After the swimming class ended, I was asked by Chabs sensei to visit a guidance room to file a report on Yamauchi Haruki. When I entered the room, there were two adults, Chabs-sensei and a male security officer in his thirties. I bowed toward the two of them to show respect, though I felt out of place since I was still wearing Kikyo's tracksuit.
In the layout of the office, there were three chairs, two with Chabs and the officer sitting right next to each other near the desk. The officer looked to be typing something on a laptop. He glanced in my direction as I took my seat right across them. Another security guard who happened to be nearby closed the door for us, leaving just the three of us inside the room.
If I'm not mistaken, this feels sort of like an interrogation. The room was mostly empty, besides a few cabinets and a clock.
"Sakura Airi. Student ID: S01T004738. Classroom 1-D. Homeroom teacher: Chabashira Sae." He looked at me with a concerned expression, trying to sound as gentle as possible, "Is this information about you correct?"
My ID number, that's a strange thing to ask, but it sounds about right.
"Yes, sir."
"Now, I am doing this for your sake, so all I need you to do is cooperate with me. You got that?"
His calm voice helped keep the room's atmosphere from becoming too tense. I've dealt with folks like this before, not as the victim of a crime but as a suspect. However, I am concerned about someone who might be considered a suspect if I don't play my cards correctly during this little interrogation.
"I u-understand, so tell me what you want to do."
My voice sounded uncharacteristically meek, but this is the best method of maintaining your status as a victim in a case like this. As a victim, it is best to cooperate with the officer when you are the victim. Usually, they will ask for a statement or testimony; however, he wanted to investigate my phone for some reason.
"Good, thank you. Can you please hand me your phone? I want to see if the SIM card inside of it is salvageable."
I handed him my newly damaged phone, which appeared to have been dropped due to the cracks on the screen, making it unresponsive to my touch.
The officer connected my phone to his laptop to see if it was working at the moment., potentially even trying to go over any files, purchases, and anything that could be salvaged from the device.
"I have bad news for you: the SIM card in your phone has been damaged. Fortunately, the warranty on the school's phones will allow you to repair them for no cost. So, I will need you to pass this file to the worker at the repair shop near Keyaki Mall; then, he will tell you what to do from there."
"I s-see."
"Right, now I want you to provide a statement about the events that transpired. After this, you will be allowed to go."
This was quicker than expected. I thought there would be further investigation. I guess that's it for Yamauchi. It's a shame because if he didn't mess up in such a pathetic way, he would still be here, and someone else would've been expelled.
I gave my rundown of events of earlier today, trying to keep it precise and keeping up the meek voice. As I was giving my statement, I could hear the tapping of the keyboard of the officer transcribing my words.
Something that I do respect the school for is the utmost professionalism that is occurring right now. It is way better than the chaos of the class trials in the Ultimate Academy. It's reassuring that the school takes these sorts of situations seriously.
"Alright, with your statement, we are done here. Thank you for your participation, and I hope that this experience doesn't discourage you."
The officer grabbed his laptop and left the room, leaving me and Chabs in the guidance room. This is the first time I've had a one-on-one session with her. She looked bored to say, I can't blame her.
"Say sensei, this might be a strange question, but are there any consequences for having someone from our class expelled?"
"That should be the least of your concerns right now. However, I want to know what makes you think his expulsion will affect the class?"
Chabs seemed to understand the undertone that I was trying to ask. 'How many points are we losing because of this?'. I have been speculating on whether or not the homeroom teachers in this school have a matter in the class competition.
"Hmm, oh, it's nothing. It was a sudden thought that popped into my head just now. It's just that I've been speculating on whether or not we would get 100,000 points. Are the points we receive based on individual or class performance?"
"Well, I can't answer that question as of now. Take that statement as you will."
Her poker face is impeccable. Though with how she answered my question, I'll take it that expulsions have consequences.
"Well, I didn't expect much anyway. Thank you for your time."
I got up from my seat and exited the room with the broken phone and a plastic bag containing my stained clothes.
Overall, I would call this little session a success.
Now, I was surprised about the stains for sure. I didn't think Yamauchi would try to let one out before swimming. Perhaps that's the reason why his swimming time was awful earlier. However, his poor aim and carelessness sealed his fate of being expelled from this school. Due to the severity of what Yamauchi did, no further investigation was necessary besides my statement, which was convenient for me.
Honestly, I was completely fine with either Yamauchi being expelled or if he didn't, as in the end, I still got what I wanted out of this situation.
