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yansimstorythatiwillnotworkon · 2 months

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Wednesday

“You know, Taro, you’ve been making incredible progress thus far!” Amai claims with a proud smile.

She and Taro were currently standing by the fountain as students filtered in and out of the plaza for the occasional snack from one of the five tables surrounding the fountain. “It wouldn’t be an understatement to say that a lot of this is thanks to your help and your quick learning.”

Taro blushes, clearly not used to such intense praise. “Ah, thank you. I-I don’t know if I’ve been doing that well, though, haha. I’m still not very good, but I’m glad that you think that I’m making progress.” He says, holding one of his arms with the opposite hand. “I’m open to helping you out some more if you really need it.”

Amai smiles, folding her hands together pleasantly. “Don’t you worry. Today’s Wednesday, so I think since all of the treats are properly baked now, we should be able to relax a little bit!” She says, sitting down on the fountain and patting the spot next to her. As he sits down next to her, she continues. “So, what are some things you enjoy doing in your free time?”

“Ah, well..” Taro takes a small book out of his pocket and chuckles. “Believe it or not, reading.”

Amai tilts her head and holds a hand out, asking for permission to hold it. Taro hands it to her and she reads the title aloud. “Fall of Two byyyyy Yukina Miura. What’s this book about?” She asks, handing it back instead of reading the summary on the back.

With a sigh in thought, Taro holds a hand to his mouth in thought, looking at the cover of the book. “Hm… well…” He thinks for a moment, before smiling and looking up. “Well, basically it’s a story about how a girl who’s job is mountaineering is sent up to an infamous mountain to answer a distress call from someone on top of the mountain.”

Immediately, Amai had a question. “A mountaineer? Usually they’d call a professional rescuer for that type of thing, right?” She asked, leaning her arm on the fountain curiously.

“Apparently, since the mountain was usually so isolated, the nearest rescuers were too far to get to the distress call immediately. The best bet they had was a nearby mountaineer, who was sent up because they believed that the caller was in immediate danger.” Taro explained.

Amai nods, urging him to continue with the story. “Eventually, the mountaineer reached her, but the weather immediately got bad once she did, so they had to wait to go back down. And….” Taro hesitates. “..well, I wouldn’t want to spoil the story for you..”

Smiling, Amai raises her hand and waves it dismissively. “Don’t even worry about it. I don’t often choose reading above baking in my free time. Go ahead and tell me!”

“Ah, if you say so..” Taro smiles hesitantly and continues. “So, while they’re waiting, the mountaineer is investigating the area they’re in, which is a big cave. As it turns out, the caller had a severe injury that resembled a stab wound from a blade, but the caller denies anyone being up there with her, or even having a blade.”

Amai holds a hand up to her mouth in shock, clearly wrapped up in the story-telling.

“There are several events that happen before they’re able to begin traveling down. I… admit, a bunch of it just seemed like filler.” Taro says, looking disappointed. “I think the whole point of the book was to leave the mystery up to the reader’s interpretation.” He says, shrugging lightly. “So, basically, at the end, when the mountaineer and caller are climbing back down, the caller suddenly walks to an edge and starts… reminiscing about something.”

“Reminiscing is a weird word to use.” Amai comments. “Or maybe just a weird thing to do in this situation.”

Taro nods. “I agree. The caller starts talking about how she just wanted to go on a vacation, and that’s the reason why she was here in the first place. To take a vacation with people she trusted.”

“Ooh..” Amai furrows her eyebrows, looking a bit anxious at that comment. “That sounds spooky.. Does that imply that the caller wasn’t there alone after all?” She asks.

To Amai’s question, Taro just smirks, almost mischievously at her curiosity. “That would explain the stab wound to some degree, wouldn’t it?” He asks with a smile. “The mountaineer tries to get the caller to keep going, but she threatens to jump. Apparently, she thought that the mountaineer had figured out ‘what she did’, but she never explains what it is that she did.”

If Amai could be at the ‘edge of her seat’ without being in Taro’s personal space, she probably would.

“The caller threatens to jump if the mountaineer tells anyone what she did, and despite her not knowing what it was that the caller did, the mountaineer promises.” Taro leans in a bit, his expression in a mischievous smile. “So, the mountaineer walks forward and slowly takes the caller’s hand. The caller then apologizes and theeeen..”

Taro trails off, leaving Amai to guess what happened. She places her hands onto her cheeks nervously. “Oh, gosh. Does she jump? Does she drag the mountaineer with her?” She asks, looking distressed.

“We actually don’t get to figure that out.” Taro explains, leaving Amai to exhale in both relief and dread.

“Gosh, that’s so scary… those poor ladies. So… what do you think happened?” Amai asks, folding her hands together.

