Chapter 2: Meeting Itsuki Nakano

"Yakiniku set without the yakiniku, please." Ayanokouji says with a calm look on his face, all while keeping his gaze directed somewhere else.

He knew that there was no way anyone would attack him in broad daylight, in the cafeteria no less, but he is a very precautious person, for no reason other than being a force of habit.

You never know what's lurking in the shadows.

Every law enacted in society has a way to be bypassed; Ayanokouji merely enjoys exploiting such loopholes to pass the time. The cheapest item on the menu at this school's cafeteria is the bowl of rice on his tray, which costs 200 yen.

However, if he orders the yakiniku meal set and asks for the meat to be removed, which costs another 200 yen, the cafeteria staff will still give him the bowl of rice, but with the miso soup and veggies as if he ordered the full yakiniku set.

Essentially, this means that he can take advantage of the cafeteria system by receiving miso soup and veggie without having to pay for a bowl of rice! It's like housewives taking advantage of the discount sales in supermarkets, but on a smaller scale.

Sometimes my genius is almost frightening.

After retrieving a cup of black coffee for himself, he looks for a place to seat.

-

"Yikes, is that Ayanokouji? He ordered something weird again."

"Looks like he still hasn't got anyone to eat with. What a f*cking loner, huh?"

"I know, right, that's so lame ~"

Ayanokouji could clearly hear their quips about his social skills but didn't bother to give them a second thought. He casually continued on towards one of the two-seater tables near the end of the cafeteria.

As soon as he set his tray down on the table, he noticed that there was another tray next to his. He tilted his head to look at the owner of the other tray, which caused him to lock eyes with a young red-head frowning at him.

Déjà vu. Didn't expect to see one of the Nakano sisters so soon.

She was sporting a noticeably different uniform, with a black top that contrasts sharply with the lighter tones of their high school's uniform and long peachy-red hair ornamented with star-shaped hair clips.

''I found this spot before you did!'' The red-head stared daggers.

''That's funny, I don't see your name written on it,'' Ayanokouji said nonchalantly as he pulled the chair and sat down without waiting for her response. ''But if you wanna sit with me that badly, then be my guest.'' He pointed at the remaining empty seat in front of him.

"Ummm...huh, b-but but...?" the girl stammers nervously, already quite red in her cheeks. Her hands are shaking visibly, causing the water in its cup on her tray to tremble and jump.

''You know your food is only going to get cold if you keep standing there.''

"I was - Shut up, I know!" the girl sat down immediately, pouting intensely.

Her facial expression lightens up as she sets down her loaded tray and lets out a sigh of sweet relief. "My legs are killing me...I spent all day yesterday touring the campus here, and I don't think my body has really recovered..." the girl says while pulling her wooden chopsticks apart in half. "I deserve a break right about now."

Ayanokouji rested his left arm against his left cheek, listening attentively despite his disinterested expression.

Not sure, why she is even telling me this. Must be the talkative sort.

However, as she is explaining her dilemma, Ayanokouji notices additional sets of feet and voices approaching them, and sure enough, one of them says in low tones-

"Whoa, look, Ayanokouji's eating lunch with a girl!"

"Damn, you're right. Is she stupid or what?"

Once again, Ayanokouji ignores them, he glanced at his seatmate and to his mild surprise, his female companion is more flushed than before, her eyes inclined downwards at her own meal, and her eyebrows tense with embarrassment.

Well, it's not like I forced her to sit next to me.

Ayanokouji shrugs his shoulders as his eyes fall upon the girl's food. 250 yen udon, two 150 yen shrimp tempura, one squid, chicken, and sweet potato tempura pieces each priced at 100 yen, and 180 yen pudding for dessert.

"You have quite the appetite, huh," Ayanokouji remarks with a bored look.

"Hey! A girls gotta eat!" She blurts out, her blush deepening, but she hastily clears her throat and corrects her posture to look more mature. "I'm still growing ya know?"

Still growing, she says. Though I do wonder where all the nutrients disappear off to?

Ayanokouji's dull eyes are drawn to the exceptionally large size of her chest, which is elegantly concealed only by her black outfit.

Nevermind... I think I just found my answer.

He gave himself another second before returning his gaze to where it belonged: the girl's brilliant, dazzling blue eyes.

"Well, it's not my place to tell you how you should or should not live; just know I won't think of you as any less of a woman even if you were to get fat."

''I will not get F-A-T!''The girl crosses her arms defensively and glares back at Ayanokouji, still with her same pout, as if daring him to ask further.

Ayanokouji nodded before turning his attention back to his lunch. Without bothering to utter the traditional Japanese phrase of thanks before eating, Ayanokouji digs into his meager meal right away.

Savoring the taste of the freshly cooked, fluffy white rice in conjunction with the deep, hearty taste of miso soup, he takes his time with the food, chewing intently like a food critic trying to understand its flavors.

The girl drops her pout and unfolds her arms instantly. "O-Okay... itadakimasu."

Clasping her hands together and uttering the phrase, she grabbed her chopsticks and started to eat. It didn't take long for her to notice the enormous difference between their lunches, prompting her to shoot him a concerned glance.

"Will you be satisfied with a meal like that? Don't tell me you're aiming for the Guinness Record for the World's Skinniest Man...?"

He waved off her words of concern. "I'll be fine. Just concentrate on eating your own lunch."

