The Mask Shatters
Chapter 3
"The road will be long and difficult, but he will become an excellent thief."
The day was long, abnormally so for a teen like Arthur.
He enjoyed his schoolwork, took it seriously, and strived for excellence back in the home country. Took online classes to even further his education where possible. Time was never a factor into his day before.
Unlike now.
When the bell rang for lunch, he wasted no time in searching for the cafeteria. He just followed everyone else. When he had entered, he was surprised at how large the space really was. The whole section of the floor must've been dedicated to it. Of course, students were allowed to eat lunch in the courtyard as well, but Arthur preferred indoor dining. The weather and the bugs were nonexistent.
When he purchased his lunch - a small meal of white rice, some mixed vegetables and tilapia - he began looking for a small place to tuck away and be by himself. As much as he wanted to look good in front of other students, he didn't want to intrude on anyone. It seemed most people in the cafeteria sat with those they knew anyways. Arthur didn't know anyone, and the only real interaction he had with another student was the student he sat next to who had braces. They shared a textbook, but that was to the extent of their interaction.
Arthur scanned the cafeteria but couldn't spot a lone table. All he saw were groups and groups of students, some passing by, most just eating at a table. Even one table near the entrance to the cafeteria was taken by the red-eyed girl from his class. She was sitting there, alone, eating a school lunch and minding her own business.
Part of him felt bad for her and he thought about joining her. But he didn't know her, and he didn't want to come off as a creep or weird or anything worse. Those possibilities in mind, he quickly opted out of the idea, and decided to wander about for a table.
As he wandered, he passed different tables dominated by different types of cliques. First years, second years, third years, nerds, athletes, the typical female cliques, and more. At one point, he even spotted a group of second years sitting apart from everyone else. One was a blond girl with bushy pigtails, another was a blond carefree looking boy who wasn't even wearing a regulation shirt underneath his black button up. The final guy was a frizzy, black haired boy with glasses.
And somewhere nearby, Arthur could've sworn he heard a cat.
But he shoved those thoughts aside and moved along. Their business was not his. He didn't want to look crazy looking for a cat either.
Eventually, he found a table at the far end of the cafeteria. Deserted and quiet. Just as he wanted. He took a seat and, chopsticks in hand, slowly began to eat his meal.
After a while in his seclusion, he felt a buzz in his pocket. The sudden vibration caught him off guard and he grunted, food still in his mouth, and pulled his phone out to check.
But, as was the case yesterday, there was no notification. Just the same wolf pack lock screen that he was used to.
"Haht tha?" He mumbled, food in his mouth. He swallowed, unlocked the screen, and checked his messages for any sneaky little text. But there was nothing. The latest text having been sent four days ago to a punk friend of his back stateside.
He shook his head, and just then a voice piped up.
"Uh, excuse me?" Someone asked.
Arthur put the phone down and looked up. Much to his surprise, it was the short, black haired boy with braces from his class.
"I was trying to catch up with you but, damn, you move fast." He said, chuckling at Arthur. Arthur just looked at him and apologized.
"Sorry, I tend to speed walk. A habit of mine."
"Ah, is it an American thing?" The boy asked, before quickly shaking his head and saying "Nevermind, that sounds really stupid actually…"
Arthur glanced between his half-eaten food and the boy, who just awkwardly stood there. It seemed like he was unsure of what to say next, and the situation just deteriorated by the second in its comfort level. But eventually the boy broke the immediate silence.
"So…. mind if I sit with you?"
Arthur looked at him for a moment further before chuckling. This was a surprise to him, and a welcome one at that. The students in his class seemed to have had their fun with him in the beginning but as class rolled on he became a figment of the past. Even the red-eyed girl who seemed to have been studying him in the beginning left the second the bell rang without even saying a single word to him.
To be approached by someone he didn't know in such an alien land was a warm thing indeed to Arthur, and he didn't want to turn away the possibility of making a new friend.
