Goth girls are the devil

On a normal school day, I’d normally get up at 7:45 and take the 8:00 train on the JR line to school. Usually by then , dad was already on a train halfway to Tokyo to work at the law firm. I was so restless that night that my nerves wouldn’t let me sleep a wink past 7:00, so I decided I’d get up early and walk to school. I didn’t wanna be the only weirdo walking to school that early in the morning from so far away, so of course I called my best friend so I could drag him along with me.

“Eughh…Ren?! What the hell do you want?…it's six in the Goddamn morning” I could tell by his drowsy voice that Sentaro had been fast asleep, and wasn’t too happy I’d woken him up an hour and a half early.

“Hey Sen, listen I’m sorry, but I just can’t sleep! They announce the scores for the midterms today and I just have to know as soon as possible!” I was met with silence on the other end of the line for an uncomfortable amount of time. “S…Sentaro?”

“You woke me up at six in the morning because of the midterm scores?..DO YOU THINK I GIVE A SHIT ABOUT THE DAMN MIDTERM SCORES?!” Despite his yelling, I could tell Sen was still half asleep and barely registering anything I was saying to him.

“Okay Okay, so you’re a little upset but just hear me out…if you walk with me to school early today, we can be the first ones at the school stand and we can have first dibs on the red bean dorayaki, I’ll even pay for as many as you want.” This was followed by another long silence.

“So you’re saying just for coming with you that you’ll buy me a whole dozen of dorayaki?” Was he out of his mind?! A dozen? Just because I have a rich dad doesn’t mean he’s just gonna let me run around spending all his money on deserts for my glutton friend.

“A dozen, how about I get you three and we’ll call it even since I’m the only reason you scraped by on any of your exams this year.” I could hear Sen yawn, and the sound of his feet patting on the floor as we walked over to his bathroom and ran some water from the faucet.

“You heard me. An even dozen, take it or leave it.” I grinded my teeth against each other and considered it for a moment. How on Earth did I end up with such a bone headed friend anyways?

“Four, best I can do.” I got up and went to the bathroom myself, pulling on a fresh school blazer and pair of pants from my wardrobe as I heard the obnoxious scritch-scratching of Sen brushing his teeth over the phone, followed by a grotesque gargle and spit into the sink.

“Half dozen and I’ll let you have one.” I smiled and looked out my bedroom window at the cold late November morning looming over Yokosuka. It was gently raining, the faint sound of the patter on my window reminded me to throw an umbrella in my school bag as I was getting ready. I Put Sen on speaker and laid on the bed, rolling onto my back and kicking my legs up to help pull on my pants.

“You got yourself a deal old friend. Meet me at the end of Dobuita street in 20 minutes, and don’t be late!” I hung up on Sen just in time as my Father opened my door and walked inside. My dad Was always a cold and calculated man, but being so made him one of the best large case lawyers in the greater Tokyo area. He looked at me with his expressionless gaze, frigid as stone. He always slicked back his sleek black hair neatly behind his ears and wore eloquent gray suits. His face was sculpted and youthful as if even the years themselves were afraid to confront him, as if he could convict them and lock them away.

“Well this is a surprise, up bright and early. I hope that just because midterms are over you think you can breathe easy when it comes to your academics.” I nervously gulped and looked over at him, trying not to hold eye contact for more than a moment or so.

“No sir, I know now more than ever is the time to be serious about my studies” He glanced over at the phone laying on the bed beside me, and wordlessly closed the gap between us to grab it. He raised it closely to his face and adjusted the dark maroon framed glasses he always wore.

“You know people like us really shouldn’t be associated with a boy like that. Who knows what kinds of things people might think if they see you hanging around with that degenerate. A man is judged by the company he keeps, you know. Hang around delinquents long enough…and you’ll become one.” he scoffed, tossing my phone back to me as he turned to leave.

“Yes sir. But…he’s my friend, sir.” I meekly peered upward at him as I held my head low, even an act of defiance that sheepish was something I wasn’t used to. But I felt as though I had to say something. My father paused in the doorway, and without turning to face me, spoke sternly.

“If you want to throw away your life and the values I’ve taught you, you go right ahead. You’re my only son, you’re supposed to continue the honor of the Natsukashi name and become a great lawyer someday. But if you’d rather fool around with these ‘friends’ of yours, just know I won’t view you as a son of mine. Get it together.” He left without another word, closing the door behind him. I sat there for a while, unable to move after what he’d said. I inhaled and exhaled heavily and slowly, trying not to hyperventilate as I began to smack the sides of my cheeks with my palms.

