The Unfortunate Girl

“I’m late!” She pants.

That is the voice of Isa Izanami. Her feet stomps the pavement next to the busy road. Her heavy breathing stifled as she grips her school side bag. Her glistening jet black hair swaying along with her run.

Izanami then hastily pulls out her phone from her pocket, dialing a saved contact, who is also starred as a favorite.

Brr! Brr!

She glances many times at her phone.

Brr! Brr!

Even after a minute, there was still no answer.

“Come on! Pick up, please!” said Izanami as she turned a corner.

Ping!

She held the phone close to her ears, “Ah! Yes! Hello? Ran?”

“Yo! Where are you?!”

Izanami halted for a moment, catching her breath, and then continued.

“I- I’m almost there! Just a few blocks away!”

“Good! Because our teacher had been distracted, you might make it.” Ran responded calmly, but to Izanami knowing Ran, she always does this when unsure.

“—You sure?”

“…I think.”

“You think?!”

After turning twice more, Izanami reached by the closed front gates of her school. At the same time, Ran peeked outside the classroom.

“I don’t think he’s here yet,” Ran whispered.

“I’m ending call!” replied Izanami.

—And so she did.

She climbed the gate’s bars all the way to the top, only to then struggle climbing one more step—that is all it will take for her to successfully make it in her school. But her current output of effort doesn’t even match close to the gap that needs to be filled.

She grunted, ”Hrr! Err!” Her leg pushing against the bar to her side, while her arm is gripping the flat end above her. Grunting even more, she grinds her teeth and slightly drools.

Immense strength accumulated. Blood vessels throb and pulsated. Izanami’s forearm and biceps bulged greater than before, passing through fatigue, and passing through the gap that needs to be filled.

Then, she went all loose. Pulling herself up and leaping over, finally making it in school territory.

———᯽———

Ran was in disbelief, “Wha-?”

After a moment of silence and Ran’s disbelief on Izanami ending the call so suddenly, she hears echoing footsteps.

“? Huh… Huh?!” Ran started rambling as she sees a figure sprinting across the hallway, fog or smoke emitted and swayed behind. Except, its coming closer and closer. Aiming right at Ran, or that’s what she thinks.

“GAAAAAHHH!!!” The figure screams.

“GAAAAAHHH!!!” Ran screams.

Sooner than she expected, the figure hit her stomach. Hitting her so directly, that they both stumbled and fell back into the classroom. Matter of fact, before the “blitzing boar” hit, it ducked and swerved sharply to ram their head in first.

Now that’s what I call critical damage.

Ran, who is still down from the impact, started mumbling as if dreaming. “Wha…da… Heck…!”

The last thing her body processed was the figure speed blitzing like a jet; it shocked her.

Though right after, she sat up along with the figure who was on top.

“Izanami?!”

In fatigue, Izanami slouched up.

“…Sit back…I saw…”

“? What?”

Izanami couldn’t even speak properly. And the slouching didn’t make it any better. Still though, Ran tried her best to understand her cryptic message.

Izanami repeated, “Sit down, teacher is here.”

Whoosh!

Behind them, stood the teacher in front of the opened door, pissed.

“…Ah, teacher—”

“Sit. Right. Now.”

Extremely pissed.

His quiet demand was heard “loud” and clear. What didn’t make it any better was that when Izanami stumbled into the classroom along with Ran, the impact also shut the door hard. So with that, they both sat at their respective seats and pray that this doesn’t result in disciplinary.

If there is a chance, please…God., they simultaneously thought.

———᯽———

In the end, they were both confined in school disciplinary. An isolated room they stayed in with a member of staff present right after all classes finished. During disciplinary, Ran had commented on Izanami’s incredible fitness as it never ceases to amaze her.

But, in a matter of time, Izanami was already out. Ran, however, had to stay longer.

“It’s already getting late,” said Izanami.

She gazed above, the sun slowly hiding itself, and the darkness of the night enveloping.

The once busy streets of Tokyo turned to almost complete emptiness. Street lights lit up. It was clear that right now, isn’t the time for her to be out. But even so, there’s nothing she can do about it.

She sighed. “What’s done is done.”

Ahead of Izanami were a group of girls.

“Oh, how cute!!”

“Is that new?! I haven’t seen them yet.”

“Dude, we were just at the arcade!”

In their school uniforms and heavily decorated bags, strolling around and they seem to be around Izanami’s age, 17.

She shrieked when she saw them. An alleyway to her right, she immediately turned, taking the opportunity to go home through a detour instead.

Through the alleyway, she felt relieved that there was no encounter with that group. But for what reason?

Her steps echoed and her surroundings cramped.

Not a nice way to go…but what can I do?

Ahead of her was even more cramped due to the trash and stinky bins leaking out from being filled to the brim. Cardboard pieces dampened from who-knows how many people stepped on them.

Izanami continued walking, slowing her pace a little.

I…can’t see…?

More ahead, nothing more could be seen. At least that’s what she thinks.

“A dead end?!” She heavily exclaimed. All she could see is a massive wall face to face.

This definitely wasn’t how she planned.

She reached to where she saw no continuation. She was right; the alleyway’s dead end has probably set her back even more as going back would nonetheless guarantee an encounter with that group of girls.

To her left, is a metal ladder. It looked stable and even has a cage around it, in case of slipping. So, Izanami tied her bag tightly and took her first step climbing upwards. Here we go… She thought. Without stopping, she continued, eventually, reaching halfway up.

“Oh!” said Izanami, looking at her side to where the once, massive wall cut off her path. There’s a way.

Indeed, there is a way around. The wall is tall to the point where she would think that the other side is non-existent. Knowing that it’s not true, she hurried. Because of the shocking nature of the revelation, Izanami pushed herself up at the last step.

Now that she’s above on the roof of the building, she can finally make it over. The wind passes strongly as her pace of walking weakens by the second. Four steps turned into three. Three into two. Then, just as she cautiously took another step, she slipped.

You…thought she was cautious? But she still slipped. Not because of the wind, and not because she rushed either. As on the other side of the alleyway was the ladder that would get her down safely. So really, it was just bad luck.