Naoto was kidnapped, just as the plan. This proved that Kubo Mitsuo wasn't the true culprit. They had to save her before it was too late.

But Yukiko wasn't worried at all. They would save her, just like how they did in other cycles.

And they did.

At the end, Naoto joined the team to help them to pursue the true culprit. Yukiko was glad that Naoto would help, but part of her felt heavier than before. The time for her was lesser. They would know she was the culprit, sooner or later.

The Culture Festival was coming up. These few days, they were busy preparing for the event. Their class was doing the group date cafe, a weirdest and damn choice they picked. Yukiko didn't bother to change this little funny event because she was enjoying this.

Other than the group date cafe, she was more looking for the cross dressing pageant event. She found it funniest in this event where she could apply make up on the boy she loved. She would laugh every time after seeing the result.

This time, however, was awkward. The boy nearly confessed, and before he did, the girl rejected him. What could be more embarrassing than this? Yukiko blushed when she applied the make up on him, barely paying attention to the design she made.

"Ermm...Yukiko." Timidly, Yu said, touching her hand.

The touching caught her attention and shocked her. She let out a gasp, pulling some distance with him.

"W-What is it?"

"I don't mean to startle you, but..." Sheepishly, he pointed at the ribbon on his hair, extremely embarrassed. "Are you sure the ribbon looked good on me?"

She looked at the big ribbon she tied on his hair, winking a few times. Then, she burst into a laugh. She had no idea what she had done during this time as she wasn't paying attention at all. But now...seeing the result before her, she just couldn't stop from laughing.

"S-Sorry...I'm not making fun of you..." She wiped off the tears in her eyes, unable to hold the laughter. "I...didn't know what I was doing. I'll fix it right now..."

As her hand reached out to his hair, he suddenly grabbed it and pulled her closer. Surprised, she gasped, falling into his arms.

"Y-Yu-kun?"

Once again, he embraced her. It's been quite some time since he did it. Although he told her to forget about that night, his feelings for her never faded. It grew even stronger, completely out the way he could control.

"Please, just for a while." He felt whole with her in his arms. Even for a short while, he felt satisfied. He couldn't beg more. "Hmm...are you available in Kouyasai?"

"I-I guess..."

"I would like to have a dance with you." He wanted to spend time with her, even though they're only friends.

"...Okay." Hesitating for a while, she accepted the invitation. It wouldn't hurt to go with him, right?

But...why did he not letting her go? This position was embarrassing. She felt her cheek was hot, her face must have been crazy red.

"Y-Yu-kun, please let me go..." She still had to finish his make-up and all...

"I refuse."

"H-Huh?" Was he teasing her or something? It was rare for Yu to show such a mischief side.

"...I don't know why, but you seem to get skinnier recently. Your face is paler each day. Are you not feeling well?" He asked in a soft voice.

Did she? Honestly, her clothes seemed loosened than before, and because of lacking of sleep, her condition didn't seem too good, but was it so obvious? She wasn't aware of it. She thought if she concealed it well, no one would notice it. It seemed she was too confident with her make-up skill.

"I-I'm fine...I think it's because I'm busy lately...you don't have to worry about me..."

"How can I not worry about you?"

Yukiko was speechless. She knew Yu was not the only one who worried about her, her friends all were worrying about her. However, hearing it so directly was something different.

"I..."

"Like I said, we're always here by your side. If you feel like you want some ears, we're always ready to listen to you. So...don't strain yourself out."

She knew, of course she knew it. However, she couldn't let them know. How could she reveal herself now? No way.

"T-Thank you, Yu-kun. I know how worried you guys are, but...now it's not the time I should tell you. I mean...you will know the truth one day, I promise."

She pushed him, letting go of his arms. It was too suffocating for her to stay in his arms after hearing his sincere words. She was bad to the bone, but not heartless.

Knowing the girl still refused to confess, Yu had no choice but to let her be. Like she said, he would know it one day, and he hoped it wasn't too long. He's worried whether her condition could last until then.

