Time passed by quickly as the weekend quickly ended.
Monday had arrived, and it was once again time for students to go to school.
However, it seemed like even after last week's issue, another one soon came.
Haruya, carrying his bag, walked toward the classroom with Nagisa trailing slightly behind, chatting quietly about their weekend.
As he approached the door, something immediately caught his attention.
Ishida Shoya was already there, standing stiffly in front of his desk, his fists clenched tightly on both sides.
Haruya frowned lightly.
Something about Ishida's stance felt different. The boy wasn't just tense; he was openly glaring toward the group of desks near the back.
"Hmm…" Haruya muttered under his breath, nudging Nagisa gently. "Something's off today. Watch carefully."
Nagisa tilted her head. "I wonder… what could it be this time?"
Ishida's sharp gaze landed on the desk in front him.
A closer look revealed chalk marks, crude graffiti in various colors, spelling out words meant to provoke.
Haruya's eyes narrowed.
"Looks like trouble for him," he whispered to Nagisa.
Before Haruya could say more, Ishida's patience snapped.
He slammed his hand on the desk with a harsh thud, startling a few nearby students.
"Who did this?!" he roared, his voice carrying across the room. "If you've got a problem with me, come say it! What's the point of hiding behind this garbage?"
A few students glanced toward him, whispering under their breath, but no one stepped forward.
All except Kazuki, who leaned back in his chair near the edge, arms crossed, expression unreadable as ever.
His lips curled into a faint smirk as if amused by Ishida's rage.
Ishida's eyes caught Kazuki in his peripheral vision, and his anger immediately flared.
He stormed across the aisle, grabbing Kazuki by the collar.
"Was it you?!" Ishida barked.
Kazuki didn't flinch. "Let go. Why would I care?" His tone was flat, emotionless, but carried a hint of calculated provocation.
The grip on his collar tightened instinctively, and Ishida's temper ignited.
He shoved Kazuki, who stumbled back slightly but maintained his balance with eerie calm.
The scuffle drew glances from the entire class, some murmuring nervously, others watching with faint amusement.
Keisuke, sitting nearby, fidgeted. He didn't intervene, as if the three of them were not once close friends, though who he obeyed was obvious in the way his eyes followed the confrontation nervously.
"Hey! Enough!" Kawai Miki's voice cut through the tension as she hurried between them, her hands raised. "Stop it! You're going to get in trouble again!"
Ishida barely glanced at her, his face red, chest heaving.
After a moment of hesitation, he spun around and stormed out toward the exit, muttering to himself as he clenched his fists.
Ishida passed by Haruya and Nagisa quickly as if he did not notice them.
Kawai Miki exhaled heavily, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.
She glanced at the chaotic desk, then at the scattered chairs.
'He'll clean it up himself,' she thought, deciding not to argue further.
If anyone asked, she could always pin it on Ishida later.
Meanwhile, Shouko Nishimiya walked in quietly, pausing at the doorway beside Haruya and Nagisa as she observed the situation.
Her notebook was clutched to her chest as always, eyes wide at the disruption.
Haruya, entering a few steps behind Nagisa, and looked around for a brief moment.
He whispered softly, leaning toward her:
"Did you notice that? Ishida… he's not just upset at the desk. Something's changed. He's against Kazuki and Keisuke now. That's new."
Nagisa frowned, whispering back, "Really? Aren't they friends…? What could have happened over the weekend?"
The classroom slowly settled as students returned to their seats.
Whispers circulated, speculation buzzing about Ishida's sudden change in behavior and the tension with his former friends.
Haruya and Nagisa turned, finally noticing Shouko beside them.
They both greeted her as they started walking towards their desks at the edge of the classroom.
The two girls seemed to have a lot to talk about as Haruya let them be for a while, deciding to check the recent situation first.
Haruya sat down, resting his chin in his hand casually, but his sharp eyes scanned the room.
Kazuki locked eyes with him and quickly avoided his gaze, face neutral as ever, but there was a faint glint in his eyes.
Cunning, like a mastermind silently watching the reactions unfold.
Keisuke shifted uneasily in his seat at the front, glancing at Kazuki, then at the door where Ishida had passed through, torn between the situation.
Soon, one by one, other students had finally started arriving.
Hazuki, Tamao, Sudo, Ueno, Miyoko, and then the rest.
Every single one noticed the mess of desks and rumours about Ishida's outburst against his closest friends started circulating in the room.
With last week's events, at first the students that had just arrived thought it was Haruya's doing, but those that witnessed it came to his defense, clearly seeing him come later.
And wasn't it quite strange that that the people that Ishida first accused was not the person that made him cry and apologize in front of the entire class last week, but his own best friends?
Those that had their own desks messed up quickly fixed it up, but left Ishida's vandalized desk alone.
Soon enough, everyone else had arrived.
Including the fuming Ishida.
Takuomi-sensei finally entered, his heavy footsteps announcing his presence. "Class, settle down. Let's start with the attendance."
His eyes swept over the room, pausing briefly on the tense faces of Ishida, Kazuki, and Keisuke.
He frowned slightly but didn't comment further, sensing there was more under the surface than could be addressed with a simple scolding.
"Clean your desk, Ishida." Staring at Ishida's vandalized desk, he thought that the class troublemaker was acting up once more.
Ishida, who was already fuming on the inside, got angry again. "It wasn't me that did it! It was those two bastards, Kazuki and Keisuke!"
Not wanting to argue so early in the morning, Takuomi slammed his book on the board and shouted, "Enough! Go get the rag and clean it up, now!"
Ishida clenched his jaw in anger, but complied, angrily storming out the classroom to get cleaning equipment.
The emotionless Kazuki who was sitting at the back watched this all happen with a mischievous smile underneath his sleeve.
Naoka Ueno, who sat to the left of Ishida, also said nothing.
Haruya leaned toward Nagisa again, whispering with a sigh:
"Looks like this week is not going to be peaceful."
Nagisa nodded quietly, her curiosity piqued, her eyes following the subtle tension brewing between the troublemakers.
"I wonder if something happened between them after we left?" She voiced.
The first bell rang, signaling the start of class, but the undercurrent of rivalry and unease had already set the tone for the day.