My new school was only a ten minute walk. My father had to go to his new job at the local furniture store, so he suggested we walked together until we had to part our separate ways. I agreed.
Before we left, I stood in front of my mirror, checking over every inch of my new uniform. Somehow, it wasn't too loose or uncomfortable anywhere. Although the school uniform came with knee length socks, I settled for black opaque tights. The thought of the uniform and knowing there was nothing to make me stand out brought huge comfort. I wanted nothing more than to blend in with the rest of the students.
Normally I didn't have breakfast, but since it was the first day of school, my father insisted I leave the house with something in my stomach, although not much of it was eaten. We headed down the street together, my new bag was in hand, holding my pencil case and all the textbooks brought to me the day before. My father and I parted ways about five minutes later, and I headed to school alone.
The school was the second biggest building in Yomiyama (the first being the hospital). It had three floors, and was very long like a panorama. The building itself was made from dark stone, and the windows and doors had wooden frames. There were patches of grass outside as well as trees, and I knew from the map that the school field was at the back of the property.
I paused by the large metal gates, taking in my new school, where I was only going to be enrolled for a year. A fresh start with people who didn't know who I was or what my background consisted of. Sure, anxiety was flowing through me, but it filled me with a sense of determination as well.
Then he almost bumped into me.
The shadow made me jump, and I jumped to the side before I collided with its owner. A boy, slightly shorter than me, with the most beautiful darkest skin I had ever seen. His hair was brown and cropped so short it was almost nonexistent, but his fringe bounced upwards before falling in front of his face. No school bag, I noted. He was wearing black gloves on his hands, and I didn't blame him; there was a slight chill in the air even though it was May.
"Sorry, I almost bumped into you," the boy grinned. "Are you new?"
I couldn't help smile back. "Yes, I am! My name is Takeda Tsuki, and I'm in class 3-3."
"Ah, were in the same class!" The boy smiled, flicking his long fringe out of the way, only to have it fall back into place moments later. "I'm Fujiwara Riku. It's nice to meet you, Takeda-san!"
He removed his glove and held out his hand. I shook it, hoping my moment of hesitation beforehand didn't know. Physical interactions were something I needed to work on. To say he had been wearing gloves, his hand was freezing, especially the tips of his fingers. But I tried not to let my discomfort show.
"It's nice to meet you too, Fujiwara-san," I nodded back. "Shall we head to class together?"
I had no idea how that had spilled from my mouth; I haven't even thought of them.
"I'd love to," Riku responded sadly, "but I have something I need to do first."
"Oh, that's okay!" I said. "Maybe another time?"
"Yeah..." Riku responded slowly. I could tell he was contemplating something as he pulled his glove back on. "Um... I'll see you around, maybe."
Maybe?
"Oh, and Takeda-san?" Riku called before I began to walk. "Please... Try not to get too close to me."
"What do you mean?" I asked him.
"Just... It would be better for everyone if we weren't seen together in school," Riku said.
Feelings of self consciousness drowned me. Was he embarrassed to be seen with a new transfer student? Was I ugly? Did he just talk to me to make fun of me? Why would he be kind and talk to me, only to decide I shouldn't get too close?
Riku sprinted off before I could even open my mouth. So all that escaped my lips was a sigh. I was puzzled... He had started a conversation, and then he suddenly decided that I wasn't good enough for him?
In order to calm myself down, I just told myself that he was just a careless boy who spoke before he thought. So I headed into the new school alone, and used my map as my guide and exploring wooden corridors, before heading up the stairs and to the third floor. The door labelled '3-3' was already open, so at least people wouldn't stare if I opened it myself and caused a scene with my entrance.
"Tsuki-san!" Clarissa waved at me from the front of the classroom, next to the large blackboard. "Welcome to class 3-3!"
Clarissa waved her hand majestically over the classroom, turning my attention to the fifteen desks nearly lined up, the large windows at the far side of the room, and the shelves full of spare textbooks stationery at the back.
"Thanks," I replied, trying to memorise the faces of my new classmates. Riku wasn't there yet. I noticed Akira talking to some boys in the corner, and everyone else was a stranger.
"So..." Clarissa clasped her hands together. "We get three lots of homework everyday, take seven classes a day, and we don't leave our desks until ordered to do so by the teacher. One time we were sat down for two hours because the teacher had forgotten to excuse us! And also, we have to spent two hours on cleaning duty every night."
