((Author's Note: I promise that, after this chapter, this story will get better. This and the intro are more of a way for me to set the scene than anything. Hang in there!))
Chapter 1
Kentaro dragged me along toward the school, and my earlier anxiety began to resurface.
"Wait, Kentaro..." I started, biting my lip, any and all confidence out the window. "I don't think I can do this, we don't belong here!" He shot me a look that was a mixture of irritation and disappointment.
"Miko- Mikoto, we definitely belong here, so shut up and just be the hard worker you always are, and you'll be fine." He ruffled my hair, much to my dismay, and continued to drag me along as I attempted to fix it. "Pick up the pace; we're going to be late." I sighed, but complied and began walking faster. We made it to our first class without being late, and took our seats.
When the teacher came rolling in on his chair and fell over backwards, crashing into the ground, my jaw dropped. I quickly glanced around at my fellow students to see if anyone would say anything, but they all acted as if this was business as usual. The man stood up, apparently alright, and I noticed that he was completely covered in zigzag stitches. And was that…a screw sticking out of his head? Kentaro looked as dumbstruck as I was.
"Good morning, students." The man grinned as though he was very excited about something. "For those of you who may not know me," Here his eyes, behind a pair of glasses, fell on Kentaro and me. "I am Dr. Stein. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any specimens for us to dissect today, so we will just be doing a review of the material." I sighed with relief, sinking back into my chair. I wouldn't do too well with a dissection, being as squeamish as I am. Kentaro would love something like that though.
I rested my chin in my hand, allowing everything around me to fade to a blur as Dr. Stein droned on about something. After a long stint of daydreamy peace, the hairs on the back of my neck prickled. I sat up straighter in my seat, frowning. I felt certain that someone was watching me. I glanced around in search of the culprit, and my eyes met a pair of yellow ones that were watching me very intently. I felt heat rush to my face as I desperately tried to recall if there was something amiss about the way I looked. Maybe my hair was still messed up from with Kentaro ruffled it? Yeah, that had to be it. The guy who was watching me didn't look away, even though I'd caught him.
At a closer inspection he was kind of cute, which made this whole situation worse. He was a bit unusual though, with black hair that had horizontal white stripes, but only on one side. The most curious thing about him was his expression. He didn't look curious, or like there was something wrong with my hair. Instead, he had the look that someone gets when they have OCD and something is out of its place. I broke our eye contact, my face still flushed, and focused on the teacher again.
Later, as we were filing out of the classroom, I saw him talking to two blonde girls in cowboy hats, one tall and one short. He was flailing his arms about frantically, and I thought I heard him say something like "It was so asymmetrical!". What could he have been talking about? I would have stayed to find out, but Kentaro grabbed my elbow and tugged me out of the room. Who was that weird guy?