"Mmh~"
Eriri slowly opened her eyes. But unlike yesterday, when she woke she didn't find Mio beside her.
Just as she was wondering whether Mio had already left, the bathroom door swung open, and Mio, freshly washed up, stepped out.
Seeing that Eriri had only just woken, Mio said apologetically, "Sorry. Did I wake you?"
"No, it was the alarm." Eriri couldn't help yawning as she finished.
Maybe it was because she'd spent last night discussing that doujinshi in depth with Mio, but afterward her head had been full of all sorts of stray thoughts she couldn't shut off, and she hadn't managed to drift off until the small hours.
If not for the alarm, Eriri felt like she could've slept clean through to noon.
A little more awake now, she watched Mio changing clothes and couldn't help asking, "So you're really heading back now?"
"Yep. I'll go right after breakfast. Don't miss me too much~"
"Who'd miss you? Don't flatter yourself." Eriri pursed her lips, then threw off the blanket and climbed out of bed.
The instant she got up, Eriri seemed to register something. Her expression went stiff and unnatural for a beat. Then, while Mio wasn't looking, she pulled a spare pair of panties out of her suitcase and made a beeline for the bathroom.
She really should've known better than to lie there last night running her mouth with Mio about all that nonsense.
By the time Eriri came out of the bathroom, Mio had already finished packing.
Hearing the door, Mio glanced over, then asked, curious, "Eriri, what're you doing with a pair of panties in your hand?"
"Eh!?"
Eriri blinked, and only then did it hit her: she'd been so wrapped up in other thoughts that she'd forgotten to stash away the pair she'd just changed out of.
"You know." Eriri put on her best unbothered face, but the blush coloring her cheeks had already given away exactly how she was feeling.
"Ohh~" Mio's expression cleared in instant understanding, and then she asked, all concern, "You got enough panties left? If you're running low, I've got spares."
"I-I don't need them!"
Eriri genuinely could not understand how Mio managed to say things like that without so much as a change in expression. Was this the legendary state of having no shame whatsoever?
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"Hm? How come I don't see Shirai-san?"
Aki Tomoya looked around, puzzled, but Mio was nowhere in sight.
"She had something to do, so she went back early. You need her for something?" Eriri asked, a little annoyed.
"No, it's just that she's been with you this whole time, so it's a bit strange not to see her today, that's all." After Aki Tomoya explained himself, he went on, "Looks like it's just the two of us today, then."
"Mm." Eriri gave a soft sound of agreement.
In the past, the idea of being alone with Aki Tomoya like this would've left her at least a little nervous inside.
But right now, Eriri just felt like something was missing.
Wait, don't tell me she was missing a certain white-haired little bitch?
No way. Absolutely no way!
It wasn't like she was into girls. Why would she be thinking about her?
And besides, that white-haired little bitch teased her every chance she got. There was no way she'd be sitting around missing her, obviously.
Just as Eriri was deep in her little game of internal Q&A, Aki Tomoya patted her shoulder. "Eriri, what's wrong?"
"N-nothing. Let's head in too."
Eriri forced out a smile and walked straight for the entrance.
She went about it the same as yesterday, hunting out the booths that caught her interest. She'd always loved that feeling of stumbling onto something new. But right now, she seemed to be running a little low on drive.
Just then, Eriri felt her phone buzz. A message from Mio.
What Eriri didn't notice, in the instant she saw Mio's message, was the faint little smile that tugged at her lips.
"I'm already on my way back. Did you miss me~" Along with the message, Mio had thrown in a selfie.
Looking at the photo, the white-haired girl beaming like a flower in bloom, Eriri couldn't help smiling too, then typed back, "Don't flatter yourself. There's way too much fun stuff here. Why would I miss a little bitch like you?"
"Eh? But I've been missing you plenty."
"Then go ahead and keep missing me. Whose fault is it for heading back so soon?" Eriri sent a face-pulling emoji.
Right after she sent that, Eriri felt someone tap her shoulder. She turned on reflex, and met Aki Tomoya's puzzled expression.
"Eriri, what's got you grinning so happily?"
"Happy... me?" Eriri pointed at herself.
Aki Tomoya nodded. "Yeah. You were just smiling like a goof at your phone the whole time."
Hearing him say it, Eriri reflexively rubbed her cheeks. Had she really just been grinning like an idiot?
It was only a message from Mio. What on earth was she smiling like that about?
No. It was a rare chance to be alone with Aki Tomoya. How could she be sitting here thinking about that white-haired little bitch? She had to pull her head together.
Eriri took a deep breath, then said to Aki Tomoya, "Let's go. Let's check out that booth you mentioned."
Aki Tomoya gave her an odd look. He couldn't shake the feeling that Eriri was acting a little strange today, her moods swinging way more than usual.
Strange or not, he still led Eriri over to the booth.
Looking at the cover—a gorgeous white-haired, red-eyed girl—Eriri, who had only just barely managed to stop thinking about a certain someone, found that someone's figure surfacing in her mind all over again.
Noticing the subtle look on Eriri's face, Aki Tomoya asked, concerned, "Eriri, you okay?"
"I-I'm fine. I was just curious. Is the white-haired, red-eyed look really that popular these days?"
He didn't know why Eriri was asking, but Aki Tomoya explained anyway. "White-haired characters have always been a hugely popular moe type. As an artist yourself, you'd know that better than I would."
"That's true, I guess, but..."
"But?"
"...Never mind. It's nothing." Eriri let out a soft sigh. She could hardly say it out loud, that the sight of a pretty white-haired girl made her involuntarily think of a certain white-haired little bitch.
She'd fully intended not to think about that someone today, yet everything around her seemed determined to remind her.
For the moment, Eriri honestly couldn't tell whether the problem was with her, or with the world.
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