CHAPTER 48

          "How would you like to join the Humanity Club?"

          The flood of students that passed through the gates didn't even spare a look in our direction and the flyer Kouichi was holding out for them.

          "It's a lot of fun!" Saki tried next.

          "Yeah, I watched their program this morning," girls giggled.

          "Do you people even know what the Humanity Club is?" I asked in turn.

          Blank stares were nodded our way left and right.

          "They're a little weird, right?" the whispers that had erupted didn't slip by unnoticed.

          "It's not even the end of the year yet they're advocating for some club?"

          "If they need more members it's probably some pathetic one."

          "WHO'S PATHETIC YOU LITTLE—"

          Strong arms yanked me back from lunging at the said girls, hand clasping overtop of my mouth. I struggled against Hibiki's hold but regardless of my flailing, he remained firm. Pushing out his head to the petrified girls shooting appalled looks at me, he flashed them an apologetic smile and wink. They immediately snapped out of their dazes and flushed like the giddy school girls they were.

          "Oh gosh, he's so cute," they squealed as they hastened on.

          "Kenzou-kun, right?"

          "Foreigners are so adorable!"

          By the wide grin on his face as he waved them off, I could just imagine his head inflating with those unnecessary compliments.

          "Trust me," he called out, pretending to shoot them with an imaginary gun, "I'm even more adorable once you get to know me—"

          I silenced him with a jab to the side. He emitted a not-so-quiet gasp, hunching over and cradling the spot. The girls and other students stopped to gape at me once again. I sent them running with a growl and menacing glare.

          "Why are you so aggressive?" Hibiki whined.

          A loud huff surpassed my lips as I folded my arms across my chest. "You're the one that started flirting with people who insulted the Humanity Club. And besides, you were born and raised here, stop accepting all that foreigner bullshit because your complexion is a little dark."

          He opened his mouth to retort and only let out a moan. Hinata dropped the flyers in his arm onto the table we had displayed, hurrying to his aid.

          "Are you alright, Hibiki?"

          Lower lip quivering, he shot up taller and threw his arms around him. "Hinata, Miyuki's being so mean to me. Nurse me until I feel better."

          Hinata faltered a step, unmistakably reddening to the point of a tomato. "B-better, but..."

          I sighed as I peeled my eyes away from them. As the bell was to ring any minute now, most students of this prep school had already disappeared inside the buildings. The fervent whispers erupting and popping all around me like bubbles swelled even more anger inside me than I'd have liked.

          I swivelled around, ignoring the heat that flushed my cheeks along with it.

          "What do you two need?"

         Saki who'd slapped a hand over her mouth slowly dropped it, the twinkle in her eye unmistakable to place. "I can't help it," she confessed, turning to Yuji posted at her side with a similar amount of giddiness, "Mi-chan's just so cute!"

          "And soft," Yuji agreed, whistling to spark more embarrassment through my veins. "Like a marshmallow."

          Their tease didn't settle well within me, leaving my mouth to flap wordlessly for a good amount of time.

          "Oh hush up!" I finally sputtered, turning the other way. "As if you guys weren't angry at the way they put that either."

          "It definitely hurt," Yuji said, turning towards Saki with his Cheshire grin. "But she was willing to go the extra mile for us."

          "It's because Mi-chan loves us," Saki giggled, hands at her cheeks. "So, so much."

          "Hey!" I cried, unable to halt the heat that claimed my cheeks. "I try to be nice...!"

          The two of them merely continued snickering. More embarrassment seared through me.

          "Just ignore them, Hoshino. Once they start, they won't stop."

          I glanced over my shoulder at Hiro. He'd decided against a hat today and instead had his wavy brown hair tamed, bangs hovering above his eyebrows. Since that day, it had been kind of awkward. But he kept behaving as normal.

          "I was going to do that," I finally responded.

          I stuck out my tongue at the two for emphasis, though their outburst hadn't lessened.

          "Guys, nobody seems to be accepting the flyers."

