You don't gain, without pain.
There are always obstacles, barriers and roadblocks between you and your goal, whatever the goal may be. You had to harden your heart, pull up your spirit and keep walking forward with your eyes wide open.
Just like the easy times, there would also be hard times. But you can't waver, you can't stutter or halt your progress for it.
The final exams for the third year seniors in Kunugigaoka middle school were tense. There was a constant pressure on the students because their top class was under pressure.
Aside from class E, who had turned their isolation into a way to hone themselves, Kunugigaoka had gone the other way. The main school students were under pressure by the presence of the principal teaching in class A.
Moreover, Gakushuu wasn't present.
He didn't come for classes and people didn't see him. Some would mention seeing him, but most people weren't sure of what was happening to their Student Council President.
It was a tense time.
But Gakushuu was there for the exams, and everyone heaved a sigh of relief. Because if he was there, then surely it wasn't too bad yet.
Surely their Principal hadn't gone too far yet.
Gakushuu thought about the amount of expectations that were attached to the word 'responsibility' and hoped he wouldn't have to live up to them sometime as he sat down in his seat, with the eyes of everyone in the class set on him.
"Start!"
Japanese, Science, Social Studies, English and Math.
The finals stressed on the marks as much as on the rankings, but Gakushuu had never really fallen from his overall rank 1 spot, even if there tended to be variations.
To be honest, he wasn't surprised.
"500 marks…" someone whispered, sounding faint.
"Congrats, Ga-" someone else started.
"No, wait. That's… Akabane Karma?"
Class A started whisper-shouting at each other, even with the Principal in front of them. Gakushuu just looked at the rank sheet.
He had slipped up with Science, Social Studies and English.
Overconfidence, thy name be Gakushuu.
But well, it was Karma.
Aside from what he could get from Gakushuu by winning their bet, and constantly reminding him about losing against him in Academics for the rest of their lives, it probably wasn't going to be too bad.
Maybe.
Hopefully.
Gakushuu frowned. He should find a way to sweeten the deal. He didn't want to constantly be reminded of it for the rest of his life.
For some reason, he could imagine Karma getting it etched on a ring and asking him to marry him just so he could see Gakushuu war with the ideal of Karma against a ring with 'Second Place' etched on it.
Then he blushed at the idea of marriage and tried to throw the idea in the metaphorical trash because wow, talk about dreaming too far.
The class had shifted from gasping about Gakushuu's scores to talking about the fact that class E had actually managed to get everyone of them into the top 50, with the top spot being taken by Karma.
Was it odd that just remembering that Karma actually beat Gakushuu in academics, made him feel like pinning Karma to a surface and doing some very bad things to him?
He felt like he should be more upset about his marks. Like his classmates seemed to be.
Instead Gakushuu was daydreaming about his boyfriend.
He was just glad his father seemed to be far too focused on the results in his hand instead of Gakushuu's face because he didn't want his father to see Gakushuu blushing when he should rightly be upset.
Gakuhou looked at the class, clearly avoiding looking at Gakushuu, who was literally in front of him.
"There is still time for more lesson," he said clearly in a daze, "I will review the notes and re-educate the entire class until graduation time-"
The students stood up in alarm.
"No!" Hinata shouted. Ren did damage control, even if he was saying the same thing with different words.
"We believe that instead of the fault lying in us, it is the fault of the education system," he protested. "I request that we be educated according to the rules and conduct of class E instead-" which was impossible, and everyone knew it, "-as we do not believe we are suited to this style of learning."
Burn , Gakushuu snickered to himself, amused.
"So how about that, sensei?" He said mockingly, an exact replica of the day before, where he told the man to give up on his ideals.
There was an odd sound.
A sound of skin hitting skin.
A sharp sting of pain on Gakushuu's face.
He stumbled back, surprised.
Gakuhou had pulled back in the last second, so instead of throwing him across the room, Gakushuu stumbled.
