When Jun opens her eyes, she knows immediately that something is wrong. She sees velvet blue walls and a few chains dangling from the ceiling, swinging left to right to left. She can hear the faint rattling sound it makes, as well as the sound of dripping water. Slowly, she sits up and notices the cuffs around her wrists that are linked together by a chain.
"Chains?" She stares at her restraints, taking note of how cold and heavy they feel. "Wha—my clothes…!"
She chokes back a scream when she notices her clothes have been changed. Someone had changed her into a black-and-white-striped prisoner uniform while she was sleeping!
"I gotta…gotta stay calm…" Jun holds her head in her hands. She's seconds away from having a major freak out and noticing the ball that's chained to her left ankle certainly isn't helping her at all with preventing that. "Gotta stay…calm…"
The sound of laughter reaches her ears, momentarily distracting her from her thoughts. She turns her head and finds that she's trapped behind a set of bars. It's not a sight she particularly likes, though her attention quickly shifts over to the two girls who are standing on the other side of the bars.
They're twin girls with unnaturally muted hair, pale skin, and golden eyes. They're dressed in blue, wearing an outfit that resembles a prison guard uniform and a black eyepatch with the letter "V" over one of their eyes. One has her hair up in two buns while the other has her hair pleated neatly into a braid. The two of them stare at Jun and watch her as she stands up.
Jun takes a step towards them, stopping only because of the weight chained to her ankle. She had almost forgotten about it… She shakes her head and keeps walking forward. She stops only once she's close enough to grip the bars that are keeping her trapped. That's when she notices that there's another person nearby—an old man with an unusually long nose, huge eyes, and an eerie smile.
The old man sits behind a desk and greets Jun with a gloved hand. "Trickster…Welcome to my Velvet Room."
Jun is a little more than freaked out at this point and, understandably, starts shaking the bars in hopes of making an escape. It is to her dismay that she finds the bars will not budge, no matter how much force she applies to them.
"So you've come to, Inmate," the girl with her hair up in buns speaks. Her expression is stern and her tone is harsh.
"The you in reality is current fast asleep." The other girl with her hair in a braid is the exact opposite of her twin. Her expression is devoid of any emotion and her tone is calm and almost monotone. "You are only experiencing this as a dream."
"You're in the presence of our master—stand up straight!" the first twin—the harsher and aggressive of the girls—barks out an order at Jun.
Jun hesitates for a moment, but does as she's told in the end. Though she's not the type to take orders from just anyone, she also knows better than to test her luck against a girl—as small as she may be—with a baton.
"Welcome," the old man speaks in a deep and gruff voice. "I am delighted to make your acquaintance. This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. It is a room that only those who are bound by a 'contract' may enter."
"A contract?" Jun purses her lips, her grip tightening on the bars. Her anxiety is starting to spike up, causing quite the inconvenience for her with its timing. "Stay…calm…deep breaths…"
"I am Igor, the master of this place," the old man introduces himself. "Remember it well. I summoned you to speak of important matters. It involves your life as well."
"My life?" A small bead of sweat rolls down the side of Jun's face. "Wh-What important matters?"
Igor doesn't give her an answer and instead, choosing to gaze at his surroundings. "Still, this is a surprise… The state of this room reflects the state of your own heart. To think a prison would appear as such."
"So even in my own heart?" Jun almost wants to laugh…it's just sooo funny. She might just cry…
"You truly are a 'prisoner' of fate…" Igor's gaze falls back on Jun. "In the near future, there is no mistake that ruin awaits you."
"Ruin?" Her stomach churns uncomfortably.
"I speak of the end to everything," Igor explains. "However, there is a means to oppose such a fate. You must be 'rehabilitated.' Rehabilitated toward freedom…That is your only means to avoid ruin…Do you have the resolve to challenge the distortion of the world?"
"…Wait, what?" It's a lot for Jun to take in on such a short notice. She frowns when Igor starts chuckling. "What's so funny?"
"You didn't decline, hm?" Igor's grin only seems to widen. "Very well, that is enough. Allow me to observe the path of your rehabilitation."
