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Chapter 3

The Dark Side of Fuutarou

Being the history nerd that she was Miku was always eager to read something new about the great generals of Japan's Sengoku Period. Whenever she discovered a new history book on the subject she would immediately want to read it. At least, that's how it used to be. Now... it just gave herself something to do and not think about that night.

She too had heard Fuutarou enter Yotsuba's room, confirming his decision. She had been hurt, but was also very relieved. She knew he liked her, supported her, and spoke very highly of her. However, deep down she always suspected that he did not see her in a romantic way. Miku had been able to overcome both her shyness and low self-esteem thanks to him. That was more than enough for her. In the end she wasn't as heartbroken as the others.

Especially Nino...

She sighed heavily. She hadn't been able to forget that moment when she saw Nino, frozen in place with tears flowing down her cheeks. She knew how she felt. Both of them had competed fiercely for Fuutarou's affections, but she could never forget how lifeless Nino had been when she hugged her.

Since that night Nino hadn't been herself. It was expected, but they were all confident she would recover.

She had before.

Miku shook away those awful memories and turned her attention back to what brought her here. A big tall book containing the entire history of the Takeda Clan! Out of all of the famous clans from the Sengoku period the Takeda Clan was her favorite. They were truly the romantic heroes of their time! Samurais with a strong code of honor and master horse riders!

Horse riding.

Miku had often wondered what it would be like to ride a horse, traveling across the land in a time before automobiles took over. Sometimes she even dreamed of it. Alas, she would have to go for miles to even see a horse, and she had no experience on what it was like to live out in the country.

That was one of the things she planned to do once she graduated. She wanted to travel across Japan and visit all the historical landmarks that held significant events of Japanese history. She intended to start by going to the Yamanashi Prefecture first, once known as the Kai Province and the historical homeland of the Takeda Clan. This book would be a tremendous help to understanding their history. She couldn't wait to buy it!

That is... until she saw the price.

She stared at it in absolute disgust. She already knew it was going to be expensive but this was well beyond her budget!

"This is so unfair..." she quietly groaned.

She would have to wait until next month when she received her next paycheck, but even then she wouldn't have all that much left . She groaned again. She hated it when things didn't go as planned!

"You into Japanese history?"

She jumped, squeaked, the book nearly slipping out of her fingers as she frantically clutched it to her chest. Steadying herself she turned to the person who had spoken and saw... a face she hadn't seen in a long time.

"Takeda-san?"

The handsome boy with blonde hair stood there with a curious look on his face. It had been a while since she'd last seen him. In fact, it had been a while since any of them had seen him at all.

During their second year of high school their stepfather had tried to replace Fuutarou with Takeda Yusuke as their new tutor. He was the school's principal's son and was ranked as the second best student, right behind Fuutarou. His good looks made him popular with the girls, but his ego had made him insufferable.

However, she saw none of that ego now. He was actually being very friendly for a change.

"Hi," he grinned, "I never imagined I'd find you here."

He leaned over to read the title of the book she had in arms and his brows rose.

"A History of the Takeda-Clan?"

Miku blushed. The last time she had openly talked about her obsession was with Fuutarou not long after they first met.

"Oh... yeah," she gave an awkward chuckle, "I'm really into Sengoku warlords and such."

She forced herself to meet his eyes. He looked at her quietly before raising an eyebrow.

"I know," she admitted, half chuckling, "It's silly."

He laughed, "Not at all. Everyone had their guilty pleasures. I got the impression you were something of a geek when I first saw you. Glad I wasn't wrong. I have my secret hobby too."

"Oh, really?" now Miku was curious as he turned his attention to the bookshelf, "And what would that be?"

"Gaming," he answered right away.

"Gaming?"

"Well, I'm not a hardcore gamer. Mostly online ones. I'm into strategy and civilization building games. I also prefer science fiction games set in outer space, but I do like to play historical ones too, such as Shogun 2 Total War."

