an: this story is just growing and growing. When i first began writing it I thought it might end a t around 20 000 words. I am now around halfway and already it is more than 30 000 words.
This chapter is becoming extra long and I decided to write it in two parts so you do not have to wait so long for an update.
Chapter 7 The white devils, part 1
One morning I awaken with a scream on my lips and a bloody taste in my mouth.
As much as I wanted I would not remember exactly what I had been dreaming, only unfocused short images. From what I could recollect Yamaguchi was the main protagonist in the nightmare and a group of men dressed in black suits was beating her up. In the nightmare I was lying on the sidelines watching without managing to help because someone was holding a knife towards my throat.
Everything felt so real. I just knew she allowed the suit clothed men to beat her up because she was protecting me.
I had even bitten my lip so hard in my sleep that it had began bleeding.
Not a good start on my morning.
oOoOo
First thing in the morning after washing my mouth thoroughly I walked out into the sun, not feeling comfortable eating anything after the rough awakening I had just experienced.
The closer I got towards the school the stronger I felt the need to reassure myself that my dream had just been another nightmare, not centered around the truth at all.
I opted to wait outside the gate just long enough to see her enter. Finally I could shake off my restlessness as she came and walking past me almost in her own world. Just seeing her, without any bruises helped my condition a lot, and I soon followed inside the school's property with a calmer heart.
When she walked into my classroom a few minutes later in the morning she was not the sunny goddess I expected. She looked more like a gloomy child.
As she took place in the middle of the classroom and told us all she would soon be without work my first reaction was to feel angst. She would leave? Then I remembered I and the rest of the young men inside this room would had graduate at that point, or at least I hope we would had gotten our diploma.
When this shock was over I began feeling angry on her behalf. Did they not realize they would loose the only teacher in this school who earned the money they paid in salary?
She might not teach her students much school related stuff, but Yamaguchi taught us about a realistic life outside the classroom, and from what I had seen myself that was a lot more relevant than algebra.
With her students surrounding her I must admit she was kind of cute as she sat there on a small chair with her knees up to her chin like a young child. Sometimes it felt like I was older than her.
Take, the kind spirited young man he was tried to comfort her. Telling her that it would not be hard to find part time work. He told her she could for instance work as a tutor. Hm, wonder if she would become my private tutor if she decided to change her work status? So far I already knew everything school related she was teaching so I do not think I would be her first priority when it came to her future students. In order for her to not leave me completely alone I could fake stupidity. To bad I do not have the money to pay her. The few bills I still carry around with me was technically not mine, but if I ever have to use them it would be on her, even if she was the rightful owner.
After Take began giving her advice, the rest of the guys started throwing out ideas as well. Hayato, the bastard, opened his mouth in front of everyone and said "Why don't you just take over your family business? You are the fourth generation."
My neck almost broke off as fast as my head turned in Hayato's direction. My blood was pumping inside me as the rest of the guys inside the room yelled out "Family business?"
She had already informed us she would be without work in a short time, did he want her to be fired already?!
Hayato luckily noticed his mistake and kept his mouth closed as Yamaguchi tried to come up with an explanation as to what type of family business Hayato referred to. As the others began question Yamaguchi my head was still too shocked to come up with an realistically solution to this problem.
Hayato decided to intervene and told everyone her family was in the Soba business, that they owned a joint. Maybe not the best idea he could had given considering how everyone now was curious as to where her family's soba joint was located.
Yamaguchi fortunately came up with one of her stupid word games, and even as if it was pathetically stupid as shit, both me and Hayato laughed loudly in hope everyone would forget what we were even discussing. Luckily it worked and Yamaguchi quickly began teaching something related to math as no one of her students was no longer listening.
Sitting in the back my head could not decided if it wanted me to hit Hayato for his slip up, or question everyone else lack of IQ since they did not react to her stupid word game.
oOoOo
A few days later Yamaguchi came into the room with her familiar happy voice yelling out "Ohayo". Unlike the first week she was our teacher, this time she received a lot of positive response to her greeting. Her good mood was quickly explained when she relieved that a few of the guys in class had been given interviews on companies for work after graduation. Tsucchi being one of the lucky ones.
Someone yelled out his uncertainty and worries related to how he could perform well on a interview and in doing so gave Yamaguchi her new task to teach us, without it being part of the curriculum of course. She decided to teach us practically on how to succeed on interviews.
I could at once see why everyone needed the practice, but still role-playing at our age? Sighing loudly to myself I could understand how these guys needed all the practice they could get it seemed.
Seeing her get more and more frustrated with how "the interviews" was acted out was almost funny. In the end Yamaguchi lost her temper and pushed the desk in front of her away and tried to attack the guys acting out the interview. Me and a few of my friends managed to hold her back from the fight. Even if she was part of the Yakuza I felt like it was a wonder how someone as skinny as she was could have so much strength inside.
