Chapter 3

I awoke to my head pounding. I was in bed at home. How was I here? I tried to remember what had happened. I remember walking home, and then starting to feel pain and dizziness… It's no use. I can't remember a thing. There were noises from the kitchen. Was there someone here? Getting out of bed was exhausting. My body repeatedly told me not to move. But each pain that ran through my body I ignored. When I finally managed to get out of my room and able to view the kitchen, I saw what was causing the noise. Who, in this case. It was Tomoyo. She seemed to be preparing something. Although I couldn't tell what.
"Tomoyo?" I managed to call out her name. But my voice sounded hoarse and rough. Had the events of today driven me to absolute sickness? I could tell that she had frozen up from me calling to her, just by her back alone.
"Okazaki-san…" She turned around with a smile on her face. But her voice spoke her true emotions. It was filled with sadness. She shook her head, maybe trying to shake all thoughts out. "Go rest. I'll be done soon." I did as I was told and went back into my bed. The pain throughout my body lessened as I lay on the soft mattress. The day's events flashed through my mind as I closed my eyes and tried to get at least some rest. I may not know how I got here. However, I assume since Tomoyo's here that it was her.

"Okazaki-san." I woke up to Tomoyo calling to me and shaking me. Waking up only made me feel worse than I had before. I groaned and sat up. I attempted to get out of bed, but I was stopped by Tomoyo. "Stay. I'll… I'll get your dinner." She walked off to what I assumed would be the kitchen. I wasn't sure what to think about this situation. But, it was nice I guess. From the kitchen I could hear more noises. She was probably trying to find where everything was. I laughed as I heard her sigh.
"Top left cupboard!" I yelled out to her in case she hadn't found what she was looking for. Although yelling didn't do my voice any justice.
"Thanks! Found them." I heard back. "Let's see…" A moment later Tomoyo came in with some soup. I couldn't tell what it was from the smell alone. "I won't be able to nurse you back to health. But, at least you're feeling well…" She trailed off. Her face told me everything I needed to know.
"Tomoyo?" Before I asked anything, I decided to give her a chance to continue.
"I… I found you on the side of the road while heading down this way by chance. I thought of the worst case…" Tears begun to form in her eyes. "But I'm happy you were okay when I found you… And, well. I knew where you lived because I asked your homeroom teacher, so I could talk about earlier…" With her explanation, I had no more questions apart from ones that no one would the answers to. "I…" My mind thought back to Ryou's fortune from before. About Tomoyo finding love. If she had and it was me…
"Tomo-"
"I'm sorry!"
"Huh?" The fact that it wasn't a confession surprised me. Maybe I had read it wrong. And Ryou's fortunes weren't accurate to begin with as it were.
"And well… I heard what happened in the courtyard… I'll talk to her, your… Girlfriend that is."
"Girl… Friend?" She heard about the courtyard? And she once again thinks that Ryou was my girlfriend. Did she think we got in a fight because of her?
"The one who told me my fortune. Fujibayashi-san."
"I told you before, she's not my girlfriend. How do I say this? Her sister is trying to get us together and I guess that's how we got on a first name basis."
"Well… I should apologize for my behavior at least."
"I'm sure she would forgive you. But yeah, go do that."
After that I ate the soup Tomoyo had made for me. It was delicious, even more so since I hadn't had lunch. I guess I should really apologize to them both as well. We sat in silence as I finish my meal. It had been a long day. For us both. No. For all of us.

Tomoyo and I said our goodbyes. Luckily my dad hadn't come home yet, so she didn't have the 'joy' of meeting him. I don't know if it was fatigue from the day, me being 'sick', or Tomoyo's soup, or even a mix of the three, I managed to fall asleep before dad had returned home.

April 17th

I woke up early, and I don't remember my dad coming home. Which would explain why I'm able to wake at this time. The events from yesterday went through my head as I tried to get myself out of bed. As much as I would like to skip school, I needed to talk to both Ryou and Kyou. Never had I seen such a face on Kyou. And I didn't want to see it again. The pain that could be seen through her expression was too much for me to handle. I forced myself out of bed and got myself ready for school.

