With a two week deadline, I’m usually in a rush to get things done. It’d be quite easier to space out the time I had with Yuuri and Kurumi if said deadline wasn’t as far as I thought.

I like to reason to myself that what I’m doing right now is indeed spacing out despite my prediction that I’d be able to set everything up a week before it happens.

“You’re quite casual Kurumi-san” I looked at the clock.

“Jeez… why’d you need me here after dinner anyways?” Kurumi lowered her shovel

“Third rule of the School Living Club… Do not–”

“Yea yea I get it…” Kurumi interrupted, “But why now? Why can’t we do it in the morning?”

“You’re busy with the barricades in the hallway during the morning. Also, I needed the insurance since you aren’t interested in staying in your room playing Uno with Yuki and Yuuri”

“Yeah it’s pretty much the sentiment among us… it’s surprising you know”

“You were eager enough to come over when I asked you”

We walked towards the barricades.

“Well, what’s the excuse? What if Yuuri found out?”

“She wouldn’t mind. Compared to if let’s say I brought Yuki over”

“So what do you want me to do?”

“Just come with me for a quick run to the library… in and out”

“Five minutes?”

“Ten minutes maximum”

“Well, you’re gonna owe me… and no, the sweets won’t count”

“How about I take over patrolling for the next five days? After all, I made those table barricades so it shouldn’t be a hassle repairing them”

“And I assume you’d wander around with a textbook or a pen?”

Kurumi’s humor was quite dry, even by my standards.

“Couldn’t acquire any weapons other than ones I’ve crafted during my spare time. So it’s back to basics” I raised my right arm, revealing the layer of tape and notebooks that I had wrapped around.

“Then why don’t you help me with some of them in your spare time”

“ I’d get injured easily due to my lack of athleticism” I shrugged.

Ironically enough, the way Kurumi was dressed probably made it easier for her to get infected.

“Anyways, let’s go”

We continued through the table barricades, heading straight forward while periodically checking the nearby classrooms.

Usually, I’d take this time to spark a conversation, but perhaps I’ll find that opportunity.

The library hadn’t evaded a similar fate to what had happened to the classrooms, but it seemed tolerable enough for me not to end up cutting my foot.

“Guard the door. If you see anything, just hide inside the library and tell me. If I need help, I’ll shout”

“No need to tell me”

It was easy for me to look for the usual study books I needed, but due to our situation, it’d be a bit more daunting.

Wandering through the bookshelves, I placed my finger through each section while holding a flashlight with my free hand until I had reached what I wanted.

After grabbing two books, I walked over to the front, where Kurumi stood close to the door with her hands crossed. As I got closer, her gaze focused on the hallway.

“Ssh” Kurumi raised her shovel.

Sliding the books at the table, I sidestepped behind her. After a moment of trying to get an angle thanks to her hair, I tapped at her shoulder.

How many? I motioned with my hands.

Kurumi looked at me weirdly.

It’s my fault to assume she would know sign language.

“How many?” I whispered.

“Do you think I count how many there are?”

“Of course…”

“There’s probably twenty of them” Kurumi raised her shovel, before lowering it down again, “What’s your plan, genius?”

I slid the door closed.

“We can sneak through to the nearby classroom and turn on the lights. Since they are attracted to noise and light sources, we can use them to escape while they rush in. Now in the case that–”

“You talk too much” Kurumi slid the door open again, raising her shovel, “Don’t go too far”

I’ve thought out of a plan like that yet I didn’t expect her response.

Kurumi rushed over to the hallway, swinging her shovel towards a nearby zombie. I followed after grabbing my books and pushing another zombie with a kick to the chest.

As I did so, I could feel a breeze of wind brush past my hair.

“Did you almost hit me?” I turned over to her while backpedaling.

“Yeah, my bad”

Kurumi rushed over again, rapidly swinging her shovel towards the head of each zombie while fending off anyone that tried to fight against her.

She had a rough and almost unconventional style of using a shovel, yet considering her self-taught nature, she had some faults.

“Watch out!”

I kicked a nearby zombie before continuing to retreat in unison with Kurumi.

“I was about to handle him,” Kurumi shouted.

“Yeah right…”

Kurumi then thrust her shovel towards a zombie’s chest, hesitantly stopping before dealing a fatal blow straight through its face.

A few zombies from the left and right started rushing past her, causing me to grab onto her shoulder.

