Pre-Exam Notice

Before the first period, Mashima Tomoya entered the classroom.

He set his lesson plan on the podium, braced his hands against either side of the desk, and swept his gaze across the class.

"The midterm exams will be held in mid-May. There are five subjects: English, mathematics, Japanese, history, and science. Anyone whose average score in any individual subject is less than half the class average will be expelled."

The classroom fell silent for a moment, then someone in the back muttered, "Here we go again."

Kiryu Yume slipped his hand into the side pocket of his backpack, his fingertips touching the cover of that notebook.

When Mashima Tomoya had handed him the notes in the office last time, he had not said anything unnecessary. He had only gone over the framework of historical knowledge once and told Kiryu to study it on his own. Since then, Kiryu had gone through that notebook every night. From an initial history score of forty-one to consistently scoring above sixty on practice tests last week, every page bore the marks of having been turned over and over.

He looked up at the podium. Mashima Tomoya was handing out the paper notices, then turned to write the exam dates and subject order on the blackboard. Kiryu Yume silently calculated his expected scores. He was steady above seventy in math and English, around sixty-five in Japanese, and could get over sixty in science. He could pass history now, too. Without that notebook, he would probably still be staring blankly at that forty-one.

Katsuragi Kohei raised his hand. "Will the class average be calculated from the average total score across all five subjects, or will each subject be calculated separately?"

"Each subject will be calculated separately."

Katsuragi Kohei lowered his hand without asking anything else. Sakayanagi Arisu sat in the front row by the window, her cane resting against the side of her desk. Her violet eyes faced the podium as one finger lightly tapped the desktop, its rhythm perfectly matching Mashima Tomoya's pace as he read the exam instructions.

After handing out the notices, Mashima Tomoya stepped down from the podium. As he passed Kiryu Yume's seat, his footsteps paused for less than half a beat. His eyes swept over the cover of the notebook on Kiryu's desk, then he withdrew his gaze and continued toward the back.

After first period, Kiryu Yume folded the notice and tucked it into his notebook. Then a finger gently poked the back of his neck.

He turned around. Morishita Ran was leaning over her desk, her index finger still held in the position it had been in when poking his neck. Her blue-violet eyes looked up at him from beneath lowered lids.

"You looked much calmer when they handed out the notice than you did during the last quiz. Last time, the moment you heard the word history, your whole face went blank. Today, you only blinked once."

She pulled back her finger and took a rubber band from her pencil case. She looped it twice around her finger without stretching it fully, merely spinning it. "Looks like those notes weren't wasted on you."

Kiryu Yume leaned over the back of his chair, facing her. "You were even counting my blinks?"

"Since I sit behind you, I can either stare at the back of your head or look at your profile. When you're nervous, your right eyebrow moves first. Today, it didn't."

She slipped the rubber band over her index finger and pulled it back without releasing it. The fibers pressed a faint red mark into her knuckle before she let it loosen.

Kiryu Yume reached out and took her fingertips, drawing them a little closer. The pad of his thumb gently pressed the red mark, and her lashes fluttered twice in rapid succession.

"Mom."

Morishita Ran's earlobes burned from pink to the edges of her ears. She took off the rubber band and set it beside her pencil case, then pulled a soda-flavored lollipop from her pocket. She unwrapped it and held it to his lips, the stick tapping lightly against his lower lip.

"Your timing was better than last time. You caught me when I wasn't prepared. One every day before the exam, and if you pass history after the exam, you get two more." She pushed the lollipop into his mouth, then casually picked up Mashima Tomoya's notebook from his desk and flipped through two pages.

"The key points you added yourself in the last few pages are summarized pretty well. They're messy, but they hit all the important points. At least you won't fail the midterms."

"The word 'at least' doesn't make me feel very reassured."

"Good. If you felt reassured, I'd be worried you'd stop studying." She closed the notebook, set it back beside his hand, and headed toward the classroom door.

The system panel flickered.

[Morishita Ran: 2/30]

Class D classroom. Chabashira Sae stood on the podium with one hand in her uniform pocket, tossing the paper notices onto the first row of desks with the other and leaving the students to pass them around.

