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Somebody ran right into Takumi. As this was a daily occurrence by this point, it barely moved her. The only shocking thing was that it took so long. Usually, the other girl attached herself to Takumi the moment she left her dorm. Today, Takumi almost reached the cafeteria unmolested. She was getting worried if she was being honest.
“Man, you're not gonna believe it!” Gaku yelled right into her ear as she wrapped her hands around Takumi’s arms just like she did every morning.
“Hmm, what happened?” this early, she was more interested in what the cafeteria had for breakfast (croissants and assortments of jams; how did the school expect them to survive on that till lunch remained a mystery to Takumi) than whatever Gaku wanted to say.
She was terrible at judging what was actually noteworthy news. Regularly reporting on things like Yugamu breaking the uniform rules, Yugamu always broke the uniform rules; half the school broke them, including Takumi and Gaku.
She may as well be gossiping about the sky being blue.
This time, however, she had some genuine news to share, Gaku even lowered her voice to say it.
“Kyoshika and Kurara are totally dating. I saw them kissing behind the gym”, that explained why it took her so long to catch up to Takumi this morning, she was snooping.
“Kyoshika and Kurara?” she asked, loading her tray with hers and Gaku’s breakfast. Technically, as a scholarship student, Gaku should have taken advantage of the free food offered to them (today’s special: assortment of world’s saddest cereals), but there was nothing in the rule book that forbade paying students from sharing their meals, and so the two of them ate together.
Gaku nodded fervently.
“Yeah, Kurara even took her mask off and everything”, she waved for emphasis with the hand she wasn't holding Takumi with, then used the same hand to grab them a milk carton each.
“Without her mask? It must be serious”, Takumi dropped their tray on the nearest table and waited for Gaku to detach herself to sit down.
“I’m happy for them”, Takumi said before taking the first sip of milk.
“I hope you're not too upset, dude. I know you had a crush on Kyoshika.”
Every time. Takumi couldn't understand how they did it. Every time there was some piece of ridiculousness to be shared, her friends found the most awkward moment to share it. Was it that funny to see her spit a drink all over the place in shock?
She tried to use her experience in this matter to stop herself from spitting her drink out, and arguably succeeded, but all that did was make her choke.
So, instead of letting out a comical spray of milk, she was in an even worse position of coughing it out. Gaku actually moved away from her a little. Ugh, most of it landed on her clothes. Note to herself - never try this again.
“What… keh-keh… do you mean by crush on Kyoshika?”
Gaku looked aside, annoyed. “Come on, dude, you didn't do a good job of hiding it. You would always cheer her on when she was doing her Kendo shit, and talk with her about manga, and I know you don't care about that. Not to mention all the staring.”
“That does not mean I had a crush on her!”
“Sure, whatever you say, man… kinda sad you're 2 to 0 on romantic success.”
Not this thing again. Takumi felt herself blush and then blushed more with annoyance at the fact that she was blushing.
“I didn't have a crush on Darumi either!”
“Denying our forbidden love again? Oh, how you break my heart!”
“Don't rise to the bait. Don't rise to the bait. Don't rise to the bait. Don't…”
“Hi, Darumi”, she said in a tired voice. Darumi dropped her tray and herself in front of the duo. Hiruko, who was following her, did the same, but with much more grace, before she spoke.
“Don't worry, Takumi, I promise if you ever admit your feelings for Darumi, I won't hurt you… much. Besides, there is always space for more at my side.”
“But, mistress Hiruko!!! Puppy doesn't wanna share! Bark-bark!”
Hiruko shook her head. “Pupply may need to be disciplined then. Good dogs play nicely with others.”
Gaku made a face. “Guys, maybe not at breakfast?! And I’m sure Takumi is not interested in that freaky shit anyway!” she quickly went from disgruntled to excited, however, as she remembered the news she had. “You won't believe what I saw this morning!”
As Gaku shared the gossip. Takumi had to take more commiserations over her apparent romantic failures. But she just groaned over it without further complaints. They wouldn't help her any.
She had her reasons for obsessing over Kyoshika and Darumi before her; she shouldn't need to explain herself.
At least it led to Darumi and Gaku being friends now. Back before Kyoshika transferred to their school. Takumi inserted himself into as much of Darumi's stuff as she could. Gaku would insist on accompanying her every time.
