Why Do You Like Teasing Me So Much?

Chapter 40: Who Might This Be?

"Hello?"

"Takagi-Chan?"

"Hm, what is it Mira?"

"So how'd it go?" Mira called Takagi the minute she got home, and asked her how the rooftop confession went.

Takagi quickly pressed mute, then calmed herself down. She took a few deep breaths, then held the phone near her ear, "It went...fine."

"Whaddaya mean? Hey...were you crying? Your voice..." Being her childhood friend since forever, Mira immediately could tell that her best friend was feeling under the weather, "That person, they didn't hurt you or anything right? Cause if they did, I swear I will make sure they-"

Takagi couldn't help but giggle, "No no, don't do anything to them Mira. They didn't hurt me or anything. In fact, it was probably me that hurt them."

Mira's voice softened, "Then..."

"Mira, I'm okay. Don't worry."

"You sure?" The tension between the two girls grew.

Takagi looked up at the rainy sky, "Yup."

***

You like her, don't cha? The words unraveled and kept circling around Nishikata's head. He couldn't shake those words out. The dripping of the rain made everything clean, a new environment.

"No no no no, this doesn't make sense. Why am I still thinking about that? It's not like I actually like her...or anything," He steps on a puddle and sighed, "What are you trying to tell me?"

The boy grunts, then walked back home in silence under his small striped patterned umbrella.

***
The next day came by in a flash. Puddles of last night's shower were splattered all over the streets. The clouds began to clear up, allowing the warming sun to hug the beautiful city in Japan. Students rushing to school, cars zooming to work, birds chirping to find food, everything was a spectacle sight.

Nishikata came inside homeroom, glancing around to find Takagi, and that other boy Ryu, who happened to be in this homeroom.

Apparently that boy wasn't here, but his group of friends were hanging around his empty seat.

"Hey, where'd Ryu go?" A rather buff guy huffed.

A skinny dude with weird hair replies, "I dunno."

"Did you hear? He confessed to this girl yesterday." Another guy said.

"Did he now?"

"Yeah, she's right there, her- yeah, with the long brown hair."

The boys glared at Takagi, who was looking out the window, gazing at the sky with empty eyes.

"Do you think...that Ryu got...rejected?!"

"Whatt? No one would reject our boss!"

Nishikata sat down in his seat, trying to see if he caught Takagi's attention. Sadly, he didn't, but he noticed something else.

"Hey you!" A loud voice shook the room. It was that same buff guy behind Nishikata, who was now walking towards Takagi.

A few of the early students looked at the commotion, gossiping about all the possibilities.

Takagi turned around, only to meet threatening eyes piercing through her, "Are you calling me?"

"Ryu asked you out yesterday didn't he?" The guy looked like he could kill a mouse.

"And who are you guys?"

"Ryu's our boss! He helped us study for tests and saved us from punishments! You gotta problem with that?" The guys surround Takagi.

Nishikata glanced at the clock. There were fifteen minutes until class will start. Is anyone gonna do anything? He held a fist under his desk, anger slowly boils up.

"You gotta apologize little girl. Ryu's probably not here because of you! If anything happens to him, you're dead-"

*slam*

Everyone switched their uninvited attention to the loud sound, produced by the person next to the seat.

"Hey, don't be so loud in the classroom. It's annoying."

Takagi's eyes widened as she witnesses Nishikata standing up slowly, eyebrows furrowed. More students gather around the classroom, from other homerooms and other grades. Mira, from the next class, peeks in from the window, mouth gaping.

The buff guy tilts his head, and smirks, "Oh? And who might this be?"