The seconds passed inside the quiet classroom of 1 - D. Tension and agitation filled the air. It's already 7:15 AM, but Sir Andy hasn't showed up yet. He's already fifteen minutes late, and many of the thirty students are already getting anxious.
"Where is he?" the class president stomped her feet in agitation, "He's already late by 15 minutes!"
"Where's Sir Andy, he never arrives at school this late?" Ayaka worried.
Although worried, her seatmate and best friend, Karen tried to comfort her, "Cheer up, Ayaka! He'll be here soon."
On the other side of the room, the mood was different. It wasn't agitation nor concern that was aloof.
"I assume that stupid teacher failed his check ride, heh!" Minako sneered.
"What are you talking about, Minako?" Akane asked with a bland tone.
Just as Ayaka's concern, Sayuri's anger, and Minako's pride are about to reach its peak, it happened.
The door swung open, a tall figure stood outside, but something seemed out of the ordinary.
"Good-good morning, Delta!"
"Good morning, Sir Andy!" the entire class greeted.
"Ta-take your seats - whoop," he nearly stumbled on his step.
He was feeling wobbly and his head was spinning, but he tried to speak up.
"Bri-bring out your no-notebooks, we will be -"
He began to lose his bearings, his feet moved back and forth with his head in perfect sync. He managed to hold on to the teacher's desk, but it was futile.
"Sorry, 1 - D!"
His vision became blurry, his feet swayed left and right, before losing the remaining strength he has. His eyes blacked out; he didn't feel his left arm first slam to the floor. He collapsed, in front of everyone.
"Call the headteacher, the nurse!" Sayuri frantically ordered.
Two girls left the room and carried out Sayuri's orders, while the rest crowded over the teacher's collapsed body.
A cold breeze blew by, he felt his skin tingle, and the familiar scent of eucalyptus filled the air. Andy slowly opened his eyes, it was white everywhere, his bed, the blanket, the curtains, and the cabinets in front of him.
"Where am I?" he was feeling drowsy from the cold air that enveloped his body with a relaxing sensation.
"You're in the infirmary," a lady's voice told her in a calm yet concerned tone.
Andy immediately recognized her voice, "Aneki?"
He felt a warm feeling on his head, followed by the rough ruffling of his hair.
"You arrived late, then you collapsed in front of your class? What happened, Andy?" she asked while patting her head and tucking him inside the blankets.
"I haaaaaven't slept yet," yawned Andy.
"Why?"
He sniffed the soothing scent of eucalyptus before covering his body under the warm blankets.
"I had a flight last night, Sunday. Capital to Genzo, back to back, 9 PM to 12 AM, then 1:30 AM to 4:30 AM, back. I haven't slept yet."
Aneko was both shocked and concerned, "You had a flight, how?"
But his concern was only answered by silence, Andy had already fallen asleep.
"What have you been doing, Andy?" Aneko patted his brother's head and gave him a short kiss on the forehead.
Two hours later, an unusual noise woke the sleepy Aviation teacher.
"Is he still asleep, Karen-chan?"
"Nope, I think he's just about to wake up."
"Ayaka, Karen, keep your voices down!"
Andy heard the familiar voices; he rubbed his eyes and his blurry vision came back. Three girls stood beside him, wearing their usual cream uniform and brown blazer, with the standard black skirt and ribbon.
"Ohh, it's you girls" - he covered his mouth and yawned - "what are you doing here?"
"We came to visit you, Sir Andy," Ayaka replied with a sweet-sounding tone.
"How are you doing Sir Andy?" Karen cheerfully asked.
"What happened to you, you collapsed in front of the class," worried Sayuri.
"Sorry, sorry, I'll tell you girls about it later during ICT class."
"No, you're not going to your ICT class!" a lady's sharp and stern voice interrupted their conversation, "You're going home straightaway!"
"Aneki, it's fine, I've rested up now," he smiled.
"That smile won't convince me. I won't risk you collapsing again, rest up at home, or I'll drag you to my apartment and make you sleep."
"Aneki, that's a bit too much. At least let me see my class and tell them what happened."
Aneko sighed, arguing further would only strain his brother.
"Fine, I'll take you home after you have your talk with your class. I'm gonna take an undertime so that I can watch over you."
"Aneki, that's a bit -"
"Don't argue!" her inner demon seeped out and threatened Andy.
She left the infirmary in a hurry, leaving his brother and the three girls together.
"I think it's best you return to the classroom," he told the girls, "I'll be there in a while."
"Are you okay, will you be able to walk?" Ayaka asked with concern.
"Hm-mm, don't worry about me. I've rested up already, so I'll be fine."
Just as the three lovely girls left, another one of his students barged inside the infirmary while Andy was fixing the bed.
"So, I guess you passed your check flight then?" an arrogant sounding voice asked.
"Yep, and it's thanks to you, Minako-san."
Andy spun around, Minako-san, the student who helped her prepare for his check flight, stood by the infirmary door.
"Hmph, I helped you because you looked pity, I didn't do it because I wanted to, it's because you look so pitiful that I can't help but -"
"Alright, you don't have to explain yourself, what matters is you helped me," he scratched his head in embarrassment.
