|| 5/25 Wednesday ||
|| After School ||

At Shujin Academy, Mikono fumbled with her things as she tried to put them in her bag. She tried to talk to Akira, but he had left with Ann the moment the bell rang. She'd been trying to figure out what was wrong with him the past couple of days. He only talked to her a little yesterday and today. This was the first time he was ignoring her, which caused her heart to ache.

When seeing him leave with Ann, she remembered their first time at the diner together. Akira said he was debating whether to ask out a girl he'd only known for a short while. She didn't want to get her hopes up and thought of Ann. Now, she was certain it was her classmate. Compared to Ann, she was plain and nowhere near as beautiful as her. All she had was her vast knowledge, which she wondered if annoyed Akira.

Mikono shook her head, eyes sealed shut. "Stop it! Stop thinking like that!" She hung her head, clenching her fists tightly. Who Akira liked was none of her business and this jealously in her heart was ridiculous. She had never liked a boy before and wasn't familiar with dating. Even though the boy had shown small signs to show his affection toward her, she didn't detect them.

Regardless of her blindness when it comes to the opposite sex, she still felt a strange sensation in her chest when she spent time with Akira. She wondered if it was love or some other emotion that made her heart flutter.

Her eyes open when she remembered the text Akira sent her last Wednesday. He said he had something important to tell her after they dealt with Madarame. With the old man's Palace no longer in existence, she eagerly awaited for him to tell her what was so important he had to wait. But now, she wondered if he even remembered sending the text. "Maybe it wasn't too important..." She pushed her chair under her desk, sliding her arm through the straps of her bag and placing it on her shoulder. She suddenly paused before leaving the classroom. "Or maybe he meant after Madarame confesses. Am I too eager?"

"Um, Tsutsui-chan?" A gentle voice caught her attention. Turning her head, she saw a worried Mishima standing beside her desk. "Are...you okay? You've been mumbling to yourself for a few minutes now."

"Oh, yeah. I'm fine," she smiled. "Just thinking about some things and wondering if I'm overreacting."

"Is there anything I can help with? You know, to help ease your mind. You kind of seem sad and worried," he said.

"I-I guess my emotions really do show on my face," she nervously laughed. She cleared her throat and turned her whole body toward Mishima. She leaned closer to him, causing his cheeks to turn red. "You're a boy, right? Of course you are! Tell me, Mishima-kun. What would you do to show your affection to the girl you like?"

Mishima was flabbergasted at how fast Mikono was talking. He had to replay her words in his mind to make sure he didn't mishear her. "F-For the girl I like? W-Well... I guess I would do small things like help her out whenever she needed it. I-I would also try to take her to her favorite places. But I think what I would do the most is just try to spend some alone time with her."

Mikono backed away, giving him some space. "I see..." She placed a finger on her chin as she reminisced in the memories of all the times she spent some time alone with Akira. There were many, but only a handful of times were the moments that truly counted. She then searched her memories for all the small gestures Akira had made toward her. As she remembered the unrelenting teasing a few days ago, she also reminded herself of all the times she's made him blush. She pushed all her memories aside and sighed. "Just because I'm able to make him blush doesn't mean he likes me..."

"Who're you talking about, Tsutsui-chan?" Mishima asked.

Mikono realized she said that out loud and shook her head. "N-Nobody! Just thinking out loud, is all! Pretend you didn't hear that!"

The boy chuckled lightly. "What were we talking about again?"

She smiled gratefully at him. "Thank you, Mishima-kun. I should get going."

"Okay."

Mikono left class 2-D and headed toward the stairwell. Before she could descend the first step, Ryuji called out to her. "Yo, Mikky." He walked over to her, hooking his thumbs through the loops of his belt. "Wanna grab somethin' to eat?"

She didn't hesitate to respond. "Sure. Where do you want to go?"

"How 'bout Ogikubo?" He suggested.

A grin manifested on the girl's face. "You and your ramen..." She agreed to the idea. "All right, let's go."

<——————————<<<<<

At Ogikubo, Ryuji and Mikono ordered their favorite ramen. As they ate, the boy noticed how silent his best friend was. He slurped up some noodles before swallowing. "Y'know, it's usually difficult to stop you from talkin'. Now you ain't saying nothin'. What's on your mind?"

Mikono lowered her chopsticks with a heavy sigh. "I think Akira has been ignoring me these past two days. Whenever I try to talk to him, he doesn't look at me or even try to keep the conversation going. He even left with Ann today and didn't even say anything."

Ryuji peered down at his bowl of ramen. "He was with Ann yesterday, too. I heard 'em talkin' about Inokashira Park. She didn't tell you even though she's been spendin' the night at your house recently?"

The girl shook her head with a sorrowful frown. "No..." She picked up her chopsticks, opting to poke the scallions floating atop the broth instead of eating them. "Maybe I was right..."

