[Itō Hidesato]: "@Touji. Kasumigaoka-san, are you the person mentioned in the news these past two days?"
At two in the afternoon, the usually dormant First-Year Class G group chat was abruptly jolted awake by this single message. The digital silence shattered, replaced by a rapid cascade of notifications.
[Suzuki Masato]: "News? You mean… Winter-sensei?"[Aida Misa]: "No way…? It's hard to imagine a classmate in our own class being that food and music blogger with over three million followers…"[Akizuki Yuna]: "Exactly! It sounds way too far-fetched!"[Kitazono Ryo]: "Honestly, when I saw the news yesterday, Kasumigaoka-san was the first person I thought of. There are just… so many similarities."[Nakajima Masaki]: "+1!"[Nagase Ryohei]: "When there are too many coincidences, it might not be a coincidence at all!"[Nagase Ryohei]: "Let's list them: Both are high school students. Both are siblings. Both were 'picked up' by their families. Both have that 'child groom' backstory in the articles… And the pen names 'Winter' and 'Kasumi Utako' have clear connections to their real names, Kasumigaoka Touji and Kasumigaoka Utaha…"
[Sakurai Akira]: "I'll bet 100 yen right now that the blogger in the news is our very own Kasumigaoka-san!"[Sakurai Akira]: "@Touji. You there? Come out and say something!"
[Shimizu Takuya]: "Thinking about it… Kasumigaoka-san is pretty well-off. Remember when Honda-san's umbrella got stolen? He immediately offered a 30,000 yen reward for clues… A normal high school student wouldn't just throw that kind of money around! That's enough to buy sixty umbrellas!"
A big-time blogger with three million followers definitely wouldn't be strapped for cash.*Evidence +1!*
[Kitazono Ryo]: "@Kani Nayuta. Speaking of which, Honda-san, do you know anything about this? I remember you two mentioning you were mutual fans online…"[Itō Hidesato]: "Now that you mention it… looking closely at Honda-san's username…"[Itō Hidesato]: "…Could it be that you're the author of that recently popular light novel, 'Silver Season'!?"[Kitazono Ryo]: "Ah? Huh!?"[Aida Rina]: "Wait, I've read that! The author is Honda-san!? Is that true!?"[Aoki Sawako]: "Ehhh!?"[Aida Misa]: "What!?"
[Nakajima Masaki]: "Another hidden big shot? Are there seriously this many incredible people lurking in our Class G?"[Kuriyama Takeshi]: "I'm completely numb!"[Aida Rina]: "@Eriri Spencer Sawamura. I remember Eriri Spencer Sawamura and Honda-san were already acquainted before school. Do you know anything?"[Arai Mieko]: "By the way, I wonder if Eriri Spencer Sawamura has some hidden identity too? lol."[Asakawa Saori]: "If she does, that would be truly insane! Our Class G is simply too full of talent…"
"..."
Late April. The sun was warm, the breeze gentle. Arguably the most comfortable time of the year. Yet, inside a luxurious estate nestled on a slope in the northern district, Eriri Spencer Sawamura felt a cold sweat break out on her back.
"Huh…!?"
"What the—!"
"Rina! Mieko! Why did you have to drag me into this!? And Mieko, your intuition is way too sharp!"
Eriri's eyelids twitched violently as she stared at the rapidly scrolling messages in the Class G chat. Her heart hammered against her ribs with a panic that was both familiar and entirely new. The speculation from her so-called 'friends' made her wonder if someone had let something slip…
She debated furiously whether to say something, to try and throw them off the scent. At the same time, her fingers flew, sending a single, frantic '🤐' zipped-lip emoji to the only two people in Class G who knew the full truth—Kasumigaoka Touji and Kani Nayuta. They'll understand, she thought desperately. They have to.
"..."
Meanwhile, in Kasumigaoka Touji's bedroom—
Kasumigaoka Touji was… otherwise engaged in a rather 'amusing' activity with Kasumigaoka Utaha. It was a full hour later when he finally noticed the flood of notifications from both Eriri Spencer Sawamura and the exploding Class G group chat.
During that hour, Kani Nayuta had also sent a private message, her text laced with a mix of panic and excitement:[Kani Nayuta]: "Winter-sensei! Your blogger identity's been exposed!"