          I lifted my gaze only for it to settle upon Kouichi. As soon as I did, my anger dissipated and I not-so-shamelessly burst into a guffaw. I wasn't the only one—considering Yuji was barking right after me. Hiro, Hibiki and Hinata all froze to take this in as well.

          Saki heaved a gasp. "What the..."

          I was trying my best not to roll on the floor and fell to a standing crouch. Yuji, on the other hand, had shamelessly begun to do so. Kouichi blinked rapidly at our reactions, craning his head around. But that didn't diminish the scribbles he had scratched onto every portion of his face. His hair was tied up in a tinny tuff above, uniform unusually bulged by unexpected lumps at his chest.

          "What's so funny?" he asked.

          "What the hell did you do with your hair?" Hiro demanded.

          "And face," Hibiki added. He paused as he dropped his eyes to his chest. "And how'd you suddenly sprout boobs?"

          Kouichi, as if recalling what happened, brightened. He picked up his vest and reached inside only to pull out a couple crumbled flyers.

          "People said they'd consider joining if I tied up my hair like this and stuffed some rolled up flyers up my shirt... but they only ended up laughing at me." He stared down at me and Yuji. I was doing my best to cover my mouth the best I could but it was honestly impossible. "Kind of like you two right now."

          I howled even louder, gripping at my sides.

          Yuji was flailing like a fish out of water. "I-It hurts! Holy crap I'm dying. Air. I need air."

          "Guys," Saki interjected. But even she was trying her best to stifle a smile.

          "Hey!" Kouichi cried, moving closer towards us. "I only agreed to do this for you guys!"

          Hiro snorted, making him recoil even more. Though I hadn't seen him do the like before, Kouichi definitely grew mortified. His mouth curved further down.

          He went barrelling towards Hinata, jumping him into a hug with dramatic tears in his eyes. "H-Hinata-san tell them to stop laughing at me!"

          Though he tried to cover it too, I also saw Hinata's lips quirk upwards. Kouichi gasped as he backed away.

          "N-no, no, I'm not..." Hinata waved his arms but he ended up breaking out into an unwarranted snicker. "I'm not...!"

          "Hey, get away from Hinata! " Hibiki interjected, yanking Kouichi's arms away. "He's only allowed to hug and console me!"

          "Hinata-san...!" he whined anyway, barely clinging to his sleeves as Hibiki tugged him away.

          "Even without Kazuya-sama you guys are still as rowdy as I remember."

          My laugh soon died down in my throat as I thwarted my attention up. The first thing I caught sight of were two girls, one extending her arm into the air and the blond beside her timidly smiling as well. Though both had levelled up to wearing the proper high school uniforms instead of their middle school ones in the past, their faces didn't slip by unnoticed.

          "Rin-chan!" Saki was the first one to shout, racing towards the brunette and throwing her into a hug. She did the same for the girl beside her. "Chiho-chan! How long has it been?"

          "Long enough, Saki-san," Rin cooed. "You're still as pretty as ever."

          "Says you," she returned, returning an equally wide smile. "How's it been going? Since the whole... y'know."

         Unlike the nervous girl I remembered since that strenuous love letter event, Rin was a lot happier seeming. She stood taller, tossing her arm around Chiho's shoulder. "Ah, I don't even look back to those fakes who had the audacity to call me a friend. Ever since I met Chiho here we've been best buddies!"

         Chiho was smiling all the same, features coming to life without her glasses to shield the way. "How about you guys?"

          "Depends on how you two feel about joining the Humanity Club," Yuji said, swinging a lazy arm around Saki's shoulder while beckoning for them to accept the flyer in his other hand.

          Rin and Chiho contorted with surprise as they accepted the sheet to read.

          "No way, is the club in trouble?" Rin demanded.

          Chiho gasped, "You're short on members?"

          Yuji shrugged. "As of next year, yeah."

          Rin and Chiho who shared a look wore a simultaneous frown.

          "If you're in any other clubs it's not a big deal," Hiro said.

          "The both of us are already apart of the swim team together," Rin sadly disclosed, mouth pursed in the state of a frown. She looked at Chiho then nodded. "We'll ask around to see who wants to join."

