Once, when she accidentally dropped her cell phone, Yumiko Miura was the one who reminded her, No matter where you go, don't forget to take your cell phone when you leave. Yumiko was always careful about it.
This reminded her of Hayato Hayama's previous apology and also of the conversation between Yukinoshita Yukino and Yuigahama Yui from just now.
"Yumiko, please don't ruin our friendship," Ebina Hina said as she glanced toward Akira's room.
A few minutes later,
Yumiko Miura opened the door.
She looked at Akira's room and then at the sofa in the living room. She knew exactly where she had left the phone—it was there because she had put it there herself.
The reason she had left her phone behind was simple, but for a few seconds, she hesitated. Then she walked to Akira's door and slowly opened it.
Akira was still sleeping soundly, She took careful slow steps toward the bedside, noticing his even breathing and how handsome his sleeping face looked.
"I'm sorry, Yui," Yumiko Miura thought silently as she moved closer to Akira.
Just as she was about to lean in, Akira's cell phone rang.
He opened his eyes instantly. Yumiko Miura, standing nearby, froze in surprise.
Akira turned his head toward her without saying a word.
Silently, he picked up the phone, glanced at it, and set it aside. He neither answered nor hung up.
"The person who called is Ebina-san," Akira said calmly.
Yumiko Miura's face turned pale, and she lowered her head.
Why had Ebina Hina called him at this time? The answer was simple.
"Miura-san if you treated me that way because you liked me, I would have been happy. But you only acted that way out of gratitude, and you still have Hayato Hayama in your heart. I can't accept that," Akira said lightly as he shook his head.
Yumiko Miura lifted her head in disbelief, staring at him.
"Of course. If all you wanted was someone to accompany you, I would be glad to do that. But I don't want responsibility. I don't want Yui to know, and I don't want to spend a yen more on you. Can you accept that?" Akira continued.
"Fujimiya-kun, you…"
"Actually, my original target was you, but because of your feelings for Hayato Hayama, it was difficult to break your relationship. So when you planned to introduce Yui to me, I accepted gladly. I didn't expect that you would break up, and I also didn't expect that you would develop such a good impression of me," Akira said, looking at Yumiko Miura.
Yumiko Miura opened her mouth but couldn't find words. It became clear that her intuition had been correct: Akira had wanted to pursue her, but she had pushed him toward her friend Yuigahama Yui.
"Miura-san, I'll give you two choices. Either you forget this matter and we remain friends, or you accept my relationship with Yui, and I will treat you as my girlfriend privately—but if others find out, I will not admit it and will put all the blame on you," Akira explained.
"I…" Yumiko Miura's eyes filled with confusion.
"You don't have to answer now. I'll give you a month to think it over. After a month, tell me your answer. By then, it would be best if you calmed down completely and lost your good impression of me," Akira interrupted, preventing further hesitation.
.....
Yumiko Miura left.
Akira glanced at the new message on his phone. It was from Ebina Hina, asking him to stop Yumiko Miura. She didn't explain exactly what she meant—smart people understood without explicit instructions.
He recalled the lost expression on Yumiko Miura's face when she left and sighed quietly.
Honestly, Yumiko Miura wasn't a bad person, but asking him to accept her feelings now would mean giving up both Yuigahama Yui and Yukinoshita Yukino.
When dealing with Yumiko Miura, Akira decided to stall for time. If he waited a month, maintained his current favorability with everyone, and ensured the proper conditions, Yumiko Miura's choice would become less crucial.
The reason Akira didn't reject Yumiko Miura immediately wasn't that he liked her, but that her favorability was important strategically, since system has already mark her as the second person.
After a moment, Akira looked out the window and replied to Ebina Hina. He didn't mention Yumiko Miura but simply wrote, "No problem."
A few minutes later, Ebina Hina sent a photo of Yukinoshita Yukino and Yuigahama Yui. A caption read: Which is more important, friendship or love?
Akira saved the photo, replied briefly, and then put away his phone. He had slept for a few hours and was already hungry.
...
In front of the station, Ebina Hina looked at Akira's latest message and smiled.
His reply —
"Ebina-san, you know too much," she muttered with a chuckle.
She didn't continue replying but instead looked at Yumiko Miura beside her.
