Alright, here is chapter 3! I'm so sorry for not posting it earlier. I meant to have this posted on Wednesday but I was unable to do so. Just to make my situation clearer, I do not have internet but I usually am able to make it to a nearby library once a week where I get access to the internet, but only for about two hours. I was not able to make it when I wanted to and so my update is late. You can expect Chapter 4 next week sometime, but after that I will not guarantee an update every week because I will have to start work (and that will keep me busy and tired). But I will try to make an update (at the very least), once every other week. I promise I will complete this story if it's the last thing I do. Anyways, here is the newest chapter so please read, review, and enjoy! And even though I sound like a broken record, Risako's picture is up at DeviantArt if you still haven't looked (there's a link on my profile page). Now enjoy and please review.
Chapter 3
"She's not here. She was transferred over to Kimura's homeroom for some reason, and so my perfect class is destroyed," Yukari-sensei grumbled to Tomo.
Hearing this, Osaka disappointedly averted her gaze from the front of the room. She stared at her desk and thought to herself, how am I going to get the letter to Chiyo-chan now? She's in Kimura's class and I have no idea when I'll be able to see her again. Osaka scolded herself for not being able to give the letter to Chiyo-chan last night. She could have even just dropped the letter on the ground for Chiyo to pick up, but she couldn't even do that. "I'm such a failure," Osaka whispered to herself. She just wished that she hadn't been so afraid of Chiyo-chan catching her.
As Osaka continued her thoughts, a voice began repeating her name in her mind, "Osaka. Osaka. Osaaakaa."
Waking from her daze, Osaka glanced up and found that Kaorin had taken the seat in front of her. Chiyo-chan used to sit there. Osaka thought when she had finally noticed Kaorin whispering for her. Wondering why Kaorin was calling her, Osaka then noticed that Kaorin was holding her pencil. "Why do you have my pencil," she asked nonchalantly.
Kaorin seemed rather confused by the question and awkwardly replied, "That's because you dropped it and I just picked it up for you."
Tilting her head in almost equal confusion, Osaka calmly responded, "Really? That's funny, I don't remember dropping it."
Kaorin realized that Osaka must have been thinking about something because even though Osaka was spacey, she usually only spaced this far out when she was lost in "deep" thought. "Say, were you thinking about something?" Osaka only nodded and Kaorin asked, "What were you thinking about?"
Because of the sudden interruption, Osaka had to think back and quickly remembered that she was originally thinking about how she would give Chiyo-chan the letter that she had written. Suddenly blushing at the idea of telling this to Kaorin, Osaka muttered, "Nothing. It's nothing."
Why would Osaka be blushing? Kaorin thought as she attempted to figure this out. She knew Osaka was lying because the girl always had her mind on something or someone. Wait. Could it be? No, it can't be? "Osaka, could you possibly have a crush on someone right now?" Instead of answering, Osaka only went into a deeper state of crimson. She actually looked like she was having difficult time breathing. Just from the look on her face, Kaorin knew she had been right. "Who is it? Who is it that you like?"
Osaka became scared at the idea of revealing her secret to someone and tried to avoid Kaorin's gaze. Barely seeing it, Osaka noticed a white blur from the front of the room and within seconds, the white blur had struck the back of Kaorin's head. Kaorin whirled around to see a piece of chalk lying on her desk. When she looked up, Yukari-sensei stood at the front of the room, eyeing Kaorin, "Excuse me but would you like to go back to Kimura-sensei's class? I'd be happy to make the arrangements."
"NO! I'll be good! I'll be quiet!" Kaorin quickly answered. Quickly placing her hands on her desk, Kaorin faced the front of the room and attentively listened to every word Yukari said. She was willing to do every possible thing to remain in Yukari-sensei's class.
Osaka, meanwhile, returned to thinking about how she was going to get her letter to Chiyo-chan. After all, I don't have class with her anymore so I can't do it during school and I don't get to walk with her to school so I can't do it then. What about after school? Osaka thought about this prospect for a moment. She could pull Chiyo-chan to the side and give a fully fledged confession without anyone seeing. All she had to do was meet up with Chiyo-chan after school. That would be perfect! Osaka thought as she began planning on how she would get the letter to Chiyo-chan. I'll do it today! I just hope everything goes alright.
