Another day had passed, and it was time for the club again. Josuke and his friends met up earlier at lunch to discuss their plan.

"So, Josuke will investigate the club by himself," Koichi began. "Meanwhile, Okuyasu and I will be on standby at the café. If Josuke does need our help, he'll call the café from the phone in the room across the hall. If he does not contact us somehow ten minutes after the club has ended, we will assume the worst and go to help him."

"That sounds like a pretty good plan," Okuyasu said.

Josuke nodded. "Yeah. We can do this."

Josuke was walking down the hall to the clubroom.

Right, so today I should try to do two things: spend some time with Yuri and ask Natsuki about her bruise. Seems simple enough. Here I go.

He then walked in.

Sayori greeted him, "Hi Josuke!"

"H-hey, Sayori," he nervously responded, now knowing that he is not childhood friends with her. He felt a bit conflicted about all this.

Hmm. You know, I'll just act like nothing is different. She's cool, and why would I want to suddenly not be friends with her?

Josuke then smiled at her, "You seem like you're in a good mood today."

She giggled, "I'm just still not used to you being in the club, that's all."

"I see…"

"Hey, are you hungry? 'Cause I'm hungry! Will you come with me to buy a snack?"

"Um… no thanks."

"Eh? T-that's not like you at all!"

He gulped.

Has she noticed something already? That can't be true. I'll just play it off cool.

"I'm not really that hungry right now."

"W-Well could you give me some money for the vending machine? I'll pay you back tomorrow!"

"Yeah, sorry, but I don't have any money either. I kinda spent it all over the summer."

"W-What? You spent it all?"

"… Why is that so strange?"

"I remember you told me that you won the lottery over the summer. That's the money you meant right?"

"Ah, no. The money I'm talking about is the money my dad gave me before he went back to America."

"Oh… How much did you win though?"

"Um… five million yen."

"FIVE MILLION YEN?!" Sayori screamed, making everyone in the room look at her. "You can do whatever you want with that kind of money!"

"Hey, I didn't even get all of it. I only got a third of it since I got it with some friends. And I can't use any of it since my mom put it all in a savings account."

"Some friends? What about me, huh? Which friends?" she began to pout.

"That would be Okuyasu and-" … Shigechi.

Josuke looked at Sayori's face and decided to not tell her about what exactly happened with him.

"Okuyasu and a really cool middle schooler. He and his family moved away a few months ago so you probably wouldn't know him."

"W-Well you still could have kept it a secret from your mom!"

Yuri suddenly giggled, her face in her book as usual. "Ah-!" she was startled and seemed embarrassed. "I wasn't listening in or anything…! It was just… something in my book…"

Hmm. I don't buy it. Looks like I'll ask Natsuki about her bruise later.

Sayori then approached Yuri. "Hey, you have any money I can borrow? I'll pay you back, promise!"

Yuri looked at her and sighed. "You should only buy what you can responsibly afford, and frankly, after just randomly asking the same of Josuke, your suffering is fair enough retribution."

Sayori and Josuke were quiet.

"Ah! I-I didn't mean it…" Yuri stammered.

Sayori began to laugh a bit. "I really like it when you speak your mind, Yuri. It doesn't happen much but it's a fun side of you."

The two began to banter a bit over what had happened. Then out of nowhere, something smacked Sayori in the face and falls onto the desk.

She rubbed her face. "Ow… What was- Eh? A-a cookie!"

They notice that the thing that hit her was a giant cookie wrapped in plastic. She glanced around.

"I-Is this a miracle? It's because I paid my restitution!"

Natsuki was standing in the doorway, laughing. "I was just gonna give it to you, but then I heard you blab about the cupcakes. It was totally worth seeing your reaction though."

"N-Natsuki! That's so nice of you! I'm so happy!" Sayori said, then hugging the cookie.

"Uh… Are you going to eat it?" Josuke asked her.

Without answering, she quickly teared open the wrapper and takes a big bite. "Sho good… Mmf!" She suddenly covered her mouth with her hands. "I bit my tongue…"

Josuke chuckled as he then sat on the desk next to her, secretly activating Crazy Diamond to make her feel better.

