Thursday, May 27th
The bell signaling the end of the day rang, as usual, releasing the subjects of Kawakami's teaching into the freedom the streets of Tokyo provided, although she had one final thing to say, "Oh, and remember! Registration for the Shujin Fair ends on Saturday and the school-wide cleanup is Monday. It is mandated."
Akira sighed as he pulled himself from his desk, yawning as he met Ann's piercing gaze, "What?"
"Are you gonna…y'know, register us?"
He sighed as they walked from Kawakami's class, meeting Ryuji at the base of the stairs–his usual spot, "Come on Ann, do I have to do it?"
"Do what?" Ryuji was nibbling on a piece of candy as he ignored the disgusted glares he was getting.
Was it from being a 'Delinquent of Shujin Academy' or his blocking of the stairs?
Realistically probably both.
"Ann here wants me to register the group for the Shujin Investor Fair."
Even Ryuji looked at him rather strangely, "Okay…? Ain't that what you're supposed to do?
"Oh, you have to be shitting me. Did you two forget I'm supposed to do it with the Student Council? Hello? The domain of one Makoto Niijima who–might I kindly remind you–hates my guts? Y'know, the same woman who frequently comments on how much she laments my existence? Who's sister hates me as well?"
Ann rolled her eyes, "Okay, okay we get it. It's just that the leader is meant to do it. They're supposed to be present and the one doing the form and all of that."
Akira shrugged, "So? You two can just do it and then I'll do all the leader duties or whatever the hell you need me to."
Ryuji winced, "Yeah…it's not that easy. I uh…" He looked at Ann, "tried to do somethin' similar last year and…yeah, didn't really go so well. They force the leader to speak durin' the presentation, so it'll have to be whoever wrote their name down, dude."
"Huh." He turned to Ann, "I assume he made you speak by accident, huh?"
She gave a grim nod, "It was so embarrassing."
Ryuji couldn't help but snicker, "I never thought someone could make a presentation about a VR game fighting gorillas interestin'."
Akira's interest peaked, "Interesting–"
Ann's face lit up a crimson tinge as she jabbed a finger in Ryuji's face, "S-Shut up! If you tell him–"
"She puked backstage all over Kobayakawa after we finished. We were the last group to go, so he was fixin' to give some bullshit ass speech, y'know the deal. It was 'effin hilarious man."
Ann started throwing jabs into Ryuji's shoulder, they clearly didn't hurt as he kept laughing them off–something Akira partook in.
Eventually, after allowing the laughter to settle down, Akira spoke once more, "So," he bounced his eyes between the two of them, "from that story, it would only be right for Ryuji to be the presenter right?"
While Ann's face flashed a sense of surprise that was usurped by satisifaction, Ryuji's face was filled with dread, "Wait, WHAT?!" He threw his eyes between the two of them…his fate had already been sealed, "No! Hell no! I ain't doin' this! Akira, be a damn man and just walk in there—"
Instead of Akira, Ann took up the mantle, wrapping her arm around Ryuji's with a face of serenity, "No…no, Akira has a point. Imagine all of the mental anguish he must be going through seeing a woman who constantly berates him…I can only imagine what would happen if she saw him create a group with Haru Okumura in it…" Ann started dragging him up the stairs, "Be helpful to your best friend, why don't you?" Her face quickly morphed into one of sheer hatred, "Plus this is a great way to get you back for last year! C'mon Ryuji!"
Ryuji flicked his head back towards Akira, his hand outstretched, it seemed as if he had tears in his eyes as well, "Dude! Wait! No, don't do this! Face your demons like a real man! Don't let Ann do this to me!"
Akira cleared his throat as he pointed at him, "As my Secretary in Cream, I order you to take my place! I will owe you a thousand times over! I'm going home!"
Did…did I just really say that outloud—
Oh screw it, they think I'm the worst being in the universe anyway.
A ghastly wail came from Ryuji as he was pulled up the stairs, "AKIRAAA—OOF!"
Akira could only assume it was cut short by Ann either chopping him in the neck or punching him in the ribs.
Either one is preferable.
It took a few minutes to register, but for the first time in a while…Akira Kurusu had…
Free time!
Well, not really since Madarame exists BUT every once in a while I could use some rest.
That's technically what Morgana's doing since he's off on his little hangout with Kasumi in the library.
Hmm…
No practice…no Ryuji…no Ann…Haru said she had a family matter to attend to so she left early…
I don't have any sort of bond with Ohya, plus she's been so weird lately…and what the hell do I look like hanging out with my best friend's girl? There's a very, very thin line between his romantic life and his normal healthy life that I do not wish to intrude on.
Sojiro's…Sojiro.
I'm definitely not touching my horn after the shit show that was yesterday…
What CAN I do…
Oh, I could go shopping for books? Haven't done that in a while.
Actually, yeah! That's a really good idea!
I've been caught up in all this bullshit, I haven't actually had the time to explore Tokyo.
I've barely explored Shibuya man, that's depressing as hell.
Akira made his usual trek down the stairs to the main entrance with a faint smile on his face.
I'm pretty sure walking through the halls of Shujin with nothing but a smile on my face is probably freaking these guys out.
Good.
Anyway, I should probably start with Central street…get a couple of things there…maybe swing by Akihabara for a couple of games and things?
Hmm…not a bad idea.
See, I don't need my friends to actually have a productive da—
Akira stopped dead in his tracks at the tip of the stairs.
Wait…huh?
At the base of the stairs, to his—and many others'—surprise was Goro Akechi.
He greeted him with a smile, "Ah, Akira! I almost thought I might've missed you already!"
Akira, surprisingly, was dumbfounded.
Apprehensively making his way down the stairs—with everyone's eyes trained on the two of them—Akira stopped in front of Akechi, "Uh…Akechi-san…? Why are you here? Wait, scratch that, how did you even find out I go to Shujin Academy?"
He pointed at his uniform, "Your uniform does you no favors for secrecy I fear."
Nakanohara and Akechi in the span of a couple of days.
Yeah, I gotta stop wearing this shit when I go out dude.
Akira gave an awkward nod, "Yeah, I can see that now. So…why are you here though?"
Akechi paused before laughing, "Right, where are my manners? I wanted to ask if you wished to grab a cup of coffee with me?"
Fucking coffee?
How stereotypical can you get as a jazz musician?!
Akira sighed, "Yeah, sure."
But…this might be better than an overdue tour of Tokyo.
Studying in the library is boring. Really boring. Even worse when there's nobody in here but us.
Well…that might make things a little bit better actually.
No weirdos…
Why are we even studying? Exams just finished!
Morgana laid his face on his palm, lazily jotting down notes as Kasumi intensely read over her Chemistry textbook.
Though…Kasumi makes this cool enough.
Almost as if on cue, Kasumi ripped her gaze from her book to meet Mona's, "Are you okay, Mona? You seem a little…out of it?"
He nervously snickered, "Yeah, I'm good, just kinda…"
"Bored? You get that same look in class, Mona-chan." A brief chuckle came onto her face, "I'm sorry, I just want to keep up my scholarship. I feel as if I could've done better on the last exams…"
Right…that academic and athletic scholarship thing…I almost forgot.
"While I get the drive to do better, Kasumi we haven't even gotten the results back. I think you deserve to relax a little…"
"Hm…I don't know…I doubt my sister would relax."
