A/N: Okay, so, something a little new. Well, comparatively.

Especially for those who are fandom blind (and thank you for giving this a shot if you are!), please note that this gets heavy at places, so beware. It is a strong-T rating, as I had originally considered it to be deserving of an M-rating, but my betas convinced me it should be okay at the lower rating. I will put specific content warnings in author notes whenever needed in future chapters.

Also, as I write with musical accompaniment for mood and content, I'll be including a reference to that for each chapter. For those that are inclined to read in a similar way, I recommend using the referenced pieces. For those that aren't, I hope it's not too annoying. I've built a playlist of these songs and more on Y/T for people to check out, with new songs being added along with each new posted chapter. Check it out at: playlist?list=PLrhG_x-i1OD9QXoYe6WeOrd3mv9ZQz-vQ

Lastly, I'd like to thank my various beta-ers quickly: NoseBridgePinch, Rosy, Wyatt, and numerous others on Discord, especially on the r/fanfiction server. This story wouldn't be anywhere near as good as it is without the help of all of you, so a big thanks!

Now, without further ado, let's get on with this.

Italics are for emphasis and thoughts.

Muse: "Lucky One" by Vertical Horizon

Waiting

By: Leafsdude

Chapter 1: Surprises

I stand behind a set of curtains just beyond the sight of the crowd that fills the expansive auditorium. In my right hand, I am clutching a professionally bound book while my left fidgets nervously. Along with my nervousness, I feel a sense of excitement. More than anything, though, I'm filled with determination throughout my body as I await my name being called. I have to do this for her, I think to myself with a nod. I owe it to her, to all of them.

Standing at a podium, Monika is addressing the audience, her brunette hair shining in the spotlight. Hanging directly above her is a banner with the words "Club Appreciation Night" in bright cardboard letters. The letters are made with hard edges, taking away from the otherwise unmistakably cute and sweet style with its daring and sophisticated nature.

"So, without further ado, I'm proud to introduce, John Doe," Monika finally says from the podium, turning towards me as she leads the applause I hear as I head in her direction.

Yes, my name is John Doe. Don't worry, I've heard all the jokes before. I'm numb to them now. Some people like to tease me by calling me "Anonymous" or making up random "found" names for me that they say they got from missing persons pages or something. Some strange people even took to calling me "MC" for some reason I never figured out. My parents, meanwhile, have always been completely oblivious to the reality they've placed me in. To most of those who have exhausted all the jokes or were nice enough to never make them in the first place, I'm just John. But to one person, I'm always 'Johnny'…

The applause is mostly polite, but I can hear a couple "woops" coming from some of the more, let's say, excitable students. Struggling, I hold in my grin at the noise. It's not because I'm trying to portray an air of professionalism that I don't smile. I'm too laid back for that. I'm also not above giving them the satisfaction of having their over-the-top reactions responded to, but this is neither the time nor the place for a smile.

It's not even that I'm unhappy, or that I have to convey complete seriousness. Even if I only say so myself, there are many moments of pure hilarity that are contained within the book that's now placed on the podium. Even so, in the moment, my composure is the most important thing. I adjust the microphone to my mouth before taking a breath to calm myself.

"Unlike my fellow club members, Monika, Yuri, Natsuki," I pause for a moment before continuing. "Sayori, the entirety of this story is true. The names have not been changed to protect the innocent. There's no such thing in our group, not anymore. This is the story of our Literature Club."

Tuesday, September 12, 2017

I awake to my alarm clock blaring the morning news from the local radio station. I'm up at 7:30 as always, despite the fact that school starts just before 9:00. I swear I'm not a slob, but I still rarely ever take more than half-an-hour to be ready, even when I put in an effort to make a nice breakfast for myself, which is not very often. Still, I always make sure I'm out of bed at such an early hour.

I get up, avoiding my computer desk as I head to my dresser, grabbing my uniform as I head for the shower. I know a lot of people pass the time here by singing, and though I readily do so otherwise, I don't like to sing a cappella. Others just get the job done and get out as quickly as they can. Meanwhile, I always spend my time lost in thought, especially on mornings, reflecting on the previous day and what I may or may not have dreamt the night before.

