Yukinoshita-san is definitely secretly in love with me.

Although she kept complaining that Yukinoshita was just so annoying, Miura still wore a grin so wide it looked like it might split her face when they stepped out of the aquarium.

It was strange. She'd come to the aquarium plenty of times before, with friends and family. But never not once had she felt this happy the entire way through.

Just seeing Yukinoshita like this, wide-eyed and quietly delighted like a cautious little animal experiencing something new, made Miura feel that bringing her out today had been the most perfect decision she'd ever made.

Next, they went to grab lunch. Yukinoshita had picked out a simple Japanese diner. Miura originally wanted to take her somewhere fancier, but she was quickly persuaded by one line:

"I've never been to a place like this before..."

Those eyes quietly yearning. That awkward, bashful expression she tried to hide beneath a calm facade. Miura felt the blood rush straight to her head.

Take her.

Take her everywhere!

Forget restaurants if Yukinoshita said she wanted to bomb the Imperial Palace, Miura would have been halfway to the powder room grabbing dynamite.

They each ordered a rice bowl pork cutlet for one, beef bowl for the other.

Very down-to-earth dishes. Yet Yukinoshita looked genuinely fascinated as she ate, like she was doing something wonderfully novel.

Miura could feel her heart melting.

Ughhh what an absolute angel. How could anyone ever be mean to her?

All those rumors from the past... nonsense. Totally baseless. Absolute misunderstandings.

Miura "Rose-Tinted Glasses 800-Meter Long" Yumiko

After finishing lunch, they still had some time, so Miura planned to take Yukinoshita around the mall to see if they could find one of those purikura (photo sticker) booths. But after looking for a while, they couldn't find a single one.

"What are you looking for?"

"Purikura machine! I saw in a guide that any proper out... uh, I mean, any proper outing with a friend has to include purikura to be complete."

"You must've been reading a guide from a few years ago."

Yukinoshita sighed and pressed her fingers to her forehead. "Young people haven't really been into those lately."

With smartphones and editing apps everywhere now, the once-trendy purikura booths had quietly faded away. Just last year, Japan's major purikura machine company, Make Software, had gone bankrupt. The era of sticker photo booths was officially over.

Miura pouted, visibly deflated. "Aww... I wanted to sneak in a photo to remember this date..."

Yukinoshita glanced at her. "Idiot."

"Hey, who are you calling an idiot?!"

But Yukinoshita just replied, "Use your phone. That works, doesn't it?"

That's what I was waiting for you to say!

Grinning ear to ear, Miura quickly opened her phone camera. Just as she lined up the shot, she saw Yukinoshita walk ahead a few steps in the preview window. Then she turned back with a hand brushing aside her hair and the other lightly pressing down her skirt. She smiled over her shoulder.

It looked like a breeze had swept in at that exact moment. Miura, on pure instinct, tapped the shutter.

She glanced at the screen Yukinoshita was smiling, those rare dimples blooming on her cheeks like hidden flowers. Then she looked up at the real Yukinoshita, whose expression had already returned to calm.

That was the first time, Miura realized, that Yukinoshita had smiled at her.

Shit.

She was gorgeous.

Like some Disney princess who'd escaped the palace. Or an elf lost from Avalon.

So beautiful it made Miura speechless.

So beautiful her head stayed fuzzy even as they wandered through the mall.

It was one of the biggest shopping centers in the city modern, well-stocked, and full of variety.

They got on the escalator and continued chatting.

"Miura, have you made any progress on your club project report?"

That was just an excuse I made up to get her to beg me to hang out. I don't even have a ghost of an idea.

Miura cleared her throat and said seriously, "More or less. I've got the outline in my head. Should take me fifteen minutes to finish once I'm home."

As she spouted nonsense, she moved to stand behind Yukinoshita.

Today, Yukinoshita was wearing a pleated skirt that came just above the knee. It wasn't especially short, but on a moving escalator, there was always the risk of flashing someone especially with people behind you.

"Is there anything you want to buy, Miura?"

"A light jacket, maybe."

In the end, besides Miura's jacket, Yukinoshita bought a pink hairband and gave it to Miura as a thank-you gift. "For the beef bowl," she said.

Miura looked at the pink hairband in her hand and gave a reflexive tsundere huff. "Doesn't really suit me, does it?"

Truth was, she really liked pink. Like really really really liked pink.

But being the cool queen type and having a thing for girly colors talk about embarrassing.

"Miura, pink doesn't suit you."

She'd heard that so many times before.

Over time, whenever she went shopping, she'd automatically skip anything pink. But each time, she'd feel a little twinge of regret.

And now Yukinoshita had picked up on this preference she'd buried so deep.

She really must like me a lot.

Armed with an answer straight from the system mission cheat sheet, Yukinoshita offered a deadpan but oddly sweet compliment. "You're good-looking. You can pull off anything."

Miura felt her cheeks heating up again. She stole a glance at Yukinoshita's face and muttered under her breath, "You're the one who's pretty... Hayama and the others all think so…"

What's the use of being pretty, Yukinoshita thought to herself. I still got hated by everyone.

But she didn't say it aloud.

Instead, she looked over at Miura. "Speaking of Hayama, I heard some rumors about you two."

Miura suddenly panicked. "They're not true! Just gossip!"

"Because we were neighbors and classmates since middle school, we spent a lot of time together. That's why people at school like to make stuff up!"

Yukinoshita let out a quiet sigh. "That's a relief."

Miura stared at her, her heartbeat gradually speeding up.

Why would she say that?

Was she about to...?

But Yukinoshita added, "Most girls who liked Hayama ended up hating me. I don't want you to hate me too, Miura."

Miura was the first friend she'd ever made.

At that moment, Yukinoshita didn't even care about racking up points with the system anymore.

The butterflies in Miura's chest settled down. All that remained was a tender softness toward the girl beside her.

"Like him? No way. Hayama's a total idiot."

"I heard that back in elementary school, lots of girls were jealous of you because of him. And that he didn't do anything to stop it! What a moron, seriously it pisses me off!"

Seeing Miura fuming like that, Yukinoshita somehow felt calm.

She even found herself making excuses for him. "If he'd stepped in back then, it probably would've made things worse. And... the reason I haven't been bullied too badly since transferring to Soubu High might be because Hayama's been secretly looking out for me."

"What's the point of secretly doing anything? When you first transferred to our class, I literally said in front of everyone that if anyone dared to mess with you, I'd…"

Yukinoshita tilted her head. "You'd what?"

Miura's voice came to an abrupt stop.