Hey guys! This chapter we get to see what type of person Yui is. Someone gave me a review on the story on making Yui more fully fledged out and I appreciate the review. I hope that this is okay! Anyway, that's all I have to say, onto the chapter!

4/13

My alarm blares near my ear. '6:00 am'. Another day in Inaba, will it be interesting? I bet not. Though, those dreams were weird… mom and dad warned me about reading too much graphic novels, were they right? Whether or not, I'm not giving them up. Undressing out of my yukata, I put on my uniform. Stepping in the dining room, there was a note on the table.

'I made you breakfast and lunch before I left. They're in the fridge labelled. I had to get to school early because of the distance. There is a spare key daddy had made for you in the flower pot on the table. Have a good day Yui!~

~Nanako'

She's so sweet… I open the fridge and see two containers. One had, 'Breakfast', on it and the other had, 'Lunch', written on it. Taking both, I remember that there is a spare key in the flower pot on the table. I look at it, see the key, take it, and walked out of the house. I locked it and made my way to school.

~Time Skip~

I was able to catch up with some walking students so I just stayed in that area. If something were to happen, there would be witnesses. Agh! I'm getting paranoid. I need to chill out before I lash out at someone by accident. "AAAAAHHHH!" Speaking about accidents. The boy from yesterday sped past me and crashed into a bunch of trash. "S-Someone…" his pleas were muffled from his head being in the trash can. Wow, you really need to ride your bike properly. With a sigh, I held the trash can in place and began to pull on it. There weren't much trash as they were all secured in trash bags.

"Whew, you saved me. Thanks! Umm… oh yeah, that's right! You're that cute transfer student, Yui Narukami, right?" Him recognising me as 'cute' took me by surprise as I started to heat up. "I'm Yosuke Hanamura. Nice to meet ya." Hanamura winks at me, while getting up his bike. "Are you okay, Hanamura? That looked like a bad fall…" I asked as he nods, "Oh yeah, yeah I'm fine. I've had worse accidents than that anyway." We began walking in the direction while talking about the incident. The two of us agree that something like this is very worrisome and messed up.

"Oh crap, we're gonna be late! Here, jump on the seat. I'll sit up front and pedal." Hanamura holds his bike down and I look at him weird. "Will that work? Meh, I'll listen to you then. I can't ride a bike so I trust you not to kill me, Hanamura." I jump on the bike seat as he sits in front of me and begin pedalling. I clench onto his jacket so I don't fall off as the two of us continue all the way to school. The time we got there, the second bell rang as we rushed up the stairs and to our classroom.

Class is class, boring. Apparently the teacher has the nickname, 'King Moron', from his full name being close to it. Hm, I'm gonna call him that from now on. "So, you getting used to this place?" Hanamura stands next to my desk as I begin to pack up. "Not yet. I haven't seen much of this place other than my neighborhood, the school zone, and the train station…" my mind started to wander of all the places I got to see fully. "Huh, want me to help you Narukami? Let's start now! I want to take you to get some grilled steak, you in?"

My face had this look of, 'Really?', plastered on. I guess he knew what I was talking about because his face went pink. "T-T-T-T-That's not what I m-m-m-meant! What I meant was, just us hanging out! N-Not a date! I-I-It doesn't mean I wouldn't date you, i-i-i-it's j-j-j-just-" his reaction was golden. "Heh, I'm just teasing Hanamura. Grilled steak sounds great, count me in!" Just then, "Hey! This is how you can pay me back for breakin' my stuff, you big idiot. Yukiko, want to join us?" I look over at the black haired girl as she shakes her head towards her brunette friend. "I'll pass… I don't want to gain anymore weight. I need to help out at the inn today, anyway." And with that, Amagi leaves.

"Chie! I only asked Narukami~Chan here, at least ask properly. But, I do owe you. C'mon you two…" Hanamura sighs inwardly as Satonaka and I gather our items and follow Hanamura out. "So, Satonaka, how long have the three of you been friends?" I began a conversation with Satonaka as she started contemplating. "Well, Yosuke I knew him ever since he got here six months ago. With Yukiko, you can say we've known each other for a lifetime!" Her bright smile made me smile. The whole time we walked, I just kept talking to Satonaka. Hanamura would chime in a few times but it was mainly just Satonaka and I talking.

