บท 105: I Just Want a Single Ending [105]
After everyone had finished packing up, Kamigawa Saku stood up to join them.
"There's really no need, we've already imposed on you enough tonight," Nijika Ijichi politely declined.
"Even so, I still want to see you home safely," Kamigawa insisted. "Just like Shiina-san said earlier, going home this late can be dangerous."
Ikuyo Kita raised a practical concern, "But there are so many of us—how will you manage, Kamigawa-senpai?"
Nagasaki Soyo spoke up, "I live upstairs, so you only need to worry about everyone else."
"Well, at least let me take you all to the train station."
Escorting all eight of them home wasn't exactly feasible, but he could at least accompany them to the station.
"Thank you, then."
With the matter settled, they no longer refused his offer.
After saying goodbye to Nagasaki Soyo, who headed upstairs, Kamigawa and the others took the elevator down together.
"Study sessions are so fun," Chihaya Anon remarked with a smile, reminiscing about the day.
"Agreed," Takamatsu Tomori nodded approvingly.
"Definitely."
Shiina Taki glanced over at Tomori, echoing her sentiment with a satisfied nod.
Yamada Ryo added with uncharacteristic sincerity, "Studying really is interesting."
"What's gotten into you? Are you feeling okay?" Kamigawa stared at her in disbelief.
This didn't sound like the Yamada Ryo he knew—he could still vividly recall her resistance at the end of their game of Old Maid.
Nijika laughed and explained, "It's that single-minded focus I mentioned before. Once Ryo gets into studying, there's no need to worry about her motivation."
"Got it."
Kamigawa was starting to understand this curious trait of hers.
"It's a shame the time was so short. We could've had even more fun," Ikuyo sighed regretfully.
Since they'd only arrived at Kamigawa's after school, their study session had been limited.
"Yeah, it did feel a bit rushed," Chihaya agreed.
Nijika suggested, "Well, if that's the case, we should plan to hang out more often."
"Absolutely."
Kamigawa was more than eager to have more gatherings like this.
After all, his single-life ending talked about spending his days happily with a group of like-minded friends.
Today's study session had been the perfect fit.
Everyone had genuinely enjoyed themselves.
At this rate, achieving his single-life ending didn't seem so hard after all.
Whether it was forming friendships or having fun, everything was progressing smoothly.
As long as he continued like this, his single-life ending was just within reach.
After chatting a bit about possible future hangout spots, Chihaya noticed Gotoh Hitori lingering at the back and turned her attention to the usually quiet Yao Raana.
"Raana-chan, what did you think of today's study session?"
"Delicious!"
Raana gave a thumbs-up.
"Oh, right! I forgot you were snacking the whole time," Chihaya laughed.
Since everyone was focused on studying, no one had really paid attention to Raana's snacking spree.
"More study sessions, please!"
Raana declared, clearly satisfied with the evening.
"No, you're just in it for the snacks, aren't you? Doesn't matter if it's a study session or not!" Chihaya teased, then turned to Gotoh Hitori.
"And you, Hitori-san, how did you find today's study session?"
"It… it was wonderful… I'll cherish this as a memory for the rest of my life," Hitori stammered, her tone full of emotion.
Being part of such a gathering had moved her deeply.
For a moment, she felt like a normal, socially active person.
"You're being a bit dramatic. It was just a study session!" Nijika laughed, brushing it off.
Kamigawa added, "Yeah, if you enjoyed it, you can always join us for these things more often."
"...Today already used up all my energy for the year. Let's leave it at this for now," Hitori said, quickly shaking her head.
Keeping up with regular gatherings was a bit too much for her.
An occasional event like this was fine.
"Your 'lifetime supply of energy' might be a little low, don't you think?"
It seemed that even casual gatherings with familiar faces were still a lot for Hitori to handle.
Then again, these two bands had only just started to get to know each other.
Aside from a few meetings during Golden Week, they'd only exchanged brief conversations before today.
After this session, though, they couldn't quite call themselves close friends yet, but they were definitely a lot more comfortable with each other.
"Anyway, it's never a bad idea to hang out more often!" Kamigawa said cheerfully.
Chatting casually, he accompanied them to the station.
"When you get home, send me a message to let me know you made it safely—or just drop a note in the group chat."
Before they parted ways, Kamigawa reminded them to check in.
"Got it!"
Everyone agreed.
"Oh, and Bocchi-chan, make sure you message me! No excuses!"
Knowing Hitori's shyness, Kamigawa felt compelled to give her a little extra push.
"O-okay, I will," she replied, unable to refuse.
---
Not long after Kamigawa returned home, he started receiving their safe-arrival messages.
Since Raana didn't know how to use her phone properly, he called to check on her.
She managed to answer, at least.
It took a while longer, but eventually, Kamigawa received the last message—from Hitori.
"All's well, then."
Seeing that everyone had made it home safely, he finally felt at ease.
--
The days passed quickly, and soon enough, it was the weekend.
During this time, Kamigawa had been waiting to hear from Togawa Sakiko.
However, he hadn't received any messages.
And since he didn't want to come across as overly eager, he held off on contacting her again.
Patience was key, especially with something this important.
It was perfectly normal for her to take her time deciding.
Today, Kamigawa sat in the back of a sleek black car, being driven to a meeting with a snack company to discuss a promotional campaign.
He was quite invested in today's collaboration, mainly because the company's brand ambassador was none other than the idol group sumimi
Yes, the same group that featured Misumi Uika.
Today, sumimi would be filming a commercial at the location.
Of course, as a male influencer on Instagram, he couldn't work directly with sumimi.
His role was simply to film a few promotional clips for online advertising.
Even so, he was determined to make a good impression.
At the very least, he couldn't tarnish the image he'd established with Uika.
---
If you notice anything that feels off, just let me know—I don't mind fixing things up.
Oh, and don't forget to sit up, grab some water, and take it easy while you're here. No rush, right?
If you're into this, consider checking out [patreon.com/WiseTL].
Your support helps me keep going, and I'm grateful for every bit of it.
สถานะพลังงานรายสัปดาห์
-- การจัดอันดับด้วยพลัง 
-- หินพลัง