Chapter Text
"-So unless there's anything else, I think we can move on," Hajime said, laying down his binder and glancing around the room. He wasn't really surprised to see no hands; at that point in the school year, there wasn't much left for the student council to do, short of one final thing.
And since he couldn't help with that, that left only one more thing for him.
"Ok," Hajime said, once he'd satisfied himself there was nothing else. "In that case, that just leaves the last agenda item," he said, his eyes flicking once more to the binder in front of him as he read, "graduation."
The pause in the wake of that word felt like it lasted an eternity, though Hajime knew it was only a few seconds. Then he took a deep breath.
"Before myself and the third-year class reps leave, I'd like to take a moment to thank you all," he said, looking once more around the room, at the four tables arranged into a large square. For the past school year, he had presided over that group at least once a month: over the twelve class reps, four from each grade level, and the four other members of the actual student council.
Of his student council.
"Student government can be thankless," Hajime said, "and often difficult. But it goes a lot smoother with good people, and I've been really lucky to have you all working with me over this past year. Those of you who stay on next year as class reps, I hope you continue to support President Iwasaki the way you've supported me; those of you who aren't, whether because you're also graduating or simply stepping down, it's been a privilege to work with you."
Hajime looked around the table at the twelve class reps, each grade sitting on their own side of the square table. Then he glanced, briefly, down his own side of the table, at his actual dedicated council: first-year rep Sawa Mitoma, treasurer Mio Hasegawa, secretary Chiaki Hasada, and...
Snapping his head back to look out over the room, Hajime exhaled. "It's been my honor to serve as your president this year," he said, rising to his feet, and the rest of the room did the same. "Thank you all, and I wish you all the best."
He bowed, and the other students bowed back. Then he straightened up, sliding the binder to his left.
"Third years, you can go. I yield the chair to the vice president."
There was a scraping of chairs as the rest of the students sat down, and Hajime and the four third-year class reps reached for their bags. But then he paused as a timid voice called out,
"President?"
Hajime looked up, across the table to one of the first-year class reps, a girl who was still standing and nervously fidgeting with her skirt.
"Yes?" he asked, and the girl took a deep breath.
"I just want to say, thank you! For all you've done this year. You've been a really great president, and I wish you all the best, too!"
Hajime blinked at the girl, who almost collapsed back into her chair with a bright red face. Then he was aware of other voices echoing her words, not just from the other first-year reps, but the whole room:
"Yeah, you've been great, President!"
"It's been an honor, President Sohma!"
"President Iwasaki's got pretty big shoes to fill, President."
"Thank you for everything, President!"
"Thanks for being such a good leader!"
"It's not gonna be the same without you in charge, President."
"Good luck tomorrow, President!"
At first, Hajime didn't know quite how to respond. But as he straightened up, he was grinning, and it was with that same sheepish grin that he looked around the room one last time.
"Thanks, everyone," he said, feeling strangely awkward but touched, all the same. "Take care, all of you, and like I said, it's been an honor."
"Your student council president, ladies and gentlemen, for the very last time."
Hajime's grip on his bag tightened at the voice both playful and tender, and for a moment he was torn. In all his time spent looking around the room, there was one face he'd tried not to notice, one set of eyes he'd done his best to avoid. But here, now, in his last moment before walking out that door, he decided he could risk one final look.
Mutsuki sat in the same seat he had all year: the spot to Hajime's left, the traditional seat of the student council vice president. He sat there now with Hajime's binder in front of him, open to the page that Hajime had never actually reviewed: the graduation checklist.
Because Hajime, and the other third years, weren't supposed to; because they were the ones who were leaving.
For one brief moment, brown eyes met grey, and Hajime and Mutsuki both smiled. Then Hajime took a deep breath, and with one final wave, he and the other four third years walked out of the room, Mutsuki's strong voice the last thing he heard before pulling the door closed behind them:
"Based on today's rehearsal and a final inspection of the gym-"
Hajime and the other third years walked down the hall together, their footsteps echoing in the empty hallway as they approached the staircase. Then his own class rep looked at him.
