Friends

I cleared my throat, trying to push away my feelings of discomfort with a change in the subject.

"Ah, um... Natsuki, you make cupcakes a lot, right? What if you brought them so that we could all try it!"

Monika smiled sweetly with one hand lightly pressed against the side of her face. She looked rather welcome to that prospect.

"I would love to try some!"

Yuri looked a little surprised. She excitedly cupped her hands together and looked at Natsuki intensely.

"Ah, Natsuki, you do baking?"

Natsuki puffed up her cheeks and averted her gaze.

"Erm, well... I-I don't know."

Yuri pouted ever so slightly.

"E-Eh? Why not?"

Natsuki scratched the back of her head and looked at me discreetly.

"Um, I'm used to only making some for Sayori. I don't know if you two would like it."

I couldn't help but feel quite strange. Maybe because I felt a little happy that she only made things for me, but at the same time her lack of confidence made me feel worse. Without thinking, I raised a fist and unabashedly laid bare my thoughts.

"Your cupcakes are amazing! If someone was so lucky that they got the chance to have them, then they should cherish it! Don't you remember? You're the best cupcake maker in the world!"

Hearing me say all of that, Natsuki flushed red all the way to the neck. She frantically waved her hands in my direction as though she could somehow erase all the things I said.

"Wa wa wa, stooooop! I-I didn't say any of that!"

I tilted my head to the side and put a finger to my chin.

"Eh? But I remember you said it just the other-"

Before I could finish my sentence, Natsuki leaped over, knocking her own chair to the side just to cover up my mouth. I couldn't lie, seeing her react like this made me want to make many more comments.

However, when she gave me a desperate pleading look, I pushed those urges down. Instead, I simply held onto her outstretched arm and hugged it, wanting to give her some semblance of reassurance one way or another.

Though... I did end up pressing her arm against my... um, breasts. It kinda made it seem like I had other intentions.

Natsuki turned into a sputtering mess as her eyes seemed to swirl.

"Y-You! I... H-How dare y-you!"

She shivered like a hummingbird, seemingly torn between jumping away and keeping her hand on my mouth. I honestly didn't really think about it in any weird way, but seeing the way she treated it, I couldn't help but feel a bit... strange.

Feeling the palm of her hand gently rub against my lips made me feel a little like melting. And as for her arm... her shivering was...

Feeling overwhelmed by the stimulation, I ended up letting go. Similarly, Natsuki also promptly let go, crossing her arms a little too tightly, all the while still shivering. As for me, I lay in my chair like a piece of putty. It was hard to get myself to sit upright again.

Monika and Yuri both looked at us a bit strangely. Monika simply smiled after though, while Yuri looked at us rather curiously.

A soft smile formed on Yuri's face, with a hint of bitterness behind it.

"So you two were that close... I-I guess if that's how it is, then we can just forget the cupcakes."

Hearing that, Natsuki tensed up considerably.

"N-No! It's not like that at all! I-I'll bring the cupcakes tomorrow!"

Monika clapped her hands together lightly.

"Then that settles it. We will be meeting up together here tomorrow as well!"

Yuri looked a little excited. She looked down at the table, making it a little hard to tell who she was trying to talk to.

"Ah... W-Will this be a regular thing then?"

Monika smiled sweetly and giggled.

"If nobody is against it, then of course!"

We remained there silently for a brief moment, which showed our agreement. Yuri appeared to have picked up on this. She brushed a finger by her hair, moving a lock over her ear.

"T-Then if you guys would like to try, I could also make a bento for all of you? Y-You could just have a bit then have your own lunch."

Monika let out a laugh.

"That would be amazing! Thank you, Yuri."

In response, Yuri nodded towards Monika as though making lunch for her was a privilege. However, she seemed to be more focused on Natsuki, waiting for her response. Natsuki coughed a little once she noticed.

"E-Er..."

A conflicted expression formed on her face. Somehow, I could realize how she was feeling. She seemed both guilty and desperate, but I couldn't tell for what reason. Eventually, she lowered her head a little.

"If you don't mind..."

Yuri smiled brightly with a faint flush on her cheeks.

"I don't! I really don't at all!"

The atmosphere felt cheery, but a bit awkward for the rest of lunch. After talking about different things we could think of, lunch was already over. We parted ways, but it didn't really feel like we were leaving as we had promised to meet up again.

Next... was math class.

Once again, I was alone all by myself. However, it didn't feel too bad. I reassured myself by saying that I was going to spend time with everyone again tomorrow. With that mentality, I even focused on what the teacher was saying for a whole five minutes!

Not that I uh... understood anything.

How was I supposed to know what a y-intercept was?

Once class was over I packed my things and hurried on to gym class. I thought that if I got there fast enough I could quickly change without anybody seeing. But it definitely wasn't the closest and by the time I got there, both Monika and Yuri were already inside. It looked like they just got there along with me.

Upon noticing my entrance, Monika smiled brightly and waved, while Yuri did the same but with a more sheepish look.

I smiled with a bit of embarrassment.

"U-Um, hi!"

Yuri held up her hair to block her face.

"Ah, is that what it feels like to have friends?... A-Am I being too presumptuous to assume you guys are my friends?"

I hurriedly waved my hand at her statement.

"No, no! Not at all."

That's right... they're just my friends. Why was I so scared of exposing my body to them? It's not like they were guys or something.

...Yeah, there's nothing to be ashamed of.

As though agreeing with my internal thoughts, both Monika and Yuri began changing their clothes.

My head felt a little light.