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Chapter 1

April 1, 2015

One thing I wanted to do after leaving that place was to make friends, and maybe uncover the beauty of deep connection. They say that in order to understand a person's story, you must first live in their shoes.

Obviously, that doesn't mean you literally have to put on their shoes, but it does make sense.

Robin hood is one person people look up to. His life may have been described as 'cool' or 'noble', but it never seemed so in my view. Stealing from the wealthy and gifting the plunder to the poor was rather reckless. Firstly, one cannot be lucky enough to flee the law successfully every time. Secondly, giving to the poor is illogical to me. Couldn't he have used that money for himself?

The more I attempted to understand it, the more it evaded me, therefore, it was a waste of resources to think about it any further.

I pushed the door and entered my assigned classroom, class D. A few individuals peeked momentary glances my way before looking away. I searched for my allotted seat and discovered it in the corner.

Appreciating the convenient location, I plunged my bottom into the chair and relished in its cool sensation. Warmer might be more comfortable, but cool is also sweet for the skin. Not that my skin was exposed, since these trousers were quite thick.

I decided to inspect the phone I was given. Sliding through the differing applications, I arrived at one portion in the 'Student Information' tab. A picture showing my face popped up, and I vividly recalled the time I had to take a selfie before the camera during the interview session. That was the first time I'd taken a picture of myself, literally.

Another thing caught my attention. Why did I have something called... 'points'? For some reason, these points were quantified as one-hundred thousand. I guess I could ask someone later, but it was peculiar.

I stared outside the window, clicking spiritually with the flapping white pelicans. That was my guardian animal; I just knew it! I desired to experience that luscious freedom; to do whatever the hell I wanted without any wet blankets intruding. Perhaps even a bit of peace in that, as Gandhi would have liked.

The clock on the wall struck without emitting any sounds and entranced me until I heard a dragging sound by my right side. Turning my head, I regarded my neighbour, noting that our meeting was a first.

"Good morning," I greeted while giving a light nod. "The weather is nice, is it not?"

She sent me a pensive glance, probably caught off guard by my initiative in speaking. "Good morning to you as well." The dark-haired girl picked her book and continued unfurling its inner contents, no longer taking notice of me.

Well, if she doesn't want to interact, then I can't force her. We live in a democratic age, after all.

Although. . . she's just too pretty to ignore!

This will probably make her annoyed, but I must do this.

"Crime and punishment? A good read, I must commend. Do you enjoy books such as these?"

Just to note, I wasn't lying about having read it. The tale grips the reader from start to finish, despite its filthiness. Simply put, it left a bad taste in my mouth.

"You've read this before?" she asked, to which I gave a nod. "Currently at the halfway make. Hopefully, I can finish it soon enough."

"Halfway? I assume you started this morning, then. What's your name? We should meet soon enough to have more in-depth discussions concerning literature of this kind."

She might not have agreed to give out her name, considering her staunch seriousness. My interest in her perked up, and I wanted to know just how girls my age operated. What were their interests? With what fashion did they adorn themselves? How did they talk? Mostly these questions, for the sake of normality.

"It's hard to turn your request down, since you do seem very educated. You may refer to me as Horikita. Also, I did start reading this morning. How can anyone make such a guess?" she approved while arching a brow.

"I just did," I shrugged my shoulders as I said so. "Besides, weren't you there on the same bus? I think a girl with black hair reading a book is quite impressionable for the mind's subconscious, Horikita."

"You do have a point. . ." she turned away, as if in contemplation. "Let's exchange numbers. I would like to talk more."

Wow. . . First number from a girl. . .

Life is going to be great!

"Sure, let's do that. Also, my name is Ayanokōji Kiyotaka," I mentioned it since she strangely did not ask.

"I've already noticed it on your nameplate, Ayanokōji-kun. My eyes work just fine."

Okay. . .? Loners are typically observant of their surroundings, courtesy of their lack of compensating hobbies. It should come as no surprise that Horikita didn't ask for it but chose to read instead.

"Does that mean my eyes aren't working, using your logic?"

