New Friend

(Words: 2515)

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In the student guidance room after the fourth class at noon.

Sasaki sat on a wooden chair and asked Takamine Ayako, who was sitting across from him:

"Takamine-sensei, you wanted to see me?"

"Yes."

"Sasaki, after you returned to school…"

Takamine Ayako wasn't the gentle, understanding type of teacher.

She wasn't particularly good at comforting people, so after briefly inquiring about Sasaki's recent situation, she skipped the small talk and got straight to the point, asking directly:

"Sasaki, I'd like to know if you're aware of the reason Ueda and Higashikawa transferred. If you know anything, could you share it with me?"

Her question didn't surprise him, so, Sasaki innocently and simply shook his head:

"I don't know, I wasn't close to them. We never talked."

Takamine Ayako carefully scrutinized his expression.

After confirming that he showed no signs of nervousness, guilt, or evasiveness, she quietly breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, saying,

"I see… If you don't know them, that's fine. I was just asking as part of routine inquiries."

"You've probably heard some of the rumors circulating in the class.

Regardless of what the truth is, since rumors have started, I need to ask the students who were on duty yesterday to clarify things so I can explain them to the rest of the class."

"Yes."

Sasaki nodded with an understanding smile, playing the role of the innocent and clueless student to perfection.

But inwardly, he couldn't help but sigh.

He hadn't expected those two who hadn't been hit yesterday to be so cowardly.

After merely witnessing their companions being hit, they had immediately taken leave and arranged for a transfer the next day.

This had drawn the attention of their classmates.

While transfers weren't entirely uncommon, they weren't everyday occurrences either.

Typically, when students heard about a classmate transferring, they'd be slightly surprised, discuss the student's usual behavior for a bit, and then move on, quickly forgetting about it.

It wouldn't usually lead to the spread of rumors—unless something unusual had occurred…

Coincidentally, for the students in the class, this transfer situation was somewhat unusual.

First, the matter began when Takamine Ayako, the teacher in charge, casually mentioned during morning roll call that Morishita and two others had taken leave.

This was a minor issue, nothing to be concerned about.

After all, it's not uncommon for students in any class to take leave.

At most, the oddity was that three students requested leave all at once, which was slightly strange.

Most of the students in the class didn't give it much thought.

But shortly after, a well-informed student revealed that someone had seen Higashikawa escorting a boy whose face was covered in blood into the nurse's office the day before.

The crucial detail was only one sentence, but with the student's excessive interpretation and wild speculation, the story evolved into something else entirely.

The injured boy, whose face was bloodied—whether it was Morishita or Ueda wasn't clear—was said to have been in a fight and got injured as a result…

Although it was merely that student's imagination, Sasaki, who was listening nearby, couldn't help but marvel at how close they had come to the truth.

However, not all students accepted this explanation.

One student, who had been in the staff room earlier that morning to deliver assignments to Takamine-sensei, stood up to refute the claim, saying they had seen the leave slip Morishita had submitted to Takamine-sensei.

The reason stated on the slip was that Morishita had accidentally missed a step and fell down the stairs after their afternoon duties, injuring his face.

With the teacher's "endorsement," Morishita's leave reason was beyond doubt, but the sudden transfer of Ueda and Higashikawa was harder to explain.

So, the student who claimed Morishita had been beaten denied the legitimacy of his leave excuse, firmly believing it was just a cover for Morishita's hospitalization after being beaten up.

They further asserted that Ueda and Higashikawa transferred out because they feared ongoing bullying after being beaten.

This theory gained the support of most of the class.

But when photos of Ueda and Higashikawa surfaced during their transfer process, showing them with uninjured faces and walking without any signs of distress, it shattered the rumor that they had been beaten.

After all, if they hadn't been beaten, why would they suddenly transfer?

Sasaki also found this strange.

From how quickly they processed their transfers and how they didn't even dare to enter the classroom to collect their textbooks, he figured they must have been terrified of him.

Otherwise, it was hard to explain why they fled so quickly.

The rest of the students, unaware of the truth, were left scratching their heads.

Given all these unusual circumstances, they began to concoct and spread various theories about what had happened with Morishita and the other two.

With so many people talking, and their imaginations running wild, it was inevitable that someone would hit upon the truth.

One of the theories that emerged was that Sasaki had gotten into a conflict with Morishita and had beaten him up.

But this rumor was quickly dismissed almost as soon as it surfaced.

