By the time the celebration dinner ended, night had fully fallen outside.
The March wind still carried winter's stubborn refusal to leave, gusting in from the far end of the street.
The group stood outside the family restaurant, and none of them seemed in a hurry to go home.
"Next round, next round!"
Douraku Utage spoke up first, hands in her pockets, breathing out a puff of white air.
"It's still so early — you're breaking up already? It's rare to have this many people together."
"Yan, do you want another drink again?"
Hayase Kinue shot her a sideways look, her tone carrying that particular exasperation of someone who's already seen through you.
"So what if I want a drink!"
Douraku Utage glared back, indignant and entirely unrepentant.
"With all this good news today, doesn't it deserve a toast?"
"Kinue, just let her drink."
Tsukuyomi Komoe smoothed things over with a smile.
"There's no class tomorrow anyway."
Hayase Kinue sighed and waved a hand.
"Fine, fine. But don't drink too much. Who was it last time who got drunk and hugged a telephone pole yelling 'Mom'?"
"That wasn't me!"
Douraku Utage's face went red instantly.
"It was you."
"Oh, I know this one — that was Yan-sensei~"
Tsushima Kagami looked at Douraku Utage, grinning.
Douraku Utage stamped her foot in fury, but she couldn't hold up against everyone staring at her with that unmistakable 'don't even try to deny it' look.
In the end she just turned, furious, and glared at Tsushima Kagami instead.
"It's your fault! You're always playing that game with me and Komoe and Kinue where whoever loses has to shout 'Mom'!"
"You got me into the habit!"
"Ahaha, I've never played such a weird game."
"Yan-sensei must've been drunk."
Tsushima Kagami noticed everyone's eyes had turned to him.
He spun around at once, putting his back to the group, and just as quickly changed the subject.
"Oh right! So, are we all heading home separately now, or is everyone up for celebrating somewhere else?"
"Let's go to the izakaya near my place."
Kosaka Akane pulled out her phone to check the time.
"It's about a fifteen-minute walk. There should still be seats at this hour."
"Akane-senpai, do you know that place well?"
Hiroi Kikuri leaned in to ask.
"Pretty well, I guess."
Kosaka Akane looked over at Hiroi Kikuri as she answered.
"So... could you ask the owner to get me some drinks later?"
Hiroi Kikuri glanced around at the others, then leaned in close to Kosaka Akane and whispered.
These days Hiroi Kikuri opened up completely around anyone she wasn't a total stranger to.
And after a semester of tutoring sessions with everyone, she'd grown close even with Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko, the two senpai she used to be a little intimidated by.
Kosaka Akane glanced at Hiroi Kikuri beside her, feeling a bit helpless inside.
This was the first time she'd met someone who got hooked on alcohol this easily.
If she hadn't brought that low-alcohol fruit drink to that one gathering back then...
would this girl have ever picked up a drinking habit at all?
Kosaka Akane felt a twinge of guilt about it, but looking at the state Hiroi Kikuri was in now...
she also suspected that even without her, this girl was probably destined to become the notorious drunk of every mixer once she got to college anyway.
"Then you have to promise me — just tonight."
"I'll make sure you get home safe afterward."
"And no more drinking until you graduate!"
"Hehe, okay, okay."
Hiroi Kikuri thanked her at once, practically bouncing with excitement.
Kosaka Akane didn't bother explaining further, just turned and started walking.
"Come on, if we dawdle any longer the place will close."
The group walked down the street, scattering into loose little clusters.
Mrs. Ijichi walked at the front, holding Nijika's hand.
The little girl's eyes could barely stay open from sleepiness, but she kept mumbling, "Big sister got into college, I want to get into college too."
Seika walked beside her mother, glancing down at her little sister now and then, a smile she couldn't quite hide tugging at her lips.
At this point, Mrs. Ijichi came to a stop.
Everyone turned to look at her.
"Thank you all for the treat today."
"But Little Nijika is already sleepy."
"I'll take her home to rest now."
"Please come visit whenever you have time."
"Seika, Nijika, and I will be glad to have you."
With that, Mrs. Ijichi bowed to everyone.
