March 10th - School

Students were normally noisy, but this morning all the talking was beyond limits. In room 202, second-year high school, students couldn’t behave properly; barely able to understand something that was mentioned during class, besides the commotion was enormous. The classroom’s teacher was a medium-height woman with light brown hair, who wore glasses, ponytail, and she could feel her blood boiling from all the noise.

"QUIET! PAY ATTENTION!" the teacher shouted desperately, unable to maintain control of her class. "SIT DOWN RIGHT NOW OR I’LL SCHEDULE A TEST FOR THE NEXT LESSON!"

There was nothing more effective than the threat of an exam with little time to study. Students, especially the girls, turned their attention back to the teacher, visibly annoyed. 

“BUT TEACHER… New student hasn’t even introduced himself.”

“We should meet him, don’t you think?”

How cheeky they are, the teacher thought, adjusting her glasses. Seeing her students teasing the new boy, she decided to give in to avoid more trouble than she was already facing.

“Stand up and introduce yourself, new student…” the teacher requested.

A young teenager with ginger hair was sitting at his desk, clearly annoyed by the girls standing around him. He stood up, walked to the front of the classroom, and stood beside the teacher, then looked at his classmates.

- Hi, I’m Adonis.

The boy introduced himself and returned to his desk, leaving some curious girls disappointed, wondering why he said so little. The teacher gave him an approving nod, impressed by how he seemed to handle everything, and returned to her lesson.

“Perfect! Thank you and welcome! Who wants to know more, interview him at break time.” she said proudly.

The girls continued looking at him, softly whispering compliments about the new guy’s appearance.

“So handsome!”

“Cutie!!!”

“A Greek god!”

“I’d totally date him!”

BUT… WHAT A LOAD OF CRAP ARE THESE COMMENTS?

Adonis thought to himself, feeling a bit scared.

All three periods before break flew by in the blink of an eye. The new student was the talk of the school, especially among the high school students. The bell rang, and everyone left for break.

That morning, unlike the others, Aino was overjoyed. She walked through the schoolyard as if she were floating, greeting her classmates. When she saw them, she ran toward them with a big smile and asked:

“GIRLS! ISN’T A GREAT DAY TO BE ALIVE?”

“YEEEEEEEEAH!” Akiko answered happily.

“And why is that?” Miyu questioned.

“No!” Yukino and Naoko replied sarcastically.

“Are you all tuned in to the gorgeous new guy?” Aino continued, ignoring the others' responses. “The one who joined the second year?”

“None of us is in the second year…” Naoko pointed out.

“I have no interest in looking at men.” Yukino replied.

“Look at how handsome he is, surrounded by his faithful followers!” Aino pointed toward him. She wasn’t listening to the girls' replies; she just wanted to introduce the guy she was interested in.

On the other side of the schoolyard, Adonis stood, visibly annoyed, surrounded by a group of girls.

"I just wanted to eat..." he thought, feeling anger bubbling up inside him.

"Single?"

"Where are you from?"

"Will you go out with me?"

No girl stopped asking questions or making repetitive comments. He felt like it would never stop.

On the other side of the schoolyard, Aino kept talking about the amazing guy from the second year.

“Do you know what they’re calling him? A Greek god! Because his name is Adonis!”

“But Adonis isn’t a Greek god, he’s just a mythological character,” Miyu replied.

“He’s not all that. They’re just too excited because he’s new at school,” Yukino replied, outraged by all the over-the-top compliments.

“I feel sorry for him. He must be so uncomfortable,” Naoko said, feeling indignant about the whole situation he was in.

“WHO?” Akiko asked, completely out of the loop.

Aino, now impatient with all her friends' comments, wiped the smile off her face and frowned.

“HEY! A Greek god and a mythological character are basically the same thing!” Aino said, clenching her fists in anger. “ARGH! I GIVE UP ON ALL OF YOU!” The young girl turned her back on her friends and walked away, sighing and complaining.

“No way! She really got mad,” Naoko said, in disbelief.

Miyu and Yukino just watched the dramatic scene, and Akiko wondered what had happened.

Break time was over, and everyone returned to their activities. Classes continued as usual, and only two lessons remained after the break, which passed quickly. When the clock struck noon, the unique sound of the bell rang, and the students left, excited to finally head home.

Everyone left in a hurry, but no one was in more of a rush than young Adonis, who was constantly flirted with by the lovey-dovey students. Reaching the limit of his patience, he decided to leave quickly to avoid his classmates.

“Wait a sec, Adonis! Let us go with you!” one of the girls from his class kindly called out.

“NO CAN DO! I’M IN A HURRY!” the ginger boy answered every time he could, then ran at full speed like an athlete toward his home.

“Oh! So cute, isn’t he?” a student commented to her friend.

“Bye, Adonis, Greek god!” a student called out as the new student walked by.

The teenager was getting more and more annoyed each day, running faster than usual. Passersby noticed and grew concerned, wondering if he was involved in some school quarrel.

