I don't want to let her go

Mamoru flicked on the TV, and an image of six people performing appeared on the screen.

Nanairofeather huh? As long as they sing Ki's songs, they will unleash their potential as idols and continue growing.

Even though she wrote this melody for them, it resonated in his heart for some reason.

Ki's songs are beautiful; he can see it. Seven different colors, the colors of a rainbow.

His thoughts broke off when he saw the girl stir awake. She immediately sat up, half-dazed, and rubbed her eyes. Mamoru chuckled. She looks cuter than ever when she first wakes up.

He grabbed hold of her hand, earning her attention.

"Oh Ru, you're awake."

"Morning. What time is it?"

"Eight."

It is only eight? His gaze landed on her noticing her change of outfit. That's not the one she wore to school. Did she change again before falling asleep next to him?

Unless she was disposing of the evidence, or rather she seemed to have a small graze on her cheek, he reached over without warning and licked the wound.

This action leads to the girl's cheeks turning red."Hold on a minute Ru."

"You're working yourself too hard, aren't you?"

Even though he cleared up after her, she probably rushed off and got involved in another skirmish.

"I--I'm not really." Sumire nervously fidgeted with her fingers and averted her gaze.

Mamoru stared at her for a few minutes; she stubbornly denies it even though he already knew.

"It's still early; wake me up later." Mamoru started but paused seeing her pout.

"But I made arrangements for the entire day already."

She did what? Gee, and he was the one who ended up bailing on their plans yesterday. He really isn't good with this stuff after all. He reached over and pulled her into a hug.

"That's true; today, I don't want to let you go," Mamoru mumbled softly.

He no longer wants her to leave his sight. Whenever she did, he would find her crying somewhere. Yes, just like the other day. He heard where she was from the others, so he went to see her, only to be stopped by that strange woman.

"Ru-" Sumire mumbled. "About what happened yesterday I-"

Mamoru squeezed her hands and shook his head. "It's alright, don't apologize. I understand."

He has to understand; otherwise, this girl would fall apart again.

Sumire's gaze softened. "Okay. Are you hungry, Ru? I tried to make breakfast earlier, but." Her gaze turned dim. "-I think luck isn't on my side today."

It seems like she must have woken up earlier and returned to sleep again.

His sweat fell at those words. This girl is good at nearly everything except cooking. Is his kitchen safe?

"Let's eat out this morning. There is a famous pancake store not too far from here."

"Really? Then let me get changed real quick."

Mamoru briefly glanced at his trembling hands and exhaled deeply. That was a close one. It surprises him that she still hasn't figured it out yet. How oblivious does one person have to be? It's true that Ki has had many bad experiences with romance. But it worries him that she cannot even recognize the most obvious signs.

One of these days, that girl is going to get tricked by guys' sweet words- Mamoru paused in midthought. Hasn't that happened already? Sumire started that relationship with Nagawa Sano on a whim, but it does not change the fact that she ended up trusting him.

To trust somebody so deeply, only to end up betrayed. How many more times does she have to experience that?

….

The second location after eating breakfast was the ice skating rink. Sumire practically bounced onto the rink when they put their skates on.

"Come on, come on, let's go!" Sumire exclaimed happily.

"Alright, I'm coming," Mamoru replied.

'I thought I could treat this as a date, but I probably look more like a relative rather than her boyfriend.'

It's probably due to the brown hair. Their hair colors are similar shades.

Sometimes Ki can behave childishly. But she equally has moments where she is mature. Like when they were eating pancakes together in the store. He saw many guys looking at her.

No, it's the same here too. Since earlier, Ki has been attracting people's attention. Whether she acts childish or mature, people are naturally drawn to her. Does she not realize how beautiful she is? The answer to that is probably no. Ki does not realize how beautiful she is.

She thinks people look at her for hostile reasons, but it's not like that.

He watched her from the corner of her eye; her eyes brightened every few seconds as she looked around.

Sumire seemed to realize after a few seconds since she quickly apologized.

"I'm the only one having fun, aren't I? I should have consulted with you."

"Dummy." Mamoru used his free hand to bonk her head. "Of course, I'm having fun. And what's so wrong with getting excited about something you enjoy? Come on."

It is unusual for her to be good at ice skating, though. But he is not one to question where she learned it. He tightened his grip on her hand, and the light returned to Sumire's eyes.

Despite how cold it was, he only felt a light breeze due to the scarf.

"Ru, where are your gloves? Did you lose them already?"

"That's not it."

It's just if they held hands wearing gloves; it would be difficult for him to feel her hand. Maybe they do look like a couple? By now, some strange guys would have approached them already.

"What about you, Ki?"

He ended up giving her the exact same gift. She returned home that day heartbroken after what happened with Nagawa Sano. But, when they exchanged presents and opened them at the same time only to realize they gave each other the same thing, she smiled so brightly.

"I forgot."

"I see."

If only they shared the same thoughts this time too. Maybe she didn't wear gloves, so she could also feel his hand directly.

"You have been strangely quiet- wait, you're not having some dangerous thoughts, are you?"

"Hey, why do you always think I have bad thoughts? I am a decent member of society."

Sumire rolled her eyes and sighed. "You have yet to prove that theory. How are your earnings this month? Are you taking on larger jobs that pay more?"

"My current balance is five hundred yen."

Sumire's eyes twitched, annoyed, and he laughed at those words. Even when she is angry, she looks cute.

"I have repeatedly told you to take on more expensive jobs."

"Sorry, sorry." Mamoru laughed sheepishly.

"Then you can join me for this next one. Aki assigned it to me yesterday, and I checked out the crime scene. Apparently, a serial killer is going around stealing body parts of individuals with abilities like us two."

At those words, his gaze dimmed. It seems like she already knows about it. He was planning on keeping it from her for as long as possible. The organization targets people like them and the ones who are connected to the death of the girl's parents.

If she investigates this case, she will eventually learn the truth.