Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Yuuko woke up begrudgingly, like she usually did on a school day. She knew that nothing that interesting would happen, at least she didn’t expect anything interesting to happen. It was usually the same events each day, Yuuko would either find her friends walking to the train station, and in that case be on time, or not find her friends, knowing she would be late. Then she would pester Mio or Mai into letting her copy her homework, knowing that she’ll never be motivated enough to do it herself, she’d eat lunch, then go back home or tag along with her friends until the night crept in. Rinse and repeat until something ridiculous happens, then rinse and repeat again.

Yuuko opened the door and stepped out into the streets of Tokisadame. It being a Friday, she was in a marginally better mood, but not by much. Something seemed different about her as of late, like she lost her flow. Maybe it was the thought of the school year ending soon. Maybe it was the fact she didn’t do that great on her entrance exams. Maybe it was something else. Whatever it was, the rest of Trio Sucharaka & Co. definitely took notice. The farther she walked down the street, the more she realized that she was probably late for school. Sure enough, she checked her phone once she got to the train station, and she was 3 minutes late to her train.

“Shit,” she thought. “I can say hello to the hallway windows again.” Except, she wasn’t alone. Mai ran over to the train platform, visibly sweating and fidgeting. Yuuko was surprised, Mai was never late for the train. In fact, she could only remember one other time that Mai was late for school, period.

“Yuuko…” Mai hoarsely called.

“You alright, Mai?” Yuuko asked, delivering it in an uncharacteristically sweet tone. She cleared her throat in protest.

“The dogs decided to have their last stand at the front door. I had to threaten to shoot them as a last resort.” Mai answered nonchalantly.

“Ehh?!” Yuuko’s screech of concern echoed through the outdoors. Flocks of crows flew away as the sound traveled. “What is wrong with you?!”

“They were mad that I forgot to walk them yesterday. In my defense, I needed to finish that big project due today.”

A look of horror creeped upon Yuuko’s face. “The… project? Today??”

Mai sighed and patted Yuuko on the shoulder. “I’m sure you’ll be fine…”

Yuuko knew better. That project was supposed to be worth more than everything else she had ever done at school. Mai had been working on it for weeks… allegedly. Mai wasn't exactly the golden schoolgirl, she too had trouble with motivation sometimes, but would eventually crack under pressure and work very fast. Despite this detriment, teachers always loved Mai's work, she would get all these compliments about she put so much effort in, when in reality she may have just cobbled something together in a quick moment and then pray it would stick. Yuuko couldn't think of a time where this had failed for her,  and if she could find such a moment, it was most likely one of the daily literature or English assignments. Mai knew it was unhealthy, she knew that she should manage her time better, but she always talked about "indulging in her interests" to Yuuko. She never specified what she was doing, often blushing and telling Yuuko that would be something she wouldn't get.

That sentiment, though, that Yuuko "wouldn't get it." It perplexed her. What wouldn't she get? What would be so wrong for her to know? She decided to go for… a light interrogation.

"Hey, Mai…"

"Huh?

"What were you, uh, up to… besides the project? Surely you were trying to put it of, like usual."

"I've been working on it the entire time. I… I don’t know. I wanted to be proud of something. Don't you remember the prompt, Yuuko?"

"Ehh… you're asking the wrong person…"

"It was 'create something that illustrates what you want to do after high school.' I made a few Maitreya statues and a diorama to put them in. I also made a figure of myself standing in the center."

"So… you want to be a wood carver?"

Mai fell silent. She sighed.

"Truthfully, I've always seen myself as something… more. I'm more than a sculptor. I'm a musician, I'm an artist, I'm… a lot. It's a lot to think about."

"Then… why didn't you represent that side of you?"

"I- I…"

The next train arrived, with Mai getting on hurriedly, Yuuko walking behind her. Mai sat down  and Yuuko sat beside her. Since school was starting in only five minutes, there weren't a lot of people on board, mostly occupied with the elderly performing errands.

"So…" Yuuko initiated.

"Ah!" Mai squeaked, not expecting Yuuko to be that interested in her response.

"So, why didn’t you represent the rest of yourself?"

Mai blushed, burying her face into her bag.

"Ah… I understand." Yuuko knew her friend well enough to know when she didn’t want to talk. For Mai, this was both a blessing and a curse, because it meant that she could evade embarrassing topics. But at the same time, she wanted to be able to express herself around Yuuko, because she was the person she trusted most in not making fun of her. Mai began to doze off a little, getting lost in her thoughts.

She thought about the hill near the river, a sight all too common to her conscience now.

"Why… why did I have to say it was a joke… I know that I love her more than anyone else in this world… why did I risk my chances? What if it's never obtainable?!"

Normally, she wouldn't show much external emotion in times like this, but she could feel a lone tear streak across her fabric-sheltered face. She didn't exactly know why she was acting this way now, though… Was it Yuuko's genuine curiosity as to why she wasn't willing to express herself, a known quirk of which Mai was trying to work on? Was it Yuuko's respect for her boundaries? Or was it… the comforting nature of being alone, or at least close to it… with Yuuko… Mai shoved her face deeper into her bag, attempting to hide her emotions which she knew needed to be displayed, but to which she didn't have to courage to bring forth.

The train made a stop, to the horror of Mai. She took deep breaths and looked up, trying to not make eye contact with Yuuko. Yuuko, however, noticed that Mai's face was still tinted a bit red.

"Eh, dug a bit too deep in that bag there, huh?" Yuuko chuckled and hopped off the train, looking back at Mai. Mai soon walked off as well as followed Yuuko. As expected, Yuuko failed to see Mai's blatant display of emotion. A blessing, and a curse…

Chapter Text

Walking through the hallway of Tokisadame High School when you were this late was something of a spectacle for Mai. No one was outside their class, it was oddly quiet, and the only company you got if you were unlucky enough to arrive alone was the sunlight beaming through the windows. For Yuuko, it only served as a reminder for how careless she was. She had been in this situation too many times to appreciate its beauty, and approaching the doors of Class 3-Q only gave her an ever-present sense of dread. Even though Ms. Sakurai would exhibit her overly kind nature towards the missing project, Mr. Takasaki would still be first to receive the project until Sakurai arrived. Yuuko knew his policy all too well by now. Standing in front of the door with a sign on the wall labeled "3-Q" just above it, she sighed and opened the door slowly, with Mr. Takasaki collecting the projects at the front of the room. He turned to face the door, his neutral expression slowly shifting to one of annoyance.

