Training with Sano-san is hell but Karina is willing to go through it. By the end of the week, her body is aching all over but at least she now knows how to kick and punch properly.
It's a nice Monday morning and she decides to finally go back to school. Only, she doesn't have her school I.D. It's with that red-headed stranger she met at the department store when she was picking a dress for Draken-san's birthday.
What was his name again?
Right.
Sam.
Karina calls his cell phone before going out of her house and is told to meet the boy at his school.
He's already in high school, Karina observes as she waits just outside the private academy. The boy's school looks new and pristine, obviously for the rich. Karina suddenly feels out of place.
"Karina-chan!" A male's voice calls her. She looks at where it's coming from and sees Sam grinning at her. "Where do you want to head over, my sweet lady? The arcade? Cafe?"
Eh?
"A-actually, I'm just here for my I.D..."
"Oh, you break my heart. How can you so easily reject me?" He acts as if his chest hurts.
He's a bit... weird. Even the way he speaks is strange. Karina speaks again, "Uhm, Sam-san. My I.D. please."
The boy fishes her I.D. from his pants' pocket but holds it high enough so she couldn't reach it. "If you want this back, you need to spend time with me first." There is something sinister with the way he smiles and Karina knows he's planning something.
But what?
Karina is insignificant.
What would a private high school student want with her?
"Hoy, Sam, you bastard!"
Four high school students approach Sam and her at the school's gates. Metal bats in their hands, they look really pissed off. They look like they're from another school, wearing bright-colored shirts inside their gakuran. They are also in black baggy pants.
"Banji," Sam recognizes the leader of the group.
The angry delinquent spits on the floor and then shouts, "How dare you run away from my little sister after you made her pregnant!"
The red-haired teen shakes his head. "I told you. That's not me."
"Liar!"
"Coward!"
"Bastard!" The other three chime in.
"That's the problem with you, Sam," the "big brother" walks closer, "you don't take responsibility for your actions when you fuck up. I'm going to teach you a lesson. I'll beat you into a pulp and make you say sorry!" Suddenly, he dashes toward Sam, aiming to hit him.
Oh no!
Without thinking, Karina places herself between the two, shielding Sam-san. She says, "Stay back, Sam-san. I know how to fight."
That's not totally true but not completely false. Maybe she can make use of what she learned from her training now.
Using her feet, she kicks the opponent's arm to the side before he can hit her with his metal bat. He loses his grip and the bat flies away from his hands.
Nice!
She can do it!
Karina wants nothing more than to show her improvement to Sano-san.
"Fuck. What's the deal with this girl? Are you Sam's new bitch?" The big boy cradles his arm.
"I-I'm..." Karina wasn't sure what to say.
But Sam-san quickly answered, "This lady's my new friend." He smiles. "She's interesting, isn't she?"
"Fuck you two!" Then, he orders his friends, "Kill them!"
This is bad.
There are four opponents and she's only one. Just one thing she can do. She looks at Sam, takes his hand, and runs away.
"Fuck! Run after them!" She hears the delinquent shout.
As they widen the gap between them and their enemies, Karina hears Sam-san chuckle and then laugh out loud.
"W-why are you laughing?" She continues to drag him across the streets. She's pretty sure what they're experiencing is no laughing matter.
The boy answers as he wipes a tear from his eye, "When Banji and his group appeared, I had this feeling that you'd run away, but you faced them. Then, when I thought you were going to fight them, you ran away. You're really interesting!"
"I don't have a choice. You were going to be injured and then I realized they were too many. I was told to study my surroundings when in a fight. It's not cowardly to run. Never be stupid."
"I agree."
They reach the central plaza. When they were sure that they lost the group, they enter a coffee shop. Karina is tired and parched while Sam-san isn't even sweating. His breathing is even. He's physically fit.
"So you did take my offer for a date at a cafe." The boy winks at her as he lines up before the cashier.
"Date? N-no way!" It's hard to guess what the strange boy is thinking. "I wanted to go to school, but it's far from here, and I'm just thirsty." She also needs a place to rest.
The cafe is almost empty. They pick a spot near the glass wall facing the street. There are no other students in sight, they must be in school already. This morning, Karina decided to go back to school. Maybe she could attend her afternoon classes. She's not sure if she's already ready to face Aiko but she knows that she'll have to face her and her group one day. The sooner the better. Maybe she'll lose against them. Maybe she'll be laughed at again. But at least she tried. She's not Mousy Maya anymore, just Maya. Karina Maya.
