Chapter 150Compared to Me
Come to think of it, I've never had a single senpai like my current ones before. When I was in middle school, I think I had misguided feelings not only for the senpai-s but also for everyone around me. Although I didn't mention it out loud, I was so busy with my daily life that I became self-centered and thought "I don't care about other people, though...", and I don't know if it was because of my instability as a middle school student or if it was because of the lack of mental leeway in my heart. All I remember now is that I was always at the end of my seat in those days.
Maybe I was just feeling awkward. However, even before that, I didn't know how to interact to deal with the presence of "the senpai-s". Come to think of it, it was probably impossible for me to get away and get along with the senpai-s even if Sasaki-kun was there. Hence at that time, I didn't try to maintain my relationship with them, but instead put them in a bad mood.
When Sasaki-kun called out to Inoue-senpai, she looked confused for a moment before she nodded her head. That alone shows that they haven't fully accepted me. However, even so, in the end, I got carried away and ended up near the ground.
"Well..., ...Natsukawa-san."
"...!"
As I was commenting with Sasaki-kun, who was trying to bridge the gap between us, Inoue-senpai, who was walking in front of me with Ogawa-senpai, turned around and started talking to me. I remembered the look of hostility in their eyes back then, so I fell silent.
"Look, I'm sorry. About a few days ago."
"Eh...?"
Senpai apologized while turning half of her body towards me. I stammered because I didn't know what to say to those unexpected words. I was so nervous that my mind went blank. I was afraid that I would offend them again, so I could only stretch my back.
"No, you see... ...I don't know if I went too far with my words back then, though! At that moment, I felt annoyed at everything, not just at Natsukawa-san. Hmm, you see, I realized when Taka and his friend were in a bad mood at that time right in front of me."
"Taka, who...? ...Eh, Sasaki-kun?"
"Ugh..."
Judging from what they were talking about, it seemed that Sasaki-kun and his friend were in a bad mood at that time. Perhaps... ...they got into a fight?
"Sasaki-kun, did you guys fight...?"
"No, you see, we weren't fighting... ...Well, to be more precise, we were just angry at each other..."
"No, he was very angry. I've never seen a boy like that before. I didn't know how to stop him either, and I was really scared of him... ...so I was like, 'What should I do?'"
"You see, I'm on the same page..."
Inoue-senpai and Ogawa-senpai at the moment don't seem to be in the mood to fight exactly like they did to me before, but instead, I get the strange impression that they're like depressed, cute puppies. It's like they're shrinking.
Sasaki-kun said that they were just "angry at each other". The fact that he didn't act like they were about to fight, I knew that there was no violence going on between them. But still, the fact that that boy made Inoue-senpai and Ogawa-senpai, who were still annoyed at me, do this shows that the way Sasaki-kun's friend got angry at them must have been really bad. I can understand how it feels to be scared just because of a boy who feels annoyed at them. I'm sure, if I was in middle school, I would have changed my attitude I was so scared that it made my stance lopsided.
"If you recall, he opened the door to this room a few days ago, back then he said that he was the little bro of the Queen of Ekkou..."
"Th-The Queen of Ekkou...?"
I heard an unfamiliar word appear. Somehow I immediately understood what "Ekkou" was, because sometimes the girls in my class abbreviated Kouetsu High School like that. The problem was the meaning of the title "The Queen of Ekkou". I wondered who exactly they were talking about. Even though I already knew who it was, did she have a little bro who looked scary, and was in the same first-year as us? I've never heard anything about him, not even the rumors.
"Look, so... ...I'm so sorry about everything."
"I'm so sorry..."
"Oh! Yeah! It's okay, it's—"
The two senpai-s apologized to me with a somewhat awkward look. All their words and mannerisms showed that they were truly apologizing. In the middle, I couldn't understand what they were saying, but the situation where the two senpai-s were apologizing to me made me feel sorry for myself, and I ended up strangely responding to them, choosing my words desperately and accepting their apology.
"Well, you see... ...Likewise this time, we invited Natsukawa to drop by our club activities. We didn't want it to be awkward forever."
"Oh, um... ...I see."
Can I assume that the awkwardness between me and these two senpai-s has disappeared? That's true, but it's more like there's something else more interesting in my mind... ...Although I was indeed surprised by such a strange feeling, I still decided to just nod for now. After all, I was relieved that things wouldn't get any worse for now, so I followed Sasaki-kun and the others quietly.
♦
As a high school that receives a lot of endowments, there is a magnificent soccer field on its grounds. There is a gentle slope from the edge of the fence to the field, where you can sit and watch the match. I thought I was the only student who watched this club activity, but when I got here, there were a few girls here and there. I think they're like the fans of this club, you can tell by their constant, low screams. I'm a bit jealous that they're all here with their friends. I wondered what it would be like if I had Kei next to me right now, but I couldn't imagine her sitting on the sidelines watching the boys, so I laughed. Instead, she'd look much better at running around in the middle of the field.
I imagined that they would have a practice match since it was called a tour of the Soccer Club, but it didn't seem like that all of a sudden. Most importantly, Sasaki-kun joined us at noon today. The team practiced dribbling with cones on the field and practiced passing the ball in a basic way. Special emphasis on this was given to the first-year students.
"Wow, Taka brought a really cute girl with him here."
"Isn't that Natsukawa Aika? She's famous for being cute even among the second-year students."
"Eh? Didn't someone say that she already has a boyfriend?"
I felt a bit uncomfortable because I was getting stares from various directions from the members of the Soccer Club. Honestly, I felt a bit scared when a male senpai, whom I didn't know, said in front of me that he recognized me and for some reason, he thought that I already had a boyfriend. It was also weird that he didn't try to talk to me directly. Even if he did, I don't know what to say to him.
Sasaki-kun occasionally waved his hand at me. When I waved back slightly, Sasaki-kun smiled happily and had his shoulders patted by the boys around him. I hope I don't get any strange misunderstandings from anyone...
At first, there were many curious looks from them, but when it was time for them to practice, they all concentrated on the ball in front of them. They practiced with moves that you'd never see in a soccer match on television, catching difficult balls with their feet, and so on, in a way that I could never replicate. Come to think of it, it's been a long time since I've seen people move with such agility in a live sporting event. I think it's worth watching.
Inoue-senpai and Ogawa-senpai were busy in a corner of the field. They were about to hand out water bottles and towels to the resting members, and they were also about to take a binder and write or draw something in it. I think they had a lot to do as the Soccer Club Managers.
"That's great..."
These are also examples of things they can do.
Despite everything that has happened up to this point, though. Although they have apologized to me. What caused Sasaki-kun, Inoue-senpai, and Ogawa-senpai to work hard was not because of the Cultural Festival Executive Committee, but because of this. They wanted to come to their club activities, but they prioritized the Cultural Festival Executive Committee even though they were willing to try their best for what I considered to be a fun thing. It's true that if they become members of the Cultural Festival Executive Committee, it might not be because of their own decision. But still, I can't just assume that it was entirely the senpai-s' fault for leaving the Cultural Festival Executive Committee at that time.
Because I wasn't doing anything, I wasn't in any club activities, and I wasn't of much use to them either.
TL Note: Can't believe that it's our 100th post of this series in English.
TL: Reeze27
ED: Reeze27
PR: Reeze27
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