Diamond in the Rough (Kakuma)

Shiki checked his phone as he walked, quirking his mouth as he noted the time. It was pretty late to be just baring into the dorm. If they locked the door at night or something he was probably boned. He supposed he could just try and catch a train back home for the night if that happened. It would be embarrassing, but it was doable. The rattle of his rolling luggage behind was a reminder of how all-or-nothing the trip was.

Before he knew it, he was right outside the building.

He couldn't help but gawk a little. Shiki wasn't sure what he had expected, but the facilities looked pretty nice (from the outside, anyway) for high school. His visual novel comparison before was spot on. It made him wonder all the more just what he was getting into. Mankai Academy. Shiki took a moment to exhale, then approached, hefting his suitcase up and handling the door with his free hand.

It opened easily, with a slight creak that signaled use but not disrepair. Sticking his head in like the vanguard for the rest of him, Shiki glanced around. It looked even better on the inside, if that was at all possible. Stepping over the threshold, he set his luggage to the side and began to close the door behind him when his eyes caught something. Someone, rather. A person, on the couch not far from the door. He blinked. This guy was.....sure white, wasn't he?

Shiki stood frozen a moment, then managed a smile. "Sup?" Realizing the door was still ajar, he hastily turned to close it, using a little too much force in his haste and generating a somewhat startling bang. He stared at the door dubiously, wondering just how unnecessarily loud that had been, before turning back to the other boy again. What was he doing out there alone? Wouldn't his room be better for that?

Well, this upperclassman (he assumed?) took his ungraceful entry in stride, so that was kind of a relief. Talk about a first impression though. Shiki took a moment to exhale through his nose, trying to loosen up. He really wasn't built to be as tense as he was. Ahhh, it was all this Newspaper Club stuff! He just needed. To. Relax.

Still, he blinked when the other boy greeted him. The secretary? That could only be... "Fukurou-senpai did?" He was proving more assiduous every second. Books and covers and blah blah. He was absolutely relieved though. Being greeted at the door was a lot better than just tumbling in and hoping for the best. His smile was less forced. "I appreciate you waiting around, then. Guess I'm in your care!"

This guy was interesting though. He had sort of a bookish look to him, but in that moment when he stood, he seemed almost unfittingly dignified. Shiki didn't dwell on it long, or even fully process it, but it definitely caught his attention. When he said he'd show him the way, Shiki stammered out an "uhh, yeah, sure thing," before following after, suitcase wheels creaking.

Taking an elevator for one floor wasn't really his style, but it was a hell of a lot more preferable than dragging his crap up the stairs. As he caught up, he could hear the sounds he missed earlier. Looked like there was never a chance of him arriving on his own anyway. Good knowledge. He wasn't much of an early sleeper anyway.

Huh. Shiki supposed it wasn't unusual for someone to have friends. Presumably people who used the dorms would be familiar with him anyway, right? He accepted that answer at face value. Really he was more intrigued by Takumi's apparent rep. Just how far did that guy's depths go? The part about his mindset felt a bit more right though. At least Shiki wasn't a completely useless judge of character.

The elevator doors shut, and the senior spoke up again. Shiki was sure he looked as startled as he felt. Damn, he had really hoped he was playing off his tension better than that. "T-that obvious, huh...?" The smile he managed was a tad too crooked. And then the greeting. A name to a face was always appreciated. "I guess you already know, but I'm Kakuma Shiki. Nice to-"

Hold it. Towa. He had absolutely heard that name, and not long ago. He couldn't be that Towa, right? Except, what were the odds that a second Towa was in their dorm? Was this seriously the head of the Newspaper Club himself? "....meet you." His nerves had calmed. It wasn't that he was at ease. More like, this was exactly the focus he needed to overpower his anxiety. He honestly couldn't fully place his emotions at that moment.

The door opened, and Shiki stepped out. He was grateful for the directions. The curfew took him a little by surprise, but not terribly. It was a school establishment, so it would be a little weird if there weren't rules like that, he figured. Plus, he figured he could get to sleep before midnight on most school days anyway, so what was the problem? "Got it. Thanks for everything!"

Except, it wasn't quite that easy.

>Stay up browsing the internet

It didn't take long to get himself situated. The umaibo he'd packed with him defeated the need for a snack run, so once he was in he had no need to leave for the night. Plans to get any kind of early sleep for the first day went south though. Sitting in bed, he could only think of Akira and the strange situation he had found himself in. It also took him about that long to realize Takumi's description of him had implied more distance than actually existed. Had he tried to hide it? Why? There was basically no way he could sleep when he had absolutely everything on his mind.

And so he clicked away in the dark, face illuminated by his monitor. In only a plain white tee and boxers, he lay sprawled across his bed, laptop at one end and feet on his pillow. Nobody was on, so he didn't especially have much aim at the moment. Just a listless crawl between three tabs until his thoughts could settle the hell down.