- Location
- Dreamland
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Yeah, there're a lot of interesting choices in this quest. Hell, I don't even mind if chilling on the couch wins.
A Catgirl's Last Chance for High School Romance - COMPLETE
- Thread starter Artificial Girl
- Start date
- Original Romance
obssesednuker
Commander of 10 Million Men
- Location
- In the Kremlin, activating Perimtr.
[X] Hang out and see if Yuu needs help with her homework. Plus you haven't got an update from her in a while and you can introduce her to Erika.
- Location
- In My Parlour like a Good Arachne
- Pronouns
- She, her
[X] Hang out and see if Yuu needs help with her homework. Plus you haven't got an update from her in a while and you can introduce her to Erika.
Sorry I must say we should check ul on Yuu. That said more Girlfriend time the better.
Sorry I must say we should check ul on Yuu. That said more Girlfriend time the better.
43. Summer storms
- Location
- Somewhere in the stacks
- Pronouns
- She/Her
You're not quite sure what to do for a moment, then you feel Erika's hand in yours and she tugs you over towards the couch, practically making the decision for you. She plops down to sit and you follow suit a moment later. There's a long moment (or it feels long) and then you slowly flop over to rest your head in her lap, stretching out to claim the rest of the couch as your domain. You take a few deep breaths and close your eyes, just resting in the subtle, faintly floral scent of Erika's perfume (or deodorant or whatever it is she's wearing. Point is, it smells nice). You're not sure how long you can stay like this before you get too embarrassed by the fact that other people are in the room and you're starting to fret a little internally when Erika's hand comes to rest just behind one of your ears and begins to gently scratch and pet there.
It's magical. All your worries and stress seem to melt away from your mind. Almost instinctively you curl up a little closer and before you can stop yourself you can feel the warm rumble of a purr building up in your throat. Someone stifles a laugh and your eyes crack open. Mari is looking over at you with a grin. Jou and Maki, while focused on their game of pool, are looking rather amused. Yuu is watching the pair of you, her chin resting in one hand as she smiles. Oh. You feel your cheeks start to turn a little warmer. Maybe you shouldn't do this in front of so many people-- but Erika's still petting you and the warmth of her hand is enough to keep you calm.
"You two are adorable," Mari says with a laugh as she finally picks out a book and tucks it under one arm. "That's the most relaxed I've ever seen you, Hanako."
"You are adorable," Jou agrees while Maki rolls his eyes in a good natured way. You cover your face with one hand to try and hide your blush, but you're grinning. It's... really nice. You can hang out wi0ht your girlfriend. Touch her. Be in the same space. And no one is judging you or acting like it's weird or out of place. There's a buoying sense of relief and contentment and what you think must certainly be happiness that bubbles up into your chest and fills you with giddy enthusiasm. Erika laughs, half-nervous and half-amused and your ear flicks before you turn to look up at her. Her cheeks are just as red as yours but she's smiling down at you anyway.
"...I got pretty lucky with Hanako," Erika says quietly. "I thought I was just going to end up being that girl who talks about the senpai that she pined for after I graduated."
"You guuuuys." You cover your face again, embarrassed by all of the kind words that are coming pouring out of everyone around you. "I'm the lucky one, honestly. I never would'be thought to ask anyone out," you say.
"I probably would still be like, totally in the closet and scared and maybe not even getting it if it weren't for Erika." You smile up at her. "I never would've come here if she hadn't pointed me at it."
"I'm glad you did," Yuu speaks up. Her voice is quiet and a little reserved. Sometimes you feel like she does that on purpose just to try and come off more feminine but it's not a very charitable thought and you know it can't be easy for her.
"Having you here has been really nice. You're always so supportive of other people in the group and you listen really well," Yuu continues. "If you weren't graduating this year I'd probably want to go to your high school..." She coughs and her own cheeks tinge a little darker. Maki grins and looks up from his shot.
"Yuu has a cruuuush~," Maki says in a sing-song voice. You snort, trying not to laugh and Erika rolls her eyes. Yuu huffs.
"I don't! Hanako is just really nice. I'm into boys anyway, Maki." Yuu sticks her tongue out at her friend who just laughs, pulls a face in reply, then competently sinks one of the pool balls with a stroke of his cue. Mari has plopped down into the seat next to Yuu now and is peering at the other girl's homework with some curiosity. "I just think it'd be nice to be in school with someone who understands, that's all..."
"Oh, I don't count?" Maki is more amused than annoyed. Mari gives Yuu a little nudge before she can answer.
"This equation is wrong." Yuu lets out a faint 'eek' and peers down at the paper.
