To put it simply, Rin hated Math. No, hate was too light; she loathed Math with all her being. Just knowing she was going to have math in the morning was enough to give her a migraine. She wondered why the gods of education cursed her with having Math for first period. They could have given her anything else, and she wouldn't have minded. Physical Education? God yes. English? Absolutely fine. Language? That was okay too. History? Tolerable. Science? Not preferable, but still alright.
But Math? That was just cruel.
But Rin was an optimist, and always liked to look at the brighter side of things—if she could find any.
She sighed audibly, drawing it out until all the air was expelled from her lungs, as she glumly looked at the clock. About another minute and a half until class began. Rin sighed again, preparing herself for a very, very, long hour.
The sound of someone settling into a desk caught her attention. She turned around, and gasped when she saw who it was.
"Maki-chan?" She asked.
Maki, who was taking out her notebooks, stopped what she was doing and turned to Rin.
"Hello," she replied. She sounded as if she wanted the conversation to end right there.
"I didn't nyow you were in my class," Rin said as she sat up from her slumped position, eyes brightening.
"That's because I sat across the room."
"Oh, right. Seat change. But even then, I didn't hear your name during roll call!"
"Because you're always asleep during roll call."
Rin laughed. "It's kind of hard nyot to. I mean, dealing with numbers in the morning? The thought just makes me wanna go home!"
"Mm," Maki hummed as she took out the last of her supplies from her bag.
"…Hey, Maki-chan?"
"Yes?" Maki didn't even spare her a glance as she flipped open her textbook to the page written on the board.
"What do you—"
"Alright, settle down. Class is starting!" The teacher, a portly man with a booming voice, waddled to the front and plopped himself into the swivel chair waiting for him. "I won't be checking the homework today, but I assumed that all of you did it," he paused to glance at Rin, who shrunk under his gaze "…hopefully. But onto today's lesson…"
Once Rin saw him heave himself from his seat and begin writing on the board, she began to bounce her knee uncontrollably underneath her desk. She stared at the clock, then at the board, then at her notebook, then at the clock again. She twirled her pencil between her fingers. She tapped her desk with her other hand. Her entire being was a maelstrom of impatience and activity, and nothing could calm her down. Not even the teacher himself—
"Hoshizora," he boomed as he continued to work on his wall of text.
Okay, maybe the teacher could stop her.
Rin sighed as she stilled. With anticipation, she looked up at the clock to see how many minutes of class passed.
Six.
Rin bit back the groan building in her throat as her head fell to the desk with a light thud. She couldn't wait for class to end. Maybe she could ask to be excused to the bathroom and wander around school. No, that was a bad idea. For one, it was too early for the teacher to excuse anyone to go to the bathroom—he had a policy for students to wait ten minutes before going (which Rin thought was a dumb rule because what if something…unexpected happened?). And two, he would know Rin's intentions anyways; she had been caught more time than she would have liked by the teachers roaming around campus.
This time, Rin allowed herself to groan quietly. Math really was a curse.
Well, no matter. It was time to go with Plan B: take a nap. Rin closed her eyes and took a deep breath. The tension in her body fled as she relaxed, and she let out a blissful sigh. Fatigue began to wrap itself around her, blanketing her in its warmth as she listened to the white noise of students working, the clock ticking, and the teacher rambling on about right triangles.
And it was working. Until she felt a sharp poke in her side that made her jump up with a yelp. Her face turned bright red when the surrounding students turned around to give a look. After giving them a sheepish smile and gesturing at them to pay attention to the lecture, she whipped her head around to give Maki a sour look.
"Why'd you do that?" She asked, furrowing her eyebrows together in confusion.
Maki gave her a sharp "Sh!" as she took her notes, not even sparing Rin a glance. "You're too loud," she added much more quietly.
"That doesn't answer my question, though," Rin whispered, glancing at the board to see how far along the teacher was getting. He covered more than half the board with numbers and he was still going. Rin looked away before she could pass out.
