Author's Note: Allllright! That's another chapter in the bag! I was expecting this one to be a lot longer (like maybe 9k words haha) but wanted to cut it short and get it out there so I can flesh out Sayori's arc I have planned. Hope you enjoy this one! I had fun writing it and fleshing out Kazuma's parents. Next chapter will be Sayori's...revelation. enjoy! Follow me on my Instagram page ( .bakery) for more frequent updates!

...

kodaka17: oh come on. Mitsuki is so like you!

mangaislit: no she isn't! Shut up!

kodaka17: she has pink hair and wears a red cljp

mangaislit: okayyy

kodaka17: and she loves to bake and read manga

mangaislit: yeah but

kodaka17: aaaand shes the shortest girl in the club!

A pause.

mangaislit: I am NOT short!

I had been texting Natsuki for most of the night, and I had to admit, it's turned out better than I had expected it to go (as in it was gonna be a brief, one-and-done, tsundere-style conversation). We went over what we were gonna be doing (researching what recipes we wanted to use and how to style them) and made plans for her to come over this Sunday (she seemed insistent that we do all the work at my house, which was sort of unusual but I didn't complain. I mean, wouldn't she not want to go over to a boy's house? I'm sure she's heard how those kinds of manga plots go, not that I would dare try anything of the sort.) After figuring out all the details of who would pay for what (myself eating most of the wages and being given the task of gathering most of the supplies), we broke out into a general chat about our anime series and our favorite mangas. At the moment we were waist-deep in our original conversation at the club about the Parfait Girls (where I slowly couldn't help notice the similarities between their culinary club and our literature club).

kodaka17: I'm just saying, there's so many similarities it's kind of creepy

mangaislit: Ever heard of a coincidence, dummy? (-＿- )

kodaka17: that's kind of a lot of coincidences haha

I watched her typing icon flicker for a few moments.

mangaislit: um hang on, okay?

I paused.

kodaka17: sure, no problem

I put my phone down for a moment to stretch out, sighing in pleasure as I felt my spine relax and pop. I glanced outside and barely noticed that the sun has mostly set, the streetlamps outside starting to glare brightly. Christ, had I really not moved since I sat down? I spotted the half-empty Ramune bottle and noticed how dry my mouth was. I quickly snatched up the bottle and downed the contents.

Minutes passed, and not a single new message from Natsuki. I scrolled through our chat log and kept refreshing it, waiting for a new message to pop up. Nothing. 'I wonder what's keeping her?' I couldn't help but think.

I glanced at the bowl on my desk, the drippings of soup from the dish now drying up. 'Might as well take care of that.' I thought as I got up, scooping up the dish and empty Ramune bottle. I walked downstairs and set the bowl in the sink, turning on the tap to wash it out. As I washed, my mind drifted to my plans for Sunday, how early I'd have to get up and fetch her supplies (she said she wanted to come over in the morning). Have to get a nice wardrobe out and tidy up around here in general. I should probably ask if Mom and Dad are gonna be home…

I finished up the dishes and dried my hands off. I chucked the bottle in the trash and retreated upstairs. I returned to my room and walked over to my nightstand, turning on the radio. I gently cranked the knob and switched it to a random station. J-Pop...political roundtables... weather reports...I think I'll settle for some American rock.

I plopped back down into my chair and looked at my phone again, feeling my heart sink when I saw there was still no new messages from her, but several new ones had built up in the Literature Club chat. I tapped the notification.

lilmonix3: Okay, everyone! Hope you all know what you'll be doing tomorrow, because the next meet will be nothing but prepping for the festival. No poems, but make sure you have one to read for our presentation. Can't wait to see everyone! ❤️

yurikatagiri7: Noted. Thank you for reminding us. :)

happy-thoughts: thanks for the update Monni (^^)

lilmonix3: How many times must I tell you not to call me that? :|

happy-thoughts: awww, meany Monni! :`(

lilmonix3: Natsuki and Kazuma, did you two read this?

I started to type.

kodaka17: Yeah, thanks Monika. Me and Natsuki already figured out our plans. Looking forward to the festival :)

I swiped out of the chat and checked Natsuki's chat again. Last active 17 minutes ago.

Sighing, I clicked my phone off and tossed it onto my desk. I ran my fingers through my hair and slowly swiveled on my chair to face my room, noticing how slightly dirty it was. Dirty clothes slumped around, unorganized textbooks, and I still haven't emptied my waste bin. Certainly not the dirtiest room in the world, but it could use some tidying up.

