I turned back from the teacher's desk and walked straight towards her, seated in the front row, holding out the slightly sweat-dampened slip in my hand.
"Looks like… we're partners, Komori-san."
My voice was softer than I intended. I tried not to let my excitement and nervousness show in my tone, but I couldn't help feeling like a hundred butterflies were fluttering in my stomach.
She glanced at the slip for a moment, then looked up at me. Those dark brown eyes were still impassive, but not as cold as I had imagined.
"Mm..." she replied softly, her voice flat, devoid of any clear joy or disappointment.
Just then, the wind from the slightly ajar window blew a little stronger. A cool gust swept into the room, causing some loose papers on her desk to flutter up slightly. She bent down to quickly gather them, but her neatly tied, dark blue school necktie loosened a bit, its end fluttering with the breeze—revealing a fleeting glimpse of the fair skin of her décolletage for a split second.
I, who had just been turning to grab a chair from another desk to sit beside her, froze mid-motion. My damn eyes happened to catch that brief image. My heart suddenly pounded, and my face flushed hot. I quickly averted my gaze, but it seemed too late. She had noticed.
She quickly adjusted her necktie back in place as if nothing had happened. But when she looked up at me again, her dark brown eyes clearly showed displeasure. Her thin lips pursed slightly.
"Is something wrong… Tsukino-kun?"
Her voice was a little colder than before, making my flushed self feel a chill down to my spine. Guilt and embarrassment rushed into my mind simultaneously. I quickly looked away towards the pile of books on her desk, shaking my head slightly.
"...No, nothing."
My voice was so faint it was barely audible. A thousand thoughts raced through my head. I felt like a terrible person for looking where I shouldn't have, even though it was purely an accident.
She didn't say anything further but quickly readjusted her necktie. Her face remained stoic, but I could feel the atmosphere between us had become slightly more awkward.
I, too, quickly turned to drag a chair from the empty desk nearby (Riku's former seat) and placed it beside hers, trying to maintain a reasonable distance so as not to make her feel even more uncomfortable, before awkwardly slumping into it. My heart was still pounding a bit—I didn't know if it was due to shock, embarrassment, or her seemingly reproachful gaze just now…
"It seems everyone has found their partners," Mr. Satoru's voice boomed, interrupting my awkward silence. "Now, everyone move to sit with your partners and start planning your science projects. This year's theme is 'Quantum Theory and Parallel Worlds.' I want everyone to use their creativity and imagination to the fullest, but it must be supported by scientific principles. Don't forget, this is Class 2-A. My expectations are higher than for other classes. The submission and presentation deadline is at the end of this semester. I'm giving you plenty of time to research and understand it thoroughly," the teacher emphasized.
Students began to move their seats more earnestly. The sound of chairs scraping and chatter rose again, but it seemed a bit softer than before. The pressure from Mr. Satoru's words permeated the room.
I saw Ken walk over to sit beside Mikase with an expression like he was about to be interrogated. Mikase started opening a thick textbook and said something that made Ken scratch his head. As for Zeno, he dragged his chair to sit next to Takumi with utmost enthusiasm.
"Takumi! I have an amazing idea for our project! We'll build a detector for butterflies from other dimensions! Or maybe a portable rainbow generator!" Zeno spouted ideas rapidly.
Takumi, who was sketching something in his notebook, spoke in a flat tone without looking up, "I think we should start with something that won't blow up the science lab, Zeno. Or at least something that doesn't violate basic laws of physics too much… Unless those dimensional butterflies can produce nuclear energy on their own. That would be interesting."
Over on Iris's side, she was facing Sakurai Ren, the otaku boy, who seemed to be trying to explain the concept of "Isekai" or other-dimensional worlds from his favorite anime to her, giving examples of characters who could travel across dimensions. Iris frowned slightly, trying to understand what he was saying, but she still seemed unable to grasp it. "And… how does this relate to the quantum theory we have to do, Sakurai-san?" she asked patiently.
I gathered my courage and turned to Lumine again, trying to act normal.
"Uh... about the project topic... 'Quantum Theory'... it seems pretty tough, doesn't it?"
Lumine looked up from the notebook she was scribbling in. Those dark brown eyes looked at me, as if assessing. "Well... it's quite complex, but also very fascinating. Tsukino-kun... have you heard much about it before?" Her voice was still level, but held a hint of curiosity.
"Well… I know bits and pieces," I answered hesitantly. "I've heard about... particles acting strangely, being in multiple places at once, or that cat in a box thing... but I don't really get it. Just feels... unreal."
Lumine's expression seemed to relax slightly seeing I wasn't resisting the topic. She opened a black notebook. On its cover was a small nebula sticker (I secretly noticed it). Inside, it was filled with neat handwriting and complex-looking diagrams, but she didn't open those pages for me to see.
