"This is just common intelligence sharing! Kiyono, where do you even live? It's too unfair that only you know my home address!"
She had always wanted to know.
"An internet café."
"That's not a place for a person to live, is it?"
He was messing around again. Yanami pouted and continued sending messages. "Kiyono, could it be that you're the only son banished from some big family? Is that why you're being so secretive!"
"I wouldn't even dare to fantasize like that…"
"It's already twelve. Don't you have school tomorrow? Go to bed quickly," Kiyono sent, signaling the end of the conversation.
"Aren't you missing a sentence?" the girl asked.
"…See you tomorrow?"
"It's today, actually." This message was followed by the time 00:01. She slowly typed out the last words. "Good night."
For so long, she had wanted to say those words.
Yanami hugged her phone, a faint smile on her face, and a barely perceptible sweet whisper echoed in the room.
Good night.
---
To pass the next make-up exam, Yanami entered serious study mode. She cut out a quarter of her snacks, took two days off from her part-time job, and even reduced her interactions with Kiyono significantly. However, whenever she got tired of studying, she would open her phone, scroll through her chat history with Kiyono, and then smile.
After school on Friday, the last day of exams, the elated girl originally wanted to celebrate with Kiyono immediately, but her parents' slightly serious faces made her temporarily suppress that thought—her Old Father's mother had accidentally fallen and been hospitalized today. Although the elder said she was fine, they all had to go back to visit her.
"So, that's the situation. We can only meet again next Monday, Little Senpai."
Edit, send.
Yanami put away her phone and looked out her bedroom window. Outside was a vast curtain of rain and lead-gray clouds; the sound of rain pattered softly.
"It started raining just now…"
The girl mumbled, picked up her umbrella, and prepared to buy some gifts for her grandmother before they left.
Drip-drop, splash-splash—the rain intensified in an instant.
Dark clouds rolled, the rain poured, and the water curtain separated heaven and earth, as if washing away the city's leaden hustle and bustle. Only the sound of rain remained in his ears.
A bicycle glided through the quiet, dim street. Kiyono felt the raindrops pelting him like a squall, and his expression was inevitably glum.
"So unlucky."
He muttered, and the previous scene flashed through his mind:
"Kiyono, could you please deliver a pre-ordered meal right now? We really can't find anyone to deliver…"
In the hot kitchen, just as he had scooped the tamagoyaki onto a plate and wiped his sweat, Big Sister called him into the hallway, looking apologetic.
He was a bit reluctant at first. Usually, it was fine, but now it was raining outside, and he was covered in sweat—riding a bike in such conditions sounded miserable, until…
"As compensation, after you deliver this meal, I'll add this much to your salary today."
Big Sister winked at him, slowly held up three fingers, and her smile seemed to sparkle.
So, he rushed out without hesitation.
But because he had lent his raincoat to an older Big Sister at noon, and it had only been a negligible drizzle at the time, he hadn't bothered to avoid the rain. The result was obvious.
"Still, I made a killing."
Thinking of his double salary for the day, his mood brightened again.
Just then, a touch of summer blue suddenly appeared in the gloomy rain.
Huh… was it an illusion?
"Kiyono!" A bright call pierced through the rain, clearly reaching his ears.
Kiyono turned his bicycle around, surprise flickering as he looked at the girl in front of him.
On the rain-splashed street, the blue-haired girl stood calmly. She held a clear umbrella in one hand and a plastic bag in the other, which probably contained… snacks?
"Why are you riding a bike in this weather? You'll catch a cold!"
Yanami quickly jogged over and held the umbrella over his head.
Raindrops pattered on the canopy, splashing tiny beads of water.
Kiyono briefly explained, and as the girl got closer, he realized his clothes and hair were soaked, and his appearance probably wasn't great. He subconsciously ran a hand through his bangs.
"Miss Yanami? Not even a downpour can stop you from buying snacks?"
"No, you idiot—didn't you see my message…" Yanami lightly stomped her foot, then tilted her head as if remembering something. "Ah, Kiyono has been cycling all this time. These are comfort items I bought for my grandmother."
She explained her situation.
"Then I misunderstood you…"
No sooner had he finished speaking than Yanami placed the plastic bag in the front basket of his bicycle, took out a paper cup, and the steam from the oden swirled into a small cloud under the umbrella.
"Little Senpai, have some chikuwa."
—I don't think it was entirely a misunderstanding!
Kiyono complained internally, but still took it. When he bit into the chikuwa, he unexpectedly tasted sweetness. Yanami also took out another skewer, eating it with a happy expression. However, she subtly switched the umbrella to her left hand, tilting it toward Kiyono and leaving her right shoulder exposed to the rain.
"This isn't some manga scene where we share an umbrella. I don't need to hold an umbrella anymore." Kiyono grabbed the handle in exasperation and pushed it back.
Yanami chuckled. She looked at the boy, and the convenience-store lights reflected like stars in her pupils.
"Aren't you going to the station with your parents soon? Don't just stand here—go home quickly. I also need to get back to the store," Kiyono said.
"But Kiyono, in your current state…" Yanami hesitated.
"Don't worry about me. I've been soaked for so long, a little more won't make a difference."
Kiyono pushed the umbrella back. Just then, Yanami's phone rang. She took it out; the screen showed "Mom"—she was probably urging her to go home.
She pressed answer and put it on speaker in front of Kiyono, hummed twice, and finally said she'd be right back before hanging up. But her gaze remained fixed on Kiyono's soaked figure, and she lightly bit her lip.
