4 Onigokko (Tag) and Kakurenbo (Hide-and-Seek)

He ran, ran, and ran as fast as he could.

His pounding footsteps were slowly filling the deserted hallways.

Despite the situation he was in, silently he was grateful there wasn't anyone in the hallway at the moment. Most of the students were still eating in the cafeteria while the others might be in their classroom or in the inner courtyard. This way he didn't need to be worried about collateral damage, if by any chance the situation escalated.

"YOSHINAGA!! Do you think you could run away from me!?"

Yamada Taichi's bellowing voice could be heard somewhere from behind.

Izumi's face paled and his body stiffened when he heard that. It seemed his senior really and totally angry with him right now. He didn't need to look back to confirm it. His shout alone which filled with rage was enough to prove it.

Well, it's not like he didn't understand why the upperclassman was like this in the first place.

From his classmate, Izumi heard that in the aftermath of incident with the bullies this morning, the three bullies had been sent to the hospital. Apparently a passerby had seen them lying in the street and called an ambulance. Their injuries had been nothing that serious, mostly a minor head-injury. It had not been something life-threatening, but the hospital advised them to stay there for around two or three days just to be safe.

That being the case, he could tell Yamada—the leader��wasn't angry about this—about his underlings being defeated and taken into the hospital. He could see it in his eyes.

It was not about revenge.

It was not to settle some grudge.

It was not an issue of winning or losing.

It was because someone had indirectly hurt (read: injured) his pride.

Since the rumor said that someone who did the deed was Yoshinaga Izumi, Yamada who heard it couldn't stand it anymore and so when he met him accidentally in the cafeteria, he snapped. He would get it back at him for his injured pride. Otherwise he wouldn't feel satisfied.

'That's ridiculous!' cried Izumi in his head at the unfairness of it all.

He wasn't even the one who did it. It was all a misunderstanding. But Yamada wasn't hearing any of it when he tried to explain. Too pride to listen.

Oh, well… It couldn't be help that things turned out this way. Ridiculous or not, there was no time to start complaining. All he needed to do now was running away from his pursuer. It was pathetic, but it couldn't be helped since he couldn't fight back. He would just end up getting serious injuries instead if he were to try to do that.

"Stop running! Get back here!"

Once again, Yamada's furious roar echoed down in the hallway.

(Idly he couldn't help but wonder how Yamada hadn't bit his own tongue with how much he was yelling while running. And how come none of the students complained about the noise.)

Still, there was absolutely no way he was going to comply what that karate club captain said. Especially, after he managed to put some distance between him and Yamada—it was something that hard to accomplish, that easier to say than done, since he had zero athletic ability. Still, losing his pursuer would be difficult. That left him with only one choice: he needed to hide.

'But where…?' he pondered silently, glancing back and forth as he ran.

Restroom? No, hiding in the male restroom was not a good idea and too cliché (the bully would find him in no time at all, and the worse part would be if his head was shoved into the toilet bowl), while hiding in the female one would be the same as asking for more trouble (he wasn't a pervert, thank you very much). And hiding in the teacher's restroom was out of the question.

Cleaning closet? No, it was too cramped, dusty, and could be dangerous if he were to accidentally get locked from outside. Not to mention, if by any chance the equipment being stored there broken, he would be the one being blamed for it and forced to take responsibility.

Infirmary? No, hoken-no-sensei (the nurse-teacher) would start questioning him unnecessarily and wouldn't allow him hiding there since he wasn't injured or sick (he wasn't stupid enough to hurt himself just so he had an excuse to be there).

Library? No, there was a risk the bully ripping any books if he found him there. Besides, if a mess were to happen there because of him, the librarian would ban him from entering it.

Gymnasium? No, the building was used by the basketball club right now.

A club room? No, he wasn't even a part of any clubs.

An empty classroom…?

'That sounds like a good idea, except there isn't any empty classroom in this school.'

Nanazono High School was a big place. If one were to pay a closer attention at the school, they would notice there were relatively a lot of blind spots or hiding places. Still, why it looked like things wouldn't be that easy? He was totally out of options. Somehow he just couldn't find a good hiding place, or if possible the safest one.

Desperate and tired, the golden brown-haired teen paused for a second to catch his breath as his breathing had become even more ragged. He really needed to hide before he reached his limit. Not to mention that he was running out of time too—he could hear Yamada's enraged voice getting near and near by the seconds.

