Chapter 5: Dream of Love
“—Well, I'll head out first, then.”
“Yeah. See you at the station.”
At long last, the morning of our school trip had arrived.
After seeing Mizuki off at the front door once she finished getting ready, I let out a slow breath.
So the day is finally here, huh?
Half of me was looking forward to it, while the other half was a bundle of nerves.
Touring Kyoto in the exact same group as both Mizuki and Kashiwagi-san—if you had told me a year ago that this would be my second-year school trip, I would have questioned your sanity in more ways than one.
...Well, no point overthinking it now.
Since there was no telling what might happen over the next four days, the least I could do was try my best to enjoy the trip.
Resolving to take things as they came, I locked up the house and headed out.
“—Oh! Look who finally showed up! You're late, Iori!”
By the time I arrived at our meeting spot inside Tokyo Station, most of our classmates had already gathered.
Raising a hand in greeting, I walked over to where Renji and Kashiwagi-san were standing.
“Morning.”
Wait... we were still well before the assembly time, weren't we?
Seeing Renji scowl at me made me wonder for a second if I had misread the itinerary sheet, so I quickly checked my wristwatch. Nope, plenty of time to spare.
As I tilted my head in confusion, Kashiwagi-san offered a wry smile.
“You're fine, Amano-kun. We still have ten minutes before roll call, and plenty of people haven't arrived yet.”
Reassured by Kashiwagi-san's words, I shot Renji a flat look. He merely raised his eyebrows indignantly.
“Are you kidding me?! I've been standing here on standby for a whole hour already!”
“What are you, a grade-schooler before a field trip?”
Just how excited was this guy?
And to think that back when Kyoto was first chosen as our destination, he had whined nonstop about wanting to go to Hokkaido or Las Vegas instead. What high school takes a class trip to Vegas, anyway? You'd lose your shirt at the slots in five minutes flat.
Tuning Renji out, I glanced around the concourse.
As usual, Mizuki was surrounded by a lively ring of classmates.
Although the battle over her trip group had supposedly been settled, several diehards clearly hadn't given up hope; I could see them pleading with her to tour with them just on the final day, leaving Mizuki with a faintly troubled smile.
“Ahaha... Yukimura-san really is amazing, isn't she?”
“...Ever since our group lineup was announced, the guys in class have been glaring daggers at me nonstop. Look, they're doing it right now.”
While Kashiwagi-san smiled wryly, Renji tugged on my jacket sleeve in mock tragedy.
Sure enough, half the boys in our class were staring in our direction like vengeful spirits.
With both Mizuki and Kashiwagi-san—our school's undisputed top two beauties—in the same group as us, the hostility from the male population went without saying.
Under a barrage of glares that practically screamed Off with their heads!, Renji was shivering like a soaked chihuahua. ...Yeah, sorry for dragging you into the line of fire, buddy.
“...Since I was the one who invited Yukimura-san, feel free to throw me under the bus and tell them it wasn't your fault.”
“Huh? N-Nah, I'm used to guys being jealous of my good looks anyway... Though I gotta say, you're taking all this attention pretty calmly, aren't you?”
“Well...”
When he put it like that, maybe I was.
Truth be told, I didn't have the mental bandwidth to worry about random glares from the guys—not when having Mizuki and Kashiwagi-san in the same group was taking up a hundred percent of my attention.
Even now, watching Kashiwagi-san gaze toward the crowd around Mizuki with a complicated look in her eyes made my stomach tighten.
Still, I had known what I was signing up for when I formed this group.
“Well, it's too late to change groups now anyway, so we might as well tune out the noise and enjoy the trip.”
“...True that.”
Chuckling wryly, Renji nodded in agreement.
Right as we finished talking, the clock struck our official assembly time.
“—Alright, listen up! Is everyone from Class 2-B here?!”
At class representative Goto-kun's call, everyone turned toward the front.
Once Goto-kun finished taking roll call and reported to our homeroom teacher, we were cleared to board the platform.
Finally freed from the crowd of classmates, Mizuki joined us as we filed onto our assigned Shinkansen car.
Although seating charts had technically been handed out in advance, nobody had the slightest intention of following them.
“How should we do the seats? Bullet trains are always awkward with the three-seat and two-seat rows.”
“Oh, I think we can rotate the seats to face each other!”
Pointing toward the base of the two-seat row, Kashiwagi-san indicated the foot pedal.
Oh, right—you could swivel Shinkansen rows around. Since I hadn't ridden a bullet train once since my parents moved overseas three years ago, I had completely forgotten about that feature.
“Nice catch! Ready, Iori?”
“Yeah.”
Stepping on the pedal together, Renji and I rotated the two-seat row a hundred and eighty degrees to face the row behind it.
That gave us a private four-person booth, and all down the car, the other groups were doing the exact same thing.
“Alrighty! Ladies first—please take the window seats!”
With a courtly bow, Renji gestured toward the inside seats. Mizuki, however, gave a small shake of her head.
“I don't mind taking the aisle seat.”
“Whoa, no can do, ma'am! ...In fact, I'm begging you on my knees, please take the window seat! If we make Yukimura-san sit on the aisle while we hog the window, your fan club is gonna murder us in our sleep!”
Pressing his palms together in desperate supplication, Renji cast a terrified glance toward the middle of the car.
Sitting a few rows away, the girls of Mizuki's royal guard were watching our every move with eyes cold enough to make a hardened mob boss flinch. Seriously, why were they so scary?
“...Just take the window seat, Yukimura-san. I'm pretty sure nobody in this car will be able to relax if you sit on the aisle.”
“? Really?”
At my nudge, Mizuki relented and slid gracefully into the window seat.
Right behind her, Kashiwagi-san pattered over like a polite little woodland creature.
“U-Um, then I'll sit next to Yukimura-san, if that's okay?”
“Sure.”
When Mizuki nodded, Kashiwagi-san let out a small breath of relief and sat down beside her.
I took the window seat directly across from Mizuki, while Renji dropped into the aisle seat next to me.
“Man... talk about a million-dollar view.”
“Huh? What view?”
Given that the train hadn't even pulled out of Tokyo Station yet, I shot Renji a puzzled look.
“Are you blind, man?! We're sitting right across from our school's top two beauties side by side! What else would you call this if not a million-dollar view?!”
“...”
How could this guy blurt stuff like that out when the girls were sitting two feet in front of him? Besides, hadn't we sat in the exact same arrangement at the family restaurant on Saturday?
