Tuesday, 8/9

Ren awoke with a jolt, startling himself and Tae in the process. Before he could adjust to living in reality, he rubbed the hallucination out of his eyes.

"Have fun?" Tae asked from her swivel chair.

"Do I ever?"

Tae shrugged. "Maybe. I don't know what you see after you close your eyes, so…" She looked away from Ren, down at her notes, but still with her usual teasing smile.

"What are you implying?"

"Oh, nothing…"

"Fine. Be that way," Ren said before he hopped off the table onto wobbly legs. "I'm leaving. Thank you, Tae, for whatever the hell you put in that stuff, but I hope that I never end up here again."

"I'll see you again soon, Ren," Tae said in denial of Ren's words. Ren knew that Tae would be proven right within time. He always found his way back to her, somehow, someway.

Ren walked out the door of the exam room, then the clinic entrance. Over the next few minutes, Ren kept himself on autopilot as he boarded the subway. Left standing up because of the numerous people occupying seats, Ren pulled out his phone. He'd had little social contact with the members of GRAVY since returning from Iwatodai.

He'd spent little of his time outside his apartment, besides going to work. The occasional text from Makoto, wishing him a good night or morning went down as his only interaction with the people he was supposed to be talking to on a more regular basis.

Maybe his lack of interaction left him desperate for some. Doing something he didn't expect of himself, Ren shot Ryuji a text.

Ren Amamiya:

-How goes the courtship of Hifumi Togo?

Ryuji Sakamoto:

-Idk, we'll find out tomorrow. We're going to play shogi!

Ryuji Sakamoto:

-Kind of weird tho, because she wants us to play in a church.

Ren Amamiya:

-A church? Is she religious?

Ryuji Sakamoto:

-I haven't talked to her that much, but I didn't get that vibe.

Ren Amamiya:

-What vibe do you get?

Ryuji Sakamoto:

-Not sure, but we've only been texting. Hard to get much out of that, but I'll lyk tomorrow.

Ren Amamiya:

-Cool, good luck.

Ryuji Sakamoto:

-I don't need luck, I am Ryuji Sakamoto.

Ryuji Sakamoto:

-But thanks anyway.

Ryuji Sakamoto:

-Also, quick question, do you think a rash will go away in a day? Asking for a friend.

Ren Amamiya:

-Rash? Where'd you get a rash? And why do you need to get rid of it so quickly?

Ryuji Sakamoto:

-First of all, I said it's a friend with the rash, not me! And second of all, that friend just doesn't like having rashes.

Ren Amamiya:

-You're Ryuji Sakamoto, you don't need help getting rid of rashes. You'll figure something out.

Ryuji Sakamoto:

-Effin bullshit, man.

Ren Amamiya:

-Jokes aside, I have no clue how to help your "friend." I can send you the contact info of that doctor I know, Tae Takemi.

Ryuji Sakamoto:

-Eh, I probably don't need a doctor yet. I'll think of something.

Ryuji Sakamoto:

-They* don't need a doctor yet.

Ren Amamiya:

-Good luck with that.

Ren put his phone away as the subway came to a stop at Shibuya Station.

Wednesday, 8/10

Ryuji walked up to the small, modest church. He'd traveled all the way to Kanda for a girl and a date in a church. This isn't gonna go well, is it? Ryuji asked himself. He knew that he should have the opposite sentiment, especially right before a date, but he couldn't help himself. He'd screwed up pretty much every opportunity he ever had, why would he stop now?

Just don't think of it as a date. To her, it's just a shogi match. Just be natural and shit, Ryuji said to himself. It steeled his confidence enough for him to open the door to a mostly vacant church. Empty pews preceded an organ on the left, a confession booth on the right, and the altar sat in between both on the far side of the church. However nice it looked, it didn't draw many visitors.

Only two people were there. The first, a priest, old and gray-haired, was expected. The second was also expected. Hifumi sat in the first row, looking down at something next to her on the pew. Ryuji took a deep breath and walked up the aisle. Reaching the first pew, Hifumi noticed him quickly just as Ryuji saw the shogi board she had next to her. She looked up. "Good afternoon, Ryuji," Hifumi said, motioning with her hand for him to have a seat on the opposite side of the shogi board.

