Let's get rolling!

Disclaimer: I do not Infinite Stratos.

As the week progresses, Thomas must prepare for the upcoming School Beach Trip!

This can only go so many ways for a young teenage boy.

Thomas quickly rushes to the mall to gather the essentials for a trip: A console, games, movies, and more games! But will Thomas discover that he might need more than moments entertainment? Probably not!

But when Thomas sets out on a shopping trip, he discovers life outside the IS Academy isn't as quiet as he thought it was.

Then...

"Now kids," Said the teacher, "What do you all want to be when you grow up?"

"I wanna be a race-car driver!"

"I'm gonna be an astronaut!"

"I'll drive trains!"

"A hairstylist!"

"What do you want to be when you grow up, Thomas?"

Thomas stood up, smirking confidently as he finally made his answer.

"When I grow up," He belted out proudly, "I wanna be an IS Pilot!"

The entire 5th-grade class fell silent.

And then, it started.

"You? An IS Pilot?"

"Hah! As if!"

"Everybody knows that only girls can be IS Pilots!"

"That was so funny! You can be a comedian when you grow up!"

"What dude would want to be an IS Pilot? It's so girly!"

"Tommy's a girly girl!"

"Lame!"

"Freak!"

"Class, be nice-!"

"He wants to be a girl! Weirdo!"

"That's uncalled for-!"

"Thomas is a girl~! Thomas is a girl~!"

Thomas was hit where it hurt the most. His face fell as he sat back down, ashamed and humiliated. He put his head down on the desk as he covered with his arms, in a failed attempt to block out the mass of jeers, insults, and offenses. He could hear them, and it just got louder and louder. Until the point came when it felt as though the volume had been turned up to a deafening level beyond what anyone had ever experienced.

Thomas closed his eyes, refusing to look around him.

There was only two people in the room who weren't laughing at him. But the noise was so great, he couldn't tell the difference.

It was the end of the school day, and the school year.

The teacher was asking them what they wanted to be when they became adults. Other kids took something reasonable, but ultimately lacking. Thomas, being the dreamer, wanted to aim higher than the rest.

Right now, that shot looked pretty impossible.

The bell rang, the day was over.

The other students all eagerly raced outside, ready to begin their summer vacation. They'd make fun memories, do fun things, and have fun little adventures.

The teacher, Miss Willis, was packing up, ready to enjoy her summer as well. She still felt awful for being unable to get kids to act nice to Thomas.

She then noticed a certain someone.

Thomas hadn't moved an inch after he put his head down. He was on the verge of tears. What hurt the most was that Thomas didn't have friends, everyone else only talked to him when he firmly placed himself in the conversation, and couldn't get away. Sure he was allowed to participate in activities, but none of the other students ever truly saw him as a friend.

What really hit the nail into the coffin was that when Thomas was quiet, it was like he wasn't even there. People forgot about him, and were surprised when he finally spoke, as though he'd just appeared from thin air itself.

She'd have to cheer him up somehow.

Miss Willis walked over to Thomas's desk.

She knew the boy felt miserable. It hurt her to know that no matter what she did, he was always stuck at square one. She could feel her eyes fighting to hold back the swelling tears, she fought hard to keep from breaking down where she stood.

She placed her hand on his shoulder, and he finally looked up to see her.

"Miss Willis?" He asked, his voice trembling, "D-do you think I c-can be an IS Pilot?"

The question became the tipping point for the poor teacher.

"I-I'm...Sorry, Thomas." She broke, "If things were different, you could. But...Maybe..."

Tears were creeping in. Thomas was cursed with the capacity to fully understand what she meant.

"Maybe you should set your sights on something more...Realistic."

She could see the final drops of hope drain from Thomas's face, which hurt her more than anyone thought possible.

"You can't. Only women can pilot IS Units."

Thomas's face froze.

Miss Willis was about to go from whimpering to full-on sobbing.

The little boy's face began to tremble. Suddenly, Thomas bolted out of his seat, snatched his bag, and began to cry and sob as he ran out the classroom door. He didn't look back, nor did he want to. If he did, he'd see his teacher fall to her knees, and cry as well.

