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Chapter 2

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Seto's POV

Things have been peaceful so far. It's been almost one week since he joined the class and there have been no clashes as of yet. I do not bother him and he does not bother me. That is good. Unlike that stupid dog over by the window, he seems overly concerned about Arai. Wonder why.

I look to my side and spot that head of slivery tresses spilling over well-shaped shoulders hunched over a laptop. He works during class, much like I do, that's good. That's very productive. The teachers have learnt to leave him alone. He has proven to be more intelligent that I would have held him account for.

I hold my gaze as he turns to stare at me. He knows that I've been watching him. I know that he knows that I have been watching him. I think he knows that I know that he knows I've been watching him. I'm actually positive that he…*

I've been hanging around the mutt's best friend for too long. A pity, he was the only one whom I could actually converse with without insulting intentionally.

Unblinking gold eyes hold my own frosty blue gaze. It is unnatural, the amount of time he can go without blinking; that however is unimportant. He stares calmly at me for a moment longer, his left eye hidden by a ruby quartz half-visor attached to his headpiece. I believe that it also has audio, vocal and administrative capabilities as well, allowing him to directly interact with his unit without being near it. It can probably transfer data directly to his brain if necessary.

Interesting, perhaps I shall question him about it.

As soon as I prove my own superiority to him.

He is good. No one has been able to hold my stare for so long. Most people are more afraid of my stare than my glare. At least my glare tells them they're in trouble; my stare shows absolutely no emotion. It renders them unable to predict their future.  And contrary to popular belief, I do not practice staring at myself by staring at a mirror for hours on end. It is a talent. It comes naturally.

And besides, I do not have the time to waste on such useless and fruitless practices.

He blinks once, satisfied that I am not going to disturb him or his work and turns his attention back to his laptop.

Fujimiya Sensei, perhaps the only teacher I have any true respect for, is teaching the rest of the class history. I could ace this class without having to turn up for a single class. It's the same for every other class. This 'education' is useless to me. I am far more learned, if not more knowledgeable, about every subject they do and do not teach me at this level. My I.Q. is far higher than theirs. And so is his.

He is interesting.

For a model, his intellectual understanding far surpasses what I expected of models. Especially male models who mostly seem to work only on hormones. He is about the only person who is capable of challenging me academically and physically. I however doubt that he is of any challenge should it come to games.

I have watched him over the past two weeks, and have learned through observation that he is working on some sort of a stimulation. A virtual reality product. A game maybe. I have already crossed that barrier. I am superior.

Or so I would like to think.

I am not above myself in admitting that he may or may not have ideas and products that surpass my own. However, I am also aware that people think and approach things differently. Therefore, things that have crossed his mind, may not have crossed mine and vice versa.

That is what differs him from me.

He does not bother me. He does not feel the need to speak unnecessarily. Speaks only when spoken to, though rarely replies to anyone but to his superiors, and reluctantly at that. He knows his place and clearly knows how to bid his time. He wastes no time on insults or flattery. He barely acknowledges what goes on in class. He distances himself from everyone else. He bothers no one and expects no one to bother him.

This is the feather that shows we flock together.

Unfortunately, like myself, he is too often plagued by mindless little girls and boys who want his attention. He is however, a master of the 'stare' and it does not take long for people to back down.

Except me.

For the new rule that was imposed on both of us, we have worked out an arrangement that is to our advantage. For every class now had to arrange their tables in twos. In hope that the social successes will help the socially deprived in order to build class bondage.

It was unspoken of course. Neither of us has exchanged any form of verbal conversation. We have not even exchanged a single syllabus. It is unnecessary. Before the rule, he sat a space away from my left side. So it was only logical that he would sit next to me. Also, even if we have been given the choice of partners, the results would have been the same. By becoming 'partners' we were not bothered unnecessarily and were able to go about our business without interruptions.

Unlike a certain other pair, who have been busy playing with each other's fingers. They are concentrating so hard on the obscure hand signs that they are making that they have failed to notice Fujimiya sensei approaching them. It is pitiful really. The white haired one does not deserve the trouble that the dog gets him into.

A soft, but still audible, to me at least, sigh brings my attention back to my 'partner'. Apparently he has found a glitch in his programming. I smirk and offer no assistance. It would have futile to have done so. He is like me in this sense. We solve our own problems.

For the moment he is staring blankly at the screen. He is drawing a blank. I glance over quickly and immediately see his problem. There is an error in his encoding for the anti-virus program. There is an extra code, amidst countless other codes, it is easy to see how he has missed out this one letter.

However much I prefer solving my own problems, I have come across this sort of a problem too often to know that it is the most frustrating sort.  So I decide to help him.

Acting as disinterested as I can manage, I flick my finger at the 'x' that stands out in his 0101 code. His eyes widen for a second before he deletes it and flicks his hair back in a smooth move of gracefully tossing his head back. Than we go back to 'ignoring' each other.

Had I been anyone else, I would have missed his subtle thanks. But I am not. In the single movement of shifting his hair back, he glanced at me and lowered his top eyelids half way in thanks. It is our way of communicating. Words are not necessary.

Quick glances, blinks, half lowered eyelids, smirks, frowns…various understated facial expressions make up most of our conversations.

His most common expression is one of disbelief. For him, a delicately raised eyebrow can say a thousand things that perhaps only the two of us understand. For me, a smirk expresses my every feeling. Between the two of us, a simple roll of the eyes can develop into a joke only the two of us understand. When that happens, I usually laugh in my usual domineering manner and he just raises that eyebrow of his and turns away.

We hold many conversations this way and we get along better than most.

And to think people think that we are too proud to talk to them.

Another sigh from him momentarily distracts me. But I know this sigh to be one of no importance to me. It simply signals that he is done for the day or is about to take a break. I watch from the corner of my eye as he removes his headpiece and closes his laptop. A small pout forms and I know that he is bored. So am I.

A quick glance my way before a roll of the eyes in the direction of the mutt broadens my smirk. He obviously feels the same way I do. That stupid mutt is a waste of space and a ridicule to the human race.

Leaning back, he quietly pulls out his palm top and we start a quick game of tic-tac-toe. Trying to find the three hundredth strategy to the game

Hey, if anything, it beats rock paper scissors**.

*Reference to Demon Diary, my other fic.

** Jou and Ryou were playing rock paper scissors…