Misaki
It was April. I stood outside in the streets, patiently waiting alongside others for the bus to come pick us up. Today would be my first day of school, and the first day of my journey. I wasn't excited nor nervous. In fact, I don't know what I felt.
All I had were my goals, and they were all that mattered to me. I didn't really consider any of my feelings into the equation, and to be honest, I never really cared. If I felt happy, angry, or even fearful, it would just be an obstacle in my way. Maybe that's why I mostly felt empty my entire life.
Of course, that wouldn't be the only reason. I believed that by not having a father, I was like this. An empty vessel that uses nothing but logic. My mother taught me many things, showed me multiple perspectives, but even with her efforts, I was only half of what I was supposed to be.
This school was my chance to complete myself. Both of my parents had once attended this school in the past, and it was the only place I could think of where I could find the pieces and put them together. This, I'm sure of it.
Finally, after waiting for a while, I heard the sound of a large vehicle coming by and saw that it was the bus. It slowed down, coming to a stop and opening the doors to allow us passengers on.
I stepped inside, looking around the entire bus. It wasn't quite full yet. There were still plenty of empty seats, and if I wanted a smooth ride on the way, I had to take one now.
I walked forward, ending up in the middle of the bus. I took a seat off to the side and placed my bag beneath my legs. Once the other passengers sat down as well, the bus closed the doors and immediately drove off.
I took out my phone, and looked at the digital map on my screen. Using it, I found out that it would take a while before we would reach the school, which was my destination. I put my phone back into my pocket, then took out a book of mine from my bag that I carried before I left. Seeing that I had time, reading a book while I waited would be fine.
After silently flipping a few pages, reading the book in my hand, the bus came to a stop. The doors opened, allowing more passengers to ride on. The doors of the bus closed and it continued forward, heading towards the next destination. After a little while, it stopped again, allowing more passengers to ride with us. The bus, which was barely filled when I got on, was now mostly full and crowded.
I never looked away from my book, but from the corner of my eye, I could see a few people wearing the exact same uniform I was wearing. Like me, they were high school students who were going to the same school.
It wasn't only just high schoolers however. There were a few adults, some of them dressed in suits while others wore casual clothes. There were also a few elderly people, who were quiet and sat by themselves.
I flipped another page in my book, then I decided to take a quick break by glancing outside the window. I saw the city, changing bit by bit as we drove. The scenery was beautiful, and it was warm and bright outside, almost making you want to go out and take it all in.
However, this sight-seeing would end when the bus stopped for another time. I looked away from the window and back to my book, resuming my reading. More passengers came on, and I happened to notice one of them coming down to sit on my right.
I glanced over to see that it was a high school student who sat next to me. I would've mind if it was anyone else. In fact, I would've been alright if I had continued to be alone for the rest of the ride. However, seeing that they already took the seat, and since we were getting close to the school, I decided to ignore them.
"Hey, can you scoot over a little?" asked a boy who was in the far back.
"Sorry, I can't. It's too crowded." Another boy answered.
"Are you serious...?!"
Apparently, as I was reading, a few students were arguing loudly in the back of the bus. From the sound of it, it involved two students. Perhaps even a third one will join.
"Look man, there's not enough space! If you want, you can stand up!" they shouted back.
"Hell if I'm going to stand! I can barely keep myself in this seat!"
"Can't you just hold on until we get to the school?" said a third student who sat next to them.
"If I could, I wouldn't have asked you guys to scoot over!"
I sighed, and seeing that I couldn't focus on my book, I closed it and put it back in my bag. From my right, I heard someone else sigh and I turned to look at them.
It was the high schooler who sat next to me. He was a boy who wore the exact same uniform as me, and he had a bag to his side, holding his belongings. He had short black hair and empty dark-gray eyes. He had a blank and scary expression on his face, and he seemed quite bored and tired. Besides that, it seems like he too hates commotion, especially when it's from idiotic people.
"Um...you can sit with me if you'd like," said a gentle voice. The person who called out was a high school girl who seemed to be going to the same school as us. She had long mahogany-red hair tied in a ponytail, and she had beautiful dark-red eyes. In addition to that, she wore a charismatic smile and had a positive aura.
"Really? Thank you!" As the boy was about to move, he was suddenly grabbed by the arm. "Huh?"
"A-Actually, if you'd like, you and I can switch..." whispered the other boy, who said no to scooting over.
"So now you want to move?"
"Y-Yeah. Please...?"
He took a glance at the girl, then back at him. "Hmm..."
"W-What is it?"
The boy sighed, then patted him on the shoulder. "Fine. Go. Hurry up before I change my mind."
"R-Right."
The other boy stood up and went over to the girl, sitting next to her while the first boy scooted into his seat. He goes on and tells her how the first boy only wanted to sit in that seat, so he kindly took his place. A pitiful and stupid excuse to get close to a pretty girl like her.
"It's nice to meet you! Hope we'll get along!" The girl said cheerfully.
"Y-Yeah! It's nice to meet you too!"
I let out a heavy sigh, clearly disgusted and bothered by this. To my left, I heard a chuckle, and I looked to see another male high school student, standing while holding onto the handrail. He had pink-colored eyes and long silver-gray hair that reached all the way to his shoulders. In addition to that, he seemed to have a stunning appearance, as well as a confident but arrogant aura to him.
"My, what a hopeless and pitiful boy..." he said in such a dismissive tone, shaking his head.
His comment was quite bold and disrespectful, but in a way, I could agree with him. Besides that, what surprises me is that I never noticed him until now. Not even when I got on the bus, or even as we were moving. It was almost like he appeared out of nowhere. No, rather he's someone who can't easily catch anyone's attention.
"Hmhmhmhm..." he chuckled, running his hand through his hair, showing off his dazzling and radiant form.
"How much longer do I have to ride on this bus...?" I muttered to myself. I was annoyed and irritated. There was that stupid argument of theirs about not having enough room, then one of those boys had oddly got close to a pretty and seemingly popular girl. Now, there was this silver-gray haired student who couldn't get out of my view.
I hated the situation I was in. Just like what was said in Shakespeare's Sonnet 32, time apparently speeds up when we are at our best, while it slows down when we are at our worst. In this case, a minute for me now felt like an hour, and I had no choice but to bear with it.
After waiting for what seemed like an eternity, the bus slowed down and finally came to a stop. The doors opened and outside, there was the Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School, waiting for us students.
The high schoolers on the bus began going off one by one. As they left, I grabbed my bag and followed behind them, stepping outside.
The Advanced Nurturing High School
I walked up and stood in front of the school gate, staring at its architecture and its history. Based on the stories my mother told me about her time at this school, it seems like a lot has changed since then. The structure and designs were a little different from what she described, and there were quite a few teachers and upperclassmen welcoming the first-years in. Besides this, I hope that everything else has stayed the same. Otherwise, the knowledge I had would've gone to waste.
This is it. I told myself in my head. Once I walk through that gate, there will be no going back. I will stay here for the next three years, studying and facing many challenges, alone and alongside my classmates. Here, not only will I learn more about myself, but my father and his past. I took a deep breath, then stepped forward, going up the steps.
To my side, I happened to notice a familiar figure walking alongside me. It was the high school boy who sat next to me on the bus. He still had the same blank and scary expression on his face, almost as if he didn't care about the world around him. As I did before, I decided to ignore him and continued onward.
I went through the gate, and there I saw a crowd of first-years, walking and entering the school building that stood in front of me. This is the start of my first day, and marks the beginning of my story here at the Advanced Nurturing High School. I will graduate from Class A no matter what, and I will find out who you truly are, Otou-san.