"No. Rather, you chose to ask a perfectly obvious question without paying attention to the answers before you. That's all."

Her logic was valid. Her responses were always witty and to-the-point. I liked this girl.

"True enough, Horikita," I acquiesced. "My number is: ########"

"And mine is: ########"

I had a feeling ― things would go well with this new acquaintance of mine. She wasn't too mean, nor was she bothering me with her speech. Horikita was just uncouth in her delicacies and by no means a people-pleaser.

We both turned our heads to the front when a grown lady waltzed into the classroom, punctuating each footstep such that is reverberates on the walls. The teacher was probably the strict type, valuing firm discipline.

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

"Class, please quiet down. The matriculation guidelines will be handed out. Take one and pass the rest."

From then on, she explained everything about the S-system. Some parts of her wording did strike me as odd, but it didn't cause much alarm internally. Even Horikita was frowning as she mentioned a hundred-thousand points.

It was incredibly strange, really.

"Are there any questions?" Chabashira-sensei circulated across the room with her eyes, and a dirty-blonde boy raised his hand.

"Yes, Hirata?" Immediately, some of the females in his vicinity became excited at the mention of his name. Prince Charming, is that you?

"Sensei, I need to give this a mention. How do we give points to other people? At least, in the case where we want to lend to a classmate or friend?"

Chabashira-sensei instructed us to look at an application called 'Balance Enquiry'. Apparently, we could send our own points to a classmate by clicking on their profile and choosing how much to give.

I was impressed by how lag-free the phone and application were. It showed us all forty of our classmates' names and showed their amount of points as well. One minor concern I would raise with this is how breaching it was of the students' privacy.

"Any further questions?"

"Sensei, is there some sort of reason for getting this many points? My parents certainly did not give this much free allowance to me, y'know?" a beige-haired girl mouthed her concerns.

"I've already said it before, right? For passing the entrance exams, you deserve this reward. Go ahead and live fulfilling student lives, everyone."

With that all said and done, the teacher left amidst the joyous airing of celebration. Just for passing the entrance exams, we get this much money? Interesting. . .

As this was happening, I watched one boy rise with a pleased expression on his face, donning a beautiful smile. He politely asked us to hold an introduction session, and many voices approved. So, he started with his soothing tone.

"My name is Hirata Yōsuke, and it's a pleasure to meet all of you! Feel free to call me by my given name, since I personally don't mind. My hobby has been and always will be football, and I'm planning to join the club here too. Let's have bright days in this school, alright?"

His introduction had a certain formula to it: First, he told everyone his name, and gave permission to use his given name as a way to establish himself amiably. Next, he gave a clear statement about his love for soccer, which is a sport many continue to pay attention to today. Then, he ended with a cheesy statement about bright days. Essentially, he sounds like a typical Shōnen character.

What a man, indeed.

As the introductions went on, I gave a glance at the gorgeous Horikita's direction. She seemed bored with the current events, and likely about to leave. I petitioned her, "Hey, do you think we can hang out after this?"

She agreed, and everything went by in the blink of an eye.

1

Departing after introducing myself, I caught up to Horikita who surprisingly waited for me outside the first-year block. Amazing that she would do such a thing, really.

I grabbed her shoulders.

"Hey!" she chided.

"You seemed so engrossed in your book that I doubt you'd have heard me. It's a necessary sacrifice, really," I explained.

"Okay. That makes sense, but I still dislike that sort of physical contact, Ayanokōji-kun."

"Sorry about that, but where should we go? Either to your bedroom, or the library?" my voice rose at the end, showing my uncertainty.

She rose an eyebrow. "Convenience store," she gushed, refusing to elaborate any further. Then, she grabbed my hand and pulled me along with her. I didn't dislike the sensation, so I made no attempts to resist.

Didn't you just say you hated this kind of physical contact?

After about two minutes of walking, we arrived. The place had a fresh smell, indicating that cleaning was done very recently. At the very least, that was good for us since we wouldn't agonize over the avoidance of floor filth.

"Are cup noodles healthy?" I asked, lifting a cup labelled size B. The specifics of these measurements were lost on me, and I could barely understand what they entailed.

