"I'm already like this, so please don't rub it in."
Amaori Renako rubbed her sore eyes, feeling like tears of regret could spill at any moment.
"I'm just afraid that even if I wanted to apologize now, I wouldn't have the chance. I suspect Kazama-san has already deleted me."
"So you want to try those unreliable methods from the internet to test that theory?" Haruna tilted her head, her expression somewhere between exasperated and fond. "But have you considered that even if the kind-hearted Kazama-senpai really hasn't deleted you, an apology still needs to be done properly?"
"You mean... you're telling me to skip those pointless tests and just directly message Kazama-san to apologize?"
Under her sister's patient analysis and persuasion, Renako finally regained her ability to think.
"Exactly."
Amaori Haruna nodded with satisfaction, a proud expression blooming on her face that practically screamed as expected of my onee-chan: "If you're too embarrassed or don't know what to say, you can ask me, your adorable little sister, to send it for you."
"However, if possible, it's best to do it yourself."
Haruna suddenly dropped her playful demeanor, her expression growing serious: "Apologizing is an act that conveys a person's truest feelings. If onee-chan says it herself, Kazama-senpai will definitely feel your sincerity!"
Listening to her sister's earnest words, the dark clouds in Renako's heart instantly dissipated by more than half. Brightness re-gathered in her purple eyes, and her fighting spirit rekindled: "Okay, give me my phone! I'm going to apologize to Kazama-san right now!"
"I'll tell him that compared to a best friend like him, those annoying gyarus are simply—"
Ding!
Renako had barely typed a few words when a crisp notification suddenly chimed, causing her fingers to freeze in mid-air.
The message had been read.
"If it's read... that means, that means...!" Renako startled at first, then immediately understood, her words tumbling out in an incoherent rush.
An uninformed observer might have thought she'd just won the lottery.
Looking at her older sister's dazed expression, Haruna smiled helplessly, silently lamenting Kazama Haru's grave sins.
Ding.
Another crisp notification.
"Quick, quick! Haruna, help me see what Kazama-san said!"
Like a student who hadn't studied before an exam and couldn't bear to look at their own report card, Renako tossed her phone towards Haruna as though it were a live grenade.
"Uwah, don't just throw things!"
Haruna yelped, barely catching the phone. After shooting her sister a fierce glare, she checked its contents.
"H-How is it?!"
Renako unconsciously swallowed, her voice thick with undeniable tension.
"..."
Haruna's silence only amplified her anxiety.
Could it be that Kazama-san is going to completely cut ties with me?!
"Say something! What happened?!"
Seeing her older sister on the verge of a breakdown, Haruna drew a deep breath, trying to calm her own racing heart after reading the message.
"How about... you just look at it yourself?"
Haruna held out the phone, displaying the screen to Renako.
"..."
After seeing the contents, Amaori Renako fell into the same stunned silence as her sister.
Kazama Haru had sent three messages in total.
The first explained what he'd done after school and apologized for his delayed reply and for twice declining her invitations.
Although it was merely text, one could feel the respect and consideration for Renako woven into every line.
But more importantly were the two messages below.
[Evening 21:13]
[(Read) Kazama Haru: Don't force yourself. You've already tried very hard today.]
[Evening 21:13]
[(Read) Kazama Haru: See you tomorrow, best friend.]
Like someone seeing written words for the very first time, Amaori Renako stared blankly at the glowing screen—but her long-suspended heart quietly settled back into place.
Her taut nerves finally loosened after what felt like an eternity.
"Ugh—!"
A choked sob, like that of an injured small animal, could no longer be suppressed. Tears, like pearls from a broken string, flowed uncontrollably from her eyes.
Kazama Haru might never know that his casual reply would hold such immense power…
…
"Haru-kun, good morning!"
The next day, the moment Kazama Haru stepped into the classroom, a sweet and energetic greeting reached his ears.
His eyebrow twitched, and he looked toward the source of the voice with mild surprise.
It really was Amaori Renako.
She seemed to be in excellent spirits today, having applied delicate, light makeup with a faint eyeshadow accenting the corners of her eyes.
Her pink bob appeared even smoother and silkier under the morning sun streaming through the windows, while two cute hairclips pinned on either side of her forehead gave her a neat, capable look.
With the weather gradually warming, she'd already shed her school uniform blazer. The crisp white dress shirt beneath accentuated her already prominent F-cup curves even more noticeably.
Black ankle socks hugged her calves snugly, and looking further up revealed her visually striking, plump thighs—drawing sidelong glances from the boys scattered throughout the room.
Her natural beauty had always been exceptional; her so-called "plainness" was merely a self-deprecating notion born from middle school, when she'd failed to make a best friend as she'd hoped. Now, with just a little effort in her appearance, she looked utterly charming—even stunning.
Calling her a bishoujo wouldn't be an exaggeration at all.
However, compared to her cute appearance, the classmates were clearly far more interested in how she'd addressed Kazama Haru.
Among them, the Nakamura clique's reaction was naturally the most intense.
"Huh? Haru-kun?"
Riko Nakamura's eyelids drooped, her gaze toward Renako filled with suspicion and disbelief.
"Oi, oi, Renako—even if what happened that morning shocked you, there's no need to act this crazy, is there?" The gyaru sidekick beside her spoke without mercy. "Even the magnanimous Kazama-san would be super troubled by someone like you suddenly calling him by his first name."
But Renako seemed to completely ignore the scathing sarcasm. A sweet smile remained on her face, and without sparing them so much as a glance, she walked directly toward Kazama Haru, who had just stepped through the doorway.
Looking at the cheerful, energetic Renako before him—who seemed like an entirely different person compared to a few days ago—Kazama Haru didn't fully understand the motive behind her sudden transformation.
Still, he respected her decision. And seeing her so full of life made him genuinely happy. He returned her smile with a small nod:
"Mm, good morning, Renako."
Their intimate exchange of first names and morning greetings was witnessed clearly by every student in the classroom.
…
After a beat of stunned silence, the relatively quiet morning atmosphere erupted like a dam bursting.
For students who had just entered a new academy and begun fresh school lives, such open familiarity between opposite-sex classmates was definitely prime gossip material.
Especially since one of them was Kazama Haru.
Constantly watched by countless eyes—especially the girls'—he already generated an unusually high level of discussion wherever he went.
Now, openly displaying such warmth toward Renako, who was undeniably cute herself, would naturally send speculation skyrocketing.
Could it be... those two are already dating?
Instantly, this thought materialized simultaneously in the minds of every student present.
In the back row, Takamatsu Tomori—who had excitedly looked up the moment Kazama Haru entered—felt her pink pupils contract sharply. The fresh pack of band-aids she'd just retrieved from her pencil case crumpled in her tightening grip, the plastic crinkling softly beneath her trembling fingers.