First Day

The sun was barely up, and I was already awake, staring at the ceiling in my room. Today was the day—my first day at Matsugaya High. After a week of hearing Aisha talk up the school, I was finally going to see what all the fuss was about. But instead of feeling confident and ready, there was a tight knot in my stomach, like I'd downed a gallon of iced coffee in one go.

I took a deep breath, trying to steady myself. "You've got this," I muttered, forcing a smile in the mirror as I adjusted the collar of my shirt. "You've already met some of Aisha's friends. You're not going in blind."

I grabbed my backpack and headed downstairs, where Aisha was waiting. She was already dressed, her hair neatly done, and that bright smile of hers was as reassuring as ever.

"Ready to go, Motosaki?" she asked, her voice a mix of cheerfulness and amusement. "You look like you're about to head to a battlefield."

"Feels kind of like one," I admitted, slinging my bag over my shoulder. "But yeah, I'm ready."

"Alright, let's get going!~" Aisha giggled, grabbing her keys from the counter.

The two of us left the house and began making our journey to Matsugaya High for my first day. The walk to Matsugaya High was quieter than usual. Maybe it was the early morning, or maybe I was just lost in my own head, running through different scenarios of how the day could go. Aisha must've noticed because she started humming a tune, probably trying to lighten the mood. It worked, kind of. It was hard to stay tense when she was so relaxed.

"So, what's the plan? Are we walking straight to my class, or do I get to see everyone again?" I asked, trying to sound casual but probably failing miserably.

"Well, we'll go to the main building first to get your schedule and locker assigned. After that, we'll head to Class A-1, which is our homeroom," she explained, glancing over at me with a teasing smile. "And don't worry, I've already told the others to be nice to you today."

"Nice? After what Naomi said, I'm expecting her to hand me a list of chores as soon as I walk in," I joked, shaking my head.

Aisha laughed, the sound clear and light in the morning air. "Oh, she'll definitely tease you, but she means well. Besides, it'll be good for you to meet more people. Expand your circle a little bit."

I nodded, trying to focus on that. It's not like this was the first time I was the new kid, but being a transfer student in another country was a whole new level of intimidating. Still, I had Aisha. That made things a lot easier.

When we reached the school, the gates were already open, with students streaming in. It was a completely different vibe from last week when we had our quiet tour. The place was alive now, with groups of friends chatting and catching up, a mix of laughter and conversation filling the air. I could feel a few eyes on me as we walked through the entrance, probably curious about the new guy walking with Aisha.

"Welcome to Matsugaya High, Motosaki. Feeling overwhelmed yet?" Aisha said, glancing at me with a knowing smile.

I grinned, trying to match her energy. "Nah, just trying to take it all in. It's… big. Bigger than I expected."

"Yeah, it can be, but you'll get used to it." She led me toward the administration office, where we needed to pick up my schedule. "Let's get you settled in first, and then I can show you where all the important stuff is."

Inside the office, everything felt a bit more formal and structured. The staff behind the desk handed me my schedule and a small map of the school. I glanced down at the paper, scanning the list of classes. Math, English, History, a few electives… it looked like a typical setup, except for the Japanese language course Aisha had insisted I take.

"Looks like you're starting right at the top, Class A-1," Aisha said, peeking over my shoulder. "Not that I'm surprised."

"Well, you did say I should get ready for the big leagues," I replied, trying to keep the nervousness out of my voice. "Guess I'm jumping right in."

"Exactly! And don't worry, I'll make sure you find your way to all your classes." She pointed at the map, tracing a path from the main building to the various sections. "But for now, let's just get you to homeroom. The first day is usually pretty chill. You'll get to meet everyone, and then they'll probably just go over rules and expectations."

"Sounds… simple enough." I folded the map and slipped it into my pocket, hoping I wouldn't need it too much. "Let's do this."

As we left the office, Aisha took the lead, guiding me down the hallways. The school felt bigger with all the students around, but it was also less intimidating, like I was just another part of this big, moving machine. A few people glanced our way, some with curiosity, others with friendly smiles.

I recognized a couple of faces from lunch last week—Otsuki, Rebecca, even Naomi, who was already surrounded by a small group of students, talking animatedly. When she caught sight of us, she gave a dramatic wave, a sly grin spreading across her face.

"Looks like we're not the only ones excited about your first day," Aisha said, nudging me.

"Yeah, I'm sure she's got a whole list of ways to make me 'fall in line,'" I said with a chuckle, feeling a bit more at ease. "But hey, at least I'll never be bored."

"Exactly!" Aisha said, laughing as we continued down the hallway. "Just be yourself, Motosaki. That's all you need to do."

