Tokyo: Love Begins with Controlling the Rich Girl

She straightened up and gave a polite smile. "I'm fine with anything, teacher."

After answering, he turned to look at the class below the podium, his gaze sweeping over the entire class.

Her gaze lingered on each student's face, as if trying to remember what the new students looked like.

They might be looking for an empty seat.

But when my gaze swept over the row of windows, I suddenly stopped.

Her gaze lingered on the back row for a second, two seconds, three seconds...

Shimada Sho sat in his seat, neither dodging nor moving, just staring at her.

Chizuru Amami's eyes slowly widened.

His pupils contracted slightly, and his lips unconsciously parted.

Her smile froze on her face, her composure turning into surprise, then into disbelief, and finally, panic showed in her eyes.

Her face gradually turned red, from her cheekbones to the tips of her ears, and from the tips of her ears to her neck, as if it were burning.

She pursed her lips slightly, and her fingers unconsciously gripped the hem of her skirt.

Seeing her expression, Shimada Sho sighed inwardly.

I recognized him.

"Tenkai-kun," Natsumi Yonekura's voice came from the podium, "your seat is..."

She looked at the empty seats in the classroom and finally settled on a seat in the second row.

"You can sit next to Haruko, here."

Tenkai Chizuru stood still.

Her gaze remained fixed on Shimada Sho, as if she were frozen in place by something.

"Tenkai-kun?" Natsumi Yonekura called out again.

"Huh? Ah! Okay, okay!" Tenkai Chizuru suddenly came to her senses, her voice trembling.

She lowered her head, walked quickly past the podium, and crossed the aisle in the middle of the classroom.

She paused for a moment as she walked to her seat.

She glanced at him.

That glance contained surprise, embarrassment, shame, and a hint of something indescribable, as if confirming something.

Then she quickly lowered her head, moved a chair, and sat down.

Haruko enthusiastically climbed over to greet her, "Hello, Chizuru-chan."

"Hello..." Tenkai Chizuru's voice was so soft it was like a mosquito's buzz, a stark contrast to the confident and composed idol on the stage just moments before.

Shimada Sho sat in the back, listening to the rustling sounds coming from the right front.

Chizuru Amami's seat was in the second row, while he was in the fourth row, diagonally in front of her, with Haruko in between.

After sitting down, she looked down and rummaged through her schoolbag, put in her textbooks, and adjusted the position of her chair.

After a series of actions, things quieted down.

But Shimada Sho could see her unease at that moment.

His shoulders hunched unnaturally, as if he had reverted to his old self-consciousness.

"Shimada-kun."

The voice of Yukine Kamishiro came from behind.

Shimada Sho turned his head.

They discovered that the young lady was looking at Tenkai Chizuru.

The other person had their head down, and because their back was turned, their expression was unreadable.

"What's wrong?" Shimada Sho asked casually.

"It's nothing." Yukine Kamishiro looked away and turned to Sho Shimada. "I just wanted to say that Amami-kun seems to know you."

“…I don’t know him.” Shimada Sho turned back expressionlessly.

Yonekura Natsumi tapped on the podium, and the commotion in the classroom gradually subsided.

"Quiet down, class is starting."

The students gradually returned to their seats, but their eyes still couldn't help but glance in the direction of Tenkai Chizuru.

Chizuru Amami lowered her head, opened her textbook, her hair falling down and covering half of her face, only her red ear tips could be seen.

Shimada Sho sat diagonally behind her, watching her profile.

His shoulders were hunched and his back was slightly arched, as if he wanted to hide himself in his desk.

She was completely different from the radiant idol she had been on the stage just moments before.

He recalled what had happened at the convenience store yesterday.

I guess she regrets it now?

Back then, I fearlessly did all sorts of daring things, even doing those sticky things over the wall.

She probably never imagined that she would see herself again at her new school the next day, the same person she thought she would never see again after leaving the convenience store.

Besides, she just posted photos explaining what she was doing today.

Doing this remotely via the internet can be considered a form of fun or play.

But now she's sitting diagonally in front of him, less than two meters away.

Wearing a school uniform, with her hair in a ponytail, and probably nothing underneath her skirt...

As Shimada Sho was lost in thought, he suddenly noticed that she had turned her head away.

Eyes facing each other.

Chizuru Amami's eyes widened suddenly, her pupils trembling slightly, like a startled fawn.

Her lips parted as if she wanted to say something, but because of the people around her and the distance, she couldn't utter a single word.

Seeing her embarrassed expression, Shimada Sho's lips unconsciously curved into a smile.

Then, Chizuru Amami's face turned bright red.

From the cheekbones to the tips of the ears, and from the tips of the ears to the neck, it was so red it looked like it was burning.

