I spied on them from the corner of the shed.

Shiori was arguing with a bunch of troublemakers from our school. 

“What’s wrong with having a little fun?”

“You call stealing money ‘having fun’!?”

Next to Shiori, I noticed two girls who, judging by their appearance, looked like freshmen.

“It depends on your point of view.”

She glanced at her friends, and they snickered.

“I won’t say it again—get lost. They don’t mind lending a little money.”

The two girls flinched slightly at her statement.

“Forget it.”

The situation is getting worse.

Shiori didn’t back down an inch. 

“You’re starting to get on my nerves…”

the boy remarked.

“You’re just a big, burly kid playing tough.”

She began to taunt him. 

“You disgust me, both you and your friends.”

She flashed him a defiant smile. 

“Didn’t your parents give you any allowance?”

If her intention was to make him angry, she succeeded. 

"Now you've really done it!"

What’s she going to do!?

He raised his fist. 

“I’m going to put you in your place!”

BAM! 

I don’t know if it was a stupid move or not, but I couldn’t just stand there and watch. 

“Sora!?”

I stepped between her and the punch, taking it full on.

“Damn it! Who the hell is this guy?!”

He cursed.

I remember not hearing anything anymore—I thanked the adrenaline for that. 

“Listen… I don’t care who you think you are…”

He didn’t understand why… but he started to back away. 

“I suggest you leave. If you go to the principal, knowing your reputation…”

I looked him in the eyes. 

“Seeing me in this state, who would believe me? Me or you?”

He took a step back; my threat, however vague, had worked. 

“Let’s get out of here. It’s not worth getting in trouble over these idiots.” 

The group backed off.

My legs gave out. 

“Sora! What the hell were you thinking!?”

Shiori came over to me, checking my face.

“Are you okay? Are you feeling dizzy?”

“Well, it would be weird if I wasn’t, don’t you think?”

Maybe it wasn’t the best time to make a joke. 

“Anyway, don’t worry—I’m fine.”

I tried to get back on my feet—it was a terrible idea; in a split second, I lost my balance. 

“Be careful!”

Luckily, Shiori caught me. 

“You two”—

She was referring to the girls. 

“Go ahead; I’ll take care of reporting this to the principal and taking this reckless guy to the nurse’s office.”

Did he just call me reckless? Hey, I helped you!

“O-okay, thank you.”

They walked away, still shaken. 

Meanwhile, the two of us headed toward the infirmary. 

“Why did you help me? It could have turned out much worse for you.”

She spoke first. 

“What did you want me to do? Would you have preferred that I just stand there and watch you get punched in the face?”

“No… Well… T-thank you.”

It took her a great deal of effort to say those words. 

“You’re welcome. Anytime—actually, let’s try not to do that again.”

She gave a faint smile. 

“I didn’t think you were the brave type—you seemed terrified back at the gym.”

“I’m a complex guy.”

Actually, I was scared of that thug too, but why take away from my glory?

In a few minutes, we reached the nurse’s office. 

“Sora! What happened to you!?”

She rushed over to check on me right away; everyone was worried, even though I was actually feeling pretty fine. 

“You need to be more careful!”

She scolded me as she helped me to the treatment table.

“First your knee, now this—explain to me how a baseball ended up hitting you in the face?”

I felt bad; this was the second time I’d lied to her. 

“I was trying to get into sports.”

I gave her the most believable explanation I could. 

“Well, just be more careful anyway.”

“Now get some rest; I’ll go see if I can find something for your head.”

She went into the far corner of the room, where she kept all the medicines. 

Meanwhile, Shiori was leaving. 

“Sora, I’m heading over to the principal’s office…”

She stepped through the doorway. 

“T-thanks again.”

She closed the door behind her. 

With a little practice, she’ll get better at saying thank you.

I thought.

At that moment, Little did I know that Shiori had already run into someone else... 

“You’re Haruto, right?”

She asked him. 

Haru was out of breath.

“Yeah… Is Sora okay?”

I don’t know why or how, but Shiori had already told him.

“Don’t worry, it’s nothing serious—it’s just the usual.”

That statement didn’t sound reassuring. 

“Those jerks—you’re going to see the principal, right?”

“Of course. I won’t let them get away with this.” 

He walked past me. 

“Anyway, thanks—for letting me know, I mean.”

He gave her a nod, then they went their separate ways. 

“Sora!”

He flung the door open, making me jump. 

“Haru!” 

“You’re okay, right?”

He seemed really worried—maybe a little too much—and I’d be lying if I said I didn’t appreciate it.

I spent the rest of the morning resting and telling Haru everything.

At one point, the nurse sent him away. 

“Come on, you have class now. Go to class,”

she told him. He looked disappointed—Haru and school were two totally different worlds. 

When classes ended, they let me go home. 

“Man, my head’s still spinning.”

I whispered as I approached the gate. 

“What a day—”

I froze—there she was, standing by the low wall...

“Akari?”