Chapter 2

There is only one person I have met who I truly believe is a nice person. A nice person, but with a loose tongue. His name is Kakeru Tobe. One of the few people I can consider a close acquaintance, maybe even a friend under certain circumstances. He looked exactly the same as high school. Maybe a little more mature, but his carefree attitude stands strong.

As soon as I saw him, only one thought came to my mind.

It's over.

"Ehh? Is that you Hikitani-kun? No way?! And Ka… Kawa… Kawasaki! Right? No way?! You guys going out?"

I stay quiet for a few seconds. At first, the surprise of seeing this guy caught me off guard, but it looks like he's just going off of instinct. He was never the brightest…

Come on Hachiman! Think! Think of something convincing! Oh! He doubted that it was me at first, right! I'll just pass myself as someone else then!

"Eh? But wait, what about Yu…"

Before he could finish, and solidify his thoughts, I abruptly cut him off.

"I'm sorry. I think you have the wrong person. I don't know a 'Hikitani'. My name is…"

Crap! I need a convincing alias… I look over to Saki and it hits me. Her hair in a ponytail and her loose shirt reminds me of a certain light novel character.

"… Ayanokoji Kiyotaka." I give Saki a sidelong glance, hoping she catches the clue in time. With a look of realization, she glances back at me and gives me a nod.

"Huh?" With visible confusion, Tobe stares at me dumbfoundedly. "There's no way… You look just like Hikitani…" He then looks at Saki for confirmation. "You're Kawasaki, right?"

"Sorry, Wrong person too. My name is Karuizawa Kei…"

Both being loners, Both Saki and I shared similar interests. Because of that, I decided to share some of my favorite light novels with Saki in the hopes she would share the same hobby. Good thing I did.

The look of shock and confusion on Tobe's face made me feel bad. It hasn't been that long since we last saw each other, only a few months. Even so, this ruse seems to be enough to buy us some time to get out of here.

"No… way… What high school did you go to?" It seems he doesn't want to believe his ears. Still, the seeds of doubt have been sown. But I can't just say 'Advanced Nurturing High School'.

"Kamiyama High School." With confidence, I say the name of a school from another of my favorite light novels.

"Hmm… never heard of it… Is it out of the area?"

"Not surprising, it's really far away. I'm here for college. Sorry, but being under scrutiny like this is a little uncomfortable…" I have to cut this short before he gets too suspicious.

"Ah! My bad! My bad! It's just you look so much like Hikitani-kun, I just can't believe it. Well, I guess Hikitani was a bit gloomier than you are. You should smile a bit, Kiyotaka-kun! You got your girlfriend at your side, ya'know!"

I was plenty happy until you showed up. Well, I guess he at least said I looked gloomier in the past…

"Right… I'll keep that in mind…"

"Well, I'll see ya around then Kiyotaka-kun. We should hang out sometime!" With a wave, he, finally, takes his leave.

"Sure… Sometime…" I give an awkward wave back so as to not leave him hanging.

Wait! Did he get my fake name right?! Why is it that he says my fake name right, but can't say my real name! Not even when talking to a stranger!

"Well, he sure hasn't changed much, has he?"

"I guess not. Though, I never spoke to him in high school. I'm surprised he even knew my name."

"Well, he is a nice guy at heart. He probably remembered everyone's name to some extent… Though he still gets mine completely wrong…"

With a wry smile, I urge Saki on. She tightens her grip on my hand as we make our way to the car.

" "We're home!" "

"Welcome back!"

It was Miyu who greeted us back while lying on the couch. She was on her phone as usual.

"Don't ya get tired looking at your phone all day? You're gonna go blind one of these days."

"Hah?" Miyu tilted her phone down a bit and lifted her head up to look at Saki.

"Hah?" Saki was now fully glaring at Miyu. Well, I guess they get along in their own way. They often bicker in this way, not much different than high school.

Before I get caught up in their squabble, I go look for Yukino and Yui in their room. They have the first room to the right in the corridor.

I open the door only to find the most heavenly scene on planet earth.

Yukino had one leg placed firmly on the floor at the edge of the bed. She had her opposite leg bent right on the edge of the mattress. She only had a pair of black panties and bra along with black tights on. Her hands were placed firmly on Yui's shoulders, pushing her against the bed.

