Sayori
For the first time in her life Lori woke up to the sight of a cute girl next to her bed, which would've been wonderful if not for the detail that she'd gone to sleep alone the night before.
She rose from the covers with a yelp, the back of her head connecting with the frame of her bed rather violently. The world around her spun for a few moments, until the girl grabbed her arms and helped her straighten herself up. Her grip was careful and delicate, though she wasn't in the right place to appreciate that with the extreme confusion, anger and sudden pain located in different parts of her head.
"A-agh!" she yelled, rubbing her nape with tears in her eyes. "Sayori! What the hell are you doing in my room!?"
Sayori took a nervous step back, both hands still raised at her side, and formed a lopsided, awkward smile. Through her daze Lori figured that this wasn't the way she'd expected her to wake up.
"W-well… I thought it'd be nice to be the one to wake you up this time," she explained, twiddling with her fingers. "Since… you know, it's a special day and all!"
Hand still on the back of her head Lori sighed, lazily moving her legs out of the covers until her feet met the carpeted floor of her room. She looked up to the calendar next to her window; the bright red of a marker encircled the current day, under which was written the word Festival, followed by a bunch of exclamation points.
She then lowered her sight to the ant table where her phone resided; it was eight thirty. A burst of panic exploded from her chest outwards, putting her hair on edge. That was barely just enough to change and get to school in time.
Of course the piece of shit would not let the alarm work, and in the day of the festival no less. She shuddered to think of what Natsuki would've done to her if she arrived late… they'd probably be scraping her remains off the floor and walls for the upcoming weeks.
Trying to hide her relief she turned towards Sayori, and frowned.
"I've never gone into your room to wake you up, though," she said. "I just knock on your door like a civilized person. What if I slept naked?"
She regretted her words the moment they came out of her mouth, accompanied by the almost imperceptible flush of her cheeks. The last thing she wanted to think about right now was that kind of scenario. Especially with how faint the line between friendship and… something else, had been recently in her life.
"Oh come on Lori! I gifted you that pajama you're wearing, didn't I?" Sayori smiled, apparently not bothered at all. "I knew you'd use it all the time!"
"Don't… say weird things like that." Lori whispered, looking away
With tremendous effort she started walking around the room, looking for the scattered parts of her school uniform around the disaster that was her room. It wasn't nearly as bad as Sayori's, but she didn't have the excuse of…
Her hand stopped over the white shirt hanging on a nearby chair, hovering as the sour thought invaded her mind.
Great job forgetting about that. What a great friend you are.
The sarcastic voice echoed in her mind, sending shivers through her skin. She bit her lip and took in a deep breath, turning towards Sayori as subtly as she could.
The fact that she'd gotten up early for once was a good sign, though that could've been just a result of her excitement for the festival. Still, it was a huge step for her, and judging by the sad frown she was desperately trying to conceal Lori figured she'd done a bad job of acknowledging that.
Not only that, but she looked spiffier than usual. Her short brown hair wasn't sticking up everywhere like usual, and that along with the careful placement of her red bow told Lori that she'd put a lot of effort into brushing it that morning. Her clothes even looked ironed, and while she hadn't buttoned her blazer up (as usual), at least she kept it clean and dashing.
Come on, don't be a jerk. She deserves this.
Sighing to herself she approached Sayori, gently placing a hand on her shoulders. She tried her best to form a soothing smile through the thick clouds of sleepy still pestering her barely awaken mind.
"Hey, I never said I didn't like it. I'm proud of you," she said. "Besides, thanks to that scare I feel more awake than usual."
Sayori looked up for a moment, her thin lips curling up and her eyes flashing Lori a wordless thank you. Straightening up she cleared her throat, placing both hands on her hips.
"Alright, let's get ready for the festival then!" she smiled brightly, voice booming. "We shouldn't let the others waiting, and if we arrive late there won't be any cupcakes left for us!"
"Now that would be a tragedy."
Lori went to her desk and grabbed the blazer and skirt on top of it, still feeling her friend's eyes on her back. Gulping, she turned around towards her once again, her words somewhat stuck under her throat.
"Uh… Sayori?"
"Yeah? What is it?" she asked, perking up her nose.
"I kinda have to change, so…"
She gestured with her eyes to the door, and it took her friend a few seconds for realization to set in, after which her eyes went wide and a strong blush appeared on her cheeks.
"R-right! Right…"
