Hey everyone. This is chapter 2 of my Yakomonogatari story, and I bring here a drastic but needed change to the storytelling. As I mentioned before, I'm not an English native so my grammar/vocabulary is pretty limited. I was kind of anxious to write in first person and thought the usual third person use was easier on me. A Reddit user I personally thank for his comments (SuperG9) helped me make my mind on that matter. So from now on, the story will be NisiOisin style, Araragi point of view centered. This is not proofread by any english native (yet!) so I apologize in advance for any mistakes you may find.

I hope it will please you guys as well!

23rd February. 11:54 am.

It's time for lunch and my stomach growls, manifesting itself and protesting to me violently as my body needs its nutrients to be assimilated through the digestion of food. I couldn't quite get a healthy breakfast this morning thanks to the infamous Fire Sisters. I'll make sure they pay the price in a thorough manner. As I'm heading towards the cafeteria for my usual yakisoba sandwich, a favorite of mine, I naturally end up meeting that girl I came across before classes began. How cliché, am I right? I mean, it's not like I totally wasted my first periods of today's classes thinking about her and secretly wishing I could see her during the pause for lunch. How intriguing, how fascinating, how mysterious. Here she is, in all her pale splendor, walking diligently to the cafeteria as well with a certain dignity in the way she's walking. Am I really that intrigued by this girl? What would Senjougahara think of an Araragi Koyomi staring at a girl's body and thinking about her with such intensity that he would neglect his studies?

"Die."

Yep. After some reflection, her voice reaches my inner thoughts. That would probably be the most accurate answer to this question. Nevertheless… back to the main topic. If you're going to selfishly admire someone only to be disillusioned later, then maybe you shouldn't try to get to know them better at all. That's what I abide by. So the problem here is why am I currently trying to know more about her? Why am I obsessed with her right now? For her pretty face? Her demeanor? Her charisma? I don't even know precisely myself. I want to talk to her. I want her to open to me. Is she a shy, timid girl? Is that why she seems to be giving everyone the cold shoulder? Or is it something else? Has she recovered enough from her illness? Did she get bullied as soon as she got in her class? Has someone stared at her revealed panties after a divine hand forced a gust of wind to rush under her skirt? Oops. This is getting out of hand. I begin my approach as she stopped to queue in for her order, behind the people already there.

"H-Hey."

Damn it. I just stuttered nervously again. What am I, an elementary school kid talking for the first time to a girl he likes?! Wait, more importantly, what is up with that look she's giving me? It's like she's just looking over at a pile of smelly trash bags in the streets that weren't picked up by garbage collectors. Disgusted is the right word for the analogy.

"What is it, Araragi Koyomi."

Oooh! This time I got an answer and her voice finally graced my ears. A soft and soothing one at that… even if the tone implied she wasn't really pleased at all. And did she just say "Araragi"?

My position within Naoetsu Private High School was like that of a rock on the side of the road. Even some of my dear classmates could very well not be aware of my name. How could Michiko Yamane, a "new" student at this school, know my name?

"That is correct. Michiko Yamane, right? Nice to meet you… How did you get to know my name? I'm curious."

I'm trying to be as genuine as possible. I don't want to appear like Hanekawa described me as. A small smile with that should seal the deal.

"I went to the teacher's office to ask for the name of a student fitting your physical description. They asked me why, so I told them the truth."

C…Could she m-mean that… Impossible… Is that what they call… love at first sight?! But I have Senjougahara and I-…

"That I wanted to know the name of the perverted guy I should avoid at all cost for glancing over my body so blatantly and calling out to me in the next seconds."

If I could fall over, anime style with the camera focusing on my legs and feet in the air, I would totally do it right now. That would fit the feeling of shock and disappointment filling me on the spot.

"Don't describe me like that to the teachers! I'm not that shady of a character!"

My outburst felt really justified because I knew they would probably believe her more than me who's been here for years. I'm pretty sure I'll get called in the next hour or so to the office to explain myself. What an unfortunate day.

"I only told them what the facts were, Araragi. Now please, don't talk to me anymore."

And now she's pulling the self-important type attitude? Who in the world is this girl?

"First of all, I have a girlfriend so that should clear an obvious misunderstanding. I wasn't giving you the kind of look you think it was. I should still apologize if it seemed like it, to you or anyone else. I can assure you from the bottom of my heart that it was not the case."

Here, how is that? I call this the sincerity of a man that flips the situation around.

"You? Having a girlfriend? If you're not lying, which I find hard to believe, then I feel really sorry for her. Give her my regards and condolences."

