It was your everyday, normal day at school. People were walking thru the halls, some were talking, others were getting to class trying to not arrive late.
At that time, Naoto Takumi, your average looking guy, 2nd year at Hinawa High-School, was in his classroom, sitting at his seat as always, looking at his phone, while waiting for class to start, while his classmates were coming one by one in the classroom, sitting down at their seats and talking to eachother.
And next to his desk was Aoi Suzuki. Your average teanager living her normal life. She wasn't anyone popular or anything like that, but she was interesting, kind and friendly enought of a person for her to have friends to speak to and to not be alone. She was a kind and a pretty expressive girl. One that, her emotions can be read from miles away, either showing it on her face or thru her actions.
She talks with her friends, goes to school and does stuff like a normal teenager would. Sometimes bad, sometimes troublesome, but its the part of life of being a teenager.
That day she was leaning on her desk, which is the one next to Naoto, talking to her friends - Nanami; Marie and Shiori as always. Both of them, Naoto and Aoi were deskmate and have been so, for 2 years since the start of High-School, but they have never talked or interacted with eachother. None of them have thought about it, nor have had the reason to do so. Maybe sometimes when one of them dropped something the other might pick it up or something similar, but other than that, they didn't talk.
As Aoi is talking to her friends, leaning on her desk, one of her friends decides to throw a notebook at her.
"Aoi! CATCH!", one of Aoi's friends, Nanami, yells at her as she throws her the notebook for her to catch, but she ends up not being able to catch it, and so it hits Naoto in the process.
"Oh, shit!", Nanami says out loud as the notebook hits him.
As the notebook hits Naoto and falls on the ground next to his desk, all of them turn to him to see what he will do. But susprisingly he doesn't even react. He just sits there on his phone not even fazed from the hit.
Aoi stops leaning on her desk and walks over to his.
"Are you alright? I'm sorry for my friend, she tends to be a little bit of a clutz", Aoi says as she laughs slightly trying to be friendly, and apologise for her friend's actions.
Naoto looks up from his phone and looks to his side at Aoi and her friends, who are all looking at him and looks down seeing the notebook on the floor, picks it back up and hands it to Aoi.
"It's fine. You don't have to worry about it", he says with a blank expression on his face as always. As what It seems, that he is not even hurt by the hit? Sure It was just a notebook but Nanami did throw with a little bit of force. He should've been hurt at least a little.
Aoi, gets the notebook from his hands as he gives it to her, and looks at him confused and nervous, since she is not sure If he is really okay or not. She looks at her friends who just look back and forth at her and him, not knowing what to make out of it.
"Are you sure you are alright?", Aoi asks, trying to see if he really is alright or just faking it.
"Yea, I'm fine.", Naoto says calmy like the hole thing didn't bother him a bit.
"Oh... Alright... Sorry again, for the hit.", Aoi apologises once more and he nods in the process, and goes back to his phone like nothing has happened.
Aoi goes back to her friends and continue talking with them, but with a little bit of concern and guilt from what just happened in the back of her head.
As the last class of the day concludes, so does today's school day. Naoto packs his things, grabs his bag, stands up and leaves the classroom, and starts heading down the hall. He leaves the school building and leaves the school grounds thru the school gate after and starts walking back home.
As this is happening, Aoi and her friends also start heading back home, but as they leave thru the gate aswell, Aoi sees Naoto and on the spur of the moment, decides to go after him.
"Sorry, you can go home without me. I forgot I had some things to do at school.", she says at the other girls, who stop walking and look back at her as she says that.
"Alright, then.", says Nanami.
"See you tomorrow, Aoi.", says Marie after Nanami.
"Yea, see you.", follows Shiori after Marie.
As all of them wave at Aoi and continue walking together home. Aoi turns around and sees Naoto in the distance, so she rushes over him. She had to lie to her friends that she had something to do at school, because she didn't want to trouble them with what she was about to do.
"Hey! Wait up!", Aoi says loudly as she is rushing over to him. As he hears that he stops walking and turns around and sees Aoi, trying to catch her breath, from all the running. He was confused on why she would be here and to speak to him of all people, but decided that it would be easier and for the better to just go along with it.
"Suzuki, right? Can I help you with anything?", Naoto asks her as she is trying to catch her breath.
"Yea...", she says, catches her breath, stands up and looks at him.
"I wanted to apologise for what happened back in class.", says with determined eyes, looking at his.
"Oh, If It's just for that, then you shouldn't worry about it. I'm fine, so no need to worry.", says calmly as always, now that he knows what she came here to do, and why she started to talk to him all of the sudden.
