The Monster at My Side

Saya’s POV

The seat next to me was always empty, that is, until he filled it.
“Ohayou!” I smile, entering the classroom.
“Saya, is it true?!” Ayumi turns to face me, palms on my desk in a forceful manner. Emi, who sits as Ayumi’s side, whips her head around as well. I hadn’t even had the opportunity to sit yet.
“Is what true?” I questioned, removing my bag from my shoulders and hooking it to my desk.
“Don’t play dumb!” Emi scoffs.
“The new transfer! Is he really joining our class?!” Ayumi presses. I sigh, falling into my seat.
“As far as I know he is.” I shrug.
“And did he really get kicked out of his old school for fighting?!” Emi is practically rocking in her chair, ever the eager gossiper. “They say he punched a teacher in the face! Knocked him straight to the floor!”
“I heard he put a few kids in the hospital!” Ayumi adds. I sigh, pulling out last night’s homework.
“I wouldn’t know about any of that. I guess you would need to ask him that yourself.” I shrugged.
“Are you crazy?!” Emi hisses. I’d also heard the rumors, and the idea of some hot headed brawler joining our class was not something that sat well with me. I wanted my senior year to be a pleasant one, full of fond memories with my classmates.
“I hear Shouji took you to see a movie this weekend.” Ayumi stated, wriggling her brows. I could feel my face flush red with embarrassment as my eyes darted over toward Shouji's seat. Emi’s eyes were also on mine.
“Sooo...” Emi pressed.
“So what?” I murmur, eyes downcast.
“So did anything happen?!” The two hiss.
“He'll hear you!” I whisper, glaring at the two loudmouths. They roll their eyes before pressing further. “We saw a movie and he walked me to the train.” I shrug.
“Did he kiss you?!”
“Y-Yes.” I stutter.
“Aaaaaaaaand????”
“And what?!”
“How was it?! Were there fireworks? Did you heart race?!”
“Was there tongue?” Ayumi added, making my face the shade of a firetruck.
“NO!” I blurt.
“Ugh!” They groan in unison.
“What?!”
“It's been three months Saya!”
“What of it?”
“Most couples would have at least gotten to second base by now.” Ayumi rolls her eyes.
“You would have let him take you all the way home by now.” Emi teases Ayumi. She glares at the jab.
“Well...we're not most couples!” I stammer. The truth was, I was having a hard enough time seeing my childhood friend in that way. To me, kissing him was like kissing my brother. I couldn't imagine what anything further would entail.
“Saya, Shouji adores you! He is one of the hottest, sweetest guys in our class. Plus he’s captain of the kendo team! What more could you ask for?!” Emi scolds.
“All we’re saying is that if boys don’t get a taste of the candy they’re craving, they’ll find a taste for another sweet.” Ayumi tuts. I sigh, nodding in understanding.
“We're going out after class today...maybe the mood will strike me.” I feign a chuckle.
“Sure.” Ayumi groans rolling her eyes.
I rested my elbow on my desk, palm holding my chin up. The mood...that was the problem. I was never in it! What was wrong with me? Shouji was good looking. He was popular, good at sports, honest, kind, and well groomed. But the thought of kissing him made my stomach churn; and not in the “full of butterflies” way.
Loud chatter filled the room, rumors of the new transfer being passed back and forth. The empty seat at my side remained empty as the clock ticked away. The morning bell rang, chatter dying as Saeko, our instructor, entered the room.
“Rise!” She bellowed, monotone as she dropped her belongings onto her desk. I pushed myself to my feet, the rest of the class following suit. Saeko honestly didn’t care one way or another. “Saya-kun.” Saeko calls me forward to begin discussing our upcoming class trip.
“Hai!” I exclaim, quickly taking my place at the front of the classroom. “So, in our last student council meeting we came to an agreement-we’ll be traveling to Osaka in a few short weeks!” I began.
A few cheers erupted from my classmates, bringing a smile to my face. “Excellent! Well in the meantime, your student council has been working on an agenda. We will be doing some sightseeing, attending a local spring festival, and completing a test of courage!” More cheers. “I will begin collecting money for the trip, so please have that handed in within the next two weeks.” I moved away from the podium, passing out envelopes to my classmates.
