You blink your eyes open gently, adjusting to the light flooding your room through the window.

Groaning, you turn over in your bed and throw the blanket over your head. "Curse you, sunlight. I'll never get good rest."

The door to your room slammed open

"(Y/N)!!! Get out of bed right now!!"

That was your mom's voice

You sit up in your bed, looking like a depressed ghostly figure under a mountain of blankets.

"Why? My alarm hasn't even gone off yet..."

She lurched forward and pulled the blankets off of you.

"It's the first day of school!! You're gonna be a sophomore! Aren't you excited?! It's best to get to school as early as possible on the first day so you know where all your new classes are~"

You sigh and slide off of the bed, slipping your feet into two fluffy white slippers

"Thanks for waking me up mom." You smile disingenuously at your mother, trying to hide your frustration

"Of course!" She steps back towards the door "Oh! I forgot to mention—Sabito's outside. He wants to walk with you to school today. Oooooh he's so sweet! I missed him"

Sabito...Sabito's here!!

Your face lights up a bit "really? I guess I'd better not keep him waiting huh"

She nods "exactly! Hurry up and get dressed so you can be on your way"

While you were upstairs getting dressed, you found your old freshman year uniform in the closet.

This old thing...man, it feels like a century ago

You weren't going to wear it until you realized that the school never mailed a new uniform to your house. You grit your teeth in anger

How could they forget my address?! Damn it

Unwillingly, you strip your clothes off and slip into the black skirt and button-up white shirt.

Not only did it shrink in the wash last time, but you've grown a bit since you last wore it, so the skirt doesn't come down to it's required length anymore.

To make matters worse? The buttons of your shirt won't go over your chest.

What the hell?! My breasts can't possibly be that big. I hate this tiny ass shirt

You look up at something that catches your eye

My old jacket!! That's perfect!

You swipe the black sweater off the clothes rack in your closet and throw it over your shoulders

As a finishing touch, you rush to the vanity on a dresser in your room and clip a crescent moon shaped hairpin into your hair

Rushing down the stairs with your backpack slung over one shoulder, you pull your knee-high socks over your feet and slip them into some old shoes from last year

"Oi! Did you brush your teeth?" Your mom called from the kitchen

"Yes, mom!!" You call back, picking up your skateboard which previously laid against the wall by the door

"Have you got your phone?" That was your dad's voice "And backpack?"

"Yes, dad! I'll be fine. See you guys later"

You were quick to close the door behind you. You leaned against it with a sigh

"Hey!" Sabito smiled at you, waving from the driveway on the side of your house. He was leaning against a tree with his skateboard in one arm and wearing an all-black school uniform.

As you approach him, he continues to talk "You sure took your sweet time in there." He looks you up and down for a moment "We're not going to a photoshoot y'know."

Was that a compliment?!

You bit your lip in embarrassment, sliding your arm through the other strap of your backpack "Don't hate me just cause I'm cuter than you!!"

Sabito chuckles and stands to his full height, looking down at you "You haven't seen me in forever and this is your response? No hello, no welcome back? I'm offended."

This close to him, you can see the stitches on his head where the surgery was done under his pale orange bangs. His hair had also gotten much longer, and most of it was in a scruffy low ponytail.

"You started it by being such a dick. Classic Sabito." You stick your tongue out at him

He rolls his eyes at you jokingly, tossing his skateboard onto the concrete "alright (y/n), since you wanna be that way..."

"you owe me a drink from the vending machine later." He smirked, hopping onto his board and rolling down the hill

"HEY!! NO WAY!! COME BACK!" You holler, throwing your own skateboard down and rolling after him

When you catch up to Sabito, the two of you are cruising along the sidewalk in the city. That steep incline from your house may be dangerous, but it gives you enough momentum to just keep going for a while.

"Sabito, you can't be so reckless in your condition." You furrowed your eyebrows at him

"Relax!! The doctors said it's fine. And look at me! I'm fine" He tilts his head back, feeling the wind in his face and flowing through his hair

"The doctors said it's fine to skate, not go barreling down a hill into a busy street." you frown

As much as you enjoyed seeing Sabito so free, you vowed you'd never let harm come to your friends again, no matter the circumstances.

"Aww come on (Y/n)," Sabito looks at you, his expression softening; it looked almost as if your words really did reach him "I mean it. I'm tired of everybody looking at me like I'm dying or something...I can take care of myself. And besides, I'm the one whose supposed to protect you and Makomo anyways, not the other way around."

"But..." You started

"But nothin. Stop worrying about me," Sabito turned his head to look ahead again "Let me take care of this. All you should be worried about is yourself."

You decided not to put up a fight any longer, despite how tempting it might be.

Upon arriving at school, you and Sabito are already being met with a ton of weird stares.

But, luckily for you, it's easy to ignore them when you're listening to the stupid things he's saying

"Look! Holy shit, remember when that one kid totally puked on Mitsuri at that table?!" Sabito snickered.

The two of you were on the second floor now, and he was pointing at a table where your group used to sit through the window

You gasp "Yes! He got so many death threats from Mitsuri's fans that he had to transfer--that was insane."

"Wow...good old days" Sabito smiles warmly back at you

Unfortunately, though, he's not watching where he's going

Sabito's shoulder smacks right into the arm of some really tall guy walking with a long-haired girl, and immediately he backs up to look at them.

You stop as well, your heart sinking into your stomach when you realize who it is.

We're fucked.