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A few days had passed since Mizuha and Shimizu started eating together on the rooftop. Mizuha was now getting used to her new school environment and felt closer to her friends, especially Shimizu, Hikaru, and Zul. Shimizu, too, had become more cheerful and confident, thanks to their shared lunchtimes.
As usual, the four of them were eating together on the rooftop. Lately, however, Zul had had a worried look on his face that hadn't gone unnoticed.
"Zul, what's wrong? You seem a bit off today," Shimizu asked, her eyes filled with concern as she looked at him.
Zul looked up from his lunch, trying to brush it off. "Don't worry, it's nothing," he said, forcing a smile.
Hikaru wasn't convinced. He put down his chopsticks and leaned in. "Is it about Elly? Are you worried about her?" he asked, his tone serious.
"Elly? You mean Sakamoto-san? Do you know her, Hikaru?" Mizuha asked curiously.
Hikaru nodded. "Yeah, Zul, Elly, and I went to the same middle school," he explained.
"Really?" Mizuha said, surprised. "I didn't know that."
Hikaru continued, "Zul and Elly are childhood friends. Elly can speak properly with Zul, but she's a bit shy to talk to anyone else, including me," he added with a small laugh.
Mizuha looked at Zul with interest. "Both of you are childhood friends? I never expected that."
Hikaru turned back to Zul, pressing further. "So, what are you worried about her?"
Zul sighed, clearly worried. "You see, recently she's been disappearing during our lunchtime and avoiding me," he admitted.
"Oh, I remember! A few days ago, Shimizu and I saw Sakamoto-san, and her uniform was a bit soaked when she returned to our class. Right, Shimizu?" Mizuha said, looking at Shimizu for confirmation.
"Yeah, you're right," Shimizu replied. "I tried to ask her what happened, but she was too scared to talk to me, like usual," she added, shaking her head.
That's really suspicious, Zul thought. Is she being bullied?
The bell rang, and they began heading back to class, with Mizuha and Shimizu following behind Hikaru and Zul. Suddenly, Shimizu stopped. "You guys go ahead; I need to use the restroom," she said.
"Wait, Shimizu, I'll go with you," Mizuha said. "Hikaru, see you later." The boys continued on to class while Mizuha followed Shimizu.
Inside the restroom, they overheard an argument before entering.
"Huh, is this all you have? I asked you for more every day," said an angry voice.
"I'm sorry, this is all the money I have for today," replied a trembling voice.
Mizuha and Shimizu exchanged a look. "Is that Sakamoto-san?" Mizuha asked as they walked in, shocked to see Elly surrounded by a group of upperclassmen.
"Because you failed to give us what we wanted, we're going to punish you," one of the bullies said, and two others brought out buckets of dirty water.
"No, please, don't do this!" Elly begged.
"That's terrible. We need to act quickly," Shimizu whispered, and Mizuha nodded.
"Ready, girls? Splash it on her now!" ordered the leader of the bullies. But as they counted down, Mizuha and Shimizu rushed forward, taking the splash themselves.
Elly was shocked to find that the water had missed her and hit two people who had suddenly appeared to protect her. "What's happening? Yuki-san, Toyama-san, what are you doing here?" Elly asked.
"I'm glad we made it in time," Mizuha said to Shimizu.
"Yuki-san, Toyama-san, your uniform is dirty. Are you okay?" Elly asked.
"I'm fine, thanks. I'm just glad it didn't hit you," Mizuha replied.
"It's just a uniform; it can be cleaned later," Shimizu said.
"Who are you two, and how dare you interrupt us?" the leader demanded.
Shimizu gave a sly smile, cracking her knuckles. "I'm Shimizu, first-year student. Nice to meet you, senpai," she said, her expression turning fierce.
"I've heard of her. She's the red-haired delinquent first-year student," said another girl in the gang.
Really? I didn't know I was famous because of that rumor, Shimizu thought to herself.
"Hmph, that's just a name. Get her now, girls," the leader ordered.
"Oh, you're challenging me, huh? Mizuha, protect Sakamoto-san, let me handle these guys," Shimizu said, preparing for a fight. Mizuha hugged Elly protectively as Shimizu faced the bullies.
"Bring it on," Shimizu said.
Punch, punch, punch...
One by one, the bullies went down from Shimizu's punch.
"Damn, she's so strong," the bullies said, down after being beaten by Shimizu.
"Geez, you guys are useless. Take this!" the leader said as she charged at Shimizu, but Shimizu dodged. "Heh, too slow," she taunted, landing a punch on the leader's face and knocking her down.
"Enough, you win. Please stop," the leader pleaded. Shimizu grabbed the leader by the collar and said, "Don't ever show your face around Elly or us again or you'll be finished."
"Okay, understood. We won't do it again," the bullies said, and then they ran out of the restroom.
"Take that! Don't mess with me, haha," Shimizu said, laughing.
"Hey Shimizu, are you okay?" Mizuha asked as she approached her.
"I'm fine. How about Sakamoto-san?" Shimizu replied.
"She's okay. Nothing bad happened to her," Mizuha said, smiling.
"Damn those guys; they made our uniforms really dirty. We're lucky that we have PE class after this, so we can use those PE uniforms for the rest of the day," Shimizu said.
Elly suddenly approached Mizuha and Shimizu, tears streaming down her face. "Yuki-san, Toyama-san..." she said, her voice choked with emotion. She then began to cry, overwhelmed with guilt over what had happened to Mizuha and Shimizu's uniform.