Except, he must have been far too surprised by the time of events, because Gakushuu tripped.
He tripped over a chair leg, and then fell.
And hit his head on the raised dias.
Gakushuu blinked.
Blurry figures coagulated into people.
"Gakushuu, Gakushuu!" Someone familiar screamed.
"Call for an ambulance, he's not responding!"
"Shut up! The school nurse is coming!"
Gakushuu blinked.
"He's awake!"
"Can you hear? Gakushuu! Can you respond if you can hear me?" Anaya asked, semi-calmly, which was more calm than he had been expecting.
" Yeah, " Gakushuu replied. "Just give me a minute. "
He raised his hand to his head, but his classmates didn't shut up.
" Hey, quiet!" He snapped. Then he hissed, cause holy fuck did that hurt.
Wet patch on his head.
He brought it up, and yup, that was blood.
Gakuhou knelt in front of him, looking at Gakushuu seriously.
"Gakushuu, are you aware of the fact that you are speaking in English?" He asked seriously.
"I was?" Gakushuu asked, forcing his tongue to comply with his brain.
He spoke in Japanese.
Gakuhou closed his eyes. Then he opened them, looking at him with forced detachment.
"We need to get you to a hospital. You have a head injury and you will need to stay in the hospital for a few days so they can make sure you don't have any problems," he explained slowly.
Gakushuu blinked a few more times.
" Okay, " he responded. Gakuhou's shoulders stiffened.
"Okay," he repeated, in Japanese this time. His father's shoulders did not, in fact, release the tension like he thought it would.
He raised a hand, and carefully set it on Gakushuu shoulder. Gakuhou took a deep breath.
"I'm sorry about this, Gakushuu," he said deeply. Gakushuu frowned.
It hurt, but he wasn't someone who left things unsaid.
"It doesn't matter," he told him. "You've been a shitty father for far longer than just five minutes."
Gakuhou looked like he was in physical pain, even though it was Gakushuu who got hit across the face and stumbled into a head injury.
Gakushuu didn't particularly care.
No, he did care. He cared for his father, who hurt him in ways only a father could.
But a part of him also didn't.
The part of him that spoke in English and said his father was a dick, didn't really care about his father, and hoped he died a fiery death.
Gakushuu used what little restraint he had to not say it, because it sounded like the sort of thing people would regret.
Gakushuu did care for his father, even if he was a shitty father. He was just bad at showing his affection and care, not that he didn't actually have those feelings for Gakushuu.
Gakushuu had never been just another student for Gakuhou, after all. They pretended a lot, both Gakushuu and Gakuhou.
But they were just awkwardly trying to find a way out of the situations they dropped themselves into.
A part of him scoffed in disgust, what a bunch of morons.
Gakushuu thought silently that those tests might actually be pretty important this time.
He tried to stand up, and two different arms steadied him and brought him to a back down.
"I think I have a concussion," Gakushuu said aloud.
No shit, Sherlock.
"This is a joke," he said.
It really isn't.
"Fuck."
Discombobulated voice aside, it was sort of nice to have an actual injury again. His arm just meant that he had a slight hindrance in doing most work, but head injury meant he couldn't do anything.
It would be more annoying, but Gakushuu was kind of shooting ideas at himself, and enjoying getting some kind of answers back.
(They seemed to agree on most things, so that was nice. And they also agreed that Karma was godsend, and an absolute delight as a boyfriend.)
(They loved the food Karma got for him.)
Gakushuu didn't switch to English again, and the hospital gave him a clean bill of health aside from the concussion.
Gakuhou insisted that Gakushuu stay in the hospital, and Gakushuu did what any concussed teenager would do, he escaped.
The voice in his head laughed faintly (and growing fainter the more his concussion healed, but Gakushuu didn't think about that).
Gakushuu ended up in a random scenic place which he found familiar, but mostly which the voice in his head seemed to like.
