The Class's Anomaly

I parted ways with Taniguchi after reporting my findings. The guy said he wanted to clear his head on the rooftop for some more time, so I let him be alone up there and headed back to my class. I made a quick stop at the vending machine by the second-floor stairs first, though.

Next period will be Math—my horcrux. The subject teacher's a cold-blooded killer, so I gotta get some caffeine to stay conscious.

"My, isn't it hot today——"

Or that was the plan, until an uninvited voice crashed into my ears.

"I could really go for some orange juice on this super hot day. But I unfortunately left my wallet in my bag."

The voice continued its monologue, over-dramatic as always.

"Having to go all the way back to class to get it would be such a drag, wouldn't it? Isn't there some hero out here who wanted to help me solve this problem? Anyone, please!"

A plea so insisting it almost burned my eardrums. Something I really didn't want to hear any longer. So reluctantly, I moved my finger from the coffee button and handed a carton of orange juice to the helpless person behind me.

"Your orange juice, Milady."

"Yay! Thanks so much! Oh, and I'm still a teenager, so don't call me 'Milady'!"

Yeah, I know. Look at her from any angle and you would notice that she's not a lady, but a miss. Her name is Natsume Natsuki. Like Taniguchi, I've known this—Yakult bottle sized—creature since middle school. We've been in the same class three years running, and we usually sit next to each other. So you could say we're pretty close. Though of course there's another reason, one I definitely wouldn't tell just anyone.

"Call me cutesy Natsume!" The creature said while posing a peace sign to her cheek like some idol on stage. What a narcist.

"Yeah, cute. Whatever."

"Eh? What kind of reaction was that?"

"What were you expecting, exactly?"

"Umm. Praise!"

"I already gave you a cold juice. That's better than praise, you know?"

"Well, yeah. But a cold juice with a praise is much better."

I can't deny that.

"Just drink your juice. Weren't you thirsty?"

"Aye aye, Skipper! I'll finish it down to the last drop. I'm super dehydrated after playing badminton on the field."

Yeah, I knew that. She was the one constantly smashing her friends back there. I wasn't sure if she's mischievous or just bad at badminton. Maybe both. Her head's shorter than the net, after all. She's so small even logic bypass her without noticing.

"Oh yeah. I saw you on the rooftop earlier," Natsume said, stabbing her straw into the juice carton.

"Are your eyes made of telescopes or something?" I commented, grabbing my coffee from the machine's drop box.

"Hehe, don't underestimate Natsume Natsuki's eyesight. I can see as clearly as a hawk hunting mice in the darkness of night."

"That's amazing." Almost unbelievable also.

"So, who were you talking to? Looked pretty serious to me."

"Didn't you say you have hawk-eye vision? You couldn't see who I was talking to?"

"Well, I can see their faces. But if I don't recognise them then how would I know."

Oh, fair point.

"It's just Taniguchi, not someone important," I said, stepping past her.

"Oh, Taniguchi, huh. But why'd he look so small? Did he got melted by the summer heat or something?" Natsume asked while following me.

"Well, he's a bit depressed at the moment."

"Depressed, huh? That word doesn't really suit his character. What kind of problem that made Taniguchi Minoru that depressed anyway?"

I laid out the details of Taniguchi's situation to Natsume. She listened attentively, occasionally nodding for each crucial part of the story.

"I see. That's an awe of a news," Natsume concluded. "They've been dating since middle school, right? Their relationship seemed fine, too. Then how could Tanaka cheat on him? It's hard to believe."

"Well, yeah, but that's what happend. Still water runs deep. Sometimes there is also a kappa in it."

"You mean crocodiles? But kappas are scary too, I guess. Point is, there's always a worst-case scenario in everything, right?"

"Pretty much."

Natsume sucked on her straw, then continued, "Things that look fine on the surface sometimes hide all kinds of problems. We just can't see them. Especially matters of the heart. They can flip upside down in an instant, get tossed around—with or without any clear reason—then suddenly change direction. Like an ark lost in a misty ocean, losing sight and the will to sail forth. Wow, that poem runs deep! Hahaha!"

She clapped her hands, cheering for her own masterpiece of sort. Such a narcissist.

We reached my classroom not long after. I wanted to get to my desk at once. But unfortunately couldn't do so, because it was being used by two of my classmates. They were playing shogi at an intense level. It'd be rude to interrupt such an engaging game, obviously. So I decided to wait for them to finish while leaning against the hallway wall. Meanwhile, Natsume beside me picked up our earlier conversation.

"So, how'd Taniguchi react about that bitter revelation?"

I sipped my coffee, answered nonchalantly, "What do you think?"

"Hmm. Fall into a rampage? Turning into phase two and ready to wipe out civilisation?"

Well, not in that extent. But he did almost smash my smartphone.

"Broadly speaking, he's heartbroken."

"Huh? The Midorikawa Middle School Matador Bull got heartbroken? For real?"

