"I guess I was a little vague." He chuckled sheepishly. "I meant, did your head recover well after you were hit on the back of it?"

There was no amount of reasoning or rationalizing that could convince you that Seiji's words weren't referring to that incident. It felt like everything in your life paused for a moment and you were no longer in a comfortable flower shop talking to a friend, but you were back at school where you needed to be wary and cautious.

But how does he know about what happened?

After your talk with the system at the cafe, he quickly clarified that since your death didn't count he made it so it simply never happened. Meaning, Seiji couldn't have been your attacker. Because if he was, he shouldn't have any recollection of what happened.

Seiji tilted his head to the side. "(L/n)-san?"

You weren't sure to be exasperated or amazed at how sweetness still honeyed his tone; he acted like he didn't just drop a soul crushing bomb on you. Just who was he? What kind of connections did he have with the system? Did he deceive you from day one? Why did he suddenly reveal himself now out of all times?

You walked up to the counter and narrowed your eyes at Seiji. "You have some explaining to do––"

Interrupting you, a feminine voice called out, "Kei, you can take the rest of the day off now! I'll handle the shop."

The door behind Seiji opened and a woman stepped out. She was in the middle of tying her straight white locks into a low messy bun when her silver eyes met yours.

"Oh, I didn't realise we had a customer!" Her voice was light and gentle and harmonized with the warmth of the flower shop. "Welcome! What can I get for you?"

"Ah..." You cleared your throat, having to change your facial expression and demeanour all of a sudden made you a little flustered. "I was just––"

"She's (L/n)-san. The friend I told you about," Seiji said.

It took everything within you to not frown in displeasure when he casually referred to you as a friend.

"I didn't realise, I'm so sorry! Kei talked a lot about you." She clasped her hands together and her face lit up in excitement. The way she carried herself resembled her snow-white hair and silver eyes very well; angelic was the first word that came to mind. "I'm glad that we finally got the chance to meet."

You forced a friendly smile. "Likewise, I wish we could've seen each other sooner."

"My thought's the same. Ah! How about I give you a bouquet as a gift? I should. Wait a moment––"

"It's fine!" you exclaimed, maybe a little too frantically. "I mean––I need to get going soon and uhm..."

Seiji's mother showed you an understanding smile. "Oh, if you're busy then don't feel pressured to stay. Come visit soon, okay?"

You didn't have the heart to deny her words. With a polite bow, you bid goodbye to Seiji––avoiding eye contact with him as you did so––and his mother.

The feelings you would typically have when you stepped foot out of the flower shop were light and refreshing. After all, your visits with Seiji were fun and uplifting. Now? Bitterness and immense confusion.

You walked for a good few minutes before coming across a bench that you collapsed on. You let out a much needed sigh. When everything finally sunk in, you buried your face in your hands in frustration.

Seiji was someone you genuinely considered as a friend, he was someone outside of the stressful game you were participating in, he was someone that allowed you to forget about your situation even if it was for only a moment. You desperately clung onto the hope that he was still a good person, someone who had good intentions. Maybe there was a misunderstanding? He didn't get the chance to explain himself, after all.

... But what if he wasn't a good person?

You tangled your fingers in your hair and groaned. There were many questions that were probably going to be left unanswered for a while. You leaned back and your gaze followed the moving clouds in the sky. You just wanted to listlessly stare at them forever.

"Ah..." you mumbled. "School is tomorrow."



===



For once, you didn't dread student council work early in the morning before school. Yusei, knowing your work ethic pretty well by now, was surprised when you didn't complain about the duties. The reason? Well, right now you'd do anything to keep your mind occupied. Sleep was dreadful last night because you kept thinking about Seiji. In the morning your thoughts were still occupied by him. If you could, you'd take out your brain to remove the section that was vigorously stressing over his words.

"So, that's what we need to get ordered. The budget has already been sorted out and I contacted a teacher who can get it purchased," you said before following up your words with a small yawn catalysed by your lack of sleep. "I just need their confirmation. Can you do that for me, please?"

The student council member nodded his head. "Oh, there's also one last thing I need to report on."

You were sitting on a desk in the middle of sorting out papers. "What is it?"

