Our Reality (Doki Doki Literature Club!)

Alone in a Club Room

Another day of school has come and gone. Not too long ago, Shujinkou would have simply went straight home as soon as he heard the last bell ring. But now he sticks around the school to participate in the club he had recently joined; the school's very own Literature Club.

The young man walked out of his classroom and casually stuffed a heavily marked test paper into his bag.

"I am so late..." he winced.

Shujinkou was used to occasionally staying after class to converse with his teacher, but now that he's in a club, he was suddenly having trouble getting through these meetings. Suddenly, all he could think about during the meeting was how late he was going to be to the club.

The young man looked around, confirming that the halls were empty. With no witnesses to capture what he needed to do, Shujinkou dashed through the school, hoping he was not late enough to be called out on it.

He eventually made it to the classroom the Literature Club calls home, breathing heavily as he walked through the open door.

"I'm here," he weakly announced; though with his panting and heaving, he'd understand if no one heard him.

Finally catching his breath, Shujinkou soon realized there was no one around to hear him.

Maybe I'm not late?

He curiously looked around the room. For the short time he has been part of the club, he has always been the last one to arrive and figured that he would always be last. Possibly being first was very surreal to him.

Guess I should just wait.

Suddenly, he heard a loud rustling sound coming from the classroom storage closet and cautiously made his way there to investigate.

Opening the door wider than it already was, Shujinkou was surprised to find Natsuki holding a large crate in her hands whilst balancing herself on top of a wobbly stool. "Natsuki?"

"Huh?" Startled by her club mate's sudden appearance, the fragile balance Natsuki desperately tried to maintain was finally lost. Time seemed to slow to a crawl as she fell. With nothing to stop the inevitable, she closed her eyes and braced herself for the eventual collision with the cold, hard floor.

But that never came to pass. What she crashed into was much softer, and somewhat assuring. Natsuki opened her eyes, her cheeks glowing bright red the moment she discovered that she was in Shujinkou's arms.

"You okay?" he worriedly asked.

Natsuki quickly averted her gaze. "Y-Yeah... But this wouldn't have happened if you didn't surprise me like that.

She jumped on her feet in a huff and gently placed the crate she was holding on a nearby desk. Shujinkou anxiously scratched his right cheek. Was she mad that he tried to help him? That seemed to be the case to him.

"But... thanks anyway..." it was barely audible, by he definitely just heard Natsuki thank him.

A small smile crept onto Shujinkou's face as he stood up. He then looked over Natsuki's shoulder and was surprised to find out that the crate she got from the closet was filled with various manga.

"You read manga?" Shujinkou asked.

Upon hearing that question, Natsuki's entire body tensed up.

"M-Manga is literature!" she instinctively responded in a very defensive manner.

"So what kind do you read?" he queried.

Natsuki stared at Shujinkou with a dumbfounded look on her face. Shujinkou felt a chill go down his spine when her confused look quickly changed to a skeptical one.