"Uh, sure. Sure. Have a seat, man." Arthur allowed him. The boy smiled and sat across from him. The boy was of the same grade as him, a third year. With braces, short black hair that parted on the left side and a uniform like everyone else, this guy almost looked like you could lose him easy in a crowd if you didn't know him. The fact he thought to approach Arthur AND acted on it said a lot about his own confidence, and that was something Arthur immediately picked up on and quietly respected.
Even more when he earlier agreed without second thought on sharing a textbook with Arthur.
"Oh, by the way, I appreciate sharing your textbook with me earlier." Arthur commended him, adding a slight bow to his posture. The boy shook his head.
"Don't bow to me please, we're the same grade. I can't at all be considered your senpai."
"Ah… I was wondering when I'd hear that word…" Arthur said as he rose up. Some level of disgust with that word was evident in Arthur's voice, but the boy merely rose a brow in confusion.
"What?" He asked. Arthur simply cocked his head and, with a small snicker, shrugged his question off.
"Nothing. Don't worry about it." Arthur said as he picked up his chopsticks. He leaned forward on the table and watched as the boy with braces readied himself for his own meal. A small napkin in his lap and under his plate. He looked up at Arthur and noticed he was watching him.
That sparked a conversation between the two that lasted a good bit. The two talked about the circumstances regarding Arthur's troubled transfer between the schools, and at times the boy gushed over things he heard about America and asked Arthur all kinds of different questions regarding that topic. Arthur was more than happy to answer them. Questions such as meal portion size, fast food businesses, and traditions that Americans had among other things. The conversation lasted a good while before Arthur, realizing he doesn't even know the boy's name, interrupted the conversation to ask.
"Oh, my name? My name is Ichisake. Ichisake Miyara. But you can just call me Ichisake, no needs for honorifics please, Williams-san."
Arthur's eyes widened at the honor and he couldn't help but bow again. "It's an honor, Ichisake…. If that's the case…" He paused and looked up at the boy. "...You don't need to use honorifics with me either. You can use my first name."
"I am truly honored, Arthur…. Arthur…. Arrrrrrthurrrrrr…." Ichisake sounded out slowly, causing Arthur to smile, even if it was just a small one. "Rolls off the tongue weird."
Arthur laughed, and Ichisake joined. When the two caught their breath, Arthur suddenly thought of something that he heard about yesterday during his car ride to his new home. Ichisake had begun picking at his fish when Arthur asked about it, causing Ichisake to suddenly perk up.
"So, I've been hearing about some stuff going on with the school, been happening since before my exchange. What is all that about, stuff about "phantom thieves" and… well… sexual harassment? Was that what made my exchange difficult?" Arthur asked.
Ichisake, mouth full of fish, simply looked skyward for a moment in thought before swallowing and, with a gasp for air, shook his head.
"I wouldn't know, Arthur. At least not that last part…" Ichisake started. "But I know what you're talking about. For a few days that's all the school talked about. Kamoshida's change of heart, the phantom thief calling cards, the harassment coming to light. Even the news picked up on it. You telling me no ones talking about this overseas?"
Arthur shrugged. "I didn't find anything during my research."
"Huh…" Ichisake sounded off before looking back at his dish. "Well. I wouldn't know if that's what delayed your transfer, but I know a little bit about what's been going on, so if you wanna know. I'll be happy to tell ya." He offered with a humble smile.
The bell suddenly rang out of nowhere, and Arthur could hear faint groans of annoyance from the students all around. Even Ichisake seemed mildly annoyed with time having run out. Arthur himself just shrugged and piled his trash on top of his plate.
"Didn't even finish my lunch…" Ichisake complained. Arthur reminded him he didn't either, and the two quietly stood up and disposed of their garbage.
"Well, I suppose I'll have to fill you in another time, Arthur." Ichisake told him. Arthur agreed, and relayed to him he was very interested in figuring out what the deal was before his arrival.
Ichisake looked at Arthur and smiled.
"Wanna walk back to class together? We're in the same room, after all." He offered.
Arthur, happy someone in the school took an interest in him at all, returned his smile and reciprocated his offer of friendship.