Underneath her was a flustered Yui, also only wearing panties and a bra, except hers were light pink. It looked like Yukino had pinned Yui underneath her.

I had no words or any kind of explanation as to what was going on. I'm only privy to this kind of sight during 'special' nights.

Noticing the sound of the door, both girls turned to see who had entered.

"Ah…"

"Eh…"

Yukino's flawless white skin contrasted beautifully with the deep crimson blush on her face. If Yukino usually reminded me of the moon, flawless and beautiful, right now, her red face was reminiscent of a rare blood moon.

Yui looked like an innocent girl who was being taken advantage of.

Faster than I have ever moved before, I take out my phone and snap a picture. It was moments like this that had to be recorded, or else I would never believe it actually happened.

Suddenly, I could physically feel the temperature of the room drop. Had there been a thermometer, I am 100% certain the drop in temperature would have been visible.

Yukino got up from her position, straightened up her posture, suppressed the agitation in her face, and extended her hand towards me.

"Hachi, may I procure your phone for a minute. I need to confirm something." I was surprised she could speak so confidently, not a vibration in her voice. Clear and curt.

"You know I can't do that."

My body started to shiver from the cold, piercing gaze she gave me.

"May I ask why?"

"You know better than anyone what kind of person I am. I don't think I need to explain, but if you insist. First, it is my duty as a man to capture such rare happenings for documentation. An event such as this may never again have the chance to be recorded. You, better than anyone, know this. If you're worried about this picture being viewed by someone other than me, rest assured, I can, and will take the necessary precautions to protect this picture with my life. If anyone or thing were to view this piece of modern art, I will do everything in my power to obliterate them from the face of this earth. Besides, I don't understand why you're so embarrassed. I've seen both of you in much less than now. And in situations very similar to now, if I may add."

Yukino held her head down, her bangs over her face, so I couldn't tell what kind of face she was making, but considering the silence, my answer won me the argument.

I hold my head up high. Holy crap, I did it! I won against her! Where are the cameras? Someone take a picture! Oh, wait. I already did…

Slowly, she lowered her hand but soon brought it up to her forehead as if holding back a headache, the same pose I have come to expect and love. "Why are you only motivated when it comes to things like this… Fine, you can keep the picture but, as you said, make sure no one else sees it. Also, our anniversary date has to be unforgettable."

"Damn, that's a tall order, but if it means that I can keep this picture, I would do anything."

"Well, Yukinon, you can't blame him when he walked in on us like that, hehe… But Hikki, don't you want to know why we were like that…" I saw Yui put on an uncharacteristically devious smile. Yukino's face started to grow even redder than before. "She was so excited about your 'anniversary' she wanted to start prac…"

In a flash, Yukino had already rushed to put a hand over Yui's mouth, not letting her continue what she was saying.

"? Right, well, enough messing around. We need to hurry or we are gonna be late."

"All right. We'll be ready in 10 minutes."

I left them to finish changing and went to ask Miyu if she was ready. As I walked out of the room, I looked towards the living room where I saw Saki on the single-seat sofa with her head tilted back. She had her eyes closed and was breathing softly. She must have dozed off. She gets up really early to go get Keika and her other siblings ready. Without making much noise I head back down the corridor to look for Miyu.

Miyu's and Saki's room is the second door after Yukino's and Yui's room. In between the rooms is a full bathroom.

I open the door to her room and see Miyu half-dressed. She was wearing a light blue skirt that had yet to be zipped shut. Hearing the door open, she turned to see who it was.

"Hikio, come help me with this." She was struggling to put on her bra. It seemed it was a little tight. I go over and take the straps to hook together. I tried to hook them first without any force but saw that it was indeed too tight for her.

Looks like she grew a bit, huh. Yukino's gonna be pissed…

I pull both straps a little more forcefully and eventually hook them together.

"Looks like I'm gonna need a new size, huh."

"Don't you girls do your growing when you're younger? Why are you growing more now?"

"Rude much… I'm not some old lady ya'know. Well, everybody's different, I guess. Hmm…" She then put her finger to her cheek as if considering something important. "Maybe I'm pregnant?"

"Eh?" I was speechless. She just said something really scary so nonchalantly. I look at her face only to see no particular emotion at first. Soon a faint blush appeared on her cheeks and a mesmerizingly, beautiful smile graced her lips. She turned to look at me, maybe to gauge my reaction.

