A few days had gone by since Mizuha and Shimizu started eating together on the rooftop. Mizuha was growing used to her new school environment and felt closer to her friends, especially Shimizu, Hikaru, and Zul. Shimizu had also become more cheerful and confident through their shared lunchtimes.
As usual, the four of them were eating together on the rooftop. Lately, however, Zul's worried expression didn’t go unnoticed.
"Zul, what's wrong? You seem a bit off today," Shimizu asked, looking at him.
Zul looked up from his lunch, trying to brush it off.
"Don't worry, it's nothing," he said, forcing a smile.
Hikaru wasn't convinced, putting down his chopsticks and leaning in.
"Is it about Eri? Are you worried about her?" he asked, his tone serious.
"Eri? You mean Sakamoto-san? Do you know her, Hikaru?" Mizuha asked curiously.
Hikaru nodded. "Yeah, Zul, Eri, and I went to the same middle school," he explained.
"Really?" Mizuha said, surprised. "I didn't know that."
Hikaru added with a small laugh, "Zul and Eri are childhood friends. Eri can speak normally with Zul, but she's a bit shy to talk to anyone else, including me."
Mizuha looked at Zul curiously. "Both of you are childhood friends? I never knew that."
Hikaru turned back to Zul, pressing for answers. "So, what's worrying you about her?"
Zul sighed, looking worried. "You see, recently she's been disappearing during our lunchtime and avoiding me," he admitted.
"Oh, I remember! A few days ago, Shimizu and I saw Sakamoto-san—her uniform was a bit soaked when she returned to our class. Right, Shimizu?" Mizuha said, looking at Shimizu for confirmation.
"Yeah, you're right," Shimizu replied, shaking her head. "I tried to ask her what happened, but she was too scared to talk to me, like usual."
Zul thought it was suspicious. Is she being bullied?
The bell rang, and they began heading back to class, Mizuha and Shimizu following Hikaru and Zul.
Shimizu stopped. "You guys go ahead; I need to use the restroom," she said.
"Wait, Shimizu, I'll go with you," Mizuha said. "Hikaru, see you later."
The boys continued on to class while Mizuha followed Shimizu.
As they entered the restroom, they overheard an argument.
"Huh, is this all you have? I asked you for more every day," said an angry voice.
"I'm sorry, this is all the money I have for today," replied a trembling voice.
Mizuha and Shimizu looked at each other.
"Is that Sakamoto-san?" Mizuha asked as they walked in and were shocked to see Eri surrounded by a group of upperclassmen.
"Because you failed to give us what we wanted, we're going to punish you," one of the bullies said. Two others brought out buckets of dirty water.
"No, please, don't do this!" Eri begged.
"That's terrible. We need to act quickly," Shimizu whispered, and Mizuha nodded.
"Ready, girls? Splash it on her now!" ordered the leader of the bullies. But as they counted down, Mizuha and Shimizu rushed forward, taking the splash meant for her.
Eri was shocked to see the water miss her and hit Mizuha and Shimizu instead.
"What's happening? Yuki-san, Shimizu-san, what are you doing here?" Eri asked.
"I'm glad we made it in time," Mizuha said.
"Yuki-san, Shimizu-san, your uniform is dirty. Are you okay?" Eri asked.
"I'm fine, thanks. I'm just glad it didn't hit you," Mizuha replied.
"It's just a uniform; it can be cleaned later," Shimizu said.
"Who are you two, and how dare you interrupt us?" the leader demanded.
Shimizu smiled, cracking her knuckles.
"Oh me? I'm Shimizu, first-year student. Nice to meet you, senpai," she said, her expression turning fierce.
"Wait, I've heard of her. She's the red-haired delinquent first-year student," said another girl in the gang.
Really? I didn't know I was famous because of that rumor, Shimizu thought.
"Hmph, that's just a name. Get her now, girls," the leader ordered.
"Oh, you're challenging me, huh? Mizuha, protect Sakamoto-san. Let me handle these guys," Shimizu said, preparing for a fight.
"But, Shimizu...you don't need to fight them back," Mizuha said.
"Don't worry, this doesn't take long," Shimizu replied.
Mizuha hugged Eri protectively as Shimizu faced the bullies.
"How dare you do that to Sakamoto-san. What you did earlier is unforgivable!!"
"Tch, don't get cocky! Get her, girls," the bullies' leader snapped, telling her gang to charge at Shimizu.
"Come, show me what you have," Shimizu said, preparing herself.
Shimizu struck, knocking them down one by one.
"Damn, she's so strong," the bullies said.
"What, is that all you guys had? So boring," said Shimizu, mocking them.
"Geez, you guys are useless. Take this!" the leader said as she charged at Shimizu.
Shimizu caught the leader's fist immediately, gripping it tight.
"It hurts! Enough, you win. Please stop," the leader pleaded.
Shimizu released her grip and pushed the leader backward, making her fall to the floor. The leader's gang approached to help her.
Shimizu approached them while cracking her knuckles.
"Hey, you guys, listen properly," she said.
"Don't ever show your face around Sakamoto-san or any of us again, or you'll be finished. Understand?"
She gave them a scary glare.
"Okay, understood. We won't do it again," the bullies said, and then they ran out of the restroom.
"Take that! Don't mess with me, haha," Shimizu said, laughing at them.
"So Mizuha, how did I look earlier? Look cool, right?" she asked, turning to Mizuha.
"Nah, you look like a real delinquent, I guess," Mizuha chuckled.
"Wait, what? Delinquent? That's so mean, Mizuha," Shimizu said, shocked.
"Enough with that already. More importantly, are you okay?" Mizuha asked, concern in her voice.
"Yup, I'm fine. How about Sakamoto-san?" Shimizu replied.
