Hello everyone, Lealius here with a new chapter
In this one... Is better if you see it for yourselves
Also, we have passed the 3000 views. I can´t thank you all enough, you guys make it worth it
With that, enjoy
Shikimori´s not Just a Cutie and its characters belong to Keigo Maki
Spider-man and its characters belong to Marvel Comics
Cover Image made by KrystalDragonArt
Monday, May the 18th
It was another shiny day for the city of Hino, the birds were chirping, the crickets were running around the trees, and its citizens were going from one place to another, carrying out with their daily lives
The news about a lizard creature roaming around town were, thankfully, nothing more than some blurred footage caught by people and their smartphones
But, as usual with these sorts of things, people were saying one thing or another. Stuff like "We have a Spider-man, we don't need a lizard creature" or "This is obviously some sort of prank, what's next, aliens that can shapeshift?"
-"Thank goodness no one has made any connections to it and Shikimori-san´s mom" Izumi thought with relief, putting his phone away, and on his way to school
It was the following day after his confrontation with his girlfriend´s mom who had been turned into a lizard
-"I wonder how Shikimori-san is doing?" Izumi browns went down a bit "Well, she must be worry sick that her mom is not having any side effects or anything of the like, I´ll ask her once I see her at school today"
Speaking of his school, the building came into sight
Jogging up a bit, he made his way through the entrance and headed towards his classroom, all while listening to the students mumbling about the mysterious lizard creature
Once he reached his classroom´s door, he spotted his friends, talking to each other
With a smile, he walked to them "Morning, everyone"
They all jolt on their spots
-"Um… Morning, Izumi" Saruogi was the first to speak, he was drenched in sweat
-"Huh?" Izumi tilted his head, Saruogi looked more nervous than usual "What's wrong?"
Nekozaki scoffed at this "Why do you care?!"
-"Eh?" Izumi was taken back by her outburst
-"Easy, Nekozaki" Inuzuka said, trying to be the voice of reason
-"I am not gonna be easy about it!" she replied, her anger increasing "You know full well what he did was wrong!"
-"Nekozaki-san?" Izumi tilted his head at her, not understanding
-"Don´t play dumb, Izumi!" the cat girl was glaring at him "You ditched us yesterday!"
Finally, it dawn on him
-"Oh no!" his mouth hung open, eyes disappearing from his face as a shadow formed over his face "From their point of view, I did abandon them yesterday!" he gulped "Listen, I´m sorry, I"
-"I don't want to hear your excuses, Izumi!" the black haired cut him off "You think we weren't scared?! We were, but we still tried to do something! Look at Inu!" he pointed at the future vet, whose arm was still wrapped up "He broke his arm trying to help!"
-"Is more of a dislocated shoulder" he corrected
-"I" Izumi´s face was heating up
He can't really defend himself without telling them the truth
That's when he noticed someone was missing
-"Where´s Shikimori-san?" he asked
-"She and her family spent the night at my house" Kamiya said "She decided to skip classes today to take care of her mom today, plus, father has some questions for her"
-"Oh" That was news to him "I was not aware of that"
-"Wow, what a shock!" Nekozaki sarcastically said
-"Nekozaki-san, I"
-"You know what makes this worse?" she cut him off again "That you promise me to never do something like that again! It was bad enough that you ghosted us when Hachimitsu died, but when we needed your help as well, you weren't there again!"
-"I'm sorry" he was struggling to fight back the tears
He then looked at the others "Do you guys feel that way too?"
To this, Inuzuka, Kamiya, and Saruogi looked away
While they weren't been as vocal as Nekozaki was, they had been disappointed as well
Izumi´s mouth was hanging open once more, he felt hurt
-"I can't believe you, Izumi!" Nekozaki frowned further, she was a mix of anger and pain
The school´s bell rang, it was time to head to their respective classrooms
-"I am heading to class, see you all later" Nekozaki said, heading towards her classroom
And bumping her shoulder against Izumi as she did so
Izumi´s eyes were glued to the floor
-"Let´s head in" Inuzuka said, he took one last look to his best friend
Despite the fact he was disappointed, it did hurt him to see him so sad
Saruogi followed suit
That left the Izumi and Kamiya alone
-"Izumi-kun" the blue haired said, grabbing her arm "Father said that we should keep what happened yesterday to us"
His response was a quick nod
With that, she also walked into the classroom, feeling hurt for the state he was in, but disappointed too
Well, classes are going to be awkward for now
Izumi followed suit, but his pacing felt almost… mechanical, like he was on auto-pilot
-"Could this be any worse?" and with that, he took out his text book
He really shouldn't have asked that
The day at school went on as good as it could
The rest of their classmates could feel the tense atmosphere that was going on with Izumi, Inuzuka, Kamiya, and Saruogi, and with Nekozaki as well, despite the fact she's from a different class
They whispered to themselves about some big argument that happened, but had no idea about the full details
Izumi finished putting his stuff into his bag, when
-"Izumi"
He looked up, and saw Inuzuka
-"Oh" the young hero was surprised, since during the entire school day, no one had talked to him
He even ate his lunch alone
-"W-What is it?"
-"You probably did not know, but we are heading to Shikimori´s house to help out cleaning the mess, and check how she and her family are doing"
-"Ah" he was not aware of that
Regardless, he was glad Inuzuka still talked to him "Ok, let's go then"
At the gate, the rest of the gang were waiting
Nekozaki simply looked away from Izumi as she saw him approaching
-"We are doing this for Micchon" she thought to herself
-"You guys ready to go?" Inuzuka asked as he and Izumi joined them
-"Y-eah" Saruogi said, not sure how to act
-"Kamiya" Inuzuka said "Any news from Shikimori?"
