[FIC] The Book (part 7)

[dd]

“Mr. Sagara!”

The gym teacher stood, rubbing his closely shorn head. He had on a shirt that was too large and pants that were too baggy. His whistle was never too far from his lips.

“Sir!” Sousuke ran to see what the instructor wanted. He held the book securely in one hand.

“Young man, this is PE class, not the Library.” The teacher eyed the book and shook his head, puzzled. “You will be running three miles today. You can’t just sit in the shade and cram for a test or something.” Kids these days. In his days, the others boys would have jumped and pants’d anyone found carrying a book to PE. However, in his days, dark and moody boys didn’t carry pistols, grenades, or combat knives.

“I am well aware of today’s assignment, Sir. I will be running with the rest of my squad. It is not a problem!” Sousuke stood at attention.

“But… the book…” The PE instructor scratched himself in places that would get him in trouble when the girl’s instructor was outside. “You better not expect me to hold it for you or something! Why didn’t you just put it in your locker?”

“How shall I put this?” Sousuke relaxed, thinking intensely. “Hmmm. Did you hear about the incident in Homeroom class 4?”

“Yes.” The instructor nodded. “The janitor, Mr. Zenji told me something about it. He was glad that he didn’t have to clean it up.”

“The perpetrators were after this book,” Sousuke admitted. He did not consider himself a perpetrator, even though he was the one who rigged the trap.

“Is it valuable or something?” The teacher suddenly had a look of avarice. “Something rare that someone might want to steal?” Maybe he should hold the book for the boy.

“Negative!” Sousuke said. “It can readily be purchased through book dealers and over the internet.”

“Some girl scribble a love note in it? You don’t want your sweetheart to find out?” The man chuckled. He remembered being young.

“No Sir!” Sousuke answered.

“A boy?” The teacher raised one eyebrow.

“Negative! That would be…” Sousuke looked rattled.

“Well, what is it then.” The teacher rubbed his chin. He blew his whistle, signaling for the boys to stop stretching and come over to him. “Is that book something dirty? Pornography. Not little boys, I hope.”

“Sir!” Sousuke pulled out his Glock 26. It was difficult for anyone to understand where he might have concealed it. “If you are making inference…”

“W-H-O-A!” The teacher put his hands up. “So it’s girlies, huh?” He leered at the book. “If you like, I will hold the book for you. It will be our little secret.” That was impossible. A large number of guys had walked over quickly and heard the tail end.

“Sagara’s got porn?” One guy asked. Just the question itself caused word to spread like wildfire. “Come on man, share it!”

“I did not say…” Sousuke could not get a word in.

“Alright! Tittie pictures. Serve’m up, dude. It’ll give us something to think about while we run.” One of the boys on the track team rubbed his hands together.

“It is not…” Sousuke held the book tightly.

“Bitchin’, man! What kind of stuff?” One boy tunneled his way beneath the crowded cluster of students. He forced his way to his feet. “Giri-giri? Idol shots? Girl next door?”

“Move it!” A burly member of the wrestling team pushed his way near Sousuke. “Out with it Sagara. Good to see you’re a normal guy after all. I bet it’s outdoor showers, onsen shots, maybe even lingerie girls.”

“Shit! Don’t bogart the book.” A member of the gymnastics team vaulted off of the back of his friend. He landed near Sousuke, causing him to stumble back and step on the gym teacher’s foot.

“O-u-c-h!” The instructor cursed under his breath. “Everybody get back. This is ridiculous. Buy all the magazines you want at the street vendor.” He turned to Sousuke. “Afraid I’ll have to confiscate that pornography, son. I promise not to tell the Principal.”

“It’s not pornography,” Sousuke said. He was getting worried. There were a lot of guys crowded around him. If they grabbed the book, the word would get out. But, he could not use excessive force, merely to protect a book.

“You got any bondage, Sousuke?” One guy asked. “Girls undressing? Thongs? How about low angle shots?”

