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"Kaito, do you have any of those fruit bars?" Sayori asks.
"Maybe..." I check my bag, but all I can find are some empty wrappers. "No, looks like you ate them all. Sorry."
Instead of getting upset, Sayori noticeably perks up. "Well, seeing as you don't have any fruit bars...you must be hungry, too! Want to come with me and buy a snack?"
I shake my head. "Nope."
Sayori startles, clearly taken aback. "Eh?? T-that's not like you at all!!!"
I let out a deep sigh. "Sayori, I have my reasons. First of all, I'm not hungry. Second...well, why don't you show me your purse, Sayori?"
"Eh? Why that...all of a sudden?" Sayori whimpers, eyes wide. She's playing innocent, but I've been her friend for too long for me to fall for her tricks.
"No reason," I say in my most casual tone ever, "I just wanted to take a look at it."
Sweat beading on her forehead, Sayori nervously retrieves her coin purse. After fumbling with the latch for a moment, she turns the bag upside-down, letting the contents spill out onto the desk. Just as I suspected, only two coins fall out.
"A-hahaha..." Sayori giggles nervously.
I roll my eyes. "Sayori, you know I can see right through you."
"That's not fair!" Sayori says with a pout. "How did you even know?"
"It's simple. If you had enough money to buy a snack in the first place, you would have done so before coming the the club. So, either you're not hungry and wanted an excuse to take a walk...or you planned to conveniently forget that you spent all your money, so that I would lend you some!"
"M-maybe I just wanted to take a walk?"
"Sayori, you literally asked me for one of my fruit bars just a minute ago. Besides, even if you didn't ask for a fruit bar, you're always hungry!"
"Uwa!" Sayori wails. "I give up! Don't make me feel guiltyyy!"
"Sayori, if you feel guilty, that means you deserve to feel guilty."
Yuri, nose buried deeply in a book, suddenly giggles.
I hadn't known she'd been listening in...
"Ah!" Yuri gasps, face flushing, "I wasn't listening or anything-! It was just...something in my book..."
"Yuuuri, tell Kaito to let me borrow some money..." Sayori pleads.
"That's- don't get me involved like that, Sayori..." Yuri pauses, before saying in a much more firm voice, "Besides, you should only buy what you can responsibly afford...and frankly, after trying to pull a stunt like that...your suffering is a fair enough retribution."
Sayori giggles a little, and Yuri flushes bright red.
"Did I...Ah! I didn't mean that! I got too absorbed in my book..."
"That's okay, Yuri!" Sayori cheerfully responds. "I really like it when you speak your mind! It doesn't happen much, but it's a fun side of you!"
"That's..." Yuri begins, "there's no way you could think that..."
"You were right, though," Sayori admits. "I did something bad, and now I have to accept the revolution."
"Retribution," Yuri gently corrects.
"That!"
"Still," Yuri continues, "coming from you, Sayori...I guess there's all a little devil inside all of us, isn't there?"
"Ehehehe.." Sayori giggles innocently.
"Don't let her fool you," I warn Yuri. "She's always a step ahead of everyone. After all, she told you guys she was bringing me to the club before she even told me..."
"B-but...!" Sayori weakly protests, "You wouldn't have come if it weren't for the cupcakes...so I had to trick Natsuki into making them!"
I roll my eyes. "See, Yuri? You can't trust her one bit."
"Ehehe..." Sayori giggles.
Pwap!
Out of nowhere, something bounces off Sayori's forehead onto the desk in front of her.
"Kyaa-!" Sayori yelps in surprise and pain. "Ow..." she says pitifully, rubbing her forehead, "what was-!"
Sayori suddenly gasps in surprise, staring down at the thrown object.
"Woah! A-a cookie!" Sayori breathes, picking it up reverently.
Sure enough, it's a giant cookie wrapped in plastic. Sayori glances around, then up at the ceiling. "I-is this a miracle?? Have I paid my restitution?"
"Retribution..." I correct.
Yuri shrugs. "Actually, that one almost worked..."
"Ahahaha!" Natsuki laughs. She's standing in the doorway, eyes twinkling with mischief. "I was just gonna give it to you," she says, gesturing to Sayori, "but then I heard you blab about the cupcakes. It was totally worth your reaction, though!"
"N-Natsuki!" Sayori gasps, "That's so nice of you!"
"You have a good throwing arm, too," I comment. "Excellent aim as well."
Sayori hugs the cookie to her chest. "I'm so happy..."
