Author's Notes
- Welcome to chapter 6 of TBAA! So sorry for the prolonged wait for this chapter, but have no fear, for it's finally here! I went back to chapters 1-5 and revised them into what I like to call, TBAA reincarnation, with the first official chapter being this one!
Touched By An Angel!
Chapter 6 – The Bystander Effect
"Courage is fire, and bullying is smoke." – Benjamin Disraeli
In the Club room, the three present members of Houkago Tea Time sat at their table, all of them resting their heads on the wooden furniture to get some rest while waiting for their drummer and guitarist, Ritsu and Yui, to arrive so they can start practicing. Sawako had left earlier to go monitor the auditorium for HTT's performance.
"Azusa-chan, where are you going?" Mugi asked as her cat-like kouhai stood up from her seat at the table. The pigtailed girl pushed her seat in and sighed.
"I think I'll go out for a walk before practice. I mean, this is my first live performance after all," Azusa replied to her blonde senpai.
"You're worried about Yui, aren't you?" Mio asked as she lifted her head from her rest.
"Eh?! M-me worried about Yui-senpai?!" Azusa flinched, "... a little."
"Don't worry Azusa, they're on their way," Mio smirked.
"I'll be back before practice starts," Azusa said as she left the Club room and walked down the first set of the stairs. She stopped at the bottom of the first staircase and looked out the window into the blue sky.
"Where are you, Yui-senpai?"
Touched by an Angel!
"What's the problem here, Manabe-san?" Kurisu asked as he arrived to the booth section of the school festival, where a crowd was watching a scene unfold.
"The one in the gakuran is disturbing the Literature Club's booth," Nodoka pointed to three other student council members surrounding two other figures, a male with blonde hair grabbing onto the arm of a girl with black hair and pale skin, but she didn't seem to be really bothered by his action.
"Please let me go," the pale girl said in a soft tone.
"No! Kyōko please! Give me another chance," the boy wailed.
"Jesus, what a baby," Kurisu scoffed.
"I believe you want to be removed from the festival, Otomo-kun?" Nodoka raised an eyebrow at him.
"No! Manabe-san please! Give me another chance!" Kurisu pleaded.
Nodoka rolled her eyes at him and sighed, "Fine, please escort him from the campus."
"Wait, but don't you have security guards for that?" Kurisu blinked at her.
"Why do you think I called you over here?" Nodoka said, "You're our muscle for the day."
"Eh?! Muscle?!" Kurisu rolled up his sleeves to reveal his arms, "But I'm not even that buff!"
"Cut the chatter! I have more important things to deal with as of now, I want you to escort him to the exit please," Nodoka pushed up her glasses and turned around, "Tachibana-san will assist you."
As Kurisu watched the bespectacled girl walk away, a fair-skinned girl walked up to him and punched him in the arm, bringing the boy back from watching Nodoka, who disappeared back into the school.
"Yo," she waved as Kurisu glanced at her. That was when he noticed her fair skin and long, flowing light brown hair and her light brown eyes. She wore the same school uniform as the other girls who attended Sakuragaoka, but she had a red and yellow and red ribbon tied around her left arm just like him. There was one distinct feature about the girl that caught Kurisu's eyes, one that brightened his face, she was eating a pocky, "The name's Tachibana. Himeko Tachibana."
"Kurisu Otomo," the boy nodded.
"Nice to meet you!" she punched Kurisu in the arm again.
"What's up with the punching?" Kurisu raised an eyebrow at the fair-skinned girl.
"Sorry, it's just that I don't have many interactions with guys. This being a girls school and all," Himeko lightly bowed, "I have no idea how to act around guys," she looked away and blushed, causing Kurisu to smile at the girls cute behavior.
"It's not a problem, Tachibana-san," the smile still glued on to his face.
"You can call me Himeko," she said as she turned back to face Kurisu.
"Alright then, Himeko-san," Kurisu nodded.
"So what's the plan? You gonna wrestle him? Knock him out?" Himeko asked as she took another pocky stick out of the box and quickly ate it, much to Kurisu's suffering, since he didn't get to eat Mugi's cake yet. He heard some screaming in the background, but Kurisu was too concentrated on the pocky to notice.
"Is that a pocky you're eating?" he asked, pointing to the treat in her hands.
"Mhm! It's Strawberry-flavored! Why, do you want one?" she took out another pocky and held it in her hands for Kurisu to see.
"... Yes."
"You heard what Nodoka-chan said earlier! You have to escort that guy to the exit," Himeko pointed to where the disturbance was and found that both the uniformed guy and pale-skinned girl were gone.
