"Before we end today's lesson," Sir Wilhelm said as he set the marker down, "I'd like one of you to solve a problem for the class."
Sir Wilhelm had only been our teacher for a few days, but I'd already heard plenty about him from the upper years, he had a way of making even the most difficult lessons feel approachable. So far, I couldn't disagree. He never spoke down to us, and every explanation seemed carefully paced, as though he genuinely wanted us to understand rather than simply keep up.
I'd also expected someone named Wilhelm to be an elderly professor with silver hair and decades of experience behind him.
I couldn't have been more wrong. He looked young—twenties young. I'd later learn he was the youngest teacher in the Mathematics Department.
He turned back to the board and, with practiced strokes, began writing.
[ tan⁻¹(2cos(2sin⁻¹(½))) + tan⁻¹(1) ]
When he finished, he stepped aside and folded his arms.
"We've only just begun discussing trigonometric functions, but they're one of the foundations you'll need before we move into calculus. Don't worry if it looks unfamiliar—that's exactly why I'm putting it up here."
A faint smile tugged at the corner of his mouth.
"But..." His eyes swept across the room.
"If anyone can solve it correctly, I'll exempt you from the quiz in today's lesson."
The classroom, which had been quietly taking notes only seconds earlier, suddenly felt different.
A quiz exemption.
A guaranteed perfect score.
This was an international academy. Every student in this room had earned their seat here, and none of them liked passing up an opportunity to get ahead.
Before I could think twice, my hand shot into the air so quickly that my shoulder seemed to register the decision before my brain did.
Please.
Pick me.
Please pick me.
Almost immediately, another hand went up.
Then another.
Then several more.
Within seconds, nearly half the class was volunteering.
I glanced around the classroom. Some wore the confident smile that said they'd already figured it out, while others stared quietly at the board, their eyes tracing the equation as they worked through it in their heads.
At the front row by the windows, Serena hesitated for a moment before slowly raising her hand, a small smile still resting on her face. She looked less like someone trying to win the exemption and more like someone who simply wanted to know the answer.
Farther back, in the third row, fourth seat, Clement had his hand raised as well. He leaned slightly over his desk, absentmindedly twirling his pen between his fingers while waiting to be called.
Across the aisle, from the second row, fourth seat, Yuna Natsuki slipped off her glasses before enthusiastically raising her hand, as though she'd already learned they wouldn't survive the motion. She practically looked ready to leap from her seat, a grin spreading across her face as though the equation were the most exciting thing she'd seen all morning.
Then…
Han Seon-woo raised his hand.
I'd heard his name more than once during orientation. The heir to a well-known Korean conglomerate. A familiar face at interschool academic competitions long before transferring here, or so people claimed.
Rumours had a habit of growing on their own.
Even so, Seon-woo didn't so much as glance around the room. His attention remained on the equation, his expression unchanged, as though nothing else in the classroom mattered.
All of them maybe already knew the solution, or maybe they were just as confident they could find it before anyone else.
It didn't matter.
So was I.
This was my chance.
I didn't want to prove I belonged here.
I wanted to prove I could go beyond them.
"Rael." Sir Wilhelm nodded toward the board. "Let's see your solution."
"Yes, sir." I rose as calmly as I could manage, though it took every ounce of self-control not to grin.
But inside, I was celebrating.
I walked toward the front of the room, trying my best to look composed. As I passed between the rows of desks, I couldn't help stealing a glance at the classmates who'd lowered their hands.
Heh. Sorry, everyone.
Better luck next time.
I picked up a piece of chalk and faced the board.
This was it.
The moment.
Everything I'd imagined over the last ten seconds had led to this.
As the chalk touched the board—
The bell rang.
Its sharp chime echoed through the classroom.
Sir Wilhelm looked toward the clock."...Well," a small chuckle escaped him. "Looks like that's our time."
My hand stopped moving."...Sir?"
"I suppose we'll have to continue this another day." He smiled apologetically before turning back to the class. "For your homework, read page eleven of your Mathematics II textbook. We'll discuss it tomorrow."
The students immediately began closing notebooks, sliding chairs back, and packing their bags. Meanwhile…
I was still standing at the board, chalk still in hand. Any excitement I'd been carrying moments ago had vanished, leaving me rooted in place with the unmistakable feeling that all the colour had just left my face.
Sir Wilhelm walked past me on his way to the door and gave my shoulder a light pat. "Don't worry," he said with an amused smile. "You'll get another chance."
Then he left.
I slowly turned around.
Several classmates were already looking at me. Smirks spread across a few faces, subtle but unmistakable, as though the bell had just solved the problem for them. Someone let out a quiet laugh. Another gave me a sympathetic smile that somehow felt even worse.
