Sakura's dorm was oh floor. When Hikaru followed the red-haired girl into her room, he was immediately greeted by a faint, sweet fragrance.

  This wasn't his first time entering a girl's dorm; he'd been to Iose's room before, as well as the rooms of Ando Sayo and Himeno Yuki from their css. But those were group gatherings—this time, it was just the two of them.

  "Please… e in, Hikaru-kun." Her voice was soft and shy. She had seemed retively posed outside, but now that they were alone in her dorm, she couldn't bring herself to meet his gaze.

  "Excuse me for intruding."

  Sakura's stock price had already climbed to 100. With 5,000 shares, this iment had great potential. Judging from how she had ion when he mentioned his brief versation with Manabu, it was clear that she had no i in the school's css petition.

  This perfectly aligned with his initial assessment—Sakura was the kind of person who could be influehrough trust alone, without the plications of css politics. It was like mining a gold vein: as long as he maintained a steady, geionship without aive as, her stock value would only tio grow.

  "Hikaru-kun, could you wait here for a moment? I just o tidy up my bedroom."

  After stealing a quice at him, Sakura blurted out the request and hurriedly retreated into her room, shutting the door behind her.

  "Of course."

  Hikaru casually took out his phone and began scrolling through the css group chat.

  Meanwhile, in her room, Sakura's face was flushed as red as an apple. Her inal pn had been t him straight into her bedroom to show him her blog, but the moment she stepped inside her dorm, she realized her bed was still strewn with various outfits from her st photoshoot.

  If Hikaru-kun saw that mess, wouldn't he think she was weird?

  Embarrassed, she opted to break from the pn and tidy her room first.

  Sakura took a deep breath and began anizing the clothes, meticulously cheg every er of the room to ehing embarrassing remained in sight. After folding the outfits and putting them bato the wardrobe, she removed her decorative gsses and ged into a fresh set of clothes.

  About ten mier, she opehe door.

  "Sorry to keep you waiting, Hikaru-kun."

  "No problem at all. It's not like I had any pressing pns."

  When Hikaru looked up, he was geaken aback.

  Sakura had ged into a soft, flowing house dress that atuated her slender, curvy figure. Without her red-rimmed gsses obsg her face, her striking blue eyes stood out even more vividly. She'd also tied her hair into twin tails, framing her already cute features in a way that made her appear even more charming.

  "That outfit really suits you, Sakura-san."

  Hikaru didn't hesitate to pliment her—after all, that was the hallmark of a socially adept man.

  "Th-thank you, Hikaru-kun."

  Her heart fluttered at the ued praise. When she'd caught her refle in the mirror earlier, she had spontaneously decided to ge outfits, hoping to present a better version of herself to him.

  Seeing the subtle glint of admiration in his eyes and hearing his genuine pliment made her decision feel pletely justified.

  She hated when others stared at her with strange or lustful expressions. But for some reason, Hikaru's gaze didn't bother her at all—in fact, it made her feel warm and… happy.

  What's happening to me?

  Just as her mind started wandering into unfamiliar territory, his voice brought her back to reality.

  "So, are you ready, Sakura-san?"

  "Ah—yes! I'm ready." She quickly shook off her distrag thoughts and led him into her bedroom.

  Upoering the room, Hikaru noticed the same faint fragrance lingering in the air. Sakura's room was quite minimalist; aside from the ptop on her desk, there were no plush toys, posters, or other decorations one might expect from a girl her age.

  "Hikaru-kun, you take a look at this. It's my blog and the tent I usually post."

  Sakura sat down at her desk and opened her homepage. The s was soon filled with professional-quality photos of her modeling various outfits.

  "Oh, wow…"

  Hikaru leaned in, feigning surprise as he examihe images.

  Sakura truly had the figure of a model. Her delicate features and impressive physique were perfectly atuated by the stylish outfits. It was easy to see why she had a dedicated followers.

  "This is amazing, Sakura-san."

  Hikaru turo her, his tone filled with genuine admiration. "I had no idea I was friends with such a popur blog idol. I should ask for your autograph while I still have the ce."

  "My… my autograph?"

  "Of course! You're famous, after all. Just look at ye's view t—it's really impressive." He rubbed his thoughtfully. "Did you take all these photos yourself? Or do you work with a photographer?"

  "Well… I started off doing everything on my own. I've always had a hard time rexing in front of strangers, so I would set up the camera, take the shots myself, and thehe pictures to the magazine."

  "They were surprisingly uanding about my situation, and I'm really grateful for that."

  She dropped her gaze, visibly embarrassed. Even she realized that her solo-photography approach wasn't the industry standard.

  "You're really amazing, Sakura-san. I bet most magazines wouldn't approve su unventional method."

  Hikaru shifted his gaze from the s to her fad smiled gently. "Well, now that you've showhis secret side of yourself, it's only fair that I reciprocate. Do you have any questions for me? I promise to answer holy."

  Sakura froze.

  The moment he made that offer, a rumor she'd once heard floated into her mind—a rumor she desperately wao firm.

  Steeling herself, she met his eyes and asked, "Hikaru-kun… are you dating anyht now?"

  "...?"

  Where did that e from?

  Thrown off by the sudden, personal question, instinctively responded, "No, of course not. I've never been in a retionship before. Why do you ask?"

  "Oh… nothing in particur. I just… wondered." Sakura's cheeks burned as she hastily added, "Please don't take it the wrong way!"

  His answer filled her with a strange sense of relief, even though she couldn't expin why.

  "Anyway," she tinued, "will you still be practig photography iure? If you want… I help."

  "Absolutely. After seeing your photos, I realize how much more I have to learn."

  "I-I'll do my best then," she stammered, her heart fluttering at the thought of spending more time with him.

  ~~~

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