Eli: I'm so hot...
Maki: Yes yes, we all know that you're damn sexy.
Umi: No Maki, she meant the weather. We're sweating here, how is it possible that you're not?
Maki: One thing, air conditioner.
EliUmi: ... Riiiight...
Maki: What's with that drawl...? Actually, why am I still stuck with you guys?
Eli: Oh come on, it could be worse.
Umi: Yeah, try Honoka for one.
Maki: ... Point taken. Let's just start...
Eli: Right, the author doesn't own anything.
XXXXXX
"Oh Hanayo-chan! Perfect timing, I was lookin' for ya!" Nozomi beamed, running towards Hanayo. Hanayo blinked in confusion, before managing to dodge her employer's tackle. "Sheesh, no need to dodge!"
"S-Sorry!" Hanayo bowed, clearly panicking. Nozomi chuckled, patting Hanayo's head gently in an attempt to reassure her.
"It's fine, no problem at all! So anyways, I just wanted to tell ya that the mics are back in business!" Nozomi grinned, pulling out two sets of microphones meant for recording purposes. "All we need to do is to get hooked up to the cable and we're ready to roll yan!"
"That's great! I'm sure Maki-chan will be pleased to hear that!"
"Uhhhh... well, Maki-chan may or may not be happy to hear that piece of news... But hey, that tsundere needs to work too!"
"Tsundere? Maki-chan?"
"Well yeah, just that she doesn't show it to ya that much... which wasn't in my cards at all." Nozomi shrugged, turning her attention towards the keypad. "Ya mind helpin' me? I'm kinda stuck with these gizmos, an' yer hands are free so... help your ol' boss out?"
"O-Oh! S-Sure! Umm..." Hanayo rummaged her bag, and had a flash of panic after 30 seconds of searching through her bag. "H-How do we open the door again...?"
"... With your ID card Hanayo-chan." Nozomi deadpanned, it's not like Hanayo was new to this entering system so why was she... 'Oh. This feels like déjà vu all over again...'
"... It sure is hot isn't it Nozomi-san?" Hanayo stopped her search and decided to attempt at a weak conversation with her superior.
"You don't have it with ya, do ya Hanayo-chan?" Nozomi decided to just spare the agony of the two of them standing in awkward silence once Hanayo's attempt failed.
"W-Well uh... I-It's a funny story actually..." Hanayo hesitated, would Nozomi scold her for not having the card?
"It's alright Hanayo-chan, my card actually expired an' I forgot to renew it again." Nozomi admitted, chuckling to herself.
"It feels like déjà vu..." Hanayo pointed out the similarities in the conversation with the one they had during one winter morning.
"It'll be even more so if Nicocchi comes an' save our sweatin' sorry selves."
"Huh? What are you two doing out here? It's freaking hot y'know." Cue their saviour, strolling up to the duo with dulled ruby eyes. "Ahhhh damn this, can't see straight... too hot..."
"N-Nicocchi! Please help us open the door!" Nozomi begged, which was uncharacteristic of her. Nico gave her one look, and stared at Hanayo in surprise.
"... Not that I mind, but couldn't you guys just asked Maki-chan to help you guys unlock this door? I mean, she lives in this building."
"Ah." Hanayo and Nozomi could only gasp in response, wondering to themselves why didn't they think of that idea in the first place.
XXXXXX
"Seriously Nozomi, you could have just called me for help." Maki sighed, watching Nozomi fiddle around with the cables. "You're the one who allowed me to stay here after all."
"Well sorry for not askin' yer royal highness who sleeps into the late afternoon!" Nozomi replied back, shooting Maki a glare.
"... Hanayo, you left your ID card in my room. Here." Maki said, pulling out Hanayo's card.
"Oh, thanks Maki-chan!" Hanayo took the card out from Maki's out-stretched hand. "I'm really forgetful at times, you must find it annoying..."
"N-Not at all." Maki hastily replied, her cheeks heating up. 'Oh man, my emotions are going haywire in this rate! Okay okay, find a way to go back to my usual tsundere self prior to her arrival...'
"Really? Thanks for saying such kind words!" Hanayo beamed. Maki wasn't too sure whether it was simply just imagination, but she swore that she saw a bright light emanating from Hanayo.
