Sunday, 9/11

One knock soon became three as Ryuji eagerly shifted his feet around at the doorstep. His suitcase behind him had dragged his arm into exhaustion, but it would all be worth it when the door opened. Hawaii had been fun, but there truly was no place like home, especially the Sakamoto home.

The door opened. "Ryuji!" Eri Sakamoto said, pulling Ryuji into an aggressively welcoming hug. "I missed you so much!" She kissed his cheek and pulled him into the house, ready to hear all about the trip. Ryuji couldn't remember the final day, but there was still plenty to say.

He couldn't even evade his mother to put his suitcase in his room. Hugs kept coming in, which Ryuji reciprocated, of course. He missed his mother more than she missed him, but Ryuji, being a teenager, felt some natural embarrassment in doing so.

"You look like a grown man now, Ryuji."

"It's the tan."

"No, you seem… mature. Grown."

"I'm telling you," Ryuji said, looking his mom in the eye to get his point home. "It's the tan."

At least, I hope it's the tan. Everything gets fuzzy after Yusuke brings those brownies… I hope he didn't put some life-changing shit in those, Ryuji thought.

Eri pinched his cheek. "If you say so." She glanced over to the kitchen. "Dinner's almost done. How about you unpack your bags then you can tell me all about what you did in Hawaii?"

Ryuji nodded. He quickly carried his suitcase up the staircase and into his room. Unpacking meant that Ryuji would have to fold clothes, which had never been his favorite thing to do. Eh, I'll do it later. It's been a long day. I deserve a break, don't I? he thought before leaving his room and going back down the creaky stairs.

Eri remained in the kitchen, hard at work on whatever delicacy she would be serving. Ryuji's stomach grumbled as he took a seat at the dining table. As per usual, the day's newspaper rested at the center of the surface. Ryuji's mom much preferred reading the newspaper to watching TV, citing "brain-rotting" as her primary reason.

Ryuji flipped the paper towards him. A bunch of political headlines that he couldn't be bothered to pay attention to e filled the front page. The impending election meant that most of the news would have to do with whatever scandal the candidates were unintentionally cooking, and it meant that Ryuji had to delve further into the newspaper for the things he actually cared about.

The Tokyo Yakult Swallows won yet again. They were the favorites to win the title that year, which meant that Ryuji had hopped on the bandwagon because the hype drew him in. As he flipped through the sports section, a black and white photo on another page caught his eye. Ryuji navigated through the paper to that article, his eyes widening in shock.

'Shogi Venus Set to Model.' Holy shit! Hifumi is going big time! Ryuji thought as he skimmed through the brief article. Apparently, Hifumi was scheduled to model for some brand at a giant meet-up for the fashion world, with the intention of the event being to give Hifumi her big break in the mainstream for modeling. It says everyone's gonna be there. I wonder if Ann's going?

"Hey, ma!" Ryuji called over to his mother, newspaper still the subject of his focus. "Hifumi's got a modeling gig coming up. I think I'm gonna go."

Eri replied with a question. "Hifumi's the one who got away, correct?"

"Er, yeah." Ryuji cringed at the memory of him letting the potential date slip out of his hands with his mention of mono. But that was in the past, and Ryuji always strived to live in the moment. With sheer determination and willpower, he had no doubts about winning Hifumi back. "Ya think she'll like it if I surprise her there?"

"Any girl would be lucky for you to support them, Ryuji-kun." Eri's voice got closer as she spoke, so Ryuji finally looked up from the black and white photo of Hifumi. Dinner was placed before him as his mom took the seat across from him. "So, tell me all about your trip, and don't forget a single detail!"

Ryuji gulped. His mom always knew when he left things out and explaining the final day of the trip required at least a few lies to get through. Nonetheless, Ryuji easily slipped back into Tokyo life as he relayed stories of defeating ISIS and spending a night in a hammock.

"Frankly, Ann-chan, I'm not sure there's a place for you in the industry anymore." Ann nearly dropped her phone as the raspy voice of her agent continued to give her the bad news. "Mika's completely taken over your niche of youthful, slim girls who dress up like small animals with pink backgrounds. Unless you pivot to being a youthful, slim girl who dresses up like medium-sized animals, your options are run dry."

Ann couldn't believe what she was hearing. Half a year ago, she had more offers than she knew what to do with. "B-but there has to be someone wanting to work with me!" Her phone had gone from ever-interrupting to always silent as modeling contractors left her hanging.