"What? I don't see it..." Mari bends over and starts explaining the problem to the younger girl and you close your eyes again, basking in the feeling of this place. Everything is okay. It's nice and quiet. Everyone is enjoying themselves. You could really get used to this. For the first time in what feels like weeks, you actually don't feel tense and anxious. You're here in this moment and you're not worrying about anything else.
"...We should do this more often," you murmur, cracking your eyes open to peer up at Erika. She smiles back you and your heart flutters in your chest. God. She is so pretty when she smiles and you really just want to kiss her maybe. You think. But gosh she's really pretty. And smart. How are you so lucky?
"Yeah, we should," she agrees. "...I'll start coming back to meetings."
"I'd really like that."
"Me too."
"Lookit these two lovebirds over here," Mari is giggling again and Yuu is giggling with her and your cheeks flush red. You stick your tongue out and turn your face into Erika's tummy to get away from the teasing. You don't mind it, actually--you kind of like it because it makes you feel so much more welcome and normal. Yeah. This is pretty nice.
Of course, the hour or so you have before you have to head back to the train goes by too quickly and before you know it, everyone is bundling back onto the trains to go their separate ways. You hug Erika tightly and wish that that feeling of belonging and comfort didn't leave you once you were back outside of Live Out Loud, but what are you going to do?
When you get home, you try to slip inside quietly but... it's not the most successful. Mom and Dad are on the couch in the living room watching something on the TV and you get a look as you try to slip past to the stairs without being noticed. You try to smile and end up half-succeeding. It feels like your nerves are showing through the expression and you hope that you aren't so transparent. Mom quirks an ear towards you.
"You were out later than usual." Ugh. UGH. You don't want to talk about this right now.
"Yeah. Um. I just hung out with Mari." Not technically a lie, at least.
"Call me next time, okay? I get a little worried." You can feel the words stab into you like a knife. Are you not a good kid anymore? You've been trying really hard to be a good kid and now you're sneaking around and lying. Is this what being gay does to you? You don't know if you want it. It hurts. You want to be able to tell your mom everything.
"O-Okay. Sorry, Mom..." You glance away. You don't want to keep standing here feeling like the worst of you is on display and yet...
"Don't worry about it," your Dad says. "Everyone makes mistakes or forgets about those things sometimes, so don't sweat the small stuff., okay?" You smile weakly. Dad's attempt at reassurance feels flat to you and you just nod, a numb feeling of anxiety and self-loathing starting to crawl into your chest.
"I'm gonna take a bath and go to bed," you mumble and hurry up th stairs before anyone can say anything. You hope the hot water and steam will clear your head, but it doesn't. Instead it just seems to let all your bad feelings stew inside of your mind and the happy contentment you felt earlier in the night seems like a distant memory. When you finally crawl into bed, you simply curl up and try to fall asleep, but it doesn't seem to come for a long, long time.
The next morning is hard. You have to drag yourself out of bed and forces yourself to get dressed. Thankfully your mom is gone for work already and dad has lunch ready for you, so you don't have to talk much before you head off to school with bleary eyes. It's raining, too, dark gray clouds that suggest your mood splitting the sky with faint rumbles of thunder to punctuate the pounding of the summer rain against the roof. Morning classes go by in a lazy blur. You're not sure you can remember what you've been taught today or not--the good mood from just the day before seems unattainable now and distant. The world seems very far away, like you're staring at the sky from the bottom of a well.
When lunch finally gets here it's almost a relief. Almost. The little lunch group has grown some. Now in addition to you, Mari, and Ryou, Jesse and Erika usually join you and occasionally Hikari and Miyako pop by. Today though it's just the five of you. You're picking despondently at your lunch and Erika is chatting to Ryou and Mari about something--maybe an upcoming test? You're not sure--when Jesse leans over to look at you.
"...You okay, Hanako? You seem kind of out of it today."
[ ] Mom might be getting suspicious of me and I feel like an awful daughter because I'm hiding things from my parents and lying and I never used to do this. I'm the worst daughter ever.
[ ] I'm fine. Why are you asking? I'm fine! I don't need you prying into my life, okay? God! It's FINE!
[ ] Huh? Oh. Yeah. I'm fine. Everything's fine. How are things with you? What's up with the baseball club these days?
[ ] Uh, I'm just stressing about entrance exams, that's all. Lots of school stuff on my mind that needs my attention and it's soooo exhausting, am I right?
[ ] I just didn't get a lot of sleep last night. You know how it goes with us cats. We need our beauty rest, ha ha ha!
[ ] Um, the haunted house is just stressing me out a lot I guess. There's still so much to do and it feels like time is slipping by really fast. That's all.
A/N: So my last post hit the 50K word mark and I want to thank all of you for coming along on this ride with me! I hope you'll stick with it! Also, if you like this particular quest about queer kids in high school, you should definitely check out the one that @Jeboboid is doing about magical high school and queer kids. You can find it over here: By Spell and Scroll: A Magical School Quest.
