A/N: Hey, everyone! So, while watching the Grumps playthrough of Doki Doki Literature Club I got a little idea for a crossover AU. Apologies in advance if a lot of the early scenes follow the game dialogue kind of closely-there's sort of a reason for that, and will probably start to deviate a little more by later chapters. Also, updates on this story might not be as frequent as I would like, due to real-life workloads and my own slow writing pace. Please be patient with me.
Anyways, just another warning; This fic contains dicussions/depictions of suicide, death, depression and self-harm as well as references to abuse/neglect. It also contains elements of psychological horror and unreality. If you are sensitive to these types of topics, then please take caution while reading this story. Thank you, and feedback is always appreciated!
Chapter 1: Welcome to the Literature Club
The morning sun glimmered peacefully through the trees that dotted the suburban street that Dan Avidan currently walked down. A gentle, autumn wind ruffled the few stray chestnut curls that hadn't been tied back into a low ponytail.
Around him, a small clusters of students, some dressed in uniforms similar to his, milled about, chatting idly about various topics. Occasionally, one or two of them would give him a quick glance as he passed, before returning back to their conversation.
Dan sighed to himself as he mentally prepared for what he assumed would be another typical day. He'd spend way several hours staring out the window, daydreaming when he should have been listening to the teacher's long, droning lecture that he was sure he would have forgotten five minutes later, even if he had been paying attention.
"Hey, Danny!" a high-pitched, cheerful voice rang from behind him, "Danny, wait up!"
Dan smiled as he turned toward the sound of the voice. A girl clad in a grey blazer jacket similar to Dan's, waved her arms enthusiastically, seemingly unconcerned with accidentally hitting someone or drawing attention to herself, as she clumsily bounded down the street toward him. Her bright red hairbow bobbed dangerously, threatening to fly off of her short pink hair as she ran toward him.
Dan stopped, patiently waiting for her at the crosswalk. The girl huffed, panting as she caught her breath.
"'Morning Sayori," Dan greeted her with a wave.
"I overslept again!" Sayori said between breaths,"But I finally caught up to you this time!"
"Only because I stopped and waited for you," Dan joked, with a sly wink, "And I almost didn't even do that."
A troubled frown crept onto the the edges of Sayori's lips as her blue eyes narrowed into a hurt glare.
"So you were thinking of just leaving me, then?" she sighed, "That's really mean, Danny!"
Almost immediately, a small knot of guilt tied itself in Dan's stomach, as part of him wanted to apologize. But, another part of him reassured, he and Sayori had been friends since they were kids. Both of them knew each other well enough to know when the other was only joking, or when they'd actually crossed a line.
Or at least, that's what Dan had believed.
Ever since they'd entered high school, he noted a subtle change come over Sayori. When she wasn't oversleeping and nearly being late for class, she seemed occasionally more distracted than usual.
Of course, Dan figured, it could have just as easily been nothing unusual, as well. After all, she still acted like her cheerful and lively self around everyone. Perhaps it was just the usual stress of high school and preparing for college?
Still, sometimes when he looked at Sayori, he couldn't help but feel worried for her. It was as if she were wearing a mask of porcelain held together by string, and that the slightest wrong thing could cause everything to unravel and the mask to shatter on the floor.
Dan didn't want to think about what would happen if it ever did.
"Anyways," she giggled, her expression softening, "You still waited up for me. So, I guess you really can't be all that mean, even if you were trying to be."
For now, Dan sighed to himself as he saw the smile return to Sayori's face, she was happy.
And that made him happy.
A comfortable silence fell between them as they crossed the street, entering the school yard. The clusters of students standing about had grown considerably, Dan noticed. At least most of the students seemed to still be outside, he thought. That at least meant that he and Sayori weren't late for class.
"By the way, Danny," Sayori spoke, breaking the silence, "Have you decided about which club you want to join, yet?"
Dan winced, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head. He remembered that Sayori and him had talked about joining clubs sometime at the beginning of the year. But, he'd admittedly hadn't put much thought into it since that conversation.
"I already joined a club" he joked with a smirk, "It's the 'Probably Not Joining a Club' Club. Already had t-shirts made and everything.
"Danny!" Sayori said, "That's not funny. You promised me you'd join a club this year!"
"Eh..," Dan blushed and embarrassed shade of pink that almost matched Sayori's hair, "Well...about that..."
The pink hair girl glared again, crossing her arms in a way that Dan could only describe as the kind of look his mom would give him when she was about to lecture him about something.
"I'm just worried about you that's all," Sayori said, "I mean, your happiness is really important to me! And, I'm worried that if you don't join a club, then you won't get into college and you won't be prepared for the real world, and that you'll end up miserable-"
Dan gently rested his hand on Sayori's shoulder as tears began to form in the corners of her eyes.
"Sayori," he reassured her with a soft smile, "I'll be fine. I'll look into a few clubs, if it'll make you happy. Can't make any promises, though."
Sayori's eyes widened, and Dan was almost afraid that she was going to cry again.
"You'd do that," Sayori asked hopefully, "To make me happy?"
"Yeah," Dan replied with a confident smile, "That's what friends do, right? We make each other happy."
A blush painted Sayori's cheeks as she looked at the ground as if suddenly became fascinated with the concrete walkway beneath her feet.
Dan sighed. Why did he let himself be lectured by her? He wondered. Sure, he knew that her heart was in the right place, and he was at least somewhat glad that she cared about him. But, sometimes he felt that she worried a little too much about him, and often over-exaggerated situations in her head.