The blonde took another mouthful of ramen, wiping the small droplets of broth from his mouth with his sleeve. "Right about what?"

"Akira liking Ann. When we first went to the diner to study together, I left to take a call. Wen I returned, I overhead him talking with Morgana about the girl he likes and how he's only known her for a short amount of time."

Ryuji choked on the hard-boiled egg. His face started turning red as he pounded a fist against his chest. He managed to dislodge the food and sighed in relief once his airways were cleared. His face returned to normal and he groaned as he felt a small tinge of pain in his throat from where the egg got stuck. "You've no idea how wrong you are..." He mumbled.

To his dismay, Mikono heard. "How am I wrong?"

"I ain't saying nothin' about it. It'd be better if Akira explained." He continued eating his ramen, but he paused briefly as he wondered about his chances of dating her. Although he knew she saw him as an older brother, he couldn't help but think about the possibility of her seeing past that and allowing him to take her out on a date. He placed his chopsticks down, turned in his seat, and faced her. He was never one to beat around the bush and spoke his mind. "So what's your opinion on us dating?"

Mikono gave the boy her full attention. "Are you speaking hypothetically or...?"

"I mean for real."

Her eyes widen in shock. She stared into his brown eyes with her cerulean ones, wondering if he truly saw her as more than a friend. When she realized he wasn't lying, she tore her gaze from his. "I-I hadn't even thought about us being a couple. You were my first friend in the entire world, and..."

Ryuji sighed, already knowing where this conversation was going. "Yeah, yeah. I know. I'm like an older brother..."

"You've done so much for me, Ryuji, and I can't thank you enough for everything." She lowered her head with a groan, pressing her forehead against the counter and tapping it repeatedly. "I can't believe how blind and slow I am!" Tears overflowed from her eyes. She lifted her head and Ryuji winced when seeing the tears.

He looked around the eatery and saw he was receiving disapproving glances from the other customers. He stiffly reaches out and pats her on the back. "H-Hey, can you stop the waterworks? People're starin'..."

She shook her head and placed her forehead back against the counter. "How long have you liked me?"

"Uhhh..."

Her head shot up and she turned her body, throwing her arms around Ryuji and hugging him apologetically. She buried her face into his chest, her tears soaking the front of his ZOMG shirt. "I'm so sorry, Ryuji, for being an idiot...!"

The blonde was taken aback at her sudden embrace. Still stiff, he carefully placed his arms around her. "Not sure why you're apologizin' for something like that, but...okay."

She lifted her head from his chest and met his gaze. "Will you forgive me?"

"You gotta stop apologizin' for everything," he groaned. When he saw her purse her lips like a spoiled child, he sighed. "Fine, I accept your apology. You're not gonna stop cryin' if I don't..."

She smiled up at him. "Thank you." She unwound her arms and went to eat the rest of her ramen, but she couldn't move when the boy continued to hug her. "R-Ryuji?"

The blonde realized he as still hugging her and quickly unwrapped his arms from around her. His cheeks were red as he rubbed his nose with his sleeve. "S-Sorry..."

She smiled at him. "It's okay. I've been feeling down all day and the hug cheered me up. I'm gonna try to talk to Ann when I get home to see if she'll tell me what's wrong with Akira."

Ryuji turned his attention back to his ramen and immediately scarfed down the rest with a smile on his face. Once the broth was only left, he disposed his chopsticks and picked up the bowl. He drank the broth greedily before sighing happily and placing the bowl down. Licking his lips, he patted his belly. "This place has the best ramen in all of Tokyo."

"You should marry ramen if you love it so much," Mikono snorted with laughter.

He looked down at her half-eaten ramen and pointed at the bowl. "You gonna finish that?" She slid the bowl toward him and gave him what was left of her serving. Like before, he gobbled it down. Once he finished, he belched. Mikono slapped his arm for his poor manners, but he only continued to smirk. He leaned against the counter and pushed the two bowls aside. "Any news on that weird Takahashi guy?"

"Not yet." Mikono stacked the bowls and placed their used chopsticks in the garbage. "Akechi-kun said it may take a few days for him or Chief Goto to contact me with any more information." She heard her phone go off and checked to see who messaged her. Deep down, she prayed it was Akira. Instead, it was Ann. The blonde was wondering where she was and if she was safe. Mikono promptly texted her back and told her she'd be home shortly. "I should get home. Ann doesn't have a key and she's waiting for me."

Ryuji pushes himself off the stool and grabbed his bag. "I'll walk you home."

Mikono grabbed her own bag and left Ogikubo with Ryuji by her side.

|| 5/25 Wednesday ||
|| Evening ||

At nine o'clock, Ann and Mikono sat down on the couch to enjoy the next episode of the drama they both had become interested in. They were wearing comfortable pajamas and grabbed a pillow to hug the moment the show started. During the commercial break, Mikono decided to ask her friend about her time with Akira. "So..."