It's magical. All your worries and stress seem to melt away from your mind. Almost instinctively you curl up a little closer and before you can stop yourself you can feel the warm rumble of a purr building up in your throat. Someone stifles a laugh and your eyes crack open. Mari is looking over at you with a grin. Jou and Maki, while focused on their game of pool, are looking rather amused. Yuu is watching the pair of you, her chin resting in one hand as she smiles. Oh. You feel your cheeks start to turn a little warmer. Maybe you shouldn't do this in front of so many people-- but Erika's still petting you and the warmth of her hand is enough to keep you calm.
"You two are adorable," Mari says with a laugh as she finally picks out a book and tucks it under one arm. "That's the most relaxed I've ever seen you, Hanako."
"You are adorable," Jou agrees while Maki rolls his eyes in a good natured way. You cover your face with one hand to try and hide your blush, but you're grinning. It's... really nice. You can hang out wi0ht your girlfriend. Touch her. Be in the same space. And no one is judging you or acting like it's weird or out of place. There's a buoying sense of relief and contentment and what you think must certainly be happiness that bubbles up into your chest and fills you with giddy enthusiasm. Erika laughs, half-nervous and half-amused and your ear flicks before you turn to look up at her. Her cheeks are just as red as yours but she's smiling down at you anyway.
"...I got pretty lucky with Hanako," Erika says quietly. "I thought I was just going to end up being that girl who talks about the senpai that she pined for after I graduated."
"You guuuuys." You cover your face again, embarrassed by all of the kind words that are coming pouring out of everyone around you. "I'm the lucky one, honestly. I never would'be thought to ask anyone out," you say.
"I probably would still be like, totally in the closet and scared and maybe not even getting it if it weren't for Erika." You smile up at her. "I never would've come here if she hadn't pointed me at it."
"I'm glad you did," Yuu speaks up. Her voice is quiet and a little reserved. Sometimes you feel like she does that on purpose just to try and come off more feminine but it's not a very charitable thought and you know it can't be easy for her.
"Having you here has been really nice. You're always so supportive of other people in the group and you listen really well," Yuu continues. "If you weren't graduating this year I'd probably want to go to your high school..." She coughs and her own cheeks tinge a little darker. Maki grins and looks up from his shot.
"Yuu has a cruuuush~," Maki says in a sing-song voice. You snort, trying not to laugh and Erika rolls her eyes. Yuu huffs.
"I don't! Hanako is just really nice. I'm into boys anyway, Maki." Yuu sticks her tongue out at her friend who just laughs, pulls a face in reply, then competently sinks one of the pool balls with a stroke of his cue. Mari has plopped down into the seat next to Yuu now and is peering at the other girl's homework with some curiosity. "I just think it'd be nice to be in school with someone who understands, that's all..."
"Oh, I don't count?" Maki is more amused than annoyed. Mari gives Yuu a little nudge before she can answer.
"This equation is wrong." Yuu lets out a faint 'eek' and peers down at the paper.
"What? I don't see it..." Mari bends over and starts explaining the problem to the younger girl and you close your eyes again, basking in the feeling of this place. Everything is okay. It's nice and quiet. Everyone is enjoying themselves. You could really get used to this. For the first time in what feels like weeks, you actually don't feel tense and anxious. You're here in this moment and you're not worrying about anything else.
"...We should do this more often," you murmur, cracking your eyes open to peer up at Erika. She smiles back you and your heart flutters in your chest. God. She is so pretty when she smiles and you really just want to kiss her maybe. You think. But gosh she's really pretty. And smart. How are you so lucky?
"Yeah, we should," she agrees. "...I'll start coming back to meetings."
"I'd really like that."
"Me too."
"Lookit these two lovebirds over here," Mari is giggling again and Yuu is giggling with her and your cheeks flush red. You stick your tongue out and turn your face into Erika's tummy to get away from the teasing. You don't mind it, actually--you kind of like it because it makes you feel so much more welcome and normal. Yeah. This is pretty nice.
Of course, the hour or so you have before you have to head back to the train goes by too quickly and before you know it, everyone is bundling back onto the trains to go their separate ways. You hug Erika tightly and wish that that feeling of belonging and comfort didn't leave you once you were back outside of Live Out Loud, but what are you going to do?
When you get home, you try to slip inside quietly but... it's not the most successful. Mom and Dad are on the couch in the living room watching something on the TV and you get a look as you try to slip past to the stairs without being noticed. You try to smile and end up half-succeeding. It feels like your nerves are showing through the expression and you hope that you aren't so transparent. Mom quirks an ear towards you.
"You were out later than usual." Ugh. UGH. You don't want to talk about this right now.
