Lunch time on a particularly sunny day, warmer than usual but not unbearable. Nonetheless, my bestie and I had escaped the gross humidity and sought the stale yet cool air of the school library. Marin, the aforementioned bestie, had naturally parked herself next to me, and diligently scribbled contents of the previous class into her notebook. While mine was also open, I felt no need to do the same.

   I get that it's good to revise and all that but wouldn't you rather be having fun during your breaks..?

   I leant back into my chair as I felt the listlessness creep in, feigning a stretch. When I let my gaze linger up, the tiled, white ceiling seemed to stare back at me and the distant humming of the air conditioner felt like an invitation to nod off. I threw myself onto the table and let out a deep sigh.

   "I'm bored..." I said.

   Marin huffed, "I said you didn't need to come with..."

   "Yeah, and what? Spend lunch on my lonesome? Nuh uh."

   Marin's eyes darted to me for just a split second before returning to her notes. There was just the smallest scowl on her face, which I thought was a little amusing. "Break's nearly over you know. Have you even eaten yet?"

   "...Nah... Maybe I'll sneak a little snack, surely peeps won't mind."

   "Don't you get us kicked out, Ro..." she grumbled.

   "No fun. I'ma go find something to do then."
   "Uh huh."

   I groaned at her protests but truth be told, she was right. While I personally don't care about getting in a little trouble now and again, I'd rather not let those consequences affect my bestie if I could help it. And it's not like I couldn't snack on the way to class anyway.

   I took the opportunity to give my restless legs some relief, but I froze awkwardly when I realised I didn't know the layout of the library. 

   I guess I'll just pick a direction and just go..

   For real, there was no system I cared for less at that moment than the Dewey Decimal System. I mindlessly passed by subject after subject and stopped if only to look busier than I actually was. Maybe it was because of how different all the sizes and widths of the books were, but the shelves felt a lot more disorganised that they probably were. I took one sluggish step after another, and found myself in one of the far corners of the building.

   Not that I really expected otherwise but I didn't find a single book that really captured my curiosity. I felt a little out of place standing, but it didn't feel right to just take a seat when I had just gotten up. I turned into the last aisle in resignation when I saw her. A lone girl seated at a small circular table just on the other side. 

   Huh. Don't think I've seen her around.

   The girl sat leaning against the partition and though her bangs covered part of her face, I could see she was sleeping. In front of her was a pile of books as well as an open one on the edge of her table.

   As I tried to form another thought, an ear-piercing sound blared right above me. I recognised it as the harsh ringing of the bell, but I'd not heard it so close by before. I quickly turned away, as getting snapped out of my daze made me realise I was staring. I needed to meet back up with Marin, but I felt compelled to sneak one last look. 

   Despite the partition being made of solid wood, she looked really comfortable sitting there. I could practically hear the soft acoustic guitar track that would've made for the perfect BGM if this were a scene in a visual novel. The teal of our uniform's cardigan and tie clashed a little with her dull, reddish hair, but the scene was so serene despite the incessant ringing of the bell that I had to overlook it. 

   But even if I felt I could watch forever, it was time to pack up and go. Bummer. I thought I saw her open her eyes as I turned away, if only by a little. They were a pale sort of bluish-purple.

◆◆◆

   "Oh man, where'd it go..?"

   My desk was piled with all sorts of books from my frantic rummaging through my backpack. Since I got back from lunch, my pencil case had gone missing. I've given both my desk and bag a full on spring cleaning at this point but unfortunately, no dice. 

   Defeated, I shoved my belongings back into my bag. 

   "Any clue where you might've left it?" Marin asked. Thankfully as a hardworking and prepared student, Marin had a spare pacer ready to go, so I'd borrowed it for today's classes. 

   "If it was anywhere, prolly back at the library..."

   "Even though you weren't doing any work?" What a cheeky response. My bestie sure knew how to press my buttons at times like this. 
   "Shut it, you."

   I threw my backpack around my shoulder. Its heft had me staggering back but it wasn't nearly enough to make me lose my footage.
   "You can go home first, Marin. I'll check and see if it's there or not."

