Poverty

The June sunlight filtered through the corridor windows, carrying the warmth of early summer, yet it failed to thaw the pervasive gloom hanging over Class D.

During the lunch break, the flow of people in front of the small convenience store on the ground floor of the school building was noticeably thinner than it had been at the start of the month.

The air was thick with a subtle, lingering tension.

Kiyona unscrewed the cap of the bottled water she had just bought, the seal emitting a faint, dry rasp.

Her gaze swept sharply toward Hoshino Kanade beside her. Seeing him also twisting open a bottle, she immediately lowered her voice, her words slipping out like a stream into a crevice: "Kanade, look at Class D over there..." Her eyes darted quickly toward two girls picking out bread not far away.

Their fingers hovered repeatedly between the bread and the price tags, clear hesitation etched into their brows.

In the end, they picked up the cheapest sliced bread and a basic rice ball, their steps toward the checkout carrying an imperceptible sense of haste.

When they swiped their cards, that unease was magnified—their gazes dropped, deliberately avoiding any potential stares; throughout the entire process, silence was their only form of communication.

Hoshino Kanade followed Kiyona's cue, his expression remaining as usual.

He took a light sip of his water, his Adam's apple bobbing, and when he spoke again, his tone was as calm as still water: "As expected."

"With the '0' point status continuing through June, the bottom line of this class has been laid bare for all to see."

His gaze did not leave the two retreating figures, precisely dissecting the current situation, "The fools who squandered everything in the first wave not only exhausted their own resources but also overspent their friendship points early on. And now? The whole ship is sinking together. Those who still have points in their pockets..."

He paused slightly, a subtle chill rising in his tone, more like an observation of a precise measurement of human nature, "are only the misers skilled at calculation, and... the sufficiently vigilant, clear-headed ones. They know that 'scarcity' is a contagious disease." He gestured toward the shelves, "Even buying a snack requires looking over your shoulder. It's not the price they fear, but the eyes of 'friends' that might light up the next second, staring at your points."

Kiyona suddenly turned sideways without warning, like a vine finding its habitat, embedding herself softly and almost seamlessly into his embrace.

Her chin rested naturally in the hollow of his shoulder, her warm breath brushing against the sensitive skin of his neck, sweeping over that most delicate area again and again, stirring up tiny ripples.

With a hint of a spoiled, nasal tone, she said: "Speaking of which, my points are almost bottoming out too~ I'll have to rely on Kanade to 'keep' me from now on, okay?" Her tone was light and matter-of-fact, as if she were speaking of the most natural thing in the world.

In reality, she still had forty thousand in her account, but given the state of Class D, it was an almost visible future that everyone would eventually exhaust their points.

Hoshino's body tensed for a split second before relaxing within half a second.

Regarding this sudden, almost clinging intimacy from Kiyona, he had long since moved from his initial awkwardness to becoming accustomed to it, and even... finding a secret enjoyment in it.

He lowered his eyes, looking at the soft top of her head just inches away; the clean orchid scent of her shampoo mixed with the warm, sweet fragrance unique to her, easily overpowering the smell of the air conditioning in the convenience store.

He didn't respond immediately, simply raising his free hand to wrap it naturally around her waist, holding her more firmly against his side.

The movement was fluid, carrying an unspoken sense of possessiveness and intimacy.

"Oh?" Hoshino Kanade let out an ambiguous monosyllable, the tail of his voice rising slightly with a hint of playfulness.

He tilted his head, his lips almost brushing her temple, his voice lowered to a level only she could hear, "'Keep' you? That sounds like a high-risk investment." He paused, feeling the warm, soft sensation in his arms, his gaze sweeping over her slightly upturned face, which held a mischievous smile, "However, given that this 'investor' currently looks... well, quite pleasing to the eye, and possesses a certain 'strategic value'," he deliberately used the terminology she had teased him with earlier, a trace of an imperceptible smile flashing in his eyes, "perhaps it's worth considering."

He lowered his head, his nose almost brushing hers, their breaths mingling, his voice low and magnetic: "But, how shall we calculate the interest?" His gaze swept over her slightly parted lips, full of suggestive meaning.

Under the bright lights of the convenience store, their intimate posture, oblivious to others, was completely out of place with the slightly tense atmosphere surrounding them.

Held in his arms, Kiyona clearly felt the steady heartbeat from his chest and the resonance of his voice vibrating slightly as he spoke.

Hoshino Kanade's playful and teasing words made her earlobes flush, but she felt more of the sweetness of being indulged.

