Disclaimer: I own nothing related to To-Love Ru, if I did, then the series would still be on-going.
Regular exposition text looks like this.
"Speech looks like this."
'Internal thoughts appear like this'.
"Mindscape discussions appear like this."
:=:
The second law of thermodynamics, an isolated system's entropy will never decrease over time, or in simpler words, in an isolated system either things remain the same or get increasingly disorderly. There is either stagnation or chaos.
Would such a law apply to a fictious world? A fictional world is after all limited, purposefully made chaotic at the whims of a writer to satisfy the readers. But what if that world no longer has readers to observe the story, nor a writer to purposefully create chaos.
Wakayama Tsukishiro, the math teacher would never have imagined that the serious look of focus that his student Naoto Suzuki was giving him was not because of the algebraic formula on the chalkboard, but because the student was battling to find a solution to his never-ending worries.
'It has been almost a month now' Naoto was yet struggling with his discovery of the world being one from a story he'd once read. While he was all but certain of the fact, it did not make it any easier to accept.
As he carelessly took notes of the teaching material, Naoto couldn't help but return to his conundrum. The story of To-Love Ru was written in a fashion fitting of a descent to chaos. With greater stakes every arc and new threats for the cast to find solutions to, it was a story written to target the shounen category through and through. While Naoto could not remember much of the details, he was sure that most challenges were overcome with the power of friendship, love and trust. This power however was also often called as something else within the anime community. Plot armor.
'But plot armor doesn't work in the real world' Naoto bemoaned, holding his head as he felt a headache build. Even now he'd regularly hear whispers of the pink-haired princess and her beauty. While the current whispers and events were limited to perverted but harmless antics or the confession of a handsome transfer student on his first day, Naoto was certain that Lala and Rito would soon enough be involved in bigger and bigger issues.
Even the thought of aliens who were never part of the original story, invading the school or the planet, made Naoto groan unconsciously. While he remembered that Lala was accompanied by a few of the emperor's guards, he was certain that the guards must have been terrible at their job given how many dangerous situations the main cast is set to find themselves facing in near future. The possibility of the butterfly effect leading to the end of the planet, while minor, did exist.
As Naoto clenched his fist to relieve the forming headache, attempting to walk away from the thought process with no answer or value, he was once again reminded of second law.
"Wakayama-sensei! It appears that Suzuki-san is not keeping well! May I escort him to the school nurse for his wellbeing!" was the cry of the ever-dedicated class president, uncaring of the baffled expression worn by Naoto.
"Not like this" cried Naoto, holding his head like a certain icon from his past.
His very existence, every move, every action, was pushing the world ever so slowly towards entropy.
:=:
In a high school filled with multiple facilities, swimming, sports, or extracurricular. A school attended by a beautiful female student crowd. A school with a well-kept garden, a library with a wide array of books and even a small coop for animals, what might be the most popular place for the male students to visit?
If anyone's first guess was the Nurse's office, then Naoto would have called them out on their lie or reported them for cheating. While skipping classes resting in the school nurse room is an enticing proposition, doing so is generally difficult without a genuine cause. It is often not a place looked upon fondly by a student. That however was not the case for Sainan high, simply because of one major reason. Though looking towards where Class president's gaze was, there may very well be two significant reasons.
A beautiful woman with green eyes and brownish red hair sat within the nurse room, wearing a lab coat, though 'wearing' may be a stretch given how the coat loosely hung over her shoulders, revealing her pink top worn underneath, emphasizing her immense breasts, some of which remain unhidden by the top, held together by a belt at her waist, with a skirt too small to cover anything below.
Mikado Ryouko, the school nurse, was a dreamy mature woman for anyone, be it the male students or perhaps even the teachers. Her affectionate gaze while treating the students, and attentiveness towards the students who'd visit the nurse room purely to seek her out, had won her a cult following within the school.
"Mikado-sensei! I have come to escort Suzuki-san to your care!" the loyal class president proclaimed, though his loyalty may have been to two certain mounds of flesh, given where his gaze was fixed.