'But, where am I supposed to hide?'

In that moment, when he took a turn in the next corner, he accidentally saw the stairway. A smile slowly spread across his cute face as an idea began to form in his mind.

For a moment he hesitated. It was a reasonably risky plan. He realized, if he executed this plan, it meant there wouldn't any other way to escape, nowhere to run. If he were to get cornered, it would certainly be a dead end for him. And, if he were to get caught… He didn't know what Yamada would do to him but he could guess it was nothing good.

"To do or not to do, that is the question," he said to no one in particular.

If, whatever he did, he would get caught in the end… If, whatever his choice, it was a hopeless struggle in the end… Then, at least, he wouldn't go down without a fight. Yes, he knew he couldn't fight them like Mikami did. Even so, that didn't mean he had to give up either. For someone like Izumi, there was another means of fighting.

Making up his mind, Izumi carefully climbed up the stairs from the first to the forth floor, last floor. It was a tedious task for him, considering he even hadn't had any breakfast or lunch. However he hanged in there until finally he reached the top of the stairs.

The doorway to the rooftop gave a light creak when he reached out to open it before walking out. He couldn't help but feel so glad that it wasn't even locked; otherwise all his effort until now would be in vain. After closing the door inaudibly, in order not to alert his pursuer, he pressed his own ear against the cold door, trying to hear any sounds beyond it.

There didn't seem to be any footsteps nearing the place nor Yamada's angry shout.

Even so he stayed like that for a minute or so to make sure of it.

'Thank goodness…'

Realizing he was safe, the teen let out a long sigh of relief. His face still looked pale and his body was awfully tired. Nevertheless, it felt like all the tension finally evaporated from his body. He understood he shouldn't have feeling relaxed, shouldn't let his guard down, since it wasn't over yet. But he just couldn't help it, he supposed. For the time being, he just wanted to enjoy this little victory.

Since Izumi had arrived at his destination, what he could do now was waiting until lunch break ended before coming back to his class. He turned around, and…

"!"

…suddenly his breath caught in his throat when he saw someone there. He hadn't noticed it at all when he first stepped onto the rooftop. He was sure he was alone.

And yet clearly, not too far from him, there was a male student lying on the floor. He didn't seem to care that his gakuran got dirty as the result of such action. From the look of it, he seemed to be sleeping soundly—his eyes closed, his breathing steady, his hands tucked under his head, and he didn't wake up when Izumi opened the door.

For Izumi, the most shocking part might be the person's face. He was…

'Mikami Kyousuke,' Izumi thought.

Frankly, he never expected he would meet the teen again so soon. Nanazono High School was a big place after all. However, apparently it wasn't big enough if they could meet again like this.

'Come to think of it, I haven't thanked him yet, have I?'

As if sensing his presence and stare, Mikami suddenly opened his dark red eyes and glanced over at him. As both of their eyes met, Izumi froze on his spot.

What should he do in a situation like this? Should he say something? If he didn't say something soon it would be getting awkward for sure. But, what should he say to him? Oh right, he had to thank him! Still, wouldn't it be weird if he started a conversation like that? That would sound so out-of-the-blue. Then, what about a greeting? It was a basic start of human conversation after all.

"G…," he awkwardly started to say, "good afternoon."

"Oh, it's you," the jet-black-haired boy said, recognizing him.

"I'm sorry if I disturb your sleep." Izumi ducked his head in apology.

Internally he was shocked; he didn't think someone like Mikami would remember someone unremarkable like him.

"Don't worry about it," Mikami replied. Sitting up, he scratched his hair, making it messier than before. "I'm not sleeping. I'm just closing my eyes for a moment, enjoying the silence. Well, it's my favorite place, after all. And I ate my lunch up here."

"…I see."

He didn't know how to respond other than that. The other boy said that, but really…it was hardly convincing. A short while ago, he was certain the other boy had been sleeping peacefully. Not to mention that right now Mikami was rubbing his eyes just like someone who just woke up. He didn't dare say that though. They weren't friends, classmates, let alone acquaintances anyway.

"U, um… I want to thank you for your help this morning."

"Nah… It's not a big deal. I just want to give them some lesson." He dismissed it nonchalantly with a wave of his hand before eyeing him with unreadable look. "So, what are you doing here?"

"Eh?" he said, confused. Not sure of what he meant.

