Chapter 215: So You Like Him Too
The remaining four days that Sakurai Saki and Nino spent in the other world passed by quite peacefully.
Aside from being a bit addicted to "studying" together, there was nothing else—no strange incidents at all—just that on the sixth day, Nino said her safe period was about to end, so the two of them calmed down.
Indeed, when a man and a woman live together, it's easy to make mistakes.
But Nino didn't regret it at all.
It was just that Sakurai Saki's technique was far too good, which left her feeling a little disappointed, because she had thought he was just like her—doing it for the first time—but it turned out not to be the case.
She had no idea who he had practiced this skill with… perhaps Hayasaka-san?
...
The scene shifted back to the festival.
At the entrance of the Shrine, the other four Nakano sisters had been waiting for a long time before finally seeing Nino and Sakurai Saki.
"Saki-kun, you're here." Miku glanced at Sakurai Saki and noticed that the look in his eyes when he looked at her was still the same as before.
But…
Miku's gaze shifted down to their hands.
She asked, "You two… why are you holding hands?"
Miku: ( ,,⩌'︿'⩌,,)
"Nino just twisted her ankle, so I took her to the side to rest for a bit." Sakurai Saki explained.
"Umu, my ankle still hurts a little." Nino leaned in close to Sakurai Saki, pretending to be too weak to stand without his support.
Her acting was pretty good.
At the very least, Miku didn't notice anything unusual.
"Is your ankle better now?"
"Umu, it feels much better now." Nino nodded.
This time, inviting Sakurai Saki to join the festival had been Miku's idea, and Nino was very grateful for it.
Now she really wanted to tell her little sister and best friend about what had happened between her and Sakurai Saki.
If Miku heard it, she would definitely be happy for her—or so Nino thought.
But the whole thing about traveling to another world was far too strange, and if she told her, Miku probably wouldn't believe it, so she decided not to say anything.
Itsuki asked worriedly, "Nino, are you okay! Why didn't you message us? If you had told us, we would've gone to find you."
"Because Sakurai-san was with me, so I was fine."
Hearing that, Itsuki also breathed a sigh of relief. They had been waiting here for quite a while and had even thought about reporting it to the organizers to look for her.
"As long as you're fine."
Ichika looked at Nino, who was smiling brightly, not looking at all like someone who had just been injured.
Why did it seem like she was even happier than when eating candy? Did something good happen?
But less than an hour had passed since they split up—there couldn't have been any romantic developments she didn't know about, right?
'Nino likes sensei-chan… I wonder if she confessed her feelings to sensei-chan while they were together this time.'
Ichika didn't think Nino had the chance.
To compete with Hayasaka Ai—the one Sakurai Saki had actively confessed to, even willing to take a week off school for—Nino was still far from that level.
'Even I had to give up… yet Nino still persists.'
In truth, Ichika also quite liked Sakurai Saki. Some time ago, the movie she had filmed together with him was set to premiere in two months.
During the filming period, their relationship had developed rather quickly… or at least Ichika thought so.
But Hayasaka was too strong, and Ichika felt that if those two didn't break up, she had no chance to step in.
Hayasaka: ( ◡̀_◡́)ᕤ
It might be a bit pathetic, like a losing dog, but that was the reality, and Ichika couldn't do anything about it.
...
Back at the hotel, since it was already late, the five Nakano sisters took their baths and went to bed.
Tomorrow, they would take the shinkansen home together.
The kendo club would also be going with them.
Nakano Miku couldn't sleep, her mind constantly replaying the image of Sakurai Saki and Nino kissing.
That scene was something she herself had created, yet Miku still felt uncomfortable about it.
Another person who couldn't sleep was Nino.
For the past few nights, she had been sleeping in Sakurai Saki's arms, and now she felt like something was missing.
After spacing out for a while, Nino crawled out from under the blanket, intending to go to the small courtyard next to their room to get some fresh air. This room had its own small courtyard, and the environment was quite nice.
