Friday, May 19th - 2nd year's floor
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*CHIME SOUND* (I don't really know the appropriate sound for the Japanese chime.)
'Alright! It's showtime.' Thought Ren when the signal for lunch break announced its presence. Saying that lunch break was the most awaited moment by the students in Kotori Gakuen was no exageration. Everybody who brought their lunches from home took them out, joined chairs with some other classmates and started eating, while others darted off towards the cafeteria, hoping to be the first ones to arrive so they could buy the best articles at the menu. But this was not the case for Ren though.
"Hoooh, you look fired up Ren-chan." At some point the E class pet, the energetic Sakagami Shigure, made her appearance when she noted Ren's overwhelming attitude.
"Yeah, I thought that we could talk about 'that' during lunch break with Arisaka-senpai." Shigure's eyes widened when she heard the word 'that' being pronounced, you could almost see a tail waving behind her.
"Oh, that's a great idea Ren-chan, shall we go?" Shigure smiled and offered her arm like any gentleman would. There's no need to clarify that Shigure is not a man.
"You're right, the earlier the better." Completely ignoring Shigure, who had her arm raised so Ren could entwine his, he started walking towards the third years floor. Shigure sighed in defeat, and shortly after she was walking alongside Ren.
'She looks one hundred times better than yesterday' Ren thought. In comparison to Shigure's behavior the day before, she made a complete 180. Ren was happy that he could at least, brought back her over-energetic smile.
"Umm, R-Ren-chan?" Ren turned around to see Shigure fidgeting nervously with her fingers. Then something clicked.
"Oh, need to go to the restroom? Sorry, didn't noticed." Shigure shook her head furiously while her cheeks turned a new shade of crimson.
"N-No no! That's not it!" Ren tilted his head quizzically. Shigure continued.
"It's just that I'm a little nervous, I hope we can be friends with Sora-san." Said Shigure scratching her head embarrassed. Ren's eyes widened a little, not too much for Shigure to notice. Then he smiled.
"Don't worry, we'll make this, I'm sure of it." Shigure glanced at Ren.
'He looks so manly and reliable...' When she noticed her own inner thoughts, she shook her head while blushing a little.
"A-Anyway, would you mind telling me what are you telling her?" Ren shook his head, causing Shigure to pout.
"Okaaay, I'll wait." Without touching that subject anymore, both of them continued walking.
The 'plan' Shigure was talking was something Ren came with yesterday at the club room after classes.
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*FLASHBACK* Thursday, May 18th — Music Club Room
"Pardon my intrusion~" With a pleasant sliding sound, Ren entered the club room alongside Shigure. Both decided to plan something again at the club room. Michiru was already at the club room, reading a book like always.
"Oh? My, if it isn't Kanzaki-kun and Shigure-san, good afternoon." Michiru greeted them with a gentle smile characteristic of hers. Ren and Michiru returned the greeting and decided to sit down. Michiru closed her book after making sure her bookmark was inside it, and turned around to see Ren.
"I am very happy to see you guys again, I thought that you would not come anymore and that made me sad." Michiru put a hand on her cheek while she spoke with a sad face. Ren smiled awkwardly.
"Don't worry Michiru-senpai! I, Sakagami Shigure-chan, promise that next time will be successful, right Ren-chan?" 'Whoa, she just called herself Shigure-chan.' Deciding that it would be wiser, Ren decided to not say anything and just nodded.
"Well well, those are incredibly good news! Then, lets do our very best." Michiru was as 'harmonic' as usual, and Shigure as energetic as always. Ren smiled to himself.
"Then I suppose you want ME to plan this?" Ren asked to be sure. Michiru and Shigure turned to see each other for a couple of seconds, they nodded to each other, then both turned to look at Ren with a decisive expression on their faces.
""Yes!"" Both saluted at Ren at the same time, like a pair of well trained soldiers. Ren sighed, he saw this coming from miles.
