Chapter 97

Sitting in class, Yushiro stared at the four slips of paper in his hand excitedly. "Oh finally I can't wait to show them these tickets!"

After a while Shinobu walked into Yushiro's class. The boy had asked her to meet him here because he wanted to show her something "important." Knowing Yushiro, it was most definitely the opposite but whatever it was, she was still curious to check it out. Hence she decided to stop by after class.

"Great! Shinobu you're finally here!" Yushiro spun around to face Shinobu who appeared unfazed by his enthusiastic reactions to her presence.

"What is it you wanted to show me?" Shinobu said boredly.

"Look what I got! Four free tickets to Dice and Roll Valley!"

The four tickets were at close proximity to Shinobu that she backed away in frustration. "So when are you going there with your family?" She asked nicely despite getting agitated by Yushiro's reckless behavior.

"Oh my parents are on their honeymoon so that leaves me with you, Douma and one more person." Yushiro replied, thinking about who the other person could be.

A few boys from Yushiro's class gathered around his table eyeing the tickets in his hand.

"Woah are those the prizes from the chess competition?"

"Yushiro is a champion at chess!"

"That's so cool!"

Yushiro got up from his seat and stood up proudly with a smug look. "That is correct! I'm embarking on a prestigious journey after the school's collaboration for the chess competition. Thank you all for your support."

"At Dice and Roll Valley? Wow." Someone from the crowd said.

Yushiro approached Shinobu with one of the tickets pointed at her. "For you." He said passing the ticket to Shinobu.

"Thanks. When are we going there?"

"This weekend hopefully. Now we just gotta find Douma."

Shinobu watched the slightly taller Yushiro return to his seat. The other boys started asking him questions about the chess competitions and the opponents Yushiro was up against. While Yushiro was talking with his friends, Shinobu wondered if Douma would join them or decline this offer. It was going to be fun and Douma would be missing out on a lot if he didn't come along.

"Oh no I just realized something." Yushiro blurted out.

Everyone turned to look at him. Yushiro got up from his seat and prepared to make an announcement to the crowd gathered in front of him. A few girls in class started whispering among themselves while Shinobu stood there waiting for what Yushiro was about to say.

"These tickets expire in two weeks! I have to find the next two fast before it's too late!"

"I'll go with you!"

"Me too!"

"Nah I've already made up my mind about that."

The group of boys sighed after hearing Yushiro's response. They were disappointed, how could Yushiro let them down like this? They were friends, if only Yushiro appreciated their company just as much as they did.

"Do you know where Douma is?" Yushiro asked Shinobu who was getting tired of this whole thing.

"I don't know Yushiro I haven't seen him in a while. Maybe he's at the Hasu Mountains or Atlas."

"Really? Can't you call him or something?"

"His phone's out of service and he rarely uses it. I'm not surprised this happened, it's not like they need this kind of stuff anyways."

Yushiro slouched on his chair and stared at the ceiling in disappointment. He could stretch his legs comfortably since his friends had gone back to their seats. "Now what are we going to do?"

"I hope you won't invite any creeps Yushiro." Shinobu reminded him.

"Don't worry I'm going to find Douma no matter what!"

Easy for you to say. The violette crossed her arms and glared at Yushiro who flipped through each ticket like cash. 

"See you around Yushiro, I've got some club matters to settle." Yushiro watched as Shinobu slowly left the class without saying another word. This left Yushiro in dismay, he was left to find Douma all by himself. Shinobu didn't even bother to assist him or anything.

"Wait! You can't leave me to do all this myself! Come back!" Yushiro grabbed Shinobu's wrist before she stepped out of the classroom.

Shinobu looked behind her in annoyance. "What now? There's no plan here, you're better off on your own unless you can figure something out."

Yushiro gulped and regained his composure. "I will but you're the only one I can rely on for this. Please Shinobu I promise our time at Dice and Roll Valley will be meaningful." It took the last statement for Yushiro to realize that Shinobu still kept the ticket with her. Which made him feel better since it meant that Shinobu still looked forward to the outing.

"Yeah no I've got more important things to do. Running around in circles is an absolute waste of time." Shinobu walked off leaving Yushiro in grief.

"Don't go!"

"Didn't you hear about the school's horticulture festival? I'm a part of it and it's my responsibility to make sure everything runs smoothly this week." Although Yushiro's plan wasn't that complicated, Shinobu wasn't going to push aside her roles during the botany festival just for something Yushiro could manage on his own. There were too many things to worry about, if only Yushiro could understand that.

Besides, Shinobu had her shift today. She couldn't just leave the booth empty.

"Aw man how am I going to find Douma? The only person I can count on is Shinobu but she's not cooperating with me! Ugh think Yushiro, think!" The boy stood there pondering about what to do, his mind stumbled upon a couple of ideas that could be proven useful. But they required a team effort and Yushiro was shorthanded. 

Yushiro ignored the ongoing commotions in his classroom. The Hasu Mountains is far and I don't even know where Atlas is. Darn you Shinobu, if only you weren't so stubborn!

"This outing will turn out spectacular! Just you wait Shinobu! I bet you're just as excited as I am but you just don't want to show it! Don't you worry, you'll forget about all that soon enough. I'll assemble a team and embark on this prestigious journey."