Before Akira could respond, Ito Chika walked over and tugged Miu Matsuoka a few steps away from him. "Okay, Miu-chan, don't make things harder for Akira."
Unlike Miu, Chika was far more observant. They'd all been classmates since first grade, and anyone with half a brain could tell that Akira and Shouko had never once been placed in separate classes. It was obvious to anyone who paid attention what was going on between them.
"Come on, Miu, don't you need to review anyway?" Akira gave Chika a grateful glance, slung Shouko's school bag over his shoulder, and prepared to leave.
"Ugh, can we not talk about terrifying things like being split up right after school!?"
"Let's go, Miu," Chika said gently, giving her a little tug. "Yuzuru-chan's probably waiting for us downstairs."
—
Sure enough, Nishimiya Yuzuru was waiting on the first-floor staircase landing. As soon as she saw them appear, she puffed out her cheeks and complained, "Sis, you're so slow!"
Shouko stepped forward and ruffled her little sister's head, smiling softly. "Sorry, Yuzuru. Teacher Minagawa kept us a bit longer than usual today."
"Hmph." Yuzuru lightly snorted and grabbed her sister's hand. Then, she looked up curiously. "Did something happen? Minagawa-sensei almost never runs late."
She had started at the same school last year. At first, their grandmother insisted on escorting her to and from school every day. But by the second semester, she was finally allowed to walk home with her sister and the others.
Along the way, she had often overheard Miu Matsuoka complaining about Minagawa-sensei's cold personality. In fact, Miu had once declared the teacher's only redeeming quality was that she always dismissed them exactly on time—a sentiment the others had agreed with.
Akira reached out to hold Shouko's free hand, but she playfully avoided him—and even shot him a glare from those beautiful eyes of hers, fierce and bright. Akira could only laugh awkwardly and change the subject.
"It's no big deal," he said. "Just that they're reshuffling the classes next year for sixth grade."
"Eh!? Then you and sis might get separated!?" Yuzuru looked shocked. How is that not a big deal?
"Let's talk while we walk," Chika cut in smoothly, tugging Miu along beside her. "We're blocking the stairs."
As they walked, Akira reassured Yuzuru that he and Shouko wouldn't be separated. He also explained to a sulking Miu that keeping all four of them in the same class wasn't really something he had any control over. That depended on the school's class assignments.
Miu's reaction was immediate. "Awwww…!" Her energy drained instantly.
But the moment they stepped out of the school gates, she was suddenly re-energized again.
"I believe in fate! We'll totally be in the same class again!" she declared, punching her fist into the air like a shonen protagonist.
No one had the heart to contradict her.
As for Akira—he felt a warm, boneless little hand slip quietly into his.
—
"Heh… when the time comes, I'll put that kid, Miyamura Akira, in your class. Takeuchi, you'd better make the most of it."
Inside the Principal's Office, a balding middle-aged man with a large gut hidden poorly under his black suit sat lazily on a leather sofa. He grinned at the young man seated across from him—a man with medium-length hair, rectangular black-rimmed glasses, and a blue-and-white tracksuit.
Takeuchi's eyes widened with excitement. He almost leapt to his feet. "Wait, seriously? Is Minagawa-sensei okay with this!?"
This was Miyamura Akira they were talking about. The kid who had been first in the grade for five straight years. If he remained top again in sixth grade, his homeroom teacher could proudly put that on their record: produced a student ranked top for six consecutive years.
But even more importantly… he was President Miyamura's son. If Takeuchi ever needed a favor or ran into trouble, he could just casually mention having taught the President's child. That kind of connection was pure gold.
The Principal waved for him to calm down, grinning. "Relax. I'll handle Minagawa. We'll assign Miyamura-kun to your class next year."
"But…" he added, pausing dramatically as he took a sip of cold tea, "Shouko Nishimiya will be joining him."
Takeuchi's excitement instantly dimmed.
He blinked. "Nishimiya…?"
The name didn't ring any bells.
Seeing the man's hesitation, the Principal smirked slightly. "She's the girl with the hearing disability. Miyamura Akira's childhood friend. Also the goddaughter of President Miyamura's wife. You remember her now?"
"Wait—hearing impaired?"
The Principal's eyes narrowed. He could already read Takeuchi's thoughts. "What? You think she's going to be trouble?"
"No, no, of course not!" Takeuchi waved his hands quickly, trying to recover.
But in his mind, he was already groaning. He had taught hearing-impaired students before. It was always extra work—slowing down his speech, writing things out, trying to understand their replies through unclear pronunciation or sign language. They often became targets for bullying, too. Parent complaints would start flooding in. It was a massive headache.
The Principal lit a cigarette, took a drag, and spoke flatly. "Yeah, I know what you're thinking. Put that garbage out of your head."
Takeuchi flinched.
"She's different," the Principal continued. "She's been learning to speak clearly since she was little. Miyamura Akira taught her himself."
Takeuchi kept silent, but inwardly he was skeptical. You're just trying to offload a problem student on me…
The Principal blew out a puff of smoke and stared at him coldly. "If I didn't need this done, I'd have kicked your sorry ass out of this school years ago."
Takeuchi forced an awkward smile. "Ahaha, no worries, no worries. I'll give it my all! Even if she has a hearing impairment, I'll teach her with care."
"...Tch." The Principal didn't even look up. "If you've got nothing else to say, get lost."
Takeuchi bowed quickly and left the room. Once outside, he muttered curses under his breath—but stopped himself before he reached the surveillance camera at the end of the hall.
Back inside, the Principal pulled out his phone and dialed a number.
"Minagawa-sensei," he said with a smile. "Can you come to my office? I'd like to discuss the sixth-grade class arrangements with you."
"Understood." Her voice was flat. She hung up without another word.
Minagawa-sensei stood from her chair, left the teacher's office, and walked down the hallway.
As she passed by Takeuchi, she didn't even bother to look at him.
------------
POWER STONE!!!
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