Chapter 4 – Attacked by the Negative Spiral

Well, this was out of nowhere, but I’d like to tell you guys my opinion on a certain thing.

The existence of this thing called ‘Girls Group.’

Like its name suggested, it was a group formed by girls who were on good terms with each other. The reason why it was more well-known compared to its counterpart, ‘Boys Group,’ was because the boys didn’t really have such things to begin with. Unlike girls who’d socialize with as many people as possible, boys would only hang out with a few select friends.

Anyway, the Girls Group itself was divided into several cliques.

Such as the clique that was filled with quiet and reserved girls who wanted to keep their world to themselves.

The clique that was filled with outgoing girls who grouped together to make their lives more exciting.

There was also the clique that was filled with charismatic girls who were essentially the center of their classes.

Then, there were other cliques like the gyaru clique or the cool girls clique, but our class only formed the three cliques that I had mentioned, so they were irrelevant to the conversation.

By the way, Himawari didn’t join any of those cliques. You’d think that she’d be among the second or the third cliques, but that wasn’t the case at all. Himawari was someone who’d try to get along with everyone. She wouldn’t group up with a certain group of people like that.

In any case, lads.

There was a clique that you should never mess with if you were still in high school.

And that clique was the third one, the one filled with the charismatic girls. They were extremely troublesome to deal with.

They knew that they were the center of the class, so they’d go ahead and impose their own twisted sense of justice toward the rest of the class. If there was something that they found unpleasant, they’d make a twisted justification to deal with it and actually act up on it like a bunch of starving wolves.

Hm? Why did I tell you about this? It was because…

“Joro. Don’t you feel ashamed of yourself?”

I was being attacked by the aforementioned clique.

It happened in the morning. I was stoned after following Himawari’s morning antics.

When Himawari left the classroom to talk to one of her fellow club members and Sun-chan was still in his morning practice, they came and ganged up against me.

By the way, this was one of their characteristics.

They would only go up against someone they knew they could beat.

If Sun-chan, the tenacious boy who’d go up against them single-mindedly, or Himawari, someone who was cuter and more popular than them, were here, they wouldn’t even dare to attempt this.

Those girls knew when to strike by instinct.

That was why they attacked me at this moment, knowing that I’d be isolated from the rest of the class if they were to do so.

It was hard to see the difference between them and a pack of hyenas, honestly.

“Sorry? What are you talking about?”

As a poor fawn being surrounded by five hyenas, I tried to appeal to them while showing them my baby-doll eyes, but to no avail. Thinking that they were doing a selfless act, enacting some kind of justice that only they would understand, the hyenas clicked their tongues.

“You know what I’m talking about. Rumors said that you’re three-timing some girls?”

They shoved a piece of paper in front of my face.

“What the hell is this?!”

Once again, I screamed at the heavens. I snatched up the paper and read it.

On it, ‘Kisaragi Amatsuyu, the Scum of the Century! Reported Three-Timing!’ was written.

“They published it this morning. You didn’t know about it? In any case, way to go, Casanova.”

Girl A sneered at me, showing off her fake eyelashes.

Wait a second! I thought Asunaro would be following me closely until the day of the Hyakka Festival, then she’d decide on whether she’d publish this article or not. Then, why the hell had this article been published already?!

“At least do something about your appearance first if you want to start a harem… Disgusting…”

This time, it was Girl B, the one who put on excessive eyeshadow, who was scorning me.

Now I knew why they were attacking me. Fuck!

“W-Wait a second! This article is fake! I didn’t do something like that!”

“Sure, sure, I knew you’d say something like that. But, you know what? Every girl I knew had been telling me that you’ve been leering at them with your lecherous eyes. It’s disturbing, don’t you know that?”

There we go! The clique’s classic ‘Every girl I knew’ move!

Homeroom hadn’t even started yet and if the paper was distributed earlier this morning, how many girls had you talked to in that short period of time?!

I bet ‘every girl I knew’ meant only the members of your clique!

There was no way you’d do a fact check with everyone in class first before you came to me!

You guys were only here to intimidate me! No way in hell you guys got the guts to do a fact check when Himawari and Sun-chan were our classmates!

“So, who are those three girls? Why don’t you stop doing it right now and apologize to the poor girls?”

This was their modus operandi to gain control of the class. Trying to get information out of me while forcing me to apologize.

The article said that I was three-timing, but it never mentioned the names of the girls. That was why, they figured they’d be able to get the information they needed if they were to corner me!

Now, if I were to tell them that two of the girls were Himawari and Cosmos, they’d be able to turn the boys’ aggro on me!

There was no way I’d give them the chance to do that!

“H-Hold your horses!”

At that moment, the classroom door rattled open and an out-of-breath Asunaro appeared.

She seemed to be flustered as her Tsugaru dialect came out.

“What is it, Asunaro?”

Girl A, with her fake eyelashes, gave her a suspicious look.

However, Asunaro disregarded her glare and charged right into the middle of the girls’ clique.

“You see, this article isn’t supposed to be out yet! I don’t even know why they distributed it already… That’s why you guys shouldn’t believe anything that the article said!”

“But… This article was written because Joro did something weird, right? So—”

“Yes, but there’s no proof yet! I’m still investigating the matter!”

Asunaro cut off Girl A’s words and pushed her point forward.

Apparently, the publishing of the article was something that even Asunaro didn’t know about.

“My plan was to stick by his side until I could find the truth about the situation! Then, I’ll publish about it in a special issue on the Hyakka Festival!”

The girl who doubted me the most somehow defended me the most. I never expected this kind of development.

No, wait, if she didn’t misunderstand me in the first place, none of this would have happened!

“If you said that much, Asunaro… Still, be careful. You’ll never know what this guy is up to. The girl that I know told me that he groped her chest out of nowhere once.”

Oi, that never happened. Why the hell were you accusing me of something that I never did?

“Sorry, Joro… When I worked on my articles yesterday, it seemed like I mixed up the article about you with another one… I promised to not let no one see it until the Hyakka Festival, but I broke my promise… I’m really sorry!”

After the girls clique went away, Asunaro took a step back and bowed to me.

“If only I had double checked everything, this would’ve never happened… I’m sorry!”

“…It’s okay. Even if I were to complain about it, nothing would have changed.”

“…Thank you.”

Well, I managed to get out of the fire for the moment, but this was just delaying the inevitable.

In the end, if I were unable to convince Asunaro to think otherwise, this would bound to happen again.

I really had to clear up this girl’s misunderstanding first…

* * *

“Haah… This is troubling…”

After the second period. Recess. I let out a heavy sigh.

The misunderstanding worsened and created an unexpected situation.

Actually, during the first recess, Cosmos and I had been trying to recruit another participant for the Kabuten. But everyone that we asked kept rejecting us.

But this time, the cause of it wasn’t Himawari and Cosmos, but me.

As for the reason? Because of the leaked article.

Whenever we tried to recruit someone, they’d always give us one answer.

‘I’m not going to dance with a three-timer.’

This situation made me feel despair. Even when Cosmos explained that there had been a misunderstanding and the article wasn’t true, the girls’ distrust in me ran deep. The paper had more weight to them compared to the words of the student council president herself.

And so, we didn’t manage to recruit anyone and the confirmed participants numbers didn’t go up.

The one fortunate thing in this situation was that Asunaro withdrew the article almost immediately.

She even stopped sticking by my side to gather all the distributed papers around the school back in the first recess.

“Um, Joro… I’ve gathered all the distributed papers… Um… Sorry for that…”

Bad rumors about me had spread, it was too late for her to apologize. Seeing me exuding a dark aura, Asunaro, with the distributed papers in her hands, came up to me and frantically apologized.

If she had the slightest bit of conscience, she’d offer to stop her antics of ‘keeping a close eye on me.’

“I don’t care. What’s done is done. Just make sure that things like this won’t happen again in the future.”

“Of course! I’ll do my best to prevent it from happening ever again!”

