Inside classroom 1-2 at the back corner, Komachi was still attempting to absorb her relatively new surroundings, glancing around the room from time to time - noticing only a few distinct students such as a bald boy whose skin is pale white; a pair of twin girls with long hair, both of them having a single prosthetic forearm - one on the left and one on the right; and a relatively frightened-looking boy who had a cane beside him.

It was only her second day of attending, but she found the feelings of loneliness and abandonment mostly dissipated on her first day; due in no small part to the unexpected efforts of a rather crass individual.

As Tonaka stated to the class that they were nearing the end of the period, the twins approached Komachi as she was idly still in the middle of her observations.

""Good afternoon. You're Hikigaya-san?"" They spoke in unison, slightly stunning Komachi from their synchronization.

Woah. They're, like, virtually identical besides the placement of their fake arms and oddly enough, the height.

"Umm.. y-yeah, that's me, Komachi. Nice to meet you…?"

"Yuka Kobayashi! And this is Nanako," The taller twin introduces the two with a bright smile, pointing towards her sister who gives a meek wave. "we saw you pop up after lunch yesterday out of nowhere and you took off as soon as class ended, we didn't get the chance to say hi!"

"Oh, Komach- I got here pretty late. After class ended, I had to go see the nurse, I didn't have a chance to speak with anyone!" She replies, making a vain attempt to match Yuka's enthusiasm.

"Welllll, we'll have to correct that. Do you want to have lunch with us? It'll give us a chance to get to know each other!"

"O-oh I actua- ah, you know what, that sounds like a great idea." Komachi agrees with some hesitation. Senpai said he'd join me for lunch. Komachi isn't sure if that applies now. Komachi hopes he will. Should see if he still would.

"Great! We'll head to the cafeteria as soon as the bell rings, Komi-chan!" Yuka says happily, waving as she heads back to her seat.

That's a pretty cute nickname. Komachi likes it. Komachi thinks to herself with a small smirk, before noticing Nanako still stood there with a curious look in her eyes.

"W-w-were you going to do something else for l-lunch?" The shorter twin asks cautiously. She picked up on that, huh?

"Sort've. I was gonna go with my senpai." The even shorter girl admits.

"O-oh! I hope we weren't i-intruding on your plans…"

"No, no. It's fine. I was actually going to text him to see if he'll come with." Komachi explains as she takes out her phone, typing a quick message.

Recipient: ×××Keegan×××

[Senpai! classmates wan 2 have lunch wit me. U wanna joinn?] 11:56 a.m

Nanako reels back at the mention of 'him'. "H-h-h-him?"

"Hmm? Oh yeah, it's a he," Sensing the nervousness in her voice, Komachi continues. "don't worry, he's… friendly enough." Komachi guesses that's a close enough description. Is she not ok with boys or something?

Nanako just barely speaks in an audible voice. "Ah. A-alright. Well, l-let us know if there's a change of p-plans."

Komachi gives a nod in affirmation before her phone vibrates.

Sender: ×××Keegan×××

[I'll pass. Enjoy yourself tho.] 11:56 a.m

A sense of disappointment begins to fester as she read the short reply. How is Komachi supposed to enjoy herself with strangers? Should Komachi not have mentioned classmate(s)? Does he not like groups? He's starting to seem more and more like onii-chan by the minute. Ugh. Komachi shouldn't cancel on them though, they seem alright and it'd be nice to make friends with my classmates.

Getting through her thoughts, Komachi decides to send a message voicing her issue.

Recipient: ×××Keegan×××

[itdd be hard to w/o you there :(((] 11:59 a.m

She puts her phone away in her bag as her classmates begin to hand their assignments to their teacher.

A shocking realization strikes Komachi as she stares at the unfilled sheet of work in front of her. Awh, crapcakes. Komachi spent the whole time people-watching and talking. It's for English, Komachi probably wouldn't have done too well anyways.

Komachi hesitantly makes her way to the front of the class where she is greeted by the warm smile of her teacher.

"I apologize, Tonaka-sensei, I wasn't able to make any progress on this period's work." Apologizing as she turns in her empty page.

Tonaka's smile doesn't change in the slightest as she glances at the assignment. "Oh, no worries, dear. I imagine you're still going through an adjustment period. How do you fare in English overall?"

