April 9, 2001 (Monday) – Morning, Budogaoka High School, Morioh, Japan
After the complete and utter humiliation that was Maple's "Mission: Infiltrate the Higashikata Household," (Y/N) was praying for a smooth, uneventful first day at her new school.
Spoiler alert: It was not going to be smooth, nor uneventful.
With her bag slung over one shoulder, she stepped through the gates of Budogaoka High School, immediately feeling a wave of nervous energy settle in her stomach.
She had spent the past few years at a high school in Tokyo, where everything was fast-paced, competitive, and filled with perfectly put-together girls who made looking pretty seem like their full-time job.
Morioh was supposed to be a change of pace. A fresh start.
And yet...
As she walked past groups of uniformed students chatting near the entrance, she could already feel the eyes on her.
The quick once-overs. The subtle, judgmental stares.
She wasn't surprised.
Japan had very clear beauty standards—ones she had never fit into.
Too soft. Too chubby. Too different.
She had tried to ignore it for most of her life, to act like it didn't matter, but the quiet whispers from a few passing girls still made her stomach tighten.
"She must be a transfer."
"I didn't think our school allowed skirts in that size."
"Maybe she should've stayed in Tokyo..."
She swallowed hard, keeping her head high as she walked further inside.
Just focus on getting to class. That's all.
⸻
The moment (Y/N) entered the building, she realized one very crucial mistake.
She had no idea where the hell she was going.
Sure, the school wasn't that big, but the hallways all looked way too similar, and her map was doing absolutely nothing to help.
Okay, okay, don't panic. Just... find someone to ask.
She turned a corner, spotting a group of girls chatting by a row of lockers.
(Y/N) took a breath and approached.
"Excuse me—"
They turned to her, eyes scanning her up and down. One girl barely concealed a smirk.
"Oh. You're the new girl, right?"
Something in her tone made (Y/N)'s stomach drop.
Still, she nodded. "Yeah. I just transferred in, and, um—" She forced a polite smile. "Could you point me to Homeroom 3-B?"
The girl exchanged a glance with her friends before flashing a too-sweet, obviously fake smile.
"Oh, sure! Just go straight down that hall, take a left, then go up the stairs."
(Y/N) felt instant relief. "Oh, thank you so much!"
She bowed slightly before hurrying off, following the directions exactly.
...Only to realize, three minutes later, that she had just been sent to the completely wrong side of the building.
"Oh, great. So we're doing that today."
(Y/N) groaned, rubbing her temples. What now?
And then—
Someone called her name.
"(Y/N)?"
She turned—and immediately felt her stomach flip.
Because, of course, standing there was none other than Higashikata Josuke.
He was leaning casually against a row of lockers, school bag slung over one shoulder, hair perfectly styled despite the fact that he had just been chasing her cat through his house less than 24 hours ago.
(Y/N), meanwhile, was still frazzled from getting lost, sweaty from rushing through the hallways, and definitely not looking anywhere near as cool as he did.
"Wait," he said, raising a brow. "What're you doing all the way over here?"
(Y/N) crossed her arms. "Trying to find my homeroom. Some girl gave me directions, but I think she—" She paused, frowning. "...sent me to the wrong place on purpose."
Josuke's expression darkened just slightly.
Of course they did.
People like that always had something to say when someone didn't fit into their perfect little mold. It pissed him off.
Still, he kept his tone light. "Tch. Figures." He jerked his thumb over his shoulder. "C'mon, I'll show ya where it is."
(Y/N) blinked. "You know where my homeroom is?"
He glanced over at her schedule paper and smirked. "Yeah. 'Cause it's mine too."
(Y/N) froze.
"...Wait. We're in the same class?!"
Josuke chuckled, nodding. "Yup. Guess you're stuck with me, huh?"
(Y/N) groaned, covering her face. "First Maple, now you—my life is officially cursed."
Josuke laughed. "Hey, c'mon, I ain't that bad."
