Lenny woke up the next morning and decided to proceed the day like it would be done normally. He wanted to make this his first true day at Yamaku Academy. Getting his uniform on along with taking his medicine for the day. Once that was done, he remembered the promise he made to Lilly about going to the library last night and knew he had to go there once class was over at one. He grabbed one of the books before he began making his way down for breakfast.
Students would normally wake up at six-thirty and use the hour to get themselves ready for the day. Once they finished their breakfast, they could hang out until seven-thirty where they were dismissed and made their way to class where it would begin ten minutes later. Classes would be arranged in thirty-five-minute intervals with five-minute breaks between so they could get to their next class. How this would work was if class of the first period would start at seven-forty in the morning, it would end at eight-fifteen and then the next class would begin at eight-twenty. Classes would continue until Nine-forty where there was a twenty-minute break for the students to rest up and get themselves reorganized and use the downtime to get any work done, class would then resume at ten. Lunch would be served at eleven-twenty and would last for an hour before the last round of classes would begin at twelve-twenty with dismissal at one. The students at Yamaku due to their physical disabilities were given less homework than the other schools due to their said disabilities plus the staff knew having the students enroll in clubs would improve their self-esteem and make friends.
After Breakfast Lenny made his way to the room for homeroom and first period. 3-3 it said as it was on the schedule, He was going to be meeting two special people when he got there. Lenny approached the door as Hisao and Hanako were standing there. Hanako looked at Lenny with a warm welcome and Hisao nodded to his friend.
Katawa Shoujo- Fripperies
"Hello Lenny, how have you slept?" Hisao would ask. Lenny seemed to be curious about how his friend had slept.
"Probably good for the first time in months. I couldn't stand being on that stretcher, I knew I was back where I belonged. I just wanted to see if I can get used to this new environment." Lenny sighed. Hisao nodded that Lenny was doing just fine. Lenny looked down a bit as Hanako walked over and held his head straight back up.
"It's not so bad. I was in the same place as you until I met Hisao. Maybe there will be one person one day that can change things and turn them around." Hanako told Lenny that it iis good to have hope for the future.
"That's excellent to hear, hopefully you don't pass out like you did yesterday, you made Mutou scared when you fainted like that." Hisao smiled at Lenny, he was moreover pleased with the fact that Lenny had rested well to begin a new day. "Lilly said that we're going to the library after class. Should I remind you before we leave for the last period of the day?"
"I think I have class with Lilly, I'll follow her there and then we can hang out there." Lenny gave his answer to Hisao that he didn't need to be reminded.
"Okay good." Hisao responded. Then they were interrupted by a third person entering the scene, it was Mutou.
"Good morning you three." Mutou greeted them.
"Morning Mutou, how's everything going?" Hisao asked. Mutou unlocked the door to the classroom. The door was unlocked as Mutou continued the conversation.
"Very good Mister Nakai, Miss Ikezawa is also doing fine too?" Mutou asked Hisao if Hanako was doing fine.
"She is Mutou, thanks for asking." Hisao gave his response. Mutou gave a smile before he turned to Lenny who looked at his teacher as he remained somewhat nervous from yesterday's events.
"Class is going to begin so if anything is bothering you, let me, Mutou and Hanako know. Just try breathing slowly." Hisao instructed Lenny to not black out was to take it easy. Lenny gulped as Mutou began to write stuff onto the board.
"So we're going to be going over with yesterday's lesson as we are going to…" Mutou would begin to lecture his class. Lenny was seated right where Hisao used to sit as Hisao had taken up a spot next to Hanako. This all came to a screeching halt when Misha and Shizune had arrived a few minutes late.
"Who are they?" Lenny nervously whispered to Hisao as he didn't know who they were.
"That's Shizune, she's deaf and mute and the one with the pink hair is Misha, she's Shizune's translator. Misha is the loudspeaker of the class as she's always shouting everything." Hisao introduced Lenny to the girls that just walked in. Shizune began to speak in her own language.
"The student president would like to make an announcement." Misha began while she translated what Shizune was signing. "Shizune would like to announce the tour of the art room after class has concluded. We would like to see some of the pictures that were made by the art club. Then we will head to the library afterward to see how the new students have settled in." Lenny froze from what Misha had said, he began thinking about Rin and the painting they made just yesterday, the student president was going to be looking at her work and then making her way to the library. He was going there that afternoon. He didn't know how he was going to respond to this. Lenny began to feel his heart racing as he didn't know how he was going to react to these two. Mutou however was ready to set things straight.
"Mikado, what did we say about volume control?" Mutou asked Misha if she knew about saying something with a normal pitched voice.