"You're going through a lot over just one cookie," said Natsuki as she takes a bite out of her own cookie.

"Ah, yours looks really good too, Natsuki! Can I try it?"

"Jeez… Beggars can't be choosers!"

"But yours is chocolate…"

"Yeah, why do you think I gave you that one?"

"Fine. Still, I'm really happy that you shared this one with me." Sayori then got out of her seat and hugged Natsuki from behind.

Natsuki looked away and blushed slightly. "Ah- Jeez…"

She then tried to nudge Sayori off of her with cookie still in her hand. As she did so, Sayori leaned down and took a bite out of Natsuki's cookie.

"H-HEY! Did you seriously just do that?!"

Sayori began to walk away to safety, mouth full. Josuke and Yuri laughed at the sight of all this.

Natsuki fumed, "Jeez! You're such a kid sometimes! Monika can you tell Sayori- Eh?"

She glanced around the room. Monika is not in the clubroom.

"Where is Monika?"

"Good question…" Yuri added. "Have any of you heard anything about her being late today?"

"Not me," Sayori said, swallowing what she stole off of Natsuki's cookie.

"I haven't either," Josuke followed.

"Hmm… That's a bit unusual," Yuri pondered.

"I hope she's okay…" said Sayori.

After a few minutes of speculation on what Monika was doing that was making her late, the rest of the club split off to do their own things. Josuke then decided that now would be a good time to talk to Natsuki. He approached her as she was rummaging around in the closet again.

"Hey, Natsuki?" Josuke called out to her.

She turned around to look at him. "Hey. Did you finish reading the first volume?"

"I mean, I did, but that's not what I wanted to talk about-"

"Great! We can get started on the next one when you put back the first one. You didn't leave it at home, did you?"

"No, I have it, but I-"

"Okay, now let's see-"

"Natsuki! Can I ask you something?"

She seemed to calm down as she folded her arms. "… Sure…?"

"Yesterday, I thought I saw a bruise on the back of your neck. How did you get it?"

Natsuki stiffened up, her eyes darting all around the room. "Um… I fell down when I was setting up my manga in this closet. It was a few days before you joined so-"

"No. That bruise looked too fresh to be from a few days before. What really happened?"

"It… It doesn't even matter now. It's gone anyway."

"Natsuki…"

"JUST SHUT UP!"

Suddenly, the door to the clubroom swung open. "Sorry! I'm super sorry!" Monika said entering the room, slightly out of breath.

"Ah, there you are…" Natsuki said exiting the closet, bumping into Josuke with her shoulder.

"I didn't mean to be late. I hope you guys weren't worried or anything!"

Sayori was surprised. "Eh? Monika chose the club over her boyfriend after all! You're so strong willed!"

"B-Boyfriend…?" Monika laughed nervously. "What on Earth are you talking about?"

She quizzically glanced at Josuke as he made his way over to them from the closet.

"What held you up?" he asked.

"Ah… Well, my last period today was study hall. To be honest, I kind of just lost track of time…"

"That makes no sense, though…" Natsuki piped up. "You would have heard the bell ring, at least."

"I must not have heard it since I was practicing piano…"

"Piano…?" Yuri asked. "I wasn't aware you played music as well, Monika."

"Ah, I don't, really…! I kind of just started recently. I've always wanted to learn piano."

Sayori smiled. "That's so cool! You should play something for us, Monika!"

"That's… Maybe once I get better, I will."

"Yay!"

Josuke added, "That sounds cool. I'd like to see that too."

Monika looked at him. "Is that so? In that case, I won't let you down, Josuke." Monika smiled sweetly.

"Oh! Uh… I didn't mean to pressure you or anything."

She giggled. "Don't worry. I've been practicing a lot recently, and I'd really love the chance to share once I'm ready."

"Cool. Well, good luck with that!"

"Thanks! So, I didn't miss anything, did I?"

"Nothing very important."

Then everyone went back to what they were doing before, leaving Josuke alone.

I could go back to Natsuki, but I don't think that she is willing to talk about that stuff anymore. Ah well… Time to investigate Yuri.

