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Title: He Doesn’t Know I Know He Knows I Like Him

Episode 1: “Operation: Totally Not in Love” (Extended Edition)

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Minami Aoi’s alarm went off at 6:45 a.m. sharp. She turned it off by chucking her pillow across the room and groaning into her blanket.

“Senior year,” she mumbled. “Time to pretend I don’t have a crush on Kaito Riku for the 642nd day in a row.”

Minami wasn’t dramatic—she just had a flair for internal monologues and secretly counting how long she'd been in love with a boy who once stole her eraser, smiled, and said, "Oops. Yours was cuter."

Wearing her perfectly ironed school uniform and last year’s good luck socks, she marched into Sakuragaoka High, repeating her three golden rules:

Don’t sit near him.

Don’t talk to him.

Don’t. Make. Eye contact.

By 8:17 a.m., all three rules were broken.

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The Chaos Begins

Homeroom was a warzone. Everyone was scrambling to pick their seats for the year, and thanks to being literally one second late, Minami got the last desk in the back row—right next to Kaito Riku.

“Yo,” he grinned, spinning a pen between his fingers like a ninja. “Guess we’re desk buddies, huh?”

Minami stared at her water bottle like it held the meaning of life.

“Haha, yeah. Lucky me.”

Kaito had that kind of smile that made your brain buffer. He smelled like mint gum and bad decisions. His messy hair always looked like it belonged in a shoujo manga, and somehow he made the school’s hideous tie look cool.

“Minami Aoi,” he said thoughtfully. “Your handwriting’s, like, really neat. You planning to be a spy or something?”

What does that even mean?? She laughed anyway. Rule #4 was born: Don’t get flattered by nonsense.

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Lunchtime Catastrophe

In the cafeteria, Minami weaved between crowds, clutching her tray like a battlefield medic. Just ten more steps to her usual table—

BOOM. The world spun. Her tray flew. Her rice met gravity.

Minami landed—not on the floor—but on someone’s lap.

Not just someone.

Kaito. Again.

“You okay?”

“Yep,” she squeaked. “Just fulfilling my daily embarrassment quota.”

Laughter erupted all around them. Kaito just grinned, brushing a speck of rice from her hair with such casual ease it short-circuited her soul.

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The Announcement

Principal Kanzaki’s voice crackled over the intercom.

“Attention, students! This year’s Dare Week theme is: Fake Dating! All participants will be assigned partners by lottery… unless you volunteer publicly before Friday.”

Cue screams. Drama. Chaos.

And then—the twist of the day.

“I volunteer!” Kaito stood up.

Everyone turned.

“With Minami Aoi!”

The cafeteria gasped. Someone dropped a fork. A couple in the back broke up out of sheer shock.

Minami nearly passed out.

“It’s just for the dare week,” he said smoothly, winking. “Unless you’re scared~”

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The Suspicion

That night, Minami stared at her ceiling. There was no way Kaito just randomly picked her. He could’ve had any girl, or boy, or sentient jellyfish. So why her?

She opened her locker the next morning to find a folded note:

He knows.

Her heart dropped.

Who knows? What does he know??

Was this still a comedy… or something else?

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End of Episode 1

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Title: He Doesn’t Know I Know He Knows I Like Him

Episode 2: “The Fake Girlfriend Rulebook (Step One: Panic)”

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Minami Aoi had survived many things in her academic career.

Math tests. P.E. relay races. That one time she accidentally replied “Love you too” to a teacher’s “Have a good weekend.”

But none of that prepared her for Fake Dating Kaito Riku in front of the entire school.

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📱 After the Lunchroom Bomb

Word spread faster than fire on oily ramen. By sixth period, their names were trending on the school’s gossip account:

> 🔥 @SakuraLeaks

🚨BREAKING: KAITO X MINAMI FAKE-DATING??

Who knew the quiet girl and the human disaster would become the it couple? 💥👀 #DareWeekDrama

Minami stared at her phone in horror.

“This is fine,” she whispered into her sleeve. “This is totally fine. I’m not melting. My lungs just... forgot how to air.”

Even her best friend Yuka couldn’t stop grinning.

> “I mean, if you’re gonna spiral emotionally, might as well do it with the hottest boy in school.”

“Can we not?!”

Yuka sipped her bubble tea and smirked. “So... do I call you ‘Mrs. Riku’ or—”

“YUKA.”

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🚪 And Then Came the Knock

She opened the classroom door—and of course, there he was.

Kaito. With that stupidly handsome smirk. His uniform was slightly crooked in that ‘I-don’t-care-but-it-works’ kind of way. He looked like a walking problem.

“Ready for our first fake date, girlfriend?”

Minami blinked. “I’m not emotionally prepared for this.”

“Then it’s gonna be even more fun.”

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🌸 The Walk and the Talk

Dare Week required couples to spend at least an hour a day together—publicly. They had to do “couple things.” Talk. Hang out. Laugh. Act cute. Gross.

So here they were: walking through the sakura-lined courtyard, as people not-so-secretly snapped photos behind bushes and pretended not to stare.

“I’m just saying,” Kaito said, “if we’re gonna be fake dating, we should get fake matching keychains.”

Minami stared at him. “You are taking this way too seriously.”

“Nope. I take fake love very seriously.”

She laughed. She didn’t mean to, but it happened. And he noticed.

