Rie's point of view

　"Hey, what kind of person is he?"

　"He's so kind. He's always been concerned about me, and not only did he take me home, he even talked to my mother and picked me up and dropped me off!!"

　"I see. ...Yeah. I think it's a lot better than that piece of trash!"

　"Right!!"

　I was a little excited because Touka had accepted me. I replied right away. Normally, I wouldn't have been noticed. But she's my best friend. What I want to say is...

　"So you like him already. Ah! Maybe tomorrow's after-school event will be to walk home together!"

　"How did you know?!"

　Yes, my feelings were revealed. Of course, I never thought I could keep it a secret from the beginning. Still, I never expected that she would find out through just text messages on RAIN.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

　"I understand that much. It's thanks to that person that Rie is in good spirits right now, right? I should be grateful too. Oh, by the way, we're going to school together starting tomorrow, right? I'll just say hello then!"

　"Come on! Why would Touka do something like that?!"

　"Because I want to say thank you for helping my best friend."

　Messages like that warmed my heart. I realized that I am loved by many people.

　"...Yeah. I want to introduce you as my dear friend too."

　"Yes! ...Now that I think about it, we were going to talk to each other, right? What happened?"

　"I was wondering how I should approach this."

　"Oh. I see. That's certainly difficult. I don't know the other person at all, and if I do something wrong it will have the opposite effect..."

　『I thought so, that’s right.』

　"Yeah. If he's a kind person, there won't be any progress as long as he thinks Rie is depressed. On the other hand, even if he thinks she's okay now, we might lose contact."

　…Yeah. Maybe I'm just asking for too much from Sugita-kun after all?

　"But they ended up going to and from school together, right? Would it be good if the people around them started to think it was normal for those two to be together? Like, fill in the moat?"

　"...That means you're causing trouble, right? I'd like to avoid that if possible."

　"After all, Rie is Rie. In that case, I think it would be best to get to know her better, let her get to know you better, and gradually close the distance between you."

　"Yeah. That's the royal road. I'll try my best! Thank you, Touka!"

　"You're welcome! I'd be happy if you could let me know how far you've gone from time to time."

　"Yeah! Of course."

　Shortly afterwards, we finished RAIN. Before I knew it, my mother had left, but I fell asleep feeling refreshed.