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therainroguefanfiction · 4 years ago

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🌀 Storm Coming (A SKET Dance Fanfic) Chapter 4: A Test of Courage

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Kaimei high school was a ten-minute walk from the house. Kevin insisted on taking me, but I didn’t want him to miss work so I managed to convince him I’d be fine. In truth, I was far from fine. Every step I took seemed to grow heavier as my heart hammered against my chest. The crude map he had drawn for me was clenched tightly in my hand as I walked down the street.

When I reached the gate leading to the school, I paused to calm my nerves. I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths, the cool spring air filling my lungs. When I opened them, I took a moment to appreciate the cherry trees on either side of the gate. They were beautiful and had a calming effect on me. It was kind of ironic – I hate the color pink, but I also think cherry trees are one of the most beautiful things in nature.

My phone buzzed in my pocket and I slipped it out. It was a message from Kevin.

‘Did you find the school okay?’

I nodded, but realized that was stupid since he couldn’t see it and quickly typed a reply, ‘I just arrived. I’m going in now.’

Taking another deep breath, I slid my phone back into my pocket and entered the school. I had been worried that I would get lost looking for the office, but I found it fairly easily and slid the door open. Several pairs of eyes looked up at me and I froze. This wasn’t like the office buildings back in America. Back home, the office door led to a desk clerk or secretary. Behind that person would be a couple different offices, including the principal.

But it was different here. The office was one room, in the center of which were a bunch of desks pushed together. There was a desk at the front of the room, and I assumed that had to be the principal’s desk but he wasn’t there. Shit, what do I do? I was supposed to come to the office, wasn’t I? Everyone is looking at me. Is it too late to run away?

My breathing was getting heavy and I felt a panic attack coming on as I slowly backed up, right into someone. I felt warm hands grip my shoulders

“Woah there. Are you okay?”

I didn’t want to look over my shoulder. It was obviously a guy if the voice was anything to go by. I lowered my head, feeling my cheeks burn. This was a mistake. I can’t do this.

“Would you happen to be Reynolds, Samantha?” He questioned.

I nodded, staring down at my sneakers.

“Perfect, I was just coming to look for you! If you follow me, I’ll take you to the room where you’ll be taking your test.”

I nodded again, not trusting my voice. My eyes felt moist, but I refused to cry. I couldn’t. Not in front of this guy I’ve never met before, not in this strange school. The thought of drawing that much attention to myself kept me grounded enough to keep it together, but just barely.

“My name is Agata, Soujirou, I’m the student council president.” He said, stopping in front of a door and sliding it open. “Here we are.”

I glanced up. There were two tables pushed against one another in the center of the room, with books and pens and an assortment of other items placed on top. Two chairs were placed on either side. A desk sat at the front of the room, which he moved to sit in.

“This is the student council room,” he explained, stifling a yawn as he leaned back in his chair. “The others are in class right now. Go ahead and take a seat.”

With a gulp, I took the first seat at the table. Several sheets of paper had been stapled together, waiting to be filled out. ‘Kaimei High Placement Test’ had been written in bold lettering across the top. I glanced at the boy as he relaxed in the chair, hands behind his head and eyes closed.

He seemed to stand at around five-ten, with black messy hair. The top buttons of his school shirt were undone and his tie was loose, his clothes wrinkled. Was he really the student council president? I had followed him without question. I bit my lip, weighing my options.

His brown eyes slid opened, meeting my own and he tilted his head. “Something wrong?”

I quickly looked away, cursing myself for getting caught staring. I picked up the pencil with a shaking hand, taking a few deep breaths. In and out. In and out. Gotta stay calm. I can do this. First, I gotta fill in my name. I wrote my first name and then paused. The Japanese write it last name first, I should do that. I erased it and wrote my last name, then paused again. Wait wait, I don’t know the kanji for my name! Crap, I’m filling out my name and I’m already losing it? You’re a goddamn mess, Sam!

Agata hummed thoughtfully as he stood up and approached me.

I tensed up, my hand tightening around the pencil.

He tugged it from my hand with a chuckle, letting his tongue touch the tip before he pulled the paper toward him. “Let’s see. Reynolds, Samantha, ne? That would be…” He wrote my name in Kanji. “There,”

“T-Thank you,” I mumbled, keeping my eyes on the paper as he slid it back to me. I heard him sit back down in his chair, but I didn’t want to look in case he was watching me. My eyes scanned his messy handwriting, trying to memorize the characters for my name. He must think I’m so stupid, not even able to write my own name.

Running a hand through my hair, I added the date and started on question one. The room was so quiet I could hear my breathing and his own. My ears were ringing, but I forced myself to make due. I couldn’t handle quiet environments well. For whatever reason, my anxiety didn’t like it, so I always had to have some sort of background or white noise. It made it hard for me to concentrate, but I did my best to ignore it.

The bell rang, a shrill sound that echoed throughout the school. I could hear footsteps as students crowded the halls, their chatter making my body start to shake. I glanced at the clock. It was already lunchtime? I swallowed hard, closing my eyes. It’s okay. I only have one more page and I can go home. You’ve gotten this far, Sam, don’t chicken out now!

