The Weight of Trust

On Thursday morning, the sunlight was still bright, but the atmosphere in Class D's classroom was subtly different.

Hanyu Xiuyi sat at his seat, his gaze sweeping over everyone who walked into the classroom. Ike Kanji and Yamauchi Haruki were still chatting and laughing loudly, Sudo Ken was yawning, Yukimura Teruhiko had already opened his textbook, and Karuizawa Kei was chatting with the girls—everything looked normal.

But his gaze finally landed on Kushida Kikyo.

She was talking to Hirata Yousuke, her smile sweet, her shoulder-length short hair swaying gently with her movements. Hirata was amused by her, and the two were chatting happily. Seeing this scene, a complex emotion surged in Hanyu's heart.

If it really is her...

"Hanyu," Horikita Suzune's voice came from beside him. She sat down at her seat, her black hair neatly draped over her shoulders, and asked in a low voice, "How's the investigation into what happened last night?"

"Ayanokoji is investigating," Hanyu replied in an equally low voice. "There should be results today."

Horikita nodded and didn't ask further. But her gaze also swept in Kushida's direction, clearly contemplating the same question.

The morning classes passed in peace. Hanyu tried hard to concentrate on the lessons, but his thoughts kept drifting to Kushida involuntarily. He remembered what she looked like when he first met her—her sweet smile, how she proactively greeted everyone, and how quickly she integrated with the whole class. He remembered how, on the island, she always took care of classmates who were low in spirits, gently comforting them. He remembered how she voluntarily took on the role of class coordinator, never complaining.

Could someone like her be the mole?

During the lunch break, as Hanyu was about to take out his bento, his phone vibrated. It was an email from Ayanokoji:

"Rooftop. --Ayanokoji"

Hanyu put away his bento and quickly walked towards the rooftop.

On the rooftop, Ayanokoji Kiyonaga was leaning against the railing, holding a can of coffee. Standing beside him was another person—Ibuki Mio.

Hanyu was stunned. "Ibuki? How did you..."

"I asked her to come," Ayanokoji said. "There are some things that need to be said in person."

Ibuki's expression remained indifferent, but there was a hint of tension in her eyes. She looked at Hanyu and said, "After I went back last night, I found some more things."

"What things?"

"Ryuen's notebook," Ibuki said. "He accidentally left his notebook in the club room last night. I flipped through a few pages before he went back to get it."

Hanyu's heart rate quickened. "What did you see?"

Ibuki took a deep breath and said, "I saw a name."

"Whose?"

"Kushida Kikyo."

The air seemed to freeze.

Hanyu fell silent. Although he had been mentally prepared, hearing the name actually spoken still sent a pang through him.

"What did the notebook say?"

Ibuki recalled, "It said, 'Class D's Kushida Kikyo, key informant. Provided a list, payment upon confirmation.' There were a few more words next to it, but they were crossed out and unreadable."

A list. It should be that athletic ability assessment list.

Hanyu clenched his fist.

"Anything else?"

"Yes," Ibuki said. "There was a note tucked inside the notebook, in Kushida's handwriting. It said: 'Next Tuesday, 3 PM, Library Archives.'"

Next Tuesday was today.

Hanyu looked at Ayanokoji. Ayanokoji took a sip of coffee and said plainly, "It's only one o'clock now. There are still two hours."

"Do you want me to go confirm?" Hanyu asked.

"Don't you?"

Hanyu fell silent. Of course, he wanted to. But if he really confirmed it, how would he face Kushida? How would he tell the others?

"I'll go," he finally said. "But don't follow me. I'll go alone."

Ayanokoji nodded. Ibuki glanced at him, wanting to say something but holding back, and finally turned to leave.

Hanyu stood on the rooftop, gazing at the distant campus. The sun was still bright, but his mood was incredibly heavy.

At 2:50 PM, Hanyu Xiuyi appeared on the third floor of the library.

He didn't go directly to the archives but weaved between the bookshelves, pretending to look for books. There weren't many people in the library, and the few students who passed by didn't notice him.

At exactly 3 PM, a familiar figure appeared at the end of the corridor.

Kushida Kikyo. She wore a neat school uniform, her shoulder-length short hair pinned behind her ears with a hairpin, and she carried a few books. She walked to the door of the archives, looked around, and then pushed the door open.

Hanyu's heart sank to the bottom.

He waited for a few minutes, then quietly walked to the archives door. The door was ajar, and faint sounds came from inside. He peeked through the gap in the door—

Kushida was talking to a boy. The boy wore a Class C uniform and was one of Ryuen's confidants. A document was spread out before them, and they were talking in low voices.

Hanyu couldn't hear what they were saying, but he didn't need to.

The evidence was conclusive.

He quietly retreated and left the library.

Afternoon classes, Hanyu barely paid attention. He sat in his seat, his gaze occasionally sweeping over Kushida. She was still the same as usual, her smile sweet, chatting with those in front and behind her, showing no signs of anything unusual.

What was this girl thinking?

After school, Hanyu called out to Kushida, who was about to leave.

"Kushida, can I bother you for a few minutes?"

Kushida turned around, her smile still sweet. "Of course! Is there something you need, Hanyu?"

"Let's go to the rooftop," Hanyu said. "There's something I want to talk to you about."

