It was the next day.

  I had successfully taught Kaneko the basic layout of the school’s property so she could get herself home without repeating the incident from yesterday.

  After I had done that, we parted with a normal farewell. Though, I’ll admit that I was a bit worried about her getting home by herself. I was hoping that she didn’t collapse again.

  However, it appeared that our houses were in the same direction, so if it ever happens, I’m confident that I’ll be able to find her in time.

  Just thinking about it makes me sigh.

  She’s quite a junior to have.

  “Hey, Lawrence, do you have yesterday’s homework?” Yamada Sota, my classmate, asked.

  He was a fairly tall guy, about an inch or two shorter than me. He had blonde hair and green eyes. He wore the school’s male uniform which consisted of a white dress shirt and black tailored trousers. To indicate that he was a second-year, he had a blue tie to pair with his shirt.

  His desk was situated to the left of mine by the window in the middle row. Normally, I’d see him leaning into the palm of his hand and staring out at the baseball field as other homerooms held their gym classes.

  But when it comes to times like this, he turns to me to ask for the assigned homework if he didn’t do his. Thankfully, this is a rare occurrence as he normally does complete his homework on his own time.

  Reaching towards my bag, I grabbed it and placed it on my desk, unzipping it.

  “It’s been a while since you asked me for answers, Yamada,” I said, sparking small talk between us.

  “Haha, it really has been, huh? I was so distracted yesterday that I completely forgot about it,” he replied with a nervous chuckle and a bit of shame.

  “Can I ask what you were up to yesterday?”

  I handed him my answers.

  “Thank you– and uh, yesterday…” he trailed off, “I guess I was just in shock from what I witnessed.”

  I raised a brow.

  “Is that a good or a bad thing?”

  He snorted.

  “Eh, bad, I guess. Though, it isn’t anything traumatizing. I just witnessed something that would only happen in anime.”

  Now, that caught my full attention as I placed my bag beside the leg of my chair.

  “Oh? That’s… interesting.”

  “Yeah, do you want me to tell you about it?”

  I nodded.

  “I mean, yeah, you caught my full attention by mentioning anime.”

  Yamada laughed as he eyed the door of the homeroom. Our teacher has yet to arrive for the next period, so there should be a bit of time left for him to tell the story– albeit briefly if it’s a bit long.

  He then leaned forward a bit and spoke in a quieter voice.

  “Alright, let’s make this quick then, because–” he eyed the paper I handed him, “I still need to finish my assignment.”

  “Got it.”

  He nodded and leaned back against the window with a slight smile.

  “So, yesterday, after classes, I was on my way home, yeah?”

  “Mhm.”

  “I was minding my own business until I heard a commotion coming from the park. Naturally, being the curious guy that I am, I made my way over.”

  He used his fingers to simulate a man walking.

  “It didn’t take long to reach the site, probably a few minutes if I had to guess, but you know what I discovered?”

  The way he said it sounded more like a rhetorical question, so I didn’t answer and simply waited for him to continue– to which he did.

  “Two girls– not any ordinary girls, but TWO beautiful girls our age fighting over an average looking guy! Furthermore, one of the girls and the guy was wearing our school’s uniform with the first-year colors!”

  Yamada sighed as he rubbed his forehead.

  “Man, you don’t even know what I felt at that moment. I was in awe at first, but afterwards I really felt like screaming at the top of my lungs. I really hope it isn’t as I feared and that other girl ends up becoming a transfer student.”

  I chuckled.

  “I doubt it, if that were to happen, then you can expect chaos to interrupt our peace.”

  Yamada laughed.

  “You’re right, you’re right. There’s no way a coincidence such as that would happen, surely.”

  It was then that the door to the homeroom slid open, surprising Yamada.

  “Shit!” he swore under his breath as he quickly grabbed a pencil to copy down my answers as fast as possible.

  Our homeroom teacher, Hiramatsu-sensei, a young female brunette who wore black dress pants and a white button-down shirt, walked to the podium and placed her notebook down.

  “I apologize for my tardiness, I had to deal with the sudden commotion caused by a new transfer student in the first year.”