There was no way we were getting that Udon. Unless we wanted to repeat history.

“Hey! What are you doing”

“Forget it. We should handle getting the hell out of here” I tapped on Kurumi’s shoulder.

“Then let’s go!” She grabbed onto my arm, “I’ll cover you at the barricades”

“They’ll overwhelm the barricades if we get through”

“What’s your plan?”

“The one I had told you but you interrupted!”

“Fine!”

We quickly rushed inside the classroom door, sliding it shut after I threw the flashlight towards the hallway, causing a few zombies to swarm it.

Several hands started to slam through the door while I slid a nearby table to keep it closed.

“Great! We’re trapped” Kurumi pressed her foot onto the door, “What kind of plan was that?”

“We’re not trapped”

“It’s not like you have some sort of contingency plan, right?”

“Just go to the window”

“Why?”

“I’ve watched a lot of movies, I know what I’m doing”

Kurumi looked at me weirdly before rushing towards one.

“What now?”

The pounding on the door started to grow louder at this point.

“What now? Jump down to the field!”

“Jump?!”

Kurumi couldn’t detect my sarcasm.

“No silly! Climb up to the window”

“Oh”

Watching Kurumi climb up the window and reach the third floor, I started to retreat, noticing the door had started to cave in.

“Don’t look!” Kurumi shouted as she vaulted over the window frame.

I heard the door slowly crack open, followed by the sound of the zombies growing louder.

“Anytime now!”

“Alright! Grab my arm!” Kurumi extended her hand out.

I grabbed onto it, being pulled up towards the third floor with all of Kurumi’s strength. Using my other hand, I managed to get over to the third floor.

I slid the books through the class, sitting in an empty classroom with Kurumi beside me.

“You’re seriously heavy,” Kurumi gasped for air.

“Seriously?”

A sudden bang followed from below us, causing us to flinch before looking at each other.

“See… I knew we’d have some time before they’d come in”

“Yea yea we get it… are you some sort of robot?”

“I got called that by Yuki this afternoon”

“I can tell why… how long did you plan out these moments?”

“Uh… fifteen minutes”

It was way shorter than that.

“I thought it’d be an hour”

Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original.

“It’s not hard when you have every factor and possibility in account… It’s not like I’m a master at academics”

“Yea…” Kurumi stared towards the door, “Sorry for interrupting you”

“It’s alright… people wouldn’t understand why I’d go to such depth anyways”

“That’s actually the first time I’ve seen you done such… you kinda remind me of those guys with glasses that people like to call ‘nerds’ all of the time”

“What’s the difference between me and them?”

“You don’t talk so much and you don’t talk about weird things”

“Fair enough”

An idea struck my mind as I looked at Kurumi.

“By the way Kurumi-san, can I offer you something?”

“Fire away”

“Both of us don’t work well in teamwork, I can acknowledge my faults when I see it as well… I hope you can identify yours”

“What are my issues?”

“You’re quite… feral in your attacks”

“Anything else?”

“Despite being fast, you’re relying on powerful hits to incapacitate zombies… it wouldn’t go well with your fast athletic self alongside making it hard to handle–”

“You’re at it again” Kurumi interrupted.

“Yeah, I know… but better be safe than sorry”

“Yeah…” She nodded, “What do you think is your flaw?”

“I usually just hang back and act in response rather than being aggressive”

“Bingo… I’d thought you’d be a bit more efficient fighting”

“Do you expect me to be some sort of samurai?”

“No, I thought you’d use some cool techniques since you knew karate”

“I’m not tall enough to launch such attacks”

“You could always give it a try…”

“Can I also mention something I’ve observed?”

“You observe a lot of things…” Kurumi mumbled, “Sure”

“I noticed you were struggling to strike one of the students while we were handling the horde in the hallway. Was it one of your friends?”

Kurumi paused for a moment, fiddling with her hands in the meantime.

“Do you remember the rumors last year? With Hotaka and Chiasa?”

“Of course… if you want a bit of inside information, Hotaka and Chiasa were indeed dating”

“Thought so…”

“So… that girl… she was Chiasa-san?”

“Yep… sometimes I still think about it”

“What about them?”

“I wonder if they still had some time together before the outbreak… after all… despite them being all lovey dovey… in the end, it’s just…”

Kurumi clenched her hand as she spoke.

“I understand”

She seemed quite empathetic behind that strong face of hers.