Kushida's eyes flickered for a moment, but quickly returned to normal. "Okay."

The two walked towards the rooftop, one after the other. Along the way, Kushida chatted as usual, talking about how nice the weather was today, how the afternoon class was a bit difficult, and how she planned to go to the convenience store to buy newly released snacks tonight. Hanyu responded, but his mind was elsewhere.

On the rooftop, the afterglow of the sunset filled the entire space. Hanyu walked to the railing, his back to Kushida.

"Kushida, I have a question for you."

"What question is it?" Kushida's voice was still sweet.

Hanyu turned around and looked directly into her eyes.

"Why are you helping Ryuen?"

Kushida's smile froze.

In that instant, her expression became incredibly complex—surprise, panic, fear, and a hint of... relief?

"Hanyu..." Her voice was no longer sweet, but hoarse. "How did you..."

"I saw you," Hanyu said. "This afternoon at three, in the library's resource room. You and someone from Class C."

Kushida fell silent. She lowered her head, her shoulder-length short hair covering her face.

After a long time, she spoke, her voice so low it was almost inaudible. "When did you start suspecting me?"

"Yesterday," Hanyu said. "Ayanokoji noticed you've been going to the resource room frequently recently. And the resource room stores the files of each class."

Kushida looked up and looked at him. Her eye sockets reddened, but no tears fell.

"Since you know everything, what do you want?" Her voice carried a hint of mockery. "Tell the whole class? Make everyone hate me? Get me isolated?"

"Why?" Hanyu asked. "Why help Ryuen?"

Kushida paused for a moment, then laughed. That smile was no longer sweet, but bitter, even carrying a hint of madness.

"You want to know why?" she said. "Fine, I'll tell you."

She walked to the railing and gazed out at the campus in the distance.

"Since I was little, I've been the 'child of other people's families.' Good grades, cute, good personality, everyone liked me." Her voice was calm, but Hanyu could hear the tremble in it. "But do you know? It was all an act."

She turned to look at Hanyu. "The real me isn't like that. The real me is selfish, jealous, hypocritical, and I'll do anything to get others to like me. But I can't let anyone know, so I've been acting. Acting like a perfect self."

Hanyu listened quietly.

"When I got to high school, I thought I could start over," Kushida continued. "So I kept acting, acting like the Kushida Kikyo everyone liked. But..." Her voice grew low. "Ryuen found me."

"He found leverage from your middle school days?"

Kushida laughed. "No, he found the real me."

She took a deep breath. "One day, he cornered me in the library and said something. He said, 'Kushida, you don't have to act in front of me. Because I'm the same as you, a person wearing a mask.'"

Hanyu froze.

"Do you know, Hanyu?" Kushida's voice held a hint of madness. "At that moment, for the first time, I felt liberated. Someone finally knew the real me. I finally didn't have to act anymore."

"So you helped him?"

"At first, it was just talking," Kushida said. "It felt so good to tell him my real thoughts without pretending. Later... later he started asking for my help. Just small things, like telling him about the class situation. And then, that list..."

She lowered her head. "I knew it was wrong. But I couldn't stop anymore. He had the real me in his hands. If I refused, he would tell everyone..."

"So you're afraid of being exposed?"

"Yes." Kushida looked up, her eyes full of tears. "I'm afraid. I'm afraid that after everyone knows the real me, they'll look at me with strange glances. I'm afraid of losing everything I have now. I'm afraid... of becoming that lonely self again."

She cried. Not the fake crying, but real, breakdown crying.

Hanyu looked at her, a complex mix of emotions surging in his heart. Anger, disappointment, sympathy... all sorts of feelings intertwined.

But in the end, he just sighed.

"Kushida," he said. "Do you know? I knew long ago that you weren't as perfect as you seemed on the surface."

Kushida froze.

"No one is perfect," Hanyu said. "But the fact that you've been trying so hard to get everyone to like you shows that you care about this class. When we were on the island, you took care of the students with low spirits, that was real. You mediated conflicts for everyone, that was real. You cared about Sakura, you cared about Karuizawa, you cared about everyone who needed help—those were all real."

Kushida's tears flowed even harder.

"The real you might indeed be imperfect. But who says you have to be perfect?" Hanyu looked at her. "What is Class D? It's a collection of flawed goods. Every one of us has shortcomings, has a past we don't want anyone to know. Karuizawa does, Ike does, Yamauchi does, and I do too. But so what?"

He took a step closer, looking into her eyes. "We're together not because we're all perfect. But because we're all willing to accept each other's imperfections."

Kushida opened her mouth, but no sound came out.

"You have two choices now," Hanyu said. "Continue helping Ryuen and become his chess piece completely. Or, come back and become your true self."

Kushida looked at him, tears blurring her vision.

"C-can I come back?"

"If you are willing."

Kushida fell silent. After a long time, she finally spoke, her voice hoarse but firm:

"I am willing."

Hanyu nodded and extended his hand.

"Welcome back, Kushida."

Kushida looked at that hand, tears welling up again. She reached out and grasped it tightly.

"Thank you... thank you..."

The afterglow of the sunset bathed the rooftop, warm and bright.

In the distance, the school bell rang, signaling the end of the day.

But for Kushida Kikyo, a new beginning had just begun.