chapter three

The trio of friends were standing at the base of the tree that Naegi remember oh-so-fondly falling out of not too long ago. In fact upon arriving, he had a vivid memory of falling from the tree and landing without much impact in Maizono's arms not too soon after. That reminded him, he should ask her if she saw what happened.

As Kirigiri scanned the tree for any evidence, with Maizono not too far behind her standing guard, Naegi went over to approach his blue haired friend. She caught sight of him and smiled, waving at him as if she hadn't seen him there. Naegi swallowed down his nervousness and went to approach her, already flushing from nerves and just being around Maizono in general.

"Maizono-san," he began, before he shyly looked away to rub his neck. "Did… did you see anyone in the tree when I fell?" His question didn't seem to shock Maizono, who just stood up straight and brought a finger up to her lower lip.

"Hmm." She looked around in thought, though Naegi had a sneaking suspicion that there wasn't really a truthful intent behind her actions. "From where I was, you didn't really seem to fall. The branch snapped off, but it was never in my way. My only interest was to keep you safe, and I did! I caught you when you jumped down."

From behind Maizono, Kirigiri's ear twitched. There was something off about her story to her too, yet the evidence she was observing would prove that the thickness of the branch could've only snapped with so much pressure. She didn't attempt to climb it, but there was another question she had, that she beat Naegi to.

"Maizono-san, where did you catch Naegi-kun?" she asked, already having a good idea of how the lies would stack up. Maizono turned her head to Kirigiri, and stepped to the side before setting forward to show Kirigiri where she caught Naegi.

Kirigiri didn't acknowledge the smile she sent her way, and instead turned directly to Naegi. "Naegi-kun," she began, looking straight at him before shaking her head. "I'm afraid you're simply overreacting. Maizono-san's story is accurate with what is left at the scene."

Without a second of hesitation, she began to explain why it was possible. "Whether you jumped or fell, you would've landed right here, in her arms. The branch that fell off sight, would've gotten stuck between those branches…" she pointed at a pair of smaller branches that formed a cross section that very well could've supported the large trunk that almost crushed him. "Or rolled off and landed elsewhere. They're no possibility that it could crush Maizono-san from the fall."

Despite Kirigiri's explanation being sensible and quite well thought out, Naegi still had his doubts. He could've absolutely sworn he saw someone in the trees, and felt as if something had moved him. He looked at Kirigiri, who was already wrapping up the case and taking with Maizono, but Naegi still had his doubts. If the Super High School Level Detective could be so certain about this, then what was there for him to doubt about?

With a sigh, Naegi was left to swim in his own uncertainties, and the trio took off back to school. Along the way, Naegi's phone buzzed and he reached into his pocket to check what had been sent. It was just a reminder of Enoshima's party, no big deal.

But what Naegi hadn't expected was for the blonde haired fashionista to walk onto with her sister right behind her, cramming herself into the seat next to Naegi and making herself comfortable. Ikusaba was left to stand on the bus, squished between two older men which made her very distressed.

"Don't worry about her, Makoto-chan," Enoshima told Naegi, tucking her arms behind her head and throwing her legs up over the seat in front of them. "Oneesan has been through worse in the wars. She spent eight days locked in a briefcase that was smuggled into enemy camp. She's coped with much worse."

Naegi, who hadn't heard that story nor did he expect it to be so horrific, sent Ikusaba a shocked look, to which she responded, by looking away turning red. That was a reaction. Enoshima gave a hearty laugh, and dropped her legs.

"Ah, Makoto-chan! I just have to ask, who are you planning to share a dance with during the party?" she asked, her icy blue eyes piercing straight through Naegi's cool. A dance?! He wasn't aware that he'd have to dance with someone…

Seeing right through his nervousness, Enoshima prodded again. "You should make your choice soon. Word in our class is that you're the most sought after guy to share a dance with." Shooting a look at Kirigiri and Maizono who seemed unsuspecting, and another at Ikusaba who shyly looked away when Naegi met her gaze yet again. "C'mon Makoto-chan, which lucky lady are you gonna dance with at the party?"

As flustered as ever, Naegi covered his face with his hands trying to hide his reddening face. It was like Enoshima to find his weak point and exploit it for her benefits, and in this case she'd found his embarrassment of being romantically involved with anyone.

It wasn't a secret that Naegi didn't consider himself an eligible bachelor of any sorts, much less a romantic partner so this exchange had simply made him flushed with awkward nerves. Enoshima, being her usual boisterous self, laughed.