It wasn't like he was going to drift aimlessly through life without ambition. He wanted to go to college, and start up a band and become a famous singer. Then again, he thought, he didn't really have a plan on how to achieve that goal, so perhaps Sayori was somewhat right to worry about him.
For a moment, Dan allowed himself to slip into a daydream as he continued to walk. Around him, the crowded hallways of the school faded away, shifting into crowded concert hall. His uniform transformed into a sparkling, form fitting blue costume. Hazy flashes of ruby, sapphire and emerald danced in his vision as his hips swayed seductively in time to the music of his band. Thousands of eyes watched him from the shadows, enthralled by the rhythm, and waiting with baited breath to let his siren voice weave its spell on them.
He opened his mouth and-
THUD!
Faster than he could react, Dan found himself colliding with both reality and with what appeared to be another student, sending them both sprawling to the floor. Sayori gave him a concerned look as she helped him back to his feet.
The other student, Dan noticed, appeared to be another male, judging by his uniform. He couldn't help but notice a streak of blond amongst the dark brown of the man's ponytail. As he moved toward the other man to apologize and see if he was alright, his foot brushed against a pair of glasses that he assumed must have fallen off of the other man. Carefully, Dan picked up the glasses with one hand while extending his other toward the other student.
"I am so sorry, dude," Dan apologized, handing the man his glasses back "I really should have been watching were I was going. Are you okay, man?"
Slowly, the other man looked up as he slid his glasses back onto his face, his brown eyes widening fearfully as they met Dan's own. The man's lips, just barely hidden behind his facial hair, hung agape, quivering slightly, as if halfway between speaking and whimpering. With a shaky hand, the other man took Dan's hand to help him stand.
Now that they were both standing, Dan was able to get a good look at the man he'd accidentally bumped into. On first glance, everything about this man would have given the impression he was intimidating. Like Dan, he was considerably tall. One could even argue that the two were roughly the same height. However, unlike the lanky Dan, the other man's body was broader and slightly more muscular. He seemed like he could have been the type of person who could easily do some damage in a fight, given the opportunity.
However, Dan also sensed a bit of gentleness and warmth in the other man's demeanor that off-set his gruff exterior. He seemed like the kind of guy who wanted nothing more than to make others laugh and feel comfortable around him.
"I-I'm fine," the man stammered"I shouldn't have been there, anyways. I really should get to class."
A flustered blush painted the other man's cheeks as he swiftly bounded down the hall, disappearing into the crowd, leaving both Sayori and Dan to ponder the events in his wake.
"Who was that guy?" Dan asked, "I don't think I've ever seen him before."
"Oh, him?" Sayori replied, her face brightening a little, "That's Arin. He just transferred here from Asagao Academy-y'know that private school just outside of town?-recently. I think he's in the same year as us, but in a different class or something. I don't really know. I hear he's kind of grumpy though."
Dan arched an eyebrow, but said nothing. He wondered how Sayori already knew so much about this new transfer student. The guy couldn't have been there more than a couple days, he reasoned. Otherwise, he was sure that he would have at least heard about him sooner. Then again, he reasoned, Sayori was a little more social, and was actually involved in clubs. So, it was possible that she'd met or heard about him before.
Whatever, he thought, shaking his head as he entered the classroom and took his usual seat near the window. It wasn't really that important. It wasn't like he was ever going to actually run into him again, anyways.
The rest of the day passed by quietly without much incident. Afternoon had fallen, and the last school bell rang. Dan had barely even noticed that the other students had already filed out of the class for the day, leaving him to be alone in his daydreams. He sighed to himself, running his fingers through his hair, as he remembered his promise to Sayori. He'd said that he'd at least look into some clubs for her. But, where was he supposed to start, he wondered?
He always supposed that he could consider the Music Club. But then, he thought, he wasn't sure how well he'd fit in there. Sure, he knew a lot about music, especially more contemporary music, and even could sing and play bass guitar (to a minor extent). But, he felt like the other students in the club were more interested in discussing music in a much more mathematical sense, which wasn't something he was able to articulate quite as easily.
But still, what other option did he have?
A soft scraping of wood against wood startled him, drawing him once more from his inner thoughts.
"Hello?" a sweet, cheerful voice called out, "Danny?"
"Sayori?"
Sayori entered the room, making her way toward him with a shy smile.
"I waited up for you after class," Sayori explained, "But, I didn't see you leave. So, I thought you must have been in here, spacing out. So, I came in. Honestly, you're even worse than me sometimes!"
Dan frowned, but nodded. Sure, he admitted, he'd been spacing out a lot lately. But, he always figured that it was more because he was more of an internalized person. True, he very much enjoyed hanging out with other people, but sometimes he was just as content with losing himself in his thoughts and the little dream worlds that he'd create.
Perhaps that was the same reason that Sayori spaced out as much as she did, too, he thought.
"You didn't have to wait up for me," he replied, "I mean, I don't want to make you late for your own club."
Sayori giggled as a sly, mischevious smile spread across her face. Instantly, a small knot of panic settled in the pit of Dan's stomach, again. However, this was not the same type of unease he had felt with her earlier that day. But rather, this was an uneasiness and sense of dread that he knew all too well.
Whenever that spark of blue lightning flashed in her eyes, it only ever meant one thing: she had a plan. And for Dan, that usually only meant one other thing-trouble.
