Chapter 4: Cold
After watching over Judal for a few days, it seems that the magi has no intention of revealing Hakuryuu's secret as he had promised. Even so that still can't distill the fear in her that might be uncovered. Even if Judal keeps his word that still doesn't change the fact that something like that time will happen again. No, she can't let that happen. No matter what she can't let her gender be aware of even if it means isolating herself from her peers.
"Hey Hakuryuu, what's with all the staring?" Judal had noticed Hakuryuu's occasional glances at him since he normally has his attention directed at his neighbor rather than on the lectures.
This is bad he noticed.
"I know my face is attractive and all but there will be times that we might not meet so here." Judal places a picture of himself on Hakuryuu's desk.
Who carries a picture of themselves? Not only is he a pervert but a self absorbed narcissist too.
From afar, Kouen has been keeping an eye on the two ever since he discovered Hakuryuu's secret from that photo album.
After Kouen turned to the next and final page, he couldn't believe what he had just seen. He scanned the entire page several times to confirm that it wasn't his imagination. Kouen's grip on the book loosen. Allowing it to land onto the hard floor while Kouen is having a hard time processing the new information he just gained.
"If this is true then..."
Hakuryuu is actually a girl.
It's true that he's quite effeminate for a guy like Kouha, but he never would have thought that Hakuryuu would enroll into Alma Torran as a guy. No matter how many times he looked at the page or reread the words under the picture to confirm if he had misread the printed characters, it didn't change the fact about Hakuryuu's gender. Under the picture of Hakuyuu cradling his newborn sibling in his arms with Hakuren and Hakuei by his side were the words 'Our second cute baby sister. Hopefully she'll be more feminine than Hakuei.'
'Then the reason Hakuryuu enrolled here was to look for Hakuren and Hakuyuu.' As admirable as it is such a decision will only lead to hardship and misfortunate for his cousin if this continues on. To gather the resolve to infiltrate into an all boys' school as a male...
"Hey Brother Mei, Brother En has been smirking like for a long time. It's scary…." Kouha whispers to Koumei.
"Although he tends to behave irrational time from time, it is strange for him to act like this." Like Kouha, Koumei was a bit wary of the not exactly change but rather the strange subtle behavior that his older brother has been exhibiting for the past few days.
"And so class, today we're having our fitness test. Those who don't take the test automatically get a zero for the class so make sure to have your PE uniform ready."
Nobody had expected this not even Kouen. A physical test out all of a sudden. This was bad. If there's a physical test, then that means changing into their PE uniform. And if she refuses to change, then that means getting a zero for the class which isn't good either. To let someone as promising as Hakuryuu go would be a waste. Kouen wouldn't allow a promising student like Hakuryuu go especially not when he hadn't gotten her to join his side.
Like Kouen, Judal wasn't too happy to hear about the sudden fitness test they had to take. For one thing, he preferred taking naps over running. And two, if Hakuryuu got kicked out of Alma Torran where else would he find someone as interesting as her. Lastly, Judal felt uneasy with letting someone else besides him see Hakuryuu's body.
"Everything will be fine, Hakuryuu. Just leave everything to me." Judal pats his neighbor on the shoulder.
"?" Hakuryuu on the other hand had no idea what Judal was talking about. Hakuryuu wouldn't put it past Judal to get intoxicated so early in the day especially after seeing that in their room.
Inside the boys' locker room, everybody is getting ready to change out of their uniforms into their PE uniform.
"Hey Hakuryuu, you're kind of slender for a guy." Alibaba Salujah, one of Hakuryuu's classmates, pointed out. They've seen each other a few times being classmates and all, however they never interacted before since Hakuryuu chose to distance herself from her classmates as her mission was to look for her brothers not to make friends.
"I guess so..."
"Hey, hey…. I know he's got a girly face and all, but he's still a dude." One of Alibaba's friends, Kassim, said to his childhood friend with a tone of disgust at his unpopular friend who could never get a girlfriend despite his good looks. It wasn't that he was ugly or anything. In terms of appearance, he was above average but not as attractive as Sinbad or Kouen. It was fate's decision that Alibaba ended up girlfriendless for the past twenty years of his life or at least that's what Kassim thought.
"Shut up, I know that! I was just trying to make a conversation!" Alibaba knows that he's 100% straight. It is true that he has trouble getting a girlfriend, but he's not that desperate to go after a man! All he wants is a sweet caring girl who would become his girlfriend and hopefully cute.
"Don't worry, Alibaba. You definitely have more fat on you than him especially if you eat a lot like this morn-" Alibaba's household member, Olba, tried to assure Alibaba.
"Hey! How is that suppose to help me! And I never said I wanted to be fat! I was just making a comment. And at least say muscle instead of fat!" Alibaba appreciated his friend and household member's goodwill, but Alibaba has no intention of becoming fat. Wherever did he get such a ridiculous idea from?
While the three good friends chatted amongst each other, Hakuryuu just continued on with unbuttoning her shirt before Alibaba interrupted her.
'Fufufu... Time to put my genius plan into action.'
