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The next day, the morning went by as usual, and Mizuha walked to school. She couldn't shake the thoughts of the vision she had experienced the day before. What was that thing I saw yesterday? she wondered. Why did I hear those desperate cries for help? She tried to make sense of it all.
Suddenly, she felt a jolt as someone jumped from behind her and called out, "Mizuha!"
Startled, Mizuha turned around to see Shimizu standing there with a grin. "Ah, it's you, Shimizu. Good morning!" she exclaimed.
Shimizu's smile faded as she noticed Mizuha's distant look. "You seem a bit off today. Are you okay?" she asked, her concern evident in her voice.
Mizuha quickly reassured her, "I'm fine. Just had a lot on my mind. Nothing serious," she said, her tone light and dismissive.
Shimizu looked at Mizuha with a mix of worry and acceptance. "Alright, if you say so. But if you need anything, don't hesitate to let me know."
As they continued walking, they saw Eri and Zul walking together ahead of them.
"Hey, Eri! Zul!" Shimizu shouted, waving to them.
Zul and Eri turned around. Eri smiled as she saw them. "Oh, Shimizu-san, Yuki-san, good morning," Eri greeted them warmly.
Mizuha smiled and said, "No need to be so formal with us anymore since we're friends now."
Eri blushed slightly and looked at Zul, who gave her a reassuring nod.
"Then, good morning, Mizuha-chan, Ayumi-chan," Eri said, speaking more casually.
"Good morning, Eri-chan," Mizuha responded with a warm smile. She felt glad to see Eri looking better and more cheerful than yesterday.
Shimizu suddenly interrupted when she heard her given name being called.
"Um, Eri, can you just call me Shimizu? Shimizu asked.
"Why can't we call you Ayumi? Ayumi is your given name, isn't it?" Zul asked.
"Well, being called Ayumi makes me uncomfortable..." she said, almost pleading.
"Uh... okay then, Shimizu-chan," Eri replied.
Oh yeah, why does Shimizu stop us from using her given name? She did ask the same things to me earlier too, thought Mizuha. Was something wrong with her given name? I wonder why she's asking that.
"Hey, Mizuha, what are you waiting for? Let's go," Shimizu called to her.
"Ah, sorry! I'm coming now," Mizuha said as she approached her and the others.
The four of them walked together to school until they reached their classroom, just as the first bell rang to signal the start of the first class.
After a few classes, the bell rang, signaling the arrival of lunch break. Mizuha, with Shimizu close behind, made her way to Eri's table.
"Eri-chan! Come join us for lunch on the school rooftop. The breeze up there is really comfortable!" Mizuha said.
Eri looked up from her lunch in surprise. "Is it okay for me to join you guys?"
Shimizu hugged her shoulder from behind. "Don't worry, you're one of us now. We're friends, right?"
"If you say so, I'd be happy to join you guys," replied Eri with a smile.
Eri turned around, smiling at Zul, who nodded back. He felt relieved that Eri could speak properly with Mizuha and Shimizu now, just as she spoke with him.
Zul made his way to Eri's seat to join them, just as Hikaru arrived from his class with his bento box, ready to take them to the rooftop.
"What are you guys waiting for? Let's go!" he said.
"Oh, it's you, Hikaru. Please wait a moment; we have another person joining us today," Mizuha said.
Hikaru then went to Zul. "Good for you, Zul. It seems Eri is alright now; she's no longer looking down like before."
"Yes, you're right. Thanks to Mizuha and Shimizu, Eri is doing better. They're the ones who saved Eri. As her childhood friend, it's a shame for me that I did nothing to help her," Zul said, feeling a bit guilty.
"You two, what are you doing? We are going now," Shimizu said.
"We're coming," replied Hikaru, laughing a little at Zul. The five of them then made their way together to the school rooftop.
"Hey, look, Sakamoto-san is joining them today too," said one of their classmates.
"I can't believe it! That shy and timid Sakamoto-san is now very close to Shimizu-san, who everyone fears. I think she used to be the one who was scared of Shimizu-san," replied another classmate.
"I envy them. Not only are they close to Shimizu-san, but they're also very close to the famous Hikaru, who everybody loves (especially the girls)," said another classmate.
"Is it because of Yuki-san's influence? She seems very easy to be friends with, even with someone like Shimizu-san. She seems to bridge the gap between people without judging them based on their appearance," said another.
"I think so," said another classmate.
Just then, another girl passing by overheard their conversation and said, "Yuki Mizuha?!"
After that, the group settled on the rooftop. That day, not only were they there, but another group of students was also eating there.
"Seems like other students are eating here too today, not just us," Mizuha said.