"Because I think you should wake up and take notes," Maki hissed between her teeth as she finally stopped writing to give Rin a look. Maki wasn't as effusive as Hanayo, but underneath the hard amethyst of her eyes, Rin caught something that she dared to call concern.
"Maki-chan," Rin slowly began, "are you…worried about me?"
"N-no!" Maki whispered furiously, her reddening cheeks betraying her. "I-I'm just—I just don't want you to get yelled at, is all."
A small grin came across Rin's face. "So you are worried about me!"
"D-don't get the wrong idea!" Maki began. "I just want to save you from being humiliated in front of the entire class so that I can save myself the second-hand embarrassment of watching you getting chewed out, especially since I'm sitting right next to you! Look!" She pointed an accusatory finger at Rin's blank notebook. "You didn't even write down the first page of notes! Have you been writing anything at all?"
Rin had the audacity to scratch the back of her neck with a sheepish smile. "O-oh, uh…nyot really…."
Maki looked appalled. "Oh my God. What—what's your grade in this class?"
Rin looked to the side, jutting out her lip as she thought. "Nyot passing. But that's because I don't understand Math in general."
"Guess it can't be helped," Maki said with a sigh as she began writing down notes again. "I suppose I can tutor you during lunch or something."
Rin perked up. Did…did she hear Maki correctly? "Tutor me?" Rin asked, unable to stop herself from smiling.
"Yes, tutor," Maki muttered indignantly as a red smear colored her cheeks. "Got a problem with that?"
"Nope! It's nyalright with me!" Rin grinned. "I didn't nyow that you were capable of caring for people, Maki-chan."
"I—wha—I don't care," Maki hissed. She sent a withering glare in Rin's direction but the exuberant girl was unperturbed. "It would be bad for you to have bad grades because you wouldn't be able to work, and Eli said we needed all the hands we need for the Festival."
"That basically means that you care, Maki-chan."
"W-what's with you?"
"Nishikino! Hoshizora! Pipe down back there!" The teacher boomed from the front.
The both of them gave a very quiet "Yes." They gave each other one last glance before working again—or in Rin's case, beginning her work.
But as she scribbled incomprehensible notes, Rin felt herself smile.
Now that she knew Maki was here with her, having Math in the morning wouldn't be so bad after all.
-X-
"Ah, Umi-chan! You're here!"
Umi gave Honoka a tired smile as she settled into her seat.
"Good morning, Honoka," she muttered tiredly. She took out her supplies significantly slower than usual, and Honoka seemed to notice.
"What's wrong?" Honoka asked, concern tainting her tone. Umi looked up to take a glance at Honoka and saw her eyebrows coming together. Umi felt a smile pulling on her lips—Honoka looked like a puppy. An adorable one, at that.
"Just—" she was cut off by an unexpected, and rather loud, yawn, "—excuse me—stayed up finishing my work, is all."
"You're not working yourself too hard, are you?" Umi gave Honoka a look between light surprise and amusement. Honoka was hard-headed and stubborn when it came to her objectives, but was overly-compassionate and worried when it came to her friends.
"No, I'm not, it's just—overwhelming, I suppose, trying to balance school, archery, and Muse. But I'll get used to it, don't worry." She added the last part quickly when she saw Honoka deflate with dejection.
"You know," Honoka began as she quirked her lips into a small smile, "if it's too much, you can always quit Muse."
Umi blinked. "I can handle it," she said slowly, cautiously. More words tickled the tip of her tongue but she forced them to stay in her mouth
"But I don't want you to quit something you love, you know?" The exuberant sparkle that usually lived in Honoka's eyes dimmed, and Umi felt a sudden chill run down her spine at the sudden sight. "I…don't want you to go sacrifice something important to you. Like…what Kotori-chan did, you know?"
Umi studied Honoka. For the first time in a long while, Umi wasn't able to read her like a book. Honoka was usually so effusive, constantly wearing her heart on her sleeve., Umi would be lying if she said seeing Honoka like this didn't unnerve her. She was a big worry-wart (Honoka's words, not hers), after all, especially when it came to a certain girl.
"You don't feel guilty about Kotori quitting still, do you?"
