The Hiiragi twins relished the warmth brought upon them the bright Monday morning sun. Kagami especially wanted to take it as a sign that everything was completely back to normal. She had decided not to let the rest of her family know of what had happened up on the school's roof, figuring that since no one had come out worse for wear, all things considered, it was best to simply put the incident behind her. More than anything, she was content with letting life continue on as normal, though she'd be lying if she didn't admit the ordeal gave her a new appreciation for the life she lived. However, there was one small thing that had been nagging at her, a tiny detail that was constantly poking her brain ever since she had arrived home that evening.
"Hey, Tsukasa..." Kagami spoke pensively, keeping her eyes on the school building they were approaching.
Tsukasa turned her head to look at her sister, "What's wrong, sis?"
"That guy, the one that saved me," Kagami started, "do you think we'll see him again?"
Tsukasa put a finger to her chin thoughtfully, "I don't know, it looked like he was wearing the school uniform, so I'm pretty sure he goes to our school"
"Well yeah, that much is obvious," Kagami retorted, "however, something just seemed familiar about him, now that I think about it. I can't quite put my finger on it, but I feel like I've seen him somewhere before, although that had to be the first time we've actually met."
Tsukasa shrugged her shoulders, "Well you never know," she said as the two came upon the entrance of Ryoo, where Konata had standing waiting for them.
"Hey girls..." Konata uttered tiredly. The twins looked the girl up and down as they took in her disheveled appearance. Her hair was a frizzled mess, her eyes had massive dark circles under them and her clothes had looked like they had been haphazardly thrown on. Her skirt sat crooked on her waist, attracting many a curious eye, and one sock sitting at ankle length whilst the other was at her knee.
"Let me guess," Kagami started in a deadpan, "Spent literally the entire weekend gaming."
"Maxed out my level," Konata quietly began, "all night raid, fought the leech queen, farmed exotics."
"Uh huh, okay, sure." Kagami answered nodding, her voice oozing with condescension as she pretended to understand whatever her friend was saying. "Just one question though: Did you do your homework?"
The silence she received told Kagami everything. She shook her head in disapproval as she walked up to the otaku. "Learn to be responsible once in awhile will you?" She admonished as she tugged Konata's skirt up to it's proper place.
"But if I act responsible, who are you gonna take care of?" Konata muttered, trying to be as teasing as her mental faculties could allow.
Kagami rolled her eyes as she continued straightening out Konata's uniform. "With an attitude like that, don't expect a great future for yourself."
"Eh, I like to live in the now, you know?" Konata remarked with a shrug "Besides I know my sweet Kagamin will always be there to take of little old me."
Kagami merely furrowed her brow at the remark, deciding against dignifying that statement with a worded response. It wasn't that she didn't care about her old friend, but the idea of always being around just to take care of her didn't exactly sound appealing. Even the time she already spent around the blunette was enough push the limits of her patience most days.
After Kagami finished making Konata decent the three made their way into the building and soon found themselves going separating to head to their respective classes. Kagami soon found herself walking into her classroom with plenty of time to spare. She let out a tired sigh as she slumped into her desk and pulled her textbooks out of it. If there was one thing that certainly amazed her about the little blunette, it was how interacting with her at all could drain Kagami. She looked up to the front of the class to see Miss Sakuraba had yet to arrive, most likely talking to other staff members.
"Hey Hiiragi!" Kagami turned her head toward the sound to find her other crazy and usually hyper friend, Misao Kusakabe.
"Hey Misao." She responded with a with a small wave.
"You do anything during the weekend?" The brunette asked enthusiastically.
"Not really, just homework and studying." Kagami answered nonchalantly. Misao made a sour face in response, apparently not too happy with such a boring answer.
"Man, why waste what precious free time you have with that stuff?" Misao pouted, "We could've totally hung out you know!"
Kagami couldn't help but feel a little bad as she looked at Misao's pouting face. She was her oldest friend after all, and it was undeniable they didn't hang out nearly as much as they use to. Of course there was one question Kagami did have for her though.
"Yeah, we probably could've, but" Kagami narrowed her eyes in accusation. "Did you get your homework done?"
Misao blanched at the question, giving Kagami the answer she was expecting. Kagami rolled her eyes at her, before pulling her completed papers out of her backpack. Misao's eyes began to sparkle with the hope of being saved, but the withering glare the twin gave told her she wasn't just going to be straight out copying it. Luckily she had managed to get a rather large chunk of it done during her weekend, and they did still have a little bit of time before roll call. Working fast as she could with Kagami's help she managed to finish right as their teacher walked in; she flashed a toothy smile and a thumbs up in silent thanks to her old friend, to which Kagami responded with a small smile.
