Saturday, after school was over. Sitting alone in the clubroom, I checked the time on my phone.

"Strange, why hasn't she shown up yet? Yesterday, even though the bell had just rung, she was already here before me. How could she be late now?"

It had been thirty minutes since I arrived. But there was no sign of Yuri whatsoever. Since she still hadn’t bought a new phone, I couldn’t contact her either.

"Should I go check her classroom?"

During lunch break earlier, I spent the time eating with Kaito. That’s why I hadn’t seen Yuri at all today.

Staring at the computer Ms. Mizu gave me, which I hadn’t even touched yet, I felt like there was no point in waiting any longer. Picking up my bag, I walked toward Yuri’s classroom, which wasn’t far from the clubroom.

Fortunately, although there wasn’t a single person left in the classroom when I opened the door, one first-year girl happened to be passing by, seemingly just done with her club practice.

I quickly stopped her.

"Hey, can I ask you something real quick? Do you know Yuri from this class? She’s a shy girl with long bangs. Do you know where she is right now?"

"Yuri? Oh, she’s from my class."

Wiping the sweat dripping from her cheeks with a towel, the girl caught her breath.

"She’s absent today. I don’t really know the reason, but according to the teacher, she might be sick."

So she really didn’t come to school?

But sick? Could it be because she got caught in the rain with me? No, that happened a while ago, and if she really had a fever, she should’ve been absent since yesterday.

Thanking the girl, I headed back to the clubroom to lock the door and decided to go straight home.

Walking down the hallway, I let out a sigh.

"She looked completely fine yesterday..."

To be honest, it felt kind of lonely with her suddenly absent like this. Especially since I had drawn a few more illustrations after she told me she liked my art. Too bad school’s off tomorrow, and I’ll be back at work on Monday.

"... Maybe I could visit her house? Tomorrow is Sunday after all. She wouldn’t mind if I just dropped by to check on her, right?"

As I passed the stairs heading to the second floor, I turned briefly when I heard fast footsteps like someone was running and wondered who it could be.

But it turned out to be someone I knew.

"Yona?"

"Ren!"

The ponytailed girl’s eyes widened, and soon a smile appeared on her face when she saw me. Stopping in her tracks, she didn’t seem to plan on walking all the way down the stairs. Because right after stopping, she jumped toward me.

For a moment, my instincts as a man told me to catch and carry her like a princess.

But on the other hand, my instincts as a human wanting to survive told me to dodge, because she might be too heavy for me to hold alone.

Caught in a moment of dilemma, I ended up doing nothing; neither dodging nor trying to catch her. Fortunately, Yona didn’t seem to expect any reaction from me and landed safely. As expected from the ace of the Track Club.

Her uniform looked a bit messy and soaked in sweat, so she probably just finished practice.

"... Ren! Are you done with your club stuff?"

"More or less."

Adjusting the scarf I wore as the wind began to blow, I tried to block the cold seeping through my neck.

"In that case, that means..."

Her smile grew wider. Reaching out, she wrapped her arm around mine. Her face lit up with happiness as she looked at me, like a child clinging to their parent.

"We still have lots of time after this, right? Wanna hang out for a bit?"

"Hang out?"

"Yeah. I’ve been really lonely, you know? I actually wanted to ask you yesterday, but I didn’t expect practice to take longer than usual."

Tightening her hold on my arm, the happiness on her face somehow started to feel cold.

"Besides, seeing you with Yuri in the clubroom you guys just built... you’d be annoyed if I suddenly walked in, wouldn’t you?"

I can't breathe...

Turning my face away, my scarf covered my mouth as I spoke.

"Alright. So where are we going?"

I could tell Yona was starting to sulk because I changed the subject. But after a few seconds, she loosened her grip and started walking, with me struggling to keep up.

A small laugh escaped her lips.

"Hehe. To a place I’m sure you’ll like. I only found out about it recently after my classmates started talking about it. They all say it’s a fun spot."

A place normies would like, and she thinks I’d like it too? Now I’m really curious.

Before I could ask, Yona spoke again.

"It won’t be fun if I just tell you everything now. So come on, let’s go."

"Slow down, please..."

Just like that, I was dragged away by Yona to wherever she had in mind.

Though, it turned out to be farther than I expected. Not only was it in the opposite direction of the station, it also took more than twenty minutes just to get there.

I stared at the large, multi-story building in front of me, full of visitors.

"A shopping mall?"

What’s so interesting about this? My mom or dad might like it since it’s where they usually buy things, but me?

Besides, I’ve gone back and forth to this mall plenty of times when they asked me to buy something. Is Yona really sure there’s something exciting like she said earlier?

"Yeah. But this isn’t what I wanted to show you. Let’s go inside first."

Maybe I judged too soon. Because after she led me to another area inside the mall, I was completely taken aback.

Lights glowed in every corner. Dozens of machines lined up neatly, each screen showing a different game. Laughter from kids and teens filled the air.

"A game center!?"

How is there a game center here!? Wasn’t this mall just full of boutiques, cosmetic shops, and cafés that could drain my wallet with just one menu!?

Since when did an oasis like this appear in such a dry place!?

"What do you think, Ren? Surprising, right? I was curious too about why the way to this area was always blocked. Turns out, according to my friend, they were adding this game center."

Only the sounds of games reached my ears, and I almost missed Yona’s voice if she hadn’t been standing right next to me.

"L-Let’s play right away, Yona! There are so many multiplayer games I want to try here!"

"You really do love games, didn't you?"

Now, it was my turn to dragged her.