“That girl is almost as big of a freak as Yugamu is! I can't just leave you alone with her!” And so they would hang out. All three of them, and to everyone's surprise, Gaku and Darumi got along great. Takumi was not prepared for that at all. It was a good thing that Darumi and Hiruko started dating. Because Gaku and Darumi were hanging out with each other so much, it made Takumi-
“I mean, it’s cool with Kyoshika and Kurara, but maaaan, almost everybody has somebody while I'm still single! What rotten luck this is!”
They were in the school bathroom now. Why did they always need to go to the bathroom together, Takumi would never understand, but she followed the same instincts.
“How many do we have now?” she asked as Gaku washed her hands. The girl looked at her quizzically.
“You know happy couples?”
“Ah!” Gaku took her hand out of the water with such momentum that the water sprayed all over Takumi. Ugh, at least she wouldn't have to change, like with milk this morning. Gaku turned off the tap and started counting on her fingers.
“Well, we got Kyoshika and Kurara, Darumi and Hiruko, Nozomi and Moko and Tsubasa and you-know-who.”
Takumi nodded. Tsubasa and Shion did a piss poor job of hiding their relationship, but Shion was the principal's daughter, and Principal Sirei hated it when the girl focused on anything but her school duties. So, the student body pretended not to notice to avoid getting the two in trouble. Takumi hoped this would last for as long as possible. Principal Sirei thought she and Takumi had some sort of rapport together, and Takumi knew that once the cat was out of the bag, everybody would make it her problem. She was not looking forward to it.
“At least Shouma and Takemaru are still in limbo, and the twins are too young. So there is that”, Gaku yawned. ”I don't know about you, but I would go insane in Takemaru's place.”
“Ehhhh… Me too, to be honest. Maybe it will fix itself soon.”
Gaku took Takumi by the hand and led her to their next class. She always remembered their schedule much better than Takumi did.
She snorted. “Sure, dude, maybe when they both hit thirty. If they're lucky.”
Takumi didn’t argue.
It came out during their last hangout with Takemaru. The girl confessed that she wasn't planning to pursue Shouma romantically until the other girl’s self-esteem got at least a little better.
“It would feel like taking advantage, you know? What if she freaking doesn't like me, but accepts anyway, cuz my feelings are more important than hers or something. I can't risk that shit!”
“I think she would reject you even if she liked you”, said Gaku, dealing cards for the three of them. Subtly trying to return all the missing Aces into the deck. She and Takumi were planning on trying out some tricks on the semi-delinquent, but once she started to bare her heart out for them, they decided to refrain. Communicating this by way of several panicked looks above distracted Takemaru's head.
“She would all be like: ‘A trash bag like me doesn't deserve to have a girlfriend’. And then she would tell you to find someone else.”
Takumi nodded; that seemed more Shouma style. Takemaru said nothing, but by the way she gritted her teeth, Takumi could tell that the possibility didn't escape her.
The Ace of Spades falling out of Gaku’s sleeve also did not escape her; that was a bad day for them.
“What about Yugamu? You didn't mention her, but she isn't dating anybody either.”
“Well…” Gaku trailed off and stopped awkwardly in the middle of the corridor.
“Wait, is she?” now that would be surprising. Kurara and Kyoshika, she could see coming. Whenever she would hide away to watch Kyoshika’s kendo practice, Kurara was also there, hiding just a few trees away, but Yugamu?
Yugamu kinda flirted with everybody, but didn't seem to romantically end up anywhere. Takumi started to worry that the girl may have her sights set on Gaku… Worry only because Gaku would freak out if that happened, of course, not for any other reasons. But if that was the case, Yugamu gave nothing away, and with how much time she spent with Gaku, Takumi would notice her even if she used Kurara's flirting methods. Probably… It was Yugamu after all.
Gaku moved her hand from Takumi’s, briefly distracting her with a hollow feeling, before dragging her by the arm into an empty corridor. She brought their heads together before speaking, her warm breath hitting Takumi’s face. Thankfully, she missed how Takumi blushed at that.
“Okay, we don't know yet, that’s the thing. I don't know if you noticed, but Yugamu has been sneaking out of school recently.”
“I didn't”, said Takumi, desperately trying to focus on the conversation at hand.
