Sleep.

Sleep is the most preferred thing done by lazy people, but I am not lazy. I am an energy conserver, so I know that excess sleep can lead to various consequences like being woken up with a fall by the bed as someone pulled the sheets and also getting punched in the gut at school by an extra violent teacher I have. But now, there is no one to wake me up except my phone, so I expected myself to be late, and so I was.

I woke up at 8 and was already extremely late as homeroom would start ten minutes from now. I hurried out of my bed and ran into the shower. Despite the pleasure I feel while letting the hot water trickle my body, I knew there was no time for such things. I left for school on my bike and reached school late, only eating a toast as breakfast and expected to be punched in the gut.

The ride to the school was highly uneventful for me, but, for the passing bystanders, it must be amusing to see a person pedalling as hard as if his life was on stake. I reached school when homeroom was just about to start and closed my eyes; expecting a punch. Getting no pain in a gut for a couple of seconds, I finally opened my eyes to her glaring at me with immense anger.

Huh? You're that angry for just getting late? What the hell is wrong with you, sensei? You will never get married if you get angry at trivial things like that.

Wait, she did not punch me even after being that angry, so maybe this is about something else.

"Meet me after class, Hikigaya." She said with anger in her voice. I felt a huge fear wave going throughout my body and shuddered. That was crazy. She then turned away and entered the class to start the homeroom. I was still frozen in place shocked by sensei's sudden change of demeanour. Somehow, I recovered and sat on my chair.

I felt 'god's gaze' piercing my back. [1]

As I looked towards the direction, intending to decipher the location of the source, I found a pair of green eyes staring at me with immense softness; Miura. However, as soon I looked back towards those captivating eyes, she immediately looked away, leaving the rest of the face with a tinge of red.

I could also feel Yuigahama's stare, but decided to ignore it. I don't want to talk to those two anytime soon.

Throughout the homeroom, I could feel some eyes constantly trying to give me a glance carefully so as to avoiding getting scolded by Hiratsuka-sensei for not paying attention in the class.

The feeling was infuriating, but, somehow, I managed to let it pass by.

After her class ended, I followed her out of the room. She was still angry. I could notice it while she was teaching as she just destroyed a few students for lacking off in the class, leaving everyone dumbfounded. I was really scared of her; not the kind of scared to get punched in the gut, but the kind of scared that is strangely mixed with confusion. As soon we reached a good distance away from the class, she spoke.

"Hikigaya, what did you do in club yesterday?"

So this is what it was all about.

Everything became clear to me as glass. It was like a big puzzle got solved in front of me in no time. I felt immense anger. I didn't expect that they would resort to such childish tactics to get me back; as if to get her tool back in place. After all I've heard, I was getting to hear that it was my fault? Seeing sensei, the only wise thing to do would be to apologize.

"Sorry, sensei." I replied in an indifferent tone. I didn't mean to let my disinterest slip. Judging by her increasingly annoyed look, she was definitely not satisfied with that.

"You're sorry? That's it? I know what you are going through, but this does not give you the right to shout at Yukinoshita!"

'You can't just shut up, can't you?'was what I said to her yesterday. Weren't they exaggerating?

Should I tell her about what I heard yesterday?

I decided not to in order to avoid destroying the image they have in front of sensei. I just need to avoid them as much as I can. This would be the best for everyone. Maybe I won't be able to control myself next time like I was able to do yesterday. I should come up with something pretty quickly.

"I am sorry, sensei. It was just our usual, normal banter, and it got the best of me. I wasn't able to control myself. I am going to take some time off from the club. Can you tell them that?" Her angry expression turned into the one of shock and her jaw dropped. What's there to get shocked about?

"Hikigaya, I can tell that you are lying. Tell me the truth, now." How the hell? I guess I am a bad liar. Even so, I can't tell her the truth yet. I should let her find it out on her own.

"It is what happened, sensei." She was now getting irritated, so I just decided to leave before she makes me spill the truth.