There was a beat of hesitation before Honoka replied. "Guilt's kind of a strong word. It's more like I feel responsible for it, you know?"
"Honoka, that's basically the same thing."
"I'm failing English for a reason," Honoka said with a growing grin.
Umi shook her head. "You know you don't have to feel—"
"Guilty about it, I know, I know. I've had this conversation with Eli-chan."
Umi frowned. "Then why do you still feel guilty about it?"
Honoka hummed, swaying in her seat back and forth as she thought. "I'm not sure. It's like how you keep worrying even though Kotori-chan and I tell you it's going to be fine."
"I-I m-mean I guess," Umi indignantly sputtered out, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment as she looked away; she couldn't believe that Honoka actually got her.
"Hey, Umi-chan?"
"Mm?" Umi turned to Honoka, who was wearing the tiniest of smiles.
"I'm really glad I have you and Kotori-chan around."
Umi turned even redder as a shy smile tugged on her lips. "You only say these kinds of things if you want something."
Honoka shook her head, her smile growing. "I'm being serious. You guys helped me with the candy shop, and when that didn't work, you stuck beside me to pick me back up. Even now with Muse, you're still here supporting me." She chuckled. "I really don't deserve the both of you, you know?"
Umi let out an amused sigh through her nose. "You say the weirdest things at the weirdest times."
"Maybe it's because I really love the both of you."
"You want me to buy you lunch again, don't you?"
Honoka's smile turned sheepish. "You wouldn't mind, would you?"
Umi chuckled and shook her head no. "It's fine. I do it because I love you, too."
Honoka's eyes suddenly widened, her grin growing larger and larger. "Umi-chan, you just—"
"D-don't get used to it!"
-X-
"Koizumi-san, you're late."
Hanayo shut the door behind her, and offered the teacher a weak smile. She pushed up her falling glasses and mumbled a quick, "sorry" under her breath as she scurried to her desk, which was, luckily, right next to the door. With nervous energy, she took out her supplies as fast as she could. Now she needed to copy down the notes that the teacher was—
Hanayo froze.
Her pencil was gone.
Her only pencil was gone.
She frowned to herself as she sighed, rummaging through bag to find a pen. Suddenly, something clattered on her desk and she looked over to find a rather colorful pencil with a tiny Santa figurine as the eraser cap. Hanayo smiled; it was cute.
She turned to her right, ready to say her thanks, but her words died when she saw who it was.
Maki was trying her hardest to avoid Hanayo's stare. Hanayo ripped off a corner of her paper and scribbled a quick note on it, before scrunching it up with her fingers and flicking it in Maki's direction.
Thank you, it said.
Hanayo heard Maki exhale amusedly before the note came flying back.
Don't worry about it
Hanayo felt herself smile as she flipped the tiny scrap of paper over.
I never would have expected you to own a pencil like this, she wrote.
She flicked the note over once again and began writing down what was on the board until she heard Maki make an indignant noise. Hanayo stopped writing and looked over to see a red-faced Maki giving her an annoyed glare. Hurriedly, Maki jotted down another quick response before sending the piece of paper flying.
It was a gift
From?
Santa, obviously
What
What?
Santa?
Yeah…? Problem?
He doesn't exist, Maki-chan
He does so!
Before they knew it, their makeshift correspondence began to take up a majority of the period. In between taking notes, they exchanged simple messages, and one of them would always react in a way that made the other amused. Hanayo would let out a stifled snort, to which Maki would respond with a soft chuckle. Maki would let out a muffled grunt, to which Hanayo would respond with a quiet giggle.
It would have gone on until the end of class if the teacher hadn't cleared her throat.
"Be sure to go over the last three chapters of the book," she drawled, her voice raspy and tired. "We'll be having a test in the next week or so. Be prepared. Remember, the test is easy—"
"—If you know the answers," the class finished.
The teacher gave a weary smile and nodded. The class erupted with noise as students began stuffing their notebooks into their bags, preparing for the next class.