While I rolled my eyes, Mizuki didn't bat an eyelash, and Kashiwagi-san merely laughed wryly at Renji's antics.
Apparently, however, Renji wasn't the only one in the car thinking along those lines.
“H-Hey, look at that booth over there...”
“Whoa, what kind of divine seating arrangement is that...?”
“Yukimura-san and Kashiwagi-san together... Quick, somebody get a camera and ask for permission to take a photo!”
Excited whispers rippled down the aisle—only for the girls of Mizuki's royal guard to rise from their seats like bouncers, instantly intimidating the boys back into silence.
Amidst all that lively commotion, the Shinkansen smoothly glided out of the station.
Now then... what are we supposed to talk about for the next two hours?
As the rest of the car settled into travel chatter, I mulled over our situation.
With both Mizuki and Kashiwagi-san sitting right across from me, I felt like I had to watch every single word that came out of my mouth.
For more reasons than one—though I figured Mizuki understood the need for discretion just as well as I did.
...Or so I had naively assumed.
“Amano-kun. Do you want some Pocky?”
“...Huh?”
Sitting directly across from me, Mizuki asked the question as naturally as if we were lounging in my living room.
“You like sweet snacks, right?”
Offering a soft smile, she pulled a chocolate-coated biscuit stick from the box in her lap and held the tip right up to my mouth.
Every muscle in my face locked up at once.
...Uh, hello, Mizuki-san?!
What do you think you're doing?! We're in the middle of a bullet train surrounded by our entire class! I pleaded silently with my eyes.
Mizuki merely tilted her head a fraction of an inch, her hand not wavering in the slightest.
“Wha—WHAAAT?!”
“Y-Yukimura-san?!”
Several rows away, half a dozen boys and girls practically launched out of their seats, while right beside us, Renji and Kashiwagi-san stared with their jaws on the floor.
With lethal bloodlust locking onto my head from all directions, Mizuki calmly kept holding the Pocky stick out in front of my lips.
...Right. Clearly, she had zero intention of holding back just because classmates were watching.
Realizing she wasn't going to lower her hand until I took it, I let my shoulders slump in resignation.
“...Thanks.”
Surrendering to the inevitable, I leaned forward slightly and took the Pocky stick from her fingers, crunching it down in two bites. The chocolate tasted bittersweet on my tongue.
Meanwhile, the murderous aura radiating from the rest of the train car had reached DEFCON 1.
“U-Um... Yukimura-san? Have you and Amano-kun always been this close?”
Predictably, Kashiwagi-san spoke up in a tiny, strained voice, her smile frozen at the edges.
All around the car, I could feel twenty classmates silently cheering Yes, ask her! in unison.
Keeping her eyes fixed fondly on my face, however, Mizuki answered without missing a beat.
“Who knows? It's just that Amano-kun's reactions are really cute.”
Smiling softly, she pulled a second Pocky stick from the pack and held it out toward me with a gentle “Here, have another.”
At that sight, fresh cries of anguish echoed up and down the train car.
“N-No way... The Ice Queen Yukimura-san is hand-feeding a guy?!”
“Well, well, well, Iori-kun... Care to explain yourself to the court?”
Across from me sat Kashiwagi-san looking as though the sky had just fallen; beside me sat Renji with a deadpan stare.
“...Uh.”
Honestly, I didn't even know what to say anymore.
With my stomach already tied in knots ten minutes into the journey, the bullet train sped westward toward Kyoto.
◇
After two solid hours of Mizuki's unapologetic doting giving me an ulcer, our train finally pulled into Kyoto Station.
The moment we stepped off the platform, every boy in class was glaring holes into my back, while the girls immediately swarmed around Mizuki.
I could hear them lecturing her in hushed, urgent tones—“Y-Yukimura-san, weren't you being a little too friendly with Amano-kun on the train?!” “Was I?” “Yes, you were! He might look harmless, but he's still a teenage boy! Let your guard down like that and he'll get the wrong idea!” Hey, what do you mean, look harmless?!
“—Now then, Iori-kun. Let's hear the full story from top to bottom, shall we?”
“Huh?”
“Don't ‘Huh?’ me, man! Why the heck was Yukimura-san practically spoon-feeding you snacks on the train?!”
Pointing an accusing finger toward Mizuki, Renji demanded an explanation, leaving me scrambling for words.
“Y-Yeah... Up until this trip, you and Yukimura-san barely ever talked in class, right, Amano-kun?”
Beside him, Kashiwagi-san looked up at me with wide, pleading eyes that practically begged me to tell her it was nothing.
“...She's probably just in high spirits because of the school trip, same as everyone else.”
I offered that weak excuse to brush it off... though even to my own ears, it sounded paper-thin.
Fortunately, our homeroom teacher clapped for everyone's attention right then, forcing both Renji and Kashiwagi-san to reluctantly drop the interrogation for the time being.
Breathing a silent sigh of relief, I glanced over toward Mizuki.
Surrounded by her classmates, her serene profile looked no different from any other day.
And yet... seeing how boldly she had acted on the train made me wonder how she really felt about having to hide our relationship in public.
A faint, lingering unease tugged at the corner of my mind.
—From Kyoto Station, we boarded chartered buses to our inn to drop off our extra bags before heading out for afternoon group sightseeing.
The instant our bus pulled up in front of the traditional inn, however, I did a double-take.
Normally, high school trips stayed at large, budget-friendly tourist inns—yet standing before us was an unmistakably high-end ryokan with a manicured timber facade.
I knew our academy was prestigious, sure, but were high schoolers really allowed to stay somewhere this luxurious when our trip fees had been completely standard?
“...Man, our school really spares no expense when it comes to stuff like this, huh?”
“I know, right?! According to the brochure, the guest rooms and open-air baths are gorgeous too! I can't wait!”
While Renji gawked up at the entrance gate, Kashiwagi-san beamed as she leafed through the inn's illustrated pamphlet.
“...Looks like a really nice place, doesn't it?”
Stepping up beside Mizuki as she gazed quietly at the courtyard, I spoke to her in a low voice.
“Yeah.”
Mizuki offered me a small, private smile.
Back when we were kids, my parents had naturally brought Mizuki along on all our family vacations... though I still remembered how unfazed a young Mizuki had been even when my parents splurged on a fancy hot-spring inn.
Picturing how deflated my mom and dad had looked back then made a fond chuckle escape my throat.
“Sorry, you two—Yukimura-san and I are going to drop our hand luggage off at the front desk real quick!”
