X December 17th X
It was a few days before any of them saw each other again. The storm truly had wrecked the city and it took officials a while to clean everything up. Satoshi and Yuka had spent them at home. Their parents hadn't minded their overnight absence...too much. They'd just wanted to know if it was worth it. Satoshi had told them it had been and that their friend was fine.
And then Yuka had taken it upon herself to announce Satoshi had said friend as a date for the 24th. Then she'd ran away, giggling and laughing and leaving Satoshi standing there embarrassed. Their parents had found it quite amusing, but otherwise didn't really comment on it too much. For that, Satoshi was glad.
He spent those days, or at least the times Yuka wasn't bored and bothering him, thinking ahead for the date. He had completely missed any opportunity for a restaurant or something similar. But they could always go walking around the city. The lights really were amazing this time of year, especially by the waterfront. And it would give them a chance to talk, something very much needed.
Attire wasn't too much of an issue. It'd be cold, so he'd he wearing a jacket or coat over anything else. Still, on the off chance they did manage to find something indoors, he'd have to wear a dress shirt. But other then that, a pair of jeans and sneakers would be fine. The other details, he'd have to work out with Naomi next time he saw her.
That day happened to be the 17th, a few days after her birthday and exactly a week till the 24th. The electrical grid had finally been patched up and the roads and sidewalks cleared. So the city quickly resume its normal hustle and bustle, and that included school. So that morning Satoshi and Yuka both got up and made the walk to school alongside dozens of equally let down students.
"Big Brother?" Yuka asked as they walked. "Can you ask Naomi to wait with you?" She asked. "I want to see her again." Kisaragi Academy held both a middle school and a high school, but the student bodies were separated and were dismissed at different times of the day, hence why none of Satoshi's friends had ever met Yuka before hand.
"I'll ask her." Satoshi promised, trying to hide his anxiousness. Even after her birthday, a small amount of doubt existed in his mind because there clearly was a lot to do still. But Naomi had said she was eager to see them again, so surely she would make sure to come to school today? He hoped so at least. Yuka and him separated at the gate and headed to their respective classes.
When he walked into 2-9, the first thing he did was scan around. Yoshiki was absent that day again, but that wasn't anything new. Satoshi's gaze drifted towards a different part of the room and he sighed in relief when he saw Naomi there at her desk. Not only that, but she didn't look dead on her feet or detached from everything around her. Rather, she just looked nervous due to the fact there were no familiar faces nearby.
"Morning." Satoshi walked over and greeted her. Her eyes brightened when she saw him.
"Satoshi...Good morning." It wasn't the greeting the old Naomi would've used, but she'd greeted him. That was good enough for him. "I'm not use to being the first one here." She admitted.
"Yoshiki skips class a lot to visit the Class Rep." Satoshi explained. They had a few minutes to talk before lessons began. "He might fail the year if it keeps up...but I haven't been able to convince him not too."
"Shinozaki is going to kill him when she wakes up." Naomi laughed, although there was an obvious nervousness to it.
"Yeah..." Satoshi tried not to let it ruin the mood. "That'll definitely be the first she does... Or ask for all the assignments she missed."
"I bet." Naomi nodded. The friendly exchange was interrupted by a bell signaling the start of lessons. Everyone rushed to their seats, and the two had to cut their conversation short. But it was a good start to the day for both of them, so they didn't mind. They didn't get another chance to speak till lunch break, during which both relocated to a corner of the room for privacy.
"Have you been doing okay?" Satoshi asked first, worry in his voice.
"Yeah." Naomi nodded, looking embarrassed. "My mothers really happy to see me back to normal... I feel terrible for stressing her out so much these past few weeks..." She looked guilty. "She was worried about me..."
"She cares about you, Naomi."
"I know... It's just...she doesn't know and she kept saying..." Naomi trailed off, unable to continue. "She got me a late birthday present." Naomi changed the subject. "A kitten." She smiled. "It's really cute."
"That's great." Satoshi commented. He'd heard of pets helping people recover from incidents, so maybe it was exactly what Naomi needed.
"You should all come see it sometime." Naomi offered. "It really likes people."
"I'd like too." Satoshi nodded. "Yuka too." Naomi smiled and then averted her gaze outside for a short while before turning back to Satoshi.
"Satoshi, I was wondering if...the three of two would come over again on the 22nd." She asked quietly and looked at him pleadingly for an answer. The 22nd? That was Shinohara's birthday...
"Shinohara, huh?" Satoshi asked cautiously. Of all the subjects between the group of friends, that had to be the most sensitive.
"Yeah." Naomi admitted, looking around first. Their classmates had ridiculed her, all of them actually, for insisting on the existence of the others. It had eventually forced them into a reluctant silence. Even now they weren't comfortable bringing them up just in case someone overheard. "I don't think it's right to ignore the day."
"No, I understand." Satoshi nodded. "I'll come, though I'm not sure about the others." He remembered his conversation with Yuka on the way to school. "You can ask Yuka this afternoon though. She wanted me to ask you to wait because she wants to see you again."
"Oh." Naomi glanced out the window towards the building that housed the middle school. "Ok then, I'll stay for a bit. You really have a nice sister, Satoshi."
"She's annoying sometimes," Satoshi chuckled. "But she's a really good girl."
