At a critical moment, Shimizu stepped in to save the day.
"Amamiya-kun, please add Kaguya's contact information," Shimizu said with a warm smile. "Once we get back, I plan to have Kaguya chat with me all night long until dawn—a mother-daughter night talk!"
Kaguya remained calm as she replied, "I go to bed at nine o'clock every night."
Amamiya was taken aback.
'You're a high school student, and you go to bed at nine? That's more like an elementary schooler's schedule!'
As Shimizu gave a subtle wink, Amamiya finally caught on. He turned to the seemingly unphased and asked, "Shinomiya-san, may we exchange contact information?"
"Sure," Kaguya responded nonchalantly, taking a phone from her bag.
"Wait a second," Amamiya said, staring at the phone in her hand. "What kind of phone is that?"
Kaguya tilted her head slightly, her tone more questioning than certain, "...A Nokia?"
'Nokia? Seriously?'
It turned out to be the legendary Nokia, a straight-button phone that looked over ten years old. No wonder she was clueless about social media trends. Besides making calls and sending texts, that Nokia had no internet functions.
Shimizu chuckled nostalgically, "Ah, I miss those days. Before your mother passed away, all the phones were like this." She then turned to Kaguya and asked curiously, "Why doesn't my little Kaguya have a smartphone?"
"I'd like to know that too," Amamiya added, equally curious.
It was baffling that a super-wealthy young lady was using an antique phone—it didn't fit her image at all. It was like hearing that a rich girl's favorite food was instant noodles—no one would believe it.
"There's no need for one," Kaguya replied, folding her arms across her chest. "No one calls or texts me. I don't need to contact anyone... except Fujiwara-san."
As for Hayasaka, who had grown up with her, they lived together, so there was no need for phones between them.
"Thank you for your hard work, my Kaguya-chan," Shimizu said, opening her arms and pulling the icy girl into a warm hug. "From now on, I'll send you good morning and good night messages every day."
Amamiya couldn't help but twitch slightly.
'Good thing you're her mother. If you were a boy, you'd have long lost your humanity.'
After a brief exchange of contact details, Shimizu smiled and said, "Little Kaguya, change your phone soon. Then we can video call!"
'Wait... she's already mastered video calls in two days?'
Amamiya thought, stunned. 'She learns fast!'
Just as Kaguya was about to respond, two girls walked by the classroom—Yotsuya Miko and Yurikawa Hana.
"Hey, it's Hana-chan," Shimizu exclaimed, her eyes lighting up. She quickly tugged on Amamiya's sleeve, her excitement barely contained. "Amamiya-kun, let's go back together!"
Amamiya put his phone away, glanced at the ever-composed Kaguya, and nodded. "Shinomiya-san, we'll be heading out now. See you tomorrow."
"..."
Kaguya stepped into the hallway, watching as Amamiya, Miko, and her overly enthusiastic mother practically stuck to the blonde girl. She bit her lower lip in frustration.
"The young lady is too much trouble," Suddenly, a hot blonde girl with her school uniform tied around her waist appeared out of nowhere, casually biting a lollipop as she muttered.
"Should we just kidnap Natsuki-san and lock him in the basement?" she asked with a mischievous grin.
Kaguya crossed her arms, unfazed. "That's a crime."
"Is it wrong to commit a crime for the boy you like?" Hayasaka retorted confidently.
"...it sounds wrong…" Kaguya hesitated for a moment before snapping out of it. "Wait, I don't like him!"
She quickly tried to convince herself. 'I just need to stay in touch with Mom, that's all.'
'It's too early to say I like him!'
Hayasaka crossed her arms over her chest and said,
"If you don't like him, why did you ask for Natsuki-san's contact information?"
"It was 'him' who asked for mine," Kaguya slightly raised her elegant chin, her voice cool.
"…I want to change my phone."
Hayasaka tilted her head, intrigued.
"What are your requirements for a new phone?"
"A phone that can make video calls."
Hayasaka popped a lollipop out of her mouth with a soft sound.
"These days, most phones can make video calls. Anything else?"
"That's it."
Hayasaka smirked.
"So, you're changing your phone just so you can video call a boy? You've really grown up."
"It's not for video calls with 'boys'!" Kaguya quickly protested.
At the same time, Hana waved goodbye as she headed off.
"I'm going home now. See you tomorrow, Amamiya-kun, Miko-chan."
"See you tomorrow, Hana," Miko replied.
After watching her friend leave, Amamiya turned to Miko and casually asked,
"Want to come over to my place?"
Miko nodded.
"If we go to my house and my brother sees us, it'll just be a hassle."
---
At Amamiya's home...
"I'm home," Amamiya called out as he opened the door. An Akita dog sat waiting behind it, its tail wagging furiously.
Miko knelt down slightly, smiling as she gently stroked the dog's head.
"This Akita... It was just a puppy when we found it in middle school," she mused. "It was so tiny, barely bigger than my palm. We couldn't just leave it, so we took it in. At the time, the owner's father was already sick and couldn't care for the puppy, so you took responsibility for it."
"It's only been a year since we adopted it," Amamiya said, watching the Akita lavish affection on Miko. "Back then, it was so small, and now it's this fat lump."
"A little fat is cute," Miko shot back, looking up with mock irritation. "Besides, it's your fault for overfeeding it."
"Yeah, yeah," Amamiya conceded as he walked over to the fridge and opened it. Inside, a vengeful ghost's head glared at him with dull, dead eyes. "What do you want to drink? Green tea or Coke?"
"Green tea," Miko replied.
Amamiya grabbed a can of green tea and handed it to her. Shimizu, now temporarily materialized, lounged on the sofa, flipping through TV channels.
"I want some green tea too," she said with a sigh. "It's a shame I can't actually taste anything."
After chatting for a bit, Shimizu stayed downstairs to watch TV, while Amamiya and Miko went upstairs together.
It was way too awkward to perform back-stepping therapy in front of your classmate's mom.
---
In Amamiya's room...
Amamiya flopped onto the floor.
"Alright, I'll leave it to you to help me 'get stronger.'"
Miko, arms crossed, gave him a dubious look.
"You think you can just get stronger without putting in any effort? There's no such thing as a free lunch. If something looks easy, it's probably a trap."
"Who said there's no sacrifice?" Amamiya retorted.
"I'm giving up your dignity!"
"I remember reading in a comic that there's a planet somewhere in the universe where people grow stronger just by making complaints," Amamiya said, fiddling with his phone. "If people can get stronger just by whining, is it so crazy to think you could get stronger by lying down?"
"There are also people who get stronger by feeding off others' negative emotions," Miko quipped, pressing down slightly harder with her feet.
"So, there's nothing wrong with my method."
"There's plenty wrong with it," Miko responded, applying a little more force.
"The law of conservation of mass and energy is the foundation of the universe," Amamiya explained, scrolling through a live stream on NicoNico. "Energy can be transformed. You provide kinetic energy by stepping on my back, and that energy strengthens my body. It's totally scientific."
Miko's eyes narrowed.
"Science says it doesn't want to talk to you."
As Amamiya continued watching people dance on the live stream, Miko's face hardened. She increased the pressure even more.
"Why are you stepping harder?" Amamiya grumbled, suddenly feeling the weight. "Don't tell me… you're getting heavier again?"
Expressionless, Miko crossed her arms and glared down at him with pure disdain.
"You're absolutely right."
"Ow, ow! My waist— it's gonna break!"