'Yeah, figures.' Ren nodded, obtaining a happy face from his classmate and senior. They didn't said it, but Shigure and Michiru have confidence in Ren's intellect, they thought that probably he'll come with some kind of idea to—
"I'll go talk to her." Declared Ren. Michiru just clapped and said something among the lines of 'ohhh' while Shigure just stared at him in awe. Then she walked until she was mere centimeters away from him.
"Ehhhhhhhhhh?! Then why did you sent ME yesterday? I was so nervous Ren-chan!" Shigure shouted while grabbing Ren's necktie. Ren just sighed, raised his hand and—
*STUD!*
"Owww!" Shigure was crouching holding the back of her head with both hands. Ren slammed the side of his hand on Shigure's head, so to calm her. Michiru just laughed quietly holding a hand on her mouth.
"I told you yesterday, didn't I? You were the best option, but that's not the case anymore. So I thought that I could give it a shot." Shigure looked at him scornfully.
"Then that's pretty much the same with Michiru-senpai, isn't it? Why can't she go?" Ren looked at Shigure with confusion written all over his face.
"I already told you about that. Right Arisaka-senpai?" Ren turned to look at Michiru, who was just listening to Ren and Shigure's discussion with a smile.
"That's right, you told me that she would not feel at ease trying to make conversation with a senior, yes?" Michiru tried to recall everything Ren told them yesterday. Ren raised an eyebrow, then he slowly nodded.
"...Yeah, something like that, more briefer though." Michiru smiled proudly at her 'good memory'. Shigure sighed, a new sight.
"Yes yes I understand, then, what are you going to do?" She looked scornfully at Ren, he just shook his head.
"I don't know, but I'll talk to her tomorrow at lunch break." Michiru and Shigure looked at him curiously. Shigure continued.
"Why not right now?" Ren shook his head again.
"That wouldn't be good, she probably went home already, she doesn't have friends at all, she does not have a reason to stay at school after classes." He had a point. Sora does not have friends, so why would she stay at school?. Her daily routine was always the same, she goes to school, eats lunch alone at the rooftop, and when school's over, she goes home. Despite Sora's 'popularity', none of the girls dares to invite her to hang out because they think that she is out of their league, much to Sora's misfortune.
"You have a point, but..." For some reason Shigure didn't liked the idea of Ren talking alone with Sora. Michiru saw this, and a big smile made it's way to her face.
"My, my, do you dislike the idea of Kanzaki-san talking to another girl, Shigure-san?" The blue haired girl replied nervously:
"W-W-W-Whaaaat?! N-N-Not at all! Why would I?!" Ren just sighed at Shigure's display, not really understanding what Michiru meant.
At that moment, Rin sent a message to Ren, saying that she was waiting for him at the entrance along Nagi, so he decided to call it a day.
"Anyway, that's the plan for now, end of today's discussion." Ren started sorting out his things. Michiru nodded.
"You are right Kanzaki-san, we should leave soon." Shigure also nodded.
"Alright, I hope you obtain good results tomorrow~" She stood up, went for her bag, and darted towards the door.
"See ya tomorrooow~" Shigure disappeared, leaving Ren and Michiru alone at the club room.
"Fufu, I believe you have to leave too, right Kanzaki-san?" Ren smiled and nodded.
"Yeah gotta go, my sister is waiting for me outside." He decided to not mention Nagi's name, just to be safe. Michiru nodded and once again opened her book.
"Then, I hope you succeed tomorrrow, Kanzaki-san, good luck." She smiled gently at Ren, resting her chin on her hands, which were resting on the table.
"...Yeah, thanks senpai, see you tomorrow." He decided to leave. Just before he could exit the room, he heard Michiru's voice.
"U-Umm, Kanzaki-san?" He turned to see Michiru with a nervous expression, this was new to him. He never saw her making a face like that.
"Yes, senpai?" Michiru looked at Ren with an embarrassed face.
"I hope it doesn't sound too selfish but, c-can I call you by your first name? I always hear Shigure-san calling you Ren-chan. S-So c-could I...?" Ren looked at her with an expressionless face for a couple of seconds. Michiru panicked, thinking he was saying "no" to her request.
