Chapter 14

After the lunch break ended, Shizuna spent the rest of the time’s heartbeat racing uncontrollably.

“Of course I could take you. Satisfied now?”

The words Ryuichi had said to her echoed endlessly in her mind. Even though she needed to concentrate on class, a moment of distraction was all it took for those words to start ringing through her head again. Seeing Shizuna sitting beside her with flushed cheeks and letting out a poignant sigh, her friend looked concerned and called out to her.

“…Shizuna, are you okay?”
“…Eh? Ah, sorry.”

Startled by her friend’s voice, Shizuna snapped back to reality. She realized only then just how spaced out she must have been for people around her to start worrying. Flashing a smile to reassure her friend that she was fine, Shizuna went back to copying the text from the blackboard into her notebook.

…However, Ryuichi’s voice echoed in her mind once more.
And by the time Shizuna came to her senses, her notebook wasn’t filled with the notes from the blackboard at all.

“Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun Ryuichi-kun”

“…What on earth am I doing?”

Right as Shizuna felt like burying her face in her hands, the chime signaling the end of class rang out.

“…Phew.”

Well, it wasn’t like she could help it after being told something like that during lunch break.
Last night, after returning from the bar, she had talked with Sakie about Ryuichi. Sakie apparently hadn’t intended to share any of the intimate details with Shizuna, but once she heard that Shizuna already knew, she opened up and talked about him anyway.

Sakie had worn a beautiful smile at the time, looking so genuinely happy that Shizuna thought she hadn’t seen her mother shine like that in ages. While being able to see such a look on her beloved mother’s face brought immense joy, a seed of jealousy simultaneously planted itself deep within Shizuna’s chest.

“…Hah.”

Just remembering it brought back a sharp, pinching ache in her heart.
She wanted to experience that kind of intimacy with Ryuichi too; she wanted him to brand the joy of being a woman into her very soul—she had found herself entertaining such lewd thoughts. Naturally, she had writhed in embarrassment on her bed afterward, but… that was where she had finally arrived at a single conclusion.

“…I wonder if I’m in love with Ryuichi-kun.”

The moment she whispered those words, her heart gave another massive, heavy thud.
And before that pounding could settle down, today arrived, and meeting him at school had pushed her racing heart to its absolute peak.

“Fufu♪”

Remembering it brought a smile to Shizuna’s face.
It wasn’t an unpleasant feeling at all; rather, the warmth blooming in her chest felt dangerously close to becoming an addiction. She wanted to linger in this state forever—she found herself wishing for just that.

“Hey Shizuna, you’ve been grinning to yourself for a while now. Are you really okay?”
“…Y-Yeah, I’m fine.”

Oops, can’t let my guard down, thinking that, Shizuna frantically forced her expression straight.
While enjoying a chat with her friend until the next class began, Shizuna’s gaze naturally drifted toward Ryuichi. He was talking cheerfully with his friends—well, he looked a bit annoyed, but they seemed as close as ever.

“…Love… huh?”

Love. To be completely honest, Shizuna had zero experience with it. The closest male friend she had was undoubtedly her childhood friend, Souhei. He had always been around since they were little, and though he certainly had his unreliable moments, there were times she even felt like she had to look after him.

“……?”

Right then, Shizuna felt a gaze on her and looked over. Souhei was sitting there, staring intently at her. When their eyes met, he smiled happily, but Shizuna looked away without offering any particular reaction.

“…I’m going to run to the restroom for a minute.”
“Sure. See you in a bit.”

More than anything, Shizuna just needed a moment to calm down.
She headed to the restroom, stepped inside a stall, and let out a long breath. The voices of the other students using the facilities were noisy, but it was enough to settle her nerves. When she finished and stepped out into the hallway, she happened to run into Ryuichi and Makoto, who also seemed to be heading back from the washroom.

“…Should I pull a little prank♪?”

Walking slowly and quietly so as not to alert him, she crept up right behind his back.
Just as she raised a hand to poke his shoulder, Ryuichi suddenly spun around. Of course, he hadn’t turned back because he knew Shizuna was there; he simply looked startled to find her standing right behind him out of nowhere.

