Day Nine

I have always been the type to regret my decisions. Whether it was beneficial or not, I’ve always looked at the downsides. Ever since yesterday, I haven’t felt a single moment of regret in my decision.

Instead of working out all afternoon, I instead have a small activity after breakfast and lunch. A small gardening event, led by Yuuri, followed by some ‘woodwork activities’. It wasn’t much of an issue predicting what these activities were in disguise.

Looking back at the board, I noticed a small empty square marked with the words ‘activities’. I left it last night, since it was easy to write down the possibilities, even when accounting for Yuki and the others.

I still haven’t written anything on the board about Yuki yet.

As I entered the de facto club room, my eyes focused on Yuki, who sat next to Kurumi as she read a small manga series with a hard tack over her mouth.

“Good morning everybody”

“Ah, good morning Ryu-kun” Yuuri turned over, standing close to the stove.

“Heeeeeeey” Kurumi mumbled, her mouth still filled with hard tack.

“Hello Ryu…” Yuki waved at me, her voice cheerful and almost obnoxiously louder than before.

“Well, this is the first time in the club, so let’s make it a good time…” I said to the group.

“Yep," Yuuri responded, while Kurumi and Yuki nodded in silence.

“So uh, where’s Sakura-sensei?”

“Megu-nee? She should be here anytime soon. From what Yuuri told me, she was out setting up some activities for the day"

“Huh…”

As we all waited inside the room, the sound of footsteps from outside grew louder and louder. Eventually, the door slid open, with Sakura entered with a smile on her face.

“Good morning everybody!”

“Good morning Megu-nee," Everyone said almost simultaneously.

“As you all know, we have some activities to do today. I have today’s schedule with me right now, so feel free to check it out"

Sakura set her small journal onto the table, with everyone except for Yuuri crowding around it.

A small crude yet simple schedule, almost as if she copied it off of the Horticulture Club’s schedule. Gardening then woodwork, followed by a small cooking session.

Too simplistic, yet the activities were probably large enough to fit the schedule.

“Once you’ve read the schedule, feel free to get ready. I’ll be at the garden tending to some last minute matters"

“Got it"

“Sakura-sensei, may I come with you to the garden?”

“Sure"

We left the room shortly after, my head still filled with the thoughts of yesterday’s events in an oversimplified order. Nothing should be of issue for now, since we’d be confined to the third floor for most of the time in our activities.

“So… would you want me to do anything to help you with the activities"

“Probably not. Thank you for the offer though"

I nodded, my face encapsulated by Sakura’s friendly demeanor

“I’d also like to thank you for helping me out with the club form since I forgot to say it yesterday.

“It’s no problem, Sensei. You kinda had a few lackluster answers that would probably get denied if we were in a kinda normal situation.

Sakura looked at me with a puzzled face.

“I’m not saying as if your application was bad or anything, it was just protocol. I’d probably accept it nonetheless"

My nervousness took hold again.

“What do you plan to do tomorrow?”

“Well, I’ve just found out that tomorrow will be Sunday. So perhaps we could wait it out for the time being"

“Hm. I still can’t get over the fact that I’d be living in this school"

“Me neither. I do hope my family is fine up north though"

“They probably are… it’s a shame they probably can’t find a place like this to stay in…”

An idea sparked in my head.

“By the way, Sakura-sensei. Do you happen to know if the school has some sort of Emergency Manual for such an occasion?”

Sakura’s reaction was priceless. Almost as if I triggered something inside of her or reminded her of something life-changing.

“No. Not really…” Sakura responded, looking down for a second.

“Odd. I was wondering if the school had such a thing. After all, they should’ve been prepared"

“Indeed…”

We arrived at the garden, with a large pile of fertilizer bags, rakes, shovels, and wagons all lined up neatly. Nonetheless, I was quite impressed. Not only because of Sakura's organizational skills but rather her ability to set something up.

“How did you do all of this?”

“I had them set up with the help of Yuuri-san"

“Oh wow… Perhaps I could do the cleaning up for you. Just so you won’t break your back"

“I can handle it"

“No, no. I insist. Please"

“Thanks…”

“Consider it a repayment for what you’ve done for us. Even though I haven’t seen it take fruit, what I could see in the future is quite positive"

It was a short-term strategy, yet the options were vast in what could’ve happened. Sakura nonetheless smiled.