"If they're out there, they're not reaching out. I'm sorry, Ann-chan." Her agent had always been honest, which Ann appreciated, but this was the worst possible time for it. "Perhaps you should dedicate yourself to schoolwork and think about life after modeling."

How can you say that? Don't you know how bad my grades are? Ann thought.

"Is there really nothing I can do?"

"Well, unless you assassinate Mika, you're old news in a world of trends and controversy."

That's it! I'm not controversial enough! Ann thought, remembering the advertisement she saw for Mika's own merchandise. The rival model began selling cups of her own sweat, bringing so much attention to her name and brand that the sweat sold out. As she thought more about it, Ann liked her idea less and less. Controversy turned out to be the last thing she wanted.

"Alright, Hata-san. Thank you for giving it to me straight."

"Of course," her agent replied. "I'll keep networking to see if I can get the ball rolling, but there are no guarantees." The line clicked and left Ann in the silence of her home. The Takamaki parents just left on another intercontinental excursion two weeks prior and wouldn't be returning for months.

Ann hated the lonely nights, but there was some charm to be found in them. She laid back on her couch, snuggled into a fuzzy blanket, and turned on the cooking network.

If this was going to be her life without modeling, Ann could tolerate it. She would think herself unproductive and lazy, but at least she would be having some fun.

Still, being completely alone in a fairly large house sucked. Companionship of any kind, besides the servants who worked the house during the day, would be welcome.

Haru arrived at the Okumura estate just in time for dinner. Of course, Kunikazu had gone out of his way to welcome Haru home with nothing but his imposing presence at the head of the dinner table. Haru set her suitcase down at the base of the staircase before joining her father by taking the seat across the table from him.

"How was Hawaii?"

Haru didn't know how she would describe it. She absolutely loved the highs of the trip, like the volleyball tournament, or reaching the waterfall after the grueling hike, but it did leave something to be desired. For example, she accomplished nothing on the final day of-

Wait… what did I do on the last day? There were brownies, I ate some, then I went back to my room… Haru couldn't probe her memories enough and the final day in Hawaii remained a blank slate, but she remembered a feeling rather than a moment. Intense warmth and happiness resonated within her, remaining unpinned in what actually happened.

"I didn't think you knew I went."

"I signed that paperwork, didn't I?"

Haru nodded but didn't continue the small talk. She got to work on her food, disregarding her father and whatever conversation he had wanted to have.

"Haru, I believe we must speak about the state of…" Kunikazu's eyes darted around as he tried to think of the right word to fill the gap. "You." That got Haru's attention. An apology had been too much to ask not long ago, so what could have spurred Kunikazu to turn over a new leaf? "My campaign for the lower House is building, and the media is a threat to any politician. They try to tear you down before the very people you work hard for."

Oh… this is no apology. Haru felt anger swelling, but she didn't interrupt. She politely stayed in her seat and listened as her father continued with worthless words.

"And so you will become a target for the media. They will try to embarrass me with you," Kunikazu said. His voice, low and hollow, left no room for interpretation. "Haru, as my daughter, I ask that you do not give them a reason to embarrass me." Whatever taste the food once had grown bitter in Haru's mouth. She set her fork down on the table, scooted her chair out, and stood. "Is the food not to your liking? I could have our chef rema-"

The dinner barely even made it over the one-minute mark.

Haru reached over the table and slapped her father. Shocked, Kunikazu looked up at her with his mouth agape. Whatever his expression said, Haru knew that he wouldn't get the point. He would never understand the suffering that he brought to Haru, the cruelty of Nobuo Sugimura, and the feeling of finding her mother hidden away. No matter what either of them would do, Kunikazu couldn't redeem himself in her eyes.

"It's nice to see you as well, Father," Haru said, turning to leave the dining room. "Thank you for dinner," she said as she left her father behind.

"What do you remember about that day?"

"Uh…" Futaba looked down. Her glasses nearly slipped from her nose, but she caught them and pushed them back up the bridge. "It's fuzzy. I don't really know."

Good. That's how it's supposed to be, Maruki thought. He'd begun regularly checking Futaba's tampered memories because abnormalities started emerging as of late. Thoughts and ideas that he altered for Futaba seeped back into her consciousness, which proved deeply concerning. Is she like Ren and purposefully fighting against my help, or is she doing it by accident? Then again, Ren may have done it by accident as well.