"Then I'll head back too."
Seika Ijichi said beside her.
"Seika, stay and keep everyone company a while longer. Just don't go and kill the mood, all right?"
Mrs. Ijichi said with a smile, looking at Seika, who was already reaching to take Nijika from her.
"Honestly, I wouldn't do something like that!"
"Then please let my driver take you home."
"It's safer that way."
Kosaka Akane was already dialing a number on her phone as she spoke.
Mrs. Ijichi didn't refuse.
After the thanks were exchanged, a Toyota Century pulled slowly up to the curb.
They waited until Mrs. Ijichi got in with little Nijika in her arms, said their goodbyes, and watched the car pull away before the group continued on toward the izakaya Kosaka Akane had mentioned.
Yukinoshita Shizuku and Hiratsuka Shizuka walked in the middle of the group, talking about something.
Hiratsuka Shizuka gestured animatedly as she spoke; Yukinoshita Shizuku nodded now and then, or gave a small laugh.
Machida Sonoko walked along the outer edge of the group with her camera raised, snapping a photo every so often.
"Sonoko-senpai, what are you taking pictures of?"
Sayuri leaned over to ask.
"You guys, of course."
Machida Sonoko flipped through the photos she'd just taken, nodding in satisfaction.
"This is all youth, you know. Look back on it when you're old and you'll definitely cry."
"I would never cry."
Sayuri said stubbornly, though her eyes kept sneaking glances at the camera screen.
"This one makes me look bad!"
"You look bad in all of them."
"Sonoko-senpai!"
Sayuri lunged for the camera in outrage, but Machida Sonoko laughed and held it up out of reach, and the two of them tussled together.
Tsushima Kagami walked at the very back, watching the group ahead of him, an indescribable feeling suddenly welling up inside him.
"What are you thinking about?"
Shimizu Nayotake had come up beside him at some point, her voice gentle as she asked.
Her voice was pitched just right — only Tsushima Kagami could hear it.
"Nothing much."
Tsushima Kagami looked away, then tilted his head to glance at her.
"Just thinking that fate really is a strange thing."
He repeated the thought, his tone carrying an emotion even he couldn't quite name.
Shimizu Nayotake didn't reply, just walked quietly beside him.
The two of them walked on in silence for a while like that.
"Nayotake."
"Hm?"
"What are your plans, going forward?"
Tsushima Kagami asked.
"Once I'm in the medical school, I'll probably be busy."
"So I hear."
Shimizu Nayotake nodded.
"But I'll make time."
"Time for what?"
"To see everyone. And you."
It sounded like the kind of sentimental line about not wanting to leave everyone behind, but her tone stayed as flat as ever.
Just like usual...
and just like that...
and just like the day with Shizuku...
Ah, what am I even thinking about?
Right, must just be a sudden rush of blood elsewhere. Never mind, then.
Tsushima Kagami blinked, then laughed.
"Since when did you learn to say things like that?"
"I learned it from you and everyone else."
Shimizu Nayotake glanced at him sideways, the corner of her mouth curving up just slightly.
Tsushima Kagami opened his mouth like he meant to say something, but in the end just laughed and shook his head.
The izakaya wasn't big, but the owner was warm and welcoming.
The moment he saw Kosaka Akane walk in leading a whole group, he immediately cleared out the largest private room without a word.
"Young Miss Kosaka, long time no see."
The owner was a man in his fifties, wearing a navy-blue apron, his face creasing into deep laugh lines when he smiled.
"And this is...?"
The owner glanced at the one and only boy in the group — who also happened to stand out the most — with a certain look in his eye.
Then his expression suddenly turned suggestive.
He leaned in close to Kosaka Akane's ear and murmured.
"Bit of fierce competition there, huh~"
"No."
Kosaka Akane cut him off, expressionless.
"Just a friend."
"Oh... a friend."
The owner drew out the word meaningfully, then turned with a smile to go fetch the menus.
"All right, all right, I'll stop teasing. Twenty percent off for you all today."
"Thanks, boss."
The group kicked off their shoes and crowded into the private room. A kotatsu sat on the tatami, and lifting the blanket revealed the warmth radiating underneath.
