Summary: University life's sometimes not all it's cracked up to be. Especially when you've got a particularly quirky group of friends.
Disclaimer: I own none of these characters; Kiyohiko Azuma created them. I'm sure other people own rights and whatnot. Ah well, the list doesn't include moi.; )
Rated T for swearing, alcohol references, and shoujo-ai. Hoo! Rah! Rah!
Somehow this thing still has the same title… ah well, I obviously have yet to come up with anything to replace it.
Thoughts and stressed words are in italics.
Chapter 6
Someone's car alarm blaring at 5:30 that morning had prompted her to get up. She had gone to the gym, ran, came back, showered, forced herself to eat something, and now was contemplating returning to bed to shut out the world for at least a couple hours. She had spent the better part of last night worrying herself sick and cursing her own stupidity for having ever brought her… concerns up with Tomo (of all people!) in the first place.
Part of her knew it was useless. There wasn't a whole lot that could be done right that second, but that didn't seem to phase her overactive imagination which appeared to be mocking her by coming up with every possible failed outcome. Maybe she could just avoid seeing Sakaki altogether, but that would be an obvious snub on her part. Naturally, Osaka would go visit her at Tomo and Yomi's. She'd be expected to be there, too. Maybe she'd get hit by a car or something before then. Or a building would fall on her or possibly a gaping hole would open up in the earth right where she stood and she'd just be completely wiped off the map, effectively putting her out of her misery.
Her confidence as an athlete didn't always seem to cross over to social situations.
Before she could continue that thought further she decided to weigh her options. Stay awake and get nothing but mulling over her issues accomplished or retire to an unconscious state and "forget" her troubles for a while. Yeah… I just need to go back to sleep.
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Tomo Takino was an energetic person. She was a get-up-and-go person. She was lively certainly and could be animated to a formidable degree. Productive, however, she was not.
Her enthusiasm tended to be misdirected at best and even chaotic in its more destructive form. Now, though, Tomo was on a mission. Her own personal objective would be put to the side for the moment and she would come to the aid of a friend in need. 'Cause I'm a good person like that.
"Yomi! I'm going to do laundry!!" Tomo called into her friend's room before she picked up her laundry basket with a heave and headed out into the apartment hallway.
Yomi peered out of her recently opened door, seeing the blurred form of her roommate cheerfully head towards their front door. She lazily rolled over to look at her clock. Laundry? At 7:30…? … I'm going back to bed.
Back in the hallway, Tomo was congratulating herself for her brilliance. Phase one of her elaborate plan was in motion: come up with a completely legitimate excuse to go out of their apartment without Yomi wanting to come along. This was like being a special agent. Now all she had to do was start the loads, separating whites from darks, before heading over to one of the student residences to force Kagura out of the pathetic state she had a feeling she was in.
llllllll
Kagura lay there, unsuccessfully attempting to get back to sleep. She had no desire to get up to face the day, but neither would her mind allow her to fall asleep. Turning over for the umpteenth time, she stared at her wall for several minutes. Just as she was about to turn back over onto her other side, someone began knocking on her door. Maybe if I act like I'm not here, they'll go away…
Her visitor was apparently unperturbed by Kagura's lack of response and proceeded to open the door, entering the room. What the…?
"Hey, stupid. Stop sulking. Now's no time for a pity party. We're going shopping!" the voice said.
Tomo?! ... did I leave my door unlocked?
Kagura's annoyed response was to pull the covers over her head.
"Go awaaay," she moaned from underneath her comforter.
"No can do. I let you have all last night to feel sorry for yourself. Hey, I wonder if you're ticklish," Tomo speculated as she reached for an exposed foot.
"hee Stop that!" Kagura, despite herself, began laughing, yanking her foot under the cover.
"haha! So you are! I'm just learning all your secrets, aren't I?" Tomo chuckled, not letting Kagura's weak efforts dismay her from getting the other girl out of her lofted bed.
She climbed up the side and grabbed the end of the comforter, attempting to tug it off, Kagura, however, still had a strong grip on the other side. Just as Tomo was moving up another rung, Kagura gave the blanket a fierce jerk, pulling Tomo along with it.
Tomo gave a cry of surprise as she was pulled over the side and onto the bed, landing half in the other girl's lap.