Along the road to school, there was once again many students. A sight that I wasn't used to, and honestly didn't want to get used to. To them, I was most likely invisible. I received some stares from various students, and I think whispers as well. Yesterday really seemed to have an impact on me and my reputation. I came to where the road split off. The same road where Kyou had gotten me with her bike just yesterday. That girl, she really needed to watch out for others.
"T-tomoya-kun?" From behind I heard an innocent, startled voice. I turned my head slightly to see Ryou walking behind me. To think I'd run into her here. Although, I couldn't see Kyou with her. "Um… You're here early." I could see that she had put on a smile, but it was faltering. It was understandable, she was probably weary of me now after yelling at Kyou like that out of nowhere.
"Sorry, did you want me to leave and come late?" I tried to say it jokingly, but it came out in a more serious tone than I had intended. She had stopped walking as I said that and looked down at the ground. I put my hand on her head, I don't know why but I felt like I should. Maybe it was that I felt guilty.
"T-t-tomoya?!" Ryou hadn't been expecting my action, but she didn't try to object. "I… Um…" Her face quickly turned red alike yesterday, and her eyes were darting around. I could feel the gazes of students on us again. More whispers, and maybe a rumor or two, were sure to come from this.
"Sorry." I took my hand off her head and started to slowly walk off.
"Ah…" A disappointed sigh came from Ryou which made me stop again. She ran up beside me and stuck close. "I… I don't mind. Tomoya-kun." With how close she was now, I was beginning to think that maybe my suspicion from yesterday was right.

Together we walked to school. Ryou never left my side, maybe even getting closer if that was even possible. I was pretty sure that there was at least one person looking at us. If Sunohara saw, actually, even heard about this, he'd never shut up about it. There was little to no conversation between us as we walked. I occasionally looked down at her and saw a red tint on her face. Sometimes our eyes met before we both quickly looked away. I guess even though she caused this she's embarrassed about it. I thought about asking about Kyou, and apologizing. But… With how happy Ryou was right now, I couldn't bring myself to talk about yesterday's events. The morning sun shone down on us as we approached the hill that led to the school. In its light, Ryou appeared more beautiful, especially with how close she was to me. I gulped instinctively. I couldn't help but to stare at her as we walked. Small details about her became apparent to me. Like how she walked, and the way her hair blew in the brisk wind. I'm pretty sure she noticed because she started to look down and blush.
"Sorry." There was no response from her. But I could feel her against me as she was now effectively leaning on me.

Ryou didn't end up leaving my side until we entered the classroom. There was no chance that a person from our class hadn't seen us. By the time it was break, there would undeniably be a rumor or two. Surprisingly there were no whispers throughout homeroom or in the next two classes. I did see Ryou look back towards me occasionally before quickly turning back as our eyes met. My attention wasn't towards the class as the hours went by, I still had yesterday on my mind as I thought about how to confront Ryou about it and Kyou. I ended up thinking about Ryou's behavior and how Kyou wanted us together. Did Ryou agree? Or did she like me? I couldn't be too sure, but I wouldn't suspect a timid girl like her to like a delinquent like me. We had gotten closer over these past couple of days, but I couldn't imagine us dating.

Apparently, I ended up lost in thought until break because Ryou came over trying to wake me up.
"Oh sorry, I was lost in thought."
"It's fine. Um… Did you have any plans for lunch?" Lunch? Thinking about lunch made me think of yesterday. I didn't see her come with a lunch box though.
"Plans? No. Not in particular." Assuming she wanted to ask me if I wanted to go with her later, I thought it'd be fun to tease her slightly. "You want to go for lunch later? How bold."
"T-tomoya!" Ryou had said my name in a loud voice. Gaining the attention of the whole class. "Y-you didn't let me ask you!" After she said that, she noticed that the whole class had turned their attention to her. "Ah…" Ryou looked from side to side before looking down at the ground in embarrassment. I couldn't help but let out a laugh. Apart from that, I couldn't think of anything to say. The attention from the class had slightly died down, but there were still prying eyes on us. "Um… Would you like to have lunch with me though? If you don't mind."
"No, I don't mind. But you didn't bring a lunch box, did you?" I could tell from the look of her eyes that something was off.
"Ah… No. Onee-chan is off today."
"Sorry." It was quiet, but her eyes met with mine. Turning her off expression into a serious one.
"You've said that a lot today." Ryou pulled me out of the classroom by my arm and didn't let go. I couldn't imagine what our classmates would think of it.

