The final bell rang, echoing through the halls. Students spilled out of their classrooms instantly, laughing, stretching, and celebrating their newfound freedom.
Hiro didn't rush, though. He stayed seated for a moment, leaning back with a tired sigh before finally dragging himself up and slinging his backpack over one shoulder.
"Ugh… I gotta pick a club."
He shuffled out of the classroom and into the hallway, already regretting ever promising himself he'd find a club today.
He seriously needed to stop making deals that accept Future Hiro like that. Future Hiro always suffered for it.
Students around him buzzed with energy, heading toward their clubs, chatting excitedly, or making weekend plans at the mall or arcade.
Hiro watched them pass, envy dripping from his soul.
"Lucky bastards…" he muttered under his breath.
He adjusted his bag and started walking toward the exit, weaving through clusters of students. In truth, he was seconds away from fully giving up, going home, and pretending clubs didn't exist.
But as he moved past the large bulletin board outside his classroom, he didn't even look at it. He kept walking.
Three more steps.
Then he froze.
He stepped backward like someone hit the rewind button, eyes narrowing.
"…Wait."
He turned toward the board.
"Oh? Looks like I found something that answers my prayers for help."
Colorful posters covered every inch of the corkboard. Hiro leaned in, scanning the club advertisements.
Karate Club.
"Eh… I used to do Taekwondo as a kid. Stopped at the blue belt. Should probably finish someday but…nah."
Drama Club.
"Tempting, but not really helpful right now."
Swimming.
"Nope."
Tennis.
"Nope."
Astronomy.
"Nope."
Chess Club.
"Nope. I refuse to be destroyed by a board game prodigy again. I have had enough of that from Josuke on family game night ."
He kept zipping through his options, increasingly unimpressed.
"Nope… nope… nope… nope… nope…"
"Man, is there anything good here—?"
His voice cut off.
His eyes locked onto a clean, bold poster near the center:
ENGINEERING & DESIGN CLUB/ Kōgaku Dezain Bubu
Create. Innovate. Build something worth remembering.
The poster featured students working with miniature architectural models, drones, sketches, and 3D-printed designs.
Hiro blinked.
"…Oh."
His head tilted slightly.
"…Ohhh."
A grin crept onto his face.
"That… actually sounds perfect."
He reached out and tore off one of the sign-up tabs at the bottom, slipping it into his pocket like precious loot.
"Heh… fate actually came through for once. This will definitely come back to bite me in the ass..."
"But I mean, common, it's the Engineering & Design Club. How bad could it be?"
He turned away from the bulletin board and started heading down the hallway toward the club rooms. The building grew quieter the further he walked; most students had already rushed off to their activities. Only a few lingering voices echoed faintly from the far end of the corridor.
Hiro followed the signs posted above the classrooms:
Music → (音楽部 / Ongakubu)
Literature → (文芸部 / Bungeibu)
Science Lab → (科学部 / Kagakubu)
He turned the corner.
The hallways were completely silent save for the people inside the club doors, who sounded more like muffled voices; basically, think of it like the panicked cries of someone who's gagged and tied up.
'Why did I compare it to that, you may ask?'
'Stop asking so many questions, disembodied voices in my head. '
As he walked, he engaged in mental banter, like any sane person would do when bored out of their mind to make something more exciting. He walked past a couple of workshop rooms filled with the faint hum of machines and the clatter of tools.
Then he saw it.
─────╽ワンピース╽─────
ENGINEERING & DESIGN CLUBROOM – 3B-12
(工学・デザイン部室)
─────╽ワンピース╽─────
The door was propped open by a cardboard box full of wires and scrap parts. Light spilled out from the room, warm and slightly chaotic. Something buzzed inside. Something else clattered. Then something exploded, softly, like a toy firecracker.
"…That's not concerning at all," Hiro whispered.
He stepped closer to peek inside and see what this was all about. Hiro leaned in, just enough to see past the doorframe.
He never got the chance.
Because the second he peeked inside—
BAM.
Something, no, someone, shot out of the room at full speed.
"WA—!"
Their foreheads collided with the force of two coconuts slamming together. Hiro saw a flash of white, a spark of pain, and then his body flopped backwards onto the hallway floor.
"Gah—?!"
The girl who hit him bounced off in the opposite direction, landing on her butt with a squeak.
"Ow—! That's gonna bruise…"
Before Hiro could even groan, she scrambled up like a startled cat and lunged toward him.
In half a second, she was hovering above him, knees on either side of his hips, leaning over him so close he could attempt to count her eyelashes. Her face filled his entire field of vision.
"ARE YOU OKAY?! CAN YOU HEAR ME?! HOW MANY FINGERS AM I HOLDING UP, WAIT THAT'S STUPID, I'M NOT HOLDING ANY, ARE YOU BLEEDING?!"
Hiro blinked up at her. Her hair was a little frizzy, she smelled faintly of machine oil, and her golden eyes were wide with absolute panic. She was close. Like… very close.
"Uh… I-I'm… I'm good," Hiro managed, brain lagging like bad Wi-Fi. "Just got surprise-headbutted by a small missile, that's all."
She leaned even closer, their noses practically touching.
"Oh, thank goodness! I thought I broke a new student! The last thing I need is another complaint form, otherwise Fubuki is going to kill me for sure…"
She paused, then her eyes widened as she realized exactly the position she was in.
"…Oh. Oh."
Her face went bright red.
"I, uh, I, THIS ISN'T WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE!!"
She flung herself backward so fast she nearly flipped, landing on her feet in a flustered crouch.
Hiro finally exhaled. What. The. Hell.
This girl… was definitely going to be trouble.
She finally straightened, took a deep breath, and extended a hand toward him.
"Oh, right! I'm Aoyama Mei! President of… um, the Engineering & Design Club! Nice to meet you!"
