I took the keys from my bag and unlocked the front door. To my surprise, the front door had already been unlocked. I stepped through the front door.
"I'm home!"
Footsteps originated from the kitchen were heard and a figure emerged from around a wall.
"Tanaka! Your finally home! What took you so long?"
"There was a small accident. Nothing much. And besides, what are you doing here big sis?"
"Hmm… looks like you have to get those trousers fixed. And to answer why I'm here… it's to see you obviously! Dummy!"
My big sister threw herself on to me, apron and all, and hugged me. Fortunately, I was on the taller side, and she was on the shorter side, so the hug looked somewhat normal. Her name was Tamiko, and she was my big sister, even though we looked nothing like each other. Tamiko was about two years older than me. She was a second year in university and had an internship at a very well-known and advanced research facility. Unlike her carefree nature she was currently showing, she was a hard worker and often spend extended periods of time at the facility. Her grades weren't affected either, even though she had accumulated many absences. I supposed her patrons were quite generous. Nonetheless, I knew that she was up to something more.
"So why are you really here?"
"Business talk already? Your big sis just came to visit you and the first thing you talk about is work."
Tamiko, unbecoming of her age, childishly rested her hands on her hips and pouted with a disappointed face. It wasn't like I didn't enjoy her company, but I wanted to know what I am getting myself into before it happens. Tiredly I spoke.
"Sis… huh… I'm not trying to chase you away."
"Waaaahhh"
My sister had started wailing like a child. Although I was sure that it was just an act, I couldn't help but try to comfort her.
"Look… let's get the business talk over with and then uuuhhh… we can spend some time together."
"Really!"
The colours suddenly rushed back into her face, and she sprang up once again. I could see the individual twinkles in her eyes on the count of how close her face was to mine. She was so easy to please and persuade, it was hard to imagine her as a one of the scouted researcher candidates.
"Okay" She slapped her face as if to get back to reality. "Business talk. Ahem… I have a request for you."
"Okay."
"The request revolves around two items. I need you to take this package and also take it to school with you."
Tamiko presented a small package no larger than her palm. The box was completely unmarked and was lined with a lead interior which most people couldn't see. There was also no opening, no indication of where someone would even attempt to open the unmarked 'package'. Despite the overwhelming suspiciousness of the package, it was not something out of the ordinary given the context.
"Tamiko, what is this?"
"Frankly, I don't know myself, but I was told to give you this and to tell you to have it on yourself at all times."
"I… see…"
Strange. That was the only word I could really think of to express the situation.
"Also, you can't open it."
That made the whole thing stranger. It was common courtesy to not open or look into a package or letter they were delivering, not that this would be delivered. The fact that the sender was so conscious of such an action spelled out suspicion more than leaving it be. Or it could be that the object was so important that the sender felt the need to be extra cautious even with Tamiko and me.
Sigh "There's nothing we can do it about it. The facility is paying for my tuition and living expenses, and you have a paid internship there. If they are doing this, then that means it has to be something that must be done."
"I'm sorry you have to do this."
"It's not a problem."
"Oh, the second item."
Tamiko handed me a letter. It was also completely unmarked, but it wasn't lined with a lead interior. I could tell from touch alone that there was a letter inside along with three small electronic objects. A letter? It seemed strange to communicate with written messages nowadays in the age of technology. Even messages could be encrypted to unimaginable levels and sent over a wireless connection. I was about to open the letter, when my sister stopped me.
"No wait! You can't open that yet."
"Yet?"
"I was told to relay this exact message, 'open it when you feel like you or those around are in grave danger'. I don't really understand to be honest."
"Sounds like some bad omen."
Cryptic messages and a strange box. What on Earth could be happening over at the facility? It sounded serious and could involve me. Nevertheless, endlessly pondering this won't lead to the answer. I would have to ask the director the next time I saw him. I turned back to my sister, as she patiently waited for my reply.
"It's okay. Remember what I said business stuff first then relaxing."
"Oh yes! Come on quick. I made your one of your favourite dishes, omurice."
