Chapter 25: Doji, Icho Setoka
The first thing Icho did once gaining the seat of power was to make sure the seat was comfortable. Second thing was, of course, the Doji Problem. For this reason, she put her premium office chair and her desk right in front of the rear entrance of the School Council Room. Nobody else was in this room. The floor was cleaned until it shines, and a small piece of carpet placed in front of the door. She called her assistant to let Doji in.
The door slid open and upon taking the first step Doji landed flat on her face. Her phone was thrown to the window opposite of the door, making a loud crashing sound.
"Wait, seriously?" Icho looked at the person who opened the door, who was similarly surprised.
"I'm fine, I'm fine!" Doji said, standing up. "You called me, Icho?"
"Yes. I'm here to talk to you about the Doji Problem."
Doji slightly smiled. "There's a problem named after me, huh?"
"Yep. Also called 'Super Clumsy Problem', your 'quirk' is the most dangerous out of all Itan students. Is it true that you hospitalised three seniors on your first day?"
"Yes," Doji said. "I slip and threw my phone at a bucket of water, which ended up splashing a cat, who ran towards the garden, causing the janitor to throw a wrench at it, but only to miss and have it hit a student's foot, who jumped backwar-"
"No need for details, Doji. As a result, the previous President put you in your own booth, correct?"
"Yes. It was a plastic casing, measuring 1.5 meters in depth and width, 2.7 meters in height, covering me and my desk, and also I was to sit at the very corner of the class room, with nothing on the floor for 1.5 meters around me." Doji's face paled as she recounted her treatment. "The President called me a 'Euclid', I believe. It meant there is always a Student Council Person on standby to watch over me."
"Did you make any friends?"
"The President forbade me from talking to anyone, so no," Doji said.
"And do you understand why you get this treatment?"
Doji started reciting the reason. "In Itan we seek only the most unique students, but even for special characters and personalities, endangering other students is not allowed. As such, for everybody's safety, I must submit to this...special containment procedure."
"So I guess I don't have to explain any further. The previous President had left me a document detailing the Doji Problem and its solution," Icho said, placing a thick folder on top of her desk.
Doji nodded, her eyes an emotionless shade of black. "For Itan's sake."
"FORGET ALL OF THAT!" Sitting on her office chair, with her legs raised, she spun the chair to kick the folder off the table, leaving sheets of paper scattering about in the air. Doji tried to take one but she slipped. "The old President is dead, long live the new President: Me! Rejoice, Doji! For you shall live normally among your peers! No more plastic booths, no more sitting in the corner, no more restrictions! Make all the friends and enemies you like!"
Doji looked aghast. "B-but isn't it dangerous to others?"
"What's life with no danger? What's high school life with no danger? Bland and blah! Blaaaah!" Icho stood up. "My name is Icho Setoka! And my desire is for an Impressive Itan! An Incredible Itan! And you, Doji, will lead me to it."
"M-me?"
"Someone who trips and slips and blunders every step of the way, and yet walked this far? That's very Impressive and Incredible. How many times have you lost to gravity, Doji?"
"Five thousand, six hundred, and twenty fi-"
"Zero! For you always stood back up again! Look at me, Doji! Do you see the sparks in my beautiful eyes? That's from being impressed. Being impressed by you."
Colour returned to Doji's eyes. "R-really? Me?"
"And that's why I'm giving you full freedom, as free as the next student. This is also an official apology." Icho lowered her head. "First year is supposed to be your freest, but we've made you spent it caged and lonely. I'm sorry."
Doji choked. "T-thank you, President! I, I'll try my best to not harm anyone!" She went to the window and picked up her phone before leaving.
[break]
"And that act of kindness is why, even in the famously tight-knit 2-1, Doji still voted for me," Icho said.
"She looked so proud after the vote, if I recall," Komi said. "She really trusts you."
"And that's why, Komi, as your friend, I want to borrow 500 yen."
Komi narrowed her eyes.
[break]
"I can tell you're lying," Komi said. "Just like how I can tell Icho was lying with her Doji story, I can tell you're not telling the truth, Tadano."
Tadano sighed. "You got me, Komi. You read me like an open book. Yes, that 'G' wasn't my first name translated into English, 'Guyguy'."
"You're in a secret group. In this group, you're called 'G'. What did you do in this group?"
Tadano rubbed his hair, breaking the polygonal shape. "Please don't hate me."
"Never," Komi said.
"I'm gonna tell a story about Chiarai and Tadano Hitomi. No, not my sister."