.”

---

To Be Continued…