The air had started to change.
The slight yet noticeable chill in the morning air and the falling leaves were proof.
The intense summer… had come to an end.
"The days ahead will only get chillier…"
Max walked on, his gaze unfocused as the thought passed through him.
Not much had changed over the past week.
Silence and thoughts were the only company for Max during his walk to school.
His limbs felt heavy, weighed down by the training at the dojo.
Each step carried a dull ache.
Yet, his pace never faltered.
As the school gates came into view, the faint chatter of students began to seep into the quiet—slowly pulling him back.
He opened his locker and took out his shoes.
The laces slipped through his fingers as he tied them—looser than usual.
By the time he stepped into the hallway, a crowd had already gathered around the notice board.
Max slowed.
His brows lifted slightly as his eyes fixed on the board from a distance.
He began walking toward it.
One step at a time.
His hands clenched.
The crowd thinned as students moved away—some satisfied, some indifferent… surprised even.
With each step forward, his throat grew drier.
Finally, he stood before it.
Close enough.
But he didn't look.
He lowered his head instead, trying to steady his breathing—
each inhale heavy, uneven… almost mechanical.
With his breath finally steady, Max lifted his gaze—starting from the top.
A slight nudge.
He turned sharply.
It was Julian.
"Ah—sorry." Julian said, already turning back to the board, a faint grin forming on his lips.
Thwack!
"Did you finally tell them at home? About joining the dojo?"
Kensei stood beside him, his eyes already scanning the board.
"Could you not thwack my back?! It hurts…" Max complained, before adding, quieter,
"…I'll tell them. Today… for sure."
Dexter stepped into the hallway.
His eyes moved once—
from Max…
to his trembling hand…
to the board.
He paused.
Then pointed toward it.
"Well then…"
"…there's no better day than today. I guess?"
Max looked at Dexter with a puzzled expression.
His eyes then followed in the direction Dexter's finger pointed at.
The notice board.
Familiar names were lined up together on the board.
He started to search from bottom to top.
"Rose… Lily… Kensei… Rena… Vanessa…"
He finally reached the top.
"3rd… Julian Hart. Wow, so that's why I got the nudge before huh?"
"Who's 2nd? Oh… quite the strategy to brag about himself I see."
Suddenly a realization hit Max.
He hadn't found his own name yet.
His eyes finally fixed upon the name at the very top of the board.
"MAX IDEN KRAUS?!!"
Something inside his chest tugged upwards as the thought crossed his mind.
"So, how's the view from the top?"
Kensei asked, his fist extended towards Max.
Max turned around and extended his own fist, meeting it with a fist bump.
"Heavenly!"
He replied, a smile etched on his face.
"Camaraderie is all well and fine but… Oh well, leave it."
Julian stepped between the two.
His eyes locked onto Max for a moment too long.
"Congrats!"
He said as his expression loosened again.
"Okay, I'll head to class now or we'll be late."
He turned around to leave… two steps later…
"Tch…"
Dexter noticed the faint click of his tongue.
The tiny sound meant much more than anything Julian had said.
Lily and Rose who had just arrived in the hallway, rushed to Julian's side.
"Must be nice… being smart…"
Kensei blurted, as he gazed at Julian's group in the distance.
"BUT… that doesn't mean you can ignore me. It hurts damn it."
Dexter patted Kensei on the shoulder, gave him a faint smile and raised a thumbs-up.
"What's that supposed to mean?! You looking down on me now?"
"pfft!"
Kensei turned around. Max kept his hands in front of his mouth, sealing off the urge to laugh.
"Fine! Make fun of me all you want, I'll show you in the tournament, just how awesome I can be."
Kensei declared, looking at the two, his fists clenched to his heart.
"Looking forward to it!"
Dexter and Max said in unison before marching toward Kensei and dragging the protesting boy through the hallway toward their class.
The three entered an unusually loud room,
Julian already surrounded by everyone at the edge of the classroom.
The moment they crossed the doorway,
they quickly untangled themselves and headed for their seats,
pretending they hadn't been making a scene in the hallway moments earlier.
