After the movie ended, Kaoru didn't hold Ichinose's hand as they walked out, leaving her visibly pouting.
"Are you mad?" Kaoru asked, clearly oblivious.
"You were teasing me on purpose. That was too much." Ichinose puffed her cheeks in displeasure, recalling how he'd eaten the popcorn without hesitation—popcorn that had touched her lips.
Her face burned at the memory.
"But didn't you end up enjoying it too?" Kaoru was referring to her eating the popcorn.
"Shut up." Ichinose Honami felt embarrassed.
Truthfully, she hadn't intended to do anything bad—she was just so accustomed to Kaoru playing tricks on her that she couldn't help wanting to play along this time.
Who knew he only wanted to feed her? It had made her so nervous.
However, Ichinose Honami didn't stay upset for long.
As the two walked out of the cinema, the crowded mall made her tense up again.
"Let me see your hand," Kaoru suddenly said to her.
Ichinose Honami instinctively extended her hand, only for Kaoru to immediately grasp it, holding it gently without any intention of letting go—or even actually looking at it.
Realization dawned on her a little late.
"W-what are you doing?" she whispered, her cheeks flushing.
"Someone might see. Let go, quick."
The girl's small hand was soft, her fair and delicate skin flawless and smooth like naturally polished jade, its texture so fine it inspired tenderness.
"It doesn't matter anymore. Suppressing our feelings will only strain our relationship," Kaoru murmured.
"No one can go back to the past. The only thing we can do is start over."
Ichinose Honami's expression grew complicated, her lips pressing together.
"Why bring this up all of a sudden? I'm not as bothered as you think."
"Because our relationship is more twisted than that of a normal couple, and I..." Kaoru hesitated.
He wasn't sure how Ichinose would react to his thoughts.
Based on their past interactions, she hated it when he got involved with other girls.
"Are you trying to talk about Mako-chan?" Ichinose Honami spoke up first.
Unbeknownst to Kaoru, she had actually talked with Amikura Mako many times—she had always known about Mako's feelings.
Kaoru was stunned for a moment before smiling.
"These topics aren't suited for today's date. Let's go eat."
The conversation was cut short, and Ichinose Honami didn't push further.
Instead, she recalled a recent scene—the figures of Sakayanagi Arisu and Amikura Mako flashing through her mind.
The location was a quiet Western restaurant.
Kaoru ordered two servings of Wellington steak, and since they were underage, the waiter brought them juice instead of alcohol.
After eating, the food felt rather ordinary—perhaps the restaurant didn't have a particularly skilled chef, nor did they prepare high-quality ingredients.
After all, ANHS spending power wasn't especially high.
For dessert, they were served two different flavors of ice cream—a deliberate arrangement by Kaoru.
"Want to try mine?" Kaoru turned his ice cream toward Ichinose Honami.
"I took a bite—it's really good."
Even though they had kissed multiple times, Ichinose Honami still blushed slightly.
Looking at the ice cream he offered, along with the spoon he had used—it might even carry his taste.
"You've been acting weird today," she remarked, scooping a bite and finding it overwhelmingly sweet.
"That's what dates are for—to let you experience a different side of me," Kaoru paused, "or rather, I want to see a different side of you too."
Ichinose Honami felt a bit annoyed.
To be honest, she sometimes really wondered if this guy was doing it on purpose—often managing to say embarrassingly sweet things with such a straight face.
"Since that's the case, please try my flavor too." She scooped a spoonful from her own ice cream and brought it to Mitoma Kaoru's mouth.
"Open up, Boyfriend-san."
Kaoru obediently ate the ice cream from her spoon, his expression unchanged, which only made her feel a little more self-conscious.
"It's like feeding a puppy."
"Demoting me from Boyfriend-san to a dog is way too harsh."
"It's just a metaphor, and I'm still mad."
"Then let me feed you too."
"Mmm~"
As Kaoru fed her a bite, he found the way she licked her lips adorable and couldn't resist taking a few photos with his phone.
"Why are you taking pictures of me?!" Ichinose Honami hurriedly tried to cover her pretty face.
She hadn't put on any special makeup today—for her, applying makeup was a bit difficult.
"I'm really happy to be on a date with you today. I hope we can keep dating in the future, but before that, let me save some precious memories."
Kaoru didn't see anything wrong with it.
Taking pictures of his girlfriend was perfectly natural.
"At least warn me first..." Ichinose Honami murmured softly before picking up her own phone and snapping a few photos of Mitoma Kaoru.
"So this is what dating feels like?"
"Are you happy?" Kaoru asked.
"A little serious, a little new," Ichinose Honami answered honestly.
"It feels kind of unbelievable that I actually have a boyfriend now."
Before Kaoru could respond, she pressed her lips together and smiled faintly.
"But... I understand your feelings, Kaoru. You want to give me a normal relationship, right?"
Sometimes, Kaoru suspected that they too possessed some form of Emotion Perception—or perhaps a superhuman radar—always able to see through his intentions so quickly.
"Actually, your judgment about me isn't wrong. Someone like me is inherently twisted. And you wanting to correct my way of thinking isn't wrong either. But I know my own nature very well." Kaoru's voice turned distant.
"Even now, I don't think what I did to you back then was wrong in the slightest."
Ichinose Honami studied him for a moment before suddenly asking.
"Why do you always say such airy things so casually?"
"Does it make you unhappy?" Kaoru asked.
"I know exactly what kind of person my boyfriend is, so I don't mind these things. And... doing a few bad things... I don't dislike it either..." Ichinose Honami's face flushed slightly, but her voice remained firm.
"Your true nature isn't something anyone could hate. On the contrary, once people understand you, no one would ever dislike you."
"No, I've actually kept quite a few things from you." Kaoru's mood grew complicated.
"Did you cheat on me?" Ichinose Honami asked calmly.
Kaoru nearly jumped in surprise before realizing—she had always remained rational about him, perceptive of his every move.
"In a certain sense... yes, I did cheat."
After saying this, he watched the silent girl before him.
Unlike Kushida Kikyo or Sakayanagi Arisu, there was a very real chance that she genuinely cared about this kind of thing.