The apartment door opened, and Yuki stepped inside, her shoulders slumped, face pale and tight with exhaustion. Momo's hand stayed lightly on her back, steadying her as she walked forward.
Jennie, who had just returned from her own study session, froze at the doorway. Her eyes widened as she took in Yuki's expression. "Yuki… what happened? Was the exam… too hard?"
Yuki shook her head faintly, her voice barely above a whisper. "I… I want to rest, Jennie. You… talk with Momo, okay? I'm really tired…"
She moved slowly, each step heavy, dragging the weight of the day behind her. Momo let her go once she reached her room. Yuki sank onto the bed, burying her face briefly in the pillow, trembling.
Jennie glanced at Momo, worry etched across her face. They settled on the sofa, and Momo spoke quietly, recounting the events as gently as she could.
"She… she was completely perplexed in the exam hall. She stared at the first question like she couldn't remember anything… nothing came to her mind. I tried to help her, showing the answers… but she… she was on the verge of tears the whole time."
Momo's voice softened. "By the end, she couldn't hold it anymore. She ran to the bathroom and broke down crying. She told me… she just wanted me to take her home."
Jennie's hands clenched lightly in her lap. "Oh… Yuki…"
Momo nodded, her eyes filled with quiet concern. "She's exhausted, Jennie. Both physically and… mentally. She needs time to recover, not pressure."
Jennie let out a slow breath, leaning back against the sofa. "I understand… we'll let her rest. She just… needs someone to be there, that's all."
In Yuki's room, the faint rustle of blankets signaled her slow descent into sleep. Her eyes lingered on the ceiling for a while before finally closing. Her breathing evened, small and fragile, as the storm inside her finally eased enough for rest.
Jennie stood, glancing once at Yuki's sleeping form. She turned to Momo with a determined look. "For the next exam… you should prepare everything neatly and come to our apartment to teach Yuki. Step by step. Make it easier for her."
Momo smiled faintly, a quiet agreement in her eyes. "I'll do that. She won't have to go through this alone again."
With that, Momo stood, gave Jennie a small nod, and quietly left the apartment, leaving Jennie and Yuki alone in the peaceful stillness.
"The Study Struggle Chronicles"
Later that day, Yuki had fully committed to her new career: professional couch potato. She lay sprawled on the sofa like a human marshmallow, phone in one hand, snacks in the other, blankets tangled around her like a personal fort. Occasional dramatic gasps and soft giggles escaped her as she scrolled through a drama on her phone.
Jennie's jaw dropped. She froze mid-step, eyes wide. "Yuki… are you… auditioning for the Human Sloth Olympics or something?!"
Yuki blinked slowly, one eyebrow raised. "Hmm… maybe. I think I could win gold," she said, stretching so lazily it looked like a slow-motion cartoon.
Jennie's mouth opened and closed like a goldfish. "Gold… seriously? No textbooks? No notes? No brain activity at all?"
"Brain… hmm… that's a lot of work," Yuki murmured, tossing a half-eaten cookie into her mouth. "I'll… think about it later."
Jennie whipped out her phone, typing furiously. "Emergency. Momo, she declared war with studying. Just come fast and handle this."
Momo's reply popped up a second later: "Mid-afternoon. I'll handle the couch potato disaster. "
At mid-afternoon, a knock sounded at the door. Jennie practically sprinted to open it.
"Momo!" she gasped.
"Jennie," Momo said, stepping in like a general entering a battlefield, bag over one shoulder, a determined glint in her eye. "How bad is it?"
Jennie waved helplessly toward the living room. "It's… catastrophic. She's perfected sofa artistry and drama-binging. I'm… losing faith in humanity."
Momo smirked knowingly. "Perfect. My target is soft, distracted, and highly flammable… mentally speaking. Let's deploy Feynman Technique!"
"Yuki, time to study!" Momo called, striding toward the sofa.
Yuki peeked from under a blanket, hair messy, phone clutched like a lifeline. She lifted one arm slowly, as if waving from the depths of an abyss. "Study? Uh… I didn't study a word. You're gonna hate studying with me like this."
Momo crouched dramatically, pointing at her notebook like she was summoning magical powers. "Hate it? Don't worry! I've prepared EVERYTHING. Step by step. And teaching you? That's actually the best way for me to learn. Feynman technique, baby!" She winked and jazz-handed toward Yuki.
Yuki blinked. "Jazz hands… right. I'm terrified already…"
Jennie, hiding behind the sofa, snorted. "Oh no… she's bringing out the big guns."