"Sorry." Misha told Mutou. Misha and Shizune went off to take their seats and to Lenny, they ended up sitting in the worst place possible, right next to him. Misha looked over with Shizune as Mutou went back to lecturing the class. Shizune looked at Misha as they began to sign to each other. Lenny was trying his best to pay attention to the lesson though the heart monitor was something he was worried about. The vitals were flashing faster than normal. Mutou did his best to continue the lecture when Misha turned her head and tapped on Lenny. Lenny felt like he was going to nearly jump due to the fact that Misha was trying to get his attention. Much like a big disturbance.
"You seem pretty cute." Misha began. Misha smiled happily as she tried to open up to, who is this new student?
Katawa Shoujo- The Student Council
"What?" Lenny asked. He seemed confused, as Misha was trying to force herself onto him. Shizune made a few quick hand gestures before Misha began to speak again.
"Shicchan thinks you look a bit like Nakai, she likes you for it." Misha expressed to Lenny. Lenny felt dumbfounded, she didn't know if this Shizune and Misha were trying to push him into an uncomfortable spot. Mutou fortunately was about to show up and break the class up to do group work.
"We should be splitting up into pairs or groups of three." Mutou began. "Shizune and Misha, since you two want to talk over my back, you should be paired together."
"Right Mutou." Misha told Mutou. Lenny was able to catch his breath, Misha was going to be the end of him if Mutou didn't step in there and assign group work. Mutou continued to sort out the assignments while Hisao tried to speak to Lenny.
"I think you still aren't feeling yourself but that's fine with me. At least you're striving to be better than yesterday." Hisao abegan. Lenny nodded as beads of sweat were starting to drip down his forehead.
"Yeah… thanks." Lenny sighed. Mutou went over as he had three students left.
"Hisao, Hanako, would you two mind having Lenny be your partner for today's group activity?" Mutou asked. Hisao looked at his teacher as having Hanako in the group was good and now another student was going to be added to the group.
"Sure thing Mutou." Hisao replied. Mutou gave a smile before he turned to Lenny
Katawa Shoujo- School Days
"Lenny, since I know you're still fairly new to Yamaku, I'm entrusting you with my star pupil of the class Hisao. Are you okay with that?" Mutou asked Lenny if he was going to be okay with being grouped up with Hisao and Hanako.
"I would appreciate it. Thanks." Lenny expressed that he was thankful for the group up, at least it wasn't with Shizune and Misha that Lenny had been grouped up with. Class time seemed to go by as the students got their questions done. When the bell rang for the next period, everyone headed off to their next class. Hisao had his entire morning with Lenny and some parts of it with Hanako. Hisao began to speak to his new friend.
"Mutou was impressed with the answers you gave. You're just as gifted as me when it comes to this." Hisao began speaking. Lenny walked alongside Hisao with Hanako next to him. He tried to figure out what made this kid special.
"I know, it's physics so there's nothing to really worry about that much." Lenny expressed himself that there wasn't much to be nervous about when it came to classwork. Hisao gave a smile.
"That's good. I hope you can do just as well as your other classes." Hisao smiled at his friend thinking he could do this.
"I'm going to go, it was nice speaking to you." Hanako told Hisao and Lenny before she left the room.
"See you Hanako." Hisao told her. Hanako left the scene shortly afterward as this left Hisao and Lenny alone. Might as well get the rest of the morning done.
The next few periods would go by in the order, Science, Math, History, then there was the break, Japanese language and now track. Knowing the condition of Lenny's heart thanks to the Nurse, the staff at Yamaku decided that any cardio exercise would be good for Lenny if he was to become more resilient to any future heart attacks. Lenny headed out onto the track where he was to get his exercise for the day. Lenny began to look around as this place was unfamiliar to him. Lenny was surprised to discover that he was not the only one present at the track. Not just that, but it's a face He had seen before yesterday. The prosthetic-legged girl was trying her best to convince Lenny to not be so shy yesterday, running on the track lithely, like a half-mechanical gazelle. What was her name again? Emi Ibarazaki? She seems to be running laps at a somewhat easy loop, her prosthetic legs clacking rhythmically on the hard track surface. Lenny was beginning to wonder what reason she has for running this morning for her class. Maybe it's something akin to mine, and the nurse is oppressing the poor girl to jog just like he is oppressing Lenny. Lenny certainly wouldn't be here if it weren't for his health, and the nurse prompting Lenny to do so. And even with things being like they are, it's only because Lenny wanted to get it out of the way early. The fact that he would be less likely to encounter someone who would witness Lenny's pitiful attempts to get in shape was merely a happy accident. Lenny would have wanted to leave, but it seems that my former assailant noticed me on her last lap. She waves at Lenny cheerfully and jogs over.
Katawa Shoujo- Standing Tall
"You have track with me? That's great." Emi told Lenny that she was grateful that their periods were together.
"I wasn't expecting you to have it either." Lenny replied. Emi giggled with some excitement.
