Chapter 23 The Two of Us on a Day Off (3)

The Two of Us on a Day Off (3)

“Haha… Have you calmed down now?”

I asked with a wry smile as Kakizaki-san nuzzled her face against my chest.

“Sniff… Y-Yeah… Seriously, you make me cry at least once every single day, don’t you?”

“Wait, what!? How is that my fault!?”

Startled by the unfair accusation, I immediately protested.

“It is your fault… Naoe-kun makes me happy, makes me cry, dries me out, and is planning to wrinkle me up like a prune!”

Kakizaki-san looked up at me from my chest, her tear-swollen eyes glistening.

But… haha, there was a playful teasing glint in her eyes.

In that case—

“That’s right. I’ll keep making you so happy you cry. Until you can’t cry anymore… until all you can do is smile.”

“Ah… There you go, saying stuff like that again…”

Kakizaki-san buried her face into my chest again, as though hiding her expression… Wait.

“…(stare)”

…The clerk-san was beaming at us through the store window, flashing me a big thumbs-up.

“K-Kakizaki-san, let’s get out of here already…”

“Eh? Oh… y-yeah…”

She must’ve noticed the gazes of the clerk-san and other customers too, so we quickly left the spot.

“Now then, where to next…”

As I was pondering that—

“Ah… I-I'm really full today…”

Kakizaki-san shyly covered her face with both hands.

“T-Then, would it be okay if you came with me to one last place…?”

“Eh? Oh, u-uh… sure, but this really is the last one, okay? Also, nothing that costs money.”

“G-Got it.”

Well, the place I had in mind didn’t cost any money anyway.

And so—

“Wowww…!”

When we reached the rooftop observatory, Kakizaki-san gasped in admiration as she took in the radiant sunset.

Yeah… I wanted her to see this view.

“Look, isn’t that where our apartment is?”

“Eh? Where? Where?”

I pointed off into the distance, and Kakizaki-san squinted in concentration.

“Ahaha! It’s so far away, I can’t see it at all!”

“Yeah… And over there, that’s the university I go to.”

“Y-Yeah… Chuho University, right?”

“Yeah…”

I’d heard from Mushakoji-san that Kakizaki-san had aimed to get into Chuho University and had even been accepted.

How much pain must she have felt, having to give up on a dream that had been so close, right in front of her eyes…?

“…Hey, did you know? My university is pretty merit-based. Grades for earning credits are decided entirely through tests and reports.”

“R-Really?”

“Yeah. So, you see? They don’t keep track of attendance at all. Because of that, it’s not uncommon for people who aren’t students to sit in on lectures.”

“Eh…?”

As I said that, she turned her gaze to me.

“So, how about we attend a lecture together sometime? It might be boring, though.”

“Ah…”

Her eyes widened the moment I made the suggestion.

“I-Is it really okay to do something like that…?”

“Of course. No one will care.”

“…But if someone recognizes me, it might cause trouble for you…”

“It’ll be fine! Even today, when we were eating and shopping, no one noticed who you were, right?”

…Well, except for a few guys sneaking glances—probably because Kakizaki-san is so cute.

“I-I see… So I can attend a lecture at Chuho University…?”

She must’ve been imagining the scene of herself sitting in a lecture hall.

Occasionally, she smiled to herself, then seemed to get lost in thought. Her mind was busy with possibilities.

“So… what do you think?”

“Y-Yeah… If you don’t mind, Naoe-kun, then… um… I-I’d love to! Please take care of me!”

With that, Kakizaki-san bowed deeply.

“Haha! Alright, then. When we get back to the apartment, let’s check the second-semester schedule and pick which lectures we’ll attend together!”

“Okay! Wow… I never imagined I’d get to sit in on a Chuho University lecture… Honestly, ever since I met you, every day has felt like a dream…”

Clasping her hands near her mouth, her eyes glistening with tears, Kakizaki-san smiled bashfully.

Bathed in the glow of the sunset, she looked ethereal—so breathtakingly beautiful that I felt like I could get lost just gazing at her…

“N-Naoe-kun… If you stare at me like that, um… i-it’s embarrassing…”

“Eh!? O-Oh, sorry!”

Startled, I instinctively turned my face away.

And then.

—Pito (light touch)

“K-Kakizaki-san…?”

“Mm… Just for a little while… Just a tiny bit is enough…”

The two of us leaned against each other, silently basking in the peaceful glow of the sunset.