Track 19. ロージー (Rosie)

The tension was in the air. The points were being tallied to the very end. Teacher Rubi was ready to deliver the big news.

Miyu was very tense. Her worry showed plainly in her face—almost in her whole body. Naoko looked calm; she knew she had done her best in the quiz, and now she waited, attentive. Adonis was a little anxious, but he didn’t show it. To anyone watching from the outside, the redheaded boy looked calm.

Rubi raised the microphone and put on that familiar, provocative look of someone about to reveal something huge. She faced the crowd—still excited, still chanting their war cries—and began:

“READY? This year was different, so we’re going to start by… announcing first place!!”

The students went still, and a deafening silence took over the gym. Everyone was waiting to find out who the smartest student in the school was. After the dramatic pause, Rubi continued:

“In first place in Questions and Answers… NAOKO OF THE OCEANICS!!”

The third-years exploded with excitement. Naoko celebrated in a restrained way, but it was clear she was happy. The senior classes started shouting in unison, “UH! É TERCEIRÃO! UH! É TERCEIRÃO!”—the familiar chant repeated every year.

But the announcements weren’t over. As soon as the noise settled, Rubi continued:

“That’s it! Seniors celebrate! But the special announcement is that this year, for the first time, we had a tie! Adonis of the Glaciers, Miyu of the Firefighters! You two take second place!”

The classes cheered. Second place was worth more points than third, so in a way, both teams came out ahead.

But when you looked at the two “smartest students in the school,” as people whispered in the corridors, neither of them looked very happy. Miyu was stunned—frozen. Adonis had frowned, clearly not liking the result.

After the first shock passed, Adonis broke the ice.

“Hey… we tied,” he provoked.

“And so what?” Miyu crossed her arms, annoyed.

“It means we still haven’t settled our dispute! But I’ll think of something!”

“Drop it.” She kept her arms crossed and frowned.

Rubi waited for the crowd to settle once more. This time, her excited expression gave way to a serious look. Everyone realized she had something important to say and fell silent.

“Now I have one more important message! The drawing event will NOT be canceled! Accept that people develop different skills. If you don’t know something and it bothers you that someone else does, then go train and learn it too!”

She paused briefly, letting everyone reflect.

“And the winners of the panels are… Team Firefighters!” Rubi announced.

Joy filled Yukino’s chest—because for the first time, she felt she had truly won something. She gave a small smile, and her face flushed. It wasn’t common for her to show herself like that.

The School Gincana finally came to an end. The results were written on a huge sheet of kraft paper and stayed on display for a week, hung on the courtyard bulletin board.

GINCANA RESULTS:

1st — OCEANICS
2nd — GLACIERS
3rd — FIREFIGHTERS

Later, whispers began running through the corridors. Aino was the one who found out what it was and ran to tell the group:

“They told me everyone who participated is getting +1 point on their grade average because of the effort.”

“Told you,” Yukino jabbed, remembering what she’d said on the first day of school.

Planet Finalia

That day, on the dense Planet Finalia, Ayami’s room had a visitor. After so many days since the mission began, the sovereign was impatient.

“Anything to report after a month on Earth?” Ayami asked.

“It’s a curious planet. You don’t even need that long to get used to it and act like them. There are all kinds of people, but I got lucky—I was welcomed quickly. That made it much easier to bring the others to Earth,” Itzel said, sitting on Ayami’s sofa.

“And the delay?” Ayami pressed. “It’s already bothering me. I didn’t send you there to be a tourist.”

Ayami stared him down, but even with the aggressive tone, he stayed calm and continued:

“With Adonis at school, it should be easier to find them. The problem is what happened with Koa. So we need to be discreet.”

“Ah, yes… that issue…” Ayami said. “Fine. Itzel, you’re the one who adapts best… handle it. Now leave.”

“Thank you very much, Lady Ayami! I appreciate the compliment!”

Ayami remained in her room, staring fixedly at the planet. Meanwhile, Itzel rose from the sofa and headed for the door, leaving.

Walking down the corridors, he reached a room with a rose-shaped handle. He knocked and called:

“Rose, can I come in?”