I got up from my chair. Guess I'll start cleaning...

Soon a half hour passed. I felt myself grow worried. 'She's probably eating dinner or something.' I told myself. Yeah, her parents called her down to eat. But still, she at least would have texted me by now, right? Or maybe she's taking a shower or something. Or am I being too obsessive over this? Maybe. It's certainly nothing to worry about, at least. I could always talk to her tomo-

My phone buzzed. I quickly picked it up and read the notification. 'New message from Natsuki!' Almost hopping with excitement, I quickly tapped the message.

mangaislit: Sorry, my dad was calling me. Ill talk to you later. See you tmrrw. Find me at lunch. Dotn forget PG

And just like that, her profile clicked offline.

…

The rays of the morning sun peered in through my window, painful stakes digging through my eyelids into my eyeballs. I tossed on my bed, shielding my eyes from the light. Downstairs, the smell of breakfast wafted through my nose, the faint sounds of cooking oil sizzling and popping. My stomach rumbled, dreaming of eggs and bacon. My hands grasped out to my nightstand and picked up my phone, placing my finger on the back to unlock it. The first thing I saw was the row of dismissed alarms, one after another. My mind slowly started to spur.

What the hell? What time is…

9:22am.

I shot up in my bed, panicking. 'Shit, I overslept!' Class started well over an hour ago! Do Mom and Dad even know I'm here? They must think I already left, busy getting ready for their day. I threw my bedspread aside and shot up, rushing for the door. I listened in downstairs. A TV played, a male voice speaking in careful Japanese. I could hear faint, light music playing. And my Mom and Dad talking, but I couldn't make out their words.

So they're here. Shit. Ah, whatever. They'll know I'm here once I head downstairs. Maybe Dad can even give me a ride to school? I turned to my drawer and started pulling out a clean uniform, having just fallen asleep in yesterday's attire. I quickly buttoned up my blazer and went to the bathroom, combing my hair back into a respectable shape. I took a moment to check the rest of my notifications. I started quickly reading them and swiping away.

I stopped.

happy-thoughts: hey! Are we still walking together today? Getting time to go..

(2) missed calls from Sayori ️

happy-thoughts: oh well, your probably still asleep hehe ^_^

happy-thoughts: hope you come to the club today! ❤️

I felt my head start to swirl. I completely left Sayori hanging this morning. Fucking hell! Why did I stay up so late trying to finish Parfait Girls? Even if it was a good volume (which it kinda was), now Sayori probably thinks I'm ignoring her or something. I moan to myself, opening up her chat. I quickly hack out a message.

kodaka17: Hey, im really sorry I didn't wake up to walk today. Hope you weren't waiting too long. Can I make it up to you with cookies?

I pushed send and shoved my phone in my pocket. Gotta remember to wrap up a few cookies from the fridge from her now. I slung my bag over my shoulder and left my room, quietly shutting the door behind me. I slowly crept down the stairs, partially cloaked in darkness.

I walked downstairs. Rays of sunlight streamed in through the large wall-to-wall windows, glowing on the wood floors and furniture. On the table I could see my fathers laptop and suitcase, and my mother's various folders spread out.

¨Kazuma? Your still here?" My Dad said, surprised. Dad was a lean and polished man, and a little nerdy in appearance, with solid black glasses and neatly combed hair. He was dressed in his usual formal attire, black suit blazer with a stark white dress shirt, fat blue tie and gray dress pants.

"He's here?" I heard a soft female voice say. Mom. "Ooh, let me set him a plate."

I coughed. "I, uh, overslept, sorry. I was heading out right now." I moved to the door.

My mom emerged from the kitchen, a steaming plate in hand. "Nonsense! Eat. Can't have my son heading off for his studies on an empty stomach, can I?" My mom was a fairly short woman (about as tall as Sayori, I'd say), with a soft face and dazzling complexion. She had her black hair tied up in a small bun, a lightly greased-stained dull yellow apron wrapped around her. She was wearing a thin pink sweater beneath it, not yet changed into her formal arrite yet.

She held the plate and a tall glass of orange juice out to me, a smile on her face. I thankfully took the plate and drink and kissed her on the cheek. "Oishi-sō. Arigato." I set it down on the table in the seat to the left of my father, his attention returned to the television. I set my bag next to my chair, resigned. 'Well, I'm late anyway and the school stopped serving breakfast by now. Might as well eat.' I thought to myself as I sat down.

I suddenly remembered about the cookies. I got up from my chair. "What's wrong?" My mom asked, hovering by the kitchen, undoing her apron to hang it up.