Kiyona not only didn't retreat, but instead met his gaze, her fingertips lightly poking his solid chest: "As for the interest... that depends on your performance, doesn't it?" She drew out the tone, her eyes shimmering, "For example... do you want to 'prepay' some of the interest right now?"

Hoshino Kanade's Adam's apple bobbed again, and the arm around her waist tightened slightly.

He certainly understood her implication.

His gaze lingered for a moment on her lips, which held both expectation and mischief, then scanned the environment of the convenience store—although there weren't many people, it was, after all, a public place.

"Public place, Kiyona." He reminded her in a low voice, though there was no real reproach in his tone, only a hint of helplessness and indulgence.

He lowered his head and quickly pressed a feather-light kiss to her smooth forehead, carrying a soothing intent, "The prepayment limit is limited. The rest... we'll settle when we get back."

This dragonfly-touch kiss clearly didn't satisfy Kiyona.

She pouted in dissatisfaction, but she knew his principles.

However, being able to cling to him so openly and watch him—who was usually cold to the point of ruthlessness when analyzing the situation—show such helpless and doting expressions toward her was already a great pleasure.

"Hmph, stingy." She muttered softly, rubbing her head into the hollow of his shoulder like a cat seeking comfort.

Hoshino sighed silently, but the corner of his mouth curled into a faint arc.

He tightened his arm to let her lean more comfortably, his gaze returning to the shelves, but his mind was clearly no longer on analyzing the plight of Class D.

Of course, he knew very well—if Kiyona were truly serious, with her aptitude, obtaining those points would be no difficult task, and she might not even need to "cut corners" like him.

Hoshino Kanade knew better than anyone the intelligence and drive she hid beneath her cool exterior.

Perhaps in the future, if he became the loser, he would have to rely on Kiyona to support him.

The card in his pocket, carrying a huge sum of points, held far less weight in his heart at this moment than the girl in his arms—who possessed warmth, knew how to act spoiled, and made him retreat from his principles and bottom lines again and again.

"I give up on you." He said in a low voice, his tone filled with a tenderness he hadn't even realized himself.

The air conditioning in the convenience store remained, but the space where the two huddled together formed its own little world of warmth.

Point crisis? Observation of human nature? In the face of his lover's warm, soft body and intimate whispers, everything else temporarily took a backseat. Kiyona secretly curled the corners of her mouth in his arms, like a little fox that had successfully stolen a treat.

The June sunlight filtered through the corridor windows, carrying the warmth of early summer, yet it failed to thaw the pervasive gloom hanging over Class D.

During the lunch break, the flow of people in front of the small convenience store on the ground floor of the school building was noticeably thinner than it had been at the start of the month.

The air was thick with a subtle, lingering tension.

Kiyona unscrewed the cap of her newly purchased bottled water, the seal emitting a faint, raspy click.

Her gaze swept sharply toward Hoshino Kanade beside her, and seeing him also twisting his bottle cap, she immediately lowered her voice, her words sliding like a thin stream into a crevice: "Kanade, look at Class D over there..." Her eyes darted quickly past two girls nearby who were currently selecting bread.

Their fingers hovered repeatedly between the bread and the price tags, a clear hesitation etched between their brows.

In the end, they picked up the cheapest loaf of sliced bread and a basic rice ball, their footsteps toward the checkout carrying an imperceptible sense of haste.

When they swiped their cards, that sense of unease was magnified—their gazes dropped, deliberately avoiding any potential stares; throughout the entire process, silence was their only form of communication.

Hoshino Kanade followed Kiyona's cue and looked over, his expression remaining unchanged.

He took a light sip of his bottled water, his Adam's apple bobbing once, and when he spoke again, his tone was as calm as deep water: "As expected.

With the '0' point status continuing through June, the bottom line of this class has been laid bare for all to see."

His gaze did not leave the two retreating figures, precisely dissecting the current situation, "The fools who squandered everything in the first wave didn't just exhaust their own, they overspent their friendship points early on. And now? The whole ship is sinking together. Those who still have points in their pockets..."

He paused slightly, a subtle chill rising in his tone, more like an observation of a precise measurement of human nature, "are only the miserly ones who are good at calculating, and... the clear-headed ones who are cautious enough. They know that 'scarcity' is a contagious disease." He raised a finger to point toward the shelves, "Having to look over your shoulder just to buy a snack—what they fear isn't the price, but the eyes of 'friends' that might light up in the next second, staring at their points."

Kiyona suddenly turned sideways without warning, like a vine finding a habitat, softly and almost seamlessly embedding herself into his embrace.

Her chin rested naturally in the crook of his shoulder, her warm breath brushing against the sensitive skin of his neck, sweeping over that most sensitive area time and again, stirring up tiny ripples.

