The Ayanokouji Group was doing fine with the past lessons, so I gave everyone a day off. Right now, I asked Airi if we could hang out in her room and she timidly accepted.
"Good morning, Kiyotaka-kun..." she replied, opening the door for me.
She wasn't wearing her glasses and she also had her hair down. Her typical shy demeanor made her look like the middle ground between Shizuku and the usual Airi. She stared at me with a curious expression.
"Hey," I greeted. "You must be wondering why I'm here. Don't worry, I'm not going to give you some supplementary lessons since I think you're already fine. I just wanted to talk about something."
"O-Oh... You guessed what I was thinking," she chuckled cutely.
It's currently ten in the morning, and we really didn't have much to talk about when it was just the two of us.
"Haruka knows that you've been taking pictures of yourself, but you've never really shown your quote-unquote true face to her, right?" I asked.
"Yes... I mean, I've also shown a lot of my pictures to you, Ken-kun, and Akito-kun, but I was in my plain get-up the whole time," she narrated. "The only one who really knew about it was you."
"When we first met, right? I didn't know who Shizuku was, though."
It was also the reason why I immediately concluded that she was Shizuku when she showed us the magazine.
After some more idle talk, I finally decided to get on with the main topic.
"I checked your blog site last night. It seems like you stopped posting when school started," I said.
"E-Eh? You saw my blog...? T-That's really embarrassing..." Airi covered her face with her hands. Her body shook left and right in a very adorable manner. This was a side of Airi that only we in the Ayanokouji Group know.
"You really love your fans, don't you? You replied to almost every comment. I bet you were liking them all, too," I teased.
"Stooop!" Airi lay face-down on her bed, burying her face in the sheets.
"I'm kidding, I'm kidding."
"Geez, Kiyotaka-kun, you're so mean sometimes..." pouted Airi. "Even though your face doesn't change."
Cute... If Airi acted like this with her Shizuku appearance, boys would instantly swarm her much like how they would Kikyou.
Well... I hate to ruin the nice atmosphere but...
"Although... I think some of your fans love you a little too much."
Airi froze. Her face contorted like she just remembered something unpleasant.
"Airi... Have you read those comments? Ah, if you have no idea of what I'm talking about, then forget I asked."
[Do you believe in fate? I do. I believe we will be together forever.]
[I can always feel you close to me.]
[You were even cuter today, weren't you?]
[Did you notice when our eyes met? I noticed.]
Delusional was the first word that came to mind, but I felt like there was something more to this superfan.
"U-Uhm..." Airi's eyes darted around the room.
"Last night, you were trying to tell us one more thing, right? I thought it was related to this."
"Eh? You noticed?" she asked in surprise.
"Akito and Haruka did, too, apparently. We were worried."
Airi bit her lip with an apologetic expression.
"It would've been fine if those comments were limited online, but the guy sounded like he knew who you were. Do you know him? Is he a student in this school?" I asked.
I didn't really have to be so forward, but Airi wouldn't say anything if I didn't question her. And unless I was wrong about how close we were as friends, she'd tell me upfront if she really wanted me to stop asking.
"N-No... He's not..."
It looks like Airi isn't too comfortable talking about this, sure enough.
"He's not a student? Then he must be an employee..."
At least I've confirmed that this guy does exist inside the campus.
"Um, Kiyotaka-kun, is it alright if we stop talking about this? I promise to tell you guys everything after I confront the problem myself."
Well, that was fast. Unfortunately, I didn't get enough information, but I don't want to hurt my relationship with Airi by asking any further.
"I see... I understand, Airi. Sorry for being pushy."
"I-It's fine. I'm surprised, though. So you have an assertive side sometimes, Kiyotaka-kun."
"I guess..." I replied.
Airi chuckled in response.
"If I told Haruka-chan, she'd surely get the authorities involved. Ken-kun and Akito-kun would most likely try to reprimand the person themselves... Kiyotaka-kun, meanwhile-- to be honest, I don't really know what you would do."
"Probably the same as Ken and Akito."
"You'd confront him as well? I just can't imagine you in a fight with someone, though." Airi mused curiously.
"Well, a lot of our classmates say that I look harmless. I don't know if that's a compliment, though."
"Yeah," she giggled.
Despite the cold atmosphere earlier, the two of us slowly managed to bounce back.
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After talking some more, the time finally hit 11 o'clock.
"I have lunch plans with Hirata and the others. Wanna come along?"
"Eh-? That's with Karuizawa-san and the rest of her group, right? I-I'm good. I won't fit around them, that's for sure..." she declined. "Have a nice lunch, Kiyotaka-kun."
"You sure?"
"Yes, I'll be fine. I can even ask Haruka-chan out if she's available." Airi saw me off with a smile.
The most important piece is "when"... I have no idea when Airi will make her move. Because I confronted her today (on top of telling her that Akito and Haruka also knew about this), Airi's sense of urgency will kick in. There's a very high chance for her to do it today.
————————————————————————
At Keyaki Mall, Karuizawa and I were the ones who ordered the food. Apparently, her friends wanted to interrogate Hirata about their relationship's progress.