  Yamada and I stiffened as we turned our heads to look at each other in unison. His gaze was frozen on me even as Hiramatsu-sensei walked over to his desk, and snatched his unfinished work.

  “Hm? Not finished yet, Yamada-kun?” she glanced down at the other piece of paper– mine– and read the name at the top.

  Her eyes shot over to me.

  “Cheating off of Lawrence-kun, too, huh?”

  She snatched my paper away from Yamada as his eyes were still locked onto me.

  “Both of you, see me after class. It’ll only be a light scolding since I know the two of you are usually diligent.”

  “”Yes, sensei.””

  We both responded robotically.

  After receiving a scolding from Hiramatsu-sensei, I left the teacher’s room, and slid the door behind me shut.

  I sighed.

  Yamada had already left beforehand, having received the scolding first. Off to my right, I noticed a familiar figure leaning against the wall.

  Looking down, I saw that it was Kaneko. Her gaze was focused on the school grounds, but as if she noticed I was here– I sure hope she did– her eyes flicked over to me, and filled with recognition.

  “Senpai…” she said, in a quiet voice, but noticeably more energetic than yesterday.

  “What’s up, Kaneko-san?” I greeted her with a smile.

  “Nothing… just here to ask… for help…” she replied.

  “It’s almost lunch time, though, are you sure you’ll get your question answered quick enough?” I inquired, curious.

  I wonder what it is that she needs help with. I’m assuming it’s at least school-related, she doesn’t really give off the vibe that she has personal problems to deal with.

  “Probably… it’s just one math… question…” she answered with a slight tilt of her head.

  Ah, so it was something school-related. That’s good to know.

  She then moved away from the wall as I stepped away from the door so she could slide it open.

  Holding the handle of the door, Kaneko looked back at me, her eyes as intense as ever.

  “Stay… here… I’ll be back…”

  I was a bit surprised by her statement, but I didn’t object to it.

  “Alright, I’ll be here then.”

  She nodded and extended a hand to pat my cheek once.

  The sudden action by her fully caught me off guard as I fought the heat that was slowly rising to my face. To disperse my embarrassment, I simply gave her a smile and returned the gesture.

  A single pat, but afterwards, her eyes followed my hand robotically for a few moments before she nodded again and walked into the teacher’s room.

  Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

  As the door slid shut, I let out a heavy sigh and leaned against the wall with folded arms.

  That girl is quite something.

  The bell then rang, signaling it was time for lunch.

  Thankfully, it didn’t take longer than it needed to. It was only a few minutes at most before Kaneko slid the door open and stepped out.

  The feeling I got from her was a satisfied one, even though it didn’t visibly show, it was as if she was emanating it.

  Without turning, she slid the door shut and her eyes wandered for a bit– as if she was looking for something– before they landed on me.

  Looking up, she spoke.

  “Come… let’s eat lunch together…”

  Wait, she wants to eat lunch with me? That’s… flattering. Who would I be to turn down a beautiful girl such as her?

  “Sure,” I smiled, “let me grab my lunch then you can lead the way.”

  She nodded.

  “I’ll need… to grab mine, too. Let’s… meet back here.”

  “Sounds like a plan to me.”

  After we grabbed our lunch boxes, we met up in front of the teacher’s room, and she made her way to the school grounds as I followed behind her. We passed through waves of students on our way, but eventually it began to thin out as less and less people started showing up.

  Occasionally, I’d notice Kaneko turn her head to make sure that I was still following behind her, but after her fifth turn, she stopped in place to turn and face me.

  “You can… walk beside me…” she said, pointing to the air next to her.

  “Ah, I see, sorry about that. I’ll do that then,” I sheepishly apologized.

  I figured I’d walk behind her to not give off the wrong impression of us, but I suppose it hindered her more than anything. I should’ve figured anyways, I don’t think she cares about things like that.

  She nodded in response as I moved my feet to stand beside her.

  “Much better…” she said, satisfied with the outcome.

  She then began to move again and I followed suit.