Momo plopped down beside Yuki, opening her notebook with a flourish that could have knocked over a small child. "Step one: activate brain cells. Step two: panic. Step three: genius-level learning achieved."
Yuki flopped dramatically, pretending to faint. "Step two sounds… familiar…"
Momo giggled. "Exactly! And I'll be your guide. By the end, you'll be a genius. Or at least awake enough to answer a question without crying in despair."
Yuki squinted suspiciously. "Awake enough… that's your goal?"
Momo nodded solemnly, tapping the notebook like it was the source of all knowledge. "Yes. Snacks, notes, jokes… survival kit included. You're welcome."
Yuki rolled her eyes but couldn't hide the tiny, reluctant smile tugging at her lips. "Fine… but if I die from over-studying, it's on you."
Jennie peeked again, whispering to herself, "I think I just found the new comedy duo of the year."
Momo winked at Yuki once more. "Learning… commence!"
Yuki slouched on the sofa, blankets wrapped around her like a burrito of pure laziness. Momo spread her notes across the coffee table like a general preparing her battlefield. Jennie hovered nearby, half-exasperated, half-amused.
"Okay, Yuki," Momo said, standing and pointing at the first page of notes as if unveiling a treasure map. "We start small. Just a little review. Nothing scary. Promise."
Yuki yawned so wide it could have swallowed the coffee table. "Small? That sounds… suspiciously like actual work. I'm scared already."
Jennie muttered, "Suspiciously? She's about to invent a new dictionary for laziness."
Momo plopped down beside Yuki, dramatically flipping open her notebook. "Fear not! Today, you learn through the Feynman technique! You explain it, I correct it, we laugh at how much you forgot—and repeat!"
Yuki perked up slightly. "Explain it… I barely remember anything. Are you sure this isn't some kind of torture?"
"Oh, it's torture… but fun torture!" Momo replied with a flourish, tossing a pen in the air like a circus performer.
Yuki groaned and flopped backward dramatically. "Fun… torture… is that a thing? Do I get snacks for surviving?"
"Of course!" Momo said, winking. "Every correct answer earns you one snack. Every wrong answer… you owe me a dance!"
Jennie almost choked on her tea. "A dance?! You're making her do interpretive sofa dancing?"
"Exactly," Momo said proudly. "Motivation, Jennie. Pure motivation."
Yuki sat up, fake terror on full display. "Interpretive dance?! I… I may die. I'm not sure my limbs will forgive me."
"Too late!" Momo exclaimed, shoving a flashcard toward her. "What's the definition of—"
Yuki snatched it and read, squinting. "Ugh… extracurricular activities? Really? That's the first question?!"
"Step one: brain activation!" Momo shouted like a drill sergeant. "Step two: panic!"
Yuki flopped onto her back again. "Already on step two… step three, genius? Too far. I quit."
Jennie covered her mouth, stifling a laugh. "I think my Yuki just invented a new Olympic sport: dramatic sofa collapse."
Momo leaned over, pretending to take notes seriously. "Step three: genius. Step four: surviving Yuki's laziness. Step five: getting snacks."
Yuki cracked one eye open. "Step five sounds… reasonable."
The three of them erupted into laughter. Even Yuki, buried under blankets and half-hearted protests, couldn't help smiling.
"Alright," Momo said, raising a hand like a conductor. "Reset. Focus. You will survive this. And by the end… you might even remember something."
Yuki groaned dramatically, rolling her eyes so hard Jennie worried they'd get stuck. "Fine. But if I fall asleep mid-answer… consider it an official surrender."
Jennie grinned. "Best comedy hour ever. And somehow, studying too. I don't even know what's happening anymore."
Momo winked at Yuki. "Ready? Let's begin… Operation Brain Activation: Yuki Edition!"
Yuki groaned theatrically but slowly propped herself up. "Operation… whatever. As long as snacks are involved, I can survive."
e next one hour felt less like a study session and more like a circus directed by Momo herself.
Momo began gently — explaining formulas in a soft voice, waving her pen slowly like she was trying to hypnotize a baby panda.Yuki stared blankly, nodded twice, then — without shame — went right back to scrolling her phone.
Momo froze.Jennie froze.Only Yuki's thumb continued its majestic upward swipe.
So attempt two began.
Momo stood up dramatically, arms spread wide as if she was about to deliver a motivational TED Talk.
"Imagine the consumers… flowing like WATERFALLS!" she proclaimed.