"Aioi."

Yuuko knew she was guilty, she just had to put the final nail in the coffin.

"No… I don’t have my project."

Mr. Takasaki stood up with his fists clenched at his sides, slowly approaching the door. Yuuko felt her legs trembling.

"Tell me honestly, how have you managed to accomplish nothing with your project?"

"I-I… Still don't know what I'm gonna do after high school. This world has too many occupations and tasks for one to complete, I just… don't know where to start…"

Mr. Takasaki began to shift back to his neutral demeanor. He looked up from Yuuko's eyes, out the window. He then looked back into Yuuko's eyes solemnly.

"I… understand where you're coming from, but you have to understand that life is more complicated than doing the things you want to do. Sometimes… society just decides what you should do."

They both fell silent.

"Um, I only ask this out of curiosity, but… did you want to be a teacher, Mr. Takasaki?"

Takasaki's eyes widened. No student had ever asked him such a question before. In fact, he never really questioned it himself.

"Well… I was fine with the possibility of being a teacher, but… truthfully, I always wanted to be a poet. I'm glad that I get to analyze the great literature of this country, but sometimes… I wish that I could contribute. I want to be recognized."

Yuuko's eyes lit up.

"A… poet? Well, I've kinda wanted to be a poet, too…"

"Eh? Really?"

"Yeah… I've been writing a lot of haikus recently, but I can never think of any ending stanzas except for 'Mogami River'." She chuckled to herself.

"Well… maybe that's just your trademark."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that the Mogami River could be the defining aspect of all of your poems. It'll make you stand out."

Yuuko never thought of it this way, but it did sound nice to stand out.

"Mr. Takasaki…"

"Yeah?

"Do you think I should go for it?"

Takasaki stood there, thumb and index finger on his chin, earnestly thinking of a response.

"Go for it. Even if you think you have no hope, keep pushing for it."

"But what if another occupation pays more?"

Takasaki got down to Yuuko's level and put his hands on her shoulders.

"Passion always comes before profit. Why would you work a job you hate just to have money?"

"Does that mean you hate your job as a teacher?"

"N-no! I have regrets about being a teacher, but I'm at least grateful to share the literature which could possibly inspire our youth."

Yuuko looked at the floor for a few seconds, feeling out her commitment for the hobby in her head. She then looked back up at Takasaki.

"I'm gonna be a poet, then. And I'll try to never give up."

"That's the spirit." Takasaki stood up straight and cracked his knuckles. "If you have any poems written down, you can turn them into me and at least get partial credit."

"I have my project ready, Mr. Takasaki." Mai finally interjected.

"Minakami?!"

"I arrived late because my dogs wouldn't move from the front door. I got on the same train as Yuuko."

"Ah… very well. Turn it in on the table over by the window."

Mai walked in and assembled her diorama, carefully aligning and angling each statue. Yuuko turned in a few pages of poems she had written over the past few months.

"May I stand in the hallway with Yuuko, Mr. Takasaki?" Mai asked.

"Huh…? Uh, sure."

Mai grabbed Yuuko's hand and brought her into the hallway, closing the door to the classroom.

"Why would you wanna stand out here?" Yuuko asked politely.

"I came here to confess something."

Chapter Text

Mai stared at Yuuko for a few seconds, just outside the doors of Class 3-Q. She sat down, and gestured for Yuuko to sit down as well. Mai sighed and looked into Yuuko's eyes for a second, but then decided against it.

"So... about my career choices..."

"Yeah?"

"When I said that I was a lot... I wasn't exaggerating. There's so many things that I want to do that I'm not sure I can make a living off of. I want to be able to sell my music, I want to be able to sell my art... on paper. I'm confident in my sculptures, you know?"

"Yeah."

"But I don't know if it's achievable... I feel like people will just scoff at me and tell me I'm going nowhere. That it's all dumb and a waste of time."

"Yeah..."

"But after your talk with Mr. Takasaki... I feel like I have a bit more hope."

"That's good! I feel like you can be just as successful as me."

"But there's also other things that I've felt the same way towards..."

"Hmm?"

"I... don't wanna go too deep into it, but I wish that I could talk about my interests around anyone. I wish that I could talk on end about the things I... love..." Mai blushed and smiled a little, with Yuuko being in her mind again.

"Then... why not talk about them now?"

Mai looked up at Yuuko, staring into her eyes a little longer than she should have. Yuuko blushed a little, putting her hand in front of Mai's eyes.

"Mai?"

"Huh? Oh... um, I would talk about them, but I feel like you would appreciate a more... intimate experience with them."

"Ah... I see."

"...Would you like to go back inside?"

"Sure."

Mai stood up by herself, but noticed Yuuko struggling.

"Ah... cramps..." Yuuko groaned.

"Here." Mai pulled Yuuko up by the hand and helped her to her seat. Yuuko's hand felt really nice to Mai. It was a little soft, almost like she had moisturized it before leaving her house. Mai was so infatuated with Yuuko's hand that she kept holding it blankly even as Yuuko was sitting.

"Mai?" Both Yuuko and Mio called out.

"Ah... sorry... I don't know what's up with me, I think that I didn't get enough sleep last night." Mai knew she was lying. She quickly sat down and pulled out a book to read, which was hidden behind another book. Mai had decided to bring "How to Open Up to Girls, For Girls", a decision which didn't seem like much to her the night she packed it, but meant the world to her now that Yuuko had become so desirable to her.

"Where were you two, even?" Mio asked, a tad annoyed. "I had to get on the train by myself, and you know how much I hate that!"

"It's a long story." Mai replied. "We can discuss it during lunch... or at least... most of it."

"Yeah..." Yuuko added tiredly. "I wish today would be over already."

