As usual, he went through the routine in Kotori's room.
The sudden shower had already stopped.
The sun had sunk far to the west, dyeing the room crimson.
Amid the ticking of the alarm clock Kotori had used since she was a child and the rustling of her uniform as she fixed it, Kotori asked him, sounding unusually anxious.
"Um... did it not feel good today?"
"Huh?"
Takumi was taken aback by the question.
As he stared intently at Kotori, who had just finished pulling up her underwear, she looked down and whispered with a clouded expression.
"You seemed kind of distracted today, like..."
"That's..."
Takumi's heart skipped a beat.
His mind had been so preoccupied with Akira that even though he was trying to act normal, he couldn't deny that he might have been different from usual.
Kotori seemed to have a sensitive sense for such small differences.
Breaking into a cold sweat, Takumi answered with a rare fluency.
"That's not it. The amount wasn't any different from yesterday, right?"
"That's... true, but..."
"Well, it might be because it was two days in a row."
Takumi let out a dry laugh.
He was aware that it was a weak excuse.
They had been doing this for a long time. There was no way Kotori wouldn't know.
"Was there something wrong with me?"
"No, it's not like that!"
"But..."
When she started saying things that were completely off the mark with tears in her eyes, he couldn't help but raise his voice in panic.
But he understood the state of mind of Kotori, who had low self-esteem.
If he said the wrong thing, the very existence of their routine might be shaken for her.
"............"
"............"
They stared at each other for a while.
The truth of a poor excuse would be easily seen through.
And when he thought about it, it wasn't something he needed to hide anyway.
With his cheeks slightly flushed in shame, Takumi timidly told her what had happened during lunch.
"Actually, during lunch today, there was a senior who talked to me normally."
"What?!"
Kotori's eyes went wide as she shouted in disbelief. Without a moment's hesitation, she started asking him questions in a rush.
"That wasn't for a punishment game or because some tough-looking guy was messing with you, was it?!"
"No, I just helped them carry some stuff to the home economics room. On the way, we were just chatting about how lettuce goes well with okonomiyaki, and I even said kimchi was good, too."
"Ooh, that's a popular person's conversation...! Takumi, that's amazing!"
"Hehe."
Kotori clasped her hands together, her eyes sparkling with envy.
Takumi, not entirely displeased, rubbed under his nose in embarrassment.
"So, what kind of senior was she?"
"She's a second-year girl, and she seemed like a good student, really cute. Her name was, I think, Ikoma... she said her first name was Akira?"
"Ikoma Akira... I think I've heard that name before."
"Really?!"
This time, Takumi leaned forward, pressing her for information.
Kotori put a hand on her chin, furrowing her brow as she searched her memory.
"She's super cute, and she helps out with all sorts of club activities, committees, and the student council... I think they call her 'The Angel of Aid'?"
"Yeah, that's her. I see, so she's a well-known person."
Takumi nodded in understanding.
If she was the type of person who did that all the time, it made sense that she would offer to help him out earlier.
And Kotori murmured, sounding a little impressed.
"But it's rare. For someone to be able to talk to you without being scared. And a girl, too."
"Yeah, I was surprised, too. I wonder if I'll be able to talk to her again?"
"Maybe, but... you shouldn't get your hopes up. There might be a hidden motive."
"...Ah."
Kotori's words, spoken in a somewhat stiff voice, made Takumi's expression freeze.
Seeing this, Kotori hurried to defend herself.
"I-I'm not saying it to be mean! Um, I don't really know what kind of person that senior is, and... I don't want you to get hurt..."
Her words were meant to be considerate of the slightly elated Takumi.
Kotori had trusted someone and been betrayed by a fake confession, leaving her with a wound that would never fade.
Therefore, her words carried weight.
Takumi pulled himself together and put on the best clumsy smile he could.
"I know. Well, either way, there's not much info on her, so there's not much to say."
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