It has been almost a month since the AST lost contact with Takamiya Mana, but right now, I couldn't care less about it. The usual school bell rang, and I lay exhausted on the desk, feeling like smoke was about to come out of my head.
"It's really over. Is this the price of joining AST?" I whispered to myself.
I had just finished the final exams, the dreadful enemy of all students, and it was even more terrifying for someone like me who only trained for combat and paid no attention to studying.
"Alright, everyone, settle down. Please stack your test papers at the back," said Ms. Tama-chan, clapping her hands.
Looking around, everyone seemed exhausted, like lifeless zombies. At the end of last month, when all the students in the school had to be hospitalized due to the exhaustion caused by Kurumi's "City of Devouring Time," the government pretended to investigate and claimed that it was due to some strange gas escaping from the school's pipelines. The school was temporarily closed, yet the exam schedule remained unchanged, showing no mercy to the students.
Below me, Shido and Tohka were talking about the test.
"It's over," Shido stretched, letting out a long sigh.
As Shido was placing his test paper, he noticed the girl at the next desk doing the same thing I did earlier.
*Collapse on the desk* as if she threw herself onto it.
"Are you okay, Tohka?" Shido asked worriedly.
"U, umu…" Tohka lifted her head, looking dizzy.
"How are things?"
"It's probably fine," she replied slowly.
"You've been studying hard all week; it'll be fine." Shido encouraged her cheerfully.
Not wanting to eavesdrop any longer, I left and headed to the cafeteria.
I returned to the classroom shortly after the bell rang for the next lesson.
"Alright, all the final exams are over now. You all did well," Ms. Tama-chan announced. Cheers and sighs of relief echoed from the classroom.
"But there are still some tasks to complete, so you can't leave yet."
"WHAT??? Are you kidding?" The class exclaimed in unison, disappointment and frustration clear on everyone's faces.
Amid the commotion, Tohka called out to Shido.
"Shido, can I go get some water?"
"Tohka, are you alright? You look exhausted! Do you need me to take you to the infirmary?" Shido looked at Tohka with concern.
She shook her head lightly, a weak smile on her face.
"Umu, don't worry about it. I'll be fine with just some water."
"But you say that… We're in class now…"
"Shido, catch." I turned around and tossed a bottle of water I had bought from the cafeteria to Shido.
"Watano, what are you doing?" Shido asked me, his eyes questioning.
I shrugged, smiling.
"Isn't there someone who needs a drink?"
"Don't worry, it's electrolyte water, good for someone who's tired. And I haven't drunk it yet."
"I don't need your pity," Tohka glared at me, her tone hostile.
Even though I was used to their animosity, it still stung a little to hear such words. Nonetheless, I kept calm and smiled lightly.
"Tohka, he doesn't mean any harm," Shido tried to reassure Tohka.
"He was like this before without any ill intentions, Shido."
"Come on, it's over, and no one was hurt," Shido tried to mediate.
"Enough, Shido. You don't need to say any more." I sighed, ending the pointless conversation.
As our talk ended, Shido turned to the girl sitting at the left desk.
"Origami!"
Hearing Shido call her name, she was slightly startled but showed no emotion on her face.
"What is it, Shido?"
He seemed relieved to hear Origami respond, given that they hadn't spoken for a month since the incident at Ocean Park. I knew they only met somewhere to talk privately, which wasn't important to me, so I didn't care much. I lay down on the desk, waiting for this boring lesson to pass.
The last class finally ended, but since it was my turn to clean the classroom, everyone left first, including Origami, who was pulling Shido out of the classroom. The classroom wasn't large, so I only needed about 15 minutes to finish cleaning. After completing it, I stood for a moment to admire and enjoy my "great achievement" before leaving.
When I reached the shoe lockers, preparing to leave, I saw Tohka fumbling around looking for Shido, her face showing worry and confusion. I knew it wasn't my business, and she wouldn't listen to anything I said anyway. So, I quietly walked towards the school gate, leaving Tohka with her worries.
"SHIDO!" She suddenly shouted his name, breaking the current calm atmosphere.
At this moment, Shido and Origami had just stepped out of the girls' bathroom. Hearing Tohka's call from behind, Shido was startled.
"T…Tohka? You haven't left yet?" Shido stammered.
Tohka looked at Origami and Shido, her face serious and angry.
"Why are you with Shido? And coming out of the girls' bathroom?"
"Guh!" Shido stammered, sweat pouring from his face.
