By the time evening rolls around, I have already moved all of my things upstairs and to my room. Now I sit at the table with Dojima and Nanako sitting in silence while I eat the food they got for me. "Alright, let's have a toast," Dojima proposes. Not willing to turn his suggestion down, Nanako and I raise are drinks into the air with him even though I for one have no idea what we are even toasting for.
"So…" It seems Dojima is determined to keep the conversation going. "Your grandfather's working overseas, right?"
"Yes, he is on his way to America right now to work on this big murder case."
"Oh, yeah. He said that. But still, it must be rough for you, having to move in with complete strangers because of your Grandfather's work."
"Believe me, this is not the worst situation I have found myself in while my grandpa was away."
"Like what?" he sounds genuinely intrigued by the way I said that. Sadly, this is not a very auspicious conversation on my part.
"Nothing you need to concern yourself over, I can promise you that much." I need to steer away from this topic, now.
"Oh, well, okay." He seems to be dropping it here but I can tell the topic never changed in his head. "Anyway, it's just me and Nanako here, so it'll be nice having someone like you around." Someone like me? You don't even know me yet. "Just as long as you're here, you're family, so make yourself at home."
"Thank you for your kindness." I bow by head slightly.
"C'mon, there's no need to be so formal." He let out a chuckle. "Look, you're making Nanako all tense."
"Right, sorry. That's just a habit of mine."
"No, that's fine. I was just telling you that you don't need to be formal if you don't want to." He looked back down at his food. "Anyway… Let's eat." Before he could even take a bite, Dojima gets a call. "Ugh… Who's calling at this hour?" He quickly answers it. "Dojima speaking."
Even though I can't here the other end of the call, I know exactly what they are saying. He's being called into work right now. I can tell via his expression. He looks both guilty and disappointed, a look I have seen on my grandpa's face far too many times. Looking back at Nanako, I can tell she knows it too. "Yeah, I see… So where is it?" The way he speaks confirms my earlier hypothesis. "All right, I'm on my way." He hangs up the phone and under his breath says "Looks like I made the right choice to skip the booze." I look back at Nanako. She looks so sad and lonely. I wonder if I ever looked like that to other people when I was her age.
"Sorry, but I gotta go take care of some business. Go ahead and eat without me." My heart fell for the little girl across the table from me. Now that I'm older and can understand Dojima's side of things more, my heart falls for him as well. "I don't know how late I'll be. Nanako, you help her out, okay?"
"…Okay." You can almost hear the depression in her voice. Dojima walks away without another word to either of us. Just when I thought he was gone, I hear him scream something from outside. "Nanako, it's raining out. What did you do with the laundry!?" Laundry? This girl is responsible for the laundry?
"I already brought it in!" Wow, you're pretty responsible for a girl your age.
"All right. Well, I'm off." Now he's gone and I am left alone with Nanako, a little girl that I have just met and know nothing about. This situation will get awkward quickly. Thankfully, before I completely humiliate myself with me lack of social skills, Nanako reaches over to the remote and turns on the TV.
"-for this week. Next, let's take a look at the hourly breakdown of tomorrow's weather." It seems that the weather channel is on. This would be useful to know I knew I was going to be doing anything tomorrow. From the way things look right now, the most likely outcome is that I will spend all of the next day unpacking. "With storm clouds moving in from the west, expect rain throughout the day tomorrow in most areas." Great, now I have one more thing to be worried about.
"Let's eat," Nanako says, cutting of the weather lady. It seems that the only thing I can do now is try and talk to the girl.
"I'm sorry your dad had to leave like that. Does he do that a lot?"
"Yeah, but it's fine." She pauses for a second. "My dad's a detective."
'Really," I say pretending that I didn't know that already "My grandpa's a detective too, as am I."
"Really, you're a detective!?" It seems that she has grown very interested in me. I'm not sure if that is good or bad.
"Yes," I don't want to go into details right now, so I change the subject back to its original course. "Anyway, don't worry about him having to leave like that. He doesn't really have a choice. He still loves you." Remembering all of the days and nights I spent alone as a child, I really do feel for this girl. She reminds me a lot of myself when I was here age. Of course, a lot has changed since then.
Before she can even respond to what I said, the TV regained both of our attentions. "And now for the local news. City council secretary Taro Namatame is under fire for an alleged relationship with a female reporter." Not this again. "His wife, enka ballad sensation Misuzu Hiiragi, revealed to this station that she will likely pursue damages. In response, Eye Television has decided to cancel all of announcer Mayumi Yamano's televised appearances. Until allegations of an affair with Mr. Namatame are resolved, she will remain off the air and out of the public eye."
"This is boring," Nanako interrupts. I couldn't agree more. She changes the station to what looks like a story commercial.
"At Junes, every day is Customer Appreciation Day. Come see for yourself and get in touch with our products!" This is still much more favorable than the news. "Every day's great at your Junes!" The voice sings.
"Every day's great at your Junes!" Nanako mimics in the most adorable way possible. It is so adorable, in fact, that I can't help but let out a chuckle. Nanako looks at me. "Aren't you going to eat?" Oh right. I almost forgot. Eating is an option.
