The life I lived really was beginning to suffocate me.

I couldn't go out freely, and I always had to make arrangements with Mion before going to work.

I'd thought my life would improve after escaping from the school, but in reality, it wasn't that easy.

It's not healthy to live like this for too long.

Without any friends to hang out with,

I felt like I was hibernating.

I'd started to feel the dangers of falling into boredom.

All I could think of now was Satoshi Houjou-kun's face.

I'd only met him briefly.

...But my encounter with him had a great impact on my new life.

I felt like something exciting was going to happen.

...Really, I was hyped up like a little kid.

The more I thought about it, I realized I'd been thinking about him a lot lately.

...This might be a crush.

I felt a little ridiculous idolizing him in such a romantic way, though.

Then, out of the blue,

I got a chance to see him again.

".........Oh?"

I saw a familiar face at twilight in the park. He was sitting on the swing.

He looked like he was zoning out, or maybe deep in thought.

...He didn't notice me, even though I was right in front of him.

I reminded myself to speak and act like Mion before talking to him...

"Hey.

What are you doing here?"

".........Mion...

You surprised me."

"You don't look surprised.

I've been standing here for a couple of minutes now. Didn't you notice me?"

"...Have you?

Sorry, I didn't..."

He smiled self-derisively and shrugged.

He looked depressed.

Like something was troubling him.

"...Is something bugging you?

You can talk to me if you want. Maybe I can help."

"N-No... that's okay..."

"Come on, I owe you one from before, Satoshi-kun.

Or maybe,

you don't think this ol' man can be of any help?

Don't you know how mighty I am?"

"I'm okay...

You don't have to help me."

"......Huh.

What is it, then?

Are you saying that you don't need help from a girl?"

Thinking him unfair, I puffed up my cheeks in a sulky gesture.

...Satoshi-kun noticed that and smiled.

"No, Mion...

It's just... I messed up my swing when they needed me the most..."

...I mentally rifled through all the information about Satoshi-kun that Sis had given me.

...He doesn't look like much of an athlete, but apparently Satoshi-kun belongs to a junior baseball team.

They're called the Hinamizawa Fighters.

I doubt he's very skilled, since I didn't hear much about his contributions to the team.

Maybe that's why he doesn't tell many people that he's a member.

Given how down he felt as a result of messing up, though, he must be fairly dedicated.

I deduced all that from what Sis told me, and carefully chose my words so as to sound like her...

"What?

Are you feeling down just because of that?"

"Hey,

it's not that easy to get over, Mion."

I pat his back while chuckling.

Satoshi-kun would probably call me insensitive.

I knew I should listen to him, rather than trying to cheer him up.

Acting like Sis was probably the wrong thing to do in this case... but I had no choice.

This was just how she'd react in this situation.

"Aha ha ha.

Instead of feeling down, you should practice even harder and aim for your chance, you know?

Practice makes perfect here!

Well, if you want to beat the opposing pitcher so badly you're willing to pull some tricks, then I might be able to help you in a few ways."

"Mmph... there's no point if I cheat...

Hahhh..."

Satoshi-kun hung his head after letting his regrets out with a big sigh.

Surrender, defeat, resignation...

...were all visible in that gesture of his.

"Are you quick to give up, or persistent?

If you're a man, then don't you want to be a star and have your fifteen minutes of fame?"

Satoshi-kun grinned and said "yes."

"Of course, that'd be wonderful,

but that's not why I play baseball.

I just have fun batting and throwing the ball...

You can understand that, right?"

"This ol' man isn't sure.

I only love games that I can win.

I don't understand how you can love something when you can't be the best at it.

Ahahaha!"

"Mmph...

Ahahahahahahaha. That really sounds like you, Mion!"

Having realized that I'm trying to make him feel better, he laughed along...

He didn't look depressed anymore.

I guess he was just feeling down because of the game.

He wasn't as depressed as I thought.

Maybe I just jumped to conclusions when I saw him sitting alone in the park.

"...You always put forth your best effort to win.

That's admirable, I think.

Yeah, it definitely is."

He smiled gently and stood up... then he started stroking my head.

All of a sudden.

I totally wasn't prepared for that.

"Eh?

...Whoa... ooh..."

I thought this when he did this last time, but...

...How can he stroke somebody's head so easily...?

I felt like I had turned into a little kid.

Memories from kindergarten came to mind...

My face must have been red. I felt embarrassed... but also like I was in heaven.

Satoshi-kun stroked me as though petting a cat.

I was blushing with my eyes closed...

I felt helpless, like a girl being treated by the dentist with her mouth open and her eyes shut.

...Satoshi-kun didn't seem to notice my feelings at all.

