A/N: A little bit of the same intensity in this chapter, but it's not as direct as the last one, so no real warning needed, I don't think. We'll just carry on once more.

Italics are for emphasis and thoughts. Lines preceded by "-" are text messages.

Muse: "Middle Ground" by Vertical Horizon, switching to "Right Behind You (Mafia)" by Our Lady Peace for Yuri's arrival.

Waiting

By: Leafsdude

Chapter 6: Scents and Smells

Sunday, September 17, 2017

I dream of some strange images all night. Something about a funeral or two? There's also a song, but I can't quite get the name of it in my mind.

I awake slowly this time. Looking over, I see the clock says it's almost 10 in the morning. I rub my eyes again. I often feel terrible when I oversleep this much, but today I feel reasonably refreshed instead. I look around the now bright room I'm in.

My eyes wander over to the hallway and see it's still empty. I strain to listen, but I hear nothing. I decide Sayori is probably still asleep. I get up and get dressed quickly all the while wondering to myself if I should wake her. I find I don't have to decide, however.

Walking into the hallway, I look into her room to see Sayori still lying in bed, staring at the ceiling. I want to interrupt her, but something stops me as I stare at her almost as intently as she stares at the whiteness above her.

Eventually, I snap out of it. I decide to walk in and sit on the corner of the bed without a word. I notice Poki curled up next to Sayori's knees. Neither reacts to my presence for a while. Eventually, though, Sayori blinks and looks at me.

"Morning," I say with a smile. "You ready to get up?" I ask, recalling what she said yesterday.

She stares back at the ceiling again, but less intently this time. "I was kinda wrong with something I said yesterday," she says quietly. "You are always why I get up in the morning. Not because you're waiting for me, or because you make me feel better, but because sometimes I just can't wait to see you again."

I'm caught a bit off-guard by the admission, but I recover quickly. I laugh softly. "So, is that a yes or a no?"

She shrugs, but she does move to sit up. This time Poki does respond, chirping lightly before picking herself up as well and nuzzling against Sayori's legs. And they say cats don't listen, I think to myself with a smile.

We remain there quietly for a couple minutes, before I decide to break the silence again. "I'm going to go get started downstairs. You can come down and join me whenever you're ready, okay?"

Sayori smiles at me as I get up, her hand absently scratching Poki's head.

I make myself a couple pieces of toast after I fill up Poki's food bowl. Just as I finish eating, I hear Sayori rush down the stairs.

"Oh, crap, oh, crap, oh, crap," she mutters, going straight to her jacket and pulling out her cellphone. She's fully dressed with her hair in its normal messy state and her bow placed in its off-centre position.

She stands nervously as she waits for the phone to boot up. Finally she starts typing frantically, taking a number of seconds before she stops.

"What's wrong?" I finally cut in. She doesn't take her eyes off the phone.

"I told Monika I'd help her with the pamphlets today," she says worriedly. "I hope she's not too upset with me."

"Did you tell her you'd help her this early?" I ask her. I know she's not exactly the most responsible individual ever, but Sayori is usually good at only making promises she can keep, at least.

"Well, no, not exactly," Sayori says after a second's thought. "I was supposed to help her online. She wanted me to proofread and maybe give some suggestions on how it looked. Stuff like that. We didn't exactly plan on when," she finally turns her head to look at me. "I guessed she would just check with me whenever she was done."

Her phone goes off and she looks back down at it. She sighs in relief. "She's not ready yet. She'll send me a text to tell me when she is."

"She's not just gonna send it to your phone?" I ask, looking pointedly at the device in her hands.

"Well, it's kind of small," Sayori says with a frown. "She said it'd be better if I had something of higher resolution to look at, so we decided she'd send it to me over Skype and I'll look at it on my computer."

I recall last night's conversation. I'm a bit worried about her being alone, even if she'll be talking to Monika some of the time. And since I've basically promised Sayori that I'd still help Yuri today, I can't exactly keep her company, either. Suddenly, a thought hits me.

