"Thank you for listening!"

Daichi bobbed his head to symbolize the end of our presentation while I stood beside him firm like a statue. The piercing stares of all my classmates made me all the more nervous. A few claps erupted here and there and that was my cue to rigidly move towards my desk. Once I made it, I let out a deep sigh, burying my head into my arms.

"This was horrible," I murmured, not even wanting to reminisce this fail of a presentation that had occurred. As we were being marked individually despite having partners, Daichi's great performance wasn't going to benefit me at all.

"You were kinda stiff," Daichi said, falling into the seat next to me.

"That's because they were all staring at me," I excused. "How could you talk so smoothly?"

"It was easy," he replied. "Oh, here. Ms. Osaka handed us our marks."

I raised my head to see him extending a sheet. Post receiving it, I frowned at the sight of the seventy scribbled onto it. I swiftly threw it into my bag. Well, at least I passed.

The sounds of the next presentation filled the air and I once again directed my focus to the front of the room where most of the class was huddled.

"Kikuchi."

"What?"

There was a pause. "Are you mad at me?"

"Mad at you?" I craned my neck his way. "Why?"

"You're not?" My confusion allowed Daichi's guilt contorted expression to fade. "I went on a huge spiel about how I'd have your back. Then, first chance I get to prove that, I let you get carried away by a delinquent."

The memory trickled to mind. I balled my fists, rounding to face him. "Oh, yeah. What the heck was with that?"

"I'm sorry!" He bowed his head. "I swear it won't happen again! I just saw this familiar face and—"

"Your cowardice proves that we can't be continue whatever this is supposed to be anymore," I cut him off.

"No, wait, Kikuchi! Don't be like that!"

"You should've thought twice before leaving me for dead."

"I said I'm sorry! C'mon, let me make it up to you. Please?"

I huffed, guilt swelling in one huge splurge. I spared him a warning glance. "You're lucky I wasn't actually in trouble. If it was any other delinquent I'd have killed you for sure."

Daichi clasped his hands together. "Never again."

"Promise?"

"On my life," he insisted. Then, he met my eyes. "How about if we go out for ice cream tomorrow to prove that? My treat."

At that, I caved. Ice cream sounded great. There was no way I could pass it up.

"Fine," I relented.

Daichi fist-pumped and cheered. "Yes!"

Shaking my head, I returned my attention to my desk. I'd probably never get used to this. Conversing naturally with someone my age—a boy at that—was already quite the feat. But he even went as far as to try to keep this stupid agreement to have an excuse to associate with me.

Daichi Sugiyama was truly a puzzle.

"Anyways, Kikuchi," he said, this time in a whisper.

He gestured with his hand to come close and reluctantly I did as told. Up close, I admired the green of his irises and the unique silver lining around his pupils. It was so mesmerizing. Compared to his eyes, mine were a dark brown you could mistake as black.

"—So, was he?"

I snapped back to reality via redundant blinks. "Huh?"

Daichi's face scrunched up. "Well, you're still alive so maybe it was the wrong guy..."

His words piqued my interests. "Wrong guy?" I parroted. "What are you talking about?"

He shook his head, drawing away. "In the first place Satoru doesn't even attend Akelius. I'm freaking myself out for no reason. It was probably somebody else."

"Satoru?"

Daichi turned his head my way. His flashed me a smile. "Never mind. Just talking to myself."

I made a face. If he was talking to himself then why did he have to whisper in my ear? Exhaling, I slumped in my seat. He mentioned a 'Satoru.' Where did I hear that name before? It sounded oddly familiar...

It was in that moment the door to the classroom squeaked open. Silence befell the classroom upon a knock on the outer door. Students poked their heads out to identify the culprit but from where I was sitting I couldn't see a thing. Ms. Osaka rose to her feet upon the disruption and ambled towards the doorway.

"Excuse me," she called. "We are in the middle of presenting—"

"Hello, Ms. City!"

The cheerful exclaim startled both my homeroom teacher and the entire class. Wide-eyed, I observed as a brunet came sauntering into the classroom followed by towering male of orange hair.

"What?" I demanded as the two came to a stop near the podium at the front of the room. They properly faced the class, causing my breath to catch in my throat.

What were they doing here?

"Miyabi!" Ms. Osaka snapped. "What is the meaning of this?"

"Don't worry, it'll only last a few minutes!"

