"So we have to start all the way back to seventh grade at YMH."

All of Kaito's friends were silent yet eager; in the mood to absorb whatever he said next. Their focus was stark and concentrated on him only.

He felt intimidated at best, but Kaito swallowed his own spit and prepared himself.

"Rin was one of the new people in our class. So you could imagine how awkward it must be for her on that first day. But she did well, honestly. Even more than what was expected, if my friends and I used to say it. No one expected her to be that good with academics. And she was open-minded to anyone. It was no wonder everyone didn't have anything bad to say about her."

"That does sound like the Rin we have right now." Miku smiled.

"Yeah, she always insisted there was at least one thing that was a sore eye for most people." Kaito laughed it off. The smooth flow of memories from a distant past was both a comfort and dreaded act.

"Okay, so what ticked off Miss bunny cohort leader?" Luka steered the conversation in the right direction.

Rin's thick ribbon (or scrunchy, if she tied her hair) resembled bunny ears. Hence the nickname 'Rinny Bunny' by Luka and Miku. The boys used it too, though in the context to tease her.

Kaito sighed. "Well, you need to know someone who plays a big role in it. His name is Len. He and I have been friends since primary school. We got along because we both share niche interests. Also because some douchebags who saw us as the wimpy nerds bullied us."

"I think I know where this is going." Oliver spoke for the first time.

"Shhh! No spoilers, Oli!" Miku was quick to shush her friend in fear of the thrill being lost from Kaito's story-telling. "Let Kai talk it all out. I can't wait any longer for this!"

Kaito laughed. "There's no need to rush! So, Len is one of my closest friends. Not so much anymore by the time we were in ninth grade though. Basically, Len is a huge geek. Video games? The guy you talk to. Animation? More likely he may pursue it as a career. The guy is a talented artist. He plays instruments—keyboard, both the acoustic, bass and electric guitars. He also composes songs when he's in the mood."

The last part made all eyes sparkle towards Kaito.

All of them had their own areas of focus in music. Gakupo trained himself in traditional folk singing and traditional instruments, besides the keyboard and guitar. Luka, being bilingual, sang in two of her fluent languages and played the drums.

Oliver leaned more on the classical side of instruments; the cello (do not comment on his height, a vein on his temple would show) and the organ (he was aware it makes him a badass). Besides being bilingual as Luka, Oliver composed songs when he found the mood for it.

Kaito was into the keyboard, the bass and electric. He did the triangle once in a primary school orchestra. It's not much, but it's honest work, he would say.

If it were not for their busy schedules in their final year, with the threat of exams and mountain load of assessments, they would have formed a band. The idea only lived in the name of their group chat.

"When I say 'geek', he's also into coding and programming. He can full-on develop a website by eighth grade." Kaito continued.

"Even despite his talent and hyper focused dedication, Len suffered in the socialising department. Besides the bullying we got from the douche-bags in primary school, he was just struggling to put himself out there. Even when the douche-bags left by seventh-grade and we got transferred to Rin's class, he was tormented by it. He was also a bit sensitive; couldn't take criticism and would throw tantrums if he got hurt."

"Like Yuki," Miku whispered. Luka gently but quickly hit her head with the side of her hand.

"Do you want to start another fight with her? You better not let her hear that." Luka scolded.

"Give the poor girl a break. She must still be recovering from her breakdown." Gakupo frowned, though with a hint of sarcasm.

"As I was saying," Kaito interrupted them. "Len was one of those people who had a crush all the time. He had feelings for the same person twice within a two year gap. He's not really firm with his decisions in life… I mean, from the last time I talked to him. He could have changed through the years for all I know."

"Sounds like a poor and hopeless bloke to me." Luka muttered, unimpressed with the extensive description of this 'Len' person Kaito elaborated on.

"Lu, we shouldn't judge people quickly. Especially one we haven't met in person yet." Gakupo gently chided.

"Lu wasn't that far. That's what the rest of our class thought of him." Kaito connected Luka's opinion with the truth.

"Back to Rin, she was already hanging around with a group of our classmates. Until we did our seating arrangements, and I had to sit next to her. She was helpful and welcoming to me, even if I was supposed to do that for the new transfer." Kaito chuckled and briefly scratched his hair at the back in embarrassment.