In silence, Maruki watched Futaba for any reaction to the question. He had a theory to test, and the question served as a method to prod the girl.

"...M-Mom…?" What luck. Maruki caught Futaba's distortion seeping through his actualization in front of him. It wasn't difficult to tell that Futaba possessed a palace within the metaverse, and a very strong one at that. The distortion likely festered unchecked for years, growing to a point where it could override even Maruki's powers.

Any questions Maruki needed to research would have to be saved for later. Futaba began shivering in her gaming chair. Maruki quickly adjusted his glasses and intensely focused on his subject. "Wakaba isn't here, Futaba. It's just me, and we're in your room. You didn't kill your mother, and she didn't take her own life because of you. Forget about everything that happened that day." Maruki exhaled with all the satisfaction in the world.

As if she'd been zapped by an invisible beam, the shivering stopped and Futaba's posture stiffened in the chair. She relaxed a few seconds later and let out a deep, satisfied breath. "Heh, sorry. Guess I zoned out. What were we talking about?"

Maruki hoped that he would be able to catch every instance of Futaba's palace overpowering the actualization, but he knew it would be difficult, especially if Futaba's palace continued to intensify with nothing to stop it. All he could provide were short-term solutions to a long-term problem. He needed more power. But how do I get it? It appeared to me with Rumi, now there's nothing; no clues for what I must do. I've been left in the dark, but I have to persevere. Futaba deserves happiness, Yoshiro deserved happiness, and so does everyone else on Earth. They need me, Maruki thought.

Yoshiro's unexpected death also meant trouble for Maruki. He'd been privately told in an urgent phone call by Kobayakawa the morning after it happened. From Yoshiro's sessions, Maruki saw no way that Takata's mother would willingly murder her own son, so foul play was to be expected, but from who was the important part.

Maruki theorized that Ayumi Takata's shadow had been manipulated, but he couldn't see for himself or prove anything. As powerful as he was, metaverse excursions were off-limits due to his lack of physical power and no way to travel to the metaverse.

The murder also meant that Maruki was down a test subject. It was unfortunate, but his paper neared completion anyway and the counselor already derived all use he could from Yoshiro, mostly using the teenager as a test run for his memory actualization. Yoshizawa served a similar purpose with much, much different goals and results. Maruki actualized Yoshizawa to ensure her happiness; he actualized Yoshiro to prevent any violence ahead of time and to cleanse the teenager of any out-of-line thoughts. Both were successful, until the murder.

Someone could've known that Yoshiro was actualized. That's why they had Ayumi doing it instead of just going straight for Yoshiro; he wasn't in Mementos. Maruki realized that truth as a bit of good news in a dark time.

"Hey, doc?" Futaba said, startling Maruki and getting his attention. "What were we talking about?"

"Hm? Oh, it was about that new game you told me about." Maruki fumbled through words until he found the title of the game. "It was… Geriatric Necklace?"

"Ooh, yeah! It's the newest part of the Ring-borne: Shadows Die Elderly series, and…" Sessions with Futaba consisted of Maruki probing through her head to find places to fix, or listening to Futaba's crazed ramblings on the newest games and anime. He quite liked the latter, as it gave him time to relax, and watching Futaba show actual passion without a care in the world made his day every time.

To put it simply, he just wanted to see Futaba happy.

Monday, 9/12

In complete, impenetrable silence, Yusuke sat on the edge of his bed and stared straight ahead. The monitor he had set up on his dorm wall danced with light, showing a courtroom and its proceedings. More importantly, it showed someone quite integral to Yusuke taking the witness stand.

Ichiryusai Madarame's trial had begun over the past week and brought many troubling revelations to the surface of the art world. The prosecution pulled back layer upon layer of the counterfeit Sayuri scam, to which Madarame pleaded guilty, among other shady activities. Apparently, Yusuke's former master also laundered money through a Shinjuku club.

As interesting as the trial had been, Yusuke kept it on mute (with closed captions on) the entire time, with now being the most important time to do so. The prosecution just began to get into Madarame's pupils and his treatment of them, all the information being displayed through closed captions. Several of the pupils were called to the stand. Yusuke recognized few among them, but seeing them didn't stir any feelings of joy, resentment, or vengeance; just emptiness.