'... I can't suddenly go back to my tsundere side now. Hanayo, you're just too... much like a cinnamon roll. Yeah, that's a good term.' Maki thought to herself as she tried her best to shield herself from the light.
"Maki-chan nyaaaa~" Rin barged into the gaming room, tacking the scarlet-haired woman. "Rin misses you nya!"
"W-What the hell is with that random reason?!" Maki asked, pushing Rin off her. "And get the heck off me, god you sure are heavy..."
"Nya? Oh Rin read about Friendship Day and decided to share it with you nya!" Rin explained, her attention soon shifting towards Hanayo. "Kayo-chiiiin! Happy Friendship Day nya!"
"... Hey Nozomi, isn't that in August? Are we already in August?" Maki asked, flopping back on to her futon.
"Yeah, it's the first day of August. Man I wish I was still a student, I don't have to worry 'bout all these stuff..." Nozomi sighed, standing up and lying beside Maki. "I'm deadbeat."
"Since when you did anything?"
"I do a lot behind the scenes ya know."
"Screwing Anju more like."
"Oh please, without me around who's gonna keep ya rascals in line?"
"Eli for sure." Maki smirked upon hearing Nozomi's groan. "Sorry but you're just not authoritative enough."
"I know, I know. Speakin' of Elichi, where is she? She's usually in by now..." Nozomi muttered, raising her hand. "Ya know Maki-chan, I wish that the distance between my hand an' Polaris is just like me and my goal..."
"I'm surprised you know that the star I spray-painted on the ceiling is Polaris." Maki commented, closing her eyes as she listened to Nozomi's gentle voice. "I placed that there to remind myself of you guys."
"Huh? Why are we Polaris?"
"You guys are like my guiding star, if I didn't meet you all I wouldn't know what would I be doing now."
"Heh. I'm surprised that Muse Studios is still standin', honestly I thought we'll be finished when we're still Toyawa." Nozomi smiled wryly. "Guess Lady Luck's on my side huh?"
"What do you mean by that Nozomi?" Maki asked, but before Nozomi could give an answer, she was used as Rin's landing pad.
"Oof! Geez Rin-chan, give me a warnin' next time will ya?" Nozomi laughed breathlessly, ruffling Rin's hair.
"Nyahaha~ It's Friendship Day after all nya!"
"I'm sorry to interrupt you, but we really need to get back to work." Tsubasa said, her head poking into the room. "We're actually behind schedule... Seriously though, how did one screw up in January last for months?!"
"Whatever Tsubasa, the place is freaking old after all." Maki shrugged, glancing at Hanayo's direction. "You coming Hanayo?"
"E-Eh? O-Oh, yeah!" Hanayo was snapped out of her daydream, quickly following after the retreating Maki.
XXXXXX
"Urgh... It's finally over..." Maki groaned, her head resting on the table. "This is... what? Episode 23?"
"It's episode 22 Maki-chan!" Hanayo replied, a smile on her face. "I find it heartening that Nikagura-sama is starting to be honest with her feelings towards Hana-chan!"
"Ehhh... Shouldn't Hana have already picked up on Nikagura's feelings...? I mean, it's pretty obvious right?" Maki countered, looking through the script. "Even the script here told me which parts that has an embarrassed tone and whatnot."
"Still..."
"Oh, you guys want to record the next episode? You two sure are eager." Tsubasa remarked, entering the recording room.
"W-What?! N-Not really..." Maki looked away, only to see Hanayo's eager expression. "U-Uh, I mean, why not?"
"... Okay then, you guys take a 30 minutes break. Take a walk or something." Tsubasa nodded, pushing the duo out of the room.
"Oh Maki, perfect timing." Umi was outside of the room, apparently waiting for Maki. "Could we talk for a bit in private?"
"Hm, I guess." Maki shrugged, following after Umi. Hanayo was left to wait by herself, though she was soon accompanied by Kotori.
"Ah Kayo-chan! Are you on break too? Wanna hang out with me for a bit?" Kotori offered, holding up a box from a famous bakery. "Nico-chan just got her hands on their cakes, and I wanna share them since it's too much for me to handle!"
"S-Sure? Though I think you should share them with Nico-san..."
"Oh don't worry about her, she bough her own share too! Come on, let's head to the cafeteria!" Kotori led Hanayo to the cafeteria, immediately locating an empty table due to the lack of people in there. "Here, feel free to take whatever you like!"
