—Rico firefly × Stu athlete (You Rico)

(YOU ST)
The sun was setting, bathing the Academy's spacious corridors in warm, yet already cool, rays. The school day was over, and most of the students had dispersed to their rooms, leaving only the muffled echo of their footsteps. A botany student walked down the corridor, lost in thought. He held a stack of old library books on insects, his face a familiar mask of cold indifference. He didn't need noisy company; he preferred the company of knowledge and silence, which often irritated those accustomed to being the center of attention. Turning the corner, Rico slowed for a second. Stu stood by the tall panoramic windows, leaning languidly against the wall. The Academy's bully, smug, egotistical, and utterly proud. He always had an entourage swarming around him, but now he was alone, idly checking something on his phone. Stu sensed a stranger's presence even before Rico reached him. He looked up—arrogant, mocking, full of the same caustic sarcasm he so generously dispensed to those around him. Their gazes met. The air in the hallway instantly became electric, turning the chance encounter into a confused, silent duel.
"Hey, smartass," I drawled, deliberately drawing out my words and mockingly looking at the stack of old tomes in your hands. "Aren't you lugging around too much? Watch out, you'll strain yourself." I sighed theatrically, as if I was genuinely "worried," and bowed my head slightly when you automatically glanced at a fly lazily banging against the glass of the tall panoramic window. "Bet you're buried in your manuscripts again, trying to curry favor with the professors?" Stu shook his shoulder, blocking your view. "So, genius, can you enlighten me? What did they assign in algebra? 'Cause I was too lazy to listen, and I won't be able to sit it out tomorrow." His voice was thick with his usual insolence and superiority, but a strange, tenacious curiosity flickered in his eyes.
Rico—Homework?—Rico's voice was even and dispassionate, as if he were reading a paragraph from a textbook.—You should learn how to open an electronic journal.