A harsh truth that many people realize when they're children is how cruel and evil people can be when their social status is on the line.

That one person you thought was your friend betrays you when they find that everyone is going against you. If they try defending you in any way at all, people will unconsciously treat them just as badly as the victim because they're going against what everyone else is thinking. This is very common in children, but it's also common with teenagers and adults, and I would argue that it can be difficult to find someone that will stick by your side through these kinds of situations. Because most people would rather cast you aside than join in on your suffering.

As I finished that thought, I couldn't help but recognize Isshiki's somewhat gloomy expression as we walked to my lunch spot. For someone who values superficial relationships for whatever reason, you have to deal with the loss of your friends, and you also have to deal with the other students who may be talking behind your back in these kinds of situations. The two of us found ourselves in this situation together, so it's only natural that we stick by each other.

Finishing that thought, I then opened the door for her and made myself comfortable on these concrete stairs.

"I wouldn't have thought this would be so hard..."

There wasn't a topic in her sentence, but I could take a wild guess at what she was talking about. But even as she said those depressing words, she found some light as she ate her lunch.

"The loner life is hard when you're forced into seclusion by your classmates. Like I said, after a while you get used to it."

"I guess so..."

Alright, she seems really bummed out about this, so I guess there's no point in hiding this from her any longer.

"What if I told you I recorded the fight?"

"Did you actually?"

Suddenly her gloominess dissolved as she found a glimmer of hope in my words. "Yep. Look."

I then showed her the audio recording where it captured almost everything perfectly. This will be enough to kill all the rumors and even get Sudo suspended, but even so, I still want to find a way to contact him directly and talk to him about this.

"Wow..."

She was speechless apparently since she didn't say much. "You said your clubmate has him in her class, right? What's his homeroom? I want to go talk to him tomorrow."

"He's class 3-D, which is right by yours. But why didn't you show me this sooner? It's not that big of a deal, but I was really suffering, you know? I thought I would've had to put up with this for the rest of the school year."

I guess I didn't show her the recording because I wanted a day not only to think this whole thing over myself. If I had shown her the evidence immediately, I think she would've forced me to go to the Student Council to fix things. That wouldn't have been the worst thing in the world, but I still wanted to see what would happen during that extra day, but to my surprise, Sudo has not made a move yet. But now I get to see what this guy's deal is.

"Yeah, my bad. I guess I wanted time to think about the situation before showing you the recording. Plus, if I showed you the recording you would've wanted to see the Student Council as soon as possible, right?"

"Well, yeah. But it's whatever though. So, when are you going to present them with the evidence?"

"Tomorrow, and I'm also going to talk to Sudo at lunch tomorrow."

"Ah, okay, that's good, then. You're a reliable senpai too, it seems. You're even spending time with me like this to make me feel better, right?"

She giggled cutely in an attempt to tease me. I guess if she's not trying to manipulate me with her charm, then she's going to tease me. Which, well... it's pretty damn effective but not impossible to defend against.

"Yeah, let's go with that."

"C'mon, lighten up a bit."

"Why can't you lighten down instead?"

"But that's soooo boring. You can't invite a girl out somewhere and not keep her entertained, you knoww~?"

"I didn't invite you anywhere, and I'm the last person you should seek entertainment from,"

"No, no, unacceptable! When you walk me to my job today, I'll be expecting quality entertainment from you, Senpai."

Is she actually serious about this? I guess there'll be no point in arguing any further than this.

"Fine, whatever. But I'm not your friend Isshiki, so don't expect me to talk to you like one."

From her facial expression, it's clear that she doesn't like my attitude. "I can tell you never had a girlfriend either, right? I mean, who would want to be around someone like you anyway?"

"There's no need to be so harsh, kouhai. And no, I never had one, but that's because I don't want one."

"Huh, sure... wait, how about this! Let's go on a practice date this weekend, how about it?"

"Why in the world would you want to go on a practice date with me?"

"Because I'm kind of interested in someone at the moment, and I want to practice going on a date or two so I won't get nervous come the actual date. Plus, it'll be good practice for you too. It's not like you gone out with a girl before, right?"

For someone like Isshiki, I'm surprised that she needs to go on a practice date at all. But it's not that I'm not completely opposed to the idea of us going out together, but going out takes so much time and energy that I'll much rather stay home and relax.

"Can I say no?"

