The next morning came, and unlike the first, it was much quieter than usual. The girls got ready in a normal manner, not running around or throwing random objects at me. I know I might regret saying this, but it felt strange; a calmness filled the room, and none of the girls spoke much. The occasional weird question from Nao was the only thing that kept me from feeling completely weirded out.
"Um, hey…" I murmured as Yuki put on her shoes.
"What?" she replied.
"Is everything okay?" I asked. Yuki blinked.
"Of course I am. Apart from some trauma, I guess. But enough about me. The girls are doing some rehearsals, and I heard the boys are too, so go learn your lines, dork."
Sure. If you guys weren't being so weird... Something about how calm she was being made my chest tighten ever so slightly.
"Yeah, Souta, shoo shoo! We will be okay. There's nothing for us to worry about; we're going to be with the teachers all day anyway, so just go and practice."
She turned around and began to walk out the door along with the other girls, before looking back.
"The last thing I need is a nervous prince who doesn’t know his own lines," she said before she and the others left the room.
"Sure..." I muttered, not loud enough for her to hear, as I watched the door close, the quiet settling back in, and somehow, that scared me more than the noise.
***
Soon after the girls had left, I made my way through the halls until I reached one of the theater rooms. The room itself wasn't really anything special; it was just a large space with mirrors on the back wall. A couple of chairs and tables had been set out in the middle back of the room. The moment I walked in, I saw the seats were empty, and the room was filled with guys from my class and some from nearby classes, all laughing, shouting, and having too much fun.
Most of them I knew weren't part of the play so why they were here made no sense at all to me. Among them was Shinji's group of friends, but let's be honest, Subaru and Felix were fine. It's just that guy I'm scared of.
"SOUTA, MY MAN! COME HERE!" Shinji shouted, waving like a madman.
I need new friends who aren't female. Would I even consider the sisters as friends? Most likely not.
"NGH!" I cried out as Shinji came barreling toward me, not caring about almost dislocating my shoulder.
"SO! BRO! BEFORE WE EVEN START OUR PLAY, WE MUST DO A RITUAL!!" He shouted, as the group of guys surrounded us, forming a circle.
"What? Who are we sacrificing?" I asked, slightly fearing for my life.
"Heheheh!" Shinji began laughing as he jumped back from me.
Right… This feels like I’m in some gladiator coliseum. The crowd around me began cheering and murmuring as something soft hit my back.
"A pillow?" I murmured to myself, turning around.
"Indeed, Souta, my man! This is the sacred tradition of the pillow fighting arts!" he said, narrowing his eyes at me.
"The pillow what? Do you just mean a pillow fight?"
"NO! FOOLISH MORTAL! THIS IS A SACRED ART! DO NOT CALL IT 'JUST' A PILLOW FIGHT!"
"Yeah, fool!"
"What an idiot! Doesn't he know what this is?!"
What the flying fu-
What is wrong with these people?
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
"FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!" Was the only thing I heard from all sides. The sound of angry primates shouting reached my ears as Shinji received his pillow.
"HA! Souta, it seems we're now going to duel it out till the death!" he shouted, a crazed look beginning to form in his eyes.
"Bro… It's just a pil-" I stopped. Not because Shinji shouted at me or because the crowd told me to shut up, but because it was something much more terrifying.
"W-what the..." I muttered, my eyes widening.
Something about the way he stood made my stomach tighten. Too low. Too balanced. I’d seen that posture before, or at least, something close to it.
“For a split second, a stupid thought crossed my mind. No. That’s impossible.”
"Hehehe! It is me! And I shall defeat you!" he shouted, and for a split second, I forgot it was a joke.
Bang!
WATOOSH!
The gentle yet not-so-gentle hits of the pillow came in a rush. Each time I tried to dodge, I failed miserably.
"DIE, FIEND! HAAHAH!"
"YEAH, GET HIM!"
"RIP HIM A NEW ONE!!!"
This is bad. If Shinji is really the stalker, I need to tell the teachers, but I can’t if I’m stuck in this ridiculous, I mean, ritual with the stalker. Each hit forced me closer to the corner of the makeshift arena, every blow granting that stalker a victory he didn't deserve.
I can't lose. Not when my pride is on the line. Not when this guy is the one causing me to go bald.
I WILL NOT LOSE!