"I was extremely shy back then. That's one of the reasons why Len and I got along. Rin was a god-sent not only for being so nice. She knew my niche stuff and actually interested in it." He sighed in relief, as he was brought back to that very moment.

Luka opened a bag of chips as Kaito talked. Gakupo heard the scratch of the plastic and gestured his palm to her.

"Lu, give me some of those." He muttered with his palm in front of the bag.

Miku also outstretched her hand. "Lu~ Me too!"

After Luka gave the rations, she gestured the bag to Oliver after Kaito declined her offer. "You want some, mate?"

"Nah, I'm good mate, thanks!" Oliver quickly replied.

"She was also making music, and that was a great start for us. Len was seated behind me so he could hear us talking during our vacant periods, and I'd encourage him to join us. For once he actually did, instead of isolating himself. I thought: finally, he came out of his shell for a bit. Rin would join Len and I on breaks and even when we go home. Those were the best times." Kaito spoke throughout their ordeal.

"Maybe I was dense and not observant enough. Because I was sure as hell shocked with what happened later. But I, and maybe the whole class, was in for a surprise." Kaito paused to take a breath.

"It was almost the end of term. It happened during class and I'm ashamed to say this, I was completely oblivious even if it happened in front of me!" Kaito chuckled. Miku bit her lips and her knuckles were squeezed with anticipation.

"Basically," He paused for the effect. "Rin and Len confessed to each other."

Several reactions came out from his friends, which Kaito thought was amusing.

Miku squealed and vibrated from her seat. Gakupo and Oliver gasped, the former even smiled. Luka scrunched her eyebrows.

"What do you mean you didn't see it despite being in front of them?" Luka was the only one sceptical.

"I was listening in class. Rin and Len were busy writing and passing papers to each other. Len took the chance if Rin was seeing someone else before he confessed to her. Rin, not knowing he had something up his sleeve, just answered the question. Len told me he felt hurt when she admitted she was seeing someone else. But curiosity got over him and wanted to know who that person was."

"The only time I heard Rin being distracted at class huh." Gakupo chuckled. Miku, Luka, and Oliver nodded in agreement.

"According to Rin, she felt nervous with his questions. At that point, she already realised her feelings for Len and was still figuring it out if it would only be temporary. She tried to hold it until she found the right opportunity."

"Highlight: 'tried'. She must have given up." Miku jested with a smile, and Kaito agreed.

"Exactly. Rin thought this was one of those 'screw it or do it' moments, so she admitted the truth on paper. She was supposed to tell me about the whole crush thing earlier. But then, the whole confessing part already happened even before she could tell me." Kaito shrugged his shoulders.

"Rin, falling in love with the anti-social geek? Woah there, that's a plot twist." Gakupo commented.

Luka also agreed. "Definitely couldn't see how that's her taste. Maybe she's one of those 'I can fix him' kind of people."

"Rin would never do that, Lu! Kai, you better swear it won't be the case!" Oliver turned his head to Kaito and begged.

"It's debatable whether she did or not. Our old class also thought the same thing when news spread." Kaito answered with all honesty despite the ambiguity. "As their mutual friend, I was happy for them. I saw how they had chemistry despite being polar opposites."

Kaito had a fond smile and a far-away look as he commented on the relationship. "Rin understood Len, and looked behind his insecurities and awkwardness. I don't think she wanted to 'fix' him since she accepted his flaws before he realised it. Everyone thought they were the most bizarre pair to ever come out. Because a few months into the relationship, unexpected things happened."

Gakupo paused from his chewing on the chips. Miku had her arm raised mid-way towards the bag of chips. Oliver tilted his head in intrigue. Luka's eyes subtly widened.

"It was with Len mainly. He literally changed. He was still the geek I was talking about. And he still had those bad tantrums. But he improved as much as the rest of the class and I thought." Kaito began.

"He got along with people more than before. Len and I got pulled by Rin to her group and we had more friends than I could count my hand with. It was a relief when they accepted us, even when they were our classmates far longer than Rin. He became approachable and not antisocial anymore. His world finally did not only involve me and his new girlfriend. The biggest change of all was Len actually trying hard with studying."

Luka and Miku suppressed their chuckle. The sound of their restrained laugh was heard.

"Of course that's what happens when you date the goody-two-shoes academic." Luka commented.