"No way!" Miku got excited. This was the first time she had spoken to another player, "I play that one too! It's one of my favorites! Especially online."

He glanced at her, "You any good?"

She raised her fist in triumph, "I'm one of the best!" then she pouted, "Although recently I've developed this rivalry with this one player. I swear it feels like I'm playing against myself whenever I face him! He thinks just like I do. It likes he knows what I'm going to do before I even do it."

Takeda had been reaching for a book but froze midway when she finished her sentence.

"That's funny. I've been going against a player who's just like that," he paused for an instant before asking, "Out of curiosity when was your last online battle?"

"Um... two days ago. Why?"

Another pause, "How did it start?

"Well, I started the battle by trying to claim higher ground-"

"Were you countered by a direct cavalry charge?"

Miku blinked, "Yeah."

"How do you respond?"

"I tried to bring my archers up-"

"And your opponent countered with another cavalry unit by flanking them. Was the battlefield also in foggy conditions?"

"Yeah, it actually gave him a big advantage, but how do you..." her voice drifted away as she stared at Takeda, "Hold on, what's your avatar's name?"

"TakTheGreat2000. Yours?"

"Mi-3-Sengoku," her eyes went wide, "Wait a minute. Don't tell me you're..."

The two teens stared at each other awkwardly before they burst out laughing.

"You got to be kidding me!" Takeda couldn't control himself.

"It was you this whole time?" Miku clutched her stomach, "Oh, my God. I honestly thought I was facing some ancient warlord who'd come back from the dead!"

"So did I," Takeda wiped tears from his eyes, "I never thought it would be one of my classmates. Well then," he held out his hand, "nice to finally meet you in person."

"Same here," Miku shook it after she finally calmed down, "So, what brings you here?"

He pointed to the book she still held in her arms, "Same reason you are."

Miku watched as he took another copy of the same book she wanted off the shelf.

"Oh, that makes sense," she said, "It's only natural you'd be curious since you share the same name."

He looked at her, almost startled.

"Actually... no. I'm curious to see what this author wrote about my ancestors."

There was another awkward moment of silence as Miku stared at him before bursting out laughing again.

"I'm sorry!" she couldn't stop giggling, "I wasn't ready for that! That's was actually pretty funny."

"I wasn't joking. I was serious."

Her giggling immediately seized and she stared at him again. When she looked at him she saw that Takeda wasn't joking at all. It took several moments before it finally sank in.

"Wait... you're... actually descended from the Takeda-clan?" she pointed to the book cover, "The Takeda-clan?!"

His lips twerked into a bit of smug grin, "You didn't think it was possible given my family name?"

"Well... no. I just thought it was just a coincidence. I mean, isn't Takeda a fairly common surname nowadays?"

"True. Most families who carry it today have nothing to do with the actual clan, but in my case I really am a descendant. If you don't believe me ask the teachers, or even the head nurse. They can all confirm it."

Miku just gaped at him before looking away, almost feeling faint, "I don't believe this."

"Don't be embarrassed. You're not the first," Takeda scan through the first few pages, "So I hear that Uesugi is now dating one of your sisters."

She stiffened for a moment, then relaxed. It was only natural he had heard about it.

"Yeah," she sighed.

"I'm sorry," he quickly apologized, "I didn't mean to upset you. I spoke too soon."

"No, it's fine. You obviously would've been curious."

"You did sound disappointed though."

She shrugged, "Should I not be? We were all the trying to win him."

"Hmm, I guess so, but I am really surprised that he chose... sorry, what was her name?"

"Yotsuba. She's the fourth one."

"Yeah, that one."

"Why are you surprised?" she herself was surprised to hear that.

"Well... I knew he was in love with one of you, but Yotsuba-san never struck me as a possible candidate. I mean, the two of them seemed nothing more than friends."

"That's what we thought too," Miku sighed, "We didn't know until Yotsuba told us after it was over that the two of them met when they were children. Apparently she turned his life around and he was forever grateful for that."