"I have to go attend class. Tell them I won't be back to the club for a while." Saying this I was about to turn but, now, she was looking at me with immense worry on her face. How the hell can she change her moods so fast? Hulk angry to motherly caring in a split second? Is this even possible?

I guess she figured out that something is wrong. I can't blame her for that I am a really terrible liar.

"Hikigaya, you better be back before it's too late."

It is already too late sensei.

I just nodded and went back to class.

Lunch break came. I got up from my seat, and started walking towards the cafeteria to buy some shitty food.

As if I have an option.

I suddenly remembered that Miura had invited me to the roof at lunch. I still haven't asked her which rooftop it was, so I decided to go to the roof of the special building as it was the tallest of the bunch. I could easily find out where she would be.

I walked through the empty hallways. I managed to find an alternate route towards the roof. I definitely don't want to pass by that room. The lack of noises only served to alleviate my uneasiness. I didn't want to meet anyone at all. Maybe except Miura.

I reached the roof of the special building. As I opened the door, I felt the cool breeze brush past my body. The glare from the sun kissed my skin as it always does every time I wake up. I looked towards the spot just a few steps in front of me, and there sat a figure of a woman.

Miura.

Her cheeks were flushed, and was continuously mumbling to herself. As the breeze came once more, my and her hair fleeted in synchronization. What's with this romantic-comedy atmosphere?

Well, at least she's already here. That's great, since I don't have to check other roofs now!

I then noticed that the person I was looking at was throwing daggers at me with a crazily strong glare. I did not even know that this kind of a glare was possible.

She suddenly said with her voice laced with venom. I think.

"Why are you late, Hikio?" Why won't I be late? You didn't even tell me which roof I had to go to!

"I was buying lunch and figuring out which roof you wanted me to come to." Her face immediately got red at that. I'm not that dense. She realized her mistake, and got embarrassed for it.

"O-Oh, my bad…" Stop stuttering. I didn't accuse you of anything. It's okay to forget about things sometimes. We are only human, you knooooooow? Damn that sly fox.

"No problem. Now that I'm here, care to explain what you needed from me?"

"Oh yes, I almost forgot. You said that you brought lunch from the cafeteria, didn't you?"

"Yeah, I did, but what about it?"

"Give it to me." She said as she showed me her right hand's palm. Huh?

"But, why?"

"Just give it to me." She retorted with a condescending tone. What's with her? Is she going to give me lunch? I gave my lunch to her. It was just a sandwich…

She grabbed it, or maybe the more apt term is snatched it. Crumpled it, or maybe the more apt term is rendered it uneatable by destroying it and putting it inside her bag.

What the hell?

"That was my lunch woman!" I frantically shouted. Damn right! What am I supposed to eat now!? You better give me lunch!

"Yes it was, but now this is." She said as she pulled out a couple of bento boxes from her bag and handing one of them. I just can't seem to understand this girl even a bit. Every single time she shows off a new persona of hers. But still, making a bento for me is kind of over the top. I was just joking with my thoughts earlier. I really didn't expect her to give me one. Well, maybe I should have. She has this weird motherly attitude to her, after all.

Wait a minute.

Is this woman planning to kill me? She just gave me two heart attacks in less than two minutes!

She immediately got flustered after she realized what she said.

"Don't misunderstand…" she faked a cough before continuing. "Thisisonlyasathanksforyesterday." She mumbled so fast, I would've missed it if she said it any faster.

"You already did more than enough, Miura. There was no need for this." I replied. It really was unnecessary. She was the person who gave me a shoulder to lean on, and the motive to live on for my family. It may not seem like a big deal to her, but it kind of brought my thoughts together.

"It was not enough, Hikio. Just hurry up and eat it, or lunch break will be over." Now that she has destroyed my lunch, I have no choice but to accept her bento. There's no other reason I can think of. At least, I don't want to. Hey, but wait…

"My lunch was worth my money!" She replied with an irritated look.

