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Actually managed to update ahead of schedule. Case study was simpler than I expected. So here's an extra long chapter. I'll leave the rest of the Author's Note at the bottom.

It’s been a few days since that phone call with Yozora. There hasn’t been a opportune moment to ask Hanako out to the city since then, because my homework load is starting to increase again. Now, the guilt-tripping that’s made me want to hang out with Hanako has faded. Not that I don’t like her, it’s just my motivation seems to have dropped.

I interlace my fingers on the chain link fence on the roof on Friday morning, enjoying the cool air in the morning before school starts. I got up early and made my way up here before anyone could stop me. If anything, the roof is the perfect place to think and meditate. I imagine Lilly is going to invite Hanako and I somewhere again though, so I’m not too worried about going too long without an outing with Hanako. Saturday is looming though, so maybe I should try to make plans for tomorrow.

Looking at my phone, it’s nearly time for class to start, so i start to make my way off the roof. Yozora hasn’t texted or called since that Monday, so I’m kind of worried about her. But then again, I’ve only contacted her first once. More than likely she’s waiting for me this time. But for now, Mutou and class beckons.

Shizune and Misha greet me as I enter. Dunno why they’re here so early, so I give them a halfhearted wave before taking my seat next to them. Somehow, Misha is angered by my action.

“Hisao! That’s no way to greet the Student Council!” Misha says angrily, or at least I think it’s supposed to be angry.

“Ah, sorry Misha. I’m just tired. Homework kept me up last night and I woke up early today.”

Misha wags her finger disapprovingly at me.

“Well you shouldn’t be keeping your homework until the last minute...That’s right Shicchan, he’s a disgrace to our class.”

It’s still odd to hear Misha say as well as sign her response to Shizune. If Shizune wasn’t there, I’d swear Misha was crazy...well she is a bit crazy to begin with, with her cheerfulness and all that. Now I have to go defend myself.

“If you haven’t noticed, i am doing good in this class. So the ends justify the means.” I remark.

They both know this, so I don’t get why they’re bothering me about the homework now.

“Well Hicchan, if you did your homework early, you’d get more free time! And more free time is always a good thing!” Misha says happily.

Shizune suddenly signs something to Misha. Misha suddenly lights up, as if she had just remembered something.
“And speaking of free time, Hicchan, are you free after class today?”

Oh great...I gotta come up with an excuse, and fast. I should buy some time first.

“Well, why do you ask?” Because that isn’t an obvious question or anything like that.

Shizune and Misha grin innocently at this question. They start to have a heated signing conversation, probably planning their attack. Suddenly, a stroke of inspiration hits me. Breaking out my phone, I turn away from the pair and quickly select Yozora. I text:

“Hey, Yozora. Do you have any plans after school?”

Pressing the send button, I turn back towards Shizune and Misha, who appear to have been waiting for me to finish up.

“What you doing there, Hicchan?” Misha asks.

“Nothing. Just checking the time.” I lie.

“Oh, well today’s one of our free days, and we were going to go down to the Shanghai to eat. Of course, we could use the company of someone like you, Hisao.” Misha translates.

Hmm, if I hadn’t been tricked and deceived in their attempts to recruit me to the Student Council, this would have seemed an innocent enough offer. But...I had been tricked and deceived. Feeling my phone vibrate, I take it out and quickly read the message.

“No, I don’t. Since you asked, I’m assuming you have nothing to do as well. Would you mind if I come over to Yamaku this afternoon? No one from club is here today.”

Well that’s an odd plan. I never considered the idea of Yozora coming over to Yamaku. After all, gossip about me would spread like wildfire if I’m seen with her. Ah well, I can easily explain it away. Hopefully. It’s either that or being with Shizune and Misha for the whole afternoon, and it’s obvious which option I’m going to pick. I text my response back to Yozora:

“Yeah, sure. I can meet you at the bus stop in front of the school around 2:30. Do you know how to get here?”

“Hicchan! Who are you texting?!” Misha screeches. I wince under the sound of her voice.

“No one you know. Oh, and I can’t go with you guys. I have plans today.” I respond once I recover.

Shizune and Misha don’t look pleased at my answer. I notice Shizune staring at my phone, who then quickly signs to Misha.

“Are you sure it’s not because you just made plans now?” Misha inquires. Well, even if they figured it out, it’s too late now.

“No, that was just Kenji ranting about something as usual. But he invited me to go disco bowling yesterday, so I figured I might as well go, see why he does that to begin with.” I lie again. To be honest, I actually do want to see what disco bowling is about. Maybe I’ll ask Kenji about that soon. My explanation seems to sate Misha and Shizune, as they visibly cool down.

“Oh, ok then Hicchan. You’re eventually going to hang out with us two! Wahaha~!” Misha laughs.

Turning away, I see Hanako enter the classroom. She gives me a little wave before taking her seat at the back of the classroom. Weird. She usually comes up to me to say hi and talk for a bit. I better not overreact to this though. Mutou comes in a few minutes later, and the lecture promptly starts.

At the lunch bell, Hanako and I promptly make our way to the tea room. Lilly joins us soon after, and we start our lunch ritual of making tea to go along with whatever lunch we have. Breaking out a bag of chips from the U.S. called Doritos, I start to idly munch on them while waiting for the tea to cool down. I’m not exactly sure where my parents finds all this foreign junk food to send to me, but I’m not complaining. These chips are really good.

“Hisao, Hanako, are you two free this Saturday?” Lilly asks, breaking the silence of the room.

Hanako and I exchange glances, before we respond in unison.

“Yeah.”

“Oh, that’s good then. Akira’s offering to take us to this jazz club out in the city Saturday night. We didn’t get a chance to do anything last week, so Akira and I thought it would be nice to go somewhere new this time.” Lilly says, looking visibly relieved.

Well my prediction about Lilly inviting us somewhere came true. So now I have plans for today and tomorrow! For someone with a barebones social life like me, that’s pretty unprecedented. Looking over at Hanako, she also seems happy to be going somewhere on Saturday.

“It sounds like it’ll be fun, Lilly.” Hanako remarks while sipping some tea.

“Yeah, I’ve never been to a jazz club before.” I add in.

“Neither have I, Hisao. But Akira must really like it if she wants to bring us three there.” Lilly says.

Hmm, I wonder why Akira would like a jazz club. Maybe because they have good alcohol? Ok, this might be a question to dwell on later. The bell’s about to ring again, so the three of us hastily clean up before heading back to our respective classroom.

