I looked around the computer room, and noticed that everyone had taken off to their respective stations. I knew Michiru, Daquan, Amy-chan, Azizah, and Asa would be busy all day, so I wouldn't be able to hang out with them. The only one still left in the room was Kaemon, who was now playing an action video game of sorts and talking over it, his voice echoing through the room quite loudly I might add.

"Yo welcome back, it's Nakamon347 here, and already we've got another subscriber! Thanks, uh... X-x-x-BloodyMoonlight666-x-x-X. Nice name, by the way." Kaemon basically shouted out. I couldn't stand listening to his annoying voice any longer and promptly exited the room. Perhaps now I would have time to hang out with Masaki? If I could find him, at least. He never did tell me exactly where he was headed for.

I walked out of the computer room, leaving Kaemon behind. I then went into the food room, and I saw Saeko and Toko eating from plates loaded with food. How do they maintain their figures eating that much? I asked myself. They must have had incredible metabolism.

"Howdy, Kanon!" Toko called out to me, their mouth loaded with food and their voice being almost completely indistinguishable as a result. A few gold-brown crumbs scattered over their face.

"Chew with your mouth closed! That's gross!" Saeko reminded them. Despite her having a massive amount of food on her plate as well, she managed to keep her face and her side of the table clean. "Kanon, you gonna join us for a meal?" Saeko asked me. I looked around - I guess everyone else was out doing something else this day. While I certainly would have enjoyed spending more time with Saeko, the truth was that I could never be around Toko too long, mostly because they still unnerved me. What if one day, they were to pull a gun out and it... was loaded? There was no way I would allow myself to be a victim to that.

"Uh, no thanks," I replied as I walked out of the room, trying not to make eye contact with Toko. Saeko gave a sigh as I left for the scenic room, just to be anywhere else. I wondered if Masaki was in there? It seemed like the type of place he'd frequent.

As I made it to the scenic room, I noticed that at first, it seemed that I was alone in here. Where is everyone else? I asked myself. I looked around, seeing if I could spot Masaki anywhere. That was, until I noticed in the rightmost corner that Lorenzo was sitting by himself. What's he doing all alone? I asked myself. I figured he'd be hanging out with Utamuro right about now.

"Hey, Lorenzo?" I called out to him. Lorenzo turned his head to me, his face expressionless. He looked as if he had been spending quite a bit of time worrying about something, or that he was just bored and tired. There wasn't much way one couldn't be, with these early hours and such.

"Oh, hello, Kanon." Lorenzo called back. He gave a sigh as I approached.

I tilted my head at the Ultimate Entrepreneur. "What's wrong?" I asked him.

Lorenzo just shrugged and leaned his head back, as I sat across from him at the other seat. "I dunno, I guess I'm just... worried."

Well, I certainly didn't want to just leave Lorenzo hanging like this. I figured I would go seek out Masaki later. I was bound to run into him at some point, wasn't I?

"What are you worried about?" I asked him.

Lorenzo sighed again. "It's my business. See, without me to run it right now, I'm just... worried about whose hands it's in. I've spent years making clever marketing strategies in order to keep my business afloat, and the last thing I need is for it to be taken over by dirty communists-" His voice started to tremble as he approached the end of that sentence, but then he stopped himself and sighed. "Sorry, I don't wanna ramble too long. Anyway... what brings you here to talk with Mister Lorenzo Ricci himself?" His face suddenly shifted dramatically as he raised an eyebrow and gave a confident grin in my direction. What was going on?

"Uh, Lorenzo?" I asked him. He wasn't flirting with me, was he?

"What is it? Clearly something must have driven you here for you to have chosen to hang out with myself. Could it be because I am a clever businessman? Or because I am rich? Or is it my sense of style that brought you here? They say the clothes make the man." Lorenzo mused in a flirtations manner, seeming to look at me up and down. Truth be told, I wasn't really too into this. Lorenzo was trying way too hard to impress me, and I could just sense it.

I gave an awkward chuckle, turning my head away from him for a second. "Lorenzo, you're not trying to flirt with me, are you? Because it's not really working."

