"Nakamura-san?" My heart sank and I immediately felt jealousy flow through me, but I suppressed it. "Well, I'm not surprised," I said with a forced chuckle. "I'd probably have a crush on her if I were ten years younger."

Motoyasu nodded. "I…wanted to ask for your advice."

"Oh? On what?" My heart rate increased exponentially.

"How do I confess my feelings to her?" He sounded almost desperate.

"Okay first of all, calm down," I said. I need to be mature about this… "First of all, have you interacted with her much?"

He lowered his head. "No…"

"Well, how about you start with that?" Wait, what am I saying?!

"You think she'd talk to a loser like me?"

Despite my jealousy I did feel bad for this guy. He sounded as if he had some insecurity issues. I put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't call yourself a loser," I said reassuringly. "I can tell you're not a loser. Sure, you may like manga and games, but so do I. And I'm not a loser, am I?"

He shook his head. "No…"

"Exactly. Your interests are your own. There's nothing wrong with that. My first girlfriend liked me, and I had some differing interests than her." Stop it stop it stop it!

"But-"

"No buts, Chiba-san. And stop doubting yourself." I smiled. "Let me let you in on a little advice my mom once told me. Women like a man who is more confident in himself, but not to the point of being prideful. There's a fine balance there. You notice how Tanaka-san speaks whenever she rambles on about her interests? Her shy persona completely changes. She really enjoys talking about her interests and she really likes it when people are genuinely interested in listening to her. I bet you're the same when it comes to your hobbies. Seeing someone enthusiastic about something they really enjoy is a big turn-on."

"So…should I talk to Monika about my hobbies?"

"If she brings it up, sure. But be sure to also listen and pay attention to her as well. You might come off as boastful if you say you're a visual novel master or a GM for your local D&D group over and over again."

"Is it possible to learn this technique?" he asked.

I couldn't resist. "Not from a teacher. Life is the best teacher we can have." I leaned forward. "But don't tell anyone or else I'd be out of a job," I whispered.

Motoyasu chuckled. "I swear."

"Is there anything else you want to ask?" Please say no, please say no!

"Do…you think Monika's seeing anyone?"

Damn it! "I wouldn't know. I just got here last week, so if she's with someone I wouldn't know."

He bowed. "Thank you, Price-Sensei." He headed away, with a bit more of a pep in his step.

As soon as he was gone, I leaned against the wall and slid down to a sitting position. My heart was racing and my head felt like it was spinning. I took off my glasses and rubbed my eyes, trying to calm down. Even if he does confess, she'll turn him down…right? The moment I felt doubt, I immediately hated myself. I couldn't think that about Monika. I trusted her too much. No, she'd never do that. I refuse to doubt! I leaned back against the building, closing my eyes. I just…needed a rest.

"Sensei?"

I jumped at the startled voice. Looking up I saw that it was Mei. "Kisaki-san?"

"So there you are! The Literature Club members are looking for you," she said. "The festival's almost over, you know."

"Wait, it is?!" I looked at my phone and sure enough it was mid-afternoon. "Damn! I fell asleep!"

"Are you sure you're okay?" Mei asked me. "After what happened yesterday-"

"Yeah, I guess I'm not as okay as I thought," I said. "Probably just exhausted." I stood and brushed myself off. "Thank you for waking me, Kisaki-san."

"No problem, Sensei!" With that she headed back to her booth. I headed back to the school.

When I reached the clubroom, Yuri was the only one there. She looked up and saw me. Her expression brightened. "Sensei! Good to see you!"

"Hey there, Tanaka-san. Where's everyone else?"

"Looking for you. I stayed behind in case you came back." She went back to reading. I sat a few desks from her and looked at the internet on my phone. When I next looked up, she'd moved to the desk next to me.

"Tanaka-san? Didn't you message the others?"

She looked startled. "Ah, um, not yet. I wanted to talk to you." She put down her book and stood.