"...Tch." I clicked my tongue and rolled my eyes.
Just you all wait. Next time, that exemption's mine.
With a quiet sigh, I stuffed my notebook back into my bag. Whatever enthusiasm I'd walked to the board with had completely evaporated.
"...Are you sure you didn't just experience a major tragedy?"
I looked up, momentarily caught off guard. I hadn't even noticed someone had walked over. Serena stood beside my desk, hands clasped behind her back, the corners of her lips curling into an amused smile.
"...Was it that obvious?"
A soft giggle escaped her before she answered.
"I thought you were going to solve it."
"So did I."
"...Looks like the bell solved it before I could."
She covered her mouth as another laugh slipped out, her shoulders rising just enough to give it away.
"...I don't think that's how it works."
"Maybe..." She tilted her head ever so slightly, the smile never leaving her face."...I think it does."
I could only let out another defeated sigh.
"...Well, don't worry." She gave a small, encouraging nod, her expression softening just a little. "You'll get another chance."
"...That's exactly what Sir Wilhelm said."
"See?" A quiet laugh found its way into her voice as her smile brightened again. "Then it must be true."
Before I could think of a reply, she adjusted the strap of her bag before placing her white bucket hat back on her head, smoothing it into place with both hands.
"I'm heading back to the garden."
I blinked, the sudden change of topic taking me a second to catch up.
"...The garden?"
"Mhm."
"What for?"
"To collect more maple leaves."
She said it so naturally that it almost sounded like the most obvious thing in the world.
Without waiting for another question, she turned on her heel.
Her steps were light, almost buoyant, as she disappeared into the stream of students. She turned on her heel and disappeared into the stream of students, the pale bucket hat bobbing gently above the crowd until I finally lost sight of it.
...
I watched her disappear into the stream of students.
Come to think of it...she'd been collecting the same thing beneath the maple tree this morning.
Why was she collecting maple leaves, anyway?
The lunch bell had barely faded by the time I stepped out of the classroom.
Students poured into the corridors, their conversations quickly swallowing the silence the lesson had left behind. Some made straight for the cafeteria, while others wandered through the courtyard, taking the long way as if forty-five minutes of freedom somehow deserved to be savored.
The cafeteria.
I wonder what's for lunch.
Maybe something decent for once.
As I made my way across the courtyard, my hand slipped into my pocket more out of habit than intention. My fingers brushed against the library card Cyrus had returned earlier, prompting me to pull it out and idly turn it over in my hand. The small USB attached to one corner caught the sunlight.
I'd noticed it during orientation, but I'd never really questioned why it was there. Was it for school files? Digital textbooks? Or something else entirely? My thumb absentmindedly traced along its edge as I walked.
Anything was better than replaying what had just happened.
It lasted all of three seconds.
Before I knew it, I was already back at the board, chalk in hand, staring at the equation... and then the bell.
I shut my eyes for a brief moment.
Could my brain please let it go already?
"...Why didn't you just keep writing?"
The voice slipped into my thoughts so suddenly that I looked up before I realized someone had spoken to me. Han Seon-woo had somehow fallen into step beside me. I hadn't even noticed him catch up.
"...Because class ended?" I answered, almost instinctively, as though the reason should've been obvious.
He studied me for a brief moment, his expression giving away nothing.
"You were already at the board."
"So?"
"You could've finished it."
I scoffed, more out of reflex than amusement.
"...It's the bell."
The excuse left my mouth almost defensively, as though saying it with enough confidence would somehow make it sound reasonable. "What if Sir Wilhelm got mad?"
"They would've considered it." His tone stayed as calm as ever. "You were already solving it."
I frowned. I knew he had a point. I just wasn't about to admit it.
"...Or they would've considered it disrespectful."
"I doubt it."
He kept his eyes on the path ahead, speaking as casually as if we were discussing the weather. After a few more steps, he spoke again.
"The schools I attended in Korea would've let you finish," he said matter-of-factly. "They cared more about whether you could solve the problem than whether the bell had already rung."
A small nerve twitched at my temple. "...Good for you, then." I looked ahead, following the curve of the stone path instead of meeting his eyes.
"Besides..." His voice broke the quiet. "No one actually told you to stop."
I tried to think of a comeback, but every excuse sounded weaker than the last. That was the frustrating part.. For all the irritation he was causing me, he wasn't entirely wrong.
I exhaled through my nose. For some reason, swallowing my pride felt far more difficult than it should have. "...Fine. You win." ."