Hiro blinked at her hand, still unsure whether to shake it or make a break for it.
"…Hiro. Katsuhisa Hiro," he said cautiously, sliding into a half-shake.
Her golden eyes sparkled as she beamed.
"Great! Now that introductions are out of the way… let's get you signed up!"
"Actually, I'm—" Hiro began, only to be cut off.
"NO TIME! MOVE!"
Before he could finish, Mei grabbed his arm and dragged him inside the room. He grumbled under his breath about blondes, but resistance was useless.
A desk covered in wires, a half-built drone, and blueprints of impossible contraptions appeared. Mei shoved him into a chair, flipping open the sign-up sheet. Hiro scribbled his name as quickly as possible while muttering complaints.
"Finished!" he gasped.
"Perfect!" Mei said triumphantly, pulling a brightly colored party popper from her pocket. She twirled it, aimed, and POP! Confetti rained everywhere.
She laughed as if it were the most normal thing in the world. Then, without warning, she lunged and wrapped her arms around Hiro in a tight hug, practically rubbing against him.
"I can't wait to see what you'll do here! I bet you're going to be amazing!"
Hiro froze, caught between panic and flustered disbelief. He barely had time to say anything when the door creaked open again.
Another girl and two guys stepped in. The girl sighed, stepped forward, and SMACK.
Her hand hit the back of Mei's head. Mei froze, blinking rapidly.
Then slowly, her entire expression reset into a flat, robotic stare.
"…Hi, Fubuki… sir, miss, ma'am," she intoned mechanically.
Fubuki sighed audibly.
"I told Mei to stop doing that," she said, her voice a mix of exasperation and warning. "It makes people super uncomfortable."
Mei mumbled, her robotic tone gone, "I just wanted to show my excitement with a new club member…"
One of the guys chuckled, pointing at Hiro. "Yeah… one day you're gonna get a charge for sexual harassment."
The other guy doubled over, nearly in tears, laughing. "I can't… I'm just dying. This is too funny."
Fubuki shot Mei a glare. "Wait… how did you manage to convince this poor guy to stick around?"
Mei grinned proudly. "I used my incredible charm and people skills."
Everyone immediately shouted out. "BULLSHIT!!"
Hiro, meanwhile, leaned against the window, staring outside. 'Could I survive a fall right now?' he wondered.
"Don't bother," one of the guys said, smirking.
"See those grills out the window that make it look like we're in a prison? That's because someone had the same idea and almost died trying to escape her."
Hiro's stomach dropped. 'Why did I decide to come here...somebody save me!'
Fubuki crossed her arms, exhaling in annoyance.
"Alright. Since we clearly skipped the proper introductions, let's do this. I'm Kaneshiro Fubuki, vice-president of the Engineering & Design Club. And I make sure Mei doesn't destroy the school."
Mei puffed up her chest, golden eyes shining. "I am Aoyama Mei! President of this amazing club! And I will personally make sure you all learn something as well as having as much fun as possible!"
The twins leaned casually against a workbench, smirking at all of this. "I'm Tanaka Haruto," said one.
"And I'm Tanaka Hayato," the other added, waving lazily. "We are the ones who usually test out stuff here to make sure they don't blow up. We're about a month or two into this, but so far we haven't died to a prototype Mei made, so that's a good sign. "
Hiro blinked at them, feeling the weight of the words. "..."
Haruto grinned. "Don't worry, new guy. The last 'dangerous prototype' incident only scorched the ceiling."
Hayato nodded. "And we only set off the smoke alarm twice."
Hiro's eyes widened. "…Oh. Fantastic."
The room fell into an awkward pause before everyone's attention turned to him. Hiro took a deep breath, trying to act as composed as possible.
"…I-I'm Katsuhisa Hiro," he said, bowing slightly. "Please… take care of me."
Mei clapped her hands with excitement. "Yes! Welcome officially, Hiro! This is going to be so much fun!"
Haruto leaned back against the workbench, arms crossed, smirking. "Eh… let's see if you make it a week first before we start making promises, newbie."
Hiro groaned, pressing a hand against his forehead as he watched Mei, oblivious to boundaries, rub her shoulder against his arm while still smiling as if everything were perfectly normal.
"For the love of God, Buchō," he muttered, fingers pinching the bridge of his nose, "please learn about PERSONAL SPACE!!"
Mei blinked, tilting her head like she didn't quite understand what he meant. "But… I'm just showing you how excited I am! Isn't this… normal?"
Hiro froze, staring straight at Mei, his eyes narrowing and his brow furrowing. He tilted his head slightly, trying to find any hint that she was joking, or, at the very least, pretending to be sane.
"…You're serious?" he asked slowly, voice tinged with disbelief.
Mei's golden eyes blinked innocently, and her grin didn't waver. "Of course! Why wouldn't I be?"
Hiro's mouth fell open slightly. He slowly dragged a hand down his face, muttering under his breath, "…Oh no… I'm so doomed."
Fubuki, standing a few feet away with arms crossed, let out a long sigh. "Yep. That's your life now. Good luck surviving a week without having a minor heart attack."
Hayato snickered, clearly enjoying Hiro's misery. Haruto just shook his head with a grin. "Welcome to the club, new guy. Don't say we didn't warn you."
Hiro blinked at Mei, his expression somewhere between horror and resignation. After a long pause, he let out a slow, defeated sigh, shoulders slumping.
"You know what…? I don't care anymore," he muttered, rubbing his face.
Mei's eyes sparkled even brighter, completely missing his resignation. "Yay! That's the spirit! You're going to love it here, Hiro!"
Hiro stared at her for a long moment, unblinking, his brain filing this under 'I-should-have-just-gone-home'. Then he muttered under his breath, barely audible, "Future me… you're really going to hate today."