"O-Oh thank you..." Hanayo took a slice of cake from the box, cautiously bringing it towards her mouth for a bite.
"How is it?" Kotori asked, helping herself to her favourite dessert.
"It's very good! Are you I can have this though?" Hanayo beamed, which made Kotori smile too.
"Sure, why not?" Kotori nodded, her head resting on her free hand. "Say Kayo-chan, how's things with Maki-chan?"
"Hm? We're good! Maki-chan's a really great friend!" Kotori's smile faded off for a brief moment, but soon resurfaced afterwards.
"That so? She's pretty sweet once you break her cold exterior."
"Kotori-san, Maki-chan is not the least bit cold!" Hanayo frowned, now nibbling on her cake. "... Unless there's something about Maki-chan that I don't know about..."
"E-Eh?! No Kayo-chan, it's not a bad thing! I-It's just that she's lost one of her cute points, that's all!" Kotori quickly corrected her conversational partner, fearing that Hanayo may misunderstand her words. "If you really wanna know about the dark stuff, that's basically me, Umi-chan, Honoka-chan, Eli-chan, Nozomi-chan and Nico-chan!"
"W-What do you mean by that?!" Upon hearing Hanayo's terrified words, Kotori knew that she had not dodged a landmine but instead walked on an atomic bomb.
"Ummm... Dark as in we like horror movies?" Kotori tried to gloss over the topic with her usual angelic smile, but she knew that Hanayo wasn't convinced in the slightest. 'Me and my big mouth.'
"Kotori-san, what do you mean by that? Okay well I know that Umi-san is kinda like Maki-chan after she told me that really sad fairy tale, but you too?!"
"Ummm..." Kotori really wanted to simply ditch Hanayo, but she knew that the conversation would come back to haunt her. Yet, she really didn't want to answer Hanayo's questions. Thankfully for her, the perfect scapegoat happened to enter the cafeteria, and was even waving at the two of them. "Umi-chan!"
"Hey you two. Hanayo, sorry for stealing Maki away from you. She's outside if you want to talk to her." Kotori's eyes lit up upon hearing that Maki was within the vicinity, and so she stood up with an apologetic smile on her face.
"I'm so in luck, I happened to need Maki-chan right now! Kayo-chan, why don't you ask Umi-chan about it? Okay gotta go, see ya!" Kotori immediately fled the scene, with Umi taking her place. Umi simply shrugged in confusion and took a bite out of one of the cakes in the box.
"So Hanayo, what were you about to ask Kotori?" Umi asked, deciding that she should help Kotori to answer. Hanayo took a deep breath, and asked the very question that made Kotori flee.
"What did she mean by you, her, Honoka-san, Eli-san, Nico-san and Nozomi-san having a dark past?"
"Uh." Umi gulped, now she understood why was Kotori so eager to talk to Maki despite having absolutely no reason to. 'Kotori... Must you always leave the tough questions to me?'
"Oh wait hang on... Maki-chan mentioned that your past is like hers, Honoka-san made a desperate gambling attempt... and Kotori-san had to endure her parents' divorce! But how are those dark pasts?" Umi sweatdropped, Hanayo's questions had just gotten even more specific and there was still the question regarding the Toyawa crew...
"I can't tell you much about Eli or Nozomi, since they're really secretive. Nico's situation is actually more common than you think, and the three of us... well... uh... okay fine. Just don't remind Kotori about it." Umi relented, deciding that giving in was probably the easiest solution.
XXXXXX
"Why did you wanna talk to me? As far as I know, animators have nothing to do with VAs." Maki asked, glaring at Kotori. "Unless it's a Nico-chan problem. No way in hell am I gonna help you again Kotori. No freaking way."
"Not that! I just told Kayo-chan that we have a dark past!" Kotori admitted, sighing heavily. "I shouldn't have brought up the topic of you losing your tsundere charm point..."
"... Since when is that my charm point?"
"Since forever?"
"Gah... whatever, I'll bite. How did it end up that way? The conversation I mean." Maki sighed, Kotori was her friend after all. And friends hear friends out, according to Maki's perspective on how friendships worked.
"Well... I asked her about your relationship with her, tsundere, potential misunderstanding, dark past?" Kotori grinned, while Maki was scowling. "Not helping?"
"Only you and Nico-chan can make an innocent conversation escalate that quickly. And I'm not dating Hanayo." Maki groaned, facepalming at her friend's 'talent'.
