"Hm?"
In the middle of plotting how to complete her task, Mio caught the sound of someone knocking at the infirmary door.
A second later, the door cracked open just enough for Mio to spot Miura Yumiko's familiar face peering through.
Confirming the school nurse wasn't in, Yumiko stepped inside. She'd been about to greet Mio when she realized there was someone else in the room.
Yukinoshita Yukino.
If you went to this school, you'd heard the name. Stunning looks, top grades—one of Sōbu High's brightest stars.
Also Yumiko's rival.
If only on Yumiko's side.
Because she was constantly being compared to Yukino. Comparison was one thing—the real problem was that, in those comparisons, she always came up short.
She knew, intellectually, that she didn't need to care what other people thought. But it still bothered her, in a way she couldn't quite name.
That said—since Mio had transferred in, people had started comparing Yumiko to Mio too. At first, that had irritated her. But the more time she spent around Mio, the less the irritation showed up.
These days, when she heard people praising Mio, she'd even feel a small, quiet flicker of happiness.
Pulling herself out of her thoughts, Yumiko quietly studied the two of them.
From the way Mio was sitting next to Yukino, they almost looked like… acquaintances?
But Yumiko had never seen Mio interact with Yukino in regular school life. Mio was a transfer student. And Yukino was famously hard to approach.
Even Yumiko had to admire Mio's social skills.
The moment Mio saw Yumiko, she knew this wasn't going to go well.
If it had been just her and Yukino, the task would've been relatively simple. With Yumiko in the room, "simple" had just become "very, very difficult."
While Yumiko hesitated over what to say, Mio spoke up first. "Yumiko, aren't you supposed to be in class?"
"The teacher's already finished the lecture. We're on free study time. And I was worried about you being lonely in here on your own. Although—" she glanced at Yukino, "looks like I was overthinking."
Catching Yumiko's gaze, Yukino's brow lifted slightly. She had no idea why this girl, whom she'd done absolutely nothing to, was directing this faint hostility at her.
Then again, plenty of people resented her without cause. She'd long since stopped letting it bother her.
"Thanks for worrying about me. But as long as you've got a phone, it's pretty hard to be bored." Mio waved her phone for emphasis—even though she hadn't actually unlocked it once since arriving.
"It's nothing. After all, you slacking off is partly my fault."
Saying that, Yumiko shot Mio another glance. On the surface, Mio looked exactly the same as always—but in Yumiko's head, certain mental images were stubbornly refusing to fade.
Catching Yumiko's gaze, Mio tugged absently at the hem of her skirt. She didn't notice that her gesture exactly mirrored Yumiko's own from that morning.
Yumiko realized her staring had become a little too obvious. She cleared her throat. "Well, since you have company, I'll head back."
Sensing that staying here any longer was going to spawn even more strange thoughts, Yumiko basically fled the room.
"Mm."
After watching Yumiko leave, Mio quietly let out a breath.
That was when Yukino suddenly stood up. "Thank you for the help. I feel a lot better now. I'll head back to class."
"Eh!?"
Mio's hand shot out on reflex and caught the hem of Yukino's blouse.
The task's failure window was the end of the period—but if Yukino went back to the classroom now, the task was as good as failed.
Mio quickly arranged her face into her best wounded-puppy expression. "If Yukinoshita-san leaves, I'll be all alone here. Don't do that, please!"
"Are you a child?"
Yukino tugged at her clothes, trying to free herself from Mio's grip. Mio held on with absolutely no intention of letting go.
"There's barely any time left in this period. And Yukinoshita-san should rest more."
After a brief stalemate, Yukino sighed. "As I thought—Shirai-san really is the type I don't know how to deal with."
"Oh, don't say that. Spend more time with me and you'll find I'm very easy to deal with."
Once Yukino sat back down, Mio quietly let out another breath of relief. At the same time, her brain shifted into overdrive.
Less than twenty minutes left until the bell. If she didn't think of something fast, she was going to faceplant on what was supposed to be an easy task.
Judging from how low Yukino's conquest rating was, the two of them really weren't close. Same school, but different classes—and without Haruno-senpai in the picture, they'd never have crossed paths in the first place.
Which was exactly why Mio felt that her usual playbook wasn't going to work on Yukino. That was why she'd held off so long.
There was also the small matter of: if Mio did anything weird to Yukino, and Haruno-senpai found out, Mio was cooked.
In Mio's mental hierarchy of fears, Haruno-senpai was significantly scarier than the punishment deck.
In the middle of Mio's deliberations, Yukino spoke up. "Shirai-san, if there's something you want to say to me, just say it. We don't share telepathy. Staring at me isn't going to communicate anything."
That snapped Mio back. She'd evidently been staring for a while.
She gave a slightly embarrassed laugh. "Sorry. I was just trying to think of a topic that might actually catch Yukinoshita-san's interest."
Then something occurred to her, and she pulled out her phone. "Oh! Yukinoshita-san, want to see my Cake? By the way, Cake is the kitten I'm raising. Very cute~"
Yukino's previously cool expression shifted in a subtle but unmistakable way the moment "cat" entered the conversation.
She edged just slightly closer to Mio. Her eyes locked onto Mio's phone screen. The implication was loud and clear.