“She totally does. We thought, me and Darumi, that she finally started killing people for real or something, but a few days ago, Darumi caught her doing that whole drawing hearts around someone's initials thing. Yugamu saw her and closed her notebook before Darumi could see whose initials it were, but she is totally crushing on someone for real. So she is going out, and she is totally either dating or stalking someone outside the school.”
“Huh, I didn't expect that”, she really didn't. Who could Yugamu be dating outside the school? One of the invaders, maybe?
“We wanted to follow her and see where is she going, but ehhh, you know the rules. Scholarship students can't leave the school without a permit and an approved destination. I can't risk my Scholarship, and Hiruko won't let Darumi risk hers. Unfair, like always. The least they could do is to make it apply to all the students. But as always, only us poors get fucked over.”
“That sucks”, said Takumi, nodding as if she wasn’t also using that privilege. It was a bit unfair that rule. Especially since they only put it in place to stop Ima from leaving school to go to one of her shifty jobs, but Takumi needed it to stay as it was. Otherwise, Gaku could follow her. It was a miracle that they noticed Yugamu sneaking out, but not her own weekly excursions.
“Soooo, we were thinking”, Gaku started, and Takumi felt the incoming annoyance like a hit to the sternum. “Since you're not a scholarship student, maybe you could spy on her for us?”
She needed to refuse. There was nothing good that would come out of spying on Yugamu. She opened her mouth to say no.
“Pleaseee Takumi”, Gaku looked up at her with her big, shining eyes. Takumi made a mistake of looking down to escape her mesmerising gaze, eyes landing right at Gaku’s chest.
“I guess I can try. If-if I see her leave or something”, she replied beet red.
“Thanks, dude”, Gaku hugged her as if she agreed to something actually important and not the same type of idiocy she always did. Gaku's head ended up right under Takumi’s chin. Takumi resented that hat she always wore. It would be nice if she could put her face in Gaku’s hair. If only it weren't here, or if the hole at the back was a bit bigger.
The rest of the day went pretty normally. The weather was nice for early March, and Gaku insisted they should eat their lunch outside. It was fine until a colder wind hit them, and Gaku wanted to cuddle for warmth. Then it was more than fine.
And now it was the part of the week that Takumi hated the most. Friday after classes was the only time Takumi really had time to do it. The only time Gaku was too busy to notice. Miraculously, several of her club activities coagulated on Friday. The DJ Club, the Electronic Music Club (formerly The Composers Club) and the weekly student council meeting. In Gaku’s official role as the treasurer and unofficial role as the school's party and festival coordinator. With all actual treasurer duties handled by the head of the council, Hiruko. Takumi often considered giving up on the chore she set for herself and joining in with her friend. She didn't care that much for any of those activities, but it would be fun to hang out with Gaku regardless. Except for the student council, where Hiruko ruled with an iron fist.
Gaku certainly liked to bring up how fun it would be to be there together. She even mentioned starting a Light Music Club. Which was the only musical club Takumi ever expressed interest in, but not one Gaku cared for, and consequently one they school didn't have yet.
But no, as it was, Takumi couldn't bring herself to give up on the only person who knew. As much as it sucked to actually talk to her.
A new school year will start soon. Maybe her schedule won't be as convenient, maybe then. It wouldn't be her decision. Takumi made enough decisions in her life.
The way it was, she took the same bus she took every week and suffered the long drive to St. Eva’s Correctional Facility for Troubled Young Ladies.
Stupid name, she thought, as she usually did when entering. Made her think that Eva ended up as a building for a whole three months, before they had that baseball match against the other school, where Eva showed up as a completely normal girl.
She was stalling, she knew. She always was. The receptionist, used to her visits, didn't even check her documents, just let her through. And then it was just a few minutes before she was in the meeting room with her.
“Again here, ugly Takumi? I would have thought that you would have given up on trying to assuage your guilty conscience.”
Why did she even bother?
“'Hello', would be nice, Eito. And what do I have to feel guilty about again?”
“Skipping your unfortunate human nature? There are just so many things, Takumi! You know I’m always shocked by your lack of imagination. I could sit here the whole day coming up with things for you to feel guilty about.”
“Are you going to say at least one of them, or are you just going to insult me like always?”
“I don't know Takumi”, Eito seemed to think it over. “How about the fact that we’re only here because of you.”
