After deciding to give up, I became popular

"Meow?" The kitten tilted its head, looked at Kawa Sou, then at Yukinoshita, who was keeping some distance from him, with a puzzled expression.

"Don't worry, we're not fighting," Yukinoshita said softly.

She really wanted to pick up the kitten; she usually would, but Kawa was next to her, so she was hesitant.

"Meow."

"Yes, good girl, good girl..."

"What are you going to do about the club?" Kawa asked, watching the cute interaction between the girl and the cat.

"Recruit members."

"That doesn't sound like you."

"But isn't it the most direct method?"

"..." Kawa was silent.

For a long time, neither of them spoke.

"I'll take my leave then," Kawa stood up, ready to leave.

He would get bored if he stayed in the same place all the time.

Yukinoshita paused, as if responding to him, her lips slightly parted, wanting to say something.

However, Kawa had already walked some distance away, so she had to call out.

"Kawa... what are you thinking about?"

"Thinking about?" Kawa was taken aback, not expecting Yukinoshita to ask that suddenly.

"Is Little Snow cute?"

"..."

"If you're not asking that... then probably just how to live each day well."

"..."

"Whether you believe it or not, after all... goodbye, Yukinoshita," Kawa waved behind him, not lingering any longer.

And Yukinoshita Yukino hugged the kitten in her arms, gently stroking it: "Little Snow, do you believe him?"

"Meow?"

"I see... as expected, he's a liar..."

036. Serendipity

Interpersonal relationships are just the seasoning of life; daily necessities are the essence of it.

He could go an entire day without talking to anyone, but he couldn't go an entire day without eating, so the necessary needs had to be met.

Fried pork cutlet, potato cakes, tempura, and a bowl of hot miso soup; all the necessary ingredients were prepared, so even the angel couldn't criticize him now, right?

At most, she'd nitpick, complaining that he didn't eat vegetables, but there was no helping that, because he was a carnivore.

"Should I stock up on some more snacks? But if Shiina finds out..."

"..."

"Then should I buy some cake to take back? Just as a bribe for her..."

"..."

"I guess I still have to buy them, whether it's chips or soda."

Now that he'd decided to enjoy life, the things he'd discarded in the past had to be picked up again, and the same went for games; buying them and not playing them was just being a sucker, wasn't it?

"..."

"What a fragrant smell..." Kawa wrinkled his nose and muttered.

Then he turned his head and saw a cherry blossom-like girl appear beside him, her pretty face very close, as if it would touch his nose in the next second.

Kawa took a small step back before greeting her.

"Good afternoon, Katou."

"Good afternoon, Kawa-kun,"

"Um... Katou, when did you get here?"

"Hmm, I think it was when Kawa-kun was thinking about whether or not to buy snacks?" A delicate finger lightly touched her cheek, and the girl tilted her head, looking thoughtful.

Kawa:

So she was there from the beginning!

"Because Kawa-kun looked like he was thinking, I didn't want to disturb you." She put her hands behind her back, leaning forward slightly, looking curious.

"Did I scare you?"

"Not really..." Kawa shook his head.

Although he hadn't seen her yet, the girl's youthful aura had completely wafted over, and he stepped back simply because he felt she was too close.

"Did Katou come to buy things too? Running errands for your mother?"

It was certainly embarrassing to have his mutterings overheard, but as long as he didn't care, the understanding Miss Katou wouldn't bring it up on her own.

"I just happened to be passing by here while taking a walk." Katou pointed to the window on the side; through the display window, you could see inside from the outside.

Kawa followed the direction of her finger and nodded slightly.

The two chatted for a while, paid the bill, and walked out of the supermarket side by side.

"How was your weekend?"

He always had to find something to talk about; as a boy, he couldn't always let the girl take the initiative.

"I went back to my hometown with my family, Kawa-kun, how about you?"

"Uh... I participated in artistic creation? And went to Saitama for fun." Speaking of this, Kawa finally remembered what he had forgotten.

So he put down the bag and took out a bag of chocolate-filled biscuits from his bag.

"This is a souvenir."

It wasn't a Saitama specialty, but it was still his good intention.

He had more than one of these, but he was so busy today that he accidentally forgot about it until now, when he was chatting with Katou.

He'd give the rest away when he ran into other people.

"Thank you, Kawa-kun." Katou received it, holding it in her hand, her slender fingers gently twirling her hair, the corners of her mouth slightly raised.

