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As summer continued and the days grew hotter, the mid-year exams loomed just a few days away.
Their teacher warned that anyone failing this exam would need to take remedial classes during summer vacation.
Despite having sleepovers to study together, Mizuha, Elly, and Shimizu felt they needed more preparation. Mizuha, Elly, Zul, and Hikaru were discussing Shimizu's suggestion to study together at her house.
"What do you think about the idea, you guys? None of you has ever visited my house before," said Shimizu.
""Oh, you're right. We've never been to your house," said Mizuha.
"But are you comfortable having us over? Since both of us are guys," Hikaru asked hesitantly.
"Don't worry, if it's just for studying, there's no problem," replied Shimizu.
"Then, when do you want to do it, Shimizu-chan?" Elly asked.
"How about today after school? Just come directly from school to my house," suggested Shimizu.
"That works for me. How about the rest of you?" Shimizu asked.
"We all agree," Elly spoke for the group.
"So, we're counting on you, Mizuha-sensei," Elly and Shimizu teased, since Mizuha tutored them in their weakest subjects.
"Geez, you guys, please stop it. It's so embarrassing," Mizuha protested.
"By the way, Zul-sensei is coming too," added Hikaru.
"Hikaru, stop it, not you too," muttered Zul.
That's right, Zul excels in most subjects like I do. He could also help us today too, thought Mizuha.
"So, it's decided - we'll go together to my house after school," concluded Shimizu.
After school, they headed directly to Shimizu's house. Upon arrival, Shimizu unlocked the door and invited them inside.
"Mom, I'm home!" called Shimizu as she opened the door.
"Oh, welcome home, Shimizu," replied her mother.
"Mom, I brought my friends over today. We're studying together for the upcoming exam."
"Really? That's nice! Let me see them," said her mother excitedly.
"Here they are," said Shimizu.
"My, who do we have here? Two lovely girls and two handsome boys," her mother remarked.
"This is Mizuha and Elly, and this is Zul and Hikaru," said Shimizu.
"Nice to meet you," said Mizuha and Elly.
"Nice to meet you too. So, you guys are her friends. I see. Anyway, thank you for taking care of my problematic daughter. I bet she gives you nothing but trouble," said her mother with a smirk.
"This old hag is saying too much," thought Shimizu irritably.
"Not at all! Shimizu-san always makes us happy and suggests fun activities," Elly defended.
"Good job, Elly! Take that, you old hag!" thought Shimizu triumphantly.
"Really? I didn't know about that. She never says anything about school to me," said her mother.
"By the way, Elly-chan, you're so cute! I can't believe my daughter has a friend this cute," said her mother as she suddenly hugged Elly.
"You too, Mizuha-chan," she added, switching to hug Mizuha next. Both Mizuha and Elly blushed after being hugged.
"Hey, what are you doing to them? Stop it," said Shimizu, annoyed.
Suddenly Hikaru smirked and said, "Good for you, Shimizu. You have a very interesting mother."
"Ah, shut up, Hikaru," Shimizu replied.
"Come on guys, we're wasting time with this middle-aged woman. Let's go to the living room," said Shimizu.
"That's so mean, Shimizu! I'm not that old," her mother protested.
They settled themselves in the spacious living room.
"Sorry my room isn't big enough for all of us, so we'll study here," said Shimizu.
"Sorry about my mother, both of you. She gets overexcited and has a habit of hugging cute girls," Shimizu explained.
"That really shocked me, but from what I see, she is a really kind person," said Elly, smiling.
"Remember the day I acted all feminine and polite? That was her idea too," Shimizu continued.
"Oh, I remember that! I can't forget about it. It was so funny watching you act like that," Mizuha chuckled.
"Yes, I almost fell for you that day. Hahaha," laughed Hikaru.
"Ah, stop it, both of you. I'm never doing that again," said Shimizu.
Tch, these two look like they want revenge for when I teased them, thought Shimizu, annoyed at Mizuha and Hikaru.
Soon, they began their study session in earnest. Mizuha sat between Elly and Shimizu, helping them with their weakest subjects.
"Mizuha-chan," Elly called softly, sliding her notebook across the table.
"Could you check these answers for me?" her voice trembled with nerves and hope.
Mizuha studied the work carefully, her expression brightening as she saw Elly's progress. "Elly, this is amazing! You seem to have improved a lot. Keep it up."
"Thanks, Mizuha-chan," Elly said, blushing and fidgeting with her pencil.
Nearby, Shimizu smiled, inspired by her friend's progress. She showed her own math worksheet to Mizuha, revealing neat rows of solved problems.
"Here, Mizuha-sensei, please check mine too."
"Let me see. Hmm, well done Shimizu, you've improved too. Look at how you solved this problem here," she pointed to a complex equation.
"A few weeks ago, you were struggling with the basics, but now you're handling these advanced concepts so well!"
"Haha, I know that. I can do it if I try hard," said Shimizu, proud of her improvement.
"Then, good for you, Shimizu, but don't forget it during the exam," replied Mizuha.
At the other end of the table, Hikaru looked up from his textbook. "Speaking of progress," he said, moving closer to join the conversation with Mizuha. They discussed their current subjects, sharing insights and different approaches.
"Mizuha, I don't understand this part. Can you show me how to do this?" said Hikaru.
"Sure, let me show you the steps for that," replied Mizuha.
Zul turned his attention to Elly, with curious eyes. "How are your studies coming along?"
Elly's face lit up with pride. "I actually understand most of the subjects that used to give me trouble now," she replied, "thanks to Mizuha-chan. It's starting to make sense, finally."
Zul's face softened with warmth. "I know you can do it," he encouraged. "Keep it up."
