Honoka: You know, I never liked being with you and Nozomi-chan.

Kotori: Why is that?

Honoka: Cause it's a reminder that we don't have a group song! Like, there's Soldier Game, After School NAVIGATORS and what about us? The trio who slacks in a dark corner of a room the whole day?

Nozomi: Now now, we have our own charm ya know?

Kotori: I'm surprised you're out here, since you had already read the previous chapter...

Nozomi: Aw man, I wish HSR me would reconcile with HSR Nicocchi soon...

Kotori: Speaking of which... do we come from alternate universes or are we from the same one?

Honoka: I'm from the original anime!

Nozomi: I'm from RaP, what about ya Kotori-chan?

Kotori: Um... this universe's Kotori?

Honoka: Man this is complicated... Well fine, author doesn't own anything, English words are in bold yadda yadda and we're off!

Nozomi: Honoka-chan, ya should do it properly... if not it's washi washi time for ya~

XXXXXX

"It's the sea! Woohoo!" Honoka yelled as she and Rin proceeded to charge into the sea. After their tour, the group had decided to visit the sea as planned. Some people, like Honoka, Rin and Anju, were excited over the prospect of the sea while others like Maki, Eli and (un)surprisingly Nozomi, were... less enthusiastic over their visit to sea.

"It's just the sea, why are they so hyped up over it?" Maki questioned, shooting a look at Eli. "I'm surprised you chose to bare both of your legs..."

"Eh, what can I do? Honoka will definitely drag me in to play, so wearing long skirts are out for me." Eli replied, tugging on her jacket. "Which is why I opted for a simple hoodie that can cover me in case anyone notices me."

"That's a terrible solution Elichi. Either ya don't wear 'em, or ya sit this one out." Nozomi gave her own opinion, holding up a camcorder that was facing the direction of Kotori and Tsubasa.

"Why are you being like this Nozomi?" Eli asked, wishing that her best friend would give her an answer. She got what she wanted, but not in a straight way. And Eli hated answers that were ambiguous at best.

"Oh ya know, just summer heat gettin' to the best of us, fuelin' the volcano in our hearts, ya know the rest." Nozomi shrugged, walking off.

"... I think I need to lock Nico and Nozomi in a room together and pray hard that those two will make up." Eli groaned, mussing her hair out of frustration.

"That can easily be arranged later." Maki replied, lowering her sunglasses so that her eyes meet Eli's. "I'm sure Kotori and Anju will be more than happy to cooperate with you given the fact that everyone now knows that there's something going on between those two blockheads."

"Hanayo and Rin don't."

"Hanayo does now, thanks to a certain terrible liar and an ex-tsundere." Eli gave Maki a disturbed gaze, with Maki wryly smiling back. "You're welcome."

"Why the hell did you bring her into this?!"

"Not me, Kotori provided the base, Umi gave her the body and I simply decorated the cake."

"... What's her reaction to this?"

"Hmm... She asked me why did Nozomi set up the company with you two after hearing about it. I never really told her when you got yourself injured but given that your car was bought by your younger sister, I imagine that your injury was during high school."

"Now that you mention about it, Nozomi never really told us why did she want to enter the anime industry..." Eli looked back upon the past, and realised that not even she nor Nico knew why did Nozomi want to run a company in the anime industry. "What's Nico doing over there with Hanayo?"

"Hanayo, you look real cute in your swimsuit." Nico complimented, her signature twin tails now tied up in a low ponytail. "Not afraid that your bust will attract attention?"

"I-I... I-I think I can handle it..." Hanayo was blushing furiously, and covering up her chest while her eyes darted around to see whether there were any unwanted attention. "... Probably."

"Don't worry, if anyone starts hitting on you, I can protect you."

"T-That's a relief... Does this happen to you often though?" Hanayo asked, biting her tongue after realising what she had just said. 'O-Oh no, Maki-chan once said that Nico-san's chest size is one of her complexes...'

"Nah, my bust size will only garner attention from a niche group of people that won't be usually found on beaches. It happens to Nozomi often though, she's surprisingly incapable at handling with the male species." Nico laughed, sending Eli a smirk. "Eli on the other hand, a cold glare from her piercing cerulean eyes was all it took to send them running!"

"I-I can hear you from here!" Eli yelled back, stomping over to Nico to give her ears a firm twist. "You're just jealous that no one looked your way!"

