The next day, Mizuha was absent because of the fever she had the day before. From her seat, Shimizu glanced over at Mizuha’s empty desk, worrying about her condition.
Meanwhile, in Hikaru’s classroom, Hikaru sat wondering what had happened to Takeru. Yesterday, he had skipped all his classes after lunch, and now he was absent.
Where could he have gone? Is he blaming himself for what happened to Yuki-san yesterday?
Back in Mizuha’s class, the teacher asked for a volunteer to deliver Mizuha’s homework.
"Can someone deliver this printout to Yuki-san, who is absent today?"
Shimizu volunteered, raising her hand. "Sensei, I will deliver it to Yuki-san this evening."
"Oh, Shimizu, thanks for your help. Please deliver it to her, okay?"
Her classmates were curious about her absence. Some of them had seen Hikaru carry an unconscious Mizuha the previous day.
"Hey, did you hear that? I heard Yuki-san passed out suddenly yesterday."
"I heard that too. I also saw Hikaru carrying her like a princess, rushing to the nurse’s office yesterday with Shimizu-san."
They approached Shimizu to ask the reason.
"Um, Shimizu-san, what happened to Yuki-san yesterday? We heard she passed out suddenly during lunch break."
Shimizu told them not to worry about Mizuha and explained that she just had a high fever. The classmates were relieved and thanked Shimizu for the update.
Recently my classmate been approaching me without hesitation. Looks like they no longer see me as a delinquent, contrary to the rumors, Shimizu thought.
Hikaru messaged Shimizu, saying that they didn’t need to eat on the school rooftop as usual and could eat in their respective classrooms. They all agreed. Suddenly, Shimizu received a message from her editor requesting an urgent meeting.
Ugh, why is this happening suddenly? she thought.
She then planned to ask Eri to deliver the homework.
"Eri, can you deliver this to Mizuha? I have an urgent matter this evening."
"Shimizu-chan, about that, instead of asking me to deliver it, why not give it to Takamiya-kun? He seemed really worried about Mizuha yesterday."
"That’s a good idea. I wonder why I didn’t think of that. Thanks for the advice, Eri."
"You're welcome."
Shimizu then went to Class 1B to meet Hikaru. "Excuse me, is Takamiya here?"
Some of Hikaru's classmates were surprised by Shimizu's sudden appearance.
"Wait, is that the delinquent Shimizu from Class 1F?"
"Yeah, why is she here? What does she want with Hikaru-kun?"
"Is she going to bully Hikaru-kun?" they whispered to each other.
Shimizu noticed their whispering and sighed. "Ah, not again… Keep calm, just ignore them."
"Hey, Hikaru-kun, that tomboy is calling for you."
His words made Shimizu lose her cool. "What did you call me? Say it again?!"
The classmate was shocked, and Hikaru laughed before standing up. "Oh, I'm coming now."
Hikaru approached Shimizu while Akemi, who was at her desk nearby, glanced over at the exchange.
"Hey, Shimizu. What’s up? Do you need something from me?"
Shimizu handed the printout to Hikaru. "Here, take this."
"What is this?"
"This is Mizuha’s homework. I want you to deliver it to her."
"Why me? You’re her classmate, right?"
"Well, I was planning to deliver it at first, but it turned out I'm busy this evening, so I can't."
"So, can you do it for me, please?" Shimizu begged him.
"Besides, I know you want to see her. Why not use this as an excuse to deliver it to her?"
Hikaru felt hesitant to take it. "But..."
Shimizu grinned. "No need to hide that; your face clearly tells me that you really want to do that."
Hikaru felt annoyed before he sighed. "Alright, I'll deliver it this evening. You happy now?"
"Yeah, that's what I wanted to hear from you. As expected of a perfect guy, Takamiya."
"Ah, shut up already. Here, give it to me," Hikaru said before taking the printout from Shimizu.
"Okay, we're done here, right? Now go back to your class already," Hikaru said.
"Tch, you stubborn…" Shimizu said before looking into Hikaru's classroom.
"By the way, what happened to Takeru? I haven’t seen him since Mizuha passed out."