"You say that every day." Mio commented. "Are you sure you aren't in like... a 'funk', or whatever people in America call it?"

Yuuko sat there, arms crossed and head rested, facing Mai's desk. She stared blankly, focusing on the small details of the timid girl, some more personal than others. She noticed the shimmering black hair reacting to the light from the windows, the small creases on her uniform shifting while she breathed in and out. She envisioned a beautiful girl towering over her, holding her in a warm embrace, a girl talking for extended periods of time, shaking her hands as she formed sentences mostly comprised of words Yuuko didn't understand but still felt engaged in. She envisioned a girl with shining cherry red lipstick kissing her intimately as she held her hand, like the girl had done to Yuuko just a moment before. Yuuko's face slowly shifted to a shade of rhubarb as she buried her face in her arms.

"Maybe." Yuuko finally replied with a dampening quality. She looked back at Mio. "Maybe I am in a funk. I gotta get it together."

"Heh. Easier said than done."

Yuuko felt a little offended by this comment, and felt the need to defend herself.

"H-hey!" She spoke up. "I can damn well get it together! i
In fact, I'll get it together so well it'll damn near blow your socks off!" "Heh. Yeah... I'll get something together..."

"Ah... It's not like I doubted you..." Mio replied, confused by Yuuko's sudden burst of energy. Well, it was actually a welcome surprise for her. Yuuko had been down in the dumps so long that Mio nearly forgot Yuuko could have energy. "So... what's going on with the both of you?"

Mai looked up from her book, blankly staring at the front wall, then turning to face Mio.

"...What do you mean?" Mai asked in her generalized monotone voice.

"I mean... that. You seem so much happier when you're talking to Yuuko, and you seem to have way longer conversations with her. Do you just hate me?"

"Wh-what're you talking about?! Why would I hate you??" Mai replied with a genuine concern.

Yuuko hadn't noticed it previously, but it was true. Mai seemed to have more thoughtful and longer-lasting conversations with her than with anyone else. It was like she was Mai's life-link. Her one hope... her soulmate. That word reverberated and echoed off of the hypothetical walls in Yuuko's mind. She liked that word. She wanted to be that close to Mai. Of course she knew that word could be used platonically, but with Mai... she wanted it to be different. But different how? Surely she didn't mean it romantically... right? The possibility seemed to overwhelm Yuuko, as she returned back to shielding her arms, leaving the ongoing conversation as barely audible.

She remembered the hill by the river.

She remembered the first time Mai showed vulnerability around her.

She remembered the sunset which lit Mai's features gorgeously.

Yuuko gasped and emerged her head, rapidly grasping both sides of her desk as sweat beaded on her forehead while she breathed sparsely. Mai and Mio both looked at her. Yuuko shielded her face once again using her palms.

"What is wrong with me... Why can't I just be normal? Why can't today just be normal?!"

"And Yuuko..." Mio began.

"Fuck..."

"You seem... tense. Are you alright?" Mio finished, with Yuuko relieved that she didn't ask questions that personal. Yuuko showed her eyes once more and brought herself back into the conversation.

"Sorry if I seem... mad, or something. I just wanna make sure my friends are doing okay."

"Ah... I... Yeah." Yuuko replied subconsciously.

"Although..."

"Huh?!"

"You seem to be around Mai a lot more than usual, even when you don't mean to. I feel like you're just... gravitating towards her."

Yuuko felt surprised at the unexpected kindness exhibited by Mio. If anything, Yuuko thought that she would be jealous about her behavior, thinking it was crush-oriented. Which, um, it totally wasn't... Yep.

"Ah- Um- So..." Yuuko attempted to reply, but failed to make a coherent sentence. There was so much going on in her mind at once and she didn't know what to do with it.

"I... I think... Maybe..." Mai was also having trouble thinking of an explanation for it. She didn't feel like Yuuko could already be in love with her, yet she also wanted her fantasies to come true. She wanted to treat that girl to an all-expense paid dinner as she flaunted her curves on a sharp red dress. She wanted Yuuko to see a side to her that was more gentle, caring, and... and... motherly. She could imagine taking care of her adoptive children with Yuuko, watching them grow up, eventually going to high school like they had at this present moment.

The girls didn't realize it, but they were looking at each other, expecting one of the two to speak, but they sat in silence, each running her own thoughts in a cloud which, while currently disconnected, desperately wanted to join with the other. It was serene for Yuuko and Mai, and lightly disturbing for Mio.

"Surely this is just one of your guys' pranks, right?" Mio tried to remark casually, but she was unsure on what the intentions of the girls in front of her were.

"What is?" Mai replied, breaking eye contact with Yuuko as if she wasn't daydreaming a moment ago.

Mio swapped her looks between the two girls, Mai staring at her and Yuuko still facing Mai.

"Do you two... have something going on?"

"Ehh?!" Mai blushed and darted her eyes around. "Am I really that obvious... around HER?!"

Everyone noticed Nano Shinonome approaching their desks.

"What's everyone talking about here?" Nano asked with obliviousness.

"Dear God... This might be the end for me..." Mai thought with horror.

Chapter Text

Nano sat at the desk next to Mio’s, looking at Yuuko with confusion.

“Aioi?”

Yuuko slowly turned to face Nano, almost forgetting that she was even at school.

“Ah, Nano! Selamat pagi!” Yuuko shook her hand and got back into the conversation. Again.

“You should’ve seen them a moment ago, they had their eyes LOCKED like they were in a staring contest, except it felt oddly… intimate? It was so weird.” Mio recalled the moments between the two girls.

“Ohhhhh fuck. I forgot Mio was there.”

Mai was visibly uncomfortable by Mio recalling events of such magnitude, but she probably had it coming.

“Um… did everyone notice the… cherry blossoms blooming?” Mai interjected hastily in order to stall the impending doom.

“Isn’t it February, though?” Nano noted, knowing that cherry blossoms start blooming in March in Tokisadame.

"W-well, mine sure are blooming! Right, Mai?" Yuuko added, trying to give her more credibility.

"Um… yeah…" Mai replied out of necessity.