"Well," she said, "I thought that you might need a starting point to start looking into clubs and everything. So, I was thinking maybe..."
"...Maybe?"
"Well, that you could come to my club!"
"Sayori..." Dan replied, uncertainly, "I mean, I like reading and everything. But, I don't know if I really have an interest in joining the Literature Club."
Of course, he thought to himself. He'd completely forgotten that she was Vice-President of the Literature Club. But then again, he reasoned, the Literature Club itself was fairly new, and didn't have a lot of members in it, so it was understandable for him to have forgotten it's existence. So, of course she'd be enthusiastic about drawing as many new members into the club as possible.
Honestly, it kind of surprised him that she had an interest in literature. Sure, he'd known her to occasionally read a story or two, but he wouldn't necessarily consider her an avid reader. He wondered if her being one of the first people to join, and thus Vice President, was mostly because she thought it'd be exciting to help start a new club.
Once more, Sayori pouted. And again, Dan couldn't help but feel a small, amused smile crossed his lips. There was just something about the way Sayori pouted that he couldn't help but find slightly adorable. It was almost difficult to say no to her when she did that. He was almost positive that Sayori knew this as well.
"C'mon," she replied, "What about those little songs you write? Those are technically like poems. And those are really good! You'd be perfect for the club!"
Dan blushed again, rubbing the back of his neck. He wasn't exactly sure that he'd consider himself a 'good' songwriter, by any stretch. Outside of Sayori, he'd never actually shared his songs with anyone. And even then, he'd only shared a few of the songs he'd written with her.
"I mean, I guess," he shrugged, "But...that'd be more of a thing for the Music Club wouldn't it?"
"C'mon," Sayori pleaded, "Please?"
"Why are you so dead set on me checking out the Literature Club today anyways?"
Again, Sayori's expression changed faster than Dan was able to blink. Once again, her cheeks flushed. Her slender, delicate fingers knitted together, forming a point with her index fingers as she balanced her chin on them.
"Ehehehe," she laughed nervously, "Well...I-I kind of already told the others that I was gonna bring a new member today. And, Natsuki made cupcakes and everything. And I figured that it'd be really rude to her if she spent all that time baking them, expecting you, and then you didn't show up-"
Dan sighed to himself once more, pinching the bridge of his nose with his fingertips. Was she really that airheaded and gotten ahead of herself, believing that he would actually agree to join the literature club? Or was this all part of her scheme in the first place?
Still, he couldn't exactly be mean and make Sayori look like a liar in front of her fellow club members. And, he couldn't exactly say no to the offer of free cupcakes.
"Fine," he said defeatedly, "I'll stop by. But, just for a cupcake. Don't take this as a sign that I'm gonna join or anything."
The pink haired girl bounced on her heels, letting out an excited squeal. Suddenly, Dan's vision became a blur of color as Sayori grabbed his arm, dragging him from his desk with surprising strength. In the back of his mind, he almost couldn't help but laugh as he pictured how bizzare and comical the sight of a petite girl dragging this walking palm tree of a man behind her into the hallway as if he were some kind of teddy bear.
When he was fully able to get his bearings again, he noticed that Sayori had lead him to an empty hallway on the third floor. This floor, he knew, was reserved primarily for teachers offices, club rooms, and the occasional spare classroom in case one of the other classes needed to temporarily relocate for whatever reason.
Inside the clubroom, Dan was greeted with an unexpected sight. Three ladies sat at desks, each of them seemingly absorbed in their own activities before noticing their two new guests.
"Hi everyone!" Sayori said, waving, "I brought the new member! "
"Sayori!" Dan whispered, "We talked about this. Don't call me that!"
One of the girls stood up and approached them.
"Welcome to the Literature Club," she says in a soft voice, "It's a pleasure meeting you. Sayori is always saying nice things about you."
The girl looked to be roughly in the same year as him and Sayori, or possibly a year above them. Everything about this girl, from the way she gracefully tucked a strand of her long, violet hair behind her ear, to the shy half-smile she gave him, seemed to give the impression she was a very reserved, but intellectual type.
A second girl, one with bright pink hair, huffed in annoyance, crossing her arms.
"Ugh," she said, "I can't believe you brought a boy! That's really gonna kill the atmosphere."
This girl seemed the stark contrast to her taller counterpart. She was thin and kind of short. Dan guessed she might possibly be a first year; though he swore that he'd probably seen her around school before, so it was just as likely that she wasn't. While her friend seemed more reserved and elegant, she seemed more outgoing and cutesy. Though, the sour attitude she was giving him seemed to conflict with her appearance.
"Ah, Danny," a third girl spoke, "What a nice surprise! It's good to see you,"
This girl, was also distinctly different from any of the other girls in the club. She seemed almost too perfect. Not one strand of light brown hair was out of place, one wrinkle in her uniform, that didn't seem intentional. She practically glided across the floor as she approached him, her green eyes staring intensely at him.
Dan fought the urge to take a few steps back as she drew closer. There was something about her eyes especially that sent a chill down his spine. It was as if they were seeing through him, into the core of his very soul. Those eyes saw things in him that even Dan was unaware of about himself.
Blinking, he managed to shake off that uneasy feeling, daring to give her another look. However, as a small grin crossed her delicate lips, he can't help but wonder if that feeling was just in his head. There was absolutely nothing weird about her at all.
