《Last Year [of High School]》


 Chapter 1 - An Unusual Progression

    On a rainy day in April, a boy with black spectacles whose name is Hitori Yume exited a hospital.


    ¡°Ahh, it''s pouring! The one day I didn¡¯t bring my umbrella, ha¡­.,¡± I let out a sigh as I approach a nearby bench in front of the hospital entrance.


    With that in the way, I am free to do whatever I want from now on right? Then what is it that I want to do right now?¡­¡­


    Maybe I can try becoming a normal student for once?¡­. Yes, that¡¯s it! I will become a normal student this year, well for starters I need to enroll in a high school, do I have to pay for education?


    With a brief idea in my head, I take out my phone that has a huge crack on the screen protector. As I scroll the internet for the requirements to enroll in a high school, to my surprise, I found out that the fees are quite expensive at the private high school near my apartment that I¡¯ve been longing to go to.


    ¡°Ah, this is it, the high school that I¡¯ve been dreaming of attending¡­.,¡± I said to myself with a glimmering look in my eyes.


    Damn, the fees are high¡­


    ¡°It seems that I need to take a part-time job¡­. maybe two¡­.FOR THE SAKE OF A NORMAL HIGH SCHOOL LIFE!!!!¡±, Without thinking twice, I shouted with a determined face filled with motivations,


    but at the same time got scolded by the hospital¡¯s security guard for being too loud near the hospital.


    As the rain stopped, I got up from the bench and started walking to the nearby train station while my head is filled with cliched scenarios of high school animes that I love to binge-watch at night on my phone.


    Scenarios of hanging out with friends, getting scolded by the teachers, school festivals, sports festivals, and so on. Those are what it means to become a high schooler, I guess? But the reality is often disappointing...


    As I arrive at the train station, the announcement on departing of the train made me snap out of my daydream. The doors are about to close, without a moment to spare, I immediately go into a sprint towards the train.


    ¡°Uwahh¡­ that was a close one,¡± I uttered while desperately catching my breath.


    As I stand while holding onto a handrail, I looked around the train observing people¡¯s behavior talking and laughing with their friends. This sight which I consider a blessing got me fired up that even flames are visible in my eyes with a clenched fist held to my chest. This excitement to experience those situations can also be seen leaking out of my body in the form of a flame-like aura.


    A few days have passed and I successfully enrolled in the private high school despite not having enough documents, the school¡¯s staffs were kind enough to dig out every necessary document from who-knows-where.


    The registration was fairly simple but the problem that I had is a few essential stuff was missing, unfortunately, I don¡¯t understand a single thing they said about them, but they were quite good in their work filling up the holes so I can register there, such nice people.


    In Hitori¡¯s apartment.


    My apartment doesn¡¯t have a bedroom and only a bathroom, the kitchen, bedroom, living room are combined in a very small space. There¡¯s a small desk with a few framed pictures on it in the corner of the room beside my bed. The condition of this apartment also seems like it could fall apart anytime¡­erk.


    ¡°All is set, this is the starting point of my high school life, clothes ready, books ready, Yosh! I¡¯m fired!¡±


    I stared at the calendar which had been marked on certain dates with a black marker that is hanged on the wall across my bed.


    ¡°I got a part-time job at a bookstore nearby, the pay¡¯s quite good so I think I¡¯ll manage to pay the school fees with it alone, hopefully, it works out ¡±


    After doing a bit of cleaning in my apartment I decided to take a nice view of the night before going to bed, sitting on the rusty stairs.


    Gazing at the stars that are visible in the sky while the cool breeze blew upon my slightly curly hairs feels refreshing as always.


    ¡°Who knew that I¡¯m allowed to have a normal school life¡­.,¡± I said to myself, slightly surprised and at the same time joyous.


    Later in the morning, the digital alarm clock that Hitori set up to wake him up at 7.30 a.m. shows the time at 7.25 a.m., but it seems like he is already up and awake, smartly in his new high school uniform and ready to go to school.


    Whoa, I look pretty good in this uniform,


    The mirror seems to be honest to itself, a high school uniform is undoubtedly charming in its own way.


    I still can¡¯t believe I got to wear one of these, my black glasses and hair seems like a perfect match for this black and gray colored uniform, maybe I was meant to wear this uniform all along?


    Posing in the mirror-like in the animes sure looks cool as hell! As I turned around I noticed the clock, my heartbeat increased as if I was about to run in a 100-meter sprint.


    The clock shows 8.10 a.m¡­I¡¯m gonna be LATE!!!


    ¡°This is bad, this is not what I imagined my first day of high school to be!!,¡± I shouted while sprinting to school carrying my bag under my armpits.


    The time required to arrive at the school from here is about 20 minutes as I calculated before, if I run as fast as I can, it will reduce the duration by at least 10 minutes. Yosh! Let''s go!


    Fortunately, I had already prepared for things like this that might happen, not to brag but I¡¯ve seen my share of animes to predict any events that might happen, hehe, but this confidence doesn¡¯t actually convince me at all¡­


    I continued sprinted to school as it was some kind of marathon while being greeted by the neighbors.


    The neighbors here are nice to me, especially the small kid that always hangs around in front of my apartment.


    As I sprint towards the gate of the school, I was stopped by a student that seemed to be some kind of prefect in front of the gate, when I turned my head to look at the person, a girl with long silky rose golden hair that is styled in a twin tail, her eyes are blue similar to that of the sky appeared before my eyes.


    ¡°Please refrain from running in the school if you still value your ability to walk,¡± she informed, or precisely threaten me to stop running.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Sweats started to drip down my chin inevitably,


    This girl¡­. is something else


    While bowing my head down,


    ¡°Oh, I¡¯m so sorry if my actions are somewhat disturbing the peace of this school, I regret it and will try to avoid it in the future¡±


    Huh? What the heck am I saying? Something¡¯s not right here. It¡¯s like she is exerting dominance by simply existing here. Hmm¡­. certainly intriguing, I¡¯m gonna need to observe this more.


    ¡°Very well, carry on,¡± she told me.


    Being told so, I then walked towards the shoe locker area to find my locker. It seems that this school had already assigned each locker for each student beforehand and the shoes are already inside, as expected of a hole-in-a-pocket burning private school.


    ¡°Hitori¡­.Hitori¡­.Hito- ah there it is,¡± as I searched for my locker.


    After changing shoes, all the students are required to gather in the assembly hall which was split into two parts separating girls and boys to listen to a speech from the Principal which is boring as expected by everyone including the teachers, most of the students looked sleepy and some are already asleep as the Principal continues to spout nonsense, well I¡¯m sleepy as hell too, might as well join them¡­


    As the Principal¡¯s tedious speech ended, the next person to walk up the rostrum is the Student Council President, the golden-rose haired twin tail, at this particular moment when she arrived at the rostrum, all the students suddenly came alive, not even a slight hint of drowsiness in everyone¡¯s face. Except for one newly transferred student sitting in the last row, sleeping peacefully as a log.


    ¡°Boys¡¯ last row, third from the middle! Present yourself onstage right this instance,¡±


    A commanding voice is heard as I stay half-asleep, but all I can think about is sleeping.


    Of course, I still stayed asleep for the reason that I had trouble sleeping last night but still woke up early of excitement that leads to my body shutting down just now, initiated by the sleep speech of the Principal.


    ¡°Oy, oy, wake up! Seito Kaichou is calling you,¡± the student sitting next to me tried to wake me up, what a nuisance.


    *Seito Kaichou means Student Council President


    ¡°What do you want? I don¡¯t have any money, dumbass,¡± I answered him deliriously while still being mostly asleep.


    As the president¡¯s patience wore off, she ordered a student that seems to be a student council member to drag me on to the stage, even after getting dragged on to the stage, I still showed a fatigue expression that annoyed the president. Then I was forced to stand outside in the sun until the end of the assembly, what a cruel girl.


    ¡°Ahh¡­ I screwed up, I just can¡¯t help but get excited to attend school as a normal student, that¡¯s why I can¡¯t go to sleep¡­¡­so the rose gold twin tail from this morning is the student council president huh,¡± I said to myself while standing still in the middle of the sun, luckily the sun is not very intense today.


    ¡°You right there!¡±


    I turned around to take a look at the person with the voice of the student council president.


    ¡°Assembly is over, u may go to your classroom,¡± she said and turned away heading to the school building.


    ¡°Wait, I¡­don¡¯t know where my classroom is,¡± I said while scratching the back of my head not knowing the class.


    ¡°What is your class?¡±.


    The rule in getting someone else¡¯s name is to give your name first, just like in a negotiation, in order to obtain something you have to give something first, nothing¡¯s free in this world.


    ¡°Before that, I¡¯m Hitori Yume, third-year class 3 A, why don¡¯t we exchange introductions first?¡± I said with a smiling face.


    ¡°Very well, I¡¯m the student council president of this high school, Yagami Kori from class 3 A as well,¡± she said as the mild wind sways her hair creating a view of elegance.


    For some unknown reason, at this very moment in my life, I think something very interesting is going to happen involving her. A vague, new, unknown feeling that is exhilarating me. It seems like life had something fun planned out for me after all.


    ¡°Then I shall escort you to our class, Kaichou,¡± I said politely to the president.


    Without any response from the president, she proceeded to the classroom.


    I continued to follow her. While on our way to the classroom, I can¡¯t help but keep thinking about what to call her,


    ¡°Hmm¡­Kaichou?¡­¡­Kaichou¡­..chan?¡±


    Suddenly I am already lying on the ground.


    ¡°Eh? What happened,¡± I said in a state of confusion.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be too familiar with me, Kaichou is what you will address me,¡± she said with a strict voice.


    ¡°Got it Kaichou¡­..chan,¡± as I am getting up from the floor.


    Just as I was about to get up from the floor, I was once again lying on the floor while Kaichou glare at me with scary but somehow attractive beautiful eyes. This time I got up silently to avoid kissing the floor again.


    This girl is pretty strong, I didn¡¯t even notice that she tackled me twice, ouch...it still hurts...


    As we walked along the hallway, I noticed that this school is quite nice, it¡¯s very clean and the condition of the building seems to be taken care of almost flawlessly. As expected of a private school, now I can ensure that I was not wrong to enroll in this school. Although I can sense some glares pointed at me from different corners as I walked past the halls.


    She suddenly stopped in front of a classroom.


    ¡°This is our classroom, I believe your seat is there,¡± she pointed to a seat next to the window at the back of the class.


    ¡°Where do you sit, Kaichou?¡±.


    ¡°Right here,¡± pointing at the most middle and front seat in the class.


    ¡°Ehh¡­ but I wanna sit next to you¡­¡­,¡± I said with a highly depressed and disappointed voice like a kid complaining, attempting to tease Kaichou.


    Filled with disappointment I walked towards my seat.


    A student who sits next to me attempted to approach me.


    ¡°Yo, you¡¯re the new transfer student, right? I¡¯m Chiba Kusuo, you can call me Chiba or Kusuo, whichever you prefer¡±


    ¡°Ah, Chiba it is then, Hitori Yume, nice to meet you.¡±


    Chiba with the weird body gestures,


    ¡°Hitori, it seems like fate has brought us together in this journey of the last year of high school, let us together unravel the secrets of the cosmos to achieve true happiness in this stage of our liv-,¡±


    The air surrounding us suddenly become denser, Chiba froze in action while sweats dripping from his chin, what is this feeling of excitement in my chest? I should have known, Chiba¡¯s loud voice has attracted a being across the realm that hunts down peace disturbances. As soon as I knew it, Chiba is already outside the class holding buckets of water while squatting, it seems like this situation is quite normal almost as if they already knew what kind of punishment they will get for their actions that are deemed wrong by Kaichou without even being told. What an exhilarating progression.


    The class door opened slowly, a person dressed as a teacher then entered the class, probably the homeroom teacher without even bother to ask about Chiba outside the classroom.


    ¡°Hello class, it¡¯s me again¡­.Ishizaki Nomura-chan, your homeroom teacher for this year¡­.again,¡± the fairly young teacher introduced herself in front of the class, with a lazy and sleepy face.


    ¡°Again?¡± I wondered.


    ¡°Oh, we have a new transfer student this year, Hitori Yume-kun, would you please introduce yourself to the class?¡±


    Upon hearing the request, I immediately stood up and walked towards the front of the class


    ¡°I¡¯m Hitori Yume, nice to meet you all,¡± I said after writing my name on the blackboard.


    ¡°Eh, another average person?¡±, ¡°nothing changes¡±, ¡° why can''t we even get a decent-looking guy?¡±, ¡°so boring¡­.¡± ¡°seems like we got another trouble¡± timid voices of the students can be heard.


    Meanwhile, the voices continue to be heard, I just kept smiling and walked towards my seat. The voices slowly disappeared as I sat down.


    What was that? Is this what introducing yourself in class is like? The voices, I can¡¯t understand the meaning behind those words, or I just didn''t want to understand them... Do the students here hate me? Am I a nuisance taking up space in this wonderful school? For now, I¡¯ll just observe.


    ¡°So I guess, do you all still want to keep the same class roles as last year¡¯s?¡± sensei asked the class.


    ¡°Yes!!¡± the majority of the class answered.


    Hmm... I guess students here don¡¯t change classes when they advance each year. That explains why sensei said ¡®again¡¯.


    After Ishizaki-sensei took the class attendance, she left and Chiba also entered the class straight to his seat right beside me. His body looks quite exhausted while he lay his head on the table.


    The first period started and everything seemed normal. Or so I thought, upon closer inspection of the situation, it seems like the teacher kept on making a slightly displeased expression each time his head turned towards me. What is this? Am I some kind of criminal in this school? I continued to ignore it while focusing on the subject.


    It¡¯s recess¡­.but


    ¡°Haaah, this morning was a mess, I even forgot to bring my lunch, I guess I had to fill this stomach with water then,¡± I said to myself while getting up from my seat.


    Slowly walking out of the class, I then proceed on filling up this stomach with water at the nearest water fountain.


    As I was drinking, I can¡¯t help but notice other students staring at me with a disgusted face, even if they hide it, the expression is strong enough for me to recognize.


    This almost dark intent, I am somewhat used to it, so even the smallest intent is easily recognized. Well, not that I mind about it though. It is somewhat predictable considering this is a private school, of course, the students are elites, and there will be some student that despise low living standard people like me.


    Without thinking about it more than I need to, I proceeded to class ignoring the other students.


    On my way to class, I noticed that Kaichou is scolding the students that were running in the hall, well¡­I¡¯m not sure if she even said anything, but the students look so terrified while apologizing profusely and walked away trembling.


    ¡°Whew, what a scary lady you are,¡± I approached her.


    She looked at me for a second and ignored me as if I don¡¯t even exist here, she then left the area.


    What an awkward encounter, how do I approach her? I want to know more about this scary, or rather interesting person.


    As I walked passes the hallway, my eyes observing the hallway found a notice board.


    ¡°A notice board? Oh, these are some nice clubs, archery, swimming, even anime! Hell yeah! Wait what¡¯s this, recruiting members for student council?¡± something interesting had caught my attention.


    ¡°Maybe this will work¡­.. I¡¯ve decided,¡± my eyes glimmered with hope.


    ¡°So the interview will be held in a week,¡± what kind of interview?


    Wanting to know more, I then proceeded to the Student Council Room and in the room, a person is visible enjoying his tea peacefully.


    ¡°Sorry to interrupt, where do I apply for the recruit for Student Council?¡± I asked politely.


    The guy immediately stood up putting his tea on the table and came rushing towards me.


    ¡°It can¡¯t be,¡± the guy said while appeared to be surprised.


    Huh?


    As he approached me,


    ¡°Are you serious about this?! Are you some kind of hero?! Please tell me you¡¯re real!!¡± the guy came to me jerking his tears off.


    Eh? What the hell? This guy looks like someone who had just come out from a torture session based on his expressions.


    He calmed down after a while and explained to me the whole situation afterward.


    ¡°Oh, so the notice was for you to find a replacement in your position, but no one came to apply, and no interview is being held because of that,¡± I said after hearing the explanation.


    ¡°So what¡¯s the position?¡±


    ¡°Vice President,¡± he said with a straight smiling face.


    ¡­¡­. The room became silent for a while.


    ¡°Wha- what do you mean?¡± I faked a smile which is obvious and asked if the guy was joking.


    ¡°You¡¯re the new Vice President, congratulations! Goodbye, and good luck!¡± the guy said and immediately exited the room.


    I was left with a very confusing situation alone, still sitting in the chair.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect to carry a huge burden like this¡­¡­well it¡¯s going to be challenging that¡¯s for sure, plus I get to observe Kaichou,¡±


    Taking on a huge responsibility like this is not quite my style, I guess it won¡¯t hurt trying something new, does it?


    ¡°Wait why was he crying and what did he mean by ''good luck''?¡± left me to wonder in confusion.

 Chapter 2 - Me? The New Vice President?

    I had just experienced an unusual situation that resulted in me being in a position that is quite enigmatic. After the conversation with the guy whom I don''t even know the name of, I walked out of the room heading towards the classroom as the next period is about to begin.


    As I arrived at the classroom and straight to my seat, a question came to my mind


    ¡°What in the world had that guy been through?¡±


    The class ended, so I started to pack my things to go home, but a voice called on to me


    ¡°Hello, Mr. New Vice President¡±


    It¡¯s Kaichou


    ¡°Uhm¡­ about that, I¡¯m not sure what happened.¡±


    ¡°Quickly pack up your stuff and come to the student council room, I will give you an explanation, make haste,¡± she said and left the classroom.


    ¡°Oh is the new kid also the new dog? Hahaha as expected of a lowlife,¡± one of the classmates whispered to the others.


    I just ignored their words and continued packing.


    Arriving in front of the student council room, I knocked on the door while greeting ¡°Hello?¡±


    ¡°Come on in!¡± a voice of that a grown man answered the door.


    As I entered the room, there are two other students other than Kaichou herself sitting at her desk. One is a blonde girl with a ponytail and the other is a blue-haired guy with a figure of a bodybuilder with an intimidating face flexing his muscles.


    Yup, that¡¯s the guy that dragged me around this morning for sure.


    I then walked towards Kaichou¡¯s desk upon entering the room.


    ¡°So this is our new vice president, seems like an average guy with glasses to me, not that it matters though,¡± said the blonde girl.


    ¡°Wait a minute there Makino-san, you shouldn¡¯t judge a man from his appearance, you should judge them by their STRENGTH!¡± said the guy while flexing his muscles non-stop.


    ¡°The name of the man standing before you is Sasaki Keito, the treasurer of the council and a true man!¡± said the musclehead.


    ¡°Makino Hina, the secretary of the council, also the hopes and dreams of this high school! A true idol!¡± claimed the blondie.


    Err, they all seemed¡­unique¡­


    A question appeared in my mind,


    ¡°Oh, yeah, is it possible to hand over positions like the guy before me did?¡±


    Kaichou who is appeared sitting at her desk started explaining while still doing her work, multitasking at its finest I¡¯d say.


    ¡°In normal circumstances, it wouldn¡¯t be possible, but in Kazu-san¡¯s case, we allowed him to pick anyone to replace him because of a condition we gave him, what kind of condition you might ask? The condition was if he could find one person that is willing to replace him, then the person is allowed to become the new Vice President, what are the circumstances? Kazu-san¡¯s reason to become the Vice President is to have power in the school system for selfish reasons, he knew that there was no way he could beat me for the President¡¯s position, after we discovered his true motive, we devised a plan to corner him into the condition that resulted in him resigning his position¡±.


    That¡¯s quite odd, are they disposing of him under such a vague condition? The explanation also seemed like just the tip of the iceberg, a lot of things are questionable, I don¡¯t think I¡¯d care about it though.


    ¡°Keep in mind that we will not tolerate even the slightest malice in this student council, even with the power we attained from being in this position, as long as I am the president, we won¡¯t be exploiting the power towards a despicable goal,¡±


    ¡°Kazu-san¡¯s attitude was also very rude and nasty when he started,¡± said Makino.


    ¡°His obstinacy is also quite difficult to cope with though, nothing I said will get through his thick skull,¡± said Sasaki.


    So there was no one willing to become the vice president, which means that this position doesn¡¯t entitle me to much authority compared to the president. I guess students here don¡¯t care that much about the use of this position when applying to a higher institution.


    A small thing stills bothered me a bit, how did that Kazu guy changed completely from how they describe him to what I just encountered?


    ¡°You might wonder how he changed, well that is none of your concern, as the new vice president, there are other important things to manage, here is your armband to present yourself as one of us, don¡¯t drag us down,¡± Kaichou said while holding out the armband to me.


    Something tells me not to get to the bad side of Kaichou.


    The look on Kaichou¡¯s face expresses a lack of emotion, but somehow all I can see is a mere facade.


    Even in circumstances such as this, it would still be quite risky to accept a new vice president without any kind of background check or at least familiarity, after all, I¡¯m just a new transfer student, not a child prodigy or something. They must have a reason to accept me like this, then I shall not disappoint them.


    Gallantly, I took the armband,


    ¡°Got it, leave it to me,¡± with a confident face, I put on the armband.


    ¡°So, what is it that a vice president does?¡± Hitori asked with a smile.


    ¡°Of course you wouldn¡¯t know, first of all, we as the student council, have power to that of a teacher in this school, which means that it is our responsibility to mold the students into at least a decent human being, especially in their etiquette towards society, as you had noticed, students in this school are highly arrogant as they come from rich families thus looking down on people with a poor fortune in their lives, that is one of our priority, from my judgment, we could easily achieve that if all of the students start to respect you as a vice president despite how low you are on this school¡¯s social hierarchy,¡± she explained to me.


    Wow, that last statement does sting me a little, but this might also be the reason they let me be the vice president, quite a clever method they have here.


    ¡°Amazing¡­¡± I said under my breath.


    ¡°Yes?¡± Kaichou asked, not hearing what I said.


    ¡°Ah nothing, if nothing else then I¡¯ll be heading home, quite a tiring day it is¡±


    ¡°Excuse me? You are to complete these papers by the end of today,¡± Kaichou said while placing a huge heap of files on the table.


    ¡°Already?!¡±


    ¡°Quit whining and get your job done¡±


    ¡°You thought things will be easy, don¡¯t you? Hahahaha,¡± said the blonde.


    ¡°Zip it Makino, you have your own share of ¡®problems¡¯ don¡¯t you?¡± said Kaichou.


    Problems?


    ¡°I told you I can¡¯t help it!¡± Makino defended herself.


    ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± I asked Sasaki.


    ¡°Apparently, this self-proclaimed idol is a bit of a sadist, the recent case is she got carried away and continued to beat a guy after he admitted defeat in a kendo spar,¡± explained Sasaki.


    ¡°Is the guy okay?¡± Hitori asked.


    ¡°Yeah, yeah just a few minor bruises and scratches,¡± Makino left the room after saying that.


    ¡°Where is she going?¡±


    ¡°Probably to settle the case, don¡¯t worry too much, this happens quite often, you should get used to it,¡± Sasaki said.


    The heap of papers seemed like a mountain from my perspective, never in my life have I ever done this much paperwork¡­.


    Not wanting to cause any ruckus, I just went along and complete the task given to me.


    Though it was very unpleasant to have me do this on my first day of high school, the atmosphere around the hardworking Kaichou seems very peaceful and somewhat delightful.


    I must admit, this doesn¡¯t seem all too bad. Soon I was drowned in the mood and focused like crazy on the papers.


    Finishing up the last document,


    ¡°Uwahh¡­.that took me longer than expected.¡±


    I looked around the room after a very long session of paper works, I can¡¯t see any of the council members anywhere, maybe I didn¡¯t notice they left.


    As I pack my stuff, my eye caught the glimpse of a beautiful hair swaying from behind a pile of books and files. As I move closer to take a peek, a beautiful girl was laying her head on the table seemingly had fallen asleep.


    ¡°Why is she still here? Did she waited for me?¡­..¡± in confusion, I wondered.


    A smile appeared on my face as I look at her sleeping¡­must be tiring too becoming the president¡­


    I then returned to my seat and faked a loud sneeze ¡°Achoo!!¡± that woke Kaichou.


    ¡°All done! Whewww¡­..I can go home now,¡±


    I said out loud attempting to wake Kaichou up.


    ¡°Well then, thank you for your hard work, u may return home,¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you going home Kaichou?¡±


    ¡°Me going back home is none of your concern¡±.


    None of my concern?


    ¡°But it¡¯s getting late¡±.


    She ignored me while continued doing some work on her desk.


    I cleaned up the table, and proceed to leave the room. Having decided, I hid and waited for Kaichou outside the school gate. 5 minutes have passed and Kaichou is seen exiting the school gate.


