v1c5: A common point

  
“Choukiken? What’s that?”

No, it’s not Choukiken, it’s Kyouchiken. I immediately corrected her, but the girl sitting next to me didn’t seem to get it at all as she lazily replied with a quick “Huh...”

“I’m talking about Kyouchiken… the local geography research club.”

“Eh… I’ve never heard of it before, you know? Is there really a club like that at our school?”

“Yes, there is. In fact, I used to be a member of that club.”

When we first started school, our entire grade was gathered in the gym where the school held the “Club Activities Introduction”. She should’ve been informed of what each club does, but… It looks like none of it stuck in her head.

It was Wednesday night, on the way home from prep school. He was sitting down on a long seat, and this week too, his classmate from school, Ema Kitaoka, was sitting right next to him. Somehow, it had become a weekly tradition for the two of them to go home together after prep school.

【TLN: Long seats are like those seats in MRTs.】

The train was considerably crowded, and after two stations, there were lots of people standing around us. And today, she was also listening to me seriously, which was unusual. Maybe the phone she usually plays around with was running low on battery. Anyways, we were talking about the upcoming school festival.

At the high school they attend, third-year students had to focus on their studies, so each class could choose whether they wanted to participate in the festival or not. Half of the classes seemed to be motivated to participate, but the rest of the classes, namely Yasuki and his friends who belonged to the class 3-F, wouldn’t be participating.

Instead, Yasuki planned to help the club he’d been a member of up until the end of the first semester, the “Local Geography Research Club”, with their exhibit. The club had always been loose and lenient, and even now, he still showed up at gatherings. On top of being lenient, there were less than 10 people in the club, so it looked like they needed all the help they could get.

When he told all that to Kitaoka, she was utterly puzzled as she replied with a “Haa?”, which led to the conversation at the beginning.

“...So, what will this Local Geography Club do?”

Yasuki indifferently answered Kitaoka’s question.

“It mostly involves the local geography, so… they’ll cover things like the history of an area, changes in the regional industries, and so on. They’ll interview locally famous people, and they’ll make posters and put them up for display.”

“Heeeh… That’s kind of plain, isn’t it?”

“I knew you’d say that. Just so you know, we’ll be having “Chiibaa” come over, you know?”

“Eh? Seriously?”

Kitaoka had a broad smile on her face, and Yasuki instantly had a look of surprise as he asked her.

“You know Chiibaa?”

“Yeah. I like Chiibaa quite a bit, you know?”

Chiibaa is a character created to promote the history and traditions of the prefecture, a “costumed mascot”, so to speak. He’s a yellow rabbit granny. (But, its popularity and the level of its public recognition were far below a certain “Red, mysterious living creature in the shape of a prefecture (Not a dog)”. In fact, to most people in the prefecture, Chiibaa was an incredibly obscure character, and they’d react with, “We had something like that?”)

【TLN: So. Just like the previous translator mentioned, this paragraph speaks of Yuru-kyaras. A costumed mascot, used for public relations and whatnot. I couldn’t find Chiibaa on Google, so I assume it’s an imaginary mascot, but the “Red, mysterious living creature in the shape of a prefecture” is, in fact, a real mascot. It is the mascot of Chiba, a prefecture in Japan. You can search “Chiba prefecture mascot” and look at the images.】

An alumnus of the Local Geography Club works at the prefectural museum, and with their help, we were able to borrow a costume of Chiibaa. On the day of the festival, the plan is to have some of the kouhais take turns to get in the costume and promote the club.

Kitaoka was smiling happily at me as she said, “Chiibaa, so cute!”. For some reason, I got embarrassed even though I wasn’t the one being complimented.

“Speaking of clubs, which club are you in?”

I asked her on a whim, but it seems to have offended her a bit since she lowered her voice.

“Eh, I didn’t really join any club though.”

“Is that so? No one asked you to be managers in their clubs or something?”

From the very beginning of their first year, students in athletic clubs had their eyes on all the good-looking girls, and some upperclassmen would directly invite them, saying, “Won’t you be a manager at our club?”. In fact, when I was in my first year, an upperclassman who looked like a scout came to my class.

Yasuki knew the feeling of being more motivated when a cute girl was nearby, but it was a terribly blatant and indecent system. That was what Yasuki, an outsider, thought with a bitter smile on his face. It wasn’t as though they’d do the management using their looks and appearances. Rather than that, Yasuki thought that what was more important was how much interest they had in the sport.

Kitaoka had a somewhat disgusted look on her face as she replied.

“...Some people invited me to do so, but I turned them all down.”

“Why?”

“Because, I’m not the kind of person who can help others”

Kitaoka’s reply was so frank, Yasuki let out a suppressed laugh.

“Ah… I see.”

She's certainly not the kind of character who “works hard for the sake of everyone else”, who wakes up early in the morning and strives to support everyone from behind the scenes. Besides, her emotions tend to be reflected on her face easily, and I feel that such a trait would cause unnecessary trouble in clubs with strict and relentless hierarchical relationships.

“What do you mean by, ‘Ah… I see’? So rude”, muttered Ema sullenly. As Yasuki laughed to gloss over the matter, he heard a girl’s high-pitched voice from his right side.

“Oh, Ema?”

Kitaoka snapped her head upwards. She saw a girl with a bob cut wearing a uniform. The girl walked from the connector between train cars and stopped right in front of us. It looked like she had moved from a different car.

“Kumiko…”

Kitaoka looked up at the girl and muttered. The girl was wearing the uniform of a private high school that was famous for how difficult it was to enter. Perhaps it was because of that, but her refined, Japanese-style face gave her the impression of being someone highly intelligent. She was wearing dark blue knee-socks and a pair of Jaguar sneakers in collaboration with a famous brand on her thin, slender legs. All of those clearly gave me a sense of her individuality and determination.

Kumiko, as she was called, took off the white earphones in her ears and stuffed them in her pocket. Then, she turned to Kitaoka and grinned widely.

“It’s been a while! How’ve you been?”

She spoke in a lively and cheerful way. I guess this is how a carefree person would speak.

Kitaoka, seemingly influenced by her liveliness, smiled in return.

“I’m fine. You look like you’re as lively as ever”

“Well, yeah. But I’m dying from all these supplementary lessons. What about you? On your way back from prep school right now?”

“Yeah.”

It looks like this girl and Kitaoka were good friends. They probably have a lot to talk about since it’s been so long since they’ve met, so I gave my seat to Kumiko, to which she said, “Ah, excuse me.” as she smiled and bowed her head. Then, she sat down in the empty seat without hesitation.

I stood in front of Kumiko and grabbed onto the strap. After a while, I was planning to change train cars under the guise of a person who’s getting off at the next station, when Kitaoka suddenly called out, "Iijima".

“I’m not lending that to you, you know? I’ll take that.”

She said that as she reached for the clear case that Yasuki was holding. This girl… even though he went through the effort of pretending that he was a stranger since her friend was nearby. “What the heck is she doing, read the air!” Yasuki thought. He was crestfallen from the fact that he had gone through all that effort for nothing.

And, just as one would expect, Kumiko had a look of surprise on her face as she looked at Kitaoka and Yasuki. Her voice was filled with confusion as she muttered, “Ah… eh?”. As expected, it looks like Kumiko didn’t realize that Yasuki was accompanying Kitaoka.

“Umm… who might this be?”

“Iijima-kun. He’s in the same class as me at school.”

“Which means..?”

“He’s a classmate.”

Kitaoka flatly answered Kumiko’s question. I slightly bowed as I said, “Hello” to Kumiko, while Kitaoka took the clear case from me somewhat forcibly and placed it on her lap.

It looks like Kumiko had regained her composure as she smiled amiably and greeted me with a "Nice to meet you”.

“My name is Isogai Kumiko. Isogai, written with the kanji for beach and shell. But that’s not important here. Ema and I were together in elementary and middle school.”