This morning, however, I'm thinking of something different. It's three weeks into the new school year and I think I've been on-time for homeroom twice. Usually I'm late now and then, but even I know it's been ridiculous. I don't really care, though. If I did, I'd have gotten tired of waiting for her…

Sayori.

I've known her since Kindergarten, when most boys are still grossed out by girls so much they don't even let themselves get close enough to tease them. Our school was no different. Somehow, however, she became my friend. Or, should I say, she befriended me. Almost immediately she became my best friend, so it was always mutual, but the whole thing was her doing. I never would have become her friend on my own. For that, I will always be thankful to her. Even now.

I step out of the shower, dry off and get dressed before heading downstairs to my kitchen. I consider taking out a couple eggs and finding something complicated to cook with them, but I decide against that idea when I see it's ten minutes to eight. Instead, I crack off a couple of cartons of yogurt, tear each open one at a time and devour them quickly. Just in case I get hungry before lunch I pull out a couple more and place those in the lunch box I'd prepared last night.

I consider whether to take out a jacket from my closet as I put on my shoes, but decide against it. While the weather outside is starting to get chilly, I'm always much more comfortable being a little bit cool versus feeling too warm.

Since school is a short walk from my house it might seem absurd for me to leave now to get to a class that starts in an hour, but I once more prepare to do just that this morning. I open the door of my house and look out hopefully.

I sigh dejectedly before closing the door behind me. I'm not surprised, just disappointed.

You see, ever since we were old enough, Sayori and I have always walked to school together, just the two of us. We never planned it out, or made a pact, or anything. It's just how it's always been. We don't even organize ourselves. We just wait outside the other's house.

Sometimes Sayori is super early, making it to my place right at 8:00, hence why I'm always up and ready so quickly. Most of the time, however, I'm waiting forever outside the gate to her house for her to drag herself out into the world. Especially this year, that has been the norm by far.

I look around as I reach the sidewalk, just in case, but there's nary anyone to be seen, let alone the red bow I'm scanning the surroundings for. I put my hands in my pockets, partly as an emotional reaction, but mostly due to the cold. I consider going back in for my jacket again, but I know I'll soon feel much warmer from my walk to Sayori's house due to the increased blood flow.

I try to keep my head up in spite of the soft cool breeze blowing in my face. It feels like it might rain, but as I look up at the scattered clouds in the sky, I decide that's unlikely.

I take the final few steps as I arrive at the gate of Sayori's house, having seen no sign of her yet. I look up at the window to her room and see nothing, so I put my hands in my pockets again and begin my long wait. I start tapping my foot to a song in my head and a moment later I start whistling along as well. Quickly, I lose track of time, but after what feels like either a couple minutes or a whole lifetime, the door finally opens.

I constantly consider asking her questions when I'm stuck waiting for her: are you feeling alright? Are you sleeping well? Perhaps you should have someone check if there's something wrong? But every time she exits and flashes those warm eyes and bright smile, all my worries for her disappear, instead replaced with a smile that I hope matches hers.

"Morning, Sayori," I finally greet as she makes her way beside me and we begin our walk. I never look at my watch when she comes out. I feel that would be too passive aggressive from me, and besides, I know Sayori always checks to see what time it is before she leaves. If we're really late, she'll tell me.

"Hi Johnny," Sayori returns, a slight bounce entering her step.

We talk about school work, teachers and friends on our walk today. Sayori's emotive face is always shifting throughout, scrunching and contorting, sometimes in ways that I can't help but laugh at.

"Meanie," she pouts playfully after I snicker at the latest face she's made. Our school finally comes into view as we make our way to the top of the small hill that sits between it and our neighbourhood, which means we're just a couple minutes out.

"Oh, hey," Sayori stops and turns to me suddenly, though I can tell the abruptness of her outburst is fake. Clearly she's been thinking about what she's about to say for a while, but I don't let on that I'm aware.

