After walking Nene home, Kanade, who had eagerly awaited this moment, appeared visibly more excited.

'Finally, a moment alone with Reiji-kun~' She thought, with an inner smile of pure happiness.

Soon, they arrived at the train station, and the train didn't take long to come.

Despite it being past ten o'clock at night, the carriage they chose was surprisingly occupied. There were available seats, but more than half were already filled. As soon as they settled in, a conversation between a father and his son caught their attention.

"Dad, how come the woman is always right?"

"Ah, you get used to it over time, Izumi. I've been married for 35 years."

Izumi asked, "And what's the secret to that?"

The father promptly replied, "Just agree."

Izumi, intrigued, asked, "And if she's wrong?"

"Ah, that's the secret, my son. She's never wrong."

Izumi, still confused, said, "Not even when I'm right?"

"Especially in those moments, that's when you're most wrong."

Izumi admitted his confusion, "It doesn't make sense."

The father, with a resigned smile, said, "Welcome to the club. I've been trying to understand for 35 years, without success." Changing the subject, he asked, "Did you fight with your girlfriend again?"

Izumi reported, "Yes. She sent me a message, it was all written there. I showed her what she wrote, and now she's mad at me because, according to her, she didn't write that."

Izumi's father shared a curious perspective, "Reality often isn't the foundation of their arguments. They live in their own reality." His gaze lost in the distance. "Remember when you fell when you were little? To this day, your mother blames me."

Izumi questioned, "But wasn't it you who bumped into her, causing me to fall?"

"No, I wasn't even close," the father replied.

"So how come?"

"Because I'm not Spider-Man. I couldn't foresee your fall to save you before you got hurt. Therefore, it's my fault," the father explained, with irony.

"Does this mean they always want to be right?" Izumi sought to understand.

"Exactly, young man. But it's not always about being right. Sometimes, it's just the need to be right," the father clarified.

"Sounds complicated..."

"Do you plan to marry her?" the father asked.

"Yes, next year."

"Then, you better apologize."

"But why?"

"Just apologize."

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

"I did nothing."

"Give up, kid, and apologize."

"But apologize for what?"

"Just apologize!"

"Alright, sorry..."

"Now that you've learned to apologize without reason, you're ready for marriage," the father concluded, proud.

Emotionally, Izumi thanked him, "Thank you, dad."

"And now, what are you going to do?"

"I'm going to apologize to her for being right."

"That's my boy!"

*Clapping!*

What started as a single clap soon evolved into an applause from other passengers, men who seemed to deeply understand the scene.

*Claps, claps, claps~!*

The situation was so unique that Reiji could hardly believe what he had just witnessed.

Kanade also seemed thoughtful, murmuring to herself as she listened.

Someone in the back exclaimed, "Bravo!"

Even after they got off the train, the memorable scene echoed in their minds, remarkable for its uniqueness.

Reiji never imagined he would witness such a unique scene, in which a father offered life advice to his son, and the collective reaction was applause. Interestingly, the men applauded vigorously, while the present women nodded, seeming to agree with every word.

"I can't believe what we just saw..." Kanade expressed, surprised.

"It's really something," Reiji agreed, laughing lightly.

"But is that true?" Kanade sought an answer in his eyes.

"Maybe?" Reiji casually replied. "I'm not married and I've never dated, so I can't say for sure."

"Ah..." That revelation made her blush, thinking to herself: 'So he's never had a girlfriend...'

However, this made her question: If he had never had a girlfriend, how could he understand girls so well?

Or was it her own lack of experience that made her see things in this way?

Regardless of the reason, she admired him, whether he had romantic experience or not.

"Is he really going to apologize?" Kanade wondered to herself.

"Probably, yes," Reiji answered, surprising her with his response.

Caught off guard by receiving an answer, she looked at him again and smiled, stating, "Well, I definitely wouldn't act like those women."

Reiji simply smiled and patted her head, without saying a word.

He then remembered a friend from the past (past life) and his girlfriend, who started dating at 14. There was a time when the girlfriend spilled coffee on the living room floor and blamed her boyfriend, his friend. He recalls that she often brought up the incident, always blaming him, and even her mother believed that version of the events, and his friend was forced to take the blame.

'When a woman wants to be right, she can be quite uncompromising...' Reiji reflected.

As they left the station, Reiji noticed the gentle pressure of her body against his arm, a delicate and comforting touch.

Looking up to gaze at the starless sky, Reiji saw that Kanade was doing the same.

Kanade murmured, "It's curious how the city deprives us of the stars in the sky, yet compensates us with its own luminous versions. Every lit window, every illuminated lamppost seems to create an artificial starry sky. Don't you think that has its own poetic charm?" She turned to look at him.

"Indeed," Reiji agreed, "but I think a truly starry sky, with clean air and nature around, would have its own poetry."

"I'd love to see something like that," she commented, with a dreamy look.

"We could plan a camping trip," Reiji suggested.

Visibly excited, she asked, "Really? For real?"

"Yes," Reiji confirmed, "but we need to organize it carefully."

"Ah, I believe we have a tent and camping gear at home; my parents liked camping."

"Great, if you can check, we can start planning our camping trip," Reiji said.

She nodded, smiling.

The idea of camping with Reiji delighted her. Although they were not dating, they had already planned activities together, and now they were even considering camping, though without a set date yet. This prospect filled her with joy, pondering how wonderful it would be if they started dating.

Lost in her thoughts, she felt her cheeks blush intensely.

"We're here," Reiji announced as they stopped in front of her house.

"Already?" Kanade's surprise revealed how much she wished the moment would last longer.

Noticing her reaction, Reiji couldn't help but smile.

With her cheeks flushed with embarrassment, Kanade looked at him, hesitating for a moment before deciding. She stood on her tiptoes and gave Reiji a quick kiss on the lips. Then, she ran towards the gate of her house. Passing through it, and upon reaching her door, she turned around, her face even more flushed.

"A-See you tomorrow, Reiji-kun~!" Her voice trembled, mixing nervousness with a hint of seduction.

Caught off guard by her gesture, Reiji was initially stunned but quickly composed himself, responding with a warm smile: "Yes, see you tomorrow, Kanade-chan." He waved.

> ||- Note -||

>

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