"Well, yeah. He's not heartless after all, duh."

Which is why he managed to get a girlfriend in the first place. Even though it turned sour after, but still.

"Besides, he's just a teenager—like us. How though do you think a high school student's heart is?"

"Hmm, yeah, I can understand that. I just couldn't imagine that delinquent with a sad face. You didn't take a picture of his gloomy expression of something?"

"What do you take me for? My friend's going through a crisis, why would I demoralise him like that?"

"Well, I don't know. You got a tendency to snap photos in many improper moment after all."

"I also know when to turn my camera off."

"Unless if there is senior Maeda?"

"You want me to throw you out the window?"

"Whoa! Let's not be hasty, Sir!"

Natsume hopped sideways, dropping into a judo stance. She looked like a red bear trying to assert dominance through intimidation. Too bad her pint-sized frame just made her look cute instead.

"Well, getting betrayed by someone you love definitely leave an unbearable scar for sure," Natsume said, slowly leaning back against the wall beside me again. "But tragedy like that wouldn't just happen out of nowhere, no? There has to be a reason."

"Normally."

"Right? So, what was it?"

I shrugged, saying, "Wish I knew."

"Eh? You don't?"

"Nope."

"Huh? But you're the one exposed her act. How could you not know?" Natsume protested, pressing her nearly-empty juice carton against my cheek.

I pushed the carton back toward her, defending myself, "I only investigate to gather evidence, not looking for the reason why she cheated. That's beyond my objective."

"Objective, huh. Some detective you are."

Natsume sighed, looked dissapointed. She then sipped through her juice until she emptied that carton before starting her monologue again.

"But, yeah, I guess so. Figuring out why someone does something is like God's work. Almost impossible, actually."

"True."

"We can speculate. But in the end, the truth only comes from the person's mouth directly. And that's only if they're actually being honest."

As she said this, Natsume pointed her juice straw into my classroom.

"If we could figure out everyone's thought, that girl wouldn't be such an anomaly, would she."

I looked at the direction she pointed. Specifically at the back corner seat, where the world felt a little more serene.

A girl sat there in silence. Her head was lowered. She wore an expression as flat as an unpainted wall. In her hands, a book—clearly too thick for a high school girl—lay open. While other students happily chatting with each other, that girl was busy by her own. As if the world existed only in between the grasp of her hands.

"What's with that girl, anyway? Doesn't she realize she's in the prime of her life? Being a high school girl only happens three years in one life, you know."

"Could be four years, if you got hold back."

"Kobayashi, I'm being serious here."

"Sorry. Please continue, Milady."

"It's miss!"

I raised my hands in surrender. Natsume continued, still brimmed with nagging energy.

"I mean think about it, spending this precious time just reading books? Seriously? What a waste, right?!"

Natsume grumbled, complaining—to no one in particular. She always gets annoyed when commenting on that girl, for reasons that aren't really important.

Maybe it's just a natural automatic response of an acute extrovert when encountering a compulsive introvert. These two species always have opposite views on how to enjoy life. Though here, as we can see, only Natsume's giving her two cents.

"While her name means 'light', she looks nothing but like a dim starless night. What a contradiction," Natsume continued, still irritated.

"What's in a name?"

"Names can represent a person, you know. Look at me, for example. I'm cheerful like summer. Right?"

Yeah. Also oppressive and exhausting. Obviously, I kept that opinion to myself, not to offend her.

I turned my gaze to the subject of our conversation. She still sat quietly, reading at her desk. Her name is Shinonome Hikari. A bright, beautiful name, like the light of dawn.

But just as Natsume explained, the girl's behavior at odds with her name.
We've been in the same class since first year. Natsume even sat next to her at that time. While I was in front of her. Natsume's an acute extrovert. As long as she's breathing and has someone to talk to, she'll chatter endlessly. There's always a topic coming out of her mouth, doens't really matter if it's important or just trivial gossip.

Shinonome, on the other hand, is a compulsive introvert. Doesn't care about social connections or high school life. If you talk to her, she would still answer, only as necessary—like a machine. Her voice seems limited by quota of some sort. Clearly not a good conversational partner for Natsume. They're like Capitalists and Communists, water and oil, LDP and CDPJ—can't mix.

"Now I'm remembering a manga I read once," Natsume chirped beside me again. "The heroine was just like Shinonome. Quiet, mysterious, doesn't want to interact with anyone. Until the protagonist 'accidentally' discovers her true identity, which turns out to be an alien from another planet."

After that, as if being bestowed by a divine inspiration, she gasped. Natsume looked up at me with a pair of sparkling eyes.

"What if Shinonome's actually an alien?!"

A radical accusation suddenly, with no consideration about rational reasoning, was delivered. Her voice was loud, but still muffled by the bustling around us. So no one heard her except me. Which was a form of curse by itself.

I could only respond to her absurd idea with a flat expression. Meanwhile, Natsume—ignoring my reaction entirely—enthusiastically continued her conspiracy theory.