"Given the number of times Nozomi groped me, I can safely say that she has looked my way more than once." Nico retorted, thrashing about in Eli's firm grip. "And get your mitts off me! It bloody hurts y'know!"

"Tell me what happened to you and Nozomi yesterday! I'm not getting anything concrete out of Nozomi and I swear to harasho that if you don't tell me-"

"Okay okay! Don't get all murdery on me! I'll speak!" Nico pleaded, attempting to loosen Eli's grip on her ears. Eli immediately complied, dropping Nico to the sand (since she was lifted up in the process). "O-Oh man, can't believe they went through such torture..."

"Yeah yeah, speak already." Eli dismissed Nico's concern, glaring at Nico. "You better tell me the truth, or so help me I'll hit the nico nico daylights out of you."

"Okay! Sheesh, I gave her a reality check! I told her that she's still harping over her abandonment issues, and that she broke your heart when you two broke up!" Nico admitted, standing upright despite Eli's looming figure. It sucked being short, and Nico knew that feeling too. "Then Nozomi lost it and started insulting my family, which then I kinda sent her a threat."

"... What the hell...? Why- Gah, forget what I wanted to say. What started this conversation anyways?" Eli groaned, glancing at Nozomi, who was recording Honoka and Rin.

"I entered her room because I felt that she may need a drink... and the conversation escalated when she showed me one of her tarot cards." Nico bit her lip, averting her eyes from Eli. "Well, not like it really mattered. I asked what was bugging her, and I would have pursued the matter if she didn't tell me the truth."

"... Nico Yazawa, you-"

"I know I know, I'm at fault too. But I really wanna make up with Nozomi, it really doesn't feel the same y'know?"

"Not that. Why did you even offer Nozomi a drink? I'm going to guess that you got the alcohol from my stash, but you know that Nozomi is a recovering alcoholic!"

"... She never once stopped actually." Nico mumbled, wishing that she wasn't having this conversation with Eli. "Look, I'm sorry that I hurt Nozomi again and I know that she still means the world to you in a platonic way, but somebody has to do the dirty work alright?"

"... What you need to do is to apologise under the context that Nozomi knows that she has some fault to play too. I'll... I'll help you solve your own mess, partly because I'm the reason that this ever happened. But in the future, tread carefully."

"You know I hate being considerate for others just so that they can live in a sweet lie."

"Nico, remember the time that you ruined Maki's Christmas that Santa doesn't exist?" They turned their heads to Maki, who was trying her very best to flirt with Hanayo. Key word being 'trying'.

"S-Say Hanayo, y-you look lovely in that swimsuit." Maki said, trying her very best to smile normally (and not her usual condescending smile that she liked to use).

"Really? I'm so glad, Nico-san told me that I look cute in it! I'm really glad that I don't look weird in it..." Hanayo breathed a sigh of relief, causing Maki to blush harder than she ever had. "Maki-chan? Are you alright?"

"Y-Yeah. Sunburn. Thanks to you." Maki fumbled for an explanation, tripping over her words in the process. "Y-You look great without your glasses."

"Aw, thank you Maki-chan! You look handsomer with your hair tied up!" Hanayo, seemingly oblivious to Maki's attempts to flirt with her, complimented. Nico and Eli shook their heads, pitying Maki.

"Man, Maki-chan sure sucks at flirting. Did ruining her Christmas had such an impact on her?"

"I doubt it... but I think it was at that point that Maki started being honest to herself..."

XXXXXX

"Well that was refreshing... if shooting water out from water guns into our eyes and swinging a metal bat around wildly can be considered refreshing that is!" Umi gritted her teeth, sending chilling glares towards Anju, Kotori, Honoka, Rin and even Tsubasa. "I'm very disappointed in you Tsubasa."

"We're at a beach for crying out loud! It's summer you hear? S-U-M-M-E-R!" Tsubasa retorted, pointing a finger at Nozomi. "Should you be calling Nozomi-san out?! She was filming us the whole time! That's voyeurism right?!"

"I ain't doin' voyeurism. I'm makin' summer memories yan~" Nozomi shrugged, a flippant smile on her face. "Speakin' of memories, it reminds me of the time where two lovers did it in the hot spring..."

