Hotaru: Hey everyone!

Etsuko: How’s everyone doing this Monday?

Natsuhiko: Haiii! Welcome to another episode of…

All three: The After-School Podcast!

Natsuhiko: I’m Natsuhiko, the president of the After-School Podcast!

Hotaru: I’m Hotaru, the founder and vice president!

Etsuko: And I’m Etsuko, the secretary of the After-School Podcast! Right now, it’s 4:08 pm on Monday, May 7th.

Hotaru: This episode… We’re gonna be talking about the drawing of all three of us that I made!

Natsuhiko: I can’t wait to see it!

Etsuko: Me neither!

Hotaru: It’ll be the best drawing you’ve ever seen!

*Hotaru rifles around in his backpack, and pulls out a piece of paper, which you can hear it fluttering*

Hotaru: Here it is!

Natsuhiko: *in awe* Whoa!! It looks so good!!

Hotaru: *proudly* Right?

Etsuko: Whoa! It’s amazing!!

Etsuko: I really really like it! You made us all look just so cute!

Natsuhiko: We’re all chibi!

Hotaru: It’s all of us inside the classroom we use for our podcasting, with the three desks from the back row pushed together. We’re all sitting at the desks, with my phone in the middle of us, and we’re all talking and having fun like always!

Etsuko: Clearly, we could all see that. You didn’t have to explain to us what it looks like.

Hotaru: Yeah, but I was describing it to the people listening to the podcast!

Natsuhiko: Hey, Etsuko, by the way, I just remembered…

Etsuko: Yeah?

Natsuhiko: How’re the transcripts of the podcast coming along?

Etsuko: They’re going great! I already converted the first two episodes into transcripts. It’s a little hard writing it in the third person...

Hotaru: Which two episodes are you talking about? The trial run episode we had, and the second-first episode?

Etsuko: Yeah. Those are the two. I’m gonna work on them in twos, so after this episode I’m gonna replay the episode 2 and this one, and listen to the posted recordings and then the rest follows.

Natsuhiko: Sounds great! That’s a really great strategy. Nice job, Etsuko!

Etsuko: *friendly chuckle* I’m just trying my best to contribute to the podcast.

Hotaru: Oh yeah, speaking of the podcast…

Natsuhiko: What is it?

Hotaru: How do we plan on improving the podcast and stuff like that? Like, what are we investing in?

Etsuko: You’re asking us that? Aren’t you the one who created the podcast?

Hotaru: Yeah, but *addressing Etsuko* you’re the responsible straight man, and *addressing Natsuhiko* you’re the president!

Natsuhiko: Well, I think we should probably learn to be more prepared and plan ahead, and soon, if we’re serious about the After-School Podcast, we can start investing in more podcasting equipment, and not be recording live on Hotaru’s phone anymore.

Etsuko: That sounds like a great idea!

Natsuhiko: Yeah. We should talk more about this over the weekend, though. *writes in notebook* I wrote a reminder for us to discuss that. For now, why don’t we get started on our topics for the day?

Etsuko: Alrighty then!

Natsuhiko: Let me check what topics we have set up for the day. *starts flipping through the notebook pages*

Hotaru: Hey Etsuko, how’s your day been so far?

Etsuko: It’s been good. How about yours?

Hotaru: Well, things have been going pretty chill, so that’s a plus.

Etsuko: Nice. Honestly, same here.

Natsuhiko: Okay, I found the page!

Hotaru: Why do we just pick random pages and use them? Why don’t we just start from the first beginning page?

Natsuhiko: Beats me.

Hotaru: So, Prez, what’s on today’s schedule?

Natsuhiko: Okay, well, last time, didn’t we take suggestions from the comments people left?

Hotaru: I think so. Yeah! It was my idea!

Etsuko: Yeah, it was.

Natsuhiko: Well, we wrote down the names of the people who made the comments, and what their comments said.

Etsuko: Alright, who’s up first?