It is at that moment that the twins turn to face Jun. They're not much shorter than her, which makes it easy for them to make direct eye contact with her.
"Ah, pardon me for not introducing the others." Igor rests his chin on the back of his hand. "To your right is Caroline."
The girl with buns in her hair nods only once in affirmation.
"To your left, is Justine." Igor gestures at the quiet girl with her hair in a braid. "They serve as wardens here."
"Hmph, try and struggle as hard as you like," Caroline is the first of the twins to speak.
"The duty of wardens is to protect inmates," Justine speaks next—almost as though she is continuing for Caroline. "We are also your collaborators…That is, if you remain obedient."
"Obedient…right…" Jun can only nod her head.
"I shall explain the roles of these two at another occasion." The twins turn their back to Jun and face Igor. "Now then, it seems the night is waning… It is almost time. Take your time to slowly come to understand this place. We will surely meet again, eventually…"
An alarm rings loudly, startling Jun with its abruptness. She looks around for the alarm, taking a few steps back away from the bars.
"Time's up," Caroline states. "Now hurry and go back to sleep."
Jun scowls at Caroline and leaps towards the bars at her. Caroline doesn't so much as blink, only smirks—as though she finds Jun's attempts to scare her amusing instead of annoying. Jun has no idea what to think of that—not that she has much time to think. Slowly, her consciousness starts to fade.
The last thing she hears is Justine's voice, calmly saying, "Goodnight, Inmate."
…
…
Jun sits up so suddenly when she wakes up. Her eyes are wide and her breaths are short and erratic. She frantically looks around the room, slowly calming when she sees a messy attic instead of a jail cell. She allows herself to fall back onto her pillow, taking a moment to wipe the sweat off her brow.
"What…was that?" Such a strange dream she had… "Ah, it's morning already."
Jun unplugs her phone from its charger to check the time and frowns when she sees it. It's early in the morning, but not enough for her to get another hour of sleep. She looks up at the ceiling and sighs loudly.
"Might as well get up…" She's not sure if she'll have enough time to eat breakfast before Sōjirō shows. "It's a good thing I bought those snacks…"
Melon pan has never been her ideal breakfast, but it does its job in giving her something to fill her stomach. Although, there's something rather awkward about the way Sōjirō just stares at her when he comes up to check up on her.
"Well you're a sight for sore eyes," he says, smirking at the sight of Jun with her long, messy hair, bleary eyes, and crumby mess on her shirt from the melon pan (of which she's still eating). She looks like an absolute mess (a lot like a certain orange-haired girl he knows…). "How did I get stuck taking care of little girls?"
"Nice trilby," Jun retorts. Not the best comeback she's ever made, but it's honestly all she can say when she sees the white trilby Sōjirō sports on his head with his outfit.
"It's nice to see we agree on something," Sōjirō takes her comment in stride (much to Jun's complete annoyance). "Anyways, we leave in half an hour. Get changed by then—try to brush your hair."
Jun stares blankly at Sōjirō and waits until he's turned his back on her to stick her tongue out at him. She takes another bite out of her melon pan afterwards and then reaches out for her glasses. "Can't forget these…"
…
…
When Jun leaves her room, she is wearing her school uniform as neatly as possible. She's managed to listen to Sōjirō in regards to that, though she has completely ignored his request to brush her hair. When he makes mention of this, she sticks her tongue out at him in a manner that reminds him of a cat.
"Troublesome girl," he mutters under his breath. He tries to ignore the wave of relief he feels from knowing that she hasn't completely admitted defeat, despite yesterday's conversation with her. "Do what you want—let's get going. The school you're attending is in the Aoyama district."
"Aoyama…" Jun repeats.
Sōjirō smirks. "You're probably gonna want to write that down—better hope your phone is fully charged this time."
Jun refuses to make a comment out of spite.
"It'll cost you a bit to ride the train there, and the route transfers are a pain." Sōjirō wonders how Jun will fare, considering how lost she got while looking for his café. He shakes it off, deciding that it's none of his concern. "I'll drive you there, but just for today. Let's go."
