Chapter 13: 100% Girlfriend

♡♡♡

“Preparations are pretty much done. Pamphlets are printed, so we’re all set, all set.”

Hamanami says.

It’s a late autumn evening, on the way home from school.

The work for the cultural festival committee has wrapped up, and now we just wait for the day.

“Oh, let’s stop by the convenience store. My treat—karaage okay?”

Hamanami suggests, so we pop into the store.

We eat karaage outside the shop.

Convenience store snacks are personal. Hayasaka-san often goes for nikuman, while Tachibana-san eats ice cream even on cold days.

“Um, Kirishima-senpai, about that thing……”

Hamanami says, fidgeting.

“Oh, you mean Tachibana-san being the prize for the escape game?”

“Y-yeah, that’s it.”

“Tachibana-san said she’ll turn it down.”

At my words, Hamanami looks relieved.

“You’re quite the girl, huh, Hamanami?”

“Well…… even if it’s just a jinx, winning means marriage, so……”

“You really like Yoshimi-kun, don’t you?”

“I’m not even sure myself. I only started noticing him recently. I used to think he was just a goofy guy……”

Apparently, Yoshimi-kun started playing basketball in elementary school because of a manga. But he got surprisingly serious, making it to nationals in middle school. In high school, the level’s higher, and he’s struggling on the bench. Still, he doesn’t give up, practicing late at the park.

“I just…… started thinking he’s kind of cool……”

But, Hamanami says sadly:

“Then he suddenly started saying he likes Tachibana-senpai. Back when we were kids, he used to say he’d marry me……”

“It’ll be fine. Your love will work out, Hamanami.”

“How can you say that?”

“Tachibana-san told me. Childhood friends are the strongest.”

“……Oh, right, you and Tachibana-senpai met when you were kids too, didn’t you?”

Finishing our karaage, we start walking toward the station.

“Tachibana-san seems nicer than I thought. Has she changed, or was she always like that?”

“Who knows? She’s hard to pin down. Whimsical, a bit of an artist’s soul.”

Also, she’s a type AB personality and left-handed.

“I feel like she’s got a surprisingly girly, romantic side.”

Hamanami says.

“So this time, wasn’t she actually waiting for you, Kirishima-senpai?”

“Waiting for me?”

“The escape game prize thing. Maybe she was hoping you’d join the game, win first place, and compete with her in the Best Couple Championship?”

“Nah, that’s……”

“Well, it’s just my imagination. But don’t forget about getting kicked through the door.”

I know Tachibana-san has a fiery side.

“That said, she’s definitely got more composure than the other one.”

“Hayasaka-san, huh……”

“It’s all your fault, Kirishima-senpai.”

Hamanami says.

“There’s that psychology where you want to chase someone who’s running away.”

“The snob effect, right?”

“The fact that you like Tachibana-senpai the most creates a situation where Hayasaka-senpai can’t stop chasing you.”

It’s like the snob effect is always active.

“No wonder Hayasaka-senpai’s gone yandere. The snob effect is one of the stronger psychological triggers.”

That’s been proven in psychology experiments.

The more I say I like Tachibana-san, the more Hayasaka-san wants to chase me.

“Must be nice, being liked that much.”

Hamanami says.

“Can’t I use the snob effect to get Yoshimi’s attention?”

“How would you do that?”

“Like this?”

Hamanami links arms with me.

“Nah, this is too much. Before he chases you, he’ll just think you and I are dating.”

“Right.”

Even so, Hamanami keeps clinging to my arm.

“Ugh, this is what I wanna do—not with you, Kirishima-senpai, but with that idiot Yoshimi!”

“Don’t use me as a practice dummy.”

“Anyway, I’m no good for practice compared to Tachibana-senpai or Hayasaka-senpai. I’m just a kid next to them.”

While playing this lover simulation, we reach the plaza by the station.

Maybe it’s a wild instinct, but I feel a chill down my spine and look around—

A girl stands up from a bench, staring at us.

Hayasaka-san.

Expressionless, she tilts her head, looking at my arm linked with Hamanami’s.

“Hey, Kirishima-kun, am I…… an unwanted girl?”

♡♡♡

“How long were you waiting?”

“Not long. Just three hours or so.”

Hayasaka-san says it like three hours is nothing, her face sincere. When I look flustered, she just tilts her head innocently, as if to say, Why?

We’re sitting side by side on a bench by the station.

