Friday morning.
Shuu arrived at school earlier than usual—not by design, but because his breakfast turned out to be instant coffee and regret.
The classroom was still mostly empty.
But Sakura was already there.
She sat at her desk, carefully flipping through a small paperback novel, fingers gliding gently over the edge of the pages.
Shuu approached.
"Morning," he said.
Sakura looked up. "Good morning."
Her voice was soft, but there was no hesitation.
Shuu slid into his seat, glanced at the book in her hands, then smiled. "Another fantasy romance?"
She nodded. "This one's about a witch and a knight who make a contract to break each other's curses."
"Ooh. Drama?"
"A little. But also… sweet."
"You like bittersweet endings, huh?"
Sakura looked thoughtful. "I like it when people try their best, even if they don't win everything."
Shuu watched her quietly.
That was her, wasn't it?
A girl who didn't expect to win. Who didn't expect to be chosen.
But still tried.
He wanted to say something.
Something meaningful.
But before he could open his mouth—
"Yo! Morning, lovebirds~!"
Motoko Iura burst in like she was leading a parade, two toast slices sticking out of her mouth and a juice box in hand.
"Sorry I'm late, traffic was murder," she said, taking a dramatic dive into her chair.
Shuu sighed. "You live two blocks from here."
"Mentally, I live in another galaxy."
She kicked back and rested her feet on the empty chair beside her.
Then looked at Sakura and grinned.
"New book?"
Sakura nodded. "Yes."
"Cute cover. Does someone die tragically in the end?"
"...A little."
Motoko winked. "My favorite genre."
Sakura gave a small laugh.
Shuu watched them, feeling a strange mixture of things.
Relief.
Annoyance.
Admiration.
Jealousy?
No—not quite.
It wasn't that Sakura liked Motoko more.
It was that Motoko noticed the small things.
The exact genre. The faint smile. The kind of ending someone preferred.
She wasn't competing.
She was connecting.
And Shuu, who thought he was the only one doing that…
Suddenly felt like he wasn't the only one playing this game.
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