“Maybe it’s just a book on Arm Slaves?” Shinji said. He looked more excited than the porno freaks. The other guys pushed him out of the way.

“It… is… not… pornography!” Sousuke was getting irritated. He was finding it hard to control his temper.

“If it’s not ‘virtual date’ poses, than it’s probably hitozuma and jukujo themes. Married women. Remember when that married babe saved Sagara’s ass at the flirting contest? Way to go, guy!”

“You got Haruka Oikawa? Kaya Nanami? Yuri Ozawa? How about Akane Natsukawa, she’s hot!”

“Man, how about Nao Kobayashi or Rin Horiguchi. You better have some Toshimi Yonekura!”

The boys all crowded in on Sousuke. A number grabbed hold of the book, while others brought the young soldier to the ground.

“IT… IS… NOT… F-CKING… PORNOGRAPHY… YOU… SHITHEADS!”

Sousuke’s obscene shout owed a lot to the time he had spent with Lt. Melissa Mao. It burst out of him like the creature in ‘Alien’, taking everyone by surprise. A series of gunshots fired straight up into the air added to the shock of the moment. The small stun grenade made it far enough away from Sousuke so that he took only nominal damage. Many of his fellow students were less fortunate.

“Hold on, Leader!” That sound was familiar to Sousuke, even through the ringing in his ears. It was one of the Rugby players that Sousuke had helped train. The profanity had caught his attention. “We’ll f-cking save you. Come on guys, move you f-cking sorry asses. We gotta f-cking rescue Sagara!”

The entire Rugby team began picking up moaning and writhing bodies, throwing them aside like they were toys. They helped Sousuke to his feet and asked if he was OK.

The gym teacher was a bit shaken up, but unharmed. He considered sending Sousuke to the Vice Principal, someone who seemed to tolerate Sagara’s actions far less than the Principal did. But, he had not acted forcefully enough to control the situation, and had actually helped cause the ruckus. Walking about checking the boys, he was relived to see that no one was injured severely. At worst they were stunned, with a few minor cuts and bruises.

“It is not pornography,” Sousuke said to the chastened boys. “I would not look favorably on anyone who spread that type of rumor.” To emphasize his statement, he emptied the clip of rubber bullets in his gun and slammed in a new clip.

“Hey! Who said it was porno, man?” One boy raised his hands and backed away.

“We never heard anything about pornography, guy!” Another boy’s statement had everyone eagerly nodding their head.

“Then, as we have wasted some time, I suggest we start with our running.” Souuske looked over to the PE instructor. “Does that meet with your approval, Sir?”

The gym teacher blew his whistle in a series of loud blasts. “All right ladies, pick’em up and put’em down. You got three miles!” The teacher smiled. “Sagara will be bringing up the rear. I hope there are no stragglers!”

The guys all started running. It looked more like they were running a sprint, rather than a long distance race. Shinji was near the front, his untied shoelaces flapping wildly.

“It is good to see such spirit. A youth who is educated physically is likely to become a healthy adult who is motivated to remain healthy. And, a healthy physically active child is more likely to be academically motivated, alert, and successful.” Sousuke put his gun away, and situated his other gear to were it was most comfortable.

The gym teacher just shook his head.

“Yes… sportsmanship… teamwork… tolerance. You are a credit to our school, Sir. A true professional.” Sousuke respected anyone who had a skill, or who could teach others well. “PE class is a good thing. It does not qualify for Basic Training, but promotes many useful traits nonetheless. Improved Physical Fitness. Skill Development. Improved Self-Confidence and Self-Esteem. Self Discipline…”

Sousuke did a few more stretching exercises as he watched his fellow students disappear over a ridge. They would be on the track soon, doing laps. The instructor looked on, somewhat incredulous. The sound of gunfire still rang in his ears.

“…Improved judgment. Strengthened peer relationships…” Sousuke stretched a bit more.