"I'm so sorry. It's my fault you two got dirty," Elly sobbed.
"It's nothing," Shimizu said, trying to reassure her. "It's just a small thing."
"That's right. We're just glad you're okay," Mizuha replied, struggling to keep her own tears at bay.
"Sakamoto-san, don't worry about it. They won't bully you anymore after this," Shimizu said, placing a comforting hand on Elly's head.
"Let's clean ourselves and return to our class for now because the break time is almost over," said Mizuha.
"Oh, you're right, let's go," said Shimizu.
Elly wiped her tears and said, "Yuki-san, Toyama-san, thank you so much."
Mizuha and Shimizu looked at each other and smiled warmly. "No problem, here, let's get back to our classroom," they said, extending their hands.
Elly took their hands and smiled gratefully, and the three of them made their way to their classroom.
"Sakamoto-san, you should really tell Zul about what happened. He's been very worried about you," Mizuha said as they walking together return to their class.
"But I don't want to trouble him," Elly replied.
"Don't worry, I'm sure that he'll understand," Mizuha assured her.
Zul was approaching Mizuha and Shimizu as they entered the classroom. "So, there you are. What took you so long? And why are both of your uniforms so dirty?"
Mizuha was taken aback by Zul's unusually talkative and worried demeanor.
"Something happened earlier, but we managed to take care of it," Mizuha explained.
"What actually happened to you guys?" asked Zul.
"Well, actually..." said Shimizu.
"Wait, Toyama-san, let me explain to him," Elly suddenly interrupted.
"Um, Zul, Actually I..." Elly started to speak, but Zul interrupted, shocked to see her with them. "Elly!? What are you doing with Mizuha and Shimizu?"
"Well, Zul," Shimizu said, "why don't we head into the classroom first? We'll explain everything then."
"Right," Zul agreed, calming down. "Let's go inside, and then you can tell me what happened."
Once inside the classroom, Elly recounted the events and described how Mizuha and Shimizu had heroically saved her from the bullies.
"I knew it. Then why didn't you tell me you were being bullied? Do you know what could have happened if Mizuha and Shimizu hadn't stopped them earlier? If you got hurt, what would I tell your mom?" Zul said, sounding a bit upset. "Didn't I tell you before? If you get into any trouble, please let me know."
"I'm sorry, I don't want to burden you at all," said Elly, tears in her eyes.
Suddenly, Zul sighed, hugged Elly, and said, "Well, it's not your fault; it was my fault. I should have paid more attention to you, and I'm sorry. From now on, if you have any problems, please tell me, Mizuha, or Shimizu, okay? Also, we need to talk after this."
"By the way, thank you both for saving her," Zul said to Mizuha and Shimizu.
"Well, Zul, don't worry about it. Everything is already solved. They won't have the guts to bully Sakamoto-san anymore," Mizuha replied.
"That's right. I already gave them a warning that they will never forget," Shimizu said, laughing.
What kind of warning did you give, Shimizu? Zul thought to himself.
Suddenly, their conversation caught the attention of their classmates, who started gossiping about it. Shimizu turned around and glared at them, then said, "What are you guys looking at and gossiping about? Get lost."
"Oh no, she's mad. Let's go," said a classmate, as they quickly returned to their seats under Shimizu's glare.
The bell rang, marking the end of break and the start of PE class. Zul asked Elly to stay with Mizuha and Shimizu during the PE class.
The school day then ended as usual. As Mizuha reached the school entrance, she noticed Hikaru waiting for her there.
"Huh, Hikaru, you haven't gone home yet?" Mizuha asked.
"Well, I was actually waiting for you, so let's go home together," said Hikaru.
"Sure, let's go," replied Mizuha.
"You look happy. What happened earlier?" Hikaru asked.
"Umm, well... earlier..." Mizuha recounted how she and Shimizu had saved Elly from bullies, feeling happy to have gained another close friend through the experience.
"Oh, I see. So, she was being targeted after all," said Hikaru. "I'm glad you two were there to help. That was really brave. How is Elly now? Is she okay?"
"She's doing better," Mizuha replied. "She was really shaken up, but she's grateful for the support."
"That's good to hear," Hikaru said. "It's important she knows she's not alone. You did a wonderful thing today, Mizuha. I'm proud of you and Shimizu."
"Thanks, Hikaru," Mizuha said, smiling. "I just did what felt right. I'm glad we could help her."
Both of them walked and chatted together until they reached Mizuha's house. "See you tomorrow, Hikaru," said Mizuha, opening her front door.
"See you tomorrow," said Hikaru, waving to Mizuha before making his way to his house.
"I'm home," Mizuha said.
"Welcome home, my dear," her mother replied.
"Oh, Mom! You're back early today," Mizuha exclaimed.
"Well, my work finished sooner than usual, so I came home early," her mother explained.
As Mizuha entered the living room, a sudden vision overwhelmed her, causing her to space out as unfamiliar images played in her mind.
"Please don't do that to me. I'm begging you, please stop."
"Someone... help me." "Why is no one helping me?"
She touched her head, a sharp headache throbbing after the vision. What was that? What are these visions? Her body felt weak, on the verge of collapse.
"Mizuha, are you okay?" her mom asked, rushing over when she saw her daughter about to fall.
"I'm fine, mom. Maybe I'm just too tired. I'd better clean up and rest for today," Mizuha replied.
"Get some rest, honey. Let me know if your condition gets worse, okay?" her mother said.
"Okay, mom," replied Mizuha.
Mizuha then returned to her room and went to sleep for the rest of the day.
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