He began to approach her when he noticed the cover of her book. It was the same as the book she had lent him, and she only seemed to be on the first few pages. She then noticed that he was looking at her and hid her face deeper in her book.

Josuke spoke nervously, "I was just spacing out…"

She was beginning to feel uncomfortable. "Oh… It's fine… If I was focused, then I probably wouldn't have noticed in the first place. But I'm just reading a bit of this, so…"

"That's the book that you gave me, right?"

She nodded. "I wanted to re-read some of it. Not for any particular reason…!"

Keep in mind, she could be a Stand user. Just play it safe.

"Any reason you have two copies of the same book?"

"Ah… Well, I stopped at the bookstore two days ago-" she stopped herself. "Ah, that's not what I meant… I mean- I… just happened to buy two of them."

"Ah, I see." He could tell that she was acting strange, but he decided to let it go. "W-Well, I'll start reading it soon, for sure!"

"I'm glad to hear… Once it starts to pick up, you might have a hard time putting it down. It's a very engaging and relatable story."

Josuke sighed internally. He was glad to hear that it was engaging, but he was still skeptical after his experience with Parfait Girls.

"What's it about, anyway?"

"Well…" Yuri began, closing her book to read the back.

Josuke now got a better look at the cover after the 'spider' incident. He saw an ominous looking eye symbol on the front.

"Alright… I just wanted to make sure I don't accidentally give anything away. Basically, it's about this girl in high school who moves in with her long-lost younger sister..." Yuri continued to talk about the book with a very calm and confident tone.

He listened to her, commenting on how the story got dark really fast.

She gently giggled. "Are you not a fan of that sort of thing, Josuke?"

"N-No, it's not that…" he began. "I mean, I can enjoy stories like that, but it just reminds me of some… unsettling experiences…"

"O-Oh… I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable…"

"It's… It's fine. I just haven't thought about reading something like that so soon."

Yuri began to talk about why she really enjoys those kinds of stories. After about a minute, she stopped herself. "Ah…! I'm rambling again, aren't I? I'm really sorry, but I feel like you should know that I have this problem… When I let things like books and writing fill my thoughts, I kind of forget to pay attention to other people. So, I'm sorry if I end up saying something strange. And please stop me if I start talking too much!"

"… I really don't think you need to worry about that. I don't mind," Josuke spoke softly, not making eye contact with her. He was clearly lost in thought.

Yuri looked at him concerned. "Are you sure you're alright…?"

"Yeah, I'm fine…"

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"I… I don't think that you would really understand. It's not something I'm too proud of."

"Was this something that happened recently?"

"Just this past summer."

Josuke was thinking about how the human experiments in the story was similar to what Kira had done with those people he killed. While he knew it was a stretch, it made him think about how they might have felt before that man killed them.

They don't have to know about that. Only a few people actually know what one of the most evil men ever had done. Assuming they are Stand users, they might feel inspired by him, or something. But if they aren't even Stand users at all, it'll only creep them out a lot.

"H-Hey, I think I'll start reading the book," he said, now focusing on her again.

"Wha? Y-You don't have to…" Yuri stammered.

"It's alright, really. I'll go get the book." Josuke went over to his bag, got his own book and sat in the seat next to her. "Is it okay if I sit here?"

"Ah… Yeah."

He opened the book and began to read. As he read, he felt a presence over his shoulder. He could see Yuri in the corner of his eye and that she was no longer reading from her own book. Josuke looked at her and suggested that they just use the same book.

"Ah… I suppose so," she said as she closed her own copy.

The two of them spent some time reading, but most of it was spent trying to not feel uncomfortable. They kept shifting around and talking about how reading together was a new experience. Josuke was already enjoying the story a lot more than he was with Parfait Girls, but that was mostly because he didn't fit its target audience like Natsuki did. They eventually were reading and turning the pages in silence, like they were reading each other's minds.

"Hey, Yuri," Josuke began, deciding to talk for a bit. "This might be a strange thought, but the main character kind of reminds me of you."

She looked at him and asked, "You… think so? In what way?"

"I guess she's blunter in a few ways, but she second-guesses the things she does and says. Like she's afraid she'll do something wrong."

