"This year will be a pain." - Daichi lifted his head slightly up looking at the sky.
"Hey, do you know where the Hall for the first-year Entrance Ceremony is?" - A boy filled with enthusiasm asked Daichi in such a way which he considers loud.
"Huh?" - Daichi seemed surprised; it was very unlikely anyone would actually try to start a conversation with him.
The boy was not that tall; he could be considered equal to Daichi, but he was bulky, not too much, just so you could tell that he would not run out of stamina even after playing sports like football or basketball for an hour or two, clearly indicating that he was an athlete.
Just by his speech and his style of approaching, Daichi concluded that the boy wasn't some normal school boy; he was a well-experienced extrovert with groups that 'often' hang out together.
The boy was handsome, just enough to be considered above average. To be honest, his looks were described more accurately as cute; he was overly excited, showing his youthful nature.
Just the type that Daichi always wants to avoid.
Daichi then turns to the boy and says, "I am a first-year too," he said, not as welcoming as the boy.
"ohh sorry! I thought you were a second year or higher because you look way too unmotivated to be a first year."
Daichi turns his head around looking around him.
(Daichi felt something or someone looking at him but due to the crowd he wasn't able to make sure who it was.)
"Was that supposed to be a compliment or an insult?" - he replied in a cold way.
"No I mean...a compliment."
"I guess so, well then I assume you are a first year too."
"Uhmm... ya I am" - the boy looked very surprised.
"Leave that and find the hall then," Daichi said, pointing toward the crowd.
"Ok" - saying this, the boy disappeared in the crowd.
sigh...
("It's good that he doesn't have a sharp intuition or he could tell that by just following the crowd we can reach the hall.")
("Good thing I didn't tell him; if I told him this, then he would demand going to the hall together.")
Daichi felt relieved. Spending more time with that boy would definitely draw attention—something he couldn't afford as a special recommendation.
Daichi thinks it will be for his best interest to not let anyone know that he is a special recommendation and mutters to himself - "I would rather die than tell anyone that I am a special recommendation."
"Ahh, what was that?" - the boy asked in a rather curious way.
"Huh!!" - Daichi got startled and almost tripped.
"How are you here? You were supposed to be searching for the Entrance ceremony hall?" - Daichi asked the boy in a loud manner.
"Ohh about that, the girls over there told that the hall is at the end of the decorations in exchange for my contact info, aren't they so nice?" - saying this, he waved his hand to the girls and smiled as they waved back.
(That was close...)
But when the boy turned to Daichi, they turned like an evil spirit who were disgusted by Daichi's presence near that boy.
Daichi ignored them and said, "Good for you, well then by..." before he finished, the boy said enthusiastically, "Let's go there quickly before we are late."
"Eh... uhmm... No I will go to washroom first" - he couldn't say no directly to his face.
"Oh, I also wanted to go to the washroom, let's go together then," - he said with a joyful look on his face which became shinier than usual.
On the other hand, Daichi's face became pale and even more dead than usual.
"What a coincidence!" - Daichi said in a low undead voice and started moving in a random direction.
The boy followed him to the end of the stroll, and at the end, they entered the washroom.
(Dang it, why is this boy attached to me like a magnet? If this continues, my secret will be revealed in no time, and so will my high school life.)
Daichi looked at the mirror and saw his face and was slightly surprised. He never thought he could get so irritated at someone except his mother.
Then Daichi smirked a little and headed towards the exit, thinking about how to get rid of that 'extra luggage.'
(How do I get rid of him....)
Then suddenly he noticed a cluster of people surrounding something or rather someone.
"You are Haruto, Haruto Minami, right?" - one girl said.
"Yeah, I knew it! You were Haruto, the ace of Basketball," - another girl said.
(Haruto Minami? Never heard of him. Well, I am not into sports anyways.)
"Where is that boy, did he leave already..." - Daichi's heart filled with joy.
"Well it was bound to happen..."
But suddenly Daichi's keen intuition struck, and he looked at the crowd carefully.
"We went to watch that match of yours; it was awesome!" said another girl.
"Yeah, the last three-pointer throw was amazing; that made the whole team win," - the second girl finished.
"The whole team worked equally hard, and we won because of the extraordinary efforts made by the whole team," - Haruto said in a low and worried voice, looking here and there.
(I knew it. He wasn't a normal ordinary school student; he was some sort of celebrity.)
(God really exists; I have to take this opportunity and make it to the hall as quickly as possible.)
"You are so humbled as always."
Exactly that happened: what Haruto feared. People started gathering around Haruto like bees around a beehive.
"Ah... guys, there is da... entrance... ceremony..." - before Haruto could finish, he was already engulfed in the crowd.
Daichi took advantage of the situation and slipped right past the crowd.
"Finally I am free now; this surely took a lot of my time."
"Let's head towards the hall," - Daichi said to himself and started moving towards the hall.
"Woah, the hallways aren't half bad, and the school itself is pretty big. No wonder this is called the most elite school of Japan."
(Finally I am here. Dang, this surely is a huge hall; it might have a capacity of thousands of students.)
"The seats are almost full, and it is almost time."
