Mr. W was right, doodling in a math notebook is quite entertaining. I drew flowers, horses, and chocolate bars. In fact, I drew my chocolate bars so well that I'm now craving one. Or two. Maybe five will be satisfactory.

"Nomi, where are you going? The next class is about to start." Gina calls my name. I almost drop my notebook of chocolate doodles from surprise. Surprise that she noticed me, and surprise that she cared.

In fact, I'm so surprised I completely forget why I'm leaving the room.

"I'm, uh, I'm going, I think, um…"

"Are you going to deal with your situation?" Gina's eyes are worried. Why is she worried? What situation is she talking about? My mind is racing to remember what she's talking about, but for some reason, I completely blank.

When I fail to answer, Gina nods. "I knew it, it is a bad situation. You never interrupt class." She sighs kindly and looks at me with a smile. "Go, I'll cover for you, is that okay?"

Well, that's very sweet of her. Not that I need covering for, no one will notice whether I'm there or not. But what she's offering is so very nice that I can't tell her that her services aren't needed. So I nod, pick up my notebook, and leave.

I think they sell the really big chocolate bars at the convenience store a few blocks away.

The wrapping around the chocolate gives away easily and I'm soon breaking the delicious goodness between my teeth.

So. Good.

I don't even care that, when I looked at the store clerk, I had been struck with the odd realization that a few months ago he stole three hundred dollars from the register so he could buy some video games. Maybe I'll tell someone someday, but today he sold me chocolate and therefore today I do not care.

I sit down on a bench in the park. I don't really care that I'm missing class. I do care quite a bit that the heat from the sun is melting my chocolate, making it soft and sticky. I don't think it changes the taste too much, but it makes the transport from wrapper to mouth a lot more difficult.

"It's over here!"

A voice cries from somewhere in the park. I look around and soon spot a few high schoolers running around. Well, more accurately, one is running around like a small child, one is kicking the playset as if testing its stability, and the last one is standing there, stoic and uninterested.

"See? Right here!" The one running around comes to a halt and now points aggressively at the ground below him. "The treasure is hidden below this ground! I can sense it, too. C'mon, Nendo, dig it up."

The large guy stops kicking the playset and looks over at his blue-haired companion. "Why do I have to dig it up?"

The blue-haired kid laughs. "Because if I try to dig it up, the Earth Goddess will take it as if I'm starting a war upon her and her kind, and I don't want to have to bother with a big fight right now."

The large guy just stares blankly. I wonder if he even listened to that story that the kid obviously worked very hard to make up. Actually...upon closer inspection, these people look familiar. And they're wearing PK Academy's uniform!

I about squeal from delight when I realize that the third person is the psychic I saw from yesterday. I assume. I don't see that many pink-haired high school students around here.

"Hey!" I shout across the park, and then I get up and start running over. I don't think they heard me, as they keep messing with the ground, but when I get up right next to them, the blue-haired kid falls back in surprise with a surprisingly girlish squeak.

"Wh-who are you?" He musters.

I can't hold back the laugh that bubbles in my throat. I feel bad when I see his face turn a light shade of pink, but the harm is already done, so might as well move on.

"My name is Nomi. I would say 'pleased to meet you' but we've already met."

"We have?" The large guy scratches at his weirdly shaped chin.

"Yeah, but it's okay if you can't remember. I really just want to talk to you!" I say, whirling around to face the pink-haired one.

But no one is there.

"Hey wasn't there someone there just now?" I say, whirling back to the large guy.

"Who, my pal? Yeah, he was just there."

"So where did he go?"

"Did he leave?" He turned to look. "Oh! He's gone. Pal? Where did you go? Paaallll?" He cups his hand around his mouth to make his voice travel further. Then he begins to wander off, shouting 'pal' into the sky.

I don't understand. Why did he leave?

"You," I start, facing the blue-haired kid. I remember him clearly now, he's the delusional one with the torn clothes. He perks when he notices me talking to him. "What is that person's name?"

