Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

College became tiring.

Amidst her first semester, the professors suddenly decided that it would be an exhilarating idea to hand out quizzes about the course materials due the next day, spontaneously schedule a midterm for the following week on fashion marketing, and send emails that made the entire faculty group chat spiral because of how condescending one “fossil” (that’s how they’d call their professors) could be.

It was all too much for Aya.

So instead of studying, like any other normal university student would not, she decided to launch a game she had randomly heard about from whispers lurking in her faculty halls.

Her computer lit her dark bedroom, blinding her eyes for a split second. While waiting for the game to install, she put her earphones on and played the playlist she had created the night prior, trying to drown out the ruckus her brothers were making in the other room. Lately they had been calmer because they understood that their sister would spend less time with them due to university, but that did not stop them from occasionally disrupting the peace.

She started humming when her phone turned on. She received an email notification, and she groaned at the sight of it. Nevertheless, she opened it, not wanting to miss out on something potentially important. 

Intro to Psychology: Midterm

from: boringahhprofessor

to: oosawaya

Good evening, students.

As I have said during my classes, we will have our first midterm for this subject on Tuesday, November 11th 2025, at 11am in Amphitheatre 3. It will contain the first four units, of which we will cover the fourth in our class tomorrow (November 4, 3pm). Do not forget to bring your Student ID. Only carry a pen and a bottle of water. Cheating will be sanctioned.

Regards,

Prof. Jane Doe

“Cheating will be sanctioned,” as if. Aya thought. It’s the easiest course I could find, how hard can it be? Maybe it’s a good idea to show up tomorrow for the first time… Oh! The game finished installing!

Illusion was apparently the latest craze among college students with no lives, and somehow it had gotten out of the gaming grapevine. The game itself is an online roleplay game where you create your own avatar, select a class and complete missions in order to upgrade your level.

Aya particularly liked the customization aspect of it and spent a good thirty minutes perfecting her avatar. She was having fun choosing outfits for her character and made her look like a fairy with a flowy dress and transparent wings. It almost resembled her in a way, with the pink hair she picked. When she was done, she had to choose a name. She thought for a moment and decided to name herself based on the artist she was listening to at that time.

Welcome to Illusion, [paramoremoremore]!

Please select your class: [Mage]

—

In the end, Aya found out that she was unfamiliar with MMORPGs like this. She had to look up so many tutorials just to get to a decent enough level for being accepted into a guild. She chose this class because it was apparently easy for beginners, but it still wasn’t enough for her to be satisfied with her skills. She only wanted that because she didn’t want to be alone. She was talkative to her peers, sure, but she wanted to form some genuine friendships during her college years, so she figured she might as well use any means necessary to achieve that.

When she was browsing through potential guilds that would accept a low level as hers, she stumbled across a very peculiar name.

> Blue Cold Mild Carrots

42 Members • 23 Online | Guild Master: [biflexual]

> Join Guild | > Report Guild

Isn’t this just a spinoff of RHCP??? What a cringe name.

Aya clicked to join it anyway. It was rare to see someone even remotely interested in rock where she lived.

She quickly got accepted into the guild. Not true to its name, it had a castle which was covered in red and black banners. There were some users casually strolling across the rose gardens sprawled along the map, yet once the users caught sight of her, they sprinted towards her in a matter of milliseconds.

[TheAeroSmiths]: A NEW MEMBER!!! EVERYONE WAKE TF UP

[foolfighters]: welcome!

[Bring_me_the_hoerizon]: HELLOOOOO

[THEresNoBodyHereDude]: AYEEE glad to have you here!

[stillintoher]: PARAMORE MENTIONED?!?!?!?!?!?!

[francisforever]: hey.

…10 more messages

Aya was thrilled to see this much excitement over her joining. She even had coins sent for her as a welcome gift. The users, dressed in colorful attire, surrounded her as if she was an alien, curious eyes in her direction.

[stillintoher]: ur avatar is so pretty omg ^^ let me add you!

[TheAeroSmiths]: I just sent you a req! Pls accept

[paramoremoremore]: ohmygosh tysmmm for the gifts! i am a new player so be kind to me pls <3 i will add everyone here! also yall have cool names istg does everyone like rock here?

[Bring_me_the_hoerizon]: If it wasn’t obvious by the names already, yeah

[francisforever]: lmao

[biflexual]: hello @paramoremoremore ! hope you enjoy your stay at the guild. i’m the guild master of the group, i saw your name and i knew that i had to accept you. if you have any questions abt the game ping us and we’ll answer. also @Bring_me_the_hoerizon look at your username as if you have the right to talk

[Bring_me_the_hoerizon]: Touché

[biflexual]: @everyone i think it’s time to remind you of the rules here again so pls check the rule board thanksss !

RULES:

1. Do NOT discriminate against someone based on gender, race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation. You will be permanently banned.
2. Do NOT reveal any harmful and personal information. You will not be banned but you will be asked to remove that information.
3. Do NOT reveal any personal relationships with other guild members. Keep it private.

All of that seemed good, but that last rule was weird… Did something happen previously in this guild to have this rule? Besides that, everything seemed particularly nice. The members were funny and all of them had these creative usernames. It seemed that everything was going to work out. All of a sudden, though, Aya got a separate notification that did not come up in the guild chat.

Whisper with [francisforever]:

> hello

> i’m not the type to text much in the group

> so i wanted to approach you here

Aya forgot who [francisforever] was at first, but then she took a closer look at the people around her and found an avatar with a dark cloak around them, above it the username that just texted her. Of course a Mitski fan would dress up edgy. She was a bit intimidated as to why they would privately message her, but she tried to play it cool.

hello? whats up? <

> you said you were new to illusion?

thats right <

> i can show you around

ahh ty thats kind of you! but i think ill manage on my own <

> i meant explain the system and stuff

> it’s a bit hard to get it at first

i watched tutorials till now, im sure can do this <

> yeah but wouldn’t it be easier to have some real experience with someone who’s already played?

Aya suddenly thought of the very reason why she played this game. She gave in and accepted their help.

well if you put it that way…<

ill add u rn give me a sec <

[paramoremoremore] added [francisforever] as a friend!

so, mitski huh <

> yeah, what about it

nothing much, thought it’s cool! <

btw <

how long have you been in the guild for? <

> i actually created the guild with @/biflexual

WHATTT NO WAY <

did you come up with the name too <

> that was his idea. don’t ask me

crying <

how long have you played the game <

> a solid year i guess?

> last year i was a senior in high school and the pressure got to me

> so i looked for games as a pastime besides my other hobbies

> and i got hooked to it

ohh thats nice!! <

wait are you in college now? <

> yup, first year

omg me too!!! what a coincidence hahah <

Aya wanted to know more about this person, and wondered if they attended the same faculty as her. She didn’t want to reveal herself too much, so she refrained from speaking further. Speaking of faculties, she completely forgot about the quiz her professor gave.

hey sorry to cut this short <

i just remembered i had sth for tomorrow <

bye for now! <

> take care. if you need anything whisper me

> good night

This is the end of your Whisper with [francisforever].

—

Aya decided to attend the 3pm psychology class the night before, and she was facing the consequences. Tired and out of her mind from staying up late finishing her quiz, she brushed her teeth, washed her face, and put on some light makeup. As the semester progressed, she had put less and less effort into her appearance, even though she was a fashion design major. University is not for the weak-hearted, she thought. She put her phone, laptop, pen, earphones, and wallet in her Nirvana tote bag and headed out.

She arrived just in time to catch her train. The beauty of being a university student was that some classes started later in the day, so she had no problem catching a seat. She took out her earphones and played a random song from her playlist. She closed her eyes for a bit to have a moment for herself.

—

“Excuse me,” a deep voice echoed in her head.

It repeated several times until a jolt woke Aya up.

“Oh- where am I?”

“This is the last stop. I assume you’re going to X University?”

When Aya gained consciousness, she scanned around her to find students getting out of the train. Her gaze landed on the girl sitting there, and…

Wow, she’s pretty.

The girl was slightly taller than her, with dark, slightly disheveled hair falling on her shoulders. She had a mole on her left cheek. Her fingers were adorned with silver rings and her nails were painted black. She had a black hoodie on with a skull design standing out against the monochrome background.

And those eyes . They were staring at her, waiting for her next move.

Everything about her sounded alarms in Aya’s mind.

“Hey, are you okay?”

“Oh- yes. Sorry. Let’s hurry before the door closes!”

Aya grabbed her bag, and in the process, the girl’s hand as well. She was rushing as the number of passengers in the train decreased, and managed to get out just in time.

She took a deep breath, but it was all for naught when she realized what she had done just then.

“OH MY GOD I’M SORRY I DID NOT MEAN TO DO ANYTHING WITHOUT ASKING YOU!”

Aya started to panic and she quickly let go of the girl’s touch. She turned around in embarrassment and covered herself with the hoodie. In the process, she accidentally dropped her earphone, and just as she was about to pick it up, she lightly touched fingers with the one standing next to her, who already picked it up.

“I believe this is yours, no?”

“Thank you…” Aya cried. “I’m sorry, it seems that today I am bound to make a mess out of myself.”

“No need to sweat it. It happens to all of us. Are you perhaps heading to Intro to Psychology?”

“How did you know?”

“Only the Psychology department is crazy enough to organize their classes in the middle of the day. Elective courses, apparently, tend to be like this, because all the mandatory lectures take up the earlier time slots.”

“I see… You seem to be more experienced, what year are you in?”

“Oh, I just started university. This is stuff I heard from some seniors in my department.”

“You’re a first year and you already know this much? I’m jealous. The people in my class are confused and nobody knows what they’re doing. Oh, I’m Oosawa Aya, by the way. Fashion designer.”

“Koga Mitsuki. Music major.”

“Music major? That’s so cool! Wait," Aya looked at her phone and put it in her pocket. "Let’s chat while we walk. We’ll be late.”

As they headed to the humanitarian campus, they were discussing general stuff about their faculties, how hard it is to adjust, sharing trauma about how bad their university page is with loading information about their courses, and how pretentious some professors are.

“By the way, I’ve been meaning to ask. Are you into rock? I dig your Nirvana bag.” Mitsuki asked.

“Oh, thank you!” Aya exclaimed shyly. “I am! Back in high school I used to be ashamed of showing it, because everyone around me looked the same, so I was worried that I’d come across as an outcast. But now I have managed to combine that with the fashion I like, and I feel more open to express it. It became much easier when I started my fashion classes because everyone around me is so unique. I assume you like rock as well, since you asked. Where did you get that hoodie from?”

“I hand painted it myself with bleach. My uncle sells hoodies at his record shop, too, so I took one and decided to customize it.”

“You’re so cool.” Aya could see a blush creep up on Mitsuki’s face. “What made you want to start music?”

“I was exposed to rock music ever since I was a baby, so I figured I’d make it my life goal. I also learned how to play guitar at a young age, which led to me wanting to pursue music.”

“That’s amazing, you sound like a coming of age protagonist.” Aya gave a light chuckle. “The more I hear about you the more stars I see around you, it’s like you’re radiating this vibe that I can’t even describe! Also you have to show me your guitar skills!”

“Oh, that’s too much for me, haha. Thank you. I can send you videos, or even better, show it to you in real life. What’s your LINE?”

“Let me get the scanning code.”

Aya took her phone and opened the messaging app. She found the QR code and showed it to Mitsuki, who took her own phone and scanned it. A profile picture of a pink-haired girl with pastel headphones appeared, and Mitsuki showed a small smile. She clicked the [Request] button below it.

“Done. The request should pop up now.”

“...And I accepted you! Oh, right, you mentioned that your uncle held a record shop?”

“Yeah, we have all kinds of stuff there, but we mainly sell CDs and vinyls. If you’re a collectioner, I can get you a special discount. Do you want to go there after class?”

“You don’t have to do that, please. A business is a business. I’d love to go!”

Before they knew it, they reached the amphitheatre. It was packed with students who did not seem like they were from the same departments, but one thing’s for sure: they all bore the same tired expression of an average college student. There were several empty seats on the first row, and it was a shame nobody had wanted to sit there because they were the most comfortable ones, so Aya and Mitsuki wanted to take those, but they suddenly noticed a guy two rows above waving at them.

“Koga, did you not see my message?” he called.

“Yo, Narita. Come over here, there’s not enough room there for all of us. Oh, don’t give me that look, the professor is too focused on the back rows to even perceive the front row. Get here before I smack you.”

The guy - Narita, as Mitsuki called him - obediently went to the first row as his friend had instructed him to, and sat next to her. When he did so, he finally noticed the pink haired girl sitting next to Mitsuki, who was getting stuff out of her tote bag.

“Who is this girl?” Narita whispered, glancing at the one he was talking about.

“Calm your bisexual ass up and don’t embarrass me. I just met her today. Says she’s a fashion designer.”