"hee," Tomo giggled nervously, looking up into Kagura's surprised face.
Both rapidly parted, gazes averted.
"So…"
"…yeah…"
"Why the hell are you here again?"
"Shopping, Kagura! Shopping!" Tomo said, quickly regaining her composure.
"Oh… wait, shopping? What does that have to do with you being here, in my room?"
"We are going shopping to buy you something sexy to wear on Friday."
"… what are you talking about? Shopping. As if you know how to dress," Kagura griped.
"I'll pretend I didn't hear what you just said. So, get changed. It's kinda chilly out."
"When throughout this whole conversation did I say I would go with you to go shopping?" Kagura complained.
"Quit your bellyaching. I just so happen to be an extremely stylish dresser when I put my mind to it," Tomo explained haughtily, "Or, at least I'm sure I would be had I ever really seriously thought about it."
"Go home, Tomo. And hey, shouldn't you be getting ready for some sort of date yourself?"
Tomo did look a little put out at this observation. "Well, I figure Yomi will always be there… or at least as long as I continue to help paying rent or until the end of the semester, but Sakaki is coming in for one weekend this year. So this is your chance to make things happen. I've got all the time in the world, but you've gotta take this opportunity and run with it."
"Well, what if I don't wanna?" Kagura almost pouted. Her arms were now crossed as she sat in a defensive position, opposite the other woman.
Tomo just looked at her friend, incredulous. "I never thought I'd have to be telling anyone this, but STOP BEING SO CHILDISH! Get over your issues. Unless you plan on being alone forever or marrying, having kids, and being miserable, I'd start accepting myself if I were you. Geez… for crying out loud!"
Kagura looked at Tomo, for a second appearing emotionally wounded, before she gathered herself together.
"I guess you're… kind of… right…"
Tomo nodded, looking very satisfied with herself. "I'd rather be me and then other people have issues with that than me act like something I'm not and have issues with myself. No beating around the bush! No wishy-washy garbage with me. "
"… uh… huh..." Kagura said, looking less than convinced.
"And that is part of my life's philosophy."
"Yes, Tomo Takino, model product of society," Kagura muttered sardonically.
"Damn straight," either not picking up on the other woman's tone of voice, or otherwise choosing to ignore it.
"I suppose this means you aren't going to leave me alone until you get your way" Kagura sighed sulkily.
"You bet," Tomo winked.
"Hmph. Fine. I'll meet you in the lobby in ten."
"You don't trust me to staaay? I won't peek… maybe," she looked over at her companion with a predatory grin.
"The lobby. Ten minutes," Kagura snapped, feeling the heat rise in her cheeks. Pain in the ass.
"Sorry, can't help it. Teasing Yomi about this stuff's gonna be great."
"How can you be so sure of yourself? You've always been like that… Expected things to just work out."
"It's all about perspective, kiddo. And I'm Tomo Takino, so of course it'll all work."
With that Tomo got down from the bed and opened the door.
"See you shortly!" she said as she shut the door behind her.
Kagura frowned. Just one damned thing after another.
llllllll
In another part of the country another young woman was sitting at her desk, having just finished sending an e-mail.
People rarely made her nervous. For many years she didn't care enough to get hurt by the things they did, just embarrassed every once in a while. She was often happier to daydream than to actually interact. It was easier that way, less confusing. The highs were all fake, just figments of her imagination, but the lows, they weren't so bad. All through elementary school and before high school, she was able to get away with being the obscure one. Not many people had much of an opinion about her presence either way. Then high school hit and she had grown. Tall enough to make most boys uneasy when around her, but the worst was how her chest had suddenly gotten larger.
She didn't understand why people envied her and even less why they respected her. Most of the time she had just tried to ignore that type of attention. The admiration wasn't real, she knew. It couldn't be. The person they loved and revered simply didn't exist.
Miss Sakaki to them was confident. She was courageous. She took on gangs, one against an entire army of thugs. The only part of her that was injured was her hands, from throwing so many punches. She was beautiful, classy, and bright. She was perfect.
She wasn't Sakaki the dreamer. The lover of all things cute and cuddly. The lonely girl who just wanted to make friends.
And then… she had. And it was wonderful. But all good things must come to an end. They eventually went their separate ways.
