4town DDLC Au Rewrite | Some changes DISCONTINUED

Part 24 Act 1

"...Okay, you three! We're all done sharing poems, right? Why don't we start figuring out—" Z interrupts Jesse. "Hold on a second! Is it just me, or did you say something strange just now?" "Eh...?" "Something did sound a bit unusual... That's right. You deviated from your usual catchphrase when addressing the club." "C-Catchphrase? I don't have a catchphrase..." "Jeez... Why is the mood so weird today? Look, even Tae isn't immune to it." "Uu... Stagnating air is common foreshadowing that something terrible is about to happen..." "In your books, maybe! Look, the only thing different is that Aaron isn't here." I clear things up for those two. "Ah... ...It seems you're right." "Sigh... Aaron always helps lighten the mood a little bit, doesn't he? It's almost like everyone's balance it thrown off a little when he's not around..." "Where the heck did he run off to, anyway? I thought he just went to pee." "Z, please show some decency..." "Oh, come on." "Ah, he actually wasn't feeling too well and went home early..." "Is that so...? I hope he's alright..." Tae says with a concerned face. "Seriously? Of all the times to not go home with him, you pick the time he's not feeling well? So much for you two being all lovey-dovey." "Ah—no! First of all, stop misunderstanding my friendship with Aaron! And second... He's kind of been avoiding me today, so I didn't want to force it..." "Hooooh?" "That curious expression coming from Tae, of all people??" "Calm down, guys...? I talked to him earlier, and everything is fine." "What did he say...?" "Anyway, we need to figure out the rest of the festival preparations, so... Let's decide what everyone will be doing this weekend." "I already know what I'm doing!" "That's right. Z will be making cupcakes. But we might need a lot of them, and different flavors... Can you handle that all by yourself, Z?" "Challenge accepted!" "And as for myself... I'm going to be printing and assembling all the poetry pamphlets. Aaron will be helping me design them. And as for Tae... ... Tae, you can... Ah... Um..." "...?" "Guys... Can you help me come up with something for Tae...?" "I... I'm useless..." "N-No! That's not it at all! You're the most talented person here, you know!" "..." "N-Now Z's pouting, too?" "Jeez, even I can tell now... I guess I never gave Aaron enough credit, but I can tell things are even harder on you when he's not around." "Ah... That may be the case... But if I can't also be a leader ok my own, then I won't grow as a person. So, Tae...! You have beautiful handwriting, you know? So you should make some banners and decorations to help set the atmosphere." "Atmosphere...? Um, about that... I... I love atmosphere!" Tae's expression suddenly changes as he stares at his desk in focus and starts nodding to himself. "Your mind is already racing, I see..." "That's great! You'll be a wonderful help, Tae. But anyway... That just leaves you, Robaire." "The one who is truly useless." "Ahaha! Don't say that. In fact... Both Z and Tae have some pretty heavy tasks to handle. It would probably go a long way to give one of them a hand. You could always help me out, as well... I would really appreciative of that." "Ah— That's..." Is Jesse suggesting I spend the weekend with one of my club members? How on Earth are they going to respondbto a suggestion like that...? "Ah... I...suppose I wouldn't mind a bit of help..." "Well, even if you don't know how to bake, there's always dirty work I could give to you. It's not like Jesse's going to give me a choice, and you shouldn't be sitting on your butt anyway..." Z tries to mumbl3 a bunch if excuses like that. "Um... If I recall, Z... You mentioned that you would like to handle the baking on your own. Z may not like to be around if you only make him out to be a nuisance... So therefore... He may be more suited to assisting with the decorations." "Hold on! I never said that! How hard could it be to make a few decorations, anyway? Sounds more like you're just making excuses for Robaire to—" "W-What are you saying?! It will be extremely meticulous work..." "And baking isn't? Just what do you think—" "Guys, guys! Let's settle down for a moment... In the end, I think it's up for Robaire to decide how he'd like to contribute. Besides... He hasn't really gotten the chance to spend any time with me yet, you know? So I'm sure he's interested in—" "You literally just said—" "I-I'm surprised as well!" "Sorry, sorry! I was just saying, though..." "Jeez... Can we just settle this already?" "Yeah... Robaire, you're okay with this, right? In the end, it's up to you." "Ah... Of course." "Hmph." "Very well..." "In that case..." Everyone looks straight at me. But of course, I'm going to go with—