"Sure. Let's go."
"I just don't know what went wrong this year…" Kobayakawa murmured into his palms, frustrated with the turn of events he had to deal with throughout the beginning of this school year.
"Pardon me, Principal Kobayakawa?" The vice principal asked, raising an eyebrow at his choice of words. The principal glanced up at him from his hiding spot behind his hands, displeased with his vice principal's ignorance to the situation.
"You're telling me you're oblivious to all that's gone on this year?" The principal asked, laying his hands on the arms of his chair and leaning back, watching the man before him with a steady glare. "First, a delinquent transfer student scaring the staff and student body, THEN we have a delusional honor student confusing everyone with her references to another person when referring to herself, THEN these "phantom thieves" and Mr. Kamoshida and…. Good God, Kamoshida…" Kobayakawa pouted. He shut his eyes and let his face droop. The vice principal frowned, crossing his arms and massaging his chin as he thought about everything presented to him.
"It has been a troublesome year…." He said, trying to find a good way to agree with the principal's troubled state.
"Troublesome? Troublesome, huh?" The principal echoed, opening his eyes and eyeing the papers on his desk before him. "Try a complete clusterfuck.." He mumbled.
"Sir?" The vice principal asked, surprised to hear the principal cursing aloud.
"Things just keep getting thrown at me left and right and I'm expected to handle all of it in a correct fashion that is completely absent to me. How am I supposed to deal with these "Phantom Thieves"? What am I supposed to do about our school's image, now that Mr. Kamoshida has gone and mucked it all up?" Kobayakawa whimpered, finding no solace to the situation even in his own mind.
The vice principal rose a finger to him. "We're not even sure these Phantom Thieves of Hearts even exist. I'm pretty sure it's just a prank, as does most of the student body and faculty. Even the student council president, Niijima-san, agrees that it's just a prank by someone who knew." He reminded Kobayakawa.
The principal shook his head and echoed the vice principal's choice of words.
"Prank…." He murmured, unsure if his higher ups would even accept that as an answer. They didn't when they contacted him about this incident. The principal then leaned forward, looking his vice principal in the eye as he thought up a new question. "If it's a prank, then answer this: How does that explain Mr. Kamoshida's sudden change in personality? His readiness to commit suicide for his actions? His complete cooperation with the authorities? His sudden demands to be arrested? No one in this entire world can change on a whim like that, even if threatened or blackmailed…"
The vice principal nodded. "So you're saying these Phantom Thieves are real….and that they might be members of our student body?" He deduced.
"Precisely." Kobayakawa said, smiling that his vice principal caught on so quickly. "But worry not, I have a very trustworthy person looking into this for me. But that isn't the end to my worries…." The principal slouched in his seat, eyeing once again the papers sitting before him. They were faxed to him nearly an hour ago, and the worrying details on them only served to displease him further.
"What sort of worries, Kobayakawa-san?" The vice principal asked, truly curious that there was more.
"Regarding the foreign exchange student." The principal sighed. He picked up the papers and read them over real quick before looking at his vice principal. " I got worried over his arrival and thus had these faxed to me by a colleague of mine. They regard him in a bad manner. One that could further taint our school."
"Really?" The vice principal asked in surprise. "If that's the case, why did you allow him to come?"
"I-I… Everything happened AFTER his transfer was approved! There was no way I could stop it!"
The vice principal shook his head, and Kobayakawa looked over each paper he had for a few moments before sighing aloud. He knew what the vice principal was thinking, and opened his mouth to answer the question. "According to these papers, Williams-san has… had extensive psychiatric treatment in the United States. This therapy has been going on for about a year, and it was ongoing until his transfer was approved to our school."
The vice principal looked at him, surprised to hear that. "Really? I had just spoken to Mr. Sakutaro only twenty minutes ago. He reports that Williams-san's conduct and manners are, as he put it, "acceptable". Coming from Mr. Sakutaro, that is quite a compliment."