"Right, of course." I take a bit with my chopsticks.
After we both finish eating, excuse myself and retire to my room. It's quite small compared to my room back at the estate, but it will certainly do. Because I have neglected to unpack as of right now, the room is still flooded with boxes. With nothing to do, I decide to go to bed on the futon Dojima is allowing me to use.
Fog. That's the only thing I see as I open my eyes. Looking at the floor I stand on it appears to be a bunch of red stones chaotically placed together. Despite the odd situation, I have no fear as I proceed forward. After less than a minute of traveling, I hear a voice in my head.
"Do you seek the truth..?" It asks. Ignoring the voice, I continue on my way. "If it's truth you desire, come and find me…" Now the voice sounds less like it's in my head and more like it's coming from right ahead. I speed into a run to a strange looking door. It spiral open for me. Behind it I see more fog and a shadow thing.
"So… You are the one pursuing me…" It has the same voice as before. "Hm, try all you like." It's now that I notice the gun in my hand. Has it always been there? Attempting to keep my eye on the target I shoot. Considering the fact that no scream of pain comes from in front of me, I assume that I missed. "Hmmm… It seems that you can see a little, despite the fog…" Wait, does that mean I hit whatever this thing is? I try to attack again. This time I feel a strange sensation rush through me as a card appears in front of the nozzle of my gun. Without thinking, I shoot it and feel a stronger sensation. The next thing I know this weird shape attacks the creature instead of a bullet. What was that? I wonder. "I see… Indeed…
That is very interesting information…" I strike again, the same way I did initially. "But… You will not catch me so easily… If what you seek is 'truth,' then your search will be even harder." Suddenly, the amount of fog increases to the point where I can barely see my shoes. Despite the obstacles, I still attempt to hit the foe, this time positive I missed. ""Everyone sees what they want to… And the fog only deepens." Once again, I attack and miss. "Will we meet again…? At a place other than here… Hm… I look forward to it." Even though I could no longer see the shadowy figure, I can sense it leave. As it leaves I feel my consciousness fade.
"Breakfast's ready," I hear a voice say from beyond the door. Oh, that must have been a dream.
"Hold on, Nanako, give me a minute." Slowly but surely, I stand back on my feet and proceed to the kitchen downstairs. Once I arrive, I see Nanako by the table carrying a plate containing three pieces of sausage and an egg. On the table I see an identical plate and two plates with toast on them.
"Good morning," Nanako says while laying the plate on the table. "Okay, let's eat." I'm still standing there in astonishment.
"Nanako, did you do the cooking?" She nods.
"I can toast bread… and cook sunny-side up eggs in the morning. Dad can't cook, so I buy diner." Wow. And here I am barely being able to toast bread without burning it.
"That's amazing, Nanako-chan. Who taught you how to do that?"
"My mom," She answered quickly. Oh no, I can't make her sad now. Great, I can't say three sentences without messing up.
"Well, I think you are doing a wonderful job. I can't do any of that." I take a seat across the table from the girl and begin eating. It's not as good as the eggs I would eat at home, but still very impressive.
"You're starting school today, right?" It's now that notice that she is sounding happier today than yesterday. Good.
"Yes. I'm going to Yasogame High."
"Awesome. My school's on the way, so… let's go together." She definitely sounds much more cheerful. She also seems somewhat restless.
After we both finish eating, we begin our journey to each of our respective schools. I notice that Nanako has been staring at me the entire time. I decide not to ask her about it as we walk in silence. That is, until I hear the little girl say something. "Why are you wearing a boy's uniform?" she asks quite innocently. Right, I hadn't explained it to her yet.
"Well, I'm just more comfortable like this. There isn't much more to be said."
"Oh." The way her eyes wander indicate that she is lost in thought. Finally looking back at me, she says, "okay," with a wide grin. Good, she didn't ask any more questions. Even though it is a conclusion most jump to, I am not transgender. I just simply do not feel comfortable in skirts and such. My grandpa explained this thoroughly to the school and Dojima.
We spend the rest of the walk in silence, neither of us having anything else to say. About ten minutes later we stop in the middle of the floodplains. "You keep going straight from here," Nanako tells me. I give her a confused look. "My school's this way. Bye." I wanted to stop her, but thought better of it. I'm sure she knows what she's doing. After watching her walk off, I continued to my school.
Soon after the school comes into sight, a noise comes from behind me. "Whoaaaa..!" it says. I turn my gaze to the sound's source to find a boy struggling to both pilot and bike and hold his umbrella. Out of instinct I jump out of the way. With a load crash, the poor student crashes violently into a pole. I move to go help him before I see exactly what part of him got hurt. I think he'd prefer to pretend that no one saw that happen than have me help him. I stroll right past him. As I do so I hear him wince in pain.