It took us a while but we ended up at a place called Junes. Wait, wasn't this an ad on TV? The one where Nanako sings the theme song? "What! This place doesn't serve grilled steak! And why take us to YOUR place?" Satonaka's complaints stayed as we went into the elevator. "Well, I WAS planning on taking Narukami~Chan to Aiya but since you jumped on the freeloader train I had to change my plans. Sorry Narukami~Chan if you were expecting steak, man…" Another savage? "It's fine, Hanamura! I actually wanted to get to know you two more anyway. You both plus Amagi are the only ones who are making an effort for me to get to know you guys and making me feel welcomed here! I should be thanking you three…"

"Wow, you're so nice and formal, Narukami. Why's that though? You also have that mature aura about you too…" The tomboy continues to contemplate as we get off the elevator and to what I think is a food court. It actually looks better than I imagined from this town. "Oh, that… my parents were strict about my behavior with others. No matter the age, I have to refer them by last name until we became close. Another thing is that I have to be modest and keep my manners daily. That's what I was taught since I was able to talk…" I cringe at my past. These guys will think I'm a snob. "You know Narukami~Chan, your parents are in another country. Try letting loose instead of being formal. But it's solely your choice." That gave me a shock. I seriously thought he would call me a snob the moment his mouth opened.

"Y-You sure? I don't want to be rude!" Satonaka and I sat on cheap-looking foldable chairs and placed our bags under the table as Hanamura went to a nearby stand. He was close enough to hear and to be heard. "Yeah, we don't mind Narukami~Chan! But, just do it at your own pace. We want to be casual with you but we want to make sure your comfortable first." She leans back into her chair as Hanamura places three cases on the table. They were each filled with fifteen pieces of takoyaki with milk chocolate coating the top and white chocolate drizzled on. "She's right. Yukiko~San, Chie, and myself have the same thing in mind; have you be our friend so that you won't feel lonely here."

What their saying, are they being genuine? I heard stuff like this from Machi and others but, could they be telling the truth? A small smile formed on my face as it morphed to a big, bright, gleeful smile. "Thank you! Itadakimasu!" I take a toothpick and begin digging into my case of takoyaki. Hanamura and Satonaka briefly smiled before starting to eat. As we ate, we chatted. It didn't seem long but the time when we finished, it was already 4:30.

The topic changed from how life was like in the city to about the shopping district Inaba has. "It's only been half a year since this place opened up, but I haven't been to the local shopping district much since." Satonaka ate the last of her takoyaki as she spoke. "A lot of stores there started closing, and… oh, uh…" her voice was muffled by the takoyaki but we were able to make sense of what she said. "... you can't blame it on Junes, can you?" Hanamura's sigh bummed the three of us out. "Oh, Hana~Chan! Hi!" A girl with long light brown hair and eyes called out and waved. Hanamura shot out of his seat and rushed to her.

"Who's that? Hanamura's girlfriend?" I whispered o Satonaka as she laughs and explains their relationship. Apparently her name is Saki Konishi and Hanamura has a huge crush on her and she's our senpai. Her family runs the liquor store in the shopping district but she works part-time at Junes for some extra cash. I don't blame her wanting more cash. "Hey! That's the transfer student, right Hana~Chan?" Konishi points at me and walks towards me. "Hi! My name is Saki Konishi. I'm one of Hana~Chan's friends. If you ever want to hang out with someone, just ask me!" Her smile was bright but it also seemed forced in a way.

I shook it off and gave her a formal introduction, the way I usually greet people older than me. "Heh, Nice to meet you, Yui~San! Say, keep an eye on Hana~Chan for me, please? He's a good guy but he can get nosy and annoying at times. Tell me and I'll set him straight, okay?" Hanamura begins to get all flushed and I just giggle. "I will Konishi~Senpai! But I'll also remember that he's a good guy at heart, you should too!" Konishi~Senpai agreed with me and left due to her shift starting up.

Hanamura flopped on his chair while talking about Saki. She has a brother and she treats Hanamura like a brother as well. Satonaka teases him as he gets flustered by the minute. "The daughter of a local family-run liquor store and the scion of the invading chain… the flame of forbidden love!" "Aw! You live the life of a soap opera. I want to live the life of a soap opera!" I whined and we all laughed. In the midst of laughing, a light bulb came in Satonaka's head since stopped laughing.

She told us about a mysterious show called the 'Midnight Channel'. To watch it, it has to be midnight on a rainy night, the TV needs to be switched off, and a person will appear on the screen. That person on the screen is apparently your soulmate. Hanamura began laughing his ass off because of how dumb it was while I was kinda interested. "I'll try it out. It's raining tonight, right? Let's all try it out and report about it tomorrow!" "Really? Fine, I got nothing better to do." Hanamura sighs as tiny droplets of water fall on our faces.

"It's beginning to rain. Let's go home for the day before we get sick. Remember to watch it you two, mainly you Yosuke. Bye!" and the girl in green leaves the elevator. I do the same and parted ways with Satonaka once we leave the building. The rain picked up quick so once I got home, I was drenched. "Hey, are you okay? You're soaked…" Nanako rushes to me with a worried look on her face. I pat her head and reassure her that I will be fine with a long soak in the bath. Her bright smile makes me happy. She skips back to the TV and continued watching the news.

