An Unheard Voice - Chapter 41: Chapter 41

I tap the voice-mail with my shaky hands, and immediately put it to my ear. Holy fuck-- wait, why is it silent? It should be playing by now.
I look at the screen, just to see it fucking died.
I might actually go insane.
"An, do you have a charger?!" I ran up to her, picking her up by her shirt. She groans, shaking her head, so I drop her again.
"Fuck..!" I grit my teeth, go inside and grab my coat.
"Ena! I have to go do something! Thank you for today everyone, I'll see you later!" I shout, apparently putting my coat on inside out and dash to my house.
".. What the hell was so shocking to him that he thanked us?" Ena asks, completely dumbfounded.
Practically running a marathon, I arrive, bang on the door, go past my mom and into my room.
Crap, where is it..! Found it! I grab my charger from the now messed up desk, and plug it in. Now I have to wait a second for it to be one percent.
I turn it on the second it does, panicking.
What the hell? Where is it?! Looking and scrolling frantically for a few minutes, I end up not finding it again. What the fuck happened..?
Why is always me that gets everything good taken away from me?
My mother barges in my room, yelling at me for running in the house like that. But I can barely hear her over my own thoughts.
I can't call him back either. Fuck, what did you do, Toya?
Where did it go..? Now I'm dwelling on the past all over again..
It took so long to finally accept my feelings for him, I was holding back for so long. And now- I messed everything up.
What am I going to do if I never see him again? Every time I remember I have little to no chance in having that same connection with him, imagining a future without him makes me feel like I'm suffocating.
"Are you even listening?! You can't just push me aside because I spent days pushing you out--"
And just like that, everything around me just goes silent. Either it's because I don't want to listen to this annoying ass rant, or I've finally reached a dead end.
°•°•°
What's wrong with me? I can't stop thinking about him. He's taken over all my thoughts.
And the day we first met. He said that I saved him by blocking the erasers from falling on him.
He wasn't wrong about that, but to be honest, after I got to know him he was the one that saved me. So much that it's impossible to even try to repay him.
During elementary school, I first got known for being a 'monster' because I jumped on and bit a middle-schooler that attempted to attack me because Ena picked a fight with them.
She couldn't keep her mouth shut, so once in a while I would get to deal with her shitty enemies. So in middle school, I first moved here, so I thought I was going to make new friends. I hoped.
But then some asshole pissed me off, so I dealt with him outside of school. I made sure to stay away from anyone that would know me...
The day after, someone apparently saw and spread the word. It was irritating, but I just accepted that I was going to be a loner.
It wasn't so bad, but speaking to people would just end up in me getting a wallet.
I got confessed to because they thought I was a 'bad boy', but once they found out I was nothing like that I was broken up with. Except my last girlfriend, I'll never forget what happened.
I never liked them anyway. So, in short, I never really fit in. I was about done with it...
And then this asshole came along.
°•°•°
"Do you not like the lunch here?" A random girl asks, pulling a chair to my desk and sits in front of me.
"The lunch today wasn't that bad. Plus, the cafeteria isn't that loud. It did leave an after taste." She laughs, continuing to talk, staring at me.
"Okay..? Glad to know that." I frown, and begin to ignore her.
"I like your piercing." She points at it, smiling. Oh my God, can she just leave already?
"Huh? Oh, um.. thanks."
Just then I hear a group of footsteps approaching the room, and sigh.
"You should put the chair back and act like you're getting something."
"Why?" She tilts her head, confused.
"There's people coming. You heard the rumors about me, right?"
"Yeah. So?"
"So being with me would just make you look ba--"
"Rumors are lies people make up to seem cooler and get on their friend's dick. But when they're true... If you really did that, I think it was pretty cool."
.. What? She seriously speaks like that?!
We look at each other for a second, and the door opens. Crap. I turn my head to see the people that came into the classroom, but they look a bit disgusted.
"Hey, guys." The girl waves, snapping them out of it and awkwardly wave back. Clearly they rush to get out of there and gossip, and once they do, she bursts out laughing.
"Did you see their faces?! They were probably thinking 'What a terrible pairing'!" She giggles.
What is that supposed to mean? Are they like, scared of her? I've seen her before, and she has friends everywhere. Like a social butterfly.