"What did I just defend her for? What am I trying to justify?" Yuuko questioned as the silence grew louder between the four girls. Slowly, Yuuko and Mai looked back at each other, but broke eye contact when they realized what they were doing.

“I swear you two have to be pranking us.” Mio insisted.

“I know what’s going on.” Nano ominously delivered.

Mai and Yuuko were visibly sweating, darting their eyes around in horror, feeling that Nano probably knew all along.

“You’re planning my BIRTHDAY PARTY, aren’t you?”

While they would hate to take advantage of Nano’s lack of awareness, Yuuko and Mai seemed to telepathically agree to cover up their not at all connected behaviors.

“Yeah, yeah! We have soooo much planned! We’d hate for you to know about it!” Yuuko lied, not that she really wanted to lie. She did think about planning something for Nano’s birthday at some point, of which Mai nodded in agreement.

“Ah, sorry for interrupting you, then! I’ll be sure to not eavesdrop!” Nano walked back to her desk, Yuuko and Mai simultaneously sighing in relief.

“Maybe you both need to get it together.” Mio commented. “Are you sure there isn’t something I need to know about?”

Mai and Yuuko went into states of prolonged thinking.

“Together… physically? Like… meeting, physically?” Mai finally asked.

“Uh, I think that… maybe… we should have time to think it over…” Yuuko added.

“I think I understand.” 

Yuuko blushed and nodded. Mai also blushed, feeling like she had almost confessed her feelings for Yuuko.

“We’ll think about… all of this… over the weekend.” Yuuko delivered to Mio.

“I'm sure you will." Mio finally turned around, noticing a lack of activity in the classroom. She savored the moment by dozing off, a rare sight to see. Yuuko faced Mai, who went back to reading. She looked back at her desk, which had a blank sheet of paper. Yuuko picked up her pencil and began to think of a new poem to write.

“Luscious black hair waves

In the wind through the sunset

Mogami River”

Yuuko felt a fuzziness take over her, she felt an urge to write more.

“Entering her house

She greets me with warm smiles

Mogami River"

Yuuko looked around to make sure no one else was watching her write, she surrounded her arms around her paper and wrote more.

“Rest on her shoulder

Feel her warmth across my face

Mogami River”

“Stroking hair softly

As she sings with her sweet voice

Mogami River”

At this point, Yuuko kept writing without thinking of her environment. Her consciousness rested as her true feelings flourished on paper.

“This feeling is nice

Her arms wrapping as we sleep

Mogami River”

“She moves close to me

Interlocking lips of red

Mogami River”

“I stand here with her

Flowers blooming as we stand"

She paused for a moment.

"We both say ‘I do’”

Yuuko’s consciousness came back to her, now faced with a full page of haikus. She gasped and stuffed them away before anyone could read them. She thought that she might've gone insane. But then she remembered that she had been constantly staring at the girl next to her. But maybe it's because she has nothing better to do today, surely it has nothing to do with… love … right?

It was all too overwhelming for Yuuko. She wished that she had an answer, something to keep her at peace, but she just didn't know. She felt like she was too young to have feelings for anyone, let alone girls, but why would she feel the need to limit herself? She just wanted to go home, but she knew that it was still a few hours away.

At lunch, Nano was back next to Mio’s desk. Yuuko stared blankly at her food, her mouth open ajar. She couldn't think about anything except how she might love her best friend, but in what way?

"Yuuko." Mai put her hand in front of Yuuko's face.

"Wha- ..huh?"

"I can tell you're worried about something. If you want, you can… tell me about it… later."

Yuuko had wanted to say "tell me what you're worried about first," but felt like it implied that Mai felt the same way towards Yuuko, worrying about if they could get together or not. She needed to say something, though.

"Um… I need to… do… research, first."

"Ah."

"Y-you can also talk to me if you're, um, worried about anything…"

Yuuko never felt so awkward in her entire life. She just wanted to go home. Home was still on her mind, she just wanted to be able to be a step closer to feeling normal.

"I wish that there was a big fire at school so we could all go home early…" Yuuko groaned.

"Well, if you say your wish out loud, it'll never happen." Mio commented.

"I feel like it's unlikely that there could be a fire at school," Nano added, "there's barely anything that happens here-"

Just then, the fire alarm went off. The four girls sat in shock for a few seconds as students rushed out the door and down the stairs.

"I don't know if you're blessed or cursed, Yuuko…" Mio commented they all stood up and bolted down the hallway.

Leaving the front doors of the school and scanning the windows, it became obvious where the fire started:

Ms. Nakamura.

This was the second year in a row where she had failed to mix chemicals correctly, which caused another chemical fire.

"Sounds like we all get to go home." Mr. Takasaki said as he viewed the fire with intent. "Now I get to continue my binge of The Eric André Show! Sweet! See y'all Monday!" Takasaki got his bike and cruised down the road.

"What time does the train come in the early afternoon, anyway?" Yuuko asked herself in front of the audience of four.

"I dunno. Let's just get walking and find out." Mio replied as she started down the road.

The four of them moved mostly in silence, occasionally trying to start conversations. Unfortunately, everyone was too burnt out to get past the first two sentences of a conversation. Sitting at the bench on the train platform, Mai had been sitting closer to Yuuko than usual. She kept opening her mouth expecting to say words, but she felt tangled in anxiety. When the train arrived, she once again sat next to Yuuko, looking down at her legs and wishing that she could rest her hand on Yuuko's thigh while resting her head on her shoulder. Yuuko kept looking at Mai's forehead blankly, breathing through her mouth shallowly as thoughts of her lips moving and making contact with Mai's head formed. Even as everyone walked home together, Mai still felt an urge to hold Yuuko's hand. However, Yuuko and Mai walked alone as they approached the Minakami household. Before she said goodbye for the day, she turned to Yuuko, blushing a little, and silently waved while smiling.

"I'll catch you later, Yuuko."

"See you Monday… probably…"

Mai walked through her front door as Yuuko stood still for a minute, in awe of how overwhelming today was. She went on towards her house, finally making it through her front door. She overheard her mom getting a call about the fire at school, and how students were released early. She continued to laborfully advance toward her bedroom before flopping on her bed.

