Next Time, Let's Go on a Date?

How could Shinomiya possibly tell Sakura that he had never paid attention to her at all?

"Eyes? I don't really get it."

"If you want someone kind, Kushida would be better, wouldn't she?"

"Didn't Kushida help you a lot today too?"

Shinomiya gave Kushida another assist.

"Mm..." Sakura lowered her head in silence.

Was it the instinctive intuition of a wallflower protecting herself?

Sakura was grateful to Kushida, but she simply couldn't trust her completely.

That was how Shinomiya saw it.

It couldn't be helped. Kushida really was dangerous.

When Shinomiya saw Sakura fall silent again, she seemed to have something to say but hesitated.

"Is there something you want to say?"

"Mm..." Sakura nodded.

"Shinomiya, do you think I should be friends with Kushida?"

"I feel like I've let Kushida down. She's helped me so much, but I..."

Shinomiya immediately became alert. This was a crucial moment—he couldn't say the wrong thing. He needed to buy himself enough time to think.

"Why ask me?"

"I... I told you before. Shinomiya's eyes don't scare me. They make me feel safe."

Shinomiya looked calm on the surface, but his mind was racing wildly.

You couldn't pressure someone as socially anxious as Sakura, or she would instinctively retreat.

She had to make the choice herself, though he could give her a little hint.

Shinomiya adjusted his mindset and casually sipped his fruit tea.

"See what you want."

"Huh?" Sakura looked up at him in surprise.

"You said just now that you felt sorry for Kushida."

"That's enough."

"Put those worries aside. For your own sake, ask yourself whether you want friends."

"Ask... myself?" Sakura froze, staring blankly at Shinomiya.

Shinomiya felt that he had mixed up becoming friends with Kushida and Sakura wanting to make friends.

Wasn't Sakura easy to handle like this?

Kushida returned, and the three of them chatted casually for a few moments.

"Then let's call it a day! It's getting late anyway."

All three agreed. After Shinomiya stood up, Kushida suddenly moved closer and whispered, "Can I come to your room later?"

"Huh?!"

That night, in Shinomiya's dorm room.

Kushida lay directly on Shinomiya's bed, sliding her hands back and forth over the sheets.

"What are you doing?"

Only then did Kushida remember the important matter.

"Look, is this Sakura?" Kushida took out her phone and showed him.

Shinomiya scrolled through it. They were all selfies. Though she was wearing makeup, he could still tell it was Sakura.

"Where did you find these?"

"You told me to look for Sakura online. There are only a few social media sites we can access on the school phones, so I found her right away."

"You're impressive! Ace agent! I was just telling Sakura to be friends with you."

Kushida seemed uninterested. Shinomiya was puzzled. "What's wrong? Didn't you always want to be friends with her?"

"It's nothing. I just think it's not interesting anymore."

Shinomiya quickly asked Kushida why.

After Kushida explained, Shinomiya suddenly understood.

Kushida had already discovered Sakura's secret. If Sakura came to see Kushida as a confidante and revealed that secret to her, the sense of validation and pleasure Kushida gained would be greatly reduced.

There was nothing Shinomiya could do about that. She already knew—what, was she supposed to forget?

It wasn't like she was a Man in Black who could put on sunglasses and erase everything.

Shinomiya continued browsing Sakura's account.

"Wait! Come look at this!"

Shinomiya hurriedly called Kushida over to look with him.

They discovered that someone had been leaving harassing comments under Sakura's recent posts.

Shinomiya roughly went through all of that person's comments.

The person knew where Sakura was in real life and believed that he and Sakura were a couple. Sakura had only taken those photos for him.

In short, a complete lunatic!

He was about as obsessed as Horikita.

"What should we do?" Kushida looked at Shinomiya worriedly.

Shinomiya was a little at a loss too. If they went straight to Sakura, wouldn't that mean telling her they knew she took gravure photos?

Wouldn't that scare her senseless?

But if they said nothing, were they supposed to keep following her? They didn't have time for that.

If they ignored it... that seemed possible too.

Shinomiya looked at Kushida. "Do you still want to be friends with her?"

Kushida answered without hesitation. "I do!" Even though she already knew Sakura's secret, what Kushida wanted most was still other people's recognition and trust.

"Then spend more time with her. Hint that things have been unsafe lately, that there might be a pervert around, and when something happens, make sure she comes to you for help."

"But that doesn't solve the pervert problem!"

Shinomiya looked confused. "Why do we need to solve it?"

Kushida choked.

Shinomiya explained. Simply put, Kushida could have a beautiful girl save another beautiful girl. Wouldn't that instantly max out Sakura's favorability?

"What if I don't make it in time? Or what if Sakura doesn't get a chance to call for help?" Kushida questioned.

"Then it's fate. You can still swoop in afterward." Shinomiya shrugged.

"You bastard! I thought you'd changed!"

Kushida stomped her feet in anger. She had originally wanted to give Shinomiya a chance today, to let him finish what he had wanted to say on the day they went skating.

But this guy was exactly the same as before!

Shinomiya noticed that something was off with Kushida.

He keenly realized that he had made a mistake.

This was definitely an important moment. He couldn't make another mistake.

Shinomiya wanted to push his brain into overdrive and use his analyst talents, but he felt that doing so would make him lose Kushida forever.

He didn't know why, but the sense of danger was overwhelming.

Shinomiya was deeply conflicted. The turmoil in his mind triggered another episode of his condition!

All of this happened in an instant. Shinomiya now felt his emotions slipping out of control, and the world before his eyes grew gray.

But he couldn't show it. He had to make the right choice first!

His way of handling Sakura had made Kushida dissatisfied with him.

Then he would change it. He would choose to have someone follow her!

He didn't have the time, so he would find someone who did.

"Kushida, I think we should still protect Sakura. I'll find someone to protect her at all times."

Shinomiya's tone was somewhat stiff. He was struggling to maintain his outward calm.

Kushida was still angry, but hearing that, she froze.

Had Shinomiya changed?

"I think I went too far before. We can't casually joke about a classmate's safety."

Kushida looked at Shinomiya's tense face and felt that something might be wrong with him.

How could Shinomiya say something like that? Usually, he would change the subject and brush it off.

"Don't worry. I'll arrange someone reliable. You can also spend more time with Sakura. That'll make her safer too."

As Shinomiya spoke, he ushered Kushida out. Kushida wanted to ask something else, but Shinomiya gave her no chance and closed the door.

Kushida became even more convinced that something had happened to Shinomiya. Was he having another episode?

"Shinomiya, open the door first!" Kushida pounded hard on it.

On the other side of the door, Shinomiya sat on the floor with his back against it, tears and snot streaming down his face. He cried out soundlessly. He couldn't control himself.

He wanted to open the door and go to Kushida, but reason told him that it wasn't a good choice.

Kushida stopped pounding on the door. She sighed. "Shinomiya, what did you want to tell me that day after we got back from skating?"

Shinomiya heard her. Most of the conflict, unease, fear, hesitation, and other emotions inside him faded away.

After a long silence, Shinomiya's hoarse voice came from inside the room.

"I wanted to ask... can I call you Kikyo?"

Kushida froze outside the door. That was it?

Kushida suddenly smiled. In her natural voice, she said seriously to Shinomiya:

"Next time, let's go on a date."