          "There's no way we're letting the Humanity Club disband!" Chiho agreed, vehemently nodding her head. "We can't!"

          "That's very kind of you cuties." I withheld the sigh threatening to part from my lips as I watched as Hibiki had somehow ended up at their sides. He took Rin's hand, startling the girl as he flashed them a kind smile. "It's really admirable that you care so much. Though I'm not one of them, I can vouch to say that all those in the Humanity Club are extremely grateful."

          A warm blush spread across Rin's cheeks. "N-no," she sputtered. "It's not..."

          "Of course we care!" Chiho interjected. Despite being equally as awkward, she held up her fists for emphasis. "They helped us when we ourselves needed help. The least we can do is spread the word."

          Hibiki's eyes flitted onto her. "Chiho, was it?"

          "Yes. Yamazaki Chiho."

          "Kenzou Hibiki," he introduced, acknowledging the both of them. "Maybe if you two aren't too busy sometime I can buy you a drink as a thank yo—"

          A punch to his tall shoulder was enough to cause him to wince and retreat once again. I pushed him off, returning my attention onto the blushing girls.

          "Ignore him," I dismissed. "He has this issue doctors are still trying to find a cure for—"

          "I'm perfectly healthy, thank you very much!"

          I paused to shoot him a glare. He returned an equally sour look. I ignored the glimpse of Hinata's countenance from the corner of my eye.

          Gritting my teeth I mumbled a polite excuse me to Rin and Chiho before dragging his sorry ass to a more secluded part. "If you're going to help us at least take it seriously!"

          "I am!" Hibiki responded, the octave in his voice high enough to rival mine. "Why do you keep hitting me today? You never gave a crap when I tried to flirt with girls before."

          My stomach wrung with even more anger.

          "Those girls are trying to do us a favour," I responded. "I don't want you scaring them off."

          "And I won't," he said, removing his hand from cradling his shoulder. "They seemed pretty charmed, didn't they?"

          He paused to shoot them a playful wink and wave. I watched as Rin and Chiho bashfully averted their gazes, immediately starting up a conversation with Hiro, Saki and Yuji. Another glimpse at Hinata who had a concerned Kouichi pressing him about the frown he couldn't seem to dispel and another surge of fury ran through my veins.

          I smacked Hibiki's arm. "Stop doing that!"

          "Ouch!" Hibiki shouted, dropping his arm with another painful gasp. "Stop what?"

          "Flirting!" I realized I was getting angry for a selfish reason, but the hurt on Hinata's face couldn't vanish from my mind. "You're not allowed to flirt with other girls."

          Hibiki emitted a snort. "If I didn't know any better I'd say you're jealous."

          "You wish," I hissed.

          "Then why the hell do you care so much?"

          It was hard to find my voice. Even if Hinata did like Hibiki, that didn't automatically mean they'd just pair up and go out like it was nothing. Was it the fujoshi inside of me that didn't want to accept that reality wasn't so easygoing, probably.

          Hibiki's been flirting with girls since we were little. I'd never seen him much so much as blink in a guy's direction—not when there were girls in the same room. Sure he had never officially gone out with any girl (not that I know of, anyway) but even if Hinata felt a kind of way for Hibiki that I might feel for Hiro didn't automatically mean Hibiki would too.

          "Look," Hibiki coughed after realizing I wasn't in the right state to respond. "I get the Humanity Club means a lot to you and you don't want to see it disband. If it bothers you so much, I'll try to hold back a bit. Even though I really don't feel like what I was doing wasn't helping, but whatever."

          I exhaled loudly, massaging my temples. "Just forget it," I said. "What do you think we should do? Nobody's coming over here."

          Hibiki hummed. "To make people interested we need bigger impact."

          "Impact?"

          "Nobody really knows the Humanity Club exists, right?"

          I met his gaze with a cocked brow.

          "Think about it like this," he said. "If you really want someone to get into this really amazing anime that just came out—one you love to the moon and back—what would you do to convince them?"

          My lips met in a purse and I tilted my head to the side. "I guess I'd expose them to it forcefully by showing them clips or even characters..."

          Like a lightbulb, I swerved his way in newfound awe.