"Hm?" Ann hummed, looking over at her.

"I saw you left with Akira right after school ended. Ryuji mentioned you two were heading to Inokashira Park. How was it? It was a date, right?"

Ann's eyes widen before they returned to normal. She shook her head. "N-No! It wasn't a date or anything like that! We went to the park because...because..."

Mikono looked away with a guilt-stricken expression. "I'm sorry for prying, Ann. It's none of my business. You don't have to tell me if you don't want to. It's just...Akira's been ignoring me for the past couple days. I try to talk to him, but he only says a few words. Have I done something to make him mad?"

Ann knew exactly why Akira was acting strange. It was because of Mikono, but it wasn't because he was angry at her. She couldn't tell her the truth because she promised Akira to keep quiet until it was time for him to confess. "You haven't done anything wrong, Mikono! Boys are weird and they just have their moments. Have you tried texting him?"

Mikono showed her the message she sent to Akira on her way home. "He's read it, but he hasn't responded."

"That idiot..." Ann grumbled. As she reread the message, someone's name appeared on the screen. "Oh, you're getting a call from Chief Goto."

The inky-haired girl turned her phone around and saw the chief's name. She excused herself and headed to the kitchen to accept the call. "Hi, Chief Goto."

"I'm sorry for calling so late, Tsutsui-san, but this couldn't wait 'til morning," the chief of police said. "We were able to secure a search warrant for Takahashi's apartment. We found the photos Akechi discovered alongside a few other unsettling things."

Mikono's body tensed up. "What else did you find?"

"We found a hand-drawn floor plan of your house with a few sticky notes attached to it. Those incidents Akechi told me about, we believe those are Takahashi's doing. He has notes and schedules of your everyday life. From the time you leave the house in the morning and the estimated timeframe you return home. He also has a list of names scribbled down. Are you familiar with a Ryuji Sakamoto, Ann Takamaki, Yusuke Kitagawa, or an Akira Kurusu?"

Her gripped tightened on the phone. "They're my friends..."

"I see..." Chief Goto fell silent before continuing discussing what they found. "There was also a map of Shibuya with shops and restaurants circled. There were also dates and times written above each building. It seems Takahashi has been watching your every move for quite a while."

"You're going to arrest him, right?" Mikono asked.

"Morosely, we haven't been able to locate him. We've an APB out and officers are searching for him. We're sending an officer over to your house to keep an eye out in case Takahashi does plan on paying a visit. Are you home alone?"

"N-No, I've a friend staying with me until my parents get home."

"Good. If we find him, you'll be the first I call. Goodnight, Tsutsui-san."

"Goodnight, Chief Goto." Mikono hung up and placed her phone on the counter. She chewed on the tip of her thumbnail, pacing back and forth. Myriads of thoughts crossed her minds, most of them consisting of where Takahashi could be and how he could break in at any moment. She grabbed her phone and opened her private conversation with Akira. She was typing up a paragraph that paraphrased what Chief Goto told her, but she hesitated halfway through. She stared at the message she sent hours ago that the boy had read and chosen to ignore. With a sigh, she deleted her lengthy message before she could send it. "I doubt he would care..." Before she turned off her phone, she felt it buzz and saw Ryuji was messaging the group chat.

Ryuji: Hey, so are we boned if this legal action goes through?

A few seconds later, Yusuke replied.

Yusuke: Madarame is a well-known individual. The police will surely move fast on his request.

Yusuke: We will be arrested, and worst comes to worst, sent to some sort of juvenile hall.

Ann: But I thought you said it didn't seem like he'd actually go through with it...

Yusuke: That is true. He's been bedridden since we went through with it, after all.

Yusuke: Honestly though, it's difficult to even tell if he's actually undergone a change of heart.

Ann: I guess we'll just have to wait until he recovers...

Ryuji: I don't feel good about this...

Yusuke: I will contact you all at once if anything happens. Would that work for you?

Mikono was about to text the others when she noticed Akira messaged the group. She stared melancholically at the message.

Akira: Are you going to be okay?

She ignored the last two messages from Yusuke, saddened that he would talk to the others but not her. She gripped her phone tightly and left the kitchen. She heard Ann call out to her worriedly when she walked past the living room, but she ignored her and headed up the stairs. She entered her room, slamming the door behind her. Placing her phone on her nightstand, she released a frustrated wail and tossed her body on to her bed. When her phone buzzed multiple times, she chose to ignore it. Flipping onto her back, she stared up at the ceiling for a few minutes before covering her eyes with her arm. "Jerk..."

*****
Confidant: Mikono Tsutsui
Arcana: The Puppeteer
Rank: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
*****