“You seem… troubled, Ryu-kun"

“I just haven’t been sleeping well. Besides, I can’t get over the fact that we won’t be rescued for a while. It screws up my plans"

“I understand. This is just a way to pass the time and keep everyone’s spirits high”

“I know. I’m just worried…” I placed my hand on the table.

“Worried over Takeya-san?”

“Always at this point. She doesn’t seem too… enthusiastic about the idea of a club. I’m willing to have some fun during these times, but Yuki may be a sort of mood killer for all of us”

“We’ll demonstrate it then. How it’ll help Yuki. I’m mainly focused on helping her out, even if it does feel awkward to do something fun, but I hope she’ll enjoy it in the end"

Sakura’s face lit up with confidence and resolve in the moment. The most amount of determination I’ve ever seen on her face in such a long time.

“Would you want me to focus on Wakasa-san and Ebisuzawa-san?”

“Please do"

“Got it. I am wondering why you haven’t roped Wakasa-san into the whole club plan"

“I’ve already told Yuuri-san"

“Right… Do you think we have the same idea over the club?”

“I reckon we have the same idea about what we plan to bring to the students" Sakura politely smiled at me.

“Agreed. Especially over Yuki-san

“From what I heard, you lost an Uno game to Yuki-san. Nonetheless, it was surprising as it contradicted your win streak a year ago when the school had the Christmas Party"

She’s more perceptive than I thought.

“I’d like to thank you for putting the effort in trying to make her happy"

“I’m surprised you know"

The door to the garden opened, with Kurumi, Yuuri, and Yuki entering.

“Speaking of Yuki, here she comes"

“Hello everybody!”

“Hello Megu-nee” Everyone followed in almost perfect unison.

“As you know, we’ll be doing a bit of gardening. I’ve already set up some protective equipment and gear. Please know that you’ll be getting a bit dirty so if you ever need any help or need to withdraw, please inform me”

“Got it!” Everyone responded.

“Alright. Let’s get to it!” Sakura exclaimed in an excited voice.

We started picking up the various tools at our disposal, scattering them across the three garden beds on the rooftop. I wasn’t exactly the best at gardening, but as long as I reciprocated what Yuuri was doing, there’d be no issues.

We continued with the gardening for quite some time, yet the flowery wording behind the goals Sakura had for our activity had some sort of profound impact, that even I wasn’t immune from.

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

Yuki and Kurumi, who mainly kept to the furthest side of the garden bed, had little to no issues other than Yuki being tired out midway through the activity and sitting out.

“Megu-nee, we’re out of fertilizer” Yuuri turned over after looking at the sole bag that we had in the corner.

“Oh dear, I didn’t expect that to happen"

“What do we do?”

“I could probably make a run to the storage room” Kurumi turned over to Sakura, using her forearm to wipe off the sweat over her face.

“Go ahead Ebisuzawa-san! Try not to wander off" Sakura smiled,

“Ebisuzawa-san, do you want me to come over?” I turned over,

“No thanks. You seem quite preoccupied right now"

“I guess…”

“I’ll be back, I need to use the bathroom” Sakura followed Kurumi shortly, stopping at the door, “Wakasa-san, you’re in charge”

To be honest, I was kinda thankful that I wasn’t set in charge, or else I’d have to multitask. Perhaps what I said to Yuuri had played out quite well.

“Alright Ryu and Yuki-san, if you need any help, just call it out”

“Yep" We both responded.

I continued with the garden bed, taking advantage of the same methods used by Yuuri earlier to produce quite decent work.

“By the way Yuuri-san” Yuki called out from the other side.

“Hm?”

“Since we’re out of fertilizer, what do we do until Kurumi arrives since this is my remaining task?”

Yuuri stopped, hovering her fingers close to her chin.

“How about you borrow some from Ryu-kun’s garden?”

Seriously?

“Sure. I have a bit too much anyways" I scooped up a large portion of fertilizer onto my spade, before passing it to Yuki.

“Thanks!”

“No problem,” I smiled.

“Sorry if you have to wait now,” Yuuri said to me while continuing to work on her garden bed.

“I don’t mind. After all, I respect what you’re trying to do"

“Thanks… I kind of owe you"

“For what?”

“... just how you’ve been recently"

Her voice sounded as if she had a different response at first.

