3 Ino Yamamoto 2
But it's finally over: the bell rings; everyone starts putting everything in their backpacks, and some of them stand up from their desks and leave.
"Hey, guys, don't forget your homework; it's due tomorrow," says Horinomi-sensei while following them with her eyes. Well, it's not like she could do anything else, so she closes all her book and notebooks, puts them in her backpack and stands up. "Bye, everybody. See you tomorrow," she hangs her backpack in her shoulder and leaves.
I also stand up from my desk, hang my backpack in my shoulder and:
"SOTOKA-CHANNNNNNNNNNNNNN!" Izumi runs towards Sotoka-san, who's ripping off the remaining flyers on the chalkboard, and hugs her from behind. Sotoka-san yells and throws the flyers she already picked up all over.
And turns towards Izumi.
"Oh, it's you, Izumi-san."
"Chan! Izumi-chan! And let's go give some flyers away!"
"But, Izumi-chan, we have to take these ones off first," Sotoka-san was referring to the flyers that were still on the chalkboard and on the walls and all over the floor.
"Ok," and Izumi starts picking up flyers on the floor. "I'm saving these for later."
Yes, I know, it's kinda weird that now Izumi's so energetic and cheerful while she was dying from sleep some hours ago. But that only means sleeping at class (and at every class) can really do the trick.
Not to mention she always reeks like coffee.
I believe teachers, directors, parents, student council and disciplinary committee members used to scold her all the time because of it. They said something like coffee's not a recommended beverage for a high school student.
But now I think they just let her be. Maybe they grew tired of all the useless scolding (but it's not like they really care, to be honest).
Anyway, I should help them, right? I mean, I got a lot of stuff to do at home, but I can do it later.
So, without further ado I start ripping flyers off the walls.
I rip one and another and another one.
And I could rip them all, but some of our classmates are still here yet. They're on their desks talking and laughing and inches away from most of the remaining flyers. Why don't you leave already? Can't you see we're working here? GET OUT; YOU'RE GETTING IN OUR WAY!
"ANIME LIFE is the best club in the goddamned universe! Wanna join?!" yells Izumi, who else? But the ones still here stand up and finally leave. I don't know it that was your plan all along or you only wanted to yell (as you usually do), but thanks. "Sotoka-chan!" Izumi hugs Sotoka-san from behind, and Sotoka-san yells and throws the flyers she already picked up all over.
Sotoka-san turns towards Izumi.
"Oh, it's you, Izumi-chan. But I already told you to stop hugging me like that."
"I'm just happy, Sotoka-chan, 'cause I'm gonna be in a club with you, and I can't repress my emotions anymore."
"We are not really a club," I had to say it.
Izumi turns towards me and:
"What you talking about. Of course it is... ¡ANIME LIFE!" Izumi releases Sotoka-san, raises her hand and looks at us expectantly.
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"Oh, right," Sotoka-san high-fives her.
And now Izumi's staring at me expectantly.
"We are not a club," I repeat.
Izumi lowers her hand.
"Not officially yet, but that doesn't mean we aren't a club."
"Yes, it does. There's nothing as an unofficial club."
"Says you."
"Yeah, because it's true."
Izumi stares at me.
She gets closer and closer to me.
She stops one step away from me.
And she throws at me all the flyers she picked up, and they hit me in the face and fall everywhere.
"ANIME LIFE!" she yells.
If that's what you want... I throw all my flyers at her, and they hit her and fall everywhere. I immediately start picking up as many flyers as I can.
Izumi immediately does the same.
"Hey, what are you doing? Stop throwing those flyers," pleads Sotoka-san, but:
"ANIME LIFE!" Izumi throws at me a few flyers, and they fly through the air and don't even touch me.
Meanwhile, I'm still picking up as many flyers as I can.
And I have a lot already.
I get closer and closer to Izumi.
"aNiMe LiFe!" I yell.
She runs towards Sotoka-san.
"SOTOKA-CHAN, TASUKETE!" and hides behind her.
I stop a feet away from Sotoka-san. She stares at me.
"Just stop," she says.
"Move," I reply.
"No," she says, but as soon as I lift the flyers, she closes his eyes, shrinks, and covers her face with both hands.
And I think she's trembling a little bit.
But you wanted to defend Izumi, right?
A shame, because you are going to end with a bunch of flyers in the face.
I put my hands behind my head to throw the flyers as hard as I can.
Sorry, Sotoka-san, but this is what you get for pretend to be nice with everyone else.
In 3...
2...
1...
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Ok. Unlike everyone else is this fucking life, I'm not an asshole, so:
"Ok, Izumi, you win. Now help me pick up the rest," I sit on the floor and start picking up flyers.
Sotoka-chan turns aways and continues ripping the remaining flyers off.
Izumi sits close to me and starts picking up some flyers.
And I throw all my flyers at her face.
"Now we're even, and pick those up; you're closer."
Izumi looks at me enraged.
And starts picking up as many flyers as she can.
And smiles at me.
"Izumi, don't you dare throw those at me."
Izumi picks up flyers even faster.
And smiles at me again.
"Izumi, we're even, and if you keep going we'll never end," and that's a promise, so I start picking up flyers as fast as I can too.
And smile at her.
Izumi picks up the last flyers close to her.
So do I.
She looks at me.
And I look back at her.
THUMP!!!!
Izumi and I turn around to find out what was that sound, and it was a pile of flyers Sotoka-san probably dropped as loud as she could on some desk.
"Done," Sotoka-san says with an annoyed smile. "Izumi-chan, Ino-chan, can you just pick up the flyers you're supposed to pick up, please?"
I've never seen her mad, or whatever that was.
She's scary.
"Ok, just 'cause you called me Izumi-chan, Sotoka-chan," Izumi picks up all the flyers left. They were just a few, really. "Now let's give them away!"
"Izumi-chan," Sotoka-chan says and then sighs, "just stop. I don't want Fujimoto-san to yell me again, and we can find another way to recruit more club members."
"Yeah, but we can go to the other clubs and tell 'em about ANIME LIFE. We can start with the soccer team."
"Yeah, but that's a club: they can only join one at the time."
Izumi stares at me.
She didn't think this through.
Well, it shouldn't surprise me.
"Whatever," she says. "We leave them some flyers, and maybe some of them will tell her friends, and maybe some of those friends haven't joined any club yet, and maybe some of them want to join ANIME LIFE.
"If they talk about our club, believe me, they'll surely make fun of it. And us," I mean, it's obvious.
"But they'll talk about it, and maybe someone will care enough to join us. Come on, Sotoka-chan," Izumi takes Sotoka-san's hand, and she ends up following her.
And I end up following those two.
