Ugh, I feel all groggy. We shouldn't have stayed up so late playing that MMORPG last night.
Next to me, I heard Tsuna yawn.
"Man, we stayed up really late last night."
"I know," I replied, "But you really wanted to go grinding, and I was there to make sure you didn't die so much."
"Haha, very funny," Tsuna grumbled, good-naturedly.
"Yo Tsuna, Chi!" Someone called from behind us. I froze and tried not to look back.
"Yamamoto-kun!" said Tsuna, "Good morning!"
"G-good m-morning, Y-Yamamoto-san…" I forced out.
"What's the matter you guys?" he asked, "You both have bags under your eyes!"
"Actually I always look like this…" I murmured.
"Eh, really?" Yamamoto-san clapped my back a bit roughly, "Hahaha, that's not good, Chi! You need lots of sleep to be healthy!"
I was already trembling. I don't have anything against Yamamoto-san, (other than the fact that I find him incredibly terrifying) but I'd rather not get too close lest I garner the hate of his many fangirls…and destroy the dark interior of a broom closet…again.
"Well, as long as you guys weren't up all night studying!" he exclaimed.
"Huh?" Tsuna was confused, as was I.
Yamamoto-san laughed, "We wouldn't want to lose one of our slow group, right?"
Ah, I didn't tell you did I? Yamamoto-san isn't just known for his skills with a bat, he's also one of the students with the lowest test scores.
I suddenly shivered, feeling harsh glares at my back.
I sighed quietly. And so it begins.
Shudder.
After school Tsuna and I were hanging out at the school's pool area. We were kind of forced to go there since Reborn-san wanted to talk to us about something.
"Gokudera was rather upset this morning," said Reborn-san, floating along in the pool, "He doesn't think Yamamoto is trustworthy and is against him joining. So I thought giving Yamamoto a 'Family Entrance Test' would satisfy Gokudera's worrries."
So our worries came true. Whether we like it or not, Yamamoto-san will be included in the Vongola.
"I'm not gonna go along with that!" cried Tsuna, "And don't go into the pool with permission!"
"Are you sure it's wise to bring in Yamamoto-san?" I asked, "I mean, he doesn't really have any ties to the Vongola…wouldn't it be dangerous?"
"That's why I'm giving the test," Reborn-san explained.
"No way! Yamamoto-kun is our friend!" shouted Tsuna, "Besides, he's too busy with baseball! Don't go dragging him into this!"
"Too late, I already asked Gokudera to bring him to the back of the campus."
"HUH?" we shouted.
Upon reaching the back area, we saw both Gokudera-san and Yamamoto-san standing next to each other. It seemed like Yamamoto-san was trying to offer Gokudera-san some milk, with Gokudera-san glaring a hole in his face.
Not literally, thank goodness.
"Hey!" Tsuna shouted.
"Hm?" Yamamoto-san turned around and Gokudera-san hid something behind his back when he caught sight of Tsuna, "Hey guys, what's up? Oh, is that your little brother, Tsuna?"
Not understanding what he meant, Tsuna and looked behind us, Reborn-san was on a skateboard holding onto a rope that was tied around Tsuna's waist.
…How long was that there?
"I'm not his brother, I'm an assassin from the Vongola Famiglia," Reborn-san answered.
"Hahaha!" laughed Yamamoto-san, "Is that so, forgive me then!"
Please tell me he thinks it's a joke…
"You're pretty young for an assassin!"
"Not really," Reborn-san replied, "You're joining the Vongola too."
"No way!" Tsuna shouted.
"Hey, hey, take it easy, Tsuna, he's just a kid," said Yamamoto-san, "Don't you remember playing cops and robbers as a kid?"
"Well, we mostly pretended to be knights and samurai…" I thought out loud.
"Chi!" Tsuna whispered harshly, his face turning red with embarrassment.
I flinched, "S-sorry…"
"Hahaha!" Yamamoto-san laughed, "That's sounds like loads of fun!"
"Tsuna's the tenth generation boss of the family," Reborn-san explained.
