Hikaru's face turned pale after hearing Zul's words. He gripped his blanket tightly, his expression darkening.
"Is that true, Zul?" Hikaru asked, his voice tense.
Zul gave a small nod. "Yeah, that's what happened."
"Damn it... I knew it," Hikaru muttered, running a hand through his hair.
"Why didn't Mizuha tell me about it earlier? Why is she hiding this from me?"
"She probably didn't want to worry you," Zul replied. "Especially with you being sick like this."
Hikaru clenched his fists, feeling both frustrated and guilty. He should have noticed something was wrong earlier.
"But don't worry," Zul continued. "Even with all that happening, she never gave up. She's holding strong. And she's not alone—Eri, Shimizu, and even Takeru have been supporting her."
Hikaru blinked. "Wait… Takeru too?"
Zul nodded. "Yeah. He stood up for her."
Hikaru let out a deep sigh. "That guy... I had a feeling he'd do something like that. I should thank him later for helping Mizuha. By the way, did you guys find out who started the rumor in the first place?"
"Not yet," Zul admitted. "I've been looking into it, but I haven't found anything concrete."
"I see..." Hikaru exhaled sharply. After a moment, he looked at Zul.
"Anyway, thanks for looking out for her. I appreciate it."
Zul shrugged. "It's nothing. I can't just sit back while a friend of mine gets badmouthed like that."
He stretched his arms and picked up his bag. "Alright, that's all I wanted to say. I should get going now."
Hikaru gave a small nod. "Yeah. Anyway, thanks for visiting me today. Also, please take care of Mizuha for me."
"No problem. Just leave it to me. You better get well soon," Zul said before turning to leave.
Hikaru's mind was still racing with thoughts about Mizuha.
Geez, I'm really useless this time, getting a cold at such a bad time. I hope Mizuha will stay strong with everything that has happened, he thought.
Meanwhile, Kurumi and her gang were hanging out at the playground near school since classes had ended early.
Kurumi smirked and laughed. "Did you see Yuki's face earlier? She was completely messed up, right?"
One of her friends nodded. "Yeah, I've never seen her look so disappointed before."
The group laughed. "With all this pressure, I'm sure she'll give up on Hikaru. Then you'll have your chance, Kurumi-chan."
"Oh, come on. Don't get excited too soon. There's still more we need to do." Kurumi said, before her phone vibrated.
She looked at the screen and opened a message. A picture of Mizuha and Zul together appeared. The picture had been taken earlier when they were walking together back from school.
Kurumi smirked. "Oh, looks like we got something interesting. That person really knows how to do their job."
"Hey Kurumi-chan, what's wrong? Smirking like that all of a sudden?" her friends asked. Kurumi showed them the picture on her phone.
"No way! So she's not just two-timing with Takeru—she's going after Zul too?" one of them sneered. "What is she thinking?"
Another friend chuckled. "Hey, we can use this for our next move, right?"
Kurumi grinned. "Of course. This will bring even more chaos for her." She laughed, and her friends joined in.
As the rain started to pour again, Kurumi and her friends decided to go home. One by one, they split up, leaving Kurumi walking alone under her umbrella.
The road was quiet, with only a few cars passing by. As she walked, she felt uneasy, as if someone was behind her.
She ignored it at first, thinking it was just her imagination, but the feeling lingered, causing her steps to slow.
Kurumi's steps slowed. Something is wrong, she thought.
She stopped walking and turned around. "Who's there?!"
The street was empty. She scanned the area but saw nothing suspicious.
She frowned, still feeling uneasy. To be safe, she walked faster and entered a crowded area nearby. As she blended into the people, the feeling of being followed disappeared.
Even though she felt relieved, something still bothered her. I was sure someone was behind me, she thought, still bothered.
She slid her hands into her jacket pockets and felt something unusual—a folded piece of paper.
When did this get here? she wondered.
She unfolded the paper. "Enough, Stay out of this!"
Kurumi's face twisted in anger. "What is this? A warning?!"
"This must be Yuki's doing," she muttered, crushing the paper in her hand. "She thinks she can stop me like this?"
Feeling upset, she crushed the paper in her hand. "I won't stop just because of this!"