"Well, we lost them," Kurisu sighed with disappointment.
"You mean, you lost them?" Himeko narrowed her eyes at him, "I can't wait to see Nodoka-chan's face when she hears you tell her you lost them."
"Eh? I have to tell her?" Kurisu looked around and saw Jun as she was running towards the two volunteers, panting as she tried to catch her breath. The two volunteers also saw the three student council members that were surrounding the other boy earlier, all on their radios asking for assistance.
"Suzuki-san?" Kurisu asked as he watched Jun hold up a finger as she continued to pant.
"Senpai...! You...idiot...!" she said in between breaths.
"What did I do this time?!" he asked her.
"The guy... took the girl away," Jun pointed to where the PE track and field area was, "You didn't just see him push those girls to the ground and run away with her?!"
"Uh..." Kurisu looked at Himeko, "... Yes, I did."
"Come on, Kuri-kun! I know where that is!" Himeko yelled as she took Kurisu's hand and pulled him along as they ran.
"Alright!" Kurisu yelled, "Wait... Kuri-kun?" he blinked at the nickname he just heard as Himeko dragged him along. Jun watched her two senpai's vanish into the day as Azusa walked up to her bushy-haired friend.
"Jun?" Azusa asked as she stood side-by-side with the brunette, "Was that Kurisu-senpai?"
"Oh! Hey Azusa!" Jun smiled and all of a sudden she regained her energy, her hair twitched for a second and Jun poked it, "Yeah, that was him, he was also with Tachibana-senpai."
"Why were they in a rush?" Azusa asked as she looked at Jun with a raised eyebrow as Jun continued to poke her hair.
"Shimizu-senpai was kidnapped by this one guy," Jun said, "They went chasing after them."
"Kidnapped?" Azusa flinched, "Will she be okay?"
"I wouldn't worry, Kurisu-senpai will be there for her. Tachibana-senpai too!" Jun gave Azusa a thumbs up.
"But Kurisu-senpai is an idiot," Azusa cringed.
"That's true..." Jun rubbed her chin, "But you never know!"
"Yeah... maybe," Azusa said.
"Oh, have you seen Ui yet?" Jun asked.
"Nope, I haven't seen Yui-senpai or Ritsu-senpai either," Azusa said as she felt her heart drop.
"Oh. Well, don't worry Azusa, they'll be here," Jun smiled, "My hair says they will."
"I see... we'll, I'm going to go now," Azusa said as she walked by Jun.
"Alright! I'll see you at your performance, Azusa! Good luck!" Jun waved before realizing something, "Oh and don't forget to wear warm clothing tomorrow! My hair says it's going to be 48 degrees!" she called out as Azusa stumbled while walking, but turned back to Jun.
"Alright!" Azusa waved back as she disappeared down the same path Kurisu and Himeko took earlier on.
"What about Sunday?" Jun asked herself, looking up at her brown hair. Jun's hair shook before coming to a stop, "Ah, it's going to rain. Perfect, I planned to just stay inside all day anyway!"
With Jun seemingly talking to herself, she gained the attention of a woman passing by, who gave Jun a weirded-out look. Jun turned bright red with embarrassment.
"Sorry for disturbing you!" Jun bowed to the older woman as she walked away with haste. Jun slouched over and sighed, "Maybe the Jazz Club could use some help," she said as she walked the other way into the army of club booths.
"Eri, what should we do?" Akane asked the brunette as they arrived at the booth of the Literature Club, where a certain pale-skinned girl was missing. Akane looked down at the ribbon tied around her left arm and sighed of disappointment at how she had to wear it since she volunteered for the festival.
"I feel like an analysis officer like this," Eri said as she walked around the scene of the alleged assault on three student council members occurred. Akane and Eri were busy helping setting up Volleyball Club's booth when they were radioed about a uniformed boy assaulting three student council members and taking one of their classmates, Kyōko Shimizu, away, "Oh, I got it! CSI: Osaka!"
"Are you even listening to me?" Akane's soft voice rose with anger, "Kyōko's missing and all you can do is-"
"Agent Taki of the Behavior Analysis Unit, FBI, this is Agent Satō," Eri said as she nodded towards Akane and looked at one of the student council members near her who was one of three pushed to the ground by the uniformed boy, "What's the problem here?"
"You watch too much Criminal Minds," Akane sighed and cringed at Eri.
"I watch American TV as much as those weeaboo's watch Anime!" the brunette laughed.
"I guess that would make you, what do they say in America? A nerd?" Akane smirked.
