Last night in the gymnasium, Satoshi's whispered voice kept spinning in Kasumi's head. ——If Kasumi disappears, I'll be alone again. A small voice without the microphone. But in the gymnasium's silence, she heard it clearly. 8 AM. The day of the Kazamiya Festival. Classroom 2-3 on the third floor of the main building was a mess. The wall by the windows had only half its decorations up. Desks were still in rows. The menu board was halfway done. Kasumi lined up thirty paper cups while telling herself: (Committee chair's job. Finish the preparations. That's all.) In the last seat by the window, Satoshi was coloring a Pikachu illustration with a ruler. Since yesterday, he'd been trying to talk to Kasumi over and over, but couldn't seem to do it. Kasumi knew. She knew he kept looking at her. But she still couldn't meet his eyes. "[serious]Kasumi, what height should we do for those? I think we should line them up from the edge" "[serious]Twenty centimeter intervals, evenly spaced. Two pieces of tape each" She answered while lining up another paper cup. Then. A calm voice came from the hallway. "[serious]Excuse me. I'm Shinozaki from Class 4. Could I borrow two desks for our exhibit?" The classroom went quiet. Standing in the doorway was a boy with short, silvery-white hair neatly combed. His uniform shirt had not a single wrinkle. He was tall—around 178 centimeters. Cool violet eyes swept across the classroom—like he was grading it. Vice President of the Student Council, Shinozaki Kojiro. Top of Class 2-4, first in the grade. A few students in Class 3 straightened their spines. Then. "[excited]Oh, Kojiro!" The loudest voice came flying from the window side. Kojiro stopped. His violet eyes turned toward Satoshi. "[excited]That cream puff yesterday was seriously delicious! I said it was like the sweets from the Pokémon Center and you got mad, but——it was amazing!" "……You" Kojiro's brows furrowed slightly. "[sarcastic]That strange customer" But. The moment he saw Satoshi's face, something in Kojiro stopped. There was no calculation, no embarrassment—nothing but a straightforward smile. Just saying "it was delicious," but he meant it with genuine joy. Something stirred faintly in his chest. (……What was that) Kojiro surveyed the entire classroom. He understood immediately. Decorations half-done. Desks in disarray. The class atmosphere heavy. "[serious]……Want some help? As vice president of the student council, supporting other classes' preparations falls within my duties" Class 3 stirred. Kasumi froze, still holding a paper cup. Kojiro rolled up his sleeves and entered the classroom. "[serious]First, we decide the layout. You didn't think about traffic flow?" Satoshi tilted his head. "[surprised]Traffic flow? Like the line Pokémon move in?" Kojiro stopped. One second. "……The path customers take" "[surprised]Customers! Oh, I get it!" Something faintly crossed Kojiro's forehead. But he didn't say it out loud. --- Once Kojiro decided on the desk arrangement, Class 3's preparations moved forward rapidly. "[serious]One-way from entrance to exit. Order counter by the window, pickup station in back. That way there won't be congestion" Class 3 moved to his brisk instructions. Satoshi stuck to Kojiro's side, holding the poster board. "[excited]You know everything, don't you, Kojiro!" "[serious]I just have basic knowledge" Satoshi started taping the decorations to the wall. Kojiro stood beside him, calculating positions. Satoshi was right next to him. Close. His heartbeat quickened again. (It's because I'm moving. That's all.) Kojiro told himself. "[gentle]Hey Kojiro, where should I put this?" Satoshi held out a single illustration. Round cheeks. Pointed ears. A tail with lightning patterns. A mysterious creature. "[serious]……What is that" "[excited]Pikachu! My best partner ever" His face was serious. Not a lie. Kojiro looked at the illustration. It wasn't bad. But the world-view was too unique. Yet——the fact that Satoshi treasured something came through, seeping in. "A partner, huh" He repeated it quietly. Stared at the wall for a while. (Why does this guy interest me so much) "[excited]Can you do sports, Kojiro? I wanted to battle you" "[serious]I have a rank in kendo" Satoshi's eyes lit up. "[excited]Let's do it right now!" Kojiro gently held Satoshi's wrist as he reached for a decoration rod. "[cold]We're in the middle of festival preparations" Satoshi