Chapter 2: The inverted diamonds (Parts 1-2)

Chapter 2 Part 1

Another day living with these floating rags... if this is a nightmare, I hope someone wakes me up soon.

It's very early in the morning, I cook some scrambled eggs with blended beans, but...

— Oh, what miracle are you cooking up?

Seji-sensei is surprised to see me making breakfast.

— I'm tired of always eating pupusas...

— I'm hungry, I'm hungry...!

Kibō shouts loudly behind me, very excited and hungry.

— And why did Kibō wake me up to make him something?

He doesn't even let me sleep because he wakes up hungry, he doesn't even let me ask him if he's responsible for that weird dream and this cut on my face.

Chie comes into the house after spending the whole night outside in a puddle of vomit.

— Good morning, bro... Buaaaaaaaagh!

Chie vomits on the floor of the house.

— Don't vomit on the floor, then I have to clean it up!

I shout, why are the spirits of diamonds so troublesome?!

Seji-sensei says to him:

— So you woke up hungover again.

Seji-sensei hits Chie on the head.

— That's what you get for drinking all my sake!

— Ow! I'm sorry... I'm hungry!

I prepared food for Seji-sensei, Boki, and myself...

At this rate, I'll go without breakfast...

— Can't you guys say anything else? Anyway, everyone sit down, breakfast is ready.

Kibō heads to his seat and says:

— I'm here against my will, the least you can do is give me food!

— I appreciate the food, but it's already too late, you should go to school.

Seji-sensei was right.

— That wouldn't happen if we didn't live on top of a mountain with over a thousand steps to descend... anyway, I'll eat at lunchtime. Boki, don't be late.

— I'm Kibō!

— Whatever.

I put on my shoes and head to school, on the way there I can't help but think about how Miru-chan is doing and whether I should visit her after classes.

...

I feel like I'm being watched.

I turn to look, but the person quickly hides and mutters quietly:

— Tch, why did he ask me to follow this idiot?

That voice sounded familiar to me, maybe it's because of the diamond that I could hear it loud and clear.

Nevertheless, I continue the rest of the way with a little fear.

I had arrived safely at school, I quickly enter my classroom and go to my desk as usual.

Then, Kenji approaches me.

— Hey Rasec, why do you keep cutting your face?

I touch my face with my right hand, it stings a lot, I'm bleeding again but very little, it seems like it was just done.

— Umm... I hadn't noticed.

— And... what do you have in your hand...?

He saw my diamond!

— Uh, nothing!

I quickly hide my right hand behind me.

— Come on, you've been acting weird these days, show me what you have there, buddy! Is it a gift for Miru-chan? She didn't come today either, so show me what you have!

Kenji insists on wanting to see it, he doesn't let go of my arm for any reason.

I'm in trouble, I need a miracle right now!

And it happened... Social Studies teacher Asiasito-sensei enters...

— Good morning, everyone, please take your seats.

— Ugh, it's Asiasito-sensei, we'll talk later, Uraseku-chan!

— Phew...

I hadn't felt so relieved in a long time, but I still feel watched...

I look around and someone has their eyes fixed on me.

It's Hiroki, the guy I bumped into yesterday... he's been watching me all morning, did I do something to him?!

I decide to ignore him for a moment, but my peace wouldn't last long because Kibō appears under my desk.

— I'm back.

— How did you come if you were at home?!

Again, I speak to him quietly and angrily.

— I teleported to the diamond.

— Why didn't you do that to appear in the diamond just when I took it?! Forget it, I have to ask you something.

This was the ideal moment to ask him about my cuts so I decide to get serious.

— Have you been cutting me at night? Huh?

— Cuts?

Kibō looks at my cuts, but it seems that he's not responsible.

— It wasn't me, the diamond is rejecting you, surely it's slowly consuming you.

Um, just like that guy said in my dreams!

— Over time, the diamond will continue to reject your body, consuming it until your inevitable death. I suppose we'll meet again... if you manage to discover how to avoid your misfortune, I trust you'll achieve it.

