Prison School: No More Prison

14th of July, Saturday

Kiyoshi's POV:

As I woke up this morning, Gakuto, Shingo and I went and had breakfast in the cafeteria. As always, We had to be cautious, either Gakuto gets seen and we have the whole school fangirling at him, or Shingo and I get noticed and start getting bullied, either way we wanted to grab something quick and take it outside where no one would bother us.

As we are getting to the middle of July, it's slowly getting hotter. We grabbed some tea and some semi-burnt cupcakes from Joe's recent baking club session and we looked for a place to cool off.

"Shingo-dono, Is anything the matter? You've been looking rather… Upset" Gakuto started a conversation.

"Ah… My bad, my bad. I've been thinking a lot about my recent 'date' with Anzu-san… I wanted to kiss her so badly…" Shingo sounded depressed as he said that. "Gakuto, have you managed to score a girl with that fame of yours?"

"Y-Yours truly has been unlucky with the ladies as of recently… Mitsuko-dono and Bitch-dono have been ignoring me… I want to kiss a girl too…" Suddenly Gakuto looked as somber as Shingo. I heard that Mitsuko and him had an argument, and I can't imagine what happened with Bitch-san as well… 

"Ah, shit! I'm so tired of not being able to do anything! I want to be a man like Andre! That ungrateful bastard! He skipped like 5 steps in one night!"

"Yours truly is an agreement! I want to feel a woman's lips before my fame fades out!"

Suddenly, both of them looked over at me with murderous eyes.

"Kiyoshi-dono… You've been awfully quiet… I remember you mentioned kissing a girl before the sports festival…"

"Yeah… Even though your advice was terrible, it didn't seem like you were lying…"

"H-Hey guys, why don't you both calm down and stop trying to kill me with your minds?"

Shingo suddenly grabbed me by the neck of my shirt.

"How did you do it?! I don't want to hear any more bullshit from you! Be honest!"

"I-I've been honest! I thought that would work as it did with me!"

"Oh, That reminds me" Gakuto seemed to calm down. "Kiyoshi-dono, why did you write a letter to Chiyo-dono? It's not like you to do so"

"A-Ah… I wanted to have the chance to talk to her again… I-I know that she hates me now but… M-Maybe that will work…"

"Ah, that's right" Shingo let go of my shirt. "How's she doing? I haven't heard anything from her since the bathroom incident"

"I-... don't know… I asked Mayumi-san but she told me she doesn't even talk to her"

"What the hell did you do to her to make her that upset? Did you try the bottle stuff on her?!"

"N-No! I-I would never" But he wasn't that wrong to be honest… "I just… Want to apologize for what happened… I would totally understand if she doesn't want to talk to me ever again… But at least…"

As I looked around me, both boys were looking down. I guess none of us is having any luck in love, right? At least they didn't do anything as bad as I did…

Man… Lately everything is… Shit… Is this my emo phase or something? Why is it that I find everything so shitty…

The gloomy ambience suddenly changed as an orange haired girl appeared in front of us, accompanied by her gray haired 'rival'.

"What are you doing here? Why do you look…dead?" Meiko asked us without a hint of compassion in our faces. 

"She's right, you guys look miserable, what happened? Is it the weather?"

We all just looked to the sides, but Meiko hit Gakuto in the face.

"Answer when you're spoken to!"

"S-Sorry!"

"S-Sorry, we're just… feeling down"

"Eh? 'Down' you say? Is it about the festival?"

"N-No, it's just tha-"

"Then it's not important" Meiko said again, her cold heart turning away and trying to leave us just as we were.

Kate seemed to look at us with a bit more compassion, and a second after that she got closer to us.

"Hey, Why don't you accompany us? I think you'll see something that will cheer you up!"

"Huh? Where are you going?" Shingo asked.

"We're going to see the vegetable garden you guys built, don't you want to see it?"

We all looked surprised at her proposal, and before we knew, we were following them.

[...]

As we approached the empty wasteland in which we used to work for most of our imprisonment, we found a really pretty and well assembled garden. Tomatoes, basils, carrots, there were even some strawberries for what we could see.

