I'm Coming Too!

After leaving the shogi club's booth.

Natsume Chikage and Saionji Nanase casually visited and tried out a few more clubs, and time quietly slipped by. Before they knew it, it was already past four.

Natsume Chikage glanced at the sky.

"It's about time. I need to head back to the café for work."

Saionji Nanase, who had been brimming with excitement, froze at his words. She instinctively took out her phone to check the time, and the bright smile on her face faded slightly, revealing a disappointment she herself had not noticed.

"Ah... it really is getting late." She quickly pulled herself together and smiled again. "I should head home too. Shall we leave the school together?"

"Yeah."

The two returned to the classroom for their bags, then walked side by side onto the familiar Cherry Blossom Avenue.

As an island nation, Japan always saw the sun set especially early.

Though it was only a little after four in the afternoon, the setting sun had already dyed the clouds on the horizon a splendid gold and crimson, its lingering glow spilling down gently.

Along Cherry Blossom Avenue, the pink-and-white petals bathed in the twilight seemed to have been gilded with a delicate layer of gold.

The two of them strolled along the path beneath the falling blossoms.

The club booths that had been bustling at noon had mostly been taken down by now, leaving only a handful of students still playing around and chatting.

From the baseball field to the left of the avenue came the crisp, powerful crack of bats and the energetic shouts of players training.

In contrast, faint melodies from the orchestra's practice drifted out through the open windows of the school building on the right.

The different sounds intertwined, creating a harmonious, vibrant picture of youth.

Feeling this tranquility amid the bustle, Natsume Chikage could not help relaxing, silently sighing, These high schoolers are really young.

Yet in the eyes of the other students passing by, weren't this boy and girl strolling beneath the shower of cherry blossoms also one of the most moving parts of their youthful scenery?

People could never possess youth and truly appreciate it at the same time.

This very moment was the best illustration of that saying.

"Natsume! Wait for me—!"

An energetic voice suddenly shattered the peace.

The two turned around at the sound.

Fujiwara Aoi was jogging toward them, her healthy wheat-colored skin gleaming in the sunset.

Her white school shirt rose and fell lightly as she ran.

Human eyes were instinctively drawn to moving things—it was an irresistible instinct.

Natsume Chikage's gaze, too, inevitably lingered briefly on that gently bouncing outline.

He quickly looked away. After all, Fujiwara Aoi was both his coworker and classmate; it would be awkward if she noticed.

But as soon as he withdrew his gaze, he happened to meet Saionji Nanase's lively eyes.

"What is it?" Natsume Chikage asked.

Saionji Nanase was slightly taken aback. Her large eyes blinked, as if she did not quite understand why she had been looking at Natsume Chikage herself.

She gently shook her head and smiled.

"No, it's nothing."

By then, Fujiwara Aoi had run up to them and stopped, panting heavily, her chest still rising and falling slightly with her hurried breaths.

She raised her head, looked directly at Natsume Chikage, and pouted.

"Natsume, didn't you say you'd wait for me so we could go back to the café together? Why did you leave on your own?"

Natsume Chikage waved his phone.

"I sent you a message. I said I'd wait for you by the subway station."

Fujiwara Aoi froze, then hurriedly pulled out her phone to check. Sure enough, there was the message.

She scratched her head sheepishly and grinned foolishly.

"Ahaha, you really did!"

Only then did her gaze shift to Saionji Nanase beside Natsume Chikage.

The girl before her was about 160 centimeters tall, with smooth shoulder-length hair. A lock of hair on the left side had been neatly braided with a pink ribbon.

Her large eyes were bright and lively, and her fair cheeks carried an adorable air.

Her uniform suited her exceptionally well, making her look especially lovely. Her temperament far surpassed that of an ordinary girl—she possessed a natural innocence, along with a faint elegance that could only have been cultivated by an affluent upbringing.

The only issue was that she was covered in little prizes and accessories won from various club mini-games, all colorful and gaudy, making them seem somewhat at odds with her overall air.

Seeing Saionji Nanase standing beside Natsume Chikage, Fujiwara Aoi felt an inexplicable, subtle emotion rise within her, and she could not help wondering about their relationship.

Pretending to ask casually, she said:

"Natsume, who is this?"

Natsume Chikage introduced the two of them:

"This is my classmate—Saionji Nanase."

"This is my coworker at the café—Fujiwara Aoi. Like us, she's also a first-year."

Saionji Nanase politely dipped her head slightly.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Saionji Nanase."

Fujiwara Aoi hurriedly returned the greeting.

"Hello, hello. I'm Fujiwara Aoi."

Still, she couldn't suppress her urge to probe, and asked with an intentionally casual smile, "Why are you leaving school together? Could it be that Saionji is also planning to work part-time at our café?"

Natsume Chikage shook his head.

"No. We just happened to be heading out through the school gates together."

With a slightly airheaded smile, Saionji Nanase earnestly added, "Mm! We just visited lots of club booths together, but it's getting late now, so we decided to leave school."

Fujiwara Aoi instantly froze, her voice trembling slightly.

"Y-You two... visited lots of club booths together?"

Saionji Nanase nodded vigorously, her eyes sparkling and her smile radiant.

"Mm! It was especially fun!"

The corner of Fujiwara Aoi's mouth twitched almost imperceptibly. Forcing a laugh, she said, "I-I see... I thought when Natsume said earlier that you wanted to find a club you liked, you were going by yourself... So you were with Saionji..."

Natsume Chikage explained, "That was the plan at first."

"Saionji also said she didn't know which club to choose. Since we sit next to each other, we just looked around together."

Fujiwara Aoi's eyes lit up, and her expression instantly brightened.

"Oh! So that's how it was!"

"That's true, looking around by yourself can be a little boring. It's much better with two people!"

She immediately pressed on, "Did you find any clubs you liked?"

Saionji Nanase scratched her cheek in slight distress.

"The clubs were all pretty interesting... but none of them really made me want to join."

Fujiwara Aoi looked at Natsume Chikage.

"What about you?"

Natsume Chikage shrugged.

"I have a part-time job, so I want to find a club with fewer activities."

"But the school seems to place a lot of importance on clubs, and most of them take up quite a bit of time... so I haven't found anything suitable yet."

Fujiwara Aoi suddenly understood and asked, "I see... So you've already looked through all the clubs today?"

"Not yet." Saionji Nanase interjected a little sheepishly. She unconsciously touched the flower wreath hanging around her neck. "I spent a long time playing the little games at some of the club booths, so that held us up... Otherwise, we probably could've visited more clubs."

She turned to Natsume Chikage. "Natsume, do you want to keep looking at the other clubs after school tomorrow?"

Fujiwara Aoi froze for a moment, then reacted with remarkable speed and blurted out, "Then I'm coming too! I don't have any club activities tomorrow!"

"And I know some upperclassmen from different clubs, so I can show you around!"