Even once the third girl's gaze left him, he found himself at a complete loss for words. This club, he noticed, was completely full of cute girls. On one hand, part of him almost wanted to join the Literature Club right then and there-any excuse to spend time around four beautiful and smart ladies. On the other hand, being the only guy in the club would probably make him stand out a bit too much, and would probably raise suspicions amongst his fellow classmates as to any ulterior motives behind his joining the club.
Sayori opened her mouth to speak, when suddenly she was interrupted by a loud thunderous crash as the door flew open with a bang. A large figure stumbled into the room, almost seemingly diving into the room to stop himself from tripping over his own feet. Once more, Dan felt his heart skip a beat as he found himself staring again at the figure of Arin.
So this was how Sayori knew who Arin was, he thought. Arin must have been a member of the Literature Club, or at the very least had been talked into visiting the club by one of the other members, much like Dan himself had.
"Ah, Arin," the third girl said, her enigmatic smile not once leaving her face, "I see that you're late again. Good of you to finally join us."
Arin's brow furrowed, flashing a brief, almost unnoticable, grimace of annoyance, before he casually brushed it off. Dan wondered if it were necessarily annoyance toward the fact Arin was late, or if it was more toward the cause of what made him late. Either way, he reasoned, it probably didn't matter.
"Yeah," Arin apologized,"Sorry about that. I got a little tied up with some stuff, I guess you could say. What's important is that I'm here, now. And, Sayori said that she was bringing a new guy or something, right?"
"He's right here!" Sayori beamed, waving her hand toward Dan in way that almost made him feel as if he were some prize being presented by a model on a game show.
Dan shifted in place a little as Arin looked him over with hawk-like scrunity. The other man's expression seemed almost paradoxically readable and unreadable at the same time. Although his bearded face was blank, a myriad of emotions danced in the light behind Arin's eyes, each of them more confusing to Dan than the next.
Anger burned like wildfire in his eyes, muddied by slight disgust. Perhaps, Dan had thought, Arin recognized him, and was more annoyed with the incident this morning than he'd let on. Or maybe he felt that Dan was threatening his position as the only guy in the club?
And yet, an icy wind of sadness and regret seemed to cool the angry blaze. Maybe, Dan reckoned, Arin realized that his jealousy and irritation towards Dan were unfounded, and he felt bad about the whole thing.
"What are you staring at?!" the short girl spoke, breaking the silence, "If you've gotta say something, just say it!"
"Natsuki," the tall girl exclaimed, her voice giving her tiny friend a gentle warning.
"Sorry," Dan apologized, sheepishly averting his gaze as he rubbed the
"Don't worry about Natsuki," Sayori whispered to Dan, "She can get kinda moody at times. Just ignore her when she gets like that."
She turned back to the other girls, and continues speaking as if nothing happened.
"Anyways," she said, nodding to the short girl, "This is Natsuki. She's the one who made the cupcakes. She's always full of energy!"
She waved toward the taller girl, who immediately blushed.
"And this is Yuri," she said, "She's the smartest on in the club."
Yuri's blush grew deeper as her shoulders tensed, and she drew in upon herself. Nervously, her fingers fidgeted with the cuffs of her jacket, as she fixedly averted her gaze toward a distant spot on the wall.
"D-don't say things like that!" Yuri stammered.
"Well, in any case," Dan said, "It's nice to meet you two."
"You and Monika," Sayori continued, motioning toward the third girl, "Apparently already know each other? Is that right?"
"That's right!" Monika replied cheerfully, "We were in the same class last year."
Dan nodded. Of course he recognized Monika. Although he didn't know her that well, he did remember being in the same class as her the previous year. He remembered that she seemed like the most popular girl in class. She was smart, elegant and athletic, and almost every student in the class seemed to like her. Admittedly, he wasn't sure what he felt about her, but he was at least somewhat sure that he probably liked her a little, even though she was way out of his league.
"And," Sayori said finally, "I believe you literally ran into Arin, earlier."
Again, Dan nodded. So, Arin was a member of the Literature Club after all, he thought. So much for the idea of being the only guy in a club full of beautiful girls. Then again, maybe having another guy in the club wouldn't be a bad thing.
Wait, what was he saying? Why was he already thinking like he'd joined the Literature Club? He still had other clubs to look at, he reminded himself. Besides-he'd only promised to stop by for a cupcake. He'd never promised to actually join this club.
"Yeah, man," Dan apologized, "Sorry again about the whole slamming into you thing."
"Don't worry about it, dude" Arin smiled, "It's pretty much forgotten. I mean, I'm a lot tougher than I look."
"Then," Natsuki snarked, "You must be an iron wall on the inside. 'Cause you already look like you fight bears on weekends or something."
Despite himself, Arin couldn't help but grin at the pink haired girl's comments. Arin's laugh seemed almost infectious, Dan thought as he listened to Arin and Natsuki playfully bickering with one another. His laugh was comforting and warm. If it were able to manifest in physical form, Dan was almost sure that it would have appeared as a blanket made of sunshine, or a sunny spring afternoon. It was the kind of laugh that made one feel like they were at home when they were around him, like they could trust one another.
"Anyways," Sayori interrupted, "Everyone, this is Danny! We can make a few tables out of the desks, and I'll go get the cupcakes!"
Sayori started to skip toward the cupcakes, but was stopped by Natsuki making a noise.
"Hey!" Natsuki protested, putting her hands on her hips, "I'm the one who made them, I should get them."
"Right," Sayori blushed, sliding back toward Dan, "Guess I got a little excited there."
"I'll go make some tea, then." Yuri spoke, her gentle voice just barely above a mumble, as she pulled out a teapot from the closet.