Yusuke had been asked to testify but refused. Not to protect Madarame, but himself. Yusuke could recognize that some form of affection for Madarame resided deep within him, knowing it to be a result of Madarame's years of abuse. If he saw Madarame in person, he didn't know what it would conjure emotionally.

The analog clock on the wall struck eight, and the familiar bell reminding Kosei's dormitory students to get going for classes rang out. Yusuke glanced over at the wall just under the clock. A pile of blank canvases waited for him to give them any detail. They would wait a little longer.

Yusuke's slump showed no signs of resolution, to the point where it had begun affecting his livelihood. Kosei's principal called Yusuke into the main office a week prior to passive-aggressively notify him that his full ride to education at Kosei would be coming to a close if his output didn't increase. He also warned that any bad behavior on the Los Angeles trip would also prove detrimental to Yusuke's case for staying at Kosei.

So, as the most obvious solution, Yusuke decided that he simply wouldn't go to Los Angeles.

But the details of that were a matter to be saved for another time. Yusuke pressed a button on his remote and the monitor cut to black. Placing the remote down, he grabbed his over-the-shoulder bag and departed for class.

"Due to unforeseen circumstances, there was a mishap with boarding the returning plane from Hawaii." Ren perked up at Kawakami's words, finally interested after a long, boring lecture on what defines good behavior on a field trip. With all eyes on her, Kawakami dropped a bomb. "Mishima-kun failed to board the plane and is still in Hawaii."

Wait… the suitcase of brownies was empty outside of the hotel bathroom. Mishima must've eaten all the brownies, then missed the flight! Holy shit! I don't like the guy, but at least I gave him a chance to make it onto the buses with the rest of us. Oh well. Hopefully, Mishima likes the beach.

"Kawakami-sensei, are you sure that Mishima is still in Hawaii?" One student asked. "What if he's just abse-"

Kawakami cut the student off. "No, we're sure that he's in Hawaii."

Another student chimed in. "Is he coming back?"

"I don't think so."

"Why aren't we helping him?"

Kawakami shrugged. "I'm sure he's fine there."

"But… he lives here, in Japan!"

"I bet he won't miss it too much."

"So… that's it? No more Mishima?"

"Seems that way," Kawakami concluded before moving on far quicker than she should've. Mishima getting abandoned in Hawaii probably deserved a school assembly and a lawsuit, but the teacher couldn't care less. "Anyway, that wraps up the aftermath of the Hawaii trip. Who's ready to start our next unit?"

The class groaned simultaneously. Kawakami's beginning of a lesson was the cue for Ren to stop paying attention and look out the window, as always. He knew he still had to prove his academics to the school, but he planned on cramming as close to the next exam as possible.

For Ren, procrastination always followed summer break no matter what year of school he was in. Something about vacation sapped him of all patience and tolerance for the tedium of schoolwork. He ran into a few speed bumps living by that philosophy, but it hadn't turned out too poorly for him.

Amid Kawakami's lecture, feedback screeched from the intercom for a fraction of a second, stopping just as soon as it started. Kawakami stopped speaking and even the gossipers sitting in the back stopped to listen.

"Attention," Kobayakawa's deep, fuzzy voice began through the intercom. "There will be an assembly during lunch that is mandatory for all Shujin students. Please proceed calmly to the gymnasium once the lunch bell rings." The class heard the click of the intercom, then collectively groaned just as they had when Kawakami began the lesson.

An assembly during lunch? Dick move, Kobayakawa. Dick move.

The idea of giving up his free period to watch Kobayakawa waddle around on stage and use buzzwords didn't sound too appealing, leading Ren to the natural conclusion that he should skip the assembly.

Kawakami resumed her lecture, and Ren resumed his boredom until he felt a buzz in his pocket. He slid his phone out, carefully hiding it under the ledge of his desk. To his surprise, it was Makoto who'd interrupted the learning that he took so, so seriously.

Makoto Niijima:

-Please meet me on the roof during lunch. There is something we have to talk about.

A second text came through just as Ren finished reading the first one.

Makoto Niijima:

-Do not worry about missing the assembly.

I wasn't worried about it in the first place, but whatever you say, Makoto. I wonder what she wants to talk about. We ended Hawaii on great terms, but I haven't really talked to her much since we got back.

Whatever it was, Ren knew that thinking about it would only make time pass more slowly. Kawakami's meandering lesson continued with the clock on the wall inching closer and closer to the precious time of lunch. Ren managed to zone out until that beautiful bell played over the intercom.