"Oh, him? He skipped all classes yesterday, and today he’s absent too," Hikaru said.
"I see. I think he’s blaming himself for what happened yesterday."
"Yeah, I think so too. He looked pale after Mizuha passed out yesterday."
Shimizu turned to leave. "Okay, I'm counting on you for this, Takamiya. Go see your girlfriend."
"Hey, she’s not my girlfriend."
But you like her, right? Haha, you can't hide it from me. Then, I'm counting on you." She run away and return back to her class.
Hikaru turned red, clearly flustered. "You, Shimizu!!! Wait…"
Geez, this annoying girl… Hikaru thought.
Hikaru returned to his seat before one classmate approached him. "Wow, you’re so tough, Hikaru-kun. You can talk casually with someone famously tomboyish like that? We wouldn’t dare talk to her like that."
"What? Her? Haha. Why are you guys afraid of her? She’s not as bad as people say. Just because she looks boyish doesn't mean she's a delinquent. You guys were misled all this time. If you were friends with her, you’d see she’s a great friend."
Seeing Hikaru blush when Shimizu mentioned he liked Mizuha made Akemi fall silent.
When her friend asked what was wrong, she forced a smile."Ah, it's nothing."
Meanwhile, Mizuha was still in a weak condition, lying on her bed in her room.
"Mizuha, I’m going out for now. Do you need anything?"
"No thanks, I’m fine."
"Let me take your temperature right now, my dear."
"37.9°C. Your temperature is still high. If it gets worse, we’ll go to the hospital, okay? Just get some rest, okay?"
"Alright, I will rest."
"Then, I’m going for now. Please call me if your condition gets worse, okay?"
Her mother turned to leaveher room. "See you later."
At the family restaurant, Shimizu was having a meeting with her editor about the novel.
"Umm, this is a very nice manuscript. I'm waiting for the upcoming chapter, Mizuno-sensei."
"Thank you very much."
After the meeting ended, her editor left.
Huh, I’m so exhausted today. I’d better rest here for a while, Shimizu thought.
She took out her phone and messaged Mizuha: "Mizuha, how are you feeling?"
Mizuha had not read the message yet.
Hmm, she hasn’t read it yet. I think she’s sleeping, Shimizu thought.
Suddenly, she noticed Mizuha’s mother entering the restaurant. That’s Mizuha’s mother. What is she doing here?
She looked in the direction Mizuha's mom had gone and saw someone she knew waiting there unexpectedly.
Is that... Takeru? What is he doing here with Mizuha’s mother? Shimizu thought, confused as they met.
Mizuha’s mother approached Takeru. "Tak-kun, sorry I’m a bit late. I was taking care of Mizuha before coming here."
"Ah, don't worry, Yuki-obasan. I also just arrived a few minutes ago."
"How is she, Yuki-obasan? Is she recovering?"
"Not yet. Her temperature is still high. That worries me so much, so let’s finish this as soon as possible."
"Okay, back to the topic I promised to tell you yesterday, Tak-kun."
"Yes, go ahead, Yuki-obasan."
What are they talking about? I can’t hear what they’re saying, Shimizu thought.
Shimizu then noticed Mizuha's mother tear up while talking, and Takeru's face turned pale upon hearing what she was saying.
What are they talking about? Mizuha's mother is suddenly crying, and Takeru looks shocked, Shimizu thought, frustrated.
Takeru’s face turned pale. "I can't believe it. Is that right, Yuki-obasan?"
"Yes, Tak-kun, that’s why she didn’t recognize you yesterday."
Takeru clenched his fist. "Damn, how did this happen? Is this because I left her alone after my family moved? If I hadn't moved away back then, she might not have ended up like this..."
"No, Tak-kun, it's not your fault. You did well back then taking care of her. If anyone is to blame, it's me. Back then, I left her alone to suffer, without paying attention to what was happening. I really regret that. That incident opened my eyes."
"Yuki-obasan..."
"Tak-kun, please hear me out. This is a secret just between us. Only the two of us and my husband know about this. I beg you, please don’t tell Mizuha herself or even her close friends about this until the right time. Promise me, okay?"