Chiyo-chan sat in Kimura's class while the new girl, Risako-chan, finished introducing herself. Trying to pay attention, Chiyo just found her mind returning to Osaka. She sounded so mad. Well, now that I'm in Kimura's class, she won't have to worry about me. Chiyo thought to herself and watched as Risako took a seat next to her. I just have to stop thinking about Osaka because I'm not going to be able to talk to her anymore. The very thought of not being able to talk to Osaka again welled up in Chiyo's heart and she began to feel a few small tears struggling to run down her face. No, not here. Chiyo thought and quickly wiped away her eyes. She knew she had to think positive if this was going to be successful.
Looking up at the board, Chiyo decided to get her mind off of everything by paying attention to Kimura-sensei, but something else got her attention that quickly distracted her. Out the corner of her eye, Chiyo noticed that the new girl, Risako-chan, had been eyeing her. When she noticed Chiyo's gaze, she moved her eyes to the front of the room. What's with her? Chiyo wondered and returned her attention to the board. Not long after that, Chiyo again caught Risako staring at her and again, the girl moved her eyes back to the board when Chiyo had caught her.
Deciding to find out what was going on, Chiyo quietly leaned over to Risako and whispered, "Is there something wrong?"
Risako, surprised by Chiyo's sudden question said, "No, I'm just surprised to see someone like you in high school. You look like you should be in middle school."
So that's what it was. Chiyo thought and then silently explained, "I skipped some grades, that's why I'm here."
Risako nodded and looked back to the chalkboard to take notes. She only glanced away for a moment when she turned back to Chiyo and asked, "You wanna eat lunch with me? I don't really know anyone yet . . ." Chiyo wasn't entirely sure about eating with Risako. Not that she minded, but since she was trying to get used to a classroom without Osaka, she wondered if this would be a good idea. Risako suddenly interrupted Chiyo's thoughts, "It'll be fun."
Since I am here to stop thinking about Osaka, maybe it would be best if I ate with her. She'd be a new friend anyways. Chiyo thought and decided to accept Risako's kind invitation. "Sure, I'd be happy to eat with you." She became excited at the idea of eating with someone new and especially on her first day in the class. Returning her gaze to the board where Kimura-sensei taught, Chiyo became excited as she waited for lunch. Risako seemed like a nice girl and since she was new, it would be an excellent opportunity for Chiyo to start off fresh in Kimura's classroom.
Lunch arrived quicker than expected for Chiyo-chan and soon she found herself watching Risako as the girl moved her desk over to Chiyo's desk. As Risako-chan approached Chiyo with her lunch and desk, she happily said, "I'm so glad to have found a friend on my first day here! I thought for sure I'd become an outcast."
"That's not true. I'm sure you would have made other friends. There are lots of nice people here." Chiyo reassured as she pulled out her lunch. Opening it, Chiyo began eating when she heard a small gasp escape Risako's lips. "Is something wrong?"
"Meatballs! Curry! Chiyo-chan, that lunch looks delicious! I bet your mom is a wonderful cook if she can do that!"
Chiyo blushed, knowing that her next response was about to generate even more surprise, "Actually, I made this myself. It means waking up early but I have lots of fun preparing it."
Risako's blood ran cold as she heard the words, "You . . . make . . . your own lunch? And you get such fantastic results!" Risako slouched in her chair and glanced at her lunch. "I wish I could make lunch like that, then I'd be living the high life right about now."
Chiyo modestly shook her head and waved her hands, "That's not true. I'm sure Risako-san makes just as good a lunch as mine. What did you bring?"
Opening her lid, Risako revealed a lunch of octopus cakes and chili croquettes. "It's my favorite lunch but the only thing I'm good at making is the chili croquettes. I always get everything else wrong so dad usually ends up helping."
She's not too confident about her cooking. Chiyo thought and tried to think of a way to help Risako. "Risako, mind if I try your chili croquettes? I'm sure they taste just fine."
Surprised, Risako looked at Chiyo and asked, "Are you sure?" When Chiyo nodded, Risako gave in and tore off a small piece for Chiyo-chan to try. "Just so you know; it's a little spicy."
Chiyo accepted the warning along with the croquette and consumed the piece that Risako had given her. Why should she be ashamed of this? It's delicious. Chiyo thought and responded likewise, "Risako, I think you're a great cook. This is really . . ." But Chiyo couldn't finish her sentence. The spices had kicked in and now she felt her mouth burning. "It's hot! It's hot!"
"Are you okay?" Risako quickly asked when Chiyo bolted up from her seat.
