It was another day at Amamiya Ren's new school. Though the class has ended for the day, there were more passerby outside the new transfer student's class than usual, some only glanced, most took a good look for the infamous delinquent; a youngster with a criminal record.
He tried ignoring the strange looks as best as he can.
"Delinquent!", he can almost hear them whisper.
"Scum!", he'd swear their glances conveyed that meaning.
But he can do nothing to stop them. Any attempt he'd take would only be taken the wrong way, and most likely worsen the situation, so he tried to shift his attention to other stuff, anything that can take his mind off the situation, and his brain chose to focus on nighttime activities. Since he can't go outside in the night (Sojiro, his host, didn't allow him to), he figured he'd start looking for indoor activities he can do in his room during the night.
Considering video games are expensive and he's short on cash, he figured he'd read some books as a temporary escape. And the one place to get books for free is the library.
'Anywhere's better than here'
In a swift motion, he rose from his seat, took his bag and started walking toward his destination. Thinking that outside his class he won't be subject to prying eyes, he quickly took his exit and went to the hall. But contrary to his belief, the hallway wasn't any better. During the walk, the intense staring and whispering gets even worse. Seemed like every student, every teacher, even every staff who he passed by were watching, were judging him. Each look of disapproval, every voice of disdain, they all echoed even louder during his walk.
He kept walking, his gaze directed to the floor, his steps getting faster. He was desperately trying not to think how bad it would be; having to endure such thing for a whole year. But try as he might, the reality of having to spend another 12 months in this prison called school wouldn't change, and that fact hits him hard, like a binding chain weighing heavily on his body.
After what feels like an eternity of walking, he arrived at the door leading to library.
He'd seen the library from outside multiple times, but never thought of entering before. Seemed like a dull place to hang out before, but now it looked like a safe haven from the prying eyes and the endless gossiping.
He opened the yellow door and with eyes still downcast, let his feet took control and directed him to the nearest table to take his breath and calm himself down.
He slid into the chair of a big, round table and settled in, took a few moments to catch his breath, before finally raising his gaze to look around.
First thing he saw was a brunette with a braided hairband, studying materials of advanced subjects sprawled around the round table, and a pair of crimson orbs looking straight on his direction.
"Do you need something?" the girl asked the now frozen boy.
'Quick! Think of something!' his brain screamed, which in turn awakened him from his wordless trance.
"I-Uh, I want to borrow a book,"
With a confused look and a small, almost unnoticed chuckle, the diligent-looking student replied, "You'll have to ask the librarian, then. She's right at the counter," while pointing her finger to the librarian yawning at the edge of the room.
"Oh, right, yeah. I should- I should probably go there now,"
Finally taking in his surrounding, he noticed he might had invaded the girl's studying. 'Third year…a Senpai, then?' he thought internally as he noticed the emblem indicating she was one of the seniors at the school. He rose back up slowly and let out a quiet 'Thank you', before regaining his composure and attempting to walk calmly to the counter.
The girl nodded and returned her attention to the opened book in front of her.
'Strange guy,' Makoto Niijima, Shujin's student council president thought to herself.
'Amamiya Ren…if I'm not mistaken, he's the rumored transfer student with criminal record,' her train of thought continued, thinking back to the name she glimpsed at the boy's nametag.
Curious about what kind of book a supposedly delinquent would be interested in, she took a little peek to the counter.
'Well, if he's a delinquent, he certainly doesn't look the part,'
Unkept hair, large glasses, slouching pose…from what little she could take in with a glimpse, none of those traits indicated he's a monstrous criminal like most of the school students' conversations suggested.
Further observation shows that he's taken an interest in borrowing 'The Great Thief', a crime novel based on a gentleman thief. Quite an interesting taste on book, she thought, which raised her doubt on the rumors surrounding the transfer student.
She stopped peeking when he was about to finish the borrowing procedure. After tucking the novel into his bag, he approached the table he previously sat on, stopping near the girl who seemed deep in her studies, not knowing she'd been studying him just moments ago.
Worried that he might noticed her peeking, she feigned ignorance and carefully chose her words
"Hm? Is something the matter?"
She needed to appear as uninterested as she can, as to not raise any suspicions on his part
"Oh, nothing at all. I just want to apologize for bothering you earlier, you know, what with suddenly sitting in your table,"
Internally, she breathed a sigh of relief. She'd thought she was caught red-handed spying on the transfer student, but it seemed that was not the case.
"That won't be a problem, I wasn't bothered at all. After all, this is a library, a public space for the students. Everyone is free to enter and sit anywhere they'd like," she replied to the boy's apology with a small smile on her face.
It was a nice change of reaction from the usual slander he'd accept from the other students. He thought she'd dismiss him as just another delinquent as most students would, and rightly so, as rumors of him have circulated uncontrollably, and he'd expected every student to at least heard of his supposed atrocities.
But the girl didn't antagonize him, she didn't fear him, and instead she calmly accepted his apologies. It was an expected and normal reaction to an apology, but in that moment and in the situation he's in, it was a rare and unexpected reaction, and he found that simple act of kindness admirable.
After a brief silence, the girl spoke first.
"Well, if you don't mind, I have a calculation to finish," Trying not to incite any suspicion from the boy, she tried to return to her studies with an acceptable reason.
"If you don't need anything, please don't bother me,"
'Not afraid to speak her mind, too, huh,' Each conversation with the girl proved to be interesting to him. But alas, he thought it would be better not to risk annoying her and take his exit. He already got the book he came for, after all, and the conversation with the mysterious girl was a nice bonus.
"Ah, okay. Well, goodbye, then," with a slight nod of the head, the boy walked to the exit and the girl returned her attention to her books.
Inside the library, a student council president stared deep to formulas in her book, but a passing thought of her mind was thinking of something, or rather, someone.
'Perhaps the transfer student is nowhere near as bad as the rumors suggest,'
Outside the library, a transfer student walked again among curious gazes and whispers, but for now, his mind was occupied somewhere else.
'Perhaps this year won't be as bad as I thought,'
Hello there! Since it's Shumako Week, I'm trying to contribute by making fic to show support for Joker and Queen's pairing. I'm a beginner in writing stories, so do expect mistakes and short word counts, but I hope I'll get better onward.