"This is great, this is great!"
Sayuri was the first one to dive in, curling up under the blanket so only her head poked out, eyes narrowing in comfort.
"Kotatsu are made for winter!"
"It's spring now."
Yukinoshita Shizuku sat down beside her, correcting her flatly.
"That's only spring on the calendar."
Sayuri shot back, unconvinced.
"It still feels like winter."
"Could you two stop bickering?"
Hiratsuka Shizuka sat down across from them and picked up the menu to flip through it.
"Anyone not eating something?"
"Nope!"
"Everyone eats!"
"Boss, bring the drinks!"
Douraku Utage and Tsukuyomi Komoe had the loudest voices — you could probably hear them from outside the room.
The owner called back cheerfully and soon started bringing dishes into the room.
Oden, fried chicken, skewers, edamame, cold tofu, a sashimi platter, plus a few pots of warmed sake and a row of soft drinks.
"Come on, cheers first!"
Douraku Utage raised her cup, her voice even louder than it had been at the family restaurant.
"Cheers!"
Everyone raised their cups; the clink of glass on glass rang out crisp and cheerful.
After a few rounds of drinks, the mood in the room grew livelier and livelier.
Douraku Utage had already had three cups, her face starting to flush, her voice getting louder and louder.
"Let me tell you, I always knew this Kagami kid would amount to something!"
"Too bad he wasn't in our class, huh?"
"Go ahead and be jealous."
"This time our class produced two University of Tokyo students!"
"Looks like the bonus is going up again!"
Hayase Kinue watched Douraku Utage completely ignore her and pour herself another cup.
She downed it in one gulp.
That was when Douraku Utage suddenly remembered she'd left out Tsushima Kagami, who was also a University of Tokyo student.
Only, because of his AO admission, he hadn't needed to sit the exams at all.
Really, with Tsushima Kagami's academic standing and reputation, if he'd taken the joint exam and the individual school exams, he could have gotten into whatever school and department he wanted.
Going to the Faculty of Letters at the University of Tokyo was honestly a bit of a waste for him.
Then again, Tsushima Kagami himself had said before that he wasn't short on money or fame these days.
He didn't even really need to attend college at all.
But Professor Kosaka had supported and invited him all this time.
He owed that debt of gratitude.
Since he didn't particularly care which school or major he ended up in, going to the University of Tokyo's Faculty of Letters both repaid Professor Kosaka's kindness and fulfilled his own old dream of attending the University of Tokyo.
Wasn't that a pretty good outcome?
"Komoe-sensei, let me top you off."
Hiroi Kikuri leaned over with the sake pot to refill Tsukuyomi Komoe's empty cup.
Then, pretending it was nothing, she poured herself a little more too, and when that didn't seem like enough, poured a bit more still.
She downed it just as casually as if it were nothing.
Then satisfaction spread across her face, followed by a flush of red across her cheeks.
She let out a comfortable little hiccup.
Only then did Tsukuyomi Komoe notice that Hiroi Kikuri was drinking again.
"Kikuri! You can't drink!"
"Don't worry, senpai already said it's fine!"
"And besides... isn't everyone else drinking too?"
Hiroi Kikuri said, looking around at the others.
Officially, the drinking age here was twenty.
But in practice, plenty of people started right after finishing high school.
And the strange part was, boys could legally marry at eighteen and girls at sixteen, and start having children.
No drinking allowed, but marriage and sex were fine.
Though the legal adult age had finally been lowered to eighteen in 2022, and the female marriage age raised from sixteen to eighteen as well.
Even so, it still felt a bit absurd.
Tsushima Kagami often thought of how, in Cardcaptor Sakura, Sakura's mother Nadeshiko had been in her very first year of high school at sixteen when she got into a teacher-student relationship with Fujitaka Kinomoto, and married and had a child that same year.
And on top of that, despite her frail health, she went on to have a second child, Sakura, and died not long after.
Thinking it over properly, it was honestly kind of hellish.
No wonder Grandpa despised Fujitaka Kinomoto so much — from an outsider's perspective, the man was pure scum.