  We eventually approached a surrounding with a single large cherry blossom tree sitting in the center as Kaneko led us to it and sat underneath the leaves of the tree.

  She placed her lunch down on the grass as she leaned back against the bark of the tree while I seated myself across from her and eagerly opened my lunchbox.

  The contents of my lunchbox were packed with essential nutrients. Protein for muscle recovery, carbs for energy, and healthy fats for supporting my overall health.

  Even though my food was cold, it still had an enticing aroma to it, and it was irresistible.

  “Your lunch… looks good…” Kaneko suddenly spoke.

  I looked up and saw that her eyes were focused on the contents of my lunchbox. Glancing over to the side, I saw that her lunchbox was basically untouched– not even opened.

  So, why was she looking at mine? Was her lunch bad or something?

  Thankfully, it wasn’t anything like that as she broke her stare and opened up her lunchbox– revealing the contents to be rice and… karaage.

  So far, this is the second time I’ve seen her eat karaage. If I see it anymore, I’ll start to believe that karaage might be her favorite food.

  She grabbed a pair of chopsticks that were attached to the bottom of her lunchbox’s cover and started to chow down.

  Once more, I couldn’t help but make a comparison between today and yesterday, to which it seems like she doesn’t need me to feed her today.

  I silently chuckled to myself as I grabbed my own pair of chopsticks, but as soon as I was about to dig in, a piece of karaage was held in front of me.

  I looked up to see Kaneko staring at me.

  “This is payment for yesterday…”

  Jeez, just how many surprises does this girl have under her sleeve? I never thought she’d repay me for that in this manner– actually, scratch that, I never thought she’d repay at all. I was only expecting a few words of gratitude.

  Though, I suppose this is her way of showing it since she left without a word of gratitude, only a simple farewell.

  I opened my mouth and accepted her offer.

  It was…

  “Delicious...” I spoke in awe after tasting it.

  For a brief moment, I swore I saw a shadow of a smile on Kaneko’s face when she received my compliment, but it disappeared as fast as it appeared.

  “I cooked this karaage… myself…” she– at least what I’m assuming– boasted.

  Plus, did I hear that right? She cooked this herself? That’s… I don’t know why, but hearing it makes my heart race. Along with a slight feeling of pride.

  “I cooked… it for you…”

  And just like that, it felt like my already racing heart activated the turbos.

  It was beating so fast against my chest that I swore it’d burst out. I had to do everything with my willpower to fight down the rapidly approaching blush as I swallowed the piece of karaage.

  However, I couldn’t stop the heat as I felt my forehead begin to glisten with a light sweat– but I didn’t let it affect my tone of voice.

  “Thank you… I really appreciate it, Kaneko-san. I’ve never had anyone do something like this for me before,” I expressed my gratitude in a composed demeanor.

  This girl… is she even aware of her actions?

  “You’re welcome… senpai…”

  She then grabbed a second piece and brought it up to my mouth. When I opened my mouth to grab it, she began to speak.

  “There was… a new transfer student in my class…”

  I raised a brow, was it the one Hiramatsu-sensei mentioned briefly earlier?

  “She’s beautiful and athletic but… she has already… caused a ruckus…”

  Oh no.

  Yamada, you’ve cursed us… or was it me?

  “There’s a boy… in our class… average, plain… but for some reason–” Kaneko suddenly stopped speaking when she brought a piece to my mouth.

  She eyed the piece and as soon as I was about to grab it, she turned it around and ate it herself.

  “Mhm… the transfer student… and another girl are both… infatuated with him.”

  However, that was the least of my worries. She seriously just made me look like a fool just now, didn’t she?!

  “Apparently… the transfer student and him have… ran into each other outside of school…”

  But anyways, I’ll put that aside and focus on what’s truly more important. This real life anime main character takes priority, because seriously? A transfer student that he’s ran into outside of school?

  I guess our school really will have a bunch of chaos ensue.

  “It’s… really like… an anime.”

  I smiled.

  So, she watches anime, too, huh? That’s one common interest that we now share between one another.

  “Right? Next thing you know, they’re going to end up joining the same club as the guy so they can be with him.”

