"Hicchan~!"
The sudden shout brings me back to my senses, and I notice that even when Misha's trying her best at keeping a serious tone it sounds too happy to be taken as anything else than cute. Raising my head from my bag, I see that the inseparable duo is now standing in front of my desks, Misha with her regular bubbly expression and Shizune with a stern, scolding expression. I'm quite certain that I know what this conversation will be about...
"Skipping half of the day on his second day at a new school is a pretty big mark for a new student, Hicchan~," Misha says, at least a little less bubbly now than when she was shouting at me. "However," she continues, Shizune's expression turning into a sly one that can be described as nothing else than cat-like, "as class representative and president of the student council, I, Hakamichi Shizune, will let you pass by this one time."
"I assume there's a catch," I immediately answer, realizing that I've found myself stuck in a trap that I was not planning on getting stuck in.
Wait...
President of the student council?
I guess I'm not really surprised, and judging from what I've seen of the two; Miki and Shizune would have an incredibly difficult time getting along. If anything, I'd think that they could almost be considered natural enemies. Mortal enemies, even.
"Yes, there's one condition. To compensate for the lack of care for school, you will have to instead spend time after classes to in any way help out. Currently, that would mean that you are to do anything you possibly could to make the festival on Sunday a success."
So that was their plan, to ensure that I am to work away half of my remaining lifespan in this week to turn this school festival into a successful one. Oh well, it's not like I have any reason not to work on the festival; I do happen to be a student of Yamaku High, after all.
"I'm quite certain that you'd make me do the same even if I hadn't missed class," I say, making sure that I do in no way mention that I from my own perspective was skipping class, as that could be used as more blackmail-material. Shizune's sly smile turns to a more friendly one at this, although I can't say that it's any less sly than the original one.
"See it as a bonus," Misha translates her partner's words for me, and I assume this means that I will owe them in some way from now on. Owing the student council president a favor does not sound like a favorable position, but I guess I'll just have to live with it this one time. Best case scenario, it raises my influence-points.
"Shouldn't I prioritize my own class' project first, though?" I ask as the thought enters my mind; I'm pretty sure that the combative Shizune wouldn't just leave that lying to do something else, so that should mean that there are some other certain circumstances where that comes in.
"The stalls of class 3-3 were all finished last week," the response comes. "All remaining work will be during the festival itself." Of course, with Shizune as the class representative, that shouldn't come as a surprise; with her, it wouldn't be surprising if the class actually was just a group of slaves controlled by her. Hakamichi Shizune, pharaoh of the empire of Yamaku High.
"And that would leave exactly what work left to be done by somebody without work to do for his class?" I ask.
"Just because a certain class has finished all of their their preparations, everything does not necessarily have to have been finished, Hicchan," Misha states, not translating for Shizune this time. Do they have some kind of telepathic link, so that neither of them actually has to sign? Or was the just slightly mocking tone Misha was using actually her own? Somehow, the latter theory frightens me more than the former.
"So exactly what am I supposed to do?" I ask, furrowing my brow and letting me head drop slightly to my side. For a moment I let my gaze drift around the classroom, and it seems that Miki is watching me; as she noticed me looking at her, a sad expression I presume to be as faked as snow in July appears on her face. My eyes then return to the duo beside my desk, who seem to be discussing what work they find suitable for the new guy to do.
"The simplest would be to check the status of the different budget reports, as they are to be finished latest on Friday," the student council-duo explains, Misha of course being the one voicing the explanation.
"So you don't trust me to do more than that?" I ask, actually quite relieved about the task I've been given, as I was prepared to get some far more craving mission. Misha translates, and Shizune's expression turns into a dark one, with a devilish smile on her lips as her rough hyperspeed signing makes an appearance. It seems to take her incredible focus to do so, but the pink-haired girl appears to be able to understand her companion's words.