"Huh? Did it get colder in here?" Kassim noticed the sudden chill in the air.
"Alibaba, hurry up and put on your jersey!" Olba grabs Alibaba's jersey for him.
"It's freezing in here." Poor Alibaba was half naked when he was trying to make small talk with Hakuryuu. It didn't help that he was in his underwear either.
A few moments later, the entire locker room was frozen solid along with most of the class except for a few.
Judal turns to Hakuryuu to give her the all clear so that she can change without anyone seeing.
"Hakuryuu! Now you can..."
"Huh? Did you say something?" Judal's excitement was cut short as he saw Hakuryuu already in her PE uniform.
It turned out that Hakuryuu was a fast changer which was why no one found out about her when she changed.
Judal had doubts about letting Hakuryuu take the test since a woman's constitution is different from a man's. However his doubts were washed away when Hakuryuu outran him in the 50 meter dash. After that, she did more push ups and sit ups than him, and then she jumped higher than him in the vertical jump test.
"Wow, he's doing better than I thought. Try learnin' a thing or two from him." From the sidelines with Alibaba and Olba, Kassim comments on Hakuryuu's physique at the same time insulting Alibaba's while smoking a cigar as usual.
"I'm doing just fine!"
"That's right, Kassim! Alibaba was magnificent when he jumped with all his might to get that barely passing mark."
"You're not helping!"
"That wasn't the only thing he did with all his might only to get a barely passing mark." Kassim harshly remarked while blowing a cloud of smoke at his childhood friend's face.
"Hey!"
"Damn Kassim! Damn Olba! I can easily pass this test with no problem if I tried. I just need some motivation that's all….. Achoo!" Sitting under the shady area of the tree, Alibaba sneezes.
"Oh, thanks." Alibaba takes the handkerchief offered to him.
Just as he was about to blow his nose, he realized something was off.
!
Wait, a minute. There was suppose to be no one there but him after he ran from his traitorous friends. Alibaba quickly turns around to see that it was Hakuryuu who gave him the handkerchief.
"Hakuryuuu, what are you doing here!" Seeing the scarred bluenette had surprised Alibaba as he had no expected anyone to find him.
"I felt thirsty so I went to get a drink."
"Oh, I see..." For some reason, Alibaba felt a bit dejected. He couldn't understand why though.
But the feeling didn't last long, when he realized how close Hakuryuu's face was near his, only a few inches away from his.
"Hmm, it seems that you have a slight cold."
Hakuryuu's sudden action had caught Alibaba off guard not expecting him to do such an embarrassing thing just to check his temperature, but didn't find it as disgusting as he thought it would be. Normally a guy would be repulsed if another male's face was just a few inches away from your's, but Alibaba didn't feel the slightest bit horrified at all. Maybe it's because of his effeminate face, but Kouha and Titus, one of his classmates, both had effeminate appearances. If they had done such a thing to him, he would immediately back away.
"We should best head off to the infirmary before your condition gets worse." Hakuryuu starts carrying Alibaba over her shoulders.
"But I'm fine and what about class?"
"I'll inform the teacher of your state after I drop you off in the infirmary. It is best to act now before your cold gets any worse."
"If we miss class, we'll both get a zero for the class."
"Your health is more important than a simple test." Naturally, it's in human nature to help those in need. It's common sense that a person's health is of more importance than anything else.
Alibaba couldn't help but blush upon hearing Hakuryuu's words.
'He thinks I'm important!' No, no, no, Hakuryuu never said that.
Still thinking about Hakuryuu's words, Alibaba had not realized that Hakuryuu had taken him to the infirmary as he was still in his absentminded state.
"Oh, the school nurse isn't here." Seeing how there was no one to take of Alibaba, Hakuryuu placed Alibaba on one of the available beds. She searched through the drawers and cabinets to see if she can find a thermometer and some cold medicine for Alibaba which she did. She first checked Alibaba's temperature to see how serious the cold was.
"40.3° C!" How did he get a temperature that high Hakuryuu wonders.
'Wait, he probably meant it as friends... But are we even friends! If we're not friends, then why did he say I was important to him?' That's because she never said it.
Alibaba had just remembered his mother's words to him as a child when he asked out of curiosity how to find a girlfriend.
"When you have someone you care deeply about, then that's what it means to fall in love."
'Then does he that mean that he likes me?' That's totally wrong!
Alibaba's face turns as red as a tomato in response to his thoughts.
Still caught up in his thoughts, Alibaba had not noticed that Hakuryuu had taken his temperature.
"I knew his forehead was a bit warm, but I didn't think it was this bad." Hakuryuu was shocked to see the high temperature on the thermometer not expecting it to be that high. "I can't leave him like this if his temperature's this high especially not without the nurse around. I guess I'll have to inform the teacher after the nurse returns.
As Alibaba slowly came out of his self deluded state, he could only make out a few words Hakuryuu had said.
