Entertaining himself in solitude wasn't Ichin's style.
After taking a shower, he headed straight to his bedroom to tackle his howork. Although he had taken a day off from school, his assignnts still awaited him. Thankfully, Utaha had not only spent ti at his place but also thoughtfully brought his howork along.
The workload wasn't particularly heavy; Ichin managed to complete everything within an hour and a half. Once he packed his finished assignnts into his bag, he opened his laptop to dive into research about the NS developnt kit. It was completely unfamiliar territory for him, so he needed to study it from scratch thoroughly.
---
The next morning, as Ichin walked to school, Utaha glanced at the laptop bag in his hand and asked curiously, "Ichin, are you planning to work at school?"
"Not exactly work," Ichin replied with a smile. "I just want to go over the developnt kit's details. I read so of it last night, but it's far from enough. With so much free ti at school, I can't afford to waste it."
"You're so diligent," Utaha remarked with a mix of admiration and amusent. Her eyes flicked to his schoolbag. "So, did you bring a bento today?"
"No ti for that," Ichin admitted. "I'll just grab so onigiri or bread from the store."
While Ichin wasn't overly concerned about an occasional skipped bento, Utaha seed less forgiving. She lightly smacked his arm and scolded, "Ichin, that's not good! If you don't have ti to make one, just let know in advance. I'll ask my mom to prepare an extra portion for you."
"Wouldn't that trouble your mom?"
"Not at all," Utaha assured him with a shake of her head. "Mom often asks if you're managing to eat properly while balancing school, managing your studio, and developing gas. If you overwork yourself and get sick, it'll affect a lot of people!"
Hearing the sincerity in her words, Ichin nodded in agreent. "Alright, I'll let you know if I need help."
"You'd better!" Utaha grinned, satisfied. Together, they boarded the bus to school.
---
Upon arriving at school, the atmosphere in the classroom was lively as usual. It seed that after an entire day spent reviewing test papers, everyone's mood had recovered quickly.
As soon as Ichin sat down, Fujii, the boy seated behind him, eagerly leaned forward. "Hey, Ichin! Guess what? I passed this ti! Barely, but I did it! I was so scared I wouldn't make it!"
While pulling out his howork, Ichin glanced back at him, unimpressed. "You're that excited about just passing? Aren't your standards a little too low?"
"Well, what can I do? The questions were so weird this ti, especially in the science section!"
"I thought they were fine."
"Oh, right, I almost forgot! You got first place in the year again—this ti in the official midterm exams, not just a mock test."
The realization hit Fujii like a truck, reminding him of the vast gap between their abilities.
"Does that an being good at academics actually helps in finding a girlfriend?" he asked wistfully.
"Hm…" Ichin stroked his chin, pretending to ponder the question. "Not necessarily. First, you have to look good. At the very least, being presentable makes it less likely for a girl to turn you down when you talk to her."
Fujii imdiately slumped onto his desk in defeat, clearly disheartened by Ichin's honest but brutal response.
His appearance wasn't unattractive, but it was far from being called handso.
Utaha chuckled softly at Ichin's earlier comnt and said, "Ichin, isn't it a bit harsh to discourage soone like that?"
"It's not that bad," Ichin shrugged. "I was just stating the truth. People may claim that having an interesting personality matters more, but let's be real—what catches soone's attention first is their looks. It's just that the importance of appearance varies from person to person."
Utaha couldn't argue with his logic. It was true; in today's world, appearances played a major role in first impressions. Even for herself, before getting to know soone, their looks were the first thing she noticed.
Their conversation didn't last long, as the class representative ca by to collect howork, and the start of class was approaching.
---
Thankfully, today's lessons moved on from reviewing test papers and resud regular teaching.
During the last period of the morning, which was Japanese literature, the dismissal bell rang, signaling the end of the class. The teacher, Shizuka Hiratsuka, put away her lecture notes and addressed the students. "Alright, that's it for now. Oh, Ichin, co to my office after lunch."
With that, she left the classroom.
Utaha glanced at Ichin and asked, "What's this about?"
"Probably about taking leave yesterday," Ichin replied calmly. "Even though Hiratsuka-sensei approved it, she likely wants to follow up on the details. Looks like we won't be eating lunch in the clubroom today. I probably won't have much ti to go through my materials either."
"That's fine," Utaha said with a smile. "Go ahead and grab your food. I'll wait for you to co back so we can eat together."
Ichin returned quickly with three onigiri and a bottle of milk. He and Utaha pushed their desks together and shared lunch, much to the envy of so classmates, who couldn't help but feel as if they were being fed dog food just by watching the scene.
After finishing lunch and taking a short break, Ichin left for the teachers' office, while Utaha stayed in the classroom to read.
---
In the teachers' office, only Hiratsuka Shizuka and another female teacher were present. Ichin walked over to Hiratsuka's desk.
"Hiratsuka-sensei, you wanted to see ?"
"Yes, have a seat," she said, gesturing to the chair beside her. Once Ichin sat down, she set aside the docunt she was working on and looked at him. "How did things go yesterday? Was everything resolved?"
As he expected, she wanted to discuss his leave of absence. Ichin briefly explained what had happened the day before.
After listening, Hiratsuka remarked, "You really are sothing, aren't you? Seems like you have a lot of potential. But if things aren't fully settled yet, does that an you might need to take more days off in the future?"
"It's possible," Ichin admitted with a nod. "But I'm not sure when the next eting will be. If it happens during sumr break, I won't need to take leave."
"Got it." Hiratsuka tapped her fingers on the desk thoughtfully. "By the way, did you notice the changes in this exam's papers?"
"Hm?" Ichin was caught off guard by the question. "Changes? Now that you ntion it, there did seem to be sothing different. Did you base them on exams from China?"
"Partially, yes," Hiratsuka explained. "We focused on adapting ideas, particularly for the science sections. This was an experint. Moving forward, Toyogasaki Academy hopes to make more adjustnts and innovations to improve teaching quality. Considering your background, Ichin, I assu your previous high school back in China was a good one?"
Ichin nodded cautiously, unsure of where this was going.
"Well," Hiratsuka continued, "during the upcoming break, we're planning to arrange an academic exchange with your forr high school. Surprised?"
...
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