1
The day that had started off in such a rush ended up being surprisingly ordinary after all.
When all the classes and homeroom were over, I packed my stuff into my school bag and stood up, heading toward the classroom door—
“—!?”
I froze in surprise.
Right in front of me stood Minase, hands on her hips like some kind of guardian statue. Though her pose was imposing, her face wasn’t stern at all—it was bright with a cheerful smile.
I darted my eyes around the classroom. Nearby classmates were watching us in suspense, while others whispered among themselves, sneaking glances our way.
“Let’s go home.”
Amid that tense atmosphere, Minase said it so innocently that it didn’t match the situation at all.
“Yeah, I’d rather not, thanks.”
“Knew you’d say that.”
I shot her down with the same words as this morning, but she just laughed it off, completely unfazed.
“See you. Tomorrow.”
I slipped past her.
“Ah, wait, wait!”
Of course, she didn’t let me go that easily—Minase quickly chased after me.
Just like this morning, the classroom buzzed again, but I ignored it and stepped out.
Tomorrow looked like it’d be another handful.
Walking side by side down the hallway with Minase, I sighed quietly.
“You say you don’t want to walk together, but you’re not exactly running away either.”
She smiled as she looked up at me, amusement flickering in her eyes.
“Too much effort for too little reward. Besides, if I did run, you’d probably just chase after me anyway.”
Since we lived in the same apartment building, we’d end up in the same place no matter what. If I ditched her halfway, she might even show up at my door.
“If you actually ran away, I don’t think I’d chase you.”
“Damn. Should’ve tried it then.”
“Hey now.”
Minase chuckled softly.
Even as we talked, she greeted passing students, waving back whenever someone called her name. Watching her, I couldn’t help but comment,
“You’ve got plenty of friends to walk home with, don’t you?”
She was cute, popular, and clearly well-liked. I couldn’t imagine she lacked company.
But—
“Who knows?”
Her answer was oddly vague.
I looked over at her, and when she noticed, she smiled brightly again.
We soon reached the shoe lockers. I switched into my school shoes quickly, while Minase changed one foot at a time—much more carefully than me.
“I’ll wait outside.”
“Ah, okay. I’ll be right there.”
I stepped out, moving aside so I wouldn’t block the doorway. For a moment, I considered just heading home alone, but before I could decide, Minase appeared. It had only been a minute or two anyway.
“Thanks for waiting!”
She jogged over and hopped lightly once before stopping in front of me.
“Ohh, you didn’t run away. Impressive, impressive.”
“Yeah, yeah.”
I thought about it, though.
Having a girl stand so close face-to-face was bad for my heart. I turned away and started walking. Minase caught up and matched my pace.
“Why do you look like you’re having so much fun?”
“Because I am.”
She answered without hesitation. She was having fun, so she acted like it—simple as that. Made me feel stupid for even asking.
“It’s nice walking home with someone, isn’t it?”
“You said that this morning.”
“Did I?”
She tilted her head innocently.
“What about you, Sakura? Are you not having fun?”
Honestly, I was. Any guy would be happy walking home beside a cute girl like her. Even I couldn’t deny that.
“Who knows.”
I dodged the question with a vague reply—it felt embarrassing to admit it outright.
“Hey, Sakura, do you usually cook for yourself? Or do you buy food?”
“Mostly cook.”
My parents sent me money every month, and with my part-time job, I wasn’t struggling financially. Still, I tried not to waste money—anything I saved, I planned to return when I graduated and use it for college later.
That thought brought a frown to my face. I remembered something unpleasant.
I still hadn’t told my parents I quit soccer. They went through the trouble of helping me enroll in a strong soccer school far from home, and I couldn’t bring myself to admit I’d given up only half a year in. Pathetic.
“Something wrong?”
Minase noticed right away, peering up at me curiously.
“Nah, it’s nothing.”
“Okay… So, what’s for dinner tonight?”
“Pork miso soup.”
“Pork miso soup?”
“Yeah. My mom taught me the recipe when I moved here. Said as long as I could make pork soup, I’d never go hungry—it’s got meat and veggies in one dish.”
It was a lazy way of thinking, but honestly, she wasn’t wrong. I often made a big pot and ate it with rice when I couldn’t be bothered to cook properly.
“That sounds so good! Can I come eat some?”
“No. And stop asking.”
She was acting like I’d already agreed to cook for her.
“Then how about you come to my place?”
“Absolutely not. Don’t invite guys over so casually.”
Her sense of distance really was broken. Maybe she was always like this? As far as I could tell, she often had friends over—girls, mostly. I’d never heard any guys, though. Hopefully that was still true.
“Do you cook too, Minase?”
“Yup! I’m actually a pretty good cook, you know. My specialty’s curry.”
“Curry, huh…”
I grimaced as an unpleasant memory came back. I’d once tried making curry myself. To save time and money, I made enough for three days—but eating the same thing three days straight was torture. Then, on the third day, I burned it badly, and cleaning up was a nightmare. Total failure. Ever since then, I stuck to store-bought curry packs.
“Oh, I know! Let’s eat together sometime!”
Minase suddenly brightened with an idea.
“Didn’t I just say you’re not coming over, and I’m not going there?”
“No, no! I mean, we could combine them—my curry and your pork soup. Wouldn’t that make an awesome meal?”
I pictured it in my head.
“Yeah… that might actually work.”
Both were simple comfort foods, but together, they’d make a hearty meal—pretty good for two high school students living alone.
“That sounds great.”
“Right?”
Minase grinned, clearly pleased with herself.