Well, of course she wouldn’t do it. And I couldn’t exactly ask her to stop either.

Why? Because of the scene that happened earlier today.

In everyone’s eyes, I was already guilty for three-timing.

There was only one way to change that, which was to make Asunaro write an article to debunk the previous one.

And for that, I had to let her stick close to me to clear up her misunderstandings no matter how much I hated it.

That and looking for a participant that wanted to join the Kabuten became the top two on my to-do-list. Neither of them were easy to do. I felt like crying…

“In any case, I should look for someone who’s willing to join the Kabuten first…”

“Ah, that!”

“Hm? What?”

Suddenly, Asunaro clasped her hands together.

I had a feeling that she was about to say something bad. Should I stop her?

“So, Joro. If you don’t mind—”

“Oi, Joro.”

At that moment.

Before Asunaro could finish what she wanted to say, a low spirited voice came from behind.

It was Sun-chan. He looked far less energetic than usual.

Maybe he found out about the article and now he was angry at me?

“Ah, Sun-chan. So, uh… What’s up?”

I said, trying to sound as normal as possible.

“You know that weird article that came out today?”

Boom! He already knew! Oh no!

“Y-Yeah… B-But everything is just a rumor. D-Don’t take it seriously, okay?”

When I confirmed it in a hurry, Sun-chan’s expression turned into a smile.

“Oh, I know! Don’t make that kind of face!”

He went back to his normal self! Regaining his energy, he slapped me on my shoulder.

It was great that he understood my situation, but… My shoulder…

“Don’t worry. No matter what happens, I’ll always be your best friend!”

This was the manifestation of our bond as best friends… I felt like crying again…

“Yeah, so I heard from our club’s manager that you and Cosmos-san were looking for the last participant for the Kabuten? From the look of it, you haven’t found anyone, have you? If that’s the case, then you don’t need to worry! I knew the right person for it!”

“Really?!”

“Really!”

Now this was what I call a joyful miscalculation! Good going, manager girl! I already forgot who your name was, but good job!

“Considering the thing that happened with the article, even if you found the third person, it would only make your case worse, right? But, if it’s this person, that will never happen!”

“T-Then, who is it?”

“Hehehe…”

With a blinding smile, filled with passion and heat, Sun-chan raised his fist and pointed his thumb at…Himself…

“It’s me!”

“…You?”

“Yeaaa!”

Wait! Wait, Sun-chan!

The Kabuten was supposed to be a dance with three girls acting as partners for a boy.

But, I’ve already filled up the slot for the boy participant! What, were you telling me that you’d be participating for the girl’s slot?!

What were you doing? Did you go to Morocco during the time you haven’t appeared in the series¹I don’t understand this reference, sorry.?!

Also, if we were to take the legends involving the Kabuten into account, then there would be a chance that we’d end up dating!

No! At this rate, a JoroxSun or worse, SunxJoro doujins would be published in the summer and winter comiket! …Which pairing did I prefer? The one where I didn’t act as the uke²Uke just meant the guy who ‘received’ in a BL pairings. You know, the ‘girl’ of the relationship.— Wait, no! I preferred none of the two!

“B-But, Sun-chan, you’re a guy, no? The Kabuten…”

“Don’t worry about it! I already asked Cosmos-san about it and she told me, ‘That’ll make this year Kabuten unique, go for it!’ So, why don’t we melt the audience with our burning passion, Joro?!”

I never expected the day when I’d be doing a steamy and passionate dance with a guy would come… The world was such a wide place…

“Is he using Sun-chan as a camouflage? Or maybe he is into both genders in the first place? …Hm, interesting…”

Please stop creating another rumor behind my back, my dear misunderstanding machine.

* * *

“Alright, let’s do our best to come up with a countermeasure today!”

Lunch break. Like yesterday, I called out Himawari and Cosmos to the library.

One of the two major tasks I had to finish, looking for a participant for the Kabuten, was unexpectedly resolved. Since that was the case, all I needed to do was to clear up the misunderstandings.

And since he was involved in this, I also invited Sun-chan to join us. Normally, he ate his lunch in the cafeteria, but today, he was eating a loaf of bread that we bought together at the cafeteria.

We had to go through a lot of trouble as the place was filled with people. Not to mention that we had to avoid Asunaro along the way.

While I stopped minding her sticking close to me, I couldn’t let her do it this time.

It was because the purpose of this meeting was to look for a countermeasure against her. It would be stupid if I were to let her join, wouldn’t it?

“““…”””

Huh? I didn’t know why, but for some reason, the girls were all quiet today.

Was it something that I said?

“Joro.”

“Yes, Sun-chan?”

After he finished eating, Sun-chan rolled up the bread’s wrapping paper and called out to me.

“I think rather than worrying about the article, we should focus on the Kabuten first. Sorry, but… That article is exclusively your problem and not ours… On the other hand, if the Kabuten turns out to be a mess, the whole school will be affected by it.”

“Ugh…”

“Honestly, I thought we’d be talking about that when you invited me to come here. Sure, it was hard work trying to gather all the participants, but you know that isn’t all there is to it, right? We still have to prepare other things for the Kabuten.”

His words were right, I couldn’t even find any words to refute him. Even if I were to ignore the article, no one would actually be bothered by it.

Well, if I told them that I was attacked by the girls’ clique at class earlier today, he might change his mind about it, but there was no way I’d do that. I wouldn’t let Himawari or Sun-chan get into a fight with our classmates no matter what.

“Your problem is a tricky one and I understand that. Clearing up misunderstandings is a hard task. Especially when the other party couldn’t see anything from your perspective. Honestly, I don’t even know where to begin.”

San-chan scratched the back of his head with an apologetic look.

He said all those things about how I should be prioritizing the Kabuten, but it seemed that he cared about my problem, after all.

“Sorry, but can we put your matter aside first, Joro-kun? Um, I understand what you’re going through, but I’m honestly at a loss on what to do as well…”

“Sorry Joro, all I can do is tell everyone the truth, but I can’t really do anything more than that…”

“In my case, I’m not good at talking with people. Even if I were to try to tell them the truth, I doubt that they’ll believe me at all… Sorry…”

After that, the three girls apologized to me as well.

I guess that was why they had been keeping their mouths shut, huh?

All of them were the kinds of people who wouldn’t care about what the other people think of them.

That was why my case was something foreign to them, they didn’t know what to do when they had to face a situation like this. If this thing were to happen to any of them, they probably wouldn’t care about it in the first place.

…That was that, I guess. Let’s just put my own problem aside for now.

Besides, Sun-chan was right, there was something that was way more important than clearing up the misunderstandings.

“…Fine. Let’s talk about the Kabuten then.”

Yeah. Forget about the gloomy things and let’s have some fun instead.

“Yes. Then, let’s begin!”

Cosmos stood up, smiling as she opened up her note with a familiar gesture. She looked enthusiastic now.

“Despite its twists and turns, we finally managed to gather all the participants for the Kabuten! So, from now on, let’s put all our efforts into getting ready for the show itself! So, I’ll be telling you our schedule for today!”

I had a hard time, but as the student council president, I guess Cosmos had it worse than me. I could feel her relief through her speech.

“After school, we’ll be having dance practice until 6 pm! After that, we’re going to pick up costumes for everyone! Do any of you have plans for the time I’ve specified?”

“None.” “I don’t have any!” “Me too!”

“That’s great to hear! What about you, Pansy-san?”

“Why are you asking me? I’m not a participant.”

“I know, but since you’re here already, I want to ask your opinion for the costumes we’re going to pick up! The more input we have the better, you see!”

Seeing Cosmos saying that in an excited tone, Pansy turned her gaze at me. What a troublesome girl.

“…Should I?”

“Just do whatever you want.”

“Okay. I’ll be joining everyone then, Akino-senpai.”

Her tone still sounded indifferent, but I could tell that she was happy.

How could I tell? Because she was playing with my hand under the desk. Seriously, stop.

