Not just a regular fever…?
Miyuki could feel the worried looks of some of the girls in the room there with her. They were her friends, after all - it must’ve been dead obvious to them that something was wrong with her, no matter how much she tried to tell them otherwise. But to be called out by Tsubasa…
‘Was it really that bad?' Miyuki thought, worried for the first time. 'Does she know something about this fever that I don’t? Or have my countless pranks finally been caught out…?' Truthfully, Miyuki had stopped with her crazy pranks when she got into 0048, but she still didn’t want anyone finding out that she had chased out several teachers in her old school with her antics.
“O…Okay,” Miyuki said, following Tsubasa out the door. She could only see the manager’s back, and not her face, so she couldn’t tell whether she was angry or not. Her vision blurred over slightly, and she staggered. “S-sorry. Lost my balance for a second.” Breathing in deeply, she stood up straight and continued to follow the blonde, wondering what exactly she was in for.
Tsubasa looked over her shoulder and sighed slightly. Stepping back, she put her arm around the kenkyuusei’s shoulder. “We don’t have long, you know. These things all happen so quickly.”
She could see that the girl was uncomfortable and unsure, but Tsubasa didn’t want to say anything within earshot of anyone else. Soon, they were out of the building and heading toward a car. Shuffling the young girl in, she smiled, able to relax herself. After all, this was an event to be celebrated, not hushed.
“You don’t need to worry. Everything is going to be fast paced, but I’m sure you can keep up. For now, all you need to do is rest and listen carefully. Once we reach the theatre, we’ll be heading underground. Congratulations, Miyuki - not everyone succeeds this quickly.”
'Happen so quickly…?' Miyuki thought, wondering what Tsubasa was talking about. As they headed towards a car, Miyuki’s worries only grew even more - was she going to be kicked out of 0048? What had she done wrong? Suddenly, she felt like crying. 'This…This is so unfair! Am I really going to go, just like that? Are they chasing me out?' Her insecurities about being left alone resurfaced in her mind with maximum impact, hitting her like a truck.
And then when they were in the car, Tsubasa finally spoke.
Miyuki didn’t take in half the words - she was still in a bit of shock from the sudden influx of memories, all those years she had been alone. But her attention snapped back to the present when Tsubasa said that last line.
Congratulations, Miyuki - not everyone succeeds this quickly.
Miyuki blinked, and her mouth gaped open. It stayed open in a bit of a comical fashion, the scene made even weirder with her red face from the fever.
“Wha…Wha…” The words out of Miyuki’s mouth were incomprehensible as she tried to wrap her head around it.
'Succeed? Really? B…But who? Everyone tells me I act a little like Yuko…But I don’t want her to graduate! Sae? Sayaka? Th…They’re all names that are already taken! Who…Who could I possibly succ-?’
Then it hit her, and a tear slowly rolled down her cheek. Except it wasn’t one of sadness - it was one of pure joy.
“Jurina?” Miyuki asked softly, hoping and praying that she had finally earned that name. The name of the person who she had looked up to all these years, who she had idolised and tried to be like so much. That one word in a question summed up all of Miyuki’s emotions, and it was visible on her face.
(Source: jurinathesecond)
