What a twist! The loser heroine!

Is it carefree?

Wenshui Kazuhiko laughed to himself.

I'm someone who's just made friends; I'm not qualified to accept that term.

◇

After a period of silence, the two passed through the gates of the educational institution.

Store your personal belongings and enter the classroom.

Just like the previous two days, Ayano Mitsuki was sitting in the middle of the classroom.

He was frowning, focused on the practice problems in front of him, clearly having entered a crucial stage of solving them.

Wen Shui, quite perceptively, quickened her pace, walked to the empty seat behind Ayano, and gently moved the chair to sit down.

The list of members in the tutoring class changes very little, as everyone basically has their own social circle, so their positions are basically fixed.

The classmate who usually sits next to Wen Shui is a boy wearing a private high school uniform. He looks very mature for his age and has a loud voice. However, he loves candy and will secretly toss Wen Shui two pieces every class. Although he is sometimes late, he is a nice person.

I remember his name was... something like Ishido, right?

Just as Wen Shui was wondering whether he would get a strawberry or green apple flavored hard candy today, he took his textbook out of his schoolbag when he heard the sound of the chair next to him being moved.

【Ah, here it comes, next comes the classic loud greeting—】

Wen Shui deliberately rummaged in her bag for two seconds, waiting for Shi Dong's joking greeting, but she never heard the voice she wanted.

The sudden change surprised him, so he immediately turned around.

The seat that should have been occupied by Ishidou was occupied by Asahi Chihaya.

"Ah?"

He looked at Chaoyun sitting next to him and paused for a moment.

I remember……

His gaze quickly swept over Ayano Mitsuki, who was still engrossed in doing her homework, before turning back to look at Asahi.

Seemingly noticing Wen Shui's confusion, Chao Yun smiled.

She placed the textbook on the table and then explained softly, "Hime-no-miya already talked to me about this yesterday; it's something I should do."

He pursed his lips.

"no problem?"

Perhaps out of concern, or perhaps considering that the current situation was entirely his doing, Wen Shui said this.

"It's already come to this point anyway."

She smiled as if she had already let go of the past.

Oh, I see...

Wen Shui silently turned her gaze to Shi Dong, who had just entered the classroom.

He was supposed to sit next to Wen Shui, but when he saw that Chao Yun had taken his seat first, he didn't say anything. He just scratched his head and walked straight over.

"Ah, um... good afternoon." He said this while sitting down in the seat that was originally occupied by Asahi Chihaya with a smile.

"Oh, hello." Ayano Mitsuki, who was suddenly greeted, immediately looked up, a little taken aback.

Ayano first dealt with Ishidou, then turned to look at Asahi, who was deliberately avoiding her gaze, and Onami, who had a wry smile on her face.

A look of realization dawned on his face. He pursed his lips, straightened up, and began chatting with his new classmate sitting next to him.

On another note, why is it that Ishidou speaks so loudly when he talks to me, but speaks so softly when he talks to Ayano?

Is this person treating me differently?

Wen Shui tried to distract herself, hoping to escape the already heavy and oppressive atmosphere and catch her breath.

Ah, here it comes, the classic candy offensive, I want some too...

Wenshui glanced at Ishidou, who was handing out candy as a gift to Ayano, and secretly cheered for her choice of strawberry-flavored answer.

Unfortunately, there were no prizes.

As Wen Shui was thinking this, she suddenly saw a fair arm enter her field of vision.

Turning her head, she saw Chihaya Asahi leaning forward with her hand half outstretched, as if she intended to stop Ishidou from offering her candy.

She remained in that position, stunned for half a second, before silently shrinking back into her seat.

"He doesn't like sweets..."

The girl murmured softly, her voice so low it seemed she only wanted herself to hear.

Wen Shuihe, who was standing quite close, silently gripped his pen.

◇

The strange and awkward atmosphere persisted.

During the break, the three of them never spoke to each other even once, and the group study session required by the teacher ended without any communication.

Finally, the bell rang to signal the end of the tutoring class.

Wen Shui slung her backpack over her shoulder and said to Ling Ye, "Then I'll be going now."

"Ah, okay, I still have a few questions to answer, you guys go back first."

Ayano Mitsuki sat in her seat and gave a similar reason as before.

"Ayano-san, it's getting late, please be careful."

"Um...I will. See you tomorrow."

"Hehe... See you tomorrow."

Asahi Chihaya smiled and nodded at Ayano, then turned and left.

After retrieving his personal belongings from the locker, Wen Shui walked to the front door and stood there. He looked up at the gray sky.

"Is it going to rain again?" He gently shook his head.