Takumi raised her eyebrow. “No? You're here because you tried to set the school on fire. I didn't make you do that.”
Eito smirked. “Stupid as always, Takumi. Incredible how much of a disappointment you are. I don’t mean you and me in this building. I mean, everybody being here.”
Oh. Oh! That’s what Eito meant. For all that, Takumi came here because, unlike everybody else Eito remembered, they didn't talk about it much. Usually, Eito would just insult her for a while, and then, annoyed, Takumi would leave. This was unexpected. Takumi felt herself tense.
“I don't… that wasn't my decision. I didn't make that wish.”
“No, you didn't, but you let Gaku do it. Didn't you? Or are you starting to forget like the rest of the rabble?”
Of course, Takumi didn't forget; she couldn't. Almost a year has passed, and she remembered it like it was yesterday.
Gaku asking her… not her back then. Gaku asking him to trust him. Gaku pushing Eito away from the boxes and then. And then Gaku made a wish… the wish.
Takumi didn't look at Gaku as he did it. You watch someone’s hands if you don't trust them. Takumi didn't want Gaku to think… So he forced himself to look at Eito instead. Watching Gaku’s back. But he could still hear him.
“Give me- Give me-” there was some hesitancy, as if he was deciding on what he wanted. Then he said it, in one breath, as if he was afraid that he might change his mind in the middle.
“Give me a Yuri Paradise for Everyone!”
Takumi didn't have time to think about how ridiculous it was. He could see Eito starting to mouth “What the-” the sound didn't even get to reach Takumi’s ears before the wish took them.
And now they were here, from two boys on the battlefield to two girls in the room. Eito was still talking.
“Gaku doesn't remember it, so all the responsibility falls on you.”
“You’re saying it as if this were a bad thing. We're all here under a real sky. There is no war. Kyoshika and Darumi, hell, even all the enemy commanders are alive and well. A nicer, happier world for everybody”, she clenched her fists. “Even you, Eito. You pretended for a while, but I know you can see things normally now.”
“If that’s what you want to call it”, Eito folded her arms and huffed a little in annoyance. “Just because I lost my sacred eyes does not mean I don't know how humans are. Disgusting, repulsive creatures. This is supposed to be a paradise, Takumi; humans are known for ruining those. And besides”, here Eito smirked, ”isn't it bothering you? How it changed you?”
Takumi felt herself blush. The problem was, it wasn't bothering her. The first few days, after the wish took place, she didn't even consciously register the change. There were so many things to get used to in this new reality that the fact that she was a girl now was pretty low on the list of priorities. Sometimes she spent weeks not thinking about it, only for it to hit her suddenly. She wasn't bothered by it, and that was what bothered her. She couldn't tell if it was the wish that made her that way or if she just never figured out that she… Gaku probably… you wouldn't wish for something like that if you weren't a little…
Agh, Takumi didn't know enough about things like that, and she was too scared to really check them out. No matter, she couldn't let Eito psyche her out.
“What-what about you? How is being a girl working out for you?”
Eito shrugged unperturbed, the jackass. “I don't expect a half-wit like you to understand, but gender was invented by wretched humanity. As it is, I don't particularly care either way.”
Takumi didn't get what the hell Eito meant by that.
She was getting restless; this was about as much Eito as she could stand. Unfortunately, Eito was unusually talkative today.
“Ah, well, I shouldn't have expected you to be able to think about such complicated topics. Let’s move on. Did you have any successes, or are you still a failure even when a wish is helping you?”
“What?”
“You know what I mean, Takumi. How are you doing with the ‘yuri’ part of yuri paradise?”
Takumi was stunned. Where was this coming from? As if hearing her thoughts, Eito continued.
“I was convinced that you've been out there snogging with Nozomi this whole time. Imagine my shock when I found out that she’s been with Moko for a while now. But now that I think about it, it's not that surprising. Who would want to date a cretin like you?”
Takumi needed to get out of here. This was getting too… wait, how did Eito know about Nozomi and Moko? Takumi never told her. No, no matter. Girls from all over the city went to this facility to start their delinquent romances; some must have been gossiping about their school. She got up, ready to leave. Eito was still talking.
“Only somebody as stupid as you, I suppose-”
“It was nice seeing you, Eito, but I must leave now.”