“As for where we should practice…”

“Prez, may I have a word?”

“Hm? What is it, Joro-kun?”

While I agreed with Sun-chan, the matter regarding the Kabuten was way more important than clearing the misunderstandings.

The article had already been published once and I’d rather avoid any unnecessary actions as much as possible.

In other words, I didn’t want Asunaro to see me with everyone while she was still keeping a close eye on me.

There would be a lot of touching involved in dancing.

And because of that, if Asunaro were to see us practice dancing, it would definitely give birth to more unnecessary misunderstandings.

So! I had a place in mind where we could avoid her eyes and other people’s eyes too! This was the matter that I wanted to tell Cosmos about!

“Why don’t we hold our practice here?”

“Here? In the library?”

“Yes. There’s a lot of space here and people don’t normally come here.”

“But, Joro-kun, the library is a place for people to read quietly. Not really a suitable place to practice, don’t you think?”

Tch, stop interrupting me with a good argument. I couldn’t even come up with something to counter that.

“But, if we were to practice here, Pansy-chan would be with us, wouldn’t she? I think it’ll be more fun if Pansy-chan were to join us!”

“I agree with Himawari! I think it would be more interesting if Pa– Sanshokuin-san were to join us!”

“That’s a good point. Since she’ll be joining us to pick the costumes anyway, it’ll be better if she were to join our practice too. Dance practice inside the library isn’t exactly a common thing to do, but it should be okay as long as we get permission beforehand.”

Oh, Himawari, Cosmos and Sun-chan agreed with me!

Normally, I wouldn’t have the chance of winning whenever I was up against Pansy, but with the power of friendship, even the demon king could be toppled!

Alright, Pansy, try to come up with something to counter our arguments!

“…”

Pansy kept her silence as everyone was staring at her.

After ten seconds had passed, she turned her gaze on me.

“Do you really want to be with me that badly, Joro-kun?”

“What?”

“You said that the library is spacious and there are only a few people that would come here, but is that all the reason why you want to practice here?”

She tilted her head, looking at me with an expectant look.

Why did she feel the need to check up on my reasoning? She knew exactly what I was thinking.

“Joro-kun, do you really want to be with me that badly?”

I could deny her words, but the current atmosphere made it hard for me to do so.

Especially when the other three were pressuring me with their gazes!

“…Yes, I do.”

“I see. It can’t be helped then. You can practice here if you like.”

Kill me…

“It’s settled then! Let’s gather here again after school! After we are done practicing, we’ll be picking up our costumes together! As for the permission to use the library, I’ll be working on it, so you don’t need to worry!”

“Okay!”

“Roger!”

Haa… With this, the rumors wouldn’t get worse for the time being. Sacrificed a bit of my mental health for it though…

* * *

After school. I crumpled a piece of paper with ‘The worst kind of scum’ written on it and threw it to the trash can. It was probably the work of the girls clique again, but it wasn’t like I could do anything other than enduring it. If I were to make a fuss here, it would only make my situation worse.

“Haah…”

“Are you going to practice for the dance today, Joro?”

As I let out an emotional sigh in front of the trash can, a certain ponytailed girl approached me with her red pen in her hands. She wore a big smile on her face.

“…Yeah.”

“So, where are you going to practice? Himawari and Sun-chan are already on their way, so I’ll be sticking with you. I don’t want to lose sight of you again like back during lunch break.”

Ugh, of course she’d mention that.

I already planned to come clean and honestly told her about it, but it felt like I was being coerced to tell her instead.

“Don’t tell anyone about this, okay?”

“Oh! The way you’re talking about it makes it sound like it’s somewhere special!”

The closer I put my mouth to her ear, the more excited she got.

“…The library.”

Her red pen twitched after hearing those words coming out from my mouth.

I wasn’t happy about this, not at all.

But I’ve decided to prioritize the Kabuten over trying to clear up her misunderstandings, so I had to put up with this for the time being.

“I see~ That’s certainly a place where you could flirt with the three girls without anyone knowing~”

“That isn’t the case. Anyway, after the practice, everyone will go together to pick up our costumes. People will end up seeing us together either way.”

“…Let me guess, Sanshokuin-san will be there too?”

“Let me tell you this. I don’t have any kind of special relationship with her. Nor do I want to start one with her.”

“If you say so, Joro, I’ll leave it at that~”

I wanted to complain, but I knew it would be useless, there was no way that I could get through that thick skull of hers.

Whatever. Let’s just hurry off to the library.

* * *

“Really? Are you sure about that, Sanshokuin-san?! Alright!”

“Yay! Now I’m looking forward to it!”

“Me too! Though, it’s useless to refuse you at this point. You’ve already decided on doing it, right?”

“Yes. Make sure to keep Joro-kun in the dark— Oh my, you’ve come.”

When Asunaro and I entered the library, the four people inside were having a suspicious conversation.

Under normal circumstances, I would definitely gun them for an explanation, but I wasn’t in the mood for it.

This demon behind me was taking all of my attention.

“Ah, Asunaro-chan is here too!”

“Yes, I’m here too! I’ll be following him closely today too! By the way, what are you guys talking about?”

With her signature red pen in her hand, Asunaro seemed to be ready to write up something for the newspaper club.

She must have smelled that something fishy was going on. She even asked them the question I wanted to ask.

“Hehehe, you won’t get anything from me that easily, Asunaro!”

“Oh, is this the famed Sun-chan’s hot-blooded defense?! This is a tough one!”

“Yes! My defense is easily Fukumoto-class³Fukumoto Yutaka, another famed baseball player in Japan.!”

He compared himself to the person who won the most Gold Glove⁴It’s an award that they give to the best fielders of the year. Fukumoto won it for 12 years in a row from 1972-1983. award, huh?

I didn’t even need to say out loud. This would be a tough challenge for you, Asunaro!

“Alright, it’s time. Can everyone change to your P.E uniforms now?”

Cosmos’ stern voice brought tension to the previously relaxed atmosphere. As expected of the student council president.

“For the girls, you can change behind the reception desk. No one will accidentally walk up on you there.”

That was unfair. We boys needed privacy too. Let us change there with you guys!

Well, if I were to say that out loud, Cosmos would definitely get mad at me again.

Anyway, looking at them together like this, I could understand how their relationship with Asunaro worked.

Despite her misunderstandings toward me, Himawari and Sun-chan were still friendly with her because they were classmates.

But, Cosmos and Pansy didn’t even try to talk to her. Maybe it was because they were in different classes, or grades in the case of Cosmos. Actually, rather than not trying to talk, they seemed to be actively avoiding each other for some reason.

In fact, Cosmos and Asunaro didn’t really talk to each other yesterday either.

The only occasion when they conversed with each other was when Cosmos was still acting like a samurai.

“Hehehe, I already wore my P.E uniform underneath my regular uniform, Joro. You don’t need to worry about me!”

Yeah, I wouldn’t worry about you at all, buddy. Didn’t know why you’d tell me that, though.

“Don’t peek at us when we’re changing, okay, Joro?”

“Hah? Why the hell would I do that? I’d never do something like that!”

“Sure, sure.”

Alright, fine. If you doubted me that much, then I’d show you how much of a gentleman I was.

“If you’re oh so afraid of me peeking at you, then Sun-chan and I will change in the nearby toilet. We’ll stay there until you guys are done, so text me or call me or whatever by then.”

“Really? That’ll be great for us, but won’t it be troublesome for you two?”

“No. It’s just common sense that men shouldn’t be in the same room with women when they’re changing.”

“Joro-kun… You understood what I was talking about the other day?”

“Of course. Let me show you the reformed Joro.”

I gave the surprised looking Cosmos a confident smile.

Yeah, I’ve reflected. The bouncy feelings on my back robbed me of my sanity the other day, but it wouldn’t happen again.

I had no intention to show that kind of disgrace ever again.