"I'll pay for our first meal if you come with me."

Free food...

"Fine, I'll go. But don't expect me to follow your every whim like this all the time, alright?"

"Right, right. Anyway, we should probably head back to class before we're late."

I checked the time and we had about 2 minutes before lunch ends. Yeah, I guess we might as well get going. I agreed with her and then the two of got up and made our way to the hallway and to our classes.

"Same spot after school, okay?"

"Yep, see ya."

I wasted no time and headed for my class. Class 3-D, huh... that should be directly on my right.

I guess one of the things you can't do in life is try and predict it on a large scale.

Sure, you can predict small things that don't require more than one variable to be met, but when it comes to bigger things, it is simply not possible to try and anticipate future uncertainties. I would not have predicted any of this would've happened, I mean who would've? Unfortunately, the rumors are still going around the school, which is fine, but I somehow got involved with a sly kouhai that I've grown cautious of.

And as I think about this, it never fails for people to give me strange looks as they walk past me outside. I know from past experience that most people will not say or do anything to you in person unless they were in a group, so none of these glances mean anything to me.

But as I was saying, Isshiki is strange, that's for sure. I mean, why would someone like her need to go on a practice date at all? It's not just that, but she acts like we're friends or something when we're not. The only reason I'm waiting for her right now is because she's paying me too, nothing else. So, it shouldn't be long until the two of us move on with our lives, but knowing her, I don't think it'll be that easy.

As I finished that thought, I saw Isshiki leave the building from the left corner of my eye. I then got up from the wall and approached her.

"Hello, Senpai!"

"Yeah, hey. Before we go, let me get my bike, alright?"

She nodded then I went to unchain my bike, and we began to walk in the direction of her job. As usual, we walked in silence with only the occasional chatter from the other students masking our silence. But it wasn't until moments later that she disrupted the bubble of silence that we were in.

"Let's talk about the date. Where should we go?"

I'm still processing the fact that we're going on a literal practice date with each other. We just met not too long, and yet she moves so quickly and sneaky like, almost like a fox. Yes, that's it. She's a fox. I always thought girls were shy but I learned through Orimoto, Yuigahama, and Yukinoshita that's not the case, because there are some sneaky bitches out there.

"I dunno, what about Saize?"

"Nope! That place is not suitable for dates. Since you like coffee, let's grab some coffee, my treat."

"Wait, you said you were going to pay for my first meal, don't tell me you're just going to cover the coffee and nothing else."

"I might buy some snacks and stuff, but you're gonna pay for lunch, okay?"

"Fine, whatever. You better ask that guy out so you can leave me alone for the rest of the semester."

She sighed. "Have you always been alone, Senpai? I'm curious."

I don't want to give her my whole life story, but I've always been alone, but I think being alone has it's perks. For one, it's a fact that you are going to be alone for the majority of your life. So, I think it's good to get used to the silence and the solitude as early as possible, so you won't be dependent on other people for contentment. But of course, from an outsider's perspective, being alone doesn't have any perks at all.

"Yep, always."

"How about your family? I'm sure you see them every day, right?"

"My parents work long hours, so I only see them on the weekends, which means I barely see them at all."

"Oh, okay... that sounds so depressing..."

To a degree, yes, it is actually kind of depressing. Just coming to an empty, silent home after a long day at school is great because I'm no longer at school, but it's not welcoming at all. But that's why I love Kamakura so much, even though he tends to bother me only when he wants food, he's still loving company.

"Because you're making it sound depressing. Trust me, it's not that bad."

"I see. So, do you... Do not mind me at all? Or would you rather me just leave you alone?"

Her tone was serious, and I can see her glancing at the ground as the two of us continued to walk to her job.

"I don't mind dealing with your antics as long as I still have my free time."

That was the truth. If she wants to have lunch with me, I wouldn't be opposed to it. And if she wants to go on a practice date, I wouldn't be opposed to it. She's good company, but I prefer my own company. So, I'll try to keep an open mind, because she's right. A cute girl like Isshiki entered my life, but it would be foolish to think that this would lead to anywhere other than our separation at graduation.

"I see... well, I'll make sure not to go overboard, then!"

"I hope so..."

I told her that I don't mind dealing with her, so she's most likely going to be involved in my school life for the rest of the year. I guess that's not the worst thing in the world, but when I graduate, that'll end things for sure. But why do I keep hoping that we'll never see each other again after this year? Why am I still hoping for the worse?

