After watching Hoshimi take his medicine and lie down, Yukino sat by his bedside, quietly tucking him in. Once everything was in order, she picked up her bag and stood beside the bed, her back to Hoshimi. "Hoshimi, I need to go to school now. If anything happens, contact me immediately, and I'll come back as soon as I can."
"Haha," Hoshimi chuckled softly, his voice a little hoarse as he teased, "It's just a small cold, not a life-or-death situation. If you're really reluctant to leave me, why don't you stay here and keep me company?"
"..."
Yukino didn't say anything, just slightly turned her head, catching Hoshimi's gaze with the corner of her eye. After a brief moment, Hoshimi's smile faded, and he didn't dare say anything more.
Because he realized Yukino seemed genuinely inclined to stay and take care of him!
Crap! That would ruin everything if she did!
"Yukino, you should go to school. I'm fine." Hoshimi's serious tone made it clear he meant it.
"...Alright." Yukino, reassured by his words, didn't say anything further. She silently turned to leave.
At that moment, if Hoshimi had asked her to stay, she would have.
As for reasons? There were plenty, and no need to explain them all.
"Yukino."
"Yes?"
Hoshimi closed his eyes and said in a low voice, "I'm sorry."
"It's okay; it was no trouble at all."
With that, Yukino stood still, waiting. After a long pause, Hoshimi said nothing more.
She sighed softly, gripped her bag strap a bit tighter, and said, "I'm going to school. If anything comes up, contact me."
"Okay..."
Yukino slowly walked away, and it wasn't until she had exited the apartment building that she couldn't help but sigh deeply.
Why couldn't he just ask me to stay? If he had, I would have gladly stayed to take care of him...
Hmph! He's always so clingy, but when something serious happens, he insists on handling it alone. What are you trying to prove, Hoshimi?
Do you have some other "sister" to take care of you? No way, aside from me, who else would put up with you, you stubborn jerk?
At that moment, Yukino conveniently ignored a certain one-eyed princess.
"Sigh..."
Yukino irritably tightened her grip on her bag strap, transforming into a human air conditioner, her face cold as she headed to school.
...
Meanwhile, on the 27th floor of the apartment building, Hoshimi lay in bed, staring blankly at the ceiling. Maybe he should skip faking illnesses next time... If she found out, she'd definitely kill him...
Buzz... Buzz...
Soon, his phone vibrating pulled Hoshimi back from his wandering thoughts. He reached under his pillow for his phone and saw a message from Kotoko Iwanaga.
"Hoshimi, you caught a cold? Is it serious? Do you want me to come see you?"
Seeing the time, Hoshimi realized it had only been ten minutes since Yukino left his place. Kotoko must have heard about his cold from Yukino while waiting for him on her way.
After thinking for a moment, Hoshimi decided not to reply to Kotoko just yet, pretending he had fallen asleep.
He dismissed Kotoko's message and opened the Line message sent earlier by Kasumigaoka.
She had sent the message when Hoshimi was sending an email to Yukino—more precisely, when he was taking that cold shower. He hadn't replied, even putting his phone on silent to avoid any interruptions while faking his illness.
But now that it was over, he could reply to Kasumigaoka.
He opened her message.
"Hoshimi, are you awake? You're not still asleep, right? It's already 7 a.m.!"
After a moment of thought, Hoshimi replied.
"Just woke up, getting ready. See you soon."
After sending the message, Hoshimi tossed his phone aside and started getting himself ready.
Since it was an important "IRL meeting," he needed to clean up a bit, but that just meant dressing neatly. He wouldn't do much more than that.
Soon after he was ready, Hoshimi checked his phone again and saw another message from Kasumigaoka.
"I'm already out~ I'll wait for you at Kinokuniya bookstore in Ginza."
Photo-
Kasumigaoka had also attached a selfie of her walking down the street.
The picture was a bit goofy, not really showcasing Kasumigaoka's beauty. This showed that she probably didn't take selfies often.
Hoshimi casually replied.
"I'm heading out soon, see you at Kinokuniya. By the way, your photography skills are terrible~"
After replying to Kasumigaoka, Hoshimi then opened his email to respond to Kotoko Iwanaga.
"The cold isn't too serious. I feel much better lying in bed. I'll just keep sleeping; after all, no desk is as comfortable as a bed~ ZZzz... (.-ω-)"
After sending that, Hoshimi put away his phone, ran a hand through his hair, and set off to meet in Tokyo, enjoying the warmth of the morning sun.
After arriving at the train station, still unfamiliar with the train routes in Japan, Hoshimi spent some time studying the route map.
...
On the streets of Tokyo, Kasumigaoka's eyes lit up as she received Hoshimi's reply.
She quickly noted the time he left in her phone's memo app.
"8:05 a.m., Hoshimi leaves."
Now, she only needed to note the time Hoshimi arrived in Shinjuku, Tokyo, to estimate his travel time.
However, she had to consider two things: the time it took Hoshimi to get from home to the train station or Shinkansen, and the time spent buying tickets and waiting for the train. These factors were unpredictable, so she'd have to find a way to get some details from Hoshimi.
But she already had a plan, just waiting for the right moment to execute it.
Suddenly, Kasumigaoka had an idea. Her eyes gleamed as she sent Hoshimi a message on a whim.
"Hoshimi, I've arrived at Kinokuniya. Where are you?"
About half an hour later, Hoshimi replied.
"Just got on the train. It's so crowded that I'm feeling a bit dizzy. I'll take a nap now, so don't message me."
Kasumigaoka's eyes widened, her mind spinning, as if she'd just been hit by an unexpected windfall.
Why is Hoshimi's guard so low today?
No, no, no, maybe my plan was just too subtle for him to notice!
"Yes!"
Kasumigaoka clenched her fist in excitement. Hoshimi had given her his boarding time, so she no longer needed to risk probing him for information. She could now estimate his location accurately based on his boarding and arrival times!
Overjoyed, Kasumigaoka quickly noted Hoshimi's boarding time.
"8:38 a.m., Hoshimi boards the train."
===
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