"... Why are you guys looking at us...?" Kotori asked, noticing the stares on her and Nico. "We didn't do it in a hot spring."

"Yeah, so stop looking at us like-" Nico agreed, but was soon cut off by Kotori's continuation.

"We did it in a closet."

"Oh my god, have some decency!" Nico blushed, slapping Kotori numerous times. The remaining ten decided to ignore them (apart from Nozomi who chose that occasion to record), and plan out what they should do next.

"It's 5.24 pm, what are the activities we could do now?" Maki stated, glancing at the clock.

"What about going into the hot springs? Matsuura-san mentioned that she liked to take a dip with Takami-san and Watanabe-san around this time." Tsubasa suggested, tugging on her t-shirt. "Besides, I think we all could use a relaxing dip into the hot springs."

"Then that's settled." Erena declared, stripping down to her birthday suit. "Let's go."

"Erena, I love you and all, but please have some decency." Tsubasa groaned, averting away from her girlfriend. "Put on a yukata at least."

"Why? It's hot, and I want to take a bath. It's logical for me to be naked now right?" Erena replied, a serious look on her face. "I'll head on first then."

"E-Erena! Wait!" Tsubasa begged, only for Erena to exit the room without anything to cover herself with. "You'll get reported for public indecency!"

"Haa~ Tsu-chan's off to chase after her stripper girlfriend." Anju remarked, a teasing smile on her face. "Those two are like a comedy duo, they fit each other so perfectly."

"You should really be more concerned Anju." Umi remarked, sighing as she started to unpack her luggage. "Well, since they're off to the hot springs, shall we follow them as well?"

"Yeah! Afterwards, let's go play with some fireworks!" Honoka cheerily agreed, stripping down to nothing but her birthday suit much to Umi's chagrin. "Rin-chan, race ya to the baths!"

"Nya! See ya at the baths Kayo-chin!" Rin ran off with Honoka, also in the nude. Maki wondered to herself how did Hanayo managed to stay friends with Rin for so many years considering that Hanayo herself was covering her eyes from Rin's stripping session.

"S-Shameless! Kotori! Did you just see what Honoka just did?" Umi asked, turning to face Kotori but was instead met with a make out scene. "K-K-Kotori?!"

"O-Okay, I think this is our cue to give them some privacy..." Eli gently nudged Umi out of the room, a furious blush on her face. "Nozomi, stop filming them already."

"Eh~ But it'll make a good sex tape!"

"Nozomi, please."

"Then I can sell it to Kotori-chan for her personal use!"

"Nozomi, I don't want to know why Kotori wants her own sex tape but you should leave. Like, leave it to film while you miss out on the action." Maki advised, shoving Hanayo out of the door. "And you're destroying Hanayo's innocence."

"Oh nice body~" A voice came from around the corner, followed by a shriek.

"That sounds like Ohara-san! She's here too?" Anju noted with surprise, exiting the room only to find a naked blonde-haired woman dripping with water. "Yup, it's indeed Ohara-san... and looks like Umi-san fainted..."

"... We're surrounded by shameless people aren't we?" Maki commented, pitying Hanayo who had to witness the sight.

XXXXXX

"Are you sure you're okay? You were lying in a pool of blood just now..." Maki asked, referring to Umi's anaemic complexion. Umi nodded, glancing away from the person that had caused her blood loss.

"I-I'll be fine. Ohara-san just shocked me." Umi muttered, glancing at said woman. "... She has a nice body indeed..."

"Don't mind Ohara-san, she's just like Erena." Tsubasa dismissed Umi's worry, glaring at Erena. "Erena on the other hand..."

"Ahahaha, Kira-san you're sure as strict as last time!" Kanan grinned at Tsubasa, jerking a thumb at a woman beside her. "You're just like Dia really!"

"Excuse me?! Kanan-san, what do you mean by that?!" The woman beside her, who had straight black hair, turquoise eyes and a beauty mark on her right chin, questioned, shooting Kanan threatening looks. "If anything, Kira-san is far more unreasonable!"

"Tsubasa, what did she mean by that?" Maki asked, curious about Tsubasa's life at A-RISE Animations. "For all I know, you're pretty docile."

"W-Well... I used to yell at people when they goof off while recording... O-Of course I don't do that now!" Tsubasa weakly replied, wishing that she could crawl up into a hole and live the rest of her life in there.

