Soft music played as the fountain spilled water gently into the pool.
In the bustling plaza, just as Maki Shijō was bracing for what she believed to be her social death, a parasol opened in front of her.
Only then did Maki realize who it was.
She hiccupped through her tears.
"…Yukinoshita?"
With sudden suspicion, she demanded, "Are you following me?"
Yukinoshita said nothing.
She gave her a glance, then looked at the "+1 Mental Strength" message still fresh on her phone. Without a word, she turned to leave.
If not for the points she needed for her task, she wouldn't have come at all.
But a gentle tug on her sleeve stopped her.
"Wait, can you… can you just stay a bit longer?"
Yukinoshita was dressed in a color-blocked white and grey blouse, paired with a soft blue cotton skirt. A modest crossbody bag hung from her shoulder.
It was an ordinary spring-summer outfit for a young woman, plain in its palette of black, white, grey, and blue.
But to Maki, no one on the street no matter how expensive or flashy their clothes stood out like her.
This girl truly had a way of quietly drawing attention without even trying.
Maki rubbed her reddened eyes.
"I'm scared… scared they might see me again…"
Tanuma and Kashiwagi had probably wandered off somewhere by now.
So perhaps, more than fearing them, she simply didn't want strangers to see her crying like this.
Compared to the poised and composed young lady in formal dress at the banquet that night who even looked dignified while crying today's Maki Shijō was in casual wear. Her soft shoulder-length hair was tied into twin tails.
She was petite, with a delicate, almost childlike face, and even her tear-streaked expression had an undeniable cuteness to it.
Yukinoshita gave her another look, then turned. She switched the umbrella to her other hand, lowering it slightly to the right so it would still shield the teary-eyed girl beside her.
Even though there was no task point reward this time.
She pulled out her phone with her free hand and started texting Kasumigaoka.
Kasumigaoka: I'm already on my way!!!
Kasumigaoka: Yukinoshita, I didn't keep you waiting too long, did I???
She even attached a photo her cat, Hoshi, inside a space capsule-style pet backpack. Its little paws and face were pressed eagerly against the transparent dome, looking full of energy.
Yukinoshita: I just stepped out too.
Maki accidentally caught a glimpse of the messages on Yukinoshita's screen, her mood instantly dipping.
"You're… waiting for someone?"
Yukinoshita's voice remained calm.
"Of course. I started forging chat logs last night just so I could follow the great Miss Shijō today."
"…"
Maki mumbled in protest, "You showing up out of nowhere… it's not unreasonable for me to misunderstand, is it?"
"Not entirely," Yukinoshita replied flatly. "People who stalk their friends and their friends' boyfriends tend to assume everyone else does the same. Makes perfect sense."
"I'm not a stalker! I just ran into them by chance!"
"If you were really that confident, you wouldn't have burst into tears back there."
Yukinoshita paused.
"I get it. Must've been a brick that flew into your eye. Totally understandable."
Maki: "…"
What kind of Jeanne d'Arc logic is that???
Compared to the last time they met when Yukinoshita had stood in the corner of a balcony, eyes red and aura quietly sorrowful today she had clearly returned to her usual impenetrable, razor-tongued self.
Every word she spoke carried a thorn, each one stabbing straight at Maki's heart.
Why did it feel like Yukinoshita, while no longer as haughty as before, had somehow become even more insufferable?
And yet, this infuriating Yukinoshita had held up an umbrella for her, shielding her from all the judgmental, scrutinizing gazes that sliced at her like blades from every direction.
Fate was strange. It brought together two girls who, in any other timeline, might've gone for each other's hair the second they met.
Time seemed to still in that moment, the world outside melting away into a quiet, sheltered harbor.
Maki sniffled.
Unlike Shionomiya and her emotionally barren family dynamic, the Shijō household was warm and full of love.
Her father was stern yet gentle, her mother busy but attentive. And she had a slightly silly but genuinely lovable twin brother.
The Shijōs had given her a privileged upbringing and unconditional love. Precisely because of that, Maki had always held herself to impossibly high standards. She wouldn't allow herself to do anything that might stain the family's name.
She and Kashiwagi had been friends for years, supporting and growing alongside each other. Kashiwagi was one of the most important people in her world. Hurting her, even slightly, was unthinkable.
Even so-called "fair competition" was a forbidden concept in Maki's world.
Bound by the walls of the prison she built for herself, Maki Shijō would probably spend her whole life peeking through the bars at the world beyond.
She lowered her head.
"I really do want Kashiwagi to be happy more than anyone else. I want her to enjoy her relationship with Tanuma to the fullest."
And perhaps for that very reason, her pain would also be greater than anyone else's.
Yukinoshita glanced at her. For once, she didn't fire back with a sharp remark.
"Yukinoshita," Maki asked, "you've dated a lot of people. Have you ever truly liked anyone?"
"No."
"I've heard that the faster someone answers, the more likely they're lying."
"Well then, Shijō have you ever fallen into a cesspit?"
"Of course not!!!"
The second the words left her mouth, Maki realized she'd walked into a trap. Her still-slightly-puffy eyes widened in indignation as she glared at Yukinoshita.
Perhaps slightly amused by Maki's outburst, Yukinoshita's icy expression softened, like the surface of a frozen lake just beginning to thaw in early spring.
With her long black hair cascading over her shoulders, she looked like a goddess from myth, chasing the moon across the sky.
She quietly closed her umbrella.
"I'm leaving."
And just like that, the little windless refuge they had created began to dissolve, time resuming its flow.
They were once again girls on diverging paths, destined to pass each other by.
"Yukinoshita!"
She turned back just as she was putting the umbrella away, only to see the petite girl standing there, a stubborn expression on her face.
And for the first time, Yukinoshita smiled.
"Next time we meet… I won't be this pathetic again!"
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