Chapter 6 - Class Rep

Class 3-B had never been known for its discipline.

Desks were crooked, students talked too much during announcements, and nobody took cleaning duties seriously. Most days were filled with just enough chaos to keep teachers mildly annoyed but not concerned.

But today felt... different.

Subtle, but enough for Sakura Inoue to notice.

Reiji Kazama—the school's unofficial bruiser, stormcloud, and king of detention slips—was quiet.

Not sulking. Not asleep. Just… quiet.

He leaned against his desk, staring blankly at the chalkboard while the morning lesson drifted on without him. He hadn't snapped at anyone. He hadn't slouched with his usual dramatic apathy. He even wrote notes in his barely-used notebook.

Strange, Sakura thought, glancing at him from her seat in the front row.

She was Class Rep. Watching people was practically her job.

What happened to you, Kazama?

---

Lunchtime brought more oddities.

Reiji, who usually escaped to the roof or the back steps with bread in his mouth and a scowl on his face, was still at his desk. Chewing quietly. Thoughtfully.

When Minazuki-sensei entered the room with a stack of papers in her arms, Reiji got up—without being asked—and took half the stack from her.

The class froze.

"Whoa," someone whispered.

"Did Kazama just help?"

"Who gave him character development?"

"Plot twist: he's in love with Sensei."

That last comment hit like a stone skipping across a calm pond.

And when Reiji turned, eyebrows twitching, the teasing only escalated.

"Ohhh, he's blushing!"

"Yo, don't tell me you're dating the teacher!"

"I bet they're living together—him, Sensei, and her daughter! Instant family!"

Reiji dropped the stack of papers a little too hard on the front desk.

"Shut up," he muttered, retreating to his seat.

He stared at the page in front of him. It was blank.

Just like his head.

---

Inside Reiji's mind

Why does it bother me?

Why do I care what they say?

He'd always been good at tuning people out. It was one of his few talents. But this… was different.

He thought of Asuka's smile when she thanked him for patching up Yume's scraped knee.

Of the way she handed him that snack box like it was a gift from another world.

Of her voice when she said, "I've been where you are."

It's not like I like her… right?

He looked out the window. The sky was gray, clouds gathering like secrets behind glass.

---

After Class

Most students had left for club activities or the comfort of vending machines.

Sakura lingered by the window, her schoolbag dangling from one hand.

Reiji was packing up his things slowly, like he was moving underwater.

She spoke without turning.

"You're not yourself lately."

Reiji paused. "Didn't know you kept track."

"I do. That's my job."

He didn't reply.

"You're not angry anymore," Sakura said, still looking outside. "You're just… somewhere else."

Reiji slung his bag over one shoulder. "People change."

"Not overnight."

She finally turned to him.

"What are you hiding?"

The question wasn't accusatory. Just quiet. Heavy.

Reiji looked at her, and for the first time, saw something besides frustration in her expression.

Worry. And something softer—almost like sadness.

"I'm not hiding anything."

"Liar."

His shoulders tensed. He turned toward the door.

"You don't have to tell me," she said quickly, "But at least be honest with yourself."

He stopped.

Sakura stepped forward, voice dropping.

"I'm not judging you, okay? I'm just—"

"I said I'm not hiding anything."

He didn't look back as he left the room.

---

Later – On the Streets of Mishiro City

Rain began to fall just as Reiji stepped outside the school gates.

Of course.

No umbrella. Just his hoodie and a long walk home.

Water ran down the back of his neck as he walked, shoes splashing through shallow puddles. The streets were mostly empty, everyone else smart enough to seek shelter or get picked up.

He didn't mind the rain, though.

It made everything quiet.

Made it easier to think.

Why do I feel like this?

Why does it hurt to be around her sometimes?

He shoved his hands in his pockets.

The image of Asuka brushing Yume's hair at the park, her gentle laughter filling the air, looped in his mind.

She's too good. Too kind. Too bright.

I'm not supposed to feel this.

He passed a darkened storefront, and the puddle below its awning reflected his face.

Wet. Tired. Blurry.

He stopped and stared.

Would she still smile at me if she knew everything?

The fights.

The reasons behind them.

The bruises no one ever saw.

The nights he went home to an empty apartment and turned off the lights just to feel invisible.

He knelt down and touched the puddle, watching his reflection ripple away into nothing.

"I don't even know who I am when I'm not angry," he whispered.

But no one heard.

---

Meanwhile – In Class 3-B

Sakura stood alone in the now-empty classroom.

She looked at Reiji's desk.

A notebook left behind.

Curious, she stepped forward and flipped it open.

Her breath caught.

Inside, rough sketches of people and moments—some funny, some sad.

But one page held a soft pencil drawing of a smiling little girl riding a dragon.

And just below it… a faint sketch of a woman standing in sunlight.

Eyes kind. Hair tied back loosely.

Minazuki-sensei.

Sakura stared at it, lips parting.

"Oh…"

---