The Way We Are (part 8 of 20)

One Step Closer

Even though I wasn’t acting like it, I still considered Shizuru to be my friend. I always considered her to be my friend, my only one actually. Nothing would change that. Even if we never spoke to each other again, which I sincerely hoped wouldn’t be the case, she would always hold a very dear place in my heart. I hoped, prayed really, that one day when all this First District and Hime stuff was over with and out of the way that we’d be able to pick up where we left off. But I didn’t know if that time would ever come, or when it finally did, if I would even be alive.

Needless to say, I continued looking into the First District, gathering information from both Yamada and some other sources that I had hired. We were still slowly crawling closer and closer to the organization, but we certainly had a ways to go, not to mention that there were quite a few major pieces of the puzzle still missing. To say that it wasn’t frustrating would be a complete lie, but the little steps we were taking managed to keep me sane.

One thing that wasn’t helping my sanity was school. Studying for my end of term exams was stressful, especially since it was being piled on top of all the other things I had going on. I did, however, put it as my top priority for the time being. I couldn’t afford to get behind another year in school… that would just be flat out embarrassing. Well, not just embarrassing, but it would also look bad on my part. Even though I was currently dealing with the First District and other things that were totally off the wall, a part of me still continued to cling on to the slight hope that one day I would resume a normal life. And if I was to have a normal life, a good education was important. I think that was my main motivation when it came to my schooling. I would squeeze by, even if it nearly killed me in the process.

During this time, Shizuru and I didn’t talk too much. We didn’t talk at all really. Every now and then we’d run into each other at school, merely exchanging awkward hellos and the occasional wave. She always smiled though, that same sweet smile, but something seemed…off. I could usually read how she was feeling no matter what kind of mask she had on to hide her true emotions, but lately I noticed that it was becoming more difficult to do so. Granted the times we did see each other were quite brief, but still…Had she changed that much since I was last around her? It wasn’t totally out of the question, but it certainly did trouble me, which is probably why I was currently trying to hunt her down.

It was a Friday morning, the bell had already rung and I should have been in my first period class, but instead I was hanging around the high school girl’s locker room waiting for a certain brunette to appear from the doorway. I remained out of sight as I watched one after the other of Shizuru’s classmates leave the changing room. When she finally emerged, I was quick to make my presence known, turning the corner to lean against the wall, arms crossed.

“You sure did take you’re sweet time in there.”

“It’s my job as class representative to be the last one out,” she began as she waved a small key in the air, “I have to lock the door.”

“I see,” I simply responded, hanging on to every slight deviation of her strong Kyoto accent. It had been such a long time since I’d heard her soothing voice…Was it possible to miss it this much?

“So why has Natsuki graced me with her presence this Friday morning? After such a long time…” Shizuru continued, turning her back to me to place the key in the knob.

“It’s about that actually…”

“Oh?”

The familiar ‘thunk’ of the lock sounded, breaking the silence before she turned to face me once again. Since the weather had warmed up, the high school P.E. classes were now currently swimming during that period. Shizuru was adorned in the typical blue one-piece swimsuit, along with her blue and white Fuuka Academy jacket that she left open. She also carried a small tote bag with her, which I assumed contained the usual swimming necessities.

This was the first time I had seen Shizuru so…exposed, for lack of a better term. Her skin was lightly tanned from spending many class periods outside. She was curvier than I was, a perfect hourglass shape. She…had a nice body. Shizuru was in decent shape, granted she wasn’t as conditioned as me, but I sincerely doubted that many girls our age were. Not that I expected her to be. It wasn’t like she had a reason to, plus I don’t think most girls aimed for the whole toned-muscle look. This just proved once again that Shizuru was quite the opposite of me; she was soft and sensual, and absolutely stunning, something you couldn’t entirely perceive when you simply saw her in her school uniform.

“Ara…Natsuki looking at me so intently is making me blush…” the crimson-eyed girl playfully teased, pulling her jacket together at the chest and successfully snapping me out of my daze.

“W-What?! N-No!”

My long lost friends red cheek one and red cheek two returned. It seemed we were slipping into our same old routine already.

Shizuru’s familiar chuckling tickled my ears and I couldn’t help but smile slightly, “So, I assume you’ve been well?”

“As well as one can be, I suppose. And you?”

“I’ve been alright.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

I pushed myself off the wall, squaring up to her yet maintaining the same distance, “Hey, Shizuru?”

“Yes?”

“We’re okay…right?”

“Whatever does Natsuki mean?”

I looked deeply into her crimson eyes.

You know what I mean.

She let out a small sigh, tilting her head slightly, “I would like to think so. What about you?”

“Yeah, I just…wanted to make sure is all…”

At that, she smiled her genuine smile, my smile, “Then that’s that.”

She paused for a moment, her smile fading, “Although I would like to apologize for the last time we talked…I—“

I knew what she was implying immediately.

“Mmh, no, don’t worry about it. I wish you had hit me harder actually,” I added with a laugh.

A familiar devious smirk, “Alright then.”

“H-Huh?”