Natsuki looks pleased, as well as slightly embarrassed. "Jeez," she scoffs, "just eat the thing..."
Sayori rapidly tears open the wrapper and takes a big bite. "Sho good...Mmph!" Crumbs fly everywhere as Sayori suddenly clasps her hands to her mouth. Quickly swallowing, Sayori whimpers, "I bit my tongue..."
"Ehehe.." Natsuki giggles, pulling out a cookie of her own and taking a bite. "You're going through a lot for just one cookie."
Sayori perks up. "Ah, your cookie looks really good too, Natsuki! Can I try it?"
"Jeez..." Natsuki scoffs, "beggars can't be choosers!"
"But yours is chocolate..."
"Yeah, why do you think I gave you that one?"
"Fine..." Sayori takes another big bite of her cookie. "Still," she continues, getting out of her seat, "I'm really happy that you shared this one with me..."
Now that she's behind Natsuki, Sayori wraps her arms around the other girl. Natsuki squirms in her arms, flushing beetroot red. "Sheesh," Natsuki mutters, "I get it, I get it." Cookie still in hand, Natsuki reaches up to nudge Sayori off of her.
With that, Sayori strikes. Leaning down, she takes a bite out of Natsuki's cookie. "...Om."
"H-hey!" Natsuki yelps. "Did you seriously just do that?!"
Mouth full, Sayori trots away to safety.
Yuri and I laugh as well.
"Looks like Sayori the Food Thief strikes again," I comment. "You can never be too careful around her. Lock up your cookies, cupcakes, and candy bars, because she's coming for them all!"
"Jeez!" Natsuki huffs, "You're such a kid sometimes! Monika, can you tell Sayori-"
Stopping short, Natsuki glances around the room. I look around as well, and realize something I should have already noticed- Monika is not here.
"Ugh..." Natsuki groans, hands on her hips, "where's Monika, anyway?"
"Good question," Yuri says, looking a little concerned. "Have any of you heard about her being late today?"
Sayori shakes her head. "Not me..."
"Yeah, I haven't either," I tell them.
Yuri hums thoughtfully to herself. "Hm...that's a bit unusual."
"I hope she's okay," Sayori whimpers.
Natsuki scoffs. "Of course she's okay. She probably just had something else to do today. She's pretty popular, after all..."
Sayori startles. "Eh? You don't think she...she has a...!"
Though she doesn't finish her sentence, everyone knows what she's trying to say.
"I wouldn't be surprised," Yuri says with a wistful smile. "She's probably more desirable than all of us combined."
Sayori giggles to herself. "Ehehe...that's true."
Natsuki scowls. "Excuse me???"
"Don't worry, Natsuki," I say with a grin, "if you take me out of the equation, the desirability points of your group go up."
The shorter girl rolls her eyes. "Gross."
Suddenly, the door swings open. "Sorry," Monika hurriedly says, "I'm super sorry!"
"It's cool," I tell her.
"I didn't mean to be late..." Monika says apologetically, "I hope you guys weren't worried or anything!"
Sayori bounces up and down in excitement. "Eh??? Monika chose the club over her boyfriend after all! You're so strong-willed!"
"B-boyfriend...?" Monika stammers, clearly at a loss for words. "What on Earth are you talking about?" When she glances over to me, I just shrug.
"So, um...what held you up, anyway?" I ask.
"Ah..." Monika begins. "Well...my last period today was study hall. To be honest, I kind of just lost track of time..."
"That makes no sense, though," Natsuki argues, "you would have heard the bell ring, at least."
"I must have not heard it, since I was practicing piano..."
"Piano...?" Yuri asks. "I wasn't aware you played a musical instrument as well, Monika."
Monika laughs a little. "Ah, I don't, really...! I kind of just started recently. I've always wanted to learn piano."
"That's so cool!" Sayori praises. "Hey, remember when you had those clarinet lessons, Kaito?"
I groan. "Don't remind me."
Turning to Monika, Sayori says, "You should play for us one day, Monika!"
"Maybe once I get better, I will."
"Yay!"
"That sounds pretty cool," I tell Monika. "I'd also look forward to it."
"Is that so...?" Monika begins, looking straight at me. "In that case...I won't let you down, Kaito."
She smiles sweetly at me.
"Ah...I didn't mean to pressure you or anything."
Monika giggles. "Ahaha...don't worry. I've been practicing a whole lot recently. And I'd really love the chance to share once I'm ready."