"According to the fax I received, Williams-san has been, as the Americans put it, Baker Acted in May of last year for… attempted suicide."
The vice principal's eyes widened, but even with the word hanging in the air he couldn't help but ask a question that was obvious to him even if it was completely ignoring the elephant in the room. "What's a "Baker Act"?" The vice principal asked.
Kobayakawa looked up from his papers, annoyed he had to answer even this. "It's something in America that allows doctors and other healthcare officials to hold someone involuntarily for up to seventy-two hours in a hospital for various mental health reasons…"
"So suicide…."
"Yes…" The principal confirmed. He looked back to the papers, and read off the rest of what it said. "Depression… The attempted suicide… He hangs around a bad crowd back in his American school… His parents are apparently a big factor into this behaviour, and his psychiatrist has often tried to prescribe antidepressants only for his mother to turn it all down. They apparently fight and argue and break things… All according to what he's told his therapist, of course." He explained to the vice principal, who only listened and shook his head at the horrible situation he's gone through.
"Aside from the attempted suicide, how can any of that be a detriment to our school?" The vice principal asked. "And more importantly, I'm not sure it's legal that you did this…"
"Don't worry about legality. My friend can find loopholes." The principal told him. "But that's not the issue here. According to these documents, he is still not mentally sound. It seems he has "episodes" as well. Episodes where he'll cry and carry on for hours and hours on end if anything triggers him, be it words, images, or dreams. He's even broken down with his therapist before and ran into the bathroom to bawl his eyes out."
"My word…." The vice principal murmured, shaking his head and imagining a scene like that playing out at Shujin Academy. "I can see the worry you have in that. If he has an episode… what if he hurts someone? O-or himself?"
"That's what I'm worried about too. The media will eat that up and make us look even worse!" The principal announced aloud. "It'll look as if we care nothing at all for the mental health of our students!"
"Hold on, hold on… Does the document say anything else regarding his mental state? Anything positive about it?"
The principal then scanned the document, and made a loud huff as he found something tucked away at the bottom.
"Yes, it says here that, while he is not mentally sound, he has been making progress these past few months regarding his triggers…. But that's all it says."
"No concrete evidence that he won't relapse then, huh?" The vice principal asked. Silence suddenly prevailed in the room as the two started thinking. Kobayakawa was thinking of how unlucky he has been in protecting his school's image, while the vice principal thought of immediate solutions, be it a band-aid or a downright stitch to the situation. As they lost themselves in thought, they didn't realize that the door was cracked open. A single, little brown eye was peering in.
There was an eavesdropper.
The day had ended pretty quickly after lunch for Arthur. It went by even faster with the discovery of a new friend. They chatted in between the classes, mostly Arthur humoring Ichisake with facts about America. Rumors that Ichisake heard, some things he had asked Arthur, who answered with "False." while others were "Fact.". Ichisake was delighted in everything that Arthur answered, and the two even walked to the station together when school had ended.
However, that is where they had to part ways. Ichisake lived in a residential area east of Aoyama-Itchome and had to get on a different train, whereas Arthur had to take the train to Shibuya. The ride itself was pretty boring, and his phone even buzzed again with no notification showing itself. When it happened, he felt that he couldn't ignore it any further and looked as deep into his phone as he could to find out what the cause was. The whole search took up his time on the train and he nearly missed his stop. He couldn't find anything to indicate the random buzzing.
As he was walking up the steps, asking for directions where he could and memorizing what each station attendant told him, he remembered his guardian having told him to stop by the underground mall and find a school bag of some sort to take with him. It took him a good while, but he found the underground mall.
He found it quite like the malls back in the home country. Despite how small the place looked, it was packed with all sorts of people. Men, women, teens, adults, cops, busy looking officials. Anyone looked like they belonged here. The shops they had were quite diverse too, from a simple flower boutique to differing jewelry stores. Fashion shops, shoe stores, sporting goods, this mall had it all.