"… I see." She remained silent for a moment. "But, Josuke, that's probably a terrible thing to have in common with her!" She nervously tried to hide herself with her hair. "That's so embarrassing that you think that…"

"W-Wait! I didn't mean that in a bad way!" He sighed. "I'm sorry. I didn't know you were self-conscious about that… I guess I more meant that it's kind of cute…"

Yuri gasped, "What are you saying all of a sudden…?"

This is just great. What have I gotten myself into?

"Okay everyone! I think it's about time to share today's poems with each other," Monika said to the club.

Yuri sighed in relief. She then let go of the book, making it close on top of Josuke's thumb.

"Um… I guess I'll do some more reading tonight, or would you prefer I only read it with you?" Josuke asked.

"Um… I guess I don't really have much of a preference…"

"In that case, I'll read some more tonight. We could discuss it tomorrow perhaps."

Yuri smiled. "I'd like that. How about the next two chapters?"

"Yep! Sounds good!"

Josuke then put the book back in his bag. He then took out the poem he had written last night.

I'm pretty sure that I can rule out Yuri. With all the stuff that just happened, she probably would have activated her Stand by now. Although, I still can't be sure…

He had decided that he would first share with Sayori.

"Hey, want to share poems?"

Sayori looked up at him and smiled. "Sure!"

They exchanged poems. Josuke was pretty proud of the poem that he had written.

Arrows

Pointing and pointing. Always changing their direction.

Arrows are used for knowledge to show people the way.

They teach them what to do next.

But arrows can also be used as a weapon.

They make people feel threatened and scared.

They put them on the spot and center of attention.

Arrows can hurt.

Arrows can change.

Arrows can deceive.

Arrows can adapt.

Always blending in, never stopping, they will chase you.

One day, they will reach you.

You can't do anything. If you move, they move.

Arrows are the fingers of fate that show what is to come.

So take a stand, and see what fate has in store for you.

"Josuke," Sayori began. "I really love your poems. I can't believe you've been hiding these from me."

"Huh? I'm not hiding anything!" he said.

"But… they're sooo good… todays and yesterdays! There's no way you haven't done this before!"

"… Well, I'm afraid that's the case. And I… liked your poem, too!"

"Heehee! Thanks!" She nervously fiddled with her pencil. "… Say, could I keep your poem?"

"Uh… Why?"

"I don't know… This poem just speaks to me."

I think I got her. I wrote this poem about the arrow so whoever understood it is probably a Stand user. I'm going to have to check first.

Josuke silently brought out Crazy Diamond, trying to be hidden from the other club members. It raised a hand and waved it in front of her face to see if she you react. She didn't.

I guess I was wrong.

He retracted his Stand and began to chuckle, "You know, I'll give it to you on our way home."

The rest of the poem sharing went on pretty normally.

Once everyone was finished, Monika addressed the club, "Okay, everyone! I have something extra planned today, so if everyone could come sit at the front of the room…"

Natsuki spoke up, "Is this about the festival?"

"Well, sort of…"

"Ugh. Do we really have to do something for the festival? It's not like we can put together anything good in just a few days. We'll just end up embarrassing ourselves instead of getting any new members."

"That's a concern of mine as well," said Yuri. "I don't really do well with last-minute preparations…"

"Don't worry so much," the club president began. "We're going to keep it simple, okay? We won't need much more than a few decorations. Sayori has been working on posters, and I've designed some pamphlets we can give out during the event."

"Okay, that's great and all, but that doesn't actually tell us what we're going to be doing for the event." Natsuki stated.

"Ah, sorry! I thought you heard already. We're going to be performing!"

Yuri and Natsuki stiffened up. "Performing?" the latter asked.

"Yeah! We're going to be having a poetry performance. Each of us will choose a poem to recite during the event, but I'll be fun because we're going to let anyone else come up and recite poems too! Sayori's putting it on all the posters in case anyone wants to prepare ahead of time."

"Are you kidding me, Monika? You- You didn't start putting those posters up around school, did you?"

"… Well, I did. Do you really think it's that bad of an idea?"

