Before long, the school day had come to an end. Since classes finished early at around three o'clock, the rest of the afternoon was left for club activities.
"Alright, I'm heading out." Kikukawa Kyo slung her bag over her shoulder. She hadn't taken much out of it the entire day, so by the time she was already on her feet, Sakiko was still at her desk, organizing her books.
"You're heading straight to the bookstore, right?"
"Yeah." Sakiko responded casually, glancing up at Kyo—who had already taken off the yellow vest from her uniform again.
During school hours, she at least pretended to follow the rules, probably out of respect for the ever-watchful disciplinary teachers roaming the halls. But the second the final bell rang, the vest was the first thing to go, stuffed right into her bag. Only her crisp white dress shirt remained.
Sakiko had long since given up on lecturing her about it. After all, Kyo did wait until school was officially over before becoming "improperly dressed."
"Do you really hate the uniform that much? You've been trying to ditch that vest at every opportunity since the first day of school."
"This?" Kyo looked down at herself, then extended her arms and did a quick spin, showing off the simple yet well-fitted white shirt.
The fabric wasn't exactly tight, but it still subtly outlined the youthful figure of a high school girl. And with its noticeable transparency, Sakiko could clearly see the faint outline of the sports bra underneath.
At least Kyo's choice of underwear was plain and practical—just a simple white sports bra. Otherwise, even if school had already ended, Sakiko wouldn't have been able to stop herself from forcibly making Kyo put that vest back on.
This is just too indecent!
Raised with strict etiquette, Sakiko found it completely unacceptable. Doesn't Kyo realize that dressing like this will attract a certain type of gaze?!
Unfortunately, Kyo couldn't hear Sakiko's inner complaints. Instead, she casually explained, "It's just hot, that's all. Look—I've barely moved around all day, and I'm already sweating."
"I remember you saying before that anywhere there's water, you tend to produce a lot of it, right?"
"Ew… that's such a weird way to phrase it. 'Anywhere there's water'? That sounds so wrong."
Excuse me?!
Sakiko's hands clenched so tightly that veins nearly popped. I haven't even called you out for being improper and indecent, and yet you're already turning this back on me?! Kyo was just as skilled at twisting words as she was at avoiding direct questions.
"Hah…" Sakiko let out a long sigh. She only ever did this when dealing with Kyo—somehow, she always found herself at a loss. "I just wanted to remind you… As a girl, you should take better care of yourself."
The rest of what she wanted to say got stuck in her throat. Dressing like this makes you an easy target…
"Yeah, yeah, got it."
"Don't just brush it off like that!"
"Aye aye, ma'am!"
Kyo suddenly snapped to attention, standing ramrod straight with a ridiculously serious expression. She spoke with the kind of exaggerated enthusiasm a soldier might have when saluting their superior officer.
This dramatic display immediately caught the attention of the few students still lingering in the classroom. Now, everyone was staring at Kyo standing at attention in front of Sakiko.
"Just go already. You're always so improper," Sakiko turned her head away, trying to hide the smile that nearly slipped through. "I'm leaving too."
"Hehe, then I'm off!" Kikukawa Kyo, having received her dismissal, tapped her heels against the floor and strolled out of the classroom.
However, instead of heading straight home, Kyo changed direction upon exiting the main building and walked toward the club activity hall.
In the end, she hadn't signed up for any clubs. Plenty of classmates had invited her, hoping she'd join alongside them. Even an upperclassman from the cooking club—someone Kyo had known since middle school—had tried to tempt her, saying that if she joined, they could request additional mixology equipment for the club's kitchen.
Kyo had to admit, that was tempting. If not for her involvement with the band situation, she might have actually considered it.
But for now, her destination was the astronomy club.
After that day, Tomori had officially joined the club. As for Anon, she, like Kyo, hadn't found any club that particularly interested her and had remained part of the "go-home club."
Unlike the music-focused building the three of them had explored on the first day of school, this hall housed a wide variety of different clubs. As Kyo made her way upstairs, she peeked down the hallways, catching glimpses of various club activities—a room filled with intricate paper cuttings, another where ingredients were left out to dry, and at the far end of the corridor, bathed in the warm glow of the setting sun, a student curled up inside a sleeping bag.
A… napping club?
That actually sounded kind of nice.
"Should've known—the astronomy club's all the way at the top. What, to be closer to the stars?"
Kyo's athleticism was decent, so climbing to the top floor in one go didn't leave her winded at all.
Finding the room labeled Astronomy Club, she knocked a few times before opening the door.
"I'm here, Anon, Tomori."
The astronomy club's activity room was small and simple—one long sofa, a desk against the wall, a few low bookshelves filled with astronomy-related texts and past club activity records, and a telescope that looked pretty professional, sitting in the corner.
But today, there seemed to be… something extra.
"Uh… what exactly are you two doing?"
Kyo stepped in to find Anon and Tomori standing in front of the sofa, each holding a large blue plastic water bottle. Tomori had that adorably serious look on her face—the kind she always wore when she was doing something she deemed incredibly important. Anon, on the other hand, seemed like she had been dragged into it. She looked a little confused as to why they were doing this, but also amused enough to go along with it.
"Kyo…!"
"Kyo, you're finally here! Come here, come here!"
"What is all this?"
Their secretive behavior piqued Kyo's curiosity. This seemed like a surprise prepared just for her… Were they planning to give her water? No way—if that were the case, they wouldn't be acting so secretive about it.
Tossing her bag onto the table, Kyo walked closer and looked past the two girls—only to discover that the blue water bottles weren't just the ones Anon and Tomori were holding.
There were at least a dozen identical bottles neatly arranged on the sofa, forming a perfect circle.
And in the center of that circle was just enough space for one person to sit.
No doubt about it—that seat was meant for her.
…Is this some kind of ritual sacrifice dedicated to me?!