Hanayo was no exception until light coughing caught her attention. She turned to see Maki staring at her with a slight frown.
"The pencil," she said.
Hanayo blinked.
"Do you still need it?" Maki elaborated, giving said pencil a glance, as if she wanted to swipe it away from peering eyes.
"Oh, uh," Hanayo offered a quiet titter, "I do since I lost my only pencil, but it seems important to you, so I'll just give it back to you. I'll just borrow someone else's."
Maki's frown deepened. "If you need it, then just use it."
"But it's important to you so—"
"Yeah, but you need it more than me, so use it."
"…Wow."
"W-what? Why are you looking at me like that?"
Hanayo couldn't stop her growing grin. "I thought Rin-chan was lying when she said you're the type of person to look out after others."
That seemed to hit a nerve inside Maki, and she bristled.
"W-what's with you?" She stammered.
Hanayo laughed. "Rin-chan told me what you said to her in Math."
The way Maki's cheeks flushed red was cute, Hanayo had to admit. "D-did she?"
"It's why I was late," Hanayo said with a laugh. "She kept telling me all about it and we didn't hear the bell."
"Why am I not surprised?"
"But you know, Maki-chan, Rin-chan really appreciates it." Hanayo offered the redhead a gentle smile as she adjusted her glasses. "She has a hard time in that class and I'm no good when it comes to teaching."
Maki's small frown deepened. "How come she can't go to tutoring?"
"Oh, uh," Hanayo gave a shaky titter, "it's a long story."
-X-
Nico wanted to scream at whoever invented textbooks for culinary.
"Absolute bullcrap," she mumbled to herself as she jotted down notes on how to handle a knife. "Why in the world would anyone hold a knife by the blade?"
Eli didn't look up from her own work. "Some people just need to have things spelled out for them."
"They're dumb. Why're they in the kitchen in the first place?"
"Good question."
"Smart-ass."
Eli gave Nico the faintest of smirks. "Your influence."
Nico shook her head, a smile of her own growing. "Gotta learn from the best, eh?"
"If you say so."
Nico sighed, capping her pen before leaning back into her chair. "It's quiet," she noted.
"We're in a library."
Nico sent a glare in Eli's direction. "Wow, really?"
"Really."
"No, but look." Nico took time to take in the sight of the library, and Eli did the same. Posters advocating studying and scholarships were plastered on the sides of bookshelves. Books sat undisturbed on carts and shelves, collecting dust. But what disturbed Nico the most was the lack of people. Usually their university's library would be teeming with students and faculty alike, but none of the like were present. Even the librarian was nowhere to be found.
To say the least, it was unsettling.
"Kind of weird to see no one here," Eli said, sounding distant.
"Maybe it's 'cause we're used to being 'round people nowadays."
Eli gave a breathy laugh of amusement. "Who knew I would one day hear those words come out your mouth."
Nico blew a raspberry derisively. "Excuse me? I was the most optimistic out of the three of us back in high school."
Eli smiled with a touch of nostalgia. "You were," she muttered, the twinkle in her eyes shining. It was a strangely, Nico thought, because the last time she saw that sparkle in her eyes was during high school.
All of them had met during their high-school days. Suddenly finding company with other people aside from her own family was something that Nico found strange, but it wasn't an unwelcome change. In fact, it was something that Nico enjoyed to its fullest. All three of them spoke frequently, joked around, went out together, and always studied at Muse whenever they could. Even when Eli and Nozomi began dating, Nico never considered herself as the third-wheel—those two always made sure that Nico was included whenever they could. Those days were happy days, Nico mused.
That was until they discovered Muse was in the red.
Nico didn't remember when they got the announcement. It had to be somewhere along the line of their senior year. They had been the only ones showing up to the cafe for about a month, the customers dwindling ever so slowly. None of them wanted to admit it, but they knew that it was only a matter of time before Muse would close down. Nozomi and Eli accepted it because, after all, good things always met an end. However, Nico refused to believe it. She fought in order to keep her hopes of becoming the greatest chef for the greatest cafe alive so she that could support her family—and so that she could share with them the same amount of joy she felt every time she walked into Muse.
