About fifteen minutes later, both Elly and Shimizu returned from their errands, and Shimizu called out excitedly, "We're back!"
"Oh, welcome back, both of you," Mizuha replied.
Elly handed Mizuha an ice cream she had bought, smiling. "It's so hot today; I thought this would help cool us down."
"Oh, thanks, Elly-chan," Mizuha said, taking the ice cream and savoring its refreshing coldness. They continued studying, with Mizuha patiently teaching her friends the parts they struggled with as the sun gradually set.
When Elly's mother called from downstairs to let them know the bath was ready, they took a break. Shimizu went first, leaving Mizuha and Elly to tidy up their study area. After a moment, Elly asked, "Mizuha-chan, did Mother say something about me earlier?"
Mizuha smiled, recalling Elly's mother's kind words. "She just thanked me for being your friend and mentioned how you've become a better person recently."
Elly's face softened with relief, a small tear slipping down her cheek. Mizuha placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder, reminding her friend to stay true to her own personality rather than striving to be like her late sister. Elly nodded, touched by her friend's words, and offered to take the plates back to the kitchen.
Shortly after, Shimizu burst back in, looking different with her hair down and grinning widely. "Ah, that bath felt so good!" she exclaimed.
Mizuha blinked, momentarily not recognizing her friend, and Shimizu teased her, laughing at her surprised expression. Just as Mizuha was about to take her turn in the bathroom, Shimizu called out with a silly formality, "Take your time, and enjoy!"
Mizuha chuckled, rolling her eyes. "What's with that, Shimizu?" she said, heading to the bathroom.
Meanwhile, Elly returned to her room from the kitchen.
"Shimizu-chan, what are you doing?" Elly asked. "Wait, is that my old console game?"
"Elly, let's play this video game! I heard you were good at gaming during your childhood," she suggested.
"Well, that was in the past, Shimizu-chan. During that time, I was a naughty brat. It's been a while since I played these games, and now I don't even game anymore," Elly replied. "I don't even know if this console still works or not," she added.
"Why not try?" Shimizu suggested. Both Elly and Shimizu tried to turn on the console, and to their surprise, it worked. "Oh, see? It's still working!" said Shimizu.
"Yes, I can't believe it still works! The last time I played this console was three years ago with Zul before we entered middle school," Elly said.
"As this seems to be working, then let me choose the game," Shimizu said.
"Okay, let's play this," Shimizu said, selecting a fighting game called Road Fighter.
Shimizu was having a hard time, while Elly played calmly without any issues.
Eh, why do I feel like this is so easy even though it's been a while since I've gamed? Elly wondered. Does my body remember how this game works?
Wow, she's so good, even though she hasn't played in a while, Shimizu thought. But why is she much better than me?
They played for two rounds, and Elly won both of them.
"Ah, I give up. You're too good at this, Elly," said Shimizu.
Shimizu then pulled Elly by the hands and lifted her into her arms like a prince holding a princess.
"How are you so good at this game, my princess?" said Shimizu, acting like a prince.
"Stop it, Shimizu-chan. What are you doing? This position is so embarrassing! Please put me down," said Elly, blushing furiously.
Just then, Mizuha returned from taking a bath.
"Ah, you were right, Shimizu, the bath felt good," she said as she opened the door. She froze when she saw them in that awkward position, blinking slowly. "What are you two doing?" she asked, her voice flat.
"Ah, Mizuha! It's not what it looks like!" Shimizu stammered, her face turning redder.
"That's right! Shimizu-chan just grabbed my hand and—well—this happened!" added Elly, looking equally flustered.
"Oh, I see. That really happened?" Mizuha asked with a raised eyebrow.
Shimizu and Elly exchanged panicked looks.
Mizuha glared at them for a moment before breaking into a mischievous smile.
"Would you stay like that for a moment? I want to go to the kitchen and ask Mrs. Sakamoto to borrow an awl," she said, slowly closing the door as she stepped out.
"An awl? For what, Mizuha? Are you planning to make a hole or something?" asked Shimizu, thoroughly confused.
"Wait, Mizuha-chan, I don't think my house has an awl," said Elly.
Both of them chased after Mizuha to explain what happened.