"Okay…but you're not your sister. And mindless studying day in and day out is just gonna turn your brain to mush. I don't need you turning into Ryuji now…"
She quirked an eyebrow, "Isn't that one of your brother's friends?"
Mona's voice went flat, "Sadly." He regained some energy in his voice as he cleared his throat, "Point is, I just want you to give yourself a second to relax. We could even…I dunno, try that hangout thing Shinya wanted to do this weekend?"
Kasumi's demeanor lessened as well, "I…I'm not sure about that…I have a gymnastics meeting on Sunday. It's the first of the year so far, so…"
Aw man.
I'll never forgive the gymnasts!
"Wouldn't make much sense for a delinquent to be with a student such as Yoshizawa-kun anyway."
Oh hey, that's something I'd sa–
Wait who the hell–
A simple look revealed Shigeo creeping behind the bookshelves, looking as miserable as ever.
Oh, for the love of God.
Where did he even come from?!
"Is this a friend of yours, Mona-chan?"
The furthest thing from it.
Mona sighed as he picked his book back up, deciding that maybe studying wasn't so bad, "Isn't your one-sided ass beef with my brother? I'm pretty sure he's somewhere on campus probably screaming about cream and wooing with Ryuji…"
Shigeo rolled his eyes, becoming tense at the mention of Akira, "You're acting as if he's the only one with the name Kurusu."
Shigeo walked closer as Mona spoke, "Okay…so you have beef with my entire bloodline? Akira was the one that said you're a sperm-bowl or whatever–"
Much to his surprise, he didn't reply but instead turned to Kasumi, "I hope you won't go down the same path as Niijima-san. Being dragged through the mud with the likes of these…miscreants."
The two lingered in each other's eyes for a moment before Kasumi spoke, "While I appreciate the sentiment…Mona is a good person. A good friend. I won't abandon him because of a few rumors."
Huh.
Nice.
Shigeo seemed irritated at that answer, walking off while giving Morgana a warning, "You and that brother of yours better keep an eye out."
Mona sighed as he closed the door, "I think I may be getting my brother's luck…"
Kasumi sighed, continuing on in her textbook from where she left off.
"Can you please stop tugging at my ear, Ann." Ryuji didn't even format it as a question, it was more so an exhausted plea than anything else.
Ever since middle school, her ear-tugs were so overpowering.
Once making it to the Student Council door, she heeded his request, "It was the only way to make you shut up without me punching you or something."
Ryuji gently rubbed his earlobe between his index and middle finger, "Okay? Maybe that should be a sign that—gee I don't know—I don't wanna be here?! You and Akira are some assholes!"
Her voice took on a sharp edge, "Assholes? Oh Ryuji, youknow what it's like when I'm an asshole. I don't think you wanna experience that again."
A simple gulp came from him as he kept his mouth shut, only giving her a nod.
Ann sighed as she pulled the door open, greeted by the sight of…Makoto and Ohya…
Sure, the other members of the council were there also—Shiro included sadly—but the center of attention was simply the two girls together.
Ryuji peered at his girlfriend from behind Ann, before he got the chance to say anything, Ohya gathered her documents and gave a simple bow to Makoto before making her way out of the room, "I'll text you later, okay Ryuji?"
"Uh…uh-huh?" He wasn't even sure if she heard him since by the time he spat out a response as she was already making her way down the stairs.
The two blonds looked at each other, noting the encounter as strange.
"May I help you two?" It was clear for a moment Ann forgot she held the door open as Makoto peered at the two of them, a sight that wasn't pleasant to either of them.
I have no idea how Akira can resist that shit man.
Ann cleared her throat and tugged on Ryuji's uniform jacket, signaling for him to follow as she strolled in, "We'd like to register for the Shujin Fair."
Makoto shuffled through some documents as Tora waved to the both of them, he looked as exhausted as usual.
After a few seconds, she pulled a few pieces of paper and laid them in front of them with a pen to their side, "Just put the names there. Don't forget to put the group name while stating the leader."
Ann shot a sardonic grin at Ryuji as she stepped from the front of the table, "Your turn."
A sigh slipped from his lips as he picked up the pen, jotting his name down in the leadership role.
A faint head tilt came from Makoto, "Oh? I would've thought…"
Ryuji ignored her as he continued to place the names down, though that didn't deter her from keeping a keen eye on the form.
Akira Kurusu…
Ryuji Sakamoto…
Ann Takamaki…
And even Haru Okumura…?
No Morgana Kurusu?
How peculiar.
Makoto's gaze pointed her in the direction of Ann Takamaki, an idea brewing in her head as Ryuji slid the paper back in her direction, "Here you go, Miss Prez."
She quickly glossed over it, taking note of the blank CONCEPT portion of the form, "Sakamoto-kun, you know you have to place something on the concept form, correct?"
He glanced nervously at Ann, rubbing his nape as he looked at Makoto again, "Uh…let's just say it's a surprise."
"But you can't just—"
Ann stepped up, seemingly not appreciating her pushiness, "Just put shoes. The base idea is shoes but it's a surprise."
Makoto narrowed her eyes, she didn't buy it for one minute. She jotted down shoes on the form, "Your group seems to love surprises."
"Well, we aren't boring puppets, so…" Ann nudged Ryuji as she turned to leave, ignoring the cold aura that emanated from Makoto.
"Why did you put shoes?! I was bullshittin' when I said that to Haru yesterday!"
She brushed it off as they made their way down the stairs, "Yada yada, it's the only thing we got and I didn't wanna hear her mouth. Besides…what's so hard about coming up with shoes? Kids do it, why can't we?"
Ryuji shrugged in agreement, seeing her point as they reached the entrance, "I guess Akira left already…huh, you busy today?"
She looked at her phone, "Nope, but I am going to see Shiho. Wanna come?"
Ryuji looked down for a moment before he met her gaze, "Yeah. That would be good."
Ann couldn't help but smile as they set off.
When Akechi said, "Let's get a cup of coffee" somehow, Akira didn't expect him to take him to Kichijoji, a darts and billiards club specifically.
"Uh…Akechi-san…? I thought we were gonna–"
"Just call me Akechi, okay?" He smiled at Akira as he paid for their entry and time at the pool table, "And we were going to what? We can still get the coffee if that's your only concern, Akira."
The aging teenager scoffed, "As if, I hate coffee. But…you just made it seem like we'd just do a basic sit-down and not…" He gestured to the club at large, "well, a club."
Akechi gave him a wry smile as he passed him a cue stick, "Well, I thought coffee might sound a little better as opposed to a club, that's how most people are."
Akira shrugged, "I'm not like most people, Akechi. Much rather a club where we can battle each other in a game of smacking balls or throwing darts than drinking a bitter ass drink that makes me wish for the cold draw of death's stare."
Akechi paused for a moment before a bout of laughter slipped from his lips, "You really aren'tlike most, Akira. I could tell that from our first interaction at Madarame's showcase."
As Akechi went about setting the balls up and drawing his first shot, Akira pushed for the question that had been on his mind from the start, "Yeah..speaking of which…why are you hanging out with me?"
A moment of silence emanated as he drew his cue stick back, calculating the trajectory and hoping for the best before a stroke of power snaked from the stick through the cue ball, sending it careening into the grouped balls. Luckily for Akechi, a few solid balls went inside.