He nudged her playfully before motioning for her to follow.
"Let's go, new girl."
⸻
As Josuke led her through the correct hallways, (Y/N) stole a few glances at him.
Honestly? He was kind of... not what she expected.
Sure, he was a delinquent. And sure, he had an unrealistically perfect pompadour.
But he wasn't mean.
He didn't look at her the way other people did.
No once-over. No judgmental glance.
Just a normal guy talking to her like she was any other person.
That alone made her feel lighter.
"So," Josuke said after a moment. "What's Tokyo like?"
(Y/N) shrugged. "Big. Busy. Loud."
Josuke chuckled. "Sounds like my mom on laundry day."
(Y/N) snorted. "I dunno, you might actually like it. Lotta places to show off that hair of yours."
Josuke grinned, tossing his head dramatically. "What can I say? Greatness deserves to be seen."
(Y/N) rolled her eyes, but she was smiling now.
Maybe—just maybe—today wouldn't be so bad.
⸻
Josuke finally stopped in front of a classroom door. "Here we are—3-B."
(Y/N) sighed in relief. "Thank God."
As she stepped inside, she immediately felt the eyes on her.
People whispered. She caught a few more of those judgmental looks.
And just like that—the insecurity started creeping back in.
But then—
Josuke walked in right behind her.
His presence alone was enough to make the room shift.
And without thinking, he casually slung an arm over her shoulders.
"Alright, everyone," he grinned. "This here's (Y/N). She's new, so don't be dicks, yeah?"
(Y/N) turned red immediately.
The entire class gawked.
Josuke Higashikata—the most popular guy in school, the local heartthrob, the guy who literally fought people for talking shit about his hair—was casually acting like they were best friends.
(Y/N) swallowed.
...Well.
If people weren't gonna stare at her before—they definitely were now.
Budogaoka High – Lunchtime
The second the lunch bell rang, (Y/N) let out a deep sigh of relief.
Her first half of the day hadn't been terrible, but it was definitely overwhelming.
Whispers. Stares. The occasional side-eye from girls who were definitely judging her.
But honestly? The weirdest part of her morning was Josuke.
He didn't act like people usually did around her. He was too casual. Too friendly. And after the absolute disaster that was her morning of getting lost, he had kept casually checking on her throughout class—leaning over to ask if she was doing okay, or nudging her when she spaced out.
And now, as she pulled out her lunch, she figured she'd finally get a moment of peace.
She reached into her bag, carefully pulling out a pastel pink bento box, decorated with tiny Sanrio stickers and little strawberries.
It was adorable.
(Y/N) smiled to herself as she flipped it open, revealing a perfectly arranged meal—rice shaped into a bear, little egg flowers, and even some heart-shaped strawberries.
She had always loved making her own bentos. It was something her mom had taught her—putting love into her food, making every meal feel special.
She picked up her chopsticks, ready to take a bite—
And then, a shadow fell over her.
(Y/N) blinked, looking up.
Josuke had moved his chair next to hers.
And he was staring directly at her lunch.
Like, full-on entranced.
"...What." (Y/N) raised a brow.
Josuke didn't even look at her. His eyes were still glued to her bento.
"Your lunch," he said, sounding almost offended. "Why is it so damn cute?"
(Y/N) blinked. Then snorted. "Excuse me?"
Josuke finally looked up at her, his expression dead serious.
"Did you make this?"
(Y/N) hesitated. "...Yeah?"
Josuke let out a dramatic gasp.
"Bro." He turned back to her bento. "Look at the little bear rice. Look at the hearts. What the hell. This is the most adorable thing I've ever seen."
(Y/N) felt her face heat up. "...It's just a lunch, Josuke—"
"No. No, no, no," Josuke shook his head. "This ain't just a lunch. This is art. This is a masterpiece."
(Y/N) rolled her eyes, but she was definitely flustered.
She had expected people to make fun of her bento, not geek out over it like it was the best thing they'd ever seen.