"Are you sure? It hit you pretty hard."
"Yea, I'm fine."
"Okay, that's good to know. I was worried that it might've hurt you or something.", she says and starts walking and passes him.
He follows and start walking with her, not knowing what is happening.
*I guess we are walking together now?*, he thinks to himself.
"Say... we've been in the same class for 2 years, but we've never really talked, have we?", Aoi asks as she looks at him, as they walk together.
"Yea. Guess so.", Naoto says, trying to figure out why she is talking and walking with him if she came here only to apologize.
"Yeah... it's kind of weird how we've been sitting next to each other for so long and haven't had a proper conversation.", she says and gives out a light laught, trying to make conversation.
"Yea", says blankly.
"So... What do you usually do in your free time?", she asks, trying to make small talk, while they walk.
"What do you mean?"
"You know, like... hobbies?"
"Gaming and watching stuff mostly.", Naoto says with no emotion on his face.
"No way. I'm actually a little of a gamer myself, tho I haven't played much, only a few here and there."
*Why is she...*, he thinks to himself.
"You said you watch stuff? What exactly? Shows, anime, movies?", she contiues to ask him questions as they enter the street of the neightbourhood.
"Anything that is good."
"Mhm, I get what you mean.", nods as she says that.
*What is happening...? Why is she doing all of this?*, thinks to himself again, and then stops walking and looks down at the ground.
"Why..."
"Hm?", Aoi stops walking and looks back, as she sees that he has stopped aswell.
"Why are you doing this?", says as he lifts his head and looks at her
"Doing what?", she asks standing a few steps in front of him.
"All of this... Coming out of nowhere and suddenly apologising for something you didn't even do. And then starting to walk with me out of nowhere, and asking me all these questions? As you said. We have never, ever talked to each other... There is no point for you to talk with me. So what's the point of all of this? Because If It was just you wanting to apologise for your friend's mistake, you wouldn't have gone so far."
Aoi, listens carefully to him as he says all of this and thinks for a second before sighing and giving a small smile and looking up at the sky.
"Well... I'm not really sure myself to be honest.", she says, takes a small pause and looks down again at Naoto.
"Sure he haven't talked to each other, and I did only come here to apologise to you properly. It's just that... When I saw you get hit by that notebook my friend threw, I... I couldn't stop feeling guilty even though you had brushed it off like it was nothing. But now that we are talking, I just... I don't know, I feel like I want to talk to you more. I mean we are deskmates after all.", she answers, with a little laugh after.
He didn't know what to say. He was standing there looking at her all puzzled. Why would someone like her talk to someone like him? Just because she felt like it? It couldn't have been so simple.
"And I guess... I was just curious. You're always so detached and distant in class. You don't talk much and you rarely show any expression on your face. And when you do... It's usually just a blank look.", she says and look at the ground for a second and then looking back up at him again.
"Everyone thinks you're cold and emotionless. But I guess that's rude to say, huh.", gives out a laught as she says the last thing, not trying to make it sound rude when she described how the other people from his class see him.
After hearing this he sighed, looked forward and started walking, passing her in the process and stopping a few steps in front of her, his back facing her.
"I don't care what people think of me... If they think I look cold or emotionless. I am comfortable with who I am and with my life. With my friends, family and school life. There is no reason for you to take pity for me, because of the accident or because of what other people think of me. I don't care if others hate me, despise me, or love me. I live my life not carying about stuff like that. I treat people how they treat me, so I just ignore those who hate on me.", says and turns his head around and looks at Aoi.
Aoi stands there listening to what he is saying, trying to make sense of his words, as he continues talking.
"If you really pity me then we shouldn't talk to each other anymore. Continuing this is meaningless and is not going to bring anything valuable in the end. I would advice you to stop talking to the person who is "distant" from the rest of the class and focus on the things that are in front of you. Like your school reputation and grades, family and friends, and everything else that is important to you. Instead of trying to pity someone you haven't even met.", after saying so he turns his head back around, looks forward and continues walking home, leaving her there, standing, after what he just said.
Aoi stands there, dumbfounded. She feels like she just got scolded. She didn't expect such a straightforward and stern response from him. She can't help but feel a strange mix of emotion - anger, surprise, confusion, and even a tinge of... hurt? She watches as he walks away, the words he said still lingering in her mind. She's left standing there in the middle of the sidewalk, her previous lightheartedness and playfulness long gone, replaced by a sense of... uncertainty.