A frown came to Takeda's face, "She didn't tell you until now? Why? Why keep it a secret?"

"She said she wanted to give us a fair chance."

His frown darkened, but he said nothing else.

"We all knew how it was going to end," she said, "I actually feel a little better now having talked about it. Thank you."

She gave him a little smile and to her surprise he blushed a little.

"You're welcome," he replied, looking flustered.

The conversation started to feel awkward and she changed the subject.

"Well, since I can't afford this book right now," Miku placed it back on the shelf and picked up the other two books she'd retrieved earlier, "I'll just have to settle on these for the time being," she sighed in disappointment, "I was really looking forward to reading that."

"You can borrow mine when I'm finished," Takeda offered.

She looked at him again, "Thank you, but I'd rather have my own."

He said nothing more and the two teens went over to the checkout line, which was unfortunately long.

"I'm surprised, Takeda-san," she said, "You're being... rather nice. I mean, you didn't exactly make a good impression when we first met you. Then again, none of us were really interested when Papa introduced you to us as our new tutor."

To her surprise his face hardened, "Yeah, I know. To be honest, I wasn't too thrilled with the idea either."

She blinked. That was unexpected.

"You weren't? Then why did you agree to it? Isn't Fuutarou your rival?"

"He is, but the truth is my dad forced me into it."

She saw a flash of anger in his eyes and in that moment all of Miku's first impressions of Takeda faded away. From the sound of it he and his dad were not on good terms.

Takeda went first to the cashier and Miku took a moment to study him. He was shorter than Fuutarou and slightly thinner, but he didn't look like a weakling. He wore his school uniform in a more formal fashion, similar to Itsuki. She had to admit that he was undoubtedly handsome with his blonde hair and deep green eyes. It was no wonder he was popular with the girls.

Now that she thought about it, how come he didn't have a girlfriend already?

She glanced down at the books she was about to purchase while Takeda completed his. As she did Takeda held up his new book and paused, as though he was contemplating something. Then he turned around and walked over to Miku.

"Miku-san?"

"Hmm?"

She looked up to see him standing there. He was looking at the book he just purchased before lifting his gaze.

Then he did something completely unexpected.

"Here," he handed it to her, "You can have this."

She blinked. Blinked again. Then blinked several more times.

"E-Excuse me?" she glanced up and down, from him to the book, "You're... giving me this?"

"I am," he nodded.

"Why?"

"Think of it... as a friendship gift. As an apology for the way I behaved. You can even think of it as an award for all the times you've beaten me on Shogun."

"But what about your family's history?"

He grinned, "I already know my family's history. I can always brush up on it at anytime," he shifted the book closer to her, "Please."

She heard whispering behind her, followed by a few giggles, and her ears started burning. Takeda only stood there quietly waiting. Unlike her he seemed to oblivious to what was going on around them. Before she knew it Miku reached out and took the large book into her hands.

"I hope you enjoy it," he smiled, "Take care, Miku-san."

He gave a little salute and left.

Miku watched him go, utterly baffled by his generous gift. What on Earth had possessed him to do that? The sound of someone clearing their throat behind her brought her back to reality and she quickly rushed forward to the counter.

"That was very nice of him," said the store clerk.

"Uh... yeah," was all she could say.

The instant her new books were in the plastic bag she rushed out of the store, but Takeda had already disappeared. Still bewildered she pulled out the book he had just given her. His generous gift had been such a surprise it had left her genuinely confused. This was nothing like the guy she and her sisters had met last year. It was as if she had met a completely different person.

She ran her fingers over the book cover and a soft smile came to her lips. All of a sudden things didn't seem so bad. In fact... she felt much better than she did ten minutes ago.

It had been raining most of the day but Yotsuba didn't mind as she made her way home.

Even after a week, she still couldn't believe it!