    I continued to follow her like a stalker, wait, isn¡¯t that a bad thing? It¡¯s already quite late, I looked at my phone that showed 9.34 p.m.


    She suddenly stopped walking.


    ¡°You thought I wouldn¡¯t notice I¡¯m being followed? You¡¯re movements make so much sound, you would have died long ago if you¡¯re a spy¡±.


    Did I got found out already? As shocked as I am, I went out of hiding.


    ¡°Uhm...Is it that noticeable? I wasn¡¯t planning on stalking you or anything, just wanna observe you from a further distance,¡± I attempted to explain.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that the very definition of stalking?¡±


    Ah! That seems quite right, I panicked and started spouting nonsense trying to deny her statement.


    As I was panicking, Kaichou seemed to be staring at me, is she mad? She continued to leave the place ignoring me, again¡­


    ¡°Wait Kaichou, let me walk you home, it¡¯s getting pretty dark¡±.


    ¡°I would advice you to not waste your time on such trivial matters¡±


    Trivial? How is this trivial?


    ¡°I wouldn¡¯t say it¡¯s trivial, as a matter of fact, I see it completely as an obligation to ensure your safety at this time of day, Kaichou¡±


    She¡¯s staring again¡­did I do something wrong?


    ¡°Do as you please,¡± she replied without even turning her head.


    Feeling a bit of relief, I continued to walk her home, more like guarding? Can¡¯t seem to find a word to describe this situation.


    As we walked, I tried to spark a conversation, looking at Kaichou being silent along the way, talking to her might lighten her mood a little.


    Although I¡¯m not quite sure what her mood is currently¡­.with an expression like that, no one can guess it¡­Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.


    ¡°Say, are you not scared of encountering bad guys this late at night?¡±


    ¡°I believe you had experienced my self-defense first-hand this morning,¡±


    She seems quite confident in her self-defense.


    ¡°Well, in most cases where women and even men encountered a real criminal attempting to do harmful actions towards them, their body froze in fear, humans have a built-in safety mechanism which is also known as fight or flight where your body increases in blood flow and breathes rapidly, but because of fear, none of the options are viable as they just stopped from doing anything, when fear has taken control of the mind, our judgment will also sway away from rationality, not that I¡¯m saying that you¡¯re gonna get scared by something like that, but men are undeniably stronger than women, in any case, think carefully before even attempting to confront them¡­¡­ please¡±.


    ¡°...¡±


    ¡°Ah sorry to break the mood there, my bad eheh¡±


    ¡°This far will suffice, I will proceed alone, if I caught you beyond this point, I assure you there will be dire consequences,¡± Kaichou said or more precisely threatened me.


    ¡°Okay then, have a safe walk, goodnight Kaichou¡±.


    I left her with a smile as I turned around walking towards my home which is not too far but also not too close to this area¡­


    As Hitori left, Kaichou stared at him for a bit before also leaving the area.


    ¡­


    In Hitori¡¯s apartment,


    ¡°My first day of high school¡­.that was quite a weird way to start the semester, the future does look promising enough for an unusual experience, I guess not normal is more interesting hehehe¡±.


    Being quite tired, I immediately dozed off.


    The following days, the council, members taught me about a lot of things, a week had passed.


    Every day for this past week, I was burdened by the works of the student council, why the hell is there so much work in here. My precious time to watch animes were also sacrificed as the result of this unpaid labor, the only satisfying thing about this is a night of sleep after a tiring work makes me feel like I¡¯m in heaven. The feeling when your exhausted body being laid down on the bed is indescribable.


    As I was doing some works in the student council room one day, I just realized that my part-time job was about to start, at exactly tomorrow, I need to inform Kaichou of my absence for tomorrow¡¯s work.


    Coming up with a lie is no easy task for me, yes, I¡¯m very bad at telling lies, but I can compensate it with a convincing expression at the very least.


    They say that ¡® a key to a good lie, lies in the details ¡¯, throwing in details will make the lie seems more believable.


    Nowadays, the most commonly used lie is family issues, it has been used too frequently that made it seem very obvious a lie, but I¡¯m not quite sure about that, family issues refer to problems or issues that involve the family which is a private matter, this means that even though it is seen as an apparent lie, to prove it, the matter must be unraveled and it¡¯s not very possible to do that as it might seem like an insensitive act.


    Concluding that, they must accept the lie as to not cause any additional trouble.


    ¡°Kaichou, I¡¯m afraid tomorrow I won¡¯t be able to help with the council¡¯s works, I have a part-¡­.I mean I¡¯m busy with some family issues,¡± I informed Kaichou and nearly told her about the part-time job.


    ¡°I suppose I can excuse you for tomorrow,¡± she replied.


    ¡°Ah, as an early notice, we will be having a meeting with the sports club to discuss the preparations for the upcoming sports festival in one month, the meeting will be held here but the date and time are yet to be decided, be sure to free your schedule when the time comes,¡± Kaichou announced to the council members.


    ¡°Sports festival huh, this year¡¯s gonna be interesting, I¡¯ll be winning all of them of course hahahahaha,¡± Sasaki claimed with a sinister laugh.


    This musclehead is for sure going to dominate his sports¡­.


    ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sure you will Sasaki-san,¡± I replied.


    Normally sports festivals are held during the second semester but somehow this school¡¯s sports festival is held rather early in the middle of the first semester.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t it a bit too early for the sports festival?¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t know why but that¡¯s just how this school works,¡± Makino said.


    No one seems to know the reason, what a weird school.


    ¡°Oh¡­so Kaichou, are you good with sports?¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t be participating, but to answer your question, I¡¯m quite confident in my stamina,¡± she replied.


    ¡°Then why not participate in running?¡±


    ¡°Not interested¡±.


    ¡°Why not?¡±


    Kaichou seems silent, does she not like sports? Or is she acting all cool? If so, what a weird way to act¡­


    ¡°Well, I think sports are cool, competing to see who has the better technique and physical capabilities are all the reason it needs to be awesome¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true bro! Strength is what determines a man!¡±


    Err¡­that¡¯s not what I really meant, but if that¡¯s how you think, I don¡¯t need to bother explaining I guess¡­


    With nothing else to discuss, everyone continued their work afterward.


    At Hitori¡¯s workplace.


    Hitori works as a part-timer in a book store near his apartment,


    This job is the one helping me pay for the school fees, the pay¡¯s good, my co-workers or senpai here are also very kind to me, there is no other workplace environment that is even close to what I¡¯m having right now, such positive vibes, but there is one thing I¡¯m very worried and aware of, this is a bookstore, which means the customer here are interested in books and perhaps some stationeries, what comes in mind first when you think of those two elements? Students! Students from my school might recognize me and report me to the school.


    What am I gonna do when that happens???? Keep calm, keep calm, the probability of people recognizing me is low as I don¡¯t stand out too much in school.


    Somehow on the same day, as I was arranging books, a certain customer came in.


    The doorbell rang ¡°ding dong!¡± as the customer entered the store.


    When I turned my head to greet the customer,


    ¡°Welcome to the sto-¡± I immediately started to get nervous.


    The customer was Kaichou.


    ¡°What the hell is this misfortune??!! I can''t afford to get caught this early, need a plan ASAP,¡± I whispered to myself while fast-walking to the counter.


    I need a disguise! Fast!


    In the drawer at the counter, there appear to be some masks and a cap.


    A cap and a mask! The perfect disguise hihihi, this will surely fool her.


    She went and looked for some things for a short time and came to the counter to pay. Girls like this are hard to find, coming into a store with a clear objective in mind.


    ¡°That will be 1 250 yen¡±


    Kaichou handed the amount, then started staring at me in disguise.


    Trying to hold myself together, I started sweating endlessly while screaming inside.


    ¡°Do you happen to be related to Hitori Yume-san? The weird boy with glasses¡± she asked.


    So I¡¯m weird huh, that hurts a bit not gonna lie.


    ¡°Wha- what are you talking about? I don¡¯t know any Hitori Yume, uhuh yep yep no Hitori Yume related to me at all that¡¯s for sure, hundred percent confirmed,¡± I answered her while panicking which made it quite obvious that I¡¯m lying.


    ¡°Is that so, sorry for disturbing your work¡±


    ¡°No no don¡¯t worry about it¡±.


    She actually believed me, how is this even possible? No no she must be pretending. This can¡¯t be true. But the look on her face, she sure isn¡¯t lying though.


    Her face quickly turned more emotionless than before, it¡¯s almost as if her eyes become less bright? I can¡¯t quite explain it.


    ¡°Thank you for buying from this store, have a nice day!¡±


    After Kaichou exited the store, I took off the cap and mask as I was sweating so much that they were packed with sweat.


    That¡¯s a close one¡­


    ¡°Hitori-san!!¡±


    A co-worker called me from out of nowhere, it made me jump out of the counter out of shock thinking that I got exposed, luckily Kaichou is nowhere to be seen near the store. Later, I told the co-workers to not call me Hitori when working, they then decided to call me Hito instead of Hitori.


    ¡­


    The meeting day with the sports club has arrived, the sports club consists of other smaller clubs respective of their own type of sports, the four persons in front of me represents all of the sports clubs in this school.


    ¡°Let''s get this meeting started shall we, I believe there is no need for such introductions,¡± Kaichou stated.


    ¡°Hold on, I guess I require a bit of introduction from them,¡± I interrupted.


    ¡°Oh yeah! You¡¯re the new guy, I¡¯m the president of the sports club, Yamada Taiyo,¡± the tall happy-go-lucky guy introduced.


    ¡°Name, Hayami Chise, position, vice president,¡± said the short girl.


    ¡°My turn, my turn! Hello, nice to meet you! I am Fujimura Rin, the secretary of the club and also the rival of the Student Council President!¡± said the girl with an overly excited face.


    ¡°Adachi Haruki, treasurer,¡± said the guy with the gloomy face.


    ¡°Ah nice to meet you all, I¡¯m the new vice president, Hitori Yu-¡± my introduction was cut by Kaichou.


    ¡°Then we shall proceed on the meeting,¡± Kaichou interrupted.


    Come on¡­


    The meeting went on as the sports club presents their proposal for the sports festival.


    It seems that I am now a zombie laying my head on the table.


    ¡°This is too intense, I barely understand what your points are¡±.


    ¡°Basically, the sports club demanded to include all the sports in this year¡¯s festival, is that even possible?¡± Makino wondered.


    ¡°It is not our obligation to accept the demands that go beyond our ability but to improvise our actions to fit their demand,¡± Kaichou stated.


    For an instance there, she looked cooler than her normal cool.


    An idea struck me,


    ¡°There might be a way to accomplish that¡±.


    ¡°From the records of this school¡¯s sports festival¡¯s activities, they all looked very plain and boring, how about we take activities that involve the basics of more than one sport? There are a lot of schools that do that too, we could even copy from them, from what I see all those activities involves teamwork and communication, so we can even give the students a taste of working as a team,¡±


    ¡°That sounds like a fantastic idea, well-done bro,¡± Sasaki praised me for my suggestion.


    ¡°That seems like so much fun!¡± Fujimura, one of the sports club representatives shouted.


    ¡°That might be a good idea mister vice president, I saw my friends in other schools also did the same thing, I wonder why is our school still stuck on boring plain stuff?¡± Yamada, the president of the club said.


    ¡°But doesn¡¯t that sound like we will be altering this school¡¯s tradition? Will the students accept a change like this?¡± Makino worried.


    ¡°Either they accept or reject this idea, they won¡¯t be able to stop it, the student council has the power to do so,¡± Adachi stated.


    ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure that they will find a lot of fun in it, after all, they are at the age of teens, at the very least they should experience fun events like this¡­.. while they can,¡± I said, but the last part was a bit slow as to not show it as a significant importance.


    ¡°Hitori-san? Is there something wrong?¡± Makino asked of concern.


    ¡°Ah! Nothing, just a bit tired, eheh,¡±


    ¡°So are you all in an agreement?¡± I asked.


    Everyone except Kaichou nodded.


    ¡°Kaichou, what are your thoughts?¡± Hitori asked.


    ¡°Changing the tradition might enrage some teachers and parents as well, but our top priority is to change the student of this school to better suit society, that being said, it¡¯s been decided, this year¡¯s sports festival will be the first to change the tradition for many years to come,¡± stated by Kaichou.


    So we need to find team-based activities that are well suited to be used in school considering the safety, equipment availability, and application of sports in it.


    The team worked hard to make the sports festival successful with the help of all the sports club members. The preparations are done without a single casualty.


    While the preparation is made for the sports festival, I noticed as I observed Kaichou doing the preparation seemed quite¡­how do I say it, glad? Perhaps happy? Working with so many people might actually be fun for Kaichou? The feeling is unclear through the expressions she made¡­


    Well, as long as she¡¯s not unsatisfied or displeased, it¡¯s fine.


    Now the only thing to do is hope that the students will have fun in the activities.


    The sports festival day has arrived, before the activities started, the principal gave a short speech encouraging the students for the festival. As everyone had expected, the speech is boring as hell, the majority of the student just stared at the sky proving that the plain sky is more interesting than the speech.


    As the speech ended, the host which is the student council and sports club is to explain the activities involved, the one to do that was the sports club¡¯s president, Yamada Taiyo, this person happens to be extremely famous in school, all the students cheered on as he explained thoroughly about the activities that are held and changed this year.


    ¡°Oh and one thing, this idea was made by the student council vice president,¡±


    The looks on their faces immediately turned to disgust while looking at me who was just standing near the stage, smiling without a care in the world.


    ¡°That peasant?¡±, ¡°Who does he think he is, changing the tradition?¡±, ¡°whatever, sports festivals are never entertaining,¡± insults can be heard from the crowd, but my expression remains the same.


    ¡°Calm down everybody, the activities are fun I assure you, let¡¯s put our trust in Hitori-san okay?¡± Yamada tried to calm the students.


    ¡°Well then! Let the sports festival begin!¡±


    ¡°Yeah!¡± the students responded to Yamada¡¯s call.


    The activities seem to be giving the students a hard time in the beginning, but they all managed to work together at the same time having fun. Their expressions are very pleased and innocent having fun with their friends.


    Even if I¡¯m treated similarly to that of trash, I can''t possibly treat these people who are being themselves even with a slight retaliation to their actions.


    It¡¯s not that enjoy being treated as such, it¡¯s just I¡¯m used to it and however I think about it, I can¡¯t seem to care about it at all¡­


    After all, they come to school to learn and become a better person, however, you look at it, only those who want to change will show their resolve, attending school is also considered a small step to change for the better good.


    While drowning in thoughts, I heard a person calling out my name.


    ¡°Hitori! Oy!¡±


    I turned my head to take a look, it was Chiba, it seems like he had just participated in something judging from his sweaty state. But what is wrong with that amount of sweat? It certainly is not normal for a person to be sweating that much¡­


    ¡°Yo Chiba, just got out of the pool or something?¡±


    ¡°Whoa! How did you know?¡±


    Jackpot!


    ¡°Look at yourself¡­I wouldn¡¯t ask if you just got out of a fire if your clothes are wet like this would I?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re using confusing sentences¡­I guess..not?¡±


    How is my sentence confusing? Either way, now I need to ask why¡­


    ¡°Why were you in the pool? I don¡¯t think there are any activities involving the pool though¡­¡±


    ¡°Well I slipped and fell inside¡±


    Man this guy, is he playing dumb or is genuinely dumb?


    ¡°Let me rephrase the question, what are the circumstances that lead to you falling into the pool?¡±


    ¡°Oh actually my buds and I were playing tag by the pool¡±


    Playing tag¡­how old are you again?


    ¡°Then this girl came, I suspect that she had been looking at us for quite a while, somehow she saw the perfect opportunity to throw something on my foot and made me fell inside the pool¡­¡±


    ¡°A girl? What did she look like?¡±


    ¡°Hrmm, she had a ponytail¡­her face was kind of evil but not really¡±


    Evil but not really? With a ponytail..


    ¡°Oh and she was blonde¡±


    Of course¡­who else if it isn¡¯t the sadist¡­


    ¡°I might know who did it, you wanna know?¡±


    ¡°Eh, not really, don¡¯t really care who did it, it was fun getting to swim though¡­¡±


    Err¡­


    We talked a bit until Chiba left for another activity participation while soaking wet like that.


    Looking around the school area where activities being held, I found a nice spot for a good view and decided to take a seat there, then I spotted Kaichou in one of the activities.


    What happened to not participating eh? What a very contradicting person, haha.


    ¡°Kaichou! Do your best!¡± I cheered.


    She doesn¡¯t seem to notice my cheer.


    ¡­..wait, her team is competing against that self-proclaimed rival, the sports club girl!


    They participated in the three-legged race, their partners seems like they already passed out though, Kaichou and that girl seem to have an immense amount of strength to drag another person while maintaining their top spots. Scary¡­.


    I stared at the sky while the breeze blew my hair creating a wave-like motion.


    ¡°If only¡­¡­.¡±


    The sports festival ended with a blast. The battle between Kaichou and that girl ended with Kaichou¡¯s team as the victor. The students seem to have fun at the festival. That¡¯s good to see.


    After the closing ceremony,


    ¡°Another announcement, all students are required to fill in the feedback form and hand them over to the student council before the weekend, thank you,¡± Yamada announced on the stage.


    ¡°Well that was fun wasn¡¯t it?¡± I said to the council members in the room.


    ¡°I agree with you bro, that¡¯s one heck of a sports festival, although I single-handedly defeated the opponents, having a team certainly motivates you,¡± Sasaki boasted about his victories.


    ¡°I had quite a lot of fun with my friends trampling over our opponents as we merge victorious, hahahahaha,¡± said Makino who looks like a villain right now while reminiscing her actions.


    ¡°Kaichou! I saw you having fun as well~¡± I attempted to tease her.


    ¡°I was only doing my responsibilities as a part of my team to achieve victory, that is all,¡± Kaichou replied with an emotionless face.


    From my perspective, that doesn¡¯t seem to be the case though.


    ¡°Is that so?¡± I said.


    ¡°How about you? I most certainly didn¡¯t see you participate in any of the activities,¡± she said as if she was interrogating me.


    Crap! I didn¡¯t prepare an answer for that!


    ¡°Ah, I- I was just busy helping out my team handling the foo-food, no time to participate I guess,¡± I tried to answer while panicking.


    I can¡¯t let them know¡­.


    ¡°Hm, whatever,¡± she replied and continued her work.


    Whew¡­.good thing she didn¡¯t ask further, I won''t be able to extend the lie knowing how bad I am at deceiving.


    Looking at Kaichou,


    I¡¯m sure she had fun at the sports festival just now, even if that face doesn¡¯t show anything, I can somehow feel that she is happy inside. I¡¯m truly glad that this all ended very well. Truly glad¡­.

 Chapter 3 - Just A Bunch Of Bullies

    Few days after the sports festival,


    ¡°Ohaiyo senpais!!¡± the student council room was greeted by a girl.


    As I turned my head towards the entrance of the student council room, a few students are entering the room bringing heaps of papers, to be precise there are four students. Who might they be?


    ¡°Oh! You¡¯re the new vice president! Nice to meet you, your idea for the sports festival was fabulous! It became so much fun compared to last year¡¯s! I love group activities so much! Uhh.. sorry for my rudeness, my name is Kuwahara Eri,¡±


    ¡°Uh it¡¯s not that amazing, anyone can come up with that kind of idea¡±.


    ¡°Being humble, I see, so that¡¯s what kind of person you are,¡± she appeared to be writing something in her small notebook.


    ¡°So what makes you come here with these papers?¡±


    ¡°Oh actually these are the sports festival¡¯s feedback forms that have been filed by the students, perhaps you don¡¯t know who we are?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid so¡­.¡±


    ¡°Well then, it¡¯s my time to shine.¡±


    A guy from the group suddenly walked upfront and started talking,


    ¡°We are the ones working under the student council¡¯s command, all the dirty works are handed to us without any complaint or objection, even though our identities are made public, we still have what it needs to take down the dark forces upon this school- uwagh¡±


    As this guy was spouting crap, another girl from the group approached the guy and stepped on him,


    ¡°Enough with your nonsense Shintani-kun, we don¡¯t have all day to hear your shit,¡±


    ¡°Yo! I¡¯m Hirose Yumako and the guy standing there is Tajima Jiro, oh and this guy here is Shintani Hajime, we are the student council¡¯s trainees or better known as the apprentices¡±


    ¡°Apprentices, from the meaning of that word it seems that you guys are sort of like the student council¡¯s mentee I suppose?¡±


    ¡°Yes, we are to take over the student council for the next year after you guys graduate¡±


    How does the election system in this school works? But a system like this is not bad at all, I mean just look at the result from having a system like this, all the student council members in this school will already have been polished before they are handed the positions, seems splendid.


    ¡°Ah these papers, what should we do with them?¡± I asked.


    ¡°Are you dumb? Feedback letters are supposed to be read to know for sure how the students feel about the matter,¡± Makino said to me.


    Well, that was pretty dumb for me to ask that question.


    ¡°Ah is that so, sorry sorry,¡±


    The apprentices then exited the room.


    ¡°By the way, how does this school¡¯s election system work?¡± I asked them.


    ¡°For starters, the election in this school is actually being held for the upcoming apprentices, while the positions of the student council are picked by the current members,¡± Sasaki explained.


    ¡°So the four of them are actually competing for the president¡¯s spot?¡±


    ¡°You might think that it¡¯s somehow bad for them to compete like that, but this kind of situation is completely acceptable, from what we experienced ourselves, out of the four apprentices, all of them will eventually realize which one of them is the best for the president¡¯s position, even Kazu-kun, the former vice president agreed with this¡±


    ¡°A complete mutual agreement, fascinating¡­.¡±


    Well, I better start getting through these papers, I can already guess what¡¯s going to be in these though, just some negative comments about me¡­ haha


    As I began reading the papers one by one¡­..


    What seems to be written here is not what I expected¡­


    Why is the feedback from the students like this?


    My idea to change the school¡¯s tradition in the sports festival, their comments don¡¯t clearly show the meaning, it seems like there is something hidden between the lines here, the patterns of the wordings in the comments are different but somehow, all of them meant the same thing, yes, that¡¯s it¡­¡­ why¡­.. I thought I was ready for this¡­ but these comments¡­. I never expected to¡­¡­ eh? Why are these tears coming out? This feeling, it¡¯s very warm, so that¡¯s what you¡¯re trying to tell me¡­..


    ¡°You¡¯re welcome,¡± I whispered with a faint smile.


    After being treated harshly every second since I started school.


    Being excluded from everything my classmates did, treated as if I did not exist in that class¡­


    I don¡¯t actually mind, but why after receiving some appreciation, it made me feel somewhat¡­happy


    Gratitude sure is nice¡­


    ¡­


    Today, a report from a student came in,


    ¡°Hm? What¡¯s this?¡±


    ¡°A complaint from a student, the letter contains information on a case of bully¡­¡­¡± Sasaki said.This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.


    Kaichou went silent for a while.


    ¡°Bully? In a private school like this?¡± I started being a bit confused.


    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s true, I myself had witnessed it before, hmm not exactly witnessed, more like heard, but I can confirm that from the conversation I heard are bullies,¡± Makino said.


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you stop them?¡± I question her.


    ¡°Actually I didn¡¯t have a good look on their faces because I need to hurry somewhere at that time,¡±


    I can¡¯t argue with that kind of excuse...


    ¡°So, what do we do Kaichou?¡±


    ¡°.¡­¡­¡±


    She seems to be spacing out since we read the report.


    ¡°Kaichou? Is anything wrong?¡±


    ¡°N-Nothing is wrong, bullies can never be tolerated, we will be finding them and give them a lesson, how? you may ask, the thing with bullies is that their victims will remain silent as they are threatened, a way to identify the bullies is to first identify the victims, this reported letter doesn¡¯t seem to give any information about the reporter or the bullies¡­¡±


    There she is, the calm and collected Kaichou I know.


    ¡°How about we identify victims by observation?¡± I suggested.


    ¡°It might be hard to notice any difference in the behavior among the students don¡¯t you think?¡± Sasaki said.


    ¡°Yes, victims will act as if nothing happened, one thing I can tell is that the one acting the most idealistic is most likely the victim, for now, I guess we should keep an eye on any suspicious occurrence,¡±


    The council packed up for the day after finishing up some works, there¡¯s not much work to be done anyway.


    ¡°Wanna walk home together?¡± I asked them.