"Ayanokouji-kun, you think I got the orders right?" she asked while staring at the tray she was carrying.
After scanning the receipt and looking over our food trays, I concluded that we had everything.
"Yeah, I think so. Let's head back," I replied with a nod.
The conversation was getting heated when we arrived.
"Eh?! You haven't kissed yet?!"
"That's seriously so shocking!"
"I thought Karuizawa-san was just hiding it!"
"Ah-haha... We don't plan to go that far just yet..." Hirata was smiling amicably as he denied their fantasies.
"How pure~!"
I thought this was going to continue, but their attention shifted back to me the moment I sat down.
"So, Ayanokouji-kun, are you going out with Kushida-san or what?" asked Ichihashi.
"Ooh! That's what I wanna know, too!"
"They're, like, super close. It's impossible for them to not be a thing."
The girls, even Karuizawa, enjoyed this topic a lot. They were all smirking in delight. Hirata kept smiling as if he understood my pain.
"We're just friends," I replied.
"Ehh?"
"Is that really true~?"
"The Ayanokouji Kiyotaka and the Kushida Kikyou of Class B? You're like a match made in heaven, though."
The girls voiced out their bummed reactions.
"Like, you can all sound disappointed, but you're actually happy that Ayanokouji-kun isn't taken by anyone yet, right?" Karuizawa commented with a shrug.
"K-Karuizawa-san!"
"You didn't have to say that!"
They immediately got flustered after hearing Karuizawa's words. This particular exchange isn't really new to me anymore. We've been hanging out a lot since the start of school.
After lunchtime, Hirata was supposed to accompany Karuizawa and her friends to go shopping. Summer vacation is drawing near, after all.
I went back to the dorms and spent some time by myself. Well, all I really did was the usual; fiddling with my phone, chatting with friends, and all that.
After feeling like the food in my stomach had been properly digested, I proceeded to do some light exercise in my room, near the window.
It was almost three when I suddenly saw someone who looked like Airi exit the building. I was all the way up on the fourth floor so it was pretty hard to see.
I called Airi on the phone, just to be sure. But while the person I was looking at wasn't picking it up, neither was Airi. That person seems like she's headed towards the entertainment district where Keyaki Mall and most shops are located.
I called the dormitory management office for confirmation...
She's out.
"Thank you very much."
As soon as I ended the call, I immediately put on some clothes and got to the elevator. She'll get far, but I can probably catch up as long as I know the general direction of where she's heading.
When I got down to the lobby, I saw a girl who was just getting back from her own business. It was Karuizawa Kei.
"Ayanokouji-kun? Wai- Hey!"
I didn't have time to talk so I just ran straight past her. Karuizawa was probably surprised.
It wasn't long until I finally closed the distance from the girl I saw. As expected, it was Airi. She was at the back entrance of a camera store and repair shop called SIVCamera.
"Please don't contact me anymore!"
In front of her was a man who looked like he was in his thirties. So he was the one who wrote all of those comments?
"Why would you say something like that? You're my treasure... Ever since I saw you in a magazine, I've loved you. Meeting you again here, I felt like it was destiny. I love you... I can't stop feeling this way about you!"
"Stop... Please, stop it!" Sakura shouted. She took something out of her bag. Letters. It looked like there were more than a hundred letters...
"How do you know my room number? Why do you keep sending these?"
"Why? Of course, I would know your room number and send you letters. It's because our hearts are connected."
If I try to match the number of our days on campus, the number of those handwritten letters, and the date of the first creepy comment, it's easy to see that Sakura has actually been suffering ever since school started. And today, she finally found the courage to confront this man.
"Please stop it. It's bothering me!"
She tossed the bundle of letters to the floor, rejecting the man's unrequited love.
"Why... Why would you do something like that? Even after I wrote out my feelings to you!"
"D-Don't come any closer!"
The man closed the distance between him and Airi. The intensity of his pace made it look like he was about to attack. Latching onto Sakura's arm, he shoved her up against the store's backdoor.
"Hya-!"
"I'll show you just how much I love you now... If I do that, then you'll understand, Sakura."
"No, let me go!"
I started taking photos for evidence. I wanted to wait until something decisive happened, but I felt a presence approach our location.
"Why did she have to follow me all the way here...?" I muttered.
Well, whatever. These photos are probably more than enough.
I approached the two of them quickly and kicked the guy's side.
"Gah-?!"
The startled Airi fell in surprise. I yanked the coughing man's body by the neck and kneed him in the stomach.
"Ack-!"
"Karuizawa, you're there, aren't you? Can you take care of her?" I asked without looking in her direction.
"A-Ah- Eh... Uhh, okay..." Karuizawa probably intended to hide, but she's better off keeping Sakura company while I take care of this guy.
I released a left hook to his face.
"Ugh-!"
Ah-- I think I overdid it. A couple of teeth fell out... Well, I guess that much was fine.
I grabbed the half-awake man closely and showed him my phone.
"I caught you red-handed, old man. You were assaulting an underaged girl inside the school campus. And it's the high school run by the national government, too. Your only option is to get out of this place for good, or your life will end as soon as tomorrow."
