[4] Megumi couldn’t believe it! It was already morning, which meant that she had to attend yet another day at Sakuragaoka Academy. It was no secret that she hated it there. She was a loner, and she didn’t fit in anywhere. Well, that’s not true - she fit pretty well in the library. But then again, do you need any sort of special skill to be able to hide in the library until the lunch period is over? In this way, Megumi was deep in thought, only to bump into her “aunt”, Shiori. Her aunt, dressed in a huge hoodie and sweatpants, gave her a flick on the forehead. “Hey, watch your step, kid! Wouldn’t want you to trip.” and then she had the audacity to walk in front of her! Incensed, Megumi sped up and flicked her right back. “Ow!” Shiori exclaimed, as she was opening the fridge. “What’s your problem?” Megumi’s eyes narrowed. It was the strangest thing. Here Megumi was, all this time, afraid of her own shadow, but in front of this unknown, shameless woman, she felt so irritated it was unreal. “You want to know what’s my problem?! You! You’re my problem!” “Excuse me? I’m your problem?” “Yeah!” she exclaimed, while setting the plates on the table. “In my life, I’ve never heard Mom talk about you. But now there’s suddenly an aunt I didn’t know about?” Megumi poured the milk. “Well, I can tell you one thing. I don’t like you.” Shiori’s eyes widened. “You don’t like me?” Megumi pointed at her. “Yes, I don’t. You’re acting super shady. I’ve never seen you on family photos. But Mom’s really impressionable, so I have to be the one to protect her. You’re probably a scam artist! So, like I said, I don’t like you.” Megumi truly couldn’t believe this woman. Aunt or not, this lady is an unknown stranger - and she’s acting like such a brat! For so long, it had just been Megumi and her mom - and now this lady comes barging in, waltzing into her life - and she was just expecting her to be fine with it. Shiori just sat there, looking unimpressed, but amused. “Oh, mornin’ Rika.” she said, greeting her sister. “Hey, are you listening to this? Apparently, Megumi is-” But before she could go any further, Rika’s phone rang. “Oh! That must be the office, I’ve got to take this.” And off she went, leaving a surprised Shiori and an embarrassed Megumi. She was totally about to tell her mom on her! Not cool. Some lines just weren’t supposed to be crossed! “Hmpf.” was all that Megumi had to say. Shiori, noticing her niece’s flustered state, got curious. “Oi, what’s your problem now? Seriously. Man, girls at your age are so impossible to understand. Oh, wait. Is it because of your mom? True, she was kind of rude right now. Can you believe her? We were having our first family fight and she didn’t even notice!” Sadly, Megumi didn’t understand a word of what she said - and who could? Shiori was talking while eating, huge chunks of toasted bread falling out of her mouth. Megumi was disgusted - and somehow, a part of her felt grateful that she hadn’t met her aunt until now. She leveled a judgemental stare at her aunt’s messy face. Shoes tied, she rushed to the door. “I’m going to school now. Don’t wait up.” “Ah, Megumi, wait - there’s something I need to tell you-” Megumi heard it, but sped up anyway, running out of the house. “I’ll hear it when I get home!”, she hastily said before leaving. Agh! She was totally going to be late because of her aunt! So focused in her own thoughts was she that she didn’t realize that at that moment, Suzuki Shun was leaving his house as well. Megumi continued on, walking to school as fast as she could - earbuds placed firmly in her ears. Her shoulder-length hair obscured them, making it seem like she was ignoring Suzuki when she couldn’t hear him in the first place. “Megumi! Hey, Megumi!” Try as he might, Suzuki Shun wasn’t able to catch Megumi’s attention that morning. Confused and frustrated, he left his house and continued on, leaving behind only an interested Shiori - who saw the whole thing. ‘This certainly is an interesting situation. I think it’s time to teach my niece a lesson’, she thought as she too got ready for the day.