She had never been good at communicating. If she was included in get-togethers during high school, it was because someone invited her, not due to any sort of social maneuvering she had done herself. So, one day when Kagura gave her a call informing her she'd be at her university for a swim meet, she was nothing short of overjoyed. The only other person who she had kept in touch with had been Chiyo. They e-mailed each other frequently. Maya was still at Chiyo's large home in Tokyo, keeping Mr. Tadakichi company. The cat had been a welcome excuse for her to be in contact with the other girl. Last summer she had stayed at Chiyo's for a week during the month the younger girl was home and each year Sakaki organized a birthday package to send to her. That was the stated reason for her visit that was to take place this upcoming weekend. There was one other item on the agenda for this trip…
What to say to Kagura? That she was just as sorry? If only she wasn't so taciturn, she'd take the other girl in her arms and apologize. Tell her that it wasn't fair that people were cruel. That people didn't understand. That most of the time the impression everyone had of you was a lie they constructed for themselves, for better or worse.
It wasn't something that could be done over the phone. Or in a letter. E-mail was too impersonal. She had waited long enough for the perfect reason to see the other woman and hoped bitterness hadn't grown in the wake of her absence.
Things had slowly disintegrated to the point where Kagura, shortly before the first semester of this school year, had asked her not to stop coming altogether. Neither had a very strong phone or e-mail relationship. But Sakaki was loath to let her tie to Kagura completely fall to pieces. It was the other woman's sincerity that she admired. Sometimes it was blunt and a little rough around the edges, but that made it all the more endearing. At first, Kagura had misunderstood Sakaki like all the rest, but the more time they spent together, the more Kagura caught on. And she liked the real her all the same. The athlete put her on the same level as everyone else, and actually… it felt rather refreshing. There were still those challenges that she would confront Sakaki with, teasingly. It had been something normal, something that kept her in touch with reality.
Sakaki leaned her face into her open hands. Sometimes I miss when things were still simple.
llllllll
When she finally got up, somewhat later than she tended to, it was about half past nine in the morning. Tomo apparently was still doing 'laundry'. As usual, Yomi decided not to over speculate about the activities of her sometimes, no, almost always erratic roommate.
She made a mental checklist of the things she wanted to accomplish for the day, prioritizing them. Starting off with a shower and breakfast, she then went into the living room, cleaning up from the night before. She put the half eaten bowl of popcorn by the sink when their kitchen phone caught her eye. She still had to call both Osaka and Kagura to let them know about this upcoming weekend. She was thinking that perhaps they could see a show and go out to eat beforehand. Tomo seemed much more interested in going clubbing or finding a party, but from what Yomi remembered about Sakaki, she felt the other woman would be more comfortable at a more intimate gathering of just their friends. She also felt it would be a more relaxing trip if it didn't include the three Bonkuras getting plastered. They were hard enough to tolerate when sober.
Yomi chuckled a bit to herself. She still had some rather interesting digital camera video footage that the three idiots had taken (with Yomi's camera, but not with her permission) during one of Kagura's rare visits before she had transferred. Yomi might be above acting like a moron in front of a camera, but she wasn't above saving said footage for future use (translation: blackmail).
She wondered if Tomo had let Kagura know about Sakaki coming in for the weekend when she called her. And what the heck was all that about yesterday? Tomo was up to something and if the other girl hadn't promised upon pain of death (or worse, being thrown out) that there would be no nonsense like what went on during high school, Yomi would be very worried. But besides minor slip ups, Tomo had more or less behaved herself during the time they lived together. Perhaps the two were planning something for some other poor soul. Whoever it was, if Tomo and Kagura were involved, they wouldn't know what hit 'em. Ah well, it's none of my concern. I suppose I should call Osaka though…
llllllll
Osaka had been up for some time now. Staring at her ceiling, possibly pondering the deeper questions of life, though most likely her thoughts were focused on the trivial and arbitrary.
Her room phone began ringing. She slowly looked to the side before deciding that she might as well answer it. Maybe it was Kagura.
She had been awake for at least half an hour, but had yet to use her voice so when she answered the phone her voice came out as a sort of crackled murmur, "…hello?"
"Hi, Ayumu. I'm sorry if I woke you up."
