The doors swung open to the main hub of Bungou Strait Boarding School, and in walked a silver-haired, sectoral-heterochromatic boy. His legs trembled ever so slightly as he carried his books to his first class at the boarding school: Sciences.

Nakajima Atsushi was a very anxious boy. He'd lived in an orphanage in the city of Yokohoma up until he was 14, which was when the headmaster finally kicked him out and sent him to Bungou Strait to attend the boarding school there. Apparently most—if not all—of the kids there were also from Yokohoma; however there was a divide.

There were the City kids, who were from Yokohoma itself; they ranged from the snooty, rich, possibly inbred bastards to the middle-classed people with decent personalities.

Then there were the Port kids; they lived at the Port on the outskirts of the city. One would find no higher or middle class people here; only those who were in financial crisis, or the violent orphans that were rejected from orphanages.

Nakajima Atsushi had been so lucky as to have not been sent to the Port instead.

Sure, he wasn't violent. But the orphanages also had a reputation for sending the teenaged kids to the Port to fend for themselves. After all, nobody would adopt them; couples wanted younger kids.

"Excuse me? You look a little lost."

Atsushi snapped out of his thoughts and whipped around to see two older boys standing behind them.

One boy wore a long trench coat over his ratty uniform. His undershirt stuck out from his pants, covering up the waistline of the trousers. The soft curls of his chestnut locks framed his unusually smooth cheeks perfectly.

The other boy was far more orderly and neat clothing-wise, but his long, dirty blond hair was pulled back into a pony tail to allow messy bangs to zag all over. His shirt was tucked into his pants, and there was nary a wrinkle on his clothes.

"Stop staring at us already and tell us if you're lost," the blond mumbled, "we don't have all day!"

"Relax, Kunikida," the brunette chuckled, "it's not like Lovecraft actually expects us to attend any of our classes–"

"That's exactly what he expects us to do, Dazai!" the blond—Kunikida, Atsushi assumed—shouted in response. He turned back to face Atsushi. "You must be new. You wouldn't look so stupid and hopelessly lost otherwise. What's your name?"

"Uh..." Atsushi felt a little offended, "Nakajima Atsushi. And I'm not hopelessly l–"

"Atsushi's a weird name."

Excuse me!? though the silver-haired boy, what a rude greeting...

"You'll have to excuse him," the brunette—Dazai, Atsushi assumed once again—but in, "he's terrible with new people. My name is Osamu Dazai. Joyride here–"

"DAZAI!"

"–is Doppo Kunikida."

"Pleasure..." Atsushi mumbled. Not really.

"Which class are you heading to?" asked Dazai.

"Sciences..." Atsushi answered, "with... Mr. Fitzgerald?"

Dazai laughed. "You really are stupid and hopelessly lost! Sciences are that way!" he pointed behind them, "in the other building!"

Atsushi felt an anvil of embarrassment crush his stomach. "Of course it is..." he muttered.

"We're headed that way ourselves," Kunikida stated, "with Fitzgerald as well. You can walk with us, if you really need help getting around."

"Don't be so hard on him, Doppo~" Dazai poked Kunikida's cheek while laughing.

"I told you, it's Kunikida!"

Atsushi sighed and followed as the two older boys turned around and began heading outside. He wasn't going to be stuck with them the whole time, was he?

He hoped not.

The bell screamed over the P.A. system, signally the end of the first class of the day. Though some people (Mr. F. Scott Fitzgerald included) had left the Science class early. Dazai opted to leave class early, and forcefully dragged Atsushi and Kunikida with him.

"Dazai, seriously, no wonder you're failing that class!" Kunikida growled, "leaving early–"

"Fitzgerald ditches his own class, for God's sake, Kida!"

"Kunikida!"

"Whatever!"

Atsushi listened to the constant back and forth between the older males. Was it always this way between them? It was annoying regardless.

"Here we are!"

Atsushi stopped in his tracks, bumping into Dazai just as he did. "W–" he stopped, realizing they were in front of a door. "Um... Dazai? Kunikida? Where–"

"There are some people we want you to meet," Dazai interrupted. "Come on in."