"Mm... it is quite beyond imagination," she admitted, a faint smile appearing at the corner of her mouth. "But I find it amazing, especially the idea called the 'Many-Worlds Interpretation' by Hugh Everett." Her voice began to hold a spark of interest, her eyes seeming brighter than usual. "Have you heard of it?"
"Many-Worlds? You mean... like in sci-fi movies? With lots of parallel universes?" I asked, trying to connect it to something I could grasp.
"Yes! Something like that!" Lumine nodded, seeming pleased I grasped the concept. "The idea is that every time a 'decision' or 'observation' is made at the quantum level, like... whether an atom decays or not... the universe 'branches' off into two paths, where both outcomes actually happen in their own universe." She lightly traced two diverging lines in the air with her fingertip. "It's like... every possibility... happens somewhere."
I listened intently. Even though it still felt complex, seeing the slight excitement in her eyes and her gestures made me intrigued and curious too.
"Whoa... sounds unbelievable. If that's true... it means there might be another 'me' right now deciding to skip this class?" I tried joking.
Lumine chuckled softly for the first time. The sound surprised me and... made my heart beat a little faster. "It's possible!" She smiled, a smile that looked more open and bright than any I'd seen from her. "It might not be a clearly proven theory yet, but many brilliant physicists actually believe in this idea." She looked out the window for a moment, her gaze distant. "My father is a theoretical physicist. He used to tell me about these things often since I was a kid," she added softly, as if explaining the source of her interest, before turning back to me. "I was thinking... we could try doing the project on this concept. Starting with simple basics, like the double-slit experiment showing how particles act strangely, and then gradually link it to the many-worlds theory... What do you think, Tsukino-kun? Is it feasible?" She asked for my opinion seriously.
"That's a great idea," I replied immediately, impressed by her knowledge and thinking. "Even though I'm not as good at physics as you are, I can help with research, summarizing key points, or designing an interesting presentation. I can draw a bit or do some graphics, which might help explain difficult things more easily for others."
"Excellent!" Lumine nodded, seeming genuinely pleased with my answer and enthusiasm. "Then let's try outlining the main topics we want to present in here first, shall we? Then we can divide the research work." She slid the notebook to the center between us.
We started brainstorming seriously. Lumine mainly proposed the scientific structure, while I focused on presentation methods and visual aids to make it engaging and understandable. The initial awkwardness gradually faded, replaced by a sense of teamwork I hadn't expected.
"You know," Lumine said suddenly after we'd been quiet for a while, jotting down notes, "someone once joked that... our dreams might be windows through which we get a glimpse into the lives of ourselves in parallel universes."
"Really?" I looked up at her. That idea was captivating. "You mean... if I dream I can fly, another me in another world might actually be able to fly?"
"It's not really a scientific theory, of course," she smiled wider, a smile that looked more open and natural than any I'd seen from her. It brightened her face so much I found myself staring for a moment. "But it's... a romantic idea, isn't it?"
"It is," I chuckled softly, feeling much more relaxed. "If that's true, the 'me' in another world must be having quite an adventure, while the 'me' in this world is sitting here doing homework."
Lumine's smile widened even more, her eyes sparkling playfully. "Who knows? Maybe our other selves in many other worlds are doing things we wouldn't dare to do in this one, or maybe they're happy in ways we can't even imagine... It's an infinite possibility, just like our project topic."
Before we could talk further, the bell rang, signaling the end of the class period.
Mr. Satoru stood up. "Alright, students. Don't forget you have until the end of this semester for the project. I expect quality work from Class A."
Students began to pack their things. I, too, put my notebooks and books into my bag, but I didn't quite want to leave yet.
"Thanks, Komori-san. Today was a lot of fun," I said softly.
Lumine looked at me with a softer gaze. "Me too, Tsukino-kun. Not many people want to talk about these things with me."
"If you're interested, I have some books on this topic that are fairly easy to understand. I can bring them for you to borrow tomorrow," she offered.
"Thank you so much! I'd really like to read them!" I replied immediately.
"Well then… see you tomorrow," she said, standing up.
"Yeah, see you tomorrow."
Lumine walked over to join Iris and Himari, who were waiting at the door. I saw Himari turn and give me a wide smile for a moment before the three of them disappeared.
I walked over to Ken, Takumi, and Zeno, who were animatedly discussing something.
"How did it go, Leo?" Ken asked.
"Pretty good," I replied, smiling faintly. "Komori-san knows a lot about physics."
Takumi raised an eyebrow. "Be careful not to get lost in her quantum equations," he said deadpan.
Zeno quickly added, "Yeah, yeah! Or you might get sucked into a parallel world she created!"
We laughed and walked out of the classroom together. I couldn't help but think about my conversation with Lumine, and her smile... Maybe this project wouldn't be as boring as I thought.