Recruiting Outcasts

"Hahhhhh, this is pretty nice," Reiji muttered as he lounged lazily on the roof.

It was Thursday already, and the past few days had been fairly silent. He was still getting nasty looks, or was being completely ignored for the most part, so he kept to himself. At least, he tried to, but Ichihara and Fujimoto would sometimes chat with him every now and then.

He appreciated that a lot, but he noticed that those two were also getting looked at differently because of that, so he decided to look for a quiet place to hang out.

Hence, the roof. Normally no one was allowed to go here unless they were given permission, but of course Reiji didn't care about that.

'Hey, it'll help me stay out of trouble so, win-win,' was his justification. There was a sloping storage shed on the roof that served as a great place to lie down and sunbathe, and that was exactly what he was doing.

*CREAK*

Reiji turned to the sound and saw the door opening, a flash of green and purple peeking out nervously. His eye twitched and he sighed as he asked,

"What the hell are you two doing here?"

"U-umm, can we eat with you Yagami-san?" Fujimoto asked as she stepped out.

Ichihara followed and held up his lunchbox in support.

"....You guys, don't you have your own friends? Why would you want to eat with me?"

Reiji was genuinely confused. Sure, he had helped out Ichihara, but his reputation was justifiably so bad that it just didn't make much sense to him. Fujimoto, on the other hand, he barely had any relationship with.

"I don't really have any friends in the first place..." Ichihara replied with a solemn look.

"And when I told my friends that Yagami-san was trying to change they... they didn't believe me and now everytime we hang out, they try to convince me to stop talking to you," Fujimoto added. She looked frustrated by that fact, her fingers clenching her lunchbox tightly.

"Well, I guess I understand Greeny, but Fujimoto-san you should make up with your friends. They aren't exactly wrong, plus if you keep staying with me your image will crumble as well."

Reiji didn't mind hanging out with Ichihara because his situation wasn't good either, staying with him would at least give both of them someone to talk to. But Fujimoto had her own circle already, it would be too risky to try and maintain a good relationship with both of them if she did this.

Fujimoto paused as if she was thinking about something and smiled with a determined expression a second later.

"Yep, I've made my choice! Please take care of me Ichihara-san, Yagami-san!" she declared with a bright expression.

"Wha- Did you not hear what I just said?"

"If my friends turn out to be people who listen to rumors or don't give people second chances, I don't want to be with them anyway!"

Reiji wanted to give her a good smack and send her packing, but he couldn't bring himself to do it when he saw her happy smile.

"...Don't blame me if you two become outcasts," he said, giving in to their whims.

"Does that mean?"

"Is it ok?"

They asked in unison, almost jumping in place.

"Yeah, whatever. Let's eat."

Reiji pulled out his lunch box and opened it up as the other two sat down as well and followed suite. A delicious aroma wafted out of Reiji's box, revealing a bed of rice, topped with stir-fried chicken, omlette rolls, sliced sausages, and pickled vegetables.

Ichihara and Fujimoto stared in shock as their mouths watered at the flavorful smells that were flowing out of his lunch. Reiji grinned proudly as he picked up his chopsticks.

"Y-Yagami-san, where did you buy your lunch? It looks reaaaally good," Fujimoto blurted out in excitement. Ichihara nodded rapidly like he wanted to know too.

"I made it myself, you guys want to try?"

He had a slightly smug look on his face. After all, he had started to learn how to cook for himself ever since he was adopted by his uncle.

Though he was very young, the sudden change in environment led to a much quicker maturation, and he decided to try and be as independent as possible since his uncle barely talked to him.

Of course, it took a long a long time to see substantial progress, but by the time he transmigrated, Reiji/Alex had become quite proficient.

He even came to love cooking, and studied it during his free time to the extent that he often undertook short stints as a part-timer in various local restaurants so that he could learn more.

If he stayed as Alex, he might've even decided to pursue it as a career.

"R-really? You don't mind?" Ichihara asked timidly. Fujimoto on the other hand, didn't even hesitate and took a bite of the chicken as soon as the offer was made.