"A new recruit must never be trusted with a truly important task," Misha translates, appearing exhausted after having just tried to see what Shizune was saying. I absolutely do not blame her; to be able to understand that at all you'd probably have to be fluent in sign language, and you'd probably have to be superhuman to do so without having any trouble, which would probably only leave the one that was signing it on the list of people that were capable of understanding it easily. Of course, Shizune's apparent look at the school as an army is slightly troubling, but I decide to ignore it for the time being.
Shizune quickly writes up a list of about six or so people, whom I presume to be the class representatives of the respective classes following their names. How does she keep track of these people, that she has seemingly no relation to besides having to boss over every now and then? Goes beyond me.
"It would be preferable if Satou was dealt with as quickly as possible," Misha translates as Shizune points to the name Satou Lilly – Class 3-2. "She has been the cause of a lot of stress for the student council, as she always pushes the time limit, finishing everything as late as possible." The duo sign a little to each other before turning to me and informing me that the location where the probability of finding her would be the highest is an unused classroom in the part of the school reserved for clubrooms.
"Well then, I guess I should do what I've been tasked to do," I say, standing up and stretching. "Shouldn't wait to do anything two pretty girls have entrusted me to do." Misha laughs, and Shizune's face, although stern, gets a small smile. Grabbing my bag, I walk towards the exit of the classroom, nodding to the classmates I pass and they doing the same to me. Apparently Miki and Suzu left while I was having my conversation with the duo, as I see no trace of either of them when passing their desks. Exiting the classroom and making my way into the hallway, I quickly head toward the part of the building I spent the earlier half of the day in.
…...
"Hello?" I say, knocking and pushing the door to the supposedly unused classroom open, before being stunned the sight; a beautiful girl (well, woman; her appearance would suggest that she's at least 20, but the fact that she's wearing a Yamaku uniform would say otherwise) with waist-long blonde hair, pale skin and what appears to be an incredibly feminine figure (she's sitting, so I can't be truly sure) on a chair in front of a table in the middle of the room. The fact that her eyes are closed, her finger is on a seemingly blank page on the book in front of her and the folded cane on the table suggests that she's blind.
"My, my, a guest, have we?" she asks, turning her ear towards my location, seemingly to maximize her ability to sense my presence, further pushing my theory that she's blind. An elegant atmosphere surrounds her, and even compared to the rest of Yamaku (which has an incredibly high average when it comes to looks) she's amazingly beautiful. It takes a second to gather my thoughts.
"Ah, sorry. Wasn't expecting a stunningly beautiful girl, that's all," I say to explain myself, and the blonde girl giggles while raising her left hand to her cheek. Opening her eyes, I can see that they are blue, although covered by a blank layer, which fully confirms the theory that she's blind.
"I'll have to say that I wasn't expecting a Casanova." A smile on her lips, an incredibly warm one almost pulling me in, and I find it difficult to move my body. A literally stunning beauty.
"Then I guess we both were handed with surprises. I can say that I was given a pleasant one, although I'm not as sure about you. Nakai Hisao, by the way," I state, finally regaining control of my body and clenching my fist to make sure that I'm not going to spontaneously get frozen again.
"Satou Lilly. Please, just call me Lilly," she responds, her porcelain appearance remaining the same, almost blank expression. As if she had practiced it, to always remain at her most beautiful. Considering what girls sometimes are practiced to constantly live as, it wouldn't be entirely surprising. Just a year at an all-girl academy and you'd probably have it all drilled into you.
"Then I guess I found my target," I say, looking down at the paper with the names of the different class representatives.
"Oh?" Lilly gets a questioning expression, and it's obvious that I've piqued her interest; who wouldn't find something worded like that interesting?
"A certain student council president put me on search for you. Sad that we had to meet under such circumstances, but it can't be helped." The blonde sighs, letting herself drop down slightly, probably to relax, which I sort of see why you would if you were attacked by Hakamichi Shizune. I notice that the finger that was used to read her book earlier is now tapping on said book, showing that she's either bored or annoyed. I'd guess on the latter, considering we haven't even been talking for a minute yet.
"Well then," she says after a few seconds of silence. "Since you've been sent here already, why not stay for a cup of tea?"
