It didn't take too long for me to start regretting taking up on Shu's request. Despite having grown a little since last I saw him, he was still childish, bratty, messy, and just overall annoying.
It was such a pain to live with this boy, and I couldn't figure out at all how Shu was supposedly a 'genius'. Maybe academic talent had nothing to do with the maturity of a person.
"Shu, wake up! We gonna be late for school!"
"Hmmnya hmmnya… what's for breakfast…"
Shu looked like he was still half asleep.
"Forget about breakfast, get dressed right now and start running"
Sometimes you just gotta be firm.
"Okay, okay, I'll be ready"
"Good. I have to wait 10 minutes after you leave before I can leave. If YOU are late, I'm going to be VERY late"
This was the arrangement we made so that we don't end up walking to school together. It's already odd as hell that Shu and I are on speaking terms in school, unfathomable that we may even be friends, and scandalous that we are actually living together. We couldn't let this fact get out.
I was all ready to go and sitting on the couch waiting for Shu to leave the house. I need to count 10 minutes after that.
"Breakfast?"
"If you want breakfast, get up earlier and make it yourself"
Shu sulked a little and left the house.
Gees. What am I even doing here?
Rescuing him and worrying about him, and wanting to protect him was one thing, but living together was totally another thing.
I wasn't the cleanest person in the world, but at least I try to be hygienic. But when I entered Shu's house for the first time with my luggage, I said 'fuck it' and turned around and left again straight away.
It was only after Shu's incessant begging and promise that he will clean up the mess himself and keep it clean that I reluctantly went back to the flat. But of course, I ended up helping him to clean up for the entire weekend as there was no way it could have been done otherwise. I should have known better…
The trickiest thing was not getting found out by Kulu. Because Kulu was so friendly with everyone and kind to Shu, Shu used to go over to his house a lot. Pretty much to leech on Kulu's kindness. Shu told Kulu that he was trying to be more mature and responsible and that's why he decided to not go and stay like a parasite all the time anymore, but it was suspicious as hell, and if you knew Shu it was pretty obvious that it was an empty talk.
Kulu accepted it at face value though, he's like that. You tell him an excuse, and he will accept it as it is and won't ask you further. He's a nice guy.
However, again, feeding Kulu BS was one thing, but getting found out that we are living together was another thing. Kulu doesn't know what happened to me and Shu and how I ended up going to a juvenile detention center, so I would be the last person he'd accept living with Shu.
We had to navigate through all these land mines and it was troublesome as hell every day. To the extent, I started to think that I should think about a way to move out again sooner than later.
Because Shu woke up late, I ended up arriving at the classroom even later. That damn bastard…
My problem was not that I get scolded by the teachers – nobody scolded me or punished me. It is precisely that which I hated. I was untouchable in school. To everyone's eyes, I almost killed three guys. I'm like a murderer that just got out of jail. So when I was late, nobody said anything. When I fell asleep during class, nobody woke me up. When I accidentally spill water on someone, they said sorry. True story.
But I tried my best to improve my studies. I was no longer interested in living like a delinquent. I didn't need to be a poser, I was already a criminal who bloodied his hands.
But then again…. Nobody accepted my trying to change. Teachers never asked me to come out to the front to solve the equations on the blackboard. They didn't ask me to get up and read a passage from a book. I already missed the first semester and half of the second semester, so there was a lot for me to do to catch up. However, there was the end-of-the-semester exam coming up in December, and I became determined to prove everyone wrong by placing high on that exam. It was easier said than done though.
So instead of sitting on my seat with my feet up on the desk and looking cool gazing out of the window, I spent the recess trying to study.
One day, it was one of these short self-study sessions during recess.
"Hey, Shu-, how do you solve this?"
"Let me have a look"
Shu picked up my notebook and looked at the question for a few seconds, put it down on my desk, and started to circle things and write out the work process to explain.
"Look, you just combine these two first, then solve this part of the equation next, and voila -, this is how you get the answer. Easy right?"
"Oh yeah. It's so easy why didn't I see that?"
"Keep it up"
But I got stumped again in the next question right away.
"Shu, how about this one?"
"OK, let's see… er…."
"It's hard right?"
"Boh, this is exactly the same question just with different numbers and written the other way around"
"What?! Why would they even do that"
"To test whether you actually understand it, not just memorize the order"
":sigh:… I need to cool down"
I got up to go to the vending machine at the end of the hallway and got some grape juice. Well, I might as well get banana milk for Shu too for helping me.