“My bad gang, did not mean to steal your huzz.”

“Stop it with the brainrot, you know that shit pisses me off.”

“Alright, alright. We’ll talk about this after classes.”

“No we will not. I invited her to Uncle Joe’s shop.”

“Whoa, is this what they mean when they say lesbians take things fast? Next thing you know, you’ll organize a wedding in two days.”

“Shut up, Megumu. We’ll talk about it you-know-where, once I’m done hanging out with her.”

“Deal.” Narita then turned to Aya. “Hello, sorry for not introducing myself earlier. I’m Narita Megumu, economics major. I’m Mitsuki’s wingm-” Mitsuki glared at him as if she was about to stab him with a knife. “I mean friend. Is this your first time attending this class?”

“Hello! I’m Oosawa Aya, fashion designer. Yeah, at first I saw no point in attending this class but yesterday I got the mail so I thought I’d show up for once. It’s better to pass this subject with midterms than wait for the exam in January.”

“Hard agree. Oh, here comes the professor. Remind me to give you my LINE ID!”

When the students settled down, the professor briefly commented on the fact that there were more students than usual, and that it was obvious they did not care for the subject unless exams were involved. The trio scoffed at that. Other than that, the lecture was pretty boring and virtually everyone was on their phones. Aya was taking notes from her Fashion Marketing lectures for her upcoming midterm, Mitsuki covered her ears with her hair to hide the fact that she was listening to music, while tapping her feet on the ground, and Narita was watching TikToks of finance bros. “It’s good to know your enemy to beat your enemy,” Narita had said to Mitsuki in one instance.

Those gruesome 90 minutes were finally over and while students were leaving, Narita scanned Aya’s code to befriend her on LINE.

“Let’s make a group chat,” Narita suggested. “We should go out for drinks sometimes. If yall ever need to distract yourselves from studying, you know who to call. I have to go earlier because my colleagues need help for an assignment. Peace!”

“Bye, Narita! It was nice meeting you!” Aya waved at Narita.

“Bye. I’ll hit you up later.” Mitsuki sent a knowing look, hoping the guy would get the hint.

“Anyway,” Mitsuki added, “You might have not noticed because you fell asleep in the train, but I’m only a station away from the campus. Do you want to take a walk to the shop?”

“That would be great! Are there any cafés around there?”

“Yeah. If you want to, we can visit a café first and then go to the shop. I know a good place managed by someone I know.”

“Perfect. It will be my treat, so no take backs!”

“You don’t need to go that far, it’s fine.”

“I insist! If it weren’t for you I’d probably be in a ditch somewhere right now.”

“If you say so… Thank you, Oosawa.”

Gosh, the way she says my name… Aya practically melted when she heard that. At that moment, she realized how soothing Mitsuki’s voice actually was. She could make a good singer, if she isn’t one already.

“Anytime!”

—

Aya could not escape the fact that her heart was racing. She was currently in a hole-in-the-wall café with posters of famous rock bands, drinking her favorite beverage, situated across a girl she’d just met that was scarily similar to her ideal type of a partner.

This has to be a date, right?

She quickly brushed her thoughts off and finally asked Mitsuki what she was just wondering about.

“Koga, do you sing?”

“Not really…” Mitsuki looked to the side. “I mean, I do it when I am alone, but I don’t want to show it to people until I am confident about it.”

“Oh, don’t undermine yourself. You have a great voice! More people need to hear it.”

Mitsuki was silent for a moment. Her embarrassment crept up to her ears as well, and Aya thought that was the cutest thing in the whole universe. The former of the two gulped up water, composed herself for a second, and came back at Aya.

“And what if I want to keep it only for you to hear?”

It’s been, like, what, 3 hours since we met? And she’s already flirting? Does she have any idea what she’s doing? HELP???

“Proof or it didn’t happen.”

Mitsuki observed the café and realized that only the two of them were guests. Perfect , she thought.

“Kanna, is it okay if I use the guitar here?”

Kanna was the bartender of the café, and its owner. She started it while she was still in Japan several years ago, and she still occasionally opened it. It was a secret haven unknown to many, and only strived to create a soothing atmosphere for those who just want a moment of peace amidst the chaos of everyday life.

“It’s Joe’s guitar, you know you can use it whenever you want.”

“I’m surprised you keep this thing after all these years.”

“Well, he did help establish this place. It would be more surprising if there wasn’t anything of his in here.”

“Who were you guys talking about?” Aya asked quietly after Mitsuki grabbed the guitar that was placed on the wall.

“Oh, I didn’t introduce her properly, did I? This is Kanna, she knows me from back when I was a child.” Kanna waved from the distance, and Mitsuki leaned a bit closer. “She’s my uncle’s ex-girlfriend, but they’re still on okay terms. Long story.”

“I see…”

“This is Oosawa, by the way,” Mitsuki turned to Kanna. “She’s a new friend I made in uni, we share an elective course.”

“Hope you like it here, Oosawa. Nice tote bag, by the way.”

“Thank you, this is such a nice place!”

Aya took a sip from her cappuccino as Mitsuki was strumming some chords. Aya couldn’t help but watch the way Mitsuki was playing the guitar. She could sit here for hours and not be tired at all.

And then, she heard it.

I got a lot to say to you

Yeah, I got a lot to say

I noticed your eyes are always glued to me

Keeping them here and it makes no sense at all

Yeah, Aya’s eyes were glued alright. The way Mitsuki’s fingers moved back and forth across the strings, the way her rings shined against the maroon guitar, the way that Mitsuki didn’t even have to look at the guitar to play the song, the way her bangs rested on her forehead, the fact that it was a Paramore song, the fact that her eyes were staring at Aya…

And her voice . It was enough to pierce through her heart.

Aya couldn’t even say anything anymore. It wasn’t just a crush.

She was completely head over heels.

Chapter Text

Mitsuki didn’t like it when people would stare at her for too long.

All throughout primary school until the end of high school, she was under the scrutiny of her classmates, which led her to overanalyze every behavior of hers. She had to follow others’ standards by removing her piercings and not painting her nails. She could not face other people - their constant judgement was too overwhelming. Especially when they commented on her clothes as a kid.

She could not reach anyone’s frequency.

It was suffocating. It was not her.

So when she met Oosawa, and her eyes were not filled with malice, but with adoration, she could finally breathe again.

Who knew that it was that easy to look at someone, once you got rid of your fears?

—

“Koga, that was… Wow.”

Mitsuki removed the guitar strap from herself and she took a moment to catch her breath. Once Aya spoke up, she looked away, staring at the first poster she could find. Her feelings were an absolute mess, yet she still felt Aya’s careful watch lingering over her, so she couldn’t help but look back. Aya had the most adorable grin on her face, and Mitsuki couldn’t help but mirror it.

“Thanks.” she answered shakily. “So, what do you think?”

“To say that I am impressed would be an understatement. You could easily be the frontman of a band with those skills! Why haven’t you performed in front of a public?”

“There was this one time when I was in high school, and it was a low-attended gig, but I got bad performance anxiety. After that I didn’t really feel comfortable with playing in front of a public. The fact that I deal with people at the record shop is enough.”

“Ah, that’s understandable. Sorry if I intruded there.” Aya replied. “Wait, you work at the record shop?”

“Yeah, from time to time. When Uncle is busy with helping out other people, or going to gigs, I handle the shop. It’s pretty nice until you get misogynistic music elitists as your customers.”

“Tell me about it. One time when I wore this bag, a man that seemed like a computer science major came up to me and asked me that stupid ‘Name me three Nirvana songs’ question. You should have seen the look on his face when I actually named some underrated songs! It was hilarious.”

“That sucks. The world would be better without men.”

“Exactly!”

“Shall we get going in a bit? You’d be surprised with how broad our collection of records actually is.”

Aya and Mitsuki finished their coffee as they talked more about their favorite bands. They followed each other on Spotify, too, and they even added each other on Instagram. Aya gushed at Mitsuki’s feed, filled with covers of songs and her own pictures, while Mitsuki melted from how cute and neat Aya’s account was. 

“Oh, by the way, can I take pictures of this place? I want to post a story on Insta. Do you mind me taking photos of you picking up the guitar? Only your silhouette will show, I promise!”

“I don’t mind at all. Why don’t we take one of each other after that?”

“Uh… sure! But it will be just for the two of us!”

—

When they entered the record shop, Aya’s eyes lit up brighter than the stars. She hopped from shelf to shelf, carefully examining each vinyl and each CD. Even touching them with her fingertips sent shivers down her spine from how excited she was to see something like this.

Meanwhile, Mitsuki took her usual position behind the counter and sat to watch Aya fangirl. Cute was the only thought echoing around Mitsuki’s head, and she took a candid photo of her browsing through the repertoire of songs. If she’s going to post me on her story, I might as well return the favor. I’ll ask her about it so that she doesn’t get mad at me, just in case.

“Do you like what you see?”

“ Like? This is literally the place of my dreams! You have no idea how many times I listened to these songs, so to see a physical copy of them is like, uh… smelling a book you’ve wanted to read for a while? Yeah, that.”

“Make yourself at home then. Which song do you want me to play?”

“Let me think…” Aya scanned the CDs in front of her. “How about… Just What I Needed by Cars?”

“Fitting title.”

The song then filled the room of the vintage record shop. Aya took out some CDs to have a look at them, while Mitsuki took that chance to sort out the money that was in the cash register. When Aya was satisfied with what she found, she returned to where Mitsuki was.

“Say, Koga, have you ever written a song?”

“What’s the sudden question?”

“Just curious. Since you’re into music, you must have tried making some of your own, right?”

“Yeah. Remember the gig I mentioned? I actually played an original song of mine. It didn’t have any lyrics or anything, but the melody was all me. Now that I look back on it, I don’t even know how I managed to pull it off.”

“You seriously never fail to amaze me. Can I buy this?” Aya pulled out a Nirvana CD.

“Wait, you don’t have to pay for it.”

“Is this because I treated you at the café? You don’t have to do that.”

“No, it’s just… I have this exact CD over here. It’s a personal copy of mine, but I don’t mind you having it. Take it. And I’ll give you a Foo Fighters CD as well.”

“Why? You’ve only met me today, I can’t just accept these easily, they must mean to you-”

“I insist. It’s very rare to connect with someone like this, and I’ve never really had any real friends, so… consider this as a token of my appreciation.”

“Koga…”

Mitsuki stood up and held a firm expression on her face.

“Oosawa, do you want to be my friend?”

Aya chuckled. “Are we not already?”

—

Mitsuki tried to replay the events that had happened to her that day as calmly as she could, but the word calm did not exist in her dictionary at that moment.

First, she met a cute girl on a train. She was slightly learning backwards, sleeping as if she was sitting under the shade of a tree in a peaceful field. Nobody sat next to her, save for one unassuming college student, so she took the other vacant spot next to her and sat down. Once the other girl felt her presence, she leaned on her shoulder. Mitsuki panicked internally and stood up instinctively, realizing that they were nearing the campus station.

Then, said girl held her hand, exchanged socials with her, complimented her like it was nothing, and made Mitsuki look like a lovesick mess with the way she was staring at her.

Voice chat with [biflexual]

so yeah that’s what happened when you were gone <

> bro just move in with her

> maybe it wasn’t obvious to you 

> but you kept glancing in her direction

> it’s as if you forgot about your very first friend who carried you :(

shut uppp <

you know you’re an og <

and you may be weird but you’re still loyal <

so you will be forced to hear my ramblings about her :) <

> aight bet

> then are you willing to pay your cupid?

if you want to get paid work at the shop <

> just kidding

> let’s get exp

> oh, that new member is online

Blue Cold Mild Carrots chatroom | 17 active users

[paramoremoremore]: hey everyone!

[Bring_me_the_hoerizon]: Sup

[stillintoher]: helloooo^^

[francisforever]: hi

[biflexual]: welcome again!

[paramoremoremore]: can anyone help me level up?

[biflexual]: yeah, @francisforever and i are up for it. we wanted to complete our exp missions anyway lol

[paramoremoremore]: great! appreciate the help :) <3

—

[francisforever] has slain [Mythical Dragon Lord] (lvl. 250)!

Team stats:

[francisforever] scored the most Crit Damage: 500,000

[biflexual] healed the most HP: 17368

[paramoremoremore] dealt the final blow!

[paramoremoremore]: thank you sm for helping me, i gained like 20 levels just from this

[francisforever]: no problem

[biflexual]: hehe, we are truly the strongest duo aren’t we? @francisforever

[francisforever]: ugh

[biflexual]: @paramoremoremore you’ll join this joint slay in no time. count on us and we’ll deliver

[paramoremoremore]: you guys are entertaining

[paramoremoremore]: what should i focus on to become better?

[francisforever]: leveling up weapons mostly

[francisforever]: sadly unless you’re really lucky you’ll waste lots of resources

[francisforever] gifted [paramoremoremore] 5 million coins!

