First Conversation with Ayanokoji

"Ayanokoji, you come up and read this passage!" The English teacher on the podium was a burly middle-aged man. There wasn't a hint of a smile on his face; Hoshino couldn't even imagine what he would look like if he did smile. Then again, it seemed Chabashira was the same way.

What on earth was wrong with this school? It was one thing for the students to be problematic, but the teachers too? Hoshino felt a bit worried about his future life here.

"Yes!..."

Hoshino looked back and discovered that the boy in the corner had stood up.

So his name is Ayanokoji, Hoshino realized.

"Ayanokoji-kun, could I bother you for a moment? Would you have some time to chat?" After school, Hoshino immediately went to the desk of the boy in the corner.

The boy was buried in the homework the teacher had assigned during class, moving at a high speed with almost no time spent thinking. He must be quite good at his studies, Hoshino thought. Even though he had only caught a glimpse, he had already discovered this fact.

"Hm? Um, who are you?" The boy in front of him looked up, staring expressionlessly in the direction of the voice.

"My name is Hoshino Hoshiya. Ayanokoji-kun, could I be your friend? Would you have some time to talk?" Hoshino went straight to the point.

"Uh... sure. Could you wait until I finish writing this?" A flash of vigilance crossed Ayanokoji's eyes. After a brief moment of thought, he relaxed and gestured toward the textbook on his desk as he asked.

"Of course. I'll head back for now. Once you're done, Ayanokoji-kun, you can come find me." Hoshino stared intently into Ayanokoji's eyes.

"Okay."

Back at his seat, Hoshino took out the "stick figure" sketchbook he had drawn in the past, preparing to add some new content. He had a few decent ideas...

"Um, Hoshino-kun?" A familiar voice came from his side. Hoshino, who had been lost in his "own world," snapped back to reality.

He looked up to see Ayanokoji standing in front of his desk with his school bag. Although he remained expressionless, Hoshino could sense the awkwardness of someone who wanted to start a conversation but didn't know how.

"Sorry, sorry! I lost track of time!" Hoshino apologized hurriedly.

"It's fine. Where should we go to talk? Or should we just stay here?" Ayanokoji said, secretly glancing left and right at the situation in the classroom. It was indeed quite crowded, with many people still chatting inside; it really wasn't a good place for a conversation.

"Let's go to the cafe at the nearby mall! I know a really great place!"

As a model "lone wolf," Hoshino had scouted out several spots suitable for slacking off in solitude, and this cafe was one he had stumbled upon during one of his aimless strolls.

Upon entering the cafe, the staff at the counter immediately came over to greet them, leading Hoshino and Ayanokoji to a decent table.

Ayanokoji looked around with curiosity. The cafe was indeed quite nice; the decor suited the tastes of young people, exuding a clean and artistic vibe everywhere. The booths were semi-enclosed, which was quite friendly for those with social anxiety, as it meant they didn't have to make eye contact with others.

"Hey, Ayanokoji-kun, let me introduce myself again. My name is Hoshino Hoshiya. I'm not very good at talking to people, but I occasionally noticed that you're usually alone too, so I wanted to be your friend. I hope that's alright?" Hoshino said, his words a bit unpracticed, a look of distress on his face and a hint of awkwardness in his eyes.

"Sure, my name is Ayanokoji Kiyotaka!..." Ayanokoji seemed to want to say something more, but realized he didn't really have any topics to bring up, so he silently shut his mouth.

It was a bit awkward. Was this what communication between two socially anxious people was like? Hoshino felt a bit stuck.

"Can I call you Ayanokoji? Of course, you can just call me Hoshino, or Hoshiya is fine too." Seeing things weren't going well, Hoshino hurriedly took over the conversation.

"Okay, Hoshino."

"Ayanokoji, do you have any hobbies?..."

"..."

The two of them spoke about trivial topics. Hoshino wasn't in any rush; he had actually done some research on how to make friends. On the first day, it was mostly about talking about meaningless things—as long as it could bridge the distance between them, that was enough.

However, things weren't as simple on Ayanokoji's end. Ever since Hoshino had approached him in the classroom, Ayanokoji had been suspicious of whether Hoshino was an "assassin" sent by that place. He had only thought about their methods for a second before ruling out the suspicion!

But now, Hoshino was acting in a way that didn't fit his image. Ayanokoji's relaxed heart couldn't help but tense up again. The composure that had flashed through Hoshino's self-introduction, combined with his skillful technique during their chat, made it hard for Ayanokoji to believe that Hoshino was truly socially anxious! Did he have ulterior motives for approaching him?

Half an hour passed, and the frequency of their conversation dropped rapidly. Hoshino really didn't know what else to say. He wasn't sure if Ayanokoji was doing it on purpose, but it felt like the topics kept hitting dead ends. Still, it basically met Hoshino's expectations, so he decided to retreat for now; achieving this much on the first day was enough.

After chatting about a few more trivial things, Hoshino downed the coffee on the table and proposed leaving. After paying with his points, the two of them left the cafe.

The coffee was pretty mediocre! Hoshino felt a bit regretful.