Carrying his schoolbag, a thoroughly drowsy Ishikawa Tooru yawned as he trudged lethargically toward the Toyogasaki Academy gates, three streets away.
Just then.
"Oh~ hi~ there~ Tooru!"
Pfft.... Barely keeping his balance as Yuki's playful slap almost sent him sprawling, Tooru stumbled forward a few steps before regaining his footing. He turned to glare complaininly at Yoshikawa Yuki, who was walking beside him with a bright grin. "Yuki, I almost fell."
"Hehe, sorry! Forgive me?"
Looking at her utterly perfunctory, non-apologetic demeanor and that blindingly sunny smile, Tooru could only sigh helplessly.
At this point, what else could he do?
Naturally, he chose to forgive Yuki.
"What were you doing last night?" Leaning forward slightly, hands clasped behind her back, Yuki tilted her head up and asked curiously. "Why so out of it this early?"
"Mm, accidentally stayed up too late gaming last night." Rubbing his eyes, Tooru yawned again, his voice slightly slurred.
"Eh? You still play games, Tooru?" Yuki sounded surprised. "Finals are in less than two weeks."
"Still gaming? Aren't you supposed to be studying?"
"Relax, relax." Hearing this, a confident, 'I've got it all under control' smile spread across Tooru's face. "We've got the great Lord Miyahito! Cramming at the last minute is no problem. Believe in the united Class B quartet, our power is invincible!"
"....." Watching Tooru deliver the most unreliable plan with absolute confidence, Yuki's mouth twitched. After staring speechlessly at his energetic self for a moment, she sighed heavily. "As long as you're happy."
The moment the words left her lips, a boy and a girl walking side-by-side, chatting and laughing with a perfectly harmonious atmosphere, suddenly stepped into Yuki's line of sight as she looked ahead.
Is... isn't that Utaha and Miyahito!?
Shocked by the scene, Yuki's neck stiffened as she turned her head toward Tooru, her hand unconsciously tugging his sleeve.
"Hmm? What is it, Yuki?" Noticing her subtle movement, Tooru turned to her, looking puzzled.
"Quick! Look ahead, Tooru!"
"?"
Confused, Tooru instinctively followed her gaze to the space directly in front of them.
The next second.
"I-Is that Miyahito and Kasumigaoka?!" His jaw dropped, eyes wide with disbelief. "Since when did they...?"
"Probably not yet." Having recovered from her initial shock, Yuki stroked her chin with a grave expression, looking like a certain famous detective. Her tone was serious. "But it looks like good things are approaching. We're gonna be busy, Tooru."
"Time to discuss preparing sekihan with Mama Hori!"
"Agreed." Tooru nodded solemnly. "When do you think we should bring it up?"
"After all, we need to book the Hokkaido Tokachi azuki beans early... Hm!?"
Mid-sentence, his speech faltered as he stared ahead. His eyes widened further. Beside him, Yuki's expression mirrored his exactly.
In their clear line of sight, they watched as:
Originally walking with arms almost touching, Kasumigaoka Utaha's left hand suddenly, naturally, and smoothly looped around Aragaki Miyahito's right arm, which was tucked in his pocket. Neither seemed to consciously notice it happening.
Then, whatever Miyahito said to Utaha...
She tilted her head up, a doting, faint smile on her delicate face, and raised her right hand (the one holding her bag), gently tapping the tip of Miyahito's nose with her index finger.
Even more unexpectedly, faced with Utaha's almost confessional gesture, Miyahito's cheeks flushed slightly, and he awkwardly turned his face away, looking embarrassed.
Good lord! Seriously, what the heck!
You two, are you sure you have your "roles" right?
Or is Miyahito the "female lead" in a shoujo manga, while Utaha is the "male lead"?
But even so, it didn't stop the overwhelmingly pink, couple-like atmosphere surrounding them.
In fact, The ambiguous vibe the two were radiating right now was almost too much for Tooru and Yuki to handle.
Is this the so-called "couple aura"? Ambulance! I need an ambulance!
Feeling overwhelmed by the sweetness, Tooru turned to Yuki and whispered, "Should we go say hi? If we keep following them, I think I'm gonna throw up."
"Ew, you're so gross, Tooru." Yuki shot him a deeply disgusted look, subtly edging away from him before returning her gaze to the couple ahead, her eyes practically sparkling with hearts. "I'm not gonna ruin their moment."
"They have such a nice atmosphere going on, and you're thinking of disrupting it."
"Honestly, what a romance-less man~"
Criticized, Tooru awkwardly scratched his head and muttered softly, "Isn't watching them make you a bit jealous though?"
"Damn, I really want a girlfriend as amazing as Kasumigaoka. Stupid Miyahito, so lucky."
Meanwhile.
"Utaha."
"Mhm? What's wrong, Miyahito-kun~?"
"Um..." His tone hesitant, Miyahito struggled with extreme difficulty to divert his attention from the incredibly distracting, heart-racing softness against his arm, while desperately trying to keep his eyes from drifting to the girl's equally captivating curves.
"Isn't it... a little... too close?"
Hearing this, Utaha's cheeks flushed, and she instinctively loosened her grip on his arm slightly.
But the next second, realizing she was backing down, Utaha forcefully suppressed the fluttering shyness in her heart. Ignoring her heating face, she feigned calmness and retorted, "A-A... Arara, could it be that Miyahito-kun d-doesn't like me doing this?"
...Uh, Utaha, your guilt is totally showing.
Catching the underlying meaning, Miyahito's mouth twitched. Stealing a glance at her slightly blushing profile and her guilty avoidance of his gaze, a sudden thought crossed his mind.
'Why not just confess to Utaha right here and now?'
But quickly, he dismissed the sudden idea.
Not for any special reason.
Just that.
'A confession this simple and rushed would feel like I'm shortchanging Utaha...'
At the very least, it should happen at the place where we truly met and understood each other.
To say those words.
「Please go out with me, Kasumigaoka Utaha.」
Yeah, a confession like that would truly be worthy of the beginning of our romance.
You think so too, right?
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