"What's with you, Shimizu? Losing your mind after losing to Elly-chan?" Mizuha chuckled while getting dressed.
"Ah, shut up! I never expected to lose two rounds just like that," Shimizu replied.
"Ah, Elly-chan, it's your turn to take a bath. Let me handle this girl," Mizuha said.
"Thanks, Mizuha-chan. I'll go take a bath now," Elly responded before leaving for the bathroom.
"Hey, Shimizu. How long are you going to be pouting? Are you little kids or what?" said Mizuha.
"Ah, this video game is boring. Let's change to another activity," Shimizu said, giving up on the video game. "I know! Let's play a card game!" she suggested.
Oh, she got her spirit back, Mizuha thought.
"A card game? But we don't have any cards here," Mizuha replied.
"Hehe, I came prepared! Here!!!" Shimizu exclaimed as she suddenly pulled out a set of trump cards from her bag.
"Geez, you really came to play!" Mizuha said.
"Well, that can't be helped. Alright, I'll play with you. What game?" Mizuha asked.
"Then, we'll play Old Maid," Shimizu suggested.
While waiting for Elly to finish her bath, Mizuha and Shimizu began playing. Luck was on Shimizu's side as she kept winning against Mizuha, who hadn't won a single round.
"What's wrong, Mizuha? Still want to continue another round?" Shimizu asked smugly.
"Absolutely, I haven't won a single round yet," Mizuha insisted.
Fresh from her bath, Elly entered the room and spotted them playing. "Wait, what are you guys playing? Old Maid? I want to join too, but let me finish dressing up first."
"It's okay, we'll wait for you"
After finishing dressing up, Elly joined the game with the others. "But this time I will win, you'll see, Shimizu!" Mizuha declared.
"Let's see if you can defeat me," Shimizu said smugly. They played together for about thirty minutes, with Mizuha unfortunately losing every time and repeatedly asking for rematches.
Elly moved closer to Shimizu and whispered, "Hey, Shimizu-chan, can you let her win for once? If not, we'll be stuck playing this game forever."
Shimizu whispered back, "I know, I tried to let her win but she keeps losing on her own."
Mizuha lost one final round and finally decided to give up.
"Ah, I'm done. I don't want to continue anymore—you guys are too good at this," Mizuha conceded.
"No, it's not like that. You just don't have a proper poker face," Shimizu chuckled.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Mizuha laughed.
"But it's been fun playing together, right?" Elly added.
"Yeah, you're right, Elly-chan," Mizuha agreed.
"Okay, then what do you want to do now? We're done with card games. What's next?" Mizuha asked.
"Hehe, I'm glad you asked. Now it's time for... the lover story show," Shimizu announced.
Pretending to hold a microphone, Shimizu adopted a TV host persona. "Okay, Contestant Mizuha, how has your progress with Hikaru been until now? Has your relationship improved?"
"What is this, a TV show?" Mizuha said, feeling a bit annoyed.
Mizuha explained that while she and Hikaru had grown closer, they still hadn't gone on an actual date yet.
"So contestant Mizuha and Hikaru haven't made any progress," Shimizu announced in her TV host voice.
"Now let's ask contestant Elly about her relationship with Zul."
Though embarrassed, Elly admitted that while she and Zul were close, she still viewed him as a big brother figure, especially given his past feelings for her late sister, Arisa.
"Oh, so that's the answer from contestant Elly - it looks the same as contestant Mizuha's situation," Shimizu concluded. "We'll see you again next week!"
With that, Shimizu dropped her TV show act and turned to chat normally with Elly.
"I understand where you're coming from, but from my perspective, I think he actually likes you. He just never mentions it. I bet you like him too, right?" Shimizu chuckled.
"Geez, Shimizu-chan, this is embarrassing," Elly said, hugging Shimizu.
Both of them had guys close to them, but none of them had gone on a date with each other yet, Shimizu thought, looking at Mizuha and Elly.
Mizuha then asked Shimizu if she had ever dated anyone. Shimizu replied that she hadn't, laughing as she spoke.
Mizuha suddenly remembered that Shimizu had been sleep talking about someone named 'Kita-kun' a few days ago when they returned from a picnic.
