Chapter 42: Investigative Reporting

Akuma and Angelie came back to the hotel together. Akuma walked slightly ahead of Angelie. Sumire and Mizumi rushed outside to the returning pair as they were approaching the hotel lobby entrance.

"Angelie-san, good thing you made it back in time."

Sumire breathed out a sigh.

"Yeah. So, what happened to you? Are you alright?"

Mizumi leaned closer to check on Angelie's condition.

"Yes… I'm fine. Thank you for your concern. And I'm sorry I made you guys worry."

Angelie bowed her head and didn't look at anyone directly.

"Don't worry about it. As long as you're okay, then it's fine. It's fortunate Jizen-kun found you."

Sumire touched Angelie's shoulder. Then Sumire looked at Akuma and smiled at him.

"So, how did you find her, Jizen-kun?"

Mizumi straightened up and faced Akuma.

"Uh, I just bumped into her inside the station. Anyway, I'll go get my things."

Akuma left the girls behind and went inside the hotel.

"Um, where is Sanaka-san, by the way?"

Angelie raised her head and looked around.

"Oh, she went up and fetched your things. It's a good thing you already packed earlier in the morning."

Sumire smiled at Angelie.

"I see… I should thank her later. And apologize, too…"

---

Akuma and Angelie received a mild lecture from their homeroom teacher for being a little late. Angelie took responsibility and said she was to blame for everything. She also said that Akuma just looked around for her so that the others in their group would not be reprimanded. Angelie bowed down in front of their teacher. As Akuma watched from beside her, he then bowed as well. Angelie looked at him as her eyes opened wide.

"What are you doing? I'm trying to take all the blame here so you won't have to apologize!"

Angelie glared at Akuma as they both were bowing down.

"Who asked you to do that? I was late as well. I should clear my own name for my own sake."

Akuma just closed his eyes without looking at Angelie.

"Why, you ungrateful—"

Angelie clenched her fists as she kept on glaring at Akuma.

"Okay, you two. No use arguing whose fault it was. You both are at fault. I'm just glad you two are taking responsibility for your actions."

Their middle-aged teacher pushed up his large framed glasses.

"Again, I apologize, Sensei."

Angelie averted her gaze from Akuma and then looked at the ground.

"Now, the next time you two go on a date—"

"It wasn't like that!"

Both Akuma and Angelie looked up at their teacher and glared at him.

---

The students and teachers left the hotel and went to the train station. They proceeded to the waiting area inside the station. Once the high-speed train arrived, everyone boarded it. Their seating arrangement wasn't that different from when they first arrived in Kyoto. Sanaka was still seated between Akuma, who was in the window seat, and Angelie who was in the aisle seat. Sumire and Mizumi were sitting together on the other side of the aisle.

"Hey, Sanaka-san. Sorry for making you worry. And thank you for getting my stuff from our room."

Angelie looked sideways at Sanaka.

"Oh, yeah. I was worried about you. Where did you go, anyway, Angelie-san?"

Sanaka looked back at her.

"Um, well, it wasn't somewhere anything special..."

Angelie awkwardly laughed.

"Oh, really…"

Sanaka squinted and then grinned at Angelie.

"Yes…! Really."

Angelie then turned her face away from Sanaka's gaze.

"Fine. If you say so, Angelie-san."

Sanaka then turned her attention to Akuma, who was looking outside the window as the train finally moved.

"So, how about you? Where did you go?"

Sanaka leaned closer to Akuma.

"Eh? Why do you care?"

Akuma momentarily glanced at Sanaka then looked outside the window again.

"I'm just curious. Can’t a classmate ask?"

Sanaka then covered her mouth and giggled.

"Pester me some other time. I'm pissed right now. I lost something important."

Akuma motioned his hand for Sanaka to shoo away.

(These two are too shy. I can't wait to let the others know!)

Sanaka kept on giggling by herself. Akuma and Angelie looked at her for a moment but then went about their separate musings afterward.