Finally, we stopped outside a door marked "A-1." The hallway was starting to fill up with students finding their own homerooms, and the chatter grew louder, bouncing off the walls. Aisha looked at me, her smile soft and reassuring.

"This is it," she said, squeezing my arm lightly. "Ready?"

I took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. "As I'll ever be."

"Good. Let's see how good you do," she said, giving me one last encouraging smile before she made her way into the classroom.

I watched her walk into the class first, then followed her and stepped inside. The classroom was bright, with sunlight streaming through the windows, and desks already filling with students. A few people glanced up when I entered, some whispering to each other, but I could see a few curious smiles too.

And just like that, my first day at Matsugaya High had officially begun.

{Chapter 5: First Day}

"Alright class, let's settle down now," The teacher said, standing in front of the board and pushed up his glasses. "As you can see, today we have a new student. Would you like to introduce yourself?"

I glanced at the teacher and nodded, walking to stand in front of the class. I scanned the classroom, noticing familiar faces—Otsuki, Rebecca, and Naomi sharing the same homeroom class with me. I noticed Aisha sitting next to Rebecca, giving me a thumbs up and a bright smile.

I smiled and gave the class a formal bow. "Good morning everyone. My name is Motosaki Izuna and I am a transfer student who came from America to finish my studies here in Japan."

"Wow, all the way from America?" One girl whispered to her friend.

"He speaks Japanese extremely well...has he gotten lessons before?" Another student murmured.

The teacher smiled and glanced at me. "Alright, good. By the way, I am your teacher for this year. My name is Mr. Hoshido. You may take your seat by the window beside Naomi. Naomi can you wave to Motosaki, so he'll know where you are."

I glanced at Naomi and noticed the empty seat beside her. Naomi smirked at me wiggling her fingers at me in a cute, yet demeaning manner. Just like that, I was already playing on Critical Mode, Max Difficulty.

I kept my cool and gave Mr. Hoshido a bow then began making my way to my seat. I sat down by the window taking my notebook out of my bag then set it down on my desk. While I prepared, I noticed a second notebook flop onto my desk, glancing over at Naomi.

Naomi gave me a sly smile, giggling softly. "Since you joined rather late, I thought it would be nice for me to give you the notes you missed~ Think of it as a favor from one friend to another."

I wanted to reject the offer to prove a point to her and so I didn't have to owe her aby favors, but since I was new I didn't want to seem ungrateful. I accepted her notes and just bit the bullet, now knowing I owed her one.

"Thank you, Naomi. I appreciate it," I said, giving her a warm smile.

Naomi chuckled softly, turning her attention back to the board, slightly flipping her hair. "Don't mention it..~"

Mr. Hoshido began to teach the class, starting the class with some basic calculus equations since we were starting with Math as the first subject. As the class went on, Mr. Hoshido called on a few students to answer a few questions on the board, even calling on me for a few questions.

Since I was already pretty big on numbers due to me studying in engineering, I answered the questions with relative ease. A few students were quite impressed with my knowledge, even some applauding which flustered me a bit.

The classes in Matsugaya High worked quite differently than classes in America. While America had periods for different core classes, Matsugaya had one period for all core classes needed for the day and the rest of the periods were extracurricular periods such as Art, Music, and Gym.

Soon, the bell rang for lunch, a few students getting up to head to the cafeteria while a few other students stayed in the class to hang out. Mr. Hoshido allowed his students to hang out in the class and some outside student to come into the class to hang out as well.

Naomi placed her desk right next to mine, smiling sweetly at me and giggled softly. "Well, seems like you survived your first day of class~ How was it? Hopefully it wasn't too hard for you."

"C'mon, Nao~ Don't tease him too much, it's only his first day," Aisha said, walking over to our desks and took her seat in front of us.

"I suppose so, but I still have to make him fall in line. Speaking of falling in line," Naomi chuckled and sat back in her seat, crossing her arms over her chest. She rose her hand and snapped her fingers, one of the guys hurrying over to our group.

"Uhm, yes Naomi, what can I do for you?" The guy asked, standing at attention in front of us.

'I actually have second hand embarrassment right now. I can't believe I'm actually witnessing this,' I thought, shaking my head slowly.

Naomi reached inside her purse, taking out ¥8,953 and handing it to the male student. "Benji, be a dear and get us some bento and drinks please~ And make sure to get one extra for Emma because she should be here at any moment from class A-2."

"Right away, Ma'am!" Benji said, hurrying off with the money to get us some bento and drinks as requested.

I watched Benji leave for a moment then glanced at Naomi with a raised eyebrow. "And you expect me to fall in line like him? He looked terrified of you."

