Chapter 145My Work
Shopping is indeed an uphill battle. This is because the silly conversation of high school boys is the most exciting thing that happens to them. Despite being in the same Baseball Club, Yasuda, who has a serious and mysterious leadership spirit, unlike Iwata, who easily loses his temper, started running fast. If it wasn't for him, we probably wouldn't have gotten to the classroom on time. Thank you, Yasuda. It's hard to get close to him because he acts like a mountain king, but I'll continue to support him from afar. *I'm scared.
"Phew, it's so hot... ...Eh? Ichinose-san, what are you writing?"
"Oh— Um, Sajou-kun. Um, I was thinking of a question for the quiz later..."
When I returned to the classroom after wiping off my sweat with a towel, I found that Ichinose-san was sitting against the wall, thinking about the material for the quiz. I think she had already thought of some questions and was writing them down on loose-leaf paper. Ichinose-san reads a lot of books, so I think she can create quiz material at a high level... ...But which questions did she write down?
[It is said that right before the Great Famine of the Ancients occurred, someone bit into a pre-summer eggplant and tasted the flavor of autumn, so he immediately detected that this year would be a cool summer and to prevent famine in his village, he had the villagers plant Japanese millet which is resistant to cold weather damage • Who is said to be the policy maker/thinker of such an agricultural system in the Edo Period?]
"No, what kind of question is that?"
This is not for a quiz show. Well, it is for a quiz show, but not this kind of quiz.
That's not the point, is it? It's a quiz question that determines the king of the quiz is a graduate of the University of Tokyo. My brain stopped working after hearing the first two words of the question. Maybe it's because the target audience is middle school students, parents, and other students... ...You see, this is the kind of event where we don't impart knowledge or anything like that to the audience, even if they answer the question correctly... ...If we put out this kind of question, we will only attract the attention of the audience who are middle school students who usually come to a second-hand bookstore...
"Well... ...D-Do you think it's not a good question...?"
"Probably, there won't be anyone who can answer that question..."
"Oh..."
"Oh! Sajou-kun is bullying Mina-chan again!"
"Stay away from her-! Stay away from here, boy!"
"No, really, boy, huh!"
What's with this sudden feminism? Who do you think Ichinose-san is to you? Why is Ichinose-san being treated like an otaku princess when you two are also girls?
Shirai-san pushed me away, and when I looked back, I found Ichinose-san giggling and waving her hand at me. I was already dead.
♦
During the lunch break, is the time outside of class to hold a meeting with the Cultural Festival Executive Committee. Regular members of the Cultural Festival Executive Committee like Natsukawa and Sasaki were absent. First of all, what kind of black company is this that forces students to spend their lunch breaks and after-school hours every day? It's a shame that Natsukawa has to be separated from the rest of the class when she hasn't spent any time talking to them in a long time. Natsukawa should be able to have more fun with other girls. Show us how serious you are, Natsukawa...!
"Eh...?"
"Oh, Natsukawa. Anyone can use this bench."
"Eh? Oh."
I was currently carrying a bag with a laptop in it. I felt a sensation that was much heavier than usual and made me even more motivated.
This was my ongoing duty in rotation with Gou-senpai. Today, the external collaborators of the Hanawa-senpai's team should be finishing their work from this morning. We need to utilize this lunch break to make sure that everyone in this school can check on the progress immediately after school. We can't let them waste time checking in there.
I was relieved that there was no Gou-senpai around the Cultural Festival Executive Committee classroom. When I meet someone unexpectedly, the sunlight bouncing off my waxed hair sometimes hits my eyes and makes them sting. I wondered if I could use something softer... ...If there was a small fly, I could probably burn it to death with that ray.
I went towards the atrium hallway where, Yuuki-senpai, Gou-senpai, and I gathered last time. Gou-senpai said that there would be a Wi-Fi connection to this laptop in this area. It was a place near the entrance of the school building that felt cool, and the breeze was blowing constantly. Moreover, it was also a place that was always shaded, so when I sat there, the concrete felt cool and comfortable.
"Alright, then..."
I placed my laptop on my shallow legs and turned it on. I checked if the internet was connected properly, opened the folder connected to Hanawa-senpai's team server, and checked what was inside. Furthermore, after I went further into the folder named after today's date, and found that there was a row of files beginning with the word "Completed". It felt good to see that a large number of files that took so long to complete by handwriting had been completed.
I opened each file one by one and double-checked that all the fields were filled in. Then I moved the completed files in this folder to the "Confirmed" folder — Then, I kept repeating this process. The more "Completed" files we have, the harder the work becomes, but even so, it's something to be grateful for. Most of all, I liked the fact that I could just move the files that had been edited by people who were doing the work properly. This gave me a sense of superiority that mysteriously appeared.
"—Wh-Why are you grinning...?"
"Eh? Seriously? Am I grinning? If I grin while working, is that bad?"
No, that's not it, you know! I still have to do the work, so it would be better to motivate me by finding fun in it rather than just mindlessly doing it. A-Anyway, it's not like I'm browsing an er*tic website! I mean, if I connect to such a site with my school network, I'll be expelled from school! Not only Gou-senpai, but Big Sis will also nag and throw a tantrum at me! — Huh?