His sincere words touched Elly. "Thank you, Zul," she responded softly, her voice filled her voice trusting. "Umm, can you teach me this too? I still don't understand it," said Elly.
"Understood, let me teach you that," replied Zul.
As they immersed themselves in their studies, the group punctuated their hard work with laughter and jokes. Shimizu's mother kept them fueled with snacks and tea, turning the study session into a blend of productivity and joy.
The warm, supportive environment fostered camaraderie, motivating everyone to do their best on the exams.
A moment later, Shimizu's little brother, Shinichi, returned from playing soccer at his school. Upon entering, he noticed many pairs of shoes at the entrance.
"Huh, do we have guests today?" he wondered.
"I'm home," he called out, entering the living room. He was shocked to see so many people there.
"Huh, Shin-chan, you're back already," said Shimizu.
"Who are these people, Nee-chan? Friends of yours?"asked Shinichi.
"They're my friends. We're having a study group. Don't disturb us, go to your room," replied Shimizu.
Shinichi then turned to Mizuha and Elly.
Who are these two beautiful girls? he thought admiringly.
Shinichi approached the girls and introduced himself. "Nice to meet you, I'm Toyama Shinichi, Shimizu's little brother."
"Nice to meet you, Shinichi," said Mizuha. Then Shimizu suddenly grabbed Shinichi's neck with her arm. "Hey, hey, what are you doing? Trying to flirt with my friends?" said Shimizu.
"No, I was just introducing myself to them," said Shinichi, denying Shimizu's words.
"Don't even think about it. Those handsome guys? They're their boyfriends," said Shimizu intentionally, wanting to scare her little brother.
Shinichi looked at Hikaru and Zul. Both of them were just smiling at Shinichi.
"You're Shimizu's little brother, nice to meet you," said Hikaru, smiling.
To Shinichi, Hikaru and Zul seemed to be giving him scary glares, making him tremble with fear.
"Umm, nice to meet you too," he stammered.
What's with these guys? Why are they glaring at me like that? Did they get upset because I spoke to their girlfriends?
In truth, neither Hikaru nor Zul was glaring at him; it was all in his imagination.
"I'm going to my room," said Shinichi, rushing away.
"You have a nice little brother, Shimizu-chan, and he looks similar to you," said Elly.
Well, we're siblings, but don't be fooled by his innocent appearance” said Shimizu.
"Huh, what do you mean?" asked Mizuha.
"You see, he actually likes to approach girls and tries to flirt with them if he's attracted to them. I think he got that from my mother," laughed Shimizu.
Her mother heard that and suddenly spoke, "What was that about me, Shimizu? We'll have a talk later," she said, giving her daughter a scary smile.
Oh no, I'm done for. I've angered the demon lord, Shimizu thought with dread.
They studied until sunset.
" It's getting dark, I think that's enough for today," said Mizuha.
"Elly-chan, how's your Japanese literature coming along? Understanding it better now?"asked Mizuha.
"Yes, I understand most of it now, thanks to you, Mizuha-chan," replied Elly.
"And how about you, Shimizu?" asked Mizuha.
"I can solve the problems I couldn't before, but I still have more to study," said Shimizu.
Mizuha and the others gathered their things and headed for the door.
"Heading out already?" asked Shimizu's mother.
"Yes, thank you for your hospitality," said Hikaru.
"Please visit again. It was wonderful having you all here. Be safe going home," said Shimizu's mother.
After Mizuha and the others left, Shimizu's mother spoke.
"I'm happy for you, Shimizu,” said her mother.
"Huh? What do you mean, Mom?" asked Shimizu.
"You've never brought this many friends home before. They're all such nice people," said her mother.
"You're right. I've never had this many friends before since that day, but things are different now. People accept me more," said Shimizu before heading to her room.
Her mother smiled at Shimizu's words. "You've really changed, Shimizu. It's wonderful to see," she said softly.
After leaving Shimizu's house, the group split up to head home. Zul walked alongside Elly, while Hikaru and Mizuha headed in the opposite direction as usual.
"Today's study group was really fun," Hikaru said as they walked down the familiar route. He glanced at Mizuha with a smile. "You were amazing today, teaching everyone. I didn't know you could explain things so clearly."
Mizuha's cheeks warmed at the compliment. "It's nothing special. I just try to explain things the way I would want them explained to me."
They walked in comfortable silence to Mizuha's house.
"Well, this is where we split up," Mizuha said, stopping in front of her house.
"Yeah. Thanks again for all the help today," Hikaru smiled.
"Should we do another study session tomorrow at the library?" Hikaru suggested.
"Good idea. I'll message everyone tomorrow. They'll appreciate it," said Mizuha.
"I'll head home now. See you," said Hikaru.
"Take care," replied Mizuha.
"You too, Mizuha. See you tomorrow!" Hikaru called back.
The group continued their study sessions for several more days. Then, the long-awaited examination day arrived, filling Mizuha and her friends with mixed feelings of anticipation and nervousness.
"Let's do our best, Elly. I know you can do it too," said Zul.
"Yes, you too, Zul. Good luck," replied Elly.
Both Shimizu and Elly now had determination and confidence and didn't worry about their weakest subjects anymore.
I won't disappoint Mizuha-chan after all her teaching. I'll do my best, thought Elly.
Time to show what I learned from Mizuha-sensei, thought Shimizu.
Good luck, both of you. Let's all do our best, thought Mizuha.
"The exam has begun now," said the teacher as the clock struck 8 A.M.
As the exam began, the atmosphere buzzed with a sense of intensity and determination. Each student took their designated seats, amid hushed whispers and rustling papers.
They took deep breaths, picked up their pencils, and turned over their test papers. With determination in their eyes, they began writing, ready to face the challenges that lay before them.
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