As the class president left, with his face showing great regret as if he had been forced to abandon his family, Naoto found himself alone in the room with Mikado. However, his headache and worries had only grown instead of abating.
Mikado Ryouko other than being a buxom school nurse loved by all, was also an alien, and one of the minor but named cast members of the story. Her ability to treat the main cast in circumstances of illness must have been key at some point in the story.
'Must have been…. Because I do not remember her sections within the story whatsoever' to Naoto's terror, Mikado was one of the named characters he did not remember details of. Other than some little bits of her having been a researcher for some alien organization in the past, he was not aware of any other details. What kind of alien was she? Did she have any unnatural abilities? Perhaps a tendency to experiment on human samples?! Naoto had found himself walking into one of his nightmares, an unplanned situation with a severe lack of information.
"Ara, are you going to keep standing there Suzuki-kun? Come and sit here so I can check what's wrong" Mikado beckoned Naoto, unaware of his internal dilemma.
'Or maybe simply uncaring? What if she has the ability to read minds and I'm in a greater danger than I currently believe myself to be in?!' As he moved calmly to the stool in front of Mikado, Naoto's mind was in an entirely opposite disarray. His previous thoughts during the class having thrown him into a negative spiral for this unfortunately timed moment.
"I cannot read minds you know, Suzuki-kun." Naoto's blood ran cold, as Mikado uttered words cementing his fears into realit- "If you don't tell me what's wrong, I won't be able to help treat you" or perhaps he truly should stop considering philosophical questions during Math class, his barely functioning mind decided.
"My apologies Mikado-sensei, it's just that this is my first time at the Nurse room since I began high school. I was simply shocked that Mikado-sensei was even more so beautiful compared to what the rumors say" Naoto managed to say, his mind somehow creating an excuse for acting like a robot for the last minute, though he was already cursing himself internally a moment after he processed what his mind had come up with.
"Fufu" Mikado giggled, as if she had found Naoto's terrible attempt at a compliment flattering, "I had not known the serious and prodigious Suzuki-kun also paid attention to rumors. To hear such a compliment is truly surprising" she teased, her expression clearly conveying the enjoyment she derived by making her students fumble.
"Please, no need to tease me, Mikado-sensei. My head's already hurting, I fear I would explode from embarrassment otherwise" requested Naoto, looking for some mercy from the devilishly beautiful alien nurse.
"Ara, I didn't know you were in pain Suzuki-kun" Mikado now looked genuinely surprised, ushering Naoto towards one of the two beds present within the room. "Please lie down and rest. If you do not feel better before lunch, I will have to force you to take a day off today" she said pointedly, likely knowing Naoto's tendency to focus on studies, frequently staying after school hours to study ahead.
"As you say, Mikado-sensei" grunted Naoto as he laid on the bed, slightly cranky with his head attempting to end his existence. However, he was not addled enough that he'd purposefully go against a potentially dangerous alien's command. Her being extremely beautiful was certainly not a factor.
"I hope you do not mind the noise as I look over and sign some documents Suzuki-kun" Mikado commented, looking slightly concerned. Her desk was filled with a comically large tower of paper. How such a number of documents could have piled up, Naoto couldn't fathom. He was feeling rather concerned for the disaster that would occur if the tower were to topple.
"I do not mind, Mikado-sensei. Instead, I find it oddly calming. A preferable substitute to silence." Naoto answered, as Mikado picked a document to look over. 'Now that I think about it, how is she fetching documents from that pile without disturbing the tower? Maybe that's her alien power', his logic however was clearly still not at full functionality.
"You sound like an old office worker like that Suzuki-kun. Boys your age are usually more youthful and quite a handful" Mikado smiled, sounding amused. Or at least that is what Naoto believed her expression must look like, as his vision was filled with the white and utterly uninteresting ceiling of the room.
"Maybe if I can become an old office worker as a student, when I do graduate to work, I will directly join a company as their president given my experience during my school years" Naoto jested, an image of a late teen boy sitting in the chair of the board of directors appearing in his head. Sadly, this was an entirely different world, and as far as he knew, Naoto was not some tech genius set to innovate the world.
