— — — — — —
"This should be the place, right?"
Oikawa checked the address Yui had sent him, then compared it to the number on the front gate.
Everything matched.
Just as he was about to knock, he heard hurried footsteps from inside.
A second later, there was a click. The door flew open.
"Woof! Woof woof!"
Sable launched himself straight at Oikawa.
For a moment, Oikawa froze. Then a smile spread across his face.
He caught the excited dog in his arms and gave him a good scratch behind the ears.
"Sable, did you miss me that much? Huh? Did you?"
"Woof! Woof woof woof!"
The little dog barked excitedly in response.
At that moment, Yui came down the stairs. There was a faint blush on her cheeks, and her eyes avoided his for a second before finally meeting them.
"Oikawa-kun, you're here."
Her voice was soft and sweet, like freshly fallen snow drifting from the sky.
Oikawa looked up. Today, Yui still wore her usual side bun hairstyle, but the strands framing her face had clearly been carefully styled instead of left loose and messy.
She wore a cream-colored sweater on top.
As for the sweater... Well. To put it kindly, the fabric looked like it was carrying a burden far heavier than its original design specifications.
Her pants were a cute, youthful style, wide-legged and a soft macaron gray.
Considering how much Yui loved macarons, the color somehow suited her perfectly.
"Here." Oikawa held out a small box. "A gift."
Yui glanced at it.
The moment she realized what it was, her face lit up.
"Oikawa-kun, thank you!"
Her eyes curved into happy crescents when she saw the macarons.
"Woof!"
Still in Oikawa's arms, Sable seemed a little dissatisfied by being ignored.
"Oh?" Oikawa laughed. "Are you jealous of your own owner now? Don't worry. I got something for you too."
He pulled out a dog toy from his pocket.
A pink rubber bone designed for chewing.
"Woof!"
Sable's eyes immediately lit up.
The dog jumped to the floor and stared at Oikawa expectantly.
The message was obvious.
'Throw it.'
'Throw it already!'
Chuckling, Oikawa removed the packaging and tossed the toy across the room.
"Woof!"
Sable dashed after it with a joyful bark, happily chewing on his new treasure.
It was obvious he loved it.
"O-Oikawa-kun..." Yui nervously twisted her fingers together. "H-Have you eaten yet?"
The second the words left her mouth, she regretted them.
What if he says no? Then what am I supposed to do?
Her cooking was terrible. There was some leftover food in the kitchen, but there was no way she could serve that to him.
Oh, no... What do I do? What do I do?
Oikawa noticed the panic on her face and smiled. "Well, aren't there macarons?"
"Yui, you're not planning to eat them all yourself, are you?"
"N-No! Of course not!" Yui waved her hands frantically. "I'd definitely share! I-I'd be happy to eat them with Oikawa-kun."
The embarrassment remained, but the panic instantly disappeared.
Yui immediately put on a bright smile. "Come on, Oikawa-kun. I'll show you my room. All of Sable's toys are there."
Oikawa glanced down at Sable and clapped his hands.
The little dog instantly abandoned his bone and leaped into Oikawa's arms.
Watching that, Yui puffed out her cheeks in annoyance. Sable was never that enthusiastic with her.
...
Then they headed upstairs.
The first room on the second floor belonged to Yui. The pink wallpaper was exactly what Oikawa had expected.
"Oikawa-kun, sit here."
Having a boy inside her room was still embarrassing. But because it was Oikawa, the embarrassment gradually gave way to happiness.
"So?" Yui looked at him expectantly. "What do you think?"
She was obviously asking about the room.
Oikawa smiled, "It suits you."
"Hm?" Yui tilted her head in confusion. "What does that mean?"
"It means..."
Oikawa stepped a little closer. "It's cute~"
"Just like you, Yui. Aren't you a pretty cute person yourself?"
Still smiling, he leaned in.
Yui immediately retreated.
One step. Then another.
Until her back met the wall.
There was nowhere left to go.
Her heart pounded wildly.
Slowly, she closed her eyes.
As though waiting for some destined moment to arrive.
But... Oikawa simply flicked her forehead.
Then he turned around and walked off to play with Sable.
For a second, Yui stood frozen. Then realization hit.
She'd been completely teased.
Puffing up her cheeks, she glared at him.
"Jerk." She muttered it through gritted teeth.
Oikawa heard the word.
But he only smiled.
...
..
After spending a pleasant hour in Yui's room playing with Sable, the two of them headed to the café where everyone had agreed to meet.