The sound of shoes tapping from the hallway was signal enough for everyone to scurry back to their seats.
It had only been a week but only one teacher produced the consistent tapping sound before arriving.
Mr. Richter arrived through the door, placed his files on the table and took a deep breath.
"Good morning…"he said, followed by a yawn, "…class"
The class responded in earnest.
"Good morning! Mr. Richter!"
The mismatch in the energy was painfully obvious.
"Ah! Young folks!... sure, are full of energy."
He said, adjusting his glasses.
His eyes met Max's for a moment and then shifted toward Dexter.
"Let's start homeroom then."
Vanessa raised her hand.
"Yes… Vanessa! Speak up!"
Vanessa stood up from her seat.
"Ms. Clara is our homeroom teacher. So, why are you taking it today?"
Mr. Richter took off his specs and pressed his brows together with his fingers.
"About that… I was about to announce that anyway."
He cleaned his glasses against his shirt and put them back on.
"She was transferred to the branch in Tretia sector."
Dexter and Max gasped simultaneously.
"That's where Silas…"
"That's where brother…"
Max noticed the slight twitch in Dexter's shoulder when the transfer was announced.
The silence in the class grew more uncomfortable with each passing second.
Mr. Richter looked at the class's collective confusion and sighed.
"No need to make such scary faces, transfers happen every now and then between branches."
He paused for a moment, took a deep breath, and continued.
"I was occasionally assigned to your class for this very reason. It's a surprise that none of you saw this coming."
The bell rang, signaling the end of homeroom.
Mr. Richter collected his files from the table and took his leave from the class.
The class was unusually quiet for the day.
Under normal circumstances, such silence would have been a blessing.
Instead, it only seemed to make the instructors uneasy.
The only exception was Julian, who was still as energetic as usual during the classes.
Answering questions perfectly, continuously glancing sideways at Dexter or toward the back where Max sat, for a reaction from them.
Neither of them seemed to notice.
Their minds seemed elsewhere entirely.
During the break, Max, Dexter, Kensei and Riley exited into the hallway.
The three of them wore the same "stupid" dazed look on their faces.
Julian felt something inside him being "reduced" as he saw the three.
He got up from his seat and approached Vanessa, seated all the way at the front.
He lowered his voice just enough that only Vanessa could hear him.
"Hey, what's up with everyone today? You all are acting like the world is going to end tomorrow."
Vanessa twitched a bit at the "sudden" approach by Julian.
She slowly opened her half-open eyes and looked up.
She mirrored Julian's tone and way of speaking, in low whispers.
"Oh… you see Ms. Clara wasn't just our homeroom teacher…"
Julian knew from the look in her eyes that this was something serious.
He scraped the chair beside her and sat down, facing her.
"She would listen to our problems. Help us, even if it had nothing to do with school."
"Hm…"
Julian responded, his eyes focused on the curtains behind Vanessa, trying his hardest to understand what she was trying to relay.
Vanessa gasped lightly and blinked once.
"Oh! Sorry, I didn't mean to put you on the spot!"
She apologized frantically and grabbed the corner of her desk tightly as if to say, "Please don't ask anymore…"
Julian nodded once and stared a bit too long at the air between them.
"Well, nowadays I spot a really weird trio. Pretty sure you've noticed too…"
Julian tried to steer the conversation to something "safe".
As soon as he mentioned the word "trio", Dexter and co. came inside through the entrance.
They seemed a lot different than when they left, the "stupid" look on their faces was gone, miraculously so.
"Hey come on! Ken! You know that's not true…"
"What're you talking about? It sure is!"
"Eh!"
The four of them went straight to the last bench of the furthest row.
They seemed to be joking around, exchanging jabs at each other.
"Weird? Yes, they may be"
Vanessa commented, Julian glanced back only to find her smiling softly.
"But… I think you meant the four of them…"
Vanessa said, subtly pointing toward Riley from beneath her desk.
Julian was taken aback.
"How did she know, that I didn't include him? Why include him anyway?"