"Kagami and the others already count as graduated, though."
"You haven't graduated yet!"
"Look at PA-ko, she's..."
"Hey, PA-ko, you!"
Tsukuyomi Komoe had noticed that even the usually composed PA-ko was secretly taking little sips from her cup.
Seeing Tsukuyomi Komoe looking her way, PA-ko immediately turned her head aside.
"Just for tonight, all right? If it happens again, I'll be doing home visits!"
"After all, I'll be your homeroom teacher again next term!"
Tsukuyomi Komoe pressed a hand to her forehead, exasperated.
"Ahaha, Komoe-sensei, that sounded way too much like a doting grandma!"
Hiroi Kikuri teased from the side.
"If I didn't know better I'd think you were my grandmother!"
"I'm not that old!"
Tsukuyomi Komoe puffed out her cheeks, showing a rare, childish pout.
And in an instant, she had everyone laughing again.
"Oh, right, right!"
Machida Sonoko suddenly set down her cup and pulled the instant photo out of her bag.
"The one I took earlier at the family restaurant — take a look."
She set the photo on the kotatsu table, and everyone leaned in to look.
"This one came out really well."
Yukinoshita Shizuku said softly.
"Give me a copy once it's printed."
"Me too!"
"Me too!"
Sayuri and Hiroi Kikuri spoke up at the same time.
"Everyone gets one."
Machida Sonoko put the photo away, tucking it carefully into a pocket of her wallet.
"This one, though, I'm keeping for myself."
"Sonoko-senpai, isn't there something else tucked in that pocket of your wallet?"
Hiroi Kikuri's sharp eyes had caught the corner of a piece of paper peeking out of the wallet's inner pocket.
Machida Sonoko's hand paused for a moment, then she closed the wallet as if nothing had happened.
"It's nothing."
But Tsushima Kagami noticed the tips of her ears had gone slightly red.
After a few more rounds of drinks, the conversation gradually drifted from exams and admissions toward the future.
"Are you all planning to live in the dorms or commute?"
"I heard the dorms are pretty old, though — I wonder if there are cockroaches."
"Shizuka, don't say that!"
Sayuri's face went instantly pale.
"Cockroaches are what I'm most scared of!"
"The University of Tokyo's dorms should be decent, right?"
Machida Sonoko looked over at Sayuri.
"I have no idea."
Sayuri shook her head.
Kosaka Akane looked at her, at a loss for words.
At this point, everyone's attention turned to Tsushima Kagami and Yukinoshita Shizuku.
Those two...
well...
might as well be one unit at this point.
So what would happen once college started?
After all, one of them would be at the University of Tokyo, the other at Keio.
Would they move out and live separately?
Or keep living together in the apartment?
Or maybe find some new place close to both schools?
The girls in the room were each running their own private calculations.
Ah, right — because she'd been swinging between despair and elation earlier, Sayuri had forgotten she'd get to attend the same university as Kagami after all.
And not just the same university — the same department, meaning they'd go to class together, commute together, every single day...
Wasn't that basically...?
Sayuri suddenly realized this.
Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko exchanged a look, then both turned to look at Yukinoshita Shizuku and Hiratsuka Shizuka.
The four of them locked eyes and nodded, as if some unspoken alliance had just been sealed in an instant.
There was absolutely no way they'd let Sayuri monopolize Kagami!
All four of them thought in perfect unison.
"Kagami, are you still going to live in the apartment after this?"
Hayase Kinue asked at this point too.
"Without Kagami and Shizuku, the apartment's going to feel pretty empty."
Hayase Kinue was sipping her own drink, cheeks flushed pink, resting her chin on her hand as she looked at Tsushima Kagami with a meaningful expression.
"Ah, no plans yet on that front."
Tsushima Kagami shook his head.
"I'll talk it over with Shizuku once we're back home."
"Ah, no, Kagami moving out, that's not okay!"
Beside him, Tsukuyomi Komoe, hearing that Tsushima Kagami and Yukinoshita Shizuku might move out, suddenly remembered that graduation season was not just a time of celebration but also a season of bittersweet farewells.
Douraku Utage set down her cup too, head lowered, saying nothing.