Uesugi-san had chosen her! All her fears would soon be gone. Uesugi-san had forgiven her for the mistakes. She had nothing to worry about anymore. She would finally get what she always wanted, a life with Fuutarou! She couldn't be anymore happy!

You lied to me! You lied to us!

Yotsuba shook her head, not wanting to think about that. Nino was no longer her concern. It was all about Uesugi-san now.

For the past week they had been talking about going on their first date together. She was very excited while Uesugi-san didn't seem very interested but he was always like that. Neither of them have ever done this before so it was only natural that they felt uneasy.

She came to a crosswalk and waited for the light to turn green when her stomach suddenly growled, so loudly she was certain the entire city heard it.

"Wow. That was loud. When was the last time you ate?"

Turning red with embarrassment she turned to the voice standing beside her.

"Oh, it's you!"

Standing beside her was Uesugi-san's old friend, the one who had come to the festival to see him before meeting with Yotsuba and her sisters. Last time she had been wearing regular street clothes. This time she was wearing her school uniform. A bang of her long dark hair was held back by single silver clip just like before.

"Yo!" the girl waved, "Didn't expect to see you again so soon."

"Y-Yeah," Yotsuba laughed nervously, "I didn't think so either, Miss..."

"Takabayashi Chihori," the girl introduced herself, "And you?"

"Nakano Yotsuba, the fourth sister."

"Oh, so you're the youngest?"

"No, I'm actually the second youngest."

The girl's eyes went wide, "Hold on, there are five of you?"

"Yep! We're quintuplets!" Yotsuba laughed, "My oldest sister wasn't at the festival when you came over."

"Oh, I see. My mistake."

"No worries!"

The light turned green. As they walked across Yotsuba's stomach growled loudly again.

"Did you skip breakfast and lunch?" Takabayashi sounded incredulous.

"Just lunch," said Yotsuba, "Although I didn't have much of a breakfast to be honest."

"I was just about to get some ice cream. Want to join me? I'll treat you."

"Sure!" she beamed

Together the pair of them stopped at a famous ice cream shop. Yotsuba ordered a three scoop cup of three different flavors. They ordered them to go and they went over to the nearby park. They sat down on a bench near the lake and Yotsuba happily munched away.

She remembered this park. It was the very same one where Rena first appeared before Uesugi-san. The very one they gone out on the lake together on a boat. In fact, she was not far from the very spot where she had stood watching them, hidden by the trees. Today the park had very few people in it.

"You seem really cheerful," said her new friend, "Last time I saw you you looked ready to collapse."

"Well," Yotsuba wiped her mouth with a napkin, "I was finally able to let go of the past like you suggested because something wonderful happened! Uesugi-san confessed to me last week!"

Takabayashi choked on her ice cream and went into a coughing fit. Yotsuba reached over and patted her back until she recovered.

"Say that again?" she gasped.

"Uesugi-san asked me out," Yotsuba repeated.

It took a full minute for Takabayashi to register the words into her mind. Then she blinked in amazement.

"Well, I'll be damned," she said, "I didn't think it was possible."

"Why's that?" Yotsuba was surprised.

"Because I was convinced that Fuutarou would never open up to anyone ever again. He was always so cold and thoughtless when it came to girls. I guess he really has changed for the better. Congratulations!"

"Thank you!" Yotsuba beamed.

They went back to eating their ice cream before Takabayashi asked, "Is it all right if I call you Yotsuba-san?"

"Sure! I don't mind."

"Good, and you can just call me Chihori. It's much easier."

"Yeah. Takabayashi is a bit of a mouthful."

They exchanged a laugh.

"So tell me," Chihori asked next, "How did you manage to get a guy like Fuutarou?"

"Well..." Yotsuba rubbed the back of her head, "I don't really know. I didn't really pursue him like the rest of my sisters did."

"The rest of your sisters?" Chihori stared at her, "All five of you were interested in him?"

