The words “love story” were more than enough to trigger immediate disapproval from deep within Yuuki. It would be anyone’s guess whether it was simply down to his unwillingness to read romance, or if it was due to his general skepticism about its quality. What was undeniable, however, was the fact that it was a completely foreign concept for him. After all, he’s not exactly someone who’s had a ton of female friends, let alone a girlfriend. It didn’t stop Yui from trying to force the book onto him though, but Yuuki folded his arms defiantly in response. He clearly had no intention of budging any time soon.
“I won’t let you marry my daughter! Go back the way you came!”
“I would appreciate it if you didn’t dub dialogue over me.”
“Hehe, it sounds like something you’d say with that expression. You’re a pretty weird guy.”
“I’m completely normal,” Yuuki declared. There isn’t anyone out there as average and as ordinary as me.
“I’m so glad I got seated next to someone as intriguing as you.”
“I’m telling you, I’m really not,” he stressed one more time. There isn’t anyone out there as mediocre and as plain as me.
“Hehe, well once again, nice to meet you,” she said with a slight tilt of the head and a friendly smile.
This was the first time Yuuki had gotten an up-close look at her face. Her perfectly-arched eyebrows were hidden behind her cute bangs. Her doe eyes made her look cute and innocent, and served to enhance her generally charming appearance. Her dainty nose was on the smaller, yet more adorable side, and her broad smile served to accentuate the glossy tone of her lips.
I see, so this is why they call her—
“The Seatmate Killer,” the most beautiful girl in class—no, the whole school. She was undoubtedly good looking. The only problem was whether you’re attracted to subtle beauties like her, or if you prefer the more striking ones. Whatever the case, that same delicate beauty was flashing Yuuki a cheerful smile.
“Hm? What’s wrong?” Yui asked with a dubious look when she noticed his stare.
“No, it’s nothing,“ he answered, averting his eyes as he focused his attention down at her lips. She has such perfect teeth. I’m jealous.
Yuuki spent the rest of the time before class started dwelling on nothing of particular importance. Eventually, the bell rang, and their teacher walked into the classroom shortly after. Yui watched him turn his attention to the teacher and quietly snickered to herself, probably wondering just what was wrong with him.
As always, nothing noteworthy happened during the morning homeroom, and the students returned to their lively selves shortly after it ended. Yui was no exception, as she wasted no time speaking with Yuuki again while preparing her textbooks and such for the upcoming class.
“Hey, Narito... Umm... about our English class, first period... I’m sure the teacher will call on me, and well... I’m feeling nervous and was wondering if you’d let me compare my homework to yours! Pretty please?” she clasped her hands together and bowed her head in an exaggerated manner. “Can I? I guess it’s alright if you don’t want to...”
“I wouldn’t mind showing you, if I actually finished it. It looked way too complicated.”
“Whaa—? You haven’t done it? Then why are you reading a book like you haven’t got a care in the world?”
“It isn’t like I’ll finish it on time anyway,” he said, completely monotone. He figured that was the end of the conversation, but Yui clearly wasn’t planning on letting him off the hook that easily. Instead, she decided to give him a piece of her mind.
“You do understand that you’re next in line to get picked after me, right? Don’t you know Miura’s the kind of scary teacher you don’t want to get on the wrong side of?”
“It’s okay. I’m prepared for the consequences.”
“Prepared? That’s all well and good, but don’t you even feel the tiniest bit guilty about it?!” she complained. She flipped through the pages of her notebook with a frown. “Here then. You can copy mine.”
“I appreciate the thought, but copying it kinda defeats the purpose.”
“That doesn’t sound all that convincing coming from someone who doesn’t even bother to do his homework. I’d feel nervous if someone so careless was sitting beside me, stumbling on every word. So come on now, chop chop!”
“Secondhand embarrassment, huh... or maybe...”
“Never mind that now. Just get to copying my answers, okay?” she insisted, practically forcing her notebook onto him. Having the answers literally dropped into his lap felt a bit anticlimactic for Yuuki, what with him having already mentally prepared himself for the devastation that was to come, but it looked like Yui wouldn’t let him hear the end of it if he didn’t comply. So, after a good amount of contemplation, he made the prudent choice to do as he was told.
“Ah...”
“What is it? Something got you stumped?”
“Your handwriting is beautiful is all.”