"T-This is…"

"Really pretty…"

"Yours truly is impressed by the beauty of this garden!"

"I told you! It's looking pretty good. The USC was great at managing its construction." Kate said with a cheerful smile.

"If it wasn't for the help of the club you formed, this wouldn't have ended up looking half as good, Kate" Meiko responded with a smile.

Eh? What's this? The two presidents getting along? I know they are working together but this is really rare to see.

I think my reaction was a bit obvious to them, as they quickly tried to recompose themselves.

"Anyways, this is the culmination of your work, and if it wasn't for this, the funds for the festival wouldn't be enough for us to hold it this friday" Meiko said with a serious face. "We'll sell this ones to a local market and use the money to finance your stupid plan, so you'll should be a little proud about this" 

"... Indeed, I've never felt as proud as today"

"This is so cool!"

The other two looked so happy at the garden we built, but I couldn't help but feel a little sad about selling these crops.

Whatever the case, it is really nice of Kate bringing us here, I feel a bit relieved…

"Well, now that you're here, why don't you help us collect most of the stuff!" Kate said with a smile on her face.

Ah… It was too good to be true…

…

Before we knew it, the three of us were helping them pick out the crops and putting them in baskets.

To be fair, it helped relieve some stress out of us, I could say we felt like we were back in prison. Even though we didn't have the best memories there, the time we spent together unified us. I could see the same thing on the boys' faces. It's a bit of a shame Joe and Andre aren't here, mostly because we could use some extra help, but it would be nice to just be the five of us together again…

"Hey, Kiyoshi, could you please bring us more baskets? There's no more left here"

"Ah, sure!"

As I left, I walked a bit to where the storage was. Meiko and Kate bought tons of stuff for the festival, so they were leaving them in a shed near one of the school buildings…

That reminded me of the small shed 'we' destroyed for my escape. I wonder how that ended up? I don't remember finishing it's repair.

*Flap*

"Hmm?"

I looked to my right and for a second I saw something near the top of a tree. My curiosity won and I went to see what was going on.

…

"Huh? This tree…"

It looked familiar, but the location of it did too…

It was the same place where I helped a small baby crow get back to its nest, then I promised to go on a date with Chiyo and… That happened with Hana.

I was mostly surprised because that same tree got burnt and cut down, but this one looked quite alright… Did they plant a new one? But that can't be… This one is as tall as the other…

Suddenly, I saw something move on one of its branches. A little crow appeared out of nowhere, his eyes looking directly at mine.

*Caw caw!*

He started squawking at me. And before I could even react…

*Flush*

It flew down its branch and landed on my shoulder.

"H-Huh?"

I was a bit shocked to say the least. It was my first time having one of them so close to me…

But why did it get near me? I heard that they are really intelligent but… This friendly towards someone it doesn't kno-

"...W-Wait… Could you be?"

Before I could end my phrase, the crow did a small jump and got closer to my head.

"Y-You are! You are the small crow I helped that one time!"

It did a small "caw!", so I took it as a yes.

"Hey buddy! It's good to see you"

Ah, I wish I had something to feed him… What do they eat anyways? I wish Mari was here so I could ask her…

I slowly tried petting it, as my hand got closer, it stayed really still. When my hand finally touched it's head, it moved it's head closer to my hand.

If I had to make an assumption, I would say it's a "she". And I have to say, she's really friendly. I would love to play a little more with her but…

"Well… I gotta go"

I slowly started walking, waiting for her to fly away… but…

"E-Erm… You're not leaving?"

She decided to remain on my shoulder.

[...]

"Kiyoshi-dono! You took your time with tha- Huh?" Gakuto was the first one to notice my arrival, I brought about 6 small baskets to sell the precious vegetables planted on the garden we technically built. "K-Kiyoshi-dono? Why do you?-"

"Sorry! I found this little fella and couldn't make her leave! That's why I took my time"

"Hey hey!" Shingo started laughing. "You look like the ex-president! You're gonna start 'crow bending' now?"

"You bastard…" Meiko hit Shingo in the head. "Is that supposed to be an insult to Mari-san?!" She looked as angry as she used to do before… Ah… the memories… "And you, Kiyoshi, you better be cautious with that crow! It's a part of Mari's legacy"

"Y-Yes ma'am!"