As he perused the mall, he picked over the various shops and boutiques until he found a shop that had a bag that caught his eye. It was a black and orange bag with a volleyball emblem on it. It really caught his eye due to the colors, despite the fact he wasn't into volleyball. He looked it over for a price tag and when he saw that it was well within his price range, he decided "Well, I could scrape the emblem off…Or even just put something over it.".
As he grabbed hold of the strap, another hand grabbed the bag as well, and at first he was surprised. He looked up to see who had shared his interest. A blonde-haired girl with long pigtails with a Shujin blazer over a white varsity jacket. She looked up at him in surprise, and for a moment they were just quiet amidst the sounds of the mall.
Arthur retracted his hand as did she, and the awkwardness of the moment blossomed further.
"I'm sorry." She apologized suddenly, breaking the awkward silence between them. "Were you…. Wanting that bag?"
"I like the colors." Arthur told her, placing his hands in his pockets and watching as she awkwardly fiddled in place. "Not so much the volleyball emblem though."
"Ah… Well, you mind if I have it then? It's for a friend." She asked.
Arthur looked between her and the bag for a brief moment. "Uh, go ahead. I can find others." He allowed. He didn't need much convincing to allow a kindness such as this. She smiled and thanked Arthur. He stepped away as she put the bag under her arm and turned away. Arthur himself turned towards other bags, determined to find something to suit his tastes. The girl couldn't help but look back at him, realizing exactly what it was that he wore. She faced him and surprised him with a question.
"You're a Shujin student?" She asked, looking over his uniform with an eye that was equally inquisitive as it was surprised. Arthur looked back at her and felt the same surprise to see her still standing there. Facing her fully, he nodded.
"Yeah, a third year." He said, confirming her suspicions. "You go there too?"
"Mmhmm. I'm a second year…." She solidly affirmed. "You don't look like you're from around here, though…" She then added, leaning to her left as she looked him up and down.
"Neither do you, blondie." Arthur grinned. The girl blinked for a second, then giggled lightheartedly as he pointed out the obvious.
"I guess I do stand out as well." She said, referencing her blue eyes and blonde hair. "But… Your accent… It sounds American… Plus you have those green eyes and that bright brown hair… Did you just move here?"
"No, I'm a foreign exchange student actually. Just arrived yesterday." Arthur answered, adjusting his glasses as they began sliding down his nose. The girl looked at him, as if surprised by the news he presented.
"Huh… Didn't know we had a foreign exchange student…" She murmured under her breath, but quickly apologized when she realized that sounded a bit disrespectful. "S-sorry, I-I mean… Well, with everything that's going on… I guess your arrival was overshadowed." She stumbled, a tad mad at herself for basically saying he was small news.
"Don't worry about it. I'd prefer to remain out of the spotlight anyways. Makes my life easier." Arthur smiled. It was a warm smile, and a comforting one. One that the girl wished she could see everyday from the people she knew, and the people she cared for. The girl returned the gift of his smile with one of her own.
"Right… Well." She said, extending a hand outwards. "I'm Ann Takamaki."
Arthur looked at her a moment before slowly returning the gesture, unsure of the sudden interest people have been having in him. But he knew that, unlike in America, being American is enough to be a conversation starter. That's part of the reason Ichisake started talking to him, if not the full reason.
"I'm, uh, Arthur. Arthur Williams."
"Wow, firm grip." Ann said, commenting on the grip of his handshake. She retracted her hand, shaking the dull irritation of his firm handshake off while smiling and offering him a goodbye. "It was nice meeting you."
"Likewise, Takamaki-san. Maybe I'll see you around the school." He returned, and she flashed a toothy grin at him as she turned away, walking up to the register to purchase the bag he had let her acquire.
Arthur couldn't keep himself from smiling. Despite feeling insecure about the interest people were having in him, he couldn't help but feel happy that he was actually meeting people in Japan compared to his life back in America, where his only friends were people with bad habits and actions.
And even better, they were the ones who were approaching him. That alone made him feel a whole lot better.
He gazed back at the selection of bags before him, and he couldn't help but rub his chin in thought. He was unsure of what he wanted now, since the first good looking bag he saw was spoken for.
