"W-what?"
Staring at the thick paper, Tenki dropped the pile of mail in his hand to hold the letter with both hand, much to his sibling's dismay. The very notion of his acceptance to Hope's peak made him enter a state of awe and disbelief. He read over every single word, every single letter, as if he was trying to stare a hole into it, almost expecting something like "Just Kidding" on the form, or a camera popping out, revealing the fact that the whole thing was an elaborate prank. It was simply unthinkable. He, a normal teenager, got accepted to the prestigious Hope's Peak Academy, simply because he was good at public speaking? That's crazy. However, after a fifth reading of the letter, Tenki was forced to come to term with the unbelievable truth: he is one of the ultimate students. Water started gathering in the eyes and flowing down his face. As a boy, he had made the promise to never cry in front of others, since it seemed unmanly, but the news was simply too much and the emotions overcame the poor boy's will as he stood there, unable to contain his tears of joy. He was going to attend the best school in the nation, nay, the world. His moment of happiness was, however, interrupted by his younger brother, holding a pile of dirty envelope in his hands, visibly angry.
"Jeez, why did you drop the mail?! My magazine was in there! What in the world in wrong with…," Alex shouted, trying to shake the duct and water off the papers, before looking at his brother's face and realizing his teary face. "Wait, a-are you crying?"
"Hun? OH! I-its nothing, I-I'm just…really happy," replied Tenki, snapped out of his thoughts and trying to wipe off his tears.
"What was in that letter?"
With a large grin, Tenki handed the mail to his younger brother, whom, upon reading it, let out a cry of surprise.
"NOOOO WAY! YOU'RE KIDDING ME! Isn't that where the super talented people go? They say if you graduate from there, you're set for life!"
"I KNOOW!" Tenki shrieked in response, like an excited schoolgirl. "I AM SOOOOOOO HYPED!"
"How did they accept you?"
"I don't know, I'm actually kind of nervous. Everyone there is going to be super amazing and special. There is no way I'm going to fit in. I mean, I'm just an…
Average, that was the word that best described Makoto Naegi, everything from his looks, his grades, his school, even his athletic abilities. He was utterly average, something he was painfully aware of, thanks to the constant reminder from his friends and family. To be honest, Makoto was getting sick of it, but in a certain sense, he didn't despair too much since he knew there was nothing he could do to change it. Optimism was, after all, one of Makoto best quality, which, came in handy to combat his biggest weakness, his luck, of lack thereof. Just today, Makoto lost a game of rock paper scissors with 10 participants (he played scissors and everybody else played rock) and was forced to buy his friend's drinks and snacks at the convenience store and bring it back by himself. He came out of the store with four plastic bags filled to the brim with cans of soda, coffee and snacks. This is sooooo heavy, thought Makoto, cursing his misfortune. Happy thoughts Makoto, think about something pleasant, he told himself, trying to take his mind off the current situation. He thought about his plans once he'll be home, watching that night's TV program. His former classmate, Sayaka Maizono, would be making an appearance in a music program tonight. Despite the fact he was convinced that Sayaka did not remember him, he was still looking forward to the program. He was deep in his thoughts until he heard the sound of something snapping and almost lost his balance.
"Whoa"! He cried, placing one of his foot in front of him in order to not fall over.
As he adjusted his stance, Makoto realized where the sound came from and the reason of his loss of balance, the bottom of his bags was ripped and the content within was everywhere on the ground, causing a sudden change in weight that almost made Makoto fall. Normally, the odds of all four plastic bags all ripping under the weight of the cans would be next to impossible, unless a certain store clerk accidentally sliced the bottom of the bags while unpacking them with a box cutter.
"Just my luck I guess," he ranted, while trying to pick everything up.
After a few minutes, he gathered up most of what was dropped to the ground. All but a can of black coffee. He scanned his surrounding in order to find the finale item, before seeing it roll toward an elderly man, sitting on a bench.
"Excuse me sir! Makoto yelled, trying to grab his attention. Can you please pass me the can?"
His cry, however did not reach the ear of the old man, who realize the presence of the can once it hit his foot, picked it up, looked at it, perplexed… before opening the can and drinking it.
Seeing this scene, Makoto let out a cry of discouragement.
"YOU'VE GOT TO BE…
...KIDDING ME!"
The cry of Junko Enoshima resounded throughout the entire airport, causing everyone inside to look at her and the boy beside her, Yasuke Matsuda. This cause the boy to grimace from the attention they were receiving.
"Shuddup Junko, everyone is looking at us funny and you know how I feel about attention."
"BUT THIS IS BULL$%!T," Junko cried, increasing her volume "THIS IS THE SECOND TIME THAT HER FLIGHT IS DELAYED. AT THIS RATE, I MIGHT MISS MY PHOTO SHOOT. URG, WHY IS SHE SUCH A DISAPPOINTMENT."
"Oh what, you want her to magically control the weather"? Yasuke replied, with an annoyed look on his face. "I'll remind she's the Ultimate SOLDIER, not the Ultimate weatherwoman. Plus, it's been over 3 years since you last saw her. I think that's a bit more important than your dumb photo shoot."
"WHAT! You're taking her side? What kind of crappy boyfriend are you?!"
" The kind who hate the attention you are bringing to us right now with your yelling."
" Well, get used to it," Junko replied, with a sadistic grin on her face, "cause when in 2 months, we'll be at the same school and I guarantee I will do this Every- Single- Day, my introverted otaku."
" Urg, why am I with a girl like you?" Yasuke sighed, while putting his book over his face.
" Because you love me", chuckled Junko, before giving a small kiss on Yasuke's cheeks, causing the reddening of his cheeks.
"Yeah… I guess you're right," mumbled Yasuke, covering his face with a manga, trying to hide his blush and the grin on his face.
"OH WAIT," Junko cried out, waving her arms energetically. "There she is! HEY MUKURO-CHAN! HERE! RIGHT HERE!"
At the other side of that hyperactif greeting was a young woman with black hair, with her luggage in one hand and her passport in the other. She was wearing a bulletproof vest and a camo uniform. Upon hearing the loud shout, she slowly turned her head and immediately, her emotionless face turned into a wide smile.
" Junko-chan! I'm back!"