The Fourth Period Is Modern Chinese (Continued)

I really wanted to smack my forehead hard, but it would be no good if I confused her by being too perfunctory. Yuihama's gaze fell to her feet, yet her tone was earnest.

"It's about discussing Yukino. Um, or rather... it's about us, so I wanted to talk with you alone."

"I-I see..."

If it concerned Yukino, then naturally, it would be difficult to discuss with other people around.

But no matter how I looked at it, being alone with Yuihama was not a good idea. At school, it could still be considered normal, but if the location changed from here to somewhere else, it would look different. At the very least, if I were watching from the sidelines, I'd definitely say, "Whoa, whoa, whoa, that guy's dead."

Should I tell Yukino first? But from what position could I say, "I'm going to talk with Yuihama alone!"? It was only a few words, but wouldn't specifically saying that make me seem overly self-conscious?

No matter how I thought about it, it had a real "Who do you think you are?" feeling, didn't it? Wasn't that disgusting? Thinking about it carefully, I was really a disgusting guy... No one looked down on me better than I did.

As I kept looking for excuses in my heart and agonizing over it, Yuihama suddenly let out a soft laugh.

"...I already told Yukino, so it's fine."

Her eyes seemed to see straight through me. They were very mature and gentle, yet there also seemed to be a trace of coldness there.

As those eyes, reflecting the red sunset along with pink and pale gray, gazed at me, all the strength suddenly left my shoulders.

"Ah, I see... I see..."

It was an incredibly foolish answer, even for me, and my voice carried a