"Where have you been?!"

"Sorry! I'm sorry!" Sayori apologized, skidding to a stop in front of Natsuki's searing eyes. "Monika and I got caught up talking about some stuff. Sorry."

"D-Don't worry about it, Sayori," Yuri said, smiling awkwardly.

"Thanks," she replied, coming around to the other side of the booth. "Well, now that Vice-President Sayori is here, you two are officially relieved of duty!"

"Thank you," Natsuki huffed, stepping around to the front of the booth promptly. "See you in the auditorium later."

Sayori frowned. "You're not going to stick around and see who comes by?"

"That's your job," Natsuki snapped, taking off without another word. Sayori waved tentatively after her, but she did not look back. At that, Sayori deflated somewhat.

"That was…" Yuri mumbled. "Uncharacteristically standoffish."

Sayori sighed. "I hope she's okay…"

Yuri watched Natsuki until she left the gymnasium. However, in the instant that the door closed and she lost sight of her, the hair on the back of Yuri's neck stood on end, and she felt an uncanny heat rise to her cheeks.

"I need to go talk to her," Yuri stated plainly.

"Oh, thank you, Yuri," Sayori said with a relieved sigh. "I'm sure you'll be able to – Yuri?"

But she had already left the booth behind. As she strode across the length of the gymnasium, Sayori looked on and smiled.

Natsuki exited the gymnasium and slammed the door behind her with an annoyed huff. She slowed her pace and walked to the other side of the hallway, leaning against it. She exhaled deeply and slid down the wall until she was sitting.

Finally, she was alone. Natsuki took a few moments just to revel in her solitude, able to relax for the first time all morning. No company. No festival. No one to distract her.

She reached into her pocket and plucked out a crumpled sheet of notebook paper. It was the same one that Sayori had pointed out that weekend – the same one that bore a poem. Instead of putting it with all of the others, she'd been carrying it around with her. She'd been rereading it over the past couple of days whenever she'd had a few minutes to spare.

Natsuki smiled and whispered the lines to herself for what must have been the hundredth time. It wasn't often that she felt so satisfied with something that she'd written, but something about this one tickled a certain fancy within her.

Upon finishing her recitation, she held the poem to her chest, giggling despite herself. Yes, this was a special one. It would be with her for a long while.

And yet, she knew that she would soon tire of it. That was how it was with everything she wrote these days. Nothing was good enough for her to feel proud of it, let alone to share it with

her

other people.

Natsuki took in a shaky breath and sighed, clutching the poem a little tighter. It was cold comfort. It always was, and whenever she held one against herself like this, she couldn't help but imagine the person that it was written for, instead. She saw that person now, in her mind's eye. The curve of her waist, the curl of her hair, the soft and silky sound of her

"Natsuki?"

She looked up to see Yuri standing overhead, with a confused, curious expression on her face. In a fraction of a second, Natsuki shoved her poem back into her pocket, shot to her feet, and crossed her arms resolutely.

"I – I – When did you – " Natsuki stuttered helplessly, the pace of her heart ramping back up to the high speeds that it had been racing at all morning.

"I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude," Yuri said, the door behind her swinging shut. "I was just…um…"

Yuri's hands fidgeted with each other behind her back. That feeling from before – that intense confidence – had left her. Now, standing before Natsuki, Yuri found that nothing she could say was good enough.

"M-Me and Sayori…" she stammered. "Were worried a-about you…"

"Well, I'm fine," snapped Natsuki, turning pointedly away and keeping her arms locked around each other. "So, go away."

Natsuki gritted her teeth. Was this the extent of her power? She couldn't even look at Yuri, and all that came out of her mouth when she opened it were insults. Were they going to stay like this forever?

Yuri's heart was in her throat, and her stomach had begun twisting itself into knots. Was this the extent of her power? She couldn't bring herself to say a single word. Were they going to stay like this forever?

Silence crackled between them for a few moments, Yuri unable to speak, Natsuki unable to send her away.

And then.

"Yuri?"

Yuri jolted out of the haze that she'd fallen into. "Y-Yes?"

Natsuki's eyes were wide and unblinking, and she was looking at Yuri with something other than indignation – something that might have been concern. She lifted up one of her fingers and touched it to her cheek, just beneath her eye. Confused, Yuri copied the motion and felt

a single teardrop

something.

Yuri was totally, utterly trapped.

"What's wrong?" asked Natsuki, her crossed arms loosening into a pose that was less closed off.

Yuri tried to reply, but the only sound that came out was a rattled sort of wheezing as her breath hurried in and out of her mouth. She prayed that it had been too quiet for Natsuki to hear.

Natsuki took a step forward. "Hey, I'm serious. What's wrong?"

Yuri swallowed and tasted salt. "I…" she said, and that was all.

"Was it…" Natsuki began, her voice growing increasingly concerned. "Was it something I said?"

Yuri shook her head profusely.

"Okay, well – talk to me," Natsuki said.

But her breath was coming in curt, scattered gasps. Her fingers twitched erratically, her eyes were blinking more than they had to, her heart was pounding, and she wasn't okay with it. She wasn't okay.

"I'm s-sorry for bothering you," Yuri squeaked, and with that, she sped down the hall, away from Natsuki. Anywhere but Natsuki.

"Hey!" Natsuki cried, but she did not give chase. Her legs wouldn't move, despite everything within her screaming at them to. And when she next blinked, all that she caught was a streak of purple hair disappearing around a corner.