Whispers
(Akane's PoV)
—
After reading her messages, my grip on the phone tightened unconsciously.
My mind decided to completely ignore everything regarding Shin's parents and to focus on the last message.
'She really told me to buy mochi for him. I don't know if I should feel jealousy or pity.' I thought. 'I just pray to God that she won't overstep, because I don't know how I'll react.'
After staring at that text for a few more—almost infinite—seconds, I finally replied.
Akane: "Yeah. Everything is under control. Don't worry."
Akane: "About his parents, I'll be straight: don't let them come here before the school festival. Shin has been really busy lately."
Akane: "Plus. You should rest and sleep."
The blue 'seen' double-checks came almost instantly.
"Kurone is typing..."
Kurone: "Thank God he's fine... Take care of him, please. I'll also tell you a secret: one of his wishes was to go to the beach. So... if you want, my family owns a private house in Okinawa. I can talk with my mother so that you two could go there together for free."
Kurone: "About his parents... okay. I'll talk with my mother about this, too. Thank you, Akane. Have a good day at school. I'm currently catching up on video lessons. See you!"
These messages stunned me even more.
I blinked multiple times and pinched my cheek to make sure that I wasn't dreaming, and then my fingers moved automatically.
Akane: "Okinawa sounds nice, but let's focus on other things now, okay?"
Akane: "Now just rest, don't torture yourself with those lessons, please."
Akane: "And about Shin's parents, please, let's talk about this next week."
I then stared at our chat for a few moments and noticed that Kurone hadn't even seen the message. And if the checks don't turn blue within three seconds, she puts the phone away.
'That girl...' I sighed before putting my phone back in my bag.
Then, after taking a look around me and realizing that I was the only one standing there like an idiot, I started walking to my class. The top-tier class in the school, full of people who like looking down on other students as if they were a lower life form.
The saddest part of that class was that almost everyone there came from rich families, and studying hard was the only way to earn their families' approval.
'Tch— Let's waste another day...' I sighed before stretching my arms and walking toward my class.
The walk was pretty 'peaceful' in some ways. The school corridors were empty, and only a few students were walking and whispering strange things my tired brain couldn't understand.
But when I was about to turn the corner to reach my class, I heard my name being spoken by someone. A girl.
"Chiaki... have you heard about that? People are saying that Ishikawa Shin from class 3-C and Takanashi Akane are living together! Someone saw them! So indecent!" That was the voice of Mayumi Nakarita, one of my classmates. Someone whom I never interacted with. And someone who was about to receive a drop kick.
"Yeah... I've heard that... but there's more—" The other girl—Chiaki—said, lowering her voice. Judging from the footsteps, she was about to whisper something big.
I clenched my fists, fighting the urge to go in and literally tell them to mind their fuckin' business, but I managed to remain calm.
"A friend of mine from Ishikawa's class told me that the untouchable Sora Fujimoto has fallen for him, and another one said that they are secretly dating, too! Come on! It can't be a fake rumor! They are always together with the excuse of the school festival! Poor Akane..." Chiaki said, with a tone so casual that it made my blood boil.
"Ah! I also heard this stuff, you know? I've actually heard that they even kissed!"
My eyes widened, and my body started shaking slightly. I was about to snap.
How could someone be so disgusting as to spread these kinds of lies?
"WHAT?! YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS, MAYUMI!" Chiaki exclaimed, trying to contain her voice. "Well... I don't blame the president, to be honest..."
"Well... Ishikawa is pretty attractive, isn't he? Totally my type. Moreover, I don't think that he should stay with Akane... They are too different... and she doesn't deserve a cheater. No girl deserves a cheater." Mayumi said.
"Cheater? I don't think that their relationship was good to begin with..." Chiaki sighed.
"What do you mean?" Mayumi asked.
"Mhhh... He got his crush stolen by the soccer team star in front of everyone, and he directly went to Takanashi almost immediately after getting dumped..." She sighed again. "Poor girl... I wouldn't—"
That was it. I couldn't hear more of that bullshit.
I stomped my feet hard against the concrete, enough to make sure that those two could hear me.
The noise of their voices had immediately stopped, and after a few instants, I turned the corner.
I hid my fists in the pockets of my hoodie, and then walked closer to them, slowly, analyzing every single movement of their bodies.
'Making a scene outside the class would only be a problem.' I thought.
Those two were looking at me with the same face as someone who got caught stealing.
They had a fake smile on their faces, quickly changing the topic of their conversation.
Once I was close enough, Chiaki was the first to speak.
"G-Good morning, Takanashi. How are you?" She asked, her voice polite but disgusting at the same time.
Mayumi immediately followed her.
"Hello, Takanashi! I hope you're ready for today's test! We were just discussing the possible questions we could find..." She scratched the back of her head.
When I walked past them, I stopped, but I didn't look back.
I stood silent for a few instants that seemed like an eternity.
"Yeah, everything was fine until two minutes ago," I spoke coldly, before locking my gaze into Mayumi's. "You just made me remember about today's test, and I'm really, really pissed off now. You should speak louder next time, you know? Or, tell me directly."
Both of them immediately lowered their gaze and didn't speak any other word.
And then, silently, I walked into my classroom.
As soon as I stepped inside, a strange sense of uneasiness invaded me. The atmosphere was different.
Every student looked at me, then immediately shifted their gaze away. I was surprised.
I thought that the elite class didn't care about gossip, but I was wrong.
Everything that Chiaki and Mayumi said to each other was probably only a glimpse of a bigger thing, and the way everyone avoided my gaze was confirming this theory.
'Not that I care about those idiots knowing that Shin and I are living together, but I'm curious to know who could say something like that. Daiki? Don't think so. Kenji? Nah, he's too busy.' I thought before sitting at my desk. 'But now that I think about it, I wonder if a stupid rumor like that might have consequences in this class... mh...'
All these thoughts were immediately cut short by the arrival of Matsuro-sensei, our main teacher.
"Good morning, everyone," He said, his voice gentle but tired.
"Good morning, sensei!" Everyone spoke in unison before standing up, like a robotic choir.
"Take your seats, please—" He said, sitting at his desk, while everyone in our class followed.
My gaze landed on Kurone's empty seat, and I couldn't help but sigh.
"Takanashi," Matsuro-sensei called me, and everyone's eyes immediately fell on me.
"Yes, Matsuro-sensei?" I said, smiling politely.
"I'll be really short," He said, clearing his throat. "The first thing is that I have to speak with you privately after the lesson. It's something important for you and for this school as the best student."
My eyes widened a little. That was clearly unexpected.
"Yes, Matsuro-sensei," I bowed my head. "Anything else?"
"The second question is about Tsugikawa Kurone. Do you have any news from her? I've heard from some students that you two were close friends. I'm asking because I'd like for you to send her the topics of today's lesson." He said, pulling out a math book from his bag.
"Tsugikawa Kurone is ill right now, and she'll be absent until next week. That's all I can say about her," I said, still maintaining my polite tone. "And about the lesson, I will personally send all the material to her."
Matsuro-sensei smiled.
"Perfect. Thank you, Takanashi." He said.
I bowed my head and then sat down.
'I have a bad feeling about today...'