He let out a faint chuckle and adjusted the collar of his blazer with an almost practiced ease, as though conceding arguments to him was simply part of everyday life.
I could already feel another nerve twitching.
As we rounded the bend in the courtyard, he finally looked over at me.
"...Call me Seo."
I glanced at him. Whatever curiosity I'd had about him had long since been replaced by irritation.
"I don't think I need to introduce myself."
"You already did that on the first day."
"That was an introduction." He flashed a knowing smile, as though he were doing me a favor. "This is permission."
"Sure, Seo." I took a slow breath, smoothing the irritation off my face until all that remained was a smile polite enough to pass for sincerity. "Looking forward to getting along."
For the next minute or so, I seriously entertained several different ways of punching him.
None of them ended particularly well for me; still, it was nice to imagine.
By the time the cafeteria building came into view, the lunchtime crowd had already begun spilling across the open plaza leading to its entrance. Just beyond the steps, beside one of the stone planters, Seon-woo suddenly slowed to a stop.
His smug expression disappeared almost immediately.
I followed his gaze.
A girl stood waiting beneath the shade of a nearby tree, her dark hair shifting gently in the breeze. Even from here, it wasn't hard to guess she was Korean.
"...I'll see you around."
Without waiting for a reply, he headed toward her. I watched him for a moment.
...Huh.
That was the first time he'd looked anything less than confident.
Girlfriend?
…
No. If anything, he looked like he was walking toward a thesis defense.
Maybe they were arguing. Or... an ex?
I gave one last glance in their direction before turning back toward the cafeteria. Whatever was going on between them wasn't any of my business, and I'd only known Seo for all of ten minutes. There was no reason to start inventing stories about someone I'd just met.
...Koreans.
Always finding themselves in some kind of romance drama.
The moment I stepped into the cafeteria, the steady murmur of conversation washed over me.
The lunch rush was already in full swing. Trays clinked against countertops, conversations overlapped from every direction, and the aroma of freshly prepared meals filled the spacious hall. Despite the constant flow of people moving between the serving stations, everything unfolded with an almost practiced rhythm.
I fell in line, letting my gaze drift across the menu boards suspended above the counters. Most of the selections were exactly what I'd expected—rice meals, pasta, ramen, a handful of Western dishes, and the usual assortment of drinks and desserts. Nothing stood out enough to deserve a second glance.
Until one item near the bottom did.
[ Carolina Reaper Udon — 900,000 SHU]
I stopped reading. For a second, I genuinely wondered if I'd misread it.
"What...?" I leaned in slightly, scanning the words again just to be sure. "...They serve what?!"
By the time I reached the front of the line, my curiosity had already won. I pointed toward the menu board above the counter.
"Excuse me... is the Carolina Reaper Udon actually real?"
The cafeteria attendant smiled, as though she'd been asked the same question countless times before.
"It is, but it isn't part of our regular menu." She gestured toward a laminated clipboard resting beside the register.
"We only prepare it upon request. Students who want to order it have to sign a waiver first. Since it's an extremely spicy dish, we require written consent acknowledging that the school won't be held responsible for any adverse reactions."
"Seriously?"
She nodded with an understanding smile "We also have an age requirement. Only students who are at least eighteen years old are allowed to order it."
"I see. Thank you." I looked back up at the menu, still trying to process what I'd just heard.
This school was weird.
"What about eating a pair of maple leaves?" A familiar voice interrupted my thoughts, something soft then brushed against my face.
Two maple leaves.
I blinked, plucked them off my forehead, and turned around. Serena stood behind me, gently twirling another maple leaf between her fingers, the corners of her lips already curling into a sheepish smile.
"If you're planning to cut in line," I said before she could continue, "I'm afraid I'll have to stop you. The end of the line's back there."
She blinked, her eyes widening for a split second before she looked at me as if she couldn't believe what she'd just heard.
"...Hey! I'm not trying to cut in line."
"Mhm."
"You're enjoying this way too much!" She drew a quiet breath through her nose, the tiny protest fading into an almost reluctant smile. "...I came here to ask you a favor."
I tilted my head slightly, waiting to see where this was going.
"...I broke my chopsticks."
"I see."
She remained standing there, looking at me with the unmistakable expectation that I'd say something helpful.
"...So..."
"...So?"
I simply waited for her to finish the thought herself. "...You could line up again and get another yourself."
Her shoulders slumped, like someone who already knew she wasn't going to win.
"You're terrible."
"I prefer 'reasonable.'"
She puffed out her cheeks, looking thoroughly unconvinced. By then, the cafeteria attendant returned with my tray.
"Your order, sir."