[francisforever]: so have this

[paramoremoremore]: wha- this many? thank you ig…

[biflexual]: francis you’ll scare her off

[biflexual]: wait those are your pronouns right?

[paramoremoremore]: yeah dw

[biflexual]: ok cool. idk what you did to him but he isn’t this generous towards others lololol

[francisforever]: do you want me to become the new guildmaster?

[biflexual]: not in a million years

[francisforever]: @paramoremoremore ignore him he just likes to be a dumbass

[francisforever]: these exp quests refresh daily so if you feel like doing them hit us up, or any other members of the guild

[biflexual]: we don’t bite :) 

[francisforever]: now you look like you’ll scare her off

[biflexual]: ah gomen, oomf-chan

[francisforever]: i’ll k**l you

[biflexual]: and if you continue i’ll ban you

[paramoremoremore]: i guess i have to get used to this banter too as a plus hahah ><

Voice chat with [biflexual]

> how long are you going to keep up the guy act

i really don’t want others to perceive me as a girl <

i know this server’s pretty chill but <

i don’t want any creeps to hang around people <

especially that paramore girl <

i even dmed her. but i did not want to scare her <

> you’re truly a rizzler huh

> i understand your concern tho

> after that f***er i’d do the same as you

> i’ll respect your decision

> but damn you bagged two girls in one day give me tips

go d*e in a ditch <

uncle’s calling me for dinner <

bye <

> cya

—

“Mitsuki, you seem happier today. Did something happen?”

Joe was, first and foremost, a doting uncle to Mitsuki. As the person who raised her, he made sure to be aware of his niece’s emotional state and check up on her whenever it was necessary. As she inherited lots of traits that could be seen in him when he was her age, he paid more attention to her so that she wouldn’t make the same mistakes as he did.

This, however, was a new expression on Mitsuki. Because she wore a mask during her work shift, it was easier to notice the weary look on her eyes, but now that had been slowly starting to disappear.

“We might have gained a new regular, Uncle.”

“And who might that be?”

“Well… I made a friend???”

“Is it that Narita kid again? I told you I’m getting bad vibes from him.”

“You’re just jealous of his ‘rizzler aura’, as he likes to call it. He’s a good guy. I’m talking about someone else.”

“Did you finally get a girlfriend?”

“I said it’s a friend! Here’s a picture of her.” Mitsuki showed the photo she snapped in secret.

“I see… Does she even know what kind of a store this is? She seems like a normie.”

“Normie? Really? Although, despite her looks, she’s actually super into rock. I gave her my Nirvana and Foo Fighters CDs.”

“You gave WHAT???”

“...Are you mad?”

“...”

“Mitsuki, wait at least a year before you get married to someone.”

“UNCLE!!!”

“I gave Kanna my CDs too when I first met her. Is this what they mean when they say the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree? Be responsible, kid.”

“I’m going to my room. Thank you for the meal.” Mitsuki declared with a stern, yet embarrassed tone.

—

LINE chat with Oosawa Aya 🌸🐻🎧

hey oosawa :) <

it’s koga <

[Photo Attachment] <

may i upload this on my story after you upload yours? <

sorry that i took a pic without your permission <

you looked cute <

> Hi koga!! :D cute cat emoji!

> [Reply to Photo Attachment] AHHH

> When did you even manage to take that? 😓

while you were browsing vinyls <

> I see… TvT

> Well if it’s you it’s alright!

> I don’t like it too much when people take photos of me

> But since im gonna put a story of you

> I guess it’s only fair

if you’re uncomfortable i won’t post it, dw <

> NOOO it’s fine i insist!

> Ah, i just remembered narita said he wanted to make a gc

> But i guess he’s gone

> Should i make it instead?

LINE Notification • 21:37

[You have been added to a group chat by Narita Megumu 🤪💪 with Oosawa Aya 🌸🐻🎧]

Oosawa Aya 🌸🐻🎧

> I was just about to make a gc lmao

Narita Megumu 🤪💪

> trust i will Never be caught lacking

> i sensed a vibe that someone was talking abt me

Koga Mitsuki 🐈‍⬛

you sense too much <

oosawa beware this guy texts a lot <

Oosawa Aya 🌸🐻🎧

> I don’t mind that ^^

Narita Megumu 🤪💪

> SEE??? there ARE compassionate people, micchan

Koga Mitsuki 🐈‍⬛

don’t call me that omfg do you wanna get blocked again <

Narita Megumu 🤪💪

> oh forgive me your excellency, i shall repent

> we need a gc name wait

[Narita Megumu 🤪💪 has renamed the group chat to “victims of society”]

Oosawa Aya 🌸🐻🎧

> Lol that’s true

> Btw does anyone have materials for psychology???

Narita Megumu 🤪💪

> yea i got some

> ppl say she’s too lazy to change the materials

Koga Mitsuki 🐈‍⬛

this guy might be a pain in the ass <

but i gotta give it to him he knows how to get stuff <

he might even get material for your subjects too oosawa <

Narita Megumu 🤪💪

> guys write it down on nov. 4 2025 at 21:45 mitsuki gave me a rare compliment

> but yeah what can i say hehe

Oosawa Aya 🌸🐻🎧

> Oh yeah that reminds me

> I’ve been meaning to ask this

> Narita, what year are you?

Narita Megumu 🤪💪

> oh a first year just like yall

Oosawa Aya 🌸🐻🎧

> WHATT

> How do you know so much

Koga Mitsuki 🐈‍⬛

he’s insanely extroverted <

and knows lots of people <

Narita Megumu 🤪💪

> gng when did this gc turn into a narita glazing competition lol

Koga Mitsuki 🐈‍⬛

shut up your two seconds of fame are over <

Narita Megumu 🤪💪

> anw here’s the file

> [Uploaded psychology_materials_first_midterm.docx]

Oosawa Aya 🌸🐻🎧

> You’re a lifesaver!

> Are you guys free this weekend to study together?

Narita Megumu 🤪💪

> yea sure, lemme just check just in case

Koga Mitsuki 🐈‍⬛

yeah. i’ll ask my uncle to cover for me <

Oosawa Aya 🌸🐻🎧

> Perfect!

> Does saturday at 2pm work for you? We can go here

> [Attached location]

Koga Mitsuki 🐈‍⬛

fine by me. <

Narita Megumu 🤪💪

> let’s gooo

Mitsuki was relieved that she wouldn’t have to wait until Tuesday to meet up with Aya. It would be one thing if they had classes together, but they were in entirely different faculties. Hold on, Mitsuki thought, Fashion is kind of like art, and it should be in the arts campus like my major. Isn’t that just a department of the Faculty of Arts? One Google search showed that Fashion Designing was, indeed, a department in that very faculty.

Mitsuki was relieved that they would at least meet up in the hallways, but she thought for a second. How had they not crossed their paths until then? 

None of that mattered, however.

Mitsuki felt the urge to write a song.

Chapter Text

Aya was thankful that she didn’t have classes on Wednesdays.

Yet, the pressure of wanting to be a good student she had inflicted upon herself was finally catching up to her, so to distract her from that she decided that it was about time she got a haircut. She spontaneously scheduled an appointment to her hairdresser’s, who was a friend of her mother, and conveniently enough, she had an empty time slot in the afternoon. When her mother heard of this, she insisted that Aya shouldn’t go with empty hands.

After seeing Mitsuki’s uncle’s ex-girlfriend, ( That is a mouthful even if I don’t say it out loud , Aya thought) she was in love with how her micro bangs looked, so she wanted to try that style out for herself. Her perm was losing shape, too, so it would be a good idea to cut off its dead ends.

On the way, she got a text from Mitsuki.

LINE chat with Koga Mitsuki 🐈‍⬛

> hey wyd?

Hello! I’m going to get a haircut :) <

Wbu? <

> ah nothing much

> i have music theory class

> and it’s boring

> so i wanted to text you

Don’t neglect class because of me! :(( <

It’s better to listen now so you can study easier <

You should get over the boring part now <

So you don’t have to suffer when it’s time for the exam <

> true

> as you wish, m’lady

> do i get a reward if i listen to it?

Hm… since you asked for it, give me suggestions <

> take a picture of your haircut :) 

Well, i walked into that myself… <

Deal <

I better see you do well on that exam! <

> why are you texting so fast tho

> where are you

Oh i don’t have classes today hahah <

That’s why i scheduled the appointment <

Except wednesday and tuesday my other days are packed <

I would have complained more but i’ll leave you be <

Ttyl koga <3 <

> it’s fine

> see ya later, oosawa <3

—

“Ah you’re Aiko’s kid, welcome!” A middle-aged woman yelled across the salon when Aya entered.

“Good afternoon, Ms. Mizumura! Have these cookies, please, my mother prepared them and said that I should say hi to you on her behalf.”

“Ah Aiko, that woman… She still insists on being generous like this. Thank you, dear, have a seat over there and I will come back in a bit.”

Aya sat at the nearest chair she could find and took a moment to observe her surroundings. She did not have any practical classes yet, but she heard from her colleagues that fashion majors often collaborate with hairdresser schools for fashion events, so she would have to analyze other aspects of fashion designing, as well. Now this was an aspect of her major that she did like.

“So, little Oosawa, what will it be today?”

“I was actually thinking I’d like to try micro bangs this time. I also want to cut off any dead ends, and I’d appreciate a perm treatment.”

“So are we getting over the curtain bangs now? Sounds good to me, it’s nice to refresh once in a while. Do you have any pictures of the bangs you want?”

“Yeah, just a second.”

Aya opened her gallery to find a pic she recently downloaded, but she caught sight of the photos she took with Mitsuki the previous day. Her lips curved into a smile before she finally clicked on the reference photo.

“Here you go.”

“Hmm… Are you sure that you want this? It’s a big change from the bangs you’re used to. They will look amazing on you, I just need to see that you’re certain about this.”

Aya took a moment before nodding in agreement. She got her phone back, and Ms. Mizumura got to work.

—

LINE chat with Koga Mitsuki 🐈‍⬛

Kogaaaaa <

Did you finish class? <

> yea i just got coffee

> what’s up

I’m not one to break promises so <

[Photo Attachment] <

What do you think? <

> oosawa holy shit

> i mean

> it looks amazing

> :)

WAHHH thank u!!! <

I was a bit nervous <

But the hairdresser knows me so <

I hope it’s alright <

> it suits your face a lot

> i did not expect the micro bangs omfg

> gtg, ttyl

> shitface is annoying me

I’m assuming that’s narita <

Say hi from me ^^ <

> he doesn’t deserve it rn

> but when he does

> i will

—

When Aya got home, she launched Illusion again. She played to get an item that would suit her outfit, which was a multicolored flower crown. It was a bit tough to grind without biflexual or francisforever, as they were both offline, but she still managed to get the item in the end. Aya was a bit sad because she got used to their banter, but she supposed that she could get along with the other guild members as well.

Blue Cold Mild Carrots chatroom | 5 active users

[THEresNoBodyHereDude]: so yeah that’s how i got cooked

[Bring_me_the_hoerizon]: This is why I keep telling you to level up your skills gdi

[THEresNoBodyHereDude]: you should be addicted to shutting the f**k up

[Bring_me_the_hoerizon]: You wanna kiss me so bad it makes you stupid

[paramoremoremore]: guys am i interrupting something? lol

[Bring_me_the_hoerizon]: Hello, this “dude” over here is trying to be a smarta**

[THEresNoBodyHereDude]: @paramoremoremore not really

[Bring_me_the_hoerizon]: Stop avoiding the topic

[paramoremoremore]: i just wanted to ask

[paramoremoremore]: why is no one active at this hour

[THEresNoBodyHereDude]: most of this guild plays at night, we’re the only active ones who play in the afternoon

> i prefer having a life at night unlike the rest of these jobless ppl

[Bring_me_the_hoerizon]: You are talking a lot for someone… nvm

[THEresNoBodyHereDude]: what are you implying here?

[Bring_me_the_hoerizon]: Anyways yeah. She and I keep the balance over here

> If you need some help we’re here, we’re just doing dailies

[paramoremoremore]: its all good, i managed to finally beat levels by myself! ill almost reach lvl 100

[Bring_me_the_hoerizon]: That soon? They grow up so fast :”)

[THEresNoBodyHereDude]: congrats

[paramoremoremore]: thanks :) 

> and another thing

> why cant you… reveal personal relationships here?

[THEresNoBodyHereDude]: erm

> hoerizon you take it from here

Whisper with [Bring_me_the_hoerizon]:

> Okay so

> Sorry if this is out of the blue

> But something happened to this guild a while ago

> I don’t think I can tell you yet because you’re still new

> Just so you know, some members might be defensive because of this

> But we don’t mean anything bad

> So for the time being

> Do not say anything

> Sorry I had to approach you like this

> If you get closer to francisforever, maybe he can tell you about it

> If you’re so curious

> Ty for understanding

i see <

this is too vague for me to understand <

but i kinda see where youre coming from <

and you must have your own reasons <

thanks for explaining anyway <

> Oh and delete your question on the main chat

> The wrong person might read it

> And it will look bad for us

…okayyy <

ill trust you for now <

> Sorry and please continue with what you were doing ^^;

This is the end of your Whisper with [Bring_me_the_hoerizon].

