Nickson is absent for three days straight in school. He has not contacted us or given the student council any updates on his whereabouts. Regardless of his absence, our four council members are diligent enough to continue their work without affecting their minds from the missing person.
Maybe, at the back of their head, our peers have thought that Nickson is doing something more important than going into school.
After pushing these grim thoughts aside, I resume checking the events and the timetable of the academy.
We will have sakura sightseeing for the next week and a half. Following the field trip, all the clubs will hold a session to invite all the newcomers to join their organisations. Each of these clubs will represent something at the assembly, with the entire occasion lasting for a week. For the next month, we will celebrate our school festival.
"How can I even be excited when this mangaka is ruining my schedule!" As I glance at my head on my bag, I remember the countless days I have wasted supervising Nickson. Upon shuffling my hair while escaping a groan, I pack my things and head towards the outside.
I walk to the corridors and meet with the few pupils passing by the gates. These students cement themselves in front of the phone, paying attention to the words on the screen.
I turn around and spot the rest of the council members going outside uttering nothing at each other. My peers look like zombies reanimating themselves back from the dead, despite being alive. With those grey-looking eye bags dangling in their sockets, no wonder they do not have the energy to talk to anyone after our duties.
The thought of Nickson and his problems reoccurs inside me. The only people who know the situation about the Korean guy are the two of us, Roxanne and me. We disclose the matter to the present officers inside the room, telling them that Nickson has relationship problems with his brother.
I understand Nick would not want to share his circumstances with anyone else. But nobody would accept his excuses, now that it has gone up to these consecutive days.
From those triad days, I was standing in front of the Clock Hotel, checking if he would show up for the entire duration. Both my eyes and ears went upward after finding out that he was not there spying on us or his brother, Sung-ho, working at the restaurant. Roxanne could not make it accompanying me, so I had to do it by myself and checked all the clues left by the two brothers. She said that she needed to finish the mountain-piled documents unsigned by the president, deans, chairperson, and boards and directors of the school. With those responsibilities chaining together, Roxanne went ahead, wandered around the halls, and continued her job. My best friend refused my help and told me to continue monitoring the whereabouts of Nickson and Sung-ho.
"It feels like we are in a movie, Yuki!" Roxanne added, before letting me go on the buzzing streets.
It is not just him who has gone out from the fray.
Sung-ho refused to show himself at my sight, knowing that I planned on interviewing him. To add matters worse, Wilson, the person who messaged me last four days ago, was not responding to my phone calls. I tried calling him before attending my duties as a secretary earlier, but there was no response from the other line.
"If this continues for a week, then I will let him quit for good!" My voice echoes as I slam my spoon on the latte I have ordered.
The icing, cream, and extra chocolate bursts from the lids of my glass creating an eruption like a volcano on the table. All the servers who have noticed my mess dashes straight in my direction, bringing with them mops and fabrics to dry the entire place.
It has been the fourth day since my investigation. I have no other leads besides the staff telling me that Sung-ho has gone to take his day off. Nobody knows why, and several of them are saying the same thing.
"Sung-ho has been acting strange lately." Their lines keep ringing inside my ears for the past couple of hours of waiting here inside the cafe. I understand if they are protecting the life of their friend, but I cannot let this opportunity slip through my hands!
As I glance at the transparent panels, I notice the outside world already drawing late with the dusky colour of the ground. The arrays of sun vanish from the windows, with the moonlight replacing the closing shadows of the night. With the stars twinkling in the sky, I feel at ease and storm outside.
I perceive the puddles of water around me, splashing with every step I take while I move closer to the unending road. I gaze my head skywards and discern the dim clouds forming above my head. Within a few seconds, the heavy downpour crashes like a waterfall, drenching everything inside the city.
I recall that there is a thunderstorm approaching the town. The media from the television advises citizens to bring umbrellas round-the-clock and avoid going outside for the time being. But it is already too late for me as I look at my side, hoping for something to appear.
"As I have expected, there is nothing. No umbrella will magically appear at my side, Yuki." I carry my dejected feeling with me as I walk ahead, stuttering at the hazel-like puddles forming on the floor.
However, things have taken a turn for the worse. The familiar figure welcomes my eyes, with each of them having their shoulders crossed like an X. Their eyes narrow upon seeing my figure stepping back from where I have come from at the entrance.
"Do you have a minute, Yuki?" Washi, the former president of our school, calls out for my attention without moving from his spot.
With a reluctant look, I give him my answer. "I have nothing but time."
Byakko and Washi walk closer in my direction, with their shoulders still clasps and eyes piercing daggers right through me. As soon as the two walk before me, they stop and look at the clock hanging from above.
"You have four days to bring him back inside the council." Byakko shifts her gaze back to my eyes. She does not look in the mood to take any jokes from me.
My body jerks and gives him a nod, acknowledging their command as seniors of my work. These two senior officials will use everything I say against me since they are the people who recommended working as officers of the school.
"If we do not see him in the council next week, Roxanne and I will also be out of the council." After hearing such a statement from Washi, my mind turns blank. I feel uncertain about retorting back, knowing little I can do to stop their decisions.
I try to exclaim my reasons for my friend and me, hoping they could revoke what they have told me.
"This is not a fair trade! I did not sign up for this mess-,"
"But it is still your responsibility as an officer and as a friend of Nickson, isn't it now, Yuki?" With a single comment, Byakko shuts me off and gives me a grin. The longer I gaze upon her eyes, the warmer my head gets throughout the conversation.
Before I could even reply, Washi interjects me and waves his hand. "Byakko is right. Since you are friends with him, then fetching him back inside the council should be a piece of cake, Yuki."
I am up against these two towering figures obstructing my way back home. Last week, I was just a student fulfilling my job. Right now, I need to deal with someone else's problem because I am available. To top the hat off, they keep dumping me with that guy as my friend.
"I am not his friend and will never be." A bitter taste escapes my mouth upon telling them the truth. I will defend my stand, hoping that they could hear me out.
"Nickson is nothing but a peer that I need to help since his work is affecting Roxanne."
A snortle resounds through our ears, with Washi's hair hiding his face. The former vice-president fixes the temples of his glasses and resumes facing me upon the shift in his demeanour.
"All you can think about is yourself and Roxanne. You never choose to look at the outside, to the surrounding people. You keep minding your business, and life does not revolve that way," Washi turns around and suggests to his friend, Byakko, to move out towards the streets. "My decision will stay the same. Bring Nickson back to the council, or suffer the consequences, Yuki."
Their shadows follow their figure as they march onwards on the busy road to Tokyo, Japan. The lights attached to every building are the ones paving my unlit road, guiding me nearer to my home. With the rain pouring from above, I return to my abode and open the door.
I could not distinguish my tears from the wet rain outside. Even with the downhearted events, my show must go on.