Tuesday, 08/20/XX
“If we're going to win this year, we need to do something that's never been done before.” The class president pointed at the chalkboard, which had “School festival” written at the top.
“Let's do a haunted house!” One student shouted.
“We should have an escape room!”
“What about a cross-dressing cafe?”
“Let's have a beach theme!”
The class president scribbled the flooding ideas with her chalk. I'm not particularly enthusiastic about these events, but they're somewhat fun nonetheless. What I despise the most are the performances.
“Ricchan, whatcha think? Got any ideas?” Izuki whispered, leaning his head towards my desk.
I shook my head. “I'm not creative enough for these things.”
“Me too,” Junya said while pouting, crossing his arms.
A girl gasped, planting her hands on her desk. “A musical!” All heads turned to her in unison. “We can do The Little Mermaid and have everyone crossdress! That would combine the beach idea, too!” Those who suggested those ideas were in instant agreement.
A flurry of detesting voices fought against the party that thought a musical was too much work. “We need people who can sing and act,” one boy argued, “can anyone sing?”
I glanced at the other two, who seemed as reluctant as I was. I pulled the sleeve of my hoodie over my clenched fist.
“Rito, you should try,” Junya whispered reassuringly.
My fingers fiddled with the two strings, wrapping one around my pointer fingers while I shook my head. “I don’t…” Junya nodded knowingly as I failed to find the words. “I-”
“Yokono-san can sing. You still sing, right?” Someone suddenly said from the front of the room.
The chatter dulled as my heart dropped to the floor. I turned my head to the source of the voice to see a familiar face. It was one of the whiny girls who was huddling around Takeshi that day in the library. She went to junior high with me, but I never noticed her presence until now.
“I remember you sang for the musical performance in our third year.” She smiled as if she was praising me, but behind those eyes, I knew her memory of my singing was not a positive one. “You were amazing.”
Everyone’s gaze made my throat tighten. “No– I can’t,” I squeaked. My head pulsed, the familiar throb already spreading from the base of my skull. “
“Don’t be modest, you’d be perfect!” She insisted.
“He’d be perfect for the merman!” The musical girl chimed, clapping her hands as if she found the missing piece to her plan.
“Can’t we do something else? I mean, do we have the budget for that?” Izuki argued.
“We could repurpose props from the drama club…” The president hummed. “Maybe borrow costumes from last year’s play. If we keep the set simple, it’s doable.”
“Alright, but ya shouldn’t force him to do it.”
“Why not?” The whiny girl from earlier said with a tilt of her head, clearly enjoying the spotlight.
“Isn’t there anyone else here who can sing?” Izuki deadpanned, rising from his seat.
“If he really doesn’t want to, he can say so himself.” Takeshi’s fan glared at me.
The throbbing pain in my head pulsated in my ears, unable to hear anything my classmates were saying. My clenched jaw prevented me from responding. I wanted to disappear in my seat, but if I turned invisible, that would draw more attention to me.
The class president took my silence as agreement. “Well then, it’s settled. I’ll write your name down for the role. You’ll be the lead merman.”
Laughter and cheering broke out from excitement. Suddenly, everyone became thrilled at the idea of creating a musical. Izuki grumbled, sitting back in his seat.
I slumped lower in my seat, shamefully. I pulled down my hood as far as it could go over my face.
“Rito…” Junya murmured beside me, his voice soft with concern. He leaned in, gently touching my arm. “We can still get you out of it if you want.”
I forced a smile. “I’ll be fine,” I lied.
Thursday, 08/29/XX
“Whoa Kouji, ya look really good in uniform!” Izuki grinned at the youngest, nudging his elbow into the younger's arm. Kouji scratched his head while denying the compliment.
At the opposite end of the court, a pale-haired boy was warming up, his arms outstretched behind his head. It took all of my willpower to avoid looking at him. The four of us continued talking until a man who was standing near the team shouted Kouji's name.
“The game will start soon. I'll talk to you later!” The boy waved before jogging to the other side.
“Let's find good seats!” Izuki enthusiastically grabbed our clothes and dragged us with him.
More people entered the gym as we sat down. While waiting for the match to begin, a young, messy brunette, accompanied by a boy who towered over him, walked to the bleachers.
“Mita-senpai! Natsuki!”
Mita-senpai waved as the two sat down on the same bleachers next to me. I introduced the couple to Junya. Junya waved timidly to them.