"Alright class, weekends over so put away your phones and games and let's get to roll call." Ms. Sakuraba spoke casually. Kagami only paid half-attention, making sure to be able to respond when her name was called whilst she re-checked her homework to make sure everything was accurate. Soon she heard Misao's name, then her other friend Ayano Minegishi, but then...
"Son Parniss?" The teacher called.
"Here." A familiar voice answered.
Kagami's eyes went wide as she heard the familiar name ring out. Her mind failing as it tried to process the revelation before her. After all, she was the class president, wasn't it her business, her duty at least to know who all of her classmates were? Was it possible she paid so little attention to her own class that she couldn't even recognize one of them, obliviously acting like they had literally met for the first time?
Her head discreetly turned to the back of the class, needing to visually confirm what she had already knew. As she looked, she sucked in a sharp breath at the all too familiar shape. There, in very back of her class, with his mess of black hair and strange black eyes, sat the boy that saved her own life. Her head snapped back to face the front of the room again, her mind in a jumbled mess of questions: How could she go nearly three years without knowing all of her classmates? Did Parniss know they shared a class? Had he simply pretended he didn't know who she was in order not to let her feel bad?
Kagami tried her best to clear these thoughts and questions away, deciding she would talk to him once lunch break started. She figured it would be pointless to continue ruminating for so long, especially when focusing on the lessons of the day were far more important. Her eyes had wandered over to the clock though, and involuntarily gulped at finding she was still only minutes into the start of class. A pit formed in her gut, and she realized it was going to be a long day.
Line Break
The notes on Ms. Kuroi's board were all a blur to Konata. While she had tried, at least somewhat, to pay attention to the lessons and take notes, her sleep deprived brain just couldn't maintain any semblance of focus. Any coherent thought that could be formed throughout the day had gone to all she had accomplished in her game during the weekend, and why time had to pass so quickly when she had so much to do.
The sound of the lunch bell was a euphoric aria to Konata's ears, who was grateful for a chance to not have to think about school even for just a little while. She reached into her bag and pulled out the Coronet she was again going to have for lunch, as well as a thermos and baggie with a few sugar cubes in it. She twisted the lid of the thermos and popped it off, taking a good whiff of the still hot coffee she had, glad that she was finally able to get a bit of a pick me up after not having had time to properly drink it this morning.
Hastily, Konata popped the sugar into her drink before screwing the lid back on and giving her thermos a good shake in order to mix them together. She quickly re-undid the lid and drank the concoction greedily. After topping off her drink in one go, she plopped the thermos down onto the desk and let out a satisfied sigh, already feeling much more awake. With her drink gone, Konata popped the lid back on the thermos and put it away before getting up to join Tsukasa and Miyuki with her lunch.
"Ah, Izumi-san," Miyuki called as Konata sat down "are you alright, you seem quite tired?"
"Don't worry about it Miyuki-san" Konata responded, waving off her concern. "Just another day where I'll have to copy Kagami's notes is all."
Miyuki gave an awkward smile in response, it seemed Konata was going to give anyone still in class another show with her and Kagami bickering. Most of the time she didn't really mind, and to be honest, somewhat envied the closeness to two seemed to share. Granted, to anyone looking outside in it may not seem that way, but Miyuki was blessed with a far more perceptive eye than most and could usually read someone like a book. The girl knew that her two friends bond ran deeper than most any other, more than even they possibly realized.
Miyuki looked over to the door expectantly, and three, two, one.
Konata frowned and furrowed her brow, "Kagami's late? What gives, she hasn't been late once."
"I'm sure sis is just talking to one of her classmates or something," Tsukasa chimed in "I have her lunch, and it's her favorite, so she definitely won't miss that."
Konata nodded her in contentment, "The promise of food shall surely lead our tsundere to where she belongs."
"Is that supposed to be another fat joke?" Konata's head whirled around like it was on a swivel at the sound of the elder Hiiragi twin.
"Ah Kagamin, there you are, thank goodness," Konata exclaimed with dramatic flair, going so far as to place the back of her hand on her forehead, her other arm reaching out. "I knew you would return to me."
"You can't go one day without saying weird crap, can you?" Kagami more stated than asked as she sat down with a huff, "besides, I'm not that late, and there are other people I talk to."
"Here you go sis," Tsukasa interrupted as she handed her sister her food. "Who were you talking to?"
Kagami pointed a thumb behind her at an upward angle with one hand as she unwrapped her lunch with the other, "Him."