"This place has the best conditions and allows us to feel the breeze. That's why everyone comes here."
The five of them formed a circle as they opened their bento boxes. The smell of food spread around them. They laughed and chatted while eating on the sunny rooftop.
Hikaru's eyes widened as he surveyed everyone's lunches. "Wow, everything looks great!"
"Mizuha, what bento did you bring today?" asked Hikaru.
Mizuha smiled, gesturing to her bento. "My mom made this for me - rice with hamburger, sausage, and vegetables."
"That looks delicious," Hikaru commented.
"Want to try some?" Mizuha offered.
Hikaru blushed slightly but nodded. He took a bite and his eyes lit up. "It's really good!"
Shimizu proudly displayed her contribution. "I've got sandwiches with different fillings. Anyone want to try?"
Mizuha took one to taste it. "Mm, delicious," she said.
Meanwhile, Zul passed some of his karaage to Eri. "Here, have some of mine."
"Thank you, Zul," Eri accepted gratefully. Zul replied with a smile.
Shimizu's attention was drawn to Eri's bento. "Eri, is that tamagoyaki? It looks amazing!"
Eri nodded shyly. "Would anyone like to try some?"
As everyone sampled Eri's tamagoyaki, Mizuha exclaimed, "This is delicious! Where did you buy it? Or did your mother make it?"
Eri blushed. "Actually, I made it myself."
"What?! It's so delicious!" the group said, shocked that Eri had made it herself.
"How did you do this?" asked Shimizu.
"I learned from my mother, who learned from my grandmother," Eri said.
"I see—a recipe passed down through generations," said Hikaru.
"Eri-chan, can you teach me how to do it?" Mizuha asked.
"Sure, next time I will teach you how to do it," Eri said, blushing.
As lunch continued, they passed around portions of their meals, commenting on the different flavors and dishes. The mood was friendly, with they laughed and chatted while eating on the sunny rooftop.
As lunch continued, they passed around portions of their meals, commenting on the different flavors and dishes. The mood was friendly as they laughed and chatted while eating on the sunny rooftop.
While looking at her friends enjoying the moment, Mizuha suddenly got an idea. She took her smartphone from her pocket and snapped a photo. 'Click!' went the shutter.
Mizuha smiled after taking the photo.
"Ah, you took a photo!" Shimizu shouted.
"What do you want to do with this photo?" Hikaru asked.
"I want to make a drawing of this moment of us together," Mizuha replied.
"Ah, I forgot, you like drawing, right?" said Hikaru.
"Eh, I never heard of this, Mizuha-chan. Can you show me some of your drawings after this?" Eri asked.
"Sure, I will show them to you after we return to class," replied Mizuha.
"I'm sure you will be amazed by her drawing; she is a great artist," said Shimizu, complimenting Mizuha.
"Oh, you Shimizu, you also are a..." Mizuha began.
"Mizuha... shhh," Shimizu said suddenly, stopping Mizuha, her face a bit red.
"Oops..." Mizuha covered her mouth with her hand. I almost spoiled Shimizu's secret to them, she thought.
"I'm sorry," Mizuha said with a hand sign to Shimizu.
"Huh?! What are you two hiding?" Hikaru asked, glaring at both Mizuha and Shimizu.
"It's nothing, right, Shimizu?" Mizuha said, making a poker face.
"Right, it's nothing special... hohoho," said Shimizu.
Both Mizuha and Shimizu were hiding a secret that Shimizu was a novel writer who had already been published. They both had promised not to share this secret with others yet.
"You two are weird today. Okay, it's fine if you don't want to share with us. It's your secret, right?" said Hikaru.
Suddenly, a sakura petal fell on Mizuha's head. Hikaru noticed it and tried to remove it from Mizuha's hair.
"Mizuha, hold still for a second," said Hikaru.
"What is it, Hikaru?"
Hikaru brushed a sakura petal from her hair. "Here, this was in your hair," he said.
Mizuha blushed. "Oh, thank you, Hikaru."
"It's nothing special," replied Hikaru, also blushing. Shimizu noticed their reddened faces and smirked.
"Eh, why are both of you a bit red? Did something special happen between you two?" she teased.
"It's nothing special," said Mizuha, trying to hide her embarrassment.
Eri smiled while looking at Mizuha, Shimizu, and Hikaru's conversation. Zul leaned closer to her and said, "It's nice, right, having friends like them?" "We never had this before, right?" added, smiling at Eri.
"You're right, Zul. I hope our friends will stay like this forever," said Eri, feeling happy with this moment. After lunch, they prepared to return to class and continue the rest of the school day.
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