Looking back at the past two weeks, sometimes it feels like I’m living one extended dream sequence right now. I mean, the way I met Yozora was so completely random on both of our parts: Me for confusing her for Hanako, and her for making me stay and talk to her. And now it’s come to the point where Yozora’s actually coming over to my school for a social visit. The fact that she looks a LOT like Hanako doesn’t help either. The whole long black hair (although Yozora has some pink bows on the ends of her hair), purple eyed, socially inept jig is downright creepy at times. In a way, I imagine that’s what Hanako would look like unscarred. It’s obvious that she would be beautiful without them scars...

Maybe that’s why Lilly was concerned when she first saw me and Yozora at the water park together...but I’m sure that this whole relationship with Yozora is completely platonic...She may be abrasive and hidden in her shell, but she definitely has the looks. And from what I’ve seen so far, Yozora has personality as well once you get past the shell. Makes me glad I did stay that day...

The teacher stops his lecture to give me a “Stop daydreaming” stare. Taking his hint, I get back to copying notes.

When the bell rings at 2:15, I find myself stealthily leaving the classroom with the bulk of my classmates before either the Student Council or Hanako can find me. I realize that Yozora never texted back whether she knew how to get here or not. Hopefully she can figure it out; she is more knowledgeable of the bus routes than I am at any rate.

Heading back to the boys dorm to change, I notice what appears to be Kenji (Can’t really confuse his thick eyeglasses with anyone else’s) talking to a girl with pale skin and a long white braid on a bench not far off from the dorm entrance. And here I thought he was against all women. I keep my eyes locked on the two, and just before I enter, I spy the girl slapping Kenji across the face before walking away like it never happened. Ouch. I have a feeling he’s going to tell me about that next time we talk.

Reaching my dorm, I quickly change into a polo uniform shirt and a pair of brown shorts that fit with the uniform code. I’m not really concerned about appearance as much as being comfortable right now. Somehow I changed into the long-sleeved shirt and pants version of our uniform, and didn’t notice until I got to school. Racing back the building, I quickly (as much as my heart allows) make my way to the school gate.

Passing the gate, I see a bus pulling away, with one former passenger left in its wake: Yozora. By the looks of it, she’s still wearing her school uniform as well; short green skirt, long black stockings that reach up to her thighs, and a short sleeved buttoned white shirt with what appears to be an extremely small...tie? I think. I wave at her to come over, and she runs over to me.

“Hey, Hisao.” Yozora says when she gets close to me. Upon further inspection, she has a gymsack slung over her back, and it looks pretty full. But I ignore that for now.

“Hello, Yozora. Fancy seeing you here, eh?” I respond. Unconsciously, I take her hand and lead her through the gate...wait, what did I just do. I hear Yozora make a small meep of surprise, but she goes with the flow and allows me to take the lead. Her hand feels soft and light, almost ethereal in its presence.

“You know very well we planned to meet up here. So, any reason why you took my hand?” Yozora asks while we walk to the school park. Luckily, everyone’s still either at school or heading to their dorms, so no one’s in sight yet. I look back at her, and it looks like she’s blushing a bit. Time to defuse this situation.

“Think of this as payback for you dragging me through the city the first time we hung out.” I reply jokingly. “Do you have a problem with this?”

Yozora looks away, probably slightly embarrassed by the situation. But suddenly I find myself being yanked forward as she starts to march ahead of me, hand clamped over my hand.

“Now, I don’t!” I hear Yozora say as I struggle to keep up with her. She marches us over to a bench that I vaguely recognizes and gently pushes me on the bench before taking a seat herself, while still holding hands. I don’t mind it though, for now.

“So, this is Yamaku, huh? I have to admit, it’s a lot more picturesque than St. Chronicas.” Yozora comments.

“Yeah, it looked idyllic when I first came here. Clean air, greenery everywhere, modern facilities, it’s one of those schools most kids would want to go to. Except-”

“Except that this is a school for the physically disabled, so some kids don’t want to go here because it means there’s something wrong with them and they’ll feel excluded from normal life. If I somehow ended up with a physical disability, that’s how I’d feel, at any rate.” Yozora finishes. She really is perceptive at times. And she managed to hit home my reason for being reluctant to go here to begin with.

“Wow. Pretty much hit my reason for not wanting to go here spot on.” I echo my thoughts.

I reluctantly pull my right hand away from Yozora, although this time she doesn’t resist. After all, we’re out in public.

“Well, great minds think alike, don’t you think?” Yozora says, pulling her hand back towards her lap.

“Yeah, you’re right. So anyways, why’d you want to come over here to begin with? I wouldn’t have minded meeting you in the city or something.” I ask.

Yozora doesn’t give me an immediate response, opting to look away and twiddle with her thumbs. After a couple of seconds, she speaks.

“Well, I guess I felt bad for making you come all the way over to the city just for me. So now I’m returning the favor. And I um... wanted to see what kind of school Yamaku is as well. It’s a lot better than I imagined.”

“Oh, that makes sense I guess. Once you get past all the disabled kids bit, this school really isn’t as different as a normal public or private high school.”

“Well obviously, I’m here right now. Duh.” Yozora sarcastically replies.

The sun’s repeated assault on my skin starts to get the best of me, so I figure I should show Yozora around the school, if only as an excuse to meet sweet air conditioning.

“So, Yozora, d’you want a tour of the school? After all, you did say you wanted to see how Yamaku’s like?”

“Yeah sure. Sounds interesting.”

I get up from the bench, dusting myself off. Looking back, I see Yozora’s still firmly planted on the bench. I give her a perplexed look.

“So?”

“Aren’t you supposed to be a gentleman and help a lady up from her seat? For a guy, you’re really uncivilized.” Yozora says dispassionately.

“Really...? Or is this an excuse for me to take your hand again?” I call her out.

Yozora gasps, but starts to stare me down from her seat.

“No it’s not. It’s just normal manners! Are you going to help me up or am I going to have to sit here all day?” She threatens.

Well, this is a lost battle. It’s not that I don’t like touching her, it’s just that right now, we’re in the belly of the beast. As in, the middle of school grounds in the open. Where people can see me. I already led her around once, but nearly all the students were still near the school or dorm that time. Now, students and faculty are buzzing around the park, and I’m obviously going to be seen.