My hand shook, but I did my best to keep my handwriting neat and readable. I wanted to breeze through the last page, but my brain was having a meltdown. I tried reading the paragraph but found myself reading it ten times and still not knowing what it said. I could only focus on the dozens of students that were passing the door outside.

The door slammed open and I jumped, hitting my knee on the desk. I bit my lip hard, squeezing the pencil until the wood started to crack. My eyes were closed tightly, trying to keep back tears.

“President! I have some detention slips for you to look over.” It was a boy. I could hear him walk behind me as he approached Agata.

I couldn’t stop shaking. How bad I wanted to hop up and run from the room, but my body wasn’t listening to me. It was going into flight or fight mode, but neither option seemed to appease it. I was too scared to flee and too scared to fight against the fear. I bit my lip harder, feeling the skin split. The pain helped relieve some of the pressure I felt.

“Huh? What’s wrong with you? Why are you shaking?” The new voice asked, his voice clipped.

I lowered my head, shaking it back and forth. I hoped he got the hint because I was sure if I saw his face or tried to speak, I would break down.

“Oi, didn’t you hear me?” He was getting closer.

Agata cleared his throat and the chair squeaked as he stood up. “I’m approving all of these, Tsubaki. I heard there were a few students that like to hang out around the back of the school smoking during lunch. Can you investigate that?”

“What?” The second boy, ‘Tsubaki’, snapped angrily. “Leave it to me, president!” He ran out of the room, slamming it closed behind him.

I felt a warm hand on my head.

“Sorry about that. Tsubaki can be a bit over the top sometimes, kekeke.”

What a strange laugh.

“Principal Karamatsu told me about your problem, so don’t worry. Take your time to calm down.” He spoke, softly, ruffling my hair.

The door opened again, softer this time. “Oh, is this the new student?”

“Yeah, this is her. Shinba, can you make sure no one else comes in until this test is finished?”

“Of course! I look forward to getting to know you better.” This new boy’s tone sounded flirty but kind. The door slid closed once again.

Agata sighed. “Maybe it would have been better to do this on the weekend. Are you almost done?”

I used the sleeve of my jacket to wipe away my tears and nodded, shakily reaching for the pencil. I realized I had broken it. “I-I’m s-sorry…”

“Don’t mind it,” he set a fresh pencil on the paper before picking up the broken one and throwing it in the trash. “It’s just a pencil, we have plenty of those kekeke.”

I wanted to get out of there. I wanted to run away and hide under my covers until I died. Even if I rushed through and finished the test, all of the students were out of class for lunch and I really didn’t want to go through them. I didn’t want to be seen by anyone. I carefully read over the paragraph for the eleventh time, finally understanding what it was trying to tell me.

My handwriting had gotten messier and I cursed, erasing it and trying to re-write the answer. It was just as messy. I ran my hand through my hair again, chewing on the split in my lip. The taste of metal rested on my tongue. Why did I always have to fall apart like this? Even if I pass this test with flying colors, there’s no way in hell I can survive two years of this.

Tears filled my eyes again and I sniffed, angrily wiping them away. I was a fool to think I could change, to think I was strong enough to change.

“You’re too hard on yourself,”

My head snapped up, teary eyes meeting his. His expression was serious as he watched me, his chin resting on his intertwined fingers. What, was he a damn mind reader or something? That thought terrified me. My mind is not something anyone should have to see.

“Don’t push yourself so hard. Just be yourself and try not to worry so much.”

I glanced down at the paper and scoffed.

“I know, I know, it’s harder than it sounds.” He shifted, sitting back in his chair. “But I have faith that you can do it.”

I wanted to question him but his genuine expression stopped the words before I could say them. He didn’t know me. He just met me for the first time in his life and he saw me have a mini-breakdown because some loud kid came into the room and asked me a question. How in the hell could he possibly have more confidence in myself than I do? I frowned at the paper.

Just one more question left. One more question and I could go home. The problem is that it was a math question and I had no idea what the answer was.

‘Simplify the expression: 12(3 + x) – 4(5x – 6)’,

The hell did I just read. I groaned, holding my head between my hands. What the hell does that even mean? They never taught me this shit in school. Granted, I did drop out in middle school, and the school I went to was rated a D by the school board. To be honest, I didn’t really understand any of the math questions and I won’t lie and say I didn’t guess on most of them.

“Not good at math, huh?”

I jumped, nearly falling out of the chair. When the hell had he walked back over here?

“Kekeke, sorry.” He grinned. “The answer is C, by the way.”

My brow furrowed. Why is he giving me the answer? That doesn’t seem like something a student council president would do. Is he testing me to see if I’ll take the answer? Will I be failed if I accept it? Is it even the right answer?

The bell rang again, signaling the end of lunch.

I glanced at the door just as it slid open, brown eyes meeting mine. The boy smiled, tilting his head, light brown hair shifting with the motion.