Hamanami, who was linked with my arm, apologized profusely to Hayasaka-san before leaving.

As she left, I said, “Don’t pull too many tricks when you go for Yoshimi-kun,” and she shot back, “You’re one to talk!!” Fair point.

“Aren’t you cold, Kirishima-kun?”

Hayasaka-san tries to wrap her scarf around my neck.

“No, you’re the one who’s cold.”

Hayasaka-san’s cheeks are pale from waiting on the bench.

“If you’d messaged me, I could’ve left the committee early.”

She says, “It’s fine.”

“I don’t want to be a burden to you, Kirishima-kun.”

I buy a hot tea PET bottle from a vending machine and hand it to her.

She takes it, happily warming her hands. Looking at her like this, she’s really an adorable girl.

“Hehe, it’s so you, Kirishima-kun.”

“Wanna go into a shop or something?”

“No, this is fine.”

I just wanted to talk slowly for once, she says.

“Hamanami-san was really scared, huh?”

“Because you were smiling while intimidating her.”

“Maybe I overdid it. I’m not actually bothered. Arm-linking? Totally fine, not a bit bothered. I decided to be a good girlfriend who’s okay with that stuff.”

“Uh, yeah……”

“Besides, I hang out with other guys too, Kirishima-kun.”

“Huh?”

“Yanagi-senpai.”

Apparently, they’ve been in touch a lot lately.

“That’s great.”

“Yeah. He talks about career stuff, even pretty personal things.”

“Oh, right, senpai said you’re cute, didn’t he?”

“Yes!”

Hayasaka-san clenches her fist triumphantly, then suddenly looks at me, alarmed.

“S-sorry. I…… it’s not like that, Kirishima-kun, please don’t hate me……”

She looks like she’s about to cry. She’s still so unstable.

It’s okay, I say soothingly.

“Yanagi-senpai’s your number one, right?”

“Yeah, right? But seeing you look a bit down just now made me happy.”

She hugs my arm. It’s been a while—her soft, gentle touch.

“So, things are going well with Yanagi-senpai?”

“Yeah. The other night, he called me out of the blue.”

“That’s a big deal. You don’t do that unless you’re really close.”

“Yeah. He had something to talk about.”

“What?”

“He saw you and Tachibana-san walking hand-in-hand.”

A cold wind blows through.

Yanagi-senpai and I use the same station. When Tachibana-san came to my house, I walked her back to the station, holding hands the whole way. He must’ve seen us.

“It’s not true, right?”

Hayasaka-san asks, her eyes hollow.

I reflexively lie, “Y-yeah……”

“Right. So I told senpai…… it was definitely a mistake.”

Hayasaka-san says, her bangs hiding her expression.

“Because there’s no way you’d do that, Kirishima-kun. Not while I’m trying so hard. You wouldn’t do something that cruel, you wouldn’t betray me, Kirishima-kun, Kirishima-kun, Kirishima-kun, Kirishima-kun.”

“Hey, Hayasaka-san—”

“If I can win senpai over, everything will work out. Then you won’t have to betray him, and I can stay friends with Tachibana-san. I really like her. So I need to hurry and win senpai over. Then nothing will break.”

She grips my arm tightly, almost painfully.

“You’ll wait for me properly, right, Kirishima-kun? You won’t become a bad person, right? No, you wouldn’t. It’s you, Kirishima-kun. I trust you.”

She probably senses something but doesn’t want to believe it, clinging to an idealized version of me, on the verge of breaking. Unable to watch, I say:

“What if…… I’ve already become a bad person?”

I thought maybe I should confess everything, even if it disappoints her. But—

Her reaction is unexpected.

If I’ve become a bad person—

“That’s my fault. Yeah, I get it now. It’s all my fault.”

“Huh?”

“I’m not good enough, I can’t satisfy you, Kirishima-kun, so you can’t wait properly. It’s all because of me. Because I’m a bad girl…… So…… I just need to become a good girl. Then you’ll wait properly, you won’t betray senpai, you’ll wait until I win him over, if I can satisfy you—everything will work out!”

Looking up, her expression is brighter than ever.

Wait for me, she says cheerfully.

“I’ll become a good girlfriend. I’ll be your 100% girlfriend, Kirishima-kun!”

♡♡♡

To keep Kirishima-kun from becoming a bad person.

Hayasaka-san started working hard to become a “good girlfriend.”

The logic is that if I’m satisfied with her, I won’t approach Tachibana-san at this delicate moment, betraying senpai.

