The Drama Club Room: 15 Minutes Earlier
While I was slumped over my desk in Class 1-C, lost in a heavy, dreamless sleep, a different kind of storm was brewing in the Drama Club room.
"We will stop Tamotsu from leaving this club by the end of the day!!" Emi yelled, her voice echoing as she slammed her palms onto the table.
BANG.
Everyone in the room jumped. "What, today? You can't be serious," Sora-senpai groaned, leaning back in his chair. "I wanted to go home early today!"
"Today is the only chance we have, Sora-senpai!" Emi shot back, her eyes narrow and fierce. "If we let him walk away now, he's gone for good."
"Tck" Sora went silent, eventually slumping back into his seat. He knew she was right. "Whatever.."
"Looks like we have no choice," Masayuki agreed, adjusting his glasses with a clinical precision.
"I actually wanted to know more about Tamotsu-kun anyway!" Ayame chirped, leaning her head back and swinging her legs like a child.
Meanwhile, Madoka nodded shyly, hiding her face behind a math textbook so only her eyes were visible.
"It's settled then," Emi said firmly.
"One request!" Sora raised his hand, an evil, jagged smile spreading across his face. "If I catch the brat, can I beat him up? I owe him for those 'liar' comments."
"Hey, hey, calm down, Sora-senpai," Masayuki said, holding up his arms to keep the peace. "No violence."
"Masayuki is right," Emi agreed. "Violence will only make this mess worse. However..."She paused, her gaze turning cold. "If he shows violence first, do as you like."
Sora cracked his knuckles, the sound like dry branches snapping. "That won't be a problem."
"So what's the plan emi-san? I hope you came up with an good plan"
Emi closed her eyes and stayed silence for a while.
"Here's the plan," Emi open her eyes and continued. "We block every exit. I'll take the main doors. He'll definitely try to bolt that way. Masayuki-kun, you head to the football field. There's a side gate there that leads out of the school. If he panics, he'll find it."
Masayuki looked skeptical. "The football field? You think he'll run that far?"
"I'm sure of it. When a person is cornered, they stop thinking logically," Emi declared.
She turned to Ayame. "Ayame-san, you take the back door. That's the first place he'll go when he sees me at the front."
"Roger that, boss!" Ayame jumped up and down, looking at this like it was a fun game.
"Tamaki," Emi looked at her best friend. "You wait in Class 1-C. Just in case he doubles back to his own territory to hide."
"By... myself?" Madoka's voice was a tiny, trembling squeak.
"I know it's hard, but I'll buy you whatever you want later, okay?" Emi begged.
"You... you have to buy me candy then," Madoka pouted, her face turning red. Emi nodded quickly.
"Lastly, Sora-senpai. The rooftop. He'll head there once he realizes I've locked all the other club rooms. It's the highest point in the school, a dead end."
"A rootop???" Sora shout. stood up in disbelief.
"There's no other place" Emi protest.
"Tck, Fine, whatever" He sighed. "But do we have time to get there before the bell? Everyone will eventually went home including that brat as soon as the bell rang"
Emi smirked. "Don't worry. Sensei is going to buy us all the time we need."
Present Time: The Cage
Emi's hand was a vice around my necktie, pulling me close until I could see the reflection of my own panicked face in her eyes.
"YOU WILL NOT LEAVE THE DRAMA CLUB!!!"
Cold sweat drenched my back. My heart hammered against my ribs like a trapped bird. Before I knew it, my body just reacted on its own. I shoved Emi away with everything I had and bolted. I ran as fast as I could.
"What the hell is wrong with that girl!?" I screamed internally, my sneakers screeching against the linoleum. I knew I couldn't beat her in a fight, so I ran for the back door, desperate for the exit.
I can already see the exit, my heart soaring for a split second, until someone came out of nowhere.
"Yo-ho, Tamotsu-kun! Are you lost?"
From the shadows, Ayame stepped out. She was smiling, but she was dragging a heavy baseball bat across the floor. Skreeeeeeee. The sound sent shivers down my spine. She looked like a serial killer.
"Let's Play a little, Tamotsu-kun!"
"Waaaaah!" I let out a lung-bursting scream and spun around. "I don't want to die! I don't want to die!"
I turned corners blindly, didn't know where I was heading, my vision blurring with fear. I burst through the doors leading to the football field, gasping for air. "Did I lose them?" I looked around. The field was silent. Then I saw it. The side gate. "Found it!"
I lunged for the door, but a shadow stepped into my path.
"Not so fast, Tamotsu-kun."
I froze. Masayuki was standing there, his face calm but firm. "Sorry, but I must do this for the sake of my friends."
Why? Why is this happening to me? Before Masayuki put his palm on my shoulder, My body moved on its own. I ducked low, sliding past Masayuki's reach and scrambling back into the main building. My brain was a mess of panic.
I need to hide somewhere as soon as possible!!" I started thinking where to hide.
Class 1-C! That was the only place that felt like mine.
I ran for three minutes, my legs burning like fire, until I reached my classroom. I slammed the door and leaned my back against it, sliding down to the floor.
"I'm safe..." I wheezed, closing my eyes. "I'll just wait here until they're gone."
I opened my eyes, and my heart stopped.
Madoka was standing by the back seat, shaking violently. "He's here, he's here, he's here!" she muttered to herself.