    ¡°Ah sorry bro, I¡¯ve got something to do¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m staying for Kendo practice,¡±


    ¡°Are you free Kaichou?¡±


    ¡°I-I¡¯m afraid yes¡­¡±


    That answer somehow shows that being with me is a bother to her.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t look like you are though¡­it¡¯s okay if you don¡¯t want to¡±


    ¡°Did I said anything else?¡± she said as she seems a bit mad.


    ¡°N-no¡­¡±


    ¡­the situation is getting silent and kinda awkward...


    ¡°Then let¡¯s walk home together shall we?¡± I smiled.


    Thinking back, I walked Kaichou home on my first day, but that¡¯s because it was getting late, other than that we usually go home much earlier than that day.


    On the way home, I spotted a cafe,


    ¡°Kaichou, wanna stop for a drink? It¡¯s on me,¡±


    ¡°Sure, why not,¡±


    I ordered an iced lemon tea while Kaichou ordered an expensive-looking parfait¡­..my wallet¡¯s gonna be dead, but looking at Kaichou enjoying it felt like I¡¯m ready to die now, her face is so cute eating the parfait like a little kid, I can¡¯t help but stare as she finished half of it, but I need to ask her about the way she reacted just now when we received the bully complaint.


    ¡°Uhm, just now when we got that complaint, why were you, mad?¡±


    Yes, even though the expression is faint, at that moment, I sensed a small hint of anger in her.


    She stopped eating,


    ¡°.¡­..¡±


    ¡°Kaichou?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m leaving, thanks for the treat¡±


    She got up from the seat and walked away


    ¡°Eh? Wait!¡±


    She just left and I felt that if I went to catch up to her, things would have gone even messier.


    The parfait, half-eaten and in a condition that is still presentable, I guess I should have let her finish this before asking that question. Now I feel bad for this, I guess I¡¯ll just bring it home with me then.


    Or maybe I can deliver it to her house¡­.I guess I can get her address from Makino or Sasaki.


    ¡°Hello? Sasaki-san, do you know Kaichou¡¯s address?¡­¡­¡­.. Yeah, I have something to give her as soon as possible,¡­¡­¡­ thanks,¡±


    Sasaki gave me Kaichou¡¯s address after the call via e-mail.


    The route is the same as I the day I walked her home, but I didn¡¯t know which one was her house, that¡¯s why I asked Sasaki for her address.


    ¡°So this is Kaichou¡¯s house¡­¡­..whoa¡±


    Her house is like a mansion, so huge, it¡¯s like some royal¡¯s palace straight out of a fairy tale, damn she¡¯s mega-rich¡­.it appears that the entrance was equipped with one of those electronic doorbells that also have a communication system. So do I push this button to talk to someone? A buzzing sound appeared.


    ¡°Uhm hello, I¡¯m here to deliver something to Kaichou-I mean Yagami Kori-san,¡±


    ¡°A delivery? Just put it in front of the gate, we will retrieve it soon, thank you,¡± the person said then hung up.


    I place the box in front of the gate and left, I wonder what was making Kaichou uneasy¡­.. could it be that she was bullied? Or is she a bully before? Argh!! both of these possibilities just don¡¯t fit the situation¡­.. either way I¡¯m gonna catch the bully for the sake of the school¡­¡­after seeing that reaction from Kaichou, for some reason this thing has become somewhat a personal matter to me¡­..


    Sometime after Hitori left, Kaichou seemed to have arrived home when she noticed a box in front of the door wrapped nicely, she opened the box and found the half-eaten strawberry parfait that she left unfinished earlier, her face turned more calmed and collected with a faint smile while bringing it inside.


    ¡­


    The next day, all members of the student council and their apprentices attend their classes as usual, at the same time we became more vigilant and observant than ever to catch this bully.


    A few days passed without anything being discovered,


    ¡°This is going nowhere¡­.I can¡¯t keep being vigilant all the time, it¡¯s stressing me out!¡± Makino complained.


    So stressing other people out is better I guess?


    ¡°Can¡¯t deny that¡­..¡± Sasaki said.


    ¡°It¡¯s too soon to give up, I¡¯ll come up with a solution but for now just keep an eye on any suspicious student¡±.


    I hate to admit it but this bully is good, our actions are taking us nowhere¡­.


    Or perhaps this tactic is no good at all¡­


    I need to devise a better plan to catch this bully, perhaps thinking of myself as a bully, where would a bully choose as a place to threaten their victims?


    Being done with no result for the past days, I decided to ¡®track down¡¯ the bullies.


    ¡°I¡¯m gonna go patrol around the school for a bit,¡± Hitori said and left the room.


    As I patrolled around the school, I wondered in my head of the places that have the highest possibility of becoming the bully¡¯s base.


    A place that is hidden but also accessible in the school, the rooftop?


    It¡¯s a possibility, perhaps the toilet? Nah.. too open and this school¡¯s toilet is very close to the classrooms it¡¯s too much of a risk of getting caught.


    A place where the students¡¯ normal traffic route doesn¡¯t collide with is pretty much the most cliched place to make a base for bullying I guess.


    As I continued to wonder while wandering, I eventually arrived at a place behind the school.


    I heard a voice and stopped for a while,


    ¡°Oy, what do you mean you don¡¯t have any money,¡±


    ¡°Argh¡­please, I¡¯ll give you more next time, please don¡¯t hit me¡­.¡±


    I peeked and saw a kid begging on the floor, while the other four laughed their ass off,


    ¡°Found you,¡± with a sinister smile, I said.


    Approaching them slowly,


    ¡°My, my, what do we have here, the survival of the fittest? Is this what they meant by natural selection, only the ones with the better trait will survive extinction? Hurm??¡±


    ¡°Oh, the vice president, whatcha gonna do to me? You don¡¯t have any evidence to accuse me of this, hahahahahah¡±


    ¡°Why would I accuse you of if I can just PUNISH the culprit myself, right here right now. What do you say?¡±


    Hitori¡¯s face suddenly turned very dark, his eyes are as if he¡¯s a predator that has its eyes locked on the prey. The atmosphere turned very dense that it reeks of darkness.


    ¡°Wan-wanna fight? Brin-bring it on!¡± the boss seems to be sweating non-stop out of fear.


    What¡¯s with this guy? The only thing I can sense in him is his killing intent¡­What the fuck is he going to do??


    ¡°.¡­..¡±


    The Mexican standoff continued for a while,


    ¡°Hitori-kun! Hitori-kun!¡±


    After hearing Kaichou¡¯s faint voice coming from somewhere distant,


    ¡°Yes!!! Kaichou!!! I¡¯m here!! Seems like I found some rats!!! A huge one too!!¡± my facial expression immediately turned to a pure smile.


    ¡°What is it? Did you found any clues Hitori-kun?¡± Kaichou asked.


    ¡°Better,¡± I said while pointing at the bullies that are still terrified.


    ¡°Well well, mind if you four come with us for a moment?¡±


    ¡°Why should I follow you?! You don¡¯t even have proo-¡±


    The boss stopped talking as soon as he senses the same killing intent from his back.


    They silenced and followed Kaichou to the student council room.


    ¡°Why is your face like that? Did you saw a ghost or something?¡± Sasaki asked them in the council room.


    They remained silenced with fear still engraved in them.


    ¡°Hey, if you turn yourself in, you might get off with just a warning,¡± I whispered to their ears.


    ¡°Do-Don¡¯t screw with me! You have no proof¡±.


    ¡°If this is how they wanna play, maybe we should just kill them Kaichou¡­.easier to be dealt with, drown them and throw them into the sea, then we issue a report that our ¡®friends¡¯ got lost in the sea during a trip, then the police is gonna send out a search team, if they manage to find them, by that time the body would have been badly damaged by the seagulls and the small critters will begin to eat out the tissue till there¡¯s not much left, there, case closed, no more bullies, then Kaichou and I can live happily ever after! Hehehe,¡±


    The whole room stayed in silence for a few minutes shocked by my plan to deal with them. Well¡­it was kind of going overboard.


    ¡°So, what¡¯s it gonna be?¡± I questioned the bullies.


    ¡°We¡¯ll admit guilty, please don¡¯t kill us,¡± the four of them answered as if they¡¯re synchronized.


    ¡°Hihihihi¡­¡±


    ¡­


    ¡°So they really did admit guilty huh, I thought they were gonna put up a tougher fight,¡± I was a little surprised.


    ¡°After hearing an evil scheme with a high chance of success like that, I think anyone would have done the same, I didn¡¯t know that you¡¯re capable of acting like that, Hitori-kun,¡± Sasaki said.


    ¡°Haha, I just can¡¯t help but imagine scenarios like that,¡±


    ¡°They did get off with an apology to the victims and a warning letter from the school, but I have a rather unpleasant feeling about this¡­.¡±


    ¡°Well, I guess that settles the bully problem for now¡±.


    ¡°By the way, I noticed that the bullies were already afraid of you even before entering the room, mind telling us the details?¡± Makino asked.


    ¡°Nothing happened, all I can say is that one can only know they¡¯re inferior as they face a superior one,¡±


    I finally get to say it! The line I¡¯ve been practicing all these years, it sounded so cool too, YES!!


    ¡°I don¡¯t get it,¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t overthink it, I just scared them a bit with this armband,¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t think of a valid reason for them to fear a mere vice president either,¡± Kaichou joined the dissing on me.


    Why are they ganging up on me? Please God, have mercy on this soul¡­.


    ¡°Oh yeah, I didn¡¯t even get to know their names,¡±


    ¡°There is no need for you to know of them too,¡±


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s kinda true, at the very least tell me their boss¡¯s name,¡±


    ¡°Genji Kirei,¡± Kaichou mentioned.


    Hitori stopped for a moment,


    Genji? Why is that name very familiar? I can¡¯t remember when or where I¡¯ve heard this last name before


    ¡­¡­..oh, that guy, no no it can¡¯t be¡­¡­. there¡¯s no way he¡¯s connected to him¡­.


    ¡°What¡¯s the matter? you look, troubled bro,¡±


    ¡°Ah it¡¯s nothing, just a bit tired I guess¡±.


    ¡­

 Chapter 4 - Situations I Would Like To Avoid

    The next morning, as I walked to school, a thought came to me,


    School, the place where people my age socializes and build relationships with each other, the thing with school is that after the students graduate, most cliques will either be reduced to a smaller size or even being disbanded, not everyone has the same interest thus separating them apart as each of them follow their own personal dreams, so the term friends will always be temporary in most cases, even though nowadays there are phones and internet for them to communicate anytime and anywhere, bit by bit as time flies, new friends will also be made that will be more important at that time, not that there is anything wrong with a temporary bonding, that is also what helps humans to get through life day after day.


    It¡¯s just sad that someday, someone that we once share our problems with, get into fights together, will become a stranger to us.


    Speaking of friends, it¡¯s been almost 2 months since I entered this school, but it doesn¡¯t seem like I made a lot of friends, Chiba, the student council, and perhaps the apprentices and sports club representatives? Well, we don¡¯t mingle around that much.


    As I continue to wonder, I arrived at school early to see that Kaichou has also arrived in class.


    I never noticed that Kaichou had always been alone, does she not have any other friends?


    ¡°Good morning Kaichou!¡± I greeted.


    ¡°Good morning to you too Hitori-kun,¡± she greeted back.


    We then walked together towards the school gate.


    ¡°By the way Kaichou, I always see you alone, do you have any other friends?¡± I asked bluntly.


    ¡°Friends? What is the purpose of having friends?¡± Kaichou questioned.


    Purpose in having friends?


    ¡°Well not that I have many friends, but from the animes I watched, friends are people who will always be together no matter what happens to each other, they are the people to rely on other than your family,¡± I tried to answer.


    ¡°Then what if I tell you that having friends also increase the chances of betrayal and lies, I have never put my trust in anyone other than myself, I simply took account of the risk and probabilities when placing my judgment on something¡±.


    ¡°Err¡­.am I your friend? Kaichou,¡±


    ¡°The student council are just acquaintances of mine, no more than that¡±


    Acquaintances, is that how she perceive us?


    ¡°Does that mean you don¡¯t trust me Kaichou?¡±


    Kaichou remained silent as we walk to the gate.


    ¡°Well, even if you don¡¯t trust me, I still have my trust in you, Kaichou-chan! Hehe,¡± I claimed with a smile.


    I noticed that she looked at me from the corner of her eyes as they were glaring at me¡­


    An idea came to me,


    ¡°Say, what if I can convince you to trust me?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t care¡±.


    How cold, her words are very cold it made me question whether global warming is even real.


    ¡°Alright, I¡¯m gonna have you trust me before summer break! If I win, you¡¯re gonna go on a date with me heheheh,¡± I proposed a bet.


    ¡°Although I guess we did went on a short date at that cafe before didn¡¯t we? No no that doesn¡¯t count, I¡¯ll bring you on the best date you¡¯ll ever remember¡±.


    ¡°Very well, but if you fail, you will be doing all my work in the council room for a week¡±.


    What¡¯s this, I never thought she would agree. But her condition seems a bit cruel¡­


    ¡°A week? That¡¯s like seven days¡±.


    ¡°Scared?¡±


    ¡°Hell Nah, bring it on,¡± I said with a determined face holding up a fist.


    ¡­


    During recess in a different part of the school, a group of delinquent or more known as the ex-bullies gathered behind a building.


    ¡°I¡¯m not gonna let this end like this, who does he think he is?!¡± the leader of a gang of four, Genji Kirei is mad.


    ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure he¡¯s the student council vice president,¡± said Fujisaka, one of the guys in the gang.


    ¡°I know that, dumbass!¡± Genji said with anger.


    ¡°How dare that new kid showed his fangs in front of me, but¡­..dammit! That guy was scary as hell!!, I felt like I was gonna die when he stared at me like that,¡±


    ¡°This wouldn¡¯t happen if the president didn¡¯t allow that brat to become the vice president¡±


    ¡°That guy seems awfully attracted to the president too, what a freak,¡± said Fujisaka.


    ¡°The president¡­yes, if we can¡¯t charge straight to the enemy, we¡¯ll charge to the things he holds dear, hehe hehe, seems like we got ourselves some work to do boys¡±.


    ¡°As expected of the boss!¡± said Kasaki Yori one of the guys.


    ¡°For now I will need you guys to gather as much information as possible for me to plan the downfall of our beloved president,¡± Genji said with a wicked face.


    The group of delinquents then left the place when the school bell rang. Little did they know that half of their conversation was heard by Hitori who was in the bathroom right inside the building that they gathered behind. Hitori¡¯s face appeared to be very enraged but he immediately tried to calm down his clenched fist.


    ¡­


    ¡°Those guys again? They¡¯re up to something¡±


    For the following week, I kept my eye on them, but they seem to be acting as how good students should.


    I kept my mouth shut about this problem because if I were to accuse them without any proof this time, it might backfire. The same strategy won¡¯t work twice.


    What are they plotting? ¡®downfall of Kaichou¡¯ huh? I won¡¯t allow that.


    As I wondered about their plans, they appear to be lost from my sight


    Where did they disappear to? Dammit! I lost focus on the target, this is bad.


    Ah, there they are!


    There were three guys from the delinquent group exiting my class.


    ¡°Why are they exiting my class?¡±


    After they left, I quickly went inside the class and look around if anything was missing, and then I noticed Kaichou¡¯s bag was widely opened.


    As I looked inside the bag, it appears to be a purse in the bag. It doesn¡¯t look like a student''s purse. I then grabbed the purse, but just as I was about to grab it,


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± Kaichou¡¯s voice is heard sending a shiver down my spine.


    ¡°Oh it¡¯s just you Kaichou, listen to this, just now I saw a few guys ca-¡± I tried to explain but was stopped by her.


    ¡°This situation seems like someone is trying to frame me into stealing one of the teacher¡¯s purse,¡± Kaichou stated while glaring at me¡­


    Wait, this is not one of those situations where the good guy got framed attempting to help another person, is it?


    No way this is happening.


    The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    ¡°Yeah! Those guys just ran-¡­wait, you don¡¯t think I would do this, do you?¡± I asked Kaichou with a worrying face.


    ¡°Seeing is believing,¡± she said.


    She sure can joke¡­


    ¡°Haha that¡¯s funny Kaichou, gotta give you that one, I really thought that you would-¡­..¡±


    ¡°Do I look like I¡¯m joking?¡±


    My face changed to an expression of shock almost as if this was a nightmare became true.


    There was nothing I could say to make her believe me, rather it would make the situation worse if I continued to say anything, it would just make me seem more suspicious, I suppose I¡¯ll just keep my mouth shut and say when I needed.


    But sadly¡­


    ¡­


    In the council room,


    ¡°I¡¯m not buying it, there is no way Hitori-kun is that kind of person, don¡¯t you think so Kaichou?¡± Sasaki said.


    ¡°Ye-yeah, even though he doesn¡¯t seem reliable at all, he has never been anything but kind to other people, other than those bullies of course¡± Makino stated.


    Kaichou remained silent while continuing her work on the desk.


    The room¡¯s atmosphere has turned very unpleasant.


    ¡­


    Because most of the teachers in this school dislike me, majority of them didn¡¯t believe my explanation except Ishizaki-sensei, my homeroom teacher.


    Fortunately, she convinced the principal to give me a chance to prove my innocence. But she said she won¡¯t be able to help me, otherwise, all this would be pointless.


    She does have a point there, getting help from her might also result in her reputation as a teacher being tarnished if in the end, I can¡¯t prove I¡¯m innocent.


    As a result of the case, I was suspended from any student council activities which means I can¡¯t look at Kaichou more than usual¡­how frustrating¡­


    ¡°How did it come to this? There is no way I can prove myself innocent, this whole situation is just a mess, come on I gotta clear my name, anything¡­anything to serve as proof, one week and if not I¡¯ll be relieved of my position as the vice president and suspended¡­.. ahhhh¡± I said to myself while hitting my head with my hand on the way home.


    Getting suspended means I won¡¯t be able to go to school for a while¡­.but getting relieved from my position is worse! I don¡¯t want that¡­


    My brain is already exhausted to cope with this situation, now I gotta find some non-existence proof¡­if this is a dream, please wake me up right now! even if this is a dream, it¡¯s too brutal¡­


    ¡­


    ¡°What the fuck? How did that guy found the purse?! Well, either way, we got our prey cornered, no one will trust him ever again after this¡­..but somehow I¡¯m still unsatisfied with this¡­.ugh¡­, let¡¯s go to plan B¡± Genji said to his guys.


    ¡°Maybe we should wait for this situation to calm down a bit more before proceeding with another plan,¡± Aoki, one of the guys said.


    ¡°Fuck that, we¡¯re gonna go straight to plan B,¡±


    ¡°This time, I¡¯ll be sure to see your face of despair bastard,¡± Genji said with an angry face.


    ¡°But isn¡¯t that plan going to get us suspended from school for a whole week if we are found out?¡± Fujisaka worried and terrified.


    ¡°First, you knowing about the punishment for this plan is messed up, second, this plan B is kind of heartless boss, you sure this is okay?¡± Kasaki asked.


    ¡°That is if we are found out, I got something we can put on, don¡¯t be a wuss, if we succeed, that bastard is gonna regret making me his enemy, hahaha¡± Genji claimed with a sinister laugh.


    ¡­


    Day after day I tried to think about how to clear my name, but none of the brainstormings had bared any fruit.


    To think back on the situation, why did I even bother to pick up the purse? Perhaps I was curious¡­


    What if I just left the purse inside the bag?


    Kaichou will found it or another person might found it first, that¡¯s quite a risky situation.


    She might not notice the purse until a search has been issued that lead to them finding the purse in her bag. Shit! That¡¯s the worse possible scenario!


    So, was my action that lead to this dilemma had indirectly saved Kaichou from being the victim?


    I guess¡­


    The days went by, there are two days left for me to prove myself innocent.


    ¡°Dammit, I can¡¯t find anything! At this rate, I¡¯m definitely gonna get assumed as the culprit!¡±


    I shouted in the class after realizing that.


    These past few days, I¡¯ve been staying at school every single day in hope of finding anything to prove my innocence.


    But the only thing that I got is exhaustion¡­


    Noticing the sky is already dark, I was surprised that today I stayed for this long.


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s night time already, better get going,¡±


    Suddenly, I saw Kaichou walking in the hall alone with her bag towards the school exit,


    ¡°I wonder what Kaichou thinks of me now, she did avoid me every time I tried to talk to her¡±


    She must have lost all her trust in me¡­even though she might not even have trusted me before.


    No no this is too soon to give up!


    Too soon? I think this might be the best time to give up¡­I still have one more day though, might still wanna keep trying.


    I guess I¡¯ll try talking to her again.


    ¡°Hey! Kaich-¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    I stopped after hearing small voices whispering,


    ¡°Whoa! She really worked late today, how did you know that?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve been observing her schedule for two weeks bruh, what do you think I¡¯ve been doing?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s creepy as hell bruh¡±.


    ¡°Yeah yeah let¡¯s get this over with¡±.


    These voices, no doubt they¡¯re the delinquents.


    Are they plotting something again?


    The unusual design of the bottles they held in their hands caught my attention.


    Observing them closer, I noticed a corrosive symbol on the bottle they were holding.


    Shit! It¡¯s acid!


    Without even thinking, I quickly ran to Kaichou as the guys approached her slowly.


    They¡¯re very close to Kaichou but she doesn¡¯t seem to notice, how is it that she could notice me following her before but not now?


    At this rate¡­


    What is this fear I¡¯m feeling? Anger? Rage? Quite a mix of unpleasant emotions.


    ¡°Oraa!!!!¡± Genji shouted while throwing the acid at Kaichou.


    Kaichou startled and turned around to witness the acid falling in mid-air towards her. She closed her eyes and felt a strong force pushing her until her body was flying to the ground. She opened her eyes and saw Hitori who had his face covered with his blazer while screaming.


    ¡°Argh!! It hurts!¡±


    I shouted in pain, my hands feel like it¡¯s burning! It hurts so much!


    Holding in the pain, I immediately got up and caught one of the guys that were running away. My right hand got fumes coming out from it aside from blood gushing out. The guys were terrified but one was caught and held down.


    ¡°Hitori-kun, your hand¡­..¡± Kaichou said worriedly.


    ¡°Huh?¡± I said while rapidly breathing of exhaustion from catching the guy.


    I take a look at my hand,


    A small view of skeletal structure can be seen on the back of my right hand covered in dark red substances¡­blood.


    ¡°Ah, so that¡¯s how human bones look like,¡±


    My vision became blurry, I think I¡¯m gonna pass out¡­


    ¡­


    Upon waking up, I realized that I was taken to the hospital.


    The doctor had also treated my hand to stop the bleeding.


    ¡°I¡¯ll just ask this even though I already know the answer to it, your hand can be treated with new cells, it can look as good as new¡±


    ¡°Treat the wound with new cells? Hmm no thanks, I¡¯ll just live with this, you know I can¡¯t afford that luxury right, plus this hand looks so cool¡± I said to the doctor after hearing his offer.


    ¡°Well then, if that¡¯s what you want, I don¡¯t think I can change your mind on it,¡± the doctor said.


    ¡°But make sure to cover that up, people are going to get freaked out looking at that¡±.


    With a hand like this, even I would freak myself out.


    ¡°Cover huh? Then can I wear a glove? The breathable ones of course I don¡¯t want the glove to be filled with sweats,¡±


    ¡°In that case, I have a pair of nice gloves for you here, this is the least I can do to help you¡±


    ¡°What are you saying? I¡¯m the one indebted to you,¡±


    After receiving a cool pair of gloves I then proceed to leave the hospital.


    ¡°Thanks for the gloves too!¡±I shouted and got scolded by the guard.


    After the explanation that Ishizaki-sensei told me though the phone,


    So the school had taken me as innocent, apparently, his name is Kasaki Yori, that guy admitted to the school about the acid case and even the purse case, it surprised me that they all came to admit themselves, perhaps this is what they meant by the power of friendship. They got a one-week suspension, maybe they would have been expelled if I didn¡¯t take back the acid case and admitted that I mishandled it, that would be too brutal for them, a bunch of high schoolers in their rebellious stage.


    Ah, even my school uniform is now unwearable, need to order a new one soon.


    ¡°I wonder what happened to Kaichou, I hope she¡¯s all right¡±.


    ¡­


    The next day at Hitori¡¯s apartment,


    ¡°Why do I have to rest at home for three days? Oh yeah, I don¡¯t even have a uniform now¡­¡­they said one will be delivered to me today,¡±


    My phone rang and an unknown number called,


    ¡°Hello, this is Hitori Yume, who¡¯s this?¡±


    ¡°Good afternoon, this is the student council president, I¡¯m here to inform you that your new uniform is ready, I will come to meet you at four o¡¯clock to hand over your uniform,¡± the caller said.