—

After Aya deleted her message, she was still confused by it all. What the hell could have happened to a small group like this for its members to act overprotective? They were kind to her, sure, but this was way too cryptic for her liking. And who would be "the wrong person", assuming that the members know each other well?

Since she didn’t want to do her English homework (which was a mandatory subject for her course, since she’d have to collaborate with foreign models and brands), she continued playing the game as she’d had nothing to do. She was thankful that Illusion had a Japanese server, because she would have a breakdown if she was forced to speak in English. I really need some tutoring, but I have no idea where to start… , she thought.

As night time was approaching, she slowly started seeing more and more familiar faces pop up on the messaging screen.

Blue Cold Mild Carrots chatroom | 23 active users

[francisforever] is online!

[biflexual] is online!

[Bring_me_the_hoerizon]: @THEresNoBodyHereDude Our job here is done

[THEresNoBodyHereDude]: but we didn’t do s**t

[Bring_me_the_hoerizon]: tuxedo_mask_leaving.gif

[THEresNoBodyHereDude]: you’re insufferable

[THEresNoBodyHereDude] is offline. 

[Bring_me_the_hoerizon] is offline.

[biflexual]: missed us?

[paramoremoremore]: i guess im forced to deal with TWO annoying couples now

[francisforever]: do not rope me in with that mf ever again

[biflexual]: @francisforever do you really hate the idea of us that badly? :( 

[francisforever]: this is exactly why i hate you

> @paramoremoremore do not worry, i will protect you from this scum

[paramoremoremore]: oh my knight in shining armor what would i do without you? ><

[francisforever]: i

[biflexual]: you finally don’t want someone dead when they’re flirting with you?

[francisforever]: shut up you annoying tw*nk

[paramoremoremore]: i did not sign up to be a mediator for this

You started a Whisper with [francisforever]!

heyy wyd? <

> nothing much

> had classes today

> wbu

i grinded the hell out of this game <

and im almost lvl 100 <

but the cap between lvl 90 and 100 is so huge idt i can reach it that fast <

do you have any suggestions <

> hmm

> well

> you could always get in a couple with someone

ohh yeah i think i read smth like that <

but <

i have no idea who to couple with <

i haven’t talked much with anyone in this group <

well, except you <

but since you’re maxxed out <

i guess you already have a partner??? <

> well about that

> i cleared the game by myself

> and i didn’t really need anybody’s help

> so i don’t have one, no

WHATTT <

HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE??? <

you must be a genius omg!!! <

i thought you were with biflexual? <

yall seem to have a thing <

> that guy?

> it’s true that he wants every living organism

> thinks he’s zeus or some kind of s**t

> but dw we are just friends

i see… <

so <

um <

if it’s ok to ask <

should we become a couple? <

you probably won’t have any benefit but <

it will be nice i guess? :) <

> sure, i’m up for it

> and believe me even when you’re maxxed out

> it helps out a lot during events

> there’s gonna be a christmas event soon so

> let’s do it

alrighty! idk how to send a couple req tho <

> a window will pop up

> and you’ll just have to accept it

[francisforever] wants to be in a Couple with you!

Do you accept it?

> [Yes]                        > [No]

well let’s do our best <

partner <3 <

> yeah

Congratulations! You are now in a Couple with [francisforever]!

We will send you both a congratulatory gift in-game. The reward should appear in 5 minutes at most.

Now, your Whispers have evolved into a Couple chat!

Rewards:

[Lvl] +5

[ATK] +5

[HP] +5%

[Agility] +3

[Speed] +3

[Stamina] +3

[Coins] 5000000

omg thats a lot <

this will help out sm <

> yeahhh

> also

> there are some couple missions that we can do

> but it’s late now and i assume you’re about to log off

yeah its getting pretty late <

maybe we can do them this weekend? <

wait no nvm i have plans <

um… how does tuesday sound? <

> sounds good to me

> i’ll clear some dungeons now

good night!!! see you :) <

> night night.

—

LINE chat with victims of society

Narita Megumu 🤪💪

> wsup squad

> i’m DYINGGG

> i just want to be done with this fucking subject

> yall artsy majors have it easy, try looking at statistics

> this shit will kill me

Oosawa Aya 🌸🐻🎧

Do not underestimate us! <

We fashion majors have math too :( <

How do you think we’re able to make clothes that fit? <

Koga Mitsuki 🐈‍⬛

> plus in music you literally have to time things correctly

> and what do u need for that?

> numbers.

> it’s almost 9am megumin you’re not the only one who’s suffering

Narita Megumu 🤪💪

> well micchan you know what i like sayin?

> a shared burden is better than keeping it within yourself

> - sun tzu, art of war

Aya was laughing at her phone as she was heading towards her Mathematics course. Coincidentally, her new friends rubbed the salt in the wound. Even if it was obvious that those two met way earlier than Oosawa met them, she was still enjoying their company. However, she couldn’t shake the feeling that something about them felt eerily familiar, from the way they were bantering to their texting patterns…

She shook that train of thought off when she got a call from Mitsuki.

“Hello, what’s up, Koga?” Aya answered.

“Oosawa…” Mitsuki’s deep voice echoed on the speaker. Aya stood on her tracks, shocked by how her voice sounded through the telephone.

Then, she felt something on her shoulder and she screamed.

Before she turned around, she could hear her exact scream from another source and found that weird. When she realized that Mitsuki was behind her, waving at her, Aya tried to escape to her classroom, before stopping again to take in the situation.

“Oosawa, come back! It’s me!”

“Sorry, I just had a visceral reaction. Don’t scare me like that again, please!”

“I apologize, I can’t help but smile because that was really adorable.” Aya blushed at that. “Anyway, I saw you heading to college so I wanted to go along with you. What class do you have now?”

“Math… I wanna cry, it’s too much to handle right now.”

“Wait, I have it right now as well! Which professor?”

“Mr. Matsunaga… He’s alright, but I really don’t like the subject. What about you?”

“Ah, what a shame, I thought we had the same one. Mine’s a middle aged woman. I guess different departments have different professors after all. What unit are you guys doing now?”

“Integrals, how about you?”

“Yeah, same. At least the materials seem to be similar…”

“However, I think I’m decent enough at math. My real problem is English, I just know I’m gonna fail that subject.”

“Oosawa, you have problems with English? I never would have guessed.”

“Just because I listen to English bands doesn’t mean that I know the language.”

“Fair enough…” Mitsuki was then lost in her thoughts, suddenly flashing a quick smile. Aya caught that.

“What is there to laugh about? Don’t make fun of me!” Aya retorted with a frown.

“Sorry, Oosawa. I’m not laughing at you. It’s just that… Do you want me to help you?”

“What? Really?”

“I happen to know some English. I don’t like how this system focuses on grammar instead of how English is used in real life, so I could teach you a thing or two more than what’s required. Are you up for it?”

“Absolutely! You’re a lifesaver, Koga! After we’re done with Psychology, would you mind helping me out with my materials?”

“Not at all. I’d be glad to. I gotta go now, text me when you’re finished with class!”

“I will!”

—

Aya was too tired to text Mitsuki after her class. She thought that Mitsuki wouldn’t mind if she didn’t reply. Her next lecture was a three-hour class on General Design, and then an English lecture, so she decided to get a quick snack at the canteen. There she saw two of her colleagues, Chizuru and Mao.

“If it isn’t Oosawa Aya! It’s been a while, girl!” Mao shouted in excitement.

“Mao, Chizuru, why did you have to leave me like this! Class is unbearable without you two by my side, why did you have to ditch math too? At least I hope you guys had a good time volunteering.”

“Meh, it was alright.” Chizuru noted.

“There were no hot guys there, which was a bummer.” Mao exclaimed.

“Forget about guys, I hope that you two were able to rest up. At least I wasn’t lonely while you two were gone.”

“What is this? Are you against me talking about guys because you found a guy by yourself? Our little Aya has grown up, Chizuru!”

“Is it that hot guy from economics? The one with curly hair?”

“What, Narita? He’s that famous?”

“Yeah, rumors say he has both guys and girls in his department swooning over him- wait YOU KNOW HIM?” Mao screamed.

“Yeah, but, like, we’re just friends. He didn’t seem interested in me. Besides, I made another friend. Do you guys know a girl named Koga?”

“Mao, we’ve been replaced…”

“By none other than the economics hotshot’s watch dog…”

“Watch dog? Does she have a reputation too?”

“When those two are combined, they’re one of the most powerful but dangerous duos in our entire university. How did you manage to befriend those two?” Chizuru asked in bewilderment.

“It’s a long story, but I met Koga on the train and then she and I, along with Narita, shared a Psychology class. That’s how we became acquainted.”

“Did you not notice people watching over you guys?”

“To be honest, I did not really focus on that. After that, I went to a café with Koga and…” She wanted to mention the record shop, but figured that those two wouldn’t care much. Then, she remembered her story. “Wait, did you guys not see my Instagram? I literally posted Koga the day before yesterday.”

“We had no internet there, otherwise we would be annoying as hell. Let me see what picture you posted.” Mao said.

Mao scrolled through Aya’s gallery, and she observed the pics she took of Mitsuki. “I see… Chizuru, forget the economics guy. Our Aya here is clearly focused on this musician.”

“I’m not surprised, Mao. Many of the first years admire Koga’s looks. I personally don’t see it, but, if you want her, we’ll root for you. Be quick, before someone else takes her away.”

“Guys…” Aya cried. “I can’t handle this. Let’s go to class already, people might have heard what we said.”

—

The rest of the day was gruelling for this fashion designing major, but she managed to survive it. Now that her two friends were back, she could relax a little during her lectures. If it were not for them, Aya would have gone crazy from the lack of support.

Oh, right. Koga told me to text her.

LINE chat with Koga Mitsuki 🐈‍⬛

Sorry if i’m bothering you, Koga <

I’m sorry for not texting you! I got tired during math <

And i had more classes :( thursday is the worst for me <

I had english too which was hard to follow <

How are you doing? <

> it’s fine oosawa

> im just doing stuff

What kind of stuff? <

> that’s a secret :) 

> anyways im sorry to hear that

> i hope you can rest up

> what was your eng lecture like?

I think we were talking about interculturality…? <

From what i understood <

But it’s so hard to follow istg <

Can you tell me tips on how to learn english? <

> honestly learning the lyrics of songs

> is a huge help

> hmm

What is it? <

Koga, are you there? <

> yea sorry

> i was searching for a song

> try listening to this

> and search up the lyrics

> Why Can’t This Be Love | Van Halen [Spotify Link]

Oh wow… <

I can feel the yearning in this one <

Thanks for the suggestion, Koga! <3 <

I’ll make sure to consider it <

You will still help me out on saturday, right? <

> of course :) 

> i’m glad you liked the song, oosawa

> i can drop more recs

Sure :D <

Oh, my brothers are yelling again <

> you have brothers?

Yeah, they’re twins <

REALLY chaotic twins <

They’re in elementary school now <

And when interacting with others their age <

They become unstoppable <

My mom and i face many challenges because of them <

But i love them nevertheless <

I would appreciate it if they were more understanding tho =~= <

> ah, kids being kids

> that’s so cute tho

> i’m sure they’re adorable

> just like their older sister <3

KOGAAA PLS HAHAHH <

I can’t >< <

> did i stutter?

You flatter me <

But srsly i gtg <

Ttyl <3 <

> byeeee

Aya was supposed to calm her brothers down per her mother’s request…

But it seemed like she had a much bigger problem to tackle.

“Mom, I’m sorry, can you handle Aki and Amu for a sec? I realized that I had an unfinished assignment.”

“Ah, it’s fine, dear. Go do your thing.”

Aya stormed off to her room, her face being akin to that of a tomato peel.

She put on the song that Mitsuki had sent her, and looking back at the lyrics, she threw her phone on the other side of her bed.

This is not Koga confessing to me, right?

Chapter Text

Hmm… would “Constellations in your eyes” even have a good rhythm here? How about “Come and sit between my arms?” Ugh, maybe the first one is better… This isn’t gonna work.

Mitsuki was scribbling in her notebook when she noticed that people were not going to show up any time soon at the record shop. It was a worn out notebook that she had kept since 8th grade, which contained all of the lyrics she had ever written, be it some random lines or full-on songs. She usually hated rustling through the beginning pages, but she had to do it because she’d use whatever means necessary to get inspiration. As she was reading the things her younger self had written in the spur of the moment, she was just met with a wave of embarrassment and concern. I am not going to read that again.

