The week before the entrance exams, the 7-Eleven on 4th Street became a sanctuary of caffeine and ink. Tanaka-san, sensing the stakes, had quietly allowed Rika and Rentaro to take their "graveyard shifts" together, even letting them use the small folding table in the back of the storage room during their breaks.
It was 3:15 AM. The store was eerily quiet, the only sound being the low hum of the refrigerated cases and the rhythmic click-click of Rentaro’s mechanical pencil.
"The thermal conductivity of the copper plate..." Rika murmured, her eyes bloodshot but focused. She was leaning over a massive physics tome, her silver star necklace swinging gently as she worked. "If we assume the heat flow is steady-state, the temperature gradient must be linear."
Rentaro didn't look up from his calculus set. "Unless there’s an internal heat source. Check the second variable, Rika. The problem is a trap."
Rika paused, re-read the line, and let out a soft groan of realization. "You’re right. It’s a heat-sink simulation. They’re testing for entropy."
"Everything is entropy lately," Rentaro sighed, finally setting his pencil down. He rubbed his face with his hands. Around them, the storage room was stacked with crates of ramen and bottled water—the very things they were surviving on.
Rika closed her book and looked at him. The fluorescent light of the breakroom made the dark circles under his eyes look like bruises. "Rentaro. About the North Institute. Have you sent the confirmation for the interview?"
Rentaro hesitated. He reached into his bag and pulled out the crumpled application form for the technical school three hours away. "I’m holding it until after the T-University exam. If I get the President’s Scholarship, I can stay here. If I don't... my mom can't afford the local rent, Rika. I have to go where the money is."
The silence that followed was heavy. The "7-Eleven Method" had taught them how to handle a rush, how to balance a till, and how to survive on four hours of sleep. But it hadn't taught them how to bridge a three-hour gap by rail.
"I looked at the physics department at the North Institute," Rika said quietly.
Rentaro’s head snapped up. "What? Rika, that school is a tier below your level. You’d be overqualified before the first semester ended."
"They have a partnership with the National Research Lab," Rika countered, her voice steady. "If I go there, I can get a research grant by my sophomore year. It’s not T-University, but it’s... it's a path."
"You’re considering throwing away a T-University seat just to stay near me?" Rentaro’s voice was a mix of disbelief and guilt. "I won't let you do that. I won't be the reason the 'Ice Queen' melts her own future."
Rika stood up, walking around the small table. She sat on the edge of the crate next to him and took his hand. Her fingers were ink-stained, but her grip was like iron.
"It’s not 'throwing it away,' Rentaro. It’s choosing. For eighteen years, my father chose my schools, my hobbies, and my future. If I choose a school because the person I love is there, then for the first time in my life, that choice belongs to me."
Rentaro looked at her, his throat tightening. He had spent his life running away from things—running from his old school, running from his failures, running from people. But looking at Rika, he realized he finally had something worth running toward.
"We're going to pass that T-University exam," Rentaro vowed, his voice low and fierce. "We’re going to get those two top spots. We’re going to make it so neither of us has to settle."
"Then get back to your calculus," Rika said, a small, tired smile lighting up her face. "We have three more practice sets before the sunrise delivery arrives."
They dove back into the books, two ghosts in a convenience store, fighting the dark with nothing but logic and each other.22Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu8b5dfDOUs
and then Add to home screen.