"All done. I'm heading out for a walk—anyone want to come with?"
Mio emerged from the kitchen, glancing at Shiina Mashiro and Chihiro-sensei sitting in the living room.
Going downstairs for a stroll after dinner had practically become a daily habit of hers.
Lounging on the sofa, Chihiro-sensei waved her off lazily. "Nah, it's too cold outside. Pass."
"If I remember correctly, Chihiro-sensei, you were just talking about wanting to lose weight, but I haven't exactly seen you exercising lately."
Chihiro-sensei's expression froze for a split second, then she said, "It's not good to exercise right after eating, and it's been too cold outside lately. The gym's too far from here, so I'll wait until it warms up a bit."
"In other words, you're just lazy."
"Yep, yep, that's right."
Watching Chihiro-sensei completely give up on pretending, Mio shook her head with a helpless smile, then walked over to Mashiro's room.
Peeking inside, she could see Mashiro sitting at her desk, completely absorbed in drawing manga—so focused she hadn't even noticed the door opening.
Not wanting to disturb her, Mio carefully shut the door, threw on her jacket, and headed out.
Mio didn't have any set walking route. She just liked wandering around the neighborhood. But this time, the moment she stepped downstairs—before she'd even decided which direction to go—a familiar figure appeared right in front of her.
Surprised by the sudden appearance of Yuigahama Yui, Mio asked, "Yui, what are you doing here?"
"Just out for a walk. I ended up wandering over this way and spotted you." Yui sniffled as she finished speaking.
The truth was, she'd been waiting here for almost half an hour. She'd been on the verge of giving up, thinking Mio wasn't coming out tonight, when she caught sight of that unmistakable silvery-white hair.
"Yui, don't tell me you came here specifically to wait for me?" Mio teased, falling into her usual habit.
Although she knew Mio was joking, Yui couldn't help feeling a little nervous. "N-No! I really was just walking and ended up here. If you don't believe me, ask Sablé."
"?"
Hearing its owner call its name, Sablé glanced back at Yui, then went right back to nuzzling against Mio's legs.
Mio stifled a laugh. "Yui, since when did you develop such a great sense of humor?"
"I've always had a great sense of humor, thank you very much," Yui muttered under her breath.
She'd had so many conversation topics prepared while waiting for Mio to appear, but the moment she actually saw her, every single one vanished from her mind—as if her thoughts had been completely overtaken by a certain someone.
After a long pause, Yui finally snapped back to reality. "Mio, let's go for a walk together."
"Sure."
Mio agreed, and just as she was wondering whether linking arms with Yui would be warmer, Yui beat her to it—sidling up close and hooking her arm through Mio's in one swift motion.
The whole sequence left Mio blinking in surprise.
Normally, that was supposed to be her move. What was going on with Yui? Walking her road and leaving her with nowhere to go?
With her arm firmly claimed, Mio said softly, "Yui, don't you think this is a bit... too intimate?"
"Not at all. Don't you usually love doing this?"
"Uh."
She wasn't sure if it was just her imagination, but Mio had a feeling that today's Yui—in order to avoid being teased—had decided to go on the offensive instead, turning the tables on her.
Well, if Yui didn't mind, then she certainly wasn't going to complain. Yui might come out slightly ahead in this exchange, but Mio would never be the one losing out.
Arms linked, the two of them looked just like any couple you'd see strolling down the street.
Except their stunning looks drew far more attention than any ordinary couple.
Mio had originally assumed that under all these stares, Yui wouldn't be able to keep it up for long. But she quickly realized that while Yui was a little nervous, she had absolutely no intention of letting go.
Going this far just to tease her back? Impressive.
Just then, a gust of cold wind swept past. Mio instinctively hunched her shoulders. With her Cold Resistance skill, this level of chill had no real effect on her, but old habits died hard.
She glanced down at Yui's smooth, exposed legs. "Yui, aren't you cold?"
Noticing Mio's gaze, Yui looked down, then said without a care, "A little, but I'm used to it."
"More importantly, finals are in just over two weeks. Are you ready?"
For someone like Mio, who had her textbooks memorized, preparation wasn't exactly a concern. But Yui was clearly asking for a reason.
So Mio shook her head lightly. "There's still over two weeks. No rush."
"Um, I was thinking... maybe you could come over to my place this weekend and we could study together?"
"I could, but I'm curious—if we're together, will we actually get any studying done?"
"It... should be fine?" Even Yui sounded uncertain.
She had a feeling that with Mio sitting right across from her, she wouldn't be able to focus on studying at all—her mind would be entirely on Mio.
But she really, truly wanted to spend time alone with Mio.
That way, she could create more opportunities for Mio to fall for her.
Just as she was considering whether she should switch to a different plan, Mio's voice cut in again. "If you think it'll be fine, then I'm fine with it."
"Really?"
"Yeah, I've got nothing going on this weekend anyway. Actually, should we invite a few more people and make it a proper study group?"
"If there are too many people, a study session tends to turn into a tea party," Yui said casually.
She'd finally managed to secure a chance to be alone with Mio. She really didn't want to let it slip away.
"Good point. Then it'll just be the two of us. Yui, you're so eager to be alone with me—don't tell me you're planning to do something weird to me?" Mio put on an exaggerated look of alarm.
Before, Yui might have blushed and stammered out a denial. But the current her, imitating the way Mio always teased her, leaned in closer and said, "You guessed right. That's exactly what I'm planning."
"Your acting is way too over the top."
Mio laughed, then stopped walking. "Alright, let's call it here for tonight's walk. We're already in front of your building. Next time you want to go on a walk with me, just text me ahead of time. Don't stand around downstairs waiting like a dummy."
"Huh?!"