Josuke grinned. "Man, your family runs a bakery and you make cute lunches? That's dangerous."
(Y/N) smirked. "Oh? You scared, Higashikata?"
Josuke huffed. "Nah. Just saying—if people find out about this, you're gonna have the whole school trying to steal your food."
(Y/N) chuckled, shaking her head. "Doubt it."
"Bet."
And before (Y/N) could react—he stole a piece of her tamagoyaki right off her chopsticks.
(Y/N) froze.
Josuke froze.
Neither of them moved.
Then—
Josuke chewed.
Slowly.
Eyes still locked on hers.
And then, with the most dead serious expression imaginable—
"Yo, what the hell, why is this so good."
(Y/N) let out a loud, scandalized gasp. "JOSUKE—"
Before she could properly yell at him for stealing her food, the classroom door slammed open.
⸻
A voice boomed from the doorway.
"JOSUKE. WHERE YOU AT, MAN—"
(Y/N) turned just in time to see a broad-shouldered guy with a shaved head and thick eyebrows step into the room—
And immediately stop in his tracks.
Because there was Josuke.
Sitting right next to a girl.
Sharing a lunch.
Silence.
A long, slow blink.
Then—
Okuyasu's eyes widened.
"BRO."
Josuke, still chewing, sighed. "Oh god."
(Y/N) just stared.
Then—
Okuyasu's face split into the biggest, dumbest grin.
"YOU GOT A GIRLFRIEND?!"
(Y/N) choked.
Josuke choked.
Okuyasu pointed aggressively at (Y/N). "WHO IS SHE? HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN HIDING HER FROM ME?!"
(Y/N) looked like she was about to spontaneously combust.
Josuke coughed violently. "DUDE—"
Okuyasu gasped. "ARE YOU SHARING LUNCH? WITH A GIRL??"
(Y/N) frantically waved her hands. "WE ARE NOT DATING—"
Josuke groaned, rubbing his face. "Okay, before you short-circuit your own brain, this is (Y/N). She just moved in next door to me."
Okuyasu blinked. "Huh?"
Josuke sighed. "She's my neighbor, dude. She just transferred here from Tokyo."
(Y/N), still reeling from the "you got a girlfriend" accusation, nodded stiffly. "...Hi."
Okuyasu beamed.
"OH, DUDE. THAT MEANS WE'RE FRIENDS NOW."
(Y/N) blinked. "...What?"
Okuyasu threw an arm around Josuke. "Any friend of Josuke's is a friend of mine!"
(Y/N) had literally just met him.
Josuke sighed. "Yeah, that's just how he is. You're stuck with him now."
(Y/N), still overwhelmed, just nodded. "Uh... cool. I think."
Okuyasu grinned, plopping down into a seat. "Damn, man, this is wild. You, with a neighbor. A girl neighbor."
(Y/N) groaned. "Oh my god—"
Josuke glared. "DO YOU WANT ME TO PUNCH YOU."
Okuyasu cackled.
But then—he noticed (Y/N)'s bento.
He paused.
Stared.
Then turned to Josuke.
"Wait, is this why you were losing your mind just now?"
Josuke nodded solemnly. "Bro, look at it."
Okuyasu leaned in.
Slowly.
Examining the tiny bear rice. The heart-shaped strawberries. The cute little egg flowers.
His face was dead serious.
Then—
He turned back to (Y/N).
"...Can I have some?"
(Y/N) burst out laughing.
Josuke groaned, shaking his head. "Bro. You can't just ask that—"
(Y/N), still laughing, handed Okuyasu a piece. "Knock yourself out, dude."
Okuyasu lit up. "HELL YEAH."
As he took a bite, Josuke smirked. "Damn, (Y/N), I think you just made a friend for life."
(Y/N) sighed, smiling despite herself. "Guess I'm stuck with you guys now, huh?"
Josuke grinned.
"Yup. Welcome to Morioh."