"I mean, there's no way you came all the way up here just to say that, right? No one knows I'm in the rooftop, hence no one could tell you where I am even if you ask. And you don't seem to be the type to spend their free time in a place like this. So, what are you doing here?"

"I…" Izumi opened his mouth but closed it again soon after.

He didn't know what to say. He didn't know how to explain about the incident in cafeteria and about Yamada without being sounded stupid. Now that he thought about it, there was the false rumor as well. In a way, that rumor was Mikami's fault. Wouldn't that mean it was a good opportunity to tell him about it?

'No, wait! Technically that isn't his fault!'

What the other teen did was only helping him. Moreover, he wasn't the one who spread it. So, Izumi had absolutely no reason to accusing, complaining, and blaming Mikami for something he didn't even do. That would be just wrong. That would be just unfair for Mikami. That would only make Izumi no different than Yamada (and maybe the other students) who believed in such false rumor.

And Izumi didn't want that. He wasn't someone like that.

Came to a decision, Izumi answered, "Someone chases after me. I need a place to hide and before I knew it I've reached this place. So…" He trailed off and didn't explain further.

"Ah, I see," Mikami replied uninterestedly as he started rummaging through a plastic bag from convenience store, looking for something.

Hearing that, he couldn't help but blink in half-disbelief, half-surprise.

'Eh? Just like that!?' he cried inwardly.

After being given a vague answer like that, normally people would become more suspicious and slightly more curious. Then inevitably they started asking things in detail, unintentionally giving pressure to the one being asked, to the point it was sounded like an interrogation. Like what other nosy people usually did. Like how the gossipers did.

In contrast, Mikami didn't ask him any further or press him to give full explanation. He didn't even seem to be interested on it. Not that he wanted the other boy to interrogate him. Of course not! It was just…strange. Somehow it was surprising and a bit disappointing.

'It feels like I'm worried over nothing.'

"Do whatever you want," the troublemaker continued as he opened a snack he took out from a plastic bag and began eating, "You could stay if you want to stay. I don't mind."

"Okay… Thank you," he muttered.

Sighing in relief, Izumi sat on the ground and leaned his back against the door. A slight smile appeared at the corners of his lips. He was glad. Finally he could catch a break.

He looked up at the afternoon sky and the fluffy clouds drifting by. Then, he stared out at the horizon. He had never been here before, so he didn't know that the rooftop was so peaceful and relaxing. It was so different with the chaotic cafeteria he had been before. If he didn't know any better he would think that this rooftop wasn't in the same school as the cafeteria downstairs.

And he began to understand why Mikami said it was his favorite place.

"Hey," Mikami called, breaking the silence.

Izumi glanced at him, "What is—"

Suddenly the troublemaker tossed something to him, automatically interrupting him. With a quiet gasp of surprised, clumsily Izumi caught the thing Mikami threw before examining it. It was… an onigiri (rice ball) that could be brought from any convenience store. He looked back at the other boy, titling his head slightly, throwing a questioning look at him.

"Eat it. You haven't had any breakfast and lunch, right?"

There was a beat of silence, and then…

"…Eh?"

Those casual words startled Izumi, his brown eyes widened in shock.

Did he ever say anything about that? No, he recalled. From the pitifully short conversation he had with the other boy, he was sure he didn't mention anything about lunch, or even breakfast. He didn't even tell anyone else about it either. As he came to realize this, his face was beginning to look pale and his heart clenched in his chest.

A question surfaced on his mind.

Just how on earth did Mikami know about it?

"What's wrong? You look pale," Mikami pointed out. He looked at him with a worried look before suddenly a look of understanding bloomed on his face. "Ah! You must be still tired after playing onigokko (tag) and kakurenbo (hide-and-seek) with the bully."

'No way… How did he know about that too…?'

He only told him that someone chased after him. He never said any bully. Then, how did he know that? Did he just guess it? It couldn't be that he could read his mind, right? Just as that kind of silly inquiry entered his mind, a knowing grin appeared upon Mikami's lips; as if he heard what had just ran through his mind.

At that moment…a gust of wind blew, brushing their hair playfully. The rustling sound of the leaves in trees could be heard. And the faint scent of cherry blossoms wafted in the air. It was a nice atmosphere. But Izumi felt a cold chill run down his spine, which he was sure had nothing to do with the spring wind that flew by around them.