Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"What do you mean you got demoted to Class E?!"

Shouts, your mother. Screaming fills the entire house, it's excruciating to the ears. It was loud, loud enough to nail you onto your place where you're currently seated across from her. Her eyes were bloodshot wide, so much so that you could swear that her eyes would pop out if she were to stress them open the tiniest bit more. Her wrinkles are more evident in this moment than they were any day before, and her expression can only be described as mortified.

Hideous. At this moment, your mother is hideous. No longer was she the mother who gave you head pats when you came home with a neck weighed down with medals. No longer was she the mother who spoke to you with a lulling tone, offering words of praise and encouragement. No, that woman was tender and soft. She was caring and warm. The woman in front of you, you can hardly recognize— for in your eyes, her face is blurry and morphed.

"Are you—? Are you serious right now, (Name)?!" She slams her hand onto the table, rattling the plates and utensils in the process. You don't think you've ever faced her this enraged for she'd always been indifferent with you. Once again, you find yourself unable to move a muscle.

"I-i thought Principal Asano had already e-mailed you about this. Ma, I— I'm...!"

"Well? What happens to your scholarship now?!"

"Uhm. Well... Uh, I.. I lose it."

"For goodness sake." She sighs like the world had turned against her. You can feel her disappointment and resentment against you from where you're seated, and you can only watch as she massages her temples. "I invested so much in you, too." You don't know if you were meant to hear that or not, it seemed like a thought she subconsciously uttered out.

"I.. I'm sorry."

"Sorry doesn't magically solve how we're gonna get the money for your tuition, (Name). Do you know how many hours I'll need to work? You don't! You don't know how much I sacrifice for you and your younger sister." her voice drowns out a second later, muffled by your own thoughts.

Keep your mouth shut, and take the scolding. Tighten your fists, and blink the tears away. Your lips are wobbling uncontrollably from trying to keep the whines in? Bite them down until they bleed.

"I do. I do know..."

"Then why do you make things harder for me, you worthless child?!"

You flinch. The next thing you know, tears are flowing freely down your cheeks. Droplets fall down onto your lap. You've known about her image of you ever since you stopped bringing home straight line of A's and star stamps— but up until now it had always remained unspoken. You know your mother now views you as a waste of money and space. You are well aware of the burden you are to her shoulders, she's always made sure you know. It just hurts to hear her finally admit it with coherent words, instead of her constant pressure.

"All I asked from you was one thing! One thing that isn't even so hard. Do well in school and maintain your scholarship. You're telling me you can't even do that?! What kind of elder sister are you?!"

"Go to your room! I'm confiscating your telescope and microscope, and whatever useless stuff you made me waste my money on. "

{🌒}

True to her words, she did forcibly take your precious gadgets, the ones vital to your everyday routine. She spared no second glance to you whatsoever, merely slamming the door shut as she walks out while cradling a box of science apparatuses in her arms. Soon after, you hear a preteen's voice on the other side of the wood, sickeningly sweet and obnoxious.

"Mom, is big sis crying again?", your little sister questions like a snob Victorian child. An image of her pompous face flashes in your subconscious, youthful and bright. With the same beautiful colored hair as your mother, as well as the shade of her pupils— your little sister was a perfect carbon copy of your mother when she was in her adolescent ages, and would always reap words of praise for such a thing. She's a few years younger than you, yet people often decide her as the older sister with how she puts herself out.

Mother calls out her name in a softness she hasn't used for yours in years, "Don't worry, hun. She'll stop soon. Don't let her noise bother you, and go on and finish your homework."

"Okay!" You hear her joyous voice from where you're crumpled up in your room, under your starry blanket. From her tone, you can accurately conclude that she's putting on that same cheerful and smiling demeanor. It's funny, she's inherited Mother's looks, yet her charming and outgoing personality can only be from your father's genes, his alleles. Whereas, you are mostly told that you are your father's mirror in appearance, his counterpart.

Their footsteps reverberate until they completely vanish.

