A Heart's Silent Echo

The Transfer Student

My name is Haruki Sato and I've always been the quiet one, the wallflower that no one noticed. A ghost that drifts through the school without getting a single glance from anyone. A background character. The days in my third year of high-school go by uneventfully in blissful isolation. And honestly, the fewer people that notice me, the better

Today is supposed to be like any other day.

But as I settle down into my seat at the back of the classroom, I notice her--- a girl standing near the doorway, her gaze fixed on the floor, her fingers twisting a strand of hair. I recognized the way her shoulders seemed to fold inward, the subtle shift of her weight from foot to foot. She was trying to disappear, to become invisible to the eyes on her. Something in me stirred-a memory of last year, my own hands clenching, my own voice nearly lost when I'd transfered to this school. I hadn't expected to find anyone else who felt like this.

Our homeroom teacher, Tanaka-sensei introduced her.
"Everyone, this is Aki Fujiwara and she'll be joining us starting from today"

Aki took a step forward and turned towards us, her gaze still on the floor. "N-nice to meet you..." Her voice was a faint whisper and it could barely be heard.

Her hands were trembling. I knew because mine had looked the same when I introduced myself to this class last year.

She ended up sitting a few rows in front of me, near the window, as far from everyone as she could get. I found my gaze being drawn to her. She was staring out the window. I looked back down at my desk, my heart beating in a way that I couldn't explain. There was something... familiar about her. She reminded me of someone.

Oh... that's right. She reminded me of myself. She looked like she wanted to run away just as bad as I did.

Aki didn't talk to anyone over the next few days. She'd show up early to class, like me, and she'd just sit in her spot, staring out the window. She looked... lost. That's a feeling I know very well.

I went to the library after school on a Monday as usual and was searching the shelves for the book I was looking for. The library was my refuge. A place where I can just forget about everything and immerse myself in books. It was my safe haven. The library is almost always devoid of people, so I could always stay away from any kind of human interaction here. Or at least that's what I thought.

As I was reaching out for volume 7 of "Sword of Night and Flame", my favourite light novel series, my hands brushed along someone else's, just for a second, but I pulled my hand back like I'd touched fire.

"Sorry!" We both said at the same time.

I fixed my gaze on the owner of the hand I just touched. It was Aki Fujiwara. I felt my face getting red hot and I instinctively looked downwards. A few seconds of pure silence ensued. This is probably the most awkward moment of my life, I thought. Finally, Aki broke the silence.

"Y-you can have that book..." Her voice was so quiet it barely qualified as breaking the silence. I shifted my gaze from the floor to her face. As mine met her dark blue eyes, I could visibly see her face getting red. She looked obviously flustered.

I noticed her anxious look and broke off eye contact, for both of our sakes.

"Um... th-thank you..." I muttered, looking to the side, in a voice as quiet as hers. I was nervous and embarrassed. I'm not used to talking to people, but it looked like she wasn't either which sort of put me at ease. I took the book from the shelf and just as Aki turned and started to walk away, my hand moved on its own and grabbed hers. It was so small and soft. Realizing what I'd done, I quickly let go.