"Okay I'll teach you how to run efficiently. Then we can sprint for a hundred meters." Emi explained to Lenny that they were going to be going over the basics. Lenny nodded to what Emi had to say. Emi walked out onto the field where Lenny followed her. He placed his bag by the front gate while Emi brought him out onto the field.
"Sounds good for a starter." Lenny replied. Emi smiled gleefully while Lenny got to his spot where Lenny was going to begin his practice. Lenny looked around the track field. It was steadily becoming more and more alive as students were coming down to exercise for their period. Emi had gotten here early and decided to do a couple laps around the track before spotting Lenny.
"So the "spy-consultant" the nurse was talking about... is that actually you?" Lenny asked. He wanted to figure out and remember what the Nurse told him yesterday.
"That's right!" Emi happily replied. She held her hands up in a manner that according to Lenny looked adorable.
"Oh." Lenny sighed. He shook his head as he tried to clear the feeling from his head. Was Emi trying to get herself onto him? "I was expecting someone from the nursing staff, to be honest."
"What, are you saying I don't look like I could be a spy?" Emi asked Lenny if he was either playing tricks or admitting to something that she wasn't.
"No, this is more like a relief. I was afraid he would have someone to watch my every move. Unless you are here to do exactly that." Lenny expressed himself that he was unable to figure out what he was going to say to her. Emi shrugged it off and she laughed.
"No, I'm here for my own reasons, the nurse just asked me if I had seen 'a messy-haired transfer student who looks like he's kinda lost around the track." Emi replied. She was trying to clear the laughter from her throat as it seemed to have infected her.
"So why are you down here?" Lenny asked Emi if she had a reason to be here. For Emi, she just struck a dramatic pose.
"Training!" Emi swiftly answered that question. For Lenny this only answered half of the question.
"For what? I'm pretty curious why you are running around so much?" Lenny asked as he wanted to figure out why Emi was doing all of this running around.
"Track!" Emi happily gave her answer. For Lenny, he found the other half to this puzzle.
"Ah, I see. You're on the track team, then?" Lenny asked. Lenny knew that he couldn't go as fast as Emi. Emi nods enthusiastically.
"Yep! I'm one of the better runners, too!" Emi told Lenny that she was one that would spend much of her time preparing for the track. To Lenny, Emi seemed to be modest about it, too. "Hey, you should join up! It's good exercise, you know." Emi suggested to Lenny to be her running partner. Lenny only kept his brain active but not his legs, he didn't think that much activity was probably out of the question for him.
"Nah, I'm not even sure that I really like running all that much. Plus I'm just not into organized sports, you know?" Lenny explained. He was more of Hisao's little helper in the end when it came to his classes but running around seemed to push him in the opposite direction for Lenny. Some students were strong in the fields of being smart while others were physically strong.
"I see, I see. Not that into the whole organization thing. But now that you're here, I guess we're going to run together, huh?" Emi asked. She had one of her green eyes open while staring at her friend. She couldn't take her gaze off of his.
"What? Er, sure, I guess." Lenny struggled to say that to Emi that he was going to spend some of his time to be her running partner but to Emi, she was pleased.
"Are you going to warm up?" Emi asked. Lenny tried his best to think but there was no way he was going to opt himself to practice exercise.
"Maybe not. I'm not one to stretch while doing something like this?" Lenny asked. For Emi she wanted to swat at Lenny like a puppy.
"Oh no, you should always warm up! Bad Lenny!" Emi playfully swatted at Lenny trying to get him to do better. She ended up swatting the messy blonde hair he had as Emi was close enough to rest her cheek on his. She scolds Lenny enthusiastically, but then smiles and leans closer, ready to tell him a secret. "I hate warming up too." Emi whispered to Lenny. She pulled back and laughed suddenly. Lenny was confused but he got the message."Heck, and I don't even have to stretch my legs!" As if to confirm her statement she bounces up and down a couple of times, giving a passing impression of standing on a pair of springs. Her leg blades seem to be quite elastic. "Let's go!" So they both take off around the track, and Lenny could immediately see that she wasn't lying about being good at running. Emi moves fluidly, throwing herself into the run with a sort of wild abandon. Lenny knew he had to concentrate more on running properly. Emi fortunately was going to guide him through every step of the way.
Katawa Shoujo- Generic Happy Music
"First thing we're going to do is to start by running in place." Emi instructed Lenny. She looked at the Heart monitor, which was flashing slowly, Lenny was pretty relaxed. "Okay now close your eyes to give the illusion that you're running." Emi told him. Lenny closed his eyes while Emi prepared the stopwatch. "You will do this for half a minute and go." She pushed the button which began counting down from thirty seconds. Lenny began to imagine if he was running in place while Emi was keeping watch on the heart monitor. Lenny was taking it slow at first as he didn't want to take off running in case the heart monitor began flashing erratically. Emi watched as Lenny was running in place before she turned to the heart monitor which was flashing evenly while Lenny was running in place. Once the clock ticked down to zero, Emi then gave the order. "Stop." Lenny stopped his running before opening his eyes.