With a hint of coquettish nasal tone, she said: "Speaking of which, my points are almost bottoming out too~ I'll have to rely on Kanade to 'keep' me from now on, okay?" Her tone was light and matter-of-fact, as if she were talking about the most natural thing in the world.

In reality, she still had forty thousand in her account, but looking at the state of Class D, it was almost a foreseeable future that everyone would exhaust their points.

Hoshino's body tensed for a split second, then relaxed within half a second.

Regarding this sudden intimacy from Kiyona, where she practically hung off him, he had long since moved from his initial awkwardness to his current habituation, even... harboring a secret sense of enjoyment.

He lowered his eyes, looking at the top of her soft hair within arm's reach; the clean orchid scent of her shampoo mixed with her unique, warm, sweet fragrance, easily overpowering the smell of the convenience store's air conditioning.

He didn't respond immediately, simply raising his free hand to wrap it naturally around her waist, holding her more firmly against his side.

The movement was fluid, carrying an unspoken sense of possessiveness and intimacy.

"Oh?" Hoshino Kanade let out an ambiguous monosyllable, the tail of his voice rising slightly with a hint of playfulness.

He turned his head, his lips almost touching the corner of her forehead, his voice lowered so only she could hear, "'Keep' you? Sounds like a high-risk investment." He paused, feeling the warm, soft sensation in his arms, his gaze sweeping over her slightly upturned face, which held a mischievous smile, "However, given that this 'investor' currently looks... well, quite pleasing to the eye, and possesses a certain 'strategic value'," he deliberately used the terminology she had teased him with earlier, a flicker of imperceptible amusement passing through his eyes, "perhaps it can be considered."

He lowered his head, his nose almost brushing against hers, their breaths mingling, his voice low and magnetic: "But, how should the interest be calculated?" His gaze swept lingeringly over her slightly parted lips, full of implication.

Under the bright lights of the convenience store, the two of them, in their unbothered intimacy, stood in stark contrast to the slightly tense atmosphere around them.

Held in his arms, Kiyona clearly felt the steady heartbeat from his chest and the slight vibration of his resonance when he spoke.

Hoshino Kanade's playful and teasing words made her earlobes heat up, but she felt more of the sweetness of being indulged.

Kiyona did not retreat; instead, meeting his gaze at such close range, she lightly poked his solid chest with her fingertip: "The interest... depends on your performance, I suppose?" She drew out the tone, her eyes shimmering, "For example... do you want to prepay some 'interest' right now?"

Hoshino Kanade's Adam's apple bobbed again, and the arm around her waist tightened slightly.

He understood her implication, of course.

His gaze lingered for a moment on her lips, which held both expectation and mischief, then he scanned the environment of the convenience store—although there weren't many people, it was, after all, a public place.

"Public place, Kiyona." He reminded her in a low voice, though there was no real reproach in his tone, only a hint of helplessness and indulgence.

He lowered his head and quickly pressed a feather-light kiss to her smooth forehead, carrying a sense of reassurance, "The prepayment limit is limited. The rest... we'll settle when we get back."

This dragonfly-touch kiss was clearly not enough to satisfy Kiyona.

She pouted in dissatisfaction, but she knew his principles.

However, being able to cling to him so openly and watch him—who was usually cold to the point of ruthlessness when analyzing the situation—show such helpless and doting expressions toward her was already a great pleasure.

"Hmph, stingy." She muttered softly, rubbing her head into the crook of his shoulder like a cat seeking comfort.

Hoshino sighed silently, but the corner of his mouth curled into a faint arc.

He tightened his arm to let her lean more comfortably, his gaze returning to the shelves, but his mind was clearly no longer on analyzing the plight of Class D.

Of course, he knew very well—if Kiyona were truly serious, with her aptitude, obtaining those points would be no difficult task, and she might not even need to "take shortcuts" like he did.

Hoshino Kanade knew better than anyone the intelligence and drive she hid beneath her cool exterior.

Perhaps in the future, if he became the loser, he would have to rely on Kiyona to support him.

The card in his pocket, carrying a huge sum of points, held far less weight in his heart at this moment than the girl in his arms—warm, coquettish, and capable of making him compromise his principles time and again.

"I give up on you." He said in a low voice, his tone filled with a tenderness he hadn't even noticed himself.

The convenience store's air conditioning remained, but the small space where the two huddled together formed its own warm little world.

Point crisis? Observation of human nature? In the face of his lover's warm body temperature and intimate whispers, everything else temporarily took a backseat. Kiyona secretly curled the corners of her mouth in his arms, like a little fox that had successfully stolen a treat.