Monday morning sunlight streaming through the windows of Class 2-3 was no different from Saturday's. But inside Chichi, everything had changed. Kakarotto——that moment wouldn't leave her head. The instant their hands were held again on stage. "Why were you smiling like you were about to cry?" Those words played back in her mind again. Her face burned. Chichi stacked her textbook over her notebook and hid her face. Then Kakarotto slid into his seat, his spiky hair bouncing. Back row by the window. From Chichi's perspective, he was two rows ahead and diagonally behind. "[gentle]Chichi" It was nothing special. Just a normal voice calling her name. Chichi didn't answer. She stayed frozen, textbook held up in front of her face. "[gentle]Hey, yesterday——why were you smiling like you were about to cry? I've been wondering about it this whole time" He was asking again. Here, of all places. Chichi's cheeks burned all the way to her ears. The textbook trembled in her hands. Her hands were shaking. "[angry]It's nothing!! Mind your own business!!" She shouted. She actually shouted. Still hiding behind the textbook, she slumped forward onto her desk. "[gentle]I see" He dropped it just like that. Really, completely dropped it. He pulled his chair back and looked out the window. That "I see"——made Chichi feel even more frustrated. (Why didn't you push harder...!) Slumped over her desk, Chichi clenched her teeth. Emotions she didn't even understand swirled inside her. Kuririn, sitting diagonally behind on the hallway side, saw all of it. His light blue round head dipped slightly. Golden eyes quietly tracked the space between the two of them. (Kakarotto's eyes are different from yesterday) Kuririn understood. The fact that he was asking "why were you smiling like you were about to cry" two days in a row——wasn't because he had a reason. He was genuinely curious. (Dumb as he is, he's weirdly persistent about stuff like this) With complicated feelings, Kuririn turned his gaze to the window outside. --- Ten minutes before homeroom started, the classroom door opened. Long golden hair changed the air in the room again. It was Flora. Same uniform as yesterday. Same way of walking. No hesitation. With purposeful steps, she set her bag down at the window seat——next to Kakarotto. She pulled out her chair and sat down with a cool expression. Kakarotto turned around. "[gentle]Hey" Flora looked at Kakarotto for just a moment and gave a small nod. It was barely even a response, but it wasn't rejection either. "[angry]……Why are you sitting there?" Before she knew it, Chichi was standing. From two rows ahead, she spoke directly to Flora. Her gray eyes gleamed sharply. Flora looked at Chichi. Her amber eyes turned toward her for one second——and said nothing. "[sarcastic]……I was thinking the same thing" Bulma's voice came from the hallway-side seat. She pushed her blue hair back with one hand, arms crossed, staring at Flora. Three pairs of eyes focused on the seat next to Kakarotto. Kakarotto sat sandwiched between the three of them, looking confused. "[gentle]You guys are all energetic this morning" All three let out deep sighs at the same time. Bejīta, in the front by the hallway, kept his eyes on the blackboard while spinning his pen. His gaze looked like he was preparing to write on the board, but his fingertips had gone slightly rigid. (Why is Bulma over there) He gripped the pen a little harder. His expression didn't change. It didn't change, but the pen made a scratching sound. Then Morino-sensei came in. His tired eyes had shadows under them from this morning already. A bottle of antacid was already peeking out of his pocket. He surveyed the classroom atmosphere and closed his eyes once. "[sad]……Could you all be a little more peaceful?" No one moved. "[sad]You can't, can you" The first tablet was swallowed quietly. --- The hallway during lunch break was crowded with students heading to the school store. Kuririn gently tugged Chichi's sleeve. "[gentle]Got a minute?" At the end of the hallway, a little away from the classroom, where there was one window. When the two of them stood side by side, the schoolyard came into view. Third-year students playing soccer laughed in the distance. Kuririn looked out the window and paused for a moment. "[serious]Chichi, you like Kakarotto, don't you" Chichi froze. "……" She tried to force a smile. It didn't work. Her gray eyes widened, looking at Kuririn's profile. "[surprised]……You