The Odd One Out

Chapter 2.2 - A Tempting Invitation

"Hasebe isn't here! Wh-what's going on, Professor?!" Ike cried.

Where was the Professor? I couldn't see him anywhere.

I looked up, only to see him panicking on the second-floor observation deck. The three of them looked around the pool but they couldn't find the girls anywhere.

"B-behind you, Professor!"

"What?!"

Hasebe stood behind the Professor on the observation deck. One by one, the rest of the girls appeared, until they'd all emerged onto the second floor. Seemed like many girls decided to miss out on swimming class, which was understandable considering Ike and the others' barbaric behavior.

The Professor purposely missed out on swimming class in hopes of taking pictures of the girls in swimsuits for Ike and Yamauchi.

Is this what they call... being down bad?

"Gross," the girls muttered among themselves.

"Don't be sad, Ike! There are still tons of girls here for us to look at!" Yamauchi said.

These guys...

"Yeah, you're right! This is plenty enough!"

Soon after, Kushida arrived, then Horikita. Suddenly, the boys' were glued onto them. While they did look good, I must admit, this type of pathetic behavior was just sad to look at.

"......"

For some reason, both of them were staring at my body, checking me out all over.

"Ayanokouji-kun, I didn't expect you to have such a fit body," Horikita said.

Well, thanks to the training I got in the White Room, my body was in extremely good shape. Even though I haven't been at my physical peak ever since I left the White Room, I've been doing morning workouts to try and regain my shape.

I could also hear the girls on the observation deck talking about me as I saw them stare at me in admiration.

"Look at Ayanokouji-kun..."

"He looks so strong, he's the real deal."

"I bet he's the best swimmer here by a mile."

Seems like I won't be holding back today.

"Alright, everybody, line up!"

A macho-looking middle-aged man arrived, gathered everyone together and started the class.

"Hmm... I thought there'd be more of you guys, but this'll do. After you warm up, I want to see what you can really do. Swim for me. Do any of you guys not know how to swim?"

A few students rose their hand.

"Don't you guys worry. With me as your teacher, you'll be swimming in no time. I don't mind at all if you're bad at swimming, but I'll make sure you guys are winners in the end. Trust me, swimming will definitely come in handy later in life. Definitely."

Sure, swimming is often seen as a basic skill in life, but for a teacher to say that, I can't help but think there's a hidden meaning behind his message.