Taro hums in thought, seemingly appreciative of the fact that Amai had asked. “Well…” He holds a hand up to his chin as he thinks over his response. “..I saw a theory video on the book once. It said that the caller likely went up the mountain with someone under the guise of a vacation, but was tricked and attacked- hence the stab wound. But she’s alive, so maybe she killed the person who attacked her and hid the evidence some how. Since the caller felt so guilty about this possible person’s death, she killed herself and took the mountaineer with her so that she wouldn’t be able to tell the story.”

Amai frowns, “I guess that makes sense.. And since it was just the caller left up there, it could easily look like a murder that the caller had put together, couldn’t it have?” She rationalized, her moods seeming to have dulled after hearing about the story.

Nodding, Taro chuckles with a wry smile. “I’m sorry, I guess that wasn’t the story you were expecting, huh?”

“Not at all!” Amai laughs, albeit uncomfortably. “But I did ask for you to tell me. Next time I’ll specifically ask if you’re reading a pleasant book.” She says.

“Sounds good.” Taro says, nodding in agreement.

Ayano squints her eyes, hating it whenever Taro smiled at anyone other than her. Didn’t it tire him out to smile at almost everyone he spoke to? For what? None of them deserved it.

A sigh behind her makes her flinch, and she knows immediately who it’s coming from. Ayano turns around, her back pressed against the tree in a more casual manner, rather than peeking around the tree like a creep.

“Much better.” Amise says with a wry smile. “So. What did you need?” She asked, waving her phone lightly. Ayano had actually bothered using the number that Amise had given her. Amise crossed her arms, an unsure look on her face, as if she already knew what it was that Ayano had messaged her for.

“I am ready.” Ayano says, her face more serious than it was emotionless this time. “And I have… a plan. I just need you to copy Amai’s handwriting and write something down for me.”

Amise raises her eyebrow. “And… what would I be writing?” She asks.

Once she does, Ayano glances behind the tree, where Taro and Amai were still chatting. She pulls something out of her skirt pocket- a small light green book.

As Amise grabbed it and skimmed through the pages, she recognized it as Amai’s diary based on the sweet handwriting and the topics she had written in it as well. She frowned, realizing what exactly Ayano wanted her to do. “...right.” She sighs, almost looking disappointed in Ayano as she walks out of the plaza, looking for a private area.

Amise wasn’t entirely sure where to go. There were hardly any comfortable places that weren’t ever visited- each part of the school was usually occupied or visited. Right now, Amise was just walking through the hall. If not looking for somewhere to write, then for another solution to convince Ayano not to commit some god-awful crime.

As she walked, she passed by the door of the Cooking Club and heard arguing. At first she thought that it was Ajia and Seiyo again, but actually found the other two semi-rivals of the club. She opens the door that’s out of their sight and walks in quietly, listening to what it was they were saying.

“Saki.” Kenko sighs, tossing his head back in exhaustion. “You know it’s just a suggestion. I’m concerned for your health! Would it really kill you to chew some gum instead of a whole bag of candies?”

Saki put her hands on her hips. “I am! I’ve been swapping some sweets out for something else, like my parents say. I’ve been chewing gum instead of bringing candy. I’ve been using those- those- organic materials that you insisted I use! I’ve been doing that!” She huffed, folding her arms. “It’s not the big of a deal if I bring some candy once!”

“I know that Saki, but I’m only reminding you because the whole point of a diet is to keep at it for a long period of time! If you really don’t want to keep up with it, then you could just say that.” Kenko assures her, trying to be the calmer voice of reason, although this doesn’t help Saki’s overall irritation.

Groaning, Saki turns away from him. “Why don’t you talk to me about something else? It’s always dieting and health with you! Don’t you have any hobbies? Any pets!” She throws her hands up in the air with a huff. “It’s always the same with you! And my parents! They come home after a long day of work, ask me about what I’ve eaten and then go into their room! It wouldn’t kill you all to ask me how my day was, would it?”

Kenko holds out his hands, lifting one up and lowering the other as he began speaking. “Saki, I am your school mate and club mate. Most of my life is surrounded in good health, all I’m doing is talking to you about what I talk about with everyone else around me.” He sighs, folding his arms. “If you’re so bothered about what your parents say to you, then you should talk to them about that. I don’t have any power over what your parents do and don’t say.”

“You don’t have to contribute to it, though..” Saki mumbled, averting her gaze in a gloomy manner.

Someone walks up behind Amise and puts a hand on her shoulder. It was Shoku, who sighed and walked past her. “Come on, you two, the whole school can hear you.” He says sternly, putting himself in between them. “We really don’t need the majority of our club arguing. You two agree, don’t you?” He asks softly, looking to the both of them.

Saki scoffs, turning and marching out of the Cooking Club. “Fine!” She grumbles, heading towards the Occult Club, likely to rant to Daku.