First of all, this kind of talk can easily offend people and cause resentment.

Secondly, the reason he speculated that Sasaki was the one who fought was based on the accounts of other students on duty that day.

According to them, after everyone else had left, only Sasaki and the three others—Morishita, Higashikawa, and Ueda—remained.

It's not unusual for a bit of conflict to arise when four boys are together.

However, a key point that was worth disputing was this: if Sasaki had indeed fought with them, why weren't there any visible injuries on him or on Higashikawa and Ueda?

Even if it wasn't anything serious, there should have been at least some bruises on their faces…

It's important to note that Morishita had a good relationship with Higashikawa and Ueda.

So, it's unlikely they would have just stood by and cheered while Morishita was being beaten up.

But if all three of them had jumped in, how could Sasaki have come out on top?

Three against one should have been an overwhelming advantage, yet they somehow managed to lose to just one person… This doesn't make sense.

It's not a reasonable explanation, and it would also offend people.

So, they quickly dismissed this possibility.

After that, the conversation veered off into supernatural legends and school rumors, suggesting that maybe they had encountered Hanako while cleaning the mop in the bathroom, or that something from the abandoned school building had resurfaced.

Some students even asked Sasaki if he had noticed anything strange happening yesterday afternoon…

In short, there were all sorts of theories, and eventually, the rumors caught the attention of the teachers.

If it had been teachers from another class, they would have simply dismissed the students' gossip as idle chatter and wouldn't have paid much attention.

But for Takamine Ayako, who was known as a bit of a "mother," she felt compelled to pull the students on duty yesterday aside to ask about the situation.

She was also curious about why Morishita ended up in the hospital, and why Ueda and Higashikawa suddenly transferred.

Since Sasaki had been the last person to interact with them, he naturally became the focus of her attention.

And that led to the scene of them talking now.

Sasaki, maintaining a look of bewildered innocence, recounted the events of the previous day to Takamine-sensei, covering the details appropriately.

Not finding anything suspicious in his account, Takamine Ayako, relieved that he wasn't involved, allowed a slight smile to cross her young but somewhat stern and serious face as she said,

"I was just asking about the situation, so don't overthink it."

"If you ever encounter something you can't handle on your own, you can come to me. I'll do my best to help you."

"..."

You know,

Otome was wearing the same outfit yesterday, saying these same words in bed.

Sasaki, whose thoughts were gradually beginning to drift to less innocent places, forced himself to clear the inappropriate thoughts from his mind, and nodded:

"Alright, just don't find me too troublesome when that time comes, Takamine-sensei~"

Sasaki's playful remark, coupled with the radiant smile that spread across his face completely dispelled the sternness she usually carried and Takamine Ayako, for the first time, smiled like a youthful older sister in her early twenties, displaying a particularly cheerful and vibrant expression:

"How could I? If anything's troubling you, just let me know."

Stunned by the brilliance of her smile, Sasaki instinctively blurted out a compliment,

"Takamine-sensei, you should smile more often; you're so pretty."

"..."

The atmosphere in the guidance room froze as Takamine Ayako's smile stiffened on her face.

For a moment, Sasaki wasn't sure if his compliment had been the right choice.

Just as he began to regret his words, Takamine Ayako, slowly pulling back her smile, adjusted her glasses and spoke in a tone that was neither warm nor cold, making it hard to tell whether she was pleased or displease,

"Let's leave it at that for now.

It's been quite some time since class ended, so I won't take up any more of your lunchtime, Sasaki."

Her expression remained neutral, giving nothing away.

Sasaki nodded, stood up, and said, "Goodbye, Takamine-sensei."

"Mm."

Click—

After he closed the door and left, Takamine Ayako removed her slightly old-fashioned glasses, raised both hands to cover her face, and let out a muffled sound, "Mmm."

Then, the smooth, black-stockinged legs beneath her desk, pressed tightly together, began to rub against each other as her small feet in low-heeled shoes tapped the floor, creating a sharp, crisp sound in the guidance room.

Though her face was hidden by her hands, making her expression impossible to see, the redness of her small, exposed ears revealed that she was quite pleased.

…

Unaware of the girlish reaction of the usually stern Takamine Ayako, Sasaki walked down the hallway, planning to head to the cafeteria for lunch.

"Hey! Uh, Sasaki."

A voice called out behind him, making him stop and turn around, meeting with the sight of a bright, golden-haired girl.

Natural and beautiful, her well-formed face was slightly flushed, giving her a somewhat embarrassed appearance.