He gave Akira another smile as he quickly answered his question, electing to bypass his turn and give it to Akira., "Simple, I remembered where I saw you before andbecause you interested me."
Akira eyed him from across the table before taking a page from the Jazz Prince's book, sending a lazily shot cue ball into a stripped ball.
It fell in, opening Akira up to another attempt, "Well, enlighten me then."
"As for the first, I recall your face from the National Championship last December."
Another shot and impact rang out, this time not going in Akira's favor, "Huh, I'm surprised someone like you would remember an uneventful smuck as myself."
Akechi took his shot, "Of course, I'd remember a trumpeter who had so much presence on the field…it's a habit of mine."
Akira sighed, "I didn't have that much presence, Akechi. I just—"
"—had the ability to cut through the entirety of your brasswinds with your volume and tone? Even without screaming sometimes? Give yourself some credit, Akira."
Akechi met his apprehension with a grin, but the fledgling Band President waved his attempt at charm off, "I'm not what I used to be…"
"I fear that's what we all say, Akira. You'll be back to where you were soon enough."
Another shot, another ball slotting inside of the hole while Akira rubbed his nape, "I don't think it'll be any time soon…"
Akechi released another shot but it went awry, "Damn it." He turned to Akira, gesturing towards the table, "On the contrary. If you're unlike most people, you'll be fine. Speaking of which, that leads me to my second point, you're fine."
Akira was partially taken aback, "Huh? I mean, I don't think I'm too attractive but—"
Akechi laughed in his face, though he couldn't tell if it was rooted in sincere humor or the fact that he wasn't attractive, "That's not what I mean, I mean you're fine with being around me. You're just…acting as if I'm not Goro Akechi." He pointed his cue stick at Akira, "And that, my friend, is exciting. So, why is that?"
Huh.
I guess that's interesting enough…? Weird.
"Well, going to Tachibana and with my family…I've kinda been in the world of fame enough to the point that meeting famous people…is…meh. Hell, I've done with Madarame as well."
Akechi raised an eyebrow, "Really?"
"Yeah, well…me and my friends met him because Yusuke ruined my younger brother's shirt. Which, long story short gave us the passes to the festival."
Great, can't even go a full hour without mentioning anything relating to the situation.
So much for a break.
"Kitagawa-kun as well?" Akechi paused before putting an inquisitive hand on his chin, "Considering you go to Shujin and your relationship with Kitagawa-kun–or something of one…do you know Makoto Niijima as well?"
You gotta be shitting me.
Akira tried his best to maintain his composure, "...Not too much, I just know she's the Student Council President and her sister is Sae Niijima."
"Ah…how interesting." Akechi kept his eyes trained on Akira, not moving an inch as the former attempted to not be unnerved.
Akira couldn't gather why he was lying, but there was a strange sense of…intrigue that was dripping from Akechi's voice.
He didn't like it one bit.
Akechi tilted his head for a moment, "Mind if I ask another question as well?"
Akira gave a brief laugh, "Geez, you're making me feel like I'm the celebrity instead with these questions…"
Akechi flashed a smirk, "Aren't celebrities just enigmatic figures that produce questions by being themselves?"
Akira's face surely manifested his reluctance toward that definition, but Akechi obviously ignored it or was so arrogant that he ignored it as he continued, "Using that…then yes, you are a celebrity worth these questions. In any case, my question is just based on why you decided to leave from one rival to another…"
Why the hell is he being so pushy…?
Akira flashed a glance at the pool table, electing to return to their close game, "Tell you what, if I lose this game then you can ask me all the questions in the world." Readying his cue stick, Akira aimed for a ball, "But if I win…I get to live a free existence while you buy me some really tasty ass food," He turned to the Jazz Prince, "Deal?"
For some godforsaken reason, he replied with a grin, "I'll take your offer."
Ryuji and Ann had been with Shiho for what felt like mere minutes. However, that was incorrect.
Their constant stream of banter, jabs, nostalgic throwbacks, and just general catching up made time speed past them like a bullet train.
If it wasn't for Akira texting Ryuji about getting some free high-priced food, none of them would've realized it was dusk.
Ryuji gave Ann a peak of the message, "He won some free expensive food? Tell him to get me some crepes as well."
"Are crepes just your form of crack? What the hell is so good about them anyway? They're so sweet for no 'effin reason!"
"I don't think Mr. Ramen diet can have any say on what's too sweet and unhealthy for my body. You're just a walking salt shaker!"
"I'd rather that than a livin' Pillsbury doughboy!"
Shiho meekishly raised her hand, "I don't think either of you can talk about being healthy…"
Ryuji chuckled, "I don't think you can talk that much either Shiho. Considerin' your obsession with hot foods and shit."
Ann pointed a finger at her. "Yeah! You used to eat all that shit all the time! No wonder you had so many stomach issues in Junior High!"
"Okay…then in that case I don't think anyof us have any place to talk about being healthy to each other."
Begrudgingly, Ann and Ryuji had to relent, with the former speaking first, "In that case, you could keep a reasonable eye on the both of us once you get back to Shujin. It'll just be like Junior High again. Only difference is that Ryuji will be dumber than usual."
"Hey! Shih–" His eyes darted towards hers to continue the bit, but he stopped once he saw the guilt in her eyes, "What's up? Why are you looking like that?"
Ann's head was titled in concern, "Shiho?"
She struggled to convey herself for a moment until one simple phrase came from her lips, "I'm…not coming back to Shujin."
There was very apparent silence that manifested in the room from her sentence.
No movement.
No sounds.
No sentences.
You could even hear a feather drop if someone was idiotic enough to drop one.
Ryuji, surprisingly, decided to display some maturity as he sat up in his chair, gauging Ann and Shiho's moods respectively. This led to him stepping out of the room, leaving the two best friends alone.
It was the least he could do.
Giving them their privacy.
Shiho was the first to speak, "Ann…?"
The blonde struggled to spit her words out, "Wha…what do you mean you aren't coming back…?"
Shiho's face was dark, laced with a sense of shame and regret, "I just…I can't. I can't."
There was an inexplicable expression on Ann's face, "But…" She quickly descended into a nervous laugh, "You're joking right…? After everything…? After we got rid of Kamoshida–it's not the same Shiho! You'll be okay–"
"Ann…it isn't just that either…" Shiho's eyes darkened and hid away from Ann as she–much to her surprise–stood up from her bed.
Well, more accurately, she struggled.
"Shiho!" Ann lurched forward, attempting to help her but she jerked her hand out.
"N-No…" The only thing Ann could do was keep her eyes trained on her best friend as she struggled her way to the window that overlooked Tokyo's skyrise.
A few raspy breaths came from her lips as she started to regain a sense of rhythm with her breathing. Shiho took her time gazing from the window.
It seemed almost as if she was taking it in for the final time.
"I…I finally did something for myself." There was a sense of amazement in her voice as she continued gazing at the skyrise, "For the first time since we were back in middle school…for the first time…it wasn't due to someone."
It was clear she was thinking about her rooftop attempt.
"Shiho…? What do you–"
"I've…only ever done things because of you, Ann…and you've…only ever done things because of me. Going into Kamoshida's…service. Submitting to him…hell, even getting him removed started because of me." She sighed as her head drooped, "I just...was thinking back, after you went to the police station, how…it's always been like this. The bullies back in middle school…you'd always protect me, so much so to the point you became an outcast like me."