"Anyway, what happened to you? You collapsed in front of the class like you're drunk."
"About that" - Andy slid his foot onto his shoe - "I'll explain later in the classroom, I'm about to head back now."
"Well, if you say so, don't go collapsing again," her long black hair trailed behind as she spun around and left the infirmary.
Back inside 1 - D's classroom, all the students settled down while eating their lunches. They were waiting anxiously for their adviser.
Within minutes after Minako returned from the infirmary, the front door swung open, a well-rested and calm looking Sir Andy entered the room.
"Good afternoon everyone!" the class adviser smiled as he greeted his students.
"Sir Andyyyyy!"
The girls began to crowd around their adviser, feeling energetic and excited to see him again.
"Sir Andy are you okay?"
"Sir Andy what happened to you?"
"Sir Andy are you alright?"
Sir Andy this, Sir Andy that, the noise began to hurt his ears. The crowd around him began to suffocate him, warm air began to overpower the classroom's cold environment, he could feel the exhaustion and dizziness come back.
"1 - D! SETTLE DOWN!" Sayuri yelled.
The crowd became quiet, Andy's dizziness subsided, and the girls' turned their attention to the class president.
"Sir Andy just arrived from the infirmary, if you continue to crowd around him, he might collapse again," Sayuri warned.
The girls realized their mistake, they all said "Sorry, Sir Andy!" and returned to their seats.
"Thanks for your help, Sayuri-san."
"Don't mention it," the class president returned to her seat along with the entire class.
With all the girls settled down, he took a deep breath and began his announcement,
"I would like to apologize for being late and collapsing in front of you. To tell you the truth I haven't slept yet that's why I felt so dizzy and tired earlier."
He could feel the exhaustion return to his body, so he sat on the desk to rest his legs.
"Last Saturday, I had a simulator check ride, it was a requirement for trainee Second Officers. The check ride involved landing a plane on windy and rainy weather with a wet runway to make things worse. Luckily," - he looked up and smiled - "I passed with flying colors, and I'm officially a Second Officer. I've passed emergency checks before so last Saturday's check was my last as a trainee."
The students were amazed, they felt proud of their adviser. To become a Second Officer at such a young age means he is truly a skilled pilot. In fact, a certain someone was grinning with pride, admiration, and satisfaction.
But his story doesn't answer the question, why did he collapse? Andy could see that his students were getting anxious to know what happened earlier
"Since I'm a Second Officer now, the airline assigned me a flight for me to earn experience. The bad news is, that flight was on Sunday, evening, Etruria's Capital to Genzo. The flight was from 9 PM to 12 midnight, and a return flight from 1:30 AM to 4:30 AM. I was able to sleep in the morning, but not during and after the flight. Once I got out of the airport, it was already 5 AM, I had to rush back home to take a bath and get a change of clothes."
Sir Andy looked down, the exhaustion and sleep deprivation began to act on his body again, he tried to fight it off by shaking his head.
"On the way to school, I felt dizzy and sleepy, I tried to fight it until I reached the classroom, but my body gave up."
He stood up and gave the girls a soothing smile, "Because of that, I'll be away today, and tomorrow. I'll be back on Wednesday so don't worry about me."
"SIR ANDYYYYY!"
"Come on now, you won't miss me, right?" he jokingly remarked. "I'll be leaving you with a task for tomorrow, so stay productive!"
He told his students what they will be doing tomorrow on their Aviation and ICT time. Since no one will be there to handle the class, he decided to ask one of his students to monitor the girls and make sure nobody causes mischief.
"Sayuri-san, can I ask you to watch over the class tomorrow? Collect their reflection reports and ICT seatworks."
"M-Me?" Sayuri hesitated.
"Yes, you, you're the class president."
"Ohh, fine, but I'll do it because I don't want the class to get rowdy during your absence." her voice sounded defiant, but deep inside, she had a different thought.
"Thank goodness Sir Andy is relying on me. I don't know why but it feels good to be relied on sometimes."
Andy was worried with Sayuri's reply, knowing the class president, she may sound in denial, but she'll do her job well.
"Sayuri-san's behavior towards me is somewhat concerning. I hope I didn't get on her bad side again."
With the agenda for tomorrow sorted out, Andy bid the girls goodbye while the girls told him, "Rest up and get well soon!"
On his way to the headteacher's office, he came across 1 - D's PHE teacher, Nishiyama Yuki, looking energetic and excited, as usual.
"Yooo, Sir Andy, you don't look so good."
Feeling a bit dizzy, Andy looked down at the PHE teacher, "Good day to you, Ms. Yuki. Sorry, I kinda feel sick today."
"Ahh that's nothing a bit of rest cannot handle. Tell you what, if you feel stressed, or if you ever need to relax or enjoy your time at school, come to me."
"That will be helpful, what's a good way to relieve stress here at school?"
"Ahh, that's easy, go for a swim!" beamed Yuki.
"Swimming?"
"Yeah, just imagine, the water carrying your body, floating on your back, it's like the weight on your shoulders is gone. Nothing but comfort and coolness."