His world fell apart. And his teacher, who was the one who wanted him to live happy, was the one to make the final crack in the glass utopia he sat on.

Sadly, that's how it went for Thomas. Every day.

Literally everyone told he couldn't. He wasn't a girl, so he couldn't be an IS Pilot. It felt like the world was against him.

And for once, it really was.

The young boy ran out of the school, trying to hold back his tears until he made it out of the building. He knew too well he couldn't suppress the crying, and settled for breaking down away from prying eyes.

That way, people wouldn't look down upon him more than they already did.

Thomas burst out of the main door, and was too emotional to care about the sudden change in lighting hurting his eyes. He ran and ran until he reached the street-side curb, and stopped.

He threw down his backpack irrationally. He then sat down on the curb, with his feet on the asphalt of the road, and promptly began to let it all out. He sobbed heavily and loudly, not caring if anyone was watching.

The world took his dream, he'd make a goddamned disturbance if he wanted to.

Those bunch of jerks! His classmates, his teacher-all of them! Just a big bunch of jerks! He'd show 'em! He'd show 'em all! He could be an IS Pilot too! He'd become the best IS Pilot there ever was! That'll show 'em!

The cold, unforgiving reality finally hit Thomas, like an ice-cold, frozen slap to the face.

They were right, they were all right. He couldn't be an IS Pilot. Only girls could be IS Pilots. It just wasn't fair! But it was fact.

He cried on and on without an end in sight for several minutes. He continued his sobbing until his eyes simply couldn't produce tears anymore. As he stopped bawling, he simply just sat on the curb with puffy cheeks and bloodshot eyes.

And at long last, she finally came up to him.

"I don't think it's stupid."

Thomas whipped around.

"N-Nana?"

"I think you'd be a cool IS Pilot." Nana Andreas said as she she sat down next to him.

"But only girls can be IS Pilots!" He snapped emotionally.

"I don't care. I think you're awesome!" She supported.

Thomas and Nana used to sit together at the beginning of the year. Since then, seat rotations had separated them. In the time they spent side-by-side, they became relatively close.

Nana still remembered the event that got them to talk with each other.

It was the very first day of school, and Nana was quite shy. Unlike Thomas, who was energetic and boisterous. Nana had noticed that she didn't have nearly enough school supplies, barely enough to get her through the day.

Oddly, Thomas had been paying attention to her.

"Do you have enough stuff?"

"Hm!? Oh, um, yeah!" She said, caught off-guard by Thomas's sudden interest in her.

Thomas stared at her for roughly half-a-minute longer before turning to his own belongings.

Nana finally relaxed her facade, hoping Thomas didn't catch on to her little white lie.

She then saw Thomas pulling out a massive amount of school supplies, and offered all of them to her.

She looked with both trepidation and confusion.

"You don't have enough. Take this!"

"Buh-bu...But-!"

"It's fine! I got a lot more stuff! It won't matter!"

"M-mhm."

She quickly took Thomas's offerings, and added them to her own inventory. The donation was simply massive! With this, she could last a long time!

Thomas was so nice.

And ever since, whenever Nana looked at Thomas after that moment, he became the most handsome and cutest boy she laid eyes upon.

This was her chance! If she showed her support, maybe Thomas would see her as...A special someone.

"You really think I can be an IS Pilot?" He asked.

"Of course! You're the greatest in the world!"

Thomas paused to process her kindness, "Thanks."

Thomas's dad finally came to pick him up. The two parted ways, for the time being. They spent that entire summer vacation as the best of friends. Nana had become less shy around Thomas in that time.

After that, Nana became the prettiest girl Thomas ever saw.

Now...

Thomas woke up at the crack of dawn.

"Weird," He thought, "It's been a while since I dreamed about that day."

It was refreshing. They all laughed at him for wanting to be greater, but he almost ready to bust his gut in laughter of how wrong they were.

The boy got out of his bed, checking his injuries.

As the week went on, his wounds began to heal. His burns eventually went away. Sadly, the sensitivity seemed to kick in whenever he took a shower. Showers that week were painful as the steaming hot water hit his sensitive skin.