"If she wants to fight, I'll show her what happens when she messes with me."
A short distance away, the person who had been following her earlier, wearing a hoodie, watched her from afar, then grinned, baring their teeth before smirking to themselves.
The next morning, Kurumi and her friends gathered in the school bathroom, huddled in a circle as they planned their next move against Mizuha.
"Let's spread the rumor about those two and show everyone that photo," Kurumi said with a smirk. "Everyone will believe they're dating when they see it."
"Oh, the photo from yesterday? That's a great idea, Kurumi-chan!" her friend agreed.
"Yeah, and we can also start something about Eri and Shimizu," another added. "Get everyone around her involved."
They didn't notice that Mizuha had entered before them and was listening from a stall. She stepped out, her face stern.
"Enough with all this nonsense, you guys!" Mizuha said firmly.
"Oh, look who's here—Yuki-san herself," Kurumi said mockingly.
Meanwhile, Takeru walked into Class 1F, looking around. "Mizuha, are you here?" After a moment, he frowned. "Huh? She's not here?"
He spotted Shimizu and Eri chatting near Zul's seat and approached them. Shimizu looked at Zul. "Hey, where did you go with Mizuha yesterday?"
"We went to visit Hikaru," Zul replied simply.
"How is he doing?" Eri asked.
"He's fine. Said he'll be back soon."
"I see. That's good then." Shimizu nodded.
Takeru suddenly appeared behind Shimizu, throwing his arm around her neck.
"What's this, Shimizu? Missing Hikaru already? Feeling lonely with no one to tease?" He chuckled.
Shimizu stiffened. "Oh, it's you, Takeru." She glared at his arm. "First of all, watch where you're putting your hands. I'm not one of your buddy-buddy friends, you know."
"If your hand touches my chest, you're finished"
Takeru's face turned red as he realized his mistake. That's right, she's a girl. I completely forgot! That was close. He quickly pulled his arm back.
"Sorry, sorry! It's just a habit—I thought you were one of my guy friends," he said with an awkward laugh.
"You're really hopeless," Shimizu sighed. "Well, I'm not in the mood to be upset about it right now."
"So, why did you come here? Do you need anything?" Shimizu asked.
"Not really, I just wanted to check on Mizuha. Hasn't she arrived at school yet?" Takeru replied.
"Mizuha-chan is already here. She went to the restroom," Eri replied, pointing at Mizuha's seat in front of them.
"Oh, you're right. Her bag is here—I didn't notice it," said Takeru.
"Come to think of it, she's been gone a while. I wonder what's keeping her," said Shimizu.
An awkward atmosphere fell over the classroom as students whispered about a commotion in the toilet.
"Really? Is this actually happening there now?"
"Yes, it happened," they said, looking at each other.
Shimizu turned to a classmate nearby. "Hey, what's going on? Everyone's talking about something."
"Ah, Shimizu-san," the classmate leaned in. "Yuki-san and Kurumi are having a serious argument in the toilet right now. People say it's getting intense."
Shimizu, Eri, Takeru, and Zul exchanged shocked looks.
"Mizuha-chan..." Eri said, her expression filled with concern.
"We should go check on her," Takeru said, rushing immediately.
Shimizu nodded. "Let's go, you guys."
They rushed toward the toilet, with Shimizu leading the way. As they arrived, they saw a large crowd surrounding the entrance to the girls' toilet.
"What's with all these people?" Shimizu muttered, pushing her way through.
Students in the crowd talked amongst themselves.
"What happened? A fight inside there?"
"I heard shouting. Seems serious."
"Who is involved in this?"
"I heard Yuki-san, the one people have been talking about recently, had a confrontation with her classmate Kurumi and her friends."
"Is this related to the bad rumor surrounding her right now?"
"I think so," the crowd said to each other.
"That's a big crowd," said Shimizu.
Takeru noticed Akemi in the crowd and approached her. "Hey Akemi, what actually happened?"
Akemi turned around. "Oh, Takeru-kun, and everyone. You see, Mizuha-chan and the other girl from the same class, Kurumi-san, right? They are arguing with each other inside," she said, pointing at the toilet door.
"Did you hear what they were arguing about?" Takeru asked.
