That evening, outside the hospital room, Maki stood with a fruit basket in her hand, pacing back and forth hesitantly.
"Is it really appropriate for me to visit him now?"
She'd been on a one-on-one date with Tsubasa when she heard Takashi had been shot.
Of course, she hadn't confessed to Tsubasa yet. Even the date itself had been set up by Nagisa.
Nagisa had arranged for the two to meet, then excused herself midway saying she had an urgent matter—leaving Maki and Tsubasa alone.
At first, she'd been excited to go on a date with him… but after that initial excitement wore off, she was bored stiff.
That's right—this date with Tsubasa was a total letdown.
Unlike Takashi, he didn't introduce her to anything new or exciting.
They went to a movie theater, a dessert shop, and wandered around Ginza. Places she'd been to a million times—did she really need him to take her?
More importantly, she found that being with Tsubasa felt nothing like being with Takashi.
Tsubasa was a shy virgin with zero dating experience.
You know the type.
Can't hold a conversation, painfully introverted, never initiates physical contact, gets all jittery when you look at him like he's infested with fleas, and some don't even manage a single coherent sentence during the whole date.
You can imagine how awkward that kind of date would be.
You have to carry the whole conversation, pick all the topics, and he just awkwardly agrees with whatever you say.
If Maki hadn't met Takashi first, maybe she'd still find it sweet.
But she had met Takashi first.
He was witty, charming, and it always felt like he just "got" her—like a soulmate who matched her in every way.
Whatever she liked, he happened to like too. Any topic she brought up, he could follow. She never felt awkward around him.
And unlike your average clueless first-timer, he was bold. If he felt the timing was right, he'd just hold her hand—no hesitation, no fumbling.
He never picked boring places for their dates, and even if they went somewhere familiar, he made it feel fresh and exciting.
He set the pace. He led the flow of every date.
Once you've experienced that kind of perfect date, going back to someone like Tsubasa felt utterly dull.
Halfway through, Maki just wanted to go home—but she forced herself to endure.
She was planning to just finish the day… but when she heard Takashi had been shot, her mind went completely blank.
"I have to go to Takashi."
That was the only thought left in her head.
She didn't even consider Tsubasa's feelings. She flagged down a cab and rushed to Takashi's hospital.
It was only after getting in the cab that she realized—she didn't even know which hospital he was in.
She was so panicked her IQ had short-circuited.
To find out, she activated the entire Shijo family's intelligence network.
She didn't care what consequences that would have.
Family? Didn't matter.
Tsubasa? Didn't matter.
Not even her parents or little brother crossed her mind.
She used to call Nagisa a love-struck fool, but now… she was even more hopeless.
Because at that moment, Takashi was more important than anyone.
Ogitsu Yoshiko hadn't even issued a statement yet, but Maki was already at the hospital.
Only when she saw Takashi alive did she finally calm down.
And with that calm, her tsundere tendencies kicked in.
You know the type—super worried, but pretends not to care, even acts mean.
That's why even though she was the first to arrive, she stood there watching as Momo, Ogitsu Yoshiko, Kotonoha, Adagaki Aki, Nagisa, Tsubame… all walked in one by one while she just stood there racking her brain over how to make a "casual" entrance.
That's a tsundere for you.
Even if her crush was sleeping with other girls, she'd still be sulking on the sidelines.
No wonder they end up as losers in love—what kind of guy has time to decipher those games?
"He's probably asleep by now. It should be fine to go in…"
After god knows how long of internal conflict, just as she finally made up her mind and reached for the doorknob, she chickened out again.
"What if he's awake?"
"Is this really appropriate?"
"He is the guy Nagisa likes…"
"I could never steal my best friend's boyfriend…"
Watching her inch forward and back, reaching for the door then pulling away, the nurse nearby sighed. "Excuse me, could you step aside?"
Maki quickly moved out of the way.
As the nurse passed by, a lightbulb went off in Maki's head.
She turned around and knocked on the director's office.
"Come in!" called out Nakano Maruo.
Maki marched in, slapped her hand on the desk, and said, "I'm Shijo Maki—you've heard of me. Now give me a nurse uniform."
Nakano Maruo: "???"
…
Fifteen minutes later, Maki—now in a nurse uniform—pushed open the door to Takashi's room carrying a fruit basket.
The room was already stacked with fruit baskets, practically forming a hill.
Takashi was hugging his tablet, writing and drawing on scratch paper, seemingly absorbed in something.
"Takashi—ahem—Mr. Kitahara, a lady at the front desk asked us to deliver this fruit basket to you."
Still staring at his tablet, Takashi spun the pen in his hand and said without looking up, "Just leave it on the floor."
On. The. Floor.
This is no ordinary fruit basket.
This is the fruit mentioned in Wang Wei's poems—no, wait—it's my fruit basket!
And you told her to just leave it on the floor!?
Maki fought back her anger. "The fruit basket is signed: Shijo Maki. Are you sure you want it left on the floor?"
"Where else can it go?" Takashi replied irritably as he finally looked up—only to meet the sharp gaze that clearly said, 'Try saying "the floor" again.'
His expression quickly shifted, a feigned look of shock flashing across his face. "Wait—whose fruit basket did you say it was?"
"Miss Shijo Maki."
Seeing his change in tone, Maki was finally satisfied.
Does this guy have a delayed reaction or something? she muttered in her mind.
"Put it beside my bed," Takashi said, slapping the nightstand firmly to show where.
Looks like I'm still important to him, Maki thought with glee as she glanced at Nagisa's fruit basket, which was now lying sadly on the floor.
Maki: major victory!
Little did she know, what Takashi was actually thinking was, Did this girl really think I wouldn't recognize her just because she changed into a nurse's uniform and put on a mask?
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