Description:
Things are finally starting to pick up on Seijyun grounds, and this can be seen moments upon stepping onto the courtyard. Hundreds of young schoolgirls are well into the spirit of springtime, either practicing in outdoor sports, doing paintings of the sakura blossoms, or just hanging around being giggly as always.
In other words, it's possibly the most awkward time to be a male just strolling on in. The halls themselves aren't quite as occupied, but members of various clubs are moving out and about in preperation for the upcoming event, some helping put up streamers, other re-organizing trophy cases, and most of the noise seems to be coming from the Drama room.
Luckily the Council Presidents office isn't difficult to find; it's really just the teachers lounge in the off-time; the drapes behind the doors glass window is currently down, and there are three people sitting in three of five chairs next to said doorway. Again, all three appear to be your everyday students, a slightly chubby red-headed girl closest to the door conversing with a prima-donnaish, tall blonde beside her. A black haired girl wearing a winter jacket and mittens; her bangs so long they cover her eyes beside her.
Awkward indeed. The Pacific High Southtown chapter's increasingly infamous shop teacher, Howard Rust, just can't shake the awkwardness of the whole thing out of his head. This should be like just about any other meeting with other staff or parents. He's been in more than he can count despite not having been around for a full year on payroll as an instructor. But yet... it is Seijyun. In an exaggerated way, it is a mythical place free of the Y chromosome in virtually all day to day operations and there have been countless teenage boys (and some well older than that) trying to break inside to enjoy the view. He's been hounded at least four times between the meeting with himself and the President of the Student Council (who doesn't seem to share the same nickname as that infamous one over at Taiyo) to be part of some harebrained scheme to this effect. (Valuing his job and really just acting in good taste, he of course declined.)
Getting inside to begin with goes without incident with the proper permissions presented (and the strict instructions received once the matter is resolved). His eyes don't waver much along the way, largely because the tie he has on keeps wanting to strangle him, difficulty in striking a balance between presentability and comfort... and brushing a sakura blossom petal off his head every now and then. For a man traversing a completely alien landscape of a culture not his own, it's all played rather straight.
At least, until he takes a deep breath of the pleasant aroma of the gardens. Fresh. Brisk. But uncomfortably different from his natural environments of nails, tools, mutilated trees, screeching sawblades, and smog. A welcome pollution to his own personal preferences in an environment?
Then he accidentally walks into the side of the door into the main hallways to begin with, brought back to reality and likely the laughter of some curious onlooking students. A low groan following, he opens the door inside the main hallway. Wide. Spacious... Victorian architecture, hey, he just did a lecture about it on Wednesday. Kind of ironic. This event must really be big news, too, given the streamers he walks past along the way to the specified office. He tightens the tie once more in an absentminded gesture that ends with one loud, dry cough that he tries his damned hardest to prevent from calling any further attention onto his person, hunched over slightly to hide just a little behind a statue around the corner.
And at last... the office! Five chairs... three already occupied by students. He looks to the opposite side of the hallway. No more? Well... ah, what the hell are you worrying about, this isn't going to end disastrously, just sit down on the one further away, he thinks.
Thinking becomes doing, making sure to maintain an upright posture and politely fold his hands on his lap. Professional A-game, don't make mountains out of molehills, don't worry about how many questions he's going to be asked about what it's like in here, etc, etc, etc...
As Rust takes his seat with plenty of 'breating' space for the black haired girl, nothing out of the ordinary really happens. The red-head seems to be really excited, however. "I couldn't believe it, it was like an overnight miracle!" her voice light and squeaky. "Mom says that she's going to take me shopping for bras this weekend!"
"Wow, aren't you, like, fifteen now?" the blonde replies with a smirk. "And you're still in a training bra? Where is all the food you're eating going?"
"You're so mean, Luvia!" the redhead squeaks, bunched up fists raised to her hand and her cheeks puffed out. "Mom says that it's perfectly normal to have small breasts at my age!"
"Uh-huh."