I'm not really sure what to do with 'her'. She followed me the whole way to the shed and back here as well… I truly can't take care of a pet, even less a crow! 

"Kiyoshi-dono, May I ask you something?"

"Hmm? Yeah? What's the problem, Gakuto?" 

"Yours truly wanted to know if… Mitsuko-dono said anything about me…"

Oh, That's right. Because I'm now part of the council I've been meeting Mitsuko a lot, I should have tried to help Gakuto on this…

"Erm… She didn't but… When Joe mentioned you last time, she looked… mad?"

"A-Ah… Indeed… It seems the consequences of my actions haven't gone unnoticed…"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"I'll have to figure out a way for Mitsuko-dono to forgive me…" He ignored my question. "Kiyoshi-dono, if I asked for your assistance with my dilemma, would you help me?"

To be honest, I don't want to involve myself in their problems, especially now that I'm working with her… But… Gakuto has always helped me…

"...O-Ok… But I won't do anything to get me into trouble, I'm not going to risk the position Mari left me"

"I'm truly honored" Gakuto half-bowed.

"So umm… Kiyoshi…" Shingo joined the conversation. "What are you gonna do with that thing?" He pointed to the little crow on my shoulder.

"I… I don't know…"

"Maybe you should just take care of it" Kate appeared from behind me. "Just don't let it into your room and you'll be fine"

Is it okay to just… Keep it? I've never been a pet person but… It doesn't look like she's going to leave my side at all…

"O-Okay!"

"That's enough, you can go home now" Meiko said as Gakuto filled the last basket.

"Thanks for your help guys!" 

As we left, Gakuto and I went to the computer lab, in order to help Mayumi regain her account.

End of Kiyoshi's POV.

---

Mayumi's POV:

After classes, I hung out with Satou-san. She and I became friends after Chiyo's birthday. I would say the same about Anzu-san but I'm still a bit mad about what happened in my live stream.

I wanted to be with her a little more, but there was another thing I had to do.

*Knock Knock*

"It's me Chiyo-chan… I'm coming in…"

Knocking on my on door has become something common this last week. 

Chiyo has been missing classes, she doesn't go to the cafeteria nor take showers, unless I make her. 

"H-Hey… I brought you some Katsudon!" I handed her a small plate while she remained in bed.

When I came back from her birthday party, I found her crying under her sheets. She spent most of the week like that, until the 'bathroom incident'... Since then, she's just there, staring at the ceiling…

Beside her bed, semi empty water bottles and some random food I bought her stood. She wasn't drinking that much, but her appetite is the same as always.

"H-Hmm?"

I noticed that she finally opened the letter her sister sent her.

"I read it" She suddenly spoke, making me jump slightly.

"Y-You did?"

"...Yes… So, she's gone, right?"

"Y-Yes… Mei-"

"Meiko is the new president… That's why she tried to talk to me so many times… Right?"

"A-Ah… Yes"

What's this feeling? I'm… scared? Her voice sounds so deep… It doesn't feel like I'm talking to her…

"...Thanks, Mayumi"

"E-Eh?"

"You took care of me, thank you"

I felt like crying. I went and hugged her without noticing.

"Y-You got me so worried" Tears ran down my face.

To my surprise, she hugged me back, slightly petting me in the head.

"Sorry, Mayumi… I really am"

"N-No… I'm sorry, sorry th-that I missed your party, sorry that I didn't protect you in the baths…"

"It's okay" She let go of me while finally looking at me in the face. "Thank you" She gave me a faint smile. It looked like she tried her best to do so.

"S-So… How are you feeling?"

"I'm… doing better… Big sister told me she'll call me tomorrow or next Monday, so I feel a bit better" Her face didn't say the same as that. She looked destroyed.

"I-I see… That means you're coming back?"

"... I'll see about that"

I don't want to pressure her, but I'm worried. I also want to know what happened… Maybe I should ask her about it? I don't think that will work…

"E-Ehm… Should I tell you what's going on with the school?"

