Chapter 3: Courage
Come the next day at school, during lunch the group has found a nice place to hangout at. It is a bench next to a tree just out from beneath the canopy for the other benches. Shiori sits on the ground leaning against the tree with her lunch she packed from home. Lucy, Chizuru, Ryuji and Hikigaya are sitting on the bench while Haru stands talking to them.
Haru "I'm telling you guys. You should totally start watching all the movies in chronological order. That's the only real way to watch them."
He puts his hand on his hips and stands confidently.
Lucy "I don't know Haru. Killer robots? Race cars? It sounds a little all over the place."
Chizuru "Yeah, I have a hard time watching something with a boring plot."
Haru "Boring?! It's not boring! The lore goes so deep in the movies and the animation is even better!"
Haru starts waving his arms around and talking with his body far more than he needs to.
Haru "There are so many scenes that are amazing! So much action, so much drama! There's a whole world there waiting for you guys to explore!-"
He throws his arms up and his body back a bit. This action causes him to bump into a small boy who happens to be walking right behind him holding the trash of his lunch. He knocks the boy down on the floor causing the trash to fall everywhere. The group perks up noticing this, getting concerned for the situation. Haru turns around quickly and is concerned for the boy. The boy sits on the ground holding his head low just like he was a moment ago, looking at the trash around him.
Haru "Oh I'm so sorry! I didn't see you! Here, let me help you-"
Haru reaches his hand out to help the boy up but instead he slaps Haru's hand away. Haru steps back a bit shocked by the action. The boy gets up and walks away swiftly. Haru stares at him as he leaves looking upset about what he had just done.
Hikigaya "It's okay Haru. I'd be just as upset and embarrassed if I was knocked over too."
Haru feels even worse after Hikigaya says that. Hikigaya realizes what he said isn't helping and starts thinking about what to say to fix it before Chizuru interrupts. She gets up and puts her hand on Haru's back. He looks at her softly.
Chizuru "You offered to help. That's the best you can do. Try not to worry too much about it, okay?"
She smiles as she crouches down to start picking up the trash that was spilled. The other's join in to help clean up the mess. Haru thinks about it and is still upset about it. Eventually the day ends and the group parts ways the same way they did the day before. Haru waves goodbye and starts walking by himself as the warm orange sky hangs over him. Haru looks down as he walks.
Haru 'It was just an accident. No one was hurt. So why did he look so… sad?'
Haru thinks back to the moment when the boy fell on the ground and looks closer to his face. He notices tear marks around his eyes and on his cheeks. He had been crying before it even happened. Haru slaps his hands on his head, partly over his eyes, leaning his head up towards the sky in frustration.
Haru "Ah and I just made it worse! Whatever he is going through, I just put the cherry on top."
He puts his arms down.
Haru "I need to find him so I can apologize."
Focused in thought he didn't realize someone was running down the same sidewalk he was in the opposite direction. The person wasn't looking either and ran into Haru. Haru falls on his butt from the force.
Haru "Oof! Are you- Oh. It's you!"
Haru looks up to see the boy from earlier that he knocked over. He stands, panting.
Haru "Well I guess we're even now huh? Haha!"
The boy doesn't react, still not looking him in the eyes. Haru then notices that he's panting and covered in sweat. His upper buttons undone and his hair all ruffled but still in his school uniform. Haru gets an intrigued but concerned look.
Haru "Are.. you okay?"
The boy then darts past him and keeps running. Haru turns quickly.
Haru "Why is he..? It might be best to leave it alone…"
Haru looks down and rubs the back of his head like he's debating.
Haru "Still… He looks way more familiar than I thought.. Even before I bumped into him earlier…"
Haru puts his finger and his thumb on his chin, holding it, thinking. He then looks up as a sound catches his attention. He sees 3 grown men running down a different sidewalk from his own. He gets tense when he sees one of them holding a bat.
Guy 1 "Where did he go?"
Guy 2 "I think he went this way!"
He watches as the men begin running away from him.
Haru "They're running the same direction that… he…"
He realizes they're running the same way that the boy ran off to. He gets a terrified look and starts sprinting after them.
Haru 'Oh crap! What am I doing?! I can't fight them! But I'd never forgive myself if I let something bad happen to him!'
As Haru runs after them he pulls out his phone and tries calling any of his friends. He calls Ryuji but he doesn't pick up.
Haru "Oh c'mon! The one time!"
He calls Hikigaya who picks up almost immediately.
Hikigaya "Hey man, what's up-"
Haru "Hiki! I need your help! Some bad looking guys are chasing after that kid! I need you to- WOAH!"