...He didn't seem to care. I hate him.

With my eyes still closed, I waited for him to finish.

He suddenly withdrew his hand.

"...I need to get going.

My aunt wants some stuff, so I have to go grocery shopping."

"Uh... okay."

My voice faltered.

I was so embarrassed...

"Hmm?"

"Uh, um...!

...I'm going shopping,

too..."

"Hmm?

What?

You are?

I thought the maids did all your household stuff."

Shoot...

I messed up.

In the main Sonozaki house, the maids do everything.

Therefore, Mion hardly goes grocery shopping, and she's bragged to some people about that...

I should've known better.

Still, it wouldn't be too hard to find an excuse.

"I just happened to be in town,

so I thought I'd help out with the household stuff.

Is that a problem?"

"...Ahaha.

That doesn't sound like you.

You always avoid doing boring stuff like that."

"You talk too much!

...Ooh!

Stop stroking my head!"

"Ahaha, ahaha."

Satoshi-kun seemed to be having fun with how embarrassed I'd get when he patted me.

Anyway, I managed to talk my way out of it.

He didn't seem to really care about the details...

While walking with Satoshi-kun in the shopping district of Kami-isshiki... it suddenly occurred to me.

Why had I messed up?

I'd known Mion would never go grocery shopping... What an amateurish mistake.

...Did I make that mistake when I was pretending to be Mion?

No...

I was probably speaking as Shion.

I couldn't keep lying to myself...

I had to just admit...

It was simply because,

I wanted to spend as much time with Satoshi-kun as possible...

It was easy to see why I was so attracted to him.

I'd found something intriguing in my boring life,

and I didn't have to feel tense, because he thought I was somebody else.

Et cetera, et cetera.

His easygoing nature made him fun to be around, and... his habit of petting people on the head was fun too.

From these symptoms...... I could tell I was embracing the feeling of love.

I was just casually enjoying that feeling.

It wasn't that I fell in love with him.

I was just having fun.

I could simply spend some fun time with Satoshi-kun without having to think too much.

"Uhh...

Which one is broccoli?

The green one

or the yellow one?"

"That's cauliflower, Satoshi-kun...

Hey, could it be that you can't tell lettuce from cabbage, either?"

"I-I'm not that bad...

I'm doing my best here..."

Satoshi-kun stared at the heaps of broccoli and cauliflower.

After thinking for a while, he reached out for the wrong one...

"That's not it!

...Watching you shop is like being on a roller coaster.

It's a lot of fun for me, though!

Ahahahaha!"

"...Mmph.

You got me.

Satoko can't tell the difference either.

Which is broccoli and which one is cauliflower...?"

"...You guys are too funny."

Sis had told me that Satoshi was a flaky big brother to his nagging little sister.

I hadn't met Satoko, but she must be having a tough time dealing with Satoshi-kun.

He stumbles over everything he buys, after all.

"That's cooking salt.

...It's mixed with pepper. It's different from regular salt."

"Oh... is it?

I think I saw salt and pepper separate in a science experiment once..."

"Stop making excuses and just put it back on the shelf...

This is normal salt!

What are you getting next?"

"Uh...... Ahahahaha. You're being a great help, Mion..."

"...You look smart, but you have serious issues...

I think you should study more..."

"Mmph....

That's a little harsh...

...There.

Is this it?

In it goes."

"Ahh!

That's not it!

Don't just throw anything in the basket; check the price and how many servings it is first!"

My first impression of Satoshi-kun was that... he was strong and reliable.

But the more I spoke to him, the more surprised I was at how clumsy and unreliable he was.

How do I put it... It was hard to leave him alone.

He was dangerous on his own.

If he wasn't careful he might start wondering, "Do you cross the street when the light is red?

Or was it green?"

...And get himself run over by a dumptruck... (Sweatdrop)

"Your total is 1,780 yen.

Do you have a member's card?"

"Huh? ...Oh, yes.

I do...

...Uhh... ......Huh? Where is it?"

"Oh, sorry.

We can't seem to find it, so we'll be alright for today."

I finished checking out, ignoring Satoshi-kun as he fished through his wallet full of receipts.

"That was horrible, Mion...

You made me waste points..."

"Don't go slowly fishing through your wallet to look for your member's card in the middle of the evening shopping rush!

There was a huge line behind us!

Didn't you notice all the evil glares from all the old ladies?!

Listen, at times like that, you should get it out before reaching the register!"

"...Oh. ...Right.

Ahaha, that's good to know."

"It's not only when you go shopping.

The same thing goes for when you ride a bus!

