How To Be A Man

keep my brother's name outcha mouth!

Kiyotaka could tell where Mondo was at all times. It wasn't as if he was walking around following his heavily greased pompadour, and even if the hall monitor wanted to follow him, he didm't have to. Mondo's voice boomed throughout the halls so often, Kiyotaka could easily pinpoint where he was. It could sometimes be followed by the surprised squeal of another meeker student, and then perhaps a half-as-loud-but-still-too-loud apology. No matter what, things were never boring with Mondo walking around, yelling and threatening to pummel other kids. At least it gave Kiyotaka something to do.

"Ishimaru?" a voice called from behind. He turned around and faced the person who called him, his eyes locking for a slice of a second with his caller, and then immediately lowering in deference.

"Principal Kirigiri. Good morning! How may I be of assistance?"

The principal laid a hand on Ishimaru's shoulder. "I'd like to talk to you for a moment. Come with me to my office."

"Yes sir."

Ishimaru followed him into his office, eyes fixed on him the whole way. He'd been there so many times that he was no longer fazed by the side walls decked with shelves of colorfully covered books, the back walls whitewashed and lined with oak-framed portraits of board members, government officials and the founder of the school, and the executive-style desk they sat on opposite sides of, personalized only by a gold nameplate and a picture of his daughter.

"Sir?"

"You aren't in trouble, Ishimaru. I assure you that."

Kiyotaka's shoulders dropped slightly and his expression softened.

"I called you here because I wanted to check in on you."

His lush brows furrowed in confusion. "Check in, sir?"

"Yes. I imagine it's not easy on you, going about your duties and keeping up with your schoolwork at the same time."

"Rest assured, sir. I have no trouble managing my duties and school."

Kirigiri smiled slightly. "I know. You have stellar grades and you don't neglect your post either, which is commendable. I simply didn't want you to overwork yourself."

"Overwork?" Kiyotaka said, his brows furrowed even tighter. "I feel just fine."

Kirigiri sighed. "It's not that I want you to falter in anything. It's just that it's very taxing on a student your age to juggle so much. I know what you want to do after you graduate, and I wholeheartedly encourage you to work towards it. But you should make time for your friends and yourself too. You're human, and humans need rest."

"Sir..." Kiyotaka began, his countenance short-circuiting. "I...appreciate your advice. There's just so much that I can do to help the school and prepare for my career. Besides, I'm not sure if there are many people I could consider a friend."

"That's why I encourage you to go out there and try to make some. People will appreciate you in their own way."

He felt a weight drop into the bottom of his stomach. "I'll...try, sir."

"Good. You're doing just fine, Ishimaru. Now"--

Suddenly, a yell was heard from outside the office. Kiyotaka immediately stood and turned towards the noise, then back at the principal.

"Sir, I have to go see what's going on."

"Okay. We'll finish our conversation another time."

Kiyotaka bowed quickly and turned out of the office, running down the hall. He followed the yelling, his raven black hair a millisecond behind him. The tracks in his black boots seemed to grip the tile floor and propel him forward. The closer he got, the clearer his words got.

"What the fuck did you just say to me ya uppity aristobrat? I'll cave your pretty little face in!"

"You heard me. I'm not going to repeat myself for peons like you."

"Y'ain't gotta worry about that! I'll make it so you can never repeat anything to anyone ever again!"

Kiyotaka's feet danced on the staircase, the steps echoing up the walls into the tall ceiling.

"Hmph. Is your whole family like this? No wonder your thug brother died."

"Don't you dare talk about my brother."

Kiyotaka nearly flew up the stairs, and only paused at the final step to see what was happening. He knew it was Mondo from the yelling alone, but who was the other student? He didn't have to wonder for long -- Mondo lifted him to the sky by the collar. The white folds of his shirt dug into the student's neck, and a pair of white glasses fell from his face. His golden blonde hair fell over his deep blue eyes and porcelain face, but the whites of his nasty smile shone through.

"Your brother was a punk who amounted to nothing. And so will you."

Before Kiyotaka could yell out at them, Mondo's fist connected with his face.

"Owada!" he yelled, running towards them. It was too late now; by the time Kiyotaka got there, the student was slumped into a pile on the floor.

"What have you done to Togami? Are you crazy?"

Mondo shook the blood off his knuckles. "Aw great. The principal sent his hound."

"Owada, violence is not tolerated on"--

"You know what I don't fucking tolerate? Assholes like him talking shit about my family. He had no right to mention Daiya!"

"You can't just beat up your classmates every time they say something you don't like!"

"He talked shit about my dead fucking brother! Shouldn't he be punished too?"

"Do I need to, considering you already did?" Kiyotaka flashed a glance at the unconscious Togami, then at the crowd of classmates and students from other classes that began to form around them.

"Koizumi, please get Tsumiki down here. Have Ogami and Owari take him the nurse's office."

The students he called on silently moved as Kiyotaka directed. The rest of them stayed for the second act of the show.

"He doesn't need a nurse. He needs a fucking attitude check."

"And you need detention for the next week."

"What?"

"You're going to detention for the next week. And if you protest, I'll make it a five-day suspension!"

Mondo stared him down with expressionless eyes. A broken chuckle fizzled out of his stomach.

"You know what? I don't give a shit. Do whatever the hell you want. You and Togami and the rest of this stupid school."

Mondo kicked a locker in, deforming the metal door and breaking the lock. He stomped away, the flicked-up collar on his coat hiding the tears streaming down his face.