Izumi Kotomi and gumi Kato found a bench on the street and sat down.
"The first ti I ever had a crepe, it was an orange peel-flavored one," gumi Kato said with a smile as she took a small bite of her crepe. "I didn't like oranges much before, but after that, I started to enjoy the taste."
"Really? I've always liked oranges, but I'm not a big fan of the white pith on them."
Whenever Izumi Kotomi peeled an orange, she would ticulously remove the white pith from the fruit. Of course, if she was in a hurry or just feeling lazy, she wouldn't bother and would eat the orange as is.
"Would you like to try so?"
gumi Kato, after taking another bite, offered her orange peel crepe to Izumi Kotomi.
"Huh?" Izumi Kotomi looked up nervously at the crepe gumi Kato held out. If she took a bite, would that count as an indirect kiss?
But...
She really wanted to try it!
Finally, she silently chanted in her mind: We're both girls, we're both girls...
Then, she hesitantly opened her cherry-red lips and took a small bite of the orange peel crepe.
The orange peel crepe, despite what one might think, didn't just have a bunch of orange peels rolled inside. Instead, it featured thin strips of candied orange peel, along with orange juice cooked down with sugar and liqueur to make a syrup, which was then drizzled over the crepe. There was also a version where the crepe itself was soaked in the orange syrup.
"Is it good?" gumi Kato asked with a gentle smile.
"It's really good," Izumi Kotomi nodded.
gumi Kato smiled again and continued eating her crepe. Whether it was her imagination or not, Izumi Kotomi couldn't help but feel that after she had taken a bite, gumi Kato seed to be enjoying her crepe even more.
Before, gumi Kato had been taking small bites, but now, with her eyes slightly closed, she seed to savor each mouthful, as if the crepe had beco magically more delicious after being shared.
Gradually, the evening sun began to paint the sky with hues of red, casting a lazy, golden glow over everything. Whether on the streets or indoors, the presence of twilight always brought about a sense of calm.
Izumi Kotomi had always loved the mont when dusk began to settle in.
For as long as she could rember, she had cherished the feeling of creating sothing during twilight.
She loved the sound of birds in the morning, just as much as she loved the setting sun's final act of the day.
"It's getting late," gumi Kato remarked softly.
"Yeah, if I get ho too late, my mom might scold ," Izumi Kotomi said, finishing the last bite of her strawberry and cream crepe.
"You really seem to listen to your mom."
"Mm-hmm, I'm a good girl," Izumi Kotomi replied with a hint of pride.
After saying that, she realized she had spoken with a bit of self-satisfaction. But was listening to your mom really sothing to be proud of?
Maybe, but not always.
After finishing their crepes, Izumi Kotomi and gumi Kato didn't linger on the street but headed ho together.
It was convenient that their hos were on the sa route.
They could walk ho and chat until they reached their doorsteps.
"By the way, have you thought about which club to join?" gumi Kato asked as they walked.
Izumi Kotomi was reminded of the announcent Shizuka Hiratsuka had made earlier in the day, just before the last class, about club activities.
Every high school had clubs, either officially established by the school or small, student-organized ones created by like-minded students.
However, first-year students weren't allowed to create their own clubs. They could only apply to start one in their second year.
Izumi Kotomi had indeed been thinking about joining a club.
The literature club and the art club were her top choices.
As for the ani club, Izumi Kotomi hadn't really considered it. She had heard that Sobu High School's ani club was more like a gathering of popular guys and girls—a "normie" club.
A second-year student had once vented his frustration: "Damn it! When I first joined Sobu High School, I was so excited to hear there was an ani club. I thought I'd finally found a group of friends who loved ani and gal gas as much as I did! But when I joined, I found out it was just a bunch of normies hanging out!"
Apparently, they rarely talked about ani, and the only ani they were familiar with were the ones that had beco super popular.
Their club activities mostly consisted of going to karaoke together or cosplaying as couples at conventions.
After hearing that, Izumi Kotomi quickly ruled out the ani club as an option.
With her current appearance, joining the ani club might make her the club's mascot or the darling of the normie group. But Izumi Kotomi wasn't interested. It wasn't that their activities were bad—hanging out with a group of people could be fun too.
It was just that she wasn't particularly interested in the activities the ani club had to offer.
She'd rather stay at ho, play gas, watch new ani, catch up on old ones, write novels, or draw manga.
So, between the literature club and the art club, Izumi Kotomi made her decision after a mont's thought.
"I'm thinking of joining the art club," Izumi Kotomi said.
"The art club?"
gumi Kato didn't seem surprised. "That makes sense. You're really good at drawing, Kotomi. I'm sure you'll have a lot to talk about with the other mbers."
"What about you, gumi? Have you decided on a club yet?"
gumi Kato shook her head with a smile. "I've looked at all the clubs, but none of them really interest , so I'm not planning on joining any. But if you join a club, you'll have to stay at school for an extra hour every day for club activities, which ans we won't be able to walk ho together."
gumi Kato's subtle reminder made Izumi Kotomi realize that if she joined the art club and gumi didn't join any club, they wouldn't be able to walk ho together anymore.
Honestly, Izumi Kotomi really enjoyed these walks ho, chatting leisurely with gumi Kato.
"It's okay," gumi Kato suddenly said. "I heard that Sobu High School's library is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. While you're at the art club, I can go to the library to read and do my howork until your club activities are over."
"Won't that waste your ti?" Izumi Kotomi asked.
"Not at all. If I finish my howork in the library, I won't have to do it when I get ho."
"Oh, I see," Izumi Kotomi nodded in understanding.
As they chatted, they found themselves standing in front of Izumi Kotomi's house.
"We're here."
"So this is your house, Kotomi? A detached house with its own yard," gumi Kato said, glancing around as if trying to morize the exact location of Izumi Kotomi's ho.
"Yes, feel free to visit anyti," Izumi Kotomi replied with a smile.
"Sure~ See you tomorrow, Kotomi."
"Bye-bye."
Izumi Kotomi waved as she said goodbye to gumi Kato.
After seeing gumi Kato off, Izumi Kotomi turned and walked into her house.
Her first manuscript fee had been deposited.
Now, it was ti to tell her parents and sister about her writing career!
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