"What about buying a house?"
"Kagami's not short on money these days, after all."
"Right, right, right, Kagami should just buy a huge mansion!"
"Somewhere in Bunkyo Ward."
"And then let me move in too — that would cut down my commute and let me sleep in more."
"I'll pay rent!"
Sayuri suddenly thought of this and started scheming out loud right away.
Hiratsuka Shizuka cut in immediately too.
Why not buy in Minato Ward, in Mita!
"After all, Shizuku's at Keio."
"And it's not just Shizuku — there's me, Akane-senpai, and Sonoko-senpai too."
"There are more of us."
With that, Hiratsuka Shizuka looked over at Tsushima Kagami.
"Right, Kagami? Oh, and save me a room too."
"I'll pay rent too!"
"I'm renting a place in Tokyo anyway."
"Ah, that's so unfair, you can't compare it like that!"
Sayuri protested.
"Then how about buying somewhere close to everyone?"
"That way me and PA-ko and Seika can drop by to see you all often too."
"And Komoe-sensei, Yan-sensei, and Kinue can join everyone for get-togethers often as well."
"Oh, and could you save us rooms too~"
Tsukuyomi Komoe, Douraku Utage, and Hayase Kinue all had their eyes light up at once, nodding in unison.
Listening to everyone chattering away, Tsushima Kagami realized he'd actually forgotten to think about whether, once he and Shizuku were in different colleges, he'd stay in Hayase Kinue's apartment or move out.
And if he did move out, where would that even be.
Thinking it over, Tsushima Kagami glanced at Yukinoshita Shizuku, who happened to be looking back at him, then noticed Shimizu Nayotake quietly eating beside them, saying nothing.
It reminded him of something like, "lately, Joker's room seems to have become..."
"Well, we could at least start looking at whether there's a suitable place."
Tsushima Kagami said, looking at Yukinoshita Shizuku.
Yukinoshita Shizuku nodded lightly too.
"Then—"
"Then can I—"
"No."
Tsushima Kagami refused without even thinking about it.
"I haven't even said what I was going to say yet!"
Sayuri puffed out her cheeks.
"You were definitely going to say you want to move in with me."
Sayuri went quiet, because that was, in fact, exactly what she'd been about to say.
"A girl moving in with a boy — how would that even look."
Tsushima Kagami's tone turned unusually serious.
"And don't you have a home of your own anyway?"
"I already said I don't want to commute..."
Sayuri muttered under her breath.
"I never said it'd definitely be near the University of Tokyo either."
Tsushima Kagami said with a laugh, spreading his hands.
"Then you can just live in the dorms."
Kosaka Akane settled the matter with a single line.
"How bad could the University of Tokyo's dorms possibly be?"
"Fine, I'll just live at home then..."
Sayuri said, clearly unhappy about it.
"What about you, Nayotake?"
Yukinoshita Shizuku looked over at Shimizu Nayotake, who'd been sitting quietly the whole time.
"I'll probably apply for the dorms."
Shimizu Nayotake set down her cup.
"Medical school coursework is heavy — it'll be easier living on campus."
"If we do end up switching houses, why don't you live with us?"
"It shouldn't add much of a commute either way."
Yukinoshita Shizuku worried about Nayotake's health and her personality — living alone in the dorms for a long stretch without anyone knowing how she was really doing just wouldn't do.
Before Nayotake could even answer,
Sayuri immediately spoke up.
"That's so unfair, Nayotake gets to move in!"
"Why can't I, but she can!"
"Exactly, exactly. I'm Shizuku's friend, and Nayotake's friend, and Kagami's good buddy too."
"Let me move in too~"
"We could commute to school together!"
"Nayotake is different!"
Yukinoshita Shizuku said, looking at the two of them.
"This woman's got a total double standard!"
Sayuri complained to Hiratsuka Shizuka.
"Exactly, that's so unfair!"
"What about you, Seika?"
Hiratsuka Shizuka turned to look the other way.
Everyone turned to look at Seika too.
Seika's school, Tokyo Metropolitan University, was arguably the farthest away of anyone's.
