Makoto checked her clock.

3:01.

She knew that it wasn't wrong. In fact, she checked at least once a day, just to make sure it wasn't too fast or too slow. Obviously, she could just check her phone. But wouldn't it make more sense to have a nice little clock in the corner of the room that she could check without her having to take a device out of her pocket? More efficient. Time saving.

She checked the clock.

3:01.

She wasn't there. School ended a minute ago, but Haru wasn't there.

She cracked her neck. She cracked her fingers. A pencil on her desk was slightly askew. She fixed it. Made it straight.

She checked the clock.

3:02.

Two minutes late.

Her fingers drummed against the desk. The desk that was the designated Student Council Desk. She remembered the last student council president. He was hot. Hot but stupid. Last she heard of him, he was at Todai. If somebody that stupid could go to Todai, why couldn't she? Maybe because she wasn't as hot as he was? Was attractiveness something that went into consideration for university applications? She remembered reading some headlines for clickbait articles that suggested such a thing, but she never paid them much mind. Maybe they were right. She made a mental note to find those articles and see if they contained any reliable information. You couldn't be too liberal with what information you chose to listen to nowadays. Too much fake news and propaganda. In any case, did she even make the cut? Well, obviously not. Her skills at makeup were subpar, and her fashion choices conservative and unsexy. Well, to be honest, she always kept her body in shape. But was that enough? Was there some ideal to sexiness that transcended mere physicality? Was she missing that one crucial thing that could help her make the cut?

The door handle turned with a small squeak. Makoto didn't need to adjust her posture, fix her skirt, or even move her eyes to the door. Her back was already straight. Her clothes were already pristine. Her eyes never left their focus from the door.

Haru peeked her head into the room, and her eyes widened in instinctual panic as they met Makoto's.

"Close the door."

Makoto barely gave her a second to process her situation. A nervous salutation got trapped in her throat with the older girl's command, allowing her to only muster a hurried nod.

"Have a seat."

With the door shut, Haru slowly made her way to the chair planted directly in front of the Student Council President, her gaze fixed upon her the whole time. After finally sitting down, Haru nervously shifted her legs.

"Y-you wanted to see me, M-Makoto?"

Makoto looked briefly at the clock, and she could barely hear the ghost of a relieved sigh when she broke eye contact with Haru.

3:03.

"Yes." Makoto intertwined her slender, immaculately-kept fingers together and rested them on the desk. "Do you know why you are here, Haru?"

Haru gave a single, nervous chuckle, but quickly regretted it and looked away. "I-uh, I guess I told a little fib."

Haru's response only rested in the air for a mere microsecond before Makoto sliced through it with her reply.

"You guess?"

"Uh, no! No, I mean, uh. I, I told a fib. Yes, I-I definitely told a f-fib."

"Lie."

"P-Pardon?"

"You told a lie, Haru. Not a fib, a lie."

"Aren't those the same things?"

It was rare for Haru to speak before thinking. Her heart dropped once she realized that the rare occurrence manifested now.

Makoto quietly, but firmly, placed both her hands on the table, and raised herself up in a fast, smooth motion. Haru gasped, and instinctively shut her mouth with her hands. Her instincts would normally beg her to squeal out an apology, but her tongue was too frozen to say anything.

Makoto stood like that for a few seconds. "Is this a joke to you, Haru?"

Haru jacked her head left and right.

"Then why are you treating it like one?"

Her hands finally obeying her, she revealed her mouth and gave a hurried "I'm sorry!"

"No. No, I don't think you are."

Makoto leaned forward slightly, closing the distance between her and Haru. The girl shrank beneath her gaze, but not daring to look away from her red eyes of Kaa.

"You have no idea what you have done."

A bead of sweat rolled down Haru's brow.

"Your infatuation with Joker is a distraction. Not just to you, but to all of us. We almost died because we were too busy talking about it with Ann and Futaba in Mementos. Granted, I take full responsibility for that: as second-in-command, I believed it was my duty to discuss such an important matter with a teammate. Obviously, you are not to blame for what occurred. I apologize."

