Masanori approached the Alpha dorm just as the sun had disappeared over the hills. Holding an empty soda bottle in one hand he reached into his pocket and pulled out his phone, tapping on the single word "Yuki" in his messages.
- You finished yet?
After a moment Yuki responded.
- Soon! (◠‿・)—☆
Masanori sighed and clicked the screen off. 'He's enjoying this a little too much…' Masanori paused at the entrance. 'Maybe, I should have stayed in the office. I'd prefer the silence right now...' He sighed, thinking of the work he could do instead. It was nothing like real paperwork, but as the son of the school's director he took on a lot to ensure the school's reputation wasn't tarnished from his slow work ethic. He shook it off. The school would be locked up in about an hour anyway.
He walked into the entrance of the Alpha dorm and into main lobby, greeting the serenic Dorm leader.
"Not sticking around?" They said to him. "Naoto Senpai set up a movie in the common room."
'So that's what he wanted the sodas for.' Masanori thought to himself, and stiffly replied, "No, I'll pass."
"Well alright…" They replied in a lazy drawl, and Masanori made his way upstairs towards his room, but not before trashing the empty soda bottle. Entering his dorm room he sat down at the center table after grabbing his laptop. He glanced over at the other room, the door shut and shrouded in darkness.
'He's already asleep even now. Early to rest, early to rise I guess…'
Masanori put on a movie, earbuds in his ears and a cover over him with a few snacks he saved in his room.
But every few minutes, he kept checking his phone, checking for Yuki, though he didn't text back. He kept going back like clockwork, whenever a scene started or ended.
He grumbled, exasperated at himself. He paused the movie and lied back on the floor to scroll through his phone instead.
Masanori tapped back into his messaging app and typed something to Yuki.
- Have you at least compiled the main building footage? youre not holding out to make me beg r u?
Masanori's eyes creased, knowing the expected reply would be something like, 'Have patience, your boyfriend isn't going anywhere!' or something.
Boyfriend, geez. Dating wasn't even allowed in a school like this but mentioning it sent a wave of butterflies fluttering in him, and Yuki knew it. It wasn't like he liked him though, the idea he was dating made him worry more about him. Knowing the way he acted he couldn't see him acting the same to someone else and it ending well. But if they were dating he'd have no power to stop it.
That's why it was easier to believe that he was just being bullied. He could do something about that, as long as he had evidence.
'Can't get it out of my head. If he's being attacked I'll have reason, but I need the proof. With those rumors going around…' He bit his inner cheek. 'I wonder if he's heard about it. Could that be why he's avoiding me? Maybe he finds it embarrassing…'
He stared at the screen for some time and noticed that it hadn't been read yet.
'He usually reads it right away. Did he fall asleep?'
Masanori pushed away his blanket and got up. There was no way he fell asleep when he promised to deliver it soon. He was a sloth, but he didn't make half-assed promises. He could use the distraction anyway. Masanori left his room and headed down a floor. He emerged from the stairwell to a quiet empty hall. At that point he got a reply.
- Impatient much? don't worry i'm sending you a file fit and worthy of your obsessive personality ;)
Masanori awkwardly scoffed, holding back an embarrassed smile. 'Guess I overreacted.'
When he looked back up, he stopped.
"Aruki Sensei? What are you doing here?"
The teacher stood alone in the hallway, a short and staunch beta with a jovial flush of pink in his round cheeks from the usual evening sake, but a noticeably more defined wrinkle of his eyes as he glanced around. As he turned his body towards him his eyes lifted with relief, and a pleased voice called back to him.
"Oh Imada-kun - what great timing!" He looked up to Masanori as he walked closer with a pondering but anxious rub of his chin. "I'm looking for a student, part of your patrol. But they haven't seemed to return here yet. Where have they all gone off to?"
"The patrols should be finishing up, it's nearly curfew." Masanori said, then asked, "What reason do you need him for, Sensei?"
"It's about that missing shipment. I've hoped he'd been in, but it seems he's not here yet." The teacher sighed. "Best to check the cameras. Shigoto-san is already gone however, so have you seen Hirabayashi-kun by any chance?" He shook his head. "Though it might be better to check ourselves. I can't fathom how that boy keeps his position on the council - such a lazy boy. On top of this, security in the school has gone off as well. They mentioned a disturbance by the western wall."