Yasuki vaguely replied with a “Huh…” as he nodded. She’s an eloquent and talkative girl. Yasuki wondered when was the last time a girl had talked to him this much other than his family and Kitaoka.

While Yasuki was feeling dumbfounded, Kumiko stared at his right side which was quite empty since he was holding onto the strap over his head. What’s wrong, is there some dirt on my uniform? Yasuki wondered as he was feeling uncomfortable by Kumiko’s stare. Then, she suddenly spoke to Yasuki.

“Hey, Iijima-kun, are you a fan of Scosho?”

Her accurate guess startled Yasuki.

The Scottish Shorthair (or Scosho for short) is the name of a young rock band that Yasuki is the most interested in right now, and the band he listens to the most.

But how did she know? Could this girl have some psychic powers? I answered, “Eh, yes” with some reluctance, when Kumiko’s face suddenly lit up.

“I knew it! I love them too! That keychain over there is something they sold on their previous tour, right?”

Kumiko pointed to the key chain hanging on the right side of my backpack and let out a high-pitched laugh. So, this girl wasn’t an esper or anything, but she was just a girl with good eyes.

“That’s… right. I actually wanted to buy the t-shirt, but it was sold out.”

I turned around a bit and answered her question. The key chain was part of some merchandise they sold during their tour. I bought it when I went to their concert last year. For some reason, I hung it on my backpack for school, but I forgot that I even had it on because no one had reacted to it until now.

Kumiko said, “How nice... let me see it some more” as Yasuki turned around to show her the keychain. As Kumiko held the keychain in her hands with an extremely curious look on her face, Kitaoka quizzically asked.

“What are you two talking about..?”

“The Scosho band. Don’t you know them? The people who sung, 『I couldn’t do anything with how little courage I had, you’re the only one I couldn’t save ♪』”

Kumiko sang a part of their most famous song. But, Kitaoka looked like she didn’t understand at all as she muttered, “Have I heard this song somewhere..?” while she tilted her head to the side.

Her reaction wasn’t surprising. Scosho has a strong following among some "music lovers", but in general, their sales weren’t consistent, sometimes appearing on charts and sometimes not appearing at all.

(Incidentally, the band's name is a combination of the two breeds of cats that the members like. However, contrary to the impression that their cute name gives off, the music they produce is hard rock with lots of electronic sounds, and the lyrics are very introspective. There were even rumors being whispered among the fans, saying, “Mimura (the vocalist and songwriter) has some sort of identity crisis”.)

Kumiko said, "Thank you," and let go of the key chain. She then looked up at Yasuki again and started talking.

“But still, you managed to get a ticket, huh. I’m jealous of you. I tried to get them on the day they went on sale, but they were completely sold out in all the major cities. How did you manage to get them?”

“I reserved them in advance on the web… If you apply there, you can win tickets in a lottery.”

Now that I think about it, I was very lucky. I applied for the ticket, thinking that there was no harm in doing so, but I just so happened to win it by chance. Compared to the number of enthusiastic and eager fans Scosho had, the venue for their concerts was always too small, and on the day of the event, the price for a ticket had jumped to 3 times their original price at auctions.

Kumiko's eyes glowed brightly as she continued to speak. It looked like there weren’t many Scosho fans among the people she knew (I understood that feeling very well).

“By the way, which venue did you go to?”

“I went to Zepp’s on the second day.”

When I answered honestly, Kumiko said, "No way!”, her voice almost as loud as a shout.

“Isn’t that the last day? I’ve seen other people’s setlists in the tour reports, and personally, I think the song selections on that day were divine!”

“Ahh, the encore was “Junjou Clumsy Boy”. It was a little unexpected, huh.”

“It totally was! That’s my number one favorite song!”

The song Yasuki mentioned is one of the band’s best songs from their early days, and obviously, it was very popular among their fans. However, since the song was written when the band members were young, the lyrics and chorus had lots of flaws due to inexperience, and it is one of the songs they rarely perform nowadays.

On the day Yasuki went to their concert, they played it as a surprise… Naturally, the audience was so excited, and in fact, a woman who was watching next to Yasuki started to cry as soon as she heard the intro.

“Ah, I wish I could’ve heard the live version of Junjou Clumsy Boy…”

Kumiko shook her black hair and sighed exaggeratedly. Then Yasuki remembered something.

“That day, there was a CS camera, and I managed to get a DVD from the people who were broadcasting…”

【TLN: It took me a while to search this, but apparently CS stands for Communications Satellite. Basically uses satellites to broadcast information. It can be used for TVs, radio broadcasts, etc. Not 100% sure if this is actually what CS means, so I appreciate any corrections.】

The concert on the day of Yasuki’s visit was later broadcast on a CS music channel, not in its entirety, but in edited form, focusing only on the main songs. Of course, the highlight of the concert, "Junjou Clumsy Boy" was also included in the broadcast.

“Eh, really?”

Kumiko's reaction was just as I had expected. So, naturally, her next line would be…

“Lend it to me!”

“Sure.”

“Hah?!”

For some reason, as soon as Yasuki gave her the OK, Kitaoka looked surprised. Her expression was as if she couldn’t comprehend what Yasuki and Kumiko were saying.

Kumiko was happy as she had a huge smile on her face, not noticing her friend’s circumstances at all.

“Really?! I’m so happy!”

Kumiko said as she quickly searched the pocket of her uniform and pulled out her smartphone.

“So, for contact details… Can we use Line?”

“Ah, I don’t have a smartphone or anything like that.”

When I frankly told her no, Kumiko didn't seem too surprised as she started rummaging through her school bag.

“I see. But you have access to the Internet, right?”

“Yeah, I do.”

“Okay, give me a sec.”

She wrote her email address on the edge of her notebook and said, "Here you go" as she offered it to Yasuki.

“Got it. I’ll send you an email from my PC at home.”

I put the piece of paper in my train pass holder. Kitaoka watched our series of exchanges as if she wanted to complain about something.

(What’s with her…)

Maybe she really didn’t like the fact that a social outcast like me was getting along with her precious friend. When Yasuki looked at Kitaoka suspiciously, Kumiko finally noticed the change in Kitaoka's behavior and asked, "What's wrong, Ema?”

“Nothing…”

Despite her words, Kitaoka clearly looked unamused. It was true that we had been talking about topics that she didn't understand for a while, but it wasn't like I was trying to exclude her from the group. When there are few people who share the same interests as you, you end up talking a lot when you do find them. She may have never been in the minority, so she might not understand this…

But Kumiko, who had been with her for a long time, couldn’t seem to bear Kitaoka's childish attitude. With a bright smile on her face, she launched into a strategy to forcibly draw Kitaoka to our side.

“Do you want to try listening too? I’ll lend you my CD~!”

“...I’ll think about it.”

“Come on, just try it. All the members are pretty hot.”

Yasuki tilted his head for a moment, wondering if that was true. The herbivorous-looking members of Scosho seem to be popular with some cultural girls who want to have them as boyfriends, but I think they tend to be shunned by more outgoing and flamboyant girls like Kitaoka. I think girls like her would be more attracted to boys who have darker faces and seem to have more vitality and strength.

While I was thinking about what would happen the day after tomorrow, Kumiko suddenly directed her gaze at me.

“Ah, come to think of it, doesn’t their guitarist Nishi-kun have a similar atmosphere to Iijima-kun?”

My shoulders trembled when she suddenly pointed the conversation at me.

“I don’t think so, though…”

Although I did try to refute her logic, to be honest, I did vaguely think that this person's face might resemble mine, and my elder sister, who was about four years older than me, also pointed that out to me.

But, I couldn’t play the guitar, and aside from the fact that my face slightly resembled his, I was vastly different from those who were successful in music.

Feeling awkward and unpleasant, he hung his head low. In the meantime, the topic of conversation between the two girls had switched to who their favorite musicians were, so Yasuki breathed a sigh of relief without being noticed.