"How did I do?" Lenny asked. The heart monitor was beginning to slow down as Lenny had paused his exercise. Emi began to think of the results, Lenny wasn't out of breath but he must've tried.
"You did pretty well. Now comes the next part, running a hundred meters." Emi complimented Lenny. Lenny took a sigh before he knew that there was the next part of the lesson, running the length of the track. Emi knew Lenny wasn't ready to do the full track loop as of yet and needed some experience if he was to run better. Lenny sighed as he got into position. Emi got next to him ready to beat him in a race. To Emi, this was going to be no race.
"Okay we should be set." Lenny told Emi with a blow from his breath, they watched, waiting for the right moment while students were running around to get their speed up. Lenny got himself ready while Emi looked on with confidence, her body had relaxed but she wasn't going to relax for a single moment, she was coiled up with energy and ready to run whenever Lenny was. Lenny took off first while Emi chased after him. She was not going at her fastest seeing that Lenny was a little slower than her. Emi decided to give Lenny a chance while they were running the hundred-meter dash. Emi looked to her right to check on Lenny's heart monitor which was flashing evenly so Emi wasn't worried about her friend. They continued to sprint down the track as the final stretch seemed to get closer to them. Once they got to the other end of the track. Lenny was panting a bit while Emi seemed to be fine.
"Not bad Lenny, you seem a little tired from it." Emi told Lenny about it. Lenny was panting a bit while trying to catch his breath.
"How did I do? I'm not used to running." Lenny replied. He tried to cool himself down while they were walking back to the beginning of the track.
"You did pretty well for someone with a heart problem. I checked the heart device you had and it was flashing evenly." Emi replied.
"Thanks." Lenny replied. He took out the water canteen he had and began to take a drink to cool himself down with. Once he had enough. He closed it up and went back to the starting line with Emi.
"Now since we have a little time left, we're going to be doing one full lap. I want to test your endurance to see where you fit in." Emi smiled with her glee, now came the big challenge for Lenny that day, running the full lap around the course. Emi hunched over as she got herself ready while Lenny tried his best and studied Emi's posture. Emi seemed to be gathering energy for the sprint, so much faster than Lenny. Lenny just gulped as he was worried that he wasn't going to make a full lap around the track without collapsing. He tensed himself up while he got ready.
"Ready?" Lenny nervously asked Emi. He felt sweat dripping down his forehead.
"Always." Emi replied. Emi decided to let Lenny get a bit of head start as she would just run rings around him. Lenny took off first, running as fast as he could. Emi took off a couple moments later and was quickly on his tail. Lenny was running as fast as he could, but Emi was catching up to him. They began rounding the first bend a half a minute in with Emi gaining on him. Once they were around the bend, Emi had finally caught up to him and they were now neck and neck. "Doing well so far but I don't know if you're willing to keep up with me." Emi told Lenny while they kept sprinting down the track. Emi knew they were going to be heading around the final bend within a few moments, so she picked up her speed. Lenny was left in the dust while Emi was now going ahead of him. He decided to think, take it easy and let Emi win or pick up speed to match her pace.
Things seem to be set on mirroring yesterday's interaction. That is, Lenny seemed to be struggling, while Emi moved with an effortlessness that he found enviable. It's incredibly bothersome, to be so easily worn out. Lenny knew he should be patient, work toward things gradually, but... It's difficult to stay positive about this. They began round the track and prepared for the last stretch of the lap. Emi seems to have grown impatient keeping pace with Lenny, and begins to pull away. This is where he didn't know if his heart was going to give out yesterday. Will Lenny be able to do more?
"What am I doing here? Am I really just going to fold and let Emi pull ahead?" Lenny asked himself. Should she win? Maybe not. Lenny decided to speed up. The bend seemed to be something they would be running around and without even considering it, Lenny kept going. Emi looks back over her shoulder at me and grins.
"Still going?" Emi asked Lenny. Lenny however was quickly tiring out from the run as he attempted to keep pace with Emi.
"Wouldn't want you to think I'm outta shape." Lenny panted like a dog, he was clearly going to lose this race with Emi. Emi laughs without breaking her stride, no less and speeds up even more. Well, if this is the way we're going to play things... Lenny increases his own pace as well in an attempt to keep up. He can feel his lungs burning, and his legs are starting to question just what the hell he thinks he's doing. Lactic acid screams in my muscles, but he was forced to close my ears. Lenny couldn't let himself fall behind, because that would be a loss. The rational voice in his head inquired mildly just when we started playing a game. He'd answer it, but Lenny is having a lot of trouble thinking at present. She's so fast. How the hell does she keep it?