"I promise. I won’t tell anyone about this."
"From now on, just pretend you only met her in high school. She's not the same Mizuha you knew back then anymore. Also, from now on, don't use your old nickname anymore when you’re with Mizuha. I'm worried something like that might happen again. Just leave what happened in the past."
"Understood. I will do what you said, and if anything happens to her, I will protect her like I did back then. You can trust me on that."
"Really, thank you, Tak-kun."
Mizuha’s mom stood up. "Then I’m leaving now. There are things I need to buy at the supermarket after this."
Takeru bowed slightly. "Ah, sorry to take up your time with this. Thanks for telling me; I really appreciate it."
Mizuha’s mother then left.
Mizuha's mom is rushing — she must be worried about her condition, Takeru thought. I can't believe that happened to Mizuha after I moved... I'm sorry, Mizuha. A tear slid down his cheek.
Shimizu watched from a corner of the restaurant, carefully keeping her distance as Mizuha’s mother left. She saw Takeru seated at a table, emotional after his conversation with Mizuha’s mother.
Determined to avoid any interaction, Shimizu acted quickly. She gathered her belongings and stood up, moving with purpose toward the exit. She looked at the door and made sure not to make any unnecessary noise or draw attention to herself.
With one last glance at the door, Shimizu left the restaurant quickly. She didn't look back.
About 30 minutes after Mizuha’s mother left, Mizuha woke up suddenly, feeling an intense thirst.
She noticed the water jugs were empty.
They're empty already. I need to go downstairs to refill them, Mizuha thought.
Despite her weakened condition and blurry vision, she forced herself out of bed and made her way downstairs.
Hikaru arrived in front of Mizuha’s house at the same moment. He was holding a bag of sports drinks and medicine from a convenience store.
I'm finally here, he thought.
He checked his phone and noticed Mizuha hadn’t read his message about his visit. Just then, Mizuha’s mother returned from her errands.
"Yes? Can I help you? Do you need something from our house?" Mizuha’s mother approached Hikaru.
This must be Mizuha's mother, Hikaru thought.
"Yes, I'm a friend of your daughter, Mizuha-san. My name is Takamiya Hikaru. I came to deliver her homework and some things I bought for her," Hikaru said, pulling out the printout and the bag from his schoolbag.
Wait, Takamiya? Mizuha's mother thought.
"So, you’re Takamiya-kun! The one who always walks home with Mizuha after school. She often talks about you."
"Yes? You already know about me?"
"Yeah, she always telling me about you, Takamiya-kun." Mizuha’s mother gave him a warm smile. "Thanks for being such a good friend to her."
"Ah, it okay, I also glad to be friend with her." Hikaru said.
"Also, you're the one who carried Mizuha to the nurse's office yesterday, right? Thanks for that."
"Wait, how did you know that?"
"Your classmate Takeru-kun told me that. He said you and Shimizu-chan helped Mizuha after she passed out. We had a talk inside the nurse's office yesterday."
"I see, so it was Takeru who was telling you that…"
So that's what happened. No wonder he wasn't in our class after I got back from the nurse's office, Hikaru thought.
She took the items from Hikaru. "Also, thanks for bringing these."
Hikaru frowned."How is Yuki-san, I mean Mizuha-san doing?"
"Mizuha hasn’t fully recovered yet. She needs more rest."
Suddenly, the sound of glass shattering and something collapsing echoed from inside the house. Both Hikaru and Mizuha’s mother froze.
Hikaru stiffened."What was that?"
"It can’t be... Mizuha?!" her mother said.
Her mother gasped and rushed into the house with Hikaru close behind. They hurried to the kitchen, where they found Mizuha collapsed on the floor, surrounded by broken glass.
Her mother rushed to her daughter’s side. "Mizuha!"
She moved her away from the shattered glass.
Hikaru approached her. "Hey, Yuki-san, are you okay?"
Mizuha, still disoriented, looked up at her mother. "Mom, you’re back already? Welcome home," she mumbled before noticing Hikaru. "Huh? Why are you here, Takamiya-kun?"