"I see no reason to decline a chance to spend time with a stunningly beautiful girl," I respond and Lilly shakes her head with a slight giggle, seeming to find my compliments funny.
"You really know how to talk to a girl, Nakai," she comments as she gets up and guides herself to the 'kitchen' of the classroom. A small area, separated from the rest of the room by a small wall running halfway from one of the room's walls to another.
"If I am to call you by given name you are to do the same to myself," I state. I'd feel strange calling her Lilly if she was calling me Nakai.
"Well then, Hisao it is. Now tell me, Hisao, why would it be that you are running errands for the student council? I have heard nothing of a new member, so I would assume that this has something to do with favors."
"It's not favored upon for a new student to mysteriously disappear for half of his second day after just transferring to a new school," I respond as I walk over and take a seat at the same table that Lilly was sitting at just a minute ago. "A favor for a favor, I guess."
"My, my, that would put you in class 3-3, am I correct?" she asks while getting the earlier mentioned tea ready in the 'kitchen'.
"Inside information, have we?" I respond as I hear the tea boiling. That went a lot quicker than I had expected it to. I guess this is some kind of magic of hers.
"It's not all too common for a third-year to suddenly drop in after the year has started," Lilly responds, exiting the kitchen with a cup in each hand, walking over to the table, putting the cups onto it and then sitting down. "I wouldn't be surprised if most of the school knew of it by this point." Her smile seems slightly less 'faked' (I wouldn't call it fake, but rather 'placed') now, for whatever reason. "Besides, I also happen to have a rather close friend in your class."
"Rumors already on my second day? I'm surprising even myself here," I say, choosing not to ask about the friend she's talking about. I don't even know the names of most my classmates yet, so it wouldn't make much of a difference.
"Our Casanova wasn't expecting such a welcome?" Lilly takes a sip of the tea, and I do the same. Incredibly well-made, absolutely above average, and that's coming from someone who prefers coffee.
"Well, in afterthought I can see why such a thing would happen, but I wasn't expecting it." I sigh. "I'm not making it better for myself either, skipping class with girls and all." This seems to pique my companion's interest.
"Might there be any budding romances in class 3-3?" she asks, a childish expression now covering her face, as if wanting to know everything she has possible access to.
"I'd rather call it 'helping the new guy out'." Lilly seems satisfied with my answer as she does not follow up with any other statements or questions, so I decide that I might as well take the time to get to business. "Well, to get to why I came here in the first place; I'm supposed to ask about the satus of the budget report for the festival." Lilly heaves a deep sigh and lets her face down.
"Does she actually believe that sending someone will finish the report earlier?" she mumbles to herself, before turning straight to me. "Tell her that since the deadline is not until Friday, our class has decided to make use of the available time."
"I will do as you have commanded, madame," I say, bowing for effect despite knowing that it will make no difference since she won't be able to see it. "With that aside, I'd assume that if the budget report isn't finished, neither is the major work. That leaves me to ask why you're here, when you could be helping the rest of the class." Lilly blushes slightly after I say this, and raises her right hand to her cheek.
"They told me to take a break, that I was overworking myself," she explains. Overworking in a situation in which they actually need to be working at their limit? That... sounds incredible. How does one work hard enough during this kind of work to be forced by your own class not to continue with it? We remain silent after this, a sip from our cups breaking the silence every now and then.
"'Lilly'. Quite a western name," I finally say to restart the conversation, since the silence, while not awkward, started feeling empty. The beautiful girl sitting in front of me takes another sip of her tea before putting her hands together and placing them on top of the book in front of her.
"My mother's from Scotland, and despite that I was to grow up here in Japan she wanted at least one of her children to have a name from her own part of the world," Lilly explains, the constant smile remaining as it has until now.
"The way you worded that sentence would imply that you have siblings," I respond, looking into my almost empty teacup, before letting my gaze drift onto the window and the outside world. Due to being on the third floor of a building on top of a hill, I can't see the ground, but just near the window there stands a few trees, and in the distance I can see what appears to be a mountain.
