Kenji Route: Path of the Bro Ch. 1

"Hisao?"

A voice calls to me from a direction I can't discern.  This feeling of falling, it won't go away.  My head is swirling and I can't tell right from left, or up from left, for that matter.

'clunk!'

My head impacts the cold ground.

It does a decent enough job of waking me from my swirling stupor.  My eyes re-focus and once again, I see Kenji in front of me.

Kenji
"Like I said, Hisao, trolling for women.  They're ripe for the pickin'.  You alright?"

I couldn't tell if that last statement was an afterthought barely muttered or a semi-serious worry breaking a drunken rant.
I take a moment to gather my thoughts.  Still on the rooftop.  I'd leaned against a fence and lost my balance.  I thought for a second that I was falling off the roof itself, but somehow I'd fallen to the side and my head only ended up on the cold rocky surface of the rooftop.

I had no hope of even thinking about any of it.  Kenji didn't seem shaken at all.

Hisao
"Yeah... just a little dizzy."

Kenji
"Alright then, get up.  There's fish in the festival."

Hisao
"Fish?"

Kenji
"Yeah, fish.  Like a sea, you know.  Come on already."

I reluctantly get up.  Surprisingly, standing up and following Kenji to the rooftop door helps to relieve the dizziness in my head.

We take the stairs and walk down the hall, eventually coming out of the main door, right into the final hours of the festival.

It was night time, but here, everything was bright.  Glowing lanterns everywhere, accentuated by the cheery atmosphere of countless people wandering from one stand to another, playing games, eating unhealthy food.  I realized I hadn't seen the festival since it was first starting, much earlier in the day.  The transition from the rooftop to this sudden gathering was-

Kenji
"It's cool, I got this.  Just stay quiet."

In the midst of my spacing out, Kenji must have started another one of his rants.

???
"Hiichan, ah, there you are~!"

Like a flash, Misha and Shizune are before us.  Well, maybe not so much of a flash, maybe they were near the whole time and only now glanced our way.  Kenji wouldn't have any way of knowing I was familiar with them.

Misha
"Hiichan, where have you been?  We haven't seen you at the festival all day!  Who doesn't go to a festival, I mean, really~!"

Shizune signs something after Misha signs to her what she just said.

Misha
"And in the school, of all places, eh?  What could you and your friend have been doing in there~?"

Shizune
[...]

Misha
"A secret meeting?  But Shiichan, what could they possibly have a meeting about?"

Shizune
[...]

As Shizune finishes signing, she looks at us in a playfully inquisitive manner.

Misha
"Whaat?  WAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!"

"Shiichan, come on, I don't think Hisao's like that~!"

"So, Hisao, not gonna spill the beans, eh?"

As if they'd given me a chance to speak.  Or maybe they did and I spaced it.

Before I can respond with anything, Kenji takes a step forward.

Kenji
"And what about you ladies?  Just alone with each other?"

Misha doesn't sign that, and just laughs aloud after a moment.

Misha
"Wahaha~!  You wish!  So what's your name, anyway?"

Kenji
"Kenji.  We, uh, gotta go.  See ya."

My contemplation of Kenji's sudden announcement is followed by a sharp tug on my sleeve.  Kenji's pulling me away as I manage to simply say bye to Shizune and Misha.

We stop at a tree in the middle of a small clearing.  Kenji turns to me.

Kenji
"Shit, man.  Obvious spies."

Hisao
"Spies?  What?"

Kenji
"Them.  The girls.  You couldn't see?  They pounced on us and immediately started their interrogation!  And did I mention I've seen that deaf girl?  They're clever and relentless.  I tried to keep my cool but they broke me, man."

I'm just staring at Kenji blank-faced, partially due to my drunken condition and partially in exasperation of this turning into a conspiracy thing.  Again.  Doesn't he get tired?

Apparently not.  He grabs me by the shoulders without warning, his grip feeling like it might tear my sleeves.  He moves his face close to mine, and repeates himself, loudly, really trying to drive home the point.

Kenji
"THEY BROKE ME!!"