"It was a complete one hundred and eighty degree turn. Len was less of a headache to talk to after he started dating Rin. The teachers didn't mind the relationship since Rin was still consistent with her work. They may have lowkey rooted for it after they noticed Len took his academics seriously, besides his coding classes. They were quite popular and adored by our class, even some of the seniors we had." Kaito chuckled.

Luka merely nodded and still processed what Kaito just said. Oliver hummed out loud, hand under his chin.

Gakupo and Miku squealed in delight. The former thought the whole story of Rin and Len was so sweet.

The latter had both palms in her blushing face. "Oh! Now that's like a fairy tale! It's as if they were destined to be together with how much they complemented each other!"

Oliver interrupted Miku. "So what happened? If Rin and Len were so happy, how come Rin never mentioned dating a certain Len to us today? And also with what happened yesterday? That hasn't been answered at all."

Kaito cut to the chase. "Well, that's what I'm going to say next. They broke up."

All eyebrows arched upwards as they all shouted.

"WHAT!?"

Everyone else in the classroom looked at Kaito's group. Luka addressed them to get back to their businesses and not meddle with theirs.

"If you say so."

"If you tone down your voices, you wouldn't have gotten everyone's attention."

Everyone went back to their affairs. Even when someone had a few more words to say, Luka and the rest of her friends were already back to Kaito.

Luka explained the answer to the lingering question that intrigued everyone after yesterday. "I'm not surprised after all. Like Oli said, we would have at the least heard about Len at one point, and Rin wouldn't have pulled off what happened if they didn't break up. But now we know. Yesterday happened all because it reminded her of him."

"What happened, though? They were the near-to-perfect couple based on what you told us. Or were there any problems you haven't mentioned?" Gakupo frowned in concern. His hand clutched his chest in concern for Rin.

"It's a bit complicated to explain—"

"Don't they all say that about break-ups?" Miku jokingly remarked with a concerned tone.

"Okay, don't freak out—" Kaito started.

"You're doing reverse psychology on us, Kai. I might actually freak out now that you mentioned it." Oliver nervously chuckled.

"Okay, so be it. Have the same reaction as me and everyone else three years ago." Kaito accepted defeat on his initial plan to not give his friends a surprise again. "Len simply got sick of Rin."

And there was silence.

"Excuse me, what!?" It was Miku who first spoke out after seconds of flabbergasted and dumbfounded faces from Kaito's friends.

"That's it. He told me Rin wasn't really for him. Before that, Len didn't talk to Rin for a few weeks. It happened after the school year finished so they didn't meet as usual." Kaito frowned. "Other than that, I couldn't make him, or force him, to tell me more. It may have been one of the first strains on my friendship with Len."

"Well, it better be. He was a fucking asshole to pull that kind of move already. And with that kind of bullshit reason on top of it." Miku frowned. Eyebrows scrunched on a full-blown glare not meant for Kaito, but to the image of Len in her mind.

The rest of Kaito's friends nodded in agreement.

"For a high school relationship, that reason is dumb yet painful for Rin at the same time." Oliver commented. His monotone voice expressed dismay at the turn of events he already predicted.

"Why would he do that? Rin is a lovely person! I'm sure if they had issues, she would have done everything to make it work with him and save the relationship." Gakupo was very disappointed. But as Luka said, it was not surprising.

Yesterday's events would have never happened if that were the case.

"Miks just said it, Gakt. The dude's an asshole. Sure, Rin may have made some mistakes in the relationship, because no one's perfect. They could have talked it out but Len was an idiot to selfishly break it off. It ended up looking like he threw Rin away after playing with her. Which seemed to be the case here." Luka answered Gakupo's rhetorical question.

Another wave of nods, including Kaito's, expressed the group's collective agreement.

"That's what everyone in our class also thought when the news broke out. It was ten times worse when the whole thing happened through text, at midnight." Kaito looked at Gakupo with a sad smile.

"I was awake at the time so I was the first to know. Our friends only knew about it the next morning when they saw Rin's messages in the group chat from that night. They dated for two years so it was difficult for her to move on."

"He totally deserves the title of asshole. Fuck his existence now, honestly. I hope he's not enjoying his day and that his breakfast was crap." Miku has her arms crossed under her chest and still held on to her glare.

"So… that's it? The end? The remnants of a failed relationship now held by Rin to this day?" Gakupo attempted to make Kaito tell more about Rin's past.

