After breaking up, my ex asked me to win her back

On Monday, when Kagura Hikaru saw Ai Cheng Hua Lian, she kept apologizing to him incessantly.

"That day, Zhen Chun said some nonsense to you, I'm really sorry about that; I've already scolded her."

"...It's okay."

Kagura Hikaru wasn't angry but found the self-reproaching Ai Cheng Hua Lian in front of him amusing.

The way these best friends interacted was more like mother and daughter.

It was now lunchtime, and the two sat on the rooftop of the old school building, away from the crowd's hassle, overlooking the scenery, savoring their time together.

"Kagura, I brought you a bento, and also, this is the apology gift that Zhen Chun asked me to give you."

Ai Cheng Hua Lian took out a basket with one blue and one pink lunchbox, handing the blue one to Kagura Hikaru, and the other was obviously for her own use.

As for the 'apology gift' she mentioned, it was sushi in a luxurious, rectangular wooden box, exquisitely presented as if seen in an advertisement, with only five pieces in total, freshly delivered, still exuding a slightly warm rice fragrance.

Kagura Hikaru thought that a rich girl like Ruzaki Mami wouldn't regard ordinary sushi as a gift, so it must be the pricier, high-class variety; anyway, he didn't have that high-end taste to discern which sushi maestro had crafted it.

Since it was a gesture from someone, refusing it would only cause misunderstandings, so Kagura Hikaru invited Ai Cheng Hua Lian to share the sushi with him.

The taste was naturally superb, with quite expensive ingredients used, even a pile of them couldn't mask the flavor, giving a particularly satisfying feeling while eating.

"Speaking of which, what exactly did Ruzaki want to say that day?" Kagura Hikaru asked casually as he closed the lid of the box that held the sushi.

At that time, he thought Ruzaki Mami was coming out of the closet to him, but the more he pondered, the more it didn't seem right, and he had some guesses but wasn't sure.

Hearing such a question, Ai Cheng Hua Lian's face became hard to describe, and with knitted brows, she hesitated for a long time before saying, "Zhen Chun, that day... she..."

She couldn't get to the point for a long time, and Kagura Hikaru inevitably conjured up a question mark over his head.

But Ai Cheng Hua Lian knew in her heart that it was better not to let Kagura Hikaru know about her best friend's intention to confess her feelings but then backing out.

After her confession failed that day, Ruzaki Mami returned home dejected; she rushed into Ai Cheng Hua Lian's arms at every three steps, which made it clear to Ai Cheng Hua Lian that things hadn't worked out with Kagura.

Although feeling somewhat sorry for her best friend, she was indeed relieved; yet the thought of herself being too timid to confess left her feeling that relief was unwarranted.

She had thought that Kagura might just have plainly rejected Zhen Chun and that would be the end of it.

However, after listening to her mumble through the process, Ai Cheng Hua Lian realized that her silly best friend had not only failed in her confession but had also professed her love for Ai Cheng Hua Lian in mid-air, and right in front of Kagura Hikaru, no less.

At that moment, Ai Cheng Hua Lian's heart skipped a beat; she feared that Kagura might perceive something from this.

"I like Karen-chan more than you," if Ruzaki had said this, it could be interpreted that liking Kagura Hikaru would hurt Ai Cheng Hua Lian; under what circumstances would confessing to a guy hurt one's best friend?

Of course, there was only one possibility: if both she and her best friend had fallen for the same guy.

Ai Cheng Hua Lian wasn't worried about Kagura Hikaru's intelligence failing to see this point, so she was very anxious the entire weekend, not daring to contact him on LINE, until Monday when she used the apology gift as an excuse to call him to the rooftop. Seeing that he didn't show any strange expressions, the huge stone in her heart finally fell.

It seemed they could continue being friends.

If Kagura Hikaru distanced himself from her over her feelings, then Ai Cheng Hua Lian would probably have to immediately depart in search of a time machine, going back to Saturday to shut her best friend's big mouth.

So this question from Kagura Hikaru put her in a great dilemma.