“No problem Yuuri-san" I smiled towards her.

“Have you done gardening before Ryu-kun?”

“Yea. With my Dad"

“Before he joined Randall Corporation?”

“Yep. Ever since he worked in some sort of Security branch, he hasn’t spent much time with the family recently. I used to hate that group because of how many times he had to take over for someone else"

“That’s a shame. Do you think you’ll ever get to say goodbye to him?”

“A premature goodbye grinds my gears. I wish that was the case. Even if I don’t get to see him after that"

“Agreed…” Yuuri nodded.

“You’ll find him eventually” Yuki placed her hand over my shoulder, emitting a smile completely reminiscent of when everything was normal. I hadn’t expected Yuki to look like this, but at this point, I’d probably not mind.

“Thanks…” I kept my blank face in response, “You’re done?”

“Mhm," Yuki interlocked her fingers, having them lean close to her back.

“Yuki-san, could you please check up on Kurumi-san? I’m starting to worry about where she has gone?”

“Sure–”

Kurumi emerged from the stairway, both hands lifting onto the bag of fertilizer as if she were boasting her strength.

“Sorry for the wait"

“Are you sure you don’t need help?” I stood up, placing my hand under the bag, trying to relieve her current stress.

“No thanks. This is just fine" Kurumi placed the bag down the wall, “is Megu-nee back?”

“Nope"

“Alright…”

“I’ll admit, I’m quite impressed you managed to bring a fertilizer bag from downstairs to here within like… five minutes"

“It’s not much of an issue. Anybody could do that"

“How did you even get in the storage room?”

“Well, Shovel-kun did most of the work"

Shovel-kun. Quite the simplistic name.

After lunch, we tended to the small barricade set up on the second floor under the clause of “Woodwork activities”.

I was given the prestigious role of scavenging across the school for more chairs, although I was quite relaxed than usual knowing there wasn’t any zombie waiting inside a closet.

Midway through the process, I had set up a small stockpile of tables and rope, enough to finish up the barricades. Yet, the constant ferry of tables had slowed down to merely Kurumi and Yuuri, who often switched turns setting them up.

Does it take that long?

After a moment of waiting, I walked out of the classroom, noticing only Yuki and Kurumi approaching down the long narrow hallway towards the barricade. Annoyed at the lack of progress, I approached down the hallway, holding onto a table.

As I arrived around the corner, the sudden sound of a thud echoed across the hallway, the sound of a falling table followed by an “oof”. I continued my pace, unphased.

“Are you okay Takeya-san?” Sakura’s voice echoed across the hallway.

“Yeah… it’s just… I’m so clumsy…” Her face turned into a frown.

Approaching around the corner, I picked up the table for Takeya-san, looking at her with a smile.

“Don’t worry about it, Takeya-san… we’ll handle the burden for you"

Even before her reaction I knew that I needed to improve my wording.

“Thank you… Ryu…” Her face looked miserable.

Megu-nee crouched down close to Yuki, placing her hand over her shoulder in the hopes of comforting her. I stepped around the corner, deciding to stop close to the wall to overhear the conversation.

“Don’t be saddened Yuki-san… you tried your best…”

“I don’t understand… Yuuri-san is a good leader, Kurumi-san is strong, and Ryu-kun is just…. I don’t know…”

Seriously Yuki?

“I’m nothing but dead weight to you guys… You don’t want me, right?” Yuki started to tear up.

“Of course we do… you can do something that nobody else can…” Sakura’s voice continued to ease Yuki, as she placed her hand over Yuki’s head.

“You can smile for us… it keeps us going…”

“Really?” Yuki’s sniffling paused.

“Yep! Looking at you cheers me up all the time. I’m sure the others agree"

“So promise me. No matter what happens, never stop smiling. I’ll be watching over you, always"

“Always?”

“Mhm"

“Okay… I’ll try. I’ll try my best”

“Hey, now… smiling isn’t something you ‘try’ to do"

“She’s right," Yuuri remarked.

“Oh yeah…”

At that moment, Yuki and Kurumi couldn’t contain their laughter, while I later arrived from the corner, wiping the smile I had over my face.

We continued with the usual setup, with Yuki keeping the smile she had ever since this morning.

With the sun setting and our barricade set up finished, we stopped by at the Student Council room. Yuki, holding onto a small piece of paper with the words “School Life Club”, went up the ladder, planting it over the wall.