【TLN: This is where the previous translator ended his work!】

On Sunday, Yasuki immediately burned the video of the concert from his hard disk to a DVD.

He told Kumiko he’d lend it to her, but then he’d have to meet her twice, once to lend it to her, and then once more for her to return it to him. If that was the case, it’d be faster to make a duplicate and give that one to her.

He used a marker and wrote “SSH” on the finished disc (an acronym for Scottish Short Hair), then he placed it inside a case.

He typed an email to the address on the note Kumiko had given him to discuss where he should give it to her.

Subject: 

It’s Iijima.

Body: 

Hello.

It’s me, Iijima, from Nansou High School. The one you met on Wednesday inside the train.

The Scosho DVD I promised is ready.

I’d like to hand it over to Isogai-san, so I’d like to know when you’ll be available.

I’d also appreciate it if you could tell me where we could meet up, a place that’s convenient for you, Isogai-san.

I read it over before sending it. The e-mail looked normal, and it didn’t seem to have any ulterior motives.

Then, I clicked the send button.

As soon as I did, I heard an electronic pin-pon sound, indicating a new email had arrived. It was awfully fast.

(Huh… that’s weird.)

When I clicked on my inbox and looked at the contents, I found that the new email was titled "Returned mail:see transcript for details".

...So basically, the email I just sent had an invalid recipient address.

The next day, during cleaning time after homeroom, Yasuki found Kitaoka carefreely sweeping the corridor by herself with a long broom. He whispered to her under the pretense that he was also cleaning the corridor window.

“Kitaoka.”

“Eh, what’s up?”

Kitaoka reacted with a surprised voice. I wondered why she was so surprised, but come to think of it, this was the first time I had talked to her at school since the incident with the reference book.

【TLN: The one in the prologue.】

But right now, it didn’t really matter. Yasuki quickly got to the point.

“Can you tell me Kumiko-san’s email address?”

Kitaoka’s face immediately twitched. Yasuki continued to speak quickly, not minding the change in Kitaoka’s expression.

“The one she gave me last time seemed to be wrong, and no matter how many times I sent it, it kept coming back with an error.”

Thinking that it might’ve been a spelling mistake, he reviewed the note several times as he tried over and over again to send the email. But each time he tried to send the email, a mail from "MAILER-DAEMON" would arrive five seconds later, and Yasuki was at a loss as to what he should do.

【TLN: Mailer-Daemon sends automated emails to you to tell you about various errors, including incorrect email addresses. You can Google this.】

While holding the long broom, Kitaoka sulkily huffed at Yasuki.

“Heeeh…”

“Is that a no?”

“I mean, it is her personal information.”

If that was what she was going to say, then Yasuki had no choice. Yasuki continued with his alternative plan.

“Then, I’d like you to give her the DVD for me.”

When she heard Yasuki’s request, Kitaoka’s expression grew even sulkier.

“Why? Do it yourself.”

I don’t know what’s annoying her so much, but I can’t just back down here either. I glanced behind me to make sure that no one was looking at us, then I started to argue.

“Like I said, I can't contact her to discuss how I’ll hand this DVD to her. We might coincidentally run into each other again, but I can't just keep carrying it around until then, you know?”

I thought my opinion was fairly reasonable. But, Kitaoka didn't seem to have any intention of giving in to me at all, and with a "Hmm", she snapped her chin up and spoke with her mouth slightly curved up into a smile.

“You know, don’t you think she intentionally gave you the wrong email address?”

“Look here, you…”

That shouldn’t be the case here. She’s the one who asked me to lend it to her, and the only thing between us was a pure desire to deepen our friendship as fellow fans.

The fact that Kitaoka was desperately trying to oppose Yasuki caused him to suspect that maybe…

“Kitaoka, are you perhaps, jealous?”

“..!”

Kitaoka’s voice suddenly rose. It looked like he was half right.

Geez, this girl really is childish. “Haah”, Yasuki sighed, feeling dumbfounded as he told her.

“...I know you're feeling lonely because your precious friend is being monopolized, but don't say such cruel things.”

She looked like she was at a loss of words as she glared at me, her mouth twisted and crooked.

Okay, one more push. She seems to think that I owe her, and if I behave modestly, I’m sure she’ll give in.

【TLN: This line stumps me. Here it is: よし、もう一押しだ。この子は「自分に借りがある」と思っているようだし、ここで下した手てに出ればきっと行ける】

“Kumiko-san might be really looking forward to the DVD. Please, I’m begging you.”

Kitaoka opened her mouth, looking like she was about to say something. At that moment…

“Ema?”

Mochida Miyu appeared from the nearby stairway. Kitaoka hurriedly distanced herself from Yasuki and turned around to face Mochida.

"What’re you doing? Weren’t you supposed to be done cleaning a long time ago?”

“Ah… I'll be right there!”

She told Mochida as she ran towards her. She was acting as if she absolutely didn’t want anyone to find out she was talking to Yasuki.

No, rather than “as if”, she was definitely doing that so no one else would find out. After all, talking to her at school was a huge landmine. Yasuki sighed and took the broom and dustpan that Kitaoka had left behind and began to gather up the trash.

(What should I do about the DVD…)

That was the problem at hand right now. Since Kumiko went to the same elementary school as Kitaoka, she probably lives somewhere nearby...

It's a bit stalker-ish, but I guess I'll just have to head to the station early in the morning and wait for her there. 

Just thinking of the gradually dropping morning temperature, Yasuki, a person who was sensitive to cold temperatures, started to stiffen.

As Yasuki opened his shoebox to change from his indoor shoes to his sneakers, a piece of paper fluttered down.

Wondering what it could be, he picked the paper up. When he saw what was written on it, Yasuki couldn't help but smile wryly.

「“q35isogai@dokomo.ne.jp”. If this one doesn’t work then I don’t know anymore.」

...In the note Kumiko gave me, the "q" looked like a "9". I think that's why I didn't get it.

But if she was going to tell me anyway, why didn’t she just do so directly in the first place...

“I guess I really can’t tell what Kitaoka is thinking,” Yasuki thought again.

After Yasuki got Kumiko’s address from Kitaoka, he immediately sent her an email on his PC in his room that day.

Within five minutes, he received a reply from Kumiko.

Subject:

Yay!☆

Body:

Thank you! I thought you forgot about it because you didn't email me for so long (lol).

My school is far away & I finish late, so Mon-Fri is a bit difficult for me.

So, how about this Saturday? I really want to watch “Junjou Clumsy Boy” as fast as possible~!

This Saturday... I had nothing else planned for the day, other than prep school. We should be able to meet any time after three in the afternoon.

I wrote an email relaying all that information and sent it to Kumiko as a reply, to which I got an immediate response, again.

Subject:

Meeting up!

Body:

Saturday, huh. I also have something I have to do at Chiba station on that day, so it’s perfect.

There’s a police box near the station, right? The one shaped like an owl. How about we meet in front of it at three o'clock?

Waah, it’s my first date. I wonder what I should wear (lol).

...This girl seems to be a completely different type of person compared to her friend, Kitaoka. I had no doubt she was joking about the date, but if this was Kitaoka, I don’t think she would’ve said something like this to me, no matter how much money she was offered.

“Three o'clock at the police station. I understand. Please wear some warm clothes," I replied somewhat curtly. I didn't have the skill to retort to her joke with good humor.

Two days later, on Wednesday, I looked for Kitaoka as usual on the station platform after prep school, but she was nowhere to be found.

“Perhaps the lecture is taking longer than usual,” Yasuki thought as he sat down on a bench, listening to DUO as he waited for Kitaoka. Multiple trains came and went as he was waiting.

Over an hour had passed, and there were almost no more high school students around Yasuki, as he started to see more and more drunk, intoxicated adults take their place instead.

