Chapter 186I Want You to Wear It Too
'─ These are the Student Council officials!'
Big Sis and her gang were introduced with high expectations as if this wasn't enough. The black curtain hanging from the stage set was suddenly pulled up to the ceiling, revealing them to the audience all at once.
"...Eh...?"
The first thing that caught my eye was the brilliant, pure white wedding dress that Big Sis was wearing. Maybe it was because I was witnessing this firsthand, but that dress was more beautiful than anything I'd ever seen on a TV Drama, and I could tell the seriousness of the Fashion Club. No, were those costumes made directly by the Fashion Club from the start?
Four handsome boys stood flanking either side of the girl in the white dress. Utilizing their height, they wore various types of costumes, such as white suits, tuxedos, and tailcoats, and showed off their glamorous looks with authority. Yuuki-senpai, the Student Council President, looked cool in it, while Hanawa-senpai, on the other hand, was smiling while holding Big Sis' hand.
"Gr-Great...!"
"Beautiful...! Hey, Wataru, look at that...!"
"Oh, yeah... ...I look at that, I look at that, though!"
Both Ashida and Natsukawa were very excited. Meanwhile Natsukawa was pulling my arm tightly and shaking it, as if she was happy to have witnessed the object of her admiration appear on stage. How strange... ...I thought I had told Natsukawa about Big Sis' gorilla nature very carefully...
From a third party's point of view, Big Sis might be the object of her admiration, though... ...I wonder what kind of face they expect me to put on when I see my own big sis, who's not an adult yet, in her wedding dress? Is this what you call "mixed feelings"....?
'Wh-What is this...!?'
What the heck is this...?
'The Queen of Kōetsu High School, the only female official member of the Student Council, Sajou Kaede-san! She has removed all the thorns from that beautiful rose, and now! She will be the Goddess of Kōetsu High School! Her calm eyes stared straight ahead at the venue... ...What does it mean she can't see that there are four handsome boys on either side of her!?'
MC Kurahashi, who had been keeping her spirits up with a blank expression on her face, revealed her emotions and commented on the situation. I guess I didn't understand why were her eyes wide open.
In front of my eyes, Big Sis, who had reached her goal a decade earlier than I had imagined, was staring straight ahead with an indifferent expression. I'm sure to some people, Big Sis must have looked like a cool, beautiful girl. However, what deserves attention is the extraordinary position of her mouth. I can understand that...! And it makes you move around so fast!
'They've tricked me.'
"Ugh...!"
I think the word POSCA was written in black vertically on Big Sis' face.
Normally, I would mock Big Sis by saying, "Serves you, right?" to vent my daily grudge on her, but this time, I couldn't help but feel sorry for her. I couldn't help but let out a sob-like cry and covered my mouth. I'm sure underneath that thick mask, there was a red face hidden, it was red with shame and anger. Those handsome boys from K4, they have deceived Big Sis... ...If it makes her upset, I will be the one who will be the victim of the damage at home....
'Oops, here's Hanawa-san scratching his hair and smiling sweetly! And he's winking! The audience couldn't stop screaming on the spot! It's fan service! It's fan service! Wow...!'
Wow! But that was not the case.
MC Kurahashi, whose selling point is her emotionless face, was finally overwhelmed. She put on a sexy face in front of most of the students, and I'm sure there will be a lot of people flapping their feet waiting for her in her bed at home after this event ends. She looked much cuter than Big Sis, at least to me.
"Wataru...! Wataru...! Your big sis... ...she's so pretty!"
You're much prettier than Big Sis.
I almost said that reflexively, but the wiggle in my sleeve, which was shaken so hard, kept me from saying that and the message didn't reach Natsukawa's ears. I couldn't stand it anymore. This was a rare sight, in my opinion; I found Natsukawa getting excited. That's fine, she can shake my sleeve even more.
However, it's a bit strange due to the fact that the object of Natsukawa's jealousy and excitement, Big Sis, is also indeed subtle... ...I never thought that the day would come when I would feel jealous of Big Sis. That girl... ...she has surpassed all my years of hard work in the blink of an eye... ...I hope Big Sis can keep wearing that dress and intimidate everyone around her with her piercing eyes like a queen... Honestly, I think it would be interesting too.
"...Hmm?"
On both sides of the stage, the contestants on the runway clapped happily at the five Student Council officials.
Among them, there was a blonde girl who was staring at the floor with her head down. Among the other contestants' excited and smiling faces, that was the one that stood out more than usual. Come to think of it... ...I wonder if that young lady thinks of Big Sis as her love rival. She doesn't seem to have such intentions. Yeah, it's never fun to watch the boy she loves become one of the members of a reverse harem of other beautiful girl....
I wondered how the contrast between how she walked on stage and how she looked was, and it did bother me a bit.
♦
What the heck have they shown me?
After the fashion show, that was the emotion that came to my mind. Although the young lady was the grand prize winner, it was Big Sis and her cheerful gang who took everyone's attention... That's how happy everyone was with the content of this event. From the way Big Sis seemed very reluctant, I guess it was a tactic of the K4 members.
"I wish I could vote for the Student Council officials too."
"But that performance feels like cheating, doesn't it...?"
"Well, I guess that's part of them making memories."