"Yeah. I guess I'll call Kishinuma and ask him once the cell phone service restores itself." Naomi decided. "But thanks for agreeing to come... I know she never really made you guys comfortable." That was an understatement. Shinohara had always made it her goal to make a situation awkward for her own amusement, often at the expense of those around her. But she never went too far, and it always made the school day a little more bearable.
"Don't mention it." Satoshi shook his head and tried to think of something else to say. He considered the option of continuing to talk about Shinohara...but decided against it. As sensitive as it was to Naomi, he didn't want to risk making her upset in a public place. His next topic of choice was manageable, but embarrassing.
"Naomi," Satoshi face had turned a bright shade of red before he even opened his mouth. "About what I asked you..."
"Huh? Oh!" Her face went bright red when she remembered. "Our date!" She smiled nervously. Hearing her say it so happily made Satoshi feel lightheaded again, like he was in a dream.
"Y-yeah." Satoshi stuttered. "I-I was wondering what time I could pick you up?" It would be a school day the day after, so obviously they couldn't be out too late. But they'd have to be in school on the 24th as well, which meant it would be the evening before they could even start. "Would six be an ok time?" He offered.
"Ok!" She agreed excitedly.
"O-ok." Satoshi felt better now that that was settled. "I'll pick you up a six then."
"I can't wait!" She beamed, still bright red. They were both eternally grateful to the bell that rang just then, because it meant they didn't have to face each other any longer. Planning all this stuff ahead was necessary, but that meant they'd both spend the next week anxiously because they knew what would happen.
The next few days were going to be a bit awkward with that hanging over them.
Fortunately, the embarrassment had faded between them by the time the school day ended. They managed to make small talk about the day as they left and as they stood by the school gates, and the topic eventually came to Naomi's presence in school the past few weeks.
"I really need to pull my grades up..." Naomi sighed. "I barely listened to half of what was being said before even when I showed up.
"I took a lot of notes, you can borrow them if you'd like." Satoshi offered. He'd done the same for Yoshiki; he didn't want any of his friends to fail the year because then they ran the risk of being separated during their senior year.
"Thanks..." She smiled.
"Big Brother!" Like usual, Yuka appeared with a surprise hug. Today, she finished it quickly though. "Naomi!" She got the same treatment.
"Now you see what I go through every day." Naomi laughed when Satoshi said it.
"Hey, nice to see you." Naomi greeted. "I'm feeling a lot better thanks to you guys." Yuka seemed overjoyed at the praise. They were all heading in the same direction for a while anyway, so they walked home together, which gave the girls time to talk about an amazingly wide range of topics.
Girls are girls. Satoshi thought. Regardless of age or how long they knew each, they could get along well. The conversation soon turned to the important issues though.
"Yuka?" Naomi asked. "I'm planning on doing something on the 22nd for...Seiko." Naomi managed to say it without breaking down. "Your brother already agreed to come, and I know you didn't know her that well... but I'd be grateful if you-"
"Okay!" Yuka agreed before she'd even finished. Naomi was surprised for a moment, then smiled.
"Thank you, Yuka. I wish your brother would've introduced you to us sooner." Yuka giggled at the complement.
"You know." Satoshi said thoughtfully, "All of us should have a meeting to discuss what we'll do for Shinozaki." He suggested. Yoshiki surely would've reminded them of it, but they only had a week left, so it was better not to wait.
"Right." Naomi was immediately focused on the issue. Yuka yelped.
"I haven't bought her a gift yet!" She realized. "Big Brother, you need to take me shopping!" She ordered, which made both older teenagers laugh.
"I have to get her something too." Naomi confessed. "Although I think she'll already like the friendship ring." She glanced down at her hand. All of three of them were wearing them still, even if they bit into their skin in the cold.
"I already went shopping, since Yoshiki told me what she liked. He already bought her a whole bag full of stuff." Satoshi revealed. "Actually, I think he might've bought a second bagful by now!" Naomi held a hand to her face.
"Wow... Kishinuma always did get her the most stuff for her birthday." Naomi remembered. "You said he's been visiting her in the hospital every day? He must really care about her..."
"Yeah. He'll probably be the one there when she first wakes up." Satoshi nodded. It hadn't been any secret to him that Yoshiki had been interested in Shinozaki, but none of the others ever seemed to notice.
"He must be disappointed she'll be in the hospital for the 24th." Naomi guessed. Her and Satoshi looked at each other, simultaneously blushed, and looked away. "Well..." She said after a moment. "I can't wait till we go visit. I really do want to apologize to her after...what happened." She looked down.
"Naomi? Don't blame yourself." Satoshi said. "We're glad you were there with her. If you weren't...she might be dead too now." Naomi shivered when she thought about it. Satoshi did too. Losing a friend outside of Heavenly Host was still a very terrifying thought.
"I guess you're right... I hope you guys aren't mad at her either. She really did just want to help each other, even if it caused harm to herself..." Naomi defended.
"I'm not." Satoshi shook his head. Yuka did too, even though she'd only been listening in. "I just wish she'd told us before... We'll have a lot to talk about once she's released."
"Yeah..." Naomi didn't appear to be eager for those conversations.
"But let's just help her get better first." Satoshi said quickly. "Once the five of us are back together, nothing can go wrong, right?"
"Right!" The two of them agreed with him.