Chapter Three Part 1

Hokuto walked down the hallway, while his best friend, Sawakita Shohei, tried to catch up. Shohei looked at the boy worriedly, because Hokuto had barely said a word since morning. True, he had broken up with his girlfriend a few days ago, supposedly because he caught her with someone else, but that was no reason to push everyone away.

"Hokuto, would you stop for a moment?" Shohei asked, and the person addressed stopped angrily.

"What is it?" Hokuto was visibly not in a good mood, which the bespectacled boy immediately noticed. "I have things to do, if you didn't know."

Shohei shook his head. He had known Hokuto since they were in the same class in high-school. They quickly became friends, and Shohei rarely saw the other boy irritated or angry. Shohei himself came from a good family; his father was a renowned lawyer, and his older brother taught mathematics at a prestigious private high-school. Thus, he was a suitable friend for Hokuto. Hokuto always paid attention to how he behaved, how he spoke, what he said, but now he was angry, and the students passing by or chatting in the hallway were witnesses to this. Some even stopped to hear better what was going on. Many knew Miyazawa Hokuto; the boy was famous at Todai for his excellent academic results, and for always being helpful, friendly, and a true socialite.

"Don't raise your voice," Shohei said, "as you may have noticed, quite a few people are staring at you. You'll lose your good reputation, which you fought so hard for."

Hokuto sighed, then headed towards a small alcove, where Shohei followed him. They both knew that they shouldn't be discussing this in the open. When they were finally alone and not threatened by anyone overhearing them, Hokuto leaned angrily against the wall.

"You're upset because of Amano-san, aren't you?" Shohei asked cautiously, to which Hokuto grunted.

Amano Rei was the girl Hokuto had been dating for about half a year. Her father was the deputy director of a large hospital, so her family background was suitable. Hokuto wasn't truly in love with Rei, but in his own way, he liked the girl. Amano Rei was beautiful, popular, studied psychology, and was the top student in her year. She was good to talk to, because she also had brains, and most importantly, she was presentable, unlike some girls who fluttered around the boy a lot. Hokuto planned to marry her, but the girl thwarted his plans. Yet, Amano-sensei's connections would have been useful, even if they weren't in the same field.

"What if things aren't as you believe?" Shohei asked. "Amano-san said that the boy you saw her with is her cousin, who lives in Australia and was just visiting."

"I saw them hugging!" Hokuto snapped. "Relatives don't grope each other like that! And the boy kissed her!"

"He gave her a peck on the cheek, big deal," Shohei waved it off, but immediately knew he had made a mistake.

"He kissed her! Then the little hussy, of course, started defending herself when she saw me, saying it wasn't like that, that nothing happened. She can't fool me! She can't just play with me like some disposable trash! I had to throw her out, even though things were going very well between us, but unfortunately, it's over. And I don't care what you think, Shohei, keep your opinion to yourself!"

Hokuto didn't wait for Shohei to react, but hurried away with long strides. The bespectacled boy looked after his friend in astonishment, not knowing what had gotten into the other. But he knew there were things he'd rather not know about Hokuto. Finally, he shrugged and went about his business. He hoped this Rei matter would be resolved soon. He felt sorry for the girl, somewhere he felt that Hokuto had treated her unfairly, but he also knew that perhaps it was much better for the girl this way. Hokuto, if he wanted to, could be very cruel and mean, Shohei had experienced this more than once, but thankfully never firsthand.

Hokuto walked with long strides down the hallway. He had enough to do, he didn't have time to dwell on Rei again, but his pride was hurt by the matter. When he told his parents about it the night before – of course, he waited until Yuya had left, as he didn't want to be embarrassed in front of his clumsy, useless younger brother – his father nodded approvingly. He also believed that it was better to get rid of such a woman, as she could only cause problems later if her affair with another young man came to light. Despite this, Hokuto was angry and had to take it out on someone last night. At times like these, he was glad Yuya was at hand; he could vent his frustration on his younger brother, which had accumulated from intense preparation for exams, the upcoming Halloween Party in the University – Hokuto didn't even understand why he had to participate in this nonsense – and his breakup with Rei. Yuya deserved what he got anyway, but the little cripple had more sense than to dare to tell on him. They both knew who their parents would believe. The little brat even dared to talk back to him when he took that wretched album with its worthless pictures. His photos were ridiculous, all looking as if a five-year old had taken them. It was high time to throw out the kid's junk and send him to a strict boarding school where he would learn discipline, respect, and hard work, if he hadn't managed to get it into his head by now.

