When Fujiwara Chiya returned to the office, he found Mejiro Dober waiting for him.
She was holding a pink lunch box. When she saw Fujiwara Chiya enter, Mejiro Dober hurriedly stood up.
"I'm sorry, Trainer-san. I knocked earlier, but no one was here, so I came in on my own."
"It's fine."
It was rare for Mejiro Dober to come over at this hour. She must have had something she wanted to talk about. Fujiwara Chiya guessed that nine times out of ten, it was probably related to the race.
After he sat down on the sofa, Mejiro Dober fidgeted awkwardly and said, "Yesterday, I caused trouble for you, Trainer-san."
Because she had lost the race, she had cried in Fujiwara Chiya's arms. After that, Fujiwara Chiya had taken her outside to clear her head. Only by evening had Mejiro Dober finally managed to step out from the shadow of defeat.
It was not as if she had never lost before.
But losing in such an important race had dealt Mejiro Dober a blow far greater than usual.
"This is for you, Trainer-san."
Mejiro Dober pushed the pink lunch box over. Inside were some desserts she had made as an apology for yesterday.
Mejiro Dober nervously twisted her hands together. Her eyes kept darting between Fujiwara Chiya and the floor. Finally, she said, "Trainer-san, would you be willing to listen to me talk about Shirayuki and me?"
"Of course."
He had thought Mejiro Dober had come to talk about the race. But judging by her expression, it seemed she simply wanted to chat with him. Naturally, Fujiwara Chiya did not mind.
"I… am very grateful to Shirayuki."
Mejiro Dober began talking about her relationship with Shirayuki. From their first meeting until now, she told him about all the times Shirayuki had helped her.
Fujiwara Chiya naturally already knew these things, but he still pretended to be surprised.
After Mejiro Dober finished speaking, Fujiwara Chiya answered in a proper tone, "I see. So Shirayuki did all that too."
"Mm. That was when I fell in love with Shirayuki," Mejiro Dober said, her face reddening.
In truth, the main reason Fujiwara Chiya had helped her at the time was because of the Mejiro family's request. He was also receiving a daily salary for it. Otherwise, even if the two of them were roommates, he would not have devoted himself so thoroughly to taking care of her.
Later, Mejiro Dober's condition improved, and the request came to an end. But by then, several months had already passed. Their relationship was no longer tied to payment, and so that bond had naturally taken shape.
"At that time, I even had thoughts like, 'If only Shirayuki could become my trainer and train me forever.' Back then, I kept ignoring everything Trainer-san was doing for me."
Mejiro Dober frankly admitted those shameful thoughts of hers. After all, at that time, Shirayuki had always been the one giving her instructions. In Mejiro Dober's heart, Fujiwara Chiya had been nothing more than a nominal existence.
It was only later that Mejiro Dober realized how foolish her thinking had been.
All of her training plans had been Trainer's instructions. They were things he had thought about day and night before summarizing them for her. Shirayuki had only conveyed Chiya's ideas, but Mejiro Dober had treated it all as Shirayuki's achievement.
Shirayuki had indeed been very good to her.
But Fujiwara Chiya's presence could not be ignored either.
It was only after she officially raced against Shirayuki that Mejiro Dober realized just how important Trainer was to her.
He had accompanied her through almost unreasonable training and tried his best to help her reach her peak. During that period, Mejiro Dober could clearly feel how much Trainer had given for her sake.
Gradually, Trainer also came to occupy an extraordinary place in her heart.
Yesterday, Trainer had walked with her for a long time and said many things to her, helping her untangle the knot in her heart so she could face the next race.
To be honest, the fact that she had come this far was half thanks to Shirayuki.
And the other half was thanks to Trainer.
"I like Shirayuki, but… Trainer-san is also someone I can't ignore. If I think that way, does that mean I'm betraying Shirayuki?"
Mejiro Dober spoke softly, looking at Fujiwara Chiya nervously.
The man's thoughts became slightly tangled. He pinched his chin and started thinking quickly.
Does what Dober just said mean she also has feelings for me?
If we're talking about betrayal, then honestly, I'm the one who should've apologized long ago. After all, my situation is ridiculously complicated.
"In any case, I just wanted to tell Trainer-san about this today. Thank you for always helping me, Trainer-san."
Mejiro Dober bent at the waist, then left the room.
After closing the door, Mejiro Dober stopped in her tracks. She leaned against the wall and slowly crouched down.
What am I even doing…?
On one hand, she said she liked Shirayuki.
On the other, she was showing goodwill toward Trainer.
At this moment, Mejiro Dober felt as though there was a scale inside her heart, constantly tipping back and forth between Trainer and Shirayuki.
For some reason, the things Trainer had done for her always made Mejiro Dober think of Shirayuki.
And the things Shirayuki had said always made Mejiro Dober unconsciously think of Trainer.
The two figures kept appearing alternately inside Mejiro Dober's heart, leaving her completely unsure of what to do.
"Dober, what are you doing crouching here?"
A soft figure passed by beside her. Mejiro Dober raised her head and saw her sister, Mejiro Bright.
As sisters who had grown up together, Mejiro Dober and Mejiro Bright could talk about almost anything. It had been the same back when she had been troubled over Shirayuki. So this time, Mejiro Dober simply brought her outside.
Sitting on a bench, Mejiro Dober began talking about her worries. After hearing her words, Mejiro Bright lifted her head.
"Maa, I think I more or less understand what Dober is feeling."
"I'm a terrible person, aren't I…"
"I think it's perfectly normal. Dober knows what she likes, and she is bravely liking it."
"But is something like this really okay? What should I do if Shirayuki finds out?"
"In that case, why not just tell her directly?"
"Tell her directly!? That's a little…"
"Dober can't lie to her own feelings anyway, right? Tell Shirayuki everything and let her decide. With you like this, even if you stay beside Shirayuki, your heart won't be calm."
As she spoke, Mejiro Bright gently patted Mejiro Dober's head.
"Will she get angry?"
"If she gets angry, then just apologize. I think when it comes to liking someone, you should honestly face your own feelings. Don't deceive yourself. Otherwise, you'll only end up regretting it. So tell her properly. Rather than keep deceiving her like this, it would be better to let her scold you harshly."
Hearing Mejiro Bright's words, Mejiro Dober hesitated for a while before finally nodding.
However, she still needed a little time to prepare.
Even Mejiro Dober herself had never imagined that she would end up liking two people at the same time.
And one of them was even a man.
For the Mejiro Dober of the past, who could not even look a man in the face, this was something utterly impossible.
"Give me three… no, five days to prepare! Once I've made up my mind, I'll tell her."
"Ara, ara~"
Mejiro Bright smiled softly.
"I really am such a greedy person."
Mejiro Dober covered her face and sank into Mejiro Bright's arms, drowning in self-reproach.