Dan cocked his head to the side, raising an eyebrow. How had Yuri managed to get a tea-set into the school? Students usually were barely allowed to bring phones to school, and somehow Yuri had managed to bring a teapot and a mini-heater here with no problem.
Yuri smiled as she left the room to fill the teapot. Meanwhile, Arin started to move some of the desks, helping Monika and Sayori arrange them into a small table. Dan fidgeted nervous with his hands. Even if he was just a guest, he still felt like he should have been doing a little more, than just standing there while everyone else was doing something.
With a quick glance over at the closet, he noticed a large roll of butcher paper, likely used by one of the art clubs for sketching out large mural projects. Taking a pair of scissors from a plastic box in storage, Dan cut a large sheet of the brown paper from the roll, carefully folding it as he carried it back to the room, draping it over the set of desks that the others had arranged into a small table.
"Good thinking, Danny." Monika said, as she began setting down a few clear plastic plates on top of the table. Dan blushed, smiling as he saw the brown-haired girl smiling at him. It was just so weird, and kind of embarrassing, he believed, for such a sophisticated and popular girl such as her to be smiling at him with such affection.
Yuri returned with the teapot, setting it on the burner before setting a few teacups on the table next toward everyone's plates.
"Danny," Sayori said as she and the others set down at the desk, "Come sit down at the table! We made room for you to sit between me or Monika."
Arin muttered something under his breath as he went behind Monika, setting a few plastic forks beside the plates. Monika looked over at him, her eyes flashing with something dangerous, though her placid smile never left her face. Arin coughed, flashing Monika a grimace posing as a false smile, before sitting down.
Dan quietly took his seat between the two girls, finding himself seated directly across from Arin, who was seated between Natsuki and Yuri. Natsuki, stood up, proudly standing over the tray like a mother hen standing over her newborn chicks.
"Okay," she asked "Is everyone ready?"
Slowly, Natsuki peeled back the shining foil, revealing a few rows of fluffy white cupcakes, covered in icing that was decorated to look like cats. An awed, impressed cooing sounded from the other members as they beheld Natsuki's confectionary masterpiece. Even Dan himself couldn't help but be impressed by the level of skill put into the cupcakes. But then, he thought, he doubted he could boil water without burning it.
"Wow, Natsuki!" Sayori said, "These look really good!"
"Yeah," Arin agreed, "These are really cute! The little chocolate bits you used for the ears are really adorable."
"Natsuki," Monika said, impressed, "I had no idea you were so good at baking."
"Heh," Although the pink haired girl's grin grew, a faint blush painted her cheeks, "Well, you know. Just hurry and take one, okay? They taste a lot better than the look!"
"I'll be the judge of that," Dan winks, taking one of the cupcakes off the tray as the others take theirs.
Biting into the cupcake feels as if heaven itself had exploded inside of his mouth. He can't recall if he's ever eaten a cupcake that was as fluffy and sweet as the one he held in his hand at that moment. He barely even cared if he was getting the icing all over his chin or not as he ravenously took another bite.
"Oh, wow!" Sayori said with a mouthful of cupcake, "These are delicious!"
Beside him, he noticed the others, too, wore expressions of delighted bliss as they bit into the cupcakes. But Natuski only vaguely seemed to notice them, instead sneaking glances in his direction, as if waiting for his reaction in particular.
"These are really good," Dan says, smiling as he wiped away a small bit of icing from his cheek, "Thanks, Natsuki!"
Natsuki makes a startled sound, as if she were more expecting him to spit out the cupcake and throw it across the room. However, her mildly irritated expression reappeared.
"W-why are you thanking me?" she stammered, "It's not like I made them for you or anything."
"But didn't Sayori say-?" Dan started, confused.
Didn't Natsuki technically make cupcakes for him, he wondered, considering that Sayori had asked her to in the first place? Or had she been planning to make cupcakes anyways, regardless of whether they were having guests. Then again, she could have just been trying to be modest for the sake of politeness.
Natsuki huffed, crossing her arms again in a way that seemed almost too adorable to him, much like her cupcakes.
"I-I mean, yeah," she replied, blushing furiously, "But, I didn't make them for you specifically, dummy! I made them for everyone."
From beside her, Arin grinned as he leaned back in his chair, taking another bite from his cupcake.
"God, Natsuki," he commented casually, "You're such a tsundere sometimes!"
"I am not!" Natsuki buried her face in her hands, making the others laugh. Thankfully, she seemed to be saved as Yuri having gotten up to check on the tea, returned. Carefully, she poured everyone a cup of steaming hot tea.
A light, almost flowerly scent rose from the steam as Dan held the cup near his lips, briefly allowing himself to be absorbed by the heat. The tea, he guessed from the scent and taste was likely a jasmine flavored tea. It's light bitterness seemed to perfectly compliment the cupcakes that Natsuki had brought.
"So," Dan asked, "How'd you manage to get a tea set in here, anyways. Especially the heater. I mean, are the teachers okay with that?"
"Oh yes," Yuri replied, "They told us that as long as we keep it in the club room, it was okay. Besides, don't you think a nice, hot cup of tea is perfect when enjoying a good book?"
"I guess," Dan shrugged, "I mean I never really thought about it."
From beside him, Monika giggled.
"Don't let her intimidate you," Monika said, giving him a reassuring pat on the shoulder, "Yuri's just trying to impress you."