"Fufu, Suzuki-kun really has his future well planned huh? As your sensei I feel demotivated, unable to help her student in defining his future" Mikado replied, her tone sad, while being colored by hints of teasing.
"If only that were true Sensei. Truth is, I find myself much more lost compared to my classmates when it comes to my future. Perhaps being well informed and prepared only leads to more worries" Naoto however answered honestly, his rationality hampered.
'Maybe I was too honest', he considered when the room became suddenly silent after he had replied, the sound of the pen scratching at paper also halting. 'I hate headaches' he cursed his body that was working actively against his mind.
"I must apologize Mikado-sensei. You make for such great conversation that I fear if we keep at it, I will never get any rest. I hope you'll let me try to rest so I can return to my classes post lunch" Naoto added before Mikado could respond to his previous comment.
"Ara, no need to apologize Suzuki-kun, I'm at fault, disturbing my precious student when he should be resting" Mikado replied, perhaps a little quickly. "I need to give some of these documents to the principal, so I will be heading to his office for a bit. I hope you're able to rest in the meantime" she added, as a sound of her chair scraping could be heard as she got up.
"I will try my best" Naoto answered, as he soon heard the nurse room door open and close, the room falling into silence.
His actions had yet again only led him to a situation more precarious than where he was before.
:=:
Having defeated mortal peril, Naoto had now left the Nurse room, bidding goodbye to the devilish nurse. His headache now under control, he was aiming to grab lunch before classes resumed.
His return to relative normalcy however suddenly became extremely difficult as Naoto saw a certain student walk towards him from the opposite end of the corridor he was in.
This was not an unusual or concerning incident, had the student walking towards him not been Yuuki Rito, the protagonist to the story himself.
So far Naoto had successfully avoided contact with the main major cast members who resided within the school, his only regular contact within the main cast being Mikan, who he had judged to be a harmless contact given her relative lack of involvement in terms of school related incidents.
'Thinking about it, this might be safer than I'm fearing' Naoto thought, resuming his stride towards Yuuki Rito. While Rito may be the main character set to have the plot revolve around, he himself was one of the least threatening characters within the cast. While the female cast was filled with various kinds of aliens, or unique heroines who could potentially be triggered to some terrible and often violent consequences, Rito was largely harmless if the person he was interacting with was not female, as Naoto could not remember an instance of Rito performing his signature moves on any male.
'Either way, it's not like he's going to call out to me if I don't say anything' Naoto mused, as he walked closer. However, he realized the mistake he had made moments after it had been made.
'I jinxed it.'
"Ah, Suzuki-san! How nice to meet you here." Rito said happily, his happiness paying no regard to Naoto's sanity, which was crumbling at the mistake that had been made.
"Yuuki-san, hello. It is nice to meet you here too" Naoto answered back, keeping his greeting curt and to the point. While Rito was harmless to interact with in small amounts, an extended interaction was bound to cause issues.
"I had been looking for Suzuki-san for a while, but you're barely seen outside your classroom. And umm, you are always crowded around in your classroom so I couldn't find the opportunity" Rito added, looking slightly embarrassed.
'What is this? Did I raise a flag with the main male protagonist? Don't tell me that Rito was the person I had to avoid at all costs.' Rito's statement had thrown Naoto into jeopardy. Had he been fully recovered perhaps he would have recognized the multiple jumps of logic he was making at that moment, but sadly that was not the case.
"And why is it that you were looking for me, Yuuki-san?" Naoto questioned, keeping himself together. Clearly there must be an answer to save him.
"It was to thank Suzuki-san! You have been taking care of Mikan for the last few weeks as she walks back home. She often says that you even help tell her what she should study for upcoming tests" Rito answers, "I'm not the best at studies so sometimes I feel I'm not able to help her where I should have been able to" he adds sheepishly, his arm rising so that his hand could brush the back of his head.