She looked at me a little confused, but then nodded.

[...]

I took my time to explain what Meiko told us when she visited our club. I told her about the cultural event, about how our club was going to have a little space to play with other girls and stuff like that.

She listened carefully, but her mind was probably wandering to another place, as her eyes hardly focused on me… That's when I notice the letter with her name that was on my bag.

"O-Oh… That's right… I got you a letter"

"...? A letter?"

"Y-Yes… Kiyoshi gave it to me, it's for you…"

Before I ended my phrase, her eyes became as wide as the plate where she was eating Katsudon. She choked on her food and I had to help her drink some water.

…

So… Kiyoshi WAS involved… What happened within these two?

"E-Ehm… You can have it if-"

"That's okay. Leave it on the table… I'll read it later…"

She looked as grim as last week… Was it that bad? S-Shit… Maybe I shouldn't have told her it was Kiyoshi's…

I guess there's nothing else I can help her with… I suck at this…

"Mayumi"

"U-Uh? Y-Yes?"

"Did anyone else ask you about me?"

"H-Huh?"

What should I tell her? I already think I fucked it up telling her about Kiyoshi… B-But I shouldn't lie to her…

"W-Well… Some of our classmates did… As well as other first year students that heard about the incident…"

"A-Ah… Sorry"

"No no, its okay… There also was… Hana-san…"

As before, her face changed, but unlike when I mentioned Kiyoshi, this time it looked… different? I felt like she stopped being her for a second… I felt a drop of sweat running through my forehead…

"I see… Thank you, Mayumi… Thanks for being honest with me" I could faintly see a smile on her face, but unlike the last one… This felt different. It looked fake and forced.

End of Mayumi's POV.

---

Kiyoshi's POV:

After half an hour, Gakuto and I finally were able to gather evidence enough to prove that Anzu 'flashing' at Mayumi's stream was accidental, making the ban unjustified.

So, thanks to Gakuto knowing some moderator in a random forum about Chinese history, he managed to unban Mayumi's account.

"Ah… Well done Gakuto, now our plan is finally going to work…"

"Indeed… I believe there's nothing we should worry about…"

As we grabbed our stuff to leave, I remembered something important: Next week my parents are going to come to school. If I don't do anything to stop that, they are going to see how literally every girl in this school hates my guts… Well, they would also see I'm part of the student council… But who cares, I'm a temporary member after all…

"G-Gakuto, you should go tell Mayumi about her account, I'll stay here doing some stuff…"

"Huh? Do as you please, Kiyoshi-dono, I'll see you later"

And so, he left, while I tried to send an email to my mother. I sadly did not remember her phone numbers, knowing them anyways, they wouldn't answer to a new phone number.

*Door opening*

"Hmm?"

"H-Huh?"

Before I could even try to do something, Meiko came into the room. She looked a bit exhausted. She was holding a flute of sorts, covered in sweat as always…

"What are you doing here at these hours?"

"I-I am just sending an email to my parents… I could ask the same to you, president"

"I have some stuff to take care of… Be fast using that computer!"

"Y-Yes, ma'am!"

Meiko entered the room and sat a few computers from me.

She took what I think it's a pendrive or a memory card and started working on her computer…

…

While I tried to ask my mom to 'politely' not come to the cultural festival, Meiko seemed to struggle with her 'important tasks'... I didn't want to bother her but…

"U-Uhm… Meiko-san"

"It's 'President' to you"

"R-Right… Madam President… Do you want me to help you with… whatever you're doing?"

"... Fine… I'll allow it, come here"

As I stood up and got closer to her computer, I could finally see what she was working on: I found a video of her and Kate at the music club, singing a weird song while playing some instruments…

"Please, listen to it and give your opinion… And you better be honest!"

"Y-Yes…"

[...]

I listened to their whole song. It was a song about Mari, one similar to the one she sang during the cavalry battle, but this time Kate joined and the lyrics where different…

But… If I had to be honest…

"It sucks…" Those words escaped my mouth. 

I tried covering my mouth, anticipating a hard punch from the president… But…

"... It does, doesn't it?"

"H-Huh?"

