This time, I didn't wake up because of Mika.

Instead, my beauty sleep was rudely interrupted by the sound of my alarm. It's been a while since I last heard it, but my instincts kicked in and I immediately moved to turn off the bone-chilling sound. It was only a few seconds of silence that I snapped out of my daze and remembered why I set an alarm to begin with.

Man. Is it already the first day of school?

I groaned, got out of bed, and started pulling on my school uniform. It consisted of a mid-length skirt, a gray shirt, and a navy blue blazer. After ensuring that my hair wasn't a mess, I took my bag with all my school supplies and walked down the stairs.

Only my mom was still downstairs in the kitchen. My dad had left for work, and Kenta was presumably sleeping in. She looked up at me walking down the stairs and smiled. She walked up to me and handed me a plate of tamagoyaki and rice.

"There's a bowl of miso soup for you on the table. Get a good night of sleep?"

"Yep. By the way, Mika's going to be coming soon. We're walking to school today."

Sure enough, as the two of us were peacefully eating breakfast, the bell rang, signaling the start of today's chaos.

It took some time by train to get to school, but thankfully the commute there wasn't too stressful. As Mika and I walked out of the station and down the block, we found ourselves looking at a large building with many windows glimmering in the light. A sign at the front displayed the words "Kiyomizu Academy".

This was my dream school. It's a pretty prestigious preparatory school, and took quite a lot of effort for me to be accepted. It felt like a miracle that I was. I could feel Hoshi quivering with excitement. Or was it nervousness? Maybe both.

Mika looked overwhelmed too, which was quite a rare sight. But she quickly snapped out of it and said "C'mon, Hoshi. Let's look for the gym. I think they're holding the orientation there."

The two of us nervously walked like a pair of ducklings through the campus, following the slowly moving crowd of unfamiliar students, who discussed their breaks and lamenting that the school year had started once again. Even though I knew it wasn't true, it felt like there was a spotlight shining on Mika and I.

"Need some help?"

I almost jumped from the shock, and quickly turned around to see a friendly, yet distinctly mature girl looking at me. She had stylish brown hair and was what I assumed to be an upperclassman. She pointed at a giant building with large glass windows at the top. The sun gleamed on its surface, and it didn't even look like it belonged to a high school.

"That's the gym you're probably looking for. The orientation is there."

Somehow, this girl made all of my tension melt away. I could breathe normally again.

I smiled back at her. It wasn't hard. "Thank you for your help!"

Her pleasant smile grew even bigger. "Of course. My name is Amagiri Yume. I'm a second-year student here. Nice to meet you!"

Mika didn't smile, but her hand wasn't shaking anymore. "Thank you very much. My name is Mika Tanaka, and my friend here is Sayuri Miyake. We're first years. Nice to meet you."

We ended up following Amagiri-senpai inside the gym, which was somehow even more impressive than the outside. The main gym was massive with rows of chairs lined up for the orientation, many already filled with students chatting. Decorations were laid all over for the occasion. Balloons and streamers created a festive atmosphere, and banners with bright words cheered "Let's have a great school year!" When I looked up, I saw a second floor with even more seats.

Wow... This place is massive. It was much larger than my middle school's gym, which already seemed big enough...

Amagiri-senpai walked over to the chairs with an unwavering confidence and motioned us to follow. As we sat down, she explained to us what we should expect.

"Honestly, the orientation won't be that interesting. It's just your typical speech by the principal, welcome to the school, we hope to have a great year, and stuff like that. Although if the rumors are right, I'm pretty sure they're introducing a new teacher for the first years... I wonder if they'll be transferring from another school, or if they'll be young... hopefully the latter."

As she finished talking, a door opened on the second floor, and a tall, elderly man wearing a professional-looking suit walked out. He looked down at us from behind the glass barrier and smiled brightly.

"Welcome, everyone. I'm Kajiyama Haruto, the principal of Kiyomizu Academy. It's very nice to meet you. Now, given that this is your first day in high school for those of you that are first years, my job, as is your upperclassmen's duty, is to ensure that you feel at home..."

Kajiyama-sensei gave a rather spirited orientation speech, explaining things such as student resources, the schedule, and other things to help us during the school year.

Y'know, I wonder if high school life is like in manga. I have the sneaking suspicion that I won't have nearly as much free time as the characters...

"...And with that said, it is my pleasure to introduce our new teacher, Ueda Natsumi!"

