BLOOM | NI-KI - Chapter 4: Chapter 4
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THE AUTUMN LEAVES RUSTLED IN THE WIND, the cool air blowing against Saori's wavy onyx locks as she trudged to school the following morning. Her mind ran a thousand miles a minute, vivid depictions of the nauseating dream she had last night.
She was sure of it now, that in some freakish supernatural way, she had just discovered a large piece of the puzzle—the puzzle she knew to be Ni-ki.
It was far too early for her to be heading to school, but the girl needed a distraction. She needed a way to get the image of the young boy falling to his demise out of her brain. So she did the only thing she knew how to do best: she studied.
Her fingers combed through the pages of her textbook, eyes straining in the dim lighting of the abandoned classroom. The desks were organized neatly, not a single item out of place. It was almost uncanny.
Saori rest her chin in the palm of her hand, an exasperated sigh leaving her mouth. No matter how hard she tried to focus in on the jumbled mess of numbers on the page, all she saw was the boy, his hand reached out, his face screwed in agony.
She clamped her eyes shut, her breathing growing rapid. She needed to get out of here, she needed to find Ni-ki, needed to find out who the boy in her dream was. But just as she opened her eyes, ready to dart out of the classroom, she saw it.
Ni-ki's desk.
It appeared just like everyone else's neat, tidy. But she didn't miss it, didn't miss the corner of what looked like some sort of book peeking out of his desk. She approached it, her steps cautious, as if she could sense Ni-ki looming in the background, waiting to catch her in the act.
She reached her hand out, blindly pulling the book out, her eyes widening when she realized what it was.
His sketchbook.
The same sketchbook she had seen him attempt to hide when she met him on the roof the other day. She glanced around the classroom, slipping it under her arm, before briskly walking back to her desk.
The sun had begun to rise now, and she knew her classmates could come in any minute. She didn't have time.
Her fingers trembled as she flipped through the pages. Small doodles of chrome hearts, mundane items, even the occasional blurb of words. But that wasn't all.
As she neared the end of the book, her heart stopped, blood running completely cold. There he was. The same boy she had seen in her dreams, short black hair and all.
The images were harsh, but beautiful—a boy standing at a window, another falling. A face that resembled that of Jay's. Her hands trembled uncontrollably as she fished her phone out, slightly cursing under her breath as she struggled to open the camera app.
Then, the creak of the door. Someone was entering the room. She quickly slid the book into her bag, fumbling her phone back into her blazer pocket.
"Saori?"
She exhaled, body fully relaxing at the sight of a confused looking Sakura, slowly entering the classroom.
"What are you doing here so early?"
She forced a smile, laughing under her breath. "Just wanted to get ahead with studying." Sakura stared at her for a moment, before nodding slowly. Something was off. Her answer hadn't been genuine.
Saori swallowed, clearing her throat before turning back to the workbook that sat on her desk. She had all the pieces. Now she just had to figure out how they fit together.
𓇢𓆸
"Saori!" Sakura called during break, waving her hand at the taller girl. Saori looked up, tilting her head in confusion. "Yeah?"
"Come to the bathroom with me?" Saori nodded, slipping her phone into her blazer pocket before following the girl. The two walked side by side, neither saying a word. Saori stared straight ahead, her mind visualizing the haunting images of the sketchbook.
Sakura glanced at her, chewing on her lip in thought. It was clear the girl was hiding something, she just didn't know what.
As the two entered the bathroom, they were greeted by a group of girls, all huddled around the mirror, makeup bags in hand. "Saori!" They greeted, turning to wave at her.
Saori waved back, glancing at Sakura in confusion. She wondered why the girls had only greeted her, and not Sakura.
"I'll be quick." Sakura whispered to Saori before turning to enter a stall. She simply nodded, waiting by the far side near the mirror.
"Yah, did you hear about Ni-ki?" One of the girls suddenly asked as she applied her lipstick. "No, what about him?" Another questioned, inspecting her face in the mirror.
"He's gone psycho again. When is he gonna get over what happened?" The girl rolled her eyes, tucking the lipstick in her pocket.
"No, seriously. He just needs to accept that it was an accident. He did it to himself."