          "You mean..."

          He nodded. "If you don't know anything about it you're likely to brush it aside. But the more you're exposed to it—its accomplishments and its purpose—you'll feel compelled."

          "But the HC doesn't have that huge of accomplishments."

          "Then you need to pitch to the students why the HC is different from others. And what better way to do that then holding an event for the upcoming first-years?"

          The corners of my lips quirked up. "If you had such a good idea why didn't you bring it up earlier? Do you think we'll be allowed to throw an event that big?"

          "I guess we'll have to talk it through with the Disciplinary Committee and see what we can do." Hibiki was grinning all the same as we directed our gazes onto the rest of them ahead "They owe you a favour, right?"

          "After what happened during the Sports Festival, with Wannabe saving their positions," I confirmed. "It'd actually be pretty amazing if the school came together the way they did in Sakurasou for the third-year's graduation."

          Hibiki hummed in confusion.

          Waving it off, I twirled to stand in front of him.

          "Let's grab Wannabe and the rest of them," I said. "If the Humanity Club can't be saved after something like this even I'll have no choice but to give up on it."

—————————————————

          From Hibiki and his band performing to the Art Club helping in creating flyers—even the News Department inadvertently distributing them—we did our best. The last few weeks and open house we spent advocating for the HC was an undoubted challenge but after everything, we really had no choice but to give the majority of the credit to all the clubs that banded together to help. Nevertheless, it was hands down the icing on the cake to all the things the Humanity Club participated in. One with zero regrets; perfectly fitted to be its last.

          "Are any of you forgetting anything?"

          Yuji threw his bag over his shoulder as Saki handed him some other books to carry. In her own arms were a haul of magazines and recipe books alike. Hiro had finished putting together all his games; Kouichi his teacups and camera.

          "I don't think I have enough room for my mangas," I called back out to Wannabe who stood by the light switch.

          I tried holding out my arms to gather all my books but they were at a much larger width than I could carry. I solemnly peered downwards at my full bag.

          "Why'd you bring so many of your books anyway?" Hiro sighed, approaching my side.

          Dropping his bag of games, he picked a couple volumes off the shelf, eyeing the covers as he did.

          "Says the dude with a dozen video games." I snorted, playfully jabbing his arm. "My shoujo mangas aside, I brought my One Piece volumes for you, remember?"

          "And now I deserve to carry them for you, is that it?"

          "They're not gonna carry themselves out of this clubroom." I flashed him my biggest smile. "Please and thank you?"

          Hiro returned an equally soft smile as he collected the haul onto his arms with fair ease. "Yeah, yeah. Leave it to me."

         For once, I wasn't entirely surprised by the fluttery sensation in my stomach. My lips subconsciously stretched up even further as I veered my gaze.

          "So who's getting this clubroom again?" I asked.

          Kouichi adjusted his frames further upon his nose. "Didn't Kazuya-san's father say they'd use it for storage until next year?"

          Wannabe bobbed his head. "Students are always looking to start up clubs so they'll have it filled in no time."

          "I still can't understand how you guys are so calm about this!" Saki's voice crack snatched all our gazes. She immediately shielded her face with her arm, sniffling like a child. "This isn't fair! We tried so hard to put our club name out there and yet nobody still wanted to join!"

          "We owe our exposure to the other clubs," Yuji responded, draping a comforting arm across her shoulder. "Besides, even if anyone wanted to join, this club's balance would be destroyed as soon as we graduate. The cycle would only keep repeating."

          "Exactly." I went to take her other hand. Saki peeked through her arm as I smiled. "And what kind of Humanity Club would it be next year anyway?"

          "This club is essentially the bonds of our friendship before a club," Kouichi went on, deeper than I would've ever said. "Even if we're not apart of the same club, as long as we continue to hang out, what's the difference?"

           "Kouichi's onto something," Yuji agreed. "Though it'll suck that we won't get sweets every morning anymore."

          "The only downside," I agreed.

          Wannabe gasped in disbelief. "The only... But I won't be around next year! That has to be the most prominent downside, right?" He paused, panicked even more at the quiet that followed. "Please tell me I'm right!"

