Misaki
Advanced Nurturing High School; My Room
It was now Saturday, the day after I took the swimming class I loathed so much. It was around eight in the morning when I woke up. I got up from my bed and entered my bathroom, turning the lights on and looking at myself in the mirror. My long black hair was messy, and I could barely see my brown eyes in my reflection just from how tired I was.
Following my morning routine as usual, I brushed my teeth, washed my face, and combed my hair. After that, I left the bathroom and opened my wardrobe, grabbing my uniform and switching them with my pajamas. I grabbed my hairpin with the purple Iris flower from my table and using my small personal mirror, I pinned it in my hair.
Once I was done dressing myself, I went over to my desk and grabbed two library books I had. I was going to go to the library to return them, and while I'm there, I plan to find some other books I wanted to borrow.
Advanced Nurturing High School; the Library
I arrived and walked around the library. Besides me, there were a few other students who were here, hanging around, reading books or just talking to each other. Like me, they also had their uniforms on, seeing that we were on school grounds and all.
I went towards the reference desk and saw a female librarian sitting there, looking down and reading a book. The last time I was here, I came to return Furukawa's book so I could borrow it. The librarian that I saw at that time was a different one from the one I was seeing now.
This librarian had long silver hair and violet eyes. She had glasses with black rims, and wore a white long-sleeved buttoned suit with a black shirt underneath, along with long black leggings and a black skirt.
"Excuse me," I called out to the librarian. "I would like to return these books."
The librarian looked up from her book and smiled. "Of course." She gladly took them and I left to go look around the rest of the library.
I went towards the Mystery section and looked at the shelves of books. I gazed through them, glancing at their titles and their authors, all organized alphabetically. I found the books written by Arthur Conan Doyle and grabbed the next Sherlock Holmes book in the series. Instead of one book, I decided to grab another, one called "The Woman in White", written by Wilkie Collins.
I returned to the librarian and handed her the books. "I would like to check these out."
"Doyle and Collins. Alright then." She scanned the books and I gave her my Student ID card, which she scanned as well. "You're..." She paused for a moment, staring at the computer screen where my name and picture was shown.
"Is something wrong?" I asked.
"N-No, it's fine." She grabbed the two books and handed them to me. "Here you go. Enjoy reading!" I took them and bowed, leaving the library.
Advanced Nurturing High School
As I was headed on my way back to my room, I happened to notice the Student Council President Mukai and a male student alongside her.
"Oh! Hey there!" Mukai waved my way and came to me. "If I remember right...you're a first-year, right?"
I nodded. "Yes, I am."
She pulled out her phone and started fiddling with it. "Let's see...Horikita Misaki, from Class 1-D?" She looked up and placed her finger to her lips, thinking to herself. "Hmm...that name...where have I heard it before?"
I stayed silent, hoping that she would just move on and ignore it on her own.
"Well, whatever." Luckily, she did. "So, being in Class D must be frustrating, isn't it?" Mukai asked me. "Oh, don't worry, I'm not one of those people who make fun of the lower classes," Mukai said with a warm smile on her face.
"I see..." Even though I wasn't as concerned, Mukai wanted to reassure me that she's not here to hurt me or make fun of me. This kindness from the Student Council President-from herself-is genuine. "...Yes, it is a little frustrating," I said, answering her question from earlier.
"You don't seem like the other Class D students. You look like an academically gifted student who works quite hard. I can tell from the determination in your eyes."
"Is that so?"
She nodded. "For you to be in Class D? I'm honestly quite shocked. Well, I can't say anything since it's the school and all we're talking about. Nobody knows quite well how it works," she said with a shrug. "Well, anyways, do your best, alright? Don't give up just because you're Class D. You can definitely make it!"
"I-I see. Thank you, um..."
"Oh! I came here to talk to you without even introducing myself! Sorry!" Mukai bowed. "I'm Mukai Yumiko. You can just call me Mukai-senpai or Mukai-san. And this is Mihara Kenshin, the Student Council Secretary."
"It's nice to meet you," Mihara said in a polite tone and with a bow.
"Anyways, see you next time!" Mukai waved goodbye and left with Mihara.
"That was strange..." I muttered to myself. Of all people, I never thought that I would have a conversation with the Student Council President herself. Curious, I pulled out my phone and opened the OAA app.
3-A Mukai Yumiko
Academic Ability: A+ (98)
Physical Ability: B (75)
Adaptability: A+ (98)
Societal Contribution: A+ (98)
Overall Ability: A (91)
3-A Mihara Kenshin
Academic Ability: A (94)
Physical Ability: A+ (98)
Adaptability: B- (65)
Societal Contribution: A- (85)
Overall Ability: A (86)
"Mukai Yumiko and Mihara Kenshin. I'll keep those two in mind."
Advanced Nurturing High School; My Room
After going to the library, I returned back to my room. I placed the two books I checked out on my desk, then pulled out my textbooks which I used for studying. I opened my phone and set a one-hour timer. Once I started it, I opened my textbooks and began solving the questions.
*beep*
One hour had passed. I grabbed my phone and turned off the timer, then closed and put my textbooks away. I let out a sigh, then checked the time on my phone. It was around eleven am. Seeing that I still had plenty of time today, I thought I should head out and check the mall. I went to my wardrobe and picked out some casual clothes, switching them with the uniform I had on and then left my room.