"What is it?" I ask innocently.

"You know, the festival is coming up," Sayori says, looking away for a second.

I raise my eyebrows. The fourth Monday of every school year is always slated as our Fall Festival, a day where the student body organizes activities, covertly giving our teachers a day off. It also serves as a line between the start of school, with everyone getting into their routines, and the period where classes begin to ramp up. Sayori and I have already made plans together for this year's annual fall school event, so I'm uncertain why she's bringing it up today.

"Yeah, I know," I say, somewhat dismissively. Where is she going with this? I ask myself.

"Well, remember how most of the events are done by school clubs?" She asks.

"Yes," I draw out slowly. Okay. Now I know what's coming next.

"Well," Sayori puts her index fingers together nervously in front of her chin. "Our club is planning an event, but we could really use another pair of hands, you know, to prepare and stuff."

Sayori has been bugging me to join a club a lot lately. She has always joined one since high school started. Most of them have been to do with cute things, which is just like her. It's why it was such a shock when she told me she decided to join a literature club, especially as vice-president.

"Sayori, I've told you before, I'm not interested in joining any…"

"Natsuki is making cupcakes!" Sayori blurts out, interrupting me. She quickly tries to cover her outburst with a nervous smile. "I bet they're tasty!"

I'm a little bit surprised at the uncertainty in her second statement. Sayori and cupcakes, even bad ones, always go well together. I can't exactly argue that the same isn't true for myself. I sigh.

"Alright, alright, I'll try to make it," I finally say in resignation. "Just don't be mad if I don't show, okay?"

"Yes!" Sayori exclaims in victory, as though I didn't add in that disclaimer. "You're definitely gonna like everyone!" Sayori pauses in thought. "Well, maybe not Natsuki…but she's so cute!"

Sayori babbles for a while, her mouth not letting up on expelling her random train of thoughts as we finally return to our walk to school. My mind wanders, distracting me from Sayori's rambling. I wonder if it is worth going to a literature club…

I surprise even myself when I find I'm heading up the stairs to the third floor of the school. Having put my stuff into my locker for the end of the day, I was already resolved to head home. I didn't want to miss the new anime episodes I always look forward to watching, knowing I would never forgive myself if I did. Before I could, however, my stomach growled at me and my mind immediately went back to Sayori's outburst this morning: Natsuki is making cupcakes!

I don't even know who this "Natsuki" is. Sayori even suggested I might not like her, which makes me a little concerned. I don't think I've ever met someone I didn't like, though. I don't often make friends, but that's a different story. Maybe there's a few people I've only tolerated, and there's definitely people who don't like me, but I've never met someone I couldn't deal with. There's a first time for everything, I think to myself with a shrug.

I open the door out of the stairway and begin to make my way across the hallway to the other side, which is not a short distance away. I pass another hallway and spot a vertically challenged student heading towards me with a tray in her hands. I don't pay much mind to her until she turns in front of me. Her pink hair stands out to almost ridiculous levels.

Despite the relatively small size difference between her and her tray, she doesn't seem to be having any difficulty handling it. I still feel like I should offer to assist her, but with my decision to meet up with Sayori's club today, I realize that would probably end up doing more harm than good. Regardless, I try to offer an explanation so I don't appear to be rude.

The pink-haired girl's walking speed is surprisingly quick, so I have to almost jog to catch up.

"Hello," I start off politely, getting her attention. The look she gives me is akin to a deer caught in the headlights. Well, that's a solid reaction, I think to myself glibly. We're still walking forward, but she's slowed her pace considerably. I finally catch my reverie and continue with my explanation before we make it past my destination. "Sorry. You seem to be able to handle that tray, but I probably should still be helping you, but…"

"What," she interrupts me before I can finish. "You think, because I'm short, I can't carry things?"

"Well, yeah," I reply automatically. Oh, yeah, great response, you impulsive genius, I berate myself immediately. I cautiously look over but find no sign of the absurdly pink hair. Instinctively, I look behind me…

…Whoops, big mistake. I see her ball her hand into a fist, almost causing her to drop her tray. Juggling it for a moment, she regains control before shifting it into her other hand, using her hip to support it as she starts running towards me, fist raised.

