The four of them waited in a corridor—too silent, too overbearing. They surrounded a door none of them wanted to open. Besides his sister and Kaien, there was another girl who was unreasonably late.
She distanced herself from the group, but even he could see that her arm hesitated to reach them.
'Does she wanna talk to us...?'
He didn't know, but he would make it easier.
"You may enter!"
"Right..."
Alas, he couldn't address her—at least not yet. He touched the doorknob, his heart refusing. He steeled his nerves, because he was reassured that there was always later.
'Just this once...'
He braced himself, striding towards the teacher carelessly.
His goofy grin was meant to annoy.
On the first day, his mischief was already on full display. The room was silent, his heart beating like a drum. It was still too gloomy for his taste in here, but he would light it up dattebayo!
"Good morning fellow sixth graders! My name is Uzumaki Naruto, and I am pleased to meet you!"
Then he paused, eliciting a few giggles.
"Now, my favourite dish is ramen. Oh, and I really like music as well dattebayo! So if you ever feel like you wanna check out the best ramen restaurant, get any music recommendations or pull off a stunt, feel free to tag me along!"
As he had hoped, laughter filled the room. The students turned towards each other, their hands hiding away the impressions he didn't even give a damn about.
"Thank you Naruto-kun. You may take your seat now."
Said a bespectacled man, their new teacher.
Opinions set in stone were whispered, but that was only background noise to the blonde.
He would keep his head held high and move forward.
He scanned for his seat.
Last row from the right...
Second desk from the front...
Naruto sat, right leg crossed.
His gaze shifted to the door. The door slid open, and then she prowled in.
His heart stilled, as a humble fox entered the room.
She was steady, but he was definitely familiar. As she stood on the podium, her smile beamed through even the toughest hide. Her eyes had a sharp glint beyond her years. Her breaths came in slow, keeping her as cool as a cucumber. Her hands hung loose, clasped together on her thighs.
"I'm pleased to meet you. My name is Uzumaki Naruko, and I am hoping we can all get along. If my brother ever mentioned ramen, please forgive him for his foolishness."
"Oyy! That's not what anyone was thinking!"
She was ruining his image!
"That's enough. Naruko-chan, find yourself on the desk over there."
Third row from the left...
Fifth seat from the front...
She sat gracefully. Naruto thought that she would be a delicate maiden one day.
Then again, she'll be a pain in the ass...
"No way they're siblings!"
"Face the facts man, they're basically twins."
"Yeah, but they act like two different beings entirely! I thought twins had everything in common."
His attention snapped back to the bewildered class. Eyes flickered between the two, becoming increasingly dumbfounded when Naruto was within their view.
"Cat got your tongue?" is what he would love to say, but where is the fun in that?
He still humoured the idea. After all, they were too immature to really see what's beyond the surface.
---
Seriously?
'They're already arguing in class? They aren't nervous at all?'
As he opened the door, he sensed the teacher's gaze. Kaien deliberately kept his steps light. Under his better judgement, he'd rather not let a single sound escape.
He was unbound, yet he questioned why exactly his classmates leaned further within their seats.
'This might go south...'
"I am Kaien Tsukihara, nice to meet y'all."
...
"Well... your desk is over there."
He pointed at a lone desk behind Naruko.
Kaien plopped on his chair anyway.
Everything in his body, quiet...
The room hushed‚ and he knew most students had a lot of questions in their minds.
"Wait, that's it?"
"Talk about a bummer."
Well, a few did speak anyway. They just weren't going to voice out their displeasure. Eyes flashed away from his slower, more tranquil eyes.
It was actually expected. His eyes still flickered between each student for the insight he needed. The noise was subtle, but he chose to cancel it all together. His senses were focused on his new homeroom teacher, and he too was observing everyone in class.
His eyelids closed, drowned in the hum of an illusory silence. Kaien personally wanted to maintain the little order he built internally.
The teacher's eyes bubbled around the room, unravelling each child with precision. His clenched fist rose unhurried, hovering just in front of his lips to clear his throat. He couldn't see it, but the silence he listened to this time was real.