"Well I am the Princess of Matsugaya just like my idol, Aubrie Acacia of Matsugaya University in America~" Naomi giggled, placing her hand elegantly in the middle of her chest.

'The Mega Bitch? Huh, now I can see the resemblance,' I thought, scratching the side of my head.

Suddenly, the classroom door swung open, capturing the attention of everyone in the classroom. We all turned our attention to the entrance, noticing Emma walking inside the classroom.

"Re-bec-ca!~ The best girl has arrived!~" Emma announced, making her way into the classroom.

"Emma, please refrain from announcing yourself so loudly. There's no need for the class downstairs to be able to hear you," Mr. Hoshido said, sitting at his desk and turning a page in his book.

Emma giggled softly, bowing at Mr. Hoshido. "Sorry, Mr. Hoshido~"

Rebecca chuckled softly at Emma, watching her approach our group and made room for her to squeeze in between her and Aisha. "So, how were your lessons? What did you go over with Mrs. Kendo?"

"Some boring Science and History. I swear, if I have to hear about the Legacy of Nobunaga one more time, I will actually go apeshit in the class," Emma groaned softly, resting her arms on the top of her head then glanced at me. She noticed a slight smirk on my face, her face scrunching into a frown. "What's so funny?"

"I dunno, maybe it's because last week you told me there was no room for slouchers, yet you're the only one not in Class A-1?" I said, raising an eyebrow with a teasing smirk.

Emma's left eye twitched, her frown turning into a glare. "I've only known you for a week and somehow I already kinda hate you just for that one comment."

"Uh-oh~ Looks like someone's now in that mode," Aisha giggled, glancing between me and Emma.

"I'll have you know that the only reason I'm not in Class A-1 is because I don't wanna make you all jealous with my superior intelligence!" Emma scoffed, turning her nose up and crossed her arms.

"She failed her Promotion Exams to enter my class, so she has to wait nine weeks to take it again," Mr. Hoshido said, listening in to our conversation.

Emma lowered her head with a defeated sigh. "Mr. Hoshido...you did not have to say that..."

"Well, someone needs to keep you humble," Mr. Hoshido said, continuing to read his book.

The rest of us shared a soft laugh, Rebecca patting Emma's back in a comforting manner. Soon, Benji returned with our bento and drinks and Naomi thanked him, giving him some money as a reward for his services.

The six of us began to enjoy our lunch together, the girls going on with their daily gossip while I sat back and just enjoyed my food in peace. In this moment, all of my worries were now forgotten as I spent time with the five girls and becoming a part of their clique.

After the lunch period ended, the six of us got up from our seats to throw away our trash and said our goodbyes to Mr. Hoshido. I looked at my schedule and noticed I had Art Class next and took out my map to see where the art class was located.

Aisha peeked over my shoulder, placing her hands on my arms and smiled. "Ooo~ Art Class today huh?~ Emma has that class so I'm sure she would like to be the one to show you around."

"Ugh...I suppose," Emma said, rolling her eyes.

"I also have Art Class, so I can tag along," Otsuki spoke, making her way toward me and Emma with elegant steps.

"Oh yeah, you do!~ Great, you can join us!~ Better than pretending I have actually enjoy being with Motosaki," Emma hummed, skipping forward to the art class.

'Geez, thanks,' I thought, rolling my eyes as I watched Emma skip toward the next class.

Aisha chuckled, shaking her head then gently placed her hand on my arm. "Have a nice day, I have music class today so I'll see you at the end of the day~"

I smiled at Aisha, nodding my head. "Alright, see you soon."

With that, the group split off with me, Otsuki, and Emma heading one way and Aisha, Rebecca, and Naomi headed the other. Otsuki and I walked side by side with Emma leading us down the hall through the sea of students.

"So, how do you like Matsugaya High so far? I know it can be a lot at first, but I'm sure you'll be able to find your way around," Otsuki said, holding her bag in front of her as she walked with me.

"It's honestly an experience. Maybe it's because I still have the new kid jitters, but overall I'm sure I'll adjust before the end of this week. Just have to find my bearings y'know," I answered, glancing at Otsuki with a warm smile.

Otsuki looked at me, smiling sweetly at me and giggled. "Yeah, I get that..~ I'm sure once you find your place around here, you'll fit right in like the rest of us~"

I chuckled, nodding at her words. "Thanks, Otsuki."

The three of us continued down the halls, making our way to our Art Class together. As we walked, Emma fell back to talk to Otsuki about the upcoming Art Project that the art teacher assigned.

Otsuki happily engaged in conversation with her, sounding rather excited for the project. I listened to them, growing more curious about the project they mentioned and wondered what the project was going to be about.