I steal a glance at the huge building above me. A sign at the very top of the building reads: ITAN PRIVATE HIGH SCHOOL. It's a sunny day and there's a light breeze in the air. It also happens to be my first day of high school.

Ever since middle school, it has always been my lifelong dream to study at Itan Private High School; the most prestigious high school in the district, I might add. My mom and dad have supported me in every way possible so I could come here. They enrolled me in online tuition and helped me with my homework whenever I didn't understand it. And all that hard work paid off – I became the top student in my class in middle school and it was enough to get me to sit for the Itan Private High School entrance exam. Fortunately for me, I did extremely well. My parents were very proud of me when they received an email from the school saying I got accepted.

Only one problem though: the school doesn't really care for entrance exam, it's only for the sake of appearance. How the school actually enrolls students is by conducting interviews. Apparently, the school aims to shape unique and eccentric students into future leaders or something like that. And it's a problem for me because I have extreme social anxiety, or sociophobia for short; take your pick.

To be honest, I'm not exactly sure how it all started. I have been a shy girl for as long as I can remember. I've always dreaded speaking aloud in front of a lot of people, whether it be in public or even in a classroom with around 20 kids. I usually only talk with my parents and my younger brother, Shosuke; and that doesn't happen often. My dad and Shosuke are the silent type, like me. On the other hand, my mom is extroverted and friendly. She talks with pretty much everyone she meets.

Back to the present day – I walk past the school gates and suddenly, I feel like I'm being watched. I look around and see all the students staring at me. My insides start to twist. Do I look ridiculous? Does my hair look messy? Did I forget to wear my tights before going to school earlier this morning? I do not bother to look down and check. Instead, I focus on entering the building and finding my shoe cubby.

My eyes flit from cubbyhole to cubbyhole, until I reach one with the label that reads: KOMI. I open the cubbyhole to find a pair of white shoes. I set the pair of shoes on the ground. I take off the brown shoes I wore on my way to school and put them in my shoe cubby.

I hear someone say beside me, "Oh, if this is your shoe cubby, then we must be in the same class." It sounded warm and friendly, which I honestly liked. But the voice sounded like a boy, which just made my muscles tense up. If there's anything worse than speaking in public, it'd definitely be speaking to a boy. My instincts told me to run. And fast.

I close my shoe cubby and turn around to look at him. He has a nice build and spiky black hair. But most of all, he had a nice, warm face; and I'm not even sure if I'm supposed to feel reassured about it or even more nervous. Before he says something more, I walk as fast as I could out of the shoe cubby room to my classroom.

When time came from introductions, I notice that my classmates each have a different trait which makes them stand apart from the others. Good news is, they seem quite friendly. When it's my turn to introduce myself, the whole class goes silent. I do not speak a single word; instead, I walk to the front of the room and write my name on the chalkboard: SHOKO KOMI. As I walk back to my seat, I hear the rest of my classmates cheering. I have no idea why they do that, but I take it as some kind of encouragement.

I turn to look beside me and see the boy from the shoe cubby. His name is Hitohito Tadano, and that his special skill is reading the room. At that, the whole class goes silent. Several kids give him cold stares. My intuition tells me that the rest of our classmates dislike him already. I wish I could say something to reassure him, but my mouth stays shut.

The next few hours of school are going to be a huge rollercoaster ride…

The classroom is empty. All the other kids had gone for gym class. The only ones left in the room are me and Tadano who is fast asleep. I take out my small plush black cat from my bag. I bring it with me everywhere – it somehow gives me a sense of comfort or security. "Why can't I do it?" I ask my plush cat, my voice barely above a whisper. "Why can't I talk to them?" I pretend to make my plush cat respond, "Meow…"

Tadano immediately sits up wide awake. "Crap! I forgot about gym class," I hear him say. He turns to look at me and pauses for a few seconds. "Um… I didn't hear anything."

That is when all of my remaining courage has gone. I jump out of my seat and dash out of the room when I hear his voice again. "Wait! Komi, is it possible that maybe you're bad at talking to other people?"

I freeze in my tracks and turn around. I open my mouth to say something, but it only comes out as nervous stuttering. "How about you write on the board, like you did for your introduction earlier?" he suggests, to which I eagerly agreed with.

And the whole story comes spilling out…

As I write out pretty much my whole life story on the chalkboard, I realise that my real issue is that I'm scared of other people's perception of me if I ever muster the courage to talk to them. I constantly worry if people think I'm boring or if I talk too much or if I… yeah, you get the idea.

I realise that I have opened so much to a boy I met just a few hours ago. It must've been so awkward for him to read all that. I am about to leave when he writes down on the board, "The weather's nice today, isn't it?"

My heart feels warm. He's actually trying to engage conversation. With me! As a response, I write down, "Yes, it is. The sakura flowers are very beautiful." It doesn't take long for it to actually become a full-length conversation. I suppose a conversation is a conversation, whether written or spoken – as long as there are two or more people communicating.

"What is your dream, Komi?" asks Tadano.

"To make 100 friends," I answer. I quickly add, "Please don't make fun of me." I know, I know, a dream like that seems kind of mundane. But to be completely honest, I have never made a single friend in my entire life and I've always wished for one.

What Tadano writes next makes my heart flutter. "Well, I'll be your first friend and I'll help you get the other 99." He realises what he's written and quickly apologises out loud, thinking he was being pretentious earlier.

Actually, I don't take him for a pretentious person. I think he's very sweet and thoughtful. I write back, "I'd love that." I bolt out of the classroom and he doesn't stop me this time. I squat on the floor and bury my face in my hands. It feels so… warm… and fuzzy…

I think I have achieved what I've always wanted to do for a long time: make a new friend.

AN: Thank you all for reading my first one-shot here! I hope to do more in future and feel free to drop requests. Please make sure they are wholesome and there is nothing too explicit.

Also, please feel free to check out my Wattpad account StellaZhau ( starowl738) because I have posted some stories there that I think you guys might like.

Take care and have a great day! :D