"You know, I think Natsuki said she could probably use a hand today as well," I say, trying to sound as nonchalant as I can.

"Really?" She seems surprised. This is Natsuki, after all, but I stick to my guns.

"Yeah," I nod. "You should probably head over now, before she gets in too far over her head. You can both help Monika, too, when she's ready. I'll text her that you're coming over, so you won't surprise her."

"Okay," Sayori doesn't seem to actually take any time to think it over before grabbing her jacket and shoes. She heads out the door a couple seconds later.

Once she does, I quickly head over to my phone. Natsuki's probably going to kill me, I think to myself worriedly. I select messages and start typing.

Hey. I sent Sayori your way to help you with the cupcakes. Please don't be mad. She needs something to distract her. Don't ask why. Thanks.

It's an excruciating couple minutes as I wait for her response. I hope she heeds my request. Even though she didn't say anything about it per se, I'm pretty sure everything Sayori told me was in confidence, so I can't exactly explain why.

- Arg fine ur just lucky my dads not home!

I sigh in relief, though the text doesn't fully register in my head. I place the phone down and do a quick look around the house. Things look pretty good, I decide.

I head to my room and grab up a change of clothes before taking a well-needed shower.

It's just after 11:00 as I head back down the stairs, so I decide to send Yuri a message.

- Hey. How long will it take for you to make it to my place?

I wait for a little while. I hope she's already up. The last thing I want to do is wake her.

Finally I get a response.

- About 20 minutes, I guess?

Okay, I start calculating in my head. If I start making the hamburger within the next fifteen minutes, it should be ready just after 12. I look back to my phone again.

- Alright. You want to leave at 12? I'll make us something to eat, if you want?

It takes longer this time for her to respond. I hope she's not second-guessing this now because of my offer. My phone buzzes again.

- Okay, that sounds feasible. I'll be at your place before 12:30.

I smile.

- See you then!

I put the phone back down and head up to my room to put everything back in place. This time the open door to the master bedroom catches my eye. Oh, Sayori forgot her stuff! I notice. Her clothes are strewn all over the bed. I consider whether I have the time to take them to her place, but decide it would push my timing to its limit, and I don't want to make Yuri sit and wait for me to finish cooking.

Oh, and I locked her back door, anyway, I remind myself, shaking my head. I head to the bathroom to check if she left anything else. I find her toothbrush and toothpaste there, so I pick them up and put them in the bedroom as well, before closing the door behind me.

Don't want Yuri seeing that and asking questions that I don't want to answer, I tell myself.

I head back downstairs and decide to start making our meal. As expected, it's just past noon when it finishes, so I put it to the side to cool as I wait for Yuri to get here. I put out plates and forks for us before pulling out a couple glasses along with all the drinks I have. Some pop, water, a couple juice cartons, some milk. I sigh as I look around and find no teabags in my cupboards. I hope Yuri's not too disappointed.

Just as I finish, I hear my doorbell ring. I brush myself off a couple times and then take a deep breath before making my way to the door.

It's clearly a cool day, but I'm still a bit surprised at the heavy sweater Yuri has worn to my place. I smile anyway and invite her in.

"Hey, Yuri," I greet her. She gives me a smile in response. "I take it you had no problem finding the place?"

"N-n-no, the…the directions you gave were, uh, perfect," she says shyly. She's clearly nervous, even for her. Not like I'm entirely comfortable, either, but I hope my offer of lunch isn't making it worse.

"You, uh, hungry?" I ask awkwardly. She smiles weakly before taking off her shoes and placing the bags in her hand down.

"I-I guess so," she says.

I don't trust myself to say anything else, so instead I lead the way to the kitchen.

She sits down while I grab up the pot. I pour a decent serving for her. Her look is one of…surprise? Shock? Mirth? I laugh a little as well.

"Yeah, I know, not exactly high class, right?" I say as I pour my own serving of the simple hamburger casserole.

She seems to relax after my self-deprecation. "No, it's okay," she says. "I wasn't expecting much, you know, from a guy."