"Miura was right you know, Sohma," he said, referring to the first-year class rep. "You really were a hell of a president."
Hajime cracked a smile. "Thanks, Tamura, though I didn't do anything any other president wouldn't have done."
"Not necessarily, Sohma," said 3-B's rep, Ueda. "I can't speak for all of us," he said, glancing at the other class reps, "but of the three presidents I've worked with here, you've easily been the best."
"No, I agree," said 3-D's Fujita. "Remember Miyazaki, from first year?"
"You mean the guy who never so much as made eye contact with first years?" 3-C's Taniguchi said, snorting.
"President Sugawara wasn't terrible," Ueda pointed out, "just terribly unorganized."
"Understatement of the year," Tamura grumbled. "There's nothing worse than being hounded for reports you'd turned in already, only to find out you were being hounded because they were 'misplaced.'"
The other reps all agreed, then smiled at Hajime.
"I wonder if that's not part of why they went with you after him, Sohma," Taniguchi teased. "They didn't wanna run the risk of another president losing every third thing."
Since Hajime had been teased a lot about his commitment to order and organization, he wasn't quite sure if he was being teased or not. But he did know it was good-natured, whether a joke or serious, and he allowed himself to grin as they all made their way down the stairs.
"So if I was picked because President Sugawara was unorganized, then what flaw of mine would you say President Iwasaki was picked to counter?"
"Who knows?" Ueda asked, shrugging. "For the rest of their sakes, I hope you guys were thorough in your review process, though."
"You really think that Sohma wouldn't be?" Fujita asked, and they all laughed.
"I actually left most of the final decision-making to the others," Hajime admitted, earning more laughter. "I figured that they'd know their own peers better than I do, and I trust their judgement."
"You had a pretty good council," Taniguchi agreed.
"For real," said Tamura. "I'm honestly surprised that none of them are staying on for next year."
Hajime shrugged. "None of them wanted to. I can't say I blame them; studying for entrance exams is hard enough without adding on student council responsibilities on top of it."
The rest of them all agreed with that, then Fujita looked around.
"So, you all get into your first-choice universities?"
"Yes."
"No, but I got my second."
"Yeah."
"No," Ueda said glumly. "Nor my second, or my third either. It's the ronin life for me this year," he said, and they all winced.
"Well, better luck next time," Taniguchi said, patting his shoulder. "Hopefully with nothing else going on except studying this year, you'll be all set to knock it out of the park next time."
"That's the hope," Ueda sighed, then looked at Hajime. "So, where are you headed, Sohma?"
"Chiba University," Hajime said, and the others nodded approvingly; if there were any hints of surprise, they passed by quickly.
"You have family connections to Chiba?" Fujita asked, and Hajime shook his head.
"No, but it has a program I'm interested in."
"And I supposed the distance from here isn't too terrible, either," Taniguchi said, nudging Hajime slightly. "In case you find yourself missing anyone too much."
In spite of himself, Hajime blushed, but he managed to keep his tone neutral as he said,
"We'll see."
The five of them parted ways at the shoe lockers, and Hajime put his school slippers into his locker almost without seeing them. Then he once more hefted his bag over his shoulder, and he stepped outside into the cool late March afternoon.
'Your student council president, ladies and gentlemen, for the very last time.'
It was strange, Hajime reflected as he made his way down the sidewalk. A year ago, when he'd first been told he'd been chosen to take over the presidency, he had been appalled; he'd never had the tiniest interest in student government, and he'd said as much when he'd initially been asked.
'Would you at least think it over, Sohma, please? We've talked it over, and we really think you'd do a great job.'
He and Mutsuki had sat up every night for a week, Mutsuki listening patiently while Hajime went back and forth on the pros and cons of the position. Hajime's first instinct, as well as his second, and third, had been to reject it; he would be a third year, after all, and as an aspiring university student, that meant studying, and lots of it.
He might have been more amenable if Kaibara High hadn't changed things up in the years since their parents had been in school; back when Yuki had been the president, the student council terms had begun and ended halfway through the year, rather than aligning with the school year itself.