I don't take a second to react, turning and heading full speed towards the doors that hopefully represent safety for myself. I get there before she's able to catch me and I push the doors open with all my strength. I finally skid to a halt inside the room, out of breath, before I turn around. I'm surprised when I see her in the doorway, a shocked look on her face. Slowly, a deadly smile takes over her expression.

"Wrong room," she says gleefully as she advances towards me.

Looking over my shoulder, I see Sayori, and without a moment's pause I do a skip-and-jump and high-tail it over to her. I make sure I get in as defensive a position as I can from behind my best friend.

"Wow, how pathetic, using a girl as a human shield," the pink-haired girl says mockingly, though still advancing.

"Natsuki, what are you doing?" Sayori says with a mixture of confusion and authority.

"Natsuki?" I mutter, looking at the tray. The cupcakes.

"This guy was being a total creep in the hallway," Natsuki says. "And now he's using you, someone he doesn't even know, to keep me away from him! Why don't you just move aside so I can give him what he deserves?!"

Sayori giggles before moving beside me and putting her arm around my shoulders. Natsuki's face drops immediately in surprise. "Sure, but what could Johnny have done to make you so mad?"

Now Natsuki's really off-guard. "Y-you're Johnny?"

I nod with as friendly a smile as I can muster, although I refrain from extending a hand or offering any other greeting that might result in the loss of a limb. "Yeah, but, uh, you can just call me John, you know, if you'd like."

"I should have known," Natsuki mutters to herself. Did I hear her right? I don't know.

"Okay everyone," a voice suddenly comes from behind me, causing me to jump. I didn't realize anyone else was here. "I'm glad to see a new face. Sayori, you want to introduce our new member? Properly, I mean."

I finally get my wits back and turn around to see…Monika? To say I'm surprised would be underselling it. Sayori being the vice-president in a club run by the most popular, responsible, well-liked, and, some would say, gorgeous girl in school is unexpected. Unlike myself, Sayori is very adept at making friends, but though she's fairly popular, she's not exactly on Monika's social level. At all.

Still, I look around and take note that it is just the four of us, at least for the moment. Maybe Sayori is just vice-president by default? I look over at Sayori, whose mouth opens as she begins her introduction. Suddenly, a large purple flash enters the room and stops at a desk, interrupting Sayori.

"Oh, Yuri," Monika says with a smile. "We weren't sure if you were going to make it in today."

The newcomer, apparently named Yuri, already has her head in a book. Slowly, she looks over it, her face holding a deep blush. The smile she gives is still entirely genuine. It drops slightly when she sees me, however, and I see a tinge of panic as her blush gets even darker. Her eyes shift around, unable to focus on anyone for more than a second.

"Anyway," Sayori quickly gets the attention off the poor girl and back on herself before the situation gets too uncomfortable. Typical. "This is Johnny, or, well, just John, my oldest, bestest friend ever, and now our newest member!"

I consider interrupting her with a correction of prospective new member, but I can't bring myself to say anything that might ruin that smile plastered on her face. After all, I'll have plenty of chances to make that clear over the next half-hour anyway, I expect.

"Humph," I hear Natsuki grumble from her spot a few steps in front of me. I almost smile. Probably for the best I didn't.

"Um, uh, well," Yuri suddenly speaks up, and we all turn our attention to her immediately. Her blush hasn't gone down one bit, but she's managing to hold our gaze now, at least. "W-what kind of, umm, books, do you read, John?"

I'm usually really good at controlling myself, but once in a while, I slip up. "Manga…" I hope I muttered that quietly enough, but I notice Natsuki's reaction. She doesn't say anything, though.

"What?" Yuri asks, clearly not hearing what I said. I cough and cover myself.

"Well, I mean, I'm not a massive reader," I say sheepishly. "I mean, I do read, but I don't read enough to feel I have a type, you know?"

