As the group walked to the storage room, they came across a few other students who stayed back for club activities. When they saw the Occult Club, they gave them strange looks, and when they noticed Oko, they snicker to themselves.
The club members tried to ignore them as best they could, but it was difficult. Oko had the hardest time. Whenever eyes would land on him, he would start to shake. Ayoshi noticed this, so every student they came across that laughed at them, he would stare them down until they ran away.
If someone didn't know Ayoshi personally, they wouldn't know he is a sweet guy. However, people don't really try to get to know him, so they think he is very scary. People look at him, look into his eyes, and get creeped out. They feel like his pitch-black emotionless eyes were looking into their soul. It felt terrifying.
The club members noticed this and were very thankful. No one had ever protected them. With Ayoshi there, they no longer held their heads down and were much more relaxed.
Oko, the one who felt the most grateful, had a small smile on his face. He and Ayoshi were walking next to each other, so he bent down and softly whispered, "Thank you."
Ayoshi looked up at Oko, "Mm."
The others saw the atmosphere between Oko and Ayoshi. The two looked very harmonious walking side by side together. Even though they couldn't see their President's face, they could tell Oko was smiling. For the first time in a while, Oko was happy. They gave each other looks and agreed that Ayoshi was the one who made their President happy. They cared for him very much and they wanted him to stay happy, so they had to do everything they could to keep Ayoshi around.
When they reached the storage room, they all became really quiet. Before they went in, Oko explained what they usually did when they did their investigation. "We usually don't find anything, but in case we do, don't worry, Aishi-kun."
"Mm."
"If you get scared, you can just hide behind me and I'll protect you." Oko puffed out his chest trying to look manly.
However, the others couldn't help, but think he looked like a kitten who tried to be brave. 'Very cute,' they thought as they looked at their President with knowing looks, but Oko was oblivious to the looks and too focused on Ayoshi.
"If I am scared, I will go to you."
Oko blushed and played with his fingers. "Good," he whispered. He then led everyone inside the room.
The storage room is pretty large, so they all fit in the room comfortably. They were going to write on a piece of paper because they didn't want whatever haunted the room to know what they were going to say.
The Occult Club always had a lot of fun during their investigations. While doing their rituals, they are very serious, but this is the time they relax and just enjoy themselves. They don't pressure themselves to keep focus during this activity. They liked to have fun and slack off every once in a while. After all, they're still normal kids, it's just their interests weren't normal.
So during the activity, they weren't completely focused on solving the mystery. They still wanted to, but they couldn't help it. They messed with each other by poking one another to scare each other and wrote funny things on the notepad to get laughs. In the process of holding it in, they would laugh harder, making their stomachs hurt. Some of them took the activity more seriously, but still giggled along with their fellow club members.
They were usually awkward around people they didn't know very well, but Ayoshi didn't discourage their fun, in fact, they had more fun with him there. A few of them tried to get a reaction from Ayoshi and even when he didn't, they weren't discouraged. It made them try even harder and even managed to get him to play along.
Ayoshi, being so quiet and stealthy, managed to scare everyone. They would scream and then laugh. He was so good that they had to look over their shoulder so they wouldn't be scared again, but they always failed.
Oko always used the camera to record their antics and they noticed how he would pay special attention to Ayoshi. He recorded him the most and would get shy when Ayoshi would notice he recorded him, so Oko would quickly turn his camera to someone else with bright red ears. He paid so much attention to Ayoshi, he was the only one that couldn't be scared by Ayoshi and would always catch him. He would laugh at Ayoshi and give him a silly smile that he didn't realize he had on his face.
The others noticed how happy their President looked with Ayoshi, so they made sure to push the two together as much as possible. They giggled to each other as they saw Oko get happier and happier the more attention he would get from Ayoshi.
When the bell rang to signify that club time finished, they were all very disappointed. They wanted to stay longer. This was the most fun they've had during a club activity. They all left the room dejected.
Once again, Ayoshi and Oko were walking ahead of them, and they looked at each other, communicating with their eyes in agreement. When they arrived at the clubroom, Ayoshi walked in first, but before Oko could walk in, they grabbed him. They eagerly told Oko their marvelous idea, looking very proud of themselves.
However, Oko looked unsure. "I don't know you guys."
"Come on, President, it wouldn't hurt to try."
"Yeah, we saw how he made you."
"You looked so happy with him around."
"You like him so much, why not keep him around?"
Oko's heart sped up, "Wha-what!? You guys! I… I don't like him like that! I mean, sure, he's super pretty and is super nice. Sure, he makes my heart flutter, but that doe-doesn't mean I-I like him like that," he stuttered as he rambled on.
"President, we didn't mean it like that."
"Yeah, we meant you like him as a friend."
"You're the one who thought wrong."
