Hiro walked through the high school hallways, looking at every single girl he passed by as almost every single one of them scooted away or looked at him with disgust. He didn't mind though. After all, he was known for his failing at flirting with the girls. Hiro knew this, yet he still continued anyways. To him, it was like pranking, but only pranking on the females. Quietly, he got closer, and closer, to the girl's locker room, and was just about to open it until a hand grabbed his own.

"Are you really going to do that again? Last time you got caught, the teachers had to get a talk with you." His sister sighed before letting go and taking a step back, giving him that same lecture she always would every day after catching him being all perverted, "It's bad for your name you know, and seeing how I'm your sister, it's also bad for my name. In fact, did you even study yet?"

Hiro let out a tense laugh while rubbing the back of his neck nervously. Mira, although already knowing the answer, still waited for an answer as he coughed and let out a silent, "Nope."

---

---

Kohaku was still in bed at the late time of 7:45. His alarm was ringing non stop, but he had no energy to turn it off. The night before, he was trying to finish his math homework, and study for his science test, but knew he'd fail in the end anyways, no matter how much he tried. It was on his mind all night, and even when he finally slept at 3:00 in the morning he couldn't stop thinking about it. Kohaku, very sleepily, got up from the bed and put his hand gently onto the alarm, stopping the ringing. He then got up, almost as slow as a sloth and headed for the dresser to get his shirt on. While doing so, he also took off his earrings, and put on his glasses, knowing that his outside appearance wouldn't be allowed at school.

Jin Byunghee/Lily Williams

Jin and Lily were just approaching the entrance to the school when Jin came to a halt, she turned around and glared at him "Would you just hurry up already?". There was a hint of irritation in her voice Jin just stood there gazing into space before actually replying "I just don't feel like going to school today..can we go back home?". Of course this just irritated Lily even further, it was obvious she was not in the mood to deal with Jin's excuses "Fine, if you want to go home than you can go by yourself." Lily said turning on her heel and continuing towards the school building. Jin slowly followed behind, he didn't like being at home by himself or leaving someone at home by themselves after what happened a few years ago. They both continued down the hall to there class room, both wondering who was going to be in there class this year.

---

Another day, another dollar. At least, that was the expression back where he was from, and he never actually understood what it meant. Maybe it was a metaphor for the working class man, and how his day would be set to a strict routine which consisted of working and in return yielding cash, a routine which he soon grows tired of because of it's ridiculous and dull simplicity and repetitiveness. Ike was, however, far from the working class man, but he was tired of the daily routine he had found himself molded to since entering high school.

Not that it changed much from earlier grades, considering he had always been the small foreign kid in a different country with different standards and customs. But it was always the same, get up in the morning, get ready for school, arrive at school, get beat on, and then go to class. Every day the same group of students would meet him on the grounds, every day the group would use the same insults and hit him in the same places, every day he could go to the nurse's office to get more bandages, and every day he would refuse to tell his superiors what was going on. The truth is, maybe for a short while there he had begun to lavish in the beatings, it had started to turn into something that made him feel like he belonged in a warped way.

And he needed to feel belonged, he no longer had that person there to help him out with it. It had always been his sister prior to his passing, she was always the outspoken one and tried her best to make him friends and incorporate him into social happenings. She was one of those students who wasn't just popular for her looks, but for her natural talent and kindness. It wouldn't be an overstatement to say she greatly overshadowed Ike, but he never really minded. He loved and looked up to her the most, and was always happy just to have her around.

But people die, some much earlier than they deserve. Ike's sister was one of these people. It happened before the transition into high school, and Ike found himself severely shutting down and isolating himself because of it. She was all he had, and now he was alone. He had lost the only friend he had besides his sister because of his isolation, and just further backed himself into the shadows, preferring the silence and taking comfort and solace in it. The place he stayed was a simple, small apartment. The kitchen and living area were connected, and the room consisted of a table with a single chair at it. The chair was placed so his back was facing the spanning windows, which opened out to a balcony and gave a view of the city.