"Yeah. Um. I just hung out with Mari." Not technically a lie, at least.
"Call me next time, okay? I get a little worried." You can feel the words stab into you like a knife. Are you not a good kid anymore? You've been trying really hard to be a good kid and now you're sneaking around and lying. Is this what being gay does to you? You don't know if you want it. It hurts. You want to be able to tell your mom everything.
"O-Okay. Sorry, Mom..." You glance away. You don't want to keep standing here feeling like the worst of you is on display and yet...
"Don't worry about it," your Dad says. "Everyone makes mistakes or forgets about those things sometimes, so don't sweat the small stuff., okay?" You smile weakly. Dad's attempt at reassurance feels flat to you and you just nod, a numb feeling of anxiety and self-loathing starting to crawl into your chest.
"I'm gonna take a bath and go to bed," you mumble and hurry up th stairs before anyone can say anything. You hope the hot water and steam will clear your head, but it doesn't. Instead it just seems to let all your bad feelings stew inside of your mind and the happy contentment you felt earlier in the night seems like a distant memory. When you finally crawl into bed, you simply curl up and try to fall asleep, but it doesn't seem to come for a long, long time.
The next morning is hard. You have to drag yourself out of bed and forces yourself to get dressed. Thankfully your mom is gone for work already and dad has lunch ready for you, so you don't have to talk much before you head off to school with bleary eyes. It's raining, too, dark gray clouds that suggest your mood splitting the sky with faint rumbles of thunder to punctuate the pounding of the summer rain against the roof. Morning classes go by in a lazy blur. You're not sure you can remember what you've been taught today or not--the good mood from just the day before seems unattainable now and distant. The world seems very far away, like you're staring at the sky from the bottom of a well.
When lunch finally gets here it's almost a relief. Almost. The little lunch group has grown some. Now in addition to you, Mari, and Ryou, Jesse and Erika usually join you and occasionally Hikari and Miyako pop by. Today though it's just the five of you. You're picking despondently at your lunch and Erika is chatting to Ryou and Mari about something--maybe an upcoming test? You're not sure--when Jesse leans over to look at you.
"...You okay, Hanako? You seem kind of out of it today."
[ ] I'm fine. Why are you asking? I'm fine! I don't need you prying into my life, okay? God! It's FINE!
[ ] Huh? Oh. Yeah. I'm fine. Everything's fine. How are things with you? What's up with the baseball club these days?
[ ] Uh, I'm just stressing about entrance exams, that's all. Lots of school stuff on my mind that needs my attention and it's soooo exhausting, am I right?
[ ] I just didn't get a lot of sleep last night. You know how it goes with us cats. We need our beauty rest, ha ha ha!
[ ] Um, the haunted house is just stressing me out a lot I guess. There's still so much to do and it feels like time is slipping by really fast. That's all.
A/N: So my last post hit the 50K word mark and I want to thank all of you for coming along on this ride with me! I hope you'll stick with it! Also, if you like this particular quest about queer kids in high school, you should definitely check out the one that @Jeboboid is doing about magical high school and queer kids. You can find it over here: By Spell and Scroll: A Magical School Quest.
- Location
- Wörms, the half continent
[X] Uh, I'm just stressing about entrance exams, that's all. Lots of school stuff on my mind that needs my attention and it's soooo exhausting, am I right?
WE IS ORDINARY SCHOOL CAT. FOCUSING ON THE EXAMS, YES.
WE IS ORDINARY SCHOOL CAT. FOCUSING ON THE EXAMS, YES.
Jeboboid
Draconic GM
- Location
- United Kingdom
[X] I just didn't get a lot of sleep last night. You know how it goes with us cats. We need our beauty rest, ha ha ha!
Thanks @Artificial Girl <3
All this lying is gonna really stress Hanako out more. We gotta find a way to come clean somehow.
Thanks @Artificial Girl <3
All this lying is gonna really stress Hanako out more. We gotta find a way to come clean somehow.
- Location
- Florida
[X] I just didn't get a lot of sleep last night. You know how it goes with us cats. We need our beauty rest, ha ha ha!
This is actually true despite being a symptom of the real issue. It allows Jesse to dig a little deeper without us having to lie or deflect completely.
This is actually true despite being a symptom of the real issue. It allows Jesse to dig a little deeper without us having to lie or deflect completely.
UrsaTempest
Don't Panic!
ColdGoldLazarus
Contrary Quester, Spreadsheet Queen, Pink Flamingo
- Location
- Challenger Deep
- Pronouns
- She/Her
[X] Huh? Oh. Yeah. I'm fine. Everything's fine. How are things with you? What's up with the baseball club these days?
