Kotomi Izumi remained in her original position the whole time, letting Mashiro Shiina rest peacefully on her shoulder. As she slept, Mashiro would occasionally nuzzle Kotomi's neck with her small head, like a clingy kitten.
Only around Kotomi would Mashiro become so clingy—she clung only to Kotomi.
Kotomi looked at Mashiro's sleeping face and had to resist the urge to reach out and pinch her cheeks. She didn't want to ruin such a peaceful moment.
The Shinkansen moved at incredible speed, compressing time itself until it eventually pulled into the station.
As the train slowed to a stop, Kotomi knew it was time to wake her. With fingers that were half-reminder, half-playful mischief, she gently poked Mashiro's soft cheek again and again until she stirred.
Mashiro opened her pure, sleepy eyes. Her gaze was still hazy, but the moment she saw Kotomi as the first thing upon waking, she beamed with joy, a smile instinctively curling at her lips.
"Wake up, we've arrived in Tokyo."
"Okay."
Mashiro replied sweetly.
Once the train came to a complete stop, the attendant's voice came over the intercom, thanking the passengers for choosing the Shinkansen and wishing them a pleasant journey.
At that moment, Kotomi stood up with Mashiro, pulling their luggage down from the overhead rack. Hibiki Naegi, who had been sitting a short distance away, had already retrieved her suitcase and was now waiting for them at the Green Car exit.
"Let's grab a quick lunch before taking the train back to Chiba," Hibiki suggested.
After all, none of them could drive, and they didn't own a car. Taking a taxi back would be far too extravagant—they'd be sobbing as they paid the bill.
The best choice was to take the train back to Chiba. The timing was perfect; after lunch, there wouldn't be too many people on the train, and they'd likely find seats easily.
Kotomi and Mashiro naturally agreed to Hibiki's plan.
For small matters like this, Kotomi often went along with Hibiki's decisions. After all, Hibiki was the head of the art club, and during their three days in Kyoto, Kotomi gave her plenty of respect by following her arrangements—at least when it wasn't anything major.
To be honest, they hadn't done much as a group those three days. Their only outing together had been the visit to the National Museum of Modern Art in Kyoto.
Just as they were about to exit the station, the just-awakened Mashiro seemed to suddenly boot up like a system restarting and exclaimed:
"I remember now! Before we left for Kyoto, Cousin said she'd come pick us up when we got back!"
"Now that you mention it... I think she did say something like that," Kotomi muttered. Before leaving, she'd been so focused on Gion Hanamachi that she hadn't really listened to Chihiro Sengoku's words.
Hibiki stood there, dumbfounded. She hadn't been paying attention either.
The night before their departure, she had spent the whole night "hard at work" with Seiko Kirigiri. She had gotten barely any sleep—could count the hours on one hand. After exhausting herself all night, she had to get up early and catch the train to Tokyo. Back then, she could barely stay awake, let alone focus on Chihiro's instructions.
In the end, the only one who remembered Chihiro's reminder was Mashiro—the one who usually seemed the least reliable.
"We'll have to call Chihiro and see if she's in Tokyo right now. But... today's a weekday, so she might be at Sobu High School. If she's there, we'll just stick to the plan and take the train back."
As Kotomi spoke, she pulled out her phone to call.
"Umm... I think that's Cousin's car..."
Mashiro pointed toward a wine-red SUV parked not far from the station exit. The massive body and flashy color were absurdly attention-grabbing.
Chihiro Sengoku had been thinking about buying a more compact car, while Eiren Kanagawa was considering upgrading to a much larger one. The contrast in their thinking couldn't have been more obvious.
The three girls hurried over to the maroon SUV. Chihiro rolled down the window, her face freshly made-up and glowing. She looked like she'd just come from some formal event.
"You three little troublemakers... did you leave your brains behind in Kyoto?"
"Today's your return day, and not one of you thought to call and let me know what time you'd be arriving. If Eiren hadn't called me after dropping you off at the station, I wouldn't have even known you were on your way to Tokyo."
"What's the deal? You don't like my super-cool SUV? Can't appreciate how majestic it is? This beast is way more impressive and spacious than Eiren's tiny little sedan."
Chihiro scolded them in a mock-serious tone like a teacher lecturing her students, but there was a teasing glint in her eyes. The three girls stood there obediently, waiting for her to finish before replying.
"No way, Chihiro! We just totally forgot to call you. Actually, I'm not even sure we remembered you said you'd pick us up... ahaha~"
"We're really sorry, Ms. Sengoku. When you were telling us everything in the car before we left, I was too tired and didn't catch it all. I'll definitely reflect on it."
"Cousin, what's for lunch?"