"W-W-W-Wha-?"
I leaned in slightly, whispering my next words.
"I can also end it right here and now if you want."
His expression was full of fear. His face was swollen and he was shivering all over.
"I-I-I-I-I-I u-u-u-unders-s-s-stand... I-I'll never-..."
I punched him in the face one last time as I let go.
"Agh-!" he cried as he fell to the ground.
"Scram."
The man ran back inside quickly despite his pitiful condition.
"Are you okay, Airi?"
I slowly approached the two dumbfounded girls.
"Kiyotaka...-kun..."
"You did well," I said.
"I guess I'm no good, after all... I couldn't do anything by myself in the end," Airi smiled bitterly.
"That's not true. You summoned up the courage to confront that man even if you were afraid."
I found her actions quite admirable.
"Wait, wait, wait. Excuse me? I'm here, too, you know?" Karuizawa, who was standing beside Airi, voiced her displeasure. "Can you at least explain to me what happened here?"
"K-Karuizawa-san... Uhm..."
"As you saw earlier, I beat up the guy who assaulted Airi."
Karuizawa cocked her head and eyed Airi. She probably understood how shy she was so she didn't continue asking questions.
"Well, whatever."
"Why did you follow me here in the first place?" I asked.
"T-That's because I never saw you like that! You looked like you were running for your life!"
I guess her curiosity was to be expected.
"Stop exaggerating things..."
When Airi got back to her feet, she suggested that we go back to the dorms. The three of us were definitely a weird combination, but it's the result of this silly coincidence.
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After we got to the lobby, Haruka instantly ran to Airi, hugging her.
"Airi!"
"Haruka-chan..."
I decided to contact Haruka earlier and she worriedly received her best friend upon return.
"Are you alright? You're not hurt, are you?"
"Yes... I'm okay, thanks to Kiyotaka-kun."
"Kiyopon, what happened?" she asked.
"We can explain everything, but not here. You're making a fuss in the lobby."
"Ah-"
"Hasebe-san, can you two go ahead? There's actually something that I need to talk about with Ayanokouji-kun."
"Eh...?"
"In private," she added.
"It's fine. Go ahead and call the others to your room. I'll follow right behind," I reassured them.
"Okay..."
When they left, Karuizawa and I proceeded towards a rest area on the way to the school building.
"So, what did you want to talk about?" I asked.
"A few things," she replied. "You were quite merciless earlier."
"My friend was in danger. I should at least do that much." Ken and Akito would probably do the same.
"Hehh... So you'd do the same for Hasebe-san? What about Kushida-san?"
"Of course, it's just the same for them. Well, it's better to hope that nothing happens to them in the first place."
"But what about-..."
"What about...?"
"U-Uh, what about your class leadership? I heard about it from Hirata-kun. Since you haven't told the class, I refrained from telling any of the girls yet," she asked, suddenly changing the topic.
"That's a sharp turn if I've ever seen one."
"Oh, shut it."
"Well anyway, it's true that I've taken the lead again. After that incident with Ryuuen, I realized that I was being pretty paranoid. There's really no need to hide in the shadows or anything like that."
"Paranoid? Like you were overestimating your enemies?"
"No, and I'm not underestimating them now, either. It's just that my initial methods are unneeded. It's just a school, after all."
If I was afraid of standing out, then I'd push my hiding strategy for as long as I can. Since that's not the case, getting attention for myself was an inevitable side-effect that I'd need to live with.
"Ohh... I don't really understand, but hearing you say that would really put everyone at ease.
"Nah, it's fine if the class doesn't find out right now. That's the same for Chabashira-sensei."
Teachers were another variable that I needed to be wary of.
"I get it, I get it. For now, I'll continue doing my part in controlling the girls. I could also give you some information if you want, but you already have Kushida-san for that, right? Her social network is quite bigger than mine, especially with boys."
"Yeah, I'll be counting on you."
I stood up since I thought the conversation was over, but Karuizawa continued to sit while staring at me.
"What?"
"You seem different."
"Different?"
"Uh... How do I say this... When I first got to talk to you with Hirata-kun, you had a really warm and friendly vibe, especially with your choice of words. That's despite your gloominess already." She pointed at me before continuing. "But recently, I felt like your words are getting sharper and sharper. You're giving me a colder vibe than usual..."
"Is that so...?"
"I mean, Sakura-san was probably overwhelmed by fear at that time, but as a spectator, I noticed how emotionless you were at using violence." As someone who experienced violence, Karuizawa had the grounds to say that. "It's like you're used to it-- fighting, I mean. Were you a delinquent in the past, Ayanokouji-kun?"
"Hmm... I won't say that, but I've been in fights."
"You're from America, right? The fights there must've been intense," she said, looking like a curious kid.
"It's not that bad." I turned around and started walking back to the dorms. "Let's head back. Or are you staying here?"
"We're such close friends, but I still feel like I know nothing about you," she sighed while shaking her head. "Hey, wait-! I'll come!"
I ended the conversation briefly so as to not dwell on the topic of pasts any longer. I managed to save Airi but Karuizawa Kei also saw a strange side of me.