Those were his words.

I've never cared about anything, but now, I think I feel something...

The bell rings marking the end of class.

After spending all the classes thinking, I decide to go to music class, I play the guitar while thinking about other things, but I keep playing well.

— I told you to play the G note!

That shout from Chan-chan-sensei, my music teacher, wasn't directed at me.

While she corrects those who made mistakes, I look out the window next to me to see the athletics club, maybe there's a cute girl out there...

— Ugh!

The look of boredom on my face changes drastically.

I can't believe what I see, Hiroki is watching me intently! He's far away on the school fields, how can he see me with eyes of hatred?

Did I do something wrong to him?!

Either way, I'll leave through the back door to avoid problems!

It's hard to concentrate when someone has their eyes on you.

Classes have ended, it's time to avoid getting caught by Hiroki! I put away the instruments, but then Chan-chan-sensei approaches me to say something.

— You play very well, Uraseku-kun!

— Uh?, Th-thank you very much, chan-chan-sensei.

I give a slight bow of respect to Chan-chan-sensei, but deep down I know I don't have time to talk, if I stay here longer Hiroki might find me.

— What a waste of talent, you should join my band!

— A band?

I notice the great enthusiasm in her eyes and the sincerity in her words, I should tell her we'll talk about that another time since right now I might be a dead man.

— I-I'm sorry!, Chan-chan-sensei, let's talk about this another time, I have to go now!

Before running off, I notice the disappointment on my music teacher's face, but this isn't the time to think about music.

I leave through the school hallways, unconsciously drawing everyone's attention, am I exaggerating and being too paranoid?!

While I run through the hallways with a worried and tired face, I hear murmurs from some classmates and students from other grades.

— Hey, isn't that the quiet foreign guy from second grade?

— What's gotten

 into him?

— The guy who never does anything is running around looking worried...

— Seriously? Quick, make a wish!

— That guy from the country with the funny name, right?

— I say he's cute!

Tch, are they so surprised to see me do something?!

I hate drawing so much attention when I usually go unnoticed, it's a small price to pay for being "the foreign teenager, smiling with two names and two surnames with names before surnames"!

Is this some kind of mockery?! What's so smiling about me?!

I should just be ignored as usual!

I can't take it anymore... but at least...

— I manage to leave the school...

I leave through the back door far away from the other clubs and all the students.

As I catch my breath, I decide to go more calmly from now on.

After all that running, I had forgotten that I was going to visit Miru-chan, I wonder if she's feeling better to receive visitors.

I pass by the pharmacy and then head to Miru-chan's house, would it be weird if I referred to her as Miru-cchi? I don't understand much Japanese, maybe I'll end up making another mistake like with Reina-dono-sensei trying to translate "little teacher Reina"...

— You should learn the language better, Racasec.

— Eh!

I didn't remember that Kibō could hear my thoughts.

Kibō comes out of the diamond and starts floating in front of me to explain something with a serious expression.

— I'm not from this world and I can speak it perfectly, if you want to say "little Reina" you should say... "Reina-chan".

What did he just say, what kind of blasphemy was that?!

Very annoyed, I point at Kibō.

— Hey, show some respect, she's the great universal master of pupusas!

He turns around and stands beside me while continuing to speak.

— I don't understand why all the fuss about pupusas, if you wanted to learn how to make them you should have stayed in your homeland.

I calm down a bit and since Kibō and I will be spending a lot of time together, I decide to tell him a little about why I'm here in Japan.

Chapter 2 Part 2

I let out a deep sigh and very seriously explain why I'm here.

— My parents went on a trip and left me with Seji-sensei to take care of me here in Japan. Out of nowhere, I wanted to learn to create the legendary pupusa. Legends say that only one person is capable of making it, and that's Reina-dono-sensei, but she couldn't teach me due to her age. Seji-sensei was her disciple, so I came to live here with him to somehow follow in Reina-dono-sensei's footsteps.

— Alright, but why do you want to make the legendary pupusa...?

