"But the relationships between them aren't as pure and simple as those of constellations."
"So, they are like constellations, but they aren't."
"Are you the same?"
"Uh..."
Reina didn't understand exactly what Rin meant.
Those words were like leaves falling onto the surface of water in her mind—floating, drifting, but never quite sinking in.
She wanted to ask something, but didn't know where to start.
But Rin didn't seem to care whether she understood or not.
After all, those words weren't meant for her ears in the first place.
They were for the audience watching the anime.
Ah... or rather, today's entire so-called club activity was just a massive setup for this specific payoff.
...No, to be precise, there was also an element of character building involved.
She wanted to gradually replace her shallow character image of being cold and always alone with something deeper.
A girl who, for certain reasons, was too unique and either actively or passively failed to blend into the collective, and who began to reach out after discovering a target suspected to be of her own kind...
Let the iceberg, of which only a corner was visible, become clearer.
The night grew deeper.
"Want to make a wish?"
Not letting Reina's mental storm last too long, Rin suddenly spoke a moment later, changing the subject.
"Huh? A wish...?" Reina snapped back from those somewhat incomprehensible words and blinked.
"Yeah. To those stars." Rin tilted her chin toward the night sky outside the window. "Even if they aren't shooting stars, they say it's just as effective."
"Want to try?"
"To the stars..." Reina murmured. "I've never tried that."
"I always thought you could only make a wish on shooting stars..."
"You can."
Rin nodded slightly.
"Should I do it in my head? Or is there some other way?"
"No," she said, offering a rare negation. "That would be boring."
"Eh? Don't tell me you want us to say them out loud to each other, Rin?"
"No." She shook her head. "If we do that, the wish won't come true."
Rin picked up her phone, opened her chat page with Reina, and waved the screen at her.
"I want to write the wish in the contact's nickname."
"That way, I can remember it was with you, and I don't have to worry about the wish not coming true."
"...That's so novel."
Reina's eyes lit up, as if the suggestion had piqued her eagerness.
"Then, how about we count down three seconds, then each turn around and leave our wish in the nickname?"
"Okay."
"Since you've agreed, I'm going to start the countdown!"
Rin held up her phone, the screen's light reflecting on her face and making those azure eyes shine slightly.
"Three—"
Reina gripped her phone tightly.
"Two—"
Her heart skipped a few beats for some reason.
"One!"
Reina quickly turned around.
Her fingers tapped away on the keyboard. At this moment, the audience's camera happened to linger on the screen, as characters representing the wish appeared one by one, their meaning gradually becoming clear...
...Win the ultimate school life!
[Sigh, Reina, you're still obsessing over that?]
[I guess it fits the theme? I'm curious what Rin's is.]
[Ugh, why won't the camera pan over?!]
[So annoying—]
[Stop the cliffhanger already, hurry up, I want to see!]
"I've made my wish!"
After editing and confirming, Reina didn't look back but spoke up to let her know.
"I'm done too."
Rin, who had kept her phone screen completely hidden the whole time, had also finished writing her nickname. After ensuring the bullet chat hadn't seen it, she slowly turned around, holding her phone behind her back.
Hide it for now; let the audience suffer a bit.
The timing isn't right yet.
It's not time for the reveal.
Outside, the starlight fell quietly, passing through the third-floor window of the old school building and landing in the gap between the two folding chairs.
Reina put away her phone and turned around.
Rin was still standing there, one hand behind her back and the other hanging at her side, her white hair swaying gently in the night breeze.
"What wish did you make, Rin?"
"It's a secret."
Rin's answer was brief and matter-of-fact.
"...Stingy."
...Though if it were her, she wouldn't have been able to say it out loud either.