“I’m heading back to class. Unless you need me to stay?”

“We should be done here, thanks Shinba.”

“Of course,” he winked at me before closing the door. He seemed nice enough, but I didn’t think I’d get on well with him. He seemed like the type of guy that would flirt with anything that had a pulse. Was he a stereotypical playboy you see in romance anime that jumps from girl to girl?

I shook my head, realizing that Agata was probably waiting on me. I apologized softly before circling the third option and sliding the test toward him.

He picked it up, smacking it with the back of his hand. “I’ll take this to the principal so he can look over it. You can stay here to calm down for a bit if you want.” He paused at the door, offering me a smile. “Or I can walk you to the gate?”

I quickly shook my head. “N-No. I’m okay, t-thank you.”

He waved, closing the door behind him.

I sunk down in my seat with a sigh, looking up at the fluorescent light in the ceiling. Who knew taking a single test could take such a toll on the body. I felt like I had just run a marathon. I checked my phone and sweatdropped. Kevin had left fifteen messages…

They basically all said the same thing, just in different ways.

‘I hope the test is going well,’ It didn’t, but thanks.

‘Stay calm, you can do this!’ I didn’t stay calm, but I did it at least.

‘I believe in you,’ You, too? Come on.

‘I’m so proud of you, this is a big step!’ My cheeks burned at the thought of someone being proud of me.

‘What would you like for dinner? I’ll make whatever you want!’

That one made me remember that I had skipped breakfast. I stared at the message for a minute. Do they carry ingredients for spaghetti here? It wasn’t my favorite food, but it was a comfort food that reminded me of home. When I was younger, my grandma would always make a huge pot of spaghetti because it lasted us a week. It saved money and time. Back then, I didn’t feel near as much fear as I do now, so it had always been a comfort for me when I eat it.

‘Spaghetti?’, I replied.

The dots indicating that he was typing popped up. ‘Haven’t had that in forever! I’ll go to the store on the way home.’ Another message. ‘Are you okay?’

My fingers hovered over the keyboard as I hesitated. Should I tell him what happened? No, he’ll just worry! I typed out my reply, telling him that everything was fine and that the test had gone well, but my finger hesitated over the send button.

“Well, no more of that. I want you to feel comfortable being honest with me, no matter what it is, and I’ll do the same to you. Is that a deal?” His words echoed in my mind and I groaned.

I erased the message, replacing it with a different one. ‘Can I tell you when you get home?’

‘Of course, you can! Gotta get back to work, if you need me, call me ^_^’

Was it normal for parents to use those kinds of emojis? I guess it could have been worse. He coulda used a Lenny face or sent a meme.

With a sigh, I pushed myself up, taking a couple careful steps. My legs were shaky from nerves, but there shouldn’t be a problem – they rarely ever gave out on me. I hesitantly pulled the door open, glancing back and forth. The hallway was deserted. The problem was that I had no idea how to get back to the front of the school. When I was following Agata, I had been too nervous to pay attention to anything but the floor.

Maybe I should have taken him up on his offer… With a sigh, I started walking down the hall, hoping my feet would find their own way. I glanced outside at the cherry trees, their petals being carried on the wind. It was beautiful and, for a moment, I just stood there watching them dance.

“Hey, what are you doing out of class?!”

That voice… oh no.

“Get back to class right this ins – Oh, it’s you.” Tsubaki came to a stop beside me. “Why are you loitering in the halls? If you want a tour of the school, it can wait until your first day.”

I lowered my head, chewing on my lip. Should I tell him I’m lost? He’s going to think I’m such an idiot. But if I just apologize and walk away, he could find me wandering the halls again and get even angrier. If god exists, he definitely hates me.

“S-Sorry,” I muttered.

“What was that? Speak up, new student.”

Tears were springing to my eyes again and I cursed. I should just jump out of the window. That’d probably be less embarrassing than breaking down in front of this guy for the second time. Though I hoped he didn’t realize what was happening the first time. He probably thought I was rude for not answering him.

“What is with you?” he muttered, grabbing my shoulder to make me look in his direction. He raised his voice. “Speak up so I can hear yo – w-why are you crying?!”

The tears fell from my eyes on their own, falling down my cheeks. I could feel my body starting to shake as ice settled in on my chest.

“Crap, what do I do?!” He started to freak out, leaning down so he could see my face. “Come on, don’t cry!”

I was taken back by how beautiful his eyes were. They were the color of amber in the sunlight, framed by long lashes. They were mesmerizing, I didn’t want to look away. What the hell. Is this guy a witch or something?

I tore my gaze away, taking a step back as I furiously wiped my eyes with the sleeve of my jacket. I bowed as low as my body would allow, stuttering out an apology before I took off down the hall. Of course, with my weight and lack of athletic ability, I couldn’t run away like I wanted and it ended up to be more of a speed walk. He didn’t follow.

I managed to find the exit and rushed out of the building, not stopping to admire the beautiful trees that I loved so much.

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