That was something that happened in a certain ordinary day.
That happened not long after I enrolled in this school and it could not be said that I was accustomed to the school life yet.
I'm always tense when I get suddenly talked by a classmate, and I'm unable to chat normally.
In short, for me who belongs to the bottom of the class students, it's already exhausting to be able to put a name to a face.
People with high communication skills like Hirata and Kushida have already started to talk to people from the other classes.
"What an annoying reality…"
We both entered this school under the same circumstances, and yet right now we are different as night and day.
Even though I understood everybody have different skills, but at the moment I am regretting it.
In this atmosphere, the resident of my neighboring table spends every day not paying attention to it.
She never arrives late nor has had any absence, has outstanding grades, listens earnestly during classes. She is even fast at entering and leaving the classroom.
However, nobody interacts with her. To put it plainly, she has no friends.
"You look very relaxed, it looks like not having worries is truly great."
"What are you saying all of a sudden?"
Horikita, who was preparing for the next class, looked at me annoyed.
"Nothing. I can't help but think about these things."
"I follow my standards in order to take my studies seriously, you know?"
"I was not saying those things…well, you didn't hear anything. I was wrong."
"Even though you admitting being wrong is a good thing, I feel that I can't accept it."
Horikita believes that she doesn't need friends from the bottom of her heart.
Even if I argued with her, I wouldn't have high odds of success, and there wouldn't be any gain.
"Well, let's study hard today too."
"I've never seen you studying hard once though."
I sighed after hearing her sarcastic remarks.
1
Next day. I woke up earlier than usual and I arrived 10 minutes before the class meeting began. There weren't many students and the classroom was basically empty.
"I've arrived earlier than Horikita."
After all, since it was this time, I thought she had already arrived to the classroom, but it looks like even the first-rate person is going to arrive late.
"Good morning everyone."
A moment later, Kushida, the class atmosphere mediator, entered the classroom.
The gloomy (I'm exaggerating) classroom suddenly became bright and cheerful.
Even if I only see Kushida in the morning, I still think she is very cute. I would probably feel the same if I saw her in the evening.
I didn't know what was Kushida thinking. When she turned into my direction, our eyes accidentally met.
Normally, I was supposed to greet her by waving my hand, but I subconsciously averted my eyes, typical from a good-for-nothing like me.
Today I was also running continuously at the bottom.
While I was staring blankly at the outside of the window, the class bells rang and the class meeting had started. Even at this time, I still hadn't seen Horikita.
I didn't know if Chabashira-sensei had realized or not that Horikita was not here. She didn't touch on this topic, finished the roll call and left the classroom.
"Is she late? So rare…"
I could only guess…
"Good morning Ayanokouji-kun!
"Waah!?
While I was staring blankly at Horikita's seat, Kushida stealthily appeared in my field of vision.
"Sorry, did I scare you?"
"…A little. Do you need something?"
"Yes. Actually, I'm concerned about something. Can I bother you a little bit?"
Don't say a little, you can take my time as you wish."
"Horikita-san hasn't come… to school, right?"
She looked at the seat beside me.
"It looks like it."
"Not even her bag could be seen there, she didn't come without a doubt."
"What do you want to say by asking this?"
She had some clue so she slowly nodded.
"You see, I saw Horikita-san leaving her room this morning."
"Eh?"
In other words, she certainly came to school this morning?
"It wasn't because she was undisposed that she didn't come?
"It doesn't look like it… thus I was a bit worried. Normally I would be the one to talk to Horikita-san, but I'm hated by her."
"She doesn't hate you, she simply hates human relationships."
I feel like she doesn't particularly hate Kushida. Probably.
If it's okay with you, can I ask you to contact with her?"
So, it's like this, that's why you talked to me.
"Even if you want me to contact her... I don't know Horikita's phone number."
"Eh, it's like that?"
"Yes, I'm very sorry. I guess the rest of people are in the same situation."
"What… what do we do then?"