I stepped into the small area of the kitchen and opened the fridge. "Nothing, mom. Just getting a little treat for someone." I plucked out a few chocolate chip cookies from a tray. I looked around, searching for a chilled coffee drink for myself.

"Ah, whos it for?"

I opened up a drawer and pull out a thin box of plastic wrap, tearing off a sheet. "Oh, just Sayori."

"Awww, how sweet of you. How is she these days? You never talk about her as much anymore. How is her mother?" Mom asked, putting the dirty pan in the sink and turning on the tap. "I'd love to invite her over for tea like we used to."

I paused, carefully thinking of my answer. "Well, I'm not sure about her mother, but Sayori's been good. She's been walking with me to and from school these past few weeks. She made me join one of her clubs at school, and it's been a lot of fun."

"Really?" Mom said, a little surprised. "You didn't tell us you were in a club now. What club is it?"

"A literature club."

Dad glanced away from the TV. "A literature club, huh? How interesting! You know, your old man was the president of his schools literature club. I wrote a short story that ended up going to the final level of this fancy literature contest in Kyoto, and I won an award the size of", he gestured with his fork to the TV, "that TV!" He paused to take a bite of his eggs. "Perhaps a bit impractically sized, but it earned me all the more bragging rights!" He pulled his closed laptop sitting on the table towards him. "Let me pull up the PDF I have…"

"Oh sweetie, spare him the story. You try showing off that story every chance you get." my Mom said, laughing.

"Aw, come on now, Miki. That story is something to be proud of! It brought one of the judges to tears when he read it! If our boys in a literature club, he could benefit from taking a few notes from a pro.", my Dad said with a grin. He turned back to his laptop, feverishly typing away.

I smiled, folding the wrapping up. I gently tucked it into my pocket.

Mom bent down to put the pan away, and focused on wiping down the sink. "So who's all in this club, Kazuma?"

"Oh, well…" I said, returning to my seat. "Just myself, Sayori and three other girls."

My father glanced up, looking at me over his glasses. "Your the only boy? I'm hoping you know your manners..." He said, giving me a stern look.

I felt myself go hot with embarrassment. "O-of course! They've been really nice, and I've already written a few poems as a starting assignment."

My dad nodded in approval. "That's good to hear. Good to see my boy flexing his creative muscle." He said with a smile. He returned down to his almost-finished plate.

I glanced up at the small flat-screen television hanging up on the wall, above a bookshelf. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe stood at a podium, microphones surrounding him, the news headline talking about a ceremony honoring the veteran members in his political cabinet. I watched the smaller news banner roll across the screen, detailing both Japan and world news.

My mind clicked back to Natsuki and I realized I technically haven't even asked if it was okay for someone to even come over at all. Not like there would be a major problem (Its not like I'm throwing a party or something), but still…

I coughed. "Um, since I have you both here, I need to ask you something."

Mom glanced up from the kitchen, behind the island counter. "What is it?" she said. Dad shut his laptop, showing his full attention.

I continued. "Well...our club is supposed to present in this big school festival thing next week, and everyone in the club is supposed to help with decorations and setting up our booth. I'm working with a girl who's supposed to bake snacks and stuff to offer to students, and I was wondering if…" I gripped my fork. "if it would be okay for her to come over on Sunday? If that's okay."

Dad adjusted his glasses. "What's the girls name?"

"Natsuki."

"Why can't she make the snacks at her house and you go over?"

I paused, not really having an answer. "She just said it would be easier, because I live a lot closer to the school than her and, um, her dad doesn't let boys over…" An uncomfortable silence followed.

Dad glanced up at Mom, who said nothing, only shrugged slightly.

"How long would she be over?" Mom asked.

"She wanted to come over in the morning and leave by, like, dinner-ish. We were gonna make a lot of stuff so it would take a while."

Mom took a seat at the far end of the table. "Well, this is rather convenient." I paused, expecting her next words to be a shutdown of my plans. "How so?" I said.

My Dad picked up his empty glass and plate, heading over to the kitchen. "Well, your mother and I got word today that we were supposed to drive to Chiba for work training for some new equipment they're supposed to be implementing, and we would be gone for the weekend plus another day or two. We were going to tell you after school that you'd be on your own for this weekend, but…" Dad shrugged. "Here we are."

I pulled up my mental map of Japan. Chiba, a port city, was about 15 miles or so from here. Same-ish distance from here to Tokyo. Maybe a thirty minute drive or so. I had never been, but I think Mom and Dad had been there a few times before for work-related stuff.