"I see...well, in that case, best of luck."
"Thanks! So, I didn't miss anything, did I?"
I shrug. "No, not really."
It looks like everyone has already settled down.
Not to my surprise, Sayori has already finished eating her cookie.
Yuri is back to her book, and Natsuki has disappeared into the closet.
Sayori cheerfully skips over to me. "Kaito! Kaito! I'm going to get supplies from another classroom. Want to come with me?"
"Supplies? What for?"
"Well, you know how the festival is coming up? Me and Monika were going to make some posters and stuff. So I need to find some crayons, and markers, and glue sticks..."
"I see. You need the help of my awesome manly muscles to help out," I joke.
Sayori giggles. "So, do you want to come?"
"Sure, why not?"
"Yay! Hey Monika," Sayori calls, "we'll be back soon!"
Monika smiles. "Ah, are you going with Kaito to get the supplies? There's no need to trouble yourself. I'd be happy to go with him."
Sayori pouts. "Awww...I wanted to go with him. It's so much fun exploring empty classrooms and stuff..."
"Hehe," Monika giggles. "Okay, okay. It was just a suggestion. See if you can find poster paper too, okay?"
Sayori nods. "Okay! Ready, Kaito?"
"Yep, let's go."
Sayori and I exit the clubroom. I follow behind as Sayori hums and skips around the hallway. Honestly...it feels like I'm taking a kid to the mall or something. Sayori finds pleasure in the simplest things sometimes; when I'm around her, the world seems just a little bit brighter.
"Hey, Sayori? What exactly are we doing for the festival, anyway? I'm not sure how you would make an event out of literature..."
"Ehehe!" Sayori giggles. "Me and Monika have it all planned out! Don't you worry!"
"Is that so...?"
"Yep! We're going to do a poetry performance!"
"A performance...? Of what kind?"
"Well..." Sayori begins, "everyone's going to take turns on stage...and recite their favorite poems!"
"Ah..."
That sounds a little dull.
Sayori playfully swats me on the arm. "Kaito! You're not thinking about it the right way at all! It's not just about reading poems...it's about performing them! Like, you say the lines of the poem like..."
Sayori clears her throat. "Between my feet...The last remaining flower beckons to me. I twist the stem, freeing it from its clinging roots...Caressing the final joyous moment between my fingers. But to what ends have I summoned this joy? For now when I look in every direction...The once prosperous field before me...Is but a barren wasteland!"
Sayori bows. "Like that!"
"Hmm...that's pretty good. It's just kind of weird, seeing you like this."
"Eh?" Sayori pouts, "You meanie! I'm working super hard on this, you know!"
"Ah, I know, I know!" I quickly back-peddle. "I just meant that it's a pretty unordinary contrast compared to how you usually act."
"How do I usually act?"
"You know...cute and stuff."
"Ahaha!" Sayori giggles. "Don't say that, it's embarrassing! But I guess it means I'm doing a good job."
"Yeah, I guess so..."
"Aah! I'm so excited! The festival is going to be so much fun!"
Sayori spins herself around in the hallway again. "Oh! Hey, Kaito, the classroom here is empty! Let's begin the mission!"
"The mission, eh..."
I begin humming the tune from a popular spy movie.
Sayori giggles.
It's been a long time since I've spent time with Sayori like this. But in the end, she hasn't changed one bit. Sayori's nothing but a ball of sunshine, drawing happy vibes from the world around her. Being with her...it's a pretty nostalgic feeling for me.
As the years went by, I began to hole myself up in my room more and more; going on an adventure with Sayori brings about a special sort of feeling I forgot I had in me.
The two of us enter the classroom. Sayori heads to the closet, and I follow.
"Let's see what we have here..." Sayori hums thoughtfully, pulling open the door. "Crayons!"
Sure enough, there's a big box of crayons sitting on one of the shelves. Sayori eagerly grabs the box. "They're the best brand, too! They're kind of dirty, though..."
Sayori starts pulling various crayons out of the box, reading the color names.
"We can just take the whole box with us, Sayori. Don't get distracted, we need to find-"
"Wait, I'm looking for my favorite color..."
I sigh. "Well, at least move aside so I can look for some poster paper."
"Ah, I dropped one by accident-"
Smack!
Bending down to grab the crayon, Sayori smacks her forehead right into the shelf. "Kya-!"
She falls to the floor, and the crayons spill all over her lap.
