“HIDEEEEKO, MY SWEET MAIDEEEEEN, COME’ERRRE! WHY WON’T YA ACCEPT MY LOOOOOoooOooOoo *burp* oh, ‘scuse me.”

“I don’t want to be the one that says ‘didn’t I tell you?’, but didn’t I tell you? Yuuri?”

“Haha, yes you did, Rin~ Come on, Yanus-sensei, let’s get you some water and please get away from Toyokawa-sensei.”

“LET GO OFF ME, DIRRRRE DEMONNnnn! I WILL NOT LEAVE MY BELOVED HIDEKO HERRRRE AloNEEEEEEEEEEEE!”

The dusk was approaching the second year student’s camp, slowly enveloping the whole river beachside with its dark veil. It still wasn’t pitch-black but I don’t think I’d get a clear picture of whatever the hell completely sh*tfaced Yanus-sesnei was doing if not for the campfire, gently lighting up its surroundings. He was screaming so loudly in his alcoholic/romantic rage that even me, sitting on the very edge of the camp could hear him as if he was yelling straight into my ear. Kaichou and Hiyaoka of the Student Council tried to bring him back to his senses, but failed as he lost his balance and fell into the shallow with a thunderous splash. 

“BRRRRRRRRRR MERRRE WATERRR CANNOT STOP DA COLOSSUS! HIDEKO! HERRRE I COME FORR YOUUUU!!!!” He was desperately trying to stand up, but gravity in combination with his not-anymore-functional sense of balance proved to be too strong of an opponent for him to deal with. Laughter of all the students and teachers gathered around made this scene resemble a ‘90’s sit-com. 

“Ara ara, poor Yanus-sensei… Rin, would you mind-”

“I refuse.”

“I-is that so? Well, it can’t be helped then. Let’s hand out the rest of the sparklers for now, he should be fine, right?”

“Absolutely, no need for you to worry about this drunken whale, Yuuri.”

As I observed the nonsense, sparks of delicate, yet lively light started appearing in the crowd of students in a rapid succession. They must’ve started handing out the sparklers as promised. We were also supposed to be having a mini firework show, but with Yanus-sensei in this state, I doubt we’ll be getting it anytime soon.

I sat silently by myself observing yet another fleeting screenshot of fruitful youth of a harem light novel’s NPCs. My friends from ‘another world’ were surprisingly getting along with people who I’m not even sure can be called ‘real’. Hayato was having a blast putting on some weird performance with his classmates, using lit sparklers like rapiers and improvising a bizarrely coherent fight choreography. Somewhere to my left, Mai was getting swarmed by the girls from our class that wanted her to join their dance party, or whatever it was they were doing. I couldn’t see her clearly, but I’m sure she’s red all over her face and is desperately looking for a way out. And when it comes to Saki…

“There you go!”

“Hm? Oh, it’s you, thanks.” Saki appeared in front of me out of nowhere with a bright smile on her face and even brighter sparklers in both her hands. She offered me one of them.

“Would you mind if I sat next to you?”

“...No, no, not at all.” I stutter at her question to which the answer seemed obvious to me. I move slightly to make enough space on the blanket for Saki to sit. We were both silent for a while as our eyes were captivated by the vigorously glowing sparklers. This scene surely did remind me of my own field trip back at high school. I remember sitting in the back of the camp with no one to talk to, with a single, burned out sparkler swaying back and forth in the rhythm of a distant music being played in the ‘cool kids’ crowd. I felt like a loser at first, but then I came to the conclusion that I’ve grown so used to being the outsider I started enjoying it. Plus I had all my waifus. That might sound silly, thinking of it from the present day perspective, but I felt there was someone there for me. However now that there is an actual, real someone sitting beside me, I’ve realized that I was bluntly lying to myself and eventually started believing my own deceits. Don’t get me wrong, I still love my waifus. But as simple math proves: if 2D > 3D, then 2D+3D > 2D. As long as both of those are positive values at least. I call that the ‘Chikakane theorem’. Though I suppose I’d need to make it a ‘Sekuhara theorem’ now…

I take my eyes off the sparkler for a second and look at Saki instead. Her expression was stiff and somewhat troubled. Most likely similar to mine until now.

“How do you like the trip so far?” I ask.

“...” Not answering, she turned her sights to me without moving a muscle of her face. Her green eyes reflecting the fleeting sparks were clear as a mirror, but dim as thick fog. “Ah, sorry, I got caught up in my thoughts. The trip, right? I mean, it’s much better than my last one, haha. Everybody seems to be having a great time and all…” She livened briefly, only to sulk yet again. “What about you?”

“Not bad. Though to be honest the amount of people here is somewhat suffocating. Even if they’re NPCs. Oh, and I got a burned sausage, which wasn’t great.” 

