Chapter 8 - Distance/Cleanup Duty

"What was that, and why did she bring another girl to my home? I know I'm not in a position to decline anything, but I have to find a way to restrict her. Otherwise, she might start bringing other people as well." After they left, he continued worrying about what had happened today and how to prevent it from happening again.

"Should I just keep myself away from her so she causes fewer problems? But she can still come home anytime, and I have to sit beside her in class. If I avoid her and she notices, she might tell someone about my suicidal incident." He pondered these thoughts, trying to come to a conclusion.

He sat there all day, crumbling the toast and sipping cold milk, without realizing that the sun had started setting.

When the evening rays touched his face, he muttered, "It's evening already. How much time did I spend thinking about these things? And I also missed lunch today because of that," he realized as his stomach started growling.

"I wasted my whole day, and now I need a heavy dinner. But what should I eat?" he said with a confused and sad face.

Just eat your thoughts because you won't be able to fulfill your hunger with meals alone. It's important to think about something, but after a while, you need to stop and reach a conclusion. I know it's hard, and you may not get the desired result, but in the end, you'll learn from it. Next time, you'll be more careful or whatever.

I am not opposing you being wrong. It is hard to choose one thing out of many options and thoughts, and those who make that decision alone without expecting anything from others are strong and courageous. Those who decide alone consider the worst outcome they can have if the decision goes wrong, and that is why I respect them. They are ready for the worst and aren't afraid of the outcome.

They know they can deal with the outcome they get, and that’s why they make those decisions.

I know you also made some decisions thinking that way, and your current situation is the outcome of what you decided back then.

So why are you hesitating to stand against the result of your action? You don’t have any right to just doze off and blame the time now. Just give your best shot again and try to deal with the situation you are in instead of moping over the dinner choice,” Mikage said harshly.

"Oh, so you finally showed up after the whole day."

"Yeah, I told you I would come by tonight to check on you. I was watching everything silently, seeing how that girl is running you around her finger. You are really in big trouble, and I even feel a chill around that girl. I can't imagine how far she will go and what her intentions are."

"I knew that from the very beginning. I can only see one path. From tomorrow, I have to start finding new ways to kill myself again," Atsuo replied, leaning his head on the table.

"You are a big moron. This situation happened because of your stupid decision to kill yourself in the first place. Now, you want to go and create a big problem for yourself again."

"I know you told me that at the time, that I was going into big trouble."

"You don’t know what the future holds for you. She is like a light I have seen many times, but I am not sure whether she will be there for you till the very end or lose herself and you in darkness," Mikage said quietly, with sadness on his face.

"Can you be a little bit louder? I didn’t hear a single word you just said," Atsuo asked, lifting his head from the table.

"Nothing, I just said if you really want to die, you should stick with that girl. If things go the way I see them, you'll die more than once. I think it's time for me to head out," Mikage laughed and disappeared as if he was never there.

"Hey, what does that mean? You can’t leave me behind every time like this. It’s all your fault! Last time, you said something weird like this and left, and I thought you were talking about dying," Atsuo shouted several times, but Mikage was gone before he finished his rant.

Atsuo remained in the same condition for a while, and eventually, he ate something and fell asleep, still thinking about everything that had happened.

[Two Days Later at School]

"This is the last window, and after that, I have to run to my part-time job," Atsuo told himself, feeling annoyed. He had to leave for his part-time job but was stuck with cleaning duty.

He wasn't annoyed because of the cleaning duty or the possibility of being late for his job. He was annoyed because of the team he was assigned to. After last Sunday's mental harassment, he took a break from school for two whole days, hoping things would be less messy and to give himself time to recover from the awkwardness he had faced.

Today is Wednesday, and he came in a good mood, hoping that everything had settled down with those two girls. But all his hopes were crushed by the class representative.

"This would never have happened if he had told me everything earlier. He is always such a moron.

During the break, he told me I had cleaning duty and assigned me to clean the windows and the board, but he didn't mention the most important information—that these two girls would be joining me." Due to his frustration, Atsuo was putting a lot of pressure on the window as he thought about it.