"Oh, and..." I looked back at Serena before turning to the attendant. "Could I also have an extra pair of chopsticks?"
"Of course."
A moment later, the attendant handed them over. I took the spare pair and held them out.
"Here."
Serena accepted them with both hands. "Thank you..." She paused, narrowing her eyes at me in exaggerated disappointment. "...But you really shouldn't treat your friends like that."
I stared at her for a second, wondering how she'd managed to make me the bad guy.
"You still got what you wanted."
"That's not the point."
"It sounds exactly like the point."
She let out a tiny huff, though it faded almost as quickly as it came.
I picked up my tray and turned toward the dining area. Serena fell into step beside me without so much as asking, balancing her own tray carefully as we weaved through the lunchtime crowd.
...
I wasn't entirely sure when that happened.
By the time we reached an empty table near the windows, it somehow felt stranger to point it out than to simply sit down.
I slid my tray onto the table.
Then something she'd said a moment ago finally caught up with me. "...Hold on."
Serena looked up as she set her drink beside her tray.
"When did we become friends?"
She tilted her head, blinking at me as though the question itself had caught her off guard.
"...Aren't we?" she asked, her attention already drifting to the fresh pair of chopsticks in her hands. She absentmindedly started pulling them apart.
"I don't think that's how it works. We've only known each other for a few days."
"Oops." Her hands stopped halfway.
A quiet laugh escaped her as she finished separating them much more carefully this time, scratching her cheek in mild embarrassment.
"You caught me!"
I watched her look down at the chopsticks, a brief look of panic crossing her face as though she'd expected to find two broken halves again. Instead, they were perfectly intact.
"...Were you listening?"
"I was." She nodded without looking up from the chopsticks. "Mostly."
I let out a quiet sigh and reached for my drink, taking an absentminded sip before finally picking up my own chopsticks.
"Then... I should ask you properly."
She leaned forward and smiled—the bright, uncomplicated kind that somehow made everything sound perfectly reasonable.
"Rael..." She held out her hand.
"Let's be friends!"
I stared at her outstretched hand for a moment.
...
Somehow, I'd expected something far more complicated. Instead, it was just a simple invitation. A smile found its way onto my face before I could stop it.
"...No."
She froze, her hand still suspended awkwardly between us.
"H-Hey..." Her brows drew together in bewildered protest. "...You're messing with me again, aren't you?"
A quiet laugh escaped me as I shook my head. "You don't have to ask." I reached forward and took her hand, giving it a gentle shake.
"We're already friends."
She blinked, the confusion on her face lingering for just a moment.
"...But you literally just—"
"Didn't you already decide that for me?"
Her cheeks puffed out as she looked away with exaggerated dissatisfaction.
"...You made me say all that."
I laughed, unable to keep a straight face anymore.
She watched me for a moment, still trying to hold onto the sulk. Then the corners of her mouth betrayed her, and before long, she was laughing too.
The moment settled into something unexpectedly comfortable.
"Rael?"
The familiar voice pulled my attention toward the aisle between the tables. I looked up.
"Elian."
He made his way toward our table, offering the sort of careful wave that somehow looked hesitant halfway through.
Elian was one of those people who made almost everything look effortless. Sports came naturally to him. Academics rarely seemed to give him much trouble either, and with a face like his, it wasn't surprising that people were drawn to him.
Unfortunately...
Keeping a conversation alive was apparently where the universe decided to draw the line.
Elian stopped beside the table. "Oh..." he looked at Serena for a moment, as though trying to figure out how to acknowledge someone he'd never spoken to before.
"Um..." His eyes flicked from her to me, then back again, visibly searching for the right words.
"...Nice to meet you?"
"That's…the wrong phrase," I said, unable to stop myself.
"...Yeah..."
He rubbed the back of his neck, looking as though he'd realized it the instant the words left his mouth. "Sorry."
He looked back at Serena, the question plainly written across his face. "...Who is she?"
"My new friend," I replied, gesturing toward Serena with my chopsticks.
Technically…
That had happened about five seconds ago.
Elian stared at me, his expression caught somewhere between confusion and admiration.
"...Rael."
"Hm?"
He hesitated, lightly rubbing his thumb against the edge of his sleeve as he searched for the right words.
"How are you so good at talking to people?"
"...I'm not."
I shook my head, setting my chopsticks down for a moment.
"You're just unusually bad at it."
"...Oh." His shoulders sank a little, as though he couldn't even argue with that assessment. "...Okay..." He stared down at the floor for a moment, quietly accepting the verdict. "...Sorry."
"...Actually..."