"I kinda guessed. Why aren't you though?" Kotori asked, curious to hear Maki's answer. What she got was... far from what she had expected.
"I... I don't want to scare her. I mean, like who goes up to a girl you really like and confesses despite only seeing each other for the first time?" Maki averted her eyes away from Kotori, her reply sounded stupid but it was way better than staying silent. That would give the wrong impression, and she was having none of that.
"Well, that always happen in manga? And didn't Nozomi-chan do that in high school? Well, according to Nico-chan at least..."
"... What?" Maki was stunned, she never knew that Nozomi went out with someone before Anju. If her relationship with Anju could be considered romantic prior to Valentine's Day that is.
"Y-Yeah, she went out with Eli-chan for around... five years?" Kotori counted her fingers, though she clearly remembered how long did the relationship lasted. "But Maki-chan, you already knew about this didn't you?"
"Uh, like no?! Geez, I hung out Eli fairly often you know and not once did she tell me about her romantic encounters!"
"... I think I just activated a hydrogen bomb instead of an atomic one..." Kotori mumbled, averting her eyes from Maki.
"Who cares what bomb you activated! C'mon, spill! What's the deal with the Toyawa crew?!" Maki demanded, pushing Kotori against a wall. Instead of giving the answers Maki (and Hanayo) desired, Kotori decided to do something that may or may not betray Nico's trust.
"Mmph!" In an instant, Kotori pressed her lips against Maki's and while Maki was in a confused state, Kotori fled the scene as though she had robbed Maki. Technically she did, but kisses weren't worth much from a practical standpoint.
"... W-What the hell just happened...?" Maki rubbed off any traces of saliva from her mouth, only noticing the disappearance of the designer a few seconds had passed. "K-Kotori! You sneaky... Gah!"
XXXXXX
"So how is it like now that you have Tsubasa-chan shacking up with you?" Anju asked, a smile that was bordering on teasing and concern hanging on her lips. Erena grinned back, even giving Anju the thumbs up. "That's really wonderful Erena-chan!"
"I know right? After all these years, Tsubasa's finally mine. It's like getting rejected for so many years have paid off..."
"I know that feeling. Nozomi-san is kinda like that..." Anju shrugged, her violet eyes roaming around. "I've never been to this part of Akiba before..."
"It's where there are more pachinko parlours than anime merch shops or electronics."
"Merch? Erena-chan, I didn't know that you knew such youthful language!" Anju teased, sticking out her tongue playfully. Erena glared, going as far as to smack Anju's head with her palm. "Youch!"
"That's what you get for making fun of me."
"Aw you're such a meanie~" Anju laughed, dismissing Erena's increasingly stern glare. Her violet eyes roamed around the colourful sights, soon settling on a group of people. "Hey Erena-chan? Why is there a group of people over there?"
"Oh today's the day where the legendary raffle takes place."
"And what makes that raffle so legendary?"
"Well, the prizes becomes more valuable." Erena explained, pausing for a moment. "In fact, I think today's top prize is-"
"ALRIGHT! I GOT A MILLION YEN!" A familiar voice yelled out, finishing Erena's sentence. Handbells were rung to congratulate the winner, while the crowd went crazy for the winner.
"... Anju, was that... someone we know? It sounded like someone from work..." Erena started, gently nudging Anju's rib. Anju nodded in response, soon dashing towards the crowd with her best friend in tow. "H-Hey Anju?!"
"C'mon, let's see who it is!" Anju said, pushing her way into the crowd. Once she got out of the crowd, a second round of ringing was heard. "T-This is unexpected..."
"W-What are you two doing here?!" Eli cried out, her hands cradling a box. Beside her was Honoka, with a white envelope in her hand.
"We could ask you the same!" Erena gasped, finally exiting the crowd.
"Congratulations miss! You won the third prize!" An old man congratulated Eli, while Anju and Erena stared in shock.
"Ahahaha... Well, Eli-chan and I were walking around this area... then we noticed that there was a raffle goin' on so... yeah." Honoka sheepishly explained, a bashful smile on her face. "But hey, I earnt a million yen!"
"... Don't tell anyone that I allowed Honoka to slip back to her vices..." Eli mumbled, staring down at her box. Erena nodded dumbly, while Anju took a look at the prize list, screaming in excitement after she found out what was the third prize.
