A Popular Girl Confessed to Me, the Loner—Thinking It Was a Prank, I Tried to Scare Her Off... But She Was Actually Serious. - Chapter 6: A World Beginning to Change

Lunchtime.

The students who had stayed in the classroom were chatting, messing with their phones, or napping.

As for me, I quietly opened my bento and started eating—alone, like always.

Or at least… that’s how it used to be.

“Masato-kun, can I eat with you?”

She came again. As if it were the most natural thing in the world, Amano Hiyori sat down beside me.

Her smile was dazzling. …And she was really close.

Does this girl have no concept of personal space? Is this what they call the “extrovert proximity gap”? That’s what ran through my head, but—

“…Whatever.”

I didn’t reject her, but I didn’t exactly welcome her either. My reply was vague, like always.

“Thanks!” Hiyori grinned, deftly unwrapping her rice ball and starting to talk.

“Hey, Masato-kun… how long are you gonna keep calling me ‘Amano’?”

…Huh? Wait, what?

That one line completely stopped me mid-bite.

Here I was, fully embracing the classic loner behavior of “silent lunch,” and she goes straight for the heart with a line like that.

“I mean… does it really matter how I call you?”

“It totally matters!”

She shut me down with a burst of cheerful energy.

Her eyes sparkled, and her mouth curled in a pout. What the heck is that face? That’s cheating.

“Because, you know… I’d be really happy if you called me Hiyori. I mean, you’re my boyfriend. I’d love it if you did.”

“…Yeah, no. That’s not happening.”

I shot it down immediately. That’s way too embarrassing. That’s like, final boss-level difficulty.

Still, Amano-san—no, Hiyori—just smiled. A little wistfully, maybe, but gently.

“…Then I’ll wait. Until the day you call me that.”

Those words tightened something in my chest.

Please stop. That kind of open, unconditional kindness… it’s terrifying.

“…Tch. Don’t say stuff like that so easily.”

“It’s not easy for me, you know. I get it… but I’m serious.”

Why is she always so straightforward?

It’s scary how earnestly she keeps stepping closer, like she doesn’t know how to doubt anyone.

“Whoa, what is this~? This atmosphere is way too sweet!”

A sudden high-pitched voice stabbed in from the side.

Startled, I turned around—and saw her.

Flashy makeup, platinum-blonde twin tails, short skirt, loose socks—the definition of a gyaru.

Her name was… Tachibana Suzu, I think. One of Hiyori’s extrovert friends. Friend #1 on the sunny squad, basically.

She’d always seemed like a distant character to me. We’d never interacted before.

Tachibana-san leaned in close with a mischievous grin on her face.

“What’s this? You blushing, Manabe-chi? You’re kinda cute, y’know!”

“…Don’t call me ‘Manabe-chi.’”

I slipped up and muttered a comeback without thinking.

Which only seemed to encourage her. She grinned even wider.

“Aw, I heard all about you from Hiyori! I was wondering what kind of guy you were, and like—you’re actually kinda great? I could totally stan this!”

“Stan? What does that even mean? And ‘kinda’ what?!”

Tachibana just laughed, looking at Hiyori like they were sharing an inside joke.

Nope. I can’t. This extrovert aura is too intense—I can’t breathe.

“Suzu, don’t tease him too much, okay?” Hiyori said with a gentle smile.

Suzu shrugged dramatically. “Fiiine,” she replied in a lazy tone and wandered off toward the hallway.

As I watched her walk away, I let out a deep sigh.

“…Your friend is way too much.”

“Hehe, but Suzu’s not a bad person, you know?”

“Yeah, I guess she’s not bad… but still. Her sense of personal space is broken.”

Even so, something kept nagging at the back of my mind.

The way she got close—it didn’t feel like she was mocking me.

For so-called “extrovert behavior,” it didn’t have that biting edge.

It just felt… genuinely friendly.

(Wait… she wasn’t messing with me? …No, what am I doing? I can’t lower my guard! I still don’t trust extroverts!!!)

Yeah. Not yet. I still can’t let my guard down.

And sure, I haven’t fully trusted Amano-san either.

But if there are more people out there—people like her—who aren’t enemies…

Then maybe, just maybe… my world might start to change.

And the fact that I even thought that—that’s what frustrates me the most.