Instead of the usual rush to leave that students had, they depressedly gathered their materials and stood to leave. Their lack of enthusiasm for the assembly showed in their slouched shoulders and dejected frowns.

It must suck to not be dating the student council president.

Ren smirked to himself as he watched the rest of the class file out the door. He began to follow behind, but someone tapped his shoulder. As he walked, Ren turned around to see Ann behind him. "What's got you in a good mood?"

"Guess who gets to skip the assembly?"

"What? No fair…" Ann pouted, looking away from Ren. "These always suck. It's usually to sell some merch to fund the PTA."

"I'd invite you to skip with me, but," Ren thought back to Makoto's message, clearly meant just for him, "it's not my right to do so."

"Don't worry about it. You can just buy me lunch tomorrow, 'kay?"

"I was thinking that I would give you a single yen coin. How does that sound?"

"Not worth it." Ann walked past Ren and turned back to face him when she reached the door. "See you later. Enjoy your lunch!" Before Ren could reply, she exited and turned the corner. Left alone in the classroom, Ren simply stood there.

Makoto was awfully cryptic. She could've told me what it was about, couldn't she? Maybe I'm walking into something that I shouldn't be. Agh, who cares, Ren? You're just letting your nerves get the better of you. Stop being a pussy and go to the roof.

Ren long forgot how many times he'd walked from classroom 2-D straight to the roof. The only difference this time was the lack of traffic with other students walking through the hall, making things easier on Ren and eerily quiet. Shujin's halls were abandoned with everyone in the gymnasium for the assembly. Ren almost expected tumbleweeds.

Climbing step by step, Ren reached the door to the roof within a few minutes. He hoped Makoto hadn't been waiting too long, but he admitted to himself that he could've been a bit quicker. Any chastising for his timing would be taken to heart.

Ren pushed the door open. Sunlight flashed across his face but vanished as he walked ahead until the neighboring buildings eclipsed the sun. Makoto, facing away from Ren, sat at one of the abandoned desks.

She didn't turn to greet me? I'm sure she heard the door open. It's a little weird of her not to just say "Hi," but… I don't know.

Ren resisted the idea of sneaking up behind his girlfriend to give her a jump scare. "Hey, Makoto," he said, walking around the desks. He scooted one to where it faced Makoto's desk, then sat down. Finally able to look at her, Ren smiled to keep the mood light.

"Hi, Ren." The mood, in fact, was not light. Makoto dejectedly looked up at him, her eyes wide with worry and hurt. "I know that the assembly is now, but this is the same as the assembly. I didn't want you to hear it in front of the whole school."

Hear what?

Ren raised an eyebrow, prompting Makoto to elaborate. She dodged eye contact and drew in a deep breath, not helping Ren's concerned anticipation. "Takata was killed the other night. Now, I don't know-"

"What?!" The verbal punch to the face still hadn't registered more than its shock value for Ren. "But… how?!"

If he's really dead… then I killed him. I put his name on the site. I asked the Prince to kill Yoshiro, and that's exactly what happened.

"As I was going to say, I don't know much, but the principal informed me that he was stabbed to death in his home," Makoto added, settling her hands beneath the desk on her lap. She still couldn't look Ren in the eye. As her information proceeded, Makoto's voice fell from affirmative to soft and meek. "They won't tell me more than that."

"I… what do I do?"

Makoto didn't answer the question. Ren began to get the impression that there was no conversation to be had, and that Makoto just wanted to talk at him. "I've been thinking about a few th-"

"Makoto, what the fuck do I do?!" Ren interrupted as reality set in. He hadn't murdered someone, but requesting that murder? That was just as bad, and no judge would let it slip through the cracks, especially with Ren's record. For Makoto to not want to immediately figure out a way to help Ren, or at least try to comfort him, felt wrong to Ren. "I left his name on the goddam site! They're gonna trace it back to-"

Makoto held up her hand. "Ren, please try to stay calm. We won't accomplish anything if you're acting irrationally." Ren almost interrupted her again, but he knew she was right. "Secondly, Takata was stabbed to death. It doesn't appear that he died like the other victims of The Prince."

Kaneshiro had a "heart attack," or so the police still claim. Sugimura hung himself on live TV, but he's an outlier. All the people that died from having their names left on the site seemingly had heart attacks too. If Yoshiro was stabbed to death, then someone else wanted him dead, right? Maybe one of Kaneshiro's guys had a debt to settle?

