“Morning, Arisa.”
“Good morning, Yuzuru-san.”
That day as well, Arisa came to Yuzuru’s house to deliver his lunch.
Yuzuru gratefully accepted the insulated lunchbox—and returned the one he had carefully washed.
“This one was delicious too… thank you, as always.”
“No, I’m just happy that you enjoyed it, Yuzuru-san.”
It was the same exchange as always.
Normally, this was where they parted ways.
Arisa would head to school first, and after getting ready, Yuzuru would follow.
That was their usual routine.
But… today, something felt different.
Yuzuru was a little restless.
And Arisa seemed just as fidgety.
The reason… was obvious.
It was Valentine’s Day.
“…Um, Yuzuru-san.”
Arisa’s pale cheeks were faintly flushed.
Her voice trembled with nerves.
Yuzuru felt his heart pounding.
“Th-that is…”
“…Arisa?”
“I-it’s nothing actually!”
With that, Arisa turned and ran off.
Yuzuru stood there, mouth slightly open.
“…Huh?”
Wasn’t this exactly the moment she shouldn’t chicken out?
He tilted his head, completely ignoring his own tendencies.
After that, Yuzuru went to school feeling slightly unsettled.
Once he arrived, the atmosphere was… a bit different.
There was a clear divide.
Among the boys, some looked happy, some restless, some radiated negativity—and others seemed completely unchanged.
Meanwhile, the girls were generally lively and cheerful.
Since they exchanged chocolates among themselves, they had plenty to celebrate regardless of romance.
(Maybe there’s chocolate in my shoe locker…?)
If she was too shy to hand it over directly, leaving it there would make sense.
Something Arisa might do.
With that hope, he opened it—
…Only to find his indoor shoes.
“Haah…”
“Yuzuruuun!”
“Gah!?”
Someone suddenly smacked his back, making him yelp.
Though, there were only a few people who would do that.
“A-Ayaka-chan… that hurt.”
“Oops, sorry. Hit you a bit too hard.”
She didn’t look very apologetic.
Grinning, Ayaka stood there—
With another familiar face behind her.
“Good morning, Yuzuru-san.”
“Morning, Chiharu-chan…”
They didn’t usually come to school together, so they must’ve just run into each other.
And, carried by that momentum, decided to ambush him.
Typical behaviour—Yuzuru understood them well.
“So, Yuzurun—did you get anything from Arisa-chan?”
Ayaka asked with a teasing grin.
Chiharu added with a smile of her own—
“We all made them together—you know, me, Ayaka-san, Arisa-san, and Amaka-san.”
They knew Arisa had met Yuzuru that morning.
Naturally, they assumed he’d received chocolate then.
Yuzuru would’ve thought the same.
“…Actually, I didn’t.”
“Huh? Really?”
“Arisa-san… folding at the crucial moment.”
Both of them looked exasperated.
Still, from what they said, at least Arisa had prepared something.
That was reassuring.
(If she was about to say, “S-sorry… I forgot,” that would’ve been… troubling. For multiple reasons.)
Yuzuru let out a quiet breath.
Though it wasn’t guaranteed yet.
There was still a chance she might fail to give it to him at all.
“Oh, right. Here—this is for you, Yuzurun.”
“Here you go, Yuzuru-san.”
“Thanks.”
He accepted the neatly wrapped chocolates from both of them.
Naturally, they were obligation chocolates.
“Triple the return gift, okay?”
“And don’t forget to include labour and our affection.”
“Yeah, yeah. I’ll get you something decent for White Day… though…”
Yuzuru scratched his head.
It was a bit embarrassing to admit, but—
“I’m a bit short on cash right now… can I make up the difference with sincerity?”
“Huh? I heard you make decent money from your part-time job.”
“Did you buy something?”
“Not yet. But I’m planning to… for Arisa.”
At that, both Ayaka and Chiharu widened their eyes.
“…Keep it a secret from her, okay?”
“Of course! My lips are sealed!”
“Well, that explains the lack of funds. A Black Thunder will do for White Day.”
“I’ll at least get you something better than that…”
Even if they were obligation chocolates, returning them with cheap sweets felt wrong.
After wrapping up their conversation, they headed to their classrooms.
When Yuzuru entered his—
The girls were in the middle of exchanging chocolates.
Arisa was among them.
When he looked her way—
Their eyes met.
But only for a moment.
She quickly looked down, flustered.
(…Am I not getting one after all…?)
Feeling slightly deflated, Yuzuru sat down.
…Then noticed something.
“Hm?”
There was something inside his desk.
With a faint sense of anticipation, he pulled it out—
A small, neatly wrapped box.
“…”
At that instant—
He could feel the entire class tense up.
(…Could it be Arisa?)
Pretty bold of her.
He glanced towards her—
(…No, it’s not.)
She looked completely frozen.
Like the world had just ended.
There was no way the sender would look like that.
(No name… huh.)
“…What am I supposed to do with this…”
Yuzuru let out a long sigh.