"We can talk about that later. Are you hurt? Did you step on the broken glass?"
Mizuha shook her head weakly. "I'm fine. None of the glass touched me."
"Takamiya-kun, could you carry her back to her room upstairs? I need to clean up this mess."
"Understood. I will do that."
"Yuki-san, can you walk?"
Mizuha tried to stand. "I can walk... I think."
Hikaru shook his head at her stubbornness. Without warning, he scooped Mizuha up into his arms, carrying her just as he had done the previous day.
Mizuha protested, her cheeks turning bright red. "Takamiya-kun, what are you doing? I can still walk. Please put me down; this is so embarrassing."
"Don’t worry about it. Just leave it to me." Hikaru carried her up the stairs.
Mizuha's mother chuckled softly at the sight.
Takamiya-kun's arms felt so warm, Mizuha thought.
When they reached Mizuha’s room, Hikaru was relieved to find the door slightly open, making it easy for him to enter without having to juggle Mizuha in his arms.
He gently laid her on her bed, making sure she was comfortable.
"Takamiya-kun, thanks for carrying me."
"After I collapsed yesterday, you were the one who carried me to the nurse’s office too, right? I’m sorry for causing you trouble twice."
Hikaru blushed. "How did you know? You’re supposed to be passed out."
"I just guessed, and thank you for that."
Hikaru tried to hide his embarrassment. "Don’t worry about it. It wasn’t any trouble at all."
"Yuki-san, for now, just rest in bed. Don’t force yourself to get up. It’s dangerous. If you need anything, just call your mother, like she said."
"But... I... I don’t want to trouble her anymore. She’s already done so much for me since yesterday." Mizuha’s voice broke as tears welled up in her eyes.
Hikaru handed her a tissue. "Please don’t cry, Yuki-san."
This is the first time I've seen her crying like this, as she's always cheerful at school.
"I know you don’t want to be a burden, but your mom does all this because she loves you so much. Don't blame yourself for that."
Mizuha took a deep breath."You’re right... Thanks, Takamiya-kun."
"By the way, Takamiya-kun, why did you come here?"
"Oh, right! I brought your homework. Shimizu asked me to bring it because she had an urgent meeting." Hikaru handed her the papers.
So, it was from Shimizu... that girl. I figured she was meeting with her editor, Mizuha thought.
Hikaru handed her the sports drinks and medicine. "Also, I brought these."
"Are these for me? Thanks, Takamiya-kun."
Just then, Mizuha’s mother called from downstairs. "Takamiya-kun, can you come here for a moment?"
Hikaru stepped out of the room. "I’ll be right back."
Downstairs, Mizuha’s mother handed him a bowl of porridge. "Could you bring this up to her? Be careful; it’s still hot."
"Leave it to me." Hikaru carefully took the bowl and headed back.
"Yuki-san, I brought you porridge from your mother."
"Oh, my mother made porridge?"
Hikaru held up a hand. "But be careful. It’s hot."
Mizuha looked down, blushing."Umm, Takamiya-kun… could you feed that to me?"
What's with you, Yuki-san... suddenly wanting to be pampered? Hikaru thought, also blushing.
Suddenly, Hikaru remembered Mizuha had wanted to feed him a few days ago but got interrupted.
Ah, that day, she seemed like she wanted to feed me her homemade tamagoyaki but didn't get the chance, Hikaru thought.
I'll do that, Hikaru decided. I'll do the same thing you couldn't do that day.
"Alright, Yuki-san, I’ll feed you, but let me cool it down for a moment." Hikaru blew on the porridge on the spoon before feeding it to Mizuha.
"How is it? Is it delicious?"
"Umm, it’s very delicious."
Even though she always looks cheerful at school, somehow, she wants to be spoiled like a child, Hikaru thought.
"Here’s more," Hikaru said, blowing on another spoonful before feeding her. Hikaru repeated the process many times until Mizuha finished eating the porridge.
"Oh, you’ve finished it already."