    A very familiar voice.


    ¡°Wait! Kaichou? How did you get my phone number?¡±


    ¡°The school¡¯s staff gave me,¡± she answered.


    Is it that easy to get access to other people¡¯s information? Well, she is the student council president¡­


    ¡°You¡¯re gonna come to my house to deliver it?¡±


    ¡°Yes, is there something wrong?¡±


    ¡°No, no! Let¡¯s meet up at another place, the park nearby school at four perhaps?¡±


    Shit, I can''t let her know about my apartment.


    ¡°If you¡¯re fine with it, then that place is where we¡¯ll meet up,¡± she said and immediately hung up.


    ¡°Why is she delivering it? I thought they said I was going to pick it up¡­.¡±


    I happened to arrive early at about 3.50 p.m., I¡¯m not sure why I¡¯m very nervous to meet Kaichou even though it¡¯s just a delivery.


    ¡°Just a delivery, just a delivery, just a-¡± I repeated until I heard the voice of a person greeting me.


    ¡°Good evening, Hitori-kun,¡±


    ¡°Good evening, ah Kaichou!¡±


    She¡¯s wearing her school uniform while holding a plastic bag. From the looks of it, that plastic bag contains my new set of uniforms.


    Kaichou then walked to sit beside me on the bench.


    My gloves immediately caught her attention.


    ¡°Gloves?¡± she asked.


    ¡°Ah, these gloves help my hand to recover faster, it¡¯s going to be like nothing ever happened to my hands,¡± I said with a convincing face.


    ¡°Ah, how was your hand? It looked very serious the other day,¡± she asked me.


    ¡°As I said just now, it¡¯s fine, no need to worry, they got stem cell treatment, so everything¡¯s fine now, hehe,¡± I said with an assuring face.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that expensive?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I got it all under control,¡±


    Kaichou then handed out the plastic bag to me.


    ¡°Here, this is your new school uniform,¡±


    ¡°Ah, thank you, how much is it?¡±


    ¡°Take it, let me at least pay that for you,¡±


    ¡°Eh, no way, I¡¯ll pay for this uniform myself,¡±


    ¡°You helped me back there, let me show my gratitude for you by paying for this,¡±


    ¡°Nope, I¡¯m not going to accept it then,¡± I said while handing the uniform back to Kaichou.


    She got confused as I attempted to walk away.


    ¡°Wait! Please take this uniform, you won¡¯t be able to get to school if you don¡¯t have them,¡± she said with a worried expression.


    Wahh, that¡¯s the first time I have seen a different expression on her face.


    ¡°Why? Did you miss me~~?¡± I attempted to tease her.


    Her face immediately turned emotionless.


    ¡°Suit yourself, don¡¯t come to school,¡± she said with a cold expression.


    ¡°Ahh! I¡¯ll take it, but let me pay for it, I can¡¯t be indebted to someone anymoreeeee,¡±


    She then took the money and left the park saying nothing as she fades from my vision.


    ¡°I can come to school again with this! Yahoo!,¡±


    ¡°I feel bad for lying to Kaichou though, does this mean that she is right to not trust me after all?? Uarghhh¡­¡­¡­¡±.


    I still need to confirm that the gang boss is not related to the other guy, it just gives me an unpleasant feeling as if they are really connected. I guess I¡¯ll just ask him when his suspension ends.


    On my way home, I came across the gang leader, Genji Kirei.


    ¡°Eh, is that you Mr. Bully?¡±


    ¡­


    This voice, I know this voice, this is the voice that made me fell into a fear I¡¯ve never experienced before.


    ¡°Ye-yes? How may I help you¡±?


    ¡°I¡¯ve got something to discuss with you¡±.


    Discuss? Is he gonna kill me and dispose of me in the ocean? Is he gonna discuss a different method to kill me because I tried to hurt the Kaichou and frame him? Eeeeeek!


    ¡°Su-sure¡±.


    I¡¯m dead, I¡¯m dead, I¡¯m dead, I¡¯m dead, I¡¯m dead¡­


    We approached a vending machine.


    ¡°Here,¡± Hitori handed a drink to me that he got from the vending machine.


    What is this? My last meal? Please just end my life quickly, I can¡¯t bear to be tortured like this!!


    ¡°Tha-thanks.¡±


    ¡°Do you know who Genji Kisho is?¡±


    Ge-Genji Kisho?!!!


    ¡°Ho-how did you know that name?!¡±


    ¡°So you do know him¡­¡­.. what¡¯s your relationship with him?¡±


    ¡°He¡¯s my big brother¡±


    ¡°Mind telling me some details?¡±


    Details¡­.


    ¡°He died¡­¡­he was killed by a gang when he was saving a girl from getting abducted,¡±


    ¡°Well, to tell you something, I knew about it¡­,¡±


    He knew?!


    ¡°Yo-you knew?!¡±


    ¡°Yeah, actually I was at the scene, that night the wind was colder than ever, I was on my way home from the hospital when I saw a guy was fighting a couple of thugs, upon closer inspection, I realized that he was saving a girl, I quickly went to help him but it was too late, he got stabbed in a vital spot, how I got to know his name is that I inadvertently saw his id card in his wallet when I picked it up from the floor, your brother fought heroically that¡¯s for sure, his eyes were brimming with justice as his soul faded away¡±.


    ¡°We had a little talk before he left this world, I can tell he¡¯s a very nice person, he even joked about his death right before his last breath, I can¡¯t help but laugh¡­ If I were quicker, maybe he would still be alive¡­¡±


    ¡°No! Please don¡¯t say that!¡±


    ¡°Eh? Why?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve already put aside blaming someone else for his death¡­¡±


    ¡°In the beginning, I blamed everyone, even myself¡­ but I soon came to realize that I can¡¯t go on living like this if I were to continue to blame someone else for his death.¡±


    ¡°Living like that seems like more of a hell than the hell I¡¯ve been through¡­¡±


    ¡°Is that so¡­¡±


    ¡°I-I miss him so much¡­¡± the tears appeared inevitably.


    ¡°Th-the reason I became like this was that he left me, I have no one else to support me, our parents got divorced and we lived with our mother all this time, she worked so hard to keep us going, taking multiple jobs with very little time to rest, me and my late brother were very worried that she might get sick if this goes on and insisted that she continue to be like this, but our mother, every time we tell her to stop, she just put up a smile and say ¡®it¡¯s fine¡¯, then one day, our worst nightmare came true, she fell sick and was bedridden, all these time, my brother was the one supporting us, he was my hero, when he left, we didn¡¯t have the money to live, our living conditions become very poor that made her illness worse day by day, you might be wondering what a poor kid like me doing in a private school, my shit of a dad had actually paid for my education for a full three years in advance, that¡¯s why I don¡¯t need to pay for it anymore, but as days goes on, surviving with the little money I got from bullying those rich bastards¡¯ kids, it still wasn¡¯t enough to get my mother medicines for her illness until the day she passed away. I felt as if that most of the reason for me to continue living is gone, nothing has been good for me in my life, I-I-I really¡­..hoped¡­..that¡­..Nii-san¡­.was still alive¡­..¡±


    Genji continued to cry while being accompanied by Hitori on his side.


    ¡°Losing something means that you¡¯ll be receiving something in return too, that¡¯s what I believe.¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    ¡°Thank you, for listening to my crap, I¡¯m very sorry for troubling you before¡­.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t sweat it, at the very least, it can¡¯t get worse from now on, can they? Hehehe,¡± Hitori said with a wide pure smile and left the place.


    That smile hides an unimaginable amount of pain, suffering, but somehow heartwarming. How did he hold himself intact for so long¡­. I don¡¯t know what shit had he gone through to have developed that very thick persona¡­. I think I just realized what makes the gap between the two of us¡­... Nii-san, I found someone¡­.just like you.


    Wait I thought those thugs were beaten to near-death¡­¡­¡­¡­this guy is¡­¡­¡­. hella strong¡­¡­.

 Chapter 5 - School Trip!

    ¡°Wha-what the heck?!!¡±


    ¡°Please make us your underlings! Aniki!¡±


    ¡°Why?!!¡±


    ¡°We heard what you did to Boss and feel like changing for the better good! Please let us lend a hand in changing this school¡±.


    What is happening? As soon as their suspension ended they came to this room and act like this¡­.


    ¡°Kaichou¡­what should I do?¡±


    ¡°Not my problem¡±.


    She answered my question without a single thought.


    What should I do to them? They might be a nuisance but they do look genuine wanting to change.


    ¡°Ahh¡­..then do as you please¡­..¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Aniki!¡±


    They just left the room after I agreed to them¡­damn this is weird, seems like I¡¯m some kind of mafia or something¡­err what kind of mess had I gotten myself into?


    After they left the room


    ¡°Nice gloves bro! Looks good¡±.


    ¡°Ah Sasaki-san, thanks, these gloves help me with recovering this hand¡±.


    ¡°Oh yeah..the acid¡­hopefully you get well soon bro¡±.


    ¡°What are you talking about? I¡¯m as healthy as a horse! Hehehe,¡± I said with a convincing smile.


    Making people feel worried is not my thing, I rather keep it to myself than for everyone to know.


    It seems I am contradicting myself quite often these days.


    ¡°Let¡¯s get to work! Yosh!¡±


    The days passed by and I noticed that the other students seem to be acting weird towards me¡­not the usual disgust, more like¡­.afraid¡­that doesn¡¯t make any sense¡­


    Additionally, they also had reduced the amount of insult to me, I wonder why¡­


    They usually would be like ¡®peasant¡¯ ¡®dog¡¯ ¡®mongrel¡¯ something like that, but nowadays the harassment is more like ignorance in my existence.


    Like when the teacher was handing out papers, I would be the only person to not get one, but Chiba is very kind as to take one for me every time, what a saint!


    As I patrolled the school area, as usual, one day, I noticed the ex-bullies seem to be up to something no good cornering a student.


    ¡°What? Haven¡¯t they learned their lesson yet?¡± as I run approaching them.


    ¡°Oy¡­are you guys still bullying? Come on-¡±


    Wait, something¡¯s different about this.


    Upon further inspection, it seems that I have misunderstood their actions, but what exactly are they doing?


    ¡°What..are you guys doing?¡±


    ¡°Oh Aniki! We were just promoting you to the other students to gain more trust and respect in you!¡±


    ¡°Wh-what?! Please elaborate¡­¡±


    ¡°As you know, you are the most disgusted person in this school because you¡¯re just a commoner that has no wealth whatsoever,¡±


    Look who¡¯s saying¡­


    ¡°So we asked ourselves, what can we do to help Aniki gain trust and respect in this school? Then we came up with this idea, by forcing the students to respect you using our intimidation technique!¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re threatening them?¡±


    ¡°Precisely!¡± he said with a proud face.


    ¡°So that¡¯s why the other students were acting weird around me¡­¡±


    ¡°How do you like it Aniki?¡±


    ¡°Please stop it, it¡¯s taking an opposite effect¡­..they just feared me even though I don¡¯t want them to¡­¡±


    ¡°But you said we can do as we please?¡±


    As you please huh¡­.


    I should¡¯ve phrased it better¡­


    ¡°Okay then, rather than doing this crap, I entrust you to keep an eye on the students from any wrongdoings, can you do that?¡±


    ¡°Yessir!¡±


    ¡°Oh, and keep an eye on them from within the shadows, become the vigilantes of this school that works from the shadows¡±.


    ¡°That¡¯s so cool!! We won¡¯t disappoint you, Master!¡±


    ¡°Now it¡¯s Master eh¡­¡±


    ¡°Go! Perform your duties as if your lives depend on it!¡±


    The group immediately went out of sight.


    Sheesh..that should stop them from weird things¡­..I hope so.


    ¡­


    ¡°Class, today we are going to discuss the groups for the upcoming school trip to Kyoto,¡± Ishizaki-sensei said to the class.


    School trip! From the countless animes that I have watched, school trips are where students usually strengthen their relationship and sometimes develop feelings for each other.


    School trips are also events that students will remember like a memory to cherish during school days.


    ¡°You kids decide your groups for yourselves while I take a nap, goodnight¡­¡±


    Just like that, she fell into a deep slumber.


    The classroom is awfully loud today, they must be as excited to go on the trip as I am right now. But first, I need to find a team¡­


    Looking from my friend list¡­not so much of a friend list I¡¯d say, Chiba is the only one who is friends with me, it would be natural for me to ask him first.


    ¡°Chiba! Do you have a team already?¡±


    ¡°Yeah man, sorry we¡¯re already full¡±


    ¡°Oh that¡¯s fine, don¡¯t worry¡±.


    Seems like the only person with whom I socialize in this class already has a team for the trip.


    Well, I guess that¡¯s already been expected, looking at how he¡¯s in a sports team, of course, he would have friends anywhere¡­..


    Wait, there¡¯s one more person, judging from the situation and how the person acts towards other people, the person will most likely¡­¡­


    I turned my head towards the middle front of the class,


    Just as I thought, Kaichou, there she was sitting quietly in her seat¡­.


    No one seems to be around her meaning she doesn¡¯t have a team yet!


    Not wasting any time, I got up from my seat and approached Kaichou,


    ¡°Wanna group up?¡±


    The whole class went into a state of silence.


    Eh, what¡¯s with this atmosphere?


    ¡°You¡¯re¡­¡­..grouping up with the council president?¡±


    Chiba asked me as something is not right.


    ¡°Yeah, why? Is it not allowed sensei?¡±


    ¡°Ahh¡­uh¡­sure, go ahead¡­¡± she woke up from her slumber and went straight back into it.


    The whole class seems a bit surprised, I know the fact that she doesn¡¯t have any friends but this kind of reaction is uncalled for, it¡¯s a bit rude I¡¯d say.


    ¡°Well? Do you wanna?¡±


    I said to her while squatting down, only my upper head from the eyes are visible to Kaichou.


    I just realize that viewing her face from this angle, so damn gorgeous¡­


    ¡°Do as you please¡±.


    Didn¡¯t quite expect that answer, but ok.


    ¡°Well then, we gonna need one more person¡±


    I went and asked everyone in the class whether they already have a group,


    ¡°Eh, everyone else already got a group..¡±The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.


    Suddenly the sleeping beauty woke up,


    ¡°Oh yeah¡­there¡¯s going to be one group with two people, just like last year¡­..erh¡­nevermind¡­¡± sensei said something incomplete.


    ¡°Hm? What¡¯s that?¡±


    That unfinished announcement, I think I might be able to deduce it. This year¡¯s student in this class is 42, and there appear to be 13 groups consists of 3 students in each group. So there will be one group consists of two students¡­¡­then¡­..does that mean¡­¡­


    It all makes sense¡­their initial reaction when I suggested being in the same group as Kaichou, but why did I sense that Chiba was worried for me? Well¡­.either way¡­¡­


    She¡¯s alone¡­


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­.cruel¡­.¡±


    ¡°Yosh! Kaichou, let¡¯s make this trip the best you ever had!¡±


    Kaichou looked at me as I spouted those words.


    The only thing I¡¯m confused about is that why did she not ask to be in any other team before?


    I mean it won¡¯t hurt to have another extra person in a team right?


    Or is she the one who refuses to be in a group?


    ¡­..


    On the night before the trip,


    Everything had been planned and researched thoroughly the routes that our school is taking, there are a few hidden places that look very nice, I¡¯m gonna show Kaichou those sights to make up for the lost trips that she had to walk alone.


    Even though I¡¯m not sure why I¡¯m doing this¡­


    It feels like the right thing to do.


    Is this the reason for my existence? Because if I think about ignoring the whole situation, somehow I feel like it¡¯s better to kill myself than letting this be as it is¡­


    The morning arrived¡­.but, I caught a fever all of a sudden¡­


    ¡°Why???¡±


    This won¡¯t do, I can¡¯t let a mere fever stop my plan.


    Then I¡¯ll just hide it, I don¡¯t see any other choices available right now.


    As long as I¡¯m not caught, I¡¯m good to go.


    The day has come that the students had been waiting for, the school trip of the last year in high school, this event is known to be the most exciting thing that students nowadays look forward to, traveling to distant places with friends, making sweet and perhaps bitter memories along the way that will forever be remembered.


    As for me, this happens to be my first high school trip, so I¡¯m super pumped up about it! Just can¡¯t wait to enter the world of history.


    ¡°Here we are, Kyoto¡­.¡± sensei said with a sleepy face.


    How is this woman a teacher? She¡¯s sleepy all the time¡­I can¡¯t remember a time when she¡¯s actually energized in the slightest.


    Just a few minutes of walking from the station, we arrived at quite a nice looking hotel.


    ¡°This is where we will be residing for the next 3 days, get some rest and we¡¯ll start the tour later¡­..goodnight¡±


    Goodnight¡­it seems like someone is going to resume her slumber¡­


    One room will accommodate 3 students, and they are already decided randomly, hmm? Seems like the class is the same but will they be pleased if I stayed in the same room as them? With this fever, I might infect them and ruin their trip¡­..


    The room¡¯s size is not too big and not too small, I would say perfect for 3 persons, I placed my bags and belongings beside my bed.


    Why are they being somewhat awkward? Perhaps they¡¯re not pleased with me being here.


    ¡°Oh, don¡¯t mind me, you don¡¯t need to socialize with me if you don¡¯t want to, please make yourself comfortable, I¡¯ll be heading out soon¡±.


    ¡°Wha-what are you talking about? We don¡¯t dislike you, we¡¯re just a bit afraid of you¡­.¡± one of them said.


    Afraid? Why?


    ¡°Eh? Why?¡±


    ¡°Well, earlier in school, we were threatened by some guys saying we should respect you or something like that, if not we¡¯re going to get hit,¡±


    Should¡¯ve seen this coming¡­¡­


    ¡°Ahah..that¡¯s just a joke by those guys, don¡¯t take them seriously,¡± I said to them with a reassuring facial expression.


    ¡°Is that so, then let¡¯s be friends,¡±


    One of them said while offering a handshake to me.


    Friends¡­


    ¡°Of course!¡±


    ¡°My name¡¯s Narukami Masahiro and this guy is Uehara Takeo, nice to be friends with you fuku kaichou¡±.


    *Fuku Kaichou means vice president


    ¡°Eh, don¡¯t call me that, just call me Hitori¡±.


    ¡°Ow, okay then Hitori-san¡±.


    What a surprising turn of events, I made new friends and the trip hasn¡¯t even started yet¡­.no no I don¡¯t have time to enjoy myself too much, I need to focus on giving Kaichou the best trip!


    As we begin the trip, the smaller group split up and formed bigger groups, but sensei doesn¡¯t seem to care.


    If this was the case, then would Kaichou at least followed one of the big groups?


    ¡°Kaichou, are you all alone during past school trips?¡±


    ¡°I told you I don¡¯t need any friends, touring alone is interesting in it¡¯s own way¡±.


    ¡°Ohh¡­is that so¡­¡±


    Somehow I can sense that every word in that line is a total lie.


    We toured around a temple for quite some time, I just let Kaichou follow me around, little did she know that I had something to surprise her.


    It appears that we are closing in on the first hidden attraction.


    ¡°Ah here, let¡¯s go here Kaichou¡±.


    ¡°Where does that lead to?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll eventually find out, let¡¯s go!¡±


    Kaichou proceeds to follow Hitori into the hidden path. The scene along the path was as if she¡¯s in a movie, the vines covered in flowers, old-looking pavements with a moderate amount of moss covering the floor in a line, and the sight of someone desperately trying to navigate through the path. It was heartwarming, her eyes sparkled in amazement by the beauty of the sight.


    ¡°Here we are¡­¡­eh¡­¡­no way¡­..¡±


    Why is the tree not here?


    But the site said that there would be a small tree with the height of a human here, but all I could see was a speck of empty dirt in the middle of this place¡­


    ¡°What am I supposed to be looking at here?¡± Kaichou then asked me.


    ¡°There was supposed to be a nice looking tree here¡­.maybe it got chopped down¡­.¡±


    ¡°Well, that¡¯s unfortunate¡±.


    ¡°Huh¡­..don¡¯t worry! Let¡¯s get back and continue our original route,¡± I said while trying to catch my breath.


    ¡°Are you okay?¡±


    ¡°Huh? Oh yeah, I¡¯m fine, look I can still run!¡± I then ran in a circle around Kaichou to prove I¡¯m fine.


    ¡°Ladies first,¡± I said to Kaichou for her to go ahead of me.


    She then went to the path to go back first leaving me here alone for a while.


    Haaahhh¡­¡­just a bit more¡­.better catch up.


    ¡°Wait for me Kaichou!¡±


    After I exited the entrance to the path, Kaichou asked me,


    ¡°How do you know about this place?¡±


    I guess it wouldn¡¯t be fun if I told her I used a lot of time to search for this.


    ¡°Oh, I just happened to notice it along the way¡±.


    ¡°Look, the views from here are also nice in a way, quite a lot of tourists I¡¯d say¡±.


    People enjoying themselves here, the looks on their faces are filled with joy, setting aside their problems and simply enjoying the moment with their friends and families, it¡¯s a very heartwarming scenery I¡¯d say. It¡¯s so great to be alive.


    We strolled along the path looking at monuments, historical buildings, and such before returning to the hotel rooms. It¡¯s getting dark and no activities are allowed past 8 to avoid any trouble.


    Meanwhile in the hotel room,


    My body feels very warm¡­the cold¡¯s not going away¡­but I got another place to show Kaichou tomorrow¡­just a bit more¡­I can do it.


    ¡°Hitori-kun, wanna play a game, we brought some card games, eheh,¡± Narukami invited Hitori to a game of cards.


    ¡°Oh! Watch me beat your asses kih kih¡±


    The night went along like that after a few hours when they finally went to sleep.


    I can¡¯t sleep, my body¡¯s too hot I might literally melt right here, guess I¡¯ll take some fresh air outside.


    Oh, a vending machine, might as well get something to drink, this looks good.


    I brought the drink with me on a walk,


    Whoa! What a magnificent view, it looks like I¡¯m in some kind of isekai or something.


    ¡°Gotta share this with Kaichou¡±


    I quickly pulled out my phone


    ¡°come outside, nice view :)¡±


    I sent her a message with an attached picture of my selfie with an eye-catching view of the nighttime.


    ¡°Not coming?¡±


    ¡°Guess I¡¯ll just spam her some pictures then¡±.


    I began spamming pictures to Kaichou as I stroll around the place.


    Little did he know someone was following him around while he took the pictures.


    ¡­


    ¡°What could that idiot be doing at night¡±.


    Once she noticed the view,


    ¡°Whoa..it really is beautiful¡­¡±


    As Hitori walked further, I just followed him from an undetectable distance.


    Hitori looks so happy taking those pictures, they are just a bunch of pictures, nothing to be excited about.


    My hand reached the pocket to grab my phone,


    ¡°Eh, I didn¡¯t bring my phone?¡±


    Being without my phone, Hitori appeared to walk further, I decided to follow him.


    As I kept following Hitori around, the views that he walked through mesmerized me in different ways.


    The chilly night breeze also brought about a nice sensation.


    A thought came to my mind, isn¡¯t what I¡¯m doing the same as Hitori when we first met?


    How ironic.


    As I was savoring the beautiful scenery, I can¡¯t seem to find Hitori anywhere¡­


    Have I lost him?


    ¡°Hitori-kun? Wait I don¡¯t recognize the roads here, I¡¯ll just use my GPS then-¡±


    I didn¡¯t bring my phone¡­.


    Oh no¡­.what do I do? What do I do?


    Relax¡­.no need to panic, let¡¯s find a place to sit first and think of a way then,


    I hate to admit that my sense of direction is terrible, why didn¡¯t I think before following him¡­


    The night is not very dark here as there are a lot of light sources, but where I¡¯m sitting is quite secluded I¡¯d say, there are multiple routes here, it¡¯s as if I¡¯m in a maze of flowers.


    The night breeze kept on blowing the beautiful hair of a lost girl sitting on a bench.


    This loneliness, just like before¡­.I wonder if my life will always be filled with this feeling of being alone¡­.it hasn¡¯t changed a bit since that time, and I had also grown accustomed to this over time, something like a companion of mine¡­..but then, somehow, his presence made me feel like that loneliness never existed¡­.now...


    ¡°I¡¯m kind of scared to feel lonely again¡­¡±


    ¡°Why are you alone miss?¡± a voice of a man is heard from under the shadow of the trees.


    A man? Why is he asking me with that sinister tone of voice?


    Is he a bad guy? Judging by his appearance, dark color clothing that blends well in the shadows could possibly be a bad guy.


