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Ren and her parents were in the principal's office. The principal, Mr. Masaru, was in his mid-sixties. He was tall and slender.
His tiny eyes were like two dots on his face, but they were eyes that had seen a whole lot in his lifetime—eyes that had witnessed unpleasant experiences and had looked greedily at money.
In his younger days, as tiny as those eyes were, people, especially girls, found them sexy and always told him he had beautiful eyes. His well-trimmed brows enhanced such beauty.
His face was wrinkled, and the wrinkles deepened when he laughed, especially at the sides of his eyes. But it was worth celebrating that he'd gotten this old yet looked very strong, hale and hearty. He looked stronger than most young people.
His voice was deep and thunderous. When he talked, one might fear he'd used all his might, but nah, it didn't take an iota of strength from him.
There were three visitor chairs facing Mr. Masaru's chair, with a table separating them. Ren and her parents occupied the chairs.
Mr. Masaru had quickly done a background check and knew this family was wealthy, so he was masking the smiling face he usually wore whenever he saw a wealthy person or money.
The hot coffee given to Tadashi and Yuzu in their mugs smelled fresh and rich. The aroma of the coffee filled the office. Fragrant steam swirled from the warmth of the coffee.
Their meeting was coming to an end. Mr. Masaru gave them a form to sign, which they did. He then informed them Ren was now one of his students.
Ren's eyes lit up, burning brightly. Her face beamed, her happiness flowed like a stream. She clapped her hands, but not loudly. Her seat couldn't contain her anymore. She felt like she grew massive.
Mr. Masaru glanced at her, a knowing smile on his lips. He wondered what was so special about the school for someone who left the wealthiest school for a place like this. With how happy she was, he bet nothing could spoil her joy.
But wait!
You might be wondering how Taku's parents were able to pay Akira and Mao's tuition fees, considering how impoverished they were.
The kids were on scholarship. Itsuki did that for kids from penniless families just to show he was a philanthropist, but it was not for nothing…
There was a cruel price to be paid, fueled by unbridled deceit.
Tadashi took out a check and a pen from the breast pocket of his classic suit. Mr. Masaru suddenly bolted upright, craning his neck and fixing an intense, avaricious gaze at the check.
Tadashi wrote a check, then gave it to Mr. Masaru. "My family and I are donating fifty million Yen to the school."
Mr. Masaru grinned widely. He was expecting it, but not such a huge amount. He snatched the check from Tadashi, his greedy eyes devouring the check to confirm the huge sum. When he was satisfied, he looked up at Tadashi.
"Thank you very much for your generosity, Mr. and Mrs.," he cast a quick gaze at Yuzu, then Tadashi. "Your daughter is in good hands. We will take great care of her." He shook hands with them.
"Thank you, Principal," Tadashi and Yuzu replied with smiles on their faces.
***
The family driver helped Ren bring her suitcases. They stood at the door of her room in the girl's dormitory. She wouldn't let him go in.
"Keep it here, Aoto. Go back and drive my parents home. I'll be fine."
"No, I…"
"It's fine, Aoto."
"Okay, okay, okay." He nodded and left.
Ren closed her eyes, her heart pounding slowly in her chest. She felt an arching anxiety. She fluttered her eyes open. She bit her fingers nervously, her eyes moving sideways rapidly. She inhaled deeply and exhaled. She was about to place her hand on the doorknob when the door swung open.
The stale sweat of an unwashed body, like a decaying fish oozing from the girl's body who opened the door, clung to Ren's nose. Ren was forced to wrinkle her nose slightly, but she didn't do it in an offending manner.
The girl's shaggy hair was messy, heavy bundle of strings, like a ditched mop. Ren could see live lice crawling on her hair. Her face was pale and oddly oily, caused by lack of good hygiene and care.
She wondered if she was a student; if she was, she could be her roommate. She had fantasized about the roommate she would be seeing. It was nothing like what was standing before her. Anyway, she was excited she had a roomie, no matter how unbelievably this one seemed.
She brought out her hand for a handshake. "I'm…"
Midori slipped back to her bed. She sat on her bed, hugging her legs, and just stared at the stranger at her door. She'd wished she would never have a roomie, but she knew that wasn't possible.
If her parents were wealthy, they would have bought the principal with money into doing that for her, but phew, they weren't even close to average.
She was on her bed when she heard the voices of Ren and her driver. The voices died off, but she smelled that a human was still standing there for ages. She decided to open the door, wondering if the person had gone numb.
Ren cocked her head into the room. The room was worse than the human she had seen standing like a disheveled ghost before her. The room was literally turned upside down.
After the incident that had happened between Midori and Noa in her room, Midori never cleaned up the room.
She closed her eyes. "I made this decision myself," she muttered under her breath. She exhaled softly, then smiled.
She clutched the handle of her suitcases, one in each hand, and rolled them inside.
The moment she entered the room, she stepped on broken glass. She winced.
"Ugh!" She let go of the suitcases she was holding. She squatted and then checked the injury. It was gushing blood. Blood covered her foot, grievously staining the floor.
Midori's throat contracted hungrily at the sight of the blood. She buried her face in her pillow.
Ren stood up and dragged her suitcases inside, making a blood print of her foot on the floor as she limped.
She kept her bag close to where she assumed was her bed.
She left for the school clinic, taking directions from students. Her foot was treated, and then she got back to the room.
She still found her new roomie lying on the bed with her face buried in her pillow, just the way she left.
"She must be really weird," she concluded in her head.
She started arranging the room. She swept the room meticulously so as not to leave any broken glass on the floor. She kept things in order as they should be. Then she started mopping the room, cleaning the floor of all the dirt and bloodstains.
Before she could finish with all the cleaning, it was twilight. The incandescent light bulb glowed brightly, engulfing the room, freezing out the milky glow of the moon.
She cocked her head outside the window and looked up; the moon graced the sky. She imagined her name spelled on the sky and she chuckled. The moon, a loving and enchanting sight, was glowing with all its radiance. She imagined her parents with her on the moon.
Speaking of them, she missed her parents, but she was ready to enjoy the goodness of being a boarding student and everything that came with it.
She dashed into the bathroom. The drizzle of the shower on her skin washed away the stress and fatigue of the day.
She came out of the bathroom, cleaned her body, and slipped into a neat pair of pajamas. She sat on her bed and took out a sheet face mask from its packet—a face moisturizer which contained soothing vitamins, glycolic, salicylic, and hyaluronic acid, charcoal, and gel. It offered hydration. It refreshed and smoothed the face.
She placed it gently on her face and felt its dampness and coolness. She smoothed it over her cheek and nose with light tappings.
She cleared her throat to get Midori's attention. She knew Midori wasn't sleeping and was listening to her.
"I'm Ren. I'm your new roomie. I'm new in this school, as you can see. I hope we get along. I'm easygoing," she chuckled. "I hope you will help me get settled. Thank you so much." She gave a light beam.
She waited for Midori's response, but she didn't get any. Her phone rang. It was her mom.
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