One Year Later

2 | Regroup

Kyouko Kirigiri had expected to go to her room to study and go to bed shortly after her meeting with her father and Kiyotaka.

Instead, she got a summons via text message.

Donut Girl: Kyouko-chan! Come 2 my dorm room! It's URGENT!!

Kirigiri raised an eyebrow at the message. The expression remained as she typed out her response. It always took her longer to send text messages than she was willing to admit, largely because of her gloved hands.

Lady Sherlock: I can go there before I go to my own room and be there in a few minutes, but may I ask why?
Donut Girl: That's a surprise! We all have 2 discuss it in person!!

Kirigiri sighed and slid her phone into her pocket, resigning herself to asking in person. She wondered what her friend had meant by "all" as she made a turn for the designated meeting place.

She quickly found that, as the text message had implied, she wasn't the only one who had been invited. When she entered the unlocked dorm room, she saw six pairs of eyes focus on her. She gave an awkward bow in greeting.

"...Hello, everyone. I'm in the proper place, correct?"

"Of course," the meeting's host confirmed. She gestured at the low table. "Why don't you sit with Sakura and Naegi-kun?"

Kirigiri eyed the table. Sakura, who seemed to be finishing a cup of tea, gave her a friendly wave, and Naegi a lopsided and nervous-looking smile. The difference in their sizes was amusing, particularly because Naegi was noticeably small. She took a seat between them and nodded at them both.

It was Aoi Asahina's dorm room. The girl herself stood by her desk and rested some of her weight on it with her arm. Leon Kuwata, Yasuhiro Hagakure, and Sayaka Maizono sat near the edge of her bed. It was an assortment of people that seemed familiar somehow, that tugged on the strings of memory in Kirigiri's mind. She knew: she had overlooked something important.

"...So why are we all here? What did you want to discuss?"

Asahina made a disgusted sound and slapped a hand to her own forehead. Kirigiri heard Naegi, beside her, hiss through his teeth.

"We're not ALL here. We're still waiting on Fujisaki-chan! And are you saying you don't already know? Look around! Think about what time of year it is!"

Kirigiri still couldn't recall. It was making her anxious. She didn't normally forget things, and she always liked being one step ahead of everyone else in the room.

As if she'd heard her own name, Chihiro appeared in the doorway and didn't bother with greetings. She ran to the table and sat across from Naegi. Asahina nodded at her, but didn't let the intrusion stop her scolding.

"I can't believe you forgot! Weren't you the mastermind?!"

Asahina groaned as she frantically searched through her messy desk drawers for a calendar. As soon as she'd found it, she more or less threw it across the room to have it land on her table. Kirigiri flipped the calendar open and saw that Asahina was completely correct— Kirigiri had let an important date slip from her mind, and for that, she was rather ashamed.

"...That soon? ...Their anniversary is in a month?"

"More like two and a half weeks," Chihiro quietly corrected. Kirigiri nodded. She now understood why Asahina had gathered this particular group in her dorm room.

Nearly one year ago, everyone here had gotten involved in forcing both Kiyotaka and Mondo to confront their feelings for one another. Each and every person had contributed something. That said, Kirigiri still felt a bit of resentment towards Leon and Hagakure for ruining what should have been the perfect moment for their first kiss. Mondo had managed to rectify the situation later, but still.