Instead, she took out a random CD and let it envelop the quiet, yet suffocating ambience that was present. As the piano started echoing, Mitsuki quietly tapped her pen on the scribbled page and began adding more twists and lines on it as she was following the beat of the song. Doing it, she slowly started jotting down words such as “crush”, “hair”, and other not so interconnected words.

Mitsuki focused on how seeing Aya made her feel - at ease, flustered, relieved…

She stopped scribbling on the page, thinking that this thought process would lead her to a dead end. Ironically enough, thinking about the very person she wanted to write a song for made her back away from wanting to do it.

I want to see her.

—

In the end, Mitsuki couldn’t come up with the rhythm nor the lyrics for the song. Even though spontaneity was her best friend when creating something, this time it betrayed her. Disappointed, Mitsuki went back to her room to launch Illusion, wanting to get some steam off.

That paramore girl is not here this time… Mitsuki thought while doing her daily missions.

Truth be told, except Megumu, Mitsuki was reluctant to make friends in this game. She had met him when she started playing the game, and she remembered the first time she chatted with him.

One year ago…

Whisper with [biflexual]:

> yo newbie

> wth is up with that costume, edgelord

i don’t think you have the right to talk <

you look as if you walked out of a flopped 90s movie about the mafia <

> hey don’t diss my swag!

> i’ll have you know that the suit and glasses combo is a timeless look

> if anything you look like a failed sasuke with a cloak

shut upp <

why did you whisper me anyway <

who are you <

> well i lowkey fw mitski

really? wouldn’t have guessed that someone like you is cultured <

> bruv

> but yeah i dig her vibe

> wanna create a guild?

i barely even know you <

why would you want to be in a guild with me <

> well you look lonely

> wouldn’t hurt to have some friends, would it?

not interested <

go with someone else <

you seem like the popular type <

> well i have a reputation

> but cmon

> i’ll create a guild only for cultured people

> quick

> tell me a band

uhh <

red hot chili peppers <

what for <

> you’ll see hehe

Mitsuki was bewildered by whoever this user was. It was a bit funny because all she ever wanted to do in this game was slay monsters and clear dungeons as fast as possible without any interruptions, yet somehow by some sort of charm this guy immediately turned that around. She was reluctant to even reply to this guy, but the fact that he approached her while other users did not want to speak to her so easily was something she admired.

A request popped up on her window.

[biflexual] invited you to join a guild!

Blue Cold Mild Carrots

1 Member • 1 Online | Guild Master: [biflexual]

> Join Guild | > Report Guild

Whisper with [biflexual]:

was this why you wanted me to say a band name <

lame <

> do not underestimate my genius

> you just don’t get it

> in no time this guild will be legendary

and what makes you think that <

> my vibes

> they’re never wrong

if you say so… <

> what is your name btw

koga. yours? <

> narita

> let’s be buddies :)

why? i only just met you <

> well they say it’s easier to level up with a group

> and you look like a killing machine

> plus im a healer

> we’d make a great duo

well <

true <

[francisforever] added [biflexual] as a friend!

> perfect

> also you seem cool

> are you into guys by any chance?

no <

and if you thought i’m a guy <

you’re mistaken <

> i see

> then why is your avatar a guy?

just because <

> fair enough

> do you want to clear a dungeon?

sure <

> let’s goooo

—

Voice chat with [biflexual]

yo <

how do you cope with a creative block <

if you even have one <

or just any slump in general <

> oh is the great genius mitsuki finally crumbling?

> never thought i’d see the day

> what sort of occurence brought this upon thee?

ughhh just answer the question <

> well when i’m stuck writing homework and that

> i just ignore it and go to a party lol

i forgot about that whole extroverted part of yours <

> but sometimes taking your mind off things helps a lot

> and you have a fresh start

> sometimes it’s healthy to put a stop to things

> so you can see things from a different perspective

look at you, you’re finally forming a coherent thought <

i’m proud of you <

> hey i’m trying to help!

> but seriously what’s the problem

well… <

i’m trying to write a song for oosawa <

> girl you JUST met her

> and you’re out here acting like shakespeare

> i’ll be elsa and say

> you can’t marry a girl you just met

but she’s perfect <

how often do you see someone you have so much in common with? <

and she’s nice and pretty as a plus <

i could look at her all day <

> is that enough tho?

…i don’t know <

> exactly

> it hasn’t been long since you met her

> and it’s not good to have expectations for someone

> let it marinate for a bit

> and see whether your perception of her changes

> it will make the song more authentic, won’t it?

> your feelings too

damn <

i can’t believe i’m saying this but <

thank you, megumu <

i’ll keep that in mind <

> chat we got em

> no problem

> if you need anything i’m here

> even if i might tease you in the process hahah

i’ll let you off the hook this time <

—

And just like that, Saturday came.

Mitsuki woke up much earlier than she’d expected. Not knowing what to do, she took a moment to revise some of the lessons she’s had for English to make sure that she wouldn’t make a mess out of herself while tutoring Aya. She made some mental pointers and wrote them down on her notes application just in case. She was giddy that she would finally see Aya - 2 days felt like 2 years in her book - so she was pacing around her room while wearing her earphones. It was finally time to head out after a while, so she took all of her necessities and locked the record shop.

LINE chat with victims of society

Koga Mitsuki 🐈‍⬛

just caught the train <

i’ll be there soon <

where are yall? <

Oosawa Aya 🌸🐻🎧

> I’m nearby

> Text me when you guys are there

Narita Megumu 🤪💪

> sorry yall this time i’ll be a bit late

> enter without me

Oosawa Aya 🌸🐻🎧

> Okayyy, if you need anything call us

When Mitsuki got off the train, she had to take a few twists and turns to finally figure out where she was headed to, since she hadn’t visited this area often. Thankfully, her map did not fail her and led her to the cafe, adorned with bear plushies and flowers all over. Just like Oosawa’s style.

It did not take her long to see the aforementioned girl staring off into the distance, putting her hand on her forehead as a habit from her outgrown bangs. Defeated, she looked over and practically beamed when she caught the sight of Mitsuki, waving at her.

“Hello, Koga! How have you been?” Aya asked with excitement.

“Hi, Oosawa. A little tired, but I’m still pushing through. What about you?”

“Same… My brothers still kept making a ruckus, so I was the one who had to take care of them these past two days. Their energy levels compared to mine have an overwhelming difference. Shall we get in?”

“Sure.”

The first thing one could notice when entering the cafe was a sweet mix of coffee beans and cakes filling the room. The predominantly brown and beige accents of the wall made it feel like a countryside dream, a backdrop against the light pink tables and chairs. What greeted Mitsuki and Aya was an overwhelming choice of both pastries and sweets, along with a board noting down the most popular coffee choices, outlined with hearts around them.

“Good afternoon! What can I serve you with today?” The cashier asked.

“Hello! I’d like a strawberry shortcake and a macchiato, please.” Aya answered.

“For me… a chocolate bagel and an espresso, please.” Mitsuki added.

“Will that be all?”

Both girls nodded.

“Okay, your total is…”

Mitsuki and Aya took their orders and caught a larger table with extra chairs to save for Megumu and to put their bags. Both carried laptops and notebooks, but didn’t open them yet.

“So, how have your classes been this week, Oosawa?”

“Gosh, I don’t want to talk about it. Thursday and Friday are the worst since most of my classes are forced down our throats those days. I don’t know whether this is worse or having 3 classes on a Monday. Other than that, it’s alright. I’m preparing for midterms, too, and it sucks because I have bad habits during that period, and… Oh, sorry, I talked my mouth off!”

“It’s fine, please keep talking.”

“It’s nothing important, anyway.” Aya laughed awkwardly. “Don’t mind me, what about you?”

“I can imagine, though, I’m also busy on Fridays. Guess our university doesn’t tolerate first years because they want us to experience real suffering.”

“Right? It’s so annoying. It’s like we’re in the Hunger Games!” Aya cried.

“Exactly…”

The conversation halted because the waitress came with their orders. She gently placed them on the table, gave the girls a smile, and they thanked her. When Mitsuki turned to Aya, she noticed that Aya’s cuticles were slightly scratched when she picked up her drink, and the latter noticed Mitsuki’s gaze on her hands, so she gave an indescribable look for a second before shifting the topic and returning to her usual demeanor. Mitsuki found that strange, but she decided not to comment on it.

“Except music, are you into anything else, Koga?”

“Honestly, not really… I might watch an occasional movie here and there, but it doesn’t bring me as much satisfaction.”

“That’s totally valid.”

“You?”

“Well… I do have a few hobbies. I visit exhibitions because of my major and I like collecting Sanrio merchandise from time to time. Look at this My Melody keychain I got a while ago!”

“Oh my god, that is so adorable.”

“Have you heard of Kuromi?”

“I think I’ve seen her, yeah.”

“Wanna have matching keychains with me? You really remind me of her. It’ll look so cute with your look!”

“Okay, I’m in!”

“At least I’ll have a cute meal as a compensation for the third wheeling I’ll experience today.” Megumu said, as he sat next to Mitsuki.

“Yo, Megumu, did you fall down a ditch and had to crawl back up?”

“Koga, that’s not nice! Hello, Narita!”

“Micchan, you’re getting way too bold lately. Don’t forget who gave you the Psychology materials. And do not get me started with what we talked about yesterday. Hello, Oosawa! Nice haircut you got there.”

“Thank you! What did you guys talk about yesterday?” Aya asked, looking confused.

“Nothing!” Both of them answered in unison, with Mitsuki being embarrassed and Megumu having the feeling that Mitsuki would kick his ass if he had spilled the tea.

“Okayyy… Well, shall we start studying?”

…

“I swear to god, I think I will start dreaming about Freud and his theories if I continue studying. As if mapping out business models in my subconsciousness wasn’t enough.” Megumu said as he was slowly packing up his stuff.

“Well, shall we stop for today, then? I think all of us are tired.” Aya noted, turning off the Psychology document, still keeping her browser open.

“I agree. Megumu, are you leaving already?” Mitsuki asked, closing her laptop.

“Yeah. Some guy I met at a party wants to meet up with me. Apparently he was a sophomore in my department so I wanted to ask him some questions.”

“Are you sure you just don’t have another date?” Mitsuki was unimpressed.

“Busted~”

“Well, enjoy your outing. And don’t do anything rash on your first meeting. Take the advice you give others.” Mitsuki retorted.

“Got it, chief. Bye, Mitsuki and Oosawa.”

“See you, Narita! Good luck on your date!”

“It’s not a date! Well, for now…”

And so, Megumu left the cafe. Aya and Mitsuki looked at each other for a second, and both quickly turned away, hiding themselves from the other.

“So, uhh… Wanna get started with English now?” Mitsuki finally looked over to Aya’s side.

“Yeah, sure. I honestly don’t know where we should get started, because I don’t even know where I should begin from.”

“Hmm… are there any things you know you’re good at?”

“I guess I can remember some vocabulary well… But that’s about it? Also, your idea helps a bit, but… I really don’t know.”

“It’s fine. How about we look at a video, and see if you can understand it?”

“Okay. Let me open YouTube.”

Aya opened a new tab and let Mitsuki handle the rest. Mitsuki searched for a short interview of something that she knew would pique the other’s interest. She noticed that Aya was watching it attentively, clearly fixated on trying to understand the words that were said, and since she didn’t want to overload her with too much information, she stopped it after a minute. She confirmed that Aya somewhat got the gist of it, but she was having trouble with repeating some words, and that clearly discouraged her.

Aya caught her head as her breaths slightly quickened. Mitsuki noticed this, and slightly touched her pinky, waiting for Aya’s response. Aya clasped her hand, intertwining their fingers. As Mitsuki watched, Aya took her water bottle and drank from it.

“Sorry, Koga… I didn’t think I’d get this disheartened over something small.”

“It’s not something small, if it makes you feel bad.” Mitsuki rubbed her thumb on Aya’s. “We don’t have to study now. It’s not something urgent, right?”

“It isn’t. Thank you.” Aya smiled.

“Okay, we can continue another time. I hope I didn’t make you uncomfortable.”

“No, not at all!” Aya wanted to raise her arms, but she realized that she still had her grip on Mitsuki’s hand, so she quickly removed it.

“I’m sorry, Koga, I absentmindedly held your hand like this again!!!” Aya’s color of cheeks almost matched her hair.

“Don’t worry, it’s fine.” Mitsuki laughed. “Should we get going now? I hope you enjoyed this outing.”

“Yes, I did! I hope you did too. It’s nice hanging out with you, Koga.”

“Same, Oosawa.” Aya turned off her browser. “I’ll take the trays back to the cashier’s, you can start packing up your stuff.”

