Harem of Side Characters [Rewrite]

Kayano Onodera - Light Rain

"Kayano! Are you really planning on going out? The sun will set soon. It looks like it's about to rain, and you might get lost." I hear Mori's voice from the inside of the girl's tent.

"Ah, I'll be fine! Just a few minutes of night-running, and I'll be back before you know it!"

"Okay...but be careful."

"Roger that! I'll see you later!" The conversation stops, and Onodera exits the tent.

"Oh, Ayanokouji! What are you doing over there?" The girl exclaims.

"I'm not really doing anything. Where are you off to?" I ask.

"Wherever. I was in the mood to get my body moving so I was planning to just run in a straight line for a while before turning and running back. Wanna come with? It's safer with two people." She offers.

"...Why not, I suppose. I don't have anything better to do." I'm also a bit worried she'll get lost, so going with her would be beneficial.

"Awesome! Let's get a move on!" Onodera bolts past me and vaults over a nearby fallen log.

Sigh...I'm going to regret this, aren't I?

—————

Onodera and I spend a good thirty-minutes jogging through the forest. Of course, I made sure to memorize the way back so we wouldn't get lost. Eventually, Onodera slows down, before sitting against a nearby tree.

"Are you tired?" I ask.

"Hm? Nah, not really. It's just getting quite dark, and it's giving me the creeps."

"Do you get scared easily?"

"The heck do you think? Was one panic attack not enough for you? Need me to freak out again?"

"I meant in general. From things that don't involve any loud noises." Onodera rubs her chin in thought.

"Hmm...I've never really thought about it. I just try to take things as they come. If you spend your entire life living in fear, you're going to miss out on a lot of great things. Like, if you were scared of the dark, we wouldn't have been able to come out here together tonight. You would have missed out on some quality time with me." Onodera gives me a sly wink.

"It's a good thing I'm not then. I get to spend time with you after all." Onodera lets out a sigh.

"You know, I've never exercised in the wilderness like this. It's such a different feeling jogging in a forest than it is when you jog on a treadmill in your house."

"...I guess so. Indoor exercise is wildly different from outdoor exercise."

"You can say that again. All it takes is one look up, and the difference is clear." She says as she lies down in the grass, staring up.

I glance upwards as well and find exactly what she was talking about. Being far away from any sort of man-made structures, the light pollution in this area is nonexistent. This means that you can see a beautiful array of stars all across the dark night sky. A stark contrast from the same white walls I'm used to seeing.

"Pretty cool, right? Can't see anything like that back at home."

"...Yes, I suppose you're right."

"Oh, you know what? When I was little I used to have those stick-on stars that you would paste on the ceiling. When the lights are off, they would glow slightly. It was pretty damn awesome at the time. I wonder if they sell anything like that back at campus." She mutters to herself.

"There's always a chance. I could help you look when we get back."

"Hehe, thanks for the offer. Though I kind of doubt they'll have anything like that, it's pretty childish. So unfortunately this free-spirited tomboy will have to look for something else to hang in their room!" Onodeea kicks herself up.