"[whispers]He made another girl cry." "[whispers]That underclassman from last week, right? Poor thing." Monday morning, Class 3-A. They were trying to keep their voices down, but he could hear them perfectly. Gojou Satoru gazed out the window, pretending not to listen. Beyond the glass stretched the residential streets of Kasumigaoka Ward, with September's sky hanging low. The sky was overcast, carrying that distinctly Monday-like color. (…I even complimented her, so what went wrong?) Honestly, he still didn't know. Last Friday. An underclassman girl confessed to him. He'd faced her properly and said, "I acknowledge the courage it took to confess to me." What was wrong with that? He didn't know. He genuinely didn't know. Gojou adjusted his maroon tie casually. Navy blazer, white shirt, black slacks—Harukaze Academy's uniform was plain, but it looked decent when put together. His jet-black hair was styled neatly. When his amber eyes swept across the classroom, several groups of girls looked away the moment they caught his gaze. "[sarcastic]Got something you want to say?" He turned with a smile. The girls fell silent all at once. Their eyes scattered in different directions. "…Not really." "[whispers]This guy can't read the room at all." The jab came in a low voice. Gojou ignored it and faced forward. Then their homeroom teacher, Asahina Yukiko, entered the classroom. Early thirties, round-framed glasses, soft demeanor. But she always got oddly serious during attendance check. "[gentle]Alright, let's take attendance. Answer when I call your name." The whispers continued in the back even as names were being read. Gojou kept watching the sky outside. The sky hung low. Rain might come soon. --- Lunch break. The school cafeteria "Kazenoma" filled up instantly after noon. Today's special was a 420-yen fried chicken set, and the line already had over twenty people. Gojou didn't head that way. He climbed the main building stairs, past the fourth floor, higher still. A door marked "No Entry"—but the lock had been broken long ago. Students who knew about it knew about it. The rooftop. He pushed the fence door open with a clang. September wind blew. A slightly warm wind, carrying the remnants of summer. Behind the water tank sat two old plastic benches. Gojou sat on one and lined up two convenience store rice balls and a melon pan from the school store. A pathetic lunch. But better than being surrounded by girls in the cafeteria. He wasn't in the mood for that today. Beyond the fence, the roofs of Kasumigaoka Ward stretched on. House roofs, more roofs, more roofs. From up here they all looked the same height, spreading out flatly. He couldn't see the Tamano River, but he thought he could see a thin green band to the north. He bit into a rice ball. Quiet. A car sound in the distance. Some class laughing between lessons. And wind. Suddenly, a strange thought surfaced. (Have I ever had a real conversation with anyone?) He immediately suppressed it in his mind. (Don't need it anyway.) But it didn't disappear. He crumpled the rice ball wrapper. Why'd he suddenly think that? He didn't understand it himself. He reached for the melon pan and ate again. More than whether it tasted good, he wanted to keep his mouth moving. Sitting at the edge of the bench, he gazed blankly at the sky. Gojou Satoru, seventeen years old. Maintained a top-three ranking in his year, popular with girls. That was him. So why was he alone on the rooftop at lunch on a Monday? He didn't have an answer to that, and he didn't want to think about it. He finished the rice ball and shoved the wrapper in his pocket. Wind blew again, ruffling his hair slightly. --- After school. Walking down the third-floor hallway, a massive wall appeared ahead. Not a wall. A person. Discipline teacher Onitsuka Takeshi. Former high school baseball player, PE teacher, the kind of guy who changed the air when he stood in a hallway. He stood with his arms crossed. "[angry]Gojou!" His voice echoed down the corridor. Students nearby flinched and pressed themselves against the walls. "[angry]I heard you made another girl cry. Cut it out!" "[sarcastic]Sir, I was complimenting her." He replied coolly. A vein bulged on Onitsuka's forehead. "[angry]Don't make girls cry while complimenting them!!" His voice got even louder. A first-year walking from the other direction heard it, turned on their heel, and ran away. Gojou laughed. "[sarcastic]Yes, sir." He said