"Mai…" Yuuko groaned to herself.

She could hear her mom approaching her room, she sighed, expecting to be interrogated over some assignment she had forgotten. She seemed to have forgotten that parents are afraid of their children being hurt in horrific accidents.

"Oh, Yuuko! Are you burnt? Did you breathe in the smoke?" Ms. Aioi rapidly inquired.

"No, mom… just… exhausted…"

"Oh… how come?"

Yuuko looked back at everything that happened. She felt dazed and confused. She knew she needed help, but she couldn't be too specific yet… she'd need to tread lightly.

"I… um…" Yuuko started. "I can't put it into words! What do I ask about?!" "What… does love mean to you?" "Fuck! Why- Oh. That could actually be a good place to start."

"Eh? What for?"

"Um… I don’t know. I just… need help, with… this feeling."

"Well… it depends on the context. Love is an emotion. People feel emotions at different intensities in different scenarios. You could have the biggest emotional high of your life getting into a good school, and have the biggest rush of happiness of your life. You could also feel happy by just getting through the day. People have come up with different words for these scenarios, such as "overjoyed", or "content" in these scenarios. It's not really a yes/no type of situation. It's… a spectrum. There's many words which mean happy, or sad, or afraid. Like the other emotions, the intensity of love just depends on the context. It's just a bit blurrier since everyone usually defaults to saying that they "love" someone, whereas people in other scenarios can use words from a spectrum to specify exactly how they feel."

"So… how do I tell if I actually… "love" someone? Like, in the romantic way?"

"Well, that word there. 'Romantic.' That's a word that people use to describe a type of love. You're aware that it's used in situations where people feel strongly towards each other, wanting to spend their years together and potentially get married. 'Platonic' love is another type of love. I could say that I love you, but you know that I don't mean it romantically, right?"

"Uh… I'd hope so…"

"Well, relationships that don't involve sexual or romantic intimacy usually fall under that category. I hope that explains it well enough…"

"Um. Yeah. Thank you for your insight."

"Any time." Miss Aioi departed, leaving Yuuko alone. However, Yuuko still couldn't help but feel like she was still missing a part of the equation. She knew what the different types of love were, but how could she know what applied to her feelings for Mai?

She pulled out her phone and opened Firefox. She kept staring at the search bar, her caret blinking as she thought of what to ask the ever-growing internet.

"how do i know tgat i love my best friend"

Many, many results. Obviously while correcting "tgat" to "that".

She felt like it was too broad of a query, but she didn't really know what else to ask. She easily spent at least half an hour skimming through articles and forum posts which seemed too disconnected to what she was experiencing. She came back to the search bar, again at a loss for what to ask. She could specify genders, but that seemed like it wouldn't provide enough results. Nonetheless, she went forward.

"am i in love with my best friend when we're both girls"

There were still a lot of results, which both excited and drained Yuuko. She saw a forum post titled "help!! i feel like i'm in love with my best friend, but we're both girls?? is this normal???" Scrolling through it, the answers seem to be unanimous and much more understandable.

"is it possible that you're a lesbian?"

"You could be a lesbian. Perhaps bisexual, if you still feel strongly towards men."

"if you think that you love her that much, you could be a lesbin!! i used to think i wasn't into girls but i just had to meet the right girl for it ^_^"

Yuuko felt a little dumb that it only took her a few minutes of searching the right keywords to get a potential answer, but she pressed forward.

"what is a lesbian"

She found an encyclopedia entry. Venturing forth, she began to submerge herself into the history and culture of lesbians, holding a genuine interest in the article and feeling empathetic to the discrimination faced by lesbians. And just to make sure, she began to think about potential interests in men, but seemed to come blank. To doubly make sure, she tried looking up shirtless men, but felt a rising disinterest and disgust towards mens' chests. Slightly terrified but wanting an answer, Yuuko tried looking for shirtless women. Immediately her eyes widened as she swam through a sea of hundreds of women in lingerie, each body being beautiful in its own way. Somehow, she still couldn't believe it. She decided to bite the bullet and let the internet have a say.

"am i a lesbian"

Yuuko navigated through one of the first quizzes she found. She breezed through the questions, answering as honestly as she could while still maintaining a fast pace. Her face beaded with sweat as her answer began to load.

"You are a lesbian."

Yuuko almost didn't believe it. She took the quiz again, giving each question as much thought as an ordinary school exam.

"You are a lesbian."

Yuuko still felt like this was a fluke. She went to another quiz, repeating the same procedure.

"Lesbian is what describes you, girl!"

"No, no, no, no… I can't be… that!! " Yuuko internally yelled. But then she remembered something. She slowly got a piece of paper out of her backpack. It was her poems from earlier today. She read through them all out loud. Word for word. She slowly shifted to a blush.

She had been in denial this entire time.

She didn’t quite know if she was relieved or distressed knowing she was a lesbian. Perhaps a mix of both. What would her friends think? What would her mom think? Her teachers? The world? The police? "Well, knowing what I gathered from the encyclopedia, cops don't seem to have feelings…" She thought.

Meanwhile, Mai was in her bedroom, trying to get something out of her mouth.

"Yu.. Yuu… Yuk- Ahh!!!"

She had been trying to say Yuuko's nickname again. She had been trying to rehearse for… a special occasion. She would want to call her by her nickname regularly around her, she just needed to perfect it. She just needed to stop thinking about how Yuuko was the best girl in her life.

"Yukk.. Yukko… Yukko."

Mai felt a hotness rise within her. She kicked her legs and shielded her face in embarrassment. "What makes this so different now?! Is it… the romantic connotations??"

Mai couldn't take it anymore. She needed Yuuko over at her house tomorrow to make plans. Maybe it would also be a good time to show her… the interests.

She got to her phone and starting messaging Yuuko immediately.

Back in Yuuko’s room, she navigated over to Mai's messages, wanting to ask her a question, but instead being greeted to this:

"please come over tomorrow"

Yuuko gasped, knowing that asking Mai personally would be more effective than doing it over text.

"sure, what time?"