"Well, no. It's not a bad idea, but I didn't sign up for this you know. There's no way I'm going to be performing in front of a group of people like that!"

"I… I agree with Natsuki," Yuri piped up.

They argued for a while, with Natsuki and Yuri saying that they wouldn't do it. Eventually, Josuke said he believed that they should do it since Monika and Sayori had already worked so hard. He thought that it wasn't too much to ask. In the end, the two girls finally gave in and agreed in the poetry presentation.

Monika said that they should practice by performing to the rest of the club. She went first and read a poem called The Way They Fly. After watching Monika's performance, Yuri decided that she would go next.

Yuri nervously stood at the podium. "This poem… is called… Afterimage of a Crimson Eye."

Meanwhile in Italy, a man sitting alone in the dark received a phone call… from his shoe.

After Yuri's surprisingly confident performance, it was Sayori's turn to read a poem, My Meadow. Then it was Josuke's turn to read a poem. He decided to read Arrows since he didn't have his other one with him, nor did he know of any others that he vaguely remembered. Finally, Natsuki had gone up to the podium to read Jump. Once she finished, Monika informed the club on what to do to prepare for the festival.

Once the club meeting was coming to an end, Monika said, "Okay, everyone! I think that's about it for today. I know the festival is coming up, but let's try to write poems for tomorrow, as well. It's been working out really nicely so far, so I'd like to continue that."

Josuke sighed.

Great…

Monika continued, "As for the festival, we'll finish planning tomorrow, and then we'll have the weekend to prepare. Monday's the big day!"

"I can't wait!" Sayori cheered.

"I can do this… I can do this…" Yuri muttered to herself.

"Alright…" Josuke sighed, knowing he'll have to do his best to get through it. "Ready to go, Sayori?"

"Yep!" Sayori chirped.

"Look at you two, always going home together like that," Natsuki commented.

Monika chimed in, "It's kind of adorable, isn't it?"

Sayori giggled while Josuke blushed, understand what he thought they were implying.

"It must be nice though…" Yuri added.

"Uh…"

How do I respond to that?

"It's okay, Josuke, you don't have to say it," Sayori said reassuringly.

"R-Right. Let's go…"

The two walk home once more. They had passed by the café where Koichi and Okuyasu were earlier. Josuke had given them a thumbs-up, telling them that everything was alright. While thinking about his plan for investigating the club, Josuke noticed that Sayori was being more quiet than usual.

He decided to talk to her. "Hey, Sayori…"

She didn't react at first. "… Sorry! I was spacing out!"

"Ah… That would explain it…"

"Um… I was… thinking about something from earlier. I like how we get to- I mean… So let's just say that one day, Yuri asked to walk home with you…"

He blinked and looked at her. "Huh?!"

"What would you do?"

"… What sort of question is that…? You're kinda putting me on the spot here…"

"Well…?"

This is just great. Why is she asking me a question like that now…? Ah well, I already know what I'm going to say…

"Hey, do you really think that I would ditch you for Yuri?"

"Eh?! B-But… She's so beautiful and smart…"

Remember, Josuke: she still believes that we have been friends since kids.

"So what? You've been my friend for as long as I can remember! I see her in the club every day. Besides, you always seem to enjoy going home together, and so do I!"

Sayori looked up at him and smiled, but it was different from her normal smile. They began to approach her house.

"Oh! W-Wait!" Josuke suddenly stopped and opened up his bag. He pulled out his latest poem. "As promised, here you go!"

He watched as her smile returned to how it normally is as Sayori gingerly took it from him.

"A-Are you still sure that this is okay?"

"Hey, I'm not going to hang it up."

"Well… thanks so much, Josuke!"

They waved at each other as Josuke continued on towards his house and Sayori entered her own.

Alright, I've determined that Yuri and Sayori aren't Stand users. I still need to know what Natsuki's bruise was from, and I need to know more about Monika. Also, I should maybe hang out with Sayori some more. I hope she's alright.

As he continued walking to his house, he passed by the odd-looking stone from the other day.

"See ya, Angelo!"

Once again, a muffled scream could barely be heard from the stone.

-To Be Continued