My sister excitedly tugged my hand and brought me to the dining room. My apron-wearing sister quickly ushered me into a seat and anxiously waited for me to taste her cooking. Twiddling her long brown twin tails, I sample a perfect bite from the food and to my delight…
"Your cooking has gotten better."
"Awesome! Then let's dig in."
She clapped her hands with a bright smile and dove into the food. Thank goodness, that I had managed to return home after that incident. I wouldn't want my sister to be waiting for me with food that had gone cold. After dinner we sat around and played some chess, which I won of course. Knowing optimal moves was half the battle, knowing your opponent is the other and my carefree sister made it obvious what she wanted to play next. After 3 back-to-back wins for me, we decided to have a movie night before going to sleep since it had been a while that we hanged out together. The movie wasn't anything special, some romantic comedy that my sister implored I should watch for 'my own benefit'. It was almost 11pm when the movie ended.
"Tanaka, you should go to sleep. You have school tomorrow, right?"
"Yes, I am going to bed. What about you? Is it okay to sleep here since you normally sleep with the rest of your colleagues in the college dormitory?"
"Oh, it's fine. The facility granted me leave for a week for being such a proactive hard worker."
"It's nice to reap the reward of your work, doesn't it?"
"Yep! I can spend more time with my lovely little brother!"
"Go to sleep!"
I retired to bed that night. My sister, Tamiko, was one of the few people who I could I truly open my heart to. We had always been there for each other ever since the accident 5 years ago. I went to sleep recalling such memories.
It was 6 am, so I got up from bed. It was early for a high school student, but I had to make breakfast and lunch for myself, so it had to be like this. In fact, it might not be enough time, since my school was a distance aways. I dressed myself for school and walked over to room next to mine, my sister's. I knocked.
"Are you awake, sis?"
Silence. I opened the door to find Tamiko in a deep sleep. She was sprawled across the bed with the bedsheets crumpled up into unknowable dimensions. A lot of her skins was exposed from tossing in bed and she had almost fallen of the bed. Oh, my sister, why do you make me worry about your future so much? Will you ever get a husband if you keep acting like this? Seeing as how sister was still I asleep, I took it upon myself to make breakfast. I was better than her at cooking anyway. Before preparing the miso soup, I turned on the television and switched over to the news channel. A ritual of mine, I wanted to be well informed.
"The weather will be all sunshine today with a slight chance of rain in the evening…"
"The legislation regarding the new tech has made stirs among the public…"
"Foreign tensions continue to rise between the west and east…"
"Last night, in what seemed to be an organised arson attack, multiple high-profile universities and their facilities were set ablaze across the country."
I had just packed my lunchbox when I was rudely interrupted. I fixated my gaze on the news anchor and sat down to have my breakfast.
"The government and police have issued warnings of possible further or larger acts of terrorism as culprits are still at large."
"We are here at one of the many universities hit by the attack."
I instantly recognized it as the university that my big sister attended and also the research facility she worked at.
"Luckily no one was injured, and the dormitory had mostly been deserted last night."
Such a lucky turn of events.
"Most surprising is the lack of trail left by the criminals. The police is currently accepting any information you may have about the attack."
It was at this point that my sister finally walked over to the dining table, still in her pyjamas, with a sleepy expression.
"Morning. Always up so early."
Tamiko yawned and sat down opposite of me and began to devour her food at record pace.
"Tamiko, I think you need to look at the news. You might not be going back to university or the facility for more than a week."
Confused, she examined the news on television and became stunned. She momentarily stopped eating her food and reached for her phone. After a few moments, a relieved expression appeared.
"It seems like none of my colleagues were there at the time, and everybody is all right."
"I'm glad to hear that." I looked back the news report. "Do you think this has something to do with the research facility?"
"…Possibly…"
"You shouldn't go back there until everything has calmed down. In fact, don't go near there at all and be careful when you go out, you never what the perpetrators were after and since you are researcher- "
"I know, I know… but yeah thank you for the advice."
"I'm just worried."
"Oh stop, you'll going to make me blush. To have such caring little brother."
"I'm glad that you are back to normal."
I tidied up my dishes and prepared to head off to school.