“Kirishima-kun, the history notebook’s due. You good?”

In the morning classroom, Hayasaka-san approaches with a bright smile.

“I skipped a lot, so I’m kinda screwed.”

“I’ve got it all written. Wanna copy?”

“Thanks.”

“Then lend me your notebook, Kirishima-kun.”

“Huh?”

“I’ll copy it for you.”

She forcibly grabs my notebook from the desk, trips over her own feet, and dashes back to her seat. By the end of the day, she returns it. The pages she wrote are in cute, colorful handwriting.

Hayasaka-san’s idea of a good girlfriend seems to be a deeply devoted one.

And, being Hayasaka-san, she sometimes goes a bit overboard.

A few days after her 100% girlfriend plan kicked off.

During lunch, pretending to nap at my desk, I overhear classmates talking.

“Hey, hasn’t Hayasaka-san been with Kirishima a lot lately?”

“Yeah. She made cookies in home ec and brought them straight to him.”

“When Kirishima mentioned a new gummy, she bought it the next day and handed it to him.”

“That just makes Kirishima a freeloader.”

My relationship with Hayasaka-san was supposed to be secret, and we barely spoke in class to keep our distance.

That’s completely fallen apart.

I figure I need to gently warn her, when someone taps my shoulder.

It’s Hayasaka-san herself.

“Hey, Kirishima-kun, you’ve been buying bread at the school store lately, right? You used to bring bentos.”

“My sister was making them, but she suddenly stopped for some reason.”

Got it, got it, Hayasaka-san says, looking delighted.

“Then I’ll make them for you starting tomorrow.”

She flashes a peace sign.

The guys in class watch us from a distance, starting to whisper.

“Hey, Hayasaka-san, aren’t you being a bit too open about talking to me?”

“Why?”

“It’s just, at this rate, people might start saying stuff……”

“But I need to satisfy you first, right, Kirishima-kun? Or you’ll become a bad person. It’s okay, I get it all. I can handle it alone.”

“Um, Hayasaka-san—”

“Yup, it’ll definitely work out!”

She clenches her fist, looking determined.

“So look forward to tomorrow!”

Thus began my homemade bento life with my girlfriend.

Hayasaka-san makes bentos, and during lunch, we stagger our trips to the Mystery Research Club room to eat together. That’s how our days go now.

Ignoring the eyes around her and the “second girlfriend” rule, Hayasaka-san is throwing everything into being a “good girlfriend.”

When I show up with bedhead, she laughs and pats it down. After school, we meet up, chatting about nothing as we walk home.

Ignoring the contradiction with her number-one love for Yanagi-senpai, these are fun days.

I think this must be what it’s like to have a cute girlfriend in high school.

If Hayasaka-san and I were each other’s number one, maybe this could’ve been our future.

I even think, That would’ve been nice. But—

“Kirishima-kun, what’s wrong?”

Hayasaka-san says.

“Your chopsticks stopped. Is something not to your taste? You can tell me, it’s okay.”

“No, it’s fine. It’s all stuff I like. Nothing I dislike, and it’s all delicious.”

It’s lunch in the clubroom.

We’re eating her homemade bento together, as usual.

“If something’s missing, let me know. I’ll do anything.”

“It’s more than enough already. You’re really good at cooking, Hayasaka-san. You’ll make a great wife.”

“Really!? I’m so happy! I can be not just a good girlfriend but a good wife too!”

As she says it, she moves from the sofa across from me to sit close, snuggling up.

“We’re at school, you know.”

“Just a little.”

Like a clingy animal, she rubs her head against me.

She’s truly cute, a perfect girlfriend.

“I listened to that radio show last night. It was so fun!”

She starts talking about the radio program I always listen to.

“And I read a mystery novel. Some parts were tough, but the moment the mystery clicked felt amazing!”

She’s even started reading mysteries lately.

“Alright, I should head back.”

She packs her lunchbox into a cute bag and starts to leave the clubroom.

Maybe I could keep up this surface-level fun.

But it’s just an image. A wouldn’t it be nice fantasy that doesn’t make anyone happy.

So I say it anyway.

“Hayasaka-san, I really do like you properly.”

“I’m happy you say that!”

“So I don’t want you to push yourself.”

She stops at the door, turns back, and says with a puzzled expression:

“I’m not pushing myself at all?”

“Getting up early to make bentos, listening to the radio, reading mysteries—when do you even sleep?”