Haru did not expect that. Her body, which she only just now realized was as tense as a snake coil, loosened slightly. "Oh. Uh, I mean. That's… That's alright, Makoto."

"BUT YOU MADE A FOOL OUT OF ME!"

Haru nearly had a heart attack.

"Your crush not only got us almost killed, it also shifted the blame of us nearly dying in Mementos onto me! You made me look like an idiot in front of Joker!"

"I'm sorry!"

"What is Joker going to think when his second-in-command is apparently willing to risk the lives of all of her teammates just to share gossip like a twitty schoolgirl?!"

"I'm sorry!"

"How is he ever going to trust me ever again?! How will he ever think I am capable of leading us?!"

"I'm sorry!"

"Oh, God! And Yusuke, Morgana, Ryuji. What about them? Even if Akira finds it in himself to forgive me and make me co-leader again, how can those three ever respect me as a leader? My position in the hierarchy will be compromised, the structure of the Phantom Thieves is going to crumble, discipline will be lost, and we'll all die as a result!"

"I'M SORRY!"

Haru got on her knees and prostrated herself over and over, her head just shy from banging against the ground with every bow.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'M SORRY! Queen, forgive me!"

Makoto straightened herself out. She gazed at her nearly weeping friend.

"There's only one way you can fix this, Haru."

She looked up at Makoto, confusion written on her face.

"You need to tell Akira that you lied about me having a crush on somebody."

"O-okay! I'll do that! I'll clear your name!"

"No."

Makoto walked over to the room's sole window. She stood there, gazing out of the glass, concentrating on what to say next.

"You also need to confess to him."

For a few seconds, Haru was at a complete loss for words.

"W… what?"

"You must, Haru." Makoto turned around and faced her. "This secret is stupid. Very stupid. It's clear that it will only be a distraction from now on. I can't allow what happened last night to continue in the future. As long as you keep this secret, you compromise the Phantom Thieves. Confess to Akira."

Haru couldn't move, but her eyes were wider than they were before. A hot, scorching blush made its way from the bottom of her neck to the tips of her ears. Her breathing became slow, but ragged.

"If you don't tell him," Makoto said. "Then I will."

"NO!"

That was the closest thing to a roar Makoto had ever heard come from a human. Haru bounded up to her, and, to the taller girl's utter shock, grabbed her by her shirt collar and started shaking her.

"YOU CAN'T TELL HIM! MAKOTO YOU CAN'T TELL HIM! I WON'T LET YOU! YOU CAN'T YOU CAN'T YOU CAN'T!" Haru's eyes were desperate, primal. Now it was Makoto's turn to feel scared. She never thought something like this could happen, but the tables were turned on her so quickly, so effortlessly, her brain was left in a wild scramble, hopelessly trying to figure out what to do. She grabbed Haru's wrists and tried to loosen her grip, but they remained firm.

"Then you tell him yourself!"

"I! I can't!"

"You can! You have to!"

"I…" Haru loosened her grip finally. She looked away from Makoto.

Makoto shook her head and placed a warm hand on Haru's shoulder. Haru looked up. The stone-cold glare from Makoto's eyes were gone, replaced with a firm, yet gentle friendliness.

"I know what it's like to have a crush on somebody. Believe me, I know. But how long are you going to keep this a secret, Haru? When are you going to admit your feelings? Are you really okay with just pining for a boy, and not even trying to make him yours?" She gave a compassionate smile. "You can do this Haru. Do it for the Phantom Thieves."

Haru let out a breath. She looked away from her friend. After a few moments of thought, she said, "I need time."

"How much time? A week?"

"I… I don't know. Makoto, you don't understand! I've never felt like this with a boy before. I've had crushes, but Akira… Makoto, I would do anything for him. When he rescued me from my father, when he helped me accept who I am as a person and let this great, big weight off my soul, I… My heart belongs to him, Makoto. If he rejects me, I…" Haru's lip quivered. Her skin turned somewhat pale. "I can't think about it. I can't even comprehend it. Makoto, I need time!"

