He was simply too beautiful to be Japanese.

His features were too foreign, his aura was too alluring, his presence too enchanting, he invited attention by merely existing. He stood out in the best way humanly possible, by being far too beautiful.

His curly black hair bounced eagerly, tickling at his neck as he walked to the front of the room, garnering every ounce of attention the room had to offer, all eyes were on him from boys and girls alike.

His gaze fixed to the floor, avoiding the prying eyes that picked apart his appearance. Reo being one of them. He couldn't help it, indulging himself in the beauty before him. And like a moth to a flame, he was hooked.

Dressed in the classic black and white uniform that hugged his tall form perfectly, contrasting beautifully with his smooth brown complexion that emitted such a rich glow, that he looked as if he was glowing from within.

Complemented also by his choice of accessories. The layers of gold jewellery he adorned were authentic, Reo could tell by the way they glistened in the light. The necklaces, rings, bracelets, earrings, and even his nose stud, shone just as much as he did. Embellishing him in a way that made him look more like a Renaissance painting than a person. He looked like an angel, divine.

He towered over most of the men in the classroom, Reo and Nagi aside. The amethyst-eyed teen could sense the testosterone levels rising, as envy oozed from every pore of every other man that surrounded him. Nagi excluded, as jealousy was far too bothersome for him to partake in.

They felt threatened by him and they should be. He made them look subpar, unremarkable and dull in comparison to him. Especially with the way most of the girls stared at him, with hearty eyes and blushed cheeks. And for once Reo couldn't blame them.

His features were chiselled as if he had been hand-carved by the gods themselves. Paired with eyes that could only be described as molten gold, enhanced further by sharp eyeliner. On closer inspection, the purple-eyed boy also noticed a small beauty spot under his right eye, a minor detail that could be easily overlooked by the average person. Yet to Reo, it only seemed to add to his enticing beauty, a delicate touch, to a seemingly perfect person.

But the purple-haired boy wasn't oblivious to the fact that he was uncomfortable. Even the most perfect people have their flaws, and for Akira, it seemed to be his pathological shyness.

As he fiddled with the rings on his fingers, eyes still glued to the ground, face painted in clear discomfort at all the attention he was receiving. He was like a pearl, a priceless gem that wished for nothing more than to hide away within his protective shell, far from the rest of the world. He was rare, like Nagi. A treasure like no other, a one in a million that Reo couldn't help but want all to himself.

He mumbled something, so quiet that no one besides Nakamura-Sensei caught what he said, seemingly agreeing to whatever he asked.

"Você pode dizer o quanto quiser. Não tenha medo de qualquer coisa com a qual você se sinta mais confortável."

To which Akira nodded hesitantly, slowly raising his eyes to look at the class. "Meu nome é Akira Ito. Sou de São Paulo, Brasil e é... prazer em conhecê-lo." Soft, gentle, and soothing. His voice was light like a spring breeze, so faint that if you weren't listening close enough you would miss it entirely.

Of course, Reo didn't understand a word the second-year said, and yet he was still bewitched. From the few seconds that he heard the curly-haired boy speak, Reo wanted to hear more. No, he needed to hear more. He craved to hear the comforting, delicate sound of his voice again.

"He introduced himself as Ito Akira, he is from São Paulo, Brazil and he said it's a pleasure to meet you all." Nakamura interpreted as the class erupted in a chorus of messy greetings. Reo couldn't help but mentally groan at his classmate's behaviour, "shut up" he uttered annoyed at their interruption. Ito Akira, huh? Even his name was beautiful.

"Akira, como você chegou um pouco atrasado para o semestre, você não tem lugar marcado, então por enquanto você vai sentar..." Nakamura's eyes scanned over the discontented boys and eager girls, hoping to find a seat for the new foreign boy that didn't put him in too much hot water from the jump. Her eyes narrowed, dissatisfied until she landed on an empty seat a row in front of Reo and Nagi.

Pointing to the seat. "Na frente de Reo e Nagi. Reo, please raise your hand Akira will be sitting in front of you." He did so without complaint, face painted in poorly concealed joy at the outcome. Watching intently as the bronzed boy walked to his seat, their eyes met briefly.

Offering a friendly smile, Reo hoped to relieve the anxious teen of some of his worry. But unfortunately for him, Akira quickly looked away, his full lips pursed. Though slightly hurt by his reaction, Mikage took no real offence to it. He knew that a new country, no friends, and limited communication skills could leave even the biggest extrovert a nervous wreck.

But Reo didn't let the language barrier deter him from his objective, he wanted to get closer to him. He wanted Ito Akira to be his.

Now the curly-haired boy was settled in his seat, lessons continued as normal. Keeping his head down, he worked in silence, his eyes never straying from the board.