It stumped me... I can't remember why I wanted to learn to make them...

— Forget it, I just want to, that's all. It was a good opportunity to live in Japan, I suppose.

Kibō chuckles mischievously.

— Haha, don't tell me you're into Japanese girls, Racasec. Anyway, it's not like any girl here would be interested in a Salvadoran, haha!

That annoys me, but he's kind of right...

I get worked up again, stop, and turn to him.

— Shut up, who in the world isn't interested in a Japanese girl?! Besides, I'm Rasec, not Racasec!

Throughout the journey to Miru-chan's house, Kibō didn't stop laughing, but at least we arrived at our destination.

Her house is beautiful, a typical modern Japanese two-story house with a small garden. Despite being in a rural village, it blends in perfectly with the other houses around, a traditional style of this region.

I knock on the door very gently.

Just when I think nobody will answer, someone opens the door, but... is that Ai?!

— Hello!

This is bad, I try to hide the teru teru bozu and the diamonds, but it doesn't help!

I quickly rush over to Ai, worried, and we both enter Miru-chan's house, including Kibō.

— Ai, don't be clumsy, you shouldn't open the door without asking who it is first, plus someone else might see you!

— But you had Kibō outside!

I hadn't noticed that...

From an upstairs window, a sweet voice calls out, it's Miru-chan.

— Is that you, Ai? Who was at the door?

Kibō can't stay quiet in this situation and says:

— It's just Rasec the paranoid.

— S-senpai?

At this moment, I'm worried. It's very rude to enter someone else's house without permission.

— Um, well... sorry, it's just that Ai opened the door and someone else could have seen her!

I throw myself to the ground to apologize.

— Someone was knocking at the door, and since you were sick, I wanted to help!

For some reason, Ai is on the verge of tears. I hope I didn't hurt her.

Miru-chan comes downstairs from the upper floor, looking as radiant as ever. Her clothes complement her hair color, and I couldn't help blushing when I see her.

— Don't cry, Ai-chan, I'm glad it was Uraseku-senpai.

She smiles sweetly, and it seems I didn't upset Ai. Shortly after Miru-chan appears, she gets up as if nothing happened.

Ai asks me:

— So, what brings you here?

Kibō cuts in and answers:

— He came to see if Miru was okay and brought her some medicine.

— Hey, he asked me!

— Then answer quickly!

Kibō and I weren't happy with each other. His reason is that he has to live with an unworthy bearer of the power of the Hope Diamond. Mine is that I'm obligated to live with him, and he keeps bothering me.

During my argument with Kibō, Miru-chan puts on a serious and threatening face. I've never seen her like this...

— Hey, you two, calm down...

— Y-yes!

It was the only way to stop the argument...

— Uraseku-senpai, is that true? Did you come to see if I was okay?

Still on the ground, I respond with a trembling voice.

— Y-yes... but well, I think I should go...

— Wait.

She crouches down to look directly at me and with a smile on her face, she makes a request.

— Why don't you stay and chat?

— Really? About what?

Could this be a chance for us to spend time alone? I suppose my big moment has arrived!

— Well, I'm still very confused about the diamond issue... Let's take advantage of Kibō and Ai being here to ask them what else they know!

— Ah, that's what it was...

My joyful expression changes to disappointment.

I had forgotten that I didn't come alone... however, this is a good opportunity to clarify doubts.

I get up from the floor and head towards the living room with Miru-chan, Kibō, and Ai. Miru-chan prepares tea for us and sits beside me on the left.

Kibō seems to have a lot of information about this, so he starts the conversation.

— Alright, what do you want to know about the diamonds?

Miru-chan seems more intrigued now, so she begins with her question.

— Chie, Seji-sama's diamond spirit mentioned that there were also other presences along with you guys. I wanted to know if you can locate the remaining diamonds or spirits.

She asked an excellent question, but since the spirits joined us, they haven't told us anything relevant, so I don't think they'll tell us anything...

— Yes.

— Huh... EH?!

— So, you do know how to locate them?!