"'Sok… I've been awake for a while. Jus' haven't got up yet."
"Ah. I see. Anyway, I was just calling to inform you that Sakaki is coming in next weekend and she wanted us each to get something together to send to Chiyo. You know it's her birthday in about a month," Yomi explained, her tone business-like.
"Huh. Ok. Well, ya wanna jus' go together? All four of us? I can try ta call Kagura. I don't think she was feelin' well last night… but I mean, as long as ya aren't busy today, then we can go as a group," Osaka proposed, "Maybe ta make up for last week, y'know… since everybody's gettin' along now."
"Well, I suppose that makes sense," Yomi said, somewhat surprised Osaka was making a plan herself, the shorter girl tended to just go along with everyone else's decisions, "Tomo is supposedly doing laundry at the moment. But if I can't find her, let's just say meet at the mall over by you in an hour. Does that sound alright?"
"Yup. I jus' gotta change and I'll be ready," Osaka said through a yawn.
"OK. I'll meet you at the north entrance by the ice cream shop at eleven."
"See ya then."
"See you."
llllllll
They had gotten to the mall around half past nine in the morning. Nothing was open yet. Kagura was sullenly sipping her drink that she had forced Tomo to buy for her after having to pay for the drinks they had purchased at the café the day before. She could tell Tomo was getting antsy.
"I suppose I could've finished my laundry before I came over," Tomo admitted.
"Laundry?"
"Yeah, I told Yomi I was going to do laundry. And I did. I put two loads in."
"You just left 'em sitting there? Your stuff's gonna get stolen, stupid."
"Nah. Who does laundry early morning on a Sunday?"
"Well, early, I dunno… but chances are if we sit around and wait until the stores open, you probably won't get back home until around noon at the earliest."
Tomo thought about it for a second before blowing off Kagura's concern.
"Psh. It's all good."
"And why'd you lie to Yomi?"
"Well, what am I supposed to say? 'Kagura's having girlfriend issues so we're going out to buy her a little black dress so she feels better about herself'? That's kinda hard to say without a lot of additional explanation to go along with it."
Kagura was only able to mouth 'little black dress' while appearing disturbed.
Tomo caught the other girl's expressioin before grinning, relishing in how easy it was to throw Kagura off lately. "Yup. Ya ready to show some skin?"
"Uh, no. That's not going to work. If you've forgotten, I swim. A lot. My arms aren't the most feminine looking. I think I'd look like some sort of experiment gone wrong if I were to try on a cocktail dress."
Tomo looked disappointed. "Fine, you still have to try on at least one before we start looking at things with sleeves. Besides, I'd say you're more toned than bulked up looking."
"I don't understand why you get to set the rules for this," Kagura said, ignoring what she supposed was Tomo's attempt at a compliment.
"Because I'm impossibly stubborn and you know I'll win in the end."
"For now. But you know what? Payback's a bitch so you watch yourself," Kagura smiled wolfishly.
Tomo's grin widened even more before she stuck her tongue out at her companion. "Empty threats! You're full of empty threats!" she declared in a song song voice before clasping her hands together, "Like dear, wonderful, amazing Miss Sakaki, you wouldn't hurt a fly. All bark and no bite, Kagura."
The athletic girl just sniffed, dismissing the wildcat's proclamations.
"Whatever. Don't say I didn't warn ya. But let's go see if there's anything open yet. It's almost ten."
Tomo conceded, still smiling.
llllllll
Yomi hadn't found Tomo, once again only being able to locate her roommate's cell phone. Why doesn't she ever take it with her? Ah, that's right, because it might make my life just that much easier. We can't have that now, can we? Yomi shook her head, wondering why she was suddenly so irritated.
She was on her way to meet Osaka hoping the other girl would actually be on time and not deem another half an hour of sleep necessary. She sleeps more than anyone else I know…
As she approached the designated meeting area, she saw Osaka happily eating some ice cream. Probably for 'breakfast'.
Yomi schooled her face into its normal unconcerned expression. As soon as Osaka saw her, the smaller girl's features brightened considerably.
"Yomi!" she said, smiling softly before lifting up her ice cream, "Would you like ta try some?"
"Ah… no, that's alright. Thank you for offering."