Woah.

Makoto had no idea that Haru's love went this deep for Akira. She knew it was somewhat ridiculous. After all, the two knew each other for only, what, like over a month? How could Haru possibly know that she loved Akira this much? But she knew from personal experience that it was hard to not quickly form a tight bond with your companions after exploring the Metaverse for so long. She remembered believing that Morgana was kind of annoying at first, but quickly took a liking to him after a day, and after a week, she began considering the cat one of her closest friends, along with the rest of the group. And the look in Haru's eyes told her everything. Whether or not it was puppy love didn't matter. Makoto could tell just how much Akira meant to her. Her loyalty went beyond words. If Haru had to sacrifice herself for the boy, Makoto knew that she would.

"Okay. I understand. You can take your time. But Haru, this can't go on for long. You need to prepare yourself for rejection and just do it. And what if he feels the same way! Haru, you have to do something before it's too late."

Haru recomposed herself. She breathed heavily. "I think… if you gave me a month, I'll be able to do it."

"A month?!"

"Mako-chan, listen. Give me a month. I'll… I'll do my best to see if Akira likes me back. I'll spend more time with him, I'll talk to him more. And, if I think he feels the same way, I'll confess. But if it's clear that he doesn't, well… I love him too much to be mad at him. I'll let him go. I won't even need to confess, Mako-chan. I'll be able to bury it in my heart. It will hurt, but that is infinitely better than the alternative. What day is it today?"

"November 1st."

"Okay. Give me until November 30th. At the end of the month, I'll do it. Please, Makoto. Please?"

Makoto sighed and got back into her chair. Her terrifying attitude toward gossiping about this sort of thing was really just a show. There was no way, no way in hell, she would let this girl she considered her sister suffer over a boy all by herself. She was prepared to do whatever it took to help Haru through this time, and if that meant some distractions during Mementos, then so be it.

But a whole month of this?

She rubbed her forehead and sighed again. "Okay, Haru. I trust you. Please, just don't make any rash decisions, okay?"

"O-okay." Haru sat down too, trying to calm her racing heart. The two girls let the silence permeate between them.

Makoto was the first to speak again. "Man. I'm going to have to be spending more time with Akira, too."

"Hm? Why's that?"

Makoto let her body relax as she reclined on her chair. "I mean, like I said, I need to get him to trust me again. This whole… incident, on top of the fact that he's just so…" Makoto grasped at the air, trying to find the right word to describe their leader. "Just so weird. It's hard to explain, but ever since I met him, I just… It's just really hard for me to connect with him. I can barely even call him a friend, and now that he thinks I compromised the team for a crush, I'm afraid I'm going to lose him."

"Mako-chan, Akira values you a lot, both as a teammate and as a friend. It might be hard for him to show it, but I know he cares for you as much as any of us."

"Maybe." Makoto rubbed her tired eyelids. "I guess we'll see this Saturday."

"What? What do you mean?"

"Oh." Makoto yawned and rubbed her eyes. "Yeah, I asked him if he wanted to see a movie with me this Saturday. Hopefully I'll be able to finally crack his shell and get back into his good graces."

"You asked him out."

"Hm? Yeah, I guess I did. Aaaahhh! I'm so tired! I can't wait to go home and take a long-"

"You're going out with him."

There was something off in the way Haru inflected her voice. Makoto opened her eyes and took her friend in, but what greeted her vision was something totally unexpected. Her jaw was clenched shut, her usually full, inviting lips pressed into a thin, white-hot line. Her eyelids narrowed slightly.

"We aren't going on a date or anything! I just, uh, I mean, I just wanted to get him to, uh…"

Haru's gaze did not change in the slightest, but she gave two robotic nods of her head.

"I understand."

"O-oh."

"You just wanted to hang out with him."