- Location
- ⇙
Nice. We get to choose the flavor of awkwardness we want in the next update. Exams are important and completely normal to suddenly stress out over, right?
[x] Uh, I'm just stressing about entrance exams, that's all. Lots of school stuff on my mind that needs my attention and it's soooo exhausting, am I right?
[x] Uh, I'm just stressing about entrance exams, that's all. Lots of school stuff on my mind that needs my attention and it's soooo exhausting, am I right?
tearlessNever
Inspired Procrastinator
- Location
- Ireland
- Pronouns
- they/them
[X] I just didn't get a lot of sleep last night. You know how it goes with us cats. We need our beauty rest, ha ha ha!
[X] I just didn't get a lot of sleep last night. You know how it goes with us cats. We need our beauty rest, ha ha ha!
- Location
- Aotearoa
[x] I just didn't get a lot of sleep last night. You know how it goes with us cats. We need our beauty rest, ha ha ha!
- Location
- Somewhere!
- Pronouns
- She/Her
[X] I'm fine. Why are you asking? I'm fine! I don't need you prying into my life, okay? God! It's FINE!
Remember our roots! Hanako started as an over dramatic Byronic catgirl, and by god we need to keep some drama in her characterization.
Remember our roots! Hanako started as an over dramatic Byronic catgirl, and by god we need to keep some drama in her characterization.
Ultramandalore
Errant Quester
- Location
- just south of Parts Unknown
[X] Uh, I'm just stressing about entrance exams, that's all. Lots of school stuff on my mind that needs my attention and it's soooo exhausting, am I right?
- Location
- Somewhere else
[X] Uh, I'm just stressing about entrance exams, that's all. Lots of school stuff on my mind that needs my attention and it's soooo exhausting, am I right?
obssesednuker
Commander of 10 Million Men
- Location
- In the Kremlin, activating Perimtr.
[X] Uh, I'm just stressing about entrance exams, that's all. Lots of school stuff on my mind that needs my attention and it's soooo exhausting, am I right?
- Pronouns
- She/Her
I think that the logical option is the lack of sleep. As noted it gives Jesse an opening without making things too obvious or making ourselves too open about the whole deal. Which is a good balance.
But I have to agree with Nemo, as I often do. We made Hanako into a dramatic character and overall we've done nothing with that, which is a total waste. Let's get her back to her roots a bit.
[X] I'm fine. Why are you asking? I'm fine! I don't need you prying into my life, okay? God! It's FINE!
But I have to agree with Nemo, as I often do. We made Hanako into a dramatic character and overall we've done nothing with that, which is a total waste. Let's get her back to her roots a bit.
[X] I'm fine. Why are you asking? I'm fine! I don't need you prying into my life, okay? God! It's FINE!
- Location
- In My Parlour like a Good Arachne
- Pronouns
- She, her
[X] I'm fine. Why are you asking? I'm fine! I don't need you prying into my life, okay? God! It's FINE!
Yep that sounds about right. Also that last part was adorbs before Mom spoke up. And as a warning: How Mom is acting is how you get people to cut you out of their life.
Yep that sounds about right. Also that last part was adorbs before Mom spoke up. And as a warning: How Mom is acting is how you get people to cut you out of their life.
44. When it rains, it pours.
- Location
- Somewhere in the stacks
- Pronouns
- She/Her
You smile weakly and make a show of rubbing at your eyes and giving a big yawn.
"Oh, it's nothing. Ha. I just didn't get enough sleep last night. You know how it goes with us cats, yeah? We need our eight hours, at least. Ha ha." Your laughter sounds fake and hollow to you and part of you desperately wants Jesse to keep asking questions and prying into what's bothering you while another part is desperately hoping that he decides to leave you alone so you can just let yourself sink deeper and deeper into this feeling of misery. It's comforting in a weird way (comforting is the wrong word). If you're really awful (the way that little voice in the back of your head has been saying off and on since middle school) then don't you kind of deserve to feel like this? You must.
Jesse doesn't ask, though. INstead he gives a little nod and smiles.
"God I know the feeling. If I don't get enough sleep I feel like complete trash in the morning. Try and rest up this weekend. You do a lot Hanako." You smile again and take a bite of your lunch so that you don't have to say anything in reply immediately. Part of you likes that he didn't ask. The other part sinks a bit deeper. Of course he didn't ask. Why would anyone ask? You pick at your lunch the rest of the break and watch the rain and by the time you get back to class your lunch box is still full of food. You don't feel hungry though, weirdly enough. After school you somehow manage to make it through the club meeting and then slouch home without waiting around for anyone, pushing Erika off with the excuse of being tired and having homework to catch up on. You're lying to everyone, aren't you? Not just Mom and Dad. The walk to the station and from the station to your house seems to stretch on forever and you're accompanied only by the sound of the rain against your umbrella.