I smile a little as she blushes slightly. "Yeah, I know only enough to make sure I'm not eating the same few things every week."

She looks over at the drinks I've set out and I frown again. "Sorry, I don't have any tea. I thought I got some last week, but I guess not."

"Oh, th-that's okay," Yuri looks away slightly for a second. "A-actually, I…I brought my own."

I'm a little surprised, though I'm not entirely sure why. Of course Yuri would always have tea with her. "Oh. Well, I have a pot if you want."

Her smile is still nervous as she gets up. I take a couple bites while she waits for the water to boil. It takes only a couple minutes before she's pouring a steaming cup.

We both eat quietly, Yuri only speaking up to complement my cooking, as simple as it may be. I note the fact that I can smell her sweet-smelling tea from where I sit. It's oddly comforting.

"What kind of tea is that?" I ask, a little mesmerized.

"Oh, it's oolong, it's my favourite," she says with a smile. "It has a strong relaxing effect."

"Just how strong, exactly?" I ask, feeling slightly nervous suddenly.

"Oh, well, just st-strong enough for me, I g-guess," she says.

I frown. Well, of course. What was I thinking it was? I laugh nervously.

We both finish our meals a little while later. Yuri assists me in clearing the table before we stand at the entrance of the kitchen, looking at each other a bit awkwardly.

"So, what did you have in mind for today?" I ask as casually as I can.

"Oh, w-well, I wanted to run some…scents by you," Yuri responds. "Y-you know, atmospheric enhancements? I already showed you the tea, but I also have candles, fragrances, things like that."

I nod as she heads over to her bags.

"And I brought a few things to make some banners, too," she adds.

"Will this be okay for you?" I ask, motioning to the living room when she glances back towards me. She smiles weakly.

"For the banners, I believe so, but I think we'll need something more…c-cozy for the rest," she says, blushing a little afterwards. "It'll make the smells and flavours st-stronger."

"Oh, okay," I think about it for a second. "Well, we could use the bathroom, I guess?"

"Oh, that might be a…a little too c-cozy," she laughs nervously. "M-maybe your bedroom, instead?"

I feel my face heat up, but I ignore it as much as I can. "Uh, okay, sure, if that's what you think will work best."

Yuri nods vigorously. "W-we should probably do that first. It'll make me l-less awkward, and will probably take longer to do."

I'm a little surprised at just how self-aware Yuri seems. I suppose that probably has something to do with her constant nervousness, I think to myself, noting to myself how noticing my own behavior can sometimes make me feel out of sorts.

"Okay, if that's what you think, I'm cool with that," I nod at her. She smiles shyly as I make my way upstairs with her a few steps behind me.

She closes the door as she enters, which surprises me for a second, but I rationalize it quickly. We're testing scents, I remind myself. It won't help us if they escape out the open door.

We go through a number of scents, just as she suggested. She has a wide range to choose from, jasmine, spearmint and other mints, some perfumes, some spices. She even brought along some sweet-smelling cinnamon scents, which I found rather enjoyable.

It takes a while, but we finally agree on a few for Monday. I realize it took us a couple hours just to decide, exactly as Yuri suggested.

As we head back downstairs, Yuri excuses herself and heads to the bathroom. I decide to pull out one of my poem books and look it over while I wait. I still need to let Monika know which one I'm going to read, so I decide to choose it now. I turn to one of the poems I'm considering, but the page flips back accidentally. My eyes hover over the words for a second and before I notice I'm mesmerized by it. Oh, wow. This is perfect.

I pull my cellphone out quickly. I think about what to do, but I finally decide to just leave Natsuki to handle it.

- Hey, can you relay a message to Monika for me?

It takes a moment for her to respond to me.

- Yah but hurry up Sayori's gonna take cupcakes if I leave her alone 2 long!

I smile sheepishly. Knowing Sayori, she's probably being a pain in the butt for Natsuki. I quickly type out a message for her to tell Monika the poem I've decided to read for Monday.

- Oh, and don't let Sayori see. I want it to be a surprise.

Natsuki responds a few seconds later.

