The afternoon sunlight shine brightly through the classroom's windows. The professor drones on and on, while students hurriedly scribble down notes for Sensei's lecture. It'll be on the final after all...

In the back of the room, the sound of one pen's scratching stops. The young man with dark hair holding the pen turns his gaze out through the windows, staring blankly. Was that a scream that he just heard? Why isn't anyone else reacting?

Beside him, another pen stops its furious writing. Another dark-haired young man looks up from his economics notes to poke his friend. "Ne, ne, daijoubu?"

The first young man turns, and is confronted by his reflection shining off of his friend's sunglasses. "I... I just thought that I heard something..."

His friend snorts. "That's just the nerves getting to you," he whispers. "You're probably just stressed because of the final. Last night I dreamt that Sensei was chasing me with a mallet, trying to pound economics into my head. Don't worry. You've always done well in this class. You and money... sheesh!"

The dark haired young man frowns at his friend and turns his attention back to the lecture. But that persistent uneasiness still lingers in the back of his mind.

TBC...