Apparently, the girl didn't listen at all and instead grabbed one of the shrimps that she ordered with her chopsticks, before handing it towards him. "Here! You can have one of mine...!" she exclaimed, which caused Ayanokouji to raise an eyebrow.

"No need. I'm fine with my lunch being like this."

"Don't worry about it, please I insist...!" Closing her eyes, she shoved her chopsticks forward, dropping the shrimp in his tray.

"You are acting pretty buddy-buddy, considering I don't even know your name yet," he muttered, chewing the shrimp slowly in order to savor its delicious taste.

The girl jerked back in surprise, then swiftly recomposed herself by slightly bowing her head. "It's Itsuki. Itsuki Nakano. Nice to meet you, uhm...?" she looked up at him with eyes full of curiosity, and Ayanokouji knew what that look meant.

"Ayanokouji. Kiyotaka Ayanokouji." He gave her a small nod, before going back to eating.

Itsuki nodded back, gobbling up some of her udon. "B-Besides, I just transferred here. What's wrong with me trying to make friends."

-

"Hm? What are you doing?" With a mouthful of exquisite udon on her lips, Itsuki inquires, observing Ayanokouji take a piece of paper from his backpack before folding it into smaller and smaller pieces.

"We had a mock in one of our classes; I don't really see a point in keeping the test papers around. I usually just toss them on the garbage can on my way home." Ayanokouji responds calmly.

"Ah, I get it! You don't want your parents to see them. Don't worry we are in the same boat, I used to hide test papers from my dad too. Now - If - you will - excuse me!" Leaning forward sneakily, the black-uniformed girl suddenly lurches ahead and successfully snatches the quiz paper out of Ayanokouji's hand.

"Well then, Kiyotaka Ayanokouji-kun, you received - " the girl smugly scans her lunch companion's quiz. However her smug expression just lasts a split second. "- a perfect 100," she concludes blankly.

Lowering Ayanokouji's quiz paper, she instead looks like she's just gotten slapped in the face metaphorically.

"Oh no, how embarrassing.." Ayanokouji expressed sarcastically with a monotone voice. It probably would've been funny if he wasn't saying it with such a dead look.

"Mmmmmuuuu! ! !" the girl resumes her usual pouting again as her cheeks redden up once more. "You wanted me to see it!"

"But...now that this topic is on hand, it does remind me of my own grades..."

"You don't say? How so?"

"Well, the truth is...as difficult as it is for me to admit to someone else, my grades aren't all that great."

"Really? That's unfortunate, cause you appear to be the studious type." The girl sits up a little straighter as a result of Ayanokouji's casual remark, and Ayanokouji notices that what was left of her pout from earlier has vanished.

"I-Is that so? I mean, I...I do try my best to study as hard as I can..." the girl says quickly, her cheeks glowing once again, but she shakes her head and clears her throat.

Itsuki suddenly clapped her hands together."You know it must've been fate that bought us together," she says with a bright smile adorning her face. "Do you wanna help me study?"

"Well obviously, it's my job after all," Ayanokouji replied without hesitation.

''Whoa!'' Itsuki backed away in her seat with exaggerated movements and a shocked look planted on her face. ''I d-didn't expect you to be so into it!"

Why is she so taken aback? Even if she doesn't know what I look like, she should be well-informed that she's getting a tutor. Now that I think about it... Why is she even asking me to teach her when she is aware she already has a tutor?

"I guess that settles it. My father has already arranged for me to have a tutor. But I have a feeling I'm not going to like him." She gave him the thumbs up. ''So, you are as good as hired.''

Well, that explains a lot.

Ayanokouji had a sour taste in his mouth, not surprising considering that she's basically talking about firing him and then re-hiring him.

Should I just tell her? Mmm... I read somewhere that people like surprises, this might be a good chance to test it out.

-

Perhaps noticing the silence Itsuki continues talking. ''I apologize if I wasn't clear, but you will be well compensated for your time."

"You mean like a salary? You can worry about that after our first class." Ayanokouji shrugs while spinning one of the chopsticks around his fingers "Spending time with you is enough compensation for now.''

"Eeehhhh! ! !" Itsuki squeaked a weird sound as her cheeks reddens once again.

Ayanokouji stopped playing with his chopsticks and tilted his head in bewilderment. He hadn't anticipated such a reaction. Is it possible that I overstepped my boundaries somehow? I mean, it's not like I said something wrong, right? My entire job description consists of spending time with her and mentoring her so that she does not fail again. Guess I need to work on my social cues more.

Itsuki suddenly got up, even though she wasn't done eating. Her eyes were hidden behind her bangs.

"I-It's been a n-nice having lunch with you, A-Ayanokouji-kun...! U-Until we meet again!" With a quick bow and a shaky voice, the red-haired girl then ran away with her tray.

As he watched her leave, Ayanokouji took it as a sign that it was also time for him to leave. While he was putting away the tray that he used, he was deep in thought about something important.

Itsuki Nakano. She's definitely not what I was expecting. She seems diligent and willing to work hard. I hope the other sisters are a carbon copy of her personality. They already have that covered in the looks department after all. Sadly, that's just wishful thinking.

Worst case scenario, I can just dig dirt on the teachers and blackmail them to pass the quintuplets. After all, my job is to get them to pass, there is no mention of how I'm supposed to achieve that.

But let's just hope it doesn't come to that.