You Were The Path I Chose | A Goro Akechi Romance

#RANK 1: A Question of Justice

... In which my class makes a school trip to a TV station and I have a destined encounter with the man who would soon become the greatest challenger intended for me by the Gods. Against all odds, he would also be the one capable of stealing my own heart.

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Sitting there, in the glaring yet astonishingly inconspicuous spotlight, I find that I'm actually excited for day two of our school trip.

Technically, there is no real reason for this hope. I slide back and forth in my uncomfortable seat, trying not to let the stark lights of the stage in front of us blind me. No matter how much I hoped it would at least amount to some excitement, yesterday was . . . disappointingly boring. I recall the following trip to Dome Town much more vividly than anything that happened at the station. Well, anything except—

"Akechi-kun's coming on!" The AD's voice cuts into my thoughts, and my eyes fly up.

Right. I turn my head, involuntarily looking out. Nothing memorable happened at the station yesterday, except for . . . him.

I can't quite pinpoint why the brief interaction with Goro Akechi in the hallway made such an impression on me. We talked for less than a minute, yet the subtle discrepancy between his lighthearted tone and his expression etched itself into my memory . . . as did the peculiar look that Morgana gave me after our conversation. He didn't explain what was wrong, but it stuck with me anyway.

I want to see him again, I think suddenly; that's why I was looking forward to today. Maybe if I do that, I can figure out why I felt a surge of that emotion that typically indicates I am developing an attachment to yet another person based on nothing but a strong instinct that they may use a friend.

I shift my weight, recalling his oddly unreadable stare. Akechi . . . Isn't he a TV star with hundreds of fans? So far, everyone who has elicited this feeling has been an outcast in society—lonely and in need of empowerment and friendship. Akechi couldn't be further from that . . . could he? Nonetheless, a part of me genuinely considered inviting him to come along with us to Dome Town because I had a strong hunch that it would make his day, maybe even his week or month.

I make a face. Maybe I've become so used to feeling this way about people that I'm conjuring it up where it doesn't belong. Maybe it really is only in my head this time.

Yet no matter how much I tell myself that, logically, it makes no sense, the feeling does not leave. It sits at the back of my head all while I follow him with my eyes as he makes his way on stage, accompanied by a wave of cheers and applause. Every girl in the audience seems to be swooning, and though part of me kind of understands why, this kind of impersonal adulation makes me want to roll my eyes. What do they even know about him? Besides the fact that he's good-looking and . . . well, charismatic, I have to admit. Smart too, probably. Still . . . As quickly as I tend to become emotionally invested, I'd never crush on someone I've never even spoken to. I'm always thinking—what if they're completely different than they appear once the cameras are off?

I shove aside all memories of my various middle school phases when I too swooned over and adorned my walls with posters of idols and art portraying fantastical characters. We're all . . . allowed to dream, no? And who's to say that the fairytale that I've . . . never quite let go of, if I'm being honest, doesn't exist out there, somewhere? If I only look hard enough . . .

"Ain't that the guy from yesterday?" Ryuji leans over and whispers loudly in my ear over the ongoing chatter.

I keep my eyes on Akechi, occasionally glancing at the two hosts as they sit down and raise their eyes to the camera. He's wearing the same Khaki uniform blazer as yesterday—presumably his school uniform. And just like yesterday, I wonder if the black leather gloves are part of it too, or if there's a different reason he wears those.