"i'll try to be ready around noon."

Ready? Since when had she needed to be ready? Yuuko felt confused, but still accepted the invite.

"alright, see you then."

Then, Mai sent something unexpected:

"💜"

Chapter Text

It was dark in Yuuko's room. It was dark in her vision. Her eyes were seemingly welded shut as she tried to sleep. She was still worried about what had unfolded before her, but she tried to get into a deep enough slumber to forget about it. She dared not to open her eyes, but she felt like it was probably midnight at the very least. She breathed in, slowly breathed out, and tried to flush her thoughts out. It seemed to work, as she felt looser, and then suddenly felt nothing.

For a while, it was still dark. It was dead silent. Anyone consciously listening would fail to find evidence of life. Within her mind palace, a faint light began to grow from the center of her vision. As the light crept forward, Yuuko saw her arms illuminate. She twisted her wrist to make sure she could move. She attempted to walk forward, but doing so made her flip uncontrollably before she regained her balance. She seemed to be floating, but she didn't know why, yet. Perhaps some celestial entity would tell her that, once again, she was a failure. However, the light still accompanied no one.

Suddenly, a voice extended beyond the observable light.

"My dear Yukko…"

Yuuko squinted, trying to make out who could be calling her.

"Do you remember? Do you remember the times where we were alone, looking off into the distance?"

A tall and slender figure appeared to emerge. It had long, black hair and seemed to be wearing a flowy, white dress. As it approached Yuuko, she began to notice a halo above its head. She then noticed that it was wearing glasses, then she noticed… it was Mai… obviously. Yuuko's eyes felt widened as if she had woken up, but she was still in this ethereal state. She tried to move her arm, only to realize that it wouldn't budge. Perhaps Mai locked her in place, or maybe Yuuko was in a state of shock.

Mai was now inches away from her. Mai formed a smile and put her hand on Yuuko's soft brown hair. She flexed her fingers and lightly brushed her nails against Yuuko's scalp. Yuuko felt her face graced with a heat previously unheard of, as if she was in front of a flame.

Likewise, Mai's vision was also dark. But in her vision, she began to see her own angel. The angel struggled to maintain eye contact in the sudden romantic moment, parallel to her real-life behavior. It reminded Mai of the one sunset that she knew all too well. She wanted to close in on Yuuko's cheek to give her a kiss, but also found herself unable to move.

Within Yuuko's mind, she looked up at Mai and tried to form words.

"I…"

Mai looked at Yuuko's eyes intently.

"Mai, I…"

Yuuko felt her heart beating out of her chest. This wasn't even the real Mai, what was she scared about? This was her moment to practice! Practice what, she didn't quite know, but she knew this was a glimpse into how everything could unfold.

"Truthfully, Mai… I've always… loved you…"

Mai replied only in nods and then wrapped her arms around the girl and lifted her off the metaphorical ground. She let out a small giggle and then kissed Yuuko's forehead.

Mai's angel continued to dart her eyes around before Mai spoke up softly.

"I… I was never joking about loving you, Yukko…"

Yuuko wore an agape look, failing to form words with her mouth.

"I wish that I was honest with you in the first place… I only backed out because I didn't know how to process my feelings, I didn't know what others would think… but now I know that it doesn't matter. I know that I love you more than anyone else in the world, and I don’t care what others think."

Mai felt dizzy, she felt her legs tremble and she began to flip forward before her angel caught her fall. They locked eyes before they began to squeeze each other. Yuuko gave a soft and nervous kiss on Mai's forehead, and then there was nothing.

It was now morning. Yuuko had woken up exceptionally early, according to her internal clock, at around 9:32 AM. Mai had laid in her bed for a while, attempting to process what just happened. Yuuko got up hazily, looking out her window. Initially, she couldn't think of much about anything, but then she remembered the course of events which had unfolded before her. Cautiously, she searched for her phone and then unlocked it, hoping that she just had a really long and in-depth dream. She checked her texts, and, to her horror… It all happened. She felt a panic creep over her, leading to her leaping forward and attempting to seem presentable. Somehow, she still felt like she was dreaming, but couldn't help but get ready anyway. 

There came to be a dilemma, however. If she tried to look too nice, she might set expectations too high, which would become increasingly awkward given the stakes at hand. But if she dressed too casually, it would give the impression that she didn’t care  which was obviously false. In the end, she decided to wear her yellow sweatshirt with a Mogura on it, with a green polo underneath; she also picked out some gray pants… not really any particular reason, they were just comfortable. This outfit met a nice middle ground to her, balancing on the thin wire between cordial and casual.

Mai had planned out this outfit for months, and deliberately avoided wearing it until today, no matter how much she thought she was alone. A red crewneck pullover sweater with black tights and a black skirt which rested just above her knees. Not really groundbreaking, but she never publicly indulged in a casual outfit featuring skirts that extended any shorter than her ankles. She wanted to get a reaction out of Yuuko, but not in a mean-spirited way. Mai wanted to surprise her enough that it somehow eased her. It was a risk that could very well fall flat, but Mai knew how much this interaction meant to the both of them.

A light noise began to graze the road outside her house. While Mai began to notice a lack of natural light in her room, surely it wasn't the perfect conditions she had been dreaming of…

Glancing out the window, she spotted thin strokes in her vision which could only ever represent the action of precipitation. The possibilities of the light noise had enchanted Mai for as long as she could remember, wanting to lull Yuuko into her arms as the rain calmed them in a dark and ambient room, hoping that Yuuko would whisper the sweet sounds of anxious love into her ear, worrying about someone else hearing that wasn't there. There was a lot that could happen today, and the rain would aid her.

Yuuko also began to hear the rain, nervous about the possibility of getting herself wet. But she felt that Mai was kind enough towards her to laugh it off and then dry her off. The abundance of rain during this season meant that she always carried an umbrella with her, and it seemed like today would be no exception.