Sighing, I offer my hand to Yozora. She takes it, and I pull her up from the bench. I quickly attempt to wrest said hand away from her, but she holds firm.

“You’re my guide, right? You’re supposed to be leading me around then.” Yozora comments with a smirk.

With a grumble, I start to lead her towards the main campus, maintaining enough distance so that people won’t confuse us for a couple. I notice a few stares our way, but I think it’s more because of Yozora’s uniform standing out, at least in here anyways. Entering the school campus, a wave of air conditioned air strikes me, cooling me off. The lobby is deserted, as usual since school is out.

“So, what do you want to check out first?” I ask.

“Eh, I’m not sure exactly. I guess you can show me your usual hangout spots. Every student has one of those in every school.” Yozora replies.

Well, at least this tour will be a short one. There’s only two places I go to outside of my classroom and the cafeteria. I take Yozora up some stairs until we arrive at a familiar place: the tea room. I move away from Yozora, although thankfully she doesn’t try pulling any more fishy business. What does she stand to gain by making me drag her around by her hand?

“So, what is this place? Doesn’t seem like anything special to me.” Yozora says.

I head over to the shelves full of tea making necessities and look for something to snack on, to no avail. I take my usual seat on the table, and beckon Yozora to take the seat opposite me, which she does.

“Well, this is a place I like to call the tea room. Lilly, Hanako, and I usually meet up here at lunchtime to have tea and talk. It also helps that it’s in a secluded corner of the school so no one can interrupt us.”

Yozora’s taking in the small room, looking at the tiny sink Lilly uses to wash the tea set and the stove used to heat the teapot.

“Very quaint. Kinda reminds me of my club room over at St. Chronicas. Except a bit smaller, obviously. Do you know how to make tea?”

“No, Lilly or Hanako usually does the tea making. Can you?”

“Nope. One of the members in my club, Yukimara, makes pretty good tea though. Makes it every club meeting.”
Sounds like a pretty dedicated guy, this Yukimara. Maybe I should get around to learning how to make tea. I don’t want to be a burden on Hanako or Lilly every lunchtime.

Looking out the window, it looks like I should get a move on with the tour. I have an idea about where to take Yozora after this.

“So, Yozora, let’s keep moving. I want to show you my other spot.” I say, offering my hand to her this time. The school is deserted, so I have no qualms about this. She takes my hand, and together we head towards the stairs to the roof.

The summer heat hits my face as we go through the door, but I don’t mind it. The gravel crunches beneath me as I lead her to the edge of the roof.

“Well, I guess I’d call this my second spot. The roof. It’s a pretty good place for thinking when you’re alone.” I explain. I move my right hand (the one that isn’t attached to Yozora’s) and grab the fence. Peering down at the school grounds below us, I start to wonder: Yozora certainly has become a lot warmer with me now, to the point where it’s comfortable to touch each other, well casual contact anyways. But still, it’s a good sign of progress I’m making with her. We’re just two lonely souls looking for someone to be lonely with...wait no, that’s not right. I’m already interested in someone...Hanako.

A small part of me is suggesting that Yozora would be a good girl to go out with though. Emphasis on small. The majority of my mind is arguing that even though we’re getting closer, there’s still a lot to learn about Yozora.

“Hisao, are you alright?”

Apparently, the war in my head hasn’t gone by unnoticed, as Yozora’s giving me a worried look. Maybe that conflict was showing in my facial features somehow. I quickly give her a smile to reassure her.

“Yeah, I’m fine, Yozora. I just wished I had more places to show you...and that you’d let go of my hand by now. If you want, we could head down to town and get some food at this local cafe, the Shanghai.” I add the hand comment as a joke, I think I’m getting used to this by now

“You’re so stubborn, Hisao. Just for that...” Yozora squeezes my hand extra hard. “I’m not letting go until we get to this Shanghai.”

...why? I should’ve figured Yozora would have something like that planned if I made a wrong remark.

“Well, let’s go then.” Resigned to my fate, I lead Yozora off the roof and start to make our way to the Shanghai. The walk is a lengthy one, since we have to traverse the park as well as the road down towards the town. This time, more stares are headed our way, although thankfully none of them come from the four people I don’t want to see right now; Hanako, Lilly, Shizune, and Misha. If any of them see me, it’ll get awkward really fast.

I notice the sun starting to sink in the sky, and my watch says it’s about 4:00. That should be enough time to eat at the Shanghai and wander for a bit before seeing Yozora home. With a plan in mind, I settle down a bit, animatedly talking to Yozora about random things like the can’t-miss movie of the year, Left 4 the Half-Fortress, and foreign junk food.

When we get to the Shanghai, I notice that it’s empty, as usual. Even the waitress is missing. Well, until a figure rushes up to me and Yozora.

“Welcome to the Shanghai! I wasn’t sleeping in the back or anything!” Yuuko stammers as she gives the two of us a high velocity bow.

“Yuuko! Calm down, it’s just me Hisao.” I say.

Yuuko, noticing that it is me, stops looking distressed. How did she ever get a job waitressing?

“Oh, hello Hisao. You and your friend can take any seat you want. I’ll be with you shortly.” She says before turning away. She did look a bit disheveled, she’s probably going to straighten herself out first. I lead Yozora to a table by the window, and finally extricate my hand again. For some odd reason, a feeling of emptiness soon follows me.

“Hey Hisao, does this place have any menus? I don’t see anything resembling one around here?” Yozora asks.

Ahh yes, the dilemma I faced when I first came here.

“Nope, they don’t. Well, I haven’t seen anyone ask for a menu in the couple of months I’ve been here.” I respond.

“That’s stupid. Waitress!” Yozora calls out. Yuuko comes flying out at high speed, visibly neater than the last time we saw her.

“Oh, what would you two like?” Yuuko nervously asks, holding a pen and pad.

“Well, first of all, d’you have a menu? I have no idea what food this establishment has.” Yozora says back.

Yuuko starts to shake at that question. Does this place really have no menus?

“Of course we have a menu!” She bolts off to a door leading somewhere, and quickly comes back with two battered laminated pieces of paper, which she hands to both of us. Examining the menu, it simply says ‘The Shanghai’, then a pretty extensive list of food and prices. Sandwiches, soups, pies, ice cream, pastries, etc. For a small establishment, this place has a lot of selection. Looking up to Yozora, she’s already placed down the menu. Huh, that was fast. Looking back at the menu, I spy something called a Turkey Club sandwich that looks tasty.