"Owowowowow..."
"You okay?"
"My forehead..." Sayori whimpers, clutching her forehead.
"Here, lemme check for brain damage."
Since Sayori is sitting on the floor, I grab her by the waist and pull her out of the closet.
"You have to move your hands, Sayori..."
"But it hurts..." Sayori sniffles.
"Just do it for a second, okay?"
Sayori slowly releases her hands from her forehead, and I gently brush her bangs to the side.
"Ow-!" Sayori cries out, tears welling in her eyes.
"Sorry..."
There's a huge red mark in the center of her forehead. A bump is starting to form, as well.
"Man, that's going to swell up. I think there's only one thing to do, Sayori."
Sayori winces. "What's that?"
"Amputation. You can live without the top of your head, right?"
Sayori starts to giggle, but quickly stops, hissing in pain. "Ow...it's hurts to laugh."
"I'll get you some ice...actually, I'm not sure where I'll find ice around here. I guess I'll get you a cold drink, instead."
"Kaito, you don't have to...I'm fine looking like a unicorn-"
"Ahaha, what are you saying? Don't worry, I'll be right back."
I pat Sayori on the shoulder and run out into the hallway. Locating the nearest vending machine, I get her some apple juice and a cookie.
I return quickly back to the classroom, prizes in hand.
Sayori has one palm on her forehead, and is using the other hand to clumsily scoop crayons back into the box. "At least they were already in the wrong spots before I spilled them..." she mutters to herself.
"Here you go, Sayori." I hand her the apple juice.
"It's nice and cold..." Sayori breathes.
Instead of putting the bottle against her head, she opens the cap and begin drinking from it.
"Sayori, what are you doing? That's for your forehead, idiot!"
Sayori smiles. "Sorry, I forgot..."
Screwing the cap back on, Sayori places the bottle against the bump on her head. "It stings..." she whimpers.
"Just bear with it, it'll feel better soon. Looks like you cleaned up most of the crayons, so that's good."
"Hey, Kaito," Sayori begins, "this kind of reminds you of growing up, doesn't it...?"
"Eh? What do you mean?"
"You know we used to play outside all of the time...I would always try and keep up with you. You were kind of oblivious in some ways...like I'd usually fall behind or had trouble climbing on the things you did...but sometimes when I tried to do things I couldn't, I would get myself hurt."
Sayori lets out a deep sigh. "I'd fall and scrape myself, or get a bump...and I would start crying really hard. You would always rush over as quick as you could. You would try really hard to get me to stop crying. It was almost like you blamed yourself and were afraid of getting in trouble if someone found out...even though it wasn't your fault at all, you know?"
"A lot of times it was my fault, though. Remember when I convinced you that we could climb that tree in your backyard? We ended up falling, and you broke your arm."
"So did you! But I didn't know it at the time, because you were too busy trying to make me feel better."
"I deserved the broken arm. You didn't."
Sayori smiles. "I don't think you realize it, but you're always thinking about other people. Even after all these years...you're rushing to help me, even though I'm just being clumsy. You're really a sweetheart..."
"D-don't call me that! And I don't really do this kind of thing all the time...I guess when it comes to you, it just feels natural. I guess that's what happens when you've been friends for so long."
"Really? Maybe you're right..." Sayori says thoughtfully. "Kaito...I'm so glad nothing's changed between us. Do you think it'll be like this forever?"
"You can't get rid of me this easy, you goof."
"I'm so happy..."
We remain in silence for a moment.
Sayori's usually so silly and clumsy on the outside that when I see her deep in thought like this...
"Oh, by the way, I got you a cookie."
Immediately, Sayori brightens up. "Thank you, Kaito!"
"The machine was out of chocolate, but they did have one with chocolate chips."
Sayori takes the cookie. "I like chocolate chip! Anyway, we better head back. I don't want Monika to worry."
"She's going to see your forehead either way," I tell Sayori.
"Not if I hide it under my bangs!"
Sayori hops to her feet, before crying out in pain. "Aah!"
She clutches her forehead again.
"Don't stand up too fast after hurting yourself!"
"Uuu..." Sayori whimpers.
I swing my arm over her shoulder. "I guess it can't be helped. Here, lean on me."
"It's okay," Sayori says bravely. "I'm good standing on my own."
"Alright," I tell her, releasing Sayori from my grasp. "Just let me know if you feel lightheaded, alright?"
"...Okay."
"Anyway, let's go."
*Save