She had barely stepped out of the room when she saw Miku coming out as well.
Nino turned her head and smiled at Miku. "Miku, you couldn't sleep either?"
To the matchmaker of her love story, Nino felt very grateful.
'How should I repay Miku~ Maybe give her a few sweet matcha-flavored treats?' Nino knew Miku's favorite food was matcha.
"Umu, I couldn't sleep." Miku's calm yet pleasant voice sounded in the small courtyard.
"Is something bothering you? You can tell me." Nino asked with concern.
The two of them sat down at the stone table in the courtyard.
The night breeze blew past, and since neither of them had tied their hair, with faces almost identical and hair color exactly the same, it was like looking into a mirror.
"I have someone I'm interested in," Miku said.
"Eh! Really?" Nino's face showed surprise.
She hadn't expected Miku to have someone she liked.
"Umu, I don't know when it started, but my eyes just keep following him."
"Is he a classmate?" Nino asked curiously.
She had thought she was just coming out to enjoy the night breeze, but she hadn't expected to hear such shocking news!
The sister who usually showed the least emotion actually had someone she liked!
"No." Miku shook her head, then lowered her voice. "But we're in the same grade."
"Also, he already has a girlfriend, and I even once saw him kissing someone who wasn't his girlfriend."
Hearing that, Nino gritted her teeth and said, "What kind of scumbag is that! Two-timing! That's awful!"
Nino: (｡•̀ ⤙ •́ ｡ꐦ) !!!
"Let me ask first—does he look handsome?"
Miku recalled Sakurai Saki's face, then said, "He's okay."
"No wonder! Scumbags are the type who use their good looks to seduce everyone—Miku, don't fall into that trap!" Nino didn't want her sister to jump into the fire pit.
The farther away from that kind of man, the better.
Hearing Nino say that, Miku started trying hard to hold back her laughter.
Miku outside: ( ,,⩌'︿'⩌,,)
Miku inside: ( ≧ᗜ≦)
Clearly, Nino herself liked exactly that kind of person, yet she was saying this—it was hard for Miku to keep a straight face.
"What?" Nino looked at her expression, puzzled. "Miku, don't tell me you actually like that type of person?"
"I'm not sure, but when I see him, my heart beats faster, I want his approval, and talking to him makes me really happy… is this liking someone?"
"That's definitely liking someone!" Nino gave her answer.
Hearing Nino's conclusion, Miku's fair cheeks instantly turned red. "Then when I see him kiss another girl, I get angry…"
"That's jealousy." Nino said, then showed a slightly amused expression. "So it turns out you know how to get jealous too, Miku—rare indeed."
"Hurry and tell me who he is, so I can help you think of a plan."
Miku was silent for a few seconds, then quietly said, "Saki-kun."
"Huh?" Nino blinked her bright eyes, full of confusion.
Nino: (っ º - º ς) ?
The atmosphere instantly went silent.
A few minutes later, Miku finally spoke:
"Nino, I'm sorry, but I won't give up Saki-kun to you."
After saying that, Miku stood up and walked toward her room.
Leaving Nino sitting there with a dazed expression, questioning life.
Nino: ∘ ∘ ∘ ( °ヮ° ) ?
...
The next day.
Nakano Nino stood on the Shinkansen platform.
Seeing Sakurai Saki with Miku holding onto his arm, her face was full of helplessness.
"Miku, holding me like this is hot, you know."
Sakurai Saki was confused—why had the person he usually trusted the most suddenly turned out like this?
But seeing her sleepy expression, Sakurai Saki could more or less guess the reason.
"Miku's really clinging to Sakurai-san today," Itsuki commented while eating a meat bun.
"She's probably just not fully awake yet," Yotsuba guessed.
Miku's mood right after waking up was also rather heavy.
Only Nino knew.
This was Miku doing it on purpose.
Miku: (˵ ¬ᴗ¬˵)
Nino: <(ꐦㅍ _ㅍ)>