The two teams finally entered the court, signaling the beginning of the match.
Izuki smiled. “There’s Kouji!”
Kouji was on the court, his white number five on his sky blue jersey was the only thing our group could see. Mita-senpai and Izuki yelled his name, which made the first year cock his head to the bleachers. He grinned and waved his arms.
Ten minutes into the game, both teams were head-to-head. Abruptly, the crowd on our side roared cheerfully. I jumped in surprise and looked at the court as Kouji high-fived his teammates.
“GO KOUJI!” Mita-senpai hollered, clapping his hands.
The ball was served by the opposing team, which was then hit by one of Kouji’s teammates. I watched as the ball was rapidly passed to Kouj,i then to another teammate. Finally, my eyes expanded as the ball was spiked by a white-haired boy with brute force.
I cheered loudly with the rest of the crowd. I watched Kouji celebrate with his team members, accidentally making eye contact with the white-haired boy while doing so. I held my breath as he grinned, waving at me.
Izuki tapped my leg with his foot and giggled as my face and ears turned red. “He’s sooo into ya~”
“Shut the hell up!” I grumbled. The joy I felt completely disappeared in that instant.
In another uproar from the crowd, I looked to Mita-senpai, who wasn’t invested in the game anymore. Mita-senpai whispered something to Natsuki, who already had a grasp on the situation and held onto his necklace. I took the initiative to place my glasses on to assess the surroundings.
“Sorry, folks, but we need to get out of here,” Mita-senpai ordered.
I elbowed Izuki. “Izuki, we need to go,” I murmured.
“What? The game isn’t over, though.” He pouted while furrowing his brows.
I ushered Izuki and Junya out of their seats. The five of us stood up from the bleachers and crouched to avoid blocking everyone else's view.
I ignored Izuki's whining as we walked down the stairs. “I’ll explain later, but we need to leave the crowd before-”
My peripheral vision caught sight of a faint red silhouette. Before I could warn the others, a shadow burst from above and landed in the middle of the court. My eyes widened as I saw what appeared to be a colossal cheetah. Before I could react, Natsuki leaped down to the court and started attacking the beast. I watched in awe as Natsuki closed the distance between him and the beast within seconds. His movements were powerful yet delicate, his sword dancing in his hand like an extension of his being. Although Natsuki was fast, the cheetah was on par, weaving and dodging his attacks.
“That’s the boy on the news!” Someone shouted. People stopped panicking and started cheering.
Mita-senpai sighed, snapping his fingers to wield his hoverboard. “Let’s get this over with.”
Mita-senpai and Izuki placed their masks, and I did the same. Mita-senpai joined his boyfriend in the battle while Izuki began evacuation. I was about to jump down until I noticed Junya was cowering in fear. His shaking hands were covering his ears to block out the screams from the rushing crowds.
I turned off my glasses and sat next to Junya, holding his shoulders. “Junya, don’t worry, we’ll get out of here.”
His lips were trembling as he tried to speak. His eyes were brimming with tears as he looked up at me. I flinched seeing Junya’s glowing green eyes stare into my soul. He squeezed my hand as if he was putting his full faith in me. I pulled his trembling body up from the bleachers and led him to Izuki. He was standing on the stairs next to a portal where people were entering.
“Keep an eye on him! I’m going to help Mita-senpai and Natsuki!” I shouted before joining the battle.
Most of the players fled the court, but some collapsed on the floor or were buried under rubble from the roof. I ran up to a screaming player and held out my hand. “Touch my hand!” I turned the two of us invisible, allowing the player to phase through the debris. “Get to the portal now!” I ordered.
Before I could turn the next player invisible, I saw a tall, toned figure running up to me. “Senpai, what’s happening?”
“The five of us here must’ve lured the shadow!” I pointed to the fallen players. “Help me evacuate the volleyball players! Izuki has a portal open on both stairs.”
He nodded, lifting the mask to cover his face. I helped up another limping player and guided him to the portal. I turned back to the battle and my horror, the shadow pounced towards Kouji and me with raised paws. Its movements were too fast for us to react. I hugged Kouji and the player and instinctively turned us invisible. To my dismay, I felt a sharp sensation on my arm. I jumped back in agony, seething through bared teeth.
Dammit! I complained in my head.
“Yokono-senpai! Are you alright?” Kouji panicked, holding onto my red-stained sleeve.
