Quiz

Kenji waited in the 1st year dormitory lobby. He bought a black can coffee from a nearby vending machine. He had his earphones connected on his mp3 player as classical piano music played from it.

Soon the elevator opened and then the person he was waiting for arrived. Kenji went to the person, and she also noticed him.

"Kawamoto-kun?"

"I'm sorry about yesterday. I've gone too far."

Kenji bowed his head slightly on Kushida. Thinking about it, he really did go far with his words. Though that was Kenji's honest thoughts, it really did hurt her.

"Oh, there's no need for you to apologize Kawamoto-kun. I admit I'm forcing you to do something. I'm also sorry for that." Kushida say sorry bowing her head slightly.

"By the way can I ask you something?" Kenji said. "Why are you desperate to be her friend Don't you already have more friends than everyone else? There's no reason to focus on Horikita right?"

"I wanted to be friends with everyone. Not just the people in Class D, but the students from other classes, too. But if I can't become friends with one girl in my class, then that means I'll never achieve my goal..." Kushida said.

"Hmm... There's really no need to be fixated on such a goal right? Do you have some particular reason why you 'really' need to be friends with everyone?" Kenji asked probing her true intentions.

"About that..." Kushida turned meek by Kenji's gaze.

Looking at her like this, Kenji sighed. "Sorry. I guess I've gone too far again. It was rude to ask you that. Please forget about it."

Kushida also was relieved. But somehow there was something bothering until today. "So you still don't call me by my name Kawamoto-kun."

"Oh really? I guess that's really quite rude for me, isn't it?" Kenji said reflecting on his lack of manners. "Then from now on I'll call you Kushida."

"Yes! That would be fine Kawamoto-kun!" Kushida smiled at him delighted.

"But Kawamoto-kun, why aren't you speaking with anyone other than Horikita-san in class? I'm sure you could make some friends easily if you open up with them too you know?" Kushida asked. "I heard that you want to make friends right?

"How did you know that... Kushida?"

Hearing Kenji say her name for the first time, Kushida was glad. "Ah, I heard it in the swimming pool when Kawamoto-kun and Horikita-san are talking."

"I won't deny it. I wasn't really able to make friends. In junior high, I never knew anyone's contact information or hung out with anyone after class. I was always alone." Kenji said.

Kushida was visibly surprised when she heard Kenji say that, like she couldn't believe it.

"I mostly just helped out in my family's business. I always go straight home after school. My parents are worried about me not making any friends, so to respect their feelings I decided to make some friends." Kenji said. "I think that's also partly why I can relate to Horikita. We're both loners after all."

"Woah... That's really a shock. I didn't think you were like that at all. Why were you all alone?"

"Nothing in particular. I still don't really know if that's my fault or the fault of the circumstances I was in. I think it's both of them though."

Their conversation kept them occupied until that they arrived in their classroom. Some girls, who looked like Kushida's friends, and boys getting jealous after they found Kushida walking with a boy together at school.

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It was second period in math. It'd been three weeks since the entrance ceremony. At this point in time Kenji had already given up on making friends.

"Kawamoto-kun, haven't you made quite a few friends?" asked Horikita, copying what was written on the blackboard into her notebook.

"No, not really." Kenji said while doing nothing in particular. Well he did some doodling on his notebook to pass the time.

Kenji was secretly observing his classmates in the background. They were quite the bunch of 'delinquents' if he had to say. Coming to school late, ditching school, chatting in the middle of a lesson, talking out loud... They definitely didn't looked like students of a prestigious highschool.

"Whoa. Seriously, he has a girlfriend? Awesome."

Based on the conversation on the group of friends, apparently the de facto class leader Hirata was dating Karuizawa. Karuizawa is somewhat of a Queen Bee, being the leader of a group of popular girls in class.

"I'm so envious." Kenji muttered under his breath.

Not only was was he handsome and outgoing, Hirata also had a girlfriend already. Would having a girlfriend really make his life more fun? Based on his experience, it truly is more enjoyable to share happiness with a person you hold dear. But he didn't have someone like that, aside from his family that is.

Well it's not like being alone in and itself was bad. He could be happy even if he was going to spend his high school life on his own. That was what he was doing up until now.

'If I want a girlfriend, I would like her to be strong and yet really adorable.' Kenji glanced at Horikita for a split second. Though he knew that would be impossible.

"Don't even think about it." Horikita glared icily at Kenji. She must have read his thoughts.

"Yes ma'am. Please forgive this humble one."

And so his great quest to slowly ask Horikita to become his girlfriend failed before he even got the chance to develop their relationship and ask her out.

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For the third period it was Japanese History class. When the bell rang, Chabashira-sensei walked into the noisy classroom. Her entrance didn't alter the students' behavior.

"Quiet down a little, please. Today's lesson will be a bit serious."

"What do you mean, Sae-chan-sensei?"

They already had a pet name for the teacher. What a bold class they are.

"It's the end of the month, so we're going to have a short test. Please pass these to the back."

She handed out the papers to the students in the front row. It contained questions in the five main subjects. With only a few questions per subject, it really was short.

"Huh? I wasn't listening, though. This is so unfair!" a student cried.

"Don't say that. This test is just for future reference. It won't be reflected in your report cards. There is no risk involved, so don't worry. Of course, cheating is prohibited."

As soon as the pop quiz began, I scanned the questions. There were four questions per subject, for a total of twenty. Each question was worth five points, for a total of one hundred points. Most of the questions were extraordinarily easy, to the point where it was almost a letdown. In fact, the questions seemed to be about two levels less difficult than the ones on the entrance examination. It appeared far too easy. Even middle schoolers could get a decent score from it.

"Hm~" Kenji silently hummed a tune while answering the test questions in the quiz.

Sure enough the questions did look really easy. He answered one questions after another, until a huge problem occured.

"Huh? What the heck is this?" Kenji said out of surprise.

The last three questions couldn't be geared in for a 1st year highschool student. The questions really are made for a higher level.

But Kenji just shrugged and answered it without thinking too deeply about it.