“You should’ve told me, I’d give you mine instead!” 

“Nah, no need to. We were lucky we even got one ourselves. Did you see how many of them Mai ate? That’s honestly unsettling.” I saw her go and get at least 3 extra servings.

“Haha, that’s true! Speaking of which, look, they’re dragging her inside the circle now.”

“She doesn’t even resist anymore. Poor thing.” Mai was forced to take part in the mini dance party of our classmates in the end. She must’ve agreed only because she was fed up with being coaxed.

“Seems like she’s somewhat enjoying herself though!” Saki noticed Mai movements getting less and less restrained.

“Huh, that’s unexpected.” I think I even caught a glimpse of her laughing. But it’s getting darker with each second, so I might be imagining things.

“BBBRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRAKAMONO GA! POLISH SAUSAGE IS DA BEST IN DE WORRRRRLD!!! HOW DARRRRE YOU ASK ME FORRR DAT YANKEE KRRRRRAP???” A scream loud enough to scare Shrek out of his swamp echoed around the riverside. 

“Wh-what’s going on?” Saki panicked a bit.

“Ah, don’t worry. It’s just Yanus-sensei being Yanus-sensei. Someone must’ve asked him for a hotdog and he took it personally. 

“Haha...”

“...”

“...I’m sorry about today’s morning…” Saki said gloomily, out of nowhere. Both our sparklers burnt out in that instant, leaving us lost amongst the darkness.

“What do you mean?”

“I… kind of got a bit irritated… Sorry for running away.” She was looking down at her feet while blushing, like a kid admitting to have broken a precious piece of pottery.

“Oh, that. No need to, I can be pretty dense at times, I should be the one to apologize, really.” 

“No! It was my fault! I should’ve known there won’t be mixed rooms…But to be completely honest…” She struggled to continue, but did so eventually. “I want to go home. And I don’t mean the one here. I want to go back to our world.”

“Saki…” Her statement caught me off guard, in spite of it being an entirely reasonable complaint one could have in this situation.

“I know it’s a world of your fantasies, but… I just can’t stand pretending to only be your ‘childhood friend’ all the time. I mean, we haven’t done anything couple-like since we got here. I know I’m sounding desperate, but please understand.” It’s been a while since Saki was this straightforward and honest about something. “I just… I just want to spend more time with you, that’s all. I want to feel like your girlfriend. And…”

“Hm?” She paused all of a sudden which made me curious. Then, she straightened her back abruptly, which made her twintails sway charmingly.

“And also, there’s Mai-san…” Oh, so that’s what’s really going on, I get it now. “I mean, I like her, don’t get me wrong! And I feel sad seeing her distancing herself from everyone. It’s just that I get a sense that you pay more attention to her than me.” Saki’s monologue leaves me speechless for a while. But I answer confidently after a short while.

“See? I was right. I am the one that should be apologizing.”

“Huh?” Confusion flooded her face as her eyes sparkled faintly.

“I got too caught up in this world and forgot about what I have achieved in the previous one. I’m sorry, Saki. I don’t have anything to say in my defense. I screwed up. Will you forgive me? I promise I’ll pay more attention to you from now on. Oh, and what would you say for a little date after we’re done with the trip? We can go visit that Japanese sweets store you were excited about.” 

“You remembered…”

“Of course I did. You’re always so cute when you get fired up about things, I couldn’t just forget it just like that. Oh, and since we’re at it, I also remember about the guitar.”

“Guitar…?” She didn’t want to show it, but I could tell she enjoyed being called ‘cute’ a lot.

“Haha, so you’re the one that forgot!” I tease her slightly.

“S-shut up, you!” She pushed me with her shoulder lightly.

“You mentioned you love it when guys sing songs for their significant others in movies and TV shows, so I told you I’d learn to play the guitar and write a song for you.” This was just after we got together so I wanted to impress her, but I can’t just go back on my word now.

“You did say that actually… I didn’t think you’d really do it, thank you!” Her face brightened up again.

“No need to thank me. Thank the poor bastard that’ll have to somehow teach me how to play.” My hand-eye coordination is not the best, which might prove to be a tad of a nuisance when it comes to playing an instrument, surprisingly.

“Don’t say that, you can do it!” 

“Haha, we’ll see. I’ll do my best though.”

“Well then, I’ll be waiting!” A full smile was shining bright on Saki’s face amidst the now completely pitch-black surroundings. I grabbed her hand that was resting on the blanket loosely. She answered by tightening her own grip in my fingers and laid her head on my shoulder, as we watched the vigorous crowd of students talk and play along the river beach carefreely. 