"I couldn't affirm such. If we were to inspect the nutritional value section, that would give a clear answer, wouldn't you say?"

She was indeed right about that, but companies can also lie about the nutritional composition of their food products. Even if you argue that it was FDA-approved, there is still room for trickery in that vein. Thus, I needed to be ascertained to the overall safety.

"Do you believe what you say, Horikita? Is it trustworthy in your opinion?" I probed for her honest thoughts on this matter, looking directly into her crimson circles.

"That's. . ." she trailed off, drooping her voice. "I don't know."

"Okay, what are you going to buy, Horikita?"

"Collectively speaking, I intend to purchase groceries, toiletries and maybe something else tomorrow," she explained.

"In that case, I'll just take whatever you take. It's a less stressful alternative."

My admittance alarmed her, causing her to question me. "Have you never went shopping in your life? Such poor decision-making is just bizzare!"

"I agree, which is why I'm copying your list," I nodded. "Will that be an annoyance at all? I'd hope not. . ."

She pursed her lips, coming to terms with my request. "Fine. But I hope this is not a frequent habit come the next day. You need to have some basic knowledge about these things, Ayanokōji-kun."

"Yare yare daze."

"Did you say something?"

"Nah, it's nothing."

What dangerous super ears!

Eventually, the task was completed. I copied the majority of Horikita's shopping list, consisting of: a toothbrush, tissues, face cream, hair food and the like.

She even went as far as to teach me about these foods.

Stuff along the lines of: "Carrots have the vitamin b9, also known as foliate. Folic acid is crucial for proper brain function and plays an important role in mental and emotional health. It aids in the production of DNA and RNA, the body's genetic material, and is especially important when cells and tissues are growing rapidly, such as in infancy, adolescence, and pregnancy."

I was astounded that she could memorize such trivial loads of information.

Although, this is just a miniscule piece of the education I received in that place. Of course, men can't get pregnant, but the other benefits fit well for all people. Balance is absolutely necessary when considering the consumption of food.

"...kun?" A mature voice brought me out of my trance. "Ayanokōji-kun, you're daydreaming."

"I was. Sorry about that."

"Placation must be another of your quirks, yes?" a rhetorical question escaped her lips.

"Indeed," sarcastically, I agreed, but would Horikita be able to understand me?

2

The cooling overture cast us into a shiver as we exited the shop. My eyes drifted over to her lower part as the skirt was lifted by the wind.

Purple, huh? Interesting colour.

"Horikita, we should hurry. The wind seems to increase aggression second by second."

We started our dash, but --

"Move! You're holding up the line, dude!"

"Oh yeah?! Tell them to say it out loud! Unless they're too scared to say it?"

We heard an argument erupt from the inside. Whoever the second person was, their vocabulary was spectacularly unimpressive; they literally said the same thing twice. A better way would've been for them to say, "unless they're to scared to do so?"

Not only did it for better on the ears, but it required less exertion of effort from the tongue.

"Should we help out or not, Horikita?"

"Absolutely not."

Should've seen that one coming.

We left the place in a hurry, ignoring our aching fingers along the way. Nevertheless, it wasn't that bad. Careful consideration would tell that this option was fast more cost-effective than ordering from the cafeteria. If we were dissatisfied by the serving, the possibility of getting a refund or refill was low.

As commonplace the portrayal of it in cartoons is, the dishes served there tend to be lackluster, both in taste and appearance. My assumption could be wrong, since this school prides itself on a prestigious level of quality, but rumours tend to be based on fact rather than speculation.

"I'm glad we didn't get involved in that scuffle. Low-borns pick the wrong wars to fight in, like always."

Yare yare.

"That's a cold viewpoint. Try to be a little more understanding, okay?" I advised. "Judgement is toxic when you don't have all the pieces to the puzzle."

"That's a hard no. I won't listen to such things from anyone, including you, Ayanokōji-kun," she incredulously refused to heed my words.

"Sure, whatever you say, but hopefully you don't act like I never told you so in future."

There was no point going back and forth on this.

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word count: 2488