"Saki! Sakiiiii!" "Yes?" Shouts Saki, as she gets up off the bed and walks to the door. "Come downstairs, your father and I need to talk to you about something." Saki: "Ok, just a minute!" Mom: Your father and I will be going out of town for the next few days. We need you to take care of Minori for us. Saki: Ehh!? How come? Minori: Yeah, Minori wants to go too! Mom: No Minori, we need you two to stay here. We're going to be staying in a hotel that doesn't allow kids. Besides, you both have school. Minori: Awwww, this sucks. Saki: But wait, what about the shop? Dad: Heh heh heh! Don't worry about a thing! I got it all under control! Saki: (Sigh, he's probably gonna close the shop again. Oh well, atleast I can relax now.) Mom: Anyway, we're leaving tomorrow morning so we'll be gone by the time you two get home from school. We gotta get back to the shop now. Saki: Wait, can Mai come over? Mom: Absolutely! Just make sure you two don't make a mess or anything. Saki: We won't! Mom: Well, off we go. We'll see you two tonight. Minori: Bye bye! Saki: Take care! Saki rushes up to her room and jumps on the bed, excited to invite Mai over. She blushes intensely with her face buried in her handmade pillow that Mai stitched for her. Saki: Oh wow, it's just gonna be us two tomorrow night! Well, Minori too but she'll be asleep around 8 o'clock anyway. Flappi: Don't forget about us too, Lapi! Flappi, Mupu, and Fupu all transform from their device forms into their normal bodies. Since Mupu and Fupu are still young, Saki decided to watch over both of them so they wouldn't get lonely. Mupu and Fupu begin playing around, making tons of noise. Saki: Hey you guys, cut it out! Minori is still here! Mupu and Fupu fly out the window, not listening at all. Saki: Oh well, as long as they don't get caught by anyone. Anyway, me and Mai are worn out from all that fighting we've been doing with Dark Fall. Can't we get some rest for once. Flappi: Huh? What's wrong lapi? You seem a little different lapi. You were just turning red a minute ago about how it was gonna be just you and Ma- Saki: Shut up! I did not! Flappi: Yeah you did, lapi! You were even giggling and turning re- Saki: SHUT UP! Saki grabs Flappi, about to throw him out the window when the door begins to open. Flappi notices it in time and quickly switches back to device form. Minori: Oneechan? What's going on? I heard you screaming. Saki: Uh..Uhh...nothing! I..I was just t-talking on the phone! See?! Saki holds up Flappi, who currently appears to be a cellphone, albeit a bit strange looking. Minori: Hmm...now that I think about it, where did you get that phone? Okaasan and Otousan never bought us any phones. Saki: Umm...Uhh..I've had it for a while! Mai had a spare one so she gave it to me! Anyway, next time knock before you come in. I've told you that before. Minori: Hmmm...alright then... Minori leaves the room, still feeling a bit suspicious about Saki's behaviour. Saki drops down to her knees in relief. Saki: Phew, that was close. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- *BRRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNGGGGGG* The alarm goes off as Saki's eyes shoot open. For the first time in probably forever, Saki immediately gets up out of bed. With the excitement of being able to invite Mai over for the entire weekend, there was no way she could have overslept. Within 15 minutes, she is already dressed and ready to go. As she runs towards the front door, she quickly grabs a piece of toast out of the kitchen. She runs back to the door, slips her shoes on, and runs out. Saki: Ittekimaaaaasu! Mom: Ittera- Huh? Her mother looks around and notices the piece of toast gone without a trace. Mom: Did Saki really leave this early? Hmm... Despite being early for once, Saki runs at her normal pace. Being on the baseball team, it is not unusual for her to be able to run the entire way to school. Arriving at the front gate at 7:45, she has plenty of time to relax. She walks nonchalantly into the classroom, expecting to see Mai drawing peacefully in her sketchbook. Strangely though, Mai is nowhere to be found, despite the class being relatively full. Saki checks her watch. Saki: Hmm...7:50. That's weird, I though Mai usually gets here early. Saki keeps glancing at her watch every ten seconds or so, until 7:55 passes. The teacher enters the room and drops a stack of papers on the desk, then goes about shuffling through them. Saki begins to wonder if something may have happened to Mai. She checks her watch again. Saki: 7:58...what's going on? The clock strikes 8 o'clock. The teacher immediately calls attention to the class. Teacher: Alright, class will now begin. She looks down at her attendance sheet. As she is about to call the first name, the door flies open. A girl with blue hair tied up into a ponytail stands at the door. Mai: Huff...huff...teacher, sorry I'm...huff... Figuring that it's Saki, the teacher continues to look down at the sheet as she speaks. Teacher: Saki! This is now the 53rd time you're la- What? She looks up to see that the tardy student is not Saki as usual, but one of the top three students in the class: Mishou Mai. She then looks over to Saki's desk and jumps back a bit upon noticing