12 Roses

7 | A Fragile Daisy

You sat at the desks you always sat at, with you in between the window and Maki.

You fidgeted with your right hearing aid while listening with your left, until you came to regret that decision when the door flung open and slammed into the wall, a high pitched squeal ringing in your left ear.

Gojo came walking in with his usual giddy grin and his usual eccentric pose that would be cute if his limbs were a little shorter.

"And you're getting a new classmate today!"

You glanced at the door as a boy with a uniform like yours, only white, entered, and suddenly it felt like all the air in the room got a whole lot harder to breathe in. A shadow loomed over him, and you weren't interested in finding out what it could do.

You jumped to your feet, holding your arms out as vines burst through the floor boards, their thorns aiming at him, while Maki held her blade, Toge's hand held the one thing that kept his voice back and Panda kept his fighting stance.

Who was this kid?

•••

You stared out the window, the dream replaying in your head. You had never seen the boy before, not much to your surprise since your dreams seemed to be playing a game with you, but he seemed quite familiar.

"Is she okay?" Maki questioned.

Toge turned and shrugged before slowly approaching you and making himself known by placing himself between you and the window.

You lifted your chin from your hand. "Did the bell ring?"

"No. Are you okay?"

You nodded, then saw Gojo enter the class, prompting Toge to sit down. The bell, however, hadn't rung yet and Gojo coming early was like streamers being hung on the large tree in the centre of town: something important was happening.

He stood at the front of the class with a grin. "You're getting a new student today!"

Your eyes widened, your hands tightening into fists in your lap.

No way.

No way.

No way.

The door slowly opened and a boy you definitely knew walked through the door, with dark hair and even darker eye bags, an unsure look in his eyes that couldn't be mimicked by anyone else.

Maki's gaze flickered to you before going back to the boy who stood in front of the class. Even though he was the only one standing, he seemed so small, his eyes to the wooden floor and his brows furrowed together like something was paining him. Of course, naturally, his eyes would every so often gaze away from the floor to look at Panda, who still wore his giant panda head.

"Introduce yourself," Gojo urged.

"Hi, I'm Yu-"

"She's deaf." Maki's thumb jerked in your direction. "Use sign."

Much like you on the first day, a chill was sent down the boy's spine as Maki spoke with her golden glare piercing through him. "My... name... is... Yuta Okkotsu."

His hands moved timidly, unsteady, as if he couldn't remember how his name was spelled. You knew quickly that he was still a beginner in sign. Why he would take this class, you had no idea.

There was a desk right behind yours, which was his only option to sit at, but Gojo took it my the edge and dragged it so it was aligned with yours.

Your eyes couldn't help but wander during class, down to Yuta's bag on the floor, which was barren of any keychains or pins. Panda had, well, pandas all along his bag, while Toge had a keychain of a rice ball. Even Maki had a sword keychain on her bag, the gold ones that people normally get as souvenirs. At your feet, your backpack has a small stuffed animal that Mimiko had sewn for you a long time ago.