I couldn't bear it any longer. Today was one of the few days I attended my classes and I felt as if I should have just stayed out; art class being no exception. Of course, my mind and body both agreeed to ditch for the school's pool, which was my only salvation.

Then the bell rung.

Finally, I could breathe. I could breathe and leave. With little to no time, I grabbed my things and dashed straight out the door; the idea of water relieving my aching head and rapid thoughts was enough to get me going. I was free-

"N-Nanase-kun...?"

I froze in place as a strange chill darted up my spine. A girl's voice said my name just now, right? No, I- I don't know what to say and do. Her voice sounded off though; almost as if she was... scared? No, that wasn't right was it-

"Nanase-kun!"

I quickly shot my head around to see a short girl with orange hair and bright lilac eyes run up to me in almost a panic. Before I could even make a break for it, she stood there in front of me with her head looking down. Was she just as uncomfortable as I was?

With a small gesture of her hand, she held out a textbook. Ah, I must have left this. Was I suppose to say something here or do I just need to take it from her? My brain pulsated as shots of confusing thoughts passed through my head.

I just needed to get out of here.

I gulped down the dryness in my throat and slowly reached for the book in question. Just as I opened my mouth to speak up, a large hand placed itself on my shoulder and I could hear my head screaming for the pool immediately.

My eyes quickly moved towards the source of the hand until I met a familiar emerald gaze; it was my childhood friend, Makoto. "Found you, Haru- Oh, hey there, Miyabe-chan!" Miyabe-chan? Wait- He knew who this girl was?

I turned my focus on her again, only to notice that her face was red. W-Was she running a fever?

"I-I just wanted to return this book to Nanase-kun! He left it in art class, so..."

"How nice of you! Thank you for that, Miyabe-chan."

"... Thanks."

The two of them stared at me instantly and I could feel my stomach literally twist. Did I say something weird? I mean, it was the right thing to say in this type of situation, right? Oh god, maybe I should have just kept quiet-

"Y-You're welcome."

My eyes stayed fixed on her, she softly pushed the book in my hand and ran as fast as she did when she called my name. I didn't understand why, but all I could do was just stare at her. Then she looked back at us.

She looked back and her eyes were- Her eyes were... They weren't on me, but on Makoto, Bothered. For some reason I felt bothered. My chest got strangely tight and stayed that way until she vanished behind a corner of the hallway.

I could breathe once again.

Now that I could think a little clearer, maybe it was the best time to talk to Makoto. He did know the girl after all, right? So maybe it wasn't so odd to just ask who exactly...

"Makoto."

"Yeah, Haru?"

"Who was that girl?"

"Ooh! Curious about her are we now?"

Or maybe it wasn't. I didn't have time for joking, 'sarcasm', or whatever people called it. It only made these thoughts more worse than they already were. With a sigh, I walked towards the nearest exit in hopes of getting to the school's pool. I needed the cool water to take my mind off this 'Miyabe-chan'.

"She's actually... Wait, Haru- I wasn't just kidding, hold on!"

Hmph.