They gave Oko a shit-eating look. He couldn't bear to be stared at by so many knowing eyes. They continue to press him about the matter. "Ok! I'll ask him." They were all very happy, until he started to stall. So they gave him a push, literally. "Gu-guys! I'm going… I'm going, you don't have to push."
They called out to Ayoshi, who was looking at the altar, and he turned to face them.
"Our President has something to ask you."
Oko looked at them, very unsure, and he felt very uneasy.
"Don't be nervous."
"Yeah, I'm sure he'll say yes."
"Go on and ask."
"You can do it!"
Oko steadied his nerves and looked at Ayoshi. "Aishi-kun… the others were hoping that you cou–" Someone pinched, how rude! "I-I mean… I was hoping… maybe you could join the Occult Club?" He looked at Ayoshi with hopeful eyes, waiting with anticipation for his answer.
"I'm not sure."
'I knew it… I knew it! Why would he ever want to join the Occult Club?!' Oko thought.
"How come?" Jutsu Kokuma asked.
"I am already a part of a club."
"You are," they all said with sad tones.
"Yes, but I would like to join."
They all perked up at Ayoshi's words. Oko felt so happy, 'Ayoshi does want to join the club!'
However, Jutsu realized. "How are you going to join if you are already part of a club?" They all started thinking, then it struck her. "The Student Council! If you ask the Student Council President if you can join a second club. I'm sure he'll allow it."
"You can be a part of more than one club?"
"Yes! As long as it doesn't affect your studies."
"Great," Oko yelled, but soon grew a little embarrassed from his outburst, "I mean… great..."
"Ok, I will go ask tomorrow," Ayoshi said.
They all started talking about how excited they were about their soon-to-be new club member as they were getting ready to leave.
"Ok everyone, you can go. I'll clean up here," Oko said.
"I can help you clean," Ayoshi offered.
"Aishi-kun, I could never ask you to do such a thing. You're a guest!"
"You are not asking, I am telling you," Ayoshi said as he started cleaning.
Oko just sighed, "Ok."
Not everyone had left yet, Jutsu lingered behind. "Umm, excuse me, Aishi-kun," she whispered to Ayoshi, trying to make sure Oko didn't hear.
"Hm?"
"Umm… I would just like to say thank you."
"For what?"
"For making our President so happy today. Some incidents happened last year, and it really… affected him. He was never the same after that and wasn't as happy as he used to be. However, even though you've only joined us for a day, everyone has noticed a big difference in him. We've never seen him smile so much in a day… especially after what happened. Our President had so much fun today. He laughed, smiled, and even played with us. It's all thanks to you, so please take care of him and keep making him happy," Jutsu said, then ran off.
Before Ayoshi could even think about what happened, Oko called out to him, "Aishi-kun, what did Jutsu-chan want?"
Ayoshi just shrugged and explained, "She said something about last year's incident, how you have never been the same."
Oko's face became mortified, "Wha-what!? Did she… did she say anything else?"
"She also said I make you very happy and to keep making you happy."
"Did she say what that… incident was?" Oko asked as he looked everywhere, but at Ayoshi.
Ayoshi saw how badly Oko picked the skin on his fingers. He walked up to him, stopping him from picking his fingers. "No, all she said was that something happened."
Oko sighed, his eyes filling with relief. Even though he felt relieved, he didn't want to look at Ayoshi and his jaw clenched. His face held a large frown. Ayoshi could tell he wanted to pick at his fingers, but Ayoshi stopped him from hurting himself. He finally looked at Ayoshi, finding the courage to look into his eyes. Ayoshi's eyes brought him some comfort. "You probably want to know what happened?"
"Actu–" Before Ayoshi could tell Oko, he didn't need to know Oko interrupted.
"Last year, for the most part, the students didn't bother us… until Ronshuka Musume took interest in us. She talked about us to her group of friends, who then talked about us to anyone who would listen. Many students started to think we were weird and would bully us, but we didn't care. They would never go too far, just some laughing, name-calling, and asking questions about the club in mocking tones when they saw us. Soon everyone stopped interacting with people outside our club… except for me. I didn't want to think everyone in the school were jerks… so I gave someone a chance. They were so kind and would always listen attentively when I would talk about the Occult Club. I thought he was my friend, but I was wrong… so wrong," Oko cried out as tears started to stream down his pale face.
Ayoshi led Oko to sit down in one of the chairs.
