"Akihiko," a voice called the moment I walked into the clubroom and I froze mid-step. Masumi, a step behind me nearly walked right into my back and came to an awkward stop. Stood by the doorway, the tall frame of coach Takako stared at me, steely blue eyes clear as day. She was dressed in a suit jacket and long trousers, her blonde hair perfectly parted around her head without a single thing out of place. My immediate reaction was to straighten out as if I was being inspected.

"U-Um, coach," I responded, my mind immediately doing a backflip to wonder how the hell the coach even knew me by name. From the corner of my eye I saw Masumi slowly step around me, looking wary and unsure if she was being included in whatever was about to happen. But when there was no immediate call of her name she breathed a sigh of relief and ran off for the mahjong tables right away.

Traitor.

"You'll be playing with the third-years today."

I didn't know what expression I was pulling just there, but the coach didn't even blink or say a word about it.

"Uh, excuse me?" I asked, sounding and feeling dumbstruck.

"You heard me. You'll start at Table 2," Takako responded, her voice flat and factual without any trace of giving me a choice in the matter. I couldn't even respond before she was turning and walking away, leaving me stood by the doorway and staring at the window.

What was going on? This felt eerily like when Ikeda had dragged me off to play against the regulars. Takako I expected to never give me an answer but what was with everyone else? It felt like I was being shoved around by some older kids in a playground. Not knowing what I was meant to do I stood there for another few moments before reluctantly dragging my feet across the floor to go for Table 2, feeling like this was an execution.

"Tsk, why do we have to play a first-year?" one of them complained seconds after I had sat down.

"Believe me, I don't know either," I admitted outright. Fortunately that seemed to calm the girl down a little, though I could feel that the three of them - All third-year students who I didn't know - Were watching and judging me intensely.

"Fine, if the Coach says so," she grumbled, making me breathe an internal sigh of relief. "Don't try to go bust too fast," she then added and just like that my feeling of relief was gone, remembering my horrible game against the regular players with a bitter taste in my mouth.

"Ah-hah…" I mumbled, deciding to look down at the table and watch as it whirred to life and the walls of tiles popped up, quickly gathering up my hand. I didn't say another word, or ask who was playing East, just deciding to watch the other three and work from there. Fortunately, the girl right in front of me drew her tile first and threw away a white dragon. Next along, the south player drew and discarded a red dragon. And then me, the West player, drew next and added the tile to my hand.

Including the new tile I just drew, I had 2 Wests, 1 North, 1 South, 3 green dragons, 1 white dragon, 1 and 7 of bamboo, 7 of circles and 2,3,8 of characters.

This hand was… Good. If someone discarded a West soon, I could call it and have three of my own Wind, giving me a yaku of two han.

Taking a look at the discards and back at my hand, I decided to discard the 7 of bamboo first. The North player didn't seem to care and threw away a 1 of circles and I looked right away to the East player, who made a face at her draw. Putting it on her hand she threw away a North and I had to pause as no one called it, pressing my lips together and feeling suddenly nervous, watching with anxiety as the South player discarded an East.

I reached for my tile and breathed out when I found that I'd drawn a second South. I threw away my 1 of bamboo to make room.

And just like that, the North player discarded a South.

"Pon," I called, plucking the tile from the table and revealing my other two tiles, sliding them against my corner of the table. The three of them looked at me but they looked more confused than anything else, after all three tiles not from my own Wind were worthless. I picked the 8 of characters next, putting it into the discards.

East threw away a 2 of circles and looking at her discards - A white dragon, North, then 2 of circles, she was unlikely in tenpai yet. The South player sat there and looked unhappy as her turn was skipped from the pon, so I went to draw my own tile and felt the urge to throw it at a wall as I ended up with a 5 of circles, which I also discarded right away.

No, not like that.

The north player regarded me cautiously and I blinked, looking up to see that the girl was looking at me with a squint.

"What kind of discards are those?" she asked sceptically and I felt myself flush a little at the direct question.

"Er… Sorry."

She snorted at me, making me flinch as she threw away the tile I'd been looking for - The West.

"Pon," I called again, snatching the tile and collecting it with my other two, throwing away the 2 of characters.

Now, I realised with satisfaction, I had 3 South, 3 West, 1 North, 3 green dragons, 1 white dragon, a 3 of characters and a 7 of circles. My own winds yaku was here, though I was still a few tiles from tenpai given I had no winning tile yet.

I shifted in my seat, feeling a little rush of excitement as I marvelled the gathered Souths and Wests in my corner and drummed my fingers against the table, watching and waiting as the East player threw away a 1 of circles. That discard had me pause, a flash of uncertainty crossing my mind. Was she in tenpai after all?

Yet again with her turn skipped, the South player directed an annoyed look at me as I collected my tile. A useless 1 of characters, it didn't bring me any closer to a winning hand and I realised with a flash of frustration that if I'd thrown away my 7 of circles I'd've had 1-2-3 of characters and a completed triplet. That backfired horribly.

