The Sun has just risen on Inkopolis: as usual, its rays penetrate through the windows and try to wake up the people of the city. They never seem to reach Grina, though… in fact, she was still sleeping like a small child on her comfy bed. She was babbling things in the sleep….
"Zzzz… no mom… … zzzzz… not the broccoli… … those are aliens… zzzzz…"
Her alarm clock starts ringing, making her jump a bit. She stood there for a moment, before shutting it down. Once the alarm clock is off, the girl yawns with the mouth closed and stretching her upper body a bit.
"… drat… today there's school, isn't it?" She said to herself, with her eyes still full of sleep and snorting loudly.
Without hesitating, Grina starts preparing herself properly: first, she starts taking igienic business inside her bathroom. Then, she took a quick breakfast of milk and chocolate cereals, while watching TV: it was showing a talk-show, which bored quickly the young lady.
She didn't care to watch other channels, since her school duty is occupying her mind. Grina checks her academic tools: everything was in the bag. A last check around the house and the girl got out of it, locking the door behind.
While walking toward the school, she couldn't help but to think about her friend at the hospital: she still remembers what the doctors said about his situation. He needs to stay there for some days, since Hun took serious injuries all over.
That alone, made Grina a bit worried and sad: in fact, she didn't smile ever since she woke up in the morning. The girl was passing near the road that will take there to the injured boy: she wishes to throw away her bag and rush to the hospital, to see his state.
However, school was very important for her… since that could give her a future in the Inkling society. The Turf War Station pays once every day to everyone, according to their overall performance in a certain amount of matches. Since there are far better players than Grina, getting paid well enough to survive with that job alone, is not possible.
She still dreams about that, but the girl knew she wasn't the only one: saying to be a Turf War pro as a profession, is the best status symbol an Inkling could wish for. Fashion too, but in order to get the freshest clothes and accessories, you still need money and a certain degree of Turf skills, which is not an easy task.
There are alternatives: other sports like Basketball, Tennis, Soccer are said to pay well too, but that's a niche category. Those are nowhere near as famous as Turf Wars and Grina doesn't really appreciate, the idea of not using any Squid abilities in any of those sports.
Suddenly, the girl realized to fell into improvised thoughts again: that happens when she's in a sad mood and doesn't have anyone to talk to, at the moment. Grina doesn't even remember, how she arrived to think about niche hobbies and their related cash.
However, a glance to the high school courtyard, made her head escape from the clouds: the girl starts looking for her friends, which is a rather simple duty. Usually the three Inklings meet near a tree, located to the east side.
Grina got there in a jiffy, finding Bars sitting on a bench under the familiar tree, while listening to his smartphone device through funky-looking headphones. He was watching through the buildings and skyscrapers, while moving his head a bit following the rhythm of the song.
Bars was so immersed into the music, that he didn't notice the girl sitting near him. She took his smartphone and increase the volume, making the boy quickly ditch his headphones.
"Grina!" He calls her, getting a bit frustrated. "I hate that joke, man!"
"Hi Bars…" Grina greets, with a voice lacking joy.
Bars looks Grina for a bit, without saying anything.
"Ehm, are you all right? That face is giving me the chills…" Bars gets a little worried.
"… I'm not into a smiling mood…" She replied, while looking away from him.
"Come on, cheer up! You can't seriously stay depressed all day! I couldn't stand it!" Bars tries to help his female friend.
"… I don't want to be happy, Bars." She said.
"What?! That's stupid! I… uhm… oh, wanna listen to some music?! I have just the right one for"
"No. I want to hear silence, now…" Grina lays her head on her left hand, while the arm rests on her left leg.
"Grina…" Bars is feeling down, looking at the girl in such state.
For a while, no one said anything…
"… I hate myself…" Grina speaks in a low voice.
"What did you just said?" Bars asks.
"I hate myself, Bars. I'm such an useless being, that's only good at causing even more trouble…" Grina explains demoralized.
"T-that's not true! Where did you get those stupid ideas?!" Bars got a bit upset.
