Chapter XXXIV - The Weight of Promises We Make (III)

Before I could respond, a movement at the edge of my vision caught my attention. Minazuki-san, still positioned against the far wall, shifted slightly. Her posture remained defiant, but her gaze had settled on Sairenji with an expression that, from anyone else, I might have interpreted as curiosity.

Sairenji followed my glance, eyes widening slightly as she noticed the scarlet bombshell.

"Is that...?"

"Minazuki Serena," I confirmed.

"S-S-She came to see me?" Sairenji stammered.

Her surprise was understandable; Minazuki-san didn't have a reputation for school spirit, after all. Not only that, the last time they talked to each other was due to my insistence on wanting to fix her. They've never had a proper introduction, at least, from what I knew.

"We've been acquainted recently," I explained, gesturing vaguely. "When she heard about the visit, I asked her if she'd like to join us. Of course, you know how Minazuki-san is. I practically had to drag her along. You're a classmate, so she's got a right to be here."

That last part wasn't a lie.

And yet...

It felt incomplete somehow, as if there were layers of nuance and complication that my simple explanation omitted.

Regardless, Sairenji as kind as she was, offered a smile and wave at Minazuki-san.

Minazuki-san merely responded by nodding her head.

"Ah, Sairenji, please don't take it the wrong way! She doesn't mean it, she's just being her usual lone wolf sense, ahahaha...!"

Sairenji's eyes, always too perceptive for comfort, moved between Minazuki-san and me.

"I see."

Though what exactly she "saw" remained frustratingly unclear.

"Seven minutes, exactly." The nurse (I assume was assigned to Sairenji) who had been hovering nearby approached Sairenji with a firm smile.

"Has it really been seven minutes?" Sairenji sighed theatrically, but allowed herself to be guided back to the couch without much of a real protest. Once seated, she looked around at our gathered classmates wistfully.

"I've missed you all so much..."

It was just one sentence, but the simple sincerity of such silenced even the most excitable among us.

"The doctors say I should be able to return to school soon—not full days at first, but eventually. I can't wait to be back in our classroom again."

"When?! When will you be able to come back?!" Inoue's voice rang out.

"Soon, I think. Maybe a week? I'm not entirely sure, honestly."

"A week! Oh my God, that's amazing!"

The news sparked a flurry of questions and congratulations.

"But I'll be on restricted activity for quite a while. No marathon study sessions, no staying late for committee meetings, ahaha," Sairenji had to dour their joy.

"No worries! We'll handle everything until you're ready to take over again!" Miyazono assured her.

"Yes, we'll make sure you can rest properly," Kurihara added with a smile.

My eyes twitched at that. Yeah, "handling everything" was a bit of a stretch, wasn't it?

Especially since I was the one carrying the class on my back.

"No class representative duties either," I added. In her absence, I shouldered her responsibilities along with my own, however poorly. Her return would not mean a return to our previous division of labor.

"Actually..." She looked at me straight, her face suddenly serious. "I was hoping to talk to you about that, Kagami-kun. Privately, if possible."

Another ripple of whispers moved through the assembled students. Conversations that excluded others were rare in our tightly-knit classroom dynamics; invitations to private discussions, especially between class representatives, were ripe fodder for speculation.

"Of course, whenever you want." I agreed, ignoring the not-so-subtle nudge Akise delivered to my ribs as he passed by.

I'm working on it, man.

"Then, how about now? After the others leave."

And I didn't even have to do anything else.

Sairenji's nurse frowned slightly. "I don't know if—"

"Just a short conversation, please?" Sairenji pleaded. "I promise, I won't overdo it."

"Fine, but not too long. You need to rest."

"Thank you!"

With the promise of a private conversation secured, the remaining minutes of the visit flew by. Students said their goodbyes to Sairenji, some emotional, others simply promising to return. In the corner, I found myself indulging in that familiar scent of perfume and smoke.

"That wasn't so bad, was it?" I asked quietly.

Minazuki-san seemed to have enjoyed counting the number of tiles on the ground.

"She wasn't what I expected," she said finally.

"What did you expect?"

She shrugged. "Someone more... I don't know. Prissy? Self-important? She's the top student and female class representative, right? I thought she'd be uptight."

"Sairenji has never needed to prove anything to anyone. That's what makes her different from the rest of us." I smiled fondly.

"Including you?"

"Especially me."

Minazuki-san turned to face me directly for the first time during our conversation.

"She cares about you, you know."

The remark surprised me.

"You spoke to her like once. How can you tell?"

"I'm observant. Plus..."

Her voice became super low, but... I always had pretty good hearing.

"...I'm a girl too."

"Whatever, you should probably leave with the others."

She rolled her eyes, but there was a hint of a smile playing at her lips as she moved to join the departing throng. As she passed me, her hand briefly touched my shoulder, a featherlight contact that sent an unexpected shiver down my spine.

"See you later, idiota," she murmured before vanishing into the hallway.

As our classmates filtered out of the lounge, their promises to return echoing in the hallway, Sairenji caught the nurse's sleeve.

"Please... promise me that you'll give us a few minutes alone." Her eyes were big, her expression pleading. "I'll rest right afterward, I promise. But I need to talk to him."

The nurse hesitated, maternal instinct warring with professional discretion.

"...Five minutes, but I'll be right outside. If you feel tired or lightheaded—"

"I'll call immediately," Sairenji promised.

With a reluctant nod, the nurse departed, leaving us in a silence that felt oddly weighted. Outside the window, rain had begun to fall again as droplets traced erratic paths down the glass like translucent snail trails.