She lulled him into a daze, as she sang a song lullaby. And he stared at the city in daylight and hummed along with her.
"I found him," Karma panted into his phone, staring at Gakushuu swaying from side to side, as he stared off into the sunset.
"Oh, thank God! Stay with him. I'll tell the Principal-" Ren and Karma frowned in unison at the name but neither acknowledged it, "-to call off the search."
Karma sighed.
"Yeah, okay. I'll stay with him," Karma responded.
"Maybe you should just-" Ren started.
"No," he refused.
"Just give me a vague idea!" He insisted.
"No," Karma refused again.
"Karma!" Ren gritted his teeth in irritation.
"I already told you I won't be revealing his location if I find it. But he'll be safe with me. You can trust me on that," Karma told him seriously.
Trust wasn't easy, but Karma believed that class A already trusted Gakushuu with him, or they would have put up a bit more of a protest or at least, subtly hindered them.
"I do," Ren sighed, exasperated. "Okay, fine. But text me every hour and tell me if anything changes."
"I'll text you when I get him to sleep," Karma responded, then he cut the call, and switched his phone off.
Karma watched Gakushuu look dazedly off, as he swayed to a music only he seemed to be able to hear.
Like Gakuhou, Karma could sense that there was something off about the whole concussion. Everyone knew about Gakuhou hitting Gakushuu and everyone was conflicted about not having any sort of child services called for Gakushuu.
But also, slightly relieved.
Because Gakuhou was going above and beyond in caring for Gakushuu, in a matter that was almost excessive, unless people actually stayed with Gakushuu for more than 10 minutes.
Then the reason became surprisingly obvious.
Gakushuu would stop responding in the middle of conversation, and aside from the first few minutes after waking up when Gakushuu spoke in English, he seemed to have decided not to respond to anyone speaking in English at all.
He seemed constantly in a sort of daze.
Most people didn't seem too aware of it, but Karma and Gakuhou were both observant people who spent a concerning amount of time on Gakushuu.
It was obvious to them.
But they didn't speak about it.
Gakuhou's murder-suicide on the day he hit Gakushuu was concerning enough, but at least Koro-sensei managed to talk him down from that.
Karma didn't really want to talk to Gakuhou about the number of things that were wrong with Gakushuu because of him.
Even if he was finally showing some humane amount of concern instead of a dismissive 'he'll be fine' like he used to.
Karma hoped it didn't mean he knew something Karma didn't.
He sighed to himself, and then went to sit beside Gakushuu.
Gakushuu didn't acknowledge his presence.
Karma pretended to heave a put-upon obvious sigh.
Gakushuu startled. Then he turned to look at Karma with a smile, an amused but warm smile. Karma was trying to get used to this new smile he saw instead of the normal 'melt your heart through your ear' one.
Gakushuu was extremely good at making Karma feel like melting.
But this version…
It was some sort of Gakushuu-adjacent behaviour, but somehow, also not. This was a weird not but kind of bonding experience for Karma and Gakuhou where they stressed over Gakushuu together.
It was unpleasant.
Not only was the man responsible for Gakushuu's current state, he didn't even have the decency to stay out of sight.
Gakushuu was behaving weirdly, then Koro-sensei was behaving weirdly. And Karma was just wanted Gakushuu to be okay.
It was a mess.
Gakuahuu raised an arm and ran his fingers through Karma's hair.
It was yet another gesture that Gakushuu…didn't exactly do it often. It was an oddly maternal gesture.
Gakushuu patted Karma's head, and he sighed. Then he laid it on Gakushuu's lap.
"This doesn't mean I'm letting the matter go," he warned.
Gakushuu hummed softly as he kept staring at the scenery.
Karma sighed again.
"What is going on," Karma buried his head in Gakushuu's stomach.
Gakushuu giggled.
It didn't really help.
Two days ago
"Have you ever died, sensei?" Gakushuu asked his hospital ceiling.