Her eyes widened as she squealed in excitement, which in turn made Ichihara salivate and eat as well.

"Wow, this is as good, no maybe even better than some restaurants! Why are you so good at this Yagami-san?"

"Is it that weird? I just like to cook, I make food for myself everyday after all," he scratched his head a little shyly. He was weak to genuine compliments, so their enthusiastic feedback made him chuckle.

"Of course it's weird! Who would've thought that a supposedly no-good Yakuza delinquent would be this good at something like cooking?" she exclaimed.

"...Right. No more food for you Fujimoto. Here, have some more Greeny!"

"Wha-! I-I'm sorry Yagami-san, I was just joking," Fujimoto blabbered with a dismayed face. She tugged at Reiji's sleeve with a sorrowful expression, making him laugh.

"Haha, I know I was kidding too. I'm not that hungry so you guys can have some more if you want."

"Th-thank you. Um, but w-why do you keep calling me Greeny?" Ichihara inquired.

"Ah... That's my bad, I didn't even realize I was doing that. I have a bad habit of giving people random nicknames, I'll try not to do it again," Reiji apologized awkwardly.

"I-I don't mind! Actually no, please keep calling me that!!" Ichihara shouted suddenly, his eyes pretty much shining as bright as the sun. He clenched his fists and raised them slightly, leaning in with a pleading look.

"O-Oh, that's fine with me. As long as you don't mind I guess..."

Although Reiji was taken aback, he thought it was more endearing. Seems like Greeny went through a lot, with all the bullying making it impossible to make any friends.

It was quite obvious that he thought a nickname signified closeness, which isn't exactly wrong.

"W-What about me Yagami-san? Give me a nickname too," Fujimoto interjected, not wanting to be left out of the fun.

"Huh? It's not like I can come up with one on the spot ya know? Greeny was obvious because of his green hair, and it flows quite smoothly. But calling you Purply if I followed the same logic sounds weird."

"You're right... Then this will be homework for you Yagami-san, I need a new nickname by Monday!" She folded her arms across her chest.

"Homework? Haha, I thought you would be like Greeny and be a little shy at first, but you're pretty spunky Fujimoto," Reiji couldn't help but chuckle again at her pouting face.

This made her blush as she looked away.

"I-I usually am, I just feel comfortable around you two.... My other friends are quite.... self-obssessed? I don't know exactly, but you two seem more genuine in a way."

"I think the same too, Yagami-san! I don't usually t-talk this much," Greeny added.

"....You've barely talked and you're saying this is a lot for you? Either way I guess I understand that somewhat. Anyway, just call me Reiji from now on. Yagami sounds so ominous for obvious reasons, and I'll call you Airi for now as well, Fujimoto."

They brightened up at his response and nodded like bobbleheads, inciting another laugh from Reiji.

'School will be pretty fun from now on.'

***

Reiji walked out of the school building after classes ended with Greeny and Airi in tow, chatting mindlessly.

They were heading to the exit when Reiji stopped suddenly, making the other two look back in confusion.

"What happened Reiji-kun?" Airi asked as she saw his face which had veins popping on his forehead, his eye twitching in frustration.

They both heard whispering around them, diverting their attention.

"Who are those guys? So scary?"

"Are they going to cause trouble? Should we call the teachers?"

"They look like gangsters, maybe they're...."

Hearing these conversations, both Greeny and Airi looked at the gate and saw two hulking men kicking rocks around while smoking cigarettes.

One had a thick, unruly beard and the other had a head that was so bald, it was reflecting the sunlight like a mirror. Airi even had to shield her eyes for a quick second.

"D-Do you know them by any chance, Reiji-kun?"

"Nope, no idea who they are," he responded with zero hesitation.

Greeny and Airi looked at each other with disbelieving expressions, but a loud shout snapped them back to reality.

"OOOH BOSSSS!! WE'VE BEEN WAITING FOR SO LONG! WOOHOO? BOSS? OVER HERE!!"

'I'm going to commit my first murder today.'