“I’ll take this Turkey Club sandwich and a cup of coffee.” I order.

“I’ll have a ham and cheese sandwich and a cup of coffee.” Yozora orders.

“Ok,” Says Yuuko as she scribbles down our orders. “I will be back shortly with your orders.” With that, she runs towards the back of the restaurant, presumably to make our food.

“She’s a skittish one.” Yozora observes.

“That isn’t even the half of it. She’s the librarian over at Yamaku as well. She can get even more riled up than she it right now trying to do her job properly.”

“She’s just a train wreck waiting to happen.” Yozora says harshly.

Well, that’s a brutally honest statement. I can’t help but agree with her though. But it’s not like I want that to happen anytime soon.

“Well, let’s hope the train doesn’t manage to get itself in a bad situation to begin with. So what’s up with the gymbag?” I ask, noticing the bag next to Yozora.

Yozora shrugs. “Eh, I had plans to make the club go to the gym to work out.” Then Yozora’s voice takes on a sarcastic tone. “Mysteriously, the day we were supposed to go, everyone’s absent. Typical.”

“Well, maybe they all coincidentally had obligations that day. You never know.”

“Hisao, you’re so forgetful. The Neighbors Club consists of people with no friends. What obligations could they possibly have?” Yozora scoffs.

“I dunno, maybe their parents dragged them somewhere? Or they’re sick? There’s lots of reasons for being out of school.” I reason out. It seems my logic has struck Yozora cold, as she looks like she has nothing to say back.

Yuuko arrives and places two cups and our respective sandwiches in front of us, than scurries away before we can ask for anything else. This interruption breaks Yozora out of her trance, and as we both take our sandwiches, I hear the door suddenly burst open.

Turning around, I see two girls, one with pink drills and the other with short dark blue hair walk in the Shanghai. Aww shit.

Well, this was a difficult chapter to write. Making everything seem plausible is tough business.
And I've noticed that I haven't been getting much in the way of posts. Is it because my story is unbelievably normal that there's no need for feedback, or is it because it's so horribly bad that no amount of feedback would save it? I mean, I'm still going to finish this (Not one of those "Oh no one's responding, I guess I'll stop" writers), but still, I wonder.

Oh, and my avatar is a preview of what crossover I'm going to dabble with next. Even though it's been done already. So yeah.

BobBobberson wrote:And I've noticed that I haven't been getting much in the way of posts. Is it because my story is unbelievably normal that there's no need for feedback, or is it because it's so horribly bad that no amount of feedback would save it?

Would you rather be overloaded by insane amounts of crappy and/or useless comments, and constantly be pressured to "writ MOAR PLZ"?

I've noticed a lot of writers have been updating their works recently. Maybe you just got over-shadowed by some of the bigger writers?

*Ahem* Good work as always! Keep it up! Can't wait to see Yozora and Shizune/Misha clash! It's bound to be bundles of fun.

Kinda predictable - what next, Emi and Rin ask him out and catch him with Yozura? However its enjoyable to read, and I look forward to their clash with StuCo. Keep it up!

BlackRockHanako wrote:Kinda predictable - what next, Emi and Rin ask him out and catch him with Yozura? However its enjoyable to read, and I look forward to their clash with StuCo. Keep it up!

I'll let the next chapter do the explaining for me. Don't want to explain too much.

Who's StuCo?

BobBobberson wrote:

BlackRockHanako wrote:Kinda predictable - what next, Emi and Rin ask him out and catch him with Yozura? However its enjoyable to read, and I look forward to their clash with StuCo. Keep it up!

Yeah I know it's pushing it using the unwanted random encounter twice since I try to keep things at least a bit conceivable, but I think it was the only way to get Yozora and Misha/Shizune to meet when I wrote it. After all, those two are aggressive as hell, and Hisao already knows about Shizune liking him.. And it does tie in with the second half of the title called 'Interference' There won't be any need for using said plot device anymore. I'll let the next chapter do the explaining for me. Don't want to explain too much.

Who's StuCo?

Student Council

BlackRockHanako wrote: Student Council

Oh. I feel stupid now. I'll try to keep the story as unpredictable as possible from here on out though

The more important question is why he feels the need to keep lying about the relationship. Someone feels a bit guilty...

Nice chapter and nice read. Can't wait for the next one. As for the relationship, it is clear that Hisao is interested in Hanako. He may be lying to himself but he''s single so he can do whatever he wants. If anything, he's trying to hide Yozora from Shizune, Misha, Lilly and Hanako because he knows he's not gonna like the reactions on their faces when they see Hisao with Yozora.

But you said before, this happens on Hanako's route so I don't know how Shizune likes Hisao or did I miss something?

xcrossfacekillahx wrote:
But you said before, this happens on Hanako's route so I don't know how Shizune likes Hisao or did I miss something?

Well, I like to assume (read: headcanon) that Shizune had an interest in Hisao to begin with when he first came to the classroom to begin with. But obviously in this route, Hisao rebuffs her and goes to Lilly (and Hanako by proxy), and y'know, maybe Shizune never accepted it and continues to pursue Hisao in the futile hopes that he will somehow have a falling out with Hanako and Lilly and go to her?

Kinda like a gay Spy who's in love with a straight Engineer, but the Spy knows his love will never be requited, so that's why he saps Engie's shit every day. (Don't ask me how I came up with this example) ._.

Not that I approve of gay Spies, I like to think all the TF2 classes are straight >.< damn fangirls

Welp, this update took longer than I expected. More important part of AN is on the bottom of post, as usual.

Wait.....

I look closer at the two girls, noticing something off. The girl with drills is way too thin to be Misha, and the blue haired one is too chubby to be Shizune. That, and they’re wearing normal clothes, not the Yamaku uniform. When they start to look around, I catch sight of their faces, which are completely different from the Student Council's.

What’re the odds of two girls with the exact same hairstyles as Misha and Shizune walking in during my meal with Yozora? And how am I defying said odds? If there is a higher being, he is just messing with me right now. I thought Misha would be the only girl I'd see with pink drills. But apparently the OTHER girl with pink drills decided to visit the Shanghai today. Really?

Turning back to Yozora, she’s giving me a confused look, with one eyebrow raised.

“Problem, Hisao?”

“No, nothing.” I quickly respond before taking a bite of my sandwich. This turkey club is pretty good, I should remember to have this again.