According to Zoologists and Ecologists, professionals who have dedicated years of their life studying animal behavior and psychology— Parental is defined as any behavior of a member of a species toward an immature conspecific that increases the likelihood that the immature organism will survive to maturity. In mammals, depending on the species, parental behavior can include maternal, paternal, and alloparent behavior. Maternal and Paternal behaviors are those that comes from the biological mother or father of the offspring, while alloparent behaviors are the caretaking acts directed towards an offspring by an individual other than the biological parents. It just to happens that in mammals, Maternal behaviors are the dominant one.

A mother is more present than a father, in most cases during field researches.

Kudos to your mother, since she is indeed more present than your other parental figure (your father is long gone).

Yet your mother is not as caring as your father.

You pull your constellation ridden blanket closer to you as you sniffle, as if it was equivalent to having the stars themselves wrapped around you. Akin to a stray cat on the side of the streets during rainy days, you're quaking and crying for the nth time. You hate how you cry so easily, how your lacrimal glands secrete liquid at every minor situation. It's just annoying.

Right now, you're given the chance to recall the numerous animal documentaries you've watched, with one particular scene oddly resonating with you. Sure, there were more interesting segments than this specific one— when watching nature documentaries, there are many shown behaviors of animals and other life forms; behaviors such as predatory instincts, fight-or-flight responses, ecological relationships between species... as well as maternal behavior observed in the Animalia kingdom. Bobcats hunting for their child, goats caring for their yearlings, as well as a hare warming her leveret.

You know you should be grateful for what your mother does for you— despite that, you can't help but wish she was more like those animals in nature.

In the midst of your relapse, a sudden ring is heard from your phone, by an unknown caller. You force the sobs and whines back down your throat as you shed the blanket, crawling over to where your phone was carelessly thrown to on your duvets.

The screen shows a number you've no memory of, you don't recall ever dialing this number ever, so you are left wondering who could this be. Whether to pick up, or to hang up, you contemplate between those two options. A few tears still manage to escape your tear ducts despite your efforts to stop the trail, and if you were to talk, you're sure it would be evident in your voice— the fact that you've been spending your time weeping— so is it really worth it to pick up? You would prefer it if you stopped embarrassing yourself for this day. In the time you've spent weighing whether or not you should answer, the ringing had already stopped.

"I-it' stopped. W-what.. what do I do..? Should I call back? Or, or something."

It sprung to life less than a second later, vibrating against the palm of your hands. This time, you were too shocked by the spontaneous ringing, that you instinctively swiped to answer— a decision you wouldn't exactly consider wise. You brought the cellular device up to your ear, listening in closely for the voice on the other end.

"H-hello?"

"Good evening, is this (Name) (Last Name)?" A stern, masculine voice prompts. Who the heck?

"No!" You reply, a little too quickly. It came out in a squeaky tone, a little too high pitched for your liking. Fear came over you, was your lie too evident and obvious? Are you in massive trouble? You don't recall ever hearing this voice before, it seems like it belonged to an adult man. There was a long pause from the caller, he was thinking, you'd presume.

"I see.", said he.

No way he bought that?!

"Uhm, uhhhh... May I ask who are you, Mister?" you question, with your usual shaky, and nervous tone.

"Is this indeed (Last Name)'s number?"

"Oh? I-i don't know... Please answer my question first." You're not stupid enough to oblige to a random man's concerns, especially when he's looking for you specifically. You hope he hasn't seen through your lie, you'd bargain your anxiousness gave it all away.

"My name is Tadaomi Karasuma. I'm the Physical Ed teacher of Class-E, and I work under the Ministry of Defense. Miss (Last Name), please don't panic. You are in no trouble whatsoever." Eh? What did he say? Ministry of what now? Crap, you're already shaking. The silence is stretched out thin, nothing fills it in— those chapped lips of yours are sealed shut, and trembling— there came trailing down, beads of sweat from your forehead. "Miss (Last Name), are you able to exit the house at this moment? This is about your transfer to Class-E."

You think about it for a hefty second, and ultimately, you decide against it. Now, you wonder how you should relay your message. Wait a minute, how did he know it was indeed you he was speaking to in the first place?! Figures, you're no master deceiver, and it's best to come clean.

"Yes, this is indeed (Name) speaking... Uhm, I'm- I'm sorry but I'm not sure if I want to... Right now, at least. I'm really sorry for lying, Sir Karasuma." you blabber out. Man, this day is hellish.