“I don’t need to sleep. It’s all to become your ideal girlfriend, Kirishima-kun.”

“Hayasaka-san……”

“I don’t have anything, you know? Unlike Tachibana-san, I don’t have anything to make you love me. So I have to try hard. To make you like me. It’s okay, I’ll make sure it doesn’t look like I’m pushing myself this time. Sorry for not being thoughtful. I’m not as clever as Tachibana-san. But I’ll get there. I’ll get there soon. So, wait for me.”

Hayasaka-san says in a positive tone.

“If you fall head over heels for me, Kirishima-kun, everything will work out. You won’t have to become a bad person. If I become the perfect girlfriend—”

“But this isn’t good for your number-one love either. People are starting to talk about us.”

“Yeah, I’m kind of a mess, huh? Tachibana-san’s your number one, so it’s not about me asking you to wait until I win over senpai. I know all that. I understand it, and I’m doing this on purpose. It’s a decision I thought through.”

Because, she says.

“I’m an idiot, so I keep falling more and more for you, Kirishima-kun. I can’t help it.”

♡♡♡

“You broke Akane again, didn’t you?”

Sakai says.

Hayasaka-san’s friend, usually a plain girl with glasses. But take off the glasses and pin up her bangs, and she’s a mature, love-savvy girl.

“It’s something Akane chose herself, though.”

It’s a rainy autumn morning.

I’m skipping first period, talking with Sakai at the bike racks.

“Akane brushed off a guy’s hand recently.”

“Yeah, I saw that.”

It happened in the hallway when a third-year guy tried to touch her.

“Hayasaka-san, let’s hang out at the festival.”

The guy said, reaching for her shoulder.

“Don’t touch me!”

Hayasaka-san swatted his hand away dramatically, and the guy looked pissed. He probably felt humiliated, rejected in front of everyone.

After he left, Hayasaka-san was visibly shaken.

“She’s trying to grow out her hair too. Know why?”

“She’s trying to be Tachibana-san.”

“Exactly. To match your tastes, Kirishima.”

The radio and mysteries are the same. She decided that’s my ideal.

“Everyone changes themselves a bit to fit someone else, but Akane’s overdoing it.”

“Hayasaka-san said she ‘doesn’t have anything.’”

“You and Tachibana-san are too compatible, so she’s comparing herself.”

Akane’s got low self-esteem, Sakai says.

“What triggered this?”

“Me holding hands with Tachibana-san.”

“You’re really going for it, huh?”

“Yanagi-senpai saw it, apparently.”

“That’s a full-on drama.”

“Hayasaka-san’s convincing herself it was a mistake.”

“She doesn’t want to face reality.”

That’s why she broke, Sakai says.

“If Yanagi-kun falls for Akane and they get together, everyone’s happy. The Yanagi-Tachibana line would fizzle out. But that’s impossible. I don’t see Yanagi-kun going for her.”

“I think so too.”

“Akane should just admit it. You’ve become her number one.”

It’s natural to fall for someone you’re close to, Sakai says.

“Either way, if you’re continuing this relationship, take care of her.”

“How?”

“Start by helping her. She’s in a pinch right now.”

“What’s going on?”

“That third-year whose hand she swatted? He’s holding a grudge.”

Hayasaka-san mimicked Tachibana-san’s strong rejection, and it backfired.

“Got it.”

“Obviously. You’re her only boyfriend, even if you’re second.”

“But even if I help, she won’t stop trying to be Tachibana-san.”

That’d just repeat the cycle.

“True. You need to strongly affirm her as she is.”

“I don’t know how to do that.”

“You’re surprisingly dense, Kirishima.”

There’s a simple, highly effective way, Sakai says.

“Just do what normal couples do with her.”

♡♡♡

Doing intimate things like grown-up couples do. That’s definitely the ultimate affirmation.

You only do that with someone you fully accept. Doing it feels like a guarantee of their affection. Interpreting it as a confirmation of love is pretty accurate.

If that can strongly affirm Hayasaka-san, I should seriously consider it.

But the weight of that act is too heavy for me to decide yet.

Either way, I have something to do first.

“So, where are we headed?”

Maki asks.

“Convenience store.” I answer.

It’s after school, the rain has cleared.

Sakai told me a few guys are waiting at the convenience store to aggressively hit on Hayasaka-san and take her away. The guy she rejected bragged to some delinquent upperclassmen about a “cute, easy” girl at his school, and that’s why.

