Chapter 5: Crossroad

Hoshino Kaito POV:

I stood there, watching as Mio leaned against the desk, her fingers absentmindedly tracing the surface. She wasn't looking at me, but I could tell her thoughts were somewhere else—somewhere... distant.

Should I ask her what was wrong? Should I just let it go? Or maybe… I could try lightening the mood?

I sighed, rubbing the back of my neck.

"You know, if you wanted to race back to the classroom, you could've at least given me a heads-up. I would've actually tried to win."

Mio blinked before turning to me. Then to my relief, she let out a small chuckle.

"Oh? I didn't know you were that competitive, Hoshino-kun."

"Of course. I take running away from my responsibilities very seriously." I smirked.

That earned me a quiet laugh, but the air between us still felt… heavy.

"Asakura-san… look, I know something's bothering you. You don't have to tell me everything, but I'd rather not stand here pretending like nothing's wrong." I exhaled.

"It's nothing serious, really. I just… overthink of something. That's all." She bites her lip.

"overthinking of what?" I raised an eyebrow.

"It's dumb." Mio averted her gaze.

"I specialize in dumb things. Try me."

She shakes her head.

"It's just… watching those two, It reminded me of something." Her fingers curled slightly against the desk.

"Or maybe it just made me realize something I avoided for a while now."

I waited. Eventually, she started talking.

"Back when we were first years… Ayane and I were always together. Wherever she went, I followed. I was happy just being by her side. But as time passed… she started spending more time with Ren-kun."

Mio's voice grew softer. "At first, I thought nothing of it. They were childhood friends, of course, they were close. But then… I started realizing something. I slowly liked Ren-kun, too."

Out of nowhere a weird pain bursted from my chest.

The words hit me harder than I expected. I clench my hand, forcing myself to keep my expression neutral, even though a sharp, unfamiliar ache appear in my chest.

Mio likes Ren.

It felt ridiculous. Painful. Like stepping on shattered glass with bare feet. This morning, I had fallen for her in an instant—like a visual novel scene. And now, within the span of a few minutes, I was already hearing what no one in my position would want to hear.

She let out a small laugh, but it lacked warmth.

"It was so stupid. I didn't even notice my own feelings at first. I just assumed I was tagging along like always. But the more time I spent with them, the more I realized… I wanted to be in Ayane's place."

"But I know. I know from the start that Ayane liked him. Maybe even more than I did. So, I made a choice. I gave up. I decided to support her instead." Mio shook her head, as if she's scolding herself.

I felt a strange tightness in my chest. The way she spoke, as if she had come to terms with it long ago… but I could tell. It still hurt.

"You gave up… just like that?" I asked quietly.

She smiled, but it was different from her usual teasing grin.

"It wasn't just like that. It took time. It hurts. But… I convinced myself that this was the right thing to do. That it was the only thing I could do."

A part of me wanted to tell her she didn't have to do that. That she should have fought for her own feelings. But deep down, another part of me—my selfish part—was relieved. She gave up.

But if she had truly let go… then why did she look like she was moments away from breaking?

My hands twitched, the urge to reach out, to say something—anything—overpowering my usual hesitation. I didn't want to see her sad. I didn't want to see Mio like this.

But at the same time…

A part of me felt guilty. Why am I feeling like this? I barely know her. I only just started getting close to her. And yet, it hurt. It hurt in a way I wasn't prepared for.

"Asakura-san…"

"It's fine, Hoshino-kun. I'm fine. I just…" She hesitated before shaking her head.

"Never mind."

I could hear it in her voice—the way she was trying to sound casual, like all of this was just some old story that didn't matter anymore.

But it did. It mattered to her. And now, for some reason, it mattered to me too.

The tension in the air was heavy, unspoken emotions lingering between us. I wanted to say something, anything, to break it—but nothing felt right.

After a moment, she's finally stands up while forcing a small smile. "Come on, let's head back. If we're gone too long, Sensei might actually make us do more work."

I exhaled, knowing I couldn't force her to say more.

"Yeah… let's go."

As we walked back together, my chest felt heavier than before. Mio had given up on Ren.

But why did it feel like I was the one being left behind?

...

We started walking back, neither of us saying a word. The hallway was filled with the faint chatter of students from the nearby classrooms, the muffled hum of the school's daily life continuing as if nothing had changed.

But for me, something had. Something I couldn't quite put into words yet.