With a wide grin, Miyabi scooped up a sheet from the stack Ryu gripped tightly in hand. He outstretched it for the whole class to see. It was then, with his left hand raised, that I spotted the green armband he possessed. Bafflement blossomed inside of me. That was the Student Council's symbol. Specifically, the vice president's.

"As you all may or may not know, Akelius Academy is holding a charity fundraiser for some of the hospitals in the area," he announced, pointing towards the colorful sheet. "And since this year is our first year doing so, we'd like to hear the opinions of all the classes on what exactly you believe would be the best type of fundraiser. You could nominate anyone to collect the general consensus from your classmates and work along with the Student Council to make them a reality. Class presidents like the guy right beside me are usually the ones who take on this role, but it isn't set in stone. Anyone can volunteer. That said, anyone brave enough to take a stand?"

Although Miyabi broadcasted this message in such a formal, yet ecstatic way, Ryu from beside him was scowling. It was his trademark look—one that never failed to scare me shitless. The bandages on his face and still purple eye only added to that. His scariness was potent, proven by the petrified messes every single one of my classmates were, including Ms. Osaka. Though, mostly likely because I was exposed to it longer, I wasn't as affected as the others. In fact, instead of fear clouding up my senses and making my mind run a blank like it usually did, this time I was only confused.

If my ears weren't playing a trick on me, Miyabi mentioned the Student Council. He was wearing the said armband, and also mentioned something about a class president being right beside him...

My mouth felt unbelievably dry. There was no way...

As if catching my gawking, Miyabi's eyes which were scanning the room for participation landed on me and lit up. I hung my head in a heartbeat. But it was too late. He recognized me.

"Is that Sheep?" he cried at the top of his lungs.

Almost immediately, all eyes shot to me.

I couldn't understand why at first but realized thereafter by bashfully looking up that Miyabi was pointing directly at me. All the colour drained from my face at a fast rate. Ryu's glower lightened when his stunning grey eyes locked with mine.

I should've seen it coming, honestly, but as usual, I was in denial. I could only gape as Miyabi grinned like an idiot. Which, in his case, was a normal smile because he already was an idiot.

"Never mind, Ms. City," he told my teacher, waving his hand dismissively. "We found our helper! Sheep will be helping us!"

Miyabi escaped from behind the podium, scurrying up to me and grasping my hands. His face was adorned with glee.

"We'll be taking Sheep with us now to confirm some details!"

Before I could process what had happened, I was dragged out of the room like a rag doll.

By the time my classroom door slammed shut, Miyabi spun me around and gripped my shoulders, holding me firm in place. I slapped his hands off me in an instant. Though, I couldn't find my voice to resist. Ryu trudged up from behind, flyers still in hand.

"Why did you do that?" I finally shouted once I found my voice again.

"Do what?" Miyabi innocently asked.

"Since when were you in Ms. Osaka's class anyway?" Ryu chimed in from behind.

I immediately shot him a glare then returned my focus back to Miyabi.

"Bring me out here!" I told him in exasperation.

Although I was being serious, Miaybi stared at me as if I were stupid. "Were you not listening? I already told your class that—"

"I heard what you said in there!" As soon as my yell reached my ears, I groaned and spun around. "I'm going back to class."

"Wh-what?"

His body lurched onto me, restricting me from leaving and allowing me to almost lose my footing. I regained it before I could fall, gaping.

"Hey!"

"You can't leave, Sheep!"

"Just watch me!"

"Never!"

I squirmed furiously. "Let me go!"

With one last jostle from me, Miyabi faltered back a few steps. I spun around, alert, and glared at him and also Ryu who was nonchalantly watching this.

"You're always angry," Ryu commented.

My gaze lurched to him. "Why do you think?"

"Sheep needs to smile!" Miyabi cut in.

He reached out but I swatted his fingers away before they could touch my face.

"Stop touching me!"

He pouted like a baby. "But you're frowning," he reasoned, holding up his fingers and attempting to 'turn my frown upside down' again.

"Touch me again and I'll hit you," I stated firmly, readying my hands to slap him.

Miyabi retracted his arms for a second before holding them out again.

"Miyabi!"

Although I was being serious, he beamed. "Sheep's cute when she's mad."

Heat spread across my cheeks. "Don't compliment me." I expected my voice to come out a lot louder but I was flustered. Dammit. Brushing it aside, I tossed an accusatory finger at them. "I'm not doing this!"