He would much rather have started halfway through his second year and been done before his third-year summer break.
In the end, though, he had bowed to the pressure and accepted the role. He'd always struggled to back away from responsibility, and the previous council's arguments for him had been strong. And to their credit, they'd picked a strong team to support him.
'So I've got a confession to make, Mr. President.'
He doubted he would have accepted the position, though, if he'd known they'd asked Mutsuki to be his vice president.
'Seriously, Mutsuki? You accepted, just like that, without even asking me what I thought?'
'What's there to think about? Yes, I admit I'm not at your level when it comes to organization, but really, is anyone?'
'That's not the problem, and you know it!'
Hajime had been angry then; angrier than he could ever recall being with Mutsuki in their lives. And before their conversation was over, Mutsuki had been angry, too.
'Maybe you should tell me what the problem is, Hajime, and why you're so upset.'
'You know why!'
'Honestly? I don't think I do, because I thought this would be fun.'
'How? Student council is a job, Mutsuki, one with a lot of responsibility!'
'Jobs can be fun, too, Hajime, especially when you're doing them with people you like.'
'And you don't see the problem?'
'No, I don't! I clearly like you, you clearly like me-'
'-If we're on the student council together, we'll be around each other all the time at school. At least two or three afternoons a week, minimum, and that's not touching on festival seasons, or the monthly all-council meetings-'
'-I get it, it's a commitment. Believe it or not, Hajime, I do intend to pull my weight on the council...though it helps they tapped me for VP. As long as you do your job, which I fully trust you to do, mine is relatively easy!'
'It's nothing to do with the job, damnit!'
Mutsuki's beautiful eyes had narrowed then, with a coldness in them that Hajime had never actually seen.
'Are you saying you don't trust me, Hajime? That you don't trust me to behave, if we're around each other at school?'
The accusation had been cutting, and Hajime's silence had been so long Mutsuki started to take it for an answer.
'I thought you knew me better than that-'
'-It's not you, ok? It's not you I'm worried about, Mutsuki, it's me!'
It had only ever been him.
What a difference a year could make, Hajime reflected as he made his way down the street. A year ago, he had had been unsure and afraid of so much: afraid of whether he could handle the responsibility, afraid of whether he would do a good job. Afraid of whether his council would regret having to work with him.
Afraid...of being discovered.
Today, all those fears were behind him. He had sailed through his exams, and gotten into his first-choice university. He had diligently served his term as president, leaving, from the sound of it, almost total satisfaction in his wake.
'With your boyfriend?'
And he had done it, in the end, with the entire school knowing he and Mutsuki were a couple.
Almost all of it was over now, though. That day had been his last meeting of the student council; tomorrow, he would graduate. He would walk up to the podium, in front of the entire student body, the teachers, and parents, and deliver his final speech: this time, on behalf of and to the graduates. Then he would walk out those doors...and he would be done.
Hajime had never liked goodbyes, but he’d never struggled with them; he allowed himself to feel the sting of separation, and to mourn what he was leaving, but once the next door was open, he stepped through it without hesitating. Leaving home to go to high school in Tokyo had been hard, but he had known it was the right choice, and that had ultimately made the decision easy. Just like it was the right decision to go to university in Chiba...even though it meant, once more, leaving 'home.'
Hajime felt a pang in his chest as he reached the top of the hill and the familiar old house came into view. Living there had been his idea; he had been the one to stand there, his hand on the locked gate, and study the house through the bars. He had been the one to make the plan, and to approach Kinu; he had been the one most determined to make it work.
He had come to Tokyo with a purpose: to walk in his parents' footsteps, and to better understand them, himself and his heritage. So much had changed since he'd first made that tentative decision; when he'd first started considering the idea, he'd had no idea just how unique that heritage was. Learning about the Zodiac Curse had been a shock, but it had cemented his desire not just to go to Kaibara High, but to share every experience of his parents’ he could.
As Hajime raised his hand to open the door, his eyes darted to the side and he looked at the bracelet currently sliding down his wrist. For three years now he had worn that bracelet; now, it was almost a part of him.
