"Kiyoya!"
Her excitement surged to her throat; the name she'd whispered in her heart countless times finally burst out.
The girl's voice was bright and clear, like orange soda popping in the sun.
She bounded toward the boy like a little rabbit.
Blinded by her dazzling smile, Shiratori Kiyoya froze.
As the girl in his field of view drew closer and closer, he snapped out of it and quickly reached out to catch Hojo Suzune.
His palm settled on her soft waist—his heart gave a little jolt.
Suzune's pale, slender arms wrapped tight around his neck, her face burrowing into his chest.
She clung to him koala-style, greedily drinking in his scent.
"…"
Her dark hair brushed his face; gardenia fragrance threaded through the fine strands and slipped into his nose.
Kiyoya instinctively leaned back, dropped his gaze, and called her name softly.
"Suzune? Suzune?"
"Mm~"
A lazy kitten's hum spilled from her delicate nose.
Her small cherry lips pressed together; lashes trembled; the corners of her eyes were flushed, a faint, alluring air clinging to her.
Once he was sure she could stand, Kiyoya eased his hand from her waist and murmured, "Come on—people are staring."
All he got back was another soft hum. He tugged at her—she only hugged tighter.
He couldn't help teasing, "Full koala mode now, huh…"
Yanking her off would be awkward, so he tilted his chin up and figured she'd let go once she'd had her fill.
He'd barely raised his eyes when he saw Hojo Shione stepping over from the car, something like a smile—hard to name—on her face.
Their eyes met; it wasn't a bystander's teasing grin.
They stared until Shione stopped beside them and finally tore her eyes away, feigning surprise. "Oh my, Suzune, what are you doing?"
"…"
Kiyoya felt the girl in his arms twitch—still she clung on, even rubbing her cheek against his chest.
"If you keep that up, Kiyoya's shirt will be covered in your foundation. Keep smearing and we won't be going anywhere."
As if shocked by a trigger, Suzune let go at once, gave a little sniff, and turned away without speaking, wiping the tears from her eyes under cover of smoothing her hair.
Shione made no move to cover for her; she couldn't help laughing.
"Pfft!"
"Weren't you bragging a few days ago about being all grown up? And here you are, crying like a kid."
At the teasing, Suzune paused, then glared, eyes still pink. "You're the kid!"
Before Shione could respond, Suzune's brows drew tight. "Don't you have stuff to do? Why are you still here?"
Shione narrowed her eyes; her voice chilled. "Keep this up and I'll take you home right now."
"…"
That shut Suzune up. Arms crossed, she turned away and muttered, "As if you could just take me home."
Sensing the brewing storm, Kiyoya changed the subject, eyeing the paper bag in Shione's hand. "What's that?"
Shione tucked a lock of hair behind her ear and smiled warmly at him. "Clothes Suzune spent ages picking. She said she wants to change today. She hopped out like a monkey and forgot them."
She handed the bag over.
Kiyoya peeked inside—looked like a yukata.
That could come in handy tonight.
"You're the monkey…" Suzune muttered.
Shione ignored it and turned back to Kiyoya. "I just got back to Tokyo yesterday—still have a pile of things to do. You two have fun; I'll drive over to pick her up tonight. Just call me."
"You got your license?" Kiyoya asked, surprised.
"Yep. Snuck off to take the test at the start of the year—never got the chance to tell you."
She paused, voice meaningful. "Driving's tiring, though. Not nearly as comfy as the passenger seat."
"…"
Kiyoya nodded, pretending not to get it.
Shione caught the look, smiled again, and said suddenly, "I saw your post yesterday. She's very pretty…"
The words hung. Kiyoya met her eyes, remembering what she'd said:
"I hope you won't treat the next girl as cruelly as you treated me."
Shione looked away, patted her sister's shoulder, and, despite Suzune's annoyed glance, said, "Alright, Suzune. Happy birthday.
"Remember to call me tonight."
Something in the "happy birthday" softened the girl's face. "Okay. Be careful…"
Shione turned to leave, without a hint of lingering.
The two of them stood and watched until her car disappeared.
Finally gone.
Thank goodness!
As the tail lights vanished, Suzune's face broke into a grin.
She grabbed Kiyoya's arm, leaning half her weight on him.
Feeling the soft, warm press, Kiyoya flinched, then quickly slipped his arm free.
"Eh?"
The sudden move left her staring, blank, not understanding why she'd been refused.
"Suzune," he said before the sting could rise. He bent a little to meet her eyes. "It's your birthday—I'll spend the day with you. But I have one condition."
"…"
She blinked at his slightly stern look, then nodded obediently—like the girl who'd talked back to her sister moments ago was someone else.
Satisfied, he raised a forefinger. "No touching me. No clinging, no hugging. Off limits."
"Aaah…"
She drew out the sound and reached for his arm to wheedle. "But before, it was okay…"
Kiyoya slipped aside; her pale hand closed on air.
"I have a girlfriend now. I can't be physical with other girls. Or do you want people calling me a scumbag?"
"But when you were dating Sis, I could hug you…"
Suzune pouted, face full of grievance—a look that said, If you don't let me, I'll cry.
"That's just it—that was your sister. She and I both treated you like a little sister. My current girlfriend won't see it that way.
"So—no."
Suzune frowned.
What an annoying reason!
Where did that damned fox spirit pop up from?
Disgusting!
She hated Takahashi Mio already—and they hadn't even met.
Biting her lip, she racked her brain—then brightened. "Th-then… what if I get lost?"
"Kiyoya, if I get lost, I'm done for, right? Tokyo's so big—even you couldn't find me…"
"I won't hug you anymore. Can I hold your sleeve? Holding a sleeve isn't really physical contact, right?"
"…"
Looking at her pitiful face, Kiyoya paused, then nodded.
Yeah!
Approval won, Suzune beamed and pinched a corner of his sleeve between her fingers.
Seeing her behave, Kiyoya nodded. He glanced at her slightly flushed cheeks. "So—where to first?"
He'd planned to set an itinerary for her birthday, but she insisted on deciding.
She pointed at a nearby sign and grinned. "Since we're here, let's hike Mount Takao, obviously!"