Karasuma can only flinch at the several apologies, even through the phone, the anxiety in your uttering is nothing but evident. He feels the slightest silver of worry and concern to how you are, and how you're handling being dropped down to rock bottom— alas, he knows better than to voice his frets. "No worries, you were just wary about giving away your identity. That's good. What I need to talk about to you is urgent however, are you sure you can't spare a few minutes of your time? I'm parked just outside your home."

"O-outside?!"

"Yes."

'Ahhh, what now? He came all this way to talk to me. It'd be rude of me to turn him away...'

{🌒}

You know, you should really pick up books that educates you on how to stop being a pushover. Being seated at the passenger seat of this masculine, attractive young adult really comes to show that you'll believe and do whatever anyone inquires you to. There was indeed a sleek, midnight shade vehicle parked across the street of your residential house. Was it unfathomably concerning? Yes. Did you accept his invitation inside, regardless? Also yes.

You kept your gaze down to your lap as you remained stiff as a boulder. Now, while this Karasuma guy did seem legit and serious, it's your bad habit to be queasy, as well as flustered, around people. His professional demeanor did nothing to ease your rough edges— from his suit, and tie, and those furrowed brows of his, you swear he looks as if he's prepared to lead a war. The interior of his car seems to reflect his personality, bland and monotonous. No chains, or gimmicks whatsoever.

Karasuma suddenly snaps his head in your direction, causing you to jump slightly. "(Last Name), I'll be very straight forward with you. Your homeroom teacher at Class-E is the creature that obliterated 70% of the moon some time ago, he goes by the name 'Koro-Sensei'— and it is your job as a student of E class to assassinate him before March, if not he will do the same thing to our home planet, Earth."

Eh?

Huh?

What did he say? What is he saying exactly?

Is he high? Crap, was it the wrong call to trust him after all?

He then takes the brown folder that you've been eyeing earlier when you first settled in this car, and he takes out a polaroid photo of.... something. Too much. Too much was happening today, and you just know you'll cry harder when you're in the comfort of your room again— cry because of confusion, disappointment, and a bunch of other emotions that are overwhelming you right now.

He hands the folder to you, or well, pushes it into your hands. Inside, there is what seems to be a lab report. You could only guess what was written, the font and lettering was hard to read, and your near sightedness was not helping you here. Geez, you should try and find your old glasses in your cabinets.

"You'll be attending school tomorrow as a student of Class-E now, not just a student but also an assassin."

".. If you're worried about first impressions, I'm sure you'll do well."

'Do well in what way?!'

{🌒}

Karasuma didn't keep you in his company for long. After he handed you a rubber knife, and a pellet gun, both were too realistic for your liking— he sent you away. Now, you're here soaking in the cold evening air, with the rubber knife and pellet gun he's imparted with you. Under a luminescent street light, you're left stumped and disarrayed by how this day has unfolded itself. Reminiscing everything thrown at you since the waking dawn of today, you're left wondering what's real and what's fictitious.

You feel your legs start to lose every ounce of strength they reserve, they're held up and supported by such rigid bones, yet they come tumbling down easily. The next thing you are given awareness of is the feeling of the rough, paved sidewalk biting against your ragged skin, each crevice, and each fissure molded onto your skin with an angry red. The rubber knife sits along with you on the sidewalk, resting well against your side— whereas the gun 'like' object slouches on your lap. You don't wrap your fingers around them, you can't. They feel too uncanny to even touch barehanded, too unfamiliar, too spine-chilling.

You lift your hands to look at them, with how much they were stinging from being pressed too hard against the concrete, you reckon they're probably crimson and bruising. You see them under the bright light of the streetlight above you, and indeed they are in worse shape than ordinary. If you squint hard enough, you're able to locate grime, as well as dirt, as well as other debris hanging onto the edges of the peeled skin.

It hurts. Pain. The gnawing stimulation you feel at the region of your hands. It's the only thing that you're able to distinguish from everything, the only thing that feels real, the only sensation you can make sense of— the pain is the only emotion you can discern out of the heap of them, a heap towering high. You sniffle down a whine as you bring the heel of your palm up against your forehead. "W-why is all this happening to me? I know... I know how much of an undeserving person I am... but surely t-this is too much of a punishment, right? Dad?"