"I hope he made it here in time."
(Well, it is not my fault that he got a big fan following there, though I feel bad for him.) - Daichi made himself comfortable on one of the chairs and started looking around.
Daichi noticed a person who looked like a 2nd-year student who was wearing glasses with a serious look. He was giving out an honored student aura, and everyone around him was talking to him in a very formal manner—or that's what could be seen from where Daichi is sitting.
He was holding a clipboard with a lot of papers and a pen in his hand, but many were holding these two things. Yet, he stood out among all of them.
By this observation, he concluded that he was the president of the student council or an administrator of this event.
As it was almost time, everyone who was talking in a group started sitting in the chairs, and the hall was becoming quieter than before.
All the students who were holding clipboards and the students who were inspecting the decorations started moving towards the backstage.
Daichi then noticed a huge crowd was settling down.
(What's this, another celebrity?)
He then saw a silvery white flash there - "The goddess of the school, though I forgot her name."
"Hmm... now that I look at it, she does have eye-catching features."
"Huh, is she... no way. The students from the student council are really offering her cushions to sit on."
"Well, would you look at that? She really is treated like a goddess." - Daichi looked very surprised in an obvious way.
(All that while we were sitting on these metal chairs.)
(The student council also favors her; crossing paths with her will be certain death. Better look out for that.)
Daichi then started looking around in a disappointed way; his expression wasn't very hard to read.
But soon he returned to his senses as he noticed the nerdy-looking creepy stalker looking at her. He was exactly five chairs away from him. It was not very far from him to notice that—"The guy is literally drooling while looking at the goddess, like literally."
"And what the hell is he writing in that notebook of his?"
"He is a lot scarier than I thought. I hope someone could tell the goddess that she doesn't have very normal worshippers."
"Well, elite schools like this aren't very different from normal ones after all."
"Hmm... come to think of it..."
He took another look around and said to himself, "All students are either from very rich families or they are sons or daughters of renowned personalities. I will have a real hard time being around here."
"It is getting hot here..."
"Oh, I guess it is going to start soon..." - Daichi relaxed a little and took out a bottle from his bag.
(I am sitting at the second-last row, so it isn't very far from one of the hall's gates. I could hear every time someone enters or leaves, but it doesn't matter because I am neither interested in anyone nor do I know anyone well enough.)
"Uhmm... can I sit here?" - a boy asked someone at the back row of Daichi.
"Yea... you really gonna sit, really?" - a girl asked in a hyperactive way.
"Yes, if you let me," - the boy replied.
Daichi was unhinged by the commotion at his back; instead, he opened the cap of the bottle and took a sip of water.
(What's going on? I guess another celebrity appeared.)
"Hi..." - the boy tapped Daichi's shoulder.
Daichi was still on the verge of swallowing the water, and at the sudden call from someone, he got startled and started coughing like he was coughing up his entire digestive system.
Due to the sudden loud sound, the entire hall became silent, and everyone in the hall turned towards Daichi, including the goddess and the creepy worshipper.
As Daichi recovered from the cough, he looked around him in a panicked way and felt ashamed for becoming the center of attention.
"Sorry for startling you," - Haruto said to Daichi in a rather low voice than he was used to.
(Sorry, my ass; you choked me to death) - Daichi thought this, but neither did he have the guts nor any intention to say it aloud.
"It's ohkk..." - Daichi said while making a weird grin on his face.
"Anyway, what are you doing here?"
"I am here to attend the ceremony."
"No, I mean here at the end. You should be sitting at the front, right?" - Daichi said while closing the cap of the bottle.
"After all, you are too, very popular right?"
"No, I wouldn't say that much."
"Like... those girls over there are literally waving at you, and you are saying not that much?" - Daichi said, pointing towards the girls.
"I mean those just love watching basketball," - Haruto said with a joyful grin on his face.
(Yup! He is the humble, popular guy with good looks. Now I officially hate this dude.)
"Oh, I didn't introduce myself properly."
(Although I know most of the things due to those basketball lovers.)
"My name is Haruto Minami, and I am looking forward to becoming your good friend," - Haruto said in a very overjoyed way.
"Ehhh..." - Daichi looked very surprised.
"Huh..." - Haruto replied, looking very confused.
"Ahhh..." - Daichi said, still looking like he didn't understand human language anymore.
"What happened?"
"No... I was just zoning out."
(This dude literally told me that he wants to be a friend of MINE. Is he insane? Who in their right mind would make me, an average-looking loner, their friend? It would just ruin their reputation.)
"Uh... can you repeat that again?"
"Yes, my name is Haruto Minami, and I am looking forward to becoming your good friend," - Haruto said in a more overjoyed way than before.
"Good morning, everyone," - a teacher on the stage started the ceremony saying this.
"Oh, the ceremony started," - Haruto lowered his voice.
Daichi still looked very confused and surprised at the same time.
(I am done. From the moment I stepped into this school, I am only getting weirdos. This is such a pain.) - Daichi sighed, looking very stressed.
(And I don't even know the person who put me to this hell.)
(Anyway I really need to know what this dude really wants from me...)