"Yeah."

"So you asked him out."

"Yeah."

"So you can hang out with him."

"Yeah."

"Akira is very handsome, don't you think?"

"Ye-"

WHAT.

"What?"

"I said, don't you think he's handsome?"

Makoto still didn't understand. She stared at Haru for a few seconds.

"I mean, I guess?"

"Hm? You don't think so?" Haru cupped her jaw with her hand, rested an elbow on Makoto's desk, and looked out the room's window, lazily twirling a lock of her smooth hair. "I assumed most girls would think he's cute. Ann definitely does, she told me herself. Would never date him, but…" She shrugged. "I always thought he would be kinda your type."

…

…

"M-my… my type?"

"Yeah. I thought you two were a cute couple when I first met you guys. I mean, I just assumed you were a couple at first. Not sure why, since you never hugged or kissed or held hands or anything. But I was really shocked when I found out you were both single. Or, rather, more just shocked that he was single. I mean, the boys in this school are generally kind of awful and gross. A few good ones, but, eh."

She locked eyes with Makoto. A small smiled curled on Haru's face.

"I never told anyone this, but before we ever even went on our first real mission together, I thanked God how lucky I was that you hadn't taken him by now. If I knew him for as long as you have, I would have done anything I could to make him mine. I thought that a girl as pretty as you would be dying to find a new guy to meet. Especially one that cute."

Oh. Fuck.

"No! I swear to you, I DO NOT see Akira that way. He's just a friend to me! And besides, looking for a boyfriend is not something I do, Haru." She chuckled a little. "I mean, you've known me long enough to know that I've been kind of a shut-in why whole life. I've never even had a boyfriend before, I genuinely don't even want one."

Haru's eyes closed as her smile widened.

"I know! You mentioned that before. It's kind of a shame, though. I'm sure you'd make any guy happy!"

Haru stood up from the chair and grasped the door handle. She turned her head back to Makoto, her hair gently swinging across her smiling, cute face.

"So we're done here? Let's head out!"

And with that, she opened the door, and stepped out into the school hallway.

It took a while for Makoto to get her thoughts back in place. The Haru she knew seemed to become a completely different person when it came to Akira. Her violent reaction to Ann outing her in Mementos was surprise enough, but what she just saw was terrifying. It was rare for another student to even come close to intimidating the Student Council president, and Haru was the last person Makoto would think would be capable of doing such a thing.

She gave a small gulp and wiped her brow, only to find some sweat there. She checked the clock.

3:10.

She grabbed her bag and swung it over her shoulder. She turned off the lights and stepped out.

"Hold on, where's Morgana? And where's your backpack?"

Akira sniffed.

"What're you talking about?"

"Nevermind."

With classes over, Ann and Akira began their afternoon ritual of lounging around in their classroom and talking to one another as they waited for Ryuji to show up. Many of the other students had already left the classroom by now, but a few were also occupying the space, dawdling on their way to leave.

As soon as Kawakami started prattling on about quadratics or whatever the hell it was they were supposed to be studying, Akira's mind naturally began to drift. He thought about when the next issue of his favorite manga would come out, the upcoming history quiz, what it must feel like to get his dick sucked by Ann, how much money he would need to get a new laptop, wondering if Kawakami would let him shove it up her ass if he paid her enough, his upcoming trip to Takemi's office to thank her for taking care of him while he was passed out, imagining him repaying her by cumming on her tits, and so on. Overall, a pretty typical school day, although the day's lack of frequent self-inflicted orgasms made his dick feel strangely ticklish as it pressed against his pants. And, as usual, as soon as classes were over and he began talking to Ann, he forgot all about the fact that he just spent the better part of the last hour thinking about railing her nonstop until his cock fell off of his pelvis.