"Then… I'm safe?"

"Hopefully, yes," Makoto said, exhaling as her shoulders slouched forward. Ren could see her exhaustion written in her hunch and her dark eyes. "But, as I was saying earlier, I've been thinking about a few things."

Oh… I don't like the sound of that.

"I've decided that I need some time to process this." Makoto couldn't even speak to Ren face to face. She had to avert her gaze, looking off in the distance or at the ground next to her desk. "I don't know what to think about…" Makoto shook her head, waving her hand as she did so. "Takata. You. Anything."

I deserve the respect of eye contact, right?

"Makoto…" Ren's first instinct was to plead, but Makoto not even affording him eye contact sparked something. Makoto's act of breaking up with him felt ingenuine and rushed on her part. Surely, he deserved better. "What do you mean you don't know what to think? He was stabbed to death. The Prince doesn't operate that way. I'm not the reason Yoshiro's dead."

"Just because he was stabbed doesn't mean-"

She has a point, but I don't care.

"Look, it's not my fault, and if it was, I wrote his name on that stupid website for you!" Ren said, his voice teetering on the edge of breaking. "He was going to kill you, Makoto!"

"Just because you saw it in some… dream doesn't mean that you get to make self-destructive decisions without any consideration." Makoto kept her cool as Ren's temper continued to get the better of him. Some part of him knew that everything she said was valid, but he still believed himself more than her. "Especially decisions that put lives at risk. I don't want you to put the rest of your life on the line just to preemptively stop something that wouldn't have happened." As if he hadn't already realized it, Makoto reminded him of his situation. "Ren, you could be arrested if they begin to suspect The Prince's involvement and use the site to trace your suggestion."

"B-but…" Ren sputtered out of arguments. He didn't know why he was even angry anymore, he just felt pure rage at Makoto. How could she break up with him, especially now? No matter what he did, he deserved more time, didn't he? He deserved happiness, didn't he?

"My sister's a prosecutor. The foundation of my life is built on justice," Makoto spoke hoarsely, shakily getting through her words. "Getting Takata killed isn't justice."

I want to remind her that I didn't kill him, the one with the knife did, but it's pointless. Neither of us care what the other has to say; we just want to argue.

"He was going to!"

"We don't know that! That dream lied to you, Ren! Takata hadn't shown any signs of slipping into his old self, and Maruki-san's weekly reports all prove that."

"And how was I supposed to know that I was lied to for the first time?" Ren pleaded. "Makoto, I watched you die, was told that it would happen in just a few weeks, and that I had to save you no matter the cost. How the hell was I supposed to react?!

Makoto wisely chose not to escalate any further. Taking yet another deep breath, she slowed the argument to a crawl. "This isn't an ending; this is just time apart. I want some time to consider things, and I want you to be able to do the same. We'll be better off after it, even if we come to separate conclusions."

"So we're breaking up?" Ren asked through gritted teeth. He'd complied with Makoto in not arguing further, but that didn't mean he'd calmed down.

"No."

That makes it hurt slightly less.

"I don't want you to think that I'm toying with you. I do care about you, and I want what's best for both of us. If that ends up being us going our separate ways…"

"Fine. I understand." He didn't want to, but he did. Makoto was being reasonable, and he had just yelled at her for it. As a shitty apology for getting so aggressive, Ren admitted that Makoto was right. "It'll be healthy."

The two sat in silence as Makoto awkwardly nodded. The whole time, she hadn't looked Ren in the eye and didn't seem like she planned to any time soon. Ren assumed that it must've been difficult for Makoto to go through with the semi-breakup.

Disbelief was dispelled from Makoto first. She got up to leave rather violently, shaking her desk with how quick she moved. She nearly stumbled on her first steps towards the door back in, but stopped herself and turned back to Ren. "It's for the best, and please try to be safe. Okay, Ren?" As if it reassured anyone that the difficult time would pass, her lips weakly curved.

Ren nodded to Makoto with no conviction. Disbelief had yet to leave him. Makoto caught him so off-guard that he didn't even know if he believed his own conscience; maybe he'd gone to Tae's clinic and was tripping balls. Yusuke would step out from around the corner any second and say some bullshit about a contract.

The moment never arrived.

"May I come in, Maruki-san?"