Natsuhiko: This one is by User8265, and it says, ‘I’m curious; how did you all meet?’.

Etsuko: They wanna know how we all met?

Natsuhiko: It seems that way!

Hotaru: Well, let’s tell ‘em the story! Roll the tape!

Etsuko: Hmm…. Okay, if I remember correctly, me and Hotaru met… *pauses to think* when he crashed into me when he was on his bike, delivering cupcakes from his parents’ bakery.

Hotaru: *in an accusative tone* I was going really fast so it was hard to stop when you just walked in front of me!

*Natsuhiko’s listening closely to their story*

Etsuko: Well, anyway. I remember we both just crashed into each other on the sidewalk, and then Hotaru looked really annoyed. Then he apologized to me, while being deeply annoyed. I told him to perk up a little bit, and I straightened up his bike, picked up the boxes of cupcakes, and dusted the lids off.

Hotaru: Then, I said thanks and zoomed off to deliver the cupcakes.

Etsuko: You did not say thanks!

Hotaru: *ignores Etsuko completely* Well, then we found out we live close-by, and we went to the same middle school.

Etsuko: Yeah, then you’d wait for me outside my house for me to come outside. You’d also try to scare me sometimes, by jumping out from a bush.

Hotaru: *laughs* You’re so easy to scare!

Etsuko: And then, there was that one time where I was so used to you being behind the bush I stopped getting scared.

Hotaru: Remember that one time?

Etsuko: What time?

Hotaru: You were poking your head behind the bush and said ‘Ha! I’ve got you now Hotaru-kun!’ and then I said ‘Up here, Etsuko-chan!’ in a creepy voice, and you screamed and looked up. There I was, up in the tree!

Natsuhiko: *laughing*

Etsuko: *rather bitterly* Oh yeah… and then every day after that you’d keep changing your hiding spots.

Hotaru: *reminiscing* We were so young!

Natsuhiko: That sounds funny!

Etsuko: Yeah, *sarcastic laughter* ha ha ha. That was like, three or four years ago, wasn’t it? Which means… me and Natsuhiko were in… 7th grade, right?

Natsuhiko: Yeah, I think so. One of the two.

Etsuko: And you were that little small fry.

Hotaru: Shut up Etsuko! I told you not to call me that!

Etsuko: I remember a year after we became friends, I introduced you to Natsuhiko, and we all became friends!

Natsuhiko: Oh yeah! Etsuko invited me to go to your parents’ bakery with her that one day.

Hotaru: And then you met me! 

Etsuko: Yep! That’s when I introduced you to Hotaru.

Hotaru: So anyway, how’d you like our backstory, Natsuhiko?

Natsuhiko: It sounds really funny! I enjoyed hearing it!

Hotaru: Honestly, I’ve been curious for a while now, when did you and Natsuhiko meet, Etsuko?

Natsuhiko: Oh! I remember! It was this one time where we were in the same class together. We first met like, three years ago? Yeah. We were in the same class, and you sat directly behind me. Then one day, you whispered to me and asked if you could borrow my notes because you were gone the other day.

Etsuko: Oh yeah! Now I remember! Then, you lent me your notes.

Natsuhiko: *a little bashful* I also remember there was this other time… where you um, talked to me again…

Etsuko: Yeah, I said good morning to you, and asked for your name. I still remember that shy but beaming smile you gave me when I smiled at you.

Natsuhiko: I said good morning back, and asked for your name back.

Etsuko: We just traded names like that. And then each morning I’d say ‘good morning Natsuhiko-kun!’ and you’d say ‘good morning, Etsuko-chan!’ and then every little day we’d say that, and sometimes we’d just have tiny little conversations.

Hotaru: It sounds weird hearing honorifics after our names. We dropped them after a while, didn’t we?

Etsuko: I wasn’t even aware of it at first. It all kind of just happened one day. Like, I just suddenly called you just Hotaru.