Upon entering the building, I am directed to classroom 1-1. Before I can enter, I am stopped by who I assume is the homeroom teacher. "Hey, whoa, stop right there." The voice for some unknown reason sounds off to me, as if I should run for the hills. I turn around to see a very odd looking man. His hair cut is one that could never be described in words. He has what could possibly be the world's largest overbite and a permanently pissed-off-looking face. "Are you the new transfer student?" he asks not losing his rough tone. I try not to let it phase me.
"Yes, I am." I reach out my hand to him. "My name is-"
"I know what your stupid name is. Now put your hand down and let me talk." Taken aback, I slowly put my hand down. "The name's Kinshiro Morooka. Now let me lay down the rules here." Something in his voice makes me shiver. "First off, I don't care if you're from the city, that doesn't make you some big shot. Second of all, I also don't care that you're a detective. I will treat you just like any one of my other idiotic students. Third…" This goes on for a while. As he keeps giving me more rules, I start to get more and more offended. Once the bell finally rings, I feel like crying out in joy. "Come on, let's go." He quickly enters the room. When I try to follow, he almost slams the door in my face.
Walking into the classroom, I see students hurrying to their desks while I am left standing awkwardly in the front of the room. "All right, shut your traps!" With a face like that, no one dares to defy him. "I'm Kinshiro Morooka, your homeroom teacher from today forward! First things first! Just 'cause it's spring doesn't mean you can swoon over each other like love-struck baboons. Long as I'm around, you students are going to be pure as the driven snow!" From the looks of it, this will not be a very entertaining class.
"Now I hate wasting my time, but I'd better introduce this transfer student," he continues. All eyes dart to me. "This sad sack's been thrown from the big city out to the middle of nowhere like yesterday's garbage." He is aware of the fact that I can get him in trouble for talking to students like that, right? "Anyway, introduce yourself, quickly."
"I-I'm Naoto Shirogane." I was slightly off guard for not expecting to have to talk.
"Hey, what's with the stutter?"
"My apologies."
"Okay, whatever. Now listen up." He's addressing me directly now. "This town is miles away from your big city of perverts and assholes, in more ways than one. You better not be starting any trouble." Even though that is more or less the exact same lecture he gave me outside, I nod.
After ranting to the class for a while, he finally turns back to be. "Now find an open seat!" Glad to finally get out of everyone's eyes, I walk over to a desk in the middle with a fast gait. On my way, however, I hear Mr. Morooka mumble "-ya stupid crossdresser" under his breath. It was so low that I doubt anyone else in the class heard, but I did, stopping me in my tracks. "What are you doing!? Sit down!" After taking a deep breath, I continued to the desk without another word. And here I am, hoping no teacher would call me out on it.
While I take my seat, I hear other students whispering, but no well enough to make out their words. "Shut your traps! I'm taking roll, and I damn well expect you to respond in an orderly manner!" As he calls off names, I look around at all of my fellow students. Not many of them stand out to me. That is the whole point of a school uniform. The only kid that does stand out, however, REALLY stands out. He is sitting in the far back of the room completely disregarding almost all of the dress code rules. The wears a total punk outfit and his hair looks like it was most likely bleached. I wonder why no one's called him out on it.
After hours of boring lectures and strange teachers, it finally is lunch time. Though most of the students stayed in the classroom to eat, some went out in search of friends. I decided to leave as while due to the stares I know I would be receiving if I stayed. As I traveled the school, I looked for a place no one else was so I could eat in peace. Though it is not the most effective way to make friends, I know I would be a failure at that anyway.
I wonder if there is any way I could-. My thoughts are cut off by a body colliding with mine as both of us fall to the ground. "Oh my god, I am so sorry," the person lying on the ground next to me says. We both stand up and brush ourselves off. Looking her down, she is the second most out-of-uniform person I've seen all day. It isn't much, though. All she's doing is wearing a green sweater over her uniform.
"Don't worry about it. I'm sure it's at least partially my fault."
"Okay, well-" She cuts herself off.
"Is something wrong?"
"What? Oh, no. It's nothing." She quickly changes the subject. "Hey, are you new here? I've never seen you around."
"Yes, actually. I just moved here for the year while my grandpa is doing work overseas." Even though I'm not a huge fan of social interaction, this girl seems nice enough.
"Oh yeah. I think I heard something about that. So, how do you like it here so far? Make any friends?" Despite only knowing me for two seconds, she seems eager to talk to me.
"Not really, I just got here yesterday." I don't know if I like where this is going.
"Okay then, do you want to go hang out in my classroom with my friends? Even though you're only a first year, it should be fine." Wait, does that me that you are my upperclassman.
"Okay then." I don't see anyway nor reason to refuse. "I have no objections."
"Great." She sticks out her hand. "I'm Chie Satonaka." I return her shake.
"Naoto Shirogane." My new companion gives me a friendly smile to which I attempt to return. Maybe this school won't be too bad.
Authors Note
Hey, I know that not that many people are reading this but I want to ask something no that way when I start writing for I will already have answers. I will include social inks in this but not all of them. I want to know which ones you guys want me to do. I have already decided to do all of the party members. The main thing that I really want to know soon is if you would rather have Kou or Daisuke's social link. The same goes for Ayane and Yumi too.