forming words.
Humiliation? Anger? Both? Whatever she might be feeling, Ayato was
steeling himself for either a shriek or an outpouring of invective. Instead,
hurrying to cover herself, the girl drew a deep breath and glared at him hard,
even as tears welled up in the corners of her eyes.
“T-turn around!” she ordered in a low voice, full of forcibly suppressed
emotion.
“Huh?”
“Just turn around already!”
He rushed to obey, the authority in her tone beyond question.
From behind him came the faint rustling of her clothes. And a strangely
pleasant scent. Ayato could not have been more uncomfortable.
On top of that, he was still perched on the windowsill. He was one wrong
move away from a deadly fall. He waited like this for several minutes, while
the wind on several occasions threatened his balance.
At last she sighed and said, “O-okay. You can turn around now.”
When he did so, he saw now a girl blooming with radiance.
Wearing her uniform impeccably, she cut the very picture of class and
elegance—such a stark contrast to her earlier appearance that he wondered if
he’d imagined it. Her sullen expression and fierce glare loudly declared a foul
mood, but even that seemed somehow endearing. Ayato couldn’t help but
gaze at her.
She bluntly interrupted his trance. “So, the handkerchief?”
“…Sorry?”
“You were saying something earlier. About a handkerchief.”
“Oh—oh yeah! Um, here it is…” Ayato took the handkerchief from his
pocket and held it out to her. “I found it floating along in the wind and picked
it up. Is it yours, by any chance?”
The girl inhaled sharply, opened her eyes wide for a split second, then let
out a deep sigh of relief. “Thank goodness…”
She took the handkerchief and gently held it to her chest.
“Thank you. This handkerchief…it’s very special to me.”
“Oh no, I mean, I just happened to find it…”
“All the same. I really do appreciate it.”
As Ayato stood embarrassed by her gratitude, she bent forward in a deep,
formal bow. But then—
