"That guy always has everything going well."
Kaito sighed. He seemed to be looking at a classmate's social media posts.
"Are you envious?" Sora asked.
"Envious, or... frustrated, I guess."
Hiyori said quietly, "That's a natural emotion."
"But these kinds of feelings aren't good, right?" Kaito said with self-loathing.
"Why do you think they're not good?" Hiyori asked back.
"Because envying people feels narrow-minded."
Sora supplemented. "Social comparison is a basic human psychological process."
"Social comparison?"
Hiyori began explaining. "A theory proposed by psychologist Festinger. People compare themselves to others to evaluate themselves."
"Everyone does it?"
"Yes. To know your own abilities or situation, you need to compare with something."
Mira wrote in her notebook and showed it. "Upward comparison, downward comparison."
"Upward comparison is comparing yourself to someone superior. Downward comparison is comparing to someone inferior," Sora explained.
Kaito thought. "What I did was upward comparison."
"Upward comparison triggers two responses," Hiyori continued. "Inspiration or envy."
"Inspiration?"
"Positive motivation like 'I want to be like that person.' This leads to growth."
Sora added. "But if you think 'That person is good and I'm not,' it becomes envy."
"I'm the latter," Kaito admitted.
Hiyori said gently, "That's a sign your self-esteem is hurt."
Mira wrote, "Why does it hurt?"
"Good question," Hiyori nodded. "Behind envy is the recognition that 'I'm lacking something.'"
Sora analyzed. "In other words, what you envy tells you what you value."
Kaito's eyes widened. "What do you mean?"
"What you envy is what you want. If you know that, you can see your goal."
Hiyori continued. "Envy is an uncomfortable emotion. But it's also a clue to self-understanding."
Kaito pondered. "True, what I envy is his sociability."
"Which means?" Sora prompted.
"I also want to be able to talk with people more?"
"Exactly," Hiyori acknowledged. "Envy clarified your desire."
Mira showed a new note. "Comparison trap."
Hiyori explained. "But be careful. Constantly comparing with others makes your value dependent on them."
"You lose your own axis," Sora said.
"Right. You live by external standards, not internal ones."
Kaito asked. "So what should I do?"
Hiyori answered. "Compare yourself to your past self."
"My past self?"
"Yourself from a year ago, a month ago. Use your own growth as a standard, not others."
Sora agreed. "Then you can progress at your own pace."
Mira smiled and wrote, "Competition with yourself."
Kaito brightened a bit. "True, I'm better now than a year ago."
"That's important," Hiyori said. "Others' success doesn't mean your failure."
Sora added. "Everyone walks different paths. Comparison is meaningless."
Kaito took a deep breath. "Okay. When I feel envious, I'll use it as a clue to think about what I'm seeking."
"Good approach," Hiyori acknowledged.
Mira closed her notebook.
Sora said, "Envy isn't an enemy. You can make it an ally."
Kaito laughed. "Somehow I feel better."
Hiyori said quietly, "Emotions aren't good or bad. What matters is how you use them."
The four looked out the window. People walking their own paths. Understanding instead of comparison. Learning instead of envy. That's what they thought about this afternoon.