Kenji pulls back, loosening his grip slightly.  He recomposes himself as well as a drunk Kenji can.

Kenji
"You didn't say shit either, man.  What the fuck?  Didn't you have my back?"

Hisao
"It looked like you were in control of things, until the end there."

Kenji
"This was a bad idea.  Why the hell did we do this?"

Hisao
"I uh... don't really recall, but wasn't it your idea?"

???
"Sup?"

The sudden interruption, no doubt feminine, causes Kenji to flinch forcefully, his hands nearly pushing me off balance before returning to his side.  I manage to stumble into a turn towards the voice.

It's Miki.  The tomboy girl from my class.  Well, 'tomboy' was my current quick definition of her, I haven't had the chance to do much other than overhear her in class on occasion.  She's wearing a confused expression, even I think it looks unfitting of her.

Miki
"Uhh... am I interrupting something?"

Kenji is standing still.  Best I take the lead this time.

Hisao
"No... just uh..."

Miki
"I don't mind if you are, it's cool."

No excuses come to my mind.  I turn to sarcasm.

Hisao
"Yeah, Kenji was totally coming on to me."

Miki chuckles, with a bit more force than I'd expect out of most girls.  I turn to Kenji, and a smile lights up on his face.  I'm briefly shocked that he didn't go crazy over it.

Miki
"Okay.  Hisao, right?  I'm Miki, we're in the same class, you know."

Hisao
"Yeah, I know.  I'm not that aloof."

Miki flashes a wide grin.

Miki
"Really?  Doesn't look like it."

She turns to Kenji.

Miki
"Oh!  I'm sorry!  You are?"

Kenji
"Kenji.  Nice to meet you."

Kenji seems pretty secure now.  Maybe he re-composed himself better than I thought.

Miki
"So uh... the fireworks are gonna start any second now.  That's why I came over here.  Wanna watch with me, guys?  That is, unless you got other plans."

Kenji
"Sounds good to me."

With Miki at the lead, we take a few steps to the other side of the tree, where she sits down and we follow suit, Kenji next to her, and me next to Kenji.

After a minute or two of silence, the fireworks start.  Good thing too, the booming sounds stop me from passing out amidst the silence.  Even in my stupor, I'm captivated by the show before me.  Minor to moderate variants of things I've seen on many occasions throughout my life.  Despite that, it's all very eye-catching.

Miki
"See, this area's on sort of a hill, just high enough to see over the medical building.  Nobody knows this place."

She's right, the fireworks look remarkably close.  I have to crane my head uncomfortably high to see some of the more high-flying explosives.

As the show continues on, Kenji moves close to me and starts to whisper in my ear.  He's hard to hear amongst the booming of the fireworks, but I manage to make it out.

Kenji
"Great plan.  Man, I underestimated you."

Hisao
"Plan?"

I simply speak my reponse.  Miki doesn't seem to notice, or she doesn't care.

Kenji
"You know.  A gay couple is a feminist's worst nightmare.  The eternal disregard of bitches and unity of man.  They know they can't break it.  It's like cryptonite, man."

"Anyway, Miki's cool though.  I can tell she's not a threat."

Hisao
"Why?"

Kenji
"She's missing a hand.  Feminists don't bother with that shit.  They need their soldiers to have hands.  Come on, man."

Kenji resumes whispering after a brief pause.

Kenji
"Anyway, she's cute.  I'm gonna make a move man.  Can't waste this."

Hisao
"Uh, what?"

Kenji suddenly scoots away from me, and turns to Miki.

Kenji
"So... in the mood for love tonight?"

Miki nearly mirrors my reaction.

Miki
"Uh, what?"

Kenji
"Oh, come on.  Don't play dumb..."

Kenji wobbles in his sitting position, lets out a sigh, and apparently passes out, collapsing right onto Miki's lap.

Miki
"Eek!  Get OFF!!"

Miki reels back half a meter and leans back, delivering a solid kick to Kenji's chest, sending him almost flying back.  He simply lays there, obviously passed out now but breathing.

Miki looks in shock, her foot still elevated.

Miki
"Oh man, I'm sorry!  I didn't mean to hit him that hard!  He's not hurt, is he?"