The other three looked up and were surprised to see the boy they had met back on Friday was standing behind her. With an awkward smile, Parniss gave his greetings as he pulled up a chair in between Kagami and Miyuki. He sat down a small brown bag on the desk before stretching his arms.
"Son-kun, it's great to be able to see you again!" Miyuki proclaimed with smile.
"Thanks, um Takara-san, right?" Parniss greeted back hesitantly, feeling relieved as Miyuki nodded in affirmation. "Good to see y'all again too."
"Can you believe me and this guy have actually shared the same class for over two years now and I didn't even realize it?" Kagami exclaimed.
"My my, Kagami paying so little attention to your fellow classmates, huh?" Konata chuckled with a smirk. "Do you really love us that much?"
Kagami glared down at Konata as her face turned beet red, "Shut up you!"
Konata jerked back with mock terror, "Oh no, Kagami's letting the demons out again!"
The other three looked on as the never ending cycle of teasing and arguing between Konata and Kagami began. Parniss watched with a befuddled expression, having difficulty comprehending these were the same two he had met before. He leaned his head close to Miyuki.
"Are these two always like this?" He whispered.
Miyuki nodded again as she took a bite of her lunch, "It's just how those two are."
"Sis and Kona-chan tend to argue a lot, but they are actually really close. It just doesn't seem like it sometimes." Tsukasa added with a smile.
Parniss nodded, still not quite sure if he understood it all. He decided he was better off accepting it, content with just being a part of the group. A rumble echoing out of his stomach told him it was not time to think, but time to eat. And so, he opened up his bag and pulled his food out.
"A muffin? That's kind of an odd lunch don't ya think?" Kagami prodded, having finished chewing Konata's head off for the upteenth time.
"Well, I like muffins!" Parniss defended "It's what I usually bring. I don't often have time to make myself an actual lunch, so I just wait until I get home eat."
"Why not go get one from the cafeteria?" Tsukasa asked.
"I don't carry money on me." Parniss answered curtly.
"Oh, why no-" Konata began
"I just don't. Don't worry about it." Parniss interrupted, trying to ignore the raised eyebrow from Kagami and befuddled expressions of the others.
"Ok then, whatever floats your boat." Kagami finally said with a shrug before getting back to her lunch.
"Hey Kagami," Konata said after everyone had finished eating. "I managed to snag that Contra game you were talking about."
"Oh really?" Kagami said with a light smile, "Cool, but, I thought you mainly played those dating sims, and rpgs?"
"Oh Kagami, my dear." The blunette remaked haughtily, shaking her head. "I'm a master of games, do you really think I would tie myself down to just those two genres?"
Kagami rolled her eyes, "Right, how on Earth could I forget that I'm speaking to the queen of the nerds."
Konata merely smirked at the gibe, choosing not to take it as an insult. "Anyway, how about you, Tsukasa, and Miyuki-san come over this weekend. We can check it out, hang out, and stuff."
"And by stuff you mean copy my homework." Kagami scorned.
"Details, who needs them?" Konata shrugged.
"Uh huh," Kagami groaned. "and just what do you think you're gonna do once High School's over and it's time for college?"
Konata gave a noncommittal shrug "I figure I can just go to whatever one you go to-"
"Pffffft As if!" Kagami laughed, "With your grades and lazy attitude, you're barely gonna get into anything decent."
"Uwah, Kagamin has such little faith in me!" Konata cried out "Whatever shall become of-" Konata stopped suddenly, freezing in place as her eyes went wide. She stood up suddenly, startling the twins sitting beside her.
"Kona-chan?" Tsukasa squeaked.
"H-hey, you feeling okay?" Kagami asked as she looked up at Konata.
Konata didn't answer either of them, her eyes glued to the desks. A violent shiver coursed visible through her body. With a small wretch, Konata placed her hands over her mouth and dashed out of the classroom. The group watched stunned, not sure what to make of it."
"Umm...I'll go check on her." Kagami stood up and quickly walked out of the classroom, leaving Tsukasa, Miyuki, and Parniss alone.
"Well...That was something." Parniss said as he finished his muffin.
"Do you think Kona-chan's okay?" Tsukasa asked Miyuki.
"I did see her chug something before she joined." Miyuki answered "I'm guessing it was coffee, and it must have upset her stomach."
"You think just coffee did that?" Parniss asked.
"Well, that and a mixture of other things. I don't like to speak ill of my friends, but, Izumi-san isn't the best at taking care of herself." Miyuki answered, frowning.
"Oh yeah?" Parniss chuckled "She must be a busy girl then, huh? I know how that can be, sometimes."
