The Calm Before

Ichiro couldn’t get his mind off of it.

The previous night, he had received an incredibly cryptic message from Izumi.

She had sent him a text on Lime, mentioning that she had a surprise in store for him the following day. However, despite his attempts to inquire about the nature of the surprise or where he should go to receive it, Izumi remained as enigmatic as ever.

Feeling increasingly frustrated by Izumi's habit of obscuring everything about herself, Ichiro had a restless night as he tirelessly tried to unravel the meaning behind her perplexing words.

As a consequence of this, he found himself struggling to stay awake as he arrived at school with a big yawn. Even the slowly drizzling sky outside was slowly lulling him to sleep.

Despite being surrounded by his friends, his mind kept drifting back to their text conversation from the previous night. Or at least it was whenever he wasn’t feeling his eyelids being forced down against his will.

Their casual banter held his attention as best it could, but he couldn't fully engage. He was physically present but mentally distant, not fully immersed at the moment as he normally would be.

But something warm and soft entered the edge of his consciousness, bringing him back to reality. “Hey, Ichiro? You OK? You seem tired.” Those gentle words were spoken by the girl who had been seated next to him nearly all morning, and only just as she had taken a hold of his hand in hers did he finally notice that she was even there in the first place.

“Oh, it’s nothing, Hina,” Ichiro rubbed his tired eyes, desperately trying to wake himself up before the girl still had her fingers wrapped around his hand as she held it close to her chest. Her large and concerned eyes fluttered their eyelashes with worry, causing him to flinch with insecurity to their intensity. “I just had a rough night's sleep. Couldn’t get comfortable, you know?”

Her lip turned up in frustration at hearing his words. “Are you sure? If anything’s wrong, you can trust me, I can help you with whatever is wrong.”

“I know, I know,” Ichiro shrugged back a little as Hina leaned in closer to him with her eyes remaining diligently on his, steadfastly. “It’s just too much caffeine?” He winced slightly as he realized how he was realizing how he was unable to stop lying to his friend and couldn’t figure out why he felt the deep urge to do so.

Hina’s eyes narrowed momentarily, studying his face as he nervously laughed while still backing away from her slightly. “Alright,” she sighed, relenting, “I trust you. You should watch your caffeine intake, Ichiro. It's not good for you.”

“Yes, yes” Ichiro raised his arms in defeat, “I will do better in the future, I promise.” He simply sighed in defeat, knowing that any attempt to resist would only end up worse for him than trying to fight her any further. Even though he had known her for so long, he couldn’t seem to tell her that he was talking to Izumi late into the night.

Turning his attention away from her just enough to not seem too awkward any further, he noticed his other friends starting to chuckle amongst themselves.

“Aren’t they just a loving couple?” “Wish I could find a girl as sweet as Hina.” “Lucky bastard…”

“What's your problem, guys?” Ichiro raised an eyebrow in frustration at his friends' comments.

“Oh nothing,” Takuya laughed and playfully smacked his friend's knee, hard enough to nearly leave a bruise in the process, “We're just envious that we don't have a girlfriend as adorable as yours, you idiot.”

“Who? Me and Hina?” Ichiro asked, completely bewildered as to where this was coming from. “But we are just-”

“Alright, everyone, take your seats,” Mr. Sato interrupted Ichiro's retort as he entered the classroom. “Class is about to begin.” As he finished speaking, the bell rang above their heads.

Hina gave one final squeeze to Ichiro's hand before letting go, joining the others in taking their seats. The class president instructed everyone to greet their teacher as he positioned himself at the front of the classroom.

“Okay, class, before we start," he began, placing his hands on the podium, “I need to introduce you to our newest classmate.”

Whispers swirled around the room as students wondered who the new student could be. While the classroom buzzed with excitement, Ichiro tried to catch a glimpse of the newcomer by peering into the hallway.

“Please come in,” Mr. Sato beckoned out into the hallway, picking up a piece of chalk and starting to write on the chalkboard.

Gasps resonated throughout the classroom as a stunning girl with long flowing black hair entered the room, her locks cascading behind her as she moved gracefully forward. Most of the class couldn't tear their eyes away from her as she turned towards them and bowed, greeting the room.

However, Ichiro made a conscious effort to avoid eye contact. In fact, he attempted to shrink further into his seat, hoping not to be noticed at that moment.