Faced with her three precious girls who had made her so proud by being selected for the first round of the Tokyo National Youth Art Prize exhibition, Chihiro couldn't stay mad.
The Sobu High School art club had produced three participants in the first round this year. That alone was enough to make every other school green with envy.
The level of competition between schools was intense, and this gave Sobu High School a clean edge over its peers. The board chair, principal, and department heads were all thrilled.
As the art club's supervising teacher, Chihiro Sengoku was seen as a major contributor.
Even if nothing else changed, her year-end bonus alone would be worth a small fortune. Just thinking about that made the girls' faces seem even cuter to her—as if no matter what they did wrong, she could forgive them with ease. Thumbing behind her like a seasoned pro, she grinned:
"Alright, hop in. I'll take you to grab lunch first."
"Then I'll drive you home, Kotomi, Hibiki."
"Once you get home, take the afternoon to rest and reset. Don't keep thinking about having fun—the second round of the exhibition isn't starting anytime soon. Your homeroom teachers already requested leave on your behalf, and all the paperwork is done. Just be good and show up to school tomorrow."
Then she added:
"Oh, and don't think you'll be doing absolutely nothing this afternoon. Great news—your midterms are the day after tomorrow! Hahaha! Excited? Hey hey hey, Kotomi, what's with the penguin face all of a sudden?"
"You're the top student in the whole grade—and in all of Tokyo, remember? You've got to hold your head high and stay confident!"
"Chihiro, don't you know that whether your grades are good or bad, just hearing the word 'exam' is enough to make any student pull a face? It's encoded into our DNA!"
"Really now... maybe I've just been out of school for too long. I must've lost that DNA instinct."
Chihiro twitched at the corners of her mouth. No matter the situation, Kotomi always managed to stir things up.
Hibiki and Mashiro loaded their suitcases into the trunk and got into the car. Kotomi was just about to do the same when she heard a spirited, mischievous voice calling out:
"Senpai!"
Kotomi whipped her head around and saw Iroha Isshiki riding up on a shared electric bike.
At first, she was happy to see Iroha—but then she froze. Her expression instantly tensed.
Mashiro didn't know who Iroha was. Kotomi had never mentioned her.
This meant... this was their first time meeting.
An unexpected encounter was manageable. But what if—what if during their conversation, either of them mentioned the gift Kotomi had sent...?
For a moment, Kotomi felt like her heart had skipped a beat.
Chihiro looked at Iroha riding up on the electric bike, then glanced over at Mashiro, who had started to step out of the car to see what the commotion was about. Whether by coincidence or not, Chihiro's gaze drew a perfect triangle through the air.
She paused for a second.
Then softly muttered, "Wow..."
Sitting in the front passenger seat, Hibiki immediately noticed something was off.
Unlike Mashiro, who was already seated in the back, Hibiki's right foot was still outside the car. Upon hearing the voice, she poked her head out—and saw Iroha Isshiki riding up on a shared electric bike.
Hibiki had never met Iroha before and didn't know who she was. But the moment she realized Iroha was headed straight for Kotomi, her mind jumped to one conclusion: their relationship was probably the kind that couldn't be explained in just a few words.
Seeing Mashiro about to get out of the car, Hibiki quickly realized—if her guess was right, and Mashiro and Iroha met now, a love triangle showdown could erupt on the spot. Kotomi wouldn't die... but she might only have half a breath left.
With that image in mind, Hibiki didn't hesitate. She slammed her foot into the car, jumped fully inside, and shut the door with a loud bang.
Before Mashiro could get out, Hibiki lunged toward Chihiro Sengoku in the driver's seat and slapped the lock button. With a crisp click, all four doors of the SUV locked simultaneously.
Mashiro tugged on the door a few times, only to find it wouldn't open. She looked toward the front and realized—the car had been locked.
Once again, Hibiki had saved Kotomi's hide. Playing it cool, she slouched back into the passenger seat and, drawing on all her theatrical instincts, rubbed her belly and groaned:
"Ms. Sengoku, when are we eating? I'm starving over here!"
Chihiro immediately caught on. She stepped on the gas, and the wine-red SUV roared like a beast freed from its cage, speeding off down the road.
She really wanted to watch the drama unfold—but her gut told her that if this triangle exploded into a real scene, Kotomi's precious life might not survive.
These girls were her pride and joy, her shining stars who brought glory to the art club. A messy misunderstanding between Mashiro and Iroha right now would only cause unnecessary trouble.
"Hahaha, so you were hungry, huh, Hibiki? I know this amazing place in Tokyo. I'll take you there and we'll all eat until we're stuffed. And since Kotomi's not in the car right now, my wallet just got about ten thousand times lighter in pressure."