Yuki blinked up at her, unimpressed. "Can the waterfall wait? Someone just posted cat videos."
Jennie quietly covered her mouth to hide a laugh.
Momo switched strategies like a panicked general mid-war.
She leaned in, lowering her voice to a dramatic whisper, "Yuki… every wrong answer will cost you one chocolate."
Yuki's phone fell onto the pillow instantly.
Jennie's eyebrows shot up. So chocolate is the weakness.
But five minutes later, Yuki's focus dissolved again — her gaze drifting toward the cozy blanket around her like it was calling her name in slow motion.
"No blanket seduction allowed!" Momo declared, yanking the corner like she was rescuing someone from a burning building.
Yuki blinked, as if genuinely confused."I was only hugging it spiritually…"
Momo groaned into a pillow. Jennie nearly choked trying not to laugh.
Still — somehow — Yuki managed to write a few lines of notes, her pen wandering across the page like a half-awake snail. She'd listen for thirty seconds, then dip into daydream; solve one equation, then stare at the ceiling like it held the answers to life.
Jennie whispered to Momo in shock,"It's like she's studying and vacationing at the same time."
Momo whispered back, "She's at 50% human, 50% blanket ghost."
Yuki, hearing them, gave a sleepy glare."I can hear you two… I'm right here."
"But are you mentally?" Jennie teased.
Yuki opened her mouth… but slowly sank into the pillow instead.Answer denied.
Momo opened her another notebook like she was unveiling the secrets of the universe.
"Accounting Principle One," she began, calm, professional, full teacher-mode.But Yuki was busy… poking a biscuit into her tea like it was a chemistry experiment.
Momo paused mid-sentence.
Jennie silently mouthed: She's really gone.
"Yuki."Momo tapped the textbook."Debit means RECEIVE. Credit means GIVE."
Yuki nodded. "Mm-hmm. Receive food. Give stress. I understand."
Momo's soul left her body.
Jennie's eyes widened so hard they could've qualified for Olympics.
Momo inhaled sharply, like a monk trying not to scream.Then continued…
"Okay. Let's balance this trial balance."
Yuki leaned forward for five seconds. She even wrote two beautiful lines.
Then—
She started doodling tiny cats beside "Assets = Liabilities + Equity."
Jennie slapped her forehead so loudly that even Yuki flinched.
Momo stared at the doodle.Then stared at Yuki.
"Huh… so now equity has whiskers?"
Jennie burst into laughter, fell sideways onto the couch clutching her stomach.
Yuki only smiled sheepishly,"It helps with memory… meow-based learning system."
Momo's expression could've been framed in a museum—a mix of shock, defeat, disbelief, and a tiny sprinkle of love for this chaotic friend.
Five more minutes passed.
Momo tried explaining Supply and Demand using snacks.
"If demand increases—" she raised a chocolate bar.
Yuki's eyes lit up like headlights.
"—and supply stays the same—" Momo hid the chocolate behind her back.
Yuki shot up. "Then I chase you until equilibrium happens."
Momo stared.
Jennie stared.
A full five-second silence.
Then both burst into wheezing laughter—Jennie almost dropping off the sofaMomo swinging a pillow at Yuki like a frustrated aunt.
"You're not supposed to THREATEN THE SUPPLY!"Momo cried dramatically.
Jennie wiped tears from her eyes, voice shaking with giggles,"Oh my God, I can't breathe— Commerce classes were not built for this level of insanity."
Yuki only blinked, "Economy runs on survival. I'm being realistic."
Momo nearly combusted.
Jennie leaned over and whispered,"She's unhinged. Completely."
Momo shock-whispered back,"She is 50% study, 50% chaos, 100% impossible."
Their expressions were wild—shocked eyebrows touching hairlines,mouths open like cartoon characters,hands thrown in the air like confused birds.
Momo finally snapped.Her face tightened, eyes narrowing like a general who'd lost too many soldiers to laziness.
"No, Yuki. I am done with this. I really need to be serious with you now,"she announced, slamming the textbook shut dramatically.
Yuki froze mid-biscuit-dip.
Jennie looked up slowly, sensing drama approaching.
Momo pointed at Yuki like she was issuing a final warning.
"New rule. You give one wrong answer—"she held up Yuki's favorite kombucha bottle like a hostage,"—and I drink this whole thing."
Yuki gasped like someone just declared a national emergency.
"No… not my kombucha… Momo please, anything but that—"
Momo raised an eyebrow."One question. Correct answer saves the kombucha. Wrong answer… you dance."
