135. Culmination (3)

(Riku POV)

***

"I don't want to see you two failing again in the future. Got it?"

Kahawara Sensei's words echoed through the class, the already existing silence getting heavier as it took a few seconds for everyone to process it.

"Wait, what??"

"They both failed?"

"Holy shit, that's insane."

The hushed whispers quickly spread across the students, and I could only grit my teeth at the embarrassment.

I side-eyed Morikawa, who was covering his face with his hands in shame, his ears turning red at a visible rate.

'This isn't fair! I'm sure this isn't allowed!'

There was a reason only the Top 50 were listed on the rankings, because it helped prevent other students from getting discouraged or attacked by peers if they performed poorly.

But Kahawara Sensei announced this regardless.

It's not like I didn't know how sadistic this man was, but his thorns were usually aiming for Yagami, and that made me a little happy.

I even thought we were kindred spirits!

Now?

It seems like it's my turn.

I could feel Hina's burning gaze on me, so I glanced at her briefly, expecting pity or concern.

But.....

'...Why is she shaking her head?'

It felt like she was ridiculing me, mocking me for not listening to her.

Was I overthinking it?

Maybe.

But my mind was already overheating at the repeated setbacks today, and it was a wonder I hadn't just run off yet.

Yuzuki-san was slightly behind me, and I could look back at her without much effort.

And yet I didn't have the courage to do so.

If my childhood friend was reacting like that, what would she be like?

Especially after I unintentionally seemed to offend her earlier on.

*CRACK*

I ignored the sound.

Or maybe it didn't even register.

Seeing the class becoming noisy, Kahawara Sensei had a small, almost unnoticeable smile on his face.

But I noticed.

*CLAP CLAP*

"Alright. Everyone, calm down. I'm distributing the papers now!"

He called out names one by one, not that I was paying any attention.

I only looked up when I saw Yagami's name get called.

He stood up from his seat and walked up to the podium calmly, not even sparing me a glance as he passed by.

And for some reason, that irked me.

Yagami reached the teacher's desk, but as he held onto his batch of papers from the outstretched arm, Kahawara Sensei didn't let go.

".....I'm still not convinced. The midterm papers were ready a week before the actual examination, giving you enough time to get your hands on them somehow. I've already reported you to the Student Council," Sensei muttered.

His voice was quiet, yet it was still heard by everyone.

'...I knew it! He definitely cheated!'

But contrary to my expectations, Yagami merely smiled.

"That's fine."

He took the papers from Sensei's hand and returned to his seat leisurely, as if there wasn't an ounce of worry in his body.

Kahawara Sensei's face turned gloomy, and he continued distributing the papers with a frustrated frown.

Soon, all the papers were distributed, including mine and Morikawa's, and he clapped his hands again to quieten the chattering students who had started discussing their marks.

"Classes will resume as usual. Since everyone picked up their papers, attendance has automatically been taken."

Saying that, he walked out of class for the first period's teacher to take over, but my attention was purely on the large number of red marks on my answer sheets.

I sighed, feeling like an idiot as I read the comments beside some of the silly mistakes I made.

***

You forgot to carry the number.

25 divided by 5 is not 4.

You misspelled the word 'construction', it's not 'construcion.'

H2O is water, not salt.

***

The ridiculous level of idiocy in my answers made even me feel like punching myself.

Surely I wasn't so distracted that I messed up these simple things??

But reality determined it so, and there was nothing I could do about it.

For the first three periods, I didn't have the energy, drive, or motivation to listen to the course contents; my eyes blurred as I started drifting off into dreamland.

I daydreamed about Yuzuki-san being my girlfriend.

About Hina accepting that relationship and joining in.

About being so impressive that I even won over the ice-cold President.

About beating the living shit out of that Yakuza.

"Kazama."

About winning the E-Sports tournament and securing the MVP.

About ranking first and shutting down all the haters.

What a wonderful life.

"KAZAMA!"

"HUH?"

I snapped out of my thoughts, only to see Higashino Sensei standing over me with a furious face.

"Not only did you fail my class, but you haven't learned your lesson and are still goofing off?" she snarled with undisguised anger.