This was a quality they liked, only the Student Council had four handsome boys, while only girls participated in the event. It was disturbing. Even from a production standpoint, I felt that the show was considered separate from the fashion show that the young lady was participating in. It's an exhibition. In the extreme, that was fine, as long as the audience enjoyed it.
"Eh, the closing ceremony is about to start? Are we going to stay here?"
"Oh, we're almost done, aren't we!? That was fast."
"We need to clean up."
"Pfft... ..."Clean up", you said."
"Wh-What's so funny?"
"Clean up, you say, is the Cultural Festival a toy? That's so funny!"
"I-It's just a habit I always tell Airi...!"
I see, that's funny.
When I saw the sullen and excited Natsukawa and the runaway Ashida it was soothing. Right now I'm going to get ready to help out in the cleanup duties after the closing ceremony. Unlike yesterday, there's nothing to make me tired today. I wonder if this is what dating feels like.... I guess it's quite a rare case that I'm doing this with two girls at once.
(TL Note: Yesterday, you did it with 3 people instead.)
"Oh, it's Kei!"
"Oh! Kawaicchi!"
Another Volleyball Club member entered the gymnasium. Other students began to flock to the gymnasium one by one. Ashida jumped up and down with excitement and high-fived the students, which was a rare sight. Kawai's height is almost the same as mine.
"Ashida's been taken."
"I-It's okay, though..."
"That girl has a weakness for pretty girls. For example, Shinomiya-senpai."
Natsukawa, who was slightly depressed, walked towards me. The damage she received from Ashida being snatched away by Kawai in such a lighthearted manner seemed to be quite significant. She was unable to hide her annoyance. Somehow, I kind of understood that feeling.
Natsukawa sat behind the pipe chair I was sitting on sideways.
"As I expected, this Cultural Festival is different from the Culture Festival when we were in middle school. There are a lot of things going on."
"Yeah, that's right, isn't it...? But the Cultural Festival back then was very troublesome, though."
"I don't remember how we went through the Cultural Festival when we were in middle school..."
"I still remember it clearly. Back then I was chased around by a boy to the point that it bored me."
"I don't remember it, you know...?"
"Gosh..."
Those were old, distant memories that I could only vaguely recall now that she mentioned it. I didn't want to remember those memories, and there were many things I didn't want to remember. Those memories were left like the remnants of a snake skin that had been peeled off. It's not something worth keeping. What I should do is remember that I was in love at the time and I was carried away by the feverish atmosphere. Well, how come I'm sitting here in front of Natsukawa when I rationalize like I know what we went through back then?
"...Did you have fun?"
I'm asking something like this at the last minute shows my lack of confidence. But as a boy, I'm interested in what a girl I've had a crush on thinks. If she suddenly says, "That's boring", though... ...Haha. I'll just give up on the 3D world.
"Yeah..."
"...!"
I was caught off guard.
As if it was a punishment for me for asking such a stupid question, my eyes were drawn to Natsukawa's smile as she looked at me with affectionate eyes up close. I forgot that Natsukawa is a very beautiful girl. I think it was so obvious, that it just crossed my mind.
"...."
"! Wh-What...? What's wrong... ...you're looking at me like that?"
She had a mysterious charm that made me stare at her even though I already knew what I was looking at. There was a mysterious impulse that made me unable to look away from her, even though I tried. I wonder if this is what the protagonists in manga who desperately refuse to be manipulated by their enemies feel. As Natsukawa watched me, I think I felt like I could finally let myself go. I averted my eyes from her face and hurriedly made an excuse.
"N-No. Everything is good, in many ways — except the last one."
"What the heck? Isn't that nice? Your big sis in her wedding dress."
"I don't think Natsukawa would understand... ...how it feels to have one of your family members exposed in front of everyone like this."
"She's beautiful, you know?"
Ugh... ...No way. I guessed it, that last part with Big Sis was too much. I will see the appearance of Big Sis in that dress in my dreams today. I can't see her face for a while. This magical power that can instantly mess up the sweet and sour atmosphere with Natsukawa in the blink of an eye is really scary.
Most of all, I regret that the impact of it was greater than my memories with Natsukawa. If I don't recall this day well tonight, I'm afraid this will be the only memory I have of this Cultural Festival.
"Huh... ...Oh. Imagine if the person in that dress is someone else."
"Gosh, stop saying that again."
"I see."
What if the one wearing the dress was, let's say, Shinomiya-senpai? Honestly, I'm sorry if I'm being rude, but she's number one on the list of people who will get married lately, and if she showed me at least one of her current wedding dresses, my impression of her would probably change drastically. Oh, no, if I can choose someone,
"─In any case, I want Natsukawa in that dress too."
"..."
Marriage can be called an important milestone in one's life, and it can also be called one's life goal. If that's the case, if I find Natsukawa being proposed to by a handsome boy, I might be able to put my mind at ease. Although that would mean I'd have to find a new love as well.
"How about you wear that dress next year too?"
"...I-I won't — I won't wear that dress!"
"...?"
In front of my eyes, while the members of the Girls Volleyball Club were excitedly comparing their heights, there was an announcement that the entire school community would gather here.
ED: Reeze27
PR: Reeze27
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