Ann gave a huff of humor, "But that never bothered me! I couldn't care less about–"
Shiho groaned, but it wasn't with a sense of annoyance–it was with severe frustration, "That's the problem! You shouldn't have to constantly give something up for someone! Especially at our ages, Ann!"
Ann shot back, her emotions clearly on the rise, "So what?! You just wanna switch schools because you–"
Shiho, with a sense of speed that surprised the both of them, turned to Ann, "I'm switching schools so you don't have to run yourself dry every goddamn day over me like I'm some defenseless puppy!" A staggered breath came from Shiho as she struggled her way over to Ann, her eyes revealed themselves to her in the form of watery slits, "I don't think you understand how guilty I feel…just knowing that you keep giving yourself up for me and sacrificing things for me. Whether it's physically…mentally…emotionally…all of that weighs on you until you can't take anymore…especially when you know you can't do anything for yourself! That you need people to stand on! To depend on!"
Shiho stopped in front of Ann as she clasped her hands to her cheeks, not allowing Ann's vision to waver—so she could see Shiho's vulnerabilities at their strongest.
Tears were streaking their faces.
It seemed this was the peak of their emotional thresholds as they couldn't contain anything anymore.
"I'm tired of having to watch Akira, Ryuji and you all put yourselves on the line for me." A sniffle came from her, "Sure, that monster is long gone from our lives now…but Shujin will always be Shujin. He didn't create that environment…it was always there and he just took advantage. I don't want you guys to have to constantly protect me…I don't want you to worry yourself to death every single day over what I'm doing or if I'm safe, or if someone said something nice to me in all my classes."
There was a vulnerability in Ann's voice as she struggled to speak, "Which is why you want to switch schools…so you can face challenges by yourself without me as a safety net…"
Shiho gave her a sorrowful nod, to which Ann gave a brief chuckle, "One helluva way of challenging yourself, huh?"
If it was supposed to be a display of strength, it failed as Ann's visage of humor quickly turned into an outburst of tears as she collapsed into Shiho's arms.
Their time was limited, and neither of them were planning on wasting it.
Friday, May 28th
As always, the bell rang and Akira was a free man.
Well, he was until Ryuji texted him.
Ryuji: Yeah, it was hella awkward man. They were just cryin' and shit when I tried goin' back inside, so I just decided to…ya know, stay outside until visitation ended.
Akira: And how long did that take?
Ryuji: Another three hours.
Akira: Shit…
Akira: Good thing you sat in the little chairs they have in the lobby of each floor, right?
Ryuji: ….Damn I forgot those little shits exist.
Akira: Never change man.
Akira: Never change.
Akira: So…Shiho's gonna be leaving then, huh? Any idea when?
Ryuji: Nah, when I left she had just broken the news, when I took Ann home she didn't say shit either.
Akira: I can imagine she wouldn't wanna say anything, just imagine how heartbreaking that has to be…considering everything as well.
Ryuji: Yup…which is why I didn't push the issue ya know
Akira: Well, look at Ryuji Sakamoto gaining some maturity!
Ryuji: Piss off I've always been mature!
Ryuji: Anyway, how are you and your therapist milk goddess?
Akira: I take back everything good I've ever said about you.
Akira: You are a fraudulent individual and I hope you get impeached from your status as the Secretary of Cream.
Ryuji: OH C'MON IT WASN'T EVEN THAT BAD!
Ryuji: AKIRA ANSWER!
"Kurusu-kun." There was clearly no room for humor in Kawakami's voice.
Today was going so swell.
Akira raised his eyes from his phone as he spared her a glance, "Hey, Kawakami-sensei! What's up?"
Ew, I sound like a Teacher's pet.
Kawakami rolled her eyes, her bags worse than before, "It's the end of the week, are you going to go see Maruki-san or?"
Akira couldn't help but tilt his head in confusion, "But it's Friday…?"
"You think I don't know what day it is?! Stop trying to weasel out of this and get your ass moving! Just see the man for once!"
Okay…she's extremely tired to the point she can't tell what day it is.
This is sincerely worrying.
But…I should probably go to Maruki…I have been putting it off long enough.
Akira sighed as he rose from his seat, his bag in tow, "Fine, fine. I'll get going."
Kawakami had a content smile on her exhausted face, "Good! Now you can keep your B- for the rest of the semester."
"Yeah, you should probably give me that one extra point so I can peacefully have my A, Kawakami." Akira closed the door behind him.
After a few ignored stares and missteps, he finally made it to the nurses' office where—oddly—Maruki was stationed.
I guess it makes sense in retrospect. He was brought in on such short notice and Shujin—at least to my knowledge—didn't have a guidance counselor before so…
Akira placed a few knocks on the door as he sent one final text to his group chat.
Akira: Hey lol.
Akira: My demons are winning.
Akira: Goodbye.
Ryuji: Dude?
Mona: Aye?
Ann: AKIRA?
Elite Milk: Are you okay?
Ah, causing chaos as I enter purgatory.
Fun.
Akira's smirk dissipated as Maruki opened the door, signaling to the teenager he was truly trapped.
"Ah! Kurusu-kun! Here I was feeling like a side chick! Come in!"
Yeah…should probably work on those jokes a little bit more, Maruki.
Taking a seat, Akira slouched into the relaxing cushions as Maruki sat across from him, "So can we get this over with as soon as possible, Maruki-sensei?"
A chuckle came from the man's lips, "Straight to the point, huh?" Maruki outstretched a hand, pointing to the bowl of sweets that took center stage on the table between them, "Want one?"
Akira waved the offer away as the councilor took a lollipop for himself, "I'm fine."
Popping the lollipop into his mouth, Maruki sighed, "Kurusu-kun, I'm not going to lie to you, the only reason why I've been trying to desperately get a hold of you is because—"
"-of everything with Kamoshida."
Maruki gave him a nod, "I see your file isn't wrong with listing you as a gifted individual."
"Even Ryuji Sakamoto could've figured that out." Akira paused for a moment before slouching further into the couch, "Since you mentioned my file…I assume another reason is because of my legal guardian?"
"Sakura-san?" The aging man placed an inquisitive hand on his chin, "While that is interesting…I truly have no care for it. But…while Kamoshida is a part of why I've been—"
Akira couldn't help but sigh, "Look, I'm not trying to be rude here, but can we just…I don't know, keep this surface level so you can be satisfied and stop bothering Kawakami-sensei so then she can stop bothering me?"
Maruki's energy seemed to dissipate as he chuckled, taking his glasses off at the same time, "If you would've let me finish…while Kamoshida is a part of the reason why you're here…the real reason why is thanks to Kawakami herself."
All thoughts Akira had quickly morphed into one collective mush of confusion as he sat upright on the couch, "Come again?"
"Gathering from your words, I can only assume she made it seem like I was bothering her. Quite the opposite really…while Kobayakawa kept…persuading me to talk to you on the basis of Kamoshida…I felt it wouldn't be right until you came to me yourself. I didn't want to force anything. Honestly, you weren't on the top billing."
"Until…Kawakami brought me up to you…"
Maruki nodded his head, "Correct. She told me practically everything. Well, her perspective and limited knowledge of everything. Hearing all of that made me…well, open to seeing you as fast as possible."
