Sonata's Serenade Chapter 2

>You are anon.
>And you are struggling to keep your wits about you.
>This girl that you've been trying to finish your work with can barely grasp algebra, let alone physics equations.
>How the hell did she get into this class in the first place?
> It’s more than half an hour into the class and both of you have barely finished half the work while everyone else had finish 10 minutes ago and were idly chatting with their friends.
>The only reason you didn’t finish earlier is because you’ve been switching back and forth between explaining the equations and explaining math to her.
>Bluesy rests her head in her hands and pulls on her hair, sighing in frustration as she looks at the equations of rotation as if they were some sort of space age technology.
>After a minute or so she turns to you with a forlorn look in her eyes.
>"I'm so sorry; I just don't know how to do this. I don't know how to do any of this. I'm so useless…"
>As she mutters the last part of her apology, she drops her head on her desk, startling several surrounding people.
>You look at the sad sight that is before you, and your anger starts to slowly dissipate.
>You start to feel like a bit of a jerk. This girl is most likely vilified by the entire student, and quite possibly some of the teachers.
>And here you are treating her just like everyone else.
>You feel kind of sorry for her, but you're not sure what to do in this situation.
>You do the first thing that comes to your mind, although a little hesitantly.
>You reach out slowly and gently rub her shoulder, making her jump.
>While doing so, you manage to think of something to say, hopefully without making her angry.
>You don't have much experience with magical sea ponies, but you probably don't want to make one mad.
"Nobody is a complete master at physics after a week of classes. I'm sure you'll get it eventually.
>She looks up to you, wiping a tear away from her and sniffling.
>"But it's not just physics...I'm barely passing almost every single one of my classes...And no one wants to even walk in the same hallway as me, let alone speak to me..."
>Figuring she probably doesn't want to be asked anything about what happened last night; you try to move the conversation elsewhere.
"What if I helped you?"
>She looks at you like you just told her that you were pregnant.
>"F-for realzies?"
"Yeah sure. Like I said earlier, I was never really affected by anything you did so I don’t have a reason to hold a grudge against you."
>Just like earlier, her eyes lights up like a Christmas tree that belongs to a serial arsonist.
>She goes in for the hug again.
>It takes you by surprise yet again, but now you notice just how nice she smells.
>Like a mix of blueberries and lavender.
>When she breaks off the hug, she looks at you with a glint of hope in her eye, as well as another tear.
>"Thank you so much...You have no idea how much this means to me. Thank you...uhhhh..."
"Anon"
>"Thank you, Anon. I'm Sonata."
"My pleasure. Now we need to get this work done before class. Which one do you need my help understanding?"
>Looking back to the paper, she bashfully points out the problem about calculating velocity.
"Oh that's easy! What I like to do is take all the variables I'm given and....”

>15 minutes later the bell goes off, signaling the end of first period and the beginning of the study period.
>Luckily, you and Sonata finished the last problem a couple minutes ago and had just started to pack up.
>Heading out of class, you stop at the door and think to yourself which of your classes you want to go study for.
>While you're deciding, you don't notice Sonata walk up beside you and poke you.
>"Um...Anon?"
>Shaking yourself out of your thoughts, you look down to the aquamarine girl at your side.
"What's up Sonata?
>"I was, um, wondering if you wanted to go to the library with me and help me out with some of my classes."
>This takes you by surprise. You didn't think you were that good of a tutor back there.
>You occasionally stumbled over your words, and would have to go back over things again to make sure that you explained them right.
"Really?"
>"For realizes! You were so helpful back there; I actually somewhat understand some of the equations now! “
>She gently grabs a hold of your arm.
>"You were so helpful. I was hoping you could help me understand my other classes…"
>She looks up at you with the kind of look that could melt any heart.
>Hnnnnnnnnng those eyes.
>They’re a soft yet alluring shade of purple that you feel like you could get lost in.
>She gazes deep into your eyes as she awaits your answer.
"Ok I can help you out. I've pretty much finished all the work I needed to finish for my classes."
>She squees in delight and grabs your arm, pulling you in the direction of the library.
