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Downright Delinquents
Chapter 2
Ugh.
That was my first thought when I stared at the new school I'd be attending. I crunched my eyes closed, in a pitiful attempt to wave away all the images of the large iron gates and barbed wired fences that stretched all around the school, as far as I could see. The building was large, and was made somewhat entirely out of brick. Vines even climbed up the edges of it to the lowest windows, which were barred from the outside.
I opened my eyes. This was so not happening, I tried to convince myself. I already regretted taking on this job offer. Surely I'd be murdered here. I'd be better off working to take out the garbage or something. What on earth was this? A school or a goddamn prison?
Two security guards were patrolling the entrance of the school. I swallowed a lump that had lodged itself into my throat. How my life could go from absolutely perfect to.. this was still unbelievable. This is for Ami, I told myself.
I sighed wearily, pinching the bridge of my nose. The day hadn't even started and I was already exhausted.
"Um, excuse me?" The taxi driver cleared his throat nervously. I turned towards him, looking exasperated, and he flinched and cowered backwards. "P-please, don't hurt me."
My gaze softened almost immediately. It had to be hard transporting people around this area of town, especially to the school, with the number of thugs around. I quickly told him, "I'm a teacher here."
His eyes filled with relief instantly, and he smiled at me tentatively. "O-oh, I thought you were a student here, since you look so young and all."
I cringed. I had woken up at five in the morning just to make sure I looked older before coming to school. I'd put my long pink hair into a casual high bun, and my honey brown eyes were hidden behind Kukai's reading glasses. They made my vision slightly blurry, but it definitely made me look older as well. I wore a tight formal grey skirt right above my knee, and donned a fitted, white collared shirt, accompanied by black high heels. I had decided the outfit didn't look that bad on me. It was a safe one. I had also applied a little mascara and lip gloss to finish it off. And a taxi driver thought I was a student? Maybe my disguise wasn't as good as I thought it was.
What if no one believed I was twenty-one? Tsukasa-san made it clear that if my true age was found out, I wouldn't be able to keep my job. The thought made me incredibly nervous and I rubbed my sweaty palms quickly on my skirt.
I quickly shoved the cash I owed him into his hands, and strode off before he could make any more awkward comments. With a slight nod, he hopped back into his taxi and drove off as quickly as possible. What I'd give to be able to do the same.
I hitched my bag onto my shoulder and approached the gate. I decided to stop being a milksop. It was now or never. The gates starting opening with a loud screech and I winced, clamping my hands over my ears. The guards I saw earlier marched out, their faces impassive.
I quickly gave a peace sign out of habit but noticed my slip as the guards stared at me incredulously. I pretended to scratch my head instead.
They ignored my feeble attempt to retain my pride, and one of them snarled at me harshly, "What are you lingering here for? The school grounds are off-limits to the public."
Yep, my disguise was definitely not doing its job. "What do you think, I'm here for a picnic?" My cool exterior appeared again. "I'm a teacher here, so move out of the way."
They turned to look at each other, raising an eyebrow. I rolled my eyes and handed them the letter of approval Tsukasa-san gave me for them to certify. They then nodded grudgingly and allowed me inside.
As I entered, I noticed that there were more guards, each patting down a student, obviously checking for weapons and the sorts. Most of the boys looked agitated, tapping their feet impatiently or folding their arms. I had gone past dumbfounded to seriously irritated.
"Is that really necessary?" I deadpanned, gesturing at the scene, furrowing my eyebrows. "They don't deserve to be treated like that, you know?" The guard I was trailing after let out a laugh. "You're a new one, alright. You'll learn soon enough."
At least teachers weren't needed to be pat down. I had hidden a small pocket knife in my bra, courtesy of Kukai. Apparently, I had to know how to protect myself in here. He was being extremely overprotective of me when he learnt I was going to an all boys delinquent school. He hadn't been informed of that fact from Tsukasa-san.
I was led to an office before the guard left. I didn't bother knocking and went straight in. "Hey, Tsukasa-san."
Tsukasa looked up from his desk and smiled. "Hi, Hinamori-san. I'm going to have to call you that while you work here." He said apologetically.