The only sounds between us were the tapping of our shoes against the floor. Mio walked a little ahead, her hands tucked into her sleeves, eyes locked straight forward. She looked completely fine—like the conversation we had just moments ago never happened.

And yet, that silence between us… it felt different from before.

After what felt like forever, we finally reached our classroom. I placed my hand on the door, hesitating before sliding it open.

The usual classroom energy greeted us immediately. Students were chatting, some scribbling down their homework, and the others just messing around. Nothing had changed. No one noticed anything strange about us.

To them, it was just another day.

"Ah, there you guys are!" Ren's voice called from his desk, his usual lazy grin plastered on his face.

"What took you so long? Don't tell me you got lost."

Mio let out a small chuckle, one that sounded almost natural.

"No, no. Hoshino-kun was just taking his sweet time."

Ren smirked, looking at me.

"Figures."

"Hey, I carried all the heavy stuff. I deserve some sympathy here." I rolled my eyes, forcing a grin.

"Right, right. But seriously, that took a while. Don't tell me something interesting happened?"

"Oh? Jealous that we had more fun than you?" I raised an eyebrow, smirking.

"More fun Carrying boxes? Yeah, sounds like a blast, but for real, everything good?"

I hesitated for a second before nodding.

"Yeah. Nothing to worry about. Also, thanks for worrying."

"Ahahah, don't be so formal buddy" he shows his usual grin.

Mio, who had been silent, simply made her way to her seat without another word. Ren gave me a curious glance, but I shook my head. Now isn't the time to get into it.

I sat down at my desk, but something was still nagging at me. The event between Ren and Ayane—him catching her from the falling boxes—i feel like it didn't happen. Was it because I interfered? Was the setting different from the game, or had my actions somehow altered the outcome?

I leaned toward him, lowering my voice.

"So, how about you Ren? Is there something happened with the whole moving-boxes thing?"

"Uh… fine, nothing happened I guess? Why?" Ren raised an eyebrow.

I studied his face. No sign of anything unusual.

"Nothing happened? Like, nothing at all?"

"What, was something supposed to happen?" He looked at me like I had grown a second head.

I leaned back, crossing my arms.

"I dunno. Maybe a heroic moment? Saving Sakuragi-san from an avalanche of boxes or something?"

Ren blinked.

"What kind of dramatic scene are you imagining? No, dude. We just moved some stuff, that's all."

I frowned slightly. So the event really didn't happen. My mind raced through possibilities. Maybe because I pushed Ren to go, it changed the natural flow of events. In the game, he volunteered on his own (well I choose that option in-game), leading to that moment. But since I forced it… did I mess things up?

I hesitated before throwing another question at him.

"By the way, I checked the chemistry lab earlier. You guys weren't there. Just a bunch of boxes stacked outside. Where did you go?"

Ren stiffened slightly at my words. It was brief, but I caught it. A hesitation.

"Oh, uh… we just moved the boxes and left for a moment. But don't worry, we finished our job after that," he said quickly.

I acted like I didn't know.

"Left? Where? I looked around, but you were nowhere to be found."

Ren rubbed the back of his neck, avoiding eye contact.

"We just… took a little detour. Ayane wanted to talk, so we ended up somewhere else."

"Huh. Alright then." I could tell he wasn't telling me everything. There was something more to this. But for now, I decided to let it slide.

Ren sighed, looking relieved that I didn't push further. Now I was even more curious.

Time passed quickly since there were no lessons, and before I knew it, the final bell rang.

After school.

I stretched as I walked out of the class, letting out a small sigh. The day had felt longer than usual, and I'm still thinking about everything that had happened.

As I reach the entrance building, I spotted Ren putting his indoor shoes.

I strolled over casually, acting as if I didn't already know what had happened earlier.

"Yo, Ren. You heading straight home? Or… are you planning to meet Ayane at the old student council room like in that letter?"

Ren flinched slightly.

"Huh? The letter? Oh… uh, yeah. About that…"

"So? You going or not? Pretty bold of Ayane to ask you to meet her there, huh?"

He let out an awkward chuckle, scratching the back of his head.

"Well… I mean…"

I raised an eyebrow. He was hesitating.

"Wait a second, You already met her, didn't you?"

Ren realized that there was no point in hiding it.

"Yeah. She, uh… pulled me aside after we finished moving the boxes. Took me to the old student council room earlier than planned."

Bingo.

"And?"

He hesitated before finally answering.

"She just wanted to talk. About old times. Childhood memories and stuff. It wasn't some confession or anything like that, if that's what you're thinking."