"Hehe, it’s just like that. I think it’s because I hadn’t eaten since morning—I’ve been sleeping."
"Thanks for that, Takamiya-kun…."
Hikaru cleanup the bowl, and suddenly stood up."Umm, Yuki-san,I’m going to take this bowl back to your mother in the kitchen. I’ll be back. Before that, here—drink this water first, then take the medicine."
"Understood, I’ll take them. See you later, then."
Suddenly, Hikaru noticed a door near Mizuha’s room labeled "No entry."
What's with this room? Why is it labeled like that — and locked? Hikaru thought.
Never mind, this must be some private room they don't want anyone to enter, he thought as he headed to the kitchen.
"Oh, you’re already back. How did it go? Did she finish the porridge?"
"Yes, she finished it already. She ate it happily."
"Really? That’s great. I was worried she wouldn’t want to eat. I think it’s because you were there with her; it gave her the appetite to eat."
"Um, does she become this weak when she’s sick?"
"Yes, she somehow becomes weak when she’s sick. This started two years ago."
"But you don’t need to worry about that. I just need to keep monitoring her health every day to make sure she doesn’t get sick."
The last two years... does she mean during middle school? Wait a minute, didn't Takeru also mention yesterday that the last time he met Yuki-san was around that time too? Hikaru wondered.
"Umm, sorry for asking this, what happened to Mizuha-san in the last two years?"
"About that…. Sorry, for Mizuha's sake, I can't tell you that. I'm truly sorry."
"Ah, don't worry about that. I shouldn't ask you about that. My mistake," Hikaru said before heading back to Mizuha's room. "I'm going to check on her."
"Before you go back to her, take these cooling gel sheets. Please ask her to put one on her forehead."
Hikaru took the gel sheets. "Understood, I’ll give these to her."
"I'm back, Yuki-san."
Mizuha was already asleep when he entered the room.
She’s already sleeping, he thought.
Hikaru adjusted her blanket to cover her properly, then placed a cooling gel sheet on her forehead and sat beside her, taking her hand.
"Yuki-san, I hope you fully recover after this. I’ll be waiting for you to come back to school as usual."
As Hikaru gently put her hand back down, Mizuha suddenly spoke in her sleep, "Takamiya-kun, thank you..."
Hikaru froze. "Huh, is she sleep-talking?"
"You’re welcome..." he whispered in her ear.
I should head home now; she's already asleep and I'm done here, he thought.
Before leaving, Hikaru looked around inside Mizuha’s room.
Wow, so many drawings in this room. Did she draw these? Hikaru wondered, admiring the artwork.
He turned to the door. "I’m leaving now, Yuki-san. See you later at school."
As Hikaru reached the stairs on the lower floor, Mizuha’s mother approached him.
"Oh, you’re going home already? I was hoping you might stay a bit longer so we could have dinner together tonight."
"Thank you for the offer, but staying longer might burden you, so I must decline. Also, Mizuha-san is already asleep, and my task here is done, so there’s no need for me to stay. I apologize."
"Oh, I see. If you say so, I won’t keep you."
Mizuha’s mother bowed.
"Takamiya-kun, thank you so much for visiting her today. You’ve done so much for her."
"Please, don’t bow, Yuki-san. As a friend, I am glad to be able to help her."
Hikaru bowed slightly in return. "Alright, Yuki-san. Thanks for having me. I’ll be on my way now."
"Ah, Takamiya-kun, wait a moment. There is something I need to give you before you leave."
Mizuha’s mother went to the kitchen, packed something, and handed it to Hikaru.
"Here, take this. These are dishes I made for dinner. Please share them with your family. Consider it a gift from me for what you did for Mizuha earlier."
Hikaru took the container. "Thank you so much. I’ll make sure to share them with my family."
"Please be careful on your way home, okay?"
"Yes." Hikaru nodded and left Mizuha’s house.
What a wonderful person he is, Mizuha’s mother thought. He even came to see you when you were sick. Good for you, Mizuha. You have friends who truly care for you now.841Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRBzJP15wH2
841Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMF8XE8QsOK
and then Add to home screen.