"Hm-mm that doesn't sound so bad," Andy began to imagine himself floating on the school's swimming pool, his eyes gazing upon the beautiful sunset.
"That's right if you're interested in swimming, come to me. You can help me with my swimming classes, and you can relax at the same time."
"Wait?" he began to doubt the words he just heard. "Did you just say, swimming classes?"
"Huh, you don't know. The first-year girls have swimming as their PHE lesson, they can even go for a swim during their Sport's day."
"No, I never heard anything from the girls."
"Well now you know"- she gave Andy a light slap on the back - "if you wanna take a dip at the pool to relax, consider helping me out in class."
Andy was hesitant, he was worried that he might be called a pervert or hentai if he attended the girls' swimming class. Although he does need a bit of soothing relaxation, and the water is very effective in cooling the nerves.
"I'll think about it."
"Great, if you're free on Friday, why not consider joining 1 - D's swimming class. I've heard from the two boys that you were a great swimmer back in the day. Besides, I could use your help in dealing with a certain problem child."
"The two boys? Ohh, those two! And about the problem child?"
"Don't mind it" - she gave Andy another slap on the back, but this time it was harder - "just come to me if you wanna go."
Yuki began walking away with a very chipper mood and continued walking towards the classroom.
After that conversation, Andy could feel his headache and dizziness return.
"Damn, talking to that energetic PHE teacher sure sapped a lot of my energy."
Andy made his way to the headteacher's office where Aneko was waiting for him. With her brother's remaining energy nearly drained, Aneko brought Andy to her apartment where he took care of him for the rest of the day.
"Thanks for letting me stay here, Aneki."
"Don't worry just rest up in my bed. I don't want to see my cute little brother all tired," she patted Andy's head and gave him a light kiss on the cheek.
After finishing dinner, the two were about to sleep when something very peculiar happened.
Andy closed his eyes and slowly fell asleep. But just a few minutes later, he began to feel cold and afraid. Fear loomed inside his mind, and then he found himself in a never-ending free fall down to earth. The winds rushed towards him, the horror behind dragged him down. Amidst the chaos, he saw a girl extending her arm towards him, trying to save him.
In desperation he called her name, "Aneki!"
Aneko just got out of the bath and got dressed, she could hear Andy's desperate call. She went to his bed sat beside him, "What's wrong, Andy?"
"I-I don't feel so good."
"Ehhhh, is it a fever?" Aneko worried.
"Aneki, help me, please."
He knew there was something wrong with his mind, like his dreams got the best of him. He tried to get a hold of himself and resorted to asking for help.
His sister didn't know what to do, she just sat their and watched the frightful expression in his brother's face.
"What's wrong, Andy?"
"Aneki … Aneki … help!"
Aneko lied down beside his brother and caressed his trouble face. The warm bedsheets and soft pillows felt like heaven to the elder sister, but right now, Andy is experiencing hell.
"Aneki!" he wrapped his arms around her sister, and he pressed his body towards her. His face began to touch Aneko's … let's just say it's something that feels plushy.
"Andy!"
She was caught off guard, she could feel Andy's heat engulfing her body. She just got back after taking a bath, she only had her shirt and shorts on, she isn't wearing anything underneath … on the top that is.
"Andy are you okay?"
Andy hugged Aneko tightly, and just as suddenly, tears began to fall from his eyes.
"I don't want to let go of Aneki! I don't want her to go! Don't go away!"
"Ohh, so that's how it is," she gave his brother a light peck on the forehead and patted his head, "I'm here, don't worry."
Aneko finally understood what his brother was facing.
"So, sleep deprivation and exhaustion can cause you to have nightmares, huh?"
The exhaustion that Andy felt, and being sleep deprived triggered a nightmare that he couldn't handle. His first sleepless flight must have taken a toll on his body.
"Aneki!" tears continued to fall from his eyes, his mellow voice kept on calling out to her sister.
"Don't worry, Aneki's here beside you."
Even though he's already asleep, he could hear Aneko's soft and gentle words. As the nightmare began to get worse, he hugged Aneko even tighter and pressed his face further in fear. His face felt a bit uncomfortable for her sister.
"Aneki's here beside you, Andy!" she whispered to his ear.
She hugged Andy by the neck and by some miracle, the nightmare began to fade away. Andy felt warm throughout his body, the weight from his shoulder has been lifted. In his mind, the girl reached out to him and hugged on to him tightly. She never let go, she saved him from his free fall towards the earth.
This time, he snapped out of the dastardly nightmare and he didn't have any more trouble sleeping. He was still sleep deprived and exhausted, but those feelings began to fade away.
His dream took a great turn, his sister caressed her head while hugging her. Her warm embrace gave removed the negativity in his body.
The young brother was lucky, thinking his head is resting on a pillow, his face was enjoying the soft and wonderful feeling of Aneko's che – lumps of fat.
With the warm and mellow feeling of Aneko beside her, Andy succumbed to his exhaustion. He indulged in his wonderful sleep knowing too well that his sister is taking care of his dear brother.