"From what I heard, Mizuha-chan is trying to stop them from spreading more rumors. They planned to involve you guys, especially Sakamoto-san and Shimizu, in this rumor too."
"Damn, they're going too far now. I can't hold this any longer. I'm going inside to help Mizuha. Let's go, Eri," said Shimizu, dragging Eri's hand through the crowd.
"Wait, Shimizu-chan!" said Eri while being dragged by Shimizu.
"Wait, Shimizu!" said Zul.
"That girl really likes to act recklessly without thinking," said Zul.
"Well, that's how she is... haha," said Takeru with a chuckle.
Suddenly, someone approached them from behind.
"Hey, you guys, what actually happened here? Why are so many people crowded here?" they asked.
As Takeru, Zul, and Akemi turned around, they were shocked by the person who was asking.
"Wait, you..." "Hikaru...?" they said simultaneously upon realizing Hikaru was approaching them.
"Step aside! Make way!" shouted Shimizu while dragging Eri and pushing through the crowd.
"Hey, what are you doing, pushing like that?" a male student in front of her said.
"Huh? Did you say something?" Shimizu asked.
The crowd was shocked by Shimizu's approach.
"Oh no, it's that girl—the delinquent, Shimizu."
"Hey, just move aside! If she gets mad, she'll beat us up!"
Hearing this, the crowd quickly stepped back, giving Shimizu space to walk through.
Good, they listened, Shimizu thought, smiling and said, "Thank you."
Meanwhile, Kurumi suddenly shoved Mizuha against the wall. She pulled out the warning note she had received the day before and held it up in front of Mizuha's face.
"You sent this, didn't you? Trying to scare me? Too bad—it's not working."
Her friends gasped.
"Wait... is that true, Kurumi-chan?" one of them asked.
Kurumi scoffed. "Of course! This idiot thinks she can threaten us with a stupid note."
Mizuha's eyes widened. "Wait... are you seriously accusing me of doing that?"
"Who else would it be?" Kurumi snapped. "You think this piece of crap will scare me? Unfortunately, it won't."
"Come on guys, enough with her. Let's move on to the next step of our plan." she added.
Mizuha stopped them and said, "Please..... like I said before, if you want to spread rumors about me, then fine. But don't involve my friends in this."
Kurumi and her friends burst into laughter. "You hear that? She's begging us to spare her friends—how pathetic!"
"I don't understand why Hikaru-kun is interested in a pathetic girl like you. He was supposed to get together with me, not you," Kurumi sneered.
"Oh, never mind, let's go, girls," said Kurumi.
As Kurumi and her gang turned to leave, Mizuha reached out and grabbed Kurumi's shoulder. "Wait... please don't do this."
Kurumi's expression darkened. "Don't touch me with your filthy hands!" she shouted, shoving Mizuha backward.
Mizuha stumbled and fell, landing hard on the floor. Kurumi stepped forward and pressed her foot against Mizuha's chest.
"I'm surprised you have the guts to stop me, huh," Kurumi sneered. "Looks like you need to be taught a lesson."
"Why are you doing this to me? Did I do something bad to you before?" said Mizuha, trying to push back Kurumi's leg.
"No, it's nothing, but your presence here is really making me irritated. Since you transferred, I've had no chance to get close with Hikaru-kun, you know."
"That's right, Kurumi-chan likes Hikaru-kun, but you ruined everything," another friend agreed with her.
"You're really such an eyesore," said Kurumi. "Alright, let's make a deal."
"A deal?" Mizuha asked.
"Why don't you distance yourself from Hikaru-kun after this?" Kurumi added.
"If you do that, we promise to leave you alone... how is it?" said Kurumi, holding Mizuha's chin while smirking at her.
"No, I..." said Mizuha.
One of Kurumi's friends glanced at the entrance, noticing more students gathering outside. "Hey Kurumi, can we go now? They're hearing us from outside," she muttered.
Before Kurumi could respond, a sharp voice interrupted.
"Step away! Make way!"
The voice was strong and approaching fast.
"Wait, Shimizu-chan!" another voice followed.
That voice... Shimizu!? Eri-chan!? thought Mizuha.
