While we were back in class, the other students bombarded me with questions about Sakura. I quickly grew frustrated by their relentless curiosity. "Is it really such a big deal to talk and have lunch with Sakura?" I asked.
"Huh? Yes, it is a very big deal!" the students exclaimed in disbelief. "How? Isn't it common to talk with friends?" I countered. My classmates explained the reality to me: "It's common, but not with Sakura. Countless boys have tried to talk to her, but no one ever gets a chance because she turns down every single person who approaches her."
"But she talks to Todo in a normal way, just like a friend," I pointed out. Todo added, sounding just as puzzled, "I'm also confused about how she talks to me so normally." I insisted to the group, "You all are wrong. She is always polite and cute with everyone." The students looked at me and asked, "For how many days have you known her to be saying that?" "Let me be clear," Todo interjected, "He has been her friend since childhood." The classmates echoed in shock, "CHILDHOOD? Since childhood?". Fortunately, the teacher entered the classroom then, saving me from those mindless questions. They made no sense to me anyway; when I first met Sakura, she was incredibly friendly.
Once the classes were over, I left the room with Todo and Elisa. I saw Sakura waiting for me at the school exit. We joined her, and I thought it was the right time to introduce Sakura to Elisa. "Sakura, this is Elisa," I said. "She helped me out, and she was the one who found the pendant." Sakura turned to Elisa and said, "Thank you for all your help. I'm truly grateful that you helped Estival find my home address. I hope we will be good friends and not rivals."
"Rivals? What do you mean?" Elisa asked, puzzled. Sakura quickly brushed it off, "Oh, it was nothing. It just slipped out." Elisa smiled and replied, "No worries, we will be great friends."
"Oh, I forgot to tell you, Sakura," I interjected, "we are heading to the ice cream parlor. It's my treat." Sakura's eyes lit up. "Okay, let's go now! I'm really craving some ice cream." Everyone agreed, and we set off immediately.
We reached the shop and enjoyed our treats, but I kept the secret of the mysterious girl from Elisa. I even bought an extra ice cream for her. Eventually, Elisa left for home. After she was gone, we headed back toward my apartment, where I spotted Senior Glacia. "Hey, Senior Glacia, are you going alone?" I called out.
She spotted me heading home. "Yeah, I am... are you all going somewhere?" Glacia asked. "No, we are all going to my place," I replied. Glacia looked curious. "Anything special?" she probed. "Yeah, kind of," I said, and then I recounted the entire story to her. Glacia exclaimed, "Let's go then! I want to see that girl too."
We all headed to my place. Once we reached my apartment, I felt a wave of nervousness before unlocking the door. After I opened it, a wonderful aroma wafted through the air. To our surprise, we saw that the girl was busy cooking food. "Wh-what are you doing?" I stammered. The mysterious girl replied simply, "Ahh, I am cooking food." I countered, "I know you are cooking food, but why?" "I just wanted to show my gratitude to the person who saved my life yesterday," the mysterious girl explained. I was taken aback. "I didn't tell you anything about myself," I replied, wondering how she had figured it out. "Oh, so it was you who saved my life last night. Thank you for saving me," she said with a soft smile.
"Wait, we need to talk," I insisted, trying to regain control of the situation. "Okay, but first, the food is ready," she suggested, glancing at the group. "Are these your friends?" I nodded, "Yes, these are my friends." We all sat down, and she served us the meal she had prepared.