To stop her attack before I lost my grip on her arm I told her "...why don't you show us an example?" She stopped at once, and Hayato even supplied that not one of us had even taken part of an interview before and because of this she should show us how it is suppose to be performed. Tricking her into being the interviewed and not the interviewer was easy when all the other guys also decided to call her out on it.
As she walked out of the room and into the hallway it was quickly voted that Hayato, Take, Tsucchi, Hyuga and me would be the interviewers. Someone even gave us ridiculous costumes, which I refused to use. This would be interesting.
Yamaguchi knocked and opened the door before entered into the classroom. She bowed down before turning a little in order to close the door behind her. So far so good I thought to myself. Wondering how long her perfect act would last when confronted by her students in an "interview".
As my friends asked the questions I knew it was not something someone would be asked on an interview for a teaching job. Why did they ask for her measurement, and why did I know them to be wrong the moment she told them? I even said so out loud she should not lie, and she acted as if I had take away her teddy bear as a child.
Take even dared to ask her about her love life, and if she had a boyfriend. Making me freeze for a moment. Yamaguchi, of course forgot who she was talking to and told everyone she had someone she liked, but that it was not going so well. Even if I did not want to admit it I knew of whom she was talking about, that annoying male teacher to that annoying girl Take was in love with. My heart felt a little calmer after hearing that her romance at this moment almost non existent.
When she finally reacted negatively to their choice of questions everything was soon over and she left the classroom a few minutes late just before the bell rang.
oOoOo
The four of us went out together with Tsucchi after school in order to help him with his cv. Hopefully also assist him in preparation for his interview in the following days. When I saw which picture he was going to put on his profile I was glad we had volunteered to help him, he desperately needed our assistance. Who put up a wannabe gangster picture on his cv for a job at a arcade firm. Take, as innocent as he is, gave Tsucchi an other picture he could use. It was of the two of them together with hearts and everything. I am not a homophobic but I do not think a homosexual picture like that would work on a cv. Maybe at a gay bar, but not at a arcade. In the end we luckily managed to convince Tsucchi to take a fresh, normal picture of himself.
For once I had hoped everything would work out without any problems. Unfortunate this was not the case. After it was decided we would go out for karaoke to celebrate Tsucchi's interview. As we began walking in the direction of the karaoke bar Tsucchi was held back by a rough looking group of high school students in white uniforms.
We turned back the second we noticed the other students, already knowing it would result problems.
I hesitated for a second longer than my friends, not because I did not want to help, but because I send a silent message to whoever was listening in hope of this confrontation would not result in any problems for my friends or our homeroom teacher.
I tried to stop my friends from attacking the guys together with a guy identified as Todorokin when the strangers stupidly decided to make fun of Tsucchi's hard working dreams as they ripped up his cv.
My oral definition of the white dressed guys as "these guys" did not make the situation any better, but still this was not something to attack us for. From my point of view it looks like the strangers were just trying to pick a fight for whatever reason they themselves defined as legal.
I really liked being Hayato's friend, but if there is one thing which could be defined as his weakness it is his hot temper. With the other guys acting all tough and yelling I just knew his patient was running out. With two of them holding his collar Hayato finally lost it and punched one of the guys resulting in one of them falling to the ground.
Who was so stupid they chose white uniforms for high school students such as them? Luckily our uniform was black so a few stains could easily be hidden in the dark color. For the guys in front of us their uniform would have to be daily washed. I can not even remember the last time I washed my uniform. Of course I wash my inside shirt, after all that running I do around Yamaguchi I had to wash it often. The jacket on the other hand would only be washed if it is really dirty. Shaking of my irrelevant thoughts all hell was loose in front of me.
Seconds after Hayato throws a punch everyone was attacking someone, almost like small children running after a football, huddling together.
Even if I thought this was a bad ideal, nothing would stop me from protecting my friends during a fight. Beside after the dream I had recently it felt nice to finally hit someone.
oOoOo
The next day was also a shitty morning, luckily I had not had that dream again, but my body ached from the beating last night.
As I finally managed to gather myself to go to school there was another negative surprise waiting for me and my friends. Our fight last night was the main reason why all my classmates failed their interview. They had not even been given the chance to show what they could contribute to, not even defend themselves against the accusations. It made me feel shitty.
As we were sitting there waiting for the guys return I could see Yamaguchi's anger boiling just under the surface. When the door opened, with Tsucchi in the front leading the other guys inside the room everyone else was quiet just watching them. Tsucchi, standing in front of us began his excuse telling he did not know the interviewers had see our fight last night. I just knew he should had chosen a different approach to this subject seeing Yamaguchi's facial expression.