'It's not just mine!' Kasumigaoka Touji thought, a wry smile touching his lips as he scanned the chat history. 'Yours and Utaha's got dragged into it too! Three for the price of one.' He hadn't expected the dominoes to fall quite so spectacularly.
He replied to Kani Nayuta first with a calm, reassuring message, then sent a simple '👍' OK emoji back to the distressed Eriri Spencer Sawamura. Finally, he opened the Class G group chat properly. He'd only skimmed it before. Now, he read through the detective work, the bets, the growing pile of 'evidence.'
He thought for a moment. Denial seemed pointless and exhausting. Fine. Time to go with the flow.
His thumbs moved over the virtual keyboard.
[Touji]: "Singing and cooking are just personal hobbies, really. I'm actually quite an ordinary guy."[Touji]: "Everyone, please just treat me like any other student. Same as before."
His 'admission' was like throwing gasoline on a smoldering fire.
[Nakajima Masaki]: "You call that 'ordinary'!? You're way too humble!"[Nagase Ryohei]: "This redefines the meaning of 'humble'!"[Kitazono Ryo]: "I think I need to completely re-evaluate what 'ordinary' means. Thank you for the lesson, Winter-sensei!"[Itō Hidesato]: "I'm sorry… I, as an actual ordinary person, have disgraced the title!"[Touji]: "..."[Shimizu Takuya]: "@Touji. Big shot! Do you need a hanger-on? I volunteer!"[Aoki Sawako]: "The song is amazing! I'm a total fan now!""..."
It was the first time Kasumigaoka Touji had ever been showered with such concentrated, awe-struck attention from his entire class. The experience was… novel.
Simultaneously, a deluge of new friend request notifications began popping up in the background of his social media app. Seeing they were all from classmates, he sighed internally and hit 'Accept All.' Almost immediately, his private message inbox began to flood with greetings, questions, and fawning comments.
For these unsolicited private chats, Kasumigaoka Touji adopted a policy of polite, minimal, and decidedly cool responses. He had zero interest in cultivating dozens of new 'close' friendships overnight.
"..."
In a very different setting—inside the walk-in closet of Gotou Hitori's house, where she sat curled up after a session of intense, solitary guitar practice—a pair of wide blue eyes stared at the glowing screen of a phone.
Gotou Hitori had been secretly monitoring the Class G chat. When she saw Kasumigaoka Touji's indirect confirmation, her eyes widened even further. Her heart, already prone to erratic rhythms, kicked up a few unnecessary extra beats.
This person… the one who owes me 1000 yen… the one I wasn't sure would ever pay me back… my… friend (?)… is actually the music blogger I've been quietly following and admiring.
In truth, the suspicion had been gnawing at her since last Friday night when "Kasumi Utako" first exploded online. She'd opened their chat window multiple times, her finger hovering over the send button, trying to formulate a question. But her own socially-averse nature had clamped down each time, sealing the words inside.
Now that she knew, an incredible, almost dizzying sense of surprise washed over her. But close on its heels came the old, familiar shadows: a crushing sense of inferiority and profound self-doubt.
Could someone like me—someone even less socially capable than a single-celled organism—really have such an amazing person as a friend?
Does Kasumigaoka-kun… truly think of me as a friend?
Or was it just a casual, throwaway comment, something he'd say to anyone?
A wave of panic and dejection washed over Gotou Hitori, threatening to pull her under. She felt small, insignificant, and utterly out of place.
Slap!
She brought her hands up and lightly slapped both of her cheeks. The stinging sensation helped focus her spiraling thoughts. She took a deep, shuddering breath, forcing herself to rally.
"I shouldn't… doubt others like that…"
When she thought about it calmly, she had been treated with kindness this past month. Maybe… maybe that's all a friend was? Someone who was kind to you. And perhaps… she even had more than one?
"Speaking of which… should I try to return the favor somehow?"
Thinking of the consistent care she'd received not just from Kasumigaoka, but also from Kumin Tsuyuri and Kato Megumi, Gotou Hitori's brow furrowed in deep, serious contemplation. For someone who lived in a world of chords and melodies, navigating the intricacies of social reciprocity was a puzzle as complex as any song she'd ever tried to write.