Chapter 3: The Hidden Rainbow Behind the Pine Tree

'Oh no. No. No. No. No. No!'

Panicking internally at the grim prospects for his future, Yukio couldn't help but feel annoyed at Chiaki's proactivity. However, the feeling was quickly expelled when he remembered the words he had said while in a daze on the bus- the words he was being held accountable for right now- reaffirming the notion that every dialogue and action has to be made with caution. And if he didn't get on top of damage control soon, he'd be the target of expulsion by a certain two-faced she-devil.

Reigning in his emotions, and keeping his facial expressions as placid as was humanly possible for a guy facing future expulsion, Yukio pondered on a solution to the bleak circumstance.

'Wait! This situation can be salvaged. There is no need to panic. Maybe I can just rely on…'

"Nice to meet you… Kushida-San, is it? Matsushita-san has probably introduced me, but I'm Yukio Kobayashi. I thought you looked like a… certain model back in the UK. You were really cool on the bus by the way!"

Relying on his foreign looks and his supposed ignorance of Japanese culture was a big brain move in Yukio's opinion, and so he gave himself a mental pat on the back. Though he was not going to let his guard down around the girl. Some countermeasures would probably need to be put in place.

"Aha! So it was that… Well, hi Kobayashi-Kun! Thank you for the praise but I don't think I deserve it. I just found it saddening that a senior was unable to find a seat so I couldn't help but step in. I'm Kikyou Kushida as you know and I hope we can be friends!"

The cute, crimson-eyed girl with an abnormally large bust leant forward in greeting, attracting the attention of several boys around the class. It was statements such as those that made Kushida appear as though an angel.

Yukio felt relieved as the uncomfortable feeling in his stomach finally settled, and decided he'd do some further damage control in his introduction, just to hammer in the point that he was just a wee little ignorant foreigner who could not possibly know Kushida's past.

While exchanging greetings and pleasantries with the group of girls Chiaki had brought over, the class had become full, and a well-endowed brunette with sharp facial features, garbed in a suit, finally made her way in, attracting the attention of the class.

'Sae Chabashira… she is more beautiful in person. That serious expression is really hot. But what is it with women in this academy and not being what they seem? Chiaki, Kushida, and now Sae.'

Taking a seat at his desk, Yukio looked to his right, spying a familiar blonde with his legs resting on the table and a mirror in his hands. Deciding to put all thoughts on the narcissist aside, he focused on the small welcome speech Chabashira had to give.

"Ahem, good morning new students. My name is Chabashira Sae…"

— — —

Drowning out the voice of the bored-looking Sensei, Chiaki Matsushita gave an imperceptible glance at her desk mate of the foreseeable future.

'I wonder what secrets that boy has. He looked all panicked when I told him about the meeting with Kushida. I think he might have even looked at me at one point too. Anger? Annoyance? But then it just… disappeared. That boy is hiding something. He might be more interesting than he lets on.'

When Chiaki approached him and noticed his sudden crumbling expression, she immediately thought to block the view from Kushida. She figured it was a helpful move given the quick return to a smiling face indicating his desire for his thoughts to go unnoticed by the 5'1 beauty.

'Hm… I've helped the cute little Kobayashi with his problem but he's left me quite intrigued. Since it's like that, why don't I just collect the debt from him in the future… with interest.'

And while pondering her micro-schemes for the future, she listened to Chabashira explaining the rules she was already aware of.

— — —

After all the commotion Chabashira managed to raise with the lacklustre dissemination of the school rules, an excited cacophony erupted within the class.

'Haa… It's quite funny to see how excited they are. I'm going to save this scene in my brain so I can have a good laugh on the first of May.'

While thinking silly thoughts, Yukio noticed a friendly-looking brown-haired boy stand up and turn to the class. Just short of being 5'9, he was of average height- an interesting thing to note. In Japan the average height was slightly shorter than the western countries, so Yukio's 5'11 was just short of being the tallest in the class behind Kouenji's 6'0, and was the same as Ken Sudou's height.

"Everyone, can you guys listen to me for a bit?"