Maybe scary was a bad way to describe it, but seeing that we are still in our first year of college, it probably wouldn't be a good idea. Miyu and Saki, specifically, have strong motherly tendencies, ever since high school. Even so, it is still too early to think about kids. I should probably have some kind of talk with the girls about the future soon.

"What kind of reaction is that? It was a joke, well half of it at least. If you're so scared by the thought you should probably start using condoms more often, you've been getting lazy lately."

"Sorry, it's not like I'm scared by the idea, it's just I feel it's too early for that, y'know. But…" I grabbed her hand to reassure her. "I do want that kind of future with you, with all of you. That is if you all will have me."

"I don't know about the others, but I chose you a long time ago. It was a bumpy road, but I'm here with you now."

With no other words needed I pulled her in for a kiss. Staying true to my name for her, The Fire Queen of Sobu High, her lips were burning to the touch, but filled me with a comfortable warmth.

As our lips separated, she, again, said something scary. "But, what if I actually was pregnant?"

Damn this girl…

"Well, I take responsibility. That much should be obvious. Or do you have that little faith in me?"

"Hmm… Well, I just wanted to check!"

I sighed and turned around to leave the room. On my way to the door, I mumble under my breath so she doesn't hear. "Well, life never seems to go the way I expect…"

As I reach the door I tell her to hurry and change. "Don't want to be late, get a move on, Miyu."

The time is 9:25, and we are all piling into my car. We usually carpool together to save on gas. That stuff ain't cheap.

It's a spacious SUV, so the five of us fit comfortably. Yukino is the only other person that can drive. My parents were able to buy my car when I graduated from high school. I guess that's why they worked so many hours, though my mom got promoted so she was able to work less than my dad. My dad just recently got promoted not too long ago.

Traffic is really heavy around the university. I decided it best to drop Yukino, Yui, and Saki off first. The three have a lot of classes in common. Yukino is taking business, political science, and philosophy classes. She is aiming for law school in the future. As someone who doesn't like to lose, you couldn't find a better fit.

Yui is taking business-related classes. She wants to try her hand at an arts degree in business. She is also taking classes like sociology and philosophy. Someone like Yui, who is good at reading the mood and understanding groups of people, would thrive in this field.

Saki wants to follow a career in fashion design. It was clear in high school that she had a talent for design. She even helped put together costumes for us many times. She at the very least wanted to explore the idea, but it seems she likes the idea more and more as time goes on.

After dropping them off on their side of the campus, I drive to the other side of campus. Miyu and I are also taking similar classes.

Miyu wants to be an elementary school teacher. She wanted a career where she could care for others. This was the obvious choice, and it seems she likes the idea of working with young kids.

I still have not decided what I want to do. For the time being, I decided to take a few general classes until I can decide what I want to do as a career. Unfortunately, 'House Husband' just doesn't cut it for the girls. I just can't get things to go the way I want.

Before I drop off the other three, we decided to meet up for lunch since today is one of the few days we all share a similar schedule. I park the car and we head out to our first class.

University Food Court

2:10 PM

Walking through the buildings lining the campus walkways, Miyu and I made our way through the mob of people.

The path to the food court is always full of people. Since you didn't have to be a student or faculty member to eat at university food courts, the area is always inflated. It's a bother to push our way through, but Miyu likes to take advantage of the people to hold my hand so we don't get separated.

Well, it's not like I'm against it though.

Once we make it to an open area, we look around for the group of three. Miyu was the first to spot them. They were at a table near a popular coffee shop on campus. The table was under a tree, on a patch of grass. As we walked over I could see Yui and Saki half-standing from their seats with worried looks on their faces. Yukino was standing in front of the table.

It looked like she was arguing with another group of people, specifically the de facto leader of said group. As we got closer, I started to hear their conversation.

"Sorry, but, as I have said before, we will not move. You have yet to provide a convincing enough reason for us to move. Though, even if you could, we would still choose to not move, as we are not required to."

"Like I said before, we have more people in our group! This place is full and there isn't another spot big enough for us to sit down! Your group of three can just take the single seats over there!"

"Did you not listen to anything I said." Classic Yukino, she holds her hand up to her forehead as if holding back a headache. "The rest of our party is on their way. Even so, you have no right to demand we move. Unless there is a university policy I am not aware of? Haahh… Even after all this time, you haven't changed at all…"

"You…! Why are you always…!"