(...Geez, maybe she isn’t going to come)

I was getting hungry and my body was getting cold. The air of the deepening autumn night was filled with signs of the coming freezing season, and it quietly made me feel sad.

I wonder what Kitaoka is doing right now. When I saw her at school earlier today, there didn’t seem to be anything particularly strange about her at all. She might have gone home earlier today.

If she really did, then it was pretty cruel of her to keep me waiting for her. But at the same time, I also realized that we hadn't promised each other or invited each other, we were just going home together because our times were the same for the past few weeks. But at the same time, I knew that we hadn't promised or asked each other to do this, we had just been going home together because our times somehow overlapped with each other for the past few weeks.

Whether it was Kitaoka sitting next to me, or me boarding the same train as her, both of us were doing it on our own. It's not like we could condemn each other for suddenly stopping. So I can't really blame her here.

The clock on the side of the electronic bulletin board showed that it was now 10:30. Seeing this, Yasuki got into the train that had just arrived, as he passed by the people who were getting off the outbound train.

That weekend, on Saturday…

Prep school ended a little earlier than usual, so I went to a nearby convenience store to browse some books and kill some time so that I’d arrive in front of the police box at exactly three o'clock.

When Yasuki arrived at the owl-shaped police box, their designated meeting place, Kumiko hadn't arrived yet. Yasuki had no choice but to wait for Kumiko while watching the foot traffic. Perhaps it was because it was the middle of the day on a weekend, but there were lots of young women who looked like they came to the department store or the mall in front of the station to go shopping.

And among all those young women, whenever I saw one with long, straight hair that was dark brown in color, I noticed that my eyes naturally followed their figure.

I wondered why I did that, and I was shocked. It was because those girls looked very similar to “her”. That insecure girl, who’s always so unsociable and cold, but occasionally shows an incredibly lonely expression to me…

“Iijima-kun?”

I suddenly came to my senses when someone called my name. I turned to the direction of the voice and saw a slender girl with a bob cut standing there.

Kumiko put her hands together in front of her face as she tilted her head to the side bashfully.

“Sorry, was I a little late?”

“No, I just arrived too…”

Kumiko was wearing an MA1-type jacket, with patterned tights, short pants, and short, high-heeled boots, with stylish, large black glasses on her face. I had a hint of this when I saw her in her school uniform, but it seems like this girl really likes to dress up in a unique way.

Kumiko stared at Yasuki for a while, before she let out a sigh, seemingly surprised.

“Your plain clothes give you a surprisingly different impression. I thought you were someone else at first.”

“...Is it weird?”

I couldn't help but ask her that question. The jeans, hoodie, and raglan shirt that I was wearing were bought in a street store located in the fashion district earlier this year, on New Year's Day, when my sister, who was attending a university in Tokyo, brought me along with her friend.

I casually followed them to go shopping, but after I tried on one of the clothes, my sister, her friend, and the shopkeeper kept bringing me clothes one after another, saying, "Try this one on", "Try this one next", and "Doesn’t this one look surprisingly good!”, and I couldn’t just leave the store without buying anything. However, these clothes, which I had bought with a large sum of money on the spur of the moment, were comfortable to wear and they matched easily with other clothes, so I treasure them a lot. Since then, I’ve gotten a little more interested in what I wear, and when I buy something, I make sure to try it on and choose something that suits my body type.

And, since today wasn’t a school day, I'm wearing the cell-frame glasses that I usually wear at home (the same ones that Kitaoka told me were better for me during the summer vacation). The classrooms at my prep school are much smaller than those at the school, so even though the prescription on these glasses is a little weaker, I can still read the writings on the blackboard, so I always wear these on Saturdays. Maybe this is the main reason why I seem to have a "different impression".

【TLN: Cell-frame glasses are apparently glasses with their frames made of plastic.】

But would it look stylish on someone like me? Or would it look ridiculous instead? As Yasuki was having those fears and worries in his mind, Kumiko had a huge smile on her face.

“No, I think it really suits you. I like it.”

Yasuki was a little relieved to hear that. It was nice to hear a girl like Kumiko, who seemed to have a good eye for aesthetics, say that, even if it was flattery.

“Right, here’s the DVD, as promised.”

I quickly pulled out a DVD from my tote bag. Kumiko lightly shouted, "Ah!" and took the DVD.

“Thank you… When should I return this?”

“No, I have another one at home. I’m giving that one to you.”

When I told that to her, Kumiko gazed at the disc containing the DVD as if it were a treasure and smiled as she looked down.

“I see… So, you burned a new DVD for me. Sorry for the trouble, and thanks a lot.”

I didn't do anything that grand, though. When I saw Kumiko looking so happy and smiling, I started feeling uneasy.

I’d already finished my errand, so shouldn’t I be able to just head home now? “Well, I’ll see you later,” Yasuki was about to say, but just before he could, Kumiko pointed to the direction behind her.

“Well then, as thanks for the DVD, I’ll treat you to something. Why don’t we have a cup of tea?”

My prediction that something like this would happen… was strangely spot on.

Kumiko invited me into a café on the first floor of a department store.

Unfortunately, the cafe was full inside and we couldn't sit down anywhere, so we had no choice but to take a seat at the open cafe outside. The sun was shining and there was little wind, so I could tolerate being outside for a while (Kumiko was wearing a warm jacket, so it would not be a problem).

Kumiko was sitting across from me at the round table. She probably didn’t want to make me feel nervous, so she started off by talking about Scosho as a continuation of our previous conversation. We talked about how we both got into the band, our favorite songs, rumors about the members, the latest album that was criticized for its mediocrity, and other things that only fans can talk about. However, Kumiko seemed to be deeply interested in the band, and there were times when what she was saying was a little too maniacal to be understood, and each time Yasuki could only give a vague "Is that so”.

Once Kumiko had finished talking about Scosho, there was a moment of silence. Then her expression turned somewhat docile and she took a sip of her lukewarm cafe mocha as she said, "By the way"

“Iijima-kun, you’re in the same class as Ema, right?”
“Yes.”

“How is that girl doing? Does she stand out or get bullied at school?”

Yasuki couldn't believe his ears. Kitaoka getting bullied? She was someone at the top of the pyramid, the center of everyone's attention and admiration. She may ignore others, but I was sure she would never be the one on the receiving end.

“No, not at all. In fact, she’s very popular and she’s highly favored at school.”

I almost said, "Especially with men," but I stopped myself. If I said that, it’d make it look like I was jealous of her popularity, and that wouldn’t make me look good.

Kumiko breathed a sigh of relief and her eyes behind her fake glasses narrowed as she smiled happily.

“I see… thank goodness. I went to a different school, but it still weighed on my mind a bit.”

“You’re worried about… Kitaoka-san?”

“...Ema is a good girl, but she's also awkward and easily misunderstood.”

Yasuki again wondered if that was the case. In his own eyes, Kitaoka appeared to be selfish, outspoken, and she behaved as she pleased. In addition, she seemed to be fairly picky about who she associated with, and she’d reject anyone who’d be a detriment to her. She seemed to be able to conduct herself very well. Which part of her was awkward and clumsy?

Yasuki was at a loss for words as Kumiko started speaking with a distant look in her eyes.

“You see, she’s the type of person who kind of stands out, right? That’s why she caught the eyes of her senpais in the upper grades, and the popular boys fell in love with her on their own. This caused her to be hated by the girls. I was in a different class at the time, so I couldn’t do anything for her.”

Kitaoka being hated by everyone was another thing that Yasuki couldn’t believe. On the day of the summer training camp, Kitaoka took a really long time to return from the convenience store, which made Andou, someone in the same class as me, really worried about her. So, at least in that group, they must have a good relationship.

But perhaps it was because of the bitter memories of the past? Rather than the boys who are trying to approach her, she’s putting the feelings of her female friends first, and she takes great care not to hurt them. That's how she got to where she is today, or something. It doesn't look like Kumiko is lying, and it’s quite possible that my conjecture is true.

