That morning a deeply worried Takumi walked through the school corridors completely immersed in himself, the bad thoughts that insinuated in his mind made him oblivious to his surroundings. He couldn't even notice all the other students going back and forth, talking, laughing.. nothing registered in his mind but the growing beating of his heart, fearing for what could happen to Gii. It didn't even occur to him that in that moment he was in the same danger Gii was in.
He reached his room and as soon as he went in, locked the door as to block away the bad things about to come their way.
A moment later a knock on the door made him walk back to it with hesitation.
"Hayama are you there?" someone from the other side asked and Takumi knew immediately who it was. With faster steps he opened the door to his friend Akaike and when he did Takumi saw he wasn't alone, alongside him stood Shingyouji and Misu.
Takumi invited them in, happy to see them, but they looked hesitant. Misu leant forward a bit and looked from the left to the right inside the room "Are you alone?" he asked.
"Yes, my roommate's not here right now" Takumi answered questioning their behavior with his eyes.
Satisfied, all the three of them walked inside; while Misu and Shingyouji walked to the center of the room, Akaike stayed behind so that he could close the door. Only once they were sure it was closed did they start to speak. Takumi watched them with a questioning face.
"We came to see how you were" Shingyouji said, but their friend only frowned more not understanding what was behind their behavior.
"We heard about that guy's latest plan" Misu explained, it was clear who he was referring to. Immediately panic rose on Takumi's face: how did they know, did he do something already? What happened to Gii?
Noting the panicked expression, and sensing what his thoughts could be like, Akaike who in the meantime took a few steps towards them, explained "We heard from Toshihisa" and Takumi exhaled a big sigh of relief, "Toshihisa" he whispered, his expression much more relaxed.
"He was concerned about you" Misu added.
Takumi sighed, ready to confide in them "I'm worried, I don't want anything happening to Gii"
"There's nothing to worry over, even if he does say something he'll fail like all the other times" Shingyouji reassured him.
"I don't know, this is different. And you know how much Ishimura sensei is strict about rules"
"He won't listen to a rumor" Misu confirmed Shingyouji's words.
Takumi though made an expression that said he doesn't believe that sensei won't. It's a rumor all they have, that's true, but Takumi doesn't think that he could doubt that rumor.
It was the start of the school year. Gii and Takumi agreed to act just like mere friends. At first they were more wary around the younger students than the new professor, but that soon changed. Gii noted how Ishimura sensei stared at them whenever they stood close, it put him in alarm.
"Do you think he knows, Gii?" Takumi asked when his boyfriend told him his suspects "I don't know, maybe he heard something about us" Gii turned away sighing in angry frustration "We can't let our guard down" in that moment they decided to act the way they carried on until now, barely meeting at all.
"Takumi.." Shingyouji called as his friend seemed lost for a moment.
"I.. I was thinking, maybe I should tell Tanaka that the rumor was about me, that it was only because we shared the same room, and that it was false. When he'll tell the others they'll let it go" he said hopeful.
"Kamenashi won't get let down that easily" Misu rejected the suggestion.
"The opportunity is too good, they won't drop it like that" Akaike agreed. And so his hopes were crashed.
Takumi dropped his shoulders as the situation hit on him again. He went to sit down on his bed, next to Shingyouji. He didn't say anything as his friends stood by him.
-._.-.-._._.-.-._.
In Kamenashi's room the group resumed the meeting they had to postpone the night before because of curfew.
The leader of the group was very excited about the whole thing, he saw it as his first real chance of success. In his mind Gii's days are numbered. But it wasn't like that, still. "We have to find out more!"
"Why not just tell sensei about what we heard?"
"Idiot, sensei will need something more concrete than a rumor or he won't listen to me" then he sighed "What are you still doing here?! Go ask around we need proofs!"
With that said his followers went out to get what their leader wants.
-._.-.-._._.-.-._.
In the dorm room lit in warm light, Akaike watched his friend Gii as he took a few steps away deep in thought.
He had just updated Gii on the latest news and now was waiting for him to speak.
"How's Takumi doing?" it was the first thing Gii asked after knowing all up to the point they went to visit his secret boyfriend.
"He's worried for you" Akaike revealed and Gii smiled sweetly for a brief moment, lowering his gaze.
"Too seriously if you ask me" Akaike continued "sensei won't give credit to a rumor."
Those words raised a doubtful expression on Gii's face.
"Your expression is the same as Hayama's" he pointed out with suspicion, what was behind that?
Gii shook lightly his head "Nothing just.. Ishimura looked at us suspiciously" and then explained everything to him.
It followed some moments of silence.
"So it wasn't for the freshmen that you two were so drastic, but for sensei"
Gii could hardly voice his "Yes" as he went with his mind back to the start of this school year, feeling once again how frustrating and hateful it was all this situation.
He brought his mind back to the present and thought about Kamenashi. "As stupid as he is" Gii said then "even he knows that he can't go to sensei with just that." Then concluded "he won't stop here, he'll try to find out more"
"Do you think there are proofs that he could discover?"
"Maybe. What's for sure it's that he won't give up just because he didn't find out anything"
Akaike watched his expression "Are you that worried?" he asked surprised.
"I don't care about what he does, but if he really will find out something, then he'll discover that Takumi was the other student, and I can't let him do anything to him"
Akaike hid a smile: his two friends really were the same, only thinking about the other's safety.
"What's our move then?"
"We have to watch him close, know everything he might discover" Gii instructed, then added lower "at least we'll be prepared to a countermove"
"Understood."
-._.-.-._._.-.-._.
Running as fast as his legs allowed, a student who was part of the Kamenashi group, rushed through the school corridors aiming to reach his leader as soon as possible as if lives depended on it.
He knew where his leader was and as he was in front of his dorm room he didn't wait to get permission to enter since he knew that Kamenashi was waiting for his followers to return with the information he wanted.
He could hardly wait to catch his breath "I found someone" he said between fast intakes of breath "he saw Saki sempai with the other guy. He saw them kiss."
