The sword cut through the air, scattering the strands of hair near Nozomi’s ear.

The tip stopped just short of her face, hovering beside her ear.

"Let go."

Nino’s voice was completely emotionless, as calm as her expression.

"..."

Nozomi’s smile froze. She stared blankly at the girl before her as a clear tear slid down her cheek.

Nino tilted her head slightly. Seeing no response, she reached out toward Nozomi’s arm.

Just as her hand was about to land, Alan frowned sharply and knocked the bamboo sword away.

"Nino."

Calling her name, he pulled his hand back.

However, Nozomi seemed to resist deliberately, biting her lip hard and clinging to Alan’s arm even as tears streamed down her face.

Rip!

All three pulled at once, and the sleeve on Alan’s arm tore open.

At the sound, Nozomi instinctively looked over.

Her eyes widened, pupils shrinking.

A dark, grotesque scar—like a coiled python—ran from Alan’s wrist all the way to his elbow.

Exposed to the air, the room fell into dead silence.

Two seconds later, Nino lowered her gaze to his arm. The coldness in her eyes instantly vanished.

The scar was like a burning fuse, igniting a flood of memories—

***

"Hu... hu... hu..."

At the end of her final sprint before sunset, the girl panted heavily. When she saw the red flag by the creek, she stopped and collapsed onto the slope, spreading her limbs into a big "X."

Her tied ponytail pressed uncomfortably against her back.

Frowning slightly, Nino reached up and pulled off the hair tie.

Her jet-black hair spilled across the grass as sunlight filtered through the leaves above, dappling her hair, face, and neck.

The warmth made her squint. Sleepiness washed over her, her breathing slowly steadying as her consciousness began to drift.

Just as she was about to fall asleep, the light on her eyelids was suddenly blocked.

Sensing something wrong, she opened her eyes and saw Alan leaning over her.

"You really never listen, do you?"

The drowsiness vanished instantly. Nino pressed her lips together and propped herself up on her palms, gaze lowered in guilt, unwilling to look at him.

Click.

Alan gave her a helpless look but didn’t repeat his usual lecture. Instead, he twisted open a bottle of water and brought it to her lips.

"Drink first. Small sips. Soothe your throat."

"Oh."

Her throat suddenly felt dry.

She licked her lips and took a few careful sips. When the bottle was half empty, she stared at the worn black tips of his shoes and asked quietly,

"Alan... are you angry?"

There was no answer.

Her ear twitched.

Just as she was about to look up, she heard the crisp rustle of a plastic bag.

Curious, she lifted her head and saw Alan pulling a shoebox from it.

"Of course I’m angry."

He looked straight into her eyes, serious.

"I’ve told you so many times, and you still don’t listen. I think you’re trying to drive me crazy."

After running, sitting down immediately caused blood to pool in the legs, increasing strain on the heart and disrupting muscle recovery—something he had explained countless times.

Since she wouldn’t listen, he’d just have to take care of it himself.

Alan opened the box, taking out a pair of black running shoes, and patted her thigh.

"Lift your leg."

"Oh."

Familiar with the routine, Nino arched her slim waist and placed her long leg steadily across his knees.

But this time felt different.

Noticing the new shoes, her eyes lit up. Biting her lips, she asked,

"Are those new shoes you bought, Alan?"

His palm kneaded her calf gently as he glanced at her.

Seeing her expression—They’re for me, right? Right?—he felt amused.

A mischievous thought surfaced, and he replied with a straight face,

"Yeah. I bought them for you. But since you don’t listen, I’m thinking of keeping them for myself."

"Ah?"

Her face froze as she stared at him blankly.

A moment later, she realized he was teasing her and poked his shoulder, pouting.

"Nino was wrong. Please forgive Nino..."

"This isn’t the first time. How many times do you expect me to forgive you?"

He spoke calmly and lowered her leg.

"Other leg."

"Oh."

As he placed her other leg on his knees, a wave of relaxation spread through her muscles.

Nino shifted slightly, stealing another glance at the shoes. Puffing her cheeks, she thought hard.

Suddenly, an idea struck her.

"But... Alan can’t wear them."

Surprised she thought of that, he narrowed his eyes but kept his poker face.

"Then I’ll just return them."

"Ah?"

"Isn’t that troublesome?"

Her eyes welled up. Leaning closer, she whispered,

"Would you really rather return them than let Alan wear them?"

"If you make mistakes, you have to accept the punishment. Otherwise, you won’t learn."

"Nino knows she was wrong..."

"No means no. End of discussion."

"Oh..."

Seeing there was no chance, she lowered her head, fiddling with her fingers. Lying back down, she stared at the shade above, eyes full of disappointment.

But after running, she was always exhausted...

Lost in thought, she suddenly felt something cool on her foot.

Looking down, she saw Alan had taken off his shoes.

"Ah?!"

She gasped, staring at him in shock.

A sweaty smell filled the air—one she could clearly recognize as his.

Her cheeks flushed bright red. Her toes curled inside her white socks.

She yanked her leg back, pressing her foot under her hip, then peeked at him shyly.

"Alan... you’re naughty."

"Huh?"

"Did you finally lose control?"

She sniffed again, then scooted away hurriedly.

Realizing she might have hurt his feelings, she softened and murmured,

"Being naughty isn’t forbidden... just not right now..."

Alan burst into laughter, finally understanding.

"So when do you think it is okay?"

"At least... at least tomorrow morning..."

"Oh. I thought washing your feet would make it fine."

Her face burned even redder, heat spreading to her neck. She pressed her legs tightly together.

Finally, she snapped,

"Alan, you’re a bad boy!"

Watching her pout, Alan found it even more amusing. Pretending to sigh, he said,

"Not allowed? I brought water so I could do it now. If it’s tomorrow, I probably won’t want to anymore."

"Ugh..."

Nino hesitated. This was the first time Alan had ever asked her for something like this. 𝑓𝘳𝘦𝑒𝑤𝑒𝘣𝘯ℴ𝘷𝘦𝓁.𝑐𝑜𝑚

She had imagined such moments before—but not like this.

After a full minute, she sat up straight.

"Nino wants to wash herself..."

"No."

"Huh?"

Before she could react, Alan grabbed her ankle, pulled off her sock, and gently washed the dirt from between her toes, speaking softly,

"I’m not disgusted by you. If I were, we wouldn’t have lasted this long over something so small."

"And besides..."

"Being able to take care of you makes me happy."