"Well, there was the whole drama after their break-up." Kaito continued.

"Strangely, even people they both barely confided about their relationship joined the angry mob. It looked like the majority of the class, even me, had beef with Len all because he broke off with Rin. Among them were people who thought they wouldn't last long back in seventh grade."

"Well, they fucking jinxed it. Thanks for that." Miku grumbled.

"I think that was the biggest and most obvious consequence of the break-up. It's why Len was almost alienated by everyone. He returned to his old self before they dated. The only difference was he became more detached than before."

"Well, he deserved it, if you ask me." Gakupo snorted.

"And then we had more drama. It was full of strained emotions at the first few weeks obviously. Both of them, most of the time it was Rin, desperately avoided each other." Kaito sighed and began to reiterate the stressful period.

"Rin was angry and miserable. She became more withdrawn, often looked at empty spaces, and most days was on the verge of crying anytime. The whole break-up bothered her, even if she never missed a day at school." Kaito confided the difficult experiences he had as Rin's best friend.

"That's when her constant breakdowns were at its peak. There were close calls while we were at class, and actual times where we had to find her after she hid in some part of campus. But it mostly happened at night when Rin was in bed and cried to me or one of our friends. If she didn't have anyone to talk with, she would cry in her sleep."

Miku and Gakupo were devastated, with their widened eyes and deep frowns. Luka's eyebrows further scrunched on her forehead. Oliver sighed.

"We never saw Rin so broken. The teachers had an idea on what happened when some of her marks in that brief period made a downward trend. They were about to intervene but I think Rin said something to convince them not to do it. I'm not sure."

Oliver commented. "Well, now that answers why even people who used to hate them ended up hating Len and sympathising with Rin. She was already popular in your class, and seeing her so distressed would have made an impact or two."

Kaito somberly nodded. "I became their middleman. Naturally, Rin wanted answers from Len. Obviously, talking to Len was the last thing on her list. So someone else had to deliver their messages. But it was going nowhere. Their replies came in circles. Questions were replied with another question. Nothing gets answered. When Rin indirectly asked him 'Why?', Len simply answered 'To prove a point'. We thought it made no sense."

"That's bullshit!" Miku called out.

"I was scrambling to pass their messages, and mostly help Rin understand the replies. The few times they directly talked whether in person or online, they argued or threw passive-aggressive disses. There was always tension before they spoke. It didn't help that in tenth grade they were forced to sit with each other for the whole year. "

"Oh God, that's the worst thing that could happen." Gakupo cringed.

"No compromises were made. They were silent and awkward throughout the year. If there were chances to switch seats or get out of there, they took it." Kaito added.

"The area where they sat was called the 'ice glacier', with how cold the two were to each other. But some called it an active volcano zone, threatening to erupt any minute if one of them actually punched the other first."

"Okay but the jokes were actually hilarious." Luka laughed.

"The few times they had to be together for group work, oh boy was it a ticking time bomb." Kaito sighed with a strained smile.

"We all know Rin has an academic performance to maintain, so she had to restrain herself for the sake of not failing the assessments. It was so obvious with her body language whenever she ended up with Len. She would visibly shake whenever he didn't listen, or if he didn't do the effort to contribute. It was the laughing stock for the class."

"If I were Rin, I would have lost my shit too but far more quickly." Miku commented. It actually happened once when she and Yuki were paired together for an activity in class.

"I would laugh and then intervene by holding Rin's shoulders to stop her from tackling Len." It was then that Kaito frowned.

"My social life was improving from that point on. But Rin and Len were my closest friends," Kaito's tone shifted into soft melancholy. "When they fought, it was hard for me. Especially when the two of them were being hostile to each other, it just pained me to watch them. I often had to calm Rin down from her panic attacks. Len avoided me most of the time. I may have cried at least once and wished my friends to stop fighting."

Kaito lowered his gaze from everyone and stared down at his fidgeting hands. He was disappointed with Len and also frustrated with Rin. He was forced to be in the middle.

Back then, at the end of every day, he just missed his two best friends.

Gakupo spoke softly, "I'm so sorry you had to endure that, Kai. It was already a messy break-up between the two of them, and you had to get in the middle of it as their best friend."