"But I don't have anything to give you in return right now..."

"I didn't prepare it for that kind of thing," Kawa shook his head and chuckled.

Every time he chatted with Katou, he felt very relaxed; the image of the girl next door was etched in his heart and couldn't be erased.

"I feel like Kawa-kun is in a good mood today; did something happy happen?"

"Why do you say that? Am I showing it that much?"

Katou nodded.

"Hmm... if you want me to say something happy, it's that I can continue to get along with everyone in the student council, right?" Kawa thought for a moment and said frankly.

"Katou should know that I'm the student council president, right?"

"Yes."

"Probably around last Monday, I resigned for a while due to some personal reasons." Kawa tried to keep his tone as calm as possible, as if he were describing something that had nothing to do with him.

"I won't go into the details of the process. The main thing is that today, I successfully returned to my position, and as for the reason... naturally, it's because I can't bear to leave everyone in the student council."

People's joys and sorrows are not the same; indeed, Katou was a very understanding girl, but precisely because of this, some things couldn't be told to her.

If it were someone like Hachiman, he would be able to vent everything.

"..." Katou nodded, not responding any further.

Although Kawa said it very lightly, she could completely see the complex emotions he was hiding behind it, and more importantly, she remembered the scene of meeting Kawa-kun again that day.

Just as she said, he was like a pitiful little dog that had been abandoned, licking his wounds alone in the rain.

If she left him alone, she didn't know what would happen, and most importantly... she would feel sorry for him.

"Kawa-kun, do you remember what I said that day?"

"...Are you referring to wanting me to be more selfish?"

"Are you unwilling?"

"Katou really likes to spoil others," Kawa shook his head, then changed the subject with a slightly teasing tone.

"But, maybe I'm being selfish right now?"

Katou was stunned, then her cheeks puffed up slightly; what she wanted wasn't this kind of "selfishness" from you.

"Speaking of which, there are some things I've always wanted to know... Is Katou willing to listen?"

"I don't want to talk to Kawa-kun right now."

"Eh? Are you really unwilling to listen?"

"...I'll decide whether or not to listen after Kawa-kun finishes speaking."

"Wouldn't that be the same as already having listened?" Kawa complained, then slowly opened his mouth, "Did Katou ever do anything as a child that made her parents angry?"

"..." Katou glanced at Kawa with a somewhat puzzled look, but still answered seriously.

"Yes. Once, when I went out with my parents, I got lost because I was engrossed in the TV show next door." A blush appeared on Katou's cheeks.

No matter who it was, they would subconsciously feel ashamed when talking about embarrassing things from their childhood, even the usually calm Megumi was no exception.

If Kawa didn't want to listen, she would never have brought it up.

"My dad got really angry at the time."

"Uh... did Katou apologize to them properly?"

"Yes, not only that, but I also helped with the housework for several days in a row."

"Help with the housework? Is that all that was enough?"

"I was just an elementary school student at the time, Kawa-kun, and I couldn't do anything else."

"I see..." Kawa nodded, looking thoughtful.

What you do isn't the key, the important thing is whether you do it or not...

"Is that all that's enough? An apology and compensation?"

If anyone's life experience is the most useful, it's undoubtedly Katou Megumi, who grew up in a normal environment and best fits the common people's views.

The fact was also true, whether intentionally or unintentionally, Katou had helped him solve too many doubts, and he had 100% trust in Katou's experience in interpersonal communication.

"It shouldn't be called compensation, Kawa-kun, it should be called—a measure to make yourself feel at ease."

"It's not entirely about taking care of other people's feelings, it's more about making yourself feel more at ease. If you don't understand this point, it may bring great misunderstandings to others."

The former is more like compassionate charity, the latter can be said to be comforting yourself. Although it has the same effect, misunderstanding its essence gives people a more arrogant feeling.

"I understand, thank you, Katou."

Katou looked at him and shook her head slightly. Although Kawa didn't want to share everything with her, being able to seek help from her in this way also showed some attitude.

Sure enough, she had to work harder...

The cool evening breeze gently brushed her hair, but couldn't take away the determination in her heart. The graceful girl stared at the male companion beside her, her eyes unmoving.

No matter how beautiful the evening glow was, it couldn't compare to the small him in the girl's eyes.

037. Argument? I'm sorry...

Back home, put away the ingredients, and just tied on his apron to start cooking when the doorbell rang.

"No way..."