Wednesday arrived, and everyone gathered, heading toward Mizuki's house together.
Arashi muttered, "The house isn't that far… let's just get there."
Takumi grinned and urged, "Come on, hurry up! Free food tastes amazing, you know."
Satoru shook his head, half amused. "You never change, do you?"
Hina crossed her arms and sighed. "Just pray our class actually wins."
Miyu's eyes sparkled with excitement. "Yes, really! If our class wins, everyone will see us when we get our prize. We'll earn some respect at last!"
Arashi rolled his eyes. "Okay, stop dreaming for now—we've already arrived."
He stepped forward and rang the bell at Mizuki's house.
As soon as the bell rang, a loud "Coming!" echoed from inside, followed by the unmistakable crash of something falling over.
When the door swung open, Arashi froze—Mizuki's dad was standing there, arms wide. Without warning, he lunged and grabbed Arashi in a crushing bear hug.
"Arashi! You're back! I missed you so much!" he exclaimed, squeezing him like a human stress ball.
Arashi struggled, trying to escape. "Y-Yeah… okay… now let me go!"
Finally free, he glanced past Mizuki's dad and saw the rest of his friends. The man blinked, clearly taken aback.
"And… who are all these people?" he asked, his voice a mix of curiosity and confusion.
Arashi scratched the back of his head awkwardly. "Uh… we're friends. Mizuki probably told you about us…"
Mizuki's dad squinted at them all, looking each over carefully.
He paused at Ayane, recognition lighting his face. "Ah! Ayane! We've met before, haven't we? You're still the same little troublemaker!" Ayane bowed slightly, trying not to laugh. "Yes… sir… nice to see you again."
Then he turned to Hina, who was standing quietly off to the side. He tilted his head. "And… you? Who are you?" Hina gave a small, polite nod. "I'm Hina. Nice to meet you, sir." He raised an eyebrow. "Hm… quiet type, huh? Mysterious."
Next, Miyu stepped forward. Mizuki's dad looked confused for a moment, then held out his hand. "And you are…?" Miyu grinned nervously. "I'm Miyu! Nice to meet you, sir!" He shook his hand awkwardly, mumbling, "Ah… okay… nice to meet you…"
Takumi walked up confidently. Mizuki's dad's eyes narrowed as he studied him. "And you are…?" "Takumi," he said cheerfully. "Nice to meet you!" The man made a face like he was trying to figure him out. "Huh… energetic, I see. Hmm…"
Finally, he looked at Satoru, who was silently observing everything. "And… you. You're…?" "Satoru," he said calmly. Mizuki's dad blinked, looked him up and down, then shrugged. "Alright… quiet one. Noted."
He stepped back, letting out a deep breath and shaking his head with a small chuckle. "Well… this is a… colorful group. I guess Mizuki's in good hands… somehow."
The group exchanged glances—part amused, part nervous, all silently wondering how chaotic this visit might get.
As they stepped inside, another familiar voice suddenly called out from the room. Arashi looked up—and his eyes widened.
The boy's eyes lit up the moment he saw Arashi. He ran over excitedly and threw his arms around him in a big hug.
"Arashi! You're here! Today you'll play with me, right?" he said, beaming.
Arashi chuckled nervously. "Y-Yeah… okay."
Then, the boy looked at the rest of the group, curiosity written all over his face. "And… who are all these people?"
Arashi scratched the back of his head. "Uh… these are my friends."
The boy smiled at them all. "Hi! Nice to meet you!"
Mizuki's dad, watching the scene unfold, shook his head with a laugh. "Alright, alright… enough standing around, everyone! Come on in—let's get moving!"
Once everyone stepped inside, Mizuki's dad called out, "Alright, everyone, take a seat. I'll class Mizuki, I'd be right there," and headed toward Mizuki's room.
The rest of the group sat down, chatting quietly. Miyu's eyes landed on the boy, and she smiled warmly. "Come here, little one," she said.
As soon as he walked over, Miyu gently grabbed his cheeks and began to squeeze them playfully. "You're so adorable and cute! What's your name?"
The boy squirmed, giggling. "L-Let go of my cheeks! They're getting hard!"
Miyu laughed. "Okay, okay… I'll let go. Now tell me your name."
"I'm Kaito," he said proudly.
Miyu's eyes sparkled. "Kaito… that's a lovely name! Do you know what it means?"
Kaito nodded eagerly. "It means 'ocean' or 'sea'."
Hina, impressed, tilted her head and smiled. "Wow… you're really smart for your age!"
Kaito tilted his head, looking at Miyu curiously. "What's your name?"
Miyu smiled warmly. "My name's Miyu."
Kaito nodded, then turned to Hina. "And you? What's your name?"
Hina gave a small smile. "I'm Hina."
"Okay," Kaito said, then looked at Satoru. "And you?"
Satoru gave a calm nod. "Satoru."
Finally, Kaito's eyes landed on Takumi. "And you?"
Takumi straightened up confidently. "I'm Takumi."
Kaito's eyes narrowed thoughtfully. "Takumi… what does that mean?"
Takumi scratched the back of his neck awkwardly. "Uh… it means… 'dragon'?"
Kaito blinked, then shook his head with a little grin. "No, no! That's not right. Takumi actually means 'skillful and clever.' See?"
The whole group burst into laughter, watching Takumi's embarrassed expression. Even Mizuki's dad chuckled from across the room.
Takumi muttered, rubbing the back of his neck. "H-hey… I thought it sounded cool!"
Kaito just giggled. "Nope! Now you know!"
The room filled with laughter again, the tension completely melting into a playful, warm atmosphere.
Takumi noticed Miyu laughing the hardest and said.
"Hey," Miyu said, grinning at her, "Miyu… you're laughing so much—then tell me! What does your name mean?"
Miyu straightened up confidently, meeting his curious gaze. "My name? It means 'beautiful connection.' Unlike you, I know what it means, Idiot!"
Takumi's face turned bright red, and he muttered embarrassedly, "W-wait… what?!"
Kaito giggled at Takumi's reaction. But Takumi wasn't done. He waved a finger dramatically. "Just watch, everyone! I'm eating all the food today—I'll get my revenge!"
Satoru raised an eyebrow, dryly commenting, "Revenge? On what? You never even share with us."
At that moment, Mizuki appeared, walking in with a bright smile. "Hi, everyone!"
She gave a quick glance at the group, then called out, "Ayane, Miyu, Hina—let's head to the kitchen!"
The three of them nodded and headed toward the kitchen, ready to start preparing for the festival.