He didn't mind it, but he did find the lonely aura of the place quite foreboding at times. He hoped he'd be able to make friends on his own this year, and maybe even invite some over for dinner. He hadn't had any luck thus far, however, and was humoring giving the notion up altogether and just giving in to this routine once more. Maybe he was meant to never break the cycle, and remain a spoke in the wheel that was his life.

Pushing all these thoughts to the back of his mind, Ike found himself idly trudging through the halls after another daily nurse visit, fresh bandages lining his face. His strides were small, and he had a hand raised to grip at the opposite arm as he walked, shoulder pressed against the wall to guide him as he dragged it along. He wasn't sure why he did it, maybe it was because he liked how it felt as his arm ran over the indentations of the lockers.

He liked it so much, in fact, that he never really payed attention to where he was going as he got lost in the basic rhythmic pattern of his shoulder rising and falling with each locker. And because of this lack of focus, he ended up running into another student, though, not one that he recognized. It was a male, and he seemed to be standing across from and talking to a female, which Ike assumed was either this male's sister, friend, or significant other.

After running into him, despite how soft the collision was, Ike found himself physically wincing away from the presence of other people. He was always wary around students, and him accidentally bumping into one could easily be turned into a reason to beat up on him some more. His grip on his arm tightened, and he flicked his glance up to the students before casting it downwards and keeping it glued to the floor.

"S-sorry..."

It was almost spoken in a whisper, and Ike cleared his throat afterwards, nervously beginning to dig his foot into the hallway floor.

Aya had just finished dropping Hana,his little sister, off at school. From time to time he checked his watch to make sure he wasn't late. As he came into view of the school Aya sighed softly at himself,"I hope Nao has left the house by now". Aya was worried that Nao would be extremely late, yet again, for school. He bothered Aya very much as he kept thinking maybe he should have just made him come to school.

Aya had woken up before his brother and sister as usual. He had gotten Hana out of bed and dressed for school. He sat her down at the table, and as she ate her breakfast Aya went to wake up Nao. "Nao it's time to wake up", when he entered Nao's room he found both Nao and his room in a frantic frenzy. "What the heck"?

Aya couldn't stand messes, especially when he had just cleaned Nao's room yesterday. It seemed like a good minute until Nao had realized Aya's existence. Nao had froze under Aya's cold and unforgiving stare, "Aya Thank God your here. Help me please"! Aya stared around the room to see Nao's school books were out. Aya shakes his head as he realized what was happening. "You didn't study did you"? Nao seemed to enter a state of despair,"What should I do? Mom and Dad said if I fail this test they would take me off of sports for a whole month". Aya sighed,"I told you I would help you, but you keep saying no to me".

Aya was already walking around Nao's room picking up clothes and books that were scattered across the floor. Aya neatly stacked the papers on Nao's bed, as he put the clothes away. Nao, not noticing Aya's cleaning was ranting on and on about how he was going to fail and that Aya wouldn't understand since he always got good grades on his test. Aya's response to his ranting was a gentle nodding at Nao's stressed out words.

Hana was at the doorway tears filling her eyes,"Aya"? Aya quickly stops cleaning and holds Hana in his arms,"What's the matter Hana"? He stroked her head softly claiming her down, which he did quite often when she would cry. "I-I can't find Mika". Mika was a stuffed rabbit, which Aya's step Mother had given her for her fifth birthday, which was yesterday.

Nao sighed,"Your crying over that little thing? It's probably long gone by now". Nao wasn't the most sensitive guy, he would always argue with Hana. The end result would be Hana crying even more at Nao's remarks. Sure enough Hana started to cry even louder. Aya glared at Nao which quickly shut him up. Hana was crying on Aya's shoulder, Aya was smiling gently at Hana,"Nao are you coming to school, or are you going to be late"? Nao waved him away,"I'm going to be late, so cover for me". Aya sighed and walked out of Nao's room carrying Hana. He smiled lovingly at her,"Don't worry Hana I'll find Mika,but we have to go to school now. So can you wait until after school"? Hana nodded sadly as Aya patted her head. "Good girl, now lets get you to school".

