"And~ done!" Natsumi sighed as she sat down her pencil and leaned back stretching slightly. She collected her books, placing them into her bag and stood up from her desk. She slung the strap over her shoulder and grabbed her jacket as she ran down the hallways leading to her after-school group. That essay had taken longer than she thought so she was positive she was running late-again. Natsumi Kimoto was the top student in her fourth-year class, with one of the highest overall scores at Omiya Kita High School. But she was never one to be known for her punctuation. It seemed that she was always racing somewhere and the teachers had gotten used to just stepping out of her way when they saw her coming. She slid the door to the room open, huffing as she caught her breath and bowed to the teacher.

"I'm sorry! I lost track of time working on my assignments!" She apologized to Ms. Tajima and her fellow students. No one looked surprised that she was walking in late and continued with what they were doing. Some were taking notes on what Ms. Tajima had been saying and others were openly on their phones emailing their other friends.

"That's alright Miss Kimoto. We were just about to discuss our latest signup." Ms. Tajima said, already used to her top student's tardiness. Natsumi walked in and took her usual seat in the corner. She pulled out several notebooks with the notes she had taken for her science exam next week, preparing for after the teacher had finished talking. She reached up and fixed the large, blue bow that held up her brown hair in a long ponytail, not expecting anything to change today.

She had signed up for this volunteer tutoring job at the suggestion of her counselor. He said that it would look great on her college applications. She had been with this group for a month since the start of the year and had yet to be assigned a student to help. She was pretty patient though, knowing that usually the more senior members got the first pick of jobs. She knew that one day she would be given a chance and it would bring her one step closer to her goal.

"Okay. Now as I was saying before the interruption...Our newest signup has proven to be difficult to place with a permanent tutor. He's already gone through three of our best and refuses to state any reason other than he was unsatisfied with their abilities." She said and Natsumi stopped fiddling with her bow as that caught her attention. She glanced over to Katsu Higashi, Yuki Mihara, and Taro Amaya. They were all fourth years that had been with this group since their second year. They were considered the best and every student they tutored passed with excellent marks. If they hadn't been able to help this person, there was a chance that none of them could and he would have to seek a professional.

"So I guess that I'll have to just hope that he'll be satisfied with one of you eventually and we'll be able to help him. The student's name is Ryuu Yoshida and as you all probably know, he's very important to this school." She said and Natsumi's eyes widened. Everyone knew who Ryuu Yoshida was. His father was the leading tycoon in business in Saitama City and was a big contributor to the school as well as several universities. He was the school's rich boy and kept to himself most of the time.

He was Mr. Perfect all the girls in the school wanted to catch his eye. Natsumi had seen him on several occasions and had to admit that he was very good looking. He was rumored to tolerate people, but never known to make true connections with anyone. He had people he talked to, but they weren't his friends and knew little about him personally. He was like an enigma that could never be figured out by anyone. She frowned as she tuned out the teacher while thinking of the boy. Why would someone who could easily hire the best tutor in Japan-or the world for that matter, sign up for their small group? Especially when he seemed unsatisfied with their skills anyways.

"So do I have any volunteers for this?" Ms. Tajima said and Natsumi snapped out of her thoughts and jumped up out of her seat, holding her hand out into the air.

"Yes! Me! Ms. Tajima, I'll take this assignment!" She said with a bright smile and all eyes in the room turned to her. Ms. Tajima tapped the papers she was holding against her hip and frowned.

"I don't know Miss Kimoto. This would be your first assignment. Maybe you should sit back and let someone with more experience go first and then if no one else-"

Stolen story; please report.

"I can do it miss! Please!" She pressed and Ms. Tajima tapped her chin in thought. Natsumi held herself still as she waited, praying that she would be allowed to at least try.

"Excuse me Ms. Tajima?" Yuki said as she stood from her chair. She looked over at Natsumi with a gleam in her eyes.

"Kimoto hasn't been given a chance yet, why not let her at least try?" She said, as if reading Natsumi's thoughts. Natsumi smiled brightly at the girl, but she turned her nose up. Natsumi blinked, but didn't let it affect her. She knew that many of the students were envious of her grades and she wouldn't let their opinions get to her.

"It's true miss." Katsu added as he smirked back at Natsumi.

"She's been so eager to help. Why not let this be her true test. Let's see if Ms. Perfect Pet can do what we couldn't. Then she can continue to call herself the best." He said and the others laughed as Natsumi blushed.

"Alright that's enough. We are all here for the same reason. To help our fellow students. This isn't a contest." Ms. Tajima said to quiet everyone down. This was exactly what Natsumi had been thinking about. Being number one in the school when you were two years younger than everyone made a lot of people jealous. They saw her as a teacher's pet because she would run errands for the staff and was the model student, never getting into trouble. It didn't win her any popularity contests, but her goals were too important to lose sight now. She ignored the jibbs and turned her large, brown eyes to her sensei.

"Please Ms. Tajima. I promise I'll do my best." She said and Ms. Tajima sighed as she shook her head.

"Fine. I'll give you the chance. But don't be disappointed if Mr. Yoshida turns you away because of your lack of experience." She said and Natsumi nodded eagerly as she walked up and took his file. She went back to her desk, ignoring the whispers around her as she read over the notes the others had taken as well as Yoshida's own application. He was failing European English? That seemed a strange subject for the heir of a business empire to be struggling with. She pulled out a blank notebook and began to take her own notes as she thought things out.

She stayed there late, the other students leaving-either on their own assignments or to head home. She wanted to be as prepared for her first meeting tomorrow as she could be. Despite the way the others had reacted to her, she was still determined to make this work. If Ryuu Yoshida turned her away, at least she wanted to say she tried. She wanted to prove to everyone that she worked hard to be where she was and nothing had been handed to her. That was the whole reason she was so determined now. This was the first chance to see if she had what it took. So she compiled her lists and plans for their study sessions if he decided to keep her on. She looked up at the clock on the wall and sighed. She should start heading home before her mom began to worry.

She gathered her things and placed them carefully into her bag before pulling on her jacket and heading for the front of the school. The hallways were empty and her footsteps echoed through the air as she rushed to the lockers to change her shoes. She set her bag down so she could pull her shoes on without falling over, which she has done in the past.

"Can you believe Ms. Tajima actually agreed to that?"

"I know. Now Miss Pet won't look so perfect anymore."

"There's no doubt what'll happen tomorrow. He'll say the same thing to her he did with us."

"Yeah and she'll have no choice with her situation... "

Natsumi turned and watched as Yuki and Katsu walked out of the school together. They were laughing and she blushed, trying to ignore their words. She sighed and picked up her bag, pulling the strap over her head to rest on her shoulder and across her chest. She was used to comments like that, but it still stung a little each time she heard them. The older students like Yuki and Katsu were the worst offenders. They took it personally that she was the top student and didn't like the fact that she beat them during midterms and final exams each year.

She just shrugged it off and made her way home. Once more, not letting anything they thought affect her. It was true that she felt lonely at times when the other students snubbed her, but that just gave her more time to study and focus on her goals. She was determined to make it happen for herself and wouldn't let naysayers put her down.

She was going to be the first person in her family to go to university. She knew in her heart what she was meant to do with her life and tomorrow she would prove it. She was going to get that full scholarship to Tokyo University and get her teaching degree. She was going to help pave the way for other students to follow the path that she had traveled. And Ryuu Yoshida was going to be her starting point!

"You got this Natsumi!" She cheered herself as she fisted her hands and grinned up at the setting sun.