Eito looked up at her and shook her head.
“I can't believe this. Ahhh, I guess I can help you since I know you missed it. Do you want to know something, Takumi?”
“Don't rise to the bait. Don't rise to the bait. Don't rise to the bait. Don't…”
“What is it?”
“When she was making her wish, Gaku was looking right at you.”
Takumi closed the door to the visitation room behind her. Stupid Eito with her stupid bullshit. Ugh, why were they the only two that remembered? It made no sense; they weren't even the ones who made the wish. Takumi would-
Yugamu Omokage was flirting with the receptionist. Which, first of all - gross. What the hell was the woman thinking? Yugamu was like 20 years her junior, and she was at work. Second of all, Yugamu?
So shocked she was by it that she didn't even think to hide, and Yugamu noticed her. She walked to still stunned Takumi.
“Takumi-chan! Fancy seeing you there.”
“Hi, Yugamu. I- I didn't expect to see you here either. Did they finally take you in for your… well, everything?”
Yugamu smiled, “Oh, not yet. I know better than to leave evidence lying around. I'm just visiting someone.”
“Who-”, Takumi didn't finish the question. With sudden clarity, she knew the answer. It somehow felt as if life was playing a joke on her. Well, at least spying for Gaku wasn't necessary now.
“You're here to see Eito.”
Yugamu clasped her hands together. “You got it in one, Takumi. I assume you were here to see her as well. I didn't know you two were close”, there was an edge in that last sentence.
There was no hiding their connection, but how to explain it?
“We’re not. I… We used to be friends a long time ago, or at least I thought we were. So, I feel kinda responsible for that whole fiasco", Takumi shrugged. “Like if I made different choices… you know what I mean. So I visit her from time to time.”
“Oh, so there is a history there? If I didn't know any better, I would be jealous.”
Takumi frowned.
“Why are you visiting Eito?”
Yugamu grabbed herself by the arms and started drooling, making Takumi instantly regret the question. “I’m a girl in love, Takumi! Oh, I have been so enthralled by her killer drive ever since the fire. She had made such an impression on me. I had waited a while, afraid it was another fleeting fancy, but I couldn't get her out of my head for months. The way she snarled as the police took her away, the way she bit one of them. Be still, my heart! Then I spent some time too bashful to approach her, admiring from afar. Only recently have I overcome my shyness and managed to talk to her. Ohhhh, the thing she told me, Takumi! It was heaven! Pure heaven! I have been visiting her regularly since then.”
So: obsessed for months, stalked for months and then got here - Eito probably scolded and insulted her, and Yugamu found that hot.
Godspeed Yugamu. At least this one would probably go faster than Takemaru and Shouma.
“Whatever makes you happy, Yugamu. Did she really bite a policeman?” that part surprised Takumi. She would think that Eito wouldn't want to touch a ‘disgusting’ human with her mouth. Then again, the disorder was no longer in play. Adding biting to your repertoire of attacks was one way to take advantage of that.
“Oh, you don’t remember Takumi? It was quite the scene. She took out a chunk of meat, you see.”
“I don’t remember anything from the fire… Eito roofied my dinner that night”, Takumi grimaced, thinking about it. The first week in the new world, when Eito pretended not to remember. Takumi didn't expect the attack.
“Fooled again, Takumi," Eito said when they saw each other next.
Idiot. It wasn't even her that fooled her the first time. It was a completely different Eito.
“She didn't want to risk me being in a state to escape the fire. She really overdid it. I was out of it for a good week after. That's why I ended up in the hospital back then.”
“And here we all thought it was smoke inhalation that got you. Then I guess she only burned two rooms before they put it out. Not that much smoke to inhale, I should have known. And she poisoned you too... Exquisite! There was nothing about it in her documentation! Ahhh, what luck it was to run into you here!”
“I decided not to press charges on that. Principal Sirei was pissed, but I figured she was in enough trouble already. Also, could you not get excited over me getting poisoned? Thanks.”
“Sorry, sorry. I guess that also explains why Gaku had to carry you out of the building. And here we were all joking around that you're such a sleepy head that not even a fire alarm could wake you.”
“What!? Gaku carried me out!?” Takumi, of course, knew that somebody got her out of the building. But, she assumed it was somebody from the faculty. The fire was almost a year ago. How come Gaku never said anything?
