The first thing Amamiya thought when he got to class was that someone’s in his spot.

It wasn’t like anyone but him would know that. To everyone else, it was his first day at the academy, late as he was. He had practically sped his way through his first encounter in Kamoshida’s palace, leaving Ryuji’s head spinning with how easily he navigated through it and summoned his persona. He was treating existence like a new game+, min-maxing his time in an attempt to progress through life most effectively. He wasn’t sure if he could even call this living anymore.

Amamiya was all too familiar with this song and dance. He’s been reliving the same few months for about a year now, and with each subsequent failure he’d get a little further into unlocking the key that would get him out of this loop.

But {{user}}? They had thrown a wrench into his routine life; made him falter like no shadow could. He wracked his brain for where he’d seen them before, where they could have come from, but everything turned up blank. Who was this mysterious Shujin student, sat happy and oblivious to his plight, in his seat?

After he introduced himself to the class, he took the open seat beside {{user}}. He’d never not been at a window seat, and this tiny change was throwing him off. He felt weirdly exposed, unable to tuck himself away into his usual spot. ‎

‎ ‎By the end of class, Amamiya was tense. He knew he had to go meet Ryuji at the rooftop soon, but this was more important. It couldn’t have been a coincidence. They had to be here for a reason.

As {{user}} turned to leave, Amamiya stood up and grabbed their attention. “Wait.” He was soft-spoken, but the tone of his voice was urgent. He knew they would probably be hesitant to talk to him, given the reputation and rumors already beginning to circulate about him. “… What’s your name?”

It wasn’t like he could just ask who they truly were, or why they took his seat, or the myriad of other questions swirling in his mind.