She looks like she doesn’t believe me, but shrugs and starts to eat as well. We stay like this for some time, silently eating our food and sipping our coffee. I can’t really think of anything to say, really. And I don’t want to sound stupid trying to break the silence. Yuuko nervously creeps up to us after seating the two Student Council lookalikes.

“Do you two need anything else?” Yuuko inquires, eyes looking at anything except the two of us.

“Ehh, no, I’m good. What about you, Yozora?”

Yozora, draining the last of her coffee, shakes her head. Yuuko than produces a receipt from her apron, presumably the bill. Being the gentleman that I am, I start to take out my wallet.

“Hisao, no. I got this.” Yozora suddenly says while fumbling for her own wallet inside her bag.

“Yozora, no, I can pay for this!” I protest while opening my wallet. Apparently, it’s too late, as Yozora just pulled out a large bill and handed it to Yuuko, who leaves to get the change. Damn.

“I told you I got it.” She says with a victorious smirk. Why do I have a feeling that this will bite me in the..arse later?

Yuuko returns with Yozora’s change and leaves with the dirty dishes. Getting up, I take Yozora’s offered hand and head outside. Checking my phone for the time, it’s already 5:00. Time is flying by too fast right now. Didn’t even feel like I was in the Shanghai for thirty minutes. Now what else could I do with Yozora...?

While I think, we silently walk down the town’s main road, passing the Aura-mart. Yozora’s moved up so now we’re walking side by side, hand-in-hand, like a couple...except that we’re not? Now that I think about it, I’m not obligated to lead her by the hand (literally) since I’m not guiding her through the school or to the Shanghai anymore. But still, my hand stays clasped with hers. Maybe I’m just overthinking it. We’re friends, and holding each other from time to time never hurt anyone. Unless of course the girl you like or her friend sees you and takes it the wrong way.

“Hey, Hisao. Is that the theater?” Yozora asks, breaking my concentration while gesturing to the movie theater I took Hanako to.

“Um, yeah, that’s it. Why?”

“Well, you were raving about Left 4 The Half-Fortress on our way here. And we still have a lot of time to kill, so I was wondering if you’d want to go see it with me...again in your case.” Yozora says, looking a lot more innocent than she usually is.

“Well, I dunno, why would I spend money on a movie I already saw?” I counter.

Yozora huffs and looks away, reverting back to angry mode. After a couple of seconds, she speaks.

“Fine, if I pay for your ticket, would you go with me?”

Can’t argue with that. I don’t have an option here at any rate, since the rules of social conduct dictate that I just can’t abandon Yozora here. I just hope the movie doesn’t lose a lot of its luster if I go through it a second time.

“Yeah sure I suppose.” I respond. Yozora looks positively elated at this news, and starts to run over to the theater, dragging me with her. After she pays for two tickets, we stride into the theater and take two seats smack dab in the middle of the theater. Watching the same trailers I’ve seen already, I close my eyes and start to meditate. With the darkness, Yozora shouldn’t notice, at least I hope so anyways. God only knows what kind of rant I’d receive if she caught me.

After the trailers finish, I hear the distinct Team Fortress 2 theme music start ( and I open my eyes again to be greeted by the 9 now-famous teammates of Reliable Excavation Demolition. Watching the classes get ready for combat in Respawn, I take particular interest in the Medic, the guy who implanted new hearts into RED team so that they can handle ubercharges. I could definitely use an implant like that. No arrhythmia AND eight seconds of invulnerability? Sounds like a good deal to me.

“Hisao, who’s your favorite guy out of this group?” Yozora asks quietly, nudging me in the shoulder to get my attention.

“Err, I’m not sure to be honest. I’d have to say Medic. He seems like a cool guy.”

“Oh really now? Is it so that he can fix your heart? He certainly looks like he knows his way around a broken heart or two. Very professional.” Yozora comments.

“Yeah, well, just wait until they show the actual combat. He isn’t so professional than...” I add. Medic can go bloodthirsty when he can. It’s actually kinda creepy. I fall silent again, choosing to let the movie explain the characters to Yozora.

As the movie continues, I start to notice that Yozora seems to get more excited by the violent scenes than the scenes with actual emotion in it (which is a lot given the kind of characters in the movie). When a Hunter pounced on Zoey, Yozora’s face practically lit up at the gore. I don’t say anything though, for fear that Yozora will pounce on me and start shredding my heart out.

This movie really is good. Examining the finer details of the movie, I see that there has been a LOT of effort put into this. Apparently, this ‘Valve’, the company who created all the series, has pretty strict quality controls in place. And luckily, the theater is near empty, so there’s no one who can see Yozora and I.

It’s still kind of funny how I’m watching the same movie that brought me and Hanako to the theater together. Except now, replace Hanako with Yozora. Talk about deja vu. In a sense, this time it’s more relaxing. No pressure whatsoever.

Suddenly, Yozora leans her body in my direction, resting her head on my shoulder. I can’t see her face since she’s still facing the screen, so I’m not sure whether it was intentional or not.

Ok, so there’s pressure now. Half of me wants to wrap my left arm around her, and the other half wants me to excuse myself and go to the bathroom to get away from this situation. I decide to take the neutral route; stay in my seat, but pretend nothing’s happening.

Surprisingly, this strategy works out well. The rest of the movie passes by uneventfully, and soon the two of us find ourselves stretching outside the theater. Glancing at my phone, it’s already 7:30. The sky’s turned into a dark reddish orange. Looking at Yozora, it appears she’s giving me a look that seems like she’s waiting for me to do something. I vaguely remember that I’m low on instant ramen and orange juice, so I guess that’s a start.

“Do you mind if we stop by the Aura Mart before we head back up the hill? I’m running low on food back in my dorm.” I ask.

Yozora’s face turns from expectant to haughty.

“Yeah, sure I guess. I could do with a snack too.” She responds.

I take the lead, slowly guiding her through the darkening streets to the Aura Mart. After purchasing some food, we leave, making our way to the road that’ll take us back to Yamaku. My hands are full thanks to the bags, so Yozora can’t grab my hand again. I feel that Emi or Rin is probably lurking around town right now, so this is probably for the best...until i remember that nearly the whole campus saw us when we were going down here, making this point moot.

“Hisao. I dunno if this is a personal question, but...have you ever suffered from a broken heart?” Yozora hesitantly asks, breaking the silence.

“You already know I have a broken heart, Yozora. I really wish Medic was around so he could fix it.” I joke, chuckling.