"It's fine," I waved it off, taking a seat on the chair across from him. I brought my hands into my lap and looked at him expectantly. He pulled out one of his drawers and whipped on the black binder at the very top. He placed it on his desk and slid it over to me.
"This had everything you need in it. Your co-worker's schedule, your own timetable, the lists of your students' names, and the list of the course work planned for this semester. Since you're the new homeroom mentor, I must also expect you to keep tabs on all your students' activities, and you're needed to follow them to classes at times, to make sure they don't misbehave."
I opened the black binder, and scanned the first page. My eyes widened, and I almost threw the binder back at Tsukasa. "But Tsukasa-san! My homeroom class is a senior class! If I were in high school, I'd only be a junior! How can you expect me to mentor students older than myself?"
"Actually, Hinamori-san, you're now an adult who isn't in high school." He pointed out.
"But-" I tried to argue.
"They won't know anything," He cut me off, sighing. "Trust me, Hinamori-san, everything will be fine."
I gulped. "Okay."
"You don't have a teaching period today, but you have homeroom mentoring later on. So why don't you go explore the school?" Tsukasa smiled at me. "You might also need some time to settle in your room."
"Settle down?" I cocked my head to the side.
"I did say it was a boarding school, didn't I," Tsukasa raised an eyebrow at me. "Teachers are expected to live here, too."
"What?" I cried. "I didn't hear of this! I can't accept this!"
"I'm sorry, Hinamori-san." He told me. "If you're thinking of Ami, Kukai should be able to take care of her."
"He's got school to attend too! I can't ruin his future with this!" I hissed.
"What if Kukai found a replacement?" Tsukasa asked me, still smiling.
"He did?" I asked, incredulous. Kukai didn't inform me about this.
"Yes, he's got his little sister to babysit Ami twenty four, seven. Her name is Yaya-chan. I take it you've heard of her?"
"O-oh, yeah." I frowned, still a little uncomfortable with the idea of it. But I trusted Kukai and his judgement. "Alright. I still get to go home on weekends, right?"
"The weekends are all yours," He flashed another smile.
"Alright then," I sighed. I really had no choice in this. "I'll get Kukai to bring me some clothes later." My fingers pressed a few buttons on my phone as I sent a message to Kukai.
I stood, tucking the folder under my arm. "See you around, Tsukasa-san." I waved without a backward glance.
"I really should have asked for a map of this school," I grumbled under my breath. I rounded the corner of the building, hoping to find a sign that said, This way out of this damn school. I watched the ground as I cautiously made my way over rock covered ground. I wasn't used to wearing high heels, so I had to be extremely careful on uneven terrain.
Where the hell was I? I wondered mentally. A shout of pain cut off my train of thoughts and my head snapped up instantly, worried. When I didn't see anyone, I became more confused. Then another cry of pain came and I realized it was coming from my left.
Alert, I crept over to the edge of the building. I heard faint voices now, and they sounded threatening. My heart thudded against my ribcage wildly as I kept myself hidden behind the wall. There was definitely a fight going on, with the sounds of punching and groaning. I nibbled my lower lip nervously. What should I do? Leave them alone? But what if someone got hurt? As a teacher, it was my job to stop these things, wasn't it?
I swallowed, and stepped out of my hiding place. Immediately, I felt exposed. My eyes landed on four guys dressed in the school's uniform; black shoes, black slacks, a white button-down shirt similar to mine, a black jacket embossed with the Seiyo Private crest, and a red tie.
One of the blondes were on the ground, groaning as he was punched repeatedly by a another guy, who had long purple hair. I noticed there was also another guy who looked especially alike the purple head. Were they twins? He was trying to attack the other purple head, but a black haired guy was locking his arms behind his back, making him unable to move.
Suddenly, the purple head threw the black haired guy off his back, and wrestled him to the ground furiously. The purple head was startled, and the blonde on the ground took the chance to kick him in the stomach. He doubled over, and the blonde sprang up, locking his neck in a vice-like grip, while punching him over and over.
I ran across towards them, ditching my heels quickly, and planted myself in between them, because the purple head managed to get out of the blonde's grip. "Stop this!"
