The school building in the forest camp was a new location for both Yukio and Matsushita; technically, they weren't scheduled to come here until tomorrow morning's classes. But since the temporary infirmary was also located in this building, the two of them ended up visiting it today.
It was practically a parade—Yukio carried Matsushita right through the crowd of students, making sure everyone could see. Once they entered the building, which was currently empty, he unceremoniously set her down.
Matsushita, who had just been suddenly dropped back on her feet, was momentarily stunned. She stood there for a bit, finally regaining her senses with cheeks flushed red, glaring at Yukio in annoyance. Seriously, how could he be so inconsiderate? He'd shown her off by carrying her past everyone, but the moment they got inside, he wouldn't even finish helping her to the infirmary! Didn't he have a heart?
Given how Matsushita had been raised to observe etiquette, she felt she should at least thank him for carrying her—regardless of his scheming intentions. But now, with his abrupt dismissal, she simply couldn't bring herself to say those words. Such was a girl's ever-shifting heart.
"How did you twist your ankle?" Yukio asked, not intending to leave right after putting her down. His real purpose was to see Hoshinomiya in the infirmary, so of course, he wasn't just going to run off. Reaching out, he propped up Matsushita by her right arm and prepared to guide her forward.
"…Th-thank you." Matsushita noticed he was suddenly acting all gentlemanly again, so she forced herself to express her gratitude.
Thus, the two of them made their way to the infirmary in search of it, chatting idly as they went. "I guess the terrain was too rough out there. I saw a small mud pit while I was running and tried to dodge it… That's how it happened," Matsushita explained.
Yukio nodded in understanding. Girls often try to avoid mud, not wanting to get dirty. A boy, on the other hand, might just stomp through it without a second thought—mud splashing everywhere. A bit of dirt never bothered him.
"That means you Class D folks—at least the girls—have already divided up who will run which segments?"
Matsushita's guard went up again. Why was Yukio so nosy? First sowing discord with his scheme, and now trying to gather information? This felt way too pushy. But simply clamming up and ignoring him wouldn't align with the manners she'd been taught. So, she tried to redirect the conversation gracefully. "That, I'm afraid, is a secret of Class D. I won't be telling you, Yukio-kun."
"Just like how you wouldn't share how your own class is dividing its running routes," she added.
"Wow, so stingy." Yukio gave a casual smile and dismissed the idea: "If you really want to know, Matsushita, I'd tell you everything."
"What's there to hide about something like that? It's not as if that intel is super valuable. We, your class, and Ichinose's class are all training pretty close together. After a few days, just by watching daily practice, anyone can figure out how we're splitting up our running routes. No point getting all worked up about it."
For a moment, Matsushita had no comeback. On reflection, he had a point: it was simply a matter of paying attention over time. It wasn't exactly classified intel. She had to admit that Class D's bias against Yukio ran so deep that whenever he said anything, she instinctively put up her guard, making it impossible to view his words objectively.
Finding the infirmary proved easy enough; on the first floor, at the far corner of the school building, they saw the sign for it. Yukio rapped lightly on the door a couple of times, then helped Matsushita inside.
As expected, Nurse Hoshinomiya was on duty—or more accurately, slacking off. In the pristine white infirmary, she wasn't exactly standing by waiting for injured or sick students but was happily enjoying a hot cup of coffee and watching a show on her phone.
When the pair walked in, they must have arrived at a particularly amusing scene because Hoshinomiya was still laughing out loud.
It was…awkward. As soon as she heard the door open, she glanced back at them. Her grin hadn't fully disappeared, and the audio from her phone was still playing on speaker. An awkward silence hung in the air for two full seconds before she quickly muted the phone and locked the screen. Putting on a professional face, she acted as though nothing had happened.
"Oh my, isn't this Yukio-kun and Matsushita-san?" she greeted. "What's the matter? Matsushita-san hurt her foot? Come, have a seat over here, and I'll take a look."
Only an experienced adult could recover so smoothly after being caught slacking off. That level of composure was something students could learn from.
Hoshinomiya turned out to be quite capable. A quick glance told her Matsushita had sprained her ankle. She had Matsushita lie down, elevating her foot above her heart to reduce swelling, then applied an ice pack, a topical swelling-reducing patch, and gave her some medicine to promote blood flow. She also advised Matsushita to start using warm compresses after a day, saying she'd likely recover fully in two days. But in the meantime, she should avoid as much physical activity as possible.
Hearing that she would be healed quickly made Matsushita a bit relieved, but learning she was barred from training for two days left her anxious. "Hoshinomiya-sensei, are you sure I can't train? We…we're really short on time."
"No way," Hoshinomiya said firmly, in a playful, girlish tone. She crossed her arms in an X, then slipped back into a sweet smile. "Just rest easy. I'll write you a note here in the infirmary, so even if you skip training for the next couple of days, you won't face any penalties."
Yukio quietly observed from the side. He had already sized up Matsushita's injury and could tell it wasn't that severe. One day of rest should be enough. Evidently, Hoshinomiya was tacking on an extra day—an understated move to hamper Class D. She would seize any chance to suppress them. Ruthless indeed.
"All done," Hoshinomiya announced once she finished the procedure. "Matsushita-san, you just rest up. I'll let your classmates know in a bit. And Yukio-kun, why don't you help me carry back some new medical supplies? It's only the first day, and we're already getting injuries. There'll probably be more to come. We're short on supplies."
Since Yukio's main purpose was Hoshinomiya anyway, there was no reason for him to refuse. He quickly agreed. After assuring Matsushita she'd be fine on her own until her classmates arrived, Yukio left the infirmary with Hoshinomiya.
They didn't go far, nor did they actually fetch any so-called supplies. Once they were a short distance away, Hoshinomiya turned to him with a cheerful look. "Yukio-kun, do you actually have feelings for Matsushita-san? It's rare to see you taking care of a girl like that—personally escorting her to the infirmary. Ahh, looks like poor Ichinose's chances just got even dimmer."
Yukio really had no idea why she was bringing this up, so he chose not to respond. Instead, he mentioned what would pique her interest the most. "Matsushita's injury… I was the one who caused it."