>After a brief moment of almost falling flat on your face, you manage to keep up with her.
>On the way there, you notice the hallway is eerily empty.
>It's highly unusual, considering that this should be a high traffic area, so to speak.
>What little students that actually are present in the hall are giving you and Sonata looks that could kill.
>You return a look of annoyance to some of them, and they instantly look away.
>You turn to see how Sonata is handling the treatment.
>She looks happy. She's either pretending not to notice, or she's genuinely happy that someone isn’t casting her out like a social pariah.
>You're not sure whether to feel sorry for her not being able to pick up on the negative emotions or happy for her being able to power through the hostility.
>"We're here Anon!"
"What? Huh? Oh, right. Yeah. Library. Right."
>Sonata lightly giggles at your awkward stammering, and pulls you into the library, past all the other tables and through some aisles.
>The aisle opens up into another study area, but it looks completely unoccupied.
>You and Sonata pick a table and sit.
"Right so, what would like to work on first?"
>"Weeeelllll I have some Algebra, I've got an English Assignment, and I also need to finish my Chemistry Lab"
"Why don't we work on the chemistry lab first, get the hardest out of the way, and then work our way towards English?"
>"Okie Dokie!"
>Sonata pulls out a black and white notebook and hands it to you.
>You open it to the most recent page and see that she's working on Acid-Base Titrations.
"Ah I know exactly how to do these. They seem difficult at first, but it's all about knowing the reaction equation. Here let me write it out for you..."
>Sonata watches you intently as you explain stoichiometry.
>While you are tutoring her, you notice that she's slowly shifting her chair closer to you.
>You assume to get a better view of what you're writing.
>Outside of the occasional question, she stays pretty much silent, focused solely on you while you continue to talk her through how to calculate the pH.
"Alright now take the concentration of H+ ions you just calculated"
>"Uh-huh"
"And then calculate the negative log of that…"
>"Right..."
"And the number you get should be the pH of the solution.
>"For realzies?!? That's it?"
"Yep. All you need to do is round those two numbers after the decimal and you should be good to go!"
>"Anon, you have no idea how much this means to me!"
"Well like I said, I'm glad to help."
>Her smile slowly disappears and turns into a look of sadness.
>"But, why are you doing this for me?"
"I told you why, you didn't really do any-"
>She furrows her brow in annoyance and crosses her arms.
>"No, I mean why would you do this for ME? You must have heard everything that the school has been saying about me."
>Tears start to run down her cheeks as she struggles to maintain her composure and not raise her voice.
>"I've be-been nothing but awful to everyone in this school. T-The only reason why I'm still here is because I helped Principal Celestia send Adagio and Aria away."
>Her mascara is starting to run. You can see it trailing with her tears as they fall onto her skirt.
>"Even when I was with those two they were always awful to me, calling me names and picking on me, just because I was always the ditzy one."
>She looks away from you.
>"They would always play jokes on me, and tell me I'm nothing without them."
>She turns back to you, tears freely flowing.
>Her voice is raised slightly “So why are you doing this for me?!? I have nothing! I AM NOTHING! I-"
"SONATA."
>She jumps at hearing you raise your voice in return.
> You turn your chair to face her and look her directly in the eyes.
>You sigh and think of the best way to put it without seeming like a complete and total loser.
>Which will probably be extremely difficult.
"I'm doing this because I don't want you to end up like me."
>Sonata sniffs and wipes her tears away on her arm.
>"*Sniff* W-what do you m-mean, Anon?"
"Well I know this may seem like quite a shock to you, but I'm not exactly the most popular person in school."
>You see a faint smile flash on her face and disappear quickly.
"Every day has kind of been the same routine for me. Come to classes, eat lunch, study, and go home. I've never really felt the need nor drive to make friends. Day in and day out, to everyone here, I'm just another face in the crowd."
>Sonata looks at you with a mixture of confusion, sadness, and empathy clear on her face. You turn away, trying to hold back the tears that are forming in your eyes.
"And for the longest time, I'd convinced myself that I was much happier that way. But deep down I guess I knew that I was only fooling myself."
