The morning sun angled through the classroom windows, scattering its light across neat desks and dust motes drifting lazily. To anyone else, it was just another day. But here, the air moved differently. Conversations bent around a single point of gravity.
It was easy to see who.
Hayama Hayato sat near the center of the room, the kind of presence that demanded orbit. Blond hair caught the light perfectly, his uniform worn with a casual neatness that looked effortless, though I doubted it was. His smile carried warmth: polished, smooth, honed to perfection. He didn't force attention; it came to him, like gravity pulling at smaller stars.
Every gesture set a rhythm. When he leaned forward, the boys closest leaned too. When he laughed, the girls followed, bright and immediate. Even silence seemed to shift around him, like the pause before a cue.
And me? I was a fragment. A newly arrived piece of space debris. Untethered. Observed.
Totsuka beside me flipped through her notes with quiet composure, unaffected. Her presence was calm, the one still ripple in a restless pool. But for everyone else, the atmosphere kept shifting, stealing glances when they thought I wouldn't notice.
It didn't take long before the sun acknowledged the intruder.
"Kurosawa-kun, right?"
The voice was smooth, steady. Warm enough to sound genuine, distant enough to remind me who was center and who was not.
"Yes." I turned my gaze to meet his, offering nothing more than the confirmation.
"Welcome." He smiled again, the kind of smile designed to lower defenses. "I hope the transition hasn't been too difficult. Everyone here is friendly, I'm sure you'll find it easy to settle in."
I inclined my head. "That's reassuring. Thank you."
No hesitation. No fumble. Just steady words.
For a heartbeat, his smile faltered. Barely. Then it returned, brighter than before, as if to erase the slip.
A murmur swept the room. Yui's laugh tripped over itself. Miura's brows furrowed the faintest bit. Ebina grinned wide, like she'd just found a new character in a story she couldn't wait to rewrite.
I hadn't said anything remarkable. But sometimes, saying exactly enough is louder than saying too much.
---
Whispers followed through the rest of class. The kind too soft to be called gossip, but persistent enough to become the room's second heartbeat.
"Is he really that calm?"
"He doesn't seem nervous at all…"
"He thanked Hayato like they were equals."
A comparison. Quiet, but unmistakable.
Hayato laughed easily with his orbit, but I caught the flick of his gaze more than once. Not hostility. Not yet. Something quieter. The awareness that someone had entered his stage without his permission.
---
The rooftop lunch with Totsuka hadn't gone unnoticed. By the next morning, whispers had sharpened into something heavier.
"They're close, right?"
"Saika-chan with him? I thought she never-"
"Do you think it's serious?"
It was the kind of talk meant to hang in the air without reaching my ears. But voices carry. Especially when they want to.
I didn't react. Totsuka didn't either. She smiled, the same as always, her calmness unshaken. Perhaps that was what made her different: she wasn't playing the game.
When the lunch bell rang, I stood. Heads turned, subtle but unmistakable. Beside me, Totsuka rose as well, as if it was the most natural thing in the world.
"Shall we?" I asked, tone even.
Her smile widened just a touch. "Yes."
The whispers flared, then dimmed, trailing us like smoke as we walked out.
---
We didn't make it far before someone called out.
"Uh, hey!"
Yuigahama Yui hurried over, clutching her lunchbox. She almost tripped on the way, catching herself with an awkward laugh. "H-Hey, Kurosawa-kun! Um… good morning!"
"Good morning, Yuigahama-san."
The calmness in my reply seemed to catch her off guard. She blinked, then smiled nervously. "Ahaha… you're really, like… polite, huh?"
"I find it saves time."
Her laugh stumbled again, unsure whether I was joking.
Beside her, Ebina Hina appeared, her grin already mischievous. "Oooh, polite and cool. No wonder Saika-chan's smiling so much. Careful, Kurosawa-kun... Hayato might get jealous."
The class around us stirred, just enough to feed the tension.
Ebina leaned closer, lowering her voice just enough to still be heard. "Actually… wouldn't you and Hayato make a cuter pair?"
Gasps. Stifled laughter. Yui turned pink, waving her hands. "Hina! Don't~!"
I looked at Ebina, my expression steady. "Sorry," I said calmly. "I charge by the hour."
The silence that followed was almost absolute.
Then Ebina burst out laughing, clutching her stomach. "Pfft~ahaha! That's perfect! Oh, you're dangerous, Kurosawa-kun."
Yui's face went crimson. "W-What do you mean dangerous?! Hina, don't encourage him!"
I adjusted my sleeve, ignoring the stares. "Encouragement wasn't required."
For a moment, the weight lingered. Then the tide shifted back to Hayato's desk, as if the room itself was trying to forget what had just been said.
---
The last bell rang, and the classroom dissolved into noise. Chairs scraped, voices overlapped, bags zipped and thudded against desks.
I was slipping my notebook into my bag when her voice cut clean through the clutter.
"Kurosawa."
Hiratsuka-sensei stood at the door, arms crossed, gaze sharp. The type of teacher whose authority came not from rules, but from the way she looked at you, like she'd seen through a hundred excuses before you were born.
"Yes, sensei?"
"You're being assigned to the Service Club."
Her tone left no space for protest.