"All the security?" Masanori balked. "That's right, I noticed they were already gone by the gate as well." Masanori scratched his head with a look of concern. He turned back to the stairwell door and pulled it open. "Then, I'll head back to the school to find Yukihiro."
"Oh no, I can't ask that of you right now Imada-kun." The teacher held a hand up reassuringly. "You should go off to sleep while the adults deal with this for once."
But Masanori shook his head. "It's alright Sensei. This is something I was put in charge of, I should be the one to handle it."
'And if he finds out I was sleeping while something happened, he'd give me a real scolding…' He thought to himself.
Masanori left the teacher and soon was walking out the Alpha dorm, walking swiftly back towards the school building once more.
———
Ren yawned, his eyes beginning to droop. As he heard the sound of a door opening and shuffling he shot back to alertness. He was still in the darkness of the cabinet, beginning to doze off. He shook his head, trying to remember how long he had been stuck in here. 'I-I didn't actually fall asleep, right? Please don't tell me it's morning already!'
He pressed an ear to the cabinet and heard the sound of students chatting to themselves, though this time their voices were hushed and he couldn't tell what they were saying.
Ren finally heard the kitchen grow quiet again, along with the lights turning off, leaving him in pure darkness. He tried to push the cabinet back, only to be met with a similar resistance. Though the sodas were gone the crates remained.
'Damn it. I really might be stuck in here all night. At least I know its still night or it wouldn't be so dark....'
Ren sighed and folded up his knees, leaning his chin against his kneecaps with a furrowed expression. 'But after everything I'm still trapped. And, I totally missed curfew by now. I haven't broken the rules this blatantly before, if the school comes bursting into my dorm room, could it affect Kakeru-kun? Will they go through my things? What if that guy who plunged that thing in my arm does the same to Kakeru instead? Even if I turn myself in, Hopefully they don't question Masanori, after all he's done to help me…'
Ren thought about what Masanori told him, about the secondary genders and the origins of the school, and what he told him about the experiments and the Alphas. It was hard to tell what in that conversation he could believe, but Ren could notice Masanori's tension. There was something he was scared of, Ren could see that, but he couldn't see why he chose to help him anyway, when he still didn't seem to believe him.
It was confusing, but Ren - even knowing they were being watched - could tell Masanori looked down on him too. He knew Masanori was holding back, but deep down he also knew he wasn't considering what he said, impatiently telling him to stay low and dismissing him, was it all really because they were being watched?
Ren's eyes drifted over to the inner door of the cabinet, seeing the screwed in hinges that he wished was on the other side, eyes narrowing in anger.
'If I were in my old body I bet I could kick this thing down! One shot! I could-! Wait. The screws!'
He shot up in alarm, eyes widening. 'That's… That's it!'
He hurried over to his bag and pulled out the hammer! Using the sharp and pointed end Ren got a grip on the small screws that kept the hinges connected to the cabinet, turning and pulling with the levied force against it. His weak arms trembled, only making a small inch, so he bent his knees and pushed against the cabinet to pull back with all his strength. He pulled the first screw out enough to loosen it then started on the other.
After this struggle went on for 10 more minutes, Ren finally managed to push out the cabinet door in a violent kick outwards. He moved the cabinet door out the way and noticed the crates, now with a black sheet over it. The lights were also off, making it harder to see. Ren pushed the crates to the side with his elbows, giving him an opening. Ren stepped out the cabinet, holding the hammer up, pridefully beaming.
'Yes! I'm free!!'
His eyes moved over to the clock on the wall, and the darkness through the curtained window. 'And it is still night! It's only been an hour!' His plans weren't ruined after all! Ren snatched his bag up and moved over to the doorway of the kitchen that led into the main building.
'This isn't what I planned, but it doesn't matter now.' Ren slowly peeked his head out the open doorway, to a silent hall. He reached in this bag and pulled out a black face mask, putting it on while narrowing his eyes with determination. He quickly sped through the hall, his ear following the sound of voices growing louder.
