Chapter 9
The second day isn't so. If anything, it's easier than the first day. As expected, the principal gave a speech about how we're all in high school now and we need to act it. Me being… well me, didn't pay much mind to it. I don't plan on getting in trouble and I'm well behaved, so this didn't apply to me. Other than it being so boring, I would've fallen asleep… except for one lilac thing to my side.
"Hey, hey, don't look so drowsy wowsy, wake up will ya?" She's whispering to me right now, as if to taunt me.
That's it, there's no way she could be my neighbor, there's just no way. If I have to live close to this… this… thing! I'm going to die before the week ends. Well, time to tune her out. Looking around me in the auditorium, I noticed that many of my friends are in the same condition that I'm in.
Vert is already asleep, why isn't Neptune keeping her up? She's lucky though, her bosom provides her with an ample pillow. The way she's laying on them, it looks very pleasant and comfortable. Man I'd kill for a pillow like that right now. I wonder if Vert would let me do that someday, she's already said she's going to seduce me, might as well try sometime.
Rom and Ram, being so young I can understand their situation. This is probably the most adorable thing I've ever seen. Rom is leaning over the arm rest of the seat, while Ram is on top of her. If you listen hard enough, you can hear faint snoring coming from one of them. If I actually had a heart, I'd say they were cute when they slept like that.
Finally the principal decides he's done with boring us to death, and lets us return to class. Right about now it's third hour. Good lord he took way too long. We managed to skip two classes but this is ridiculous. I hate to admit it, but I actually want to go to class than listen to his voice.
"Man that was soooooo boring!"
"What… (Yawn), did I miss?" Nice to see sleeping beauty awake and lively. The same thing can't be said about the twins. There they still rest on each other. Nepgear lightly shook Ram, this sent her into a moment of eye flutters. From that point she acted like you'd expect, cranky.
"Why did you wake me up!? I was fine!" Yep, this is exactly how I thought this would turn out. Nepgear looks saddened by this. If only I knew what she was thinking. From what I can infer, she's thinking somewhere along the lines of "Did I mess up?" or "am I a failure?" With minds like these it's hard to predict what they're thinking at times. "Nepgear looks shaken, could you wake Rom?" Blanc seems surprisingly caring right now. I don't know why she's asking me all of a sudden. Giving a simple nod I walk over to the sleeping Rom. How she slept through Ram's yelling I'll never know.
Walking a few steps to the left, I lightly poke Rom on the nose. This results in her squirming a bit before slightly opening her eyes. The way she's looking at me is just what you call adorable. Blinking once she closes her eyes again then drift back to dreamland. I don't want a cranky Rom, so I do what feels natural. Picking her up as careful as I can, I hold her bridal style. Once situated where she curls up a little more, I begin to walk.
"Hmm, you're pretty good with kids." Very good observation Noire.
"You're alright I guess." Nice to know Blanc's back.
Walking down the halls, we reach the appropriate classroom. Walking inside I get a few curious looks. It's at this moment I realize I'm still holding Rom. "Hahaha, look at the baby!" I hate the people I go to school with. Just because I'm carrying a sleeping younger person doesn't mean she's a baby. "Why don't you just go away Andrew, I'll bet she's ten times more intelligent than you are."
"Yeah… well… you're gay." Is he really going back to such petty insults? This is as good of a sign as any that I've won. If it's anything I learned in my years of seclusion, it's how to piss smart asses off.
"I expect more maturity out of you. No wonder people think we evolved from monkeys." Now this REALLY pissed him off. I'm not talking about a regular amount, I'm talking steam coming from his ears angry.
"Why you!" He's clearly letting his emotions get the better of him. He runs at me and throws his right arm back to gain a strong punch. Normally I'd side step him, but this is a special circumstance. I don't want to snap Rom awake with a sudden jerk. And if I just stand here, his fist will actually hit her before me. I only have one option.
Doing a smooth heel turn, my back is now facing towards his fist. Brace for impact. "Pfft!" It actually made a noise upon contact. Damn, that hurt more than I expected it too. The shock of the punch was enough to wake Rom up, but not too heavily. Her eyes opened. My face was giving off the look of someone who was in serious pain.
"Ja… Jack? Are you… alright?" The trembling in her voice tells me right away she's really concerned about me.