"AHHHHH!" With all my courage and a mighty roar, I burst out from the corner of the pillow-filled battleground with a barrage of pure pillow power.
"GUM GUM PILLOW GATLING!!!!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, giving it my all in an attempt to activate my inner second gear.
“…”
"…"
“What the hell is this guy doing? He’s not hitting anything?” A voice murmured.
Then I realized that in my effort to activate second gear, I had closed my eyes to truly feel the steam surging from my body as I swung aimlessly. Because of that, I didn’t notice Shinji had sidestepped and was now staring at me as if I were on some sort of drugs.
“Souta?” Shinji muttered, confusion clouding his expression.
“Ummm.” I mumbled as I felt the weight of everyone’s gaze upon me.
“D-don’t look at me like that!” I shouted, pointing an accusatory finger at Shinji, who furrowed his brow in bewilderment.
“Ey?” he replied.
“Y-you’ve just admitted it! You’re the stalker!” I cried out, panic creeping into my voice.
The moment those words slipped from my lips, Shinji’s expression shifted.
“Huh? Stalker? What are you talking about, bro?” he asked, genuinely puzzled.
“You know, the guy who’s been stalking Yuki! You’re him! You just admitted it!” I shouted, my voice rising in urgency.
“Stalker?”
“Yo, I can’t believe Shinji’s a weirdo!”
“Stalker, Yuki? That’s not cool!”
Murmurs rippled through the crowd as I observed the sheer confusion imprinted on Shinji's face, and for just a second, something else. Hurt, maybe. But then it was gone, suddenly morphing into a smirk.
“BRO! I was just speaking like that because I thought we were role playing! Of course I’m not Yuki’s stalker; sure, she’s a total 10 out of 10 bombshell, but come on, dude! I could never do that to her and put my BFF through so much trouble!” he protested, sincerity lacing his words.
Yet something deep within me felt uncertain. Perhaps it was the truth, but I couldn't be sure.
“Oh… I see. Sorry about that; I guess the whole thing's been taking a toll on me,” I replied, letting out a dry chuckle.
Shinji blinked and then smiled, walking over to slap my shoulder with enough force that I could have sworn I heard a crack.
“It’s alright, broski. I mean, if that’s what you’ve been dealing with, I hope they pay you double. And if you need anything, just let me know.”
“Sure, thanks,” I sighed, but my turn in this makeshift human coliseum wasn’t over yet.
“Now, aside from that, you fought well, Souta, even unleashing your special gum-gum whatchamacallit.”
“Shinji, the way you say it makes me sound like an idiot.”
“Anyway, I may have been bested in this duel, but there’s another challenger who wants to fight you!” Shinji shouted.
Another challenger? My gaze shifted toward the door as the line of boys parted, revealing yet another one of Shinji’s friends.
“Subaru?” I muttered.
Subaru, usually the silent type, now had fire in his eyes, clutching his pillow as if it were a cherished stuffed animal. For a second, I could've sworn he was staring past me, like he was imagining something else entirely."
"I will win this! After all, you promised me I could meet Yuki!" His voice cracked slightly on her name.
(Which I absolutely did not.)
“YEAHHHHHHH! LET’S GOO, SUBARU!” Shinji and the other boys cheered.
Meet Yuki? …What am I, her legal guardian now?
“You do realize you can just say hi to her, right? She doesn’t bite… Well, if you’re lucky.”
Subaru shook his head. “True, but if you introduce me and tell her how amazing I am, maybe she’ll see me as more than just some random guy!” Subaru declared as he marched to the center of the room.
“What the fu-”
“You guys are all insane,” I muttered as the frantic cries of teenagers erupted around me.
“SUBARU!
“SUBARU!
“SUBARU!
The chants roared on, everyone rallying behind Subaru.
And here I was with Shinji. I think.
His smile faltered slightly as he whispered into my ear, “Yo, dude, you know I’m with you. No way I’m letting Subaru get Yuki. Just… don’t lose, yeah?”
"Yeah... Sure." I replied, not liking the way that sounded.
“Gomen-nasai, sensei,” he said, bowing before stepping back.
“You jackass,” I muttered, now armed with a brand-new pillow, ready to face a new opponent, one I didn’t know well, yet one who had somehow been rallied into a fight for a promise I never made…
DeadEndYuto.