Seeing this, Sasaki smiled and raised a hand in greeting,

"Hamazaki-san, haven't you gone to lunch yet?"

"Not yet."

As he walked closer, Hamazaki Reina gradually regained her usual confident demeanor as she shook her head slightly and said:

"I was just about to go. Want to join me?"

Having no reason to refuse, Sasaki nodded,

"Sure, the cafeteria?"

Having promised her close friends yesterday to introduce Sasaki to them, going to a place as crowded as the cafeteria wasn't ideal, so

Hamazaki Reina, leading the way downstairs, guided Sasaki as she spoke, "Let's go somewhere quieter."

"You know my reputation at school isn't great, and I don't feel comfortable going to the cafeteria."

"Oh, and my friends are there too. You don't mind eating with them, right?"

"I'm more concerned about what we'll be eating." Noticing they weren't heading toward either the cafeteria or the convenience store, Sasaki chuckled.

"Don't worry, we won't let you go hungry."

Laughing heartily in response, Hamazaki Reina then asked about what had happened yesterday,

"Hey, you just came from the guidance room, right? Did the teacher talk to you?"

"Yeah."

As the club building came into view, Sasaki nodded, "Since we were the only four left after cleaning up yesterday, and now one's in the hospital and the other two transferred, it was natural for the teacher to ask me what happened."

"Sorry about that, I didn't mean to cause you any trouble."

Feeling a bit guilty, Hamazaki Reina scratched her head and looked up at Sasaki's profile:

"What did you tell the teacher? Did they suspect you?"

"There aren't any cameras in the classroom or the hallway.

Even if they suspect something, what can they do?

Those three have already left, and even if the teacher wants to make an issue of it, the school board wouldn't be willing to pursue it."

"Don't worry."

Sasaki didn't dwell on the situation, and reassured her with a casual tone.

"It's no big deal."

And seeing how relaxed and natural he was about it, Hamasaki Reina, who wasn't the type to worry unnecessarily, took note of his easygoing attitude, shifting the conversation to lighter topics that might help her get to know him better.

After about six or seven minutes of chatting and laughing, they arrived at the third floor of the club building, stopping in front of a door with a sign that read "Idol Research Club."

"We're here."

Hamazaki Reina said as she reached out to open the door, calling out to the room inside,

"I brought a new friend!"

Following her inside, Sasaki immediately noticed the two girls sitting around a long table made by pushing four desks together in the center of the room, eating their lunch.

The girl on the right side of the table had long, off-white hair, an uncommon color.

She looked up instinctively at the sound of Hamazaki's voice, revealing a cute, delicate face.

Perhaps knowing how adorable she was, she had styled her shiny, silky hair into twin-tails that fell just to her shoulders, held in place by two thin, pale pink ribbons.

Her bangs, cut straight across her forehead, framed a pair of gentle, slightly drooping eyes that gave her a soft, approachable aura.

Her pupils were a striking shade of light purple with a hint of red, adding to her charm.

Her nose was straight and elegantly shaped, and below it, her small, plump lips glistened with a slight sheen.

Upon seeing her familiar friend enter, she responded to Hamazaki's greeting,

"You're late, Reina. Ruri couldn't wait and started eating already."

"Huh?"

"So the new friend is here."

Her comment caught the attention of the other girl sitting across from her.

Compared to the twin-tailed girl's cuteness, the girl with purple hair opposite her exuded more of a mature, sensual vibe.

Her long, dark purple hair, which hung loose, rippled softly in the light breeze from the window, giving it a silky and smooth appearance.

Perhaps because of its silkiness, she didn't wear any hair accessories, letting her waist-length hair flow freely.

Her face, as she looked up, was undeniably beautiful.

The strands of hair framing her forehead naturally parted from the center, with the longer bangs tucked behind her ears, revealing her smooth, fair forehead.

Her delicate, jet-black eyebrows were as finely shaped as if drawn with a calligraphy brush.

Her eyes, long and serene, carried a gentle, alluring charm, with pupils that shone in a brilliant shade of purple, reminiscent of perfectly polished amethyst.

Like Hamazaki Reina, she wore heart-shaped pink earrings, a symbol of her "gyaru" status, on her soft earlobes.

Noticing the unfamiliar boy in their usual gathering spot, Yukina Sasaki, who knew he was the one who had stood up for Reina and herself, greeted him warmly.

"Hello there~ new friend."

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