“We’ll discuss everything more in depth as the date draws closer. Any questions?” I paused, but no hands rose. “Thank you for your time!” I smiled, ducking back into my seat.
“Thank you for all your hard work Saya-kun.” Saeko stated, rising yet again. This time, she continued with the lesson.
Roughly 40 minutes into the lesson the classroom door flew open, crashing loudly into the wall. The sudden disturbance sent my heart leaping into my throat. Saeko dropped the book she had been holding, and it fell to the floor with a solid thud.
All eyes turned to the doorway, silence filling the room. In it stood a short, lanky male wearing our school uniform. The creases hadn’t been ironed out-it was obvious that it had just recently been removed from its packaging. His scowling face was full of piercings, and his sharp almond eyes scanned the room momentarily. Frizzy, bleached hair sat atop his head, the sides shaved somewhat neatly. Wisps of golden blonde fell over his eyes as his gaze settled on me. I felt my heart thrum unnaturally. His small frame moved hastily, and the once empty seat at my side was finally filled.
“How kind of you to join us Tooru-kun.” Saeko started after a long, awkward silence. All eyes were still on the boy. “Class, this is our new transfer student, Nishimura Tooru. Tooru-kun, won’t you please introduce yourself?” She questioned. He merely shot her a cold glare before turning his attention to the pen in his hands. “Or not…” she muttered, silently picking up the book she dropped. “Saya-kun will show you around the school later and assign your classroom duties. Saya…” She directed her attention toward me. I could feel my throat swell shut. “Please introduce yourself.”
Nervously, I stood at my desk, turning toward the delinquent. His gaze remained focused on the object he twirled between his fingers.
“I-it’s a pleasure to meet you. My name is Saya Shaw.” I bowed slightly, vaguely aware of his momentary gaze. A gruff sound of annoyance escaped his throat, but he tipped his head toward me. Awkwardly, I returned to my chair.
I’ve never regretted volunteering for student council more than I have this very moment.
Now where were we…” Saeko continues, turning to face the white board. I attempted to direct my attention back to task I’d previously been working on, but my mind spun like the pen in Tooru-kun’s fingers.
I had trouble concentrating as Tooru-kun scribbled furiously beside me. I knew he wasn’t taking notes-no one took notes that ferociously. I glanced sideways several times, noticing the way his gaze disappeared into the paper that he covered with ink. I couldn’t make out what it was, but the page was incredibly dark.
After what felt like an eternity, the lunch bell finally chimed. The class erupted into a sea of voices, tables and chairs screeching against the floor as the usual cliques ate their lunches together.
“Saya, let’s eat in the courtyard today! It’s beautiful out!” Emi’s eyes light up at the thought of food. She was a pudgier girl with a big appetite.
“I’ll meet you there.” I smiled, “I need to give Tooru-kun a tour of the building first.” I attempted to sound positive, but his expression made it obvious that it sounded forced. I took a moment to gaze at the paper he’d been scribbling on during class. It appeared to be a hand holding a bleeding eyeball of sorts.
“No thanks.” He grumbled, standing and moving toward the door. He nabbed his paper, folding it and shoving it in his pocket.
“Are you sure?” I frowned, “The hallways can be a bit tricky.” Without so much as a word, he disappeared.
“What a creep.” Ayumi mutters, urging us along and into the courtyard.
“He’s definitely trouble.” Emi nods her head, “I wonder if he comes from a family of gangsters. Did you see all those piercings?!”
“Yakuza for sure…probably why he had to transfer. I’ll bet he’s covered in tattoos.” Ayumi adds.
“I’m sure you’re dying to find out.” Emi teases with a wink. Ayumi pretends to gag, kicking Emi in the back of the leg as we reach an empty picnic table.
“What did you think Saya?” Ayumi questions, pulling out her bento. I do the same while Emi is already digging into hers.
“He didn’t say much.” I shrug. The girls roll their eyes in unison.
“That’s our Saya for you…always the goody goody.” Ayumi teases. I frown, turning my attention to my meal. What’s so interesting about other people’s lives anyway? I longed to ask them that question.
“Saya-chan!” A familiar, masculine voice shouts out from above. I glance up, only to find Shouji leaning out a window, waving like a madman. My face flushes with embarrassment as I feel eyes on me, and I wave back out of courtesy. “Stay there! I’ll be down shortly!” He shouts out. I want to disappear into my palm.
