COLLISION, assassination classroom

CHAPTER #019. MISJUDGEMENT TIME!

     The school field trip came to a quiet and bittersweet end. The class did not manage to assassinate Korosensei (unfortunately), but somehow Hajime gained something in return. If he had to put it into words, the invisible line that he kept between him and his classmates had been slightly blurred, as if someone had crossed along the chalk and created a smudge on the ground. The explanation he had given on their last night in the boys' common room had relieved Hajime of a burden that weighed on his shoulders. He was almost weightless without it. It was the first time Hajime felt this exposed to others and while it was uncomfortable, it was not entirely unwelcome.

Hajime sighed, deep and thoughtful, drawing the attention of his younger sister that followed behind him. He went to pick up his sister from the Fuwa household after returning back to the school. Miho looked utterly relieved to see him at the front door along with Fuwa Yuzuki. Understandably, Miho had been growing anxious while stuck in an unfamiliar household. The Fuwa family had sent the two off with warm smiles and a plethora of comics at hand from the purple haired siblings.

Miho swung the plastic bag containing shoujo-related comics and glanced at her sibling. "Did the field trip not go well?" The sun was setting in the distance, partially hidden behind the tall buildings. It painted the skies in hazy hues of purple and orange. An almost dreamy backdrop to their walk home.

"Kind of," Hajime responded, looking up at the clouds. "Something really annoying happened, but it was a nice trip overall." He had half the mind to look into the crew that ruined their itinerary, but Korosensei had already dealt with it. The last thing Hajime wanted was to draw the octopus' attention.

"Hmph." Miho pouted. "Well, while you old seniors were out in Kyoto doing whatever. I happened to be growing my comic collection." The female raised the bag in her hands and shook it, animated sparkles glimmering in her eyes. "Nao-chan said she'd give them to me! Free-of-charge~" The plastic bag was almost bulging from the amount of paperback comics inside it. The corners of the books protruded from the bag in sharp spikes that threatened to tear.

Hajime side-eyed his sister, laughing through his nose. "Are you proud to be a cheapskate?"

The two arrived at the Takano residence, Hajime lifting his leg in time to dodge a half-hearted kick from his younger sister while he opened the gate. The brown haired male hiked up his bag over his shoulder, smiling in amusement at the enraged complaints being thrown at him. All the lights in the house were off, even the ones in Miho's bedroom that were on twenty-four seven. Hajime pressed his foot against the front door while he tried to insert the keys in, only to find the door being pushed open on its own accord.

The small smile slipped right off of his face.

Hajime grabbed the handle and twisted it, growing tense as the mechanism remained loose. He distinctly remembered locking both the front door and the gate before they left. There was no news about his parents returning earlier than planned. Unease crawled up his back, slithering hauntingly over his skin and wrapping around his neck in a threatening hold. It was suffocating. Hajime turned around to face his sister. The expression on his face had her lingering petulance dropping in exchange for alarm.

"Nii-san?"

"Did you come home while I was gone?" Hajime questioned, tone hard. He dropped his hand from the doorknob and began to zip open his bag. The male reached his hand inside and began searching for something while dark reddish-brown eyes scanned the front porch and the divider connected to the gate of the house. The front gate had been locked and untampered. Hajime briefly eyed the security camera that viewed the entrance, narrowing his eyes on the blinking red light. He couldn't be certain if the camera caught it. It would be hard to receive the footage without drawing his parents' attention. If they were still inside though...