"Hey, Aikawa! Don't put too much pressure on the window. It might break and hurt you," Hikari said as she engaged in a broom fight with Mitsuru.

This only pissed him off more. First, they were slacking off from their duties, and now she was giving a lecture on safety while having a broom fight.

"Watch yourselves first. You both are doing nothing, just slacking off the whole time, and now you're playing with a broom. It might hurt someone," he replied, his face showing clear annoyance.

"Who told you we were slacking off the whole time? We're just trying to have some fun while working," Hikari replied, delivering her winning strike.

The final strike went wrong, and the sweeper that Mitsuru was holding slipped out of her hands. After spinning in the air a couple of times, it dropped on Atsuo. The moment it hit him, Mitsuru was scared to death and immediately hid behind Hikari.

"Ouch! If you're not slacking off, then what is this? Could you girls be more careful? You just gave me a full lecture on safety, so what is this? Before giving lectures to others, you should follow them first," Atsuo said angrily, throwing the cloth on the floor.

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

"So...so...sorry, it was unintentional," Mitsuru stammered, replying from behind Hikari.

"Yes, you should be. I already know you don't have the courage to do that intentionally," he replied with a fierce smile.

"Yes, we can agree on that. But it's not just her; I don't think any girls in our class have the courage to talk to you after hearing so many rumors," Hikari found it odd. Despite being totally pissed off, Atsuo was controlling himself very well. So, she replied with a smile to make things easier.

"If you think that way, and if you observe then you are correct, then I will love it if things continue that way," he replied with a serious look as he picked up the cloth from the floor.

"Thanks for the compliment! I've been good at observation since childhood," she replied with pride, feeling she had handled the situation properly.

"What? When did I compliment you? I think instead of taking it, you should start your work. It's almost time for our teacher to come for inspection," he said, annoyed, as he started to clean the last window again.

Despite being totally pissed off, he didn't want to do anything that would lead to more trouble. After this commotion, the girls also started working seriously, so he decided to forget about the incident and focus on his own work.

The sincerity they showed did not last for very long. After ten minutes, they both started a new game, playing catch with cleaning clothes. Hikari stood at one entrance and Mitsuru on the other side. When they started, the cloth was clean, but as they missed a few catches and it hit the dusty floor, it became dirty. They had no idea what was going to happen next, as they were having the time of their lives.

"Mitsuru, try to catch this. I'm going to throw it at full speed," Hikari said enthusiastically as she threw the cloth ball. In their enjoyment, they didn’t realize when they became serious and started playing intensely.

"I'm not going to hold back either," Mitsuru replied with the same enthusiasm.

"Ugh... they are not going to listen to me. Let them do what they want. I don’t want to get in their way. Let’s finish the work so I can join the shop. I'm assigned to board and window duty, so it won’t affect me if they slack off," Atsuo thought to himself. He watched both of them but knew deep down that they wouldn't listen to him, so he tried to ignore them and focused on his own work.

He had just finished with the window and was about to leave the class to dispose of the dirty water. The girls were covering most of the class, but there was still some space available behind them, so he tried to sneak through that narrow space.

"Behold, Hikari! Now you are going to face my super ultra fireball," Mitsuru shouted, mimicking one of her favorite manga dialogues.

"Are they still in grade school? Nowadays, even grade schoolers are more responsible than them," Atsuo thought as he passed through the gate.

In the meantime, Hikari missed the super ultra fireball thrown by Mitsuru. Hikari tried hard to catch it, but an accident happened. The ball hit Atsuo's face badly, and he collapsed. The dirty water he was carrying spilled everywhere, and some of it splashed onto the blackboard he had cleaned earlier.

[After 20 Minutes in the Infirmary]

"What’s going on with me? Where am I? Why does my head feel heavy and why is there pain below my right eye?" Atsuo put his right hand on his head as he awoke, still feeling drowsy but with a lot of questions on his mind.

"Ohh... finally you woke up! Now I can breathe a sigh of relief. I was so scared," Hikari said, putting her hand on Atsuo's with a relieved face and watery eyes.