“And… done!” Yuki shouted, getting off the ladder.

“All right everybody. Line up, please. Let’s take a picture” Sakura held out a Polaroid camera.

We lined up in front of the room, with Kurumi resting her shovel over her shoulder while Sakura aimed her camera towards us.

“Smile!”

Sakura clicked her camera in front of us, grabbing onto the picture printed out.

“Sensei" Yuuri ran towards her.

“Wakasa-san?”

“Let’s switch spots. The advisor has to be in it too"

“Let me take it" I walked up towards Sakura, “Leaving the club president from the picture wouldn’t be the best"

“Sure” Sakura passed the camera over to me.

“C’mon Megu-nee” Yuki ran over, grabbing onto her arm and dragging her over to the line.

“Alright, I’m taking the picture…” I raised my camera, “Say cheese…”

While I aimed my camera at the group, Yuki hugged Sakura's arm at the last minute.

“You gave me a startle Takeya-san…”

“Sorry…”

I grabbed onto the printed picture from the camera, waiting for the image to fully materialize.

“Were my eyes closed? Do we have to retake it?”

“Look!” Yuki looked over at the picture, “You came out great, Megu-nee”

I’ve never taken photography classes, nor have been the best at taking pictures among my family. So I have to give credit to Yuki for how it went out.

I haven’t been the type to see these moments with a smile, mainly because it feels like once you’ve reached a certain age, everything and everyone is out to say or do something deceiving behind a facade.

However, today, I’d probably mark it for the rest of my life. It seemed silly since it was eventful but not noteworthy compared to everything else I’ve once kept note of, but I didn’t care. Was it because I felt like my life was going to be short, or these moments are indeed rare?

I would cherish these moments to the very end. Wherever the end is.

Day Ten.

Our first official meeting for the club was in fifteen minutes, which was a disguise for just a usual meet-up and check-in with each other. Not that I would make a fuss over that, because it’s best to keep things disguised for now.

Approaching the hallway, Yuki’s soft voice was emitted from across the classroom, her words completely inaudible due to the wind blowing through the shattered windows across the class. Yuki’s usually early to most club members, but perhaps she decided to slack around for now.

“Good morning everybody!” Yuki said from inside the classroom, her voice as cheerful as usual.

I walked inside the classroom, the room was empty except for Yuki who stood close to a table.

“Hey Ryu-kun!”

“Morning Takeya-san…”

“Did you get much sleep last night?”

“Not really… you seem a bit… energetic"

Yuki looked over to her right where the line of windows lay, pausing for a second, before looking back at me.

What is she doing…

“Not really… I almost overslept breakfast and I’ve just gotten here just in time"

“Do you want me to give you my alarm clock? I’ve been waking up earlier than usual”

“No thanks! I’ll manage"

“Suit yourself…”

I walked towards a nearby table, leaning close to it with my hand planted.

“So Takeya-san, what are you thinking about the club?”

Takeya turned over to her right again, giving a small nod towards a corner before turning back to me.

“Sorry, whatcha say?”

“I…” My mouth fiddled for a moment, “forgot"

“Do you seriously forget everything Ryu-kun?”

“No"

“What about the painting you promised?”

“Sorry. Couldn’t find the art equipment in this school"

“What about the Art room on the second floor? They have everything there”

“I’ll go check it out… not now though"

“Oh yeah, let’s get to the clubroom now"

We walked down the hallway, with Yuki glancing over at me from time to time. I turned over towards Yuki, exchanging looks.

“Is everything alright Takeya-san?”

“I’ve been wondering… have you ever had a friend before?”

“Are you still believing in the rumors about me?”

“Yea…” Yuki embarrassingly looked at me.

“Well…” I fiddled with my words, “I had one before…”

“Ooh, is he in this school?”

“She… uh… left for another school many years ago"

“Aw…”

“I lost her contacts a few years ago, although it’s probably not easy to contact her now"

“That’s a shame… How did you meet up?”

“Do you ask a lot of questions?”

“Sorry… I’m just curious"

“It’s alright… Anyways, let’s get back to the club"

Yuki and I continued walking down the hallway, my hands dug into my pockets as I looked back into the classroom we were just in. As I reached the door, I slid it open, with Yuki going inside.