-"Yes" the blue haired replied "She told me they are on their way to their house, father has already finished asking them questions a while ago, and he's now"
That's when something click on Izumi
He remembered what the Captain told him yesterday
-"Stop by my office tomorrow at 4:30 PM. I´ll have some info by then, and it will be good for you to have it"
He checked his phone, the meeting time was close, and he needed to go get ready
But
Was he really going to leave them again when they needed him once more? Plus, he has yet to check on his girlfriend directly
And then it came to him, all the destruction that the lizard turned Miyabi did and how dangerous that was
If he had not intervened as Spider-man
-"I am doing this for them" he whispered to himself
The more he and Captain Kamiya had, the sooner they can stop whoever did this
And so, taking advantage that his friends were distracted talking, he slipped by
-"Ok" Inuzuka said, clapping his hands "Let´s get a move on. Izumi, you ready to go?"
And he got no answer
-"WAH?!" that's all he could do when he noticed the purple haired was gone
-"Izumi-kun left?!" Kamiya said
-"Are you kidding me?!" Nekozaki said, feeling a migraine "Again?!"
-"Maybe he has something else to do?" Saruogi said
-"Is it more important than helping his friends and girlfriend?!" she fired back "I´m getting tired of this!"
And with that she stormed out of there, deciding to get a move on to her best friend´s house
She was so mad at him, but also, worried
Because the words of a certain person who kidnapped her were echoing through her mind
-"You all like to pretend you are so close, but the thing is, you are lying to yourselves"
-"We are not lying to ourselves! We support each other through everything! And nothing can't separate us!"
-"You say that now, but trust me, something will happen that will lead you to abandon each other"
At first, she thought that was impossible, her group was tight solid, not even a bomb could break them apart
But, in light of recent events
-"No… This can't be happening" she felt flustered, her brow tightening at this "It can´t! She's wrong"
At his office, Captain Meiyo Kamiya was going through some documents
Until he heard some pokes coming from his window
Turning around, he smiled seeing his ally, Spider-man, waving at him
-"Hang on a second" he said, and opened it "I am glad you came Spider-man"
-"Of course" Izumi replied in kind "There's no way I won´t help with this"
-"I know"
-"Have you talked to the victim in regards to what happened yesterday? Shikimori-san, was it?" he decided to fake ignorance
-"Yes, I just finished talking to her and Dr. Honyūrui a while ago"
-"And how did that go?"
-"Well"
Some hours earlier
Meiyo was talking to Miyabi, who had just finished re-telling her version of the events
-"And that's when your… transformation happened, right?"
-"Yes" Miyabi said, with some dark bags on her eyes, she had some trouble sleeping, telling that story made her skin crawl
There was a knock on the door
-"It´s open" he said
The door opened, revealing an officer
-"Fujima, what is it?"
-"Sir, I have Dr. Honyūrui, though he´s with a friend of his"
-"Ok, bring them in"
The duo of doctors entered the office
Jin was the first to speak, and quite frantically "Miyabi! Thank goodness you are ok!"
She smiled a bit upon seeing her longtime friends "It's good to see you Jin, you as well Akira"
-"When I got the call from Akira and told me about the accident, I was scared to death" he looked at his friend "But he refused to further elaborate"
-"Because" Akira looked down, sounding defeated "This is all my fault"
Miyabi looked confused "What do you mean?"
He looked up, his face flustered, and eyes red shot "It's because of me that Miyabi went through that horrible experience… I´m the one behind the serum that transformed her"
Miyabi gasped in shock, Meiyo let out a sigh, fingers intertwined
Jin knew exactly where he was going with this, but he had to play the part of the ignorant one "What?! Transformation?! What on Earth are you talking about, Akira?!"
-"With all due respect, who are you?" Meiyo asked
-"Dr. Jin Hachurui, it's nice to meet you officer"
-"Nice to meet you as well, I´m Captain Meiyo Kamiya, and I see, Shikimori-san mentioned she´s friends with you two, though I don´t recall summoning you here"
-"I asked him to come, I want them both to listen to my confession, please"
-"I see, please continue"
And so, Akira went on explaining about his project about reptilian cells, and how that was related to the accident that happened yesterday
Which they also had to filled in Jin
-"I… I am at a loss for words" the doctor said, faking surprise
-"Akira" Miyabi said, looking at her friend
She looked betrayed
-"I understand your reason for doing that research, Dr. Honyūrui" Meiyo said, his voice stern "But playing with anatomy like that is dangerous"
-"I know that!" Akira said, voice raising a bit "Ive been beating myself over my careless mistake!"
-"I always knew how bitter you were about losing your arm" Jin said, condemnation on his voice "But I have to agree with the Captain on this. We are scientists! We are supposed to help people, not put them in danger!"
-"I know" he looked at Miyabi "Miyabi, please forgive me"
-"... I am shocked to learn this, but" she took a deep breath "I know you were not behind this, at leas, not directly"
-"Huh?" Akira was confused
-"I was talking to Shikimori-san" Meiyo interfered "She says that she started to feel the symptoms prior to her transformation after she took a coffee with you two"
-"Yes, we did meet up" Jin said "But we all drank the same beverage, and nothing bad happen to us"
-"Shikimori-san also told me that your research has been stolen" Meiyo added, he then looked at Akira "Dr. Honyūrui, would I be correct to assume that the two things are connected?"
-"Yes" he said
-"So whoever stole Akira´s research used Miyabi as some sort of test subject?!" Jin asked
-"It is possible" Meiyo said "My forensics team is currently investigating the coffee place as we speak of, seeing if they can find any traces, and we have also taken a blood sample from Shikimori-san, hoping to find anything that can help us pinpoint the true culprit"
-"Good luck with that" Jin smugly thought to himself "I made sure to modify it so that there are no traces left" he took a deep breath "What now then, Captain Kamiya?"