'With this on, the other students will be less likely to notice me and think I'm sick so they should avoid me. Time to find this party! I've been wondering what the Alphas have been planning to do with the betas here…'
Ren began to stealth his way through the familiar halls of Beta Dorm. As he moved away from the kitchen the hall began filling with more students, each of which Ren successfully avoided. Even when he found no places to hide he managed to keep his head low and continued past anyone.
He had gotten used to not making much of an impression on others, especially during school hours, so he managed to easily slip past the betas that continued mingling in the dorm before lights out. As Ren continued on, his worries bloomed up again. Because, where were the Alphas, and where was the party?
He took his search down the dorm room halls, where he took off his shoes and put them in his bag wrapped in a plastic bag for this exact purpose. He had to sneak in yesterday, so he knew the best way in and the layout, since he figured it might not be in the main common room.
As he turned down one of the hall three students began walking up, an Alpha and two betas.
'There! Finally!'
Ren squeezed the straps of his bag and slowed his pace, keeping his head down as the three walked past him. Ren waited a second and slowly peeked his head back. The plan was simple. He would follow that Alpha to wherever he was going!
But when Ren turned around, that Alpha had also stopped, and was looking back at him with a suspicious glare.
He startled back. 'Aah! I've been spotted already!?' He swiftly turn and ran. He didn't check if he was being followed, just making a beeline for a hiding spot in the form of a large potted plant. By the time he got there he was out of breath, but felt a lot better. These large potted plant sure were convenient, weren't they?
But this wasn't good, not only had he not found the party yet, his disguise was already being found out. But if they're hiding the entrance to the party, how was he going to find it? While Ren scratched his head and tried to think of a new disguise, he heard a voice.
"Rest assured, I haven't given up anything yet."
"B-Bastard…!"
Ren perked his ear at the familiar voices, one especially so with a vulgar mouth. He peeked out from under his hiding spot.
It was Kokichi, backed up and cornered by Ruota. Unlike his usual dulled and tired looking demeanor he looked more sinister, with a cold uncaring glare. When he spoke it was in the same slow drawl, though it didn't match his expression.
"We've played enough games to know I'm not joking. You'll see I just want what's best for you. Stop fighting and join the calligraphy club."
"Psh! You don't know shit! I do what I want!" Kokichi hissed back. "Only I know what's best for me, dick! I'm busy dealing with your bullshit and looking for what you stole from me and you just keep spouting nonsense!"
'Kokichi's having trouble with Ruota? If he's here, then maybe he's part of the party that I gotta find. Looks like Kokichi is trying to find his meds. Never got to ask what it was...' The only meds he knew were stolen were omega pills, but Kokichi would have no reason to take those as a beta, right?
Ruota continued. "Didn't think I'd have to use it directly, but you know I worry about your condition. I wonder, if I could help you. Maybe perhaps, you'll see things my-"
"Hey my condition is your fault!" Kokichi yelled over him. "If you hadn't sent thieves to my dorm, my meds wouldn't be missing!"
"...my fault?" Ruota grumbled. "Don't tell me I activated your first heat, or you'll make me sick."
Ren blanched. 'H-Heat!?'
In turn, Kokichi also blanched. "Heat?! Who do you think I am!?"
Ruota coldly laughed. "That's a poor bluff. I already know your missing medicine, aren't you? And that temper, your small stature and weak scent. The omega scent in your club room all week when your club's only omega was out sick. You can't deny it anymore."
Ren stared wide eyed at the scene. No way, Kokichi was actually...?!
Kokichi froze, gawking at Ruota.
Then, Kokichi burst out laughing. He bent over in hysterics, clutching his stomach.
"Bahahahaha! Fuck, that's funny as shit! You think I'm hiding being an omega!? What kinda idiot would lie about that and live in the beta dorm willingly!? No, retard!! I'm not missing some kinda heat medicine! I'm talking about my prescription!"
Ren's face dropped back to disgruntlement. 'Yeah, of course.'
Ruota's face changed to surprise. He cocked his head and stared at Kokichi considerably. "...Hm, interesting…"
Kokichi just growled in his face. "Jackass! you better tell me where my shit is after I got harassed because of this!! I want answers- gchk?!"
Ruota had wrapped his hand around his throat.
"Quiet. You'd be less of a hassle if you went mute."