When the bell rang for lunch, he made no effort to move while his other classmates raced to the vending machines and opened the bentos they had brought from home. Ms. Nakamura had also left the room, choosing to dine with the staff as opposed to with her students. Leaving Akira alone and uncomfortable, ignoring the obnoxious sound of giggling girls, who circled him like vultures.

"His skin is so dark!" One whispered.

"Damn, he does eyeliner better than me." Another noted.

"His hair looks so soft, I just wanna run my hands through it!" A third remarked, her voice soaked in awe. Reo watched as Akira physically recoiled at the girl who attempted to reach out and touch a strand of his curly black hair. He watched the bronzed boy purs his lips into a thin line, gold eyes narrowed. He looked so uncomfortable.

Reo couldn't help but feel both anger and pity for the boy, mostly anger though.

"Excuse me, can't you see he's uncomfortable?" the indigo teen asked unwavering at the pointed stares he received from the girls, who all looked equally displeased at his interruption. "If someone randomly touched your hair, would you be okay with that?"

Now Reo would be lying if he said he didn't feel some form of satisfaction, seeing the girl immediately remove her hand.

"We were just trying to become friends with him. What's wrong with that?" A girl disputed. A few others nodded in agreement, to which Reo only raised a brow.

"You're trying to be his friend by petting his hair without asking? I find that hard to believe, he clearly is overwhelmed." He argued back. "He doesn't speak Japanese, all of you are hovered over him like he is some pet. And who touches a stranger's hair as if you're friends?"

The group once again fell silent, too embarrassed to come up with a response without sounding stupid. Seeing as no one bothered to correct him, they stared at Akira as if he would be the one to save them, but the boy was too preoccupied with twirling the rings on his finger to care.

"You're all bothersome, so take a hint and go away." Nagi's voice drew the attention of the silent teens, and if looks could kill they'd be dead on the spot. Leaning back in his seat he watched the nervous group of girls retreat one after the other before turning his attention back to his game.

Akira seemed to relax as the girls around him dispersed. Shimmering gold gazed up to meet radiant amethyst purple. They stayed like that for a few moments, staring at each other.

Reo had so much to say, so many questions hung from the tip of his tongue 'Are you okay?' 'what's your favourite colour?' 'do you like men?' being a few that he had and yet he was speechless. Captivated he found himself falling deeper and deeper into the curly haired boy's golden eyes.

Akira finally averted, unable to hold eye contact any longer. The other felt disheartened for a moment until the foreigner spoke up.

"....Thank-thank you." He whispered.

Reo's eyes widened, lips slightly parted in shock as his mind attempted to register what the boy before him just said. "You can speak Japanese?!" He said hushed, careful not to draw attention.

Knitting his eyebrows together, the dark-haired boy paused before shaking his head.

"You're too...Uhm–You going fast. C-Can't understand well."

"Ah- so, you do speak Japanese?"

"I understand but speak....bu-but no–"

"But you can't speak it well?"

"Yes."

"Ah, I see. Well...that's okay." Reo comforted, as Akira's shoulders relaxed at his non-judgemental stare. "I can help you if you want." Akira perked at his words, his gold eyes shining with gratitude at his offer. Reo couldn't help but chuckle.

"Thank you...again," the black-haired boy murmured, biting his lip. "Uhm sorry...I forgot name?"

"Ah don't worry about it! I'm Reo Mikage and this is Nagi Seishiro, Nagi say hello."

"Hola?, did I say it right?" Nagi said peeking up from his game to look at Akira, who scrunched his nose at the white-haired boy's poor pronunciation "Olá" he corrected. "Olá" Nagi repeated testing the word on his tongue. "Sim, é Olá, não Hola." the curly-haired boy confirmed.

The bell rang and just then, their teacher walked into the class. "Akira," Ms. Nakamura called out, nudging her head towards the entrance. "Vamos lá, houve uma confusão com sua papelada, pegue suas coisas, pois você não terá aulas pelo resto do dia."

Akira nodded collecting his belongings, and standing up before bidding the two farewell. "Thank..you. Bye, Reo Seishiro." He murmured, and Reo could swear he saw a ghost of a smile on the other's lips as he left, leaving him astonished in his wake.

His name sounded so beautiful from his lips, Reo's face now flushed a deep shade of red. The gentle sound of the boy uttering his name so delicately with his heavy accent made Reo's chest bloom with a great sense of satisfaction. Was it so bad that he wanted to hear his voice again?

"He's cool," Nagi said, his phone now tucked away in his pocket as he looked at his friend, whose eyes were still fixed on the spot where Akira once stood.

"Yeah, he is, isn't he? A real treasure."