28 Chapter three, 2016, beginnings: 3 (1/2)

”I don't understand why she hasn't responded. I mean, if she wasn't interested in the club she could just have said so.”

'Club? Oh, it's you two!' Kyoko looked at the backsides in front of her and closer to the gym hall. She was looking for somewhere to sit outside the cafeteria. Kuri-chan and Noriko-chan, no you prefer being called Nori-chan, would join her in a few moments.

She found a bench wide enough to house three in the shade outside the school cafeteria. Both wings flanked the area and great canvas sails strung to the walls gave protection from both sun and rain.

”Sorry, but I gave her the letter, OK?” Matsumoto-san's back moved when he shrugged, and so did his short hair at the nape of his neck.

”My bad. I apologise. Should have handled that myself,” the taller of them said.

Behind them Kyoko reddened. 'Please, don't let them know I'm here!' She wiped the bench clean and sat down with her lunch in her lap. It was one of the occasions when a uniform skirt was better than trousers. The boys needed to carry trays to place on their legs.

”Don't worry man. If I'd known she was worse than blondie I'd kept quiet. I decided to confess, so that's my fault, not yours.” Resigned irritation tinged Matsumoto-san's voice, but it wasn't all that surprising that he hated her.

'They're talking about me. I'm embarrassed! I'm eavesdropping! What would father think if he knew?'

”Disagree. I bet if I hadn't made you drag Christina into it things would have turned out better.” Hamarugen-san said; because he was a name now and not merely 'the geek from 6:1'. Then he slapped his friend on the back.

It was one of the boyish expressions of affection Kyoko just couldn't understand. The slap was hard enough to hurt.

Even sitting down he was very much the taller of the two, and Kyoko could, in a detached way, understand why she had been drawn to him first. But he had that awful hairdo glued to his head, and that combined with what he had made Matsumoto-san go through extinguished whatever feelings she had once harboured for him.

”Ko-chan, there you are. I thought we'd never find you. Look, there's...”

”Shush, quiet, Kuri-chan!” Kyoko hastily slapped her hand to her mouth and beckoned her friends to sit down in silence.

Kuri-chan gave her a startled look. Then she must have recognised the boys Kyoko eavesdropped on and nodded. Noriko-cha… Nori-chan took her seat in silence as well and gave both backsides in front of them a sullen stare.

'Poor kid. You have it bad. I'm over him already, but you've got that bug real bad.'

”Who cares? Maybe it's better this way. At least I know what she's like when things don't go her way,” Matsumoto-san said, and his voice turned hoarse.

That hurt, but Kyoko guessed she deserved it. She had behaved poorly.

Kuri-chan gave her a look full of questions. Kyoko nodded back. The two of them didn't need words to confirm something this obvious.

It felt a bit funny, sitting like this squeezed into the middle. To her left the amazingly tall and slender object of admiration she had made into her best friend. To her right the petite sister of the prince of Himekaizen Academy, and she was cute enough in her own way with her short haircut matching her small body. That left her, Kyoko, as the odd one out with her chubby frame.

”Don't be like that. I'd be pissed off like hell if a girl made me look like Ryu's tool,” Hamarugen-san suggested in what was a poorly disguised attempt to put the blame on himself.

Nori-chan looked up, but Kyoko grabbed her hand to keep her silent. ”Yes, that's why we just listen,” she whispered to Nori-chan.

It was a peculiar sensation sitting with her friends in silence listening to someone else's conversation. 'We really are eavesdropping now. This is so improper, but I want to know.'

”Yukio, I'm really, really sorry. I'll treat you Fridays for the rest of the month. And I'll try to find a way to patch things over,” Hamarugen-san said, and Kyoko could hear in his voice that he really did feel guilty about what had happened.

'Yes, please do!' she thought.

”You know, I'm not certain I can afford any more help from you.” Kyoko could almost hear Matsumoto-san grinning widely. Maybe he wasn't as angry as their conversation led her to believe.

”Man!” Hamarugen-san said, and they both laughed. ”Coffee?”

”Yeah, with milk.”

Hamarugen-san handed a can over to his friend. Kyoko heard the metallic click when they opened a can each. Beside her Nori-chan stirred, but Kyoko shook her head. 'Just a little more.'

”It's Matsumoto-san I'm interested in. I'm not looking at Hamarugen-san,” she whispered to Nori-chan. It was a minor bribe, and she felt ashamed for it. Still, it served its purpose, because Nori-chan calmed down somewhat. 'One rival less for you.'

”Yukio, I'll handle her myself, OK?” Hamarugen-san let his words be followed by a mock punch to his friend's shoulder.

”Both guys yours?” Kuri-chan asked in Kyoko's other ear. Kuri-chan mustn't have heard what Kyoko had just told Nori-chan.

”No, he's talking about you,” Kyoko explained silently.

”Me, handled? What the hell?” Kuri-chan swore and made as if to rise.

”Wait!” Kyoko yanked her friend down.

”Thanks for small favours,” Matsumoto-san said. ”How do you plan to do that?”

With Kuri-chan and Nori-chan both whispering questions in her ear Kyoko felt an ever rising feeling of the surreal as she tried to hear what Matsumoto-san and Hamarugen-san spoke about.

”Well, she kind of owes me.”

Beside her Kyoko felt Kuri-chan flare up in silent rage.

”I guess that's true,” Matsumoto-san agreed.

That didn't exactly calm Kuri-chan down, Kyoko noted to her consternation. She had to pull on her friend's sleeve to calm her down.

”And you. She should be on her knees thanking you for your quick thinking,” Hamarugen-san said.

Kuri-chan should kneel down in gratitude to Matsumoto-san? How did that happen? By Kyoko's side Kuri-chan sat down again. Kyoko could feel her curiosity winning over her anger.

”You took all the flak. I just ran around telling people.” Matsumoto-san scratched his head as if listening to Hamarugen-san's praise embarrassed him.

”That's bull. You saw what happened. You acted on it. You even guessed about all that water and had them bring clothes. Damn, that makes you my hero.”

Kuri-chan gave Kyoko a hard stare, and Kyoko shrunk and pointed at Nori-chan.

”Yes, he did. He was off like lightning after you ran back to the locker room. To gather our class,” Nori-chan whispered. ”He's your hero in the shadows if you go for that thing,” she finished and glared at Kyoko.

That stung. Kyoko and Nori-chan weren't on the best of terms with each other right now, even if they were still friends.

”What are you going to do?” Matsumoto-san asked.

”Well, if she hasn't read the letter I'll just have to ask her about the club.”

”Club?” Kuri-chan said.

'Club? Guess that makes two of us.'

”Club?” Nori-chan asked.

'OK, three of us.'

”I don't understand why she'd dislike a chance to speak that horrid language of yours. Oh, forget about the horrid part! Maybe she just has better taste than you,” Matsumoto-san suggested.

”Oh, shut it!”