knew?" Kuririn smiled a little. Dimples appeared. "[gentle]For a while now. Since before we transferred to this school" Chichi's mouth opened slightly. "Then……you——" "[gentle]I'm your friend" There was a beat. In that single beat, something was quietly sealed away. Kuririn's voice was calm, laughing. But very slightly——just barely——it trembled. Chichi noticed. She noticed, but couldn't ask. "[gentle]So don't give up. That guy's been changing since yesterday" Chichi's eyes grew wet. "……Thank you" It was small. Her voice barely came out. But it reached him. Kuririn gave a small nod. Outside the window, a soccer ball rolled away. The two of them watched it for a while. --- After school, the hallway to the club building was quiet. Flora was standing in front of the hallway leading to the science club room——the second floor of the club building, the room with scorch marks on the ceiling, Bulma's domain——waiting. Her back against the wall, arms uncrossed, just waiting. The moment Kakarotto walked down the hallway, Flora looked up. "[serious]Kakarotto" Kakarotto stopped. "[gentle]Hm?" "[serious]We need to talk" The two faced each other against the hallway wall. Outside the window, the ridge of Komorobi Hills caught the evening light. Flora looked straight at Kakarotto. Her amber eyes held a slightly deeper color than usual. "[cold]I know about your grandfather" The air in the hallway changed. Kakarotto's face——changed. His usual bright smile vanished. His eyes narrowed. For the first time, a serious light appeared in his warm brown eyes. "[serious]……What do you mean?" His voice was low. Chichi had never heard Kakarotto's voice sound so low. Around the corner, a little way back. Chichi and Kuririn were standing there. It was coincidence. They'd really just happened to pass by. They couldn't move. Flora's gaze flicked down the hallway once. Whether she hadn't noticed Chichi and Kuririn or was ignoring them, there was no way to tell. "[serious]I can't talk about it here. But I'll tell you everything soon" With just that, Flora opened the science club room door. She went inside. The door closed. Kakarotto was left alone in the hallway. He stared at the door. His face hard, unmoving. His shoulders were tense. His messy black hair looked the same as always, but his entire presence seemed like a different person. In the shadow of the corner, Chichi tugged Kuririn's sleeve. "[whispers]……Does Flora know something about Kakarotto?" Kuririn answered quietly. "[serious]She's not just a transfer student" --- Beyond the school gate, the evening wind swept through Misora City's residential streets. From the direction of Hayase River, slightly humid air drifted in. Kakarotto and Chichi walked side by side. Toward the Higashioka area, their usual route home. Chichi's house was three doors down from Kakarotto's——walking this road together had been the same since elementary school. But today, Kakarotto was silent. Usually he'd go on and on about useless stuff like "what was that in today's lunch?" or "I'm still hungry," but that was Kakarotto. Yet today——he walked in silence, his face lost in thought. It was unusual for him. Chichi's chest felt unsettled. "[gentle]Are you okay?" Kakarotto looked up a little. "Yeah……" There was a gap. "[serious]Hey, Chichi. Do you know anything about my grandpa?" Chichi tilted her head. "[surprised]Huh, nothing……Why?" "[gentle]It's nothing" He switched back to his smile right away. The usual round, bright smile. But Chichi could tell. That smile was trying a little too hard. (He's forcing it) Chichi said nothing. Instead, she took a small step closer to Kakarotto's side. "[gentle]If something's wrong, tell me, okay?" Kakarotto turned to look at her. He looked at Chichi's face. "[gentle]Chichi……you really are an important person" It sounded like he was talking to himself. Something pounded fiercely in Chichi's chest. She thought the words "because we're friends" would come. They always ended there. But they didn't. Kakarotto just turned forward and kept walking. His face showed he was feeling something, but didn't yet understand what——that kind of expression. Chichi turned forward and pressed her lips tightly together. Her face was hot. Her eyes were slightly wet. The sky over Higashioka spread in pale orange. The ridge of Komorobi Hills floated black and sharp against it. Their shadows stretched long. Flora's words——"I'll tell you everything soon"——quietly lingered in Chichi's mind.