You call out to him even if you know he doesn't answer, you always find yourself doing that. Seriously, how stupid can you get? But then again, who can blame you? With the weight of the entire Earth's future resting on your shoulders as a student of Class-E, surely you could afford to be just a tad delusional, like approximately a mere smidgen?

A sane man would never want a person's— well, in this case, a creature's life lost by their doing.

No matter the creature's intentions, you don't wish to be the one to eradicate his vigor. You'd rather live life ignorant, and remain clueless as to truly why the moon suddenly exploded into dust. You would have accepted the widespread lie amongst the public, the scientific explanation that a Mars-sized asteroid was ejected into the Earth-Moon orbit by the gas giant, Jupiter. Earth's gravitational pull kept the asteroid in orbit around the rocky planet until it inevitably came into contact with the moon at accelerating rates. Astronomers and Geologists are said to be studying the moon debris that fell onto Earth's crust, as well as the supposed asteroid's.

But now you know that was just a big fat lie, which makes everything all the more disappointing. In the first place, such a thing would be undeniably improbable. Yet, it's honestly more believable than the scenario of a Lab-experimented organism demolishing 70% of Earth's moon with its sheer power alone.

"We would have seen the asteroid in the sky if it really were orbiting the Earth at such close proximity. W-why am I only realizing this now..? Stupid." Stupid.

Now, nights are way darker than they were before the moon was more than halved. You figure it's time to limp into your house before the twilight of the night swallows you whole. With the little amount of energy you withhold, you stand up from your place on the ground. The weapons given to you by Karasuma were not forgotten by any means, and they are now snug in your grasp.

Entering the house, you immediately tread towards your room, falling limp on your bed.

Chapter Text

You awoke to the sound of your bedside alarm. The shrill its letting out is earsplitting and awfully deafening. You spring up upon hearing the echoed ringing that is heard all throughout your room at loud volumes, albeit you still being half-asleep. When you've finally slammed your hand to shut up the said alarm, you retreat back onto your mattress. The sun has just begun to rise, its light rays peeking faintly from your curtains, offering warmth to your otherwise gloomy room. You lay flat on your back, eyes facing the ceiling with not a thought in your brain.

Mornings have always felt surreal to you, and the first few moments after you awaken from your previous state of sleep was nothing more than a blur. It's become routine to you to mindlessly gaze up at your star-decorated ceiling until your brain remembers you're conscious and existing. This morning, the realization of everything hit harder than any other morning of your teenage life. Like imagine waking up knowing your life is not absolute, and the only way of saving everyone is to kill your teacher! Not exactly calming to your nerves.

Sitting up from your commodious bed seems like the most challenging to do, but you force yourself to accomplish it anyway. You went on with your morning routine with a reeling mind, and a heavy heart. While brushing your teeth, you occasionally stopped to let out a few tears, nothing too dramatic of course. You also spent a few moments rummaging your cabinets, in hopes to spot your old prescription glasses.

Good news, you did! Anyways, after putting on your school uniform, and inserting your newly owned weapons into your bag, you sling your bag over your shoulder, and headed down to the kitchen. You feel— very heavily— the weight on your shoulders, pulling you down; the numerous textbooks, as well as notebooks. Even when the weight of your bag has you mistaking you're carrying gym dumbbells' over your shoulder, you don't bother to take the stuff out. You have a judgement that they will all come in use later, even in most days you never even take them out.

"(Name), if you don't move any faster you'll be late for school! Really, how are you so slow in everything?" You hear your mother call out from her place in front of the stove, irritation evident from her words.

"Yes, ma! I'm coming.", you say while picking up your speed in fear of angering her once more.  

You don't hover around your mothers presence for too long either. After you have acquired your bento from the counter, you practically scurried off. Outside, amidst the morning dew, the sun had already risen to its brim, and is now pridefully governing the sky above. The first thing that hit your eyes when you stepped into the sidewalk was the shine of Helios. With the stars watching over you, you start your agonizing walk to the station, and then onwards to the institute of Kunugigaoka.