She felt like she was mostly ready, not really sure what she could be forgetting. Checking the time revealed that it was only 10:13 in the morning. Exceptionally early considering her promise of being ready around noon, she thought it wouldn't hurt to ask to leave earlier. She picked up her phone, unlocked it to Mai's messages, realizing once again that this is really happening, and then saw that there was a new message sent a few minutes ago:

"i'm ready for you. come over soon"

This was enough of a confirmation to walk out and make her way over. She had departed from her mom on enough Saturdays that permission was unnecessary. She would just make her way back before sunset and everything would be fine.

The rain had intensified the last time she checked, and wind gusts had picked up, so steady hands would be key. Her tenacity held up all the way to the Minakami household, and she had successfully dodged any potential flying garbage launched by explosive forces. But a new challenge faced her: the door. A greeting. The tension of trying to accomplish something you never thought possible. She stood there for a few minutes before Mai caught on to the girl standing and overthinking, opening the front door for her, unprompted. Mai realized the implied hostility and smiled, trying to maintain eye contact but opted to look towards her chest, before realizing that the shoulder would be more appropriate.

"I love your outfit… it's always been one of my favorites from you…" Mai began softly, silently admiring the shade of yellow. "Come in."

She reached out for Yuuko's hand, which slowly got interlaced with her fingers. The two of them walked inside and Mai stopped in front of a door. Yuuko looked around, confused.

"Well… what're we stopping here for? You always told me that room was for utilities!" Yuuko nervously asked, not sure if she was about to die or not.

"There's… more to this room. Stuff that I've hidden from… everyone." Mai replied softly, and embarrassedly, it seemed. It wasn't particularly easing, but Yuuko still felt it to be a stretch that Mai was a murderer in her spare time. Mai slowly opened the door and began to walk down some stairs, choosing to not flip the light switch to the side of her. Yuuko held her hand tightly as they slowly descended, with Mai feeling more and more hesitant with every step. Eventually, a darkly-lit room pierced into view. Yuuko looked around the limited space she could currently see and found multiple monitors reminiscent of older televisions, a sofa, and walls consisting of organized shelves. Reaching the bottom, Mai looked to the ground and began to form her words.

"This… is where I spend a lot of my time after school. It's where I, well… indulge in my interests." Mai felt her already depleted confidence recede deeper into herself, not noticing Yuuko's agape look of honest curiosity.

"Why haven't you shown me this sooner?! This is so cool!!" Yuuko skimmed through labels on several bins, which all related to technology many hadn’t used in decades. Mai looked up, resisting tears, and then watched as Yuuko excitedly peeked into the bins,  gasping at the amount of old laptops and iPods Mai owned, looking at the large CRT television resting on top of a stand with at least a dozen retro consoles, then finding another CRT monitor hooked up to a custom Windows PC, with so many drive bay add-ons it created a plasticy sound with defined ridges as you ran your nail across the front of the case.

"Uh… well… I didn't know how you would react. I thought you'd see all of this as weird, or that I'm some kind of nerd…"

Yuuko looked back, walking up to her, unintentionally cupping Mai's cheek in her hand. She decided to roll with it.

"Mai… do you honestly think, from one weird girl to another, that I would be the one to shun your interests? And look at you…" Yuuko stroked the frame of Mai's glasses, looking into the lenses and blushing. "...do you honestly think that I don't already see you as a big nerd? You talk about things so thoroughly, racing through topics faster than I can understand, just because you're so passionate? It's… beautiful." Yuuko blushed at the sudden delivery of a compliment, but kept going. "Everything about you is beautiful. Your… your hair… your glasses, the way you stand over me… your… your… every… thing…" Yuuko continued to blush, not noticing that her hands were now stroking Mai's red cheek.

Mai squeezed Yuuko, resting her forehead on her brown hair.

"I have something else to say…"

Yuuko instantly felt chills attack her body. Was this it? What could she be setting up?

"Well, first, I should thank you… Thank you for always being my friend, supporting me through everything in this crazy life. I wouldn’t be the same without you… If you're inclined to answer this… do you- would you believe me if I said that I have autism?"

Yuuko relaxed her shoulders, thinking about it honestly. She had seen a lot of portrayals of autism on television, but they never really matched up with Mai. Though, Mai always seemed to dislike them one way or another, citing that autism is very different across people who have it, and isn’t really comparable to the stereotypes shown in media. If she had all that knowledge of autism, even telling me a bunch of traits relating to it which line up with her likeness, then maybe she could be autistic.

Mai gripped Yuuko's shoulders, hoping for an appropriate answer.

"Well… yeah. A lot of your behaviors feel like those that you've described to me sometimes. You don't really talk a lot unless it's with people you trust, you talk extensively and put your focus on a few key interests, you do repetitive motions under stress, and seemingly when you're excited... You just seem… perfect for a diagnosis like that."

Mai could feel tears well up and run down her face, transferring to Yuuko’s brown hair. She sniffled and looked into Yuuko's eyes.

"Thank you… that's really relieving to hear… I always thought something was wrong with me, that I wasn't "normal" enough. But you've taught me ever since middle school that it's okay. It's okay to be different."

She transferred her hands to Yuuko's, leading her over to a Denon cassette deck. On top of it was an album: "Running With Scissors" by "Weird Al" Yankovic.

"This was the first album I ever listened to in full, back when I lived in Alaska. I didn't really think about if I would like it when I first picked it up, I just thought the album art was cool and the artist name was funny. But as I listened to it, I realized it was more than that. A lot of the songs felt like they spoke to me in a way that I didn't really understand. It just felt different from the songs I listened to on the radio. Well, as I got older, and as I got to know you, I kept revisiting this exact cassette, hoping to know exactly why this was so important to me. Then it hit me. Weird Al is never afraid to try something out of the ordinary, he's always positive with his music, so confident in a way that I could never be. You would think I'd realize that by listening to an album by an artist quite literally named "Weird Al"... but I always thought of the word "weird" as an insult prior to listening to his music. You two have taught me that being weird is not a tragedy, it's a lifestyle. Even though I might've been afraid to share you this room, I still knew that you would support me. Just like how I'll always support you…"

Mai looked at Yuuko again, who was blushing while staring at the same angle which implied she was focused on her glistening hair.