"Ah, I'm just messing with you, Makoto-chan!" she said, flinging an arm around his shoulders, pulling him into her, which startled him just as much as it did when he accidentally bumped into her chest. "It's okay not to have anyone yet. And it's totally okay to dance with multiple people if you want to. Only if you spare me a dance too, I am the hostess, after all."

In the midst of Naegi doing his best not to move and make things more awkward for himself, he hummed a distressed sound, and meekly nodded his head. The response then prompted the fashionista to release him and throw him back into his seat.

"Great! Glad that's settled," Enoshima chirped, right as the bus pulled up to their stop. The collective group of them, along with some others, all stood up and made their way off the bus, with Enoshima leading the pack unsuspectingly and Ikusaba trailing behind.

Once they reached the gates of school, Naegi spotted the familiar faces of Asahina and Oogami who were tossing a volleyball outside the school. Once Asahina caught Naegi's eye, the swimmer waved her hands and promptly made her way over to greet him. As she did, Maizono and Kirigiri said their brief goodbyes, and Enoshima dragged Ikusaba off elsewhere. Naegi really had to give it to Ikusaba for being able to put up with Enoshima's energy.

As Asahina approached him, Naegi started to wonder if maybe it could've been Asahina in the tree. He reminded of himself on the clue he picked up on: pale blue eyes. If he could remember correctly, Asahina had…

"Hey, Naegi-kun!" Asahina waved, coming closer with Oogami picking up the volleyball that must've flown way over Asahina's head. "Are you going to Enoshima-san's party?"

Naegi waved back, nowhere near as enthusiastically and gave his best smile. "Yeah," was his answer. Unfortunately, was what he wanted to add, but that was only an afterthought.

"Oh sweet!" Asahina chuckled. "I thought I wasn't going to be able to find a date. …You don't have a date, do you?"

Naegi began to turn red, yet again. As far as he was concerned, he didn't have a date for the party, but there seemed to at least be some people he would probably go with, as platonically as possible. If it even was possible, for awkward ol' him.

Unsure of how to answer her question, Naegi just remained red and silent while Asahina patiently waited for an answer. And that's when Naegi noticed her eyes: pale and blue. He felt his heart start to beat a little faster, did this mean that it was Asahina that he was saved by in the tree that day?

"Asahina-san," Naegi finally managed to say, softly and uncertain, but perking up Asahina's attention. "Did… did you save me from falling the other day?"

The swimmer stared at him for a second, her face unchanging and blank, as if she was processing what had just been said to her. Naegi started to panic, what if he wasn't supposed to confront her about it? What if she didn't know about it, and was going to be curious to what had happened? There were just too many things Naegi thought could go wrong.

Instead, Asahina tilted her head and frowned. "I don't think so?" was her response, but even she seemed uncertain. "Could it be that it was a ghost?"

"Asahina-san," Oogami said, startling Naegi with her deep voice. "You were with me that day, by the pool." Instantly, Asahina's face lit up in recognition and her mouth dropped open.

"Oh yeah! Sorry, Naegi-kun. Wasn't me!" Asahina bowed her head and took a sneaky step back. "See you at the dance!" And with that, Asahina and Oogami left a very confused Naegi.

Confused since seemingly, Asahina's entire persona changed. Naegi knew she wasn't the brightest student in his class, but he was suspicious to how she acted around him. And up until Oogami reminded her of their time by the pool, Asahina had no idea what he was talking about.

In fact, Naegi had more questions than answers now. He never specified what day it was when asking Asahina, yet both Oogami and Asahina knew which day he meant, seemingly. Also, Asahina had first inquired about going with him to the dance, but then left before he could give her a definite answer. He could conclude this she knew something, but unfortunately he couldn't ask them about it.

Naegi sighed. The sun had disappeared beyond the horizon and the sky was starting to darken. Soon it would be Friday, and the day of Enoshima's dance. And maybe, Naegi thought to himself, it would give him clearance to whatever was going on right now with all his friends.

He slipped his hands into his pockets, entered the building, and began to think of dinner.

oh wowow it's been eighteen months since i updated this story i am so sorry i don't have an excuse :cc

but we're halfway to the end of the story, and closer to finding the identity of awks!naegi's saviour. any guesses?

i'll do my best to complete this story by the end of the year, but for now i hope you enjoyed!

- blue