Just before we reached the polar bear enclosure, Miyagi stopped in front of the seals and sea lions.

         The enclosure felt more like an aquarium than a zoo, with round, plump creatures lounging on land and swimming through the water.

         Of course, just like when we’d gone to the aquarium, Miyagi stared intently at the round, black-eyed marine mammals.

         「Sendai-san, which one had the external ears again?」

         The main difference we’d learned about between seals and sea lions was that one of them had external ears.

         Miyagi seemed to remember the conversation we’d had after our trip to the aquarium.

         「Sea lions.」

         That day, I’d told Miyagi that sea lions had external ears, like earlobes, and kissed her earlobe as I said it.

         That was the only reason I remembered.

         「Oh, you were right. They really do have things that look like ears.」

         Miyagi, whose mood had soured at the tiger enclosure, seemed to be feeling a little better now thanks to the sea lions. Her voice sounded a little more cheerful than before.

         「Hey, Miyagi.」

         I called her name as she continued watching the sea lions.

         「What?」

         「We’re still going back to the aquarium again someday, right?」

         We’d promised to go back to the aquarium to confirm the difference between seals and sea lions, but now that we’d gotten the chance to see them here, I was worried she might no longer feel the need to keep that promise.

         「Do you not want to go to the aquarium anymore?」

         Miyagi took her eyes off the sea lions and turned to look at me.

         「I mean, I do, but now that you’ve seen a sea lion’s ears for yourself…」

         「… Sendai-san, you don’t even like fish, do you? We don’t have to go back to the aquarium if you don’t want to.」

         Miyagi’s tone turned grumpy again, and she looked back at the sea lions.

         She’d said something similar on the day we’d gone to the aquarium.

         She’d surprised me by asking whether I really liked fish enough to want to keep going back to the aquarium.

         Just like today, she’d seemed to be taking my preferences into consideration.

         It wasn’t like her to say things that made me realize the reason she’d wanted to see a tiger was for my sake, or to surprise me like this.

         This side of Miyagi made my heart flutter, but she was so different from her usual self that it left me feeling strangely unsettled, as though my feet had been lifted off the ground and I were floating in midair.

         「I had a lot of fun at the aquarium, so let’s go again.」

         I said, tightening my grip on her hand.

         We’d had so much fun at the aquarium that it had led us to the zoo. I didn’t want today to erase the promise we’d made back then. I wanted each promise we made to lead to the next, and I wanted to keep being by Miyagi’s side forever.

         「If there’s something you want to see there, then we can go again.」

         Miyagi said quietly.

         「I want to see the penguins flying through the sky again.」

         「… Then we can go back to the aquarium.」

         「Okay, then it’s settled.」

         I said, making sure we’d settled the promise before she had a chance to change her mind.

         「Let’s go over there.」

         Miyagi said and started walking, still holding my hand.

         We were headed for the polar bear enclosure, and after walking for a little while, the large white animals came into view.

         「Were you okay with not taking any pictures of the seals or sea lions?」

         「Yeah.」

         She replied curtly before stopping at a spot where we had a good view of the polar bear, so I stopped beside her.

         “I’m fine with not taking pictures because I don’t want to let go of your hand.”

         Of course, Miyagi would never say something like that, but I wished it were true. At the same time, though, I couldn’t help wondering why she was still holding my hand.

         Normally, Miyagi would’ve tried to resist holding my hand or pulled away by now. Since she was still holding it, there had to be some reason for it.

         … It wasn’t because she wanted to make me happy, was it?

         With that unlikely thought in mind, I turned my gaze from Miyagi to the polar bear.

         I saw the same thing Miyagi was looking at.

         A playful white bear.

         It seemed almost needlessly energetic.

         「It seems like polar bears don’t really get cold in the winter.」

         Miyagi mumbled, watching the polar bear intently.

         「Seems like it. But I bet they get really hot in the summer.」

         「I feel like it should just be happy that it doesn’t get cold in the winter.」

         「If you were a polar bear, wouldn’t you get annoyed by how hot it gets in the summer?」

         「I wouldn’t.」

         「No, you definitely would.」

         I imagined a polar bear version of Miyagi complaining about the heat while stretching her arms out, and I couldn’t help but crack a smile.

         「You’re so annoying, Sendai-san.」

         Miyagi said as she elbowed me.

         「Oww, that hurt.」

         I said, clutching my arm exaggeratedly.

         「Aren’t you cold with your hair up in a ponytail?」

         「I’m not a polar bear, so yeah, it does feel a little cold.」

         「Then why are you wearing it in a ponytail?」

         「… So I can show off my earrings better. You should show off yours too, Miyagi.」

         「No. It’s too cold.」

         「Then at least let me take a picture of you with the polar bear. Tuck your hair behind your ears.」

         I already knew what she was going to answer with.

          “I don’t want you to take a picture of me.”

         Knowing Miyagi, she would definitely say that.

         But I was going to take a picture of her no matter what. Even if she refused to tuck her hair behind her ears, show off her earrings, or let me take a picture of her at all, I was still going to take one, so her answer didn’t really matter. I’d feel really lucky if she granted my wish, but I wasn’t really counting on it.