"...Eh? N-Natsukawa? Why?"
"Oh, U-Um..."
"...?"
This is a place where no one else but me should be here. Normally, the other students should be concentrated in the classrooms, cafeteria, and stores. Natsukawa should also be having lunch with Ashida and the others right now since she doesn't have to be on duty as a member of the Cultural Festival Executive Committee during the lunch break. As I looked up, I was confused by the presence of a person who shouldn't be here, standing right in front of me.
Was I mistakenly thinking that there was another Cultural Festival Executive Committee meeting today as well...?
"Oh — um... ...I think today's meeting is only after school, right?"
"I-I knew it! I knew it!"
"O-Oh... ...I see."
"..."
"..."
...E-Eh...?
Eh? What kind of feeling is this? What should I say? I mean, why are you here? Oh, calm down, me...! Calm down in assessing this situation, I can do it. I wonder how many years I've been in contact with Natsukawa? If there's a test about Natsukawa, I should be able to pass to level two. Please tell us when Natsukawa Aika's birthday is. The answer is on Halloween. Please give me a trick or treat.
I suddenly looked at Natsukawa's hand and realized something.
"So you brought your lunch box... ...Are you on your way to meet someone?"
"Eh!? Oh, th-this is... ...You see, it's not like that, though..."
Then, Natsukawa quickly flipped the packed lunch box behind her back as if to hide it. At that moment, my attention was almost drawn to her skirt which was swaying as she did so, but I restrained myself. Only my right eye.
"—I-I thought you were doing work... ...Well, I was too, though..."
"Work...? Work... ...No, if that's the case, then it's after school today."
"That's not what I meant...! ...I-I thought you might be doing work... ...Well, you brought your bag."
"...Yeah, I think so."
"?"
This is how I was able to turn on my laptop and connect to the internet online. It wasn't wrong. I wasn't wrong, but still, it was strange that Natsukawa was here. No rule said that if I was doing work, Natsukawa had to do work too. If there was such a rule, the first thing I would do is let Sasaki do it first.
"I thought you were in the Cultural Festival Executive Committee classroom, though... ...but it turned out that you're not there. I searched around for a while and found you right around here..."
"No, well... ...No, I don't think they would lend me the key to that room only for me. No, put it this way... ...just because I'm doing the work, doesn't mean Natsukawa should be on any work either."
"I-It's because... ...you don't have to do it either..."
"That's true, though... ...but it's my own decision. Natsukawa doesn't have to worry about anything. After all, I'm on the Student Council's side."
"That's true, though..."
"..."
Natsukawa Aika. The "Goddess" side of her that I knew was starting to show. Among all that, I think I have a strong sense of responsibility to fulfill my role, or rather, the work entrusted to me. I've been working part-time recently just to earn some allowance so I can have fun and play games, but when I first started working part-time in my middle school days, my motivation was that I wanted to become someone worthy of Natsukawa personally. In other words, it was to improve myself.
In the end, though, I realized that what I needed to stand out was "what I already had from the start". Appearance, talent, studies, and sports. I couldn't believe that Natsukawa had all those things, to begin with. Of course, I thought I was trying. But still, something inside me has been broken. Because I thought I couldn't continue that endeavor. Because I think it's "troublesome" to keep pursuing her.
"Um... ...Wataru, what did you have for lunch?"
"...Eh? Oh, after this is done, I'll have the food I bought for my lunch..."
"'Bought'... ..You're not preparing your lunch yet?"
"No? Look, it is here."
I took out a plastic bag from inside my bag. It was the sweet bread I bought at the convenience store this morning. I couldn't see it, but I put the bread in my bag with my laptop, and I think it was probably half-crumbled.
"That food again... You, when you used to bring lunch right after you first enrolled in this school. Why did you change?"
"O-Oh..., ...No, you see, there are too many green peppers and the like, you know? If I leave them all in a row, Mom will get angry."
I think it did make Mom angry, or rather, it was just as sarcastic. I didn't have the words to answer her. As a bonus, Big Sis often treated me like a child, and I was trampled and kicked by her. I had no choice but to accept being trampled and kicked by her. Kaboom.
"..."
"Oh... ...Um, Natsukawa-san?"
Natsukawa did seem worried up until this point, but after I explained how my lunch box turned into a sweet bread, she suddenly fell silent, looking at me while lowering her eyebrows. Oh, everything suddenly changed... ...I feel like I just stepped on a land mine. By the way, Natsukawa is a big sis... ...So I think she will try all sorts of trials and errors to get Airi-chan to eat green peppers. She's like a bush snake.
"Um."
"Did you... ...not like green peppers?"
"Oh, yeah."
"I see... ...why?"
"It's bitter..."
"Well then... ...maybe bitter melon?"
"Oh, yeah..."
"..."
"..."
...Hmm? What kind of feeling is this? I think there's something rather good about it... ...Was there that kind of element in our conversation earlier? I thought I was going to be scolded or drugged. How cute. I feel like I could eat the inside of meat-stuffed peppers right now.
Author's Note: Because it's—
TL: Reeze27
ED: Reeze27
PR: Reeze27
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