The sound of the bell signaling the end of class was, but for Hojou Kyousuke's it's was the most beautiful music in the world.
No matter how many tis he heard it, it never failed to bring him joy.
Nishimiya Shoko turned her chair around to face Kyousuke, ready to begin their lesson.
"Nishimiya, so you can actually hear, right?"
Naoka Ueno walked over and spoke to Shoko.
Shoko was happy that a classmate was talking to her, but she first glanced at Kyousuke.
After all, this was their agreed-upon study ti, and using it for small talk felt disrespectful to him.
"It's fine, Shoko. Go ahead and chat with your friend."
Kyousuke was more than happy to see Shoko interacting with others.
Learning a language required imrsion, listening and speaking in a supportive environnt.
The reason Shoko hadn't learned to speak before was that no one had been willing to talk to her or listen to her.
"Yes, because I wear a hearing aid, my hearing is a bit better."
As usual, Shoko wrote her response in her notebook.
She was genuinely happy because Naoka, like Kyousuke, spoke slowly and clearly, making it easy for her to understand.
She also rembered how Naoka had helped her during class by explaining what the teacher was saying.
'Naoka is such a kind person,' Shoko thought.
"A hearing aid? What's that?"
Naoka feigned curiosity, though her real intention had been to disrupt the closeness between Shoko and Kyousuke.
But now, she was genuinely intrigued.
After all, hearing aids weren't sothing elentary school students typically encountered.
"It's a device that amplifies outside sounds to a volu I can hear."
After writing this, Shoko brushed aside her hair to reveal the hearing aid nestled in her ear.
"That sounds amazing. Can I take a look?"
Though she felt a bit embarrassed, Shoko didn't hesitate to remove the hearing aid from her right ear and hand it to Naoka.
The little girl moved so quickly that Kyousuke didn't have ti to stop her.
"Huh, so that's what it looks like."
"Naoka, what's that? Let see."
A voice ca from behind Kyousuke.
It was Ishida Shouya.
The back of the classroom was his and his gang's usual hangout spot.
Every break, they'd roughhouse there, polishing the floor with their antics.
Kyousuke found these kids incredibly noisy, making it impossible for him to read quietly during breaks.
He often wondered if they'd manage to wear the floor down to a shine before graduation.
Hearing Shouya's request, Naoka didn't think twice before tossing the small hearing aid toward him.
Shoko raised her hands in a desperate attempt to stop him, but it was too late.
"Ew, what is this? It's so gross!"
Shouya caught the hearing aid, made a disgusted face, and took a few steps back, preparing to throw it out the window.
"Are you sure you want to do that?"
This ti, Kyousuke was quick enough to grab Shouya's wrist, stopping him mid-throw.
On the other side of the room, Shoko stood up, looking like she was about to cry.
She breathed a sigh of relief.
"You! Why do you always have to ddle in everything?"
Shouya's expression turned fierce as he struggled to break free from Kyousuke's grip.
"I just want you to think about your mother for once."
"What are you even talking about? Shimada, Hirose, co help !"
"Sure~"
Though he agreed, Shimada Kazuki remained leaning against the windowsill, one arm propped up.
The chubby Hirose Keisuke did step forward to grab Shouya's arm, but Kyousuke could tell he wasn't putting any real effort into it.
"That hearing aid costs at least 200,000 yen. Are you sure you still want to throw it away?"
"So what?"
"Do you know how long your mother has to work, how many custors she has to serve, to earn 200,000 yen?"
Kyousuke could see Shouya's bravado wavering.
With a slight twist, he pried the hearing aid from Shouya's hand and returned it to Shoko.
"Even if you can't make your mother happy, at least don't add to her burdens."
Handing the hearing aid back to Shoko, Kyousuke used the lecturing tone that kids hated most.
"You jerk!"
Shouya, predictably, flew into a rage.
Embarrassnt and anger boiled over, and he swung a fist at Kyousuke.
"Ah!"
Both Shoko and Naoka scread.
Shoko, in her panic, couldn't form words and could only point frantically behind Kyousuke.
Seeing their reactions, Kyousuke didn't even turn around.
He simply crouched down.
Shouya's punch missed entirely, and the montum sent him crashing into a desk.
He and the desk tumbled to the ground in a heap.
'Ouch, that looks painful.' The desks were made of tal, after all.
"Well, well, Ishida. Even though I just stopped you from doing sothing stupid and saved your mom so money, you don't have to bow down to thank ."
Kyousuke smirked, clearly enjoying himself.
"You jerk! I'll never forgive you!"
It seed elentary schoolers had a limited vocabulary.
Shouya could only repeat the sa insult.
Gritting his teeth, Shouya got back up and charged at Kyousuke again.
Kyousuke braced himself, ready to "defend" himself properly this ti.
But suddenly, Shoko rushed forward, standing in front of Kyousuke with her eyes tightly shut.
Her small fists were clenched at her sides, as if she were ready to take the punch for him.
'What a silly, adorable little girl.'
Kyousuke felt a warm glow in his chest.
With his left hand, he gently pulled Shoko aside.
With his right, he caught Shouya's wrist mid-swing and redirected the force behind him.
'Crash!'
Shouya fell to the ground again, this ti knocking over a storage cabinet at the back of the classroom.
A cascade of miscellaneous items rained down on him.
'Tsk, tsk. Good thing it was just books. It would've been hilarious if there'd been a flowerpot.'
Kyousuke stood calmly, watching as Hirose helped Shouya back to his feet.
"Hey! What's going on here?"
Takeuchi-sensei's voice bood from the classroom entrance. He strode over to the back of the room.
After scanning the scene, his eyes landed on Kyousuke.
'Not soone to ss with.'
Then Shoko.
'Special needs, also not soone to ss with.'
Naoka?
'A well-behaved girl.'
Hirose and Shimada?
'Shouya's lackeys.'
Without hesitation, Takeuchi-sensei eyes zeroed in on Shouya.
No matter what happened, it was always safe to bla the "troublemaker."
Even if he wasn't at fault, he probably was.
"Ishida Shouya! What are you doing now? Co with to the office imdiately!"
Shouya, silent and supported by Hirose, struggled to stand after two hard falls.
"Everyone, study on your own for now."
With that, Takeuchi-sensei led Shouya out of the classroom.
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