"Sorry?"

The words slipped from my mouth easier than I would've wanted and in a question. The delinquent named Ryu Iwasaki glared at me a bit more before leaning back. My tensed nerves and muscles relaxed instantly.

Did he not remember who I was? Good. I did not want to deal with him. Let me just go home...

"Wait," he called out just before I could make a beeline to the bus stop.

I halted, frozen. I robotically moved my head back.

He stood there, and even though he had such a menacing scowl on his face before, his countenance right then looked a little lost. "Um," he began, holding up a map, "I'm trying to get to the northside but I don't know what bus to take."

On the outside, I made sure to keep up my unaffected expression. On the inside, I was a panicking mess. The northside? B-but that was where I lived...

"Uh..." I started, clearing my throat. "Don't know."

"Really?" he said, "but you seemed to know what bus to take before."

Before...? My lips caved in.

"You're the bitch I shoved to the floor, right?" he went on, simply ambling forward, closing the distance and pointing to a portion of the sheet. "I live around here."

There were many things wrong with this picture. First, because he had identified me pretty easily and still had the audacity to call me both a bitch and admit he shoved me to the ground on purpose. And second, I lived exactly where he was indicating on that map, too.

My eyes averted his serious gaze. "A-are you sure? Never seen you."

"Do you have short term memory, then?" he spat, his look darkening.

"N-no," I stuttered. "Wh-who are you, I really don't know."

"Did I knock your head that hard?" he snorted, outstretching the map further. "Whatever. I don't care if you remember me or not. Show me the way there."

My eyes were on my boots. "I-I don't take the bus—"

When he grasped the hood of my jacket and began dragging me towards the bus stop, I began squirming.

"Hey!" I shouted, trying to get free.

The glare he shot me shut me right up. My heart began hammering in my chest as I snuck glances around in hopes of seeing somebody who could save me. This was kidnapping! What the hell was this guy's problem? Couldn't anyone else have done this?

To my horror, nobody was around. The streets were abadnoned, only filling me up with many horrid thoughts. He was going to kill me. Wait, the police station's right there! I'd just call—

"If you know what's good for you, you won't touch your phone."

His words jolted me and my fingers stopped creeping to my coat pocket. I cursed, biting my lip.

"A bus is coming," he said, nudging me in the direction of the incoming light. "Is it a bus I can take?"

Seeing the approaching number, I lied easily. "Yes, it'll take you straight there!"

"Okay."

He nodded, digging into his pocket and getting his pass ready. I smirked as the bus came to a halt.

Good, this'll get rid of him. The bus took you to southside, not north. Hah, this was payback. It was a surprise he even wanted to take the bus despite what happened earlier on—I'd have assumed he'd have already made it home by now—but, whatever. I didn't care what happened to him.

Without warning, Ryu clutched my jacket yet again and yanked me onto the bus. My heart skipped a beat.

"Wh-what are you doing?!"

"Taking you with me," he responded simply. "How do I know you're not lying?"

My face paled as he showed the bus driver his pass before digging into my bag and holding up mine as if he was assured it'd be in there. Then, he tossed me to one of the seats and took the one beside me, blocking off my escape.

I sat there, wide-eyed and in a daze, my pass rested on my lap. The bus sped off along the road.

My head tilted onto the male who had pried off his hat and was fixing his hair.

"Um... what am..."

"You're leading me home," he said, as if it were obvious.

"Home...?" I repeated.

He rolled his eyes. "Yes."

I turned away, blank. It didn't take long for me to rotate his way again.

"To your house...?"

"Yeah."

"In... the northside...?"

"Yes." He met my gaze, eyes narrowed.

"Okay," I slowly said, looking straight ahead.

"This isn't the right bus is it?"

I was so tempted to cry. No! We were going to southside! If I'd have known he was going to bring me along, I wouldn't have lied and told him to take this bus!

If I told him it wasn't the right one...

I gulped, hard.

"Is it?" he pressed again.

"Yes," I lied.

He grabbed the top of my head with his fingers. "There are many things I hate, but I hate it the most when people lie to me."

A chill ran up my spine and I was immobilized in fright. Oh lord.

"Now, you're gonna tell me the truth right now," he drawled, voice booming. "So?"

Ignoring the tears that welled up at the corner of my eyes, I opened my quivering lips. "N-no," I confessed, "we aren't."

What a wonderful life I'd lived. Ah, who was I kidding. My life had been horrible. I was dying young despite the fact that I hadn't even begun to truly "live."

Expecting to receive a painful punch to the face or to the abdomen, or even a knife, I shut my eyes tight. He wearily unhanded my head and I waited a good few seconds for my death. When a minute passed, I peeked through an eyelid.

To my shock, Ryu was slouching in his seat, arms by his sides. His face was inexpressive, his eyes fixated on the passing scenery. I watched, mouth dropped.

He wasn't going to... kill me?

"You don't care?" I questioned but when he snapped his head in my direction, I couldn't help but regret it.

"I don't particularly mind if we stay on this bus," he said, "I mean, all you have to do is guide me to my neighbourhood and I'll be good."