The door opened quickly. Rosália appeared smiling when she heard her beloved’s voice.

“Itzel! You’re back…”

Her words stopped. She examined him from head to toe. Her expression showed shock—tinged with displeasure.

“Hm? What are those clothes, Itzel?”

“Do you like them? I bought them to blend in with the Earthlings! They’ve got lots of styles, and I liked this one,” he said, showing off his black knit jacket.

Itzel sounded genuinely excited talking about the clothes—more put-together than the style he used to wear in Finalia. Rosália didn’t like it at first, but decided to give in when she saw how happy he was.

“Well… come in!”

She ran into the room, took off her shoes, and climbed onto the bed. Then she lightly patted the blanket, inviting him to join her.

“Why didn’t you come see me? It’s been almost a month.”

“I’ve been busy with the mission. As soon as it’s over, I’ll come get you. I promise.”

He took off his jacket and sat on the edge of the bed. Rosália moved closer and started massaging him. Hearing what he said, she asked, surprised:

“Come get me?”

“I’m getting organized. Soon I can get a place for us two. It’d be small—if we wanted something bigger, I’d need another job.”

“Itzel, my love… did they brainwash you?”

“Haha. I’m fine! It’s just that the humans I met are nice,” he replied, laughing.

“But who would want to live on Earth?”

“Well, the air there is better than here. And besides…” Itzel hesitated. “Finalia is dying.”

“But… Ayami promised us a new home if we took Earth for her,” Rosália argued, hugging him.

“But is it true? Have you heard people saying she destroyed a planet?” Itzel held her hand and stroked it gently.

“If that were true, she’d be punished. It must be rumors.”

Rosália loosened her hug and sat close, holding his face to kiss him.

“I just want the two of us together. Happy. With two kids running around the yard of a house.”

“Two kids?” Itzel asked, startled. I’m going to have to work more, he thought.

“Itzel… don’t go…”

“I can stay here just tonight.”

They kissed passionately. Itzel laid her down gently on the bed. Rosália felt he was different that night—her heart beating fast. He seemed more in love; his touch was softer. She didn’t know if it was because he missed her… or if he was truly changing.

They spent that night together. The next day they said goodbye, and he returned to Earth, with no idea when he would see her again.

April 5 on Earth — Morning — School

It was Monday morning, class time—the first weekday after the gincana week. The students were sluggish, not very excited for lessons.

“And that’s it, first-years! Outdoor math so you suffer less,” the teacher commented.

The math teacher decided to try something different and took the students outside. The chosen place was the outdoor basketball court, next to the covered soccer court. Some students started complaining.

“Ball noise…”

“Second-years are in P.E.”

“If it were in the classroom, it’d be you guys yelling.”

You could hear the thud of the ball being kicked and students cheering. The teacher didn’t look too bothered—game noise was less irritating than shouting inside a classroom.

Class was going normally. The students were grouped up, working—when suddenly, a loud, sharp sound was heard: Adonis whistling. At who? Nobody knew, but it didn’t take long for him to make it clear.

“MIYU!” he shouted.

Miyu startled. Her classmates stared at her, and she didn’t know where to put her face—mortified that she was going through that.

“YOU DEAF, MIYU? COME HERE!”

After being called twice, she couldn’t ignore it. Miyu turned and spotted the boy calling for her loud enough for everyone to hear. She stood up abruptly. She was very irritated—something rare to see. No one had tested her patience as much as Adonis in less than a month.

She walked toward him while her classmates watched, curious. With clenched fists and a rigid posture, everything about her showed discomfort.

“Oh! You heard me!”

Adonis didn’t seem to notice at all that the Miyu walking up to him was furious. It was as if he was completely oblivious to body language; his goal was to call her, and he had succeeded.

Miyu—barely 1.50m—stopped close to him, while Adonis—1.75m—looked down at her. She stared up, brow furrowed, green eyes locked on his blue ones.

“What are you doing?” Miyu asked, indignant.

“What’s wrong? I just want to make a proposal!”

His carefree tone clashed with her irritation.

What proposal could Adonis possibly have that needed such urgency?