"Thank you," Jun simply says. She knows when to express her gratitude, even though Sōjirō all but ignores it.
…
…
"You strike me as someone who's fit to ride in the backseat." Sōjirō chuckles when he sees Jun's reflection in his rear-view mirror. She stares blankly at him for a few seconds before unbuckling her seatbelt and clambering into the passenger seat. "Hey—watch it!"
Click!
"Tch, such manners…" Sōjirō clicks his tongue at Jun. She stares at him with such a defiant expression on her face. "Close your legs, you're wearing a skirt."
Jun does the exact opposite of what she's told and crosses her arms over her chest when Sōjirō gives her a disapproving look. It takes her a few seconds to eventually cower under his gaze, to which she closes her legs and mutters a nervous, "S-Sorry…"
Her face is bright red from embarrassment, her expression now devoid of its defiant appearance.
"Heh, so there is a limit to your troublemaking." Sōjirō almost laughs, but decides not to. "Consider yourself lucky I'm going easy on you, but just remember—not everyone has the patience for your antics."
"Understood…" Jun exhales shakily. She knows better than to act this way around adults who aren't her uncles. But it just really drives in the reality that this truly is her first time without them by her side. "I need to behave…"
The drive to the Aoyama district is long and uneventful. It's also rather quiet, due to how Jun and Sōjirō avoid talking to each other. Eventually, the car ride comes to an end when Sōjirō parks the car and motions at Jun to follow him. It is from there that he takes her to the gates of Shujin High.
Shujin High, at first glance, is an unremarkable sight to behold, with its dreary gray coloration that almost blends in with the other buildings near its surroundings. It'd be easy to miss, were it not for the plaque to the left of the gates that reads, Shujin High School.
Sōjirō stops Jun when they're about to enter through the school gates. "Do me a favor and behave yourself, all right?"
Jun says nothing—she only stares at Sōjirō. It's a bit unnerving, since she doesn't blink, so he averts his eyes and sighs.
"Don't get me wrong—I don't care what happens to you." Sōjirō scratches at the back of his head. "Just don't cause me any trouble."
For a brief moment, there's a look of betrayal on Jun's face. It goes relatively unnoticed due to how quickly Sōjirō turns his back on her and how fast her expressions changes. It's easy for her to put up a façade on such a short notice, though there's not really much she can do about the pain that lingers within her chest.
…
…
Jun watches quietly with observant eyes as Sōjirō fills out the papers he's been handed to by the bald, overweight man dressed in a yellow suit who sits at the desk that's in front of them. Her eyes quickly glance at the woman that stands right next to him. She has dark brown eyes and short, unkempt hair of the same color. She wears a long-sleeved yellow shirt with red and white horizontal lines and a denim skirt that goes down to her knees. There's a look on her face that suggests she'd rather be anywhere, but here.
"To reiterate, just so we're clear, you will immediately be expelled if you cause any problems." Jun's attention is back on the man in the yellow suit. "Honestly, I hesitated on accepting someone like you, but there were some circumstances on our side…"
Jun resists the urge she has to play with her hair. She doesn't want to make a bad impression on her principal—especially not with the way he's been watching her every movement.
"You might have done a variety of things in hiding in your hometown, but you will behave yourself here." His expression is stern, as is his tone. "If you are thrown out from our school, there will be no place for you to go. Keep that in mind."
Jun nods her head only once to show that she's been listening. There's not really much she has to say, though…
"This is the teacher in charge of your class," the principal gestures to the woman at his side.
"I'm Kawakami Sadayo," the woman introduces herself before holding out a small card to Jun. "Here's your student ID."
"Thank you," Jun says when she accepts her student ID. She almost smiles at Kawakami, but stops when she notices how still and stiff she is. Try as she may, Kawakami cannot hide her reluctance completely from sight.
"Be sure to read the school rules," Kawakami says. "Any violations will send you straight to the guidance office. And, if by chance you cause any problems, I won't be able to protect you at all…That IS your promise, yes, Principal Kobayakawa?"
