After the utter mess that trying to navigate the campus that afternoon had been, Hikari managed to find the cafe again surprisingly easily. The lighting was warm, a few people were sitting at table with their books... There was just a really nice, relaxed atmosphere.
There was a familiar face, too, looking up from his seat by the counter as she walked in the door, face slightly hidden by his scarf. "Oh, it's you. Hikari-chan, right?"
Hikari nodded, not entirely sure what to say in response to this. "I... yeah." She placed her order, and took a seat next to him. "Have you... had a good day?"
"It was... alright, I guess. I mean, I kept dozing off, but... I guess the trip here tired me out more than I thought."
It had been a long train ride. Hikari had fallen asleep during part of it, but was woken up after a now-fuzzy dream of being chased around by a herd of dinosaurs. That sort of thing happened, when a university got large numbers of students despite being in an incredibly remote location.
"Then... you should go to bed early. It... might make you feel better." She didn't know if she was qualified to give this sort of advice, but it seemed like common sense, so maybe it would be fine? She didn't want to be stepping on anyone's toes...
Tsukane gave a wry smile. "That's easy for you to say. My room's right by one of the bathrooms. Did you know people will get up and decide to take a shower at three in the morning sometimes?" That sounded incredibly impractical, but Hikari wasn't about to question it.
"That doesn't mean you... shouldn't try and get more sleep." It'd probably be good for him, anyway.
"I guess..." Tsukane drummed his gloved fingers on the countertop as his drink was set in front of him. It appeared to be coffee, but the regular kind which didn't cause people to run out and write books about experiencing enlightenment. "...You know, if we're going to keep meeting up, it should be easier for us to contact each other."
"S-sorry." Hikari could feel her face burning. "My phone died earlier, so I left it in my room to recharge..." All she had to do was not mention that it had happened this morning, and she would be just fine. "I haven't... got the number memorized or anything."
She was expecting this to be a big problem. But Tsukane just shrugged. "All right, then. I guess that's not too important right now, with how we live in the same building, and all... Still, it'd be nice. To- to have someone to talk to." And with that, he gave another massive yawn. Apparently, the coffee wasn't working as well as he was hoping.
Hikari let the conversation die there. It wouldn't do for one of them to pass out in the middle of a sentence.
That night, Hikari had no strange dreams. No dreams at all, even, though she woke up the next morning feeling refreshed, and with a fully-replenished phone battery. The sky above Kusoka was covered in clouds, promising rain later that day.
Still... the weather report said it wouldn't be a problem until around noon. She decided to trust it.
[ ] Not that she had reason to go outside just yet. Now that she had internet access again, it felt like a good time to go back to the internet session she'd been in the middle of before her phone died.
[ ] While the atmosphere wasn't quite the same as if it was raining outside, she still ended up eating breakfast at Cafe Chagall with a friend.
-[ ] Shiyuri Kosono.
-[ ] Tsukane Akabori.
[ ] Perhaps it would be nice to use the morning to scope out the library's selection. Perhaps she'd just happen to find someone along the way...
-[ ] Shiyuri Kosono.
-[ ] Tsukane Akabori.
-[ ] ...But probably not.
[ ] Now that she again had access to GPS, she could probably get a much better understanding of the campus than her wanderings the day before. Best to get that out of the way before everything was drenched in rain.