Even though it was still within Tokyo Prefecture, it was out in Hachioji City, well beyond the twenty-three special wards.
Seika Ijichi, who'd been eating quietly, looked up.
"Huh? Me?"
"I'll probably live in the dorms too. Tokyo Metropolitan's dorms are pretty cheap, and there's a discount for Tokyo residents too."
"Seika, you really are good with money."
Hiroi Kikuri said admiringly.
"Of course."
Seika said, matter-of-fact.
"I'm not like Akane-senpai and Sonoko-senpai, who come from wealthy families."
"And I'm also planning to save up money for Little Nijika's future college tuition."
Hiroi Kikuri suddenly thought of her own family.
Realizing her own family wasn't well-off either, and that her parents had still worked hard to send her to a private school like this, she figured the financial pressure on them must be significant too. Thinking about it this way, she suddenly felt a pang of guilt over her old history of refusing to go to school.
Maybe she should take on more part-time work too — not just chase her music dreams, but help support the family as well.
Well... at the very least, she shouldn't keep asking her family for money from now on.
PA-ko, watching from the side, took a quiet sip of her drink, then said, in a distant sort of voice,
"My family runs a convenience store. Anyone who wants to buy expired lunch boxes, come find me."
"Twenty percent off."
"Who wants to buy expired lunch boxes!"
Hiroi Kikuri and Sayuri shouted in unison.
The private room burst into laughter again.
At this point, Hiroi Kikuri and PA-ko both turned to look at Seika Ijichi.
"Seika, hang in there."
"Keio and Tokyo University and all that might be a bit tough."
"But Tokyo Metropolitan — the two of us could probably manage that with some effort."
PA-ko said with a smile.
"The tuition's cheaper too, after all."
Hiroi Kikuri added.
"Once we're all in college together, let's start a club again."
The two of them said together, laughing.
Seika Ijichi laughed too.
"It's a promise, then."
"Just don't be like a certain someone who said she'd go to college with the senpai and start a club, and then ended up at a completely different school."
"Ah, Seika, how could you be so mean!"
"I didn't do it on purpose!"
Sayuri hadn't expected the conversation to swing back around to her, let alone bring up her supposed betrayal of the group's college plans.
How could this be happening!
Everyone burst out laughing again at the sight of Sayuri's expression.
Just as the laughter was dying down, the door of the private room slid open, and the owner came in carrying a huge plate of skewers.
"Here you go, on the house — congratulations on getting into college, everyone!"
"Boss, you're the best!"
Douraku Utage's eyes went red with emotion — whether from the alcohol or genuine feeling, it was hard to say.
"Just doing what I should."
The owner set the skewers down on the table with a laugh, glanced around the room, and then left, still chuckling.
"Want a sip?"
Kosaka Akane glanced at him, the corner of her mouth curving up, and lifted her cup to take a drink.
"It's sweet."
"It's just fruit juice."
Tsushima Kagami said with a smile.
"I don't drink alcohol."
"You really are no fun."
Kosaka Akane said, though she set her cup down anyway, her expression noticeably softer than before.
"Oh, right, Kagami."
Machida Sonoko suddenly remembered something and turned to look at Tsushima Kagami.
"How did the talks go on that novel adaptation rights thing?"
Tsushima Kagami blinked, then shook his head.
"Fell through."
"Fell through?"
Machida Sonoko frowned.
"What happened?"
"They wanted to buy it outright. I didn't want to sell."
Everyone seemed a little disappointed.
"Kagami."
Shimizu Nayotake spoke up suddenly.
"Hm?"
"What are your plans, going forward?"
Everyone's attention turned toward him again.
He picked up his cup and thought for a moment.
"Like I said before — start a company."
"A company doing what?"
Hiratsuka Shizuka raised an eyebrow.
"Something to do with the internet and technology, I think."
Thinking about this, Tsushima Kagami always found it kind of amazing.
Personal computers, the internet, smartphones, mobile gaming, electric vehicles — technology significant enough to reshape an entire era.
And here was this enormous country of Japan, with all its massive conglomerates, and not a single one of them had caught the wave!
It really was baffling.
