All the people who like me are other people’s girlfriends! ?

[Kiyono: I'm outside]

The message had just been marked as read when, with a click, the door opened, and Toyokawa Shoko popped out, his head still carrying a faint, warm fragrance. His gaze locked onto Kiyono's wet half-body, and his long eyelashes blinked.

"Kiyono-kun, what are you doing here?"

"Aren't you guys taking a shower?" The boy put away his phone and coughed lightly. "You'll feel uncomfortable with guys around, right? I think I'll wait until you're finished before I go in."

Toyokawa Shoko paused for a moment, then her pretty face softened into a sweet and gentle expression.

"Honestly, Kiyono-kun is such an idiot..."

The young girl moved gracefully to Qingye's side, extended her small hand, and with an irresistible gentle force, slowly pushed him into the warm entrance hall.

"We've all finished showering, Kiyono-kun, why don't you go take a bath to warm yourself up!"

"Was the bathwater completely drained?" Qingye asked sternly. "I don't want to use water that you've soaked in!"

"What...what is Kiyono-kun thinking?! Such impure thoughts!"

...

The boy, having finished showering, opened the bathroom door with a serious expression. The warm water had awakened his brain, making him acutely aware of his situation—this small room was full of young women, and he could easily trigger an embarrassing incident if he wasn't careful. Hadn't a C-level danger quest just occurred?

What if the plot unfortunately turns into a romance anime, and you've already touched it all, seen things you shouldn't have seen, and can't explain yourself no matter what you say? What if you've unwittingly fallen into the vortex of Gravity Girl?

We must be on guard! Even if Da Xiang were still around... Da Xiang is no longer viable!

Kiyono cautiously walked outside. In the living room, the band girls were sitting on the sofa, chatting and laughing. The atmosphere was gentle and full of girlish beauty. But suddenly, the girl's gaze was focused on his face, and her expression was strange, as if there was a flower on his face.

"What's wrong?" he couldn't help but ask.

"It's nothing, I just told everyone about Kiyono-kun's gentleness earlier." Toyokawa Shoko smiled at him, her smile pure and lovely.

--Hello!

Kiyono felt a little helpless. He didn't know how to react, so he could only change the subject: "Have you all explained the situation to your parents?"

“Yes! We already said we’d be staying together today!” Toyokawa Shoko waved her phone.

"There are still some ingredients you brought last time in the refrigerator. For staple food, there are noodles and rice. You can cook whatever you want..." Kiyono was not surprised at all.

What did Xiao Xiang bring?

Nagasaki Motoyo paused, her gaze casually sweeping over Shoko and Komugi. Only they knew Kiyono's home address, but she hadn't expected Shoko to be so close to this boy... What a surprise...

As she pondered, Nagasaki Motoyo suddenly felt her palm enveloped in warmth, and Shoko gave her a radiant smile.

"That's enough, Desuwa, Suze, let's go cook together!"

"Ah... okay."

Nagasaki Motoyo's heart skipped a beat, and she reacted instinctively.

"Um... I'll help too." Shiina Riki stood up a little shyly.

Toyokawa Shoko: "It's alright, Tatsuki just needs to rest."

The drummer gave an "oh," raised an eyebrow, and sat down.

Kiyono glanced at Li Xi, who was chasing dreams, and raised his hand: "Teacher Xiangzi, I'll help too!"

"Kiyono-kun, you can sit here too. The kitchen can't accommodate so many people," Toyokawa Shoko comforted her like a mother. The apartment wasn't big enough, and the living room and kitchen were connected with only one countertop for separation.

Shiina Tatsuki seemed to have found the reason for her rejection, and her tense face relaxed a little.

Under their watchful eyes, the two young ladies of the Moon Forest changed into boys' aprons—the kind that were almost never worn—and began cooking everyone's dinner.

"Speaking of which, this is the first time Xiaoxiang and I have cooked together."

