Please note: These are OPTIONAL side stories from Maika’s POV that sometimes come with the release of each light novel volume (to celebrate its publication). This one should be read after part 97.

YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.

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         Shiori and Sendai-san.

         I’d been wondering about this for a while.

         On the surface, Shiori and Sendai-san didn’t seem to have much in common, yet maybe they were actually friends. When they ran into each other in the hallway, the way they acted made it feel like there was some sort of connection between them, as if it wasn’t strange at all to assume they knew each other well.

         But every time I asked Shiori about it, she’d brush it off, saying they weren’t close, just former classmates. I wanted to believe her, but after I’d bumped into Sendai-san myself and talked with her, I started to feel a little doubtful.

         As the classroom buzzed around us, I glanced over at Shiori, who was standing by my desk.

         「Hey, Shiori?」

         When I’d casually mentioned Shiori’s name to Sendai-san on the way to the school store, her reaction had been more surprised—and interested—than I expected. Since then, I hadn’t been able to shake my curiosity.

         「What is it?」

         Shiori asked, turning to look at me.

         I was tempted to ask about Sendai-san, but something held me back. I felt like she’d just brush it off with the same answers she’d given me before, so I couldn’t quite find the right words to say. While I sat there hesitating, Shiori looked a bit puzzled and asked again, “What’s up?”

         「What are you having for lunch today?」

         「… Maika, that’s not really what you want to ask, is it?」

         Shiori placed her hands on my desk and asked, “What did you actually want to ask?”

         「No, really! I’m actually interested in what you’re having for lunch. I was wondering if you’d share a bite with me.」

         If I could just talk with Shiori alone, somewhere quiet instead of the classroom, maybe she’d answer differently—but that’d make things feel way more serious than they needed to be. At the same time, if I pressed her about it here and now, she’d probably just brush me off with, “Sendai-san’s not my friend, and we’re not close,” and it’d just make things awkward.

         「Don’t worry, Ami-chan can answer that for you. Shiori is probably having… bread for lunch!」

         For some reason, Ami, standing across from Shiori, declared in an overly loud voice. The classroom was bustling during the break, but there was no need for her to be that loud.

         「Ami, you’re too loud.」

         Shiori said, sounding exasperated.

         「Wait, Shiori, so you’re not having bread today?」

         「Well, I am…」

         「If bread’s all you’re eating, you’re not going to get enough nutrients.」

         Ami said in an unusually serious tone.

         Shiori sighed.

         「It’s not like I eat bread every day. But anyway, Maika—what was it you wanted to ask earlier?」

         「Well… can I ask you something about Sendai-san?」

         I repeated the same question I’d asked Shiori several times before.

         「I mean, even if you ask about her, I can’t really tell you much. I don’t know Sendai-san that well.」

         「Yeah, that’s true.」

         Maybe it’d be best to just drop it for now.

         Right as I was thinking that, Ami chimed in with,

         「Hmm, but it did feel kinda weird when you and Sendai-san bumped into each other in the hallway the other day.」

         「What do you mean by that?」

         「I dunno, something just felt a little off.」

         「What did?」

         「Well, you know… You get what I mean, right, Maika?」

         Ami looked over at me and gave my shoulder a pat.

         「I guess it did seem kind of strange.」

         In a slightly hurried tone, Shiori replied,

         「There was nothing strange about it at all. I was just really spaced out, so it surprised me when I bumped into someone. Maybe that made my reaction seem weird? If anything, you two get way too excited when it comes to talking about Sendai-san.」

         Ami grinned and replied, “You noticed, huh?”

         「That’s enough about this topic. You two should just drop it already.」

         I stared at Shiori, looking troubled, and Ami, who had started it, as they argued.

         When I’d bumped into Sendai-san the other day, I’d found out that her top university choice was close to mine, so I told her that Shiori was applying to the same university as me.

         At that time, something about Sendai-san’s reaction made it seem like she and Shiori had some kind of connection between them. In reality, though, there weren’t many things linking them together. Still, if I assumed they really were friends, suddenly a lot of things seemed to make sense.

         But thinking like this wouldn’t do any good; assumptions could lead to misunderstandings.

         And there was something else I needed to find out.

         「Shiori, you’re applying to the same university as me, right?」

         I asked Shiori, who was still bickering with Ami. Ever since I’d spoken with Sendai-san, there was something on my mind that I felt I had to confirm, no matter what.

         「Yeah, but why are you asking out of the blue?」

         「Oh, just curious. Have you spoken to anyone else about your university plans?」

         「No, and I don’t really feel the need to.」

         「I see.」

         「Which means that only Maika and I know about where you’re applying to. It’s like our little secret!」

         Ami said, as if we were in on something private.

         「Yeah, I guess so. You two are the only ones I’ve talked to about this.」

         Shiori said with an uncertain smile on her face, her tone neither bright nor gloomy.

         Seeing Shiori like that, I realized I’d made a terrible mistake—I’d told Sendai-san which school Shiori was applying to.

         Regret flooded over me.

         I owed her an apology.

         But to do that, I’d have to come clean about everything I told Sendai-san. Just thinking about having to do that someday left me feeling a little down.

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