...

As I finished that thought, the two of us arrived at her job. The area was bustling with people, but the bookstore was relatively calm for the most part since I would assume most people come here to shop and eat and not to look at books.

"Thank you for walking me, senpai!"

"Yep. Are my services required after your shift?"

"Nahh, maybe tomorrow, but I can walk myself today. You're going to talk to Sudo-senpai tomorrow at lunch, right?"

"Yep, so we won't eat with each other this time."

"Blah, I guess that's fine. Well, good luck! And I'll see you tomorrow!"

"Yeah, later."

With that, she ran up the steps and walked inside the building. I then hopped on my bike and began my ride back home.

Come the next day, the rumors are still floating around my classroom, which usually would bother me, but it simply is what it is. It was lunchtime so I have some business with a particular individual. I left the room and went to class 3-D. When I entered the classroom, I immediately gathered practically everyone's attention, which I ignored as I scanned the room for Sudo. After I found him, I approached him.

"Sudo, right? Let's talk for a bit."

For a brief moment, he was surprised, but it looked like he was actually glad to see me. And as I got a better look at him, he has scruffy dark brown hair, kind of like mine but it had a better style if I had to say.

"Sure thing, let's go."

He then got up from his seat and followed me out to the hallway. As we began to walk down the hall, I could hear multiple students come out of his classroom to see where we were going.

Sudo was a few inches taller than me and we're nearly the same size, and he walks with a confident posture compared to my exaggerated hunchback.

"So, where are we going, Hikigaya?"

"My lunch spot, we'll talk out there for a bit."

"Hmm, alright."

After less than a minute, we arrived at my lunch spot, and I opened the door outside. While it was still chilly out by this part of the school, the warmth of the sun made it tolerable enough to sit out here without getting chilled to death.

The two of us then sat down, keeping an appropriate amount of distance between each other. But before I was about to speak, he chuckled to himself.

"I know you recorded the fight, so I figured this would've happened. But I should count myself lucky that you didn't go to the Student Council first."

"Wait, you knew, but how?"

"Kuku, I partially heard someone's phone go off nearby, and I turned and saw you."

"I see,"

"So, what made you come talk to me?"

"I was curious about you, that's all."

"Ah, is that so? Well, I'll be willing to go to the Student Council to clean things up as long as you don't leak that video. I also won't leak the blackmail I have on Iroha if you don't."

"You won't leak it, really?"

"Nothing good will come out of it so no, I won't. I don't even do this kind of stuff anymore anyway, I just saw an opportunity with Iroha and took it."

"Well, it backfired, you bastard."

He laughed. "Yes, it did. I wanted to see how long I could take advantage of her before I had to pay for my sins. I knew it was wrong to do that to her, but I did it anyway because I enjoyed the power trip. I thoroughly enjoyed using my strength to take advantage of others, but it's time to finish my high school life as a regular student after being a delinquent for all these years."

This is an extremely weird situation. It feels like he doesn't care about this at all, I was expecting a little more heat, but there's something about this situation that I can't put my finger on. He did all this knowing I had a recording on him, and he wanted me to come to talk to him like this. But why? That's the one thing I can't understand.

"Hmm,"

He smiled at me after I muttered that. "Are you going to participate in this year's Cultural Festival, Hikigaya?"

"Probably not, why?"

"Oh, no reason. But it's our last Cultural Festival, you know? Don't you want to go out with a bang?"

"I don't even know what that means, so no."

He smiled at me again. "You don't want to enjoy your last festival as a high schooler? After we graduate, the real world awaits us, you know? We won't be able to fool around like we're doing now."

I took his words and began to think about what he said. Maybe I will participate in the Cultural Festival, but I'm not interested in anything besides the food. I missed last year, and I intend on missing this one too.

"I don't care about shit like that anymore."

"You're a funny guy, you know? We should totally be friends, what do you say?"

"Like hell I'll do that."

What is the matter with this guy? I can't get a good read on him. The only thing I can say for certain is that he's insane, but I can't say anything else beyond that.

He laughed. "Yeah, you're definitely the type of person I like to be around. I can tell by your personality that you're honest to the core, and I like being around people like you who speak their mind freely.."

"You don't even seem like the type of person to get involved with someone like me unless you had ulterior motives."

