[Warning 15+]
Author's Notes:
The Tenbin manga adaptation is currently completely free for a limited one-week period!
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The Tenbin manga adaptation is currently completely free for a limited one-week period!
Check it out!
Part Six
―With the Same Energy as Before, Wearin' a Smile
Chapter 215
...Wait, What?
―With the Same Energy as Before, Wearin' a Smile
Chapter 215
...Wait, What?
"Mya~!"
After school, Haruki's wailin' echoed through the noisy hallway.
Walkin' beside Haruki, Hayato shot his childhood buddy the kind of look reserved for a pitiful creature, lettin' out an exasperated sigh.
"...Well, thanks to you, the class attraction got decided without a hitch, so that's good."
"I mean, yeah, but still~."
"Though man, that last line of yours was definitely a bit much."
"Urgh..."
Haruki choked on her words, her eyes wellin' up with tears.
Durin' lunch break, thanks to Haruki goin' off the rails when a weird switch got flipped in her, the class attraction was settled in no time.
Every time the actual culprit, Haruki, recalled exposin' a side of herself she usually kept hidden from those around her, she let out pathetic squeals and squirmed in agony. Serves her right.
To Hayato, that side of Haruki wasn't anythin' new.
Haruki'd shown it in front of both Ema and Minamo recently, and glimpses of it had slipped out in the classroom here and there, but to most of the class, it must've been pretty shockin'.
Even though Haruki got some seriously weird looks, it seemed to be received pretty positively. Or so Hayato thought.
(...Good grief.)
Hayato knitted his brows, scratchin' his head aggressively.
It was supposed to be a good thing that the real Haruki was being accepted for who she was, but for some reason, his chest felt all hazy and cluttered.
Aware that it stemmed from a childish sense of possessiveness, Hayato forcibly changed the subject to cover it up.
"C'mon, let's just finish up the job the Cultural Festival Executive Committee asked us to do real quick. It was checkin' the equipment, right?"
"Yup. Checkin' whether the count and condition of stuff we're usin' outdoors on the day—like tents, lights, and generators—are all good to go. As for the location... ...um, the Old School Buildin', right near our Secret Base."
"Oh, over there. ...Goin' there with an actual, clear errand for once feels kinda fresh."
"Fufu, right?"
Haruki's expression flipped to an excited smile as she pulled herself together and headed off toward their destination.
After school with the Cultural Festival right around the corner had a buoyant vibe, wrapped in a restless, electric excitement.
All over the school grounds, they passed people bustlin' around with prep work. Some were even assemblin' stuff right in the hallways.
Around this time, Hayato's class was probably havin' a heated discussion about the Vampire Princess Cafe too.
Word was they were gonna use the video game's concept as a baseline while tweakin' it into somethin' tailored for their own Cultural Festival. A bunch of the boys and girls were super hyped about it.
Before long, the Old School Buildin' came into view.
While it was usually a deserted ghost town, students comin' to grab materials stored here were scattered all over the place.
In one of those groups, they spotted a familiar face. It was Kazuki.
"Oh, Kazu—"
Hayato was about to raise his hand and call out, but swallowed his words midway.
It wasn't because Hayato thought he'd be interruptin' their fun convo. It was because somethin' felt off.
Besides Kazuki, there was one boy and three girls.
Walkin' and chattin' happily with classmates was a completely ordinary sight.
Yet somethin' caught in Hayato's mind—and then it hit him.
Kazuki's expression was noticeably soft.
Even though Kazuki was surrounded by girls, he was completely natural and relaxed.
Up until now, due to past failures, Kazuki was supposed to have built up a wall and kept his distance from girls. And yet, it looked as though he was lettin' them right into his personal space without a second thought.
"Wait, what...?"
"Yeah..."
When Hayato's disbelief spilled out loud, Haruki gave a solemn nod in agreement.
Did Kazuki have some kind of change of heart?
If so, was it because of that incident at the Fall Festival the other day?
Lately, it felt like Kazuki had changed a bit too—just as Hayato was mullin' that over, Kazuki noticed them and casually raised a hand with a "Hey," steppin' away from his group to head over. Hayato raised his hand in response.
"Hayato-kun, Nikaidō-san, what a coincidence runnin' into you guys here."
"Oh, yeah, helpin' out the Cultural Festival Executive Committee. Checkin' the equipment."
Beside Hayato, Haruki gave a solemn nod with a slightly sulky face.
"Heh, good work you guys. We were just seein' if there's anythin' here we could use for interior decor. Oh, everyone's waitin' for me, though, so I better get goin'."
"Yeah, catch ya later."
Sayin' that, Kazuki turned around.
Right then, Haruki reflexively called out to Kazuki's back, "Kaidō."
"Hmm? What's up, Nikaidō-san?"
"Kaidō, are you..."
"Whoops, did I...?"
"...Never mind."
"Gotcha."
Kazuki gave a dry smile and headed back.
"...Shall we get goin' too?"
"...Yeah, let's."
From Haruki's expression, it was impossible to tell what she was actually tryin' to say.