Shioyaki Lemon dumped the entire large bundle of colorful fireworks onto the ground with a "clatter."
"Alright! Everyone, come and pick! First come, first served!"
She was the first to pull out a common handheld sparkler and lit the fuse.
"Sizzle—"
With a slight burning sound, sparks burst from the tip of the sparkler, tracing a brilliant arc in the night sky.
"Oh oh oh! It's lit, it's lit!"
Shioyaki Lemon waved her arm, the sparks tracing paths in the air along with her movements, making her smiling face look exceptionally radiant.
"Anna! Quick, come here! This is super fun!"
"Coming, coming!"
Yanami Anna was clearly infected by this pure joy. She walked quickly to the pile of fireworks and began her selection with great interest.
Her eyes scanned over the fireworks, and she soon found the styles she liked.
"Senpai! Koma! You guys come and pick too!"
Yanami Anna picked up two sparklers that looked like little stars, turned around, and handed them to Tsukinoki Koto and Koma Chihana. "These look so cute! Let's each have one!"
Tsukinoki Koto smiled as she took the sparkler.
Koma Chihana hesitated for a moment before carefully taking it from Yanami's hand, whispering a "thank you."
After distributing them, Yanami Anna rummaged through the pile for a while longer, finally picking a handheld sparkler identical to the one in Shioyaki Lemon's hand, and walked over to Imaizumi Keita's side.
"Here, this is for you."
She stuffed the sparkler into his hand and then chose an identical one for herself.
The two of them walked to a slightly more open area and, standing side by side, used a long-handled lighter to ignite their fireworks at the same time.
Two bursts of silver-white sparks bloomed in the night simultaneously, like two brief meteors, leaving bright reflections in each other's eyes.
Yanami Anna turned her head to look at the profile beside her that she had seen many times, and her heart still skipped a beat uncontrollably.
She subconsciously waved the firework in her hand, drawing a small, crooked heart in the air.
Imaizumi Keita noticed her movement and followed suit, waving his arm to draw a more complete heart that perfectly enclosed her small heart within it.
Yanami Anna's cheeks flushed red instantly under the glow of the sparks.
This guy...
Really...
On the other side, Tsukinoki Koto stood quietly beside Tamaki Shintaro and lit the firework in her hand.
With a soft "pop," orange-yellow sparks bloomed from five corners simultaneously, accompanied by a faint crackling sound.
The light of the firework was warm, making the gentle smile on Tsukinoki Koto's face appear even softer.
She turned her head, looking at her childhood sweetheart beside her with anticipation, wanting to share this small joy with him.
However, Tamaki Shintaro wasn't looking at her at all; he didn't even spare a glance at the firework in her hand.
He was squatting on the ground, excitedly rummaging through the pile of fireworks, muttering to himself.
"Oh oh, this one looks amazing... It's actually a Color-Changing Fountain! And this one, 'Earth Dragon'? It sounds so cool just from the name..."
The smile on Tsukinoki Koto's face froze bit by bit.
Looking at this childhood sweetheart whose mind was entirely focused on the fireworks on the ground, that familiar annoyance surfaced in her heart again.
She waited silently for the firework to burn out, then lifted her foot and gave Tamaki Shintaro a firm but not too heavy kick on the back.
"Hey, Shintaro."
"Ow! That hurts! Koto, what was that for!"
Tamaki Shintaro clutched his back and turned around with an innocent look.
Tsukinoki Koto glared at him with those eyes that were usually full of smiles, her tone filled with obvious complaint.
"Watch the fireworks a little, will you!"
"Aren't I looking for fireworks right now?"
Tamaki Shintaro scratched his head, somewhat bewildered. He pointed at the pile of fireworks. "Isn't it better if we play with the biggest one together later?"
"Hmph."
Tsukinoki Koto let out a soft hmph from her nose. She pulled a larger sparkler from the pile, turned her face away, and said gloomily, "The firework I chose is so big, of course it's meant for two people to light together."
"I know, I know."
Tamaki Shintaro responded perfunctorily, but his gaze was already drawn to a firework with a giant dragon head printed on the packaging.
Seeing him like that, Tsukinoki Koto felt a sense of powerlessness wash over her.
Forget it.
This guy has always been like this.
She sighed and silently brought her new sparkler close to the lighter.
After the fuse was lit, the tip flickered with a few sparks and then went dead.
It went out.
Even the fireworks are working against me...
An indescribable sense of loss suddenly enveloped Senior Tsukinoki.
She looked at the dud sparkler in her hand, and as if possessed, she wanted to see if there was something wrong with the fuse.
Subconsciously, she pointed the sparkler's nozzle right at her own face.
At the exact moment she leaned in to observe—
"Sizzle—!!!"
The previously dud fuse suddenly flared back to life and burned out, causing the sparkler to spray a hot and blinding stream of fire!
With a sharp whistling sound, the orange-red sparks sprayed directly toward Senior Tsukinoki's stunned face!
"Koto!!"
A voice filled with worry and horror exploded in the night.
Tamaki Shintaro, who had been buried in the task of picking out fireworks, reacted almost the instant the sparks sprayed out.
With an explosive power completely at odds with his usual lazy demeanor, his body lunged toward Senior Tsukinoki!
Time seemed to slow down at this moment.
Senior Tsukinoki only saw a figure shield her with a posture of absolute determination, his palm grasping the sparkler that was frantically spraying fire without a hint of hesitation.
"Clap!"
The moment Tamaki Shintaro gripped the firework with his palm, he violently flung it toward an empty area.
The out-of-control firework traced an arc in mid-air, finally landing on the distant ground and sputtering noisily until it went out.
The entire process took no more than two seconds.
It wasn't until the dangerous firelight had completely vanished that Senior Tsukinoki belatedly realized what had just happened.
The surrounding air was still filled with the pungent smell of gunpowder smoke.
"Are... are you okay? Koto?!"
Tamaki Shintaro's voice still carried lingering horror and lingering fear. He grabbed Senior Tsukinoki's shoulders, nervously checking her over.
"Did you get burned? Your face? Your eyes?!"
Senior Tsukinoki looked at him blankly.
She looked at his face, which appeared somewhat distorted due to anxiety, and his eyes, which were filled with worry.
Then, her gaze slowly fell upon the hand he had just used to grab the firework.
The palm of his right hand had already been scorched into a patch of red marks.
Senior Tsukinoki's heart felt as if it had been ruthlessly wrenched by something.
She didn't answer his question, only staring at that injured hand. After a few seconds, she asked in a trembling voice:
"Shintaro..."
"At a time like this, shouldn't you... be more worried about your own hand?"
Who could understand the sense of salvation when an update of six chapters suddenly becomes sixteen?
-------------------------
If you enjoy this story, you can read 70+ advanced chapters on Patreon!
Webnovel will keep getting 1 new chapter every day but Patreon readers can stay far ahead.
Maybe it's not a big deal now… maybe it will be later.
[email protected]/Rexlent
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"