"I'll be right back! I'm gonna get some water," Chiyo-chan said and ran out of the room. Locating the nearest faucet, she drowned herself in cool water. Slowly, the burning sensation subsided and a nice, cool taste filled her mouth. Relieved from Risako's food, Chiyo began her walk back to the classroom. "Risako was right. Eating with her is fun, but I hope it isn't this fun all the time." As she approached the room, Chiyo stopped at the entrance because someone had caught her eye. Standing only a few feet from her was Osaka. The girl seemed troubled about something. I better head back into the classroom before something bad happens. Chiyo thought and as she took a step towards the classroom, she was interrupted by Osaka.
"Wait." Osaka calmly, yet nervously said to the little girl. This is my chance. I can tell her how I feel and I won't even need the letter. Osaka excitedly thought as she dreamt of what could possibly happen after her confession. Slowly, Osaka began, "Chiyo-chan, there is something I have to tell you. I . . ."
But Osaka was interrupted by a voice from inside the classroom, "Chiyo-chan, whatcha doing? Come on inside so we can finish eating."
Confusingly, Osaka watched the apparent struggle that Chiyo was having. It appeared that she couldn't decide whether she should wait for Osaka to finish or hurry into the classroom. Surprisingly, Osaka watched as Chiyo turned to face whoever had spoken inside the classroom and said, "Coming!" With that, Chiyo-chan ran back into the classroom, ignoring the fact the Osaka was standing right there, and had wanted to talk to her.
What? What just happened? I was going to tell Chiyo-chan and she . . . A variety thoughts circled through Osaka's mind as she slowly retreated to her classroom. She thought for sure things would work out. It had only happened by chance that she had caught Chiyo-chan when she was returning from the bathroom but Osaka never expected the girl to ignore her. What's going on? Chiyo always listened to me. Not knowing what to do, Osaka returned to her classroom, trying desperately to piece together what had just happened.
Upon entering the girls immediately noticed something wrong with Osaka. She appeared depressed and upon finding her seat, Osaka sat down and buried her head in her arms. She didn't want to talk to anyone and even when Sakaki and Yomi questioned her about it, Osaka ignored them, hiding her face from view. What happened back there? Why did Chiyo-chan ignore me? Osaka felt like crying and if it hadn't been for her friends questioning her and the fact that she was at school, she would have cried.
Osaka continued her thoughts even when Yukari-sensei entered the room. "Alright everyone, lunchtime is over. Time to start class." Osaka glanced up to watch everyone return to their seats, but didn't pay any particular attention to them.
As Osaka's eyes traveled around the room, she caught Sakaki-san staring at her. When their gazes met, Sakaki looked away. An idea struck Osaka's head as she thought about the situation. Did Sakaki tell Chiyo-chan about me? It would explain why Chiyo suddenly acted so weird. As Osaka thought about this, she felt herself drift into another afternoon nap:
Walking through the corridors of school, Osaka felt as though everyone she walked by (teacher and student alike) was looking at her. At first she didn't pay any mind because she would glance in their direction to acknowledge they were there. But this was different. It felt as if she was being glared at by everyone whom she walked by. Osaka began to feel uncomfortable as her pace picked up, wanting to get out of these corridors.
A door finally appeared and Osaka ran through it, escaping the whispering that had began, and the awkward glances she received. Upon entering the room, Osaka found it empty aside from Sakaki-san, and Chiyo-chan, who stood near a window. The two looked at her for only a moment and then to each other. "Hi Chiyo-chan. Hi Sakaki-san. What's wrong with everybody? They're acting weird."
Chiyo shifted where she stood, almost uncomfortably. Staring at Osaka, Chiyo carefully asked, "Osaka-san, are you in love with me?"
W-Who told you that," Osaka panicked. She had wanted to tell Chiyo herself, but somehow she had failed to do so.
Sakaki-san raised her hand so that her elbow was slightly stretched and answered, "Me."
"W-Why did you tell her? You said you'd keep it a secret."
Chiyo looked from Sakaki to Osaka and continued, "Osaka-san, you're my friend but this doesn't seem right. We are both girls you know. What would other people think?"
Hearing this, Osaka stared at Sakaki in shock. "You mean you told everyone and that's why they were staring at me?!"
"Yes, I was concerned about you Osaka. This just doesn't seem right but I didn't want to hurt you."
Osaka's mind began spinning and suddenly she grasped her head. It was throbbing and Osaka soon lost her ability to stand. She looked up and found Chiyo with a sad expression on her face. "Osaka-san, I think it'd be best if we didn't see each other for a while."
"W-What are you saying Chiyo-chan?"