"Isn't it okay by just leaving her alone?"
"but—"
Kushida is really a gentle person, she's even excessively worried about Horikita.
"I'll go look at her circumstances."
"You say circumstances… isn't the next class starting soon?"
"But doesn't this make people worried? Do you think Horikita would cut classes?"
"This is something… hard to imagine."
She gives the feeling of someone who would even come to class despite catching a cold.
"Although there's not much time left before the first lesson starts, if I run fast I should be able to get back on time."
Kushida, just like Horikita, is a model student that never arrives late nor is absent.
Even if she does this because she's worried about Horikita, it'll still leave a lateness record.
"Ah, wait a moment."
I lifted my heavy waist and slowly stood up.
I can't let Kusada be late, so I can only take a step forward. I'm definitely not pretending to be cool. Really.
"Ayanokouji-kun?"
"In short, I'll go look for Horikita's situation."
"Eh?"
"I can't let Kushida cut classes. And if I run, I am more likely to get back in time for the class. So I'll be right back."
"But, But, this is something I wanted to do on my own accord. I can't request you to do it."
"No problem, Since the lecture go in one ear and out the other anyways."
...Probably.
"I'm sorry… thank you"
"It's nothing. By the way, which is Horikita's room number?
If I had run panically right now, I would end up not knowing where her room is.
I need to ask this.
"Let me think, it's 1201."
Since I've been thanked by Kushida, then this might be something that will score points.
In her heart, my points have probably risen up.
There's approximately 8 minutes until the first class starts.
Running to the dorms needs 2 to 3 minutes, so there's a change to get back on time.
2
I immediately left the classroom and run like the wind through the corridor.
It looks like it might be a bit motivated.
Feeling slightly embarrassed, I ran through the empty courtyard and I arrived at the dorms entrance. Thanks to the students who were going to class, the 2 elevators were stopped in the first floor. I immediately entered the elevator to go to the 12th floor.
Since I couldn't help but feel anxious, I kept pressing the target floor's button.
"The upper floors are the girl's area…"
I arrived at the corridor of the 12th floor in an instant and looked for room number 1201. Just by thinking this was the place where the girls live, my heart started beating faster. Dangerous, this is not the moment to think about these things. If it's like what Kushida saw, then Horikita should be inside her room.
After arriving at the front of the room, I first caught my breath. Then I pushed the doorbell.
"..."
However, after waiting for a while, I did not hear a response from the room. Have you already left for the school?
No, there is only one path to school. If that was the case, we would've surely run into each other. And she didn't take the other elevator.
She's either not in her room, or perhaps she has collapsed inside.
In order to confirm the situation, I gripped the entrance doorknob.
"Should I knock the door again?"
Even though she's Horikita, she's undoubtedly a girl.
So I pushed the doorbell, then I knocked the door, and waited for a response from inside.
This time I waited a bit longer. But it was the same in the end. No reaction.
"Damn, there's no other way."
Having made a firm resolution about entering the door, I turned the doorknob.
Then the doorknob easily turned around, thus opening the door. Which meant the probability of Horikita being inside was very high.
"Hey Horikita, are you here?"
Since it's one room, by looking inside was enough to find out the situation.
Then--
"Eh…"
Horikita was inside.
She didn't collapse, nor was in pain.
She was in the process of changing her clothes.
She didn't suddenly scream because of the unexpected visitor, but calmly looked at me with a sharp glance.
"...What are you doing?"
She didn't feel ashamed, Horikita stopped her movements and asked me.
This could be considered one of Horikita's ways of being wavered.
Is it because her brain has not recognized that she has been seen naked, that she's not trying to hide?
I was slightly worried about how to respond to her question, being bewildered about where should I look at, while I stared at her soft and glossy skin. After all, I had no choice, right? A girl's naked body is hard to see.
Even if what I'm seeing is similar to what I saw during swimming classes, it's still totally different.