"I do, in fact. A sister," my companion answers and I let my gaze drift over to her instead. Waist-long, blonde hair, pinned with a black ribbon (I wonder how long it would be if she let it down), pale skin, almost as porcelain. What catches my attention the most, though, is her fingers; long and slender, as pale as the rest of her body, but something about them just has me looking at them. It might just be the small movements they have due to her lack of sight, but if it is, then it's not consciously that I find that interesting.
"And this sister has a Japanese name," I comment, finishing her statement, although I did intend it more as a question than a fact.
"Akira," Lilly explains as I continue to watch her fingers with their small and almost invisible movements. I wonder exactly how much she's able to pick up just through those small movements.
"'Satou Akira'. Far more eastern than Lilly." Looking up at Lilly's face, I realize that her current smile is the warm, natural one I was able to witness when she mentioned her friend in my class earlier. It must be a smile specifically for the people she cares about, I presume.
"So how about yourself, Hisao?" she asks, taking the last sip from her teacup. "Any siblings in the Nakai-family?"
"I'm sorry to say that I'm an only child," I answer. "When I see how close siblings are I get extremely jealous. That smile of yours, for example." Lilly gives a questioning expression by furrowing her brow slightly.
"Smile?"
"When you're talking about people you care about your smile turns a lot warmer than the practiced smile you're otherwise carrying," I say, and it seems that my analyzes have been spot on, as the blonde girl blushes and raises her hand to her cheek again.
"My, my, analyzing, are we?" she says, still blushing.
"Sorry, force of habit," I respond, a childish tone to my voice, as if not sorry for doing it but for getting caught. I'd say that's closer to the truth than to say that I'm sorry for doing it.
"Well, Hisao, with you knowing what I hold dear it, I'd like to know something like that of your own. It's unfair to only listen and not say anything," Lilly says, which gets me to think. What do I actually have to hold dear? I lost most of my life with the heart attack, so I guess there aren't really any people I can say that about; since my parents always work I've never been able to get close to them, and I've never had much time to meet any other relatives...
"Memories," I say after some time of thinking, to which my companion responds by tilting her head to the side, furrowing her brow slightly to give a questioning appearance. "Memories are what's precious to me, as they're the one link between the person I currently am and the one I once was. This moment, the one we're sharing right now, in not too long that will too be nothing but a memory, right? And since I don't have anyone close to me, the memories I have are what I can treasure."
Lilly seems to want to say something about this, probably along the lines of 'isn't that sad/lonely?', but refrains from doing so. My words actually seem to have taken the smile off her face, which makes me feel a bit bad about my own actions, but there's nothing I can do about the truth.
"I know how it sounds, some lonely guy who only thinks about the past, but everyone has to be a little melancholic from time to time." I try to take another sip from my teacup, but find it empty. Apparently I finished it a lot quicker than I had expected, but I guess that's not incredibly strange considering the quality. And the company of the girl who made said tea probably had some kind of influence on the speed, too.
"While it is correct that everyone goes through despondent periods every now and then, I do believe that the best way to get through them are through contact with others. I'll have to say that you don't seem to be having trouble on that front, though, and maybe this isn't a debate for me to take, but for yourself." Although Lilly seems quite concerned about my situation, probably due to some kind of motherly instinct (or maybe she's just an inhumanly good person?) the smile she was carrying earlier now returns. "Another cup?"
"I'd never be able to decline such an offer," I respond, placing the cup against the tip of her finger so she won't have to search for it herself, as that would probably be a minor pain for someone who can't see. She nods, as if a minor bow, to thank for my cooperation, before standing up and heading back into the 'kitchen'. I assume that the tea left from the earlier boiling was just standing around with the heat on, as I can almost immediately hear the sound of something being poured, and soon Lilly returns into the main room, sitting down as she places a cup in front of me and the other in front of herself. "Thank you."
