Swallowtail: Mariposa Radiante

Freedom

Swallowtail:

Chapter 22

Freedom

By the time 4:30 rolled around, several people around the school had heard about Kaikane's challenge to Eba. He had been nervous the entire afternoon, focusing on his work while planning his course through the school. He had heard of a sport like this called Stride, something that Boys Clubs did in Tokyo, but he had never gotten around to doing it himself. He knew that Eba was a fast girl, the fastest on the track team. But he also knew that speed could be a weakness. She wasn't versed in anything but running laps and running sprints, but Kaikane had superior knowledge on running across buildings, thin ledges and vaulting over pipes and fences. He was confident he could beat her.

So, he decided to skip his last class and head back to the cafeteria, asking Fumiko for the same food he had during lunch. Once again she asked why he had selected those dishes, and he replied that he was just watching his diet. A bold lie, but one that would suffice for the time being. The moment school ended, everyone either headed home or found a place to watch, all the while, Kaikane moved to the boy's locker room, changing into his tracksuit. He stretched his arms and his legs, jogging in place for a few moments before kneeling, securing his laces. The door to the room opened, causing him to whirl around, only to see Futarou standing before him.

"What the hell are you doing?"

"What does it look like? I challenged Eba to a race in order to get Yotsuba out of that club. There was no way Yotsuba was going to quit." he said, giving him a firm look. "She thinks she can handle both, but doesn't realize she's being manipulated by Eba."

"I get that, but a race? I know you are confident in your own speed but do you think you can beat the school's fastest runner?"

"In a regular race? No. But with the style I challenged her, I am confident I can win. Trust me, Futarou, I got this." he said, holding his fist out. Futarou sighed, bumping fists with his friend.

"I trust you, but try not to waste time. It's been a shit week already and we need to figure out what to do with the girls and their studies." the mushroom-headed boy said, glancing at his phone for a moment. "I think we can use these last couple days to really cram what's left. I think they can do it."

"So do I, Nino has improved a lot and so have Miku and Ichika. We need to focus more on Itsuki and Yotsuba right now. I'll set her free and we can go home and fucking study."

"If we can get Nino and Itsuki to make up."

"Oh don't worry about that, I sent Miku on a mission." he said with a wink. He glanced at his wrist watch, seeing it was 4:27. He sighed, slapping his cheeks. "Alright, let's do this."

The young man was honestly rather calm as he climbed the stairs that would lead him to the roof. He knew this race would decide the fate of his friend, but even if he lost, he hoped that Yotsuba would take the hint and quit on her own. He spotted groups of people standing along the edges of the fence, the second he got to the roof. He spotted his opponent across the way, standing at the makeshift starting line.

"Hello there, Pretty Boy~ Ready to lose?" Eba said, a sneer on her face as she looked the young man up and down. "I doubt you have a chance to beat me."

"Worry about yourself, Eba. I'll do the same."

"Alright, contestants!" one of the girls from the track team said, getting their attention. She stood between them, holding a white board in her hand, with a hand drawn map of the entire campus. She pointed to their starting line with a marker. "The two of you will start here on the roof, there are two routes you can take, the long way through the hall, out the west window and onto the rooftop, through the first floor and finally to the field, or the alternate route that will take you around the school building. The finish line will be on the Track field's halfway mark, ending our race. First person to cross it will win."