First-name basis already. Let's effin' go, Ryuji! The imposing complexity of the shogi board interrupted Ryuji's celebratory thoughts. He had no clue how to play shogi.

Ryuji did want to learn to play shogi before meeting with Hifumi so that he wouldn't make a fool of himself, but he didn't have the time or the willpower. Since getting back from Iwatodai, Ryuji felt somewhat under the weather. He also developed a strange rash on his back, but he figured it would soon fade.

Also, after getting back from Iwatodai, Ryuji did some management of GRAVY's Shujinstagram account. In a way, he wanted people to view the trip to Iwatodai as a positive memory rather than a negative one. He posted a few of the photos that the group took together, including the selfie from the van, a timed group photo on the boat, among others. GRAVY's Shujinstagram didn't put up numbers comparable to the popular students at Shujin, but they did get a few likes.

Illnesses and social media semi-addictions aside, Ryuji wouldn't be deterred from a date with the Venus of Shogi. He did a bit of research, meaning a quick internet search for 'Hifumi Togo.' It turned out that Hifumi was highly ranked among amateur shogi play and received some media attention for her high-level play. Ryuji could barely contain himself at the fact that he would have a famous girlfriend.

If he didn't eff everything up, that is.

"Shall we begin?" Hifumi asked.

"Woah, don't we gotta do some preparation? Like talk about the game, or bow to the opponent?"

"This is just a practice match, Ryuji. We don't need any of that."

I guess I'm gonna have to talk to her during the game then. Shit. Maybe I'll learn to play shogi as I go along, Ryuji thought.

The match began by immediately losing Ryuji's understanding. Hifumi moved a piece, Ryuji had no clue what to do, but he just copied her. He moved a piece of his own. He and Hifumi shared a glance, perhaps one of competition. Maybe Ryuji did a decent enough job of faking his shogi skills and Hifumi believed she actually had someone at her own skill level. Maybe she just thought he sucked.

Over the next fifteen minutes, Ryuji knew that Hifumi definitely thought the latter. Even if he did little to prepare for the shogi match, he knew that a short match would be thirty minutes. Within half that time, Hifumi served Ryuji's ass to him, proclaiming her victory with a final move.

"The dragon which governs the blue sky has fallen into my hands!" she declared, intensely reaching for her piece on the board. Her over-the-top passion for a simple board game frightened Ryuji, but it didn't deter him from his goal. "How do you intend to survive this?" Hifumi finished as she moved the piece forward. "It's checkmate no matter how you look at it."

No matter how I look at it, I still don't know what's going on, Ryuji thought.

"Alright, good game. You win." Not bummed about the loss, Ryuji instead had excitement because he finally reached the good part: he could talk with Hifumi without having to worry about shogi. "So what're-"

Hifumi's phone rang, stopping Ryuji in his tracks. He watched as she winced at the ring before swiftly pulling her phone out and putting it to her ear.

"Yes, mother?" Hifumi said. Ryuji watched as Hifumi's eyes stared into nothingness. Immediately, Ryuji knew that Hifumi and her mother's relationship had some issues. "I'm practicing right now…" she said, trailing off to hear her mother's response. "...Another one? Mother, I-"

Ryuji could hear indiscernible shouting on the other end. Hifumi winced again before hanging up the phone. Not even looking at Ryuji, Hifumi packed up her shogi board into her bag. She nearly left without even saying goodbye to Ryuji, only stopping her escape when he called out to her.

"H-hey, where're ya going?!"

"I am sorry, Ryuji, but I must leave," she said, bowing politely. Hifumi finished her bow, hesitating to move on from standing a few feet from Ryuji. "I enjoyed our match."

Aw, hell yeah! Ryuji thought, happy that he'd done something right. Just when he got over his elation, he realized Hifumi had left.

"Shit," he said aloud to himself. He caught the eye of the priest in the corner, glaring at him. Ryuji took the glare to heart, quickly getting himself up off the pew and out the door.

Ryuji looked around, eyeing the people in the crowds on both sides of him. Maybe Hifumi couldn't walk very fast and Ryuji had a chance to catch her. He would never know because he couldn't see her anywhere. Instead of searching for the girl of his dreams, Ryuji decided to call it a day and go home. At least Hifumi enjoyed their shogi match.