"So, yes, you can invite this girl over." my Mom said with a definitive air.

From the kitchen, my Dad added, "That is, on one condition."

I braced myself. ¨Yes?"

Dad returned to his spot, and looked me dead-serious in the eyes. ¨Can you promise to keep your hands to yourself? You know we can´t afford to raise your chi-¨

I feel my cheeks go red. ¨Dad!" I practically shouted. Dad and Mom started laughing. Despite myself, I awkwardly laughed as well. Dad flickered down to his smartwatch. "Oh, shoot. It's getting to be around ten." He looked at Mom. "I could drive him to school then come back and we'll head out."

Mom smiled. "Sure, that gives me time to change."

Dad stood up, pushing his chair in. "Ready to go?" He said to me. I glanced down at my plate and realized I hardly touched it. "Oh sure, just, uh…" I picked up my fork and shoveled a cut-up egg into my mouth, took a few bites from a piece of toast, and tore a chunk from a bacon. "Let me put this away." I said, mouth almost full. I picked up the plate and glass and headed to the kitchen.

Dad chuckled, grabbing his keys from the shelf. "Remember to chew, son." I quickly swallowed down the mishmash of food, took a big swig of juice and put it in the fridge. I walked back to the table and grabbed my bag. "Let's go."

Dad gave Mom a quick peck on her cheek and moved to the door. I hugged my Mom. "Hands to yourself, Kazuma." My mom whispered into my ear. "Mooom." I muttered, blushing. She laughed. "Have fun at school!" she said as I released the hug. She gave a light wave as she closed the door behind us, hearing it clack and lock.

We turned and started heading to the car.

…

"Well, here we are."

Dad pulled the car up by the gate, idling in a stretch of empty road along the sidewalk. I picked my bag up and pulled it over my shoulder. My dad was adjusting the radio back to his favorite station (a political fireside chat). "Remember what your mother said, Kazuma. Hands. To. Yourself."

I scoffed. "Dad, you know I'd never dream of doing anything forceful."

My Dad nodded. "I know, we raised you right. To always look out for others. Just...keep it in mind. And be courteous. Make her something to eat before she arrives, tidy up a bit around the house. Be a gentlemen."

I smiled. "Thanks, Dad." I stuck my hand out and he firmly shook it. "Have a good day. See you by Tuesday. Mom and I will text you." I nodded and opened the door up, stepping out onto the road. I shut it behind me and gave a parting wave, watching my dad pull out and start to drive off. I watched his car zoom by, and turned to walk to the gate.

I punched in the code to open the electronic gate (it locks once school starts to keep students in and keep undesirables out) and stood back as it a automatically opened. I started to walk up to the doors and heard it silently click back to lock.

I swung open the doors and walked through the lobby of the school, a three story, modern architecture area with exposed support columns and lots of floral decorations. I approached the main office and opened the door. A younger female student (looked like a first year) with a blue streak in her dark hair and a miffed expression on her face stared down at her phone. She glanced up at me and quickly returned to her device. I walked up to the main desk.

"Hello. I need an admission to class, please." I said politely to the receptionist, an older woman wearing a maroon office suit. She propped open her chunky black laptop and started to type.

"Name?"

"Kazuma Odaka."

"Student number?"

"0734"

"ID?"

I reached into my wallet and pulled out my school-issued identification card. She glanced down at it and handed it back, typing away.

"Reason for tardiness?"

"I woke up late."

She clicked her tongue. "You should consider an alarm."

I hugged through my nose. "I have one. It didn't go off."

She said nothing, still typing. Was she writing a book or something? How long does it take to-

A small, black device on her desk buzzed, a red light shining faintly. A thin piece of paper slowly printed out, the schools emblem adorning the top. She waited for it to fully print and ripped it free, handing it to me. I gently took the paper.

"Arigato. Yoi ichi nichi o." I said, turning away. The receptionist said nothing, typing away again. I sighed and nodded to the girl, and returned to the lobby.

Naturally the hallways were deserted as class was already in session. I slowly walked past the closed doors, faintly hearing the conversations in each one. I listened to my shoes clack...clack...clack against the checkerboard linoleum hallway. My current period, Computer Science, was upstairs. I quickly made my way up the stairwell to the second floor, and walked to the class. I took a moment to check my phone a final time before hastily putting it in my bag. I took a deep breath, before knocking on the door.

A pause.

"You may enter." A male voice said.