Despite the nonstop horniness, No Nut November didn't feel that bad so far. Of course, he knew that over the course of the month, there would be times where he would really, REALLY like to masturbate, but Akira was confident in his ability to maintain self-control. He shook his head as he thought of his other No Nut Companions, knowing that they were probably suffering tremendously by now, and thanked his lucky stars that he wouldn't have to suffer as much as them. And besides, that's why he's the leader of the Phantom Thieves, right? Because he was always calm, and cool, and collected? Because he always knew how to get out of a bad situation and find a way out? And as leader, Akira knew that it was his duty to help Morgana, Ryuji, and Yusuke through this harsh time, even though he knew that he won't have it as bad as them. A sly smugness bubbled up in Akira's heart as he imagined paternalizing his three friends, being the compassionate, yet stern voice of reason that he knew he truly was deep down inside.

Ann and Akira's conversation was cut short by the sound of the classroom door opening. But much to their surprise, it was Haru who greeted their vision, not Ryuji.

Oh, that's Haru! Wonder what she's doing here.

Makoto stepped in too.

FUCK.

"Oh, hey guys!" Ann greeted them. "Didn't expect to see you here. We're just waiting for Ryuji."

"Yes, we were planning on trying to set up a time for a meeting," Makoto said. "We need to make figuring out that new floor in Mementos our priority."

BAD. THIS IS BAD.

"Oh! I was just about to bring that up to Akira, actually," Ann said. "Looks like I can always rely on you to take initiative, huh Makoto?"

"Well, I try my best to be a good co-leader and team strategist. It's my duty, after all."

"Are you feeling alright, Akira-kun?" Haru sweetly asked. "I was so worried when you got knocked-out. I, uhm. I wanted to call you last night to make sure you felt okay, but I decided that you probably wanted to rest."

And for some reason, for some fucking reason, Makoto turned her head to Akira and gave him the sweetest, sexiest, cutest smile he's ever seen. "You were knocked out cold for so long, I hope you feel okay," she said.

Akira didn't really know why his dick went from zero to hero whenever Makoto smiled at him. But it probably had something to do with his heart feeling like it was about to melt.

Oh, why does this have to happen now? Akira thought. I was just minding my own fucking business and trying not to jerk off and Makoto just HAD to walk right in with her sexy legs and cute butt and STUPID gorgeous face with that FUCKING AMAZING smile and that GODDAMN MOTHERFUCKING ADORABLE VOICE AND HER STUPID BULLSHIT PIECE OF SHIT MATURE AND ORDERLY PERSONALITY THAT JUST MAKES ME WANT TO KISS HER AND

"Oh, yeah. I'm feeling fine, thanks."

"When will Ryuji get here?" Makoto asked. "We should probably get the group together as quickly as possible to figure this thing out."

"Agreed," said Ann. "We shouldn't dawdle on this. What's the deal with that creepy floor? We might need to start exploring it again today, but with more caution."

B A D.

"I'll text the other guys real quick."

Akira said that sentence very nonchalantly, but internally, he was screaming. He yanked his phone out of his pocket and created a private group chat with Yusuke and Ryuji so quickly, he was afraid his phone would crack with the impact of his thumbs.

Akira: BAD. THIS IS BAD. BAD NEWS BAD NEWS

Yusuke: What? What is the matter?

Akira: MAKOTO IS HERE

Yusuke: And?

Akira: AND SHE'S REALLY FUCKING HOT

Ryuji: Don't remind me.

Akira: AND THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT EXPLORING THAT FLOOR IN MEMENTOS

Yusuke: So?

Akira: We can't let them go in there! We need to keep No Nut November a secret from them, and we need to keep them away from that sock-tanned douchebag.

Yusuke: You are right. I should have predicted that the girls would obviously be concerned about this and try to investigate. It would be disastrous if they encountered that… thing and got seriously hurt by him. We are clearly no match for him.

Ryuji: I really want to jerk off.

Akira: Okay, I'm going to make up some shit about you guys not being able to meet up today. We'll regroup at LeBlanc like we originally planned, and we'll go from there.

Yusuke: How are we going to prevent them from trying to get to that floor in the future, though?

