A/N: Hello again, it's been a while. But I am back with more story to share! I'm more interested in writing my story down on paper than I am in typing it, so that's what takes me so long to update (I am currently writing chapter 19). I will have another update soon, probably, since not a lot happens in this section.


Chapter 3

"Where are you going for Activity Day?"

The question, aimed at me from Senpai, rang annoyingly in my ears. I wasn't so much annoyed that I had been asked this certain question as I was annoyed that I didn't have an answer. So, in short, I was annoyed at my own incompetence and indecision.

"I haven't decided yet. All the places sound really super boring and really super dumb. Plus, you have to pay for them, which makes it even more dumb," I said flatly.

"Well aren't you a happy camper?" Link teased me.

"I'm always happy, glad you noticed," I retorted with zero tolerance for Link's antics while I was trying to concentrate on making a decision.

I was never really the kind of person who got excited over spending money on shallow entertainment for half a day, especially if it involved a lot of people, a lot of movement, or a lot of noise in general. This aversion of mine wasn't very useful, because every few months at my school, we had an activity day where everyone has a choice to go to one of three places. The places varied with each time, but it usually cost anywhere from ten to fifteen dollars just to go. I was perfectly alright with staying at school, but nooo, everyone was required to go. It was either that, or stay home and be marked absent. Apparently the school's reasoning was that they wanted the students to spend time interacting, getting to know each other, and learning social skills. It was having the opposite effect on me though.

In any case, our choices this time were bowling, Jumptime, and Wahooz. Pretty standard activity day locations, according to Senpai. Wahooz was almost always an option, and Jumptime or bowling was usually included in the first activity day as well. I knew Jumptime was out of the question for sure, but neither bowling nor Wahooz sounded appealing either. Jumptime required a lot of movement, bowling required… skill…, and Wahooz required tolerance for noise and crowds. I had none of these.

"It's true these kinds of things aren't for everyone," Ike consoled me. "But you've just got to endure it, and in the end it's not a big deal."

To be honest, I was glad someone seemed as unenthusiastic about going as I did. Ike didn't directly complain about this, but I could tell this wasn't his "kind of thing". When I thought about it, though, I couldn't think what would be Ike's "kind of thing" besides sports. There had to be something else.

"True," I admitted. "I could probably afford to have a more open mind about this. In that case, where are all of you going?" If I couldn't make a decision based on how I felt, then I could just go where everyone else was going, to make to most out of this detestable activity.

"We're all going to Wahooz, actually, because anywhere else would be… less than desirable," Senpai said. "I'm guessing you want to go with us?"

"You know me too well," I laughed,

Senpai shrugged. "It was obvious."

"Yeah, whatever." I stuck my tongue out at Senpai. "Where do we sign up?"

"The front office, of course. Where else?"

"Senpai, don't make me seem as dumb as I actually am," I chuckled.

"You don't need me to make you seem dumb," Senpai said mischievously.

"…Ignoring that comment. Anyway, I suppose I'll just stop by the office after school, since break is almost over. Don't let me forget!" I asked them even though they probably wouldn't remember either, leaving for my last period, Study Hall.

When I arrived, Marth was sitting at his desk with a group of his friends. Now, this was another thing that bothered me about Marth- he was always with people. Always. I'd literally never seen him by himself. He didn't have to seek people out, they just came to him like flocks of wild geese. He was friends with pretty much every single person in our grade and then some outside of it. Although I hate to admit this, it made me doubt his sincerity, and I couldn't help but feel maybe he was just being my friend because it was his "duty as the student body president" or something trivial like that. Making acquaintances with many people was a good way to increase popularity, after all. It reminded me of Peeta from the Hunger Games- in the movie, Peeta waved to the people in the capital even though he didn't really care about them, and Haymitch commented that he knew what he was doing. Can you see where I'm drawing the comparison?

The disappointing thing was that I did want to talk to Marth, but not when he was surrounded by all those people. As pathetic as it sounds and is, Marth was the only friend I had in the majority of my classes. In fact, he was the only one I could even consider a 'vague acquaintance'. Since I knew Senpai and Dezi, I had never felt the need to invest my time in the rest of my classmates; I was new and didn't fit in with them, so I'd stick out like a sore thumb. If there was anything I didn't want, it was for people to think I was trying to fit in, because I really wasn't. I didn't care for their standards. Their standards were vexatious, and they had no place in my daily routine. It was all so contrived and pointless and short-sighted.

So, instead of joining them, I sat down by myself, and opened my notebook. Always, always, always, I carried a notebook around with me, to the point it grated on some peoples' nerves. Even if I didn't end up writing anything at all, keeping a notebook (or at least something I could write on) came as a sort of comfort to me. A peace of mind, so to speak.