She's right about the adjustment period. Komachi rubs her arm nervously as she looks out the window. "Not too well, it's actually one of my worst subjects."

"Well, I'm sure if you ask nicely, Shiro-san would give you some helpful pointers."

Senpai?

"W-what do you mean?"

Tonaka looks at her with a quizzical look. "He hasn't told you? Hmm... I must say he did a good job of masking his accent during our first meeting... Anywho, Shiro-san's native language is English."

The revelation piqued her curiosity about her upperclassman.

His first language is English? But he speaks Japanese perfectly like he's always spoken it… Komachi wonders where he's from. Komachi should ask him.

"Huh. I think I'll do just that, Sensei. Thank you for the suggestion." She thanks her with a grateful bow.

"Anything I can do to help, young lady," Tonaka replies as the bell rings, signalling the start of lunch.

Komachi turns to see the Kobayashi twins already waiting for her near the door, so she begins to make her way to them.

Yuka speaks up almost instantly as Komachi gets within conversation distance. "Soo? Is your senpai going to be joining us?" Hmm? She knows about… oh right Nanako probably told her.

"Oh. No, he said he'll pass. I guess he's not the biggest fan of groups." She replies with a remorseful smile.

"That's too bad, though it seems a lot of the upperclassmen here tend to keep to their grades," Yuka explains as she leads the way out the door.

Really? That's odd. Komachi wonders if Sobu was going to be like that.

"I wonder why that is, but I don't believe my senpai would care too much about those types of things," Komachi says, following the two down the hallway.

o—o

The newly formed trio make their way into the already packed cafeteria, the lunch crowd shuffling along.

Glancing around, Komachi spots Suzu's distinct hair colour who was with Hisao and a few others she didn't recognize. No senpai. Is he on his own? Should that be bothering Komachi? Cause it's bothering Komachi.

Collecting their lunches and finding an unoccupied table, they seat themselves as an increasingly anxious Komachi continues to look around while the other two begin eating. Her anxiety is alleviated slightly when she spots the source of her worries — Keegan entering the cafeteria, being flanked by two students Komachi didn't recognize.

For someone who says he doesn't bother trying to make friends, he seems to be around quite a few girls. Cute ones at that. But the look on his face says he's putting up with them.

As Komachi watches the trio enter the lunch line, she notices Keegan begins getting fidgety; his shoulders tensing up as he shoots glances in multiple directions. What the..? Does he know when someone's looking at him?

Seemingly confirming her question, the two make eye contact. Keegan's face brightens almost instantly when he notices her, and his body visibly relaxes. Grinning at the sight of it, Komachi waves slightly which he returns. This doesn't go unnoticed by either's respective company.

Yuka follows Komachi's sightline to Keegan and in turn, the other two with him; letting out an exaggerated groan.

Confused, Komachi turns back to face her lunch companions. "What is it?"

Yuka nods her head in the direction of Keegan. "Student council president and her lackey. Essentially a taskmaster tyrant." Nanako giggles at her sister's comment.

"Oh. Is she that bad?" She asks, beginning on her food finally.

"Maybe not, however, our few encounters with them have been… less than pleasant," Yuka says as she looks back towards them. "looks like she's got her claws into another unsuspecting poor sucker."

Wait, what?!

"W-who do you mean? Senpai?" A startled Komachi asks, glancing at Keegan as the pair of girls follow him to an empty table.

Yuka looks on with a more focused expression. "That's the senpai you were talking about? Oh boy... He's in for an unpleasant time. Assuming they're successful."

"Successful with what?"

"Recruiting him to the student council. They try to enlist whoever they think will fall for their charm. And I use the word 'charm' very loosely."

Oh. Senpai wouldn't fall for that. Komachi hopes.

"I'm not falling for that. Try it on a lesser man." Keegan stated bluntly.

"Buuuut Shiro-san~! You don't want to spend time with us?" Misha pouts as she puffs out her chest, attempting to look cute as she does so - with mild success in a different regard.

"Y-your high school girl cliché-bullshit won't work with me. And I doubt Hakamichi would want a degenerate on the student council." A slightly flustered Keegan retorts as a mischievous smirk spreads across Misha's face.