"Is Muse open today?" Nico asked absentmindedly.
"No. Even though we should…." Eli shook her head and sighed.
"What's the deal?"
"No one in charge for today. You and I have evening classes today, and Nozomi isn't available today because she needs to take an exam later tonight. I texted the others earlier today."
Nico sighed out of her nose. "We should probably figure out who's going to be the next in line for running Muse. All three of us are going to be transferring into universities soon, and we are kinda the ones keeping Muse barely alive."
Eli pursed her lips. "I know."
"Got any idea of who it might be?"
Eli looked at Nico with the smallest of smiles. "Well, one person does come to mind…."
-X-
Honoka stared at the glazed bun in her hands with a pout.
"Umi-chan, you got me red-bean again."
"Is that a problem?"
"You know I'm tired of red-bean."
"Then maybe you should get your lunch yourself, hm?"
Honoka frowned as she ripped open the plastic wrapping. "You're being mean again, Umi-chan."
"Sorry, sorry."
"No you're not."
"I am."
"If you were, you wouldn't be smiling," Honoka pointed out as she sank her teeth in the bread. The tiring taste of red-bean paste filled her mouth. She sighed—the only thing that would make this better would be a nice, warm cup of vanilla macchiato from Muse.
Speaking of Muse….
"Fif youf gef the fexfs from Efwei-Chwan?" Honoka asked with a full mouth.
"You know I can't understand you."
Honoka cleared her mouth and wiped her lips with the back of her hand. "I asked if you got the text from Eri-chan."
"Oh, yeah," Umi said, taking out her phone. "It said—"
"No work today, thank God!" Kotori declared, bursting through the library doors. The librarian gave her an admonishing glare. Kotori smiled sheepishly as she muttered her apologies.
"I was beginning to think you weren't going to show up," Umi said with amusement.
"Sorry," Kotori began, taking the seat next to Honoka. "I had a conference with teacher about which college I want to attend."
"Weren't you thinking about going to a fashion school?" Umi asked.
Kotori nodded. "I am. But it may be harder to get into one since I stopped interning." Her sheepish smile came back for a split second, but it quickly melted away as she looked off to the side. Her eyes glazed over, and Honoka quickly caught on that Kotori was losing herself in her thoughts.
"You alright?" Honoka asked, poking Kotori on her cheek. Kotori's eyes grew wide, and she blinked several times.
"Nothing, just…thinking."
"About…?"
"Nothing."
But Honoka knew it wasn't nothing—nothing always meant something. She pursed her lips, debating whether or not she should continue to prod Kotori for the answer. Honoka shot a glance in Umi's direction, a silent plea on what to do. Umi imperceptibly shook her head no, and Honoka allowed the subject to die—for now.
ALl three of them fell into a silence as they concentrated on their work—or at least, Kotori and Umi did. Honoka was far too busy zoning off, eyes transfixed on an invisible spot on the floor, until a flash of red caught her attention.
"Hey, is that Maki-chan over there?" Honoka pointed out. Umi turned around to see and Kotori leaned in front of Honoka to watch Maki take a seat at the table diagonal from them.
"Oh, it is," Kotori said with a tint of awe.
"I'm surprised that she would be here out of all places," Honoka said.
Umi turned back to her with a confused look. "Where else would she be?"
"Mm…in the band room? She's a pianist, so she probably practices in her free time."
Umi slowly nodded her head, understanding. "But she really strikes me as the studious type, so I wouldn't be surprised if she came here time to time to study."
"Or maybe she just needs a quiet place to be in," Kotori piqued. "I get the vibe she doesn't really like people—"
"You three know I'm right here, right?" Maki asked, sending them a cool stare and a small frown.
Honoka looked away, Kotori laughed nervously, and an embarrassed Umi turned extremely red.
Honoka quickly turned to face Maki, putting on a mask of mild surprise. "Oh, Maki-chan, I didn't see you—"
"Don't play dumb."
Honoka tittered; Maki was as straight-forward as ever.