“You know what I mean!” Yozora snarls back, displeased with the joke.

“I know, I know, calm down. It’s only a joke” I stick my tongue out. “But that is a fairly personal question...” I drift off. I suppose there’s only one instance that could qualify as breaking my heart.

“Well, you don’t need to answer it if you don’t want to...” Yozora says back, all traces of her previous outburst gone. “I understand.”

Well the question is why would she ask such a question to begin with? I suppose I can oblige her, if only barely.

“I suppose I could say I did get inflicted with a case of the broken hearts. But that’s not important now. What’s important is that I have someone who’s helping me mend it.”

Yozora barely responds to that statement, in the form of a raised eyebrow and tilted head, although I swear I saw a smile. I thought she might have wanted more specifics. Although now that I think about it, I’m not sure I could supply said details if I wanted to. If such a statement were made pre-Yozora, I would have guaranteed that I’d say that Hanako was fixing it.

But now, I find myself conflicted. Looking over to Yozora, she looks calm and happy, humming Solly’s theme and looking up at the clear night sky. While I still certainly like Hanako, there’s just something about Yozora that I can’t help but feel drawn towards. I’m not exactly sure what it is, but I do know that whatever that trait is, it makes hanging around her a lot more comfortable than being with Hanako. Hanako’s nice and all, but one wrong move and she gets rattled. Yozora, on the other hand, would capitalize on said move and use it to her advantage. And the sad thing is, I don’t mind that now.

And as much as I don’t want to admit it, the fact that an attractive girl like Yozora is choosing to be friends with the likes of me has a great impact on me. Not to discount Hanako’s own looks, but Yozora definitely wins appearance wise. I know it’s a bit wrong for me to think that way, but as a teenager, I can’t help it.

My internal monologue is interrupted by our arrival at the school gates. Now that I think about it, we never really discussed when Yozora had to leave.

“Shouldn’t you be heading home soon?” I inquire. I don’t want to leave Yozora hanging by herself.

“No, not really. It’s still a bit early, I think. And I never did get a tour of the place I really want to see.” Yozora responds with a hint of surprise. I hope it didn’t seem like I wanted her to leave.

“What place haven’t I showed you yet?”

“Your room.”

What. If I was a pervert, I’d be thinking that Yozora wants to have sex with me. But I’m not a pervert, so why would she want to check out my room? I guess the only way to find out is if I oblige to her request.

“Ah, of course. Follow me. Although if we see any of the night guards, just pretend you’re my cousin or something. Can’t have them getting suspicious.” I order as we walk through the now deserted and dark park.

“Of course, even in a school for the disabled, the students can’t control their hormones. Typical.” Yozora chuckles a bit at this revelation.

As we approach the boys’ dorm, it appears that my luck has held. Must’ve arrived when the guards were changing shifts, I suppose. We walk into the thankfully deserted lobby, Yozora observing every inch of the building. I mash the elevator button only for one of the doors to instantly open. Entering the elevator, I press the 11th floor button, and away we go.

Arriving at my floor, I quickly walk to my door and open it, allowing Yozora to enter before going in and locking the door. An interruption by Kenji would have been a game breaker at this point. Placing the bags of food down by the desk, I throw myself at the bed.

“Ahhhhhh. This feels good.” I mumble.. Spinning around into a face-up position, I see Yozora giving me an amused look.

“Tired already? We just sat for two and a half hours.” Yozora says, looking appalled.

“Remember? Heart condition? Duhhh.” I laugh. That was the first joke I made about my heart condition, and it came out so naturally. Of course, if I had continued to run with Emi, maybe I wouldn’t be so tired. Oh well, I guess I’ll have to find another way to get in better shape.

At that joke, Yozora playfully smacks her hand on her face.

“Oh yeah, I forgot about that. You look so normal though, Hisao, so excuse me if I forget about your condition.”

Yozora briefly reaches down to take out a bar of chocolate out of one of the bags before sitting down on the desk. Ripping open the wrapper, she takes a huge bite of the bar, thoughtfully looking around the room.

“Your room is pretty plain, Hisao. I thought someone like you would have more...stuff hanging on your walls.” Yozora comments.

“Oh, well no one ever goes in my room, so why bother decorating it?” I respond.

“So I’m the first person you know that’s ever been in your room?” There’s a hint of incredulity in Yozora’s voice, as if she can’t believe it.

“Umm, yeah I guess. Should I have done something special for you?” I ask sarcastically while getting up to get a bag of chips from the bag of food.

“No, Hisao, you don’t. You’ve already done something like that for me already.” I hear Yozora say behind my back. Turning around, I see that Yozora has quite the serious face going on right now.
I don’t see what I’ve done that could be considered special in Yozora’s eyes, but for the sake of not looking like a dummkopf, I’m not going to ask her what I did.

Sitting back on my bed, I open the bag and start to eat the chips. For a couple of minutes, the only sound in the room is the sound of eating. Suddenly, Yozora’s phone rings. Taking it out of her bag, she grimaces once she looks at the screen.

“Who is it?” I ask.

“It’s Meat. Gimme a sec.”

Yozora opens the phone and places it on her ear. I hear some indistinct chatter come from the phone, then Yozora responds.

“Meat, you already know it’s me you’re calling. If you have something to say, spit it out or I’m hanging up.”

More indistinct chatter comes from the phone, although I think it got a bit louder.

“Did you just call me to talk about eroge?! Go away!” Yozora slams her phone shut and puts it back in her bag.

“Eroge? What?” I mouth in disbelief as Yozora devours the rest of her bar.

“Don’t ask. Meat’s addicted to eroge and galge. Every time I arrive in the clubroom, she’s always there playing them on her laptop. It’s sickening.”

“Stop right there. I don’t want to know anything else!” I burst out.. This Meat is becoming weirder and weirder every time I hear about her from Yozora. Assuming what Yozora says is true anyways. I’m not sure whether I want to hear more about her anymore.

Yozora laughs at my outburst, and as I sit on my bed, I notice that this is probably the first real laughter I’ve caused that isn’t from Misha. Lilly is way too composed to laugh, and Hanako...well the girl barely smiles to begin with. But here, everything seems normal. Our day today, what we did, what we’re eating, the atmosphere, it feels like I’m living someone else’s life for a day before I come back to my crummy life where I’m in a school with other broken people and I might die at any second. With that in mind, I start to laugh along with Yozora as well.

