After the First Year Midterm Exam, the weekend immediately followed.
The First Year students enjoyed their rare leisure time, casting aside their exam preparation stress.
Inside a cafe on the commercial street,
Soothing music flowed.
In a booth by the window, Nagumo leaned back somewhat languidly in the soft sofa, his fingertips unconsciously stirring the coffee in his cup.
Asahina Natsume sat opposite him, taking small sips of her cake, her gaze occasionally sweeping over Nagumo's somewhat distracted face.
This was the very shop where Sakamoto had once worked.
Nagumo himself couldn't quite explain why he chose this place to relax.
Perhaps it was a subconscious attempt to conquer a lingering shadow.
More than a week had passed since that nightmarish "interview period."
Sakamoto had indeed joined the Student Council as he "wished," taking on the role of secretary, which had been vacant.
Horikita Manabu had also granted Sakamoto a great deal of freedom, which resulted in him rarely participating in the Student Council's daily affairs, appearing and disappearing like a ghost.
This, in turn, made Nagumo breathe a sigh of relief.
At least, he didn't have to constantly be on guard for that figure's sudden appearance in the suffocating space of the Student Council Room.
Time, it seemed, truly possessed some ability to dilute everything.
The horror and embarrassment brought on by the extreme "service" of those days gradually blurred under Nagumo's deliberate forgetting and his brain's self-preservation mechanism.
It was categorized as an absurd collective hallucination caused by excessive stress.
Yes, it must be like that.
How could such a thing be real?
As the fear gradually receded, certain restless thoughts began to quietly sprout again.
The First Year Midterm Exam was over... those "gifts" he had meticulously spread must have taken effect by now, right?
Some of the First Year classes should now be in a state of chaos, perhaps even experiencing internal conflicts, due to their mistaken reliance on the "past exam papers" he provided.
And Sakamoto, whom he had framed, must be deeply embroiled in a whirlpool of public opinion, unable to defend himself.
Thinking of this, Nagumo couldn't help but reveal a malicious smile.
"Miyabi?" Asahina's voice interrupted his thoughts.
She tilted her head, a smile on her face, "What good thing are you thinking about? Your expression is quite amusing."
"Nothing," Nagumo quickly reined in his smile, picked up his coffee, and took a sip, "I just think the weather is nice."
Asahina smiled, not exposing him.
She, of course, knew what he was thinking.
She was also happy to see Nagumo like this, "alive" again, and even starting to be a bit "forgetful."
Sakamoto-kun's methods, though astonishing, seemed to have worked well.
At least they kept this guy quiet for a good while.
She lowered her head, cutting her cake, her mood pleasant.
Nagumo secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
The second year was his absolute domain, his long-established kingdom.
No matter how strange that First Year Sakamoto was, his reach couldn't possibly extend to the second year, could it?
As long as he was in the second year, he was safe... Just as this thought settled.
The wind chimes at the cafe entrance rang crisply.
Nagumo subconsciously looked up.
The next second, the color drained from his face at a visible speed, the fingers stirring his coffee suddenly froze, and his pupils abruptly contracted.
That figure—
That black nightmare—
was calmly pushing open the glass door and entering the cafe.
His posture was tall and straight, his steps elegant, as always.
And by his side, there was a girl.
Long purple hair, with a small braid on the side—
It was Kamuro Masumi of Class 1-A.
The silver spoon in Nagumo's hand clattered onto the saucer with a jarring sound.
— — — — — — — —
Sakamoto and Kamuro Masumi walked into the cafe side by side.
This weekend cafe date was actually initiated by Kamuro.
Ever since the beginning of the semester, when Sakamoto, like a god descending from the heavens, corrected her mistakes in the convenience store, and then on several occasions, when she encountered trouble, he casually resolved it in various unexpected ways, Kamuro had harbored an indescribable feeling in her heart.
Although she always maintained a cold and aloof demeanor on the surface, she remembered everything Sakamoto did to help her.
She felt it was time to repay Sakamoto.