“You didn't know?” Yugamu smiled. Takumi didn't like that smile. “I would have expected her to brag, maybe ask for compensation. That would be more her style.”
“It would, wouldn't it?” said Takumi, but her thoughts were far away in another world where Gaku asked Takumi to trust him.
She wished Yugamu good luck and left the building. The colder air outside hit her face. She’s been in there longer than she normally would and missed her usual bus. She didn't have to wait long, but it was still annoying. After all of this, she was as tired as if she had run a whole marathon.
Soon she was able to plop herself at the back of the bus and leaned her face against the glass. There was nobody there but her and the driver. She was starting to zone out.
“How are you doing with the ‘yuri’ part of yuri paradise?” stupid Eito and her mind games. For all that she teased her about Nozomi, she revealed her hand at the end. Gaku watching her back then? Ridiculous. Eito was just annoyingly good at hitting Takumi’s weak spots. How did she figure out Takumi’s feelings? Takumi didn't know. She tried not to speak about her friends with Eito. Not that it was a problem before today. This was the first actual talk they had in months. Maybe it was Yugamu’s influence? Still, how could Eito figure her out if? Did Yugamu know? Of course, there was a chance that Eito saw it back then. But Takumi was hiding it so well. She was sure none of her friends noticed her growing crush on Gaku. Eh, it must have been when she let Gaku deal with the boxes. She did it because she trusted Gaku, not because… but Eito must have assumed. Used the wrong formula and got a good result anyway. Like in her and Gaku’s math homework.
Takumi grabbed the material of her skirt in annoyance. It was so frustrating.
Stuck in Gaku’s romance paradise with no real signs of interest from the other girl. If they were still guys, all that cuddling, grabbing, and handholding would be a clear sign of interest, but girls just did that stuff naturally. Takumi’s been friends with Karua for years; she knew how that worked. It was a shame Karua had to go to a different school in this world. Maybe she could talk it over with her during spring break. If she wasn't too busy with that girlfriend she kept sending Takumi messages about.
The worst was the anticipation. Gaku wished for a yuri paradise for everyone, including herself. It was just a matter of time before somebody would sweep her off her feet. And what would Takumi do then? The attack could come from any direction now that all their friends were busy with each other. Yugamu was the last holdout. Unless you counted twins, but Takumi doubted that either of them was interested. They had a strictly sisterly relationship with Gaku. Maybe that rumour that V'ehxness was dating what’s-her-name wasn't true. Takumi had been keeping an eye on her since she kidnapped Gaku and Kurara as leverage during the last inter-school competition.
As she went through the options, her eyes were growing heavier and heavier. She didn't even notice it when she-
Though she couldn't place it for the life of her, she knew that it was not a dream but a memory. They were in Gaku’s room back at the academy. Gaku was pointing to something he'd written on a whiteboard, which he'd dragged there from who knows where. Takumi was breaking. He has promised himself that he wouldn't ask questions. No interruptions and no clarifications; this is how they would get through it as quickly as possible. But it was bugging him, it was really bugging him.
“I don't get it”, he heard himself speak and knew that he lost that battle. “You were supposed to explain ‘girl love’ to me, but it's day two, and we're still on ‘girl friendship’.”
Gaku looked at him as if he were an idiot. “Those are obviously the basics. I can't start you off with the really hardcore stuff till we have built the foundations, dude.”
“Yeah, yeah, I get it. Class S relationships or whatever it was called. You went about it for hours yesterday. I still remember."
“Unfortunately”, he added in his thoughts. “But we went over that yesterday. You said that we’re moving to ‘the real deal today’, but it looks the same to me. All of the stories you described today were just girls being friends. Gals being pals.”
Gaku shook his head the way an indulgent teacher would. Takumi wanted to punch him.
“Takumi, you simply don't get the beauty of ambiguity. Think about what can happen when two girls are friends. They can hold hands, cuddle, hug, and sit on each other's laps. If two bros tried to do that, they would look like complete weirdos, right?”
Takumi nodded.
“See! And yet this is normal for girls, all this stuff that would look romantic if it were with a guy. But what if it is romantic? A girl in love can hold her friend's hand without worrying about looking like a creep. She can love in secret but get all that romantic stuff anyway. A girl in love with her friend never had to risk what they have with a confession because what they have is just a step away from dating.”
