Ever since I confessed, she has been acting strange. - CHAPTER 5: SUMMER VACATION ARC

Chapter 5: Summer Vacation Arc

Episode 25: First day of summer vacation

“Alright, that should do it…”

I wipe away the faint sweat that has gathered on my forehead. Even though the air conditioner is running, opening the boxes, taking out the contents, and arranging them in the room alone was quite exhausting.

“Maybe I’ll buy everything that’s missing later. It’s just for the summer vacation, and if there’s anything left over, I can take it home and use it myself…”

Once the preparations are done, I take another look around the room.

A bed, a table, a microwave and a refrigerator – basic furniture and appliances, nothing particularly decorative, just a simple room. Once I plug in the TV, it’s complete for now. The TV is essential for reviewing the public information that the society disseminates, so I should set it up quickly. Even though I’m temporarily away from the Tendou household for the summer vacation, I can’t just do nothing.

Before the summer vacation began, I obtained permission from my husband and daughter, and through Yukimichi’s connections, I was able to rent a one-room apartment in this building. At first, I planned to pay the rent myself with a part-time job, but thanks to my husband’s kindness, the Tendou family is covering the cost.

He said, “I’m not going to let you go, Star Sound. No, you’re like one of our children. Don’t hold back.”

It’s a kind offer. The Tendou family, who could only see me as an outsider, thinks so much of me.

At first, I thought I’d rent an apartment near the Tendou family’s mansion so I could be close to the young lady in case of an emergency. However, my husband strongly advised against it, and with the young lady’s support, I finally chose a place farther away from the mansion.

It would be roughly on the opposite side of the Academy, I suppose.

…Although I had my concerns, it might have been for the best.

If I were too close to the mansion, I might end up becoming too dependent on the Tendou family’s environment, and that would defeat the purpose.

And so, on the first day of the summer vacation,

I left the Tendou family and began my temporary life on my own.

“Well then. What should I do first?”

The purpose of living alone is to improve myself, but… the main reason is to distance myself from the young lady. The whole situation started because I thought my presence was hindering her growth.

So, in that sense, there’s no real need for me to do anything specific.

“…………Well, I guess I’ll start by doing some push-ups.

The desire to distance myself from the young lady was so strong that I ended up not being able to decide what exactly to do. I really am a bit of a fool.

“Five hundred seventy-eight, five hundred seventy-nine…”

“Yo! I’ve come to interrupt… Wait, what the hell are you doing?”

While I was doing push-ups, Yukimichi suddenly entered the room.

“No, I had nothing else to do.”

“I don’t understand why you’re doing push-ups though…”

“Wait, how did you get in anyway? I locked the door.”

“Spare key. It’s a spare key.”

“I don’t remember giving you one.”

“Hahaha. Well, let’s just say… various reasons.”

I wanted to ask what those “various reasons” were, but I knew better than to expect a decent answer from this guy, so I kept quiet.

“Well, in other words, you’re bored, huh?”

“………I hate to admit it, but yes, I’m bored.”

“It’s supposed to be summer vacation, but it’s kind of lonely, huh?”

“Well, I guess you’re pretty lonely too, coming all the way to a place like this during your precious summer vacation.”

“Don’t get the wrong idea. Do you think I’d just show up at some guy’s house on the first day of summer vacation for no reason?”

I had a feeling it would be something like that as soon as he showed up.

“…So why did you come here after all?”

“Now that it’s summer vacation, I thought I’d invite you to hang out. You haven’t had time to have fun with all the things going on at the Tendou house, have you?”

“Of course. If I had free time, I should dedicate it to the young lady. Honestly, I don’t need time for anything else.”

“But right now you’re away from the young lady. And you’re just sitting around, bored.”

“………”

I’m weak on this point. My original goal of “distancing myself from the young lady” was already accomplished when I finished moving. And it’s also true that I wasted time and even started doing push-ups out of boredom.

“Sure, I’m bored. But if I spent all my time slacking off, I’d be dishonoring my husband, who provided the funds for this. I’ve decided to use this summer vacation to improve myself.”

“It turns out that your husband asked you to do something, huh?”