Then he tilted his head slightly and asked, “So, why do you think I picked you?”

She nearly tripped over air.

“What?”

He looked amused. “You haven’t asked. Most people would.”

“Well, I... figured you just randomly panicked and said the first name you saw.”

“Hm.” He smiled but didn’t confirm or deny.

> That smile was suspicious. Suspicious and illegal and slightly charming.

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📝 The Notebook Incident

At the end of the day, Minami returned to her locker to grab her chemistry notes—only to find something else inside.

A folded slip of paper. Same clean, blocky handwriting as yesterday.

> “It’s not just him. Someone else knows too.”

She looked around. No one. The hallway was mostly empty. Just the low hum of fluorescent lights and her rapidly increasing heartbeat.

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🏠 That Night

She lay in bed, eyes wide open, staring at the ceiling like it had answers.

“Kaito can’t know. No way. I’ve been careful. Have I been careful??”

She reached for her phone and re-read the note for the sixth time.

Then her screen lit up.

Text from Kaito:

> Did you get home safe, fake girlfriend? 😊

Don’t let the internet get to you. You’re pretty great, y’know.

Her fingers hovered over the keyboard. Should she respond?

Instead, she threw the phone onto her pillow and covered her face.

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📓 Minami’s Secret Thoughts (Scribbled in her Journal)

Kaito is definitely hiding something.

I am also hiding something.

Someone else knows everything.

Yuka is a terrible wingwoman.

I am going to combust before midterms.

WHY IS HE ACTUALLY NICE?? STOP.

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💬 Meanwhile...

Somewhere in a dark room, a screen blinked with grainy hallway camera footage.

Two figures talking.

A note being pulled from a locker.

Someone whispered, “She doesn’t even realize she’s already involved.”

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End of Episode 2

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Title: He Doesn’t Know I Know He Knows I Like Him

Episode 3: “The Spark, the Spy, and the Smooth Liar”

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Minami had one goal for the morning: avoid Kaito Riku at all costs.

Her new Dare Week strategy involved speed-walking into school five minutes early, ducking into her seat, and pretending to study like her life depended on it.

But of course, Kaito arrived just one minute later—dragging his chair with that infuriating squeak—and dropped into the desk beside hers like gravity was personally invested in ruining her life.

“Morning, girlfriend,” he said, way too cheerfully.

Minami’s eyes didn’t leave her notebook. “Morning, stranger.”

Kaito laughed. “Ouch. The cold shoulder already? And here I was thinking we’d hold fake hands by Thursday.”

“I’m filing for fake divorce.”

“You’ll miss me when I’m gone.”

She finally looked up. “Are you leaving?”

“Nope.”

> This boy was sent from the universe specifically to test her patience. And maybe her heart rate.

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📚 A Very Suspicious History Class

Third period was history, and Mr. Kanzaki had apparently decided today was “Group Presentation Surprise Day.” Minami groaned internally.

“Pick a partner,” the teacher said, “and prepare a two-minute analysis on the fall of the Taira clan. You have ten minutes.”

Before she could even blink, Kaito slid his chair closer.

“Historical tragedy and emotionally unavailable girls. My specialty.”

“Excuse me?”

“Let’s ace this, Aoi-chan.”

Minami considered throwing her pencil at him. Instead, she tried to focus. Key word: tried.

“I’ll write the intro,” she said quickly. “You can—”

“Already drawing samurai stick figures,” he said, holding up her notebook, which he had somehow stolen.

“Give that back!”

“Wait, wait—look, this one’s you. You’re the grumpy warlord. Fierce. Mysterious. Probably hiding a tragic backstory.”

“I'm not the warlord!”

“You’re totally the warlord.”

> Somehow, in the middle of her flustered scolding, she forgot that she had a crush on him.

For a few seconds, she was just... laughing.

And so was he.

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💌 The Third Note

After lunch, Minami returned to her locker—and there it was again. Folded perfectly. Neat handwriting. No name.

She glanced over her shoulder before opening it.

> “Be careful who you trust. He’s not being honest with you.”

This time, her hands went cold.

She looked around. The hallway was filled with noise, laughter, rushing students—but she felt completely alone.

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🧠 Inner Spiral, Hour Six

Back in her seat, Minami couldn’t concentrate. Kaito was doodling nonsense in the margins of his notebook like nothing was wrong.

What did the note mean?

Was Kaito hiding something? He had been acting strange lately… remembering things she never told him, showing up at weird moments, knowing she’d be at her locker—

> No. Stop it. she told herself.

It’s just a prank. Some troll playing games.

Still, she couldn’t shake the feeling crawling down her spine.

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📱 That Night

Minami texted Yuka.

Minami:

> Do you think someone is watching me?

Yuka:

> What? Like... emotionally or physically?

Minami:

> Physically. I keep getting these notes in my locker. Weird ones.

Yuka:

> OMG. Like a stalker? Or a secret admirer?

Minami:

> I don’t know. One of them said not to trust Kaito.

Yuka:

> Girl. This is either a love triangle or the start of a crime drama. Either way, I’m INVESTED.

Yuka:

> Do NOT delete those notes.

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🕵️‍♂️ Meanwhile, in a different part of the school…

Someone—unseen—tapped their pen against a journal filled with Minami’s name.

> "Let’s see how long you keep pretending not to know, Kaito.”

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End of Episode 3