"No one is useless in this world who lightens the burdens of another"- Charles Dickens
I woke up a bit early today. I worked a little on my sketch before heading out, running into Hisao (not literally, of course) along the way. He was dressed in some kind of sport attire and looked red in the face.
"What happened to you?"
"Went for a run" he explained.
I nodded and left him alone, going for a stroll.
I was the second person to arrive at class, Hisao being the first. He looked like he was ready to kill a man with his bare hands.
"What happened to you?"
"It's been a long morning" he said as if that explained everything "I just had to deal with Kenji"
"Who?"
He gave me a weird look. I think I was meant to know who Kenji was "Kenji," Hisao said again "Lives in 117. Thick glasses, wears a scarf, is a complete conspiracy nut?"
I shook my head. I still didn't remember, although now I could understand why Hisao looked frustrated. Conspiracy theorists were an annoying bunch.
So I sat at my desk, next to him. Hisao's head drooped as if he was napping, leaving me to my own devices until class started.
I was tracing my finger around a knot in the desk when I heard a noise in the doorway.
"Excuse me" It was Lilly "Is there anyone here?"
"Good morning, Lilly" Hisao said, his head shooting up.
"Hi Lilly" I added
Lilly almost jumped in surprise "Hisao? Kaito? Good morning. I didn't hear you earlier"
"Hisao was napping" I explained "I was... distracted. Never saw you"
"You didn't have to tell her that" Hisao grumbled
"Have either of you seen Hanako today, by any chance?" she asked
"No, she seems to come in just before the bells ring. Or after that" Hisao said
"Do you want us to take a message?" I said.
"No, it's fine" Lilly smiled "It's strange, but I think we're the only three people in the school right now"
"I shouldn't have gotten up so early, then" Hisao sighed
"You're chastising yourself for doing something that other people should?" Lilly arched an eyebrow "Punctuality is a good thing. It's a very busy morning today. The festival is coming up soon, and today is the deadline for event registration, budget reports and any other official paperwork. It could be that everyone is trying to complete the necessary forms at the last minute. Maybe that's why it's so quiet today"
The door was flung open with a massive SLAM followed by an ear-splitting "Hi hi!"
"Misha" I grumbled
"Hi boys!" Misha called to us, Shizune unsurprisingly standing behind her.
"Hey" we both said hello at once in a monotonous grunt.
Shizune signed something once she noticed Lilly "Look, it's the class representative! Hello!" Misha translated with a smile.
Lilly smiled "Good morning"
Shizune made a smug face "Of course, you're not the representative of this class, right? Right?"
"I'm not" she agreed, a harsher edge to her voice. Enemies indeed.
"You're here early, Shizune" Hisao noted
"You were here even earlier than us!" was the reply. Misha then started speaking again as Shizune turned to Lilly "Class rep! It's a good thing you're here! We have to talk. The festival is coming up in three days, right? Every other class has already handed in their projected budget reports for their events! Even the first-years! Except you! Wahaha!"
"There is still time to hand it in, isn't there?" Lilly responded
"Today! The deadline is today! You're certainly taking your time, aren't you? If I had it my way, I'd have all of the necessary paperwork days ago, but someone had to say "the deadline, please extend it!""
"Yes, that was me" Lilly admitted "Planning something on this scale is not a small task, and a week is too small a time frame to expect a whole class to work out such a complex issue completely"
"Do you want to know what's harder than distributing the funds for one class event? Handling the same matter for every class in the school and then some! The one who does that is me!" Misha seemed to be getting more and more emotional on Shizune's behalf.
"Hey, Shizune, aren't you being a little too hard on her?" Hisao spoke up "There's still a whole day left"
"Please, Hisao" Lilly sighed "It's alright" She then spoke to Shizune again "If this is about the budget then I'm disappointed you think I have forgoten about it. I understand how important it is"
"Then can I have it, please?" Misha demanded on Shizune's behalf.
"I don't think she has it" I said "Not right now anyway"
"It's not here right now" Lilly admitted "I asked two students to take care of it for me. Students from my class" She put a weird amount of emphasis on that last sentence.
It it were possible, Shizune's frown got even bigger "It was your responsibility! A budget report isn't something you should just be delegating away; as class rep, it's your job to be on top of things! This kind of disregard for proper procedure is really just terrible!"
