C22

Chapter 22: That Day's After-School — Rinko Takamiya Side

After school.

The path leading from the school to the station. Turning the corner of the familiar residential street, Rinko Takamiya and Meiko Kano were walking their usual way home.

The laughter that had been echoing from behind, the fading footsteps. Students leaving school headed toward the station one by one, and the road gradually grew quiet.

Walking side by side with Meiko, Rinko looked down at her smartphone and suddenly raised her face.

"Hey, Meiko."

"Hm?"

"Wanna drop by the convenience store?"

At the sudden invitation, Meiko glanced over slightly.

"Sure."

"Yay!"

Rinko smiled just like she always did.

Stepping inside, a cold air different from the outside enveloped the two of them. Rinko relaxed her expression at the coolness. Amidst the familiar entry chime ringing as usual, the two headed toward the drink shelves.

Browsing the products lining the shelves, Rinko suddenly stopped her feet.

"Ah."

She recognized the limited-edition new product lined up right in front of her.

"This is it! The one that was blowing up everywhere yesterday!"

Picking up the product, Rinko pulled out her smartphone.

"Since we're here, I gotta snap a picture!"

Aimed with her smartphone, the product was captured on screen. Taking a few photos, Meiko casually asked, looking over the shelves,

"Rinko, are you buying it?"

"Hmm... what should I do?"

Rinko tilted her head while checking the photo.

"Oh well, might as well since we're here!"

In the end, she dropped the item straight into her basket.

"Stuff like this, you get the biggest rush of excitement when you first find it, right?"

Rinko laughed happily, as if she hadn't been in the heavy atmosphere of the classroom just a moment ago.

Carrying the basket, Rinko leisurely walked around the store. Eventually, heading toward the register, she stopped in front of the magazine rack.

"—Ah!"

Picking up a magazine, Rinko flipped through the pages searching for a familiar face.

And then.

"Found Kokona!"

The opened page featured the figure of Kokona Suzumura.

"She's totally in here!"

Rinko smiled a little happily.

"I mean, seeing her like this, she really gives off that model vibe, doesn't she? We're just normal friends together at school, but when she's printed in stuff like this, she looks like a totally different person."

Peeking in from beside her, Meiko dropped her gaze to the magazine as well.

"Her vibe is definitely different."

"Right?"

Rinko nodded matter-of-factly.

"Kokona definitely looks best in a style like this!"

The two returned the magazine to the rack, paid at the register, and walked right out of the shop.

The moment they left the cool interior, feeling a clinging summer heat wrapping around their skin, Rinko and the others walked down the road leading to the station holding their freshly bought drinks.

◇

Walking the way home, Rinko poked a straw into her newly bought cup beverage, took a sip, and let out a satisfied breath.

"Still though—"

Rinko suddenly opened her mouth.

"I wonder why Renya suddenly did a thing like that."

Meiko looked over at her.

"We were originally supposed to drop the truth when Kokona and Tachibana-kun were left all alone after school today, right?"

Rinko tilted her head slightly.

"I get that it was for Kokona's sake, but did he really have to go out of his way to do it in front of the whole class?"

Walking along, Rinko pulled her mouth away from the straw.

"I seriously froze up back then, you know."

That exact moment.

The atmosphere in the classroom inverted all at once.

No, or rather, she simply didn't understand it at all.

Because Kujo suddenly stood up and started talking in front of everyone.

"That seriously wasn't something to laugh about!"

As Rinko said that, Meiko—walking beside her—scrolled slowly down her smartphone screen with her finger, answering flatly without looking away.

"He said Kokona would be in danger if it were just the two of them, so I guess it couldn't be helped?"

Rinko narrowed her eyes slightly at Meiko's words.

"Still though, wouldn't it have been nice to give us a heads-up first? I honestly was super surprised, you know."

Rinko puffed out her cheeks in slight dissatisfaction.

"Well, true."

Without looking away from her smartphone, Meiko nodded slightly.

"I mean—"

As if suddenly remembering, Rinko looked at Meiko walking beside her.

"Meiko, you were recording a video, weren't you?"

Keeping her eyes on her phone, Meiko replied shortly.

"Yeah."

"No, 'yeah' nothin'!"

Rinko laughed, looking somewhat exasperated.

"Isn't that going way too far? Filming a scene like that in front of the whole class, I was genuinely shocked."

Meiko raised her line of sight just a fraction.

"I already deleted it. Kujo-kun told me to. It'd cause trouble for Kokona."

At those words, Rinko fell silent for a moment.

"Well... if you did, that's fine."

Though Rinko said that, she didn't seem entirely convinced. An expression of lingering doubt floated across her face.

"Still though,"

Rinko continued.

"Isn't it kind of pitiful for Tachibana-kun too? Meiko, you went a bit too far as well."

Meiko tilted her head slightly.

"But if we don't make it clear that they're out of each other's leagues, isn't it scarier to give him false hope? Kokona would be troubled."

"..."

Rinko fell silent, thinking it over.

"Uuun..."

True, when put that way, she couldn't entirely disagree.

Yet she felt like something was still snagging in her mind.

"......Well,"

Rinko looked at the drink in her hand as if pondering.

"A lot happened, but—"

She let out a small breath.

"Tomorrow, we can just properly apologize to Tachibana-kun! Then Tachibana-kun will understand, right!"

Rinko smiled lightly.

Tomorrow, if we apologize, it'll all be over—she seemed to be thinking along those lines.

"Meiko, don't go pulling weird stunts anymore either."

"Got it."

Meiko replied shortly.

The two continued walking just like they always did. It was as if what happened in the classroom today was already nothing more than a past event.