First Friend

She went straight in with no hesitation which was unexpected. I didn't know how to respond at first, so I kept walking slowly, trying to think of an answer. I thought that if she was straightforward with her approach, I should do so as well.

"What's your name?"

"I'm Ichinose Yui, what's yours?"

"Hinode Hiryu, nice to meet you. Should I tell you a bit about myself?" I asked. I barely could hold a conversation. I was trying my best.

"Oh. There's no need. If we told everything about ourselves here, we wouldn't have anything to say later on. It's better to find out one's personality on your own."

My impression of her skyrocketed. She was outspoken and clever in the way she talked. She also looked unrelenting, which was different from what I saw of her earlier. Well, to be honest, she could still be popular, but boys would more likely gravitate towards girls like Saki that had a bubbly personality, instead of a serious girl displayed by Ichinose.

"Sure. I like that idea," I nodded. She responded with a slight smile. I was going to ask about the other girl, but I figured that it would give the wrong impression that I liked her or something, so I refrained from doing that.

One by one, students were called and told to sit in their assigned seats. The list was arranged alphabetically following the first names. The seats were chosen randomly though, the arrangement of names didn't correlate to which seat a student would be taking.

I prayed that my fortune would be with me. I wanted to sit around those I knew of. I mean, who wouldn't? A sense of familiarity is always a good thing. Even so, sitting around strangers could be pleasant as well since I wanted to befriend people anyway. But I would still prefer the former choice.

"Hinode Hiryu," my name was called. I was at the near bottom of the list, the line now was sparse. I looked at the windows to peer inside the classroom. I saw the perfect spot. A cliché spot, the one that any protagonist in a school setting would sit in, but I couldn't care less.

"Alright, go find your seat," the supervisor said.

I trod slowly to the classroom door. People scattered around to find their seats. Some of them were seated already, specifically the ones on top of the list. That was how I knew the seats were chosen randomly.

The inside was certainly huge. Windows were built on both sides of the classroom. Technology was heavily used in this school. The classic blackboards were triumphed by large monitors. Tablets were placed on everyone's tables. I even saw portable chargers installed on the sides of the tables.

However, the one that most caught my eye was the hologram table in front of the monitor. It looked like it came from a villain's hideout or a military base. It was showing the seats in the classroom. Not only that, it displayed which seats were occupied or vacant. Digitalization had truly taken over all fields of work.

Well, it was for convenience. The changes it made were undeniably beneficial. For example, instead of using plenty of textbooks to jot down notes, which is cumbersome, using a single tablet that could store everything neatly was more efficient. Not that I cared about academic pursuits, since I mainly strived in combat, anything of convenience was essential for everyone.

Shortly after I was done inspecting the classroom, Ichinose talked to me from behind, "Impressive, isn't it? The technology here brutally defeats what we have in Hinata."

I turned around to face her, "I guess it's an obvious fact. They don't call Hinata a countryside for nothing, even when technology is frequently used there."

She let out an amiable smile before continuing. "Want to join me in looking for my seat? I could help you if you wanted to."

I had no reason to deny the offer, so I reluctantly accepted it. "Sure," I responded.

At first, I wanted to search for Saki because she went in before me. I didn't see her when I walked in so she was probably still looking for her assigned seat. Chasing her down would waste time. I hoped that I would sit next to Saki, so I wished her good luck in my mind.

As I was walking beside Ichinose, some eyes were shooting at us. This was to be expected for many reasons. First, I mentioned that Ichinose possessed a good-looking appearance, which was why the main audience was guys. Second, a boy and a girl having befriended that fast in a new school year was hard to believe, which was why some girls were staring as well. The second one was speculation though since I didn't have much experience, but I was quite certain.

Well, it wasn't an issue for me, albeit rather uncomfortable, so I incited another conversation with Ichinose.

"Which seat would you choose if it weren't assigned by the school?" I asked.

"I could sit wherever. It doesn't matter much. You know what's more important?"

"Let me guess…The people you are surrounded with?"

"Exactly. It's not the 'where', but the 'who' that is more crucial. People could affect your emotions or mood easily, not the place. How about you?"

"Same thoughts as yours. I do have one seat in mind though. That one right there," I pointed to the spot at the back next to the left windows. "Least exposure, fewer people which would lower the chances of being surrounded by unfavorable people. Not to mention, the view out of the window is a bonus."

"Should we go there then? I have a feeling that it's going to be your seat," she chuckled.

"Sure, but I don't want to get my hopes up."

"Don't worry. My intuition is hardly ever wrong."

The conversation was going smoother than I expected. I suddenly had the urge to thank Saki. I couldn't have handled a chat if it wasn't for her training.