"Kiyono, remember to take some cold medicine to prevent illness when you get to the store!" Yanami met his gaze, her breath as warm as her words.
"Got it."
"Remember to take a bath tonight, go to bed early, and don't stay up until two in the morning."
"Are you my mother!?"
Yanami stepped back two paces, and as she waved, tiny droplets flew from her hair. The black cotton socks at the hem of her uniform were splattered with small spots of mud.
Only when Kiyono's figure had completely disappeared did she retract her gaze and head back.
Ahead, Kiyono sped up his cycling.
But when he parked his bike in front of the restaurant, he noticed an extra white plastic bag in the basket. He reached in and opened it, finding it filled with curious boxes—"Low-sugar chestnut yokan," "Calcium-rich cheese pudding," "Onsen manju"…
Combined with Yanami's earlier mention of "comfort items."
—Did you really buy only food for your grandmother! And these suspicious health foods!
His first reaction was to complain.
Kiyono's mouth twitched, and he wiped the rain from his face. "This idiot, I swear."
Then he got back on his bicycle and pedaled.
The train was about to depart, which meant if he missed it, Yanami would have to go see her grandmother in the hospital empty-handed… Although family probably wouldn't care about such things, he still didn't want Yanami to be misunderstood as a thoughtless idiot.
Moreover, last time he'd just helped Lemon deliver a pair of cleats, and this girl had complained about it countless times. If he showed preferential treatment now, she'd be resentful for the next week.
"Oh no—I forgot the comfort items I bought for Grandma!"
The sound of rain was crisp. The family of three had just walked through the ticket gate when the blue-haired girl suddenly stopped, staring at her empty hands, frozen in place.
"It's okay, Anna. Your grandmother isn't someone who cares about such small things. She just got new dentures recently, so she can't eat too much," her Old Father, at the very front, said gently.
"Did you leave it at home, Anna?"
The blue-haired beauty subtly glanced at the man—he was her biological mother, so of course he wouldn't care, but she still needed to mind etiquette and details.
"This…"
Under her parents' gaze, Yanami subconsciously turned her face away, stammering. She couldn't possibly say she'd left it on Kiyono's bicycle, could she! That would be too hard to explain to her Old Father!
"Let's go, let's go. The train is almost due," her Old Father urged, decisive.
"Hmm, there really isn't enough time…" her mother said helplessly.
Yanami slowly took a step, but her gaze kept lingering on the empty rainy scenery behind her. Her state of mind was conflicted. She certainly didn't want Kiyono to brave the rain to deliver something because of her mistake—what if he caught a cold? But she couldn't help a hint of anticipation bubbling up from the bottom of her heart—
However, no matter how she looked, outside the station there was only gloomy rain and hurrying pedestrians.
She retracted her gaze. This was for the best; it would let that idiot get soaked a little less.
Just then—
"Hey, hey!"
The sound of bicycle tires on asphalt rang clear, followed by hurried footsteps. Yanami turned her head and saw the boy running toward her.
He stopped in front of her, bangs still dripping onto the tiles, his soaked shirt clinging to his back. In his hand, he held a plastic bag, his knuckles white, as if gripping a protective amulet from a shrine.
"That'll be…" Kiyono caught his breath. "Three thousand yen."
"That's too much! I can only give you half at most!"
The blue-haired girl's breathing hitched, and her eyes seemed to bloom with rainbows. She took out a towel from her backpack and wiped his head—but the needle-like gazes behind her made her small hand stiffen. She coughed, then roughly shoved the towel into his hand.
"Oh my, oh my." The blue-haired beauty behind her cupped her face, a gentle smile on her lips.
"Wait! Who is this man?" Her Old Father's gaze instantly sharpened.
After returning to the store, Kiyono toweled off and immediately resumed work—he had already been delayed by the delivery and by Yanami, and he felt bad slacking off any longer.
Outside, the rain poured, but inside, it was still a hive of activity: stoves, hot sweat, range hoods, busy chefs, servers…
Because of the rain, the store closed half an hour early today, and Kiyono also returned to the internet café early to rest.
But soon, he realized something was wrong.
"Sure enough, there are still signs of a cold…"
Feeling a slight abnormality in his throat, Kiyono clicked his tongue. After all, he had sweated and been soaked for so long, and the day–night temperature difference in June was large…
"However, I anticipated this situation long ago!"
Kiyono hummed triumphantly. As someone who couldn't afford to get sick, his backpack was already full of various daily medicines.
This wave—oh, this wave—is man conquering nature.
After chugging two packets of medicine, Kiyono even had time to play on the computer for a while, chatting and joking with his editor. But today had ultimately been too tiring. Less than two hours later, he lay down and closed his eyes.
He had a strange, chaotic dream.
A burning pain throbbed in his throat.
Kiyono was yanked awake by the continuous ringing of his phone—vaguely recognizing Yanami's custom ringtone, the one he'd complained about. He groggily opened his eyes, limbs weak, face hot, vision spinning, as if under a full-damage debuff.
Damn it—the pure-love warrior still fell.
It seemed he had overestimated himself.
Abnormally thirsty, Kiyono fumbled for his phone and saw that Yanami's call had auto-ended. The screen showed over thirty unread messages and twenty missed calls… Had he stumbled into some heavy-duty drama set?
Ring-ring-ring-ring, ring-ring-ring-ring.