The Humanity Club | ✓

32. In the Country of Hearts

CHAPTER 32

          "Oh c'mon, just let me have a turn."

          "I'd rather not. You're going to get the princess kidnapped."

          Yuji frowned as he plucked the game system right out of Hiro's hands. "This is Mario. We all know the princess is getting kidnapped."

          "Miyuki-san, may I speak to you for a minute?"

          I craned my neck away from the manga my eyes were set on to find Takuma waiting by the doorway. I quickly picked myself off the floor and bobbed my head.

          "Yeah, sure."

          Both Hiro and Yuji were too occupied to notice what was going on. I pursued Takuma out the doors of the boys room and down the hallways until we reached a veranda. We stepped out into the nature, where scenic flowers were sprawled out before us; even a cute little bamboo shoot. As Takuma took a seat on the patio so I collapsed a polite distance away from him.

          At first it was awkward, as Takuma kept a smile on his face as he eyed our surroundings, but soon enough he broke through my building paranoia with a question.

          "Have you been enjoying yourself?"

          "Oh, uh, yeah," I replied. "It's been really fun."

"That's good to hear."

         I snuck Takuma a quick glance as he placed his palms flat on the deck. Despite his weary features and lithe frame—almost grey hair and blue eyes—I could truly see some similarities of Wannabe in him. Well, what did I expect? They were related.

"Kazuya has told me you're all apart of the same extracurricular activity."

I woke from my daze when he met my eyes. His mouth curled up in amusement, and I averted my gaze in a heartbeat. Great... He caught me staring. But Kazuya...? That was Wannabe, wasn't it? I kept forgetting he had a name like that.

"Yeah," I responded anyway, and tensed. "I mean, yes. We're in the same club."

Takuma laughed yet again. I sighed at my informal behaviour.

"Is Kazuya a good leader?" he asked.

Leader? my mind echoed. Like a PowerPoint, our past occurrences flashed through, leaving me to purse my lips. Well, he was Club President at least.

"He directs the Humanity Club with unwavering passion," I said, knowing Wannabe would want me to.

"Humanity... Club?" Takuma startled me by sitting up straighter than before. His eyelids had risen high before suddenly tapering.

My body stiffened as a result. I carefully bobbed my head. "We're apart of the Humanity Club."

"He's not apart of the Student Council?" Takuma was growing more and more impatient for answers, as if I had caught him off guard with the news.

"Wannabe—I mean, Kazuya—isn't apart of the Student Council. We all aren't," I said, scrunching up my eyebrows. They were actually our enemies, waiting for the next chance to demolish our club, if anything. "Is there some kind of misunderstanding?"

All at once, Takuma's jaw set into place. "No," he responded, his smouldering intensity portraying the opposite of his words. "There's none. None at all."

I tilted my head in confusion. Takuma hurriedly sent me a warm smile as he rose to his feet. He slipped out his cellphone and unlocked it as he headed backwards inside.