…

“Oh? Kanazaki-kaichou and Hiyaoka-san aren’t here yet?” Saki opened the paper door of her ryokan room carefully and went in after realizing others were yet to come back after a long day of hiking and partying. She was followed by Mai, who has been assigned the same room. Hiro and Hayato detached from their group a second ago to join the infamous Harem Club members in their room and somehow live through the night to tell the tale.

After entering the room, both Saki and Mai headed for their backpacks to reorganize and pack all the cosmetics they had brought with themselves to the bathroom before. The ryokan room they were staying in was in every way a stereotypical anime school trip one, with paper walls and the floor neatly lined with tatami mats. A hint of humidity in the warm air made the whole place smell of the summer forest, which only added to the wabi-sabi aesthetics of the humble inside.

“I have to say, I didn’t expect you to be this good at ping pong, Mai-san!” Saki tried to encourage Mai to take part in the conversation by referring to the ping pong game played by the two of them around 30 minutes ago. As Mai had pointed out before to Hiro, a ping pong game is a must have during the trip.

“I-I’m not that good…” Troubled Mai would most likely prefer for the still to continue, but answered hesitantly in the end.

“No need to be so humble! You were so fired up! And those curve balls were impossible to hit!”

“Thanks I guess…” Mai kept on rummaging through her backpack, even though she was long done with re-packing.

“Did you play ping pong in your previous life?”

“...” She finally closed her backpack and sat down on the tatami mat with a big sigh. “Is this some kind of an interrogation? Did Hiro ask you to investigate me or something?

“Eh? No, I was just curious… Sorry, if you don’t want to talk about it, it’s okay.” Saki backed off. Mai looked at her in suspicion, but after letting out another sigh, she said:

“I played some in elementary school… I, uh, might’ve won a tournament or two, but that’s not a big deal…”

“It absolutely is a big deal! Congratulations! I knew those weren’t rookie’s serves.” Mai flustered at Saki’s compliment

“... And what about you? You played some ping pong before?”

“No, not really. Only from time to time during PE classes… Why?”

“You put up a great fight for a beginner. I only won 4-2. Honestly, I didn’t expect you to be any good. You don’t seem like an athletic type.” Their game was a close one for a semi-pro vs a rookie. And long. Hiro and Hayato, who were excited about the match-up at first placing bets and commenting on each play, were falling asleep by the fifth set.

“Haha...” Saki laughed in a troubled manner, not sure how she’s supposed to react to that half praise/half insult. “Maybe I got motivated because Hiro was looking…Or something, haha.”

“You like that guy? Seriously?” Mai’s face showed a mix of admiration and disgust regarding Saki’s taste.

“Well… I mean… He’s my boyfriend, so…”

“Shut up, no way! Like, really?! I’d never tell. I mean I figured you guys must’ve known each other before this whole Isekai thing happened, but even so…”

“I-is that so…?” Saki felt those words hurting her somewhere deep inside. So others also noticed that they don’t act like they were in a relationship? It was both a success and a failure.

“That Hayato is also your guys’ friend, right?”

“Yes, he’s Hiro’s actual childhood friend… Oh, but he’s a boy, just so you know.”

“I figured.” Mai said bluntly. Instead of answering, Saki smiled and a small laugh escaped her closed mouth. “Wh-what?” Mai felt a surge of embarrassment, even though she didn’t do anything particularly dodgy.

“Sorry! I just thought to myself that you can actually talk normally!”

“Wh-what’s that supposed to mean?!”

“I was starting to get worried about you, Mai-san.”

“Huh? Why? What’s going on?” She was confused as ever at Saki’s unexpected declaration.

“Since we met, you’ve been very…careful?” Saki made sure to choose her words meticulously, as she knew very well Mai didn’t need a lot to fly off the handle. “It felt like you didn’t want to interact with any of us at first. That’s why I was worried. I thought that maybe you’re depressed because of this situation… or something. Sorry, I didn’t mean to sound nosey or anything!” Saki was starting to get nervous after noticing Mai’s expression becoming less and less friendly with each word she spoke. “A-anyway! I’m glad we can talk with each other normally!”

“...” One more big sigh, accompanied by an over the top downward head swing from Mai. “Listen. Thank you for worrying, but that’s none of your business. I didn’t come here because I wanted to, nor did I choose to be spending time with you all. But I realize we have no other choice if we want to get out of this shithole. I’d much rather just stay in my room away from all the people and do nothin-

“Wanna play Old maid?” Saki cut in, completely out of nowhere, with a smile bright as the full moon outside the window. She was holding an unpacked, presumably freshly bought deck of playing cards.
“...” Mai clearly wanted to comment on Saki forcing a sudden change of topic, but the cat got her tongue, as she reddened. It was partially because she found herself cornered and thus too embarrassed to raise voice, and partially because she felt like she’d said too much already. “W-well… I guess we have to… It’s usually in the script, so…”

“Fufu, you don’t need to act so cold, Mai-san~” Saki’s remark only worsened Mai's mental state. “Okay, could you help me with the shuffling?”

