It took me ten minutes to realize that I can no longer eat by that tree in front of the student council office's room.

I had finished eating my lunch of melon bread and juice in a jiffy so I got up, dusted the dirt off my skirt, and started walking back inside, breathing heat into my frozen fingers. Just as I was a few steps away from the council's window, it slid open, and a familiar voice called out, "Cinna-chan!"

Kanato-kun had his head out of the window, looking at me with wide brown eyes. I tilted my head. Somehow, I was pleasantly surprised that the one who used the window wasn't Akashi-kun and his scolding or one of his stern remarks. (I internally slapped myself for once again thinking of the redhead.) I tilted my head in question, asking why he called out to me.

"Did you just finish eating...?" he asked worriedly, eyeing my hands. Currently, I just had a ball of trash in one hand and the light novel I was currently reading in the other.

I nodded.

He slammed his palms on the short wooden cabinet in front of the window, frowning with puffed-up cheeks. "It's too cold out, Cinna-chan! What are you doing?!" he scolded, and though he did seem to be disappointed and mad at my actions, I giggled, unable to hold in my thoughts on how cute he was and how he didn't really suit the Mom Friend™️ role. My suppressed laughter only made him puff his cheeks more and slam his fist on the cabinet's surface again. "This is no laughing matter, Cinna-chan!"

I covered my mouth, trying to stop my giggles and nodded, waving my hand to say that I'm completely fine. 

"You might get sick again!" He argued, the frown not leaving his face.

"I'm sleeping fine and early recently," I told him, as "early" in my terms was midnight. Well, that's better than 3 am, right? "I'm also eating properly, as always," I reasoned once more; it's not like I only eat dull-tasting bread, anyway. And I don't get too lazy to fix myself a meal recently. Or at least go to the nearby convenience store to buy a "well-balanced" bento.

"But it's too cold! I told you to just eat here, inside, where there's a heater!" 

And spend an awkward time with the person I'm trying to avoid? No thanks.

"I'm really fine, Kanato-kun!" I told him again, raising one of  my eyebrows. "I'm going to look for a new place anyway." It's not like I had a choice; I might have to spend a few days roaming around, eating my food mindlessly. If it'd get too cold, I might have to spend the rest  of my time in the library. One of these days, I might also have to make something for the school nurse to show my gratitude for her patient care during the time I was bullied. "And besides," I added, scratching the back of my neck and looking at some of the stray autumn leaves, "I don't want to be a bother. I'm sure Akashi-kun wouldn't want someone like me---"

"I don't mind," a voice from the same window cut me off, throwing my heart a thousand miles into the sky, "Though I would prefer it if Akiyama could also be a helping hand."

What?  The absence of Akashi-kun's appearance in my surroundings gave me the freedom to really frown at his unexpected intervention. What's with this sudden kindness?

Kanato-kun, looking back at the speaker with wide sparkling eyes and a large smile, suddenly reminded me of a large dog who was just given a treat. He turned back to me with a larger version of the grin, and leaned further outside that a strong gust of wind would surely push him out of balance and get him to fall into the grass of fading green. "See?! He says he wouldn't mind! It's completely fine, Cinna-chan!" He wagged his hand, the other supporting his weight on the cabinet.

For a moment there, I was almost tempted to accept the offer, until the afternoon before the Winter Cup flashed in my mind, and again, I wanted to punch the sudden pang away from my chest.

Taking a deep breath, I turned and faced him properly, placing both of my hands on my lap. I made a polite smile and bowed low, staring at the hopeful look the adorable Kanato-kun was giving me. As much as I like Kanato-kun's company, I also had to get rid of these lingering feelings for the redhead. "I truly, sincerely appreciate your concern, Kanato-kun!" I told him. "But I'd have to reject your offer. I apologize!" I straightened up, seeing the small fall out of Kanato-kun's lips. Just as he was about to say something, I bowed again. "Then, please excuse me!"

I made an about-face and quickly walked away from the scene and into the school's hallways. I slapped both of my cheeks for causing that look of disappointment to appear on Kanato-kun's oh-so-pure face. How dare I hurt the cinnamon roll?! 

I slapped myself, scrunching up my face and closing my eyes.

He's too pure for this world! 

Slap.

Just because I couldn't get rid of these stupid, disgusting feelings.

Another slap.

When I opened my eyes, a group of guys were giving me weird looks. I turned away, my cheeks burning, making my hair and bangs hide my face by hanging my head low. I forced an awkward chuckle, bowing a little and escaping from their sight, finding my way into the library once I threw my trash into a bin. 

I found a rather comfortable seat unoccupied, one where only one tall guy was nearby (all the other places had groups of people or just many students surrounding them), and took it. Setting my book onto the accompanying table of the seat, I closed my eyes, covered my ears, and took a deep breath, forcing myself to take my mind off Akashi-kun's words earlier. I opened my eyes and made myself comfortable on the seat, slumping, and continued reading the light novel.

________
a/n: short chapter but yooo i'm (somehow) free from school! the title is random and a song ref pffft
do you guys like the new cover? ^^; i thought the layout was already kind of old, and we're now dealing with Oreshi with the haircut. so yuhhh. i also somehow sorta added a hint in there for a future event. eheh.

Also! Does anyone want to do an 'Ask the Character' thingy? Like you could ask a character of your choice from this fic (Akashi, Saki, the other OCs). I just thought it would be fun. Haha.