He sat up there and gazed absently at the wall adorned with posters featuring characters from manga and games recalling the dream he had the night before and how real it seemed.
After dismissing the thought, he lazily gets out of bed to begin his "misery."
He then goes to the bathroom to thoroughly wash off the dust from his body before preparing for his college.
or accurately "hell on earth"
Moving slowly, he enters the kitchen, finding it empty. Since his parents are away managing finances abroad, Meanwhile, his sister, the leader of the arts and design club, has left for an early meeting, leaving a calm solitude behind.
"Ah, seems sis left food out on the table"
He leaves the house after the breakfast left out for him and makes his way to his despised collage.
===================================================
Chouko Eiko is born in the Reiwa era of Japan to parents from a variety of backgrounds.
He was only 17 years old and had no serious aspirations or considerations for others, including his parents.
He never really had a good reason for acting in such a way.
He had loving parents and sibling who encourage him in all of his endeavors and loved him dearly.
While still in school, he had friends who he could trust and who depended on him for their academic and athletic accomplishments despite having average academic performance.
Or, more generally, he enjoys acting like "a king" while actually being no different from the pawns around him.
Never did he dare to look above
But Every day he plays his boring façade
Till the faithful day it wears off… ha ===================================================
While Eiko walks he hears a recognizable high-pitched voice calling from behind as he approaches the front gate.
It was impossible to miss the girl with the blond hair and tiny stature who appeared to have stepped out of a fashion magazine when looking to see the voice.
It was his closest friend Mei Elijah
Mei Elijah and Chouko Eiko met accidentally when they discovered they shared a parent who are from the same countries. Mei was thrilled since, up until she met Eiko, she was the odd one out among her peers which made Mei ecstatic when she found out Eiko was from her place.
As time went on, they grew closer, and eventually Eiko began to find Mei "likable" and "comfortable" to be around
"How are you today Eiko?"
While clinging on to his jacket tightly
"Well and dandy, what about you?"
While keeping an atrocious fake smile on his face
"Pretty good, after seeing your unusual face"
Even though it is was a common insult it is true, his face does look unusual with joyful eyes but boredom painted upon his eyes, a common hair that yet makes a statement and his face that displays emotion but hard to understand he could easily camouflage into the background like an octopus and yet eyes can't be kept off him
He laughs and brushes off the comment and talks till they reach a hallway
"Look at these two love birds dude"
*snickers* "yea dude they should already kiss"
Eiko looks back at Mei's face to see her flustered expression to where she turns around
"Y-YOU TWO SHUT U-UP CAN YOU"
Turning around he sees Naoki a gloomy tall guy and Ren a small guy where the first thought would be to shout 'GREMLIN' those two are Eiko's good friends to where he finds them to be 'bearable'
"Hello, Ren and Naoki, why are you guys here? Aren't you both supposed to be in class by now"
"Yea, but we had to come and see what this bickering was all about"
"Hmph yea, but it seemed like the prince and his princess were just being love birds Hehe"
"you guys know Mei doesn't like that, right?"
"Yea yea it's just a joke'
Eiko looking to his left sees Mei beet red with embarrassment with her hands on her face buried into her palm
Suddenly Mei runs off the opposite direction before Eiko finishes to process the situation
"MEI WHERE ARE YOU RUNNING TO, sorry Ren and Nanoki I'm going to run after Mei I will be back in a pinch tell teach to mark me present"
After saying that in a rush Eiko runs after Mei, but it seems he has lost track of where she ran to
- What a pain to keep chasing her around like a kid knowing her Tsundere behavior it should be obvious where she went I guess it's good she ran finally I can escape their over bearing presence and hang out with Mei
Thinking this he ran towards the Indoor court and as soon he hears a loud crash inside of the supply closet there he run where he finds her fallen over there he catches a glimpse of her body upon which he noticed her body is bruised and battered with no explanation
There he runs toward her and bends down to comfort her
"Mei what happened to you why are bruised like that?"
"oh, it's nothing much just got hurt by falling down"
Before Eiko could ask more about what happened Mei Swiftly changes the topic and asks him
"Why did you come after me"
Eiko replies
"why would I not when I see you running away"
Tear suddenly form on Mei's eyes dropping on to Eiko's lap
"Eh Eh… why are you crying "
Mei sniffling asks
"Do you like me enough to save me"
Eiko with a surprise reaction reply
"of course, I would help you as a uh..."
a blush forming on Eiko's face
"...Friend"
Mei surprised laughs out loud at Eiko's response
"Well, I'm glad you would save me as a 'friend' "
says Mei with a smug face on her soon a blush too forms on her face
Awkward silence was created to which was interrupted by a loud obnoxious bell ringing
"WE SHOULD GO BACK TO CLASS HUH MEI"
Shouts Eiko abruptly
"YEA WE SHOULD"
Picking up the things they have dropped they walk back to class
With a flutter in his heart Eiko looks at Mei while speaking to himself
"I guess I have a thing to look forward to huh"
As Eiko approaches the classroom, an unexpected shiver ran down his spine, sending a mysterious chill throughout his body. Trying to shake off the strange feeling, he continued toward the room.
However, the usual bustling sounds of the school had vanished, replaced by an eerie silence that hung in the air, making the corridor feel oddly deserted.
Glancing at Mei, Eiko noticed a similar unease on her face, a shared sense of discomfort. They exchanged uncertain looks, trying to downplay the strange atmosphere.
But as they got closer to the classroom, the unsettling feeling intensified. The once-familiar environment now radiated an unexplainable tension, as if something foreboding was lurking behind the closed classroom door.
Eiko and Mei shared a moment of silent acknowledgment, realizing that the normalcy they expected had turned into an unsettling void.
The classroom, usually a hub of activity, now seemed to emit an aura of uneasiness. Each step toward the door felt heavier, laid with an unspoken sense of dread.
Eiko understood that they were no longer dealing with a mere oddity. The stillness within the classroom wasn't just an absence of noise; it was an intangible feeling of FEAR...