"She's okay. Nothing bad happened to her," Mizuha said, smiling.
"Damn those guys; they made our uniforms really dirty. We're lucky that we have PE class after this, so we can use those PE uniforms for the rest of the day," Shimizu said.
Eri approached them, crying. "Yuki-san, Shimizu-san..." she said.
"I'm so sorry. It's my fault you two got dirty," Eri sobbed, overwhelmed with guilt.
"It's nothing," Shimizu said, trying to reassure her. "It's just a small thing."
"That's right. We're just glad you're okay," Mizuha replied, struggling to keep her own tears at bay.
"Sakamoto-san, don't worry about it. They won't bully you anymore after this," Shimizu said, placing a comforting hand on Eri's head.
"Let's clean ourselves and return to our class because break time is almost over," Mizuha said.
"Oh, you're right, let's go," Shimizu said.
Eri wiped her tears and said, "Yuki-san, Shimizu-san, thank you so much."
Mizuha and Shimizu looked at each other and smiled warmly. "No problem. Here, let's get back to our classroom," they said, extending their hands to her.
Eri took their hands and smiled gratefully, and the three of them made their way to their classroom.
"Sakamoto-san, you should really tell Zul about what happened. He's been very worried about you," Mizuha said.
"But I don't want to trouble him," Eri replied.
"Don't worry, I'm sure that he'll understand," Mizuha assured her.
The three of them returned to their class and Zul approached them as they entered.
"So, there you are. What took you so long? And why are both of your uniforms so dirty?"
Mizuha was surprised by Zul’s sudden urgency.
"Something happened earlier, but we managed to take care of it," Mizuha explained.
"What actually happened to you guys?" asked Zul.
"Well, actually..." said Shimizu.
"Wait, Shimizu-san, let me explain to him," Eri suddenly interrupted.
"Um, Zul, Actually I..." Eri started to speak, but Zul interrupted her, shocked to see her with them.
"Eri!? What are you doing with Mizuha and Shimizu?"
"Well, Zul," Shimizu said, "why don't we head into the classroom first? We'll explain everything then."
"Right," Zul agreed, calming down. "Let's go inside, and then you can tell me what happened."
Once inside the classroom, Eri recounted the events and described how Mizuha and Shimizu had heroically saved her from the bullies.
"I knew it. Then why didn't you tell me you were being bullied? Do you know what could have happened if Mizuha and Shimizu hadn't stopped them earlier?
"If you got hurt, what would I tell your mom?" Zul said, sounding a bit upset. "Didn't I tell you before? If you get into any trouble, please let me know."
"I'm sorry, I don't want to burden you at all," said Eri, tears in her eyes.
Suddenly, Zul sighed, hugged Eri, and said, "Well, it's not your fault; it was my fault. I should have paid more attention to you, and I'm sorry.
From now on, if you have any problems, please tell me, Mizuha, or Shimizu, okay? Also, we need to talk after this."
"By the way, thank you both for saving her," Zul said to Mizuha and Shimizu.
"Well, Zul, don't worry about it. Everything is already solved. They won't have the guts to bully Sakamoto-san anymore," Mizuha replied.
"That's right. I already gave them a warning that they will never forget," Shimizu said, laughing.
What kind of warning did you give, Shimizu? Zul thought to himself.
Their conversation drew gossip from classmates.
Shimizu turned around and glared at them, then said, "What are you guys looking at and gossiping about? Get lost."
"Oh no, she's mad. Let's go," said a classmate, as they quickly returned to their seats under Shimizu's glare.
The bell rang, marking the end of break and the start of PE class. Zul asked Eri to stay with Mizuha and Shimizu.
The school day ended as usual. As Mizuha reached the school entrance, she noticed Hikaru waiting for her there.
"Huh, Hikaru, you haven't gone home yet?" Mizuha asked.
"Well, I was actually waiting for you, so let's go home together," said Hikaru.
"Sure, let's go," replied Mizuha.
"You look happy. What happened earlier?" Hikaru asked.
"Umm, well... earlier..." Mizuha recounted how they saved Eri, happy to have gained a friend.
"Oh, I see. So, she was being targeted after all," said Hikaru. "I'm glad you two were there to help. That was really brave. How is Eri now? Is she okay?"
"She's doing better," Mizuha replied. "She was really shaken up, but she's grateful for the support."
"That's good to hear," Hikaru said. "It's important she knows she's not alone. You did a wonderful thing today, Mizuha. I'm proud of you and Shimizu."
"Thanks, Hikaru," Mizuha said, smiling. "I just did what felt right. I'm glad we could help her."
Both of them walked and chatted until they reached Mizuha's house. "See you tomorrow, Hikaru," said Mizuha, opening her front door.
"See you tomorrow," said Hikaru, waving to Mizuha before making his way to his house.
"I'm home," Mizuha said.
"Welcome home, my dear," her mother replied.
"Oh, Mom! You're back early today," Mizuha exclaimed.
"Well, my work finished sooner than usual, so I came home early," her mother explained.
As Mizuha entered the living room, a sudden vision overwhelmed her, causing her to space out.
"Please don't do that to me. I'm begging you—please stop."
"Someone... help me." "Why is no one helping me?"
She touched her head, a sharp headache throbbing after the vision. What was that? What are these visions? Her body felt weak.
"Mizuha, are you okay?" her mom asked, rushing over when she saw her daughter about to fall.
"I'm fine, Mom. Maybe I'm just too tired. I'd better clean up and rest for today," Mizuha replied.
"Get some rest, honey. Let me know if your condition gets worse, okay?" her mother said.
"Okay, mom," replied Mizuha.
Mizuha then returned to her room and went to sleep.
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