"To which she said she'd get me over here, huh?" Akira sighed as he dropped his head into his hands, "Now I feel awful…"
That explains her worry so much…and the pushing…I thought she was just getting annoyed by him bugging her…
Maruki chuckled as he sat up, electing to pull one of the spare rolling chairs in the office, "With that being said, Kurusu-kun…this one visit won't absolve you of Kawakami being on your back."
A sigh slipped from his lips as he relented, deciding to grab a lollipop himself if he was going to tryhere.
"Take it away, Maruki-sensei."
"Also, you don't have to call me sensei…Maruki is fine. I feel old enough as it is being around you teenagers every day…"
Huh.
That was actually worth a chuckle.
Maybe you aren't so bad, Maruki.
"In that case, you can just stick to Akira."
Maruki nodded as he positioned himself comfortably in the rolling chair, electing to cross his legs as he narrowed his eyes on Akira, "Starting off…tell me about yourself."
"Huh? Haven't you read my file?"
"A file doesn't magically tell me all about you as a person, Akira. Even if it could, it wouldn't feel ideal." He paused, gathering a better phrase, "It wouldn't feel real."
I guess he has a point.
"I uh…I'm Akira Kurusu, as you know. I like music and…video games."
"What type of games? I used to be a Dragon Quest savant back in my day."
A look manifested on his face, "I can't say I'm surprised."
Maruki quirked an eyebrow, "Is that supposed to be an insult?"
"Anyway…I like games like Dragon Quest, but I really like anything. As long as it's fun or has a good story, I'll play it. I'm a real sucker for fighting games though."
"Fighting games huh? I assume you've played Avenue Brawler or is that a little too old for you?"
Akira scoffed, "As if, Avenue Brawler was my first fighter, you know."
"Ah…a man of culture I see. Good to see some of you kids like amazing things."
"You're selling your aging adult persona very well."
Maruki surrendered a chuckle as he readjusted in his chair, "Moving on…how have you been, Akira?"
Akira hesitated at first, "Uh…pretty fine, I guess."
"Are you sure? That hesitation signaled that to be a false truth."
"I mean, I said I guess for a reason."
"There aren't any 'I guess' when it comes to your emotions. Even if you aren't in tune with them, you should still know where you stand in terms of your thresholds and stability."
…Haru said the same shit…
He sighed, "Okay…then I've been a bit….stressed."
"Exams?"
Akira waved that suggestion away instantly, "Nah, I have a feeling I did decent on those. Besides, they've been over for days now."
"Then?"
Yeah, I'm just stressed because I'm currently racking my head trying to figure out how the hell to take down a famous artist! While also juggling a performance and—
Maruki rolled closer to Akira, "Akira…I think I might've forgotten to mention it, but anything said here is completely and totally confidential. I'll believe anything you say, I'll hear you out, I'll give you council all with the benefit of it not leaking outside of this room."
Believe anything I say…?
Sounds like Kawakami probably mentioned our conversation the day I stayed behind and helped her with the papers.
Correction, the day I was forced and then argued with Makoto again.
He paused before continuing, "But…Kobyakawa is gonna shake you down for this meeting isn't he?"
A grin formed on his face, "I have a vow that swears me to secrecy. So, no he can't without getting into some real illegal territory."
…
I don't know…
Maruki could sense the conflict in Akira's mind, "Okay, okay, let's draw it back a little, tell me…about your brother, how's that?"
Akira kept a flat face as he stared off into space, "Fine."
"Are you two close?"
"Mhm."
"Okay…um…what about your parents? Do you talk to them frequently?"
Ha.
"Uh, yeah. Sure."
"How are you tackling your role as Band President? It must be something new. Are you enjoying the practices?"
Yeah, I'm totally enjoying my constant fuck-ups and dealing with the fact that Mishima is our drum major.
"It's…something."
Maruki sighed, "Akira, you can't just ask for a surface-level session and then not participate. Thisis surface-level! I gotta get to know you kid!"
"You can't ask anything else? These questions are a little—"
"Personal? That's the point of a counselor, no matter how much you may want it to be basic or surface level."
Akira didn't give a reply, only a muted sigh as he slouched in his chair.
"Look, I can tell you have an issue with letting people in. Only makes sense as to why you avoided this for the longest."
Did he just read me like a book—
Snarky asshole go!
A scoff escaped his lips as he rolled his eyes, "An issue with letting people in? Nah…I just didn't come because I thought this would be bullshit…which, so far, seems to be true." Akira winced as he remembered he was speaking to a faculty member, "Sorry."
"No, no, don't apologize. This is good, it just means you–at least on some level–don't see me as a member of staff. Which means there's a chance for you to be comfortable with me." Maruki readjusted once more, staring into Akira's eyes as he addressed his deflection, "And you having some form of trust issues would make sense. Considering what happened with Kamoshida leaking your record and your general…'fame'around here."
"My fame has done a lot of good for me, it's not a bad thing. Hell, it's the reason why I'm going to commercialize my infant fight club!"
Maruki, as expected, didn't get the joke, "Uh…huh. Look, Akira you can either dance around your problems with jokes and sarcasm, so much so to the point you can't even talk to me about your stress in a 'surface-level' conversation, and leave here feeling content with your isolation…oryou can take steps with me to become your ideal self. No jokes, no deflections…just an attempt." Maruki rolled, minimizing the distance between them, and reached out, touching the boy on his shoulder, "I'm not going to force you or make you do anything against your will, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to try to reach in for your best self that I know exists. It's my job."
There was a brief respite as his words lingered in Akira's head, bringing him around before he knew it, "You're right. I…I've always had a form of trust issues, for as long as I can remember. Got worse after everything at Tachibana…"
Akira paused, his eyes taking on a heavier appearance as he stared aimlessly at the table, "It's hard wanting to let people in when you have a voice gnawing away at you every time you talk to someone new. Someone promising. Yelling at you and whispering in your ear that they're going to throw you away at a moment's notice."
Maruki, from the expression on his face, seemed to sympathize. Akira's words seemed to lull him into the boy as he softly leaned forward, "If…if I may ask, what exactly happened at Kyoto? It seems as if no one here actually knows…not even Kobayakawa…"
There was an expression of conflict, one that morphed his face until a mask of regret took hold, "I…I don't think it's time for me to tell anyone that yet."
Maruki's face seemed to flatten with disappointment but it quickly faded away, "Of course, your comfort is what matters the most to me, Akira. But with that being said…is that hesitancy to let people in a reason behind your stress?"
The teenager waved it away, "Nah…I've been working on it actually. If you've noticed, I have a little ragtag group of friends outside of my brother. I actually…trust them."
"Then what is it, Akira?"
He struggled with his words for a moment, "I'm just…being pulled everywhere, you know? I feel like everything in my life is jumbled out and conflicting. It's exhausting, but I can't complain."
"Why is that? It is your life, you have a right to complain."
"Be that as it may, I also have an obligation to do the right thing. I can't sit aside while things are going wrong."
"…but…is that obligation what youwant? What you desire? Will it make you happy and content?"
Akira paused.
It seemed as if he was frozen as he eventually came upon his answer, "I want to make sure everyone I love is okay."
Once again, it seemed as if Maruki's face was laced with disappointment, "I see. But again…if it's causing you some form of discomfort in your life, is it truly the best thing for you? Happiness and peace should be the main concern of any human being, Akira."