I could see the frustration on the girl's face. Her shoulders and arms were visibly shaking. It was then, one of my 108 Hachiman skills activated, [Human Observation]. I saw the coffee in her hand shift. Before she was holding the coffee by the lid, but she shifted the cup to hold it from the side. I also saw her give the cup a small squeeze, popping the lid just slightly.

She wouldn't!

With urgency, I called out to Miyu, who, luckily, was already on her phone. "Miyu! Pull up your camera and turn on the video! Now!"

"Wha… O-Ok!"

It was a good thing the girl seemed to be hesitating. It gave me time to start sprinting towards the group. We weren't too far from the group. Only a few meters. Easily reachable within a few strides. I quickly took the jacket I was wearing off. Just as I was reaching the spot where the two girls were, I saw the mystery girl do the exact thing I thought she would, but, due to my Hachiman skills, I made it in time.

I wrap my jacket around the unsuspecting Yukino and pull her into my chest. I wrap my arms protectively around her.

"Hikio!" "Hikki!" "Hachiman!"

Damn, that's flipping HOT! Who the hell gets scalding hot coffee in the middle of summer!

The mystery girl had thrown the contents of her cup straight at Yukino. She was about 2 meters away from Yukino. Was she stupid? Scalding hot coffee straight to the face, I couldn't even imagine what kind of pain that would bring. Well, I do now.

The coffee landed right on the back of my head and neck and was running down my back and the front of my face. Looks like the splash didn't hit the other girls at the table.

"FFFFUUUU…! That's hot!" I released all the air in my lungs in an attempt to not yell in pain. "You know, that stubborn attitude of yours is a real pain sometimes. Good thing I made it in time…"

Yukino started to struggle free from my hold and the jacket I had wrapped around her. She looked confused at first, but then a drop from the now lukewarm coffee hit her cheek.

"Why… Wha… Whe…" Trying my best not to worry her, I smiled at her, though I could tell my face was wincing from the pain of the burn.

"Yui! Saki! Get some cool water and towels from the coffee shop! Hurry!"

"R-Right!" "O-On it!"

Looks like Miyu acted right away. Well, she was always the one to act first in a crisis.

I looked at Yukino to make sure she was alright. "Hey, Yukino, are you alright?"

"Am I alright?! You're the one who is hurt right now!" I could see tears taking shape at the corner of her eyes "Why do you always do this?!"

"Heh. Remember my answer from our ski trip? The alternative was something I just couldn't 'bear'. If you got hurt, well, let's just say I'm not averse to making a bigger scene in the middle of all these people."

"This is no time for jokes!" In a panic, Yukino took off the jacket wrapped around her and started to frantically pat dry the coffee dripping from my head and shoulders. She started to get up, but lost her balance and fell forward. The sudden shock must have left her weak in the knees. I caught her before she got too close to my coffee-drenched clothes.

"Oww, oww!" "Hey, you ass-hole! You can't just push people like that!"

The coffee girl was complaining in pain, but one of the guys in her group actually had the gall to say something like that, I was impressed. Right before I covered Yukino I had 'accidentally' run into the girl who had thrown the coffee. The girl had her back to me. I ran straight for Yukino, but she happened to be in the way.

I pushed her with my body but made it look like an accident as I tried to cover Yukino. If I had taken the time to go around her, I would have been too late. The distance between the two helped, but the fact that I even made it in time was a miracle. If I didn't know any better, I would have thought I had awakened some kind of superpower.

I was suddenly grabbed by my shirt and pulled up. In front of me was a guy who was in the coffee girls group. The action caused the scar on my forehead to slightly throb with memories from the past.

"Who do you think you are? Apol…"

Before I let this familiar scene play out, I decided to stop it. I brushed his hand away from the grip he had on my shirt. "And who was the one who started this mess? Back off, before this goes any further." I put my dead fish eyes to good use. I squint my eyes and tilt my head up as if I was looking down on the guy. My hair, wet from the coffee, pulled my bangs down adding to my already fierce look. I was using the pain I was feeling to make my expression seem more threatening, though I actually was as angry as I seemed. The coffee running down my face was a plus.

After giving him a good glare I turn back to help Yukino up from her position. She was still on her knees.

