Temporarily Suspended Points

"Bam!"

"Ow, that hurts." Sakura rubbed her head as she sat on the floor, speaking.

"Tch, a scene that feels familiar, isn't it, Sakura?" Takahashi extended his hand toward Sakura.

"Umm, Ta... Takahashi, sorry, I... I wasn't paying attention."

"It's fine. Were you taking pictures here, Sakura?" Takahashi said, glancing at the Digital Camera hanging around Sakura's neck.

"Th... this... yeah..."

Seeing Sakura's hesitant demeanor, Takahashi spoke again: "It's getting late. I'm heading back to the dorm. Want to come along?"

"Yeah..."

Back in the dorm, Takahashi tossed his phone and a stick engraved with Great Misfortune onto the table.

Another month, the beginning. Watching everyone around him glued to their phone screens, fingers constantly swiping and refreshing, there was no need to guess—they definitely had zero points.

Takahashi then rested his head on the desk, facing Horikita, before quickly turning to wink at Sakura. Caught sneaking a glance, Sakura hurriedly lowered her head, her face flushed red, fingers fidgeting with the hem of her skirt.

Chabashira stepped into the classroom right on the bell, the clack of her heels against the floor like the drumbeats of a countdown.

"Saeda! Are we at zero again this month?" Ike's loud voice pierced the stagnant air as he rushed to the podium, face red. "I checked my balance this morning—nothing came in! We slogged through the Midterm Exam, didn't even dare whisper..."

Chabashira's gaze swept across the restless classroom.

"Don't jump to conclusions." Chabashira unfolded a document, spreading a record of each class's points across the blackboard: Class A 1004, Class B 987, Class C 695, Class D 87.

"Except for our class, every other class gained nearly a hundred points. Class A has even surpassed its starting points..." Horikita analyzed the class points.

When "Class D 87" came into view, the whole classroom suddenly erupted. Ike and a few others cheered in excitement.

"See! Our hard work paid off!" Sudo raised both arms and shouted.

"But... Chabashira, why haven't the points been transferred?" Kushida voiced the question on everyone's mind.

"There was a bit of an issue this time, so the first-year points will be delayed." Chabashira's voice echoed through the room. Ike immediately jumped up: "This is the school's fault. Don't we get any extra compensation?" The previously silent classroom exploded into chaos, waves of student complaints rising and falling.

Chabashira tapped the podium and said:

"Don't make a fuss like this. If there are any points left after the issue is resolved, the school will distribute them on time."

Noticing Horikita at the next desk lost in thought, Takahashi casually muttered, "Eighty-seven class points! That should be enough to do quite a bit, right?"

"Are you saying something happened to the class?"

"Huh? Did I say something?"

Horikita: "..."

Chabashira had deliberately emphasized "after the issue is resolved, if there are any points left" before distributing them. That kind of vague wording clearly hid some ulterior motive.

During lunch break, while everyone else went to eat, Takahashi lay on his desk, staring at his phone in thought.

"Umm... Takahashi."

He looked up to see Sakura.

She and Horikita were among the few students who made their own meals—arguably the only two in the class right now. Besides Takahashi, who was still sprawled on his desk, only she and Horikita had brought out their pre-prepared Bento.

"Takahashi, are you feeling unwell?"

"No, just thinking about some things."

"I... I see. But skipping lunch isn't good. Um... I... I made this Bento myself. Would you... would you like to try some?"

"Heh," Takahashi let out a light laugh, reached out, and tapped Sakura on the head. "If I eat it, what will you eat? Silly girl."

"I'll just grab a bread roll from the convenience store."

Leaving the classroom, Takahashi didn't head straight to the convenience store. Instead, he went to another classroom.

"Hey, I said, couldn't you just send a message? Why did you have to call me out here?"

After the boring afternoon classes ended, the class broadcast carried Chabashira's voice: "Sudo, come to the faculty office."

"What? I've got basketball practice! What a pain." Sudo grumbled as he left.

The moment Sudo was gone, quite a few classmates started gossiping about him.