-"I need to speak with Dr. Honyūru in private, so Shikimori-san, Dr. Hachurui, I need you to step away for now. I´ll let you know once we are done"
-"Very well" Jin said, not showing protest
-"What´s going to happen to Akira?! He's innocent of this!" Miyabi asked, despite everything she was still worried about his friend
-"We´ll see" that's all Meiyo said
-"But"
-"Miyabi" Jin interfered "Let's leave for now, it's taking a lot for Akira to do this, we should let them have their privacy"
-"I"
-"Miyabi" Akira put a hand on her shoulder "It's ok, knowing that you don´t blame for anything is more than enough"
-"Of course, you are my friend, and I know you will never harm anyone on purpose"
-"I think so too" Jin said
-"Thank you both"
And with that, they left the office
-"I see" Izumi said after hearing what Meiyo has told him so far "It is the same thing Dr. Honyūru told me while preparing the cure"
Despite his involvement, Izumi was still worried about him "What´s going to happen to him?"
The Captain massaged his temples "He turned himself in"
-"What?!" Izumi was shocked
-"I tried to stop him, but, technically speaking, he was doing research on something that was unethical, and at the very least, he´s indirectly responsible for this" he let out a sigh "He has submitted all of the information in regards to his research, and I am trying to see what will happen to him, I don't want him rotting in jail for something that he didn't do, but until we find the true culprit"
-"I see" Izumi fist bumped "We can´t let them get away from this!"
-"We won´t, but I got the results rom the tests, and they couldn't find anything, so whoever we are dealing with, they are intelligent,we can't underestimate them"
-"We won´t" then something clicked on the young hero "You think they'll try something like this again?"
-"I don't know, hopefully, they´ll realize that their plan has failed and that's it, but we´ll see"
-"Yeah, same here"
-"In any case, I´m glad you're here, you are the only one who actually put up a fight against Shikimori-san, and thanks to your intervention, there were no casualties"
-"Of course!" Izumi said with determination "I'll do whatever I can to help!"
Meiyo smiled "Thank you Spider-man, I´ll keep investigating and see what I can find, and also", he stood up from his chair"
-"Huh?"
-"I realized that I never properly thank you for saving my daughter all those months ago, so" he extended a hand to the hero "Thank you, and let´s do our best together"
Izumi felt touched by the trust he had on him
And he was not going to let him down
-"Thank you" he shook his hand "And let´s do this together!"
And with that, the hero left
Meanwhile, the rest of the gang were at Shikimori´s house, helping out to clear the mess from yesterday's fight
-"That should be all for the broken table and chairs" Shikimori said while dusting her hands off
-"What about the sliding door?" Nekozaki pointed out
-"It's been a pain to pick up all the broken glass on the yard" Fuji said, rubbing his neck
-"Repairing all of this looks like it will be expensive" Saruogi said
-"Well, we´ve been thinking about doing some redecorating, so I think this came at the right time" he chuckled
-"Regardless, thank you all for coming here" Shikimori smiled
-"Of course Micchon, we are here for you" Nekozaki smiled at her
-"Say… Where´s Izumi-san?"
-"Um" Inuzuka scratched his head "We have no idea"
-"He hasn't answered any texts" Kamiya added
-"Oh" she smile sadly "It´s ok"
It was not, but she trusts him
But, not being here again when they needed him
Noticing the state his sister was in, Fuji spoke up
-"How about we take a break? I know this place that has some good donuts" he threw his phone at them "Order whatever you want, my treat"
-"I am getting hungry" Nekozaki said, already looking through the menu
While typing the order, Kamiya looked at Shikimori
She looked so sad that Izumis been missing
-"And I am partially responsible for this"
Because she had to do something no one asked for
-"I´m such an idiot"
Some time later, the rest of the gang had already left
Kamiya was at the entrance with Shikimori
-"Thank you once more for coming Kamiya" the pink haired smiled
-"Of course, that´s what friends are for, you sure you and your family won't spend the night at our house? Father and Mother won't mind, and neither will I"
-"We appreciate the gesture Kamiya, but we want to return to our house"
-"Very well" the blue haired took a deep breath "Say, Shikimori"
-"What is it?"
-"I…" the ace of the volleyball team swallowed "I own you an apology"
-"Huh?" the pink haired tilted her head, not understanding that "What are you apologizing for?"
-"I recently realized that I was a busybody. I'm the one who told Izumi-kun about the seminar for journalism and everything"
-"Oh" she was somewhat taken back for that sudden apologize "Kamiya, that's not something to apologize for"
-"It is" she looked away "I was trying to help a friend out, but I didn´t stop to realize how it could hurt you"
-"Me?"
-"I noticed back at the ball-sport tournament, how sad you were after Izumi-kun suddenly left"
-"Oh" she couldnt counter that "I was sad yes, but that's still not something you should apologize for"
-"Be that as it may, I should have come to you first"
-"You don't have to ask me for permission to help a friend"
-"But what's the point of helping a friend if I hurt another one in the process? Especially one who did so much for me"
-"Kamiya" Shikimori felt sad for him
And it was not her fault, she was only trying to help
-"You´re such a good person Shikimori, I don´t know how I got such a great friend as you, and I promise I´ll be more careful in the future" she gave a curt bow "I´ll leave now, have a good night"
-"Kamiya, wait!" Shikimori tried to stop her, but she left in such a hurry
The pink haired looked down "You´re also such a good friend Kamiya, even if you don't see it. You and the others are wonderful people"
They had been helping her since this incident started
All of them but
She checked her phone
No messages or calls from Izumi
-"Izumi-san" she said with sorrow "Why aren't you helping… And why did you lie to me and the others?"
