Cheering Her Up

"Is everything alright, Sayori?"

A woeful sigh escaped her lips as she and her president helplessly gazed at their youngest club mate, curled on the floor beneath the window like a sleepy kitten by the closet at back of the classroom. Under normal circumstances, the girl could be found in her usual spot, quietly reading some manga; but something, and Sayori nor Monika could figure out what, had left Natsuki in a poor mood. In reality, such a state was not necessarily abnormal for Natsuki, someone whose mood is often sour or hostile; however, whatever it was that upset her today left her in a state far worse than anything Sayori or Monika had ever seen. Instead of growing defensive and volatile, she had become distant and depressed. Silenced and limp, she wasn't even reading her manga; the book was strewn lazily at her side. The poor girl was quite clearly depressed, but try as she might, Sayori couldn't get a single word out of her, and her attempts at helping her friend only seemed to make Natsuki feel worse.

"Hey, Natsuki, what's the matter?" and "Are you feeling okay?" were some of her initial questions after approaching her saddened friend. All she could get in response, however, were silent head movement and sad glances. That was alarming; whenever Natsuki was upset about something, she'd normally just demand the others to leave her alone; that would have been a far more reassuring reaction. But now she wasn't saying anything, and for the first time, Sayori didn't know how to handle it.

She had given up just as Monika walked into the classroom, and stood helpless and confused as Natsuki continued to sulk in the corner.

"No, not really," Sayori sighed in response to Monika's question. "Do you have any idea what's going on with Natsuki?"

"I'm sorry; I don't," Monika shrugged sadly.

Sayori sighed again as Monika placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. It didn't help much. She was completely clueless, and seeing Natsuki in such a hopeless state, sad and distant and alone, bearing a burden that no one else could understand, whatever it may be...

The situation hit far too close to home.

"Hey, have you seen or heard from Yuri, by any chance?" Monika asked, breaking the tense silence.

"Uh, no, I don't think so," Sayori answered, grabbing her chin in thought. "It's not like her to be so late."

"Where could she be?"

"I...don't know," Sayori mused, tears dotting the corners of her eyes as she turned towards Natsuki's corner. Her voice shuddered and broke as she added, "I don't seem to know anything today, do I?" and a gentle laugh that held no humor.

Recognizing that Sayori needed a distraction of some sort, Monika then replied with "I need to make a run to another classroom downstairs. Wanna come with?"

Sayori wrestled with this question for a moment. On one hand, she wanted to keep trying with Natsuki. She couldn't completely give up on her; that would make her feel horrible. On the other hand, she knew that she couldn't pressure her into letting her in; if she ended up hurting her by trying to press her too much, that would make her feel even worse.

And so she relented, accompanying Monika out of the classroom and down the hallway. They had made their way to the top of the staircase when Monika stopped and placed a hand on each of Sayori's shoulders.

"Hey..." she said softly. "Don't worry too much about it, okay?"

"How could you not be worried?" Sayori huffed. "How could you stand a-a-and watch that without being scared for her?"

"I am scared for her, in a way," Monika sighed, "but if she won't tell us what's wrong, there's nothing we can do except leave her alone."

"But what if it's something serious?" Sayori asked.