“Shouji’s coming to see you.” Ayumi and Emi swoon. I wanted to smack their heads together.
“I wish I had a boyfriend like Shouji.” Emi sighed.
“He's way out of your league.” Ayumi sniggered, poking Emi in the gut. She pouted, covering her pudge just as Shouji appeared in the courtyard.
“Saya! Thanks for waiting!” He pants. He’d obviously ran down here.
“I wasn’t going anywhere.” I smile, gesturing toward my lunchbox that had hardly been touched.
“Oh! Great!” He grins. “Listen…I know we'd discussed having ice cream after class. But there’s this new bakery that just opened near the station. They’re running a special on pastries today…”
“Pastry sounds lovely! I may be getting out of the school a bit later. I need to try giving our new student a tour of the building and talk about classroom duties.” I quickly add. “So you don’t need to wait up for me if that’s a problem.” I smile.
“Oh I have no plans tonight.” He grins ear to ear. “I’ll wait by the lockers for you. And your dessert is on me, obviously.” He adds with a wink.
“Okay then. I’ll see you later today.” I nodded.
“It’s a date!” He laughed as he trotted away.
“It’s too bad you won’t have time to change into something cute.” Emi frowned.
“Why? It's not like she's trying to impress him.” Ayumi sniggers. “She's not even going to first base!”
“Shut up.” I grumble, attempting to finish my meal before our lunch hour ran out.
I was slightly disappointed to find that Tooru-kun hadn’t returned to our class. Not because I was looking forward to seeing him, but because I was looking for an excuse to postpone my date with Shouji. As class ended, I noticed Saeko gesturing toward me.
“Saya, would you mind cleaning out the erasers? I’d hoped Tooru would, but he seems to have wandered off.” She grumbled the last part, handing over a box full of chalkboard erasers. I was grateful for the opportunity.
“Absolutely!” I beamed, turning to move toward the roof.
“You can just use the windows if you’d prefer.” Saeko offered.
“Oh it’s okay! I was looking forward to watching the birds on the roof!” I smiled. She nodded as I disappeared, taking my time as I climbed the stairs. Reaching the door, it seemed to be stuck.
“Damn old building.” I grumbled, shifting the box to my hip as I forced my body weight against the door. It finally fell open with an “Oof!”
“…Oof?” I muttered to myself, glancing behind the door. There he was, knocked over with a cigarette dangling from his lips.
“Tooru-kun!” I squeaked, realizing he’d been bracing the door. “I’m sorry!” I quickly dropped my box, offering him a hand. He turned his cold, almond gaze on me, pushing himself up.
“It’s fine…” He grumbled as I picked my erasers back up.
“I thought the door was stuck.” I explained, “It’s an old building and sometimes this door sticks. Especially when the weather changes. You know, from the wood expanding and contracting over the winter. I don’t think it’s settled yet…” I was rambling.
“…It’s fine.” He repeated, those cold eyes still on me. He took a long drag of his cigarette, glancing toward the stairway.
“You can take your time finishing that. It doesn’t bother me.” I shrugged. “I’m just going to clean out these erasers…over here….” I timidly moved to the edge of the building, clapping erasers together. Dust filled the air, slowly falling to the ground. Two birds danced together merrily in the sky, fluttering into a nearby tree where they nestled together. I couldn’t help but smile to myself watching them.
I turned around, expecting to be the only one here. Tooru-kun stood in place, cigarette no longer between his lips. His eyes were on me, but his usual cold gaze seemed different. For the first time, I noticed how dazzling his almond eyes were.
“W-Were you waiting?” I stuttered.
“I didn’t want you getting stuck out here…what with the sticky doors and all.” He smirked, holding the door open for me. Did he just make a joke? I felt a blush creep into my cheeks.
“T-thank you.” My lips twisted into a small smile. We left the building together. Tooru continued outside, Shouji taking his place.
“Did you think of what type of pastry you want?” He questioned as we walked hand in hand toward the bakery.
“An almond torte.” I answered. My cheeks were still rosy.
That night, as I closed my eyes to kiss Shouji, a dazzling almond gaze filled my mind. And, for the first time, I enjoyed losing myself in a kiss.