Then, something suddenly came to Yasuki’s mind. When he first entered the school, Kitaoka had coldly refused his act of kindness. Could it be that…

“But, with someone as reliable as Iijima-kun by her side, I’m sure she’ll be okay.”

Hearing Kumiko’s words, Yasuki was taken aback as he looked up at her. When their eyes met, she had a look of relief on her face again, and Yasuki couldn't help but avert his eyes as he looked down again.

“That’s not… I have absolutely no interaction with Kitaoka-san at school.”

“Eh, really? Even though the two of you went home together the other day?”

Kumiko looked surprised as Yasuki replied bitterly.

“That’s just because on Wednesdays, our prep schools just so happen to end at the same time, so I was chosen as a conversation partner. At school, I’ve only ever talked to her once or twice.”

Yes, it was just a coincidence. As proof of that, three days ago, on Wednesday, she didn't show up at the usual place and I was left waiting for her, but when she came to school the next day, she didn't give me a reason or an apology regarding the matter.

“Why? Are you on bad terms with her in class?”

“No, it’s not really like that… It’s just, she’s pretty and she’s stylish. She’s part of the upper caste. I’m way below her level. Normally, I wouldn’t even be able to say hello to her.” 

“Heeh, so there’s a rule about something like that? I’m in an all-girls school, so I don’t really know about that kind of thing.”

Kumiko said that, but I’m sure she’s experienced something similar to it before. Even in junior high schools, to a certain degree, there is always some kind of disparity, because you can't mingle with everyone equally. If she really hadn't noticed it, then either she was a part of the upper caste who had never had a hard time, or she was an exceptional student or artist who was able to break out of the ranks.

I was both envious and jealous of how carefree she was. I knew there wasn’t an actual caste system implementation, and I knew I was silly, but I was still too afraid to try to overturn it or to voice my objections. Once the group pressure is ignited, it never stops. I didn't want to be a target of that.

As Yasuki fell silent, Kumiko suddenly softened her expression and looked into his face.

“By the way, Iijima-kun. Are you going out with anyone right now?”

The abrupt topic that she suddenly brought up made me wince and shake my head.

“No, someone like me going out with a girl is impossible.”

"Eh, why?”

“Because I'm not good-looking at all, and I don’t have any significant merits or good points about me. Generally speaking, I'm not popular at all.”

Even so, he wanted to go out with a girl someday and live his days happily, but he knew it was impossible, at least for the present Yasuki.

Kumiko blankly stared back at Yasuki. Then, she quietly muttered, “Ah, I see,” as she softly cleared her throat and closed in on Yasuki without hesitation.

“Then, it’s not like you hate girls or anything like that, right?”

“Eh..? Well… that’s right…”

Her face that was close to mine got even closer.

“Well then…"

I wondered what she was going to say as I gulped. The next moment, Kumiko suddenly grabbed my hand on the table.

“I will be your girlfriend.”

“Ehh…”

I froze, unsure of how to react to her unbelievable declaration. I've never had a girlfriend before, and of course, this is the first time in my life that someone has ever confessed to me.

I could feel Kumiko's body heat through my palm, and my heart rate increased rapidly at the same time.

It wasn’t like I wasn’t happy or anything like that. However, I don't know Kumiko very well since I just met her. Of course, from what I've seen of her, she seems to have nothing wrong with her personality and appearance, but that's why I can’t understand her reasoning. If it were her, I'm sure there are plenty of high-spec boys who would be more suitable for her. Maybe she lost a dare or something, and that’s why she’s confessing to me?

Besides... I wonder what Kitaoka would think if she knew about this. Just asking for Kumiko’s email address got her angry, so if I were to go out with Kumiko seriously, she would never speak to me ever again.

I imagined that situation, and my heart began to ache. I wondered why. I had just thought to myself, "I want to go out with a girl”. If that was the case, then now would be the best opportunity to do so. No matter how Kitaoka looked at me, I could just ignore her. It was supposed to be that way.

I've always thought of her as someone "unpleasant", so now that she's distanced herself from me, I should just go back to the way I was. And yet, despite knowing all that, why do I care so much about a girl I only spend 30 minutes with once a week…

As Yasuki was in a state of confusion, Kumiko suddenly let go of his hand as she softly laughed, “Fufu”

“It was a joke, you know?”

“Eh?”

“Don’t take it so seriously.”

“Of course it was a joke,” I thought to myself. I was disappointed, but more than that, I was relieved.

“Is… that so.”

Yasuki muttered, to which Kumiko indifferently replied.

“Yeah. Because, I’m a serious yuri.” 

【TLN: You all should know what yuri is. Google it if you don’t.】

He stiffened with a jolt. Seeing Yasuki react that way, the girl sitting in front of him wryly smiled as she propped herself up on her elbow.

“...That one was a joke too.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. Talking to this girl is bad for my heart in a different way than talking to Kitaoka. She seems to like to tease people with a serious expression on her face. I wonder what she's going to do if the other person takes her seriously.

While Yasuki was feeling embarrassed, frustrated, and confused for being played like a fiddle, Kumiko's playful expression suddenly disappeared before he knew it.

Their eyes met, and Kumiko started speaking quietly.

"...Your reaction just now was exactly the same as Ema's.”

“My reaction… just now?”

I didn’t know what she was talking about as I asked her again. Kumiko nodded her head and said “Yeah”.

“The other day, when we met each other on the train coincidentally, you got off the train before us, right?”

He answered her with a yes. But he had no idea where the conversation was headed, and he had no good guesses either, so Yasuki just stood still, confused as ever.

“After you left, I asked Ema, “Does Iijima-kun have a girlfriend?””

“Ehh…”

Yasuki was astonished at what he was hearing. He hadn't expected the two of them to be talking about him.

Kitaoka must’ve been feeling nothing but troubled, being asked something like that-

“Then she said, “He probably doesn’t have one”. I tried asking her, “Then, I wonder if I could be his girlfriend”. After I said that, she had this look on her face that seemed to show she really hated the idea as she said, “Ehh…””

Kumiko grinned as she looked at Yasuki. It was as if she was signaling something.

...So, this is what Kumiko meant by Ema having the same reaction as me. But, rather than her hating the idea, I’m sure it was just her feeling perplexed.

Besides, I can’t imagine Kitaoka reciprocating my feelings at all. Yasuki hung his head low as he slowly looked away from Kumiko.

“...That’s probably just her hating the idea of someone taking away Kumiko-san from her...”

Rather than probably, that was definitely what was going on here. Kitaoka just doesn't want Kumiko, her friend since childhood, to be taken away from her by anyone else. She has no other intentions.

Kumiko disagreed with Yasuki, who muttered to himself as if he was trying to convince himself.

“Really? But, when I was in junior high school, there was a time when there was a bit of a rumor going around about me and a boy, and Ema excitedly told me, “Why don’t you two just get together~””

“Then why…”

“What do you think?”

She looked into my face and asked me. “Surely you get what I mean, right?" she said.

For a moment, Yasuki thought, “Maybe she hates me so much, she doesn’t want me to be her friend’s boyfriend”. But if she had such negative feelings towards him, she wouldn't have bothered to go home together with him, even if it was only prep school. Yasuki was a pessimistic person, but when he looked at it a little more objectively, he could see that this was indeed not the case here.

“Then, maybe...” I was once again confronted with a possibility that I had been denying for a long time. But, no matter how I looked at this, wasn’t this just me being conceited here? It's impossible for a girl as pretty as Kitaoka to be interested in me. Even if she did, it was probably either the childish and possessive side of her thinking, “Now that I’ve finally got a plaything, I don’t want to lose it”, or her prideful side thinking, “I don’t want someone like Yasuki to get a girlfriend before I get a boyfriend”

Yasuki was silent as he stared down. Kumiko plopped her hand down on his shoulders.

