Ever since I confessed, she has been acting strange. - CHAPTER 1-EPISODE 3

Episode 3: Hardship and Effort

Year 1 Class A of Tenjōin Academy High School.

This is the class that Ojou and I have been enrolled in since this spring.

At this point, a month after the initiation ceremony, certain groups have already formed within the class.

Among the students at the academy, those who, like Ojou and me, moved up from the middle school to the high school on an escalator system are called “internal students.

On the other hand, students who entered the school by taking an entrance examination from outside are called “external students”. The groups within the class are mainly divided between these “internal students” and “external students.

Since the internal students have known each other since middle school, it’s natural for them to form close groups. As a result, the external students, who find it difficult to integrate into these already established circles, inevitably end up in the same groups.

And right now, one of the challenges I face is…

(…the young lady doesn’t have any friends, huh…)

Although a month has passed since she entered high school, this young lady has yet to make a single friend.

In fact, this has been an ongoing problem since her middle school days.

It’s not that she’s shunned by those around her.

In fact, she’s more likely to be the object of admiration. When spoken to, she responds normally.

Just the other day, some unknown female students even approached her on her way home from school.

However, there are hardly any students she is close enough to call friends.

Perhaps it could be described as a balanced approach, for better or worse.

That’s not necessarily a bad thing, nor is it necessary to force friendships. However, I can’t help but worry that it might end up limiting their world.

“Why the serious face, Eito? …Wait, don’t tell me – you’re imagining the girls in their gym uniforms sweating it out in the gym right now? I get it. I totally get it.”

“Eito. Especially Tendou-san in her gym uniform… I bet that sight holds an almost violent level of charm…”

“If you say another word, you’d better hurry up and make your confession, Yukimichi.”

“You’re as dangerous as ever when it comes to Tendou-san…”

His slightly overgrown hair was dyed brown, giving him a relaxed appearance. His slim yet well-balanced physique carried just the right amount of muscle. If one were to compare him to anything, he would resemble a friendly dog.

His words and actions had an effortless ease to them, making it seem as if he naturally slipped into people’s personal space without them even noticing.

He usually wore his uniform in a casual, slightly disheveled manner, but at this moment, he was dressed in his gym clothes, his arms raised in a mock surrender. This student was Kazami Yukimichi.

Our parents – that is, the young lady’s parents and Yukimichi’s parents – had a close relationship, so we had known each other since childhood. Although he wasn’t quite up to the young lady’s level, he still had impressive academic abilities.

On top of that, in just one month, he had blended in effortlessly with the “external students” and demonstrated exceptional communication skills. Contrary to his flashy appearance, his overall abilities were remarkably high.

“If even you are sitting there with such a serious look on your face, it must be something related to Tendou-san, right?”

“You’re as sharp as ever.”

He could be considered a friend of Ojō’s, or at least someone she gets along with.

At the moment, Ojō has very few students she could call close friends. The reason I say “few” instead of “none” is because he is one of them.

“You have a pretty wide social circle, don’t you?”

“Yeah, that’s true. I don’t want to brag, but I’m confident that I’ll be the first to collect the contact information of all the girls in the ‘external students’. My guess? About a week.”

“That’s really nothing to brag about.”

“Well, if something’s bothering you, just talk to me. I’m probably the only one you can casually confide in, right?”

There’s no doubt he’s up to no good, but I can’t underestimate his communication skills. …It might not be a bad idea to consult him. If it looks like it might have a negative effect on Ojou, I can just put a stop to it myself.

“Actually…”

Half expecting failure, I decided to share my concerns with Yukimichi.

“…I see. Now that you mention it, Tendou-san hardly has any female friends at school. Unless it’s someone from the same high society circle, that is.”

“Even within that high society circle, there aren’t many families that can match the status of the Tendou family…”

“You get it, huh?”

“I understand, but… it’s going to be hard. Especially since their sense of caution has increased lately.”

“What’s the reason?”

I can’t imagine this guy declaring something as “difficult” without some thought behind it?

“Hmm… There are a few things I’d like to confirm first.