◆◆◆

   Hrm... It's not where we were sitting...

   This had to be the only place it realistically could've been. And yet, the only thing I saw was a blank table. It really was a bother, I couldn't keep asking Marin for spare stationery every day after all. I set my bag down on the same chair I sat on during lunch, popping back up with a hefty sigh. There was no choice but to expand my search area.

   And so I retraced my steps, moving from aisle to aisle but this time paying more attention to my surroundings. It felt longer than it did but even after doing a once over of the path I took, there was no trace of my missing pencil case. An expected result, I had to admit.

   "Hahhh.... Maybe there's a lost and found."

   It wasn't that I hadn't thought of the idea before now, and it wasn't like I was embarrassed to ask for help. I was just the type of person who preferred to do everything I could on my own before letting someone else into my problems. 

   I had been leaning against the end of an aisle while contemplating my next move, so I threw my body forwards to stand back up. I stumbled a little before regaining my balance but right when I did, I felt something not soft but bean bag-like tap my head.

   "Oi."

   "W- wha-?"

   I jolted as I turned around, ready to run or..  actually just run, if needed. 
   It was a familiar face. Well, kind of familiar. It was the girl I'd seen right before the bell rang. I didn't expect her to tower over me, but I guess you can't really tell someone's height while they're sitting down. Behind the girl's dishevelled bangs was a languid expression that made her look tired. Now that I had gotten a closer look, I felt as if I'd definitely seen her before. 

   It took a minute for me to recover from the stun, and I finally realised the item she had just hit me with.

   "Oh, hey! That's mine..!" I pointed at the grey felt pencil case in her hand.

   The girl briefly glances at the case, then back to me.
   "Ah.. You be more mindful where you put your stuff..."

   Wow, even the way she spoke lacked energy.

   "Y- yeah.. thanks."

   I took the case off her after she held it out to me at a sensible height. 

   What followed was a brief but incredibly uncomfortable silence.

   ...

   ...

   "Ah. Well. If that's all then..." She gave me a small nod and walked past me to a table not even 10 metres away.

   Watching as she wordlessly plopped herself down onto the seat, I couldn't help but snort at how awkward I felt at that exchange.

   Well, that's mission accomplished. Nothing more to do, so home time, I guess. 

      And yet despite my thoughts, my legs seemed to move on their own until I reached the same table the girl was sitting at. I hadn't felt like this in a while but I was flooded by this weird enthusiasm that made me just so curious about someone. Yes, for some reason I found this person interesting and I could not ignore it. The first time this happened led to me befriending Marin and now, I found myself perched across this mystery girl. She either didn't notice me or didn't care.

   Hm. Actually, I do think I've seen her around before today. Ahh, of course. It took me rattling my brain a little but I do recognise her now.

   "You're the one everyone in my year's scared of.." I let out absentmindedly.

   "What..?"

   Whoops. Didn't mean to let that slip. When I looked over, her face had slightly contorted into a frown. Ah yep, I could see why she terrifies people now.

   "I- I mean like- 'Oh, she's so cool but a little unapproachable', or 'I wanna talk to her but I don't think she likes me', or-" 

   "Oi."

   She interrupted me with a single stern word. I had futily tried to save face but it looked like that had just pissed her off now.

   "And you buy those rumours..?" Her voice as she asked that question was softer than I thought it would've been.

   "Uh.. I guess not really? I don't know the first thing about you, after all."

   It was the truth. I didn't like judging people based on hearsay since I'd been on the other end of it when I was a kid. Her shoulders, which had tensed up since I let that first comment slip, finally relaxed when I answered her.

   "Mmm... Yeah. You don't." She looked away from me and to an open book she had in front of her.

   "Yep... So uh." I shuffled a little closer. "In that case, what's your name?"

   She flicked her head towards me in surprise, as if I'd said the strangest thing she'd ever heard. She gave me a bewildered look and gave a curt answer after a little bit of stammering.

   "Sara."

   "Sara! I'm Ro. Nice to meet ya."

   "A- ah. yeah."

   "And now, I know a thing about you." I flashed Sara a grin, which only caused her bewilderment to grow.

   "..Y- yeah."