Homura eyed the tile as the door to room 1-A slid open.
"Miss Akemi," the teacher said, "You're quite late."
"I-I know..."
He glanced back into the class, then back at the grey-eyed girl in front of him. "Everyone, continue on your worksheets. I'll be back in a second."
Homura heard a few of the kids jokingly "oooooh"ing, her head hanging even lower.
"Is everything alright?" Her teacher inquired.
The brunette gave no answer.
"If you want, you can go somewhere else." His voice was kind, not understanding, but... knowing.
"Yes, please," Homura responded.
"I've got a class to teach, but..." His voice trailed off as his student avoided his eyes, "Is there anyone I could fetch to help?" The raven-haired girl nodded. "May I ask who? I'll go get them, send them to you with the worksheet from today."
"M-Mami Tomoe, class 1-C," She murmured.
"And may I ask where you're going?"
"The library..."
"Okay."
Homura turned to leave, clutching her books tightly.
"And Miss Akemi?"
She turned, still refusing to raise her head.
"I'm not sure about 1-C's teacher, but if you ever need to do this again, just tell me."
Homura nodded before continuing on her way.
Homura's silver eyes scanned the small pile of books stacked in the corner. She had once more formed the little nest in the back of the library, just like the first time she had come here. There were so many books, and not a one of them looked interesting now. Nothing was interesting.
"I just want to curl up and die..." Homura murmured to herself.
"Homura?" The familiar friendly voice shook her from her thoughts.
"Hey, Mami..."
The blonde came over, sitting down next to her depressed friend. She reached a hand behind herself, placing something on the pile of books. "Is everything alright?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," The raven-haired girl said, holding back tears.
"It doesn't sound like it."
"Then there must be something wrong with your hearing."
"Homura?" Mami sounded a little offended by the statement, but not enough to break the concerned look on her face. "I would ask if this is about transitioning into this new life, but from the tone in your voice-"
"I'm used to having my life turned on its head."
"What?"
"I'm used to everything going wrong."
"Homura, I-"
"If you could see my face, you wouldn't be my friend."
Her milky golden eyes opened wide, a look of surprise crossed Mami's face. "Wh-what do you mean by that? Why would you say that?"
"Because I'm a freak!" Homura spat, "Because every part of me is broken in some way! Because... because..." The brunette finally broke down, tears spilling out of her eyes.
Her blonde friend threw herself around the crying girl. "That's not true, that's not true at all!"
"It is! No one in their right mind would want to be friends with me! I'm a freak, a monster!"
"Then call me insane! Because I want to be your friend, and even if I could see you, I would want to be your friend! You're my best friend, Homura, my very best friend."
"M-Mami..." Was all the girl, crying and held tight in her friend's arms, could choke out between the tears.
"You're a wonderful person, Homura. Call me insane, tell me I'm out of my mind, but that's what I honestly believe. You're fantastic, and I..." Mami herself was crying now, too. She swallowed hard before saying, "And I don't know what I'd do without you, how I'd feel if I lost you."
For what felt like a good hour, the two were silent, holding one another, their tears slowly dying down. When they finally stopped, the blonde slowly released her best friend. "You really are great, Homura."
"M-Mami," Homura glanced away, feeling a small blush cross her face. What these thoughts crossing her mind were, the brunette didn't know, but...
"Yes?"
The raven-haired girl leaned in, a hand reaching for her friend's cheek. "Thank you." And with that, Homura had her first kiss.
It was a tad sloppy at first, Mami taking a second to react. It lasted maybe five, slow and gentle. Neither of them had a clue what it meant, but gratitude is a hell of an emotion.
"H-H-Homura," The blonde stammered, still unsure of what to think.
"I, uh... sorry..."
"N-no, it-it's fine."
The girls said nothing for a moment, an awkward silence prevailing their little corner.
"I, uhm, I've gotta get back to class, if everything's alright."
"Oh, yeah, yeah, uhm, I'm b-better now, thank you."
"Yeah, uh, okay. Sorry, teacher's orders."
"N-no, no! It's okay, it's okay!"
"Okay, uhm, talk to you later?"
"Of, uh, of course, yeah! Talk to you later!"
"Al-alright!" Mami's hand reached out awkwardly for a second, towards Homura's face, before the blonde stood up, spun around, and left quite briskly.
Mami tried to concentrate on the worksheet in front of her, but it felt like even the words in the page refused to be read. Come on, Mami. You can do it! She cheered in her mind.
But sadly, she could not. Her mind refused to focus on anything.
Well, almost anything.
She reached a finger up, touching her lips, remembering how her best friend's had felt against her own. How soft they were, the light taste of just-add-water noodles, and the small taste of tears.
Homura...