You'd think your journey to your educational institution would help you get rid of any worries you had inside your noggin, like maybe the good weather would clear up the clouds up in your own head as well, like maybe the wind would be kind enough to blow you away to some far off land. Surprise, surprise, the whole walk to school felt like a drag, like a chemical experiment that showed no reactions. As you travel towards school, you feel like a shrinking entity, merely awaiting the moment you are to be squished. With your gaze looking downwards, shoulders tensed, lips sealed tight— you tread your path as if what's waiting for you at the end is execution.

'Should I take a long detour?', the thought suddenly seeped into your brain. It certainly does sound tempting, it wouldn't do any harm to miss a few periods, right? God, really, you're just desperate to prolong your inevitable faith. You may be a pushover, but you're not against breaking a few rules. People always assume you're a law abiding student, but you secretly enjoy pushing said laws to a certain extent. Nothing too extreme, of course!

It's your own way of fighting back, subtle but undeniable. 

You figure the local library would be a good place to pass time while cutting class, so you turn to head there.

{🌒}

"I-I'm deeply sorry for my tardiness, Sir Karasuma!"

You bow at a 90° angle with one hand clutching the strap of your bag, and the other holding your glasses in place from where they're perched. You miscalculated the time to read a singular chapter of the Microbiology and Parasitology book, and ended up staying plentiful hours at the library, more than you intended. Once you realized such, you instantly dashed towards here, sweating literal buckets in doing so. 

Now, at the faculty of the Class-E building, you're face to face with your Phys Ed instructor. Ever since you have reached the top of the monstrous hill the Class-E building is on top of, the stoic man is the only person you've had the chance of interacting with, by far. 

The agent sighs, and you can only flinch at the disappointment he was emitting. "Tardiness isn't a good practice, (Last Name). See to it you won't do this again." he says, with the same professional voice he spoke with last night. You take it as permission to stand upright from your bent position.

"Uhm, yes. Yes, sir. A-again, I'm sorry." You mutter with a shaky voice.

"No use in apologizing now. "

"Ah, yeah, you're.. you're right, Sir. I'm sorry... again."

"I just said— Ugh. Anyways, you'll need to meet the rest of the class. But, right now they're preparing for the fifth period, being P.E.— You can skip it for now and settle in the classroom, you might as well prepare for the next period, there'll be a quiz."

A goddamn quiz?! It's your first day, and you're already being thrown into battle! Eek! You force down the lump in your throat, as well as choking out a response. "Understood, Sir." Deflated, you turn around to leave, already feeling anxious about your future in this class. God, who knows what kind of prejudice you'll face here! Would your peers all hate you for the sole fact you came from the main building, or even worse, would they think you're way below them in aspects such as personality and academia then ram you into the ground?!  

Standing in front of the door, you're about to leave and succumb yourself to your habit of overthinking— Karasuma says out loudly the words you've been needing to hear. "Oh, I almost forgot... Welcome to E-Class, (Name). You'll fit in nicely here." He says while keeping his eyes glued onto a document, but his voice seems less serious, and more uplifting, more laidback. 

"I... I— Thank you, sir." That was all you could say. With a much lighter heart, you open the door, feeling ready to explore uncharted waters—

"Nyufufu, Sir Karasuma, the children are waiting for you at the field. With such enthusiasm, I must say.... they never seemed that joyous when I was in charge of Physical Ed—" Suddenly, you're faced against a three meter tall anomaly with a large bulbous head and a freakishly stretched smile?!?! The color instantly vanished from your face as your whole being started staggering. It's beady-eyes met yours not long after it spoke, and you swear your brain flipped the 'flight or fight' response.

"Ah, you must be one of the new students that was supposed to transfer today, yes?" Koro-sensei tried to sound welcoming, smiling ever so widely to accommodate you. But of course, you have no way of knowing that, so it just seems to you he's getting ready to antagonize you, just as he did with the moon.

"U-uh... I, um. A-affirmative!", you're astonished you could even reply to anything! You take a step back, hoping to find a moment of opportunity, just a dent in this scenario so that you could go on, and run away. Oh, but would this creature find that rude and disseminate you as well?! God, help you, you're certain your heart rate spiked from the average of 60-100 BPM to an astonishing 100-150. With you stepping back, Koro-Sensei just took that as a chance to further enter the faculty room— oh that's fine, if only he didn't close the goddamn door behind him! This room was not large, but it felt even more stuffy, more confining with a three meter tall octopus-like organism.