“Why am I coming along?”

Maki says, walking beside me.

“There’s a few of them, apparently.”

“Planning to fight?”

“If it comes to that.”

“You’re totally scared, aren’t you, Kirishima?”

“No way.”

“Then why do you keep trying to push me in front?”

We banter as we reach the convenience store. Three guys are loitering in the parking lot.

“Yo, Kirishima, those guys don’t just look delinquent—they look straight-up bad news.”

“The one in sunglasses seems like the leader.”

“That black boxcar parked there…… they probably plan to take Hayasaka in that.”

“We gotta do something.”

“You’re stepping up, Kirishima.”

“Yeah, well.”

I square my shoulders and walk toward them. But—

“Please, just leave.”

Standing before them, I bow at the speed of light. Scary is scary.

“Who the hell are you guys?”

A dreadlocked guy says, a thick gold chain on his chest.

“We’re Hayasaka-san’s friends. She’s not that kind of girl, so please don’t hit on her. That’s what this guy, Maki, here is saying.”

“No, it’s just this weak-ass glasses nerd Kirishima saying that. He was bragging earlier about using force if he had to. If you’re gonna hit someone, hit him.”

We push each other into the line of fire while begging them to leave without doing anything.

“But, like……”

The sunglasses guy, who seems like the leader, says.

“I heard that chick was getting it on with a guy behind curtains during festival prep. If we hit on her, she’ll act all shy but her body’ll be all for it, right?”

The guys laugh crudely, saying, We wanna get some too!

Maki looks at me, shocked.

“Huh? You did it? At school? That’s too much, man.”

“We didn’t do it! And this isn’t the time for that!”

So that’s how this happened, I realize.

During festival prep, Hayasaka-san took off her skirt behind curtains, moaning exaggeratedly to show off to the guys trying to hit on her. Most people dismissed it, saying the pure Hayasaka-san would never, but rumors spread.

“So we can’t just leave without hitting on her, right? We wanna see her face. Or, well, her body. Heard she’s super hot. Wanna see her stripped down.”

The guys laugh loudly again.

If guys like this mess with her, Hayasaka-san’s heart will definitely get hurt.

“It’s all a misunderstanding.”

I beg them to leave. But they’re hyped up to have fun with a girl and won’t budge. They start getting angry, their voices turning menacing.

“What’s that Hayasaka chick to you? Not just a friend, huh?”

“……Her boyfriend.”

“Got a hot girlfriend you can’t handle, huh?”

“She’s not that kind of girl. Don’t talk about her so crassly.”

I’m getting pissed too, and the argument escalates. To them, we look like weaklings, so it’s only natural they’d get physical.

“You’re bowing, but you’re looking down on us, huh? We can tell.”

The dreadlocked guy raises his fist.

“Oh, hit Maki, please.”

“No, go for Kirishima. Break his glasses.”

In the end, I get punched square in the nose.

It hurts, and since it’s my nose, tears come naturally. I feel something warm under it. Blood. But this might be fine, I think. If I get beat up here, they’ll lose interest in hitting on her, and they’ll leave before it becomes a bigger issue.

“What’s with this guy? Smirking like that.”

They’re about to hit me again.

That’s when it happens.

“Can you guys cut that out?”

A guy in our school uniform steps in, grabbing the dreadlocked guy’s arm.

“I can take on three of you.”

Short hair, lean but well-trained. Athletic type. The delinquents are bulky, but their muscles are for show. His are different—lithe, built for real strength. He stands alone against three, staring them down for a moment.

Soon, a few guys who seem like his clubmates show up.

The delinquents must realize they’re outmatched.

“Lame.”

With that parting shot, they pile into the black boxcar and drive off.

“Senpai, you okay?”

The short-haired guy peers at my face. He looks familiar.

“You’re……”

“I’m Yoshimi. Yoshimi Makoto.”

He’s got a refreshing vibe. Even as a guy, I can tell he’s cool.

No wonder Hamanami’s got good taste.

“Thanks, you saved me.”

“No problem. Actually…… I had something to talk to you about, Kirishima-senpai.”

Yoshimi-kun seems a bit shy, like a good-natured kid. Likable.

“If it’s about Tachibana-san, I can’t help you.”

“No, it’s not that.”

He scratches his head, hesitating.

As I wait, he says, blushing and fidgeting:

“Are you, uh, dating Hamanami, Kirishima-senpai?”

“……No, not at all.”