“Wh-Whaa—? Y-You really think so? I think it’s normal, personally...”
“Actually yeah, it’s not that pretty. Way too stereotypical.”
“Just get on with it,” Yui whined as she rushed him. The bell rang just when Yuuki had finished copying the answers, and the teacher entered the room soon after.
Miura the English teacher was in his late forties and came across as deceivingly harmless, but this was nothing more than a facade. Beneath his slim pair of glasses hid the cold, emotionless eyes of a ruthless pedagogue. He had built himself a reputation of brutal strictness which extended not only to his teaching methods in class, but to the assignments he handed out, as well. In other words, Yui’s worries were more than justified.
If Miura ever learned that a student had been slacking off on their homework, well, saying that he’d give them a hard time would be quite the understatement. The fact that the class had to face this monster of a teacher during the first period didn’t help matters either, as the tension was palpable much before the bell had even rung.
Miura wrapped up his morning greetings and hurriedly cracked open his textbook before addressing the class once again.
“Let’s see here... It’s the 3rd of June today, so how about we begin the day with the person in the 18th seat. You’re up, Takatsuki.”
“Y-Yes!”
“Actually, I changed my mind. Let’s go with the seat right beside you. Bet you didn’t see that one coming, Narito,” he quipped with a broad smile. It seemed that, at least for the time being, Miura was in good enough spirits to joke around with the class. This helped to loosen up the mood of the students, though they were all keenly aware that this jovial mood could turn on a dime if Yuuki were to answer incorrectly.
Everyone’s attention was focused on him whether he liked it or not, but he paid them no mind. He simply read the answers to Miura’s questions from the parts that he had so shamelessly copied from Yui’s homework.
“Excellent! Wonderful! Great to see you put the effort in!” exclaimed Miura.
Out of the corner of his eye, Yuuki noticed Yui smiling from ear to ear and shooting adorable peace signs at him. He understood why she was so ecstatic; Miura’s words of praise were actually meant for her, after all.
“Okay, Takatsuki, it’s your turn now.”
“Wha—?! So I’m also getting picked?!”
“I never said I’d let you off scot-free. And what are you doing with your hands, by the way?”
“I-It’s nothing!” Yui semi-shouted, flustered. Suddenly, the entire classroom fell into utter turmoil as Yui made a mess of her words as she tried to answer Miura’s questions. This rare occurrence was punctuated by her completely beet-red face.
“Hmm, you made a couple mistakes here and there, but good job overall,” said Miura.
Yui heaved a sigh of relief, but quickly puckered her lips into a pout as she glared in Yuuki’s direction. Yuuki himself was at a loss on what to do, so he decided to shoot a peace sign her way, as well. That might not have been the wisest move, though, as an ominous smile quickly formed on her face right after.
The first period peaked early and otherwise proceeded uneventfully. Once the bell rang, the classroom burst into life once more. Yui, however, was still staring silently at Yuuki. At first, he figured that she might be looking to complain to him about something, but then her serious expression appeared to soften a bit.
“Hehe, guess we both got picked in the end,” she said. “I’m glad I decided to share my homework with you.”
“Thank you, I appreciate the help.”
“But you better do it yourself next time around, you hear?”
“I will,” he responded. He intended to sound candid, but Yui must have found something funny, because she suddenly burst into an uncontrollable fit of giggles.
“Sorry, my bad,” she finally wheezed. “You sounded way too sincere there. Hehe, you’re an interesting guy, Narito~”
She really does smile a lot, Yuuki thought to himself. He gazed upon her visage for a while when he was suddenly struck by words of wisdom Keitarou had imparted upon him in the past.
“The Seatmate Killer's smile is a force to be reckoned with! It’s otherworldly cute. I always feel like my heart is going to burst out of my chest whenever I see it! Aaah!”
“Hey, Takatsuki,” Yuuki called out to her. It seemed her innocent smile made him want to continue the conversation.
“Hm? What’s up?”
“Ummm, this is sort of hard to say, but...”
“What’s wrong? It’s okay, you can tell me anything!” she chirped. Yui’s gentle voice and reassuring smile helped Yuuki to overcome his hesitation and just ask her directly.
“Have you done... your math homework, too?”
“... You gotta be kidding me,” she frowned, her once joyful expression vanishing in an instant.
I knew it was all a facade, Yuuki thought to himself.