“Gotcha. Take your time.”
“See ya in a bit!”
Renji and I nodded as Kashiwagi-san and Mizuki walked over toward the reception counter.
Although our large suitcases had been shipped ahead by courier, checking any extra bags before walking all over Kyoto was a smart move.
Since Renji and I had traveled light with only shoulder bags, we stood waiting near the edge of the lobby—until two shadows fell across the carpet beside us.
“—Hey, Amano. Got a minute?”
Turning around, I found two guys from our class standing right behind me.
...Sugiuchi and Tanaka?
Not only were they our classmates, they also happened to be the other two guys sharing our four-person room at the inn.
Our room roster consisted of Renji, me, Sugiuchi, and Tanaka.
Normally I only exchanged casual small talk with the two of them in class.
Right as I opened my mouth to ask what they needed—
“You're coming with us.”
“We have a few questions that require your immediate cooperation.”
Without warning, the two of them clamped onto my left and right arms like secret police and dragged me across the lobby.
“Huh?! H-Hey, wait a second—!”
As I was hauled off toward a quiet alcove by the vending machines, I shot a pleading look at Renji—who merely strolled along behind us with a huge grin on his face. Traitor.
Once they had me cornered in the alcove, they planted themselves in front of me.
“...Okay, what's the big idea?”
“Don't play dumb with us, Amano! How the heck did you get so cozy with Yukimura-san?!”
Sugiuchi—a burly, crew-cut guy from the track-and-field team—barked the question in a furious stage whisper.
He was one of the most diehard Mizuki devotees in our class; in fact, he was the exact guy who had tried inviting her to his trip group first and gotten verbally obliterated by her royal guard.
Having him witness Mizuki hand-feeding me Pocky on the bullet train had clearly pushed him over the edge.
Under Sugiuchi's bloodshot glare, I scrambled for a safe answer.
“...We're in the same trip group, so it's only natural that we talk a little, right?”
“That explanation fails to hold water, Amano-kun. For starters, it still defies all statistical probability that Yukimura-san accepted your group invitation on the spot without hesitation.”
Pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose with a sharp glint, Tanaka—our class's self-styled intellectual—chimed in.
Ranked second in our entire grade right behind Mizuki, Tanaka wore his hair in a textbook seven-three part and was the very definition of a straight-laced honor student.
Unlike effortless natural geniuses such as Mizuki or Renji, Tanaka earned his top marks through sheer, relentless study—which meant he and I actually traded exam notes fairly often.
“Furthermore, Yukimura-san ordinarily keeps conversation with male classmates to an absolute minimum. When I myself attempted to initiate dialogue with her previously, receiving a single word in reply was a rare triumph—and on multiple occasions, I received no reply whatsoever! Therefore, the degree of familiarity she displayed toward you on the Shinkansen is a complete anomaly!”
Tanaka leaned in until his glasses were practically touching my nose.
“Y-Yeah, what he said! Why are you the only guy she—Wait a second, Tanaka. What do you mean, you tried talking to her?! When?!”
“T-That is beside the point right now, Sugiuchi-kun! As the second-ranked student in our year, I merely sought to exchange courteous academic greetings with the top-ranked student—!”
“Why, you sneaky four-eyes! Trying to hit on Yukimura-san behind my back?! Unforgivable!”
“It is a complete misunderstanding!”
...Leaving my two roommates to strangle each other in the corner, I turned a flat gaze toward the spectator grinning beside me.
“...Having fun watching the show, Renji?”
“Who, me? Nah! Though I gotta admit, they're asking the exact same question I want answered: when did you and Yukimura-san get so close, anyway?”
Caught between three pairs of prying eyes, I inwardly winced.
No matter how I tried to spin it, Mizuki's behavior on the train had been way too obvious.
“...Beats me. Probably just a passing whim on her part.”
Playing dumb was the only card I had left.
Even after that, the three of them kept grilling me from every angle—
Until Mizuki and Kashiwagi-san came walking back across the lobby toward us, causing Sugiuchi and Tanaka to scatter like cockroaches when the kitchen light turns on.
“? Did Sugiuchi-kun and Tanaka-kun need something from you two?”
“Nothing important at all.”
Giving Kashiwagi-san an innocent shrug, I ushered everyone out the door to start our sightseeing route.
◇
December in Kyoto.
The air carried a chill entirely distinct from Tokyo's—that piercing, bone-deep cold unique to a mountain basin.
Thankfully, the winter sky above us was crystal clear, making for ideal sightseeing weather.
Together, the four of us climbed the bustling stone slope of Kiyomizu-zaka, where traditional souvenir shops and street-food stalls lined both sides of the lane amidst throngs of tourists and fellow school-trip students.
“Ooh, seasonal limited-edition yatsuhashi...! Look, Iori! Practically every shop on this street sells yatsuhashi!”
“Yeah, yeah, and you already ate three free samples at the last stall. Keep moving.”
Grabbing the back of Renji's collar, I hauled him back into line before he could wander off again.
Beside us, Kashiwagi-san was happily snapping photos on her phone every few steps as we climbed the slope. ...At the rate she was going, I half-worried her phone storage would fill up before Day One was even over.
Do girls actually go back and look through all the thousands of photos they take on trips...? Just as I was pondering that mystery, a towering vermilion gate came into view at the top of the slope: the Niomon Gate of Kiyomizu-dera.
Seeing the massive two-story vermilion gate in person carried an overwhelming presence that textbook photos couldn't begin to capture.
“Man, seeing a gate like this really makes it sink in that we're actually in Kyoto!”
“Yeah, it's breathtaking...”
Both Renji and Kashiwagi-san let out genuine murmurs of admiration.
Listening to them, I glanced sideways at the girl standing beside me with her usual tranquil, unreadable expression.
You're allowed to look at least a little impressed too, you know...
Noticing my gaze, Mizuki tilted her head slightly in question. Smiling faintly, I shook my head to say It's nothing and walked through the Niomon Gate with her.
Beyond the gate, another flight of stone steps led up toward the main hall. After climbing that long slope all the way from the bus stop, I worried the steep steps might be rough on the girls.
“Yukimura-san. How are your feet holding up?”
I kept my voice casual as I asked. Mizuki had decent stamina, sure, but walking uphill on stone pavement was still tiring.
Without even a hint of shortness of breath, however, Mizuki gave a calm nod.
“I'm fine. Switching to walking shoes before we left the inn was the right call.”