We’re just on the festival committee together, I explain. Yoshimi-kun looks relieved.

“Yoshimi-kun, could it be……”

“Well…… yeah.”

He says, embarrassed:

“The one I like is Hamanami.”

♡♡♡

“Sorry, it’s my fault, right?”

Hayasaka-san stuffs rolled-up tissue into my nose.

“There’s no blood coming from that side.”

“Sorry, Kirishima-kun, sorry, sorry. Please don’t hate me, don’t abandon me.”

She’s not listening, and in the end, she stuffs both my nostrils full of tissue.

We’re in the infirmary.

After the incident, I returned to school and headed here. Hayasaka-san, hearing what happened from Maki, came to tend to me.

“Your face is dirty.”

“That’s a rag, Hayasaka-san.”

“Your nose is scratched too. Gotta disinfect.”

“Please don’t spray it in my eyes.”

“S-sorry! Wait, I’ll fix it—”

Panicking, she crashes into the desk, knocking over the first-aid kit and spilling its contents.

“I’m fine, you don’t have to rush.”

I say, picking up the scattered items—bandages, stomach medicine, Band-Aids. As I finish, I notice Hayasaka-san standing there, shoulders slumped.

“Hayasaka-san?”

“I’m really no good, huh? I want to be a good girlfriend, I thought I could be, but I’m totally useless……”

She says, teary-eyed, looking defeated.

“All I do is cause trouble for you, Kirishima-kun……”

“That’s not true.”

“I want to do things right. I want to do something for you. But I can’t be clever about it. I can’t be Tachibana-san…… Sorry, even this time, I tried to handle that guy like she would. But I got you hurt. Sorry, I’m such an idiot.”

“Hayasaka-san……”

I sit her down on a chair.

“You don’t need to become Tachibana-san.”

“But she’s your number one, right? I want to get even a little closer to your type. I want to be your 100% girlfriend.”

“It’s not bad to try to match someone’s preferences.”

I do it too—trying to be gentlemanly to impress Hayasaka-san, wanting to be closer to her ideal. Everyone does that.

“But you don’t have to reject who you are now. The parts you think are bad? I love them.”

“That’s a lie.”

Because, she says.

“Normally, I wouldn’t listen to the radio, you know? Your favorite late-night radio? I wouldn’t listen.”

“You fall asleep fast, don’t you? That’s cute.”

“Normally, I wouldn’t read mysteries. Your favorite mysteries? I wouldn’t read them.”

“You’re scared of murder cases, right? That’s kind, and it’s great.”

“……But I’m still no good. I’m too different from Tachibana-san. You’d definitely hate that.”

Like Sakai said, Hayasaka-san’s self-esteem is low. And I’m probably the one who made her compare herself to Tachibana-san. So now, I have to affirm her as she is.

“……And also.”

She continues.

“I’m a clingy girl, you know? I try so hard not to be, because I’m second, but I’m really super clingy. You might not have noticed, Kirishima-kun.”

“Y-yeah……”

I noticed pretty early. And that’s after holding back?

“Hugging, kissing—it’s all my first time with you, so I just keep falling for you more. I can’t think of anything but you. Tachibana-san’s an important friend, but sometimes…… I think it’d be better if she were gone. I’m a bad girl.”

“It’s okay. I can handle all of you, just as you are.”

And, I say:

“It’s really special to be liked so much by a wonderful girl like you.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“Is it okay if I stay a clingy girl?”

“It’s fine.”

Cute, clingy girls might seem high-maintenance, but honestly, they’re kind of a guy’s dream. Being loved that much? Doesn’t feel bad at all.

“Kirishima-kun, is it okay if I stay me?”

“Of course. I love Hayasaka Akane.”

Her expression brightens. It’s not forced—it’s her natural, radiant cheerfulness. Seeing that face, I know I really do love her.

“Yeah, you’re right. I’m me, aren’t I?”

She stands, about to hug me, but stops just short.

Normally, her brakes would fail, and she’d cling to me, wanting something intense.

But—

“It’s okay.”

She says.

“We’re at school, and you said you’ll accept me, so I don’t have to push.”

She seems genuinely at peace, and I think this is good in its own way.

“I’m gonna come at you full force, Kirishima-kun. As me.”

“Bring it on.”

“Hehe, then—”

She intertwines her fingers in front of her face, cheeks flushed, with a sultry expression I’ve never seen before.

“Next time, I’ll give you all of me. So accept it properly. Don’t run away.”