Chiyo motioned over to Sakaki who walked over to her. "Could you help me with the window? I can't open it." Sakaki nodded and helped Chiyo to open the window. Then grabbing onto the sill, Chiyo hoisted herself halfway out the window and looked back at Osaka, "Sorry Osaka, but I have to go now." To Osaka's astonishment, Chiyo-chan pushed herself out the window.
"No! Chiyo-chan, come back!" Osaka yelled as she was forced to watch as Chiyo used her pigtails to fly out of sight.
"CHIYO-CHAN!" Osaka exclaimed when she awoke from her dream. Waking to an empty classroom, Osaka figured that Yukari-sense had given up on getting her to pay attention; being that this was the second day in a row she had slept through afternoon classes.
Sakaki, who again had waited for Osaka to wake, walked over and said, "You just missed the end of class by a few minutes. Everyone just left." Osaka suspiciously watched Sakaki approach her, fully remembering the dream that she had had. "I wasn't able to . . ."
"You broke your promise didn't you?" Osaka angrily responded. From the looks of it, she had both surprised Sakaki-san and scared the girl at the same time. But she didn't care, Chiyo had acted so strangely around her and the way Sakaki stared at her during lunch, the dream had to have at least some truth to it. "You said you wouldn't tell her. Now what am I supposed to do?"
"Osaka-san, p-please, I didn't . . . I didn't tell Chiyo-chan anything."
Osaka's rage only continued to build. She had trusted Sakaki with this and now everything seemed to be falling apart. "But what about today? I went to tell her and she walked away from me."
Confused, Sakaki asked, "What are you talking about?" Osaka then explained the whole incident about what had happened at lunch when she was about to tell Chiyo-chan her feelings and how the girl ignored her by running into the classroom. "But that's probably because she still thinks you're mad at her."
Osaka's rage disappeared in an instant. "But I already told you that I'm not mad at her. Why would she think that?"
Sakaki shook her head and responded, "I don't know, but that's what she thinks. I just haven't been able to tell her that."
Osaka nodded and decided that she should explain things to Chiyo-chan as soon as possible. "I'll see you later then. Thanks Sakaki-san." With that, Osaka hurried out of the building.
Why would Chiyo-chan think I'm mad at her? Osaka wondered as she began her walk home. She never acted angry about anything that Chiyo had done so why would the girl act that way. That would explain what happened at lunch. Continuing to walk, Osaka decided to head straight to Chiyo's house and clear things up. It would also be the perfect opportunity to give Chiyo-chan the letter.
Her excitement building, Osaka broke into a run as she wanted to get to Chiyo's house as soon as possible. Though she couldn't run very fast, Osaka could suddenly hear voices up ahead and because the weight of her book bag tired her out fast, she decided to see who was up ahead. Moving into a quiet walk, Osaka slowly followed the voices ahead of her. Once in sight, she could see that one of the voices belonged to Chiyo-chan. The other voice belonged to a girl whom she didn't recognize, mainly because all she could see was the girl's back, but the voice wasn't coming from any of her friends.
Well, that girl is probably from Chiyo's class. It doesn't matter if she's around when I hand Chiyo the letter. What's important is that I get the letter to Chiyo-chan and tell her how I feel. Osaka nodded to herself, agreeing with her thoughts. Carefully, she pulled off her book bag and grabbed the letter from inside. Glancing up, she saw that Chiyo and the other girl hadn't noticed her yet but she could clearly hear what they were saying so Osaka figured she would only have to call out Chiyo's name.
As Osaka readied herself to grab Chiyo's attention, she heard the other girl say to Chiyo, "I hope I'm not bothering you by walking you home. Are you sure it's alright?"
Chiyo-chan immediately responded to the girl, "Of course it is. I really like you so why wouldn't it be okay." Osaka stopped in her tracks as she listened to Chiyo giggle after the statement.
She likes someone else. Osaka's feet had stopped moving and she only watched as the two girls walked out of sight. Of course, that's why she avoided me at lunch. Feeling tears sliding down her face, Osaka wondered what she would do. Glancing at the letter that remained in her hand, she quickly stuffed it back into her book bag. "I can't give this to Chiyo-chan now. It would upset her too much.I can't follow her home either." Feeling more tears flow down her cheeks, Osaka turned around and ran home via a different route as fast as she could, only wanting to reach the privacy of her own room.
"I hope we can be good friends too," Chiyo responded to Risako, completely unaware of what had just transpired behind her.
Risako's face lit up with excitement and she felt all her worries about the transfer disappear. "I'm glad I got placed into Kimura-sensei's class because I was able to meet you, Chiyo-chan!"