Yuri stared fixedly down at the cup in her hands, fervently avoiding both Monika and Dan's gaze. Dan felt like he should have apologized for his ambivalent response to her attempts at trying to make conversation with him.
"T-that's..." Yuri mumbled, "I meant that. Y'know?"
"Oh," Dan replied, "I believe you. I just meant that I don't really drink tea that much while I'm reading."
"Thank you," Yuri replied, smiling shyly as she managed to look up again.
"Anyways," Monika spoke, changing the conversation, "What made you decide to check out the Literature Club, Danny?"
Dan shifted awkwardly in his chair, unsure of the best way to begin answering the question. He was sure that if he'd told her that Sayori had dragged him here on guilt and the promise of cupcakes, it would probably just disappoint and upset her. Plus, he added, he couldn't just sell Sayori out like that.
"Well," Dan said after awhile, "I was thinking about checking out the Music Club. But, Sayori seemed pretty happy here, so I thought that it couldn't hurt to give it a look."
"And the fact," Arin snarked, "That Sayori literally dragged you here didn't factor into your decision, right?"
"Hey!" Sayori exclaimed, pretending to be offended.
Was it really that obvious, Dan wondered. Was it really that obvious that he hadn't entirely been brought here of his own free will?
"What made you want to start you're own club," Dan asked, "I mean, you could probably be President of any club you joined. Weren't you Debate Club President last year?"
"Well," Monika replied, folding her hands behind her back, "Honestly, I kind of quit the Debate Club. I just didn't like that most of it was just everyone arguing about the budget and whatever. Just too much politics around the major clubs. Besides, I'd rather start a club about something that I'm passionate about, and maybe make something special out if it."
"Monika is really a good leader," Sayori chirped from beside Dan, "She's always so passionate about things."
Yuri and Natsuki nodded in agreement. Arin likewise, nodded in agreement. But,once more, a distant, far-off gaze seemed to cloud his eyes, as if he were lost in his own thoughts and only half-listening to the conversation at hand.
"I'm surprised," Dan continued, "that there aren't more people in this club yet. I mean, you're really popular and everything, you' shouldn't have a problem attracting new members. I'm guessing that it's hard to start a new club"
"You could say that," Monika explained, "Not a lot of people are all that interested in helping start something new. Especially if it's something that's kind of obscure and doesn't immediately grab people's attention. You really have to try hard to convince people that it's fun and worthwhile. That's why the things like the school festivals are really important. But, I'm pretty confident that we can make this club something really special before we graduate! Right, everyone."
Once more, everyone nodded in agreement. Part of Dan wondered if Monika had rehearsed that speech, as if she were expecting him to ask that question. Or that she had been asked that question many times before and had gotten used to responding with a confident, hopeful response such as that.
"Right!" Sayori replied, beaming
"We'll do our best," Yuri said softly
"You know it!" Natsuki added with a confident grin.
"Sure," Arin replied with a shrug, "I guess we could try."
It was interesting, Dan noted. Such completely different people all drawn to this club for their own reasons, and each enthusiastic about working toward the same goal. Monika must have worked very hard to find the four of them. Though, he wondered if he really would be a good fit for the club. After all, he still wasn't sure he had their level of enthusiasm when it came to literature. Things might have been going well now, but once they actually started getting into the actual club activities, he was sure that they'd believe him to be some kind of fraud.
"So, Danny," Yuri asked, "What kind of literature do you like reading, anyways?"
"Well," he thought for a moment, "I really haven't had much of a chance to read a lot lately. But, I really kind of love stuff about space, or like fantasy stories with like dragons and elves and stuff. But, occasionally, I'll read a manga or two, if it interests me."
At 'manga', Natsuki's head perked up, and she seemed very interested in the conversation again. It looked like she wanted to say something, but was hesitant to bring it up, so instead kept quiet.
"Ah," Yuri said, "I see. That's very interesting. You didn't seem like the kind of person who'd be interested in something very fantastical and complex. You seemed more like an nonfiction reader."
Dan stared at her quizzically for a moment, mildly offended. What was that supposed to mean? Of course he loved fantasy! Ever since he was a kid, he'd been enraptured with tales of magical, faraway lands where unicorns ran free across the planes while brave, cunning knights and clever wizards would rescue fair maidens from evil sorcerers and terrifying dragons. Also dinosaurs. As a kid he'd been obsessed with dinosaurs-especially the stegosaurus.
Although he didn't really have a problem with nonfiction, and in fact actually enjoyed it on occasion, he didn't think that there was anything that would have pegged him for the type of person who'd exclusively read that kind of stuff.
"So," Dan asked, "What kind of stuff do you read?"
Yuri paused, shyly tracing the rim of her teacup with a delicate fingertip. She sighed before she continued.
"Well," she said carefully, "I guess that I like a lot of that stuff, too. I really love stuff that builds a lot of complex worlds. I find the level of creativity and craftmanship that goes into them is really fascinating. But, it's also really interesting to tell a story set in a foreign world unlike our own."
As she continued to talk, the timidness seemed to fade, melting into a calm, sophisticated confidence. Her purple eyes lit up as she spoke, clearly enthusiastic about the way that suggested that she definitely preferred books over people.
"But," she continued, "I really like stories with a psychological element to them, as well. It's amazing how a writer can take advantage of one's own imagination, or lack thereof, and completely twist the story around to throw you for a loop. Anyways, I've been reading a lot of horror lately, too-"
"Yeah," Dan said, struggling to come up with a good response "I tried to read a horror novel once-"
From the corner of his eye, he saw Monika quirked an eyebrow as she leaned forward in interest.