The room filled with the sound of the cards being shuffled and then dealt, before it became completely quiet again. The silence was only briefly disrupted from time to time by the cards being drawn and played. Even though the atmosphere was so dense you could cut it with this story’s edge, Saki’s smile didn’t diminish at all. Mai, on the other hand, was almost unnaturally focused on the game, most likely as an act of self-defense aimed to hide her unease. It was now sinking into her mind that she got carried away and monologue’d her way through the conversation with Saki, opening up a bit more than she felt comfortable with. She isn’t a person who finds it easy to make new friends, after all, but for some reason she just let a solid portion of what she’s been bottling up for the last couple weeks escape her mouth.

“Mai-san?” Saki broke the silence after a few rounds of the game had already been played.

“W-what?” She said, still slightly flustered.

“Say… what do you think about Hiro?”

“Huh? Why?” Her emotional state made a 180 upon hearing the name, and she was now mildly annoyed instead of nervous.

“Ah, no, I just, uh, I mean… You don’t seem like you took to him yet, so I wondered…”

“...” Mai played her next move in silence. She drew the Old Maid, meaning Saki won this game too. She then put her cards down. “Isn’t it obvious? I can’t stand this douche. He thinks he’s so ‘cool and mature’. I’m kinda sick of him.” She said, as blunt as ever.

“I-is that so…?”

“You’re surprised? He’s been a dick all this time. Fuck him. Literally. He’s your boyfriend, take care of him, or something, I dunno.” Mai went on the offensive.

“A-ah, so-sorry, but we…”

“Huh? Can’t hear you, speak up!” 

“We… haven’t done…it… yet, so-”

“That explains a lot.”

“Wh-what is that supposed to mean?!” 

“Nothing, don’t worry about it. But props to you for still being with that bastard.” Mai ended off with another half compliment half diss. This time however, Saki smiled genuinely while whispering to herself.

“Is that so? So she doesn’t like him.. Fufufu.”

“H-hey, what are you mumbling?”  

“Hihihi~”

“Seriously, what’s with that creepy smile?!” 

“No, no, it’s nothing~ I just… There!”

“WOAA-” A soft and anticlimactically quiet sound of impact echoed throughout the small room. Some white feathers came flying in all directions soon after.

“What are you doing?!” Mai shouted after being knocked-out onto the floor with a well-timed pillow bash.

“That’s another thing on Hiro’s list, right?~” Saki answered playfully and stood up next to Mai with her fluffy weapon held tight in one hand.

“...”

“He? Mai-san, everything alright? Don’t tell me, did I hit you too hard? I’m sorry, so sorry!”

“Next time, you try to hit me…”

“E?”

“DON’T YOU DARE HOLDING BACK!!!” Mai shouted as she grabbed another pillow from the tatami mat and counter-attacked with all she got. 

“H-hey, don’t leash out on me out of nowhere, it’s not fair!”

“Says the one who just did the same!”

“Come on, bring it on then!” A full on, cliche Pillow Fight In a Hotel Room Between The Girls During a School Trip™ had commenced. None of the contestants felt like going easy on the other. A rain of feathers and a serenade of fluffy punches and light footwork created a spectacle of the fruitful feminine youth… I know, it sounded like it was a foreplay to a yuri scene. Sorry to burst your dream bubble.

The vicious duel was brought to a halt at last, but not because one of the fighters surrendered. The room door opened with a squeak that was virtually impossible to be heard among the heat of the battle. Two towel-wrapped characters stood on the threshold and observed the havoc. Shortly after, they themselves grabbed a pillow each and tossed them forward with strength hard to imagine to have come from high school girls.

“AAA-”

“Wha-!”

A perfect double-headshot. Sakura Mikazuki and Mai Gotou - RETIRE!

“Ara ara, nice shot, Rin.”

“And vice-versa, Yuuri.”

“Oh, welcome back!” Saki greeted the two remaining roommates from the floor.

“ ‘Welcome back’ my ass, come get some if you’re so brave!” Mai did the same, although in her own, quite a unique fashion.

“What would you say, Rin?” Yuuri turned to her assistant.

“All in.”

“Ara ara, maa maa, what a beautiful display of youthful spirit~ Count me in!”

And thus, a feather and sugar-coated bloodbath unfolded. But in this battle, there shall be no victors, nor losers. For the only real purpose of this rampage… was to punch the living sh*t out of each other just for the hell of it.