Principal Kobayakawa nods his head. "Kimura-kun is responsible for all her actions."
"N-Not now…" Jun bites her lip when nausea starts bubbling in the pit of her stomach. Something feels wrong…so very, very wrong. Why—she doesn't know, but then Kawakami opens her mouth to speak.
"But really though, why me…?" Kawakami furrows her brows. "There should've been better candidates."
"It was a sudden transfer, and your class was the only one that had an opening." Kobayakawa wastes no time in justifying his reasons. "Besides, don't you think a female teacher is best suited for this?"
Jun was expecting people to talk about her like this. She expected it—she just…didn't expect to hear it right in front of her face. She can deal with people talking behind her back or in private, but this… "This feels bad…"
And she knows—she just knows—this won't be the last time this happens.
"If you're done explaining things, mind if we get going?" Sōjirō doesn't want to stay any longer than he has to. "I got a store to get back to."
Kobayakawa turns to Sōjirō. "Sakura-san, please keep a close eye on her. Don't let her cause any trouble outside…"
"Well, I'll be sure to have a serious talk about the situation she's in." Although, Sōjirō has a feeling that the reality of it is finally starting to set in for her…
Kawakami sighs wearily. "Come to the faculty office when you arrive at school tomorrow. I'll show you to your classroom."
With that said, Sōjirō and Jun take their leave.
…
…
"They're treating you like some kinda nuisance…" As usual, Sōjirō doesn't pull any of his punches. Not even the fact that they're still inside of Shujin High keeps him from voicing his complaints. "I guess that's what it means to have a criminal record. Turns out your past follows you wherever you go."
When Sōjirō looks over his shoulder at Jun, he notices her absentmindedly scratching at a spot on her right thigh. She avoids meeting his gaze, appearing far too distracted with her own thoughts to say anything.
"By the way…if you get expelled now, I won't hesitate to kick you out." It takes a few seconds for Jun to realize that he's talking to her. Her head snaps up, her eyes focused right on him. "Did you get that?"
Jun pauses for a moment to play with a lock of her hair. Then she says, "I'll be careful."
"Hmph…" Sōjirō turns away from Jun and sighs. "School never changes, huh? Come on, we're going home."
…
…
Kawakami Sadayo can't help but let her thoughts drift over to messy-haired girl that she met earlier in Principal Kobayakawa's office. It's all that she can think about as she leaves the practice building and makes her way across the courtyard to the classroom building. Because really, when she heard that the transfer student with a criminal record had dabbled in compensated dating, Kawakami was expecting a large-chested girl wearing make-up and a much shorter skirt.
Instead, she got sixteen-year-old girl with the appearance of a grade-schooler.
"Looks can be deceiving," Kawakami tries to tell herself. "You've seen it happen multiple times with girls her age…"
And yet, she still has her doubts…
"What a troublesome situation." Kawakami stops at the halfway point to the classroom building and gymnasium. Standing in her way is a male teacher dressed partially in a black jersey, wearing only the pants to it with a white t-shirt. He is far taller and muscular than she is, with wavy black hair and a broad, square jawline.
"I can't believe they pushed someone with a record on me." Kawakami frowns when she realizes Principal Kobayakawa had made a point when he said a female teacher was best suited for this. "I just wish I wasn't that female teacher…"
"Why in the world was someone like that admitted here?" The male teacher shares her grievances.
"Who knows?" Kawakami sighs. "It was the principal's decision. I was told it's for the school's reputation."
"I would've thought that my volleyball team has contributed more than enough to cover that." The male teacher flashes Kawakami a grin.
"That's certainly true…" Kawakami can't argue with him on that. "I just…wasn't expecting someone like her."
The male teacher arches his brow as he stretches one of his arms. "Is everything okay?"
"No—I mean, yes…I'm just confused." Kawakami pinches the bridge of her nose.
"Just be careful, yeah?" The male teacher smiles reassuringly at her. "If anything were to happen, I'd kick out a student like that right away."