“Since I’m still keeping a close eye on you, Joro, should I…”

“You can come, just don’t peek at us.”

“O-Of course I won’t do that!”

Ignoring Asunaro, who was trying to deny my words with a red face, we left the library.

“Alright, I’m going in.”

“Go ahead! I’ll make sure Asunaro can’t come in!”

“I told you I won’t do it!”

I entered the men’s toilet alone, leaving Sun-chan, who spreaded his arms wide to prevent Asunaro, whose Tsugaru accent came out again because she was flustered.

“Phew… Finally… Hehehehe…”

Inside, I looked at the mirror.

There was an ugly bastard in the mirror.

Oi, oi, who the hell was this guy? He looked hideous as hell. Whatever.

…In any case, I was currently inside the men’s toilet, far away from the library.

The girls should be changing right now, thinking that I wouldn’t be able to peek at them.

But, that wasn’t the case!

They forgot about one thing, the most powerful privilege ever given to a teenage boy like me!

Yes, the power of delusion!

For all of you who failed to understand what I was trying to say, let me explain!

You see, my delusion was a little bit special for I had the power of God on my side!

It would be easier for me to demonstrate.

Dear God (Illustrator), the ruler of our world! Dear God (Buriki⁵Buriki is the series illustrator, btw.)! Give me your strength!

THANK YOU VERY MUCH! FROM THE DEPTH OF MY HEART, THANK YOU VERY MUCH!

He even added Pansy into the image even though he didn’t need to. THANK YOU VERY MUUUCH!

* * *

“Heya, welcome back. Hm? You look like you’re in a good mood, Joro-kun.”

Ah, you could tell? Yes, thanks to the illustrator I got into this good mood. All hail Illustrator-sama!

“Really? I don’t feel different than usual though.”

Of course I wouldn’t tell her. She’d make me kneel down again if I were to do it.

“That so? Well, whatever. Now that we’ve all dressed up, let’s begin our practice! Since everyone is an amateur, let’s start with the standard waltz!”

Yeah, since we were all amateurs, there was only so much that we could do.

“I’ve prepared a video of last year’s Kabuten, so let’s try to use it as a reference!”

Alright, time for the dance practice! Time to farm some accidental touching here and there! Let’s go!

“So, Himawari and I will dance as a pair today! Joro-kun, you’ll go with Sun-chan!”

…Oh, so we’d be going with that, huh? My hopes and dreams were crushed before I realized it.

“Joro-kun, keep in mind that Asunaro is still here. I’m trying to be considerate of your situation here.”

Sorry! And thank you very much! But still, you coming closer to me and whispering all this to me would make her misunderstand!

“It seems like there’s something deeper between Joro and Prez’s relationship…”

See?! I knew it!

“Are you ready, Joro? Un deux trois It’s the key to dancing! Un deux trois⁶The ‘un deux’ is actually written in kanji, probably it’s a reference to someone’s name, but I don’t know who it is. Since it’s Sun-chan speaking, and the kanji fits, it’s probably referred to another baseball player’s name, Ando Yuya..”

Sun-chan, there was no way that someone who sounded like a second generation Japanese American would be a key to dancing.

…Anyway, I shouldn’t fret too much. I couldn’t get touchy touchy today, but there was always tomorrow.

When that time came, hehehe… Hm? For some reason, Pansy was staring at me.

“Joro-kun.”

“What?”

Her voice sounded emotionless, but it was colder than usual.

“If you were to try to do something weird to Hinata-san or Akino-senpai tomorrow, I’ll make Stinger-kun stab you.”

“Huh? Stab⁷Stab and Starbucks sounds kinda the same in Japanglish.? The coffee shop?”

“Oh c’mon, Joro-kun, you know that wasn’t what I was talking about when I said stab.”

“Then what is it?”

When I tilted my head in confusion, she pulled out a certain novel from Dengeki Bunko. Sword Art Online by Kawahara Reki.

C-Could it be…!

“By stab I meant Starburst Stream⁸If you’ve never read/watched Sword Art Online, it’s Kirito’s signature move. Also, again, a pun since starbuck and starburst sound similar..”

…Okay, let’s try to avoid as much physical contact as possible tomorrow.

The image of Stinger-kun wielding two horns and executing 16 slashes in a row sounded terrifying, but it sounded awesome at the same time.

* * *

My first day of practice was mostly just me and Sun-chan, passionately dancing, hand in hand.

As expected of the ace of the baseball club, with his outstanding motoric nerve, he mastered the movements necessary for the dance with ease. Himawari, as the ace of the tennis club, was also the same. Even with my untrained eyes, I could see her movements got better and better in real time. As for Cosmos, well, she was easily the best dancer in the room. She probably got some practice on her own before coming here… Huh? That meant, the worst dancer in the room would be…

Well, that wasn’t right. Comparing ourselves to each other wasn’t the goal here. We were supposed to be a team!

That was why, pointing your fingers at someone and accusing them for holding the rest of the team back wasn’t the right thing to do!

No, I wasn’t acting like this because a certain librarian told me that my movements were ugly or anything like that!

In any case, after we were done practicing, we left the school and went to pick up our costumes as planned.

“Woah! Amazing, amazing!”

As we arrived at the supply store, Himawari started frolicking around in excitement.

With her eyes sparkling, she ran around the store, looking at various dresses available.

“I’m going to ask the staff to see if we can try them out.”

Cosmos pretended to be calm by opening her note, but I could see her eyes checking through the various dresses as she made her way to where the staff was.

I guess her pride as the student council president kept her girly mode at bay.

“When it comes to dresses that fit me, red dresses should do the trick! Red is the color of bravery! What do you think, Joro?”

Wait, Sun-chan, were you planning to wear a dress for the event?

“Can’t wait to see what kind of dress you guys will choose! This will make a good topic!”

Asunaro, who was still following me around, said so excitedly.

Since she was also writing an article for the Kabuten, I guess it made sense that she’d be excited for this outing.

“…”

I turned my gaze to Pansy, who seemed to be staring at a certain dress.

It was a dark blue dress with floral patterns on it. The design was close to that of traditional Japanese dresses.

Gotta say, it would suit her if she were to wear it with her true appearance.

“Why don’t you try wearing it, Pansy?”

“I’m good.”

The moment I called out to her, she turned around and walked deeper into the store with hurried steps.

What was wrong with her? I just called out to her, why was she acting like this?

“Everyone~ I got the permission, so you guys can try on the dresses now! C’mon, quickly!”

I guess Cosmos had reached her limit.

As she called out to us, she was already holding three different dresses in her hands. She couldn’t hold back her girly mode anymore and had already broken off her serious persona.

“This one lacks passion… This one isn’t intense enough… Hmm… This one? Nah, it doesn’t look as fiery as I want it to be… Oh, this one! This one got the soul!”

Sun-chan, I don’t think that was the right way to pick your dress…

Whatever, let’s focus on mine. Now, which one should I get? This one or that one?

* * *

In the end, Himawari and Cosmos picked up my tailcoat for me.

And so, it fell into my hands to judge the dresses that the three of them would be wearing. Personally, I wanted their dresses to show as much skin as possible (for the girls only), but I wouldn’t hold out much hope for that to happen considering their personalities.

“What do you think of this, Joro? Does it look good on me?”

The first person I had to judge was Himawari.

She came out of the fitting room twirling and jumping up and down in a good mood.

The dress that she picked was a mature-looking one. Design-wise, it was a nice dress.

However, if I were to answer her question, then the answer would be no.

She was too childish looking for the dress.

But, if I were to say that to her, she’d definitely get mad at me, so, I’d settle with praising her instead.

“Huh, it looks good.”

“Ehehe, thank you! I’ll wear the next one then!”

As long as she was happy with it.

“What do you think of this dress, Joro-kun? I like it…”

This time, it was Cosmos who came out of the fitting room. There was an embarrassed smile on her face.

It was adorable.

The dress that she picked was a slightly childish looking one. Design-wise, it was a nice dress.

