[Scene: School rooftop – lunch break. Naizaka sits silently, sipping juice. Footsteps approach.]
Naizaka: (muttering) "Don't tell me she brought someone again…"
[Door swings open. Yuki walks in, smiling wide. Behind her is a loud boy holding two juice boxes.]
Yuki: "Told you he'd be here."
Toma: "Behold! The legendary loner in his natural habitat!"
Naizaka: "You again. And now... noise."
Yuki: "Toma insisted. He said friends should stick together."
Naizaka: "We're not friends."
Toma: "Yet! Grape or apple?"
Naizaka: "I want silence-flavored."
[Toma plops down beside him, ignoring the sarcasm.]
Toma: "So this is where you two always eat? Feels sacred."
Naizaka: "It was. Until today."
Yuki: "C'mon, Naizaka. You secretly like the company."
Naizaka: "I like vending machines more than people."
Toma: "I bet a vending machine never smiled at you like Yuki does."
Naizaka: [blankly] "I'd prefer if she didn't."
[The rooftop door slams open again. Enter Riko, glasses on, clipboard in hand.]
Riko: "All three of you! Skipping club orientation again?"
Yuki: "Nice to see you too, class rep."
Riko: "Naizaka, you especially. You're on the list for potential clubs."
Naizaka: "Burn the list."
Riko: [blushing slightly] "You can't just—! Ugh, just come to the gym after school. There's a drama club showcase."
[After school. The gym is buzzing. The drama club is setting up. Toma is on stage… in a banana costume.]
Toma: "I am Banana Man! Defender of healthy snacks!"
Audience: [awkward clapping]
Yuki: [whispering to Naizaka] "I'm 95% sure I regret coming."
Naizaka: "Only 95?"
[Sora and Sena—the drama twins—spot Naizaka.]
Sora: "Look, look! The cold beauty is here."
Sena: "Let's cast him and Yuki in the next school play. Romantic tension galore!"
Sora: "He has the face of a tragic prince."
Sena: "And the personality of a traffic cone."
[Suddenly, the gym doors creak open. A new figure steps in—tall, calm, black-haired. It's Mio Tachibana.]
Yuki: "Who's that?"
Naizaka: [staring] "...She feels quiet."
Mio: [walks straight toward them] "You're Naizaka, right?"
Naizaka: "Do I know you?"
Mio: "Not yet. But I've heard about you."
Yuki: "Already? He's not even that popular!"
Mio: [calmly] "But he's interesting."
[Before anyone can react—CRASH! The gym doors slam again. A rough upperclassman storms in.]
Delinquent Student: "Tch. Drama club? What a joke."
Toma: "Hey! You can't just barge in!"
Delinquent: "Move, banana boy."
[He shoves Toma and grabs Sora's costume.]
Sora: "Hey! That's delicate fabric!"
Naizaka: [standing] "That's enough."
Delinquent: "Or what, silent boy?"
[Just then—Mio steps in. Calm. Silent. She doesn't yell.]
Mio: "Let him go."
Delinquent: "Make me."
[In one blink—💥—she flips him over her shoulder in a clean taekwondo move.]
Crowd: [gasps]
Sena: "She... she broke gravity."
Toma: "She flipped him like a pancake!"
Yuki: [jaw dropped] "Okay WHAT was that?!"
[The delinquent groans on the floor. Teachers rush in. Mio brushes off her skirt like nothing happened.]
Naizaka: [quietly] "That wasn't luck."
Mio: "Taekwondo. Second dan."
Naizaka: "That's military-grade calmness."
Mio: [to Naizaka] "I expected you'd step in. You sense things, don't you?"
Naizaka: [heart pounding] "...How do you know that?"
Mio: "I'll explain. One day."
[She turns and walks out. Silence follows her.]
[Later, outside the school gates. Yuki and Naizaka walk together.]
Yuki: "Sooo... do you always attract weird girls?"
Naizaka: "You tell me."
Yuki: "Touché."
Naizaka: [thinking] "She was too composed. Too precise. Like she knew what would happen…"
Yuki: "Hey. Don't overthink it. You still owe me juice."
Naizaka: "You're holding one right now."
Yuki: "Yes, but I demand emotional juice now."
[Scene: Evening. Naizaka buys two juice boxes from the vending machine again.]
Naizaka (thinking): "I've only ever bought one. Why did I buy two?"
[He turns. Yuki runs up the street, breathless.]
Yuki: "Wait—wait! Sorry! Riko made me clean chalkboards."
Naizaka: [hands her one juice box] "Took you long enough."
Yuki: [smiling softly] "But you waited."
Naizaka: "Unfortunately."
Yuki: "You're welcome."
[They sit on the bench together. A moment of silence… the warm kind.]
Naizaka (thinking): "More people. More noise. More problems. And yet…"
Naizaka (thinking): "…My heart is louder than ever."
To Be Continued...