The counselor looked startled standing in the doorway of the nurse's office. Yoshizawa took him by surprise, oddly enough, considering that his job was to expect students to go to his office. "Of course! Make yourself at home." Yoshizawa trudged through the door. Maruki didn't need analysis to notice her glumness; it was written across her entire body. Tired eyes looked down at the floor, and puffy cheeks indicated crying. Yoshizawa took a seat on the wide chair while Maruki sat down in his usual spot. "What's troubling you?" the counselor asked. Those three words spurred most of his conversations and most of his research.

"Everything…" A surprisingly common answer among teenagers. Most didn't know how to describe how they felt. It was Maruki's job to get to the root of their feelings and determine the best possible solution for those feelings. "I'm under a lot of stress right now."

"Ah, with your gymnastics?" Maruki asked. "I heard that your training in Hawaii went well."

"It did… but my scholarship is still in question. The next meet is coming up and I think… I want to sit out of the meet."

"But then your-"

"I know. My scholarship would be revoked," Yoshizawa finished. "I don't believe I can compete right now."

"There's something more than just the stress, isn't there?" Maruki loved dealing with external factors in the counseling sessions. Ultimately, most of the students were dealing with similar emotions and problems but had differentiating factors that made their issues unique to them.

"Yes…" Yoshizawa's breath hitched. She sniveled, then wiped her nose on her hand. Maruki glanced over to the tissues on his desk, yet he didn't reach for them. "I haven't really told anyone about this. Maruki-san, these sessions are fully confidential, right? You wouldn't share what one patient tells you with another patient?"

"But of course!"

Yoshizawa sniffled again, weakly smiling at Maruki. She didn't want him to think of her as a complete mess, even though she knew he never would. Maruki was kind; kinder than anyone she'd ever known. She didn't know how she would live without him, honestly.

"I developed feelings for my senpai," Yoshizawa began, momentarily hesitating to gather the courage. "It turned out that he doesn't feel the same way." That was putting it plainly. Ren approaching her in Hawaii felt like a punch in the gut; like he'd ripped her heart out.

She knew that he had a girlfriend, but just knowing from a distance was far better than explicitly being reminded of it. Ren showed her no decency or respect, just unfiltered honesty to the point of being a dick. Realizing that Ren wasn't who she thought he was hurt almost as much as him telling her he didn't like her.

"Um… to be honest, it's Amamiya-senpai," Yoshizawa added.

"Do you feel like I need to know that it's Amamiya?"

"It felt like instinct to be completely honest with you, Maruki-san."

"I see."

Yoshizawa continued her vent. "I just wish I could forget about him, but I can't. I still feel something for him. It still hurts to hear about him and the student council president." All issues of hers cycled back into her incredible load of stress, which didn't seem to be on its way out. Kobayakawa continued to hang her future over her head as if she was a dog jumping to try and grab a treat. "I can't focus on my athletics with him. Quitting doesn't sound so bad, either." She weakly laughed, only wanting to see if Maruki would take her idea of giving up seriously.

Instead, he just seriously looked at her. Light obscured his eyes from its reflection off his glasses, but she could feel herself being burned into. Carefully, Maruki brought a hand to those glasses and pushed them up the bridge of his nose, moving the lenses from the light.

"Yoshizawa-chan, you shouldn't worry about Ren. You should forget about him completely as if you two never met. Focus on your gymnastics with no distractions, and you'll be alright. Do you understand?"

Yoshizawa's eyes glazed over, but she held her head high and stiff. "Yes, Maruki-san."

"You're here to apologize, I assume?"

"Actually, I'm back for more."

Tae raised an eyebrow. Ren's newest surprise visit shocked her even more than the last, given how he'd left the clinic the previous time. She'd even given him sleeping pills just to get through the first few nights because she could tell how rough the trial had been on him.

"More," Tae repeated. "As in another trial, or as in more sleeping pills?"

"Both."

Tae smirked at Ren. He hated whenever she did that because it meant she had the upper hand over Ren in any venture of hers. "The pills I gave you were placebos. Did you really think I would let you get an addiction?"

Well, you do regularly put me through mind-altering trips that I'm sure could lead to psychosis.

Ren went straight to the clinic immediately after school. His main priority was to contact the hallucinated version of Yusuke and press him for the truth, whatever it may be, about Yoshiro's intentions for Makoto. Otherwise, Ren didn't know if he could live in good conscience.