that Saki has been there the whole time. Teacher: W-W-What's going on? Did you two change hairstyles? Did you two switch bodies or something?! The whole class laughs as Mai sits down in embarrassment, blushing as brightly as Saki. Teacher: Well since you're one of the top students and this is your first tardy, I'll let you off with a warning. But please be on time in the future. Mai: Y-Yes, Sensei. As class continues on, the teacher begins to lecture. Dozing off, Saki begins to think about how she should invite Mai over. If she asks her at lunch time, her other friends like Kenta will probably overhear and want to come over too. Not that there's anything wrong with them, but there really has never been a single time that they have spent alone together. Usually either the baseball team, their parents, or Flappi and Choppi are around. And when they are alone, one of Akudaikaan's minions shows up within two minutes to spoil the mood. Saki decides it's probably better to pass notes in class than to risk the others finding out. Saki: Hmm...what should I write...I probably shouldn't bring it up right away. She finally decides what to write. She writes it on a slip of paper and passes it to Mai. Saki sees an opportunity to invite Mai over. Teacher: Hey Mai, would you like to spend the weekend with me? Just the two of us! Mai: Sure Saki! I'd love t- Oh..uh... Mai looks up in horror to see the teacher standing right behind her, reading with a clear view of the paper. When the teacher saw Saki pass the first note, she did not go straight to Saki's desk and call it out right on the spot. Instead, she circled around the room from the blackboard, to the entrance, and eventually to Mai's desk. The classroom erupts with laughter. Saki and Mai can only look at each other with complete shock and hurt written across their faces. The teacher begins lecturing again. Giggles can be heard every now and then. Occassionally a few people will glance over at the two girls. The only thing Saki and Mai can do is look down in gloom. As soon as the bell rings, Mai gets up and goes outside without a word. Saki follows her out. Saki: Mai! Mai! Wait up! Mai just continues to walk, not responding to any of Saki's words. They finally get to the edge of the balcony, where noone can hear or see them. Saki: Why aren't you answering me? Mai: Just leave me alone, ok? Saki: Why are you acting weird all of a sudden? Mai: What do you think? The whole class is laughing at us! Saki: Well noone would be laughing if you had noticed the teacher behind you! Mai: Oh yeah? Well you didn't notice her either! And what's with that "Hey Mai, would you like to spend the weekend alone with me?!" Now everyone thinks we're gay! Saki: Well ma- Mai: JUST LEAVE ME ALONE! Saki backs away in complete fear. For all these years, she has never, ever, seen Mai get angry before. What was supposed to be a fun weekend alone together, has now become the end of a friendship. Saki's eyes begin to tear up as she walks away. Not wanting to be seen in class like this, she heads out to the side of the school to cry. Class begins again. The teacher is lecturing, occassionally calling upon students to answer questions on the board. Saki and Mai simply sit there, staring down at the open textbooks on their desks. Eventually, the teacher calls Saki. Teacher: Saki, how do you solve 2x+5=7? Saki: I don't know. Teacher: Sigh. Well how about you, Mai? Mai: I don't know either. The teacher begins to wonder if maybe it wasn't such a good idea to put them on the spot earlier. Saki's reply probably isn't unusual considering her study habits, but the fact that Mai did not know either brings up a red flag. The teacher decides to save face by explaining the problem on the board, even though she now knows that the two girls will not pay attention. Class ends, and everyone floods out. Saki and Mai leave without saying a word to each other. Saki walks quickly through the halls, ignoring the glances and giggles. When she gets out of the building, she begins to ponder to herself. Saki: What have I done? How could I criticise her like that? This is all my fault! Although, she begins to think about it a little deeper. Saki: But now that I think about it, why was she so angry at me in the first place? I can understand her running out of class like that, but why was she trying to avoid me? Before she has a chance to find the answer, Flappi pops out screaming. Flappi: RRRAAAAAAAPPIIIIIIIIIIII!!!! Saki: Huh? What is it, Flappi? Flappi: It's Mai, rapi! Saki: Whatever. It's not like I'll be able to talk to her anyway. Flappi: No, she's in danger, rapi! Saki stops immediately and almost drops Flappi. She turns around and runs full-speed back into the school. Meanwhile, Mai is surrounded by four guys. 1st guy: Hey guys, check it out! This is that lesbian in my class that I was telling you guys about! 2nd and 3rd guys: AHAHAHAHAH! 2nd guy: Oh yeah, this girl! I see her holding hands with that orange-haired chick all the time! 3rd guy: Me too! I always knew she was gay! 1st guy: That chick's parents are outta town. I bet she was inviting her over for SEX! As scared as she is, Mai's heart jumps. Could it be that Saki deep down feels the same about her?