Sitting near the end of the hallway was a girl sloppily wearing some slacks and sweater. She had shoulder-length brown hair and was intently looking down at a smartphone. 

Nara Takagi.

“Hm? Oh, Arata,” Nara casually said while looking up.

She was sitting next to Katsumi's front door with a cellphone in one hand and a loosely held cigarette in the other. To accompany this, she had been building a collection of empty bottles around her.

After a moment of looking at Mayumi, she noticed who was next to her. A grin grew across her face. 

“Oh, and Katsumi too! I see you’ve met yer’ new neighbor!”

Mayumi turned to Katsumi, giving him a look of disappointment, which made him quickly break eye contact with her.

“Nara, why aren’t you hanging out inside the apartment?”

“I ran back to my place to grab a few more beers, an’ when I got back the door was locked.”

“You didn’t have the spare key?”

“Nah, forgot it inside.”

Katsumi paused for a moment before becoming aware that she dressed a bit nicer than usual. 

“I thought you didn’t want to come to class, what’s with the clothes?”

“Ya’ see, I was considerin’ comin’ today, but I decided that it was simply a waste of time.”

“H-hold on. You comment on her being a bit more dressed up? Making it sound like something extraordinary, but not the fact that she is smoking cigarettes and drinking outside of your apartment?”

Katsumi stared blankly at Mayumi. “Well—“ Just as he began making an excuse, he was cut off.

“And what’s all of this about a spare key?”

“Oh, you see—“ For the second time, Mayumi cut one of Katsumi’s excuses short. This time with just a look.

Mayumi's eyes were wide open as she stared into Katsumi’s.

After a moment, Mayumi broke this contact and angrily walked over to Nara, where she plucked the cigarette out of her mouth and threw it onto the ground. Flattening it beneath the sole of her shoe.

“C’mon! I wasn’t finished with that,” Nara said in a joking tone. All the while, she was reaching for her pocket.

“It’s bad enough that you hang around Takagi. But at least you don’t do anything like I've heard.“ She turned towards Katsumi. 

The instant she did, Nara pulled out the carton and started lighting another cigarette with a mischievous grin on her face.

“Right, Murakami?”

What the hell is this? She’s so fired up. I never thought she’d be able to show this much emotion…. Well, it’s like she’s fired up but still has that same vacant look on her face… I don’t get her at all.

“Murakami?”

“Well, how do I put this—”

Mayumi’s eyes opened a bit wider.

Nara, now standing, took the cigarette out of her mouth with two fingers and put an arm around Mayumi’s shoulder—blowing the smoke in front of her face. This caused Mayumi to let out a few little coughs while trying to disperse the smoke.

“Ya’ see, Katsumi here—”

Mayumi pulled away from Nara and glared at her. “I don’t want to hear it.”

“Some mornings' when he wakes up he doesn’t even remember that I came over ‘cause of how much he drank. He still always acts surprised when he wakes up and sees me on his couch.”

Even though Mayumi’s look didn’t seem to have any emotion in it, Katsumi felt as if she was freezing the hallway around her.

“And I’m surprised he hasn’t tried anythin’ on me yet, know what I mean Arata?” She said this with that same mischievous grin plastered on her face.

“Nara, don’t say dumbass things like that.”

“Haha, calm down Katsumi, I was just jokin’ around. Anyways, toss me yer’ keys so I can get in.”

“Oh yeah, sure.” Katsumi reached into his pocket, and tossed his keys to Nara. However, they never reached their intended target.

“Hey—”

“I don’t want to hear that from you.” For a second time, Mayumi plucked the cigarette from Nara’s mouth and threw it to the ground. Once again squishing it with the sole of her shoe.

Nara quickly reached into her pocket, bringing out the entire carton of cigarettes. She waved in front of Mayumi’s face.

“Murakami, she’s a terrible influence, you need to get your priorities straight.”

“Whad-ya’ mean I’m a terrible influence? I’ve only been helpin’ him relax and enjoy himself a little bit. He used to be so up-tight.”

“Maybe that version of him was better.”

This comment from Mayumi prompted a back-and-forth between the two girls. While this was going on, Katsumi moved over to where Nara had been sitting and started collecting the various bottles she left lying around.

“He used to be an upstanding student, the top of his class. And now he has difficulty getting to school on time. I don’t think you’re helping him in any way."

Nara stood there, a grin on her face, with what Mayumi was saying going in one ear and out the other.

“Hey now… Nara has helped me qui—“ For the third time, Mayumi had cut off Katsumi.

“No. She hasn’t helped you with anything.”

Katsumi broke eye contact with her, opting to look at the ground next to her.

“You know what, tomorrow morning I’m going to wake you up to make sure you get to class on time. It’s about time you stop with all of this. I better not find you in his apartment tomorrow morning.”

Katsumi was shocked by what he heard coming from the quiet-looking girl’s mouth. He’d never seen nor expected her to be able to blow up like that. Mayumi’s normally white, soft-looking face had now turned to a shade of light red. 

He was at a loss for words.

Nara smiled and retorted, “Alright alright, calm down.”

With this, she put the carton of cigarettes and her smartphone in her pocket. Nara threw her hands up behind her head while she casually made her way down the hallway. “Well, guess I’ll catch ya’ later, Katsumi. Looks like your mom is mad at you.” 

“She isn—“

Nara disappeared into the elevator.

It was now just a confused Katsumi and a Mayumi with a very menacing aura about her.

“…”

“I expect to see you here first thing tomorrow morning, got it?”

What’s up with her? She didn’t react as intensely when I made remarks... But once Nara got involved she got all worked up. I think she’s too worried about me…

Mayumi stepped on Katsumi’s foot quite hard because he was being unresponsive and staring at the elevator.

“Ow! Sorry, sorry”

“It’s for your own good.”

“Okay I get it… but why do you even care?”

This question took Mayumi by surprise. For a moment it seemed that she began to say something, but cut herself off. 

“Alright… tomorrow morning, right? I’ll be here.”

I’m never going to understand her. There’s no reason for her to suddenly care about how I live out of the blue like that... Besides, how I’m living isn’t that bad, I can fix myself up whenever I choose to…

Katsumi opened the door to his apartment and stood in the doorway. 

Mayumi, who was about to shut her door, poked her head out and added one more time, “Don’t forget.”