Sakaki nodded once at the girl and made her way back to her classroom, ignoring the surprised looks of her teacher and classmates.. Sakaki was NEVER late. She hadn't been since a quarter of the way through first year, when she had gotten up late and her mother had decided a little "discipline" had been in order. Sitting down quietly at her corner desk, she picked up her bag to remove the relevant textbook and notebooks, not noticing as a little sheet of lined notepaper fluttered to the ground, a gust of wind from the window carrying it out the door just before the teacher slammed it shut. Upon it was drawn a single sketch. The teacher began her daily drone again, just as she had the year before, and Sakaki slumped down on her desk, deep in thought. She was startled out of this state as she heard the boy that sat next to her, Hideyoshi Yukio, whispered over, "Hey, Kimura! What was that in the hallway?"

[i]Of course,[/i] she thought. [i]Make one gesture of sympathy and people hassle you about it for the rest of your life.[/i] Turning her head so she was looking at him, she stared at him levelly, before whispering back, "She needed help. I gave it."

Turning her head downwards, she expected the conversation to end.