Almost like clockwork, Akira surrendered a rebuttal, "Nothing in this life comes without difficulty. It's a part of the human experience."
A faint huff of humor came from his lips, "I suppose you could view life that way."
Saturday, May 29th
Instead of being forced to deal with the monotony of their classes, the Shujin higher-ups–Kobyakawa of course–decided to simply force the developing minds of Shujin Academy to watch matches between the athletic clubs of Shujin. All of them were there. The volleyball team was set to start the event off, then the basketball team would be next, the hockey team, and so on and so forth.
Well, all of them with the notable exception of the Marching Band.
Besides that obvious discrimination, Akira had a pretty understandable reason to avoid being stuffed into the gym with the rest of the students as a Shujin-branded pack of Vienna sausages.
The Volleyball team and Basketball team have a vendetta against me. Why in the holy hell would I surrender myself to their bullshit? Knowing my luck, they'd probably throw balls at me and pretend as if it was a mistake or some shit.
With that in mind, Akira, with Ryuji in tow, moved away from the gym while everyone else–Morgana included as he wanted to spend time with Kasumi–made their way to the gym.
Once they broke free of the Shujin tide, Ryuji brought up a really good question, "Okay…where can we hide out? Aren't the teachers at the exhibitions too?" He gasped, "Unless you wanna ski–"
"Nope, plus did you forget about the security guards we have on campus dude? Skipping would be a death sentence that would get us in so much bullshit since we're delinquents."
"Then?"
Akira paused for a moment, "Eh, I got a better idea anyway." Before Ryuji could realize where they were, Akira yanked the door open with a smile on his face, "Kawakami-sensei! How are you!"
Kawakami paused as she typed away on her computer, a sigh sliding from her lips, "Not you too…"
Akira tilted his head, "What do you mean—" Ryuji nudged him, pointing in the direction of his desk to reveal Ann eating a crepe.
She waved, "I see you guys had the same idea, huh?"
Kawakami sighed, letting her head hit the desk as she grumbled, "Why me? Why can't you guys be normal students…" She lifted her head, pointing to Ryuji, "If you're gonna skip in here, close the door behind you at least…"
Akira chuckled as he slipped into his desk, "Doesn't this mean you're a reliable teacher we love and respect if we came to you?"
Kawakami's face had no humor to it as she stared at him, "No, it just means you know how to take advantage of me when you're fighting demons, or whatever it is you say."
Ryuji took a desk beside Ann, "Hey! Cool, you're learnin' how to speak like us!"
Kawakami's face scrunched up at the thought of speaking like Ryuji Sakamoto, "Ew…" She turned back to Akira, "How did you even know I wasn't coming to the exhibition matches?"
Akira lazily shot her a look as he pulled his eyes from his phone, "You see how tired you look? You look even worse than Wednesday, sensei. I just thought you were lying saying that you'd meet us there. Turns out my idea of you sneaking in a few naps was right, huh?"
She shook her head, "Nope…I'm taking this time to finish extra work and create assignments for you guys as well."
Ann finished taking another bit as she turned around, giving Akira a fist bump, "Same idea I had. I didn't want to sit around a whole bunch of annoying kids and smell the worst mustiness in the world for the rest of the day so…"
Ryuji, somehow took offense to that, "Hey! Why didn't you tell us?!"
Ann quirked her head, "You mean the annoying kids or the mustiness…? Ryuji we're in marching band, I think you know all too well–"
"No! The whole stayin' in here thing! Me and Akira had to fight demons tryin' to get back up here when he decided to abandon mission!"
Her expression widened, "Oh…right. I thought…you guys might enjoy it…or he would've figured it out, which he did."
Akira snorted, "Ah right, I'd enjoy having to watch teams that hate me. Much fun. Knowing my luck they would've taken volunteers from the crowd just to target me." Akira raised his hand for Kawakami's attention, "That's why I'm in here, sensei. You remember Wednesday, right? Oh…wait, you came too late to help."
"Ha, ha. You're so entertaining Kurusu-kun."
A shit-eating grin formed on his face as he slouched comfortably into his desk, "I know, it's my charm. Seemed to work on you huh?"
Ann slapped him on the arm, "She's a teacher, you weirdo. Shut up."
Unbeknownst to Ann, Kawakami flashed a faint grin as she returned to her laptop, "Yet another thing I could easily report to Kobyakawa…it's alright Takamaki-kun, Kurusu-kun and I joke like this frequently. Anyway…I'll let you guys stay in here, but just…keep it down, alright?"
The trio nodded as they descended into a conversation about—as usual, stupid shit.
At least until Ann brought up a question, "That reminds me…did you ever come up with something about…the problem we have?" She looked over her shoulder, making sure Kawakami was still enthralled in her work.
It seemed her high state of exhaustion made it easier for her to get lost in her work.
She turned back to see Akira tapping away at his phone, "Akira?"
He nervously chuckled, "Yeah…you just reminded me, actually."
"Huh?" She looked to Ryuji who was just as lost.
Akira: Hey, Iwai I might need a favor.
Iwai: What
Akira: So…
Akira: I know we've been leaving you guys outta this cyclone of bullshit the three of us have cooked up, but uh…you think I could get another Yakuza favor?
Iwai: AW FUCK NO
Iwai: You know how much bullshit I got wrapped up in cuz of you three asshats?
Iwai: And you DO know that means I'd have you in even deeper shit for my favors, right?
Akira: BUT
Akira: BUT THIS IS IMPORTANT
Iwai: "bUT IwA1 tHiZ iZ iMPOrtanT111!
Iwai: You know what you sound like? A dumbass who doesn't understand the delicate system of ownin favors to the damn YAKUZA
Iwai: Get your head outta your ass goddamn it!
Akira: OKAY OKAY DAMN IM SORRY
Iwai: And what's so goddamn important that bein indebted to Yakuza and me doesn't scare you?
Akira went on a spree, detailing everything they were able to make out throughout the last couple of days.
Iwai: Jesus…
Iwai: I can't help with the Yakuza, I sincerely can't. It's too risky and despite how much I hate your guts, I don't wanna put your ass on the line (and mine)
Iwai: But…I got an idea.
Akira: Huh?
Iwai: But first, you got an idea of how you're gonna bust the old perv?
Iwai: Anythin odd? That could maybe be used?
Anything odd…
I mean, besides the old bastard having a shack despite his wealth?
Old decrepit doors and locks that—
HOLY SHIT.
I got it! That door! Even Nakanohara mentioned it! Damn it, how could I forget!
Akira: When Yusuke forced me to stay outside, I caught a glimpse of a room in the back. It had this strange pattern on it…like something made by an okiyo-e artist…
Akira: Okay, so how are you gonna help me with this without the Yakuza?
Iwai: c'mon boy genius, think about someone who knows…I dunno, the muse of Kitagawa-san?
Akira:...me?
Iwai: Holy shit you're so slow sometimes.
Iwai: TORA JACKASS
Iwai: YOU HAVE HIS NUMBER, ASK HIM
Akira: Aren't you around him? Ask him for me
Iwai: Contrary to popular belief, I'm not around that jackass all the time. I left the idiot to suffer in the gym since he's on the Student Council.
Iwai: In the baking room currently.