Akira: I don't know! I'm using the majority of my brain capacity to resist cumming in my pants, I can't think right now.

Ryuji: Same here.

Yusuke: Ryuji, you NEVER think, and yet you still ejaculate like a slimy garden hose.

Ryuji then sent a gif of a guy getting fucked in the ass by a horse, his favorite go-to for when somebody roasted him too hard in a group chat.

Akira: Goddamn it, not this shit again. Just make sure you guys are at LeBlanc by six.

"Ryuji and Yusuke can't meet up today," Akira calmly said, pocketing his phone.

"Um, what?" Ann said. "This is kinda a big deal. What could be more important to them right now?"

Akira shrugged. "Yusuke's got this meeting with some artist he's been dying to see for a while, and Ryuji needs to help his mom out with something."

"Well, can you ask them if they can meet up tomorrow?" Makoto asked. "This needs to be our top priority."

"Sure, I'll ask them."

Akira pulled his phone out again.

Akira: Dick cheese dick cheese poop asshole vagina

Yusuke: What in the world has gotten into you?

Akira: Those harpies are asking me to plan a meeting with you guys tomorrow, so I'm just writing random shit to make it look like we're talking.

Yusuke: I see.

Akira: Say something to keep me occupied.

Yusuke: That horse that Ryuji likes to post reminds me a lot of Chadusuke.

Akira: Um… what?

Yusuke: It's as though, symbolically, I am currently getting fucked in the ass by him.

Akira: K

Ryuji: How's Morgana holding up?

Akira: Not sure. I threw him out the school's window for cumming on my calculus homework.

Ryuji: At least he didn't cum on your laptop after you made fun of him all night.

Yusuke: That was a fun Saturday.

"They're not really sure right now," Akira said, pocketing his phone again. "Probably not, though."

"Oh for the love of…" Ann groaned.

"Well, I think we can make do without them," Haru said. "I already texted Futaba, she said that she can meet with us tonight. We can just fill Yusuke and Ryuji in later."

Oh my fucking-

Akira pulled out his phone again.

Akira: Yo, would you rather go to a Phantom Thieves meeting, or play Street Fighter with me after class is over?

Futaba: Why can't we do both

Akira: Because I'm trying to get out of the meeting.

Futaba: Why are you trying to get out of the meeting

Akira: I need an answer, woman.

Futaba: Play Street Fighter.

Akira: Atta girl. Go tell Haru that you can't come to the meeting after all, make some shit up.

Futaba: I can't lie to Haru!

Akira: Um, yes you totally can?

Futaba: She's way too sweet.

Akira: Don't be a pussy.

Futaba: How about you tell her yourself, pussy?

Akira: It'll look so stupid if I lie for you, dumbass.

Futaba: Well I guess you gotta go to that meeting then, dipshit.

Akira: reioxfgnc,selimfrfsroiesroivd90ewn

Futaba: So are you gonna do it?

Akira: Yes.

"Oof, yeah. Futaba just texted me. She said that she can't make it either, actually. Said she needs some time alone. Personal stuff."

"Well, that's just great," Makoto said. "We can't have a meeting with three of us missing, especially not without the girl who knows how to analyze that entire floor. Let's just plan on getting it done tomorrow, okay guys?"

"Oh! Ann, is that a new purse?" Haru exclaimed.

"Yep! Got it at the underground mall a few days ago. What do you guys think?"

"Well…"

And Akira sat there as they prattled on about stupid bullshit he was too horny to care about.

Okay, grab Morgana, visit Takemi, play some Street Fighter, meeting. Grab Morgana, Takemi, Street Fighter, meeting. Morgana, Takemi, Street Fighter, meeting. Morgana, Takemi, Street Fighter, meeting. Fuck Makoto is so hot, FUCK she likes somebody else, FUCK who the fuck is it, oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck.

"Kurusu-kun."

Haru's voice sliced through Akira's hyperventilating trance.

