Pseudotree's fanfic.

Disclaimer –I do not own The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi.

Something you should be aware of –When I said 'more…"Kyon-like"' in the summary, I really, REALLY meant MORE. Also, note the "" (quotation marks).

Summary –This is a story in which Kyon behaves more…"Kyon-like" than in the original series. Many laughs, many tears. Also features Kyon-pursuing Haruhi.

O

Chapter 2

The students began to trickle in as class time neared, with the exception of a few who hung around the front gate to wait for friends and acquaintances.

CRUNCH

Suzumiya Haruhi wasn't one of them, however, because what she was doing so early in the day was more of a series of morning activities-

CRUNCH

-than something that could be classified as "waiting".

CRUNCH CRUNCH CRUNCH

…Especially with how loudly she was eating!

Smack

And with a suck of her finger she finished her breakfast (buttered toast) that she grabbed before rushing off to school, wanting to meet with the mysterious classmate of hers as soon as possible. People openly stared at the hungry girl despite how rude it was to do so, but kept their distance –after all, when you see a normal-looking high school student munching bread over a floral-patterned salad bowl, it's natural to feel the need to avoid her, especially after she's done.

Satiated somewhat, she started glancing around as her fingers played with the china in hand. Having arrived considerably earlier than mostly everybody, though, meant that Haruhi had to endure a period of restlessness.

It was during her rounds of indignant shouts aimed towards the nice guy who dropped a coin in the bowl that she heard the tell-tale voice, the words ringing sweetly in her ears.

"…ING LUNATIC! PEOPLE LIKE HIM SHOULD GET THEIR LICENSE TAKEN AWAY BEFORE THEY RUN OVER THE WHOLE GODDAMN NEIGHBORHOOD!"

Ah, like nectar for bumblebees.

Kyon, slightly red-faced from the angry yelling, made eye contact with the girl who was waiting for him and a look of recognition crossed his face. When the boy neared, strangely enough, Haruhi suddenly felt that his stare doubled in intensity and became focused on her Tuesday hairdo: a lengthy pony-tail.

"A LENGTHY PO-" was all that got out, before Kyon clamped a hand over. Looking questioningly at the frowning young man who seemed to be gnawing the inside of his own mouth, Haruhi greeted him in a cheerful voice. "G' morning, Kyon-san!"

Taking note of how the tied-up hair bounced perkily as she talked, he lowered his hand and replied. "Good morning… Suzumiya-san, was it?"

"Right." said the girl with a smile, squashing the disappointment of not being at a first-name basis.

Already having guessed that she was waiting for him, he asked the other question in mind. "So… what's that in your hand?"

Glancing at the bowl containing the 50 yen coin, she was struck with a bizarre idea again. "Currency from 1968! That means it's as old as our parents!"

A pause, then Kyon slowly nodded. "…I see. Well, should we go to class, now?"

Grinning happily, she walked along with him towards the main school building, barely suppressing her eagerness for the day's lunch period.

"AND SO I WALKED ALONGSIDE SUZUMIYA-SAN, THE GIRL WITH BREAD CRUMBS AROUND HER MOUTH..."

It could be said that the classes simply flitted by the exuberant girl, if not for the occasional ruckus which seem to be prevalent in any homerooms. While she let her eyes roam over Kyon's back (and getting a few glimpses from him in return), the young lass noted that the attention on the boy seemed to have increased as the "news" on his odd characteristics spread all over the school. But, it turned out, almost half of his classmates stopped approaching him directly as they realized how unresponsive he was.

Then lunch came.

Just as Haruhi slung her bag (with her meal) over the shoulder and moved towards the young man, a flash of dark blue suddenly entered the corner of her vision.

"Excuse me, Suzumiya-san, Kyon-san…" inquired a long haired girl politely.

Both of the mentioned party turned and replied in unison. "Yes?"

Beaming at the pair, she continued. "I couldn't help but overhear yesterday about the club-hunting that you two were planning on…"

'Huh. I wondered if anyone else noticed that I talked to him.' thought Haruhi.

"And, well... I thought you should know that the Fortune-Telling club at the east wing isn't meeting this period today, so you should check it after school."

Kyon nodded. "Thank you for the advice –and I'm assuming that you're interested in checking it as well?"

"Oh, no –I just heard it from one of the seniors before class started. It was nothing, really."

"I'm still thankful that you told us, miss…?"

She smiled then bowed slightly. "Ryoko Asakura. I have to leave now, but I hope you wouldn't mind discussing clubs again later."

And after some brief exchanges she was off, hair trailing gracefully out of the room with her.

Watching the girl leave then turning to his strangely quiet companion, Kyon received a look back. "She seemed… nice."

Letting a barely audible chuckle escape, his eyes went back to the doorway she left from. "Yeah –she does."

They walked towards the school grounds with Kyon's narration in tow ("…I FELT THAT THEY SHOULD HAVE WATERED THE LAWNS MORE…"), and Haruhi listened in contentment. Finding a rather good-sized bench a few feet from the school garden, they decided to settle down and eat their lunches before starting the search.

"So, do you have any specific clubs in mind?" asked Kyon as he took out a small bento.

Nudging herself closer as discretely as possible for her (which wasn't very discrete), she responded semi-casually while opening the lid of a large plastic container. "Err… actually, I think the Fortune Telling club would have been my first choice." Turning, she continued. "Does… does it seem like a good one to join?"

Mulling over with a bite in his mouth, he replied some moments later. "To be honest, I'm not all that into mysticism, but I suppose a look wouldn't hurt…" a drink from a can. "…as long as the senior members don't go crazy with the candle wax."

Laughing softly, the rest of their meal went by in comfortable silence, the two generally left to themselves besides the occasion points towards Kyon by passing students.

'Maybe we're friends?'

Eventually they were done and got up, Kyon stretching his back a little as he made a suggestion. "How about checking out the closest ones first? That'll save time."

"Hmm? Oh, sure…" said Haruhi, taking her eyes off his shoulder before he noticed. "I think the nearest clubs from here were astronomy, volleyball… and…"

"And Literature." finished Kyon with a grin. "Can't forget that one."

O

IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE

…Well, I did say that the later chapters will probably be shorter. I'm not sure how long the next one will be, though.

Anyway, expect the next chapter to be out in another almost-a-month or so –although, it seems that I may be able to update earlier.

And… um… there isn't much to say in this note, so… check the next one once it comes out with the third chapter, I guess. Thanks again for reading!

March 14, 2008