         「Let go of my hand.」

         Miyagi replied in a low voice, saying something I hadn’t expected.

         I instinctively tightened my grip on her hand.

         But she pulled her hand free and tucked her hair behind her ear.

         「Huh?」

         A confused sound slipped out before I could stop myself.

         I could see her plumeria earring, though only one of them.

         「There. Now take the picture.」

         She said in a displeased tone, hardly sounding like someone who was actually willing to have her picture taken, and gave my shoulder a shove. She then put some distance between us for the photo, so I quickly pulled my phone out of my coat pocket and pointed the camera at her.

         Click.

         Without thinking, I accidentally pressed the shutter and ended up taking a picture of the polar bear instead.

         「Sorry, I have to take another one. If you can, smile for the camera.」

         I called out to Miyagi, who was making a difficult expression.

         Of course, she didn’t smile.

         Although she wasn’t frowning, she didn’t look like she was about to smile, either. After taking another picture of her, I tried to get her to smile again, but she looked at me—or rather, at my phone—with an unusually serious expression on her face.

         「Sendai-san.」

         「What’s up?」

         As the polar bear came up behind Miyagi, I quickly snapped another picture.

         「Are you having fun at the zoo?」

         「Yeah, I am.」

         I smiled to show her how I felt.

         Miyagi’s expression softened slightly, so I took the opportunity to snap another picture of her with the polar bear behind her.

         「That’s good, then. Okay, now it’s your turn, Sendai-san.」

         Miyagi took off her gloves and pulled her phone out of her coat pocket.

         「Huh?」

         「I’m going to take a picture of you with the polar bear, so come stand over here.」

         I was caught off guard, but there was no reason for me to refuse, so I did as I was told and switched places with Miyagi.

         「I’m taking it now, okay?」

         Miyagi raised her phone and pointed the camera at me.

         I smiled for the camera, but after hearing the shutter click once, she said,

         「You’re smiling too much.」

         「But isn’t it better to smile for the camera?」

         「No, you’re smiling too much.」

         Miyagi repeated herself before taking another picture.

         「I couldn’t get a good shot of the polar bear.」

         「But what about me?」

         I asked Miyagi, who was mumbling to herself as she looked at her phone.

         「You look okay.」

         「What do you mean, I look “okay”? Let me see the pictures you took.」

         I moved closer and looked at her phone.

         On the screen was a picture of me looking happy, with the polar bear seemingly enjoying itself behind me.

         「I think that’s a pretty good picture.」

         「Of the polar bear?」

         Miyagi asked, saying something rude.

         「Of both me and the polar bear.」

         「Okay, if you say so.」

         「Well, anyway, do you want to stay and watch the polar bear for a little longer?」

         「No, I’m good.」

         「Then should we go look at the penguins next?」

         「What about the shoebill?」

         「The shoebill enclosure is a little further down from the penguins. Want to stop by the penguin enclosure first?」

         「Okay.」

         Miyagi slipped her phone back into her pocket, put her gloves back on, and started walking.

         But now Miyagi wasn’t holding my hand anymore.

         She walked a little ahead of me.

         「Where’s your hand, Miyagi?」

         I caught up to her and gently tapped my hand against the back of hers.

         「I’m not holding your hand.」

         「You don’t have to hold my hand as long as you leave your hair like that.」

         I wasn’t sure whether she’d forgotten about it or not, but for some reason, the plumeria earring I’d picked out for her were still fully visible.

         「I’m going to catch a cold like this.」

         「Come on, leave it like that just a little longer.」

         Miyagi, who had been reaching for her ear, frowned at me but stopped.

         She didn’t fix her hair.

         It remained tucked behind her ear, leaving the plumeria earring on full display for everyone to see.

         「Do you like polar bears, Miyagi?」

         「I don’t know if I’d say I like them, but I do think they’re cute. What about you, Sendai-san?」

         「I guess I do like them. They’re kind of like stuffed animals.」

         Miyagi looked cute while watching the polar bear, and I didn’t particularly dislike polar bears either, especially since they gave me the opportunity to take a picture of Miyagi with her earring visible.

         「Do you just like all animals that remind you of stuffed animals?」

         「Well, no, not exactly.」

         Any animal was fine.

         As long as Miyagi looked like she was having fun watching them, that was all that mattered.

         「Then what kind of animals do you like?」

         Miyagi seemed unusually talkative today.

         Or rather, she was just asking me a lot of questions about myself.

         I was happy that she was showing an interest in me, but she was acting so unlike herself that I had no idea what the right thing to say was.

         「Hmm, let me think… I thought the prairie dogs were pretty cute.」

         Besides, Miyagi looked really cute while she was watching them, I thought to myself.

         「You sound like you’re lying.」

         She said from beside me.

         「I’m not lying.」

         「Is that so?」

         Miyagi said curtly as she picked up her pace.

         The penguin enclosure was still quite a ways ahead, so I sped up to match her.

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Chapter debt: 78

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