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The Service Club room.
Yumiko was fiddling with a rubber band when she suddenly snap—broke it in half from pulling too hard.
"That Iroha is definitely doing it on purpose!"
She growled through clenched teeth.
"There's no way they need to be that close for a three-legged race—she practically threw herself all over Rei Ao!"
Yui paused from sorting club papers and gave a weak, wry smile.
"Ugh!"
Yumiko slamd her hands on the desk and stood up, the chair scraping noisily against the floor.
"I saw her pretending to trip and flinging herself into Rei Ao's arms. That smile on her face—she totally planned it!"
By the window, Yukino paused in her reading almost imperceptibly, but quickly recovered her calm expression. Only her fingertips pressing into the pages gave her tension away, creating small wrinkles on the edges of the paper.
"Um… haha,"
Yui began, hesitating. "Well, Iroha is trying to 'win him over'…"
But Yumiko shot her such a vicious glare that her voice trailed off.
"Ahem, uh, so anyway…"
Yui hurriedly changed the subject.
"I heard Rei Ao's eting with Kei Shirogane after school today."
Yumiko's attention shifted imdiately.
"Kei Shirogane? Why would he be looking for her?"
Yukino closed her book with a cool expression.
"We have no right to pry into other people's private affairs."
"But aren't you even a little curious, Yukino?"
Yumiko leaned in.
"That's your boyfriend eting with another girl. If you don't really care, then why'd you interrupt their training earlier when Iroha was up to her antics?"
Her words struck a nerve under Yukino's seemingly calm exterior. Yui noticed the way Yukino's fingers tightened around the book, but she still kept her expression steady.
"I don't mind," Yukino said quietly.
"We're just going to see what they're up to after school, that's all."
Seeing how unyielding she was, Yumiko narrowed her eyes and switched tactics.
"Fine, let's just call it… a club activity—checking on a fellow student's well-being. Sounds good?"
Yukino started to refuse, but the thought of Rei Ao standing around with Kei popped into her mind, stirring a bit of jealousy she tried to suppress. With a soft snap, she shut her book.
"…Do whatever you want,"
she finally said in a flat tone.
Yui and Yumiko exchanged glances, both thinking the sa thing: She's so not okay with this.
…
anwhile…
Kei Shirogane sat alone in an empty classroom, staring at her worn-out sneakers. The sole on her right shoe was completely unglued, gaping like an open mouth mocking her.
She bit her lip and tucked the shoe into her bag.
"Why now…?"
She spoke under her breath. Rei Ao-senpai had obviously noticed her situation. She felt her nose sting with oncoming tears.
Why did it have to be Rei Ao-senpai who saw this?
"Soone like …"
She looked at her socks—faded from many washes—and the battered shoes. Tears threatened to spill over. Money at ho was tight. She'd worn these shoes for three years now, not wanting to burden her family with more expenses. She wiped her eyes, deciding she'd just go straight ho after school, skip training, and drop out of the sports festival. After all, she couldn't buy fancy running shoes like everyone else.
The final bell rang. Kei slowly packed her things, hoping to leave after the crowd was gone.
But when she reached the shoe lockers, there was a tall figure leaning against the wall, making her freeze in place.
"Kei."
Rei Ao stood up straight. His voice, like the man himself, was cool but not distant.
"We agreed you'd wait for after school."
Her cheeks imdiately ward. She instinctively tried to hide her right foot behind her left.
"R-Rei Ao-senpai… I just rembered sothing going on at ho today…"
He glanced at the foot she was hiding, and her heart practically stopped. But he didn't comnt on it, only nodded slightly.
"It won't take too long. Co with ."
His tone left no room for argunt. Kei hung her head and followed. He walked with long strides, but she noticed he slowed his pace a bit, as if matching hers.
…
They left the school gates, crossed a few streets, and ended up in the shopping district. Kei felt more and more confused.
"Senpai, where are we…?"
Suddenly, Rei Ao stopped and pointed.
"Right here."
Kei looked up—to see an upscale athletic shoe store. She stared, wide-eyed.
Rei Ao smiled.
"I'm planning to buy you a new pair of running shoes, Kei."
The mont she realized what he ant, her face went pale.
"N-no way! I can't accept sothing that expensive!"
The store was clearly a brand-na place. Definitely not cheap.
"Consider it my thanks for that ti you invited over for dinner," Rei Ao said calmly, with a finality that suggested no refusal.
"But that was my invitation… I'm the one who took up your ti."
"That's separate. Besides, I didn't bring a gift that day," he replied with a light chuckle.
"You wouldn't want to feel awkward coming by your place again in the future, would you?"
"I…"
Kei faltered, unable to find a coback.
Rei Ao gently took hold of her wrist.
"C'mon."
His hand was warm and dry. The mont his skin touched hers, a current of electricity seed to flow through her entire body, sapping all her will to resist.
…
Inside the store, the lighting was soft and welcoming. Rows of high-end athletic shoes lined the shelves. Kei had never set foot in such an upscale place before, and her palms were sweating from nerves.
Rei Ao led her straight to the running section.
"You're in the sports festival, right?"
"…Yeah."
He picked up a pair of blue-and-white running shoes.
"These have good cushioning and are suitable for long-distance running."
Kei glanced at the price tag and nearly gasped—4,000 yen! That was more money than she spent in an entire year.
"Senpai, this is way too expensive! I can't—"
Ignoring her protest, Rei Ao flagged down a store clerk.
"Could we get these in size 36 for her to try on?"
As the clerk went to fetch the right size, Kei stood there in a daze. She didn't know how to refuse without embarrassing him—or herself.
~~~
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