Lenny picking up speed began to have some disastrous results. His chest began to cramp as he placed his hand on it and the heart monitor he had was behaving erratically as it was flashing faster than normal. He began to shake; his face became pale while his muscles began to cramp. They came to an abrupt halt while Lenny was gasping for air. Emi looked at Lenny who was rapidly slowing down to a stop. Emi stopped while she looked back to see Lenny looking sick.
"Are you okay?" Emi asked with concern. Lenny didn't respond. He toppled over and blacked out. This race was too much for him. Emi whirls around and her eyes widen. "Lenny!" Emi yelled at him, she sprinted from the other side of the track. Lenny was just laying there not responding as if his heart had shut down on him.
Katawa Shoujo- Caged Heart
A couple moments later, Lenny woke up on the field while Emi and a couple other students from the track team were trying to get him to wake up. Lenny gasped while trying to sit up while Emi was giving him some water.
"Does this usually happen to him?" The track team captain asked Emi.
"I don't know for sure; he was trying to catch up to me but I didn't read the heart monitor he has." Emi replied as she didn't know what was going on with Lenny.
"At least he looks fine. I don't know if he has an issue as he just collapsed unexpectedly." Another student told Emi.
"He has a heart issue so he's wearing a heart monitor." Emi explained. The track captain nodded and took a look at the heart monitor on Lenny's wrist. It was flashing a few beats a second but a few moments before, it was flashing nonstop. Could Lenny have something happen to him that caused him to topple over? It was his body shutting down to reboot and save itself.
"Something like Hisao, but Hisao is smart enough to not pull off something like this." The track captain told Emi. Lenny sat up as he was still panting.
"How did I do?" Lenny asked Emi.
"You were doing pretty well before we came around the final curve, what caused you to catch up to me like that?" Emi asked Lenny what his thought process was when he tried to catch up to him.
"I didn't want to be left behind, so I decided to go faster if I was to catch you." Lenny replied. He was still shaken by what had happened to him but at least he was calming down and relaxing a bit.
"So, catch up huh? I knew you were trying to challenge the fastest thing with no legs but I won out in the end." Emi replied to Lenny's request. She decided to let Lenny drink some more water before he began to speak again.
"Yes you did, I wasn't too bad. Right?" Lenny asked. He began to push himself up while the pulse monitor was returning back to normal.
"You weren't. It was the last part that kind of took you down." Emi replied to what Lenny had to say. The class was getting ready to conclude before Emi looked back to Lenny. "You're going to the nurse." Emi decided. Lenny felt dumbfounded.
"What?" Lenny asked. Emi didn't really seem to care as she picked him up and carried him away. She waved goodbye to the students as she carried her friend off to get checked out. Honestly, Lenny felt a little ashamed of his own weakness. He didn't know if he should really rather not have Emi concerned about Lenny, but it seems to be too late. Heck, Lenny would really rather not have anyone concerned about his own condition, though at this point, it seems to be too late for that as well. Lenny would have liked to be able to deal with the whole thing on his own, without being a bother to anyone else. While he was wishing for things, he didn't want to be worried about not having this condition in the first place.
"Nurse!" Emi called out. Emi crashes into his office without knocking, but it doesn't alarm the nurse in the least.
Katawa Shoujo- Ah Eh I Oh You
"Good morning, sunshine. What's up?" The School Nurse greeted Emi. Lenny was confused by the nickname, Sunshine? Anyway, he calmly sips from his coffee mug but lays it down after following Emi's gaze to see Lenny looming in the doorway. "Lenny? What brings you here?" The Nurse asked for what was happening. Emi decided to lay it out.
"We were running and he stumbled over and started grabbing at his chest and I thought I'd come get you and make him wait there but he said he was okay but then I thought you should see him anyway and…" Emi tried her best to describe what was happening, she was speaking as if talking at a million miles an hour. For the Nurse, he needed to apply Emi's brakes.
"Easy there, Emi. Calm down. Lenny, what happened?" The Nurse asked Lenny if he could recall the events from earlier that period.
"I don't know. We were running, and then my chest started hurting like that time before, but it went away after a few seconds. It was just a flutter or something." Lenny tried to describe what happened. Indeed the pain went mostly away but it still lingered a bit as his heart was still beating irregularly. The nurse frowns, as if to say that "just a flutter" is some kind of oxymoron.
"I didn't mean this quiet when I suggested that I get some exercise. You've got to be more careful, Lenny." The nurse explained to Lenny that he should have taken it easy instead of racing after Emi.
"I was being careful, I just..." Lenny tried his best to say what he could. Come to think of it, "I just got into a race with a member of the track team" doesn't seem as well reasoned as I thought it would.
"You just what?" The nurse asked Lenny as he wanted to be somewhat more serious with him. Lenny knew he needed to spill the can of worms for the nurse.
