"Hey! Yu, hurry up, hurry up!"
As they walked down the slope bathed in the setting sun, Miura Yumiko's cheerful voice echoed from ahead of Nakano Yu.
If it had been earlier, Nakano Yu would have responded immediately. No, more precisely, he would not have even been this far away from Miura Yumiko, but would have been sticking close to the girl.
So why was it like this today?
It had something to do with the other two girls Miura Yumiko had brought along.
Thinking of this, Nakano Yu's gaze fell on Yuiigahama Yui and Yukinoshita Yukino, who were walking behind Miura Yumiko.
Yesterday, he had solved the Izanagi Curse problem affecting Marika and Chika, but yesterday afternoon he had originally planned to go out with Miura Yumiko. However, because of the situation involving the Tachibana family, which concerned people's lives, it had been postponed until today.
But what Nakano Yu had not expected was that Miura Yumiko would actually invite both Yuiigahama Yui and Yukinoshita Yukino.
Yuiigahama Yui could still somehow be explained, since she was also one of Miura Yumiko's good friends and a member of the popular group. It was completely normal for good friends to go out together.
But!
Why was Yukinoshita Yukino with them?! Logically speaking, shouldn't Yukinoshita Yukino and Miura Yumiko dislike each other? Even if their relationship wasn't that bad, they shouldn't be close enough to go out together after school, right?
Nakano Yu had originally thought this would be a sweet date with Miura Yumiko, but he hadn't expected it to turn into a group outing of four people.
Recalling what Miura Yumiko had previously told him about Yuiigahama Yui, Nakano Yu felt a headache coming on.
He had not expected Miura Yumiko to be so accommodating that she would even push the person she liked toward someone else.
"I'm coming."
After responding to the three girls waiting for him at the bottom of the slope, Nakano Yu quickened his pace and caught up with them in just a few steps.
Looking at Yui, whose face was flushed red, who didn't dare look him in the eyes but kept secretly glancing at him, Nakano Yu quietly sighed, then looked at Miura Yumiko with a smile and asked curiously:
"Yumiko, where are you planning to go?"
"Hmm... well, let's check out the new Shopping mall nearby. My friends say it's really interesting!"
Hearing that, Miura Yumiko pretended to think for a moment, then as if suddenly remembering something, finished her sentence and led the group in the already planned direction.
Watching Miura Yumiko deliberately walk ahead to lead the way, leaving him and Yuiigahama Yui to walk together, Nakano Yu curled his lips.
He wanted to see what kind of scheme Miura Yumiko was planning.
Although Miura Yumiko thought she was acting naturally, Nakano Yu wasn't stupid and could see her deliberately hidden intentions.
He estimated that once they arrived at the Shopping mall, she would find all kinds of excuses to leave him and Yuiigahama Yui alone together.
Shaking his head, Nakano Yu couldn't really understand why Miura Yumiko was doing this.
At that moment, a glance attracted Nakano Yu's attention. Following the direction it came from, Nakano Yu happened to meet the deep blue eyes of Yukinoshita Yukino, resembling an abyss.
The moment their gazes met, Yukinoshita Yukino's body trembled slightly, and she quickly looked away.
"Ahem!"
After coughing twice, Yukinoshita Yukino quickened her pace and soon distanced herself from Nakano Yu and Yuiigahama Yui.
"How strange."
Seeing Yukinoshita Yukino's unusual behavior, Nakano Yu muttered.
Compared to Yuiigahama Yui, Nakano Yu was even more confused about why Yukinoshita Yukino was here. Could it be that Yukinoshita Yukino had also fallen in love with him?
Hmm... it was possible. After all, Nakano Yu knew that very few people could resist his charm.
However, as for Yukinoshita Yukino... Nakano Yu didn't feel any particular excitement. He hadn't had much contact with either Yukinoshita Yukino or Yuiigahama Yui.
Between the two of them, Nakano Yu felt that he still preferred Yui, because Yui was cheerful, and although part of that was people-pleasing behavior, her true nature also carried a sense of optimism. Compared to Yukinoshita Yukino's lifelessness, Yui's advantages were obvious.
Moreover, Yui meant that her children wouldn't go hungry in the future, unlike Yukinoshita Yukino, whose children would obviously be destined for formula milk.
"Nakano-kun... U-um... H-hello!"
Just as Nakano Yu was pitying Yukinoshita Yukino's future children, Yuiigahama Yui, who had been shyly following beside him, suddenly spoke to him.
She spoke in fragments, and in the end failed to form a complete sentence, managing only to greet Nakano Yu.
"...Oh, hello."
Looking at Yuiigahama Yui, whose face was red and whose eyes were filled with confusion as she looked at him, Nakano Yu opened his mouth and responded after a moment.
"Um... this... Na-Nakano..."
At that moment, Yuiigahama Yui realized what she had just done. She waved her hands, wanting to explain her foolishness, but her nervous brain had already collapsed. A high fever seemed to occupy Yuiigahama Yui's thoughts, and she couldn't even speak.
Clenching her fists, Yuiigahama Yui now hated herself for being so useless.
Obviously, obviously the person she liked was right in front of her, obviously she wasn't usually like this... Why, why couldn't she speak?!
Biting her lower lip tightly, Yuiigahama Yui's heart was filled with mixed emotions. She had clearly prepared herself mentally, she was supposed to talk normally with the boy beside her, but why, why...
"Alright, just call me Yu. Relax."
Just as Yuiigahama Yui was internally boiling with anger toward herself, Nakano Yu's gentle words entered her ears. As his voice fell, Yuiigahama Yui felt a warm large hand patting her head.
Coming back to her senses, the girl looked up at Nakano Yu, who was smiling at her, and froze for a moment, not even noticing the trace of blood on her lower lip from how hard she had bitten it.
Seeing that Yuiigahama Yui had actually bitten her lip until it bled, Nakano Yu was surprised, then an emerald glow appeared in his eyes. He stretched out his hand and brushed across Yuiigahama Yui's lips, restoring the wound to its original state.
"Don't just stare at me blankly, let's go."
Seeing that Yuiigahama Yui was still staring at him in a daze, Nakano Yu said dissatisfiedly. As he spoke, he reached out and flicked Yuiigahama Yui on the forehead, instantly bringing the girl back to reality.
"Ah! Oh! Okay, okay, Yu-kun!"
After coming back to herself, Yuiigahama Yui quickly replied, her face turning crimson red. Gently touching her lips, she recalled Nakano Yu's incredibly gentle actions just now, and the girl felt herself being overwhelmed by happiness.
Is this what being in love feels like?!
Following beside Nakano Yu, Yuiigahama Yui now felt much more relaxed, occasionally even finding topics to talk about with the boy next to her.
Every movement of Yuiigahama Yui and Nakano Yu was noticed by Miura Yumiko, who was walking not far ahead. When she saw Nakano Yu's gentle actions, Miura Yumiko suddenly recalled her encounter with Nakano Yu in the pavilion.
Now that she thought about it, aside from being annoying sometimes, that guy was truly flawless in every other regard.
Smiling quietly to herself, Miura Yumiko glanced at her phone, placed a checkmark beside the first item in the note titled "Today's Plan," and then her gaze fell on the second item.
"Next is... creating a romantic atmosphere in the scary Monster House?"
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