Ren couldn't keep watching. He started rummaging in his bag as quietly as he could. He had to help! But as he pulled out his flour bag, he paused. He'd know he was here if he did that. But was he going to just sit here and wait?
Ruota continued, voice threading into a threatening air. "Have you heard? I learned recently that there's an interesting side effect to taking the wrong pheromone medication with some soda… I think you might-"
Pomp!
Ruota was pelted in the back of his head by a half kilo of flour. He looked behind him, only to be hit right in the face. Ruota grunted and tried to rub the flour out his eyes. "What…?"
Ren nodded. 'Okay, go on and run Kokichi! I can just circle back around, but I can't go with you!'
Kokichi burst out laughing again.
"Bahahahaha! Fuck, that's funny as shit! That's what you get you dick!"
Ren slapped his forehead and groaned. He should have left him alone!
Kokichi pulled out his phone with a sneering grin. "Ha! I'm taking a picture and using it as blackmail, you ass-"
Pam!
Kokichi also received a half kilo of flour to his face. Ren internally raged. 'Why did I think to help that idiot…!"
But then Ruota cleared his eyes and looked around the hall. Quietly he muttered something, then hastily walked away.
'Huh? Is he already leaving?!' Ren quickly moved from his hiding spot. 'Then I need to-'
"Agh, Takeshita!"
Kokichi suddenly grabbed onto Ren's back, stopping him from moving.
Kokichi hissed. "Dumbass, you hit me! Look at me, I'm covered in flour now!! Enemies in first person shooters have better aim!!"
Ren grunted. "It was intentional, because you need better timing! I'm busy here but you had to get yourself in trouble and I had to save you again…!"
"Save me? I never asked for you to do anything, you showed up and did it yourself!" Kokichi shouted back.
As he failed to escape Kokichi's moderately firm grip Ren eventually sighed, sagging as he gave up on chasing after Ruota. He'd never catch up now.
Ren loosened from his arms and he flopped on his bag, suddenly feeling himself losing his spirit. He couldn't find the party and now, since he's revealed himself to an Alpha and lost him, his cover was blown. At this point Ruota might have alerted the entire party! By helping him he might have ruined everything!
Kokichi began shaking off the flour on him, loudly complaining. "Your flour attacks are the worst! Do you know how suspicious it is to bring your laundry in covered in white stuff? This is disrespectful to your senpai, you know!"
Ren seethed up at Kokichi tiredly. "Why are you even here? This place is dangerous."
"I should be saying that to you though?! I live here you know!" shouted Kokichi, seemingly unaware of it.
'Right, he is a beta,' Ren thought resignedly. 'And he did have something stolen from him. Plus, those guys earlier mentioned that not all the betas are in on this. I guess Kokichi is a victim here.' Still, he wasn't sure why the Alphas chose the beta dorm in the first place. Why was it the beta dorm, not the Omega dorm or, more obviously, their own dorm. Why here?
He didn't even know something as simple as that. Why was it here, what it had to do with the missing pills, if there even anything he could learn from this.
"...Hey Kokichi-kun," Ren hesitantly asked. "What about being a beta do you think is better than Alphas and Omegas? Do you know?"
Kokichi turned towards him with interest, looking calm and normal for a moment, before he raised an eyebrow with a wide smug grin, putting both fists on his waist in a staunch pose.
"Of course. Betas aren't fucking insane! Alphas think they run the show but without betas this world would catch on fire! You Omegas are only good at distracting Alphas with whiny tantrums and obnoxious bitching so the betas can keep shit from falling apart."
Ren sighed and massaged his forehead. "Of course, what did I expect as a response?" He wasn't even capable of being mad, getting mad at something offensive Kokichi said was like screaming at the rain to stop falling.
That comment about Omegas though especially gave him a mild twitch in his eye, especially something as vibrantly worded as being "bitchy". It's that sort of language that made him think those students he chatted with in the beginning of the year were sexist! What did they mention again? All he remembered now was flowers and being appalled. For his credit, a lot has happened since then!
Omegas didn't seem to get any respect, did they? His omega roommates seemed pretty normal though, though it might be because they made him feel normal sized again.