"Whoa, whoa! Where's my usual quiet and timid Akacchan? What have you done to her, you clone?!" Eri pointed a finger at Akane and jumped back, "Are you at least still... awkward around boys? Especially that certain someone?"
Akane blinked and looked away blushing, "I, uh..."
"Anyways! The cool thing is that I can understand what Hotch says!" Eri smiled at Akane.
"Eto... you can understand English?"
"Me alsho speak eet," Eri said in a distinctive English accent. Akane raised an eyebrow at her friend and sighed, one of the student council members walked up to the pair and cleared her throat.
"We already told you Taki-san, we were supposed to wait for Tachibana-san and some guy to apprehend the uniformed male, who we identified as Miyamoto Takashi of Yuhigaoka High School, and that was when he shoved me and the others to the ground and ran off with Kyōko," the student council member said as she wiped the sweat off her brow.
"Some guy? Who?" Eri asked as Akane stood next to her.
"He's a volunteer like you two, he goes to Osaka High. Kurisu Otomo," she answered the brunette.
"Him? Yo, Akane!" Eri turned to her friend with a devilish grin, "Your boyfriend is here!" she giggled. Akane folded her arms in dissatisfaction and looked away, lightly blushing.
"Hmph!" Akane grunted. Eri rubbed her chin and thought for a second, before her eyes widened to a realization.
"Wait, did you say Tachibana-san? As in Tachibana Himeko, star softball player?" Eri asked. Akane watched from the corner of her eyes as the student council members nodded their heads.
"Oh dang... how can you beat the princess, Akane?" Eri asked, "I mean, with Himeko's beauty, her popularity here, and her-"
Akane grabbed her friends arm and began dragging her away from the booth section of the school festival as more student council members arrived to the scene, leaving everything to them.
"Akane? Are you alright?" Eri looked at her tall friend, who shot a glare at her, "Fine, fine! You keep being jealous. Do you even know where they are?"
"I can smell Otomo-kun's cologne all the way from here. The softball field," Akane narrowed her eyes as she continued to walk.
"Oh, boy," Eri followed behind with a worried look glued on her face.
"Takashi, please let me go..." a pale girl with a worried face said as she was dragged across the softball field by a blonde-haired boy. She almost tripped over her own feet as she couldn't keep up with the one known as Takashi.
"You used to call me 'Takkun'... what happened to that?!" Takashi yelled, "Kyōko, please tell me what I did wrong in our relationship. Was it because I waited outside of your house for 5 hours just for a goodnight?"
"Takashi... nothing ever happened between us. Nothing like that," the pale girl who's known as Kyōko said to the blonde. Her blank face along with what she revealed crushed Takashi, leading him to turn red with anger. Unknown to them, Kurisu and Himeko were watching from behind the stands, awaiting the perfect time to jump Takashi.
"What do you mean nothing happened between us?!" Takashi yelled, tightening his grip on Kyōko's arm, causing her to flinch.
"You're hurting me..." Kyōko whimpered. Kurisu kept an eye on the two as he turned his head to Himeko.
"Who are they?" he asked her.
"Shimizu Kyōko, she's in my class, Class 2-1. She's a complete loner at school, although I see her talking to Kimiko Makagami at times," Himeko said with a concerned look before shooting a glare at Takashi, "The crazy blonde guy? That's Miyamoto Takashi, he goes to-"
"Yuhigaoka High School," Kurisu gritted his teeth, "I know that gakuran anywhere."
The gakuran that Takashi wore was the same design as the one Kurisu and Satoshi wore except the blazer was that of a maroon color, the pants were grey, and his tie was red, signaling him to be a third-year at Yuhigaoka High School.
"Hate 'em too, huh? They're athletic rivals for Sakuragaoka, especially to the softball club. What do they have against Osaka High?" Himeko asked.
"Academic rivals. Plus, I hate red."
"Takashi, please!" Kyōko begged, "Let me go! You're really hurting me!"
"No! I'm not done with you, not until you love me!" Takashi grabbed Kyōko with both of his hands and began shaking her, causing Kyōko to grunt from each shake.
"That's enough!" Kurisu yelled as he and Himeko walked out from their hiding place and towards Takashi, who ceased terrifying Kyōko and looked at the two volunteers with a confused look. The two of them stopped and stood on the other side of the dirt field, creating a standoff.
"Time to let her go, Miyamoto-san," Himeko folded her arms.
Takashi blinked at the two before bursting out into laughter. Kurisu and Himeko exchanged confused looks before turning back to the blonde.
"You should've seen the look on your face!" he looked at Kyōko and let go of her, "Guys! Did you get it?"
