Tuesday.
Sakurai Saki woke up in the morning feeling dizzy.
Yesterday's rain had been heavy, and he had gotten quite wet on his way home. But he had quickly showered and dried his clothes, so it probably wasn't a cold. Moreover, superpower users were truly not afraid of colds.
This situation should be related to his superpower.
It was [Time Stop] . Sakurai Saki hadn't expected to randomly get it again so soon, but surprises always came quickly. The side effects were still similar to last time—but instead of severe headaches, it was dizziness and a throbbing pain, like needles pricking his brain. In this state, his thinking speed slowed down, and he became drowsy and sleepy. The side effects had weakened, but they were not completely harmless yet.
Sakurai General Affairs lay on his bed, picked up his phone from the nightstand, and sent a message to his homeroom teacher. The general content was that he had caught a cold from the rain yesterday and was taking the day off today.
He didn't want to go to school. If he went, he would just sleep at his desk. Since it was all about sleeping, why not choose to do it at home? Last time, he had to go because of an exam—that had been about his competition with Kaguya Shinomiya. But this time, he gave up.
His absences were rare. He hadn't missed a day or left early since the start of school.
Soon, his homeroom teacher replied, telling him to rest well.
He didn't know how much time had passed. Perhaps it was noon?
When Sakurai Saki woke again, he found that his physical condition had not improved. He got up, drank some water to soothe his throat, then continued drifting back into sleep.
Knock, knock~!
A crisp knocking sound, very rhythmic.
Sakurai Saki was woken up. He hoped it wasn't a salesman knocking; otherwise, he might help him pile stones by the Sanzu River.
He put on his shoes and dragged his tired body to the door. He opened it.
The first thing he saw was a black butterfly hair tie—and the pink hair shared by the Five Sisters.
"Sakurai-kun, are you feeling alright?!" Nakano Nino's voice was tight with anxiety. She was full of worry at that moment, and seeing that Sakurai Saki was fine, she unconsciously breathed a sigh of relief.
"I'm okay," Sakurai said perfunctorily.
He wondered where she had gotten the news. Perhaps she had always been paying attention to him. People who liked to slack off would surely envy this kind of initiative; doing whatever came to mind was undoubtedly Nino's strength.
"How did you know where I live?" Sakurai Saki was still half-asleep. His head was very dizzy now, and his thinking speed had slowed.
"Haven't I been here before?" Nino stepped forward. "I came to take care of you this time."
She showed him the get-well gifts in her hands—cold medicine and some dishes.
"Miss Nino, I don't need your care." Sakurai Saki didn't want to let her in.
But Nino's actions were beyond his expectation. She squeezed directly through the half-open door.
"Do you think I'd believe what a patient says?" Nino's face was full of concern. She temporarily put down her things, took off her shoes, and prepared to help Sakurai Saki back to his room.
"I don't have a cold." Sakurai held his forehead.
His embarrassing side was being seen by the person he least wanted to show it to. Among the Five Sisters, Nino was the one he found most annoying. But Nino was also the one with the highest favorability toward him.
"Do you know what time it is now?" Nino ignored his refusal and directly helped him up. There was a significant height difference between them, and Nino seemed to be struggling a bit.
"Three o'clock?" Sakurai Saki's expression was strained. His head was still throbbing.
"School's already out. How could it only be three o'clock?" Nino's voice was gentle but firm. "Sakurai-kun, and you still say you don't have a cold."
This was the first time Nino had seen Sakurai Saki so weak. To be honest, it made her heart ache. He had never shown this side—not even to others at school. Sakurai General Affairs at Shuchiin Academy was a symbol of handsomeness and versatility: excellent in academics, good at all sports. There seemed to be nothing he couldn't do.
His sick appearance should only be seen by her.
"...I'm telling you beforehand." Sakurai Saki was tucked into bed by her. "Even if you take care of me this time, I won't develop feelings for you."
Nino helped him pull up the covers.
Nakano Nino said seriously: "Even if we're just in a teacher-student relationship, I'll still take care of you. And I like you. I've always known it's just my unrequited love."
Sakurai Saki turned his head to look at her, saying weakly, "Whatever you say."
She was the first person to openly declare herself his simp. Also—did this woman have no other subtle way of expressing her feelings besides blunt declarations? It was so heavy—like a high-speed Shinkansen train that wouldn't brake. Truly, no one could withstand the impact of that locomotive.
After hearing such words, Sakurai General Affairs's head hurt even more.
"Don't go to sleep yet." Nino rushed to get water. "Take your medicine."
"I don't have a cold. Just a bit of a headache."
"Then take painkillers."
Sakurai Saki narrowed his eyes slightly, watching her retreating back. His vision was a little blurry.
To be honest, besides his mother in Kyoto, no one else had ever taken care of him like this. Would he be moved? To be honest—a little. After all, the other party and he were just in an ordinary tutor-student relationship. Just hearing the news of his absence and choosing to come look after him after school—this kind of behavior would move any man.
Tens of seconds later, Nino came over with water. When she had been wandering around his house earlier, she had pretty much figured out the layout of everything.
"Come, ah~" Nino held the pill between her index finger and thumb.
Sakurai Saki didn't mind her feeding him. He swallowed the pill, then took the water cup from her hand. After taking the painkiller, his headache didn't alleviate much—but it was still her kind intention. After all, this wasn't caused by inflammation; it was a side effect of his superpower. It would be strange if medicine worked. Only a superpower organization could make drugs to suppress side effects.
"Alright, go to sleep. I'll go make dinner first." Nino watched him swallow the medicine and showed a happy expression.
She took the water cup and left.
After she was gone, Sakurai Saki lay flat on the bed and slowly closed his eyes.
"It should be here, right?"
At the apartment entrance, a girl with long pink hair stood holding her phone with a map displayed. In her hand, she also held many get-well gifts. Among them, a deck of playing cards—very much her style.
Fujiwara Chika had learned today from Kaguya Shinomiya that Sakurai Saki had taken a day off. Originally, everyone in the Student Council had wanted to visit together, but Chika had stopped them. Shirogane had the strongest desire to visit; as for why, it was probably because Sakurai Saki had looked after him so often. Shirogane wanted to return the favor.
Also, Shirogane and Sakurai had known each other for so long, and this was the first time Sakurai General Affairs had taken a day off due to a cold.
Kaguya Shinomiya had also gotten excited when she heard this topic; her thoughts were different from Chika and Shirogane's. She was simply preparing to watch the show. After enjoying the show, if she was in a good mood, taking care of him wouldn't be out of the question—or so Kaguya Shinomiya thought.
But unfortunately, after a competitive game, Chika had won the right to visit Sakurai Saki alone.
Walking to the second floor, Chika knocked on the door.