"What the hell are you doing here? Why am I in the infirmary? And why are you crying while holding my hand?" he asked, snatching his hand back in embarrassment. His cheeks turned a little red; after all, a girl holding his hand was an experience he had never imagined.

"So, you don’t remember what happened to you in the classroom?" Hikari gently wiped away her tears and asked. There was a slight quaver in her voice, indicating she had cried a lot before he woke up.

"If I think about it, the last thing I remember is carrying the used water to dispose of," he said, scratching his chin as he tried to recall the events.

"Let me tell you what happened after that. We were playing catch with the washing cloth, and while you were passing by, I missed the catch, and it hit you directly. You collapsed after that. We called Mr. Sumida for help, and he brought you to the infirmary. You've been unconscious for about twenty minutes now," Hikari explained, standing up from the chair and placing her hands on the bed.

"So where is she? Did she run away out of fear, or did she pass out the moment your so-called ball hit me? Do you think she'll come to school tomorrow, or will she stay away for a whole month?" he laughed with a devilish grin, raising his hands in the air.

"No, no... She is in the classroom right now for cleanup duty. Mr. Sumida punished her for throwing the super ultra ball. Once she finishes the work, she'll come to you for an apology," Hikari explained.

"So, why is she the only one getting punished? You were involved too. If I'm being honest, you're her partner in crime," Atsuo asked while changing his position to sit up.

"Yes, we both are at fault, but since she was the one who threw the ball so hard, she got punished. The teacher told me to stay here to look after you," Hikari laughed and replied.

After a brief conversation, the infirmary turned silent again. They both just sat there without uttering a single word. After some time, Atsuo decided to leave for home. He stood up from the bed, picked up his school bag, and made his way to the door. After taking a few steps, he noticed something unusual.

"What is this strange feeling?"

"Why am I not feeling comfortable?"

"What is the issue?"

After questioning himself several times, he realized the issue and screamed.

"Who the hell did this?"

"Why am I in the girls' PE uniform? This is so embarrassing!"

"Most importantly, who changed my clothes?"

Since Hikari was the only person around him the whole time, he turned towards her even before she could reply and defend herself. He had tried to control himself until now, but he finally lost his composure. His eyes turned reddish.

"I tried my best, but you don't want to lose any chance to piss me off. I've ignored many things until now, but this time you crossed the line, girl."

Despite seeing him completely mad, Hikari wasn't scared at all. She took a few steps forward, patted his shoulders a couple of times, and replied.

"No worries, you can return it whenever you want. This is my uniform. When the ball hit you earlier, the dirty water you were carrying spilled all over, and the uniform you were wearing got drenched. We tried to find spare clothes but had no luck. Fortunately, I accidentally brought my PE uniform today. The teacher suggested it was a good idea to change into the clothes we had, and he helped us change your clothes," Hikari replied with pride and a big smile on her face.

"How am I supposed to go home in this? If someone sees me in a girls' uniform, they'll think I'm a pervert," Atsuo replied sadly, his anger subsiding after hearing that the teacher was involved.

"I don't think so. There's not much difference between the girls' and boys' PE uniforms. It's not like you're wearing a girl's skirt. I think the only difference is the pockets. So you can easily sneak out without anyone noticing," Hikari replied positively after thinking for a while.

"I've got a new idea. Just wait a second. Take this. You can borrow my PE jacket, and after that, no one will be able to tell whether you're in a girls' or boys' uniform," she said, picking up her PE jacket from her bag and replying quickly with utmost confidence.

"Hmm... It's embarrassing to wear a girls' uniform, but it's better to use this instead of getting caught by somebody on the way home," he replied, totally embarrassed but realizing he had no other choice.

He hadn't even realized when he calmed down from his anger. He grabbed the PE jacket from the girl's hand and walked away from the infirmary without uttering a word.

"Hey, goodbye! See you tomorrow," she shouted loudly in the hallway with a smile on her face.

Even though she was shouting, he just turned around once before leaving the place without answering her.