There was a slight clatter from near his window.
"A-ah. Asano-kun. I wasn't doing anything suspicious-" then his light hearted embarrassed tone was cut off abruptly as he registered Gakushuu's question.
" Dying is strange, teach," she said.
Koro-sensei sat down beside Gakushuu's bed, still wearing the facade of a human face.
"Is it really?" Koro-sensei replied calmly, staring strangely at Gakushuu. "Dying is a very natural process of life. It's what happens when your life ends, whether you have lived a fulfilling life or not."
Gakushuu's eyes fluttered, he looked away from the ceiling and towards the superhuman being.
"I never wanted to die," she said softly. "I didn't think I'd live forever, but I never wanted to die."
Gakushuu's eyes closed shut.
"Even if you never wanted to die, you can't live as Asano Gakushuu," Koro-sensei said, his voice hard. "Unlike you, he has a life left."
There was an odd silence.
They laughed.
"I'm not dying," Gakushuu said, his eyes opening slowly. He focused on the strangest being he had met, aside from himself. "She's just being dramatic."
"Not really," she said. "I'm dead, but I also know my limits. I'm just going to be gone again. There's no way back, no way to live. This is just a glitch in the system." She explained.
Koro-sensei raised an eyebrow, staring at Gakushuu curiously.
"Were you aware of her presence, Asano-kun?" He asked.
"She's dead, sensei," Gakushuu replied. He closed his eyes again. "The dead don't come back."
"That's right, " she agreed, abet sadly. "And Gakushuu has such a good life too! I couldn't ruin something like that for him."
Koro-sensei fluttered his hands. Gakushuu huffed.
"She'll be fine," Gakushuu told Koro-sensei. "She's just dead."
"Dead but not gone," she said oddly cheerfully.
"I…see," Koro-sensei said, sounding confused. She snorted.
"Shouldn't you know already? Aren't you dying too?" She asked, rolling her eyes. Gakushuu stiffened. "Oops, I wasn't supposed to say that."
Koro-sensei laughed at the faux-pas.
"It's all right. Well, I suppose there wasn't much I could hide from your sharp eyes after all, Gakushuu-kun," he said warmly. His tentacle patted Gakushuu's head gently. "Dying will be an experience. I hope you can guide me well," he bowed his head.
"Hmm, but don't you have someone ready waiting for you?" she asked. Koro-sensei looked up with surprise. "I think someone is already waiting for you, and I'm waiting for someone else too. So it'll be okay. Don't worry too much," she told him.
Koro-sensei blinked, before his face softened.
"Thank you for that," he told her.
"No worries," she waved casually. "It was pretty obvious anyway."
Koro-sensei laughed.
"How long will you be here, young lady?" He asked. "There are many people who worry about Gakushuu-kun. The longer you stay in this state, the more they worry. The more I worry."
"A few more days. I'll be gone as soon as Gakushuu gets healed," she hummed. "I'm not sure why, but we seem to be linked somehow. But either way, we won't interact again. It'll be the last time."
Koro-sensei hummed.
"I would hate to have to find a way to eject you out, so I hope that doesn't happen again," he warned.
She laughed.
"Don't worry, sensei. Gakushuu has things well in hand," she informed him. "You have a very good student here."
"Oh," Koro-sensei got flustered. "Thank you for your kind words."
She laughed again.
"Good night, sensei," she said. Koro-sensei took the hint for what it was.
"Good night then," he got up and went to the window. "I hope you sleep well."
And then he was gone too.
"Yeah, I need a good long sleep after this," she agreed.
"Don't pretend like you won't miss me," Gakushuu replied.
"Don't pretend like you won't miss me ," she teased.
"That's true," he laughed.
She sighed.
"You like sunsets, right?" Gakushuu asked quietly. "I'll take you to see nice sunsets."
She hummed softly.
Gakushuu fell silent as well.
There was no response for the rest of the night.