Monday morning. The moment Gojou Satoru entered the classroom, his eyes went to the cactus on top of the locker. The words Nobuko had said last Friday after school were still stuck in his head. ——Water it, or it'll die. The cactus stood there today in silence. Green and lush, wearing a face that knew nothing. "[excited]Good morning!!!!!" The door burst open and a blonde head flew in. Itadori Itadori. 180 centimeters tall, sun-tanned skin, buck teeth showing when he smiled. The guy who stood out most in PE class appeared in the classroom now carrying huge boxes, barely making it before the late bell. "[excited]I'll handle the props! Heavy lifting, moving cardboard—leave it all to me!" Harukaze Festival—the Harukaze Academy cultural festival held the second weekend of October—preparations were starting in earnest today. Class 3-A was putting on a haunted house. Today marked the beginning of full-class participation. The classmates stirred. Itadori, who'd been practically invisible during the sports festival, was suddenly raising his hand loudly for the cultural festival. "[whispers]That guy... who was he again?" "[whispers]Itadori, right? He's suddenly energetic or something?" Gojou watched from his window seat, arms crossed. Once preparations began, Itadori moved immediately. He grabbed cardboard boxes stacked in the hallway, carrying them into the classroom with both hands. Two boxes, three boxes. Not a hint of strain. That's when Nobuko tried lifting a large cardboard box by herself. Purple-tinged red bob cut, sharp red eyes. Both arms tensed, gripping the edge of the box. Itadori noticed. Three steps and he was there. "[gentle]I got it!" Before Nobuko could answer, Itadori lifted the box effortlessly. Nobuko's hands hung in the air. For a moment, something crossed her face. Surprise, maybe embarrassment—something that could be read either way. Her cheeks flushed slightly. "...I could've done it myself, you know." "[laughing]Come on! Heavy stuff's more my style!" Then—BANG. A dull sound echoed through the classroom. In the momentum of lifting the box, Itadori's head had smashed directly into the fluorescent light cover on the ceiling. The entire class turned at once. Itadori held his head, completely unfazed, laughing. "[laughing]It'll work out!" Nobuko's face went exasperated. But her mouth was curving slightly. She was barely holding back a laugh, desperately suppressing it. Gojou watched. Something stirred in his chest. (I've never made Nobuko make that face.) He wasn't trying to do the math. But as a fact, that expression—half exasperated, half about to laugh—had never been directed at him. "[cold]...What do you mean 'it'll work out'" Gojou spoke in a voice no one else could hear. --- After school. Preparations finished and classmates started leaving in small groups. Gojou sat in his chair, pretending to fiddle with his phone. Itadori sat at his desk and spread out a Japanese language worksheet. He was groaning. "...Ugh." Nobuko passed by his desk. She glanced at the worksheet for a moment and stopped. "[sarcastic]You, this is elementary school level. I can't believe it." "[surprised]Really that bad?" "[cold]It says 'renai' in hiragana and you've written 'love' as the reading for every single character. You've got it backwards." Nobuko sighed. But she sat down. She pulled out the chair next to Itadori and took the worksheet. "[serious]Fine. I'll teach you." "[excited]Thanks, Nobuko-chan!" "[cold]I told you to stop with the '-chan' suffix." "[laughing]Come on, it's just a suffix!" "[cold]It's not 'just' anything." She was angry. But she didn't stand up. She tapped the worksheet with her finger and began explaining carefully. Itadori listened to her explanation and clapped his hands together. "[excited]Oh, I get it! Nobuko-chan, you're really good at explaining!" Nobuko—laughed. She complained about the '-chan' suffix, but her face didn't look unhappy. Since she'd transferred, Gojou had only seen Nobuko smile once—that evening with the origami. Today was the second time. Gojou stood up. He approached their desks and crossed his arms. "[sarcastic]I'm ranked 3rd in the grade. Want me to teach you?" Nobuko looked up. Her red eyes gave their answer in a second. "[cold]No thanks. If you teach me, it comes with a lecture from on high." She turned her gaze back to the worksheet. Gojou's pride made a sound. "[serious]...I wouldn't lecture." "[cold]You would. You're giving off that vibe right now." Itadori looked between them both, laughing awkwardly. "[laughing]Come on, it'll work out!" Gojou had no words left. He returned to his seat. The guy in the back row muttered. "[whispers]...The 3rd-ranked student just got told he's less useful than Itadori at Japanese." Gojou silently took that guy's worksheet and threw it in the trash. "[cold]Shut up." --- Wednesday after school. Only a few people remained in the classroom. Some were making decorations for the haunted house, and Fushiguro Megumi was reading by the window, her bluish-black hair swaying quietly in the evening light. Fushiguro was always there. Present. Watching. Nobuko and Itadori were arranging decorations made from origami. "[sarcastic]...What is this?" "[laughing]A crane!" "[sarcastic]A crane, huh. Why is it diamond-shaped?" "[laughing]It's got character!" Nobuko picked up the diamond-shaped crane and stared at it intently. "[laughing]I've never seen a crane this warped before." Itadori held up the crane toward the audience area and started doing "Come on in, come on in!" Nobuko laughed. This time out loud. Her shoulders shook, her head tilted. "[laughing]You're planning to use this as a haunted house guide? I'd run away." "[laughing]That's the scary part! It'll work out!" Gojou watched from the back of the classroom. His chest hurt. It was jealousy. He knew it was jealousy. He didn't want to admit it, but this was jealousy. Nobuko was laughing. Out loud, shoulders shaking, her face not looking unhappy at all. In front of someone who wasn't him. ——The next moment, he realized he was standing. He'd walked to their desks. His feet wouldn't stop. Nobuko looked up. Itadori turned around. The gazes of the few remaining classmates naturally gathered. Gojou looked at Nobuko. "I like you." He surprised himself. It had come out. No calculation, no timing, just out. The classroom air froze. Nobuko stopped moving. Still holding the diamond-shaped crane. Itadori's mouth fell half-open. By the window, Fushiguro raised only her eyes from her book. Silence. Gojou's heart was racing impossibly fast. His ears were hot. He had to say something. If he didn't say something, this air would—— "...Well, since I like you. You should be happy about it." The moment he said it, he knew. He'd done it. Tears began pooling in Nobuko's eyes. Anger and sadness flooded her face at once, and her red eyes trembled violently. "You..." Her voice shook. "[angry]You're the worst. Beyond worst. What do you think people's feelings are!" She grabbed her bag and stood. The chair fell backward with a sound. Clatter. Nobuko flew out of the classroom. No one could call after her. "[scared]Nobuko-chan!" Itadori snapped back to reality and tried to chase her. But by the time he rushed into the hallway, the sound of her footsteps down the stairs was already fading. The front door closing—he barely heard it. He was too late. Itadori came back from the hallway. His face held a color Gojou had never seen. Not smiling. Itadori, who always smiled, now wore an expression somewhere between anger and confusion. "[angry]...Satoru." He just called his name. Said nothing else. Gojou stood alone in the middle of the classroom. All the remaining classmates were silent. No one said anything. No one offered comfort, no one laughed. A silence like still water. What did I do? I confessed. That much was clear. I said I liked her. That was clear too. But that last line—"Since I like you, you should be happy about it"—destroyed everything. By the window, Fushiguro Megumi quietly closed her book. Snap. A small sound. In the quiet classroom, only that sound remained. Fushiguro said nothing. She just closed her book and looked at Gojou. Her calm gray eyes saw everything. Gojou couldn't look at anyone's face. The cactus on top of the locker stood unchanged.