"There's going to be a competitive basketball match after school today. The newspaper club needed a photographer outside of the club since their main ones weren't available. There was a volunteer and the teacher suggested having a student council member there to make sure everything runs smoothly. We don't have to if we're busy, though."

"Who is the photographer?"

The student pondered for a moment. "I believe it was Satoshi-san."

Satoshi...? When you straightened the papers, you accidentally slammed them on the table a little too hard. "I can go and help out."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course."

The student's eyes sparkled in admiration. "That's great! Then, please excuse me. I'll go and confirm the purchases now."

"Yup, see ya."

The door closed with a small thud. After sliding the papers in their respective folders and cleaning up the table, you exited the student council room. Maybe you arrived at school a little too early, everything was already completed.

Oh, right! Kai texted me he'd be at school early for basketball practice. I'll tell the coach I'll be there to help out.

Happy that you had more things to keep yourself busy, you made your way over to the basketball courts outside. When you walked by the principal's office, you caught muffled snippets of the conversation that was taking place inside.

"I was told that you were going to transfer after the break. Did you change your mind?"

"I got settled in my new place faster than I thought."

You slowed down your steps. The first voice was definitely the principal. The second one belonged to a student, a voice that sounded very familiar... Wait. If it is who you think is it, then you do not want to be seen when they walk out of the room.

Despite your realisation, it was as if someone up there had heard your inner thoughts and decided to absolutely clown on you. The door opened before you had a chance to leave the hallway.

"Oh! (L/n)-san, that's perfect."

Ah man, you couldn't just ignore the principal. You turned around and gave a polite smile.

"Good–" You paused for a moment when you saw who was next to the man. Rose pink eyes narrowed in amusement, he folded his arms and his lips curved into a smirk. Ah, shoot. You were right. It was Genji. "Good morning."

Genji transferred here? Seriously?

"Genji-san recently transferred to our school and I was wondering if you could give him a quick tour." He looked over to the redheaded idol. "This is (L/n) (Y/n), our student council vice president. You're in good hands."

"I know her very well~" Genji mused. "I'm sure she'll be great company."

You swallowed the urge to flat out reject the principal and also smack Genji's smirk right off his face in the process. "Sure, I'll give him a quick tour around the school."

The principal nodded in approval before leaving you with Genji. You internally slammed your head against a wall. There was already so many things to stress about, why did you also have to deal with the affairs of the past (Y/n)? Without saying anything, you began walking. A small part of you hoped Genji would walk the other direction so you wouldn't need to give him a tour. But, of course, that was nothing but a fleeting dream.

"So, student council president, huh?"

"Vice president," you corrected.

"Ah, my mistake, your majesty."

Is it bad if I punched him right now?

"I was hoping to run into you, but I didn't think it'd be so soon." A melodious hum left his lips. "A reunion is always nice."

You ignored him. Gesturing to what's in front of you in the most unenthusiastic manner possible, you said, "So, this is where the cafeteria is."

"Wow, acting colder now, are we? And you were so clingy in the past as well."

"Oh yes, because after the guy who I was dating cheated on me I'm supposed to act friendly." You glared at him. "Very logical."

"Well, technically, I cheated on you several times. You always stayed, though. That's what made you stand out from all the girls I dated."

You seriously almost threw hands right then and there. The guy acted like he wore a crown on his head. Though, this comment wasn't entirely dismissed by you. The past (Y/n) stayed even when he cheated on her several times? Why?

Whatever, you didn't need to think too much about it. "Upstairs is the music room."

Genji was not paying attention to the tour you were definitely putting your 100% in. "You know, seeing you act like this is giving me butterflies."

"Digest them. Anyways, if you make a left here, you'll find yourself in the courtyard."

Speed running this tour was on the top of your priority list. Not gonna to lie, it got a little amusing as time went on. Every time Genji would try to comment or ask any questions––even if it was valid––you'd cut him off.

"Hm, so are there any events––"

"The home ec room is down his hallway."

"Is the cafeteria usually full––"

"Over there is where most of the art club students like to hang out. Best if you don't be a disturbance like you are right now."

"...I––"

"If you take a few turns here and there, do a couple of backflips if you want, you should find the hall."

