You dropped your arms as you and Tsumiki exhausted every story you could possibly tell to each other about your day, from your crazy home room teacher to the fly that wouldn't stop buzzing around her ear in second period.
Now that you thought about it, you didn't know why you were being so dramatic about going to a different school. It was just a couple of hours apart.
"So, thankfully you found a group that you could communicate with quickly," Tsumiki said, grinning.
"Admit it, you're jealous."
"Yes, endlessly."
You laughed and turned to her from your seat on the bench. She smiled at you and sighed. "Crazy that this is the first time we aren't in the same school."
You nodded and glanced at the street, where familiar cars drove by, stopping at stop signs that had been there since before you were born and had begun to grow plants at their base that had gotten used to their presence.
The people walking through the street, knowing full well that the two girls seated at the bench under the second tree to the right of tree third tea shop had known each other since they were five, that they were inseparable, that there was not one misunderstood word shared between you.
Being at that school, where people would never glance in your direction, where your closest friend could make or break you, where you knew no one, it was all new.
New...
It was not a place where they "always did." Perhaps people were always sitting at the same table or wearing the same uniform, but they didn't always come into school at exactly 7:30 in the morning, nor did the scent of the lunch food drift into the hallways do so at exactly 11:30.
It was strange.
Strange to not look out the window and know exactly whose care was whose. Strange to not know exactly what someone was going to say when they approached. Strange to not pass the same people as you left.
But at the same time... it wasn't all that bad.
•••
You sat at the counter of the flower shop, watching people go by through the window until you spotted your teacher walking towards the store, except he didn't quite look like your teacher. He had to be at least ten years younger and wearing a uniform very similar to yours.
You, without even a thought, picked up your hearing aid that sat on the counter and placed it in your ear.
He walked through the door and you furrowed your brow confused as he walked towards the counter rather than perusing the flowers. He slammed 100 000 yen on the table and asked, "How do you passively aggressively say, 'I killed your dad' in flower?"
•••
You woke up to the sound of your alarm and you scratched your head. That was weird.
It wasn't like you knew what Gojo looked like when he was younger, but it was definitely him - the round glasses, the white hair, and even though he was certainly shorter, you could tell he'd grow to the obnoxiously tall man he was.
You tried to block out the last thing he said, but it kept repeating in your head. It made no sense but it wouldn't cease.
Why would you even get flowers with such a message anyway?
You rubbed your eyes and began getting ready for school, remembering that you would be seeing that exact teacher that day. Now that you thought about it, though, he did seem like the type to ask for such an outlandish bouquet.
It wasn't like you had never had strange dreams about people in your life - who hasn't?
Some were just... oddly specific.
You made your way to the bus stop, where Tsumiki, Nanako, and Mimiko were already waiting. Nanako already had all sorts of photography supplies in a tote bag that was slung over her shoulder.
She sighed, holding it in her lap like an unborn baby. "Don't ask," she told you simply, and you raised your hands in surrender in response.
When Nanako was snappy, she could very easily bring out embarrassing photos of you and showcase it at whatever she could possibly showcase it at.
You sat between Mimiko and Tsumiki and Mimiko was quick to lean on your shoulder, falling asleep.
"She was practicing all night," Nanako said, placing her hand on her sister's shoulder. "She saw all sorts of things displayed in the halls of her school and thought she wasn't good enough. Suguru was super worried."
You nodded and tried your hardest not to move so she could get at least a little sleep before you had to get on your bus.
After a couple minutes, the bus drove up and you slowly moved from your position, placing your hand under her head so Tsumiki could slip under.
Nanako and Tsumiki waved and you left on the bus like you had the previous morning.
You watched the road go by out the window until you got to a stop with someone wearing the same uniform as you, save for the skirt... and a panda head.
Eyes wide, you watched him enter the bus and he seemed to look through the seats, spotting the similar uniform and plopping down right next to you.
You couldn't help but stare, the strange choice of fashion catching your attention. The only thing telling you that he was a guy was his uniform.
The bus came to a stop and the both of you got off and entered the school. Many people stared as he walked by, but the real problem was that he was walking next to you. It seemed like everyone was staring at you rather than him, even though you knew that a normal girl sauntering around the school wouldn't actually gain any attention, while a boy with a panda head on definitely would.
You went into your class and found that he did as well.
"Good morning, Y/N," Maki greeted, while Toge waved at you as well. "I see you've met Panda Yaga."
You stared, your eyes going from Maki's cool and collected face to the boy wearing a panda head right beside you. "So Panda is his actual name?"
She nodded.
"And the boy wearing a panda head is him?"
She nodded again.
You hummed and sat down, watching him do the same. Maki leaned forward to gain his attention and seemed to say something to Panda, which made him lean forward even further so he could face you.
"Sorry, I was talking the whole time while we were on the bus and you couldn't hear a word!"
Your face flushed - he had been talking that whole time and you were just staring at him.
Gojo walked in with a chipper grin and you tensed, just a bit. It wasn't like he actually asked you for the bouquet that you had seen him ask for in your dream, but it was strange to see him right after that.
Maki sighed once again, clearly unimpressed with both his wide grin and upbeat attitude.
Gojo was rather easy to pay attention to. Between his exaggerated movements, his strange fashion choices and his height, you found it hard to have your eyes stray away.
Although, you did begin losing him when he went on a tangent about his high school life in the middle of Science.
"My friend - the school nurse - always did awful on essays because she just couldn't explain things right! Don't know how she became a doctor."
The school nurse had an office to the right of the main office. You had passed it on the first day while looking for your class, noticing the name Shoko Ieri engraved on the plaque stuck on the door.
You sometimes smelled the scent of smoke radiating from the room, so you assumed that she smoked - not that you blamed her. Being a doctor was stressful.
The bell rang and Maki practically yanked you out of class to finally get enough of Gojo's yapping.
You glanced behind you, seeing that Gojo had almost immediately stopped talking, his eyes now fixated on the row of potted flowers that caught your eye on the first day.
He always seemed very energetic, which was remarkably hard to hide from someone who sees more than a grin and hears more than joyous tone.
You listened, but not the way someone normally did.
You observed, but not the way someone normally did.
Toge tapped your shoulder and you turned. "Is something the matter? You look absent."
"I'm fine."
It's not like you could do anything with your observations. The flowers he had were not in soil and clearly preserved since they didn't hold their velvety texture. They did, however, still hold their meaning - friendship; love. But what would you even do?
You sat on the bleachers with Maki, Toge and Panda like you had before.
"He's so annoying, I swear, you'd think he forgot college and just went straight to teaching!" Maki complained with Toge translating for you, although it was hard for him to keep up with her annoyed rambling.
You tried not to laugh, leaning against the bleacher behind you, nodding along with what Maki was saying. You turned to Panda. "Not going to eat?"
"I will."
Maki stopped talking and said something to Panda, something that Toge did not decide to translate.
After a while, Panda nodded and placed his hands on the sides of his panda head, slowly pulling it off, revealing his face underneath.
His scarred face underneath.
You didn't know if they were burns or bruises or abrasions or what, but you simply smiled and continued eating.
Maki smirked at Panda before continuing.
She apparently had a lot to say about Gojo's teaching style after just two days.
After lunch, you walked with the three back to class, with Panda and Maki up ahead chatting, and you and Toge close behind.
His hand placed itself on your shoulder and you glanced at him. "Thanks for that."
"For what?"
"Not saying anything about Panda's scars. He really hates them, you know?"
"Well, he chose a panda head over showing them, so I'd assume so." You smiled at Panda, who had begun putting his panda head back on. "It was nothing though. I'd like Panda whether I knew or not."