Episode 12: Little by Little — Shiori’s Side
side.Shiori
(…heh.)
I, Takamiya Shiori, couldn’t help smirking to myself.
I’d thought there would be an opening if Nanase-san was worn down enough — but it might have gone even better than I expected.
Nanase-san is lowering her guard around me, little by little. I can feel it.
Spending time like this, building it up — that’s the surest way to draw her closer to me.
(…isn’t it?)
I put the question to her, inside my head.
But she doesn’t answer. She just sits there quietly, looking out the window.
When the dessert we ordered arrived at the table, Nanase-san’s expression softened just slightly. Seeing it, I found a smile rising to my face without thinking.
(…she’s so cute.)
Even that tiny shift in her face is enough to pull me in a little further.
But it’s not enough yet. Not nearly.
I want her to let her guard down more. I want her to open up to me.
I had been watching Nanase-san for a long time.
And the more I watched, the more I liked her.
She was always so distant, so blank-faced — and yet the moment a message came from Shiraishi-san, or Shiraishi-san came to meet her, her whole expression would light up, sparkling with happiness. And when Shiraishi-san wasn’t around, she wore this quietly lonely look.
Watching her like that, I found the feeling growing, gradually — the need to make her mine.
So when Shiraishi-san let slip that she wanted Nanase-san to ease up on her — I knew it was my chance.
If I could shake Nanase-san then, she would pull back from Shiraishi-san. I was sure of it.
And that’s exactly what happened.
Now that Nanase-san and Shiraishi-san have put distance between them — this is my chance to make Nanase-san mine.
(…Shiraishi-san. I can make Nanase-san happier than you ever could.)
I say it quietly, inside myself.
Nanase-san’s heart is probably still full of Shiraishi-san right now. I know that.
But I’m going to paint over it.
Little by little, little by little, taking all the time it needs.
“How is it?”
I pointed at the berry tart in front of Nanase-san and smiled.
She picked up her fork and took a slow, careful bite.
“…It’s good.”
That small murmur made me smile without meaning to.
“Right? The balance of sweetness and tartness here is just perfect.”
Nanase-san took another bite, and then another.
She looked so endearing that I found myself staring.
(…I want her to get used to me more. I want her to look at me more.)
“Hey, Nanase-san.”
“…What?”
“Want to go somewhere together sometime?”
Her hand stilled.
“…Somewhere?”
“Hmm… like, an aquarium, maybe. Do you like that kind of place?”
Nanase-san thought about it for a moment.
“…I don’t think I’ve really been.”
“Then — how about experiencing it for the first time with me?”
I smiled, a little playfully.
Drawing Nanase-san’s heart toward me means slipping into her world like this — little by little, steady and slow.
“…I’ll think about it.”
Her answer was still vague, but that was more than enough for me.
(…no rush. Slowly, taking all the time it needs…)
I brought the cup to my lips and made that quiet vow to myself.