---

It was already the weekend after the second-years' school trip. Akuma was still sleeping on his bed even though it was almost noon already. He got back home the previous night from the trip and went straight to his room. He placed the duffel bag he was carrying on the floor, beside his bed.

Yuurei knocked on his door but he didn't respond. She slowly opened the door and peeked inside. She saw her older brother still sleeping under the sheets. Yuurei entered the room and started to tidy up some of the things Akuma left on the floor, such as the clothes he wore when he got home.

When she picked up a shirt that was on top of Akuma's duffel bag, a strap came out from one of the bag's pockets. She grabbed the strap and took it out from the bag pocket. She put the cellphone strap near her face as she observed the character hanging from the strap's end.

"Why would my brother buy something like this? Unless… Oh! Maybe Onee-san bought this for him?!"

Yuurei squealed loudly, enough to wake up Akuma.

"Hey, what are you doing inside my room?"

Akuma rubbed his eye as he stared at Yuurei. He started to get up and sat down on his bed.

"I'm just cleaning up your messy room. Mom asked me to do it."

Yuurei had her back facing toward Akuma, so he didn't see her holding the cellphone strap or what else she was doing.

"Fine, just don't go through my stuff."

Akuma closed his eyes and stretched his hands upward.

"It's really cute of Onee-san to give you this strap."

"Huh? That thing? It's a nuisance. She just gave me another thing to think about, and that's where to put that junk."

"How about on your phone?"

Yuurei turned around with Akuma's phone in her hand. The cellphone strap was already attached to it.

"Hey! I said don’t mess with my stuff! Give that back!"

Yuurei ran down the stairs with his dirty clothes and his phone. Akuma hurriedly got out of bed and went after her.

---

The following week, the second-years went back to school. It was early in the morning and Sanaka came to school a little bit earlier than usual. She saw Akuma was already there, who was sleeping on his desk. She quietly sneaked up on him to see if he was really asleep. Sanaka looked at him silently and then she saw the cellphone strap that was hanging from the side pocket of his pants. She had a wide grin on her face.

Sanaka then went to the classroom of 2-C and 2-D. She asked the students inside where the desks of Mimi and Kiba were, respectively. Once she knew which tables were theirs, she slid a folded paper into the compartment under the desk of those two. She then went back to her own classroom.

Morning classes went by quickly. During lunchtime, Sanaka, Mimi and Kiba met at the rooftop earlier than usual.

"I see that you both read my message."

Sanaka chuckled as she held her chin on her hand. She was seated on the floor.

"What is this about, Sanaka-san?"

Mimi asked as she was preparing her bento boxes on the floor for lunch.

"Yeah, what's with this sneaking around without those two?"

Kiba sat on the floor and also took out his lunch box.

"Well, you see… During the school trip. I think something happened between those two."

Sanaka leaned closer to the other two and whispered to them. Mimi dropped one of her bento boxes on the floor. Kiba dropped the chopsticks he was going to use.

"By 'something happened', can you further expand on the meaning of that…?"

Mimi rigidly turned her head toward Sanaka.

"Oh really? Those two?! This I got to hear!"

Kiba grinned and tensely leaned closer to Sanaka.

"H-hey! It's not something lewd or a-anything… I think."

Sanaka looked up and put her finger on her chin. Mimi breathed out a huge sigh. Kiba relaxed and sat back up straight.

"Tch. Just lost my interest."

Kiba opened his lunch box and started to eat using his chopsticks.

"Wait! You have to hear me out first! You guys remember the first day when the two of them were stuck together?"

Sanaka held her hands in front of the two, her palms facing them, signaling them to wait. Mimi and Kiba quietly nodded.

"Well… On the second day, they were together the whole day too!"

Mimi and Kiba gasped loudly.

"…Though it was because of the plan of our groupmates to get them stuck together…"

Sanaka looked down at the floor while she still had her hands up.

"But!!"

Sanaka then looked straight at her two distraught listeners. She paused for a moment.

"But what? Don't leave us hanging here!"

Kiba stomped his hand on the ground.

"Do we know where the two of them went on our free day?"

Sanaka smirked at the two of them.