He lied to them about his absent from Hachimitsu´s funeral
Letting out a sigh, she went back into her house
-"You doing ok?" Fuji asked "That kid did not show up"
-"Don´t" Miyako replied curtly "I´m going to take a shower" and she left without saying a word
Her elder brother let out a grunt "That idiot! I swear, I should have a word with him!"
But this is her sister´s relationship
He has already said his piece before
What she decides to do in regard to that
-"It is up to her to decide, I´ll support her no matter what"
At his apartment, Jin was pacing around the living room
His hands were tightened into fists, turning his knuckles white
-"Damn it! Damn it! DAMN IT!"
He was furious
Back at the police station
-"I don't believe any of this" Miyabi said as they were walking down the stairs
-"Me neither" Jin said "But we must trust the police´s work, and hope that they can find the truth about this"
-"I sure hope so, my children don't deserve any of this"
-"Of course, are they ok?"
-"Fuji is, while Miyako" she looked down
-"What is it?"
-"Just some stuff with her boyfriend, whom I thought he was better than that"
-"I see, well, hope that ends well too"
-"Same here" she looked at her friend "I am glad to have great friends like you and Akira, it means a lot"
Friend… he hated that word "Of course" he kept his composure though "Also, there was one part that picked my attention from that story, Spider-man showed up, correct?"
-"Yes, him and Akira worked together to cured me"
So there was another person who interfered
-"I see, good thing he showed up"
-"Yeah" she smiled
That beautiful smile of hers
It always brighten his day
But now, realizing he was not the one that made her smile
-"He truly is a hero"
-"Damn you, Spider-man!" he slammed his fist into his table, the sound echoing through his living room "How dare you to interfere!?"
To interfere in his plans to get Miyabi´s love
It was beyond forgiveness
-"Huff…Huff…" he was panting, his heart going fast "Ok, calm down Jin" he passed a hand through his hair "Keep your wits about you"
Taking another breath in, he regained his composure "I underestimated that freak. I did not take into account him arriving at the scene, much less Akira´s interference, not that he will be a variable that I have to worry about now"
His long-time friend was out of the equation now
-"But Spider-man, he must pay for interfering"
But then, a lightbulb went off his head
He came up with an idea
-"Although" he put a hand on his chin "He was able to hold his own against Miyabi, and the mutation increased her strength by a considerable amount… Interesting"
He was so caught up on his rage, that he forgot the other purpose of his experiment
To gather data
-"Perhaps this Spider-man can help me to further test some enhancements that I had planned for the serum" he smiled, it was a terrifying smile "Yes, he can be the perfect candidate for me to do further tests"
Which means more people will be a target of his experiments
-"Acceptable losses, all in the name of science, MY science!"
A new variable had come into this equation
And he was sure to use it to its fullest
-"You should be grateful, Spider-man… I´m going to give you more opponents to fight"
He snickered
He'll wait until things cool down a bit
He can be quite the patient man
Wednesday, May the 20th
Two days later, Izumi headed towards the station, where he spotted a certain someone
-"Shikimori-san!" the purple haired yelled once he spotted her
Shikimori turned around, and smiled at him
Though her smile did not reach her ears
-"Morning, Izumi-san" she said kindly
He wrapped her on a hug "I´m glad to see you"
-"Same here" her voice sounded almost… mechanical
He broke the hug
-"Is your mom ok?"
-"She is, thank you for asking"
-"That's good" he smiled at her, blissfully unaware "Let's move then, or we´ll be late"
-"Yeah"
As they were walking towards their destination
-"How have you been?" she asked
-"I´m doing well… Ah!" he remembered something "On Sunday we are having a sort of birthday dinner since it´s dad´ birthday"
-"Oh" she looked down "I´m sorry once more"
-"It's fine, but we still figured we should do something, even if it´s symbolic, I have to pick up the cake that day, and you are welcome to join us"
She smiled at that "Thank you, I will"
Feeling satisfied, they kept on walking, talking about anything
However
-"You´re not going to give me an explanation then?" she bitterly thought
She shook her head, better to change the topic
-"By the way, we are taking mom out for dinner at her favorite restaurant on Saturday. Considering all that's been happening, she could use a break. You´re welcome to join us"
To this, the purple haired smiled brightly "Thank you Shikimori-san, I´ll be there, I have some errands to run first though"
-"That's fine"
And so, they kept on walking to the school
Shikimori´s heart never stopped beating
Hoping that nothing bad happens that day
The day as school went on like usual, despite the tense atmosphere in their group, Izumi was hopeful that things will get back to normal as usual
Now, in the classroom, it was just Inuzuka and Kamiya, who were on cleaning duty today
-"Are you sure you can do this, Inuzuka-kun?" Kamiya asked, concerned about her friend "You´re still recovering from your shoulder"
-"It's fine" he waved off her concerns "I have worked while injured before, plus, I wouldn't be comfortable leaving all the hard work to you"
She smiled at that "Very well"
They kept on working on silence for a few minutes
Until Kamiya decided to speak
-"Say, How do you think Izumi-kun looks?"
The future vet looked at her "You can't help but worry about him as well, huh?"
-"Yes, despite what he did, he's still our friend"
-"I get you" he passed a hand through his hair "Wish I know why he left yesterday"
-"I actually got an answer for that" Kamiya said, taking out her phone "He told me that he was meeting up with Isana to study together"
To this, Inuzuka looked at her, eyebrow raised "That's impossible"
-"Huh?" Kamiya did not understand "What do you mean?"
-"Isana was working yesterday at the cafe, plus, she had to study for her own midterms after that, so there's no way she could have had the time to help out Izumi. No matter how much she likes to pack on her schedule, even she has her limits"
Kamiyas eyes went wide in shock "Are you sure about it?"