"Huh? That's all? I thought you'll do something far worse, plus you're still doing that to Honoka and Rin actually." Maki shrugged, pouring a cup of sake (that was in a floating bucket) for herself. "Hanayo, do you want some?"

"Um... Maybe I'll drink later when the rest bring out the alcohol." Hanayo replied, searching for Nozomi. Eventually her eyes managed to locate Nozomi, who was with Eli. 'I wonder what are they talking about...? I should go closer...'

"Hanayo?" Maki realised that Hanayo was going closer to Nozomi and Eli, and feared that she may worsen the situation. "H-Hanayo! Wait!"

"What is it Maki-chan?"

"You shouldn't make yourself so obvious. Whatever Nozomi and Eli are talking about... it's bound to be really private. We shouldn't interfere." Maki said, gently pulling Hanayo away from them. "Besides, you should take the time to relax. N-Not that I'm worried that you're over-stressed or anything."

"Oh Maki-chan, you're so considerate."

"W-What?! N-No I'm not worried at all! Really!"

"Hehe, thank you for worrying about me. Why don't we both go and relax at that corner?" Hanayo pointed to a secluded section of the pool, already seeing past Maki's words. "I think that we should spend some time basking in peace from time to time, don't you agree?"

"I-I... uh, yeah. That'll be nice." Maki fumbled for a proper response, hoping that Hanayo wouldn't notice her blushing face was not due to the heat. 'T-This is a date right? A hot spring date like how those visual novels turn out right?! Am I really experiencing it?!'

"Seems like Maki-chan's gonna get herself laid soon~" Nozomi smirked, ignoring Eli's displeasure. "Hanayo-chan sure is bold when makin' the moves huh?"

"Nozomi, don't try to run away from the topic." Eli sighed, she had already expected this yet going through with the actual thing was still troublesome. "What exactly triggered you? Was it the topic of your parents?"

"..." Nozomi kept quiet for a brief moment, before going back to her usual self. "Do ya think that Honoka-chan an' Rin-chan are unconscious even as we speak? They tend to push themselves, don't ya agree Elichi?"

"Nozomi. I want an answer, please stop running away." Eli curtly replied, obviously not in any mood to play along with Nozomi. Nozomi blinked, then gave Eli a hard look.

"... It doesn't really matter, does it?" Nozomi coldly replied, startling Eli with her words. "Our friendship is already over the day we had that conversation."

"This is what Nico hates about you, you always blow things out of proportion when in reality it can be solved if you just asked. I dislike that part about you Nozomi, why do you always think that everyone is out to get you?" Eli huffed, discovering what was the real problem between Nozomi and Nico. "... It was our breakup that led to this right?"

"...!" Nozomi flinched, suddenly treating Eli as though she was a threat. Well, she was indeed a threat in a way. Either way, she started moving away from Eli but Eli wasn't going to let Nozomi escape her.

"I'm right, aren't I? Look Nozomi, we've broken up. We can't be together, and you know it. We have to move on, and I'm not saying this because I like Honoka now. We can't keep on living in the past Nozomi, and there are some things that just can't happen no matter how hard we try."

"... The past is more comfortin' though..." Nozomi sullenly replied, as though Eli had forced a hot poker down her throat just to get an answer out of her. "Ya know that I need ya, I know that I hurt ya before, but I still need ya Elichi."

"... No one needs each other in this world, relationships are not symbiotic. We can depend on each other yes, but going as far as to base our survival off the relationship with someone is wrong Nozomi. Do you understand? I don't mind that you depend on me, but for you to rely on me for your survival is too much."

"Yer the only one I have! Yer the only one that wouldn't ditch me, not even if I have dependent personality disorder!"

"Wait, you have a mental problem too?! I thought Nico and I are the only ones to have something wrong with us!"

"Well I don't know really, but I looked it up on the net last time when we were datin'."

"Damn it Nozomi, don't say things that aren't true!"

"Look Elichi, point is that I need ya in my life!"

"Nozomi! I am in your life! Just that I'm no longer dating you, that time is long gone Nozomi. I've moved on, and I won't look back. You should move on Nozomi, there's someone that loves you now right?" Nozomi turned to Anju, who had noticed Nozomi looking at her and sent a smile back at the co-owner.