Akira: Oh….
Akira: Baking room?
Iwai: Yeah, and? What about it?
Akira: Nothing I just…heard something about a guy and a pie? Apparently, people blame me for it.
Iwai: Yeah…we made a special pie for some of the teachers…but some guy snuck in here and…fucked it.
Akira: I don't know what's more surprising, the fact that you actually…bake pies and you've never offered me one, or the fact someone in Shujin is crazy enough to sleep with one.
Akira: HOW DO PEOPLE THINK ITS ME?!
Iwai: C'mon kid, they blame you for everythin
Iwai: Get onto textin Tora, he should reply quick as hell if he's as bored as I think he is.
Akira looked up at his phone, the two blonds seeking an answer, "Just give me a second, gotta text Tora-senpai now…"
Ann sighed as she went to her phone, Ryuji doing the same.
Akira: Senpai? Iwai told me to ask you for a favor?
Tora-senpai: Hmm, what's up?
Akira broke down everything and explained if he could use his connection to Makoto for help.
Tora-senpai: …
Tora-senpai: You guys are positive your information on Madarame is correct?"
Akira: Yeah.
Tora-senpai: And if you say that, then you believe he's a danger to himself and others, correct?
Tora-senpai: That what you're doing is just?
Akira paused as he considered if it was.
Akira. Yes. Someone like Madarame doesn't deserve to continue existing without a guilt-free conscience.
Tora-senpai: I see…in that case, I'll have a way for you and Sakamoto-kun to get into his home, soon. Hopefully, I should get lucky with Niijima-san mentioning something.
Tora-senpai: I hope you two aren't wrong. I'm…putting my status and friendship on the line.
Akira's face turned grim. It wasn't an idea he liked, but he appreciated it.
Akira: I promise we aren't wrong. We won't put this to waste.
Thankfully, Morgana got a break from the mind-numbing matches that were going on. Well, not just him as it was the entirety of Shujin that was released from the gym for twenty minutes before the matches resumed.
Morgana and Shinya while they ventured to their classroom, seeking to sit somewhere that didn't completely make their backs ache in pain, Kasumi on the other hand decided to head to the cafeteria.
Maybe Akira and Ryuji were right…I should've gone with them…
Though that thought disappeared once he thought of a familiar set of red hair.
Nope, I'm good.
Shinya elbowed Mona in the side, "What's with the smile dude?"
"I can't just smile…?"
"I think if you want to keep things normal between you and…her,then having an uncharacteristic ass smile every time ya hang out is a little…obvious."
Morgana sighed, "It's not that obvious man." He shook his head as he began stretching and yawning. Though Shinya caught his eye once again, "Now I got a question to ask, you alright?"
Shinya pointed to the classroom door, the sight of Shigeo, an extremely buff kid, and Kazuhiro catching Mona's attention.
Aw crap.
Again?!
The volleyball duo made a straight B-line towards the two first-years, while the buff one stayed at the door, seemingly looking out. All of this elicited a massive sigh from the youngest Kurusu. He tapped Shinya on the chest, "I got this."
"Okay Shigeo, I get it that you want to purge my bloodline from the annals of history, but can't you wait? I would like to get through one semester of Shujin first."
Shigeo, surprisingly, kept his mouth shut as Kazuhiro took center stage, "You know, while I was out there playing…I couldn't help but notice how you seemed to be chopping it up with Yoshizawa-san."
Oh, you have got to be shitting me.
Is this how Akira feels whenever people bother him about Haru…?
Maybe I shouldn't crack too many jokes about it now.
…nahh, that isn't me.
Mona shuffled around in his seat, " Isn't she a year younger than you? Aw man, don't tell me you're so unpopular that you're going after younger chicks now…"
Kazuhiro chuckled, "You tryna provoke me like your piece of shit brother? Gotta tell you…he was actually able to get something outta me…guess you're the weakest link." He paused, "Which means… you're ripe for picking…"
Morgana leaned in, a smirk slithering across his face, "So, mind telling me what's really your beef with us? I just can't believe that whole bullshit about taking Shujin over?"
"I don't think that's none of your business."
"Considering you almost beat on my brother? I think it's more than my fucking business."
Kazuhiro snickered, "Oh? You got some but–"
"You know, I don't really think you know. I think you're just a little drone for your brother, mindlessly following his orders and desperately doing each and everything he says for his approval. Either that or you guys just let Shigeo come in and fill your heads with the biggest loads of bullshit." Mona took a page out of Kazuhiro's book as he snickered, "I can't tell which is more embarrassing."
"Listen here you little shit–" He grasped Morgana by the collar, pinning him against the window, "I really don't think your brother told you the message well. Stay in your place…and stay away from Yoshizawa-san. She doesn't need to be around–"
There was a harsh coldness that took over Morgana as he grasped Kazuhiro's wrists, the same as before when he had his conversation with Sae, "I'll do whatever I damn well please. And you're right to be focused on my brother, he's way better at this than I am." His icy gaze narrowed as a scowl formed, "But you should be afraid of me as well. Just not for the same reasons."
Kazuhiro examined his eyes, clearly able to tell that Morgana was being serious. He loosened his grip due to Shigeo whispering something in his ear. Probably that he wasn't worth it at the moment. He scoffed as he straightened his gym uniform out–almost as if Morgana stained it, "Whatever. Just remember what I said."
The two left, seemingly reuniting with the rest of their ball-crazy brethren, leaving Shinya and the rest of his classmates as confused as ever from the interaction.
Morgana though?
He had an idea brewing.
He tapped on Shinya's shoulder, "You think you can meet me by the gym in five minutes?"
Shinya narrowed his eyes, "What are you doing?"
"Nothing…I just…got a bombing mission to complete."
Much like many other days, Sae Niijima was staring at her phone screen in her recording studio.
Though this time, it wasn't for a musical reason.
A personal one instead.
Sae: Sakura-san?
Soji: …why are you texting me? Is this a prank? Am I being set up? Are the Yakuza outside of Shujin at this very moment?
Sae: Oh for the love of God, shut up.
Sae: I had a few questions from our conversation the other night.
Soji: Oh. Right.
Soji: Shoot.
Sae: I'm surprised you accepted that without making some remark.
Sae: I expected you to say something akin to…"Seems like you didn't have as much fun by yourself if you're texting me." or something even worse.
Soji: I mean, I was thinking that but you know, priorities.
Sae: Ugh.
Sae: I assume you're busy right now?
Soji: Yup, about to go into a faculty meeting over the clean-up on Monday. Wanna talk over…dinner tomorrow?
Sae: Sakura-san…me in public? Eating dinner with you of all people?
Soji: Did you literally not do this a couple of days ago?
Sae: I only got lucky because all of the reporters were fixated on Madarame.
Soji: Fine, your place?
Sae: As if. I don't need two headaches.
Soji:…
Soji: Look, I'm almost at this meeting, just come up with something by the time I get out, alright?
Sae: Sure.
Questions about Madarame kept pooling in her mind over the last few days so…pressing Sojiro seemed to be her only option.
It might even be fun.
"The volleyball team's ball deflated?" Ryuji paused, "Wait no, both the volley and basketballs got deflated? That's why we went home?" Ryuji turned his gaze to the youngest of the group, "Dude we left you alone for like half an hour, what the hell did you do?"