However, if I were to answer her question, then the answer would be no.

She looked way too mature for the dress.

But, if I were to say that to her, she’d definitely get mad at me, so, I’d settle with praising her instead.

“Huh, it looks good.”

“R-Really?! Hehehe, t-then, I’ll try out the next dress!”

Great, she seemed happy. So far, I haven’t made any wrong choices.

“Joro! I feel all tingly! Is this what youth feels like?!”

Next, Sun-chan came out, wearing the largest-sized dress in the store.

It was amazing. Despite his thin frame, his body was filled with muscle and thanks to his height, the dress was tightly fitted to his body.

I wouldn’t be surprised if it were to rip out at any moment.

Well, it wasn’t like he could get a bigger sized dress here, so I decided to compliment him properly.

“Huh, it looks strange.”

“Hehehe! I’m happy that you think so! I’ll try out the next dress!”

Eh? The next dress? They had more in stock? Wouldn’t it be better to stop here? The staff would get mad at us, you know?

“What do you think, Joro-kun? Does it look good on me?”

While I was waiting for the three of them to come out with the new dresses, Pansy came up to me.

She was wearing a flower hairpin on her head. A Pansy, just like her name.

“Don’t care.”

“…What a bully. I’ll try out the next one.”

No, I’d still answer the same way even if you were to wear another one. I really couldn’t care less about you right now.

“Ugh, it’s pouring out there.”

While I was waiting for the three of them to come out with the new dresses, I noticed that it was raining heavily outside.

The sky looked uncooperative before we got here, so I suspected that this would happen. And my suspicion came true.

“You didn’t bring an umbrella with you, Joro? The weather report said that it would be raining today.”

“Nope, I didn’t see the weather report.”

“I see~ You purposely didn’t bring your umbrella so that you could go home with someone~”

“Stop making it sound like I’m planning every move I made.”

“Hahaha, just kidding! Alright, as an apology, why don’t we go home together? We can use my umbrella!”

Asunaro pulled out a yellow-green folding umbrella from her bag.

“It’s fine, you should go with the others instead. Like, I’m sure Himawari also forgot her umbrella. You should go with her.”

“You’re as kind as ever, Joro. Oh, by the way, can I ask you something?”

“What is it?”

“You never gave proper answers to them when they showed their dresses, didn’t you?”

“…You could tell?”

Well, there was no need for me to deny it.

It would be more convenient if she were to think that I didn’t have any interest in the dresses the girls were wearing.

“Yeah. Your voice is a pitch lower than usual. So, why did you do that? I think all their dresses suited them well.”

“Huh, really? I don’t think so at all. Himawari’s dress looked too mature for her and Cosmos’ dress looked too childish for her. I think it’s better if they were to exchange their dresses.”

“Hmm… I guess I can see where you’re coming from.”

“Right? There’s no way my judgment could be wrong! They should exchange their dresses, it won’t work on them otherwise!”

“I see. By the way, Joro…”

When I was talking about the dresses, Asunaro suddenly changed her expression, from a frown into a wide smile.

“Hm? What’s wrong?”

“Well, I think you’re kinda in a bad position now.”

Huh? Why did she say that? I mean, yeah, I was in a bad position because the girls’ clique wouldn’t leave me alone, but I doubted that she was talking about that particular problem…

“Joro.” “Joro-kun.”

Ah, now I know what she was talking about.

Two eerily disturbing voices came from behind me. Scary. Should I just run away now?

“U-Um, Asunaro, can I ask you something?”

“Yes! What is it?”

What an angelic smile. Could you use that angelic smile to vanquish the evil behind me?

“Can you tell me what’s going on behind me right now?”

“Sure~ How do I describe this situation, though? …Hm… I guess Apocalypse is a fitting term to describe it!”

Her bright voice brought me even a deeper despair than what I had already felt. As I was trembling in terror, a certain braided girl came up to me with a hairpin in hand, completely disregarding her surroundings.

“Can you give me a proper answer for me too, Joro-kun? What do you think of this hairpin? Does it suit me?”

If I were to do that, could you do something about those two bringers of apocalypse behind me?

Ah, it was too late for that. They had already grabbed me by the shoulders.

All hope had been lost. It was all over for me.

“Why don’t you tell us your true thoughts about our dresses, Joro-kun? You can take your time, no pressure at all. Don’t worry, I won’t do anything to you regardless of your answer. Just be honest with me, okay?”

“Lying is bad, Joro~ Nothing is going to happen to you if you’re honest, you know~?”

Long time no see, Dark Cosmos, Black Himawari.

“Hm… So you won’t accept them wearing dresses that don’t suit your taste, huh, Joro? That means you are a possessive person! But, trying to make all three of them cater to your tastes is a bit much, don’t you think?”

Her misunderstanding grew worse even when I didn’t even do anything.

The world was such a cruel place, huh?

* * *

After getting scolded by Dark Cosmos and Black Himawari, I walked home totally drenched.

‘It’s raining outside, we’ll all get wet if we were to go home like this. So, I want you to go to the convenience store and buy us umbrellas. Don’t worry about the money, I’ll pay for them.’

That was what Dark Cosmos said to me. I didn’t have the guts to go against her order, so I immediately went to the convenience store in the middle of the rain and bought the umbrellas for everyone.

I didn’t go alone. Sun-chan volunteered to come with me, screaming ‘I will evaporate the rain with my burning spirit!’ as he ran beside me.

I almost cried. He was such a good friend.

But, as soon as we arrived at the convenience store, he suddenly told me, ‘My Pandora’s box is about to open!’ and disappeared into the toilet for more than half an hour.

On top of that, Asunaro was also following me. She was the only one among us three with an umbrella. ‘It’s hard to get both of you under one umbrella at once, so I won’t give a special treatment to either of you!’ She said to us.

I understood that she was doing her job earnestly, but I’d rather her to spare me from all the teasing.

Anyway, while waiting for Sun-chan, I had to endure gazes from the convenience store’s staff. They really didn’t want me to be there because I was completely wet. Then there was also Asunaro, whose misunderstanding somehow grew worse despite me not doing anything. At that point, I became sick of everything.

“I’m home.”

Exhausted, both physically and mentally, I said my greeting after opening the front door to my house. But, I didn’t hear any replies coming from inside.

Mom was out I guess.

Let’s just go to the bathroom first. Didn’t want to go to my room while soaking wet, after all.

As I walked, I recounted everything that happened in the past few days.

And I realized how miserable my life had been…

Just when I thought that I had finally made up with Sun-chan, Himawari and Cosmos, I had to deal with the three-timing accusation against me.

I tried to clear up Asunaro’s misunderstandings toward my situation, but it just grew worse and worse.

Then, the article filled with allegation somehow got published, the girls’ clique was up on my ass and I almost lost my position in class.

The worse thing was if I couldn’t clear up Asunaro’s misunderstandings in time, this three-timing accusation would spread to the other schools as well.

I only had two weeks left. Would I be able to do this…?

Fuck! Why was it me who had to suffer through this shit?!

Why can’t anyone be nice to me once in a while?!

“Ah, I wonder if there is a good girl somewhere out there? A girl who is unconditionally kind to me and will do her best for me. I don’t care if her personality is a little harsh, but I want to meet a girl like that!”

As soon as I said that, I heard the front door opening, so I looked over to see…

“…Huh?”

My whole body froze.

Huh? Was this really happening? I wasn’t dreaming, was I?

“Um, sorry? Who are you?”

As our front door was opened, a beautiful woman emerged from behind it.

An unfamiliar woman whose beauty was unmatched.

Her long, straight hair was stretched to her chest. Long eyelashes that looked captivating without any kind of makeup. She had an amazing looking figure that was more pronounced because of her drenched clothes. Ample-sized chest and thin waist. The woman pulled the hem of her skirt and squeezed it, creating a picturesque scene.