Hisao
"Doesn't look like it."

She looks at me suddenly, a look of moderate disapproval appearing on her face.

Miki
"What's with him?  You guys seem cool but hardcore weird."

I don't know whether I tell her the truth because she seems like she'd be okay with it, or I just didn't care.

Hisao
"I think we had too much to drink tonight."

Miki
"Oh, alcohol?"

I nod.  Her smile reappears.

Miki
"Is that it?  I get that.  Kid can't hold his liquor, eh?"

Hisao
"Yeah, we've been struggling all night."

Miki suddenly gets up.  It's only now that I realize the fireworks show ended during the ordeal.

Miki
"Well, we'd better take care of him.  Come on."

I get up and we walk towards Kenji.  Still aware that Miki has only one hand, I wordlessly kneel down and attempt to scoop Kenji up in my arms.  I manage to get to my feet but it's nearly impossible to keep him up.  He's not heavy for a guy, but it's still more weight than I can handle.

Likely seeing my struggles, Miki quickly moves to my side, holding her arms under Kenji's backside as well as she can, her hand pressed firmly against my own left.  The position is extremely awkward, as we begin to walk it feels like some sort of awkward three-legged race, but the weight is now barely manageable.

Miki
"You need to be more careful, you know.  Emi told me about your condition."

As if I hadn't heard that enough.  Regardless of her being right, I let out an exasperated sigh.

Miki
"Hey... don't overthink it.  Just, don't try to be the big muscleman all the time, eh?"

"Also, drinking was a terrible idea."

Hisao
"It's none of your... why do you care?"

Miki
"How can I not?  I'm not gonna just let somebody be an idiot."

"Take your time and ease in, alright?  No need to go full-blown party animal in the first week."

Hisao
"Yeah... guess I wasn't thinking much.  I still feel out of place here."

We arrive in front of the stairway to the dorms.  We manage to struggle our way up.  Miki looks down at Kenji and I follow suit.  His face, adorned by the usual glasses that are now nearly falling off, is calm, serene.  The usual look of someone sleeping, but I've never seen Kenji make an expression anywhere close to this.  It seems that those who are only able to wear this expression in sleep are truly troubled.  Is that Kenji?  I know he's pretty eccentric, but he never takes a break from it.

Miki
"What about your friend here?  You two look like you're getting along well."

Hisao
"He's the one who dragged me into this in the first place."

Miki
"Figures.  So it was a date?"

Hisao
"No, nothing like that."

Miki looks disappointed, as if she's still hoping she'd originally stumbled upon a near-makeout session.

Miki
"Well, still.  If he's doing that then maybe he really likes you.  You know, as a friend."

Miki flashes me a toothy grin.

Miki
"Don't let him down, okay?"

Hisao
"Sure thing."

Miki
"I got a few friends I wanna catch up with and I shouldn't be seen going into the guys' dorm.  You think you can handle him yourself?"

Hisao
"Yeah, I got it."

Miki
"Alright, cool.  Thanks for hanging out, Hisao, say the same to Kenji for me."

Hisao
"Yeah, thanks Miki.  See ya."

Miki lowers her arms and backs away before turning and running down the stairs.  The weight comes back, but the short distance looks possible enough.  A guard near the front door eyes me curiously.  I manage to mutter out '"sleepy" and he nods and returns to observing the grounds.

I manage to make it to my door, breathing hard.  Maybe I should've asked for help from the guard, despite the risk of our alcohol-soaked cover being blown.  I try to kneel down and end up half-dropping Kenji to the, fortunately for him, carpeted floor.  He lands with a couple of quiet thumps.

As I fumble for my key, I realize Kenji needs to be put in his own room.  Amidst my almost overwhelming dizziness and tiredness, I decide against searching him for his own key.  For all I know he put it in a place where only the most daring could hope to find it.  I unlock and open my own door and grudgingly drag him into it by his armpits.  Settling him somewhere close to the foot of my bed, I quickly collapse on my own, far beyond the desire to change out of my uniform or even my shoes.

[Act 1 End]