“Earlier, you said that Ema was out of reach, that it was as if she lived in a completely different world.”

I don't think I said something that extreme. But it's true that that's what I've been thinking, and that's what I intended to base my actions around.

When I nervously looked up, Kumiko's eyes met mine, and she mischievously smiled again.

“I have a feeling you two are more alike than you think.”

She grinned at me, which made my heart race. At the same time, I mildly suspected that maybe she could see into my heart.

Kitaoka and I are different in our looks, hobbies, and basically everything else. But for some reason, I feel comfortable talking with her. The things I want to ask her and the things I want her to know about me keep pouring out one after another. She's so selfish and cocky, and I thought I would never be able to get along with her. However, I had a feeling that maybe we were kindred spirits at the core, and I was inexplicably happy when I imagined that she might feel the same way.

...Since she was Kitaoka’s best friend, I’m sure she’d know. How much the both of us resembled each other, and why Kitaoka had an incredibly sad look on her face at times.

He was tempted to ask her, but Kumiko looked at her watch and muttered, "Ah, it's time," and Yasuki swallowed his feelings along with his words. It was over. This was the end of his brief, but first-ever date of his life.

Kumiko stood up and showed him the tips of her glossy bob cut, curling them around her fingers.

“Today, I'm going to get my hair cut.”

But, it didn't look like it was growing at all. I looked at Kumiko's nape and her slender neck, and I became very aware of the fact that she was someone of the opposite sex.

Then, Yasuki wondered what would have happened if he had accepted Kumiko’s confession earlier. He was sure she’d just say, "Of course it’s a joke," but in the unlikely event that she decided to go out with him for real, he might have been able to touch that neck.

To get rid of his wicked thoughts, he asked her, "How much of your hair will you cut?”. Kumiko then said, "I think I'll make it a little shorter this time," as she made a gesture of some scissors snipping the hair around her ears.

“It looks somewhat dull,” Yasuki remarked tactlessly. But, Kumiko didn’t look particularly offended by his comment as she said, “Won’t it be fine if I have a scarf?”

“Thanks for treating me to the coffee. I had a great time today.”

Yasuki was headed towards the station, and Kumiko was going to stop by at the hair salon, which was halfway in the same direction as the station. As they walked shoulder to shoulder, Yasuki bowed his head.

“I should be thanking you. Thanks for the DVD. Next time they have a concert, why don’t we go there together?”

“Sounds like a good idea,” I laughed as I replied. I've been going to concerts alone, but I'm sure it'll be more fun if I go with her.

Well, even if I do decide to go, it'll have to wait until after the exams are over, so it’s going to be a while before I can go. I’m not sure we’re going to stay in touch until then, but for now, I’ll just wait and hope that we do.

“Ah, and next week is Nankou High’s cultural festival, right? I’ll be sure to come and visit.”

Kumiko’s words surprised me as I replied, “Okay”. As expected of a local. She really knows a lot.

When Yasuki said, "My class isn’t participating, and I’m helping with the exhibit of a modest and plain club called the Local Geography Research Club", Kumiko unexpectedly said, "I'm really interested in the local geography”. As expected, Kumiko seemed to be a little eccentric, or rather, she was a really eccentric girl.

Kumiko suddenly stopped walking. It looks like this is where we part ways.

“Well then,” I raised my hand and was about to wave goodbye, when Kumiko suddenly turned around and looked at me.

“One more thing.”

“Yes?”

“Iijima-kun, you’re definitely a popular person. Have more confidence in yourself.”

What the heck was she saying, right at the very end of our date. My body started heating up, and I’m sure my face must’ve been incredibly red.

“No, that’s not... ” I desperately refuted her logic, but Kumiko continued, seemingly trying to tease him.

“Ah, but don’t be too indecisive. You’ll make Ema anxious.”

...I knew it. This girl was definitely misunderstanding the relationship between Ema and I. I don’t think she’d really care about who became my girlfriend, as long as it wasn’t her close friend.

“I don’t think something like that would happen,” Yasuki quietly whispered. Kumiko just smirked as she watched him, seemingly amused.

“Well then, take care.”

“Ah… yes. I hope I didn’t make you too late.”

“Yeah. I’ll see you… next week, I guess?”

We waved goodbye to each other and parted ways. The dry autumn breeze ruffled Kumiko's hair and Yasuki lightly sneezed.

Ema thanked the lecturer for staying so late and left the room. She noticed that there wasn’t anyone else in the room but her.

It was quite late into the night. The lecture at the prep school ended earlier than usual, but she had something she couldn’t understand no matter how hard she thought about it, so she went to ask the lecturer about the difference between the subjunctive past and the past perfect tense in the English language, and they started talking about what the subjunctive mood even was in the first place, so she ended up leaving the class 30 minutes later than usual.

Thanks to that, she had a better understanding of the subject, but… she looked at her watch and saw that the time was almost 9:30. The train she usually took on her way home from prep school had long since left, and the next train had probably already arrived, ready to be boarded.

Already running out of energy to hurry and catch the train, Ema stopped by at a convenience store on the way to the station to try to drown out the cold and hunger. There, she bought a cup of hot milk tea and put it in her pocket to keep herself warm while it cooled down as she headed back to the station.

...In the end, she couldn't talk to Iijima again today. He would’ve probably left by now, since he was always the one to finish classes first. 2 weeks ago, on a Wednesday just like today, Ema’s old friend dashingly appeared before her and Iijima, and she recalled the conversation they had.

That day, Iijima, who lived in an area slightly higher than us, said, "Well, I’ll be heading off first," and got off the train first. Iijima lives in a bit of a commuter town, and a lot of people got off the train along with him.

The doors closed and the train rushed through the night city once more. In the empty and silent train car, save for the occasional rattling, Kumiko sighed exaggeratedly, "Haah”

“As expected, co-ed schools are really nice. You can encounter lots of people. How envious.”

“Eh?”

“What are you talking about?” Ema was dumbfounded. Kumiko had a broad grin on her face as Ema stared back at her, feeling confused

“That boy just now, you’re actually dating him, right?”

“Haa?!”

She unintentionally shouted, and Kumiko chided her with a “Shh!”. But what kind of absurd thing was this girl saying?

“What are you saying? That’s just impossible!”

She raised her voice as she argued with Kumiko. Kumiko's idea was so unexpected that Ema's composure was blown away.

Iijima and I, being lovers? How could I possibly see us that way? First of all, Iijima was an unsociable otaku who didn’t seem to have even the slightest amount of interest in me. He answers when I talk to him and doesn't openly shun me, but I've always felt that he could be a little more friendly to me.

Besides, the type of man I prefer is a man more mature and open-minded. Such an unreliable and absent-minded man like him would never be in my strike zone.

Kumiko tilted her head curiously and said something even more absurd.

"So you're saying you haven't confessed to him yet?”

“...tch!”

I almost said, “Stop joking around!”. In the first place, I had no intention of confessing to him. Iijima is not the kind of person I would consider as a member of the opposite sex. It's just that when I'm with him, I feel soothed for some reason. That's why I want to spend time with him once in a while and talk about trivial things that I can't talk about at school.

“I’m telling you, that’s really not how it is! We’re just classmates.”

“Really?”

“Yes! Isn’t it obvious!”

When I declared somewhat forcefully, Kumiko seemed to finally understand as she nodded her head repeatedly.

“I see… Well, I wonder if he has a girlfriend right now.”

“...There’s no way he has one. That guy isn’t popular at all.”

I had never heard any of my friends in my group, or any of the other girls in my class, compliment or praise Iijima. His face and clothes were plain, he rarely talked to girls, and he was hunched over, giving off an otaku-like aura. It’d be weird if all of those aspects managed to make him popular.

He’s actually a fairly chivalrous man who helped me out before, and he looks after his underclassmen, but I haven’t told anyone else about this because it’d be troubling if others were to be interested in him.