— I just said yes, Racasec.

Kibō acts indifferent while Miru-chan is surprised. Meanwhile, I'm furious because he didn't tell us something so important.

Damn it, this guy is a mess!

— Why didn't you tell us something so important?! We were asking about it yesterday!

— I got distracted because I was hungry...

Ah, no matter how much I want to be angry with him, he's kind of adorable.

I give a small yawn due to the sleepiness I feel and manage to keep somewhat calm.

I pick up my tea cup, take a sip, and Kibō continues speaking.

— But we can only know exactly where they are if they're outside the diamond. If not, we'll just know they exist.

So we can know exactly where they are if the diamonds weren't at the meteorite collision point, that means they surely found a bearer.

— Kibō and I have agreed that two of our siblings are missing along with three beings we haven't been able to identify.

Miru-chan, very analytical, says exactly what I was thinking.

— So, that means there are two other diamond bearers. Have you and Kibō been able to locate their locations?

— We knew exactly where they were recently, but now we don't know where they are, so we assume they must be inside their respective diamonds.

I suppose talking about this topic has been very enlightening, but my mind still has more doubts.

— Hey, what about the beings you haven't been able to identify? Do

 you know anything more about them?

Kibō seems to be thinking about something, but not very successfully.

— We don't know anything about them, but maybe we could ask our siblings whom we haven't found yet, although I don't think we'll have much success.

— I see...

I tilt my head and start thinking about many things.

Even with the tea cup in my hand, I recognize that our priority now is singular.

I set the cup down on the table, stand up from my seat, and say:

— Well, we'll talk about this another day. We should meet again to search for the remaining diamonds, or ideally, they will come to us since their spirits should also detect us.

Miru-chan, still looking confused, understands what we need to do now.

— Seji-sensei will be upset if I'm not early helping him at the pupusería. Let's go, Boki.

— I'm Kibō!

— Whatever...

Before we leave, Miru-chan interrupts us.

— Kibō, senpai, goodbye.

Miru-chan bids us farewell with a smile. I should learn how to properly say goodbye to people...

— Goodbye, Miru-chan, I hope you get better soon.

I return the smile.

As Miru-chan watches me, I attempt to make an epic exit, or so I try...

At least I got to spend time with the cutest girl.

Kibō and I head towards the pupusería. On the way, we continue our conversation about Japanese honorific suffixes.

Once again, I didn't realize I was taking him outside.

— As I was saying, Rasec, "dono" is a very old suffix and is currently outdated. You could simply call her "Reina-sensei." Also, it's strange to use "dono" with "sensei." Who does that?

— It's a literal translation to say "maestra niña Reina." I acknowledged my mistake, what more do you want?

— Whatever... oh, and just so you know, if you want to use the prefix "cchi" with a girl, you should be careful. It's a prefix used in informal situations and with very close friends.

— I don't need lessons from you; that's what school is for.

— But you seem to just be warming the seat because apparently, you haven't learned anything...

The journey to the pupusería feels endless, but for some reason, it's less boring with Kibō than alone.

After that long walk, I finally reach the pupusería, and Seji-sensei seemed to be waiting for me.

— Why did you take so long? Were you with a girl, by any chance?

Seji-sensei puts on a mischievous smile. No matter how hard I try to hide my nervousness, it's impossible.

— Uh! Wh-wh-why do you know?!

— Huh, was it true?

...

I think I just made a fool of myself... Kibō couldn't hold back his laughter.

— Hahaha, you just spilled the beans yourself!

— Well, at least I confirmed that you're not batting for the other team...

It seems Seji-sensei had reached a point where he thought I wasn't interested in any type of girls...

— Hey, what kind of vision did you have of me?

The night is filled with laughter at the pupusería. I can't attend to the customers as I normally would because I'm distracted thinking about the diamond issue, and because the diamond gets in the way when I'm serving.

That's how the night passes, and the next day I wake up with a cut on my abdomen. This one is smaller than the rest, but I fear having to go through this every day.