My love index is at its maximum.

"So comfortable~" Ninomiya Shiori rested her head on his arm, lying still and quietly.

Tazaki Tsukasa didn't say anything; although he was holding her, he didn't have any romantic thoughts about her.

He knew very well that the little cutie had no such thoughts in her heart. All she was seeking was a fleeting memory, just as she said, fuel stored up to get through the winter.

But no matter what, having a beautiful girl in your arms is a comfortable thing from any perspective.

Every now and then, her ear would brush against his cheek, her warm breath slowly moistening his neck. Although her body was slender and delicate, it was breathtakingly developed, and one could feel the tight softness in her chest.

"Hey, hey, hey, say something!" Shiori Ninomiya would say, burying her face in his chest.

"What did you say?" Tsukasa Tazaki inhaled the wonderful fragrance emanating from her skin.

Unlike the scent of the older women, this was a scent that only growing bodies could produce, like the fragrance of flowers blooming with morning dew in summer.

"Anything is fine, as long as it's something to please me."

"So cute!"

“Shiori-chan,” she emphasized, “you need to include her name.”

“You’re so cute, Shiori-chan,” Tsukasa Tazaki added.

"How cute?"

"So cute that ducks from ponds all over the world waddle along in a line through all the forests in the world."

Shiori Ninomiya imagined that scene and chuckled, "Kiki's words are always so funny."

"You're the first person to say that to me."

"move?"

“Not at all,” Tsukasa Tazaki said. “It just left a deep impression.”

"Give me an even better one!"

"No, I need to go to sleep."

"Say one more line!"

"I have to go to school tomorrow."

"Oh, what a pity." Shiori Ninomiya murmured her last words, her utterly exhausted spirit collapsing. That tranquil, warm breath, with a certain rhythm, blew towards Tsukasa Tazaki's neck.

With the help of the light from outside the window, I could barely make out her face.

Tsukasa Tazaki suddenly realized that if his little darling were his lover, he would probably kiss her again and again without ever getting tired of it. Whether it was her ears or her lips, he would gently bite her with his teeth and inhale her fragrance.

He thought about it, but ultimately failed to take any action.

Ultimately, it was just an imagined action based on the pure assumption that "if she were his lover, he would do this."

The short night passed quickly.

Tsukasa Tazaki carefully got out of bed, boiled a kettle of water, and drank two cups.

After hesitating for a moment, I turned off the kitchen light and went outside.

At 6 a.m., the temperature was unusually cold, and no one had passed by yet. The vending machines huddled together, waiting for the sunlight, and the streets were as quiet as ruins.

I hope you won't be troubled by nightmares... Tazaki glanced at the window of the little cutie's room, then walked to the train station, went straight to Shinjuku for a morning run, then went home to shower and change clothes, and then went out to take the train to class.

……

The morning sun rises between the tall buildings.

The windowsills of countless residential buildings were bathed in sunlight.

The bedside alarm clock showed 7.25:5, five minutes before it was time to ring. Shiori Ninomiya stretched her arm out from under the covers, ran her fingers across the dull surface of the alarm clock, restored it to its original state, and then pulled back the covers.

My mind was a complete blank, and my limbs felt stiff and mechanical.

After getting dressed, Shiori Ninomiya went to the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face. Her head was still spinning from just waking up, and her vision blurred. She hurriedly braced herself against the sink, closed her eyes, and breathed slowly. After the dizziness subsided, she slowly opened her eyes.

Listening to the sound of running water, she stared blankly at her slightly haggard reflection in the mirror.

Thoughts are like being stuck in a swamp, unable to move, no matter which direction they extend, they will be firmly trapped by the silt.

She gently shook her head and washed her face with cold water.

I left home and returned to school again after two months.

I didn't change my shoes, nor did I go to the classroom.

Heading straight to the staff office, homeroom teacher Naoko Morisawa was already waiting for her.

Everything had been discussed beforehand, and at this moment, besides feeling reluctant to part, there seemed to be little else to do. Dejected, I left the office and went to Class D to say goodbye to several familiar classmates.

"I can't bear to part with the fragrant seedlings," she said with a smile.

"Yes." Kasuga Kanae nodded, tears welling up in her eyes.

"Don't cry, or Shiori-chan won't want to leave." Ninomiya Shiori left the classroom cheerfully. At the other end of the corridor was Class F's classroom, where autumn sunlight bathed the floor tiles, revealing many small, fragment-like things floating in the light.

It could be dust, chalk dust, or something else entirely.

Soon, the depth gradually shortened, the light brightened, and the outlines of the surrounding objects became clearer.

Coming to her senses, Shiori Ninomiya peered into Class D through the back door, inhaling the stale air inside. Her eyes were fixed on the high school boy sitting peacefully in the warm sunlight; she couldn't see any other students.