"Perspective is great, isn't it? It's subjective and not one perspective is objectively right. But what does it mean to be right, and what does it mean to be wrong? These are the questions, Hikigaya!"

I sighed and got up from my seat, and as I did that, I heard Sudo pack his things and followed me out the door.

"Tch, you don't get to walk away from me like that, you bastard."

"That's quite the change."

"You're free now, but soon we'll meet again. I want to have some more fun with you before we graduate."

I turned and faced him as he said that. "Is that a threat?"

"What do you think, is it a threat? Anyway, I want to go to the Student Council room with you after school. "

"Huh, okay."

"It'll be easier if I withdraw from this case with you by my side. I'll probably still get punished but fuck it."

"Well, you were suspended for a week so I'm sure you won't mind a small punishment, right?"

"Eh, pretty much. Anyway, I'll be waiting for you after school. Until then."

He waved me off as he left me alone in the hall.

As soon as the last bell for the day rang, I immediately made my way to the Student Council office to close this case for sure.

After a few minutes I made my way to Sudo's classroom and there he was waiting for me right outside the door. "Hey,"

"Yeah, hey. Let's go now."

He smiled and began to walk by my side. Almost everyone was surprised to see the two of us walking side by side, especially with all the rumors circulating around the school.

"As expected, their confusion should naturally dispel the rumors circulating around us in no time."

After we arrived at the student council office and opened the door inside. Neither Hayama nor Yukinoshita were there, but the Treasurer was present. She flinched subtly at our presence but collected herself quickly.

"Y-Yukinoshita-san and Hayama-san should be here shortly, but you can take a seat if you want."

Sudo gave the girl a friendly smile as the two of us took some seats. I went to the same seat I took before and waited for the other two to come to the room.

When the two of them entered the room, they were in slight shock to see the two of us sitting together.

"Sudo? What are you doing here?"

Hayama raised his voice as he addressed Sudo across the room. By his body language and facial expression, it was almost as if Hayama was ready to fight Sudo. But Sudo didn't budge one bit, rather, he seemed to be enjoying himself.

"How's it going Hayato? How's the Soccer club? Oh, wait." He kept a patronizing tone before he addressed Yukinoshita. "And good afternoon to you, Student Council President."

"What are you two doing here? Is this some kind of joke?"

"Yeah, it was one big joke. Even though Hikigaya does have his fingerprints on my jacket, I staged the whole thing for social media attention."

Yukinoshita sighed as if she was disappointed by Sudo's actions. I even don't know what's going on right now. What was the point of him staging that whole thing?

"You're still getting punished, Sudo."

"That much is obvious. So, what am I getting? A 1 or 2-day suspension? Surely you won't try for a 4 day, right?"

Unable to answer him, Yukinoshita chimed in. "1 day is more than enough for this matter. In the future, if you wish to pull another stunt like this again and disrupt the learning environment of the school, then don't expect leniency from me again. This is your only warning to get your act together."

"Yes, understood. I won't show up tomorrow, then." He smiled then got up from his seat. "Let's go, our work is done here."

I didn't have any reason to stay back in the room, so I obediently followed Sudo to the door and Hayama eyed us on the way out.

"With that out of the way, shall we exchange phone numbers?"

"Hell no, just leave me alone."

"Fine, but for the sake of the rumors, we should spend as much time with each other as possible, what do you say?"

This guy is seriously a weirdo, but I do want these rumors to go away so I guess I'll suck it up and deal with him for now.

"Fine, whatever. If I didn't know any better, I would believe that you would be out to get me for what happened last time. We're nearly the same size, yet you're strong as hell."

He examined my body as I said that. "Our physiques are nearly the same, but I've been training since my first year of high school. That's the only reason I was able to take down that rugby player during my junior year, otherwise, I would've gotten the short end of the stick."

"Ah, right."

He brushed aside my words and switched the conversation. "Can you tell Iroha that the three of us should start hanging out together in school to help dispel the rumors?"

"I guess I can. But I don't think she would want to hang out with you anyway."

"Well, we'll just have to see and find out. Anyway, I'll see you around."

Sudo then waved me down as he walked down the hallway.

This dude... just what does he want? I thought he would be some dumb jock type that lacks critical thinking skills, but Sudo is so mysterious and confident, and the atmosphere in the Student Council room was really dense as if I had intruded on an argument taking place between them, but I was there the entire time.