Z.
Tae.>
Jesse.
Aaron...

"Well, I'll probably be most useful helping out Tae..." "M-Me...?" "Are you serious? Why would you—" "Z. I can already tell you're about to say something mean." "N-No... I was just saying— Ugh..." "So, you'll be helping Tae then, Robaire?" "Yeah. That's what I'm going to do." "I'm glad. I have a bad habit of Overthinking these sorts of things... So I think your assistance will be very useful." "That's great to hear. Z, will you be able to handle the baking yourself?" "I mean, yeah. I already said I would be fine." "Okay, okay..." Eveyone can tell that Z is feeling a little sour. "So...is that everything we needed to go over?" I asked Jesse. "Yeah, that should be about it. Are you guys excited?" "Well, 'excited' may not be the right word... But I suppose I'm looking forward to it a little bit." "Do you feel the same way, Robaire?" "Me? Ah, I guess you could say I'm interested to see how it'll turn out..." "That's good enough for me! What about you, Z?" "..." Tae yells a bit after he didn't respond. "Z!" "What?? Why is everyone yelling at me? I didn't even do anything...!" "N-No—! That's not what I meant at all! A-Ah..." Tae anxiously glances between everyone in the room. "I-I'm sorry for this! I don't really know why Robaire picked me... And also... Your cupcakes are the best cupcakes I've ever had! They go really well with my tea! And nothing that I do for the event will compare to that, so... So..." "I get it, I get it. I'm kinda surprised, though..." "W-Why?" "Um... Well, I'm the one acting immature... I already know that. But you're trying to cheer me up all of a sudden..." "I-I know I'm not very good at it... I'm sorry if I said something bad!" Z isn't the only one surprised. Jesse and I are also taken aback by Tae's words. When he already has trouble with words, trying to cheer someone up msut be far out of his comfort zone. But I begin to understand. Tae was trying to sound like Aaron. Even if it didn't work perfectly, I can tell that he tried to say something Aaron would say at a time like this. Because Aaron always helps everyone smile and feel good about themselves. "No... I kinda appreciated it. I'm sorry...for making a big deal out of nothing. But I'm going to say this." "...?" "You better beg that my cupcakes are going to be the best part of the whole event!" "Ah... ...I believe you." "Yeah! I hope to see everyone do their best. But with that... There's nothing more for today. So I guess it's time for us to head out." "Alright, let's get out of here, then. Everyone packs up their things. I start to follow Jesse and Z out the door as they chat between each other. "U-Um—!" "Eh?" I turn around. "Sorry... I realized that I don't have any way of contacting you this weekend..." "Oh, you're right. I can't believe that slipped my mind. Should I give you my phone number?" "I think...that would be the best way, yes." "Alright, then..." Tae and I exchange phone numbers. "Okay. Then, I'll be stopping by your house on Sunday..." "Eh? My house?" "I-Is that a problem...?" "No, not at all... I just thought that I would be the one going to your house, since I'm the one helping you." "Ah, I suppose that makes sense... But, if you don't mind... I think I would prefer going to your house." "Alright. In that case, it won't be a problem." I decide not to press Tae for a reason. It's not like it should matter much either way, so I'll just need to make sure my room is clean. "I hope I manage to make myself useful in some way... I'm not nearly as creative as you are." "Don't underestimate yourself, Robaire. I think that we'll make a very productive team. Even if you only chose me because you felt bad or something..." "Wait...! You don't actually think that, do you?" "... I...don't know. It's difficult to come up with any other reason you may have chosen me..." "You're forgetting the on reason with the most common sense! I chose to help you because that's what I want to do." "B-But..." Tae thinks to himself with an extremely tense expression. "Tae...you're overthinking this. You wanted me to point out when you're overthinking, right?" "Eh...? I...didn't realize..." "I'm telling you, I want to. That's all there is to it. Do you believe me?" "I..." Tae thinks really hard again. He looks straight into my eyes for a long while. "...I believe you!" As if it took him tremendous effort, Tae finally says that and relaxes his expression. "And I'm really looking forward to Sunday." "Yeah... I am too." After that exchange, I make my way out the door, and Tae follows.
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An:
(I have to end this chapter here since my back hurts way too much, and I need to sleep soon cause, timezones. Also my English teacher said my writing is very good! Anyway bye~)

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Words: 1727
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