I turned the knob and stepped into the class. A dozen student faces were looking up at me from their terminals, most returning to their computers when they recognized me. Just Kazuma.

Mr. Frink, my instructor, was an Eastern European man, 40 something, with thin brown hair and thick black glasses. He was standing at the front of the room, a textbook in hand. He turned to me and gave me a polite smile. "Ah, Mr. Odaka, how pleasant of you to finally join us." he said, voice laced with slight annoyance. Tardiness was always looked down upon and viewed as a disrespect to the teacher.

I gave a light bow. "My apologies, sir. My alarm failed to go off this morning." I pulled out the admission paper and handed it to him. He glanced at it and tucked it into his shirt pocket. "I'd consider getting a new one. Please take a seat. We were finishing up our review paper from last class. Due at the end of the period."

I nodded and quickly walked to my assigned booth near the corner of the class, offering a great window view of the town ahead. A sleek gray desktop computer sat, a wireless mouse and keyboard to match. I set my bag down and started powering it up. Beside me was Shinichi, one of my 'anime' friends. He was busy typing away at his terminal, with a billion different tabs open and white earbuds on. He glanced over to me and leaned over.

"Nice of you to show up, Kazuma." He said, keeping his voice to a near-whsiper.

"Stuff it, Ozaki. I woke up late." I said, pulling out my binder from my bag.

"Too busy reading those erotic mangas, huh?" He snickered.

The login window popped up. I quickly typed in my credentials and logged in. Within a few seconds my home page popped up. I opened up my documents and clicked open my draft. I started to type.

"No. Unlike you, I was up talking to a girl."

"Ooooh, watch out everyone. We got a real charmer on our hands." He said, not looking away from his screen.

A pause.

"So, who's the girl huh? Anyone I know?"

"I don't think so. I met her at a club a week ago." I paused. "She's into manga."

"Cool. You should try bringing her to the anime club. We could use a little female company." He said, jokingly.

I laughed, keeping my voice quiet. "What, and have you try to swoop in and be a creep? Not on your-"

"Gentlemen." Mr. Frink said from the back of the room, his voice stern and cold. We both looked up. He made a gesture. "Work."

We both nodded. "Apologies, sir." Shinichi said, cutting me off. "I was just refamiliarizing Kazuma on what we're doing." Mr. Frink sat down at his desk.

"He shouldn't need 'refamiliarizing'. He should be working." He started to type away at his personal computer, ending the conversation.

Shinichi looked at me. I shrugged. "Whatever." he said, returning back to his work.

I continued to type.

…

The second period bell rang, and I quickly picked up the rest of my papers and shoved them into my bag. I quickly logged off my terminal and slung my bag over my shoulder, nodded to Mr. Frink and headed out. Students are already shuffling out their classrooms, moving against and with each other to get to their class. I took a moment to glance down at my phone, greeted to a few notifications (including a message from Natsuki, which made my heart skip a beat).

I went back to my chat logs…Sayori still hasn't opened my message yet. I felt myself grow worried. 'She probably just has it turned off or something, and I'll still see her at the…'

Through the heads of students, I could see a familiar swirl of coral pink hair, with a vibrant red bow atop it all. Sayori!

"Hey! Sayori!" I call out to her, ignoring the looks of students nearby.

I see her head turn, but quickly turn back. She moves away.

Is she...is she avoiding me? Maybe she just doesn't…

"Sayori!" I called out, a little louder.

This time, she turns around fully. We lock eyes. I see a trace of...fear in her eyes, before warping to happiness. She waves and beckons me over. I smile and start to move through the students. She moves aside near a water fountain, separate from the rush of students. I rush to join her. She's sort of looking around, not really meeting her eyes to me.

"Hey, sorry about this morning. Did you get my text?" I said, reaching my hand into my pocket with the cookies.

"Oh, ahhh…" she seemed to trail off. "My, um, phone is dead. It unplugged in the middle of the night."

'That...doesn't quite make sense.' I think to myself. If her phone was dead, how did she call me in the morning? Maybe she charged it for a little bit?

"Ah, it doesn't matter." I pull out the wrapped cookies, and hand it to her. "I got you something as a makeup gift, heh. These were your favorite kind as a kid, remember? With white chocolate chips."

She looked up at me. Her cheeks and eyes were slightly puffy red, with a hint of concealer dashed around. It wasn't quite working, and it seems like a generously amount was used to try and conceal it.

What happened?

