After the teacher took attendance in homeroom and all that jazz, Kouta went to his first period class. He had math first. Something he never cared for. He looked at his textbook.
Soon Kouta was about ready to doze off when he felt a quick chill on his neck. He jolted up in his seat, looking all around the room as if he was searching for something.
Some of the students started laughing.
"Falling asleep in class, are we Murakami?" the teacher asked.
Kouta scoffed. He didn't care about getting lectured by some old man. He got up and ran out of the class.
"Hey! No ditching class!!" the teacher called out.
Kouta sped down the hall. "I feel it! I feel it! The same sensation I felt that day..."
He turned a corner and ran down another corridor. At the end of the hall was a staircase. "This way!" He quickly ran up the stairs and looked down the hall.
The chill on Kouta's neck grew more intense. "There's no mistaking it! There's a ghost inside the school...!"
Kouta heard light footsteps following him.
He quickly turned around, but then he smelled her.
It was Yumi. She glared at him. "What do you think you're doing?! Ditching class like that!"
Kouta smiled mischievously. "Oh hoh, but Yumi... aren't you doing the same thing?"
She blushed. "This is not about me! What are you doing up here?"
Kouta started walking down the corridor. "There's a ghost somewhere up here."
Yumi was speechless. She ran to catch up with Kouta. "Look. I heard what happened to you, but you can't just say things like that! We need to get you some help."
Kouta chuckled. "Man, if I haven't heard that line a million times."
He quickly looked to his right. A ghost passed through the wall from one of the classrooms.
Yumi's eyes grew wide. "What... the hell... is that..."
Kouta smiled nervously. "That's a ghost."
Kouta watched the ghost closely. This one had a more human-like face than what he remembered, and it was smaller. Almost frail. It stood on two bony legs. It turned its head to Yumi and grinned widely.
Yumi screamed.
The ghost jumped at her, picked her up, and leapt out the window.
Kouta grit his teeth. "Oh crap, it's faster than I thought it'd be...!" He jumped out the window head first, taking a nose dive to gain speed.
They were on the eighth floor, so it would be a nasty fall if Yumi were to hit the ground.
While she was still screaming, Kouta was catching up with the ghost. He got himself just slightly ahead of it.
The ghost turned its head to look at him with wide buggy eyes.
Kouta kicked its head, which made the head dissipate and it let Yumi go.
Kouta was now falling faster than Yumi. He grabbed a hold of her and landed on his back.
flump!
Yumi opened her eyes. "Huh? I'm... alright?"
She turned around to look under her. "Kouta!" She jumped up.
Kouta sat up and looked around. "Where'd that bastard go?"
Yumi moved in front of him. She seemed to be bewildered. "Kouta... you jumped off the eighth floor..."
Kouta didn't see any sign of the ghost, and the chill on his neck disappeared. He put his right hand on the back of his neck and cracked it to both sides.
"Yeah, what of it?"
Yumi looked at him up and down. "You don't have a scratch!"
Kouta started walking back to the school. "Well yeah. I got lucky I guess."
Yumi ran to catch up with him. "Was that a real ghost?"
Kouta got irritated. "No it was the janitor running from the Halloween party."
Yumi egged him on. "You don't have to be so sarcastic. I mean, how would you expect me to reply when you tell me that you ditched class to hunt ghosts?"
Kouta gave her an annoyed look. "How about believing me for once?"
Yumi followed him into the school. "Okay, I believe you. What now?"
Kouta put his hands in his pockets and walked towards his next class. "Nothing. The ghost ran away. Can't do anything about it."
"But what about the wall and the window? It didn't break! How are we going to tell someone?"
That question made Kouta laugh a little. "When a ghost touches you, apparently you take on the same properties. So you passed through the window along with it. Thing is, you can't tell anyone. There's no proof, so no one will believe you. I learned that the hard way. Unless they see one themselves, it's pointless to tell 'em about the ghosts."
Yumi suddenly felt bad. She thought that Kouta was just mentally traumatized, like everyone else did. "How can I make it up to you?"
Kouta grinned. "I'm not a big fan of IOUs. If you wanna do something, do it because you want to."
He stopped at a corner. "I'm gonna go chill at my next class. I'm skipping math. Don't feel like hearing Mr. Sano's big mouth right now. See ya around." Kouta turned the corner.
Yumi went ahead and went back to her class.
Kouta smiled to himself. "I finally saw one. A real ghost. Now I know for sure. I'm possessed. And whatever it is, is making me superhuman. I'm gonna get to the bottom of it. Why was my family attacked that night, and why can't ghosts hurt me? It had no problem with Yumi. Is it just me? I don't understand at all."
-
Kouta always eats on the roof during his lunch breaks. He gets peace and quiet there. No noise, no weird smells, just him and the sky. He felt his phone buzz in his pocket. He took it out. It was a text message from Yumi.
Yumi: I've decided what I'm going to do. Meet me at your place at six.
Kouta: Don't set up meetings at my own house. But sure, come if you want.
Yumi: Good. See you then.
Kouta sighed. "Geez, she's really got some nerve. I think I liked her better when she just sat around quietly and read books."
After the school day was over, Kouta went back to his house. He opened the front door and kicked off his shoes.
"I'm home." he said.
He walked up to his room and threw off his school uniform. He came back downstairs in his white shirt and navy blue sweatpants. He scratched his head and yawned. He looked at the clock on the stove.
5:43 PM.
"Six huh? Why did I accept her meeting, I just wanna go to sleep." He laid back on the living room couch and closed his eyes. "I'm sure a fifteen minute nap won't hurt right...?"
The sound of the doorbell woke him up.
Kouta groggily looked around. His eyes locked on the clock in the kitchen.
6:04 PM.
Kouta stood up and stretched. He walked to the door and opened it up.
Yumi stood there frowning. "I rung like four times."
Kouta rubbed his eyes. "I answered didn't I? I was power napping."
Yumi stepped into the house. She looked around. "This is a really nice place."
She took off her shoes and placed them neatly to the side. She furrowed her brow at the sight of Kouta's shoes just randomly placed on the floor. She picked them up and put them back neatly.
Kouta picked his ear. He was staring at her with an annoyed expression. "What are you, some neat freak?"
Yumi stood up straight. "No, I just don't like to see disorder."
Kouta turned around. "That's the same thing you know. So, what did you decide to do?"
Yumi sat down on the couch. "I want to help you. With the ghosts."
Kouta chuckled. "You don't want any part of that, trust me."
Yumi grew eager. "I do! I've always thought that you were crazy for saying that ghosts exist, but now that I've seen one, I can't just sit around and do nothing! And you're the only one who'll believe me!"
Kouta chuckled some more. "Can't sit around and do nothing huh? Alright, say I let you in, what can you offer me?"
Yumi's expression told Kouta that she was serious about this. "I want to do research on these ghosts. There has to be a reason for why they exist right? And how come I've only just now seen one?"
Kouta thought about it. She was right. He'd been possessed almost two years ago, and he'd just now seen another ghost for the first time.
"Why the sudden interest?" Kouta asked.
Yumi put her hand over her chest. "I'm a wanna-be biologist at heart. I want to explore the supernatural."
Kouta grinned. "I kinda like this side of you. We should hook up."
Yumi stood up. "Not a chance. I'll text you when I get more info."
She put on her shoes and left.
Kouta stepped outside and watched her leave. He glanced to his left.
Kasumi was outside. She gave Kouta a smile and then went back inside.
Kouta went back into his house and shut the door. He yawned. "That's enough human contact for me for the day. I'm going back to sleep."