"Hey, did you see that?"
I overheard some girls talking to each other.
"Yeah, I know. Do you think he's threatening Shu?"
Huh?
They were standing by the window looking outside, so they didn't see that I was rather close by.
"You mean like forcing him to help him so he won't flunk?"
"Yeah"
"I don't know. That's what I thought first but he doesn't seem to act scary to Shu"
"He IS scary just by being there"
"You are right"
"This is not fair to Shu right?"
"Do you think we can help him?
"Maybe we tell the teacher he's forcing Shu to do his homework and stuff"
"But even the teachers can't touch him"
:Sigh:
So that's how it looks. I'm used to it and I knew this all along, but this one time I felt quite irritated for some reason.
"Ladies"
"Kyaaaaaa!", they both screamed and held each other.
"Look, I didn't mean to eavesdrop but I heard you"
"We are so sorry. Please let us go…"
"I'm not even holding you"
I raised my two hands in the air. On one hand, I had grape juice, and on the other hand banana milk. How can I look any more harmless?
"Please don't hit us"
:sigh:
"Whatever.. but hey, you are not giving enough credit to Shu"
They looked at me confused.
"He's helping me because he's nice. That's all"
"ENOUGH!"
Suddenly someone shouted in the hallway.
I turned to see the class rep girl standing there with clenched fists, she was trembling a bit.
"We've had enough of you. Why are you even coming to school? Nobody wants you here. Do you think you can do anything because teachers don't scold you? Stop bullying the others"
What in the fuck.
"What are you even talking about? What have I done to you guys?"
I stepped forward as I said this, which probably was a mistake.
"Don't come any closer! We are gonna call the police! People like you should be locked away!"
That made me fucking lose it.
I threw the bottle I had in my hand against the wall and it completely shattered.
"What do YOU know?! You don't know SHIT about me!"
Now everyone was getting frightened.
I pointed my finger at her and just whoever was around.
"Fuck YOU! Fuck you too! And you! And you! Fuck this bull shit. Fuck this school. Fuck EVERYONE"
Then I saw two school security guys carefully approaching holding their batons.
"Stay the FUCK away from me"
One of them was talking into a walkie-talkie.
"Sir, we have a problem. Er… that guy has gone out of control. On the second floor, we are by the vending machine"
It was an instinct I have been suppressing for too long. I automatically assumed a fighting stance, looking around, ready to pounce on whoever comes. That made it look like I'm ready to launch myself at anyone.
"Boh! Boh, stop!"
Shu came out to check out what all this rawcus is and saw what was happening. When he saw me he started to run towards me.
"Stay away-!"
One of the security guards grabbed Shu to stop him.
"Don't touch him!", I shouted across the hall. My head was all over the place and I feel like something was gonna break.
"Stay- away. Don't come any closer"
The security guards were backing off on me while holding Shu who was struggling to get out of their hold.
I lowered my body slightly and started to approach them slowly.
"Boh! No! Stop!.. let me go! Let me go!"
Shu was frantically shouting at me and the security guys.
"He's dangerous. We have to call the police"
I visualized myself launching my body on them. I would grab and take out the baton of the guy on the right and pound him to the ground. Push Shu to the wall side and shield him with my body from the second guy that will approach. Kick him in the balls and smack the back of his head with the baton.
"Enough! Stop right there Boh!"
Someone spoke from behind me with the most authoritative voice that made me turn immediately. When did this guy get so close –
"De… detective?"
"Boh, calm down. Calm- Down-", the detective was using his hands to make the calm-down gesture.
"Breath-, breath in-, breath out, - calm, down"
Following his instructions loosened up my body and the tension was fading away.
By this time Shu managed to break free from the security guard and ran towards me.
I thought he was coming for me and was ready to embrace him, for one reason or another, but he ran right past me and went to the detective.
"Detective, please – please don't take him away, please"
The detective knelt and pat Shu's head with his big hand.
"Don't worry. I'll take him just for today"
"Really?"
"Promise"
By this time I had no more will to fight and all the adrenalin from my body subsided.
"Come with me Boh. We will talk"
With that, he wrapped his arm around my shoulder and escorted me out of the school building. I'd never felt so weak before and had tears in my eyes as we walked out.
When was the last time I cry? And why are these tears coming out now?
I tried so hard. I tried my best.
But I don't belong here.