Since my skill was still active, I could see the guy in my periphery grit his teeth and clench his fist. He was likely pissed that I had brushed him off and ignored his intended threat. I also noticed Saki and Yui coming back with water and towels.

"Oi! Don't turn your back to me!" With clenched teeth, the guy then proceeded to slam his hand on my right shoulder. All this while, I was trying my best to hold back the pain I was feeling, but the sudden slap to the affected area spiked my pain. The coffee was seriously burning my skin. I was likely red all over. The coffee had mostly landed on my right side.

More than that, my anger had finally boiled over. At that moment I remembered a certain judo senpai from back in high school. My anger and memories take over, and so I follow my instincts. I turned around and tightly grabbed his arm. Using my body strength, I pull the guy close and shoulder toss him over me. Upon his descent, I used even more strength to slam him into the ground.

I was different than in high school. I have been working out consistently since my third year, so I was quite fit. Had I slammed him straight into the concrete, it would have been bad, but the tree we were under had a flower bed under it as well. I slammed him right into the dirt. I feel bad for the flowers though.

I gave the other guys in coffee girls group a menacing stare to discourage any more movement.

The action of throwing the guy over me and then slamming him into the ground took quite a bit of effort. I was still struggling with the pain of the burns, and the extra movement irritated my skin. On top of that my scar seemed to be throbbing more and more. I grabbed the area on my forehead in pain as memories I didn't want to remember came back to me.

"Hachiman, that's enough. Sit down so we can cool the burn." "Yea, we'll go to the infirmary after we cool it down a little."

Saki gently grabbed me by my left arm and pulled me to the table, all the while pulling me from my memories. Saki first poured water over my head and back. Then Yui placed towels soaked in cool water on the affected areas.

At that moment, nothing felt so good. The cool water soothed the burns, to the point where I could only feel a slight itch.

Though, the subsiding pain only made room for the throbbing that only seemed to get stronger. The pain, no longer from the burns, only became more evident on my face as I started to roughly massage the area of my scar hoping to soothe the throbbing, to no avail. I clenched my free hand so hard my knuckles turned white. I closed my eyes only to be swallowed by the darkness, as well as a growing pain in my knuckles as if they too remember the past.

"Hey, you're ok now." "We're right here with you."

Likely having seen through the problem, two concerned, but affectionate voices entered both my ears. A soft, but hot hand gently gripped my fist. Slowly, my hand loosened until the other was able to intertwine its fingers with mine. Feeling a tight squeeze, I looked towards the owner. With tears pooling in the corner of her glistening, emerald eyes, she looked into mine, pulling me out from the past, lifting me up to the present.

I also feel a tender, but cold hand place itself over the one on my forehead. It pulled it down and twisted itself with my fingers, firmly and securely holding onto my hand. It relaxes in the cool embrace. Her deep, sapphire orbs had a sharp, firm look, but, contradictingly, I could only find comfort in them as they cut away at my pain.

"And we're stayin' here, got it." "Wherever you and the others are, I'll be right there, too"

Two pairs of hands placed themselves on both of my shoulders and gripped them tightly as if fearing I might disappear.

I looked to my right and saw crystalline, amethyst-colored eyes giving me an unshakable stare. Her body language and facial expression were enough to convey all the silent words she wanted to say.

To my left was a pair of glassy, ruby-colored eyes conveying to me that I had people who would always be there no matter the situation. That she would always be there. Though, I could also see the greedy glint in her eyes telling me that I had no choice in the matter anyway.

I closed my eyes and the topaz-colored eyes of my sly kouhai came to mind. It might be a good thing she isn't here. As reckless as she is, she probably would have gotten physical with coffee girl.

I take a deep breath, and slowly the throbbing subsides. "Haahh… Sorry, but could you keep the cool water coming. My skin is starting to sting again. Miyu, did you get most of that. We're probably gonna need it. Oh, Yukino, could you give Iroha a call? Better we tell her now than she finds out later.

"R-right!" "O-ok!" "Uhh, I got up til you tossed that idiot." "Yes, I will call her in a moment."

"… Thank you…" I respond to them with a gentle smile.

"Woah. What's going on here? Eh? Kiyotaka-kun, that you? What happened to you?! You ok?"

Crap! Another troublesome one makes an appearance, again. And I was finally starting to calm down.

"Oh, Tobe. What's up? You know, just cooling down. It's a hot day today. No pun intended."

At the joke, all four girls pinch various parts of my body.

