High School of the Dead + One

「Eleven Dead」

I head across the wooden floors quickly, a path dripping behind me, in a hurry to get out of the cold. A door next near the kitchen catches my eye and I slip in, switching the light on.

The room is big, which isn't surprising considering the rest of the house, but it looks unused, only holding the absolute necessities. A bed in the far right corner is made with deep brown covers, a pretty teal body pillow lying across the oak backboard. There's a sliding door that I take to be the closet across from it, hanging open. From what I can see, there's nothing in it but boxes. Instead, I move to a small dresser next to the bed. Thankfully, there are pairs of underwear and a few Victoria's Secret nightshirts.

I grab one of each and start getting dressed, pulling the long-sleeve over my head. The nightshirt isn't as long as I wish it was—trailing down to my mid-thigh, barely enough to cover the underwear—and the sleeves stop just above my wrist. Somehow, it still manages to show curves, emphasizing them if anything, practically sticking to me like a second skin.

I heard that Victoria's Secret was good, but I never thought it was this good.

When I'm done, I make my way to the kitchen, meeting with Saeko.

"What's up?" I say in passing as she raids the fridge.

"Looking for ingredients for tonight's dinner," she says, pulling out several vegetables.

"Nice thinking," I give her, "but I'm too hungry to wait for anything to cook."

She chuckles and goes to the stove, allowing me to get to the cabinets.

Just as Ms. Shizuka said, there are several brands of whiskey, beer, and scotch. I bypass them, though, going for the cereal in a cabinet over. Snatching up a small box of cornflakes, I make my way to the center of the kitchen, where the counter island is, and take a seat at a stool.

"Want some?" I offer, opening the tab.

Saeko glances at what I'm talking about before shaking her head. "I'm not a big fan of cereal, but thank you."

"Eh, no one is," I say, grabbing a handful of cornflakes. "When Takashi found out that I liked to eat cereal for breakfast, he shook his head and called me an American."

She looks amused. "You've known each other for a long time then?"

"Only a few years. Hisashi introduced us two years ago, but we weren't really close-close until about a month after that. That thing with Rei was starting to pick up when I first met him, so I don't really blame him, but after he accepted it, he started opening up."

"I see."

"Yeah, it happened surprisingly fast, to be honest," I say. "One day, we hadn't talk at all, the next, we were hanging out together more often than Hisashi and Rei hung out, and that's saying something, because Hisashi and Rei were practically glued to each other."

"Ah." She smiles. "You like him, huh?"

I freeze, nearly dropping a handful of cereal, but regain myself, popping a cornflake in my mouth like she hadn't said anything. "Of course. He is my friend."

She nods, but the mysterious smile on her face as she turns back to the stove makes me uneasy.

"Did Shizuka ever get her alcohol?" I ask, changing the subject.

"Yes," she says. "Takagi brought her and Miyamoto some before she went to the living room."

"Huh," I say. "Didn't know Rei drank."

"In this environment, I'm surprised you're not drinking," she says rather nonchalantly.

"I don't like alcohol," I mutter. "It turns people into monsters."