The gym teacher began coughing. He swallowed something the wrong way.

“… and, of course, Stress Reduction.” Sousuke figured that he had given the rest of the boys a large enough head start. Woe betide anyone he caught up to. “I will be going now.” with that, he left.

“I’m getting too old for this.” The PE teacher shuffled off in the direction of the track.

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“But…”

Kaname rubbed at her hair with a towel. She and her friends looked like a bunch of drowned kittens. Their hair was plastered to their heads and their clothes stuck like a second skin. That had prompted hoots and whistles when they had run their short dash to freedom.

“There will be no ‘buts’, Miss Chidori.” The girl’s gym teacher had her hands on her hips. “You will be running with the other girls.”

“Teacher, we may get sick.” Kyouko went to dry off her glasses on her shirt; before remembering how et it was. Water ran down her leg and puddled on the hardwood of the gym.

“Outrun your cold, Miss Tokiwa. Be glad that I won’t be calling any parents. Imagine, you girls going into the boy’s locker room. Into the showers.” She sighed. “What were you thinking.”

“Sousuke Sagara,” Ryo said with a frown. She did blame Sousuke to some degree. Mainly, it was safer to say that than to point a finger at Kaname.

“Yeh,” Maya said. “Sousuke and Kaname.” She was braver than Ryo. Kaname had gotten her into this mess, and she was going to show her displeasure.

“Miss Chidori?” The teacher looked shocked. “You and Mr. Sagara… are the two of you…” She settled herself down some. She was a teacher, someone the girls could come to with their problems and questions. “Do I need to refer you to the Health Clinic for a talk on sexual education. Our nation is gaining an unwanted reputation for promiscuity, with schoolchildren having more sex than ever before, but many are shunning condoms, unaware of the risks of contracting HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases.”

“Wh-Wh-Wh-” The words froze to Kaname’s tongue, as if she had licked something extremely cold.

“I know that there is a cultural reluctance to openly discuss sex in the home. It can’t help that your father is in America. Not that a Japanese man would necessarily be the best person to talk to. The popular culture often treats teenage girls as sex objects, and there is a proliferation of online dating sites has led to a rise in enjo-kosai, "compensated dating.’ That‘s just a euphemism for teen prostitution, in which girls sleep with men they meet in chatrooms in exchange for cash or gifts.” The teacher looked at Kaname with a look of sympathy. She mistook Kaname’s budding reaction as shame and confusion.

“Wha-Wha-Wha-” Kaname was turning red in the face. Even Kyouko stepped away from her.

“I know that Mr. Sagara might seem dashing to an impressionable girl…” The teacher sighed, bring her hands to her chest. She didn’t see Maya and Ryo look at each other and mouth ‘Sousuke?’ “That doesn’t mean that you have to be one of the half of 17-year-old girls having had sex, right?” She thought back to her own youth for a moment. Times had changed so much. “It’s not enough just to be studious, Kaname. You need to take care of you body as well as your mind.”

“W-H-A-T?”

Kaname’s shout had Kyouko covering her ears. Mizuki smiled a army smile, drinking in every minute of it. Ryo and Maya tried to sneak outside, but the teacher wasn’t done with them. Cringing, the older woman snapped her fingers and pointed to the floor.

“What!” Kaname repeated, at a much quieter volume this time. “Why are you jumping to conclusions. I haven’t slept with that moron. I’m one of the fifty percent who haven’t slept with anybody!” For a moment she looked at her friends. She did the math and wondered. Mizuki may have slept with Shirai. What about the others? No, what the Hell was she thinking!

“You don’t need to be ashamed. I’m only trying to help. Maybe if you…” The teacher froze, seeing the look on Kaname’s face.

“I have done nothing. I am not planning on doing anything today. I may never do something. If I did, it wouldn’t be with Sousuke Sagara, that military freak! He may not even know what to do!” Kaname felt her chest heaving.