After this memory Aya feels even more loaded with thoughts. He walked into the class room and sat down in an empty chair. Aya quickly pulled out a notebook and began to write down his daily plan. "Okay let's see. I made lunch for both Nao and Hana. I woke both Nao and Hana up. Got Hana dressed and feed. Nao was left at home and will be coming to school late. Took Hana to school, and talked to her teachers about her grades and behavior towards her classmates". It had seemed Hana was having trouble with her classmates, getting into fights or hitting others. Aya sighed and continued,"After school today, I need to go pick up Hana. When getting home I need to find Mika. Then cook dinner for both Hana and Nao. After that Mother and Father should be home so I can leave for work. Than after that I will be able to work without worrying about Nao or Hana...well worrying about Hana. After work is finished I need to get home and study". Aya was mumbling the whole thing making sure not to leave anything out. He nodded in satisfaction at his list. He put his notebook away, and took out his earphones. He popped them in his ears, turning on some music. Laying his head down he closed his eyes as he listened to Keep it Real by One Ok Rock.

✿Slipping her feet into pink bunny slippers, Ami yawned and slid her way down the familiar maple stairs on her bottom.
"Aunty?" She called, getting up from the floor and making her way slowly into the kitchen.
She was then greeted by her carer's frown, "What have you been doing? You were meant to get up fifteen minutes ago." Came her firm and yet caring scold.
"Sorry, but Keiko kept me up half the night with her terrible screeching." Ami replied, still rubbing at her eyes as she bit into a slice of toast that had been on the large plate Megumi - The social worker - kept full to the brim with pastries and toast smothered with honey.
"Now Ami, that's no way to talk about Keiko's singing." Comes Megumi's reply, even though she's laughing lightly.
It was true, Keiko (another orphan) was horrid at singing and yet, she still was always practicing, convinced that one day she would be a star.
Ami reckoned that would only happen if a) She were the only on Earth or b) everyone went deaf - Which was likely to happen if Ami heard much more of that vile voice.

Waking up a little, Ami takes a quick glance at the clock and realizes that maybe, she should have gotten up that fifteen minutes earlier.
Rushing to her room, the girl quickly changes and brushes her teeth before racing back downstairs to run all the way to school.

***

Ami bounded through the door and down the school hallways, grinning and waving at everyone, even though she hardly knew any of them.
Pulling at the straps of her Rilakkuma, she slid it off her shoulder and un-clipped the little bear's nose, opening the bag.
Grabbing her favorite blackcurrant lolly-pop out of the bag, she then proceeds to unwrap it and stick it into her mouth, her smile brightening as her daily dose of sugar spills into her system.

Then remembering she still has to get to class, Ami quickly slings Rilakkuma back onto her shoulder and resumes her greetings all the way down the hallway, only stopping a few times to re clip her bunny pin or straighten her pink, pleated skirt.
Pushing open the door that lead to the room in which her her first class was to be held - or at least, she hoped it was the right room - Ami took a seat at the back and picked up where she left off with 'Ultra Maniac', thinking about whether she remembered to bring her half completed math's homework or not and chewing on a handful of skittles.

To most, this girl would look like a quite, sweet little student with her pink hair, fastened by a little bunny clip and wearing a white tip with little daisies on paired with a pink skirt and yellow converse.
If only they knew just how insane she was.✿

Hiro Mashiyama/Mira Mashiyama

"Then we're studying when we get home." Mira decided on her own, "I can't afford for you to suffer from grades... after this there's college you know..." She sighed, feeling some concern for her brother's future since all he focused on was flirting, and nothing else.

"Yeah, yeah, sorry. But do I really have to-" Hiro started but then was interrupted when a boy his height. Both siblings had the same thoughts, it was that this boy looked quite different than most people they saw at the school, and both of them, knowing almost everyone in their high school, didn't know this young boy.

"S-sorry..." They heard the boy say.

Hiro, as he always did, simply shrugged and said, "No problem, no harm's been done." He said, and then seemed to have noticed how shy and timid the boy was. That, or the boy was frightened.

Before he could ask himself, Mira looked at this boy and stared at all the bandages for a while, but then redirected her eyes and asked, "Are you alright dear?" She didn't mention anything in specific like the bandages, but just meant it in general since he wasn't looking at either of them.