>"Anon..."
>You feel Sonata gently place her hand on yours. You don't shy away from the contact. It’s comforting. But you need to let this out.
>You’ve held this in for way too long.
>You look up and try to make out Sonata's face through the tears forming in your eyes as years of solitude and pain come flooding back to you at once.
"I guess what I'm saying is I'm doing this because I believe someone like you deserves better than to be someone like me. No friends to have fun with, no one to enjoy each other’s company with..."
>Sonata just stares at you blankly, probably unsure of what to say.
>You wipe away your tears and try to regain your composure.
"Was that a more acceptable answer?"
>Still unsure of what to say, Sonata just nods.
"Good.*Sniff* We should probably get back to your work. Let's work on your algebra. Let me see what you've got."
>Sonata slowly hands you a worksheet, still looking intently at you.
>You slowly wave your hand in front of her face to bring her back to this reality.
>"Wha-huh?
"There's only 10 more minutes until study period is over. We can probably get most of this algebra work done. Do you need help with all of all of it?"
>"Y-yea.."
"Ok let's start with this one. Now a factorial is when you take this number and..."
>Just as you both finish the last question involving imaginary numbers; the bell sounds off, signaling the end of the study period.
"Look at that! We finished it just in time!"
>She doesn't seem too excited about it.
>You pack all your things into your bag.
>Sonata starts to do the same.
"What class do you have after this?"
>"Algebra..."
>Fuck.
>You had Japanese.
>Sonata was going to have to manage an entire class period on her own.
>You don't expect she was going to enjoy it, considering the treatment everyone else has been giving her recently.
>Weighing all of your options, you think up of a plan.
"Ok, how about this. Hand me your phone real quick."
>She rummages through her bag, pulls out a phone, and hands it to you.
>You quickly enter your number enter into her contacts and hand her phone back to her.
"If at any point you need me, just ask the teacher if you can use the restroom, and then text me. I'll find you as soon as I can."
>She looks to her phone, then to you, and then puts her phone back into her bag.
"I just hope that my teacher doesn't see me pull out my-OOF!"
>Sonata interrupts you by locking you into a full-on embrace.
>But this hug felt different.
>It felt like it was out of endearment and thankfulness rather than one of plain gratitude.
>You decide to return the hug, and wrap your arms around her, pulling her closer to you.
>Her ponytail bounces into your face as you do so, overwhelming your sense of smell with blueberries and lavender.
>She sighs contently and looks back up at you with those eyes of hers.
>HNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNGNGGGGGGGG
>Let me sing her the song of my erection.
>Wtf boner no.
>Breaking away from the hug, Sonata gathers up her work off the table and stuffs it into her bag.
>"Will I see you at lunch? I doubt I'll have anyone to sit with now..."
>You smile as you think of something even better to do.
"You wanna go out somewhere to eat?"
>Sonata looks at you with child-like amazement.
>"We can do that? Just leave school? For realzies?!?"
"Well we have to return before the lunch period ends, but basically, we can."
>CHS allowed students to leave during lunch, whether to return to their own homes get food or to go to one of the fast food places in the neighboring shopping plazas.
"Why don't you think of somew-"
>She cuts you off before you’re even halfway through your sentence.
>"TACO BELL!"
>That took you by surprise.
"Fair enough. Taco Bell it is."
>Sonata squees in delight and bounces up and down.
>While in her fit of excitement, you quickly glance at your watch and realize you and Sonata might be late to class.
"We should probably get going, Sonata. The bell's going to ring in a couple minutes."
>Sonata suddenly stops .
>"Omigosh! You're right! We gotta go!"
"Exit is this way."
>"Right!...Heya, Anon?"
"What's up, Sonata?"
>"Uuuum..."
>She looks down at her feet, and back up at you, while twirling the end of her ponytail.
>"Thanks again...You're a great b-...a great friend."
>Friend....
>For some reason, hearing someone call you that feels, strange.
>But a good kind of strange.
>Almost like an empty part of you was suddenly felt more.....complete.
>You smile and enjoy the feeling.
"Cmon let's get to class."