If I could use a single word to describe her, it would be ‘angelic.’ She was like the embodiment of love and compassion. And that kind of beauty was here, in my house.

Was she a college student? Why was she in my house?

“Phew… I shoulda brought an umbrella. I’m drenched already…”

“U-Um, a-are you okay?”

W-Well, I didn’t know who she was, b-but it would be better for me to let her in, right? It wasn’t like I could let her stay outside in this heavy rain…

“Uh… I’m fine, but… Is there something wrong?”

When I called out to her, she gave me a suspicious look.

She asked me if there was something wrong… Maybe she somehow went into the wrong house?

Did I forget to lock the door?

“Uh, why don’t you take a bath first? Your clothes are all wet…”

“What are you talking about? You’re drenched all over too. You should take a bath first before me.”

Woah, what a kind woman! But, as a man, I couldn’t just yield like that!

Look, since it was a chance encounter, wouldn’t it be embarrassing for her if she were to realize that she entered the wrong house and left while I was taking a bath? That was why I should let her take a bath first, lend her my clothes then we’ll go from there!

“No, no, ladies’ first.”

“No, really. You should go first.”

“Ladies’ first.”

“What’s wrong with you? You’ve been acting strangely since earlier… Oh, is this how is it? You want to come in together with me?”

Heavens above! A big reward out of nowhere! But, wasn’t this too early for such things?

An angel suddenly descended upon me, then she invited me to take a bath together! It was like something that could come up in an eroge!

“I-Is that okay?”

“Of course! There’s nothing to be embarrassed about!”

Such a generous person! To bestow this kind of honor to someone like me!

Well, if she went that far, what kind of choice did I have? This Kisaragi Amatsuyu would graciously—

“All things considered, you’re still my cute little child!”

…Uh, what did she just say?

I was her child?

The person in front of me was a ridiculously pretty woman with straight hair that reached her bountiful chest, had well-groomed eyelashes and a perfect figure.

Meanwhile my mom, Kisaragi Keiki, was a disappointing housewife with perm hair and always wore heavy makeup.

“C’mon, hurry up, get in! If we dawdle, both of us will catch a cold!”

I tried to listen to her voice again. This high-pitched, high-tensioned voice…

The woman pronounced certain syllables the same way my mom did.

Could it be that she was actually my mom?! The woman who obsessed over idols, my mom?!

No way that was the case! She must be an imposter! How dare she! Bring back my mom immediately!

“C’mon, hurry up! Laurier is cold!”

She was actually my mom! There was no way a normal person would refer to herself with her own nickname!

T-This reminded me of something.

Back when I was still in grade school, I asked my dad, ‘Why does mom never go with us whenever we go to the pool or the beach?’ His answer back then was, ‘Because she’s too pretty…’

I never knew that she would be this pretty! She always styled her hair with a hairdryer immediately after bathing and before walking out of the bathroom!

So this was how she looked when she took off her heavy makeup and dropped off her perms!

Dad was right, she was damn pretty!

How the hell did I not realize it after living with her for 16 years?!

“W-Wait a second, Mom!”

“Hm? What is it, Amatsuyu?”

Stop tilting your head sideways like that! Were you trying to flirt with your own child?!

“Y-You know what, Mom? You should take your bath alone! I’ll just go to my room and dry my body with a towel!”

“Eh? C’mon, don’t worry about it! Let’s just go in together, that’s less of a hassle, no?”

That wasn’t the point!

“C’mon, take your clothes off~”

“Hiii!”

She put her hands on my clothes while giggling. I immediately ran away.

“Ah, Amatsuyu! Wait for me!”

I ran up the stairs, entered my room and locked the door. I didn’t bring any towels with me. My whole body shivered.

Not from cold but from fear…

Today I learned, some truths would be better left buried on the ground.

* * *

More time passed and the time for the Hyakka Festival drew near. One more week until D-Day.

Honestly, my current situation was really bad. No matter how much I tried to avoid the romcom cliches, Asunaro always had a way to misunderstand my situation because I had a lot of opportunities to be with the three girls.

And there was nothing I could do to stop her from writing down every single little thing that she found.

At this rate, she’d publish that article on the festival and my life would be ruined again.

I had managed to prevent myself from getting completely isolated in class, but time was running out. I needed a way to clear my name…

“So, I’ll be in your care again today, Joro!”

Asunaro came over to my seat. Her ponytail swung around as she walked.

This girl had been sticking even closer to me lately.

Aside from lunch break, she always followed me around everywhere.

She didn’t do it just to keep an eye on me, though.

“Asunaro. You really need to be more careful. Joro is—”

“Don’t worry! I’ve been with him all the time lately and he hasn’t done anything to me!”

Asunaro said that with a smile as a response to the girl who was always unnecessarily hostile to me, Girl A.

She had been protecting me from the girl clique’s assault by staying with me at all times.

After that incident when they openly attacked me, Asunaro came to me and said, ‘Since it was my fault that the article got leaked, I’ll protect you so you won’t get harassed by anyone!’ And she did just that.

However, in the end, if I was unable to clear up her misunderstanding, I would be screwed either way. That was why, if you were to ask me whether her actions benefited me or not, well, it did, but the drawback was slightly bigger…

In any case, it was thanks to her that I didn’t get isolated from the rest of the class for the time being.

Gotta say though, despite all the troubles she brought me, she was a good girl.

I didn’t mind her presence and if we could clear up her misunderstandings before the festival could begin, I wouldn’t hold a grudge on her.

Though the problem remained. How exactly could I do that?

* * *

Lunch break. I left Asunaro behind and went to the library like usual, where the usual gang was already waiting for me.

At one point, Himawari, Cosmos and Sun-chan started hanging out in the library during the lunch break.

Before I knew it, this turned into a new routine for all of us. Even when we hadn’t planned on doing anything, they still stopped by to hang out.

Inside the reading area. I was in the middle seat, Sun-chan sat on my left and Pansy on my right. Himawari and Cosmos sat in front of us. That was our usual sitting position and we took on the same position again today.

“Heya, Joro-kun. You’re late. Did something happen?”

“I just managed to throw off Asunaro.”

“I see. So, um… Are you okay? I heard a lot of bad rumors going on about you…”

“Well, not really… But, I’ll manage somehow, so don’t worry…”

“…I see”

Ah, I guess my answer didn’t ease her worry. She started writing on her note again.

“…U-Um… A-Ah, Pansy-chan! What sweets did you make today?”

“Well, Hinata-san, I made something interesting today… This…”

Those two… I guess they realized the atmosphere became heavy, so they changed the subject.

I felt a little guilty for that.

“Um… Are those waffles? And fried chickens?”

“Yes. I also put maple syrup on top of them.”

“Huh? Huuh?!”

“T-That’s… Something interesting alright…”

Himawari and Cosmos looked surprised seeing the amount of maple syrup Pansy poured onto that thing.

I understood their feelings. That was my exact reaction after seeing this abomination too.

Like, what was she thinking? Waffles, fried chickens and maple syrups? Could you even eat those three together?

“D-Does it taste good?”

“Of course. Right, Joro-kun?”

“Yeah. Just try it, Himawari. You too, Prez, don’t be shy.”

“T-Then, I’ll eat some…”

“M-Me too…”

Both of them took a bite of that waffle fried chicken thing. It was a slow, modest bite. But then…

“Woah, amazing!”

“This is?! I can’t believe it! It tastes so good!”

“I can’t really make a good fried chicken, so I bought them instead. If you were the one who made them instead, Akino-senpai, I bet it would taste even tastier.”

“Then, next time I’ll make some for you! Just leave it to me!”

The five of us grew even closer than before.

Everyone was enjoying themselves, every day we ate Pansy’s snacks and Cosmos’ food. Himawari and Sun-chan would livened up the atmosphere and we were all having fun.

We went through a lot, but if the result of our hardships was this, then all was well for me.

I started to feel that even if I couldn’t clear up Asunaro’s misunderstandings and that article ended up getting published, as long as I could stay together with those guys, I would still be content with my life.