"Uh… well… err… it's…" He tried to explain, but the curious stares from the surrounding students left him tongue-tied.
In this tense situation, Origami intentionally 'added fuel to the fire' by holding Shido's arm and winking suggestively at him.
"O…Origami, what are you doing?" Shido asked, confused by Origami's actions, his voice faltering with surprise.
"What are you doing?! Let go of Shido!" Tohka yelled angrily, glaring at Origami.
The scene of the three of them gradually spiraled out of control, causing trouble for the clubs still operating after school. I couldn't just stand by and let this mess escalate further, affecting others.
I took a deep breath, stepped forward, and shouted.
"Shido! Tohka! Origami! Enough!"
All three turned to look at me, surprised. Shido, who was already confused, blinked several times as if he couldn't believe his ears. Tohka frowned, her anger evident. Origami, as usual, remained expressionless.
"I don't know what's going on between you three, but please stop. Everyone around is staring at us!" I said firmly.
Tohka, still angry, especially with my presence, seemed to realize that now wasn't the time to cause trouble. She lowered her voice, still glaring at Origami. "But… Origami…"
"I asked Origami and Shido to clean the bathroom for me, so stop making a fuss over trivial matters."
Shido, his face still red with embarrassment, quickly nodded.
"That's right, Tohka. There's nothing to worry about. Watano just asked us to help out a bit."
Tohka looked at Shido, then at Origami, and finally at me. She sighed, clearly not satisfied but not wanting to escalate the situation.
"Alright. But Shido, you need to explain things better next time."
"Of course," Shido replied, managing a light smile.
I also breathed a sigh of relief, feeling the tension in the air ease a bit.
"Alright, everyone. If you have so much time, why not prepare for the upcoming trip?"
"Oh, right, thanks for the reminder. It's already mid-July," Shido responded, his eyes brightening.
Tohka immediately turned to Shido, surprised. "Trip? What trip, Shido?"
"Did you forget, Tohka? It's the school trip to Okinawa." Shido smiled gently at Tohka.
"Ah, umu! I remember now," Tohka slapped her forehead, looking regretful. "I can't believe I forgot something so important."
"And you too, Shido. Didn't Ms. Tama-chan announce in the last period that the destination has changed?"
"Huh??? Really?" Shido looked surprised.
"Seriously, you guys. The new destination is Arubi Island."
"Oh, I've heard of that island. The beach scenery is just as beautiful as Okinawa."
"Shido, did you register our group?" Tohka asked, looking worried.
Shido's face suddenly changed, as if he remembered something important. "Oh no! I forgot! I forgot to register our group!"
Tohka widened her eyes at Shido, then looked at me, her worry increasing. "What do we do now? I don't want to go without Shido!"
I sighed tiredly, motioning for them to calm down.
"Don't worry. Fortunately, while everyone was tired after the exams, I registered our group."
"I had to persuade Ms. Tama-chan to allow mixed-gender groups."
Shido looked relieved, gratitude evident on his face. "Really, Watano? You did that for us?"
"Think what you want. But the group includes you, Tohka, Origami, and me. Is that alright?"
"Uh, no problem," Shido replied cheerfully, his eyes shining as if a great burden had been lifted.
"Well, if Shido says so, it's fine," Tohka said, though her eyes still showed caution towards me.
"What about you, Origami?"
"No problem. I'm very grateful for that." Origami nodded slightly, her blue eyes reflecting a hint of quiet joy.
"I've said what I needed to say, so let's wrap this up and go home to prepare for the upcoming trip."
"Right, thank you, Watano," Shido said, then turned to Tohka. "Let's go home, Tohka. Goodbye, Watano, Origami."
I didn't know if it was because I helped him out of that awkward situation, but his gaze seemed slightly different from the first time we met. However, I didn't pay much attention to it.
Origami stepped back, watching Shido and Tohka leave. She then turned to me.
"Thanks, Watano. Though it wasn't really necessary."
I just shrugged. "Just friends help—"
As I uttered the word "friends," a sharp pain pierced my heart, like a needle driving deep into it. My lips quivered, the sound that emerged was shaky and broken, each word heavy, burdened by unspoken emotions. My heart was torn by the conflict between what I intended to say and what I truly felt. Pain spread through my body, an emptiness and loss, as if I had just lost something incredibly precious that I could never regain.
Origami didn't say anything more, just turned and walked in the opposite direction. I also headed back towards the school gate, feeling exhausted after a long day. But at least, for now, everything was resolved.