"Not so much me," Yotsuba admitted, "I thought Uesugi-san wouldn't choose a girl like since I'm so unreliable. I sincerely believed that all of my sisters was better suited for him. I guess I got really lucky."

When Chihori didn't answer she looked up, and blinked. The cheerful face Chihori had earlier was gone, replaced with deep concern.

"Forgive me if I'm prying, Yotsuba-san," she said, "but can you tell me everything that's gone on between you, Fuutarou, and your sisters up until now?"

Yotsuba looked at her, an uneasy feeling growing in her stomach, but she suspected Chihori wouldn't have ask if she didn't have a good reason.

"It's a long story," she warned.

Chihori shrugged her shoulders, "We have plenty of time. Humor me."

"Okay. To begin with, I first met him in Kyoto when my sisters and I..." she went on to explain she and Fuutarou first met and the promise they made, how she ended up breaking that very promise, and how she and her sisters unknowingly transferred to his school. She then explained how Fuutarou became their tutor and listing all the events that had happened between them all the way up til now. When she was finished Chihori's face had turned dark.

"Let me see if I understand this correctly. You and your sisters got together and gave Fuutarou an ultimatum that he had to choose one of you. Is that correct?"

"Correct," Yotsuba nodded, wondering where Chihori was going with this.

"Despite the fact that he wasn't ready to and yet you forced him anyway?"

Yotsuba nodded again, growing more uneasy. The way Chihori was speaking to her was like a mother lecturing her child for doing something really bad.

"And yet he chooses you. Why? Why exactly did he choose you? Did he ever tell you?"

"He choose me because I always by his side," she replied.

Chihori's gaze narrowed, "Did he actually say that he loved you?"

Yotsuba blanched, "Uh... no."

Now those eyes blazed, "What did he say?"

"Um... he wanted to know how what my feelings were and then he thanked me for always being be his side."

"Always being by his side," Chihori repeated very slowly before placing a hand on her forehead, letting out a huge sigh of frustration, "Fuutarou... you damn idiot! You haven't learned a damn thing!"

Yotsuba was startled by her sudden burst of anger.

"There's more!" she said quickly, "He also figured out who I was and he didn't hold my past against me. He wanted to support me in return."

Chihori looked at her, the contempt deep in her eyes, "Let me ask you something, Yotsuba-san. Do you even know who Fuutarou is?"

Yotsuba blinked, suddenly feeling uneasy, "He's... he's my friend. From my past."

"I'm not talking about who he was back then. I'm talking about him as he is now. What do you really know about him?"

Yotsuba couldn't answer.

"You don't know, do you?" Chihori slowly said, "Has Fuutarou ever talked about his past? Aside from the fact that he was once a bad kid?"

She shook her head, "N-No, he never has."

Chihori snorted, "That's what I thought."

Yotsuba finally had enough, "All right, Takabayashi. What is this all about?"

"Before I answer that, I need to know something. How are your sisters handling this?"

"They're doing fine," she answered a bit too quickly.

"Are they?" Chihori didn't look convinced.

"Yeah, they are," she insisted.

"I don't believe that. In a situation like this there's always that one girl who's suffering for the sake of another's happiness."

Yotsuba flinched, suddenly remembering what Nino said to her.

Because unlike you, I want Fuu-kun to be happy.

But they all agreed to accept the outcome no matter what. Hadn't they? Why should any of her sisters be suffer?

You lied to me! You lied to us!

Chihori spoke again, interrupting her thoughts.

"Now I need to ask you this question, Yotsuba-san, and I need you to be perfectly honest with me," Chihori's eyes turned deadly serious, "Do you want to know the whole story about Fuutarou? I will give you one chance to walk away and forget we ever had this conversation. Your choice."

Yotsuba was suddenly scared. Very, very scared.

Uesugi-san's old friend quietly waited for her answer. She had to fight to keep herself from running.

Yotsuba knew she was right. If she walked away the doubts would continue to grow no matter how much she would try to ignore. Uesugi-san had given her the confidence she needed when he made his choice. If she ran away now then it would all be for nothing.