“What… what do you mean?”

This was truly a shocking revelation. Despite the air-conditioned room, I felt almost dizzy from the surprise.

“So does that mean the young lady is saying the same thing…!”

“……… No. The young lady has nothing to do with this. Even the head of the Tendou family told me to keep it a secret.”

“Is that so? But why keep it secret from the young lady as well…?”

“Well, of course. He wouldn’t want to give up his beloved only daughter so easily, would he? But if the young lady found out, my situation would be in trouble… sigh. I never thought I’d understand the feelings of a middle manager at my age.”

“?”

“Ah, never mind. It’s nothing. Just something on my mind.”

Yukimichi cleared his throat as if he wanted to reset the conversation.

“Listen, Eito. I’ll say it clearly, on purpose.”

With a sharp, almost audible snap, Yukimichi pointed his finger at me.

“You-” You don’t play enough!”

“Huh? I don’t play enough…!”

“That’s right! You’re way too serious! You need to have more fun! Go out and waste some time!”

“Wait, Yukimichi! As someone who serves the young lady, I have to behave properly! I can’t just waste my time playing around!”

“That’s why you’ll never grow!”

“Grow… can’t grow…!”

It felt like my head had been hit with a hammer. The words “can’t grow” hit me hard.

“People who just study seriously, compared to those who know how to have fun and play around, always seem to come out ahead in life!”

“When you say it, it somehow sounds uncomfortably convincing!”

“It’s annoying to hear it from you, Eito, but I’ll take it as a compliment. …What I mean is that ‘play’ can sometimes be the fuel that helps a person grow. The word ‘play’ might sound a little bad, but if you rephrase it, it’s ‘experience’. The more experience you gain, the more flexible you’ll be when the time comes to act.

I hate to admit it, but he’s right.

When he points out that I’ve been living in a small world, I can only nod in agreement. Of course, I am proud of having experienced things that most ordinary people would never have. On the other hand, I lack what you might call “normal experiences.

“Eito. What you need is the experience of being a ‘normal high school boy’! If you really think about it, that’s where you’ll find the ‘room’ for your growth from now on!”

It’s frustrating, but there’s a certain charm to his words that draws you in. In a way different from the young lady, he too is someone who has the power to move others.

…Well, if the young lady has “charisma,” the term “con artist” seems more appropriate for him.

“…Fine. I’ll go ahead and collect the ‘regular high school boy’ experiences you’re talking about.”

“You get it now!”

“Yeah… So what should I do to have fun?”

“Well…”

“…Well?”

Yukimichi paused for a moment, as if to build up some suspense.

“—-It’s a group date!”

“I’ll strangle you.”

Oh no. I accidentally let my true feelings slip.

“Wait. If you say you’re going to strangle me, even as a joke, it’s no longer funny.”

“Sorry. It’s just that the suggestion was so ridiculously stupid…”

“I understand why you’re confused. Generally, group dates are for college students and older, so-called adults.”

“What I’m confused about is what’s going on in your head.”

I’m starting to think this guy might be some kind of scam artist or something.

“Calling it a ‘group date’ is just a figure of speech. In reality, it’s just a perfectly wholesome get-together where we hang out, chat, and eat with kids from other schools.”

“So you’re saying… it’s about building relationships with students from other schools?”

“Exactly. And this time, the school we’re connecting with is the prestigious ‘Hōraiō Academy’, known for its elite students! I was able to set this up thanks to a connection from the head of the Tendō family.”

“W-wait, the head of the Tendō family set up a group date?”

“Yes! That means that this group date is officially approved by the Tendō Family Chief!”

What in the world…? The head of the family setting up a group date? Is this even real? It doesn’t make any sense. It goes against everything I consider normal.

“Honestly, I would have avoided bringing you to such a rare opportunity… but it was the head’s condition. So I had no choice but to invite you. Oh, but feel free to refuse if you want! It just means that I’ll have less competition for the fresh, beautiful flowers out there.”

“No… when the head of the family is involved, I can’t really skip it… It would be an embarrassment to him…”

But I don’t get it. I can’t wrap my head around it. Why would the head of the family go so far as to involve me in a group date…?