Kumiko leaned forward a little as she held her bag on her lap, and started speaking.

“Then, next time I see him, maybe I should try telling him, “If you’re okay with me, I can be your girlfriend,” or something.”

“Ehh…”

Kumiko's sudden comment made Ema speechless.

She didn’t expect her to start talking about things like that. 

It looks like she inadvertently produced the opposite effect of what she’d  intended, giving her the idea that Iijima seems to have some appeal as an unpopular person.

Ema answered with a voice as low as possible, trying to hide the fact that her voice was trembling.

“I think it’s best that you don’t go down that path…”

“Why? Our hobbies are similar and we’re the same age, isn’t this just perfect?”

“But, he isn’t really good-looking.”

“Eh? But he really is suited to my tastes. I’m really into nice boys like him.”

It looks like Kumiko, who goes to an all-girls school, has a completely different standard of evaluation than Ema, who is used to seeing boys in general. He's a guy from the otaku group, and the girls don't take any notice of him. But I realize now that such a hierarchy is meaningless once you leave the school.

It’s not like I’m dating Iijima, and I have no right to interfere with Kumiko's love life. In fact, it's only natural to wish for the happiness of your friends.

And yet... as she looked into the face of Ema, who was too anxious and flustered to say anything, Kumiko asked her as if to admonish her.

“I mean, Ema, you talk to him on a regular basis, so it’s not like you hate him, right?”

I don't hate him. It’s true that he’s not a handsome, good-looking guy, but he's kind, gentle, and has a unique way of responding in conversations that makes him surprisingly fun to talk to. And he and Kumiko share the same taste in music, so the more I thought about it, the more I felt like the two of them were a perfect match.

“Well that’s… you’ve got a point, but…”

I muttered that as I hung my head low. But… Iijima and Kumiko going out would put me at a loss. I wouldn’t be able to bear watching them, and I wouldn’t be able to support them either. Please, please just tell me that the past hour was nothing but a delusion.

I felt a stinging pain in the depths of my lungs and my ears started to go numb. After our conversation, I couldn't look at Kumiko properly all the way till I got off the train.

And last Monday, I gave Kumiko's correct email address to Iijima, and the next night, I received a carefree message from Kumiko saying that she was going to meet Iijima-kun on Saturday.

I sent an ordinary reply, saying “Good for you”, but my heart was swirling with feelings of anxiety and frustration, and I couldn’t sleep well that night.

The next day, because she had PMS (Premenstrual Syndrome), Ema was hit with a migraine that she hadn’t experienced recently. Perhaps the message that came from Kumiko yesterday had added to the stress. In the end, she couldn't go to prep school that day and she decided to stay home and rest.

Even though she saw Iijima at school, she spent more time avoiding him than ever before because she felt like she would say something irrational to him if he spoke to her, and she didn't want to do something as uncool as that.

That Saturday, around three o'clock, she tried to take her mind off the matter as she said, "For now, I’m going to do some studying!" as she worked on solving problems in the university entrance exam workbook. Then, a message arrived on her smartphone.

She wondered who it was, and when she checked her phone, she saw a message from Kumiko, saying “We’re about to have our date. His plain clothes might surprisingly suit him a lot!”. A picture of Iijima was sent along with the message, which seemed to be taken from a small distance without Iijima knowing.

...She knew. She always knew that Iijima wasn’t actually all that uncool, that if he tried a little harder, he could be popular. She wondered why no one else realized this fact, but now that someone did, she couldn’t help but feel frustrated and annoyed.

She wondered whether or not Kumiko had confessed to Iijima by now. It bothered her so much, she kept reading the same part over and over again when she tried to solve long English sentences, and even though she was supposed to be really good at factorization, she kept making mistakes she wouldn’t usually make, because she couldn't find the common denominator.

(Well, I don't really care though! It doesn’t matter if those two are going out or anything.)

That’s what she told herself, but she still couldn’t concentrate at all.

Eventually, Ema threw her studies away after an hour or so, turned off her phone and fell asleep.

...Since then, she hadn't heard from Kumiko at all, and Iijima was still not approaching her at school.

The fact that it was being kept a secret from her seemed to imply something, and she was too scared to ascertain anything for herself.

Holding a cup of milk tea in my hand, I walked through the west ticket gate and headed for the platform of the downbound Tobu Line. I didn't need to wait for Iijima anymore today, so there was no need for me to go to the east entrance.

I walked down the stairs one by one, looking down. The moment I reached the last step and stepped onto the platform, I suddenly heard my name called.

“Kitaoka.”

I looked up in surprise. I saw a figure of a person sitting on the bench in front of me, as he casually stood up and walked towards me slowly.

“No way,” I thought, as my heart started pounding. But, there was no way I could have mistaken him for someone else, and his voice sounded familiar.

When he stopped right in front of her, he scratched his head as if he was troubled.

“I thought you’d never come here ever again.”

Iijima said that as he lifted the corners of his mouth. As soon as I saw his awkward smile, my nose felt tingly for some reason, and tears started to flow.

Ema fell silent, unsure of what to say. Since she usually came first and waited for Iijima to finish prep school, she didn't expect to see him waiting for her instead.

I was happy, but that wasn't the only thing on my mind. He might already be in a relationship with Kumiko. Taking that into consideration, I just can’t show him a happy and lively expression on my face.

While Kitaoka had a complicated expression, Iijima smiled at her and added, “Since you didn’t come last week.”

...Which means, Iijima probably waited for her last week too. She knew he wasn't being sarcastic, but she couldn't help but feel like she'd stood him up.

Ema almost said, "It's not like we promised each other we’d go home together”. But if she said that, the next time she was late, he would go home first. She didn’t want that at all, so she did her best to restrain herself from spouting out something so abusive, and she told him the truth while she hung her head low.

“Last week, I was feeling a bit unwell, so I stayed at home to get some rest…”

Iijima didn’t look particularly surprised as he nodded his head.

“I see. Are you alright now?” He asked Ema.

...What a soft-hearted person this guy is. Even though I stood him up and made him wait in vain for me, he didn’t blame me at all. In fact, he even got worried about me. Besides, I went to school as usual everyday, so he should’ve known it wasn’t anything that serious. “Wasn’t he being a bit silly?” I thought, but at the same time, his kindness was very heartrending.

“Yeah, I’m completely fine. I got well right away, so…”

“Ah, I see. That’s good.”

He smiled lightly as he said that.

This is bad. I'll get serious about him at this rate, and I won't be able to back out anymore. Even though this guy doesn’t mean it that way, why does he always say these misleading things?

(Even though he doesn’t even like me that much)

As soon as I thought that, I felt myself slowly starting to cry once more. I didn't want him to notice that I was crying, so I looked down and sniffled my nose.

We had some time before the train arrived, so we sat down side by side on the bench where Iijima had been sitting earlier. A cold wind blew occasionally, but I didn't feel too cold, probably because I was so nervous.

Iijima… I wonder why he’d been waiting for me up until this point. Maybe he had something he wanted to talk about with me. And maybe, that talk was going to be about some recent changes in his life.

Fundamentally speaking, who he chose to go out with had nothing to do with me. But, if his girlfriend was my close friend, then he had to tell me about it. That’s why he wants to talk to me.

Once that thought crossed her mind, she couldn’t think of any other reason why he’d want to talk to her, so Ema finally decided to ask him herself.

“On Saturday, you met up with Kumiko, right?”

“Yeah. Did you hear from Kumiko-san?”

Iijima immediately replied, clearly not intending to hide it from me… I knew it, this must be what he wants to talk about.

“...How was it?”

As I was staring at Iijima’s face from the side in astonishment, his mouth suddenly slackened.

“Ah. That girl is a really good person. She was concerned about various things about you, Kitaoka.”