---

---

Kohaku Tsubara

Kohaku finally arrived at school; his hair down, being long and shaggy, his glasses on, and his earrings all taken off from his both his ears. He didn't quite favor his school appearance very much, but needed to since the school wouldn't allow him to go dressed looking like a gangster. Even though it was spring, and a very hot part of spring for that matter, he still had to wear that jacket over his white school uniform shirt, or else the tattoos would easily be visible.

He entered through the hall way while reading a book, keeping his eyes off everyone, and wiping away some sweat from his forehead from time to time. He could hear people whispering about how weird he was to wear a jacket in that time of the season, but he already was used to it from a few years of experience.

The sun was shining brightly this morning, causing Miyako to cover her eyes as she exited the door of the home she shared with her mother and brother. The modest home was not as far from the school as some of her friends, so she could take her time getting to school. Looking at her wristwatch, she could see that it was almost time for her to meet her friend, Haru-chan at the school gates. Despite Haru-chan being her senpai, they made friends quickly and bonded over a mutual love of books and people.

Miyako had Kyudo practice to attend after school that day and was searching her schoolbag to make sure she had what she needed. As she searched, she remembered she had left her mizugake on her desk before leaving. Mentally berating herself, she turned around and rushed back to her home to fetch the forgotten item.

After retrieving it, she ran from the house saying another quick goodbye to her mother and made her way quickly to school. As she rushed, her mind was elsewhere, worrying that she might miss Haru-chan like she had the day before. She was not paying attention to where she was going and in her hurry, she bumped into someone on the street, also heading toward the direction of the school. The stranger was wearing headphones, and had not seemed to notice her. She turned to him, gave a him a small bow and a quick sorry and hurried on her way.

She arrived out of breath at the front gates and glanced around. Students were streaming through the gates, but she saw no sign of Haru-chan. She glanced at her watch again, thinking she might have been late after all, but saw that she was just on time. The school bells wouldn't ring for at least another ten minutes so she Miyako decided to wait for her friend.

---

---

---

---

Katsuyo sighed as he left the last train stop. He hated using public transportation. It just felt so unclean to him and he was glad to be rid of it, at least until this afternoon where he would be using it to go home. He lived pretty far from Yousaka, but they had a pretty nice academic record and he liked that about it. The train left the station with a Whoosh! and Katsuyo climbed the subway stairs in a bit of rush. He wasn't going to be late, he was never late.

It didn't take him very long to reach the school and he was early as usual. After slipping on his uwabaki, he went in search of his friends. No doubt Hiro, at least, would be here trying to catch a peep at the girls changing. He smirked at the thought of Hiro getting caught again. It was funniest if his sister caught him in the act because she scolded him.

As he climbed the stairs her could hear the sounds of bickering and he again smirked. He looked up, and just as he expected, Hiro was being chewed out by Mira. "Caught again?" Katsuyo said brightly to him. "You should find some better peeping places." He gave Mira a nod and a smile. He was familiar with her, but not too familiar and he didn't feel like angering her just yet. As they were speaking, a guy about his age bumped into Hiro and mumbled sorry. This guy was obviously a foreigner and Katsuyo recognized him as the guy he saw getting beat up a lot in the mornings. Katsuyo never stopped it, always thinking what good what it do for him to get beat up too? Mira took a motherly approach with the stranger like she did with everyone else.

Katsuyo snapped his fingers in further recognition. "Oh, hey, you're that guy from my class. Ike-san right?" He didn't really care if this guy remembered who he was, but he was trying to appear "friendly" in front of Mira.

~OISHI MATSUTA~

---

The half-white-haired-half-black-haired boy with silver eyes walked through the hall, very close to the wall to avoid being noticed. If it weren't for his strange hair; Oishi would have blended right into the wall and away from sight. He would rather disappear into wall than have the students in the hall try their best to avoid looking at him or acknowledge his existence. But he had grown used to others acting like so, and he was not one for change.

Oishi had not seen anyone he recognized in the hall that day, not that it was a surprise. He rarely knew anyone at this school. The people he did know, his three friends, were older than himself. Two were two years his senior and one was one year his senior, so he rarely saw them during the school day. Oishi usually waited until after school to see his friends, but that would mean he would spend the whole day alone with strangers.