♚♘◼◻◼◻-LIARS-◼◻◼◻♞♔
I'm unsure how everyone else reacted to Yamauchi's crime since I went straight to the guidance room without talking to anyone. However, I have arranged time with Hasebe to hang out. Although she prefers to be alone, she can give me a good idea of how the other girls reacted.
I returned to my dorm and decided to freshen up with a quick shower and change into casual wear, including a purple blouse and jeans.
As I finished changing, I made my way out of the dormitory, and right near the entrance, I found a blue-haired girl waiting for me.
"Hey, are you doing alright?"
Her soft voice was unusual coming from her, but due to the situation I appeared to be in, it made sense that she would feel empathy for me.
"I'm doing fine."
I lightly nodded and made my way towards her.
"So, I can take it that bastard has been expelled?"
"Well, you would be correct. According to the officer I spoke to, he should be gone by the end of the day."
"Thank goodness, perhaps the other guys will not be such creeps during class! Though what he did was at a whole another level!"
That's wishful thinking. Though, at the very least, none of the guys should be doing anything stupid like taking bets on girl's chests at the very least.
The two of us made our way towards Palate Cafe, a popular cafe I hadn't tried yet. However, I've heard from Kikyo and others that this cafe is one of the best regarding its pastries and drinks.
"There are so many people here," Hasebe said.
"Say, have you ever been here before?"
"No, this is one of those cafes where it's odd to be alone, can't you see."
As I looked around, I noticed that all the tables had at least two or more people. It was mostly girls. For example, I noticed some girls from Class B, like Ichinose, were present.
"I can see, well, I haven't been here before, surprisingly. So it'll be our first time here, so let's enjoy it together."
The two of us made our way to a table. Where a waiter came to our table asking for an order. I ordered a green boba tea and red bean pancakes, while Hasebe ordered a frappuccino and some dango.
As our order came in, I added a lot of sweetener to my tea, which Hasebe looked confused by.
"You must really like sweet stuff. I can't say I'm the same."
"Yeah, I like the way it feels in my mouth."
"That's an absurd way of saying that it tastes good."
"Nope, not at all. I don't know how well-known it is, but I can't taste anything."
"I didn't think that was true at all."
"Yeah, you can do many weird things with your food since you don't have to worry about taste."
Hasebe's face slowly scrunched after hearing that, possibly thinking of all the worst food combinations you can think of. I've probably done a lot of them.
"Um, that's funny. I don't want to ask what you've eaten."
"Nishishi! Yeah, let's leave it to your imagination."
Now that our mood had been more casual, we chatted for a while, ranging from various subjects. However, eventually, we reached to gossip.
"Kaurizawa's group is so annoying to deal with, and I don't know how you can just casually talk with them so often."
"Oh, did something happen that has you mad at them? I'm all ears."
I leaned forward, trying to get Hasebe to spill the tea. I know that Kaurizawa's group doesn't have the best reputation amongst everyone in my class due to her bitchy attitude. However, at the same time, she does hold a considerable influence amongst the girls in the class because no one stands up to her.
I could, and Kikyo could potentially as well, but neither of us is interested in having direct control. For now, I'll let Kaurizawa do her thing in our class.
"Tch, oh, it's nothing. It's just that I overheard them badmouthing me the other day. I don't mix well with them. Especially Shinohara. She is the rudest of the bunch."
"Shinohara, well, she knows how to speak her mind."
Despite being average by my standards, Shinohara Satsuki knows how to speak her mind. I like people who aren't afraid of speaking the truth, but the method that she and Kaurizawa use to drag others down makes them controversial figures in our class. Especially with the boys, besides Hirata, they can't tolerate any of the other guys.
"Yeah, she can be rude at times, I'll admit. Though, I do have to wonder, how did she and the rest of her group react after the events that occurred during swimming class?"
"I guess there's no harm in telling you now. I can't be sure if this is true, but I overheard Hirata mentally shut down after the incident; now, I heard from Satou. So, it seems they are concerned with Hirata's well-being."
My eyes widened at this. Is Hirata incapable of handling a stressful situation? If so, that explains a lot of his character and why he wants everyone to get along. I guess I'll witness a change tomorrow if Hasebe is correct.
"Well, I hope he gets better soon."
"Me too. He's one of the few tolerable guys in our class."
After our little discussion, the two of us exited the cafe, and surprisingly, we ran into Ayanokoji, who looked just as robotic as he usually does.
"Oh, Aya-chan!"
I waved towards him, to which he sheepishly waved his hand towards the two of us. I signaled him to come towards us, to which he obliged.
"Hello, Sakura, Hasebe. What brings you two here?"
"Oh, we were just having a good chat together. So what about you?"
