Chapter 163Unfair
"...Hoho."
I was somewhat moved as I looked at the somewhat thicker pamphlet for the Cultural Festival. In contrast to this feeling, a voice like that of a producer folding his hands behind his back came out of his mouth. I've been helping the Cultural Festival Executive Committee and I thought I knew a lot of things, but it seems that my role is much more out of my league than I thought.
The scale of the Cultural Festival at Kōetsu High School is much bigger than those at other high schools. However, this is the only high school cultural festival I've experienced since middle school, and I don't know what it's like at other high schools. Even so, the pamphlets for this Cultural Festival were very well-made, even too well-made, and I was fascinated by the great variety of its content.
In the booths for the first year, we prepared a lot of simple things like a riddle competition and a rest area like our class, but in the booths for the second and third years, I could see that the contents of their booths were getting more and more complicated. For the third year, they set up a café and even went so far as to use another classroom. There was also the use of a very large chemistry lab.
"Okay! Then, today, all of you go home early to prepare for tomorrow! Don't take detours, stop here and there, and cause any trouble!"
As I was being excited like a child one day before going to the amusement park, Ootsuki-chan was glued to me while tapping the attendance list on the teacher's desk. Was she an esper? I was about to wander around the video game corner at the convenience store or the rental shop, even though I had no intention of buying anything.
"Ootsuki-chan, you're nervous yourself, aren't you?"
"Gosh~! Don't say that, oh~!"
Yamazaki said so while half-smiling and Ootsuki-chan started to get even more nervous. It was more of a nervousness than an excitement in anticipation of a show. It was as if she was hoping that nothing would go wrong.
Times like this are the times when if I do something out of the ordinary it might end badly... ...I guess I'll just sit still. I was going to stay up late to play video games the night before the Cultural Festival started, but that was the riskiest thing I could do. I'm already late.
"—Okay, guys, please be careful when returning to your respective homes. Follow the directions of the teacher!"
Our class was dismissed after getting the directions from Iihoshi-san, also known as the Class President. Even though Ootsuki-chan had said so, there were still some people who remained sitting on their seats and laughing, and there were also some who said "Let's go to karaoke!" on the night before the Cultural Festival, so it felt as if something was missing. Ootsuki-chan's eyebrows twitched... ...Although, I'm afraid it seems like trouble will happen at this point... ...Okay, let's just go straight home.
"Then, I'll see you tomorrow, Natsukawa. Ootsuki-chan, I think you're in trouble, so it would be good if you went home early too."
"Eh?"
Ootsuki-chan's way of getting angry was indeed quite mean... ...It's fine if she gets angry normally with a loud voice, but it's good if I suspect that she's in a bad mood for the rest of the week. After all, that's quite a long time. However, when something good happens to her and she's in a good mood, she gets distracted, she makes a mistake, gets scolded by the Vice Principal and complains to us, it's a devilish combo. It's a complete combo, bang!
Everyone who joined the club activities, including Ashida, seemed to have a lot of business to attend to. I really don't have much to do. I've been helping out in the Student Council, the Disciplinary Committee, and Cultural Festival Executive Committee, but if I didn't do all that work, I think I'd be a very bored person. I really don't want my free time to be wasted because I'm tied up with work after school, do I? Instead, I'd rather say, why did I take on so many work and work so hard at them?
As I walked through the corridor and toward the elevator entrance, I heard some conversations. Karaoke, bowling, night parties, and everyone not wanting to hold back — huh? E-Eh? Surprisingly, everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves more than expected. Was the day before the Cultural Festival really that much fun? Am I the only one who got lost because I secretly wanted to go straight home and tried to sleep early?
"—I-I wonder, is there a Hitokara* nearby?"
(TL Note: Hitokara stands for "Hitori Karaoke" which means a karaoke place for one person or alone without having to think about other people around.)
"No, you should go back home soon..."
"What!?"
I was frustrated by the fact that I had already arrived at the elevator entrance, but as I opened the map app and tried to type "Hitokara" in the search field, someone suddenly spoke to me from behind and I stepped on the steps unconsciously. I felt sad when I saw my hand slip and the word "Hitori (alone)" typed in the search field. Who the heck are you!? Who made me type the word "Hitori (alone)"...!?
"...Eh?"
"Teacher said we shouldn't take detours and stop here and there..."
"O-Oh... ...I'm sorry."
"Y-You don't... ...need to apologize..."
Eh, no, eh...?
Why is Natsukawa here? Why are you a bit out of breath? Don't ruffle your hair too much, it looks glamour.
Just as I was about to reach my limit due to seeing the appearance of my idol figure that I felt was a bit disheveled, she looked at me with a frown and panting breath and also an exasperated look in her eyes. Eh? Weren't you still rummaging through your bag when I said "See you!" to you earlier?