Mika nudged me in the ribs a little too hard and brought me back to reality. "That's our teacher!"

I squinted to look closer at the bowing woman, who looked... really young. She didn't look any older than thirty. She wore a standard female uniform consisting of a blazer and a skirt but somehow looked fashionable regardless.

"Hello, everyone. As the kind principal already said, my name is Natsumi Ueda. This will be my first year as a teacher, but I assure you all that I will work hard to serve you well. Please take care of me."

Ueda-sensei bowed one more time, and the whole gym applauded. I suspect that her looks are going to help with her popularity.

Once the opening ceremony ended, we had a lunch period, after which we would go to our classrooms for the first time. Mika and I ended up eating lunch with Amagiri-san and her friends.

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"Wow... the cafeteria's quite nice.

I couldn't help but speak out in wonder when I saw the vast cafeteria. It wasn't quite as fancy, but it looked like those modern cafeterias in the nicer office buildings. There were only about a handful of choices for lunch such as tempura udon or sandwiches, which apparently don't change, but if I ate one for every day of the week I think I'd be fine.

As I scanned the cafeteria, I noticed a strange glow zooming around the area.

"Hoshi, get back over here..."

While I gorged myself on the steamed fish and rice, Amagiri-san explained the rest of the day's schedule.

After lunchtime, we would go to our homerooms to meet our classmates and teacher for the first time, and then we would have an early release.

When she heard this, Hoshi excitedly began gesturing, to which I stared at her blankly for several seconds before finally understanding.

"Ah, I noticed a cafe on the way here. Do you two want to come with me after school?"

Even though I just met Amagiri-senpai, she already seems really nice. I'd like to get to know her more. Plus, maybe I can treat her to something as thanks for showing us around.

Amagiri-senpai smiled at me, but her eyes looked a little sad. She fidgeted with her hands.

"Sorry, Miyake-san. I have to work at my part-time job after school today. Maybe next time though. Thank you for the offer though."

Wow, she really is like an adult. To be able to juggle a job and school... Wait a minute, aren't I going to have to do that too?!

"Oh no, it's alright! If you don't mind me asking, what job is it?"

"Oh, it's nothing much. I just work part-time at a convenience store."

"Really? You should tell us where it is so we can visit!"

Amagiri-senpai laughed gently. "Aha. Very funny."

The familiar ringing of the school bell reverberated through the cafeteria, signaling the end of lunch, and unfortunately, our time with Amagiri-senpai for the day. She led us to our classroom, A3. The first year's classrooms were on the first floor, the second year's on the second, and so on.

Mika and I waved goodbye to Amagiri-san, and as she walked away to her own class, she greeted several people that seemed to recognize her.

"She's quite popular, isn't she?" With her arms crossed, Mika's eyes fixated on her until she turned to walk up the stairs.

"Yeah, she really is. I feel a little bad that she ate lunch with us instead of her friends."

"Well, we can always ask her about it next time. Just be grateful for now."

I realized I was simply staring off into nothing and turned around to head back into the classroom.

The room was full of students, most talking to one another, with some awkwardly standing around. There was a wide assortment, from a boy with glasses to a rowdy girl with heavy-laden makeup.

Honestly, I was slightly expecting our decently prestigious school to be rather conservative, but it was a nice surprise to see all sorts of different people. It made me want to learn more about them, almost like I was in an entire library of books to read.

While I was busy looking around at the other people, Mika checked our seating arrangements at the front of the classroom.

"Wow, that's lucky. We're sitting together."

"Eh? Really?!"

It was a bit hard to mask my relief and joy as we sat down together at the back of the classroom. I know I'm supposed to make new friends, but at least this way I won't be too nervous...

Ueda-sensei walked into the room, and the entire class went silent. She smiled a calm, reassuring smile.

"Looks like I have quite the obedient class. Thank you for quieting down. Why don't you all take your seats? I will make sure to give you time to make new friends later. Anyhow, if you don't know where your assigned seat is, feel free to check the paper or ask me."

Everyone moved to their desks and sat down. The way everyone was so obedient was surprising, but what was even more surprising was that Ueda-sensei was a new teacher. Despite being young, I could tell she had a strong sense of command.

"Thank you, everyone. Now, I'm sure you guys were paying attention during the opening ceremony, as high schoolers do... Well. On a more serious note, let me properly introduce myself as your teacher. My name is Ueda Natsumi, and I will be your homeroom teacher for the year. As it is my first year being a teacher, I hope you will all be patient with me."