Julian thought as he turned around to look at the "four" of them yet again.
"Pretty sure he's just trying to use Max to his own benefit."
Rose suddenly butted into the conversation.
Julian looked at her, puzzled for just a moment but then reverted back again.
"Wouldn't be surprised if that was the case."
Julian remarked lightly as he rested his chin on his palm.
"There's no way that's the case."
Vanessa cut in, looking directly at Rose while still seated.
"How can you be so sure?"
Rose questioned back, her hands on her waist.
Vanessa answered back without any hesitation.
"Well… you tell me, do you really think Dexter even has the capacity to think about something like that? Using people? Using friends?"
Rose opened her mouth to argue, then glanced at Dexter.
Suddenly the memory of him trying to save her desperately popped up in her mind.
"Well… I think she's right on this one…"
She turned around and started to clean the blackboard behind her.
The ring echoed through the hallway.
The students started to settle down and prepare for the next session.
The sound of table screeches and pens scribbling filled the room.
Julian made his way back to his seat.
He glanced to his right.
And there was Dexter, writing something in a hurry and then striking it out again and again, as if struggling to arrive at something desirable.
Julian leaned closer and patted his shoulder.
"If you need any help, I'd be happy to lend a hand…"
Dexter suddenly closed his notebook and put it back into his bag.
Then looked up slowly.
He stared at Julian for a while as if searching for his words in air.
"Well, it's nothing I can't handle. I'll ask if I ever need to."
Julian's brow twitched.
He stared at Dexter for a moment before letting out a sigh.
A little chuckle followed under his breath.
"You seriously piss me off sometimes, you know?"
He said with a smile on his face and turned back to take out the material for next class from his bag.
"Huh? … Did I step on a landmine? …"
Dexter thought as he took out the material for the next class and reviewed it.
The lectures resumed, the class seemed to regain some of its life it was missing in the morning.
Julian was still volunteering and questioning but there were other participants too every now and then.
At the end of each lecture, Julian would turn around and take a "survey" of the class with his own eyes.
Dexter remained focused on the material for the next lecture.
Meanwhile, Max seemed to be scribbling and striking in a notebook, much like Dexter had during the earlier break.
"I wonder what they are up to?"
Julian thought, his thumb between his teeth.
The thought lingered in his head all throughout the lectures that followed.
The lectures felt quieter and a strange sense of focus filled the room.
The bell rang and the students sighed as if they had been holding their breaths and made their way out of the room, either to the cafeteria, washrooms or the ground floor.
Julian's eyes involuntarily followed Max and his group as they chatted at the end of the last row.
"They get along quite well…"
He muttered under his breath.
"You couldn't be more wrong about that."
A soft voice brushed Julian's ears from behind.
It was Lily, standing before him with a lunchbox in her hands.
"Anyway, let's go and have lunch."
Julian stared at her as if recollecting his memories.
Lily turned around.
"Vanessa! Care to join?"
Vanessa had already started eating, her lunchbox and cutlery spread neatly on her table.
"Uh- sorry, I already opened mine and packing it all again would take a lot of time. You go on ahead."
She said, forcing an awkward smile.
"If that's the case— "
Lily turned around.
"Julian, let's go."
She found Julian in the same state as Vanessa.
"C'mon, did you two set me up to a déjà vu? That was too fast to be one!"
She exclaimed while pouting.
Her eyes then drifted to the seat next to Julian.
An idea crossed her mind, she placed her lunchbox on the table and sat down in the seat.
"Rose sits in front of this seat anyway. I'll just eat here today."
Julian felt an incoming inconvenience and spoke up.
"Rose already left for the cafeteria, leaving her alone would be too cruel."
Julian said with a wry smile, as if trying to persuade a particularly stubborn customer.
"Ah! Then it can't be helped, I should hurry over or she'll chew my ears out!"
Lily said while picking up her lunchbox.
Julian sighed, when the faint sound of footsteps reached his ears.
"Uh— That's my seat…"
"A clueless Dexter has appeared!"