"Trust the machine's judgment," Asahi Chihaya's smiling voice rang out beside her.

"The weather forecast said it wouldn't rain today, and look, I didn't bring an umbrella."

She stretched out her hands, made a grasping motion in the air, and then smiled at the warm water.

Wen Shui knew she was trying to lighten the mood, so she smiled in agreement.

"However, cloudy weather really can make people feel down."

She also looked up at the sky and said softly.

"yes……"

Warm water expressed its agreement.

"Hey Wen Shui, are you free later?"

"Huh? I do have some free time—"

"Could you accompany me for a short walk?"

Wen Shui turned to look at Chao Yun, whose expressionless profile revealed no emotion.

"Alright then." He nodded.

Ten minutes later, outside a coffee shop near the tutoring center.

Asahi looked up at the shop's sign, then turned and asked, "Does Wenshui like coffee?"

"I quite like it." Wen Shui readily admitted her hobby.

“After cram school, I sometimes bring Ayano here for coffee.”

She said with a smile, "He doesn't like sweets, and this is the only coffee shop around here. It's a bit expensive, but there's nothing we can do about it."

Kazuhiko Onami watched quietly as Chihaya Asagumo reminisced and recounted her past.

He decided not to interrupt.

And so, Chaoyun, carrying Wenshui, passed by a coffee shop, a stationery store, and a used bookstore.

Whenever she paused briefly, she would smile and tell a short story.

It was almost like saying goodbye to something.

"Ah, I remember last time I came here, Ayano-san bought a copy of 'The Setting Sun' for very little money—"

Chao Yun paused in pointing at the bookstore, then turned to look at Wen Shui apologetically.

"Sorry... I've been the one talking non-stop..."

"It's nothing, just treat me like a confessional today."

Wen Shui smiled and said, "As long as Chao Yun is happy."

Asahi forced a smile: "Thank you... Himegami is right, Wen Shui's personality is indeed very good."

It was getting late, so she bought a chemistry reference book with a worn cover from a secondhand bookstore, and then returned to the bus stop with Wen Shui.

Under the warm-toned lights, Asahi Chihaya sat on a bench at the bus stop, her head bowed, looking somewhat frail.

"...Ayano-san said that he wants to work in the field of books."

She gently stroked the cover of the reference book in her hand.

"Yes...really?"

[I really didn't expect that. I thought someone like Ayano would go down the science path.]

[Working in the book industry... does being an editor who reviews and approves books count as one of those roles?]

Chao Yun nodded at Wen Shui, who was lost in thought, and explained, "Yes, that's what he said. Although he once dreamed of becoming a writer, there is ultimately a gap between dreams and future paths."

She continued, almost to herself, "But... he didn't mention the deeper thoughts to me."

She chuckled lightly, almost as if mocking herself: "But I was already quite surprised to find out all this. I never imagined that Ayano-san and I had such similar dreams—"

She pursed her lips, didn't continue speaking, and instead started a new topic.

"Just thinking about these things already makes me feel a little satisfied," she said softly. "Ever since junior high cram school, I've always been happy to meet Ayano-san."

"I became aware of my feelings at the party after graduation."

"I met Shao Shio for the first time."

Upon hearing this, Wen Shui's eyes widened slightly.

"I saw that Ayano and Yashio were getting along very well, and a feeling of sadness suddenly welled up inside me."

She pursed her lips, her hands holding the schoolbag, the knuckles of which were slightly white from the force.

"After I got home, I gradually understood that feeling was called jealousy, and then I understood that the happiness was called liking."

She gazed at the starless night sky and softly confessed her feelings.

“I knew it from the beginning. Yashio and Ayano have known each other since they were little, and I was the one who barged in. Sometimes I would tell myself that maybe the two of them should be dating. But the thought of that outcome makes my heart ache.”

Asahi Chihaya said softly, "So... I want to give it a try."

"Occasionally reveal your feelings, subtly close the distance, and use a few subtle tactics..."

Wen Shui's eyes flickered.

"In that case, even if Ayano is slow-witted, I can still see myself getting closer and closer to my dream."

Chao Yun looked at Wen Shui with a wry smile.

"Until that night, when Wen Shui handed Ayano the movie tickets, my dream was shattered."

"Feel sorry……"

Seeing that Chaoyun had truly become his confidante, Wen Shui sincerely apologized.

"I'm not blaming you," Chaoyun said, glancing away. "I'm just... in a bad mood."

"All the hard work I put into these past few months was defeated by a movie ticket. Movies are truly an amazing invention."

As Chao Yunqianzao finished speaking, she burst out laughing, and as she laughed, a tear slid down her cheek.