"I'll get going sis."
"I know you told me to be careful…, but that goes for you too okay."
"Don't worry, you know full well that I can handle myself. And yeah, I'm taking the package and letter with me."
"You could leave them with me."
"No, it's safest with me."
There was a slim chance that the object that I had in my pack was somehow related to the attacks that happened last night. The facility wasn't oblivious to outside pressures. Knowing there would be an attack, they sent out some of the more valuable items in storage to trustworthy retainers. I happened to be one of them that was nearby. It wasn't a theory without holes, but certainly a possible one. That's exactly why I can't let my sister handle it.
The trip to school on my bike was uneventful. I made sure to make a constant survey of the surrounding people, but no one that I could see was acting overly suspiciously. I left my bike on the bike rack and wandered into my classroom and onto my seat. Never have I ever been accosted by anyone, mostly because I usually never interacted or responded to anyone in class. It was a waste of energy. I could certainly be more active around my sister, but she was different. As a result, I had been labelled as a loner within the class social hierarchy. God forbid, why did cliques even exist.
"Yo, nerd!"
Ironically, the top of the class hierarchy, Tachibana, was one of the few people that attempted to interact with me on a regular basis. Tachibana came sauntering over towards me with a bunch of his goons of his clique. Now that I was on the topic of cliques, I may as well explain the ones in this classroom.
"Hey, are you even listening to me?!"
No. The clique that Tachibana belonged to was the "delinquents". Quite unflattering, they never dressed properly, they acted aggressively, they were extremely rude, and they were unintelligent. It was a miracle that they had not yet been expelled.
"Tachibana, can you stop bothering Tanaka please?"
With grace and elegance of a young lady, Aoi stepped forward and confronted Tachibana. Aoi was beautiful. She had long striking black hair and an intense gaze. The idol of our school and revered by everyone. She was the student council president and also the class president. She belonged to the "Presidents" clique, where every member were girls who were equally studious and diligent. It was thanked to her efforts that the class ever managed to cooperate on anything. Aoi and Tachibana often butted heads since their respective factions are polar opposites from each other.
"Class pres is such a worrywart."
"I know right, can't believe she's already making a ruckus this early."
"Tachibana can be quite annoying, but she should just leave him be. He's not hurting anyone."
From the corner of the classroom, I heard gossiping between a group of poorly dressed girls. Bleached or dyed hair were some of the common characteristics between them, which was extremely against the rules that nobody cared about. They were like the female versions of the delinquents, cruel and annoying. Although they could be easily subdued in comparison to the delinquents. They spent most of their time in and out of class talking to each other or mindless typing the most generic messages possible into their text messaging app.
"Wow, what's going on?"
A tall and buff-looking man approached my seat in the midst of the battle between Aoi and Tachibana. His name was Akamatsu. Despite his looks, he was most definitely a high school student. He was the leader of the "jock" clique. Calling them a group a seemed out of place since they did not have the intelligence to recognize that they were a group, nor did they know that Akamatsu was their leader. Akamatsu stared curiously at Aoi and Tachibana, racking his brain to figure out what was happening. He may be dumb, but him and the others were nice people. Unfortunately, he could be overly friendly sometimes. That meant he was one of the few people that talked to me in class.
"Yo, Tanaka, what they doin?"
"They are arguing about manners again."
"Yo, really!"
The last clique had not given any input, but I may as well mention them since I had gone through the effort of describing the other cliques. They were the nerds. They sat all the way in the back and were usually unnoticeable. They were generally smart and had a great love for Japanese animated entertainment. Otakus, if I had to label them in some way. They stayed out of trouble and didn't bother anyone. The delinquents tended to bully them. They were currently playing a card game with zeal.
Then there were people like me. People who didn't fit into a specific clique. I'd describe them as the "normals". People like us didn't have a specific overarching trait that defined our character. The concept of a clique was already strange in the first place. In total there were 27 people in our class.
Bbbbuuzzzz
The school intercom let out a monotonous growl signalling the start of the school day. Everyone settled into their seats and the teacher marched into the classroom. Today should have been just another boring school day.