A nervous laugh erupted from Chiyo when she heard Risako's response. "You know, you've gotta be the first girl to ever be happy about being in Kimura-sensei's class."
Confused, Risako tilted her head to Chiyo as they continued the walk and she asked, "Really? Why?"
It may be best not to tell her why. I'm not sure how she would react to that. Chiyo thought and upon her decision only said, "No reason, just that Kimura-sensei can be a little weird at times." That's downplaying the situation, isn't it?
"Were you always in Kimura's class," Risako asked and Chiyo-chan was surprised by the question.
I guess it would come up sooner or later. She thought and continued to figure how she should respond to Risako's innocent question. Aside from lunch, Chiyo had done an excellent job of keeping Osaka out of her head and now she was brought face to face with it once more, something that she hoped would not happen. Finally facing Risako, she replied, "No, actually I wasn't always in Kimura's class. I transferred out of Yukari's class but I didn't expect to get dropped into Kimura's class."
Risako fell silent for a moment as she realized by the tone of Chiyo's voice, that this could be an issue that the young girl might not want to talk about. Still she wanted to know in case she could help Chiyo-chan in any way. "Why did you transfer out of Yukari's class?"
Chiyo shifted uncomfortably in her stride and when Risako apologized, she just shook her head and said, "You don't have to be sorry, it's not your fault. It's mine actually. When I was in Yukari's class, I made my best friend get real mad at me. She didn't even want to talk to me, so I decided to switch classes so she wouldn't have to worry about me." Chiyo eyed the ground as she walked. Just talking about it made her feel ashamed of herself.
"What did you do?"
Shaking her head, Chiyo replied, her voice becoming squeaky as she answered the question, "I don't know. Every time I tried to talk to her, she would run away or ignore me. And I also heard her say, "I wish she would just leave me alone.""
Risako sorrowfully watched Chiyo as they walked. She wanted to comfort the girl but she didn't know how. "Wow. That's harsh."
"And it makes me sad to leave her because I really liked her. She was always making me laugh and she always tried to protect me." Chuckling, Chiyo remembered how Osaka had stepped in front of her to block Sakaki-san from stealing her height. And without realizing it, she continued talking about Osaka, "She had real pretty hair too. It was just the perfect length and her voice was always so calm and soft. I've never even heard her yell before."
Surprised by what Chiyo-chan was saying, Risako wondered what Chiyo really thought of this girl. Deciding to take a small risk, Risako said, "The way you describe this girl, it would sound like you have a crush on her."
Her cheeks flushing in embarrassment, Chiyo glanced up to Risako and said, "W-Why do you say that?"
So that is the case, concluded Risako as she read her friend's face like a book. Smirking, she answered Chiyo's question, "Just listen to you. You describe this girl like she is the most important thing on the face of the earth. She really sounds like something." Giving Chiyo-chan a kind smile, Risako calmed her voice and continued, "Besides, I've had a similar experience so I know how you feel just by listening to you. You Chiyo-chan, have a crush on your best friend."
Chiyo didn't know what to say. She had never even considered the possibility of having a crush on anyone, at least not yet. Still, she knew she couldn't just walk up to Osaka and say anything of the like. "B-But, she's still mad at me. What if I make her even more upset?"
Risako placed her hand on Chiyo's shoulders and said, "If this girl is as special as you say she is, then I don't think she'll get mad at you for that."
Still doubtful about all of this, Chiyo quickly responded, "B-bu-but, even if I did, there's no way she would like me back!"
"That, you'll have to find out for yourself." After saying this, Chiyo had stopped walking and Risako assumed that they had arrived at the girl's house. Just glancing at it, she was astounded to see a mansion standing before her. Risako's mouth dropped open as she gazed at the magnificent house, "WOW! Is this your house?"
Still embarrassed over the previous conversation, Chiyo nodded and whispered a small, "yes." She frankly had no idea how to handle the situation. Risako had dumped a lot of things onto her, but Chiyo wasn't so sure that Risako was wrong.
"It's gorgeous! Wish I wasn't busy tonight so I could get invited inside!"
Chiyo stared curiously at Risako and asked, "Why, what are you doing tonight?"
"I've got homework for one thing, and I've gotta finish unpacking," Risako responded, and turned to leave. Before heading home, she waved at Chiyo-chan and said, "I'll see you later."
Waving back at the girl, Chiyo felt her face warm up with a blush as she thought to herself; I can't have a crush on Osaka, can I?