It had been over three months since school started, and the various cliques in the class had solidified. Unlike the start of the term, when classmates thought Takahashi was aloof, he now knew quite a few girls in the class and the same grade thanks to Hasebe and Ichinose. As for the boys, things were a bit disappointing. For some reason, he felt a certain distance between Sudo's trio and himself. After the Midterm Exam, they held a celebration party in Ayanokouji's dorm and invited Horikita and Kushida, but not him. Sigh, he'd put a lot of effort into the Study Group! First step ashore, and they really forgot their roots, huh?

"Takahashi." Hearing that cool voice, Takahashi knew who it was.

Ayanokouji and Horikita came up beside him. Horikita spoke first: "About what Chabashira said this morning..."

Before Horikita could finish, Takahashi said, "The delayed point distribution and what I said, right?"

"Yes."

Takahashi pulled out his Divination Tube, grabbed a handful of sticks, and picked out the one engraved with Great Misfortune. "Sorry, my luck's bad today. I'm heading back to the dorm to lie low."

"Damn it, this guy." The speaker was Horikita. Ayanokouji beside her said nothing, merely watching Takahashi's retreating back, lost in thought.

"Moshi moshi." Setting down his novel, Takahashi answered Ayanokouji's call. "Sorry, my fortune today is Great Misfortune. Better to hide out in the dorm."

He put down the phone, didn't pick the novel back up, but instead took his coffee and walked to the window.

"Damn it, that Takahashi's such a letdown, using some superstitious crap to brush me off. And I thought he was my friend." Sudo grumbled discontentedly, then turned to Ayanokouji and Kushida beside him. "You guys have gotta help me out. I don't wanna get suspended."

"Sudo-kun, calm down first. Can you tell us exactly what happened?" A flicker of disgust passed through Kushida's eyes.

"Well, last week I beat up a few guys from Class C. But they started it. Today Chabashira-sensei called me in about it. I might get suspended. She told me to wait for the notice." Sudo said dejectedly.

"You say you got into a fight... What really happened?" Ayanokouji's face showed confusion, his tone full of bewilderment.

Sudo immediately waved his hands in defense. "Let me make this clear, it's not my fault! Those Class C guys came looking for a fight. I was just defending myself. But then they turned around and bit me, claiming I started it. That's completely twisting the truth!"

He spoke rapidly, his logic a bit jumbled. Though the gist was understandable, the specifics of the fight—the cause and effect, the details—were still hazy.

"Sudo-kun, don't rush. Can you tell us the whole story in more detail?"

Kushida beside him nodded gently, her eyes full of concern. "Yeah, take your time. We're listening."

Sudo took a deep breath, steadied his emotions, and started again. "A while back, the advisor teacher talked to me. He said he was thinking of putting me on the official roster for the Summer Tournament."

He'd heard Sudo was good at basketball, but he didn't expect him to get a shot at the starting lineup so soon.

"That fast? Impressive." Kushida said.

"It's not set in stone yet. Just a possibility." Sudo scratched his head, pretending not to care, but the corner of his mouth lifted. "Still, I'm the only first-year on the shortlist. I made up my mind right then to get that spot no matter what. But on the way home from school, trouble found me..." His face darkened. "Komiya and Kondo from the basketball club called me to the Special Teaching Building, said they had something important to discuss. We'd had arguments during practice before, so I figured it was a good chance to clear the air. But when I got there, Ishizaki was there too. Turns out Komiya and Kondo are his lackeys. They came right out and said they couldn't stand that a Class D guy like me had a shot at being a regular. They threatened me to quit the basketball club, or else. Of course I refused. Before we could even exchange two words, they threw the first punch. Was I supposed to just stand there and take it? I had to strike first and subdue them."

"So, Sudo, they started it, and now you're the one being framed?"

"Yeah. It's infuriating. A bunch of cowards."

"Hmm..." Ayanokouji thought for a moment. "Did the school listen to your side?"

"They did, but they told me to produce evidence by next Tuesday, or they'll rule it my fault. I'll be suspended until summer break, and we'll lose class points. Worst of all, I might—no, I definitely will—they'll take my spot on the official roster while I'm suspended."

At the mention of losing his roster spot, Sudo slammed both hands on the table, startling Kushida.