She couldn't run away from this, no matter how much she wanted to. She had to face this. There was no other choice. With her decision made she lifted her eyes to the girl and said "Alright, tell me. Tell me about Uesugi-san."

Chihori studied her to see if she was being sincere before saying, "Before I begin, have any of your sisters confessed to Fuutarou?"

"Yes," Yotsuba nodded right away, "At least two of them have."

"Well... they were not the first."

Four years ago...

During our last year of Junior High there was a girl who had a very big crush on Fuutarou. She was one of the most popular girls in school and bit of a wild one. All the boys wanted to date her, but she only had eyes for Fuutarou. Yet no one understood why. She would tease him, constantly flirt with him, and always give him a hard time. She never seemed to realize that Fuutarou simply wasn't interested. His studies were more important, but this made him only more attractive to her. Until one day...

"Fuuta-kun!"

Fuutarou rolled his eyes as the bane of his existence sliding in front of his desk and into his vision, but he kept his eyes locked on his studies. He could never understand was this girl loved to be around him all the time. Chihori had told him several times that it was because she liked him, but he would always scoffed at that.

"Just what did this girl see in him? She really has to be dumb," he said to me one time. At first I didn't take it seriously because I thought he was just annoyed with her. It wasn't until that day that I realize... that's how he really thought of her.

"Whacha doin' after school, Fuuta-kun?" the girl sang in her sweet voice, slapping her hands on his desk and covering his notes.

With a growl he finally looked up at her. Anemori Hatsuka, the school idol and one of the beautiful girls in school. Even he would admit that.

"I'm trying to study," he said impatiently.

"Boo!" she pouted and move to his side, "You're always studying. Don't you ever go out and have fun? Hang out with your friends? Or date cute girls? Like me!"

"I don't have time for those things," he answered for what must had been the thousandth time, "My studies are top priority."

"And that's why you so lonely!" Hatsuka giggled and started pulling his ears.

Fuutarou gritted his teeth and tried slapping her hands away, "Will you stop that! God! I hate it when you do that!"

You had to admit, it was rather fun to watch those two interact. The popular girl being attracted to an unpopular guy. We believed that it would be interesting if they started dating, and that's exactly what Hatsuka exactly had in mind.

"Hey!" Hatsuka brought her face close to Fuutarou's, "Come to the rooftop after school. There's something I want to tell you!"

"Can't you just tell me now?" he glared at her.

"Oh, no, no, no!" she shook her and blushed, "That would be too embarrassing! It's has to be somewhere private. Just you and me."

She wink at those last words, causing Fuutarou to roll his eyes again.

"And if I don't come?"

"Then I pester you even more tomorrow, and the next day, and the day after that until you finally do."

The smile she gave him was enough to convince Fuutarou that she meant it.

"Ugh..." he growled again, "Fine, I'll be there."

"Awesome!" Hatsuka clapped her hands and squeled, "I'll be waiting!"

When she left the classmate Chihori came over to him.

"You know, it wouldn't hurt a little nicer to her," she said.

"All I want is for her to leave me alone," he looked at his childhood friend, "Why do you think she wanted me to come to the roof?"

Chihori gaped at him before bursting out laughing, "Come on, Fuutarou! Isn't it obvious?"

"What's obvious?"

"She's going to confess her feelings to you! What else would it be? Haven't I told you many time already that she has a crush of you?"

"There you go again with the crush thing. We have the final coming up and she's wasting her time with me. I'm not even worth her time."

"Fuutarou," Chihori scolded halfheartedly, "Honestly, what's gotten into you? Ever since we came from that school trip three years ago you've been... different. Acting like a total stranger. Hatsuka is only a girl, a teenage girl. This is what girls do. You really need to stop overthinking it," she was about to go back to her seat when she added, "You know, you still won't tell what happened to you that day."

"I simply made a promise to a friend and I intend to keep it," he said again, "Nothing more."