"Where––"

"Walk along the halls and you'll eventually find your classroom."

"Oh, c'mon! You're not even properly directing me."

You shrugged. "Guess you weren't really in good hands."

Eventually, you reached your last destination and it happened to be the basketball courts outside where Kai was practicing. Today was a particularly gloomy day so you were welcomed with a monochromatic environment. But the lively shouts, sounds of basketballs hitting against backboards and hoops, and chatter from the basketball team made the setting added some colour. When you spotted Kai on the court, he had just flawlessly shot a three pointer. His teammates praised him and he gave them a curt nod.

Kai's green eyes lit up in excitement when he saw you. "(Y/n)! You saw that, right? Right? Wasn't I super cool?"

His energy was enough to melt away the sour mood you were in because of Genji. "I saw it. And yes, very cool."

Kai smiled proudly before resuming his practice. Well, he boasted to everyone about how you complimented him and then he resumed back to his practice. Some of the members looked your way and waved. A nervous chuckle left you when you returned the gesture. If the entire team knew about Kai's crush on you, you would not be surprised.

"Ohhh." Genji grinned. "You got a new boyfriend while I was gone, huh?"

He just had to open his mouth. "You sure love making assumptions, don't you? Anyway, this is our last stop, the basketball courts. Now, shoo."

"Geez, so quick to dismiss me. Are you playing hard to get?"

You stopped yourself from responding when you noticed a group of girls whispering to each other. Tuning Genji out, you focused on their conversation.

"Wait, wait. Don't tell me...Is that Genji-san?"

"The idol? I never knew he was transferring to our school!"

"Should we approach him? Ah, but it looks like (L/n)-san is with him."

"She's probably busy, I don't want to be rude and interrupt her."

Oh? You approached the girls and smiled warmly. "Sorry, I couldn't help but overhear your conversation. Do you want to speak to Genji-san? In fact, you girls can show him around the school! I did a tour already, but I was too busy to go into detail."

One of them asked, "Are you sure? We don't want to intrude."

"Of course!"

The girls looked at each other excitedly and profusely thanked you. Genji looked at you, confused. You simply returned his look with a smug grin. Other students noticed the girls approaching him and realisation that another idol was in your school spread around. It wasn't long before Genji was completely occupied by his fans, allowing you the perfect opportunity to abandon him.

You did notice the differences in his interaction with his fans compared to Kashi. Kashi made sure to make everyone feel included. Though they were his fans, Kashi never made conversations solely about him. How was everyone's morning? Did you hear about what happened the other day? It'd be simple things like that.

Genji, however, was basically having his ego fueled when the girls showered him with compliments and praises. And when you saw him flirting with some of the girls, you decided that it was a perfect time to look away.

You shook your head. "How the hell was he my boyfriend..."

As soon as those words left you, someone aggressively dunked a ball in the hoop. That someone was Kai. He looked at you, exasperated.

"That guy was your ex?!"

"Oh, you heard me?"

Kai ditched the basketball court to come up to you. "What did that asshole do to you? Do you need me to––"

"Kai, Kai. It's fine," you said. "He cheated on me, but it doesn't matter now."

Kai took it like Genji had committed a crime against humanity. "Where is that bastard––"

"Ah! No violence, don't need you getting suspended," you said, grabbing his arm and pulling him back.

"But––"

"Don't worry about it. He doesn't deserve any of our time and energy."

Kai glared towards Genji's direction before letting out a loud huff. "Fine."

"Thanks."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever."

You let go of his arm. "Right! Kai, can you do me a favour? Tell your coach that I'll be helping out with the match after school."

Kai immediately cheered up. "You'll be here after school?" An excited smile was on his lips, but he quickly covered the lower half of his face with the back of his hand to hide it. "I-I mean, fine I'll tell him."

Seriously, the way Kai unapologetically expressed his emotions followed by his terrible attempts to hide it was both amusing and endearing. However, you quickly dismissed the thought. Remember, (Y/n). You can't get distracted. Most likely, something troubling is going to take place after school. Kai and Aimi are still outlined in red for a reason.

Your mind was suffused with apprehension at the thought of preventing more deaths. It's been a while since the last one, huh?

