Author: SS Samurai	Original Source: Syosetu
Translator: rm31439	English Source: Re:Library

“Should we really leave this early?” Kanata asked Sakura after opening the window at 7 am, right before the time they had planned to leave at.
“It’ll be fine. I used to get up early in the morning to study – usually at 5 am – so this is late in comparison. On the other hand, isn’t it too early for you, Kanata?”
“I’m completely fine. I went to bed pretty early.”

The boy smiled at her. Her intuition as his childhood friend told her that he was truly alright, so Sakura momentarily showed an expression of relief.

“Then… let’s go.”
“Right.”

The two of them closed their respective windows and left their rooms, called out to their parents, who were already awake, that they were going, and then left the house without ever looking at said grinning parents.

“You look cute today, more than usual.”
“I-It’s not that big of a difference. I didn’t put on any makeup and these clothes I got from you as a present were the only nice outfit in my room. The stuff I have in Anazumu is more stylish, you see?”
“Well… The fact that I thought you’d look good in them is the reason I bought them. And as expected, they do suit you.”
“Th-Thank you.” The boy’s sudden advances caused Sakura to blush. “Th-The same goes for you, too, Kanata, you’re dressed rather smartly, aren’t you?”
“I mean, it’s a date. More importantly, are we going to wear these?”

Kanata suddenly pulled two masks from a pocket of his small bag and held one of them out to Sakura.

“…Why should we?”
“Look, the other day, the newspapers-”

Large newspapers and magazines had reported about Sakura’s eyesight somehow being restored under the title of “Mircale born from love between childhood friends” (the main reason was that there had been a TV program covering their situation once in the past).

That wasn’t all, they also had to deal with publishers focused on documentaries and non-fiction about welfare and medical care, who were asking for details concerning Sakura’s and Kanata’s life.

On top of that, they were requested by the studio who made that documentary in the past for another interview and an appearance on TV.

In other words, the two of them were the middle schoolers with the most attention on them in the whole country. As a matter of fact, their notoriety was about to draw level with their older siblings¹… something no one except Kanata had realized.

“I understand now why Big Bro and Mika-nee put on disguises every time they leave the house in Anazumu.”
“Y-You have a point…”

Sakura was looking at Kanata’s face.

“(If he’s putting on a mask, I won’t be able to see his handsome face well…)”

She continued staring at him, as if to bore a hole into him. This obviously was embarrassing for him, so he scratched his cheek as she continued to stare.

“Should we not use them, after all?”

Sakura silently nodded at his suggestion. After seeing that, the boy put the masks back into his bag.

“Let’s go, then.”
“Yeah!”

When he held out his hand, obviously inviting her to take it, she did so without hesitation.

They had explained to their classmates, that them holding hands each day on their way to and from school was a holdover from the time Sakura had been practically blind. In reality, everyone knew that they did it because they wanted to.

The two of them, still handing hands, not talking much, and shooting each other bashful glances, walked to the station. Although they had gone on dates together in Anazumu several times, they looked as if this was their very first one.

Thus, they boarded the metro. Their destination was the city center, where you could change trains and such. Once they reached that station, they’d be close to all the facilities they planned to visit on that day.

“Can I get a little closer?”
“S-Sure.”

The two of them found neighboring seats without much issue, where they nestled up closely. In this manner, they arrived at the central station.

“Now… What should we do first?” Kanata wondered, right after getting off the train and still holding Sakura’s hand.
“Hm… well…”
“What about eating sweets in the station’s shopping area? There’s still some time until we’ll go to the aquarium.”
“Alright!” Sakura, with her unmatched sweet tooth, accepted Kanata’s proposal.

For the time, being, they left the train platform and strolled around the wide street in the station, lined with shops.

“There are lots of clothing stores from the Check Company and such here, so, as planned, let’s also buy some clothes for you, Sakura.”
“You’re still onto that?”
“Of course.”

The two of them looked around for food stores and finally discovered a notable donut shop, which they decided to frequent.

“Ah, let me say that in advance. I think I mentioned it before, but I’m going to pay for everything.”
“…Are you really sure?”
“I have the leeway for it.”

Sakura reacted with a shrug. She had been about to reply with an “I guess so”, but Kanata had started to peruse the donuts already, so she gave up on it and, taking him up on his offer for the time being, picked an extremely sweet type of donut, which was among her favorites.

The boy chose one that was different from hers. As they always did, they split their meals in half and shared them with each other.

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