After the stalker incident involving Miyanoshita was resolved, there was no longer a reason for us to spend every day together. Our relationship hadn’t ended, but there was no need for us to be together as often as we had been. That’s what I thought, anyway… "Good morning, Yuuki-san! ♪" “…Why do you visit me every morning?” “To replenish my supply of Yuuki elements, of course.” “What does that even mean?” “It’s the power of love.” She said that so confidently. “Seeing the person you love gives you the strength to get through the day! That’s why it’s so important.” “That kinda makes sense...” “By the way, if I don't get my daily supply of Yuuki elements, I start seeing illusions of you and become confused. I can't skip even a single day!” “So you weren't making sense after all... Plus, my elements sound dangerous.” “Don’t worry, it’s all perfectly legal.” “Are you sure?” “You can’t see it, after all. Here, I’ll show you how I replenish my supply. Squeeze!” And just like that, Miyanoshita hugged me. It was something that happened almost every day. I’d gotten so used to it that I didn’t get flustered anymore... I just accepted my fate and let her do what she wanted. “All right, let’s go to school.” “Yeah.” I left my apartment with Miyanoshita. The same morning. The same time. I was honestly glad to have things back to normal. But… How did I get used to this so quickly? Was it a good thing or a bad thing? I couldn’t decide. “All right, this is where we part ways. Don’t go cheating on me now!” “We’re not even dating.” “We might as well be. I feel like we’re already doing all the things that people in relationships do.” “... But we’re not.” “You hesitated just now, didn’t you? Hee hee!” “No, it’s just… Haaah, I’m exhausted.” “Must be tough.” “Whose fault do you think that is? Come on, go to school already.” “You’re right, I’ll be late. But before that... Do I get a goodbye kiss?” “If we do that, I’m never going to guard you next time we play.” “Ah-ha-ha, I’m just joking! I’m sorry! If you did that, I’d melt away in an instant!” In the end, it was the same as always. “All right then, see you later!” “Yeah, see you.” I said good-bye to Miyanoshita at our usual intersection. Every morning, we said good-bye the same way. I was glad she was feeling better, but I wasn’t sure if her growing affection towards me was something to be happy or sad about. “Haaah… I miss the peaceful life I had before all this started,” I muttered to myself. —— “Hmm... What should I do today?” It was after school. I left my classroom and slowly walked down the hallway. I didn’t have any part-time work scheduled and hadn’t made any plans with Miyanoshita either.

It was the first time in a while that I’d had time to myself. What should I do? “Heave-ho... Heave-ho...” Books were walking down the hallway. No, that wasn’t quite right. A girl was walking down the hallway, holding a lot of books. Which class is she from? I’ve never seen her before, but... that’s not important right now. I broke into a light jog and caught up to the girl, then took half of the books she was carrying. “Huh?” “Let me help.” “Huh? But, umm… that’s really kind of you.” “Don’t worry about it. Oh, I’ll take a few more, too.” The load still looked heavy, so I took a few more books off her hands. “Whoa!” “Where do you need to take these?” “Um... to the art-prep room, I guess.” “Got it. Let’s go, then.” “Oh, okay.” It’s only right to help someone in need. It couldn’t hurt to lend a hand every once in a while. Besides… This girl is really, really small. She was wearing the school uniform, so there was no mistake that she was one of the students, but even so, she was very small. She couldn’t be a middle schooler… Could she? If I saw her from a distance, I might mistake her for an elementary school student. She also had a very child like face. It wasn’t the kind of beauty that stood out, but rather the kind that suited the word “cute” perfectly. That made her look even younger. If there was a girl like this at school, you’d think she would be the talk of the town, but I’d never heard anything about her. Maybe she wasn’t the type to seek the center of attention? “Oh, we’re here.” While I’d been lost in thought, we’d arrived at the art-prep room. The girl unlocked the door and went inside. “Is it okay if I put these books on this shelf?” “Go ahead.” I filled the empty shelf with books. Incidentally, the girl was too short to reach the shelf, so I put the books up for her. She looked a little frustrated, so I decided to pretend I hadn’t noticed. “All right, mission complete,” I exclaimed. “Ha-ha, don’t be so dramatic.” “Still, wasn’t it a little crazy to carry all these books by yourself? It must have been tough.” “Yeah, you’re right. But I couldn’t just leave it to her.” “What do you mean?” “Actually, the art teacher was going to carry them on her own... do you know that the art teacher is pretty old? On top of that, her hips seem to be bothering her, so I couldn’t leave her to do it alone.” “So you took her place?” “Yes. I’m young, so I figured I could handle it.” “……” What a good Samaritan. I bet she was always doing things like this for other people. Her personality is a real handicap. But I didn’t hate her for it. “You’re amazing.”

“Eep.” Without thinking, I patted her on the head. Because of her youthful appearance, I’d been treating her like a little sister. “Ah, sorry.” “N-no, you surprised me, but... I don’t hate it, you know? ...Yeah. It might have even made me a bit happy, eh-heh.” “Really?” “But if you do that to anyone but me, some people might get mad, okay? Be careful.” “Understood, I’ll be careful.” “Good.” This girl sure is acting like an older sister, despite looking so young. Maybe she’s at the age where she idolizes older women? “Let me treat you to a drink, as a thank-you. Shall we go to the kiosk?” “Huh, you don't have to.” “No, it’s fine; I insist. If you won’t let me treat you to a drink, I’ll fail as your big sister.” “Pfft!” “Huh, what’s so funny?” “I’m sorry, sorry. It’s just that your acting like a big sister is so cute, I couldn’t help it.” “Hmph...” The girl puffed out her cheeks. It was a very childish gesture. And it suited her well. She looked a lot like someone I knew. “You haven’t noticed yet, have you?” “Huh, noticed what?” “...I’m a third-year.” “Huh?” What did she just say? “Just look at my ribbon.” “It’s red for third years...” “Heh-heh, that’s right! I’m a third-year. And you’re a first-year. In other words, I’m your big sister!” The girl looked very proud of herself. Oh, but it’d be rude to call her a girl, wouldn’t it? She’s my senpai, after all... Wait that is not important right now! “I’m very sorry! I didn’t mean to…” “Ah-ha-ha, don’t worry about it. It happens all the time. But more importantly...” The girl held out her hand. “My name is Ruri Koyanagi. What’s yours?” “Naoto Yuuki…” “Yuuki-kun, then. From now on, we’re friends, okay?” “Huh?” “Nice to meet you, Yuuki-kun.” Koyanagi-senpai smiled and shook my hand. The handshakes intensity grew more and more. She looked very happy. Was she that glad to have made friends with me…? I didn’t think it was that big a deal, but… “...Sorry if this is rude, but don’t people say you’re a little strange, Koyanagi-senpai?” “Don’t people say the same about you, Yuuki?” “They sure do.” “Same here.” “……” “……” ““Ah-ha-ha”” Koyanagi-senpai and I laughed at the same time. And just like that, I had made friends with this upperclassman who looked like an elementary schooler.