“Sometimes, it feels like I don’t really have any options either.”
CHAIN-LINK EVENT
WARNING: this Event is part of an Event Chain! You've lost all control over your own actions and must now sit back while
someone else takes the wheel. Enjoy the ride while it lasts, and hope that you did things right before taking the plunge!
Imani calls out to the girls at the Christmas Party, announcing that this year's gift exchange is about to begin. Recognizing that around half the class isn't present, she reveals that she's prepared some complimentary presents in case they end up not getting one tonight. The presents themselves aren't special, due to Imani's low salary, so she also offers to hand out the list of who got who in case they wanna discuss it tomorrow. With that, she announces she'll be returning home for the night and leaves Karin in charge.
Throughout the room, the gift exchange begins:
Nodokareturns to her notebook to continue her investigation into Sensei's character. She talks to Otoha whilst doing so, mostly embarrassing her about their day trip after Nodoka's book signing, taking the opportunity to admonish her treatment of Rin. The conversation is cut short by Futaba joining the two to deliver Otoha's Christmas present. This surprises Otoha, having anticipated things to be much more tense between them following the break-up with Rin. Conversely, things remain tense between Nodoka and Futaba, the latter being driven off by invasive questioning.
Sana presents Miku with a video game console, shocking the latter girl into speechlessness. Sana reveals that, by mistake, her mother bought her the same console she had years prior. Instead of selling her old model, she decided to gift it to Miku so the two of them could play games together. In a conversational lull, the two girls point out how much they've both changed since the beginning of the school year, with Sana more outgoing and Miku more outwardly girlish. Despite enjoying the change, they both agree to avoid discussing the impetus.
Imani stands off to the side, staring down at her gift for Sensei, speaking aloud about how silly she feels for bringing it when he obviously wasn't going to show up. As she loudly bemoans her 'stupidity', Yasu walks up to her, cryptically claiming to have been drawn to Imani due to "darkness swallowing her up". The proceeding conversation is exhausting for Imani, mostly due to the strange and roundabout way Yasu speaks, but she's ultimately able to deduce that the girl merely wants to hear about what's troubling her. Imani avoids getting into details, but admits to wanting to see someone right now, feeling as though they're slipping further away – Yasu sympathizes.
Sensei, staring blankly up at his ceiling, vocally declares that Imani and Yasu's affection have decayed by ten points each.
