It was a three-stop ride to the seaside.
After getting off the train, Mori Shinra deliberately stretched, then placed his left hand on his hip, intentionally leaving just enough space for a certain girl named 'Sakurajima Mai' to link her arm through.
"It's not too far from the sea from here. Should we walk..."
As he spoke, his eyes couldn't stop glancing at her right hand.
At the side, Mai had long noticed his little movements and couldn't help but find it amusing. She then naturally linked her arm with his and said, "Then let's walk. We can enjoy the scenery along the way."
To be honest, there wasn't much scenery along the way. The houses, lawns, and passersby were all very ordinary, almost no different from the area around their homes.
However, neither of them found it boring. On the contrary, they found it very novel.
Some roads are boring to walk alone, but with two people, it's completely different.
Take Sakurajima Mai, for example. She had never walked so intimately with a boy on the street before. What was even more incredible was that she was the one who had proactively invited him.
The Puberty Syndrome had indeed brought her a lot of trouble, but it had also brought her an experience completely different from the past.
It seemed... it wasn't so bad after all.
"By the way, why did you talk to me back then?"
"That's naturally because your bunny girl outfit was too stunning, Mai-san. I felt that if I didn't say something, I would regret it for the rest of my life."
"Not that time, but later, at the station."
"I guess I was just a little worried. Besides, even without the bunny girl outfit, just in your school uniform, you're still incredibly cute. I felt that if I didn't help, I would regret it for the rest of my life."
Mai pursed her lips, looking a little happy from the compliment, but she still kept a straight face. "Although I know I'm cute, you're the only one so far who has dared to hit on me so brazenly."
"In other words, I took your first time?" Shinra said, with a look of honor.
"That's not wrong, but the way you say it is too weird!" Mai said, pinching the soft flesh at his waist with her free left hand.
Ever since she had played like this last time, she seemed to have gotten a little addicted.
"Ow, ow, ow!" He felt that the bit of Constitution he had added the day before was completely useless.
So when was he going to get a body-strengthening type of ability? The kind that could add resistance to the soft flesh at his waist.
"I feel like you're a bit of a sadist, Mai-san."
"Yes, that's right. Scared?"
"On the contrary, I happen to be a bit of a masochist," he said proudly, giving a thumbs-up.
Her statement was so perverted that for a moment, she didn't know how to respond.
"By the way, does no one hit on you at school? With your popularity, you should be at the very top!" he said.
"Sorry to disappoint you, but I'm no different from 'air' at school."
As she said this, her tone was frighteningly calm. It felt like he had stepped on a landmine.
He wasn't flustered, though. He had plenty of experience with stepping on landmines. But why were the outstanding women around him always so unsuccessful in their campus social lives?
Of course, he himself was in no position to talk about others.
"I see. Is it because you're too dazzling that people don't dare to approach you?" he said, pinching his chin thoughtfully.
He didn't think it was bullying. After all, she had been shining in front of the camera since she was eight and had dealt with adult staff members on a daily basis. Her social skills were definitely not weak.
So even if she couldn't integrate into the campus cliques because of her status, she was more than capable of protecting herself. Besides, the school she attended wouldn't want a scandal like a big star being bullied on campus.
But... bullying wasn't just about violence. The cold shoulder was also a form of bullying.
Having a falling out with her mother over a photo shoot and moving out to live alone, being treated as 'air' by her classmates at school, and being stared at by countless pairs of eyes, both good and bad, on the street...
To be honest, even he felt a little suffocated just putting himself in her shoes. He didn't know how she had endured it. Even if she had, in the long run, it would definitely cause psychological problems.
Originally, he thought the root of the problem was her mother. Now it seemed there were other reasons.
"I guess so. But I'm used to it. Being treated as air is better than being surrounded by a group of people asking all sorts of strange questions."
The hand she had linked with his unconsciously tightened. Although the soft and warm touch became more distinct, his mind was no longer on it.
"That's true. By the way, I basically have no friends at school either. We're quite similar in that regard," he said, timely giving her a sense of 'kinship'.
Don't underestimate this feeling. It's the best way to close the social distance. After all, humans are social animals.
But he wasn't using this to get closer to her. He just felt that at this moment, he should give her some comfort.
"No friends? Then what about that pair of sisters we met the other night?" Mai narrowed her eyes.
Seriously? She still remembers after just one meeting?
He felt he had underestimated a girl's memory.
"Friends. But Yukinoshita and I are not in the same class. We're in the same club; she's the president. Besides, you saw it last time. She barely spoke to me. It was her sister who was talking to me the whole time," Shinra said, calmly, methodically, and selectively telling the truth.
Yare yare, have I learned some strange skills without realizing it?
It's all the system's fault!
"I see. I'll let you pass."
Although Mai knew there was definitely more to it, she chose not to delve deeper. After all, with their current relationship, she was in no position to say anything.
"Is it tough at school?"
"The coursework? It's fine. It's no problem for me to get into a good university."
It seemed Sakurajima Mai was a rare intellectual in the entertainment industry.
Shinra said, "You know that's not what I was talking about, right?"
Mai was silent for a moment, then she brushed her hair back with her left hand and said in a relaxed tone, "It's actually fine. At least for me, going to school is easier than dealing with those reporters."
To even be compared with dealing with reporters, how can that be easy?
But since she didn't want to talk about it, he wouldn't be tactless enough to press the issue. Instead, he chimed in, "That's true. They're all from the school of journalism."
"What about you? How do you feel at school? My similarly reclusive classmate, Mori Shinra," Mai asked back calmly, as if she wanted to see how he would answer.
"Like a fish in water," he replied. He didn't socialize because he didn't need to. In terms of both mental and moral fortitude, he was a top-tier powerhouse.
Never any internal friction!