"So, what? You want to eat a crappy sandwich instead of homemade bento? Are you that big of an idiot, Hikio?"

I couldn't think anything to answer her accusation. She kinds of reminds me of Yukinoshita for that matter. Damn, she can be really scary when she wants to be.

"Tch. Whatever." She smirks. I opened the box. It was a traditional Japanese bento with no western crap. Just how I like it. It consisted of eggrolls, pork cutlets and curry rice. What a heavenly combo! Definitely worth 8000 Hachiman points! I grabbed the chopsticks and picked up a pork cutlet and ate it. I was, flabbergasted. The taste of the cutlet, the juiciness of each bite, it was… pure heaven!

Miura was looking at me as if she was expecting something out of me. Maybe she wants a compliment for her mother who did the hard work of preparing two heavenly bentos.

"Your mother surely makes some delicious food, Miura." She looked at me with shock. So it was not her mother? Maybe by the chef?

My chain of thoughts was broken by a sudden shout.

"I made it, you damn bastard!" There comes the third heart attack. This women surely seems like she came here to kill me!

"You cook this good?" I asked, unable to hide the surprised tone in my voice.

"I don't cook this good. I took help from my mother." Damn, she is acting all dere-dere.

Don't play with my heart like that!

"But… weren't you the one who said cooking will spoil your nails back at Chiba village?"

She looked like she had been caught red handed, or I should say, red faced. But I digress. She is the fire queen and I am just a poor commoner wanting to be pampered by the caring queen.

"Just eat it, will you? Or else, I'll make you give it back to me if you have a problem with it. I won't mind eating two boxes of my delicious food." See that, ladies and gentlemen? That's how a mouse gets crushed by a tiger. A fitting example.

"Yes, ma'am. I understand." I replied, stoically. No, actually, I was terrified. She smirks.

The rest of the lunch break was rather uneventful except for our occasional bantering. Whatever we talked about, we really just had to make a big deal out of it, eh?

Having finished our food, we took out our beverages. She brought some kind of juice. I, on the other hand, brought out the best of the best: MAX Coffee! Warm, as I like it. I really need to find the inventor of this coffee and show him my gratitude for making the best beverage possible for human beings.

I was enjoying my drink thoroughly, enjoying the peaceful silence we were in until she spoke again.

"From now own, come here every lunch break." Huh? I don't like where this is going.

"What for?"

"To have lunch, you idiot. What else?" She glared at me

"I will make lunch for you. You can just pocket your money or something." she then said with an averted gaze.

There comes my fourth heart attack. Still…

Thank you very much!

I have never seen a person as unpredictable as this girl. Maybe. However, there was one thing still bothering me.

"That's… actually fine and all, but what about your Hayama and your clique? " I asked

She was left speechless at this. Maybe she did not consider the consequences, or, worse, she ignored them. She fidgeted, most probably figuring out what to say and how to handle the situation. With a sudden look of determination, she replied.

"I'll handle them. As for you, just shut up and don't tell anyone about this, or you die." she said with fire in her eyes. I'm sure she will surely kill me or at least do something similar if I don't comply, so I have no other choice.

My decision was not only based of the life threat that I received, but also the fact that whatever her clique is, maybe it is, indeed, made up of the thing that I hated the most. That is, false relationships. Still, it means everything to her. This kind of thing has a tendency to destroy their status quota if it got out of control.

I simply nodded.

We both gathered our stuff and left for the classroom.

After the last class of the day, my instincts told me to go out of class and wait for Yuigahama by the corridor next to the class. It was my usual routine in the first place. However, from today and onwards, there was no need for that routine.

The orange glow gave out by the sunset filled the room. It certainly didn't fit the cheerful noises coming from the sickeningly youth-indulged humans around me. It was like adding nothing to anything. It just never adds up.

Having nothing else to do, I started looking around the class only to see most of the students leave for their clubs or houses and the rest chatting with their friends. The one group which stood out the most was Hayama's clique. There was something odd, and it was obvious. Yuigahama was not acting as cheerful or interested as she normally did; whether it was genuine or fake.