“Get it together , Ren. Please. Just get it together.” I murmured to myself, grabbing my phone and bag as I left out the door, my mother shyly trying to get me to slow down for breakfast, but I ignored her so I wouldn’t be late meeting Sen.

“Yooo, Einstein! Ready to pay up for that dorayaki?” Surprisingly, Sen was on time for once and waiting for me. Nothing seemed to motivate him to get things done quite like the promise of free food. Whatever good mood I had been in when I called him earlier had been shattered by what my father said to me, and I simply sauntered past him, holding my little translucent umbrella close to keep dry. “Yo, what the hell man? You were all guns blazing this morning when you called. This was your idea, you know.” One thing you could count on with Sen, was that it didn’t take much to get him riled. He was a great guy and an even greater friend, but he was a walking fight just waiting to be unleashed on whoever was unfortunate enough to tick him off just a bit too much.

“Let's not talk about it, okay? Can we just get to class, please?” I looked at him with a forlorn expression that despite my efforts, I could not mask.

“C’mon man, that's bullshit! You drag me out of bed and then give me the cold shoulder. Do you really want me to lay you out right here?” Sen pulled up his sleeves as if preparing to fight me. He hadn’t bothered to bring an umbrella, and his school blazer was already soaking wet. Underneath it he wore a bright red graphic tee that was definitely not part of the dress code, matched with a pair of dress pants that had gotten much too short for him revealing his hi top sneakers that also were definitely not part of the dress code.

If he’d threatened to ‘lay out’ anybody else from our school, they’d probably turn tail and run. He was easily 6’2 and all of 190lbs of chiseled muscle from years spent on the wrestling team. He had short brown hair that had a cowlick in the front that looked like a rolling wave over his forehead. His piercing blue eyes stared into me, as if to assert he meant every word of his threat.

“Sen, we both know if we get into a fight again it’ll go just like last time. The only one on the ground will be you.” I was still utterly miserable, but for the sake of keeping our fists to ourselves I faked my best smile.

“Oh come on! That was one time years ago and you never let me have a rematch since… ah fine, forget it. But come on, we’re best friends. Something must have happened for you to be feelin’ down like this all of a sudden.” Despite being a bit of a meathead, Sen had this way about him that just made you trust him entirely, a true friend if you know what I mean.

“It's just my dad. He’s on my case again. Just…It was really bad this time.” I started to walk down the street towards the school as we spoke, my sneakers getting damp as they sloshed through vibrant blue puddles of fresh rain.

“You know, sometimes you make me glad my old man left when I was a kid. Having one seems like a damn hassle.” Sen intentionally stomped in every puddle in his path as we walked, kicking mud and smirking. Something about him reminded me of a happy labrador puppy, cute and funny sometimes, but mostly annoying.

“Hey, would you cut that shit out already, you’re getting my pants soaked with all that splashing around!” I snarled at him, grabbing his shoulder in a vain attempt to get him to stop acting so childishly. He immediately swirled around and knocked his fist right into my chest, putting me flat on my ass right in the biggest puddle. That’s just my luck, of course.

“Oh! And the crowd goes wild! Who knew this fight would be a one hit K.O folks! Sentaro! Sentaro! Sentaro!” Sen threw his hands up in the air as if he’d just won the world heavyweight championship before turning and extending a hand to help me up. “Hey, no hard feelings right, Ren? With you I’ve gotta get my punches in where I can, ya know?” His grin leered down at me, and even though I was furious I couldn’t help suddenly bursting into laughter. Sen’s grin grew even wider before he too broke down laughing, sitting in the puddle with me in the middle of the street.

We both laughed for a good long time, a few elderly passerbys staring at us like we were insane, but neither of us cared a bit. Eventually, Sen’s laughter came to a stop, and he looked at me in a way that suddenly made him seem far away.

“You know, the only thing I’m going to miss about school when we graduate is you, man.” He suddenly slapped his hand across the top of the puddle as if he’d grown frustrated. “This shit sucks, this is the last year we’re ever going to see each other.” I looked at him a bit awestruck.

“What do you mean? We’re not just going to stop being friends just because we graduate. Don’t say things like that.”

“Oh come on man, you’re the smartest guy I know, you really can’t be this naive.”

“I…I really don’t get it, what are you trying to say?” I tilted my head a bit and stared at him. His blue eyes looked back at me as if they were picking me apart piece by piece.

“Don’t you get it? This is it. We both know once you graduate highschool you’re gonna pass the bar exam and move to Tokyo to work at your dad’s law firm. What do you think is going to happen to me? If I’m lucky I might get a shit job here in Yokosuka, but even so I’m gonna be stuck here helping Ma raise my little brothers.”

I hadn’t considered it before, but he was right. My life had been planned out for me practically since I was born. My dad would take care of everything. I’d apprentice under my father until he got too old, and then I’d take over the firm. Even my marriage had been decided and put into official paperwork since I was a kid. I had nothing to even think about really, but what about someone like Sentaro? He could barely pass grade school and he had a single mother taking care of three little brothers to worry about. Realistically, he’d probably be stuck working a dead end job in Yokosuka forever… In a way, even his fate was planned from the start.

“Listen…Sen…” I tried to find the words to console him, but he was right… and so I said nothing. I really wish I had. I think at that moment more than any other, Sentaro really needed me to tell him how much he meant to me, but I…said…nothing.

“What the hell are you doing?! GET OUT OF THE WAY!” ‘Cha-chuk, ch-cha, ’ The sound of skateboard wheels loomingcloser and closer behind us began to fill the air. I looked at Sen first, and he looked at me. We turned at the same time to see a girl barreling towards us .

“Augggh!!” We both raised our arms up to brace for impact. I peeked through my fingers to see her suddenly snap her heels down and jump the board over both of us with a loud ‘kwak!’. We both turned to face the girl who had skidded her wheels to a stop on the other side of us.

“Grrr! Hey, you nearly killed us you know! watch where you’re going!” Sen snarled and got up, approaching her with clenched teeth and fists. She did not judge and glared at him with cat-like green eyes that looked like they could cut a man in half.

“Listen jackass, you and your friend there are the ones sitting in the middle of the road. You’re lucky I was even able to avoid you at all.” She parted her hair out of her face as she spoke, and I believe in that moment my heart skipped a beat. She was quite tall and thin, with pale skin that clashed against her long black hair. Both her eyelids and her lips were adorned with black makeup that gave her a fierce aura that was impossible not to stare at. Her body type was honestly pretty tom-boyish, and when I glanced down to observe what she was wearing I noticed the most surprising thing of all… she was in our school uniform.

“Aha, listen, ignore my friend here…he’s a bit of a moron. So, uh… you go to Orange Point Highschool, too?” I nervously laughed and quickly jumped to my feet and dusted myself off, trying to smile at her casually. “Sorry we got off on the wrong foot. I’m Ren and this is my friend Se-” Sentaro suddenly elbowed me in the side of the leg and glared up at me, talking in a growlish whisper through clenched teeth.

“What the hell man, we don’t know this chick and she nearly just took our heads off, stop being such a kiss ass.” Sen pushed himself up to his feet to stand beside me before I abruptly shoved him away and nervously laughed again.

“Aha… you can just ignore him, he’s a bit of a weirdo. Did I mention my names Ren, nice to meet you!” I closed the gap between the two of us and extended out my hand to her. She stared down at it for an uncomfortable amount of time before finally accepting it in her own small hand, all the while still glaring at me with a stoic expression that looked as if she was intent on murdering me.

“I’m Aiko. I just got transferred to Orange point this week.” Her voice was unenthusiastic and a bit deeper than I expected, but for some reason that only seemed to add to the charm. Standing this close to her now I realized she also had all of her nails painted black, and was wearing a spiked choker around her neck.

“You transferred this week? How did you pull that off with midterms being this whole last week?” I knew a few of my classmates had been transfer students this year, but all of them either transferred before or after exams to make it easier on themselves.

“Listen, I really don’t have time to stand around and chat. See ya’ around I guess.” I tried to stop her, but before I could utter a word she set her board back down and took off down the road, the wheels of her skateboard whooshing through puddle after puddle. I watched her for a long time, staring as she slowly became a small dot on the horizon.

“If you’re done drooling on yourself we have to get to school too you know, ass.” Sen rolled his eyes and started to walk off.

“I’m not drooling on myself, shut up!”

“Sure thing, Ren. You sure know how to pick em’, don’t you?” I blinked at him, a bit hurt by the underhanded insult.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I started to jog to catch up to him as he spoke to me without stopping or bothering to look at me.