"My, my, no need to act reserved. You are a guest, after all, even if sent by the president of the student council," she responds, again raising her hand to her cheek. Once again am I caught by her lady-like nature, that I'm sure must have been practiced to come as natural as it does to her; had she not done so, I see no reason to why she'd act that way. I'm not complaining, but rather feel as if that must be quite something to constantly be thinking about, and I wonder how much of it has actually become her natural way of acting. Maybe it all has.
"So, Lilly, what is that book you were reading before I came and interrupted?" I ask after some time, having nothing else to talk about for the time being, as I can't really think of any other shared interest we might have. While I can't say that I've ever found an interest in braille at any earlier point in my life (I could say the same about books just four months ago), it does seem fairly interesting to read with your sense of touch.
"Ivanhoe," she says, and I recognize the name. Although I do try to place the title in my mind, I fail miserably, which Lilly seems to notice from my silence. "A historic novel set in 12th-century England," she explains, and I finally remember it; not because I've ever thought of reading it, but because I heard about it during English class once.
"Sir Walter Scott?" I ask, feeling like I butchered the name incredibly, which Lilly's giggle confirms, but I decide that being a joker works every now and then. The girl in front of me, having stopped giggling, nods.
"So you know of it," the blonde says before taking a sip from her cup, I letting my gaze back to the window to look at the scenery of the area around Yamaku High. 'To help youngsters with special needs.'
"I'd think that anyone who pays at least some attention during English class would at least know of it," I respond, the sky outside seeming to start change in color. "Wasn't expecting to ever meet anyone reading it." Yup, it's definitely starting to head towards sunset, and I check my cellphone for the time; five past five. "It seems time has moved quicker than I thought it had."
My eyes shift back over to Lilly, who again has tilted her head to the side, furrowing her brow to give a questioning look.
"It's just past five already," I explain, putting the cellphone back into my pocket and letting my gaze stay on the stunningly beautiful girl sitting right across the table. The afternoon has turned out a lot better than I had believed it would when I realized I owed Shizune and Misha a favor.
"Well then, how about we finish our tea before wrapping this little meeting of ours up?" she says, and it seems like the best thing to do. "I should be heading to the library before they close."
"While I'd love to join you, I still have work to do," I explain, taking a large sip of the tea in the cup in front of me. It's almost empty as it leaves my lips, meaning that it won't be long at all until our clubroom tea party is finished. I sigh, pour the last tea into my mouth and stand up, as if to say that I'm finished.
"I'll take care of everything. You can go and do whatever it is the student council has demanded of you," Lilly says with a smile that seems to at least be a little warmer than the one I saw as I entered the room, although I can't be sure whether it's my eyes playing tricks on me or not.
"Well then, I'll do so," I say, placing the cup still in my hand on the table a bit to the side of the girl's. "It was nice meeting you, Lilly, and it would be lovely for it to happen again."
"It would be my pleasure, Hisao," she says, still with a smile, as I walk over to the door, glance back at her and bow, mostly for my own effect, before exiting the room, leaving the door open just a crack. With raised spirits from the time spent with Satou Lilly I continue the work of checking on the status of reports of different classes, even being 'lucky' (if that's the right word) enough to find a few of them finished and ready to be handed to the student council.
…...
With my favor to the student council almost repaid, save for leaving the collected papers to them, I start heading back to the dormitory buildings, hoping to take a shower before doing something that could be anything between going to sleep and taking a walk through town... Okay, that doesn't seem like there's much variety, but I can't say that there is much variety when you've just transferred to a school. Especially not one located like Yamaku, where you have to go three quarters of an hours by bus just to get to the closest major city. I sigh.
"Yo, Hisao!" A voice drags me out of thought. A voice I recognize, even. Turning towards the source of the voice, a certain Miura Miki stands there, looking at me with the grin she seems to be always carrying on her lips. I start walking towards her, and she runs the little distance between us. "Was thinking of going into town. Wanna join?"
"Sure, why not," I say, stretching my arms. Anything I'd need was already in my bag, so heading back to the dorms would be unnecessary. Before I'm able to say any more, Miki's already on her way towards the gate, but she turns back to me before the distance has become too great.
"Are you coming or what?"