Kenko frowns, shaking his head. “I’m sorry, you’re right.” He says letting his arms rest at his sides. “I didn’t realize her parents were so hard on her. I’d probably shut up a bit more if I’d known that that’s the majority of what she’s hearing from them.”

“You’d do better telling that to Saki.” Shoku points out, patting his shoulder and pushing him towards the door. “Not now, though. She needs a moment to cool off and you need to help with the sale. I expect to hear that you both apologized and reached common ground.”

Kenko nods, walking past Amise and looking a bit embarrassed at having been caught in such a petty argument.

Shoku sighs, before turning and smiling to Amise somewhat nervously. “I’m sorry you had to see that. It’s not often you see them in such a heated argument.”

Shaking her head, Amise smiles. “It just seems like a mix of the wrong place at the wrong time. Maybe the wrong comment, too.” She shrugs, slipping the book discreetly into her skirt pocket. “Saki just seems stressed and Kenko is just worried about her. He does know the body and mind pretty well.”

Shoku nods with a light chuckle. “That he does. I’m glad there are people like you who see both sides of the situation.” He says, crossing his arms. “So, did you visit for any specific reason? Amai is out near the plaza if you need her.”

The reminder of what Amise was tasked to do was something she could thank Shoku for and equivalently not tell him about. “Ah, no. I just heard arguing and got worried. I’m actually looking for a private place to sit down right now.”

“Ah, I see.” Shoku smiles, looking out the window to the sakura tree. “If I may, I personally recommend the sakura tree up there. Amai and I-” The cook pauses, going a bit red in the face at the implication that his original sentence might cause and quickly rewords himself. “Ah- I mean- we talk there often. It’s not often bothered outside of the occasional couple making out.” He laughs lightly.

Amise crosses her arms, smirking. “Ah, so is that what you and Amai are doing up there?” She asks mischievously, tilting her head to the side.

“G-God, Amise.” Shoku covers his red face with a hand and laughs weakly. “Please don’t ever say that in front of Amai. I don’t know what I’ll do with myself if she ever hears that.” He sighs, lowering his hand to cover his mouth shyly.

“Promise.” Amise chuckles, holding up an ‘ok’ symbol with her hand. “I’ll head up there, then.” She says, waving her hand briefly and walking out of the Cooking Club.

“H-Hey! Ayano!” An unfamiliar voice called out to her, and Ayano turned to see the bluenette from the art club waving and walking over to her. “Hey! Hey, uh… you’re Mai’s friend, aren’t you?” She asks, immediately looking shy and picking at her hands nervously.

Ayano pulled her mouth into a line as she thought. “...well…” Rather than answering, Ayano simply asks. “..why are you asking?”

Efude didn’t seem to notice or mind and immediately continued with her request. “O-Okay, so, this might sound weird because we’ve hardly talked and you probably don’t even know who I am- I’m Efude, by the way, class 1-1- but I wanted to ask you a favor.” Efude speaks quickly and hurriedly, as if trying to get her question out before she could be rejected. “I was… I was wonder if you could ask Mai to be my muse for a day or so? Maybe under specific requests but that’s not really a necessity..”

Ayano folds her arms. “I’m willing.” She says laxly. “I can ask, but me knowing her doesn’t mean she’s going to say yes.”

“Oh, I know.” Efude laughs a bit nervously. “But, like, she doesn’t know me at all so I didn’t think she was going to say yes. But if you ask her then she might! There’s a bigger chance, right?”

“I…guess so.” Ayano says, nodding to Efude.

Apparently, that wasn’t enough indication to Efude that Ayano was going to do it, as she nervously laughs again, clears her throat, and continues. “U-Uh, I heard from Enpitsu that you were, like, super helpful and stuff? He said you helped him with his muse, so- ha, so I just assumed you might do the same for me. Ahem.”

Ayano tilts her head to the side, an eyebrow raised. “Yes. And I am going to help you, too.” She says, more direct this time.

Nodding vigorously, Efude wiped her hands on her skirt, clearly incredibly nervous. It then became more obvious to Ayano that she probably didn’t look like she was willing to help. Efude was a social butterfly- one that depended greatly on her interactions with others.

With that in mind, Ayano put her hands on her hips and looked away casually. “Don’t worry, I’ll get to it.” She says, putting on a confident smile. “From what I’ve learned, I’m pretty persuasive.” She said with a light chuckle.

“C.. Cool!” Efude laughs, looking a little reassured by Ayano’s more confident persona. “I’ll, uh… well, I’ll just be outside of the gaming club. That’s where I usually am, hehe… Okay, bye.” She bids Ayano farewell quickly before speed walking down to the Gaming Club.