"O-On second thought, forget it! I-I was just being too selfish haha..." After seing a dejected Michiru, Ren couldn't help but smile.
"Yeah, I don't have a problem." Michiru smiled excited.
"...! T-Thank you Kanzaki-sa— No, R-Ren-chan." Ren smiled wryly after hearing his senior calling him "chan".
"Just Ren is fine, please don't imitate Sakagami-san" Michiru thought for a second, then she continued.
"J-Just Ren is too risky, w-we don't have that kind of relationship... perhaps Ren-san?" Ren laughed lightly.
"Yeah that's fine senpai." Michiru looked at him a little displeased. Ren tilted his head.
"That's not good, you have to call me by my name also!" Ren sighed, he didn't feel that comfortable calling an upperclassman by her first name. But he decided to accept.
"Okay then, see you tomorrow, Michiru-senpai." Ren waved his hand, leaving the club room.
"That's better, see you tomorrow, Ren-san." With a pleased smile, Michiru returned her attention to her book once again, being the only one left at the club room.
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*END OF FLASHBACK*
A couple of minutes had passed since Ren and Shigure left the classroom. They were now in front of the music club room, but when Ren tried to slide the door...
"Huh? It's not opening." Ren tried to apply a little bit more strength into his arms, but the result was the same, the door didn't even bulged.
"It's closed... senpai probably hasn't arrived yet. Maybe she is on her classroom?" Shigure nodded at the possibility.
"Probably the case. Then? What should we do?" Ren was going to suggest that they should go see her at her classroom but at that moment, he saw a long blonde hair making its way towards the school rooftop. He decided to try his luck.
"I gotta go Sakagami-san, make sure you go and see Michiru-senpai!" That said, Ren dashed towards the rooftop, leaving a confussed Shigure standing in the hallway.
"Okay..? Wait." Something seemed a little bit off. She started pondering about what the Kanzaki boy told her just a few minutes ago.
'I gotta go Sakagami-san, make sure you go and see Michiru-senpai!'. That's when it clicked.
"¡...!" Her eyes widened to great extents. That's not a face that a lady in her prime years should be making.
"EHHHHHHH?!" Some students heard the scream of a young lady, provoking shudders among the youngsters. Some said that it was the ghost of a girl that died at the third floor restrooms, some others said that it was a vengeful spirit that ate the cheaters. A long list of theories were created, but that's a story for another time.
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While he made his way towards the rooftop, Ren keep thinking about what should he say to Sora when he talked to her. 'Most probably scenario is that she will feel awkward, I mean, she rejected me not so long ago' Ren started to think that his timing was extremely bad. Had he waited a little bit more time to confess, maybe this would be a walk on the park. 'Well, nothing I can do about it'.
*CREAAAACH* With a disgusting sound, the door that connected the third floor with the rooftop opened. Ren keep walking towards the very same door, hoping to find the blonde girl eating by herself. He thought that she would look at him with a confused expression on her face. 'There's only one way to found out'.
"Hmm?" Just before opening the door himself, Ren noticed something that nobody questioned about until now. He thought it was strange, but he didn't paid any attention in particular. 'I can always ask her in person'.
*CREAAAAACH* Like some kind of deja vú, that disgusting and ugly sound reached Sora's ears. She stopped eating her lunch and turned around towards the origin of said sound. Because of what happened a little while ago with Shigure, she was on guard, waiting for the person at the other side of the door to show himself.
After opening the door, the bright sunlight invaded Ren's eyes, making him look the other way for a couple of seconds until his sight settled down. He felt a fresh breeze over his face, his hair danced along with the gentle waves of air. He couldn't help but to think: 'Amazing'.
Soon after that, he spotted a single yellowish point at the end of the rooftop. 'Found you'.
There she was, Mikagi Sora. Sitting in a seiza style, looking at him as if he was a strange creature. Her beautiful sapphire eyes shined thanks to the bright sun. Her long and blonde hair was swimming along the air, as if it was part of the sky. Also her porcelain-white skin almost reflected the sunlight, while a small blush was posing on her cheeks. Ren stared at her for a couple of seconds, trying to engrave her features into his memory, but he had to say something.