Kawakami could only wonder if he'd think the same way after meeting with Kimura Jun. She runs her hand through her hair and shakes her head. "Honestly, I just…keep wishing that she'd just end up not coming to school. Still—that isn't something I should be saying as a teacher…"
"Well, I should be returning to practice," the male teacher says.
Kawakami tilts her head to the side. "What are you—oh right! The tournament's coming up, isn't it?"
"Hehe, having such high expectations placed on you by others is quite a problem in itself." Despite what he says, the male teacher is smiling widely in pride. "We'll have to work hard to make up for the track team too."
"Yes, that's true…" Kawakami feels a lot more exhausted than before at the mere mention of the track team.
"Oh…and before I forget." The male teacher places his hands on his waist. "I can certainly lend a hand in keeping that troublesome transfer student in place with the strict training of the volleyball club."
"I'll…keep that in mind." Kawakami decides not to think too much about it. She watches the male teacher go on his way towards the gymnasium and sighs for what feels like the umpteenth time today. "Why'd it have to be my class…?"
…
…
The sudden development of a traffic jam lengthens the duration of the drive back to Leblanc. Jun finds herself feeling uneasy around Sōjirō as his anger starts to spike up from the inconvenience before him.
"Traffic's not moving at all…" Sōjirō raises his voice slightly in annoyance, to which Jun reacts by unbuckling her seatbelt and climbing into the backseat. "You're taking the train starting tomorrow."
Jun waits until she's done buckling herself in to respond. "I understand."
"…So how was it? The school, I mean. Think you can manage?" Sōjirō turns to look at Jun, only to realize she's no longer sitting in his passenger seat. He stares blankly at the empty seat and then looks towards the back, to where he sees Jun waving at him. "I see you still have it in you to mess around."
"It seems fun—the school I mean." Jun shifts the focus back on the question Sōjirō had asked her.
Sōjirō is baffled by Jun's response. "Do you even understand your situation…?"
He receives no response from her and instead, finds that Jun is playing with her hair again. It's a tic she has that he's only just noticed. Why she does it, he does not know, but it always feels as though she's making light of the situation. He figures that this is all he'll get as a response from her, so he decides to move on.
"Still," he sighs, "you were expelled once already. To think you'd re-enroll at a different one. It's not like anyone will be sympathetic with you—even with your looks."
Jun narrows her eyes at Sōjirō, but still remains silent.
"If that's what it was like at school, people might say stuff about me in the future too…" It's a concern he has, especially since Jun isn't his only ward. "What a troublesome kid I've taken in…"
"Why did you take me in?" Jun finally brings herself to ask.
"I was asked to do it, and I just…happened to agree to it." Sōjirō ignores the memory he has of a blond-haired man with scars on his face begging him for help. "I've already been paid for it too, after all."
"Ah, so that's why…" Jun laughs halfheartedly. "There's no turning back now, huh?"
Sōjirō's not sure if he wants to know what Jun means by that. He reaches out to turn the radio, just in time listen in on a news report.
"Again, a subway has derailed at Shibuya Station, greatly affecting the timetable all across the—"
"Another accident?!" Sōjirō stares at the radio in disbelief. "So that's why it's so crowded. There's been a lot of those lately."
Jun stretches her arms out and yawns loudly. "I'm sleepy…I'm gonna nap."
Sōjirō clicks his tongue. "Tch, nice to see at least one of us can make the most of this situation."
…
…
It's late in the evening when Sōjirō and Jun finally arrive at Leblanc. There was a slight detour to the grocery store after making it back to Yongen-Jaya, but only because Sōjirō was growing annoyed with how loud Jun's stomach was growling. He can only wonder why she didn't say anything as she worked her way through one of the ready-made meals she picked out at the store.
"You sure aren't picky…" Sōjirō was expecting Jun's sheltered upbringing to pop up in the form of her eating habits, though from the looks of it, she seems fine with what she has. "Then again, all she's had for breakfast is melon pan…"
"Thanks for the meal," Jun says almost an afterthought through a mouth full of rice.
