The meditation session the next day went smoothly.
Aside from a few individuals, everyone managed to assume the full lotus position, sitting with their eyes closed as they began to meditate.
Kaoru slept soundly until the homeroom teacher suddenly spoke up, instructing them to head to the classroom for lessons.
Although each large group attended classes separately, their schedules differed—just like during regular school days.
By noon, Kaoru had somewhat regained his energy and quickly made his way to the cafeteria, where he soon spotted Shiho Manabe.
At the same time, Manabe Shiho also noticed his presence.
Pretending to continue chatting with Nanae Yabuuchi and Saki Yamashita, she gradually edged closer to a certain boy standing in line.
Seeing who it was, Kaoru's expression shifted to one of surprise.
He had initially assumed it would be an upperclassman, but it turned out to be someone familiar—Haruki Yamauchi from Class 1-D.
Upon hearing Shiho's voice, a flicker of panic crossed Yamauchi's face, though he quickly feigned composure and kept talking to Kanji Ike.
Judging by appearances alone, Kaoru would never have guessed that this guy had been tailing him.
Had he been bought off?
The thought came naturally to Kaoru, though he had no way to confirm it—Class D wasn't his domain.
It seemed he'd have to enlist Kushida.
As Class D's "little angel," handling Yamauchi should be a piece of cake.
Still, Kaoru was puzzled.
Even if Nagumo or Ryuuen had bribed Yamauchi, what exactly could he do?
An inexplicable sense of unease crept over Kaoru.
He must have overlooked something.
...
Miki Yamamura sat gloomily in a corner.
Though she knew no one would pay her any attention, she still flinched whenever passersby came too close. Instinctively, she reached for her phone—only to remember she didn't have one now.
In that instant, the girl's heart grew even heavier.
Due to the group assignments, she had been sent to a different team by Sakayanagi.
Though she had a fellow Class A student with her, they weren't close.
Not only were they not close, but Yamamura Miki also had no idea how to build a rapport with them.
Every encounter was awkward, making her instinctively avoid conversation.
Perhaps finding interactions with her troublesome, the other person simply blended into circles from other classes, leaving Yamamura Miki feeling somewhat disheartened.
Feeling downcast, she could only continue living as she always had—existing almost invisibly within her group, following along with everyone else's movements.
Perhaps because of this, the girl gradually let her guard down—until today, when something unexpected happened.
While preparing breakfast, someone deliberately tripped her.
Thankfully, she wasn't hurt, though her pants got dirty.
Then, when she went to the restroom, someone—she didn't know who—locked the door from the outside, causing her to miss attendance.
These bullying-like pranks filled Yamamura Miki with an inexplicable fear.
She couldn't recall doing anything to deserve this.
Confused, she still couldn't muster the courage to bring it up with the others, afraid the real culprit might retaliate with even worse actions.
Moreover, today's events reminded her of past experiences—times when her belongings, though perfectly clean, were met with overt disgust, as if associating with her would somehow lower their own standing.
At that time, Miki couldn't understand what this meant, but now she had come to realize certain truths—in some people's hierarchies, she existed at the very bottom, something even more insignificant than dispensable.
Fortunately, she had always been inconspicuous, so no one had ever done anything extreme to her.
But now, things were different.
Miki could sense a subtle shift in the group's atmosphere, especially among the students from Class C.
The way they looked at her was as if she were prey.
Having never experienced anything like this before, Miki's first instinct was to shrink into herself, behaving even more cautiously than usual.
During meals, she didn't dare approach her groupmates, even unconsciously distancing herself from her fellow Class A students.
Even now, she still felt lingering fear, unsure whether she should reach out to Sakayanagi for help.
But even if she did, what could be done?
There was no concrete evidence that anyone harbored ill will toward her.
Maybe it was just a coincidence, one or two isolated incidents.
Miki was torn—she didn't want to assume the worst, or else the days ahead would become unbearable.
"Can I sit here?"
Suddenly, Miki flinched.
She quickly lowered her head, her side ponytail swaying slightly, as if she were completely absorbed in her meal and hadn't heard the voice.
She had hoped the other person would take the hint and leave her alone—this jumpy, nervous wreck of a girl.
Yet, out of the corner of her eye, she saw the person casually sit down beside her, acting as if there was no distance between them at all.
Startled, she instinctively scooted inward, her heart pounding.
Was this person here to cause trouble?
"This spot of yours is really out of the way. Took me forever to find it."
Hmm, his voice sounded somewhat familiar?
Cautiously, Miki raised her head and saw Kaoru's face.
His calm gaze was oddly reassuring.
"Eh?"
She hadn't realized she'd let out such a foolish sound.
"The food here feels about the same as the school cafeteria. I suspect they brought the cooks along too."
Kaoru took a bite of his chicken cutlet as he spoke. "Not hungry, Miki?"
Perhaps snapping back to reality, Miki's face flushed red.
She stammered, "Y-you're here... I don't know how to eat."
"Don't know how to eat?"
Kaoru chuckled. "Want me to feed you, Miki?"
Miki startled, hurriedly shoveling a few mouthfuls until her cheeks were stuffed full—now there was no way he could feed her, because there was no room left.
Kaoru gave her a strange look.
This girl was kind of amusing.
He really didn't get why people around her acted the way they did.
Noticing his lingering gaze, Miki grew embarrassed, then suddenly remembered he had been calling her by her first name this whole time.
Sure, during their Study Group sessions before, she had allowed him to do so, but that didn't mean he could just casually use it every day, right?
Showing up out of nowhere, calling her name so casually, sitting beside her like it was the most natural thing—didn't this guy feel any shame?
"Don't see Masumi with you. Are you two in different groups?"
Kaoru's eyes flickered to the faint stains on her pants, his question deliberately offhand.
"Kamuro-san is with Sakayanagi-san, so she's not with me." Miki was a bit hesitant, swallowing the food in her mouth before answering nervously.
"Are you looking for her?"
From her perspective, Kaoru should prefer spending time with Kamuro Masumi, given how often the two bantered with each other in class.
Moreover, whenever she recalled the time she followed Kamuro Masumi to secretly observe Kaoru, Miki felt her face burn with embarrassment.
She never imagined she would witness that kind of scene.
It was practically like being a peeping tom—and Masumi hadn't even let her leave!
How outrageous.
Right now, Miki was terrified of accidentally exposing herself and letting Kaoru find out that she and Masumi had spied on him kissing Asahina.
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