"Er... that is... I was racing Emi." Lenny finally blurted out to the Nurse. The Nurse turned to Emi as he wanted to speak to her next.
"Emi, is this true?" The Nurse asked Emi if she decided to race with Lenny even if he wasn't in the best shape. Emi fidgets, looking adorably contrite.
"Um, well..." Emi began as she tried to think of what to say to the nurse. Finally she can't seem to bring herself to say it aloud, and merely nods. The nurse sighs and rubs at his forehead with one hand tiredly. The Nurse began to speak again.
"Emi, you've got to be more sensitive to the limits of others! I don't know if he told you, but Lenny has a bad heart, and getting him to race you was incredibly irresponsible." The Nurse seemed to scold Emi that she shouldn't have done that.
"Er, actually I started it." Lenny told the Nurse that it wasn't entirely Emi's fault. The nurse is stunned by his statement.
"You WHAT?" The Nurse asked Lenny if this was true that he attempted to start a race with Emi.
"We were just running, and Emi started to pull away, and so I uh, sped up to catch her." Lenny told the Nurse that he attempted a race to keep up with Emi. The Nurse stares at the ceiling, mutters a prayer for patience to some god or another, and looks back down at the both of them.
"So you're both stupid. That's a comfort, I guess. Now come on, Lenny. I've got to make sure your heart's not going to explode or something." The Nurse told them both that they had been irresponsible since someone could have gotten themselves hurt. Lenny dutifully obeys and follows him to the adjacent room where they ascertain that Lenny was, in fact, not going to keel over and die. "So how does it feel?" The Nurse asked Lenny. Lenny still felt his heart race a bit as he was trying to remain calm.
"I don't know. Nothing much. Tired, but it might be just from the exercise." Lenny told the Nurse as he was reading Lenny's vitals, it wasn't as bad as he expected them to be.
"You should stay here for a few minutes and rest, and we'll see how you feel after that. Your heart isn't doing as bad as I thought it would." The Nurse told Lenny to get a little bit of rest. Lenny was not going to object, so he lied down on the infirmary bed. A thoroughly miserable Emi comes in after getting an earful from the nurse in the other room. Lenny couldn't hear what he said through the closed door, but he was sure it wasn't pleasant.
"Look, I'm really, really sorry. I should've been more careful." Emi told Lenny that she was upset, she gave her green puppy dog eyes to him as she wanted to say it wasn't her fault. Lenny wanted to reassure her that she wasn't to be blamed.
"Hey, you didn't know. It's not your fault." Lenny tried his best to tell Emi that she wasn't to be blamed. "She looks awfully down and sorry, and his reassurances don't do anything much to cheer her up.
"I want to make it up to you." Emi told Lenny that she wanted to give him a bit more of a test. Again with that decisive nod. "So you have to come to lunch with me. I'll bring it for you, okay? Something really really good!" Emi told Lenny that she was going to make it up to him. Lenny wanted to start with a "You don't have to..." but then shut up and just nod at her when he sees her face."
"Good! We will meet on the roof." Emi told Lenny. Lenny was a little confused.
"We?" Lenny asked a little curiously. Emi smiled as her eyes looked into his. She was just ready to kiss him even though that wasn't what she wanted to do at this moment.
"Yep! The weather's nice now, so the roof's a great spot for lunch, you know." Emi told Lenny that they should head up to the roof and spend their lunch there. Lenny remembered now.
"I see." Lenny sighed. He was going back up there to spend time with Emi.
"You'll come, right? You wouldn't deny me the chance to make it up to you?" Emi asked. She hunched over as her face was inches from Lenny's.
"Of course not." Lenny told Emi that he would be there for Emi. Emi just smiled before she spoke.
"Great! See you there!" Emi told Lenny before she took off. Lenny was still amazed on how Emi ran, she could do this forever and run as long as the sun was up. Lenny felt like he was drifting somewhere between asleep and awake, feeling completely drained. Not only his body, but all of him is limp and paralyzed, apart from his senses. Lenny swallows with difficulty and then tries to lie as still as he can, which in this state is not a very hard thing to do. The nurse is shuffling around on the other side of the curtains he drew to give me privacy. All Lenny can see his shadow shifting about in the sunlight. He has opened the window of his office. It's windy outside. The clean white curtains flutter in the breeze in a heavy, lazy motion, like waves. Light sifts through them slowly, half absorbing into the fabric. Lenny finally closed his eyes. The breeze on his face feels like the soft fabric of the curtains. Finally, listening to the sound of his heartbeat for a moment, trying to shut out the sound of the nurse tapping away on his computer, and his own heavy breathing. It's steady.