"Ah! Uh, what's up, Haru?"

"We haven't gardened together in a while."

Akira winced.

Ah shit, I haven't hung out with Haru in a minute.

"I would love to! Let's, uh, how about we do it tomorrow?"

"I was thinking more today."

He rubbed the back of his head.

"I mean, I'm kinda busy right now…"

"Doing what?"

Akira gulped and looked away.

"Like, homework and stuff."

"If we don't plant the new vegetables now, we won't be able to have any for the next time we go to the Metaverse."

"Well, I mean, can't you plant them yourself?"

"There are a lot of vegetables, Akira. I can't plant them all by myself."

Akira shifted his legs, uneasy under the weight of Haru's gaze.

"I… I mean…"

Haru kept looking at him.

"I guess… I guess I can spare a few minutes."

"Great!" Haru clapped her hands and smiled. "See you on the roof in, oh, ten minutes?"

"I kinda need more time than tha-"

"Great! See you there!"

Haru exited the classroom with a hum in her throat and a bounce to her step. Makoto and Ann stared at her as she left. Makoto turned to Ann, a wry smile curling at the end of her lips.

"Oh, my God," she said. "How did we not notice earlier?"

Ann returned Makoto's smile with one of her own. "Yuuup."

Akira cocked an eyebrow. "What? What are you talking about?"

Ann shook her head and looked out the window, muttering something about boys being stupid under her breath. Makoto smothered her mouth with her hand, trying hard not to let out a mischievous giggle.

"It's… it's nothing! Ah, I should, uh, I should go talk to Haru for a second! See you guys tomorrow!"

She rushed out with her hand still stifling her giggles.

Akira tapped Ann on the shoulder. "What was that about?"

"Mmm, nothing, nothing." She rested her chin against her hand. "You sure like to follow Haru's orders, don't you?"

"Pff, no! She's not the boss of me!"

"Then why did you agree to help her garden if you're busy?"

"I, uh. I mean, she's my friend, so like, I wanna help her out."

"Oh yeah? Just a friend?"

"Shut up."

Ann giggled loudly. "Whatever you say, Akira." She stood up and swung her backpack around her shoulder. "I should get going. Don't wanna get in the way of your little date tonight~!"

Akira released a loud guffaw from his stomach. "Yeah right. Me going out on a date."

"Mmmm, you never know…"

"What was that?"

But Ann had already made her way to the door and stepped out. Whether or not she heard him was unimportant.

Akira looked out the window and sighed.

Guess I better clean up my mess.

Morgana was waiting for Akira at the school's courtyard, not far from where his backpack was defenestrated. As the cat came into view, Akira also noticed a big, steaming pile of shit resting on top of his backpack as he walked towards them.

"That," said a fuming Morgana, "was for throwing me out the window."

Akira stared wide-eyed at his backpack, and then quickly turned a hateful gaze to the cat.

"You shat on my shit!"

"You threw me out the window!"

"You came on my homework!"

"You threw me into your backpack and shook me!"

"You were talking shit about Makoto not liking me!"

"YOU are a pathetic loser who can't get a girlfriend!"

"And YOU are too!"

Morgana pointed an accusatory paw at the boy.

"Do you know how many times I've had uber-hot chicks press me up against their tits? A lot! It feels good, Akira. But I guess you wouldn't know the feeling, huh?"

Akira's mouth closed shut. He knew that nothing he could say would change the fact that he's gotten less action than a fucking cat.

Morgana gave the boy a smug look. "Heh, that's right, cuck. You'll never know what it's like to have a nice pair of boobs rubbing up against your cheek. Or the feeling of a girl wrapping her arms around you so she can press you up against her chest. You'll never know how soft it feels, how heavenly the scent is, how it makes your head spin, how it makes you…"

Morgana trailed off. He only just realized that he was drooling.

"I… I gotta use the bathroo-"

Akira grabbed the cat by the neck before he could finish his sentence. For what felt like the tenth time today, he rubbed his eyes in exasperation, and then turned to his friend.