I begin to undress myself and placing my uniform and my other things in the washing machine. The bath slowly became full so I gently submerged myself in the soapy water. The warm feeling's soothing. Second day and I already made friends who really seems to want me to be friends with them. It will take a while, but I will get comfortable with them and allow my true colors to fly.

Time passed and I get out of the bath. I start washing my hair and wrap it in a towel turban I left here. Wrapping a bigger towel around my figure, I leave the bathroom. I heard the TV was still on so Nanako must still be awake. The door opened too which leads me to believe that Dojima is home. I scurry to my room and begin drying myself off. I dress myself in a white t-shirt, a lilac crop hoodie and a pair of black leggings then walked downstairs. "Welcome back, uncle!" I smile at him as he gives me a sleepy one in return. The Police Department must be working them ragged. The news went from the Yamano murder to them interviewing the person who found the body.

"What went through your mind when you saw it? Could you tell she was dead? Did you see her face?"

"U-Umm…"

The person they were interviewing had a blurred face and distorted voice, but you can tell it was a girl. Probably for personal reasons. But I can't help but think that she seemed familiar.

"Don't you think it's scary that someone was killed on a foggy day?"

"Huh...? She was killed?"

Okay, now they're getting into her face too much.

"Oh, err… so did you see anyone suspicious around here?"

"No, not really…"

"We heard that you found it when you left school early. Did you have some personal business to take care of?"

"Huh? That's…"

Wait, now I remember. It's Konishi~Senpai! I knew that the person seemed familiar. Not that it matters if she found the body or not. The news continued to talk about the case and how it will ruin the shopping district. Dojima spoke up about it, saying that they should stop running down the shopping district and maybe they will have more customers. Lastly, they mentioned that the Inaba Police Department are useless since they can't determine if it was a homicide or suicide and Dojima kept his mouth shut. I think he was going to swear up a storm but realized that Nanako and I are here.

The Junes ad played and, like usual, Nanako sings the song happily which puts a smile on my face. "Hey daddy? Can the three of us go to Junes sometime?" the little girl's question went unnoticed by the middle aged man. "No…?" it was then when we realized that he was just asleep. "Geez… I'll wake him up when I go to bed. Don't worry, Yui~San…" and with that, Nanako continues to watch TV. My mind wanders for a bit and when I come back, I'm already in my room, reading one of the graphic novels I brought from home. I don't know what the title is but I'm just gonna continue reading.

Hours past, and I'm already half way done. I turned my phone on as it displays the time, '11:58pm'. The Midnight Channel is about to be on. I bookmarked my page and closed the book, awaiting for the Midnight Channel to appear. I kinda hope that it's real, but I also hope that this isn't some freaky occult stuff. Minutes past, and an image appeared, making me jump. It was someone with long light brown hair. What the? It's real!?

I am thou, Thou art I…

Thou art the one who opens the door…

Huh? That… sounds like me…? UGH! This migraine hurts like hell. A lighting sound pierces through the migraine as the lights went out. The image on the TV disappears. What was that…? Unconsciously, I tap my fingers on the screen of the TV. There was a ripple. That drew my curiosity. I pushed my arm on the screen as it went through. I was freaking out mentally until I felt like I was being pulled, since I screamed. But my scream was muffled due to the fact that my head went inside the TV too.

With all my might, I pulled back. The grip on my arm vanished as I fell back and hit my head on the small table in my room. "Rgh…" I groaned as a knock came on my door. "Are you okay, Yui~San?" It was just Nanako, not uncle. "I'm fine. Just fell out of bed. Did I wake you?" she muffled in a yes manner and wished me a good night. I try to go back to sleep but I couldn't. Eventually, yes, but it was just uncomfortable. I was tossing and turning all night.

What, just happened…?

Hey guys! Did you enjoy the chapter? If you're wondering about the bit with the 'I Am Thou' thing, I kinda based it on the Persona 5 awakenings and how the voice actors of the main cast also voice their personas. For example, Xander Mobus voices both Joker and Arsene, and the same follow suit for the other characters. I can't tell is the same as it is in the Persona 4 version but I'm gonna say that the personas sound like their human selves. Also, I've been wondering about a few things while writing that part. What kind of voice would Yui have? I'm just going off of preference and personality of Yui on this when I say Erica Lindbeck would be a good voice for Yui. Namely because of Kaori Miyazono from Your Lie In April (love that anime!). I'm not going to give spoilers but I will say that Kaori is happy, supportive and competitive at times and it can be turned down a bit to fit Yui. Another thing is that I love Erica Lindbeck's performance as both Kaori and Futaba Sakura from Persona 5. They were both amazing! Anyway, I'm done rambling. Bye~