Miyabi gasped. "No way! You have to. We don't have anyone else."

"I didn't even volunteer!" I snarled. "I don't have time to help out with this ridiculous thing, no matter how noble the cause."

"Don't do this to us, Sheep!" Miyabi begged, flashing me a puppy-dog pout.

"I'll do what I want." My stared at his armband then Ryu who was still standing there witnessing this. "You two are apart of the Student Council?"

"Nope, that's just me," Miyabi assured me with a smile. "I'm Vice President, actually."

My mouth fell slightly. "You are?"

"I still question how myself," Ryu murmured loud enough for me to hear.

Miyabi frowned at him. He'd heard him too. "Hey, what is that supposed to mean, Iwasaki?"

"What it sounded like."

"But that sounds like you're saying I'm not fit to be apart of the Student Council!"

"You aren't."

"What! But you're the class president of class 2–3!" Miyabi retorted. "If you're capable of being that than I can be Vice President!"

My ears perked, eyeing Ryu who still carried the fundraiser flyers in hand. He really was Class President? Well, if someone like him was participating in some charity fundraiser it shouldn't be surprising. Still... Miyabi was apart of the Student Council and even Ryu had a prestigious title, too? It was so hard to digest. I wanted more than anything to believe they were lying.

"Anyway." I cleared my throat and snatched their attention. "Then that just means you're capable of doing this yourselves. You don't need me."

"No!" Miyabi lunged at me with his arms again. "We need you, Sheep!"

I recoiled but just before he could crush me into a hug, Ryu grabbed him by the collar of his shirt.

"Stop doing that," he said, tossing him to the side with ease.

Miyabi tripped onto his face. He hoisted himself off the floor, puffing up his cheeks and sniffling. "Iwasaki, that... that was so mean. How could you do that to your best friend?"

"We're not best friends," Ryu replied with a snort. "Even if we were, that doesn't give you the right to touch her."

I was caught off guard with his declaration. My eyes were wide as I stared up at him. It was just like back when he randomly stood up for me in the infirmary. What was going on with Ryu lately? It was weird. I couldn't imagine him saying things like this before...

"Besides," Ryu said again, "if Kikuchi doesn't want to do it then don't force her. It's not like she could do a good job of it anyways."

I was a fan of his words. Until the end.

"What does that mean?" I demanded, incredulous.

He spared me a glance, but didn't say anything. He didn't have to.

I sent him a dirty look. "I would so do a good job."

He sneered at my words. "You're not even Class President or anything like it. And you're always negative, too. There's no way you can plan or think of anything good."

His words were synonymous to a challenge. One I couldn't refuse.

"Yes, I can," I insisted. "I can so do that."

"Whatever."

I clenched my fists. "I can! It'd be child's play to upstage a guy like you!"

"Whatever helps you sleep at night."

"That's it! I'm doing it. I'm so showing you."

Miyabi whipped his head between us, jumping up and down like a giddy child. "You're doing it, Sheep?"

I hesitated. Oh no. Why was I letting my anger and stubbornness get the best of me again? Not that it mattered. Ryu was looking down on me—not literally, as he looked down on everyone due to his giant stature. But, since the beginning he was always intervening into my affairs as if my opinion wasn't worth considering. And that irked me.

"It's on, Iwasaki!" I announced, sticking out my index finger again. "I'm definitely thinking up a better fundraiser plan than you!"

"Aw, Sheep's getting competitive!" Miyabi chuckled. "There's no need to, though. Why don't we all just work on this together?"

I scowled at him, my cheeks beginning to swell with a blush. He was ruining the moment.

"Starting this weekend let's work on it," Miyabi continued, swinging his arm around my shoulder and Ryu's. Well, he tried putting his arm around Ryu but ended up just awkwardly jumping up and down before settling for his forearm instead. In a cheerful tone, he repeated, "Starting this weekend let's work on it!"

Ryu easily nudged him aside. Miyabi bumped into me, trampling my foot. I grimaced from the pain, but he didn't move. Nor did he take his arm off me.

Growling, I attempted to slip away from him but his grip was really tight. That didn't stop me from wriggling though.

"Mi-ya-bi," I enunciated. "Stop. Touching. Me."

Visible beads of sweat rolled down his face. He carefully unhanded my shoulder, laughing nervously. "Uh, right. Sorry."