Natsuhiko: I remember there was this one time where I saw you after school in the classroom, still sitting at your desk. I needed to grab my pencil case from my desk since I forgot it. But when I saw you, I then said, ‘hey! Good morning, Etsuko? How are you?’ and you weren’t doing so well. You started crying, and told me your Grandma died, and I comforted you.

Etsuko: *remembering it all, and her voice breaks as she tries to laugh through the tears* Oh yeah, ahahaha… I forgot about that…

Natsuhiko: *takes notice and feels really bad about it* I’m sorry.. I didn’t know you were still upset about it… I’m really sorry!

Etsuko: It’s okay, don’t worry about it Natsuhiko.

Hotaru: *completely oblivious* Oh yeah! I remember now! You did seem pretty bummed about it as we walked to school. I didn’t want to pry though, so I didn’t ask. Sorry about that.

Natsuhiko: I remember after that day we started talking more and more, and then you once saw me walking home and then you invited me to go to Hotaru’s parents’ bakery with you. And then I asked who Hotaru was, and you introduced me to him.

Hotaru: And then we all got to know each other, and now we’re all besties!

Etsuko: And no longer refer to each other with the use of honorifics..

Natsuhiko: Honestly, I prefer it when you guys don’t call me ‘Natsuhiko-san’ or ‘Natsuhiko-kun.’

Etsuko: Yeah, same.

Hotaru: I third that!

Natsuhiko: We’re just that good of friends. We just no longer use the honorifics.

Etsuko: Yeah!

Hotaru: Yep!

Natsuhiko: Okay, any other quick comments or suggestions that we can add?

Etsuko: How long do these podcasts even get? I lose track of time.

Hotaru: I think the second-first episode was like, roughly an hour and a half, maybe an hour and 45 minutes?

Etsuko: *surprised* It’s that long?! Each time we record live, it only feels like 20 minutes!

Natsuhiko: Yeah, really.

Hotaru: I think there’s another suggestion written on here. It’s from User2239, and it says, ‘Talk about everyone’s opinion on bread.’

Natsuhiko: I like bread.

Etsuko: I like toast.

Hotaru: Do you do that anime girl thing where you run to school with that toast in your mouth?

Etsuko: What? No! And you know that! We literally walk to school each day!

Hotaru: Alright, alright, no need to get so defensive.

Natsuhiko: So, do you like toast, Hotaru?

Hotaru: I guess, yeah.

Natsuhiko: Well, there’s that topic asked and answered. Should we close out with our new (but not really) and improved (but not really) outro?

Hotaru: Yep!

Etsuko: We can do this!

Natsuhiko: Alright, on three. 1, 2, 3!

Hotaru: Well, That’s it for today’s episode of the After-School Podcast!

Natsuhiko: Thanks for tuning in! I really hope you enjoyed your time here!

Etsuko: And we hope to see you next Monday!

All three: *just as out of sync as all those other times* See you next Monday!-- Have a nice day!-- Have a good week!

Etsuko: *disappointed groan* We blew it again…

Natsuhiko: What did we do last Monday that kept us in sync?

Hotaru: Oh yeah! You told us what to say!

Natsuhiko: Yeah! Now I remember! Alright, we should do that from now on!

Hotaru: Well, let's just redo it!

Etsuko: Wait, the whole outro?

Hotaru: No, just the part where we’re supposed to say something all together in sync!

Natsuhiko: What are we gonna say?

Hotaru: Well, we said ‘have a good week!’ last time, so how about we either say that again or maybe… ‘see you next Monday’?

Natsuhiko: I’d say change it up.

Etsuko: We could try ‘see you next Monday’.

Hotaru: Alright then! On three! 1, 2, 3!

All three: *almost perfectly in sync* See you next Monday!

All three: *still in sync* Perfect. Wait, ahh! We’re still in sync!

Hotaru and Etsuko: Stop copying me! No you! 

Etsuko: *frustrated yell*