"Hey Motoki," Usagi mumbled, hefting herself onto a stool with a sigh. She didn't bother to remove her raincoat, which was hanging off one shoulder and glistening with moisture. Her normally silky hair was wet and tangled. And her words had almost been
drowned out by the cadence of rain pelting the arcade's windows, when usually, they would be leaping over each other in a rush to leave her mouth, and bubbling with enthusiasm.
But what gave Motoki pause was the utter misery on her face.
"Are you okay, Usagi?" he asked, concern straining at the confines of his words.
Studying the laminate countertop, she half-heartedly jerked a shoulder.
Then, biting a lip, she hesitantly murmured, "Can I ask you a question?"
Motoki frowned,worried. "Of course."
She looked up at him then, her blue eyes raw and vulnerable. "Do you think Mamoru likes me?"
Motoki gaped like a beached fish, surprise tearing its claws into him. Did she somehow know that Mamoru had been pining for her for weeks, and whining to Motoki for just as long? But how could she?
"I thought so," she said, despair dragging on her words. "I just figured that if anyone knew, it'd be you. Well, thanks anyway, Motoki. See you around." And she slid down from her stool and left the arcade, trudging dejectedly back through the merciless
rain.
Motoki shut his mouth with a snap, still holding the chocolate milkshake Usagi hadn't even looked at.