Before I could even react, Shizuru was right in front of me. I watched as she reared her arm back, and I instinctively shut my eyes anticipating the impending strike. However it wasn’t a painful smack that came, instead it was a pair of warm and slightly wet lips quickly pecking me on the cheek. My hand immediately shot up to the spot.

“Hey!” I yelled at her as she pranced away, giggling like a child with a victorious little grin on her face. I could feel my face reddening, “Shizuru!”

“I should really be off to class now, and so should Natsuki, ne?” she practically singed.

Defeated yet again, I waved her off, “Bah! Fine...Baka!”

“Goodbye, Natsuki!”

I watched as the girl trotted off to catch up with her classmates, my angered expression losing out to a small smile as I stood there simply reveling in the fact that Shizuru and my friendship was still quite intact, albeit on a small level, even after all this time.

And for now, that was all that I needed to know.

“Wow, good job Miss Fujino, that’s been the best time for the entire class all week!”

As I emerged from the water, I heard my teacher profess this, which in turn triggered a quiet eruption of ‘oohs’ and ‘aahs’ from my fellow classmates who were watching her write down my lap time.

A happy little grin spread across my face.

How could I not have the best time after just seeing my Natsuki? And I stole a kiss from her on top of that…

Well, to solely credit my astounding time to my elation of being with Natsuki earlier wouldn’t be completely correct. Lately it seemed that my body was…stronger, more athletic, than usual. It was strange. I hadn’t been doing anything different…and I hadn’t changed my diet at all, not that I ate much junk food anyways. I did exercise here and there when I got the chance, but I hadn’t been increasing my time any. The only thing that was different about me was a small red mark that had appeared on my left side right above my hip. I didn’t know where it came from; it practically sprung up overnight a few months ago from what I could tell. Was it a cut or a burn? No, it didn’t hurt when I touched it. A birth mark maybe? That was out of the question since it had just appeared. I tried scraping at it, but nothing happened. It was like a tattoo imbedded into my skin, and there was nothing I could do about it. Not knowing what it was or where it came from, I simply chose to ignore it for the time being since it wasn’t causing me any harm, but I would certainly keep my eye on it.

As I pulled myself out of the pool, I heard a distinctive ‘humph’ from above me. I looked up to see a sturdy blonde-haired girl peering down at me, hands crossed over her chest.

“I didn’t take you for a swimmer, Fujino.”

Suzushiro Haruka, daughter of the man who built our very school. She was loudmouthed and hotheaded, and could get relatively annoying in a very short amount of time, but for the most part, I didn’t have a problem with her. She, however, seemed to have a problem with me as of late, which was probably on account of our running against each other for President of the Student Council.

“I’m not, Suzushiro-san. I suppose I just got lucky today,” I replied as calm as ever, like what I had done was nothing special.

That should do it…

I watched her eyes flare and twitch slightly as her mouth contorted into a small frown. I could practically see the steam shooting out of her ears as she stormed off in her boorish manner. Irritating Haruka was just about as easy as teasing Natsuki, granted it wasn’t nearly as fun, but it would do for now.

Walking over to one of the covered benches, I opened my bag and took out my towel to begin drying off. It is about at this time when a group of my classmates quickly surrounded me.

“What did Suzushiro-san say to you, Fujino-san? Something mean?” one of the girls inquired, whispering behind her hand as she glanced over at the blonde in question.

“Nothing out of the ordinary,” I replied as I continued removing the water from my body.

“Rumor has it you’re going to slaughter her in the elections, there’s no doubt she’s heard it too,” another girl piped in.

“That might be true,” I began as I sat down, removing my swimming cap to release my tousles of light brown hair, “but I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.”

“Everybody already knows you have the position, nobody’s dumb enough to put her in charge.”

“Ara, that’s a cruel thing to say…Miss Suzushiro seems like a very hard worker to me.”

“I’m sorry for sounding harsh, Fujino-san, and it may be true that Suzushiro-san is very determined because her father built the school, but that doesn’t mean we want her as our Seitokaichou. You’ll fulfill the role much better.”

A collective agreement sounded throughout the group of girls causing a small smile to form on my face, “Thank you. I hope you’re right.”

I’ve never thought of it that way…Suzushiro-san just might come in handy…

Before my brain could continue it’s plotting, my thoughts were interrupted by the screeching whistle of my teacher, her voice commanding us to head back inside. Grabbing my bag, I began walking back towards the school.

This could work out even better than I thought.

On the first day of the new school year, I awoke and immediately went to my closet, removing the new uniform I was to wear, a welcome change from the adolescent sailor outfit I had become accustomed to. Unzipping the cloth protector, I peered down at the orangey-yellow jacket on my bed. Unbuttoning the jacket, I removed it from the hanger to reveal the white blouse we were to wear underneath. Snarling slightly, I threw the thing to the other side of the bed before returning to my closet, taking out my white long sleeved hooded shirt. I slipped the thing on before shrugging into my jacket, deciding to leave it unbuttoned. After I pulled on my tan skirt, a pair of gray socks and my tennis shoes, I downed a quick bowl of cereal before grabbing my helmet and brown leather school bag and heading out the door.

