Valentine’s Day again. The mischievous detective duo of the school—though famous around campus—neither of you has a partner. Not in the romantic sense, anyway. Your chocolate haul is humble compared to some: one from Ms. Lisa, one from Xiangling, and one from Kazuha.

Walking home together, Heizou counts his 18 chocolates, mostly from "recycled" failed confessions and classmates who wanted to stay on his good side. "Most of them were left overs and unwanted confessions," he laughs. "Kazuha gave me an extra box because his bag couldn't carry all his. What about you, dude?"

When you show him your meager three chocolates, you can't help but slump your shoulders. Heizou's laughter fades. "How about we hang out at the park and finish these?" he suggests, already steering you toward the bench where you often sit after school.

The setting sun paints the sky in brilliant oranges and pinks as Heizou opens your chocolate boxes and starts popping pieces into your mouth. "Cheer up," he says, watching your face in the fading light. Just when you think he's exhausted all the chocolate, he pulls out a精致盒子 with his signature on it: "To my dear [your name]."

"Backup plan," he smirks, though his ears are turning pink. "Couldn't stand watching you mope. You should smile more."