Friday, 8/12

As Ren prepared breakfast for himself, he noticed his phone buzzing with a notification. He grabbed his phone off the counter to check who texted him.

Kasumi Yoshizawa:

-Good morning, senpai! Would you like to help me shop for glasses in Kichijoji?

No!

Ren Amamiya:

-Sounds fun. Meet you there in an hour?

Kasumi Yoshizawa:

-I'll see you then!

Ren set his phone down and went back to making breakfast for himself, now while contemplating his plans for the day.

Am I really about to shop for glasses, alone, with a girl? I have a girlfriend now. I'm not supposed to be doing stuff like this in my free time, right? Eh, who cares. Kasumi's a friend, and I owe her because of how I've treated her this year. And I did tell her that we'd hang out this summer, so…

"How about these, senpai?" Ren looked over. The short, red-haired girl had donned a pair of pointy, bright-green glasses almost immediately after they entered the store.

Those look genuinely terrible. No disrespect to Kasumi, because those glasses would look terrible on anyone. Even the infallible Lord of GRAVY-esque Goodness, Ren Amamiya.

"Meh," Ren said, deciding to be honest if it even mattered. He didn't even know who they were getting glasses for.

"Good answer," Kasumi said before she put the hideous glasses back on the rack. "I was testing your honesty."

"Uh…" Ren could totally not see a reason for his honesty to be tested, but complied anyway, "ok." He changed the subject right after. "So, who're we buying glasses for?"

"My father. He dropped his old pair in a crowd the other day and they broke," Kasumi said as she perused the racks of glasses. The store had a few other shoppers inside, but they were few and far between enough that Kasumi and Red had their own little corner of the shop to themselves.

"What kind of glasses look good on him?" Ren asked as he began browsing. With no clue of what Kasumi's father looked like, all the glasses seemed like poor options.

"Oh, anything, really," Kasumi said, not helping Ren's case. He decided to sit back, let her do most of the browsing, and just talk with her. It'd been a while since they last spoke, almost a month, and he needed to at least try to be friends with the girl.

Letting some silence pass so that the subject change wouldn't be too jarring, Ren spoke up. "So what've you been up to over the summer?"

"Hm, not much," Kasumi said as she turned around with a new pair of glasses on. Black, plain, and minimalist in a good way. "What do you think?" Ren cocked his head, telling her that he didn't have much of an opinion on the glasses. Kasumi put the glasses back and resumed her answer to Ren's original question. "I've mostly been training for our next meet, which is at the beginning of September." Ren wanted to ask more about her training, considering her slump, but she beat him to the punch and asked a question of her own. "I saw your Shujinstagram post. How was Iwatodai?"

My Shujinstagram post…? I didn't make any post… oh, wait, it was probably just Ryuji posting Iwatodai photos. Good for him. I'm too lazy to regularly update that account, so I guess it's good that he's just doing it for the club.

Instead of correcting her, Ren just answered her question. "Iwatodai was nice. Plenty of memories were made," he said, hoping to keep it simple.

"Any in particular?" Kasumi said, holding up a pair of joke glasses that came with one of those fake noses. She and Ren both chuckled at the gag but continued the conversation.

Well, I saw the remains of Haru's mom.

"I went to a club," Ren said, shrugging mid-sentence. He could tell that his answer disappointed Kasumi, but he couldn't decipher why.

"Did you really? How'd you get in, senpai?"

"They let underage people in, so it didn't really matter. We did get VIP passes though, so that was cool."

"How'd you get those?"

"Ryuji met a nice woman and I'll leave it at that," Ren said with a chuckle. Kasumi laughed. She picked out another pair of glasses, these with a red frame and rectangular lenses. She tried on for herself, looking expectantly at Ren for a reaction.

"What about these?"

They look great, but I'm not sure if her dad also has red hair. Maybe they'll still be good for him. I'm not exactly qualified to judge what glasses would be decent, but whatever.

"I like those," Ren said. "How about you get those and we grab some food from that place across the street?" Kichijoji had grown on Ren quite a bit. It ranked highly in his favorite places in Tokyo, though it distantly trailed Makoto's apartment in first place.

