Two weeks of school, done.
And guess what, things haven't changed. I'm still stuck in the stereotypical new guy situation, no friends and all that. I guess it doesn't really matter, I'm self-sufficient enough to survive without friends.
...right?
Eh. Life is life, I'm just going with the flow right now.
I also mean that literally, the crowds at my local train station can get kind of pushy, and I was stuck right in the middle of a big one. I hissed a pained curse as a middle-aged woman accidentally kicked me in the shin. At least she apologized.
Anyway, the Japanese (yes, I know, I speak like I'm not one of them) keep to themselves - they've made that quite obvious - and technically, I'm a foreigner, even though I know how to speak the language. By default, I'm not someone they would want to talk to right away.
Oh, by the way, I know that several people from my school take the train as well, but I don't know all of them, and I usually I sit apart from them anyway.
When my train arrived, I boarded, while school and several other things ran through my mind, like the Fukushima meltdown. That was several hundred miles to the north, but I was still a bit worried about radiation fallout. While the authorities claimed that emissions were minimal, I couldn't help but feel paranoid about the effects. However, a feminine voice interrupted my train of thought.
"Wait! Wait for me!"
I turned around, and saw a girl in Sakakino's school uniform making a last dash for the door. Looking closely, I realized it was Katsura Kotonoha. Americanized, that's Kotonoha Katsura, you know, the last name is first, and all that...er...never mind.
Katsura is our class president, and she's usually quiet, and keeps to herself. For the past two weeks, I've usually seen her with a book in hand. I've talked to her once or twice, as part of her class president duties, and she seems polite and nice enough...but other than those few times, we haven't really talked. She's a cute girl, though, maybe one of the cutest girls I've ever seen. Hands down. No argument. A cute face, long dark hair that goes down to her waist, and large brown eyes (which makes me think she isn't entirely Japanese).
What, I'm forgetting something?
...Oh.
Yeah.
Kotonoha has the biggest chest out of all the girls in the class.
They're probably...a B cup, I guess, maybe the large side of B. As you may know, Japanese women usually don't have large busts, so Kotonoha is uniquely well endowed...and I think she's bigger than most of the American girls I know. Along with her eyes, it contributes to my theory that she isn't entirely Japanese. And even though Kotonoha is a little taller than the usual Japanese girl, and slender as well, the proportion is still enough to make her breasts a...a very noticeable part of her anatomy.
...YEAH, I KNOW I JUST GAVE AN ENTIRE MONOLOGUE ABOUT HER TITS. WHAT DID YOU EXPECT. I'M MALE, AFTER ALL, AND YOU MIGHT AS WELL UNDERSTAND WHERE I'M COMING FROM.
*deep breath*
Besides, that's not I cared about when I first saw her, don't make your judgments too soon. And even if she didn't have those, the fact remains that she was one of the cutest girls I have ever seen.
Damn, I'm off track...anyway, back to the train station.
So, once I saw her coming, I held my hand between the motion sensor to buy her enough time. Finally, Katsura made it on board, then as she entered, she politely thanked me.
"Arrigato, Takagashi-san."
I smiled, and nodded. "No problem, Katsura-san." Yeah. I just introduced my "Americanisms" into the Japanese language and slaughtered a hundred years of proper etiquette.
She gave a shy smile in return, then turned to walk to her seat. My eyes followed her as she gracefully sat down, and I think I had a small smile on my face.
You have done a good deed! Quest complete! 250 experience and over 9000 gold coins for you! Ha...
Wait - DAMN IT, I'M STILL STARING.
I pried my eyes from her face (no, not her body, please give me some credit, will ya?) before she saw me staring, and turned to the scenery as the train began picking up speed.
You're probably suspicious enough by now, so I'll lay it out for you. How should I put this...Kotonoha interests me. I don't know any other way to put it. Attraction? Perhaps, probably. She does have the looks, and she's strikingly cute, if not outright beautiful. What guy wouldn't be attracted to her...Am I in love? No. Love at first sight...pshhhhh. You have to know someone to be in love with them.