I don’t want you to use a vague term like “good person”. Kumiko is a wonderful girl, and I know that way better than you. Wait, that’s not it. I want to know everything that happened that day.

“...Are you going out?”

“Haa?”

Iijima looked back at me with a dumbfounded expression. It's no use trying to play dumb now. Kumiko told me all about it, so obviously I’d know. Iijima’s attitude slightly annoyed me.

“Like I said, you and Kumiko are going out, aren’t you?”

She cut straight to the point, but her voice started trembling near the end, and her voice tapered off.

Iijima burst into laughter, holding his hand over his mouth.

“Why are you laughing?”

“No… I just can’t understand how riajuus think.”

...What does that mean? While Ema was feeling sullen and dumbfounded, Iijima just answered in a flippant manner.

"There's no way the two of us are dating. It’s impossible for someone like me to have a girlfriend as attractive as her. I just gave her a DVD, we talked for a while, and then we parted ways.”

“Eh..?”

“She told me she was going to get her hair cut. I wondered if that was true. It didn’t look like her hair was growing at all.”

The moment I heard that, it felt so anticlimactic, and I almost laughed out loud. Really, I wonder why I had been so anxious all this time. In any case, I was relieved to hear that nothing had happened.

To be honest, I didn’t think that Iijima was that inferior to Kumiko that he’d have to be so humble. I don't know if Kumiko was joking about that, or if she thought it was too early, but since Iijima said, “There’s no way she’d be my girlfriend”, Kumiko must not have said anything about it.

“Ah, I know right?” Ema lazily replied. Iijima narrowed his eyes behind his glasses even more as he muttered.

“I mean, that girl even said that she was a yuri.”

“Ehh?!”

“She laughed and said that it was a joke. But I kind of took it seriously for a moment.”

Just now, I also took that seriously for a moment. Kumiko really is a nasty person. It's not good for the heart, so I hope she stops joking about things like that.

In the middle of their conversation, an announcement announcing the arrival of a train echoed across the platform. Shortly after, a downbound train slid in noisily.

The doors opened and both of them boarded. There were two empty seats in the corner of the warm train car, so Ema sat down on one of them. Iijima sat down next to Ema quite naturally.

Their arms touched each other for the first time in two weeks. For some reason, after all this time, their proximity to each other raised her heart rate.

As the doors closed and the train began to move, Iijima continued their conversation.

“So, Kumiko-san said she’d come to the cultural festival next week.”

“Ah… I see.”

“You didn’t hear from her?”

“Nope, not yet.”

I hadn't heard from her since Saturday, and before that, we’d been talking about different topics, so I didn't know that at all.

I couldn’t help but grimace, disliking the fact that I was somehow being left out.

“...She lives close by, so she probably just wants to kill some time”

Or rather, she probably came because she wanted to see Iijima.

Ema once again looked gloomy and depressed as she remarked somewhat rudely. Iijima was completely unfazed as he refuted her.

“I don’t think so. I mean, Kumiko’s a student who has to study for tests too. I’m sure she’s coming to see you, Kitaoka.”

“...I wonder.”

“That should be obvious. That girl kept talking about you the entire time on Saturday. When I heard her, I really got the impression that she loves you a lot, Kitaoka.”

...I wonder why they talked to each other so much. I was curious, but Iijima was unusually smiling a lot right now, so I decided not to ask him any mean-spirited questions.

I stole a glance at Iijima's face and observed it once more. He had a rather sharp jawline, and his skin wasn’t too tanned. Underneath his surprisingly distinct eyebrows were eyes as thin as threads, which would disappear instantly when he smiled. But the corners of his mouth would be raised, so it wouldn’t look scary. Overall, his hair was thin and unrefined, but if he just got rid of the large amount of hair that looked somewhat unruly, I think I'd look pretty presentable. Actually, rather than I think, I know for a fact that he’d look presentable. In fact, Kumiko saw through him and complimented him as well.

I couldn't think of a situation where I’d confess to Iijima. However, I was sure that I had feelings for him, and I often imagined that if Iijima confessed his feelings to me, I would, without a doubt, say yes… But, with the recent incident with Kumiko, I realized that if I waited for this thickheaded boy to make a move, it’d be too late. I didn't want Iijima to be stolen by any other girl. Kumiko has always been a reliable girl, and I've loved her since I was a child, but I still didn’t want to give Iijima away, even to her. This time, the incident with Kumiko was just a joke, but if I didn't do something soon, a second, or even third Kumiko might appear, and that wouldn’t be amusing at all.

But that didn’t mean that I could suddenly change my attitude at this point in time… I can't read Iijima's reactions at all. Previously, when I told him that I wanted him to have a smartphone so that I could contact him easily, he suspected I was colluding with a phone company. He usually doesn't take my words or actions seriously, and his thought process is a mystery. If I suddenly fawned on him, I'm sure he’d suspect some kind of ulterior motive behind my actions. That's why it's fairly difficult to take the next step.

Should she push or pull to close the distance between her and Iijima? Ema had never dealt with someone who had such little self-confidence, so she didn’t know what she should do as she racked her brain in circles.

Ema sighed. It'd been a long day for her, and a surge of exhaustion overwhelmed her from all the worrying she did. She decided to stop thinking about it for a while.

“...I’m a little exhausted. I’m going to sleep for a bit.”

When Iijima heard that, he started rummaging through his backpack as he replied to her.

“Okay, I understand.”

Iijima took out a small music player and quickly plugged the earphones into his ears. It looked like he planned to listen to something to pass the time while she slept.

I'm not sure what Iijima is thinking. But I'm really glad that he doesn’t belong to Kumiko. For a while longer, I’ll be able to have times like this where I sit by his side as he smiles and talks only to me. 

Ema shut her eyes and looked down, pretending to be asleep. Then, when the train shook, she leaned towards Iijima, feigning coincidence.

She rested her head on the shoulder of Iijima’s school uniform, but since Iijima thought that she was asleep, he was probably being considerate as he didn’t admonish her at all. That alone made her really happy, to the point where she didn’t care about anything else. That was what she earnestly thought.

She could hear some muffled noises leaking out from Iijima’s earphone. She wondered if this was one of Scosho’s songs. The tempo was nice, and the melody was gentle and nice to hear.

“Maybe I should also try listening to it sometime soon”, Ema thought, and before she knew it, she fell asleep for real.

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Edit: Sorry, I messed up a few paragraphs. Yasuki's entire class will not be joining the festival. He's in class 3-F. I've revised that paragraph. I only hit upon these while doing v1c6. I'll try to read a little more carefully. Also, thanks to a kind person in comments, I've changed the pictures used for breaks to indicate POV.

Thanks for reading the chapter! The previous translator for this series kindly gave me their permission to pick up this series for them. I’d really like to thank them for being so kind and friendly when I DMed them. Read all of their previous chapters here. For those of you who’ve read my previous TL, Sweet Fiance, welcome to my new series. Both School Goddess and Lonely Otaku have been picked up by other translators, and the other options have insufficient votes for me to seriously consider picking them up. Simply put, I just got lazy and chose a novel I wanted to pick up. Sorry about that hehe. I have lots of great LNs people sent on my server, so I’ll be sure to pick up some more fluffy series’ in the future. For those of you who don’t know who I am, hi there! I’m an MTLer, which is why you see some unnatural lines here and there. I have several lines I had trouble comprehending, so I ad libbed those. My accuracy on these translations are probably 80% at best and 50% at worst. I do try to keep them readable at least, which is why I might work a little slow at times, so bear with me. So, the author likes to alternate between using the first person narrative and the third person narrative. It might be a bit confusing, but I’m trying to keep it as similar to the original as possible. Also, I kinda rushed this chapter, so please point out any mistakes or suggestions you might have in the comments. I don’t know when I’ll release the next chapter, so you’ll have to be a little patient, since I don’t do parts. Join my Discord here to flame me and maybe force me to work a little harder.