Kasumi nodded, taking off the glasses but not putting them back on the rack. Ren hung out near the store exit as Kasumi checked out, hungrily looking out the window. With the look of the line for the shop across the street, Ren and Kasumi would be in line for at least twenty minutes.

Fuck.

"Ready to go, senpai?" Kasumi said from behind Ren, now with a convenient little bag for her purchase.

"Hm? Yeah, but there's a bit of a line…"

"And we have twenty days until school starts. I think we can wait," Kasumi said optimistically.

Not ten minutes, not twenty minutes, but thirty full minutes were spent in line. Ren hated waiting, especially in a line or queue. It was the sole reason he'd never gone to Destiny Land and would continue to be the sole reason until he hopefully developed the parental patience that most sane adults seemed to have. Most of the adults in Ren's life could barely be considered sane, so he didn't exactly have a good example to follow.

As he thought about that, he did develop a slight hint of jealousy towards Kasumi. The way she spoke affectionately for her father would be something that Ren would never experience. The adults who actually wanted to involve themselves in Ren's life sought to use him, like Sojiro for labor, Tae for clinical trials, and Kobayakawa for a bonus check. To Ren, he offered more physical value than sentimental value.

And so, as one does when they're in line for takoyaki, Ren truly considered the lack of parental figures in his life since he came to Tokyo. Without a role model to base his ideals and morals off of, Ren was left to his own devices. He had been forced into discovering his beliefs on his own.

And what did he have to show for it?

For one, he deservedly got some takoyaki. Secondly, he had friends. Third, he had a girlfriend. That had to count for something.

If my parents actually cared about me, then they'd have fought my sentencing. I probably wouldn't be in Tokyo and I wouldn't have any of thisif they cared. I traded a happy family for a social life.

"Senpai?" Kasumi snapped Ren out of his mental tangent.

"Hm? What's up?"

"I was wondering if you think the wait was worth it," Kasumi explained, eating some of her own takoyaki that she'd gotten.

Ren hadn't even taken a bite of his takoyaki yet, but he knew the answer. "Yeah, definitely worth it," he said with no sarcasm, for once.

"Niijima-san, would you like to hear the bad news or the good news first?" Noriko said to Makoto as the four members of the student council sat down at the meeting table. Still obligated to meet during the summer, all of the members begrudgingly participated. Even Makoto didn't want to be there.

At least they didn't need to wear their Shujin uniforms.

"Give me the news," Makoto said with a sigh. Not quite in the mood for a student council meeting, Makoto had been a little off-center for the past few days. For someone with a boyfriend, she didn't have much communication with him.

We live in the same building! He could stop by for lunch any day of the week, Makoto thought to herself frustratedly. She understood that Ren had things to do, so did she, but even just a text would suffice. Makoto had been proactive in that regard, but Ren never took the initiative with that. Maybe Makoto just didn't understand that he was wired that way, or maybe she had no clue what was doing. Dating is too complicated, she thought before Noriko delivered the good news and bad news.

"Well, the Hawaii trip is in less than a month. That's it for the good news," Noriko said. "Bad news is that both Chouno-sensei and Ushimaru-sensei are banned from flying with Japan Airlines." Makoto never heard about that. Given the obvious confusion, Noriko explained the bans. "Chouno has a bit of a drinking habit, especially onboard planes, and Ushimaru beaned another man with a baseball mid-flight."

"Why?"

"Ushimaru doesn't need reasons, Niijima-san. I thought that you'd know, considering that you're the student council president," Noriko said. "But anyway, because of those two menaces, we need student chaperones."

That means… Makoto quickly came to the obvious conclusion.

"I'll go," she said quickly.

"Uh… really?" Eiji said. "You know that it's just school-guided activities, right? You're gonna be bored out of your mind."

Makoto opened her mouth to defend her choice, but Michiko spoke for her. "It's probably just for the letter of rec from Kobayakawa."

Yeah, definitely not so I can go to Hawaii with my boyfriend… Makoto thought, some playfulness sneaking its way in. She surprised herself with the thought.