-"I work with her and help her out trying new blends, I know her schedule. Plus, I asked her to cover for me yesterday so that I could go to Shikimori´s house, so I am certain of it"
The duo looked down, shivering at the idea that their friend had lied to them
For them, it was the first time that Izumi had lied to them
But, for a certain pink-haired that was outside of the classroom because she had forgotten her book
-"Izumi-san is lying again?"
Her mouth hung open, beads of sweat formed on her forehead
-"Izumi -san… Why are you doing this?"
The unlucky yet kind boy who was always looking after his loved ones
The kind-hearted boy who was clumsy because his bad luck, and was so worried that his bad luck would hurt others
No matter the hardships, he always made his priority to be there for her and the others
But
-"Lying… Abandoning his friends… Abandoning me?!"
Why was he doing this?...
-"If something is happening, why can't he tell us the truth… why can't he tell me the truth?"
The Yuuki Izumi he met and fell in love with… Was not one that would lie, much less use his friends for his lies
This Izumi
Someone who is constantly lying, and ghosting them off like that
It was too painfully familiar
She put a hand on her chest
-"I… I"
She needed an explanation from him
Saturday, May the 23rd
Another day of classes was done with
And the tense atmosphere with his friends was still there
-"It hurts, but I trust that things will get back to normal"
They will, right?
Anyway, right now, he was standing a top of a building, overlooking the city
-"It's 5 PM, we are meeting at the restaurant at 7 PM"
So he decided to do some patrolling before that
And just in time, he heard the alarm from a nearby store
-"It´s Spider-man time!"
And he jumped off the building, firing a web rope that attached to the opposite building
Swinging his way down, the hero went to fulfill his duty
Meanwhile, Shikimori and Nekozaki were walking around the mall to kill some time before the pink haired meets her family at the restaurant
-"I am so happy to be hanging out with you, Micchon!" the black haired hugged her friend "After what you´ve been through, it makes me happy to see you back in good spirits!"
-"I feel the same way, Nekozaki" the pink haired smiled
Her friends cheerful attitude was indeed contagious
It was making her feel better
-"How are the practices with the volleyball team going?"
-"It's going well. Kamiya, the others and I are giving it our all, we want to qualify to the nationals considering this is our final year"
-"I can understand that, I have faith that you will make it"
With that, the two friends continued going through the different stores
With each minute that it passed though, Shikimori´s anxiety kept increasing
-"Izumi-san, please be there"
Back with Izumi, he was finishing up wrapping some criminals on his webs
-"Thanks for the help, Spider-man" an officer said
-"No problem"
He looked at a nearby post with a clock on the tip of it
-"6:40 PM… Ok, that gives me enough time to look for my stuff, get dressed, and head to the restaurant"
Suddenly
-"What is it, Captain?" the officer answered his phone "Spider-man?"
Izumi looked at the officer once his name was mentioned
-"He's here with me, he just finished helping out, why?" the officer's eyes went wide "Really? That 's great news! Let me put him on the phone" the officer extended the phone to the hero "Spider-man, it's Captain Kamiya, he wants to speak to you"
He grabbed the phone
-"What is it sir?" the young hero asked
-"Spider-man, we got confirmation on the hideout of a drug trafficking ring weve been trying to catch for months. We are preparing for the assault, and I want to know if you can lend us a hand"
-"Oh" Izumi began to sweat under his mask "I"
He wanted to help of course, but checking the time once more
It was getting late
-"Of course, I totally understand if you need to be somewhere else. It's just that with your powers and everything, it could really be a huge help"
That is true, having someone with the skills he has could prove determinant to the success of that operation
-"It would certainly increase the odds of Captain Kamiya and the other officers making out alive"
Plus, they are dangerous criminals they are dealing with
He thought of all his loved ones
-"The more criminals I stop, the safer they will be"
And with a newfound determination, he nodded "Let's do this!"
-"Great, follow Takasago, see you there"
And with that, he began to make his way to his destination
-"It can´t take that long, right?"
The Shikimori family was at their favorite restaurant
It was nothing too fancy nor too cheap, the perfect place to go with your family for a celebration
It was the perfect place for them to relax and forget the recent harrowing experience they had gone through
-"You really are hungry, huh Fuji?" Miyabi asked her son, who was shoving down a handful of french fries
-"I have midterms coming up, I stress eat" the college student replied, knowing that eating that much that fast probably wasn't the best idea
Not that he cared though
-"How is your food, Miyako?" she asked her youngest daughter
-"Huh?!" the pink haired looked up from her phone "Oh, um, it's delicious as always"
She hasn't had more than a bite out of it
To this, her mother let out a sigh, eyebrows falling down
She realized what the problem was
That Izumi was not with them
Miyako typed another message
Shikimori-san: "Where are you?"
All her texts so far have been unanswered
Because Izumi left his phone alongside the rest of his stuff on his bag hidden in an alleyway
Right now, he was fighting for his life against a bunch of armed drug dealers
-"This is taking longer than I thought" he thought while dodging a bullet
Not the way he expected his Saturday to go
Eventually, the fight was done with
-"Good work everyone" Meiyo said to his subordinates
Thankfully, they suffered 0 casualties on the battle
-"And thank you as well" the Captain said to the young hero "Spider-man"
-"Glad that I could be of use" Izumi felt content
-"Would you look at the time?" an officer said while checking the phone "It's already 8:20 PM"
-"Wait, what?!" Izumi felt a thunder hitting on him
He needed to leave, now
-"With situations like these, you lose track of time" then Meiyo looked at where the hero was "Spider-man, we´ll take of the rest, so"
His words were cut off once he realized the web-head was nowhere to be seen
-"Where´s Spider-man?"