I smiled. "Sure, what about?"

She played with her hair nervously. "I have something I want to tell you." More alarms rang in my head.. "I want you to know how much you mean to me, Sensei."

Oh shit! For real?! It's too soon! "What do you mean?" I stood cautiously and stepped back a bit.

She looked away, blushing. "Ever since you've come to school, you've helped me so much. Not just me, but the others too. I've never met such a kind person like you and…I…" She looked up at me suddenly, her eyes wide. A demented smile formed on her face. She stepped forward, her attention completely on me. "I'm addicted to you, Sensei! I can't focus on anything else anymore. I feel like I'll die if I'm not breathing the same air as you! Damn it, I'm madly in love with you! I doubt anyone cares about you as much as I do!"

Ooooh boy. She's cracked. She's gone nuts. "Tanaka-san, are you alright?"

"I've never felt this good!" She grinned wildly. "You're a part of my thoughts every day! Ever since you became our advisor, you've never left my mind and your talk to me clinched it!" She ran over and pressed her chest against mine, her ample bosom soft and alluring. It was so sudden that I was taken off guard. Despite my fear, I became slightly aroused. She reached over and caressed my cheek. "I can't be without you anymore…I just want to crawl inside you!" She was panting heavily now, clearly fully aroused.

"Tanaka-san-"

"Tell me…Sensei…Tell me you want to be my lover. Do you accept my confession?" Her eyes were staring deeply into mine. Pleading, glistening…glowing!

I went over the options in my head. What do I do? How do I stop the script from killing her? Slowly, cautiously, I wrapped my arms around her. Her expression brightened in sheer joy as she wrapped her arms around mine. I hope you can forgive me…Yuri. Leaning my head back, I headbutted her as hard as I could. While she was reeling, I hit her square in the jaw. She went limp and stumbled back, collapsing on the floor. I immediately looked around in her coat pocket and removed a large knife. It was a simple knife, easy to miss. I sent a message to Monika, telling her to meet me in the clubroom immediately because Yuri had started becoming self-aware.

Monika threw the door open nearly seconds later. Sayori and Natsuki followed close behind. "What the hell happened?!" Natsuki said.

"It's a long story," I said. I held up the knife. "Suffice to say, she's in the state of mind she normally is at the end of Act Two. I had to knock her out before she did any harm to herself." I looked at Natsuki. "Hey, do you have Yuki's number?"

"Um…yeah? She gave it to me last night, why?"

"I need you to call her," I said. "Tell her that you and Yuri are going over to Monika's house with Sayori for a girls night or something. We need to all talk."

As Natsuki stepped out to make the call, Sayori asked "Where are we going actually?"

"My place is too small," I said. "We really should go to Monika's-"

"No," Sayori said. "I think we should go to your place, Sensei. I don't know why, but whenever I'm there the rainclouds decrease by a lot."

"I agree with Sayori," Monika said. "It's the safest place right now."

"And just how exactly are we going to carry her to my house?" I asked.

"I can make her invisible to others," Monika said.

"Okay, but she'll still need to be carried. It'll look weird if I'm just carrying a bunch of air," I said.

The room fell into silence. "What if we called a taxi?" Sayori suggested. "We can all go to your house from there."

"I mean, I guess that's okay," Monika said. "I'll make the call now." She pulled out her cell and called a taxi. When she was done, she walked over to us. "I'll take her outside. Sensei, meet you there?"

"Sure."

Monika easily hoisted Yuri onto her back and headed out. Natsuki came back in a few moments later. Sayori and I explained what was happening. "Ugh…this is so frustrating," she said. "But anyway, I should go buy some things at the store."

"What? Why?"

"For dinner, of course!" Natsuki grinned.

"Alright, here." Reaching into my wallet I handed her twenty thousand yen. "Use my money."

Natsuki's eyes widened. "This is…way too much Sensei." She tried to push my hand away but I grabbed her hand and placed the bills in her hand.

