Work Text:
Rise
The letter is written on perfumed paper, with a steady, confident hand that dips and curves with what could only be experience. It is found nestled — never shoved or, God forbid, crammed — in the corner of his shoe locker. The envelope flap is sealed, quite literally, with a kiss. Or rather, a perfectly placed lipstick print.
Dearest Senpai,
I know it couldn’t only be me who felt that certain special… something upon our first meeting. It was impossible not to be captivated by your frosted hair, your lily lips, your cherry nose, and eyes as green as leeks!
Well, I know your eyes aren’t green, but that’s Shakespeare right there! I’m sure you of all people, Senpai, know that Shakespearean is the language of love. ♥~
I know you’ve been seen with quite a few suitors lately. With Valentines Day closing in, I’m sure this locker will be overflowing with chocolate confections (just wait until you try my homemade, candy-coated tofu!), but my concerns lie with your evening plans. Or should I say, our evening plans?
I don’t expect an answer right away, of course, but a single rose on my desk will be more than enough to convey your feelings, my dove. My darling. My vessel of sweet adoration!
With most earnest love and affection,
Risette~
P.S. If, by some slime chance, your answer is no, please leave a dozen roses instead. I need something to make Kanji-kun jealous, after all!
Teddie
The letter was obviously handwritten, at one point in time, but has since been transformed via the badly abused Junes photocopier. Three identical notes, distinguishable only by the names scrawled in a blank spot near the top of each page, were found taped to the bottom of a ramen packet, squeezed into the toe of a shoe, and thrown at the back of a head. Respectively, of course.
The master-copy is retained by the sender, should any more love-notes require sending.
Dearest, darling, delightful Chie-chan/Rise-chan/Yuki-chan!
My heart floods with joy
Upon sending this love-penned
note. There, that is five.
It’s easy to see
That if you were me, my love
Our hearts would two words
Don’t try to deny
The bounce in your aching heart
When you see my ears…
…twitch with youthful de-
light! Reach forth and stroke my fur
With your soft fingertips
Hmm, poems are harder to write down than they are to say! Yosuke says I should try this kind.
The thumping of your love-ravaged heart!
Egg salad
Dutiful attending your every sore or bunion~
Dying for you on the battlefield of love
I’ll let you comb your dew tipped fingers through my soft fur
Egg salad!
Love,
Your Secret Admirer~
Chie
The note is smudged in places, made translucent where grease has been ground into the fibers of the paper. The letters are written in a bubbly script that’s filled to the brim with femininity, although it appears to be forced rather than natural. This is most noticeable when the writer’s hand speeds up with excitement, leaving a nervous and energetic scrawl behind. It is found after a few days, folded inside the front cover of her favorite fantasy novel.
Dear love
UGH, I knew I shouldn’t be writing in pen.
Dear friend,
I hope it doesn’t take you too long to find this! I know you like to flip through this book every so often, but I’d hate if someone else…like a maid(!!!!!!!) found it. Anyway, you’ve obviously found it (unless the maid is reading it, in which case, hi Hiruki-san, you can put this back now!), so I guess I’ll stop stalling and start talking!
This is really hard for me to write (no kidding, huh?) but I couldn’t think of any other way. I almost wrote it as an email, but it just didn’t seem right that way. And I could never tell you aloud, so this will have to do! I know my handwriting isn’t as good as yours, but I’m really trying! So try not to pay too much attention to how bad it is.
Anyway, yes, what I want to say! Sorry, I’m totally babbling (who knew that was possible in letter-form??), but I’m just soooo nervous. Super-Mondo-Me During The Final Scene Of Fist of Fury-nervous. Aha, you’re probably not reading this anymore. So I guess I’ve got nothing to lose!
I really
I just wanted to say that I might be
I think I might like you. Don’t hate me, okay? You don’t have to say anything if you think it’s weird, just pretend like you never found this.
But if you don’t think it’s weird…I don’t know. That’d be pretty cool though, huh? I think it would be, anyway.
Love,
Sincerely,
Your friend!
Love,
Chie
Kanji
At first, all that appears to be present in her shoe locker is a stuffed koala. Upon further investigation, the toy is fitted with a jaunty cap and holds a plush heart between its tiny paws. Initially, the heart looks as if it’s embroidered with a complex design, but upon closer inspection the designs reveal themselves as words. It takes a magnifying glass to read them properly.
The entire package is… very elaborate.
Naoto
Im not good with words so sorry if this is
bad. I hope you like this because it took me
3 hours. This writing part has already taken
me 2 more tho. I think I need you to tutor
me in composition some more. Anyways, this
heart is removable so you can take it off if
you want.
Upon removing the heart with a soft scratch of Velcro, four more words are visible on the side previously pressed to the bear’s chest.
I like you.
Kanji
Yukiko
The note is found in the room of the sender, hidden under a pile of job licensing books and old essays. It appears to be unsent, despite the date at the top being from two months prior. The script is proper in an almost casual way, although in some spaces the ink has blotted. Presumably from where a pen lingered for too long.
Chie,
I read in a book once that a person wrote their true-love a letter to share feelings they couldn’t say aloud. Well, I wish I didn’t have that problem. I wish I could speak as eloquently about my feelings as the princess in that story could through her writing. I’d even settle for eloquence here, to be honest, but you always tell me to try my best so I will. I hope you’re not disappointed.
Chie, when I look at you, I can’t describe how I feel. You make me feel whole, not like a prize to be won, but a real person. When you look at me, I know you’re not thinking about my parents or my what my future will be, you’re thinking about me. The real me. The me that shot milk out of her nose that one time and made you laugh about it for days.
