Shiori 'What do I do? Chizuru knows already. Sugawara just said his. But Lucy. What if she likes him? I don't want to make it weird. I don't want to lose her either.'
She sweats as she decides in her head what to do next. She lowers her head so her bangs cover her eye.
Shiori "I… I like… Ryuji…"
Chizuru smiles, excited that she said it. Sugawara nods in approval. She slowly lifts her head and looks at Lucy who stares at her. She stares for a moment before giving a big smile.
Lucy "Of course you do. Do you know how many people confess to him every year? At least 4."
She holds up her fingers.
Lucy "People always tend to like him more than the rest of us due to how attractive he is. I've seen it with my own eyes since as long as I can remember. There's nothing to be ashamed of."
Shiori lifts her head more now.
Shiori "Yeah, you're right."
Chizuru "What made you like him?"
Shiori "I don't know, he's really cute and caring despite how expressionless he can be."
Lucy "He's definitely expressionless, I'll tell you that haha!"
Chizuru shifts her attention to Lucy.
Chizuru "Okay, now cough it up. Who do you like?"
Lucy "Me? No one. I have a hard time finding anyone attractive. I'm just doing me."
Chizuru gives her a look of surprise but shrugs as that is a valid response.
Lucy "Now, if you'll excuse me. I gotta use the bathroom."
She says with a sigh as she gets up and leaves the room. They watch her leave for a moment. Shiori looks intently as Chizuru sweats a bit.
Chizuru "I'm gonna… make sure she doesn't need any help."
She gets up and leaves the room as well.
Sugawara "Need help with… pooping?"
He looks at Shiori for reassurance of his confusion. Shiori just shrugs.
Shiori "So you really like Haru, huh?"
Sugawara "Oh, yeah. I do."
He blushes.
Sugawara "Do you honestly think I have a chance with him?"
Shiori nods confidently.
Shiori "You both are very cute. I love your dynamic. It inspires me."
Sugawara "Really?"
Shiori "Yes. If you actually like him then I say go for it. Trust me, I know how hard it is to speak your mind but at least try to let him know somehow."
Sugawara gives her a somewhat confident smile as he is still very shy. Chizuru follows behind Lucy as she goes into the bathroom. Chizuru waits at the door for a moment. She holds her hand a bit and looks unsure of what to do before knocking.
Chizuru "Lucy? Are you okay?"
There is no response for a moment before she opens the door.
Lucy "Yeah. I'm fine. What's up?"
Lucy gives her a confused look as she pokes her head around the door. She steps back and opens the door to let Chizuru in. She steps in as Lucy closes the door behind her. Chizuru stands against the wall as Lucy leans against the counter. They stand in silence for a moment.
Chizuru "Are you sure you're okay?.."
Lucy "I'm fine Chizuru. What's got you so worked up right now?"
Chizuru "I don't know… I just… I feel like you're upset about Shiori liking Ryuji…"
Lucy looks down for a moment but not with a look of sadness.
Lucy "Yeah, I suppose you're right. I mean it's not like I don't like him or anything."
Chizuru looks up surprised and concerned.
Chizuru "So you are upset??"
Lucy "No, no! Haha, that's not what I meant."
She waves her hands to calm her down a bit while laughing before putting them down. She holds onto her arm with her hand.
Lucy "I mean that I've thought about it. What it'd be like to be with him like that… I like the thought but… I could never do it."
Chizuru looks at her, concerned.
Lucy "If I ever pursued my feelings for him then that'd mean things could change. What if he said no? What if we break up? Now, what would Shiori think? Too many things could go wrong… I don't want to risk that."
They stand in silence as Lucy holds onto her arm tighter now.
Chizuru "Lucy…"
Lucy "It's fine though. I like the way things are now. I like being happy like I am. As a matter of fact, I'm kinda relieved Shiori likes him. She's a nice girl and it makes things easier not to worry if he does or doesn't like me if he's busy liking her, ya know?"
She laughs as Chizuru smiles, still looking concerned for her.
Lucy "Anyway, I'm okay Chizu, really I am. It's not like anything's gonna change. But you have to promise me you won't tell anyone what I told you."
Chizuru "I promise."
Lucy "Good."
She smiles at her as Chizuru smiles back a bit.
Lucy "Now, if you'll excuse me, I do gotta go pee for real."
Chizuru "Oh! I'm sorry!"
She nervously giggles as she leaves. Lucy smiles as she watches her but slowly stops smiling once she leaves.
Lucy 'It's okay. As long as things stay the same, everything will be okay. Right?..'
Chizuru heads down the hall back to her room before stopping in the hallway. She holds her head down and has a strained look on her face.
Chizuru "All these secrets… All these feelings… There's so much… Will everything be okay?.."
Chizuru shakes her head and slaps her face gently.
Chizuru "No! I can't think like that! I have to be there for my friends. I have to support them. As long as we all stick together, everything will work out just fine! It has to!"
She gets a confident look and heads back to her room.
Not long after that, spring break rolls around. Shiori and Hikigaya are in their rooms hanging out not doing much when their phones vibrate. Shiori looks at it and sees Chizuru messaged the group chat.