"Yo." Sora raised an eyebrow after hearing his super-informal greeting. She decided to also greet him out of politeness.
"Good morning..." She was more wary than before. Sora had a long list of boys that confessed their love to her (including Ren), but every single one of them were turned down. Most of them liked her because of her beauty, not really because her personality.
"..." Ren didn't say another word and just made his way towards her, making her more on guard. When he reached her, she raised her arms in a defensive way.
"W-What is it? Do you need something from me...?"
"Not really, just felt like eating up here." Ren sat on the floor right next to Sora, and started eating his lunch. Sora stealed glances at him, trying to know his true intentions, but after looking at his inexpressive face, she continued eating.
"..."
"..."
The mood was kinda awkward, Sora was starting to feel nervous. This was the first time, literally, that a boy didn't asked her out. Of course, he was just sitting there eating lunch without saying a word, but it was still the first time. She became a little curious of the boy, so she looked at his face for a couple of seconds until...
"Ah! I remember you!" Said the blonde girl. Ren glanced towards her direction.
"Huh?"
"You confessed to me a couple of days ago!" Ren sighed.
"Yeah I did, I'm class 2-E, Kanzaki Ren, hello." He dismissed her remark and kept eating his lunch. Sora's eyes twitched.
"I didn't asked your name! What do you want? Did you came to try again? Well, sorry to break it to you but-" Before she could continue, Ren interrupted her.
"Nope, like I said, I just felt like eating here." Obviously Ren couldn't say that he wanted to talk with her, that would spoil the plan.
"...Then why did you sat next to me?" Sora kept her guard up. Ren just tilted his head.
"Well, it's better than eating alone, don't you think?" Ren asked Sora, knowing too well that she always eats alone.
"...Not like I would know." Sora mumbled in a low voice, Ren pretended not hearing her.
"Is there a problem if I eat lunch here?" Ren asked with a monotone voice.
"Well, yeah I mean, I always eat here so-"
"Despite knowing that the school rooftop is off-limits to the students?" Sora glanced at him with a nervous look on her face, frowning.
"..." She didn't say anything. Ren took her silence as response, and continued.
"Why do you have the key to the rooftop, Mikagi-san?" Sora's eyes widened, not expecting this question.
"T-That's not of your business..." She started nervously eating her lunch, as if trying to cut off the conversation, but Ren would not let this chance escape.
"Yeah, that may be true. But what do you think a teacher would say about this?" Hearing his words, Sora turned to look at him with a mad expression.
"What, are you blackmailing me?! Just because I turned you down! Disgusting!" Sora stood up and keep lashing at Ren. He just stood there, sitting in the floor with his usual poker face. This angered Sora.
"What is the problem with an antisocial like me eating alone in the rooftop?! Does it harm you in any way?!" Ren just nodded.
"HOW IN THE-!"
"That's the problem." Sora stopped yelling at him, she frowned confused at his words.
"W-Wha-? What the hell does that..?"
"Why do you have to eat here all by yourself?" Sora didn't understand what was happening, was he concerned about her? No, that cannot be possible, she didn't even know him. But something about his attitude seem genuine, honest.
"W-Why do you ask...? Because I have no friends..." Ren shook his head.
"That's not true, I'm your friend." Sora was at a loss for words. Did he just said that he was her friend? What the hell, they don't even know each other.
"Liar, I don't even know you!" Thinking that he was mocking her, she yelled at him.
"Does that even matter? Now I am your friend and that's all there is to it. Don't mind the small details." Ren smiled gently at her, something that he only does when talking with someone close to him. In a sense, Ren considered Sora "close to him".
"...Wha-"
*CREEEEEEACH*
At that moment, the door opened once more. This time, three female students passed through the door.
"So this is were you were, Mikagi." One of the three girls smirked when she spotted Sora. The trio started to made their way towards her.
"..." Sora didn't say a word, she just looked at them with a grim expression. Ren noticed this.
"Huh?" One of the girls noticed Ren sitting on the floor.