Lorenzo gave a nervous chuckle as he pulled on his tie a bit. "Sorry 'bout that, I guess my methods don't really work on you. How about we make up for it over dinner tonight?" He asked me.

I sighed again. "Lorenzo, please, I'm not interested in you like this."

He clicked his tongue and then clasped his hands as he looked up at me again. "Alright, if you won't respond to my advances... then I have to ask you about someone else."

Someone else? I barely knew anyone here! His methods didn't sound like they'd work on anyone.

"Who exactly... are you talking about?" I asked him.

Lorenzo chuckled a bit and looked down. "You, uh... you promise not to tell anyone?" He asked me, his face suddenly flushing red.

I shrugged. "Of course." I replied. Truth be told, I was probably going to forget about it anyway, or not really care.

Lorenzo sighed. "M-Michiru," He replied. I gasped a bit as a smile spread across my face. The smartest, most talented student aboard this train, and definitely one of the most attractive as well. It didn't exactly come as a surprise to me that he had a crush on Michiru.

"Aw, that's kind of cute," I replied. "But, if someone like me wasn't impressed with your advances, what makes you think she will be?"

Lorenzo chuckled again, and then shrugged. "Not sure, I haven't figured that out yet. I'm hoping money will be enough to make her fall for me."

Money? Was Lorenzo really this desperate?

I chuckled a little and then cleared my throat. "Why don't you actually try and get to know her a bit? Talk to her about things she might like? Learn more about her. I'm sure Michiru would appreciate it if you actually took interest in her."

Lorenzo sighed, and then looked up at me with a smile. "Thanks, Kanon," he thanked me. "You know, you're pretty cool. You're really nice, cute, and I'm sure you're not a communist. You're not, right?" He asked me.

I shrugged. "I don't know economics very well, but I-" I realized he was flirting with me again, and I just rolled my eyes. "Oh, you almost had me with those compliments there! Try that on Michiru."

"Right!" Lorenzo answered as he suddenly got up and dashed away. Something told me he was going to screw this up. Regardless, I noticed that I still had quite a bit of time left, and Masaki had to be around somewhere.

I walked away from the scenic room, and up toward the middle room. I began walking toward all our rooms, hoping I'd come across Masaki. Just as I entered the gym room on my way there, Guadalupe almost bumped into me. She was sweating from her forehead and on her clothing, and a white towel was draped over her shoulders. She was carrying a bottle of water in her right hand too.

"Oh, hey Kanon!" Guadalupe greeted me as she drank from her water bottle. "Where you going?"

I turned away for a second, not wanting to admit that I wanted to meet up with Masaki later. What if she thought I liked him? That would be embarrassing...

"I'm, uh... just taking a walk, I guess." I replied. "Just passing time before Amy-chan's concert."

Guadalupe nodded and leaned against the wall. "Yuki's probably out right now, and it seems most everyone else is busy. Wanna hang out for a little?"

I shrugged. I didn't yet know Guadalupe too well, and she seemed like someone who might be fun to hang out with. "Well, sure!" I replied. I didn't quite know what else to say.

"Nice!" Guadalupe cheered as she set her sweat rag down onto the ground. "Hey, if you're going ot hang out with me, you wanna maybe set up a training routine for the two of us? Yuki can't really afford to exercise in the train, so having a partner would be awesome!"

I gave a sheepish smile as Guadalupe proposed the idea of a training routine. Even though I got out quite a bit and would spend a lot of my days walking, I still wasn't exactly the most physically fit person around. Alongside someone athletic like Guadalupe, there was just no way I would even compare. "I don't know... I'm not really that athletic." I replied.

Guadalupe chuckled a bit before getting onto the treadmill, and pressing a few buttons as she began to run. "Silly Kanon, that's the point! It's to help you become more athletic!" she encouraged me. Well, I certainly wouldn't want ot be rude to her, even if I hadn't the slightest clue how to get my body in shape. Running for even fifteen seconds would have me sweating and on my knees, so I had no idea what Guadalupe's plans were. "So, before we start, take off your uniform." Guadalupe instructed me.

