"Did you fail another test?"
The boy remembered how annoyed he had been when he replied—
"No, I didn't!"
The boy unconsciously repeated in a low voice the conversation he'd had with Ya Ya back then.
Ya Ya's words had instantly swept away all the disappointment, hurt, and other negative feelings in his heart.
He'd been too busy explaining to Ya Ya that he'd only failed that one test.
He was a good student.
The boy couldn't help the corners of his mouth from lifting.
Looking back on what had happened then, he found it rather amusing.
But after smiling, he let out a silent sigh.
He looked around.
That time, Ya Ya had appeared in front of him of her own accord.
But this time...
Even now, he was still alone here.
The boy would rather believe that he'd come at the wrong time and Ya Ya had gone out than believe she didn't want to see him...
The boy stood beneath the tree, lost in thought for a while.
"Grrrr~"
The rumbling of his stomach brought him out of his daze.
He instinctively pressed a hand hard against his stomach.
His darting eyes betrayed a hint of guilt and embarrassment.
Then he realized he was the only one here.
He didn't need to feel embarrassed.
Aside from him, no one had heard his stomach growl.
Uh...
The Maple Tree had heard it too.
He just didn't know whether Ya Ya had heard it.
The boy thought of a few more details about his time with Ya Ya.
His stomach had growled back then, too.
Right in front of Ya Ya.
His stomach had growled more than once.
His face had turned bright red.
He'd pretended not to know what was going on,