  “That would be… quite something.”

  And as if she had run out of energy from all the words she spoke, Kaneko slowly started to slide down towards the grass as her eyes were half-lidded.

  “Tired, need food…”

  I sighed as I repositioned myself right beside her and helped her sit up. I guess she had a reason earlier to make me look like a fool.

  “You didn’t have to feed me most of your lunch if you were already low on energy, Kaneko-san. You should’ve eaten it yourself.”

  She leaned her head on my shoulder with a dead look as a cherry blossom landed on her hair.

  I never knew something portrayed as romantic could be so scary.

  “Feed me…” she groaned like a zombie, her eyes piercing straight into my soul.

  “R-Right away.”

  Unfortunately, a stutter slipped out. I really don’t like zombies, they’re scary. Plus, it seems like I'd have to feed her a bit of my lunch since hers was nearly gone.

  I sighed.

  Once lunch period wrapped up, the rest of the classes passed by in a breeze, and I had left for my student council duties.

  I did a quick patrol of the school grounds just to be sure that a certain someone didn’t get lost again by chance, and to my relief, she wasn’t locked up anywhere and had managed to make it out safely.

  Which brings me to where I am now.

  On my way to the student council room, I was stopped by one of my fellow council members.

  Her name was Himura Aika.

  She wore the female’s uniform adorned with the second-year colors as her scarlet hair was tied into a ponytail.

  “Lawrence-san! I need your help!” she didn’t beat around the bush with what she needed as her green eyes burnt holes through me.

  However, compared to Kaneko’s gaze, it was nothing.

  “What is it?” I inquired.

  “It’s the Freeloader Club! They won’t quiet down and there’s constant arguing. I’ve tried to stop them myself because of a noise complaint we received, but as soon as I walked away, they started right back up.”

  Wait, what? There’s a club at our school called the Freeloader Club? Who was the one that approved of such a club? They clearly aren’t doing any work based on its name?!

  “Who in their right mind approved such a club in the first place?!” I exclaimed in shock.

  “Hiramatsu-sensei…” Himura grumbled with a slightly peeved look.

  I pinched the bridge of my nose.

  “Oh– for the love of… whatever, just– just take me there.”

  Himura didn’t waste any time and began to jog towards the room that was assigned to the Freeloader Club.

  I followed behind her without any issue in keeping up, and as soon as we got within distance, the sounds of feminine voices arguing made their way to my ears.

  We stopped in front of the door as I grabbed the handle and yanked it open without hesitation.

  A loud bang erupted which silenced the two girls in front of me– who I assume were the ones arguing. Seated at a table nearby was an average looking guy, not too ugly nor handsome. He was more akin to an NPC from a video game.

  As soon as the two girls saw me, I noticed that they gulped in unison with a slight look of fear on their faces as their eyes slowly trailed upwards to my face– highlighting the immense size difference.

  “There’s been a noise complaint about the sounds of arguing coming from this room. Is it you two?” I spoke in an authoritative tone.

  After a moment of silence, one of the girls finally spoke up.

  “Y-Yes…”

  The girl who spoke had blonde hair and blue eyes, she– along with the other girl– donned the first-year’s uniform colors. It was clear to me that she was a foreigner based on the slight accent she had when speaking, but otherwise her fluency was undeniable.

  “What is it that you two were arguing about?”

  With my question, the passion within the two reignited– their fear of me disappearing in an instant.

  “She doesn’t want me to join the club for no reason whatsoever!” the blonde exclaimed as she pointed an accusing finger at the girl across from her.

  “Because we have no need for you here! The only people this club needs are Akira-kun and I!” the other girl, a pretty brunette with gray eyes, argued.

  “Who says you can be the judge of that?! I just transferred here today, and you’re treating me like this?! You don’t know anything about me!”

  Wait, transferred?

  …

  ..

  .

  Oh, for fu–

  Name meaning(s):

  Yamada = mountain + rice field, Sota = big, peaceful

  Hiramatsu = many meanings, but we’re going with peaceful

  Himura = dark red, Aika = love and kindness