I really don't want to have a girlfriend.

She would often unconsciously make physical contact with him, but never took the initiative to get too close. Even when she realized it, she would feel a little shy, but the next time she would still do the same thing, as if they were supposed to be this intimate.

Even if you don't understand it, there's no doubt that it's something called attachment.

No one knew this better than Isshiki Iroha.

—When a girl falls for someone, what kind of expression will she unconsciously show?

However, it's not uncommon for friends to fall for the same person in various gossip and love stories.

So despite her complicated feelings, Iroha Isshiki wasn't too surprised, but she never brought it up and let the relationship between the three of them continue to develop in this way.

And then in the not-too-distant future, will I become a heartbroken loser who can never get love?

'If it weren't for the fact that you treated Kanade like a little sister, and if you hadn't suddenly and inexplicably taken the initiative... perhaps I wouldn't even have had a chance to appear now.'

However, contrary to expectations, the reality is that Iroha Isshiki has successfully outmaneuvered her friend, winning her over before the friend even realized the romance, thus robbing Kanade of the possibility of dating her.

If others knew about this, they would probably see her as a homewrecker who stole someone's love, and condemn her for knowingly flattering her friend and deliberately dating him.

Although it makes no sense, it's as normal as eating and drinking in the girls' circle. As smart as she is, she always tries to avoid this situation and avoids associating with controversial men. When boys who are liked by other girls confess their feelings to her, she always has to rack her brains to come up with a way to reject them without getting into trouble.

After all, sometimes, even if you have no feelings for someone, just because someone likes you doesn't mean that person will let you off the hook. They can throw mud at you without caring whether it's reasonable or not.

If it weren't for how much he liked his senior, Iroha Isshiki wouldn't have dared to get so close to Yuu Tenkuji. He even had to scheme against a bunch of his admirers and fan clubs for it, winning countless battles to get to where he is today...

Looking back, it was truly a harrowing and eventful experience.

We've gone a bit off-topic.

In short, Isshiki Hatake doesn't want to be forced to give up her friendship with Tachibana Kanade just because she's dating Tenkuji Yu.

I didn't want to be looked at with accusatory and sad eyes, as if I had become a despicable person who had betrayed my best friend, and tormented by my conscience at all times.

Therefore, when faced with Tachibana Kanade suddenly appearing before them, Iroha Isshiki couldn't help but feel flustered, like a mistress caught cheating by the wife, desperately searching for words to refute her actions—

But she's clearly a freshly made, officially recognized girlfriend!

"Mental preparation? What kind of mental preparation is needed? Just tell her directly, isn't that enough?"

Tenkuji Yu glanced at her, who was like an ant on a hot pan, his expression somewhat subtle, as if he didn't know where to begin his comment.

"Huh?" With a sharp twitch of her eyebrows, Iroha Isshiki unconsciously raised her voice, complaining to him, "How could it be so easy! This is a huge crisis that could completely destroy the friendship between the three of us, you clueless idiot, senpai!"

"You're the one who's completely oblivious..."

Ignoring his complaints, Isshiki Iroha rested her hand on her chin, racking her brains to think.

"If we didn't kiss on the spot, we could probably make up some excuse to get by, but it wouldn't be easy to explain why we went out to play without telling anyone... But if we said we went out on a date and confessed our feelings, Kanade might not be able to accept it..."

"You're letting your concern cloud your judgment. Calm down and think about it carefully. Who are these people walking towards us?"

Yuu Tenkuji sighed heavily, interrupting her chaotic thoughts with utter exasperation.

To be honest, this was the first time he had ever seen a girl get nervous, thinking she was in a love triangle, before he could even react.

Couldn't she think carefully about what Tachibana Kanade, with her personality, would say to her friends and seniors with whom she had finally started a formal relationship?

"Iroha, as one of Tachibana Kanade's few friends, you should know her better than anyone else... So, do you really think that the things you're worried about will happen to her?"

