「Haaah….」

     Yume sighed listlessly.

     It was a lunch break like any other. Today, I had gone along with her and Mutsuki to eat lunch in the cafeteria, but it seemed like Yume was feeling under the weather.

     「What’s wrong, Yume? Are you feeling alright?」

     I said, placing my hand on her forehead. She didn’t seem to be feverish, but maybe it was a headache.

     As I kept my hand there for a while, Yume’s face started to turn red.

     Maybe it was a good idea for her to go to the nurse’s office.

     「You face is red. You should go to…」

     「I-I’m fine!」

     「But…」

     「Sorry to interrupt, but you should hurry up and eat. Your soba’s gonna get soggy.」

     Mutsuki said.

     Today was especially cold, so I thought that it was just the right weather for some warm soba. Mutsuki and Yume had followed suit, and the three of us ended up slurping down our noodles side by side.

     「Yume’s panting because Valentine’s Day is coming up soon.」

     「Could you not compare me to a dog?」

     「…Valentine’s?」

     I quizzically tilted my head. She was right — Valentine’s Day was soon approaching. But what did that have to do with Yume’s condition?

     As I took my hand away from her forehead, Yume took out her hand mirror to fix her bangs.

     Had I done something unnecessary?

     「…Yeah. I mean, it’s Valentine’s. You know?」

     「…? Yume, are you dating someone?」

     「Huh…」

     For some reason, when I asked that, Mutsuki piped up. I turned to see an indescribable expression on her face.

     「Kurumi, you really just don’t get a girl’s heart.」

     「But I am a girl…」

     「Kurumi, Yume’s your…」

     「Mutsuki! Don’t you say it!」

     「Yeah, yeah. By the way, if you’re not gonna eat that, can I have it?」

     「I’m going to!」

     Yume began eating her soba, and I continued at mine. I didn’t really get it, but maybe she was worrying over what sort of chocolates to give to her friends. Come to think of it, I didn’t know what the proper etiquette for that was since I’d only ever given any to Mizuki.

     「…Is there any specific type of chocolate you like, Kurumi?」

     「Hmm… Nothing really comes to mind. Are there really that many different kinds?」

     「Yeah! There’s a ton! Jeez, you’re so ignorant about the weirdest things… I guess I have no choice but to teach you all about chocolate!」

     「Hm?」

     「Are you free after school today? Let’s go browsing.」

     「I am, but…」

     「Ah, then I’ll tag along too. I’ve got nothing to do.」

     「Mutsuki, it’s totally fine if you don’t, okay?」

     「Woah, bullying? I’m telling on you.」

     「You elementary schooler.」

     As always, I couldn’t tell if those two got along or not. As I slurped my soba while watching the spectacle, I felt my phone vibrate. I looked to see a message from Sorahashi-san.

     I put down my chopsticks and stood up.

     「Sorry. I gotta go do something.」

     「So sudden. Can I have your soba?」

     「Yeah. I’ll be right back.」

     「Kay. Just make sure you don’t have anything suddenly come up after school.」

     After saying that, Mutsuki immediately began eating my soba.

     For some reason, she was holding her own chopsticks in her right hand and mine in her left. Wouldn’t that make it hard to eat? I almost smiled at how silly it looked as I started to walk away. At that moment, my eyes suddenly met with Yume’s.

     「Kurumi. That thing you have to do, is it maybe…」

     Yume’s eyes nervously darted around.

     In the end, she lowered her gaze.

     「…Sorry, it’s nothing. Take care.」

     「I’ll be back. I’m looking forward to later.」

     「…Yeah.」

     My pace quickened as I left the cafeteria. Little by little, I continued to speed up, and by the time I reached the classroom Sorahashi-san had indicated, I was half running.

     The message had been simple — “come to this classroom”. I could have ignored it, but my body had naturally just started moving when I saw it. I opened the classroom door.

     Inside the slightly dusty classroom, I saw Sorahashi-san.

     Her appearance, illuminated by the winter sun, had something otherworldly to it. Her golden hair sparkled brilliantly, and her vibrant irises carried my reflection. She slowly rose to her feet and walked over to me.

     「You’re finally here. Good morning, Kurumi.」

     「Ah, yeah. Good morning, Sorahashi-san…」

     She was Sorahashi-san.

     Not Sera, my puppy, but the person I always saw in class — the princess-like Sorahashi-san who was always at the center of attention. I thought it was weird that she wasn’t calling me Master even though we were alone. As I stood there blinking, she closed the door and locked it.

     I felt like this was a little different from usual.

     She chuckled as I gave her a blank stare.

     「Kurumi, that other day when I tried to show you my collar in class, you scolded me, correct?」

     Her voice rang out clearly.

     She was right. I recalled her trying to take off her scarf in the classroom even though she was wearing a collar underneath, and then me stopping her and scolding her. But why was she bringing that up now?

     「So it’s not good to show my collar to others, yes?」

     「Yes, that’s right. It’d be all over if anybody found out…」

     「Then…」

     Sorahashi-san turned her phone screen to me. There was a photo of a school bag displayed on it. My bag.

     Inside, there was a white collar.

     I felt my heartbeat quicken.

     「This isn’t any good either, isn’t it?」

     Sorahashi-san said.

     I was at a loss for words.

     I was always carrying around the collar that she gifted me. I wasn’t really sure why I did that. I thought that it was crazy to do so even though I knew it was dangerous.

     「…Did I leave it open?」

     「You did. You’re being very careless, Kurumi. If someone found out you were carrying a collar around, that wouldn’t be any good, would it? You have to take care to not get caught.」

     I couldn’t say anything in response. I had told Sorahashi-san to not let anyone see her collar, but if I were to behave carelessly, then that would all have been for nothing.

     Maybe I had let my guard down a little.

     I looked at Sorahashi-san. Her eyes were as brilliant as ever.

     「Sorry. Uh…」

     「That’s okay. Just make sure to close your bag properly. Be more careful from now on, okay?」

     「Yeah, thanks.」

     「There’s no need to thank me. I mean—」

     And then, a click. A sound that I’d heard just the other day.

     And a sound escaped my throat — one that couldn’t quite be described as an “eh” nor an “ah”.  Sorahashi was smiling from ear to ear, seemingly overflowing with joy.

     「I’m going to punish you now. You need to be properly disciplined if you do something bad, don’t you?」

     「Sorahashi-sa…」

     「That’s wrong, Kurumi. You mean Master, right?」

     Her tone left no room for argument.

     I didn’t know if the collar around my neck was black or white. But I was getting used to this feeling, and that scared me. Her gaze was pointing at the floor. I got on my knees.

     「…Master.」

     「There we go, good job. …Hehe. It’s a lot of fun to be scolded plenty and then spoiled after. So I want you to experience it too, Kurumi.」

     She was laughing. She was happily laughing.

     My heartbeat wouldn’t let up. School hadn’t even ended, after all. It was just lunchtime. Even if there weren’t many people coming around this classroom, this was still during the day, so there were plenty of students around. It would be the end if we were seen.

     「Come on, puppy. When will you stop pretending to be a human and start acting like one?」

     She spoke in the same sweet voice as always — but within it, I noticed a hint of joy at being the one to give orders. I could tell her excitement was for a different reason from usual. Perhaps it was contagious; my legs began to tremble. Doing as she wished, I crawled on the floor.

     Her eyes, which I always saw peering up from below, were now looking down at me.

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