Welcome to Avengers Academy! ~The Romantic Misadventures of Former Heroes~ - Gym Class and a Bombshell Announcement! Monday's Mayhem

The second week of May, Monday. The unpleasant events of the weekend were still swirling around in Tooru's head. After school on Friday, Tooru had left things with Ai still misunderstanding the situation with Suzu. Ai had seen Suzu suddenly getting close to him in the hallway. And that wasn't all. Miyabi's fake love letter had put him through hell. " Hah..." Before morning homeroom, Tooru was slumped over his desk. " Tooru, we have gym today. Don't forget to change." Makoto called out from the next seat over. His eyes behind his glasses were as serious as always, but there was a distance there. Things had been awkward between them ever since what happened on Friday. " I know..." Tooru answered without lifting his head. (*I wonder if Ai's still mad.*) He glanced diagonally behind him. The very back seat by the window. Ai was already there. She had her textbook open, reading quietly. Her profile gave absolutely nothing away about what she was thinking. "—Good morning, Tooru-kun." Suddenly, a sweet voice fell upon him. He looked up to find Suzu standing beside his desk. Her long black hair swayed gently, a perfect smile on her face. But her eyes weren't smiling. They were the eyes of a cat eyeing its prey. " O-Oh, morning..." Tooru hurriedly straightened up. " I'm looking forward to gym today. I want to see you run, Tooru-kun." Suzu tilted her head slightly and looked up at Tooru with upturned eyes. At the back of the classroom, Miyabi was twirling her ponytail around her finger, watching the scene intently. Smiling with just her mouth. " Fufu, today looks like it's going to get interesting..." Tooru felt a chill run down his spine. —The last class before noon, gym. The May sky was high and blue. The wind kicked up a little dust from the field. "Alright, today we're timing the 50-meter dash!" The gym teacher, Iwasaki, shouted in his thick voice. Forty-five years old, muscular, and loud. The students called him "Gorilla-sensei" and were terrified of him. " Alright, time to show off my lightning speed!" " Dude, you tripped and fell last time." Their classmates in gym clothes gathered in front of the starting line. As he warmed up, Tooru glanced over at Ai. In her gym clothes, Ai looked a little more delicate than usual. But her back was perfectly straight. She was stretching lightly, her face expressionless. " (If I'm gonna talk to her, it's now or never...)" Tooru took a deep breath and tried to approach Ai. Just then. "Next, Morimoto! Tomioka! Line up!" Iwasaki's yell rang out. " Huh?" His heart leaped. (*I'm running with Ai?!*) Tooru and Ai stood in adjacent lanes. They crouched at the starting line. Hands down, looking ahead. The finish tape 50 meters away fluttered in the wind. Beside Tooru, Ai also took her starting stance. Her profile seemed incredibly close. (*Crap, I'm so nervous...*) His palms were sweaty. His heart was pounding loudly. "On your marks—" Iwasaki raised his right hand. "Get set—" The starting pistol was raised. "Bang!" —In that instant. A small cry rose up beside Tooru. " Ah—" Ai's body lurched sideways. Right after the start. Her right foot, stepping forward, caught in a small dip in the field. Losing her balance, her body fell towards Tooru. " Ai-chan?!" Tooru instinctively reached out his hand. It was a reflex, faster than starting to run. He grabbed Ai's arm and pulled her towards him. But the momentum was too strong. —Thud. They tumbled together and fell onto the field. A cloud of dust puffed up. " ...Ngh." He hit his back hard. But that wasn't what mattered. Ai was in his arms. Point-blank range. Ai's face was just a few centimeters from the tip of Tooru's nose. Her bangs were disheveled, and her large eyes stared at Tooru. (*So close...*) His heart was beating absurdly fast. He felt Ai's weight in his arms. Slender, light, but definitely here. Ai's eyes wavered slightly. Her eyes, staring at Tooru, were opened a little wider in surprise. And deep within them—he felt like something flickered. (*What is this feeling...*) The center of Tooru's chest grew tight and hot. He knew this. He knew these eyes. Where? When? He couldn't remember. But his body remembered. " ...Tomioka-kun." Ai called his name in a hoarse voice. Her cheeks flushed just a little. Her ears were so red they looked transparent. " Ah... S-Sorry!" Tooru hurriedly let go. Ai stood up immediately and patted the dirt off her gym clothes. Then, without a word, she looked down at Tooru. Her face was its usual expressionless mask. But—her eyebrows were slightly downturned. " ...Are you okay?" Ai offered her hand. " Y-Yeah! I'm fine, totally fine!" Tooru grabbed her hand and stood up. Ai's hand was much warmer than he'd expected. —That's when he noticed. Behind the starting line, Makoto was standing there. Makoto, who had been waiting as the next runner, was staring intently at the two of them. His eyes behind his glasses were frozen hard. He was biting his lip, his fists clenched. Tooru could see his hands trembling slightly. " ...Makoto." The moment Tooru tried to call out to him, Makoto abruptly turned his face away. (*Oh crap...