It wasn't like he entirely disagreed with Kokichi, anyway. He had no clue what he meant by Omegas being a distraction, but the acknowledgement that a member of the control group thought that the Alphas and Omegas were out of their mind was somewhat validating. However, this was coming from Kokichi, so it didn't exactly mean much. Did he really think Betas ran things? From what he'd seen of the school, that was clearly the Alphas! Like he thought, he couldn't listen to anything Kokichi said.
Ren shook his head and got back on his feet. "Forget it. Ruota-kun ran off, but I need to find the rest of the Alphas, so leave me alone." Ren stopped. "Actually, you know where it is? The party I mean."
Kokichi crossed his arms and huffed. "You mean the Alphas throwing that secret party on the third floor lounge? Is that why you're here?"
"The second floor? But there isn't a lounge up there, I already checked there."
"Uh, yes there is!" Kokichi shot back. "I would know, I live here! I guess you missed it because the turn is in a blind spot. They've been poking around there all week, I guess because they can run off in case they get caught. I- hey wait a minute!"
Kokichi grabbed onto Ren again as he started running away. "Hold on! You're here to sneak into the Alpha's party? Are you crazy!?"
"Pipe down and get off me! I have to do this…!" Ren took a step forward, dragging Kokichi's obnoxious weight with him.
Kokichi grabbed onto him tighter, yelling, "Nuh uh! If you go there they'll attack you! If I didn't notice Ruota in the crowd I would be hiding in my room - the Alphas threatened everyone that didn't take the trip to stay out the way! You got there and they'll rip you to shreds!!"
Ren pushed back against Kokichi. The flour still on his head drifted down, and Kokichi sneezed, letting Ren go. Ren kept running Kokichi angrily called after. "Hey! You could have at least apologized for throwing flour at me!!"
Ren moved up the stairs and turned down a hall he knew led to a row of third floor dorm rooms. Indeed, when he actually moved to the end of a hall he thought was a dead end, there was another hall hiding behind a large potted plant.
'Can't believe I missed this twice…' Ren ventured down the hall, suddenly feeling more nervous. He had never been down this way.
Two Beta students emerged from down around a corner, focused on themselves, but as they passed Ren noticed that their demeanor was slightly different: their heads were hunched low and voices kept quiet. He turned his head to follow where they were headed.
Ren froze. An Alpha student was looking right at him down the hall, leaning against the wall. Ren sped away, heart racing. He dared a peek at them again but saw they were looking away, and looked in no rush to investigate.
'Phew. He must not have seen me, though I thought he looked right at me.
looking extremely suspicious crouching down like this… he looked a little zoned out, must be tired.
And from where he was now, finally, he could hear some sounds of larger activity, and the faint sound of some kind of music. He walked hurriedly through with anticipation, heart beginning to pound in his chest. 'Bingo. Finally, I'm here, I-'
He noticed coming up past some of the rooms was an open doorway. A mini lounge? Ren pressed against the wall and peeked his head in for an advantage point to sneak in. Ren's thoughts stopped in their tracks.
'H-Huh?'
———
Masanori opened the door to a dark security office. He let himself in with a formal apologetic tone though no one was inside, turning on the light himself.
'Strange. It's a little early for night security to head off…' Masanori turned back on the monitor, revealing a large range of monitor screens. Masanori scanned the screens, though even with night-vision it was difficult to see.
'Where's the patrol if they're not at the dorm already? Maybe I can see what's going on at the western wall…'
He flipped the set-up to focus on the western outer cameras, but he still couldn't see anyone. He sighed. Was he going to have to head over there himself?
That's when he noticed a flicker from one of the screens. And once he noticed it the display changed.
'Huh? Was the camera lagging?'
Now he could see something, and it wasn't good.
'Is that the trail of a water hose? Shit. A fire, on school grounds?'
It must have been small or he would have smelled it on his way to the main building, but this didn't look good.
Masanori flopped himself down on the desk chair, kneading his forehead. 'Did the patrol run off to help with this? I give them too much independence. They should have tried to report it to me first.'
Masanori frowned, knowing first thing why he let them do things independently when it came to ordering other Alphas around.
'Never mind that. Arson is rare here, I'll have to ask Aruki Sensei the best course for punishment… m?'
Masanori suddenly rose from the chair and turned to face the door.
'Why is he...?'