Where Have You Been (All My Life)?

Chapter 2

Akihiko Sanada. Ace of the boxing club. Caring, charming, handsome, these were some of the terms his legion of fangirls had for him.

And make no mistake, it was a legion. Many of my friends swoon as he passes by, chatting about him to each other. I tended to space out during those talks. Yeah sure, he looked nice and all, and his friendliness was legendary. But, what point is there in dreaming of something that was never going to happen?

Any girl who managed to work up the courage to confess to him got rejected, and that's not even mentioning the looks of scorn, admiration, and envy she'd get from the rest of the class. No, far as I could tell Akihiko wasn't interested in love, so why bother? Plenty of other fish in the sea.

Luckily I had no fear of judgement from Chihiro, who couldn't care less about men in general, much less one in particular. So I told her all about what happened at the dorm.

"Really? They just locked you out of the dorm, without telling you why?"

"Mhm." I respond, sitting on her couch. Chichiro was in her jammies already, wasn't expecting any guests at this hour.

"That's terrible!"

"You're telling me! I just want to know why."

Chihiro looks down on the pillow she grips, pondering. After a few moments, she perks up her head. "I'll ask during the next student council meeting, someone there should know."

Oh, Chihiro. I smile. "Thanks Chi, you're a lifesaver." as you can imagine, she blushed at the compliment.

She took the bed, while I lay on the couch. She practically begged for the positions to be reversed, but I insisted otherwise. She can be too kind for her own good.

While I was still upset over the altercation at the dorm, I didn't let it dominate my thoughts as I tried to get into a comfortable position to sleep. Tomorrow will be my first day back at school, Gekkoukan High School. And Akihiko Sanada can't ruin that.

After waking up and cursing myself for my back pain, I grabbed my uniform from my suitcase and got dressed for school in the bathroom. A quick breakfast with Chihiro, and we were off.

The gates of Gekkoukan never cease to amaze me, as we pass through them among the crowd of students. And not much longer we're in front of the school itself. Oh, how I missed the sight of that impressive building.

Towering, overpowering, and... flowering? (No, that doesn't work). With so much glass that to call it blinding on a sunny day like this would be no exaggeration.

But I could only admire for so long. Was time for morning class. So I made my waves to the friends I came across, giving only the briefest answers to the "when did you come back?" and "how was it"s. I'd have to catch up with them later.

This was also where I'd have to part ways with Chihiro, as we were separated by class and grade.

"W-Well, I'll see you after class!" she says, scarpering off. I wave her goodbye as I make my way to class 2-F. Usually this separation is a bit sad but, having gone months without it, getting back into the routine felt nice.

Walking into class, it seemed I was a few minutes early. The teacher, Ms. Toriumi, stood up to greet me.

"Scarlett, welcome back."

"Hello Ms. Toriumi" I try my best to match her cold demeanor, to mixed success.

"I trust you've been keeping up with your readings the week you were absent?"

"Mhm!"

"Good. Now, take a seat." she gestures towards the many empty seats, as though I know which ones aren't already taken.

Well, I guess I'll figure it out. Front seats are usually the least popular, so I take the one right in front of Ms. Toriumi's desk. People are always so anxious about them, either because they're slackers not wanting to get caught, or for seemingly no reason at all. But not me.

But, I can't seem to get acclimated to my seat for long before two distinctly non-standard clad students hover over me. Well, if there's anyone else who wouldn't mind the front, it'd be...

"Yukari!" I perk up to greet the pink clad girl. "Oh, and Junpei."

"Hey, that hurt!" replied the lovable goofball.

"Scarlett! I didn't know you were back?" Yukari replies, smile on her face. We aren't the closest but, well, everyone was Yukari's friend, and I'm no exception.

"Just got back today actually!" I replied. Then, realizing I've yet to move, I feign embarrassment and begin to rise from the chair.

"Oh, right, so sorry for taking your seat!" I joke. But, as I stand up to face Yukari and Junpei, I see out into the hall behind them. And there is none other than Akihiko Sanada. He wasn't there before. Was, was he following me? No, don't be ridiculous, he must've come with Junpei and Yukari. But then, why?

Well, I certainly couldn't get an answer out of him, as he already left. "Oh, it's no trouble! It's only been a week anyway."

"No no, I'll move a seat over. This one is free right?" I point at the desk to the left, and Yukari nods. Taking a seat I can definitively call mine now, I realize I should ask them for answers.

"Hey, why was Akihiko in the hallway there?"

"What?" Junpei asks.

"Y'know, Year Four, Akihiko Sanada, boxing club.."

I'm cut off by Yukari "We know who he is, duh. Don't tell me you're another one of his fangirls now?"

"You know me Yukari, never. I'm just curious, it looked like he came with you guys?"

Yukari and Junpei look at each other, almost as though they're nonverbally discussing how they should answer.

"Yeah, yeah he did." Junpei pipes up. "Uhh, club stuff!"

Yukari facepalms, and I too can't help but giggle. "You? In a club?"

"Hey, I resent that!" he nervously smiles.

"What club is it?" I ask.

Now the two of them turn deathly silent, the smiles washing from their faces. Yukari almost seems to be sneering, whether at me and Junpei I'm unsure. While Junpei's pale expression is that of shock and horror. Geez, is it really that strange of a question?

"Uh, how was your first day back?" Junpei casually asks, trying to break the atmosphere and push past the question.

"Well, mostly good. Except, I was locked out of my dorm." I reply honestly, pretending the avoidance didn't bother me.

"Which dorm was it?" Yukari asks, though, not in the way I was expecting. It almost sounds like she has an idea of what I'm about to say?

"The Iwatodai Dorm."

Once again, they do nothing but idly stare at me. But this time, I can't read anything off of their faces. Except maybe, fear?

Figuring they wanted me to take initiative in the conversation, I began to elaborate "Yeah, there was some argument going on, and then Akihiko..."

"Save the chitter-chatter for another time students, class has just begun." Ms. Toriumi interrupts. After looking at her, I look to see that Yukari is back straight face forward, while Junpei too has gone to the desk behind us, avoiding my gaze. What's up with these two?

After an uneventful first class, I try to continue my conversation with the pair. But they seem to zip out of the class without even a goodbye.

Just what the hell did I do wrong?