Chapter 5.1

I hadn’t even torn open the packaging yet, but I could already smell the strong aroma of mint emanating from the candy.

How could she have even given me candy that smelled this strong?

Considering how sweet Flora was herself, I wouldn’t be surprised in the slightest if candy just spontaneously generated around her.

The candies were as clear as glass and devoid of color. I stared at them in my hand as I opened my mouth.

“Hey, you don’t like him anymore, right?”

Even though I didn’t specify the person I was referring to, Dora immediately cursed the air and buried her face in her hands.

“That bastard was playing me the whole time.”

It wasn’t that long ago that Dora was madly in love with that guy from her class, much like the way I was infatuated with Noah. Nowadays though, wouldn’t you know it? Even just mentioning one word about their relationship would cause her to shout hateful obscenities.

It was only last month that they broke up, so I guess the wound hasn’t healed yet.

So then, if I confess my love to him and get rejected, will I finally come to my senses and accept reality?

“I think I’ll just tell Noah how I feel about him.”

“Oh yeah? Good idea,” Dora replied as she slowly ate the snacks that Flora had given me. Her voice sounded a bit subdued, probably because of what she was chewing on.

“Hey, no eating on my bed. You’re going to get crumbs all over it.”

I wouldn’t be able to sleep peacefully knowing that my bed was all filthy.

A frown formed on my face as I swept the remnants of the snacks off my bed with my hand.

“Oh, by the way, what’s that?” Dora asked after she helped me clean up some of the crumbs to stop my nagging.

She was staring at my hand, seemingly interested in the candy that I was holding onto.

I immediately glared at Dora while tightening my grip on the candy. This was mine and I wasn’t about to let it get anywhere near Dora’s insatiable mouth.

“You can’t have it.”

“Whatever, I don’t like mint anyway.”

Dora rolled her eyes and dismissively waved her hand.

“Why, what’s so special about it? You bought it? I thought you didn’t like peppermint either.”

That’s true; I didn’t care for peppermint at all. It’s a gross flavor and its smell was always too overbearing.

My face suddenly became bright pink as I strengthened my grip on the candy in my hand.

“… It was a gift,” I mumbled.

“From Flora?”

“… No.”

“…”

Why would she automatically assume it was from Flora?

Dora’s eyes suddenly widened in surprise.

“Noah? Wow, how did that happen?”

Dora looked at me wide-eyed as she patted me on the shoulder.

“You should treasure it like a family heirloom.”

“Anyway, I’m going to finally tell him how I feel,” I said once again as I put the precious mint candy into my pocket. I clenched my hands into fists, calling forth my resolve to make good on that promise with myself. I sat up straight with a newfound determination.

It’s already been one whole week since I last saw Noah.

Instead of continuously torturing myself like this, getting rejected with a few days of crying would be much more preferable.

“There isn’t going to be anyone in the clubroom, so just ask him to show up there.”

“And then, if he really comes in… I’ll tell him,” I mumbled as I sat in front of my desk. I put on a bashful smile just thinking about it. However, Dora knew exactly how to crush my hopes.

“Yeah, and if you get turned down, at least you can say you tried.”

Her confidence in me never fails to amaze.

I glared over at Dora. She looked a little confused about something.

“But how are you going to get Noah to show up there?”

“I’ve got an idea,” I answered in a quiet voice as I took out a pink piece of paper to write on. I’d never thought I’d actually use it for anything.

“Huh? You’re going to write him a letter? Are we still in elementary school?” Dora said, tilting her head at me as if perplexed. She then accidentally dropped the snack she was eating, but quickly picked it back up and popped it into her mouth.

“What do I know? I feel like I’m going to die just by doing it this way.”

“It’s cowardly, but I guess love conquers all.”

I brushed off Dora’s remark as I put pink ink into my pen.

It’s been a while since I bought this pink ink and paper, but now was their time to shine. However, I felt so tense that I had to ask Dora not to follow me to the clubroom.

“Please don’t come with me when I do this.”

“Don’t worry. I won’t be there,” Dora said as she stuffed the remainder of the snacks into her insatiable mouth.

“Noah probably gets thousands of letters like this every day. If he were to actually pay attention to all of them, he’d be busy meeting with girls all day.”

“… you think?”

Damn it. I already know that. It’s obvious. But, why did she have to hurt me like that?

Dora’s comment floated around in my mind as I wrote out the letter using my cutest-looking handwriting.

< Noah, there is something I wish to tell you. If it’s okay with you, could you please meet me at the back of the clubroom at 9:00 pm? >