Beneath Their Masks Chapter 10 Is Up!

Beneath Their Masks Chapter 10 is Up!

It feels a little weird to put up a chapter taking place on Christmas in October but...here we are, I guess? This is kind of where things diverge from just being about Makoto and Ann, kind of like I said before. I hope it's not too distracting or out of character, but I do want to mix things up a bit. Let me know what you think!

Ann carefully freed herself from Makoto’s grasp as she slid out from beneath the covers, not so gracefully ending up on the floor in the process. Grabbing her phone, she picked herself up and quietly exited Makoto’s bedroom, silently closing the door behind her. When she turned, she didn’t expect to see anyone else up in the Niijima household. Messy red hair filled her view as she almost bumped into her, herself leaving the other Niijima sister’s bedroom.

“Um…”

The woman before her tensed, and she slowly turned around, but relaxed when she saw Ann.

“Oh, I thought you were Makoto for a second. Good morning.” The woman said quietly.

“You’re…Sae’s friend, right?” Ann asked, voice barely above a whisper.

“Why don’t we go out into the kitchen? Wouldn’t want to wake the Niijimas, right?” Sae’s friend(?) said.

Ann nodded and followed her out to the kitchen.

Beneath Their Masks Chapter 14 is Up!

It's at this point that I've reached the end of my pre-written chapters. I think the daily uploads may come to an end. I'll do my best to keep ahead of the curve, but I'm not gonna write any checks my stupid ass can't cash.

Makoto was lighting a candle in her room after the power had gone out…again. Taking a page from Ann’s book, she had dotted some candles around her room. She even made an attempt to pick candles with scents that wouldn’t necessarily clash with each other. Ann said she was planning on coming by at some point today, and Makoto considered it a shame that the power had gone out, but perhaps Ann being there to comfort her would be a good thing. She hadn’t had as extreme of a reaction as the last time the power went out, but she still felt uneasy. The only thing keeping her mind off it was Ann’s eventual arrival.

Makoto felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. She pulled it out and tapped on the recent text notification. It was from Ann.

Ann: did the power just go out at your place?

Makoto: It did. How did you know?

Ann: because im here

Makoto: Oh, I see. You will probably have to take the stairs, then.

Ann: see

Ann: i wish i could do that

Makoto: It’s not that bad of a climb, to be honest. We’re only on the 25th floor.

Ann: no

Ann: im in the elevator

Makoto: Oh.

Makoto: Oh!

Ann: yeah

Makoto: Did the elevator stop?

Ann: yeah

Ann: i hit the emergency button but nothing’s happening

Ann: makoto niijima, light of my life, would you please find some way to get me out of this thing?

Beneath Their Masks Chapter 13 is Up!

Oh yeah, it's actually going up at a time for people to read it during the day! Wow! Also please excuse the confusing chronology. When I eventually finish P5R, I wanna go through these chapters again and fix up any mistakes or anachronisms that don't fit the timeline. Can you tell that I have basically no idea what I'm doing?

"Sis?"

"Hm?"

Sae was reading a legal journal on the couch, legs crossed, with a steaming cup of coffee in her free hand. Makoto hadn't seen Sae relaxed in a long while, so she would have been surprised…if she wasn't so nervous.

"Go on. I'm right here." Ann whispered. She placed a hand on the small of Makoto's back as reassurance.

"Sis…Ann and I…you see…" Makoto sputtered.

Sae closed the journal with one hand, setting it down next to her. The act of giving her sister her full attention would have been comforting to Makoto…if she wasn't so nervous.

Right. Ripping off the bandaid. How fitting that things had come full circle from when Ann and Makoto first started dating.

"Ann and I are dating. She's my girlfriend." Makoto finally said.

However long it took for the words to reach Sae's ears and her reaction couldn't have been longer than a couple seconds, but to Makoto, it may as well have been hours of awkward silence.

Beneath Their Masks Chapter 7 is Up!

Something a bit lighter than the last chapter. There's one more chapter for the vacation "arc" and that should be coming soon.

“Just hand your clothes to me and I’ll hang them up out here.” Ann said, through the curtain.

“No peeking!” Makoto joked.

“Ah! You got me. Guess I’ll have to keep my eyes to myself this time.” Ann joked back.

Makoto looked at herself in the standing mirror inside the stall for a moment. She was wearing a short black leather jacket over a white t-shirt with black slacks. It was simple, elegant, and “totally Makoto’s style”, according to Ann (who had helped Makoto pick it out). Makoto wasn’t used to being this bold with her style, normally sticking to hand-me-downs from Sae’s wardrobe, but she was beginning to find her own look. Not that she didn’t like the way Sae dressed, but she tended to maintain a very prim and professional appearance, more suited to office meetings and business lunches.

She shedded her current attire, handing it to Ann through the curtain, before slipping on the cream-colored sundress. It was long and airy, and although it was simple, it did add an air of carefreeness and serenity.

“I’m done, Ann.” Makoto said, as she slid the curtain aside. “What do you…think?”

Ann was nowhere to be found. There was a small pile of Ann’s clothes on the couch, and, noticeably, Makoto’s were missing.

“...Ah.” Makoto said to herself. “I see. I suppose two can play at this game.”

Wrote another heavily depressing fic. I have one more in the idea stage as well. I SHOULD be writing my flufftober stuff but it's hard to get in that mindset right now, ya know? I get an idea for something depressing and then I write it all in one sitting. At least it's relatable. When I write fluff, I find my heart hurting because I'm pining for the feelings I'm writing about.

Man I'm cringe. Getting upset over this sort of thing.

My dad really liked sparkling water (until he drank so much he got kidney stones) so I grew to enjoy it from a young age. I enjoy the TV static water with someone shouting "lime" from the other room.

I think it's a mouth feel thing, idk. The carbonation makes it feel more refreshing and it's not as heavy on sweeteners as soda.

Guy about to invent sparkling water: water is so good but I wish that it tasted terrible and hated me