"This is bad... I can't leave him…"
'He can't leave my side! What should I do? He really does like me!' Alibaba panicked at the thought of Hakuryuu liking him. It's not like he's disgusted by it at all. It's rather the exact opposite. He found his heart pounding harder and harder, and his face all flustered like a teenage girl thinking about her first crush.
While Alibaba had reentered his previous state, Hakuryuu was thinking of a way what to do treat someone with a cold which she was familiar with when her older siblings caught a cold before and she was the only one unaffected so she had to take of all three of them.
"Some porridge should help subdue the high fever." Usually giving a patient some porridge is one way of helping them recover.
'Maybe I just misheard him. That's right! I can just ask him!'
"Ano, Hakuryuu…!" However Alibaba was only left talking to an empty room as a small breeze blew past him.
Alibaba was at a lost at what to do now that Hakuryuu was gone. How would he be able to confirm Hakuryuu's feelings for him (?) if he wasn't there? It's not like he has someone he can ask for advice at a time like this… Oh wait he does!
Upon remembering that his two friends both have experience with relationships unlike him as one already has a girlfriend and is currently in a long distance relationship while the other has already been popular with women, Alibaba quickly dials the first number on his contacts lists.
"Hello?"
"Hey Kassim, I need to ask you something."
"Alibaba? Where the hell are you, man! The teacher is seriously pissed at you for ditching! I know the test is hard for you and all, but that doesn't mean you can just up and leave."
"And exactly whose fault do you think was that I left!"
"Your's?"
"I'm seriously gonna..." Alibaba lets out a fresh murderous intent at his rude childhood friend.
"So what are you callin' for?"
"..." Alibaba's face immediately turns red as he is a bit embarrassed to tell his childhood friend his problem.
Seeing as though his friend didn't have anything to say, Kassim just spoke without waiting for his childhood friend.
"Well I'll just go an' tell the teach yer ditchin' so by-"
"IthinksomeonelikesmesoIneedyouradvice!" Just before Kassim decided to hang up, Alibaba told him what he called him for, but was embarrassed saying that kind of thing so he spoke extremely fast so fast that Kassim could barely make out what his childhood friend was saying.
"Huh? It sounded like you said someone liked you, and you need my advice?"
"..." The deadly silence between the two made it more awkward for Alibaba to ask his friend for help.
"Listen Olba and I were just joking about that stuff. I'm sure you can get a girl-"
"I'm not hallucinating! I'm dead serious!" Now that was just plain rude. Alibaba found it hard to believe whether his friend was being serious or just trying to be funny and he doubts it's the latter. As hurtful as it was, the serious tone in Kassim's voice made it hurt even more.
"Is that so then I guess I'll have to make a quick call to the-"
"I don't need to go to a mental hospital either!"
After Alibaba finally managed to convince Kassim that he wasn't mentally ill or suffering from girlfriend withdrawal symptoms, the two were able to find even footing.
"So you're sayin' that new kid is in love with you of all people?"
"I'm not saying that Hakuryuu is in love with me. I'm just asking when someone doesn't what to leave your side what does it mean... And what do you mean me of all people?!"
"Hey Kassim, you're up."
"Crap, I completely forgot. Sorry Alibaba but I gotta go. Here Olba, you takeover!"
"Huh? Kassim, why did you hand me your phone?"
"Hello?"
"Ano, Olba..."
"Oh, hey Alibaba! Where are you? The teacher's really mad at you for ditching. I never knew someone could turn that shade of red."
"Never mind that Olba. I have a question for you."
"Sure anything for you, Alibaba."
Alibaba quickly explains everything that he said to Kassim to Olba.
"Since you have a girlfriend, I thought you might know what to do."
"Sorry, Alibaba that kind of thing never happened to me. Since me and Toto already came to a mutual agreement at the same time."
Rather than encourage Alibaba, those words felt like salt being poured into his freshly opened wounds.
"But if it came down to it, it looks more like you like that scarred transfer student than the other way around. Ah, I got to go, Alibaba. It's my turn. Bye~"
The other way around? Then that means that the one in love was Alibaba.
'No, no, no. That's just probably just some of Olba's nonsense. There's no way that my first crush would be a guy even if he was as pretty as a girl…'
Alibaba thrashes around on the infirmary bed realizing he just thought of a boy as pretty. Alibaba is certain that he absolutely has no interest in guys so why would he be in love with one. That's right. It's probably just a joke Olba thought of as revenge for ditching class after all there's no way Alibaba's first love would be a guy. Alibaba just laughs at how foolish he was for taking Olba's words seriously.
'It looks like he's doing just fine.' Hakuryuu had came back while Alibaba was in deep thought. Hakuryuu was surprised to see Alibaba rolling around in his bed when she arrived to give him some porridge she made.
"Hakuryuu!" Once Alibaba came back to his senses, he was extremely embarrassed to have him see him like that.
"Yes?"
Was that porridge in Hakuryuu's hands? Since Alibaba was sick doesn't that mean that he'll be fed by Hakuryuu. The thought of Hakuryuu feeding him was too much for Alibaba to handle as he collapsed from the stimulation.
"Sir Alibaba?!"