"So, what are you doing here?" Honoka asked. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Umi shoot her a look, but Honoka expertly ignored her.
"I was supposed to help Rin with math, and Hanayo was supposed to come too to help me out too. But," Maki took a glance at her phone and shook her head. "I have no idea where they are. There's only about fifteen minutes left for lunch, so I don't understand how we're going to get anything done."
Honoka watched with curiosity as she stared at Maki. The younger girl's eyebrows were furrowed together, wrinkles of frustration etched on her forehead as she ran a hand through her red hair. It was strange seeing the cool and collected Maki looking so flustered over a little study date, Honoka thought. It was almost as if—
"You really care about them," she said, her words slipping past her lips without her knowing.
Maki was quick to react. Her cheeks turned a shade of red that was darker than her hair, and scowled in Honoka's direction. "You're honestly the third person today who said that! I don't know how many times I need to keep saying it, but—"
Honoka cut her off with a laugh. "You remind me a lot of Umi-chan, you know?"
"Really?" Maki and Umi said in unison.
"Really," Honoka confirmed. "I bet Kotori-chan can agree with me, huh?" She nudged Kotori with her elbow as a grin crawled on her face.
"Now that you mention it, they are kind of alike," Kotori said with a chuckle. "Both of them are stubborn and don't like admitting things."
Both Umi and Maki sent the two of them indignant glares before looking everywhere except at them and at each other. They even crossed their arms at the same time. Kotori and Honoka shared a hearty laugh—how ironic it was to see two of the most mature people they knew acting like children.
"But, you know,"—Honoka turned to Kotori with the biggest grin she could muster—"the one thing that really makes them alike is that they really care about the people close to them."
"Oh, shut up," Umi and Maki muttered together.
-X-
Cat (9:47PM): Maaaaaaaaki-chaaaaaaaaaaaaaan~~~~~~
Help me please :)
Me (9:47PM): Which problem is it?
Cat (9:48PM): #29
Me (9:48PM): …
Didnt we do this problem already
Cat (9:48PM): nooooooooo…
Me (9:49PM): Rin we literally did this problem ten minutes ago
Cat (9:49PM): but i still don't get it :(
Me (9:50PM): just scroll up!
Cat (9:50PM): but i'm too laaaaaaaazy
Me (9:51PM): i thought athletes were supposed to be
Idk
Super hyperactive?
Cat (9:52PM): i am!
Just not in math lol
Me (9:52PM): w/e you say
Cat added Riceball to the chat
Cat (9:53PM): ah, kayochin!
Sorry that was an accident! :(
Riceball (9:53PM): it's okay! Is this some kind of study session thingy? :)
Me (9:53PM): no
Cat (9:53PM): yea
wow maki-chan
why're you so mean? :'(
Riceball (9:54PM): cmon Rin, don't be like that
she did offer to help you during lunch today…
Me (9:54PM): ^ exactly
Which, btw, you didn't come to
Cat (9:55PM): yeah i did!
Me (9:55PM): showing up ten minutes before lunch ends doesn't count
Cat (9:55PM): minor details
Riceball (9:56PM): I still feel bad about showing up late though :( sorry mari-chan
*maki-chan
And thank you for the pencil :)
Me (9:57PM): idk how many times i told you it's fine but it's fine
And you can return it to me tomorrow morning
Riceball (9:57PM): okay, you got it!
You know, you're so sweet Maki-chan :)
Me (9:58PM): w-what's with you?!
Cat (9:58PM): she really is, huh, kayochin?
Me (9:58PM): you two are
being so
Tits added you, Cat, and Riceball to the chat
Me (9:59PM): irritating!
Tits (10:00PM): *gasp*
how rude, I didn't do anything yet… :((((
Me (10:00PM): wait, no, that wasn't supposed to be for you nozomi
Gremlin (10:01PM): suuuuuuure it wasnt
Me (10:01PM): go away nico
Russia (10:01PM): Okay, okay, let's save it for later.
Nozomi, did you add the other three?
