Motivated to be lazy

Chapter 31

There's something different today about Matsuo Eiichiro that I can't quite put my finger on. It's not bad or concerning, just different. The way he sits is different for one thing, his uniform is pressed and his tie is done up all the way. Even his hair is not unkempt like it normally is, sitting with a straight back rather than with the usual slouch.

Whatever the conversation was with Chabashira it had an effect on him. While his eyes are red and glassy it doesn't look like he's been crying, it looks like he hasn't slept for even a moment but he doesn't look tired. If anything, he looks determined. It's too profound of a change in one night.

I almost want to take a page from the book of Honami. I've been trying to steal inconspicuous glances at his neck for a fold where a mask ends and his skin begins.

Today is the day that the VIP's are announced and then the initial meetings will begin. I'm fairly confident in my predictions which is why I'm sitting with him right now. I want to confirm immediately if my hunch is right and if it is I have to start making plans on how I'm going to attack this examination as quietly as possible.

I asked what his plans are for the test but he hasn't told me. When asked if he had one he simply said yes. He's already scheduled a meeting with the class, all of them on standby as soon as the first meeting is over. Surprisingly, even Koenji was willing to come along even if I wasn't the one to request it.

The oddest part of it all is that Eiichiro went to each class member specifically in person. Not by the group text we had in our chat, but individually one by one starting from the breakfast hall. After he was done with his rounds, we went to the Ocean Cafe together and sat in complete silence.

The silence is maddening and it's bothering me. No matter how much I analyze what is going on at the moment, nothing seems to be making sense.

He should be panicking, he should be begging me for help and blaming me as though I had cursed us with a special test so suddenly. As though my words breathed a test into existence, like I'm capable of influencing the cosmos simply by my words. Instead he's just sitting there patiently.

I had plans to find out what his were and then tailor my own actions based on that. Trying to find the holes in his strategy that I can plug as inconspicuous as possible but instead I am forced to just keep him company. I needed to know what we were supposed to do, how much water our raft could take to keep us afloat while still being kept in the shadows.

"Are you okay?" I asked in concern.

"Of course I am, why wouldn't I be?" Eiichiro replied quizzically.

There has to be a fold somewhere, perhaps the mask goes all the way down to the top of the chest.

"You're just so... different?"

"I had a long talk with Chabashira-sensei, I learned a lot. I have to change and she pointed out some other things. I'm trying something new." Eiichiro shrugged nonchalantly.

So that was his plan, trying to force a change. Fake it until you make it. I'm not so sure it would work but if it made him feel calmer about the current situation then who am I to question it.

"I'll be frank, Kiyotaka. I owe you an apology, just as I've given to every member of the class so far. I haven't been leading this class, I've been managing it. Chabashira-sensei pointed out the difference, I'm working on it.

"During my meeting with the monkey group, I read my sheet out loud to myself and I hid my phone in my pocket on record. I spent all night last night reviewing all the information that was available and trying to figure out what we need to do."

"You didn't need to do that," I snorted with a short laugh. "You could have asked me, I can just recite it word for word for you and we could have typed it up."