"Hooo, what's this Mikagi? Someone already took your lunch spot? Hahaha! You'll have to keep searching for another place where you can eat alone!" The girls started laughing at Sora, making said person more angry.
"Don't tell me... Is he your friend? No way right? HAHAHA!" Like a band of maniacs, the girls laughed their lungs out. Sora had a complex expression on her face.
"Yeah that's what I thought, It doesn't matter how cute do you think you are, you're just an antisocial freak aren't you?" Another girl laughed and complemented her friend's remark.
"Haha, that's right, in fact, you don't even know this man right?" After hearing them for a while, something inside Sora snapped.
"I DO!" Everybody including Ren, glanced at Sora with perplexity.
"...Y-Yeah right, like an antisocial like you could-" Sora cut her off.
"I-I know him! In fact, H-He..." Ren raised an eyebrow at Sora's words. Not so long ago, she was calling him a liar when he said that he was her friend.
"Ehhhh?" The three girls let out a confused sound. Ren was thinking of interfere in the discussion. But he was a little late:
"HE IS MY BOYFRIEND!"
""...""
Absolute silence could be heard at the school rooftop. Nobody said a word and Sora was panting, trying to recover the air she spent. Some of the students also heard Sora's voice from every place at the school. Still hot headed, Sora continued.
"Y-Yeah! That's right! H-He is my b-b-boyfriend!" Stuttering with a deep crimson face, she smirked awkwardly at the girls who were making fun of her. She said it at the spur of the moment, so now that she was a little cooler, she started feeling embarrases for telling such an obvious lie.
"Wha- That can't be true! You don't even have friends, how could you get yourself a boyfriend?!" Nobody could believe it. Not even Ren. They went from strangers to lovers in a couple of minutes.
"She's obviously bluffing." Said who looked like the "leader" of the trio. Sora grimaced at her words.
"Hey you." Ren looked at the girl when she called him.
"What?" With his usual unconcerned face, he answered.
"Are you Mikagi's boyfriend?"
"..." Sora glanced at him with a nervous expression all over her face. Ren pondered for a couple of seconds about what should he do. Should he lie to this girls? Should he pretend to be Mikagi Sora's boyfriend? Should he go along with Sora's lie?
'Sure, why not?' It was expected from Ren.
"Yeah, Sora and I are dating. Do you have a problem with that?" He looked at the three girls with a frown on his face. To be honest, he looked a little scary due to him always having a stoic face.
"Hiiiiih, n-not really, it's just that-"
"Then, I kindly ask you to leave us alone, so we can eat lunch." The girls glared back at Sora, and after a little bit, they left the rooftop.
"..." Sora looked at Ren in awe. Why did he went along with her?
"Those girls were really annoying." Ren stated, and continued eating lunch.
"...why?" Sora's voice was so low that Ren barely heard her.
"Hmm? What is it?"
"Why did you said that...?"
"What? Didn't you wanted me to say that?" Sora shook her head.
"No but, you didn't have to go along with my bluff, why did you-"
"Didn't I told you? Because I am your friend. And to be honest those girls really annoyed me." Ren smiled lightly, making Sora's face blush a little, while she didn't know why.
"..." She decided to keep quiet. She sat down next to Ren once again, and finished her lunch.
A couple of seconds passed, and nobody said anything, they just kept eating until the chime sounded, announcing the end of the lunche break.
"Well, look like time's up, see you, Mika-"
"Wait."
"Hmm?" Ren glanced towards Sora, who held his sleeve with her right hand.
"Probably at this point, there are rumors about us going out."
"Yeah, probably. So?" Ren didn't understood.
"W-Well, it would help me if you could pretend to be my lover. At least until the end of this month, after that I can say that we broke up or something."
Ren looked at her face. She had a pleading expression, so he decided to go along with her plan. It was just a few days anyway. He suddenly got an idea.
"Yeah, sure, but-"
"...But?" Sora looked warily at him. Thinking what would he want in exchange.
"You have to join the Friendly Classmates Circle." Ren declared.
"...Huh?"