And with that call for attention, the introductions swiftly got underway, with Ken's outburst causing most of the 'extras' and several of the main cast to vacate the room- Horikita, Haruka, Akito and Teruhiko being among the few. Interestingly, 3 of these individuals made up the small friendship group Ayanokouji would be a part of later on in the year.

Turning around to spy a lone Airi Sakura, the last of the aforementioned group, Yukio noticed the fidgeting appearance reminiscent of a shy introvert not knowing what to do.

'Yeah… she probably would have gone but is too afraid to draw attention to herself. What an idiotic but loveable fool.'

Yukio had nothing against any of the characters in the Advanced Nurturing High- not even Nagumo Miyabi. At the end of the day they were all characters in a light novel that were brought to life in front of him, and he was only excited to meet all these quirky personalities.

There were, however, a few he would not like to meet over the next few years, solely for the potential problems they would bring his way.

Throughout the introductions, Yukio kept up a smiling face and even burst out laughing when he heard the introductions of Yamauchi and Ike. The two were so alike to the kids back in his all-boys school, and so he couldn't help but laugh.

'Desperate virgins, eh? Wait? Would I not count as one too?'

Quickly dispelling thoughts that hit too close to home, the introductions finally made their way to Yukio. He stood up and settled for the usual lopsided smile and said-

"Well… Hello to everyone left. My name is Yukio Kobayashi. Where I'm from we were on a first-name basis, so feel free to call me Yukio. I'm not very familiar with the language, so apologies in advance if I offend you. I enjoy reading and playing sports so you might find me on a field hanging about in the future. Please take care of me."

And with a short bow to balance any arrogance that he may have unconsciously radiated, Yukio was sure he'd hammered in the point that he was an ignorant foreigner in Kushida's mind.

As he'd mentioned in his introduction, he was quite proficient at several sports including football, swimming and handball. He was mediocre at the other sports, but it would probably result in a rating of at least an A- in the system introduced next year.

Growing up in an all-boys school, the testosterone was high, and so was the competitive spirit. It lead him to play football for the school team, while swimming and handball were just past times he enjoyed in physical education classes and extracurricular tournaments.

At the Advanced Nurturing High, he did not plan to join the football team, although he may check out the other clubs in the student fair. Something fresh, and probably only found in the oriental countries, like Kendo would be a nice change of pace for the teenager.

Even though he was inexperienced with girls in his past life, if what he had seen in films and such was a good indication, he had no doubts that there would be some interest in him from the girls around. He was, after all, a relatively tall foreigner who was good at sports. And unlike Sudou, Yukio could say his personality wasn't so shitty. So if he could successfully solidify a friendship with Matsushita, she could serve as a buffer for anything that went down in the first year.

'Not that I need protection, but it's sort of… nerve-wracking to think I might be confessed to. I know it's part of social relationships but I want some time to get used to the presence of girls. Maybe if I find I want someone, I can pursue them of my own accord too, who knows.'

Additionally, objectively speaking, Chiaki was one of the most attractive in the class, competing with the likes of long-haired Horikita and the cute Kushida, making for great eye candy. So being close to her had very few disadvantages. The biggest one is her eye for things that she kept hidden. The move to cover him from Kushida had not gone unnoticed by him, but he did not want to confront her about it since she'd probably play ignorant.

The introductions finally ended with Ayanokouji's pitiful excuse of a greeting, one that Yukio took great pleasure in. Chiaki's introduction was pretty generic consisting of wanting to meet new people and make friends, as expected of a background character.

— — —

As everyone was ushered into the entrance ceremony, Yukio spied a few of the key players in the year and even managed to get a glimpse of Daddy Sakayangi as well as Horikita's older brother.

While the ceremony had ended underwhelmingly, his last entrance ceremony had been 7 years ago so it brought back fond memories.

As the students filed out of the auditorium after a brief explanation of the facilities, which got everyone chattering again, most of the students walked back to the dormitories to settle in.

Yukio turned back to look through the crowd, eventually finding Matsushita who was discussing something with Nene Mori. They came up to him and Matsushita asked something which resulted in the cataclysm of his mind.

"Hey kobayash- no, Yukio-kun. Would you like to go explore Keyaki mall with Nene and I?

'…'

'I was asked out by a girl?!'