“I never said anything about a shop clerk, you guessed that yourself, Sakura-chan!”
Even as she said this, Momoka Aoi nodded with a smile.
“But I didn’t see her either?”
“Look at the state you were in at the time, just like a dead pig~”
Momoka Aoi took the phone back from Akiba Sakura, glanced at the photo on it, and covered her mouth with another light laugh.
“I really never thought you had a side like this, Sakura-chan! It’s so rare!”
“Ahaha…”
Akiba Sakura was momentarily at a loss for words and could only force a smile.
“And even if you saw her, you might not have recognized her.”
“Why do you say that?”
This statement from Momoka Aoi took Akiba Sakura by surprise.
After all, she wasn’t face-blind and was pretty good at remembering people she’d met.
At the very least, she wouldn’t mistake someone familiar.
“Because Little Mitsuki’s part-time job at the amusement park is being a mascot in a costume!”
“Huh?!”
Hearing this, Akiba Sakura froze.
She then looked up, squinting at the blazing sun in the sky, before looking down at Momoka Aoi’s serious face.
“That’s amazing. Wearing a mascot costume on such a hot day as an amusement park mascot… I couldn’t handle that.”
“Mhm, although there’s a cooling system inside, it makes the costume very heavy. So I really admire her too!”
Momoka Aoi smiled and nodded, agreeing with Akiba Sakura’s view, then abruptly changed the subject:
“But this is all Little Mitsuki’s own doing. After all, she was the one who insisted the amusement park schedule her for work in this kind of weather.”
“Huh?”
“Because that girl’s family is very poor. She had to drop out of school early, so she can only work hard in these kinds of jobs.”
As soon as Momoka Aoi said this, she uncharacteristically lost her signature smile, and a flicker of sympathy passed through her eyes.
“So the shop clerk really is a very hardworking person!”
However, Akiba Sakura didn’t rein in her smile like Momoka Aoi did—
“Little Aoi, you don’t need to be so serious. Working hard to live life isn’t something that needs sympathy. We should be happy for her. After all, she didn’t choose to just stay stuck—she’s trying hard to change her future. I think what she needs most is smiles and encouragement, not sympathy, don’t you think?”
“Yeah, you’re better at putting things into words, Sakura-chan…”
Momoka Aoi looked at Akiba Sakura, a hint of something stirred in her eyes.
“Sakura-chan is definitely much better than me at being understanding. When I offered to help Little Mitsuki before, she scolded me harshly.”
“Scolded?”
“Mhm!”
Momoka Aoi patted her own cheeks with both hands, the brilliant smile and starry-eyed sparkle returning to her face.
“She said something similar to what you just said back then. She said she didn’t need anyone’s charity. Maybe what made her happiest back then was just the time we spent chatting and laughing together?”
“Mhm, that must be it!”
Akiba Sakura smiled and nodded.
She was just about to start walking towards the school again when Momoka Aoi suddenly grabbed her arm from behind.
“Huh?”
Akiba Sakura instantly felt a chill run down her spine and sensed Momoka Aoi’s gaze, sharp as a hawk’s.
“Sakura-chan~ Don’t think you can just brush this off like that! You clearly know that wasn’t what I was talking about at the beginning, so~”
‘Crap, I didn’t get away with it!’
“Li…Little Aoi?”
Akiba Sakura turned her head mechanically, meeting Momoka Aoi’s excited face.
“We’re… we’re going to be late, you know?”
“That doesn’t matter at all!”
Momoka Aoi’s face was slightly flushed, her breathing had become rapid, and more importantly—the feeling of her whole body trembling with excitement was transmitted through her hand to Akiba Sakura, making Akiba Sakura’s heart sink with dread.
“Sakura-chan… I remember I told you before, right? That if you made any progress with another guy, you’d tell me first thing. I said that, didn’t I?”
“Ah… I don’t remember that at all?”
Akiba Sakura put on a serious face, but the sweat beading on her forehead betrayed her completely.
“We’re best friends! How can best friends keep secrets from each other? My reputation as the ‘Love First Strategist’ resounded throughout the entire middle school! You know how many couples ended up together under my brilliant guidance!!”
‘That’s exactly why I can’t let you know!!!!!!’
Akiba Sakura’s heart screamed helplessly—how could she, a seasoned ‘NTR Expert’, mix with a branch of the ‘Pure Love Warriors’, the ‘Love Strategist’? It would undoubtedly ruin her ‘NTR Plan’!!!
Momoka Aoi’s obsession with seeing other people’s love stories, especially those ‘happily ever after’ endings, had reached a ‘deranged’ level.
This desire was even on par with Akiba Sakura’s own desire to see ‘the victim’s despairing expression when his girlfriend gets stolen’.
Fortunately, Akiba Sakura had figured out Momoka Aoi’s preferences early on, or this girl really would have ruined her plans.
And now, her ‘secret date’ with Yuuma Tsugumu had been detected by Momoka Aoi!
‘Oh, NTR God, do you think I can still succeed in seeing Tsuguo-kun’s despairing face?’
“Hey, Sakura-chan! I’m asking you a question, speak up—”
Momoka Aoi clung stubbornly to Akiba Sakura’s arm.
Knowing Akiba Sakura was stronger than most girls their age, she wrapped her arms tightly around her, trying to prevent her escape.
“How far have you and Tsuguo-kun gone?”
At this moment, Momoka Aoi’s eyes were nothing but swirling mosquito-coil circles, with the word ‘Instinct’ stamped above them.
” I…”
“Did you hold hands at the amusement park?”
“We didn’t…”
“Did you kiss and show off your love?”
“No, Little Aoi, I…”
“Don’t tell me!”
Momoka Aoi immediately broke into a knowing, auntie-like grin, her whole body starting to wiggle with an unbelievable intensity.
“Don’t tell me you’ve already—done it somewhere no one could see? Hehe…”
“Of course not?!”
Seizing the moment, Akiba Sakura directly tickled Momoka Aoi’s sensitive underarms, making her loosen her grip.
Akiba Sakura yanked her arm free and immediately took off running!
“Sakura-chan!”
“Sorry, Little Aoi, we’ll talk about this some other time—”
“Oh ho?”
Watching Akiba Sakura’s figure get further and further away, Momoka Aoi wasn’t anxious at all.
On the contrary, her mood right now was as excited as if she’d just tasted sweet honey.
‘Run, Sakura-chan. You won’t be able to run later. You still want to say there’s nothing between you and Yuuma-kun? Would two people with no connection stick together every day going to and from school, and then sneak off to an amusement park together behind my back?!’
Momoka Aoi slowly put away her phone, a slight smile curling her lips.
‘Don’t worry. As your ‘Single Pusher’, now that I’ve confirmed you have those kinds of feelings, I, the ‘Love First Strategist’, will definitely lend you a helping hand!’
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