Regarding the practice for the Kabuten, things had been going well and everyone had improved considerably. As long as we could continue with our practice, the Kabuten would eventually be a big success for us.

The only thing that concerned me was that Sun-chan was still a little awkward around Pansy. He was the only one who had never touched her sweets. But, I believe in him. He’ll figure this out soon enough.

After we finished eating, we continued to talk.

“So, Joro! Recently, I’ve been practicing to do more forkballs! I’ve always thought that making my straight balls better is the way to go, but I’m starting to think that I should add more curve balls as well!”

“Really? How is it going for you?”

“It isn’t as good as I want it to be yet, but with more practice, I should be able to nail it!”

He had been practicing hard, huh? I guess he wanted to make up for last year’s loss. In that game, he had only thrown straight balls throughout the match.

“Do you have a good book that you recommend, Pansy-chan? I want a fun and thrilling book to read!”

“In fact, I do. Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment. The story is quite long, but if it’s the thrill that you want, this is the book for you. We have it in our library actually. Do you want to borrow it?”

“Yes, I do! Thank you, Pansy!”

Himawari… You couldn’t even last for thirty minutes whenever you read a normal book. You sure you wanted to read that one…?

…Whatever, that wasn’t my business. Anyway, there was one thing that I wanted to tell those guys. It had something to do with our dance practice.

Gotta tell Cosmos about it first, though.

“Prez, later when we practice, why don’t we go all the way through the full dance? We pretty much nailed the basic already, it was time for us to practice for the real—”

“Ah, regarding that, I have a proposal to make.”

Huh? For some reason, she cut my words off.

“What is it?”

“I want us to stop practicing together for the time being.”

“Huh?!”

I stood up in surprise. What the hell was wrong with her? Why would she propose something like that?!

“Sorry, Joro. You see, I think I have to agree with her…”

“Me too. Sorry, Joro…”

“O-Oi, wait a minute! What is this all about?!”

Himawari and Sun-chan agreed to her proposal?!

But, if we didn’t practice, we would have less time together!

Also, it would affect our performance during the show…

“I’ll explain everything properly Joro-kun, so calm down.”

“…Fine.”

“Lately, I’ve been only focusing on practicing for the Kabuten. Thanks to that my work on the student council started piling up. Our dancing has become more stable, so we shouldn’t have any problems during the real performance, that’s why I think it’s time for me to focus on my work. Of course, I’ll still be practicing in my free time. I just want us to stop practicing together after school, that’s all.”

Okay, I get it. She was busy and she couldn’t attend our practice anymore.

But, why did she feel the need to make the whole group stop practicing together?

Even if she couldn’t attend, Himawari and Sun-chan—

“As for me, I have to help the tennis club for their exhibition at the festival. I already told Cosmos-san about this…”

“Me too, gotta help the folks at the baseball club. I can’t just leave them alone, you know? I’ve told Cosmos-san too.”

That meant Cosmos’ decision to stop our practice was unanimously agreed on by everyone but me?

But still, they should know that there was only a week left before the Kabuten! Why couldn’t they prioritize it first?

…Well, whatever complaints that I had, it was too late to say it.

“…That’s all. Also, I won’t be coming to the library starting tomorrow. That meant, I won’t be here on lunch break either.”

“What?!”

When it rains, it pours. After stopping the practice, now she said she won’t be coming here anymore?

Then, that meant this was the last day that the five of us would be hanging out here together?

“But why—”

“Asunaro-san.”

Asunaro?

Well, yeah she was a problem. I still needed to clear up her misunderstandings, but I’ll make sure she wouldn’t bother us during lunch breaks!

“You’ve been eating your lunch here to run away from her, haven’t you? Lately, you look so worn out lately. She’s probably the reason why.”

“No, that’s not it, you don’t need to worry about that…”

“No, I can’t just not worry about that, Joro-kun. Your situation is far worse than I imagined. At first, I thought that even if that article is published right now, as long as we could explain the truth to everyone, they’ll accept it without any problem. But, I’ve tried it. I tried to clear up all the rumors about you, but it just didn’t work out. No one believed me. And I’m partly to blame for this. If only I took your problem seriously in the beginning instead of downplaying it like what I did, this kind of thing wouldn’t happen… Sorry…”

“I-It’s fine! Seriously, you don’t need to worry about me! As long as we are together—”

“No. If we are together and that article ends up getting published, your situation will turn even worse than last time… I already caused you so much pain once and I don’t want to do the same thing twice.”

After hearing Cosmos saying those words, Himawari and Sun-chan’s expressions turned dark.

Oh, c’mon! That matter was done! There was no need to bring it up again!

Besides, as long as I was with you all, I didn’t care if the other students in the school ended up hating me!

“That’s why we should limit our contact with each other. Let’s do the thing that you first brought up. We should stop interacting with each other and make the rumor stop once and for all.”

Indeed I was the one who brought that up. I said to only interact with each other when it was necessary.

That would be the quickest way to clear up the misunderstanding.

They rejected the idea back then and now Cosmos said that she was going to accept it.

Logically speaking, this was the correct action to take. It was the easiest way to make Asunaro rethink publishing her article, by proving to her that we didn’t have any kind of special relationship whatsoever.

That was why this should be pleasant news for me, but… I couldn’t feel any kind of happiness from hearing this…

“I’ll try to put up with it for a while! Don’t worry, I won’t come here during the lunch break too! I won’t try to talk with you, Joro!”

“Me too. Well, I don’t know if this will work or not, but I want to clear things up with the folks over at the baseball club at least!”

Even Himawari and Cosmos decided to stop coming to the library for lunch…

To stop talking with them… That meant we were going to go back to the time when we hadn’t made up with each other…

After all the things we had been through! Now we went back to square one?!

“That’s everything I have to say. I know it’s a little early to leave, but I still have work to do, so I’ll be leaving first.”

“Me too! I have to help the tennis club!”

“Same here with the folks at the baseball club.”

Ignoring my stunned state, the three of them left the library.

Just like that? So you guys didn’t have anything else to say to me?

And here I thought that we were friends… Fuck you guys…

In the end those three left without me being able to say anything to them.

“So, what are you going to do, Joro-kun?”

After those three left, it was only Pansy and I inside the library.

How could this girl be so calm about this whole thing?

Honestly, it was shocking… Maybe she just didn’t care? That was the extent of her relationship with those three, I guess.

“Given what Akino-senpai said, it should be better for you if you don’t come here for a while, Joro-kun. There’s the matter of our promise, but don’t worry, I won’t make a fuss about it. Clearing up the misunderstanding takes priority, right?”

…Heh, I guess that would spare me the trouble of interacting with you.

That was convenient for me then. Honestly, I only came here because there was always a slight chance to see her true appearance, but since it was only a slight chance, then, there was really no reason for me to come here anymore.

And since she’d never lie to me. Since she said that she wouldn’t get angry, then she really wouldn’t get angry.

“Don’t worry about me. I’ve always been spending my time alone, so this just means I’ll be back to my usual routine. That’s why, think what’s the best for you, Joro-kun. Akino-senpai said so, didn’t she? This is only temporary.”

“Right… I guess you have a point…”

But, I could tell… From her words… She felt lonely and… Sad…

It was amazing that she could say all those words indifferently despite that.

“…So, what are you going to do, Joro-kun?”

“I won’t do anything special. I’ll come here like usual.”

“I see. You started to understand me a little then. I’m happy.”

That was why you shoulda told me what you wanted from the start. Seriously, you were a major pain in the ass, you know that?

* * *

After school. Himawari and Sun-chan left the classroom to go to their clubs. Already wearing my P.E uniform, I stood up from my seat, preparing to practice again.

Of course, I had to deal with Asunaro today too. Honestly, I was sick of this already…

“Alright, I’ll be in your care today too, Jo—”

“Excuse me, is Asunaro-san here?”