"Don't talk with your mouth full…" Sōjirō sighs. "To think there'd be that much traffic… What a waste of time."
"You can have my umeboshi." Jun uses her chopsticks to holds out a sour pickled plum for Sōjirō to take.
"Just keep it." Sōjirō wasn't a fan of that grocery store's umeboshi to begin with… "I wasn't able to open the café today…"
"I'm sorry…" Jun frowns. "I was saving it for last, but you can have my salmon if it'll make you feel any better…"
Sōjirō stares at Jun for a moment, taking note of the regret she has in her eyes. He scratches the back of his head and sighs. "Whatever…you can keep that, too. Just head upstairs. There's something I need to give to you—try not to make a mess."
"No promises," is all Jun says before she disappears up the stairs.
Sōjirō stares at the pieces of white rice that had managed to fall on the floor from where Jun was standing. He pushes his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Ojou, huh?"
She sure doesn't act like it…
…
…
Jun is halfway through her second meal when Sōjirō enters the room. His eyes are glued to the screen of his cellphone, paying Jun no particular attention—not even when she pops open a can of soda.
"Talk about a gruesome accident…" Sōjirō was checking his phone for news regarding the accident he and Jun heard on the radio. "Eighty people were involved."
"Damn," Jun says out loud, catching Sōjirō by surprise with her swearing. "So what is it that you wanted to give me?"
Sōjirō blinks twice and then nods his head. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a small, black book. "It's a diary. Make sure you write in it."
"Ha?" Jun tilts her head to the side.
Sōjirō throws the book down onto the table. It lands right next to Jun's black schoolbag. "You may be under probation, but there's no special limitations on what you do in particular. Besides following the law, that is. However, I'm obligated to report on you, which is why I'm having you record your daily activities."
PI PI PI PI PI PI PI!
Sōjirō quickly picks up the call he receives on the cellphone. A warm smile makes its way to his face when he answers. "Hey, what's up? I'm about to leave right now. Don't worry. I'll be there in no time…Uh-huh. I'll see you soon."
"It's like he's an entirely different person…" Jun takes a drink from her soda.
"Well, I'm off," Sōjirō says, shortly after hanging up. "I'll lock the place up, so do whatever you want for the rest of the night. Oh, but don't mess up my store. If something goes missing, I'll hand you right over to the cops."
"I understand." Jun knows better than to take what doesn't belong to her.
"You got school tomorrow…" Sōjirō reminds her. "You better head off to bed, all right?"
He doesn't wait for Jun to respond and just heads downstairs. A full minute passes before Jun gets up from the sofa and walks over to the black book by her school bag. She picks it up to get a closer look at it.
"Write in it, huh?" Jun guesses she'll do as she's told in regards to this. "Maybe before bed…"
She still hasn't finished eating yet. Though, on her way over to the sofa, she hears a sound coming from downstairs.
"A phone?" It's probably the yellow pay phone that's downstairs. "Though who can be calling from there?"
Jun sure as hell doesn't know, but she might as well check it out.
"It better not be a prank call…"
…
…
"Yo, it's me."
"Who is this?" Jun asks the person on the other line.
"Sheesh, you forget my voice already? It's Sakura." Ah, so it's Sōjirō… "Uhhh… I closed up shop, but I forgot to flip the sign to CLOSED. It's too much of a hassle for me to go back, so you flip the sign for me."
"You called a public phone?" Jun wonders why Sōjirō didn't call her cellphone instead.
"I'm very selective on whose number I save in my cellphone," Sōjirō explains. "And to be quite honest, I don't trust you with my number."
"…Fair enough." Jun isn't going to argue with him.
"Anyway, I'm glad you answered the phone over in the shop. Okay then. I'm leaving you in charge of the door sign." Sōjirō hangs up after that.
"Well…I guess I better do as I'm told…" It's a lot creepier going outside late at night when no one is around. It was easier for Jun to ignore it when she just went straight to bed, but right now, as she flips the sign from OPEN to CLOSED, she's on alert for anything that's out of place. She checks the door more than twice to ensure it's locked before going back upstairs to finish her dinner.