Kai noticed you zoning out. "Oi, you good? Did ya not get sleep or something?"

"No, no. I slept. I was just distracted for a moment. My bad."

Kai looked at you doubtfully. He glanced over to his basketball team, who were vigorously practicing on the courts, before yelling out, "I'm taking my break!"

Then, he grabbed your hand.

"Kai––?"

"What? I'm tired and you're going to keep me company."

Obviously, he was not tired. You knew Kai had monstrous stamina. You laughed softly, he knew something was off and wanted to cheer you up.

"Ah, okay, okay. Gotcha."

===

With a blue light reflected in your eyes, fingers drumming against your lap, eyebrows slightly furrowed together in concentration, you read the line of text across the holographic screen.

School had just ended and the first thing you did was hide yourself in the most isolated part of school to utilise the feature that told you the future; you hoped to get a good grasp of the cause of Kai or Aimi's death. The first time the feature was used was during Kashi's chapter. It told you who would die and how. This time, however, it mentioned a series of events and you had to infer for yourself where the danger lied.

"The information is less straightforward," you mumbled. "Guess I'll have to actually use my brain..."

[ Yup! Can't be spoon feeding everything to you ]

Ugh, the system was back. You narrowed your eyes and tried waving the digital screen out of your face. "Shoo."

[ I was thinking...maybe I should just become a substitute teacher in this school. That way, we can always see each other! ]

"Don't do it. You suck at teaching. I don't want secondhand embarrassment on top of all my stress."

[ D: ]

[ I have no words ]

You sighed. "No, seriously. Can you leave now? I need to go to the gymnasium."

[ Fine, fine ]

After the screen disappeared, you entered the hallway. Your lonely footsteps echoed throughout and the dreary weather only made the walk more ominous than it needed to be. The area was empty as students had either already gone home or were preoccupied with their clubs.

Startling you, a light tap was on your shoulder.

"Ah, did I scare you? Sorry, I didn't mean to."

Standing there and looking at you with gentle golden eyes as if he didn't just suddenly appear out of nowhere was Satoshi. When... did he get behind you?

"It's fine," you replied, doing your best to mask the uncertainty in your voice.

The paint bucket incident came to mind upon seeing his face and stubbornly stayed there, causing you to feel a lot more tense towards the male than you should.

"I heard you were helping out after school. Are you heading to the game now?"

"Yeah, you're taking photos, right?"

Satoshi raised the camera that hung around his neck. "That's right."

"Cool. Well, being late wouldn't be a great start. Let's get going."

You walked by Satoshi's side. It was difficult interacting with him normally when you had major suspicions that he was going to be the cause for Kai's or Aimi's death. But, man. The silence between the two of you was suffocating. You stole a glance at Satoshi and he looked completely at peace. You, on the other hand, needed some conversation or else your thoughts would run wild.

"Do you do photography in your spare time?"

"I do," he replied. "I prefer taking photos of landscapes, but I don't mind trying my hand at this, I suppose."

"Landscapes?"

"Nothing too special. Sometimes the evening sky has a nice hue that I'd like to capture, or there would be a nice view from on top of a hill." A lullaby-like quality flowed through Satoshi's voice as he spoke. "Simple but mesmerizing moments."

He lifted the camera and snapped a photo of you, laughing softly at your surprised expression.

You frowned. "What was that?"

"Ah, I'm sorry. I wanted to lighten up the mood, you looked a little tense," Satoshi explained, he looked genuinely apologetic.

He could tell? You thought you had gotten better at hiding masking your feelings.

"Don't worry, I'll delete the photo. It was just a joke." He showed you the camera screen. "There, see?"

His actions were harmless, but your mind kept assuming the worst. Pushing your pessimistic thoughts aside, you smiled at him. "Don't worry about it, I was just surprised."

Finally, you reached the gymnasium. You were asked to help out with organising a few things such as preparing towels and first aid kits so you had to leave Satoshi's side. Though, as you were helping out, you made sure to glance towards the brunette every now and then. He was sitting alone on the seats looking at his camera. He made no attempts to converse with anyone. If anyone did approach him, he would politely engage in chatter, but the conversation was always dismissed by him.