"... I don't deserve An-chan. I never did. I'm a fool to fall in love with her. I'm a fool to fall in love with anyone." Nozomi started to sob, which honestly worried Eli because one, she wasn't equipped with the necessary skills to comfort someone who may or may not be on the verge of a breakdown and two, she wasn't sure how to deal with Nozomi of all people. With a nervous glance, she beckoned Anju over to their side and prayed hard that she would be able to solve the problem at hand.

"Anju, can you hear Nozomi out? I'm not the one who should be with her right now, but promise me that you won't freak out after hearing what she wants to say." Eli whispered, not wanting Nozomi to notice that Anju would be taking Eli's place. Anju nodded in confusion, pulling Nozomi in a loose hug while listening to whatever Nozomi had to say. "Thank you, I'll buy you that cheese pudding you always wanted when we get back to Tokyo."

"I'm sorry. No wonder we had to breakup. I'm too toxic." Nozomi continued, speaking in short and brief sentences. This worried Anju greatly, for she had no knowledge of the conversation Eli had with Nozomi prior to her arrival. Anju continued to hug Nozomi, whether Nozomi wanted her there or not was an issue that they could settle afterwards.

'It's okay Nozomi-san. I'll always be here for you, no matter what.'

XXXXXX

"I wonder if it's really alright of me to leave Nozomi with Anju..." Eli sighed, she was starting to regret her decision. She never knew that Nozomi felt this way, and if it weren't for Nico... 'No! Stop it Eli! Nozomi's going to be fine! She's going to be fine, we can always get her the help that she needs. Absolutely fine, nothing's going to happen to her. Stop thinking about what happens if we allowed this to continue Eli, she's going to be fine.'

"Eli." Nico said, apparently done making out with Kotori. Eli turned to Nico, a hesitant look in her eyes. "... I don't like the look on your face."

"Well... let's just say that Nozomi's having a mini breakdown as we speak." Eli admitted, ruffling her hair with a towel. "... I suppose I should have attended the psychological health talk back in high school huh?"

"... Is she hitting people right now?" Nico asked, undressing herself as she waited for an answer.

"No, just... just spilling out whatever she really thinks." Eli mumbled, hoping that Nico wouldn't lash out at her the next second.

"Ah then that's perfectly alright. Anyways, who's she with right now?" Nico asked, surprisingly calm much to Eli's surprise. "... You did leave her with someone right? Cause if you didn't, I'm gonna hit you."

"I left her with Anju. Considering the fact that they're dating, she has a right to be with her now when Nozomi needs somebody the most." Eli replied, starting to dress herself. "I just hope that Anju's really taking it in with an open mind..."

"Meh, it can't be anywhere near bad. Anju really loves Nozomi anyways, so I'm sure she'll be there for her. The problem we have to concern ourselves with will be Nozomi..."

"Uh... sidetracking over here but where's Kotori?" Eli asked, not seeing the lead designer anywhere.

"She's in the sauna, think I saw Honoka and Rin in there with Takami-san." Nico shrugged, making her way towards the hot springs. "This is really a big step forward, thanks Eli."

"... Sure?" Eli blinked, she wasn't sure if she had actually solved the situation, but if Nico was satisfied with what she had done then maybe they wouldn't have to allocate them to a room like what Maki had suggested earlier.

XXXXXX

"Hey guys, dinner will be serve in an hour. You think you guys can hold out till then?" Chika asked, scribbling down a string of numbers and words on a scrap of paper and giving it to Eli afterwards. "Here's the address to a cafe that opens until really late. There's music, magic tricks and a library beside it!"

"Thanks for the recommendation Takami-san, and don't worry about the dinner. We can wait until then." Eli said, turning to the others once Chika had left the room. "So guys, what should we do?"

"... Nicocchi and I will head on down to that cafe Takami-san told us about." Nozomi informed Eli, prying the scrap of paper out of Eli's grip. "We have some things to iron out."

"Uh yeah, we do indeed. You guys can start without us." Nico nodded, following Nozomi out of the room. The remaining ten blinked, not expecting such a development.

"It actually worked...? Well whatever, back to the question. What do you guys want to do?" Eli asked again, a relieved smile on her face after seeing Nozomi and Nico getting along again.

"Doubt Umi again?" Erena suggested, earning herself a pillow to the head. "Guess not huh?"