"Yeah, it was a tough time. Thankfully some other drama within our class was happening. It was a distraction from Rin and Len, and they weren't the highlight of every gossip anymore. Not until Len involved himself in one of those."

Gakupo and Miku's eyebrows scrunched up.

"We have this classmate, Neru. I didn't like her during primary school, she was a brat. But by the time Rin and Len broke up, Neru changed so Rin and I started getting along with her. This was the same girl I was talking about that Len had a crush on twice. First time was before Rin, they dated for a brief period. The second time was after he broke up with Rin."

"Told you all, a poor and hopeless bloke." Luka repeated, now with conviction for being right.

"Neru only dated Len because she was bored and just wanted to be in a relationship for the sake of it. Then she realised it depends on the person, and Len wasn't the right person for the experience. It obviously ruined Len and I had to endure a full year of him moping. Because I was a good friend, I stayed beside him. Fast forward to ninth grade, Neru was dating one of our classmates, Kiyoteru. They were one of those couples that were, uh… let's just say the less pleasant."

"I bet they're like this one couple we're all familiar with today," Miku snickered. Once again, Luka used her hand in what she called the 'bonk' move. Miku rubbed her head and frowned at her friend.

"And then Neru and Kiyoteru started their constant fighting. You could imagine how messy it was. Back to Len, he has feelings for Neru once again after leaving Rin. Being the desperate idiot he was, he self-imposed as the mediator between the two. Kiyoteru was one of Len's old friends, so it looked like he was helping a mate."

"Nah. That asshole's got an ulterior motive to meddle himself with those two." Luka glared with a deep frown. Gakupo and Oliver nodded.

Kaito nodded; already confirmed things before he spoke. "But Neru knew Len did it for the sake of being in her good graces, and a closer step for them to get back."

Then he answered the question that was about to be asked. "Of course, Rin knew everything. She had to accept to herself that Len just set her aside for his new crush. She assumed more likely Len didn't value their time together at all. It was only a year later she fully accepted the fact that she was used as his rebound."

"Oh my god how much of a stupid asshat was Rin's ex-boyfriend?" Miku facepalmed with an accompanied groan.

Kaito grimaced. "It all depends on your definition of 'asshole'. Not long after he gave up with Neru, Len started dating one of Rin's friends that he only met online."

"Fuck off, he didn't? I need to slap this bitch right now!" Miku's eyes widened and slammed her clenched fist on the table.

It earned another round of stares from their nearby classmates. But Luka, Gakupo, Oliver nor Kaito paid them no mind.

"What the hell… I thought that extra mess was already enough?" Oliver groaned alongside Miku's violent reaction.

"At what point will it end, Kai?" Gakupo pleaded.

"Fuck it, this anger is making me hungry." Miku brought out a bag of crisps. Luka had her palm towards the bag and was given a handful.

"Yo Miks, give me some too!" Oliver called.

Gakupo, Oliver, and Luka shared Miku's bag of crisps.

"It was one of the reasons why I couldn't stand being with Len. Even if I weren't close with Rin and was just Len's friend, I asked myself how he could have done that in such a reckless manner?" Kaito shook his head in disappointment.

"It was one of the reasons for me to hang out with Rin's friends instead. It was only at the end of tenth grade Len and I managed to get back on good terms, after he admitted his mistakes and explained his behaviour at the time."

"Wow so the asshole had the brain wits to do a redemption arc?" Miku grumbled.

"But the whole break-up was the last straw for Rin. Before you guys met her, she had big mental health issues, mainly her self-esteem. Len was also the same. But for some reason they were so good together by supporting each other.

"Back then, Rin would only say bad things about herself. It was full-on beyond the typical sad girl. It frustrated me. She improved on it when Len dated her. But when the break-up happened, she relapsed and became worse. She never came to the point of suicide nor self-harm though, thank God. Her friends and I had to handle her panic attacks and mental breakdowns at worst."

It was then Miku covered her gasp with her palm. Oliver clicked his tongue in frustration.

"Thankfully, Rin's self-esteem improved by the time we came here last year. Right after the break-up, it stressed me out to see her break down so frequently. She would sob and say she was 'worthless' and 'not enough' for him. When she heard the news about her friend and Len dating, Rin cried when we had the open space to ourselves during our vacant period. It was excruciating to hear her. But it's worse watching her crumble down on the floor and hug her knees."

The tension between Kaito and the group was covered over a sombre cloud that hovered above them.

