When Gang saw Akira suddenly talking to him, he was so frightened that he quickly turned away and lay back down, afraid of getting involved.
"Pa pa pa!" Akira had been resting his head on the desk when he heard a round of clapping. He looked up toward the sound and heard Teacher Yoshinaga's loud voice:
"Everyone, back to your seats! We're going to take attendance!"
The kids playing in the back of the classroom and the odd pair behind Akira quickly scrambled back to their seats, while those napping were gently shaken awake.
Teacher Yoshinaga, standing at the front with a notebook in her right hand, turned to the first page with her left, glanced over the room to make sure everyone was seated, and began calling out names one by one.
"Miyamura Akira!"
"Here!" Akira answered.
The rest of the children followed suit, shouting "Here!" even louder whenever their names were called. Eventually, it turned into a competition to see who could shout the loudest.
After calling all the names, Teacher Yoshinaga glanced at the three who hadn't responded, then said, "Everyone stay in your seats. I'll be back soon—I need to make a quick phone call."
She then walked out of the Sunflower Class, notebook still in hand.
Outside, leaning against the wall by the classroom door, she looked toward the entrance of the kindergarten, pulled her phone from her pocket, and began dialing the number of the first child who hadn't shown up.
The first two parents she contacted said similar things: their kids didn't want to come to kindergarten anymore, saying there were "bad people" there. The parents, concerned that their children were being bullied, had decided to switch schools and would return at noon to request a refund.
Yoshinaga then dialed the last number on the list—next to the name "Nohara Shinnosuke." After two or three unanswered calls, she sighed, put her phone away, and turned to head back inside.
Just as she stepped forward, a shout rang out behind her: "Wait! Miss Yoshinaga!"
Turning around, she saw a bicycle zooming through the school gate at full speed. On the back seat was a sleeping Shinnosuke, and pedaling furiously in front was his mom, Nohara Misae.
Skidding to a smooth stop right in front of her, Misae gave a sheepish smile and said, "Sorry, Miss Yoshinaga! I overslept today. I'll leave Shin-chan in your care!"
After handing over her still-groggy son, she turned and rode off in a hurry.
Yoshinaga chuckled softly, said nothing, and guided the confused Shinnosuke into Sunflower Class to sit down before beginning the day's lessons.
The peaceful days at kindergarten continued, following the same routine. Every noon, Akira would eat lunch and nap together with Shouko. Before eating, he would help her wash her hands, then give her warm water to drink. After their nap, he'd help her put on her shoes and tie her laces.
The children in Sakura Class had gotten used to it. At first, a few little girls even envied Shouko, but eventually they all came to accept it.
Teacher Ueo often watched the two of them with a warm, auntie-like smile. Shouko had once suspected her of being weird, but Akira explained things, and Shouko let it go.
At first, Akira stood out a lot in the Sunflower Class. The girls liked playing with him—he was very different from the boys who cried or wet themselves all the time. Plus, he was cute.
But later, Akira would always vanish during lunch breaks and didn't play with the kids in the Sunflower Class anymore. Over time, he became a quiet background presence. He only stayed close with Shinnosuke's five-member group, and as for the rest of the class—he didn't even remember their names.
In the blink of an eye, three months passed in this leisurely routine.
That day, Sakura Class had P.E. class, which only happened once a week. During this time, the sandpit and slide outside were reserved for Sakura Class to play and relax.
"Dong…Dong…Dong…" The lunch bell rang. Teacher Ueo quickly gathered the children outside and guided them back into the classroom to get their lunchboxes.
Shouko returned to her seat and took out her and Akira's bento from the cubby beneath the table. Both had been prepared that morning by Yaeko Nishimiya, during her rare day off. Shouko was thrilled and treasured them dearly. She couldn't wait to eat with Akira.
Carefully unwrapping the black cloth from around the boxes, she tucked it back into the cubby. Then, carrying a bento in each hand, she skipped over to Teacher Ueo by the podium and said happily:
"Miss Ueo, can I go eat lunch with Akira?"
Teacher Ueo looked at Shouko, who was speaking to her so sweetly, and recalled how over the past three months she had often visited Sunflower Class just to be with Akira—and Akira had never left her side.
She smiled gently, patted Shouko's head, and said, "Of course, go ahead."
Shouko beamed, nodded, and walked off briskly toward the Sunflower Class.
On the way, she passed two boys coming from Sunflower Class—one with a crew cut, the other with a mushroom bowl haircut. She had seen them before and remembered their faces.
"Good afternoon," she greeted cheerfully as she passed.
The two boys ignored her.
After she walked past, the crew-cut boy suddenly said to the mushroom-head, "Isn't that the weird girl who's always with that annoying kid?"
The mushroom-head squinted, then seemed to recall something. "Oh yeah. She's like one of those monsters from the new Superman movie—she wears that red hair clip every day and talks like a monster."
"And that arrogant little punk only acts like that because he's got a little monster protecting him!"
Inspired by this thought, the crew-cut boy stopped his friend and said, "Let me handle this. I just learned a flying kick. Watch this!"
Shouko had no idea what was coming. Several meters still separated them.
The crew-cut boy got a running start, just like the superheroes on TV. Then, with a jump, he kicked Shouko hard in the back.
Caught off guard, Shouko tumbled forward, sliding nearly a meter on the rough concrete. Her knees and arms were scraped, burning from the friction. Half her face went numb. Her hearing aid flew off, and both lunchboxes spilled open on the ground.
Shouko, dazed and hurt, looked at the scattered food. She wanted to pick it up—Mama had told her never to waste food, and that if she did, Akira wouldn't play with her anymore.
But she couldn't get up. Red drops were falling onto the concrete below her.
Unable to bear the pain, she started crying.
She saw one of the boys stomp on a lunchbox, crushing the food. Thinking that Akira would go hungry because of her, she cried harder and harder.