A new transfer student.

The day started out like most others at Muzukashii High School, a balding man wearing thick, foggy glasses stands at the front of the classroom, surrounded by a diverse array of students. Kaizawa Sensei runs through our names, completing our class’s roll call, while I stared blankly out the window during homeroom.

"Osada, Takashi?" As I hear him utter my name last, I can’t ignore the way he pronounces it. His tone is infused with one of hidden disgust, a stark contrast compared to the repetitive one he used to address the rest of my classmates. However, being his most disliked and disruptive student, I can understand his feelings.

"Present." I respond with a bored expression and a lazy tone, barely shifting my gaze from the window. I watch a flock of birds as they fly through the clouds, while I do, I hope for things to hurry up so that I can either get to or skip the next class.

"Alright class, we have a new student joining us today. Please come in, dear." The door slides open, revealing the new student, earning an array of reactions from my classmates. Curiously shifting my gaze, my interest is piqued at the sight of a girl walking into the classroom and standing before us. 

‘Well, at least the new student is a cute girl, instead of some guy.’ Admittedly I can't take my eyes of her as she stands there with her head down for a moment, before turning and approaching the board behind the teacher.

Amidst the noisy banter and excitement of the class, I continue to observe the new girl, tuning out the whispers of my classmates. While watching her attentively as I can without being creepy, I take in as much detail of the new girl as I can see. Her slender figure is the first thing I notice, ‘she’s quite tall for her age, depending on her potential, she could grow to be even taller.’

I begin to envision how she might appear after several more years, my mind conjuring an image of an alluring housewife with a maternal appeal. However, my imagination begins to run wild with the image of her, taking a turn towards a more inappropriate direction, with her posing in a number of provocative positions. Before I can indulge in my imagination, a visualisation of myself forcibly turns me around and slaps me across the face, shouting, ‘OI, snap out of it!’

Refocusing on her with a shake of my head, I overlook the school uniform she’s wearing and instead, direct my attention to her free-flowing brown coloured hair that ends just below her shoulders. Interestingly, her hair looks like it has been brushed and well-groomed, yet, there’s an untamed hint to it. As I observe her further, she writes her name on the board and turns to face the class, offering a deep bow in the process.

"Hello everyone, my name is Hikaru, I'm looking forward to spending the term with all of you and hope we can all become friends." I can't help but notice her nervous behaviour and the manner in which she addressed the class.

Her voice is so soft that I can barely hear her over the guys obsessing over how cute is, while the other girls go about gossiping about her. Glancing at the board, I read her name as ‘Miyazawa, Hikaru. Cute name for a cute girl I guess. Although, judging from her body language and quiet demeanour, I can guess that she's the shy type.’

"Alright, settle down. Miyazawa-san, if you could, please take the seat behind Osada-kun." Kaizawa addresses the class in a somewhat dismissive tone as he guides Miyazawa with his hand. As she approaches her assigned seat behind me, I take in a better observation of her figure and how she carries herself, noting her overall measurements which I could best describe as balanced.

As she passes me, our eyes meet and I’m enchanted by how vibrant and beautiful her blue eyes are. ‘Wow, she’s really cute. In fact, she’s almost bordering on beautiful for her age. Give her a few more years and the best and only way to describe her will be beautiful.’ We share a friendly nod between us and she takes her seat, Kaizawa Sensei resumes homeroom up until the bell rings, announcing the beginning of the next period.

"Before you all rush off, I need a volunteer to help acquaint Miyazawa-san with the School and its surroundings. Any takers?" Instantly, several of my male classmates eagerly raise their arms, while most of the girls appear somewhat reluctant. Scanning the classroom, I notice Nakanishi Miku, the class’s self proclaimed queen, glaring at the new girl, and I can imagine why.

Ignoring Nakanashi and her pretentious nature, I notice that some members of the class begin to grow impatient over Kaizawa’s inaction in selecting someone, while the boys’ over-eager lecherous gazes suggesting their intentions towards Miyazawa. As I observe the class, my gaze suddenly locks with Kaizawa sensei, and he gives me a sinister looking smile. ‘Uh oh.’

"You know what, Osada-kun. Why don't you guide Miyazawa-san around the school and show her the ropes? I'm sure that with all the classes you've skipped, your knowledge of the school and its inner workings will be invaluable to her." A part of me wants to protest, but as I gaze at Miyazawa-san, I can't bring myself to refuse, which is weird and unnerving on top of her unsure gaze at me.

As the school day unfolds, I spend the entirety of it with Miyazawa-san. Guiding and escorting her from one class to another, I show her the ins and outs of the school grounds. While we don't often engage each other in conversation, aside from answering a question or two, it feels like a connection is developing between us. We even share a lunch together in the school cafeteria during the break.

Being honest with myself, I found myself enjoying my time-spent with Miyazawa-san, ‘I haven’t enjoyed a day at school like this in a long while.’ I didn't expect to be the one serving as a guide for the new student. ‘Then again, there could be worse things than accompanying a cute girl and helping to acquaint her with the school grounds.’

Although, it did earn me a frequent number of dirty looks from Nakanashi and her followers throughout the day, ‘Jealousy does not improve her image at all.’ I grin at the thought of a gaudy attention seeker like Nakanashi being outshone by a transfer student with a decent personality. However, despite enjoying my time with Miyazawa-san, there has been a persistent nagging sensation in the back of my mind.

Despite my expectation of the powerful sensation of the Other World’s call, my biggest worry throughout the day has been feeling the pull of the Other World while I’ve been escorting Miyzawa-san, which would result in me inadvertently abandoning her for no reason.

With the end of the day just around the corner, the time comes for me to introduce Miyazawa-san to the woman residing within the nurse's office. Standing outside the door, I can’t bring myself to introduce her, or so much as touch the door. ‘Yeah, I'm not about to deal with that today!’ 

As the bell rings loudly to announce the school day’s final class, we leave the nurse’s office undisturbed, inadvertently confusing Miyazawa-san. However, she follows me regardless, eventually catching the hem of my sleeve, seeking my attention some distance down the hallway.

"Thank you for walking with and showing me around today, it was a lot of fun." I gaze at Miyazawa as she smiles gently towards me, combined with her sweet and soft voice. I can’t help but feel a sense of attraction towards her, and for the first time outside of my experiences in Other World, I might be interested in pursuing this feeling.

"No problem, if you're ever in need of anything, feel free to ask me, okay." She gives me a nod and appears genuinely happy for the first time today. Catching a glimpse of her smile again only adds to her already cute appearance leading me to wonder, 'Wait, am I attracted to shy girls?' Attending our final class, a final thought occupies my mind till the sound of the final bell. 'I wonder why I haven’t felt the pull today?'

As everyone either makes their way to their respective clubs, or outside of the school grounds with intent to return to their homes, I find myself a little reluctant to leave. Reflecting on my last visit to Other World, I left with a job unanswered and have been awaiting, even expecting the pull to hit me earlier today. Then, just as I sluggishly approach the school gate, I finally feel the sensation I’ve been waiting for.

'Talk about leaving it to the last minute, its a bit late today.' As the pull gets stronger, I adjust my walking pace until the pull feels like it’s at its strongest, holding it back as I cross the gate, I turn the corner, effectively disappearing from everyone’s sight, and my time in this world goes on pause with no-one the wiser.