Chapter 3: The Task At Hand

Hoshino Kaito POV:

A few minutes later, the four of us stood outside the classroom as Hinata-sensei gave instructions.

"Alright, listen up. There are two locations where we need to pick up boxes from—the chemistry lab and the biology lab, take those boxes to the storage room. I'll let you guys decide how to split into pairs."

This is perfect. I already knew how this scene played out in the game. If Ren went with Ayane, he'd end up saving her from a collapsing pile of boxes—another flag for their relationship.

So, before anyone could say anything, I raised my hand.

"I'll go with Asakura-san."

Hinata-sensei paused, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh? That was quick, Hoshino."

"Huh?" Mio tilted her head slightly.

"You planned this, didn't you?!" Ren glared at me.

"I have no idea what you're talking about." I gave him my most innocent expression.

Ayane, who had been silent the whole time, just nodded.

"That's fine with me."

Hinata-sensei smirked slightly, crossing her arms.

"Well, well. Looks like you two have some preferences on who you want to work with."

I immediately picked up on her teasing tone.

"W-wait, it's not like that! I just figured we should divide up efficiently!"

"Uh-huh. Efficiently. Right." She tapped her chin, clearly enjoying my flustered reaction.

"Alright then. Hoshino and Asakura, you take the biology lab. Fujimura and Sakuragi, you handle the chemistry lab. You all know where those are, right?"

We nodded, and she clapped her hands.

"Good. Get to it, and be quick."

When I walk beside Mio, I couldn't shake off the slight nervousness creeping in. Did she think I was acting suspicious? Not that I could blame her—I definitely could have worded things better back in the hallway.

"Umm… Asakura-san." I tried to sound casual.

"Yeah?" she tilt her head slightly.

"I hope you didn't misunderstand earlier. I didn't have any weird intentions when I volunteered us together."

I tried my best to keep a straight face, but as she looked at me with those curious eyes, I felt a drop of sweat slide down my forehead.

Mio blinked, then gave a small smile.

"No… I know why you did it."

She didn't elaborate, she simply walking beside me in silence as we made our way to the biology lab. The quiet between us wasn't necessarily uncomfortable, but there's something about her tone that left me unsettled.

Wait… does she knows why I did that?

After a while, she finally broke the silence.

"You did it to give Ayane and Ren-kun some time alone, right?" she glanced at me with a knowing expression.

I froze mid-movement.

"Huh? H-how did you know that?"

"Isn't it obvious? Besides, I already know about what's happening between them. He's still nonchalant as usual." She let out a soft chuckle.

"Y-you know all of that, huh?" I feel a bit caught off guard.

Mio smiled and continued walking beside me.

"So, Hoshino-kun. Any particular reason you're so eager to pair them up?"

"What, can't a guy just make a logical decision?" I tried to act nonchalant.

"Logical? You blurted it out before anyone even had a chance to speak." She gave me a deadpan look.

"Just… figured it made sense. Ren and Ayane already know each other well, so they'd work better together." I coughed, evading her eyes.

"Hmm… I see, I see. So you are playing matchmaker." Mio hummed thoughtfully.

I nearly tripped over my own feet.

"What? No! I just think they'd be a good team!"

"Uh-huh." She shot me a teasing smile.

"You're surprisingly invested in their teamwork. Almost like you want something to happen."

I sighed, realizing there was no way to dodge her sharp observations.

"Fine. Maybe I do."

"Why?" She tilted her head.

That question made me pause.

Why am I doing this? Because I already knew how things were supposed to go? Because I wanted to nudge Ren toward Ayane, just like the game intended?

"I guess… I just think they'd be good for each other." I admitted after a moment.

"Ren's a little too laid-back, and Ayane's got that serious vibe. They balance each other out."

"That's surprisingly thoughtful of you, Hoshino-kun." Mio studied me for a second before smiling.

"Wow. Thanks. I feel so validated." I rolled my eyes.

"Still, I didn't take you for the meddling type." She giggled.

"I wouldn't call it meddling. It's called… 'helping things along'."

"Mmm-hmm. Whatever you say." She gave me a knowing look.

We finally reached the biology lab. I exhaled, glad to change the subject.

"Alright, let's grab these boxes before Sensei yells at us."

As we stepped inside, I shook off the nagging feeling in the back of my mind. Mio's words lingered, though.

Am I really just helping Ren and Ayane? Or am I acting like this because I want that game scenario to happen?

Before I could think too much, Mio spoke up again.

"But I'll do the same as you, Hoshino-kun."

I turned to her, confused.

"Huh?"

She smiled softly, her fingers lightly tapping against the edge of a box.

"I'll let Ren-kun and Ayane be together too."

Her words caught me off guard. The way she said it… there's something off about her tone. She's smiling, but it felt forced.

For the first time, I noticed something in her eyes. A faint trace of sadness, quickly masked by her usual cheerful demeanor.

Am I imagining things? Or… is there something between those three that I wasn't aware of?

I shook my head. No point overthinking it now. Let's just see what happens.

I grabbed the nearest box, adjusting my grip. The sooner I got this done, the sooner I could check in on Ren and Ayane.

"Alright, Let's hurry and finish this." I muttered.

As we carried the boxes down the hallway, I found myself stealing glances at Mio. She walked beside me, her expression neutral, her gaze focused forward. But that fake smile from earlier lingered in my mind. The way she laughed back there—it didn't feels genuine.

I tried to recall everything I knew about her from the game. Mio had always been Ayane's closest friend, her biggest supporter. But was that all there was to it?

For some reason, the way she looked earlier at the parking lot reminds me of something straight out of a visual novel CG—beautiful and heartwarming. But, with her expression before... she seems hiding a secret...

I shook my head, snapping myself out of that thought. Come on man, Get it together. I'm not some protagonist in a romance game. This is real life now.

Just as I was about to get lost in my thoughts again, Mio suddenly spoke up.

"You keep looking at me Hoshino-kun, do I have something on my face?" her voice light but with a teasing tone.

I nearly dropped the box I was holding.

"W-what? No! I was just… thinking."

She giggled.

"About what?"

I hesitated. Should I just say I was wondering what's wrong with her? That I had noticed her forced smile? But something told me it's not the right time to push.

"Just… about how heavy these boxes are." I said instead, shifting the weight in my arms.

Mio gave me a smile but didn't press further.

"Well, you better not drop it. I'd hate if Sensei to scold you because of that."

"Yeah, yeah. Let's just hurry and get this over with." I sighed.

But even as we walked, I couldn't shake off the feeling that there's something more to Mio's words. Something she tried to hide.

After a short while, we finally finished carrying the boxes to the storage room. Setting the last one down, I wiped my forehead and let out a deep breath.

"Finally."

"That wasn't so bad." Mio stretched her arms.

"Speak for yourself. These things were heavier than they looked."

She chuckled but didn't say anything else. Something about her quiet demeanor still bothered me, but I decided to let it go—for now.

As we made our way back to the classroom, we found Hinata-sensei waiting for us just outside the door. She glanced up as we approached and crossed her arms.

"Whoa, that was quick."

I straightened up, feeling oddly proud.

"Yeah, we—"

"Where's Fujimura and Sakuragi?" she interrupted.

"Huh?" I blinked.

"The chemistry lab is closer to the storage room than the biology lab, yet you two finished first?"

That's when it hit me—Ren and Ayane still hadn't come back.

Mio and I exchanged glances. I felt a small smirk creeping up my face. Hoho~ Did things go exactly as planned?

"Well, I guess we'll just have to wait and see what happened to those two." said Hinata-sensei.