Achieving Thermal Equilibrium | ac

13. DAWN

Itona felt like shit.

He'd just lost his third match against Korosensei (Itona was tired of the "brother" thing), plus his tentacles, the source of his "strength", had just been removed. Fucking hell, how was he supposed to win now?

It didn't help that the class' biggest idiots had decided to "take care of him" (which actually meant: forcing him to swallow shitty ramen, quoting English revenge novels to him, throwing him out of a speeding motorbike, etc etc).

... Okay, if Itona was to be honest, fooling around was a refreshing change compared to being cooped up in that freak scientist's lab. And for once, while people were mean to him, it was in a way that Itona knew they were genuinely trying to make him feel better. Terasaka and his friends probably still felt odd around him considering he nearly murdered their classmates with that pool explosion, but yet they didn't hide it with artificial, saccharine smiles. They were painfully blunt, just like him, and Itona appreciated their jeers and sarcastic remarks. Because, at least, his peers were honest and showed their hearts on their sleeves. (They wouldn't manipulate him like the others did.)

Terasaka was still as dense as a brick, but his stupidity was kind of amusing. He was such an easy person to mock and tease. Strangely enough, even though Terasaka reminded him of his old bullies, Itona didn't mind spending time with him. Maybe it was because Terasaka had also been used as a disposable pawn by Shiro, and so he understood what Terasaka had felt–anger, humiliation, and betrayal. Terasaka wasn't an enemy; he was a comrade. An irksome, moronic comrade.

... But life wasn't all that terrible. Itona had blacked out after he (to his mild embarrassment) held Kayano's hand, and woke up with his classmates and his not-brother around him. They were surprisingly forgiving and kind to him... which was a little suspicious, hence he stuck close to the Terasaka gang who wouldn't hesitate to kick his ass.

And Kayano.

The class had noticed him holding Kayano's hand and was curious about it. Itona wasn't a good actor, but he had to try for Kayano's sake.

"It's because she doesn't have a chest," Itona said bluntly.

Kayano squealed. Itona internally winced at her high pitched voice. "I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW I'M NOT FOREVER ZERO!" she screeched while pointing a finger at him. Another girl held Kayano back as her tiny arms flailed dramatically.

"But what does holding her hand have to do with Kayano's lack of chest?" a boy with orange hair asked, arms crossed.

"SHUT UP MAEHARA!" Kayano shrieked like a banshee and futilely attempted to smack Maehara. Itona cringed. This Kayano was starkly different from the one he knew...

"I don't like boobs," Itona said with a completely straight face. Everybody gasped. Some kid grabbed his bald head and literally wailed in horror. "I guess it's an aftereffect of the tentacles," Itona continued.

"Ehhh, so that's kind of how Kaede-chan doesn't like big breasts?" a girl nudged Kayano and said.

Internally, Itona winced. The girl had no idea how close to the truth that was.

Thankfully, the class seemed to accept his completely bullshit excuse (probably because he was already weird enough). Now that he thought about it, his mind was clearer too. The tentacles were gone and so were their incessant whispers. His entire head still felt sore, but the spiking pain had disappeared. He could actually think. Huh.

"Now, Itona-kun," Korosensei said cheerfully, "shall I help you find a place to stay for the night?"

Initially, Itona was wary of Korosensei, but after seeing him risking his life for a student who had brought nothing but trouble for him, he started to trust him. Just a little bit.

"Just take me to a place that doesn't have shitty ramen."

"Hey, kid!" Muramatsu growled. "If you didn't like my ramen then why did you eat three whole bowls of it?!"

"Desperate times call for desperate measures," Itona replied flippantly.

Hazama chuckled while Muramatsu cursed loudly. "I like this one," Hazama sniggered.

Korosensei grinned. "Don't worry Itona-kun, I'll help you get settled in. It's my job to take care of you." Subconsciously, Itona snuck a glance at Kayano. Kayano didn't speak but he swore he saw her nod slightly.

Now with a bit of silent advice from Kayano, Itona looked up at Korosensei. "Okay."

***

Kayano marched into Shiro's lab with a menacing glare. Researchers hurried past her but paid her no heed. Kayano clicked her tongue in frustration, then stepped in front of a researcher, who ignored her.

"Excuse me, I would like to see Shiro-san," she stated clearly.

"He's not available now–"

Kayano narrowed her eyes. "I said, I want to see Yanagisawa-san," she seethed.

Kayano didn't like to recall the conversation she had with Yanagisawa. Basically, she condemned Yanagisawa for taking advantage of Itona then abandoning him, but of course he didn't give a single fuck about that. She then asked to collect Itona's belongings, and he let her. Finally, she cut all ties with Yanagisawa.

Sure, he'd given her the tentacles and strengthened them and blah blah blah, but now that Itona was safe, Kayano had no reason to stay. Yanagisawa was a child abuser, a wife beater, and an immoral "scientist". Kayano had grudgingly remained in the facility to keep an eye on Itona, but there was no need for that now.

Led by a researcher, Kayano hurried inside Itona's room. Rummaging through his stuff felt like an invasion of his privacy, but she knew it had to be done.

First she took his clothes: his shirts, his cargo pants, his mufflers, and his jacket. Stashed among his shirts were a bit of cash–probably his pocket money. Then, she found the manga books Itona had haphazardly stuffed in a corner. A flash of white caught her eye and Kayano discovered it was the white tiger keychain she'd gifted him. It was dangling on a backpack. A bittersweet smile quirked on her lips.

"Goodbye, Yanagisawa-san."

Without sparing Yanagisawa a second glance and without any regrets, Kayano finally left the damned facility for once and for all.