The other girls hummed in agreement, clicking their tongues in disappointment.
"Wait, sorry, what are you guys talking about?" Saori couldn't stop herself from interjecting. The girls froze, slowly turning to face her, incredulous looks on their faces.
"Sorry, I just transferred this semester—"
"Ohhh, right, she wasn't here last year!" One girl suddenly nodded in understanding. The others looked at her sympathetically.
"Basically, last year Ni-ki's best friend had a fall," She whispered the last part, the other girls humming in confirmation.
"Was it Sunoo?" She clarified, watching their faces morph into that of bewilderment.
"How'd you know that?"
"Ah, I've just heard some things." She awkwardly chuckled, avoiding eye contact. They nodded, before continuing.
"I mean, it's obvious it was suicide, but Ni-ki thinks otherwise. Sunoo was always troubled." The other girls muttered in agreement.
"You know, some people say Ni-ki was there." One girl suddenly whispered, leaning in toward Saori. The other girls gasped, nudging the girl to quiet down.
"I heard Sunoo was trying to confess something before it happened." Saori furrowed her brows in confusion. The stories surrounding the event all seemed so different, she didn't know what to believe.
"Personally, I think Jay is covering for him." The other girls nodded.
"He has to be. All I know is he was there. Jay has something to do with it—"
"Don't you guys have anything better to do than gossip?" Sakura snapped, exiting the stall. Her eyes narrowed at the girls, lips curled into a sneer.
"Yah, who are you talking to like that–"
"Stop spreading baseless rumors, and get back to class." Sakura said, her voice laced with condemnation. The girls scoffed, one girl shoving her way forward to face Sakura.
"You think you're any better than us? Just last year you were gossiping with us. You haven't changed, Sakura."
Sakura froze, her fists clenching and unclenching beside her. The girls sneered at her, turning to wave goodbye to Saori, before exiting the bathroom.
"Are you okay?" Saori questioned, walking up to the shorter girl. Sakura shrugged her hands off, pointing a finger at her. "Stop trying to get involved with Ni-ki. I mean it."
And with that, she left, the bathroom door slamming shut behind her.
Bloom.
She was sure of it now, that in some freakish supernatural way, she had just discovered a large piece of the puzzle—the puzzle she knew to be Ni-ki.
It was far too early for her to be heading to school, but the girl needed a distraction. She needed a way to get the image of the young boy falling to his demise out of her brain. So she did the only thing she knew how to do best: she studied.
Her fingers combed through the pages of her textbook, eyes straining in the dim lighting of the abandoned classroom. The desks were organized neatly, not a single item out of place. It was almost uncanny.
Saori rest her chin in the palm of her hand, an exasperated sigh leaving her mouth. No matter how hard she tried to focus in on the jumbled mess of numbers on the page, all she saw was the boy, his hand reached out, his face screwed in agony.
She clamped her eyes shut, her breathing growing rapid. She needed to get out of here, she needed to find Ni-ki, needed to find out who the boy in her dream was. But just as she opened her eyes, ready to dart out of the classroom, she saw it.
Ni-ki's desk.
It appeared just like everyone else's neat, tidy. But she didn't miss it, didn't miss the corner of what looked like some sort of book peeking out of his desk. She approached it, her steps cautious, as if she could sense Ni-ki looming in the background, waiting to catch her in the act.
She reached her hand out, blindly pulling the book out, her eyes widening when she realized what it was.
His sketchbook.
The same sketchbook she had seen him attempt to hide when she met him on the roof the other day. She glanced around the classroom, slipping it under her arm, before briskly walking back to her desk.
The sun had begun to rise now, and she knew her classmates could come in any minute. She didn't have time.
Her fingers trembled as she flipped through the pages. Small doodles of chrome hearts, mundane items, even the occasional blurb of words. But that wasn't all.
As she neared the end of the book, her heart stopped, blood running completely cold. There he was. The same boy she had seen in her dreams, short black hair and all.
The images were harsh, but beautiful—a boy standing at a window, another falling. A face that resembled that of Jay's. Her hands trembled uncontrollably as she fished her phone out, slightly cursing under her breath as she struggled to open the camera app.