"Oh, ok… anyway, on to the next batch of news that screwed over my summer," Noriko said, opening the file that'd been waiting for them on the table. "We have to go through and approve every student's slip."

That's not too bad. Four of us, over a hundred students going on the trip. We can be done with this relatively soon, Makoto reasoned. She took a handful of the slips, approximately a fourth of them, and inspected the first one.

"Don't forget to cross their name off the master list once you approve their slip," Michiko said.

Makoto got to work. With luck, it wouldn't be long before the student council concluded their business and she could go back to her summer vacation.

"And… there's my last one," Eiji said as he set down his last slip in the middle. He scratched the name on that slip out from the master list. "How close are you guys?"

"We all finished ten minutes ago, Tanaka-san. We tried to tell you, but you were too absorbed in your work," Michiko said.

"First-years, am I right?" Noriko said with her nose high, only half-joking.

"It doesn't matter. Let's just go over the master list to see who we're missing," Makoto said, pulling the paper towards her. The usual suspects, students who often performed poorly on tests and neglected their academics, were missing their permission slips. Surprisingly, or unsurprisingly, Ren Amamiya's name sat at the top of the list.

I'm sure he doesn't have the signature just because he doesn't want to talk to Iori about it, Makoto thought.

Makoto read the names aloud, getting no reaction from the other student council members. Even when she said the name of the most infamous person at Shujin, none of them said anything.

Instead, they had the respect and decency to wait until after Makoto finished reading off the list.

"Ooh, someone's boyfriend is tardy," Noriko teased, her phone already in her hand with her fingers tapping away. "I wonder who he's been busy with…"

Well, for the last week, not me , Makoto thought. You know, Makoto, you should try to set something up between you two. Maybe Ren is struggling with something, and that's why he hasn't said much to you, she told herself. Maybe he had another one of those visions, or whatever he called them... I should check on him.

"Boyfriend?! Who's boyfriend?!" Eiji shouted, slamming his hand down on the table. "Tell me now!" His demands shocked the rest of the council into silence, even getting Michiko to awkwardly scoot her chair a few inches away from Eiji.

"Damn first-year… uh, we're talking about the first gentlemen? Miss President's new beau? Ring any bells?"

Eiji looked over at Makoto, who did her best to hide from any confrontation that the situation brought. The betrayal on his face hurt Makoto, yet she didn't even know what she did wrong.

"N-Niijima-san has a b-b-b-boyfriend?!" Tears welled in his eyes. At this point, Makoto wished she didn't know the problem. Now she'd have to perform her student council duties while knowing that Eiji had a crush on her. "It should be me…" he muttered a bit too loudly.

"Woah there, buddy," Noriko said, holding her hands up in front of her. "Take a second to think about what you're saying."

"Maybe we should conclude the meeting," Michiko suggested.

Makoto jumped at the opportunity. "Done. Meeting over," she said, standing up faster than ever with her bag in hand. She left the scene of the crime as swiftly as possible, not looking back when she heard the others emerge behind her.

Makoto managed to walk quickly enough that she got out of Shujin with none of the student council members with her. What a way to end a meeting. I can say that that'snever happened before, she thought to herself. Maybe it'll be a good story for Ren to hear.

Now, with nothing to do and a free afternoon, Makoto considered her options. She could text Ren and set something up within minutes, but she would be thinking of Eiji's affections the entire time. Makoto desperately needed something to fill her head with distractions. Almost instantaneously, Makoto knew who she should spend her afternoon with. She pulled out her phone.

Makoto Niijima:

-Meet me in the Shibuya underground in 30 minutes?

Yuriko Kuramoto:

-I'll be there!

Makoto and Yuriko walked away from the juice stand, both with cups of their own. Makoto got a healthy veggie blend, much to Yuriko's annoyance, but they both enjoyed the juice.

"So how's summer treating ya?" Yuriko asked through slurps of the fruit blend she got.

"Great, mostly." A few complaints could be made, but Makoto had been quite thrilled with the highlights of her vacation. One highlight in particular, especially. The thought of Ren holding her close, pressing his lips to her own- "I still have to do student council stuff, though. Today we had to sign off on every second-year's permission slip for Hawaii."