"Perhaps we could go through what you've read, what you've liked in the past!" Sayori says loudly, clearly excited. "See if maybe you do have a type, even if you don't realize it yet!"

Yuri nods in thought. "I-I think we could all do that. We may think we know our preferences, but it would be interesting to quantify it."

I look at Yuri dumbly, not totally understanding exactly what she's saying. Her sudden change in demeanor doesn't help, either.

"That does sound like a good idea," Monika affirms after a moment. She pauses before putting on what I assume is her best "president" face. "However, right now our most important issue is the festival. As fun as it might be looking over each other's ideal books, I don't believe that would make any kind of successful event to sell our fellow students on the club."

"You're probably right," Sayori grumbles with an uncharacteristic frown. "Oh…well, I know what would make us think better: cupcakes!"

Everyone chuckles at Sayori's outburst, though none of us offer any rejection of the idea.

"Sounds good to me," Monika affirms.

"Yay!" Sayori jumps up and down in excitement a couple times before making her way towards the tray of cupcakes at the front of the room.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Natsuki pipes up, moving her way in front of Sayori. She sounds seriously angry, but I note the corners of her lips twist upward slightly, which reassures me. Maybe her bark is worse than her bite? "I spent all night making them, so don't you dare take the reveal away from me!"

Sayori nervously does her index finger thing again as she gives a weak smile. "Oh yeah!" She chuckles nervously.

"I-I'll get the tea," Yuri mutters from her desk, just loud enough for us to hear. I'm surprised to notice the steaming kettle by the closet at the front of the room. Did Yuri place that when she came in? She moved so fast, I never had a chance to see. A feat I find impressive, considering how graceful and full of purpose her movements are now.

Meanwhile, Natsuki grabs the tray and brings it over.

"And, taa-da!" Natsuki pulls the foil off the tray, revealing the ultra-cute cupcakes. Monika and I mutter our approval, but I can feel the squeal next to me before I hear it.

"Oh my God!" Sayori just can't help herself sometimes. "They're so cute, just like you!"

Natsuki's face now features a genuine frown, and my protective instincts for Sayori prepare to kick in. I see her ball her hands into a fist, but then she turns her head away in annoyance. "I'M. NOT. CUTE!"

Between my relief and the absurdity, I can't hold in my snicker. Sayori seems oblivious to the outburst, however, as she reaches for one of the cupcakes and takes a huge bite. The remains splatter and fall from her face as she chews. "Dees are greeeeet!"

As Yuri joins us, bringing a tray containing five steaming cups of tea, the rest of us also grab a cupcake. Unlike Sayori, I make sure I take a reasonable nibble. I find that I agree entirely with her analysis of the treat.

We all finish quickly. Sayori, in her typical eating frenzy, manages to consume two in the time it takes the rest of us to polish off one.

"So," I pipe up, looking around. "Did the cupcakes work? Anyone come up with good ideas?"

Everyone looks down in thought for a moment. No one speaks up.

"Well, forget this," Natsuki says, wandering away from the rest of us. "Let me know if someone comes up with anything," she says over her shoulder.

I watch her quizzically for a moment, but when no one else reacts, I just shrug and let it go. Clearly Natsuki does her own thing in the club.

It's not a moment later when there's a high-pitched shriek from the direction of the closet. "Where is it?! Alright, which one of you took it?!" I'm glad I'm not the only one who is confused as I look around. Natsuki stomps her way back over. "C'mon, I know one of you has it, now where is it?"

"Wh-where is what?" Yuri is the first to pipe up, much to my surprise.

"I had a sheet of paper on the top of my shelf in the closet," she replies angrily. "It's not there anymore!"

"Oh," this time it's Monika's voice that cuts through the tension. "I-I assume you mean this."

Reaching into her jacket pocket, Monika takes out a piece of paper that's been folded twice. Before she can extend her hand or do anything else, Natsuki quickly moves forward and grabs it.

"What's so special about a piece of paper?" Sayori asks curiously, meeting Natsuki's gaze before the latter can help herself. The shorter girl grumbles her annoyance once more as she looks over the now-opened piece of paper.