"S-Sayori, are you okay? Your eyes are…"

"Oh." She blushes, a hot wave of embarrassment washing over her. "I think I'm sick or something. I'm not sure if I'll make it to the club meet, I might go home early. I'll put it in the group chat." She gingerly takes the cookies and slips them into her blazer pocket. "Thank you, 'zuma. Your always looking out for me."

She gives me a hug and starts to walk away, but I put a hand on her shoulder. "Sayori, were you crying? What's wrong?"

She almost shakes me off. I feel my heart shatter.

"No-no, I'm fine. I'm just...sick. I...I gotta get to class. I'll talk to you later." She moves away, almost hastily walking down the hallway. In a few seconds, she turns the corner and disappears.

Leaving me standing in the middle of an near-empty hallway, my mind spinning with worry.

…

"I just don't know what to think at this point."

"Have you talked to her about it?"

"No, not really. But I've been worried about her."

Natsuki and I were sitting at the same spot we had lunch at yesterday, overlooking the main foyer. The rays of sunlight shined down on our table, reflecting in her short pink hair. It gave her an angelic quality, and she looked beautiful.

She took a bite from her sandwich. I took a moment to drink some of my butajiru stew. "Has she said anything to you?"

"No, not really. You?"

She shook her head, sipping her iced glass of water.

"Should we bring it up to Monika? She is the club president, and she's always told us to go to her if there's any problems."

I paused, swirling my stew around with my spoon. "I don't know, because I'm not sure if there's even a problem at all. It could just be my head messing with me or something." I took another bite.

Natsuki looked down at her half-eaten sandwich, a thoughtful look on her face. "Well...maybe you should try talking to her first and getting a better sense of her head. You two were best friends, right?"

I paused. "We're?"

She shook her head. "Sorry, 'are'."

"Well, yeah. Friends since we were, like, 7. We grew up a block away from each other."

"Okay, so y'all would have hung out and stuff right? Gone to each other's houses?"

"Yes…"

"So try seeing if you can go over today or tomorrow. Hang out, y'know. Do stuff." Her cheeks showed a trace of blush. "Try to ask her questions about what's going on with her life, and see how she feels. And if it doesn't work, just flat out say what you think is going on."

I looked up at Natsuki. "That's a great idea. I'll text her after lunch. Thank you for suggesting that."

Natsuki smiled, enjoying the compliment.

I tried to switch gears. "Hey, also my parents said it was okay for you to come over for Sunday. I'll send you my address later."

She smiled. "Cool. And did you read Parfait Girls?"

I pulled up my bag and set it next to me. I unzipped it and pulled out the volume, damage-free. "Yes. I spent all night reading it, actually. I ended up waking up late this morning."

Natsuki laughed. "You dummy! Dont be like me and just do nothing but read all night. You could've just read it in the morning, you know."

I shrugged, putting it back into my bag. "I know, but I wanted to finish it." I took a sip of my Ramune soda, poured into a glass. "I have to admit, I thought it was gonna be kinda boring, but it's actually really interesting. I can't wait to keep reading with you." I paused. "Thank you."

Natsuki blushed. "H-hey, don't make me feel weird about it. It's...b-been fun reading it with you. Everytime I show it to people, they always just brush it off and never give it a chance. So, thanks yourself."

The lunch bell rang and the cafeteria became alive with activity. I stood up and took out two trays and dumped them, then walked Natsuki downstairs. I said my goodbyes to her and watched her walk away. I stepped outside the cafeteria and pulled my phone, and noticed there were a few text messages. It was from the Literature Club chat, from a few minutes ago. Not sure why I didn't feel my phone go off...

happy-thoughts: hey Im reaaally sorry but I won't be able to make it to the club today. Im feeling sick and I've asked to be sent home. still gonna try do my part for the festival ❤️

lilmonix3: Hey don't stress yourself! If you can't make stuff just don't worry, we'll work around it. Thank you for telling us. Hope you feel better soon! ? ﾟﾘﾊ

yurikatagiri7: How unfortunate. I hope you start to feel better soon, Sayori. :)

So she's already going home. On a normal basis, I won't be seeing her till the day of the festival, three days from now. If this is something seriously, I can't hesitate to wait. I was gonna be home alone anyway, so not like I need to ask permission from Mom and Dad to stay late somewhere...

I pulled up her chat and started to type.

kodaka17: Hey, is it okay if I go over to your house after school? Maybe we could watch a movie like old times?

Her response was near-immediate.

happy-thoughts: I'd like that. I'll make snacks hehe (^^) see you then

I smiled, and shoved my phone into my pocket. I was going to get to the bottom of this, and make things right.

I started my walk to my next class.