*) A cold feeling spread deep in Tooru's chest. —After school. Having finished his classroom cleaning duty, Tooru grabbed his bag and stepped out into the hallway. "Tomioka." A voice came from behind him. He turned around to find Makoto standing there. Leaning against the classroom door, he stared straight at Tooru. " Come to the back of the gym. We need to talk." The voice of the usually kind class president was cold and hard today. Tooru swallowed hard. Behind the gym. A single cherry tree swayed in the wind. This place was famous as a "confession spot." But right now, there wasn't a trace of that sweet atmosphere. " Tooru, you—" Makoto opened his mouth. His voice was trembling. " Are you serious about Ai-chan?" It was a direct question. Tooru held his breath for a moment. Makoto's eyes were glaring intensely, like a wounded animal. " ...I'm serious." Tooru looked straight back into Makoto's eyes. "Ever since I first met her, how do I put it—I felt like I knew her. And then I wanted to talk to her more, wanted to be near her. I'm serious. I like Ai-chan." He said it all at once. Makoto's expression crumpled. " ...Me too." Makoto's voice was hoarse. " I like Ai-chan too! Ever since I first saw her, this whole time! While you were just messing around, I was—" His words cut off mid-sentence. Makoto clenched his fists and bit his lip. " I'm serious about her." A heavy silence fell between them. Best friends. But now, they were rivals in love. Not knowing what to do, Tooru stared intently at his palms. There was a small scrape there from when he fell. —Just then. " Ah, there you are. Tooru-kuuun." A lighthearted voice cut through the tension. Tooru and Makoto turned around simultaneously. Suzu was standing there. Clutching her drama club script to her chest, wearing a perfect smile. But that smile seemed much sharper than usual. " Suzu...?" Suzu walked briskly up to the two of them. And then—she wrapped her arm around Tooru's. " I, well, I like you, Tooru-kun!" Tooru's mind went completely blank. Right behind him, he heard Makoto gasp. " Wha...?" "I've liked you for a long time. You're cheerful, and kind, and you make everyone in class laugh—" Suzu looked up at Tooru with upturned eyes. The honor student mask was completely off. " So, I want you to go out with me." Tooru was speechless. (*What the hell is this...?!*) Suzu had come onto him on Friday. But he'd thought that was just thanks for fixing the props. No way, she was serious—no, was this serious? Or was it some kind of scheme? His head was spinning with confusion. " Suzu, you—" Makoto tried to step forward. —In that instant. "Wow, Tooru-kun, you're pretty popular, huh." A cold voice. The three of them turned around. From the corner of the gym, Ai appeared. She had changed from her gym clothes into her uniform. Her bag over her shoulder, she stared intently at Tooru and the others. Her eyes were completely frozen over. " A-Ai-chan... It's not what it looks like, this is—" " It doesn't have to be." Ai shut him down flat. " It has nothing to do with me." Ai turned on her heel. " Wait!" Tooru reached out his hand. But Ai didn't turn back. —Rustle. A small shadow moved in the second-floor window of the school building. It was Miyabi. Her ponytail swaying, she held up her smartphone. The screen was in recording mode. " The curtain rises on the greatest stage..." Miyabi smirked to herself and tapped her smartphone. —The next moment. A loud voice boomed from the speakers installed throughout the school building. *'—I, well, I like you, Tooru-kun!'* Suzu's voice. That bombshell statement from just moments ago. The four behind the gym froze. The voice echoed throughout the school building, and screams and cheers erupted all at once from the classmates who had remained in the after-school classrooms. """WHOOOOAAA!!""" "Suzu confessed to Tooru?!" "No way! That honor student Suzu?!" "Did you hear that?! That broadcast just now!" The hallway was in an uproar. Tooru's name was flying around everywhere. Curious eyes, teasing voices, hushed whispers. It all stabbed into Tooru. " ...I see." Suzu wasn't angry. On the contrary, she was smiling like she'd pulled one over on them. " Miyabi, you did it again. But oh well. Now everyone knows." Suzu let go of Tooru's arm and headed back to the school building with a step that looked like she might skip. " Tooru... you..." Makoto was pale as a ghost. He glared at Tooru with an expression mixing anger, sadness, and confusion. " I trusted you—" With just those words, Makoto ran off. Tooru was left behind, alone. Ai was already gone. Makoto had left too. Suzu had walked away laughing. Miyabi was smirking somewhere. Cheers still echoed from the school building. Tooru crouched down on the spot. " ...What the hell is this." His voice trembled. Misunderstood by the girl he liked. Hurt his best friend. Got a fake confession from the school idol and was exposed to the curious eyes of the whole class. Everything was a mess. (*What am I supposed to do...*) Tooru lifted his head. The sunset was dyeing the town of Hoshimigaoka a deep crimson. —Tomorrow. He wanted to run away. But he couldn't. Tooru stood up. He brushed the dirt off his knees. The scrape stung a little. (*I have to talk to Ai-chan properly.*) He couldn't let it end like this. He absolutely refused to leave things misunderstood. Tooru made a firm resolution. Tomorrow, he would call Ai up to the rooftop. And then, he would tell her his true feelings. In the shadow of the school building, Miyabi slipped her smartphone into her pocket. " Now then, I have to get ready for the next act." She skipped away down the hallway, bathed in the sunset.

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Episode 4

Name: Welcome to Avengers Academy! ~The Romantic Misadventures of Former Heroes~
Author: Novelia

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