"Oh, nyufufu, quite the jittery one. You can ease yourself, it's against my contract with the government to inflict any harm whatsoever to my students."

You turn your head to Karasuma, who is now standing right behind you. He answers your worries as well, "He's right. Don't look so tense, (Last Name). It's rude."

Right, you're probably coming off as rude. You should apologize— 

"Now now, Karasuma, no need to scold her for that. Instead, let's scold your late arrival! Tardiness is a no no, little miss!" His head spontaneously alters its pigment, from a bright yellow to a dark purple, with a large "X" crossing over his whole face. He also points up one of his tentacles fingers towards you in emphasis. And now you regret ever being that scared of him, looking closely he carries an aloof, and positive aura.

"Um... I'm awfully sorry about that... Koro-sensei, right?", you put your fears, your nervousness aside and let yourself converse with him freely, without worries. The longer you look at him, the more he seems uncanny, the more you realize how biologically impossible his physiology is. You're growing more and more curious now!

"Yes, indeed! I look forward to what your addition brings to this assassination classroom, (Last Name)." He reaches out with his tentacle hand, you could tell he was hoping for a handshake. Who are you to refuse direct sensory contact? You grasp his tentacle hand with both hands, wanting to get a feel of his tentacles. For scientific purposes, duh? "Please call me by my first name, Koro-sensei. I'm stoked to meet you!"

He seemed to notice your sudden enthusiasm, and was visibly more delighted. Right now, he was getting the impression that you idolize him, of course he would be delighted. His assumption is not exactly false, but your idolization towards him are for all the wrong reasons, lol. Karasuma just watches the exchange between you two at the sideline, with his arms folded and a with face that says 'I don't get paid enough for this'. Yeah, it's not exactly the best idea to have the science obsessed nerd meet someone like Koro-sensei.

"Rubbery, as well as smooth... l-like firm silicone! Amazing, what are your cells made out of? Surely not carbon! 10 billion percent not natural! So cool! Do you mind I ask confirmation from you that you are indeed an Earth-born organism, Koro-sensei?"

"Of course I am!!" He shrieks. 

"Really? I find that hard to believe but that makes it more awesome!! Are you made up of organic matter? How did you explode the moon exactly? Where do you get the energy to move at Mach 20? Do you, like, eat a bunch? What's your diet composed of?" You keep your firm grip on his tentacle hand, eyes beaming with excitement. Meanwhile, Korosensei, all of a sudden felt a wave of nervousness.

Karasuma decides to leave the room not long after your abrupt outburst, ignoring the silent pleads of his fellow educator. He'll have to deal with your questions on his own, Karasuma refuses to deal with a curiosity driven teen. Instead, Karasuma makes his way towards the field to train the rest of E-Class.

{🌒}

As your interrogation with your octi-teacher continues without the presence of Karasuma-sensei in the room, in the midst of sharing questions and comments— Koro-sensei vanished faster than you could blink! He had left you with the blurted out words; "Oya! Oh, would you listen to that? I hear the other students have already started on their training, off I go to supervise them!", then flew off before you could reply. He seemed really eager to leave.... did you do something wrong?

'No, really, did I do something wrong? Oh no, I didn't bother him that much right? Right? Right?!' You were starting to heart all previous emotions of anxiousness, and fear that you put aside not long before. You're really starting to dig your own grave here!

No surprise would come from you if you did end up annoying your teacher, people would often comment how irritable your way of thought goes. It's something you have been burdened with since youth— your chatty self whenever you find a topic that arouses your interest, your vocal thinking. You get shut down by everyone around you whenever you try to ramble about something you're passionate of. Lesson learned, learn when to shut up. You could only feel disappointment in yourself at this instant, feeling as if you didn't do the right thing here.