>You exit the library and enter into the massive throng of students that are marching to their next class
>You attempt to navigate the crowd, keeping Sonata close by so she doesn't get lost or hurt.
>You can't help but notice that more students are staring at both of you now.
>You see a wide range of looks, from disgust to fear, and even confusion.
>Pulling Sonata closer, you head towards the edge of the hallway, so as to avoid as many people as possible.
>You feel like some sort of bodyguard escorting someone who has a price on their head.
>Moments later, Sonata tugs on your shirt.
>"Here’s my class..."
>You stop and peek into the doorway.
>It looks like the entire class is present.
>Unsurprisingly, Sonata doesn't look like she wants to go into the classroom.
"Hey."
>She looks back up at you.
>"Hmm?"
"Just remember, if you need me at any point, shoot me a text."
>A look of confusion becomes apparent on her face.
>"Why would I SHOOT you a text? I thought weapons were a no-no at school..."
>Sigh.
"It's just a saying. I meant to say send me a text message if you need any help."
>"Ooooooooh okie dokie!"
"I need to head to class now, Sonata. You take care of yourself alright? I'll see you at lunch."
>She nods her head vigorously.
>"Mhmmm! I can't wait! See you then, Anon!~"
>She gives you a quick peck on the cheek and heads into her class, leaving you standing there dumbfounded.
>She had just given you your first kiss.
>Kind of. Not really.
>Realizing the time, you fast walk down the other end of the hallway to the language department.
>Why did it have to be so god damn far away, holy shit.
>You can't help but bring your hand to the place on your cheek that Sonata had pressed her lips to.
>It was still somewhat moist from the contact she had made.
>Or maybe that's your sweat, you fucking spaghettilord.
>You wipe your forehead and tuck the meatballs and penne back into your back pocket.
>Grinning from ear to ear, you recall that moment once more.
>Her lips felt velvety smooth as they made contact with your face.
>You make it into your class just as the bell rings and take off your shoes.
> Teacher required students to take off their shoes, to adhere to the fucking weeaboo culture.
>You only took Japanese because Spanish was too simple and French was full.
>You sit down at your desk in the middle of the room and start taking notes on the characters wrote onto the board.
>Class passes by uneventfully.
>Your phone doesn't go off, so you assume that Sonata is ok.
>Hopefully.
>You glance around to see if the teacher is watching you.
>She seems to be talking about something with some purple girl.
>Towel Sprinkle, you think.
>You quickly pull your phone out and see you received a text from who you believe to be Sonata.
>"anon~! cn u cme by my class n pick me up? i hve chemistry nxt :P"
>The spelling makes you cringe.
>You have to look over the text a couple more times to understand what she's asking.
>Wait, chemistry?
>You have chemistry next class as well.
>You quickly tap out a reply so the teacher doesn't find your phone and confiscate it.
"Would you happen to have Cheerilee as your teacher?"
>You hit send and stuff your phone back into your pocket quickly.
>Not even 10 seconds after you sent your reply, your pocket vibrates once more.
>You out your phone behind your backpack and check Sonata's reply.
>"OMG YES! DO U HVE HER 2? :D"
"Yea, I do. I'll stop by your classroom and we can walk together."
>Sonata replies with a single heart emoticon.
>Smiling at the situation, you tuck your phone back into your pocket and sling your backpack around your shoulders .
>Before everyone leaves, the teacher makes everyone bow to her and say "Thank you for teaching us".
>At least she's modest.
>After you shower your teacher in praise, the bell rings.
>You pull on your shoes and head on out into the throng of migrating students.
>While you’re walking down the hall, you scan the crowd for the telltale blue ponytail with the darker highlights.
>It isn't hard to spot her, people are walking as far away from her as possible.
>And she's standing there scanning the crowd, a slight look of desperation painted on her face.
>As soon as she catches sight of you, her face brightens up and she waves you over, jumping up and down to catch your attention.
>"ANON~ OVER HERE!"
>You can't help but smile at her innocent bubbliness.
"Hey Sonata, how was class?"
>Her smile fades a bit as she recalls class.