"Still, that girl... she really forgot about her Tokyo friend who came to pick her up. Poor thing even came all the way over on a shared e-bike. If we'd left just a little earlier, she would've made the trip for nothing."
Chihiro deliberately raised her voice, making sure Mashiro heard every word loud and clear. She didn't know exactly what the relationship between Kotomi and the ash-blonde girl was, but given the situation, they had to ease Mashiro's suspicion.
Otherwise, she might become so anxious that she'd do something drastic—like jumping out of the moving car to rush back and confront Kotomi with, "Who is she? What's your relationship with her?!"
Mashiro had never done something like that before, but she'd also never been in love. Ever since meeting Kotomi, her feelings had grown stronger and more intense than expected.
That's why Chihiro had this feeling—Mashiro might just jump out of the car. And if she did... even her older cousin wouldn't know what this outwardly obedient girl was capable of when truly pushed.
After all, Mashiro had never been truly upset before.
The unknown is always the scariest.
Upon hearing that the girl was just one of Kotomi's Tokyo friends, Mashiro's expression finally softened a little. But she was still clearly upset, casting a gloom over the entire ride.
...
Meanwhile, back at Tokyo Station.
Kotomi Izumi, still holding her luggage, watched the wine-red SUV speed away. After a brief moment of confusion, she quickly realized the noble intentions behind Hibiki and Chihiro's actions.
Thank you, you righteous heroines of justice.
"Were those your classmates and teacher in that car just now? So you were planning to leave with them," Iroha Isshiki asked curiously, having already noticed the wine-red SUV.
"Yeah. Don't let that SUV's flashy exterior fool you—it's cramped as heck inside. Looks cool, but useless. With just one person in the back it's already a tight squeeze. If I got in too, someone would've either suffocated or died from exhaustion. Just look at how kind my teacher and classmates are—they couldn't bear to see me suffer, so they ditched me on the spot."
Kotomi sighed dramatically, roasting Chihiro Sengoku's SUV without hesitation. It wasn't even personal—she just needed some material to work with. The exaggeration was so obvious it was clearly a joke.
And sure enough, Iroha was amused, laughing brightly.
Iroha was dressed casually in a white long-sleeve top and denim capri pants, paired with ivory-white high-top sneakers decorated in a festive Christmas color scheme. The shoe collars had small designs of reindeer, sleighs, Santa hats, snowflakes, and gift boxes.
The whole outfit made her look lively and energetic. But most eye-catching were her fair, radiant legs—partially covered by the capris and high-tops, they were modest yet captivating. Absolutely stunning.
Kotomi couldn't stop staring.
During this in-between season when autumn wrestled with winter, the weather remained unpredictable. On cold days, you wanted to wrap yourself in a comforter. But when the sun came out, it felt like spring or summer again.
"Senpai, I'm wearing pink socks today~"
As if she'd read Kotomi's mind, Iroha tilted her head and smiled. She raised one foot slightly, showing the pink socks peeking out from her shoe.
She looked like she was teasing Kotomi again. Kotomi grumbled internally about this little devil always being up to mischief—but had to admit, Iroha looked beautiful. Standing next to her, Kotomi felt as if they really were a couple. Her heart started racing.
It's definitely not love—it's panic. Totally panic!
Kotomi lied to herself.
"Why'd you suddenly come all the way to Tokyo Station to meet me? I don't think I told you what time I'd be arriving... and if you really wanted to pick me up, you didn't have to come this far. Chiba would've been enough."
Kotomi averted her eyes slightly as she spoke, feeling her cheeks heat up.
"I came to Tokyo today to buy a gift for Mr. and Mrs. Izumi. Last time, I brought cream stew to your place and ended up freeloading a whole lunch. So I thought I'd properly thank them this time. I already decided on gloves—there's a shop here in Tokyo that specializes in them. I'd saved up some allowance money, and it was just enough to buy two pairs."
With a smile, Iroha took out two neatly wrapped boxes—simple in design, but exuding high quality.
Inside was one pair of black men's gloves and one pair of white women's gloves. The texture made it clear they were genuine lambskin. Kotomi recognized the brand right away—comfortable, warm, and pricey.
Buying these gloves had drained most of Iroha's saved allowance.
"After buying them, I was on my way to the train station when I started chatting with Aimi on Line. That's when I found out from her that you'd boarded the train to Tokyo Station about two hours ago. Since I was already nearby, I figured I might as well come pick you up. That's the first reason."
Iroha took a step closer, then added:
"The second reason... Senpai, I missed you."
She looked up, her warm smile glowing. Her skin was pale as snow, her dimples shallow and sweet—like a peach blossom blooming just for Kotomi.
—I missed you.
Just four simple words. But behind them was a girl's deep, pearl-like yearning, drop by drop.
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