Ayano hums to herself in thought. Mai seemed like a pretty simple person to convince, and she’s already done Mai a favor. Surely she’ll be willing to do this favor back? Ayano looks around the hall, gazing through the windows just in case she can see anything from across the school. Unfortunately, as she turns the corner, she doesn’t see the person walking on the other side.

Due to the other person’s pace, Ayano ends up stumbling back. “Ah!” The person grabs Ayano’s arm, attempting to steady her, but ends up falling with her. Out of all of the times Ayano’s bumped into people, this was the worst fall she’s had. Maybe she should start walking in the middle of the hallway to avoid these confrontations.

“Ow, ow.. I’m sorry. I’m really sorry.” A nervous voice said, quickly scrambling off of Ayano and yanking her up off of the ground. “Sorry. Sorry.” Scilla continues to apologize even after brushing any dust off of her uniform.

He stands up straight, realizing who it was he’d bumped into and steps back. He bows down at the waist with a red face. “Sorry. That was super sloppy of me.” Scilla sighed, standing back up and putting a hand to his face in embarrassment.

“It’s okay.” Ayano says, looking down to a very noticeable red color on the side of Scilla’s wrist. She points a finger. “You’re bleeding.” She says, looking around for whatever had torn at his skin. She spots a pair of fancy-looking scissors on the floor, ones that he had obviously dropped.

“Oh!” Scilla’s face goes red, covering his wrist and picking up the scissors. “Sorry, that’s so embarrassing.” He apologizes again. Ayano wonders if Scilla apologizes like this often. “Sorry.”

Ayano frowns. “You apologize a lot.” She says, crossing her arms before noticing something wet on her own arm. Looking down, she realizes that it’s blood that was dripping down her arm.

“I-I’m apologizing because I think I cut you, too..” Scilla says, frowning pitifully. “I can.. I can get you bandages. I.. uh…” He digs around in the bag that was hanging on his shoulder. Shakily, he pulls out a small roll of bandages. She wondered why he was carrying both scissors and bandages, as if he was always prepared for this situation. “Sorry..” He mumbles again.

Before Ayano could insist that she was fine, Scilla quickly grabbed her arm and wrapped it up tightly in just a few seconds. “Sorry. It’s nothing professional.” He murmurs, although blood certainly wasn’t getting back out of the bandage. “I’m so sorry. My clumsiness got you injured. Sor–”

“--stop apologizing.” Ayano furrowed her eyebrows, her sharp comeback making Scilla shrink into his shoulders. He opened his mouth, likely going to apologize again, but he shut his mouth immediately.

“Gosh..” Scilla sighs, stepping back a bit. “I- uh- I guess I can’t say sorry anymore, but, uh- please tell me if you want me to pay you back somehow.” He mumbles, looking guilty.

Ayano pauses in thought, realizing that there is something that he could do. “...actually..” She lifts a hand up to her mouth in thought.

Info-Chan had given Ayano some context regarding Amai’s Monday conversation. Apparently, Amai’s family was currently struggling with her parents’ bakery failing because of competition. And according to Amai, she was positive that this was because of manipulation via the competition.

This wasn’t new information for her parents, though, as Amai often had that assumption about competition. This was far worse when she was younger, but foul play was always at the back of Amai’s mind. That fact in its own was enough for her parents to disregard her suspicions entirely.

Since Scilla seemed so adamant on paying her back, surely he could do this for her?

“...could you tell Musume something for me?” Ayano asks, pulling a finger up to her lips as she decides how exactly to approach this.

“Taro is my newest trainee. It’s nice to have one as soon as I get back to Akademi. Not only that but he’s an incredibly fast learner as well! Not to mention humble. He has a lot of muscle for kneading despite not having done it before. Those delicious apple pie crusts are proof of that 100%! It reminds me of when Shoku and I first met.

“Shoku was the very first to join my club when I reopened it two years ago. At first it was just him and Kenko with me, but we made it work! He always has been such a remarkable second-in-command. On several occasions, I’ve been so shocked by his talent that I was tempted to hand over the role of leader to him! Even as I’m coming back he insisted on not keeping the role, which is honestly just the sweetest thing. Shoku wasn’t always the best (possibly even better than me) at baking, though. He was more of a cook than a baker, so he wanted me to give him some tips! We’ve been incredibly close ever since, and I really do appreciate that he’s been there for me since our first year! <3

“I guess while I’m being sentimental I should talk about my other club members. It’s so great seeing their faces again! We didn’t keep in touch as much during the summer and I missed out on the first week of school, but they seem just about the same!

“Saki is dating Daku now, which is really sweet. I guess they’re a really clear example of opposites attract? Just today Saki was blabbing to me throughout the entirety of lunch about how she and Daku met and each of their dates ever since. I don’t know Daku that well, but from what I’ve seen he seems like a mature and reliable person. I believe he’ll be nothing but good to Saki!