“You’ve always had a straight face when you do things… have you ever felt regret or loss over someone ever since the outbreak?”

“My family”

“Mhm… But what about your friends?”

“Why does it always have to be about friends? Isn’t family more worthwhile?”

“Of course! I don’t disagree with you… but do you share secrets with family members?”

“...”

Do people share secrets with their friends?

“I won’t press you…” Kurumi shrugged.

“I did regret losing someone important to me before”

“Who was it? If you don’t mind asking…”

“A good neighbor and a friend of mine… we went to the same middle school”

“I vaguely remember you from there but I’ve never seen you being close with anyone… unless…”

Kurumi’s eyes widened in excitement.

“Hano?”

“Yea…”

“I feel so bad for her…”

“What did you remember about Hano?” I turned over.

“Often teased for rumors and quite a loner… except for when you stopped by to talk with her”

“Why’d you think I wasn’t friends with her in the first place?”

“I just didn’t see you often with her since you were probably too busy with other matters”

“It’s alright… it’s a shame she left the school”

“Did you like Hano?”

“...No”

“Your face says it all”

“Alright alright we get it…” I nudged Kurumi by the shoulder.

I’ve never had romantic feelings with Hano, so it seemed weird that I had this feeling. Perhaps Kurumi had struck my soft spot.

“Should we head out now?” Kurumi got up, extending her hand to me.

“Sure. We took twice the amount of time I expected so Yuuri’s probably worried” I grabbed onto it, getting up.

“Yeah” Kurumi did a quick stretch.

An idea struck my head as I placed my hand towards the door, making me turn around.

“Can I make a proposition?”

“Sure… what is it?”

“We have our strengths and weaknesses, but perhaps we could build off of each other. Just for the sake of the club?”

“Well, what do you offer Prez?” Kurumi placed her shovel on the floor.

“What I offer is the brains that you’ll need in any situation… and some control. You meet the physical part… partially… but I believe you can reach it in no time”

“You sound like some sort of tough sensei recruiting me into his dojo”

“Sorry” I cringed out of realization, “But I think you get what I mean?”

“Of course…” Kurumi reached for her shovel, placing it close up to my neck, “And you know what I offer?”

Her playful nature contradicted the fact that the shovel was dangerously close to my face.

“The athleticism and skills of any fighter” I pushed the shovel away.

“Bingo”

“I assume you’ve taken up martial arts before?”

“At a very young age… but I quit after entering high school”

“No wonder why you were the leader of Track and Field…”

“Mhm…” Kurumi looked at me weirdly after staring at the books I held, “I don’t get it”

“What’s up?”

“If I wanted to help someone improve or I noticed an issue, I’d tell them what their issue is. Why would you want to go through the effort for it?”

“It’s not like I’m gonna use it against you”

“Of course… but can you tell me why?”

“Isn’t that what a friend would do?”

“I guess you’re right”

“Anyways, wanna meet up in three days? Perhaps in the morning” I placed my hand over the door.

“Sure. Let’s do it in the morning at 3B” Kurumi smiled, “See ya”

“Bye” I walked back towards the clubroom, giving a glance at the books I had bought.

Full List of Psychological Disorders

There was only a single copy of the book, so if I had lost it, I might as well be playing a guessing game with Yuki’s delusions. I wasn’t remotely qualified as a psychologist, but somebody had to understand it.

I left my cooking book close to the table, proceeding to skim through each page until I reached the schizophrenia section.

There should’ve been more information in this book. I flicked through the pages, already knowing all of the content from my time in school.

After reaching the final page, I slid the book to the side of the table, resting my head on the couch while I stared towards the rooftop.

People always say that what happens on a trip can be more valuable than the trip itself. And I can understand why now.

When friends or lovers usually walk back home, they end up parting after a small talk and stopping by close to their house.

Considering my status back in middle school, managing to walk home during the early afternoon was a blessing.

As I continued down the road, I couldn’t help but hear the footsteps of someone behind me.

“Hi, Ryu!” Hano leaned towards me

I had just met Hano about a month ago. At that time, I had found her to be a bit clingy. But she was just the type to act comfortably around people she trusted compared to strangers.

“Didn’t notice you there Aki-san…”

“Sorry…” Hano scratched her head, “I couldn’t help but decide to stop by with you since you were walking back home”

“I see…” I turned over, “Must be fun walking back home with someone else from school, hm?”

“Of course! Why wouldn’t it?”

