Smack!
"Hey! Shirogane, I want an explanation!"
"Momo… calm down a bit."
It was early morning in the student council office. Momo Ryuju barged in and slammed the table in front of Miyuki Shirogane.
Takamine hadn't shown up on the rooftop the afternoon of the incident. Although puzzled, she had no way to contact him. Soon after, her club members told her he was suspended for fighting.
Knowing about Ogino from Takamine, she spent the whole day digging into Ogino's background. The next day, she marched into the student council with the evidence in hand.
"How am I supposed to calm down?! Takamine may be part of your council, but he's also a member of the astronomy club. You didn't even try to resolve this?!"
"I've been investigating, too… but haven't found much yet."
"Seriously, even after becoming president, your efficiency hasn't improved."
She tossed a USB drive onto the desk.
"That Ogino guy has serious issues. He's hurt a lot of girls over the years."
While she ranted, Shirogane plugged the USB into his laptop.
"He's been like this since middle school."
"I see. The problem now is that the violence is confirmed," Shirogane said, troubled. "We'll have to use the student council's influence to minimize the fallout."
"Best case would be getting Ogino to confess in person," Ryuju frowned. "But when my dad's people went to the hospital in Minato Ward yesterday, he wasn't there. Could he have escaped?"
"Momo… Have you considered another possibility?"
"What?"
"That Takamine already figured everything out and deliberately kept it quiet," Shirogane analyzed. "And Ogino is probably already under his control."
"…That's definitely possible. He's capable of that," she pouted. "I told him I'd handle it, but no, he had to get his hands dirty."
"Anyway, I'll use the council to suppress the public side of this. You use your network to control the student rumors."
"You don't need to tell me that."
Hearing her reply, Shirogane nodded and took out the phone Takamine had given him.
"Well… I'll check in with him directly."
"Wait."
"What?"
"You have his number?"
"Yeah, we exchanged contacts for work," Shirogane said, confused. "You don't?"
"…I forgot to ask."
In all of Japan, only Sagara Kaya and Shirogane Miyuki had Takamine's contact info. He had only shared it with the two of them.
Bzzz~
Just then, Shirogane's phone buzzed. Seeing Takamine's name on the screen, he immediately answered.
"Hello? Takamine, where are you right now… Oh, we were just talking about this… Hmm, hmm… I see. You already have a plan? Alright… no problem."
His lips curled into a smile.
"So, you already have a plan. Go ahead. The student council will take care of the rest."
The call ended.
"What did he say?"
"Takamine seems to have his own solution," Shirogane smiled. "We just need to handle our part."
---
"That Takamine guy is too much. He's not even a proper student…"
"It's such a shame about Ogino. He's such a great guy. Kyoko, you must be worried about him."
"Yeah, I asked at the hospital yesterday. The doctor said he was transferred to a larger hospital. He hasn't replied to my texts either. He must be seriously hurt."
Kyoko Ootomo sat worriedly, chatting with her classmates.
"It's all that psycho Takamine's fault!"
"Why does the school let people like that in?"
As everyone badmouthed Takamine, Ishigami sat at his desk clenching his fists, nails digging into his palms.
He wanted to shout that Ogino was the real scumbag, that Takamine didn't even throw the first punch—that he did.
But before leaving school, Takamine had warned him not to do anything unnecessary, so he forced himself to endure.
But his patience was wearing thin.
"Ishigami must feel terrible, too."
Shut up.
"Yeah, he tried to stop the fight and got punched for no reason."
Shut up!!
"They were always hanging out together. I can't believe Takamine turned on his friend like that. Total psycho!"
Shut the hell up already!!
Ishigami's eyes turned bloodshot from holding it in.
"Ishigami, there you are."
"…Huh?"
Lifting his hollow eyes, he saw Kyoko Ootomo standing in front of him.
"Thanks for yesterday, Ishigami."
"…No…"
"Takamine was way too rough. I don't know why the school only suspended him for a week. He's dangerous—please don't hang around him when he comes back…"
Bang!
Ishigami suddenly slammed the desk and stood up, startling all the students around him.
"I-Ishigami-san?"
Startled by the loud noise, Kyoko Otomo instinctively took a step back and looked in confusion at Ishigami, whose eyes were now sharp and cold.
This wasn't at all the Ishigami Yu she remembered.
"You... Do you think you're able to sit here, smiling like an idiot and chatting with your classmates, all because of your own ability?"
"Huh?"
"Hey, Ishigami, what's gotten into you—"
"Out of my way!"
Seeing the surrounding classmates start to gather around in confusion, he shouted, stopping them in their tracks.
"..."
Ishigami glanced at the confused faces around him, then silently grabbed his schoolbag and walked out of the classroom without looking back.
He didn't want to stay in this class any longer.