"I..... No, I'm just not feeling well," I mumbled, still disoriented from those scenes that felt so real.

".....You do look a little pale."

Higashino Sensei's stern face softened slightly as she placed her hand on my forehead.

"Oh my... You're burning up! Go to the infirmary immediately," she said, her tone shifting with worry.

"Am I?"

I had been feeling a little under the weather ever since I found out I had failed, and I guess I really was a little sick.

But that fact made me happy instead of annoyed, because this was the best excuse to get away from this hellhole for now.

After this period was a 15-minute break, and I knew that the students around me were no less than rabid dogs, just like the ones I'd run away from a while ago.

They smelled a moment of weakness from me, and they'd pounce at the first opportunity.

I shoved my books into my bag and left the class in a hurry, not even daring to look back to see Hina or Yuzuki-san's faces.

The infirmary was on the same floor, not too far from the class, so it didn't take long to get there.

I considered straight-up leaving the school, but thought I'd get a sick note from the nurse first to prevent future troubles.

Since I was already in hot water, I didn't want to make it worse.

"Huh, what's wrong, young man?"

A middle-aged woman, who was quite burly, put down a magazine when I opened the infirmary door, adjusting her glasses to study me.

'...I knew the sexy nurses in manga and movies were false.'

"I got permission from the teacher to come here. I'm a little sick, so I'd like to go home," I stated.

"Hmmm, let me take your temperature."

She made me sit on the bed next to her and used a thermometer.

And just like Higashino Sensei said, I really did have a fever.

It was a little odd, now that I think about it.

I'd felt perfectly fine this morning, quite healthy even, and yet I'd become sick all of a sudden?

'Strange.....'

But I didn't think too deeply about it, since it benefited me anyway.

"Okay, take this tablet for now, and hold onto this one, which you'll have to take after dinner. I'll sign out for you, so you can leave if you want. Should I call your parents and inform them?"

"Um, no. I'll just go home and sleep for a bit. They're both out working, and it's just a fever," I replied.

The nurse smiled.

"What a good kid. Alright, you go on home then."

I didn't correct her misunderstanding.

The reason I didn't want to call them was to delay telling them about my results as much as possible.

They knew I'd find out this morning, so if they picked me up, there would be an interrogation for sure.

And I wasn't planning on going home anyway.

I needed to clear my head, and grabbing some food from the market nearby sounded heavenly, especially because I was oddly starving despite the heavy breakfast.

"Thank you, I'll leave now."

The nurse waved goodbye and picked up her magazine again, and only now did I notice that she was looking at pictures of shirtless men.

'Uh...'

***

There was a decent amount saved up in my wallet, so I booked a taxi after exiting the school, giving the security guard the note provided by the nurse for proof.

'Takoyaki? Nah, Kaarage sounds better... Wait, I'm feeling better already?'

As soon as I stepped out of the school, it felt like my fever had lightened a considerable degree.

It wasn't completely gone, but the change was almost instantaneous.

'Nah, am I actually terminally ill? What's happening today?'

There was a trace of fear in my mind, but I pushed it back when I thought that if I really was sick, the fever would've gotten worse instead of improving.

The taxi pulled into the parking lot next to the street market, and I rushed in after paying.

Though I didn't feel as dizzy anymore, the hunger I was feeling intensified.

But for some reason, it didn't feel like I was hungry for food.

There was this urge to fill the emptiness within me, and the idea that it wouldn't be solved by eating.

I scratched my hair roughly, racing into the bustling street with stalls on either side of me, a large crowd of people moving about, even though it was the middle of a workday.

I passed by a crepe stall.

A ramen shop.

A Takoyaki stand.

But even the delicious aroma of yakisoba didn't move me.

My eyes continuously scanned, looking for something that would satiate this hunger.

And then I saw it.

A shop with no food in sight.

It was a small, inconspicuous stand filled with a variety of different clothes.

In the middle of it, an old lady sat in a chair with a fan in her hands, using it to stay cool as she talked to some customers.

Her grumpy face and thick glasses made me comfortable for some reason, and even the sharp insults she was spewing at the people asking for a discount didn't stop that.

My hunger started to subside.

Just looking at her made me feel full.

'....Am I supposed to eat this grandmother?'