- Uh, ok

I put my phone back away as I hear Yuri returning. She puts away the scents, making sure to keep the ones for Monday separate, and grabs up the stuff for the banners.

"So, what did you have in mind for this?" I ask as she lays out cardboard, tissue paper and other stationary on the coffee table.

"I-I thought maybe a banner for the doorway," Yuri says calmly. "Something simple, perhaps. And then maybe some more elaborate things for the desks, windows, and the walls."

I nod. "What do you need for that?"

"Oh, umm," she looks at what's sprawled out on the coffee table, taking a second to think it over. "The cardboard needs to be cut up, probably squares or rectangles, and then we'll need some of the ribbons and string so we can put them together for the banners."

"Okay, I'll cut out the cardboard and you can do the string, okay?" I offer, moving over so that I can work with more room.

"And I'll make some more elaborate shapes and write corresponding words for inside the room," Yuri says confidently. I smile.

"Yeah, that sounds like a good idea," I grab up a pair of scissors that Yuri brought along and start working on the cardboard. "What should we do for the banner at the front?"

"Ah, I think we can just put the letters to spell out 'literature club'," Yuri suggests with a sigh. "Something simple, right?"

"I can handle that, yeah," I agree. Yuri really does seem to have this pretty much figured out already.

I finish cutting the cardboard, while Yuri does the same with the ribbon and string. She frowns in surprise as she looks at me.

"Oh, um, I seem to have forgotten to bring along a…a pen or something to, uh, write with," she says worriedly.

"I think I have a few around, actually," I say, getting up. I look around the kitchen but I can't find anything useful there. "I'll check upstairs. Be back in a minute!"

Entering my bedroom again, I find a couple black felt-tip markers on my dresser immediately. I grab them up and hurry back down. "Got some!"

Yuri smiles at me a little nervously as I hand her one and carry the other over to my earlier spot. I start writing out the letters for the banner while Yuri works meticulously on her part. Unlike the scents, we're both done within an hour. We both clean up the leftovers and put them in a garbage bag.

"I'll string them up when I get to the clubroom and then hang everything where they belong," Yuri suggests after looking at our handiwork. "I hope it all goes well together."

"It'll be perfect," I smile reassuringly. "I'm sure it'll be the talk of the club!"

"If Natsuki's cupcakes and the poems aren't," Yuri responds. I frown but don't say anything as I help put everything away for her. She puts her shoes on and heads for the door with her bag.

"See ya Monday," I call after her. She smiles and nods, but doesn't say anything as she exits.

I'm actually feeling a little fatigued as I sit back down on my couch. Before I get a chance to really relax, though, my cellphone goes off. It's Natsuki again.

- Hey Sayori just left for home thought u mite wanna now

I frown at her spelling errors, but I once more refrain from noting them to her.

- Alright, thanks.

I wrestle for a few moments with whether to send a text to Sayori or not. I remember the things she left upstairs and decide to just let her know and see where that leads.

- Hey, Natsuki told me you were going home. You left some things here. You want to come pick them up?

As usual, she responds quickly.

- Aw, nuts. I'll just pick them up after the festival tomorrow, k?

I nod. Okay, let's take this carefully.

- Yeah, that sounds fine. I'll come by tomorrow morning first thing for you.

I don't get a response for a few minutes, so I decide to push my luck a bit.

- If you're not up, I'll come wake you, alright?

It's another few minutes but finally she responds.

- Okay, but no funny stuff, got it?

I laugh a little.

- Of course not. :)

I decide to eat some of the leftovers from lunch. By the time I'm finished, it's almost 10:00. I spend a little time reading over my chosen poem before I prepare for bed, making sure I have a decent enough feel for it. My confidence in it is pretty strong already.

I'm very tired tonight as the mental and physical strain of the last few days crash into me all at once as I head for bed. For once I'm actually glad that tomorrow is primarily a day to relax. Usually I look forward to the festival just because of the lack of work, but this year I find the idea of making it through a regular day of school impossible.

It's not long after my head hits the pillow that I fall asleep.