"Here's how it went down: due to some technical issue, her ship got lost in space before crash-landing on Earth. Since she couldn't go anywhere else, she was forced to stay here temporarily, waiting for help to arrive. But the help never came. So she had no choice but to figure out how to repair her ship herself. Although to do that, she was required to understand this planet first, right. I mean, she had to understand how to use the technology and materials of this planet. That's why she disguised herself as a high school student—to study all that."

I've never heard someone fabricate a story that quickly. Her talent in making made up scenario deserved a thumbs up. No way to stop her creativity now, it already spilled like a busted dam.

"But of course, things didn't go smoothly. Cultural differences, lifestyle, and especially language barriers made it hard to gather information. That's why she rarely talks—she hasn't mastered our language yet. Being alone in a crowd of unfamiliar creatures would obviously leave her confused about how to act. That's why she chooses to avoid contact with everyone. And she's always reading, right. That must be to practice her language skills. Yeah, definitely!"

After delivering her wave-filled hypothesis, Natsume suddenly grabbed my shoulders with both hands. Her smile widened, like a scientist who'd just made a groundbreaking discovery. A cute smile that genuinely made me worry.

"What do you think, Kobayashi?! It's totally possible, right!"

Either from exhilarated excitement or on purpose, she shouted right next to my ear. Her hands started jostling my body like an empty coffee can.

"This could be the biggest discovery of the 21st century! If it's proven, we'll be the first humans to crack the Fermi Paradox, you know!"

"Oi."

Are we even talking at the same page now? I know this little gremlin's a sci-fi maniac. But isn't she a bit too euphoric?

Accusing a schoolmate of being an alien from another planet—you could be charged with Article 230 (1) for defamation, you know. Should we call the Thought Police to calm her down? Or should I just throw her our of the window? The second option seemed easier.

"I think you need some extra caffeine, Natsume. Your story's floated way too far—I can't even laugh anymore."

"Hey, I'm not joking here, I'm makin a hypothesis!"

More like being an idiot.

"No offense, but you sound more like a terminally ill chuunibyou patient than a follower of Carl Sagan. Besides, what kind of alien visits Earth just to become a high school girl? They got a fetish or something? There are plenty of professions more suited for them. Like a regular worker for example, a scientist, or even a micro-alloyed steel robot hunter."

"That's just T-800, you know. That's not even alien, they're machines from the future."

"You really know ball, huh."

"I'm a fan of Terminator since I was 6!"

Well, I can see where her madness came from. Also, what kind of parents let their child watch Terminator at that age. I know Arnold is amazing, but still, that's kinda crazy. Now look at what she becomes after years of consuming all those Hollywood poison. Can't say much about me, though. I also love Arnold. And Rambo.

"Well, aside from those logic, all the weird facts about her could support my hypothesis, right." Natsume continued. She said hypothesis again.

Are you diminishing logic over a made up hypothesis? Also, she really like that word, doesn't she.

"Wouldn't it be cool if this hypothesis actually turned out to be true!? We might get a free vacation to Saturn if we befriend her. Don't you want to explore the galaxy on a spaceship, Kobayashi? That'd be awesome!"

I think it's only people with appetite for adventure like you that would think so. If it's me, I'd be terrified to death.

I can't even imagine myself leaving Japan. Let alone being separated 746 million miles from Earth. That would be a disaster.

"Shinonome's only an introvert. Plenty of people like her in this country. Nothing weird about it," I said, pushing Natsume's head away from me with my index finger. "As a good member of this community, lets just let her enjoy her solitude in peace. While we'll continue our own banter at a save range. That'll be better for both sides, I guess."

With that, I concluded our pointless conversation. Of course Natsume still wanted to push her opinion further. But her voice got cut off by the school chime.

"We'll continue next time. And thanks for the juice, I'll pay you after school. See you later, Kobayashi~!" she said, waving, then darted off. It didn't take long before she got swallowed by distance and disappear from my sight.

Simultaneously, my two classmates had finished their game. They quickly put away the board and pieces, returning to their desks. Finally, I could sit on my seat.

Soon after, our math teacher, Miss Matsumoto, arrived. Her obvious authoritarian aura filled the room instantly. Class snapped back to learning gear in seconds. Everyone sat up straight, facing forward, listening to every explanation Miss Matsumoto delivered. No one dared to doze off, doodling, much less sleeping. Even the anomaly, Shinonome Hikari, had to abandon her reading to focus on the study.

She straightened up her back, gazed forward, and took notes of every formula written on the chalkboard. When being asked to solve a problem, she did so, no question asked. And of course did it correctly. The attitude of a model student. A strange sight for a typical high school student.

That sight of Shinonome Hikari made me reconsider Natsume's hypothesis earlier.

Maybe she's an alien after all. A foreign creature from the Planet of Smart Kids. Definitely not part of my brood that prefer video games.

***