"Now what do I want….?"
"I heard it from the principal himself…"
"What? The foreign exchange student? I didn't even know we had one…"
"Depression… Suicide…. If you mention his parents, he freaks out and attacks you…"
"First a delinquent, now a crazy? What's this school doing, letting people like them here? I mean goddamn..."
"What about that honor student? I saw her talking to the delinquent just the other day…"
"The delinquent's old news, really. I wanna hear more about this foreign exchange student…"
"He's American, about yay-high, third year…. Can't miss him. Just don't associate with him. He's fucking nuts from what I heard."
"I...I… I really don't care… I'm going to Big Bang Burger, do you guys wanna come? Or don't, if you're gonna be this negative."
Closing the door behind him, Arthur sighed and kicked his shoes off by the door. The apartment was at a nice temperature compared to outside, and he felt it the second he walked in. It added to the fatigue he felt. Undoing the buttons on his button up, he sat down on the sofa and exhaled a breath of relief that he survived his first day in an alien land.
The customs the students had throughout the day really took him off guard. His studying for his year here in Japan didn't prepare him enough and he found himself struggling to keep up. He thanked his lucky stars that Ichisake was there to guide him when he fouled up. Everything felt different than America, including even getting lunch.
Was it just his imagination, though? Or just the sudden fatigue he felt on his walk home playing with his mind?
Arthur closed his eyes, not even finding the energy to think properly.
He couldn't find a bag he liked, most of them were either pure black or complete white. Even though the black wouldn't show dirt, he didn't want something so dull like white or black. The black and orange bag was the only one that stood out to him, and he let that ship sail out of the kindness of his own heart.
"I guess I'll just have to find one tomorrow…" He murmured exhaustedly.
Just as he said that, he heard a familiar voice call out from another room.
"Arthur! Arthur! Is that you?!"
It was Himura, calling out from his bedroom.
Arthur sighed, not even wanting to raise his voice, before responding with a "Yeah."
Himura exited his room, surprised to see Arthur so tired on the sofa. He chuckled lightheartedly.
"What? Can't stand Japanese schooling?" He asked.
Arthur shook his head. "No, that's not it. Just fumbled through the day really and I just got tired of it. It really hit me when I got on our street, though. I feel like a nap…" Arthur said with a yawn. He collapsed to his side, finding the sofa incredibly comfortable. Almost like a cloud.
Himura clicked his tongue, trying to think of something to ask. It dawned on him moments later, after a small silence prevailed between the two.
"Well, how was the day?" Himura asked. He actually was genuinely interested in figuring out how Arthur got on on his first day. He was his guardian and friend, after all.
"I made a friend." Arthur told him, shutting his eyes as he lay there on the sofa. He yawned again, rolling onto his back and huffing at the comfort he found himself in.
Himura smiled and told Arthur "Good on you, kid. Get in good now while you're new. In a few months, maybe even weeks, you'll become old news." Himura told him. Arthur wasn't worried though. His encounter with a girl named Ann today told him that he was already small news, and he didn't mind it in the slightest. He stayed silent as Himura watched him, and Himura just shook his head.
"Goddamn, how lazy are the American schools?" He shook his head, murmuring in disgust before adding "Well, kid. I'm afraid I won't be able to show you around tomorrow. I got called into work for the day. They didn't like what I did today so now I'm paying the price. Don't stay up too late now, y'hear? As for me, I'm gonna head to bed. Dinners in the freezer. Help yourself to whatever." He said, turning around into his bedroom. He closed the door behind him, leaving Arthur alone in his tired state on the cloud-like sofa.
But Arthur couldn't keep himself awake long, nor could he even struggle to keep his eyes open.
Just as fast as Himura shut the light off in his own bedroom, Arthur drifted off into a blissful, silent nap.
But as his brain clocked out of reality...
He felt a small buzz in his pocket...
Post-Chapter Author's Note
Proof read and edited by a friend named Frozen Foe on my Discord server.