Eri and Shimizu arrived, their eyes widening in shock.
"Mizuha-chan!" said Eri, her voice trembling with concern.
Shimizu, shocked at what she was seeing, snapped. "Damn, you!!!" she shouted.
Without hesitation, she approached Kurumi, grabbed her arm, and slapped her face.
The sound echoed through the bathroom as Kurumi staggered backward, her hand flying to her cheek.
"It hurts! What do you think you're doing?" Kurumi yelled in shock.
One of her friends spoke up. "Kurumi-chan, that was—"
"Shimizu!? What are you doing here?" Kurumi exclaimed, still holding her cheek.
Shimizu ignored Kurumi and turned to Mizuha. Eri had already rushed to Mizuha's side, helping her up.
"Thanks, Eri-chan," Mizuha said as she steadied herself.
"Mizuha, are you okay?" Shimizu asked with concern.
Mizuha brushed off her uniform. "I'm fine, but my skirt got wet from the floor," she said, forcing a laugh.
Shimizu shook her head. "I see, you don't know how to be upset properly. You're too soft on them," Shimizu said, her expression changing slightly. "But you did well defending us from being involved in their mess. Thank you."
She straightened up. "Now, let me show you proper way to deal someone like them."
Shimizu turned back to Kurumi and her friends, approaching and grabbing Kurumi's collar firmly.
"Kurumi-chan!" one of her friends called out.
"Hey, you! What are you doing? Put me down!" Kurumi demanded, trying to sound brave despite looking afraid.
Shimizu tightened her grip. "You! What do you think you are doing to my best friend?" she said.
"I've been watching your bad behaviour toward Mizuha for the last few days, but what you're doing is too far. It's making me irritated, and I can't stand seeing you do this to her anymore."
Shimizu pushed Kurumi backward, making her stumble into her friends. Some female students who had gathered outside were now watching the confrontation.
Shimizu walked toward the group, cracking her knuckles. "I heard you guys have something to say about me," she said calmly. "Well, say it. I'm here to hear it."
Kurumi clenched her fists, her anger rising.
"You, don't act like you're better!" Kurumi said.
One friend quickly grabbed her arm. "Don't do it, Kurumi-chan! You can't win against her," she whispered. "Have you forgotten how she alone defeated those senpai who bullied Sakamoto-san before?"
Kurumi froze, gritting her teeth as that incident came back to her.
Shimizu noticed her hesitation and smirked. "Oh? So you've heard about that." She leaned in slightly. "You know you can't beat me in a fight."
She shoved Kurumi back, making her stumble. "So? Got nothing to say? Then get lost. Dealing with you is a waste of my time."
"And if you even think about laying a finger on Mizuha again..." Shimizu's expression hardened. "You already know what happens next."
Kurumi gritted her teeth, her cheek still sore.
"Tch... Too many damn interferences." She turned to her friends. "Let's go, girls," she said before leaving in a hurry, her friends following behind.
Once Kurumi and her gang were gone, Mizuha let out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. Eri still looked shaken.
Shimizu sighed and shook her head. "Geez, those girls just don't know when to stop." She murmured. "But this isn't the end. I'm sure they'll try again."
She turned to Mizuha, slowly approached her, and slapped her on the cheek.
Mizuha touched her own cheek and said, "Ouch, hey what are you doing?"
"You fool! What were you thinking, confronting them alone like that?" Shimizu shed a tear.
Mizuha was shocked to see hot-headed Shimizu crying for her like that.
"I was worried about you earlier, you know"
"Of course I am, I was worried about you earlier ,you know. What if they had done something bad to you earlier? she added.
"I….I'm sorry…." said Mizuha.
Without hesitation, Shimizu pulled Mizuha into a tight hug. "It's okay, but please don't do something like this again, okay?"
"Next time, don't try to handle everything alone. Trust us. No matter what happens, we're always here for you."
Mizuha returned her hug and said, "I'm so, so sorry. I won't do something like this again." A tear dropped from her eye.
Seeing them like this, Eri's eyes welled up. "Shimizu-chan, Mizuha-chan..." She couldn't finish her sentence as a tear slipped down her cheek.
Mizuha noticed Eri crying and pulled her to join their hug too.