"I was looking for that Korean store you mentioned earlier today before that."
"Korean store? I didn't know the school had one." Hasebe asked.
"It does; this school has so many delicacies worldwide. French, Moroccan, Korean, Indian, Spanish, Jamaican, and plenty more. I've thoroughly explored this campus to find all the good spots at this school, so if you want to know a place, hit me up. Nishishi!"
"That's a lot of places. I've been going to the same shops as that's the most convenient for me." Hasebe admitted, "I never knew you would be a good cook; from what I've seen from your posts, they aren't the most geared towards my interest."
She hesitantly said that last part. Those words can't even hurt me because I'm not interested in most of the content the original Airi made, as well.
"What can you say?" I responded, "Say, Aya-chan, do you need help finding that store? I can help you if you want."
"Are you sure? I think I can handle finding it myself. I don't want to interrupt your business right now." He tried to push away my offer.
"No, that's fine. I was about to head to my dorm anyway. It's nice to meet you, Ayanokoji-kun. I'll see you later, Saku-chan!"
"Right, see ya!"
She left with a bright smile. I waved her farewell as well, leaving me and Ayankoji at the Palate Cafe entrance. I think the two of us will get along well; her no-shit attitude, along with the older sister vibe I get from her, is one I think I can come to appreciate.
I felt as if I got closer to Hasebe today.
♚♘◼◻◼◻-LIARS-◼◻◼◻♞♔
After showing Ayanokoji to the Korean store and buying a bottle of that sauce, I asked him to accompany me to the repair shop to fix my phone.
"Say, how long do you think it will take for the repair shop to fix my phone?" I asked.
"Good question, I don't know. Maybe they will fix it immediately, or it could take a while."
Sometimes, I wished Iruma were with me at moments like this; if I had given her this phone and asked her to fix it, she would have done so and probably made improvements on this device. Here, I have to rely on a regular person who will do the bare minimum. Perhaps I should ask to find someone who can build something I want because I have a few fun ideas.
The two of us finally made it to the electronic store. Before going to the repair section, I strolled the building to see what was available at this store. This place had cameras, computers, and other products that a computer nerd would appreciate. However, nothing looked out of the ordinary compared to what I saw in Iruma's lab.
"There it is, Aya-chan! The repair counter."
After finding the repair counter, I made my way to the counter, where I met eyes with the store clerk. Now, I wouldn't say I liked the look on his face, and it was creepy. His eyes were lasered onto my chest, and I could see the slight drool that he was trying to suck up. I found a superfan of mine.
"Good day to you. Is there anything you need from me today?"
He was ecstatic to talk to me, as if my presence was the best thing in his life. So, with the fakest of smiles, I greeted him back.
"Hi, so I need my phone repaired."
He blatantly ignored Ayanokoji and was only focused on me as I spoke. I pulled out my damaged phone and the warranty guarantee file that the school provided me and handed it to him. He began reading the file to get the gist of my situation.
As he read, he started conversing with me about the most pointless stuff, including idol elections and idol magazines. I understand; you know I am Shizuku, but I don't say anything because of professionalism. I tried to speed things up with the conversation, but he kept asking me to go and see some lame idol I'd never heard of before.
However, he was capable of his thing. He told me that my phone was primarily external, so it could be fixed with the warranty file the school gave me. Now, all I had left was to fill in my dorm number on the shop clerk's forum.
Now, I was wondering if I should sign it. I don't want to give this guy my address, or else I will get another complaint from the receptionist. I was looking down at the form and twirling my pen when a voice called out to me.
"Can I see that for a second?"
That was the voice of Ayanokoji speaking up as I debated my decision. He was standing next to me this entire time, so he should've been able to read the warranty file as well, but I never expected this.
"Huh?"
Ayanokoji snatched the pen from my hand and began to look at the forum himself. I was confused by his actions. I thought he hated trouble.
"H-hey, wait a minute. Give your address. She's the owner, isn't she? That would be..."
"Now, she doesn't have a way of contacting anyone without her phone. So, I don't think there should be any legal issues if that's the case. In addition, the warranty doesn't explicitly state that the user's name differs from the purchaser's."
Ignoring the clerk, Ayanokoji filled out the forum with his name and dorm number, which I learned he lives in room 401.
"Now, is there a reason why she has to fill to fill this out? In that case, I can accompany her when her phone is finished."
When did he start to act like a gentleman? How did he know I was contemplating giving my dorm information to this guy?
"R-right, that's fine. Your phone will be ready on April 23rd. Until then, here is this burner phone you can use as your phone is being fixed."