It's hard to tell what the black-haired student is thinking at all, her expression blank. However without even looking to her side, she stands up, steps to the seat closer to Rust, and then sits down.
Howard Rust... did not grow up in a household environment that included women, to put it simply. He tries to tune out the bra talk largely because it is so foreign. Eyes go... the other way. Yep. Any minute now, the door should open and he should be welcomed in and they can get to business and maybe he can walk out and try to sneak another deep breath of that... well, he's kind of hesitant to use 'clean' because it feels dirty compared to what he's used to. Even if that kind of aroma has followed inside the halls to some extent. It's spring. Spring is everywhere.
Someone sits down next to him. His hand goes up to his throat and clenches the tie again, fiddling with it so idly it may as well be second nature. Perhaps he will pass this trait of tie tightening instinct to his children, should he ever have any. Then he remembers he forgot to wear a watch. Damn it.
He rests his hand back down on his lap and just takes in another deep breath. Yep. Any minute... any minute.
The red-headed girl's eyes water up, and she bounces lightly in her seat continuing to whine about how cruel her friend is; while the blonde just snickers in amusement. It's clear that she enjoys teasing the smaller student. "Y- You just wait, Luvia, this summer, I'll be blessed! I'll come back with breasts as large as Tiffanys!" she cries.
Luvia just shakes her head. "You've got to be kidding me. How are you going to do that, eating some special snacks or something?"
"No. No! No way!" the other pipes back, "It'll be like the movi- Eeep!" She stops mid-sentance seeming to just now notice the teacher, and instinctivly points at him with a shaky finger. Luvia's eyesight follows in the direction of course..
And she cringes slightly at the sight. Things are quiet for a moment from that point, very uncomfortably quiet as two sets of eyes lock on to him.
And meanwhile the black haired girl raises her mittened hand to her mouth and gives a light cough, and then a mumble. "Today.. Is a good day to die." she says to Rust 'helpfully'. And yet is staring out straight ahead.
The teacher is trying to find something in his head to tune out the talk about growing in chests and stuff. Then he remembers the talk he and a friend back home had about getting girlfriends in Japan when he was going to move out there from landing a rather lucky job opportunity from a number of factors that just eked him past another applicant that would have otherwise gotten it. 'They aren't that big,' a pre-teacher Howard Rust said, 'not like Elizabeth.' 'Yeah, but isn't she seeing another guy?' 'She'll dump him in a month, hell if I know what she sees in him.' 'You're going to be in Japan for at least a year, right? I think she wants someone... local.' 'The hell is that supposed to mean?' 'Give up on her and pick up a cute girl over there. You know how many young ones there can--' 'Aaaah, no, no, no, I'm not into--' 'So you just want an old hag then?!'
He doesn't quite remember how the rest of it went but he knows he punched him. That's... pretty much not how you say goodbye the night before you board the plane. He's interrupted by an apparent air of... disapproval? Fright? His head turns slightly. He raises a hand from his lap, his elbow deciding to make a popping noise at a most inopportune time.
'Today is a good day to die,' the person next to him says. He looks back straight into thin air, decides to abort a half-hearted wave, and lowers the hand back down onto his lap and clears his throat abruptly, eye closer to the side of the gossiping girls shutting itself closed slowly as he rests his head backwards a bit more.
Any minute now. That's why he made sure he was on time rather than too early, he remembers.
Poor Rust.
Two sets of eyes are still on him, from shocked to possibly accusing the moment his hand starts to raise. But following the bundled-up students comment, it's just silence from that point, save for the chattering going on down the halls. Rust's strategy on when to arrive was clearly a very good one, but is it really good enough considering the situation? Well he plan better next time? Will he -live- to see next time?
After what could quite possibly be forever in passing timeframe, the door finally opens and out steps a very tall japanese girl wearing hakama pants and a white top. Despite having dark colored hair she's definatly not Kasumi. The duo's heads quickly turn to Not-Kasumi whoms says, "She approved of the budget increase." with a light smile. Rust suddenly forgotten, the pair give an excited squeal, and the trio band togeather and walk off in the opposite direction.