[You're correct. However, due to our limited number of members we're forced to make exceptions.] Shizune signs with a cold smile.

Such a bitch.

"Whatever, so essentially, the help you need is to recruit a new member for the student council?"

"Yup~!"

"Because the two of you ain't enough?" Keegan says, poking at the oddly-textured food on his tray.

A sudden pause causes him to look up, witnessing Shizune looking embarrassed and Misha grinning as she signs to her friend. [I think he knows.]

[Well, I believe we should try-]

"Oi! Don't try hiding your scheming if you're literally right in front of me."

Misha bursts into a guffaw as Shizune becomes increasingly embarrassed before quickly composing herself. [Right. Anything regarding you slips my mind almost instantly.]

Jesus, seems like she gets a kick out of belittling me. I suppose I deserve it though. "Oh hardy-fucking-har, I'm starting to realize why it's only you two on the student council. Well. It's clear I'm not a candidate to recruit so what the hell do you want from me?" He speaks, trying not to let his annoyance rise.

Shizune adjusts her glasses with a smug look. [You said it yourself. We need help recruiting, we were going to use this time to try and manipu- convince Hisao to assist us but he had other plans.]

Too late to correct yourself, woman.

"So? Try again when he's free. You two seem like the persistent sort. I'm sure if you bug him enough, he'll cave with time." Keegan suggests absentmindedly, as he continues struggling with his meal.

[Perhaps. But if you were to, say, encourage him to join, I imagine it'd make the process much quicker.]

"How the shit would I do that? 'Oh hey man, you don't know me too well but you should totally join the super-fun-super-fantastic student council!" Yeah, ok. Solid idea." He says, shaking his head.

Misha tries not to giggle as she has a mouthful of food while Shizune rolls her eyes at his sarcasm. [Obviously, you wouldn't go about it like that, idiot. Get to know him. Subliminal messages. Present the idea naturally.]

"Ok. First. I don't get to know people. I prefer people like I prefer clowns. Way the hell away from me. Second. There's no natural way to go about it without some cause for our interactions. Third. I imagine he'd figure out sooner or later, that you're behind the surely-to-be obvious attempts at his recruitment, so y'all may as well be upfront about it." Keegan explains.

Shizune surprisingly takes a moment to consider what he said, tapping her finger against her chin before signing. [You raise some valid points. Aside from your creepy outlook and terrible personality, you'd make a good addition with your way of thinking.]

"Wow. You are the epitome of mixed signals."

[Don't get me wrong, I'd rather you have nothing to do with the student council affairs in the slightest, but you do present a certain… kind of logic.]

"What did I just say…" He mutters as he finishes off his lunch.

It's like she can't make up her mind about me and that's a really uncomfortable feeling. People either hate me or don't even acknowledge me. Well... aside from Komachi. And Suzu. And Miki. And Hisao. I guess Hanako to a degree too… huh… there are quite a few now. Interesting change.

[So?]

"So?" He repeats aloud.

"So~!" Misha chimes in.

Keegan gives an irritated sigh. "So what?"

[Will you help us?] Shizune asks, a serious look decorates her features.

This whole conversation is going in circles and it's giving me a friggin headache. Am I missing out on a major clue or something?

"We didn't exactly hash out why you need my help. You two are, I'm assuming, perfectly capable of harass… err, I mean recruiting him on your own."

Ignoring his half comment about harassment Misha speaks up. "Three heads are better than two~! And if Hicchan joins, it means we won't have to bother you further~!"

Hicchan? Hisao? Ahh, I see… Wait. Does she give nicknames to everyone she meets? Is that her thing?

Wait a second...

"So you admit you know you're botheri-" He speaks before getting cut off by Misha.

"Ahaha~! No! We admit nothing~! I mean, Shiro-san, of course it would be nice if you helped us out, and we'd appreciate it. But even without all that, helping the Student Council shows a healthy interest in the workings of one's school. Yup~! It's true, Shiro-san. Besides, don't you want to spend time with us after school, Shiro-san?" She says as she repeats her actions from earlier, with more enthusiasm than before.

Again with this?! You're going one for two this time, woman.

His words betray his thoughts however as he stammers out a response. "W-well..."