Saying nothing to her. Instead I give her a comforting smile. Taking the thumb of one of my hands, I wipe the drewl off the corners of her mouth. "Yeah… I'm alright. Don't worry about me." Finally setting her down in a chair, I turn to face Andrew.
"Why'd ya save the chick? She doesn't deserve to be in high school. Her and that brat sister of hers." Ok, now he's really pissing me off. Looking to my right, I can see a hurt Ram.
"Tha… that's not true. We're super smart. We can be here. And you can't do anyt-"
"I can't do what? You're just a brat."
The dam has been broken, tears are flowing. I can't believe he made Ram cry, that's cruel even by my standards. He has no soul. He made a friend of mine cry. Hell, even Rom is close to tearing up. He's not just a bully, he's a monster.
"Hey! Don't talk to my friends like that!" Thanks for the support Uni.
"How dare you talk that way about my sisters you bitch? You can just go die in a goddamned hole!"
Uni and Blanc are by my side. He hurt my friends, and he needs to pay for his crimes. Uni and I would've done something, except… Blanc acted up. The teacher was out of the room, so this was a perfect moment to torture.
Blanc picked Andrew up by his collar and slammed him against the wall. It didn't stop there, she punched him about three times as hard as she hit me. His nose is now broken, and a little bloody. Blanc drops him.
"Anyone see anything?" Glad you asked Blanc. "No!" The class said in unison.
Walking away from the scene, I get down on one knee to view Rom at eye level. She's crying which is understandable. Next I put my hands on her shoulders and speak softly to her. "Hey, it's ok. He won't bother you or Ram again." I don't know if that's true or not.
Blanc walks beside us and says, "That's right, it'll stay safe.
The teacher then walks into the room. Looking at Andrew on the floor, she seems curious. But throws it off as he got what was coming to him. The class becomes silent. Rom buries he head into my side and continues to cry. This goes unnoticed by the teacher, who just sits down at her desk.
I don't know if Rom trusts me or not to comfort her. Maybe I'm just the closest thing she could use. Either way, she's young, she doesn't need to go through dicks like Andrew yet. Whatever came over me seems to work slightly. Taking my left hand, I slowly stroke the back of her head. Her sobbing subsides for the time being.
"Ja… Jack?" I can guess she's thinking what the hell are you doing? Her next words derail this thought. Instead, I feel somewhat good about it. "Thank you Jack."
She wraps her arms completely around me at this point. Getting a hug from her isn't so bad. The weirdest part of it all was she's not letting go. Why is she just sitting there hugging me? It's one thing to be hugged for a long period of time. It's another thing when this girl is way younger than you are is holding it out.
Giving her a slight shove, she snaps back to reality. Quickly pulling away from me and sitting in the seat to my left still. It doesn't take a genius to notice the blush on her cheeks. Oh god is another one possibly falling for me? I've only known them for about two days and some of them might have feelings for me? This is all getting too strange for me.
I won't deny that they're cute. But what if one day one of us becomes more than friends? How would the others react to that? Oh well, that's future Jacks problem. Present Jack needs to focus on his class right now. It wouldn't be until the end of the day until something else would happen.
Standing in the main lobby, the final bell has rung and we all gather for the final moment of the school day. Everyone else is talking amongst themselves, and me? I'm just standing on the sideline, not saying a word. They all look so happy, don't want to disturb the moment is all. My moment is disturbed when a certain lilac haired girl asks me a question.
"Jack, why don't you come join us tonight in four goddesses online? Me and Uni are playing tonight and… we need someone to protect us in the dungeon." Ok, where is Nepgear getting this from? From what I've gathered so far, Uni would've been more likely to invite me along.
"Yeah, I guess he can come. I hope he's high enough level." I killed an ancient dragon last night, I think I can handle what they have in store. Then again, with these girls, I've learned in a VERY short time that anything is possible. "Sure, let's meet up near the castle at the beginning." It's one of the two places I actually know in that game.
"Looks like my ride's here, sorry, got to go." I wave and smile to them.
"Wait, can we get a ride home? Pwetty pwease?" Those puppy dog eyes are hard to resist. It should be a crime to use those eyes. It would ultimately be up to Maurice to give them a ride back to their complex. Doesn't hurt to try. Nodding slightly, both take notice of this and begin to follow. Nepgear following more than Neptune. She has a way of running and then suddenly stopping in front of me.