He did seem a little guilty for ruining his classmates chance at a fair interview, but it did not stop Yamaguchi from lecture about how he ruined the chance a lot of people had worked hard on getting them. That Tsucchi should not take the consequences of his actions as lightly as he did. Hayato decided to intervene her lecture, telling her "What did we do wrong?" Hyuga followed up with "It was Todoroki and his guys. It was their fault."
Take not liking confrontations even told her it was them who was picking a fight with us last night, which I had to silently agree with.
As she pointed out, the reason for the fight might be true, but still it did not change the fact. Everyone lost their interview because of our petty fight last night. Even if I already knew this the second I found out about the failed interview, her words did hit, making me feel a deep regret for my actions and how I had not manage to prevent the fight. My words, while trying to prevent a fight, might even be the action which lead to the fistfight.
Was it mine fault this happened?
Yamaguchi kept on arguing about how important this interview could be for some of them. How family members could not manage to help us forever cleaning up our mess. Her lecture was not necessary directed at Hayato because he lost his temper, or Tsucchi who fought in front of those conducting the interviews. She wanted us to clean up our own mess, and take responsibility for our actions.
Again she made me feel like a child. I sat on my chair resting my hands on the desk as if I was a better student than my fellow classmates. Trying to fool myself, knowing no one bought it. She was looking back at where I was sitting informing us regretting was easier than fixing the problem. To be responsible for our actions was something we lacked. Yamaguchi hinted that we did not yet have the ability to comprehend the importance is seeing consequences of our actions in life.
To know actions might lead to consequences which could not be undone in the future.
The classroom was completely quiet during her passionate speech. The other young men inside the room, like me, probably felt the weight of her words, not managing to lift their eyes up to meet her burning eyes.
Her lecture ended when the superintendent and headteacher entered the classroom like they owned it. Hearing them inform every student of class 3D they should not look for work any longer made me question this schools philosophy yet again. They were more afraid of the school's reputation than for its students future. Beside, even if we did something stupid, and because of it Tsucchi and the rest lost their interviews, exactly how did this matter reflect negative on the school?
I would assume that the students not having secured work before graduation would affect the school more negative than five guys not even been given a chance at a interview because of a fight one of them had entered.
As the rest of my classmates protested the headteachers words I wanted to join them, but because of the result of just a few of my words yesterday I was almost afraid to voice my opinion. As my fellow classmates got even more loudly in their protest Yamaguchi yelled out for everyone to be quiet. Before she could say anything, the superintendent told everyone that if something like this ever happens again it would result in dire consequences.
Even before our homeroom teacher asked I knew what those consequences would be, expulsion. It felt a little to petty to threaten someone with expulsion now, just short while before graduation. Even so, I knew he meant it. He even told her, and us, that hard punishment might lift up the school's image for everyone else. How screwed was his view on life?
Hayato lost his temper at the superintendent words and yelled back his disagreement in how expulsion would result in a better image for this school. Fellow classmates followed Hayato's protest as well voicing their opinions of unfairness. For the second time in a short while Yamaguchi had to order everyone to quiet down again. Sometimes I felt at awe in how everyone would follow her orders without and protests, how she demanded respect with just a few words from her lips.
To hear her stand up to the superintendent and headteacher, informing them she would do anything to ensure that all of her students would graduate on time, and how she wished for us to follow our dreams made my heart beat faster inside my chest.
Her dream was for us to walk our own paths into the future. For us to proudly graduate. I could see in her students eyes how her words hit them hard as well. We would do everything we could in order for her dream to be fulfilled.
To hear the elder men in front describe her dream for "these guys" as a waste of time made my blood boil. I would do everything in my power to make her dream come true. Before coming back at school I had been given permission to graduate even without coming to school. She was the one who make me come back, she was the reason I stayed, she was the main reason I was sitting next to my friends today. I owed her, I owed her to fulfill her dream.
Hayato had never been good with his emotions and often lost his temper. During this time I really wish he would had kept it inside, unfortunate wishes does not always come true. Hayato stood up, yelled out for them to expel him. He turned away, kicked his chair and left the room from the backdoor. All my friends left after him, making a small ruckus as they left. One by one they walked past me, exiting the room. I sat on my desk, twinning my fingers trying to find a solution.
In the end I felt like I had to leave the room with them since I was part of the fight as well and did not deserve to stay. As I stood up I tried to make eye contact with Yamaguchi to show how sorry I was for everything before turning away from her following my friends, wondering if I would ever come back to this room, to her.
oOoOo
an: part two will probably be updated those of you who have a holiday soon, enjoy :)