The way I can describe it is...it's like, while Kotonoha is pretty much the trademark quiet, solitary, and studious girl, I get the feeling that there's a story behind her life, that there's something more to her. And if no one else is going to talk to her, if no one else wants to be her friend, I might as well go ahead and try and get to know this girl, if nothing else. (Seriously, all the guys stare at her, why the heck don't they talk to her?) But I'm a shy person too, and I'm hesitant to step out of my comfort zone and make myself vulnerable...
I looked back at Kotonoha. Currently she was reading what looked like a novel, several hundred pages at least. She looked totally at peace.
I sighed again, and lay back. No, I was in no hurry to complicate life for the both of us. Maybe, sometime in the future, I would dare to disturb the universe, both mine and hers...but for now, I was content to let things go on the way they were.
-xXx-
Kotonoha pondered on the encounter with Takagashi for a while. He really did seem like a nice guy, though he was a foreigner. But she was wary of all boys, and Takagashi was no exception.
Still, as she got off the train, she couldn't help scanning the crowd of students on the way to Sakakino, looking for him. And there Takagashi was, far ahead, walking by himself, and listening to his Ipod.
For the past two weeks, he's been by himself. I wonder if he's feeling lonely.
If he is, then he'll know how I feel every day...
Kotonoha gasped at that thought, and pushed it from her mind. She had been taught to keep her real feelings hidden, and to dedicate herself to the task at hand - whether it was being hostess to her father's guests, playing the part of the ideal daughter, or schoolwork. Her parents expected nothing less. Besides, Kotonoha was no stranger to loneliness.
At least she had an English copy of Stephanie Meyer's The Host to keep her company. A good book, and the time to read it - that was all she needed to be happy.
And there were was one more thing, too...Kotonoha knew that a boy from another class liked her. From what she knew of him, he was a nice guy, always helping his friends, and lately, she had been feeling his gaze on her as they rode the train. Maybe he wasn't like the other boys, maybe he truly was a nice person. If only he would talk to her...then her life would be a little happier.
Kotonoha took a deep breath of the morning air, and let a relaxed smile appear on her face. Her life was imperfect, but for the moment, she was content with it.
-xXx-
And a ways behind Kotonoha, Makoto Itou followed. He was slightly flustered that the foreigner, Takagashi, had opened the door for Katsura-san, yet he was relieved - Makoto didn't have enough courage to interact with her yet. He glanced at his phone, smiling at his wallpaper of Katsura-san. That one picture would be enough to make his day, and there was always the chance that the cell phone charm would work...and Katsura-san would become his girlfriend.
He doubted that would ever happen, of course...but for Makoto, to watch from afar, to behold beauty from a distance...it was enough. And for the moment, he was content.
-xXx-
The principle in the Japanese school system is that students usually stay in one classroom, and teachers rotate in for different subjects. That's not what I'm used to, but hey, the world is a different place.
I was actually set back a grade - something to do with the age range of the school system here. Technically, I'm a junior in high school, albeit a young one, but here, I'm the oldest sophomore - excuse me, first year student- in my class. I'm almost 17. Everyone else is 16, or almost 16. Dammit. I should have been ahead.
So. Two periods to lunch, and I was breezing through subjects that I've already taken in the states, and finding the time to doodle or read a few things I've picked up. And of course, Kotonoha sat a few seats over to my right. I gave her a casual glance...she was busy taking down notes, her brow furrowed in concentration. Even frowning, she looked good. Just a little bit scarier.
"That is all class, please prepare your assignment for our next meeting." With that, the teacher dismissed the class.
Everyone began doing the post-class shuffle, with some people walking around, talking, others just sitting and doing whatever. In my case, I sat back and closed my eyes. My work was done, the next class began in ten minutes, and I was wondering if I should try interacting with Katsura more...
Then a harsh voice interrupted my thoughts.
"Katsura, why weren't you at the class officer meeting?"
A timid voice replied, "But...but...Otome-san, I told you I had a school council meeting..."
"Hmph. You know our class takes top priority. Don't you care about your class responsibilities? You're a lazy girl, Katsura."
My eyes opened. To my right, a group of girls surrounded Kotonoha, and were apparently verbally bullying her. And she looked like she was just sitting there and staring at her desk. And although there were a few people still left in the classroom, they seemed oblivious to the injustice going down right in front of their faces.