"Yumiko, it's still early. Why don't we go to a coffee shop and have a proper chat?"
"I… I'm a little tired," Yumiko Miura admitted softly.
"Do you want me to tell Yui about this, or would you rather have a private chat with me?" Ebina Hina asked seriously.
"Let's go to the coffee shop. Don't tell Yui about this," Yumiko Miura said hurriedly.
Ebina Hina pushed her glasses up and said nothing more.
The two took the train together and arrived at a coffee shop not far from their homes. They had been classmates since junior high, and their chance meeting was due to this café.
Ebina Hina walked in and ordered coffee and a sandwich, while Yumiko Miura simply ordered coffee. They sat at a window seat together.
Ebina Hina gazed outside. "Remember, Yumiko? The day we met, I was standing outside this coffee shop, too nervous to go in. Until you appeared. You knew I wanted to come in but didn't dare, so you took my hand and walked me in."
"...I noticed you often stayed here after school, so I guessed you wanted to enter but were too shy," Yumiko Miura said softly.
"Later, I told you I wanted to be brave like you, and asked if we could be friends. You said yes and agreed to share some of your courage with me," Ebina Hina continued, smiling softly.
"Then we became friends, but you never found the courage," Yumiko Miura said quietly.
"In reality, I stopped here every afternoon not to enter, but to wait for you. I knew you'd notice and guide me in. That way, I could become your friend," Ebina Hina explained slowly, removing her glasses.
Yumiko Miura looked surprised.
"I wanted to be friends because I didn't want to be isolated. To be friends with you is not hard — all I had to do was praise you and act slightly naive. It wasn't tiring. Thanks to you, I got through junior high. In high school, you're still the same as before, just as I expected."
"Yui joined our circle because I invited her. I knew she would adapt passively and not disrupt our relationships. That made my position stable."
"But Akira-kun changed everything. Both you and Yui have changed," Ebina Hina continued.
"Hina, you…" Yumiko Miura said, incredulous.
"Don't look at me like that. At first, I just wanted to avoid isolation. But our friendship over the years became real," Ebina Hina said with a smile, putting on her glasses.
Yumiko Miura sighed in relief.
"You and Yui are alike—naive and kind. I, on the other hand, calculate everything. It's survival. I may seem bad, but I value our friendship. I don't want you or Yui to become strangers because of Akira-kun," Ebina Hina said firmly.
Yumiko Miura lowered her head, guilt and confusion on her face.
"Yumiko, do you like Akira-kun?" Ebina Hina asked.
"I… I don't know," Yumiko Miura admitted.
"Okay, then if Akira-kun wants to kiss you, would you refuse?" Ebina Hina asked thoughtfully.
Yumiko Miura's face flushed, but she didn't answer verbally.
Ebina Hina understood her reaction perfectly.
"Akira-kun helped you, made Hayato Hayama apologize, and you overheard the conversation between Yukino and Yui. You realized if she confessed, you'd have no chance, so you tried to confirm your relationship with Akira first…"
"I didn't think so… I know Akira and Yui are a couple. I… I just thought…," Yumiko Miura hesitated.
"You wanted to kiss him," Ebina Hina concluded accurately.
Yumiko Miura nodded, conflicted.
"What did Akira say to you?" Ebina Hina asked, without asking if she had succeeded.
"He… asked me to think about it," Yumiko Miura said hesitantly.
"What's your decision?" Ebina Hina asked.
"I… I'll continue observing Akira-kun for now. If I still can't forget him later, I'll discuss it with you again, or talk to him directly," Yumiko Miura replied.
Hearing this, Ebina Hina smiled slightly, relieved.
...
Night had fallen completely.
Akira was eating the curry he had just reheated.
The ability to enhance memory wasn't without energy cost—a fact that he had just discovered today.
Excessive brain use left the mind extremely clear after a good night's sleep.
The downside was that he could easily fall into dangerous sleepiness, as earlier with Yumiko Miura.
He finished dinner, cleaned the kitchen, and walked to his bedroom.
He had learned a lot from the books in the afternoon, including how to draw manga.
Manga themselves weren't difficult. As long as he could draw characters and backgrounds well, the rest could be managed by an assistant.
But Akira had no intention of hiring an assistant, so he had to learn everything himself—and acquire the necessary materials, which he had yet to do.
...
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