I push the kid!

"Why not? After all, you are still so young. There are so many people in the world you can meet, so many places you can go, and so many..."

She paused, as if searching for the right words, and Makimura Taku followed her and said, "There are so many more?"

As if she was missing something that had passed away, Hoshino Ai's eyes looked a little lonely, which was rare.

She gently opened and closed her cherry-colored lips and lowered her voice:

“All kinds of love.”

"like?"

"Yes." The look of desolation disappeared in an instant.

"Anyway, I can see that..." Before Makimura Taku could open his mouth, Hoshino Ai suddenly pressed forward, narrowed her eyes and looked at him, "You are definitely a good person!"

A fragrance stronger than before penetrated into the tip of Makimura Taku's nose and seeped into every pore. He felt as if he was in a sea of ​​flowers.

"Thank you."

"See, you have to thank me for this too." Hoshino Ai sat back in her seat, looking very happy as if she had made a new discovery.

"I think you feel the same way." Taku Makimura said with a smile.

"wrong!"

The tower's high beam flashed on Hoshino Ai's face.

Outside the window, the sky gradually darkened, and the street lights along the road all lit up as if they had been prepared in advance.

Hoshino Ai answered amazingly:

"I'm Hoshino Ai, the worst, most greedy girl in the world!"

At this moment, even the charming twilight became the background.

She stared at Makimura Taku intently.

Those are a pair of eyes that possess all the beauty.

Deep within the pupil, there flowed an almost unbelievable colorful liquid, swirling into incredible patterns.

"Great." Makimura Taku retracted his dazed gaze.

"Really?" Hoshino Ai gently brushed away the long hair from her ears.

"Then I am the most polite seventeen-year-old in the world."

"Okay," she nodded, "Makimura-kun is the most polite seventeen-year-old boy in the world!"

"Thank you for your recognition."

"By the way," Hoshino Ai suddenly seemed to remember and asked, "Are you hungry? Did you bring any food?"

"I brought chocolate, biscuits, and bread."

“They are all my favorites!”

"Are you hungry?"

"I only bought one bento." She took the instant bento wrapped in a plastic box and plastic wrap out of her bag and put it on the table.

It came with white rice, fried chicken, takoyaki, carrots, and a few florets of fresh broccoli.

“It’s very rich.”

"Then I'll trade with you."

"exchange?"

"I'll trade you my lunch for your chocolate."

"Of course, I can give it to you as a gift." Makimura Taku took the chocolate out of the bag and handed it to her. "You like sweets so much?"

Hoshino Ai took the chocolate and soda crackers that were sent along and nodded: "Yes."

Makimura Taku looked at her thoughtfully.

"what happened?"

"lie."

"What lies?" she said nonchalantly.

Makimura Taku looked at the chocolate package in her hand: "You don't like sweets, or you don't like them that much?"

"What does it mean to like someone?" She fiddled with the tinfoil wrapper. "If you don't hate someone, then that's considered liking them, right?"

"How can there be such a definition..."

"All in all, it's an insignificant lie."

"That's true." Makimura Taku didn't say anything else.

By the time the two finished their dinner, the train had already started moving for a long time.

It was November and the sky had already turned dark, but when I looked up, the mountains in the distance were a lovely white.

At night, Hoshino Ai, with her arms resting on a scarf, fell asleep obediently on the table.

The journey was long, the train body was shaking, and in the silence, the clanking sound of the train became more and more obvious.

The lights in the carriage were a light yellow that was not too dazzling, and the window glass displayed the northern scenery outside like a display screen.

When looking closely, the piece of glass seemed to have become a clear mirror, with Hoshino Ai's sleeping face always appearing in the image.

She is the greediest girl in the world.

To the girl, this was not a lie.

Thinking about tomorrow's trip, Makimura Taku withdrew his gaze.

He connected the wired earphones to his mobile phone and played "Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence" on the free trial music player, choosing to play it on repeat.

He closed his eyes, gradually feeling sleepy, and fell asleep leaning on the cushion.

Thanks everyone for the comments.

Thank you everyone for your recommendation votes.

Chapter 3: Hot Spring Inn in Echigo-Yuzawa

Chapter 3 3. Hot Spring Inn in Echigo Yuzawa

In the early morning, the train passed through the tunnel and went into the mountains, and the surroundings were already completely bright.

The scenery outside the window seemed to be covered with a thin layer of white gauze.

Snow sweepers wearing dark windbreakers, low wooden buildings dotted on the snow, and green onions growing in groups of three or two on the roadside.

No matter what I see, there is always a dreamy feeling in my heart that floats with the blue sky and white clouds, and the whole person becomes extremely relaxed.

In the carriage, Hoshino Ai, who had just woken up from her sleep, groaned, rubbed her eyes, raised her head, looked at the white ice and snow, and stretched lazily.

"Are we there yet?" she asked in a soft voice.

"Thirty minutes." said Makimura Taku.

He took out the remaining half pack of low-sugar soda crackers from his bag and handed them over: "Make do with it. Breakfast."

"Thank you." Hoshino Ai said softly, spreading her hands to take it, and then suddenly seemed to remember and asked, "What about you, do you have anything else to eat?"

"I'm not very hungry."

"Not hungry?" She tilted her head.

Makimura Taku hummed in an unclear voice.

He zipped up his backpack, raised his head, and a finger as clean as white jade touched the tip of his nose.

"What are you doing."

"Lie!" Hoshino Ai said with a smile. It was a mischievous smile, like a prank.

"It's true." Makimura Taku removed her fingers and said calmly, "Besides, I'm the only one who can see through lies, and I'm the only one in the world. You can't."

"How can I be so shameless?" Hoshino Ai pouted.

"It's amazing."

"No one will believe it."

"It's okay to take it as a joke."

As he spoke, he took out the travel guide he had read yesterday and tapped it vertically on the table, preparing to review it again before arriving at the station.

At this moment, there was a cracking sound from the side, as if something was broken.

Makimura Taku looked up in confusion, and then half a biscuit was handed to his mouth.

"Here." Hoshino Ai said.

"Thank you." Giving up the idea of ​​biting it, Makimura Taku took it in his hand.

After they finished their breakfast, they looked at the various illustrations and texts in the guide together.

Because the paper can only face one direction, Hoshino Ai asked him to sit next to her, saying it would be more convenient this way.

Makimura Taku did not refuse, and the two sat on the side, keeping a distance between them that was neither too far nor too close.

Hoshino Ai mainly looked at the illustrations, but she looked at them very carefully, which gave Makimura Taku time to finish reading the text.

Among them, there was a set of photos that were quite exquisite. The two of them specifically looked at the photographer behind, whose name was Kaguya Shinomiya.

"Makino-kun," Hoshino Ai asked him, "You think that someone who can take such interesting photos must be a very interesting guy, right?"

"Really?" Makimura Taku noticed something else.

"You too." Hoshino Ai turned to him and gave him a charming smile.

He smiled and said nothing.

Before arriving at the station, Taku Makimura went to the toilet at the end of the aisle, and Hoshino Ai helped him keep his backpack, luggage, plastic bottles and other things.

After coming back, they packed up their things, cleared the trash, and stared out the window in tacit understanding.

The sun rises from the end of the snow-capped mountains, and the world is covered in silver, but with a hint of warmth.