Finally arriving at the door to his classroom; Oishi slipped in quietly, again to avoid being noticed, and took his usual seat in the back of the class. Once again, the classroom was filled with strangers.

---

"No problem, no harm's been done."

Ike let out a small sigh of relief as the male said it was alright, and he seemed to relax a little, but kept his eyes cast downward. He still felt uncomfortable attempting to make any eye contact with either of them, because he didn't know them and he suspected they didn't know who he was either, and he just couldn't handle that right now. Any social situation made him anxious, and it was unfortunate because he really did want to make friends. He wondered if he should walk away now, but the other student, the girl spoke up after, Ike assumed, she had looked him over.

"Are you alright, dear?"

His eyes shot up then to her face, his compass shaped pupils scanning her face for sincerity before locking in on her own eyes. He had a look of what might be called shock. It just seemed like exactly something his sister would say to him, and he had to take a moment to affirm that it wasn't her, even though he knew she was long gone. He opened and closed his mouth a couple of times, looking for the words he was thinking, but was cut off by the snap of the third student's fingers, and addressed him.

"Oh, hey, you're that guy from my class. Ike-san right?"

Ike was a bit thrown off by this student using his first name right away, without seemingly knowing him well enough beyond the point of knowing that they were in the same class. He wondered if it were a friendly gesture, or if this student was just casual enough to ignore customs and call people by their first names whether he was close with them or not. It did take him a couple of moments to register who the student was, but he did know him. Ike recognized most of the other kids that were in his class, though he never really attempted to talk to them. In reality, Ike sort of felt invisible in this school aside from when he was getting beat on. He was beginning to wonder if he was paying some sort of penance for something. He looked between the three momentarily before giving a curt nod.

"Y-Yeah, m'okay..." His voice seemed to trail off again as he began to stammer, and he placed his arms flat at his side and went into a bow. "S-sorry again for the inconvenience."

He rose out of it then, and gave a second small nod to the third student, addressing what he had said now.

"Y-Yes, hello Naganishi-san. Y-You can just call me I-Ike, if you w-want."

Hiro Mashiyama

Hiro saw Katsuyo pass by as he heard him ask, "Caught again?" Hiro chuckled and whispered back, while his sister was distracted, "Yep, just like yesterday, and the day before that, and the day before that." He actually began to think that it may have been better that he was caught because last time he went in, some girl with ridiculous strength had slapped him really hard across the face, and it didn't end too well for him. He was a bit nervous to run into the same girl from before, so he felt a bit glad about being caught, having second thoughts.

"You should find some better peeping places."

Hiro glanced over at his sister, who wasn't paying attention again, and shrugged with a childish smile on his face, "Oh but if I did, people would see me as the secretive pervert, and everyone knows I'm the type of person to do it straight out where the whole public may see my success!" He said sarcastically with a laugh, although he obviously knew he was probably the worst flirt in the whole entire school.

"Y-Yes, hello Naganishi-san. Y-You can just call me I-Ike, if you w-want."

Although he wasn't being spoken directly to, Hiro was always the type of outgoing person to just listen to other conversations and jump in, "Ike? Mmm... doesn't sound very Japanese... Are you a foreigner, Ike?" He asked, not adding any honorifics since he always saw people as friends without even having to meet them. A simple introduction, to Hiro, meant a friend if they had a nice attitude.

---

---

Mira Mashiyama

Mira watched as Katsuyo joined them, and saying a simple 'Good morning' with a polite bow and smile. She saw her brother around him sometimes, but couldn't say that she actually knew him as well as her brother did. Still, she was at least glad her brother had a sane friend unlike most of the friends he brought over which all had strange problems like drinking, flirting, or anything else of that sort. Of course, it was nothing serious, but she wasn't exactly very tolerant when it came to their behavior.

"Y-Yeah, m'okay... S-sorry again for the inconvenience."

She saw the student in front of her bow as she did the same, as respect, not sure if he was older or younger, but did it anyways. She couldn't help but continue to stare at the bandages over his face, wondering how he got him, seeing how she only knew a few certain people in the school, mostly just people in her classes, her friends, and her brother's friends. Other than that, she never really got to meet to many people outside that little group she stayed around.

