August 31, 11:20 AM.
After wordlessly walking for a while and ending up at a deserted side street, Mikoto finally stopped. Kamijou almost walked into her at her sudden stop.
She turned forcibly and, with an expression filled with amazement and anger, said, "What the hell is wrong with you? Don't you know the reason why you have to act along? If you and Unabara became friends, wouldn't it all have been meaningless?"
"…"
"Listen, right now, you're now my… my… 'lover'! All this is for Unabara Mitsuki to no longer come harassing me! Could you please not forget this basic goal?"
"…"
"What, why aren't you saying anything?"
"I can't," Kamijou honestly said. "Because that guy's serious. He already knows that doing so would only get him hurt in the end, yet he still honestly came out and stated his feelings for you. And he already decided that even if he's hurt because of it, he won't end up resenting you. I can't trick someone like him, nor do I want to."
"What…?"
Mikoto seemed surprised, looking stunned at Kamijou.
Kamijou didn't realize Mikoto was slightly trembling.
"On the other hand, I want to ask you: what don't you like about Unabara Mitsuki? Does he have some sort of serious flaw? Of course, if you don't like him, it's not right to force you to go out with him, either, though I do want to know the reason behind this."
"…"
Mikoto stared at Kamijou, as if she wanted to say something. But her lips were tightly pressed; not a word was able to be emitted from them—even her breathing seemed to stop.
Kamijou and Mikoto prolonged the silence.
After some time, Mikoto finally said, "You…"
"?"
"…Mm, nothing."
Mid-sentence, Mikoto seemed to change her mind and didn't continue. She put up a smile that said there was nothing wrong, but her eyes showed a bit of loneliness—at least that was the feeling Kamijou got.