"Well, guess we should start lookin'. I never know what ta get Chiyo. She always sends the nicest thank yous, but it makes it hard ta tell if she actually liked the gift or not."
Yomi nodded in agreement. "Yes, it's more difficult now. I can't believe she's already sixteen."
"Yeah, our lil' Chiyo's all grown up," Osaka giggled.
Yomi smiled before sighing, "I guess it makes me feel a little old to think about it like that."
"Yup. Whoda thought we'd all still be friends like this. I mean, I never thought we wouldn't or nothin' like that, but still… jus' makes me happy, I 'spose."
That seemed to remind Yomi of something. "Speaking of friends, where's Kagura? Were you able to get ahold of her? I personally don't have a clue as to where Tomo ran off to."
"Naw, I dunno where Miss Kagura went. She's not answering her phone," Osaka said, sounding slightly upset and failing to mention that she went as far as going over to Kagura's room and knocking on the door to see if the other woman was home.
"Hmm… those two are up to something," Yomi grumbled, eyes narrowing slightly.
"Miss Kagura and Tomo?"
"Yes, they both have been acting rather strangely lately. Well, of course, I notice it more in Tomo because well, we live together. But there's been a few mysterious meetings and phone calls in the past few days… very strange."
Osaka's brow furrowed as she nodded, looking pensive.
Noticing the other girl's worried expression, Yomi hurriedly declared, "I'm sure it's nothing though. Anyway, let's go see what we can find."
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With several bags and an already weary Kagura in tow, Tomo moved on to the next store.
"This is actually pretty fun. Shopping's usually so boring, but I guess when it's someone else's money and they've gotta try on all the clothes, haha, it can be a decent time, right?"
Kagura just grunted in the negative.
"Aww, c'mon, Kagura. Don't tell me that a beast of an athlete like yourself can't keep up! And aren't you glad we got some of the essentials you were in need of, too?" Tomo crooned, toting one of the bags higher than the others and shaking it suggestively.
"Aren't we done yet?" Kagura groaned, failing to react to Tomo's jibe, much to the other girl's disappointment.
Tomo decided to give up on teasing for a moment and said, "Well, I figure while we're here, we could get something for Chiyo since Sakaki wants to send her something for her birthday."
With that being said, Tomo headed over to one of the larger toy stores.
Kagura just looked at her friend.
"Tomo?"
"Yeah?"
"This is supposed to be for Chiyo, right?"
"Yeah! Weren't you paying any attention just a minute ago?"
"She's turning sixteen, Tomo! She doesn't want stuffed animals."
"Well, what do you get a teenager who has all the money in the world and is smarter than all your other friends put together?"
"Uhhh…"
Before Kagura could finish that thought two voices could be heard from behind them.
"Kagura?"
"Tomo?"
Both names were uttered simultaneously and the two women who were being called slowly turned around.
"Hey guys…" Kagura said, fake grin plastered across her face.
Tomo looked down at the bags in her hands before quickly shoving them into Kagura's, the paper material crumpling loudly. Not only had they bought the woman an outfit, but a lingerie store bag also was amongst their other purchases.
Osaka looked at Kagura, worried, "Hello, Miss Kagura. Are you feelin' better today?"
"Huh? Oh, yeah. A lot better, thanks," Kagura nodded, motions exaggerated due to her sudden nervousness.
Tomo could feel Yomi's gaze on her, one eyebrow quirked up in suspicion, she was sure.
"What are you two doing here?" Yomi inquired. And, more importantly, why do you look like you've been caught red handed?
"Buyin' Chiyo a gift. And you?" Tomo shot back, not missing a beat.
"The same. We were going to invite you two, but it appears as though you are ahead of the game… for once," Yomi noted, tone somewhat disdainful.
"Well, yeah. Anything for Chiyo," Tomo responded nonchalantly.
"Whatcha got there, Miss Kagura?" Osaka suddenly asked.
"Just some clothes. Uhh, felt it was time for a new outfit," Kagura muttered weakly, not meeting anyone's faces directly.
"Well, we're all done now. So, guess we'll see you two later," Tomo said, noticing Kagura faltering in her explanation.
Yomi and Osaka looked at each other. Yes, definitely suspicious.