“Ask whatever you need to confirm. When it comes to Ojou, I know most things.”

“Alright, first question. A while ago, a girl confessed to you, right?”

“I did.”

“Did you tell this story to Tendou?”

“I did.”

“I see. I understood everything.”

“What did you find out?”

“I’ve never met anyone as careless as you.”

“Is it really that bad? Have I really done something so terrible?”

“Damn it. I don’t understand anything… not a single thing…!

What on earth have I done…!”

“By the way, there’s something about you that I happened to hear.”

“Me? Not about Ojou?”

“That’s right. Not about Tendou Hoshine, but about Yagiri Eito. This is about you. …Eito, weren’t you walking alone on the square near the station a while ago?”

“Yes, that’s right. I had to pick up some things, so I remember passing through that area.”

“At that time, did you happen to see a female student being harassed by a man?”

“Yes, I saw it.”

“You didn’t step into the scene and get hit by those guys, did you?”

“Don’t underestimate me. There’s no way a bunch of amateurs like that could hit me. They started swinging without even listening, so I just casually deflected their attacks.”

“………………………….. I see.”

“Why are you looking at the sky?”

“No, it’s just… As your childhood friend, I can’t help but feel sorry for Tendou-san… She’ll probably be on high alert for a while.”

Before I could ask Yukimichi to elaborate on his words, the shrill sound of the gym teacher’s whistle echoed through the air.

“Next batter, step in quickly!”

“Hey, it’s your turn, Eito. Get in there.”

“Ah, yeah… got it.”

Unfortunately, today’s lesson was baseball, so I had no choice but to step into the batter’s box.

With that, our conversation was cut short, and I missed the chance to ask Yukimichi for more details.

☆

“Um, hey… Tendou-san… Do you have a moment…?”

She called out to me right after I finished P.E. and changed out of my gym clothes. I didn’t really recognize her. Since I had no recollection of seeing her before, she was probably from another class… most likely an “out-of-class” student.

If there was one thing, I could say about her… well, she was undeniably adorable, like a small, delicate animal. She probably didn’t have a strong-willed personality. It must have taken a lot of courage to talk to someone with whom she had no prior relationship.

“Sure, I don’t mind. What is it?”

“I have something I want to give to Eito…”

“Something you want to give him? ”

Somebody, please praise me for not freezing. Seriously, anyone.

“Oh, um… he helped me with something a little while ago…”

“…I’m sorry. I don’t know anything about that. Can you tell me more about what happened?”

She explained in detail.

That she was walking through the square in front of the station when a man began to harass her.

He kept trying to force her to go with him, and she was too scared to shake him off.

Then Eito showed up and saved her.

That he looked like a prince on a white horse – so cool and heroic… Ah, so this girl is the dreamy type.

This time it’s that kind of girl, huh…

“Oh, really… I didn’t know that. Thank you.”

“Yes. I really didn’t know. I had absolutely no idea about such an important story.”

“So, what is it that you want to give to Eito?”

“This… is what I wanted to give him…”

The girl took out a cute pink wrapped package.

This texture… Baked goods. Cookies, probably homemade.

“This… it’s a thank you gift for helping me… Could you give it to Eito for me?”

“Are you sure you don’t want to give it to him yourself?”

Somebody, please praise me for not freezing again. Seriously, anyone.

“Uh… If I see him in person, I’ll remember what happened and it’ll be too embarrassing… But I really wanted to thank him as soon as possible…”

“S-Sure… Then I’ll give it to him for you.”

“Thank you so much…!”

☆

“Ojou, how was your gym class?”

“It was okay… More importantly, here.”

“What are these? Cookies…?”

“They said it’s a thank-you gift for helping them at the station square. Make sure you eat them with gratitude.”

“Oh, from that time…”

“…Eito. We’re making a detour on the way home today.”

“I don’t mind, but… where exactly are we going?”

“I see. How about the square in front of the train station?”

“There shouldn’t be anything new there…”

“It doesn’t matter. We’re going… I can’t afford to lose.”