Mitsuki took her bag and put her laptop, notes, and pen in it. Curious, she glanced at Aya’s screen and slightly giggled at how cute her wallpaper is - a picture of an orange cat staring at the camera, surrounded by cherry blossom petals in a street in Tokyo. However, there was one particular icon on the desktop that Mitsuki noticed, and it had her frozen on the spot.

Oosawa plays Illusion?

Chapter Text

After she left the tray at the cashier’s and had a polite exchange with her, Aya went straight to the toilet, holding her half-filled bag tightly. It felt like her world could explode at any given time, should someone poke a needle on it. She couldn’t help but recall the fact that Mitsuki stripped her bare just by staring at her; the eyes that welcomed her a while ago were the same eyes that now made her vulnerable, exposed. She liked Mitsuki, sure, but she was not ready to open up completely to her yet. She looked at her hands and curled them up into a fist before putting them on the countertop. She stared at herself in the mirror and decided it would be a good time to fix her makeup, so she took her mascara out and applied it to her eyelashes. Then she readjusted her hair a little, and psyched herself up by giving herself a smile. At that moment, she did not care if her smile was reassuring or not. She felt like she had to do it.

She took a deep breath before exiting the toilet. She realized that she hadn’t packed all of her stuff yet, so she returned to the table where she was sitting. Mitsuki was sitting there, with a concerned look on her face, but one that concealed something else too. Aya was preoccupied with her feelings to notice what it was.

“Hey, are you really okay?” the former of the two asked.

“Yeah. Don’t worry, I’m not feeling anxious anymore.” Aya gave a strained smile. “Shall we get out? I’m craving some fresh air.”

It was already night time by the time they got out. The crisp November air made tree branches gently sway, most of which have already lost their leaves. The soft street lights made the shadows blend in with the concrete Aya and Mitsuki were walking on. Those shadows, however, still had a clear divide between them, as parallel lines that wouldn’t intersect. Both girls were looking straight ahead, walking in silence. That is, until one of them decided to speak up.

“Oosawa, did I make you uncomfortable at any point today?”

“...” Aya was speechless for a moment. “What gave you that impression, Koga?”

“Besides what happened, I noticed that you were a little… distant. You don’t talk as much anymore.”

“Is that too obvious? Well, it must be from the stress I have. I’ll be fine, Koga.”

“If you say so… though, that doesn’t seem to be the case.” Mitsuki looked down and caught Aya’s hands. Reflexively, Aya let go of the grip. Aya realized what she’d done, and tightly held her bag, staying away from Mitsuki.

“Sorry… I’m not feeling well. I think I should go now. My mom needs help with taking care of my brothers.”

Mitsuki looked away, scratching the back of her head. “...Take care. I’m sorry if I did something.”

“It’s not because of you. I’m just not okay right now. See you.”

Aya did not even dare look at Mitsuki’s face. She stormed off and stopped when she knew she was far enough that Mitsuki wouldn’t search for her. She leaned on a nearby wall to catch her breath and fell down to her knees. She hugged her legs and closed her eyes, curling herself up into a ball. Although she did not cry, she still felt as if her eyes were about to drop to the ground. She let the wind hug her, as it was the only physical contact she could handle right now.

Suddenly, her phone rang. It was her mother.

“Hey, dear, where are you? We’ve been worried sick, you didn’t answer my texts.”

“...Hi, Mom. I’m almost there, I just finished hanging out.”

“Okay. Why is your voice quiet? I could barely hear you.”

“Must be my connection. I’ll be home in a moment, I’m hanging up now.”

Aya propped herself up and cleaned the dust off her clothes. Her house was a block away, but she did not want to concern her mother, so she walked to her house as soon as she got up.

—

“I’m home!” Aya yelled out.

“Aya, my dear, welcome back! How did your hangout go?” Aiko asked, as she helped Aya take off her bag and coat.

“It was alright. I managed to study well, so I think I’m ready for the midterm. I’m sad that I can’t help you with watching over the twins, but I’ll have to study for another midterm too.”

“It’s fine. As long as you study well, I won’t mind. I still have nerves of steel!” Aiko proudly exclaimed. Aya slightly laughed at that, which felt like one of the first genuine laughs she had that day. “Did you study with Mao and Chizuru?”

Oh, right, she doesn’t know about them.

“It wasn’t them this time. I met these two during one of my classes, and I wanted to hang out with them.” Aya showed a picture she took of them while they were studying. “This guy right here is Narita Megumu, and the girl is Koga Mitsuki. They’re really cool people!”

“I see… Well, I hope you had fun! I see you took them to that cafe you always went to. Get me a pastry from there one day, alright? I miss going there!”

“Will do!”

“Now there’s that smile I know. Did something happen to you?”

“Not particularly.” Aya lied. “I’m just feeling a bit tired.”

“Well, dinner is almost ready, so it will definitely make you feel better. Come on, help me set up the table.”

“BIG SIS!!!” Two simultaneous screams could be heard from the other end of the hallway.

“Hello, you two!” Aya hugged the two little boys. “Did you cause Mom any trouble?”

“No, we didn’t…” They said, as if they had actually been guilty of breaking an antique vase.

“Okay… I’m going to let you two off the hook this time, because your sister is very tired today. But if you do anything, I will immediately know, and I will have no choice but to unleash the scary DRAGON UNDER YOUR BED!” Aya ran around with her brothers as she cleverly led them to the living room in front of the TV. She put on some random cartoon channel and sat them down on the sofa. “Now you better behave before we eat, okay? Or you won’t get any treats from me next week.”

“Treats?” The brothers’ puppy eyes came into view.

“Only if you don’t cause a mess.”

“Okay!”

—

While being with her family improved her mood, Aya still didn’t feel the best. It was far from the time she went to bed, but she was absentmindedly rolling around until her thoughts stopped. Even though she had done her best to stop going back to her old ways of handling stress, it was still a stronger feeling than her. She hated it. And she especially hated it when others noticed.

Which is why she couldn’t bear seeing Mitsuki. With a glance it was obvious that she understood Aya the best, giving an impression that she’s sympathetic towards her. Yet, that’s exactly why Aya didn’t like that. Mitsuki trusted her all too quickly, and if the time came, she could leave her just as quickly. For Aya, if she saw that something was immediately working out, it would soon crumble and be far from reach. She was afraid that the same could happen with her.

But… there was still something there that she didn’t want to give up on. She must not allow herself to fall under the control of something that has not occurred yet.

Though she was reluctant to show herself in front of Mitsuki, she did not want to lose the connection they had.

After an hour of not seeing her phone, she saw that she had some unread messages.

LINE chat with Koga Mitsuki 🐈‍⬛

> oosawa

> are you ok

> i did not want to message you immediately because you seemed overwhelmed, but i’m sorry. i should have noticed that you weren’t feeling the best, but i kept pushing. if you want to talk about what’s on your mind, i’m here. if not, that’s fine too. please take care

Hello sorry for replying late <

I feel better now <

And i think i should be the one to apologize <

Because i left without a word <

I was just overwhelmed and im still trying to process my emotions <

But thank you for checking up on me <

I probably won’t message anyone for the time being so i hope you can understand <

Bye <

> bye, oosawa

> [Photo Attachment]

> i hope this cat i saw on the street will make you feel better

Aya smiled at that message, but she didn’t have the energy to reply. She slowly stood up and brought the laptop to her desk. She opened some tabs that she previously bookmarked for studying, connected her headphones to her laptop, and turned on Spotify. She grabbed some notebooks and highlighters, as well, and got to work.

For two or three hours, the only sounds one could hear if they were to enter Aya’s room were endless scratches on her notebook, an occasional click of a pen, sprinkled with some complaints and once-in-a-while yawns. She even wanted to call Mao and Chizuru for emotional support, but figured that she did not want to bother them. As she was studying, one particular icon was standing out among all the applications she had on her taskbar. Illusion, huh… I don’t feel like playing it now.

The next two days went on in a similar manner. Aya was practically glued to her computer screen, mixing up principles of advertising, Yves Saint Laurent’s way to success, Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, and mathematical formulas. If someone wanted to talk to her, Aya would either respond with no coherence or she would just stare off into the distance, scratching her hands.

Chizuru and Mao, however, had enough of it. They only had two classes on Monday, so after they were done they took Aya to a more quiet corner.

“Aya.” Chizuru sternly said.

“Chizuru… Mao… What is going on?” Aya asked, the fatigue catching up to her voice, as well.

“Be honest with us.” Mao demanded. “Do you eat well at home?”

“...Yes?”

“Are you getting enough sleep?”

“I try…”

“That is false. Look at the dark circles under your eyes! You already know so much, girl, why are you pushing yourself so hard?”

“...I don’t want to fail.”

“Come on, you will actually fail if you keep going like this.” Mao noted. “Besides, it’s not like you have only one chance. If you fail a midterm, you can leave it for January. You’ve been like this since high school. This is college. It’s harder, sure, but you can actually schedule things as you like. You don’t have to suffer like this.”

“I know, but… I don’t want to be a disappointment.”

“To who? Your mom’s always been supportive, as far as I know.”

“I guess I don’t want to disappoint myself. That’s why I work hard, because if I see myself lacking, then how am I going to be capable of doing other things?” Aya started shaking. Chizuru and Mao simultaneously hugged her from each side, and Aya tried to accommodate both into her embrace.

“It’s okay, girl.” Chizuru whispered. “Do you want us to stay like this, or go somewhere else?”

“...I want to eat.”

“Then let’s go eat! Time to ditch the boring ol’ cafeteria and scout those places outside of campus!”

“Thank you guys, I love you so much. I’m sorry if I’m acting weird, but it feels like I’m living life on edge. You’re right, it’s best to unwind before a test. Let me just go to the bathroom, it won’t be long.”

“Okay, we’ll wait for you outside.”

Aya took out her makeup kit, fixed her contouring, and applied some blush. She also wanted to hide her eye bags, but just as she was about to apply some concealer, a figure popped up next to her as if it came out of thin air.

“Oosawa?”

She turned her head towards the one who called out her name, and she let out a sigh she didn’t know she had. It was not exactly the person she wanted to see at that time, but she was relieved that it was not some weirdo.

“...What are you doing, Koga?”

“Washing my hands? What about you?”

“Uh-huh… Wait, let me apply concealer.”

“...Are you truly feeling okay?”

“Me? Yes? I’m fine. Of course, why would I not be fine?”

“It sounds to me as if you’re convincing yourself you’re fine.”

“I’m sorry, the stress really got to me. Is it alright if I go now? I have plans.”

“Sure. See you around, Oosawa.” After a pause, Mitsuki added: “Are we still friends?”

After seeing Mitsuki’s distant, yet sad expression, Aya softened a little. She figured she was too harsh on Mitsuki, and she did not deserve her attitude towards her, so she gave a reassuring smile. This time, one that’s small, yet from the heart.

“Why wouldn’t we be? Let’s talk more when I feel better. Wait for me.”

“I will.”

Chapter Text

Mitsuki could not help but constantly check her phone, desperately hoping that a notification from a specific person would pop up, to no avail. She was aware that Aya needed space, so she gave her exactly that, but she was feeling lonely. Only after seeing Aya leave the bathroom did she realize how much Aya’s company meant to her - the laughs they shared, the pictures they’d send each other, and the blush that complimented the color of her locks - she missed it all. Mitsuki ran her hands through her hair, messing it up even more. She leaned on the wall, staying there for a bit. Although Aya had constantly reassured her that she did not do anything wrong, the way she looked at Mitsuki betrayed her.

Mitsuki had a habit of noticing other people’s habits. She observed things without letting them linger for far too long, afraid that other people would notice her stare. It is something that had captivated her since she was young, and she used most of them as an inspiration for her songs. Usually she would just steal a quick glance, but Aya had this force that made Mitsuki glued to her. Her voice reverberated through her thoughts. She was the written words that made her blank page feel alive.

Mitsuki suddenly came to her senses. Huh, it was that simple.

While it was painful, she realized the meaning behind “distance makes the heart grow fonder”. It was the perfect environment for her to finally write that song she’d been planning to make. She gathered her stuff, ruffled her hair again to get it to a more coherent shape, and headed straight towards the record shop.

“Mitsuki, you finally arrived!” Joe greeted her.

His niece just gave a faint hello, and was quick to go change her clothes. Joe was confused as to why she would not stay longer, since he’d usually catch her idly chatting to him about her day before working, so he was a little worried. He was cleaning his glasses when he heard Mitsuki’s steps get closer and closer. When she arrived, wearing her usual work attire, Joe noticed that she was carrying the notebook. There was a fire in her eyes that Joe found more than recognizable, so he suggested that Mitsuki should not work for that day. She smiled at that, and carefully put her apron and mask behind the counter. She took her guitar case, said goodbye to Joe and left, not knowing that her uncle was quietly tearing up as he was holding a certain album in his hand.