Fuck! Now I'm 0 for two.

[So it's settled, then. We appreciate the help, Shiro-san.]

"What? Wait, No."

"Awww... See, Shicchan? Of course, it wouldn't go so easily." Misha replies dejectedly.

[I think it'd be boring if it went that smoothly.]

"Yup! That's right, though, it would be boring if it went that smoothly. Oh well~! Shicchan owes me candy now!"

"You were betting on it? Tsk, my life isn't a game here!"

Shizune seems very intrigued by this as he signs to her. An aggressive glint coats her eyes.

[Let's play a game, Shiro.]

Keegan shudders as Saw flashbacks play in his head. "That's not what I said."

"How about Rich Man, Poor Man, Shiro-san? If you lose, you have to help the Student Council~!"

"Hell no, absolutely not." He hastily denies the idea.

"Aw~, why not?" Misha questions.

"Well, because you two both have the same incentive, and therefore the same goal, which is to get me to help the Student Council, right?"

[Yeah.]

"Yeah, that isn't my goal. But what this means is that both of you can team up and I'll be at a clear disadvantage. So, as I said, hell no."

"Shiro-san! I'm very offended! Are you saying you don't trust us, and that we would pull something so d—dis—in—gen—u—ous...? That makes me sad..."

Keegan stifles a chuckle at her failed pronunciation. "W-what the hell was that?"

[In order to atone for hurting a young girl's feelings, you should definitely join the Student Council!] Shizune attempts to capitalize on Keegan's insensitivity.

"No, wait! When the hell did this turn into me joining?!"

Ignoring his question, Misha interjects again. "How about a game of paper football, instead of Rich Man, Poor Man?"

"Paper football?"

"Yeah~! It's a game they play in America~! You make a paper triangle, and then you try to shoot it past goalposts that the other player makes with their fingers! Isn't it cool~? It's the ultimate form of competition between two people, Shiro-san~!" She needlessly explains.

[And it's also played by elementary and middle school children] Shizune adds on.

"...And it's also played by elementary and middle school children, Shicchan? Wahaha! That means it's a game that really separates the boys from the men!"

"No, I mean I know what paper football is, I'm surprised you two know about it; because of that fact, and due to my inexperience in American shit, I'd imagine you two would be better at it than I." He quickly deduces.

"Hahaha~! Yeah yeah~, that's true! How did you know, Shiro-san?"

"Art of deduction."

Shizune frowns at Misha. That tells me that she probably wasn't supposed to admit that so readily. Their attempts to get me involved with the Student Council are pretty annoying, but I'm a little curious about what the Student Council does here. I've never been on one before, or even known anybody who was a member, so it interests me. But that's about the extent of that interest. Intentionally going out of one's way to garner more responsibility is the exact opposite of what I plan on doing here.

[Okay, Shiro, how about Risk? The game of world domination.]

"You girls play Risk? I could understand Hakamichi but Mikado? T-that's kinda surprising. No offence."

"N-none taken, where'd you learn my surname, Shiro?" Misha asks, a tint of pink flushing her cheeks as Shizune looks between the two with a great deal of interest.

Ah, nuts. I probably shouldn't mention Suzu's name. I also don't want to seem like a creep.

His eye flicks to the side as he answers. "From… Mutou-sensei. I was asking him about the class yesterday.

"Ohh, I-I see, well if you want to play, we can after school~."

[We can play just for fun. I haven't played in a long time.] Shizune says with a satisfied smile as she adjusts her glasses.

What're you looking so goddamn smug for?

"Ah, really, Shicchan? We can play just for fun, Shiro. Shicchan hasn't played in a long time, so if you want to, there are no strings attached~!"

Oh, you clever girl. With no logical reason to refuse, it'd be a cinch that I'd go along with it, eh?

Well fuck you, I refuse.

"Sure, why not."

What the hell is wrong with me.

Misha's excitement provides him with a subconscious answer."Okay! Okay, okay~! Perfect~! We'll see you after school in the student council room, then, Shiro~!"

"Wait, why there?"

"Because~! That's where we keep the game. Wahahahaha~!" She answers joyfully.