So Tsushima Kagami's plan from the start was: once he'd finished his initial capital accumulation, he'd keep building up the entertainment and publishing business domestically in Japan.
Then, riding that momentum, he'd take that capital abroad — to the West and to the University of Tokyo's network — and invest in the internet and tech industries there.
After all, his system store still had plenty of gadgets tucked away that had been cutting-edge tech back in 2025.
Once he had enough money, he'd set up a lab, reverse-engineer them, and file the patents.
Wouldn't that make him a shoo-in to become a trust?
Forget high tech — even that pile of oddball adult novelty items sitting in his system store could pass for core technology in this era.
He'd end up an outright monopoly tycoon!
The thought made Tsushima Kagami laugh.
"I'll get the framework set up first, and figure out the details later."
"What about me, what about me!"
Sayuri raised her hand urgently.
"You said you'd pull strings for me after graduation!"
"I haven't forgotten."
Tsushima Kagami said, smiling at her.
"But only if you actually graduate first."
"I'll definitely graduate!"
Sayuri thumped her chest, promising.
"It's just the Faculty of Letters, not the medical school."
"Are you saying that to look down on our Faculty of Letters?"
"No, no, no!"
Sayuri waved her hands quickly.
"Absolutely not! University of Tokyo's Faculty of Letters is the best in the world!"
Everyone burst out laughing.
In the middle of the laughter, Machida Sonoko quietly pulled out her camera and took another picture.
This time, everyone in the frame was laughing.
She set the camera down and looked at the photo, and suddenly felt a slight sting in her nose.
"What's wrong?"
Kosaka Akane noticed something was off with her.
"Nothing."
Machida Sonoko sniffled and smiled.
"Just thinking that everyone's going to go their separate ways..."
"Don't get sentimental on me."
"That's not like you at all."
"Exactly, exactly. Sonoko-senpai, are you drunk?"
Sayuri leaned over to look.
"You're the one who's drunk."
Machida Sonoko reached over and poked her forehead.
"You've had nothing but juice all night."
"You can get drunk on juice too!"
Sayuri declared, entirely confident.
"It's called being drunk on feelings!"
"Just be quiet."
Kosaka Akane smacked her lightly on the back of the head.
The warmth from the kotatsu rose up through the room, flushing everyone's cheeks pink.
Douraku Utage had two more drinks and was now genuinely drunk.
She leaned against Hayase Kinue's shoulder, mumbling something about "I can still drink" and "one more bottle."
Hayase Kinue held her head up with a resigned expression, pouring her tea with the other hand to help sober her up.
Tsukuyomi Komoe sat on the other side, already starting to nod off, her head bobbing like a chicken pecking at grain.
PA-ko and Hiroi Kikuri were in a competition to see who could eat more skewers, a little pile of bamboo sticks already built up in front of each of them, neither willing to concede.
Hiratsuka Shizuka and Yukinoshita Shizuku were chatting about what to prepare before starting college.
Kosaka Akane and Machida Sonoko had their heads together, looking at something, letting out soft little laughs now and then.
Sayuri had eaten herself full, sprawled out on the tatami rubbing her stomach with a thoroughly satisfied expression.
Seika Ijichi and Nayotake were chatting.
Tsushima Kagami leaned against the wall, watching all of it.
He thought, this was exactly the life he wanted.
Nights just like this one.
A group of people sitting together, laughing, fooling around.
"Kagami."
Shimizu Nayotake's voice came from beside him.
Tsushima Kagami turned his head to look at her.
"What is it?"
"Nothing."
Shimizu Nayotake leaned in close beside him.
"Just wanted to say your name."
Tsushima Kagami thought for a moment, then leaned toward Nayotake's ear.
"So... about that..."
"What Shizuku said — if we do end up changing houses, will you come?"
Nayotake's face turned red at that.
She glanced at Tsushima Kagami, then over at Yukinoshita Shizuku.
"Is that really all right?"
"Of course. Shizuku would be happy too."
"Then... does Kagami want me to move in?"
"I do too."
Tsushima Kagami said firmly.
"Then please save me a room too."
Nayotake said quietly.
____
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