After class was over Fuutarou made his to the rooftop. I and a few others quietly followed. We were eager to see how this went. We were expecting it to be fun. That wasn't what we got.

Fuutarou found Hatsuka standing there with her back to him and hands clasp behind, the wind gently moving her hair like a flag. Hidden out of their sight Chihori and some of their friends were standing behind the door, excited to see what happened.

"Alright, Hatsuka," they heard him say, "Let's make this quick. What did you want to tell me?"

The girl giggled and spun around on one foot like a ballerina, her face beaming as though it was happiest day of her life.

"Well, Fuuta-kun, I have a confession to make."

Her hands clasped together and she blushed. Fuutarou remained expressionless.

"You see... the truth is..." she giggled again before taking a breath to steady herself, "I like you, Fuuta-kun. I like you a lot."

She expected Fuutarou to be surprised at the very least, but when she looked at him his expression remained unchanged, as though he wasn't even impressed.

"And?" was all he said.

She blinked at his remark but reminded herself that this was Fuutarou after all.

"I'm asking you out, Fuuta-kun," she explained, "I can't make it any more clearer than that."

"So you're saying you want to go on a date with me?"

"There you go!" her eyes lit up, "Now you're catching on!"

"Why do you want to go out with a guy like me?" Fuutarou sounded impatient, "What's so interesting about me?"

Behind the door the smiles of Chihori and the others were starting to vanish.

"Well, it's because you're interesting, Fuuta-kun!" Hatsuka beamed, "You're so quiet and mysterious, like man who's holding many secrets. Okay, I'm making that up, but I do think you're cool and you're very handsome. Plus, since you take everything so serious I think having a girlfriend would soften you up. Think of it as exploring a whole new world, taking a major step in your life. I mean, if you keep going on like this you're going to be all by yourself one day. That would be really sad. So... I'm going to help you improve by your taking you out on dates!"

She looked very proud after making her speech. Fuutarou, however, remained expressionless. He didn't even seem amused. A long minute passed before he finally spoke.

"You're serious about this?" he asked.

Hatsuka was confused by the question.

"Yeah," she said, "Why wouldn't I be?"

And then something that would change my opinion of him forever.

Fuutarou suddenly burst out laughing, almost maniacally, surprising everyone.

That's right. He laughed. Right in her face.

"W-What?" Hatsuka blinked in confusion, "Why are you laughing?"

It took a while before Fuutarou was able to calm down.

"I'm sorry," he said before shaking his head at Hatsuka, "I've known it for a long time now but you really are an idiot, Hatsuka."

Behind her Chihori heard everyone behind her go dead silent. Hatsuka just stared at him, incredulous.

"Excuse me?"

Fuutarou took a moment to stand up straight, "Look, I'm just going to be blunt. I'm not interested in dating. I'm not even interested in romance. I got more important things to do than waste time with things like that. Also, no sensible guy would ever date a girl like you, Hatsuka."

"Fuutarou!" Chihori was shocked beyond belief words, "What are you doing?!"

Behind her she could hear the boys starting to get angry. Meanwhile, Hatsuka gaze hardened into shards.

"No sensible guy would date a girl like me? What do you mean by that? Who wouldn't want to date me?"

"Simple. You're too wild, too headstrong, too outgoing, too everything."

He spoke so casually as though he was giving a classroom lecture. I soon found herself having to calm the boys down as their anger grew.

"Oh, is that so?" Hatsuka retorted, "Alright, then who's your type then Fuutarou? If you were to date someone, what would you like her to be?"

Fuutarou hesitated for a moment. It was clear he didn't expect to be asked such a question.

"Well... I would want someone who's always cheerful, can cook well, and cares for him like a sister. I want someone who can take care of all my needs. Guys prefer those kinds of girls."

Hatsuka stared at him as though he had just spoken a foreign language. Then she snorted in disgust.

