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"Ughh..."
Hirano glanced over his shoulder to look at the slumped figure behind him, who had just let out a stretched out and very tired-sounding groan.
His classmate's face was planted atop his desk, hidden by his messy orange hair and limply folded arms that almost reached off the edge of the desk.
"Uh... You good there?" Hirano turned his body and raised an eyebrow at him.
“Yeah…”
Apart from a very few other boys in the classroom, Hirano and the guy he was glancing at were the only ones still in their seats by the class windows, as everyone else had energetically gotten out of their seats and had left the class to begin lunch break, barely a second after the bell had rung just a minute before.
The day so far had been pretty uneventful – like most other school days – and Hirano had gotten through each lesson with ease; quite unlike his peer before him, who's sleepy face began to surface from beneath his arms as he struggled, though quite lazily, to lift his head up.
They were currently about halfway through their first year of high school, and during the time they'd had so far Hirano had gotten to know a bit about this guy who sat behind him in class – Sasaki Shuumei. They hadn't spoken much, but it did seem that Hirano was one of the only few people Sasaki had ever really made an effort to interact with, other than with his friend, Ogasawara Jirou. Though, with Ogasawara not present that day, Sasaki had been more quiet than usual – not that he would have spoken much to others regardless.
"Oh, hey." Sasaki raised his hand to cover his mouth for a small yawn as he looked up at Hirano through lidded eyes.
"Hey," Hirano responded.
Not bothering to say more, Hirano rotated his body again to face his desk in front of him, then brought out his lunch to eat. He decided he would just spend the break eating alone and maybe looking over notes, then preparing for their next classes. He intended not to pay any mind to Sasaki, since it wasn't like they really had anything to do with each other.
…Nevertheless, he found himself looking over his shoulder again at the object of his badly concealed interest; because, although he would avoid openly admitting it, Sasaki did interest him quite a bit.
What he saw behind him was Sasaki in the process of bending over to the side of his seat and pulling out his own bento from his bag. His movements still seemed quite sluggish, although he certainly looked more awake.
Adjusting himself in his seat, he looked to be about to open his bento and eat his food. But, his eyes then shifted up to stare right back at Hirano with an almost cat-like look of curiosity.
“Do you need something?”
Hirano instantly felt stuck, realising he had been caught staring absent-mindedly at his classmate, if only for a few seconds.
In an attempt to save himself from the situation he was in, with Sasaki's questioning gaze still fixed on him, he decided to ask, “Where's that friend of yours? Ogasawara?” After all, it was common by now to see the two hanging out together, but the dark-haired guy hadn't been seen all day.
Sasaki lifted an eyebrow, as if to ask, ‘Why do you want to know?’; but instead, he lowered his eyes to his bento again and responded in a disinterested tone, “..Not in. Think he's sick or something.”
His dismissive actions had given Hirano the impression that Sasaki had more interest in eating his lunch silently and solitarily than in talking with him; not in a disrespectful manner, but more so just due to a lack of energy. Hirano turned back round, thinking he might as well do the same.
It was understandable. Sasaki evidently wasn't the sort of person who would make an effort to socialise with his peers, and they weren't yet particularly familiar with each other; besides, it wasn't exactly Hirano's place to interfere with Sasaki anyway.
Even so, whilst munching on his food, he found himself thinking back on the few previous occasions that they had spoken to each other, where Hirano had learnt some little things about Sasaki.
For instance, their first meeting on the stairs by the school roof.
Hirano recalled finding Sasaki alone there, hidden away in the subtle shade of the staircase when he should've been attending classes. Yet, there Hirano was, passing on a homework reminder from their teacher to Sasaki, who's careless demeanor had Hirano feeling strangely worried.
They spoke to each other for a bit, about school and motivation and other thoughts. That encounter was what led them to becoming acquainted with each other.
Come to think of it, that also took place during one other lunchtime; and since then, Sasaki had been making a noticeably larger effort to increase his attendance in classes. Although he wasn't always completely there – metaphorically speaking, in that he often failed to stay awake during lessons – he was now physically present more often than not.
To Hirano, it was good to see. He didn't want any of his classmates to be falling behind.
It took a moment for Hirano to realise that he was nearly done with his food, and looking up at the clock he also noticed it wasn’t too long before lunchtime would end either – he took his time eating and forgot time was eating away too. He couldn't waste so much time pondering pointlessly.
He picked up his bento to put it away, then felt a faint knock on the back of his chair.
“Yo. Hirano.” He turned behind him to see Sasaki lowering his foot after tapping Hirano's chair with his shoe for attention.
“Hm?” Hirano was a tiny bit surprised, considering he wasn't expecting Sasaki to call out to him now.
“Mind if I get your notes now? Sorry for asking so late.”
Of course. It was somewhat of a routine for Hirano to lend him notes, because how else could Sasaki get by in class without paying enough attention to make his own?
“Sure. Here you go.” Hirano passed his notebook behind him.
“Just try to be quick, though. Lunch is gonna end pretty soon, although if you need to borrow my notes after school then you can.”
Sasaki nodded, taking the notes and staring at them whilst bobbing his head from side to side.
“Ehh… okay… I think I'll just skim over these for now and take in what I can. I honestly don't have the energy to write anything.”
“Fair enough.”
Sasaki leaned his head to the side, resting it on his palm. Hirano noticed that he seemed to be a fast reader, with how swiftly his eyes moved over each word. Hirano additionally noticed how, with a flip to the next page of his notebook, Sasaki’s face showed a hint of awe, before gradually turning into some look of… regret? Envy? Something almost forlorn.
“Hirano… how do you manage to stay on top of everything? I mean, wow, these are some detailed notes.” he chuckled lightly.
Hirano rotated his body to the side and rested his arm on the back of his chair. It did feel like it was phrased as a rhetorical question, but he still responded, “I guess having something to motivate me helps to drive my focus and hard work.”
“Motivation, huh?” Sasaki looked down. “Right. You do have something that you're working for, don't you?
“Yeah.”
Sasaki hummed.
“...And, aside from that,” Hirano continued, “actually staying awake in class helps a lot, too.”
“Heh, who was that aimed at?” Sasaki grinned.
That lighthearted reaction made Hirano relax slightly. He didn't know if it was, perhaps, that Sasaki hoped to have a source of motivation like Hirano did, or if it was something else that was on his mind, but he didn't want to butt in too much. He would help if he could, but Sasaki had to pave his own way through life.
Once again, the bell rang to signify the end of lunchtime. Noise levels went up as other students started flooding the class and returning to their seats.
Sasaki tidied up his desk. He seemed pretty ready for the next period, Hirano thought, and maybe this time he'd manage to stay awake for at least most of the lesson.
Sasaki shut the notebook and passed it back to Hirano with a thank you.
“If you'd like to borrow my notes again at the end of the day, just make sure you don't forget to return them to me. You'll probably find me in the committee room.”
“Sure. Thanks again.”
Sasaki looked as if he wanted to say more. He and Hirano held eye contact for a short moment, then Sasaki shook his head gently and smiled.
“Hirano, you're a pretty cool guy.”
Cocking his head, Hirano responded, “Huh? Well yeah, I guess I am.”
Hirano faced his desk again, prepared for class. The last thing on his mind about Sasaki was that he really was quite an interesting guy. First, he saw him as irresponsible; then second, a pain in the ass; now, he was somebody that Hirano wouldn't be too disinterested in knowing more about.