“I heard Ajia has been looking into a professional culinary school! According to her, even her parents agree that her skills are top notch! Of course, that was obvious to all of us. She’s even been able to teach me some things I didn’t know about the history of Japanese food! There is one thing I’m a bit worried about, though…

“Ajia is a master in traditional Japanese food, but times are changing. Even if her food comes out impeccable, what if someone with a newer, less known food takes the attention away from her? Everyone in Japan has tasted Japanese food, so wouldn’t they want something new? Something different? Well, maybe I’m speaking from my own tastes. Who knows? Regardless, I know Ajia puts incredible effort into everything she does. I feel like that effort alone could get her a high rating! :)

“Seiyo, Seiyo, Seiyo. I feel like he’s always been the brightest of us all. Not in smarts (I am NOT calling him dumb I think I worded that incorrectly) but specifically in regards to his personality. Always hopeful, curious, and determined! I’m not sure which of those Western cartoon characters of his has caused him to be this way, but honestly, I’m proud of him! Ajia and his parents often talk about how his goals and admirations are unrealistic, but none of them can deny that Seiyo is an amazing cook. That’s his passion, and if a cartoon character is what fuels that passion, then so be it!

“Kenko is the number one reason why we use fresh ingredients to this day. While more expensive, the less modified and more pure ingredients have honestly made a difference in how people feel when eating our treats! Kenko’s whole idea was to either go big or go home with the budgeting, and I’m really glad I listened to him! Even Saki has been getting a better eating style because of the ingredients. It’s so sweet that Kenko cares so much about our well-being. Honestly, with how helpful and healthy he is, I’m surprised he hasn’t dated anyone! I don’t know how long he’s been adamant on that lifestyle, but I think I’ll ask.”

From then on Amai finishes gushing about her friends and moves on to bidding farewell to her diary. Amise sighs.

Beside her on the grass was the alphabet on a notebook, each letter resembling Amai’s handwriting in uppercase and lower case. It was a good thing that Amai had such dainty handwriting. Even her quotation marks and exclamation marks had cute hearts instead of the simple circle of the period. Now that she had that down, all Amise had to do was write down the suicide letter.

That’s all she was told to do, at least. Realistically speaking, Amai’s had nothing but happy thoughts. Even her thoughts on competition had been dulled down. Despite what gossip may claim, Amai’s “hatred” for her competition could easily be seen as insecurities instead. That’s what it was, after all.

“I know I used to say that every mistake I made was because of someone else. I take full responsibility for what I used to say, but that was in middle school! I think I’ve matured as a person since three years ago. Doesn’t anyone else?

“Well, I know Shoku does. He seems like one of the only people I can talk to about these things. I don’t want to give my clubmates a reason to doubt me, and my parents are disregarding my suspicions completely!

“I know it’s my own fault for having such selfish thoughts in the past, but isn’t this a bit dramatic? There’s a difference between 13-year-old me screwing up a design on a cake and blaming it on my competitor and a BUNCH of healthy, clean rats polluting our pantry!

“There was no nest, they were all near the same size, they were all clean and there was nowhere for so many big, healthy rats to hide or squeeze into! Not only that, but our storage barely had a dent in it. You would think that after rats seemingly “breeding into our ingredients” there would be bite marks, missing food, holes in bags and stuff, but there wasn’t!

“I know I’m not being dramatic this time. I know my line of thinking makes sense, but the only person on my side is Shoku! Even with him on my side, I’d hate to trouble him with anything else. It’s nice having someone to depend on, but it feels way less nice knowing that someone else’s anxiety is suffering because of my own problems.

“If I really am crazy, then I’m sorry. I don’t want to trouble anyone and I hate bringing misfortune to anyone, but I hate my family being trouble even more than that. My parents are so hard-working. They built this bakery from the ground up! If all of that was ruined because of someone else’s ill will and because I chose to turn a blind eye, I would never forgive myself.”

That was a thought that Amise could carry on writing. If she added more subtle notes to Amai’s diary that increased how troubled and stressed Amai looked, then suicide would actually make sense to some degree. With another sigh, Amise lifts up the pen, being careful to keep the handwriting the same size and keeping Amai’s font in mind.

“Things have been getting worse for my family as of recently. I can tell how stressed mom and dad are about our lack of customers. After the rat incident, we’ve obviously been getting less and less customers. Sabotaging or not, the thought of my parents suffering so much is heartbreaking.

“Not only that, but things have been going…wrong in the club as well. I’m sure everyone’s just a bit overwhelmed by the thought of a Bake Sale, but… does that really cause so much arguing? I love my clubmates, really I do. So seeing them argue so often is just… overwhelming.