"Really?" she said, "I didn't expect that you'd be interested in that kind of thing, Yuri. Someone as gentle as you?"
Yuri giggled softly, blushing once again as she looked at Monika with an embarrassed smile.
"I-I guess you could say that," she replied.
"True." Arin agreed, flashing a knowing look at Dan "I mean, you know the saying. 'Don't judge a book by it's cover'. Like, just because we look a certain way, or have a certain personality type, doesn't mean that's supposed to determine what we're interested in."
"Like,"Sayori agreed, "How you're this huge, kind of scary looking guy, but you really like pink and cute little anime things."
"Or like how Natsuki always tries to act tough," Arin added, "But we all know that she's really a total sweetheart, who couldn't stop being cute even if she tried."
Natsuki grumbled. Dan could almost see the steam coming off of her face as she once again buried her face in her hands.
"Good thing," Sayori giggled, "That I'm exactly the type of person that I appear to be."
Dan grimaced, playing with a loose strand of hair, as he shot a worried glance in Sayori's direction. He wanted to protest, but Sayori seemed give him a look that, even if she wasn't aware that he had noticed anything, warned him that she didn't want to press the issue any further.
And, for what it was worth, Dan felt like brining it up would only make Sayori upset. And, the mood was too nice right now for him to be going about ruining it.
"Anyways," Yuri said, "If a story really makes me think or takes me to another world. I find it kind of impossible to set down, you know? It's that kind of surrealness about the genre that really helps you change the way you view the world, sometimes."
Although he had previously been unable to form the words necessary to hold a serious discussion with her earlier, he couldn't help but feel some sort of faint flicker of truth and understanding in her words.
Natsuki made a face, once again bringing Dan back to reality.
"Ugh," She said, "I hate horror!"
"Oh?" Yuri asked curiously, "Why is that?"
"It's just so..." Natsuki explained defensively, "Nevermind."
"Hey, it's okay," Dan said, "I'm not really much of a horror guy, either. I mean, I like some parts of horror, especially if it has a bittersweet ending. Like in that movie, Jacob's Ladder. But, like there's a lot of stuff in the whole build up that I can't handle. It's cool, though. Like, a lot of people can't handle that kind of stuff. It's nothing to be embarrassed about."
Natsuki's eyes brightened as she agreed, feeling slightly more at ease about her embarrassment over not liking horror novels.
"What about you, Arin?" Yuri asked, curiously, "Are you interested in horror?"
Arin sighed, looking down at the empty teacup in his hands. His shoulders slumped as a dark look crossed his face. Again, he gave the other man another glance. This time, it seemed different. It was sorrowful-as if he were remembering something that he secretly figured that Dan would understand.
"I used to be," he said reluctantly, "I'm not so sure about that, anymore."
"Oh,that's unfortunate" Monika said, sympathetically, "Did you have a bad experience with it?"
"You could say that," Arin muttered, "I guess."
"I just," Natsuki exclaimed, shivering "Don't like the genre at all!"
Monika smiled warmly, and once more the mood of the room seemed to shift into something more comfortable and inviting.
"That's right," she said, "You like writing about cute things, don't you, Natsuki?"
"Wh-What?!" the pigtailed girl gasped, "What gave you that idea?!"
"You left a poem in the clubroom the other day," Monika withdrew a piece of folded paper from her pocket and held it up, "It looked like you were working on a poem you called-"
Natsuki practially leapt from her desk, snatching the piece of paper from Monika's hand as a whining, flustered grunt escaped her throat.
"D-Don't say it out loud!" she cried, "Don't be mean like that, Monika! Geez!"
Now it was Sayori's turn to laugh. Casually, she slid behind Natsuki, wrapping an arm around her shoulder, much to the shorter girl's chagrin.
"Between your poems and your cupcakes," Sayori laughed, "Everything you do is as cute as you are!"
Now, Natsuki's face had flushed a shade of pink that was darker that either of the girl's hair. Her fists clenched at her sides, shaking silently. Dan tensed up, half expecting Natsuki to throw Sayori over her shoulder and punch her in the face.
"I'M NOT CUTE!" Natsuki whined, tears forming in the corners of her eyes.
"So," Dan said quickly, changing the subject, before things could escalate, "Um...Natsuki? You write your own poems? That's really cool!"
The pink-haired girl wiped away the tears from the corner of her eyes, her breathing slowed.
"Oh yeah," she replied,"Well, sometimes, I guess. Why do you care?"
"Oh," Dan replied, "It's just that I'm impressed is all. I mean, I'm kind of a poetry writer too. Well, more of a musician, anyways. So, I guess that totally counts, right? What do you usually write about?"
"Y-you wouldn't like it," Natsuki mumbled, her jaw set as she looked away.
"Not very confident yet, huh," Dan smiled, "That's cool. I mean, not everyone's really super eager to share things with people they don't know, yet. Just give it some time, I guess."
"I understand how she feels," Yuri agreed, "Sharing like that takes a really high level of confidence that's not easy to build. The truest level of writing is to be able to expose your vulnerabilites and be honest with oneself. The hardest person to write for is oneself. It's even more difficult to bare one's soul to others."
Again, Dan nodded, Yuri's words ringing with a truth to them that he couldn't help but agree with on a subconscious level he felt stirring deep in his own soul.