I turned a beet-red almost instantly. "M-My uniform?! Guadalupe, that's so embarrassing!" I cried out.

"Relax, you can keep the skirt on. Your uniform looks heavy. And trust me, you do not want to get that thing sweaty!" She informed me. I cursed under my breath as I unbuttoned my shirt, and threw it onto the chair, leaving me in a blue bra and my skirt. I was blushing madly as I tried to cover my chest.

"I-Is this necessary?!" I cried. "What if one of the boys sees me?!"

Guadalupe shrugged. "Like I said, they're all busy right now," she reminded me. I took a deep breath as I took in what she said. If Masaki were to see me, I wouldn't be able to talk to him again. However, I just had to trust that what she was saying was true. "To begin, get on the treadmill next to mine!" she puffed as she continued running on her treadmill.

With a doubtful and skeptical mindset, I stepped onto the treadmill beside Guadalupe's. I saw a few buttons on the front, but the ones that stood out to me were three on the right which read "Slow", "Moderate", and "Fast".

"If you're not quite an athlete, I'd recommend going on 'Slow'," Guadalupe suggested to me. In a moment of stupidity, I pressed the "Moderate" button. I instantly regretted it as the treadmill began to move.

"Wah!" I cried out as I felt myself beginning to fall over.

"Grab onto the handles next to you!" Guadalupe instructed me. Before I could fall over completely, I grabbed onto the handles and kept myself upward. I started to get a grip on my footing as I ran in place, feeling myself sweat from the hot air and motion. Within seconds, I was gasping for air.

"G-Guada-!" I couldn't even finish my sentence because of my shortness of breath. I tried to reach for the button again, but I didn't want to risk falling over again.

"You're doing great!" Guadalupe encouraged me some more. "Just keep pushing on and you'll get it!"

I wheezed, sucking in all the air I could as I felt my legs beginning to tremble. How was this the "Moderate" option?! I felt like I was going to be violently hurled off of the treadmill! "G-uada-!" I tried shouting out, but my lungs weren't pushing the air out. My face must have been a bright blue-red. I was dripping with sweat, and coupled with my embarrassment, I felt like I was going to die. "L-Lupe!" I screamed.

"Kanon?!" Guadalupe shouted out as her eyes widened. Her face quickly went serious as she stopped her treadmill, then reached over to mine and turned it off. I took a moment to catch my breath as I sat down onto the ground. "You alright?" she asked me.

"Yeah..." I muttered, fanning myself off. In this moment, I was glad she suggested I remove my uniform. I would have been baking alive if I were to be in it!

"Want me to grab you some water?" Guadalupe asked me. I nodded as I thirsted for the taste of some sweet, cold water. Guadalupe dashed off as she tossed a towel my way. I wiped the sweat off my brow as only a few seconds later, Guadalupe returned with a bottle of water.

"Thanks," I mumbled, gulping down the water as I exhaled a relaxed "Aaahhhh...". I leaned back, just happy to be alive.

Gudadalupe chuckled again as she sat down next to me. "Maybe we should start you off a little more slowly. But hey, thanks for training with me anyway. We'll have to do this again, just not so quickly."

I smiled at her as she picked up her sweat rag and walked out of the room. I took in a deep breath as the door on the other side opened.

"Hmm?" I called out as Ryo entered.

"Oh, sorry!" Ryo apologized as he covered his eyes and turned away. What was wrong? Then, I looked down at myself, and saw my uniform on the floor behind me. Oh, shit.

I scurried to put my uniform back on, frantically buttoning it back up. I couldn't even look Ryo in the eyes; I was just too embarrassed! After a few seconds, I heard him calling from outside the gym.

"You decent yet?" Ryo asked.

"Y-Yeah..." I replied. He then walked in, and to my surprise, he didn't look nearly as flushed as I did. I figured he would, seeing a girl dressed in a bra on accident and whatnot. "Sorry, didn't mean to intrude on you like that," He apologized to me. "I didn't know you were starting a workout routine. You should have let me know!"

