School was drawing to a close, and Nishikata was no closer to figuring out who it was who had given him the chocolate. 'Maybe I should just give up, if they want to tell me, then they'll give me another hint.'
He threw his bag over his shoulder and made his way up to the teacher. "Uh, excuse me, Mr. Tanabe?"
"Hm?" Mr. Tanabe began as he looked up. "Nishikata, you've been especially non disruptive today, is there something I can help you with?"
"I ... promised Takagi I'd bring her the school work that she missed today."
"Right." He began to reach down to a bag that was next to his chair.
"Huh?" Came a voice from behind him. He turned around to see one of Takagi's friends, the one with the ponytail, standing right behind him. "I was going to bring it to her."
"She asked me to do it this morning." Nishikata replied.
"I can take care of it for you, I have something else I have to return to her anyway."
"She lives near me, it would be easier for me to do it."
"She's my friend and I want to check up on her."
'Ooo, good move.' Nishikata thought for a moment before coming up with a comeback. "Well, I promised to visit her if she ever got sick and I need to keep my word."
"Why don't you both go?" Mr. Tanabe said, clearly getting tired of the conversation.
Nishikata looked at the other girl before shrugging. "I mean ... I don't have any problem with that."
"Yeah, I don't mind it either."
"Good." Mr. Tanabe handed the bag to Nishikata, then went back to what he was doing.
Both Nishikata and Takagi's friend walked out of the room, awkwardly glancing at each other, as if they had both been trapped in an awkward situation. "So." Nishikata began. "You're one of Takagi's close friends?"
"Yeah." She replied almost annoyed.
"I ... never got your name."
"Really Nishikata?" She said as if trying to show off.
"Impressive, you managed to guess a name that's shouted in class almost every day." Nishikata retorted as he tied the bag with Takagi's homework to his.
The girl sighed and shook her head. "I guess you have a point, my name is Sumire Takagawa."
"Nice to meet you." He replied as he offered a hand.
"Uh ... Likewise." Takagawa replied as she shook his hand. "It's nice to formally meet you as well."
The two of them continued making their way to the shoe cubbies, with much less awkward tension in the air. "Hey, mind if I ask you a question?"
"Sure." Takagawa replied.
"Did ... you give out any chocolate today?"
"Huh? Why do you ask that?"
"I have my reasons, so did you?"
"Y-yeah, but it wasn't serious, just some small things."
"Oh, great. By the way, do you know of anyone in our class who ... did?"
"I ... don't think so ... and even if I did, I wouldn't tell you."
"I know that part." He reached into his bag and pulled out the small box he received this morning. "I just want to know if the person who gave this to me is in our class or not."
She looked at the box, as if about to panic. "I ... I ... don't-" She looked away and began thinking. "Okay, maybe there were two or three girls in our class who gave out serious chocolate, but I'm fairly sure none of them were for you."
"Ge, thanks." He said as he reached his shoe cubby. "Wait, then who gave me the chocolate last year?"
Takagawa stood there for a moment before she began to look nervous. "I ... I have no idea."
"Well, whatever, let's just go."
"I need to change my shoes first."
"Oh, right."
After waiting for Takagawa, the two of them headed out on their way to Takagi's house.
Meanwhile, Kimura and Takao were in the school, standing against one of the walls in the hallway. "So, not a single chocolate again." Takao said dejectedly.
"Yeah, that's just our luck."
"Hey!" Came a voice that began approaching them. Both Takao and Kimura looked over to see Mina running towards them with a bag in her hand. "You two are in our class, right?"
"Yeah." Takao replied.
"Great, I have some left over chocolate, want some?"
Both Takao and Kimura's faces lit up. "I mean ... if you have left over then sure." Kimura replied.
"Great!" She took out one bag and handed it to Kimura. "Here you go." She reached into her bag again and looked to Takao. "And ... um ..." She continued fishing around in her bag, but didn't pull anything out. "That's strange." She turned it upside down and shook it. "I could have sworn I had two extra, guess I only had the one." She looked at Takao, feeling apologetic. "Sorry."
Takao stood there utterly dejected as he and Kimura watched Mina run back to her friends Sanae and Yukari. "How ... how ..."