I didn't want things to get awkward, so I decided to start clapping for her. But it looks like I didn't have to take the first step anyway.

Once the applause died down, Ueda-sensei cleared her throat again.

"Now then, why don't we have someone introduce themselves? Any volunteers?"

No one raised their hands at first, but it almost felt like Ueda-sensei kept looking over at me...

Giving in to the pressure, I raised my hand.

"Ah! Miyake-san! Thank you for volunteering." She looked quite pleased, so I guess this works out.

Talking to strangers is never easy, but I'd like to think I'm getting better at it. I stood up and took a deep breath.

"Hello everyone. My name is Miyake Sayuri. My favorite subject is science, and my hobbies are reading and writing. I hope to become friends with you all and have fun this school year. Please take care of me."

I sat down and the classroom applauded. I reviewed what I'd just said, paranoid that I may have misspoken.

Now that I think about it, it's a bit weird that my favorite subject isn't literature, no? Although I guess I don't like to write without genuine motivation. It's unfortunate that I've been so busy lately, with school starting and the whole Youkai situation. I would really love to get back to writing, now that I have so many new experiences for inspiration...

"-ake care of me."

Ah. Looks like my mind drifted again. I think the boy's name was Inaba Seiichi?

I should probably try and memorize some of these people in case I become friends with them. I think I already missed a couple of introductions though. Oops.

Ueda-sensei looked over at the clock and clasped her hands together. "Alright everyone, good job. I'll give you some time before the day ends to talk to each other, so do your best to make new friends!"

As people started to rise from their seats, I scanned the classroom. Even though there were a lot of interesting people, something bugged me. There was one seat throughout the classroom that remained empty... Was it an extra?

I walked up to the front of the classroom and looked at the seating chart. Mika followed me.

"You okay?"

"Yeah, just checking something."

There. In the back with Mika and I, but on the left side of the classroom.

"Suzuki Akiko..."

Mika looked at the paper. "Huh. Looks like she's-"

"Hello there!"

Startled, I couldn't help but jump a little, and turned to see Ueda-sensei smiling at Mika and me.

I gathered my thoughts and smiled back. "H-hello. Nice to meet you, sensei. My name is-"

"Miyake Sayuri, right?" She turned her eyes to Mika. "And you are Tanaka Mika?"

Mika looked rather taken aback, but we both nodded.

"How did you know?" Mika asked cautiously.

"We're not... trouble students, are we?"

I couldn't help but worry about this, despite knowing that I probably didn't cause any trouble.

Ueda-sensei smiled wider and said "Of course not. No, I was just so worried that I would not be able to remember all of my student's names that I seem to have overprepared."

That's.... a bit funny, actually. But obviously I didn't say this to her.

Instead, I said "Eh? You're very hard-working, sensei," which wasn't very far from the truth.

"Thank you, Miyake-san."

Now that I'm looking at Ueda-sensei up close, she's a bit on the taller side.

She looked over at the seating chart. "Sorry for eavesdropping a little, but I think you did notice that, yes, it seems that Suzuki-san is absent today. It's quite unfortunate since now Suzuki-san can't meet the other students. Making friends at this age is very important." She seemed quite thoughtful.

"Ueda-sensei, I don't want to be rude, but Suzuki-san sick?" If it was bad enough to skip orientation day, it must be pretty serious.

"Oh no, don't worry. Suzuki-san is just a little busy with some personal matters, that's all. It'll likely be dealt with by the end of the week." Ueda-sensei looked down and brought up her arm.

On it was a silver watch. Its dial had four phases of the moon on it, the full, new, and two half moons. Each one was positioned at 12, 3, 6, and 9 'o'clock. Its design captivated me.

"Ah, it looks like class should be ending soon. It was very nice meeting you all. I'll be seeing you all tomorrow." Ueda-sensei brought me back to reality. "Although... Miyake-san, is it alright if I ask to talk to you after class?"

Uh oh.

"Did... I do something after all?" No matter how I thought about it, I couldn't really see any other possibilities.

"No no, I just wanted to talk to you about something more personal," Ueda-sensei glanced at Mika. "Sorry about that, Tanaka-san."

"Oh, don't worry about it." Mika smiled. "If she wants to, she'll tell me anyway."