I sat through class after class totally and perpetually bored. I don’t really know why I felt like I needed to be here on the first day, it wasn’t like anything ever happened, but then again it was probably a good idea to confirm to my teachers that I was indeed on their roll sheet.

I skipped lunch to go on a little joyride on my bike. I had been feeling antsy spending all day inside, so it certainly felt good to go out and get some fresh air. Unfortunately I got back a tad bit late and ended up missing my last few classes of the day, and to make up for that, I spent the rest of the afternoon lounging under my usual tree. It was right outside my classroom so I could hear the lessons…Well, I would have if I had chose to actually pay attention.

At the sound of the bell, I waited until the main wave of students came rushing out of the school before venturing inside, making my way to the second floor. The door to the student council room was already open when I approached. It didn’t appear that anyone else was there, and when I peeked inside the door I only confirmed this. The only figure was a certain chestnut-haired girl currently sitting at the desk in the front of the room, sipping a cup of tea while gazing at the screen of her laptop.

I leaned against the doorframe, quietly watching her for a moment. The girl was clad in a new colored uniform to show her position as Kaichou, a tan jacket and a dark gray skirt, but she sported it just as amazingly as she had the old one. I honestly doubt that anyone in the school could look as good in our uniform as Shizuru did. She just had a way of looking beautiful no matter what she was wearing. I took in the sight before finally making my presence known.

“Congratulations on being elected, Shizuru.”

She gasped at the initial sound of my voice, turning her head to look at me before changing her slightly shocked expression back into her usual placid one, “Thank you, Natsuki.”

“I’m sure you’ve been hearing that all day, huh?” I questioned as I made my way further inside, taking a seat on top of the desk.

“True, but to hear it come from Natsuki is what makes me truly happy.”

I rolled my eyes at her as I continued, “Seriously though, I never would have taken you for one striving for power.”

“Ara, why is it that everyone attributes that to me?” Can I not simply want to help and be involved with my school?”

“Well, anyway, it is certainly better than having that bossy blonde in charge, but...”

“Hmm? What?”

“Eh…it’s nothing,” I replied.

But maybe this seems a little unlike you…

Sure, Shizuru had been a class representative last year, but that was something entirely different from being President of the Student Council. She was now the most powerful and influential student in the school, and along with that came a lot of work and responsibility. Not that she couldn’t handle it, I guess I just couldn’t understand why she, or anyone for that matter, would want to do it.

The crimson-eyed girl must have noticed my internal debate as she interrupted my thoughts with her sweet Kyoto-ben.

“How about we think about more important things? Such as the fact that the Seitokaichou’s access to the school’s intranet is quite superior to that of a regular student for instance…”

My heart jumped in excitement at her words before they really began to sink in, causing me to stiffen as my eyes widened, “No…it can’t be…Shizuru, you didn’t…just because I said…”

“What do you mean?” she asked me, head tilting to the side ever so slightly.

“I…well…because I said I wanted to investigate…about the school,” I managed to mumble out.

The initial response I received was completely unexpected.

She laughed.

Fujino Shizuru laughed out loud, and I mean really laughed, something totally not in character for the Kyoto native. At least not the one I knew.

“Sh-Shizuru!”

She waved one hand at me while the other attempted to stop her laughter, “Gomen…I’m sorry, but for Natsuki to say such a thing…so amusing…”

I merely squinted at her until she finally regained control of herself enough to continue.

“It is true that I will do many things for Natsuki, but to bear the weight of Seitokaichou is a little much, ne?”

“Well, y-yeah…”

“This is something I chose to do on my own, a challenge of sorts. Besides, it will help when applying for college and work as well, so Natsuki shouldn’t worry about using my position for her needs if it is readily available to her.”

Standing, Shizuru took a step away from her chair and motioned for me to sit. I eyed her warily at first, but after she reassured me with a nod and a smile I consented. Scooting up a little, I stared at Shizuru’s new toy. Would I really be able to find my answers with this? I surely hoped so, or at least, I hoped it would help me get closer to the answers I sought or the people who had them.

“Let me enter the password, it’ll only take a moment.”

Shizuru leaned forward, her arms stretching over my shoulders to reach the keyboard. I could feel her soft breasts press into my back, but I was far too preoccupied with the laptop to think twice about it.

“There. The password is fuuka1219. You can remember that, can’t you?” her voice whispered into my ear.

“Mmh,” came my speedy response.

“Then it’s all yours. Take your time, I just have some paper work to do for now,” she stated, straightening in posture.

“Thanks, Shizuru.”

Before the girl walked off, I could have sworn I felt a soft, stealthily quick pressure on the top of my head. I didn’t even notice Shizuru move until I saw her sit down at one of the other tables in the room and pull out a stack of papers to busy herself with for I was too engrossed with the screen flashing with names, words and numbers.

Finally…just a little while longer, mother. I will find the ones responsible for your death…I promise.