"What's he even talking about?" Kurisu asked Himeko, who simply shrugged.
"Told you he's crazy."
Before Kurisu could speak, three males walked out from behind the stands on the other side of the softball field. They wore the same school uniform as Takashi, all of them sporting devilish grins. One had a video camera in his hands. Kyōko looked terrified as she ran towards Kurisu and Himeko, hiding behind the fair-skinned girl.
"What the hell?" Kurisu glared at them.
"You bet we got it, dude," the one with the camera answered. He handed Takashi the camera and the blonde smirked as he gazed into the device.
"Got what?" Kurisu yelled.
"See for yourself," Takashi threw the camera across the field. Kurisu caught it and opened the camera, Himeko and Kyōko stood by his side and watched what the footage was. What the three of them saw made their eyes widen.
"That was a few weeks ago," Takashi and the other Yuhigaoka students laughed.
"Takashi, you ready?" a voice behind the camera asked. Takashi looked at the camera and smirked.
"Of course I am, what do I have to do?"
"You know Shimizu Kyōko from Sakuragaoka?"
"Yes, she's the pale one who reads books all day, am I correct?" Takashi asked.
"Yeah. I dare you to go on a date with her," the one behind the camera said, Takashi flinched at first but then grinned.
"If I take her for ice cream at the Baskin Robbins, that isn't really a date but a snack time," Takashi rubbed his chin.
"Eh... I'll let that count-oh shit! There she is! Walking by to her normal bench here at the park," a finger pointed to Kyōko, who was strolling down the path with a book in her hands, looking down as she was reading and walking at the same time. Takashi looked at the camera once more and nodded.
"When I'm done, I get 1500 yen to pay for the ice cream."
"Deal."
"Alright then," Takashi looked away and began running towards to Kyōko as the camera followed him, "Excuse me, miss!"
"Did you really think that I liked you?" Takashi started, "Everyone at Yuhigaoka loves a good drama, and that's what we got."
"H-he didn't really like me?" Kyōko asked as tears formed in her eyes, "he just used me to... to make a show?"
"Dude," Himeko cradled the pale-skinned girl, "So not cool."
"Why would you do something like this," Kurisu nodded to Kyōko, "To someone like her?"
"It all started as a dare, you see," Takashi explained, "What started as a dare turned into a school-wide phenomenon."
"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Kurisu gritted his teeth as he turned to see Himeko comforting a now sobbing Kyōko. Kurisu barely knew Kyōko, just knowing her name a few moments ago, but he hated bullies, especially ones who pick on the on those weaker than themselves. He knew he was going to stand up for her. Just like how he stood up to bullies back home in America.
"You see, stranger, for the past few weeks I've been pretending to 'love' Shimizu-san here, even going as far as staying up until midnight outside her house, waiting for a goodnight from her," Takashi smirked.
"That's bullying, Miyamoto," Himeko hissed, "Don't you feel any shame?"
Takashi ignored Himeko's question just as how he ignored Kurisu's and kept talking, "Do you know how much money I received from the Video Club to keep making this series for the school broadcast? Every week I receive 2000 yen just holding this girl's hand!" he laughed.
"I never really loved her, it was all just an elaborate ruse. How could anybody want to be with Kyōko? She's a loner! An otaku who just sits around all day by herself reading manga," Takashi continued, "She is nothing. She is worthless. Tachibana-san, how can you even stand to-"
"SHUT UP!" Kurisu yelled, he took a few steps forward and found himself standing on the pitchers plate, "She isn't worthless if you spent your time just trying to be with her!"
Himeko and Kyōko looked up at the boy from Osaka as he continued.
"She is beautiful and I wish I could have met her sooner, just so I could have saved her from your filthy hands! You don't even have the right to look at her, and if I ever hear you even say her name, I'll beat your blonde ass so badly your blue eyes will turn black," Kurisu balled his hands into fists.
"Don't threaten him!" one of Takashi's friends yelled.
"Four against one, we'll whoop you!" another remarked, "Just tell us when, Takashi."
"No," Takashi held up a hand to signal his minions to back off, to which they did, "Who are you?"
"Takashi, he's Otomo Kurisu, a second-year at Osaka Prefectural Shimizudani High School," the cameraman said, "He's known at Osaka High for transferring there in his first year all the way from America, where it's rumored he was a troublemaker."
"A troublemaker? Well, it's quite obvious that he's a gaijin and he doesn't belong, but I adore your bravery, Otomo-san," Takashi grinned, "If you can provide me with a decent reason, I'll leave. What makes you want to defend Shimizu-san anyway?"