Nagasaki Motoyo took out a large shrimp from the refrigerator, skillfully removing the shrimp veins with her hands. She turned her head to look at the girl beside her. If she was tolerant and mature when facing the band members, then when she looked at Xiangzi, she let go of some of her pretense and looked at him with a kind of gentle focus.

I really hope this kind of time can continue...

“That’s true,” Toyokawa Shoko replied sheepishly. “But I’ve only practiced cooking in Tsukinomori’s cooking classes…”

"Xiao Xiang, you can ask me anything you don't understand."

“Okay, Su Shi.”

Kiyono watched their interaction and secretly shook his head. This Toyokawa Shoko is truly sinful; look how much she has bewitched Ms. Nagasaki.

dong dong dong.

knock knock knock.

Gumbling.

Clatter. Clatter.

The windows shut out the sound of the raindrops, leaving only blurry, constantly flowing watermarks. The small living room seemed like its own separate world, filled with the warm melody of dinner, and the wafting aroma made one's mouth water.

Shiina Riki seemed a little embarrassed, so she turned on the TV and pretended to watch a program, but actually whispered to Takamatsu Akari. Wakaba Mutsu glanced at the gray rain outside the window for a while, and then, like a feather, silently moved to the spot next to Kiyono.

“It’s very warm,” the doll suddenly said.

Kiyono turned her head and met Wakaba Mutsu's gaze.

When he was with Mutsu, he always had the illusion that she was Toyokawa Shoko's sister, because their pupils were the same clear amber color.

Unlike Xiangzi's dazzling brightness, her eyes were pure and indifferent, as if they had been cold and desolate for a thousand years, without a trace of human warmth, and she was so otherworldly that she didn't seem like a beauty that would appear in this glamorous world.

“What’s warm?” he asked.

"Feel……"

Ruo Yemu glanced around, but the words finally caught in her throat. She couldn't explain it; she was never good at expressing her inner thoughts.

"So this is what it feels like to wait for dinner," she said again.

Kiyono suddenly understood. She ate exquisite meals with precisely calculated nutrition every day, but that was just the chef serving Wakaba. In reality, no one would genuinely cook dinner for Mutsu. Her parents wouldn't, and neither would anyone else. She was always sitting alone at the table.

Does she envy other families sitting down to eat together? Does the smell of curry wafting from the alleyway when she comes home from school make her feel sad?

"Doesn't Miss Wakaba usually eat with her childhood friend?"

"It will cause trouble for Xiangtian."

Ruoye Mu shook her head, gazing at Qingye: "These were all brought by Qingye."

"It has nothing to do with me. Even without me, you can still cook together and stay together in the same room," Kiyono denied.

"No, it won't." Her tone was flat and emotionless, like a judgment.

At that moment, Wakaba Mutsu said softly, changing the subject: "Just call me by my name."

Kiyono noticed a slight fluctuation in the girl's emotions, which she realized from her pronunciation, because she added an extra "that's fine".

"Ruoye..."

"Mu."

"Miss Mu..."

"Mu."

In the end, Kiyono still lost this elementary school game.

Whether it was his imagination or not, the moment he called out the girl's name, her eyes, which had always been like a deep pool, seemed to become more vivid.

...

"Everyone, you can eat now."

"I'm starting—" Everyone except Kiyono Kazumi put their hands together in gratitude.

Motoyo Nagasaki and Shoko Toyokawa made Japanese-style spaghetti, which included a huge amount of shrimp, beef, tomatoes, and thinly sliced ​​onions.

Kiyono rolled up a large roll of noodles and put it in his mouth to taste it.

Considering his stomach's shape as Yukinoshita, it wasn't exactly top-tier in terms of flavor, but for a high school girl, it was quite good. The perfect balance of texture and refreshing sensation combined perfectly, making it a flavor that both men and women would enjoy.

"It's very, very delicious," Gao Songdeng said softly.

“Delicious.” Wakaba Mutsu said emotionlessly.