>"It was alright, I guess...Everyone who sat next to me moved their desks a little further away from me when I sat down..."
"That's it? That doesn't see-"
>"Someone also bumped into me when I was putting my things in my bag...they made me drop all of it on the ground...and I could hear people laughing at me when it happened."
>You feel anger start to well up inside you and you start to look around for who might have done it.
"Did you see who it was?"
>She looks down at her feet.
>"N-no… when I looked up, they had already gone out into the hall."
>You sigh as you look back to her and reach out to touch her shoulder, rubbing it slowly to try and reassure her.
"Look, the important thing is that you're ok."
>She sniffs and nods her head.
>"Yea...I suppose..."
"C'mon, we need to head to chemistry. At least I'll be there, right?"
>Her smile returns at the thought of not being targeted in another class, and she nods happily.
"Right! We should head to class right about now."
>"Oh yeah! Come on, anon~"
>Sonata grabs your arm once more and pulls you towards the general direction of your classroom.
>"Come on, silly! The sooner we get to class, the sooner it's over!"
>You decide not to burst her bubble by telling her that's not really how it works and just follow her to the science department.
>Fortunately the math department is literally right next to it.
>Both of you carefully navigate through the masses to the chemistry lab that was only a couple of doors down.
>Entering the classroom, you scan around for any empty stations.
>You spot one towards the front of the class and lead Sonata towards it, setting your bag in an area so that you wouldn't trip over it.
>Sonata gingerly places her bag next to yours and pulls out everything.
"Why don't you put your bag under my backpack, Sonata?"
>She looks up at you and raises her eyebrow.
>"Huh? Why?"
"I just don't think you should leave all your personal items out in the open, what with everyone's opinion of you right now."
>You say the last part in a more hushed tone, so as to not attract the attention of your peers.
>Some were already staring at you two, exchanging hushed whispers with their friends.
>Nodding in understanding, Sonata slides her bag under yours, concealing it from view.
>As she's doing so, the bell rings and the teacher announces that titrations was what you would be doing and that you would need a partner.
>Oh wow, how lucky for you.
>Fortunately for you and Sonata, you both had just gone over the process in study session.
>You look to her and flash a smile.
>She returns the gesture and adds a wink as she pulls on her goggles.
>Doing the same, you then turn towards Cheerilee as she explains the process and what to look for.
>It’s relatively easy enough, just needed to have a good eye and quick reflexes.
>You turn back to Sonata, who was also watching attentively.
"You get all that?"
>She nods.
>"We just need to wait for the thing in the bottle to turn a different color!"
>You don't think you would put it THAT simply, but that actually was what it essentially was.
"That's good. I'll go get the things we need. You pull out all the equipment."
>"Okay!"
>You snap on your goggles and head to the front of the class, where the Cheerilee was carefully handing out all the chemicals that were needed.
>As you reach for some, someone pushes past you and snags the bottles you were going for.
>You look to see who it is.
>You come face to face with someone who looks like what you would exactly think of when someone said "tool".
>Streaked blue hair, black blazer, and a guitar strapped to his back.
>What the fuck why did he have his guitar with him?
>You lock eyes with him and stare him down.
>He returns the stare and smirks smugly.
>"Oh, Did I take these from you? I'm so sorry."
>Something tells you that apology was about as genuine as a deed to the Brooklyn Bridge.
>You decide to not escalate this into a conflict with dangerous chemicals in the surroundings.
>You just turn away and grab another pair of bottles.
"Whatever. It's fine."
>As you walk away, you can hear Douche Nukem snickering to his friends.
>Sonata is looking at you with worry painted all over her face.
>"Anon, what happened? Are you okay?"
"Yea I'm fine, it was nothing."
>"Are you sure?"
"Let's just start on the experiment."
>Sonata just sighs dejectedly.
>"Alright..."
>As you prepare the chemicals, you shoot a glance back at Mr. Summers Eve.
>He and his little sidekicks are watching you two, whispering to each other and laughing.
>You'll probably need to keep a close on them.
>You're not sure why, but you have a really bad feeling about them.

END CHAPTER 2