“I know Ajia and Seiyo have their differences, but is that really enough for them to argue at every corner? If Ajia could just… calm down a little, half of these arguments wouldn’t be happening. Not to mention Seiyo always contributing to these interactions isn’t helping at all!

“Even Saki and Kenko have started. I know it’s not on the same level as Ajia and Seiyo, but it’s still not a positive interaction, like we all should be having.

“Am I downplaying stress they could be facing at home? Was this whole Bake Sale idea of mine a bad one? Is it because of me that everyone’s so stressed?

“Everyone around me is stressed and I feel like everything’s just falling apart. How much longer am I supposed to say that things will get better until it does? I feel like I’m lying to myself and to the people I love.

“I’m just not sure what to do anymore.”

After about ten minutes, comments like that were carefully placed all around Amai’s diary. Now, hopefully, the letter that she was about to write made sense. Despite Amise’s distaste for the idea, the only job she’s given herself is helping Ayano explore her options. Hopefully, if Ayano went through with this, this would be the last victim that fell to Ayano’s delusions.

“Amai. I’d like to speak with you about the Dark Delights Bakery. I have information that can help you with your family’s business, but I don’t want to drag unnecessary attention to your situation. Please meet me on the rooftop at 8:15, right before classes. I hope you’ll be there.”

Amai blinked, thinking quietly about the note. Someone wanted to meet her in order to talk about her situation with the Dark Delights Bakery. Plenty of people knew about the bakery and its growing popularity, so it wouldn’t be weird for anyone to assume that her troubles were with it. But not once had she ever told anyone about the bakery by name. Was this person just that smart? Had they gone to her own bakery and asked their parents about it? No, they would have told her something, right?

Looking at a nearby clock told Amai that it was 7:55 right now. Twenty minutes until this person wanted to meet up. The whole reason she’d gone to fetch the note was because Scilla had told her that he saw someone put the note in her shoe locker. Amai sighed. She could probably ask questions later once she went to talk with whoever wanted to meet her. “Hm…” Amai hums, sighing and putting the note in the pocket of her skirt. She didn’t want to drag someone else into this, but if this person could really help somehow, she was willing to take that chance.

“Amai.” Shoku walked to her, smiling gently. “I’ve got the leftovers put up and in the Home Ec fridge. Are we going to make more treats tomorrow and give them out on Friday?” He asks, noticing the bummed out expression on her face.

Amai smiles, although it clearly doesn’t reach her eyes. She seems to notice this and sighs. “Yes, that’s the plan. Thank you so much for putting everything up so quickly. I know the others have been a bit stressful to handle.”

“That’s what I was going to say.” Shoku chuckles. “I was going to say that, really. Not to treat the others like kids, but I did try to talk to them about their behavior on… several occasions. I think maybe they’re just… stressed. I’m sorry if it’s weighing down on you at all.”

“It happens, Shoku. Maybe I should have planned the Bake Sale some other week.” Amai ponders, lifting a hand to her mouth in thought. “I’m… not sure how I could have timed this better, though.”

Shoku furrows his eyebrows, his expression looking evidently more worried than happy. “...is something wrong, Amai?” He asks, folding his arms with a cautious expression.

After sucking in a breath, Amai sighs, realizing that she valued not piling more onto Shoku than getting anything off her chest. “Well… I’d be lying if I said it was nothing, but.. I’m just a bit too tired to talk about it right now.” She says, inhaling again sharply as she felt herself getting a bit more emotional.

It wasn’t often that Shoku ever touched anyone without permission, but as soon as Amai raised a hand to wipe an upcoming tear from her eye, Shoku stepped forward and wrapped her in a gentle hug. Amai froze for a second, but reciprocated the hug after a second. “Gosh..” She mutters, biting her lip to prevent herself from crying.

“I know you’re going through a lot right now, Amai. I hate if anything else is piling up on you, and you don’t have to tell me.” Shoku says, parting from her briefly and instead holding her hands. “But I hope you aren’t ashamed to tell others about what you’re going through. Your family, the club and I are people you should always be able to confide in.”

Amai sighs, smiling, a bit brighter this time. “I know…” She wipes her eyes again and smiles up at him. “I’m not sure how I earned amazing people like you in my life, Shoku. Thank you.” She says earnestly.

Shoku nods, his heart swelling in happiness and accomplishment that he accepted what he said. “Of course. I’m always here.” He assures her, smiling. He notices the time and steps away. “I’m going to head to class. Take your time.” He says gently, waving back at her as she waved him goodbye.

With another sigh, Amai brushes her hair back, wondering how exactly she could get herself ready for this confrontation. She still has ten minutes until she has to head up to the roof. Maybe walking around a bit could jog her brain?

Saki hummed in thought, looking at the time. Realistically speaking, she and Daku should be getting to class. But, she wanted to spend as much time with Daku as possible before it turned 8:30. But, like the smart man her boyfriend was, he commented on the time.

