Izumi yawned as he walked into the classroom, still half-asleep. He slid into his seat, rubbing his eyes, when something caught his attention. A small folded paper sat neatly on his desk.
"Huh?" He picked it up and opened it.
"Stay away from Marina if you know what's good for you."
Izumi blinked.
"What…? Words with this letter?"
Before he could process it, a hand suddenly slammed onto his desk.
"WHOA, WHAT'S THAT? A LOVE LETTER?!"
Izumi nearly jumped out of his chair. Anzu and Yuki were leaning over his desk, eyes sparkling with curiosity.
"It's not a love letter!" Izumi quickly stuffed the note into his pocket.
"Suspicious," Yuki said, grinning. "What does it say? 'Izumi-kun, please go out with me~'? Huh? HUHH!!?"
"Yeah, man, this is big! Who's the lucky girl?" Anzu wiggled his eyebrows.
Izumi sighed. "It's not that. It's… just a weird note. Don't know who write this kind of thing"
Of course, that only made them more interested.
"Let us see!"
"No."
"Come on, man, we're your best friends!"
Izumi shook his head and focused on his textbook, ignoring their whining. He didn't want to make a big deal out of it. It was probably just some jealous guy messing with him. After all, Marina was… well, Marina. Rich, beautiful, and completely untouchable.
It made sense that some people didn't like the fact that she sat next to him.
Still… something felt off.
Lunch break came, and Izumi was about to take a break from all the chaos when something unexpected happened.
Marina walked up to his desk.
Everyone in the classroom froze.
"Did... marina just walk out to him"
"No way!"
Whisper sprayed all over the class
Marina never approached anyone. Ever.
And yet, here she was, standing right in front of Izumi, holding a small folded paper.
She placed it on his desk and tapped it lightly with her finger.
"You got one too, didn't you?" she said.
Izumi slowly nodded. He didn't even have to look—he knew it was the same kind of note.
Marina sighed, crossing her arms. "I don't know who wrote these, but it's annoying."
Izumi looked around. The entire class was staring. Some students looked shocked. Others looked terrified. A few boys in the back exchanged nervous glances.
Marina wasn't just rich—she came from a powerful Yakuza family. And now, people knew she was paying attention to Izumi.
Oh no.
Izumi forced a chuckle. "Haha… yeah, probably just some prank, right?"
Marina raised an eyebrow. "Prank? I doubt it."
Before he could respond, she turned away. "Whatever. Just let me know if anyone bothers you."
And just like that, she walked off, leaving the classroom in complete silence.
Anzu and Yuki immediately grabbed him.
"DUDE—"
"SHHHHHH!"
After school, Izumi packed his bag quickly, hoping to avoid any more drama. Unfortunately, fate had other plans.
As he stepped outside, he saw Marina standing near the school gate.
Alone.
Well, not exactly alone. Her bodyguards were watching from a distance, but she looked… annoyed.
Izumi hesitated. Should he just walk past? Maybe she was waiting for someone else.
But before he could decide, Marina glanced at him.
"You're late," she said.
Izumi blinked. "Wait, what? Were you waiting for me?"
She sighed. "I figured someone would try something, so I waited. Walk home with me."
Izumi felt like his soul left his body. "W-Walk home with you?!"
"Yes. You live nearby, right?"
"Y..yeah.."
He did. But that wasn't the point!
Marina tilted her head. "What's with that face? You look like you're being forced into a death match."
Izumi wanted to scream, IT FEELS LIKE I AM!
But there was no way to refuse her, not when she was looking at him so expectantly.
"...Fine," he muttered.
Marina nodded and started walking. Izumi followed beside her, painfully aware of the hundreds of jealous eyes watching from the schoolyard.
They walked in silence at first. It was awkward.
But then Marina spoke. "That keychain you found yesterday."
"Huh?"
"You like that anime?"
Izumi nodded. "Yeah… I've been a fan for a while."
"...Same."
For the first time, Marina's cold expression softened into something… normal. Almost shy.
Izumi blinked. Wait. She's actually kinda cute when she's like this—
Before he could finish that thought, a group of upperclassmen suddenly stepped onto the sidewalk in front of them.
The tallest one smirked. "Yo, Izumi. long time no see."
Izumi gulped.
Marina sighed, cracking her knuckles.
"Tch. Annoying."