"Tell me something about yourself," Sam-san pulls her out of her thoughts. He's sipping his iced chocolate while Karina drinks her vanilla shake.
The girl asks, "W-what?"
Sam-san places his drink on the table. "Tell me something about yourself. Anything. I wish to know more about you."
"Why?"
The boy stretches his arms and then crosses them near his chest. "I just want to. So, what's you're favorite color, my lady?"
"Why do you always say 'my lady'?" She suddenly asks instead of answering his question. It's been bugging her this whole time.
Sam-san's smile is as cold as it always is. "Because you are a lady. Now, what's your favorite color?"
"Pink."
"How adorable. Favorite food?"
"Curry rice."
"Nice." They pass the time like this, the strange boy questioning Karina about various things and then commenting a little. Karina wants to ask Sam-san questions, too, but she doesn't know how to stir the conversation away from her.
When they finished their drinks, Sam-san opens the door for her and they exit the cafe.
"Hoy, hoy. Don't think you can run away from us, you idiots!"
Karina knows that voice. It's from the angry big brother from earlier! Quickly, she shields Sam-san.
What to do?
All four of them are here and they blocked their way out. Should she just go back inside and call the police? Right. She can do that.
However, before she could move, one of the boys rushes toward them with a metal bat. She does her kick again, unaware that another of their opponents is already aiming for her head. The metal bat reaches her skull and Karina blacks out.
When she opens her eyes, she is inside a room.
Her back lays on a soft black mattress and over her is a fluffy black comforter. She springs up to sit and looks around her.
Where is she?
The large room is designed with expensive-looking vases and big abstract paintings of striking colors. But the walls and furniture are mostly black and white.
She hears a series of soft knocks on the door several feet away from the large bed. "May I come in?" asks a female voice.
"Y-yeah," she replies.
A maid in a uniform enters the room and places a towel and a basin of water on the bedside table. "I didn't expect you to wake up soon, miss. I will inform Sam-bocchama right away."
Sam-bocchama?
Is she pertaining to Sam-san?
This big bedroom is his? And the maid called him young master? He's a rich kid? Like, a really rich kid?
Karina looks at the windows but winces in pain. The back of her head hurts like crazy.
"Karina-chan!" The door springs open and reveals Sam-san in a black bathrobe. "Please forgive me. Because of me, you've completely missed your classes for today."
"Sam-san..." Then, she realizes, she's stripped off of her uniform and is now only in her bra and underwear. She trembles and feels weak. "S-sam-san, t-this...?"
The boy smiles slyly. "Don't worry, Greta was the one who took off your garments. Did you wish it was me?"
"No? But... w-why?"
"They were dirtied with your blood." He pauses and frowns as he remembers something. "Is your injury okay now, though?"
Karina cannot answer the boy, her head filled with the fact that she spent time with him without her clothes on. She realizes he just wants to help but this is a bit... going too far.
Brazenly, Sam-san sits on the bed and leans closer to Karina. In a deep voice, he teases the girl, "Are you thinking of something naughty, Karina-chan?"
N-no way!
She blushes and pushes Sam away. "W-where are my clothes?"
"There." The boy points at the open shelf in the corner of the room.
Karina is about to stand up but remembers she's almost naked.
Sam-san smiles again. "Okay. I'll leave you now. Don't you want Greta to wipe you clean first?"
"N-no need." She stares at the boy and wills him to get out.
He stands up and, before finally leaving her, says, "I owe you another date, Karina-chan."
She doesn't respond. After getting dressed, Greta leads her out of the mansion and explains how she can commute back to the central plaza.
What is with that strange boy Sam? Karina had let others bully her and hurt her but this boy's different. It's not like he is attacking her but he seems to overpower her in his bold, sly ways. She didn't like it. And stripping off her clothes? That was uncalled for.
Something inside Karina is warning her, telling her to stay away from the boy.
And she will.
However, the next day, as Karina leaves her house for school, she sees Sam with his expensive bike waiting in a corner. Karina gasps and sneaks away.
Avoid him.
Avoid him.
"Karina-chan!" She runs as she hears him call her name.