Plus, at the beginning of the year she was shaking so much just by talking to the teacher. I wonder how she changed so fast.
"Are they your enemies?"
"What? No, they just think I'm weird for liking girls." She says it just like that. What?!
"Don't act so surprised, I know what you are, too." She grins, poking my forehead.
"Anyways, Shinonome, I'm An Shiraishi. I stalked your classroom." She smirks, putting out her hand. That was like, so rude...
".. Hello, Shiraish--"
"Nope!" She cuts me off, almost shoving her hand down my throat. The fuck?!
"Cut the honorifics-- we're friends, right?"
"No. I just met you."
"Hehe. We are now! Come on, I'll walk home with you!" She stands up, pulling me out of my seat and grabbing both of our bags. Does she not give anyone a say in anything?
I wonder how long it's going to take for me to shake her off.
°•°•°
She's so fucking stupid.
Yet, there isn't a thing I wouldn't do to defend my friends, especially her. The lengths I went during middle school was insane. And then.. that happened.
I stare at his contact, seeing that my message bubbles turned green. He's not going to reply, huh?
So this is really the end? Of all of it? Of us?
I just want to go to sleep. Today was exhausting.
I'm tired.
°•°•°
What, that happened like.. a few weeks ago? I don't know, but it's December already. Why the hell is time passing so quickly?! When I'm doing nothing, that is.
Ena has already been screaming at me to go shopping with her knowing damn well I'm on the verge of punching anything that moves near me.
It's also getting colder, so I try going to the weekend garage to get something warm to drink. But the regulars there get on my damn nerves...
It's not like Toya's disappearance the only important thing that happened to me! Like, this is our business, do they think I was really affected?!
I was. I am.
But still, it's only Toya they ever talk about when talking to me! Shit!
"Ena, go check up on your brother. Tell him to stop banging on the desk." I hear my mother say, followed by my door opening.
"Akito, eat breakfast. And get ready. You have something to do today." She says, and I groan.
"Look, not everyone's coping mechanism is going out all the damn time. Stop dragging me around with you everywhere, it's seriously starting to piss me o--"
"AKITOOOOO!!!" I hear a voice followed by loud banging at our door. The hell..?
"He's here." Ena sighs, rolling her eyes as she goes to let them in.
"No, don't--!"
"Surprise! Good morning, Shinonome-kun." Kamishiro chuckles, entering my room behind Tenma. When did I invite them over?!
"This is just what I needed in the morning, thank you both for absolutely blessing me with your presence." My eye twitches as I grab my alarm clock.
"We're not here in an attempt to bother you, I swear!" Tenma reassures me.
"I am."
"Shut up! Straight to the point! We heard about everything you guys did to help Rui and I get on better terms. So, first of all; thank you." Tenma puts his hand over Kamishiro's mouth.
"Oh.. no problem, I guess." I relax, staring at the floor. That's relieving for some reason.
Even if they couldn't help us with Toya, that would.. be okay. It's not like I had to help in order to get something in return.
Is Toya really going to be the only thing on my mind..?
"We both know Toya is a pushover, right? He can't communicate his feelings properly, and does anything to avoid conflict." He continues, and I nod. He would probably cry if he heard that. Even though it's true.
"Given the fact he's so gullible, there had to be someone that was messing with him."
"Really?"
"Doesn't that sound true?! Rui and I know exactly who.. or might know. So if you're up for it, we're going to--"
"Let's go." I say, ready to go out and sprint out the door.
"--meet up with him. Well, that's settled. Ew, Rui, don't lick my hand!" Tenma shrieks, immediately retrieving his hand.
°•°•°
For a few minutes, the three of us walk in dead silence, which was nice until Kamishiro turned to me. Son of a bitch.
"Are you sure you want to come along? I mean, I get this is a way to get more information about Toya, but we can't confirm our suspicions true until he says it or we have proof. So in other words, we might be wrong." He asks, worried. Crap, I forgot he's a caring person when he's not creepy.
"Yeah.. it's okay. Wait, is that why you invited me?" I hiss, getting pissed. I might turn around and walk back home if it is. Or if their accusation isn't true.
"Here's the thing; he requested to see you specifically for some reason."
Taken by surprise, I go silent again. That's weird. I don't even know this 'Kutabare' guy.
