Chapter 3.5: Something Terrifying

I'm not the type to care about things that don't involve me.

It's way easier that way. Less stressful. Less exhausting. And honestly? I have more than enough on my plate already without getting dragged into someone else's drama.

But… something's off about Yukinoshita-senpai.

And even though I know I should just ignore it, I can't stop noticing.

The first time I really saw it, I was in the student council office, pretending to do paperwork while actually texting under my desk.

Senpai had dropped off some documents—something about school funding, probably. Normally, she'd hand them over with that usual I'm superior to you in every way attitude and leave without another word.

But this time, she hesitated.

I noticed it immediately because Yukinoshita-senpai never hesitated.

She stood there, her fingers brushing over the folder she'd just placed on my desk, her eyes distant.

Like she wasn't really here.

I frowned. "Uh… senpai?"

Her eyes flicked to mine, and for a second, I swore I saw something strange—like she was struggling to remember where she was.

Then, just as quickly, she smiled.

A soft, gentle smile.

A smile that didn't belong to her.

"Iroha-san," she said lightly, in a tone that was way too nice to be Yukinoshita Yukino. "You seem busy today. I hope I'm not interrupting."

My brain stalled.

First of all, since when did she call me Iroha-san? It was always Isshiki-san or some condescending variation of student council president.

Second, why was she being nice to me?

No sarcasm, no passive-aggressive remarks, no tired sigh of why am I wasting my time talking to you?

No way. This was wrong.

"Uh… what?" I blinked at her, completely thrown off. "Did you hit your head or something?"

She let out a soft laugh—a laugh. Yukinoshita-senpai laughing.

Nope. Nope nope nope. That's when I knew something was seriously wrong.

"I'm perfectly fine," she said, tilting her head slightly. "Why do you ask?"

I narrowed my eyes. "Because you're acting super weird."

She just smiled again, like I hadn't said anything concerning at all. "I assure you, I'm the same as always."

Liar.

I knew what I saw.

And more than that—I knew what I felt.

Something about the way she spoke, the way she looked at me…

Like she wasn't Yukinoshita-senpai at all.

Like someone else was pretending to be her.

So, obviously, I did what any reasonable person would do.

I found Senpai and dumped the problem on him.

I caught him during lunch break at his usual "perfect spot", looking as dead inside as ever.

"Senpai~," I sang, walking up beside him. "You have a minute?"

He barely glanced at me. "No."

Ugh. So rude.

"Okay, cool, so listen," I continued, ignoring his lack of cooperation. "What's up with Yukinoshita-senpai?"

That got his attention.

His expression didn't change, but his body stiffened—just for a second.

Subtle.

If I hadn't been watching him carefully, I might've missed it.

He didn't ask why I was bringing it up. He didn't brush it off with a snarky remark.

Which meant he already knew something was wrong.

That made my stomach twist a little.

"...What are you talking about?" he asked finally, voice careful.

I crossed my arms. "Oh, don't play dumb. She's off, right? I mean, sure, she's always kinda cold and terrifying, but at least that's normal for her. But now? Now she's all nice and smiley and Iroha-san this and soft laughter that, and frankly? It's creeping me out."

Senpai didn't react at first.

Then, very slowly, he let out a sigh.

"...So you noticed too."

A chill ran down my spine.

Not what are you talking about, not you're imagining things, but you noticed too.

That meant whatever was happening to Yukinoshita-senpai, it wasn't just in my head.

And worse? Senpai had been watching it happen for a while.

"...How bad is it?" I asked before I could stop myself.

He didn't answer right away. Instead, he rubbed the back of his neck, looking away, his usual dead-fish eyes even duller than usual.

"Bad," he finally admitted. "Bad enough that even you're bringing it up."

I huffed, pretending that didn't sting a little. "Rude."

But the uneasy feeling in my stomach didn't go away.

Senpai wasn't someone who cared about things that weren't his problem. He didn't get involved unless he had to. Which meant whatever was happening with Yukinoshita-senpai was something he couldn't ignore.

And that scared me.

I shifted on my feet, crossing my arms tighter. "So? What's the deal? Is she, like, sick or something?"

He didn't answer right away. Just exhaled slowly, staring down at his untouched lunch like it held the meaning of life.

"It's not that simple," he muttered.

I frowned. "Okay, well, explain it to me like I'm stupid."

He glanced at me. "You are stupid."

"Excuse you, I am at least average, thank you very much."

That, surprisingly, got the smallest twitch of his lips—almost like he wanted to smirk but was too tired to bother.

But then, just as quickly, the humor faded from his expression, replaced with something heavier.

"Yukinoshita… isn't acting like herself because she isn't herself," he said finally. "Not completely."

I blinked.

"…Huh?"

He sighed again, running a hand through his messy hair. "It's hard to explain. I don't even know the full picture. But she's been losing time. Forgetting things. And sometimes, she just… isn't Yukinoshita."

A shiver crawled up my spine.

"Okay, well, that sounds terrifying," I muttered.

He didn't disagree.

For a long moment, neither of us said anything. The sound of other students chatting and laughing filled the air around us, but it all felt distant. Like we were standing in a bubble of silence, completely separate from the rest of the world.

Finally, I sighed, tapping my fingers against my arm. "So? What are we supposed to do?"

Senpai was quiet for a long time.

Then, without looking at me, he said, "I don't know."

That terrified me more than anything else.

Because if even he didn't have a plan, then what chance did the rest of us have?

Author's Note:
So much for keeping a consistent upload schedule huh...
I thought I would've had time to write even during midterm exam season. Unfortunately, I had a lot less time than I thought which led to this long delay between chapters. To make up for it, this will be another double upload. Now that my exams are done, the upload schedule should be back to normal.

On another note, I've been reading the reviews and I saw that people were asking about the chronology of the story. The story starts sometime between the end of season 2 and the beginning of season 3 and will be mostly canon divergent. There will be some canon events included but most of them will be slightly rewritten.

Anyways, thank you for reading, please leave a review if you have any feedback.