"Y-Yes, hello Naganishi-san. Y-You can just call me I-Ike, if you w-want."

One of the things she had in common with her brother was that she, even though she didn't mean to be rude, listened to the conversation, and seemed to have joined in on it. Perhaps it wasn't exactly called 'joining in,' but she never referred to people by their first name unless she was a very close friend, "May I ask for your last name dear?"

---

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Kohaku Tsubara

While walking, Kohaku saw one of his close friends, Oishi walking to his class. Just as he was about to call out and greet him, one of the people around his age seemed to have bumped into him, laughing as they passed him by. While he got bumped into, his glasses fell, hit his books in his hands, and hit the ground. His vision all of a sudden became blurry as he squinted a bit, and put his hand to the floor, trying to find the glasses he needed to see for class. Most people who walked by him, who's faces he couldn't recognized, just ignored him. He was one of this insignificant people at the school, the nerd, the weirdo, and other nicknames he was called throughout his life. While still searching for his glasses, he seemed to have sighed quietly and thought to himself, 'Only a few people actually understand people like me...' He wasn't just referring to himself, but most of the people who walked around the high school with little friends, and little people who realized them in the crowd.

It seemed Rose and Kohaku both had the same goal, get to Oishi before people could begin to make fun of them. She tugged at the bottom of her shirt, trying to pull it down further. Her outfit wasn't a usual one, considering it consisted of a white button down, black vest, dark leggings, and a similarly colored shirt that fell to about mid-thigh. Since she was usually found in jeans and a sweatshirt, this felt especially strange for her. But she was staying at her sisters house for the week, and her sister wouldn't let her leave the house looking like a boy- at least that was what she had said. The only normal thing was the checkered mailbag around her shoulder, which actually happened to be comforting her greatly at that moment. Her sister hadn't even allowed her to take her books with her, but she reassured herself by remembering that she had a book in her locker.

As she began to push past people- to make her way to her friend -she found herself looking back over to Kohaku. Half of her was glad she did, since his glasses were on the ground and there was no way he was going to find them with all the people in the hall. But the other half was sort of angry at herself, knowing that if she went over to him that she would get the same treatment he was getting. It wasn't like they were great friends or anything, but having Oishi as a common factor would occasionally shove them together. At the same time though, it wasn't like they already didn't treat her that way. Letting out a deep breath she hadn't known she'd been holding, she pushed her way over to Kohaku and dropped to her knees beside him. After grabbing his glasses, she tapped his shoulder and held them relatively near his hand. "Here K."

Yamamura woke up slowly and smiled. Today was a new day! A new day to accomplish something new, and a new day to try something new. The girl yawned, got out of her bed and walked in her bathroom. Flicking on the lights, she gasped. The sight before her was indeed horrific. She had paint all over clothes, arms and legs. She knew she shouldn't have painted yesterday, but she couldn't resist her favorite hobby. After brushing her teeth, Yamamura ran out of the bathroom and to her clock sitting on her night-stand. She began to panic, school would start in ten minutes, and she had only just woken up.

The girl didn't want to walk around all day with patches of dried paint on her, but she nor did she want to miss her meeting with Miyako-chan. Deciding she would take a bath when she came home, Yamamura quickly slipped on her school uniform and brushed her hair. Glancing at the clock again, she only had six minutes left! The girl grabbed her schoolbag, silver hoop earrings, and ran out of her bedroom into the kitchen. Yamamura put on her earrings and quickly ate her breakfast of Natto. "Bye Kaa-san!" she said running out of the house.

The girl was speed walking when she looked at her watch, there was only three minutes left until school started, and she was half way there. Yamamura knew she could make it there in time, but she would have to run extremely fast. Taking a deep breath, the brown-haired girl ran like a track-runner, dodging pedestrians along the way. She looked up and saw a familiar building they called school. Glancing at her watch, there was only a minute left. Once she reached the school grounds, she began looking for her friend. Yamamura spotted her friend from a distance, ran over to her and glomped her, almost bringing the both of them down in the process. "Yako-channnn!"