"They completed it, being capable of doing so, but the students have been sick recently, so they could not come to school and give it back to me" she explained "If you want, I will apologise on their behalf for getting sick"
"Okay!" Misha smiled, although Shizune just seemed to get angrier. As such, Misha was translating her words with a tone that didn't seem to fit her words anymore "Lilly, don't they live here at the school? That's a five minute walk, you know. What could they possibly have that prevents them from taking five minutes out of their busy lives to drop off something that will affect the enjoyment of their entire class?"
Lilly goes to speak, but she was stopped by Shizune, who was signing at speeds that even Misha was having trouble conveying her words properly "And what's with that attitude! I said that it's not something you should be delegating away; are you the class representative or aren't you? Tell me the names of those two students, they should have your job if you can't even handle something this simple yourself"
"One form isn't the full extent of what I am supposed to take care of" Lilly retorted.
Shizune was smiling now, although it wasn't very warm "Of course, you do so much class rep! It must be so difficult being you!"
"I was actually just discussing the budget report before you came by" Lilly said "You must be very talented to have to have finished all your student council duties so quickly that you can track me down to make sure I don't forget my own"
I was pretty sure that was meant to be sarcasm, given the look on Lilly's face. Shizune seemed to take it as such as her reply was "Are you accusing me of slacking off? It seems like you're confusing me with yourself!"
"I don't think so. That would be a very difficult thing for me to do; comparing myself to you"
"You're right, the difference between us is like heaven and hell"
"And it's not hard to guess which one you might represent"
Burn.
Even Misha was realising that she translating a full blown argument now, her smile wavering.
"Hicchan! Kaito! Don't you slack off either!"
"What?" I said
"What are you talking about?" Hisao seemed to be as confused as I was
"Aren't you taking part in the festival? You are, aren't you? The both of you? Then I hope you're going to do a lot more to make sure it goes smoothly than this person!"
"We just got here!" I spluttered, unsure how to deal with this sudden dump of responsibility.
"It's not like we could do much, even if we wanted to" Hisao shrugged.
"That's right" Lilly seemed to be supporting us "You shouldn't expect transfer students to jump right into this on their first week"
"Yeah" Hisao said "You're being unreasonable with us all"
Shizune signed with a frown "Excuses, excuses. Miss Class Rep has had plenty of time to deal with her report. And you have been repeatedly offered a place to help with the student council work, but you have refused to commit to making the festival a success"
"Yeah, but as I said back then, I'm not sure if..."
"Enough!" I barked "I have a headache!"
Hisao sighed "Fine" before speaking to Lilly "Lilly, class is going to be starting soon, so we can talk more later. I'll tell Hanako you were looking for her"
"Thank you, Hisao" she nodded "I'll leave now, then" and with the warmest smile I've ever seen on her face, she left.
Shizune, on the other hand, had a stare that chilled my blood.
Hanako never came to class that morning.
When the final bell rang, Shizune and Misha finally deigned to speak to Hisao and I.
"Uhhh! I'm so tired!" Misha complained.
"Festival preparations must be tough for you" Hisao said. My guess was he was trying to avoid the impending argument.
Shizune scoffed before signing "Well of course, we're in the Student Council you know, so we're pretty busy. It's an important duty of ours, to ensure the success of the festival with all our strength. We would shame ourselves in front of the past student council generations if the festival were to fail. That's why there must be no flaws, no... err, I think that was "incumbrances" (Misha muddled the signs there), no nothing that might make the festival short of perfect"
I had stopped listening. I saw Hanako walk through the door.
Misha noticed too, reacting with a jesting "Hey! Playing delinquent again?"
Hanako blushed, only to back out and hide behind the door-frame when Shizune stared.
"Hi, Hanako" I said, rising from my chair "What's up?"
"H...Has Lilly been here?" she asked
"Sorry, haven't seen Satou" Misha shrugged "She, eh, came by in the morning though"
I was a little irritated by Shizune, who just kept staring at her. Didn't she know that she hated that?
"Do...Do you know where she is?" Hanako asked in a trembling voice
Shizune pouted as she signed "If she has any sense in her head, she's in her classroom, working on their festival project. But who knows where that woman is loitering at"
"You need to find her?" Hisao ignored Shizune's comment "She was looking for you in the morning but I guess you must have missed each other"
"Y...Yeah"
"Let's go" I said, moving to the door "We can find her together"
"I'll come too" Hisao said as well "If it's okay"
Hanako gave a small nod of the head, which we took as a yes.
