The Incident Between Classes C and D Takes a Turn

"Mm-hmm, I see. I understand."

An Xiao sat cross-legged on the bed. After listening to Kushida's explanation, he nodded, though he was a little surprised.

They had come because of Sakura.

More precisely, they wanted to apologize to Sakura for what had happened at the hearing.

After all, they had been the ones who asked Sakura to attend the hearing, but she was the one who had suffered the most from it.

"In that case, it really doesn't have much to do with your class or Class C," An Xiao said. Then, looking at the two girls in front of him with some puzzlement, he asked, "But why did you come to see me? Shouldn't you go straight to her?"

"Hehe..." Kushida gave an awkward laugh. "We were going to apologize to her directly, but as soon as class ended, she rushed off and kept avoiding us. We couldn't get through to her on her phone either, so we didn't know what else to do."

"Earlier this afternoon, Ayanokoji said he'd seen the two of you at the mall, so we thought we'd come and ask you."

"We also wanted to know how Sakura was doing."

"Ayanokoji? ...Speaking of which, how come he didn't come?"

"He said he had something else to ask Chabashira-sensei, so he went to find her."

"Oh..." An Xiao nodded thoughtfully, then looked at Horikita Suzune, who had barely spoken since she arrived.

"What about you? Knowing you, I wouldn't have expected you to get involved in this."

That was what An Xiao was most curious about. He had wondered about it ever since Sakura had told him earlier that Horikita had gone to see her.

After all, Horikita had already come to ask him how to earn points quickly so she could get into Class A.

Judging by how dissatisfied and disdainful she'd sounded at the time, she probably wouldn't get involved in something like this again—especially since Sudo, whom she'd disliked before, was at the center of it.

"It's related to what you told me before. Unlike them, I'm acting for my own sake," Horikita said frankly. "We still don't know whether Sudo's expulsion would have any hidden effects on the rest of Class D, so I'll offer help where I can."

She really was... almost too honest.

Looking at Horikita Suzune's calm expression, as if she didn't think she'd said anything wrong, An Xiao felt a little helpless.

Over the past few months, An Xiao had tried to teach Horikita how to get along with people normally. He'd finally managed to soften her personality a tiny bit—perhaps because she'd grown tired of his constant nagging—but unfortunately, in An Xiao's eyes, most of Class D's students barely counted as human. With that first impression, it was only natural that Horikita found it hard to get along with them normally.

She'd changed, but she hadn't changed. That was the best way to put it.

An Xiao glanced at Kikyo Kushida, sitting on the other side, and sighed.

At least Horikita had changed a little. She'd at least let Kushida come in.

A few months ago, she probably would've given up on coming to see An Xiao the moment she ran into Kushida.

"As for Sakura..." An Xiao scratched his head, at a loss for what to say.

Judging by what had happened at the café earlier, it had affected Sakura deeply.

An Xiao had originally thought of suggesting that they buy her some photography equipment, but then he remembered that Sakura didn't seem to want anyone else to know about it, so he let the idea go.

In the end, An Xiao could only tell them the truth.

"I can't think of any good ideas either. To be honest, this is only the second time I've met Sakura, and this time was just a coincidence."

"I see..." Kushida looked a little disappointed, but still smiled at An Xiao. "In that case, we'll have to keep thinking on our own. Our class has a hearing tomorrow, so we should head back for today."

Kushida stood up and was about to bow goodbye, but then she noticed that Horikita was still sitting there without moving. Her gaze remained fixed on An Xiao.

"If you were in my shoes... what would you do now?"

"Are you asking me for an answer?" An Xiao grabbed a pillow from beside him and hugged it, looking at Horikita with amusement. "This exam isn't over yet."

"Besides, I already told your brother, you, and Kushida that this is between your class and Class C. I'm not getting involved."

"No. At least now I know you have an answer for this situation, and knowing your personality, it's probably a 'suitable' one," Horikita said. She stood up and looked at An Xiao seriously. "Since you have an answer, I'll find it myself."

"I'll prove it to him." With that, Horikita Suzune left.

Just like that, only the two of them remained in the room.

"Want to badmouth her now? She's already gone."

An Xiao shrugged.

"An Xiao, doesn't it bother you? You and Horikita seem to get along pretty well."

Kushida suddenly asked, looking at An Xiao as he sat on the bed.

"Getting along well is one thing—we're friends, after all. But with her personality, I wouldn't be surprised if plenty of people badmouthed her behind her back," An Xiao said helplessly. "Of course, she doesn't care."

"You really do understand her."

"I suppose I do. But speaking of..." An Xiao raised an eyebrow. "Before I got here, did you really not argue with her? It wasn't like this the last time you met."

"Last time was an exception!" Kushida's voice rose a little as she remembered running into Horikita in An Xiao's room.

"No matter how much I dislike someone, I'll still smile at them and stick to the way I present myself to others. That's how I get by!"

"Even when it comes to that woman, Horikita!"

She was still holding back, but by the end, Kushida was practically shouting.

That must be exhausting.

Remembering how his face had stiffened from smiling so much when he'd asked around at the mall, An Xiao thought to himself.

"Feeling a little better now?"

"Heh... Actually, I do feel a little better."

After hearing An Xiao's question, Kushida realized what she'd done and let out a soft laugh.

"No wonder you can get along with someone like Horikita. Have you dated a lot of girls before?"

"Hey, don't make personal attacks like that. I was just helping you, wasn't I?"

An Xiao's mouth twitched. He couldn't figure out how Kushida had managed to connect this to him having dated a lot of girls.

"Is that so?" Kushida's lips curled up slightly. What she'd just done had indeed helped her relax, and she was in a better mood now.

"If you don't mind, you can join me in badmouthing her next time."

"...I'm afraid I'll have to decline. Listening to someone badmouth her and doing it yourself are two different things."

"And honestly, you only use the same few words over and over when you badmouth Horikita. I think that might be one of the main reasons she doesn't care."

An Xiao answered honestly.

"..." Kushida.

"You were pretty good with words before. Why are you like this now?"

Kushida's mouth twitched, and she sighed.

"Sometimes, you really are a lot like Horikita. At least you're a little better."

"At least you count as a person."