Advanced Nurturing High School; Keyaki Mall
Once I arrived at the mall, I headed straight towards Palate-one of the most popular cafes here on campus. When I got there and went inside, I looked around and saw many students already sitting down.
I let out a sigh and realizing how packed it was, I turned back around. "...I suppose I'll come back here next time."
I walked around the mall, looking around and taking a glance at the stores. Everything you could find was here. There was clothing, electronics, entertainment, accessories, and places like Palate where you could find food and drinks. In a way, I can see why someone would waste all their Points without any worry.
As I went around, that's when I noticed a lone and familiar figure sitting at a glass table, drinking a cup of tea.
"You seem quite lonely, Furukawa-kun."
He placed his cup down and looked up at me with his empty dark-gray eyes with his usual blank facial expression. "Are you here to insult me?"
"No. I just happened to come by and saw you here." I took the other chair and sat down across from him. Furukawa picked up his cup of tea and sipped it, and I did nothing but stare at him.
"Did you get your drink from Palate over there?" I asked him.
"No, I got it from one of the other cafes-the one where barely anyone goes to."
"Is that so?" There were other places where you could find food and drinks, but most of them were packed like Palate. For Furukawa to have gotten something to drink from a place where there's not many people must've been quite hard to find.
I continued to stare at him, analyzing his movements and his facial expression while remaining silent. Furukawa placed down his cup of tea and looked back at me. "Why are you staring at me so much?"
"It's strange. For some reason, you just seem so...mysterious. I can't point my finger on it. Are you perhaps hiding something...?"
Furukawa sipped his tea again and placed his cup down. "You must be delusional."
"...Maybe..." I sighed and as I was about to get up, I happened to hear giggles and laughter in the distance. I turned and saw Kurino Marise, hanging out with three other girls from our class. Two of them were Hamasaki and Yoshinaga; the other was Kumagai Riko, a classmate I wasn't familiar with.
"Well, we'll see you later, Kurino-san!"
"Yeah! Bye guys!" Kurino waved goodbye to her friends, then turned and saw us. "Oh! Horikita-san! Furukawa-kun!" Kurino shouted our names and waved, then came straight towards us. "It's so nice to see you guys!"
"Y-Yeah, it's nice to see you too, Kurino-san."
She placed her finger on her lips and looked at both of us. "Um...are you and Furukawa-kun perhaps...on a date?"
"Absolutely not," both Furukawa and I said at the same time.
"O-Oh, sorry. I didn't mean to assume. Hehe..." Kurino bowed, apologizing to us. "Hey, Horikita-san, Furukawa-kun, do you two have some time later? I want to invite you guys to a party we're going to have at the karaoke bar later."
"A party?" I repeated. "I'm sorry, but I'm not really fond of parties, especially karaoke."
"O-Oh, is that so...?" Kurino looked at me with a frown on her face, almost like she was a puppy. "W-What about you, Furukawa-kun?"
"I'm sorry, but I'm probably not going to go as well."
"Oh..." Kurino looked down and frowned even more.
"I'll keep it in mind," said Furukawa, changing his answer and reassuring her.
"Really?! Thank you so much!" Kurino smiled once again, then pulled out her phone and a notebook. Using a pen, she wrote on the piece of paper and ripped it off. "Here's my contact info. Tell me if you change your mind!" Kurino waved goodbye and left with a smile staying on her face.
"She's quite happy," I said, noting her high levels of positive energy.
"Yeah." Furukawa pulled out his phone and started fiddling with it while looking at the piece of paper given by Kurino.
"I thought you didn't want to go."
"I don't. I'm just saving her contact information in case I need it."
Furukawa put his phone away and I stared at him, feeling suspicious. "Furukawa-kun, are you planning to do something with her?"
He gave me a blank look. "Does it look like I'm one of those people?" A question with such an obvious and simple answer. Just from his looks, you can tell how terrifying and strange he was. He sighed, then raised his hand gesturing to me. "I'm not going to do anything to her. This is just so I could communicate with Kurino and the rest of the class through her."
"I see." His decision was logical. Seeing that he put Kurino's contact in his phone, I pulled out my phone and did the same. "Hey Furukawa-kun, do you mind giving me yours?"
"Fine." Furukawa showed me his phone and I put his contact information in.
"Thank you. Well then, I suppose I'll say goodbye and leave. See you next time, Furukawa-kun."
"Horikita," Furukawa called out my name and I stopped.
"What?"
"Have you found out what you should do?"
I turned back around and stared at him, thinking about his question for a moment. He was referring to our conversation back at the dorm lobby. Furukawa knew the truth about the school and Class D, and he asked me what I was planning to do about it. At the time, I didn't give him an answer, but it seems like he's looking for one.
"I thought I already told you. It's none of your business." Furukawa continued to stare at me with his empty dark-gray eyes, remaining in silence. "If you want to know that badly, I'll tell you that I'm working on it."
"Working on it?" he repeated.
"Yes, that's what I said. Now, if you'll excuse me."
Furukawa
As Horikita Misaki left, I stared at her walking further and further away. I took my cup and gulped down the remaining tea, then threw it away in the trash.
"Horikita Misaki..." I muttered her name to myself. "How disappointing..." I got up and left my seat, then decided to take a stroll around the mall.