"It's dinnertime soon. Were you planning to eat with Lilly?" he asked her
She nodded.
I could understand why she'd feel she needed Lilly for dinner. The cafeteria was more crowded during lunch, but dinner still had a large crowd and it lasted even longer.
So the three of us left together. Hisao and I had to slow down so Hanako wouldn't be left behind. I was enjoying myself, but I was a little saddened that Hanako kept as far from us, from me, as possible. I guess she still wasn't very comfortable with us yet.
We checked the cafeteria. The crowd was smaller, but Lilly was nowhere to be seen. Hanako seems to shrink even further into herself, which didn't help her already diminuative frame.
"We'll find her" I assured her "Where else would she be?"
"N-Not sure" she admitted "I was reading... in the library"
"I like the library too" I smiled.
"If I had to guess, she'd be in her own class like Shizune said" Hisao theorised "Right?"
"R-Right" Hanako said
So we made our way up there. I was content with the silence. Hisao, on the other hand, was trying to make small talk "So you and Lilly usually hang out together after class, right?"
"Y-Yes"
"Must be a pain being in different classes, I'm guessing"
She nodded "Lilly... comes by the classroom, though. Even when she's busy..." she said with a small smile. I thought it was cute.
"That's nice of her" I noted.
As we climbed the stairs, a group of students passed us. They kept to themselves, but Hanako still hid herself from them, staying close to me, since I was taller.
"You okay?" I asked her
"J-Just keep going..." she whispered
Even after they're gone she doesn't move away, not even as we climb to the third floor. I thought I was shy and sometimes nervous, but I was beginning to realise Hanako's anxiety was on a completely different level.
When we came to Lilly's classroom we were met by an overwhelming amount of noise. I made an uncomfortable grunt in the back of my throat.
"What's up with you?" Hisao asked me.
"Lot of noise in there" I grumbled
"Can't be helped" he shrugged "At least we know there's a good chance she's in there" Hisao opened the door. I prepared myself for the noise, while Hanako seemed to take cover behind me.
Inside was a chaotic bundle of activity, everyone running around working on their own separate tasks. The noise was deafening.
"Must be working on the festival stuff" Hisao wondered aloud, although how I heard him over the noise of everyone else confounds me.
Where was Lilly? Hisao's pointed at something. I guess he found her.
Upon reflection, she wasn't that hard to find; her blonde hair made her stand out and everyone seemed to come and go from her like she was in charge. We had to carefully weave our way through the crowd to make our way to her.
"Hi, Lilly" Hisao called to her.
Lilly looked up, looking around to find the source of the voice "Sorry, who..."
"It's Kaito and Hanako" I spoke "That was Hisao"
"H-Hi"
Lilly nodded, and spoke to the girl that she was speaking with "For the moment, just ask Moriya for his advice. Kenji's busy with painting one of the banners already" before turning to us "Sorry about that. Our class doesn't have many students with even partial eyesight, so they're in high demand"
"I love painting!" I blurted out. Painting and other art was something I always did in the hospital to pass the time. The doctors always gave me whatever I needed because it improved my dexterity (apparently).
"We could always give a hand if you'd like" Hisao volunteered
"Wanna join us?" I turned to Hanako. I had a very large grin on my face. She nodded, and my smile got even bigger "Great!"
Lilly sighed with relief "Ah, that's good. This might actually get finished before everyone goes off to dinner now. Would you be able to help the person painting the main banner? It's a big task for him to do, but nobody else can help"
"Kenji? Sure" Hisao said
Lilly looked surprised "I take it you've met?"
"We all have rooms next to each other. Hard to miss each other, really" he answered
"Well, it's good to see you're getting friends so fast" she smiled.
Hisao made a grim, forced smile. "Sure. Friends"
"Isn't he the conspiracy nu-" I started to say before Hisao put a hard elbow into my side.
"Let's go help him then" Hisao spoke over me "He knows what he needs doing, right?"
Lilly nodded "That's right. Just ask if you have any questions"
I practically skipped over to where Kenji and the banner where, now oblivious to the noise. Painting was one of my most absolute favourite things to do. Painting was familiar. Familiar was good.
We found Kenji, staring at his banner with intense concentration while he worked "Hey, Kenji" Hisao greeted him with only half the enthusiasm.
"What's up man?" he sprung to his feet "What're you doing here?"
"We were going to help with the banner" I explained, restlessly tapping my foot.