Of course, to make that happen, one of us would have to visit the other’s apartment. That was the real issue.
Next to me, Minase started muttering to herself about what side dishes would go well with curry and pork soup, smiling all the while. She looked genuinely happy. I doubted she was worrying about any of the things I was.
I let out a long sigh without thinking.
“?”
She tilted her head, looking at me curiously again.
“Just thinking that being around you makes me feel like an idiot.”
I wasn’t planning to do anything weird, and she clearly trusted that. Maybe I should stop overthinking everything and just go with the flow.
“So, when should we do it? Today?”
“You’re too fast. Maybe next time.”
Honestly, today would’ve been perfect—we both already had our dishes in mind. But still, I wanted to tidy my place first, and mentally prepare myself if I had to visit hers. I wasn’t exactly used to this kind of thing.
“Boo.”
She pouted for only a moment before quickly perking up again, already brainstorming what other dishes could go with curry and soup.
She really was full of expressions. I couldn’t help but smile faintly.
“Yeah… this isn’t so bad.”
I murmured that without realizing it, watching the girl walking beside me.
Luckily, Minase didn’t seem to hear.
2
The next day.
Even though I’d been getting dragged around by Minase for the past two days, it irritated me that I’d caught myself thinking something so soft about her yesterday. So this morning, I made sure to leave the house before she could launch another surprise attack. Not that there was any guarantee she’d actually show up today, though.
After that, I killed some time at the convenience store near the station, then got on a train that would barely make it in time for morning homeroom. Since that was basically peak hour for high school students, the train felt even more crowded than usual.
When the bell rang, I slipped into the classroom just in time.
I casually glanced toward Minase—she was, as always, chatting happily with a few classmates. But the moment she noticed me, her expression twisted into an annoyed glare. …Judging from that look, she definitely came to my place again this morning.
Minase stood up. I braced myself, thinking she was about to march over and complain, but then our homeroom teacher entered the room right behind me. The students who hadn’t taken their seats yet shuffled back to them lazily. I did the same. Minase sat back down, still clearly displeased.
Looks like all I managed to do was make her mad.
When the first period ended and the break started—
“You were cutting it close today. That’s rare.”
The one who came over was Kuki. As usual, he spun a chair from the desk in front of me and sat on it backwards.
“Had some stuff going on,” I said.
“Huh. You, Aoi—the guy who always showed up to club before everyone else?”
Kuki leaned in, clearly curious. I could tell this was going to go one of two ways—either he’d pry into my reasons, or he’d start nagging me again to rejoin the soccer club.
“Well, well! Let’s hear about this ‘stuff,’ then.”
Suddenly, a shadow fell over us, and a familiar voice dropped down from above.
“Good morning, Minase,” I greeted flatly.
“It’s not a good morning! I went to your place again today, you know!? What’s the big idea leaving before me!? That’s so mean!”
As expected, she was angry—and of course, she just had to say my name out loud. The nearby classmates all turned our way, startled.
“Sakura?”
Kuki, sitting right in front of me, tilted his head in confusion.
“You two have been acting weird since yesterday,” he said. “What’s going on?”
“Eh, it’s… a bit complicated,” I mumbled vaguely.
Kuki’s confusion was understandable. But honestly, I wasn’t sure how much I could tell him. This wasn’t just my problem. If I started blabbing carelessly, Minase’s address might end up being known by a bunch of random guys. That’d be bad news—she lived alone, after all. If she had family with her, maybe it’d be different, but still.
While I was mulling that over—
“Yup. It’s a bit complicated,” Minase suddenly echoed, cutting in with a smug little grin. There was a hint of pride in her tone, probably because she knew something others didn’t.
“Right?” she added, looking at me for agreement.
I stayed silent.
Her smile faltered into a pout. “Hey, you’re supposed to say ‘Right?’ too!”
“What are we, kids?” I sighed.
“Minase, you might as well just tell Kuki,” I said.
Actually, my real goal was to make sure only he knew. If word spread through the class, it’d reach the whole grade, and eventually the entire school. These days, that kind of information could spread online too. There were probably tons of guys who’d love to find out where Minase Mishio lived. The fewer hints there were, the better.
“Got it. You’re right,” she nodded, surprisingly serious for once.
“Sakura, can we switch seats for a sec?”
“Sure.”
I stood up, and Minase took my seat. She leaned toward Kuki, lowering her voice so no one else could hear. Kuki leaned in too.
“Actually,” Minase whispered, “I live in the same apartment building as Sakura.”
“...Seriously?”
“...Seriously,” she nodded solemnly.
Kuki stared at her, then turned that wide-eyed look on me.
“Yeah, it’s true,” I confirmed. “She lives right above me.”
“Man, you lucky bastard.”
“Exactly the kind of reaction I wanted to avoid,” I said. “So do me a favor and help keep it quiet, yeah?”
Kuki was one of the so-called “top-tier” guys in class—the kind with real influence. If he said, “Drop it,” most people would. Having him on our side would keep rumors from spreading.
“Alright, but you owe me one,” he said with a grin.
“I’ll start paying my debts when I actually owe you something. …And no, I’m still not coming back to the club.”
Honestly, having one more person with Kuki’s level of pull would’ve been perfect. As we chatted, I casually scanned the classroom for potential allies.
And that’s when my eyes met Koreda Murasakiko’s.
She was glaring at me—well, maybe not glaring, but she definitely didn’t look happy. Then one of the girls near her said something, and Koreda hurriedly turned back, forcing a strained smile like she was pretending she hadn’t been staring.
Yeah… somehow, I doubted she’d be joining our side anytime soon.
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