After the First Year Midterm Exam, she tried sending Sakamoto a message through the contact information she had previously added.
The content was short and direct, essentially asking Sakamoto to spend money, and she had initially thought that given Sakamoto's elusive and unpredictable style, he would most likely not respond, or simply refuse.
To her surprise, he readily agreed.
Kamuro, on a whim, thought of this cafe where Sakamoto had once worked, and gave its name.
Thus, the current scene unfolded.
At this moment, feeling the overly strong presence of the person beside her, Kamuro's heart beat somewhat unnaturally fast.
She secretly glanced at Sakamoto's calm profile, trying to find a reasonable explanation for her abnormal heart rate.
This... shouldn't count as a date, right?
It was just expressing gratitude to someone who had helped her multiple times.
Yes, it was simply a thank you.
She tried to maintain her usual cold expression, attempting to suppress the slight warmth rising in her cheeks.
"Kamuro-san, please take a seat first."
Sakamoto's voice was gentle,
He gestured with a raised hand towards an empty booth not far away.
Kamuro nodded, walked over, and sat down.
Her gaze, however, involuntarily followed Sakamoto as he walked towards the ordering counter.
When Sakamoto spoke with the Waiter, the latter even showed a surprised and enthusiastic smile, as if seeing an old friend.
It seemed Sakamoto's reputation wasn't just limited to students.
A moment later,
Sakamoto finished ordering and returned to the table with unhurried steps, gracefully taking a seat opposite Kamuro.
"I've already ordered, Kamuro-san."
He nodded slightly.
"Oh... thank you."
Kamuro uncomfortably shifted her gaze, and the atmosphere became silent for a moment.
She tried to find a topic of conversation.
"Um... the Midterm Exam is finally over, isn't it?"
"Indeed. Appropriate rest is also a necessary matter."
Sakamoto replied.
"For Sakamoto-kun, it must be a perfect score again, without a doubt."
Kamuro tried to make her tone sound more casual and natural.
"The results have not yet been announced; everything is still unknown."
Sakamoto pushed up his glasses.
The conversation again fell into a brief silence.
Kamuro's fingers unconsciously twisted the hem of her clothes, secretly annoyed.
She wasn't usually clumsy with words, so why was it that whenever she was in front of him... she had to say something else.
Suddenly, a thought flashed through her mind.
"Speaking of which..."
Kamuro looked up.
"Sakamoto-kun, do you remember before... that time at the convenience store? You said then... next time, we'd drink juice together?"
As the words left her mouth, her ears flushed slightly.
Why did she bring that up!
It sounded almost like... Sakamoto hadn't answered yet.
Just then, the Waiter approached with a tray, a warm smile on his face:
"Sorry to keep you waiting, both of you. Here are your orders."
He placed an invitingly colored special coffee in front of Sakamoto,
then steadily placed a glass of clearly freshly squeezed orange juice, emanating a fresh fruity aroma, in front of Kamuro Masumi.
Kamuro was stunned.
She clearly remembered that this cafe's menu did not offer freshly squeezed juice.
She instinctively looked up at the Waiter.
The Waiter seemed to notice her confusion and explained with a smile:
"This was specially requested by Sakamoto-kun from our manager. The manager said that as long as it's Sakamoto-kun's request, we will do our best to fulfill it! Please enjoy!"
With that, the Waiter politely withdrew.
Kamuro stared blankly at the crystal-clear juice in front of her,
then looked up at the calm-faced Sakamoto opposite her.
He... actually remembered?
Kamuro had thought it was just a cool reply.
Sakamoto had even made arrangements with the manager in advance.
Sakamoto gently raised his coffee cup and subtly nodded to Kamuro.
"I have never forgotten what was promised."
"Please enjoy, Kamuro-san."
Kamuro Masumi instinctively picked up the cold juice,
but the temperature from her fingertips seemed to instantly iron out the softest corners of her heart.
She hurriedly lowered her head,
using the act of sipping the juice to hide her suddenly uncontrolled expression,
and her rapidly accelerating heartbeat.