"I insist. Use some of that money to get yourself something too. Oh and also, just a reminder that Nakamura's a vegetarian, so keep that in mind."

Begrudgingly she took the money and put it in her blazer pocket. "Fine…"

"I'll help carry the groceries!" Sayori said.

"You just want me to buy you some snacks, don't you?" Natsuki said as the two left. I walked out and headed down to the teacher's room.

"Jon-Sensei, where were you?" Ito-Sensei asked immediately after I entered the room. "The members of your club were looking for you."

"Yeah, I found them. I, well…" I looked down a bit sheepishly. "I think you were right, Ito-Sensei. Maybe I'm not quite back to normal. I fell asleep leaning against the school wall earlier today."

She put her hands on her hips. "I told you it was okay to go back home," she said sternly. "Why don't you take the rest of the day and go back home?"

"I…was actually going to ask if I could," I said, grateful. "I'll feel better by tomorrow."

"If you don't it's okay if you take your time," one of the other teachers said.

"Thank you all. I'll see you tomorrow, I hope."

"See you when you get better," Ito-Sensei said.

I headed home slowly, the events of the day playing around in my mind, especially my conversation with Motoyasu. I played it over and over in my head, hoping I did my duty as a teacher to give him solid advice. When I reached my place, Monika was already there sitting at the table as she stared off into space. I assumed she was looking at the code. Yuri was lying in bed, still unconscious and now dressed in some of my clothes. I was just glad Yuri and I were the same height. I quietly changed and went to sit next to Monika. As I did so, a large holographic screen popped into my vision. Thanks to my newly found knowledge of coding and the few nights of Monika's tutelage, I was able to tell that this was Yuri's character file. It appeared as if her possessive characteristic had skyrocketed to dangerous levels, but as I watched, they began to slowly decrease.

"Ah! Oh Jon, it's you," Monika said, jumping when I put an arm around her.

"Who were you expecting, Motoyasu?" I asked. Whoa, where did that come from?

"Huh, why would I expect him?" Monika looked at me, then at the screen again. "Not again…it's another transfer of negative traits."

Looking back at the screen I saw Yuri's possessive trait decreasing at a faster rate. I forced myself to release Monika. "This is seriously getting annoying," I said. In that moment, I wanted Monika all to myself. I wanted to-Oh God, those thoughts are disgusting! I turned and hit my head on the table hard. "Get out of my head! GET OUT OF MY HEAD!"

"Jon?!"

I stopped and tried to calm down. Taking deep breaths, the invasive and possessive thoughts slowly decreased to the back of my mind. "Sorry, I just had some very disgusting thoughts…about you."

"They were mimicking Yuri's own feelings for the MC, weren't they?" She sounded sad. "I feel so helpless sometimes. I wish I could just stop this. Stop this transfer. I can see how this is completely destroying you…and it hurts to see."

"Imagine how I feel…I just want it to stop, but I know I have to keep fighting. My mission isn't over yet, I don't think."

Monika looked at me curiously. "Why do you say that?"

"I'll explain when the others arrive."

Monika looked down at her feet. I saw her hands were trembling. "Jon…what did Yuri tell you earlier?"

I hid nothing from her, telling her about how she'd confessed her love to me. Her hands turned into fists and it seemed as if she was having a hard time holding in her jealousy. I knew how she felt. I felt similarly about Motoyasu. "…and then you guys arrived," I concluded.

Monika was holding her arms by now, her teeth clenched. "I see…"

"Monika? Are you-?"

She looked up at me, a look of pure anger spread across her face. However, I knew anger was only a secondary emotion so I assumed she was jealous or sad. Her eyes were glowing a bright green. "How dare she…?" I'd never seen Monika so upset. She looked at Yuri with a murderous rage. "How dare she?!" She punched the ground in anger and she seemed to deflate. "No…how dare I…?"

