The two continued to march silently toward their unknown destination, at least, for one of them. The taller girl lead the way, her eyes peering into each room as they passed, but all were occupied; mostly kids eating lunch or simply hanging out. Sakaki's eyes narrowed ever so slightly, just barely suppressing a frustrated sigh. On any other day, most of the rooms would be empty. Figures the one time she needed one there wasn't one available.
Yomi was practically on pins and needles as it was and her anxiety was growing with each passing second. It was worse than being sent to the principal's office... not the she ever had that happen to her. Cough, cough. The suspense was killing her. She just knew something was upsetting Sakaki and, somehow, she was to blame. But no matter how hard she tried, Yomi couldn't think of anything she'd done wrong, not intentionally anyway. But, whatever it was, it had to have happened last night. That was when Sakaki's attitude toward her seemed to change.
She remembered the look Sakaki had given her and felt her stomach flutter. It wasn't that she was afraid of her, it was just unnerving to see her upset since Sakaki was usually so... nice. It'd be sort of like seeing Kasumi get angry over something (provided such a thing was possible). It was the stark contrast to what was considered 'normal' for her that made the change seem more extreme than it was. And the longer she had to wait, the more her anxiety grew.
An idea came to the taller girl just then. Around this time of day, the gym was usually a quiet area, she could try there. "This way," was all the warning Yomi had before they changed direction. The gentle, yet still firm, tug on her rest left her no room to argue. Their pace picked seemed to quicken, which she guessed meant they had a definite destination now. Whether that was good or a bad thing remained to be seen. Either way, she just wanted it to be over with, so long as it didn't effect their friendship.
After exiting the main building, they cut across the school yard and headed toward the back of the gym. As Sakaki had hoped, there was no one there, meaning, she could finally get things out in the open. It was then that she noticed the uneasiness in Yomi's eyes. Sakaki's own eyes widened in surprise and blinked. After a moment's thought, she recognized the problem and thought it'd be best to begin by putting Yomi's mind at ease.
"I'm not upset," she told her.
Yomi breathed a sigh of relief. If nothing else, she didn't have that to worry about. Still, her reply was somewhat shaky though she was striving for a lighthearted tone, "Well, that's a load off... I guess. So...?"
The young Skit Tit leaned against the back of the gym, arms behind her back, her eyes staring down at her feet. When she spoke, her voice was unusually quiet, making it clear she was touching upon a tender subject for her. "Last night..." she began.
"Uh-huh?"
"Last night," she repeated, "you were in my room. You saw it... didn't you?" Those last two words were punctuated with what could only be interpreted as shame.
"Well, yeah" she admitted with a shrug, failing to see where Sakaki was going with this. Much less, why she would be bothered by it. So she saw her room? Big deal, thought Yomi. Or would have, were it not for the wounded look in Sakaki's eye and the hurt in her voice, which made her realize just how big a deal it was. To Her.
Yomi had been so panic stricken, after hearing Sakaki collapse, that she hadn't given much thought to entering her room. To her, it seemed only natural. To be honest, she was actually concerned Sakaki might have been awake, given her state of undress; not to mention, the rather gratuitous position she had found her in. Yomi knew she'd be upset if anyone walked in on her like that. Luckily, that wasn't the case. However, it seemed the matter of anyone being in her room at all was a sensitive issue for Sakaki. And, given her reputation, it didn't take a genius to figure why that was, even though it was a genius who had.
"Why?" she heard her ask. "Why'd you do it?"
Yomi blinked. "Sakaki, I... It couldn't be helped. I had to. All I know is, I heard something hit the floor. At first I didn't know what it was. When I called you and you didn't answer, I panicked and decided to check. And... well... I sorta found you in the middle of the floor. I'm really sorry."
Unseen by either of the girls was Kaorin, who happened by at that moment.
In all honesty, she had been looking for Chihiro. They were supposed to join the other girls on the roof today for lunch... and (salacious grin here) a bit of sight seeing. The fifteen year old huffed. She was losing precious time looking for her friend that could be better spent gawking, I mean, admiring the unrequited love of her life. I tell ya, some people just had no consideration for others. Seesh!
Anyhoo, it so happened that her head turned in the direction of the school gym where, lo and behold, was the object of her affection. Oh yeah, and Yomi too. Funny, she could have sworn they was supposed to be up on the roof. Oh well. Fewer bodies meant fewer people to vie for Sakaki's attention. On second thought, she'd have to thank Chihiro... wherever she'd gone off too. Her smile, however, faded when she noticed they were talking and that something seemed to be troubling Sakaki. Being the obsessed fan girl that she was, she decided to investigate. Unfortunately, as was typical of situations of that sort, she walked in on the middle of the conversation, having missed all the important details that would have prevented any confusion.
"You're sorry?" Sakaki asked the younger girl.
"Put yourself in my place," Yomi said in her defense. "What would you have done? I saw you lying there and did what came naturally. You couldn't expect me to just do nothing" she said honestly.
Sakaki pushed off the wall and faced the other girl directly with what Kaorin misread as tears of betrayal in her eyes. Of course, that wasn't the case. The girl was mortified because she'd been found out. "I understand that, but still... couldn't you have waited?"
Kaorin couldn't believe what she was hearing! Sure, there was that tiny bit of logic that told her she was reading more into what they were saying than what was actually there. There was just no way, but the evidence was too incriminating. How else could she explain what was being said? Worse, the way Sakaki seemed to be hurt by it. Then there was Yomi's seemingly casual demeanor about the whole thing. She couldn't help but draw the obvious conclusion. Still, that tiny voice of reason maintained it wasn't what she thought it was. The next words out of Yomi's mouth, however, removed all doubt.
"I guess... I was just caught up in the moment. I wouldn't have done it otherwise."
So much for the voice of reason.
Sakaki mulled it over. Maybe she was over reacting. One thing she knew for sure was that she could trust Yomi. If that's how she said it happened, she believed her. It was still embarrassing though. Taking a breath, she gave herself a moment to regain her composure. She didn't want anyone to see her that way, besides Yomi that is. Too bad for the bispectacled girl she hadn't thought of that sooner. Kaorin was already glaring daggers at her as it was. Her sweet Ms. Sakaki had been defiled by that, that... glass wearing hussy! And to think, she called herself her friend. Ha!
"Please promise me you won't tell anyone" she heard Sakaki say.
Yomi took hold of Sakaki's shoulders and smiled. "I won't breathe a word. I promise."
Kaorin's left eyebrow started twitching til she saw Sakaki smile faintly and nod. "Thank you, Yomi."
Thank you?! What's she thanking her for? If anything, Yomi ought to be the one thanking Ms. Sakaki! Kaorin mused to herself. But then, she'd expect nothing less of her lady love, taking the high road the way she was doing. So, as much as she disagreed with it, she'd abide by her decision. But that didn't mean she was just gonna let things slide either. From now on, she'd keep a close eye on that Yomi. Someone had to protect Sakaki for her own good. She was just too kind and forgiving.
Of course, Kaorin couldn't let on that she knew. In order to honor Sakaki's wishes, she'd have to pretend she hadn't heard. That's what I'll do. And, with that last thought, she quietly slipped away.
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(Posted Wed, 02 Jan 2008 02:42)
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