"Really?" I could hear my heart hammering. The rules were a lot more strict than my old middle school. I was worried that I wasn't going to be able to keep up with the amount of work given to me...
"Tsuki-san," Clarissa grinned. "Im kidding."
I sighed. Part of me felt a little irritated that I had been so gullible. I hadn't even been at school for five minutes, and already Charisse had tricked me and Riku had humiliated me. Picking on the new kid.
"Tsuki-san, don't look so worried," Clarissa nudged me, not looking as cheerful now. "I'm sorry if I upset you."
"It's fine," I shook my head. I was just fed up of being bullied, but I didn't say this out loud.
Clarissa tilted her head. "I can tell that it's not." Clarissa smiled warmly. "I'd like us to get along. Let's just pretend that didn't happen, okay? I'd like us to be friends."
I nodded, decided it was best to keep the peace. "Alright..." But I still felt like Clarissa was mocking me somehow.
"Okay, everyone, take your seats," the teacher entered the room and closed the door behind him. He shuffled his large body over to the blackboard and peered at us over his tinted glasses, breathing hard.
"Sit behind me," Clarissa advised me, sitting at the middle desk of the front row.
I was unsure in case there was already a seating plan in place, but when I sat there nobody accused me of taking their seat. It appeared that everyone had their groups of friends and already knew who they wanted to sit with. Akira was sat to Clarissa's left, and I noticed that the desk on Clarissa's right was empty, as well as the desk on the back row by the window. There were only three rows of desks, each one containing five seats.
"Okay," Ishida-Sensei announced, sending the class into silence. "We have a new student today. Takeda Tsuki?"
Why was I being called on so soon?!
I raised my hand.
Ishida-Sensei smiled at me. At least, I think it was a smile. "Come to the front of the class so you can introduce yourself and tell the rest of the class a little about you."
Oh my GOD.
I did as I was told, being careful to check that I looked presentable. I took the chalk that the teacher offered me, and I wrote my name on the board. My hand was shaking.
I turned to face my classmates, but having all eyes focused on me made me feel a little uneasy. I decided to keep my gaze fixed on the pen pot at the back of the room. I noticed, out of the corner of my eye, that Clarissa gave me thumbs up and beamed.
"My name is Takeda Tsuki," I said after clearing my throat. "I moved here from Kyoto with my father. Um... I hope we all get along."
Had a spoken too quickly? Was I too quiet? I braved a glance at my classmates. I couldn't help notice that Akira was glancing around the room uneasily, and a few of my classmates looked worried, expecting something horrible to happen, like the ceiling was going to fall on top of us.
Ishida-Sensei clapped his hands together, snapping me back into reality. "Thank you, Takeda-san. You may take your seat. Now, everyone be nice to Takeda Tsuki."
I placed the chalk on the teachers desk before heading back to my seat as quickly as possible. I knew everyone was staring at me.
"Okay, let me take attendance," Ishida-Sensei produced the register from the draw in his desk and began to call everyone's name. I didn't try memorise any of them, knowing I'd be able to link names and faces as time went on. That, and my cheeks were a furious red and I didn't want anyone noticing.
The only thing that confused me was that Riku's name hadn't been said, but I presumed maybe the teacher had noticed that he wasn't sat down so didn't bother calling out his name.
"Okay, let's begin the lesson, everyone bring out your chemistry books," Ishida-Sensei instructed, "and turn to page ten."
In unison we all brought out our textbooks. Ishida-Sensei produced one of his own and began reading the paragraphs in monotone, writing down useful words on the board. Some of the other students were copying the key information on separate pieces of paper, others were annotating their text books, a few were just reading along, and a couple were just not paying attention at all. I decided to use my highlighter to make the key points stand out in the text book, and then use my pen to annotate if the teacher chose to elaborate on anything. Which wasn't often.
It was about fifteen minutes later when Riku entered the classroom. He roughly slid open the door and stomped his way to the empty desk at the back, as if he was trying to make as much noise as possible. He threw his body into his chair, folded his arms, and glared out of the window. He hadn't closed the door behind him, and he didnt bring out a chemistry book. He didn't even apologise to the teacher for being late.
I watched Riku, in hope that we would make eye contact. But he didn't look my way, so I glanced around the room instead. The teacher was still talking, and the rest of my classmates were still taking notes as if nothing had happened.
I seemed to be the only person who had noticed Riku...