"You're so fast, aren't you? Are you in a hurry?"
"No, it's nothing, though... ...I didn't mean that."
"?"
When I asked her about it, Natsukawa turned her face away and started mumbling something. Casually, as I was turning my gaze to my smartphone, I found that "Bar Solo" was displayed in the search for "Hitori (alone)". This world has gotten a lot friendlier, hasn't it? I'll keep this in mind, it might come in handy someday.
As I closed the screen and put away my smartphone, Natsukawa, who was cutely holding my sleeve against her chest, looked at me with a rather serious expression on her face.
"Should we go home together?"
"Eh, yeah."
...Yeah? Eh, yeah?
Didn't she just say "Should we go home together?"? She said it very clearly, so how could I have misheard her. Is it possible that I wasn't the only one she asked that to...?
"...Seriously?"
"I'm serious... ...what kind of confirmation is that?"
"No, I was just wondering if that might be the reason why you came here in such a hurry."
"What...?"
Oh, it's bad.
Just as I was thinking about that, it was too late. When I said this in a funny tone, Natsukawa looked rather displeased and turned her face away with a slight frown. She said that as if she liked me... ...I'm sure I've learned a lot from Big Sis that it's good not to say unnecessary words in this kind of situation. If I did, it would mean that I would never grow up.
"...W-Was that bothering you?"
"Of course, it can't be. Let's go home."
"What the heck...? ...Why are you acting like you're so relaxed and as if you have so much free time?"
Natsukawa, perhaps feeling frustrated about something, started to change her shoes with a sharp look and a slightly sullen expression on her face. I felt that if I kept this up, she would walk faster than me, so I hurriedly put my indoor shoes into my shoe locker as well.
It felt like this was a strange moment. At the threshold of the school entrance, which was filled with students after school, some students were going home together with someone, and among them, I was also trying to go home with someone as a matter of course, and moreover, that person was Natsukawa.
"I'm curious. This is the first time I'm going home with Natsukawa, isn't it?"
"Eh...? We've gone home together many times before, haven't we?"
"No, there are some things... ...It's just that, until this moment, Ashida was here, or it was late at night, or... ...I think this is the first time you've asked me out while saying, "Should we go home together?"."
Also, I always follow her around, then avoid her, then I follow her around again — That's just weird, "Anything else besides that", it would make others too suspicious of me... ...Eh, seriously, why did she ask me to go home together?
"Come to think of it, this is really strange. How does the wind blow around here?"
"Oh..."
As I recalled my strange behavior in my past... ...I can't help but be somewhat suspicious when I try to get along with someone like this. It did happen many months ago, so maybe I'm overthinking it. I didn't want to get hurt again about what happened between me and Natsukawa, after all, I didn't want to get hurt again in the future.
"Th-That's because..."
"Hmm."
"That's because... ...today, you talked to Kei all day..."
"Hmm... —Hmm?"
E-Eh...? I don't think that's the answer I was expecting... ...It's more like a general conversation about everything that's happened to us so far... ...Oh, does she have to limit it to today? We're definitely close enough to go home together, right? Naturally, if we felt like friends, and I did feel very upset, but I kept my cool. This was definitely the type of girl who would come after me. As we walked past the school entrance, I felt my heart pounding.
"You asking each other riddles and such... ...that's unfair."
"Oh—..."
Her cute arm protruded slightly from the gap between my sleeves, tightly squeezing my right wrist and it swayed back and forth. I was sweating more than I expected, and I could feel its moisture which felt warm and fresh.
No, I no longer cared about my past. Right now was the best time. After all, I can't be happy if I don't enjoy this moment. I can't change what's already passed, especially if other people don't care about it. There's no point in dwelling on that. I'm very lucky right now.
"Natsukawa."
"Hmm, what's wrong...?"
"Your fingers are thinner than I thought."
"—!?"
I traced the tip of Natsukawa's hand, which I had removed with my left hand, with my thumb to check its warmth. As I voiced my impression of the unbearable sensation, Natsukawa, who was taking a deep breath, withdrew her hand quite quickly, lest she flick my hand away. I may feel uncomfortable here, but I feel happy. It's possible that nothing has changed at all for me yet.
Natsukawa withdrew her hand and placed it on her chest, but she didn't say anything and just looked at me with a confused expression on her face. The look on her face changed gradually after a while. Was it because I made her angry, or—?
"Let's go home."
"...Yeah."
The voice that came from behind me as I walked out of the school entrance was very quiet.
TL Note: Let's just say we released this in 2021, hehe. That year was the toughest year for the author with the release of LN Volumes 4 and 5, Manga Volume 1, and he only managed to add 19 Web Novel chapters that year.
Author's Note:
Happy New Year (2021).
We declare an emergency regarding weight gain this New Year.
TL: Reeze27
ED: Reeze27
PR: Reeze27
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