Yuki stared into the distance, brain cells jogging reluctantly.She thought for a long ten seconds.
Then sighed dramatically.
"Fine… I'll dance. Save my kombucha, I'll sacrifice my dignity."
Jennie spit her tea.
Momo blinked. "Wait— that wasn't even the question yet—"
But Yuki was already standing — or half-sliding off the sofa like a broken slinky.She began dancing without rhythm, logic, or gravitational accuracy.
Arms flapping like malfunctioning helicopter blades.Knees bending in angles that no medical professional would approve.She was still half-wrapped in her blanket, so it looked like a possessed burrito break-dancing.
Jennie exploded into laughter — real, violent, full-body laughter.She rolled sideways clutching her belly, tears leaking from her eyes.
"STOP— I CAN'T— SHE LOOKS LIKE A DANCING CATERPILLAR—"Jennie howled, kicking her feet.
Even Yuki started laughing mid-dance, nearly falling over.The blanket tightened around her like it was also trying not to laugh.
Momo just… stared.Her face blank. Brain empty. Soul disconnected.
Then, slowly — painfully — she said:
"Yahhhhhh… I don't ever want to be a teacher. NEVER."She made the saddest face anyone had ever seen.
Jennie collapsed harder.Yuki laughed until she snorted.
Momo threw her hands in the air dramatically.
"Enough comedy hour! Back to commerce!"she shouted — but smiling now.
And she grabbed Yuki by the wrist, dragging her back onto the sofa like a determined parent dragging their child to school.
Yuki still giggling.Jennie still dying in the background.Momo trying to look strict but failing because even she was laughing.
After laughing themselves half-dead, Momo reopened the book with trembling hands.
"Okay. Serious mode," she declared.
Yuki nodded firmly.Then immediately giggled again.
Momo squinted. "Yuki. Focus."Yuki inhaled deeply… exhaled… and then—
SWITCH.
Just like that, the lazy sloth vanished.Her eyes sharpened. Pen tapped rhythmically.She stared at the page like it owed her money.
Jennie's mouth dropped.
Momo froze mid-breath."…who pressed her upgrade button?"
Yuki began solving problems like a machine.No hesitation. No distraction.Just pure, deadly efficiency.
Debits. Credits. Ledgers. Trial balances.All flying through her pen like lightning.
Jennie whispered, shocked,"She just transformed from dancing burrito to commerce goddess…"
Momo nodded slowly, eyes wide,"I am terrified… and proud."
Twenty minutes in — pages filled.Forty minutes — half the syllabus done.One hour later —
Yuki leaned back, stretching lazily.
"Okay. I understand everything now."
Jennie and Momo just stared.Blank. Speechless. Souls evaporated.
Momo finally croaked,"You finished more work in one hour than the last two days combined."
Yuki shrugged, smiling innocently."I just needed warm-up chaos."
Jennie clapped once."That's it. We'll start every study session with a dance."
Momo's face turned pale instantly."No. Please. Not again."
After they closed the books, Yuki suddenly stood up.Both Momo and Jennie blinked at the miracle.
Jennie whispered dramatically,"She actually got up…? All this time we dragged her and she didn't move a muscle."
Momo nodded with pure disbelief,"Commerce couldn't wake her up, but post-study enlightenment did."
Yuki returned a moment later, hands behind her back.She stopped in front of Momo — cheeks slightly pink — and held out a small locket on a silver chain.
Momo froze.Jennie gasped loud enough to scare the ceiling fan."That's your favorite one!"
Yuki smiled softly."And with it goes my half kombucha. You earned it today."
Momo's jaw dropped, eyes shiny — half emotional, half stunned.Jennie just stared between them like she was watching a plot twist in a drama.
A small gift.A silly reward.But a huge meaning.
Jennie crossed her arms, cheeks puffed like a pouting squirrel."I also deserve something. I'm a little jealous as best friend."
Before she could say more, Yuki wrapped her arms around Jennie from behind — tight and dramatic.
"You already bagged me, rich lady," Yuki declared proudly."No one else can have me."
Jennie turned her head slowly, giving the most Shinchan-level unimpressed face ever."Do you have any idea how high-maintenance you are?"
Momo snorted so hard she nearly choked on her kombucha.Yuki only grinned wider, hugging Jennie tighter like a koala refusing to let go.
So Yuki regained her focus back
but can she return to her old exam brilliance…
or was this just the calm before another storm?