"She wrote a poem on it!" Monika says with a smile. "It's pretty good too…"

Natsuki looks about ready to explode as she glares daggers at Monika from over the sheet. "You…you read it?" Her clenched teeth make her words hard to hear.

"I'm sorry," Monika bows with her apology, her smile fading away. "But it was impossible not to when I found it on the floor, so I scanned it to check for a name."

Natsuki relaxes a bit, but she's still clearly upset.

"You write poems?" I ask automatically.

"Yeah, what about it?" Wow, jeez. Is there anything that doesn't get this girl riled up? Well, perhaps I'll get a chance to find out if I stay…

I pause at the thought, partly out of fear, but also with the thought: perhaps I might join after all?

Lost in my own head, it takes me a while to realize everyone's looking at me. "Um, what?"

"Natsuki and Yuri write poems, but they're too embarrassed to share them!" Sayori fills in the blanks for me, clearly knowing I was distracted. "I'd like to learn how to write poems, too! So Monika suggested we should all write poems, so we're all equals."

"That doesn't sound like the worst idea ever," I concede. At this point, I stop avoiding the obvious fact: I'm stuck here. I'm not sure if I'd leave if given the chance.

"And poetry is something we could do for the festival," Monika pipes in. "That settles it, then. I think we should all write poetry for the rest of the week and share it with each other. Between now and Friday, I'm sure we can use it to come up with some way of making our event successful!"

"Yeah!" Sayori shouts out happily. Both Natsuki and Yuri mumble their agreement a moment later. I hope they don't bail out on us…

"Okay, well, I think that's it for today everyone," Monika says with a smile. "See you all tomorrow!"

At that, Natsuki and Yuri gather their stuff and head out, while Monika begins to tidy up the classroom.

"Uh, Johnny?" Sayori sounds nervous as she stands next to me. "Wanna walk home together?"

"I'm surprised you felt you even had to ask," I answer with a smile. She smiles back as we walk out together.

I'm surprised at how quiet Sayori is on our walk home. Usually after her clubs she comes over to my place and we just watch TV and talk for a few hours.

I think about it. We did spend a lot more time together at school today than normal with the club. Perhaps that's all it is.

I forget about my thoughts as we reach my house.

"Coming in?" I ask Sayori as I open my gate. She hesitates.

"I should probably go home first," she finally answers. I nod. "I'll come right back, though, if that's okay?"

"Of course," I smile at her. She smiles back, and then begins to make her way towards her house. She looks back for a moment and we wave at each other. She's out of sight before I finally head in.

The story of my home is complicated. I grew up here, but last year we moved out. Both of my parents' workplaces had shifted to the other side of the city, so they decided to move us into a new house. Despite the distance, they still drove me to Sayori's place every morning so we could walk to school together. Then, just before I turned 18, they told me I could move back in, on my own. Something about teaching me independence? Though they'd gotten a lot of tempting offers for the place, they never did sell it. While not filthy rich, we are definitely well-off. The mortgage for this house is paid off, and they could afford the down payment on their new house without selling it. Besides, they said, the amenities for this place would be much cheaper than the gas money they were spending. I'm not sure I believe that, but I was not going to argue with them.

I'm greeted by a chirp as I open my door. "Hey Poki."

Another thing you need to know about me is I'm a massive cat person. Both of my parents are allergic, but I was lucky to grow up in a neighbourhood full of them, and being the outdoors type when younger, I spent a lot of time around them. Of course, Sayori loves them because they're cute, but not me. I've always admired their seemingly contradictory nature: aloof but sure-footed, independent yet attention-hungry, cute but deadly. Just like Natsuki, I think with a laugh. I don't think of them as pets, they're more like companions.

I enter my house and immediately grab the food tray after I put my belongings down. After filling the bowl with food, I put it back down. Watching her eat makes me wonder again why I didn't name her 'Sayori'. It would have been too confusing, I remind myself.