The next to go was my 7 of circles, just as an act of revenge. North threw away a white dragon and East had a small grin curling her lips as she drew her next tile.

"Riichi!" she called, discarding an 8 of circles sideways on the table, making everyone including me hesitate. A dealer riichi after a white dragon, North, 2,1 and 8 of circles. She must be waiting for a tile from a suit that wasn't circles.

… And I'd just thrown away my only circle tile!

Feeling like I'd just been caught in a trap, cursing myself for throwing away the 7 of circles just out of spite, I watched South quietly toss a circle onto the table. A safe tile, no one called on it. She must've bailed out already.

I, on the other hand, feeling still somewhat determined to carry on - Drew a second North. Though now I was stuck, looking at the table's discards and then my hand. I could discard a 1 and 3 of characters or a white dragon, but the only characters discarded was my own 2 of characters before the dealer riichi, so I couldn't say for certain if that was safe. As far as characters went, I had no idea if the character tiles were safe, but…

I discarded the 3 of characters. No one called on it. If it weren't bad manners at a mahjong table I'd've let out a sigh of relief right there.

The North player looked to have the same problem as me, knowing full well anything that wasn't circles was unsafe, so they threw away a circle tile of their own. East picked up and discarded their draw, denying them a first-round tsumo, the South once again discarding a circle tile. I picked up my own tile and felt annoyed when I'd gotten a 9 of bamboo. This tile was clearly dangerous...

Again looking at the discards I dared to blindly throw away my 1 of characters. Yet again, no call. Now that I'd discarded a full triplet of character tiles I'd at least created a clear path for safe tiles against the dealer riichi.

But that didn't stop the North player, who discarded a bamboo tile sideways.

"Riichi."

"Ron," East called. "5,200."

Several hands later and I'd somehow not managed to deal into anyone's hand, though I'd lost points shaved off from tsumos after East had gone on a dealer's streak. It felt like the game had gone on for a lot longer but we'd reached South Hand 3 and it was my turn as the dealer. With 14,800 points I was solidly in the negatives but not as worse as the poor North player.

Collecting up my tiles, I noticed something odd about them. A lot of pairs, a lot…

Wait.

I put my last two tiles into my hand and peered with absolute disbelief.

2 South, 2 red dragons, 2 3 and 7 of circles, 2 9 of characters and 2 3 and 6 of bamboo with a single 6 of characters on the end.

I was tenpai for a seven pairs hand, as dealer before we even started drawing tiles. If I drew a second 6 of characters…

My hand was practically shaking with nervousness as I reached for the opening draw. The second 6 of characters could give me a complete yakuman hand as dealer, worth 32,000 points. I could suddenly be out in first place in one fell swoop. It felt like an eternity when I finally grabbed the tile and lifted it to look at it.

An East.

"Dammit!" I exclaimed out loud and then straightened out, blanching with embarrassment and shock as the three upperclassmen all looked at me with annoyance, though the South player at least tittered in amusement.

"Didn't get what you were looking for?" the player across me taunted and I pressed my lips together to hold down a huff, immediately discarding my 6 of characters sideways on the table and drawing a blue point stick as I looked the girl dead in the eye, satisfied to see her smile wipe away.

"Double riichi."

I didn't get the 32,000 point hand, but I could shoot for a 7,700 point hand waiting on an East. If I managed to win on the first round that would shoot up to a mangan hand of 12,000. Drumming my hand against the table I looked around, happy to see all three of the players were hesitating while I felt my lips curling into a very broad smile. My disappointment didn't fade one bit as all three of them discarded safe tiles onto the table, knowing well that they were cowering.

Just as I was about to draw I paused and looked up, seeing a familiar face looking my way. Fujiki Mihoko again, staring at me from across the room. I quickly looked away, my smile now gone and feeling uncomfortable and like I was being watched. So watched I barely even registered that I'd drawn a second East at first and then fumbled to hurriedly put it down on the table.

"Ip- Ippatsu tsumo. 4,000 all."

"Akihiko," that dreaded voice said once again just as I was about to exit the clubroom. I froze, daring to look over my shoulder to once again find the coach Takako staring me down, but this time she wasn't cold and distant. She looked angry, genuinely angry and I turned to face her right away, spying a small sheaf of papers in her hands. Behind her, several club members who wanted to leave paused and stopped dead in their tracks.

"C-Coach?"

"What's the meaning of that game with the third years?"

"... Um…" I responded, tensing up with my mind going blank. Was there something wrong with that game? I'd ended up only barely in the negatives. Sure I didn't come out positive but I hadn't lost many points.

In response something in the coach's head visibly throbbed and she whisked a hand, throwing the small sheaf of papers right at me. I stepped back with an instinctive little sound of surprise coming from my mouth and held up my hands defensively, then flinched as the paper brushed against me and then fell to the floor. At a glance, they looked like records of mahjong tiles played.