He handed me the burner phone, which felt cheaper than the school-provided phones. With that in mind, the two of us exited the store, and I stretched my arms behind my head once more, feeling relieved that I didn't have to deal with him for two weeks.
"God, why was he such a creep," I muttered.
"He seems to be the type that is hard to approach for girls." Ayanokoji followed.
"You can say that again. What's worse is that I am sure he knows about my career as an online idol. I get the shivers just thinking about it." I pretended to shiver, "Though you don't have to put yourself in trouble for me."
"It isn't trouble for me. As a guy, I don't feel troubled if I give out my information."
Right, sometimes I forget that I am not a guy anymore. I guess I haven't put much thought into my perceived gender that much. Perhaps I should consider that.
"Yeah, thanks. You saved me from a lot of trouble in the future. Nishishi!"
"It's no problem." Ayanokoji and I started to walk in the direction of the dormitories when he suddenly stopped, "This might be a bit offensive to ask, especially after what transpired, but don't you find it strange that Yamauchi just went through with his plan during swimming class."
"Nishishi! Despite my delicate looks, I am, in fact, tougher than you think. Though you have a point, is Yamauchi that disgusting to steal my belongings and defile on it?"
"Perhaps he is, though I didn't spend much time with him. If he targeted all of the girls, then you could argue he was framed, but he chose to only go after you. Though I might be overthinking things."
He does raise a valid point: why would someone go out of their way to frame Yamauchi Haruki? He is a well-known creep despised by the girls in our class, so seeing him do an action wasn't surprising. Perhaps it would be more suspicious if he did something like a panty raid, stealing all of the other girl's underwear. However, he only targeted me, someone he had a crush on.
"Hmm, that's an interesting thought. Did you get this idea from someone?"
"It was Hirata who came up with this idea. He was not handling the situation well, almost like he was in denial."
Denial is what Hirata possibly felt at that moment. He probably wanted some way to believe that his classmate couldn't do anything wrong. Unfortunately for him, the evidence that the school collected already painted Yamauchi as the culprit.
"I wouldn't say you are overthinking things. Let's say someone did target him. Why would they? I've been thinking that as well. Perhaps he was truly framed?"
I pointed my finger towards my lips as I stared at him.
"There shouldn't be a reason unless..."
Ayanokoji stopped talking all of a sudden. I tried staring at him, but his stare was even more empty than normal. I was curious what was going on in his head right now. Perhaps he figured something out about the case?
"Um, Aya-chan, are you okay?"
"Oh, it's nothing. I think I zoned out for a moment. I was probably overthinking things. I apologize."
"That's fine." I yawned, "I think I'm probably going back to the dorms; you want to come with me?"
"Hmm, I think I'll stay out for a bit longer. So I'll see you tomorrow, Sakura."
"Alright then. See ya, Aya-chan!"
I waved towards him once more before returning to the dorms. He seems to be more observant than he lets himself be. I couldn't tell if he was intelligent, but I can conclude that he knows more than he shows. Maybe he has a theory on what transpired during swimming class, but knowing his apparent dislike for trouble, he wouldn't go out of his way to speculate to others.
♚♘◼◻◼◻-LIARS-◼◻◼◻♞♔
As I returned to my dorms after this exhausting day. I looked at my burner phone and noticed one message from someone. The number looked familiar, but I'll check it later. The phone I was given could transfer all my numbers but not the name associated with the number. I remember whose number belongs to whom, but it'll be a pain to go through all of them.
Today was a rough day not just for me but for my class as well. Those who are left will undoubtedly be affected by the events that transpired today, even if they don't like Yamauchi—Hirata especially, from what I've heard from Hasebe and Ayanokoji. Kikyo and I have a lot of work ahead of us. However, his expulsion opens new opportunities for the rest of the class to grow.
I can't help but feel slightly guilty for setting him up in that horrendous manner. However, because of this, he will grow into a better person who doesn't have to rely on lying about himself. He has to be truthful with himself if he wants to be accepted by others again.
Unlike other days, I made my way to my sketchbook first, where I'd been drawing the faces of my classmates. I took the paper labeled S01T004706 and ripped it out of the book. Afterward, I pulled a lighter from my drawer and set the paper on fire.
___________
Author's Note:
Thank you for reading. This is the second half of chapter three after the cliffhanger, which was the first part. So that's why this chapter is a tad bit shorter.
Let me know if you have any critiques, comments, or questions.
Lastly, thank you for the reads and votes. This was just a bizarre idea I'd had for a while, and I wanted to try writing it out to see how it played out, so seeing people enjoy this surprised me a lot. So, thank you so much for your continued support.
[Word Count: 3809]