The beads his father had worn because he’d had to, worn by Hajime entirely by choice.
The house his parents had lived in, the house where they had met, now Hajime's home for the past two years.
The school his parents had attended, the reason Tohru knew Yuki and had been invited into that house at all.
The dojo that had been his father’s first true home, still run by the grandfather Hajime adored.
There had been so many things, all connecting him to the past. If he looked around, he could almost see Tohru and Kyo as they’d been two decades prior; he could imagine them as they would have been, back when they were his age.
But now...soon...it would all be over.
The connections would sever. Tomorrow he would leave that school; in a couple more days, he would leave that house.
He had already left that dojo.
And as Hajime stepped into the house, he took a deep breath.
That chapter of his life, the chapter where he had squared his shoulders and prepared for adulthood, was ending. The person looking back at him in the mirror wasn't a boy any longer, and it was time for the man to shake off the comfort of the familiar. To step into the world, not as his parents' son, but as himself.
He just wished it could all be that easy.
Hajime had had a lot of options for how to spend his last night as a student. The other members of the student council all planned to get together after the meeting; his friends from class had invited him to join them for a movie. His Sohma friends had suggested they all go bowling. Michi had teasingly invited him to come out to dinner with her and her parents. Mutsuki had asked if he wanted to go out and do something.
But in the end, Hajime had turned them all down. He had already spent time with the student council and his friends earlier that week; he and his Sohma friends hung out all the time, plus they had plans for the following day. He had literally zero desire to go out to dinner with Kakeru. And as much as he appreciated Mutsuki's offer, he didn't really feel like going out, and he told Mutsuki to go ahead and join the rest of the student council; the rest of them would all still be in school together for another year, but tonight was the ending of their time on the council, and that deserved to be celebrated.
Instead, Hajime changed into sweats and his favorite ratty old t-shirt, then made himself instant ramen in the microwave, which he ate standing up at the kitchen counter. Then he went back upstairs, passing the door to his mother's old bedroom, which they'd always used as a glorified closet. Past his father's old bedroom, his for the past two years. Past Yuki's, which had likewise been Mutsuki's. And out onto the balcony, where he stood for a moment before turning and climbing up the ladder to the roof.
The roof had never been his thing in the way it had always been his father's. Kyo loved roofs, and high places in general; he tended to spend time on the roof almost every night, assuming it wasn't raining, icy, or 'too damn cold.' Hajime, meanwhile, had always preferred his room, both at home and there in Tokyo, but there were times when the roof's call was almost a siren song.
Usually when he needed to think.
That night, as he settled himself out in the middle of the roof and laid back on his arms, it was definitely a night to think. And he found himself wishing, not for the first time, that his parents had been able to catch an earlier train.
They'd be there tomorrow, he knew, sitting out in the audience with Kazuma, Yuki and Machi, and probably Kakeru and Komaki too. His brother and sister wouldn't be with them; Kaibara High's graduation that year was the week before the end of term at Nigeyashi, and Katsuro and Sachiko had another week left before the end of class. Hajime would have been happy to see them, but he'd be lying if he said he was disappointed they weren’t coming; it was a rare thing, having their parents all to himself, and it was about to get rarer.
He would have liked to be able to talk to them, that night. To hear how they had felt the night before their graduation, right before they had moved away. Even though their situations weren't exactly the same, they were still close enough, and he always liked their advice.
But he couldn't complain. Kyo had taken three whole days off so they could be there not only for his graduation, but to also help him move; they'd be in the area until Tuesday morning, which ought to give them all plenty of time to talk...
Even if the first time he'd be seeing them was at the graduation ceremony itself.
Sighing, he closed his eyes. That night, for the first time in what felt like forever, there was nothing he needed to do. He'd turned in his homework and taken his last exams; most of his possessions were already packed in neatly labelled boxes. The uniform he'd be wearing the next day was washed, ironed, and hanging up, including the detested necktie he'd worn exactly five times since starting high school. His speech was written, rewritten, and rehearsed.
On paper, he was ready...
If only he were paper, himself.