Satoshi-kun, I bet you don't open your wallet and start looking for change until you're about to get off and have to pay while holding up everyone behind you."

"...Mmph....

No, everyone walks by me and pays their own fare..."

"Hah...

You know what that means?

You're being a super-huge bother to everyone!

You need to have the money out beforehand. That's just good manners!

Do you get it?!"

"O-Okay...

You're scary today, Mion... Ahahaha..."

Satoshi-kun smiled as if patronizing me.

...Hah... I couldn't believe it.

...He was definitely the type who made women want to protect him.

...Sure, he was fine as he was when he had a busybody like me around him,

but I couldn't stop worrying whether he was able to function in society without someone like that nearby.

We got plastic bags and sorted out what we bought.

...Satoshi-kun put a pack of tofu at the bottom of the bag. I slapped his hand and put in a milk carton instead.

"Okay, there we go.

Now your aunt won't freak out when she opens this shopping bag in her kitchen."

"Uh... thanks.

You helped me a lot...

I don't think I'm very good at shopping."

"Just shopping?

That's definitely not the only thing!"

"......Mm... mmph......"

"Ahahahahahaha!

Just kidding."

I had realized a few things while I was spending time with him today.

...He's not just bad at shopping.

He's also chronically clumsy.

...In general, you could call him a slow thinker.

...That meant... when he stepped into the quarrel with the punks, he must have needed a lot of courage.

He might be a simpleton, but he's not stupid.

He's aware of his weaknesses.

...So, he must have been aware of the danger in that situation.

...He could have chosen to walk away even though I was in trouble.

But he chose to be a man and stepped in.

That was really admirable of him.

"Good boy.

You did a great job.

There, there."

"Wh-What is it?

Don't stroke my head."

"I'm rewarding you for shopping successfully today.

There, there."

"You're making fun of me, aren't you, Mion?"

"No, I'm not.

Can you go home by yourself?

Do you know how to get there?"

"Mmph...

You are making fun of me..."

Satoshi-kun's sulky face flushed red....

Ahh, he's just too cute.

At that point, I caught a glimpse of a billboard from the corner of my eye.

'Piano Lessons. Call XX.

Abacus Class......

Junior Baseball Team--Members Wanted.'

It was a posting for the team Satoshi-kun belonged to.

It showed the day, time, and place of their next practice.

By then, I knew just how flaky he was.

I figured he must be just the same when playing baseball.

Satoshi-kun realized that I was reading the posting. He looked uncomfortable and walked away.

"I know what you're thinking...

'I beg you Mion,

don't come to see me playing baseball.'

...Am I right?!"

"M-Mmph.........

Ahh......... mmph."

"What does that mumbling mean?

......I know I'm right."

"......Mmph......"

Satoshi-kun became quiet

after mumbling something.

...It seemed like he couldn't say anything back, since I had been right on the money.

...Satoshi-kun... You're just too cute.

...I don't think going silent is a good way to dodge the issue...

Well, that might have just been the way innocent people like him would react in a situation like that.

"See you, Satoshi-kun.

It's getting dark, so be careful on your way back!"

"Aren't you going home, Mion?

To Hinamizawa?"

"...Uh... I have to make a stop somewhere first.

Don't worry about me."

"I'll help you this time.

In return."

"Uh, ahahahahaha.

I'm okay!

What are you going to help me with, anyway?

You should learn to support yourself before you try to help me.

Ahhhahahahaha!"

"...Mmph...

You're really mean today..."

He seemed to have some pride, at least.

He looked a bit upset because he was teased by a girl...

but in contrast, I felt very satisfied.

As a result, I forgot to keep my guard up.

"Uh, thank you for the help.

That was sweet of you."

"Whoa...!

...Mmm..."

While wearing a bright smile...

Satoshi-kun suddenly started stroking my head again.

Ahh... I know he's teasing me, but...

ooh, I can't reject him...

mmm...

He keeps doing it only because he's realized I won't resist...

ooohhh...

"See you, Mion!

You should go home before it gets dark...

See you in school tomorrow."

"Uh, yeah!

See you in school tomorrow too!"

In fact, I wouldn't see him tomorrow at all.

...It felt awkward, but I had to settle for that.

I had to thank Sis for letting me use her name.

After I separated from him....

...I found myself giddy and wishing to see him again as soon as possible.

I wanted to know more about him.

I couldn't wait for my next chance to see him.

...Actually, maybe there was something I could do.

Just like when I obtained my freedom from St. Lucia's,

I could choose how to live my life.

...Whatever. It wasn't that complicated.

I just wanted to tease him more. I wanted him to stroke my head more,

and...... ahh, whatever.

I already knew the schedule for his baseball team.