"In other words, you want a loyal servant instead of girlfriend. A doormat."

"No, I just don't want any problems," Fuutarou stepped closer her, "Look, I'm sorry to break this to you but you're wasting your time trying to pursue a guy like me. Now, I would like you to-"

He never got to finish his sentence as Hatsuka slapped him, hard enough to make him stagger and almost lose his balance.

"How dare you?"

Stunned, Fuutarou looked and flinched when he saw the look of pure fury in Hatsuka's eyes.

"How dare you!" she screamed at him, "Who do you think you are?! Talking to a girl like that?! Making demands like that! Have you no respect for a girl's feelings?!"

Fuutarou could only stare. He tried to form words but she interrupted him.

"No! I don't hear your excuses. You made your point. You're absolutely right. I was an idiot to believe there's was something cool about you. You're nothing but cold heartless jerk! Don't worry, I'll leave you alone from now. Sorry to have bothered you so much. Goodbye, Fuuta-kun!"

She marched past him while he only stood there. Chihori and the others stood still as Hatsuka come through the door then suddenly stopped. However, she didn't seem to notice. The anger that had been on her face disappeared and was replaced by anguish. With a sob, Hatsuka ran down the stairs crying. Chihori told the others to go after her before she herself went outside.

Fuutarou had remained where he was after he was slapped. He looked at Chihori as she approached, her face dark and eyes cold.

"Were you listening the whole time?" he asked.

She nodded slowly.

"Hmm," he shrugged, "Well, that was easier than expected."

Her jaw dropped, "How can you say that?! Don't you any idea what you've done?"

He stared at her as if he didn't understand the question, "Of course I do. I rejected her and that's all there is to it."

"You didn't have to say it so rudely! She was crying when she came through the door. Go after her and apologize!"

He glared at her as if she said something offensive.

"Apologize? For what?"

"For hurting her feelings!"

He snorted, "What feelings? She's just a stupid girl with stupid fantasies."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. All I could think was, "Is this really my friend?"

"What's happened to you, Fuutarou? I don't recognize you anymore. You really become a complete stranger. What happened to the boy I knew?"

He only shrugged and said...

"I'm no longer a boy, Chihori. In a few years I'm going to be a man. I don't have time for childish things," he turned to walk towards the door, "We better get back to class. I need to continue with my studies."

The next day Hatsuka didn't come to school, but her brother did.

Fuutarou was slammed against the chalkboards before he knew what was happening.

"You son of a bitch!" yelled the older boy, "Who do you think you are?! Talking to my sister like that!"

The classroom had gone dead silent, the teacher herself was too afraid to interfere.

"She came home crying!" he shook Fuutarou, "Did you know that! Do you?"

"Let go of me!" he gasped.

"Not until you apologize to her!"

This time he glared, "This again?! Why do I have to apologize? She brought it all on herself! If she can't handle it that's her problem! Not mine!"

The older teen went livid, "You piece of-"

He slammed into Fuutarou's jaw and he went crashing into the floor. Four of Fuutarou's classmates sprang up and grabbed him in an attempt to pull him away.

"What is with you, man?!" he struggled to free himself, "Don't you have any feelings? Do you even know how much your hurt Hatsuka?!"

"I don't give a damn about your sister!"

When he said those words I knew, as did everyone else in that room. I saw what he had become. A cold, emotionless robot with no feelings. The boy I knew back then really was gone and was replaced by a complete stranger.

The boy stopped struggling and stared at Fuutarou in disbelief. As did the rest of the class. Even the teacher was shocked. His body soon relaxed and the others let him go.

"You really don't give a damn, do you?" he straightened his shoulders, "I came here intending to knock some sense into you, but now I see that it's not even worth the effort. You really are dispicable. I feel sorry for the girl who's dumb enough to date you."

Fuutarou did apologize eventually, but only after the staff and the parents got involved. But from that point on, no one, not even the teachers, would talk to Fuutarou ever again. To us he no longer existed.