"Hey, morning, Kurokawa!" I call out to the bookworm. Although I want to wave back, with my arms totally occupied, I can not.

Honestly, I would tell Rachel and Laura to let me go for a second if I could, yet my coward instinct is telling me not to do so. I have a very unusual feeling which keeps warning me that letting them go is a terrible idea. I have had my ass saved by my sixth sense many times prior in the past. Therefore, I have no qualms about trusting it once more. Being extra careful always helps, even when Rachel is no longer stabby-stabby.

In addition to my trusted sixth sense, I have learned not to believe in anything this world throws at me any longer. Who on earth would have thought the housewife would be on one arm of mine and the class rep would be on the other one?

You? Lies!

Also! Yes, Rachel may be warm and cuddly right now. She is cute and fluffy, but who can be sure she will not turn into a berserker state out of nowhere?

Not me! It has been only two days, for goodness' sake. To keep myself and others from harm, I must not let her new side get too far inside my head.

"Sorry, I can't return the gesture." My head leans to the left and the right, signaling my difficult situation to Kurokawa. Rachel suddenly pushes my arm inside her chest, even more, making it impossible to draw out.

With a faint smile, the bookworm says: "No worries, C. I understand your hardship."

Such a thoughtful girl...

"Hey, Kurokawa!" Blondy shouts merrily from my side. "How are you doing?"

That is a little sudden, I am not going to lie. Rachel makes me feel like they are on good terms with each other, yet I can be sure she was not like this yesterday. In fact, Rachel was never fond of anyone sharing the same sex as hers. She always considered them to be a threat to her love. That explains why she tried to kill them all in the previous iterations. The housewife was very territorial in a way...

Fortunately for me, or perhaps even for us, she does not seem to have that dark killer vibe to her aura right now. On the contrary, blondy is actually sending out a friendly atmosphere towards the bookworm without a doubt. After the weird event last night, she seems like a different person. Some may consider her change of personality a bit too abrupt. However, to me, this brings the housewife more good than bad. Rachel never had a female friend due to her...previous tendencies. Having someone who can understand her is indeed a preferable outcome. I would love to see Rachel start going out with her close friends, doing whatever she likes, and being a girl her age.

Images and scenarios appear inside my head. In my vision, I see a Rachel being conscious about her weight, grabbing an ice cream or sweets, a Rachel that skips school to drink at the local coffee shop. A reality where the housewife can laugh with her peers is something that I wholeheartedly wish to see.

There is another thing that I notice. How Rachel talks and acts has changed as if she has known me for so long. Still, at this point, I am more curious about how she will interact with others rather than myself. The rest can wait.

A little taken aback by Rachel's attitude, the bookworm explains: "...So so, I guess."

Is it just me, or is there a hint of sadness in Kurokawa's voice? What happened? Does it have any correlation to the new bandages on her face? Please do not be what I think it is...

"Good morning, Kurokawa." The grip on one of my hands tightens as the class rep coldly says her greetings.

Hearing that, I glance at Laura and quickly notice her sending Kurokawa a blank stare. There is no usual shine inside her beautiful brown eyes. Instead, as if they are covered by a thin veil of darkness. Even the reflection of me standing next to her is nowhere to be seen. Quite scary, honestly...

By the way, the way and the tone our class rep just said hi was probably a little too formal. Judging by her attitude, I am starting to get the feeling that something horrible happened between this girl and the bookworm. If Rachel's change is considered one to the more positive side of the spectrum, then Laura is the direct opposite.

What else could be the cause of such a shift? Whispering that, my mind instantly goes back to what I saw when I was asleep in the kitchen, where Laura did something unspeakable to the rest of the group. The nightmare in which her frail body holding Rachel's kitchen knife and the blood spilled on her is still fresh as new to me. And soon after, a shiver goes down my spine alongside goosebumps. Seeing Laura killing people was unfathomable to my feeble brain.

Probably just overthinking certain things. Alas, what the class rep said can only be interpreted as polite, and there is nothing wrong with a bit of formality.

"Good morning, class rep." The bookworm ignores Laura's chilling gaze and replies with a nod.

"Kurokawa, were you waiting for us?" We step forward, closing the distance.

"Yes, I was."

"For how long?" No matter day and age, we should not make people wait for us unless it is an unavoidable emergency. If the answer comes up to twenty minutes or more, I will have to apologize.

Kurokawa looks back at the school's clock tower and comes up with an answer: "Not very long. I'd say 10 minutes?"

Phew! My conscience is safe! Though, 10 minutes is still not short.

"I am glad to see you, Kurokawa," says blondy.

"I personally think she should have gotten to school sooner. There is no need to wait for us here since we will meet in class anyway." Laura has a different opinion.

Seeing that the two girls have a disagreement, I stay dead silent. For one, it is clear that they will sort it out themselves. Plus, they all have their own point of view regarding this matter. Everyone has their own logic, and I should not impede on that. The bookworm and Rachel could have wanted to come to class with us as friends, while Laura could have looked for peace and quiet with me. After all, there has been almost no moment that the class rep could spend time with me as a couple. As for me, well, my thought is she should not be here since Han has already left for class. But of course, my opinion does not matter in the slightest now. It has never mattered back in the past with the plot. Now, with the storyline in the state of constantly changing, I can forget about it.

"...I forgot, but were your wounds from last night healed already?" It looks like Kurokawa's arm is still covered by bandages from whatever freaky accident. "Do they still hurt?"

"They are fine." The bookworm brushes away my concern.

Sounds like they are not. From the amount of blood I saw on the floor last night, the wounds should not be taken lightly.

"Are you sure?" I ask again, not willing to let it go.

"I told you, they are fine. You don't need to worry about them anymore." Kurokawa waves off my concerns. To make it even more believable, she pushes onto her arm with the other hand without flinching. "See? I'm all good! No pain whatsoever!"

Hmm... I am not convinced. Although she presses the bandages with force, anyone could have been fooled by Kurokawa's actions except for me. I know how her pain tolerance is due to all she has been through. The bookworm is not just a masochist because of some basic third-grade plot. On second thought, I wish she had that kind of fetish because of those. Sadly, her hidden personality has a root that has grown for many years without support. If she truly believes that, she does not need to tell me. Either she does not want me to bother her anymore, or she is trying to hide. No matter what the truth is, I should respect her thoughts. It is simply the right thing to do. Further questioning will only lead to a more complicated situation.

"If you say so..."

The three of us walk towards the classroom, with me being the center. I feel somewhat awkward being in the middle of the three like this. Under the spotlight has never been my place.

"R-Rachel! I l-like you! No! I LOVE YOU! PLEASE BE MY GIRLFRIEND!!" A male voice shouts from behind all of us.

Oh shit, I forgot about this event...