-"He left in such a hurry" an officer said "Maybe he had something else to do"
-"Could be" the Captain scratched his cheek "I just hope he makes it on time"
-"Huff…Huff" Izumi was panting as he made his way towards the restaurant
It was already 8:40 PM
With a ding on the doorbell, the door opened
He was flustered from the combat and running
-"Can I help you sir?" the clerk asked
-"Yes" he took a deep breath to calm down "Have you seen a family of 3? All of them have pink hair and"
-"Oh, the Shikimori family" the clerk perked up at this "Yes, they are regulars of ours, they left about 20 minutes ago"
-"Agh!" Izumi felt like a lightning bolt had just hit him "Well, thank you so much"
With his arms hanging loose, he left the restaurant
-"I can't believe I didn't get here in time"
On the bright side, he stopped a drug trafficking gang, so the city should be more safe
Letting out a sigh once more, he began his way home
Some time later
At her room, Shikimori was sitting on her bed, knees to her chest and hugged by her arms
-"Izumi-san"
He had stood her up… again
There was a knock on the door
-"Miyako?" it was her mother "May I come in?"
-"Go ahead"
The door opened, revealing her mother with a tray with two cups on it
-"Would you like some tea?" she asked with a tender voice
-"Thank you" she took the cup, blew a bit of the steam off, and took a sip "Are you ok? No side effects or anything?"
-"I am doing fine, thank you. And thank you both for the dinner, it really took my mind off things"
-"I am happy to hear that"
Miyabi put her cup on the nightstand "Are you ok?"
-"Huh?" the daughter looked up "Yes, why wouldn't I be?"
-"Well… Izumi-kun did not show up"
To this, Miyako let out a sad sigh
-"Are you mad?"
-"How I feel is irrelevant, I asked how are you doing?"
The pink haired tightened the grip on her pants "I don't know what's happening with Izumi-san… I recently find out some stuff about him, and my image of him is changing to one I don´t like"
-"People change Miyako, for better or worse, the important thing is what are you going to do about it"
She looked up "Aren't you going to nag him or something?"
-"I told you, I trust any decision that you make on your own, so long as you are happy and out of danger"
To this, the pink haired smiled, glad to know her mother supports her no matter what
-"Come here" she wrapped her daughter on a hug
-"I love you mom, thank you"
-"I love you too. Promise me that, whatever you do, you won't end up hurt"
-"I promise"
She broke the hug
-"Good night" with a few pats on her daughter head, Miyabi left the room
Suddenly, Shikimoris phone vibrated
It was a call from Izumi
-"Hello" her voice sounded drained
-"Shikimori-san" Izumi spoke in quite a hurry "Sorry about today, I"
-"Are you free at noon tomorrow?" she cut him
-"Huh?" Izumi was somewhat taken back "Um, yes, I am"
-"Let's meet up for lunch then. 12:30 PM sounds good?"
-"Yes" he said, breathing out a sigh of relief "See you then, have a good"
And what he got was the beeping sound that the call has ended
She hung up on him
-"Shikimori-san" Izumi felt that blow "I need to make up to her for this, starting tomorrow"
Izumi put a hand on his chest, a new-found vigor forming inside him
Meanwhile, Shikimori started to see
The smiling figure of the boy she loves the most was fading away, replaced by nothing but his lies and… selfishness
-"I…"
Sunday, May the 24th
Izumi was at a local café famous for its sandwiches
The other customers were talking to their own companions while the staff took and deliver orders from one table to the other
The door opened, and he saw her
-"Shikimori-san!" the purple haired waved at his girlfriend to get her attention
Once she saw him, she made her way to the table
-"Good afternoon" he smiled at him
A beaming and innocent smile
-"Good afternoon" she replied kindly and in a monotonous voice
She took her seat
They began to browse through the menu
-"I think I´ll have" Izumi tried to said, but
-"Where were you last night?" she cut him off
There was a dark miasma forming on her face
-"Um, I" there was something about her that seemed… weird "I had to help mom out with something, and by the time we were done, it was late"
-"... I see" that's all she said
Izumi could feel the temperature decreasing in the environment, and it was not because of the AC on
-"Anyway, what are you going to order?"
-"Liar" she whispered
-"Huh?" Izumi was not able to hear her
She couldn't take it anymore
She put down her menu, slamming the table, it was such a strong noise that the other customers and staff looked right at them
-"I said liar!"
Shikimori was panting, her face red
Izumi leaned back on his seat, mouth opened in shock
Shikimori took a look at her surroundings
Everybody was staring at them, whispering among each other
-"Tsk" she clicked her tongue, so much for keeping her head cool till they were done eating
And so, she grabbed her purse, and went straight for the door
-"Shikimori-san!" Izumi yelled, going after head
Shikimori was walking aimlessly, eyes glued to the sidewalk
-"Shikimori-san!" Izumi yelled from behind, having finally caught up to her
She stopped at a intersection that split on 4 directions
-"What happened?" Izumi said between breaths "What do you mean by liar?"
There was a maddening silence
Until
-"You are a liar" she said
-"Huh?"
She turned around, her browns tightened up, and with a rage on her eyes that was unmatched
-"You are a liar, Izumi-san!"
Izumi was taken back, left hand raised as if he was shielding from an attack
He has never seen her this angry
-"W-What are you talking about?" he did his best to not break
-"I talk with Motoko-chan! There was never anything she needed last night, she said you were out studying with Isana, and I´ve already confirmed with her that was not the case!"
Izumi´s eyes went wide, mouth hanging open
-"That´s"
-"And that´s not all. You also lied when you stood me up on Valentine's day, Motoko-chan never needed any help that day either!"
Izumi felt cornered
He never expected for her to found out
-"That's not true"
-"Are you calling your own mother a liar then?! Or Isana?!"