Then, the creak of the door. Someone was entering the room. She quickly slid the book into her bag, fumbling her phone back into her blazer pocket.
"Saori?"
She exhaled, body fully relaxing at the sight of a confused looking Sakura, slowly entering the classroom.
"What are you doing here so early?"
She forced a smile, laughing under her breath. "Just wanted to get ahead with studying." Sakura stared at her for a moment, before nodding slowly. Something was off. Her answer hadn't been genuine.
Saori swallowed, clearing her throat before turning back to the workbook that sat on her desk. She had all the pieces. Now she just had to figure out how they fit together.
𓇢𓆸
"Saori!" Sakura called during break, waving her hand at the taller girl. Saori looked up, tilting her head in confusion. "Yeah?"
"Come to the bathroom with me?" Saori nodded, slipping her phone into her blazer pocket before following the girl. The two walked side by side, neither saying a word. Saori stared straight ahead, her mind visualizing the haunting images of the sketchbook.
Sakura glanced at her, chewing on her lip in thought. It was clear the girl was hiding something, she just didn't know what.
As the two entered the bathroom, they were greeted by a group of girls, all huddled around the mirror, makeup bags in hand. "Saori!" They greeted, turning to wave at her.
Saori waved back, glancing at Sakura in confusion. She wondered why the girls had only greeted her, and not Sakura.
"I'll be quick." Sakura whispered to Saori before turning to enter a stall. She simply nodded, waiting by the far side near the mirror.
"Yah, did you hear about Ni-ki?" One of the girls suddenly asked as she applied her lipstick. "No, what about him?" Another questioned, inspecting her face in the mirror.
"He's gone psycho again. When is he gonna get over what happened?" The girl rolled her eyes, tucking the lipstick in her pocket.
"No, seriously. He just needs to accept that it was an accident. He did it to himself."
The other girls hummed in agreement, clicking their tongues in disappointment.
"Wait, sorry, what are you guys talking about?" Saori couldn't stop herself from interjecting. The girls froze, slowly turning to face her, incredulous looks on their faces.
"Sorry, I just transferred this semester—"
"Ohhh, right, she wasn't here last year!" One girl suddenly nodded in understanding. The others looked at her sympathetically.
"Basically, last year Ni-ki's best friend had a fall," She whispered the last part, the other girls humming in confirmation.
"Was it Sunoo?" She clarified, watching their faces morph into that of bewilderment.
"How'd you know that?"
"Ah, I've just heard some things." She awkwardly chuckled, avoiding eye contact. They nodded, before continuing.
"I mean, it's obvious it was suicide, but Ni-ki thinks otherwise. Sunoo was always troubled." The other girls muttered in agreement.
"You know, some people say Ni-ki was there." One girl suddenly whispered, leaning in toward Saori. The other girls gasped, nudging the girl to quiet down.
"I heard Sunoo was trying to confess something before it happened." Saori furrowed her brows in confusion. The stories surrounding the event all seemed so different, she didn't know what to believe.
"Personally, I think Jay is covering for him." The other girls nodded.
"He has to be. All I know is he was there. Jay has something to do with it—"
"Don't you guys have anything better to do than gossip?" Sakura snapped, exiting the stall. Her eyes narrowed at the girls, lips curled into a sneer.
"Yah, who are you talking to like that–"
"Stop spreading baseless rumors, and get back to class." Sakura said, her voice laced with condemnation. The girls scoffed, one girl shoving her way forward to face Sakura.
"You think you're any better than us? Just last year you were gossiping with us. You haven't changed, Sakura."
Sakura froze, her fists clenching and unclenching beside her. The girls sneered at her, turning to wave goodbye to Saori, before exiting the bathroom.
"Are you okay?" Saori questioned, walking up to the shorter girl. Sakura shrugged her hands off, pointing a finger at her. "Stop trying to get involved with Ni-ki. I mean it."
And with that, she left, the bathroom door slamming shut behind her.
Bloom.
End of BLOOM | NI-KI Chapter 4. Continue reading Chapter 5 or return to BLOOM | NI-KI book page.