"Well, that's one way to put it." Miyuki laughed lightly.
Parniss raised an eyebrow questioningly. He opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted by a loud rumble echoing through his stomach. With a hungry groan, he sat back and pinched the bridge of his nose.
"Oh no, are you getting sick too Parniss?" Tsukasa asked, afraid something contagious was going around.
"No no I'm just kinda hungry." The boy laughed. "A muffin isn't really much of a lunch."
"Oh..." Tsukasa thought for a second. "Well, would you like some of mine?"
"Huh?" Parniss blinked, taken aback by the sudden. "Oh, no thanks, I don't wanna impose."
"Ah, it's alright." Tsukasa laughed. "I always make too much food when it's my turn to make them anyway"
Parniss laughed nervously "I don't have anything to eat with, though."
"Oh that's fine." Miyuki chimed in, reaching into her bag "I have some spare chopsticks in here."
"Hehe, Miyuki's always prepared." Tsukasa laughed as Miyuki handed the spares to Parniss.
"Okay, um t-thanks." Parniss blushed as Tsukasa held out her food towards him. Carefully, he picked up a sizable piece. As he bit down, his eyes went wide at the explosion of flavor. It was like nothing he had ever eaten before!
Miyuki and Tsukasa watched Parniss' reaction with growing bewilderment. They looked at each other and shrugged their shoulders. Tsukasa cocked an eyebrow as she pulled her lunch back.
"Um, are you okay?" She asked.
"This is greatest thing I have ever tasted." Parniss said as looked at Tsukasa "You made this?"
"...Yes?"
"That's amazing!" Parniss shouted, earning a stern glare from Miss Kuroi. "Are you, like, a goddess of cooking or something? I've had some fancy stuff before, but this blows all of that way out of the water!"
Tsukasa's face bloomed into a bright blush, not expecting such high praise. "U-um, t-thanks."
"Uh, could I-?" Parniss grinned sheepishly as he held up his chopsticks."
Miyuki and Tsukasa giggled at the boy's shy behavior. Tsukasa got out of her seat and switched to the one Kagami previously occupied. She placed the lunch box in between herself, and the two began digging in. Parniss sighed in delight with the second bite, and found it hard not to just dive in and scarf it down.
Keep it together, Son. He though to himself This is still her food, I'll have to find some way to pay her back for this.
Parniss' eyes wandered to the girl sitting next to him. Tsukasa herself happened to look up from her food as she took a bite, and the two's eyes met. Tsukasa smiled at him, causing Parniss to blush slightly.
Cute!
Line Break
Kagami hurriedly entered the girls bathroom, having seen Konata's desperate sprint towards it. As she passed by the first stall, she saw Konata hunched over the toilet, groaning in pain.
"Konata, you okay?"
"No~..." Konata groaned. "My stomach."
Konata wretched and brought her face down, ready to pray to the porcelain throne. She frantically ran her hands back through her hair, trying not to let it get in the way. Unfortunately with how long it was this was nigh impossible.
"Do you want me to hold your hair back?" Kagami asked. A weak nod and a squeak were all the confirmation she needed to let herself into the stall.
"Thanks, Kagami." Konata looked back and gave a weak smile, before quickly turning back. One large wretch was all it took for the contents of Konata's to let itself out. Kagami closed her eyes and looked away, as well as tried her best to the horrible sounds she heard.
Konata panted raggedly as the first round ended. With a cough, she found round two quickly making it's way up, and lurched forward to purge it. Her arms shaking, Konata slowly lifted herself, thinking, hoping, that it was finally over. Reaching out to the toilet paper, she grabbed a few sheets and wiped the bile from her mouth. She threw the soiled paper into the toilet, closed the lid and flushed as Kagami finally let go of her hair.
Konata took a couple calming breaths, before the two of them stepped out of the stall. Konata walked up to the sink and turned on the faucet. She splashed her face with the warm water, feeling immensely relieved. Kagami walked up behind her, arms crossed as she frowned.
"Do you think you should go see the nurse?" She asked.
"Nah, I should be fine." Konata smiled as she waved off her friend's concern. "Probably shouldn't have stuffed so much sugar in my coffee."
"Wha-really?!" Kagami shouted, agitated. "Idiot..."
Shaking her head, Kagami looked Konata over. Her eyes were bloodshot and face flushed, but otherwise she seemed fine. It didn't take her long to notice something else was wrong, however.
"Ah crap, a little splashed onto your uniform." Kagami pointed out.
Konata looked down at her stomach. Sure enough, a tiny spot of brown now sat on her white shirt. Konata let out a loud groan.
