“It is a pleasure to meet you. My name is Ginka Shijunana, and I have returned to school beginning today. As I have spent a long time overseas, I may not be properly acquainted with what is considered common sense in Japan. Please notify me if I happen to do anything rude. Due to my time away from school, I am one year older than you. However, you do not need to speak politely to me.” After finishing her introduction, she bowed to her classmates. “I look forward to learning alongside all of you.”
Every single word and action was so elegant and intense that all of class 2-2 went silent. There was this pressure in the room that felt like it would crush anyone who said something careless.
The tension in the air finally broke when someone hesitantly started clapping.
“R-Right. Everyone, let’s give a round of applause!” said Tani.
More students started clapping in a hurry. The sound was scattered, and it didn’t really make for a welcoming atmosphere, but Shijunana didn’t seem to mind. She simply returned to her seat.
At the beginning of June, the silver-haired, silver-eyed beauty Ginka Shijunana returned to school. Ruka would later hear that pretty much all of her classmates had been thinking the same thing: That girl looks like trouble.
The classes they had after homeroom—and the conversations each teacher had with Ginka Shijunana—were all ridiculously awkward.
In modern Japanese class:
“Shijunana-san, that hair...”
“It’s natural.”
“I-I see. My apologies...”
In classical literature class:
“I-Is the color of your irises genuine, perchance?”
“I was born with this eye color.”
“M-My...”
And in English class, where the teacher spoke in a mix of Japanese and English:
“Teacher Tani informed me about you. You studied abroad, correct, Miss Shijunana? Nice to meet you.”
“A pleasure. Your vowels have a strong accent to them, sensei. Where did you study English?”
“I’ve never been abroad...”
(By the end of that class, their teacher was almost in tears.)
After morning classes were over, Ruka and Hinaru went to buy lunch at the school store on the first floor. Meiri had brought a boxed lunch, so she stayed behind in the classroom. She was an amateur model, so every single thing in her lunch was always green. Ruka had been kind of interested in being an amateur model herself...but not after seeing what Meiri ate.
“Shijunana-chan was wild.” Hinaru smiled as they got in line for the school store.
Ruka remembered how that girl had treated the teachers and nodded back. “For sure. Bad news all the way.”
“The teachers were totally scared. She could cause all kinds of trouble out of the blue.”
“Oh, she’s done plenty already. Right?”
“True.”
“Still, maybe she’s just not used to the whole school thing. I can see things settling down soon.”
Shijunana had overwhelmed the teachers, but Ruka didn’t think she did it to be mean or rude. That attitude’s gotta be from living overseas for a long time, she thought. She’ll probably adjust to how we talk to each other in Japan soon.
As she came to that conclusion, the line came to a sudden stop. Everyone—not just the students, but the teachers and school store workers too—was staring in the same direction. Ruka and Hinaru turned to look and saw the beautiful girl with silver hair again.
Outside the counseling office, a group of teachers stood around Shijunana. They were talking about something, but Ruka was too far away to hear. Maybe about her coming back to school or her attitude during classes this morning? she wondered.
The new girl was just standing in the hallway and talking to some teachers, but she had captured the attention of everyone here in the school store. Her presence was so intense that everybody had to acknowledge her. That was how it felt to be anywhere near Ginka Shijunana.
“Looks like that’ll take a while...” Ruka tapped the student in front of her on their shoulder to get the line moving again.
As Ruka walked down the hallway, she was feeling all kinds of depressed about having gym class after lunch. Who the heck came up with that terrible idea?! she wanted to ask, and apparently all the other girls felt the same way. They grumbled stuff like “so lame,” “let’s just get this over with,” and “unbelievable...” as they headed toward the girls’ changing room on the first floor.
Ruka would rather avoid that listless feeling she got whenever gym was after lunch, but she was more worried about her makeup getting ruined. She had prepared for that in the morning by using a setting spray and a tinted lip balm, so she didn’t think her makeup would end up being a mess...but she still couldn’t help worrying about it.
How intense is gym gonna be today? Do I have antiperspirant spray? What about some wipes in case I get sweaty? Extra clothes? Oh, and another set of fake lashes just in case... She peered into her gym bag and blurted, “Ah. Crap, my towel...” and then froze in place.
Hinaru and Meiri turned around.
“Ruka-chin, you forgot your towel?” asked Hinaru.
“Yeah, no. I’m gonna have to pass on towel sharing, even for you,” said Meiri.
“Hey, I wouldn’t wanna either.” Ruka closed her bag. She had a pack of wipes and antiperspirant spray in there, so she could at least clean up after gym. But it would be best if she could towel off as much sweat as possible. “Pretty sure there’s a mini towel in my school bag... I’m gonna go back and grab it. You two go ahead.”
“Gotcha!” Hinaru replied.
Ruka turned around and headed toward their classroom. Glad I noticed before class, she thought as she climbed up the stairs to the second floor, her short skirt fluttering with every step. She opened the door to class 2-2...and found Ginka Shijunana.
Shijunana was alone in the classroom, just breathing in and out quietly. She might’ve been meditating, since her eyes were only slightly open and her lips looked relaxed. Gentle sunlight streaming through the curtains made her smooth skin seem to shine.
For a moment, Ruka forgot to breathe.
Meiri was pretty, and Hinaru was cute. Ruka was confident about her own looks and sense of style too. But no matter how hard any of them tried, they could never hope to measure up to Ginka Shijunana. That was the vibe Ruka got.
Wait, what is she still doing in the classroom...? Every student had to change into their gym uniforms before class started. The girls had their own changing room, and so did the boys. If she doesn’t know where to get changed, she could’ve just followed someone, thought Ruka, but then she remembered Shijunana wasn’t in the classroom during lunch. The teachers had been hounding her in front of the counseling office. At this rate, she’ll just keep meditating and miss class. I should say someth—
“Shijunana-san, you’re still here?” a girl’s voice asked.
Ruka turned and saw some girls with black hair standing by the other classroom door. They were from the group of serious students in class. A pretty girl with braided hair who seemed like the neat and tidy type approached Shijunana.
“Who are you?” Shijunana asked.
“I-I’m Chinami Hayami, the class representative. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” Chinami talked fast, and she sounded anxious. Apparently, she couldn’t maintain her composure in front of Ginka Shijunana. “Shijunana-san, for gym class you need to change your clothes in the women’s changing room.”
“The changing room...” Shijunana repeated. “So that is why no one is around?”
“That’s right. Do you have your gym uniform with you?”
Shijunana nodded.
Chinami smiled like she was relieved. “Follow us. We’ll show you the way there.”
The silver-haired girl stood and followed the others out of the classroom.
Oh, so she can make friends like a normal person. Good, good. Ruka felt an odd sense of relief mixed with a little embarrassment at swinging and missing on helping the new girl. She went to her desk and grabbed the mini towel from her school bag.
“Phew, I’m wiped...” Ruka sighed and lifted her ponytail up so she could pat down the nape of her neck with her towel. She then pulled out a wipe to clean herself off. The mirror in her changing room locker showed that her makeup was still hanging in there. Glad I prepared this morning. Kinda freaked out when my color contact slipped, though!
As Ruka pushed the wipe down between her cleavage, Hinaru narrowed her eyes and glanced her way. “I swear, Ruka, your boobs are freaking ginormous...”
“Wow, instant sexual harassment. Scandalous, Hina.”
“It’s not like I touched you or recorded anything, so no way that counts.”
“Never said you were good at it.”
Meiri tugged on the sleeve of Ruka’s gym uniform. “That nee-san really was something else, right?” Ruka guessed Meiri was calling Ginka Shijunana that because she was a year older.