As the class remained captivated by the new girl, their focus wasn't solely on her appearance but rather…

“Hey, look,” whispered voices pointed out, “she's in a wheelchair.”

“Pleasure to meet you all,” the girl announced from the front of the classroom, as Mr. Sato finished writing her name on the chalkboard behind her. “My name is Izumi Nakagawa, and this is my first time in a high school class. So please be gentle with me.”

Whispers erupted across the room in response to her peculiar introduction, prompting Mr. Sato to clear his throat and calm the class. “Settle down, everyone. This is your new classmate, so let's welcome her properly.”

While the majority of the class offered the standard polite greeting, Takuya leaned over to Ichiro and whispered, "Hey, she looks pretty cute, huh? Wonder what’s up with the wheelch- what are you doing?” He flinched slightly, seeing his friend contorted at an odd angle in his chair.

“Nothing,” Ichiro answered, attempting to remain inconspicuous at his desk. “Just ignore me.”

“As you can see,” Mr. Sato interjected, reclaiming the attention of the class, “Nakagawa will need some assistance as she familiarizes herself with our school. Is there anyone willing to volunteer as her helper, accompanying her between classes and showing her around the campus during free time?”

Whispers continued to circulate throughout the class, but no one seemed eager to step forward. Glancing around the room, Ichiro found it surprising how many people suddenly found themselves engrossed in private conversations, almost disregarding Izumi, while she sat there with a wide grin on her face, her inky eyes surveying the crowd.

A peculiar sensation overcame Ichiro as he felt his body rise slightly in his seat, his gaze scanning the room.

“Come on, someone please step up and offer assistance,” Mr. Sato sighed, gazing out over the class expectantly. A surge of frustration pulsed through Ichiro's body as he noticed that no one seemed willing to give Izumi the time of day. Not even Takuya, who was now setting up his notebook to conceal his melon bread eating.

Ichiro's gaze shifted back to Izumi, who had locked eyes with him, her smile had since contorted. No longer was a goofy grin plastered under her piercing gaze, but her smile had softened along with her mouth, which fell slightly open with a joyful smile playing on her lips.

Gulping hard, Ichiro weighed the options before him, as he couldn’t look away from Izumi at that moment. Uncertain of what else to do, he shook his head in irritation and slowly raised his hand.

“Ishii?” Mr. Sato asked incredulously, readjusting his glass, “Are you sure about this? Aren’t you busy with your schedule as it is?” As he asked Ichiro this, Izumi looked between them, a look of worry suddenly capturing her grin and stealing it away as her eyes darted between the boy seated still awkwardly in his desk with his arm raised and her new teacher.

“I got it,” Ichiro winced as he answered back. “I can handle it.”

“Oh, yes,” the educator nervously fumbled with his words, “I am sure you are, but I think it would be better if someone else helped Nakagawa out. So would anyone-”

“I said I got it.” Ichiro was also surprised at how forcefully he cut off his teacher. But he remained there, unflinching.

“Yes, well then, Thank you, Ishii,” Mr. Sato nodded his head slowly in defeat, his voice slightly softer than it was when he first entered. “For now, Nakagawa," he turned to address Izumi, pointing towards a seat in the back corner of the classroom next to the window. “Unfortunately, that's the only available seat we have at the moment. If you need any assistance, feel free to ask your neighbor or raise your hand, and I'll help you.”

Izumi, still trepidatious in her movements, kept glancing between Ichiro and her new teacher. Her mouth opened a couple of times as if she wanted to interject, but only nodded. She lowered her head as she started to push her wheels forward. Her head rising once her wheels were moving again, the goofy grin finding its way back to her lips as she maneuvered herself around the classroom. Eventually she reached her seat in the back corner of the room.

Ichiro observed as she carefully settled into the desk, her wheelchair making it a tight fit. His neck strained as he tried to get a better view of her. Once she was situated, she glanced over at him, offering a smile and a wave when their eyes met.

Unsure of how to respond, Ichiro awkwardly raised a limp hand and waved back. However, before he could gauge Izumi's reaction, another face entered his field of view, blocking his vision.

“Are you sure you are OK?” Hina silently inquired, her concerned eyes on him alone, “You’ve been acting weird all day. Is everything alright?”

“Uh, yeah,” Ichiro felt his face flush as he hastily redirected his attention towards the front of the class right as a large bolt of lightning cracked in the sky. The resin was steadily coming down harder, “Everything is… fine.”