"So that's how it is, huh?"
Lying in bed, Mio Shirai slowly opened her eyes. Beyond the sleepiness that hadn't quite faded, there was a deep resignation in them too.
She'd figured that since there were no classes today and no one had made plans with her, she could finally sleep in for once. But the moment the clock hit six, her body clock kicked in and she woke up anyway.
She was the type who, once awake, had a really hard time falling back asleep.
After a soft sigh, Mio climbed out of bed all the same. She glanced at the still-sleeping Mashiro Shiina, then tiptoed out of the room.
She might not have class, but Chihiro Sengoku, being a teacher, still had to go to work.
So once she'd finished washing up, Mio went ahead and prepared breakfast and a bento for Chihiro all the same.
When Chihiro saw the breakfast and bento Mio had made for her, she said with a surprised look, "I figured I'd have to grab breakfast from the convenience store today. I didn't expect you'd actually make this for me."
"Don't get the wrong idea, Miss Chihiro. I just happened to wake up early by accident, so I made these while I was at it."
Watching Mio's over-the-top tsundere act, Chihiro chuckled and said, "Save the tsundere routine for Mashiro. It doesn't do anything for me."
"Oh right, Miss Chihiro, you mentioned a road trip before. When exactly are you setting off?"
Chihiro had been in a pretty good mood, but at Mio's words, a barely noticeable stiffness crept into her expression.
To create an opportunity for her cousin, she'd thrown herself under the bus earlier. And even now she still hadn't figured out how to deal with the whole thing. She'd talk it over with Shizuka Hiratsuka once she got to school today.
"It... it should be after the holiday starts, I guess. It's a road trip anyway, so we'll head out whenever the timing feels right."
"And what about that group blind-date thing from before? Did you find anyone you liked?"
"Don't even bring up the blind date. There wasn't a single person who was my type. You know what doing time feels like? That. Doing time."
"I keep telling you, don't be so rigid about gender. If you ever meet a perfect girl like me, you could give dating a shot, you know~" Mio said, utterly shameless.
Though she could tell Mio was joking with her, Chihiro still nodded with a perfectly straight face and said, "If there really were a girl like you, I wouldn't be opposed to considering it."
Faced with how serious Chihiro looked, Mio had no idea how to react for a moment.
"All right, if I keep rambling about this nonsense with you, I'm going to be late."
After polishing off her breakfast without a shred of concern for appearances, Chihiro grabbed the bento and hurried out the door.
Without Mio and her cousin around, Chihiro actually felt a little lonely. Was it because she'd been single for too long?
By the time she got to school, she found Shizuka Hiratsuka there, diligently grading exam papers.
Chihiro sat down beside her and said, "Shizu-chan, didn't I say before that I wanted to go on a road trip with you? Anywhere you'd like to go?"
Hearing this, Shizuka lifted her head with a blank look and said, "When did you ever tell me that?"
"It was the last time, or maybe the time before, when we went drinking together."
Shizuka narrowed her eyes and thought hard for a moment, then said, "Now that you mention it, that does sort of ring a bell. But wasn't that just you talking drunk?"
"What do you mean drunk talk? When have you ever seen me drunk?!"
"When have you not been drunk?!"
The two of them widened their eyes in unison, each trying to stare the other into submission. But before long, the sting in their eyes and the looks from their nearby colleagues made them both quietly give up on the childish stunt.
Shizuka picked up her thermos, twisted off the lid, took a sip of hot water, and said, "Are you serious? Then what about your cousin?"
The moment she asked, realization dawned on her. "Oh, right, just remembered. The one looking after your cousin is Shirai. Never mind then."
"How rude. I help out plenty too, you know."
"Then go on, tell me. What exactly have you helped with?" Shizuka said, genuinely intrigued.
Chihiro coughed twice, looking a little awkward, and said, "Aren't we supposed to be discussing the road trip right now?"
"Fine. I've got no clue why you suddenly want to go on a road trip, but I suppose I can tag along."
"You just don't want to go home and get nagged about marriage, right."
As Shizuka's friend of many years, how could Chihiro not know the situation with Shizuka's family. Though her own household was pretty much the same.
"Tch. See it, but don't say it. You don't understand that principle?" Shizuka said, looking thoroughly displeased.
But it was exactly as Chihiro had said. She didn't really want to go home this year. The experience of being nagged about marriage last year was still vivid in her mind.
That feeling was a whole lot worse than doing time.
"Well, since it's you, I don't mind~" Chihiro spread her hands, then went on, "So, anywhere you'd like to go?"
"Let me look into it when I get home tonight. For now, let's finish the work in front of us first." Shizuka pointed at the mountain of exam papers piled up beside her.
"Why does someone who teaches painting have to grade these too."
After grumbling that quietly under her breath, Chihiro ultimately buckled down and dug into the grading alongside Shizuka.
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Meanwhile, after finishing Chihiro's breakfast, Mio went back to the room to check whether Mashiro was still asleep. Barring anything unexpected, she probably wouldn't wake up until eight or nine, so there was really no need to make her breakfast this early.
So after thinking it over, Mio decided to head out for a walk.
On a winter morning, the cold hung thick in the air. Even Mio, who had the [Cold Resistance] skill, couldn't help shivering once she stepped out the front door of the apartment.
Pulling her coat tighter, Mio slowly made her way toward the nearby park.
On a normal day, this hour would be full of students rushing off to school. But now there were only office workers hurrying off to their jobs.
Before long, Mio arrived at the nearby park. This was the spot where she'd appeared after crossing over, and also where she'd first met Yui Yuigahama.
Come to think of it, this seemed to be a place Yui came to walk often. She wondered, if she waited around here for a bit, whether she might run into her.
Just as Mio was mulling over that question, she suddenly felt someone tap her on the shoulder.
She instinctively turned around, expecting Yui. But once she did, she found that the person standing behind her was Megumi Kato.
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