Bloody Truths

| 1 | Friends After A Not-so-good Day

[3:46 pm]

The burning feeling at the back of my throat only made me gag more.

I hunched over the toilet, greenish-brown puke swirling around in the toilet water. Small chunks of my lunch were floating. I looked away before I felt even more nauseous. Can my day get any worse, it's already been so bad.

"Yo Shuichi! You alright in there?" one of my friends called out from the entrance of the school bathroom.

"Y-yeah! I'm good!" I called back, flushing the toilet. I believe I got it all out, which is a relief.

"Not to rush you dude but we have to start getting to the meet-up!" my other friend also called out.

"Yeah, yeah, " I sighed, wiping the sides of my mouth with some toilet paper.

"Why the hell am I even going to this, " I grumbled to myself as I stepped out of the bathroom stall I was in, "who the hell plans a party for immediately right after school? I mean Saturday afternoon? That sounds like shit..."

I stepped out, greeted by my usual three best friends.

"You don't look so good, dude, " my tallest friend, Kai, spoke with a worried look, placing a hand on my back.

"I'm fine, " I pushed my hat down a bit.

"You may look sick but that could just be the lighting! Look at Aoki, now that is sick!" Akari laughed loudly.

"Just because I have extremely pale skin doesn't mean I am sick..." Aoki grumbled.

"Well that mask also leads the assumption you are sick, " Akari grinned, poking his cheek with his finger.

"Will you lay off?" Aoki rolled his eyes.

I sighed, noticing that Kai was holding my bag on his shoulder so it didn't get dirty, "You didn't have to hold me bag Kai..."

"Hm? Oh it's no problem, I like helping out!" he laughed, handing me my bag back, "oh and Akari told me not to say this but...he stole that 2,000 yen from the front pocket..."

"Akari you what!?" I exclaimed, searching my bag. Yep, the money was missing.

"Wow, nice one Kai!" he huffed, "here you go Shuichi..." he handed the money back.

I made sure all of it was there before sighing in relief, "why?"

"He said that when you noticed it went missing, he'll swoop in like a hero and said he found it, " Aoki explained.

"What is with you guys!? Why do you have to keep exposing me?!" Akari whined, wrapping an arm over my shoulders, "I still have to look cool to Shuichi!"

"For the many years I've known you, I never thought you were cool..." I mumbled under my breath.

"Ouch, that one's harsh, " Akari clenched his chest, a betrayed look on his face.

"Hey let's get going, " Aoki adjusted his mask, beginning to walk out of the school campus.

"Yeah, " Kai smiled.