"I hate bullying," Kurisu said, "I hate it when the stronger pick on the weak."
"Is that the only reason you have?" Takashi asked, "You just hate bullying?"
"It just isn't right! It's not right to take advantage of someone weaker than you!" Kurisu sighed, "A friend told me that long ago… oh how long it's been since I heard her voice."
"Kurisu… I tried to radio for security to come in," Himeko whispered as Kyōko kept silent, "But nobody's answering."
Kurisu nodded and turned back to Takashi, "Bullying is bad because it leads some of the victims to deep depression, sometimes they opt out by committing suicide, Takashi."
"Buy why save someone? The world won't change just because of the loss of one person."
"Sure, saving someone's life won't change the world. But the world will change for that certain someone so they can live a better life," Kurisu said, "And who knows? Maybe the person you save will end up changing the world themselves. Life is weird like that."
"Senpai…" Azusa muttered as she watched Kurisu from atop the stands, which led back to the main grounds of Sakuragaoka High School. Azusa looked to the flight of stairs on the other side of the field and saw Akane and Eri rushing down the stairs, attempting to get to the situation. Without hesitation, Azusa found herself walking down the steps herself.
"That's actually a very good reason, Otomo-kun, I respect your bravery and how you care for everyone other than yourself," Takashi said, "But think of the possible destruction with the loss of one person."
"With the loss of the victim?" Kurisu asked.
"No, with the loss of the person who saved them. Let's say the victim is saved by a certain someone, how would they feel if that certain someone were to suddenly vanish from their life as if they never even came?" Takashi smirked.
"I, uh… I…" Kurisu blinked.
"The victim would just fall into the pit of depression once more. It's a cycle, you see," Takashi laughed.
"Cycles can be broken," Kurisu said to him, which made Takashi flinch, "That certain someone gave the victim a whole new perspective of life, one to which they can find happiness in. They may lose their savior, but they will never lose the hope that they were given."
"I see…" Takashi frowned, "I'm amused with your reason. Now, take him," Takashi held up two fingers and his three henchmen marched forward. Azusa's eyes widened as she reached the bottom step and she found herself running towards Kurisu.
"You said you'll leave!"
"Yeah, I lied," Takashi's frown turned into a devilish grin. Akane and Eri arrived on the scene and stood behind Kurisu as the three continued to move towards them.
"Tachibana-san, get Shimizu-san and get out of here. Same with you two, Taki-san and Satō-san, I need you two to leave. I'll hold them off until the security comes," Kurisu said as he gritted his teeth in anger.
"Otomo-kun… there…" Akane tried to get his attention, but a voice from behind stole his attention away from her.
"Senpai!" Azusa yelled as she ran up to her five senpai's and stood next to Kurisu.
"Nakano-san, what are you doing here?" Kurisu asked her.
"I'm here to save you from being an idiot!" Azusa hissed at him.
"An idiot?! What are you talking about?!" Kurisu barked back, getting distracted from the current danger at hand.
"Otomo-kun!" Akane's soft voice shouted, which was a first for her. She gasped and furrowed her eyebrows, "There aren't any security personnel on school grounds!"
"Huh?" Kurisu blinked at her and leaned in closer to Azusa's ear and whispered, "What does that mean?"
"It means there's no security guards to stop those guys, senpai," Azusa told him and face-palmed.
"Why aren't there any security guards?" Kurisu asked.
"Because this school is open to anyone since it's a festival," Himeko explained.
"Man, we can take 'em, Kurisu-kun!" Eri ran up to him and saluted, "I took a karate class a few years ago! I was a purple belt!"
"What do they even want from me?" Kyōko asked as she sniffled in Himeko's arms.
"Maybe they want the tape," Eri pointed to the camera in Kurisu's hands. He looked down and frowned.
"This was supposed to be evidence to get that asshole and his friends expelled," Kurisu's grip on to the camera tightened in anger.
"Just give it back to them, Otomo-kun," Akane's voice returned to its soft tone.
"Fine…" Kurisu turned back and saw Takashi's three henchmen standing a few feet in front of him. Kurisu hesitated, but tossed the camera to one of them. The henchman caught the camera and opened it, looking to his comrades with an amused face. They ran back over to Takashi, who smiled with them.
"I'll get you next time, Otomo-san," Takashi waved as he walked away, "Enjoy your emotionless girl."
"Don't worry, senpai, karma will get to them," Azusa said as Takashi and his henchmen disappeared into the afternoon.
"You sure?" Kurisu asked.
"Mhm, well, I do believe in karma, so yeah."
"I feel like I've seen Takashi before," Kurisu tapped his chin, "But I'm not sure where."