Glancing down, I noticed she had indeed swapped her school loafers for a pair of clean white sneakers. Leave it to her to come prepared.
“Gotcha. Still, let us know right away if you get tired, okay?”
“Mm, thank you.”
Seeing that she really wasn't pushing herself, I breathed a small sigh of relief.
Turning my head to the other side, I checked on our other group member as well.
“What about you, Kashiwagi-san? Holding up okay?”
“Oh! Yes, I'm totally fine!”
She answered in a bright, cheerful voice. I nodded, though I made a mental note to suggest a sit-down break once we finished touring the main hall.
“...You really pay close attention to everyone around you, don't you, Amano-kun?”
Kashiwagi-san offered a shy, slightly bashful smile, making me freeze for a beat.
Being praised so directly out of nowhere always left me feeling awkward and unsure where to look.
“...Well, we're all in the same group, after all.”
“Yeah... right. Because we're in the same group.”
Lowering her gaze slightly, Kashiwagi-san gave a faint, wistful smile.
◇
A few minutes later, we stepped out onto the world-famous wooden stage of Kiyomizu-dera.
Jutting out over the steep hillside on massive wooden pillars, the veranda commanded a sweeping panoramic view of the entire city of Kyoto.
“W-Whoa! Are you seeing this view?!”
Hurrying over to the wooden balustrade, Renji leaned out with shining eyes.
“The sky feels so wide up here... Photos really don't do it justice at all.”
Standing beside him, Kashiwagi-san let out a breathless sigh of wonder.
Walking up to the railing myself, I looked out over the landscape spreading below us.
Beyond the bare winter branches of the hillside trees stretched the grid of Kyoto's streets, framed by distant mountain ridges hazed in pale afternoon light.
As I stood taking in the view, I felt someone step quietly up to the railing right beside me.
Glancing over, I saw my childhood friend gazing out across the same skyline.
Her long black hair swayed gently in the crisp mountain breeze, her profile framed against the ancient capital.
“...It's beautiful.”
The murmur slipped from my lips before I even realized I had spoken.
“Yeah.”
Giving a small nod, Mizuki turned her ruby eyes toward me.
“I'm really glad we could see this view together.”
She whispered the words so softly that only I could hear them over the breeze.
Just as my heart caught at the tender warmth of her smile—
“Hey, everyone! Let's take a group photo together!”
Kashiwagi-san's bright voice called out from a few paces away.
“Ooh, great idea! Come on, Iori, Yukimura-san, squeeze in!”
Renji immediately waved the two of us over.
Holding up her smartphone, Kashiwagi-san switched the camera to selfie mode.
“Let's see if I can fit all four of us in the frame... Miyama-kun, scoot a little closer! You too, Yukimura-san!”
“Roger that!”
“Okay.”
All four of us huddled shoulder to shoulder in front of the railing, with the wooden stage and the Kyoto skyline filling the background on the screen.
Renji struck an unnecessarily suave model pose, Kashiwagi-san beamed with an adorable smile, and even Mizuki softened her expression into a gentle smile for the camera.
As for me... I was pretty sure my smile looked stiff as a board.
“Ready? Say cheese!”
Click. The electronic shutter chimed.
“Ooh, it turned out great! Look, look!”
Happily turning the screen around, Kashiwagi-san showed us the shot.
Right there on the display were the four of us framed against the sweeping panorama of Kyoto.
Sure enough, my own smile looked a little awkward around the edges... and yet.
“What do you think, Amano-kun?”
“Hm? ...Yeah, it's a really great photo.”
“Yay! I'll send it to everyone's LINE right now, then!”
Looking at the four of us together on the screen, I genuinely meant what I said.
When my phone buzzed a moment later with the image file of the four of us, I made sure to save it to my favorites folder.
—Certain that years from now, this photo would remain a precious memory.
◇
Leaving Kiyomizu-dera behind, we stopped by Yasaka Shrine and headed toward the Gion district.
Although we had already covered several kilometers on foot, Renji was still practically bouncing off the walls with energy, and Mizuki walked along as effortlessly as ever.
There was, however, one member of our group who was starting to lag behind.
“...Kashiwagi-san, are you doing okay?”
“Huh? O-Oh, yes! I'm totally fine!”
Despite the brave smile she flashed me, her footsteps had grown noticeably heavier over the last twenty minutes.
We had been walking almost nonstop on stone slopes and stairs ever since getting off the bus at Kiyomizu-zaka. While Renji, Mizuki, and I still had plenty of stamina left, Kashiwagi-san's cheeks were flushed and her breathing was growing shallow.
If we kept marching at this pace, she was going to wear herself out completely.
“Hey, Renji. Let's take a break.”
When I called out to the front, Renji glanced back with a puzzled look.
“Huh? Already? We're almost at the main strip of Gion, though.”
“No can do. My feet are killing me.”
Truth be told, my legs were completely fine—but blaming it on myself was the easiest way to get Kashiwagi-san a rest without making her feel guilty.
“Seriously, man? Since when was your stamina that pathetic?”
“Since forever. I'm an indoor person, remember?”
Shrugging nonchalantly, I shut down Renji's protests.
Beside me, Kashiwagi-san looked up at me with an apologetic, grateful expression.
“S-Sorry, everyone... Truthfully, I wouldn't mind sitting down for a little bit too.”
“Oh, gotcha! Why didn't you say so sooner? Let's duck into a café around here and grab a late lunch while we're at it!”
Immediately switching gears, Renji scanned the street ahead of us.
Passing through the gate of Yasaka Shrine onto the streets of Gion, we found ourselves surrounded by rows of atmospheric traditional townhouses.
Among them, a stylish café-restaurant caught our eye.
Its exterior blended Western brick accents with traditional Kyoto latticework, complete with a linen noren curtain over the entrance and a miniature moss garden by the doorway.
“Ooh, what about this place?”
When Kashiwagi-san pointed toward the menu board out front, Renji and I nodded in agreement, and Mizuki voiced no objection either.
As we pushed the wooden door open, the mellow strains of instrumental jazz welcomed us inside.
Warm amber lighting illuminated a cozy interior of polished dark wood, with several table booths along the windows and a quiet counter in the back.
Because it was already mid-afternoon, only a handful of other patrons were seated inside.
“Party of four? Please feel free to take whichever table you like.”
Guided by a polite waitress, we settled into a spacious four-person booth by the lattice window.
The instant Kashiwagi-san sank into her cushioned chair, a tiny, involuntary sigh of relief escaped her lips. Yeah, she really had been pushing herself hard; I should have called for a break twenty minutes ago.