Elian lifted his head again, though his eyes still wandered for a moment before finally settling on me. He fidgeted with the cuff of his sleeve, looking as though he was debating whether to say it out loud.
"I wanted to ask you something."
"Go ahead."
He drew a quiet breath, hesitating just long enough to make me wonder if he'd changed his mind. "...I think I have a crush."
Serena's reaction was immediate. Her eyes brightened, and she leaned forward with unmistakable curiosity, as though someone had just announced the beginning of a story she absolutely couldn't miss.
"...Really?"
I looked from her to Elian.
He really decided to confess that in front of someone he'd met less than a minute ago.
Then again...
It was a little late to take it back now.
"...Who is it?"
Elian looked up toward the ceiling for a moment, visibly trying to organize his thoughts into something resembling a description.
"Do you know..." he hesitated, choosing each word with unusual care. "The girl with the glasses...she's always really energetic in class."
Serena and I instinctively looked at one another.
"...Yuna Natsuki?"
Elian blinked, looking genuinely taken aback that she'd identified the girl so quickly.
"...That's her name?"
Serena couldn't help laughing, the coincidence evidently amusing her.
"You know..." She smiled proudly.
"I'm actually her closest friend."
The conversation drifted naturally from there.
Between Elian's hesitant explanations and Serena's occasional questions, I slowly pieced together the picture.
They talked.
More often than I'd expected, actually.
Yuna would strike up conversations before class, wave at him from across the hallway whenever she spotted him, and had even come to watch one of his volleyball tryouts. She'd cheered his name with enough enthusiasm to leave him wondering if the entire gymnasium had heard it.
The tryout wasn't an isolated incident, either. Whenever she spotted him in the hallway, she'd call out his name as if the distance between them simply didn't exist.
I couldn't decide what impressed me more—that she'd done all of that in three days, or that Elian had remembered every single one of those moments.
"Then what's stopping you?"
He looked up, the question seeming to pull him back to the present.
"Why not tell her?"
The faint smile he'd been wearing slowly disappeared, leaving behind the same uncertainty that had been there from the beginning.
"...Because if I'm wrong..."
His eyes drifted toward the tabletop, lingering there as though the answer were somehow written into the wood grain.
"...I'll lose what I already have."
His fingers absentmindedly traced the edge of the table before coming to a stop.
"What if she's only kind because that's the kind of person she is?"
"If I confess..." he hesitated, the rest of the thought seeming heavier now that he'd finally put it into words."...Everything changes."
I drew a quiet breath, already turning his words over in my head. Just as I was about to answer, Serena spoke first.
"Can I ask you something?"
Elian gave a small nod, waiting quietly for her to continue.
"If Yuna confessed to someone else tomorrow..."
She let the thought linger for a brief moment, her voice gentler than it had been throughout our conversation.
"...Would you regret staying silent?"
Elian fell silent. His gaze drifted to the table as Serena rested her chin lightly on her hand, patiently waiting instead of pressing him for an answer.
I found myself looking at Serena a little differently.
Until now, I'd only known the cheerful girl who collected maple leaves, laughed at her own mistakes, and somehow managed to smile through almost everything.
I hadn't expected this side of her.
"Rejection hurts."
"But regret has a habit of staying with you much longer."
She smiled—not because she thought she had the perfect answer, but because she wanted him to know he wasn't being judged.
For someone who seemed to float through life so effortlessly, she spoke about love with a surprising amount of clarity.
Elian didn't answer immediately.
He sat there quietly, turning her words over in his head before giving a slow nod.
"...I'll remember that."
Serena smiled, "If you want, I can tell you what girls usually like—"
"I think..." Elian gently cut her off.
He hesitated for only a moment before continuing, his voice carrying a quiet certainty it hadn't had before.
"...I'd rather find out what Yuna likes."
"Not... what girls like."
"She's her own person."
For the first time since he'd walked over to our table, he smiled without looking uncertain.
Serena's expression softened. "That's a good answer."
Elian nodded once, "Thank you." With that, he excused himself, disappearing into the lunch crowd with noticeably lighter steps than when he'd arrived.
I watched him go before glancing back at Serena.
"...You're surprisingly good at this."
She blinked. then laughed sheepishly, waving a hand as though trying to brush the compliment away.
"You're giving me way too much credit."
"Still."
I leaned back in my chair, absently nudging my tray aside as I studied her for a moment.
"You sound like someone who's been through this before."
In all honesty, I'd already convinced myself I knew the answer. No one spoke about relationships that naturally without having experienced one.
Serena smiled, and a quiet laugh escaped her.
"I haven't." She paused, almost as though amused by my expression.
"When it comes to romance..."
"...I don't have any experience at all."