Azusa shrugged and pulled out her phonefrom her blazers pocket, "It's 12:46, practice begins at 1:30. I should head back."
"Whoa, whoa, you have so much time!" Kurisu tugged Azusa by the back of her collar, "Why don't you spend the rest of the time having some fun?"
"Hmm… fine," Azusa said, "I need something to take my mind off of worrying about Yui-senpai anyway."
"Sounds good, but…" Kurisu stared back at Kyōko and saw her being cared for by Himeko, Eri, and Akane. He frowned and walked up towards the four girls, bending down next to Kyōko, "Hey, Shimizu-san? Would you like to come with Nakano-san and I to the festival grounds?"
Kyōko looked up at him with a blank, but teary eyed face. He smirked at her and Kyōko slowly nodded her head. She looked back up at Akane, Eri, and Himeko.
"I…I'll go with them…" she said in a silent tone as she brought herself up.
"Do you want us to go with you, Kyōko-chan?" Eri asked.
"I'll be fine…" Kyōko whispered. Eri nodded and Kurisu walked back over to Azusa, with Kyōko following close behind, "Kurisu Otomo…" she muttered.
"Hmm?" Kurisu turned around and blinked at her. "Yeah?"
"Thank you…" she said as she grabbed ahold of the back of Kurisu's black pullover, not letting go.
"No problem, Shimizu-san!" he smiled.
"Senpai, let's go!" Azusa called. "I still need something to take my mind off of Yui-senpai!"
"So you're infatuated with Hirasawa-san?" Kurisu rubbed his chin, "Interesting…"
"Eh?! Not like that!" Azusa heavily blushed before karate-chopping him on the head.
"Ow! I was just kidding!"
Touched by an Angel!
"Satoshi-kun?" I looked on as Ui looked at me with a worried expression. She is so beautiful, I swear, but it's weird since she looks so much like Yui-senpai right now. I can still see Ui's face beyond the mask of Yui-senpai though. I'm lost in her looks right now, so lost in those light brown eyes, they're like chocolate... mmm... chocolate.
"Eto... I'm sorry for breaking you Satoshi-kun, but we don't have time for this," I saw Ui lift up her hand and ready it. I can't move! What's going on?! Oh shit!
"Pretty..." I chuckled. What the hell man?! You're about to get slapped into the next dimension and all you can say is pretty?! Oh my fuc-
*SMACK*
"Ow... ow..." I rubbed my right cheek.
"Sorry, Satoshi-kun!" Ui apologized.
"No, it's fine. It's my fault I dozed off anyway," I gave her a thumbs up, one to which she hesitantly nodded to.
"I was afraid you wouldn't like me anymore because of that," Ui said. I flinched and felt sweat running down my face. She knows I like her? Oh my God, does she like me back?
Ui blushed and her eyes widened, "as a f-friend of course!"
"Yui-chan? Ricchan?" I heard a female voice, I turned around to see Yamanaka-sensei, the teacher of both of our sisters, walking towards us.
"Damn... forgot about Sawako-sensei..." I muttered, I shared a glance with Ui and gulped.
"Did you just get here now?" Sawako asked. I nodded and nudged Ui.
"Yes! Yes, we did, Sawako-sensei!" Ui answered her in her mock Yui-senpai voice.
"Eh? Sawako-sensei?" our sisters' bespectacled teacher asked, I pondered on what she meant before realizing that my sister and her friends referred to her as something else.
"Eto…" Ui looked away.
"Yo, Sawa-chan! How's your boyfriend?" I asked in a slight deep voice.
"Ricchan… I see that you're still sick. Thank goodness you don't have to sing," she turned towards me, but clearly she was angry at my question. I gulped as she pushed up her glasses and narrowed her eyes.
"It's hard for Ricchan to talk, Sawa-chan!" Ui hopped in front of me, she clearly recognized her mistake, "Don't worry, she'll be fine and I'm ready to sing!"
"Ah, well… in that case, head up to the club room. The others have been waiting for a while now," Sawako said as she walked by us and disappeared behind the entrance to the building.
"Whew… that was close…" I said, wiping the sweat from my brow and feeling something move around on my head. I heard a muffled laughter and looked up to see Ui trying to conceal her laughter, "What's so funny?" I asked.
"Your, uh…" she pointed to my face and I started patting the top of my head, only to feel the headband of the wig turned the other way. I gasped and quickly adjusted my wig and sighed.
"The gel is starting to fade…"
"Well, let's hope it will stay like that for the rest of the day, Satoshi-kun," Ui smiled. Wow, she changed moods pretty quickly, I have to admit, just like her sister.