I wasn't expecting what happened next. The purple head was throwing a punch towards the blonde, but I was in the way. I watched it all in slow motion as he wasn't able to control his movements and stop in time. A sharp pain hit me at the side of my chest, and my eyes widened.
The next thing I knew, I was on the ground, wincing in pain. All the sounds of fighting immediately ceased and I felt my heart skip a beat before accelerating.
My eyes travelled upwards to realize all four men were staring at me. I cringed. Boy, was I in for it now.
"What do you think you're doing?" The purple head demanded, a scowl crossing his features. A small bruise was already quickly appearing at his cheek. That's when I realized all the men standing in front of me were insanely good-looking.
I didn't respond, still staring at the hot, yet intimidating men before me. All of them were still tense and panting from the fight, giving occasional glares at each other.
Then someone chuckled from behind them. I turned my head, surprised. I hadn't noticed this particular guy. He must have been watching the fight from the sidelines, as I did. His hair was a deep azure, the ends of it almost reaching the nape of his neck. He wasn't in uniform, I realized. He wore a black, long sleeved button-down, leaving the first three buttons undone. He had matching dressy pants, and a silver cross dangling from his necklace to top it off. He had a small, amused look on his handsome face. Were all the guys at this school just this abnormally good looking? I mused internally, forgetting my predicament for a moment.
"Nice view," He grinned, putting a fist near his mouth in an attempt to stop laughing. I was a tad surprised by his voice, he was obviously Japanese, but he had a very slight British accent. His words registered in my mind slowly and I noticed my legs were still spread in a very awkward manner from the fall. Blushing furiously, I pulled myself to my feet, swatting his outstretched hand away.
He looked hurt for a moment, and his facial expression turned neutral as he drew his hand to his side.
The other guys gaped at his sudden appearance. I frowned. Was something wrong?
"Tsukiyomi Ikuto," The blonde hissed, his hands curled into fists.
"What a minute here. What am I doing?" I interrupted the blonde, whom I just realized was the same height as me; answering his earlier question. "That should be my line. What are you fi- four think you're doing? I may be new here, but it doesn't take a genius to figure out fighting is against the rules."
The purple heads decided to chip in. "I don't know if you've noticed-" The other continued "-but you're in a school of bad boys." He said it with a high pitched tone, mocking me. "Don't you have somewhere to go? You know, before someone actually gets hurt." They said together, still smiling at me. This was the first time I'd seen someone smile and emanate a threatening aura at the same time.
"Besides, it's not like anyone's around to tell on us," The blonde said condescendingly.
"Oh?" I raised my eyebrow incredulously. "I'm not anyone?"
"No," The blonde stepped closer to my face. "because I'm going to make sure of that."
I took in a shaky breath and stepped forward, tilting my chin up, daring him to do as he said. I wasn't going to back down, and neither was I weak. "Bring it."
"Lay off her," The voice was from the blue-haired boy, bringing all the attention to himself again.
"Forget her," The blonde's eyes darted to mine one last time, hestitating, before shaking his head. "She's not worth it. I've got bigger fish to fry." He took a pointed glance at that boy who'd just spoken.
An arrogant smile made its way across his lips, and the blonde lost it. He lunged at him, and me, being the idiot that never learns her lesson, dived between them again, shielding the blue-haired boy.
A resounding thud echoed dimly around my brain, and the last thing I saw was the shocked look on the boy's face before spots danced across my eyes and I blacked out.
Sorry for the wait. Hope you liked it, and feel free to leave a review for any feedback. Thanks for reading.
blu2012: I changed things a little, thanks to your earlier comment, because it doesn't fit in the plot. Sorry for the confusion!
Update: I have been on holiday the past few days, and I had brought my thumb drive along with me; being the paranoid person that I am. The first night at the hotel, I realized it was gone from my luggage. I really don't know what to say; except I'm really sorry, guys. The thumb drive contained more than 50 000 words of Guns N' Roses, Downright Delinquents, Their Paid Girl, and The Way He's Not, all of which I planned to upload today. As you can guess, I am very, very disheartened about it and re-writing the chapters seem like a chore now. I definitely will update and finish every story, but it will be a long process. I sincerely hope you can all bear with me.
- J
