The girls had already run quite a distance before Mizuki suddenly felt a pang of anxiety—what if they reported her to a teacher?Wouldn't she get in trouble?
But if she did, so be it, she reasoned with herself. After all, she had done a good deed. Even if Takumi found out, he probably wouldn't blame her.
She turned back toward Rukia, whose face was still bleeding slightly. "Are you okay? Did I get there too late?"
Rukia snapped out of her daze and gave a faint smile. "No, thank you for stepping in. If they report you, I'll back you up."
Mizuki let out a breath of relief. At the same time, she couldn't help admiring how beautiful Rukia was up close—her eyes had a mischievous, foxy glint when she smiled, and her delicate oval face had an ethereal charm.
"You're welcome. Want me to go with you to the infirmary? That scratch looks painful."
"It's fine." Rukia pulled out a small mirror from her pocket and inspected the wound. "It's just a scratch. I can walk it off. You should go eat—don't miss lunch because of me."
Without waiting for a reply, Rukia turned and walked off into the rain, not even bothering with an umbrella. Seeing her leave like that, Mizuki couldn't just let her go.
"Wait! You don't have an umbrella? Let me come with you—you'll catch a cold out here!"
Rukia looked over her shoulder, puzzled by Mizuki's persistence. "Why are you being so nice? If you come with me, you'll miss lunch."
Mizuki gave a sheepish smile. If Takumi had been there, he would've recognized the exact expression—Mizuki was clearly imitating him. "Missing one meal's no big deal. The teacher says helping classmates is more important. And hey, we're in the same class."
Rukia hadn't expected anyone to say something like that with such sincerity. She simply smiled and nodded, walking alongside Mizuki.
But instead of heading to the infirmary, they veered off toward the school's small garden, a quiet place with covered pavilions and a koi pond.
Mizuki glanced around, confused. "Aren't we going to the infirmary? The cafeteria's still open if we go now."
"I'm waiting for someone to bring us food," Rukia replied calmly.
"Someone's bringing food? Who? Do your parents work at the school or something?"
Rukia's fox-like eyes sparkled with amusement. "Nope. You'll see. Oh, by the way—do you like chicken cutlet rice? I heard the cafeteria has it today."
Mizuki's eyes lit up. "I love it, but it always runs out so fast. You've got to line up early or forget about it."
Rukia gave her a mysterious smile and patted the bench next to her. "Then sit. Since you helped me, I'm not letting you go hungry."
Still bewildered, Mizuki sat down. And sure enough—just a few minutes later, a group of boys approached, each carrying an umbrella and a takeout box.
"Rukia, what do you want today? We brought everything."
Mizuki stared, dumbfounded, as Rukia walked over and selected two boxes of chicken cutlet rice.
She gave the boys a sweet smile. "Thanks. As a reward for getting food for me… here, you can have this."
She handed one of her hair clips to each of the two boys she'd chosen. They blushed and took the gift as if it were priceless.
The remaining three boys, unacknowledged, stood awkwardly before leaving quietly with the rest.
Rukia returned to the bench and handed one box to Mizuki. "See? Told you someone would bring us food."
Mizuki accepted it in a daze, still processing everything. Meanwhile, Rukia had already picked up her spoon and started eating like nothing unusual had happened.
The garden fell quiet again as the boys disappeared, leaving only the soft sounds of rain and the rustling leaves overhead.
However, just as the last of the boys disappeared down the garden path, one voice lingered behind.
"Rukia! I will guess what you want to eat tomorrow! You have to give me a gift too!"
Rukia didn't respond. She simply kept eating, as if she hadn't heard a thing.
Only once the boys had truly left did she speak, still chewing on a mouthful of chicken cutlet.
"I know you must have a million questions," she said, her tone casual. "To put it simply, all those boys like me. They've confessed before. But I don't like them, so I ignore them."
Rukia licked a grain of rice from the corner of her lips and continued, unfazed.
"Some guys are just persistent. They think that even if I turn them down, if they keep chasing after me, one day I'll change my mind. So they bring me gifts, lunch, snacks, whatever. At first, I found it annoying."
She glanced over at Mizuki, who was still processing everything.
"But later, I thought—why not just accept it? They want to feed me, so I let them. I give them a hair clip or a scrunchie as a little thank-you, and they feel like they got something out of it. It's an even trade. Everyone's happy."
Mizuki stared at her, dazed. "I think I understand what you're saying… but at the same time, I don't? Is this what the world of older girls is like...?"
Rukia chuckled. "You don't get it? Really? But you're really pretty too. Haven't boys confessed to you before?"
Mizuki flushed instantly and waved her hands. "N-no—well, I mean, yes, a little. One boy confessed last year. And then another one this year. But I turned them both down! I mean… we're still so young…"
She didn't mention the person who lived quietly in her heart, the one she couldn't forget. No other boy could compare.
Rukia tilted her head, her fox-like eyes narrowing with curiosity. "Maybe it's just that not enough boys have confessed to you yet." She tapped her spoon thoughtfully against her lips. "Let's see… just this semester, seven or eight boys have confessed to me."
"Seven or eight?!" Mizuki's eyes widened. "That's insane! I mean, yes, you're gorgeous—but isn't that a bit too much?"
Rukia laughed, eyes curving into playful crescents. "Maybe I just have that vixen vibe. I'm not the most beautiful, but clearly, this kind of look is popular with boys. They always seem to think they can win me over."
She noticed Mizuki hadn't touched her food and nudged the lunchbox closer. "Come on, eat. That meal cost me a hair clip. And not a cheap one either."
Mizuki looked down at the opened box, realizing it really was chicken cutlet rice—the rare kind that always sold out in minutes. She took a bite. It was delicious. But mid-chew, a thought struck her.
"Wait… those girls who cornered you earlier… Were you framed? You don't even seem to like boys."
Rukia looked at her calmly. "Of course I was framed. You think I'd go after their childhood friends or brothers? Please. I can't stand those boys."
Mizuki exhaled in relief—only for Rukia to casually continue.
"But it's true they keep bothering me. Actually, two of the boys who brought lunch today were exactly the ones they accused me of seducing. Funny, right?"
Rukia toyed with a strand of her hair. "Honestly, I'm doing them a favor by not telling those boys that their sisters hit me. If I said one word, they'd probably rush off to 'defend my honor' or whatever."
Mizuki: "..."
Rukia's voice softened slightly, though she still wore that calm smile. "I never wanted to break them apart. There's nothing in it for me. It'd just create drama."
She took another happy bite of rice and added, more sincerely this time:
"I'm only telling you all this because you stepped in for me. I'll remember it. And I'll repay you. I don't take from others without giving something back. Not even those boys. I always make sure to give something of equal value."
Her tone, while casual, carried a strange sort of principle—twisted by circumstance, perhaps, but grounded in something real.
"I don't take advantage of people," she said simply.