Chapter II

"Ushio Okazaki, please come to the front of the class and introduce yourself."

Ushio looked up, very red in the face. Why her? All around the class, the students were whispering about her.

"Did he say 'Okazaki'? I hear that guy's a legend!"

"Dude! Check it out! That must be his daughter! She's pretty cute!"

The teacher, Miyashita-sensei, rapped the pointer on his desk.

"Quiet!"

Ushio's face burned hotly as she stood facing the 29 other students before her. They stared intently at her, a few of the males' eyes wandering over her. She suddenly felt extremely self-conscious. She whimpered. A boy in the front leaned in to his friend.

"Man that chick is smokin' hot! And she sounds cute, too!"

The teacher stood.

"I said quiet!"

The two boys instantly shut up. Ushio looked at the floor.

M-my name… Ushio Okazaki… um… p-pleased… t-to meet you…" she stuttered. A few students giggled. The teacher glared daggers.

"The next student who laughs, giggles, sniggers, speaks or even so much as sneezes until otherwise told will get detention!"

After that, not a student said a single word. Miyashita asked Ushio to tell the class about herself.

"W-well… I… I love the…" she looked to the floor and mumbled something indiscernible.

"What was that, Miss Okazaki? I didn't quite catch that last part," Miyashita said.

"I said… I love… the Dango family…"

Ushio groaned and squeezed her eyes shut, ready for the howls of laughter. Instead, when she opened her eyes, she saw many of the students grinning at each other and smiling at her. She felt a little better. Miyashita nodded at her to continue.

"Um… I also want to do drama…" she said. A student in the back whooped. A few students laughed.

"You may sit, Miss Okazaki," the teacher said. Ushio hurried back to her seat and buried her head.

Soon, class was over and it was lunch time. Ushio was packing her bag when a purple-haired girl approached her.

"Hi!"

Ushio yelped in shock and fell on to her backside again, scattering her books. Several students howled in laughter. The purple-haired girl helped her up, apologizing multiple times. Ushio retrieved her scattered books and rubbed her doubly sore bum, wincing.

"Sorry! I didn't mean to scare you! Honest!" stammered the girl. Ushio shook her head.

"It's fine," she mumbled, looking away. "Happens all the time."

The girl giggled and introduced herself as Yoichi Fujibayashi, the class representative for 1-D. Ushio continued to look away, still red. Why did people always focus on her? There were way more interesting people than her.

"So, your father is Tomoya Okazaki, huh?" Yoichi asked. Ushio nodded, unsure of how to respond.

"That's so cool! He's practically a legend here!"

Ushio unconsciously allowed a small giggle to escape, resulting in a hug from Yoichi.

"You're so cute! Let's be friends!"

Ushio blushed.

She ate lunch alone in the courtyard. Yoichi was busy with class responsibilities, and as a result, couldn't join her. Ushio sighed, feeling lonely. She ate in silence. Suddenly, a shadow obscured the sun. Curious, she raised her eyes to see Hajime. She had come up with a nickname for him, "Tall Hime". She thought it was cute.

"Well, well, we meet again, my sweet Ushio!" Hajime said cheerily, laughter in his deep blue eyes.

"Oh…" Ushio said quietly. Then she blushed when she realized he said "my sweet Ushio". Hajime sniggered and plopped down beside her. On the inside, Ushio was happy to see him. Now she wasn't alone.

"Tell me, what do you like to do, Ushio?" he said, taking a piece of her rice cake, much to her surprise.

"Um… I like… drama…" she muttered.

Hajime leaned back on his hands and kicked his feet out, staring at the sky.

"Drama, huh? Interesting."

"You don't think it's stupid?" Ushio asked. Hajime grinned widely and looked up at her.

"Nope! My buddies and I are actually recruiting for the drama club to be reorganized!"

Ushio looked surprised and Hajime sat up, smiling broadly.

"What? A guy can't do drama?" he teased, and leaned back again. "So why are you interested in drama, Shio?"

Ushio started when he said "Shio". Hajime glanced at her.

"You don't like Shio? I won't call you that if you don't want me to."

"N-no, it's fine," Ushio said. "My mom and dad call me that at home. I just… didn't expect to hear you say it is all."

"Ha, ha, okay then," he replied. "Anyway, why drama?"

Ushio thought about what she should say for a moment.

"My mom and dad were the ones who reformed the club when they were in school. My mom was really shy like me, and my dad helped her gain confidence through the club. So, I want to follow in their steps."

Hajime sat in silence, listening intently to Ushio speak.

"It wasn't easy, though. Nobody wanted to join. Then there was the student council. My dad called them a bunch of bureaucratic blockheads! He decided to get their attention by challenging the sports teams. That also led to a new student council president being elected. After that, they were able to reform the club!

"Whenever my dad tells me that story, it gives me the courage to do the things I otherwise wasn't able to do before. That's why I want to do drama."

Ushio stopped speaking and looked over at Hajime.

"I know it's kind of cliché but… Hajime why are you crying?"

Hajime wiped his eyes and chuckled.

"Sorry, it's just… your story is so touching. Me and buds, we just formed it as a joke. But you… you have an amazing reason."

Ushio was at a loss for words.

"Shio, join our club," Hajime said. Ushio was taken aback.

"W-what?"

Hajime smiled.

"You're perfect for the club. Also, we still need a club president."

"I-I guess I could join…" she said. Hajime jumped up, causing Ushio to squeal.

"Awesome! Just wait until I tell the guys!"

Ushio smiled.