"Hopefully," I said, looking around at the grand building of Sakuragaoka High School, the hallways were way different than Osaka High's textile concrete hallways, Sakuragaoka's floorboards were wooden, almost as if the school was built a long time ago, which it probably was.
"Yeah, the first time I entered the school my eyes were amazed by how beautiful it is," Ui said as I noticed her next to me. I scanned Ui's face.
"Yeah… she is… I mean, it is beautiful!" I turned to her, "Well, Ui, mind leading the way to the club room?"
"Sure, Satoshi-kun!" Ui said as she grabbed my hand and dragged me along with her as we marched up the stairs. Thank God that Ui didn't look back, I'm pretty sure I had a bright red blush on my face from the physical contact alone.
We made our way up the stairs, both of us silent the entire time. Ui and I stood in front of the door to the music room , I gulped and looked at Ui, who was most likely watching me being nervous. We exchanged nods before Ui opened the door, revealing the brightness of where my sister goes to everyday after school with her friends. I closed my eyes from the brightness and just followed Ui's footsteps with my hearing.
"Ah ,Yui-chan's here," I heard Mugi-senpai's calm voice say, "Ricchan's here as well!"
"Yui!" I heard Mio-senpai's voice. I opened my eyes to see Mio-senpai and Mugi-senpai sitting down at a table across the room. Mio-senpai looked at me and blinked, before getting up and running towards me, "Ritsu!"
I flinched as I felt something heavy clutch on to me, I looked down to see Mio-senpai embracing me. I took the opportunity and bended down, so I wouldn't be noticed.
"Where were you, idiot?" Mio-senpai let go of me and put her hands on her hips.
"I, uh…" I looked at Ui for help and she nodded.
"She's a little sick still, Mio-sen—chan!" Ui said.
"Oh…" Mio-senpai looked at her and then back at me, "Is this true, Ritsu? You're still sick?"
I shook my head up and down as a reply.
"She can't speak, Mio-chan, her throat is affecting her voice so she's not speaking until it heals," Ui said.
"You didn't have to come to school today, you know… we could've cancelled it if you wanted," she said.
I shook my head left and right rapidly and frowned.
"I see, so I'm guessing you're ready, Ritsu," Mio-senpai sighed, "at least you don't have to sing."
"She's ready, Mio-chan!" Ui said. Mio-senpai turned over to Ui.
"What about you, Yui? Are you ready?" she asked her.
Ui flinched at the question and I raised an eyebrow at her. Ui looked around nervously before nodding her head rapidly in confirmation. Mio-senpai must've noticed something off and raised an eyebrow at Ui as well. Ui stood there in shock until a certain ojou-sama saved her.
"Well, come on now! Let's get you two some snacks!" Mugi-senpai said. Mio-senpai walked over to the table and sat down where she originally sat. I looked at Ui and she shrugged and walked over to the table. I followed her with quick haste.
On our way to the table, Ui placed her guitar case on the wall next to Mio-senpai's guitar case and what I assumed to be Azusa's case. I tapped her shoulder and crouched down next to her.
"Alright, so, you know Yui-senpai's chords, right?" I whispered to Ui as we crouched near the guitar cases, avoiding the detection of the others.
"Eto… yes, I know the chords and the lyrics!" she replied to me, but with a little hesitation. I caught on to her and glared at the clone of Yui-senpai with dissatisfaction.
"Ui… is there a problem?" I raised an eyebrow at her.
"I… can't play and sing at the same time."
"WHAT?! WHAT DO YOU MEAN?!" I yelled, luckily my yell was very similar to my sisters and that our pitches matched one another when the octaves were reached.
"Stupid Ritsu!" I turned around to see Mio-senpai glaring at me with extreme hatred, "Don't yell at Yui!" she threw a book at me, which hit my forehead and caused my wig to fall off, revealing my brown hair.
"Ow!" I rubbed my forehead.
"S-S-S-Satoshi-kun?" Mio-senpai blinked with disbelief.
"Uh…" Ui and I shared a 'we're fucked' look before turning back to the now angry and confused Light Music Club members. They seemed to have only noticed me being in there, since Ui pulled off an amazing impersonation of Yui-senpai. Well, I guess I'm the only one that's fucked. Ui joined in on the glares and betrayed me, backing off and pretending to be confused as well.
"Satoshi-kun?!" Ui gasped, I felt good that they hadn't caught her, but I realized that I have to deal with three startled, possibly angry girls. Well, two since Azusa hasn't returned yet.
"Hey, guys…" I politely waved.