"You want to share?" Kimura asked.
"I don't need your pity!" Takao said as he marched off.
Back with the others, Nishikata and Takagawa were still making their way to Takagi's house without exchanging so much as a word. 'Why does this ... not feel off?' Nishikata thought to himself. 'I should be on my toes, yet for some reason, I don't feel like that in the slightest, even though I'm walking with a girl.' He mentally sighed and continued walking. 'Maybe it's just Takagi because she always teases me.' He let out a sigh. 'Or, maybe it's because I really do like her.' He thought as if more submitting to the idea.
"Hey, can I ask you something?" Takagawa asked.
"Uh, what's up?"
"You and Takagi always walk home together, right? Why is that?"
"Well, one reason is that we live close to each other, so we'd be walking along the same path."
She shook her head. "No, that's the reason you can walk with her, I want to know why you want to."
"Oh, to get back at her for constantly teasing me of course."
"Are you sure that's it?" She asked as if accusing him of something.
"Well ... yeah, I mean, we're also friends and that's one of the few times we can hang out but ... she's always trying to tease me and I want to get back at her."
"Are you sure it's not because you like her?"
"Why is everyone asking that!?" Nishikata snapped. "Every time the subject of Takagi and I walking home together comes up, people always assume that it's because I like her, or that we're dating, is it so impossible to assume that a boy and a girl walk together just because they're friends?"
"No." Takagawa said as she looked back to the road ahead. "But I have noticed that you try to spend time with her more often than not."
"So? That doesn't mean I love her either." 'What is her deal? Why does she care if I have feelings for Takagi or not? Even if I do like her, it's not why I walk home with her. At least ... I don't think it is.'
"Okay, then, let me ask another question. That valentine's chocolate you got, it can't be from Takagi, right? How do you feel about that person?"
Nishikata looked up as he thought about the question. "Well ... I guess ... I feel flattered ... but ... I don't know, not much else I guess."
"Uh huh, and what about that one from last year that you mentioned?"
Nishikata felt his heart skip as his cheeks flushed a bright red. "I ... it ..." He grabbed his chest as his hands began to shake. "It was different last year."
"Is that so?" She asked with a smile. "Or is it that the one from this year couldn't have been from a special someone that might have given you the one from last year?"
Nishikata turned to look at her with as his face turned even redder. "How ... who? Takagi? No, I ... I already told you, I don't feel that way about her at all!"
"The look on your face says otherwise." She said as she looked at the road.
'Damn it, why did she have to bring Takagi up? Why is it today of all days I can't stop thinking of her?' He began to imagine himself at school, with Takagi standing in front of him, handing him a box of chocolates on Valentine's Day. "T-Takagi."
"I called it."
"No you didn't! Because I don't like her like that!"
"Looks to me like she's found a permanent home deep in your heart."
Nishikata was beginning to feel dizzy as he turned away. "Even if that is true,which it isn't, she doesn't like me, and what's it matter to you? Are you jealous or something?"
She didn't respond right away, which made Nishikata look back at her out of curiosity; her face was bright red and she had taken a few steps away from him. "I ... I DON'T LIKE YOU LIKE THAT!" She exclaimed. "I don't care if you have a crush on my best friend, I just wanted to know for her sake!"
Nishikata felt as if he had just heard something he wasn't supposed to. "I ... didn't mean that."
"Huh?"
"I mean, are you jealous that I get to walk home with her every day and you, her best friend, don't."
Her face went even redder as she turned away. "I ... no, I mean, I wish I could but I'm not ... jealous or anything."
'Why does it feel like one of those two statements was a lie?' He looked at her again and noticed the embarrassed look appeared kinda familiar. "That was actually easier than I thought it was."
"What was?"
"Getting you flustered."
She blushed again as she turned away and resumed walking. "Geez, is that all you think about? Teasing people?"
"Well, no, in fact it wasn't satisfying at all."
"Excuse me?!"
"The only person I want to get back at is Takagi, I don't care about teasing anyone else. I guess it just kinda happened."
"Oh ... right." She looked back at the road and the silence returned, though Nishikata couldn't shake one strange feeling.
'Why do I feel like ... she's hiding something?'