"Oh my god! Ayase-san, this is great!"
XXXXXX
"I wonder, was my readings finally wrong... or has it not come true yet...?" Nozomi muttered to herself, staring at a tarot card. "It's been ten years though... Maybe I was never meant to be hanged after all..."
"Nozoboobs, it's me." A series of knocks interrupted Nozomi's thoughts, and prompted her to hide the card under her paperwork. "I'm coming in."
"Nicocchi! What is it ya need from me, besides a raise?" Nozomi beamed, donning her usual peace-loving smile. Nicocchi frowned, and pulled out a bottle of vodka from behind her. "... What's the occasion?"
"Nothing really, just felt that you need it." Nico shrugged, placing the bottle on the table. "Where are the shot glasses?"
"... Back cabinet." Nozomi replied, sorting out her paperwork. "Nicocchi, seriously. Ya know I don't drink..."
"Yeah right, you still do." Nico scoffed as she pulled out two shot glasses. "If you don't then you wouldn't bother cleaning these, would you?"
"... Did ya lock the door?"
"Sure did." Nico started to pour the vodka into the two glasses, her eyes on the bottle. "What's eatin' at you?"
"... Ya still remember this card?" Nozomi asked, holding up the tarot card for Nico to see.
"Yeah, it's the Hanged Man right? I remember you pulled that one out from your sketchy deck of yours in high school." Nico chuckled, placing the bottle on the desk. "Why do you ask though?"
"I drew this card with this company in mind, an' I interpreted it as somethin' would go very wrong if I made any major decisions... yet so far we're still runnin'. Successfully if I may add." Nozomi explained, downing her glass.
"Well I dunno 'bout you, but I always thought that it's a sign that you need to have more confidence in yourself." Nico replied, sipping her glass. "Y'know, I always hated that self-hating part of you since high school. Also, you really need to get over your abandonment issues."
"... I don't deny the confidence part or the self-hating part, but I've long gotten over that other issue..." Nozomi mumbled, pouring herself a second glass. Nico scowled, explicitly indicating her displeasure.
"No you haven't. If you did, you would know better than to strike up a sex-only relationship with Anju."
"... I was just lonely after we ended it..."
"Not 'we', Nozomi. You ended it. You were the one who broke Eli's heart, even though the breakup was inevitable!" Nico slammed her fists on the table, her ruby eyes filled with anger. "You may have went through a hell lot, so what? Big freaking deal, Eli and I care about you sure, but the rest of the world don't. Your problems aren't gonna affect the world, it's only affecting your world. So stop self-pitying yourself and get your damn act together!"
"Nico, ya don't understand what I'm going through at all." Nozomi's tone was cold, it would have frozen most people but Nico was never one of them. "It's easy for ya to spout nonsense when ya haven't went through the same thing as I did. So what if your dad died? He died when yer still young, but at least he loved you. Yer mom has practically one foot in the grave, but at least she loves ya. Yer three siblings are waitin' at home for ya to come home, they still love ya. If ya want to preach to me 'bout my issues, then wait for the day when they start to hate ya."
"... You're really messed up Nozomi. Of course I don't understand any of your bloody problems, but I'm trying to. Y'know what? I'm done trying to understand, obviously it ain't working out. I'll leave you to your self-pity." Nico growled, heading for the door. "Oh and this will be your first and last warning, but don't you dare curse Mama."
"..." Nozomi simply stared at the tarot card in her hand, wincing as she heard the door slam close. "I'm right, I'm supposed to be hanged. Just that I've always been lookin' at the wrong noose..."
XXXXXX
"Oh Eli, where were you?" Umi asked, greeting Eli, Honoka, Erena and Anju. "You too Honoka, where the hell were you?!"
"Ahahaha... Long story actually. Anyways Eli-chan, you gonna break the news to 'em or you want me to do it?" Honoka laughed off Umi's worries, slapping Eli's back repeatedly.
"Um, well I participated in a raffle out of boredom and well... I won tickets to an inn in Uchiura? There's supposed to be an open hot spring at this place..." Eli said, opening the box. "One, two, three... Wow, now this is a coincidence."
"You guys are back nya! Honoka-chan! Did you get the popsicle that Rin asked for nya?!" Rin asked, bursting out from Maki's room.