Damn it, not even a week and Lenny ended up like this again. He thought he really screwed up this time. Should've known better than to play the half-baked sports star in front of a real one. And why did he try to act brave, like that heart flutter was no big deal, even when it was obvious that it was? It was just a reflex, to push it away, to keep it inside. Lenny didn't want it to happen. He didn't want Emi to see it. Aaah... Stupidstupidstupid. Lenny knew he should have to be more careful, or he will end up in the hospital again, or worse. ... That's his final thought before he gives in to the tiredness.
Lenny fell asleep. For how long? What time is it? Lenny was feeling a little lightheaded and he kept blinking compulsively. Pushing the curtain aside, Lenny squinted his eyes against the unfiltered light pouring in from the window. The texture of the canvas feels nothing like the wind did before. The nurse looks up from his work, sitting exactly where he was before.
"How are you feeling?" The Nurse asked Lenny how he was feeling. Lenny can't really tell, so he doesn't answer anything. Lenny was feeling kinda groggy from falling asleep at such a weird time, hopefully he didn't look too weird.
"What time is it?" Lenny asked with a yawn. He stretched as he tried to figure out what exactly to do. His croaking the question to gain some orientation. The nurse looked at his wristwatch before answering. Things seem to happen in slow motion.
"Quarter past eleven." The Nurse told Lenny, he was only asleep for a few minutes. Lenny tried to think for a moment what that meant but he was not really sure. "You didn't answer my question, Lenny." The Nurse told Lenny. Lenny felt like he had to give in to what the nurse demanded.
"Oh. Fine." Lenny sighed. The Nurse opened one of his eyes before he would begin his instruction.
"Climb down from that bed then, and let's see how you are doing. Don't..." The Nurse began. Lenny tried to do exactly that, only to sway dizzily when he moved too fast. The nurse moves to support him by an arm and sighs."...stand up too quickly, is what I was going to say. Just sit there, I'll check your pressure to make sure." Lenny's good intentions sure lasted for a long time. He had to shut up, embarrassed with himself, while the nurse got busy with an old-fashioned contraption and his arm. After a couple of minutes, he puts it away, looking neither pleased nor unhappy. "You're all right. Head stopped spinning?"The Nurse asked as he was reading Lenny's blood pressure.
"Yeah." Lenny replied. The Nurse gave a smile before looking at him.
"Good. And how are the contents doing? You didn't show very good judgment out there, Lenny." The nurse told Lenny before removing the cuff from Lenny. The latter swallowed the retort he was going to make. It's what Lenny was thinking to himself, but hearing it stated by somebody else makes him want to protest. What he's saying is not pleasant to hear. Doesn't make him any less right.
"No, sir." Lenny sighed. He knew he should be more careful with his own condition. The nurse nods, still looking as neutral as he was before. It would be easy to be angry at him if he said "Told you so" or something, but he doesn't."
"I can try and help you to keep your health, but ultimately the last call lies with you. Hopefully this little episode will be something that'll remind you of that." The Nurse explained to Lenny that he shouldn't be careful about what happened. The Nurse smiled a bit before giving one last word. "Lunch is starting so it's best you should be on your way." Lenny got up and gathered his belongings. It was good that Emi was able to keep his stuff safe so it didn't get lost.
"Thanks." Lenny softly told the Nurse. The Nurse nodded before he spoke.
"Stay out of trouble, you hear me? I don't think it was anything but a scare, but next time could be different." The Nurse gave Lenny one last warning. Lenny nodded. He must've heard you. There is some way to get to the school building straight from the auxiliary building, but Lenny was not keen to find out and possibly get lost, so he went out from the exit that Lenny knew worked. Lenny stopped at the stairs of the auxiliary building, deliberating for a moment between going to Lilly or the rooftop. The sun stings his eyes, so Lenny heads towards the rooftop. Lenny was still thinking about what Misha and Shizune had planned, and he knew he had to tell Rin about it.
Emi, Rin, Hisao and Lenny were sitting at the same table as they were yesterday and were busy unpacking their lunches. Hisao was a little worried for Lenny and wanted to ask Emi some questions.
Katawa Shoujo- Stride
"So what exactly happened to Lenny today? He looks a little off." Hisao began speaking to the group. Lenny was feeling embarrassed about what happened that day and how he was going to explain this.
"Lenny blacked out on the track earlier today, he was trying to catch up to me." Emi told the group what had happened today.
"Was he able to recover?" Hisao asked as he began eating his food. Lenny was feeling like someone was talking behind his back.
"He was. Though his heart is just returning to normal. We did some exercises before then and ran around the track afterward." Emi told Hisao that they did stuff beforehand and then did their one lap race.
"So Lenny had been carried away before then with the activities?" Hisao asked Emi if this was true.
"He was." Emi replied. Hisao began to think, Lenny was nervously eating as he didn't know what Hisao was going to say. He began to shake a bit as the heart monitor was flashing slightly faster now. Hisao needed to speak to Emi like the School Nurse giving her advice all over again.