"He just used the power of my Therapist Milk Goddess. That's all."
Mona groaned as the three of them slipped inside the apartment, "I hate you, man."
Akira threw himself onto the couch, turning the TV onto the news as he made himself comfortable, "All of that hate should be energy spent praying to her Fluid Milkiness."
"What even caused you to start this milk shit? The spoiled carton from the other day?"
"You're too young to know about it, Morgana. One day your time will come."
He rolled his eyes as he grabbed a drink, "Sure, and one day you'll actually get some bitches on your dick."
A sigh of complete misery slipped from his lips as Ryuji laughed, taking a seat by him, "Wow, Morgana might actually have a point!"
"I hate it when you two gang up on me…"
Mona cleared his throat, "I'm surprised you two haven't asked why I…might've popped the balls."
Ryuji chuckled, "As if I bet one of them probably cornered you, you got frustrated, snuck in, and popped the balls." Akira grunted in agreement.
"Yeah…pretty much. Kazuhiro came into my classroom and started getting on me about Kasumi. So I guess that's a thing now…I just popped the basketball team's because of what Akira told me they said."
Akira gave a thumbs-up from the couch, "I'm almost proud of you."
He sighed, "I didn't get caught, but I'm sorry if this gets us unwanted–"
"Eh. After the little incident in the hallway, I knew we were gonna continue getting unwanted attention anyway. Not even gonna lie to you, I was planning on pulling a prank on them the next time any of them came near me, but you beat me to it so" Akira paused as he pondered on it, "…maybe that's a good thing, probably would've taken it too far. Anyway, we'll be fine. They're not that bold to do something on Monday."
Ryuji's eyes beamed with joy at the mention of a prank, "Ooh! Does that mean it's my turn next to do a prank on them? 'Cause if I do it, it'll be 'effin awesome!"
Mona snickered, "Ryuji I don't think banana peel pranks are the coolest things in the world."
The joy in the blonde's eyes waned for a moment, "T-That's not what I was gonna do…"
It was clear that's what he was going to do.
Morgana decided to relent from his joking, switching to a more serious topic at hand, "You guys think Tora-senpai's gonna come through?"
Ryuji snuggled into his cushion as he instantly spat out a reply, "Hell yeah. I've known him longer than you two and I know for a fact, if he promises somethin' he'll do it. There's a reason why he's on the council after all."
Akira nodded, "Yeah, I agree but…"
Morgana seemed to pick up on his hesitation, "You think it might be too little too late? Don't wanna wait too long just in case something happens to Yusuke around the time of the battle?"
Akira paused, pursing his lips, "Yeah. I…I want to make true on Nakanohara's words."
Mona nodded as he took a seat in the comforter, all three of them electing to focus on the news instead.
For some reason, there was an interview happening. The focus of the interview was blurred, but it was a shoddily done job since his balding set of hair was still visible.
Huh.
Hair's kinda familiar.
"We seriously gonna watch an interview?"
"You got anything else to do?"
Ryuji grinned, "We could play Ancient Ring?"
Even Morgana snorted as he typed away on his phone, "I vote for that!"
The stare Akira gave Morgana was laced with a hatred so potent with Sae Niijima would find it impressive, "It's cute that you think you have a say in this."
Akira simply turned his head to the television as the room fell back into silence.
The camera moved around, centering eventually on a younger anchorman, Yazawa, "Today, we have with us Fleece John—my apologies, a typo in the script. We have Golden Stallion with us, a peculiar man who was recently released from prison."
The trio's eyebrows collectively perked.
"Rather than have us explain the…interesting nature of Golden Stallion, he wanted to give his autobiography."
The camera turned back to the blurred man, it seemed his voice was scrambled as well, "I doubt most people recall, but I was thrown into prison after a visit to Kyoto back in 1993 for parading around in a diaper…which wasn't my fault."
What the—
HUH?
"The hell is this weirdo talkin' about…"
"In any case, my tenure in prison was a struggle at first. I was a man…who…was very active. The…disconnection from the feminine figure was…more of a difficulty than I thought. Until…."
Ryuji's voiced the group's confusion, "Wait, what the hell does he mean by that? Is he talkin' about women? Wait…WAIT–"
"I discovered one of the greatest pleasures known to man…the whiff of delectable…seasoned…weathered…and ripe ass."
Oh my fucking god.
Why the hell does he sound so…
No…
Yazawa seemed to laugh, "Surely you're making a sick joke for our entertainment, correct?"
Golden Stallion offered a laugh as well, "In any case, that…intoxicating whiff of my first time…needless to say it incentivized my stay at prison. By the gods…it was wonderful."
"Wonderful enough that it caused you to stay in prison until last year?"
He nodded, "Correct. This discovery of mine in 1994 was…something to die for. I couldn't just…be a good boy and let it permanently slip between my fingers. So, I decided to stay. On my own terms, however."
"Did you purposely get into fights to extend your sentence?"
"Fights?" There was a massive surge of laughter, "Oh my sweet boy, I like you. No…I made it into a game. A hunt. A plight to find the perfect…scent. The perfectly sculpted cheek. The tightest…and brightest…hole."
WHAT THE FUCK
Akira jerked his head towards his brother and best friend, trying his hardest to make sure he was hallucinating.
He wasn't, as evidenced by Ryuji and Morgana's faces of sheer terror.
Golden Stallion continued on, "My limitless journey for the perfectly created cheeks and hole lasted many years…giving me countless memories of ecstasy and fun…however…the pleasure started to wane, and so did my drive. So, I went dormant and was released on good behavior."
THEY LET A CHEEK THIEF OUT ON GOOD FUCKING BEHAVIOR?
WAIT, WAIT
BALDING HAIR?
OBSESSION WITH CHEEKS AND GOT RELEASED NOT SO LONG AGO?
OH GOD
Akira met Ryuji's gaze, it seemed the both of them had the same terrifying idea.
"But…recently…a scent so…intoxicating and…fresh lingered within my nostrils. It gave me a surge so long forgotten, it was a foreign sensation."
Oh…oh no.
Yeah, my demons are winning.
"It's truly reminded me…how much I love the game. How addicting the hustle is. I lost the perfect specimen after getting a whiff…but I know where to start."
Yazawa seemed nervous as he tried to keep a professional energy about him, "Uh…is it wise for you to be declaring this on national television? Wouldn't this cause some sort of alarm for law enforcement?"
"They can come all they want…I called for this interview just to let my prey know…I'm on the way."
Yazawa chuckled nervously, off camera he seemed to call for the crew, "Okay, okay…let's uh…let's wrap this up okay? The interview is over, get this man out of here."
Golden Stallion rose from his seat, "Do you really think you can leave this set…without feeding the beast?" He chuckled, "You are dead wrong."
Yazawa tried saying something but it didn't matter as Golden Stallion pounced onto him.
Luckily, Morgana decided to turn the TV off at that moment, "Yeah…that's…that's infinitely more terrifying than anything Ancient Ring would've provided."
The trio sat in silence as Morgana started up the PS5, eventually going to AR while passing the controller to Ryuji.
The plights of Ancient Ring were nothing compared to the fact Akira had a Legendary Ass Collector seeking him.
A/N:
It's funny as hell that I've been posting chapters on AO3 for like the past month and I completely forgot about FF. Yikes. Well, at least there's a slew of chapters to read.