I felt a wave of relief. It was just Madoka. I could handle her. I stood up, trying to regain my "cool" mask. "Hey, don't even think about trapping me here like the others," I said, walking toward her like a movie villain.
(SHIIIIING—the sound of steel on steel)
"Don't even think about coming near me, Hamasaki Tamotsu."
Madoka's voice was suddenly cold, devoid of her usual stutter. She pulled out a katana, a real, gleaming blade and swung it with terrifying precision. A single strand of my blue hair was sliced clean off, falling slowly onto my shoulder.
"WHAT!?" I yelped. Where did she get a sword!? She wasn't just a nerd; she was standing in a perfect martial arts stance.
"Hey Madoka-chan please put that down okay..." I begged her to put her katana down but she didn't respond to me at all.
The room went silent, save for the loud tick-tock of the clock. I spotted a chair next to me and look back at madoka. Without thinking, I kicked it toward her.
BANG!
Madoka dodged the flying chair with insane reflexes, but it gave me the second I needed to bolt out the door.
"Wait...!" she shouted behind me, her voice sounding like a frustrated child again.
"Crap! Crap! Crap!" I yelled, sprinting down the hall not looking back. I started slapping my own cheeks hard again and again. Ow! It wasn't a dream at all. It's really happening to me now.
I need to hide somewhere else!! I tried the doors to the other rooms. Locked. All of them. "Shit!" Then I remember the teacher's office. I headed for the teacher's office, my last hope. If I tell a teacher, they'll stop this!
I burst through the office doors. "Sensei, help—!"
I stopped dead. The office was empty. Dead silent. It was a ghost house. Not a single teacher was in sight.
"Where is everyone?" I whispered, my heart sinking.
"Yo-ho, Tamotsu-kun! Where are you hiding?" Ayame's joyful shout echoed from the hallway, closer than before. "I just wanted to play with you Tamotsu-kun!!"
I couldn't go back. Then I remember the rooftop hoping I can at least hide there.I ran for the stairs, heading for the rooftop. The only place left unlocked.
I burst onto the roof, the cool evening air hitting my face as the sun began to set, painting the sky a bloody orange. I doubled over, gasping for breath.
"I hope I'm finally safe now"
"You're late."
Or Not
The voice came from above. I looked up to see Sora-senpai sitting on the ledge, cracking his knuckles. He smiled like a true villain.
"Don't even think about running now, you little brat. You're trapped."
He jumped down, blocking the door and looking at me with an smirk on his face.
"Oh... it's just you," I said, my voice flat. After the katana, he didn't seem so scary to me now.
"Is that all you have to say!?" Sora yelled, looking offended. He took a deep breath, his face turning serious. "Because of you, we've got a mountain of problems, Tamotsu. I really wanted to beat you to a pulp for that. But..." He looked me in the eye not in anger but something else. "I'm not a bad guy, Hamasaki Tamotsu. And neither are you."
I froze. My eyes widened. "What are you planning to do now?" I asked, a cynical smirk creeping back onto my face. "Stop talking like you know me, Sora-senpai!"
My fists began to shake. "I know exactly what kind of people you are!!" My voice rose into an angry shout. "You plan on making me trust you, and then in the end, you'll just stab me in the back, isn't that right!?"
Sora looked shocked, but for once, he didn't yell. He just stood there.
"I hate 'nice' people! I hate 'kind' people! I hate kindness itself!!" I screamed.
"Tamotsu, calm down" Sora tried to calm me down slowly approaching me. When he was about to put him left palm on my left shoulder.
"Shut up!!!" I slapped his left hand away.
In my blind rage, I lunged forward to punch him, but my movements were sloppy. Sora countered easily, his fist connecting with my jaw in an over-hand strike.
CRACK.
I hit the concrete hard. Suddenly, the rooftop faded, and I was back at graduation. I was back in the dirt, getting jumped by Akio, my "best friend."
"Loser, Loser " I can tell hear those words.
"Don't you dare show me your face again Hamasaki " Akio voice echo in my ear.
"Why does this only happen to me??" Tears began to spill over. "Not only when I was kind, but even now that I'm not... I still end up like this!!"
I sat up, the dam finally breaking. I started sobbing, unable to stop. "Why! Why! Why!"
"Did you catch him...?" Emi's voice trailed off as she and the others burst onto the roof. She saw me sitting on the ground, crying like a broken child.
"What did you do to him?" she asked Sora immediately.
"You're the one who told me to defend my self if he tried to hit me!!" Sora argued back.
Emi ignored him, slowly approaching me.
"Hey, Tamotsu... stop crying and listen to me."
"Why? Why does it have to be me? I hate it!" I muttered, my voice thick with grief. "Mother... you were wrong. Kindness didn't bring anything good for me!!"
"What are you talking about?" Emi asked, reaching out.
"What's wrong Tamotsu-kun?"
But I scrambled to my feet, my eyes glassy and dark. "I hate this cruel world, Mother."
I turned and ran toward the edge. They thought I was just going for the view, but I didn't stop. I began to climb the small safety wall that prevented students from falling.
"I hate it!!" I yelled at the sky.
I looked down at the four-story drop, my heart empty of everything but the desire for it all to finally be quiet.
"There isn't a place for a loser like me in this world" I was about to take my next step, stepping into thin air.
"Mother.... I'm coming to you now"
""""Tamotsu...Stop!!!""""