Coincidental Meeting

11th of June, 2020

6:30am

It's the first day of high school for Shizuno and he got up especially early for today. New school, new friends, new beginnings.

He took one last long look at the full size mirror, checking his appearance before heading off to the opening ceremony. He fixed his tie and flashed a smile.

"Okay! Let's do this!" his voice was obviously high-spirited, just as he always is.

He decided to just walk and not take his bike because the school isn't that far from his house. Besides, he wanted to see the cherry blossom tree he had always loved.

The cherry blossom tree that always reminded him of Rairi.

He was almost to the bridge where the tree was when he felt nostalgic. He saw a girl standing under it, looking straight up at the sky. She had long black hair, and it seemed like she was wearing the same school's uniform.

It was funny, he thought. It almost felt as if he was in the same situation ten years ago. He's now 16, yet that encounter is still clear in his mind.

He watched the girl as she slightly lifted her hand, trying to catch a cherry blossom being blown by the wind.

Long black hair.. Could it be...?

Shizuno's heart started beating faster. He was anxious, he wanted to know if his suspicion is correct. He started to walk closer, gently, trying not to make loud steps that might scare the girl off.

He was about three feet away when the girl started to walk. He was thinking of running towards her, but he stopped himself from doing so.

Maybe it's not her after all... I'd look like a creep if I got the wrong person.

So he just went straight to school after that. When he arrived at the school's gym for the opening ceremony, he tried to look for the girl he saw earlier. His attempt to search for her was unsuccessful though, because there were surprisingly a lot of girls in there with the same long black hair.

In the end, he just gave up on the idea and thought that he was stupid for even thinking of that in the first place.

"Class 1-B. This is it. Okay, let's do this." he muttered to himself before entering.

He opened the door and walked inside the classroom with a wide smile on his face. Trying to look very friendly.

"Hi everyone! I'm Shizuno Akagi. Nice to meet you all. I hope that we'll all be good friends in the future~"

He then picked a seat near a window. He started talking to others, making friends.

"Hey~ That Shizuno guy looks cute doesn't he?" one girl from the class said.

"Yeah yeah! And look he seems nice and friendly too~!" the other said.

First day of school and Shizuno has already gained admirers and friends. All because of his naturally friendly personality. His niceness is what makes him approachable and likable.

Meanwhile in Class 1-A, Rairi sat all alone. Quiet and wondering about her new school.

She chose a seat right in front of the teacher's desk, because that's what her mom told her earlier this morning before she went to school.

She had to be close to the teacher to be able to hear and see every lesson clearly. Her parents were counting on her not to fail her studies.

//ring

The school bell rang, signaling the start of their first class. The teacher came in and introduced himself to the students.

"Hello students. I'm Mr. Hakaze and I'll be your class adviser from now on. Let's all get along well together, okay?" the man in front of them said in a nice but serious tone.

"Okaaaayyy!!" the whole class answered in unison.

Hours went by quickly and it was already lunch break. Rairi headed to the ladies' washroom when she overheard girls talking about a guy.

"Shizuno was really cool earlier riiiight~?"

"Yeah~ he also helped me a bit with something earlier."

"Me too~! He's such a nice person ~"

The girls left and Rairi felt curious. She wanted to know if the Shizuno they were talking about is the same Shizuno she met years ago.

Without even thinking, it felt as if her body acted on its own. Before she noticed it, she was unconsciously following the girls from earlier.

She was eager to know the truth.

The girls went to Class 1-B and she couldn't go any further for that was not the class she belonged to.

She let out a deep sigh and turned around to go back to her classroom. But as she did, she bumped into a guy.

She looked up and saw a creepy looking guy with piercings on his face. The guy looked like he belonged to a gang of some sort. She wasn't sure.

All she knew was... trouble.

"You should be lookin' at where yer goin' missy!" the guy said with a loud voice.

"I-I'm sorry.." Rairi answered quietly.

"What're ya saying you bitch?" he said, slightly pushing Rairi against the door.

Rairi felt nervous and scared. She didn't know what to do, how to react. She felt like crying, but she couldn't. Nothing came out. Her voice, tears, nothing.

"Oi oi. What's this about Marco? Leave her alone. She looks scared." an unfamiliar voice said.

"This missy here was not lookin' and bumped into me. Tch." the creepy guy called Marco answered.

"Just let her go. Don't waste your time on this."

"Tch. 'Kay imma let this pass." With that, he went away and left Rairi and the stranger alone.

"Are you okay?" the guy asked, keeping his distance so the girl would not be startled.

"I-I'm okay. Thanks.." Rairi said, still looking down.

"I'm Shizuno. Be careful next time, okay?"

Rairi was surprised to hear that name. She looked up to see the face of the guy who introduced himself as Shizuno, hoping that it's the same guy she met 10years ago.

Her eyes widened at the sight in front of her. She wasn't sure if it was exactly him but she knew one thing. She saw the same cheerful and happy eyes of the little boy he met before.

"Shi..zu..no?" She uttered, her heart feeling nervous and excited at the same time.

"Hm? Do you know me?" He answered, trying to recall if he had seen the girl before.

Rairi did not know what to say. She thought that maybe he had forgotten her over the years. So she said thank you once more and left.

"Hehh.. That was weird. But I feel like I've seen her before somewhere. Oh well." Shizuno said.

He entered the room and sat down on his seat. Looking out the window, he tried to recall what happened some more.

Suddenly, he jumped up of his seat

"AAAHHHH!!! Could it be...!? It's her!?" he said in loud voice which made his classmates turn their attention towards him. Everyone just laughed at it.

"Aahh sorry sorry."

He rushed out and tried to search for the girl earlier, feeling all excited and anxious. He got the idea that it might be her when he remembered her eyes.. Those light brown eyes that complimented her pale fair skin and long black hair.

He checked every classroom for a sign of her but all attempts were pointless. Rairi was at the rooftop, thinking about what happened.

It's really him.. What should I do? I finally met him again after ten years..

Thoughts ran into her mind. She was busy thinking about what she should do when the door to the rooftop opened with a creeking sound.

There was heavy panting.. She felt someone walking closer to where she was.

"I.. I finally found you. Rairi."

A familiar voice behind her said. She felt like her heart had skipped a beat.

She turned to see who it was and was stunned.

Finally. I found you.