Komi Komi Literature Club!

Chapter 9: The Incident

"Is that so? Well I'm glad that things are going well for you in the Literature Club!" Tadano said after reading Komi's recounting of everything that had happened last week on poem day.

"Yes, I'm very happy too." Komi concurred.

"I hope it continues to be beneficial for you. And hey, maybe I can read some of your poems sometime. Um! O-Only if you're comfortable, of course!" He quickly said, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment. Komi blushed and looked down for a moment before turning to the next page of her notebook.

"I actually have a request, if it isn't too much trouble."

"Hmm? A request? What is it, Komi?" Tadano asked curiously, turning his shoulders a little to give her his full attention.

"Could you accompany me to one of my club meetings? I think you would really like it." Komi offered, hiding her face behind her notebook. Her eyes peeked over the top of the paper so that she could see Tadano make his decision.

"Eh? Grk!" Tadano clutched his chest and turned away for a few moments, startling Komi. However, he quickly turned back around to answer her, "I'm sorry, but I can't."

"Hmm?!" Komi was surprised by Tadano's rejection.

"It's not that I don't want to! But I'm the class committee president, unfortunately. I have too many things that I need to keep up with. I don't really have time to go to the club with you." Tadano explained, waving his hands in front of him.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" Komi asked. However, Tadano shook his head.

"No no no, don't worry about me! I'll take care of it, and it's not like I'm doing it alone. Naijimi helps me out...sometimes. And for the time being, Onemine has been helping me again." He explained.

"Mm," Komi hummed for a moment and managed a nod before writing: "Well, I hope one day you can come."

"Maybe, you never know. I hope you continue to enjoy yourself in the meantime!" Tadano said with a polite smile. Komi nodded in return, although she was a little disappointed.

After Tadano's rejection, she tried asking her other friends if they would like to go with her. Their reasons were all wildly different, but their answers were all the same:

"Eh? F-Forgive me, but I have my own books to attend to in the Forbidden Library of Torlaten. However, should you wish to read up on the dark arts, I will be happy to lend one of my volumes to you, my dear friend and rival." Nakanaka offered.

"Eh? Y-Y-You want to take your doggie to the Literature Club?! Oh that sounds wonderful! B-B-But I actually have to be...somewhere...at 5...please forgive me!" Agari begged.

"Eh? Literature Club? That sounds neat and all, but I can't. Sorry, Komi, but I already agreed to help Tadano with his committee work. He's still got a pretty bad backlog. But hey, when things lighten up, I'll get back to ya." Onemine said with a smile.

"You want me to come to the Literature Club? Nah, I'll pass. No offense, but that sounds pretty boring," Naijimi spoke honestly, laughing afterwards. "Plus I'm already quadruple-booked for the next 4 months."

Komi sighed in defeat; not a single one of her friends wanted to accompany her to a Literature Club meeting. She knew that any of them would enjoy it if they just gave it a chance, but convincing them of that was turning out to be harder than she thought.

The only person she knew would say yes was Yamai...for some reason, that seemed like a bad idea.

Reluctantly, Komi finally dropped the idea. She was disappointed, yes, but she had no choice but to carry on anyways. Now that the school day had drawn to a close, it was time for her to attend the next Literature Club meeting – the first one of this new school week.

Komi let out a sigh as she made her way upstairs to the second floor of the school. She held her notebook in her hands down at her waist and walked towards the door. As she got closer, she glanced around, expecting to see one of the other club members approaching.

But the halls were empty.

As Komi walked up to the door, she heard an odd noise: the sound of a girl giggling. Komi stopped for a second to listen. Was that...Monika? Yes, it was certainly her. It didn't sound like she was alone though.

Komi slowly stepped into the door frame. She peeked inside, and that's when she saw it – something that she wasn't supposed to see.

"Heheh, you're silly. We gotta stop, the others will be here any minute." Monika said, talking to a boy with curly hair. Komi couldn't see his face because Monika had her hand on his cheek. They were standing in the back corner of the room, hidden where someone would have to walk inside to even see them.

"Yeah yeah, you're right...buuut..." The boy chuckled and leaned in, giving Monika a kiss which she returned without hesitation. Komi's eyes grew even wider – she was utterly shocked to see Monika acting this way.

"Mmm okay okay. That's enough, mister." Monika teased him, smiling up at him and resting her other hand on his chest. Her boyfriend didn't say anything; he just chuckled again. He leaned in one more time and kissed her on the cheek.

Komi caught one last glimpse of Monika closing her eyes and smiling blissfully before she quickly pulled back and retreated around the corner. She shook nervously and covered her face with her hands; her cheeks were bright red and hot with embarrassment.

Did she really just witness that?! The club president, Monika, sneaking around with a secret boyfriend?! How shocking! How inappropriate! How, dare she say it, lewd!

What was she supposed to do with this information? Should she tell Monika? How could she do that? What would she say? Was it even something she should say? It would be extremely embarrassing for all parties involved if she brought it up, especially for herself and Monika.

There was no way she could go in there now, not after seeing what she'd just seen. She wouldn't be able to get her mind off of it, not for a while. Finally, Komi stood up and rushed back down the stairs. She retreated out of the school and went home.

All things considered, she decided it would be best to respectfully avoid coming to this particular meeting...