said "Oh, right" and put the rod down. Kojiro released his hand. (He's warm. Why does this guy——) --- When the decorations were about halfway done, Hikari came quietly to Kasumi's side. A small voice reached Kasumi's ear as she counted paper cups alone. "[whispers]Kasumi-chan, could you come with me for a sec?" "[cold]I'm busy right now" "[serious]Please. I want to talk, just the two of us. The rooftop?" Hikari's golden eyes were serious. Not her usual bright, bouncy cheerfulness. Kasumi stared at the paper cups for a while. "……Okay" Hikari went to Kojiro for the rooftop key. Kojiro didn't stop working, just pulled the key from his pocket. "[serious]It's the student council key. Make sure you lock it properly when you're done" "[excited]Thanks, Kojiro-kun!" Kojiro glanced toward Satoshi. "[serious]……It'll go better for today's event if you two settle things" Then. "[excited]The rooftop! I've never been! I want to go too!" Kojiro turned back immediately. "[cold]You have more decorations to finish" "[sad]……Right" Satoshi drooped and turned back to the wall. As Kasumi and Hikari left the classroom, Satoshi called after Kojiro: "[gentle]Kojiro, can you see Pokémon from the rooftop sometimes?" Kojiro returned his gaze to his work. "No" An immediate answer, without hesitation. --- Fourth floor of the main building. The rooftop. The morning air was clear. Beyond the fence, blue sky stretched wide. In the distance——faintly, the silhouette of Mount Fuji was visible. "[serious]Kasumi-chan" Hikari turned around. Her blonde hair swayed in the wind. "[serious]You like Satoshi-kun, don't you. I can tell" Kasumi froze. "I don't like——" Her voice shook. She couldn't continue. Hikari looked straight at her. "[gentle]I like Satoshi-kun too. But, you know" Hikari paused slightly. "[gentle]You were always right beside Satoshi-kun. That boy was able to smile at this school because of you" Tears spilled from Kasumi's eyes. "I……I like that idiot, but I can't say it honestly. I got jealous of you and did terrible things……" Her voice cracked. Tears poured down. When was the last time she cried like this? Hikari's eyes were red too. She was laughing while crying. "[laughing]You're not the worst. You panic because you like him" "[crying]That guy doesn't get it at all. He treats everything like friendship, even love" Hikari's expression shifted. "[gentle]In the Pokémon world, he only had companions. I think he didn't know what love was" The two of them looked at Mount Fuji's silhouette. The wind blew, and Hikari's blonde hair and Kasumi's light blue hair swayed together. "Then" Wiping her tears, Kasumi spoke. "[serious]……I'll teach that idiot what love is" Hikari paused for a moment——then her face broke into a smile. "[excited]Let's definitely do it!" Smack. The two high-fived. Crying and laughing at the same time. --- When they returned to the classroom, the decorations were nearly complete. Illustrations lined up neatly on the wall. A one-way traffic flow. Clean desk arrangement. Kojiro's work. Satoshi turned around first. "[excited]Kasumi! Kojiro made everything look so cool!" Kasumi stopped. Her eyes were red. She looked down slightly to hide it——then looked at Satoshi. "[sarcastic]……Idiot. Do your own work next time" But. There was no coldness in her voice. Satoshi's face lit up. "[surprised]Kasumi, you're not mad?" "[serious]I'm not mad. Just……I think you're kind of an idiot" Her face turned red. Satoshi saw that and smiled, looking happy. Though he didn't seem to understand why he was so happy. Hikari cut in. "[excited]Satoshi-kun, the café's gonna be amazing today! Leave it to us!" "[excited]Yeah! Let's do our best!" The classroom's atmosphere changed all at once. --- Kojiro finished returning the desks and stepped into the hallway. "[excited]Kojiro, come back again! Let's go eat cream puffs together!" Satoshi waved from across the hallway. Kojiro stopped. His heartbeat quickened again. "[gentle]……Maybe someday" He answered briefly and started walking. Walking alone down the hallway. Morning light streamed through the windows. Kojiro placed a hand on his chest. (What part of Satoshi am I reacting to) There was no answer. But——he couldn't escape the fact that he was aware of Satoshi. As he returned to Class 4, Kojiro let out a small breath. One hour until the Pokémon-style café opened. From Class 2-3's classroom, lively voices were already pouring out.