"Ouch, that's gotta suck, especially considering who's on the council."

Oh no… does she know Eiji? Makoto immediately thought. She recalled the awful embarrassment of Eiji's semi-confession and felt her face redden at just the memory.

"Noriko is such a bitch," Yuriko said, giving Makoto a surprise of relief. "She stole my bento on my first day at Shujin."

"Hah, really? She's on her phone for most of the council meetings."

"Probably finding more harmless innocents to steal from," Yuriko joked. Nearing the bottom of the cup, Yuriko took the lid off her juice and chugged the rest. She tossed the empty cup and lid into a trashcan as the pair walked past.

"I think she's texting guys, actually," Makoto said. She had no base for that accusation, but it strangely sounded like something fun to talk about. Makoto had no clue why.

"Figures," Yuriko said with a laugh. "Hey, speaking of guys…"

I know where this is going, Makoto thought as she took another sip of her drink. They continued walking through the underground, making their way to the stairs up to Shibuya Crossing.

"How's Ren been recently? I get the feeling he's been avoiding me," Yuriko finished.

Maybe he is, but Ren never saw Yuriko outside of school regularly. I don't think he even likes her. It's unfortunate, but there doesn't seem to be much I can do. At least they don't hate each other, Makoto thought.

"I'm not sure. We haven't really spoken much this week," she said, hoping the answer would placate her friend.

"Uh-oh… you know what that means, right, Makoto?" Yuriko stopped walking, also stopping Makoto alongside her. She put her hands on Makoto's shoulder and looked her in the eye. "Have you ever noticed… um… Ren flirting with other girls?"

"W-what?!"

"Well, and take this with the grainiest grain of salt, but I've heard from a few girls I know on the gymnastics team that Yoshizawa is crushing on your boyfriend," Yuriko elaborated, hammering the idea into Makoto's head.

Ren wouldn't do that. Makoto completely doubted Yuriko's suggestion and didn't even think of it as a possibility. However, that was the problem. Now, she did think about it. Ren could be with another girl right now! Makoto realized the stupidity of the thought, but it held enough weight for her to consider it.

But not enough weight for Makoto to let Yuriko run wild with conspiracy theories. "Ren wouldn't do that. He's just quiet sometimes," Makoto said, resuming her walking. Yuriko soon followed.

"If you say so, Prez."

I wished people wouldn't call me that, Makoto thought, though she didn't object to the name. She just kept walking.

Sunday, 8/14

A loud ringing noise pierced through Ren's veil of sleep. He rolled over, clumsily grabbing his phone off the nightstand. In the process, he knocked his glass of water onto the floor.

Ren hazily mumbled explicit nonsense as the brightness of his phone exploded in his eyes. "Fucking shit, goddamn pigfucking glass bitch…" He quickly shut his eyelids, then lowered the brightness based on his muscle memory. Opening his eyes, he could see the notification that ruined his morning with all the commotion.

Yusuke Kitagawa:

-I am hungry and waiting for your company.

"What the fuck."

Ren Amamiya:

-Excuse me?

Yusuke Kitagawa:

-Recall the events of the third of August.

Yusuke Kitagawa:

-"Yusuke, if you join the cannonball competition, I'll buy you lunch when we get back to Tokyo."

Yusuke Kitagawa:

-I am owed lunch.

A promise is a promise, Ren, even if it's a regrettable one.

Ren Amamiya:

-I'll meet you at Big Bang Burger on Central Street in 20 minutes.

Yusuke Kitagawa:

-I would prefer sushi.

Ren Amamiya:

-And I would like to sleep in, but not everyone can have their wishes catered to.

"Are you mad at me?"

"No, you just caught me at a bad time," Ren said. He spent his time in Big Bang Burger sulking over having to spend a fair amount of yen on Yusuke's Big Bang Challenge. Perhaps he sulked a bit too much.

"Is Makoto abusing you?" Yusuke asked as if the question was insignificant. He dug a plastic fork into his giant burger. He scooped out a greasy mix of the bun, burger, and the hell-spawned toppings that came with the challenge, lifting all of it into his mouth.

Oh, and he waited for Ren to respond to the question to end all questions.