"We tried our best with Kate, but it looks like Mari's talent beats us both…"

Now I feel like a piece of shit.

"W-Well, it's not terrible or nothing… With some edition mayb-"

"Edition?... I guess I could try that…"

"Are you going to send this to her? I thought her phone was dead basically…"

"It is… But the chairman told me she'll have a new one to talk to him…"

"W-What? Really?"

"Yes. That way I'll be able to at least send this to her…"

W-Wow… I didn't think about that before… Maybe I could use that to ask her some questions…

"I'll help you with the edition in exchange for her new phone number once you talk to her!"

"Huh? Do you think you're in any position to have an exchange with me?"

"W-Well you owe it to me! You stole my bike and left it in the middle of nowhere last saturday!"

"That's!... True… Fine, I will now help me with this. And you better not laugh or share this video with anyone!"

"I won't ma'am!"

[...]

And so, I spent an extra hour editing the video. I didn't have that many chances to be alone with Meiko-san, so this turned out to be… A bit awkward. Don't misunderstand me, it wasn't bad at all. We surprisingly worked pretty well together… Or so I believe, at least she didn't hit me more or screamed at me.

The video turned out to be surprisingly good! If you edited the audio a bit to make it sound better, that was.

Another thing I noticed is that I haven't been giving her nor any other girl any 'glances'. I had Meiko-san's giant boobs in front of me yet I just noticed them… Does this have to do with Chiyo? Maybe now that I'm so worried about her I don't really care about other women? I thought the same about Mitsuko last time but It turned out to be different… But now… 

"Hey, where are you looking?!"

"S-Sorry! I was lost in thought!"

"Hmm… Kate mentioned you were looking bad last saturday… Did something happen?"

"H-Huh? Oh… I-I uhm… I'm worried about Chiyo"

"Ah… I see… I told Hana to go look after her, but she hasn't updated me on how Chiyo-chan's doing"

H-Hana? Hana is taking care of that? Oh boy… this is gonna end up pretty bad.

"Is there anything else you're worried about?"

"U-Uhm… No… You're acting surprisingly nice, aren't you?"

"Hm… Taking care of my students and 'secretary' are part of my job as the president, I wouldn't want Mari to think I don't give a shit about my people, you know?"

"I-I see…"

…

"Well, That should work… I'm no Gakuto but this video should be good and ready"

"Good, I'll send you her number once we speak tomorrow, now go, it's pretty late to be inside a classroom"

"Y-Yes ma'- Ah! Wait! I have to send my parents the email!"

"Oh… Just be quick! And remember to close the room after you leave!

"Yes!"

As she left, I went and finished writing the message. I asked her to not come to the festival, as most people here would be students, and thanked her about the sumo movies she recommended to me.

If luck is on my side, they won't come. I wouldn't want any more drama with my parents involved.

Once I finished, I left the room, locking it with the keys Meiko left and went directly to my room. On the way home, I saw Andre and Risa together, they looked so happy I could have wished for their deaths, if they weren't friends of mine, that is.

"Ah… I wish Chiyo and I were actually dating…"

…

But it was my fault this happened… I earned this by being a pervert and a liar…

*Phone notification sound*

Hmm?

Ah… It's Hana.

'Hey. Send me the script once you finish it. If you want me to help you in this, you should start writing that thing faster.'

'hi! sorry, Im doing my best here!'

'You better start doing it faster then.'

'btw, I have a question'

'What is it?'

'youre trying to talk to chiyo right? president told me'

If she actually wants to talk to her… I should try to help her do that, that way, we may both be able to apologize… I wonder if Chiyo read my letter… I'll ask Mayumi later…

'Yes. But I don't think I'll be able to.'

'why not?'

'Mayumi told me Chiyo didn't want to see anyone but her, not even Meiko.'

'I see. in any case, if something happens please tell me!'

'Alright'

'gn!'

Well, at least I know tomorrow Mari will probably answer me some questions…

That reminded me of the small crow I found today… I haven't seen it since I went back to the school building, she just flight off-

*Caw!*

Ah… I looked up and saw the same crow on the stairs of the boy's building. Guess I have a pet now.

To be continued…

---