    ¡°Wha-what do you want? Sta-stay away¡±.


    He¡¯s approaching me slowly, his body gestures don¡¯t seem like someone with an intention to help.


    At that time, I remembered the conversation I had with Hitori that talked about being powerless in the eye of fear.


    Is this what he meant by that? I can¡¯t seem to be able to move my body, it¡¯s trembling non-stop, what should I do?! Somebody help me!


    ¡°He-he-help¡±


    No use, my voice won¡¯t come out.


    The man approached me slowly from the shadow, I can feel my face turned pale and my palms getting sweaty, before I knew it my body is trembling.


    The man then came out of the shadow, he looked like he¡¯s in his thirties.


    What¡¯s he going to do?! Please, anyone! Help me!


    It¡¯s no use, why¡¯s my voice not coming out??!!


    As the man came closer to me, he seems to be ogling at me with lecherous eyes.


    ¡°Hey, missy, wanna come to my house? I¡¯ll treat you to some food hehehe~~¡±


    ¡°Do-don¡¯t come a-any closer¡­¡±


    ¡°Why not? You seem like you¡¯re not capable of doing anything either, let me help you find your way home okay~~¡±


    <ol>


    <li>NO. Somebody! Please¡­..I¡¯m scared¡­</li>


    </ol>


    My body feels very weak, I can¡¯t seem to gather enough strength to do anything.


    I know it seems like I might be relying too much on you¡­


    But at this moment there¡¯s nothing I can think of that can save me except, you


    ¡°Hitori-kun!!¡±


    I let out a shout, wouldn¡¯t even call that a shout, more like a cry.


    ¡°Eh¡­.what¡¯s this? Some old pervert wanna take my woman home? That¡¯s not nice¡­.¡±


    The voice of the person that sometimes annoy me appeared suddenly.


    I looked around attempting to find the source of the voice.


    A person seems to be standing under the light pole facing me.


    ¡°Who are you? don¡¯t stick your nose around in someone else¡¯s business, scram before I teach you a lesson kid!¡±


    ¡°Oh, sorry, guess I¡¯ll just head back then¡±.


    What do you mean head back?! Help me! Seems like I can¡¯t get my voice out again.


    The person then approached me from the light pole, his face become clearer as he gets closer.


    My heart felt at ease when I see that face, Hitori.


    As Hitori got closer to the man, he turned around to hit Hitori,


    The gaze that Hitori gave him made his heart beating so fast that made his body collapsed from hyperventilation¡­¡­


    I could tell because I also felt that gaze, after all, I was just in front of him.


    Looking at the gaze, nothing but murderous intent is present in them.


    Looking at his eyes also felt like I¡¯m looking at something empty that I can only see my clear reflection and somehow that made my vision very blurry¡­I might pass out¡­


    ¡­


    ¡°Heh, such big talks from a trash doesn¡¯t intimidate me in the slightest,¡± I said and spit on the guy¡¯s head.


    If Kaichou weren¡¯t there¡­your life won¡¯t still be intact right now, scum.


    I turned my head at Kaichou, she doesn¡¯t seem conscious.


    ¡°Oh, Kaichou! Are you hurt anywhere?¡±


    ¡°She¡­.fainted¡­.I already knew you were following me¡­sorry to scare you like that¡­¡±


    I carried Kaichou in my arms like a bridal carry back to the hotel which was quite a distance, I didn¡¯t even realize that I had walked this far in the middle of the night¡­


    Why did I do this? Well, it¡¯s because carrying her in my back feels weirder to me at the very least, and she¡¯s wearing a long skirt, doesn¡¯t feel right¡­


    ¡­


    I then woke up to the sensation of being carried around¡­


    As I slowly open my eyes, the face of a man appeared in front of me, it somehow made my heart beat a lot faster.


    ¡°Eh¡­what happened?¡±


    In confusion, I asked Hitori who was holding me.


    ¡°Oh you¡¯re awake, don¡¯t worry I called the securities near this area to catch that guy, he turned out to be quite a wanted man around here¡­lots of girls got molested by that man, hearing that¡­¡­I regretted not giving him a beating¡­but you¡¯re more important to me than just beating some stinky old man, hehe¡±.


    Why are his words able to ease me?


    Realizing how embarrassing it is to be held like this,


    ¡°Put me down!¡±


    ¡°Oh, sorry¡­.can you walk properly? Your body seems awfully weak¡­¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m fine, let¡¯s go back before anyone notices¡±.


    ¡°Uh, yeah¡±.


    We quickly went back to the hotel without saying anything to each other.


    After getting ready to sleep, I checked my phone and found out that the pictures he took were sent to me,


    He does look very happy taking these photos, but why?


    He also called me his woman¡­.what¡¯s that supposed to mean, idiot.


    ¡­


    The next day, we walked through a different route than yesterday, this one has more of an old city vibe than yesterday which was filled with nature.


    Everything about this town felt like the original structure of the town is preserved here perfectly.


    Such an awe-inspiring scene to behold.


    ¡°Whoa, they really do have cities like this back in the days huh, must be fun wearing those kinds of clothes everyday¡­¡±


    Amidst my admiration for the beautiful town, I noticed that Kaichou is looking somewhat troubled.


    ¡­


    This guy, how can he act like nothing happened last night, what did he mean by woman? How did he know I was there?


    ¡°Kaichou?¡±


    I can¡¯t seem to find a conclusion on the events of last night, why did I fainted? That feeling¡­..I felt like my soul had been taken away¡­.. is that what he meant by the fear that overtook one¡¯s mind?


    ¡­


    ¡°Kaichou? Hello, earth to Kaichou, earth to Kaichou¡±.


    ¡°Oh, what is it?¡±


    ¡°You kind of spaced out there, anything bothering you?¡±


    ¡°No-nothing, what is it then?¡±


    ¡°Are you hungry?¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s with that question?¡±


    ¡°Well, I found a good place that sells these amazing takoyaki! Wanna go? Wanna go? Please~¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t takoyaki available anywhere?¡±


    ¡°This one¡¯s a bit different, I guess, either way, let¡¯s try some!¡±


    Kaichou just followed me around until we arrived at the place,


    ¡°Here we are, I think?¡±


    I¡¯m not very sure as I haven¡¯t been here before.


    ¡°Looks like a normal takoyaki stall to me¡±.


    ¡°Well, my mother said that never judge a book by its cover,¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    ¡°Two sets please!¡±


    ¡°Coming right up!¡±


    The sizzling sound of takoyaki being cooked and the aroma that it releases made my stomach even hungry while my mouth is filled with saliva¡­such delightful components.


    I watched as the takoyaki being cooked from the start, staring at them while I almost forgot that Kaichou was standing right beside me all this time.


    The only thing in my mind is takoyaki at that time¡­


    ¡°Here you go,¡±


    I paid for both of the sets while leaving Kaichou hanging her money that was meant to pay for her takoyaki.


    I purposely ignored her.


    ¡°It¡¯s on me, hehe¡±.


    ¡°Are you purposely making me feel indebted to you or something?¡±


    ¡°What? How could you say that? My heart is all broken to pieces now..arghh,¡±


    I tried to joke around...


    ¡°Consider this a token of my appreciation, believe it or not, meeting you somehow made my life a bit more meaningful¡­ah that sounds creepy as hell¡­.pretend you didn¡¯t hear that, let¡¯s try the takoyaki shall we! Itadakimasu~¡±


    As I took the first bite which was a whole takoyaki, the flavor burst and all that I could feel is heaven in my mouth¡­


    ¡°So good!!¡±


    ¡­


    Kaichou wondered a bit,


    They look pretty normal, but the look on his face seems like it might be good,


    As I took the first bite,


    This taste, texture, very delightful, how is this different than a normal takoyaki? I can¡¯t really figure it out. It¡¯s genuinely good. The taste even lingers around quite a while after swallowing it. Why am I feeling happy from consuming this spherical-shaped delicacy?


    ¡­


    Noticing that Kaichou had taken her first bite, I looked at her savoring the takoyaki,


    What a gorgeous smile¡­.


    ¡°I see you have taken a liking towards those pretty normal-looking takoyaki¡±.


    ¡°It¡¯s qu-quite a delight I¡¯d say¡±.


    ¡°Be honest with yourself for once Kaichou, ki ki ki¡±.


    ¡°Let us continue our tour¡±.


    ¡°Hehe, got it, let¡¯s go this way then¡±.


    We both then continue touring around the historic city.


    The second hidden attraction, it¡¯s here.


    ¡°Oh, here, I found another hidden route, wanna come?¡±


    ¡°If you insisted¡±.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go then¡±.


    ¡°This route seems a bit uneven and steep, watch your steps¡±.


    Just as I finished that sentence, Kaichou misstepped on the pavements and was about to fall.


    I quickly grabbed her hand to prevent her from falling¡­


    ¡°What did I just say? What a clumsy girl you are hihihi¡±.


    ¡°Silence! I was just a bit tired¡±.


    I noticed her face had turned a bit reddish, was she blushing?


    ¡°Tired huh? I wonder where all your usual bravado had gone to¡­.hihihi I¡¯m joking, I¡¯m joking, please don¡¯t hate me¡±


    After she got up, we continued walking along the irregularly shaped pavements with extra caution.


    ¡°Here¡­we¡­.are¡­wooaahh! Hurry up Kaichou! You have got to take a look at this¡±.


    Damn, that was too exhausting¡­I think I might die now¡­


    ¡­


    ¡°Let me guess, another tree-¡±


    As I viewed the scenery that Hitori brought me to, I was speechless, the scene was¡­.a mix of nature and old craftsmanship, it¡¯s as if this place was from a different version of the world.


    This view is indescribable, no words in this world are worthy to be used to describe such a view. But if I were to describe it, majestic is what I would use.


    Looking at this scenery, my heart feels at peace, I feel very happy to be able to witness this. And it was all thanks to this idiot right here panting as if he needed respiratory support.


    But why is he very kind to me? All I did was treat him less than an average person would. I just don¡¯t get it.


    ¡­


    ¡°So how¡¯s the view, Kai-¡±


    Eh, I¡¯m feeling dizzy¡­what¡¯s¡­happening¡­is this my limit?


    No, no, I need to at least get Kaichou safely back down first..that terrible sense of direction last night is going to be problematic to her if I pass out here.


    ¡°Kaichou, let¡¯s get back, it¡¯s getting quite late¡­¡±


    ¡°Just a few more minutes, it¡¯s not every day you can see a view such as this,¡±


    That¡¯s the first I¡¯ve seen her getting excited honestly. Well, a few minutes won¡¯t hurt.


    ¡°We made it down, fuh fuh,¡±


    My breathing is very rapid and might get noticed by Kaichou.


    ¡°Are you alright? Just now you talked down on my bravado, look who¡¯s laughing no-¡±


    ¡°Eh? Hitori-kun, why are you laying on the ground? Hey, stop joking! Hitori-kun! Somebody! Help!¡±


    ¡­

 Chapter 6 - Shouldnt Have Said That

    Hitori collapsed to the ground after we reached the ground from the path that we had taken to the hidden place.


    I immediately call sensei using my phone and send her my current location,


    ¡°Hitori-kun, what happened to you?¡±


    As I reached to touch his body, I was shocked that the temperature was unbelievably high, he has a fever, no doubt that this is a very bad fever I¡¯d say, it¡¯s like the fever was given no attention at all for it to be this bad.


    Sensei arrived with another teacher and brought Hitori to a nearby hospital, I was told to stay behind as I watch they took him away.


    A small piece of folded paper caught my attention where Hitori had collapsed. I curiously picked it up thinking it must be his.


    As I opened the piece of paper¡­..the contents¡­.made me feel very bad, but somehow happy too.


    Before I knew it, tears filled with mixed feelings that I just realized at that time began flowing down my cheek¡­.


    I thought all these visits to unsung places were mere coincidences¡­.


    ¡°Why would you go so far?¡­¡±


    ¡°Plans to give Kaichou the best school trip ever!¡±


    This is what was written in the note as the title along with the plans written below it.


    Seems like it was well planned, quite impressive I thought in my mind when I read them. All the places we had gone to is here written in the note.


    ¡­


    Uh¡­.what¡¯s this¡­where am I?


    ¡°Oh, you finally woke up, good,¡±


    It appears a doctor whose standing next to me said that.


    ¡°Hospital?¡±


    I can¡¯t seem to recall why and how I got here.


    ¡°Yes, you collapsed because your fever was too high, but that¡¯s not the actual case¡­I¡¯m sure you already know the reason¡±.


    The reason, yeah, I know it well.


    ¡°Yes¡­did you told them?¡±


    ¡°Rest assured, they were only informed about your fever¡±.


    ¡°Your body is stable now but you still need to rest to fully recover¡±.


    After listening to the doctor, I wondered for a bit and recalled something.


    School trip¡­


    ¡°The trip! Ah, it¡¯s night time already¡­¡±


    As I came to a realization, I panicked a bit and take a look outside the window, but it was nighttime already.


    I guess I miss my chance to give Kaichou the best trip, some kind of friend I am¡­


    Frustrated with it, I decided to leave the hospital.


    ¡°Can I go now?¡±


    ¡°Yes, but make sure to get plenty of rest¡±.


    ¡°Thanks for the help!¡±


    I walked out of the hospital looking at the night view of Kyoto, a thought came into my mind


    ¡°It¡¯s the same as yesterday, haha¡±


    ¡°Of course, why would the view change every day?¡±


    A voice suddenly appeared not too far from my position, this cold, almost soothing voice is none other than that person,


    ¡°Fancy meeting you here, Kaichou¡±.


    ¡°It was a mere coincidence that I happen to pass through this area to get some souvenirs¡±.


    ¡°I thought it was forbidden to go out after 8?¡±


    ¡°Well, since this is the last night we¡¯re going to be here, the teachers let the students go out until 10¡±.


    ¡°Eh, how thoughtful of them, that¡¯s pretty nice don¡¯t you think¡±.


    ¡°Is-is there anywhere you want to go?¡±


    She asked me with a little shaky voice.


    ¡°Anywhere I want to go? If it¡¯s anywhere then I wanna go inside your heart hehe,¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not physically possible, are you dumb or what?¡±


    ¡°Fufufu, it¡¯s just a joke¡­¡­then let¡¯s go buy some souvenirs, you said you¡¯re on your way to buy some right?¡±


    ¡°Ye-yes, but I don¡¯t know the place¡­¡±


    I forgot she got a sense of direction close to that green-haired pirate in an anime I watch.


    Looking around, I spotted a row of stalls that seems to sell souvenirs.


    This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.


    ¡°How about we just walk around those stalls, might found some nice things, come let¡¯s go¡±.


    I walked first but noticed that she was still standing there, I turned around and look at her.


    ¡°What are you waiting for? Want me to carry you like last time?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d rather die than be in that situation again¡±.


    ¡°Ehh¡­..you hated it that much?¡­. so-sorry then..¡±


    She proceeded to the stalls passing me and proceed to walk in front of me.


    A faint smile appeared as she walked.


    I followed her this time.


    Arriving at one of the stalls, something caught my attention.


    ¡°Oh look at this, this toy¡¯s just like you Kaichou,¡±


    I grabbed the toy that appears to be like a mini human figure with eyes that show no interest in anything, or simply said, cold, just like Kaichou¡¯s beautiful eyes.


    ¡°That thing does not resemble me in any way at all¡±.


    ¡°You think? Well I¡¯m gonna buy it just cause I think it looks like you, hahaha¡±.


    ¡°.¡­¡­.¡±


    ¡°What kind of souvenir are you looking for exactly?¡±


    ¡°Nothing in particular, just something to remember my trip here¡±


    ¡°How about this?¡±


    I showed Kaichou a miniature replica of a katana.


    ¡°Why would I get this?¡±


    ¡°Hmm, because samurais usually use katanas, and samurais are cool, they protected and fought for japan, ready to kill and be killed, such brave warriors¡±.


    The look on her face doesn¡¯t change a bit, must be uninterested.


    ¡°Well if you don¡¯t prefer it then let¡¯s carry on our search,¡±


    I said and went to another nearby stall leaving Kaichou holding the sword.


    Kaichou thought for a second and decided to buy the katana.


    ¡°I¡¯ll take this¡±.


    We searched for quite some time and nothing seems to be of interest to her.


    ¡°Nothing¡­you sure you¡¯re okay with nothing?¡±


    ¡°Yes, we must head back, it¡¯s getting late already¡±.


    ¡°I guess¡­¡±


    We proceeded to head back to the hotel with me leaving with a mini human figure resembling Kaichou.


    As I entered my room,


    ¡°Are you okay Hitori-kun??!!¡±


    ¡°I thought you were gone forever!!!¡±


    They¡¯re too loud¡­


    ¡°Whoa, stop being so loud, it¡¯s already late, I¡¯m fine and why would I die from a normal fever?¡±


    ¡°Whew¡­ so you¡¯re fine¡­care for another match?¡±


    Narukami suggested a card match while holding them in his hand.


    ¡°You¡¯re on! The last time was a fluke! Not happening again,¡±


    I gallantly accepted the challenge.


    We fought cards for quite a while until we exhausted ourselves falling asleep on the floor.


    The next morning,


    ¡°Is everyone here? Okay then, it¡¯s been a few days here and a lot of things happened, this is your last school trip as you are already third-year students, I hope you all enjoyed your trip,¡±


    Said a teacher substituting Ishizaki-sensei, she appeared to be sleeping on a bench nearby.


    ¡°Yeah! It was fun!" ¡±Kyoto rocks!¡± ¡±Wooo it¡¯s the best!¡± the voices of those who are happy can be heard cheering.


    ¡°Well I¡¯m glad you all had fun, as for yesterday¡¯s case, Hitori-kun who had a fever, was taken care of without any further casualties, but we will need you to issue an apology later as you did not inform us of your condition¡±.


    ¡°I¡¯m so sorry for the trouble!¡±


    I bowed my head apologizing for my actions.


    ¡°Well then, the train will arrive shortly, take this time to enjoy this area while waiting, dismiss¡±.


    I¡¯m exhausted, last night¡¯s game was too intense I ended up using my brain a little too much¡­.well, it was fun so I have no complaints.


    They all seem to be taking pictures together. Pictures are taken to serve as proof of the occurrence of something, in this context, as a memory to look back on as we grow older to reminisce the past.


    Yes, photos are merely events of the past, unless you¡¯re some kind of time traveler.


    It does look kinda fun, maybe I should-


    *ka-cha!*


    ¡°Uh, what¡¯s this?¡±


    After I was blinded by a light from an unknown source, my vision slowly became normal as I saw the face of a girl in front of me.


    ¡°Ka-Kaichou! Are you trying to make me blind?¡±


    ¡°What are you talking about, look at this picture of an idiot attempting the action of ¡®thinking¡¯¡±.


    ¡°Hey¡­.that¡¯s a bit cruel don¡¯t you think?¡±


    ¡°Nope, not at all¡±.


    ¡°.¡­..¡±


    ¡°You know it¡¯s a crime to take photos of others without their consent right?¡±


    ¡°That law does not apply to a being that is not considered a human though¡±.


    Am I an animal?


    ¡°Are you saying I¡¯m an animal?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re the one who said it, not me¡±.


    ¡°What! So I¡¯m an animal now?¡­¡­.¡±


    Refusing to lose in this argument, I attempted a comeback


    ¡°Then I shall be the guard dog to this pitiful girl¡±.


    ¡°Pitiful? Is that the best you can do?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m being awfully considerate here young lady¡­.¡±


    That somehow annoyed me a bit¡­


    The train arrived while they were in the middle of a small argument.


    ¡°The train, let¡¯s get going Kaichou,¡±


    I said while leaving her behind.


    ¡­


    ¡°Wai-¡±


    Why is it so hard to ask for a picture?¡­..


    Then, I boarded the train.


    Looking for a seat, I found an empty row and proceed to sit there alone.


    Being alone often gives me some kind of peace, but until recently, it has changed¡­


    Two boys suddenly approached the seat,


    ¡°Err, these are our seats, look, our bags are there¡±.


    Looking around, how could I not notice those bags.


    ¡°Oh, I¡¯m sorry for not noticing, please take your seat back¡±, while moving away from the seat.


    Can¡¯t see any empty seats, ah there¡¯s another empty row at the very back.


    I then moved to the seat after checking for any signs of other people marking their spot.


    ¡°Nothing, meaning that it¡¯s empty, I¡¯m so sleepy¡­¡±


    I immediately dozed off in the outer seat.


    ¡­


    Hmm¡­what kind of situation is this¡­I guess it¡¯s my fault I didn¡¯t leave anything to mark my spot here when I went to the washroom¡­.then how am I going to get in there, this sleeping ice queen is getting in the way, wouldn¡¯t wanna interrupt her slumber though..hmm might as well take a picture together hi hi hi¡­


    Wanna see the look on her face when I send her this picture, pfft¡­


    ¡°.¡­¡­¡±


    ¡°Well, at least the floor is still available I guess¡­¡±


    I went to sleep leaning on the wall and sitting on the floor right behind her seat.


    The sleeping pair continued to be in their dreams as the train set off.


    After arriving at their stop, Hitori immediately woke up because he had banged his head on the wall behind him.


    ¡°Ouch¡­.are we home?¡±


    I wondered as I look at the students packing their stuff.


    They¡¯re packing, which means we¡¯re home. Is Kaichou awake?


    I attempted to slowly stand up because I think my legs are numb sitting for too long on the floor.


    As I stood up, I found a sleeping beauty in the seat where I slept behind.


    Haven¡¯t woken up eh?


    *snap*


    I snapped my finger close to her ear which immediately woke her.


    ¡°Morning sunshine, we¡¯ve arrived, let¡¯s go home¡±.


    Kaichou who had been woken by my finger-snapping got annoyed.


    ¡°Perhaps you¡¯re angry with me? Eheh¡±.


    ¡°There are proper ways to wake people from their sleep¡±.


    Damn, she looks very annoyed¡­.


    ¡°Ah, sorry bout that, I was afraid people would notice your beautiful sleeping face, my bad¡±


    I said sincerely apologizing.


    ¡°Non-nonsense!¡±


    ¡°Enough, let¡¯s head home¡±.


    I can clearly see her face blushing after hearing what I said.


    ¡°Roger that ma''am!¡±


    We continued to walk home from the station.


    ¡°Wh-why are you following me?¡±


    She seems to be more annoyed than earlier.


    ¡°Well, I am a guard dog aren¡¯t I? Bark! Bark!¡±


    ¡°And from what are you guarding me against?¡±


    ¡°I dunno? Thieves? Maybe another molester?¡­¡­.I¡¯m joking, I¡¯m joking¡±.


    *SLAP*


    Kaichou seemed to had stopped and landed a slap on my face.


    A pain felt through my left cheek.


    ¡°.¡­..¡±


    ¡°So-sorry, I guess I went too far¡­.sorry¡±.


    Kaichou then walked away from me as I stand there a bit confused while touching the slapped cheek.


    I didn¡¯t know she would get mad¡­


    Either way, I can¡¯t let it be like this, gotta find a way to cheer her up¡­.


    Maybe if I give her a strawberry parfait she would forgive me? It¡¯s worth a try¡­


    From that day onwards, I spent every day trying to apologize to Kaichou by offering her strawberry parfait in the council room.


    Somehow this feels like an offering to a shrine God.


    Ah¡­.it¡¯s no use, she won¡¯t accept my apology¡­.


    ¡°Psst-¡±


    A whisper?


    ¡°Hm?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s us, the shadow vigilantes, a meeting will be held at our usual place after school, please attend to hear our reports, shuu~¡±


    Damn, that¡¯s cool, those guys, what report do they want to hand me? Hmm...


    When I arrived there,


    ¡°So what do you guys wanna tell me?¡±


    ¡°First of all! We¡¯re so glad Aniki¡¯s fine! Huuuuuu,¡±


    Why are they crying?


    ¡°We heard about your fever and thought you would leave us!! Sob sob¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not gonna die from a fever¡­.come on¡­.not you guys too¡­well, anything else? I got some things to do¡±.


    ¡°Ahem, next! We know what you were doing this past week after coming back from the trip¡±.


    ¡°You guys knew?!¡±


    ¡°Yeah we stalked you every day¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s too straightforward!¡±


    ¡°Well that aside, you were trying to get the president¡¯s attention, isn¡¯t that right Aniki?¡±


    ¡°But it¡¯s strange, I thought you two were already dating though¡­¡±


    ¡°Dating? Surely not¡­.¡±I said.


    ¡°The thing is that I did something that made her mad, I didn¡¯t know why she got mad though....¡±


    ¡°Care to tell us?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll just give an example of the situation, I can¡¯t expose the true events otherwise I¡¯ll kill myself for betraying her¡±.