"What are you doing here?!" Mio-senpai yelled, she stood up and walked towards me. A blush was on her face as well, but that was mostly because I was wearing a skirt and looked pretty girly even without the wig.
"Just, uh… hanging around?" I nervously replied.
"Where's Ritsu?" she asked as she stood over me and gasped, "What did you do to her, Satoshi-kun?"
"I didn't do anything! I swear!" I held up my hands to defend myself, "She's at home in bed! She's still sick!"
"W-what?!" Mio-senpai grabbed me by my collar and pulled me up to my feet. Wow, unexpected strength! I was taller than Mio-senpai so she pulled down and our faces met, "What do you mean she's still at home?!"
"Well, uh… I mean that Ritsu's in bed sleeping right now," I nervously answered her, "That, or she's probably wiping her nose."
"What about the performance?! We need a drummer!" Mio-senpai yelled.
"Mio-chan," Mugi-senpai said as she walked up to the both of us. She put her hand on Mio-senpai's shoulder and smiled, "We should all calm down, ne? It's not healthy to be in such an angry mood before a big event."
"Right…" Mio-senpai responded as she let me go and backed off.
I let out a sigh of relief, "My sister sent me as her replacement as HTT's drummer," I spread open my arms, "I'm all you got."
And just when I thought Mio-senpai would calm down and be relieved that I would be her drummer, I felt someone grab me by the collar again, this time it was from a different direction. I looked to see Ui, still disguised as Yui-senpai, her eyes lit up with fire.
"Ricchan sent you, Rikkun?!" she yelled, "But you're just a novice!"
"Yui!" Mio-senpai gasped.
"Yui-chan," Mugi-senpai watched on.
"Huh? What?!" I was surprised by her sudden switch of sides. Was she even helping me anymore?! I could feel the air stop going through my lungs, since Ui's grip on me was way tighter than Mio-senpai's was.
"Well, then…" Ui let me go and I gasped for air, "If Ricchan sent you, she must've thought you're ready to take her spot," Ui turned to face Mio-senpai and Mugi-senpai and her right eye winked at me. I felt myself heat up at Ui's chance at playing around with me, especially at a time like this! That's something Ritsu or Yui-senpai would've done–oh wait, she's supposed to be Yui-senpai!
"You have a point, Yui," Mio-senpai said.
"I believe we should let Satoshi-kun be our drummer–but only for today," Mugi-senpai suggested.
"Yes, only for today… but after that, never try this stunt again, Satoshi-kun…"
"Azusa-chan should get a chance to decide," Ui said. Whose side are you on, Ui?! Are you just trying to get yourself caught, or are you enjoying being Yui-senpai a bit too much?! Wait. Azusa-chan? Doesn't Azusa go by…
"Azusa…-chan?" Mio-senpai asked, turning to Ui.
"I meant, Azunyan should get a chance to decide!" Ui quickly said. Mio-senpai glared at Ui as she completely froze in shock, "She should get a chance to decide if Rikkun should replace Ricchan!"
"Yui-chan is right too, Mio-chan," Mugi-senpai said, causing Mio-senpai to face back to the former, "Azusa-chan has a right to vote in."
"Fine, Mugi…" Mio-senpai sighed. "Although, knowing Azusa… I already know what her answer would be…"
Touched by an Angel!
Author's Notes
- I would like to apologize headfirst with the sensitive topic about bullying being talked about in this chapter. I know that there are many people out there that suffer from bullying in their lives and I just want to say that I'm sorry and please, look for the light. It will bring you hope.
- I hope this is the last time I ever write with transitioning from first person to third person in just a single chapter, especially multiple times at that. Although, maybe chapter 7 will have some of that transitioning.
- Criminal Minds, as talked about by Eri and Akane, is an American Television show that centers on an FBI Behavior Analysis Unit team that profiles serial killers and hunts them down, eventually capturing them at the end of most episodes.
- Originally there was an epilogue of some sorts to describe the faith of the bully, Takashi Miyamoto, in the epilogue he was depicted as a homeless man in the streets of Tokyo and was found by Kurisu Otomo on his way to work. It's revealed that Takashi was expelled from Tokyo University and lived on the streets for a long time. In the end, Takashi finally talks with Kyōko and the two of them form a relationship. I took it out because Takashi doesn't deserve that good of an ending, and you guys know that. Maybe I'll use him again sometime in the future.
- Chapter 7 will be posted along with chapter 4 of Amber Skies and chapter 2 of Forever In Our Stars, both are other stories of mine in the K-On! fandom, check them out! Anyways, I'll see you guys in the next chapter, later!