I'm not sure when it first began but at some point, I kept finding myself in situations that you only see in mangas and animes. At first it wasn’t really obvious or concerning, but things really began to get out of hand when I entered highschool. Things that frankly, I’d rather not remember and had hoped I left behind…But they keep happening.
It’s as if horror music is playing in my head as I stare at the seat, while a drop of cold sweat runs down the back of my neck. Heck, there’s even a mysterious beam of light on the seat! What the hell is this…
The mythical protagonist seat, the fabled seat you see in every damn story. The seat where the main characters have that typical lethargic look while staring outside the window as if they are thinking profoundly of some philosophical dilemma. But they are not, trust me, I would know because I was there before and the only deep thought I ever had was what I was going to eat for dinner.
<<Why the hell is that the only empty seat! Shouldn’t it be the most popular? I mean it's at the back where it's hard for the teacher to see and notice you! Are all my classmates that diligent?! You disappoint me classmates!>>
<<Ok, ok, no need to panic. This isn’t anything new, a simple fix will do.>>
“Kurogawa-kun?”
<<Shit, I’ve inner-monologued for too long.>>
“Sorry teacher, I was just wondering if maybe I could sit closer to the front? I have poor eyesight and sometimes I have trouble hearing…”
“Oh dear, well certainly, perhaps we can do something about it. Would anyone like to trade seats with Kurogawa?”
“I would” responded a kid on the second row almost immediately.
“Oh, Inoue that's so kind of you!”
Inoue, the guy who answered had a great smirk plastered all over his face. As he made his way to the desk in the back, he had his eyes closed the entire time and looked extremely proud of himself.
He probably thinks it’s the beginning of his rom-com episode in life…I’m rooting for you Inoue buddy! Please take over the mantle of the protagonist!
“Okay with that handled, is there anyone who would be so kind as to volunteer to give Kurogawa a tour of the school?”
“I’ll do it!” responded another person with their hands raised high.
It was a cheerful guy with bright yellow pointy hair and some freckles scattered around the bridge of his nose who was situated on the third row, and right behind the seat that had just opened.
“Oh, do you happen to know Kurogawa, Nakai?”
“Yes miss, we’re friends actually!”
---------------
As soon as the bell rang, my classmates surrounded me and began bombarding me with questions.
“Kurogawa, what school you transfer from?”
“You do any sports? Our club is looking for new members.”
“What prefecture did you used to live in?”
“What hobbies do you have?”
It was a relief to see how easy-going and welcoming my new classmates were. Compared to my last classmates, it was like night and day.
“Alright, alright step aside everyone, I gotta show Naoki around the school, your blabbering can wait until after we are done,” said Nakai as he parted his way through the students with his hands.
Everyone promptly moved out of the way and I headed out of the room with Nakai.
“Dude! It’s been a minute, so how's it been this past year?”
“Very chaotic I’ll say that much”
“It doesn’t feel like much but it’s been that long already huh…and I bet you still suck at Ape X”
“Keep talking trash and you’re going to get folded like an omelet”
“Pfft, yeah right, with your aim?”
“What about my aim?”
“Mate you always do more damage to the walls than the enemies”
“...”
I couldn’t deny it…
“Anyways, let’s go pick up Katsuo first before we show you the spot we usually hang out at. It’s a perfectly normal place.”
I felt some goosebumps at the emphasis Nakai had placed on the word normal, everyone knows things are never normal if someone emphasizes its normal.
“By the way Naoki, did you purposely ask for a different seat to be closer to me?”
“Uh…yeah…I totally meant to do that…”
“Awww you shouldn’t have”
Soon Nakai and I found ourselves in a classroom labeled A-3. Inside Nakai approached a guy with an intimidating presence who towered over most students and with a fierce glare in his eyes. He had rather short hair, wore glasses, and had a bulky athletic build, but despite his appearance, he was actually a calm and reserved person.
“Yo Katsuo look who’s back”
Katsuo then looked back towards the door and after our gaze met, he grew a large smile. It was like watching a golden retriever see its owner after a long time.
“Naoki! You’re here!” he said excitedly.
The three of us then began to head toward the presumably normal spot.
“If Nakai hadn’t told me I wouldn’t have known you were transferring. I couldn’t even contact you after you changed your phone number.”
“Haha…yeah sorry about that, I had to change my phone and phone number after people I didn’t know kept spam calling me”
“Wow man did you get doxxed for sucking at APE X?” Nakai scoffed as he said that.
“Hey! I might not be as good as you guys but I ain’t that terrible either”
The both of them started laughing and although they were poking fun at me, I couldn’t deny it was enjoyable to be around these two once again.
“So, where is this perfect spot of yours? It's a bit suspicious when you emphasize that it’s perfectly normal”
“Take a guess, it's got a perfect view of the surroundings, smooth and refreshing wind AND little to no people go there.”
<<He can’t be serious.>>
“You aren’t talking about going to the roo-” but before I could even finish my sentence Nakai interrupted me.
“Speaking of which, did you ever get a girlfriend?”
As soon as I heard the word girlfriend, those three immediately came to mind and my face grew pale.
My silence took them both by surprise and with an eyebrow raised Nakai asked, “Yo dude, you good?” Then immediately after, he let out a shocked gasp.
“No way…did you get a girlfriend and switch schools after she dumped you?!?!”
“I didn’t get dumped, I just…remembered some painful memories I’d rather forget”
“That’s right Nakai, he didn’t get dumped, he probably confessed to a girl in front of everyone and got rejected and switched schools out of shame,” added Katsuo, and the two of them burst out laughing.
<<These ass heads, with friends like these, who needs enemies?>>
And just as I had suspected, we began to climb up some stairs leading to the rooftop. I didn’t exactly have the best track record when it came to rooftop’s, especially over what happened in the past… but whatever, it was the beginning of the school year anyway and nobody knew me anyways, so I thought to myself <<What’s the worst that could happen?>>.
As soon as we stepped out, the fresh breeze of the rooftop softly blew on our faces.
Nakai with his thumbs up would turn around and ask, “Pretty cool place huh? No pun intended”
The rooftop was a rather large rectangular fenced area, decorated with plant pots, tables, and benches. Not to mention, other groups of students were already in some of the tables.
“Our school allows people to come up here during breaks, since they realized keeping students from sneaking in wasn’t working, they just gave us the freedom to hang out here,” explained Katsuo.
“Well it’s definitely a nice spot to relax,” I’d add
The rooftop had a feeling of peace to it. Groups of friends laughing together under the clear blue sky and a nice view of the city. It was also rather quiet. Call me idealistic but is there any more that one can ask for than to hang out and relax with some friends in a place like this?
We continued our conversation engrossed in the moment as we walked to a spot they liked. Talking about the latest games, and the things we had missed in each other's lives.
Until a sudden voice pierced the air.
“NAOKI KUROGAWA!”
Hearing my name called so suddenly made me jump instinctively. It wasn’t the first time I had been called out unexpectedly like that, and my gut was telling me it wouldn’t be the last.
The three of us stopped dead in our tracks and slowly turned around in unison.
Standing before us was a mysterious girl. Her hands were confidently placed on her hips, her hair blew along gracefully with the breeze of the rooftop and she had a mischievous smile gracing her lips.
From the moment my eyes met with her glistening emerald eyes, I could tell, this girl was trouble and she would only disrupt the peace and tranquility I sought.
“I HOPE YOU HAVEN’T FORGOTTEN THE PROMISE WE MADE 10 YEARS AGO” she yelled out loud, and one by one, all the heads on the rooftop turned and focused on the girl. There was only one thought going through my head.
<<Not again…;-;>>
