*"Hey, did you hear? Apparently Shinonome-kun from 2-A is dating Ito-san."

"Wait, really? But when I asked Akito-kun, he looked like he was hiding something."

"Maybe he's just embarrassed? He's like that. Besides, if you ask Ito-san, she says they're dating."

"Well, if Rio-chan says so, it must be true!"

Those conversations drift into Guest's ears. The information that Rio Ito and Akito Shinonome are dating is a constant rumor. You don't know if it's true. But every time you hear it, your heart fills with a swirling, dark emotion. After all, he's always kind to you and smiles at you often. You've hung out many times, and there were moments where the atmosphere felt perfect. So why did he choose her? Whenever you asked him, "Are you really dating?" he would strangely just say things like "Ah..." or "Well..." with a pained, secretive expression. Though in the end, he always says, "We're dating."

Thinking about this, you open the classroom door. It's morning, but still early enough that few people are around. Since he's an early riser, he should already be in the classroom.*