On Wings of Icarus

The Gang (Chapter 1)

Next day Kuki and Aoi showed up at the school in fresh-pressed white shirts and blue and red skirts eager to see what their friends looked like in their natural state of economic enterprise. They smiled at the receptionist while inquiring about Paul and Sandy's whereabouts before seating themselves inconspicuously in the corner, chatting amongst themselves, giggling and whispering to each other as they watched students going in and out of doors and rushing down long corridors to classrooms. The activity was exhilarating and reminded them of being back at school which was sadly lacking in their daily lives now. They missed it all.

"Hey!" Paul came outside and welcomed them with a bow, reaching out his hands to lift theirs like an invitation to dance. "So glad you guys came! I was worried you might not as I said to Sandy."

"Kuki! Aoi! Hey gals! You're here!" Sandy burst out of her office pumping her arms up and down in celebration of their arrival. "Let us finish up a few things and we'll be out in a flash. OK?"

The "gals" nodded and sat down with their backs super straight in anticipated excitement and hands folded across their laps. They saw a group of girls leaving one of the classrooms, staring and pointing at them, wondering. Kuki and Aoi smiled back and the girls came over and greeted them with an exuberant, "Hello".

"Nice to meet you. You look familiar to me," one of the girls ventured with a great deal of enthusiasm.

"I don't know where you've seen me," Aoi cocked her head to one side.

"Do you have a sister named Takako? She used to work at the restaurant next to our school. She talked about you all the time because she was so proud of your school achievements."

"Yes, she's working in Sapporo now. She graduated before me and she's working there as a biologist."

The girl clapped upon hearing this, "That's wonderful. I hope she's happy at her job. She was always so nice to us and the food was delicious!"

"Nice to meet a friend of my sister. Would you like to contact her again? I can give you her information."

"I would indeed! I have family in Sapporo and could go see her on my vacation."

"Here," Aoi handed her phone to the girl with her sister's social media data on display.

"Thank you. See you later. We're heading to lunch and I wanted to come over and meet you because I've heard so much about you."

"What's your name?"

"Kasumi," bowing and reaching out a delicate hand to receive hers, "Will you come to lunch with us?"

"I guess it's alright if Sandy and Paul don't mind."

The teachers in question came out of their offices at exactly the same moment and walked up on the group. "There are more people here now," Paul observed with a slight smile.

"Yes, this girl knows my sister and they want to join us for lunch," Aoi explained with her head tilted toward them.

"Great and awesome! She's one of our best students by the way, in fact this entire group is top-notch and all the teachers love them."

"That's not true," Kasumi lowered her head in defiance of praise, "We're just regular students like everyone else trying to do our best in class. School's important to us."

The other girls nodded their heads, wearing tight, thin smiles and hunching down subtly in a charming gesture of humility. They waited for the others to lead the way as Aoi and Kuki got up and blended in with the girls as a tight-knit little group, preparing to engage in a full-on bonding session now that the big/ little sister relationship had been established among them.