"What do you mean when you say Yukina has harbored romantic feelings for me since five months ago?"
After his initial surprise, Murakami Yuu was puzzled, naturally because Touma Kazusa's statement conflicted with the memories in his mind.
It was now the end of October.
According to the diary left by the original owner, his first encounter with Kiso Yukina was in April, on the rooftop of the school building.
At that time, she was singing passionately against the backdrop of the setting sun.
In early May, their relationship had grown closer. She had mentioned wanting to make delicious lunch boxes for someone she liked, and from that time on, whenever she had time on weekends, she would come to 'his' house to improve her cooking skills.
Making delicious lunch boxes for someone she liked...
Weekend kitchens with just the two of them alone...
Murakami Yuu reached up to pinch his front bangs, his gaze fixed on the oolong tea on the table as his thoughts slowly scattered.
"It means exactly what it sounds like. Yukina has always liked you that way."
Touma Kazusa showed a reminiscent expression, her tone becoming unprecedentedly gentle.
"Carefully, without leaving a trace, like an ordinary girl next door, always watching you from behind."
"What's the basis for you thinking this way?"
"No basis is needed. This is what Yukina told me personally after she joined the band and became my friend."
Touma Kazusa looked at Murakami Yuu and said calmly.
Heart-to-heart talks between girls...
"I want to know the real Kiso Yukina."
Murakami Yuu said.
"I'll tell you. That was the plan all along."
Touma Kazusa replied.
This unexpected turn of events left Murakami Yuu's thoughts somewhat scattered, unsure what to say next, so he remained silent.
"Where should I start..."
Touma Kazusa murmured to herself, thought for a moment, then turned to ask Murakami Yuu.
"Has Yukina ever told you about her middle school days?"
"Never."
"Then you also don't know about how she was collectively ostracized by all the girls after being confessed to by a male classmate?"
Murakami Yuu frowned.
"What happened?"
"As I thought, she didn't tell you..."
Touma Kazusa closed her eyes and sighed.
"Near graduation in middle school, a very popular guy in Yukina's school confessed to her publicly. Yukina rejected him.
Then, things developed just like those clichéd school drama plots. She was ganged up on and ostracized by a group of female creatures who only had eyes for men, and it continued until graduation day."
Touma Kazusa's tone was unkind, but her eyes showed heartache for Kiso Yukina.
"Did she tell you this voluntarily too?"
"No, this was something I discovered by chance when I went to her house and saw what she called her middle school graduation photo. Yukina told me haltingly after I pressed her about it."
"Graduation photo?"
"Ah, in the graduation photo, Yukina was positioned at the very edge of the crowd. It was a full-body photo cut out from other pictures and pasted on."
Touma Kazusa lowered her head and smiled faintly.
"Even though she was targeted, even though such an excessive thing happened to her, she didn't show the slightest bit of distress or sadness. Instead, she was there comforting me when I was indignant. Really a strange person."
Murakami Yuu could imagine Kiso Yukina's gentle expression in that scene.
He also recalled the original owner's diary, the content recorded on April 24th, the day after meeting Kiso Yukina.
'I can just feel that she has an almost imperceptible resistance and distance toward me.'
Was it because the incident in middle school left a shadow, making her afraid to get too close to unfamiliar boys...
After thinking briefly, Murakami Yuu continued to ask.
"Can you tell me about Yukina in the band?"
"What do you want to know?"
"Everything I don't know."
"Understood."
After a pause, Touma Kazusa, looking at Murakami Yuu, suddenly smiled and said something off-topic.
"Actually, I'm very grateful to you."
"Grateful to me?"
"Without you, Yukina wouldn't have joined the band, and I wouldn't have met such a perfect close friend I could confide in."
"What did I do?"
"You said you really liked her singing voice. It was because of this that she accepted Haruki's invitation to be the lead singer and decided to step onto the stage.
The perfect performance at the school festival shocked all the teachers and students, but in the end, that was just a performance she desperately put on for you alone. In her eyes, there was only ever one person in the audience - you."
Touma Kazusa's fingers lightly touched the sofa surface, gently and rhythmically lifting and falling.
"She's just a coward who trembles with fear when standing where many people's gazes are focused, but she resolutely stepped onto the stage because someone said 'you look like an angel when you sing.'
Clumsily, working hard, wholeheartedly, moving step by step toward the person she admires."
Murakami Yuu let out a long breath. Something inside his body felt like it wanted to burst out of his chest. That uncontrollable feeling was like the sudden drop on a roller coaster.
Or like suffering from a heavy cold, his thoughts feeling like a muddled mess, as he was dragged into a completely different chaotic world and thoroughly submerged.
"The lunch boxes - you've been teaching Yukina how to make them, haven't you?"
Touma Kazusa continued asking.
"Yes."
"Once a week, special lunch boxes. From being inedible at first, to gradually becoming palatable, to recently becoming delicious.
Yukina's improvement is obvious to all, but I've suffered terribly. Couldn't you teach her to make some simple, normal dishes?"
"Her cooking... has always been eaten by you?"
"Mm, her goal is to one day be able to independently make a delicious meal for you to taste, and I'm the guinea pig testing her culinary skills."
Touma Kazusa's head tilted slightly, her expression very peaceful. This was obviously a very precious memory for her too.
Murakami Yuu picked up the oolong tea that was still half-full and drank it all at once, then stared blankly at a spot. The impact in his mind was quite significant.
Things he had once thought were completely overturned and reorganized, but the assembled picture was completely different from what he had seen before.
"Anyway, thank you for telling me all this, Touma-san."
"You don't need to thank me. I'm telling you this only because I want someone to stay by Yukina's side after I leave, even if just as a friend.
After all, Yukina is the kind of coward who trembles with fear when alone. She needs someone to stay by her side."
"You're leaving?"
Murakami Yuu was somewhat concerned.
"That's right. After this semester ends, I'll go to Vienna for musical studies."
Touma Kazusa sighed softly.
"I might... develop my career there in the future too."