Hano’s personality outside of school was a severe contrast to how I used to perceive her during the winter. But people act differently towards those they trust, so it shouldn’t be much of an issue.

“No idea…”

“Imagine all of the things you could do! Share secrets, crack jokes at each other while walking, perhaps even stop by at an arcade”

“Do you like arcades?”

“Me? Not really… just using it as an example. I’m more of an artistic type of person”

She seemed… creative in her thoughts.

“What about you Ryu-san?”

“A bit of study… probably stop by at places with my family… and perhaps something to alleviate my stress over the break”

Hano gave me a weird look.

“That seems… a bit bland in my opinion”

“Well, what do you suggest?”

“Remember when we exchanged art pieces? Perhaps we could try drawing something modern throughout the semester”

Isn’t modern art just… weird?

I often found modern art ridiculously complex.

“I haven’t drawn a lot of modern art-ish content… except for that one assignment before Christmas”

“Haven’t you seen your mark for that assignment?”

“Was too busy with council matters”

“Huh? Sensei told me that you were one of the few who got a high mark on it”

“Weird… you got top of the class right?”

“Yep…” Hano scratched her head, “Got called a nerd for it”

For some reason, I didn’t know what to say about it.

“Ignore what they say… because in the end, they’re just trying to drag you down”

“You’re right…” Hano gave out a smile.

One thing I had always liked about Hano was her smile. It wasn’t something cunning or a fake one, but rather something that looked like she had placed all her energy into creating a sort of aura.

“Correct” I adjusted my bag over my shoulder, “So uh… what do you wanna draw?”

“Hmm,” Hano stared at the ground, “I’ll think about it later”

“Looking forward to it…” I gave a short smile, “We could stop by at the art room during lunch”

“Not to sound pushy, but could we do it in my house? It has all the equipment plus more I found from the basement”

“I guess”

“What do you plan to draw?”

“You’re the one who invited me Hano-san, perhaps you have a say on what we should draw”

“You weren’t good at Cubism though”

“Is it because you noticed my work met a certain standard that could’ve been higher?”

“Mhm”

Hano’s quite smart…

“Not really… just average I guess”

It wasn’t that I was perceptive. I just often think about the most random things ever.

As we arrived at Hano’s house, I noticed a taller black-haired woman watering the front yard, who looked at me with a sort of suspicion despite walking with her.

“Hi Ayame! This is my friend, Ryu-kun!” Hano turned over, “Ryu, this is my big sister Ayame”

During that time, I felt conflicted over the fact that Hano just instantly designated me a friend, but I nonetheless played along.

“Pleasure to meet you Ayame-san” I gave a small bow towards Ayame.

“Has Hano been good to you?”

“Yep… quite the bright student”

Ayame gave a small smirk in response.

Perhaps I sounded too much like a teacher. She seemed to also be focused with her studies considering how her eyes seemed considerably tired.

“Are you currently studying at Megurigaoka High School?”

“Of course. Currently in my first year” Ayame adjusted the sprinkler, “Not much to do there but I plan to get a role in the club just for my aspirations… you?”

“I’m planning to join the Student Council there”

“How ambitious…” Ayame nodded, "I’m gonna stick with Home Economics. I heard the club’s a bit fractured so perhaps they’d probably be looking for some capable students”

“Well… I wish you good luck with that” I emitted a smile similar to Hano's, only to revert to my usual one.

“Thank you…” Ayame turned over, noticing Hano run towards the door while ignoring the flowers around it, “Hano! Please don’t trample over the flowers”

“Hehe sorry!” Hano called out before opening the door.

“I better get going” I placed my bag over my shoulder, “I’ll see you around”

“Hold on” Ayame turned over, “I’d like to uh… thank you for being Hano’s friend”

Hm?

“No problem… she is quite a shy person but acts a bit different in front of me”

“Yeah… it’s like that for her. She often doesn’t trust others despite the fact that she’s pushy”

“I could tell… nothing bad about it though”

“I do know that Hano is often getting bullied at school for her personality so I was worried you were just someone harassing her. It’s nice to see that genuine smile of her”

“Don’t worry about it… I’ll keep an eye out for Hano”

“Good… that’s what a friend would do”

That phrase has still haunted me to this day.

We would often spend much of the year drawing from time to time. Every four to six months, we would produce an artistic masterpiece which we would place across social media.

Before our friendship started to grow distant, I considered those times the best of my life.