I adjusted my sleeve, tilting my head. "…'Service' Club. That's a dangerous name."
She arched a brow. "Dangerous?"
"Sounds less like a club and more like something that charges extra after hours," I said evenly. "Should I bring protection, or does the school supply it?"
The chatter in the classroom stuttered for half a beat. A few nearby students turned, wide-eyed.
Hiratsuka's lips twitched before splitting into a laugh that was half genuine, half incredulous. "You've got a filthy mind for someone who talks so politely."
I didn't flinch. "It's better to clarify expectations, sensei. It would be irresponsible to arrive unprepared."
Her laugh sharpened, echoing louder than the leftover chatter. "You're trouble, Kurosawa."
"Or prepared," I countered, tone flat as if the words were part of the syllabus.
She shook her head, still smirking. "Second floor, Clubroom 3. Go. And try not to traumatize the girls."
I inclined my head. "I'll consider it."
The students who'd overheard whispered in a rush as she walked off. Shock, laughter, scandal. None of it mattered. Hiratsuka had taken it in stride... maybe even enjoyed it.
And me? I'd only given the truth a bit of spice.
---
The clubroom door slid open with a muted sound.
At the center sat a girl with long black hair, posture so precise it looked sculpted. Her eyes, cold and sharp, met mine the moment I entered. They didn't just look... they X-Ray-ed.
Just like in the anime, the cold goddess: Yukinoshita Yukino.
On the opposite side, another girl nearly jumped out of her seat. "Ah! You must be Kurosawa-kun, right? I'm Yuigahama Yui! Nice to meet you! and here, she is Hikigaya Hachika!" Her voice was bright, her smile nervous, her hands fiddling with her lunchbox even though it was already closed.
And in the far corner, a girl with dead-fish eyes barely lifted her head. Hair unkempt, posture slouched, her gaze skimmed over me with a boredom that bordered on dismissal.
Hikigaya Hachiman-Fem Version: Hikigaya Hachika
'..... this world is really something else... and she's actually in the same classroom as me!' Ras didn't know wether to laugh seeing the female version of Hikigaya, she is really something else! even the dead-fish-eye have a 1-1 similarities.
stepped inside, sliding the door shut behind. "I, Kurosawa Ras. Hiratsuka-sensei said I should join you."
Yukino tilted her head, lips curving faintly. "Said? That makes it sound less like you joined and more like you were sentenced. Hiratsuka has a habit of forcing square pegs into round holes."
Her words were edged, probing for weakness.
"I adapt to the shape required," I replied evenly.
Silence stretched for a moment. Yuigahama blinked in surprise. Hachika smirked faintly, as though I'd stolen her line.
Yukino's eyes narrowed. "Confident words. Most people who say that are the first to break."
"Then I'll test the statement by living it."
Another pause. Not tension, but weight.
Yuigahama broke it with a nervous laugh. "U-Um, Yukinon, don't be so scary right away! Kurosawa-kun probably doesn't even know what we do yet."
I glanced at her. "Then perhaps you should explain."
She blinked, startled. "M-me? Oh, uh, well… the Service Club is… we, um, help people with their problems!"
"Vague," I said, calm, though not unkind.
"W-Well, yeah! But it's true!" She fidgeted, then smiled again, almost desperately.
Yukino sighed softly. "Allow me. The Service Club exists to resolve requests brought by students. Problems of academics, social issues, personal struggles... anything they're too weak or incompetent to manage themselves."
Yuigahama flinched. "Yukinon…"
I met Yukino's gaze. "So in short: unpaid labor."
Yukino's expression didn't change. "If you prefer. Though it is labor most people would avoid."
"And yet you accept it," I said.
"Of course. If the weak are left alone, they'll remain weak forever."
There was no arrogance in her tone, only conviction sharpened into steel.
Hachika finally spoke, her voice dry and low. "Wow. It's like watching two mirrors argue about who's shinier. Can we skip to the part where one of you cracks?"
I turned my head toward her. "And which role do you play?"
"The broken one, obviously." She smirked, leaning back in her chair. "I leave all the inspiring speeches to perfectionists like her."
"Convenient," I said.
"Efficient," she corrected.
Yuigahama looked between us, flustered. "Uh… um… so! Kurosawa-kun, why did you transfer here? I mean, it's really rare, you know?"
Her question was innocent, curious. I could have answered with any excuse. But sometimes truth, lightly dressed, works better than lies.
"I was looking for a different environment," I said. "And now I've found one."
Yukino studied me, as if dissecting every syllable. "Do you always answer without actually saying anything?"
"Only when the question demands it," I replied.
Hachika let out a short laugh. "Yeah, he's going to fit right in."
---
The conversation wound down into silence. Each of them watched me differently:
Yukino, calculating, as though waiting for me to slip.
Yui, hopeful, still trying to make sense of me.
Hachika, amused, as if testing whether my calmness was real or just a mask.
Finally, Yukino folded her hands on the table. "Very well. Kurosawa-kun, you may stay. For now. Consider this your trial."
I inclined my head slightly. "Understood."
Yuigahama clapped her hands together with a relieved smile. "Yay! Another member!"
Hachika yawned. "God save the Queen and help us."
And just like that, the he arrives and set.