Tits added Bird, Ocean, and Caffeine-Head to the chat
Tits (10:02PM): now i did ;)
Russia (10:02PM): okay, great
Ocean (10:02PM): So…what exactly is this?
Gremlin (10:03PM): guess
Russia (10:04PM): It's a group chat for Muse.
Gremlin (10:04PM): way to ruin the fun eli
Ocean (10:04PM): Oh, okay.
Russia (10:05PM): so down to business
Sorry there was no work today
Nico and i had classes and nozomi needed to take an last-minute exam
Caffeine-Head (10:06PM): (Y)
Gremlin (10:06PM): wth is that
Caffeine-Head (10:07PM): its supposed to be a thumbs-up… :^(
Bird (10:07PM): its ok honoka-chan
Caffeine-Head (10:07PM): ty ily kotori-chan
And everyone else here too
Including u umi-chan ;)
Ocean (10:07PM): Um…thanks?
Me (10:08PM): can we move on
Tits (10:08PM): aw, is maki-chwan feeling left out? ;)
Me (10:08PM): never call me that again
Gremlin (10:08PM): OOOOOOOOH ELI YOUR GIRLFRIEND IS CHEATIN ON YOU
Tits (10:09PM): oh hush dont say that nicocchi
elicchi gets jealous easily even though she knows i wont be going anywhere ;)
Russia (10:09PM): omg did you just say that i cant believe you
Tits (10:09PM): i love you too, dear
Russia (10:10PM): okay, now really moving on…
I've just gotten the word that the Market District Festival will be three months from now.
Riceball (10:10PM): thats kind of a lot of time…right?
Russia (10:10PM): It is, but remember, we have a lot to do.
Perfecting the new menu, getting the costumes done on time, preparing the…mascot.
And since we didn't meet up today, it means a day lost, unfortunately.
Caffeine-Head (10:10PM): well we just gotta work hard the other days then!
Russia (10:11PM): Exactly.
Tits (10:11PM): oh honoka, you should see the small smile on Eli's face rn
She's so proud of you :)
Russia (10:11PM): stop
Gremlin (10:11PM): lmao you two text even though you're in the same room?
Russia (10:12PM): well we have to talk to you guys too so
Bird (10:12PM): i think its pretty cute :)
Riceball (10:12PM): me too! :)
Cat (10:12PM): same! :3
Tits (10:13PM): you three should see how red elicchi is, it's adorable :)
Tits sent an image
Caffeine-Head (10:13PM): OMG ELI-CHAN YOURE SO CUTE
Bird (10:14PM): AAAAAAAAW
Cat (10:14PM): NYAHAHA HER FACE IS SO RED X3
Riceball (10:14PM): oMG!
Gremlin (10:14PM): LMAO YOU LOOK LIKE A TOMATO WITH HAIR
Me (10:15PM): SHE DOES OMG
Ocean (10:15PM): I guess I kind of see it…
Russia (10:15PM): why are all of you like this
i just wanted to explain what's happening but then this happens
What did i do to deserve this
Nozomi i trusted you
I loved you
I still do
Why have you forsaken me
Tits (10:15PM): oh shut up Elicchi
you're being melodramatic again
Dont worry i'll pay you back later tonight ;)
Gremlin (10:16PM): OMFG
O
M
F
G
BYE
Caffeine-Head (10:16PM): ?
is it wrong that Nozomi-chan'll be paying Eli-chan back?
Tits (10:16PM): nope!
It's not a problem at all~ ;)
Me (10:16PM): please tell me that honoka actually got that and shes just joking
Ocean (10:16PM): Wish I could.
Me (10:17PM): omg
Caffeine-Head (10:17PM): what, is there something funny?
am i not getting the joke?
Cat (10:17PM): yeah, i'm nyot getting it either :(
Riceball (10:17PM): it's ok rin-chan you don't have to get it
Cat (10:18PM): do you get it, kayochin?
Riceball (10:18PM): uh
…
I would be lying if i said I didn't
Gremlin (10:18PM): wow i honestly didnt expect hanayo out of all people to understand that kinda joke
Me (10:18PM): same
Tits (10:19PM): oooooh~
Is our adorable hanayo hiding something from us?~ ;)
Riceball (10:19PM): n-no!