'Of course, a perfectly valid reason did exist' Naoto sighs, collecting the pieces of his mind as he sensed the impending doom to have passed. 'I wonder do all protagonists have this nervous tic of brushing the back of their head? I've never seen anyone else do it.' He now wondered about something entirely different, but equally insane.
"It is no concern Yuuki-san. Instead, it is Mikan-san who has been a great help to me. I look forward to running into her in my walk back home with how many helpful tips she has regarding places to shop from and recipes to cook at home." Naoto replied. Mikan's help navigating the commercial jungle was truly like a he had access to the wisdom of an experienced housewife.
"If you say so Suzuki-san. I hope Mikan hasn't been bothering you too much. I wanted to thank you earlier but umo, I've been busy uhh helping my dad lately!" Rito stammers, trying to find a reason which does not include a certain galactic princess. The poor boy must have been at wits end for the last month.
"It is of no issue Yuuki-san but thank you for concern. Please do take care to not overwork yourself. I believe your father is a mangaka? It is a truly demanding job. I have yet to find an opportunity to read his manga sadly" Naoto makes some conversation, now looking to escape as the reason Rito had approached him had been clearly fulfilled.
"Oh! You should have told me before Suzuki-san! I'll grab a copy of dad's manga later to give to you" Rito excitedly replies, his spirit rekindled, having caught the bait laid by Naoto.
"That would surely be appreciated Yuuki-san. However, you can simply hand it over to Mikan-san. I'm sure we will run into each other one of these days" Naoto comments, having given Rito an opportunity to materialize the gratitude he felt, while removing his need to cover-up anything related to Lala. "I must be heading to grab lunch now. I fear I will be too late for the next period if I delay it any longer" he added, glancing at the wall clock.
"Wait it's already this late! Lala must be looking for me!" Rito scrambled as he too looked at the clock. "I'll give the manga to Mikan to hand it over Suzuki-san." he said before sprinting towards that Naoto believed was not the correct direction to head for his classroom.
'Oh well, I'm sure it'll be fine for now' Naoto was unconcerned. Out of all characters within the cast, Yuuki Rito was one of the top contenders for goodness of heart combined with a lack of threat. The galactic princess while even more innocent could punch a hole through a wall, making her much less of a preferable option.
"The joys of being a protagonist" Naoto murmured sarcastically as he heard a girls scream from the direction Rito had run into. "Perhaps the head rub is a key requirement to become a protagonist." he quietly considered as his feet took him towards his classroom.
The image of the resident prodigy awkwardly trying to rub the back of his head was however, not observed by anyone.
:=:
As the principal's office door was closed after a tower of documents was deposited on the table within, a sigh could be heard from the woman who had just completed the backlog of a year's worth of medical documents. The fact that the principal did not care about the regularity of medical checkups and documentation was a godsend for the lazy researcher throughout the year, but hell for when she had to catch-up on the backlog.
As Mikado entered the quiet of her office, she sighed once again and slumped on the chair in the center of the room.
Finding the quiet of the room a little lonely her mind wandered to the unexpected visitor she was housing for the previous hour or so. A famous prodigy of the school, with scores perfect enough that he would gain entry into any university purely through his scholarly pedigree. His talent so precious that the school board had provided him access to many freedoms that the rest of the students did not have, though he did not make use of any, other than perhaps staying back to study even more.
That very stellar student had told her, in this very room, that he considered himself to be greatly concerned and lost about his upcoming career.
As Mikado gazed towards the bed that Naoto had occupied just a few hours prior, noticing offhandedly the fact that the sheets were tucked in nicely, even nicer than they had been prior to his occupancy, she smiled while quietly speaking to the empty room.
"Maybe the sound of a pen scratching on paper is indeed preferable to pure silence. Fufu, Suzuki-kun, such an interesting yet cute student. I wonder if he'll be returning here some time soon. Ara, but I shouldn't hope for my cute students to need my help."
In the quiet of the nurse room, a devilishly beautiful nurse could barely be heard giggling to herself softly. The sound carrying into the connecting corridor, as if calling for the law of the world to turn her hopes into reality.