I nodded. “Make sure he gets out of here safely.”
“But-” The cheetah’s growl cut off the younger boy. Its mouth reached down to chomp on us, but Natsuki jumped ahead and cut its tongue off.
I ushered them to the side as the feline wailed in anguish. Despite the damage Natsuki and Mita-senpai were inflicting on the shadow, the cheetah’s movements were becoming faster. Kouji also joined the battle, transforming into a giant-sized leopard. His attacks were powerful, but they lacked speed.
Mita-senpai gritted his teeth, throwing punches at the cheetah’s face. A punch to the cheetah’s eye caused something to fall out of its eye socket. The glint of the object made Mita-senpai jolt in surprise. The eldest landed on the ground and rolled out of the cheetah’s field of vision.
“Don’t get too close to its eyes! It’ll absorb your energy!” Mita-senpai warned, mounting his hoverboard.
As I squinted my eyes, I noticed the eye of the cheetah looked similar to the orb that the shadow from the bathroom had. There was a peculiar star symbol as its pupil. My abdomen started to churn painfully. I held onto my left arm as the throbbing pain coursing through my entire skin worsened with every second. I growled, starting to feel lightheaded.
I can’t stop now. I need to evacuate everyone quickly.
I surveyed the area and noticed there were only two people left on the court. I glanced up at the bleachers and saw that the crowds of people were drastically shrinking in size. I mustered up the last of my strength to help the fallen player under the collapsed volleyball net. He had minor injuries, but he managed to make it to the portal. My eyes finally landed on the last player. He was attempting to get up, but his leg was impaled by a broken metal rod. I ignored my pounding heart and ran up to the platinum-haired boy’s aide. I removed the rubble from him with my uninjured arm and held out my hand.
“Can you stand?”
He tried to lift himself, but he grimaced and shook his head.
I leaned back. “Here, get on my back.” I squatted down and put my arms behind my back. The boy listened, putting all of his weight on me. It must’ve been the adrenaline coursing through my veins, as I couldn’t feel the weight of his body. His arms were tightly wrapped around my neck as he adjusted himself in my grasp.
“Watch out!”
I turned and ducked my head just in time to avoid the cheetah’s massive swinging tail. Takeshi held my neck tightly as a sharp projectile flew from his hand, piercing the cheetah’s chest. It shrieked and jerked back, clawing at the icicle.
Before I could react, the boy fell unconscious. The cheetah went on its hind legs, looking as if it would collapse on us. I turned the two of us invisible and ran to the portals. Izuki was standing there, a light layer of sweat on his face. A trembling, pale Junya was next to him, looking a lot better than before, holding onto Izuki’s hand.
I made myself visible again. “Izuki, why is Junya still here?”
“He wanted to stay.” He panted.
I glanced at Junya, who was quivering, but stayed put in his spot behind Izuki.
I could tell Izuki was doing his best to appear unwavering, but a droplet of sweat running down his cheek revealed his struggles. The portal began to falter with every unsteady breath Izuki took. The opening of the portal appeared to be shrinking.
“Can you hold on for a little longer, Izuki?”
He gave me a pained grin. “Once all the civilians are out of here, I’ll close it.” Izuki gasped, looking behind me. “Is that who I think it is?”
“Don't start!” I growled. “I don’t know how much blood he’s lost, but we need to get out of here before he loses too much.”
A howl echoed in the gym, gaining our attention. Natsuki fell to the ground, his blade flying towards the bleachers. Mita-senpai and Kouji were still fighting the heavily injured beast. Mita-senpai avoided every move of the cheetah, but it was evident he was slowing down. Kouji’s fangs pierced through the shadow’s abdomen, yet the monster was too resilient.
“Asuka, we need to retreat!” Natsuki bellowed, getting off the ground. “The entire building is going to collapse!”
The eldest nodded and ran towards the bleachers with Kouji following right behind. As the three of them darted up the stairs, the floors started to tremble. The roof entirely fell onto what used to be the court floor, followed by the walls of the gym.
I took a glimpse behind me and noticed the shadow chasing after us.
“HURRY! WE GOTTA GET OUT OF HERE!” Kouji panicked.
I entered the shrinking portal after Mita-senpai and Natsuki. Kouji, Junya, and Izuki entered after me, leaving behind the fallen gymnasium and the shadow that failed to capture us7Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBRVbTCkVl0
