When Shio arrived at the classroom, everyone went silent and focused their gazes on her. Even though they were not in the know, they noticed that something was different today.

Because instead of greeting us good morning first, she stood before her elevated table in the middle and let her gaze wander around everyone.

I heard some of my classmates gulping down, perhaps thinking that they would get scolded about whatever was on their minds.

Little did they know, it’s not about that.

After clapping once, Shio put on a wide smile. Although it was directed at everyone, her gaze settled on me at the end.

“I bring great news to everyone. Today, we’ll be having a transfer student join our class. She was studying from outside the country but for some reason, she returned here to join us in this classroom.�

The way she stealthily added a wink directed at me with that introduction tickled me a bit. And for those who were unaware, the mention of the transfer student instantly enlivened them.

Well, especially the sad boys when Shio mentioned ‘she’.

“If any of you went to the grade school in the south-central part of our city, you’ll probably know her. Anyhow, you can enter now.� Shio continued, adding a bit of detail to Hana’s identity before ushering the girl in.

And even though no one in our class graduated from the same grade school as the three of us; Chii, Hana, and me, I heard the ones from the back murmuring the name of that school as if they were trying to remember someone or something from it.

A second later, entering from the opened door, the transfer student walked in. With unhurried and gentle steps as though she was taking a walk in the park, Hana gradually came into my view.

Somehow, even seeing just her side frame, my heart throbbed in slight pain and the memories of her came flooding in.

There’s the time when she first opened up to me. The sadness and helplessness visible on her face brought about that painful twinge in my chest.

Furthermore, the words she uttered that time also returned rather vividly. It’s like I was hearing it again for the first time.

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“Ruki, my parents said I’m too mature for my age. They told me to put on a smile even if I found it tiring to do so. I am born beautiful, they said. And I believed them. But why do I have to smile for everyone? Can’t I act selfishly and do what I want to do? It’s unfair. I envy you.�

There. That’s how she saw me at first. A person she envied. Because at that time, as someone who was driven only by my desire, the girl tried to understand it. She tried searching for the source of my desire. Her goal was to imitate it at first. She wanted to get out of the shackles binding her.

But over time, the girl eventually cherished those times when we were together. Because only when she’s with me that she could feel like the binds were loosened or there were none at all.

In short, like I previously said, only by my side can she experience freedom.

For the girl to have this kind of effect on my mind, I probably underestimated how much impact her presence in my life was. Or if not that, I probably never tried to explore these feelings for her because my desire hindered it completely. It got boxed in, only to be freed just recently, when she reconnected with me.

Before I knew it, my eyes already followed Hana who soon stood next to Shio. Beside me, Aya probably noticed the change in me. She reached for my hand and gently squeezed it as though she was trying to calm me down.

I glanced at the girl, muttering a silent ‘thank you’, smiled, and grabbed ahold of the hand she used, preventing her from pulling it back.

At this point, Hana turned to face the class, drawing gasps of shock or surprise from almost everyone. Obviously, it’s a reaction to her external appearance. She’s devastatingly beautiful.

If someone will describe her, they’ll probably say that she’s an angel sent from above. However, instead of having blond or silver-colored hair, it was deep black akin to the darkness itself. However, it had a certain gleam that made one imagine a halo manifesting behind her.

She had it tied in low twin tails and instead of letting it flow behind her, it flowed down from her shoulder.

She had long fringes that almost covered half of her face but that was intentional on her part. Because she’s hiding her left eye. She had this type of eye condition called heterochromia. Contrary to the reddish pupil of her right eye, her left eye had a bright golden color.

According to her, that’s also another source of her annoyance because every time someone will see it, they will always be mesmerized, enough to forget everything.

Well, I also had the same reaction at first. When she said she hated showing it even to me, I never bothered to bring it up again. However, the girl probably found that annoying as well which resulted in the girl freely showing it to me whenever we were together. Too bad for her, I continued ignoring it and just focused on fulfilling my desire.

Continuing on, her pale white skin was certainly unusual. In my memory, she had a healthier pearly white glow. Maybe it became like that because of the different climate of the country she had been in.

It’s not noticeable in the photos she sent but now that she’s before my eyes, I could easily pick that up.

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Certainly, the most noticeable change in her was her whole body... Back then, she was like Akane, devoid of any bump on her chest. But now, she is a slightly bigger size than my silly girl. Furthermore, her height was only a few centimeters shorter than mine. If I stand next to her, she’d probably reach the bridge of my nose. And don’t get me started with her figure... It’s also the one that drew gasps from everyone. She’s like the embodiment of sexiness.

Somehow, I could imagine myself wrapping my arms around her waist or feeling up those plump thighs covered by black stockings.

Ugh... Anyway, that’s it. I tried to draw my gaze back to prevent myself from being swallowed in that fantasy.

But at this point, Hana has started introducing herself. And the same as Shio, her gaze eventually landed on me.

“Nice to meet you, I am Shinohara Hana. Please take care of me.�

It was short yet concise. Her soothing voice traveled across the room which carried some sort of hypnotizing power. From next to me, even Aya seemed mesmerized by her. What more the boys whose eyes heatedly focused on her.

In any case, since she was staring at me directly, I didn’t back down and face it.

Little by little, her angelic smile broke and was replaced by a decisive smirk.

Before Shio could say something to her or our classmates could utter their welcome, Hana’s feet moved and she started making her way toward me.

In less than five seconds, she arrived at my side. Because I was down in my seat, I ended up looking up at her.

Hana gradually shook her head before turning her gaze to Aya then it moved to the direction of Hina and Saki and lastly, to Chii at the back row.

As though declaring her intent, her eyes refocused on me as her back slowly bent forward. Without holding back at all, the girl cupped my cheeks and boldly pressed her lips to mine.

As soon as that happened, the sound of chairs sliding echoed followed by the figures of my girls standing in shock.

At the front, even Shio who had just grabbed a chalk unknowingly crushed it in her palm.

By the time Hana left my lips alone, the whole class became silent. But somehow, it felt like the calm before the storm.

“I’ve come back, Ruki. Just for you.� Hana loudly said before turning to Satsuki’s empty seat. After moving it close to me, the girl elegantly sat down and leaned her head to my shoulder, ignoring everyone’s reaction.

“Welcome back. But Hana, that’s not your seat. That is Satsuki’s. I’ll have to ask you to vacate it.� Taking this moment to respond to her, I acknowledged her words before coldly pointing that detail out without giving a reaction to what she just did.

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