“Man, this place has a seriously great vibe,” Renji said.
Looking around the room, he was already muttering something about keeping this café in mind for future dates—as if he could casually hop on a bullet train to Kyoto for an afternoon date.
Right after the waitress took our food and drink orders and we settled back to relax—
“Oh...”
Kashiwagi-san's eyes suddenly drifted toward the back corner of the café.
Following her gaze, I spotted a familiar dark-polished silhouette resting beneath a warm spotlight at the far end of the room.
“They have a grand piano in the back of this café,” Kashiwagi-san noted.
Then, she cast a quick, hopeful glance across the table at me.
Her eyes were practically sparkling with unspoken anticipation.
“...”
“...Just so we're clear, I'm not going up there to play.”
“Wha—?! I haven't even asked you yet!”
“It's written in capital letters all over your face.”
I firmly shook my head. Give me a break; Asahi had already ambushed me into playing a street piano at a shopping mall back in Tokyo, and I had no desire to make a habit of impromptu public recitals.
Unfortunately, the troublemaker sitting right next to me flashed a wicked grin.
“Excuse me, miss!”
“Hey, stop right there—”
“My buddy here is a killer pianist! Any chance guests are allowed to play a tune on that piano in the back?”
Before I could clamp a hand over his mouth, the damage was done.
Beaming, the waitress clasped her hands together and replied, “Oh, by all means! We allow customers to play during afternoon café hours—please go right ahead!”
“...Renji, you traitor.”
“Come on, man, when life hands you a stage like this, you've gotta show off a little! Besides, Kashiwagi-chan's dying to hear you play too, right?”
“Y-Yes! Honestly, I'd love to hear you play again, Amano-kun... T-Though if you really don't want to, please don't force yourself!”
Kashiwagi-san added the last part hesitantly.
Dammit. How was any guy supposed to say no after being asked like that?
Accepting my fate with a quiet sigh, I rose from the booth.
“...Just one piece, okay?”
“Woohoo! That's my boy!”
While Renji cheered obnoxiously, Kashiwagi-san's face lit up like a Christmas tree.
Before walking over to the back of the room, I cast a brief glance at Mizuki—who didn't try to stop me, simply watching me with her quiet, steady gaze.
“—Even if you never enter another competition, I'll always be right here listening to your piano, Iori.”
For some reason, her words from that night echoed through the back of my mind.
Well, Mizuki was sitting right here in the café listening too, so technically I was still playing for her. Telling myself that, I brushed the hesitation aside.
Sitting down on the piano bench, I noted that while the instrument was an older model, the keys and woodwork were immaculately maintained.
Resting my fingertips lightly on the ivory keys, I felt their cool, familiar touch steady my breathing.
...Now then, what should I play?
At the shopping mall atrium back home, I had played the third movement of Beethoven's 『Moonlight Sonata』.
In a quiet, intimate Gion café like this, however, a tempestuous piece like that would shatter the mood completely. I needed something gentler—something that blended into the afternoon warmth of this room.
In that case... this one should fit.
After a moment's thought, a single melody surfaced in my mind.
Franz Liszt's 『Liebestraum No. 3』—Dream of Love.
A melody at once tender, aching, and tinged with a quiet, wistful sorrow.
For this quiet café tucked away in the streets of Kyoto, no other piece felt more fitting.
Exhaling softly, I let my fingers sink into the opening notes.
Instantly, the gentle, rippling arpeggios drifted across the wooden room.
“...Oh, my.”
From one of the tables behind me, I heard a quiet murmur of admiration.
In complete contrast to the fierce urgency of 『Moonlight』, the melody of 『Liebestraum』 flowed like a warm, unhurried stream.
And woven into every phrase of that melody was a timeless story.
“—O love, love for as long as you can, for as long as you are able! The hour will come when you stand by the grave and mourn.”
Those were the original poetic verses upon which Liszt had composed this solo piano nocturne:
If you have someone precious in your life, cherish them with all your heart in this very moment—before the day comes when you are left with regrets.
I had known the poem behind the music since middle school, yet playing the melody today, those words carried a weight I had never truly understood back then.
Gently, the final high chords shimmered in the air and faded into silence.
Waiting until the last resonance died away, I slowly lifted my hands from the keyboard.
—Clap, clap, clap, clap.
Warm applause filled the quiet café.
Looking up, I saw the other patrons and the café staff smiling warmly as they clapped for me.
...As happy as it made me, being the center of attention up close like this still made my ears burn.
Giving a polite bow to the room, I hurried back to our window booth.
“That was incredible... You really are amazing when you play, Amano-kun.”
With a faint blush on her cheeks, Kashiwagi-san looked up at me with shining eyes.
Ducking my head slightly to hide my embarrassment, I slid back into my seat.
“Thanks.”
That single word was all I could manage without my voice cracking.
Glancing across the table at Mizuki, I saw her lightly clapping her hands together for me as well.
She didn't say anything out loud, yet seeing the soft, genuine smile on her lips eased the tension in my chest.
Beside me, meanwhile, Renji was resting his chin in his palm with the smuggest grin imaginable.
“You can thank me later, bro. Who else sets his best friend up to look that cool in front of two gorgeous girls?”
“I didn't ask for your help, thanks.”
Watching the two of us fall right back into our usual bickering, Kashiwagi-san let out a bright laugh.
—It was a peaceful, warm afternoon.
Lifting my cup, I took a sip of my now-lukewarm coffee. Deep down, I knew this fragile balance between the four of us couldn't possibly last forever.
Even so, I couldn't help wishing it would last just a little bit longer.
◇
After finishing our meal at the café in Gion, we spent the rest of the afternoon strolling through the historic district before returning to the inn around dusk.
Having rested her feet over lunch, Kashiwagi-san looked completely re-energized on the walk back, happily snapping photos of the lantern-lit alleys.
Better yet, the atmosphere between Mizuki and Kashiwagi-san hadn't felt nearly as awkward as I had feared.
At this rate, maybe we really would make it through the trip without any major incidents.
Or so I was thinking as I stretched out on the tatami mat in our guest room before dinner—
“—Alright, Amano, level with us. Which one of the two is your actual type?”
Sitting cross-legged across the low table, Sugiuchi folded his arms and leaned forward with a dead-serious look on his face.
“Which one of what?”
“Don't play innocent, man! Yukimura-san or Kashiwagi-san—if you had to pick one, which camp are you in?!”