She ended up taking me to the old school building. Specifically, the reference room. Luckily for me, Yukine wasn't here. I couldn't imagine why she had brought me here.
"Tomoya-kun." She looked into my eyes with a stern look. Never had I seen this from her. She sighed before continuing. "Yesterday wasn't your fault. Onee-chan was, well, shocked. But…" Ryou never finished her sentence. Instead she wrapped her arms around me. Not like had yesterday, but with a more gentle, softer hold. "Tomoya. I…" The same feeling that came from when it was like this with Tomoyo came over me. I was anxious about what she was about to say next. "I… It's not your fault." In response I decided to put my arms around her as well. It felt awkward with her being the only one embracing. We stayed like this for a while before we separated. Neither of us knew what to say. Ryou had said what she wanted to say. And I, well, did something that she probably wasn't expecting.
"Should we head back now?" I was the one to break finally break the few minutes of silence, although it seemed to take an eternity. She nodded in response and once again, similar to this morning, she came close to me.

I spent the next two hours pondering recent events with Ryou. I just couldn't get her off my mind. I'd blame Kyou for that since she's the one who originally brought up the whole dating thing. But maybe it was me. Dating though? It wasn't something I could see myself doing, no matter who it was. Would I accept if Ryou asked me out? Maybe I should think about it in case she does feel that way. My heart sank as I imagined the alternative of turning her down. She may have been a bit less timid and bolder recently. But I'm sure that she's still the same old Ryou I've come to know. How do people deal with that sort of pressure…
"Arrgh! I don't know…" I let out a quiet complaint. Apparently, it was loud enough for the teacher to hear.
"Okazaki? Is something wrong? Did you not understand what I was going over? And you were actually listening?"
"Sorry sir, don't mind me." His gaze fixated on me before turning back to teaching the rest of the class. I didn't even know what class it was, and I wasn't going to bother to find out.

"Tomoya-kun!" I was shaken awake by what looked like an angel. The midday rays came through the windows, illuminating her face.
"An angel?"
"T-tomoya-kun? Um… It's me… R-ryou." Slowly becoming more awake, the bright rays dimmed in my vision, and Ryou came into full view. I thought I also heard her say 'I can be one if you want.' Although pretty sure I imagined that in my sleepy state.
"Oh, sorry. Must have slept." Noticing the lack of students in the class, it must have been lunch. "It's currently lunch now right?"
"Yes, it is. Was there anywhere you wanted to go?" I thought about, and the reference room came to mind. Not just because of what happened before, but because I could use a coffee.
"I know a good coffee place close by. If that sounds good?"
"We-we're going out?" I laughed. Not quite going out.
"You'll see."

We got to the reference room once again, and I opened the door to check if Yukine was present. Glancing inside I could see that she was reading a type of magazine.
"Ladies first." Ryou's expression told me that she didn't know what to think. But she followed my instruction and went inside, with me following behind.
"Ah, welcome." Yukine welcomed Ryou as she came into her view. "Oh, Okazaki-san. Nice to see you again." She gave me a warm smile. "Are you two…"
"I brought her here after an invite to lunch. Said I knew a good coffee place close by." I got a small giggle from Yukine.
"The reference room? And, how do you know her?"
"On a period I skipped, I slept here and woke up with her here. She asked me what I'd like, and I jokingly said coffee." I probably should have left out the skipping the whole class part of the explanation. Although it was too late now.
"Tomoya-kun. You can't skip classes!"
"You sound like the class president or something." I repeated my joke from the other day. I couldn't help it. "Or are you aiming for something else?"
"T-tomoya-kun!" Ryou's face started to heat up as she had realized what I meant. But our small banter was cut short by Yukine's laughter.
"Sorry, it's just that seeing you two... I couldn't help myself." That sounded familiar. "Well, considering you said that you wanted to show her good coffee. I'm assuming you would like some?"
"If you don't mind." I still remember the taste of the last coffee I had of hers was like.
"Oh, by the way. I'm Miyazawa Yukine."
"Fujibayashi Ryou. Pleased to meet you Miyazawa-san."