only that and started walking. "[angry]Your response is too careless! Gojou, are you listening?!" "[sarcastic]I'm listening." He turned the corner, Onitsuka's voice still hitting his back. Once around the corner, his feet stopped. Just for a moment. (What's wrong with me…) His expression cracked, just slightly. He fixed it immediately. Alone in the empty hallway. --- When he returned to the classroom to get his things, Asahina-sensei was still there. She stood in front of the blackboard, jotting something down while muttering to herself. "Oh, Gojou-kun." She looked up, approaching with a slightly troubled expression. "[gentle]Got a minute?" "[serious]What is it?" "[gentle]A transfer student is coming tomorrow. To class 3-A." Huh, Gojou thought. A transfer student in September. "[gentle]Can you help me prepare a seat? I'm putting them next to you." "[sarcastic]Next to me, huh. Lucky transfer student." He grinned back, and Asahina-sensei let out a deep sigh. "[serious]…Please don't say anything unnecessary." "[sarcastic]If I greet them, they'll feel safe on their first day." "[serious]That's exactly what I'm worried about." The teacher shook her head and started moving a desk. Gojou helped. They placed an empty desk and chair next to his own, by the window in the back row. When they pushed the desks together, something caught his eye. The back of the classroom. On top of a locker. A small cactus, sitting silently. "[surprised]…When did this get here?" He didn't know who brought it. He'd never even noticed it before. He picked up the watering can and gave it a little water. The cactus accepted the water without complaint. An ungainly thing, prickly, but somehow it had presence. "[gentle]Do you like plants, Gojou-kun?" "[cold]Not really." He said only that and put the watering can back. --- When he left school, he walked to Minami-Harukaze Station. From Harukaze Academy to the station, Harukaze-dori shopping street stretched out, and there were decent crowds in the afternoon. Groups of uniformed students walking together, shopkeepers sweeping their storefronts. When he passed the taiyaki shop "Kogane-do," a good smell hit him. The smell of red bean paste. Gojou walked straight past. He entered the Everymart in front of the station. The cold air of the convenience store hit his face. He picked a bento box from the refrigerated case. Makunouchi, 580 yen. He put a canned juice in his basket and got in line at the register. When he paid, his eco-bag opened automatically. The cashier seemed slightly surprised. They could tell he was used to it. He did this every day. (Every day, huh.) He carried the bag back to his apartment. A fourteen-story building; he lived on the eleventh floor. When he pressed the elevator button, no one was beside him. He opened his apartment door and didn't turn on the lights. He tossed his things onto the living room sofa. Three bedrooms, two bathrooms, but too spacious and too quiet. From the window, he could see Kasumigaoka Ward in the evening. Roofs stretched on, and something like a transmission tower was faintly visible in the distance. He sat on the sofa and took off his blazer. His phone rang. He checked the notification. A message from his father. "Business trip this month. Won't be back. Buy whatever you want with the card." That was all. Gojou marked it as read. He didn't reply. He set the phone down and leaned his head against the back of the sofa. He stared up at the dark ceiling. Quiet. Only the sound of the refrigerator. And car sounds from outside the window. (What's wrong with me?) How many times had he thought this today? He'd complimented her and she cried. The teacher yelled at him. The girls whispered about him. He genuinely didn't know what was wrong. The ceiling was dark. He could turn on the lights, but he couldn't bring himself to do it. He stayed like that for a while. Then Asahina-sensei's voice drifted back into his mind. "A transfer student is coming tomorrow." Gojou narrowed his eyes. Who would it be? What kind of person? (Someone who'll sit next to me, huh.) For some reason, he felt a little curious. About tomorrow. About the transfer student. That curiosity quietly wedged itself in beside the question that had occupied his mind all day: "What's wrong with me?" There was no answer. But maybe something would change tomorrow. That's what it felt like. There was no basis for it. Without turning on the lights, he opened his bento box.