Rendered in Code and Color

Chapter 2: A Serendipitous Seating

Have you ever gazed at the stars? You know you could never reach them, but for some reason their beauty still reaches you. Perhaps it's the illusion of countless dots of light fighting back the endless darkness. Or maybe what's so captivating is how different they are from anything else. There is only one place where you can find the stars.

Even if you could travel space, those stars would remain ever distant. Sure you can travel to a distant sun, but once you look beyond the sun? More stars. There is a certain... tranquil loneliness that the night sky brings. You are content to simply gaze at it's awesome beauty. But deep down, you long to reach out and grasp that twinkling blanket, as if it were a veil blocking something even more beautiful. You might of even reached your hand out, wondering if it were that simple.

That is how Kazuki felt every time he saw Miyuki. He would never be so brazen as to think he had feelings for her. He firmly believed that inner beauty outshines outer beauty. But perhaps it was that belief that made him wonder, "Who is she?"

Of course, he knew the surface-level answer; Shimizu Miyuki. Daughter to one of the most influential political families in Japan. For all intents and purposes, she was as close to a princess you could get in modern society. Beyond that, she was attractive, smart, kind, and carried herself well. None of these traits seemed forced or ungenuine. She really was just like a princess. But something nagged at Kazuki. When he looked at her, it was like he was looking at a crescent moon. There was a lot more to her, she just kept it well-hidden.

However, just as most of us are content to gaze at the stars when the night is clear, so too was Kazuki content to admire Miyuki from afar. They did, after all, live in completely separate worlds.

"Eep! I've been so excited for this class! I'm so happy you're in it too, Kazuki!" Ayaka asserted energetically.

"It's interesting, for sure. I've been really eager to see if programing can be applied to other fields- like film making." Hiroshi added. "What about you, Kazuki?"

To a die hard introvert, this situation would be quite infuriating. Two energetic and talkative people, sitting themselves down without even asking. He met them just an hour ago, yet they were already acting like his best friends. Luckily, Kazuki wasn't a die hard introvert. He just... wasn't outwardly social. So he replied, albeit in a matter of fact tone.

"Well, its a really unique concept. It brings people from all majors and talents, and puts them in an environment where they are forced to collaborate. It's like a good game or show. You spend hours picking up these pieces. slowly trying to figure out what is going on. Then finally, after all that hard work, everything comes together. Each part falling in-place, until the entire story is revealed." He cleared his throat, thinking he may have gotten a little carried away with his analogy.

"Erm," he continued, "I want to be someone that can bring all of those parts together in a satisfying way. This class is like a playground for that. And beyond that, I'll get to witness other peoples talents too. Really this class is the whole reason I came to this college."

Ayaka and Hiroshi stared at Kazuki blankly for a moment.

"...WOOOOWWWW! Dude that's so deep! I totally get what you mean though! When I draw characters, It's like every detail written about them is just a small piece of their personality. I love interpreting that into something that people can see!"

"Heh. It's the same in coding, really," Hiroshi started, "By themselves, each line of coding doesn't really do anything. But you put it all together and, bam! You can just press a few buttons and you're controlling the action of a character."

Everyone took a moment to process their like opinions. It seemed like Kazuki was contemplating something, but just as he was about to open his mouth, an unfamiliar voice cut him off.