"Is this your first time taking the bus?"

He looked at me and I hurriedly clasped my hand over my mouth. I was about to do the same with my left arm too but hissed in pain after remembering it wasn't in good shape.

"Is this the first time you've bruised your arm?"

Halting my cursing midway, I peered upwards. "I don't think it's a bruise. At most, it has to be a sprain."

I gingerly rubbed my arm, not wanting to touch it anymore.

He grimaced, face filling with immediate grief.

"Did I do it?"

His inquiry caught me off guard. I looked only to find concern slapped onto his face. My eyebrows straightaway shot up. Huh? Why did he look like he cared if he did?

"Sorry." His apology sent me into shock. "But, it was your fault I even pushed you."

I scanned his face, trying to locate if his apology was a lie or not. It didn't seem like it was. "Yeah..." I drew out, giving up the search. "I'm sorry for that, too. I didn't see you."

Silence overcame the two of us until we were only able to hear the sounds of the moving bus. Since it was already eight, the vehicle was already partially empty so there wasn't a lot of frequent stops.

It was then that I realized just what kind of situation I was in. I was riding the bus with Ryu Iwasaki, the delinquent whose lap I sat on. He was the one who started this all and yet look where we were, a few hours later.

"Do you go to my school?"

I paused to answer. "Apparently."

"What do you mean 'apparently'?"

I shrugged my right shoulder. "I've never seen or heard of you until today. This lady at the police station told me you attend Akelius Academy so I was a little surprised."

He latched onto my left arm. I cried out in pain and he let go, sheepishly. "O-oh, s-sorry."

I breathed in and out, waiting for the pain go sieze. "I-It's all right," I croaked out.

His lips downturned. "So, um, did she say... anything about me?"

I let out one last exhale before answering, "Just that they get at least one complaint of you every single day."

He groaned. "Great."

I tilted my head to the side. "Great?"

"I'm gonna get scolded by Mr. Hiroyuki again," he explained.

"Mr. Hiroyuki?" I repeated, startled. "Are you in that demon's class?"

"Yes, homeroom," he replied distastefully.

"My condolences."

He snorted and flashed me a lopsided half-smile. "Are you in your second year, too?"

Too? So he was one? "Yeah," I responded, "but shouldn't you be worried that Mrs. Hamada will chew you out? She's always so strict on the students who get into trouble."

He waved his hand dismissively. "Yeah, right. The worst I could get from her would be a lecture, as usual."

"Why only a lecture?" By what I knew, Mai Hamada, the principal of Akelius Academy, aka the Overlord, always punished students cruelly and unfairly. She always excused that it was for the sake of justice, but in all honesty, she sent so many people to detention every day she may as well have loved seeing people suffer.

"Because she knows she can't get rid of me," Ryu replied. "The reason she even gave me that title was because she wanted to steer me out of trouble."

Perplexed, I knitted my eyebrows together. "Title?"

"You like to ask a lot of questions, huh?" he sighed, stuffing his hands into his pockets, "I'm Class President."

My eyelashes fluttered open and closed. "Class... President...?"

He shut his eyelids. "Of Mr. Hiroyuki's class," he added with a yawn.

I blinked rapidly. I cocked my head. "Of... Mr. Hiroyuki...?"

He leered at me. "Why do you keep repeating after me? You an echo or something?"

It literally took me a while to snap to my senses. When I did, I couldn't withhold a gasp. "Huh? B-b-but you're a delinquent!"

His look darkened. I paled.

"N-no offence!"

He was the class president of 2-3's class? What?!

"You better wipe that expression off your face," he warned, scowling. He moved his face close for emphasis.

I bobbed my head vigorously.

When he pulled away, I swallowed hard. Eyeing the male who sat before me again, I couldn't believe it. Class President?

"More importantly, are you sure we should just be sitting here?" Ryu said, pointing outside. "We seem to be getting further and further from civilization."

In that moment, it was like I got hit with a brick. I recalled exactly what bus we were taking and my heart stopped. Lurching to my feet, I pulled the cord and leapt towards the entrance.

We were in the southside!

*           *           *

By the time we finally returned from the south back to the northside, it was nearly ten o' clock. I was exhausted as we were walking down the sidewalk. Today was too much. How much stuff did I have to go through before I could be home in bed?

"You didn't have to walk me home."

"I'm not walking you home," I said to him for the fifth time already. "I live here, too."

He looked dubious. "Then why did you have to go through all that BS with the southside bus?"

I made a face. Honestly, why did I?

"Anyway, we're here," he said, gesturing to the house on his right.

I nodded. "All right," I said. "My house is just up ahead."

He looked a little reluctant. I slanted my eyes. They must've been playing tricks on me because it appeared to me like his cheeks were flushed pink.

"B-bye," he suddenly cried out, hastening past his fence and up to his door. He pulled out a key and slipped inside.

I sighed for about the umpteenth time this entire day, sluggishly dragging my feet to my house. Today was horrible.

I knew I didn't want anything more to do with that troublesome guy.