I gave a sheepish smile and then shrugged. "I... kinda did, but I'd rather not get into that right now," I replied to him.

"That's alright," He answered, scratching the back of his head. I just sort of stared at him in awe - not only was he easily the tallest one here, his arms and legs were on the muscular side. Damn, this man was a hottie! He might have have been quite as high on my priority list as Masaki was, but Ryo was hardly lacking in the hots department whatsoever. "You just kinda waiting around for the concert?" Ryo asked me.

I nodded at him, trying not to stare at his muscles for too long. "Y-Yeah, just kinda passing time," I replied. "Hey, while you're here, may I do an editorial on you? I've always wanted to do a story on a famous basketball player." I pulled my camera and a journal out of my bag.

In response, Ryo flashed a wide grin in my direction and shrugged. "Of course! I never turn down one of these."

"Perfect!" I cheered as I raised up my camera and kneeled down. "Can you strike some poses for me?"

"Sure!" He answered, rushing toward an orange, shiny basketball in the corner of the room. First, he spun the basketball around on his fingertip, then he held the basketball at his waist as he showed off the sides of his arm and leg, and then he tossed the ball over my head. I jumped, as I wasn't expecting him to toss the ball at me, but I instinctively pressed the button on my camera and snapped the picture. I looked over all three pictures - they all turned out decently, and I thought they captured Ryo's athleticism perfectly. "How did they turn out?" Ryo asked me.

"See for yourself!" I replied. I handed him the camera as he looked through the pictures and nodded.

"Oh, nice! I think they turned out well." Ryo complimented my shots. "Well, now what?"

I cleared my throat and then pulled my journal and a pen out. "First question. What's it like winning a really close game?"

Ryo leaned back and smiled at me. "It's a real rush, let me tell you that. Like... at first, you can't even really believe that it happened, and you sort of just keep looking at the scoreboard just to make sure you landed it. And then everyone cheers you on, and your team congratulates you, and it's just exhilarating," He replied to me.

I took a minute to write all this down, occasionally nodding back at him. "Okay. How do you usually go about your training?" I asked him.

He shrugged again. "I try to do different things every day, you know. One day I'll lift some weights, other days I'll go for a run, but one thing I always do is practice basketball from home. I just want to help out my team, you know?"

I nodded, jotting everything down. Ryo was just so calm and ready to be interviewed, it was a little surprising. While I'd done interviews for people at school for the yearbook and whatnot, and I had done some editorials on locals, I'd yet to interview someone famous like Ryo. I never believed he would just be this calm about it.

"Okay, final question," I began, taking a second to clear my throat. "What would you say you'd be looking for in an ideal partner?"

Ryo chuckled a bit, and shrugged. "Well, uh... that's a hard question. I can't say I've really taken the time, to, uh... think that through..." Ryo turned away from me, his face flushing red as he twiddled his thumbs. While he'd been relaxed just a minute ago, he now looked nervous.

"Oh, sorry. Is that a question I shouldn't have asked?" I asked him.

Ryo shook his head, and took a deep breath. "No, it's fine. It's a question that I might need to think about. You know, tell you what. When I do figure it out, I'll let you know."

I nodded in return as I stashed away my camera and journal. "Thanks, Ryo. This was a pleasant experience."

Ryo nodded as well. "And thank you, Kanon! I had fun with this as well."

Right before Ryo and I could finish everything up, Lorenzo burst into the gym.

"Lorenzo?" Ryo asked, tilting his head. "What's going on here?"

Lorenzo adjusted his tie as he grinned at us. "Well, I'd just like to let you know that the famous Amy-chan Sakura's concert is beginning in only a few minutes, and I'm just coming in to make sure everyone's attending! It's really important we're all there, you know?" Lorenzo reminded us.

"Oh, right!" I answered. "Okay, we'll be right there!"

With that, Ryo, Lorenzo, and I made our way out of the train and walked toward the courtyard.