The rain had finally stopped. The sky cleared, and the gloomy clouds that had hung overhead for days vanished. Sunlight spilled across the earth, and the puddles scattered along the streets reflected dazzling, shimmering light—like the city itself was sparkling.
After three full days of staying holed up in his room, Haruto finally stepped outside. The moment he took a deep breath of the crisp, fresh air, a subtle sense of emotion rose in his chest. He didn't need to confine himself to his apartment anymore—he could walk the streets freely, stretching out his limbs at last.
Having not exercised for days, he felt his body awaken as he inhaled deeply. The stagnant gloom buried deep in his heart seemed to dissolve into the warm brightness of the day.
"Good morning, Miyamizu-kun."
"Morning."
"Morning, Miyamizu-san"
"Yeah, morning."
"You're out early today, Miyamizu-kun."
"Mhm."
From his apartment all the way to school, he encountered several students from Toyosaki High. Strangely, while he didn't know most of them personally, they clearly knew who he was.
Haruto smiled as he greeted them back. When he arrived at school and opened his shoe locker, he was met with a surprise: a pile of pink envelopes stuffed inside. The sight left him momentarily stunned.
After a period of relative peace, it seemed he had suddenly become popular with the girls again. Looking at the stuffed envelopes, he couldn't help but feel a moment of exasperation. Glancing around at the subtle gazes peeking his way, he calmly slipped the letters into his bag, changed into his indoor shoes, shut the locker, and headed to class.
"M-Miyamizu...kun…"
Nearby, partially hidden behind the door of her shoe locker, Saki quietly peeked at him. Watching his back as he walked away, she softly whispered his name before closing her own locker and heading toward the classroom as well.
Along the way, he caught more attention than usual, but once he stepped into the classroom, everything fell into an odd hush. Everyone already knew about what had happened with him. Their reactions were calm, and the occasional glances he received came only with quiet greetings.
He reached his seat, sat down, and looked out into the school courtyard. It was still drenched. Even though the sun had returned, three days of nonstop rain wouldn't dry up so easily. Water still seeped faintly through the windows into the classroom, but it wasn't much.
"Ugh, finally made it…"
A familiar voice spoke from behind him. Turning his head to the rear right, Haruto saw Yoshii slumped lifelessly over his desk. He wasn't moving, and it made Haruto raise an eyebrow.
There was still time before class, and with nothing better to do, Haruto stood and walked over to Yoshii. Looking at his pale face and limp body, Haruto tapped his shoulder gently twice.
"Ughhh—"
"You alive?"
"Mmmn…"
"You're pale as a ghost. Did you stay up all night gaming?"
"No… I'm just really weak right now… Three days of rain, and all I had at home were two packs of instant noodles… I ate one per day. Yesterday and today I've eaten nothing… I've been surviving on hot water and instant coffee. I think… this is it for me…"
"...Didn't you have food at home? You know how to cook, don't you? You had ingredients the last time I visited."
Haruto frowned in confusion. Akihisa got a weekly allowance—there was no way he couldn't afford food.
"FS Studios dropped a new game... I used up all my money on it. I only saved enough for instant noodles. Then the rain came…"
Yoshii's voice grew fainter and fainter, like his soul was slipping away. Haruto sighed, went back to his seat, grabbed his lunch box, returned to Yoshii, and handed it to him.
"Haruto... you're not…!"
"Just eat something. Don't pass out during class and make a scene. I'll go buy something from the cafeteria later."
"A-Angelll!! You're an angel!!! I love you, Harutoooo—!!!"
Yoshii's shout was loud, attracting everyone's attention. Students turned toward them with puzzled expressions. When Haruto looked around, the girls quickly averted their eyes and began whispering to each other.
"So, that's why he suddenly cooled off with Nakano...?"
"Wait, seriously?"
"Also, Sakmoto-kun too… All three of them? Could it be…?"
"Akihisa-kun's so skinny, he's totally the bottom, right? Haruto's like a gentle top. Then Sakmoto... hmm…"
"What if they're in a threesome...?"
Their whispered gossip was vulgar and absolutely absurd.
Haruto glanced down at Yoshii, who was now quietly devouring the lunch, then sighed and returned to his seat. Not long after, Sakamoto Yuji entered the classroom. Upon seeing Yoshii eating rice at full speed, he raised an eyebrow.
"Starting that early, huh?"
"Mmmph!"
"Swallow before you talk. I can't understand a thing."
"Mm mm mm!"
"...Right."
By the time the teacher, Fukuhara Shin, entered the classroom, Yoshii had already polished off the entire bento and neatly closed the box. He looked significantly more alive—aside from a few grains of rice stuck to the corner of his mouth.
"Due to the heavy rain, we haven't had classes for the past three days. Starting today, we'll resume the regular schedule."
Fukuhara barely even paused his gaze on Yoshii, clearly numb to his antics at this point. He looked down and began the lecture.
Since Haruto had given his lunch to Yoshii, he didn't go meet Rio as usual. He simply sent her a message and headed to the cafeteria. After ordering a beef bowl set meal, he found a quiet corner and sat down.
"Is this seat taken?"
A familiar voice. Haruto looked up and saw Itsuki already sitting across from him. He blinked in surprise, then glanced around.
In the distance, the other four Nakano sisters were sitting at a separate table. None of them seemed to have noticed her absence. He turned his gaze back to Itsuki.