"The midterm exams will be held in mid-May. There are five subjects. Anyone whose average score in any individual subject is less than half the class average will be expelled."

Sudo Ken stood up from the back row, his chair legs scraping the floor with a harsh screech.

"Expelled? Just because we fail an exam?"

Chabashira Sae looked at him, her expression unmoving. "That was the second sentence I just said. The fact that you only stood up after hearing the word expulsion means you didn't listen to the first half at all. Sit down."

Sudo Ken did not sit. He planted both hands on his desk and leaned forward, his knuckles pressing down hard enough to make the desktop creak. Yamauchi Haruki tugged at his sleeve beside him, only to have his hand shaken off.

"I only got twenty-something in math on the last quiz, and I can't even read the questions in English. You expect me to learn five subjects in one month?"

Chabashira Sae withdrew her gaze and scanned the class.

"English, mathematics, Japanese, history, and science. Every subject has a failing threshold. Half the average score, not half the perfect score."

Ike Kanji sat by the wall, turning the notice over and over in his hands. His face grew paler with every look.

His English was hardly any better than Sudo Ken's. He had not even dared to look at his score on the last quiz before stuffing it into his drawer. Yamauchi Haruki muttered beside him, "I think I failed science last time too," and Ike Kanji swallowed without replying.

Horikita Suzune sat by the window with her head lowered, looking at the notice on her desk. The braid at her left temple swayed lightly over the paper. She flipped the notice over. The back was blank. Then she tucked it into her notebook, her movements gentle, but she showed no intention of discussing it with anyone.

Karuizawa Kei sat in the middle row by the aisle. She flipped the notice over twice, then slapped it onto her desk. "Getting expelled for failing an exam is way too extreme, isn't it? What does doing badly on a test have to do with our usual performance?"

"Doing badly on an exam means you didn't study. Not studying means you didn't listen in class. And not listening in class—" Chabashira Sae looked at her, her tone as calm as if she were reading a weather report. "—is because you all think someone will help you anyway."

Karuizawa Kei pressed her lips together and did not talk back. Her fingers gripped the edge of her desk tightly.

Sudo Ken finally sat down. His fist rested on the desk, clenched so hard his knuckles turned white, and his breathing was so heavy that even the students in the back could hear it.

Chabashira Sae turned and walked toward the classroom door. Her leather shoes stopped at the edge of the podium. "The back of the notice has the formulas for each subject's passing threshold. Calculate them yourselves. Once you do, you'll know exactly how many steps away from expulsion you are." She pushed open the door and left.

Before the sound of the door closing had faded, Yamauchi Haruki turned to Ike Kanji. His voice was low in his throat, but he could not suppress its tremble. "How much did you get in science last time? I think I only got thirty-something. The expulsion line comes out to around that score."

"Don't ask me. Just remembering my English score makes me want to throw up." Ike Kanji buried his face in his palms, and a sentence leaked through his fingers. "If my mom finds out I got expelled for failing exams..."

Sudo Ken suddenly turned and glared at them. "Can you two stop making noise? You're annoying as hell."

"We're not making noise. We really could get expelled." Yamauchi Haruki's lips trembled as he flipped the notice over and stared at the formula. His finger traced down each line, and when it reached the last one, it stopped. His entire face fell.

Hirata Yosuke turned sideways in his seat. His voice was not loud, but it cut through the surrounding noise. "If we start reviewing now, we should still make it. There's time before the exam. We can organize a study group and meet after school—"

"Make it my ass!" Sudo Ken slammed his fist onto the desk. His notebook jumped and slid to the floor. He did not pick it up, instead turning to roar at Hirata Yosuke. "Of course you say there's time when your grades are good. I haven't even opened the first unit of the English textbook!"