Takumi didn't get it. “But wouldn't it be kinda confusing? If you want to know if your friends like you back, how can you tell? Or let her know that you like her. All the normal signals would get lost.”
“Yeah, that may be a problem. Some works we will look at later talk about it. But don’t you get it, dude? Unspoken love, Takumi! It can never be rejected. It can never ruin what you already have. It’s beautiful, man. I wish guys could-”, here Gaku interrupted himself and started blushing.
“Let’s move on! ‘Maria Watches Over Us’ is-”
“WAKE UP TAKUMI!”
She woke up with a jump, hitting herself on the window. Massaging her sore head, she looked up at whoever it was that woke her up. Darumi stood over her.
“You almost missed your stop, dumdum!” she was right, they were already at the school. Next to the bus door, Hiruko was waiting.
Dazed and sleepy, she left the bus with the duo.
“Did you have a nice nap, Takumi?” Hiruko asked with only a slightly mocking smile. Takumi remembered the dream-memory she had and said:
”I think I may be an idiot.”
Hiruko laughed, and Darumi started giggling. “Tell us something we don't know.”
Ugh, the worst people to have an epiphany with.
“What are you guys doing here anyway?” Takumi asked as they moved towards the school building.
“We go to school here?”
“I mean, what were you doing on the bus, Darumi?”
“We're coming back from a date. Mistress Hiruko took me to a cat cafe to see if Darumi could behave.”
Takumi looked at Hiruko, who was walking in front. Sure, that's why. And not because Hiruko loved cats… Wait, Hiruko?
“Shouldn't you be at a school council meeting right now?”
Hiruko shrugged. “We finished all that we had to do before the end of the year at the last meeting, so that we could have today off. Didn't Gaku tell you?”
Now that Takumi thought about it, she did, it completely slipped her mind.
“And where were you then, huh?” Darumi pointed an accusatory finger at her. “Why were you on the bus?”
Thankfully, Takumi had a built-in excuse. “I was spying on Yugamu.”
“What?! Gaku actually got you to do it?! Man, you're whipped!” Darumi laughed. “So, where is she disappearing to? Tell me, oh Taku-oh-me!”
“I would rather tell Gaku first. If you don’t mind.”
“What?! Come on, don't leave me hanging like that! Tell me!” Darumi begged for a while, but Takumi refused long enough that Hiruko got impatient and dragged her girlfriends back to the dorms.
Good, now Takumi could find Gaku. This was going to be tricky. Normally, at this time, Gaku would be at the Student Council's weekly meeting. But if that was cancelled today, where could she be? Usually, after she finished her stuff, she would go hang out with Takumi. Hopefully, she didn't do it today. Takumi did not want to go searching for Gaku while Gaku was looking for her. That would be stupid.
If that was not the case, she could also still be at her last club activity, too, in the zone to notice it was time to go. So, either the DJ Club or the Electronic Music Club. Takumi couldn't remember in what order they went on the schedule, but she also didn't remember in which room the DJ Club met, so the Electronic Music Club it was.
And jackpot. Gaku was there, headphones on, glued to one of the computers. There was nobody else in the room; the meeting finished long ago.
Takumi stood in the doorway for a while observing. Gaku was in her element, wholly focused on what she was doing. It was nice seeing her like that, happy, relaxed. Completely different to the way she was back in the academy.
Takumi still remembered when they were camping outside, looking for boxes. She winced. Not her proudest moment as a leader, or friend, or… something more. She had no idea what to say back then. She hoped Gaku didn't feel like that anymore, but if she did… Takumi would be ready.
She must have made a sound, or maybe Gaku felt her presence somehow, because she finally looked up from her work. Gaku's face lit up when she saw her.
Takumi really was an idiot for missing that before.
“Takumi, dude! Were you looking for me?” she took off her headphones. ”Sorry, I got lost in the sauce. I’m composing a new piece. It's going to knock everyone's socks off! Want to listen?”
And so they sat together, sharing Gaku’s headphones between them. Listening to some downright depressing dirge. Despite that, the moment was nice and tranquil. Takumi didn't dare to disturb it. Tomorrow, she decided. Tomorrow, she will kiss Gaku behind the gym, and it won't ruin anything.