I head over to my TV to check for any reruns of the anime I missed this afternoon. I sigh when I find that there's nothing until midnight. I'd have no problem staying up if I didn't get up so early every morning, but I guess I'd even give up anime for Sayori's happiness.

I hear a knock and I get up quickly. To absolutely no surprise, I open the door to see Sayori. She has a pen in one hand and a binder in the other, causing me to raise my eyebrows at her.

"For the poems, dummy," she reminds me before I can even ask, shaking her head. "We should really work on them." Of course.

I nod as I move aside to let her in. She puts the binder down on the table as I return to my seat on the couch.

"I'm really hungry today," she says nonchalantly, though I understand the question she's asking.

"Why don't you help yourself to something?" I tell her, raising my hand in the vague direction of my kitchen.

"Yay!" She squeals as she runs to start tearing open my cupboards. She ends up pulling out a bag of chips, practically ripping the bag in half as she opens it before pouring it into a bowl. She brings it over, placing it next to her binder. She sits down and opens it to a blank page before putting it on her lap, tapping her pen for a second.

"Oh!" She starts writing. I lean over towards her, but she's too fast for me, pulling her binder to her chest. "Hey! We're supposed to share these tomorrow. No peaking!"

I smile at her sheepishly. I start thinking about what I'd like to write my own poem about. Suddenly, I realize I'm making rhymes up, and I shoot up and hurry to my bag, pulling out a pen and binder of my own to write it all down.

I take a moment to look my work over when I'm done. I nod in approval. It's actually pretty good, I think to myself.

Putting the poem into my backpack along with my binder, I look over at Sayori, who is staring out into space. I walk up to her and poke her nose. "Boop."

"Hey! Meanie!" She pouts at me.

"You looked like you needed a reboot!" I respond with a grin. Sayori has a habit of spacing out for minutes on end. I often take it upon myself to bring her back to reality.

She looks down at her paper for a moment. "Aha!" She starts writing again for a couple seconds before putting her pen down. "Yay, I did it!"

"Congrats," I tell her, sitting back down again. "I wonder how the others are doing," I think aloud to myself.

"Yuri's probably got poems to spare if she doesn't write a new one," Sayori responds to my rhetorical statement. "Monika is our president, so I'm sure she's got some ideas. And I'm sure Natsuki's writing a cute poem!"

"She's not cute," I say teasingly. We both laugh.

"What happened between you two, anyway?" She asks, the curiosity clearly getting the better of her.

"Well, I saw her carrying the cupcakes, in the hallway. I thought I probably should be helping her, but with the club, I didn't think I had the time to," I try to explain. "I thought the least I could do was tell her that, but I think I offended her instead. Accidentally," I throw in defensively.

"What?" Sayori looks at me in confusion. "How?"

"I may have told her that I wanted to help because of her height," I explain sheepishly.

Sayori sighs and shakes her head. "Johnny," she starts with a stern tone.

"I know, I know," I say, feeling a tinge of embarrassment in my cheeks. "I didn't think before I said it. She got really mad," I pause. That happened a few times, didn't it? "Is she always like that?"

"No! She's really cu…nice! …when you get to know her," Sayori says, catching herself. "I know you'll both be great friends in no time!"

"I'm sure that wasn't hard for you," I say with a smile. She flashes a warm smile back at me.

"Oh," she looks up suddenly. "I should have been paying more attention to the time."

I look up and am surprised that it's past 6:30. We'd been hanging out for almost two hours! Sayori gathers her things and I follow her to the front door.

"See you tomorrow!" I say as we wave goodbye to each other. Usually, I'd close the door immediately, but for whatever reason I stare after her for a moment longer. I admonish myself for being weird as I start to close the door, but I take a final peak, and I see Sayori's head and shoulders drop.

Probably just the cold, I rationalize to myself.

Unlike me, Sayori hates the cold. She always tells me how she dreams of summer days in the dead of winter; warm sunny days that last forever. She can never wait for the last snowflake to melt and the trees to come alive again.

I frown to myself as I go to make myself dinner.