"I have one more thing to ask you…" Mai directed Yuuko over to the sofa, of which Yuuko automatically locked hands with her. As they sat down, Mai was visibly anxious.

"Do you… love… me? Like, would you… would you be willing to live together… for the rest of our lives?" Mai felt that closing her eyes would make her less tense, so she closed them and began clearing every thought out of her mind.

"Would you want to raise our own children, hoping they grow up to be just as weird and proud of it as we are? Would you want to wake up side-by-side, taking a shower and getting dressed together? Would you want us to sleep together every night and hold each other??"

Yuuko already had her arms wrapped around Mai, blushing and trying to nod, before she realized that words were needed.

"Well… I'm really new to everything about love… But what I do know is that I love spending time with you. You're always so smart and beautiful and you listen to everything I say… You're always passionate and willing to accomplish anything… So, I think I'd love that. I think I love you… too…"

"W-what?! What did I just say?!" Yuuko's eyes widened as she looked back at Mai.

Mai was smiling, a lot wider than she normally did. She began to lay down on the sofa, gesturing to Yuuko to lay on top of her. Not wanting to be intrusive, Yuuko attempted to position herself on Mai's stomach, which ended up looking and feeling very awkward.

"Don't be shy… you can come up here…" Mai softly replied, circling her finger above her chest. Yuuko propped herself forward and hesitantly placed her head on Mai's chest. As she felt a soft warmth take over her, she melted into a state of serenity.

"You're so cute, Yuuko…" Mai curled forward slightly to plant a kiss on her brown hair. Yuuko was red hot, and sweat beaded from her forehead in surprise. "I love you so much… I always have… Even on that hill, so long ago, I loved you more than anyone else in the world. I was crazy to turn down such a possibility. But now I know we can be together… forever."

"I- I… I love you too, Mai… I wish that we could've had this sooner…" Yuuko reached behind her to stroke Mai's hair… awkwardly.

"You can also lay face down. I won't mind."

Yuuko slowly flipped over and accidentally pecked Mai's chest with her lips. She had no idea how she could possibly fail at being romantic his bad, but it seems that Mai still loved her.

"Um… can you kiss me again? I… it was really nice." Yuuko looked up at Mai, her lips looking more enticing than usual. "On the lips, maybe?"

Mai blushed and stroked Yuuko's soft and beautiful hair. 

"I never thought you'd ask…"

Yuuko inched forward and met up with Mai's lips, realizing she had no idea what she was doing. She tried her best, initially trying to find a good way to lock lips with her, angling her head and figuring out what to do with her hands, eventually wrapping her arms behind Mai's neck. As the kiss progressed, Mai began to use her tongue. Yuuko learnt that she could just act as if it was a gentle sword fight. It was a lot to learn, and she got very anxious. Plus, she could feel saliva trying to escape. She withdrew for a second to breathe, something she thought of as weird but was somehow enjoyable to Mai. She learnt to take small breaks when needed, and how to keep them discreet. It was very new territory for Yuuko, and something she wished she studied, but it was a moment she would never forget. It felt like they had gone at it for hours, progressively feeling more and more natural. Mai had continuously stroked Yuuko's hair with her nails, something Yuuko didn't even realize she loved. Yuuko, perhaps without thinking, kept circling her finger around Mai's chest. She felt tired, perhaps pacified. Yuuko stopped moving her tongue and laid on Mai's chest again. Mai hummed and continued stroking Yuuko's hair.

"That was wonderful… You're so beautiful…" There was a genuineness in Mai's voice that soothed Yuuko, and she kissed Mai's chest repeatedly.

"Mmm… you're gorgeous…" Yuuko moaned muffedly, beginning to stroke Mai's long and black hair at her neck.

The two of them laid there, exchanging compliments and declarations of love, for what felt like eons. It was addicting. It was beautiful. It was love.

Eventually, Yuuko brought her head up.

"Mai…"

Mai hummed in response.

"Does this make us… girlfriends?"

Mai looked at Yuuko's eyes, thinking honestly.

"Yeah… it does."

Yuuko blushed and felt her heart beat faster.

"W-well… I love my girlfriend, then."

Mai smiled, showing a little teeth.

"I love my girlfriend, too…"

Yuuko felt a jolt of heat pass through her. Was this what bliss felt like? Had she gone to heaven? Whatever was going on, she was glad she was experiencing it with her girlfriend.

"Y-you should… stay at my house for the night, maybe. I'd like my mom to know about this, if that's alright with you…"

"That's fine. Your bed is softer, anyway."

Chapter Text

It's been a while. I'm sorry for not posting anything like this before.

Yes, the title (and summary) are correct. You're My National Treasure... is cancelled.

For now.

I've mentioned in passing that I've become dissatisfied with the state of this project (mostly because I feel like I had Actually Just Plagiarized SpiderInStockings And Just Kinda Shrugged It Off. Sorry, Eve.) However, I didn’t really know how to approach a rewrite. It’d been so long since I engaged with Nichijou, that I didn’t trust myself to do it right.

That changed in September 2025.

After watching CITY THE ANIMATION over the summer, something in me was rekindled. I realized that I didn't have to just DREAM of MAYBE writing a remake, this show had given me enough motivation to just. Start! So, in September, I began to jot down ideas of what I wanted to see out of these characters. I’m very excited to eventually see these ideas on paper, and to see what my existing reader base thinks of them.

In preparation for this project, I opted to read through the official Vertical Comics localization of the manga from volumes 1-11. This means that I’ll also be implementing concepts introduced in chapters which were not adapted in the anime. So if you need an excuse to pick up any of the manga, start reading volumes 7-11 for me.

If you need a deadline to finish doing that… also known as a deadline for me to finish this…

December 2026.

I plan to start rolling out chapters by December 1st, 2026, but I will remain optimistic that I can get these released sooner. The main difference this time around is that I will actually write the whole thing first instead of writing chapters as I go, which I realized was a good idea when I read Adrift and Anchored by LadyLinq, and from my recent experiences as a writer. I also want to try some new things relating to multimedia, but I won’t make any promises.

Thank you all for being patient thus far. I promise it will be worth the wait.