The door still open, the light-blue uniformed Yurika Kirishima steps out of the desk as well, closing the door behind her. She seems to be just on her way out, when she noticed the shop teacher and blinks a couple of times in suprise. "Mister Howard Rust? Well that is an unexpected suprise, what brings you here today?" she asks with a patient smile.
It was a very good strategy considering he forgot the watch! Good thing clocks are pretty much everywhere around here. He's tense. The kind of tense that comes from knowing something is about to fall from under your feet and that you're about to take a three story plunge to certain doom (unless you're hard enough to take it). With every growing minute he becomes more and more visibly nervous about what was whispered to him. Sweat runs down that brow after navigating that awful, awful combover. His mouth hangs open slightly to show teeth being clenched. His knee starts to stiffen up on him again.
The door opens. His head all but snaps in its direction, enough that his neck makes yet another unpleasant pop. News is given... the budget? Its only real importance to him comes seconds after the fact when the girls cheer and head off. He exhales loudly... and coughs once, again, argh, necktie is too tight!!
It's easy to miss the presence of Yurika up until she actually addresses him! He all but bolts upright while remaining seated, odd as a motion may sound. "Oh! Miss... Miss Kirishima," yay, he passed the check to actually remember her name, relaxing his posture. At least, to the extent he is able, having unconsciously done that thing he sometimes does in tense situations like, say, fighting, where he has difficulty getting to move with any real vigor or speed after the fact. Evidenced when just about any joint that gets moved gives varying degrees of popping noises - but he doesn't move much, having established eye contact to begin with.
"I'm here to see you about the pageant... you wanted me to meet you today, didn't you?" His voice is still gravelly, rife with the hint of vocal exhaustion from a number of other discussions he had with people today. "Hope I didn't, ah, come too late?"
The young musician can't help but cringe slightly in response to the popping sounds that the teacher gives. It leads her to wonder if he's really the architectual genius her files had mentioned in the past but.. In due time she'd fine out, she supposes. The black-haired girl isn't even given the slightest glance, her attention clearly focused on the older gentleman.
To the question, her expression becomes suprisingly neutral, she twisting her hand to look at the watch under her wrist. "Hmmn.. Well Mister Rust, you're actually about one hundred sixty-eight hours early. But it's a pleasure to see you regardless." she then says with another small smile. "I'd invite you for tea but, I'm afraid I'm in a bit of a rush. I'll see you next week then; oh and by the way your suit is absolutly wonderful! I approve of it completely." And so Yurika gives the man a parting curtsey, and proceeds to go one her way without more than an amused chuckle after that.
The black haired student stands up then, and says aloud, "We only have four hours to live, we must hurry."
Those joints of his, bad as they may be, are proof he's actually done a lot of the hard physical labor way back in the day. A little too much. His body is too old for his actual age given how much he's lived through it. And then the period of time where he didn't. Several internal organs may be plotting rebellion.
"That early?" It drops out of his mouth at a low volume. C'mon, he couldn't have mixed up the dates... he did, didn't he. He snaps his fingers with his right hand twice in one gesture, because his middle finger actually doesn't like being moved that way. "I, uh... thank you, Miss. I'll see you next week." So embarrassed and red in the face, rather than return a proper nod or bow he just waves a hand and starts to push up out of the chair.
'Four hours to live.' He ducks his head, makes an odd sound that could maybe be written as 'gkkh,' stands with all the accompanying pops resulting from stress and tension and that foreboding feeling of having accidentally missed something he was /supposed/ to be at instead and shuffles back through the hallway the way he came about as fast as his legs can take him. Don't lock up on him now, knee, don't lock up on him now!
He'd miss taking in another deep breath of that sweet, sweet flowery spring air in the process on count of fighting against his knee suddenly deciding it really doesn't feel like walking. Too bad, knee.
Log created on 19:45:30 04/27/2008 by Yurika, and last modified on 05:21:06 02/11/2009.