The concussion was also a real pain.

During the middle of class, Thomas sometimes found himself stumbling, blacking out, collapsing, and nearly hitting his head and risking further injury. Most of the time it was a combination of the four. Thankfully, he recovered moments before hitting the floor and changed from falling to push-ups.

This method had a 50/50 chance that it actually worked.

Thankfully, that went away as time went on.

His burns didn't inhibit him much, since he confirmed himself he was left-handed.

He yawned, happy that he didn't wake up with an eye-patch or any trace of bandages on his skin. He'd managed to make it all the way to another Sunday! Not much happened that week, since Thomas wasn't allowed to use an IS after making one explode.

A bummer. But Chifuyu had yet to make good on her threat of punishing him.

That left him sleeping in fear. He'd have to be on guard at all times.

He yawned. Time to start his first weekend that hopefully wouldn't put him under more pressure than a submarine, for the second time.

Thomas went to the fridge, and pulled out a bottle of water.

After what happened last time, he made sure to bring some food for himself.

He downed his water bottle within a matter of minutes, maybe seconds. He was quite thirsty that morning. Thomas wondered what to do that morning. He wasn't able to use an IS, Ichika was still down and out-!

A glance at Ichika's bed took Thomas's interest.

Why was there another shape other than Ichika? Did he sneak a girl in while Thomas was asleep? Was Ichika a deadbeat?

A quick check revealed it was none other than Laura. Normally, Thomas would be making a very scenic reaction, but he was simply too tired to care in the morning.

Eh, doesn't matter.

Within a week, Thomas had quickly took notice of how popular with the girls Ichika was. Thomas had a fair share of his own followers, to be sure. But when it came down to it, Ichika seemed unaware of how many girls were trying to push a romance with him.

He was like God's living chastity belt. No way he could do it without something controlling him.

Thomas began to think of what he should do today.

Gaming? Visiting dad? Make the call?

Thomas pulled out his phone. With a couple taps, he was at the call button for one Nana Andreas. His heart began to race. Should he do it? What if she was just waking up? He'd forgotten the difference in time zones, and couldn't decide to press call or not.

After a minute of debating with himself, he chickened out and turned off the phone.

He just wasn't ready.

He then noticed he missed a few calls from Nana. When would Nana have the time to call him?

Sadly, she didn't leave any messages. Whatever was going on, Thomas was going to either wait for her to call again, or call her himself. That would give him a heart attack.

That settled it, Thomas would have to busy himself. He didn't want to hurt Nana's feelings, but he would probably pass out from his heart racing so much. Thomas changed into casual clothes, and set about for the day.

This time, he wore a generic long sleeve and green cargo shorts.

He set out the door, only to find Houki in her Kendo uniform.

"Is Ichika still asleep?" She asked.

"Yeah, go on in."

It was only less than a minute later Thomas could hear Ichika screaming like a rooster being strangled. Oddly perfectly timed in the day for a joke like that.

The day had begun.

Thomas learned quickly to always be wary when in the halls. He risked getting held up by mobs of girls, all of them wanting him, or very specific parts of him. He also learned to stay on topic, even if no-one else was. This usually made him one of the first people to finish classwork.

These tips also helped him to discover shortcuts he could take to point A to point B and not be late. Mostly.

Wait. Wasn't there a school trip coming up soon?

During his time in American public schools, the field trips usually slowed down during middle school, and mostly ceased in high school. Sure there were still trips, but none that were so school-wide as the ones from earlier years.

Where were they going again?

Wasn't summer vacation coming up?

Oh right! They were going to the beach!

Wait. They were going to the beach...

The beach...

That meant...

Thomas shook the naughty thought from his mind.

But that meant bikinis and girls in very...Revealing outfits. Sure, what teenage boy wouldn't want a literal beach-full of girls in swimsuits?

But Nana was the only one for Thomas! He'd sully his heart for her if things went down.

He'd have to seriously practice chastity during this trip.

That settled it: Thomas would go shopping in preparation for the school trip.

Thomas made the train trip back to the mainland.