Yukino had already arrived. Through the café window, Oikawa could see her elegantly sipping coffee.
Sitting beside her, Isshiki Iroha looked like she was facing her greatest natural predator.
The moment she spotted Oikawa, however, relief immediately washed over her face.
Some things really did have natural counters.
At least when Isshiki was around him, she seemed carefree and relaxed, instinctively dropping that sweet-and-calculating persona she usually wore.
Around Yukino, though? She looked like a mouse standing in front of a cat.
Watching it was honestly pretty funny. After all, not every cat and mouse were Tom and Jerry.
The two entered the café, and Isshiki immediately jumped to her feet. "Oikawa-senpai, you're here! What kind of coffee do you want? I'll go order it for you."
Oikawa didn't expose her obvious attempt to escape from Yukino.
Instead, he smiled. "A cappuccino is fine. And grab me some dessert too. I'm starving. Get something for you and the others as well."
He pulled four thousand-yen bills from his wallet and handed them over.
"Thank you, boss!"
A bright, sweet smile instantly bloomed across Isshiki's face.
Then she turned toward Yui. "Yui-senpai, what would you like? Today's bill is completely sponsored by Oikawa-senpai."
Yui thought for a moment. "A latte."
"And dessert?"
Yui was about to decline.
But after seeing Oikawa's smile, she changed her mind. "A slice of strawberry cake."
"Tiramisu."
That came from Yukino.
Isshiki nodded. "Got it."
"I'll go help carry everything." Oikawa shot Isshiki a meaningful look, and the two headed toward the counter together.
On the way there, he grinned. "Aren't you usually pretty capable? Why are you so scared of Yukino?"
"Who said I'm scared?" Isshiki glared at him. "It's called respect."
"Heh! Sounds more like bullying the weak and fearing the strong."
"You…!" Isshiki puffed out her cheeks. "That's not true! Did you forget you hit me with a cardboard tube before? I didn't fight back, did I? I always respect my senpai!"
She looked genuinely aggrieved.
"Alright, alright." Oikawa waved her off. "I'm sorry. I misjudged the greatness in you."
Isshiki's smile immediately returned.
The rest of the afternoon passed in discussion.
They talked about the student council election, polished details of the speech, and helped Yui become more familiar with the script.
That corner of the café gradually transformed into a temporary Service Club room. The only difference was that the tea had become coffee, and the snacks had become cakes.
By four in the afternoon, the election strategy meeting finally came to an end.
Everyone scattered in different directions.
After some thought, Oikawa found a gym near his neighborhood and bought a yearly membership.
Two hours later, drenched in sweat, he walked out of the gym.
Then he headed into a nearby chicken restaurant.
A few chicken skewers. Some grilled chicken skin. And a bowl of chicken curry rice.
After a few bites, he came to a conclusion.
'Yeah... Kawasaki's is better.'
'Much better.'
As he ate, he opened LINE and sent her a message: "Miss you."
The reply was just "Mm."
Oikawa wasn't surprised. That was just Kawasaki's style.
She rarely typed long messages on LINE.
In fact, if she did send a wall of text, it usually meant she was furious.
He snapped a picture of his meal and sent it.
[Not nearly as good as your curry chicken rice. Not even close.]
That said, while the curry couldn't compare, the chicken skewers and grilled chicken skin here were genuinely excellent.
While chatting, he ordered two more skewers.
A new message appeared: "Why are you only eating now?"
Oikawa replied, "Spent the afternoon discussing Isshiki's student council campaign. Then I went to the gym for two hours."
"The gym?"
"Yeah. Need to get stronger. That way it won't hurt as much when you pinch me in the future." Oikawa added a crying emoji at the end for emphasis.
After a brief pause, Kawasaki responded: "That's because you're always doing weird things."
Oikawa grinned. "Weird things? You mean when someone pinned me down in the kitchen, stole my first kiss, and then demanded, 'Love me. Love me very, very much'? Heh! My innocence was taken that day. How am I supposed to explain that to the woman I marry in the future?"
Under Kawasaki's name, the familiar 'Typing...' indicator appeared.
Then disappeared.
No message arrived.
Oikawa sent five or six more messages, deliberately trying to provoke her. Still, no reply came.
Chuckling to himself, he put his phone away.
Half an hour later, after paying the bill, Oikawa started walking home.
As he walked, he wondered what to do for the rest of the evening.
He was honestly getting tired of gaming.