Ryou and I had sat down while Yukine made us all coffees. My gaze was intrigued by the magazine she was reading. I'll make sure to ask her of it when she's finished. Yukine sat down passing us our coffees. I let Ryou take the first sip to see her reaction on its taste.
"It's good!" The look on her face could tell me she wholeheartedly meant it. Hopefully Yukine could see that as well.
"Thank you."
I put down my coffee and turned my attention to Yukine. "Say, Yukine?"
"What is it Okazaki-san?" Looking at the magazine that she was reading from earlier again, I could see that it had English characters on it. Not anything I could understand though.
"That magazine you're reading, I'm curious to see what it is. The cover has English characters right?"
"Oh, this?" She held up the magazine. A small segment fell out and she quickly grabbed it. I didn't bother to ask what it was. "It's a book of horoscopes. Done similarly to the Chinese Zodiac format. If not the same."
"Horoscopes huh? Sounds right up your alley Ryo-" Her eyes were fixated on the book. She looked like she wanted to grab it straight from Yukine's hands. "You think you could show us some? Mainly Ryou here."
"Sure." The entire time that Yukine was going through the magazine, Ryou was enticed. "What's a good one?" She seemed to be lost in thought as she turned the pages, trying to find one for Ryou to try. "Fujibayashi-san?"
"Yes?"
"What type of horoscope would you like to try?"
"Is there one that… Tests compatibility?"
"You mean like with a lover?"
"Exactly that."
Yukine flipped through her book trying to find one.
"Are you two dating by chance?" She asked as she continued to try to find what she was looking for.
"Oh, no." I responded. "We're just close friends." Ryou had gotten closer to me after me saying that. Although she wasn't too close for me to feel uncomfortable.
"I see, I don't think this will change the charm then. What are your birthdates?"
"October 30th."
"September 9th."
Yukine studiously read through the book. Making various facial expressions as she did. "It says here that for each of you, your lucky numbers are 1, and 9. Fujibayashi-san, you should take every change as it comes, and try to understand them as they come." Looking over to me, Yukine's expression changed a little. "Okazaki-san, while you like to care for others, you should try to branch out of your inner shell to confront any changes or challenges. Together with these results the two off you can learn and grow your bond together."
Ryou's face had lit up, if it could have even further that is. She was fascinated with what Yukine had said.
"You don't mind if I confirm that Miyazawa-san?"
"Go ahead." Yukine started to pass Ryou the book, but Ryou had something else in mind. "Cards?"
She didn't respond to Yukine's question, but instead began to shuffle the cards and lay them down. One by one she drew a card from the top and placing them around the deck, seven in total. Yukine and I sat in wonder as Ryou's expression shifted as she read each card. Finally, her eyes moved to the final card. She nodded.
"Well?" I asked.
"Thank you for your time Miyazawa-san." Ryou got out of her seat and packed her cards. She hastily left without saying a word to me.
"Ryou? Ryou!" I yelled out to her as she left the room, but she didn't stop. "Ah, sorry. And thanks for the coffee." I started to chase after Ryou, but I felt a tug on my sleeve.
"Can we talk tomorrow? I want to talk to you about something."
"Sure!" I nodded my head as thanks once again to Yukine before rushing out the door, running down the hall in hopes that I can find where Ryou ran off to.

It was almost the end of lunch, and I still hadn't found Ryou. Where could she be? I had checked all of the old school building, homeroom, the rest of the floors on the new building, and back to homeroom. I was now standing near exhausted in the courtyard by the side entrance of the school. I looked around the immediate area and still couldn't see her. Deciding to move towards the school gate, I saw Ryou standing near an empty spot in the courtyard.
"Ryou!" I had shouted, but luckily there was almost no one around. So, any attention that would be on us would be minimal. "Ryou, I… I found you." I had to stop running midway to getting her, just so I could catch my breath.
"Ah… Tomoya-kun. You found me!" I was caught off guard by her cheerfulness. Was she not upset?
"Huh? Wait, you're not upset or anything?"
"Nope! In fact, I'm happy that my fortune came true."
"You mean the one you did in silence." She nodded. "What did it say then?"
"Even if you run away wordlessly, the one who cares shall always come to find you." Ryou poetically recited the fortune she had read for herself. "Or something like that."
I sighed, and place both of my hands on Ryou's shoulders. "Ryou, you don't need a fortune to know that I'd chase after you if you ran out like you did."
"Tomoya-kun…"
"Come on, let's go back to class." I let go of Ryou and turned around to walk off, but I was stopped by her grabbing onto my hand.
"Would you like to eat lunch? I grabbed us some bread from the cafeteria when I ran off."
My stomach grumbled on cue. "I guess we have time."
She smiled, and we headed over to a nearby stone wall.
Giving me my share of the bread she bought, she leaned onto my shoulder. "I suppose we ended up having lunch out here after all."
"Yeah." I looked over to her as she leaned on me, and the way she looked as she relaxed next on me caught me off guard. This time I was the one heating up. "I suppose we did."