Deciding to Make Contact

There is a saying that one can guard against a thief for a thousand days, but there is no such thing as guarding against one for a thousand days. Hoshino decided to take the initiative to approach the boy in the corner.

Although Hoshino did not intend to do much, he also would not do nothing at all. Some things still required taking precautions; besides, it was nothing shameful, and perhaps he might even discover something interesting!

Should he look up some information? After thinking about it for a moment, Hoshino gave up. Not only might this cause trouble for the other party, but it might even provoke them. There was no need to do anything unnecessary, so Hoshino decided to just "engage" directly.

After school, Hoshino kept his promise and did not leave right away, remaining in his seat while silently working on the task at hand.

Glancing out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that many people in the classroom had not left yet. Several "cliques" were gathered together, chatting about their own topics, such as: where to go to hang out later, what anime or games they were interested in...

Hoshino felt a bit speechless; they could have discussed those things more quietly! The result was that he had no choice but to listen even if he didn't want to.

The center of the class's "first group" was a student named Hirata, who had a strong influence among the girls. Many girls had "come for his reputation," and there were even quite a few "gals"? Hoshino still had some basic knowledge about the class; after all, there was always someone talking about it, and Hoshino felt like his ears were about to grow calluses.

The "second group" was Kushida's side, and her main lieutenant was an international student named Wang Meiyu. Because she was not a local, Hoshino had a fairly deep memory of her.

Around Kushida, besides the two girls including Wang Meiyu, there were three or four boys. One of them was the red-haired student who had almost started a fight at the convenience store entrance that day. Hoshino did not actually have a good impression of him; after all, during the self-introduction phase, he had made nasty remarks like "Are you all just children?" and struck a rather unpleasant pose, looking like a hoodlum. Coupled with the incident at the convenience store, it was hard for anyone to have a good impression of him.

"Na na, Meiyu-chan, is there anywhere you want to go?..." Kushida wore her "little angel" expression, her index finger lightly tapping her chin as she looked at the girl beside her in a thoughtful manner.

"..."

"Hey, hey, don't tell me you're going to stand me up again." Hoshino stopped his drawing work, glanced at Kushida's group, and felt a bit speechless.

Some time had passed since school ended, and it seemed Kushida had no intention of coming over to talk to him right away. Hoshino decided to go do what he had just planned.

He packed his school bag, stood up, and looked back at the seat in the very back corner. It was empty.

"When did he leave?" When he had noticed earlier, the boy in the corner was still burying his head in a notebook writing something. How did he leave so quickly? Hoshino was a bit surprised.

He had originally wanted to strike up a conversation with that boy to kill some time, but it seemed he had been too presumptuous.

Turning his head to look at Kushida, who was still talking about some unknown topic, Hoshino didn't know what kind of expression to make.

Let's just leave it at that for today!

Thinking this, Hoshino picked up the school bag on his desk, silently left the classroom, and set off on the road to the library.

Daily habits must be cultivated!

After school, Hoshino had also started to habitually come to the library to read for a while to kill time. After all, there was nothing else to do, and the "money-making" matter he had just settled was not overly urgent, so there was no need to break his existing routine.

The familiar corner, the familiar time, the sunlight was just right! Hoshino felt a sense of relief.

The novel in his hands also became more interesting.

But soon, Hoshino didn't think so anymore. The trashy author started stalling the progress again. The protagonist was going through a boring daily routine; although some people liked this part, Hoshino was not one of them. It was a pity. He didn't know how long this plot would last, and there weren't many pages left in the back. Hoshino simply flipped to the end, and sure enough, the plot was stalling again...

Closing the novel, Hoshino raised his head and stretched his slightly stiff neck, feeling a bit dissatisfied.

It wasn't that Hoshino was particularly repulsed by things he didn't like, but there were some things that, when repeated too often, left him with no desire to continue reading. After all, daily life is always the same! Probably!

Looking at the clock on the wall, an hour had passed before he knew it. Indeed, when there was something to do, time would pass in a fulfilling way. In this regard, Hoshino was quite satisfied; the decision to come to the library was definitely not wrong.

"Let's go back and take a look." A bit concerned about the matter regarding Kushida, Hoshino decided to return to the classroom to check after returning his book.

"Hoshino-kun, where did you go? I couldn't find you just now and was just about to leave! Great, I'm so glad you came!" Kushida looked surprised, but she quickly put away the slight dissatisfaction on her face and turned to a worried expression.

"Hmm—I just went to the library. Sorry! Kushida-san, is there anything else?" Hoshino was expressionless, staring quietly at Kushida's face.

"Really, did Hoshino-kun forget? I'm going to treat you to a meal! And I have to apologize for missing our appointment the other day!" Kushida made a "there's just no helping you" expression on her face.

"I accept your apology, but the meal won't be necessary. Kushida-san, you should know how popular you are. To be honest, I personally have a bit of social anxiety, and I'm not very comfortable in crowded places..." His expression softened, and Hoshino looked a bit troubled, his eyes carrying a hint of pleading as he looked at the thoughtful Kushida. Of course, this was a lie!

"Hmm—indeed, it wouldn't be good to make Hoshino-kun feel troubled! Right, could you let me give you a gift as a substitute? If I don't do something to compensate, I'll feel very uneasy. Please, Hoshino-kun?" Kushida had a smile on her lips, as if she were very satisfied with the fact that she was popular. After thinking about Hoshino's "trouble" for a moment, she looked at Hoshino with pleading eyes again, saying the proposal she had just thought of, her hands rubbing together uneasily.

"Alright, then I'll thank you in advance, Kushida-san!" Hoshino let out a sigh of relief and replied to Kushida with a slight smile.

"Okay, then it's a deal, Hoshino-kun!" With a cute expression on her face, it didn't seem the least bit out of place for her.

After saying this, Kushida waved her hand, returned to her desk to pick up her school bag, and left with light, brisk steps.

"Hmm!" Kushida really is a beautiful girl! Hoshino noted this fact. Although it was only something superficial, it was indeed very heart-fluttering!

Hoshino put away his smile and looked expressionless in the direction Kushida had left, feeling that sense of discomfort again. Hoshino had basically determined that this was a "fake," but it was indeed too realistic.

Kushida truly possessed a talent in this regard that was difficult for ordinary people to reach!