You went to the side where the other team was residing to take care of some things and made no efforts to stop yourself from eavesdropping. Whispers about Kai's athletic skills floated around and it seems like the team was figuring out a plan to go against him.

Speaking of Kai, you noticed him on the courts and called, "Good luck on the match!"

He was in the middle of his warm up, but when he heard your voice he was quick to ditch it and run up to you.

"What took you so long?!"

"Sorry, sorry. I was preoccupied with some stuff."

"Hmph, whatever. Also! I don't need your luck, I'm going to crush all of them anyway."

"Guess you don't need me to cheer you on."

"Wait––I never said." Kai gave you an exasperated look. "Why wouldn't you cheer me on?"

You laughed. "I'm joking, I'm joking. I'll be sure to chant your name––"

A hand was suddenly placed on your shoulder. The touch was fleeting and it felt like the fingertips left ghostly cold marks on you. You almost whipped your head around in alarm, but you managed to calmly glance over and confirm that it was Satoshi. Again, when did he get behind you?

"(L/n)-san, the game is starting soon." Satoshi glanced at Kai momentarily to give him a quick but polite greeting. "We should get going."

"Oh, is it?" You waved at Kai. "Well, see ya. Have fun at the game!"

You stood at the sidelines next to Satoshi and observed the game. It was clear as day that Kai was in control of the court seeing how the opposing team were struggling immensely to defend against him whenever the ball was in his possession. Heck, you swore 99% of the time the ball was in Kai's hands. Did the opposing team have the ball? Welp, it just got stolen by Kai within the first second.

Everytime Kai scored a point, he would turn to you with expectant eyes. You'd give him a thumbs up and he'd smile to himself in satisfaction. Eventually, the thumbs up wasn't enough for him so you'd yell out 'good job!'. Everyone in the gymnasium would stare at you. Needless to say, it was very embarrassing and you even rooted for the other team at one point so Kai wouldn't score any more goals and you'd save face.

Satoshi was busy taking photos, but in the middle of the match he spoke up with an unexpected question. "(L/n)-san, do you know the difference between a painting and a photograph?"

You blinked at him in surprise. Why was he asking you that? "Uh...A photograph is done instantly through a device while a painting requires someone to actually create the image themselves?"

He nodded. "A camera instantly catches a moment in time and shows exactly what's there. Painting is different, the user has control over its final outcome. They can get rid of imperfections or twist the meaning if they desire." He turned to you, the look between his eyes indiscernible. "(L/n)-san, don't you sometimes wish you could fix every flaw in something before preserving it forever?"

As soon as he finished that sentence, the lights suddenly went out in the gymnasium and darkness engulfed the area. Thankfully, the windows allowed for some light to seep in so you weren't wandering in complete darkness. Surprised murmurs swept across the space from spectators, those on the courts stopped playing, and coaches were discussing amongst themselves on what to do.

Startling everyone, a flash of light lacerated through the sky followed by a clamorous thunder. Heavy rain began pouring down and sounded like hammers pounding against the pavement.

"A blackout, huh?" you whispered under your breath.

Of course, you expected this. What you knew about the future was: a blackout occurs, putting the basketball game on hold. At one point, Satoshi and Kai head out of the gymnasium together. The two stop by an art room and only one of them walks out, that one being Satoshi. What he did afterwards was inform the teachers that Kai had gotten into a perilous accident.

And since Kai was outlined in red, that perilous 'accident' was enough to kill him. Shivers crawled through your skin at the thought.

"I did hear that we'll be getting rain this afternoon despite the warmer season," Satoshi said. "Who would've thought that it'd get this bad."

Your preoccupied mind automatically ignored Satoshi's words as you deliberated over what on earth could have possibly happened in the art room. It is said to be an accident, so did Satoshi stage it himself? Did he preemptively execute the murder or was it spontaneous? Was there a physical fight? Were there other factors involved similarly to what happened with Yusei?

"(L/n)-san?" Satoshi called out. "Are you okay?"

You nodded. "I'm fine."

Whatever it was, one thing's for sure was that you needed to make sure Kai was not left alone with Satoshi.