"Well... it's really good." The drummer looked a little embarrassed.

"I'm glad everyone likes it. It's a pity that we don't have enough ingredients and seasonings. With so many people, I can't make anything too fancy."

Motoyo Nagasaki smiled gently and looked very happy.

"That's good."

Shoko Toyokawa placed her hands on her chest, and her words always carried a unique sensibility.

"The rain was just right, the ingredients were just right, the training camp was just right... We'll never taste the same flavors again."

The girls seemed to be affected by the emotions, falling silent for a moment. A sense of cherishing and a faint sadness of parting silently permeated the warm aroma of the food.

He just blurted out such an embarrassing line... No wonder he's Xiangzi, Qingye sighed.

...

After dinner, Kiyono washed the dishes in the kitchen while the girls took the bedding out of the closet and carried it to the living room.

The dining table was pushed to a corner by everyone, and five quilts were laid out closely side by side on the empty space.

The living room space was limited, so in order to fit in this temporary sleeping area, they even moved the coffee table to the wall, finally realizing their dream of a large communal sleeping area.

The band members looked excited, and even Takamatsu Akari and Shiina Tatsuki were more enthusiastic than usual—they even forgot that there was a boy lurking in the room who could transform into a terrifying creature at any moment.

This was their first experience ever.

Let's start with the Moon Forest trio. As a prestigious girls' school, their usual training camps or school trips are well-funded, and each pair of students is assigned a room. There's no situation where everyone shares a room.

As for the remaining drummer and lead singer, one is introverted and sensitive, unable to integrate into the group, while the other has a rather cold and sharp personality, has never gotten along well with her classmates, and has hardly experienced anything similar.

So at this moment, the indescribable excitement and novelty of breaking into a male friend's house with their best friends and sleeping together on the floor filled their hearts.

why?

It's incredible that people who see each other every day can suddenly become so happy just by spending the night together.

We usually play together, we are good friends who share the same love of music, we sit around the same table, eat the same food, practice together, and rest together.

Although the physical distance remains as close as ever, it seems as if an invisible thread has drawn their hearts even closer together.

That's why I seemed a little more reserved than usual...

People who are overly excited without any reason, people who want to be the same as usual but unknowingly become more sarcastic than usual, and people who are genuine and unpretentious without excessive affectation.

All of these things combined made them feel that they would never forget this night.

The only thing that Toyokawa Shoko felt was not quite perfect was...

She quietly shifted her gaze to the locked door. There were still some spaces in the living room, enough for one person to sleep in isolation. She felt she wouldn't be able to sleep without that idiot.

Staring at the door, Toyokawa Shoko's eyes flickered, her emotions fluctuating, a bold idea churning within her...

*

Meanwhile, Kiyono lay in bed scrolling through his phone, and the thought of so many young girls sleeping outside gave him a subtle feeling that a CG scene might trigger at any moment...

Speaking of which, Xiangzi happens to be here. Should we find an opportunity to give her the things?

He paused, opened the drawer, and looked at the return gift he had specially prepared for the girl...

I wonder if she'll like it?

020. The Exit and Strategy of Fate

The living room lights cast a hazy glow, making the girls' faces appear dreamlike.

Toyokawa Shoko slept in the middle of the living room, and Mutsu naturally spread the bedding next to her. Nagasaki Motoyo quietly took up the other side, and the remaining two squeezed together.

"Everyone, let's talk about some topics that should be discussed during a training camp!"

Xiangzi suggested—though she didn't know what normal girls should say during a training camp, something like that? Like everyday things, hobbies, people you like, and so on…

“Okay,” Su Shi replied.

“It’s definitely time to talk about the band’s future,” Shiina Tatsuki poured cold water on the idea. “For example, when will we create our first song, and when will we officially perform on stage?”

"Yes, I'm sorry..."

The lead singer said somewhat dejectedly that she knew the band's stagnation was due to her inability to sing properly, but singing a diary was still a bit...