“Oh... that.”
Classic boys'-room talk on a school trip. Carefully keeping my expression neutral, I gave the safest non-answer in the book.
“Who knows? They're both way out of my league anyway.”
“Booo! What a cowardly answer! Be a man and pick a side!”
Sugiuchi groaned in disgust and threw a floor cushion at my knee.
“If you ask me, the answer is unequivocally Yukimura-san. That peerless intellect combined with her refined grace—she is nothing short of the platonic ideal.”
“Aha! I knew it, Tanaka! You do have the hots for her!”
“I-I have told you half a dozen times today, Sugiuchi-kun, my admiration for her is strictly an appreciation of her academic excellence—”
“Yeah, right! Tell it to the judge, you closet Romeo!”
“It is a slanderous misunderstanding!”
Watching the two of them launch into Round Two of their afternoon squabble, I shifted into a cross-legged sit on my futon.
Unlike my bed at home, the firm tatami beneath the futon had a grounding, nostalgic feel to it.
“Anyway, I'll deal with Tanaka's treason later. Listen, Amano,” Sugiuchi said.
All of a sudden, the boisterous edge dropped out of his voice.
When I glanced over, he was looking at me with an uncharacteristically earnest expression.
“To tell you the truth... I'm planning on confessing to Yukimura-san before this school trip is over.”
“...!”
Inside my chest, my heart gave a sharp jolt.
By sheer effort, I kept my face from betraying a single twitch.
“...Is that right?”
“Don't laugh, okay? I'm dead serious about this. I've been in love with her ever since our first year... and I figured on the school trip, I might finally get a chance to talk to her alone.”
There wasn't a trace of joking in Sugiuchi's eyes.
And I didn't feel the slightest urge to laugh at him, either. Better than anyone in this room, I knew just how much courage it took to put your heart on the line and confess to someone who felt out of reach.
Even so—
...Hearing another guy declare he's going to confess to my girlfriend leaves a surprisingly bitter taste in my mouth.
I knew full well that boys confessed to Mizuki practically every other week.
Letting every single admirer get under my skin was pointless—and yet I couldn't help the dull knot tightening in my gut.
“...You don't need my permission to confess to her, you know.”
Muttering those words, I lay back flat on my futon and stared up at the wooden ceiling.
As long as I was keeping my relationship with Mizuki a secret from the class, I had no right to tell Sugiuchi not to confess to her.
Beneath the unfamiliar ceiling of the Kyoto inn, my own voice sounded hollow and distant in my ears.
“Y-Yeah, I guess you're right... Just promise you'll help console me when I get shot down in flames, okay?”
“Count me out.”
Pushing myself back up off the futon, I reached for my coat on the rack.
“Hm? Where're you heading, Amano?”
“Just going for a quick walk to get some air.”
Giving Sugiuchi a brief wave over my shoulder, I slid the screen door open and stepped out of the room.
...Right before the door slid shut behind me, I caught Renji watching me quietly from the corner of the room with a sharp, thoughtful look in his eyes.
—Out in the carpeted corridor, the inn was hushed and still.
Dinner had already wrapped up in the banquet hall, leaving the students with free time in their rooms or the baths—though outside the windows, night had already fallen completely.
Strictly speaking, students weren't allowed to leave the inn grounds after dark, yet right now I had an overwhelming urge to breathe in some cold night air.
Slipping across the corner of the lobby, I stepped through the glass sliding doors into the inn's enclosed courtyard garden.
—Instantly, the biting December air stung my cheeks.
Nighttime in the Kyoto basin carried a razor-sharp chill that cut right through my uniform; throwing my coat on first had definitely been the right call.
Soft amber path lights illuminated the traditional garden.
Moss-covered stone lanterns stood beneath bare winter maple branches, while the black mirror of the koi pond reflected the starry night sky above.
Watching my breath puff white in the darkness, I strolled aimlessly along the stepping-stone path.
And then, just ahead—
“...!”
At the edge of the pond, where the warm glow of the stone lanterns barely reached—
A lone girl stood motionless in the shadows.
Her long, glossy black hair swayed faintly in the night breeze.
Wrapped in a pure white winter coat, her slender shoulders looked almost fragile against the dark water.
The sight of her standing there sent a sudden, nameless pang of dread through my chest—
As if she might dissolve into the night air and vanish forever if I took my eyes off her for even a second.
...Why does this scene feel so painfully familiar?
Almost immediately, I knew the answer: I had felt this exact sensation countless times back in elementary school.
Late at night—whenever I realized Mizuki had slipped out of her house, my younger self would run desperately through the dark streets searching for her.
Driven by the frantic certainty that I had to find her before it was too late.
She had stopped wandering off at night years ago, yet to this day, I had never learned what she had been doing out there in the dark.
Before I knew it, my feet were moving down the stone path toward her. Even as I drew close, she remained standing motionless by the water.
“—Mizuki.”
With no one else around, I called her by her given name. Slowly, she turned her head toward me.
In the dim glow of the distant lantern, her porcelain features looked almost ethereally pale.
“...Iori?”
She didn't sound startled to see me; her voice carried the same quiet warmth it always did when we were alone at home.
Blinking once, she turned to face me fully.
“...What are you doing out here by yourself in the cold?”
“I could ask you the exact same thing,” she replied.
A soft chuckle escaped her lips.
“What brought you out here, Iori?”
“...Just wanted a breath of fresh air.”
Despite the freezing December night, she wasn't wearing gloves or a scarf—just standing out here in the dark garden.
Frowning slightly in concern, I stepped closer to her.
“You're going to catch a chill staying out here like this.”
At my words, Mizuki suddenly opened both arms wide.
“Will you warm me up, then?”
“...Not out here where anyone could look out a window and see us.”
With fifty classmates staying in the rooms right above the courtyard, hugging her here would be asking for trouble.
Unbothered by my refusal, Mizuki lowered her arms without complaint.
“This feels kind of nostalgic, doesn't it?”
“Hm?”
“Back when we were little, you always used to come find me at night just like this.”
For a beat, my breath caught.
So she had been thinking about those childhood nights just now, too.
“...Only because you kept wandering off into the dark without telling anyone.”
When I replied in a deliberately gruff tone, Mizuki didn't argue.
Side by side, the two of us looked out across the dark surface of the pond.
Far beyond the garden walls, the faint hum of traffic drifted through the winter night.
“Hey, Mizuki.”
Listening to the quiet night around us, a sudden thought occurred to me:
Now that we were finally together like this, maybe she would tell me the truth.