"Who, Nendo?"

I recall him calling the large one Nendo earlier. I shake my head. "No, not the big guy. The one with the green glasses."

"Saiki?"

"Saiki, huh?" I turn and look at the direction Nendo wandered off looking for him.

"My name is Kaido, if you're interested…"

"I'm not, but thanks." I begin to walk away. If Saiki is not here, then there is no purpose for me to be here. And if there is no purpose for me being here, why should I stay?

"No, wait, who are you?" This Kaido kid calls after me. In my surprise, I stop. No one had ever wanted to know who I am before.

"Me? I'm, well, my name is...uh…" Honestly, I didn't blank on my name. My name is Nomi. But he is looking at me with some serious suspicion that I don't know what to do with.

"Are you part of the Dark Reunion?" He asks, cautiously looking around.

The...what?

Oh yes, he had been mumbling something about that yesterday when he saw me, too. Did I look like a member?

When I take too long to answer, he clenches his right fist and stands, a glare that doesn't fit his meek character from before emerging.

"So you catch me when I'm alone. I must thank you for that, now innocent bystanders do not have to be harmed in our legendary fight."

This...is getting out of hand. I back away.

"Wait, no, I don't know what Dark Reunion is, I don't want to fight, I don't know how to fight, would you just quit glaring at me?"

"If you aren't Dark Reunion, then who are you?"

"Geez, I'm just a middle school student. My name is–"

"Nomi?"

I turn. My sister has appeared, standing in a beam of light pouring through the park trees above. Sheepishly, I raise my hand in greeting.
"Hi, sister."

I hear a gasp from Kaido. A glance back tells me that my beautiful sister has him under her spell.

"What are you doing here?" Kokomi demands, rushing over to me. "It's still school time."

"And so why are you all here?" I fire back.

"Our class has taken a short trip to a bakery nearby for our home eco class." Kaido supplied helpfully. My sister nods and smiles, looking at me expectantly. Waiting. Secretly very impatient.

"I…"

Well I can't tell her that I'm skipping school. But there really isn't anything else to say. There isn't a good reason for me to be out of class, multiple streets away from my school.

"School dismissed everyone, someone pulled a prank and all the classrooms had been flooded with nacho cheese." Somehow, I say it with a straight face. Somehow, I say it without stuttering.

I casually take a chomp out of my precious, but softened, chocolate.

"So hey, why don't I come with you guys? To the bakery. You don't mind, do you big sister?" I put on a huge smile. I'm not going to her school, and I'm not skipping my own school (as far as she knows), so I know she can't refuse me. Not without sounding like a jerk older sister, that is.

"Of course you can come, Nomi. What a horrible prank." Kokomi's smile strains. She beckons me over to walk next to her as we all turned to walk back to the bakery. She obviously doesn't believe in the nacho cheese prank (I doubt anyone would actually believe it), but it wouldn't be very perfect of her not to believe her little sister.

"Nacho cheese does take a long time to get out of schools." Nendo states profoundly. "It gets everywhere."

Well. My doubts have been proven incorrect. In my defense, though, his level of gullibility was out of my calculations.

"By the way, why did you come over to the park, Kokomi?"

"Ah, I was looking for S…" She cuts herself off and begins again. She must not have been satisfied with what she was about to say. Perhaps it was not a perfect sentence. "Teacher was looking for where everyone went, so I volunteered to help him look."

I grin and look forward. Saiki may be a psychic, but he's also just a student. And therefore, I have to find him at the bakery. Because he will have to be with his class. Then I'll be able to talk to him.

A/N

Hey everyone! Thank you so much for picking this up to read; I was honestly completely shocked that anyone read it at all, so I am very humbled and very grateful. I'll do my best to continue posting chapters as frequently as possible, but I'm sorry if they are irregular posts. My main focus is and always will be school.

I also don't know what I'm doing, so that's a thing.

Have a great day! :)