When people read my writing, they say I'm good with words. But if you talked to me face-to-face in real life, you wouldn't think that at all. You'd probably think that I have social anxiety because everything that comes out of my mouth is poorly articulated and flows like caramel- which is to say, not very well. I think it's because I don't truly understand how I'm feeling or what I'm thinking until I write it down, and then it all comes spilling out. This was the reason I liked writing. Words- not grammar- have so much meaning and power that can convey so many different concepts when combined in different ways. The English language has words to convey almost every concept imaginable, and if you can't convey it in a single word, you can convey it in a sentence. You can create shallow sentences with the same words you use to create profound ones. It's a beautiful thing, but something I can only attain when I write it down. So if something ever crossed my mind that I wanted to remember or elaborate or express, I'd have my notebook on hand to make things easier. Some might think it's a bother to carry a notebook around, but I find it a bother to be unable to express myself.

That said, even though I had opened my notebook, I didn't really write anything inside of it. Rather, I had nothing to say, so I stared at the calming blank white sheets of paper, wondering if any significant thoughts would come to mind.

Like usual, there was nothing.

It wasn't pointless though. It wasn't like I had been holding my notebook for no reason. I did it because I felt like it. I wonder if that's a valid enough reason?

I mentally shrugged and closed my notebook, sneaking a glance at Marth.

You know that feeling when you can tell someone is looking at you so you look at them as well and both of you make eye contact but it's kind of awkward so the other person looks away but they're still curious so they look again a few seconds later?

Well, that's basically what happened, with me being the one to break eye contact with Marth. I looked at him, but he caught me staring. As expected, I looked away, but I was still curious. I looked back at Marth, and he was still staring at me. Then, he waved me over. To the group he was talking with Ugh. I raised my eyebrows and shook my head, but Marth was persistent. Almost like a stalker. The people around him saw that he was looking past them, so they turned their heads as well.

Gosh dangit Marth I don't want to talk to all those dumb people, I want to sit here and quietly observe the dumb things they're doing so I know how not to be a dumb person! But alas, my thoughts were internal and Marth could not read my mind, which is something I would normally consider to be a blessing rather than a curse. But desperate times called for desperate measures, folks.

One of the girls, named Mia, waved at me as well.

"Hey Makaiah, come join us!"

"A…alright," I stammered awkwardly. Even though she obviously didn't pay attention to me and didn't care to get my name right, I couldn't really refuse her request unless I wanted to seem antisocial or a jerk. Well, I was arguably both of those either way, but that's beside the point.

Regardless, I walked over and joined their little circle, albeit very self-consciously. Where was I supposed to stand? Who was I supposed to stand next to? What were they even discussing? Why would you want me anywhere near you guys? What input could I possibly have to improve the quality of your conversation?

They continued to talk, mostly ignoring me, basically going on as normal. The questions in my head seemed very unreasonable in comparison.

"So, Mia," I began, wanting to contribute to the conversation. "Where are you going for the activity day?"

"Bowling, of course!" she grinned. "It's all about the competition, ya know? I'm gonna beat everyone! If you're going bowling too then you'd better watch out because this girl isn't going easy on anyone!" she gave me a thumbs up with a lot of enthusiasm. She was genuinely excited.

"Ah, good luck," I nodded to her, kind of weirded out that I'd met someone who wanted to go on the activity day.

"Where are you guys going?" Mia asked in return, not just to me but to Marth as well.

"Uh…" my mind blanked. Where was I going again?

"Good question," Marth said. "What do you recommend?" He looked at me, a silent inquiry as to where I'd chosen to go. Of course. I should've known that Marth would follow me anywhere. Relatively, anyway. I didn't expect him to jump off the grand canyon if that's something I decided to try out someday.

"Jumptime is terrible unless you like to run around a sweaty room with a bunch of sweaty little kids. I had a friend who worked there once and she said it was absolutely horrifying. The times when she had to deal with kids anyway," I said quickly. "Bowling if for, you know, competitive people who like to take turns patiently and wear weird-looking shoes. You either have to have skill or be made fun of for using bumpers. Wahooz is for people who like large crowds and games and prizes and CLAW MACHINES."

"In short, you recommend… Wahooz?" Marth assumed. "It sounds like you're going there."

"Ha, you'd like to know that, wouldn't you? Well… I personally don't want to go to any of these places, but Wahooz is the least of three evils," I remarked sadly. "So you should… like… come with me." I had to sacrifice much of my pride to add that last part.

Marth nodded. "That's what I was thinking. So I'll gladly take you up on your offer. Surely this will prove to be an interesting experience."

An interesting experience indeed. "We can only hope."