In her dorm room, Sakura hugged a pillow as she stared at her chat with Takahashi, refreshing it every now and then. Although the two had exchanged contact information after first bumping into each other, this was the first time Sakura had reached out to Takahashi herself.
Kushida's sudden call just now had left her feeling uneasy. She didn't know what to do, and she didn't know why Takahashi's words had suddenly come to mind: He'd said he'd always be there. So, almost without thinking, she sent him a message. She'd deleted and rewritten that one message over and over before finally sending it.
"Ding!"
Her phone chimed.
"Tomorrow, Kushida will definitely ask you about it at school. It doesn't matter how you answer or handle things. Whatever the consequences, just remember: I'm here for you."
After reading the message, Sakura happily hugged her pillow and rolled back and forth on the bed twice. It seemed that getting a message from Takahashi made her incredibly happy.
The next day after school
Just as Takahashi had predicted, Horikita and the others had Kushida speak with Sakura. But Sakura had always been shy around people, and after what had happened with Sudo, how could anyone expect her to immediately speak up for him?
Just as Sakura picked up her digital camera and started to leave, she bumped into Hideo Tonokawa, who was walking along chatting with a friend. Sakura had tried to avoid him, but Tonokawa was gesturing with his hands as he talked and knocked her camera to the ground.
Tonokawa didn't notice. He simply apologized twice and left with his friend.
Ignoring Sudo's complaints nearby that Sakura refused to help him, Takahashi sent Sakura a message.
He knew what was on that camera, so he needed to make sure it hadn't been damaged in the fall.
"Did your camera break?"
"Yeah, the screen won't turn on."
"Where are you?"
"I just got to the stairwell."
"Stand off to the side for a bit. I'll be right there."
When Takahashi arrived, Sakura's eyes were glistening with tears. She called to him softly, "Takahashi, my camera broke."
He wiped her tears with a handkerchief. The camera must have meant a lot to her. "Come on. Let's find somewhere and see if they can fix it."
"Okay."
They found a repair shop, and fortunately, the employee said they could fix it.
"It's still early. If you don't have anything else to do, how about we go on a date?" Takahashi suggested.
"Huh? A... a date?" Sakura couldn't believe her ears and asked him to confirm.
"Yeah, a date. Don't you want to?"
"N-no, I do."
"Then let's go." As he spoke, Takahashi took Sakura's hand.
At a DIY craft store, Takahashi made Sakura a bracelet in shades of cherry blossom pink. In return, he received a light blue bracelet that was much prettier than the one he'd made.
Next, they went to a dessert shop. The desserts and their presentation were lovely, and Sakura took plenty of pictures of them with her phone. She even secretly snapped a photo of Takahashi, though she hadn't dared to hold her phone up high, so his face wasn't in it.
A trip to the mall was a must, of course. They didn't buy anything, but just looking around was fun.
Finally, they went to a restaurant called the Cat Cafe. It was an interesting place with lots of cats, all kept in cages. From how clean they looked, it was clear the owner took good care of every one of them. After taking one out of its cage, they ordered their food. Takahashi watched Sakura play with the cat and smiled without interrupting her, ordering her the same set meal as his own.
Takahashi didn't know how happiness was defined, but watching Sakura play with the cat, he felt that this moment was pretty nice.
He took out his phone and snapped a picture of Sakura just as the server brought over their meals.
Under the moonlight, with the evening breeze by the lakeside, they walked side by side. It felt as though every element was in place. Takahashi took Sakura's hand, and the bracelets on their wrists touched.
After walking Sakura back to her dorm, Takahashi returned to his own. Not long after he got there, a message from Horikita came in.
"You seem quite close to Sakura. If you can, please try to persuade her."
"Rather than making Sudo the center of everything, why not try finding another focal point? For example, those three people in Class C."
After sending the message, he deleted Horikita.
Seeing Takahashi's message, Horikita thought for a moment, then asked him:
"Make those three people in Class C the focal point?"
He deleted me? Horikita was baffled.
Before you continue