Going back to the classroom after the conversation with Makoto felt like a fever dream. Ren isolated himself in his corner of the classroom as his classmates all too eagerly buzzed about Yoshiro's death, reminding him of it with every second that passed. Getting through the rest of the day had been torture, and only further fueled Ren's desire to get answers of any kind.

"W-well," Ren sputtered, trying to think of the words that wouldn't make him sound like an idiot. "I didn't think you would lie to me."

Unamused, Tae nodded to reinforce her point of Ren's stupidity. "I'm an adult. You're not even seventeen. Think of that the next time you think you're doing something risky at this clinic."

"Fine… and I'm sorry about last time. I was rude." A mostly insincere apology, sure, but an efficient one. Ren wanted to get through the unimportant business and get straight to obtaining answers from Bob Ross Yusuke, no matter what it took. "Please let me do another trial."

Tae leaned over the front desk of the clinic, teasing Ren by biting the tip of her pen. "Are you sure, Renny?"

"Uh…" Despite the loss for words, he managed to nod.

"Are you extra sure?" Tae made cute eyes as she looked up at Ren. He knew that any seduction on her part was fake and to make fun of him, but he couldn't help himself; Tae didn't know her own powers.

Ren nodded again.

Suddenly, Tae's eyes dropped along with her smirk. "Beg for it," she said with a straight face.

You've gotta be kidding me… I just want to know about Yoshiro. Nothing more. That can't be too much of a request, right? Today's been shit, and Tae isn't helping.

"What?"

"You heard me," Tae reaffirmed. "Beg for me to give you a trial."

Ren scratched his head, giving Tae a naïve look of insecurity. "P-please, Tae Takemi, let me do a clin-"

"Kidding," she said as she quickly stood up and started walking to the back room. "Come."

Tae could literally talk me into dying for her and there's nothing I could do. Curse her.

Ren shook his head at his own incompetence at being a decent person but followed Tae into the examination room anyway. Nothing had changed from his last visit. The room started growing on Ren over the last few bits, as it could be considered his one anchor to the real world when he drifted into the unknown part of his mind. No matter what happened, the examination room kept him from unconsciously wreaking havoc on Tokyo.

I'm sure that tripping balls around Tokyo would go just swimmingly. It sure went well on the plane last week…

Without an invitation from Tae, Ren took a seat atop the long exam table while the doctor brewed Mystery Drug X V-9.12 at her desk. "I don't think I've told you how good of a guinea pig you are, guinea pig," she said, still focused on the mixing as she spoke.

"I appreciate you not telling me."

"You are very submissive, just like a real guinea pig. I don't think I'd have accomplished this much without a test subject as willing as you."

"Every time you speak to me, I regret meeting you."

Finally, Tae finished the potion. She rose from her desk and walked over to Ren. A flask of a thick, viscous green liquid was handed to him. "I could say the same for you," Tae said with a friendly smirk, reminding Ren that they still had some twisted form of friendship at the end of the day.

As always, bottoms up.

Ren sipped down the flask. Bitter tastes nearly choked him, but he kept going until the stream of liquid died off and he was left with a flask devoid of the mixture. Ren laid back on the table, actually taking the time to prepare himself because of the importance of this trip. He knew that things had to go his way.

Ren needed answers, and some pretentious wig-wearing fuck wasn't going to stop him.

A/N: Welcome back to TKOSA. I hope you guys had a good two months and enjoyed the new chapter. I'll be trying to stick to a Sunday upload schedule for the foreseeable future. 63 is already done, so I have a have a head start. It's a really, really strange chapter, but I like it quite a bit.

Because of how much I ended up enjoying outlining, the rest of September is the densest part of the fic yet. There isn't as much of the main plot, mostly just relationships between the members of GRAVY. It'll be a bit slow, but that's a good thing, considering how fast the last 10 or so chapters have felt.

I deleted No Man's Land, my other fic, for the time being because I finished the outline in its entirety and it's dramatically different from my original plan. I also have a new title for it. I'm also planning to have it beta read before uploading, and leaving it posted to gather dust while I worked on other things was not something I liked. It'll be reposted eventually, with the first ten chapters coming in quick succession and finishing at just under 40 chapters. I'm excited for you guys to read it because of how much fun I'm having writing it. Currently, I'm 3 chapters in. I'll probably take the occasional week or two off from TKOSA to just write a bunch for the other fic without doing any editing.

Thanks for waiting, thanks for reading, and I'll be back next Sunday with the new chapter. Have a great day!