I love it when you laugh, Chie.
You always say I’m the one who giggles, but you do it too, you can just stop yourself in time. I always catch it, though. Your eyes brighten up and your smile grows wider. I fell in love with that smile, and now, against my better judgment, I’ve fallen in love with the rest of you. I know it’s not right, but for once in my life, I don’t want to be right. Not if it means I can’t be with you.
I’ll send this tomorrow. I hope you feel the same.
With all my love,
Yukiko
Yosuke
Discovered upon sitting down at the computer, with the bright ‘ping’ of a popup message. It informs him that he has received several messages while offline and asks him if he would like to see them. He clicks yes.
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (23:02): yo!!
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (23:02): oh, your offline lol
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (23:39): …ugh, im bored. where did you go, anyways?
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (0:10): okay, so i cant sleep and no one else is around so i guess ill just talk to you. Um, not-really-there-you.
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (0:12): jeez, something must really be wrong with me if im up in the middle of the night doing this
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (0:12): anyway i guess no one will ever kno.
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (0:29): IM THE KILLERRRRRRR
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (0:29): haha
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (0:32): …damnit. this is really lame.
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (0:39): me and my dad got into a fight tonight. hes mad at me for skipping out on my shifts to hang out with you.
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (0:40): well he thinks its hanging out with you. its not for that, its for the TV stuff.
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (0:50): he said something really stupid
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (0:50): i think thats why i cant sleep
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (0:56): he said we were “”“too close”“” for two boys
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (0:56): stupid, right???
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (0:57): anyway he seemed to really believe it and got really pissy at me even though i told him *A MILLION TIMES* its not true
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (0:59): except it totally is
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (0:59): holy shit i cant believe i typed that. Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (1:00): okay calm down
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (1:03): so i like you
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (1:04): rally like you
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (1:04): really*
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (1:05): what am i doing. its not like your here to correct my spelling. If you were you would be calling me a sicko and telling me to stay away from you, probably
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (1:08): okay, maybe not. your a nice guy. your really nice to kanji anyway.
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (1:20): ugh, i hate it when your nice to him
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (1:27): okay, so hes a really aewsome guy, but…DAMNIT, i hate it when you and him get all cozy like your dating or something
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (1:28): and with him THAT WAY its like sometimes i think maybe you really ARE…
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (1:29): rise was saying how she saw you guys going up into your room one time all secretly
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (1:30): goddamnit
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (1:39): it hurts when i look at you sometimes.
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (1:39): fuck that sounded girly
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (1:43): you always are so nice to me and i wish you wouldnt be. i always feel like im…i dont know, taking advantige.
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (2:39): fuck fuck fuck fuckfuckfuck
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (2:39): god this is creepy. im so sorry, souji
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (2:50): i wish you took me in your room like you take kanji in there
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (2:50): i wish you liked me as much as you liked him
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (2:50): i wish you liked me like *I* like you.
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (2:53): i wish you loved me
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (2:55): fuck. i sound like such a crazy stalker. Thank god youll never see all this stupid crap inside me.
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ says (2:55): youd hate me forever
♪ʮᴓƨʊϰϵ♪ is offline. Messages you send will be delivered when they sign in.
Naoto
The letter is found in the mail slot, folded thrice, and sealed with a genuine wax stamp. The writing is careful and well measured with nary a single error in the artful calligraphy. It is obvious to the recipient that this is not the first draft.
Dear Kanji-kun,
I am aware that handwritten missives are out of date for our generation, but I have always felt they convey a certain meaningfulness e-mail cannot capture. I also do not have your e-mail address, which made the choice to communicate my feelings to you in this manner a simple one.
I will keep it short and to the point, Kanji-kun. I have developed a certain fondness for you. One might call it affection, which I assure you astonishes me more than it ever could astonish you. That is not to say you are not objectively attractive — you are, very much so — but I have not held such feelings for another person since I was very small, and even then I am not certain fictional heroes count.
As you have probably guessed, I am not as adept in this manner of writing as I would like to be. If this hindrance has diluted my intention, I apologize and will do my best to make it clear for you now.
I would very much like if you would accompany me to Okina Station this Saturday, 18 o’clock, sharp. I have taken the liberty of comparing our schedules and have found that this is the ideal time for a meeting.
Enclosed is a ticket for a train leaving precisely 10 minutes before the established rendezvous hour. If you do not return my feelings, simply not arriving will be a sufficient refusal.
Regards,
Naoto Shirogane
Souji
The note is in plain sight from the moment the recipient walks into class. It has been placed in the middle of his desk, face up, with no shame. Not on behalf of the sender, anyway, whom happens to be sitting a mere foot away.
I found a grasshopper in my underwear drawer this morning. I named it Yosuke. ;)
The note is crumpled promptly and walked over to the front of the room, where it is quickly buried in the trash. Upon returning to his desk, another note is in its place. The sender is examining his cuticles and doesn’t appear to have moved.
You didn’t like my note, Hana-chan? :(
The process is repeated. Two notes are waiting this time.
I should be offended.
and
P.S. Are those your uniform pants from last year? I like them. You should walk to the front of the room more often.
The recipient does not leave his seat this time, instead taking great relish as he tears both notes into quadrants. His desk remains note-free until second period, when he returns from a visit to the restroom.
Study tonight? Tap my chair once for yes and twice for no.
The recipient kicks the sender’s chair quite roughly, but does it only once. It isn’t until fourth period that another note appears on his desk.
I love you. ♥
The recipient kicks the back of the sender’s chair once again, keeping up the assault until midday break.
This note, he saves