Blurred Line

Minami Shouko's presence in the infirmary was unexpected. Especially when I had just seen her healthy yesterday. While she wasn’t one of my girls, I promised to look after her while she continued her search for a genuine connection. And somehow, seeing her in such a vulnerable state stirred something protective in me.

"What happened to her?" I turned to Hayashi-sensei who was staring at me as if I was acting differently than normal.

Hayashi-sensei crossed her arms as her lips stretched into a small smile but only for a moment. She nudged her glasses and answered professionally as the school nurse, “Fatigue and lack of sleep resulted in overexerting herself today. You can see the results for yourself—high fever, exhaustion, and dehydration."

Wait. She’s not being worked hard by Shizu and she didn’t even look tired yesterday when I met up with them after club hours.

Did something happen to her last night?

"I see. Did you find out why she’s like that, sensei?"