"Come to think of it…"
Walking along a quiet, deserted path, Anon seemed to suddenly recall something. She tilted her head slightly and looked at the handsome boy beside her.
"I heard someone say you were chatting with Miura for quite a while just now. I didn't interrupt anything, did I?"
"It was just about the school festival."
Kaito kept it brief, "She asked me to go buy uniforms, but I already promised you first."
"Huh?"
Anon blinked, "Does that count as cutting her off? She won't be upset, will she?"
"She's not that petty."
'If anything, someone probably welcomes it, right?'
"True."
Anon clasped her hands behind her back and lightly stepped over a fallen leaf, "Miura's always had great relationships with people, so she probably wouldn't mind something like that. But…"
She paused, her gaze drifting toward a shop window not far away, as if mentioning it casually, "It feels like you and Miura are pretty close. Have you known each other for a long time?"
"Not really."
Kaito thought about it. Although it had been nearly two months since college started, to him, that wasn't much different from a fleeting moment.
But when it came to relationships, time wasn't a decisive factor anyway, it was more about affinity.
He glanced sideways at the girl beside him, "Why ask all of a sudden?"
"Just a little curious~"
Anon turned her head and gave him a bright, unshadowed smile, "After all, you always seem kind of distant, like you're hard to approach. But with Miura, you seem especially… hmm, tolerant?"
Kaito didn't answer immediately.
He vaguely picked up on the subtle probing in her words. A girl's thoughts are like a dragonfly skimming the water, touching lightly, sending out ripples, then darting away.
"In fact, I'm the same with you."
Anon froze for a moment, then let out a soft laugh, her eyes curving, "That kind of 'balancing both sides' answer… Kaito, you're surprisingly good at dealing with girls, aren't you?"
"It's not dealing."
Kaito corrected her, "I am just stating a fact."
"Aaah! Yes~ Yes~"
As they talked, the cinema was already right in front of them.
Anon didn't dwell on the topic further. She proactively ran over to the self-service ticket machine to pick up the tickets, her slender figure carrying a hint of excitement.
Taking advantage of the moment, Kaito also took out his phone and sent a status update to his sister at home, who was waiting to be fed.
[I'm at the cinema. The movie's about two hours.]
The reply came almost instantly.
Mortis, who seemed to have been staring at the screen, quickly sent an image.
On the screen, the unpaid overworked actor Ms. Kirara was dressed in a tiny pet apron, with two large edited words below it, "Feed Me." The cat's face was filled with utter despair.
[Mortis: Kirara says it's so hungry its chest is stuck to its back!]
[Mortis: Of course I'm not urging you to come home quickly, Onee-chan. The kitty's fine. The kitty can rummage through trash on its own. Onee-chan, just have fun with another woman out there!]
'Is this her subtle way of reminding me not to forget the crepes?'
Kaito shook his head helplessly, but still replied patiently.
[Don't worry. I won't be too late.]
"Kaito, I got the tickets!"
At that moment, Anon returned after picking them up. She happened to catch the almost indulgent look of helplessness on his face and blinked, "What's with that expression? Something urgent?"
"It's nothing."
Kaito took the ticket stubs she handed over. After a moment's thought, he said, "The cat at home is… a bit clingy."
"Oh, I see."
Anon nodded, half understanding, "I remember you mentioning you have a cat… What's its name? What's it like? Is it shy around strangers?"
There were quite a few questions, and Kaito answered them one by one.
"She's called Kirara. A bit lazy, likes dried small fish, enjoys sleeping. As for being shy… that mostly depends on whether the visitor brings dried fish."
"I see."
The girl showed a somewhat wistful expression, "I actually like cats a lot too, but my mom's allergic to cat fur, so we can't keep one. Could I come to your place and see it sometime?"
Seeing the anticipation on her face, Kaito didn't think much of it and nodded readily, "Of course."
'Plan executed successfully!'
The little version of Anon in her mind flashed a victory sign. All those shoujo manga hadn't been for nothing, she'd not only smoothly secured their next meeting, but even taken it a step further, turning an ordinary date into a visit to his home. A perfect case of advancing under the radar. Who says she's not a genius?
Outside the cinema, there was a counter selling all kinds of snacks. Kaito bought a large bucket of popcorn and two cups of cola before entering with Anon after checking their tickets.
The theater was dimly lit. Guided by the faint glow of the screen, the two found their seats, right in the center, the best spot for viewing.
The movie he'd chosen was a highly rated fantasy-style art film, the kind that earned praise but not box office success. There were very few people in the theater, only a handful scattered far apart, like isolated islands that didn't disturb one another.
Even if there were any small movements, they'd be hard for others to notice.
Of course, anything too embarrassing was out of the question.
Even though the theater was dark, the staff in the back could still clearly see everything through the surveillance monitors.
But…
'If it is just holding hands during romantic moments it should be fine, right?'
Anon let out a soft breath, unable to tell whether it was nervousness or something else.
The film finally began.
This wasn't Kaito's first time watching a movie with a girl.
Yumiko, Bocchi, and Soyo… with the experience they'd given him, this should have been something he was already used to.
But with a certain flat-chested pink-haired girl by his side, the feeling was completely different.
Anon had a lively personality, which meant it was hard for her to sit quietly through a movie on her own.
When something exciting happened, she'd let out a small gasp. When a scene amused her, she'd lean closer and whisper a quick comment.
Her breath carried a faint citrus scent, and when her long hair brushed against his ear, it tickled slightly.
Kaito would occasionally respond, but most of the time he simply watched the screen in silence. The theater was dim, yet the girl's eyes beside him reflected countless shifting lights and shadows, bright and lively, more vibrant than the sun.
As the progress bar stretched on, the film reached a somewhat lengthy dialogue-heavy segment.
The story was still engaging, but Anon's attention began to drift just a little.
Her gaze slipped from the screen to the popcorn bucket between them, then quietly moved to Kaito's hand resting casually on the armrest.
His fingers were long, the joints well-defined, carrying an elegance like pine and bamboo.
She stared for two seconds, her throat moving unconsciously.
First of all, she wasn't a hand fetishist, but honestly, those hands were pretty good-looking. Second, she wasn't a hand fetishist; it was just that they looked strong, and the faintly visible veins were kind of… alluring, making her heart itch. Lastly, she really wasn't a hand fetishist, but these hands truly had the kind of beauty that could satisfy anyone's poetic imagination.
'It'll be nice if I could lick them—'
'No! No! No! No!'
Anon snapped out of it abruptly, 'How did I zone out like that?'
'Fortunately, the lighting is dim. Kaito probably didn't notice me just now.'
To cover it up, the girl grabbed a few pieces of popcorn from the bucket, then sat up straight as if nothing had happened, staring ahead without shifting her gaze. Only the tips of her ears flushed faintly red in the darkness.
Kaito seemed to sense something and glanced at her.
The light from the screen just happened to sweep across the girl's composed side profile. Her long lashes fluttered lightly like butterfly wings.
He didn't say anything, only reached out as well to take a few pieces of popcorn.
Their fingertips brushed lightly inside the bucket.
Anon's body seemed to stiffen for a second.
But soon, she slowly relaxed, the corners of her lips curving into a small, quiet smile.
The film continued, the story reaching its climax.
Neither of them spoke again, but a tacit, warm atmosphere spread silently between them, like the faint scent of popcorn.
———
At the Same Time, in a Distant Residence—
"Ah-choo!"
The green-haired girl, who was sitting on the sofa holding Kirara and idly poking at her tablet, suddenly straightened up and sneezed without warning.
She rubbed her nose and looked out the window suspiciously.
"Strange. Am I catching a cold?"
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