Hirata Yosuke did not back down from the shout. He bent down, picked up the notebook, and put it on Sudo Ken's desk. Dust had coated the cover, and he wiped it clean with his palm. "If one month isn't enough, then start today. It's still better than doing nothing. I can organize the key points, and Kushida—"

"I can help too." Kushida Kikyo stood up and turned around, her light-brown bob swaying softly with the movement. "I did fairly well in every subject on the last quiz, and I've organized all my notes. If no one minds, we can review together in the classroom after school. It's easy to lose focus when you study alone. If we work together and quiz each other, it should be better."

Yamauchi Haruki turned toward her, hope of rescue in his eyes. "Kushida, can I borrow your notes to copy? I don't even know where to start right now."

"Copying is useless." Horikita Suzune's voice came from the window. It was not loud, but every word was crystal clear. She pushed her chair back into place and stood. "Exams test comprehension, not copying. You can copy notes ten times, but if you don't understand it, you still won't understand it during the exam. Notes are only tools. What matters is memorizing it yourself."

Yamauchi Haruki's shoulders slumped. Kushida Kikyo looked toward Horikita Suzune, her lips moving slightly, but Horikita Suzune had already lowered her head and headed for the door.

As she passed Kushida Kikyo's seat, Kushida Kikyo reached out and lightly caught her sleeve. "Suzune, you should come too. Your grades are better than mine. If you're there—"

"I'll review on my own." Horikita Suzune pulled her sleeve out of Kushida Kikyo's hand. Her movement was unhurried, but firm. Her violet eyes paused on Kushida Kikyo's face for a second before moving away.

"Take care of yourself. I don't need anyone's help, and I don't want to help anyone else." She walked out of the classroom, the white ribbon on her braid swaying once beside the doorframe before disappearing into the hallway.

Kushida Kikyo looked down at her empty fingertips, then withdrew her hand and clasped it over the other on her lap.

When she looked back at Yamauchi Haruki and Sudo Ken, the curve had returned to her lips, and her voice was as gentle as usual. "Sudo, at least give it a try. It's fine if you don't understand on the first day. Start with the most basic unit, and I'll go through it with you from the beginning. Ike and Yamauchi can join too. It'll be easier to keep at it with more people."

Sudo Ken did not respond, but his fist loosened and the whiteness slowly faded from his knuckles. From behind him, Ike Kanji quietly said thank you, his voice muffled in his palms.

Hirata Yosuke took out a notebook and began writing down the study group schedule. "After school on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, in the classroom. Tuesdays and Thursdays, everyone studies on their own. Saturday, we go to the library. We'll start with English and math, since those are Sudo's and Ike's weakest subjects. We can make copies of Kushida's notes for everyone—"

"I don't need anyone's help, and I don't want to help anyone else." Sudo Ken suddenly repeated Horikita Suzune's words. His voice was quiet, but his tone was strange, like he was chewing on something he could not bite through. He picked up the notebook from the corner of his desk, flipped a page, then closed it again. "But I'm not her. Hirata, you said we start English from the first unit, right?"

Hirata Yosuke nodded once.

Sudo Ken slapped the notebook onto his desk. It made a loud noise, but this time it was not a smash. "Fine. I'll try. Worst case, I get expelled. It's not like I'd do any better staying here with zeroes."

Kushida Kikyo glanced at him, then took an unopened bag of chips from a plastic bag and placed it on Sudo Ken's desk. "Eat this if you get hungry while studying. It's better than memorizing vocabulary on an empty stomach."

Sudo Ken looked down at the bag of chips. He neither spoke nor pushed it away. After several seconds, he reached out and moved it to the corner of his desk, beside where he kept his notebook.

Karuizawa Kei crumpled the notice into a ball and threw it into her drawer. Her plastic bracelet struck the edge of the drawer with a sharp smack.

She buried her head in her arms on the desk without speaking or looking up. Matsushita Chiaki, who sat in front of her, leaned her chair back and whispered something near her ear. Karuizawa Kei shook her head, and Matsushita Chiaki patted her on the back.

Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, seated in the row behind him, rested his chin on his hand and looked out the window, his gaze falling in the direction Horikita Suzune had disappeared down the hall. He withdrew his gaze and looked down at the notice on his desk. He turned it over, then turned it back again before slipping it into his textbook.