When you get home, you ignore your dad and head straight upstairs to dive into bed and burrow there with barely enough energy or motivation to look at your phone. Why are you so bad at this? You're supposed to be the responsible one. The smart one. The good one. You've never had problems dealing with school and stuff before, so why now of all times? What's making this so hard? You fall asleep early, before dinner, and wake up late to the continuing summer rain feeling like your head is back on straight after a good night of sleep. You're also ravenous and you head downstairs in your pajamas to make yourself something to eat (it's almost noon; you never sleep this late). You futz around in the kitchen and finally settle on some toast. As you lean against the counter, watching the toaster, you hear Dad's tread on the stairs. You can tell because it's a little heavier than Mom's and he tends to skips a couple stairs with his longer stride. He pokes into the kitchen and smiles when he sees you. You smile back. You feel better today. Not great, but better.
"Good morning, sleepy head. You passed out before dinner. Are you feeling okay?" You're kind of glad it's Dad and not Mom--who's in the office again today. You wonder why she works so hard sometimes.
"Oh. Yeah. I just didn't... I didn't sleep really well the night before, you know?" You try to sound upbeat but you don't really manage it. Dad opens one of the cabinets and pulls out a pair of mugs, then starts to fill the electric kettle.
"Well, glad to have you back in the waking world then. Do you want some tea?"
"...Tea sounds nice," you reply with a murmur. You start, jumping into the air as the toaster suddenly pops up, your own breakfast startling you. Dad snickers. You stick your tongue out at him, then start to put together your toast--nothing complicated. Just canned fish and a touch of seasoning. Fish on toast is kind of your go-to comfort food a lot of the time. Tinned sardines or anchovies are the best but right now you have to make do with canned tuna. You munch on the food, standing there while dad prepares the tea.
"Dad...?"
"Yes, Kitten?" He's distracted, still fussing with the tea pot.
"When you said you kept secrets for your friends, what did you mean?"
"Hm? Oh. That argument..." He sighs and rubs the back of his neck for a moment, thinking. "...I had friends who were probably in a similar situation to yours. Though one of them actually ran away from home and made me swear not to tell his parents. I didn't. Even though they grilled me for hours." He shrugs. "So. I understand why you want to keep your friend's trust, whoever they are. That stuff is important when you're young. Even if it worries your parents." He chuckles, then picks up the kettle and pours the hot water into the tea pot and the scent of tea fills the kitchen.
"Don't worry about your mom. She's just concerned about you, even if she's showing it in a weird way. Okay?" He smiles at you and you have to smile back because you don't really know what else to do.
"Yeah. It just... stressed me out," you mumble and look away, feeling distinctly embarrassed.
"Yeah, parents are like that. And I thought the same thing when I was your age--except I was running around with a bunch of ruffians actually making trouble. You're just being a good friend," he says and reaches over to ruffle the hair between your ears. "I think you're doing the right thing. Just don't tell your mom I said that."
"...Okay," your reply is quiet. Part of you aches and you want to just blurt everything out right now, to let him know how hard things have been the last couple months. But... it doesn't come. So instead you just nod and he pours your tea and you go back upstairs to actually work on that homework you said you were doing yesterday. You feel a little better, but you're not sure how long that's going to last.
******
The next week goes by too fast and then the next--before you know it, it's coming up on the end of June and you're having to really get down to the wire on the preparations for the haunted house. It's a little stressful, but it's normal stress that lets you think about something that's not your parents or feeling like you're sneaking around. Things with Erika are okay, at least--you spent a weekend with her and Jesse at his parent's place and it was freeing in a way, though having to go home and lie about it when you got home had hung in the back of your mind to spoil the good mood all three of you had been in. At least it had for you. Erika seems to have relaxed after her initial tension in the relationship and it's hard to believe it's been like, a month. School is still stressing you out as much as ever, especially with the need to study even harder for entrance exams. Sure, they're not until January but you can't slack off now if you're going to get into a good university!
It's a Thursday the 27th of June. There's about three weeks to go until the cultural festival and the clock is starting to run down on what needs to be done. Most of the materials are ready and there's still some last minute planning that needs to be done, so today's meeting of the Occult Studies Club is more business than pleasure, even if you'd like nothing better than to pop in a movie and call it a day. It's... Kind of awkward, actually. Erika and Miyako seem to be at loggerheads over an issue--something kind of silly, you think.
"I've been saying it the whole time, Erika--I was going to play the vengeful ghost bit. Why can't you just be happy with running the sound and stuff? You never said anything about it before!" Miyako is a little steamy. She'd been planning on doing her ghost scary ghost bit and now Erika has been making noise about maybe wanting to do it herself. It's giving you a headache--you'd thought the club could be a refuge from the stresses of school and home but lately you feel like it's been nothing but a weight on your shoulders. This argument just seems to be stressing that.