—

As she was heading towards the park near the university, she could feel stares from nearby girls, giggling as they were hiding their faces with their phones. Mitsuki was aware of her popularity, no thanks to Megumu, but she still wasn’t used to being perceived by others. To drown both unwanted voices and faces she wouldn’t remember, she put on her headphones and scrolled through her Spotify playlists.

Right, I follow Oosawa… is what Mitsuki thought as she couldn’t find a song she wanted to listen to. She clicked on her followers tab and found Aya’s account, which had several public playlists. One of them was titled “yearning” and it was the most recent one, and it piqued Mitsuki’s interest, so she scrolled through the song choices. Oosawa truly has an amazing taste… I knew she was into rock, but this is some high quality stuff. She found that if she wanted to write a song about Aya, she must study her from A to Z, so she played the playlist in order. She wanted to know what the thought process was behind every choice, to see how interlinked the songs were, to hear the sound of her heart.

She finally found a spot under a tree, covering her from the unassuming November sun. She looked around her to take in the scenery, and the park was half-empty, which was perfect for her. She turned off her headphones and started writing. Just like last time, she wrote down some epithets and characteristics that remind her of Aya, in order to get some lyrics. When she wasn’t sure what to add, she was thinking up a melody, as well.

One thing she liked doing was to record herself playing the guitar whenever inspiration struck her. She spontaneously played some chords and riffs for however long she thought the song would take her, and when she was done, she analyzed the clip and added or scrapped some parts that would refine it. She didn’t rely on music theory, which was becoming a bad habit since she was a music major, but she couldn’t help it when music was an innate part of her. Relying on music theory would only hinder her progress.

When her phone displayed a notification and Mitsuki saw that it was from Megumu, she was disappointed and ignored it. Absolutely nothing would stop her from procrastinating on writing a song, not even her best friend. But, she did feel bad for not seeing what the message was, so she slid her notification bars and saw the word “midterm” among others.

Fuck. She called Megumu. She closed her notebook and placed it on the ground. She realized that writing a song was not enough and that she needed to rant to someone.

“Hello?” Megumu answered, while a noticeable crowd was occupying Megumu’s silence.

“Where are you?”

“Just finished classes, why?”

“Come to the park immediately.”

“I have plans tho-”

“This is not a choice.” Mitsuki was stern.

“Oh fuck, how important is it?”

“Very important.”

“I’m coming now. Send me your location.”

Mitsuki figured she’d at least finish perfecting the first chorus by the time Megumu arrived, so she opened her notebook again, but she was far too distracted to think of another word and note. She leaned on the tree trunk and looked above. The clouds looked as if they were bushes hugging the branches. Before she knew it, her smug companion showed up, waving in front of her face.

“It’s rude to shove your hand near someone’s field of vision, you know.” Mitsuki remarked.

“I’m ditching my boyfriend to see you, you know .” Megumu imitated her voice.

“Wait, when did that happen?”

“Last Saturday. That’s why I haven’t been texting you, I’m sorry.”

“Damn- congratulations! Is he a good guy?”

“He’s alright. But we’ll talk about that another day. You don’t call me usually.”

“Sorry, you were probably excited to talk about this with me.”

“It’s fine, I just want you to be okay. Is there an emergency?” Megumu asked with concern.

“Not an emergency really, but…” Mitsuki couldn’t find the words. She grabbed her notebook just to have something to hold.

“Do you wanna talk about it?”

“Do you think I’m pushy?”

“What? Pushy, you? I’ve never got that impression.”

“Okay, how about… Impulsive?”

“Sometimes when you have an urge to defeat a boss that’s not fit for rogue classes, but not in real life. Why are you asking this?”

“Aya asked for space. She kept saying that I don’t make her uncomfortable, but it feels like I did something wrong to her.”

“Have you said something bad to her?”

“No. I did try watching a video with her to learn English, and she got overwhelmed from that, but I don’t think it was from that.”

“Hmm… Rather than saying something, has there been any moment where she was feeling off?”

“Let me think.”

Mitsuki recounted every single moment from the study date, from them meeting in front of the cafe, to their recent encounter in the university bathrooms. She kept replaying Aya’s mutters after she exited the bathroom in the cafe, but there must have been something before that…

Oh.

“There was this time before you came. I noticed… Well, I don’t know if she’ll like me saying this, but the cuticles on her nails were all scratched. I was concerned for her and I might have taken more than a moment to look at them. She might have noticed my stare, and after that had this look of shock on her eyes. She continued talking like normal, but after that she kept fidgeting and hiding her hands as much as she could.”

“I see… Well, you didn’t say anything to hurt her from what I’ve gathered. But, Mitsuki, you explained all of this yet you still aren’t sure why she wants a break?”

“I wish I knew.”

“You’re too quick to blame yourself. I know you wouldn’t intentionally do anything to harm anyone. But I think you are too observant when it comes to people, and because of that you don’t know when to switch that off. So people might assume that you are judging them. Of course, that’s their problem, I’m just hypothesizing what’s happening to her. So, Aya might feel hurt because she saw you staring at something that she wants to hide. Did you ask her if she’s okay?”

“I did, but she only kept emphasizing that she was fine… Oh.” Mitsuki looked at her notebook, gripping it more tightly. “She doesn’t want others to acknowledge her negative emotions. But why?”

“I wouldn’t know. It’s something that only she has, or will have, the answer to. All you can do is let her process her emotions.”

“I know… It’s hard for me not to be in her presence, but I’ll be patient.”

“There you go, that’s the Micchan I know! What would you do without your supercalifragilisticexpialidocious friend to back you up in moments like this?”

“Oh, can it. But thank you, Megumu. This means a lot. I feel like I understand the situation better.”

“No problem. You see, sometimes all people need is time. Even though you don’t know her for long, I can see that she’s impacted you a lot. It’s important to know both what you and she want. I hope that things will turn out better for you two.”

“I hope so too. Megumu, you should be a Psychology major instead.”

“Nah, I don’t want to spend my parties wondering about everyone’s diagnosis there. Oh yeah, did you see my message about the midterm tomorrow?”

“I only saw the word ‘midterm’, that’s why I called you.”

“It was just a message to shake you up, but I didn’t think you would call me, so at first I thought you called me to say that you’re stressed about it.”

“When we prepared quite a bit for it? I just want to pass it. That’s not what I want to talk about right now, you’re going to explain yourself right here and right now about your boyfriend.”

—

Mitsuki had no choice but to entertain Megumu’s ideas and they went to a bar to relax their nerves. If anything, Mitsuki only felt more nervous because the bar did not play anything she liked, the lights and people around her overwhelmed her. At least it made her forget almost everything about what happened. When she returned home, the first thing she did was prop down on her bed. The midterm was pretty early in the day, so she wanted to get some rest.

Spoiler alert: she did not.

She was twisting and turning, alternating between scrolling through her phone, getting up to review her song again and again, playing an angry riff, reviewing some Psychology notes she got from Aya with her handwriting, hugging said notes, and going back to her bed. She did this over and over again, until somewhere after 12am, when she decided that she’d just play Illusion until she felt tired enough.

Megumu was not online. While she was not used to playing without him, it was also good because she did not want to get sidetracked while doing some quests and battles.

That paramore girl was not online, as well. Come to think of it, Mitsuki forgot one excruciatingly important detail: that Aya played Illusion , too. And if she played the game, Mitsuki would assume that she wasn’t an experienced player since she didn’t seem like a gamer - Illusion was the only game she had on her desktop. Also, the paramore girl looked hauntingly like Aya as if she were a fairy. Just because most players liked dressing up as someone that doesn’t look like them doesn’t mean that everyone would. She also hasn’t seen her online since Aya started studying. That could mean one thing only.

Mitsuki had no plans of telling her that, though. They were still not talking, so to bring this up would probably make things worse. So, she kept it as a surprise for Aya. If it was even Aya.

A player Mitsuki had never seen in the outworld was approaching towards her. They were dressed up as a knight, wielding an intricately made greatsword. They were happily skipping towards her and stopped when they were near enough for them to send a Whisper. They smiled and a notification popped up in Mitsuki’s chat.

Whisper with [Notacreepjustaweirdo]:

> hello! ><

> you look very cool, so i had to approach you! :3

thank you <

do you need something? <

> mmm not really!

> i just wanted to ask

> are you a part of the rhcp guild?

how do you know about it? <

> well i’m a new player, a friend of mine recommended this game

> and they’re a part of that server

> so i wanted to join it too! ^^

well… your username is inspired by radiohead, right? <

we don’t accept just anyone <

> yesss

> oh! the guild just popped up as i was refreshing my page

> please tell your guild master to accept me~

okay <

but just so you know, you shouldn’t reveal who your friend is to the entire server <

but since i’m a moderator, i want to know who it is to see if you’re trustworthy <

> okayyy

> it’s stillintoher!

Mitsuki then went to their profile to check their following list. For a new account, they sure did some things newbies wouldn’t know or bother to change, such as how to disable the following list or not show character stats. Could they be someone that plays multiple games, or is this an alt account? And out of all guilds, why target ours, specifically? I need to message stillintoher… Thank god they’re online. I wonder where they are…

Blue Cold Mild Carrots chatroom | 13 active users

[francisforever]: @stillintoher hello, sorry to bother you but can you tp here?

[stillintoher]: sure! do you need any help?

[francisforever]: i need a small favor

[stillintoher]: okay

Whisper with [stillintoher]:

hey do you know this person? <

> oh yeah, that’s my friend

> what about them?

i’m sure you just wanted someone to game with <

but you are very well aware of rule three, right? <

> yes…?

right, you must be confused <

there was an incident in the guild so we are wary of new users <

is this the first time this person plays illusion? <

> yeah, they finally got the chance to try it out

> i’ll keep the rule in mind

> but my friend just wanted to play a new rpg bc they’ve gotten bored of other games

> so pls accept them in the server

alright, thank you <

Whisper with [Notacreepjustaweirdo]:

i will add you to the guild right now <

> YAYYYY thank you!!! ><

> let’s play together sometime, it’s late now :3

> goodnight!

gn <

Mitsuki reluctantly let them in, and even though they had an approval from a guild member, it was still weird to her. Things just weren’t adding up: they seemed overly enthusiastic, were very suspicious with how they presented as a new player and there was something about that writing style that seemed very familiar, but she did not want to dwell into that. She’d have to talk to Megumu about this.

She was thankful for this situation, in a way, because her eyes finally started working against her. She turned off the screen and covered herself as much as she could. As she was drifting off, her mind made up a story about how she had her song finished, performed it in front of Aya, led her backstage, and finally gathered the courage to kiss her while nobody was watching. That kissing part made her wake up, so she made a tired motion with her hands as if she was making a cloud dissolve into thin air, and went back to sleep.

Her thoughts kept her occupied enough that when she was distracted from thinking, it was 9am and her alarm went off about 5 times. It was so loud that even Joe came to Mitsuki’s room to wake her up. She was too tired to function and with great difficulty she managed to get ready for the day.

She had a midterm, yes, but that wasn’t what she was mentally preparing for.

It was a Tuesday, and that meant seeing Aya again.

Chapter Text

After she got out of the campus bathroom, Aya let out a long sigh. In truth, she wanted to see Mitsuki really badly, but she was still not prepared for her to see her like… that. She pulled her phone out and texted Chizuru and Mao. They were near the campus exit, and Aya slowly approached them. They asked her what took her so much to come, but Aya thought that she did not want to bother herself and her friends with that interaction, so she just suggested that they should get going.

Aya was shocked when she found out that they took her to a fine dining restaurant. Chizuru and Mao insisted on treating her, and after many failed attempts of Aya wanting to cover the bill, she eventually relented. The two girls told Aya some anecdotes of the volunteering trip they had, including the fact that Mao once tried to give a bottle with her phone number to a marathon runner, and when they returned from their volunteer work, she got a number from a company trying to scam people into selling their washing machine to them. Their stories were so ridiculous that Aya’s mood became more positive. When they saw her laughing, Chizuru and Mao looked at each other and smiled.

“We’re glad you’re okay now, Aya. Tell us how your midterm goes!”

—

It was finally the time for that said midterm. When she got on the train, she couldn’t find an empty seat, but there was some space for her to breathe, so throughout the whole train ride she looked as if she was about to summon a demonic spirit, blabbering prayers to herself. People around her were concerned and offered water and some sugary snacks to boost her mood, but she reverted back to her usual self and politely declined their kind offers. She had a look at her notes for one last time before she went to the midterm, and quietly motivated herself. I’m not going to pass this if I keep being stressed!

She could go for a snack, though, so when she got off the train she went to a nearby vending machine to get some, debating between several options. Then, she put her snacks in her bag and pulled out her earphones as she was walking towards the campus. There was a noticeable crowd approaching the humanities campus, which meant that they too were unfortunate souls who had to take the midterm. Aya double checked whether she had everything: student ID, water, pen. I might check again before the exam just in case. Aya decided to get closer to the crowd to secretly scan for a totally unspecified individual, but she was unsuccessful in finding her. Stupid me, why am I doing this?