"Wait? Mizuha-chan?" said Eri in surprise. Mizuha then said, her voice trembling with emotion.
"Shimizu, Eri-chan... thank you. Thank you for coming. I don't know what I would've done without you guys."
"It's okay, Mizuha-chan. I'm glad you're okay," said Eri.
"Of course we came! We're friends, aren't we?" Shimizu looked at Mizuha, who nodded in agreement.
"Yes, you're right. We're all friends," she said with a smile through her tears. "Again, thank you two…"
Meanwhile, Hikaru talked to Takeru, Akemi, and Zul about the current situation.
Kurumi and her friends exited the toilet, looking awkward as the surrounding crowd whispered.
"Huh, are they all talking about us?" her friend asked Kurumi. "Looks like the incident attracted everyone. Ignore them and walk. We'll make another plan later," Kurumi whispered.
Akemi looked at her phone. "Oh, it's almost time. I need to meet the teacher. I'll go first."
"Then you'd better go. Looks like they're finished. I'm counting on you, class rep," Takeru said.
Hikaru saw them walking and asked Zul, "Hey, Zul, were they the ones...?"
"Yes, they're the ones who did that to Mizuha," Zul replied.
"Oh, I see... it was them, huh?" said Hikaru.
"Hey, Takeru, I'm going to do something. Can you play along with me?" said Hikaru.
"Do something, wait, don't tell me you're going to..." Takeru replied.
"Yes, it's time to clear this misunderstanding for Mizuha and you guys too," said Hikaru.
"Okay, I will play along with it. Let's do that..." said Takeru with a smirk.
Hikaru took a deep breath, then said in a louder voice, "Like I said earlier, Takeru, Mizuha did not two-time you, right?"
Takeru played along and said, "Yes, that's right. What the rumor said is nothing. Me and Mizuha? Since when did I steal her from you, right, Hikaru-kun?"
The crowd's attention now focused on the two of them, even Kurumi and her friends looking at them.
Zul, standing nearby, held himself back from laughing. These two... really...
The surrounding crowd whispered. "Really? So Yuki-san isn't two-timing?" "Looks like it, even Hikaru's declaring it."
Takeru then continued, "Also, Mizuha cheating during the exam? Are you joking? She did her best by herself. She even taught her friends before the exam and is a great tutor. What nonsense rumor is this?"
"Yes, I can confirm that," Hikaru said.
"Really? So the rumor's false?" the crowd murmured. "It was a lie after all?"
"So Yuki-san didn't do anything wrong?"
"Unlike someone over there who's jealous of Mizuha and spreading bad rumors about her, right?" Hikaru said intentionally, facing Kurumi's group.
"I don't trust rumors, especially from people who spread them. I really hate that..." Hikaru added.
Kurumi was shocked, her face turning pale. "Hey, Kurumi-chan, he was talking about us, right?" one of her friends said.
"And hearing that from Hikaru-kun too... what should we do now?" another friend added.
Kurumi gritted her teeth and ran away from the area. "Wait, Kurumi-chan..." her friends said, chasing her.
The crowd fell silent, guilt washing over them for believing the rumors about Mizuha.
A girl who had peeked inside said, "We saw what happened. Yuki-san was standing up for her friends, even surrounded by Kurumi's gang."
"We heard Kurumi was planning to do something bad to Yuki-san's friends, but Yuki-san begged them to stop," another girl said.
"Even after they knocked her down, she still begged them to stop."
"Really? She prioritized her friends even when her own reputation was being ruined?"
"So those rumors were lying to us the whole time?" the students murmured.
"We were all wrong about her, and we need to apologize to Yuki-san after this."
"Looks like they're realizing the rumor was false," Takeru said. "Yeah, looks like it," Hikaru replied.
A teacher noticed the commotion. "What's going on? Why are you all gathered? It's almost time for first period. Disperse immediately and return to your classrooms!" the male teacher ordered as he passed.
"Oh no! He's right, we'd better get back," a student said. "Let's go."
As the crowd thinned, Mizuha, Eri, and Shimizu left the restroom. Hikaru, Takeru, and Zul were waiting outside.
To be continued... Amemonogatari VI