He had to think of things to buy on this trip. He'd need something to distract him from...Things. He'd also need something to pass the time, and maybe a new pair of swim trunks.

The shopping mall complex should have what he needed.

All he had to do now was not get lost.

For Thomas, getting lost was to be expected 99% of the time.

Among his long list of problems, Thomas had earned many of the strangest but also the funniest stories one could have. Such as, the time he took a foam dart gun to the groin...

...Multiple times. And many, many more times after that.

Ever since, Thomas had always worn a jockstrap with a protective cup, to reduce risk of injuries to...His special place. So far, he'd managed to survive attacks to that area that normally would put him on the ground.

He might just be able to have kids someday.

This was getting off track. Focus, Thomas! Shopping trip! Plain and simple!

Thomas looked around. What could he use on this trip?

Perhaps he and Ichika could do some gaming...

A spare gaming console!

He'd been waiting for the chance and the excuse to buy some new games.

Might as well add some games he could get in Japan to his collection. Thomas raced to the nearest arcade store, and stocked up on both a new, compact console, some more gaming controllers, and some new games.

Entertainment checked off, what next?

He needed a new pair of swim trunks.

Thomas was popular in school for his contribution to the swim team. He was not only one of-if not the-fastest members on the team, and in the league. A small problem being that all he had in terms of wear was a pair of swim jammers.

Every time he got out of the water, they usually clung to his body and exposed certain areas that weren't meant to be out in public. He quickly went to go buy a new pair of decent and baggy swim trunks. And the problem was solved.

Currently, that was all he could think of. Anything probably would be on impulse buy.

That's when Thomas saw Ichika and Charlotte walking in his general direction...

...While holding hands.

"Damn, Ichika." Thought Thomas, "You're a two-timer? What have you been up to?"

"Oh! Hey Thomas!" Called Ichika.

"Morning Ichika." Thomas said back.

"Doing some shopping for the school trip too?"

"Yeah. You two on a date or somethin'?"

"Wait-what!? What gave you that idea!?"

"R-Right! Why would we ever do something like that?"

Thomas then noticed Charlotte's face sink to dread and despair.

Ouch.

"Relax," Said Thomas, "I'm just messin' with ya."

The trio then heard someone shout, "Help! Shoplifter!"

The supposed "shoplifter" was currently running in their general direction.

"Amateur." Thomas muttered under his breath.

The thief ran right past Ichika, Charlotte, and Thomas. For a moment however, it seemed as though Thomas and the shoplifter had made eye contact with one another. Instantly, Thomas gave chase.

"Wait up!" Said Ichika, letting go of Charlotte's hand and following, Charlotte quickly caught up with Ichika. However, neither were able to catch up with Thomas, nor the thief. Thomas, however, was easily able to not only catch up to the thief, but pass him.

He ran at high speed, almost hitting his top. He was saving his full sprint for in case his first attempt failed.

Thomas ran ahead of the thief, and then turned around. He stuck out his arm, and ran at full-speed for the thief.

Boom! Thomas clotheslined the shoplifter with a devastating left hook.

Mall Security came on the scene, and quickly detained the shoplifter. Thomas was left on a bench to catch his breath while nursing his arm, a wheezing could be heard as he inhaled and exhaled. Ichika and Charlotte finally caught up with him.

Wow, the left hook really did a number on him.

"Wow! You got him quick!" Observed Ichika.

"He's so basic. I had five different ways of stopping 'em when he went past us."

"Really?"

"Run up the stairs and land on him, trip him, take a blunt object and clock hi-!"

"Okay okay! I'll take your word for it!" Pleaded Ichika. Ichika then zoned out and looked elsewhere. Both Charlotte and Thomas were confused. Ichika snapped back to reality as he said, "Oh, sorry! I just remembered, there's something I need to do!" The boy then ran off.

"What's with him?" Pondered Thomas.

"U-Um..." Babbled Charlotte, "S-Since you're Ichika's roommate-and childhood friend-I was wondering..."

"Hm?"

"How do I...Get him to...to..."

Thomas quickly picked up on her question.

"Alright. I get it. I do."