I glanced at her for only less than a second, but it was enough for me to realize that Yuigahama was trying to get away from the clique to talk to me.

I decided to activate one of my 108 loner skills: false sleep. I put on my earphones quickly, and, well, pretended to sleep.

Soon enough, Yuigahama approached me and started blabbering about me coming back to the club. There is no goddamn way I am going to go back to that place again, Gahama-chan. Please leave me alone. Damn, she's annoying as hell. She doesn't even get the gist that I am not interested and keeps on blabbering.

I just secretly turn up the volume.

After a few minutes, which felt like hours to me, she finally gave up and went away. Probably to fulfil her Yuri fantasies with Yukinoshita. A few minutes after that, I got up and started to leave. I need to visit Komachi today.

As soon as I left the classroom, I found Miura standing by the doorframe.

"Why were you ignoring Yui?" she inquired.

"Ah, you noticed." I said sarcastically, rolling my eyes.

"Are you a fool Hikio? Anyone could see through it if they pay even just a little bit of attention! Yui was continuously speaking, and any human being could have been woken up that sort of noise!"

Tch. My 108 skills probably need recalibration. Most of them have been rendered useless in front of people.

"I told you, didn't I? I told you that they both were using me like a tool all this time to solve their requests. Why should I listen to her? Why should I go back there? Only to be used again?" Her response was immediate.

"I know Hikio, but what if it's a misunderstanding? What if it was just a joke? You have to give them a chance." She said in a motherly and calming tone which strangely dissolved away my anger without even me noticing it. How can this woman manipulate me?

"I will think about it." I don't want to jump to conclusions just now so that I might regret later.

"Good enough for me." She said with a smile. "You going home now?" These kind of smiles tend to get the best of me and try to bring back my nauseatingly optimistic past self.

"No, I was going to the hospital to see my little sister."

"Okay… Bye, Hikio."

"Yeah. See you around."

I walked the concrete floor of the sidewalks in the streets of Chiba. I spared the people that passed by me a quick glance, though no one ever returned the gesture. Their conversations were such a bore, my ears started to perceive all of it as inconceivable noise. That, and the honking of cars, the sound of their engines, their wheels sliding against the road, and the background noises coming from the city filled the air.

As I neared the hospital, the surroundings clearly became quieter than before. It was expected. People have that sense of understanding that you shouldn't be noisy in these kinds of places.

I reached the hospital, and immediately informed the staff behind the counter that I was going to visit my little sister. I started to walk to Komachi's private ward.

The walk was monotonous. Other than the rattling of wheels and the gloomy expressions of the people, there was nothing worth listening. The hallways were engulfed with the color of blue-green having no windows for the sunlight to enter. It reminded me of the horror movies I used to watch back in middle school. I simply have no time for it now.

I reached the door I visited last time. Without hesitation, I put my grip on the metal knob, and twisted it. As I opened the door, I saw Komachi again. The scene that made me lose my composure last time was still present. The tubes and machines that were keeping her alive was still there. The machines still showed those random numbers that I fail to comprehend. It was as if time had stopped to move in this room.

I sat down on the stool next to her and started talking. Talking about the day, and the usual things we talked about. Maybe she could at least hear me.

I am living for her sake now, so why not tell her all about it?

[1]: A reference to Chaos; Head. 'God's gaze' is that kind of feeling that anyone could sense. It's like someone, or something, was staring into your very being. It was like you are being watched. This was repeatedly used in the VN/anime.

A/N

Hey guys, back with another chapter. Hope you like it. Forgive me if you think 8man is acting OOC as it maybe sometimes intentional but mostly won't be intentional. If you can notice here, 8man is in the recovery phase here. I also tried to make the chapter a bit longer, as many of you requested. See you next time.

A/N (Aqua-sama)

I'm actually liking the story. It also makes me even more determined to fix the grammar. I hope everyone else also does. Here's chapter 3.