"You call yourself 28th in the club with a performance like that? After winning one hand?" Takako probed, the woman's voice heightening with bristling anger. And I didn't even understand why she was angry but by the look she was giving me I wanted to run for my life. Seeking a quick way to tear away from her gaze I crouched down to hastily gather the fallen papers, eyes to the floor while I racked my brains for whatever answer the coach wanted from me.

"I, um, sorry Coach. The third years were tough."

"Tough?" the woman echoed, though she didn't sound as angry as before. Thoughtful maybe? I didn't know, I didn't dare to look up, so I took a quick glance over the papers. They were definitely records from a game of mahjong and… They were mine? I recognised these hands right away.

"Yesterday, in three of your ten games in the ranking tournament, you won by busting another player with a yakuman hand," Takako went on as I kept my head down and crouched on the floor. Maybe down here things would be safer.

"And in another one, you made a tsumo yakuman and jumped right into first place. Despite winning four of ten of your games, the point difference was large enough you came out positive overall."

I swallowed something nervously down my throat. Why was she telling me this?

"But today? Nothing, just one worthless mangan hand that didn't even get you a positive score. What do you have to say for yourself?"

I continued to stare at the floor for the longest time, mind going blank. It felt like an eternity when my legs began to wobble from crouching and I was forced to stand back up. Holding the papers tightly and looking at the space next to the Coach's shoulder I finally responded.

"Um… I'm sorry Coach, they were tough opponents," I almost repeated, sounding lame and unsure of myself. I heard her breathe in and out.

"Sorry is all you are," she stated. I opened my mouth to respond with the first thing that came to mind and then I was cut off by a sudden, blinding pain to my cheek and a crack of skin on skin. My head jerked to the side and I froze in place, hearing some startled gasps from the other girls still waiting to get out of the clubroom. The coach lowered her hand back to her side.

"You think you can win with mahjong like that? Going for such high hands and having one of the lowest win rates in the whole club? Grow up, you stupid girl!"

It hit me all at once. Coach Takako had slapped me, actually hit me. I'd seen her do it once or twice to other girls but to do it to me… She actually hit me… And it really stung… And as I turned my sore head to look at Takako the woman glared at me with such resentment and over her shoulder I could see the other girls looking and whispering and…

Oh no, maybe that's what the regulars had looked at me for, because I wasn't good enough and weak and stupid and…

Did she just hit me?

It was too much. I turned and ran out of the clubroom.

I didn't show up to club practise the next day. I told my grandma I'd fallen down in gym class and smacked my head on the floor which she believed and fretted over, giving me an ice pack to soothe the sting.

Masumi didn't buy it though. The moment I walked into homeroom and I saw her there, looking at me with that look on her face I knew that what happened was already going around the mahjong club. It made me want to scream and hide and when I sat myself down on the desk next to her, Masumi didn't say a word, she just slid me a chocolate bar while the teacher wasn't looking. I admit it did make me feel kind of better, but I felt just as pitiful and weak about it.

All day my thoughts were on what the Coach said and how she hit me. The sting of her backhand was a lot more painful than the words, I already knew most of it but it was her anger that really got to me. She was resentful, disappointed maybe? Maybe that's how my mom and dad had felt about me too… I couldn't get it out of my head. I couldn't concentrate, not on my schoolwork or anything, I didn't have much of an appetite either.

"I'll see you at the club, OK Aki?" she said to me when the classes were over, though it sounded more like a question. I nodded my head at her and said nothing, fortunately she didn't say anything either and left, but I got the feeling she'd understood what I meant.

I went to the library instead. I couldn't go home, not yet, or grandma would start asking questions of why I went home early. Questions were the last thing I wanted right now.

Everyone was at club so the library was in a dead silence, it was exactly what I was looking for. My mind was all over the place and I felt glum, frustrated and tired, so I just pulled the first book I thought was interesting from a shelf of sci-fi literature and found a comfy armchair by the window so I could read. The atmosphere was relaxing and calming and I felt myself gradually unwind, even though I was barely reading the book at all.

I was jolted from my seat a little as I heard the chime of the bell, embarrassed and surprised to realise I'd been nodding off. Quickly closing my book and putting it back, now that club time was over I intended to leave as quickly as possible. I almost dropped the book putting it back on the shelf and quietly cursed myself for it, brushing a hand through my curled locks of hair. I hurried for the door, wondering if I could get out fast enough before anyone could see me, but no.

Fate was being cruel to me today and as I left the library I looked to my right and saw Fujiki Mihoko, as if she knew all along I would be here, stood waiting. She looked upset and quite sad, sorrowful and apologetic as she noticed me. The look made me want to vomit.

"Akihiko-san, can we talk for a minute?"