"I sent Hunry into that vicious cage and I couldn't save him… I sent the entire team into that vicious prison and I couldn't save them… not even this joker you're hearing got saved by Grina. I deserve being left in the dark, so no one will get hur"
"Stop this, man!" Bars hugs Grina, making her blush a little bit. "I thought that you'd remember what Mirii said last time…"
Grina didn't say anything…
"… I didn't forget that day, Grina… when you'd get against those bullies, in order to protect me…" Bars said, with his eyes closed.
"I got lucky there… I didn't even lift a finger, to make them run away from you." Grina replied, still demoralized.
"But that wasn't the important part, pal! It was just the intention of doing something for me… for a stranger, you know. That's what matters the most, for me and Mirii…"
Grina shakes her head.
"Heh. You guys are such naïve people… following this crazy girl, whenever she goes…"
"Well, ehm… maybe because we're also as crazy as you?" Bars guesses.
She giggles a bit.
"No, you're not… no one can be as stupid as me." Grina said, now in a more normal tone of voice.
"Really? I thought to be the stupidest of the bunch!" Bars exclaimed with proud.
"Your stupidity will never be compared to mine, sleeping giant." Grina winks at him.
"Ha ha! Sorry to burst your dreams, but I'm the world champion in that category! No way, you're going to dethrone this beast!" Bars jokes with her.
"I'm so stupid, that I'd confuse a throne with a chair." Grina smiles while saying that.
"Pfui… too weak! I did confuse you and Mirii, when we first met! Now THAT'S stupid!" Bars laughs at himself.
"But that isn't really something stupid: it happens for people to confuse new friends, you know. You're too stupid to even act like one!"
Both the friends laugh at that phrase: Grina was feeling much better than before, despite the fact she didn't want to.
"So… after school, we're going to search for that treasure, right?" Bars asks.
"… huh… I forgot about that. Mirii, what do you have to"
Grina turns her back, thinking to find someone next to her: instead there was no one near.
"Oh? Wait… where's Miss Perfection?" She looks around.
"Whoa, man…! She's not here?!" Bars got surprised.
"Yeah… now this is new! School is almost starting too, so…"
"There she is! Look!" Bars points at Mirii coming their way.
The friends took a great look at her: her face seems very sleepy and she was walking a bit weird too.
"Hi… yaaawwwnnn." Mirii yawns, with her right hand properly posed in front of her mouth.
Grina and Bars look at each other.
"It looks like someone did the small hours, eh?" Grina looks at Mirii a little disappointed.
"Shut up, Grina… I took my sleep… like usual…" Mirii was staggering a little.
"Uuuuh, wanna sit down on the bench? Or even better, lie down on it?" Bars proposed.
"You, idiot… those aren't meant as… yaawwwnn… beds…" Her eyes starts closing a bit, but she quickly opens them.
Grina didn't like her friend's situation.
"What about you get back home and take a proper rest?" Grina tried to help.
"Nonsense… there's school, you imbecile… uuugh… I do need some aspirin, though…" Mirii massages her forehead.
"Why did you stay up all night, anyway?!" Bars asks, getting worried for the girl.
"I didn't stay up… all night… why you keep… yaawwnn, asking… I'm not that stupid… to avoid proper sleeping…" Mirii tried her best to appear awake, but the sleepiness was too heavy to bear.
"Seriously Mirii, you need to sleep. You can barely stand still!" Grina stands up, getting serious.
"YOU… ARE GETTING… yaaawwnn, ON MY NERVES now… ONE MORE… zzzz… more… … zzzzz…"
Mirii loses her balance and starts falling backwards, but she was rescued in time by Bars, since he was closer to her. He lifts her up with both his hands.
"W-what are we going to do, Grina?! She can't get to school, like this…!" Bars looks at Mirii, worried.
Her eyes got heavier and she could barely move an arm.
"… Bars… put me down, you moron…"
"Don't! We'll bring her back home, right in this instant!" Grina orders Bars, which he agrees.
Without hesitation, the two Inklings left quickly their meeting spot and dash back to Mirii's house.
"… no… stop moving… I don't need… … to sleep…"
Mirii was feeling very comfortable between Bars's hands and starts closing her eyes a bit, thinking to get enough rest… instead, she finally departs for dreamy locations, as the girl was suppose to do before.