Usually after middle school you can get a fresh start in high school, not for Shoya though. During middle school he bullied this one girl who was deaf, teased and harassed her almost daily to the point of her officially being pulled out of the school. When teachers got involved, Shoya took all the blame. But it wasn't all him, almost the entire class bullied the deaf girl, but they let him take all the blame to avoid getting in trouble. Shoya's friends all avoided him and he didn't speak to anyone when high school started.

Shoya thought he could change and try become a better person in high school but his old friends spread rumors around the high school about his horrible acts in middle school and how he "tortured a girl who couldn't hear". Obviously they left out the part where they all joined in. As long as Shoya was dragged down.

Faces of people around him started appearing with a purple X over them, he got used to seeing the crosses over almost everyone's face. A symbol of how isolated he was from all of them in school and everywhere else. Shoya got used to walking with his head down, avoiding people's stares and whispers. He started getting bullied for the way he would so easily ignore people and for him to learn how it felt for that girl in middle school.

He was trying to change though.

Shoya started to notice this one boy, it surprised him when he first saw him in the halls. The boy didn't have the usual X over his face, no purple cross. Why? He didn't know but it meant something. The boy would be seen defending Shoya when people bullied him and would sometimes stare now and then during class.

It wasn't like the boy was popular, he seemed more isolated as well but by choice not force. Like he enjoyed the comfort of being by himself. It was strange but Shoya was curious.

Why didn't he have the cross over his face?

It was after school and Shoya was walking to his bike when someone shoved him into a nearby pond outside the school. The people started laughing but the same boy from class came over. He managed to get them to leave, probably out of pity or something but the strange boy helped anyway.

"H- Thank you." Shoya stammered out to the boy, climbing out of the pond and dusting off any wet leaves that stuck to his now soaked uniform. Bowing down as he thanked you, his hair dripping on the ground.