"Hey, what about the person named Kita-kun? Are you acquainted with him?" Mizuha asked.
"Wait, Mizuha, how do you know that name? I never told anyone about that!" Shimizu exclaimed.
"Well, I heard it when you were sleep talking on the train back from the picnic," Mizuha explained.
"Huh, did I really say that?" Shimizu asked, still surprised.
"Yes, you said, Please don't leave me, Kita-kun," Mizuha said.
"Ah, that was so embarrassing," Shimizu groaned.
"Hey, is that person important to you?" Mizuha inquired.
"Then how about you tell us about that person, contestant Shimizu?" Mizuha suddenly said, acting like Shimizu's TV show host again.
"Tell us about him, Shimizu-chan," Elly added, eager to know more.
Shimizu sighed. "Well, I never had a relationship with him; he was just my childhood friend, like Elly and Zul. We used to play together years ago in elementary school, but like you, he moved away because of his family's job. I wonder where he is now."
"I see, he's just your childhood friend. Sorry for bringing that up suddenly," Mizuha said.
"Don't worry about it; that's all in the past now," Shimizu reassured her. "By the way, what do we want to do next?" she asked.
"I don't know, maybe we should just go to sleep?" Mizuha suggested.
"Geez, Mizuha, you're so boring! Can you come up with a more interesting idea?" Shimizu replied. "What do you think, Elly?"
"Well, I have no idea either," Elly said.
Shimizu glanced outside, then suddenly stood up. She pulled the curtain back and opened the sliding door.
"What are you doing, Shimizu?" asked Mizuha.
"Come outside, both of you!" Shimizu called.
"What's up, Shimizu-chan?" asked Elly as she walked onto the balcony, feeling the cool night air.
"Look at the sky," Shimizu said with a smile.
"The stars! There are so many tonight!" Elly said excitedly.
"They're really beautiful," said Mizuha, looking up.
"I know, right?" said Shimizu. "I thought we could all look at them together."
The three friends stood quietly, watching the stars shine above them.
"Look – that's Deneb," Elly said, pointing. "And there's Altair (Hikoboshi), and there's Vega (Orihime). Those three make the Summer Triangle."
"You really know about stars, Elly-chan," said Mizuha, impressed.
"Yeah, how do you know all that?" asked Shimizu.
Elly walked over to an old telescope on her balcony. "I used to watch the stars here with my sister and Zul," she said, touching the telescope gently. "My sister taught me about all the different stars."
Mizuha and Shimizu exchanged a gentle look, sensing the weight of memory in their friend's voice.
"Does the telescope still work?" asked Mizuha.
"Yes, I used it last week," Elly said with a smile. "Want to try it?"
"This is amazing!" said Mizuha, looking through the telescope. "The stars look so clear!"
"Let me see too!" Shimizu said eagerly.
When she looked through it, she gasped. "You're right!"
As she watched her friends use the telescope, Elly smiled nostalgically. Looking back at the sky, she thought, Now I'm here with Mizuha-chan and Shimizu-chan. Are you watching too, big sister?
"You know," Mizuha said, looking at the three bright stars, "those stars are kind of like us three, aren't they?"
Shimizu took both their hands. "Yes, just like us – friends shining together."
The three girls held hands and kept looking at the stars, smiling contentedly in the peaceful night.
After watching the stars for a while longer, the cool night breeze made them shiver.
"We should probably head inside," Mizuha said, stifling a yawn. "It's getting late."
"Yeah, we should sleep," Shimizu agreed, helping Elly carefully cover the telescope.
Back in Elly's room, they laid out their futons side by side. The day's activities had left them pleasantly tired.
As Elly turned off the lights, moonlight filtered through the curtains, casting a gentle glow across their futons.
She could hear Shimizu and Mizuha's steady breathing, already drifting off to sleep. Lying there in the quiet darkness, Elly smiled to herself.
This sleepover was perfect, she thought. Studying, playing games, sharing secrets, and even stargazing together... I'm so glad to be friends with these two.
With that warm thought, she closed her eyes, the image of the three stars of the Summer Triangle still fresh in her mind as she drifted off to sleep.