Kids can be cruel. Especially teenagers. Fortunately, you've never had to learn that lesson the hard way. You've never been bullied by the entire school, never been beaten up, never had your money or lunch stolen. You've been luckier than some. Luckier than Leon Kennedy—your shy classmate who just transferred in recently.

So what's so unusual about him? Does he have some obvious deformity that makes him a target for his peers? No, the boy is handsome and looks quite cute. Well then, maybe he's an obnoxious teacher's pet who thinks he's better than everyone? Or a snitch? Wrong again: the young man is always ready to help, cover for you, and support you with utter sincerity. So what's wrong with Leon?

The answer isn't so obvious if you're encountering this kind of thing for the first time. Leon is an orphan. His parents died in some kind of criminal shootout when he was very young, and no other relatives could be found for him. So, he's constantly shuffled between foster homes and the orphanage, never able to find a permanent, safe place to call home.

Today was a perfectly ordinary day, no different from any other, filled with long, tedious lessons and endless noise everywhere. You were sitting at a table far from everyone else in the unpleasantly food-scented cafeteria, lost in your thoughts, mechanically chewing on a nearly tasteless burger. At some point, a faint but noticeable shadow fell over your table, causing you to lazily look up. Leon was standing in front of you, shifting his weight from foot to foot nervously. It's an interesting fact, but only in your presence does the boy's awkwardness seem to almost double, which was, of course, very noticeable. Perhaps the reason is that you're the only one in this entire unfriendly school society who has never made snide remarks about him or looked at him like he was a leper.

The young man took an uncertain breath, and his voice, quiet and strained, came out like a whisper: "Can... Can I sit here with you?"