Just as Oikawa was thinking that, a familiar figure entered his line of sight.
She was carrying two black plastic bags.
As he drew closer, Kawasaki looked up and smiled.
Beneath the streetlights, her shadow stretched long across the pavement.
Oikawa suddenly stopped in his tracks.
It felt as if an electric current had shot through his body, leaving a pleasant numbness in its wake.
"You're back." Kawasaki smiled as he approached. "I bought you some curry. You said—"
Before she could finish, Oikawa pulled her into his arms.
Holding her tightly.
"Kawasaki, you're such an idiot."
"Mm."
"Kawasaki..." Oikawa's voice softened. "Would you ever leave me one day? Or just... stop talking to me?"
"No."
The answer came without hesitation.
"What if you did?"
"There is no 'what if.'"
Her voice was even firmer this time.
At that moment, Oikawa felt incredibly fortunate.
At least, in that moment, he was. Watching Kawasaki walk into his home and immediately busy herself in the kitchen, preparing food just for him, Oikawa couldn't help but feel genuinely happy.
"Once it's done, just keep it in the refrigerator." Kawasaki continued giving instructions. "This should be enough for about three meals. Whenever you want some, just let me know."
"Okay!"
Oikawa wrapped his arms around her from behind and rested his head on her shoulder.
The scene felt strangely familiar.
"Stop that." Kawasaki's cheeks reddened as she lightly slapped away his wandering hands. "I'm trying to cook."
"So you're saying I can do whatever I want when you're not cooking?"
"I didn't say that."
The blush spread from her cheeks to the back of her neck.
There was something irresistibly charming about her flustered expression.
"Why don't you stay tonight?"
"No." The rejection was immediate.
"Come on. Stay. I want to watch the moon with you tonight. It'll probably be beautiful."
"No." Kawasaki bit her lip. "You're not planning to watch the moon at all."
"I am." Oikawa put on his most innocent expression. "I never lie."
"The fact that you just said that is a lie."
Kawasaki mercilessly exposed him.
She had always known Oikawa was a terrible liar.
The problem was that she willingly fell for it anyway.
"Stop teasing me."
Her expression almost looked like a plea.
"I'm trying to cook."
At last, Oikawa released her.
Ten minutes later, the kitchen was filled with the rich aroma of curry.
Kawasaki expertly found several storage containers, packed the curry chicken into them, and placed everything neatly in the refrigerator.
"There. I've put it away for you."
"I also brought some pickled plums. They go well with curry rice."
She brushed off her hands.
"Then... I'll be going."
Kawasaki tried to make a quick escape.
Unfortunately, Oikawa was already blocking her path.
Not today.
Today, Kawasaki was staying.
He pulled her into his arms and guided her onto the sofa.
The atmosphere in the room immediately became warmer and more intimate.
"Kawasaki. Stay. I promise I won't do anything."
"I don't believe you."
"Seriously. I swear it." Oikawa looked at her earnestly. "I do tell the truth sometimes, you know. And... I don't want this to be the last time. So stay. Please."
Kawasaki bit her lip, only to feel his hands starting to wander again.
"You... stop moving around."
Her face grew even redder.
What a liar.
He claimed he wouldn't do anything, yet who would actually believe that?
The room seemed filled with an unmistakable tension.
Kawasaki's breathing became increasingly uneven, her cheeks flushed a deep crimson.
Then—
Ding-dong!
The doorbell rang.
Ding-dong! Ding-dong!
Again. And again.
Oikawa frowned.
"Someone's here." Kawasaki hurriedly spoke up. "Go answer the door first."
"Let them keep ringing."
Oikawa couldn't care less.
Damn it. He'd already come this far.
What if, the instant he opened the door, she chose to leave?
Unfortunately, the doorbell gradually stopped. Only to be replaced by loud knocking.
And shouting.
"Oikawa-niisan! Is my sister in there?"
"I need to talk to her!"
"Oi, Oikawa-niisan!"
"..."
Oikawa's brow twitched.
He finally let go of Kawasaki.
Kawasaki immediately jumped up from the sofa and frantically straightened her clothes and hair before hurrying to the door.
When she opened it, Taishi's face appeared on the other side.
"Sis. You told me to come find you around this time, remember?" He frowned suspiciously. "What were you doing in there?"
Behind him, Oikawa looked toward Kawasaki.
Just in time to catch the faintly mischievous smile tugging at the corner of her lips.
.
.
.