Chizuru 'I'm boredddd!'
Lucy 'What do you want to do then?'
Chizuru 'Are yall busy??'
Hikigaya 'Not really. It's spring break'
Chizuru 'Then let's make plans! Tomorrow, meet at my place, get ready for a wet time!'
Ryuji 'Wet..?'
Shiori gets a look of slight surprise and excitement.
Shiori 'Beach?'
Chizuru 'Yes sir!!'
Shiori smiles and gets up from her desk and rushes over to Hikigaya next door. She swings open the door and startles Hikigaya. She excitedly takes a seat on his bed as he watches her walk in.
Hikigaya "You know, you should really knock. You never know what I could be doing."
He says with a playfully mischievous look. Shiori just rolls her eyes.
Shiori "So about tomorrow."
Hikigaya "Excited are we?"
Shiori "Shut it."
He smiles at her but does as told. Shiori inhales a bit and sits up looking a little nervous and embarrassed.
Shiori "Look… I've never actually… gone to the beach before…"
She looks down slightly embarrassed waiting for him to laugh at her but when she looks up slowly, she just sees him looking at her intently waiting for her next words. After a moment of silence, he nods.
Hikigaya "And..?"
Shiori "You're not… gonna laugh at me?"
Hikigaya "Why would I laugh? Not like I've been either. It's not exactly my cup of tea."
He cocks his head to the side and motions his hand matter of factly. She gets a slight look of surprise but nods as well.
Shiori "I've never been so I'm not entirely sure what to do at the beach… And I wanted to try to make a move toward Ryuji since I'll be…"
She swallows nervously.
Shiori "In a bikini and all…"
She is blushing and embarrassed. Hikigaya gets a bit jealous seeing her like this for someone else.
Hikigaya 'Stop feeling this way! Why do I even care? It's fine.' "Well that should be easy enough. He may be a little weird but he's still a guy after all. And your friend."
Shiori "It's not just that… I don't really want to wear one… But at the same time I do. It's just very frustrating."
Hikigaya "Why don't you want to?"
She looks at him and gets a little irritated.
Shiori "You don't have to know alright? I'm just conflicted and venting."
He notices her sudden defensiveness and understands it must be something personal so he pulls back from the question. He instead looks over at the corner of his bed. He gets up and grabs something. As Shiori follows him with her eye, she is suddenly hit in the face with a piece of clothing.
Shiori "Hey! What was that for?! Huh?"
She looks at it and realizes it's his blue button up shirt. She looks up at him confused while he sits back down in his chair.
Hikigaya "I say go for it. Show off a little. Maybe he'll notice how cute you are."
She blushes a bit at his comment and he notices. He starts blushing more realizing what he just said.
Hikigaya "I-in your swimsuit and all, ya know? Anyway, you can just wear that over yourself if you start feeling too exposed or something. Then take it off when you're ready."
Her eye lights up a bit at the perfect idea. She looks back down at the shirt and holds it a bit tighter.
Shiori "Thanks.. Hikigaya."
Hikigaya "It's what friends are for."
She nods but then laughs a tiny bit. He looks at her confused.
Hikigaya "What's up?"
Shiori "There's just one other problem… I don't actually own a swimsuit."
Ace "That shouldn't be a problem."
They both look over, surprised, to see Ace standing in the doorway.
Ace "I'm sorry. I was just walking by and heard you so I thought I'd help. Come on, I'll take you to go shopping. Get a little girl's time."
She winks at her. Shiori is stunned for a moment before agreeing.
Ace drives them to a nice clothes store. Shiori has never been here before so she looks around in awe. They come to the section where they'll be spending most of their time. They look around for a bit and come to three last picks. Shiori tries them all on but can't decide.
Shiori "Ace, I can't figure out which one I like the most. What do you think?"
She holds up the options. Ace puts her hand on her chin and thinks intently.
Ace "Well which one are you most comfortable in?"
Shiori "They all fit me well and I think they look good on me. But I don't want to get all three…"
Ace "Oh, well don't worry. I'm buying today so you just worry about looking your best."
Shiori "What?! No way, I can't let you do that!"
Ace "Hey, don't worry about it. We're pretty much family now. I'll take care of you like I would Hiki."
Shiori wants to argue about it more but Ace hushes her.
Ace "Back to the matter at hand. Hm…"
She inspects them more before coming to a decision.
Ace "I say go with that one."
She points at the more normal one. It is black and red striped with white lacing around the top and bottom. It ties at the hips, back and neck.
Ace "We don't want to go too extravagant for your first set but just cute enough."
Shiori looks at it and nods happily. As they check out and leave, Shiori looks at Ace. She blushes a bit and gets a little embarrassed.
Shiori "Thank you… For today."
Ace "Don't mention it. It's the least I could do to pay you back."
Shiori "For what?"
Shiori looks confused. Ace smiles at her.
Ace "For making my brother so happy."
She rubs Shiori's head and she smiles back.
Once they get home, Shiori hangs out in her room and looks in the mirror, holding the new swimsuit up to her, smiling happily. She puts it down and sits. She falls onto her back on her bed.
Shiori 'My first beach day!'