Chapter 2: The Plan
Aito turned over in his bed, putting his back to the sun light that filtered through the slatted windows. He stretched, and swung his legs from the cot. Still rubbing his eyes, he opened the door, and walked into the hall. Strolling down the hall, he pushed open the door to the boy's bathroom. Stepping into the shower, he turned on the water and let it run down his face, waking him up. Aito finished quickly, wrapped a towel around his waist, and stepped out of the steaming shower. He got dressed, brushed his teeth and combed his hair.
"Hey, you up already?" it was Ulrich.
"Oh, um, yeah. I can't sleep past eight. How about you?"
"Same," Ulrich laughed. "Odd on the other hand, he could sleep past twelve."
"Really? Wow, that's late."
"Yeah."
Aito watched Ulrich brush his teeth, and jump into the shower, "I'm gonna head out. I have some unpacking to do still," he called.
"Alright, see you later," Ulrich said.
Aito hurried out of the bathroom. He blinked the remaining sleep out of his eyes.
"This may be more difficult than I thought," he mumbled.
Shaking his head, he went back to his room. Sitting on his bed, he frowned. "How can I arrive my first year, and hope to get Yumi as my girlfriend?" he asked himself aloud.
He lay back, and remembered his second meeting with Sissy. Sissy! Oh, crap! he thought, sitting up. He was supposed to meet her at the little park past the little spot of forestry at 8:15. He glanced at his clock and groaned. It was already 8:10. She is gonna be ticked, he thought. Standing up, he bolted down the hall and outside. Maintaining a fast sprint, he raced into the trees. He shoved leaves from his face, and hurtled over bushes. When he arrived at the little park, Sissy was sitting on a swing.
"You're late," was all she said.
"Precise, are we?" he laughed.
"Anyway, I was thinking. If you could distract Yumi at the next school convention, which isn't far away, I could take Ulrich."
"And when they realize they were set up, you lose your only advantage," Aito pointed out.
"And what would that be?"
"Me."
"Oh, right. They trust you," she frowned.
"How about we make them hate eachother?" Aito suggested.
"Hmmm, could work. Let's do it," Sissy smiled, standing up.
"Can I go back the school now?"
"Yeah, do you need permission?" she hissed.
Aito turned and headed back to the school. Students were leaving their dorms and grouping together to chat. He scanned the clearing, and spotted Yumi. SHe was headed in the direction of the boys' dorms. He smiled.
"Yumi!"
Her black hair spun as she turned to face Aito. "Oh, hey, Aito."
"So, um, where you going?"
"Seeing if Ulrich and Odd are up," she replied, looking at him.
"Oh, I know Ulrich is. He said Odd wasn't."
"You saw him?"
"Yeah, couple minutes ago. In the bathroom," Aito said.
"I figured that," Yumi laughed. "Aelita's going to be a little longer. She was just getting up to shower."
Aito nodded but said nothing. The two walked on in silence, slipping into the building. Ulrich and Odd were walking in their direction. "Looks like Ulrich woke Odd up," Aito said.
"He does do that," Yumi laughed.
Aito decided to leave the bunch alone and go find Sissy. He was having trouble intentionally pulling Yumi away from Ulrich. After all, Ulrich never did anything to him. He frowned, thinking about what he would be called if he followed through with the crazy idea. He didn't have time to decide what to do, when he heard a noise from behind one of the buildings.
"Aito, get over here!" It was Sissy.
Aito hurried over unseen, and kelt down in the shadows. "Yeah?"
"You're still in right?"
Aito opened his mouth, but shut it quickly.
"Right?" Sissy sounded annoyed.
"Yeah," he sighed.
"Good," Sissy said before walking away.
Aito stood and leaned his back against the wall. He shrugged. "No getting out of it now," he mumbled.
He pushed away from the cold bricks, and hurried to get some breakfast. He was aware of Sissy trying desperately to get Ulrich to notice her. He found himself smiling. As whiny as she may be, she is pretty. I have to give her that, he thought. He watched her skinny figure follow, her orange shirt rippling in the wind. He smiled once again and continued on to the cafeteria.