    ¡°Fair enough, we don¡¯t want you dead too, carry on Aniki, tell us the story¡±.


    ¡°As an example, one day, person A went to the supermarket to buy some groceries, little did he know that he was being followed by person B, as the two of them walk around the supermarket, person B suddenly got lost but person A had long noticed he was being followed by person B until she got lost, person A then continued to observe person B standing alone until he noticed person F approached person B, from person A¡¯s perspective, person F was going to do something bad but person A continued to wait and watch until person B shouted person A¡¯s name and made it clear that she needed help, person A then appeared to help person B get rid of person F, and on their way home person A teased person B about what just happened and got slapped in the face, the end¡±.


    He got slapped by the president.


    ¡°So? Why do you think Kaic- I mean person B is mad?¡±


    ¡°I think the thing that triggered her anger was person A teasing about what happened in the supermarket¡±.


    ¡°I knew that at least, give me something else¡±.


    ¡°I think the true events that happened might have made her traumatic, I guess¡±.


    ¡°Yeah, that makes sense! She must be so scared after getting approached by person F, and when you- I mean person A teased her, she got very insecure and mad!¡±


    ¡°Whoa, that seems highly possible, amazing you guys,¡±


    ¡°Hehe, this is nothing~~¡± Genji and company flattered by the praise.


    ¡°Worry not as we shall lend you some advice!¡±


    ¡°Whoa, you guys can help me?!¡±


    ¡°Anything for our Aniki, give us a few days to find some ways, but it won¡¯t directly involve us¡±.


    ¡°Why not?¡±


    ¡°We might get slaughtered by the president¡±


    ¡°That might be true¡­.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m counting on you guys, for now, I¡¯ll just do what I¡¯ve done this past week,¡±


    I said that and walked away from the place.


    ¡­


    Aniki is putting his trust in us, we must fulfill this duty with complete excellency. Guys! Search for something that cheers up an ice queen! For Aniki!!


    ¡°Our task! Project Cheer Up The Ice Queen For Aniki! In this project, we will find a way for the president to forgive Aniki, the question is what makes a girl¡¯s heart open up? If we can find something for Aniki to open up her heart, she will surely forgive him!¡±


    ¡°Yeah!!¡±


    ¡°Well then, let the search, begin!¡±

 Chapter 7 - Commencing Operation

    Team Fujisaka and Genji,


    ¡°Boss it appears that those girls are talking about girls stuff, lets try hearing,¡±


    ¡°Good idea Fujisaka, let¡¯s do that¡±.


    Technique: the old fashion eavesdropping!


    Team Aoki and Kasaki,


    ¡°Yow Kasaki, I think this site has some nice ideas, I¡¯m sending you the link on tiscord,¡±


    *parody of discord*


    ¡°Huh-oh yeah, I¡¯ll open it later,¡±


    ¡°Later? Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re playing some weird eroge again!¡±


    *eroge means erotic games*


    ¡°Eh, how did you know?¡±


    Technique: the internet where literally everything is at the tip of the fingers! Everything!


    The guys worked their asses off gathering information, compiling, and confirming their viability in Aniki¡¯s situation. Ranking their effectiveness towards Kuuderes which is very rare that makes the information on them hard to be obtained from a trusted source.


    ¡°This is harder than I expected! All the techniques don¡¯t match the president¡¯s personality to be effective! I might give up!¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t say that! Imagine what Aniki will say to us if we manage to pull this off!¡±


    *imagination*


    ¡°Good work guys, you¡¯re the best, how could I possibly pay for your kindness?¡±


    ¡°This is nothing! We¡¯re capable of much more, kuh kuh kuh¡±.


    ¡°You guys are awesome!!!!¡±


    ¡°Ahhhhh, nice¡­.¡±


    ¡°Yosh!!!! Let¡¯s live up to his expectation!!¡±


    ¡°Yosh!!¡±


    The day where they would present their suggestions had come.


    ¡°So¡­why are we in the theater room again?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s because we had prepared a slideshow for you Aniki¡±.


    ¡°Errr¡­doesn¡¯t seem necessary to me¡­¡±


    ¡°Of course it¡¯s necessary! Well then, enjoy the presentation¡±.


    ¡°What is a Kuudere? According to the internet, it refers to a person¡¯s characteristics which are often cold, blunt, and somewhat cynical. They may seem quite emotionless and stoic on the outside, but little did we know that on the inside they''re very caring¡­¡­at least when it comes to the ones they hold dear. So what makes a Kuudere a hard one to catch? The problem lies within the person that the Kuudere is dealing with. The person must be well educated on faint emotions and is recommended to not be dense as anything they do will never even have a chance of success. Multiple methods are proven to be completely useless to soften their heart. But worry not as we, the shadow vigilantes had come up with an ultimate idea that will surely work if it¡¯s patiently applied with maximum care at precise measurements taken over time. But this method might also be a double-edged sword as if the user fails to control his feelings it might prove to be fatal to the user. For example, the user must be able to express the right amount of feelings, if it were to be slightly too much or too little, the risk of getting broken for life will increase exponentially.¡±


    ¡°Are you ready for the revelation? Are you truly prepared? Have you gone mad that your final resolve is this revelation? Do you value yourself less than other people to be able to execute this act of courage and potentially sacrificial?¡±


    ¡°Just say it!¡± starting to get annoyed¡­


    ¡°Well then, behold! The one and only way to catch the president¡¯s heart back for Aniki!¡±


    ¡°A THOUSAND CONFESSIONS!!!!!¡±


    ¡°What the heck!!!???¡±


    ¡°A thousand confessions?! Are you serious?!¡±


    ¡°Of course! From our investigation and research through these few days, everything that we had found reached a dead end, literally every method and way, no matter how expensive or cheap, fancy or poor, it just won¡¯t work with your situation¡±.


    ¡°But, we finally found one method which is a thousand confessions!¡±


    ¡°It might sound like a stupid idea, and they don¡¯t even have any proof that this will work, but from our own judgment towards your recent relationship with the president, we have no doubt that this will work!¡±


    ¡°So you¡¯re telling me that if I confessed a hundred times, she will finally be able to forgive me?¡±


    ¡°Kind of, more or less¡±.


    ¡°And what¡¯s this about the double-edged sword?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­.considering that you are a normal human being, getting your heart broken a thousand times might not make you human again¡­.¡±


    ¡°You mean getting rejected every time? That seems¡­unbearable..¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about the trivial things Aniki! If there¡¯s a will, there¡¯s a way!¡±


    ¡°Err¡­.I can¡¯t say I agree with your plan, but it does sound kinda fun when I think about it¡­hehe¡±.


    ¡°By the way, where did you found this idea? Surely not from some shitty forum right?¡±


    ¡°It was from a shitty forum,¡± :)


    ¡°.¡­of course¡­.¡±


    ¡°Well, after all, you guys put quite a lot of effort in this, might as well give it a try¡±.


    ¡°Aniki! Gambatteh!¡±


    ¡°Thanks, guys!¡­. I can¡¯t afford to buy a lot of those parfaits too though¡­¡±


    ¡°What did you say Aniki?¡±


    ¡°Ah, nothing¡­thanks again! Wish me luck!¡±


    ¡°Good luck Aniki!¡±


    I walked towards the exit and left the room leaving them inside.


    A thousand confession¡­does this mean I gotta say ¡®I love you¡¯ a thousand times to Kaichou?¡­Doesn¡¯t seem that hard though, but the logic behind it, is it suppose to make her feel better? Or will she hate me more? Yikes! What would anyone do if they got confessed that many times? If once, the reaction would be like ¡®So this guy likes me, do I like this guy? what if I say yes?¡¯ the guy would get rejected if the girl doesn¡¯t have any feelings toward the guy. If a second confession is made by the same guy, she would feel annoyed and start to question what the guy likes about her.


    Depend on the answer, he might get a chance¡­.or just straightforwardly got rejected again¡­.the question is what happens if a guy would confess a thousand times? Would the guy feel better even if he got rejected that many times or the opposite would happen? Will the girl grow more annoyed with the guy or start to soften up?¡­¡­ I can¡¯t conclude¡­.a human¡¯s heart is simply too complicated to understand¡­. a robot or a droid is way easier to understand¡­.simply because they don¡¯t have feelings, to begin with¡­.


    It¡¯s been a week and a half since the incident, I¡¯ve bought parfait¡¯s every day for Kaichou for her to forgive me¡­but I was ignored all the time and the parfait was never taken by Kaichou¡­I ended up giving them to the kid who always plays around my apartment, Marie-chan, well at least I got to see her happy face when she enjoys them.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    Tomorrow, I¡¯ll start the plan! A thousand confessions!


    As morning arrives, as usual, I will meet her for the morning duty in front of the school gate.


    Gulp¡­I¡¯m gonna do it, I¡¯m gonna do it, I¡¯m gonna do it¡­..


    ¡°Ka-Kaichou..¡±


    As expected, no response just like before¡­


    ¡°I-I¡¯m sorry for last time¡­.please forgive me¡­..¡±


    ¡°I-I--¡±


    Shit! This is too intense! I felt like my heart is going to jump out!


    ¡°Lo-lo¡­..I LOVE YOU Kaichou!¡±


    I did it! I did it! Now, what???


    She¡­..doesn¡¯t seem bothered by it¡­.still ignored me like a piece of candy wrapper on the road¡­..


    But why are the students looking at me?¡­.these faces of sympathy¡­.


    I guess this might work! If I kept getting ignored like this, it won¡¯t be much of a trouble, is it? Whew¡­


    ¡­


    Wha-what is happening?! Did Hitori just con-confessed to me??!! Wh-why? Does he like me? What do I say? Do I just ignore him? But ignoring him all this time seems to hurt me as well¡­but if I respond to his confession, I wouldn¡¯t be ignoring him and will make him think that he had won.


    But it¡¯s not that I meant to slap him in the first place, I was just a bit traumatized¡­.after all, he was the one who saved me¡­if anything I should apologize to him¡­I just can¡¯t¡­this highly egotistical behavior of mine is preventing me from doing so¡­


    ¡­


    I continued to confess to Kaichou every time we meet each other, even though getting ignored every time, I still persevered in obtaining her forgiveness.


    At this point, everyone in the school had grown accustomed to my confessions to Kaichou. Some think it¡¯s very sweet and romantic, while others thought that my actions are dumb and had become crazy to do something like this, even Chiba said it...


    ¡°This is going nowhere¡­.I need to step up my game, I¡¯ll make a journal of my journey for the thousand confessions, seems like I might be able to find something¡±.


    I then opened up a book and wrote everything that I noticed and any slight changes each day.


    ¡°Yosh! I can keep track of what to improve and what to discard! Almost like a real research I¡¯d say ki ki ki¡±.


    The days went by as normal as possible, only with Kaichou ignoring me all the time.


    ¡°You don¡¯t know when to stop, do you? Hahahaha that¡¯s the bro I know! Keep it up,¡±


    Sasaki said to me when were patrolling one day.


    ¡°I can¡¯t stop now before accomplishing my goal¡±


    ¡°You mean to get Kaichou to like you back?¡±


    ¡°Huh? I mean to get her to forgive me¡­..remember I told you about something I did that made her mad?¡±


    ¡°The analogically explained story at the supermarket? Yeah..you got slapped by Kaichou! Hahaha¡±


    ¡°It was an analogy! Come on¡­¡±


    ¡°Got it, got it, so it wasn¡¯t a confession of love?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­.I¡¯m not entirely sure about that too though¡­¡±


    ¡°Eh?¡±


    Meanwhile at the student council room


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s time to stop ignoring him Kaichou?¡±


    ¡°Why would I?¡±


    ¡°I mean, before this, you two seem like a lovely couple I¡¯d say, but after the trip, you¡¯ve never even spoken to him, I don¡¯t know what happened between you two¡±.


    ¡°Such nonsense, why would you care?¡±


    ¡°Of course I¡¯d care! You both are my precious friends! Is it not normal for me to be concerned about my friends?¡±


    ¡°Friends? I don¡¯t recall being friends with anyone¡±.


    ¡°I¡¯m¡­.not your friend?¡­. Not even Hitori-kun?¡±


    ¡°You got that right, friends?¡­. I didn¡¯t need them before, why would I need them now?¡±


    ¡°Wow¡­I¡¯m¡­kinda sad right now¡­¡±


    Makino walked and left the room.


    As Sasaki and I was about to return to the room, we saw Makino walking out of the room with a sad and disappointed face.


    ¡°Makino? Where is she going?¡±


    I immediately caught up to her.


    ¡°Where are you going? I thought we got some work to do?¡±


    ¡°Hitori-kun, Sasaki-kun, are you my friends?¡±


    Why is she suddenly asking such a question?


    ¡°Of course, why¡¯d you even bother asking?¡±


    ¡°Did something happened? You¡¯re crying¡­¡±


    Sasaki asked Makino trying to take a grasp on the situation.


    ¡°Kaichou¡­.she said none of us are her friends¡­¡±


    ¡°Oh¡­well I don¡¯t think she means it though¡­don¡¯t take her words so seriously okay¡­¡±


    ¡°It hurts my heart hearing her say that¡­it¡¯s as if I¡¯m hearing my old self¡­¡±


    ¡°Your old self?¡±


    ¡°When I was in junior high school¡­..no one wanted to be my friend because I didn¡¯t know how to communicate with them, everything they talked about, I had no interest in them, whenever it¡¯s lunchtime, I would just sit in my seat and read mangas instead of talking to them, at that time, I always thought that being alone is far better than forcing myself to socialize with people, they just talk about themselves and things they are interested in, it¡¯s not that I didn¡¯t make an effort to socialize with them, it¡¯s just every time I talk about the things that interest me, they would just stay quiet and look at something else¡­I almost felt like killing them right there¡­that¡¯s why I had decided rather than getting humiliated like that, it¡¯s better not even trying to communicate with them¡­.but as I advance grades, I noticed something is missing in myself¡­is it the presence of a friend? That is the first thing that came to my head, after a while I decided to analyze my class¡¯s cliques, I found a group that might be interested in being friends with me, I built up the courage to interact with them¡­.to my surprise, they accepted me and quickly became my friends, the joy I felt that moment was indescribable, I was very happy even though I¡¯ve made just a few friends, that is when I decided to make friends with everyone, I also found out that idols are loved by everyone, the feeling of having friends to share everything is priceless¡±.


    ¡°That¡¯s a pretty nice story, Makino-san, I¡¯m proud you overcame it yourself, this might be a bit too late but, congratulations!¡±


    Hearing her courageous story, I complimented her.


    ¡°Stop crying then, it¡¯s not like you to cry like this, what happened to the idol of this school? Ka ka ka¡±.


    ¡°Tha-thanks,¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, what Kaichou said is exactly the opposite of what she thinks, I guess, but I¡¯m not sure about her ignoring me¡­¡­I feel like dying already¡­..ughh¡­¡±


    ¡°For what you just said, look at you now¡­¡± she said.


    ¡°Huuuu¡­¡±


    ¡°For now I guess we can just act normal, her problem is not a conflict between her and someone else, but between herself¡±.


    ¡°I want to help Kaichou, I know the feeling of loneliness! It hurts even though I¡¯m used to it¡±.


    ¡°In Kaichou¡¯s case, it might be different, we need to find that reason first before anything else otherwise that sentiment of her might get worse if we act irrationally or inappropriately, it¡¯s like when you ask someone who is clearly mad whether they¡¯re mad or not, of course that anger is going to be fueled even more,¡± Sasaki explained.


    For a musclehead like him, he sure has an incredible way of thinking.


    ¡°I guess that¡¯s true, then what should we do?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure¡­¡±


    Suddenly I thought of an idea.


    ¡°Oh, why don¡¯t we ask her family instead? Like her parents or siblings,¡±


    ¡°She does have a younger sister, but other than that like her relationship with her or anything else is a mystery,¡± Makino said.


    ¡°Family huh, that might actually work, but what if she found out?¡± Sasaki asked.


    ¡°Gotta devise a plan for this, and I know a bunch of people up for a task like this¡±.


    After that, I brought them to a place.


    Behind the school area where the shadow vigilantes¡¯ headquarter reside


    ¡°So you guys want to get inside the president¡¯s house without getting known by her huh, seems like an impossible plan,¡± Genji said.


    ¡°You sure we can trust these ex-delinquents, Hitori-kun?¡± Makino asked me.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, they had gone from complete trash to slightly not trash level, hehe¡±.


    ¡°Is it really impossible?¡±


    ¡°Well, you know us very well right Aniki?¡±


    ¡°Not much actually¡±.


    ¡°So of course you know that there is nothing that we can¡¯t do¡±.


    Are they just going to ignore my response?


    ¡°Nice, then how long are you guys going to take to come up with a plan?¡±


    ¡°Actually, we already figured it out, look behind me, my guys had already devised a plan while we were speaking, kuh kuh kuh¡±.


    ¡°Already?! Amazing!¡± Sasaki praised them.


    ¡°A praise from Aniki¡¯s friends is also music to our ears! Waaaa¡±.


    ¡°So what¡¯s the plan?¡± Makino asked.


    ¡°Oh, it¡¯s very simple even a kindergarten kid can come up with,¡± Fujisaka said.


    ¡°Tha-that easy? Why am I getting annoyed even hearing this guy¡¯s voice¡­¡± Makino annoyed by Fujisaka.


    ¡°In this week on Wednesday, the president will be going home late, as usual, I think you all should have known that already, that¡¯s the only time you can go to her house without her noticing, but to avoid any suspicion, I suggest only two or one people go visit her house while the rest stays in the student council room, that¡¯s all¡±.


    ¡°But you gotta take the risk of anyone from her house telling her that you visited, quite a deadly risk I¡¯d say¡±.


    ¡°Hmm¡­seems very reasonable, I guess it¡¯s not that bad of a plan though it is pretty simple don¡¯t you think bro?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, looks good to me, so who¡¯s gonna do the visiting?¡±


    ¡°.¡­.¡±


    ¡°Why is everyone staring at me?¡±


    ¡°M-me?¡±


    ¡°Who else? Seems like you¡¯re the only one qualified to do the job I guess,¡± Makino said.


    ¡°You look like the person for the job bro¡±.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry Aniki you will succeed! We can guarantee that!¡±


    ¡°Errrr¡­..I¡¯ll try my best¡­.¡±


    I hesitantly accepted the role.


    After the meeting, I decided to head home.


    ¡°Why do I have to be the person to go ask her family, they probably won¡¯t let me in, I¡¯m just a no one after all¡­¡±


    Passing by a convenience store


    ¡°Ah might as well get dinner at the convenience store..¡±


    ¡°Thanks for coming!¡±


    As I was coming out of the store, a little girl seems like about 10 years old can be seen in front looking worried.


    ¡°Are you lost?¡±


    ¡°N-no! I¡¯m just a bit confused on the roads around this area¡±.


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that what being lost is all about?¡±


    ¡°I¡­guess so¡±.


    ¡°Want me to help?¡±


    ¡°Please!¡±


    ¡°Okay! Where are you going exactly? How did you get lost on such simple roads like this?¡±


    ¡°This address, it¡¯s where I live, I went here alone to buy some snacks and now I don¡¯t know how to get back home, I¡¯m a bit bad at remembering the roads¡±.


    Why is this situation kind of reminds me of someone¡­


    ¡°Let me take a look at the address.¡±


    ¡°Here¡±.


    Haaaa¡­.I should have known¡­.this sense of direction, she is Kaichou¡¯s little sister¡­


    ¡°I-I know this place, come let me show you the way¡±.


    ¡°Okay!¡±


    ¡°So what¡¯s your name? I¡¯m Hitori Yume¡±.


    ¡°Yagami Koemi!¡±


    ¡°Koemi-chan?¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡±


    ¡°How¡¯s school?¡±


    ¡°School is fun! I have plenty of friends! I think the whole school is my friend!¡±


    ¡°Whoah is that so, you must be very famous right?¡±


    ¡°Hihihi, I know right!¡±


    ¡°By the way, didn¡¯t your teachers taught you not to talk to strangers?¡±


    ¡°Yeah!¡±


    ¡°Aren¡¯t I a stranger to you?¡±


    ¡°We-well..¡±


    The look on the face immediately changed to a worried expression.


    ¡°I¡¯m joking, haha, but seriously, don¡¯t talk to people you don¡¯t know got it?¡±


    ¡°Today you¡¯re lucky it¡¯s me, but what if someone else, someone who wants to do bad things to you?¡±


    ¡°Uhh¡­¡±


    ¡°Ahah, don¡¯t get scared, it¡¯s just a reminder, you have a poor sense of direction, so I¡¯m worried if you got lost again when going outside alone..why don¡¯t you bring someone?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t have anyone else, only the maids but they would scold me if I ask them¡­¡±


    I thought she got plenty of friends? What about her sister, Kaichou?


    ¡°You have any siblings?¡±


    ¡°A big sister but she doesn¡¯t pay any attention to me at all, just ignoring me all the time¡­¡±


    How could you ignore this cute little being Kaichou?


    ¡°How about your friends? You have plenty of them right?¡±


    ¡°They live so far from my house¡­¡±


    ¡°Are you¡­..alone then?¡±


    She nodded while showing a sad expression¡­


    Damn this is frustrating to watch a kid like this¡­


    ¡°Come with me¡±.


    ¡°Where?¡±


    ¡°Just come, it¡¯ll be fun, hehe¡±


    ¡°O-okay¡­¡±


    ¡­


    ¡°Uwahhh!! Delicious!!¡±


    ¡°I know right! hahaha¡±


    I brought Koemi-chan to get some ice cream, looking at her eating the ice cream almost remind me of Kaichou...


    ¡°Do you like it?¡±


    ¡°So much!¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s go I got another place I wanna bring you¡±.


    ¡°Okay!!¡±


    ¡­


    ¡°Whoa!! is this what an arcade looks like??!!¡±


    ¡°Come, let¡¯s play something¡±.


    ¡°I can?¡±


    ¡°Why not?¡±


    ¡°Yay!! I wanna play that shooting one¡±.


    ¡°Here, take these tokens and put them inside here, then u can start playing¡±.


    ¡°Woww¡±.


    ¡°Ah, it¡¯s starting!¡±


    ¡°Take the gun! Shoot the zombies! Fast!¡±


    ¡°Ah! Take these mean zombies!¡±


    ¡°Ahah you¡¯re pretty good at this¡±.


    ¡°Umu, your compliment flatters me, kind sir¡±.


    Ahah...


    A kid is supposed to be having fun like this.


    We spent quite a lot of time playing games then, I guess she never had fun like this before.


    My heart felt at ease watching her excitedly enjoying the games here. Aren¡¯t childhood supposed to be a fun and memorable time in our lives?


    ¡°A crane! Let¡¯s play that one next!¡±


    She pointed at a claw machine with plushies inside.


    ¡°Okay, okay, no need to rush now¡±.


    ¡°But I need to get home soon¡±.


    Hearing she said that, I looked at my phone, I guess we¡¯ve been here for quite a long time now.


    ¡°Ow¡­yeah¡­¡±


    ¡°Then let¡¯s win that bunny quickly¡±.


    ¡°Bunny! Bunny!¡±


    In the end, we got a frog plushy¡­


    Then I walked her home from the arcade.


    ¡°Sorry I didn¡¯t get the bunny for you..¡±


    ¡°This frog is cute too, thank you so much onii-chan¡±.


    Onii-chan....that¡¯s a word that I haven¡¯t heard for a long time¡­


    Onii-chan¡­.why does it makes my heart feel very heavy¡­


    Oh, yeah¡­.that¡¯s cause¡­


    The sight of a young girl came to my mind as if the person is very close to me.


    ¡°Onii-chan!¡± the voice of that person suddenly played in my head.


    ¡°Eh..what¡¯s this,¡±


    My eyes had begun to drop tears before I know it¡­


    Why? I thought I¡¯ve accepted¡­


    ¡°Onii-chan?¡±


    Why are you still here?


    ¡°Onii-chan?¡±


    ¡­I¡¯m¡­..sorry¡­.


    ¡°Onii-chan?!¡±


    The voice of the kid made me snap out of my thoughts.


    ¡°Eh!?¡±


    ¡±What¡¯s wrong?.. Why are you crying?¡±


    ¡°Uh, no-nothing, just some dust got in my eyes, come let¡¯s go¡±.


    ¡°Here we are Koemi-chan, your house¡±.


    ¡°Thank you onii-chan!¡±


    ¡°Ah here, this is my phone number, if you want to go out again next time, call me, don¡¯t go alone okay¡±.