“It’s 8:14, Saki.” He points out, standing up and walking over to her chair. Bending down to lean on her chair, he gently took the book she wasn’t reading with a smile. “I appreciate that you trust me to complain, but I think we’d both rather not be late for class.” He says, tapping the book on her head before putting it back.

Sighing, Saki pouted, sinking into her chair and messing with one of her ponytails. “Yeaaah, I knoooow… But can’t we stay here for another minute?” She asks, putting her hands together pleadingly.

Daku chuckles lightly. “I can walk you as slowly as possible to your class, Saki.” He says, holding out his hand to her and urging her to get up.

Saki takes it and holds onto his arm begrudgingly. “Oh, fine.” She sighs, although she was really just happy to be in close proximity with him.

The argument with Kenko did make her upset, but not necessarily at Kenko himself. Sure, it was annoying that he always asked about her health, but it was actually a different story for him and her parents. She knew that he was right in that aspect, but there was no way she was going to admit that. Not right then at least. Saki knew that Kenko didn’t mean any harm, and she appreciated what she did, but sometimes his timing was just wrong.

As Daku and Saki walked, Saki spotted Amai walking to and up a flight of stairs opposite to her classroom. She lifted an eyebrow, stopping and looking back at her. Daku glanced her way questioningly. “I hope you don’t plan on keeping me here until 8:29.”

Saki wanted to laugh at Daku’s joke, but she also wanted to know where Amai was going. “No, uh… Amai was going the wrong way.” She said vaguely, slipping her hands from Daku’s arm. “I’m gonna go check on her. If I’m not back in like five minutes just go to class, okay?” She calls back, scurrying off to follow Amai.

Amise: Saki is following Amai.

Amise texted this, but got no answer. Neither was there an indication that Ayano saw her message.

Now that this plan had officially amounted in Amai’s eventual death, Amise had to hope that Ayano was able to handle this on her own.

An irritatingly familiar tone dinged from her phone.

<Info-Chan has sent a gif.>

The gif itself was of a chibi-shaped Amai getting her head hollowed in by an axe of some sort. This wasn’t what was happening, but Amise knew what that meant.

Info-Chan: I win this round :)

Amai leaned her elbows onto the railing along the roof in thought. The time was 8:25. She definitely had to get going by now. How long did this person expect her to wait? Or maybe they were waiting in a different area? Sighing, Amai lifted herself off of the railing. Just about ready to leave as the time turned to 8:26.

“Sorry.” Ayano apologized to Amai casually, walking to her. “I had trouble finding you.” She claimed, folding her hands behind her back nonchalantly.

“Oh! Ayano?” Amai folds her hands together over her lap in surprise. “So you wanted to meet me here, then?” She asks, Ayano nodding in response.

“That’s right. I’ve heard about your family’s problem regarding the new bakery and I have some information to help.” Ayano repeats what was written in the note, which Amai recognized.

The brunette nodded, pressing her lips together anxiously. “Right, I recall. So… do you also think that my bakery’s being… sabotaged, then?” She asks, feeling guilty for saying that out loud.

“I do. By all means, the incident with the rats doesn’t make any sense.” Ayano says. “I did some digging, and other locations where a Dark Delights bakery has been set up, some other bakery nearby was forced to close due to going bankrupt.”

Amai frowns. “Were there claims of foul play by those bakeries at all?” She asked, although that wasn’t guaranteed just because Amai thought that that was the truth. Similar to her parents, other bakeries might not want to go down with a bad reputation. So, if they had no proof, they probably stayed quiet about the whole ordeal.

“Some, yes.” Ayano nodded.

With a sigh of both relief and dread, Amai turned around to lean on the railing again. As she did so, Ayano briefly checked the time, which read 8:28. Almost there. Just a couple more minutes and she should be clear.

“I knew it…” Amai sighed. “That’s… I-I get trying to keep your own bakery alive, but… foul play is just…” She puts her face in her hands, knowing that she didn’t really have to explain.

Ayano didn’t actually have a plan. Not one that would help with Amai’s bakery, at least. “I also heard that several of the bakeries suffered the rat treatment as well, despite beforehand being perfectly clean.” She claimed. All she had to do was keep Amai under the impression that she had a plan and information.

Amai shook her head in disgust. “It’s just-” She turns to Ayano briefly, her expression one of anger for a fleeting moment, before disappaiting once more into distress. “--I– failure is… obviously something no one is proud of. I get that. But… making others fail and failing becuse of someone else are two things that feel horrible to me!”

Amai looks away again, blinking away tears of frustration. Once again, Ayano looks down at her phone. 8:29.

“...that’s just how the world works.” Ayano mumbles, before adding, “Unfortunately.”