"Dammit, I don't have a spare one on me, either." She complained.
"I got it." Kagami said as she walked up to the sink.
Kagami turned the water to hot before pulling a handkerchief out and running the water over it. Konata watched curious as Kagami rang it out before turning her. Her face turned a deep shade of red, as Kagami had pulled her shirt out and began blotting the tiny stain.
Ababababababababa-what's happening? The otaku thought frantically. When did I raise an event flag? WHERE'S THE SAVE POINT?!
"You really should start taking better care of yourself, you know." Kagami scolded. Konata remained silent, trying her best not to freak out. After a few minutes of blotting Kagami had managed to get the stain cleared enough that no one would be able to notice without actually looking for it.
"There, now come on, Lunch is almost over." Kagami said she hurried the smaller girl out of the bathroom.
The walked quickly, with Konata trailing only slightly behind Kagami. It took all she had to fight down the blush, and her mind was a storm. Their teasing and arguing was one thing, but the way Kagami had immediately leaped in to take care of her like that completely caught her off guard. She wanted to say something to get them back to their usual banter, but all she could think of was...
"T-thanks, Kagami."
"Hm?" Kagami turned, and was surprised to see Konata fidgeting with her hands. "What?"
"T-thank you, for helping me out like that. I really appreciate it." Konata smiled bashfully at the girl who held her heart.
"Oh, uh, no problem." Kagami muttered, caught off guard by the sincerity of Konata's voice.
"I probably don't say it enough, but I really do appreciate how much you help me out." Konata began, her blush returning. "You're a lot better at taking care of me than I am myself, sometimes."
Words failed Kagami, she never expected this sort of appreciation to come from the otaku. While she often bemoaned it, Kagami did have a habit of helping Konata out with whatever she needed, whether Konata asked for it or not. Thinking on it, she was surprised at how naturally it actually came to her.
She stopped and thought to herself, did she truly dislike this? Was it really so bad, being the one Konata always went to for homework, or notes, or what have you, despite Miyuki being in her class? Did perhaps, deep down Kagami like having someone rely on her like this?
"Well, that's what friends do, right?" Kagami asked.
"Yeah, but I still need to show my appreciation somehow." Konata said with a smile that reached her eyes. Kagami blushed and looked away, scratching a cheek out of embarrassment.
Yeah...Perhaps she did enjoy being there for Konata after all.
The two resumed their trek to the classroom, an amicable silence between them. It wasn't quite what Konata planned on, the words she spoke just spilled out on their own. However, she couldn't help but feel she and Kagami had become just a bit closer, and rather enjoyed the pleasantness between them. Kagami held a hand up to her chin and hummed.
"So, are you really gonna try to get into the same college as me?" She asked suddenly.
"Ah!" Konata was definitely not expecting this question. She had merely been joking earlier.
"I really don't know if that's possible given your grades. You're exam scores would have to be practically perfect to convince them to let you in." Kagami lectured.
"Ah details, details." Konata shrugged, not really wanting to talk about this.
"Be straight with me, Konata." Kagami glared sternly at the shorter girl.
Pretty sure I'm gay for you, but okay. Konata thought to herself.
"Do you really think you have a chance?"
Konata opened her mouth, prepared to try and derail this conversation, but the seriousness in Kagami's eyes stopped her. Any jokes she had dried up as she noticed Kagami seemed to be almost pleading with her. Did Kagami actually want them to be in the same school?
That...would be nice. Konata thought to herself. But Kagami's going to school to be a lawyer, and I, well I don't know...
"What do you think, Kagamin?" Konata asked.
Kagami sighed "I really don't know Konata. At this point you'd have to seriously apply yourself, especially with exams coming."
"Well, I guess we'll just have to see!" Konata smiled lazily. Kagami stared at her friend. That answer didn't exactly inspire confidence.
Soon enough the two re-entered the classroom and took their seats. With only a couple minutes left Kagami had to scarf down what was left of her lunch. Almost as soon as she had finished the bell rang to signal the end of lunch period, and she and Parniss had to depart for their class.
"So what exactly happened?" Parniss asked as they made their way to class "You two were gone awhile."
"Ah, Konata was sick to her stomach, that's all." Kagami answered "She's kind of a dummy, but somebody's gotta look out for her."
"I see." Parniss muttered as the two entered their classroom and took their seats. He stretched his arms, feeling much better after having a decent lunch for once. With another ring the Ms. Sakuraba quieted everyone down and resumed the day's lessons. Parniss looked out the window and smiled.
Man, I think I might actually enjoy the rest of the year now.