“Oh…” The teacher nodded. “If you and your young man are having… mmmm… trouble… I can ask the boy’s gym teacher to make an appointment at the clinic for Mr. Sagara. Usually at first, they do not see the boy and the girl together…”

“WE… ARE… NOT… HAVING… SEX…” Kaname shouted. “WE ONLY JUST STARTED DATING!” Oh No. Please, tell me I didn’t just say that. No, shout that. There was no way to take it back now. Damn the teacher. Damn those boys and their shower. Damn Sousuke. “And… well… the way he is acting… ummm… that might end soon…” Too little too late. She was busted.

“Oh…” The teacher was taken aback. Not just by the shouting, but also by the fact that a girl would admit something like that. Kaname Chiodri must be a well-grounded woman. Confident. Sure in herself. Not worried by the usual gossip and whispering that takes place in high schools to this day.

“Knew it!” Mizuki crowed.

“Me too,” Kyouko whispered. “Well, I was pretty certain.”

“I owe you one thousand yen,” Ryo said, sighing. Maya just smiled.

Kaname just stood stunned. Everything had been happening at a crazy rate It was like she was in a bad TV movie, or some kind of exaggerated anime that Sousuke watched. Ooooh. She didn’t even want to think that name! No. Yes she did. Ryo had given her the seed of an idea. All she needed was time to let it grow.

“I think I will set you up for an appointment, Miss Chidori.” The teacher nodded her head. It was the right thing to do. Better safe than sorry. Confident girls could easily end up being overconfident at the wrong time, especially if they were involved with dashing young men.”

Maya and Ryo slapped hands. Mizuki hugged herself, ready to burst at the seams. Kyouk sighed and whispered “Oh, Kaname” for the twelfth time that afternoon.

“While I’m at it, I will set you all up for appointments,” the teacher amended. “Sometimes groups of friends get sucked into things like enjo-kosai as a group. Let me write that down. Miss Tokiwa. Miss Inaba. Miss Kojima. And Miss Mukai. Fine. I will be discrete. There will be no one calling you at home. The nurses at the Clinic will tell me when the appointments are, and I will tell each of you.” She looked at her watch. “Let’s go. Join the other girls. We’ll head over to the tack, although I imagine it might be a bit crowded. The boys in your class are outside now.” After that, she jogged off in her brightly colored sports outfit, her pony tail bouncing off of her back.

Everyone turned to face Kaname. For the moment, they weren’t even excited about the news she let slip. “Thanks a lot, Kaname!” Ryo looked fit to be tied. If her parents even got wind of this…

“Don’t blame me!” Kaname said. “It was little miss Maya who had to make the Kaname and Sousuke comment!” She felt numb, beset by too many emotions to sort out.

“Blame Sousuke,” Mizuki said.

Everyone stopped and looked at one another. They smiled. Sousuke was always the perfect scapegoat. “So, what should we do now,” Maya asked, wanting to change the subject.

“I know,” Kaname said. “This one’s on me.” She smiled. “I have to give you credit though, Ryo. You and your bet.” Kaname’s eyes narrowed for a moment. She watched as Ryo began to sweat a little. The other girl knew that it would be a cold day in a Biblical Hell before Kaname would forget that wager.

“What are you going to do, Kana?” Kyouko spoke in a timid voice. She didn’t want things to boomerang again. She didn’t know how much more of this she could take.

“I want that book,” Kaname said. “That’s all that matters now. That will put Sousuke in his place.” She tossed her hair, looking rather proud of herself. “Six thousand yen. That’s how much I am offering someone to get me the book. Boy or girl. If I’m feeling generous, I might also throw in five hundred yen for anyone who helps corner the big jerk. He‘s out on the track now. There will be a lot of guys and gals there soon.”

“But…” Kyouko was too weak to offer any resistance. Maya, Ryo, and Mizuke looked at Kaname with expressions of respect. That was why she was Class Representative.

“Spread the word, girls.” Kaname felt like a good vigorous run.