-"I"
She kept taking jabs at him
-"I also overheard Kamiya and Inuzuka-kun talking as to why you didn't come to my house the day following my mom´s… accident, you also lied about that"
This was going south fast, he needed to come up with something
-"So? Were you lying or not?"
Izumi looked away
There was no point now
-"Yes, I lied"
Shikimori sucked in a breath
Hearing him admitting it… It hurt
-"And that´s not all"
-"Eh?" he looked at her
She was shaking
-"You abandoned us twice" the tears began to form "Nekozaki, Kamiya, Inuzuka-kun, Saruogi-kun, my brother Fuji, Captain Kamiya, even Spider-man! They were all there to help! But you, the person I love! The person I trust the most! You ran away!"
-"I" seeing her with those tears forming
He hated that
-"I was scared"
-"And you think we weren´t?! NEKOZAKI ALMOST GOT HER FACE CHEW OFF!" she took a breath "Besides, being scared has never stopped you before from helping! You jumped into a river to save a little girl from being taken away by the current!"
-"Shikimori-san, I"
-"Plus, it's not so much the fact that you were scared that hurts… It's the fact that you´ve been lying to us, keeping things hidden from us, and you have no idea how much suffering that is causing to the others!"
-"Eh?" he was confused "What do you mean?"
-"Why did you hide the fact that you want to study journalism?! Kamiya thinks you wanted to keep it a secret, and now thinks she's a busybody! She thinks she's the reason you left during the tournament at school and knows that made me sad! She thinks she made a serious mistake and doesn't deserve me as a friend! She apologized to me the other day because you kept stuff hidden!"
Izumi felt like someone had just slapped him
It was bad enough that hed been lying
But to hurt another friend on the process
-"Kamiya-san… What have I done?!"
-"You have always been one that puts others before himself! That would do anything to ensure their happiness and safety! No matter how sad your bad luck put you, you were always there with a smile to help others!" she looked at him from up and down "And look at you now! Lying! Using your family and friends for your lies! Abandoning those you love when they need you!"
The tears began to fully fell
Izumi sucked in a breath upon seeing her like this
-"I feel I don´t know you anymore!"
Seeing her so hurt, so fragile
And he put her like this
But… What else can he do? Tell her and the others the truth? Theres a good reason as to why he can't
-"Shikimori-san" he walked slowly to her "I´m sorry for lying. You don't deserve it" he put hands on her shoulders "And I promise right now"
-"Don´t" she cut him off
-"Huh?"
-"You´re going to tell me that you will never lie to me and the others again?... Well, save it, because I know that's not the case! I already suffered because of the lies of someone I loved!" Her father "I won't go through that again!"
She took a deep breath
-"So…" she looked at him, desperately "Are you going to tell me the truth?"
… He can´t
If he were to lose her or the others because they know he´s Spider-man
He didn't want to imagine that
-"I won't lie to you anymore"
-"..." he got his hands off her shoulders "So that's how it is going to be?" she took a deep breath "I thought about this long and hard last night, that depending on your answer, I would make my choice"
From the left, turning around the corner, Nekozaki and Kamiya came, alongside their teammates from the volleyball team
From the right, turning around the corner, Inuzuka and Isana came, with some supplies for the coffee place, they were accompanied by Saruogi, whom they had run into at the supermarket
They noticed the two young lovers up ahead
-"What?" Izumi felt a knot on his stomach
Why was he feeling like he was going to regret asking that
-"What do you mean by that?"
-"Izumi-kun…." she looked up, her eyes red, her nose puffy, and said the words that would shatter anyone, superhero or not "I am breaking up with you"
Nekozaki gasped, covering her mouth
Kamiya had her mouth hanging opened in shock
Inuzuka, Saruogi, and Isana were shocked as well, dropping their bags
Despair, anguish, hopelessness
Those words were short to describe what was no doubt one of the heaviest blows Izumi had taken in his 17 years in this world
-"W…." the tears began to form "What?"
-"I am breaking up with you"
-"Shikimori-san" Izumi put his hands on her shoulders "No… No… You don't mean that!"
-"I do" she said
-"Remember what you told me at the trip" he was desperate "That no matter the misfortunes we go though, all we have to do is smile to blow them away"
-"... I don't see any reason to smile"
Izumi was defeated… There was no way to turn this around
Taking his hands off once more, Shikimori run away on the opposite direction
-"MICCHON!" Nekozaki yelled, beginning the chase after her
And not bothering to check on Izumi
Kamiya followed suit
Though she did shot a quick glance at Izumi
He looked… broken
Like his heart had been ripped out from his chest
Looking down, the blue haired continue the chase of her two friends
Izumi just stood there
Inuzuka, Saruogi, and Isana looked at him, unsure of what to do
The maddening silence was broken by the sound of the siren of a firemen truck that passed a couple of blocks nearby
-"Ngh" clenching his teeth, the young hero ran towards that direction
-"Izumi!" Inuzuka finally yelled
But he was gone
Izumi kept on running
Not to find a place to cry his heart out
But because he knew he was needed somewhere else
The smoke formed a pillar ascending towards the sky as the scorching flames engulfed the apartment complex
Jumping out from a window, Izumi came out with a woman in her mid forties, who was holding her baby for dear life
Izumi coughed a few times "Are you ok?"
-"Yeah" the woman coughed a few times, she was covered in soot
-"Over here" a paramedic team went to them, with a tank of oxygen and other medical supplies
They put the mask on the woman and the baby
They offered one to Izumi, who kindly rejected "I am fine, don´t worry"
-"That's the last of them" the manager of the building said "Everybody is safe, thank you Spider-man"
-"No problem"
-"Spider-man" the woman hugged the hero "Thank you so much, god bless you"
Izumi patter her on the back "I am happy you´re safe"
The woman felt something
After that, the hero left
-"Is everything ok?" one of the paramedics asked the woman
-"Spider-man" she said
-"What about him?"