After a few moments, our laughter subsides, and we regain enough composure to finish our snacks.

“So what do you do for entertainment in here? This room doesn’t look very...fun.” Yozora asks.

I gesture towards the small stack of books on the desk she’s sitting on.

“I read, usually. There was nothing to do at the hospital except for reading, and I guess that the habit stuck even when I left.”

“I take it that that was your form of escapism?” Yozora infers.

“Yeah, I guess you could say that. I could read for hours and not notice the time until I looked up from whatever book I was reading. Do you read?”

“Yep. Reading’s one of the few things a person can do alone. So naturally I took it up early.”

Huh, another characteristic that Yozora shares with Hanako. Not that I’m surprised, really. All three of us were practically alone for extended periods of time.

Yozora grabs the topmost book from the stack and inspects the cover.

“Plugged...by Eoin Colfer.” Yozora reads out loud. “Is this a good book?”

“In my opinion, yeah it is. Colfer was the guy who wrote my favorite Western series, Artemis Fowl. Plugged is his first attempt at actual adult fiction, since most of the stuff he wrote beforehand was mainly for teens and kids. I have to get around to returning it back to the library.”

She opens the book and reads the blurb quickly, before putting it back on the stack.
“It does seem interesting, I’ll check it out from the library next time. But what about television, do you have any favorite shows?”

“Let’s see...” Resting my head on my hand, I start to think. “I know there’s Gundam Wing, Robotech. They’re the only mecha anime I’ll bother watching.”

“Did you know there’s mecha porn out there?” Yozora randomly says.

“What?? Are you serious?” I question. I do not want to know how robot porn would look like.

“Yeah, I am. One of my club members, Rika, reads a LOT of yaoi mech porn. And that’s just one category of porn she reads.”

“Just one??? So she’s a pervert?”

“Yeah, she’s a true pervert. She can turn any situation into a dirty one at a blink of an eye. And the funny thing is that she’s proud of being a perv.” Yozora explains.

“Proud...of being a pervert? Why?” I question.

“Well Rika’s believes that her pervertedness makes her interesting. If she wasn’t one, than she’d just be another genius girl.” She clarifies. “Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that she’s a genius. She was specifically recruited into St. Chronicas by the headmaster, and she has her own room to do work in, since she doesn’t go to class.”

My only response to this is to gape at Yozora. This is an odd club Yozora’s running.

“Rika is a shut-in, so it does make sense for her to join the Neighbor’s Club. But sometimes she drives me crazy with her dirty mind.” Yozora continues.

“I see, must be fun dealing with her.” I comment, trying to picture how this Rika would look like. The only thing I can come up with is that she definitely wears glasses.

“You don’t even know the half of it.”

Sighing, Yozora gets up and walks to the window, gazing into the darkness outside. I lean back on my bed again and find myself face-to-face with my clock, which is currently reading...9:12??
Crap, curfew is in effect! I forgot the curfew time was 9:00 on school nights! I bolt upright from my bed. If any of the guards catch us outside the building, I’d be in big trouble...even more so since I have a girl with me...and...yeah.

“Err Yozora...I’m not sure how to break this to you, but curfew is in effect right now, so...” I mumble awkwardly.

At my revelation, Yozora turns towards me, giving me a deadpan stare.

“Oh really? Kinda early for a curfew, but I wasn’t aware that you wanted me to stay the night.” Yozora says.

Damn, if I tell her to leave, I’d have to sneak her out of the school AND sneak past the guards again, which is near impossible for me. But if I let her stay, it’ll look like I’m trying to make a move or something...why me?

“I blame the amount of fun we’ve been having. You know how whenever you’re having fun, time flies by? This is one of those instances.” I say, trying to sound like it wasn’t on purpose. “D’you have a change of clothes or something? Last time I checked, I don’t have any women’s clothing lying around.”

I open my closet for emphasis, gesturing Yozora to take a look inside. Her blank face shifts into something peculiar, but I can’t put my finger on what it is. She moves over to the closet and peers inside, noting the lack of chick stuff.

“You should have some spare women’s clothes lying around, you might shapeshift into one someday,” Yozora recommends, losing her composure and bursting into a giggle. “But I’m fine, I have my gym clothes. it should hold me over until tomorrow.”

She reaches down to her bag and pulls out a purple tank top and black yoga pants. Draping it over her shoulders, she gives me a mischievous look.

“You know, Hisao, it’s impolite to stare at a girl when she’s going to change.”

And...cue the blush.

“W-w-what? No, I wouldn’t do that!” I stammer, sounding a bit like Hanako. I turn to face the wall to hide my face, and for good measure, I force my face against my pillow.

“I didn’t know you were going to change right this minute.” I say through my pillow.

Another chuckle from Yozora, this time accompanied by the quiet sounds of one taking off their clothes.

“Yeah well, I might as well make myself comfortable.” I hear her response through the the pillow.

The perverted part of me (Since all teen guys have a perverted side to them, except maybe Kenji) wants to take a risk sneaking a peek through the pillow. But I won’t. I do not want to feel the wrath of Yozora if she noticed. That and it would ruin our friendship, something I’m not willing to risk over a peek.

“Ok, you can stop suffocating yourself now Hisao.” Yozora says.

Pulling away from my pillow, I slowly turn towards Yozora, hand shielding my eyes from a non-existent sun in case Yozora is still naked and is trying to mess with me. Damn, all the talk about Yozora’s perverted club members is starting to rub off on me.

Looking down at the floor, I raise my eyes slowly, noting her bare feet on the floor. As I move my eyes upward, it looks like she put on the yoga pants, which has the benefit of showing off her lithe legs. Reaching her ab area, I notice the bottom half of her purple tank top.. Satisfied that she’s fully clothed, I pull away my hand to see Yozora, who looks quite amused.

“Even with clothes, you’re still enjoying my body. You’re such a pervert. You’d get along with Meat and Rika very well.” She tries to say with disdain, although her less than serious tone ruins the message.

Next time, I’ll just turn around suddenly and damn the consequences.

“I dunno, I thought you’d try to pull something on me.” I mumble, looking away out of embarrassment.

“Maybe you did want to see me try to pull something, or more accurately, not pull something on.” Yozora says teasingly.

Well what guy wouldn’t want to see you with clothes off? Her outfit is showing off all of her curves, and I can’t seem to pry my eyes away from her.