“What is it?”
“Back when we were kids... what were you always doing when you snuck out late at night?”
Why had a young Mizuki kept slipping out into the pitch-black streets alone?
No matter how many times I had asked her when we were little, she had never given me an answer.
“Nothing in particular, really.”
Her answer was a quiet murmur.
Just as I figured she still didn't want to talk about it and started to let the subject drop—
“It's just that back then... I didn't really care if I faded away at any moment.”
“...!”
It felt as though an icy hand had reached into my chest and seized my heart.
She had spoken those terrifying words in a calm, conversational voice, as if commenting on the weather.
Seeing me frozen in speechless shock, Mizuki offered a faint, apologetic smile.
“Don't worry. I don't feel that way anymore.”
Reaching out, she gently rested her fingers against my cheek.
Her fingertips were ice-cold from the night air. How long had she been standing out here alone? Without thinking, I raised my hand and wrapped my warm fingers around hers.
“Because I know that if I ever disappeared, it would make you cry, Iori.”
She said it with a helpless—and yet quietly happy—little smile.
The instant I saw that expression on her face, a sudden, dull throb lanced through my temple.
“...Ugh.”
Wincing, I raised my free hand to press against the side of my head. Immediately, Mizuki's eyes widened in concern, and she reached up to touch my hair.
“Does your old scar still ache?”
Taking a slow breath, I gave a small shake of my head.
“...I'm fine. Just a passing twinge.”
It was an old head injury from a traffic accident back when we were in elementary school; every once in a rare while, cold weather or fatigue made it ache briefly.
“I'm sorry, Iori.”
“Why are you apologizing for that...? None of that was your fault, Mizuki.”
Gently, I took the hand she was resting against my temple and lowered it in mine.
The brief throb had already subsided, and staying out in the freezing courtyard any longer wouldn't do either of us any good.
“Come on, let's head back inside before we both catch a cold.”
“Okay.”
Nodding obediently, Mizuki walked with me back toward the glass doors of the lobby.
Reluctantly, I let go of her hand before we stepped into the light.
The instant her fingers slipped from mine, the December night air felt twice as cold against my skin.
Yet right before we stepped across the threshold into the inn—
“Iori.”
“Hm? Wha—”
Rising onto her tiptoes in the shadow of the eaves, she pressed a quick, feather-light kiss to my lips.
As I stood frozen on the stone step, Mizuki offered me a tender smile.
“Good night.”
Leaving me with those whispered words, she slipped quietly inside ahead of me.
◇
SIDE: Kotoha
—God really isn't fair.
Sitting in the inn's communal bath, I—Kashiwagi Kotoha—found myself thinking that from the bottom of my heart.
“Kyaaa! Yukimura-san, your figure is unreal! Your legs are so long, and your waist is tiny!”
“W-Whoa, your skin looks like porcelain too... What kind of skincare routine do you use?!”
“Nothing special, really.”
“No way! You're totally hiding some secret beauty regimen from us!!”
In the large hot-spring bath—
Beyond the drifting white steam, a scene straight out of a painting was unfolding before my eyes.
Yukimura Mizuki-san already looked like a professional celebrity in her uniform, yet here in the bath, her proportions hardly seemed to belong to the same species as the rest of us.
Long, slender limbs; a trim yet graceful silhouette; and flawless porcelain skin gleaming in the warm mist.
Half the girls in our class had gathered around her, fawning over her with excited squeals.
Right in the center of the commotion, Yukimura-san wore a faintly troubled smile.
“...”
Meanwhile, I was soaking quietly by myself in a corner of the stone bath away from the crowd.
Even though I knew staring would only make me feel worse, my eyes kept drifting back toward her.
And every time I looked, a heavy weight settled deeper into my chest.
...She really is on a completely different level.
Her face, her proportions, her poise—there wasn't a single category where I could ever hope to measure up to her.
I had always known that in my head, of course... yet seeing the difference laid bare right in front of my eyes made my old sense of inferiority ache all over again.
Glancing down through the rippling water, I looked at my own reflection.
I watched what I ate and tried to take care of myself, so I didn't think my figure was bad by normal standards.
Still, compared to Yukimura-san's model-like height and long limbs, I was thoroughly average.
Well, if there was one single area where I had an edge...
...I guess my figure is a little fuller in one place, at least?
The instant that thought crossed my mind, a wave of self-pity washed over me.
How pathetic did I have to be to mentally compete with her using the one trait I had always been self-conscious about?
Thoroughly fed up with myself, I sank lower into the hot water until my chin dipped beneath the surface, blowing a little stream of bubbles—
“...Kashiwagi-san?”
A soft voice called out from right beside me.
Startled, I lifted my head from the water—and found that Yukimura-san had slipped away from her crowd of admirers and was standing right next to my spot.
“—?! Y-Yukimura-san?!”
Flustered, I hurriedly straightened my posture in the water. Seeing the most beautiful girl in our academy this close up made my heart thump against my ribs.
“Mind if I sit next to you?”
“Eh? O-Oh, no, go right ahead!”
As Yukimura-san tilted her head politely, I nodded so fast I nearly splashed water in my own face.
Lowering herself gracefully into the bath, Yukimura-san settled onto the submerged stone step right beside me.
...She was so close our shoulders were nearly brushing.
Seen through the drifting white steam, her profile looked even more breathtakingly unreal.
If someone had told me a year ago that I would end up soaking side by side in a Kyoto hot spring with Yukimura Mizuki, I never would have believed them.
“...”
“...”
A quiet silence settled over our corner of the bath.
I frantically searched my head for something—anything—to say, only to come up completely blank.
Even though we had been in the same class for nearly two years, the two of us had barely exchanged more than a handful of sentences before this trip.
And the reason for that distance lay entirely with me...
“...Kashiwagi-san.”
The one who broke the silence first was Yukimura-san.
“Y-Yes?”
“Do you dislike me?”
My breath caught sharply in my throat.
“...?! W-Why would you ask that?!”
“No big reason. I just always had the feeling that you were avoiding me.”
I froze completely, inwardly cursing myself for not denying it right away.
Faltering like this was practically the same as admitting she was right.
And truth be told... I had been avoiding her all this time.
Even if I tried to make up a polite lie now, those clear ruby eyes of hers would see right through me. Under her calm, steady gaze, I felt my shoulders shrink inward.
“T-That's, um... I'm really sorry. It's not that I dislike you at all...”