    ¡°Got it! Bye, onii-chan!¡±


    ¡°Bye-bye!¡±


    She then entered her house from the main gate.


    What a nice girl¡­being called onii-chan¡­.I never thought I would be able to hear someone call me that again¡­.


    Does Kaichou have a bad relationship with her sister?


    Aren¡¯t we supposed to care for our families more than anything in this world?


    I guess tomorrow I¡¯ll try to find out more.

 Chapter 8 - Ice Queen

    The day has arrived for me to visit Kaichou¡¯s house¡­this is nerve-wracking.


    I managed to avoid student council works under the pretext of not feeling well, even though she doesn¡¯t respond to me, I guess not holding me back also means she allowed it? I hope so


    Here I am standing in front of the huge mansion that is also home to Kaichou and Koemi-chan.


    What¡¯s Koemi-chan going to say if I tell her I¡¯m acquainted with her sister?


    I pushed the button on the door intercom


    ¡°Hello? Anyone there?¡±


    ¡°Ah yes, what is your business here?¡±


    ¡°Uhm I¡¯m Hitori, Kori-san¡¯s¡­acquaintance¡±


    ¡°She hasn¡¯t come back from school¡±


    ¡°No no, I don¡¯t want to meet her, perhaps her parents are home? I would like to meet them for a bit¡±


    ¡°Yes they are here, let me ask them if they would allow, please wait for a minute¡±


    ¡°Okay¡±


    Her parents are home right now.


    Damn my palms are sweating a pool right now¡­


    The nervousness is getting into my head, what if they are some strict parents where even breathing the air inside the house needs their approval?


    After I stand there for a few minutes a girl dressed as a maid came approaching me and the gate opened up automatically.


    ¡°Are you the visitor? Then please come with me¡±


    The maid asked me with a formal tone.


    ¡°Ah yes¡±


    Then I followed her into the mansion, there was a beautiful garden full of vibrant flowers right in front of the house. There was even a fountain in the middle of it.


    I never knew such a place existed in this area until just now.


    I was stunned by the magnificent structure of the whole mansion as if the mansion was some kind of historical architecture.


    Almost the kind that westerners would have. Perhaps they originated from the West?


    The maid that was guiding me then brought me into the mansion.


    Damn, the insides are as good as the outside, equally elegant as the ones residing in it.


    Whilst being amazed, I heard a voice


    ¡°Onii-chan?!¡±


    It¡¯s Koemi-chan! Didn¡¯t think I would get found out this early but whatever.


    ¡°Hey, Koemi-chan!¡±


    ¡°What are you doing here onii-chan?¡±


    ¡°Koemi-chan, please refrain from disturbing our guest, he has a meeting with Master and Miss shortly¡±


    Master and Miss, is that how they address them?


    ¡°It¡¯s fine don¡¯t worry¡±


    ¡°Tell me tell me, why are you meeting otou-san and okaa-san?¡±


    *otou-san refers to Dad while okaa-san refers to Mom


    ¡°There¡¯s something I want to ask them about your sister¡±


    ¡°My sister? Do you mean onee-chan? Do you know onee-chan?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, she and I go to the same high school¡±


    ¡°Wahh, amazing!¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s amazing?¡±


    ¡°She never brought home any friends before, at least after her-¡±


    Her sentence was cut off by the maid that was guiding me.


    ¡°Koemi-chan, I think that¡¯s enough, Master and Miss is waiting for him, we shall go now¡±


    ¡°Ah sorry, onii-chan you can go now under my command, umu¡±


    Why am I under your command? What a cute kid.


    ¡°Then I shall go, see you later Koemi-chan¡±


    ¡°Be nice to them!!¡±


    She shouted as I followed the maid. ¡®Be nice to them¡¯? Are they going to eat me if I don¡¯t?!Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!


    This is making me more nervous¡­so cruel Koemi-chan¡­


    The maid then asked me to wait in a room, I sat on the sofa in the middle of the room and waited.


    The room has a professor room kind of vibes, perhaps her parents are scientists?


    As I waited, my nervousness is making my body cold even though my palms have been sweating so much since I was at the front gate.


    My heart was pounding as if a killer was beside the door waiting to come in and take my life.


    Shit, I can''t stop this anxiety!


    ¡°Is that the boy?¡±


    Suddenly I heard someone whispering, then I turned my head towards the door and saw a couple peeking at me¡­


    Could they possibly be her parents?


    They had noticed me and were a bit in a panic before entering the room and sat on the sofa in front of me.


    ¡°Good afternoon, I¡¯m Hitori Yume, an acquaintance of your daughter Yagami Kori and a friend to Yagami Koemi¡±


    I introduced myself in a proper formal manner.


    ¡°Hitori-kun, so you want to marry my daughter is it?¡±


    WHAT THE HELL?!


    ¡°Wha-what!?!?!¡±


    Marry?! When did I even mention it in my life?


    ¡°Eh? So you don¡¯t, what the hell Maria?!¡±


    ¡°Hehehe, it¡¯s a joke!¡±


    Peeking from the door, another maid said that and ran away¡­


    ¡°What the hell is wrong with you?!¡±


    Her father also seemed to be chasing the maid in the hall¡­


    Is this how Kaichou¡¯s family is?¡­


    Her mother then said


    ¡°Erm, sorry for the disturbance just now¡±


    ¡°My husband is always like that, don¡¯t worry about them¡±


    She said it like this is a normal occurrence in the house.


    ¡°Ahah, I didn¡¯t expect it to be like this, I mean this house is already very fancy so I thought the ones living inside it are even classier, not that you¡¯re not classy, it¡¯s just a bit different¡±


    ¡°Rest assured I get what you¡¯re trying to say, but our family is what it is, you don¡¯t like it?¡±


    ¡°Why would I not like having cheerful people around me? Haha¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s going to happen to you him?¡±


    ¡°Just let him be, he¡¯ll eventually get tired and fall asleep somewhere in the house¡±


    Why is she saying that casually¡­


    ¡°So what do you want to talk about? Oh, my bad, my name in Yagami Mayumi, and my husband is Yagami Shuji¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m here to find out about your daughter, Kori-san¡¯s past with her friends¡±


    She suddenly had a different face than before.


    ¡°You want to know?¡±


    She asked me with a serious tone.


    ¡°Yes please¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    ¡°Then let¡¯s talk about it somewhere else, I¡¯ll ask the maids to get something to drink, follow me¡±


    She stood up and told me to follow her to another place.


    Without any objection I followed her to a place near the flower garden, there was a small round table and two chairs there, where the view towards the flower garden captivated me for a while with its vibrant colors being amplified even more by the sunlight where the intensity is just the right amount.


    If this was a try not to be amazed challenge, I would have lost before it even started.


    As we sat down, a maid comes serving us tea and left shortly after that.


    ¡°This is the best spot to have a conversation in this house, such an amazing view,¡± she said as she watches the same scenery I was amazed by.


    She put down her cup of tea on the round table and appear to be in a serious expression.


    ¡°So you want to know about Kori¡¯s past friend?¡±


    ¡°Yes please¡±


    ¡°Assuming that you¡¯re in the same school, you must have noticed that she doesn¡¯t have any friends or at least ones that she acknowledges¡±


    ¡°Ye-yeah¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m telling you this in hopes that you can help her, but you don¡¯t need to push yourself¡±


    She¡¯s saying it as if they had tried everything but nothing seems to work, in other words, they¡¯re at the end of the rope.


    ¡°I¡¯ll do everything I can to help her, seeing her like this somehow hurts me¡­¡±


    ¡°Is that so, huhu¡±


    ¡°Around 6 years ago, she wasn¡¯t like this, she used to be cheerful and happy all the time because she had many friends, but there was one friend that she held very dear to, her name was Sora, a very sweet and cute girl, they would do almost everything together, from eating to taking baths¡±


    Baths?!!


    ¡°They were very close like siblings, she looked like the happiest person in the world every time they were together, if they were separated she would always be worried and feel lonely despite having me and her sister who was around four years old at that time¡±.


    ¡°One day, a very unfortunate event had taken place around this area, a kidnapping spree of children happened around this area¡±.


    Kidnapping spree¡­hey¡­


    ¡°Does that mean¡­¡±


    ¡°Yes, her best friend, Sora was kidnapped¡­¡±


    It can¡¯t be¡­


    ¡°At first, when she heard about it, she thought it was a joke that we came up with so she kept telling herself that those were lies¡±


    ¡°After realizing that she hasn¡¯t appeared for a long time, the truth unfolded itself slowly in front of her, she was slowly devastated¡±


    ¡°It came to a point where she would lock herself up in her room without eating or doing anything, I was worried to death at that time, she won¡¯t talk to anyone, even her sister, I even thought that she might have killed herself in her room¡­that was the scariest experience I had gone through in my life¡­¡±


    ¡°Every day we would try to talk to her from the door, but there was no response, not even a sound of any movement inside the room¡­¡±


    ¡°Then one day, she came out of her room, acting weird. She would minimize conversation and just go through life as normal, like a robot programmed to do one thing and only that thing is what she would do¡±


    ¡°Her facial expression had also been the same all this time, the empty emotionless doll¡­¡±


    ¡°A doll, if I remember, she did show me a few other expressions¡­¡±


    ¡°She did?!!¡±


    She suddenly stood up and got close to me being excited and shocked.


    ¡°Ye-yeah¡­¡±


    ¡°For 6 years, I had been looking at that doll face of hers¡­and you somehow made her express something other than that? Are you some kind of angel?!¡±


    She seems genuinely surprised and somewhat in shock.


    ¡°Calm down Yagami-san¡­¡±


    After I asked her to calm down, I suddenly saw water dropping on the table¡­I looked up and saw her crying with her hands on the table.


    ¡°Eh? Why are you crying?¡±


    ¡°All this time¡­I thought no one could change her¡­for 6 years we brought her to meet with so many people thinking we can change her somehow¡­¡±


    ¡°I guess fate does its job in the most mysterious way¡­¡±


    Her face turned to relief as if all the stress she held up is finally able to be released.


    ¡°Thank you¡­I believe if anyone can help my daughter, it would be you¡­¡±


    I was a bit confused but an urge had appeared in me to help Kaichou more than ever.


    Thinking back, Kaichou really does make a good expression whenever she does one.


    I don''t think people who lack emotion express themselves as naturally as she did... albeit the chances are astronomically low.


    Then was she faking her demeanor the whole time?


    A while after that, her husband came and was told everything.


    As soon as he heard about it, he immediately came and hugged me while tears flowing down to my shoulder.


    Damn this full-grown man is crying like a damn waterfall...


    ¡°Thank you so much!!! Please help my daughter!!!¡±


    ¡°I will¡­but first, you need to calm down Yagami-san¡±


    ¡°Call me otou-san!¡±


    Eh? Why would I?


    ¡°Eh¡­that¡¯s kinda weird¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry! You have my consent!¡±


    ¡°But I rather not¡­¡±


    ¡°Hahaha you are a funny person Hitori-kun, I like you¡±


    ¡°Ahah¡±


    Damn what¡¯s with this awkward conversation¡­


    Then Koemi-chan came running to me


    ¡°Onii-chan! Wanna play with me?¡±


    ¡°You know this person Koemi?¡±


    Her mother asked her.


    ¡°The other day, I helped her find her way home when she got lost¡±


    ¡°Lost?!¡±


    ¡°What were you doing outside Koemi?¡±


    Her mother asked her again.


    ¡°Well, I wanted to get some snacks¡­¡±


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you brought Maria with you?¡±


    ¡°She always bullies me and only buys her snacks all the time, I hate it!¡±


    I thought the maids scolded her¡­


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you ask me then?¡±


    ¡°Okaa-san always go to the wrong store! The store you bring me is always a boring one!¡±


    ¡°Boring? But they got the fanciest snacks there¡­¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t like fancy ones!!¡±


    ¡°This makes okaa-san a bit sad¡­¡±


    What¡¯s with this kind of interaction¡­


    ¡°Err¡­Koemi-chan, I thought you told me-¡±


    ¡°Those were lies, umu¡±


    Err¡­


    Can I please have my generosity back¡­


    ¡°Okaa-san is very sorry that Koemi had troubled you before, how could we ever repay you?¡±


    Why are they talking like this¡­this is putting me in a very weird spot.


    ¡°I helped her out of my own will, don¡¯t worry¡±


    ¡°Such a saint!!¡±


    Saint? Me? ¡­surely not


    ¡°I think I must get going then¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re leaving already?¡±


    ¡°Yeah¡±


    I looked at my phone and the time is already late, Kaichou could be home any time, crap!


    ¡°We insist on you staying for dinner¡±


    ¡°Sorry, I can¡¯t, I need to get going¡±


    ¡°Aw come on onii-chan, let¡¯s eat plenty!¡±


    Damn, they¡¯re pulling me inside the house¡­how are they so strong¡­


    I ended up sitting at the dinner table with them waiting for Kaichou¡­


    Shit! If I got found out, I¡¯ll be good as dead!


    I opened up my phone and there is a spam message from Sasaki


    ¡°Kaicho heading home¡±


    Shit! I need to get out of here somehow


    What do anime protagonists do when they are trapped in a mansion by some villains?


    Toilet!


    ¡°Excuse me, I need to use the toilet¡±


    ¡°Maria, would you be so kind to show him the toilet?¡±


    ¡°Okay~~come with me¡±


    I followed the maid named Maria then.


    ¡°This is the toilet, you may use it¡±


    She then left me why humming some song.


    This is my chance I thought in my head, I ran to the huge stairs in front of the front door to escape but before I even arrived at the stairs


    The creaking sound of the door opened gave me goosebumps, I immediately entered the nearest room to me and close it shut.


    That was close, was that Kaichou?


    As I turned around to look at the dark room, I can see stuffed animals all over the place and went to pick one up¡­


    ¡°Stuffed animals, how cute¡±


    *click


    A clicking sound indicating the lights had been turned on made me froze like a block of ice¡­


    Kaichou had entered the room while I was holding a stuffed teddy bear frozen in action.


    I tried turning around and saw that Kaichou was¡­.mad¡­.


    I guess this is the end of my life


    I was knocked out and brought to another room tied on a chair¡­a dark room with only one light source¡­


    ¡°You saw it¡­¡±


    ¡°Saw?¡±


    My mind is a bit hazy because I purposely took her hit and got knocked out¡­


    ¡°You mean your sister¡¯s room?¡±


    ¡°Koemi?¡±


    She said in confusion.


    ¡°Huh? Do you mean¡­¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s¡­.my room¡±


    Her room?! Never would I even thought that she likes these things¡­


    On second thought she does like sweet things like the strawberry parfait¡­ Maybe she does have a cute side¡­


    ¡°Why are you here?¡± she asked me with a serious, closer to an angry look, yikes...

 Chapter 9 - Change

    I think I should just be honest with her. I don¡¯t think any kind of excuse is going to work here.


    ¡°Uhh¡­well, remember when you told me you don¡¯t need any friends? Well, it got me concerned till this day¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re worrying about something you shouldn¡¯t¡±


    ¡°But why were you in my room?¡±


    ¡°That was just a misunderstanding! I was trying to exit the house but then you came from the front door, so I had to hide¡±


    ¡°What a rather convenient answer to have¡±


    ¡°Believe me it was just a coincidence! But knowing you like these stuff makes you cuter though, why would you be embarrassed about it?¡±


    ¡°Th-that''s none of your business¡±


    Her face is red as hell.


    That aside, there¡¯s a more important thing I need to tell her.


    ¡°The other day, why did you say that to Makino?¡±


    ¡°I meant what I said¡±


    ¡°Stop lying!¡±


    She was a bit shocked by it.


    ¡°I knew about your past, about Sora!¡±


    ¡°So they told you¡­¡±


    ¡°Yea¡±


    ¡°Then what are you going to do about it? I don¡¯t need any help to begin with, as a matter of fact, I think I¡¯m fine the way I am now.¡±


    ¡°Who said anything about helping you? The only one who can help you is yourself¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t waste my time giving you some lecture because you know yourself better than anyone else, even though I¡¯m somewhat attracted to damsels in distress¡­ well that¡¯s a weird thing to say¡­¡±


    ¡°Anyway, after knowing about your past, I guess it¡¯s only fair if you know about mine¡­but the question is, will you be able to handle it?¡±


    ¡°Handle? What are you trying to say?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure you know what I meant by that¡­¡±


    I said to her with a serious tone.


    ¡°...¡±


    ¡°Well at least I¡¯ll try to keep it more towards a family-friendly type of story¡±


    ¡°You came into my house, dug up about my past, even came into my room and now acting like you have the upper hand¡±


    ¡°Despicable!¡±


    She threw a kick in my face,


    Damn those legs are fast!


    ¡°Eh, how is your hand free?!¡±


    I caught her kick right before it landed on my face,


    ¡°Is this how you tie people up? I thought you were better¡­¡±


    ¡°But I tied it very tightly, it should be impossible to escape!¡±


    ¡°It should if the person haven¡¯t experienced it a lot of times¡±


    I let go of her leg and stood up.


    ¡°No way, don¡¯t come closer¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t hurt anyone¡­again, hear me out for a minute,¡±


    ¡°This is not what Sora would want, you should apologize to Makino-chan, she genuinely wants you to acknowledge her as a friend¡±


    ¡°¡­remember that those around you, cherish them, not avoid them so that you wouldn¡¯t get hurt if you¡¯re left again, but appreciate the moments you have with them before everything repeats itself¡­ by that, I mean the time when you became a shut-in¡±


    ¡°How would you know how I felt at that time..¡±


    ¡°Believe me, I¡¯ve gone through worse¡­¡±


    ¡°Anyway, knowing you got hurt like that, it hurts me more than I thought it would¡­ I think you know that nothing in this world is permanent, relationships included¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s the more reason why we should try not to think about it too much, life is more colorful when you enjoy the present, the past teaches us, while the future inspires us¡±


    ¡°You must have thought that you can¡¯t be left alone if you¡¯re already alone, right?¡±


    Kaichou seemed to be a bit scared¡­


    ¡°Ah, please don¡¯t be scared, I¡¯m not mad or anything ahah,¡± I tried to calm her down.


    ¡°Well, if you look around you, are you truly alone?¡±


    ¡°Having a family like this, people you can call friends in the student council, having me here, don¡¯t you think claiming that you¡¯re all alone after just one old friend had left you is a bit exaggerated?¡±


    ¡°Exaggerated?¡±


    ¡°Yes, you might think that if you got too close to someone, departing with them would be heartbreaking¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true, but we can¡¯t avoid things like that, it¡¯s a part of life where everyone will eventually experience¡­ so there¡¯s nothing wrong with getting sad over it¡±


    ¡°It becomes a problem when the person can¡¯t get over it¡­¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re saying I can¡¯t get over Sora?!¡±


    ¡°Precisely¡±


    ¡°If you¡¯re still bounded by the emptiness that you experienced the day she left you, then you won¡¯t be able to move on to the next phase of your life, which is recovery¡±


    ¡°Easy for you to say¡­¡±


    ¡°Well I¡¯m not so sure about that though¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°Hmm¡­¡±


    Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.


    ¡°What about you act like you¡¯re friends for starters? Then you see what happens next, after all, you¡¯re the one who said to me ¡®seeing is believing¡¯ right?¡±


    ¡°That was¡­¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about that, so even if anything happens for instance someone left you the same way you were left before, or perhaps the whole world suddenly left you, I promise I won¡¯t, so even if anything happens, you won¡¯t be alone, sort of like an insurance¡­haha¡±


    I said that to Kaichou with a big smile in the end.


    ¡°Hitori-kun¡­¡±


    Then I checked the time on my phone,


    ¡°Well then it¡¯s time for me to go home¡±


    ¡°Oh, and sorry for the other day when I went overboard, if you need something for me to make it up for you, feel free to ask¡±


    ¡°And for today¡¯s daily task, I love you Kaichou, hehe¡±


    I walked out of the house and exited the gate after saying that.


    I said what needed to be said, even though there was a small lie in those words.


    In the end, I didn¡¯t need to tell her about my past, well, I wouldn¡¯t want anyone to know about my past either¡­


    Thinking back on the words I said, I¡¯m pretty sure someone must have said those to her at some point but didn¡¯t work.


    What difference will it make if she heard it from me? I guess I¡¯ll see it soon.


    The next day, Kaichou surprisingly made up with Makino and she was very happy but on the other hand, Kaichou still has no expression on her face.


    I guess change does take time.


    I didn¡¯t expect her to change this fast though¡­ I guess my words got through her thick skull this time.


    She still ignored me from time to time, I never stopped the thousand confession plan, not because of how she treated me, but simply because it was fun and somehow it might be true¡­.not sure though.


    I wondered what happened with her sister


    ¡°Kaichou, about your sister, Koemi-chan¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°Have you been friendly with her lately?¡±


    ¡°I-I¡¯m trying, all this time I had ignored her, somehow I need to make it up for her¡±


    I guess her relationship with Koemi-chan is getting better, this is how siblings should be, then she won¡¯t be needing to use my service to accompany her to buy snacks.


    An idea popped in my head,


    ¡°What about bringing her to a theme park? It¡¯s probably going to be fun there I suppose¡±


    ¡°A theme park, that could work¡±


    ¡°Perhaps going with your family?¡±


    ¡°They¡¯re too busy, I¡¯ll just go with her¡±


    So they both are going to go, just the two of them¡­


    Wait, something¡¯s not right about this duo¡­


    Both of them are terrible with directions¡­now I¡¯m worried either they¡¯re going to be fine or not


    ¡°Have you gone to a theme park or somewhere similar before?¡±


    ¡°Nope, I¡¯m not in the slightest bit of interest in those kinds of stuff¡±


    Well, your face and room tell me otherwise¡­


    They will most likely get lost in the park¡­no doubt about it¡­but how was Kaichou able to go and come back from school without getting lost?


    ¡°Kaichou, your sense of direction is terrible, how did you go to school and go back home then?¡±


    I bluntly asked her.


    ¡°Terrible huh¡­¡±


    Why is she pissed off?


    ¡°I mean adequate, not terrible¡±


    She seemed to cool off a bit¡­but why can¡¯t she just admit the fact?


    ¡°I use the GPS on my phone¡±


    GPS¡­that just proves her sense of direction is extremely bad.


    I thought it would be like she already got used to the road, or she memorizes the road in detail or maybe she got some kind of power¡­


    But here I am¡­with GPS as an answer.


    ¡°Is that so..¡±


    ¡°You got a problem?¡±


    ¡°Nah, totally fine with that¡­¡±


    ¡°By the way, that story of yours..¡±


    ¡°Yeah?¡±


    ¡°Tell me about it¡±


    ¡°Someday¡±


    ¡°Promise?¡±


    ¡°Promise¡±


    Ah, my story¡­I would like to avoid telling her, but a promise¡¯s a promise¡­one day she will know¡­


    ¡°Kaichou¡±


    ¡°What?¡±


    ¡°I love you, kih kih kih¡±


    ¡°Haven¡¯t you gotten tired from saying that all the time?¡±


    ¡°Well, it¡¯s not tiring if it¡¯s fun, maybe one day you would answer my confessions, after all, 999 No¡¯s and a Yes makes a Yes, haha¡±


    I attempted to tease her with some meme I found on the net.


    ¡°...¡±


    She blushed so hard steam came out of her head


    ¡°Haha, I¡¯m just joking, there¡¯s no way you would like someone like me would you, not in a lifetime hahaha¡±


    ¡°Have fun in your visit to the theme park then, I¡¯ll be heading home now if you don¡¯t mind, have a nice weekend¡±


    I left school and head home¡­


    I can¡¯t get out of my head what¡¯s going to happen to them at the theme park.


    Two girls with a poor sense of direction heading to a place that will be full of people in the weekend¡­


    I need to follow them¡­even though my weekend is best to be spent watching animes, I need to sacrifice this day for the sake of the two sisters¡­


    The following day¡­


    I followed them from the train station at a safe distance. I guess I learned my lesson from being spotted by Kaichou that night.


    My disguise is a black hoodie with sunglasses on top of my glasses with a face mask, looks like a normal stalker I¡¯d say. Wait, I shouldn¡¯t feel proud about this¡­


    Let¡¯s proceed to follow them, eh, there¡¯s another person with them¡­


    From the looks of it, long silky black hair, her face¡­yeah that¡¯s Maria for sure¡­


    The maid seems to be very careless of her situation and fools around a bit too much¡­


    I don¡¯t think having her with them changes anything¡­


    Despite having a ¡®guardian¡¯ with them, I followed them anyway¡­


    After entering the park, they seem to converse in a small discussion, then I saw Maria walked away towards a bench¡­


    What¡¯s she doing?