"This……"

Isshiki Yu was stunned and stood there, her consciousness as if it had been doused with cold water, her eyes gradually regaining their clarity.

Indeed, she had previously assumed that Tachibana Kanade would be like other scheming women, breaking off their friendship with her because the person she liked had been taken away, turning a friend into an enemy, and that it would take several volumes of novel content for them to reconcile, or perhaps they could never go back to the way things were.

But that is clearly wrong.

Tachibana Kanade is no one else, just as you can't project a human mindset onto an angel.

—If it were Kanade, if it were my own innocent and kind-hearted best friend…

That's right, she wouldn't think that much about it at all; she would simply offer her blessings to the two of them in their relationship!

"Ugh... What exactly am I misunderstanding...?"

After figuring all this out, Isshiki Hatake pressed her face and gave a weak, bitter smile.

Seeing that she seemed to have escaped that logical trap, Tenkuji Yu shrugged and smiled, raising her hand to greet Tachibana Kanade who was walking towards her:

Good evening! Are you here for the fireworks display too?

"Good evening." Tachibana Kanade nodded gently and stood in front of the two of them. "Dad and Mom said they would take me out to play more often while I'm feeling better."

Her pale golden eyes blinked, and the girl's voice was still as soft and pleasant as ever. She paused, then said with a hint of apology, "Sorry, I forgot to tell you beforehand."

Tenkuji Yu said frankly, "There's no need to apologize. On the contrary, we didn't even tell you about our private date here, and we were afraid you'd misunderstand."

Tachibana Kanade tilted her head slightly: "A date?"

"Yes, a date."

Tenkuji Yu took the cool, slightly sweaty hand beside him and looked directly into Tachibana Kanade's clear, transparent eyes: "Iroha and I have established a romantic relationship. From now on, we are boyfriend and girlfriend."

"The reason we didn't tell you we were coming to the fireworks festival today was because we wanted to be alone together and have a heart-to-heart talk. I hope you don't mind."

As soon as she finished speaking, Iroha couldn't help but let out a silent lament: 'Senpai, you were too direct!'

Then, the next moment, seeing Tachibana Kanade turn her gaze towards her, she immediately suppressed all her extraneous emotions, bit her lower lip lightly, nodded at her with a complicated expression and a slightly flushed face, and said to her in a tentative tone:

"I... have always liked my senior. So, I... started dating him..."

She didn't even know what she was saying; her words were incoherent... but Xiaozan should be able to understand what she meant.

"Is that so... Congratulations, Ayaha."

As expected, after a brief moment of surprise, Tachibana Kanade smiled faintly and handed over the fried noodles in her hand: "I heard that this is something to celebrate, but I'm sorry, I only have a plate of Mapo fried noodles that I bought before closing time... If you don't mind, please accept it."

"Eh? Ah... thank you, Kanade." Somewhat bewildered, Iroha took the fried noodles. After thinking for a moment, she could only manage a sarcastic remark, "The celebration shouldn't be about dating, but about marriage or a baby..."

"Really? I think we should celebrate..." Tachibana Kanade pursed her lips, a little confused, but quickly put the question aside and turned to look at Tenkuji Yu. In her soft and melodious voice, she said to him earnestly, "Yu-senpai, Iroha has always admired you, and has worked hard in secret to keep up with you. So... please make her happy!"

"Don't worry, I know." Hearing her unusually strong tone, Tenkuji Yu couldn't help but laugh and patted the girl's head. "Also, you don't need to worry about how to get along with us in the future or whether to keep your distance. Just keep everything as usual."

"Whether it's because Aya is jealous of you, or because we suddenly want to be alone, I'll tell you everything I can. Try not to worry."

"That's good."

Seemingly genuinely worried about this, Tachibana Kanade exhaled, pressing her hand to her chest, and the curve of her lips softened slightly: "I don't want to drift apart from you... but I would feel terrible if I became a third wheel between you."