Gathering my willpower, I finally look away and get up from my bed and go to my closet, pulling out black basketball shorts and a plain white T-shirt.

“I hope I can expect you to respect my privacy when changing as well. An eye for an eye, Yozora. Or rather, clothes for clothes...or something like that.” I say, botching the metaphor.

“Hisao, I’ve already seen you with just a pair of shorts on at the pool.” She protests. But all the same, she turns away and faces the wall, away from me.

Now that I think about it, she does have a point. But now that I’m alone with her in my room, I’m feeling a lot more self-conscious about my scar. After looking at the back of her head for couple of seconds, I start to strip off my clothing, removing the short-sleeved uniform shirt and the brown shorts.

Standing in my gray boxers, I spare a glance towards Yozora to see if she’s still facing the wall, which she is. I pull on my basketball shorts and shirt.

“Ok Yozora, I finished changing.” I tell her as I walk to my desk and take Plugged from the stack. It’s going to be a long night, so maybe some reading will kill the time.

Staring down at the book, I sit back on the bed and try to find the page I ended at. But as soon as I find it, Yozora grabs the book out of my hands and casually tosses it towards my desk, where it lands with a thud.

I look up to see a standing Yozora towering over me with a suggestive look on her face.

“Reading, Hisao?” She says in a provocative tone. “I have something more...fun in mind for you.”

I think my brain just broke.

Yeah, I originally intended for this chapter to be a lot shorter, but the dialogue took up HELLA time. I think dialogue and conversation are one of my weaker points, and it probably shows in the second half of this chapter.
And these next two weeks are going to be hell, with finals coming up next week. So I can't give an accurate time frame for my next update, sorry! Once the semester's over, I swear I'll update more frequently.

If anyone's interested in beta reading future chapters, mainly for grammatical errors and plot discrepancies, as well as get a sneak peek at the new chapter, drop me a PM. I'm not good at editing my own stuff.

xcrossfacekillahx wrote: I'm sure you had fun writing the 2nd half of the chapter.

Muhaha I haven't even gotten around to starting it yet. I'm currently drafting in a TF2/Saya no Uta crossover as a breather from this series. EDIT: Oh you mean the second part of this chapter...I have no idea what I was thinking when I wrote that bit D:

I do have an outline of where this story's heading, so assume nothing!

Fun fact of the day: One of the episode directors for Boku wa Tomodachi ga Sukunai is named Kenji Setou

Eh, this is more like a finisher of the last chapter. Needed to get at least this in before studying mode kicks in.
Yozora strides over to her bag and starts to rummage through it. Meanwhile, I’m at a loss for words. I think the implication of what she meant paralyzed my brain. A sudden thunk on my lap knocks me out of stasis. Picking up the object, it looks to be...a pink PSP?

“Err, what’s this?” I ask, with a confused look on my face.

“It’s a PSP, silly.” Yozora replies, sitting back down on my bed with another PSP, although hers is black. “I’m introducing you to Monster Hunter.”

Uhh, well this is anticlimactic.

“Jeez, Yozora, you didn’t make it sound like we were going to play video games.” I mumble.

“Well what else could we do here? You don’t have a TV or anything like that.” She points out.

I decide not to point out what we could be doing right now. Yozora would probably call me a pervert. Calming down a bit, I let Yozora show me the ropes of Monster Hunter. I know that it’s pretty damn popular in Japan, but that’s about it. Surprisingly enough, the game turned out to be pretty fun, with a high emphasis on teamwork. Apparently nearly all the guys over at Yozora’s school plays this game. After about an hour, I decide to call bedtime, since I still have class tomorrow, unlike Yozora.

“Ehh? It’s only ten thirty, Hisao. You’re such a kid.” Yozora complains, putting the PSPs back in her bag.

“I already told you Yozora, I have school tomorrow still. Jeez.” I counter, setting my alarm for about sixish. I head to my closet to pull out a couple of my spare comforters.

“What’re you gonna do with those blankets Hisao? It’s not that cold.” Yozora asks, watching me with a perplexed face.

“I’m letting you have my bunk. We can hardly fit two people on it,” I reason out. “And obviously I’m not going to let you sleep on the floor. What kind of gentleman would I be if I did that?”

I set up the comforters into a mattress-esque shape, grab one of the pillows off my bed, and place it at the end of my impromptu bed. Satisfied, I start to kneel down only to see Yozora roll off my bed and onto the floor ‘bed’.

“Ooh Hisao, this is pretty comfortable!” Yozora croons, stretching her arms and legs wide. “I think I’ll take this bed.”

“No, Yozora, you get the actual bed. Don’t make me pull you out of there.” I threaten, giving the stern parent look at her.

She curls up on the ‘bed’ and closes her eyes in what is clearly a taunt. I take a deep breath to prepare myself, than I grab Yozora’s forearm and attempt to pull her up...only for her to suddenly grab my arm with her free hand and pull me down to the floor with her.

Um...my mind shorts out again as I notice the compromising position I’m in: I’m on top of Yozora with only my hands acting as pillars on the space near Yozora’s head keeping me from falling any closer and potentially...yeah.. From here, I can take in every minute detail of Yozora’s face, especially those alluring bright purple eyes. Yozora also seems to be mirroring what I’m doing based on her unmoving eyes too. Time seems to stop as we take in each other from this new, way more intimate than normal, angle.

Suddenly, I think of Hanako, and the spell breaks. I forcefully turn away from Yozora and push myself up before I lose my self-control. Don’t forget Hisao, Hanako is your main goal right now. Yozora’s just a friend.

“Seriously, Yozora, just take my bed.” I quietly say while I stand up.

I walk over to the light switch to turn off the ceiling lamp, but I decide to look back at Yozora first to see if she’s ready to sleep. She’s lying on her side at my bed (about time) facing me, and I swear I could see disappointment in her face. I switch off the lights before the image of her face shatters my mental resistance.

Falling down on my floor bed, I close my eyes and nod off before Yozora can ask me a deep question like all normal friends do when they’re sleeping over a friend’s room.

Yeah, gonna take some time away from this and see where I decide to take it. All of this has been spontaneously written so far, and I want to see this come to a close. But I can't to that without a plan. I guess I'll work on my TF2/Saya no Uta crossover for a while.

Ah yes, Monster Hunter. I kind of expected more focus to be on whatever activity the last chapter ended up hinting at, but I guess going into too much detail about the game would have been distracting.

At any rate, it's not looking good for Hanako.