Why do I feel like I was doomed to fail in that roundabout conversation? He thinks to himself as he stands up to return his tray. "If you say so, I'll see you two in class then."

The council members give him a wave as he departs, placing his used tray away. Keegan looks around the cafeteria, checking the time on his cell, indicating there are still 20 minutes left of the lunch break. A hand sticks out as it waves fervently, his eye follows it to see a grinning Komachi; who is sitting alongside two practically identical girls.

Twins, huh? At a disabled school, it's still an odd sight to see. Then again my limited experience speaks for itself.

He's about to make his way towards his kouhai before a hand covers his eye, turning the world into darkness.

"Guess who~?" A familiar singsong voice speaks,

This girl…

"Mister Miyagi?"

"Wha-? No, it's me~! Misha~!" She takes her hand away and steps in front of him, Keegan barely managed to notice the strange look on Komachi's face in the background.

"Oh Woah! I totally did not figure that out as soon as you spoke." He speaks with feigned surprise.

Misha pouts before quickly breaking into a smirk. "Well then, smarty-pants, figure this out~." She hands him a slip of paper before taking off back towards Shizune, leaving a confused Keegan behind.

The fuck was that? What is… He examines the paper, revealing an 11-digit number. Is this… her number? That doesn't make sense, I was a jerk in our first encounter. Our second went… well… it went okay, I suppose. Still. Is it a practical joke? Or is this how they're planning to put a leash on me? I could honestly see Shizune plotting out something this elaborate. She really doesn't like me.

"Whatever..." Keegan grumbles as he shoves the paper into his pocket as he continues onwards to his destination.

As he approaches the table, Komachi brightens up once more. "Senpai!"

"Yo, seen you waving me down. What's up?"

She nods toward the other two at the table. "I wanted to introduce you to a couple of classmates."

He nods at the pair of blonde-haired twins. "Sup'. I'm-"

The taller twin jumps in. "Shiro Keegan, right? Komi-chan told us. I'm Yuka Kobayashi and this is my sister, Nanako."

"H-hi." Nanako greets in practically a whisper.

The ratio of shy girls here is becoming more and more prominent to me. Damn this soft spot. "Pleasure to meet ya both. And Komi-chan, huh? I gotta start using that." He says, rubbing his chin in consideration.

"W-wa-wait, no you don't have to, Senpai," Komachi speaks up, obviously flustered.

Yuka breaks into a grin. "Oh, please do."

Ahhh, now that's an interesting combo. One seems to be outgoing and the other seems to be a bit of a recluse. Opposites? Fire and ice? But they're twins, I'm sure they're similar in some aspects.

"Why it'd be a shame not to," Keegan says with a grin of his own as he plops down beside Komachi.

"A-anyways! I saw... the student council with you. You're joining them?" She asks, attempting to mask the anxiousness.

He chuckles before answering. "Oh no… I'm pretty sure," The trio look at him expectantly. "they need help with new members. They only came to me after finding out Nakai had other plans this lunch period. I guess this is when they were going to start their ploy."

"So they went with the next guy in line?" Yuka inquires.

"Sort of? I'm almost certain Hakamichi despises me to a degree. No, it's more like they're using me for assistance to get others to join. I figure if I convince someone to join, their focus will shift away from bothering people."

Komachi pipes up. "You have someone in mind?"

"Indeed. Nakai will be the first, and hopefully the only one I'll attempt to recruit. He's practically perfect, just joined the school; probably unaware of their ulterior motive; and he seems like your all-around helpful, friendly guy. With some subliminal….Oh my god… I'm using her idea." The realization sets in.

I gotta give her credit, Shizune knows how to work people.

"Whose?" She asks.

"Hakamichi. She-" Keegan is cut off by the blare of the bell, and the students begin getting up and shuffling their way out of the cafeteria.

As their group gets up to leave, Keegan is stopped by a tug on his sleeve. He turns to see Komachi, appearing troubled.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

"The other girl..."

"Mikado? What about her?

"... umm. This might be weird, what'd she give you?"

A/N: This one was done yesterday but I heard the news about Kobe Bryant and it struck home pretty hard.

R.I.P Kobe and his daughter Gianna, along with the 7 others who perished in that messed up accident.

The start of this year is mad depressing.

Juice Wrld - Legends