"Christ, no, she's not," Ren denied. Figuring that Yusuke's strange questions wouldn't end without explanation, Ren elaborated on his feelings. "I've been… I don't know. I'm stuck. I've barely talked to anyone this past week outside of work."

"Have you considered doing the unstuck?"

"What?"

"I kid. Just a reference," Yusuke explained. He set his fork down on the table and wiped his face with one of the many napkins provided for the Big Bang Challenge. "Perhaps you should consult Makoto. People don't consider me particularly helpful with emotional issues."

Who poured their heart out for Yusuke in the first place? I want to hear that story.

"I should, but… shit, you're right. I'll set something up with her this week," Ren said. "But I don't know if she can help."

Yusuke broke eye contact and picked his fork up again. He resumed the endless toil of consuming the soul-crushingly large burger, bite by bite, even with a fork. "Ren, let me tell you a story. When I was a mere first-year pupil at Kosei, I arrived at school one day to a massive crowd in the hallway. As I attempted to push past, a student sauntered up to me. He asked if I witnessed the spectacle that the crowd was beholding."

"What was it?" Actually invested in the story, Ren leaned forward in his chair.

Yusuke is a bit strange, but if there's one person in GRAVY who's going to tell a story with a relatable moral at the end of it, it's him. I'm curious what his point will be.

"I told the student that I had not, and he pulled me into the crowd. It turns out they'd gathered around the entrance to the men's bathroom. I was dragged into the bathroom, only to find another crowd inside. They gathered around a stall, all of them chattering like little girls gossiping. I looked in the stall and-"

You've gotta be kidding me. I sat through this story expecting some life advice at the end, and I get this?!

"-I noticed that excrement of gargantuan proportions had been left in the toilet. It was truly incredible," Yusuke said, a rare grin on his face. He dug further into the massive burger with his fork before stopping to look up at Ren. "The story is concluded."

"Yeah, I get that, but… why did you have to tell me that? What does that have to do with helping me?"

Yusuke shrugged. "It is an amusing tale, nothing more."

Okay, maybe it'd be amusing if he knew the diameter of- okay, Ren, that's enough thinking for the day. Time to halt all brain activity.

"Oh… well, cool story," Ren said. In his pocket, his phone vibrated. Yusuke dove further into his burger consumption as Ren checked his newest notification.

Makoto Niijima:

-We need to talk.

"Fuck," Ren said aloud.

"What is it?" Yusuke asked, prompting Ren to show his friend the phone. "Ah. Perhaps you should do the unstuck."

"Not helping, Yusuke."

"Hm… alternatively, I could call Makoto and tell her my fecal fable as a diversion, giving you time to make your getaway," Yusuke proposed. "What do you think?"

"You know, I think I'd rather do the unstuck."

Ren Amamiya:

-Ok, where and when?

Makoto Niijima:

-Can I come over to your apartment tonight?

Ren Amamiya:

-No need to ask. My door's always open for student council presidents.

Makoto Niijima:

-See you tonight, then.

Ren Amamiya:

-See ya.

Ren put his phone away and looked up at Yusuke.

"You handled that gracefully, didn't you?" the artist said.

"Like a vacuum cleaner in a cobweb." It'd been too long since Ren leaned into his own corniness. He unleashed the shitty one-liner like he believed it to be decent.

"That doesn't conjure thoughts of grace."

"Dammit, Yusuke. Every time, I swear," Ren said as he shook his head, though with a smile. Yusuke was just being Yusuke, and Ren was just being Ren.

Ren lost himself in the view of Yusuke conquering the Big Bang Challenge as he pondered what Makoto would have to say.

A/N: Surprise. I wrote a new TKOSA chapter instead of working on my other fic. The new chapter of the other fic is having some issues, and I was feeling much more inspired to write for TKOSA, so here we are. Going forward, my uploads will be for TKOSA until I say otherwise. Chapters for my other fic require a lot more work because of how refined I want them to be, so they'll be few and far between.

I think I'm ready to get back to an upload schedule. I started writing this chapter last Friday, so it was done in less than a week. I'm going to try and post chapter 55 next Wednesday or Thursday.

Thanks for reading. Have a great day, and I'll be back next week with a new chapter.