I nodded slowly, processing his words. So the expected 'event' from the game had changed. She just wanted to reminisce huh.

"Why are you so interested, anyway? You're acting kinda weird." Ren looked at me suspiciously.

"What? I can't be interested in my best friend's potential love life?" I forced a grin.

"Dude, it wasn't like that. She just seemed… I don't know. A little nostalgic. Maybe worried about something." He groaned.

I nodded again. Hmm, The storyline is really shifting huh. Maybe because I interfered, or... maybe because this reality wasn't scripted like in the game?

"Well, guess we'll just see what happens next." I clapped Ren on the shoulder.

He rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever."

With that, we went our separate ways, but my mind kept replaying that conversation. Nothing was set in stone anymore. This world wasn't just a game.

As I made my way to the front gate, something caught my eye near the bike parking lot.

Mio.

She was standing there, struggling with her bike. Again.

I raised an eyebrow, watching for a moment as she tugged at the handlebars, trying to free it from the tight rows of parked bicycles. She muttered something under her breath, she clearly looked annoyed.

I shake my head.

"Déjà vu?"

Mio perked up at my voice, turning to look at me.

"Hoshino-kun?!"

"You know, at this point, I'm starting to think you do this on purpose just to get my help." I smirked.

"As if! This thing just won't budge!" She's puffing out her cheeks.

"Alright, alright. Let's get this over with." I chuckled, rolling up my sleeves.

I grabbed the handlebars, pulling the bike free with a firm yank. It came loose much easier than expected, and Mio blinked in surprise.

"How did you—?"

"Magic." I said with a grin, handing it back to her.

She let out a small laugh, the tension in her shoulders easing a little.

"Well, thanks… again."

"You heading straight home?" I stuffed my hands into my pockets.

"Yeah." She nodded.

I hesitated for a moment.

"Wanna walk together?"

"Huh?" Mio blinked in surprise.

"I mean, if you don't mind... I'm heading the same way anyway, and I figured some company wouldn't hurt."

She studied me for a second before shrugging.

"Sure, why not?"

Alright! Score!

With that, she started walking her bike beside me as we left the school grounds. The road was quiet, the golden hue of the setting sun stretching our shadows across the pavement.

For a while, neither of us spoke. It wasn't exactly awkward, but something was on my mind—something I couldn't ignore.

"Hey, Asakura-san?"

"Yeah?" She glanced at me.

I hesitated before asking.

"Have you decided yet?"

"Decided what?" Her expression shifted slightly.

"The pairing system." I keep my tone casual.

"The deadline's only two weeks away. You've got someone in mind already?"

Mio was quiet for a moment before she let out a small chuckle.

"You're awfully nosy, Hoshino-kun."

"I prefer to call it curiosity."

She smiled.

"I guess… I haven't really thought about it."

"Really?" I raised an eyebrow.

"I mean, what's the rush? Two weeks is still a long time, right?" She nodded.

Something about her tone made me think otherwise. She wasn't as carefree as she sounded.

"Fair enough." I stayed silent.

Another quiet moment passed before Mio finally talked again.

"But I don't want to go out with anyone. And whoever I get in the lottery, it will be a disaster…"

"Eh?" I blinked, confused by her sudden shift.

She gripped the bike handles little tighter.

"It's because of my unrequited love for someone else… I just… can't go out with anyone. I don't know what to feel for the guy who will get randomly chosen with me."

Her voice was calm, but I could sense the turmoil underneath. She was trapped—trapped by feelings she couldn't let out and the school system that didn't care about her feelings.

"Asakura-san…" I clenched my fists.

She shook her head with a small, bittersweet smile.

"It's fine. I've already accepted it. I just… don't want to pretend that everything's normal when it's not."

I didn't know what to say to that. I wanted to tell her she had a choice, that maybe things wouldn't be as bad as she thought. But deep down, I understood her hesitation.

"What about you?" she asked suddenly, forcing her usual playful tone back.

"What about you Hoshino-kun? Have you decided yet? "

I opened my mouth but hesitated. Had I?

Mio watched me expectantly, and for a split second, I wondered—if I said her name, what would she say?

But instead, I forced a small chuckle.

"It's the same as you said, two weeks is still a long time."

"Figures." She rolled her eyes but didn't press further.

We kept walking, the conversation fading into silence once more. But even as we neared the crossroads where we'd part ways, my thoughts still lingered on her answer.

Mio had given up on Ren.

But is she really decide to move on?

I wonder about that...