Getting to Maurice's car, his window roles down. "Hey, can you give Neptune and Nepgear a ride home?" Part of me expects him to say no to my silly request. Then again, knowing him he'll get on me for being single for so long. It's one of those brothers looking out for their younger brother kind of things. "Sure thing Jack." Hey gives me a light wink.
I'm embarrassed at his eyelid moving down then up. I don't care anymore. I've had to deal with these eight girls for two days, I can handle anything that life throws my way. Waving to my two lilac haired friends, they make their way to the car. "Can I take Shotgun?" Neptune asks.
"Sure, go ahead." Neptune sliding across the hood, gets in the front seat. Opening the door for Nepgear, she gets in the car. Walking around the back of the car, I open the other door and set myself in the seat. He starts to drive away from the school and to the complex. This is strange, usually you have to wait a few weeks before a girl will get in a car with you. Now on day two I have two girls in my brothers' car? Damn I'm the luckiest guy in the world.
Driving down the road is surprisingly relaxing. Neptune is focused on looking at what little the town has to offer. I was wrong about what she was thinking about. She was amazed at what it had still. From what I could tell, she's been in town for not too long. It only make sense to check out the town when it's still fresh.
Nepgear is looking down at her feet. This my friends is known as the strong debate mode. Even I can see it in her eyes, she has a blank look in them, like she's in another world. She doesn't even notice us come to a stop at the complex. I put my hand on her shoulder and gently.
"Ah!" Even the slightest of shakes sent her screaming. I didn't mean to frighten her like that, it must be how she's programed inside. "Sorry, didn't mean to startle you like that. It's just… you were lost in thought and we arrived. So-"I was cut off by her index finger going over my mouth.
"No… I'm sorry. I shouldn't have reacted like that. Don't get worried over me. I'm not worth it. I'm… *hic*… just not worth worrying abo…" I couldn't take this anymore. She was being way too apologetic about something that was my fault. I did the only thing I could think of. A hug. My arms were wrapped around her trying to comfort her. When it comes to crying girls, I can't stand for it.
"That's ridiculous, you're so worth it. Don't let anyone, even yourself tell you otherwise. You're my friend, and one of the people who changed me." Was my heart bleeding out at this point? I know that I've thought she's cute, and really nice. But I don't know what I expect to come out of this. Was it respect? Love? Or something that even I don't understand.
"Jack… thank you. Thank you so much." Her arms wrap around me. As she does this, I get a warm feeling inside. She isn't the only one that this has happened to. Blanc has gotten me this way, it happened yesterday in the band room. Noire was on this list, for some unknown reason, she just had an aura to her. Hell, even Vert made me feel this way once.
I've found something that I like. And this moment is one I wish could go on forever. Both of us sit there in the back seat holding each other. Why we are I will never know. My body was subconsciously doing this I guess. However, Maurice has a way of ruining great moments.
"Hey lovebirds, care to get out of my car?" Now both of us are snapped back to reality. Upon realizing where I am and what I'm doing, my face turns red. Nepgear faced a similar conundrum. Her face was red as well, embarrassed about being in my arms, or being comforted. Either way, she's up shit creek without a paddle.
"Lo… Lovebirds!? We're not like that." We both say in unison. Nothing would bring me more comfort me more than being out of this situation. Oh wait, there is that solution. I open the car door and quickly get out. Nepgear follows my example and gets out on her own side. Both of us still stained red from that encounter.
"So… um… we still on for gaming tonight?" Stupid stupid stupid, why the hell is that the first question I ask?
"Su… sure, that's fine." He blushing hasn't subsided yet. At least she's smiling, but about what? Holy crap I knew they'd all get me killed sooner or later.
"Come on Nep Jr., let's get going, we have things to do." Nodding to her sister, Nepgear follows her back to their apartment. I wonder who they live with. Before disappearing into the door, Nepgear looks over her shoulder and gives me a quick look.
Shaking my head rapidly, I walk back into the apartment. Greeting my female roommate, I promptly make it to my room. I've got some school papers to fill out anyway. This is interrupted by an unexpected text message. From an unknown number? This is weird. When I open up the message it reads.
"I will fucking kill you and your brat friends."
A/N: In the chapters beyond this point, there will be time lapses. I don't think you want to view every single day. They won't be big lapses though, just days or hours. Again review the story, and continue to read.