„Good morning" a cheerful yet deep voice greeted me the second I entered the school yard. The night has been rough, even if I was able to fall asleep really quickly after fudou left the time I spend awake because of him was clearly noticeable in my system. Seeing gendas big grin helped me cheer up a bit though.

„good morning. Have you slept well?" I tried to sound as cheerful as I could. It felt rude to let my tiredness out on him. Besides, I think if he found out I couldn't sleep all night and what was the cause of it he'll have a little breakdown. He'll go into ‚protection'-mode and confront fudou about it, but I want to be the one who tells him that he can't keep breaking into my room all the time, especially not if he's going to make a mess of my room when ever he does. I don't even want to imagine what the bathroom looks like. Afraid of what I might find I used the quest bathroom today morning instead.

„I slept good yes. I had weird dreams tonight. Instead of being obsessed with penguins you were really into dogs. There were so many dogs running around school and some of them even talked to me." He Grinned while we walked towards the entrance.

„eeeeh! As if that would happen." I crossed my arms in front of my chest and looked into the other direction in protest.

A deep, full hearted laugh. „I know I know. Dogs can't Really talk."

I hit his shoulder softly „that's Not the surreal thing about your dream you know!" even I had to laugh by now.

Genda opened the door and let me enter first. He really was a gentleman most of the time. I've never met a person who cared as much about the people around him as he did. I have to admit, I looked up to that a bit.

„oh? I didn't Know it was that surreal to dream of dogs in our school?" he said as if he wanted to teas me. He knew exactly what I meant and yet…

„don't Play dumb genda!" I entered the building and tried my best to stay in front of him. That should teach him…

„how is it even possible that you don't Like dogs? They are so fluffy and loyal" he got up to me but kept walking just a step behind me as if he knew I wanted him to stay there.

„so like you?" I turned around and smiled at him and even stuck my tongue out a little.

I turned around again now with genda fully beside me. „I never said I don't Like them by the way. It just won't Happen that I like dogs more than penguins and you know that"

Another laugh was heard. His laugh was so full of emotions and warmth it was hard not to love it. He crossed his arms behind his head in an all casual manner while we walked up to my classroom.

I opened the door before I turned around once more „now go and think about what you've done koujirou"

He laughed once more, stepped into the class room to give narukami a greeting as well and went off.

Besides fudou narukami has been the only one who not only was in the soccer club but also in my class. He never really paid attention in class and the teachers already gave up telling him to put the headphones down. I guess that's one of the good things you get from going to a expensive private academy. The teachers get paid no matter if we learn or not. As long as the quote is right you can literally do what ever you want.

I greeted him with a hand gesture as I don't expect him to be able to hear me through his headphones. He sat one seat in front of fudous, who sat on my right side.

A few minutes after I sat down the teacher came into the class room as well and began his lesson. By that time fudou still hasn't arrived. It wasn't unusual for him to arrive late but it still bothered me. I guess it was worrisome because of what happened last night.

Time passed by but he still didn't arrive.

Somehow I couldn't stop thinking about it. I still wanted to know who he fought against and if his bruises looked any better than they did yesterday.

Sigh.

My arms laid in front of me on my table. Underneath was my history book but I wasn't able to pay any attention to the lesson. Slowly my head dropped face first onto my arms. I worried so much about him that I forgot how tired I was because of him.

„I swear I'll get back to him for it" I mumbled to myself and drifted off.

I woke up by a not so careful grab of my shoulder. Narukami has been the one shaking it. I looked up to him still half asleep and a bit confused.

He tipped onto his empty wrist. „lunch time sleeping beauty. Time for you to wake up."

I leaned back onto my chair and stretched my arms. „Did I really sleep that long?" I couldn't believe it.

„yes… I didn't know you were a bad boy kuma." He laughed and brushed over my head quickly.

„Do-o-on't" I yawned. „Do you have any idea how hard it is to get my hair underneath the strap of the eye patch while my bangs still hand out?"

„Probably pretty long if it makes you that tired" I got up, took some money out of my bag and left along side with him.

„that's not why I'm tired…"

„So what else is it" regret. I shouldn't have told him it's not the reason. Now he will keep bothering me until I tell him. There's no way I can tell him though. I had to make something up, too bad I'm a horrible liar.

Instead of answering his question with a lie he'd probably be able to show past I decided to not give him a reply in the first place and switched the topic.

„fudou wasn't in school yet was he?" I don't now why I decided to switch from a uncomfortable topic to and even more uncomfortable topic. Another regret.

„eh? That's nothing new is it? He probably is at home sleeping or playing games" narukami didn't seem to think much about it. He was right. It wasn't new that fudou didn't come. Usually he's just late, yes. But days in which he didn't come at all weren't uncommon either.