Ayano could hear Amai speaking. Complaining, maybe damning the bakery for being against her. Who knows? As she continues, Ayano’s breath went shallow and her heart beat faster. The clock turned 8:30. Those delinquents were leaving now- as evident by the ringing of the bell.

“Someone has to fall for someone else to rise.” Ayano says quietly, stepping beside Amai and watching as the delinquents walked slowly into the school. Too slow, even.

“But does that justify foul play, Ayano?” Amai asks, not bothering to turn around as Ayano stepped back. “I know everyone suffers with something. Whether it be a financial situation or a mental illness, but at the end of the day isn’t everyone still held respo…”

Thump Thump Thump

This rush was different than the feeling Ayano felt when she was in close proximity to Senpai.

“--still feel bad for–” Amai cuts herself off with a gasp as she’s pushed forward, her stomach meeting the railing. “--Ayano? What–”

ThumpThumpThumpThump

Excitement, and looking forward to the relief of having be rid of this… obstacle. This worthless thing in the way of her path.

“--wait- stop! You’re gonn–” Without time to explain, Amai lets out a scream as she’s tossed over the edge.

Thmpthmpthmpthmpthmpthmpthmp

The sound of that obstacle hitting the ground harder than it was supposed to, was the most bone-chilling, and yet exciting sound Ayano had ever heard.

The sound of Ayano’s very first victim.

“Huff… huff…” Ayano’s breathing was hard as she clutched the cloth over her heart, as if trying to get it to shut up already, so she could continue with her day. Her breath scraped against her throat and her vision blurred in and out. She hadn’t even seen Amai’s doomed-to-be-crumbled body. Couldn’t all of this adrenaline wait until later?

When Ayano’s breath finally caught up to her, she heard another sound. Something a bit more pathetic. Something she think she would hear from Amai’s horrid corpse. Whimpering. Muffled whimpering, choking, maybe even sobbing.

Ayano turned her head slowly, her expression not having fixed itself just yet. She could make out two bright blue pigtails, a shivering figure. The voice that erupted from the figure was echoing, as if it wasn’t even fully there. “..what… what the FUCK Ayano?!”

Who was that? Who is having such an… extreme reaction to Ayano’s… business?

“She’s- she’s dead! No one could survive that fall!! Why would you do that?!” The blue-haired student screamed, her echoey voice full of agony.

Such dread. Not only was that a nuisance to Ayano’s patience in its own, but some ounce of knowledge crept into Ayano’s crippling mind. Someone saw her. Someone who clearly disapproved of Ayano’s business.

Ayano took a step forward, and the screaming immediately ceased. Nearly just as quickly as Ayano had noticed she was there, the student turned on her heel with a scream. Not a wail of agony, but a scream of terror. Fortunately, this student was too panicked. Too scared and shaken. But Ayano knew what to do.

Before she could reach the nearest door, Ayano hooked her arms around the student, one over her mouth and the other wrapped tightly around her waist. The student thrashed about, the back of her head nearly knocking into Ayano’s face several times. All the thrashing did was make Ayano stumble and irritate her further.

Several dreadful pleads of “no” could be made out despite Ayano’s distorted hearing and the muffled state of the student’s voice.

“No…” Ayano echoed, bumping into the railing above the school exit. She couldn’t piece together why she had repeated what the girl was saying. Maybe she was correcting her own distorted hearing..? Maybe she was… trying to figure out why the student was pleading?

Regardless…

Ayano, still filled to the brim with adrenaline, tossed the student… Saki… over the railing effortlessly. Any scream she heard was quickly ceased by an equally quick thumping sound, similar to Amai’s.

The adrenaline made Ayano’s body ache. Her arms and legs felt overstimulated. Bruised even. “Hmmhmmm…” Was that a chuckle? Who knew Ayano could laugh? Smile? Without telling herself that she needed to? “Hehehe……”

Ayano’s arms were limp at her side as she collapsed to her knees. “Haha…ahahahahaha!!”

No one could hear her, and she couldn’t hear anything over the ringing of her own shrill laughter. This was perfect. Who knew such an accomplishment could hold such bliss?

Amise wasn’t here, and would probably leave the mess for Ayano to clean up. Ayano couldn’t hear anything Info-Chan could be texting her. Even with that blasted alarm, Ayano’s laughs would likely make the alarm silent compared to it. Since neither of them were… available in Ayano’s mind, it was up to Ayano to confirm it.

Amai has been… eliminated.

#yansim story #yandere simulator #yandere #yansim #yansim ideas #ayano aishi #amise semaj #Shoku Tsubaraya #Amai Odayaka #Seiyo Akanishi #Saki Miyu #Daku Atsu #Info-Chan #Efude Nurimono #Scilla Tonedachi #Taro Yamada #Day three #Week two #Weektwo Daythree

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