With a sigh, and a heavy heart, you leave the faculty room, wanting to explore more of the building. You debate going to the mentioned courtyard to meet the your fellow classmates, but you don't wanna embarrass yourself any further than you have already. While navigating through this small building, you reach the classroom. Where there were seats occupied not by students, but rather occupied by their abandoned belongings— at the far back, you catch the sight of two empty seats, barren of any signs that someone owns them. So ideally, you declare ownership on one of them by placing your stuff down on it.There wasn't anyone here, as far as you could tell from your wandering. This gives you leisure as you lean back on your seat.

In the heart of your peace, a sentiment of dissatisfaction impulsively drenches you like a bucket of water dumped over your head. You're really here at rock bottom, so much for being special. You wonder how people will look at you now— perhaps mockingly, or perhaps in a way that says 'I always knew you'd end up like this'. Humiliation rises from the abysmal depths of your chest.

A humiliation, that's what you are, sitting inside this classroom. You're a fraud that prided herself for her certificates and medals, a fraud who molded her entire identity and worth around what she can achieve. Now that you're way below all of that, the identity you have built collapses on itself. You bite your lip harshly.

The door in front suddenly came sliding open, harshly so, initiating a loud noise. Your head jolts upward in shock, and you catch the sight of a red head standing at the doorframe.

"Oh? There's no one here." were the first words he said out loud when he first skimmed his eyes across the room, seeing the lack of people.

Then his eyes met yours, likewise, your gaze zeroed in on him solely. This guy maintains eye contact like he has nothing to hide, unmoving and without a trace of uncertainty. "They're all outside for fifth period. Well, uh, just at the backside of the building.. I'm pretty sure." you say to fill in the silence of intense glances.

"Really? Ok, why are you still here then?", his voice is soothing, pair it with those mercury irises of his, and you're easily mush. Even when his sound is smooth as honey, his smile can only be described as mischievous. You notice he's wearing the standard uniform, yet he forgoes the gray blazer, instead wearing a black hued one in its place.

"I've just transferred to this class." you answer his question, but he merely raises an eyebrow. "Eh... well, I've  only just arrived too, s-so they told me to just wait here until next period." you bashfully admit to your tardiness.

"Well, that's something. Today's my first day here too, what a coincidence."

"For real?"

"Yeah, anyways, bye." He turns to leave, and you stand up abruptly from your seat. The chair clatters, and it almost falls down.

"Already?! Wait, no! Where are you going?" You cross the classroom with wide steps, now standing at the doorway.

"To go see the others, of course. You coming with?" Wait, hold on, he was already halfway down the hallway! This red head isn't waiting for you at all. You chase him down the hallway, not wanting to be left alone anymore. "Hey, red head, h-hold on a sec!" you call out to him, and he turns his head.

"Red head, huh?" Karma muses under his breath, feeling a slight tinge of annoyance from the name. He looks down at your stature as you finally catch up to him, "Karma. My name is Karma, not 'red head', so why don't you go ahead and call me that?" 

"N-no, I wasn't trying to reduce you to your hair color! I apologize if you got offended or anything."

"It's not a big deal or anything, geez. Don't get your panties in a twist, nerd" Karma doesn't give you a chance to retort, he's already strutting down the hall like he owns the very ground, with his hands inside his pockets, and all that swag. You watch his back get farther, and farther— and you think, 'what did he just call me?'.

{🌒}

You and Karma are now walking together, with you making sure you're a step behind from him. It wasn't long until you two spotted where all the others were, the loud chatter of the students gave the location away. You two find yourselves on top of a short staircase, overseeing the ruckus down at the field. The field itself was nothing impressive, if you had to compliment anything about it, you'd say that it was very in touch with nature— but it was honestly just barren land behind the Class-E faculty. It was nothing like the field back in the main building. You're starting to get hit with the major differences between here, and the main building.

From your spot behind Karma, you could see that he pulled out a carton of strawberry milk from his pocket, oddly enough, the straw was already inserted through the hole. You're heedful of that fact, but you say nothing.

Suddenly, the bell rang, and the students started to approach towards the two of you, including a pair of two students in their gym uniform. As they tread closer to the stairs you and Karma are on top of, you could hear more clearly the conversation they are having.

"Shame we didn't get to go home after all", one said. He (?) came to stop when he caught sight of Karma's presence looming over them.

"Yo, Nagisa-kun. It's been a while." Karma calls out as the breeze picks up around him.