The only sound to be heard in the car was the foreign humming tune of the engine. The air conditioning weakly trying it's best to singalong, providing something similar to a 143 year old man trying to blow out birthday candles. The seat was gray. His legs were on top of said gray seat, while it was still gray. Theo turned out the window.

Nora was peering off into the distance from inside the side mirror, her expression was indescribable. A sort of blankness on her cheeks, a sort of stroking of her lips from curled fingers, a sort of gaze that followed the passing trees. She noticed him staring out the corner of her eyes. She turned towards him and smiled.

Theo raised the corners of his mouth.

The road passed unchanging.

Theo and Nora played rock-paper-scissors.

His mom said nothing at her son playing against himself in the mirror.

The worn gate stood like a gallant gray, untorn and distinguished. Finely aged.

The faded brown sign, with the rustic gold lettering. Hoshi Academy.

People flooded by like baby turtles seeking the depths of the ocean, and staffs and faculty had their share of pickings. The cleating of feet provided a familiar beating sound on the beaten pathway. Simple, plain. Smooth bricks cut from stone.

His eyes were wide, his feet moved slower than any sloth.

Once again, the stone bricks led to an astute set of stairs carved from rock. Small circles of people, bundling around while taking selfies. Girls laughing and gossiping.

People sitting along the fountain. Their hands a flurry of symbols and gestures as they rushed to keep with the frantic frenzy of their mouths.

The hawky teacher, snatching up first years. Clawing them into the building.

Among the crowd, there was an outlier. Scarlet hair, long and flowing, freely swayed in the wind. He uniform completely wrinkle free. Her skirt a proper length. Shoes of a delicate brown had been gently tapping against the ground.

It started in his hands, in his fingers. They curled, as far and as tightly as they could. His shoulders tensed, causing an extreme shaking in both of his arms. It spread further up, into his neck, the veins might as well have been bursting waterlines. His lower jaw became enamored with the destruction of his upper jaw, tightly trying to tear at it with a hug. Her hair was bland compared to the color rising across his face. He scowled.

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Theo walked forward, each step painfully obviously restrained from a full sprint. Passerby's gave him strange looks before scurrying out of his way.

She turned towards him, only for a second. In that one moment, her eyes grew five sizes that day, and immediately shrunk 7 as she squinted and lowered her head into her arms. Lily scurried away.

His fist had been raising higher and higher. He followed her. Faster and faster he went. Until,

a hand firmly placed itself on his left shoulder. Theo turned to his captor. Her eyes were firmly glued into his own.

"First year convocation, straight ahead. Go now."

Her eyes were still like a hawk, but her words had none of the softness of before.

"First year convocation, straight ahead. Go now."

Her grip on his shoulder tightened beyond any blackbelt. Her hands had been pushing him against the will of his feet into the auditorium. When he was through the door, the warden released him before returning to her post. He turned back to see Lily bowing to Mrs. Lawson.

The same scent, still completely indiscernible yet 100% rotten eggs, 26% cheap cologne, 3% chestnut, and 90% wet dog. He gaged, again.

Theo hurridly made his way to the right, towards the bathroom. It was an individual locking bathroom. He went in and locked the door behind himself.

"Trying to taint my purity again?" The fragile glass boundary could not possibly nor reasonably contain such smugness.

"I'm not!"

"I just wanted some fresh air. It smells awful."

Yes, fresh air in the manual poop factory.

"Fresh air?"

Nora fell over with a thud! as she loudly died laughing.

Theo's face regained some of earlier's vivid coloration.

He took a deep breath.

Theo gaged on the smell.

Nora recovered in time to fall back down.

"Good morning ladies and gentlemen, parents and faculty, and most importantly our bright future students of Hoshi Academy.

Even in the bathroom, every word could be clearly heard.

Theo turned his head upwards towards the source, only to notice a formerly quiet speaker had been sitting in the corner.

My name is Sophie Hughes. I work in the registrar, and some of you may have already seen me for financial aid. If you don't know me, I work in the office just down the hall from here to the left. There's a big sign out front so it is very hard to miss it.

Today, we gather to celebrate a momentous occasion: the beginning of your journey as first-year students at Hoshi Academy. As the sun rises, so does the promise of your future, and it is with immense pride and joy that I address you on this special day. I want you to know as you go out into your classes today that it is your day and your moment.

Welcome to a place where dreams take shape and potential is nurtured. Hoshi Academy stands as a beacon of knowledge, creativity, and innovation, and today, you step into a tradition of excellence that spans generations. You have been chosen not only for your remarkable achievements thus far but also for your potential to contribute to our vibrant community...

The speech had no changes from last time.

This time, Theo's hands were empty. There was no cup for him to drink, no purple liquid.