“Mm.”
“It's just, um...”
What was I supposed to say? How could I possibly explain myself?
Seeing me struggle for words, Yukimura-san spoke softly.
“I'm sorry for putting you on the spot. I wasn't trying to blame you.”
“Huh...?”
“It's just that... if possible, I wanted the two of us to get along.”
Her tone was as quiet and unassuming as ever.
Yet hearing those words made my eyes widen in genuine surprise.
All this time, I had been nursing a one-sided sense of inferiority and keeping my distance from her.
I had assumed that someone as dazzling as Yukimura-san barely even knew I existed.
Looking into her clear eyes as she waited patiently for my answer, I felt something inside me finally give way.
“...Um, listen, Yukimura-san.”
My voice came out as a quiet murmur, before I had even fully sorted out what I was going to say.
All I knew was that if I didn't say it right here and now, I would never have the courage to say it again.
“You know how... people at school call me the second cutest girl in our grade?”
The words spilled out before my brain could stop them.
Maybe the heat of the hot spring had gone to my head and loosened my tongue.
“...Yeah,” Yukimura-san replied.
Seeing her nod made a bitter, self-deprecating smile tug at my lips.
The second cutest girl. Saying a title like that out loud sounded unbearably vain, yet that was the label the whole school had pinned on me.
Tracing my fingertip across the surface of the hot water, I watched the tiny ripples spread and vanish.
“At the very beginning, I didn't mind it at all. I just figured people were paying me a nice compliment, and it made me happy. But before long... every time someone called me ‘Number Two,’ it started to hurt. Whenever boys confessed to me, it felt like they were only settling for me because they couldn't have you—like I was nothing more than a substitute for Yukimura-san.”
“...”
“And before I knew it... I couldn't even look straight at you anymore. Part of me started thinking that if only ‘Number One’ weren't here, nobody would ever compare me to you and call me ‘Number Two’...”
What was I doing, dumping ugly feelings like this directly onto the person herself?
Yet once the dam broke, I couldn't stop; every petty, suffocating thought I had kept bottled up for over a year came pouring out at once.
“...Pretty awful of me, right? Resenting you behind your back when you never did anything to me.”
Beside me, Yukimura-san remained silent.
No doubt I had offended her—and who could blame her? Nobody wanted to hear someone confess to resenting their very existence.
A wave of burning regret washed over me. I never should have opened my mouth.
Right as I bowed my head and stared down at the water in shame, however—
“...I'm really not as wonderful as everyone makes me out to be, Kashiwagi-san.”
“...Huh?”
For a second, I doubted my own ears.
Yukimura Mizuki... not as wonderful as everyone makes her out to be?
I almost blurted out What are you talking about? Anyone with eyes could see she was extraordinary in every way.
There was a limit to false modesty—in fact, coming from anyone else, it might have sounded like a veiled brag.
Afraid I might say something rude if I spoke recklessly, I bit my lip and waited.
“It's just that everyone around me seems to want me to be this flawless, untouchable ideal,” Yukimura-san continued.
Gazing out through the drifting white steam, she spoke in a quiet, distant voice.
“So I play the part they expect of me... so people won't be disillusioned and make a fuss.”
Her words left me completely stunned. Never once had I imagined her thinking something like that.
Disillusioned. To think that the school's untouchable Madonna carried a thought like that behind her calm mask.
“Because of that, though... I barely have anyone I can actually call a real friend.”
There was a faint trace of lonely self-deprecation in her voice that stole my breath away.
Yukimura Mizuki—the girl who had everything: peerless beauty, top grades, and the adoration of the entire school. Everyone in our grade believed that without question.
And yet, in reality...
...Ah.
Right then, the realization struck me like a physical blow.
For over a year, I had hated the way everyone reduced me to a label—the second cutest girl—instead of looking at the real me.
Yet who was it that had been doing the exact same thing to her—reducing her to the label of the flawless Number One without ever trying to see the girl underneath?
“...I see. I was doing the exact same thing to you, wasn't I?”
“...?”
Cupping a handful of warm water in my palms, I stared down at my own reflection wavering on the surface.
“All this time... I convinced myself that you were this untouchable, flawless person who lived in a different world from me. I let my own insecurities get the better of me, and in my head, I turned you into the villain.”
How unfair had I been? Yukimura-san hadn't done a single thing wrong; she had simply been born beautiful and worked hard at her studies.
Meanwhile, I had projected all my own insecurities onto her, avoided her, and envied her from afar.
“...I'm so sorry, Yukimura-san.”
My voice trembled with genuine shame at how small-minded I had been.
Turning her into a villain in my head to excuse my own cowardice—that was exactly what I had done.
Instead of facing my own shortcomings, I had blamed them all on her.
After a quiet moment, Yukimura-san slowly shook her head.
“You haven't done anything wrong, Kashiwagi-san.”
“...But I—”
When I started to protest, I caught sight of her face and fell silent.
Her expression was completely gentle, without the slightest trace of anger or contempt.
“If anything, I'm the one who caused you trouble without realizing it,” she said softly.
Murmuring that, she looked straight into my eyes.
“I'm sorry you had to go through that. And... thank you for telling me everything honestly. It made me really happy.”
“...!”
—Ah.
I had braced myself for her to dislike me, or at least look down on me.
And instead... she said something like that. Honestly, she didn't play fair.
When someone speaks to you that gently, how could you possibly hold your guard up anymore?
For the first time, I felt like I truly understood why so many students in our grade adored her.
There was a quiet, magnetic warmth to her words when she opened up to you—something that made you want to trust her, lean on her, and be seen by her.
“...Thank you, Yukimura-san.”
When I managed to whisper those words through the tightness in my throat, she gave a small, warm nod.
Silence settled between us once more—only this time, the suffocating awkwardness from earlier had vanished completely.
Around us, the white hot-spring mist drifted softly through the air.
...From now on, I wonder if the two of us can become real friends.
Before I knew it, that wish had taken root in my chest.
Not with an untouchable goddess on a pedestal, but with the girl named Yukimura Mizuki.
She had stepped down from the crowd to face me honestly—which meant I needed to face her honestly in return.
“W-We should probably get out of the water soon before we get dizzy!”
“Mm.”
Saying that to hide my blushing cheeks, I stood up from the bath with a gentle splash.
We still had two whole days left on this school trip.
I wanted to talk with her more, and come to understand her properly.
Wanting so genuinely to get to know another person—it was the first time I had felt that way since meeting that boy in the library.
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