It's just common sense, i-isn't it?
Tits (10:19PM): it takes a certain kind of common sense, that's for sure ;)
Russia (10:19PM): okay moving on
The owner of Muse will be dropping by to see how things are, probably tomorrow or the next day, depending on how she's feeling.
I've already told her about all the reforms we did, and although she likes the idea, she wants to see if we're willing to work extra hard and if we're going to commit.
Ocean (10:20PM): So…that means she's ultimately going to tell us whether or not we're viable to participate.
Russia (10:20PM): basically
Although we decided it amongst ourselves what we're going to do, it's ultimately her decision.
So whether or not we're fit to go, is up to her.
Since we need her signature on the paperwork and stuff.
Cat (10:21PM): nyaw man, sounds like a lot of work… :(
Gremlin (10:21PM): BC it is
Caffeine-Head (10:21PM): but look on the bright side!
If we manage to get through to the owner with our dedication, then she'll for sure give us the go to participate in the MDF! :)
We just gotta fight!
Riceball (10:22PM): yeah!
And Muse will be rising to the top once again!
Gremlin (10:22PM): guess you can say we'll be…A-RISEing to the top
(10:24PM): SOMEONE SAY SOMETHING
THAT WAS A GOOD ONE
Me (10:24PM): no it wasn't
Gremlin (10:24PM): You better be ready to catch these hands tomorrow maki BC im boutta throw em
Me (10:25PM): ?
Russia (10:25PM): okay, moving on
Is that clear to everyone?
What the owner is expecting out of us and all that?
Caffeine-Head (10:25PM): Yep!
Ocean (10:25PM): Crystal clear. :)
Cat (10:25PM): it's going to be nyamazing! :3
Bird (10:26PM): gotta work extra hard on the uniforms then!
to make sure they look extra good!
Riceball (10:26PM): oh man, i'm so nervous and excited! :D
Caffeine-Head (10:26PM): LOL same hanayo-chan :)
Me (10:27PM): guess we're doing this then
Tits (10:27PM): oh maki
it's okay to admit you're excited~ ;)
Me (10:27PM): WHY
WHY DO YOU MAKE EVERYTHING AN INNUENDO
Gremlin (10:27PM): l m a o
Russia (10:28PM): okay, okay that's enough
Everyone, go get some rest
If my phone keeps vibrating until 11:00 tonight
Things are gonna go down tomorrow
Tits (10:28PM): oh elichi~
so dirty~ ;)
Russia (10:28PM): OH MY GOD
Gremlin (10:28PM): LMFAO YOU WALKED RIGHT INTO THAT ONE
Suddenly, Maki was left staring at a black screen, her bewildered reflection gazing back at her.
Maki blinked.
This was the first time she was so engrossed in a conversation that she forgot to plug her charger into her phone.
A small smile tugged on her lips.
"Why in the world do I care for these idiots?" Maki mumbled to herself.
AN: Decided to put ANs on the bottom now so that the reader (aka you) could get right into the story instead of seeing my ramblings first, lol. Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter - it was a lot more Maki-centric than I anticipated, but it's okay. More mediocre chara dev (i'm still learning how to do that, bear with me here).
So today is Christmas Eve (where I'm at), and I just wanted to take a moment to say thanks to all of you who have stuck with me. Whether you have always been a fan of my works or just got into them, every little thing you do makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside. I know I'm not the best author, in fact I'm sure I'm far from it, but your continual support gives me the drive to motivate me to do better. This particular chapter has been a struggle for me to write, mainly because I've been feeling the oh-god-I-won't-be-able-to-finish-this-story-again-syndrome again. Hopefully I can stick through with this story though. I mean, it's already been...four months? And I wrote nine chapters already? Man, that's a new record for me, lol.
So thank you. All of you. It's really been a blessing to have you guys support me. I'm truly humbled by it all.
Merry Christmas to you all, and have a Happy New Year.