“You… were you trying to ambush me?”
“N-No way! I just wanted to surprise you a little…”
“That’s a surprise. Didn’t take you for the type to pull stuff like that.”

It was true that Shizuna hadn’t done anything childish like this in a long time. Or rather, she hadn’t done it at all since entering high school. She had simply surrendered to the mischievous impulse that unexpectedly sprouted when she spotted Ryuichi.
Why on earth did I do something like that? Just as she was asking herself that question, Shizuna felt a light impact on her forehead. Ryuichi had given her a gentle flick to the head.

“That’s your punishment for trying to prank me.”
“…Ah.”

Unlike the fierce, predatory gaze he had shown during lunch, those eyes held a faint gentleness that fleetingly reminded Shizuna of her father, who had passed away when she was young. For Shizuna, the only man she could truly rely on had been her father. The pillar of the household who loved her, loved Sakie, and protected their family had died in a traffic accident.
The loss of her father had been an unimaginably heavy blow, not just to Sakie, but to Shizuna as well.

“……………”

Ever since then, she had never acted like a child or leaned on anyone for comfort. If anything, she had been overly considerate toward Sakie, doing her absolute best not to be a burden. But now, at long last, Shizuna found herself thinking that she wanted to rely on someone—just a little. She wished she could lean on the dependable Ryuichi, bury her face in that broad back, and be held tight in those strong arms.

“…Hey, Makoto.”
“What?”
“That thing today, count me out after all.”
“Huh? Got it. Let me know if you change your mind, though. There are plenty of girls waiting around for you, you know.”
“Yeah.”

With a casual wave of his hand, Makoto walked off.
Shizuna had no personal context for what they were just discussing, but knowing what she now knew about Ryuichi, she could roughly piece together what that conversation implied.

“…What was that just now?”

“Ah. It’s about that party me and Makoto used to go to all the time. He invited me this morning, but I figured I didn’t really need to go.”
“Is that… so?”

The slight knot of anxiety in her chest vanished completely.
Ever since she got involved with Ryuichi, Shizuna had been tormented by a whirlwind of new emotions. She was agonizingly close to figuring out the answer, yet admitting it to herself felt terrifying, as if it would completely change who she was. It felt like it would make her think about nothing but Ryuichi even more than she already did.

“So, what were you thinking about just now? You looked kind of gloomy.”
“…You can tell?”
“Had a hunch?”
“…Fufu, what is that even supposed to mean?”

It was true that she had been feeling a bit sentimental while thinking about her late father. Even though she should have moved past it long ago, having moments where she felt this kind of loneliness was something she shared with Sakie. Sensing something in Shizuna’s mood, Ryuichi must have decided to ask, even without any concrete proof.

“…Hey, Ryuichi-kun.”
“Hm?”
“Today… won’t you come over to my house?”
“What are you saying?”

Looking completely dumbfounded, Ryuichi let those words slip.
Shizuna herself had no idea why she had just blurted that out. She only knew that she wanted to spend even a little more time with him. She wanted to talk, she wanted to be close to him, she wanted to share—even just for a little while—her time with Ryuichi.

“Dinner!”
“Dinner?”
“I’ll cook for you! Hamburg steak, and all sorts of things!”
“……!”

She distinctly heard the sound of Ryuichi swallowing hard.
The time before, Ryuichi had devoured the nikujaga she made as if it were the most delicious thing on earth. Shizuna had felt a genuine sense of accomplishment back then. She wanted to see that smile Ryuichi had worn again, and honestly, she just wanted him to eat the food she prepared.

“Besides, there are still things you and Mom want to talk about, right? I don’t mind at all! In fact, I’ll listen right from the side!”
“No, cut that out…”

Judging by how flustered she sounded, Shizuna herself was probably in a state where she had no clue what she was saying, desperate as she was to find some excuse to invite Ryuichi over. Seeing her looking so frantic, Ryuichi let out a sigh… and gave a nod.

At that, Shizuna’s face bloomed with a smile as radiant as a giant flower bursting into full bloom.