If she explained, she feared exposing her innermost feelings; if she didn't explain, it would only add to the awkwardness.

...Compared to revealing her secrets, she'd rather endure the awkwardness.

Ai Cheng Hua Lian weighed the pros and cons and immediately became self-assured, looking directly at Kagura Hikaru, not stuttering anymore, but remaining silent.

Kagura Hikaru and she locked eyes for five seconds, feeling speechless, and he realized Ai Cheng Angel had made up her mind not to betray her best friend.

He could only skip over the topic and switch to small talk.

"My mom's getting married next month, are you coming to the wedding?" Kagura Hikaru said casually.

"Eh? Your mother? But..."
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"Yeah, it's a remarriage, and her fiance is Hina's father."

Karen Ai Cheng was at a loss for words.

President Kiryu, to become siblings with Kagura... no wait, isn't it more like brother and sister?

Just thinking about their relationship, Karen Ai Cheng felt her thoughts were jumbled, much like those light novels she loved to read.

Never in a million years had she thought something like this would happen to one of her friends.

She didn't even know that Kagura Hikaru was currently staying at the Kiryu Family, or else she might have been even more wildly speculative.

Kagura Hikaru intentionally kept this a secret, not telling anyone.

Including the wedding, he hadn't invited anyone else from school except for mentioning it to Karen Ai Cheng.

In Uharu, he only knew a few people well—Hina, of course, wouldn't need to be mentioned, as the bride's daughter she had to be there.

Chiyoko was personally invited by Kohinata Motoyo.

Suse heard some rumor and said she would go, to attend as a fellow classmate.

Ayakoji Chiyoko and Kohinata Suse were the last two people Kagura Hikaru wanted to see at the wedding.

Mother Kohinata Motoyo was unpredictable and loved to stir things up; if she saw through the relationships between these four, Kagura Hikaru didn't dare to imagine what would happen next.

As for inviting Ai Cheng, it wasn't to use her as a lubricant in a Shura Field or anything, he just simply wanted to see her outside of school.

Unfortunately, Karen Ai Cheng hesitated and then declined. She felt it would be strange for her to appear at the wedding of Kagura Hikaru's mother, and besides, it would be hard to explain her presence to Kiryu Hina and the others.

Kagura Hikaru understood and sighed, giving up on the idea.

Time passed.

Before they knew it, autumn was coming to an end.

The autumn breeze grew colder.

At the beginning of the month, the wedding of Kohinata Motoyo and Kiryu Masaki was held as scheduled.

In the spacious hotel lobby, the couple supported each other, walking over the red carpet with reserved smiles, accepting the blessings of friends and relatives on both sides.

Both had experience with marriage, handling the proceedings with ease.

Kagura Hikaru, Kiryu Hina, Ayakoji Chiyoko, and Kohinata Suse sat at the same table, watching the bride and groom pass by with different expressions.

Among these four, three of them had deep connections with the couple on the stage, though their thoughts were all different.

Ayakoji Chiyoko was expressionless. She really liked Kohinata Motoyo and wanted to bless her remarriage, but the thought of her marrying Kiryu Hina's father made everything feel off to her.

Kiryu Hina's delicate smile contrasted sharply with the former; her father was remarrying, and the new wife was Kagura Hikaru's mother, which made it seem like their two families were even more of a perfect match.

Kagura Hikaru looked helpless, because since the wedding began, a stocking-clad foot had been rubbing against his trouser leg under the table, and he couldn't shake it off. He had no idea who it was since everyone looked normal and didn't dare lift the tablecloth to look inside, afraid his mother on the stage would see and he'd have to explain later.

Of the four high school students at the table, only Kohinata Suse's smile was the most genuine and natural. Her little hand held a glass, gracefully sipping her drink.

She was simply there to attend the wedding. Crashing it under the guise of a classmate did seem a bit shameless, but she had contributed fifty thousand as a gift and even brought a bottle of champagne—she felt perfectly at ease enjoying the banquet.

Of course, she didn't just come for no reason.

Well, her leg just happened to sneakily rub against someone.