"Ow, oww. I'm injured, or did you already forget." Tough crowd, I think that was pretty funny.

"Hikki, try to be a little more serious in these situations."

"Hai, Hai…"

"Eh? Yui? Yumiko? Yukinoshita too? What's going on."

"Sorry Tobe, but can I explain later. As you can see, I'm not in the best of conditions right now."

"Uh, yea. No prob. Anything I can do to help, Kiyotaka-kun." Hearing what Tobe called me, the other three girls gave me a dubious stare.

This guy might be trouble, but he really is a nice guy. "Uh, actually yea. You don't happen to know that guy's name do you?" Since Tobe has always been a popular guy, I hoped he could help me identify coffee girls' accomplices.

"Hmm. EH?! Yea! That's Shimizu-kun. He's in the soccer club with me. What in the heck happened, why's he on the ground?"

"Sorry, I'll have to explain later. Sorry for injuring your club mate, though."

"Ugh! Dang, I'm so confused. I'm gonna go call the coach to let him know something happened. I can assume he was in the wrong, right? He's been kinda causing us trouble lately."

"Yea, you're right there."

With a nod, Tobe went to make his call.

"Hikko, we should get going to the campus infirmary to get some burn ointment."

"Yea, your right. Water can only do so much."

I look to my right and see Yukino with her head down. She had been silent the whole time. "Hey, Yukino, I'm fine alright. Don't worry about it."

"Yes, but… It's my fault. If I had just backed down, none of this would have happened… Now you're hurt. You also had to go through that again."

I saw a single tear run down her face. Yukino was never one to express her feelings, especially in public. She must have been feeling horrible right now. "Hey, stop that. You can be stubborn and a trouble maker sometimes, but it's fine. I'll always be there to bail you out. I'm not gonna lie, these burns hurt, but they are nothing compared to the pain I would have felt if you had gotten hurt." I held her hand to get her attention. I put on a smile to reassure her. "This is nothing."

She smiled back at me and, while still holding onto my hand, pulled me up. "Let's get you to the clinic."

The five of us started walking away when suddenly Yukino turned around. I turned my head to look at where she was looking. She was glaring at the coffee girl. I had actually forgotten all about her.

"Akui-san. I believe you know what comes next, right." With a piercingly cold tone, she speaks to the coffee girl. "I hope you are ready to face the consequences." Looks like our Ice Queen has recovered.

We eventually made it to the clinic. The nurse was surprised to see the condition I was in. Nonetheless, she applied the burn cream onto the back of my neck, right shoulder, and upper back. The burns, while painful, were not too bad. Likely attributed to the cool water applied right after the incident. She gave us the half-used tube of cream and told us to re-apply some later.

Deciding our day at school was over, we all headed back home. Yukino drove back while I rested.

By the time we made it back home, the burning had mostly subsided. Even so, the girls made me go lay down. When it's all four of them against me, I don't have any other choice but to listen to them. Though, I decided to take a quick shower to wash off the coffee.

Since we didn't have a chance to eat, Yukino and Saki started to make something for us. Miyu went to the kitchen to observe and help where she could. Since Yui couldn't help in the kitchen, she sat on the couch while offering her lap as a pillow.

With no reason to refuse, I laid on my left side, since it was the least burned. She ran her fingers through my hair. It was relaxing and soothing.

"Hikki, you still smell like coffee, he he…"

"Leave me alone. The water hitting the burn area irritated my skin. I only washed off the coffee."

With the gentle smile and her soothing fingers running through my hair, I started to doze off. Since I was still kind of hungry, I forced myself awake.

"If you're tired, Hikki, you should rest. Relax and take a nap, I'll wake you up when the food is ready."

Her soft voice was the trigger that made me doze off yet again. I started to think back on today's events. It sure was hectic.

My high school self would probably murder me if he saw what kind of life I was living now.

While drifting off to sleep, I started to think back on the events that led me to the life I have today. It all began on the first day of my third year at Sobu high. Reminiscing on past events, I plunged deep into sleep…

Hello and thanks for reading! This is it for my intro, and so the story continues from the start of the third year. If anybody has any requests for how the story will go, I am open to suggestions. Though there are some things I will not budge on. Reviews are helpful and welcome! the next chapters probably won't be as long, so I should be able to release it soon, though no promises...

Thank you for reading!