"All right, don't push Lenny too hard otherwise he will need to be hospitalized again." Hisao gave Emi some advice when it came to track with Lenny.
"Okay." Emi sighed as she kept eating. Hisao then turned to Lenny who had calmed down and was enjoying his food. Hisao turned his head to Lenny as he noticed something was bothering him.
"So, Lenny, you seem off? Was it from the track last period?" Hisao asked Lenny if there was something bothering him.
"It wasn't the track, it's something completely different." Lenny replied. He turned his head to Rin who was eating with her feet like usual. "Hey Rin, can I tell you something?" Lenny asked Rin if she was open.
"Sure, go ahead, roll the dice." Rin answered Lenny. Lenny began to think from the first period while trying to formulate something in his head.
"We got a speech from Shizune and Misha this morning in our science class, they said they were going to take a look around the art room after classes were concluded and then the library afterward. I'm heading there later as I promised Lilly and Hisao that I would go there even though I went to you yesterday. I'm still nervous about getting discovered." Lenny admitted that he didn't want the student council president to find out where he had been during his first day of Yamaku academy. Rin began to think about it while she continued eating. She didn't know what Lenny requested but it was a message that he wished to remain hidden.
"If I can cover your tracks for what you are asking, I can do that for you." Rin told Lenny that she was willing to hide any sign of evidence that he was there on Rin's end, but he knew that he had to hide his own.
"Thank you, a lot, for this Rin." Lenny told her with excitement. Rin was covering the art studio, but Lenny remembered that Shizune and Misha were going to the library. He had to come up with a plan if he was going to stay hidden from them.
"So, anything else you want to talk about?" Hisao asked Lenny if there was something else they needed to talk about. Lenny began to think of another thing to talk about, maybe Lilly and whoever Hisao's girlfriend was.
"So who's your girlfriend?" Lenny asked. He tried to remember her name though he was having trouble figuring out what it was.
"It's Hanako, have you had your memory wiped out from when you fainted on that track earlier today?" Hisao asked Lenny if he had forgotten who Hanako was.
"I think he's saying, he doesn't remember her name as he hadn't known her that well, take it easy for him." Emi told Hisao that he shouldn't push Lenny too hard mentally either.
"Okay." Hisao sighed. He turned to Lenny. "You remembered to come to the library later today?"
"I did, I'll be following Hanako and her friend." Lenny replied. "I have the last period with them."
"Okay, if you get lost, tell Lilly where you're going, and we'll meet each other there." Hisao nodded as Lenny was getting used to the school but he didn't have all the screws in their places as of yet.
"Got you." Lenny replied. He was the first to finish his food while Hisao looked down to his lunch to see some of it gone. Emi was eating a portion of his.
"Emi." Hisao hissed a bit at her while she was finishing up. Lenny then turned to Rin as he wanted to speak to her next.
"So, Rin, do you think there will be anyone in the library that I will meet?" Lenny asked Rin if she had any ideas on who he would end up meeting. Rin began to think for a bit before she began speaking again.
"There is someone, but I don't remember her name. I have some books I need to return to her after classes have concluded." Rin replied that she had a few things she needed to give back to the librarian.
"Want me to give you a helping hand?" Lenny offered Rin if she would want the help. Rin began to speak again.
"I'm having Shizune do the heavy lifting as I don't have arms. I can't carry stuff and walk there at the same time. I will try flagging her down." Rin explained. Lenny froze again, Shizune was definitely someone who he wasn't expecting but he didn't know how to react. He sighed before exhaling.
"Hopefully you could stall her for as long as possible." Lenny told Rin if she was good at keeping them distracted.
"I'll try my best, but I don't know how long It'll last." Rin replied to Lenny's request. "I'll do everything I can to make sure you have a good time with Hanako, Lilly and Hisao."
"That's the spirit I know." Emi replied. "Want me to be your runner? I know the school in the back of my head."
"If it'll be helpful." Rin replied. She looked up at the sky as there weren't any clouds in the air, today was a nice day outside. "It sure looks pretty out there." Rin told herself. Lenny looked up to the blue sky that was above them, there were no clouds nearby and the wind seemed to be calm. Lenny decided to look at the pulse monitor which was beeping slowly. Lenny was fully relaxed. Hisao got his phone out to check the time and they still had a few minutes before classes were to resume.
"I hate to be rude, but class is going to resume in a few. I think we should get going." Hisao told the group that they had to finish what they were doing and clean up after themselves. Lenny took his box and decided to get placed in the box cabinets so they could get washed. The other students did the same.
"I have to get going but I'll see you at the library Hisao. It was nice chatting with you." Lenny told him while they waved goodbye.
"I'll see you too." Hisao replied.
Everyone had a plan in place.
[A/N]: Everything is slowly coming together as I've been going back and forth between this and another story. I'd figure if I get more of these chapters done and uploaded, I can get some views.