"Then something tame like 'Two Truths and a Lie'? Would that work for you Umi-chan?" Kotori suggested, earning herself a nod from said person. "Hooray!"

"Why do I get hit while Kotori-san gets acknowledgement?" Erena grumbled, glaring at Kotori intensely. "Fine, I bet Eli-san will say something like along the lines of it being good team bonding exercises."

"Uh... Well it can test our knowledge to see if we really know everything about each other?" Eli replied, blinking at Erena's comment. "So, who's going to start?"

"Me!" Honoka's hand shot up, eager to start the game. "Uh... Okay got it! I like bread, I've never played Russian Roulette before and I like strawberries dipped in white chocolate!"

"Russian Roulette." Six of them responded in unison, leaving Eli, Kotori and Umi to mull over Honoka's choices.

"You dislike white chocolate, so I'm going to go with the last one." Kotori said, a smile on her face. "Nico-chan likes it though, but it's too sweet for me."

"Kotori is right, you spat out the white chocolate that I specially made for you years ago." Umi sighed, folding her arms. "That was very rude of you by the way."

"I know for a thing that you like bread and while I don't know about the chocolate bit, I do know that you've played Russian Roulette before. So yeah, the chocolate part is a lie." Eli explained, causing Honoka to earn death glares from Umi. "I take it that Umi doesn't know about that bit..."

"Damn right she doesn't. Anyways, I was lying that I like strawberries dipped in white chocolate." Honoka confessed, a sheepish smile on her face. "I kinda got myself into some trouble with the yakuza and yeah, took a gamble with our lives on the line and their boss died?"

"That was very dangerous and stupid even for you Honoka. But since you're still with us, I'm not going to scold you." Umi sighed, shaking her head in admonishment while Kotori, for unknown reasons, paled. "For now that is."

"Okay moving on folks! Next up, Umi-chan!" Honoka hurriedly ignored Umi's expression and declared her the next person to play. 'Oh this will be really easy to guess, since she sucks so bad at lying.'

"W-What?! Fine, I wear reading glasses occasionally, I got my ears pierced three years ago, and one of the two things I've said is a lie." The group simply deadpanned at Umi's choices, including Hanayo and Kotori. "O-Oh come on! Not you too Hanayo!"

"... Welp, I'll say that one of them being a lie is a lie itself." Honoka shrugged, choosing her answer. Kotori and Maki nodded, with the latter not too sure whether it was an attempt to confuse them, or it was really a lie like what Honoka had claimed.

"I've seen you with glasses when you're rewriting the script, so the piercings should be the lie." Erena said, staring at Umi intensely. "... You do know that one of them has to be a lie right?"

"W-What?! One of them is a lie!"

"Considering how bad you were at lying just now... who knows?" Umi was outraged at Erena's claim, she wasn't that bad at lying... right?

"... How bad is your eyesight?" Eli asked, observing Umi's movements. She had noted that Umi squinted a lot, and was trying to attract attention to her ears by playing with them.

"You mean the prescription? Around 100? It isn't that bad really." Umi replied, taken aback by the sudden question.

"I see. Then I'll say that you wearing glasses occasionally is the lie." The rest nodded along with Eli, with Umi collapsing to the floor in disappointment. "I knew it."

"H-How...?! I never once said anything about the glasses..." Umi groaned, upset that she was unable to lie convincingly.

"W-Well, you were squinting throughout. So I figured that the truth is that you need glasses constantly." Eli replied, which soon turn to confusion as Umi jumped about in joy. "U-Umi?!"

"Yes! I fooled you all! Woohoo!" The nine of them blinked, Umi wasn't acting like her usual self and honestly, it scared them. Umi noticed their concern mixed with fear, and explained to them the reason for her reaction (calmly of course). "I-I apologise. The truth is that I don't need them, and I wore glasses for fashion purposes."

"E-Eh?! Then why do you squint so often?" Tsubasa asked, noticing how Umi squinted during work, especially towards Honoka and Rin. "And since we're on this topic, why do you wear glasses for fashion? You're already fashionable enough without them..."

"I-I do that for intimidation... Honoka and Rin tend to goof off so I squint at them to cower them into submission..." Umi admitted, averting her eyes away from Honoka and Rin. "... And I overheard Rin telling Maki that she liked women who wore glasses... so I thought wearing them would garner Rin's interest..."

