Hello, class.

Let's all do our best today.

*Sigh*

(I'm getting kinda nervous...

What's he gonna have us do today?)

(When he had us do still life drawings the other day, he gave me an earful about mine looking too flat.)

(I feel like I've improved since then, but...

I still have a long road ahead of me.)

(No, I shouldn't let myself get down...)

(I'm gonna do what I can to draw something better today...!)

Alright, I will be announcing today's assignment.

Your theme will be “incubation”.

I'd like for you all to draw something that portrays this.

Incubation...?

You will have six hours and then take a break after three hours. You may now begin.

(Incubation... Incubation...?)

Uhh...

(When I hear that word, only eggs come to mind... But I can't just draw those. That'd be way too simple.)

Time's up. I will now begin reviewing your work, so please bring your drawings forward.

(What do I do...?

I managed to draw something, but...)

...!

(Everyone else did such a good job...

I would've never thought of what they came up with.)

(Futaba's drawing in particular...

I really love her idea. A world inside of an egg, growing so big that it's breaking out of its shell...)

(Why do I have so much trouble coming up with creative ideas like that...?)

Alright, whose drawing do we have here...?

O-Oh, that's mine!

Please have a look...!

Ah, Shinonome.

Okay, let's see...

...

Is this...a human that hatched from an egg...?

Yes...

I drew a person gazing at the vast world after just hatching.

I see...

What were you trying to convey through your drawing, Shinonome?

U-Uhh...

Having your breath taken away after seeing a completely new world, and getting excited by that prospect.

Ah, in that case, you might have wanted to use this person's gaze and expression a little more effectively to convey that better.

However...

Is that sense of excitement and feeling of awe what you were truly after, Shinonome?

From what I can tell, you simply drew whatever it was that came to your mind.

*Gasp*

No, um...

...

Well then, let's move on...

Oh...

That should be everyone.

Good work today, all.

(What did I want to convey...?)

(He was right...

I just drew whatever popped into my head... None of my own feelings went into that drawing.)

(I thought I had improved a little bit, but...

I guess I really do have a long road ahead of me...)

Hi, Ena.

Are you feeling okay...?

Oh, yeah. I'm fine...

I mean, I'm pretty used to this now.

Today's assignment was pretty hard, wasn't it?

I struggle to come up with ideas from scratch, so I spent a lot of time thinking.

Wait, you too?

Yeah. Given the choice, I'd rather draw something that's sitting right in front of me.

Mr. Yukihira's always saying how I need to be more creative. Because of that, I always get really nervous when he asks us to do these sorts of assignments.

He told me the same thing today...

But I managed to draw what I wanted, so I think I managed to make a little progress.

Progress...

(That's right, I almost forgot...

Futaba and the others in class take these assignments way more seriously than I do.)

(I need to start thinking like them.

I want to get better and catch up...!)

Mr. Yukihira!

Yes...?

Um, may I take this assignment home? I'd like to give this theme another try. I promise to bring something better next time!

...

Understood.

I'll be looking forward to seeing what you have drawn.

Thank you very much.

Ena...

(Today's committee meeting finished earlier than scheduled...)

(I could stop by somewhere to study... But I should probably go straight home. I wouldn't want Mom to worry.)

Mom, I'm home.

Mom...?

(She's not in the living room...)

(I don't remember her saying that she'd be going out today...)

(But she could just be out shopping, so...

I should probably go up to my room to study.)

...!

(Huh...? Wait, why...?)

Um...

Mom...? What are you doing...?

Oh, Mafuyu, hello.

You're home early today.

Yes, my meeting finished earlier than expected, so I decided to come home to study...

I see.

Then, I'll need to prepare a delicious dinner for my hard-working daughter.

O-Okay, thank you.

Um, also...

What were you doing just now...?

Oh, I'm sorry for borrowing your computer without asking first. I was just looking something up...

Looking something up...?

Yes, but I found what I needed, so thank you for letting me borrow it.

You were going to study, yes?

Y-Yes...