The cross dressing pageant ended with Teddie winning the championship. She guessed the blond boy was too cute for other candidates to fight against. Yu was too tall to dress as a girl, and this appeared to be his disadvantage in this event. Anyway, everyone was having fun.

At night, she went to the Kouyasai with Yu. Everyone surrounded the bonfire and danced. Yu gently took her hand and invited her for the dance, which she accepted with a smile.

Honestly, it was the first time Yu invited her into a dance. From what she could remember, he didn't invite anyone to the dance. In some of the cycles, she even went home earlier before the kouyasai started. She wasn't in the mood of celebrating the Culture Festival, especially in this cycle. She intended to go straight home after the cross dressing pageant. But since he had invited her, she just gave herself a chance to enjoy this possibly-first-and-the-last kouyasai.

She wasn't a good dancer, although she had danced before. Both of them laughed when they almost stepped on each other's legs. The smile on Yu's face was genuine. It seemed spending the time with him was worthwhile. She couldn't imagine what expression he had if she turned down the invitation.

She was heartfully enjoying this moment.

The heat filled the air, perhaps due to the bonfire. She leaned against him, both staring at each other. She had no idea who was the first to lean on, by the time she realized, their lips almost touched each other.

Gasping, she quickly pushed him away. Her face reddened, probably due to heat, or the embarrassment, she didn't know. The only thing she knew was, she almost made a mistake.

Disappointment clearly filled his face, but Yu tried to hide it.

"I'm sorry. I think I lost myself..."

Trying to stay calm, she shook her head.

"N-No, it's okay..." Her heart slowly calmed down. "...I need to go back now. Thanks for your invitation. I...enjoyed the dance."

Hearing it, Yu smiled, accompanying her back to home. Although she rejected at first, the boy insisted it was dangerous to let her go home alone. At the end, she just let him be.

Both of them noticeably avoided the topic of almost-kissing matter. From that, she knew the boy's feelings. He just pretended to be nothing and fine, yet his feelings never faded.

She knew she did the right thing by pushing him away. If they kissed, he might get the wrong idea again. She swore that she wouldn't reveal her feelings for him, never, not until everything ended. It was the best way to avoid him from hurting badly in the coming future.

Soon, Nanako would be kidnapped, and then followed by revealing the true culprit. Even if they couldn't guess who's the true culprit, she would surrender herself. This was part of the plan.

Nanako was missing. Yu was brought to the police station by Dojima because of the warning letter. She knew exactly what would happen next, but she just went with the flow, pursuing Namatame and sending Dojima to the hospital. When things happened to Nanako and Dojima, Yu had to handle everything in the house, school, hospital and TV World. Everyone tried their best to lift his burdens.

Later, Namatame was caught. Both he and Nanako were sent to the hospital for medical treatment. Knowing the little girl would be fine, she wasn't as panicked as the others. But still, there could be slightest chance that the future might change, so she stayed alert as well. If Nanako died, she would never be able to forgive herself.

The little girl shouldn't suffer this. She made it happen to her...even though she could change it.

One day, Yu received a call from the hospital informing about Nanako. Her condition was getting worse. Everyone rushed to the hospital, but the news where Nanako was dead hit them. Among them, she was the calmest. She had to stay calm no matter what, because they would interrogate Namatame later. Throwing Namatame into the TV sure was the stupidest idea, because she was the true culprit. She couldn't allow that to happen. Not by any chance.

She had used Namatame to achieve her goal, at least she had to save his life. She wasn't as heartless as Adachi.

In case Yu lost his sanity, she would help to calm the situation. But it seemed it was needless.

He was stressed, but he didn't lose his sanity.

She was proud of him. Thinking about this, she smiled.

Nanako was alive, at the end. She sighed in relief. At least, the girl's life was saved. At least, Namatame was saved.

She put down the pen, checking the content of the letter before sealing it properly.

At last, it was the time she would reveal herself.