It's a lot lonelier, now that Sōjirō is gone. It finally sets in as she finishes off the last of her dinner. She ignores the urge she has to message home—she has school tomorrow, so she needs to sleep early tonight. She makes one last trip downstairs to dispose of her trash and brush her teeth. She heads back up afterwards to change into her sleeping attire and head to bed.
She's just about ready to call it a night when she recalls the diary Sōjirō had given her.
"That's right…" Jun has to write something in it… "I should have a pencil in my schoolbag…"
…
Jun sits back down on the sofa and flips open the diary to write something in it. She pauses momentarily to think how she wants to start the entry before quickly jotting something down. When she is finished, she sets the diary on the table next to the sofa, just to the right of the framed photograph she has of her uncles that she had set down earlier this morning. She smiles at the sight of the three men in the picture.
The photograph was a parting gift given to her before the train ride to Shibuya. Thinking of it now, this is all she has left of home for the next year. It's strange…
"I'm going to bed!" Jun says out loud to no one in particular. She turns her back to the photograph and makes her way over to her bed.
…
…
"I need to take the train to school…" Jun thinks to herself as she stares up at the ceiling. She pulls out her phone to look up the directions she needs. "Yongen-Jaya… Aoyama-Itchome…Transfer…"
According to her phone, Jun needs to go out to Shibuya and then transfer there to Aoyama-Itchome. Seems simple enough…
…
"I'll set my alarm so I can leave early…" Just in case. "More news about that subway accident… Sounds like a lot of people were hurt…I bet this'll affect the timetables for tomorrow too…"
Just her luck…speaking of which—
"It's that app again." Jun scowls at the red and black icon that appears amongst her other apps. "It keeps showing up…time to delete it again."
Third time's the charm, after all.
"I should probably reboot my phone, just in case…" Jun hopes that'll do the job, once and for all. She waits until her phone has finished rebooting to set up her alarms before shoving it into her pocket. Afterwards, she stares up at the ceiling again and sighs. "It's so quiet…"
There's no one else in the café but her. It's strange how it's taken her until now to notice, but…
"I really am alone…" She has been from the moment she boarded the train to Shibuya. She might have had Sōjirō at her side today, but starting tomorrow, she was back to being on her own again. "No one but myself…"
She recalls the way the principal and her homeroom teacher had treated her. And the way Sōjirō reacted to that.
"All alone…" Tears began to well up in her eyes, blurring her vision. "For the next year…"
She's crying, she notices after almost a minute. Just like that night that got her into this mess, where she's just so alone.
"I wanna go home…"
…
…
Sunday, April 10th, 20XX
So Sakura-san says I need to record my daily activities. But honestly, I don't feel like it. Nothing happened today. I got stuck in a car with his grumpy ass after dealing with that principal and my homeroom teacher who would rather be anywhere but around me.
…
…
Huh, that was easier than I thought it would be. I guess this diary has its uses, then. Well, since this is the first page, I guess I'll start off with an introduction.
My name is Kimura Jun and I'm going to be a second-year student at Shujin High School tomorrow. My birthday is on the 15th of June and I'll be turning seventeen this year. I like baseball, seafood, and drawing (when I'm in the mood, of course).
I hate waking up early and getting lost, which'll happen often, I guess, since I'm not so good with directions here. I'm not particularly lucky (if that wasn't obvious enough), but I try not to let that get to me.
For the next year, I'll be far away from home on probation. So long as I stay out of trouble and follow the rules, I should be completely fine.
I should be…okay.
…
…
…
Right?
…
…
…
A/N Holy shit I got this next chapter up within a week. That's a new fucking record! Anyways, since it's not 4 AM like last time (it is almost 1 AM though), I think now is a good time as any to make some clarifications.
This writing style I have now? This is gonna stay, it's been like that since I started writing my Hunter x Hunter SI OC fic (it just carried over from there on). It might be a bit awkward, but honestly, it's what comes naturally to me now. Should also mention that there is no flashback like there is in the game, it's happening in real-time…yeah.
