Our small world was completely wrapped up in talk of the Suzakura Festival, but before that, there was an event in October that demanded our attention. The demon known as the midterm exam was waiting to ambush us right as we were getting swept up in festival excitement.

“Do you want to study for the test at my place tomorrow?”

On our way home from work at Cyberia, Iori muttered this when the station lights came into view in the distance. The pedestrian signal up ahead began flashing and turned red just then. We slowed our steps.

“…Test studying?”

My muttered response felt like splashing water on yourself starting from the furthest point from your heart when stepping into a pool. What I really wanted to ask was about the “at my place” part, but I couldn’t bring myself to say that right away. I had to ease into it.

“Yeah. Aotaka has tests starting next week too, right? I thought it’d be a good chance to review.”

I stole a glance at Iori’s expression. She was facing straight ahead, her profile as calm and composed as always. It was hard to believe she was a high school girl inviting her boyfriend over for the first time.

…Was I the only one getting all worked up here?

When Iori first came to my place, I was so nervous I couldn’t sleep at all the night before.

“Sounds good. I’ll come by then.”

Of course, I didn’t let my jealous feelings show. Instead, I just tightened my grip on her hand slightly — my small act of defiance.

We started walking again as the signal changed. Once we crossed the street, Iori squeezed my hand back, her expression still as serene as ever.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing… I just thought you’d react more. When I first went to your place, I was pretty nervous myself.”

“Wait, you were nervous back then?”

I remembered that visit vividly. The moment Iori stepped into my room, she started poking around, inspecting everything, and then plopped down on my bed like it was her own. I distinctly remember thinking she was surprisingly playful.

“You didn’t notice? I thought I was acting pretty suspicious.”

“Ah… now that you mention it, I guess you didn’t seem quite like yourself. So that was you being nervous?”

“Exactly. That’s why I’m a little jealous that you’re staying so calm about this.”

Iori squeezed my hand painfully tight as she said that. She really was so cool. The way she could just say things outright — things I kept bottled up inside.

“Sorry. Truth is, I’m nervous too. I was trying my best to play it cool, but honestly, I’m kind of freaking out about going to your place.”

“Heh… I see. Well, I’m glad I cleaned my room yesterday instead of studying for the test.”

Iori smiled in satisfaction. As we neared the station, we naturally let go of each other’s hands. Our relationship was a secret. For these brief twenty minutes on the way home, we could just be a couple.

…That said.

“Iori, you only cleaned because you were procrastinating on studying, didn’t you?”

She didn’t answer. But judging from her expression, no words were needed.