"U-Umi-chaaaaaan! You're too cute nya!" Rin squealed, tackling Umi to the floor. "Rin loves you a lot nya!"

"I'm glad that Rin-chan has someone to spend her time with." Hanayo smiled, which made Maki's heart skip a beat. 'Never knew that Rin-chan likes women with glasses... hang on, does that mean...? Nah, Rin-chan only sees me as a BFF!'

"R-Right, plus Umi will be sure to rein Rin in line..." Maki commented, averting her eyes towards Honoka. "Hey Honoka, who's gonna go next?"

"Huh? Hmm... How about..."

XXXXXX

"Well that was surprising, who knew that Tsubasa bullied animals before..." Tsubasa groaned, regretting the truth that she had provided. She should have gone with what Umi went with, admitting that one of her truths was actually a lie.

"Maki, stop it already."

"Oh come on, it's too surprising to not mention! Hating milk is one thing, but bullying animals is plain wrong." Maki sighed in a mocking tone, irritating her coworker. "By the way, why did you lie that you're religious?"

"I was out of options damn it! What the hell can I lie about?!"

"You can always say that you're a virgin." Erena offered, earning herself a smack on the head. "What?! You wanted a lie that no one would believe right?!"

"Uh, isn't that obvious? I mean, Tsubasa seems like the popular type who lost her virginity in high school or something."

"Maki, I lost it recently. With Erena." Tsubasa admitted, resisting the urge to rip the smug grin off her girlfriend's face. "Erena, don't step over the line."

"Right right. By the way, who's left?"

"Kotori if I'm not wrong." Eli replied, staring at the clock. "The food sure is taking quite a while..."

"Fish needs to be treated with delicacy." Umi explained, nearly delving into a conversation about it.

"Umi, fish is a staple food of Russia and as far as I know, it doesn't need to be treated that delicately." Eli deadpanned, her line of sight now on the door. "Forget the food, how long is the make up session going to take?"

"Well Ruby-chan's cafe is quite interesting! I mean, there's magic, classy music that's not the weird dubby-thingy and a freaking library beside it!" Chika popped her head into the room, carrying a large plate filled with assorted sashimi. "There's more by the way, You-chan's helping me carrying the food!"

"What is the weird dubby-thingy you're talking about?" Hanayo asked, her eyes sparkling as You arrived with huge bowls of rice.

"Probably dub-step. I highly doubt a place isolated from the city would have something as modern as-" Maki's words were left unfinished as it was cut off by electronic music. More specifically, a mix of heavy metal, techno and what Maki described later as 'rough beats'. "... Okaaaay so Uchiura is modern enough to have dub-step."

"Mari-san! How many times have I told you to keep that newfangled racket down to a minimum?!" Dia yelled, her turquoise eyes filled with rage as she nearly threw a pot filled with steaming hot soup at another room (most likely the one Mari is residing in).

"Uh... yeah, where were we?" Chika decided to ignore Dia and helped You with the dishes, with Eli expressing her gratitude on behalf of Muse Studios. "A-Anyways, if you need anything just holler! Have a good night!"

"Wow, that's a lot of food." Nico entered the room, whistling at the spread. Nozomi poked her head into the room, her eyes lighting up at the sight of yakiniku.

"Yakinikuuuuu!" Nozomi immediately charged towards the plate that had the meat, stroking the plastic edge tenderly. "Mama's here..."

"Dude, you could've just said that you wanted that. No need to do a 100 metre dash..." Tsubasa sighed, opting for lobster instead. "Sheesh."

"So, what were you losers doing when we were out?" Nico asked, sitting in between Eli and Hanayo.

"Two Truths and A Lie. You?" Eli asked, her chopsticks locked in a battle with Umi's. "Umi, can you please let me have that sashimi already?!"

"No. I will not let you have the yellowtail!

"Come on, there are other yellowtails!"

"I want to have the one that you stole from me!"

"S-Stole?! Now listen here Umi-" Eli's words were cut off by Nico, her arm covering the fish and soon splitting into two. "H-How did you?!"

"That's what we did at the cafe. That magician sucked big time." Nico smirked, eyeing the hotpot. "Oh, there's beef in it! Awesome~"

"Nicocchi, Yohane-chan wasn't half bad at all. Stop saying that she sucks already." Nozomi said, glaring at Tsubasa warily.