"Really?"

"But I gotta warn you; It's gonna be unbelievably hard to get him."

"Wha!?"

"He's so dense, you could hit his skull with Mt. Everest and it wouldn't even get scuffed!"

"You mean-!"

"He's a living chastity belt, are you still willing to try?"

"Y-Yes!"

Thomas gave Charlotte a look of pride.

"Well then," He said, "You got guts. Now you just need to figure it out. My advice? Be subtle at first, but eventually get a little bolder. And if that doesn't work...Slap his face and tell it to him straight. If that doesn't work, nothing will. This method still has a big margin for error, you might not get him, you might. It's all depending on just how much of an idiot he is."

"I see! Merci beaucoup!"

"You can thank me by getting the dummy to notice you."

"Mhm!"

Charlotte then went about to conduct her personal business.

It wouldn't be long before the beach trip was upon them.

"Look at him!" A very joyous woman's voice exclaimed.

"He's soo cuute!" Said another.

"I...I can't believe I'm a father now..." Said a man's voice, as though he was about to cry.

"What's his name?"

A noticeable pause filled the room.

"Thomas." Said the first woman's voice.

Thomas opened his eyes to see the land of the living for the very first time.

Wow, the land of the living was very bright.

The infant's eyes adjusted to the stinging light, only to see her.

She had deep, crimson eyes. Pale skin, as though it was untouched by the sun. Long, snow-white hair.

"Look! He's looking at me! He knows I'm his Mama!"

Ma...Ma?

She gave a warm and loving look as she made eye contact with Thomas.

Mama-!?

Thomas jolted awake.

The young boy found himself still on the bench in the mall. He must've fallen asleep.

"What...What was that?" He thought to himself.

Who was that woman? Was she really his mother? Why was he thinking about this now? Of all times?

Thomas checked his watch, he'd been sleeping in an upright sit for a full hour. He quickly rubbed his eyes and then continued his shopping trip. His arm stopped aching, his breathing didn't sound like a dying vacuum, and he didn't get an adrenaline rush.

So far, so good.

Thomas checked his watch, it was 3:00 PM. He had the time to get more shopping done.

Thomas quickly went to go buy snacks for the trip. It probably wasn't necessary, but it would still feel relaxing to stock up just in case. One of the reasons he liked shopping was because he was alone with his thoughts.

Any downsides to shopping? He was sensitive to loud sounds.

Back as a freshman in American high school, Thomas found time to research his diagnosed mental ailment.

He had been diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome. That meant he had sensitivity to noises, compulsive and impulsive behavior, and ended up repeating things he did or said persistently.

It'd been a hassle, but he pulled through it all the years before. He'd forced himself through thick and thin for friends he'd made during freshman year. He finally had multiple friends, he'd do anything if it meant he could stay with them.

So far, it had only been about a full week in the IS Academy, and his sanity had been stretched beyond that of the normal stress-test. Hefty amounts of homework, unnecessary attention, and draining classwork all took their toll upon Thomas.

The question being why he was whining about it now, when he should be shopping for a beach trip.

Thomas took a look at his wallet, it was starting to empty out.

That settled it, he was finished shopping. Besides, he got pretty much everything he needed anyway.

If he recalled, they still had sunscreen back home, some used goggles, and other things.

And that was that!

Thomas then left the mall to head back to the house, ready to unpack his haul and unwind.

However, throughout the trip, he felt he was being watched.

Sure, every time he made a look around, there was no-one. He even took subtle glances, which yielded nothing as well.

Whoever was watching him was adequate at their job.

Thomas hurried down the sidewalk, wanting to get home before anything had the chance to happen. However, in his imperative, he didn't notice a pair of crimson eyes tracking him as he moved.

It was only a matter of time.

A/N: Not much happened this chapter, and I'm fine with that.

I just wanted to break from all the sudden IS matches. Take the pacing a little bit slower, it's relaxing, a little.

After doing some thinking, I decided to add in a few more male OCs. Not too many, only a few.

However, next chapter, Thomas gets his own IS Unit! Who knows? He might even pilot another certain IS Unit...

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