Three days had passed since Fuyuka had suffered from a cold and Asahi had taken care of her. It was Monday, which marked the beginning of a new week.
Classes had already finished for the day, but Asahi wasn’t heading home just yet. He’d promised his friend Chiaki that he’d remain at school with him so they could study together. The sky outside was dimming rapidly; however, Asahi had fortunately anticipated this outcome—he’d done his laundry and prepared the night’s dinner earlier that morning prior to leaving for school.
Unfortunately, he didn’t have enough time to complete all of the problems he’d personally assigned himself. Or, rather, it was more an issue with his concentration—he’d found himself unable to focus on solving all of the questions. The reason behind this was none other than Fuyuka Himuro, The Ice Queen.
I’m just glad that she was able to recover from that fever, at least, Asahi thought to himself.
Chiaki had told him earlier, but she’d attended classes earlier that day as if nothing had ever happened. She behaved the same as usual and ignored everyone—a clear sign that she’d made a complete recovery from her illness. That should’ve been the end of things. Asahi didn’t think much about what happened after that... or, at least, that’s what he tried to tell himself.
Once he returned home, collecting the clothes that he’d left out to dry was the first priority. As he folded them, he went over the math problems he hadn’t been able to complete at school. His parents always gave him a hefty allowance so that he could fully concentrate on his studies. That was something he knew he had to stay on top of. He didn’t particularly dislike studying, although as of late, a few subjects—such as Math and English—had been the source of several headaches.
I should probably try to solve a couple more questions before getting dinner ready, he mused to himself as he continued to sort the laundry.
Once he’d finished with his clothes, he went straight to his room and opened his notebook. The first page was covered in traces of half-assed equations and smudges of mistakes he’d erased. The moment he decided to turn to a blank page and get to studying, something unexpected occurred.
Ding dong.
“Who could it be this late?”
At first, he thought it might be Chiaki. When he thought it over more, though, there was no chance it would’ve been him—he always let Asahi know beforehand if he was coming over to hang out. That scratched the possibility of it being him off the list. That meant that it had to be another friend of his, but even that seemed unlikely. Perhaps it was someone dropping off a delivery? But, no, he was certain he hadn’t ordered anything recently.
Because he was absolutely clueless as to who rang the bell, he headed straight for the camera attached to the intercom to check who it was. It was the safest choice to make, considering the circumstances.
What he hadn’t expected was a certain black-haired beauty to be the one waiting on the other side of the door.
“What do you want?” he asked as he opened the door. Fuyuka was standing in front of him in what could be considered everyday attire: a button-up shirt and a pair of jeans. He wasn’t used to seeing her in clothes outside of her uniform at all, so it briefly threw him for a loop.
He wasn’t able to conceal his utter surprise. How could he? Of all the people he’d thought of, Fuyuka was not even close to being on the list. As he tried to look anywhere but in her direction, she presented him with a white envelope.
“Please take this,” she said.
“And this is...?”
“My thanks for everything that happened the other day,” she followed up while thrusting the envelope toward him. He smiled awkwardly as she essentially forced him into taking it.
Although he knew what she meant by “the other day,” he didn’t quite understand why she felt inclined to thank him. It wasn’t like he’d done anything that merited her gratitude. He opened the envelope and spotted a ten thousand yen bill inside.
“I can’t accept this. I don’t remember doing anything to deserve this.”
“That won’t do. You must factor in not only the time you spent caring for me, but also the cost of the supplies—the cooling packs, the ice pillows, the sports drink, and...”
Asahi sighed deeply as she rattled off the costs of her “maintenance.” Are you telling me this is how she thinks she’s going to “pay me back” for the favor?
Actually, this was quite fitting for The Ice Queen to do. He understood that Fuyuka was simply trying to be courteous in her own unique way, but he didn’t really share the same sentiment. Shoving money in his face wasn’t the best way to thank him.
“I’m not taking this, no matter what you say. I took care of you out of good faith. I wasn’t expecting any sort of compensation in return for what I did.”
“But...”
Fuyuka was speechless as Asahi handed the envelope back to her. She was completely stumped by his defiance and didn’t know how to react in such a situation.
Given the abrupt visit and the normal conversation they were having, it was clear to Asahi that, despite her recovery, the fever had thawed a small portion of her icy disposition. He could actually read the combination of confusion and mild irritation on her face—something that would have been unthinkable even just a few days ago.
Despite multiple attempts to assure her that she didn’t have to worry about it anymore, Fuyuka wasn’t the sort who liked remaining indebted to someone. She rooted herself to the spot and stared awkwardly at him. It didn’t look as though she was ready to admit defeat just yet.
Knowing her, I bet she’s just trying to think of another way to repay me... Wait, I have an idea, Asahi mused.
“Actually... You’re good at studying and all that, yeah?” he asked her.
“I guess you could say that.”
“How about you help me with my studies, then? If you do that, you can consider us even.”
“And that would be good enough for you?”
“Yeah.”
Fuyuka was merely being modest—Asahi was aware that she was at the top of their class when it came to marks. Getting her help would greatly improve his scores, not to mention he’d finally be able to tackle the problems he was having trouble with earlier.
“Very well then,” she responded after a short moment of silence. With his confirmation, she accepted his offer somewhat reluctantly. “If you’ll excuse me,” she followed up, heading toward him.
“Huh?” Asahi quickly blurted out, his eyes widening in shock.
She didn’t pay much heed as she side-stepped him and made her way into his place. “What are you so surprised about?” she asked. “You said you wanted me to help with your studies, didn’t you?”
“I... I guess so, yeah.”
He hadn’t expected her to just barge in like that, however. He’d assumed they’d figure out a time and place to meet up, not right then and there. It had definitely caught him off-guard.
I thought she was The Ice Queen? What the hell’s wrong with her? he thought.
As she headed inside, he turned around in confusion and faced her petite, yet imposing, back. This was his second time interacting with Fuyuka, the Ice Queen, out of coincidence; it was also the second time she’d subverted his expectations.