    I should have thought about it¡­she freaking went to sleep on the bench¡­how is she even entrusted to be a guardian to them¡­


    But I¡¯m not here to handle with her, I¡¯m here to avoid these sisters from getting lost.


    I began following them riding a roller coaster¡­it¡¯s too freaking high! I felt like my soul just left my body the moment it dropped down¡­ugh¡­


    I threw up a lot after the ride¡­even thinking back on the ride made me nauseous¡­ugh


    The next ride was a peaceful train ride across the park¡­how relaxing¡­but why the heck did the guy beside me fell asleep on my shoulder¡­oh no! He¡¯s drooling! FUCK! Damn you gods of the theme park for giving me this shitty experience¡­


    After the ride ended, I saw them buying some foods and drinks¡­but Koemi-chan wandered to a different location.


    Not that way Koemi-chan! I need to go after her.


    I followed her and arrived at a huge theater.


    The theatre amazed me for a second there, I continued to follow her inside.


    She took a seat in the middle, so I¡¯ll just observe her from the sides.


    The show¡¯s about to start might as well enjoy it. Wow, they had idols here! So cool¡­


    That performance was so much fun! I never thought I would enjoy something like this.


    As I was admiring the show, I looked at the seat where Koemi-chan was sitting but she was nowhere to be found!


    Did I lost her!? Oh no!


    I quickly ran outside and searched all over the place, everyone¡¯s looking at me as I ran as fast as I could around the theatre to look for Koemi-chan¡­


    To my disappointment¡­I had lost her


    My body is tired from running around for so long¡­I felt like passing out¡­


    I had failed to protect you, Koemi-chan¡­


    ¡°Here you go onii-chan¡±


    The voice of an angel suddenly came to soothe my exhaustion.


    I looked up and saw Koemi-chan holding an ice cream to me¡­


    ¡°Koemi-chan?¡±


    ¡°Hehehe, I knew you were following us, so I decided to lure you out by going to the theatre, and purposely went ¡®missing¡¯ ¡±


    Did my sneaking techniques not work¡­two failures in the same matter is breaking my self-confidence¡­


    ¡°I guess I¡¯m not cut out to be a stalker¡±


    ¡°But you did enjoy the idols show right onii-chan?¡±


    ¡°Haha, they were quite talented and skilled I¡¯d say¡±


    The ice cream that she held towards me started to drip down from melting. I need to save it quickly so I took it and started licking the ice cream.


    ¡°Thanks for the ice cream¡±


    ¡°Oh it was onee-chan¡¯s idea¡±


    Kaichou?


    ¡°It¡¯s nothing, I just happened to have extra money, that¡¯s all¡±


    ¡°Then, thank you Kaichou¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    ¡°Why are you calling onee-chan ¡®Kaichou¡¯?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s because she is the student council president in our high school¡±


    ¡°I mean, you¡¯re not in school right now, why don¡¯t you just call her by her given name?¡±


    For a 10-year-old, you sure can think about a lot of things¡­ When I was your age, all I could think of is what does sand taste like¡­


    One day, I had finally built up the courage to find out the taste of sand, to my disappointment, there¡¯s no taste or flavor, only a feeling of discomfort on my tongue¡­


    ¡°I guess because I¡¯m used to calling her Kaichou and maybe I like calling her that¡±


    ¡°Ehh¡­you¡¯re weird onii-chan!¡±


    Yeah, not the first time I¡¯ve heard of that.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry for not trusting both of you¡±


    I tried apologizing for following them.


    ¡°Why?¡± Koemi-chan asked.


    ¡°Well I thought for sure that you would get lost in the park if no one were to look after you¡±


    ¡°What do you think we are? I can detect her location in an instant with my phone to track down her phone¡­¡±


    ¡°GPS wins again huh¡­why didn¡¯t I think of it¡­¡±


    Anyway, I¡¯m glad I worried for nothing.


    ¡°Are you having fun Koemi-chan?¡±


    ¡°Soooo muuuuuch funnnn! Onee-chan is so fun!¡±


    She seems very happy, wouldn¡¯t want to ruin this any further.


    ¡°Is that so, then I think I should leave you guys alone, I¡¯ll head home¡±


    I said that and walked away


    ¡°Wait!¡±


    Kaichou shouted¡­


    I came back there to ask what¡¯s wrong


    ¡°Anything wrong?¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    She just stayed silent there standing after I asked


    ¡°¡­¡±


    ¡°Onee-chan wants to spend the day with you too, onii-chan¡±


    Koemi-chan said after looking at Kaichou¡¯s hesitant face.


    ¡°Me? Why? I¡¯ll just get in the way of your fun, I can¡¯t handle scary heights at all¡­ and my body is already exhausted¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re going to leave soon, I want to ride the Ferris wheel before we leave the park, come with us onii-chan¡­please¡­¡±


    Ferris wheel huh, should be fine¡­I hope so


    ¡°Alright¡­¡±


    ¡°Yay! It worked! Oops¡±


    What worked? Was that some kind of act?


    I followed them into the same capsule of the Ferris wheel¡­


    The floor is a see-through clear glass¡­ I might actually die here


    A quarter way through, I already felt nauseous¡­ I felt like passing out¡­


    To reduce the nauseousness, I closed my eyes and point my head down¡­but I can still feel the capsule moving, swinging around, this is hell¡­please release me from this suffering¡­


    I don¡¯t know why but my fear of heights lead me to almost cry¡­my body is trembling and it¡¯s only been a quarter way through¡­how big is this slow-moving Ferris wheel??


    ¡°Hitori-kun, are you that bad with heights? Such a weak per-¡±


    Seems like Kaichou had noticed me trembling, a normal person would make fun of my situation¡­but she just silenced herself¡­


    My whole body is feeling very cold as if I¡¯m a corpse with no body heat.


    I felt like throwing up for the second time today¡­ but a sudden warmth clung around me¡­


    Is this Kaichou? Koemi-chan? Either way, this warmth had calmed my senses and I felt a bit relaxed¡­my eyes kept close and my head held down, I can¡¯t figure out who¡¯s warmth this is.


    After a long day following them, I felt like this moment is like a reward for my hard work¡­getting appreciated once in a while isn¡¯t so bad I guess¡­


    When we almost arrived at the platform, the warmth disappears and I opened my eyes to see but both of them just sat there as if nothing had happened¡­Koemi-chan smiled brightly while Kaichou just shows her normally expressionless face.


    I avoided passing out in the capsule thanks to the warmth that had accompanied me through the ride.


    Not knowing isn¡¯t so bad, is it?


    We then exited the Ferris wheel


    ¡°That¡­was¡­terrifying¡­¡±


    I can barely walk with my legs still shaking¡­


    ¡°Sorry I ruined your Ferris wheel ride¡­¡±


    I felt guilty they weren¡¯t able to enjoy the ride to the fullest, having to cope with my fear of heights all the time¡­


    ¡°Watching you get scared like that was also fun, onii-chan!¡±


    ¡°Err¡­are you Makino-san?¡±


    ¡°It wasn¡¯t all that bad I guess¡­¡±


    Kaicho said.


    ¡°I love you Kaichou¡±


    ¡°Even on the weekends? Get a break¡±


    ¡°You love onee-chan! I knew it! Onii-chan is in love with onee-chan!¡±


    ¡°Oy oy stop spreading false news, that¡¯s a crime you know¡±


    She went and ran around shouting that, so I chased after her but she was fast as hell¡­it made me more nauseous running like that


    After that, I explained the circumstances to Koemi-chan,


    ¡°So that¡¯s how it is, umu¡±


    ¡°But don¡¯t you like onee-chan?¡±


    ¡°Well yes, she¡¯s our Kaichou¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not what I meant! Idiot!¡±


    Idiot? A 10-year-old just called me an idiot, I guess there¡¯s a first time for everything.


    ¡°I mean as a woman!¡±


    That shout of hers made Kaichou startled a bit.


    ¡°As a woman¡­hm¡­I don¡¯t seem to dislike her at all, then I guess yes?¡±


    ¡°What kind of twisted answer is that?¡±


    ¡°Enough, let¡¯s head home, it¡¯s getting late, I¡¯ll go call Maria, wait here with Hitori-kun, Koemi¡±


    She then went off to another place.


    ¡°So what¡¯s your real answer, onii-chan? She¡¯s not here, you can tell me, hehehe¡±


    ¡°Real answer huh, is ¡®might¡¯ also considered an answer?¡±


    ¡°Hm¡­I can live with that¡±


    Then Kaichou arrived with Maria who had been sleeping the entire day¡­


    We went home together and I went straight to bed feeling extremely exhausted.


    I even fell asleep on the train on our way home¡­


    ¡­


    In the mansion,


    ¡°Then what did he said, Koemi?¡±


    ¡°His answer is ¡®might¡¯, I think that¡¯s a good sign¡±


    ¡°But I think onee-chan should act faster before someone else come and snatch him away¡­¡±


    ¡°Ehh¡­no way there¡¯s someone else who like him¡±


    ¡°You think so? Because from my perspective, he¡¯s a very nice person who is completely likable by any girl¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t think that he¡¯s only nice to you, onee-chan, he¡¯s nice to everyone and that could result in someone else also liking him¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re pretty knowledgeable even though you¡¯re still 10 years old Koemi¡­ I¡¯m genuinely impressed¡±


    ¡°Umu, what can I say, I was born a genius¡±.


    ¡­

 Chapter 10 - Abyss

    Days went along as usual for me as a student and as a vice president of the student council president, helping other clubs solves their issues, handling student activities, and such.


    The school seems to be in a very peaceful state just like when I started entering the school. People now treat me slightly better than before, maybe because I helped them a lot? Not entirely sure though¡­


    As I wondered in class after the school session ended, a voice called me


    ¡°Hitori-kun¡±


    Oh, it¡¯s Kaichou, no wonder I was excited to look.


    ¡°Yow, what¡¯s up?¡±


    ¡°M-m-¡±


    Why is she hesitating to say anything?


    ¡°M-my parents invited you to have dinner with us tonight¡±


    Dinner? With them?


    ¡°That is if you are free¡±


    ¡°Uh, may I ask why?¡±


    ¡°Apparently, they wanted to thank you¡±


    ¡°Thank... me? For what?¡±


    ¡°Ask them yourself, are you coming or not?¡±


    Should I go? But I don¡¯t want to feel awkward like before¡­


    Refusing an invitation without a valid reason is straight out rude¡­ I don¡¯t really have a reason to deny too¡­


    ¡°I¡¯ll go then¡±


    Kaichou¡¯s expression on her face suddenly showed a slight relief¡­ but why would she be relieved of me coming to have dinner?


    Wasn¡¯t the last time she got so mad she tied me onto a chair and tried to torture me? Thinking back sure sends a shiver down my spine¡­


    ¡°Then I¡¯ll come to pick you up at your apartment later¡±


    ¡°Eh? No, I¡¯ll just come to your house by myself, no need to pick me up¡±


    ¡°This might just be me but why are you so persistent in me coming to your house? Do you have something to hide like you¡¯re some rich kid or something?¡±


    Why is she suddenly mad?


    ¡°Why would you say that? But firstly, why are you mad?¡±


    ¡°I¡­kind of feel like you don¡¯t trust me at all, even though you said you would¡±


    She still remembered that time huh¡­


    One would normally forget trivial small talks like that, but why did she remember it, even more so coming out of me¡­ a nobody.


    ¡°It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t trust you, I¡¯m not sure how to put it but if it makes you feel at ease, then I don¡¯t mind letting you come to my apartment¡±


    I don¡¯t know why but it feels like if I don¡¯t let her come, she¡¯s going to have another trust issue later in life¡­ I don¡¯t want that


    ¡°...¡±


    She seems to be feeling guilty for forcing this.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to feel guilty, it¡¯s not such a big deal, a visit to my house, that¡¯s all¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m the one being unreasonably paranoid about someone visiting my place¡±


    ¡°You know, it¡¯s like when someone refuses to invite anyone over to their house to avoid them knowing about their private life, something like that¡±


    ¡°Well, in my case it¡¯s nothing serious, you¡¯ll know when you see¡­¡±


    ¡°Then maybe I shouldn¡¯t come.¡±


    ¡°No, after hearing your compassion towards me, which is rather rare, I felt a bit obligated to let you do as such.¡±


    ¡°Now I feel like I¡¯m being absurdly selfish¡­¡± she said.


    ¡°Well, humans are selfish don¡¯t they?¡±


    ¡°In my opinion, human¡¯s survive by being a bit selfish now and then¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    ¡°In any case, you can come to pick me up¡­¡±


    Why isn¡¯t she saying anything? A silent stare like that is scary¡­ have I gone overboard again?


    ¡°Very well¡±


    She said that and left the class. There is no meeting today and I have a part-time shift at the bookstore.


    I wonder how it¡¯s going to be¡­


    After finishing up my part-time job I headed straight to my apartment.


    As I was walking past an alley, a voice called me¡­


    Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.


    ¡°Onii-chan¡­ help me¡­¡±


    That voice! Could it be¡­


    Upon hearing the call, I immediately rushed into the dark alley, this place is shaded very well with a roof and appears to be a very lack of sunlight.


    My body tells me that I must run towards the voice no matter what happens.


    I ran and ran but there doesn¡¯t seem to be a limit to where this alley can go, I got confused and slowed my pacing.


    Turning my head to look at the back, it seems that the entrance was also nowhere to be found¡­


    I stopped running and it appears my surrounding is pitch black, there is nothing, like a void. The emptiness¡­ it is somehow nostalgic¡­


    ¡°What is this?¡± I asked¡­


    A distorted voice then said something


    ¡°This is you¡­ remember?¡±


    ¡°Me? How is this darkness, emptiness, void, is me?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you remember? You threw away everything¡­ even me¡­ do you think you deserve a life as easy as this after tossing me aside?¡±


    ¡°What are you saying?¡±


    Why is this voice somehow resembles¡­ it could¡¯ve been¡­


    ¡°Ah!!¡±


    I snapped out of the hallucination and I found myself surrounded by people¡­


    ¡°Hey, kid are you okay?¡±


    ¡°My head hurts a bit, what happened?¡±


    ¡°You collapsed in this alley and stayed like that for about 5 minutes¡±


    ¡°Do you need an ambulance? We can call them if you want or perhaps I can drive you to a hospital¡±


    ¡°Thanks, but I think I¡¯ll be fine¡±


    I immediately got up and thanked everyone for their concern about me and continued to walk home.


    What was that? Is it because I¡¯m tired?


    That was a bit scary I must say¡­


    Maybe it¡¯s just a dream.


    Arriving at home, I took a shower and put on my school uniform back.


    ¡°I have some time I guess, let¡¯s write today¡¯s journal.¡±


    Keeping a journal about my encounter with Kaichou is very fun.


    As I was happily writing the journal, a voice then suddenly called through the door.


    ¡°Hitori-san, someone¡¯s looking for you¡±


    Oh, it¡¯s the neighbor¡¯s voice.


    Has Kaichou arrived?


    I walked out of the apartment and Kaichou was in front of the stairs in a black blouse.


    ¡°You¡¯re here already?¡±


    She appeared to be looking at the condition of the building¡­


    ¡°That¡¯s the reason why I didn¡¯t want you to know my house¡­ but at the same time, I felt a bit relief¡±


    ¡°You think I would treat you differently if I know you where you live?¡±


    ¡°Well¡­ not entirely true but something along that line¡±


    The real reason I don¡¯t want anyone to know especially Kaicho, is not because she would look at me differently, but instead to pity me.


    Yes, because of her good-natured personality even though she doesn¡¯t express it, she will most likely feel sympathy towards me.


    Having people feel that way about me just meant that my efforts are not enough even though I¡¯m already happy with what I have, well that¡¯s just my personal opinion.


    ¡°I couldn¡¯t care less about how you live, let¡¯s go¡±


    Ouch, that line hurt a bit¡­ why can¡¯t she just say something nice?


    I locked the apartment door and followed her.


    ¡°Nice outfit, it suits you well, so feminine with that frilly stuff, hehe.¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    She stayed silent along our walk to her house, even though I tried to strike up conversations like the weather, school, and some things¡­ maybe I¡¯m just bad at starting conversations.


    We arrived at the gate and it automatically opened.


    Entering the house from the front door, we walked past through the garden that once again caught my sight with its vibrant colors.


    As I entered the house, a voice called me out


    ¡°Onii-chan is here!¡±


    It¡¯s Koemi-chan!


    ¡°Yow,¡± I said with a hand lifted to greet her running towards me¡­


    ¡°Ugh!¡±


    She bumped her head on my stomach¡­ it hurts¡­


    ¡°Koemi-chan¡­ good to see you¡­¡±


    ¡°Me too, onii-chan!¡±


    A maid came and said,


    ¡°Master and Miss are waiting in the dining hall, Koemi please don¡¯t disturb our guest like that again.¡±


    ¡°Ah, it¡¯s okay¡±


    We then followed the maid to the dining room.


    As the door opened, the Master appear to be also running towards me¡­ just like Koemi-chan did¡­ should have seen this coming¡­


    ¡°Ugh!¡±


    At this rate, I might pass out considering how painful my stomach is right now¡­


    ¡°Please¡­ calm¡­ down¡­¡±


    I tried to say while getting pinned down by the Master, for an old man like him, he sure has a lot of strength.


    As we get seated,


    ¡°Ah, I¡¯m sorry for earlier Hitori-kun, I can¡¯t help but get excited to have you come here again¡±


    ¡°Actually I too wanted to apologize for last time, I sneaked out of the house¡­¡±


    ¡°We already knew about that, we even knew what happened in the room¡±


    ¡°You knew?!¡±


    Kaichou suddenly shouted in shock.


    ¡°Ah, of course, whose house do you think this is?¡±


    That makes sense¡­


    ¡°But most importantly, because of your speech to my daughter, she has now slowly recovered from her condition.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m glad to be of help, but the truth is I didn¡¯t do anything, she was the one who chose to change, you should congratulate her, not me¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t imagine how happy we were when we found out that she had been changing, it¡¯s like a miracle.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m happy it turned out fine.¡±


    ¡°I have a question for you Hitori-kun¡±


    ¡°Hm?¡±


    ¡°Why did you decided to help her in the first place?¡±


    Why did I decide to help her in the first place?


    I never thought about it, but exactly why did I help her?


    ¡°I think it¡¯s because we¡¯re acquaintances? I¡¯m not very sure but doing so feels like the right thing to do¡±


    Honestly, I had thought that she might not be able to fix her condition once she entered the world after high school, this is because colleges and universities have fewer opportunities for her to change as it¡¯s going to be filled with a lot more things that will undoubtedly give her any time or space to do so on her own.


    Perhaps the chances are not completely zero too, there are possibilities that she might even meet someone who can ¡®fix¡¯ her condition.


    I guess if there¡¯s the best time to change, it would be before high school ends.


    ¡°We want to repay your kindness, do you have anything you want in mind? Just say it, money? College recommendation? Or perhaps you want to marry our daughter?¡±


    ¡°Otou-san!¡±


    Kaichou suddenly shouted with an embarrassed face.


    ¡°What? You don¡¯t want to?¡±


    He said to her.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t do it to get anything in exchange. Thanks, but I guess eating this dinner and the one before is already a lot.¡±


    ¡°What a guy¡­ you truly are a kind person, Hitori-kun.¡±


    ¡°Ahah, it¡¯s not that I¡¯m kind, you just happen to meet with the wrong people¡±


    ¡°I think any normal person would do the same.¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    ¡°Can I eat this?¡±


    ¡°Oh my bad, you can start digging in, hahaha.¡±


    The dinner went a bit normal than I expected, we talked about the school and student council, after dinner, I walked around the garden,


    ¡°Even at night, the garden still shines brightly with the flowers, how nice is that¡±


    Suddenly a voice said


    ¡°Those flowers, I was the one who planted them¡±


    It was Kaichou


    ¡°You planted them? No wonder they were so beautiful¡±


    I can see her face blushing haha.


    ¡°Not just me, Sora also planted some¡±


    Sora¡­ oh her childhood friend.


    ¡°You two were very close huh, mind telling me some more?¡±


    ¡°I thought of her as my own sister, there was this one time when I was lost in the neighborhood, she found me and told me a lot of things about directions but I had no clue about what she was blabbering about.¡±


    I can imagine that.


    ¡°Then she helped me get back home, that¡¯s when I thought I wanted to be best friends with her.¡±


    ¡°Our lives then revolve around each other, what I learn and knew, I shared with her and she did the same.¡±


    ¡°Being with her makes me feel so happy, she was very cheerful and brave, there was even a time when we ran away together from a dog, I was very scared but on the other hand, she just ran while holding my hand with a smile as if she was having fun. It made me less afraid at that time.¡±


    I would like to see Kaichou in her loli form like in her flashbacks.


    ¡°She must be a nice person, do you have any pictures of her?¡±


    ¡°A picture, I have tons of them.¡±


    ¡°Ahah, one is enough.¡±


    She opened her smartphone and scrolled through the gallery.


    ¡°Which one should I pick, all of them are cute,¡±


    ¡°Perhaps the one with you in it? Hehe¡±


    ¡°Keep dreaming¡±


    There goes my chance¡­


    ¡°Ah here¡¯s one¡±


    I take a look¡­


    Wait, I think I¡¯ve seen this face before¡­


    Argh¡­ the memories are flashing!


    No¡­ it can¡¯t be¡­


    This girl, I saw her¡­ but her condition¡­


    ¡°Hitori-kun?¡±


    ¡°Hitori-kun?¡±


    ¡°Ah, yea?¡±


    ¡°Why is your face like that? Did you see a ghost in the picture or something? Even though she¡¯s dead, you shouldn¡¯t react as so, it¡¯s very rude you know.¡±


    ¡°Ah no it¡¯s not that, I¡¯m just remembering something¡±


    ¡°Remembering? Do you know her by any chance?¡±


    Ah, she asked the question¡­ I don¡¯t think she needs to know anything about this.


    ¡°Nothing, it¡¯s getting late, I should go home now.¡±


    I heard a faint voice of Kaichou as I said


    ¡°Already?¡±


    Does she not want me to go home?


    ¡°Why are you getting sad for? We¡¯re going to meet tomorrow at school right?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t think there¡¯s any reason for you to be sad at all.¡±


    ¡°Or there is-¡±


    ¡°Goodnight then¡±


    She cut my line¡­


    Then I thanked everyone for inviting me for dinner and proceed to head home.


    The girl in that picture, there¡¯s no doubt that it¡¯s the same person, she was kidnapped around the time when I¡­


    I should stop thinking about this¡­ otherwise the dream is going to come to haunt me again¡­


    ¡­


    Summer is just around the corner, the time for relaxation, and a ton of homework. This will also be my first summer as a high school student, I¡¯m having high hopes for it, I think I should plan it carefully.


    Pool? Trip? Beach? There are so many things we can do!


    ¡°Summer¡¯s going to start soon, why don¡¯t we go somewhere together?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a good idea bro, but I¡¯ll be away from the whole summer, I¡¯m staying at my grandpa''s house.¡±


    ¡°Aw, man¡­¡±


    ¡°So what¡¯s the plan? Maybe I can take into consideration,¡± Makino said.


    ¡°Hmm, I don¡¯t have anything planned yet? Do you have any ideas? Kaichou?¡±


    Kaichou seems to be hesitating to say something.


    ¡°You have an idea Kaichou?¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    ¡°How about we go to the pool?¡± I suggested.


    ¡°That sounds good! Swimming in a pool during hot times is the best!¡±


    ¡°How about you Kaichou? You¡¯re in?¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t deny that going to a pool during summer is refreshing.¡±


    ¡°Then we¡¯re all set.¡±


    ¡°Oh, but can we go around the first week? I¡¯m going to be very busy after that because of cram school and some things.¡±


    ¡°Is that so¡­ then we¡¯ll try going in the first week I suppose.¡±


    With that, the first activity of my high school summer is going to the pool!


    But deep within me, something is going to happen during this summer, I¡¯m not sure either it¡¯s something bad or good¡­


    Since not long ago, it seems some events evoke back my memories, they were not pleasant.


    But why did I lost those memories?


    No, it¡¯s not that I lost them.


    They just somehow got locked deep inside me, and slowly being released as I live my impromptu life.


    I can remember bits of them but not the entirety, the whole picture only came to show when something triggered it I suppose.


    For example, when Koemi-chan first called me onii-chan, the memories of my little sister came to my head, and it made me recall that direful and tragic moment in my life.


    Will I be able to cope with it if I were to recollect the whole story?