“I NEVER WANT TO GO BACK!” he shouted, sweating and out of breath, his heart pounding. The ginger-haired guy seemed determined never to set foot in that school again, as his first day had been the strangest experience of his life.

He arrived at his place, a building about a ten- to fifteen-minute walk from the school. However, he managed to run back in only five minutes. It was a relatively old building, but well-maintained. The architecture was mostly vertical, making it the tallest in the area. Nearby, there was a city soccer stadium, but despite that, the street was quiet where he lived.

“What was all of that? What a bunch of crazy people...” He took a deep breath and calmed down, then pulled the keycard from his pocket, unlocked the door, and stepped into the elevator.

“It’s over! It’s all over for today! I have to get mentally prepared for tomorrow.” Adonis muttered to himself, complaining, and enjoying the peace and quiet of the elevator. As he soothed his anger, he began to accept that he'd have to get used to the constant annoyance at school.

The ginger-haired guy finally reached his apartment on the fourteenth floor, unlocked the door, opened it, stepped inside, and sighed once more. He turned around and opened his eyes wide in surprise.

“KOA, WHAT YOU DOING IN HERE!?”

A tall man, standing at 187 cm, with dark skin and white hair. His long bangs framed his face, while the rest of his short, layered hair reached just below his neck. He had a well-built body with several scars. His jade-colored eyes were striking, and a scar ran from the corner of his left eye down to his jaw. He wore a lip ring and another piercing on his right earlobe, along with a helix piercing in his left ear and small ball stud piercings on his left eyebrow and earlobe. He was dressed in all black: a sleeveless tank top, black tactical pants with leather belts adorned with eyelets and chains, and mid-calf military-style boots. His expression suggested he wasn’t someone with many friends.

“I had the same reaction,” Koa said. “I’ve been assigned to accompany you on your mission.”

“But, dude... wouldn't Itzel be the one?” Adonis asked casually.

“Dude!? Koa found the way he spoke strange.

“He’s already swamped with tasks, which is why I was sent,” Koa explained to the young man.

The following day, at school

That morning, unlike the others, the entire school felt different. During break time, students from all classes were gathered for an important announcement. The newcomers had no idea what was going on, while the veterans seemed to know what was about to happen, and they looked thrilled.

“STUDENTS! LET’S GATHER FOR AN IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT!!” said Mylla, the Biology teacher in charge of the students. “THE SCHOOL GAMES SEASON HAS BEGUN!” She raised her hand, pointing upward, to lift her students' spirits.

The announcement was met with excitement; students shouted, jumped, and showed just how much they had been waiting for this moment of the year.

“I CAN FEEL EVERYBODY’S EXCITEMENT!” the teacher said, overcome with emotion. “THE TEAM LEADERS WILL BE FROM THE FRESHMAN, SOPHOMORE, AND SENIOR CLASSES! THE REST OF THE CLASSES WILL BE DIVIDED! LET’S RAFFLE!”

The rules for the school games were simple: there would be three teams, each led by a high school class. The elementary classes, from fifth to eighth grade, would be divided, with each team getting one class from each grade. All students would participate in the games and choose the category they felt best suited to support. There were competitions in art, sports, and trivia. The winning team would earn the highest score, which could be exchanged for better grades across all subjects. Second place would earn an average score, and third place would get a minimum score, both of which could also be exchanged. Because of this, the competition was always fierce.

“Oh my, already?” Yukino said incredulously, showing no excitement about the news.

“What kind of activities are in this competition?” Miyu asked, curious about what would happen in the coming days.

“YAAAAAAY! SCHOOL! GAMES!” Akiko had never participated in school games before, but her heart was telling her it was going to be amazing, and that’s why she was so excited.

The sound of a large crowd could be heard from a distance.

“WOOOH, IT’S SENIOR YEAR! WOOOH, IT’S SENIOR YEAR!” It was the Senior class, chanting the same chant that had been heard for the past twenty years in schools across the country.

“ARE YOU SUMMONING SOMETHING?” Naoko asked, unable to get used to her classmates' bizarre behavior. She found their chanting, circle hugs, and jumping incredibly strange.

“BUT…WHAT’S THAT? SOME KIND OF RITUAL?” As if the terrifying first day wasn't enough, Adonis was now experiencing the second day, and he was beginning to think it was even weirder than the first.

“HAHAHAHAHA! You’re so funny, Adonis!” a classmate commented. Since he didn’t know Adonis had come from another planet, he assumed he was just making fun of the school situations.

The school colors were red, white, and blue, which were the official colors for all school activities.The first raffle was done, and now the teams had their colors, which would influence the theme of their presentations, chants, and, of course, their team names. In addition, everything needed to be connected to the main theme of the school games, which was always chosen by the teachers and announced to the students at the opening of the event. 

“Freshman year will be the Red team! Sophomore year will be the White team, and Senior year will be the Blue team!” She paused briefly, then continued with the final announcement. “The theme of this year is… ENVIRONMENT!”

The rest of the school morning went on as usual. The classes were constantly interrupted by groups of students who couldn’t stop discussing who would be the leader of each class, what everyone would do, and how the activities would unfold.