"He convinced me to do a summons. At first, I was happy. It worked. The candles blew out, the doors slammed shut, and smoke seeped into the room. I heard a voice, a dark demonic voice. I had been trying to summon a specific demon for weeks, and my friend knew about it. I wanted help with… a girl. I didn't want to ask the demon to do something to her. I wanted help winning her over. They agreed to help, but I had to do something for them first. A strange concoction appeared after a puff of smoke. They told me after I drank it I would become more charming. I didn't question it, so I drank it. It tasted vile. I almost threw up. After I asked if they were satisfied with me… I-I heard hysterical laughter. They were very satisfied with my performance. I felt so happy… but then I started to feel strange. My face started to hurt, badly. It started to inflate like a balloon, my… my tongue swelled in my mouth, it didn't fit anymore. I produced so much saliva that it dripped out of my mouth. I felt so much pain and didn't understand why my body was reacting that way. Then I realized I tasted something familiar… eggs. I'm allergic to eggs. While all of that was happening, the demon wouldn't stop laughing. I wanted to ask them what was going on and ask for help, but I couldn't talk. I got up to go to the nurse, but before I could even walk to the door, the lights turned on, the smoke disappeared, and the demonic voice stopped. People burst into the room holding cam-cameras. They were taping me while they pointed and laughed. I was terrified, but then I saw my friend. He would surely explain what was happening, but he laughed along with them… laughed harder than them. He held the waist of the… girl I liked as he laughed at me too. I felt so hurt…" He squeezed his eyes shut, tears streamed down his face.
Ayoshi wiped Oko's tears, but they kept spilling from his eyes.
"I tried to ask what was going on, but only gibberish came out of my mouth. However, he seemed to understand and walked up to me with her in his arms. He only became friends with me so they could pra-prank me. He went on and on about how I was a freak and how no normal person would want to be my friend. He called me the most annoying person he ever met and called being friends the most unbearable thing he had ever been through. He hated every moment with me and my freaky devil worship club. The thing he hated the most was my delusional thinking that a weirdo like me would ever have a chance with his beautiful normal girlfriend… they made out in front of me while everyone cheered. I felt so much pain… I didn't care that she didn't like me… I didn't care if the entire school thought I was weird, because I had the club and I thought… I had made a real, close friend. I cared for him so much… but he just thought of me as a joke he could get a laugh from. They did so much to hum-humiliate me, to hurt me! All because I'm different from them… all because the things I like aren't normal. I couldn't understand why they would do something so cruel. I couldn't stay there any longer, so… so I ran away." He couldn't stop the tears from falling, his heart still hurt so much.
"What about your allergic reaction? Did you get help?"
"I ran to the nurse. My feet, face, and mouth hurt. My entire body ached. Nothing got better after treatment… I stayed home for an entire week with a high fever from stress and an allergic reaction. When I went back to school, everything only got worse. They posted the video on the school forum. Everyone saw it. I became a laughingstock. Everywhere I went, people laughed, pointed, and said cruel things. They even… vandalized my desk with things I don't even want to think about. They even reenacted the video… Things got so bad I couldn't go to school. The club almost disbanded because the others didn't want to do anything without me. They tried to help me get the video taken down, but Ronshuka is the daughter of a very powerful man, so the school refused to do anything. However, the school prioritizes one thing and that's their reputation. My mother threatened to go to the press if they didn't do anything. They couldn't have their precious reputation ruined by letting the public know they allowed bullying in their school, so they took it down. However, the harassment kept happening, but the Student Council President helped me out a lot. He has a lot of power in the school, so he punished Ronshuka and the others. He's truly amazing. With the help of the President, my mom, and friends, I managed to put the pieces of my life back together," Oko said, managing to slow down his tears.
Ayoshi, confused about one thing, asked, "If the Student Council President is so powerful, why did he not do anything when everything started?"
"When it all started, he was away and couldn't have done anything. However, when everything was at its worst, he came back." After he finished telling his story, he and Ayoshi sat in silence. Ayoshi had thought he finally calmed down, but he once again burst into tears. "Aishi-kun! I'm… I'm so sorry. I-I can't help, but think about how… how he betrayed me! I really thought we were friends! I was such an id-idiot! I can't believe I was foolish enough to believe that someone would actually be interested in being my-my friend!"
"You are not an idiot. They are idiots and it's their loss. They missed out on being your friend. They missed out on all the cool things you and your club have to offer." Ayoshi didn't know how to comfort people, but Oko needed it, so he bent down and hugged him. "You are a wonderful person. You are fun to be around and anyone would be lucky to be your friend."
Oko was surprised by the hug, but Ayoshi felt so warm and smelled so nice. He wrapped his arms around Ayoshi and brought him into his lap. He enveloped Ayoshi in his arms and snuggled his face into his neck. "Really?" He mumbled.
Ayoshi didn't see anything strange about their position and caressed Oko's hair. "Of course, because I am one of those who are lucky."
Oko smiled and his heart that once ached now felt warm. "I'm lucky too." The two sat there for a few minutes when his tears finally completely stopped. "Aishi-kun, I'm so sorry you saw me in such a state."
"It is ok."
Oko's arms tighten around Ayoshi. "Aishi-kun, can we stay here… like this for a little while longer?" He asked, a little nervous.
"Mm, however long you need."