My mouth was parched with thirst, as if all the moisture had vanished.

I didn't know what to do or what to say, so I just stood there motionless.

The sounds of other noises from the campus also reached my ears: shouts from the playground, the sound of a soccer ball being kicked, the sound of a baseball bat hitting a softball, and recorders awkwardly practicing an ensemble of "The Last Rose of Summer".

What a short trip to Tokyo...

Leave the fourth floor and go up to the fifth floor, to Class A's classroom.

After chatting with Kuriyama Sakura for a while, Kichikawa Yui saw this and came over to say a few words as well. After the school bell rang, Ninomiya Shiori would separate from them and go to the courtyard alone.

The courtyard was empty during class time, with not a single student in sight. Only the flock of gray pigeons perched on the branches as usual, surveying the surroundings.

When I first entered this school, it was springtime, and the courtyard was lush and green, blooming with colorful flowers. Now, the leaves have long since turned yellow, and with their fall, the dreamlike time that once unfolded has come to an end.

There are still so many things I haven't had time to do...

For example, school trips, sports festivals, celebrating Christmas together, or enjoying cherry blossoms together next year... The cherry blossoms in Tokyo bloom more than a month earlier than those in Hokkaido.

Ok.

Don't overthink it, it's time to say goodbye.

It's natural to feel fear and reluctance; after all, as long as you're alive, there will be a stage where you're terrified of something.

Shiori Ninomiya looked up at the window of Class 1-F classroom.

The moment that boy first came into view, a tornado swept through his mind. To this day, the tornado has not weakened at all; in fact, it has become increasingly ferocious, engulfing almost the entirety of his body.

When we can't see each other, I miss seeing each other so much that my hands tremble and my heart pounds so hard it feels like it's about to fall out.

But that's impossible.

There are two kinds of people... Shiori Ninomiya thought, people who swim desperately to reach a certain place and people who just float around on the sidelines.

Clearly, Kiki is the first type, someone who floats lightly on the water, so capable that she can lie comfortably in the water anywhere.

But I am only the second type.

Despite having a clear goal, they can only swim aimlessly due to their surroundings. And they will soon exceed their physical limits, becoming the kind of person who desperately floats with the weight on their feet.

Two completely different people are destined to never be together...

"I know." Shiori Ninomiya rubbed her sore nose, tilted her head back, snapped her fingers coolly, and shouted, "In my next life, please let me be a handsome guy in Tokyo~!"

Startled students and teachers peered out of the windows and saw that the courtyard was completely empty, with only fallen yellow leaves drifting and swirling in the air with the wind.

……

The bell rang, signaling the end of get out of class.

The students in the class were discussing who had yelled that. Murakami Mizuiro, who recognized the little cutie's voice, turned around and looked at his best friend with a hesitant expression.

"Tazaki..."

"No need to say anything more."

After packing his things, Tsukasa Tazaki picked up his schoolbag, went up to Class A on the fifth floor, and went straight to Sakura Kuriyama.

“I’ve made up my mind,” he said calmly. “Can you tell me what happened?”

Kuriyama Sakura glanced at the backpack in his hand, then took out a medical examination form from the drawer and handed it to him: "Regarding Ninomiya's mother's health, if there's a way, then go; if not, please stay calm."

"diabetes……"

Tazaki Tsukasa recalled the syringe he found in Ninomiya's father's car and now realized that it was used to inject insulin.

Who compares their mother to a pig?

He cursed under his breath, both amused and exasperated, and left Class A classroom, heading to the staff office.

Hoshino Hanami sat with her legs crossed, intently grading homework, with a half-eaten box of Mufeng mini cakes within easy reach of her.

"Teacher," Tsukasa Tazaki stepped forward and asked obediently, "I would like to ask for a period of leave, is that alright?"

"Where to?" Hoshino Hana didn't even look up.

"Hokkaido."

The English teacher next door, who was sobbing on her desk, suddenly looked up, her red eyes staring at him: "Tazaki-kun, is Ninomiya really your concubine?"

Hoshino Hanami frowned, then slapped a workbook onto her colleague's head.

"Ouch, that hurts~ Hoshino-sensei, be gentle!" The English teacher grumbled, rubbing her head. "Just kidding, that's not how you show jealousy..."

"Stop talking nonsense," Hoshino Hanami said irritably, blowing her hair and turning to look at Tazaki Tsukasa. "Give me a reasonable explanation when you get back, or I'll hang you on a flagpole to sunbathe."

"Thank you, teacher." Tsukasa Tazaki bowed deeply, bending at a 90-degree angle.

After he left, Hoshino Hanami turned around and said to the English teacher, "Don't submit the withdrawal application yet. Let's wait until he comes back."

The English teacher nodded vigorously.

In order for the well-behaved students in her class to return to school, she even began to hope that Tazaki-san was two-timing.

……