"Hmm. Later then, I suppose," Yomi replied, deciding that she would have a chat with Tomo when she got home. That is, if Tomo wasn't still with Kagura.
llllllll
"Shit, way to act like something was up!" Tomo accused the other girl.
"Well, I'm sorry. As if you shoving bags into my hands didn't look weird."
"Well, excuse me, it's not like I could've said those size bras were mine. Geez, how you run and swim with those things is beyond me."
Kagura, already red from anger, felt her cheeks heat up even more. "Shut up! It's not like they would've actually searched our bags or anything, you idiot!"
"You never know! And if you weren't so secretive about this whole thing to begin with, it wouldn't matter. But I felt it wasn't my place to tell Yomi, at least not without your direct approval. So now it looks like we're up to no good."
"Well… I guess I'll tell Yomi… and Ayumu," Kagura offered meekly,"ya think… maybe… that it can wait until after I talk with Sakaki though?"
"Yeah, I guess. But now I've gotta tell Yomi something. Well, whatever, I'll come up with a story before I see her later tonight."
"Thanks Tomo," Kagura said, relieved, "It's one thing to say you're all ready to do something and then something completely different to actually… y'know… go through with it. But don't worry. By the end of this week, things'll be less of a mess… I hope."
"Yeah, yeah. Well, just keep a positive attitude. Things'll always work out in the end, 'cause if they don't… well, it's not the end," Tomo said, smiling.
"Always the optimist, eh?"
"Hell yeah. Where'd I be now if I wasn't? It's not like I'm a good athlete, like you, or get good grades like Yomi and Chiyo. And I don't float completely oblivious through life like Osaka seems to-"
"She's not oblivious," Kagura cut Tomo off.
"What?"
"Osaka. I mean, Ayumu. She's not oblivious or stupid if that's not what that means. She catches on to a lot more than we give her credit for. And you're not stupid either, despite all the times I call you an idiot. And you probably could be a half decent athlete if you learned good form and didn't waste so much energy shoutin' instead of breathing," Kagura countered.
"Well, that stuff doesn't matter to me!" Tomo clarified, "So, better to go out with a bang than just be mediocre, ya know?"
"… I guess."
"Well, pal, let's go. We've gotta practice!"
"Practice…?" Kagura asked, surprised and a bit worried.
"You've gotta come up with what you're going to say and you've gotta try on the whole ensemble altogether."
Kagura reluctantly followed the energetic wildcat, not for the first time wondering what mess she'd gotten herself into.
Author's Notes: They've all endeared themselves to me, I think. But that's just how Azumanga Daioh works. Too bad I can't really include Yukari and Nyamo… I suppose I could, but it might just break my brain. Including all these other characters is already too complicated for me to keep track of the interactions.: p Though much love for the crazy teachers. Maybe one day I can write something about them… there's already quite a few good fics exploring their relationship. I dunno if I'd be able to do the two justice.: )
And as always, thank ya very much for the reviews. I do appreciate them. Special thanks to the repeat reviewers. I'll admit it. I tend to be kinda lazy when it comes to reviews for separate chapters. But you've all been great.: )
Oh, and apologies for any discrepancies in the timeline. Due to my complete lack of planning, there are possible questionable parts though I do have rationalizations for most of them so it, at the very least, works out in my head.
I don't know if anything constitutes for love triangles quite yet since most of what's going on is the girls reminiscing and their current thoughts generally aren't progressing beyond a point (relationship triangles, maybe? eheh…)… with only hints here and there. Though I try to throw in bits of fun.
Ah, and I feel as though I should put some tacky announcement for the next chapter (or at least, have fun making one): Is Tomo setting herself up for disappointment? What will happen when Sakaki finally makes her appearance? Will poor Osaka get a decent scene written about her that doesn't include sleeping?
Next chapter and I think I'm actually serious this time… might be a couple weeks in coming. Or, at the very least, there won't be these updates every two to four days. I've got a lot of other stuff to focus on, not to mention all my other little pet projects that I've neglected for the past two weeks. Currently resisting the urge to look into Mai Hime/My Hime… no time… no money… X.x; There's also Kiddy Grade and R.O.D. TV… bah… ah well, lots of reading and writing to keep me busy. (and Pani Poni Dash! is coming out on DVD… yay! Serizawa!)