Anyways, more about Jun. She has three uncles who aren't exactly her uncles (not by blood, at the least) that she's very close to and loves. She's also a fucking mess because she's a lot like a cat who doesn't groom itself (much like one of kurobook's cats as well as one of UnstableFable's). And the reason I say cat specifically is because the Persona 5 Protagonist was based off a cat, whereas the Persona 4 Protagonist was based off a dog. It makes a lot of sense when you recall how often Façade!Yu bit and attacked people when cornered—though that was completely unintentional because I didn't know about the dog thing until now. Now the thing about Jun liking seafood—that was intentional to contrast with Façade!Yu's affinity for meat.
Moving on, Jun has her moments of defiance, though only around Sōjirō and it's to a limit. It's because she's getting a bit too comfortable around him, if only because of his connection to one of her uncles, Shiba. She knows better than to push her luck though, so she stops as soon as she notices Sōjirō is giving off warning signs (signs that he's tired of her shit).
It'll be a loooong journey before Sōjirō warms up to Jun, but until then…yeah. Also, feel free to scream in regards to the comment a certain shithead volleyball teacher made in regards to Jun and the volleyball club… Though, let me just tell you that I actually just took that off the manga, because holy FUCK, there was plans for Akira getting shoved into the volleyball club.
Kawakami's got her doubts about Jun, because things don't seem to match up with her appearance. Though, of course, looks can certainly be deceiving, though she still has her doubts. As an FYI, "looks can be deceiving" pretty much fits Jun to a T.
So I also wanna mention that like, I know it's Shujin Academy, but like…I've taken a semester of Japanese and I have been playing this game with the Japanese voices in order to improve my comprehension skills. The one thing I noticed is that Shujin Academy is Shūjin Gakuen Kōkō, with kōkō meaning high school. It's kinda hard to ignore and a part of me just kinda…didn't want to go with Shujin Academy, so I just ended up going through with Shujin High School.
Of course, the Japanese version is Syujin High School (it's even on the school emblem, just check it out), but I kinda mixed it so that it'd make sense. It's just a personal decision I made in the end.
So like, I wasn't expecting to do a journal entry thing like I did in Façade, but lmao, aaaay, guess what ended up being a thing anyways in Persona 5? I swear to god, it's like Façade managed to predict things, from Yu's birthday being the eventual worldwide release date of Persona 5 to the journal entries being a thing because Sōjirō gives you a diary to fill out. But that's enough of that, just get used to the diary entries.
By the by, you have kurobook to thank for Jun's birthday being in June (it's a pun) as well as a drawing of the photo of Jun's uncles (which I'll post up on my tumblr). Anyways, the date itself refers to a traditional Korean festival by the name of Yudu where you wash your hair and body in a river for good luck (which I feels is appropriate for Jun). Though, as a result, this makes her the oldest of the second-years, which contrast to Yu (who is the youngest, being only older than Rise by like two months). She is also a Gemini, which is funny because aaaay, Caroline and Justine are twins. (Of course, she isn't the only Gemini, because a certain pancake-loving pretty boy is one too and his birthday was June 2nd…which he shares with friend UnstableFable, so happy birthday, Bloo!)
Just as a heads up, I do feel that this game takes place in 2016, but for the sake of the diary entries, it'll be written as 20XX because Jun's a cheeky little brat.
Anyways, have some shout outs!
Reviewer #10: Anonymous Reviewer N
Honorable mentions: caitlin . monterroso, MonochromeEclipse, FoxOnPie, Lightsbane1905, droffatsstafford
Thank you guys so much for taking the time to review, I really appreciate it! No seriously, I love it when you guys review (CRAVE THAT VALIDATION). So feel free to say something if you anything on your mind, SO LONG AS IT ISN'T ABOUT UPDATING MY OTHER STORIES (you don't do that to writers, yo, that's heckin' RUDE).
That's about it for now, hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, I'll try to get the next chapter up as soon as possible! Until next time, everyone! KD out! XD