Haru trips over a branch sticking out of the ground down a hill through some trees and bushes off the path that they all had begun to run on. Hikigaya calls out Haru's name a few times before the call is disconnected. Haru tumbles hard before landing on his stomach and chin on the dirt. He coughs a bit in pain before looking forward and realizing the 3 men had caught up to the boy and cornered him in an open grassy area surrounded by trees.
Guy 1 "Come on kid, it's not that big of a deal."
Guy 3 "Just give us some of your family's tech and we'll be on our way."
Guy 2 "It'd really save us a lot of time."
The boy "I told you guys, I don't know what you're talking about!"
They get an irritated look on their faces as they begin to get closer to him. The boy cowers back a bit before they're interrupted.
Haru "Hey, you guys leave him alone!"
Haru stands up to them as they turn. He is shaking a bit and sweating.
Haru 'Am I crazy?! What am I gonna do?!' "You heard him! He doesn't know what you're talking about so you guys should just go!"
Guy 1 "It sounds to me like you don't know what you're talking about."
The boy looks at him relieved that someone came to his aid. One of the guys turns and walks over to him.
Guy 2 "You're getting involved in things way over your head. So why don't you get lost before you get hurt, punk!"
He looms over Haru giving him a death glare trying to intimidate him. It works greatly as Haru has been terrified from the start. Haru clenches his fist after looking down for a moment.
Haru "I won't! Not unless I get to leave with him!"
He points at the boy. The first guy, obviously a sort of leader, nods at the other. He smirks as he turns back to face Haru who tries to keep a determined look as he shakes more. The large man raises his fist in the air getting ready to strike Haru.
Guy 2 "Way to play the hero kid. Now it's time to snap back to reality."
Haru stands there, terrified, waiting for the strike… but it doesn't come. When the man swings his arm down, he is suddenly falling face first to the floor. He is unsure as to what is happening right before he face plants into the dirt. Haru looks over to see Shiori walking past him on the right. He then looks down to see Hikigaya had swept the legs out from underneath the man. Hikigaya stands up. As the man begins to push himself up from the ground, Hikigaya lifts his leg up and stomps the back of the man's head into the ground again. He leans on his knee on the man's head.
Hikigaya "Okay, which one of you ordered the full lesson in manners?"
The other 2 men watch with shock in their eyes. Shiori steps forward.
Shiori "Let me guess. You guys are with that big gang a District over, looking to make a big score. Unfortunately that led you straight to me."
She begins walking forward as one of the guys yells and runs at her swinging both of his arms up to bring down on her. Before he can do that, his jaw is struck with intense speed. His eyes shake in his head for a moment before stopping. He looks down at Shiori who has her arm across her body like she just swung. She smirks at him before his eyes roll back into his head and he falls on his back. She turns her back to the final guy holding the bat.
Shiori "Right on the jaw. Works every time."
She gloats a bit to Hikigaya. The guy holding the bat clenches it hard and shakes before deciding to fight.
Guy 1 "You little punks! You're ruining everything!"
He gets ready to swing at her and she turns around wide eyed for a moment before Hikigaya runs at her and swings her around by the arm. The guy lands a heavy strike to the side of Hikigaya's head, breaking the bat on impact. Everyone looks shocked for a second as Hikigaya stands there with his head cocked to the side a bit. He straightens up and turns to look at the guy. The attack seemed to have no effect besides making him angry.
Hikigaya "You were gonna hit her with that?!"
The man drops the remnants of the bat and puts his hands up in defense, shaking and stepping back. The man goes flying through the trees and lands in a river just past them with a big swollen cheek, unconscious. Hikigaya fist steams and his eyes are all white being so mad.
Hikigaya "Good riddance."
Haru and the boy both finally calm down, seeing that the situation has been fully handled. Shiori walks up to Hikigaya
Shiori "How did you do that?"
Hikigaya "Trade secret."
He puts his finger to his mouth and winks at her. She casually smiles a bit. Haru rushes over to the boy who is simply standing there dumbfounded.
Haru "Are you okay?"
The boy "You guys were amazing…"
Haru looks down a bit.
Haru 'Even though I didn't do anything…' "Are you hurt?"
The boy "No, no. I'm okay. How did you guys find me?"
Hikigaya "Well, Haru here called me. So I came rushing."
Shiori "I heard the commotion and followed suit."
The boy looks at Haru who notices and gets embarrassed. He blushes more looking down to the side.
Haru "I saw them chasing you and… I couldn't just stand by and do nothing…"
The boy looks at him with eyes starting to shine due to tears forming. He smiles warmly at him.
The boy "Thank you."
Haru smiles back at him. They begin to walk back down the path they came from to the school.