Or so Julian thought.
"It's okay if it'll take some time, I'll come back later."
He said and left without even listening to their reply.
Julian's eyes glittered as though he'd just seen a saint walk by. He quickly wiped the expression of his face.
"Lily! Let's go to the cafeteria! Huh? Why are you all staring into space?"
Rose said as she wiped her hands dry, putting back her handkerchief in her back pocket.
"Wait… weren't you in the cafeteria?"
Lily asked, turning her eyes at Julian.
"Oh, I forgot my lunchbox! I came back when I realized while washing my hands."
She said while chuckling lightly.
"Never mind… let's just eat here today!"
She proposed the idea to Rose.
"Eh? But isn't that Dexter's seat?"
Rose asked, pointing at the seat.
"I already got the confirmation from the owner, so it's fine."
Julian saw the two come to an agreement and sit down in their respective places.
"Still… he could've at least waited for a reply, it's not like I was chasing him away."
Lily said, while picking a potato with a fork and stuffing it in her mouth.
"That's just how he is…"
All eyes turned to Vanessa.
"Always backing away where there is no need to… it hurts a little to see that."
The four of them fell into silence. The conversation had entered into a deadlock.
Lily grew restless, looking for words to make the mood lighter.
"Maybe that's what he wants…"
She said while pointing her fork upwards as if making a point.
"That's not it—"
Julian cut in. The three of them moved their heads closer intently.
"You get used to it…"
He murmured under his breath.
Suddenly, Julian realized what he had said and gasped lightly, trying to keep his composure.
"Huh? I couldn't hear you."
Rose said while closing the lid of her lunchbox.
"Anyways, I'm done. I'm going to the basketball coach, he had asked for my help today with the checkup of equipment…"
"HUH?! That was fast! When did you even eat?"
Lily exclaimed, her mouth half full with the food she stuffed before.
Julian took a deep breath and sighed.
"Anyway, about the culture festival…"
Lily and Julian continued discussing the progress of the culture fest and other miscellaneous school talk.
Vanessa's eyes lingered on Julian as she finished her lunch and got up from her desk.
As Vanessa left, Lily drifted away from the topic and went silent for a moment.
Julian tilted his head in confusion.
"What's wrong?"
He asked.
"I could ask you the same, it's obvious that Dexter and Max have been buddy-buddy with each other ever since you came."
She said, slamming her hands lightly on the desk.
Before Julian could stop her from saying anything misleading, two people stood behind her.
"Uh— break is almost over… may I have my seat back?"
Dexter asked Lily… politely.
Beside him stood Max, glaring from above.
"Oh… sure."
Lily got up after picking her belongings off the desk.
As she was about to leave, Max sighed.
"Are you sure you should leave it at that? Dexter?"
Max asked, slightly irritated.
"They heard us!"
Lily thought to herself as she flinched and stopped.
"What's the harm? It's not like they are exactly wrong…"
Dexter answered, his hands inside his bag as if searching for something important.
Then he closed his bag and looked up at Max.
"If you say so, but still… there's just one question in my mind…"
Max said, his finger on his chin and eyes closed.
"What is it?"
Dexter asked, slightly confused as he rested his chin on his palm.
"It's just that… since when did bronze become more valuable than gold and silver combined?"
Just as he said that, he turned his eyes toward Julian.
Julian smirked lightly.
"Not a clue…"
Dexter and Julian said in unison.
"What is he even talking about? Did bronze prices go up recently?"
Deep in thought, Dexter tried to figure out the random mention of metals all of a sudden.
Meanwhile Julian and Max stood there, still locking eyes with each other.
The bell rang, as if signaling the end of the standoff.
Both of them returned to their seats.
The classroom settled once more.
Julian rested his cheek against his palm and stared at the blackboard.
Yet his thoughts remained elsewhere.
Dexter's notebook.
The strange exchange during lunch.
The way Max stood beside him.
The way Dexter answered without understanding what Max meant.
It all lingered.
For some reason, it bothered him.
A lot more than it should have.