"You have writing experience, too, Yuri?" Monika suggested, "Maybe you could share some of your work and maybe that'll help Natsuki feel a little more comfortable sharing hers?"
Yuri said nothing, though her mouth moved, only managing some half-strangled noises in response. Clearly that even Yuri wasn't the only one prone to a lack of confidence when it came to sharing her writing.
"Aww," Sayori frowned, dejectedly, "I wanted to read everyone's poems!"
A heavy silence falls over the group, as the six of them stare at each other with uncertain looks. None of them really want to share their poems with one another, but at the same time, what else were they supposed to be doing in the Literature Club?
Suddenly, Monika snaps her fingers as she sat up a little straighter in her chair. Eventhough, for once it wasn't Sayori dragging him into some hairbrained scheme, Dan still couldn't help but feel nervous about Monika's 'I've got everything all figured out' expression.
"Okay," she said, "I have an idea! Let's all go home and write a poem and share it with everyone tomorrow. That way, we'll all be even. And, besides-with a new member and everything, it'd help us to all become more comfortable being around each other. Right, Danny?"
Suddenly, five pairs of eyes stared at him expectantly, waiting for him to say something. How had he let himself get this deep into things, he wondered. He'd only agreed to stop by for a cupcake, and now they were acting like he was a full fledged member of the club already.
"Now wait a minute," Dan protested, "I never said that I was going to join this club. I still have other clubs to look at. And uh..."
These words felt like they left his mouth like venom being soat at the other club members. The other members looked dejected, some silently seeming as if they sank a little into the floor.
"B-but-" Monika began
"I'm sorry," Yuri apologized, "I just thought that-"
Natsuki just huffed in irritation, her arms folded across her chest.
"Danny..." Sayori said, her voice quivering.
It was Arin that seemed to have the least disappointed reaction. Although his face remained fixed in a blank mask, he at least didn't seem as outwardly dejected as the girls did. And for that, Dan was at least a little thankful-he didn't need to feel any worse than he already did about rejecting them.
"Hey now," Arin said, "C'mon, guys...don't be upset. I mean, it should be up to Dan whether or not he wants to join the club, right? It'd be rude for us to force him to do something he didn't want to."
Dan nodded. At least Arin seemed to understand the situation, to a degree. But still, he couldn't help but feel a little guilty for making them go through all that effort of preparing to have him stop by, and then to so coldly reject them like that. He couldn't be mean to them like that.
Besides, he thought with a small, inward smile, he'd had a lot of fun today. And everyone in the club seemed really interesting, and he enjoyed being around them. If writing poems was the only thing that he'd have to do to get the chance to hang around such cute and interesting people everyday, then that was a sacrifice he was willing to make.
"Okay," he sighed, "I guess I'll join the Literature Club. You convinced me."
One by one, the other's eyes light up. Sayori again bounces on the heels of her feet as she makes an exclamation of joy, and hugged Dan tightly, glad that her decision to bring him here paid off. Yuri seems relieved, as she lets out a sigh, clutching her chest.
"You really did scare me there for a second," she said.
Natsuki, though her arms still crossed, softens her expression.
"If you'd only stopped by for cupcakes," she said, "I was gonna be super pissed at you, Danny."
Again, Arin said nothing. A couple faint twitches in the corners of his mouth and in his eyebrow were the only signs that betrayed any sort of underlying feelings before a kind, welcoming smile came across them. He gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder before stepping back.
"Well," he said, "I guess it'll be good not to be the only guy in the club, anymore."
Like Yuri, Monika also seemed relieved. It seemed as if she'd instantly began formulating plans for the club in her head, now that they had six members.
"Well," she said, "That makes it official, then. Welcome to the club!"
"Thanks," Dan said, "I'm glad to be here, I guess."
A few more moments passed, lost in friendly conversation between seconds, and in some cases thirds, of Natsuki's cupcakes and Yuri's tea. By the time they had decided to clean up, the sun was already starting to set.
"Okay, everyone," Monika said, "I think that's it for today. Don't forget to write poems for tomorrow's meeting, alright?"
The others agreed. Natsuki and Yuri quickly followed Monika out the door. Arin hovered nervously at the edge of the classroom, absently gathering his textbooks as he kept shooting expectant looks at Dan, as if waiting for the right moment to say something.
Arin started to speak, but found himself interrupted by Sayori.
"Hey, Danny!" she asked, "Since we're here, together. Do you want to walk home together?"
Right, Dan thought to himself, he and Sayori never walked home anymore, since she was usually busy with clubs and stuff. He figured that, now that he was part of the Literature Club, they'd probably be able to walk home a lot more often.
"Sure," Dan replied, shrugging, "Might as well."
Sayori skipped as she grabbed his arm, leading him out of the classroom, leaving Arin alone in the club to stare at them as the departed.
On the way home, Dan found his thoughts wondering back to Literature Club, and it's members:
Sayori, his best friend and a literal ray of sunshine.
Yuri with her reserved sophistication and passion for literature.
Natsuki and her tough-but-cute attitude and knack for baking.
Monika: popular and athletic and beautiful; almost practically a goddess.
And, Arin: so mysterious and unreadable, yet all the same familiar and welcoming.
Although it meant that he had to sacrifice at least an hour of free time after school everyday, he looked forward to the prospect of getting to hang out with them everyday and growing as friends. And maybe, he thought with a chuckle, possibly even getting the chance to become more than friends with one of them? That was definitely worth it, right?
So, why did he feel like he'd just made the worst mistake of his life?