Hokuto stopped in front of the lecture hall and took a deep breath. He had a class that he attended with Rei, and he didn't want anyone to look at him like a loser for any reason. He forced calmness upon himself as students began to trickle into the room. Some looked at him, a few students glanced at him sympathetically, but Hokuto didn't want their pity. He was proud, hard as a rock, and nothing could shake him. He was always calm and disciplined; only his idiotic younger brother could bring out the animal in him. Even with Rei, he was coolly polite when he broke up with her, even though he could have exploded inside.

"Well, let come what may," Hokuto shrugged and entered the huge lecture hall.

When he looked around, he didn't see Rei, even though she usually sat in the hall fifteen minutes before the lecture to secure a spot for both of them in the middle of the third row by the window. But now the row was full of unfamiliar students, and someone was even sitting in his usual spot. A student he hadn't seen before, or simply hadn't noticed. Hokuto rarely concerned himself with others outside of himself; he had no real friends apart from Shohei. Although, in reality, he only befriended Shohei out of self-interest, he still liked him to some extent. But Shohei had different classes today.

As Hokuto got closer, he could make out the student. He truly didn't know him, but he seemed to be roughly the same age. His face was kind, his build slender but muscular, but his hair... Hokuto was horrified to see that not only did it fall in long waves down the boy's back, but it was also blonde. Hokuto was seized with anger at the sight of the boy, he didn't even know why. Perhaps because of his hair, perhaps because he was flipping through the notebook in front of him with such a peaceful expression, like someone with no worries in the world. But perhaps because he was sitting in HIS spot. He strode over to the boy with huge steps, then stopped at the end of the row. He thought he would set things straight in the room.

"Hey, that's my spot!" he said, and everyone around the blonde boy looked at Hokuto in shock. They weren't used to this tone from him. "Don't you hear me?! You're sitting in my spot, buddy!"

"I don't see your name on the chair, buddy!" The blonde boy looked up, gazing calmly at Hokuto, whose blood was starting to boil. "There are so many empty seats, why don't you sit somewhere else? Anyway, I was here before you. Why should I move?"

"I always sit on that chair, everyone knows that!" Hokuto insisted stubbornly, but the stranger didn't even acknowledge it. Hokuto was annoyed. "Maybe the hair dye sucked out your brain too, or what? Or don't you understand Japanese?"

The other just smiled and shook his head, as if he thought he had never seen such a fool. He clearly didn't take Hokuto's outburst seriously, who clenched his fist. But before he could say anything, Professor Morino came in and Hokuto was forced to sit in the first empty seat. Which, by chance, was right behind the arrogant and impudent blond boy. And that bastard didn't hesitate to turn halfway back while the instructor passed around the attendance sheet.

"I see you found a seat after all, buddy," he smiled at Hokuto, who was already thinking of a comeback, but the other boy no longer paid attention to him. He simply turned forward and opened his textbook.

Hokuto couldn't help but notice that several people were snickering at him, or if not, at least smiling condescendingly. He was seething with anger, but he had to keep his cool. He had already lost a battle against this cheeky blond, he couldn't let them push him even deeper into the ground. He didn't want to stoop to the level of someone who, for a boy, wore his hair long like a girl. He tried to concentrate on the corporate economics lecture, but he didn't really succeed. Revenge was constantly on his mind, as he didn't want to leave this outrageously arrogant behavior unpunished. Perhaps he could talk to his father to do something, but then he decided that as long as it wasn't necessary, he could handle it himself. He wasn't as helpless as his miserable younger brother, who couldn't even get into the school chosen for him.