Chapter Four: Suspicion

"W-O-W."

Romina stretched the word into four syllables while recapping the interview (let say three times) highlighting the end song for five times before finally allowing Crein and Rednaxela to insert their train tickets on the slot. The three guys' ears were sore from her repeated 'devotion' about six times right after Hikari's name. Crein and Rednaxela showed a wave of relief to Eagle with an untold message—Good luck with Romina on the way home. Eagle cringed and look over at Romina who hasn't stop showing how devoted she is to Hikari.

Both Crein and Rednaxela live after the next two stations. They didn't take the bus because it will take a half-hour, meanwhile only ten minutes on a train ride. Eagle and Romina were particularly neighbors—only three blocks away and fortunately the train station is only a block away from his house, the sad part is…

It's already twilight and he's with Romina—A girl.

In old age book: A real gentleman shouldn't let a lady walk alone at night.

In modern English: A man will have to accompany a woman to her house.

In short: Eagle will have to walk with Romina until she's home.

Eagle snorted. He wasn't a gentleman, he admitted. He doesn't do those genteel expressions and gestures that existed in the Renaissance period or Victorian Era or Edwardian Era or even the modern day era.

But he's a Man.

He can walk with her for the entire fifteen minutes as long as she'll stop the same topic. He already had had enough Hikari interview in his system to not put him to sleep tonight because, he's couldn't wait for the release of the next album in summer and Romina induced Hikari will going to put him on edge of disliking Hikari…

Actually, Disliking and Hikari isn't a sentence in his dictionary.

On the way back, Eagle kept his distance to the devoted fan and managed to mute her out of his hearing. But, the word 'Glasses' and 'new student' escaped from the barrier.

"Are you listening?" Romina snapped her fingers on his eyes. "I said—I hope Hamiru doesn't have a serious injury."

"Who?" he asked, forehead creasing.

"Hamiru as in Kamuel, Hamiru" She eyed him like he was an idiot. She animated her fingers over her eyes looking like glasses. "The new student? Glasses girl?" Still looking at Eagle with stupidity.

Eagle looks at the silliness, Romina sighed in exasperation and rolled her eyes.

"Miss Braided mathematician, does that ring a bell?"

Oh! The new kid. His thoughts finally remembered. "The idiot that blocked the ball for you… now I remember."

He was hoping for another round of bicker from Romina. On the contrary, she looks upset.

"Stop saying she's an idiot, Eagle." She threw back weakly. "I feel awful right now on what happened to her."

Eagle studied her; it was one of the few moments that he finds his friend on an awkward and disturbing situation, he doesn't know how to react from it or what he will going to say for the purpose of alleviating what the other is feeling. Thus, doing what he always does best—keep silent.

"You know what… She told me earlier that she was used to be called odd, strange and weird and she also said that we shouldn't be friends… But…" she paused, eyes on front. "She saved me. Despite the warning... I want to be her friend." "… Why? She's an introvert and you know those kinds of people, they want to keep everything to themselves."

Eagle couldn't help but comment. For half a day, he had seen Hamiru from the corner of his eyes—head down with sullen eyes, her hands folded on her lap, doesn't even write notes and most of the time, looking outside the window without giving attention to the lectures . Even on lunch… she didn't eat anything, she keeps sitting on her chair looking inward, as if she was only a decoration in the room: motionless, lifeless and voiceless.

The only time Eagle saw a mild trace of life from her when Physical Education class started. She was last on the line, slowly walking, separated from social interaction and settled on the far side of the soccer field. Hugging her knees close to her and again, looking inward but eyes were distant.

Eagle saw some kind of thick barrier closing from the outside world, barricaded by deafening silence.

"I saw her face, Eagle…" he heard Romina saying. "She's so lonely and I know she needs someone..."

Eagle studied her again, he walked passed her. "Romina, sometimes first impressions don't do justice in real life."

"What do you mean?" she asked, confused all of a sudden.

He sighed, frustration creeping. He hesitated for a bit and weighs his options. Romina put a foot down.

"What is it with you today?" She shouted, arm pointed at him. "We know that you're apathetic to things or even most of the time but not to Crein and me." She gave her the eye. "Yeah sure, you're dark and uncaring. But you aren't usually this cold and I demand to know what's going on to you, Mister." She crossed his arms over her chest.

Eagle sighed again—he doesn't want to argue with women, especially don't want to argue with a woman named Romina. When she starts to speculate something, she won't stop until she knows the entire reason. He then shoved his hands in his pocket and presents something to Romina.

Glasses, not just ordinary glasses…

"That's Hamiru's glasses, right?" Surprised and definitely puzzled.

Another frustrating sigh escaped Eagle. "I don't want to mention this to anyone without enough proof. But I guess I have no choice." He offered the broken glasses to Romina. "These glasses are fake, Romina."

"What?" she cried and snatched the glasses from his palm. "They're not real?"

Eagle nodded, creases began forming. "This is only a speculation. But I have a gut feeling about this: The accident Kansai-sensei told us about, her withdrawn personality, even her appearance…" he paused. "It seemed though our little new introverted classmate is hiding something…"

Eagle opened his eyes with alert, still wide awake in the middle of the night and waiting for sleep to come over. He lay on his bed with hands propped under his head, staring blankly that his dimmed space. Only the moon's light that peeked from his ceiling to wall curtain served as a guide towards his terrace.

He was thinking something… rather, someone.

He couldn't quite figure out on why the new student faked her glasses. An accessory perhaps? Most teenagers used fake glasses to match their style. But, it doesn't make sense for him. What added to the puzzle is what Romina said—

She told me earlier we shouldn't be friends…

There was something odd about her. No. There is something odd is going on and Eagle want to find out what is it.

To take his mind off things, he scurried out of his bed and made his way to his terrace to get a fresh albeit cold air. He grabbed his wool jacket and step outside. His terrace can only accommodate two people at a time, he took a breath and the moon's crescent shape was high tonight that nearly blocks by a newly opened apartment building with seven floors at the next neighboring street behind a mini convenience store and a bus station.

The next thing Eagle saw is—one of the apartment floors: on the last floor lit up brightly and a medium figure of a girl in ponytail came walking with boxes at hand and stumbled a bit little while putting it down, then a tall man followed behind carrying three large brown boxes and put it besides the other box.

New tenant at this hour? He mused but a wave of familiarity set Eagle's curiosity on alarm. His pupils narrowed.

The people inside the apartment are none other than the school doctor and their new introverted classmate.

"I guess our little miss introvert isn't lonely as Romina expected her to be." He allegedly swore under his breath.