"Oh by the way Kotori-san... what were the truths and the lie that you would tell us if we weren't interrupted?" Anju asked, distancing herself from her noisy co-workers, opting to eat silently with Hanayo, Maki, Kotori, Erena, Honoka and Rin (much to Anju's surprise that the last two could shut up and enjoy a peaceful dinner).

"Huh? Oh um... I can tap dance, hold my breath underwater for 40 seconds and I have a tattoo?"

"... You know, if you want to lie about something, at least make it convincing."

"But I am though?" Anju sighed heavily, confusing Kotori. "What did I say wrong?"

"You didn't say anything wrong Kotori, just that the truth is shocking." Nico said, chewing on her beef. 'Was Kotori able to dance the Viennese Waltz... or was it ballroom dancing?'

XXXXXX

"Hey Nozomi, can I talk to you for a bit?" Eli asked, leaning on the door frame. "Sorry Anju, I know you want to cuddle with Nozomi here but-"

"It's fine, just don't go making out with her." Anju replied, in fact she pushed Nozomi out of the room in a hasty manner. One would assume that Anju was attempting to do something illegal but hey, doing something illegal was considered a norm among the co-workers.

"So Elichi, are ya goin' to strip right here in the middle of the hall?" Nozomi asked, grinning at a passing Chika. "Well it's okay if yer an exhibitionist like Erena-chan an' Ohara-san ya know, I ain't gonna judge."

"W-What?!" Eli sputtered, her plans going out of the window. "No! I want to have a serious talk with you Nozomi!"

"Serious eh? Well, no surprise to what the topic's gonna be. Lemme guess, it's regardin' me an' Nicocchi right?"

"Yeah. I'm glad that things worked out for you two, if not we'll be executing plan B..."

"Welp, it's time for me to start lettin' things go anyways. Can't keep them all with me for forever ya know."

"What's with the sudden change in opinion though? You were rather adamant in staying in the past just now..." Eli had to know the answer, she had never seen anyone that could change so easily within a few minutes.

"I always thought that I have a chance with ya, but you seriously slapped me hard."

"H-Hey! I didn't slap you!"

"Take a chill pill Elichi, ya know what I mean." Nozomi reassured Eli, her smile never leaving her face. "An-chan was tenderly holdin' me when I stopped blubberin' like a damn fool, holdin' my boobs really but I ain't one to mind."

"Uh... sure? So uh... wait, what did I want to say?" Eli blinked, losing her track of mind. "Okay well never mind, since it's all settled I guess there's nothing for me to really say. Have a good night Nozomi."

"Yep!" Nozomi waved Eli off, practically skipping back into her room. "An-chan, what are ya doin'?"

"Huh? Oh, I was just scrolling the chat we're all in." Anju said, looking up from her phone. "Aw nuts, looks like it's back to work for me tomorrow..."

"Hm? Why so?"

"Let's see... Nico-san asked me to take pictures of the sea before the sun rises, and Kotori-san wants to sketch out the cafe you went just now."

"Ya sound like an errand girl huh?" Nozomi teased, with the latter pouting. "Alright, won't tease ya anymore. I'm gonna get some shut eye, see ya later~"

"Urgh... The sun will rise in three hours time! Nico-san, Kotori-san, you two are unbelievable!" Anju whined, stomping out of the room with Nozomi's camcorder.

XXXXXX

Nozomi: Aw right, happy end!

Honoka: And it's back to work for Anju-chan huh? Geez, you guys are on a holiday, lighten up a little!

Kotori: Uh, we're actually already behind time. Besides, it's not every day that we get to observe a beach scene up close...

Honoka: I miss my Kotori-chan... she's not like Umi-chan at all!

Kotori: I-I have a job now... and I certainly don't act like Umi-chan!

Nozomi: By the way, what was the lie?

Kotori: Eh?

Nozomi: In the story, ya played the game with the rest right? What was the actual lie?

Honoka: Isn't it the tattoo thing? Like how can she-

Kotori: I can't tap dance actually, I can dance the Viennese Waltz though!

Nozomi: See Honoka-chan, ya should pay attention to the story yan!

Honoka: Y-You're a rebel Kotori-chan! A rebel!

Kotori: E-Ehhhh?!