Mrs Ling coughed into her fist, directing everyone's attention towards the blackboard. "Now, let's move on. So, as you can see here-" A knock on the door. Their teacher let out a loud sigh, interrupting maths once more. A woman entered.
She wasn't mean, but everyone was afraid of her. Mrs Watanabe, their principle. "Ran, could you please come to my office?" "See you at lunch then." He whispered, addressing Kanta, before getting up and following her outside.
-
Mrs Watanabe sat on her chair, staring him straight in the eyes. "I have read your school records after countless professors complained about you skipping classes over and over again. Therefore, I feel the need to ask why. You've got good grades, and a successful career ahead of you. So why are you skipping classes? I called your mother, did she already talk to you about it?" He nodded, eyes still wary.
"Great. Then, explain." However, Ran remained silent. What the hell was he supposed to tell her? But she also stayed strong, maintaining eye contact until Ran would budge. And he did, not even two minutes later. "I was not feeling well." He pressed out. Ran would have expected an 'okay' or 'not a good reason to skip classes' but not a "I don't belive you." Hence why he was now staring straight ahead, picking the skin around his fingers.
She smiled at him, but her eyes demanded an answer. "Okay, what am I supposed to do about that? If you don't belive me, thats fine. But I really don't know what else to say except 'I was not feeling good.'" This time, Mrs. Watanabe nodded, waving her hand. "Then I hope you are feeling better now, because if I receive a single complaint again, I am gonna ask your mother to visit. I know you are an adult, Ran, but it seemingly isn't working and if you really want to be able to graduate, then someone has to step up. Take your leave."
-
His eyes had been so focused on the school lunch, that he almost missed Ran sitting down next to him. He was quiet, and didn't take the opportunity to suprise or straddle him, which meant that something must have happened. "What did she say?" He asked, putting down his chopsticks to sip the soup straight from its bowl. "She threatened to call my mother." Ran replied with such ease that Kanta almost missed the serious background. And as soon as he did, he put down his bowl, wiped his mouth and pointed his finger at Ran. He knew it was rude, but he was not able to manage his emotions right now.
"No. You are not gonna drop out." "I am not." "Yes. Yes, you are because you are currently not giving a flying fuck about anything. But please, Ran, all those years of pure torture can't be for nothing." "Listen, Kanta. I am not. Dropping. Out." Each word with extra emphasis and a tap on the others forehead. "Got it?" Ran's best friend nodded.
He proceeded to put the empty soup bowl on a dirty plate, carrying it to the sink to wash it off and put it in a container near said sink. As soon as he got back, both stood up and walked to their next class.
Art it was.
-
"As we can see, our attention is somehow guided at the man in the middle. Maya, why do you think that is?" A girl shot around, something dropping to the floor and landing with a loud crashing sound. A phone, if Ran had to guess. But he didn't want to turn around. Because Maya was the girl that had picked on him earlier and sat with Haruto and his other friends. Ran questioned how much they knew.
She stuttered when their teacher sent her an angry stare. "B-Because he is in the foreground?" "And how can you tell?" "Because of the details." "Correct. What else? Maybe you can answer that, Haruto?" "The mountains are pointing at him, they function like arrows. He is standing in the middle, and if you were to draw a dot on the mans head and the end of the huge stone he is standing on, one will notice that it looks like a triangle. The hiker is looking over clouds, making everything around him appear smaller and distant." And this was him. The man that had traumatized Ran.
The adults are talking
Start from the beginning