-"Well, when I hugged him, despite the fact he was inside burning building" she looked at the direction the hero had left from "He felt so cold"
Night fell on the city of Hino
Izumi was sitting on his table, waiting for his mom to return so they could have dinner
He kept staring at his smartphone
-"I ruined it" he thought to himself
The door opened
-"Yuu, I´m back" she said
Gin-chan went to her
-"Welcome" he said
-"You know, something strange happened" she said while putting a bag with some take-out on the table
-"What?"
-"Micchan sent me a text"
Izumi panicked
-"She told me she won't be going to our classes anymore, and when I asked her why, she just said is something she has to keep to herself"
Izumi gulped
-"Strange, but I guess she'll tell me when she's ready"
-"Eh, yeah"
-"Anyway, put the candles on the cake"
Izumis eyes went wide "C-Cake?"
-"Yes, your father's favorite. You were supposed to pick it up today"
He gasped
He had completely forgot about that due to what happened today
-"I…" he buried his face on his hands "Sorry mom, I forgot"
-"It´s ok Yuu"
-"..." he sniffed "No, it's not"
-"Eh?" his mother tilted his head at him
-"I'm sorry mom" he started to cry "I ruined everything… I´m the worst son ever"
-"Yuu, it's ok" she put a hand on his back, leaning closer "It's just a cake"
-"No, it's not… Everything is my fault"
-"Huh?"
-"It´s my fault that Shikimori-san won´t go to classes with you anymore, is my fault that you lost a friend"
-"Yuu, what are you talking about?"
-"Shikimori-san… she" he revealed his crying face to his mom "She broke up with me"
Motoko gasped, bringing a hand to her mouth
-"I´m so sorry mom… I ruined everything"
-"Yuu" his mom wrapped him in a comforting hug
Izumi let out the tears
Not only tears of pain because of the break up, but frustration
Frustration at himself
-"I…" he rubbed his eyes "I´m sorry"
-"Yuu, it's ok" she said with a reassuring and loving tone "You don't own me anything, I am more worried about you, what happened?"
-"That´s…" he looked at her
She kept smiling to him
The smile of a mother that did so much for him
And he used her and the others for his lies
Lies that unfortunately…. Will have to continue
-"I can't tell her the truth either… I am the worst human being ever"
He sucked in a breath "Let's just say that we didn't meet eye to eye anymore, and decided it was for the best to not continue together"
If he was going to lie, he was going to be certain that no one has to suffer any collateral damage from it
He won't do what he did to Kamiya already
-"I see" she patted him on the back "I am sad yes, I thought she was going to be different, but… Those things can happen"
-"I'm sorry mom" he felt pathetic
-"It's ok, my son" she hugged him once more "No matter what, I will always love you"
He hugged her back "I love you too"
After calming himself down, the family ate dinner
Despite what had just transpired, they were able to share a few laughs along the way
Laughs that he definitely needed
Now he was on his room, sitting on his bed, and with his Spider-man mask on his hands
-"I never asked any of this…. I never asked for these powers… Never knew it would mean a dead dad, a worried mother who has enough on her plate and I just keep adding more issues to her, a dead friend, friends and a girl… Ex-girlfriend, all of them who think I am the worst person on the face of the Earth, citizens who are always changing their opinions on me" he tightened his mask "I NEVER ASKED ANY OF THIS!" he took a breath "It's all just a twisted fate… Bad luck, a random bug bite"
He certainly never did ask for any of that
Suddenly, his train of thought was cut off by the meowing of his cat that was sleeping on his desk
Looking up, he saw that his cat was about to knock down some frames with photos on them
-"Be careful, Gin-chan" he walked to his cat
And saw them
The photos he kept
One was with his parents when he was a small child, at a barbecue they had at the garden
The other was with his friends after winning the race at the sports festival last year
And the other one was one they took a few weeks into their final year of highschool
In the three of them, they were smiling
-"But" he looked at the photos, and couldn't help but feel better "I saved them"
He saved Nekozaki
He saved Hachimitsu, at least once
He saved Kamiya
He helped Inuzuka´s brother
He had saved them and protect them all, just like he always does
Just like he saves the people of the city
-"I may not be able to do much as Yuuki Izumi, but thanks to Spider-man, they are safe" he then thought of the recent accident "Captain Kamiya is right, whoever did this to Miyabi-san may do it again, and I´m the only one who can fight them"
He wont let them down
Or rather, he won´t let Spider-man let them down
-"No matter what they say to me… I will always fight for them"
Even if it means they hate Yuuki Izumi
-"Because that's all that matters"
And with that, he turned off the lights, and went to sleep
Tomorrow is a new day
And that´s the end of that, and, well, a lot to unpack
The gang is dissapointed at Izumi, specially Nekozaki, who might have overreacted, but someone she considers a friend is abandoning over and over, and the owrds of her kidnapper from all those months back are hunting her
As for Jin, well, that´s pretty much what this saga is going to be about. Jin will send some of his experiments to fight Izumi in order to test his serum, as well as to gather more data
And the ending, shocking, right? Well, it was something I had planned this I started this story. If you look at the description, you´ll notice I never put the pair tag for Izumi x Shikimori, so I guess you could say this was foreshadow since the beginning
I´ll be honest, while I did plan this, I don´t know where I want to go with this story in regards to the romance aspect. Whether I´ll make Izumi remain single, have him get back together with Shikimori, or give a certain lady her chance with Izumi. If you follow the Shikimori series, you know full well who I´m talking about
Anyway, next chapter, Izumi won´t have time to rest, because a new opponent will show up
As usual, thank you all for reading, leave any reviews or send a PM ,and I will gladly answer
I´m going to board up my doors and windows
Until next time
Peace