The hell does he want with me?
"He's just a bad influence-- clearly. Listen, I'll fill you in on what I think happened."
They slow down and take a few minutes to tell me everything Kamishiro observed and how some of the stuff adds up.
"You think he actually drove Toya away? What do you think he said to him?" I ask, clenching my fists and trying not to snap.
"We don't know.. it was probably something personal if it got Toya to be that depressed. Didn't you say he was avoiding you for a while?" Tenma asks.
"Yeah! There was like, some point where he just turned and walked away immediately. Before that it looked like he was desperately asking me to stay away. Like an idiot, I did."
"He was probably still resisting the urge to talk to you even then." Kamishiro giggles quietly.
"Listen, let's stop gossiping until we get confirmation, okay? We're almost at the destination." Tenma huffs, grabbing his phone and checking his messages.
Wasn't there something I could've done to prevent this? But even if I tried to, would he have even listened?
If Kutabare was really the one behind this, I swear, the second I find out I'm going to make him regret everything.
"We're here." Kamishiro points, going to the door. Are we going to be the only ones there? I see them through the window.
Wait, 'them'?
"Wasn't it supposed to be just Kutabare?" I ask Kamishiro and Tenma, who pause. They look at his phone again, growing anxious.
"Y-Yeah, but.. aren't these the people that cause the most trouble..? I'm on the disciplinary committee, so I usually have to get at most of them a lot. Are they going to jump us?!" He shouts, drawing attention to us. Crap, they heard.
"I doubt it. I'm here for you, my star... Oh, and Akito, too." He grabs Tenma's hands, and just points at me. Dude.
Knowing that we're already here, a guy stands up and waves, heading to the door.
"Kamishiro, Tenma! You guy's are here~" He opens it for them, and glances at me.
"You really came. Pardon me for calling you out here so suddenly, I'm Kutabare if you were wondering."
"Yo." I frown, going inside. After we get to the table and sit with them, they stare at us.
"So, do you have a girlfriend?" A girl asks out of nowhere, making me choke on absolutely nothing.
"Shinjimae, he's not interested. Plus, you heard about Shinonome-kun." Kutabare grins, and her face turns sour.
"Oh.. right. You're gay, right? How does that even work..?" She scoffs, pointing at me. What the hell's wrong with her?
"Stop being rude. I'm sorry about her, she can get a little wild.~" He hums, and she lunges at him before someone holds her back. This is so fucking confusing.
"I don't have time for this. What the hell did you do to Toya?" I put my hands on the table, standing up.
"If you're not going to speak, I'm leaving."
"Shinonome-kun!" Kamishiro whispers, but Kutabare shushes him. Both Tenma and Kamishiro give him the most shocked looks ever.
"You're the forward type, hm? Well, it sounds like you're ready to fight, so let's go calm you down outside. But keep it down, it'd be a shame if someone were to eavesdrop." He gives me a creepy smile, heading to the door and leaving.
I look back at Tenma and Kamishiro, who nod.
"Go ahead.. we'll stay here." Tenma sighs, gesturing for me to follow Kutabare.
"I'll be back."
Once I head out the door as well, I look around to see Kutabare leaning on the wall behind the building.
"Shinonome-kun, do you like coffee?" He asks out of the blue. I furrow my eyebrows, which causes him to laugh.
"Don't look at me like that! Well, I don't." He smirks, and turns his head away.
"Cut the crap, what's your deal?! Why are you so.. weird?" I shout, trying my best not to beat the shit out of him. I don't even know if he did anything to Toya yet, but he's so damn annoying!
"Fine." His smile drops, and he stares at me dead in the eyes.
"Hasn't this happened countless times before? You've had a few girlfriends, broken up with many times..."
"Anyway, this relationship seems to have taken the biggest toll on you. Perhaps it was because you knew fully well why he did it."
I shut up, and stare at the ground. I don't. Why is he saying it.. like I do?
"See? You can't hide from your past, Shinonome-kun. Nor can you cover it up."
"He found out."
I hear his phone go off, and he sighs, running his fingers through his hair.
"Crap, something came up. I'll have to leave you here. Let's meet again some other time, okay? See you." He grins, waving as he leaves.
What the fuck.