The moment students stepped into college that morning, the atmosphere had completely flipped. Gone were the sluggish walks and sleepy yawns. Instead, chatter echoed down every hallway, feet practically skipped across the floor, and even the air felt lighter, humming with mischief.
The reason was pinned to every notice board: the management had announced a two-day college trip.
Yui Suzuki looked ready to combust with excitement.
"I knew it! I manifested this!" she squealed, twirling dramatically in the corridor, her hair flying like she was in a commercial.
Meanwhile, in the far corner of a bench, Aiko Nakamura sat hunched like a cloud threatening rain in a sky full of fireworks. Her eyes stared blankly at the ground.
"I don't want to leave home. I don't want to share a tent. I don't want to be surrounded by people. I want to quietly die under a blanket," she mumbled into her arms.
Yui came bounding over and dropped beside her with the grace of a caffeinated squirrel. "Are you not excited?" she gasped, grabbing Aiko's shoulders.
Aiko barely lifted her head. "I want to be one with the corner of my room."
In class a few minutes later, Haruki Takeda stepped in and was instantly greeted by chaos. Students were bouncing on their chairs, voices rose to an almost festival pitch, and papers flew like confetti.
But his eyes ignored it all. They immediately found her.
Aiko.
She sat quietly, her hands folded on the desk, her expression completely void of excitement. She looked like a forgotten prop in a theatre full of over-enthusiastic extras.
Haruki frowned slightly. "She's the only one not smiling," he muttered under his breath. "Don't tell me she hates trips."
A student raised a hand eagerly. "Sir! This trip is the best thing ever!"
Another shouted from the back, "You're coming too, right, sir? You have to!"
Haruki smirked, slipping into his role with ease. "Yes, yes, I'm coming. But don't forget, this is an educational trip—not a two-day photography contest."
Laughter spread across the room. But the one laugh he was hoping for—the one he always noticed—didn't come.
His eyes flicked back to Aiko. Still no smile.
He made a mental note to talk to her after class.
Then he noticed an empty chair.
"Where's Kaito?"
"Sir, no clue."
For a moment, Haruki felt oddly relieved. "Maybe he got transferred again," he thought to himself. "Peace has returned."
But peace didn't last long.
The door creaked open.
Kaito Fujimoto strolled in, casually late, wearing that infuriatingly perfect grin of his.
"Sorry, sir. Traffic jam."
Haruki's face stiffened. His tone turned icy. "Just sit."
Class resumed, but only for a few minutes.
Kaito leaned toward Aiko, voice low and playful. "Hey, what was the announcement about? I missed everything."
She tensed immediately. He was too close. Her eyes avoided his, her body stiff. "It's about… the trip," she said quickly.
Kaito lit up like a child hearing the word 'holiday'. "No way! I love trips!" he shouted unnecessarily.
Every head turned.
Haruki looked up sharply. Kaito was practically leaning over Aiko's desk, his eyes gleaming like he'd just declared undying love.
"Fujimoto," Haruki said, voice a shade deeper than before. "If you want to be excited, go shout outside."
The room fell silent.
Aiko's hands trembled slightly under the desk as she fidgeted with her pen. Haruki's glare lingered for a moment longer before he returned to the board, jaw tense.
During lunch break, Aiko and Yui took their usual place in the canteen. Yui had assembled a feast across five plates. Aiko, as usual, had a single modest dish.
"So," Yui began while chewing, "you, me, trip. Let's bring snacks. Let's bring face packs. Let's bring matching hoodies."
Aiko stared at her. "Yui, it's a college trip. Not a bridal sleepover."
Yui rolled her eyes. "Let me dream."
They were interrupted by the arrival of Kaito, who appeared with a tray and his signature charm.
"Mind if I sit?" he asked, already sliding in beside Aiko before either of them answered.
Within seconds, he had the table laughing. He made dramatic jokes about surviving tent life, acted out a mosquito apocalypse, and tossed fries into the air, trying to catch them in his mouth.
For the first time that day, Aiko laughed. A real, unguarded laugh.
And that's when Haruki entered the canteen with a few other teachers.
He paused.
His gaze swept the room and zeroed in on her.
Aiko was laughing. With Kaito.
For a second, he felt a strange relief seeing her smile.
Then Kaito slid his fries onto Aiko's plate.
Haruki's relief turned into a cold twist in his chest.
He watched silently as she blinked in surprise, and Kaito grinned like it was the most natural thing in the world. Yui, across from them, looked like she was watching a high-stakes drama unfold.
Haruki turned away, teeth clenched. He reached for a water bottle from a nearby table and drank like the bottle had personally offended him.
After lunch, as students poured out of the canteen, Aiko stepped out, stretching a little. The air felt a bit cooler, and her stomach was full.
Then, without warning, an arm wrapped around her waist and pulled her aside behind a column.
She gasped.
Haruki stood before her, his expression unreadable. His grip wasn't tight, but it was firm enough to freeze her in place.
"What are you doing?" she hissed, looking around.
"Are you seriously going to sit there and flirt with him in front of me?" he asked. His voice was calm, but his eyes burned with something far more intense.
"I wasn't flirting," she whispered. "I was just being polite."
He leaned in, and her breath hitched.
"That smile you gave him… that wasn't politeness. That was sunshine and sparkles."
Aiko's cheeks flushed instantly. "I can't control my face muscles."
He gave a low chuckle, the sound close to her ear. "You're mine for this month, remember?"
Her heart was hammering now. Her brain had short-circuited.
"I didn't know being 'yours' meant a ban on French fries," she muttered.
"It does now."
They stared at each other.
The distance between them disappeared with every breath. The tension was real—sharp and magnetic.
Then—
"Yoohoo~" Yui's voice called from the corner.
Aiko jerked away, flustered.
Yui stood with her hands on her hips, smirking. "Are we doing fry-police courtships now?"
"Nothing's happening," Aiko said quickly, her hands trying to smooth down her hair and composure.
Haruki fixed his collar, smiled like he wasn't the cause of a minor heartquake, and walked off. "See you in the trip prep meeting. Don't be late, Ms. Not-Polite-Just-Sparkly."
Aiko groaned and buried her face in her hands.
"I'm going to dig a hole and stay there forever."
Yui patted her head. "Better pack sunscreen. Holes are hot."