          Hiro snorted, lips pulled back and poking into his cheeks. "Of course we'll miss you, Kazuya."

          "Who else will we have to tease?" Yuji and I said unanimously.

          "I'm gonna miss your pointless rambling!" Saki sobbed, teary eyes adding to her dejection.

          "And who else will we have to give us even more pointless lectures?" Kouichi added.

          Like the Wannabe he was, each jab sent him dramatically recoiling a step until he hit the wall behind him. He crouched into a ball in the middle of the room, running his finger across the tiles.

          "You guys are so mean. I try my hardest to be the best upperclassman for you guys but I guess our bonds meant that little to you. I'll go bother my mother with my pointless ramblings and even more pointless speeches. I don't need you guys. I don't...!"

          Fighting a laugh, the four of us, and afterwards Saki who broke free from her sadness with a giggle, shared a look. With a simultaneous nod, we all raced up to him, tackling him backwards. He gasped in surprise but all of us had posted ourselves at his sides, Kouichi with his camera extended out in an angle that would capture all of us.

          "Say cheese on three," he called out. "One..."

          "Wait, wait," Wannabe cried, struggling against Saki and Kouichi's hold.

          "Two..."

          "Saki get in closer," Yuji said.

          Saki did just that, pressing against Yuji's shoulder. By doing that though, he knocked me towards Hiro.

          "Three."

          My ear hit his chest, arms grappling at his waist for balance as the camera flashed. My heart jumped in my chest as I sat up in a flash, removing my hands from around him.

          "Sorry," I sputtered, trying to dismiss the heat blossoming across my cheeks.

          "D-don't worry about it," Hiro said.

          Our bashful gazes flitted onto the rest of them who had gone to check the outcome of the photograph.

          "We have to retake it," Wannabe hissed, yanking his arm. "I think I blinked in it!"

          "I was definitely making a really weird face," Saki insisted as well.

          "Let me get it up," Kouichi said.

          Hiro and I got in close at the exact moment he put it up on his screen. Wannabe was the first to grab it, breathing in relief to find that he smiled in time. Saki also calmed down to see that her teary eyes weren't too noticeable. When Yuji took the camera in his hands, I caught a proper glimpse of the image.

          Acknowledging Kouichi's half-hidden face at the edge of the photograph, Wannabe with his trademark charming smile, then Saki grinning on a similar caliber as Yuji beside her. When my eyes fell onto me in the image, my mouth fell.

          "Hey, wait," Yuji said, cocking an eyebrow with a frown. "Hiro and Miyuki were too busy hugging in this to look at the camera."

          My eyes were indeed shut as I held Hiro, and him wide-eyed and blushing as he stared down at me. It was definitely misleading. Oh goodness.

          Hiro swiped the camera from his fingers, flushing further at the sight of the image before grabbing Yuji's collar with his free hand. "You pushed her onto me! That's your fault!"

          Yuji emitted a guilty laugh as Hiro shook him vehemently. He dodged his eyes. "Haha, did I? Whoops."

          A cherry red Hiro was fuming. "You so did that on purpose!"

          Kouichi took the camera from Hiro's fingers at the last second. He made a face. "Oh, but Hibiki-san and Hinata-san aren't in this."

          Yuji choked, still trying to pry Hiro away from him. "Saki, save me!"

          Saki had to go and intervene. "Hiro, Yuji did it with the purest intentions."

          "Pure, my as—"

          "Push comes to shove Hinata can always draw them in," I coughed in response to Kouichi, brushing my mortification aside the best I could. "Anyway, we're overstaying our welcome. We need to leave by five..."

          My words started drifting off when I caught Wannabe beaming from ear to ear beside me. I turned his way just as he broke out into a loud laugh. Full of enough spirit to draw our gazes to him.

          "I'm gonna miss this." His smile spoke volumes as he picked himself to his feet, dusting himself off as he did. "Say, how would you guys like to come over this weekend."

          "Over?" I asked.

          "To my house. For let's say, a dinner," he replied. "My father's kinda requesting it."