"Ooh, you made a good choice then!" complimented Yamamoto-san, hoisting Reborn-san on his shoulder, "Alright, count me in."
At this response, Tsuna let out his trademark shriek, Gokudera-san growled and I began to mentally freak out.
"So what do I have to do?" Yamamoto-san asked.
"You need to pass the entrance test, if you can't pass, you can't join."
Oh! So then, if Yamamoto-san doesn't pass, he won't get involved!
"Just so you know, failing means death," Reborn-san replied simply. I could already feel my muscles beginning to lock up. Why does he have to be so harsh?
"Hahaha!" chuckled Yamamoto-san, "Sounds fun!"
Fun? FUN? This isn't fun! It's downright terrifying!
"This test is simple," Reborn-san whipped out two large, silver pistols, "All you have to do is avoid my attacks. Chi, you're taking part in this too."
And I'm screwed.
"Hold on!" Tsuna shouted, running in front of Yamamoto-san, "You're not seriously planning on killing them, are you?"
Next to me, I could faintly hear Gokudera-san chanting, 'kill him.'
…Are all middle school students crazy, or is it just us?
"Aw come on, Tsuna," Yamamoto-san slung an arm over Tsuna's shoulders, "he's just a kid, let's humor him!"
I'm going to die today, aren't I?
"You're the boss, Tsuna, show them how it's done," ordered Reborn-san.
"What!" Tsuna yelled.
"That's great idea!' Yamamoto-san cheered, "It can be a contest! Let's see who passes!"
"Begin," and Reborn-san began shooting.
Yamamoto-san and Tsuna both shot off like, forgive the pun, bullets with Tsuna dragging me along, while Reborn-san was going trigger-happy on us.
As we were running, bullets and knives were just grazing us, not really causing any damage.
Yikes, it's either adrenaline that's keeping me alive or I'm actually really good at dodging...
…I-it's probably the adrenaline.
While avoiding the potentially fatal weapons, Yamamoto-san seemed to be treating all of this as a game.
Oh Yamamoto-san, I'd hug you if I weren't so scared of you.
Fortunately, he also seemed to be dodging everything pretty well.
"Yikes! That was close!" he said with a smile, "This kid's got a pretty good arm! Toys nowadays are really realistic!"
Seriously, are we crazy?
"Y-Yamamoto-san!" I managed to force out, "I'm pretty sure they're not toys!"
"Really? But I think a smart kid like him wouldn't play with actual weapons!"
Reborn-san's not a kid, he's a demon…
"Next, is the crossbow," said Reborn-san. Arrows began to shoot right by us, one managed to leave a cut on my forearm.
"GYAHAHA!" came a laugh from somewhere above, "I found you, Reborn!"
Hey…that sounds familiar…
We started looking in every direction for the source, then a small form appeared over the edge of one of the school balconies.
Eh, Lambo-san?
"I'M LAMBO FROM THE BOVINO FAMIGLIA," he shouted, "I'VE COME TO JUNIOR HIGH EVEN THOUGH I'M FIVE!"
That's a good pair of lungs for a five-year-old…
"Not again!" Tsuna groaned loudly.
Nearby, Gokudera-san was talking with Reborn-san, "Never heard of the Bovino, what should we do, Reborn?"
"Continue," and he began shooting arrows again, missing us by a slim margin.
"Whoa, that was close!" Yamamoto-san shouted.
"Yikes!" exclaimed Tsuna as he bent his head forward to avoid being impaled in the brain.
"Hya!" I let out a quiet shriek as another arrow cut through my sleeve.
Abruptly, these black things started coming at us…M-missiles?
…MISSILES?
Then they blew up, causing Yamamoto-san, Tsuna and I to lift up into the air with the explosions.
Looking back to where the…m-missiles…came from, I saw Lambo-san holding what appeared to be a missile launcher.
He's pretty strong for a toddler…
"DIE REBORN!"
And cue a barrage of missiles.
