COTE: Horikita Is My Childhood Sweetheart

Chapter 121 I Lied to You Too

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No one knows cameras better than Sakura Airi!

But in reality, Sakura doesn't know much about cameras at all.

Holding the coat in her arms, Sakura Airi bent her slender waist and apologized to Rin. However, Rin waved his hand nonchalantly.

"Even if you don't know much about cameras, Sakura, you like taking pictures, so you must know something about them."

"Just a little bit, not much…"

"Well, that's still better than me. At least you know what to look for when buying a camera."

"That is true."

"Then it's fine, and you don't need to apologize to me," Rin said with a smile, looking at Sakura as she straightened her waist. "Actually, I lied to you before. I'm not really interested in photography."

"…I know." Sakura responded in a soft voice.

"You know?" Rin asked, surprised. "When did you figure that out?"

"After you told me you liked taking photos, I could tell from the way you talked afterward that you didn't really know much about photography."

"…"

Rin twitched his lips and rubbed his nose in embarrassment. "Since you already knew I didn't know anything about taking pictures, why did you keep talking to me back then?"

"I don't know either." Sakura smiled shyly.

In truth, after realizing Rin Matsuoka had no real experience with photography, Sakura understood that the boy was simply trying to find a topic to chat about with her.

But why had she continued the conversation?

Sakura wasn't sure. At the time, she hadn't thought of any excuse to end their interaction…

"Why is that?"

Thinking about it, Sakura looked up and met Rin's black and white eyes. There was a light in them—a light that was captivating and hard to resist.

"I think I just wanted to keep talking to Matsuoka-san," she thought to herself. "So I went along with the conversation, even though I knew he didn't know anything about photography."

With mixed emotions in her heart, Sakura Airi put on the light pink coat that Rin had bought for her, and her plump chest was now covered by the jacket.

The coat served its purpose well. Once Sakura Airi put it on, fewer people paid attention to her.

However, her overall outfit still had a slightly sneaky appearance, which continued to draw some glances. Fortunately, most of those gazes quickly moved away without lingering.

The Keyaki Shopping Center was bustling on this Saturday, with students walking around in pairs or groups. Rin and Sakura Airi made their way toward the electronics section of the mall.

"Sakura, did you buy your camera here too?" Rin asked as they walked.

"No."

Sakura Airi, who was walking beside Rin, leaned closer and whispered softly, "At that time, I didn't even have my student ID or cell phone yet. How could I have bought one?"

That made sense.

At the time, the entrance ceremony hadn't even taken place, and Chabashira Sae hadn't distributed the student IDs or phones to the students in Class D. Yet, Sakura Airi already had a camera in her possession.

Rin also recalled that Sakura Airi's camera looked a bit worn, clearly indicating it wasn't new. It was obvious she had been using it for some time.

Sakura Airi leaned in even closer and continued whispering, "I secretly hid the camera in my bag and brought it into school. Matsuoka-san, please don't tell anyone else."

"No, I promise to keep it a secret," Rin Matsuoka said with a smile.

"Um!"

Although Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School provided Rin and the other freshmen with an admission guide booklet clearly stating that electronic devices like mobile phones were not allowed, most freshmen didn't care and still brought what they needed.

Additionally, there was no teacher assigned to check at the school gate, so everyone managed to bring their electronic devices into the school without issue.

However, since the school's network and signals were specially designed, the mobile phones students brought couldn't connect to the outside world.

Because of this restriction, the school didn't strictly enforce the rule prohibiting electronic devices.

After all, students could bring them if they wanted; their phones wouldn't work within the school grounds anyway.

Rin and Sakura Airi arrived at the only store selling cameras in the Keyaki Shopping Center, where various cameras were displayed on the counters.

The shop offered a wide range of camera models, even more than some specialized camera stores outside.

Sakura Airi's eyes lit up at the sight of the brand-new cameras, like a little hamster spotting its favorite snacks.

Since there were no other students in the camera shop, the excited Sakura Airi removed her mask and hat, her face glowing with joy as she examined the cameras on display.

"Matsuoka-san, I don't know much about cameras, but I know that the higher the pixel count, the clearer and more beautiful the photos will be," Sakura Airi said, turning to Rin.

"So, just focus on the pixel count and buy one, right?"

"Well, there's also the feel of the camera. Some cameras might have high pixels, but their weight and size can affect how they feel when taking pictures. You need to pick up the camera and see how it feels to hold," she explained enthusiastically.

Sakura Airi shared her thoughts on purchasing a camera without reservation, her interest evident.

At this moment, the store clerk responsible for selling cameras noticed Rin and Sakura Airi at the counter.

The clerk's gaze briefly passed over Rin before fixating on Sakura Airi's fair and delicate face. His triangular, inward-looking eyes revealed a greedy, covetous expression.

Then, his gaze shifted to suspicion.

"She… she looks like 'Shizuku'!"

Due to her overly shy personality, Sakura Airi usually kept her head down and her back hunched in real life. She dressed like a modest country girl and did her best to avoid drawing attention.

However, Sakura Airi had another identity online.

She was known as the blog idol and print model "Shizuku."

On the Internet, where she didn't have to interact with people face-to-face, Sakura Airi transformed into a confident, lively girl who dressed youthfully and radiantly—completely different from her reserved real-life self.

Thanks to her attractive figure and energetic demeanor, Sakura Airi had gained significant popularity online.

The clerk, who had been following "Shizuku" obsessively on social media, was one of her most fervent fans.

He stared at his phone every day, madly infatuated with the blogging idol. Now, seeing her in real life, he couldn't believe his eyes.