Suddenly, a dignified voice echoed through the classroom.

“Huh? President…?”

Cosmos’ sudden visit surprised not only Asunaro, but the other classmates remained in class too. Guess they never expected that the student council president herself would suddenly appear in our class.

“Can I have your time for a minute?”

However, Cosmos disregarded all the stares directed at her and came straight to Asunaro.

Her usual note was in her hand and her eyes looked serious, thus creating a tense atmosphere through the classroom.

“Sure, but… I have to keep an eye on Joro, so…”

“I see. Then, I’ll make it quick. From now on, I’ll be busy with student council work. Himawari and Sun-chan will be busy with their clubs too, so there will be no more practice for the Kabuten. I just thought that I should let you know about that.”

She said those words to Asunaro without even taking a glance at me.

It seemed like she really intended to keep her words…

“I see! But, why are you telling me, though?”

Cosmos probably wanted to convey that, ‘Since there won’t be any more practice, you don’t need to keep an eye on him anymore.’ Asunaro should have gotten the message already, but she was playing the fool for some reason.

“Oh my, that’s surprising. I thought you would understand the reason why without me needing to spell it out for you.”

“Sorry, it seems like you have to spell it out for me.”

“I’m just helping you so you won’t accidentally publish the wrong article again.”

“I won’t be making that kind of mistake ever again, so you don’t need to worry about that.”

Amazing. Those two were smiling, but their eyes weren’t.

I swear I could see some sparks flying between their eyes.

Cosmos was doing this so that Asunaro could stay away from me.

Meanwhile Asunaro was doing this so that Cosmos would slip up and call out my name.

“Is that all? If that’s the case, I’ll be collecting materials for an article for the Hyakka Festival with Joro—”

“Oh, the Hyakka Festival? That’s a good topic to cover. I heard that the newspaper club will be publishing a special article for it, right? Since there will be no more practice for the Kabuten, why don’t you look for your materials elsewhere?”

“You don’t need to worry about that! The other club members have already compiled the necessary materials for the special articles. That’s why I’m free to collect the materials I need for my own special article!”

The battle heated up. Neither side was giving up.

I always thought that Asunaro was a brave girl for her size, but I never woulda expected that she dared to take on Cosmos as well…

“But you—”

“By the way, Prez. Is there a reason why you’re acting like this? I think it’ll make a good topic for my article if you care to share what’s in your mind.”

“Ugh.”

But Asunaro’s words made Cosmos stop in her tracks.

The reason why Cosmos confronted Asunaro directly like this was because she wanted to make her stay away from me.

However, just by doing that, Cosmos had already earned suspicion from her.

She was one of her targets. No matter how subtle her attempt to make Asunaro leave me alone was, she’d be bound to misunderstand the situation somehow.

“…I guess you’re right.”

No way. Cosmos lost. To Asunaro.

This girl just made the famed student council president herself backed down.

“However, let me tell you one thing. Earlier today, when I was checking the progress of each club regarding their activity for the Hyakka Festival, I saw reports of some clubs working on their projects overtime without any authorization from the council.”

“I don’t think the newspaper club has a problem like that. As far as I know at least…”

By stating her schedule, Cosmos implied to Asunaro that we hadn’t been hanging out together today.

“That’s all. Sorry for taking your time.”

After saying that, Cosmos turned around and left our class.

She didn’t call out to me, or even make eye contact with me.

“…Alright, why don’t we go now?”

“You know what, Joro? I guess I can’t go with you today!”

I urged Asunaro to go out because I didn’t want to stay in the classroom anymore, but unexpected words came out of her mouth.

She wouldn’t go with me today. So, did she change her mind? Had her misunderstandings already been cleared up?

“Since the President is checking on each club’s progress for the festival, that means I have to explain to her about other articles that I’m working on! Oh, I’ll still be following tomorrow, so I’ll still be in your care!”

What the hell, what a killjoy…

So she was only letting me go for today and she’ll be sticking with me again tomorrow?

Whatever, let’s just— Huh, a text? From Cosmos?

[Sorry. I wanted to make her stop following you around somehow, but I only added fuel to the fire, didn’t I?]

[It’s okay. Thank you for your efforts.]

Well, it was thanks to her that Asunaro wouldn’t be following me around today.

Thank you, Cosmos. Your efforts didn’t go to waste.

* * *

When I entered the library, Pansy was already there, reading a book alone at the reception desk.

She was as expressionless as ever, but I could tell that she was in a better mood than usual.

It was kinda obvious from the way she fiddled with her braids after she saw me.

But, I didn’t talk to her. Instead, I walked to the back of the library and turned on the radio cassette that Cosmos placed there and started practicing alone.

Then, Pansy came over and sat down in a nearby chair.

Yo. Ho. Haah! …Hm… I couldn’t tell if my movements were getting better or not.

I’ve always had someone to practice with, so when I had to dance by myself like this, I couldn’t really tell… Ah, right.

“Pansy.”

“Yes?”

Mhm. She’d probably reject me, but it wouldn’t hurt to try.

“Are you free right now?”

“Well, I’m not exactly busy.”

She closed the book she was reading and stared at me expectantly.

It seemed like she already knew what I wanted to say.

Honesty, it felt a little frustrating, but whatever.

“If that’s the case, do you mind helping me practice?”

“…Why?”

I could hear a slight change in her tone as she asked that.

That meant she already knew the answer to her question… I swear, this girl…

“You have to pair up with someone in the Kabuten Dance. That’s why it won’t be a practice unless I’m with someone else.”

She didn’t seem to be the most athletic girl around, but it was better than nothing.

“I’m not that good at moving my body around. I’ve never danced in my whole life.”

“I never expected you to be good at it either. Don’t worry about it, I’ll teach you all the basics that you need to know.”

“…”

For the next ten seconds or so, she fiddled with her braids without saying anything. I’ve been hanging out with her a lot lately. From the way she was staring at me, I already knew what she wanted from me.

To put it shortly, she wanted me to convince her more.

Seriously, what a pain! I just wanted a partner to practice with, why the hell did I need to put up with this kind of thing?!

Fine, if that was what you wanted, fine!

“…Also, I want to dance together with you.”

“It can’t be helped then. I’ll help you.”

After saying that, she stood up and grabbed my hands.

Oh, my poor mental health… You didn’t deserve to go through all that…

“Alright, let’s get started then.”

“I’ll do my best.”

I’d really rather dance with either Himawari or Cosmos.

Why was I stuck dancing with this not pretty girl?

Well, I knew that she was actually really pretty, but you know…

“This is hard.”

We already established that she wasn’t the most athletic girl around, but she was even worse than I expected.

She kept her calm demeanor, but her movements were even more shaky than me back when I first started.

“You suck.”

“You should actually try to teach me before complaining.”

“Good luck.”

“Thank you, but unless you give me more specific instructions, I won’t get better.”

I could feel the softness of her body whenever our bodies came into contact from time to time, along with the sweet scent that emanated from her.

Now, if only she could do something about her appearance…

Should I just close my eyes and use my imagination instead? No, that was a bad idea.

If I were actually a good dancer, I could just do that, but I wasn’t. Pansy might get hurt if I were to do that.

Let’s just give up and practice seriously.

“What do you think of that, Joro-kun? I did well, didn’t I?”

Pansy was in a good mood. Probably because she managed to go through a set without stepping on my toes.

Seeing how happy she was over something as trivial as this, I guess she really was someone who was easy to please.

In contrast to her good mood, I had a bad mood.

My situation had turned into a mess. First the misunderstandings hadn’t been resolved and now the others wouldn’t come to practice ever again.

“If you can keep this up, you can be my dance partner for the practice in the meantime. At least until they come back to practice again.”

“Sure. And while we’re at it, let’s practice until we completely master the dance and give everyone a big surprise.”

And so, I spent my days practicing with Pansy until at some point everyone attended the dance practice again.

More time passed and finally, the long awaited Hyakka Festival had begun.