Hikigaya "So, what's your name?"
The boy "Sugawara Ito."
Shiori "What did those guys want with you?"
Sugawara "I'm not sure… They kept asking me questions about tech of some kind? Some that belonged to my family? But I have no idea what they were talking about. Then they started getting closer and closer to me so I started running."
They eventually make it back to the entrance of school. They stop and talk for a moment before Shiori and Hikigaya head on home once again. Haru stands next to Sugawara, waving to them. He turns to face Sugawara.
Haru "Want me to walk you home?"
Sugawara looks surprised for a moment before shyly accepting. Sugawara starts leading the way. As they are walking Haru speaks.
Haru "I'm sorry for bumping into you earlier. And right before all of this.. And not really helping save you from the men…"
Haru stares at the ground while saying this, upset with himself. Sugawara looks at him from the side for a moment.
Sugawara "I'm sorry for smacking your hand away. You were only trying to help…"
Sugawara looks down to the side, obviously regretting that he reacted so harshly. Haru notices then smiles softly. He pats him on the back gently.
Haru "Hey don't worry about it! No one was hurt, that's all that matters, right?"
Haru smiles widely at Sugawara. He's back to his sunshiney self. Sugawara blushes and nods softly. They eventually come to a large, luxury apartment building that looks very new. Only a few years old at this point, built right next to a housing area filled with casual 1 to 2 story houses.
Sugawara "This is where I live."
They stop and Haru watches as Sugawara takes a couple steps forward to head up the stairs. Before he gets on the stairs, however, he stops. His back is facing Haru. He sways side to side a bit looking hesitant like he wants to say something. He turns around.
Sugawara "I'm not good at these… socializing things, but… thank you. For coming after me even if you were too scared to. I say that's brave enough."
Sugawara smiles and blushes a bit as he turns back around and runs inside. Haru blushes, surprised by his words. He stands there for a moment and smiles. He turns to walk back the way they came to head home but suddenly stops. He looks around for a moment.
Haru "Wait a minute…"
He gets a look of shock and turns around sharply.
Haru "No way!"
Despite the crazy events of the day prior, the group meets up and goes to class like normal. They're all in their seats talking and having a good time when Ms. Samuel walks in, getting ready for class to begin.
Ms. Samuel "Alright everyone, start settling down the bell is about to ring."
As she says this, all the students start getting organized as one last student comes in through the door. Haru is busy rummaging through his bag trying to pull out his notebook while Shiori and Hikigaya look at the student. They get looks of surprise as the student sits to Haru's right, behind Ryuji. Haru sits up finally getting his notebook and notices Shiori and Hikigaya looking in his direction.
Haru "What?"
He turns around and sees Sugawara. His eyes widen and he gets a look of surprise.
Haru "You! I knew I recognized you!"
The bell rings.
Ms. Samuel "Haru Tanaka! Quiet down, class is starting."
The classes giggles to themselves at Haru while he blushes in embarrassment. Sugawara smiles a bit. Ryuji leans over to Hikigaya and whispers.
Ryuji "Is this the one you guys saved yesterday?"
Hikigaya nods. Ryuji nods back. Sugawara smiles a bit. Once break rolls around, the group meets where they usually do only this time with a new, yet familiar face.
Sugawara "My name is Sugawara Ito, nice to meet the rest of you."
Sugawara bows to them.
Lucy "No need to be so formal. It's not like we're your superiors or anything."
She says sitting on the bench, leaning into her hand. Sugawara stands up, still a little shy. Chizuru approaches him and starts inspecting him. He gets embarrassed.
Chizuru "You're so cute and small. Are you sure you're not a girl?"
He blushes.
Sugawara "Yes, I'm sure."
She giggles at him.
Sugawara "I'm here because I don't want to be alone for my entire life…"
Haru "Well you came to the right place! I've known these guys for the longest time. They'll never leave you in a pinch!"
Chizuru "Do you have any other friends, Sugawara?"
He shakes his head softly. They look at him sympathetically.
Ryuji "Well we could be your friends."
Sugawara smiles at them. Chizuru gets excited.
Chizuru "Oh man, this is great! Only a couple days into high school and we've already made two new friends!"
Hikigaya leans over to Shiori who wasn't too invested in the situation as she just met them as well.
Hikigaya "Hear that? They called you their friend. You okay with that? Not gonna melt?"
Shiori "Oh shut up."
She punches him in the arm.
Shiori "They're fine. It's you I'm still skeptical of."
He laughs a bit. She looks around at the new friends she has made so quickly.
Shiori 'How did my life change so quickly?'
She smiles a bit about it.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone