Mitsukuni wasn't fond of rainy days. They reminded him of the past, of her, and his powerlessness. He brought his knees closer to his chest, his grip on Reiko got tighter, and he silently squeezed her. As if to make sure his grip on her wouldn't get weaker.

His head nuzzled the cat plushie's neck, where her perfumed ribbon was, and he silently inhaled her comforting fragrance. He tightly closed his doe eyes, his lashes trembled, and he focused his senses on his beating heart.

He felt a hand gently brush his hair. "We'll be done soon, Mitsukuni, hang in there," the voice soothed.

Mitsukuni hummed, further burying his nose in Reiko's neck.

It was on a rainy day that she left him. He couldn't remember every detail, but the weather remained clear in his mind. Much like today, it was the rainy season, and for days now, the rain was pouring.

Flooded happened in villages, roads became impracticable, and streets remained almost deserted.

He couldn't remember why she went out.

He only knew that she didn't come back.

Yeah, after reflection, he hated—

Loathed rainy days.

He silently exhaled into the fluffy neck of his sweet, sweet Reiko before psyching himself up and looking up. His honey-brown eyes swept the student council room. He boredly took the figures of the remaining students in.

There wasn't a lot of people. Only Gakushu, Seo, and Ren remained. The other members had long since left. And judging by the ticking clock, even them would be done soon. After all, they hadn't planned on having a sleepover in the student council room.

Mitsukuni observed as Seo stood up and stored his stationery away before putting his report atop Gakushu's desk. The Student Assembly Chairman brushed his black hair back and took his phone out.

Mitsukuni guessed that he was messaging Araki, from the broadcasting club, before he stuffed his phone in his uniform's pant pocket. "I'll see you tomorrow, Asano, Sakakibara, Kannazuki," he bade as he walked out of the room.

Ren and Gakushu voiced their acknowledgment, while Mitsukuni silently waved Reiko's paw at him.

The paw lifelessly fell to the cat's side, and Mitsukuni sat up from his position on the couch. He turned his head to look out the window, trying to focus on the pitter-patter of the rain, attempting to drown his regret in the falling rain.

He absentmindedly looked at the water that fell from the sky, at the grey clouds that like a blanket, covered the wide, boundless sky in a carpet of apparent pessimism.

He couldn't see the beauty in Rain. The supposedly calm and relaxing feeling it brought. It was so monotonous, so boring, so dangerous, and fleeting.

It was the type of appeal he couldn't grasp. No, maybe he didn't wish to understand it.

"'Seen anything interesting, Mitsukuni?" his childhood friend's voice pulled the strawberry blond teen out of his musing. Gakushu was storing some papers away in the cupboard of his desk as he spared the shorter a probing glance.

The reborn male hummed, he easily peeled his gaze off the window, feeling no loss when he didn't see the rain anymore. "Just thinking," he beamed as he swayed his dangling legs up and down. He observed his childhood friend for some seconds before jumping down the sofa and skipping closer to his friend. "Are you done, Shu-chan?"

Asano hummed. "Should be, give me a sec'" he evenly answered as he pulled his bag atop the desk to check its content. His eyes flicked upward to look at the raven head near him. "Are you done, Ren?"

The Student Council Secretary lifted his eyes from his notebook. He observed Asano for a second as if to see what he was doing before he closed his notepad and slipped it in his bag. "Yes, shall we go?" he asked, eyes flickering from Asano to Mitsukuni as an amiable smile painted his lips.

"Go, go!" Mitsukuni agreed as he brought Reiko closer to his chest. He waltzed to his school bag and slung it over his shoulder. "Hurry, Shu-chan!" he ushered with a grin as he impatiently waited in front of the Student Council's entry.

Asano gave a sigh, a mild smile on his face as he defeatedly shook his head. His violet eyes spared the window a glance. "Do you have an umbrella, Mitsukuni?" he inquired, not bothering to ask Ren as he saw the handle of an umbrella peeking from his bag.

"Ah, did you forget yours too, Shu-chan?"

There was a sigh, and Asano clearly heard Mitsukuni giggle at it. "Let's drop by the headmaster's office, I think there's one," he muttered as he pulled a bunch of keys from his bag's front pocket.

The multitude of keys was kept together by a ridiculous looking pink cat. It was a keychain he got a long time ago from Mitsukuni and Karma, and although Asano would never confess it, he didn't mind having it match with the redhead.

::

"Ah, isn't that Seo?"

The shorter's question brought the duo's attention to the couple at the terrace of the café. Seo, the Student Assembly Chairman sat, sheltered from the rain, with a girl in front of him. Both were chatting, and although Mitsukuni couldn't make out what they were saying, they seemed to have a good time.

Sakakibara hummed, he squinted slightly to better make out the faces through the rain before nodding. "That should be him, the girl, if I remember correctly, is Tsuchiya Kaho, from 3-C," he introduced with his gentleman smile on his face. He turned his head to look at Mitsukuni. "You have good eyesight, Kannazuki," he praised.

Mitsukuni returned the praise with a toothy grin as he jumped from one foot to another. Reiko was tightly secured in his right arm while his left hand kept the handle of an umbrella in his grip.

Next to them, Asano's eyes thinned. "How much time does he have to waste," he whispered, almost spat as he observed the two students.

"Now, now, Asano," Ren called out. "Where is the beauty in youth if you take love out of the picture?" he said good-naturedly. After all, Ren was the biggest philanderer of Kunugigaoka Junior High, he couldn't possibly stand still when Asano criticized dating.

Violet eyes slid to look at the raven head.

"Right, right!" Mitsukuni agreed with a firm nod of his head. "You should listen to Ren-chan, Shu-chan!" he admonished. "A girl is the prettiest when in love!" he passionately said, his host persona coming back to life.

Ren seemed particularly moved by the shorter's speech, his grin brightened. "Exactly!" he beamed before turning to look at Mitsukuni as if he saw him in a new light. "I didn't know that you understood me so well, Kannazuki!"

"Hehehe!"

Gakushu spared his two friends a flabbergasted look. He sighed, rubbed the bridge of his nose with one hand, before readjusting his grip on his umbrella with the other. He wondered how he came to spend time with these two budding womanizers.

Clang, clang

The vibrant sound of glass hitting the floor brought the attention of the trio back to the terrace, and precisely, the old man who sat beside the two students.

The crease between Asano's brows got bigger. "How can this guy be so rude," he muttered as he began to walk in the direction of the café, Sakakibara, and Mitsukuni in tow.

Mitsukuni silently followed behind his childhood friend and classmate as they neared the café. He hummed to himself, inhaling Reiko's perfume to soothe his mind as he couldn't block out the sound of the rain falling.

The boy's steps stopped for a half a second, he felt observed. As casually as possible, he resumed his walk toward the sheltered terrace. He spared the two students a look, gave the girl one of his famed smiles before his eyes fell on their drinks.

He could hear Asano asking the elderly if he needed help, while Sakakibara helped him pick what fell up. He found the voice strangely familiar, and couldn't help but glance at the old man through guarded and narrowed eyes. As he did so, he felt the pressure on his back get stronger. As if the one observing them— because he wasn't narcissistic enough to think of himself as the primary target, was scared of what his next step would be.

His doe eyes fell on the two cups on the table. The more he looked, the stronger the pressure got. He wondered if there was something wrong with these drinks. His lips tugged down for a flicker before he wore his usual bright smile. His honey-brown eyes flashed. The situation somewhat reminded him of times when he went out with Reiko and friends, the looming danger over their heads due to their wealth.

"What are you looking at, Kannazuki?"

Seo's voice pulled Mitsukuni out of his musings. He lifted his gaze from the coffee cup to look at the male before shaking his head. "Mhm, nothing important," he denied with a childish beam as he brought Reiko closer to his chest.

The motion seemed to bring out the motherly instinct in Kaho who grabbed her cup. "U-Uhm, are you thirsty, Kannazuki?" she asked, gesturing to her cup.

Seo clicked his tongue at his girlfriend's act. He scowled, picked his cup up, and downed the drink in a single gulp. Mitsukuni barely spared the boy a glance, he felt the eyes on him get milder? Or lighter maybe.

He beamed at the girl, childishly tilted his head and beamed the girl an innocent smile. "No thanks," he politely declined. The drink felt off, his eyes slightly narrowed as he observed the girl oh and sip on her cup. He watched her drink, saw Seo's face minutely change, and brought his attention back to the girl.

"I don't drink commoners' coffee!"

Kaho flushed, downed her cup in embarrassment, and fiddled with her fingers. Mitsukuni tolerated a lot, but he didn't tolerate disrespect towards the elderly.

Asano's sigh brought Mitsukuni's attention back to him. "Don't trouble them, let'so go," he said, his gaze sweeping over the embarrassed Kaho and fidgetting Seo. He raised a dubious eyebrow. "Everything's alright, Tomoya?"

The Assembly Chairman hurriedly nodded, a hand to his stomach, his face contorted into a constipated look. "'S nothing."

Gakushu raised an eyebrow. "Oh," he looked from Kaho to Seo before sighing. "Don't stay out for too long," he said before walking away with Sakakibara in tow.

Mitsukuni didn't follow, he stayed for another second, looking down on the two cups. One empty, and another half-empty one. He ignored the two students who stood up with a clatter when Asano walked away, too focused on the half-empty drink in front of him.

He passed his umbrella in his other hand, secured Reiko under his arm, and picked Kaho's unfinished cup up. He saw the two students run back to their seats and pick their bags up before running out to who knew where.

His eyes narrowed. He took a probing sniff of the drink, looking for a sign of drug in the blend. He set the cup down a dabbed his pinky finger in the cup before bringing it to his mouth and carefully licking it.

He could feel the old man's gaze on him, the unknown stare on his back, and Asano's slightly impatient gaze on his back. There wasn't anything off about the taste.

"Is there something wrong, young man?" the question made Mitsukuni look up to stare at the old man who previously sat at the table next to him. Their gaze met in a staring contest until Mitsukuni beamed.

"Nothing, Grandpa!" he cheered, pulling a water bottle from his school bag. He emptied the water on the street. It was already raining, what was a bit more water? And filled it with the remaining coffee. All that under the probing and— alarmed? Yes, alarmed was the word. And the alarmed gaze of the old man.

Mitsukuni put the bottle in his bag and looked up at the man. "Ne, ne, Grandpa?" he asked, leaning closer to the male whose height was the same as his. "Do you have grandchildren?"

"I," there was an imperceptible pause in the man's speech, and if Mitsukuni hadn't been so attentive, he wouldn't have spotted it. "don't, sadly," the man confessed with a sad smile.

"Oh," Mitsukuni's eyes slid off the man to look behind him where Asano waited. He saw the way his feet hit the ground, he should hurry. His eyes flicked upward to the building that faced the café, the gaze he felt before came from here.

"Why?"

The question made him momentarily forget the gaze and building, and he focused back on the man. "Nothing, you reminded me of someone I knew!" he beamed. He squeezed Reiko, passed his umbrella in his other hand, and skipped backward. "Be careful with the rain, Grandpa!" he waved before twirling and running up to Sakakibara and Asano, the latter didn't wait to scold him for taking so long.

Nagisa looked at the A-class student with mixed feelings. For a moment, he thought his cover was blown. He watched the trio fade into the rain before his gaze flicked up to where his classmate hid.

Did he discover them? The idea made him bite his lower lip and bring his thumb to his mouth. And the way he looked at the coffee cup, carefully smelling and tasting it before taking a sample with him. Who acted like that?

"A problem, Nagisa?"

Kayano's voice brought him out of his musing. He shook his head. "Nothing, just overthinking some matters," he muttered with a wry smile. "Let's join the others!"

Kayano gave a firm nod, she pulled out some origamis and began to babble about her toilet journey, asking Nagisa for details on their targets.

Nagisa smiled, evenly answered her questions as they neared the rest of their classmates.

If he remembered correctly, Karma was the male's childhood friend. Maybe he knew something?

BONUS CHAPTER

So, this whole event is based on chapter 24 of the manga, in which 3-E retaliates against one of the five virtuosi and his girlfriend by giving them strong laxatives.

Anyway, you guys are way too good at this Game, the person who commented first already had the answer. I have mixed feelings. Both sad and happy :')

The answer, which quite a number of you guessed, was military. Precisely, one of Karasuma's future underlings!

This time: Kyoya Ootori

Hint: he wasn't mentioned yet. He is older than Takeshi