“Still, even with the patriarch’s connections, how did you manage to get students from that elite girls’ school…? Wait, could it be… that thing?”

“You know how Hōraiō Academy is moving towards becoming co-ed soon, right? This whole thing is part of that. Starting next semester, selected students from Tenjōin Academy (our school) will be attending their school on a trial basis… While I personally call it a ‘group date’, it’s officially an ‘exchange event’.

An exchange event, huh? I see… So Yukimichi was exaggerating.

As expected from the head of the family. He’s probably saying, “As someone who serves the Tendō family, contribute to the school.”

“I understand. If that’s the case, I’ll participate. In this ‘exchange event.'”

“It’s a group date.”

“Why do you insist on calling it that?”

“All right, I’ll give you the details later. Be ready for it~”

With a casual wave of his hand, Yukimichi left the house.

It seems that he came today just to tell me this. But deep down, I think he also came to check up on me. If it was just to pass on this information, a message or an email would’ve been more than enough.

“A group date, huh… Back when I was serving the young lady, I never even thought of such a thing.”

☆

Right after I left the apartment building where Eito lived, I called a certain person in a nearby park. On the third ring, the person picked up.

The person on the other end was the current head of the Tendō family – Yūta Tendō – and also the client for this request.

“Ah, it’s me. Yes. As planned, I told him about the group date. Looks like he’ll be joining us.”

I looked back at the apartment building where Eito lives.

Right now, he probably doesn’t even know.

“Yes, that’s right. As expected, he didn’t suspect anything. Well, he probably wouldn’t even dream of it. That this wasn’t a ‘group date’ or an ‘exchange event’ – but actually Eito’s ‘arranged marriage meeting’.

That’s right. What I actually proposed to Eito this time was really an ‘arranged marriage meeting.

Why did it come to that? The reason is simple.

Because the head of the Tendō family is an overprotective parent.

He doesn’t want his lovely only daughter to get married. However, said daughter is completely in love with Eito.

So the plan is to get Eito into a relationship with someone else as soon as possible.

…Seriously, he’s just a doting parent. His wife, Hina Tendō, often scolds him – or rather, gets angry with him – for such things.

“I understand. I know it must be kept secret from the young lady. If it got out, I’d be in serious trouble, and more importantly, so would you, Yūta-san, right? Don’t worry. I’ll keep it a secret. Hahaha.”

“—-My, my. What an interesting conversation I just overheard, Otoha.”

“—-… Yeah. I definitely just heard the word ‘arranged marriage.'”

“Haha… ha……..”

“An arranged marriage to get Eito a girlfriend, huh…?”

“…First time I’ve heard of it.”

“……………………”

“And also something that father arranged…”

“…without telling us.”

“…Truly an interesting story.”

“………………………………”

It felt as if the room itself was being swallowed by a pitch-black darkness, radiating an overwhelming pressure.

The sheer terror made my body tremble, making it impossible for me to even turn around.

No, if I carelessly turned around now… my life would surely be forfeit.

“You’re connected to Father, aren’t you?”

“Give me the phone.”

“………………………………”

Don’t open your mouth. Kazami Yukimichi.

As someone who handles information, you cannot talk about your client.

Let alone hand over your phone…!

“Hey, Kazami.”

“…Just a question for someone as smart as you.”

“………………………………”

Don’t speak. Don’t speak. Don’t speak.

Be silent…!

“…The sea or the mountains, which do you prefer?”

“Please, take it.”

I’m sorry, Yūta-san.

Given the choice between sinking to the bottom of the sea or being buried alive in the mountains…

I have no choice but to accept. Because I value my life.

“Well then… shall we have a nice long talk, Father?”

It almost seemed to me that the phone itself was shaking.

…All right. Time to run while I can.

It’s just a phone – nothing worth holding on to.

Not when my life hangs in the balance.

“…Where do you think you’re going?”

Just as I was about to slip away unnoticed, the Diva’s hand grabbed my shoulder, stopping me in my tracks.

I never knew… Hanehira Otoha had such a strong grip.

It was like a vice gripping me.

“You two, sit there in Seiza.”

“You will tell me everything.