#first encounter reply

She looked around at all the other students as he walked her through the school.  The stares and whispers were almost enough to make her just want to turn and leave.  She had been really focused on her thoughts when suddenly the blonde boy stopped in front of a door.  She looked up at him to see that he had a huge grin on his face as she pointed out where she was supposed to be.  He seemed like a good guy, but...she knew that it was only because he didn’t know about her.  About why she was here.  There was no reason to bother getting attached. As he wished her a good first day, she glanced away from him.  Her expression looked almost...hurt.  

“Heh, y-yeah... Thanks...” she muttered in response before opening the door and walking into the room.  

All the teachers immediately looked over her, like they were expecting something completely different.  Maybe she didn’t look the part, but they obviously knew why she was here.  She couldn’t help but sigh as she was told her schedule.  She was a second year still, but most of her accomplishments from the US seemed to be...forgotten.  She was going to be in a lower ranked class, something she had expected but wasn’t entirely prepared for in reality.  She simply smiled and nodded, despite the frustration that she felt initially at the news. There was no reason to fight it, it wasn’t like someone like her had any hope at a good future anyways.  

As her passive-aggressive teacher walked her to her classroom, muttering the whole way, she was slightly surprised to see the blonde boy from earlier sitting near the back of the room.  They were...in the same class?  She realized she had never actually asked him what year he was, so...she couldn’t be too surprised.  Still, it seemed like fate worked in strange ways.  Her widened eyes narrowed and her gaze shifted back to the floor once the teacher began to speak over the students, giving her a half-assed introduction and pointing her towards the empty seat next to her accidental acquaintance.  

She couldn’t help but chuckle lightly at his uniform joke.  She wasn’t entirely sure if he was just trying to be funny or not, but she was apparently a sucker for lame jokes.  Just as quickly as it had appeared, she returned to her usual blank face.  He seemed nice enough, but…she couldn’t just be open to people like that.  That wasn’t in the cards for her.  

As he questioned her about her old school, she tried to keep things as vague as she could.  She looked away from him, not wanting to make eye contact. 

“I…moved here from the U.S.” 

She spoke sort of quietly, almost muttering her response.  She wasn’t entirely sure if he had heard or not, but she didn’t say anything else on the matter.  When she looked back up, she saw he was smiling still.  He really was…strange.  Maybe too nice for his own good.  

“I…I suppose I could use the help” she started, but panicked slightly once she realized what she said, “T-that is, if you don’t mind…” 

She trailed behind him as he walked, taking care not to get separated from him.  She knew she wasn’t going to find anything on her own before class started.  Truthfully, he was doing her a big favor by helping.  As they neared what she assumed was the office, she tried to give him a believable smile.  

“T-Thank you very much… If there is any way I can repay you for your kindness…please let me know…” 

“Oh, I-I’m sorry, I just assumed…the pattern isn’t exactly something you see regularly, that’s all…” she trailed off, not wanting to make things weirder than she already was being.  She looked up at him, her face returning to her blank expression.  She couldn’t help it…the first thing she noticed was his hair.  She never usually judged anyone on their hair color, since white wasn’t considered “normal”, but…was he really blonde?  She hadn’t seen anyone else with hair nearly this light since she’d gotten to Japan, so he really stood out.  

That was when she remembered he was still talking.  She sighed at his question.  Of course he would be curious about a new student, but she still wasn’t sure what exactly she wanted to tell people and what to keep to herself.  She had rehearsed these introductions in her head a million times on the planes, but she still wasn’t prepared for the real thing.  She decided to go as simple as possible.

“Y-yes, today is my first day” she stammered, hearing the nervousness in her own voice.  “I uh…just transferred here.”  Slightly embarrassed, she looked away from him. 

“I was supposed to get to Shujin early to do my paperwork, but…I’m awful with directions…so I’ve been a little lost.”  She felt the heat rising up into her cheeks and she immediately regretted talking too much.