"I'm sorry I threw you out the window."

"I'm sorry I came on your homework."

"And shat on my backpack."

"We're not even for that yet. I could have died."

"That backpack almost cost me 6000 yen!"

"And I could have died!"

Akira sighed. "Yeah, you could have died. I'm sorry."

"I can't forgive you."

"Oh yeah? I'll make it up to you."

Morgana chortled. "I'd like to see you try."

"Wanna come with me to Takemi's office?"

Morgana stared at him. "I… thought you said you were going alone?"

"I was. But you can come with me. Dr. Takemi hasn't… hugged you yet, has she?"

"No… No she hasn't."

"Well, now's your chance."

Morgana thought for a moment.

"Give me a roll of fatty tuna sushi and we'll call it even."

"Deal!"

Man and cat shook hand and paw. Akira grabbed what remained of his once-pristine backpack and threw it into the trash.

"I gotta go garden with Haru," Akira said as he let Morgana crawl up on his shoulder. "Then we can go to Takemi's place. We gotta hustle though, we're gonna have a meeting with the rest of the guys about figuring out how to deal with that creature we saw yesterday."

"Alright."

Akira made his way back into school, not even bothering to try to hide the cat, since he knew that most of the school's population was already long home by now.

"Hey, Akira?"

"Yeah?"

"It took an extreme amount of effort to not jerk off while I was waiting outside."

"I know."

"An EXTREME amount of effort."

"I know."

"Akira?"

"Yeah?"

"Happy No Nut November."

"Yeah."

A bright smile formed on Akira's lips as he pushed the door to the roof open.

"Happy No Nut November."

Author's Notes:

THE LEGEND NEVER DIES

I tried my hardest, my absolute HARDEST to get this thing out on the first day of you-know-what. You guys cannot even imagine the immense amount of disappointment in myself that I felt when I realized I had to put the release of this chapter out.

Now, you guys have probably noticed the name of this chapter: Chapter 4: Part 2. No, that's not a typo, I'm still not actually done with this stupid chapter yet. Personally, I do not feel like this chapter can actually be "complete" until I conclude the first full day of No Nut November. Once that happens, the story can finally start moving along in a nicer pace.

I know that I let a lot of you guys down for being so late. I am really sorry. So many of you guys leave such wonderful, great comments and reviews on my story. You might think I'm exaggerating, but I feel so wonderfully happy when I check my little story and see that somebody left a positive review, or even just gave my story a chance at all, for that matter.

I know that this thing is a slow, dawdling, way-too-long mess about masturbating and memes, but I really do care about this story. A lot, in fact. I spend so much time in my day thinking about where I should take this story next, what plot lines should I use, how the characters would react to certain situations, etc. Like I've said before, writing chapters is a lot of fun, but it takes the energy right out of me. I promise I will do better in the future when it comes to uploading in a timely manner! (And since my favorite pastime won't be available for an entire month, I'm gonna need something to keep me company anyway...)

Again, thank you so much for your feedback, your support, and your continued reading! For all you folks who left reviews, followed, or favorited, thank you so, so, so, so much! With every review I get, with every follower, I feel a great big rush in my brain, somebody out there actually likes my idiotic ideas!

In any case, I can't improve this story without feedback anyway. Like last time, it would be so helpful if you guys roasted my shit and gave me some constructive criticism if you have any. What did you think of this new chapter? Is there anything I can improve? Has the quality dropped? LET ME KNOW!

And like last time, I'm down to answer any questions about myself or my story, no matter how seemingly stupid they are. Ask away!

Godspeed, my brothers. Stay fast and stay true. If you keep No Nut November holy, it shall stay by you, and it shall defend you. Blacklist your favorite hentai site if you have to! It will be worth it!

Your immortal Metropolitan,

Kiril

EDIT: Lol, I just realized my fic passes the Bechdel test. Your wonderful Cardinal is shaping up to be a feminist icon!