Kaito sighed. "There is some good news; not everything has been depressing for Rin. Len and the friend broke up-"

"Serves him fucking right." Miku whispered.

"And Rin and Len actually improved their communication. No more worrying they might kill the other after making eye contact. No more restrained anger, nor any passive-aggressiveness from each other. Their strained relationship would stay that way until the end of tenth grade." Kaito sighed.

"Rin and Len were now on talking terms but it was rare they actually talked. There was a little bit of tension and awkwardness. Rin confided to me how she avoided Len at all cost, and would only face him if she had completely no option left to bypass interactions with him." Kaito paused to grab a few bites of the crisps he asked from Miku.

"By the start of tenth grade, Rin felt better with herself and with coping. There were some breakdowns but not as bad nor frequent as before. For the rest of the class, gossip material was lost. But it was still understood that Rin and Len were not on good terms."

At Kaito's pause, Miku and Gakupo looked sombre. Luka and Oliver processed the details in silence.

"We were getting heavy loaded with school work since we were about to graduate. If Rin was still struggling to move on, or if the break-up happened a year later, it would have destroyed Rin's academic plans. Maybe it's one thing I'm thanking Len for with the timing? But I know that was a bad joke," Kaito chuckled awkwardly.

He scolded himself when he saw Miku's glare and Luka's scrunched up eyebrows. Oliver and Gakupo wordlessly sympathised with the consequences of his mistake.

"So yeah, we were now in tenth grade, pretty much busy doing whatever it takes to make it to the finish line. No drama was distracting Rin from her studies. Len was still a sore topic for her. The last time I talked about him to her, she wasn't looking for closure anymore even when she still hasn't received it. When I asked her why, Rin simply said she didn't need it anymore."

"Okay, I love Rin but she's stupid to think of that. She insisted on that idea. Three years later look where she is now, burning Yuki to her bones because she suddenly remembered Len." Luka spoke.

"Well, I think she took the whole move-on business with brute mental force a year later. She never once mentioned Len on top of what I said about trying to avoid him until she desperately needed to. It's as if they weren't close friends in the first place." Kaito elaborated.

"Oof, that's not really bold. It makes her look desperate to just forget everything." Gakupo grinded his teeth in discomfort.

"It already happened. It stayed that way until our graduation— Oh wait, no, I was wrong. Something else was happening." Kaito paused.

"Oh please don't tell me Len did something stupid again. I swear I might hunt him down and punch him in the face for everything he did to Rin." Miku had a palm on her forehead. She felt stressed with the potential addition to Kaito's story.

"Uhm, well. I'll let you guys judge how bad it is since you all seem to hate Len—"

"Who wouldn't? I would if I were in your old class years ago." Oliver commented.

"Alright. So this one would sound strange to you all at first. So please bear with me until the end, okay?" Kaito pleaded.

His friends expressed their consent. Gakupo randomly asked about Rin. "Where is Rin by the way? Is she still on that errand with our teacher? Surely an errand wouldn't take that long."

"I have no idea either. But it gives us time to listen to what Kai will say next!" Miku grinned and adjusted her seat for another part in Kaito's recollections of his shared past with Rin.

"So it basically started around our few weeks of submission for assessments before rehearsal on graduation." Kaito started off.

"Wait, you guys rehearse your graduation?" Luka had to do a double take on what he just said.

"Yeah, my stupid school was extra like that. All of us thought it was useless. But anyway, we had to submit our final assessment to defend a research paper we made. Most of us juggled making finishing touches on the paper and doing preparations. One of the first to present was Rin."

Luka blew air from her lips. "You guys are tough to do a research paper in tenth grade. We only did ours here last year."

"Everyone may or may not have expected it, but the woman made it through in one shot. She was a beacon of hope for most of us who were coming up soon. I was one of the people trying to take a peek into the room where the whole thing happened. Then I accidentally shouted in excitement that she made it. We got scolded by our teacher for that. It was worth it." Kaito chuckled and scratched his nape.

With their vivid imaginations, Miku, Luka, Oliver, and Gakupo laughed at the image of a busted Kaito.

"So Rin was one of the first few people in our class that day guaranteed to graduate. Naturally, she assisted different people in our class with everything about that assessment. She did the same thing to me. It was during this certain period that I noticed something odd…"