An Xiao: I Must Have Been Out of My Mind

"Um, thank you so much for your help just now."

As soon as she stepped out of the electronics store, Sakura Airi bowed to An Xiao again.

"I told you, you really don't have to do that." An Xiao looked at her with some exasperation.

"No, you really did me a huge favor just now, An Xiao."

Sakura clasped her hands together, lowered her head, and said in a quiet voice, "If I'd been on my own, I might not have been able to sign that warranty form."

"Listen..." Instead of immediately bringing up what had just happened, An Xiao stepped closer and used the clipboard in his hand to gently lift Sakura's chin. Then he tapped her slightly hunched back with it.

"Your chin's almost touching your neck. Stand up a little straighter. You weren't like this when I saw you taking photos before."

Hearing An Xiao say that, Sakura couldn't help remembering the first time she'd met him. A flush quickly spread up her neck, and she rubbed it awkwardly. Still, she seemed to relax a little and wasn't as tense as before.

"But that clerk really did give me a bad feeling." An Xiao nodded at Sakura, then recalled the clerk he'd seen earlier and furrowed his brow.

To be honest, An Xiao didn't think of himself as someone who judged others by their looks. And as for that clerk, he wasn't exactly handsome, but he wasn't particularly ugly, either.

Yet An Xiao couldn't shake the uneasy feeling the man gave him, though he had no idea where it came from.

"About that clerk we saw earlier..." An Xiao paused.

"It's not nice to talk about someone behind his back, but if you run into him again, try to stay out of his way."

"Okay." Sakura nodded, then added softly, "I'm also a little uncomfortable with the way he looks at me... It always feels like I'm being watched."

"That's probably for the best." An Xiao nodded. It was better for her to be on her guard.

"I'll contact you again when I get the camera."

"Thank you so much for today."

"All right, all right. You don't have to be so formal." An Xiao gave an awkward smile.

Being polite was a good thing in some ways, but when someone was polite all the time, it could make things feel awkward.

At least, that was how An Xiao felt.

"Sorry..." Sakura reflexively started to apologize again, but remembering what An Xiao had just said, she swallowed the words before they came out.

"I understand. I'll try."

"I'll contact you then. And if I forget because something comes up, please remind me."

"You still have my contact information, right?"

"Yeah."

Since An Xiao still had work to do, they exchanged a few more words before parting ways.

As he walked, An Xiao looked through the information he had on the clerk from that store. He didn't stop until he saw the familiar face. He twirled his pen between his fingers a few times, then circled the photo.

After that, An Xiao sighed.

"I hope I'm just overthinking it."

Evening.

"I must have seen wrong."

An Xiao stood in front of his dorm room, hand on the doorknob, but his gaze stayed fixed on the two pairs of women's shoes neatly arranged outside his door.

He closed the door and leaned back against it, tilting his head up as he murmured, "I must be so tired I'm seeing things. I haven't even gone home yet, so how could anyone be inside?"

"That's right. It's an illusion. It has to be."

An Xiao muttered to himself, took a deep breath, and opened the door again.

"What are you doing out there? You keep opening and closing the door. Hurry up and come in."

"Sorry. Horikita and I wanted to talk to you about something, so we came over without asking."

Looking at the two figures emerging from the room, one with black hair and one with brown, An Xiao suddenly laughed.

"So it really is an illusion. I must be too tired lately."

"What are Horikita and Kushida doing in my room?"

"More importantly, how are they not arguing?"

"Let's eat out today."

An Xiao started to close the door again, but Kushida stepped forward and stopped him.

Kushida grabbed the wrist of the hand An Xiao had on the doorknob and leaned close to him, smiling broadly. But her words weren't nearly as sweet.

"Go ahead. Try leaving."

"..." An Xiao.

Inside the room, An Xiao lay on the bed with his face buried in a pillow. After a while, he sat up and looked at the two women sitting upright in chairs.

"Before we talk, can I ask you something?"

"How did you two get in?"

An Xiao knew that Horikita had a key card to his room. He'd allowed it, after all; otherwise, he would have told her so last time.

And ever since then, Horikita had always let him know in advance when she planned to come over.

He'd been busy lately, though, and hadn't checked his phone much.

But as for Kushida...

Given their relationship, An Xiao couldn't imagine Horikita willingly letting Kushida in.

"We happened to run into each other on the way here, so we came together," Kushida said with a smile.

"I didn't ask you to come with me. You followed me on your own," Horikita said coldly.

"Did I?" Kushida tapped her chin with a finger, looking thoughtful. Then she said apologetically, "I guess I got the wrong idea."

"By the way, An Xiao, you and Horikita really are close! I never expected her to have a key card to your room. I was really surprised when I saw it earlier."

"...A lot has happened."

An Xiao's mouth twitched, but he was also relieved.

He'd thought Kushida had somehow gotten a key card to his room without his permission. If that had been the case, they probably couldn't even have remained friends.

"So, what did you come to see me about today?"

An Xiao sat cross-legged on the bed and looked at the two of them.

He was curious what could have brought them to sit quietly in his room without arguing.

"But let me say this first: if it's about that matter involving your class and Class C, I won't help."

Silence fell over the room.

Kushida was the first to speak. "Half and half. It does involve our class, but it also doesn't."

"Here's what happened..."