True to her words, Juri, who was filled with enthusiasm, walked me down her own memory lane from a few years back.

Like how she climbed a tree to bring back a fledgling that hopped too far from its nest. Or how she was taught how to fish using a wooden spear on a stream.

From the way she described those events, I couldn’t picture her as a grown-up when those took place. And so, I tried to hazard a guess that their trip happened when she was still very young. Maybe around ten years ago.

The result? I was only slightly off the mark. It was exactly twelve years ago.

Yeah. She’s really not a grown-up at that time.

“Geez. How did you even come up with that guess? Is it because you don’t believe I can still climb up a tree?” With her enthusiasm shaved off a bit because of it, Juri asked.

Although there was no plan for her to hide that fact, she admitted that she felt a little embarrassed from how close I was to my guess.

“Let’s see. Maybe because your image in my head is this cool fashionista who’s also a propriety freak. I somehow assumed that you’ve been like this for years now and imagining you being that lively wasn’t fitting for that image. So, I dialed it back a few years, to the age where most children would be hyperactive.”

“Uh-huh… That makes sense.” Juri wryly smiled before leaning closer to me, “Are you also hyperactive when you’re at that age? I’m curious.”

“Yes. I think I’m also a lively kid before I turned into this… grumpy guy.”

“Pfft. Grumpy? Nope. You call me ‘cool’ yet you don’t even know how cool you are.” Juri poked my cheek before pulling on my arm and putting us in a situation where we stood face to face.

While my free arm reflexively moved to her back, hers hooked around my neck as she tried to butt our heads together.

However, when she realized that another scenario could happen by doing that, Juri’s face reddened almost instantly as she closed her panicked eyes.

Watching all that up close, the restraint that I was exerting on myself loosened a little. I completed her initial plan by lowering my head and letting our foreheads touch.

Not only that, I also lifted our clasped hands to my shoulder. I thought of placing her hand on my shoulder so that I could embrace her. However, even before I could break away from that intimate connection, Juri beat me to it.

While taking a deep breath, she pulled her hand away from my grasp before sliding it to the back of my head. Soon afterward, she tiptoed to link up her arms, crossing them behind me.

In short, we once again put ourselves in a more intimate situation. We’re dangerously close to making out.

Thankfully, we already stepped out of the guided path that most campers used to navigate through this dense forest. No one was around to witness us in this state except for the insects or the little animals running around in this place.

At the moment, we’re in the area where they set up camp years ago. It’s small and not really an ideal place to camp considering there’s little to no space. However, the plus side was it’s an obscured location that provided privacy, peace, and quiet. It’s also close to the nearby stream where they fished. Some of the trees bore edible fruits or nuts. There are only a few of them as they’re naturally grown and not specifically planted. There were also edible mushrooms in some parts that could be picked. But then again, only those who wanted to truly experience nature and survive without relying on the modernity of the current civilization would be too eager to do that.

Anyway, the most important thing was… we’re currently alone here.

After letting a few seconds of silence pass – a small attempt to check if we could both calm down – I voiced out my reply to what she said last. At the same time as that, my arm finally linked up together on her back which allowed me to push her closer to me.

“So, I’m also cool in your eyes, huh? But you see. I have a specific description of how cool you are for me. You’re like the spring wind; refreshing and inspiring. Inspiring in a way that I’m always hopeful that it’s going to be a good day if I’m with you.”

With our bodies colliding against each other, the two of us started hearing each other’s heartbeat. They were in sync at how quickly they pumped our respective blood.

Maybe not used to it, Juri’s reaction to what she was feeling was to suspend her breath. However, that only lasted for a few seconds before she exhaled. Her warm, fragrant breath hit my face squarely.

She probably had no idea what kind of effect it had on me. But well, I didn’t point it out and simply waited for her reply or whether she could calm herself down.

I had no idea how much time passed but she eventually opened her eyes.

With our gazes naturally meeting each other, the deep-seated emotions within them got properly conveyed to both of us. Ah. Our current closeness also helped with that.

In any case, although I don’t know the specifics of what my eyes conveyed to her which made her frown and blush at the same time, I picked up a mix of yearning, excitement, affection, and lastly guilt from hers.

My mind quickly worked into understanding it.

If I was only holding back since I couldn’t simply tell her that I’ve already fallen for her, Juri probably has yet to get past the idea of betraying Satsuki as well as tearing down her sense of propriety.

There’s no other explanation.

Eventually, Juri pursed her lips and closed her eyes again before she pleaded with a hint of agony,

“Ruki… Stop. If you keep saying that, I don’t know what I will do.”

When I heard that, it hit me in the head that with this, I inadvertently pushed her over the edge.

With everything that happened between us today, we finally reached this point wherein it could break or make our relationship take another step forward. Or if not that, this could also be the point wherein we’d be aware of our feelings for one another.

After thinking for a while, I pulled my head back, ending our forehead’s connection. But in place of that, I embraced her tighter, letting her head rest on my chest.

And while at it, I whispered in a somewhat apologetic tone, “It’s my honesty in play, Juri. I failed to prevent those emotions from being conveyed to you.”

“Yes… And you’re not alone. I’m just as guilty for not keeping my emotions in check… Uhm… Let’s not pretend here, alright? We’re both aware of the topic that we’re not daring to breach. In the end, this is still inappropriate no matter how we justify it…” Ending that with a sigh, Juri loosened up her arms behind me. Then, she dropped her hands on my shoulders and gradually slid down to my arms where she gently pulled out of my embrace.

She then turned back around, showing her back to me. While her body was slightly quivering from the instability of her current emotion, Juri said,

“Can’t we just go back to scouting this place, Ruki? Let’s forget what happ—"

She was about to suggest our next course of action when suddenly, the sky darkened and within seconds, thunder rumbled along with a rather strong rain shower.

I have no idea if we’re just unlucky or if someone is saving us from this awkward situation. I’ll take it nonetheless.

Although we’re still under the protection of the trees, it wouldn’t take long before it eventually drizzled down on us. That’s why after looking up and estimating how long we have left before we shower in the rain, I stretched my arm out, pulling her back close to me before moving us close to a tree trunk.

Then, from my bag, I took out the umbrella that my girls packed. Somehow, even if this rain was unexpected, I couldn’t help but thank them in my head for thinking in advance…

Juri, understanding what I was trying to do, didn’t resist. But as soon as the umbrella stretched out above us, she brought up something else, “Ruki, I remember there’s a small log cabin nearby. If it’s still there, we can use that as shelter. That sky is too dark for this to be a short rain… Or we can return to the camping center. I’ll leave the choice to you…”