I wrapped my arms around her. She clung to me tightly. "Shhh…I'm here now."

"I acted poorly just now…I…"

"I understand how you feel. I get jealous too. I got jealous recently, actually."

"What do you mean?"

I sighed. "I'll explain when everyone's here and awake." I looked over at Yuri who was still asleep in my bed. "I didn't think I hit her that hard…"

"I think she's still in shock," Monika said.

At that moment the door to my place opened. "Hey everyone! We're here!" Natsuki called out.

It was at that moment that Yuri stirred. She groaned as she opened her eyes. She sat up, holding her head. "Ow…that hurt."

"Yuri?" Sayori walked in and headed straight for the bed. "Are you okay?"

"I…think so. My head and my jaw hurt."

"Natsuki, there's an ice pack in my freezer," I said, "Could you toss it to me?"

Noticing me for the first time, Yuri looked at me. "S-Sensei?! What are you doing in…your room?" She looked around and I guess she realized this was my place somehow.

Natsuki tossed me the ice pack and I gave it to Yuri, who pressed it against her forehead. She blushed. "Thanks Sensei."

"Yuri, bear with me on this. What is Doki Doki Literature Club?" Monika asked.

"Huh? Um, it's a visual novel that…oh God." She held her head and her eyes began to glow once again.

Sayori hugged Yuri instantly. "Let the memories come," Sayori said. "I know they're painful, but you need to remember them…"

The next few minutes were painful to watch. Yuri screamed as she remembered, clutching her stomach and chest as, presumably, she remembered her self-immolation millions of times over. Finally, however, she calmed down and was just reduced to soft sobs. After a while, she stopped. She wiped her tears with some tissues, then turned to face me. "Sensei…I'm sorry." She bowed. "I acted inappropriately towards you earlier." She turned to Monika and bowed as well. "Monika…I'm sorry too…for confessing to your boyfriend…"

I'd never seen Monika's jaw drop before, but it was a new sight. "How…?"

"How did I know?" She chuckled, but I sensed sadness in that chuckle. "Monika, it was obvious. You'd show Sensei, no, you'd show Jon your poem first and would talk with him frequently. I also caught your glances at each other."

And here I thought we were being subtle. Monika and I blushed fiercely. "I…see…" Monika said, embarrassed.

"I understand why you like him, though," Yuri said. "He's very compassionate, loves his students and is very eager to help. I guess that, along with a few other reasons, is why I fell…" Yuri broke down again, only this time Monika walked over and hugged her.

"Yuri, shhh, don't cry," she begged. "I can't be mad at you for your feelings."

After a while the two broke the hug. From the kitchen I could hear Natsuki chopping vegetables. Sayori was simply watching the exchange with happy tears in her eyes. After this, I cleared my throat. "Okay everyone! Let's talk about lighter things for a bit, or I could read something aloud for everyone."

"That sounds like fun!" Sayori said. She looked over at my bookshelf and perused my collection. "What about this one?" She tossed me The Horse and his Boy.

Catching it, I stood and headed towards the bookshelf. "This one isn't the first in the series," I said with a chuckle as I plucked The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe from the shelf. "This one first. We can read until dinnertime." I went and sat against the bed. Immediately Monika claimed her spot at my right. Unsurprisingly Yuri slid down to my left, causing Monika to glare at Yuri for a bit but only for a moment.

"Awww no fair, I wanted to follow along too," Sayori pouted, crossing her arms.

"Well here, how about this?" Monika moved and sat between my legs. Happily Sayori slid next to me.

Oh God, this is uncomfortable, I said. On the one hand, I had two beautiful women on either side of me and a veritable goddess sitting between my legs, but on the other hand if anyone saw me with schoolgirls like this… "I'll read the first chapter, then we should discuss a few things." I held the book open and cleared my throat. "Once there were four children whose names were Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy…"

Well, that took a turn even I wasn't expecting! Hope you enjoy!

morbiusgreen