"Who's "we""
"Kaito, Hanako and I" Hisao elaborated
"H...Hello..." Hanako spoke up, coming out from behind me.
"Oh" Kenji looked suspiscious "I guess that's okay"
We all knelt down around the banner. The banner read "Class 3-2 Noodle Stand".
"You guys selling noodles at the festival?" Hisao asked, seemingly insistant on making conversation.
"Yeah, some stalls outside. Or something" Kenji answers
"Can we start now?" I asked, eager to get started.
"How do you want to split this?" Hisao asked Kenji "We do the borders and you do the text? Or do you want to swap and do the borders?"
"Text is mine. You do borders" he said very firmly.
And like that, we got to work. I was loving it. I lost myself in the work, deaf to everything around me.
It wasn't long before I was tapped by the lighest hand on my arm. It was Hanako of all people. "What?" I asked, a little harsher than I really meant to be. I wanted to keep painting.
"Finished" she said quietly.
I looked down at the banner. Everyone was finished. If I had painted any more I would have ruined the pattern "Oh. Sorry". I rose to my feet, helping Hanako up in the process.
I stared at the scar on her hand, noticing that they also ran up her wrist. How far did it go?
She quickly covered her wrist with another hand "Sorry" I said. I had stared.
"Looks good, doesn't it?" Hisao smiled, staring down at the banner.
"It does...I guess" Hanako said
"It looks great" I smiled at her.
Her own smile was small, but just as special.
We went back to Lilly. "We've finished the banner" Hisao said "I guess that's all that needs to be done?"
Lilly nodded "Thank you Hisao, all of you. If there's any way I can thank you...?"
"It's fine" Hisao shrugged "Beats sitting in my room studying, at any rate"
"I love to paint" I said
"I don't mind either" Hanako also said, her voice clearer due a significant lack of people in the class now.
Lilly nodded "Is Kenji still here?"
"Yeah, just finished!" came his voice from the other end of the room, before leaving his finished work to dry and leaving. The rest of the people remaining started to leave as well, until only Lilly, Hisao, Hanako and I were left.
"I guess that's everyone" Hisao spoke
"I hope we don't have to do anything like that again" Lilly sighed.
"But painting's lots of fun" I complained, thinking she meant that.
"I think she means working late" Hisao corrected me "Right?"
She nodded "Indeed. The class's plans this year were ambitious. Maybe too ambitious"
"The stalls look nice, though" Hanako spoke
"Yeah!" I agreed with her
Lilly smiled "My my, I'm sure a lot of us would be glad to hear that. At least now there's not much work to do until the festival itself"
"Umm..." Hanako spoke up again "It's getting pretty late. Should we go?"
"That's probably a good idea" Lilly nodded "Are you going back the dorms as well, boys?"
"May as well" I yawned
"Guess we'll tag along" Hisao said
I was never fond of the dark, but the walk between the school building and the dorms was quite calm and relaxing with company. The only sounds to hear was out footsteps and the tapping of Lilly's cane.
Hisao yawned. "Tired?" Lilly asked him
"Yeah" he admitted "Still getting used to the flow of things, I guess. The...uh...thing with Shizune was a little...uh..."
"Annoying" I suggested
"Surprising" Hisao said instead.
"I'm sorry about it being so public" Lilly said with a long sigh "Shizune and I... go back some ways"
Wow, I didn't think it was possible be angered by words alone, but Lilly seemed to get irritated just saying Shizune's name.
"I'll be glad once the festival is over, in any case" she continued
"I can imagine" Hisao shrugged "My old school's festivals were a lot more low-key than this"
I, personally, could not remember the festivals at my old school. I remembered lots of things, but not that. Did we even have festivals?
"Yamaku stresses the idea of a school community, so the staff likes to make our festivals and such special occasions" she explained
"Then why do the kids do it?" I asked
"It's an unfair world" Hisao said jokingly.
The girls chuckled at his comment. I wasn't quite sure what the joke was though.
"I suppose coming from a strict all-girls school helped me a bit with Yamaku" Lilly theorised "Compared to there, Yamaku is much more relaxed"
Eventually we came to the dorms and had to bid the girls goodbye
"See you Lilly, Hanako" Hisao said
"Bye" I gave a small wave.
The girls nodded in farewell and left. Hisao and I entered the boys dorm, bid each other goodnight and went to sleep.
I slept like a rock.