"Why aren't you sitting with your sisters?"
"They don't need anyone to keep them company. One more or less doesn't matter. I just saw you sitting here alone and thought you looked kinda lonely. Consider this repayment for your tutoring."
"Did you study during the three days of rain?"
"..."
Itsuki's face stiffened. She hadn't expected that question, and guilt immediately crept into her expression. She hadn't even glanced at her notes.
"With that kind of weather, how could anyone concentrate? The storm, the wind, the noise… I couldn't focus at all, even when I woke up. Studying just wasn't possible."
She averted her eyes as she gave her excuse. By the end, she seemed to have convinced herself and looked at Haruto with a strangely serious expression.
Haruto, who had spent those same rainy days calmly writing thousands of words at his computer, figured he didn't really have the right to scold her. Looking at her puffed-out cheeks and sulking face, he simply returned to eating.
"It's not like it's any of my business. I was just asking."
"..."
Itsuki had been about to offer more excuses, worried that she'd disappointed him—but those words stopped her cold. Instead of relief, she felt strangely irritated.
Clenching her small fists and taking a deep breath, she forced herself to calm down.
"You gave your bento to that idiot Akihisa guy this morning, right? So now you're here eating alone?"
"He survived three days on two instant noodles. Making it to school alive today is impressive. I figured he deserved a reward. Maybe next time, he'll break his own record."
"Wait, what?! Three days… on instant noodles?!"
Shocked by the story, Itsuki stared wide-eyed at Haruto.
Haruto chewed a slice of beef and replied with a sigh.
"His family's overseas. He's alone at home. And he's terrible with money. Long story short—he bought a game, spent the rest of his allowance, and then got stuck in the rain. No food left. Just instant noodles."
Initially, she'd felt a little sorry for Yoshii, but now that she understood the full picture, that sympathy vanished. She lowered her head and quietly returned to her lunch.
These days, Haruto was a bit of a celebrity at Toyosaki. So naturally, people noticed when a girl like Itsuki sat with him. Curious stares began to stir among the other students.
"Who's Itsuki's friend? Do we know anyone from Toyosaki?"
"Not really. She doesn't hang out with anyone in class."
At the table where the other Nakano sisters were eating, Nino suddenly raised the question. The others, however, were just as clueless about Itsuki's mysterious new "friend."
"Why don't we just take a look? We're all in the cafeteria anyway, right?"
Ichika, who had been quietly eating her lunch, finally looked up at Nino's words. Her gaze swept across the cafeteria until it landed on a familiar figure—Itsuki. Then, her eyes shifted to the person sitting next to her.
Ichika's expression froze.
The other three sisters, curious as well, began searching for Itsuki. When they spotted her and saw who she was sitting with, their reactions were nearly identical—shock flickered across their faces before they quickly turned their gazes back to Ichika.
A strange silence settled over the table.
None of the four sisters said a word. They quietly lowered their heads and resumed eating, as if nothing had happened.
Even Yotsuba, who usually had the boldest personality, remained unusually quiet. Miku, on the other hand, didn't seem particularly bothered, calmly slurping her udon noodles. Nino, who had already known a bit about what was going on, hadn't expected Itsuki to go this far—to openly sit with Haruto in such a public setting.
"Itsuki… and Haruto...?"
Ichika murmured softly, her eyes downcast. After a brief silence, she looked up and turned to the others.
"Did any of you know about this?"
"Nope!" Yotsuba was quick to answer, waving her hands in denial. She genuinely looked surprised.
Miku, still chewing her noodles, gave no reaction beyond a small shrug—her indifference was an answer in itself. That left Ichika to glance toward Nino.
Compared to her usual self, Nino's expression was noticeably awkward. Her body stiffened just slightly under Ichika's gaze.
"I just know that Itsuki's been meeting with Miyamizu-kun pretty often near school," Nino admitted with a sigh. "Apparently, she asked him to help her with studying. As for anything else… I really don't know."
"So every Saturday at noon… she's been meeting him?"
Ichika's tone was even, but a shadow passed through her eyes.
Now that she thought about it, there had been little signs—Itsuki slipping out during lunch on weekends, acting slightly different. But none of them had paid it much attention. They'd all assumed she was just out exploring new restaurants, which was typical for her.
"Yeah… I think so," Nino replied, stealing a glance toward Ichika's contemplative face. Her own gaze then shifted toward Itsuki and Haruto, sitting together at the far end of the cafeteria.
Ichika didn't say much after that. Her expression remained composed, unreadable.
"I see... So that's why her grades suddenly improved—it was because of Haruto's tutoring."
She smiled faintly and lowered her head once more.
"There's nothing wrong with that."
The other three sisters exchanged uncertain glances. Ichika's calm reaction left them puzzled. None of them could guess what she was truly thinking behind that serene smile.
And so, in silence, they finished their lunch.
Meanwhile, at the far end of the cafeteria...
After quietly eating for a while, Itsuki suddenly looked up and broke the silence.
"Are you free this Saturday?"
Haruto looked up from his tray and met her gaze.
"Same as usual—nothing planned. Why?"
"This Saturday… I have something I need to do."
"I see. Then I guess we can skip this week's study session—"
"N-No! That's not what I meant!" she said quickly, leaning forward. "I was actually hoping you could come with me... to the bookstore!"