“It means don’t get any ideas. She’s a waste of time.”

“How do you figure that? Since when are you some sort of infallible judge of character?” Sen started to chuckle a little, looking over at me with his snide little grin.

“I don’t need to be. She’s goth.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” He started to laugh again a bit harder this time, shaking his head knowingly.

“Hasn’t anyone ever told you? Those punk girls are the devil. They’re only good for one thing, and that’s ripping the hearts out of guys just like you.”

“Oh yeah, is that so?” I giggled at that remark myself. “And what kind of guy am I exactly?”

“The kind that's about to lose a race to the school dorayaki stand, obviously!” Sen suddenly took off like a shot, sprinting full pace down the street before I even knew what had happened.

“Oh, you are so on!” I folded my umbrella and tucked it under my arm, sprinting side by side with him all the way to the school, dashing down wet alleyways and foggy streets like we used to do back in grade school.

When we finally did arrive we were both heaving for air, hunched over with our hands on our knees as the stinging winter oxygen stabbed at our lungs like miniature icicles. We had been neck and neck nearly the entire race, but at the end Sen had narrowly beaten me, passing under the arch to the courtyard a second before me.

“Well, I guess you win. That means doriyaki stand first, test results second.”

“Hell yeah, read bean filling here I come!” As if the mere mention of food had totally restored his strength, Sen marched through the courtyard and through the big glass doors to the first floor of the school, not even realizing he’d just left me behind.

“Hey… you’re forgetting I’m the only one here who has money to pay for them!” I chased after him, only able to move at a hobbled jogging pace after all that running.

“Ya Know…” Sen began, speaking muffled through large mouthfuls of dorayaki. “I never realized how much better these taste when I don’t have to pay for them.” Sen popped a whole one in his mouth without even struggling, holding a little white box full of five others tucked under his arm. He grabbed the next, barely able to finish chewing the one in his mouth before he took a huge bite out of the next, globs of filling and crumbs rolling down the front of him.

“Listen, just don’t forget to save one for me, yeah? I’ll meet up with you in homeroom. They should have posted the scores by now and I can’t wait another second!”

“I’ll try my best, but no promises. And let me know if you see my name anywhere in the top fourty, kay?” Sen waved to me, crumbs still rolling down his chin as he headed off in the opposite direction to our homeroom class.

I paced up the stairs to the second floor, turning down the hallway. It was longer than I’d remembered, and with each step I took I could hear my own heels clacking against the ancient jade green tiles beneath my feet. I could see the posted board at the end of the hall, but it was as if with each step I took the tiles expanded into an eternal hallway. My heart thumped in my chest faster as I eventually drew near, I adjusted my tie and turned to face the board.

My eyes scanned all of the papers for afterschool clubs and school announcements, eventually setting right in the middle on a large white paper that read STUDENT MIDTERM EXAM RESULTS in big bold letters.

THE FOLLOWING STUDENTS ARE COMMENDED

FOR RECEIVING EXCEPTIONAL SCORING,

GOING ABOVE AND BEYOND WHAT IS

EXPECTED OF AN ORANGE POINT ALUMNI:

5: TAO NAKAHISHI

4:KAZUMI ISHOHITA

3:MIKA TATSUHIRO

2: REN NATSUKASHI

1: AIKO YASAWA

“This…this can’t be for real. This has got to be some kind of Joke right?” A small crowd of students had slowly arrived at school and formed a small crowd around the board, all trying to see their scores. I continued to stare silently, thinking if I looked hard enough the names would eventually fall into their proper place.

“Hey, look at that…first place. Cool.” The familiar voice rang out from directly behind me, I turned to face it. I was absolutely livid.

“You?!... YOU got the highest score in the school and that's what you have to say about it…cool?”

“I guess this just means you’ll have to try a liiiiittttllllee bit harder next time, huh Ren?” She gave me a knowing look that made me really hate her now. I turned to look at the scores one last time and growled, but before I could come up with anything smug to say, she’d already walked off. Suddenly, a different but equally familiar voice chirped in from behind my other shoulder.

“See, told ya. Goth chicks are the devil” At some point Sen had gotten behind me on the opposite side of where Aiko had been standing, he was loudly chewing another dorayaki right beside my ear. “Oh cool, I’m forty fourth . That's at least better than last year.”