„I guess you're right" we entered the cafeteria in which genda already waited with some other teammates.

„nice they already got food for us too" Kenya cheered up and walked into their direction now a bit faster than before. He must have been hungry the whole time. I couldn't hold a light laugh back as we joined the others and sat down.

There already has been a huge conversation going on between henmi and jimon. We joined to late to really get what it was about but narukami decided to join in anyway. I knew he only made things up to get both of them all heated up. Sometimes I wonder why I even bother being friends with them. Then again it's probably this exact behavior that makes me like them so much.

The conversation, which turned out to be about some kind of game, calmed down, much to narukamis dislike. So before I could swallow the bite I already had in my mouth the asked „hey sakuma. Why were you even interested in fudous well being earlier?" I chocked

I knew he was trying to come up with a topic everyone could fight about again. Id love to know why he's doing this all the time.

„Fudou?" gendas voice had a mad undertone in it. He didn't like fudou much after all. The happenings during… that time… still sat deep on his mind and wouldn't let him go. He usually tried really hard to not let it show but I knew it anyway.

„Yea he hasn't been to school today" narukami replied while sticking another piece of chicken into his mouth.

„Isn't that like, the norm?" henmi followed right after and continued to eat as well.

„yea I said the same but somehow sakuma seems super worried about him"

„I am not worried I just asked you if you knew anything…" I wasn't feeling very comfortable in this situation and stared at my food. I felt gendas eyes on me which made me even more uncomfortable.

„yea sure. Say it one more time maybe you'll start to believe it someday" he pushed his elbow into my upper arm and grinned a bit.

„You're being annoying" genda didn't seem to be pleased right now. But I'm glad he tried to put a stop to the whole thing.

„Fine then topic change… why did you fall asleep in class?" and there we see a wild narukami Kenya doing the same mistake I did just a few minutes ago.

„I was tired" I still didn't want to face anyone around me directly so I kept poking into my lunch.

„yea but why have you been tired?" he kept asking the uncomfortable questions. I have no idea how I'm supposed to answer this one. There are too many people around me someone will definitely be able to tell that I'm making something up.

„a bird crashed into my window at night and I wasn't able to get back to sleep after" my hands became sweaty. They always do when I tell a lie. I know that my face gets red and that I start to blink more often so I tried to not let them see my face and hoped I will pass.

„could it be that bird has a name we all know?" the musical mastermind next to me poked my arm again. How the hell was he able to figure this one out so quickly and in front of all those people.

„what? N-no of course not" ‚Shit' I thought ‚I stuttered now it's totally over' I already panicked inside my head and thought about just running away and never turning back. Leaving Tokyo. Leaving Japan. Maybe I can start a new life in Amsterdam. I don't Now Dutch but I'm Sure it will work out somehow.

„Ahhh there we have it I knew it!" master jumped off of his chair „you had a date yesterday did you?"

„What?" I put, almost threw, my chopsticks away and stared right at Kenya's Face. „who gave you that idea?!"

„You did!" his whole mimic already screamed victory. The way he put his hands onto his hips made the whole pose perfect

„we had no date he just…" I stopped my own sentence and looked down again. By now I knew all the teammates who have been on this table were staring at me and waiting for me to continue.

„he what?" henmi asked in a voice that let everyone know he wasn't Sure if he really wanted to know but was to interested to not ask.

„nothing. He just happened to crash over at my place. It wasn't Like I invited him over or anything" I continued picking on my food. Everyone still looked at me and I knew that wasn't A satisfying answer for them.

„So? What happened that made him stay at home?" you could tell he was thinking about something dirty just now. But that's Not the case. If I wouldn't Continue to talk they would just make up stories themselves which was way worse than just explaining to them what happened.

„he got into a fight. Came over. I took care of his wounds. He took a shower and left." I tried to talk as fast as I could and hoped they wouldn't Really understand anything but still stop asking.

„a fight? With whom?" narukami sat down again. He seemed even more interested now. Good job jirou that's Definitely not how you get people to stop bothering you.

Before I could say anything a deep voice beside me spoke up again „Who cares he probably deserved it. I bet he started it too."

And with those words everyone started too shrug the whole story off.

Genda was right. I don't know if fudou started the fight or provoke it somehow. I don't know who he fought against either as he wouldn't want to tell me.

On the other hand he did say it was genda, even if he didn't say it directly he kind of let it shimmer through. Thinking about this and seeing that genda has been even more annoyed about the topic ‚fudou' made me wonder if it wasn't just a joke but actually true?

Nah. There's no way that could be true.

Before I could think more into it the bell rang and, just like the others, I got up and went back to class.