She quickly turned her head and buried it in her textbook.

The image of an ostrich reminds me of the first time I saw one in a convenience store.

Shimada Sho looked away, opened the math book on the table, and felt inexplicably a little better.

……

The first half of the class was spent in a delicate atmosphere.

Tenkai Chizuru didn't turn around the entire time, her back ramrod straight, staring motionlessly at the blackboard.

But Shimada Sho noticed that although she was holding a pen, she hadn't written a single word in the entire class.

In the second half of the class, Yonekura Natsumi closed her textbook.

"Next, we will have group study sessions. Each group can make its own arrangements."

The sound of desks and chairs being moved could be heard in the classroom.

"Chizuru-chan!" Haruko immediately turned to Amami Chizuru and asked eagerly, "Would you like to join our group?"

Tenkai Chizuru was stunned for a moment, "What?"

"Come on, come on!" Haruko enthusiastically pulled her arm. "Our group is short one person, and Shimada-kun is the top student in the grade. You can ask him if you don't understand anything!"

Chizuru Amami's body visibly stiffened for a moment.

She glanced instinctively in Shimada Sho's direction, then quickly looked away.

"Well, then I'll take my leave..."

"No problem, no problem!" Haruko happily moved her chair over to a different spot. "You can sit here. Shimada-kun is right across from you, and Kamishiro-kun is next to you."

Chizuru Amami, carrying her textbooks and with her head down, walked over and sat down next to Haruko.

Across from Shimada Sho.

After she sat down, she kept her eyes fixed on the table and didn't dare to look up.

Haruko enthusiastically introduced, "Chizuru-chan, this is Shimada Sho, the top student in the grade, he's super amazing!"

Chizuru Amami raised her head and glanced at Sho Shimada.

That one look contained everything: tension, embarrassment, shame, and a hint of inexplicable grievance.

"Shimada-kun... hello." Her voice was so soft it was almost inaudible.

"Hello," Shimada Sho replied calmly.

"And this one too!" Haruko pointed to the spot behind Shimada Sho, "Kamishiro Yukine is also our class's ace, with outstanding grades!"

Yukine Kamishiro stood up from her seat, carried a chair, and sat down next to Sho Shimada.

Her movements were natural and fluid. After sitting down next to Shimada Sho, her amber eyes calmly looked at Tenkai Chizuru.

"Hello, I'm Yukine Kamishiro." She extended her hand.

Tenkai Chizuru stared at the fair, slender hand for a moment, then quickly reached out and grasped it.

"H-Hello, I'm Chizuru Amami..."

“I know.” Yukine Kamishiro withdrew her hand, a faint smile on her lips. “Amami-kun is a national idol, who doesn’t know him?”

Shimada Sho's brow twitched.

Why does this sound so familiar?

Chizuru Amami's face flushed even more. "N-no, I didn't..."

"Does Tenkai know Shimada?" Kamishiro Yukine suddenly asked.

Tenkai Chizuru's body stiffened.

Her gaze darted back and forth between Shimada Sho and Kamishiro Yukine, her lips opening and closing as she hesitated, unsure how to respond.

"I don't know her," Shimada Sho answered for her. "But I do know Amami-san, since she's an idol."

Yukine Kamishiro turned and glanced at Sho Shimada.

"Is that so?" She looked away and didn't ask any more questions.

Chizuru Amami kept her head down, but Sho Shimada's words seemed to relax her a bit.

She calmed herself down, and when she looked up again, the blush on her face had faded somewhat, replaced by a professional composure.

“Shimada-san is right.” Her voice regained its clarity, and a polite smile graced her lips. “I’m a new transfer student and don’t know everyone yet. Please take care of me.”

Haruko nodded frantically, "Of course, of course! Chizuru-chan, feel free to ask us anything you don't understand!"

"Thank you." Chizuru Amami smiled and nodded, her gaze sweeping over each member of the group, lingering for a moment on Sho Shimada before naturally looking away.

Watertight.

Seeing her change, Shimada Sho sighed inwardly.

This girl, as expected, is still better at handling these kinds of situations than the Chizuru on stage.

"Let's start learning!" Haruko opened her textbook. "Chizuru-chan, where were you at in your previous school? Were you on the same pace as us?"

“It’s not quite the same.” Tenkai Chizuru opened her textbook. “There are some things I haven’t learned yet.”

“Then let Shimada-kun teach you!” Haruko enthusiastically recommended. “Shimada-kun explains problems very clearly. He explained a math problem to me last time, and I understood it right away!”

Tenkai Chizuru's gaze drifted towards Shimada Sho, then quickly returned to his own.

"No, no need..."

"Chizuru-kun," Shimada Sho said.

Tenkai Chizuru's shoulders twitched.