He couldn't believe what such a small gesture could achieve.
He watched as a sigh escaped his lips, yet it seemed as if they were trembling.
Even as he drew it out a little longer, he barely managed to suppress a smirk.
Then, it disappeared as quickly as it came.
Footsteps bellowed the arrival of a young girl, his attention along with everyone else's on her.
A step echoed—perhaps a bit too late, but her dress shoes twisted midair. Now she was facing her new classmates. Her eyes couldn't restrain the anticipation, but she wasn't looking at them.
He followed her gaze to the polished floor.
"May you please introduce yourself Nishimiya-san."
'Is this who I think it is?'
Kaien's head elevated at his teacher's words.
His grey orbs narrowed down on her.
A bead of sweat trickled.
He waited, then nothing.
She smiled at everyone present; as if that was the only thing she needed to say. A hand patted her once on her shoulder, or was it probing? She gazed up at the teacher, much taller than she was.
She nodded, holding her backpack tightly.
Everyone watched as she rummaged through it.
A notebook slipped through.
Desks screeched. They all leaned in, if only to understand what she actually doing.
Though he was sluggish, the Hiragana was bold and clear. The meaning clicked, his eyes shot open.
'For conversations.'
His classmate's noise breached his headspace.
This raised a hell lot of redflags!
"What the—?!"
"She's deaf?!"
"That's kinda harsh."
The room broke into uncontrollable murmurs—words trying to reach out to her and yet, he knew they couldn't touch her. She tilted her head, but that was it. He didn't get anything else out of that.
The teacher gave her a glance that conveyed mixed signals, but chose to point a seat next to mine.
He watched as his expression softened, as Shouko Nishimiya navigated towards her seat in a soundless world. Her steps became louder, the noise now unsettling. Her eyes glimmered at the frozen room, but she didn't flinch this time around.
Grey eyes caught her brown ones. Her skirt brushed against his desk.
She couldn't look away.
Why is that?
---
As she sat down on her desk beside him, he tore his gaze away without a word. She glanced at her right, watching how a pen spun in his hands.
However, she saw a fluid dance that captivated her, but Kaien firmly gripped his pen. She blinked—disappointed. Her eyes stayed long enough to notice him searching through his bag.
On the table, he flipped the pages with mild disinterest. Her eyes trailed his index finger, showing her the number '16' on the bottom left.
Then she straightened, but not out embarrassment.
She felt warmth, so sudden that her head jerked away. There was a terrifying void in his eyes, but her's flashed to his sitting frame a final time.
She never thought something so empty would be so... meaningful.
---
The bell rang. A sigh they didn't know they were holding leapt.
"Finally!"
"I'm so tired!"
Well, he knew that feeling.
Faces lit up, but it was more accurate to say they were never exhausted in the first place. New students were surrounded by a hoard, finding themselves in a place they belonged.
"So Naruko, is he really your brother?!"
Really?
'That's dumb.'
"Do you like ramen too?"
"Well, of course I like ramen as well!"
Naruko's smile attracted more and more curiosity. The way she confidently confronted their gaze, they must have seen something within compelling them to stay. He noticed her wry smile, though she tried to soften it a little.
Disbelief or amusement, he couldn't say...
Then, he heard a boisterous laugh that charged the atmosphere. Naruto's posture was open and inviting, drawing others in with his cheerful allure. As he was seated, his body laid sprawled across his desk. It was uncanny and bold, but he didn't change his position despite the crowd.
'Should I say, as expected of him?'
His grey eyelashes fluttered slowly.
The desks were empty. His presence there but...
No one stayed.
He couldn't help but shake his head. His eyes landed on Shouko, his being gravitating towards the hands that spoke in a language wished he could understand. He didn't move a muscle, but the tightening in his chest was getting uncomfortable.
In his periphery, something moved.
A boy passed by her group. Black spiky mane stood proudly. His hands knitted tightly behind his head.
Kaien's eyes remained empty, but he watched him like a hawk.
'Then there is this troublesome asshole.'
---