"Even better, we're going on a trip to Uchiura!" Honoka smiled, gesturing to Erena and Anju. "And look at what our lovely colleagues got for us!"
"Since when we got them for you...?" Erena questioned, her hand holding a large cooler. "I can't believe I got a consolation prize..."
"Well you did say that the prizes get crazy for the legendary raffle..." Anju smiled reassuringly, her two hands securely holding two large plastic bags.
"I know... but how the hell did you get second?!" Erena snapped, wanting to hurl the cooler at her best friend but not wishing for the second prize to break.
"Did you say legendary raffle?" Nico asked, an irritated look on her features. "First her, now you..."
"What's wrong Nico? Oh and have you seen Nozomi? I need to explain why both Honoka and I are late for work." Eli asked, unaware of Nico's expression. Upon hearing Nozomi's name, Nico immediately lashed out at Eli.
"How the hell would I know?! Maybe she's at the bottom of a river, maybe she hung herself at Kanda Shrine! Hell, she may still be drinking your freaking vodka in the confines of her damn office!" Nico stormed off, stunning those who were present.
"What's Nico-chan's problem?" Maki asked, accompanied by Tsubasa and Hanayo. "Sheesh, first thing after recording is to see a pissed off pipsqueak."
"Now now, want to get dinner? It'll be the treat of those who participated in the raffle today~!" Tsubasa suggested, sending the participants a wink.
"Settle it with Erena and Anju, I'm going to find Nozomi." Eli replied, running off towards Nozomi's office. Once she arrived at the door of Nozomi's office, she originally settled for knocking but decided to enter unannounced. However as she tried to open the door, she realised that it was locked. "You have got to be kidding me... Nozomi! Open up! Didn't you say that you'll stop drinking?!"
"... Says the person who accompanied someone who claimed to stop gamblin'..." Nozomi's tired voice came through, it was faint but Eli could hear it loud and clear. "... So, what did ya win?"
"A trip to an inn in Uchiura. It can cover for all 12 of us, plus we don't have to give a single cent."
"..." The door slowly opened, revealing a drunk Nozomi. "When are we goin'?"
"Well... I was thinking of tomorrow, but it's a bit late so..."
"Okay, find someone apart from me to drive us to that inn first thing at 7.30 am tomorrow." Nozomi mumbled, slamming the door close. Eli blinked, this wasn't how she wanted to let Nozomi know about the trip, but the end justifies its means after all.
"Alright then..." Eli shrugged, walking back to the entrance where everyone but Nico and Nozomi were present. "Were there this many of us in the entrance just now?"
"Oh my god, are you implying that Kotori-chan is fat?!" Honoka gasped, pointing an accusing finger at Eli. "Y-You're horrible!"
"What?! No! Ah screw this, I'll text all of you the details later. Right now, pack up and go home. All of you." Eli ordered, dismissing Honoka's claim.
"Okay/Alright/Got it~!" Everyone left, apart from Maki and Hanayo. Maki glanced at Eli, and sighed as she made her way to Eli's side.
"I need to ask you a private question, come with me." Eli nodded, and allowed herself to be dragged off by Maki. Hanayo simply watched on, not knowing what was going on.
"I feel like I'm in a drama series... I didn't know that they have such a backstory... no, it sounds too much like a drama already..."
XXXXXX
Umi: What's with this chapter? It's getting more... dramatic by the second.
Eli: Yeah... We should focus more on how Maki is going to confess to Hanayo!
Maki: *Sputters*
Eli: Nice reaction Maki~
Umi: Hmm... So let me get this straight, the topic of tsundere came up due to a review, and now we have all sorts of pasts that Hanayo has to face in order to get to know them better? Seriously, what the hell.
Maki: Technically, I have to face the Toyawa crew's problems. And believe me, they're far worse.
Eli: I-I believe that Nico's is rather easy to comprehend?
Maki: True, but yours and Nozomi's are pretty messed up in their own way. Nozomi's probably the worst.
Umi: I've read online that the person who has the brightest smile is the most broken one, I didn't expect it to be true...
Eli: I do hope that our trip to the inn wouldn't be ruined...
Maki: We can find out in the next chapter, and also that's where we will be addressing the reviews.
Umi: Alright then, I think I'll need to lie down... *Leaves*
Maki: Me too. *Follows suit*
Eli: ... I swear, not all of us are messed up.