"No, that won't happen!" Iroha Isshiki shook her head and stood up firmly, saying, "Kanade will always be my friend, no matter what happens in the future... I want to stay with you forever! Even if your relationship with Senpai changes, our friendship will never change!"

This genuine outpouring of emotion was perhaps the first time in her sixteen-year-old life.

The moment the words slipped out, Isshiki blushed slightly with embarrassment. Nevertheless, when her eyes met those pale golden eyes, she made no attempt to look away, but instead stared intently into their gaze, trying to convey her feelings.

"Thank you, Ayaha. I'm so glad you said that!"

Tachibana Kanade laughed even more happily.

The two people in front of them were stunned for a moment, seemingly having never seen her smile so brightly before.

On that usually expressionless face, a quiet smile, as bright and gentle as moonlight, was blooming.

"No matter what happens, we will always be good friends... and I will always love both of you."

"..."

Tears of emotion glistened in her eyes, and Iroha pursed her lips tightly, nodding vigorously like a chick pecking at rice.

"Yes! Absolutely, it won't change!"

After glancing at the sky, Tachibana Kanade bowed slightly to the two of them.

"That's settled then. My parents are still waiting for me. I'll take my leave now."

Her gaze drifted almost imperceptibly over their clasped hands. Her eyes lowered slightly, and all her emotions were transformed into a smile of helplessness and relief at the corner of her mouth.

Her slender and petite figure was wrapped in a fitted yukata. Her curves weren't particularly beautiful, but her elegant posture was still like a delicately painted oil painting. She should have been hanging in the highest place in the art museum, becoming the most beautiful and the loneliest work of art.

Looking at her like that, for some reason, Iroha Isshiki subconsciously asked:

"Xiao Zou, is this really okay?"

"..."

Tachibana stopped moving.

She turned around in the night, her flowing silver hair like moonlight spilling onto the ground, her pale golden eyes filled with a loneliness and tenderness that she couldn't understand.

"Okay, that's good."

"I've already received enough. I hope to dedicate the rest of my time to Ayaha."

"You must become happier than anyone else."

After saying that, Tachibana Kanade took a step without hesitation and continued walking towards the distance of the sidewalk until she disappeared into the brightly lit night.

She never looked back, not even once, at those two people who were so important to her.

"Xiao Zou..."

……

After that, Yuu Tenkuji fulfilled his responsibilities as a boyfriend by safely delivering Iroha Isshiki home.

Walking side by side on the dark road, their gazes stretched out the shadows of their intertwined index fingers, their steps slowed in unison.

Even though the two were alone, and should have taken advantage of the quiet, deserted street to do something intimate to celebrate their first day together, Iroha Isshiki was unusually uninterested. She just hung her head and looked gloomy, as if she was preoccupied with something.

She didn't say anything, and Tenkuji Yu wouldn't ask. He just silently followed her, waiting for the moment when she wanted to confide in him.

The passage of time had lost its meaning. After an unknown amount of time, the two stopped in front of a Japanese-style bungalow with a sign that read "Isshiki".

"Go home and get some rest. Don't think too much."

Without saying much, Tenkuji Yu cupped her cheeks, kneaded them a couple of times like dough, and then released them with a smile.

Isshiki swayed her body, her lips pursed in a somewhat forlorn manner, and finally leaned forward with her slightly flushed cheeks, resting her forehead on his chest.

"senior……"

Tenkuji Yu put his arm around her shoulder and said softly with a gentle expression, "Yes, I'm here."

Like a little girl afraid of being alone, Iroha hugged his back, nuzzling against his chest, and unconsciously whined in a spoiled tone, "I'm not worried about dating anymore. After all, Kanade is such a nice person, how could she possibly be upset with me just because I'm dating you..."

Tenkuji Yu tentatively asked, "So what are you worried about?"

Stopping her 'charging' action, Isshiki looked up at him: "What do you think Kanade meant by those last few words she said?"