The professor was taking a long time to arrive, and she even sent a mail that she was going to be late, so a teaching assistant from the Psychology department was the one who took care of the seating arrangement. The amphitheatre was just so full of students, so they had no choice but to divide the students into two groups. Those who came later had to be seated in a different amphitheatre, and they would be supervised by the teaching assistant. They might actually have an advantage, since that TA doesn’t know them, so they might be able to get away with cheating… I did study, but I’m screwed… I brought my phone just in case, but if the professor sees it I’m flying away from this planet. Wait, let me put it on silent.

The professor came and she was handing out the papers, but while she was doing that, she was interrupted by two students entering the room. It was Mitsuki and Megumu. They looked like they were searching the entire Earth to find some treasure, and Megumu breathlessly apologized for being late. The professor actually took pity on them, and let them sit on her desk. She gave them papers, too, and turned to the other students.

“Now that this is out of the way, let’s just finish this quickly. I’ll give you thirty minutes, and you can have anything with you. Just don’t be too loud, I need to grade papers. You may start.”

Aya looked at the questions, too overwhelmed to focus on anything else. There were 15 multiple-choice questions, most of them being worded confusingly. It was easy for Aya, though. She breezed through the questions without having to pull out any device, and she took the rest of her time trying to relax. She took a sip of her water bottle, and stared at the professor’s desk, where Mitsuki was apparently confused about a question. As she noticed that, she was wondering whether to help her; Megumu already finished the midterm and left, so she was left on her own. Screw it.

LINE chat with Koga Mitsuki 🐈‍⬛

Need help? <

> oosawa?

Mitsuki looked up and turned her head around the amphitheatre until she noticed pink hair in the upper seats. Said pink-haired girl noticed Mitsuki’s stare, but she was glued to her phone. Aya wanted to pretend that she was looking at her exam, having one hand on the table and the other holding her phone under the desk.

I see that you’ve stayed like this for several minutes <

You must be stuck on some questions, right? <

> yeah… i would have left by now but at least i want to have all of my questions answered lol

> i have 3 questions: 1, 3 and 4

1 - c; 3 - b; 4 - c <

I’ll go now <

Don’t wait for me <

> ah… i see

> thank you tho :)

Aya was still not determined enough to talk to Mitsuki in real life, but she was sad to see Mitsuki looking a little helpless. Mitsuki seemed as if she didn’t care about things like having perfect grades, but Aya could sense that she wanted to put in some effort. She handed the sheet to her professor, muttered a silent goodbye, and left the amphitheatre.

She dropped a quick message to Chizuru and Mao, saying that the midterm went well, and her friends responded that they would’ve never doubted her. This made Aya’s mood better. She looked at her bank account and saw that she still had some money left, so she was determined to have a self-care day. She texted her mom, saying that she wouldn’t be immediately home. Her mother gave her a thumbs up and a heart sticker.

There was a shopping mall near the campus, so Aya headed off there. What greeted her was a stand of a makeup brand she followed, so she observed the items they displayed. Sadly, most of those were way above her price range, which was disappointing because most of those items suited her makeup look to a T. She visited another stand which sold vintage trinkets and the workers behind the stand were actually two girls, who looked about Aya’s age, dressed up in a gyaru style. Aya excitedly asked them for tips on where to get clothes similar to those they wore, and they responded in kind, promoting the clothing store which was a floor above them. She thanked them and mentioned the fact that she was a fashion student. They started asking her questions about it, since apparently they were a year above her. Aya also wanted to know what kind of stuff they do during their second year, but they kept it a surprise for her to find out. They handed her a business card for her to contact them if they need someone in the future to help them out in their store, and to satisfy Aya’s curiosity about the fashion sphere.

Aya did not hesitate and headed straight to the store the girls mentioned. When she entered she immediately beamed in excitement because the stuff they sold was exactly to her taste. The shirts they displayed were cute, the jeans were grungy yet perfect for styling with any other aesthetic, and their accessories were very expressive. Perfect . She took some outfit combinations and went to the dressing room. She tried every combination possible, and sent pictures to Chizuru and Mao.

LINE chat with the powerpuff girlz

sakuraya ^_^

Guys i need your thoughts <

[Photo Attachment]

cheese butter (¬_¬")

> The color coordination in this one is cute

ma🫧

> yeah!!! the belt is a bit weird tho

sakuraya ^_^

What about this one? <

[Photo Attachment]

ma🫧

> okayy miss chappell roan

cheese butter (¬_¬")

> It’s giving

sakuraya ^_^

Wait i’ll send the others after i’m done with everything <

[Photo Attachment]

[Photo Attachment]

[Photo Attachment]

ma🫧

> you really look good in everything bestie

> i’d crush on you so hard if i didn’t like men ><

sakuraya ^_^

Hahaha thanks! I’m telling you, liking girls is so much better, stop liking men!!! <

cheese butter (¬_¬")

> Aya please go with that Chappell fit

> If you buy anything make it that one

sakuraya ^_^

I didn’t think yall would like that one so much hahah <

Personally i prefer the one with the pink Nirvana shirt lol <

It goes well with the skirt <

ma🫧

> it’s cute but i think other outfits suit you more

Aya was a little sad. She knew that her friends were not into rock, but to see it clearly like this hurt her a little. What was wrong with the outfit she liked the most? Out of spite, Aya decided that this would be the outfit she would buy. It was her choice, in the end. She went to the cash register and paid for the items.

At times like this, she dearly missed Mitsuki. Aya knew that she would immediately approve of the clothes. At that moment, Aya had realized something that was bound to come to the surface sooner or later. She let her emotions control her actions, and all she did was run away like a coward. Mitsuki didn’t do anything to her, Aya was just afraid to face her fears. That look Mitsuki gave repeated over and over again in her head, but she let that overshadow the other times she looked at her. There was the time where they went to Kanna’s cafe, her eyes filled with adoration as she played the guitar. And the time when they exchanged looks when they did not want to look at the professor. And when they locked eyes before they started studying English.

Aya had completely ignored that. She distanced herself from her feelings again.

She had no intention to continue this behavior of hers.

Not towards Mitsuki.

So she ran.

Her instinct was to immediately go to the record shop.

—

Aya had to admit that during her daze she was completely lost. At one point, she didn’t know which way was which. She had to stop to catch her breath, and slowly started moving around as she grabbed her water bottle. The buildings around her looked familiar enough, so that was a good sign. After several times of internally cursing while she was using her navigation app, she finally reached her destination. Now that she was there, she didn’t know what to do. Do I look at the window to see if she’s there? Wait no, that would be creepy, if I’m staring I might as well enter. Should I just sit next to the door? But, wait, there’s a camera, what if she sees me through the computer screen? That would be awkward! What if I-

A deep manly voice called out. “Young miss, are you okay?”

Aya screamed. Of all things, she didn’t expect to be scared by that . She took a better look, and the man standing before her looked scarily similar to Mitsuki… except if she had a beard and was way taller.

“Excuse me, are you perhaps… Mr. Joe?” Aya scaredly asked.

“Before that, let’s go inside. You look stressed, let me grab you something to eat.”

“Ah- there’s no need, sir! I actually have snacks here that I forgot about.”

“If you say so. Come inside, it’s cold.” 

As Aya was digging through her tote bag to find the snacks she bought and forgot about, Joe was readjusting his glasses to look at her. A moment passed, and then he clasped his hands, as if he remembered something.

“Well, ain’t you the gal that my niece mentioned!” Joe excitedly cheered. “Since you know my name, too, I guess my Mitsuki told you about me! I’m Joe, her uncle. So, you’re into Nirvana?”

Aya took a bit to respond because she was chewing. “Nice to meet you! I’m Oosawa Aya. More importantly, you know about me? And yes, I like Nirvana a lot. I’ve been to this shop once before, and it’s very nice! I never thought that we would have something like this here. Also, I’m super thankful that Koga gave me one of her albums. It was very nice of her.”

“That girl always goes out of her way for others, I swear. And ain’t our shop the best? Wait, lemme go get her, she’s doing…” Joe wanted to continue the sentence, but something stopped him and his expression mellowed out. “Whatever, if I say that you’re here, she will come running down, I bet. Honestly, thank god Mitsuki has other friends now, whenever that other kid came in it felt like he was stealin’ my thunder, you know?”

“You’re talking about Narita? He’s a good guy from what I know…”

“That doesn’t matter. MITSUKIIIIIII!” Joe yelled out. “THAT GIRL YOU HANG OUT WITH IS HERE!”

“Coming!” Mitsuki’s voice could be heard from a distance.

This is it… She will hate me now, probably. What was I thinking, acting like a fool then? Will she even want to hang out with me after this?

“Hey, Oosawa.” The first thing Aya noticed when she saw Mitsuki when she was waving at her was that her hands had smudged pen marks and calluses on her fingertips. She did not notice how Mitsuki looked petrified for a split second.

“Hi, Koga.” Aya was smiling awkwardly, the “hi” coming off breathy.

“Uhh… Mitsuki, I will be in the kitchen prepping somethin’ for you two, go watch the shop while I’m not here.” Joe said, sensing that there was some tension.

“Okay, uncle. How have you been, Oosawa?”

“Koga…” Aya stopped, figuring out what to say next. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry that I came off like… that to you. Sometimes, my feelings get the better of me and I act before I can process everything. I needed a little distance so that I wouldn’t lash out on you, anymore, but the more I was without you the more I felt bad. We don’t know each other a lot, but I’ve never clicked with someone before…” Aya did not look at Mitsuki at all during this confession, instead picking at her nails.

Mitsuki’s calloused hands then embraced her own. “Look at me, and breathe.” Mitsuki said. “It’s okay. Take a second to rest.”

Aya did not notice that her eyes were dwelling up. Mitsuki wiped the tears off her cheek, and stared at Aya with such care in her eyes. She then led Aya to the chair behind the counter. After Aya took some deep breaths, Mitsuki promised that she would be back with tissues. In the meantime, Aya played around with her hair. Her face was heating up as she realized what was going on.

Mitsuki came back, handing the tissues to Aya, holding a glass of water in her other hand. Aya wiped her eyes and then took another tissue to blow her nose. She looked away, but was immediately brought back by Mitsuki’s voice.

“Hey, it’s alright. Feel better now? Here’s some water too.”

Aya gulped the water down in one go. “Thank you, Koga. Gosh, now I feel even more bad for neglecting you. You didn’t deserve that, at all.”

“It was not neglect, Oosawa. You simply needed time, that is all. It happens to everyone. Don’t sweat over it. I told you I was going to wait for you, right?”

“And here I am.” Aya smiled.

“Also, just know that if you have any worries and problems, I’m willing to share them with you. I don’t want to see you like this. You don’t have to keep to yourself no matter if it’s something happy or something that burdens you.” Mitsuki soothed her.

“Thank you for everything. That goes for you too, Koga. I see that your hands are a bit… rough? Are you doing okay?”

“Yeah, don’t worry! I’m just… working on an assignment.” Mitsuki became a bit jittery.

“Hm… Is that the truth?” Aya was not entirely convinced.

“Yeah! I have an assignment about music composition that needs to be done by the end of December, so uh… I’ve been stuck on it.”

“Okay. There’s still time for that, so no need to stress over it early.”

“Also, Oosawa… Thank you for helping me out for the Psychology midterm.”

“Oh, that? It’s nothing, really!” Aya waved her hands.

“It’s just… I thought you were mad at me.” Mitsuki clasped her hands, rubbing her thumbs. “The thought of seeing you made me really nervous, so I forgot my ID. You have no idea, the last time I ran that hard was probably during track in middle school. I really did not want to miss this opportunity to want to talk to you, even for a second, so it was frustrating. I managed to make it on time, thankfully, and I was so happy when you helped me out. You saved my life there. It may not look like much, but… that made my entire day. So, when I saw you here, I was really shocked. I thought that I wouldn’t see you after this for a long while. Gosh…” Mitsuki did not know what to say next. She noticed how much she was rambling, so she put her hand behind her neck, looking off to the side.

And then, Aya hugged her.

There was no explanation for it, really. It was just Aya’s instincts. She could sense Mitsuki’s fabric softener as she nuzzled her head on Mitsuki’s nape, making Aya hug the other tightly. Mitsuki was flustered, but she quickly returned Aya’s embrace. She was careful not to damage the pink-haired girl’s locks, so she set her hair aside. Aya felt a shock from this action, so she quickly stood up. When she let go of the hug, Mitsuki looked like a sad puppy, so Aya laughed.

“What’s wrong?” Mitsuki cried.

“Nothing, it’s just… You’re so cute, Mitsuki!” Aya said mindlessly, while holding onto Mitsuki’s thigh for support.

“...What did you just call me?” Mitsuki whispered.

“...Huh?”