"This, In fact I was requested by Kushida. She wanted to have me look for Horikita's situation. You see, haven't you been persisting on not being late nor absent? Usually you go to school very early. Kushida said that she saw you this morning leaving the room, and yet you didn't arrive at the classroom, she wondered if you had a reason and wanted to come here to look for you. But since a girl coming here would take a lot of take, as a result, I stepped forward and arrived at here.
Not even I would believe that I was reciting my lines so well in order to justify myself.
Even if this was the truth, it wouldn't be acceptable to be linked to being seen while changing clothes.
"Only this?"
"...Only this."
This looks exactly like the final words of a death row prisoner.
I calmly prepared myself for the punishment I was going to happen next.
"I see…"
It looks like she has sort out the things inside her heart. She put on her skirt, buttoned her blouse and became the she that usually wears the school uniform.
"In other words, you came here to see my circumstances because you were worried?"
"That's right. Because it's unnatural that the superior Horikita would be late."
"It can't be helped. Something came up."
Horikita said this while finishing changing her clothes, and picked up her uniform that was on her bed.
"I was planning to go to school wearing these clothes, but some trouble happened."
"Trouble?"
Horikita unfolded her uniform and showed me the right side of the abdomen.
There were a few centimeters of scratch marks. Leaving a hole.
"You know that there's a bookshelf in the entrance? There were protruding nails that hooked my uniform. This is such an embarrassing topic."
That's why there was such a big cut. Sure enough, it was difficult to go to school in this situation.
So she hastily returned to her room and wore her spare uniform.
"Anyway, it's a good thing that you're okay. The time's almost up."
The time on the phone showed that it was not long before the first class started.
If we ran right now we should be barely in time.
I want to escape from Horikita's side… In order to not arrive late, I turned my body.
"Ayanokouji-kun."
I flusteredly wanted to to leave the room , but I was mercilessly called.
"M-may I ask what's the matter?"
"Can you look at me?"
"D-do I must look at you?"
"Even though I can choose to not look at me, but it will make you regret it even more, you know?"
"May I ask what do you need?"
Horrified, I turned around, but I was attacked by the approaching Horikita.
Followed by a knife hand that stabbed on my abdomen.
All the food I ate in the morning came out fiercely.
After I fell down on the spot, she stabbed on my neck with her knife hand.
"Wagu!"
I was knocked on the floor in this way.
"Whatever reason you had, have you prepared yourself to accept the punishment?"
"I-I've never thought things would become like this…!"
Even though I've prepared myself to accept the punishment, but her power is really frightening.
I can't believe this strike was done with that lavish body.
"The fact that I didn't call the police can be considered mercy. However, I wonder why I haven't cooled my temper merely with this."
"I've suffered fairly painful experience. If it's possible, I wish you could stop here…"
I requested horikita in order to not suffer any more attacks.
"...Ah…"
I shouldn't have lifted my head during the moment I was laying on the floor.
It wasn't my intention but I slightly glanced at the white colored existence under the skirt.
Together with what I saw earlier, it was another seducing feeling.
Why did I look when I knew perfectly well that I shouldn't look?
"Wait, this is--"
The back of my head suffered an acute pain. Immediately after that, I lost my consciousness a couple of seconds.
"What if I had died there!"
"No problem. I've been aiming my attacks so that doesn't happen."
She said something that I didn't know if they were apprehensive words.
"I'm really miserable…"
"Can you hurry up and leave my room? I'm troubled because I can't lock the door"
"I wish you could be a little bit more considerate with me…"
"Let me think… If you want to collapse, I ask you to go to the corridor."
"This is absolutely not being considerate!
I crawled to the corridor as if I was kicked out.
"See you then."
Even though this should be obvious, Horikita ignored me, who couldn't exert force to my legs, not being able to run.
I don't need to mention that I was late in the end.
Deep in my heart I sorrowfully determined that I would at least brand the image of Horikita wearing her underwear in my brain.