Chapter 8

Yuki had called me to the back of the school building.

It wasn’t really a backyard; it was a desolate place with a gravel path flanked by a few trees. At the end, there was just a storage shed and a staff parking lot.

No one really had any reason to be here so early in the morning, so the area was deserted.

Yuki was standing under a ginkgo tree, which had started to change color, fiddling with her phone.

As soon as she noticed me, she bounced slightly and waved me over.

“Over here, over here, good morning Naito-kun.”

“Can you stop calling me that?”

“Why? It’s fine, right?”

Last night, during our conversation on Line, she had asked about my name. I figured it was going to come out eventually, so I admitted it right away. And now, here we are.

“Umm… Yuki?”

I stared at her face, which looked almost identical to the one I’d seen just moments ago.

At first glance, I couldn’t tell them apart. But as I focused, I could make out subtle differences in the details. The most obvious difference was the length of the hair. Yuki’s hair reached to her neck, while Miki’s was at her shoulders.

Yuki’s face still had the bruise around her eye, but it wasn’t that noticeable. I had seen my mother with similar bruises in the past, so maybe I was just more sensitive to noticing such things.

“What’s up? Why did you say my name all of a sudden? It’s kind of embarrassing,” Yuki said with a pleased smile, her pale cheeks slightly flushed. [note: close people use first names]

“You were a twin, huh?” I said, and Yuki’s smile quickly faded as her eyes narrowed.

“Yeah, I am. So what?”

“You say it so easily. Jeez, you should’ve told me sooner.”

“Why? Do I really need to announce, ‘Hey, I’m a twin’? Being a twin doesn’t really matter, does it? So, what if I am?”

Her words came in a rapid-fire response, and it seemed like I’d upset her. I wasn’t sure what exactly had triggered it. But well, I hadn’t said anything wrong.

“Alright, alright, I’m sorry. But you know, I did think something was off.”

“So, you thought I was Miki, huh?” she asked, her tone sharp.

I almost nodded, but quickly realized that was a bad move.

In fact, Yuki’s eyes were practically glowing with anger now.

“No, no, I just figured it out, like… the bruise on your eye?”

“What’s wrong with that?” she shot back, her tone becoming even sharper.

I panicked and tried to backtrack, but ended up digging myself into a deeper hole. Normally, a bruise on someone’s face would be a sensitive topic, right?

“Well, it’s just that… not everything has to be perfect, right? Sometimes, having a flaw or something like that makes you more… endearing, don’t you think?”

I said this while glancing at her, hoping for some kind of understanding. The venom in her gaze started to fade as she softened, and Yuki, still blushing, lowered her eyes.

“…That’s the first time anyone’s ever said something like that to me.”

It seemed like she had calmed down. But I wasn’t just making it up on the spot; I really meant it. After all, I’m far from perfect myself, so I can relate more to those little flaws.

“Uh… sorry about earlier, for snapping at you,” she said, looking at me like a child who had just been scolded.

It was an awkward silence now, and it felt strange. It was my turn to look away this time. I decided to change the topic.

“Well, it’s fine… I was at fault too. By the way, is your finger okay?”

“Yeah, it’s fine.”

“Anything else hurting?”

“Nope, I’m good.”

She smiled brightly, her expression softening, and leaned in a little, her tone gentle.

“Are you okay, though, Naito-kun?”

“Me? I’m fine, nothing wrong with me at all.”

“I see. Hehe.”

She was back to her cheerful self, completely different from the tense mood yesterday. But then I remembered, I wasn’t talking to the real twin—so she wasn’t really the “princess” of the school either.

“So, what’s up? Why’d you suddenly call me out here?”

It felt like we’d been circling around the main topic for a while now.

She had told me over the phone to come to the back garden, and I had come all this way for what? She couldn’t just be asking for nothing.

Yuki looked up at me with a playful gaze, clasped her hands in front of her chest, and swayed her hips slightly.

“Well, Yuki has a little favor to ask you, Naito-kun.”

“Seriously? Now you’re acting all cutesy?”

“Will you listen?”

“I’m guessing even if I said no, you’d just force me to do it anyway.”

“Heh, you know me too well.”

She gave me a light push on the shoulder and winked at me, and I suddenly had a bad feeling. She reached into the bag slung over her shoulder and pulled out a bulging brown envelope.