The Meeting

Chilly morning air has gotten slightly warmer as the sun rose almost overhead, causing shadows to shrink. The stinging touch of heat made Hajime's right shoulder feel unbearable while a nice cool gust of wind touched his opposite shoulder. It was the weirdest of feelings as if two opposing entities were touching his side.

For the first time, Hajime felt alive even though he just clocked out from work. He didn't feel hungry, thirsty yes, but not hungry. Aside from that, the constant headache he felt throughout the days was gone as well. He felt alive, and that's all thanks to his stay in the hospital. Once again, he remembered the kind gentleman who saved him from the possible untimely death. Although Hajime couldn't get his name since he wanted to remain anonymous, he was still curious as to who the man was behind the goodwill he received.

"One of these days, I'll know who that person is. Of course, I'll offer my gratitude by then. I can't believe it though... but I guess that kind of people still exists in this unloving world." Hajime continued.

Hajime then reached a fork in the road, and since he always goes to school as soon as he finished work, he absent-mindedly took the road that led to Dai Yama High School. Something in his mind clicked, however, and he suddenly remembered that he left Megumi in his house when he left. His mind then started overthinking, its gears working more efficiently compared to when he was working back at the construction site. 'Did she leave as soon as I did? What if she scoured the house for evidence or something? Did she leave the door open? I swear I'm going to give her a good whack on the head if she left the door open.'

With a slight hint of annoyance and panic, Hajime turned around and headed down the other road— the one that led towards his house. He dreaded to think what he'd find as soon as he grab hold of the doorknob to his front door. "I swear... if she left the door open in order to get revenge... " Hajime clenched his fist, quickening his pace. A part of him felt uneasy upon contemplating his decision this morning. He didn't care if he was late for the afternoon classes or not. Right now, his house is of the utmost priority.

With bated breaths, Hajime arrived at his doorstep, furiously grabbing the doorknob and twisting it. His anxiousness was completely awashed with relief after he felt the slight tug of the doorknob. It was locked. "I guess she wasn't that immature, huh. She actually locked the door before leaving."

"For an added measure though... I should check inside, right?" Hajime said to himself before opening the door.

What lay in front of him was something that made him speechless, however. "What the— WHAT HAPPENED HERE?!"

.....

Meanwhile, in the teacher's office...

Five college students, with their parents, were seated side by side in front of Akamine-sensei. It was evident that the students suffered heavy injuries which Akamine-sensei was already aware of but she didn't speak a word. The man of the hour was not yet there and as such, the meeting has not commenced yet.

With a calm demeanor, Akamine-sensei patiently waited... or rather, that's what everyone in the room saw. Deep inside, Akamine-sense was actually uneasy, and the composure everyone was witnessing was just a front she wore so no one would see her as weak. That's how it is with teachers, one wrong move and the parents always have something to say.

Observing the college students, Akamine-sensei reveled at the number of injuries they had. Of course, she was unaware that Hajime was the sole cause of them. One of the college students had a bandage around his head, and his left eye had a dark circle around it. Another one was on his crutches, his legs were probably broken. And then the other three had random cuts and bruises all over their body— one of which had a broken nose, which made Akamine-sensei almost chuckle. She suppressed her laugh, though, since that would be disrespectful to everyone present.

"Where is that student of yours? Can't you see what he did to my son?" One of the dads asked, crossing his arms.

"That's right! We demand that he pay for their medical bills!" Another one seconded.

"He should be expelled! How could he attack my obedient son for no reason at all?" One of the moms wiped a stray tear from her eyes, but Akamine-sense could tell she was acting.

"So, you're saying that Hajime attacked your son for no reason at all?" Akamine-sensei confirmed.

"Why don't you believe us?" One of the parents angrily said. "We found the five of them in the hospital after we got out from work and you're still making sure? Their injuries are proof enough already."

'One of the witnesses said otherwise, though.' Akamine-sensei said inwardly. She didn't say it out loud for fear that the parents might cause an even greater scene.

"I heard that that kid is a total delinquent but this, this is enough! He should be expelled from this school! If I see him... if I see him..." The parent clenched his fist and shook it. It was obvious he was outraged.

"Still, we don't have definite proof that it's my student who did it." Akamine-sensei coolly said. "I suggest we wait for the student in question before we jump to conclusions. But may I say that my student is younger, a high school one at that. And there are five of you in the scene. How was it justified that the five of them were attacked and not the other way around? Besides, the bat that was found at the scene by the person who called the ambulance... well that bat belonged to your son. He's got his name imprinted on it so there's no mistaking that it's his. Objectively speaking, all the evidence is against you, so why don't we wait and confirm this as peacefully as possible."

"What did you say?!" One of the dads snapped, stepping forward to further intimidate Akamine-sensei.

At that moment, Akamine-sensei had the urge to get out of the office, sign her resignation letter, and hand it to the principal. She couldn't contain the tenseness she felt the longer she stayed with the parents. The only ray of hope she had was the fact that the principal is coming soon, he just had a prior engagement which was almost over.

Akamine-sensei didn't flinch, despite the blatant intimidation done by one of the parents. 'No wonder these kids grew up to be troublemakers.' Akamine-sensei said to herself.

"Dear, stop it. There's no use getting angry with the teacher." His wife said. "She's right, we have to wait for now."

'Hajime, just where on earth are you?' Akamine-sensei asked herself, she still wanted to believe that Hajime would come to the meeting. In the first place, she never stopped believing in him.