The weeks bridging June and July are the most painful weeks Mari can remember. Avoiding Yui takes all her willpower, except for when they're together in the lab on Thursdays. Mari puts on a fake smile then, laughing and joking but always avoiding Yui's eyes. She doesn't stay to talk with Kyoko and Yui after class, rushing off without a word- but sometimes she'll double back, staying just out of sight of their bench. Oddly, Kyoko hasn't moved over into the empty space Mari usually occupies- and seeing this almost makes her yield and go back. She's a split second from walking over when she sees Yui wave, not at her, but to a figure in the far distance. Mari can make out a plain shirt and black slacks, hunched shoulders and dark hair, and she turns away, not willing to stay any longer.
That's the last Mari expects to see of Yui and Kyoko until the following Thursday. She's wrong.
She's walking out of class on Monday when someone grabs her arm and pulls her down the hall, out of everyone's way. A flash of blonde hair is all Mari needs to tell it's Kyoko who has her. How Kyoko learned her schedule, Mari doesn't know: she probably got it from Fuyutsuki. It doesn't matter. What Mari needs is an opening to escape, something Kyoko refuses to provide.
They stop in an empty stairwell- the one no one uses, whose entrance lies in the middle of a rarely-traveled path. All hopes of this being a short conversation evaporate. Kyoko puts her hand on her waist, the other still holding tightly to Mari. "Okay, look," she says. "I don't know what's going on between you and Yui, but this needs to stop."
"What does?" Mari asks, feigning disinterest.
"This! You! You haven't spoken to either of us for two weeks outside of Fuyutsuki's class, and Yui's not telling me anything. All she'll say is that she thinks she's messed up, and that's it. I don't know what happened, but you have to stop acting like such a child and go talk to her."
"So you decided to wait outside my class to tell me I need to talk to Yui," Mari smirks. "Why didn't she come up here instead?"
"I didn't tell Yui I was coming here. Anyways, I don't know where she's gone to now. She stopped showing up at our usual spot last week. I think she's been looking for you. She said something about regretting not catching you earlier. That she went after you, but you were gone, and that's why she thinks she's messed up. Sound familiar?"
Surprise shows on Mari's face despite her efforts to keep it down. "She came after me?" she repeats, a hint of wonder breaking through her monotone.
"Didn't I just say that? Look, she wants you back, okay? And I don't care what happened between you two- as long as it gets settled, I'll be glad to have you back, too. I don't think I've seen Yui smile since you left. She's worried about you."
"She can worry about herself."
"Mari!" The grip on Mari's arm tightens, and she winces as Kyoko's nails dig into her skin. "Why are you acting like this, Mari? What did Yui ever do to you?"
"What did she do?" A laugh bubbles to the surface, a genuine laugh that Mari makes no attempt to stop. "You both don't get it, do you? I was the best. Then Yui comes along, and I'm not anymore. Do you know what that's like, to have something that you're used to suddenly ripped from you? And to know that it's your friend's doing?"
"I do," Kyoko snarls, finally releasing Mari. "You're doing that to Yui right now."
Whatever retorts Mari had prepared fade away, and all she can do is stare at Kyoko. Kyoko stares right back, for once showing no trace of emotion on her face. It's blank, just like Mari's mind- and when she finally formulates a reply, Kyoko's already beaten her to it.
"I told Yui that I wanted to meet her at the usual spot today," she says. "If you really give a damn about her, at least show up and say hello. That's all I'm asking."
Mari's throat clenches. "When?"
"We're supposed to meet in an hour."
"What if you hadn't caught me leaving class?"
Kyoko cracks a smile. "I may not be as good as Yui, but I can still get a job done. Don't you know this by now?"
"I suppose," Mari replies with a smile of her own.
"There we go," says Kyoko. "By the way, you should stop by Fuyutsuki's office. He said he was handing back lab papers early this week in his office so we could study them before the quiz. You left before you could hear that."
"Thank you." Kyoko nods, turning back towards the hallway, only for Mari's voice to stop her. "Hey, Kyoko... you should tell Yui it's bad for her to sleep with her glasses on."
"What does that have to do with anyth-"
"Soryu!" calls a voice from down the hall. Kyoko spins around on instinct, and by the time she glances back, Mari is already halfway up the stairs to the next floor.
"You'd better show up, Mari," Kyoko mutters beneath her breath, and turns back to the Dean.
The hall is surprisingly empty for a Monday afternoon, especially the week before exams. Everyone must be somewhere else, probably studying- not cooped up in labs poking at mice. Mari locates Fuyutsuki's room with little trouble, and knocks once on the door. There is no response. Pressing her ear to the door, she hears nothing at first- then a faint sound, which fades all too soon, obscured by the buzzing of the cicadas outside. The door handle yields before a tentative push, and after a moment's hesitation, Mari enters, paying no heed to the post-it beneath her feet.
Will be away Monday. Please refer to Yui Ikari for assistance.
-Fuyutsuki.