It was still early in the morning, so the streets were relatively empty. That meant they were alone for the most part as they walked. Koyuki looked especially beautiful at dawn, basking in the glow of the early spring sun.
She cleared her throat and began, “Okay, you got me back there at the ticket gate, but don’t get too cocky now.” She gave him a devilish smile before brandishing her phone. “So, how did you feel about getting DM’d by the one and only Koyuki Shirogane yesterday? Bet that got your heart racing.”
“Uh...” Naoya replied flippantly, to which Koyuki seemed disappointed.
“What? I thought I messaged you a lot last night.” she asked.
“I mean, uh, yeah, you sure did,” Naoya replied as he produced his phone and navigated to the messaging app they’d used. A concise declaration appeared on the screen: “We’re going to school together tomorrow.” That was followed by a flood of cat and food photos. “How exactly were these pictures supposed to get my heart racing?”
“They didn’t?!” Koyuki was flabbergasted.
What kind of guy does she think I am? Naoya pondered to himself. He was at a loss for words and stood there awkwardly for a while as Koyuki studied the phone screen intently.
“Hmm, but my sister told me that these were the most suitable topics for posting on social media,” she mumbled.
“Yeah, if you’re some disgraced celebrity trying to lay low, maybe,” he replied. He was even more curious as to what kind of girl Koyuki’s sister was now.
Still, that had managed to answer some questions he’d had. The photos of mean-looking cats and food—sent to him apropos of nothing—had thrown him for a loop. It also indicated that Koyuki had actually been trying to have a positive interaction with him. That was her doing her best to get along with me, I guess.
Naoya quite liked that clumsy earnestness. Koyuki appeared to miss that she had just made some significant progress in securing Naoya’s heart while she continued to stare at the phone and mutter to herself.
Naoya gave her a lopsided smile and attempted to keep the conversation going. “It didn’t really get my heart going per se, but I did think the cat was pretty cute. Is it yours?”
“Hm? Oh, yeah, it is. We’ve only got one pet so far. One spoiled cat baby is enough.”
“Oh, cool. What’s their name?”
“Gizzard.”
“Yo, great name! Really, like... uh, unique!” he floundered.
“Hehe, I know, right? Everyone in our house calls him ‘King Gizzard.’ Lookie here—isn’t he the cutest when he has his after-meal nap? I’ll let you look, but only ‘cause it’s you Sasahara.”
“Ah. Thanks.”
As Koyuki began showing Naoya pictures of her cat, their bodies naturally grew closer and closer. It got to the point that he could smell her sweet scent and became very aware of her chest pressing against him. On top of this, he could sense her happiness—that she was content just to be spending time with him like this. And he found himself feeling likewise.
I’ve heard this is what your first is like—you’re just happy to be near them, Naoya thought. Because of his abilities, he normally didn’t feel like spending that much time with people, except for family and old friends who knew him well. Koyuki was different, though. He wanted to spend more time with her and see all her different moods and expressions.
Naoya quickly lost interest in the cat photos and began staring at Koyuki’s face from the side. She’s so adorable. Not to mention she’s just a normal girl. Where did this whole “Queen of Thorns” thing come from anyways? Doesn’t fit her at all, he pondered. He began to wonder about her image at school—about what their fellow students thought about her.
It was standard to spend lunchtime with the person you walked to school with. Koyuki and Naoya were in different classes, so it made sense to him to ensure they got to spend some time together at school. He decided to go ahead and arrange something before they arrived. “Did you bring your own lunch today? D’you wanna eat together, maybe? Just the two of us.”
“Uh, well, yeah, that’s fine...” Koyuki mumbled, seemingly overwhelmed by the sudden invitation. Surprise attacks looked to be super effective on “The Queen of Thorns.”
Once the lunch break had arrived, Naoya made his way to Koyuki’s classroom. He was surprised when he was unable to find her. I guess she’s in the bathroom?
“Hey. You,” a familiar voice called out.
Naoya turned to the sound and found Koyuki, but she wasn’t speaking to him. She was addressing a girl who Naoya didn’t recognize. She sported glasses and a prim appearance—a real honor student type. She was struggling to carry two cardboard boxes in her arms, which were filled to the brim with used printouts and such.
The girl looked at Koyuki with wide eyes. “Um, what is it, Shirogane?”
“That looks heavy. Let me take half,” Koyuki commanded.
“But the teacher asked me to do it, and I don’t wan—”
“Just give me the damn box,” Koyuki ordered as she wrenched the box from the other girl, coming across like she was mugging her.
Glasses seemed stunned for a moment before she broke into a smile. “Thanks, Shirogane. That’s really kind of you,” she said.
Koyuki seemed troubled in response to the girl’s kind words—she stumbled over her words for a moment before she managed to snap, “Hmph. I’m only helping you because I was getting tired of watching you struggle, okay? Seriously, you looked like some stupid monkey trying to bang sticks together. Now stop talking, and let's get this over with. You’ve wasted enough of my time already.”
“Hahaha... Okay. I’m sorry, I guess...” the girl visibly deflated, and her eyes drooped sadly.
Other students in the surrounding area exchanged knowing glances and shrugged. The atmosphere in the hallway was far from light.
Ohhh, now I get it. So this is where the whole ‘Queen of Thorns’ name comes from, Naoya realized. The whole exchange had been obvious to him—Koyuki had been trying to hide her embarrassment, but others had seen things differently. Naturally, they took her words and actions at face value. It’s obvious she’s gonna get a bad reputation if she acts like that all the time. That’s sad, though. She really is a nice girl at heart.
Naoya reached a conclusion—he knew what he had to do. He began to walk toward the two girls with a wide, unassuming smile on his face. “Hey, Shirogane!” he called out to her.
Koyuki turned, spotted Naoya, shrieked, and almost dropped the box she was holding. Glasses cocked her head to the side, unsure what to make of the sudden interloper she didn’t recognize.
“Come on, Shirogane, that’s really not the way to go about it,” Naoya continued.
“Huh?” Koyuki blinked.
“Now, I can tell what you’re feeling, so I wasn’t particularly bothered by what you said, but these guys don’t know that. I realize all that just now was because you were embarrassed, but you’ve gotta be more honest about how you feel, okay?”
“I wasn’t embarrassed!” she exclaimed.
“It just really bums me out that everyone’s ended up misunderstanding you so much...” Naoya lamented, clutching his chest dramatically and hanging his head. He knew his over-the-top, hammy acting would have an immediate effect on Koyuki.
Sure enough, Koyuki grumbled and sputtered to herself at Naoya’s emotional words. She turned toward Glasses and bowed her head. “Um, I’m sorry. I was really mean just now, and I didn’t mean it. I just wanted to help, that’s all,” she apologized.
Female onlookers in the hall began to shriek in disbelief in a high-pitched chorus. “No waaay!” “Ohmigod!” “Whaaa?!”
Even Naoya was surprised—he hadn’t expected her to be that submissive and polite about it. He had simply wanted her to think about her actions a bit more; he hadn’t expected her to go this far. Ah, maybe she’s only being like this because of me.
Glasses was understandably flustered by Koyuki’s show of honesty and quickly tried to smooth over the situation. “Oh! No, no, really. It’s fine,” she reassured the other girl. “I wasn’t bothered at all. No worries, ‘kay?”
“Really?” Koyuki asked.
“Yep. I know you always say stuff like that, but help out anyway. I totally get it,” Glasses added with a bright smile. “Still, thanks for being honest. I’m serious. I’m glad to get to know you better.”
“B-But...” Koyuki floundered.