… I'm being judged very harshly. And what is this frustrating feeling of being estimated more like a criminal than a fellow student?!

Speaking of the devil.

"I appreciate your concern. But as defective as he is, Araragi still is my boyfriend. I'm such a benevolent soul that I take it on me and pour all of my heart into our relationship to please this shameless man."

Senjougahara Hitagi just arrived from behind us, making a path for herself in the middle of all those waiting in line for their lunch. In fact, it would be more accurate to say she made the pack of hungry students form a path for Senjougahara to take. What an overwhelming aura she carried around. I'm truly fortunate to be her chosen one.

"Whatever suits your taste. I'll be on my way then."

Michiko Yamane didn't waste any time in bidding her farewell and tried to get away from us within the next second, before she got interrupted in her escape by Senjougahara's firm grasp on her left arm.

"Wait. I'm not done talking, Michiko Yamane. I think you forgot something."

Her tone was pretty menacing. She's supposed to have dropped that character thing of attacking people with stationery… So Miss Senjougahara would you care to explain why you are currently bringing up a compass?!

"I'm not so kind as to let that slide. If Araragi said that he wasn't checking your body out, you should apologize for calling him a pervert and a desperate case of a human being."

Hey. Don't put false and unnecessary statements in the mix, Miss Girlfriend.

"Senjougahara, she didn't say that last par-…"

"Araragi, stay quiet for the time being."

Compass… stay right where you are, you evil thing! Don't make it look like it's Senjougahara who is controlling you at the moment, it hurts my heart!

"This isn't a matter of what his intent was. This is how I felt and received it. These glances were making me feel awkward and disgusted. You should educate your boyfriend on how to behave normally in society."

The girl named Michiko Yamane just defined me as a desperate case of a human being. Senjougahara was right from the beginning of this argument. And I have to shut up to top it off.

Getting insulted or assaulted by a female student without having the means to defend myself is a strange feeling. This is the second time Senjougahara is taking the position of a lawyer for me and it goes without saying she's a violent one. Last time, she knocked out Oikura Sodachi with a punch after "How much" stabbed my hand with a pencil. I mean… the usual setup is the boyfriend defending his girlfriend in distress, not the other way around.

Source : My manga collection.

"Now I would be most delighted if you could lift your hand off my arm, Senjougahara. Otherwise I'll file another complaint, about you this time."

Oh poor girl… If you thought this was enough to make Senjougahara yield, you're going to be really disappointed when you come to realize there's no conflict she doesn't emerge victorious of.

"Mh. Alright."

What the hell? Where did your hand and compass go, Senjougahara? Did she just give up…?

In any case, Michiko Yamane was nowhere to be found as soon as she got released by the purple haired girl standing next to me in silence.

"Senjougahara…? Are you there?"

I was trying to understand this unexpected turn of events, but first of all, her silence is confusing me.

"Could Michiko be your type of girl after all, Araragi?"

No, no, no. We're not going there.

"How could she be? She doesn't have short hair, for starters."

She should know by now. She even cut her own hair.

"Is that so? I find her to be quite the beautiful girl though. I can see why your lustful eyes were so glued to her body."

I'm shocked by her words and somehow I'm also feeling uneasy about all this.

"Why do you doubt me all of a sudden? There's definitely something wrong with this situation!"

Senjougahara looks over her shoulder to my position, before continuing.

"Was there ever a moment I didn't consider you to be a hopeless and perverted virgin?"

Ouch. That would have hurt the Araragi Koyomi who lived up to February. The fact that we engaged in some nightly activities together for Valentine's day makes it seem like a comedic retort of some sort.

"I guess I should have considered your chocolates to be awful and ran away to come back home…"

It looks like I went too far with it. She has a pained look in her captivating eyes. It means it is time to clarify things up.

"I'm just kidding, you know."

"You better be, Araragi. Otherwise, there won't be another chocolate tasting session. In its entirety."

And this means it is time to swallow my pride and bow. Yes, let us do that.

"I'm very sorry, please let me taste your chocolates again, it was very good and healthy to a point I can't even describe."

Her smile is enough to make me understand the point got across successfully. A sigh of relief escapes from my lips. Still, one thing doesn't make sense and puts me in a nervous state. There is no way Senjougahara would give in like this. Hell freezing over would be more believable to me and of less importance. Should I try asking Hanekawa about this? Maybe she has an idea of what's going on with her. This girl knows everything anyway.

As always, I'll be delighted if I can see any comments on how the approach was and if it is to your liking! Thanks for reading, and see you next chapter.