"I'm just saying that maybe you might not be the best choice for it. If we're going to have a good haunted house, shouldn't we slot people into the rolls they're good at it? Now's the time do it, anyway!"
"What's that mean? You think I can't handle it--?" Hikari reaches out to pat Miyako on the arm in an attempt to keep things calm but it doesn't seem to be working. They argued about this all day yesterday too and it's starting to give you a headache.
"No! I just think that I... I have the better build for it."
"What?! Are you saying that I'm fat?" Miyako's voice rises a little higher, touching on strident. Osamu winces.
"I'm sure she's not saying that, Miyako--"
"And I'm not! You're just. Fuller figured than me."
"Oh, so it's about me having tits and you being flat, huh? Are you just angry that a first year has a better figure or something? That's got to be it!"
"It isn't! At all! Oh my God!" Erika glares across the table and Hikari groans, putting her head in her hands.
"Both of you are fine. Look, just let Hanako make the decision. She's the president, after all..." Hikari looks over to you and you try not to let your grimace show externally. You really don't want to have to wrangle this but here you are. In charge of this crap.
[ ] What if you're both ghosts? Double the spook.
[ ] Uh, what if we put it to a vote?
[ ] Miyako's right on this one, sorry Erika. She's been working on getting this costume together AND been making it pretty clear that's what she wanted to do from day one.
[ ] I think I have to go with Erika. She has a point about her body shape fitting the role a bit better, you know. Sorry, Miyako.
[ ] Both of you shut up! You're giving me a headache and I don't care who does it as long as it gets done!
"Oh, it's nothing. Ha. I just didn't get enough sleep last night. You know how it goes with us cats, yeah? We need our eight hours, at least. Ha ha." Your laughter sounds fake and hollow to you and part of you desperately wants Jesse to keep asking questions and prying into what's bothering you while another part is desperately hoping that he decides to leave you alone so you can just let yourself sink deeper and deeper into this feeling of misery. It's comforting in a weird way (comforting is the wrong word). If you're really awful (the way that little voice in the back of your head has been saying off and on since middle school) then don't you kind of deserve to feel like this? You must.
Jesse doesn't ask, though. INstead he gives a little nod and smiles.
"God I know the feeling. If I don't get enough sleep I feel like complete trash in the morning. Try and rest up this weekend. You do a lot Hanako." You smile again and take a bite of your lunch so that you don't have to say anything in reply immediately. Part of you likes that he didn't ask. The other part sinks a bit deeper. Of course he didn't ask. Why would anyone ask? You pick at your lunch the rest of the break and watch the rain and by the time you get back to class your lunch box is still full of food. You don't feel hungry though, weirdly enough. After school you somehow manage to make it through the club meeting and then slouch home without waiting around for anyone, pushing Erika off with the excuse of being tired and having homework to catch up on. You're lying to everyone, aren't you? Not just Mom and Dad. The walk to the station and from the station to your house seems to stretch on forever and you're accompanied only by the sound of the rain against your umbrella.
When you get home, you ignore your dad and head straight upstairs to dive into bed and burrow there with barely enough energy or motivation to look at your phone. Why are you so bad at this? You're supposed to be the responsible one. The smart one. The good one. You've never had problems dealing with school and stuff before, so why now of all times? What's making this so hard? You fall asleep early, before dinner, and wake up late to the continuing summer rain feeling like your head is back on straight after a good night of sleep. You're also ravenous and you head downstairs in your pajamas to make yourself something to eat (it's almost noon; you never sleep this late). You futz around in the kitchen and finally settle on some toast. As you lean against the counter, watching the toaster, you hear Dad's tread on the stairs. You can tell because it's a little heavier than Mom's and he tends to skips a couple stairs with his longer stride. He pokes into the kitchen and smiles when he sees you. You smile back. You feel better today. Not great, but better.
"Good morning, sleepy head. You passed out before dinner. Are you feeling okay?" You're kind of glad it's Dad and not Mom--who's in the office again today. You wonder why she works so hard sometimes.
"Oh. Yeah. I just didn't... I didn't sleep really well the night before, you know?" You try to sound upbeat but you don't really manage it. Dad opens one of the cabinets and pulls out a pair of mugs, then starts to fill the electric kettle.
"Well, glad to have you back in the waking world then. Do you want some tea?"
"...Tea sounds nice," you reply with a murmur. You start, jumping into the air as the toaster suddenly pops up, your own breakfast startling you. Dad snickers. You stick your tongue out at him, then start to put together your toast--nothing complicated. Just canned fish and a touch of seasoning. Fish on toast is kind of your go-to comfort food a lot of the time. Tinned sardines or anchovies are the best but right now you have to make do with canned tuna. You munch on the food, standing there while dad prepares the tea.