For a moment, I watched, trying to understand what was going on. I didn't know Otome and her friends were capable of this - for the past two weeks, they just seemed like normal girls, not bullies. But now, here they were, attacking Kotonoha, the last person I'd expect to be bullied. She was meekly taking their abuse, while Otome's gang kept up the stream of harsh words. I knew Kotonoha was quiet and shy, but surely she should try to defend herself!...Except...she didn't...
I could figure out why later - right now, I was going to put a stop to this.
"Leeroy Jenkins," I muttered as I stood up and walked over to them. Then in a louder voice, "Guys. Stop picking on Katsura-san."
At that, the bullies looked at me incredulously, and Kotonoha looked up at me with a very surprised expression on her face. The bullies' leader, Otome, fixed me with a sharp glare. "This is none of your business, foreigner."
I smirked, anger beginning to fuel my resolve, and purposely walked right between Kotonoha and the four horsemen of idiocracy. "Hmm. Maybe it is none of my business. But there's four of you bullying a single girl. Terrible odds, don't you think? PLUS SHE ISN'T EVEN FIGHTING BACK. You think I'm just going to sit back and watch?"
Meanwhile, it seemed that the confrontation had gotten the attention of everyone else still in the classroom - probably my fault, I had gotten a little loud - and they were all staring.
Otome was apparently at a loss to what to say, and the rest of her group was speechless as well. Don't know what caused it, maybe it was the extra attention, or maybe it was just the angry foreigner ranting in her face. I pressed on.
"And tell me, what reason do you have to be bullying her?"
Finally, Otome found her voice, and replied indignantly, "I said that's none of your business. You shouldn't be poking your nose where it doesn't belong. What is it to you anyway? You don't know Katsura, you never even talked to her. Why should she matter to you?"
I stared at her grimly for a long moment, then replied, "Though I've been here for only two weeks, from what I've seen, Katsura-san has always been polite and gentle. She hasn't hurt anyone, and she definitely hasn't hurt you. You have no right. She doesn't deserve what you're doing to her."
I stepped close to Otome, who looked ready to explode, and said one simple phrase in a low monotone.
"Kanojo dake o nokosu."
Leave her alone.
Otome stared back at me with a frantic glare on her face, and she was bright red - from anger or embarrassment, or both. Then she just turned and ran out of the room, with her friends awkwardly following.
I sighed raggedly, and leaned against a nearby table. Be still my beating heart. I looked around the room, and noticed everyone staring and whispering, naturally. Half the school would probably know about this incident within the hour. Then I turned to Kotonoha, who was staring at me with wide eyes.
"Hey, are you doing okay?"
She slowly, awkwardly nodded. "Takagashi-san...Y-Yes...thank you...for protecting me..."
"Yeah, no problem. If they come back again, you tell me, okay?"
"Hai." A nervous smile appeared on her face. I returned it with my own (somewhat forced) smile, and returned to my seat just as the teacher entered.
"Quiet down, class, and please get ready for Lesson 5's quiz..."
I slumped in my seat, and replayed the entire scenario in my mind. I guess the entire incident would help me out in terms of Kotonoha's opinion of me, and news of what I've done would definitely spread throughout the class and beyond. But even the victim wasn't Kotonoha, I would still have helped out. It's just the way I did things...
...And Justice For All.
Ha.
-xXx-
Meanwhile, Kotonoha's quiz was sitting unattended to, while she stared into space, and thought over the past ten minutes. All thought processes regarding other matters were gone from her mind, and one thing constantly stood out.
Takagashi-san actually defended me.
It wouldn't stop Otome from coming back, Kotonoha realized. Her social situation would remain the same, and more people would be talking about her now. But the fact that someone had actually stood up for her and defended her...there were no words to describe her gratitude and happiness.
Kotonoha knew that she was obliged to approach Takagashi, and tell him how much his actions meant to her. She didn't mind, though, he deserved her thanks. Kotonoha hesitantly glanced to her left at him. Takagashi was sitting back in his seat, his eyes closed, and a slight frown on his face. A bemused smile appeared on Kotonoha's face, and she turned back to her work. She would never have guessed that out of all people, the new transfer student would be the one coming to her rescue.
She would approach Takagashi at lunch. Definitely.
There we go...and some more stuff on the way.
-The Author