The explosions started kicking up dust everywhere. And despite my sarcasm earlier, this is scary, I already have some cuts and open wounds from the arrows and bullets just scraping by me and now I'm getting blinded by all this dust.
There seemed to be a lull as the dust was settling. I could see Tsuna and Yamamoto-san nearby. Tsuna was scolding Reborn-san and Yamamoto-san was letting out a big breath.
"Next is the sub-machinegun," said Reborn-san, ignoring Tsuna's protests, "You can use your bombs too, Gokudera. Just think about killing Yamamoto."
What!
I was catching up to Tsuna when we heard Gokudera-san shouting, "Boss!"
Looking back, all we saw was him giving Tsuna a wink. Then we heard Reborn-san call out, "Time for the finale."
It was probably a bad idea, but the three of us had looked back while running and saw bombs, bullets, and missiles coming at us at the same time.
Oh god, whatdoidowhatdoido!
I felt someone grabbing the back of my shirt before my sight was obscured by thick clouds of dust.
"B-Boss!" I faintly heard Gokudera-san, "Boss! Er…Stupid Woman! Are you okay!"
We came out of the dust coughing, I looked to my side and saw Yamamoto-san carrying me as well as Tsuna.
S-such close contact…s-stay awake…
Yamamoto-san grinned, "That was really close!"
"We're alive…" Tsuna whimpered. I let out a quiet breath, trying to calm myself down since I could feel my entire body trembling, it's a really uncomfortable sensation.
"You passed the test," said Reborn-san to Yamamoto-san, "You're officially one of the family."
"Hahaha! Thanks!"
Gokudera-san stomped toward Yamamoto-san was saying something along the lines of 'good job', I don't really know what happened next since Reborn-san was giving me a weird look.
"I-is there something wrong, Reborn-san?"
He lowered his head so his eyes were shadowed, "…Try harder next time, we can't have you trying to die early again."
I flinched, my hands unconsciously moving over my lower stomach.
…How did he know?
"Chi?" Tsuna asked, walking up from behind me, "You okay? Do you have a stomachache?"
"U-uh, a-a little," I stammered, "It'll pass soon, don't worry."
It was evening again and this time Tsuna was staying over at my place. Hm, I don't think I ever gave much of a description of my room, huh?
Well, it's cozy, not too big, not too small with a short table in the middle of the room. My bed was next to the window and my nightstand on the other side. My desk was a few feet away from the foot of my bed and was next to my closet. I had a small television on top of a short cabinet against the other wall in my room and was some feet away from the door, with various games on the shelves and some consoles in front of it. And like any geeky/nerdy teenager my age, I had posters of video game characters and anime characters on my wall.
Tsuna and I were currently playing a fighting game, I was winning this time.
As the ending battle theme played, Tsuna groaned and fell back, "Aw man!"
"Justice!" I cheered. Then my mom knocked on the door.
"It's almost time for bed, you two!" she warned, "Go brush your teeth!"
"Okay, mom!"
"Yes, Auntie Makoto!"
After washing up, Tsuna and I flopped onto my bed, wrinkling the thick dark green comforter. We turned until we were both facing the ceiling, illuminated by the same streetlights from yesterday.
"Are you sure you're feeling okay, Chi?" Tsuna asked quietly.
"Yeah, I'm sure, why do you ask?"
"Well, other than being worried about you, you looked a lot paler than usual after that test was over."
Ah, so he noticed.
"…It was just the cuts and stuff," I lied, feeling guilty, "You know how I am with that."
He chuckled, "You always freak out about that."
I blushed, "W-well, there's nothing wrong with taking care of wounds before they get a chance to become infected!"
We talked for a few more minutes before letting our heads hit the pillows with a 'fwhump!' Oh, Mom changed the pillows too! Saying our goodnights, I stayed awake a little longer, glancing outside my window, my hand grasping Tsuna's, thinking back to what Reborn-san said today. I felt a cold shiver run up and down my spine while a nostalgic, numbing pain throbbed around my old scars.
...
...I didn't sleep.