"Dad...?"
"Yes, Kitten?" He's distracted, still fussing with the tea pot.
"When you said you kept secrets for your friends, what did you mean?"
"Hm? Oh. That argument..." He sighs and rubs the back of his neck for a moment, thinking. "...I had friends who were probably in a similar situation to yours. Though one of them actually ran away from home and made me swear not to tell his parents. I didn't. Even though they grilled me for hours." He shrugs. "So. I understand why you want to keep your friend's trust, whoever they are. That stuff is important when you're young. Even if it worries your parents." He chuckles, then picks up the kettle and pours the hot water into the tea pot and the scent of tea fills the kitchen.
"Don't worry about your mom. She's just concerned about you, even if she's showing it in a weird way. Okay?" He smiles at you and you have to smile back because you don't really know what else to do.
"Yeah. It just... stressed me out," you mumble and look away, feeling distinctly embarrassed.
"Yeah, parents are like that. And I thought the same thing when I was your age--except I was running around with a bunch of ruffians actually making trouble. You're just being a good friend," he says and reaches over to ruffle the hair between your ears. "I think you're doing the right thing. Just don't tell your mom I said that."
"...Okay," your reply is quiet. Part of you aches and you want to just blurt everything out right now, to let him know how hard things have been the last couple months. But... it doesn't come. So instead you just nod and he pours your tea and you go back upstairs to actually work on that homework you said you were doing yesterday. You feel a little better, but you're not sure how long that's going to last.
******
The next week goes by too fast and then the next--before you know it, it's coming up on the end of June and you're having to really get down to the wire on the preparations for the haunted house. It's a little stressful, but it's normal stress that lets you think about something that's not your parents or feeling like you're sneaking around. Things with Erika are okay, at least--you spent a weekend with her and Jesse at his parent's place and it was freeing in a way, though having to go home and lie about it when you got home had hung in the back of your mind to spoil the good mood all three of you had been in. At least it had for you. Erika seems to have relaxed after her initial tension in the relationship and it's hard to believe it's been like, a month. School is still stressing you out as much as ever, especially with the need to study even harder for entrance exams. Sure, they're not until January but you can't slack off now if you're going to get into a good university!
It's a Thursday the 27th of June. There's about three weeks to go until the cultural festival and the clock is starting to run down on what needs to be done. Most of the materials are ready and there's still some last minute planning that needs to be done, so today's meeting of the Occult Studies Club is more business than pleasure, even if you'd like nothing better than to pop in a movie and call it a day. It's... Kind of awkward, actually. Erika and Miyako seem to be at loggerheads over an issue--something kind of silly, you think.
"I've been saying it the whole time, Erika--I was going to play the vengeful ghost bit. Why can't you just be happy with running the sound and stuff? You never said anything about it before!" Miyako is a little steamy. She'd been planning on doing her ghost scary ghost bit and now Erika has been making noise about maybe wanting to do it herself. It's giving you a headache--you'd thought the club could be a refuge from the stresses of school and home but lately you feel like it's been nothing but a weight on your shoulders. This argument just seems to be stressing that.
"I'm just saying that maybe you might not be the best choice for it. If we're going to have a good haunted house, shouldn't we slot people into the rolls they're good at it? Now's the time do it, anyway!"
"What's that mean? You think I can't handle it--?" Hikari reaches out to pat Miyako on the arm in an attempt to keep things calm but it doesn't seem to be working. They argued about this all day yesterday too and it's starting to give you a headache.
"No! I just think that I... I have the better build for it."
"What?! Are you saying that I'm fat?" Miyako's voice rises a little higher, touching on strident. Osamu winces.
"I'm sure she's not saying that, Miyako--"
"And I'm not! You're just. Fuller figured than me."
"Oh, so it's about me having tits and you being flat, huh? Are you just angry that a first year has a better figure or something? That's got to be it!"
"It isn't! At all! Oh my God!" Erika glares across the table and Hikari groans, putting her head in her hands.
"Both of you are fine. Look, just let Hanako make the decision. She's the president, after all..." Hikari looks over to you and you try not to let your grimace show externally. You really don't want to have to wrangle this but here you are. In charge of this crap.
[ ] Uh, what if we put it to a vote?
[ ] Miyako's right on this one, sorry Erika. She's been working on getting this costume together AND been making it pretty clear that's what she wanted to do from day one.
[ ] I think I have to go with Erika. She has a point about her body shape fitting the role a bit better, you know. Sorry, Miyako.
[ ] Both of you shut up! You're giving me a headache and I don't care who does it as long as it gets done!